All the blood had drained out of Blaine's face. He stood there blinking back tears he steadfastly refused to let fall in front of Finn and feeling like the biggest fool in the world. "Even after last night... you still want him?" It was little more than a whisper. Blaine couldn't bring himself to even glance at Kurt. The pain was unbearable.

Finn, as much as he had grown to hate the idea of Kurt and Blaine together, found himself taken aback by the betrayal. The last thing he had ever wanted was for anyone - even Blaine - to get hurt. Especially when he himself still felt confused over... well, everything. He started to leave the choir room, to give the other two a chance to talk only for Blaine to lunge forward and nail him square in the jaw with a fierce right hook. Finn sprawled on the floor, nursing his wound as blood trickled from one corner of his mouth.

"Blaine!" Kurt hadn't even felt quite so shocked when Finn kissed him on prom night. The move seemed to break his paralysis and Kurt rushed forward only to pause again, torn between wanting to grab Blaine before he could think of leaving and check on Finn to make sure he was alright. Finally he settled for putting a hand on Blaine's arm, a silent plea for patience, and looked down at Finn. "Are... you okay?" he asked tremulously, well aware that even asking could well be too much for Blaine to tolerate given the situation.

"Yeah..." Finn decided, one hand cradling his aching jaw as he managed to get back on his feet. He could already feel one hell of a bruise beginning to form. Blaine had every right to hit him; Finn deserved it. Lusting after Kurt, throwing himself at his stepbrother when he wasn't even sure what his own feelings were. "Don't blame Kurt," he murmured. "It was my fault, not his."

As Finn started to leave the room, Blaine stepped in his way and, with barely controlled anger, snapped, "How about you stop jerking him around?"

"Sorry, I can't do this," Finn apologized, taking one last glance at Kurt before leaving the other two teenagers alone.

It brought tears to Kurt's eyes to realize that Blaine was still worried about protecting him. As Finn swept out of the room, they began to fall in earnest. Kurt felt even worse about that. Blaine deserved to be angry, not to be manipulated into feeling sorry for him. That Finn would simply leave after everything made him feel sick. Even now Finn wasn't interested enough to fight for him - or even to explain himself. The lies should already have told Kurt everything he needed to know. Somehow he'd managed to be a complete idiot just the same.

Hesitantly he raised his gaze to his boyfriend's face. He had absolutely no idea of what to say after being so stupid once again. It had gone beyond mistakes and into the realm of some form of syndrome. Kurt was fairly certain he was out of his mind to do anything that would hurt someone as wonderful as Blaine.

What Blaine wanted most of all at the moment was to simply turn back time and live blissfully ignorant of the less-than-chaste kiss that Finn and Kurt had shared. It would have made life oh so easy. Life, however, had never been a smooth ride for Blaine, despite his privileged upbringing. "Kurt..." Blaine mentally cursed his voice for cracking, betraying all of the emotion threatening to burst forth. "You've got to tell me right here, right now: Do you love Finn? Do you want to be with him?"

Kurt opened his mouth to answer immediately, but he knew that would mean nothing. Instead he took a moment to steady himself and think through how he could express what he was feeling. "I care about Finn. Before all this, it was finally starting to feel like we were friends and... and I'm attracted to him," Kurt confessed as gently as possible. "He was the first boy I ever looked at twice off the silver screen. I fell for him before I could even admit that I was gay. But it was... a crush." Kurt shrugged. "There was never any chance, and I gave up on it."

Kurt couldn't help but smile as he moved forward, "And then I met you. I've never seen anyone so beautiful in real life. You were so far out of my league, but you were so sweet, such a good friend to me anyway... The day you kissed me is the luckiest I've ever felt." He had no idea how to finish the explanation. He just needed to say it. "When Finn kissed me... I didn't think. It was unreal, and I couldn't think about anything. I should have. Blaine, I should have thought of you, and I should have stopped."

As hurt and betrayed as Blaine felt, he believed every word Kurt said to him. They were heartfelt and truthful, and it made him love Kurt even more despite himself. How would he have reacted if a crush suddenly developed feelings for him? Kissed him? Wearing Kurt's fashionable shoes did not make the situation any easier; however, it did help Blaine understand a little better. Having fought to hold back the tears, they spilled forth unbidden as Blaine took a shuddering breath. "I love you, Kurt. Nothing in the world can ever change that." He took a step closer, reaching out and grasping both of Kurt's hands without hesitation. "Finn - I don't know what he's thinking or doing. Maybe he's confused about himself... Whatever's happening, I meant what I told him; he shouldn't jerk you around." Blaine paused, lifting shimmering eyes to search deeply into Kurt's. "You're worth so much more than that."

Kurt's smile was watery as the tears continued to fall. "I wish I still felt like I was worthy of having you." His treatment of Blaine was, as far as Kurt was concerned, unconscionable. He had the most gorgeous, wonderful man in the world in love with him, and he'd hurt that man at every turn in the worst possible way. "I don't know what he wants either, but... I know what I want. I've just been terrible at showing it." The things he'd said to Blaine the night before remained true. He didn't regret a single syllable. The only thing he found himself regretting was his own foolish, impulsive response to Finn. He could so easily have put a stop to things, but he'd drawn it out instead, made the situation more than it should have been. "It's... what happens next is up to you. If you don't want to talk to me again or..." Kurt couldn't even say more because the thought of it hurt far too much.

"Kurt, I couldn't walk away from you even if I tried," Blaine confessed, his vision blurred from crying. "Does it make me the biggest doormat in the world seeing my boyfriend kissing another guy? Maybe, but I can't stop loving you." After last night - that wonderful, magical night - Blaine's mind boggled over how everything could have gone so wrong. //Finn. He's the cause of this. Not Kurt.// "Things can't go on like this. I think you know that. Someone's going to have to talk to Finn, and I doubt you want it to be me." A tiny smile crept up on Blaine's face. "Otherwise I'll really end up breaking his jaw."

"He'd deserve it," Kurt observed with the faintest hint of a smile, "but... then, I guess so would I." The young man sighed and then groaned. "This whole thing was supposed to be me talking to Finn. Last night he... well, I overheard something, and I knew he remembered prom night. I was going to confront him about it. I did, actually, and...." Kurt shrugged and met Blaine's gaze. "I'm not sure what to say to him. This is all so surreal... I haven't felt this strange since right before I puked on Miss Pillsbury's shoes."

"Well, if you feel like puking on Finn, please feel free." It felt like the first time in ages since Blaine had laughed. The subject of Finn, however, turned his mood somber. His eyes filled with water again, glistening beautifully. "What you should do is tell him how you feel," Blaine whispered. "That you have a boyfriend who loves you, and that whatever he's going through shouldn't have to involve us. It's not fair of him, and he should know that once and for all."

Kurt nodded just as soberly and then moved in a little closer. "I have a boyfriend I love, and I can't hurt him again," he corrected before leaning in. He hesitated on the verge of kissing Blaine and then gave a slight shake of his head before drawing back. "I need to talk to Finn first." It was the least he could do in terms of penance. "I didn't bring my car. Could you... could you drop me off at home? The sooner this is over with the better." Kurt squeezed his boyfriend's hands firmly and tried to smile. "Tomorrow night, I'm taking you out. Is that okay? Just... a little time for us. Just us."

"It's more than okay," Blaine assured him. The idea brought on another little smile. Still hurting over the image of Kurt and Finn's heated kiss playing over and over again in his mind, knowing that Kurt wanted to spend time with him helped ease the pain. "We both look awful, which is not like us at all," he suddenly declared. "Let's fix our faces, then I'll take you home." Blaine started to led Kurt from the room, only to pause and gaze at him curiously. "Are we still on for weekend?" he asked hopefully.

"I wouldn't miss it. Not for the world." Kurt's heart fluttered, and he led Blaine into the bathroom only to stare at his reflection with horror. "Oh, god, I look terrible!" He splashed some cold water on his puffy eyes and then fished around in his pocket and produced a tube of concealer. "Don't leave home without it." After a little primping and preening, Kurt felt satisfied that he looked human again even if he didn't entirely feel it yet. "God help me, I think I'm ready."

"Ready for anything, I'd wager," Blaine murmured, drinking in Kurt's throat-catching beauty. Deep down he had to admit that he couldn't exactly blame Finn - or any or guy for that matter - lusting over Kurt. Impossibly gorgeous, sweet and clever, with the voice of an angel; Blaine had decided some time ago that he was out of his mind not to have captured Kurt right from the start. His arms snaked their way around his boyfriend's waist, drawing him in closer. "I'm still thinking about those candles and silk sheets I promised you," he confessed, gazing deeply into the mesmerizing blue depths of Kurt's eyes.

Kurt blushed and wrapped his arms around Blaine's neck to enjoy the sweet closeness. "I hope so. I haven't been thinking about anything else." All strangeness with Finn aside, it was true. He was crazy about Blaine and excited beyond his ability to convey the feeling at the idea that they were going to share something so intimate, so immutable. They would share something together that no one would ever be able to take from them. "I really do love you."

"I love you, too," Blaine whispered in return. Holding Kurt close, the warmth of his boyfriend's body triggered the aching need Blaine barely held in check for him. "Still no pressure, okay? I want this weekend to be extra special. Spontaneous and special." Blaine grinned. If he and Kurt were ever going to be able to enjoy the weekend problem free, then the whole Finn issued had to be resolved. As much as Blaine loathed the idea of leaving Kurt alone with Finn, the sooner the stepbrothers talked things out, the better.

Kurt forced a smile, but it felt unnatural, and he finally sighed. "Okay. Home." He didn't have to like it, but Kurt knew that he *did* have to deal with it. Awfully as he'd handled it all, Finn deserved an honest conversation. More than that, Blaine deserved the clear resolution, the knowledge that Kurt was willing to do what it took to make things right. He reached for his boyfriend's hand and squeezed it tightly in his own as they walked out to the car. The ride was quiet, but the silence wasn't tense or unpleasant. Kurt was too busy rolling over in his mind what he wanted to say to Finn to be able to speak aloud. When the car stopped, he jolted at the realization that they'd arrived already.

After stealing a quick, warm kiss from Blaine, Kurt trudged up the sidewalk as if approaching a firing squad. He found Finn nowhere on the ground floor and finally sighed heavily once more before heading upstairs. Finn's door, not surprisingly, was closed, and Kurt knocked as firmly as he could manage given the way his hands were shaking.