It wasn't until two days after Kurt and Vin's fight that Kurt saw Blaine. Blaine popped his head into the box office where Kurt was going through how many open seats there were for the evening performance. "Hi," Blaine greeted softly with his head rested on the door frame. Only his head, shoulder, and left hand were visible.

Kurt turned his head and stopped, mid-chew on a cracker he was eating. His face read that he was uncomfortable and trying to think of something to say. He quickly swallowed the cracker. "Hi." There was a pause between them as they entered into one of their normal deep stares. Kurt swallowed audibly. He still felt bad for not showing up at Blaine's show and not returning any of Blaine's texts. "I'm- um. I'm sorry I didn't make it to your show on Monday. I know I said I'd be there, but something sort of came up and I had to deal with it." He swallowed again.

The rest of Blaine's body came into view and he stepped into the box office. "It's okay." His puppy dog eyes and melancholy expression told Kurt that it wasn't okay. "Things come up sometimes."

"Yeah," Kurt agreed for lack of anything else to say.

"Besides, it was just a show at a dive bar. Nothing important. There will be others."

"I'll go to the next one," Kurt promised. He wished, for both of their sakes that it was a promise Kurt could keep.

"It's okay."

"No, Blaine, it's not. I said I'd be there and I wasn't. I didn't even respond to your texts. I'm sorry."

"Is everything okay?" Blaine sat down in a fold out chair. He sat close to Kurt, his knees almost touching Kurt's.

Kurt sensed something was wrong. He took a deep breath. He reminded himself that he needed and owed it to Vin to give their relationship a chance. Giving it a chance meant that he had to let his fantasy of having Vin and continuing the friendship he had with Blaine the way it was going. He could still be friends with Blaine, but not in the way they had been. "Vin is leaving this weekend."

"Oh?"

"Yeah. He goes back to Vermont on Sunday."

"Four weeks went by quickly."

"Yeah."

"So how did the trial run go?"

"Um… it wasn't as easy as I thought it would be. We fought a bit." He bit his lower lip in the corner. Blaine knew this was a distress showing tick that Kurt did. "But we decided that even though we fought and bickered, we still want to make it work enough to be together."

There was a silence and both men had their eyes downcast. Because neither one could see the other, neither knew that both men were unhappy because they knew what it meant for their own form of relationship. "Th-that's great," Blaine offered, finally lifting his head. His tone betrayed him though and Kurt could tell that Blaine didn't approve.

Kurt just assumed that Blaine's somberness was for the same reasons that Blaine didn't approve for a month ago. "I love him," Kurt finally said.

Blaine's eyes widened slightly. "Good. I'm happy for you." There was another pause. "I hope everything works out for you."

"Thank you."

Blaine looked down at his watch. "I have to get over to the pit."

"Lunch?" Kurt asked.

"Yeah!" Blaine pretended to sound cheerful. He wasn't sure how convincing it sounded.

"Okay. Good. I'll see you and the others at the diner then."

"No. I think we're going to the deli today."

"Even more perfect. I haven't been there in a little while." Blaine nodded, gave a forced grin and left. Kurt turned himself back to the computer and closed his eyes. He wasn't happy. Moving his relationship forward with Vin made him happy, but the downside that always made Kurt's heart sink, was the knowledge that in order to keep Vin and his relationship moving forward in a positive place, he had to give up Blaine and become nothing more than casual friends.

Vin wasn't forcing him to do this. This was something Kurt came up with and knew had to happen. He had a sense that Blaine knew what Kurt was trying to say and that's why he sounded so cheerless.

Blaine knew by the shear mention of Kurt saying he loved Vin that what he was really saying was: We can't be friends anymore.

Days passed. The week was nearly up. Blaine said hello to Kurt in passing and had lunch with him and the small group of friends he made from playing in the orchestra. There was nothing special about their discourses and it seemed to get easier as the days went on. Easier, meaning that he got into a schedule of going into the theater and straight to the pit instead of the box office and hanging out with the orchestra members or actors on his breaks instead of going to see Kurt. He limited his time with Kurt to lunch and saying goodbye at the end of the night. He wondered what Kurt thought, though, since he never seemed to go out of his way to see Blaine. He supposed that made it all the more easier.

Kurt, felt the same as Blaine. The less he saw of Blaine, the easier it got, but nothing could stop either of them from thinking of one another and hating their current predicament.

The Saturday before Vin was set to leave, Kurt had to work, but was able to get Vin a seat to the show at his theater. Vin loved the show and Kurt and him left the theater together at the show's end. Kurt exited out the side doors where the offices were. It was away from the stage door, but also away from the main exit where the patrons exited.

Vin asked where Blaine was and Kurt shrugged his shoulders and said he didn't know, but was probably still sitting in the orchestra pit. "You barely said anything about him all week. I thought you two hung out at work."

Kurt looked down at his shoes and shook his head. "No. We go to lunch with the same group of people, but that's about it."

Vin squinted. "Oh."

"Why?"

"No reason. I was just curious." They kept walking in the direction of the subway station. Vin finally stopped Kurt when he offered nothing else as far as conversation. "Hey. Wait. I can tell you've been a little down since our fight on Monday. I think I already know, but are you distancing yourself from Blaine because of our fight?" Kurt looked into Vin's eyes, shocked at the question being asked of him. He didn't answer. "You don't have to do that, you know."

"I don't?"

"No." Vin took a breath and cupped Kurt's cheek. He kissed Kurt's lips gently. "Sweetie, I know I complain about being jealous of him, but that doesn't mean you have to get rid of your friend because I'm insecure."

"A person is only jealous because their partner gave them a reason to be. I didn't mean to, but I made you think you had a reason to be jealous of him. It wasn't fair to you."

"I know you two are just friends. He's a good guy and he's clearly a good friend of yours. I can't ask you to give up your friends. You've been sad since you felt you had to quit being his friend. I love you and I'm supposed to make you happy. Telling you who you can and can't hang out with wouldn't make me a good boyfriend and it wouldn't make you happy. I love when you're happy. Your smile is one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen."

"You mean it? It's okay if I'm friends with Blaine?"

Vin smiled. "Oh my goodness. Of course it's okay. You can be friends with whomever you want! If they were good to you and made you happy and you came home to me every evening, that would be just fine. Man, what have you been thinking all week?"

"I don't know. Lots of things, I suppose."

"Well, stop thinking all of them and start knowing that it's time we were happy again." He ran his hands down Kurt's arms and clasped his hands. "Spend tonight and tomorrow with me and on Monday, if Blaine has a show, go to it. Go have coffee, call him, just do something."

Kurt didn't know what to think of what Vin was saying. Vin never asked Kurt to stop being Blaine's friend. That was all Kurt's doing. He also was positive that if Vin knew why Kurt decided to do that, then he wouldn't be so eager to tell Kurt to hang out with Blaine. Vin had reason to be jealous and Kurt meant it when he said that it was his fault. He definitely had some things to think about. Going back to the way things were with Blaine could mean too many bad things for him and Vin, but not having Blaine in his life made him very upset in ways that were hard to hide.

He took a deep breath and gazed into Vin's eyes. Maybe he did love him. Really love him. Kurt certainly saw Vin's suggestion as a sacrificial act of love. "Thank you," he said.

Vin smiled and kissed Kurt's cheek. "You don't need to thank me. I love you."

"I love you too." This was the first time Kurt said it since first saying it to Vin that he thought he might actually mean it.

On Sunday, Kurt said his goodbyes to Vin and told him to call when he got back in Vermont. On Monday he spent the day staring at his phone and debating if he should call Blaine or not. He didn't. Instead he went over to Finn and Rachel's for dinner and hung out with them. He spent the rest of the week trying to find ways to elongate conversation with Blaine and ease into some form of normalcy. It was strange. He kind of felt nervous when it came to being around Blaine. He felt he had no reason to be. He tucked my drunk ass in his own bed, for crying out loud, he thought. It took him over a week to build up the courage to walk right up to him when no one else was around.

The day he decided that he plucked up enough courage to talk to him as if nothing ever happened between them, he walked into work to see Blaine sitting on the stairs of the lobby, looking a little disheveled and worrisome. He was bent over so far that he had his hands behind his head and his head almost in his own lap. Kurt sat next to him, immediately worried that something was wrong. "Are you okay?"

"No," Blaine answered immediately.

Kurt jumped a little at the snap in Blaine's voice. "What's the matter?"

Blaine sat up straight, but didn't look at Kurt right away. He didn't want to expel all his problems to Kurt. They'd reached a point where anything more than what they had would be tipping back into what they used to have. But still, he was upset and needed to get what was wrong off his chest. "A pipe burst in my house."

"Oh! Was anything damaged?"

"Yep. Lot's of stuff. Pretty much everything in the music room, the ceiling and walls on the first floor, anything electronic on the second floor short circuited, I don't know how many of my clothes got drenched in whatever gross water hit them. Oh, and when someone came to check it out, they found asbestos. None of us can go back until Heath and Safety Regulations says it passes inspection codes."

"When did this happen?"

"Two days ago."

"Where have you been staying?"

"I spent the past couple nights on Matty's couch, but I can't stay there. Landlord stuff. I don't even know if insurance will replace everything that was wrecked. That's who I was just on the phone with. They need to send someone to survey the damage. I don't know how long that will take and I don't know how long it will take after that to get the money to replace everything. Not that we have a place to put anything. Fuck." Blaine put his head back in his hands.

"So, where are you going to go now?"

"I don't know. A hotel maybe. I don't really have a whole lot of options."

Kurt thought quickly. He decided that he couldn't just leave Blaine with his problems when he knew he was in his capabilities to help. "Y-you can stay at my place."

Blaine whipped his head to the side to look Kurt in the eyes. Kurt could see that Blaine's eyes were tinted red, probably from not sleeping well. Even with the whites of Blaine's eyes blood shot, Kurt still thought the honey color was the most gorgeous color.

"You're offering me a place to stay?" Blaine asked, shocked at the offer.

"Yes."

"For how long?"

"As long as you need."

"I'm not sure how long that will be."

"Doesn't matter. You need a place to stay and I have a couch. I'm sure Puck won't mind. I'll give him a call to give him a heads up."

Blaine rubbed the back of his neck and scratched the side of his head. "I don't- thank you. Are you sure? I don't want to overstep or anything."

"What's to overstep? We're friend's right?" Blaine nodded slowly, glad that Kurt didn't sound to be doing this out of pity. "Friend's help each other out." Kurt patted Blaine's knee. "Don't worry. We'll get through this." He stood up after giving Blaine a comforting smile. "See you at lunch." He left it at that and walked to the box office. He swallowed hard as he walked away, thinking about how warm Blaine's leg was when he touched it, how hypnotic his eyes are, and how full his lips looked. He wondered if he was making a mistake with Blaine, but thought about how Blaine needed help and helping Blaine could never be wrong.

Blaine watched Kurt walk away and touched the part of his knee where Kurt had previously had his hand. It was subtle, a simple touch, and it meant a lot to him. He hadn't expected Kurt to do that. After almost two weeks of minimal contact and almost a month and a half of not hanging out, Blaine hadn't even expected Kurt to sit down. He thought he would have walked right by him. But no. Kurt came to his rescue. He smiled, starting to think that things would get better. Not only with Kurt and their friendship, but things in general; he felt life would get better.

Kurt called Puck once he got into the box office. "Hey, my friend needs a place to stay for a little bit. A pipe burst in his house. Do you mind if he crashes on our couch?"

"Nope," Puck answered. "Far be it for me to cock block you."

"It's not like that, Noah! He's a friend and that's it."

"What's this dude's name?"

"Blaine."

"Oh! The guy with the band that you've been eyefucking? His music's pretty good."

"Noah! We haven't been," he lowered his voice, "eyefucking. We're friends."

"Uh-huh. Stop calling me Noah. Only my mom and nana can call me that. I saw you at his shows. You sit close to the stage and stare at him and not the lead singer."

Kurt ignored Puck. "So you're cool with him staying?"

"Yep." There was a laugh on Puck's end.

"Awesome. Thanks." Kurt got off the phone and went back to the lobby to see if Blaine was still there. What he saw made him stop in his tracks immediately. Blaine was leaning his back on the wall where Landon, the guy who played the drums in the orchestra with Blaine, was looming over him very closely. Kurt gulped and felt a pang in his chest. He could see them talking and Landon was running a single finger down Blaine's chest. Kurt almost wished he could hear what they were saying, but part of him was glad that he couldn't.

Blaine

Blaine was not in the mood for Landon's passes today. He was in a bad mood to begin with and Landon's aggressive attempts as getting Blaine into bed with him were getting a bit too much. It never made him nervous. Working at Jericho and being a former manwhore prepared him for being put in positions like this.

"So, did you tap Kurt, yet?" Landon asked in a low voice.

Blaine could smell the mouthwash that Landon used. "We're friends." He rolled his eyes.

"I know. I'd like to be friends with him too if it meant I could hold onto the back of his head while he blew me."

"Your attempts are useless, you know." He crossed his arms across his rib cage. "I'm not going to fuck you or be fucked by you."

Landon ran a single finger down Blaine's chest. "You're just playing hard to get."

Blaine smiled and leaned in impossibly close to Landon's face. Landon smirked, thinking he was going to get what he wanted. "That's right. I thought it would be kinky if I turned you down every time. I'd have you eating out of the palm of my hand."

"Come on. I'll even let you top."

Blaine leaned in closer still, his lips barely brushing Landon's. "Not on your life." He leaned back and scooted under Landon's arm that was resting on the wall next to his head. He left him standing there and went into the theater.

Kurt

He inhaled sharply when he saw Blaine lean into Landon. Were they, like, a thing? Kurt wondered. He knew he had been purposely avoiding Blaine, but he didn't think he'd been ignoring him so much that he'd miss a relationship happening.

Kurt saw Blaine duck down under Landon's arm and go into the theater. He went back into the box office and sat down, deciding he'd talk to him at lunch.

Lunch time rolled around and when Kurt turned in his seat to leave, he was startled to see Blaine leaning up against the doorframe the way he used to. Head resting on the frame with his shoulder keeping him up, arms and legs crossed, looking very relaxed. He jumped, but immediately smiled. "You scared me."

"I know. That's why I didn't say anything. I wanted to see your reaction."

"It was more dramatic than being surprised with you and Landon's exchange this morning." Kurt slipped out the sentence and wished he hadn't said it because it wasn't his business and it sounded like he was spying.

Blaine's smiled faded. "Oh. That." His eyebrows danced for a second. "He's persistent and annoying."

"…So. You're not… together?"

Blaine made a disgusted noise. "God no!"

"Good," Kurt murmured.

"What?"

"Nothing. Lunch?"

"Everyone's going to the diner. Want to go to the pizza place around the corner?"

"Sure. Who else is going?"

Blaine licked his lips and toed the ground for a second. "Uh. Just us."

The corner of Kurt's lips turned upward and he felt his eyes sparkling. It was just like they were before. It made him happy. They had just picked up where they left off and he didn't know if that was a good or bad thing, but, for the moment, he wouldn't worry. "Okay. My room mate said it was okay with him if you stayed with us. You coming tonight?"

"No. Tomorrow. I'll bring all my stuff to work and I'll go home with you after. Is that okay?"

"That's perfect."

"Thank you so much for doing this for me. You don't know what it means to me."

"It's no problem. Really. Don't even mention it."

"Well, the least I can do is buy you lunch."

Kurt smiled and the two of them walked out of the office and out of the theater, chatting about the production.