Kurt continued to try to make do on being the best boyfriend he could be for Vin. He thought that maybe if he was more attentive and kept all of his promises, it would make up for his infidelity. So far, nothing quenched his guilt, but he kept trying anyway. He spoke with Sterling about needing a week off and Sterling begrudgingly agreed because he never liked it when Kurt wasn't around. Kurt was his best, and frankly his favorite, worker. Kurt pleaded that his reason for needed personal time was important and he promised to make up the loss when he came back.

When Sterling agreed, Kurt called Vin and made plans to visit him. He'd only visited a couple times for two days at a time, but each time, Kurt never went anywhere. He'd never really met any of Vin's friends. He'd met two in passing when they were at a star bucks, but mostly it was just Kurt and Vin staying in Vin's apartment watching movies and having lots of sex. Come to think of it, Kurt was hardly ever clothed when he went to see Vin. He put on boxers for dinner, but then after dinner they'd be off again because Vin was "hungry for something else," he'd always say with a grin.

But now he'd have a week with Vin and Vin promised Kurt he'd show him around town properly and he'd bring him to a party his friends were having, stating that "it might not be your thing, but if you really want to go, I'll bring you." Kurt didn't know what he meant by that, but said that he really wanted to meat Vin's friends, so "yes, I really want to go." Then there was the dinner he was supposed to have with Vin's family. He was nervous about that because they were the a-typical unsupportive family of a gay man, but Kurt had met his fair share of those people and could handle himself. All he really had to do was be polite and mature. Oh, also, he learned from past experiences, that if he didn't look or gaze lovingly at his partner, the family won't cringe. Just eat your dinner and compliment everyone. Kill them with kindness and if they same something rude, just shrug your shoulders and let it roll off your back. His family isn't going to offend you. They're going to offend him and you need to be strong and supportive for him. That was that. Kurt knew how to do that and was pretty damn good at it.

Since he had to work on a Sunday night, he caught a bus on Monday. Vin had to work because Kurt's trip had been last minute and Vin couldn't get the week off to spend the whole time with him. Kurt arrived while Vin was working, so he took a cab to Vin's apartment and let himself in with the key that Vin told him was under the welcome mat.

The apartment was just as it had been the last two times he arrived. The bedroom was littered with dirty towels and laundry on the floor. The bed wasn't made. Dishes were on the coffee table. The kitchen was a mess. Well, really, the whole apartment was a mess. Kurt knew he shouldn't really care, but he knew that whenever Vin was going to visit him in the past, he made damn sure that everything looked pristine. Living for that one month with Vin, he knew that Vin wasn't the cleanest of people, but Kurt was really able to see the extent of his dirty habits when he came to visit.

He really wanted to clean because he thought it would be a nice gesture for his man to come home to a clean apartment, but didn't know if Vin would be offended by thinking that Kurt might feel that Vin lived in squalor. That wasn't true. Kurt just thought that Vin had dirty habits. "This definitely had to change when you move in, Mister," Kurt said aloud to himself. "Puck would never stay quiet if our apartment looked even close to this."

Instead, he picked up a little of the living room and stripped down to his boxers as a surprise for Vin. He knew, knowing Vin, that his clothes would be off shortly after he came home anyway. That was always how it went. Vin came to home, his bags were dropped, then he dropped Kurt's pants. Kurt was starting to wonder if the main basis of their relationship revolved around sex.

He was right. Vin came home and only uttered four sentences before he was naked and being ravished by Vin. They were as follows:

1. Hey, Baby, I'm home.

2. I'm so glad you're here.

3. I missed you.

4. You read my mind.

Kurt was exhausted by the time dinner time rolled around because Vin's love for him was insatiable and Kurt just passed out eventually.

Vin had to work again on Tuesday so Kurt was left to himself around the apartment again. This time he cleaned because he couldn't stand the mess anymore, but by noon he was bored and flicking mindlessly through the day time television line-up. Nothing caught his attention. He tried to go on the internet with Vin's computer, but he couldn't because the computer was password protected, which Kurt thought was odd because Vin lived alone.

He decided on a walk because he really needed the fresh air. So, he got dressed and grabbed the spare key. Vin's neighborhood really was nice looking for a main street neighborhood. It was busy, even for the middle of the day, and Kurt was looking around like he did the first time he was in New York. Only, Vin's small Vermont town wasn't as exciting.

He stopped in front of a flower shop and looked in the window at the different arrangements. A trio of three men passed by him and one of them whistled flirtatiously. Thinking it was odd, Kurt turned his head toward the three men. They had stopped at the corner and faced Kurt. One man, Kurt assumed was the whistler, grabbed his crotch and yelled out to Kurt. "Wanna suck on this, homo?"

Kurt made a disgusted face, mainly because the man was so gross: dirty and greasy hair, three days old stubble, what looked like a layer of grime all over his skin and clothes. I've seen plenty of homeless people that look way better than this guy. He made a grossed out sound, rolled his eyes, and walked away to the sound of the three men laughing. I never understood why stuff like that is funny, Kurt thought. What if I said yes? He cringed at the thought as if that was even an option. Would they have thought it was funny then? What's so funny about it? That guy made a pass at me and I rejected him. By the looks of him, he'd be lucky to get anyone who'd think he was a viable option, let alone me. His thoughts went on and on until he reached a Starbucks about a half mile away. He sighed happily at the scent of coffee grounds. He missed New York already.

He lounged in a chair with a hot non-fat mocha and sip it while flipping through a magazine. His phone vibrated in his pocket and he took it out. Kurt smiled and answered it merrily. "Hello there, lover."

"Hey. What are you doing?"

"Sitting in Starbucks and drinking coffee. Your apartment got too cramped for me."

"You went out?"

"Well, I am out, so yes. Is that okay?"

Vin's voice sounded a bit frantic like Kurt shouldn't have left the apartment. "Did you talk to anyone?"

"Um. No. Just the barista, but our conversation was limited to my order. Why?" Kurt asked sounding suspicious.

"N-Nothing. Just didn't think you'd be out."

"Like I said… stuffy apartment. What are we doing for dinner?"

"I thought we'd order delivery and hang in? Catch up for lost time?"

There was a wink on the other side of the phone, Kurt could tell. He knew what Vin meant. That man is insatiable. "Didn't we play catch up last night?"

"Getting bored with me already?"

"No. Just thought we'd do something different."

"I'll take you out tomorrow. I have the day off and tomorrow night is my friend's party."

"Promise? I know I've only been here for two days, but I'm not used to spending so much time in doors."

"That's because you spend so much time on subways and theaters."

"I also don't spend so much time alone, sweet heart. Hey, why do you have a password on your computer?"

"I do? Oh, I must have turned it on by accident."

"You sure you're not trying to hide something from me?" Kurt was kidding, but the pause Vin took made Kurt start to believe that maybe Vin was hiding something from him.

By Wednesday night, Kurt was really beginning to be suspicious of Vin's actions. When Vin promised to take Kurt out, he didn't think that Vin would take him somewhere a hour and a half away just to see a movie and have an early dinner. Although, Kurt saw a sign for a petting zoo on their way back and begged Vin to turn around so they could go.

Vin rolled his eyes and agreed with a smile, but when they got there, Vin barely acknowledged Kurt at all. He kept his hands in his pockets and seemed to keep an awkward distance. He also kept looking around as if he thought someone was watching him.

"Are you okay?" Kurt asked as he scratched behind a sheep's ear. The sheep tilted its head to nuzzle Kurt's fingers more. "You're acting strange."

"Yeah. Fine."

"You know, you can touch the animals. It is called a petting zoo."

"I've touched them before."

"Okay, well I'm not going to bite, so you can come closer to me too whenever you feel like it."

"It smells here." Vin was avoiding the topic.

Kurt sighed and let it go. He stood up and started walking to the next pen of sheep. "It's a petting zoo, Vin. They have farm animals here. It smells like a farm." He paused. "Be right back."

Kurt went over to a kiosk and bought what were ice cream cones, but the worker filled it with animal feed. Kurt brought them back over to Vin and handed one to him.

"What's this for?" Vin asked.

"You feed the animals with it. Have you ever been to one of these before?" Kurt crouched down and poured a little feed into his hand and let the sheep eat from it. He giggled when the sheep's lips and whiskers tickled his palm. This was supposed to be fun, he thought. He kept trying, but Vin didn't seem to want to spend time with him. He didn't understand. Two days ago he was telling Kurt how much he missed him, now he wouldn't even stand next to Kurt for more than a few minutes.

They made it to the chicken coop and Vin's mood hadn't changed. He constantly kept looking around at people and cars passing by. Kurt was holding a baby chick in the palm of his hand and petting it with one finger. "You're not having very much fun are you?"

"I'm tired."

"How can you not being having fun," Kurt grabbed Vin's hand and put the chick in it, "when you have a baby chicken in the palm of your hand?" The timing couldn't have been more perfect. Vin looked down at the chick and the yellow bird stared back up at him like it was in love.

"Hi, Chick," Vin said blandly. The chick promptly squeaked back right on cue.

Kurt smiled. "See? She likes you."

"Sorry, Chick. I prefer cock-a-doodle roosters." The comment made Kurt laugh, but Vin immediately started looking around. They were far from anyone else at the moment. He put the chicken back with the other baby chicks. "Chickens are dirty."

Kurt stuck his bottom lip out and looked at the chick he held in his hands now. "Shh, they're right here. They can hear you. You're not dirty are you, baby chick? No. I didn't think so."

"Can we go now?" Vin asked with no enthusiasm.

Kurt sighed again and put the chicken back. "Sure, Vin. We can go." He had been in Vermont with Vin for three days now and Vin was giving Kurt the impression that he wished Kurt never came. Vin kept Kurt hidden in his apartment and acted distant and lethargic in public. He acted like he couldn't be bothered with anything that had to do with Kurt besides sex. Oh well. We'll see how this party goes tonight. Maybe his friends will liven him up a bit and he'll be fun again.

The party was not what Kurt expected. The New York parties he'd gone to where themed or decorated to look like a rave. Those were festive. This was… a gathering. There were plenty of men, more than Kurt wanted to try to keep a head count on, and they all looked different. Some were twinkish, like Kurt, others were butch. Some wore leather like at a kink party, some looked perfectly normal, some looked over the top feminine with bad make-up jobs, and a few were, well, a few were naked. So far, none of these men were the nice gay couple that Kurt met the first time he visited Vin: Tyler and Spencer.

It didn't take long to realize that everyone knew Vin and everyone enjoyed flirting with Vin right in front of Kurt. Then, when Vin introduced Kurt as his boyfriend, the attention would, more often than not, turn to Kurt and Kurt would be able to feel their eyes appraising him like an Armani collection. It was one thing to be checked out, but these men were open with their hungry eyes and not even being coy about it. Kurt didn't like the way some men touched Vin or leaned into close for comfort to say something to him. He especially didn't like it when it was being done to him. After a conversation with a man, who named himself Joanna for the night; Vin explained that his real name was Brian and he changed his name every time he came; Vin offered to get Kurt a drink, but Kurt politely declined. Vin left him in the living room for a minute only, but it was that minute that Kurt knew what a fish in a fishbowl felt like. In a three hundred and sixty degree view, all the men were oggling him like they were ready to start the auction of who gets to take Kurt first. Then he heard the moaning and pounding down the hall and he realized that a large number of men that he had already met were missing. Vin came back and a light bulb went on in his head.

"Vin, what kind of party is this?"

"A gay one." He took a sip of water from a bottle.

"Yes, I know. But what are all these people here for? No one's dancing and nearly half the people are missing."

"That's because they're in those rooms back there." Vin pointed to a hallway.

"You mean they're…?"

"They're having sex. What did you think they were doing? Think of it like the back room in Jericho."

"I've never been there." Kurt was making a 'how could I be this stupid and na�ve' look. "It took me up until now to realize why these men were staring at me like I was fresh meat."

"It's a compliment," Vin joked. "They want you because you're hot." He pinched Kurt's ass gently.

Kurt jumped at the touch. "Don't do that. Not here."

"But this is the perfect place to do that." Vin went to touch Kurt again, but Kurt swatted his hands away.

"No. It's not perfect and those men staring at me is not a compliment. It's creepy and it's predatory. I don't like it."

"I told you it wasn't your type of thing," Vin said sheepishly.

"You could have told me why. When you said a gay party I assumed you meant a get together with gay guys… Not a gay orgy."

It was that moment that two men approached Kurt and Vin. Vin introduced them as Jake and Owen. Kurt gulped when he caught the starry eyed look Owen was giving him. "Vin, sweetie, it's been a while," Jake greeted.

Vin scratched his head. "Uh. Yeah." He glanced at Kurt. "Been busy."

"Lucky you." Jake turned back to Kurt and appraised him. "Owen here was wondering if you were willing to share."

There were no words. Kurt lost his breath and ability to speak. His eyebrows went up in shock and he looked at Vin. Save me, he screamed in his head. Vin, on the other hand was thinking of a nice way to get out of the offer. Jake and he had a history. Jake was his first to be precise. He felt it was important to be nice to Jake at least. "Uh, Kurt here… he doesn't do threesomes."

"Pity." Jake tsked. "Well then. Owen here can take really good care of this pretty one. And you can come with me and we'll play that little game we used to play together." Owen stepped closer and gently held Kurt's hand.

Kurt's eyes widened. Having sex with one strange man while Vin was having sex with someone else was something that Kurt liked even less than having sex with two strange men. For a second only, Kurt caught the look in Vin's eyes that said "It's okay with me if we agree on this together." It mortified Kurt.

Vin read Kurt's expression. He turned back to Jake. "I'm afraid we're going to decline. Sorry, Boys." He grabbed Kurt and wrapped his arms around him. "This one's a little new to this."

"All the more reason to partake," Jake insisted.

"No thank you," Kurt barked, finally finding his voice.

Jake tsked again. "Pity. You're a pretty one." He gave Kurt one last look and left with Owen, who was now pouting.

Kurt broke out of Vin's arms and gave him a death stare. "We're leaving."

"Okay." Kurt didn't bother saying goodbye to anyone he met and rushed out of the apartment. At the bottom of the staircase, Vin caught up to him.

"Kurt, I'm sorry. You said you wanted to meet my friends."

"Friends?" Kurt exclaimed. "Those aren't friends. Those are fuck buddies."

"Look, I understand why you're mad. Jake and Owen, they're a couple. They have this sub/dom thing going on. I think you were meant to be some sort of gift for Owen."

"GIFT?"

"Yeah. When Owen is good, Jake gifts him with something or someone he wants. I'm guessing that by the way he was looking at you, he wanted to cash his gift in on you. That's why he didn't talk. He wasn't told he could."

"Okay, first off, the fact that you think Jake and Owen are the reason I'm pissed is insane. And second, I'm angry because you were okay with giving me to Owen. I'm yours, but not yours to give away. I'm not your property. And fuck you if you think I'd be okay with knowing you're fucking some other guy in the next room over. You should have just said no from the start. Wait, no. I take that back. You should have told me that you participate in fucking orgies!"

"I don't. I mean, I did, but I stopped going when I started dating you."

"Why? That up there. It seemed so gross. All those men were staring at me like I was a glass of wine in a room full of alcoholics. So, what? If I wanted to, I could have had sex with all of those men and you would have been okay with it?"

"If that's what you wanted. I mean, if that was our agreement. You could have one if I could have one."

"Ugh, you're making me sick. Is our sex life that boring to you?"

"No!"

"Well go ahead. Go fuck whomever you want up there; you have my blessing. I'm going back to your apartment."

Kurt stormed out the front door and Vin caught up to him again. "No! That's not- Shit, this is so messed up. I don't want anyone else! I want you. I just meant that if that's what you wanted, I'd be okay with it."

"I don't want you to be okay with it. I want you to give a shit if I fuck someone else."

"I do. I give a shit. I give lots of shits. I don't want you to be with anyone, but me. Kurt, I love you. I love you so much. Please. I didn't anticipate things going this way tonight. We'll go back to the apartment and cuddle up with a movie and popcorn? Anything you want."

"I want to go back to your apartment, take another shower because I feel disgusting, then go to bed."

"Sure. Okay. Anything you want, Kurt. I'm so sorry." Vin jumped forward and hugged Kurt tightly.

Kurt was still fuming so he barely touched Vin any more than needed.

The car ride back to Vin's apartment was completely silent. Neither man said anything and Kurt said nothing before jumping in the shower. He didn't wash anything. Kurt found himself just standing underneath the hot water. Nearly twenty minutes passed and Vin came in the bathroom. They looked at each other through the clear shower curtain and Vin started taking his clothes off.

He stepped into the shower with Kurt and grabbed Kurt's loofa. He poured soap all over it and started washing Kurt gently, and tenderly. Kurt sighed in defeat and let Vin do this for him since he'd made no motion to do it himself.

Another twenty minutes after that, Kurt was pressed up against the shower wall and Vin was thrusting into him moaning "I'm sorry," "I love you," and a string of expletives and compliments to Kurt. During those minutes of pleasure, Kurt had all, but forgotten everything that had made him mad to begin with.

It was only when he fell asleep in Vin's arms that he remembered. Oh yeah. He brought me to a gay orgy to meet all his friends that he's slept with and thought I would be okay with being a swinger… We'll be talking about this again later.

Thursday came and went with the two of them walking on egg shells around each other. Vin was trying to be extra sweet and even brought Kurt flowers and wouldn't stop apologizing. Kurt was trying to see things from Vin's perspective, so he remained appreciative of all the things Vin tried to do.

On Friday, Vin wanted to take Kurt out for breakfast because since Kurt loved diners so much in New York, maybe he'd want to try a small town diner, "where everything tastes like your mama used to make it," Vin tailed on the end. Something about Vin's entire sales pitch bothered Kurt because it was like Vin either forgot everything Kurt said about his past, or didn't care. Kurt was from a small town so he knew what small town diners were like compared to New York City diners. Also, his mother died when he was eight. The fact that Vin jokingly used that as reason for Kurt liking the diner really really got under his skin. He was bothered, but he kept it inside. No use trying to start another fight, he thought.

Kurt was finding that when they stayed in and hung out around the house, Vin was great to be around most of the time, but when they went out or spent time with Vin's friends, Vin was like a different person. Kurt didn't like the dual personality that Vin showed. He could get used to not presenting themselves as a couple in public because he was from a small town too and knew what was expected. He could maybe even get used to watching Vin be overly flirtatious with his friends. But the one thing he couldn't get used to was the way Vin acted in public. It seemed a little overkill because Vin often acted like Kurt wasn't even there even though they got out of the same car. In addition to that, Vin was easily irritable and often rude until they were back behind a shut door in Vin's apartment.

Taking all that into consideration, Kurt didn't really want to go out to breakfast because after having spent the one day in public with Vin already, he hardly wanted to go through being treated like a stranger all over again. But he agreed to go anyway because Vin was trying to make up for Wednesday night. Vin was nuzzling and kissing Kurt's neck and jaw line while cooing and making excuses about how he wanted to show Kurt his favorite place to eat. "Please?" Vin asked with voice that was so cute that Kurt couldn't stop the smile that spread across his face. Then Vin started kissing lower and lower and Kurt soon forgot all about his reasons for not wanting to go out because his blood flow was being focused more in the head that was currently being sucked by Vin and not the one that contained a brain.

So, Kurt agreed to go and stayed silent about his issues because be wanted to forego another argument and he was too blissed out from the blow job he received. He didn't know what was going on in Vin's head, so Kurt tried to let it go because it was probably just innocent and Kurt was maybe being too critical and sensitive. If Kurt was one to believe in signs, his uneasiness should have been the first one to mean that they shouldn't have gone out in the first place.

When they got to the diner, Vin, who used to either open Kurt's door or wait for him to get out before advancing further, walked past Kurt like he didn't care at all. Then he didn't open the door to the diner for him. That was something really nit-picky; Kurt knew that, but those were things that Vin normally did and Kurt couldn't understand what was making Vin act differently. The waitress came over to get their drink orders and Kurt smiled up at the older woman and asked for an orange juice and a cup of coffee. "Uh, yeah," Vin cleared his throat. "Same."

Was Kurt mistaken or did Vin just lower his voice? He thought back to something Carol had told Kurt back in high school about dating: "Try to pay attention to the way the guy treats the waitress because in ten years, that's how he'll treat you." He'd been out plenty of times with Vin and not once had he ever acted like this. Vin had barely acknowledged the woman at all. "Careful," Kurt grinned, trying to make the tone lighter. "If you treat the waitress bad, she'll spit in your food." Kurt reached forward to cover Vin's hand on the table, but Vin slid his hand away before Kurt had a chance to make contact. He knew the thing about waitresses wasn't true, but he said it once to Finn and it made Finn be super nice to waitresses every single time he went out for food.

"What are you doing?" Vin asked in a hushed tone.

"Trying to be funny because you look grumpy."

"I'm not grumpy, but I was talking about the other thing."

"What other thing?" Vin held up his hand for a second. "I always do that."

Vin's eyes quickly flicked around the room. "Well, don't."

"Don't what?" Kurt was getting annoyed again and this time he couldn't contain it, though he stayed quiet for whatever reason Vin was staying quiet for.

"Don't touch me. Not here."

Kurt raised his eyebrows in shock. He couldn't believe his ears; things were slowly moving into place for Kurt to understand. "Then why did you take me here?" He stared talking through clenched teeth.

"Their food it my favorite. Don't be angry. I'll explain later."

"You'll explain-" The waitress came back over with their drinks and Kurt looked up at her and smiled, immediately changing his expression and tone. "Thank you," he said cheerily.

"You're welcome, Sweetie. You guys know what you want?"

Kurt hadn't even looked at the menu. He glanced at the specials board behind the waitress. "Scrambled egg wrap with ham, please."

"The usual for you, Vinny?" the waitress asked.

"You know me so well," Vin said with a barely there smile. The waitress left.

"Vinny?" Kurt asked.

"It's what they call me here."

"What's the usual?"

"Poached eggs dropped on Rye toast with homefries and sausage."

"I don't think I've ever seen you order that. It's very," Kurt shook his head as he thought, "Meat and potatoes, I guess."

"It's my favorite thing they make." Though their conversation was casual, Vin's tone hadn't changed. His voice was definitely lower than normal and he just seemed agitated about something.

"I didn't think you liked sausage," Kurt mentioned nonchalantly. Then he smiled and tried to lighten the mood again. "Well, except for when you-"

"Kurt," Vin said shortly.

"What?" Kurt's smile went away. He didn't understand. He was just trying to make Vin smile.

"Don't. Not here."

Kurt sighed and sat back in his chair. He thought that asking why would be a losing battle and useless. "What's the point of going out somewhere if you're going to be mad? An outing is supposed to be fun."

"Kurt," Vin said again, looking up from his placemat. "Stop."

He was getting angry. He hadn't done anything to warrant Vin acting this way and Vin wouldn't talk to him. He had half a thought to just get up and walk out because he didn't know how much he'd be able to take of whatever this was.

They sat in silence until their food came with Kurt looking at the people around him and glancing out the window at the people passing by. Everyone pretty much looked like the people did in Lima: Normal people that are happy with the every day grind of a small town. It was nothing to look down upon. It just wasn't Kurt's thing. He was a hustle and bustle type of person. New York was exciting and fast and unpredictable. Ohio was not for him. Vermont was not for him. That wasn't to say that either one wasn't beautiful or perfect for other people.

Kurt had only taken one bite before three men walked over and clapped Vin on the back. "Vinny!"

Vin put his fork down and actually smiled for the first time. "What's goin' on guys?" He glanced back over to Kurt and his eyes hardened. Kurt knew what Vin would have said if he could say it out loud. Don't say anything stupid.

Was Vin embarrassed by Kurt? Kurt took a sip of water.

"Where've you been? Haven't seen you around much since school let out," said one man wearing a high school athletics department t-shirt.

"Yeah, I heard you put in your letter of resignation," said another.

"What?" the third asked with his eyebrows mashed together. "You didn't say anything like that to me. Is it true?"

Vin cleared his throat. "Yeah. I'm, uh," another grunt from clearing his throat uncomfortably. "I'm moving to New York. Something different, you know."

"When the hell were you planning on telling your family, Vinny?"

Vin took a sip of his coffee and glanced at Kurt. "Uh, guys this is Kurt. Kurt, this is Jerry, Rich, and Connor. They work in the high school and Connor's my brother."

Kurt sat up straight. "Oh, hi!" He stuck out his hand and immediately found the three men shaking his hand back with enormous strength. It kind of hurt.

"Who's this guy?" Rich asked.

"Oh. Kurt. Kurt's a friend of mine."

Kurt flicked his eyes over to Vin and his face hardened because all he heard was friend. In an instant he understood. This went far beyond being treated like he did something wrong. Now he was being treated like someone Vin didn't care deeply for. Kurt was pissed. He listened to Vin weave a story about meeting Kurt in college and Kurt was in town for an interview for the middle school, so he was showing him around town for a few days.

After a few minutes, the three men left and Vin looked at Kurt with the same tight lipped expression, but there was a hint of shame in it. "You have got to be kidding me," Kurt said.

"Kurt, you don't understand."

"Your own family and friends don't know?" Kurt was leaning in to be extra quiet.

"It's not that simple."

"You're thirty. You live in a liberal state that was the first to legalize civil unions in the U.S."

"That really doesn't mean much when-"

"They don't even know that you're moving in with me let alone moving at all?"

"I-I…"

"When were you planning on telling me that you're still in the fucking closet?"

"I don't know. I…"

"You wanted me to meet your family. You said you wanted me there for support. What were you planning on doing? Introducing me as your friend again? Or coming out and then saying 'Oh, by the way, I'm gay and the guy I brought with me is my boyfriend. I'm moving in with him in New York in a couple months. Please pass the butter?'"

Even though Kurt was speaking as softly as he could manage, Vin was still paranoid enough to keep looking around to see if other people could hear or were trying to listen in on their conversation. "I was going to tell them when we went over."

"When were you going to tell me that? You lied to me, Vin, about all of this. You painted a picture that told me you were out and proud despite having no real support. And what was that thing about your mother's birthday party? What was that supposed to be about? You gave me all the wrong impressions and information."

"I know. I'm sorry. Can we just talk about this when we get back home?"

"This isn't my home, Vin, and according to you, home is in New York too. But maybe I shouldn't believe that now."

"Just- please. Can we drop this for now? I don't want-"

"What? Someone to hear that you're-"

"Yes. Please." Vin was begging, but oddly enough, his expression hadn't changed much. Kurt chalked it up to years or decades of practice of pretending to be an awful excuse of a straight person. There was such a thing as a non-butch, pleasant, straight guy, but apparently Vin didn't think he could pull it off. Vin had gone with being rude and mean. Kurt didn't like the person in front of him.

"Do you have any idea how if feels to listen to you say I was your-" he gulped and finished the sentence like the last word was poison, "friend?"

"I'm sorry."

"You're sorry? Fuck you." Kurt stood up and walked out of the diner.

He wasn't exactly sure where he was going. He knew the diner was far away enough to have to drive, but didn't exactly know where Vin lived in relation to where he was standing. Kurt took a breath and sighed in relief because after two blocks, he saw someone getting out of a taxi. He knew how taxis worked in places that weren't in cities and they didn't work the same. He quickly ran up to it and approached the driver. "Hey, I'm sorry. I know you probably have a schedule or someplace to go already, but I'll pay you double if you can fit me in right now."

The young twenty-something shrugged his shoulders. "Sure. Hop in."

"Thanks."

"No problem. I didn't have another call yet to go anywhere."

Kurt told him the address and it took no more than ten minutes to reach Vin's apartment complex. Thankfully, Vin was not there. While Kurt was waiting in the back seat, his anger only grew and he couldn't even think straight. All he could think of was how he didn't want to be around Vin right now and needed some time and space away from him. "Hey," he started when they reached their destination. "Um, do you have another location you have to get to right away?"

"No, why? You need to get someplace else?"

"Uh, yeah. Um. Would you mind waiting here a few minutes? I need to get something. Then could I get a ride to the bus station?"

"Sure, man. Tell you what. You said you'd tip me double, so I'll turn the meter off while I wait."

"Wow. Thanks. I'll be right out." Kurt rushed upstairs to Vin's apartment and plucked the spare key from under the doormat. He rushed around the apartment grabbing his things and shoving them into his suitcase. It didn't take too long. Then he grabbed a piece of paper and scrolled a note. "I think we need some time to think. I went home to New York. I'll call you when I'm ready to talk." He ripped the paper off the pad and folded it and made a tent of the paper on the kitchen table so that Vin would see it when he walked into the kitchen. Then he rushed back out the door and locked the apartment before he stuffed himself and his suitcase back into the taxi.