Chapter 26

Kurt threw a high kick up in the air, moving in time with the music.

He was smiling and confident, secure in his every movement and for the first time in almost a month, he felt like himself again. After everything that had been thrown his way, he didn't feel weak or broken, he just felt that much stronger as a person.

Kurt shook his hip to the left, then to the right and with a few more well placed moves, the cheer was over and a whistle was being blown, signaling the end of practice.

He went over to his bag, grabbing his towel and throwing it over his shoulder before taking a drink from his water bottle. He looked out onto the field, spotting Blaine in his number 42 jersey, and smiled. The team was preparing for the big championship game in two days and Blaine was focused on the current play, a fierce determination in his brow. Kurt smiled a bit brighter as he thought back on the last few weeks, a warmth filling his body as he watched his boyfriend, knowing that he couldn't have made it through this without him.

Kurt's gaze shifted a bit and he found himself settling on Karofsky. And normally, he would cringe just the slightest bit, or he would have to look away quickly as he felt the beginnings of nausea. But today felt different. Today he felt calm and sure of himself. Kurt had been thinking about this day for weeks now, and he knew he was ready.

There were a few hollers as the team was dismissed and Kurt couldn't help but laugh at the apparent enthusiasm. He waited a few minutes before heading over, catching Blaine just before he headed into the locker room.

"Hey."

Blaine gave a breathless smile when he saw Kurt, his whole face lighting up.

"Hey! What's up?"

Kurt grinned slightly.

"Not much. I heard Beiste saying she wanted to talk to David after practice."

Blaine lowered his voice a bit, not really sure where Kurt was going with this.

"Uh, yeah. I think it's about his grades or something. He hasn't been doing too well. Why? What's going on? Did he do something to you?"

Kurt quickly shook his head.

"No. I just…I've been thinking and…"

He paused, glancing around to make sure that no one was in ear shot, before meeting Blaine's gaze with absolute certainty.

"And I'm ready to talk to him about what happened."

Blaine blinked a few times, slightly shocked and seemingly more worried about this than Kurt was.

"A-are you sure? 'Cause you don't have to rush into this-"

Kurt held up his hand slightly.

"I'm one hundred percent positive."

Blaine could see the confidence in Kurt's eyes and he felt his heart swell. He missed that look so much. He let the tips of his fingers softly brush Kurt's wrist, and down to the back of his hand, then just across his knuckles before falling back to his side. It was as close to holding Kurt's hand as he could get. He looked down at the floor almost shyly before looking back at Kurt with a smile.

"Okay."

The two of them waited for the locker room to clear out, going inside when they knew the only person still in there was Karofsky. He left Beiste's office, looking slightly defeated, and Beiste left shortly after. Blaine gently squeezed Kurt's hand and smiled at him with a nod. They approached Karofsky, who was quickly grabbing his backpack from his locker so he could leave. The jock spotted the couple out of the corner of his eye.

"What the hell do you ladies want?"

Blaine ignored the comment.

"We need to talk to you."

Karofsky nearly scoffed as he shut his locker and turned to leave.

"Not interested."

Kurt spoke up.

"He knows, David."

Karofsky glanced at him and was met with a steady gaze that spoke volumes, a gaze that said 'you have no power over me anymore'.

His eyes narrowed in suspicion as he turned to glare at Blaine.

"Knows what?"

Blaine looked him dead in the eye, completely calm.

"Everything."

Karofsky was terrified, but he hid it well, quickly turning and beginning to storm out as Blaine called after him.

"Look, we just want to talk."

Karofsky was trying to stay calm but panic was creeping into his voice.

"I don't want to hear anything you have to say!"

Before Blaine knew what he was doing, a small monologue of reassurances was tumbling out of his mouth.

"We're not here to out you, okay? I know how hard this is. To pretend to be someone you're not. To have to watch every single step you take because you don't want to be judged or ridiculed or worse. I get it. I get what it's like to feel like every day of your life is a lie, but knowing that you'd rather die than live the truth. We're not gonna go and just force you out of the closet."

Karofsky paused, an overwhelming suspicion still prevalent in his voice.

"Then why are you here?"

Kurt spoke and Karofsky's eyes darted over towards him.

"You might want to sit down."

Karofsky looked between the pair of them, weighing his options for a moment that seemed to last for hours before reluctantly dropping his bag and sitting heavily on the nearest bench. As he did that, Kurt noticed something odd on the floor. A blood stain. His blood.

Kurt was suddenly so aware of everything that had happened in this room. This was where everything had started, where so much of himself had been taken away. It was a sort of poetic justice that this was where it all would end.

Kurt was silent, eyes still focused on the stain, so Blaine was the first one to speak up.

"How much do you remember from that night a few weeks ago? The party?"

Karofsky seemed to search his memory, his face full of confusion when he came up blank.

"Nothing. I blacked out… Why?"

Kurt spoke with a slight edge in his voice.

"It's pretty obvious that you don't know how to handle what you're feeling, and it's seems to have also become apparent that with alcohol you have even…less control over yourself."

No matter how much he tried to hide it, Kurt could still see that Karofsky was getting visibly nervous.

"What do you mean?"

Blaine took a deep breath.

"You ran into Kurt that night at the party. Um, you two were alone, and he tried to get away from you, but things got pretty violent and…"

Blaine faltered slightly, quickly losing his nerve. Karofsky didn't even take a moment before he impatiently shot back.

"And what?"

Blaine felt stuck, like the words were there but he just couldn't say them.

"And, you…you…"

Blaine looked to Kurt, floundering for his voice, slight panic in his eyes, and Kurt returned his gaze calmly, nodding just the slightest bit before meeting Karofsky's eye.

It felt as if the whole world paused for a single, miniscule second; just waiting and watching to see what would happen next. And then Kurt spoke.

"You tried to rape me, David."

Blaine felt Kurt twitch involuntarily. That word had never been said until now.

Blaine looked at him, as if to ask 'are you okay?'. Kurt nodded once again before going back to Karofsky, who was staring at the floor, unmoving, in a shocked state of complete and utter disbelief.

"I know this may be hard to take in, but you needed to know."

Blaine noticed as Karofsky's hands balled into tightly clenched fists.

"If it helps at all, Kurt's not pressing charges. And no one outside the three of us will know about it either."

There was a moment of quiet before Karofsky spoke, low and quiet, almost a growl, his eyes still glued to the linoleum.

"What kind of sick joke is this?"

Blaine shook his head slightly.

"This isn't a joke. It's the truth."

Karofsky's head shot up suddenly, his gaze going straight to Kurt, pure unadulterated fear and rage written all over every feature of his face.

"You're a liar."

Blaine kept calm as he replied.

"Why would we lie about something like this?"

Karofsky shook his head furiously, white-knuckled hands now gripping onto the bench.

"I-I don't know. To mess with me…t-to make me think that-…I don't know, okay! But you are!"

Blaine raised his hands slightly in some sort of defense, ready to step in between him and Kurt at a moment's notice if it came to that.

"Hey, just…calm down, okay? This may not be an easy thing to accept but you can't just keep hiding from the truth because you don't like it. That isn't going to change anything. What you did to him can't-"

Karofsky couldn't handle another second of it. He shot of from his seat, grabbing Blaine by the jersey and slamming him against the locker.

"Shut up you lying piece of shit!"

Blaine didn't move or shout or try to get Karofsky away from him. Instead he stood there, holding his gaze and defiantly sticking his jaw out, almost as a challenge.

Kurt, however, immediately sprung into action.

"David! Stop!"

Kurt tried to force his way in between them, but Karofsky wouldn't budge. He had his piercing glare glued on Blaine as Kurt tried to talk him down.

"You cannot keep acting like this! Just becoming mindlessly violent isn't going to solve your problems! You need to start taking responsibility for your actions before you end up hurting someone else!"

Karofsky looked at him. Kurt's eyes refused to waver. He stayed strong, holding himself there, needing this to get through to Karofsky. The larger jock seemed full of anger, but there was the slightest tinge of fear underneath, as if he was on the edge of a breakdown. The fear was small, but it was just enough.

He let go of Blaine, shoving him once more against the lockers for good measure before scrambling to grab his backpack and stormed out.

The door slammed shut behind him and Blaine exhaled roughly.

"Well, that didn't go as well as I hoped."

Kurt stared at the door with a raised eyebrow.

"What did you expect? For him to magically 'see the light' and the world would turn into cotton candy and sunshine and we'd all skip off into the sunset?"

Kurt looked over at him with just the corner of his mouth raised in a smile and Blaine gave a small chuckle.

"Well no."

Blaine readjusted his uniform and then looked over to Kurt, who met him with a sweet, affectionate smile. Blaine felt his heart flutter when he saw the gratitude and love and kindness in Kurt's gaze. He had to remind himself to breathe as he took a seat on the bench.

"But, I don't know. An apology would have been nice. Just…something, you know? After all he put you through."

Kurt sat down next to him.

"He'll get there, on his own. It's a lot to take in all at once. But, he'll start to process everything. He'll get over the anger and resentment, and hopefully become a better person because of it. He just needs a little time."

Kurt nodded slightly to himself, as if pleased with his answer and then looked over to see Blaine with a smile on his face, staring at him in complete awe. Kurt tilted his head to the side with a small laugh.

"What?"

Blaine placed his hand in Kurt's, intertwining their fingers like he had wanted to do earlier.

"You are just the most…compassionate and kind-hearted person I have ever met, and I…am so lucky to be with you."

Kurt blushed and looked at the ground, unable to hide his smile, suddenly feeling as if all those parts of him that had been stripped away and stolen had grown back even stronger.

Blaine took his empty hand and brought it to Kurt's cheek, bringing his face back towards his and instantly reminding Kurt of their first kiss. They looked into each other's eyes for a moment, just pure emotion between the two of them. Blaine began to lean in for a kiss, but Kurt's voice stopped him in his tracks.

"We should probably go."

Blaine let his head drop and laughed.

"We should. We both smell awful."

Kurt fell back a bit in laughter before sitting back up and giving Blaine a playful nudge.

"Thank you."

Blaine met Kurt with a smile.

"For what?"

"For helping me through. For being there whenever I needed you, for staying by my side and making sure I came back from this."

Blaine felt his eyes begin to water.

"You'll never need to thank me for that."

Kurt ducked his head and gave Blaine another nudge, laughing lightly.

"C'mon, Stinky. Go get changed so we can leave."

Blaine laughed as he quickly wiped away a tear and then rolled his eyes dramatically, feigning annoyance as he replied.

"Finnneeee."

Kurt smiled, and as he headed for the door Blaine called out to him.

"Hey, Kurt?"

Kurt turned back slightly.

"Hmm?"

Blaine opened his mouth, but then quickly closed it, repressing the urge to say 'I love you'. It wasn't the right time.

Not here.

He instead flashed a bright smile and shook his head.

"Nothing. I just…I'm so proud of you."

Kurt smiled back before walking out, head held high, feeling almost redeemed.

Blaine sat on the piano bench, his fingers gliding over the keys as he played a light melody. Kurt sat next to him, his head resting on Blaine's shoulder as he hummed along.

The last few notes drifted from the piano and Kurt lifted his head, smiling lazily at his boyfriend. Blaine smiled and leaned forwards, pressing his lips to Kurt's cheek. He leaned into Blaine's side, eyes closing as Blaine wrapped an arm around his waist and pressed another kiss to his forehead.

There were some footsteps by the doorway and Carole cleared her throat to make herself known. Kurt stayed as he was, content and warm, but Blaine quickly turned his head, looking a little embarrassed at her presence. She gave a sweet smile, gushing when she saw the couple.

"Oh, you two are so cute. Blaine, hun, are you staying for dinner?"

Blaine quickly looked around the room, trying to spot a clock.

"I uh…what time is it?"

"Around 7:30."

Blaine's eyes widened a bit, but he nodded.

"Oh! Shoot! Uh, yeah, I guess. If it's not too much trouble."

Carole laughed a bit, nodding at Blaine's dopey smile.

"Alright. Sounds good. It should be done around 8:00, I'll call you when it's ready."

Carole left the room and Blaine turned back to Kurt, pulling him a little closer. Kurt reached out, running a finger up and down Blaine's hand.

"I want to teach you how to sew."

Blaine looked down at Kurt with surprise, wanting to make sure he heard him right.

"Huh?"

Kurt sat up with a cute grin on his face.

"Well, you've been teaching me some more piano, so I want to teach you how to sew."

"Uh, I… well, alright, sure!"

Blaine's face lit up and he immediately stood, grabbing Kurt's hand and heading for his bedroom.

Kurt started by giving Blaine a simple swatch of cotton fabric, a needle and some matching thread; showing him how to do a basic running stitch before letting him practice by himself while he finished a pair of pants he had been working on for a while now.

Fifteen minutes had passed by and Blaine was now sitting on the bed, cross legged and brow furrowed in concentration; tongue slightly sticking out of his mouth as he put all of his focus into his handiwork.

He stopped and examined his stitches, then held his piece out proudly.

"Whatdaya think?"

And Kurt paused his work to look at Blaine's and smiled brightly.

"Exquisite! You are practically a natural."

Blaine gave a light chuckle as he rolled his eyes.

"Oh hush."

Blaine let himself fall backwards onto the bed, a goofy grin on his face as he took a small break from stitching. His wandering eyes soon fell on Kurt's French book on the floor next to his bag. He paused, setting down his piece of fabric as a thought entered his mind.

"Hey, Kurt?"

Kurt replied without looking up from the hem of the pant leg.

"Yeah?"

"…Do you think you could actually teach me French?"

Kurt stopped sewing and slowly turned around with a raised eyebrow. Blaine just stared back for a second before trying to explain.

"You know, back when you were 'tutoring' me we didn't exactly…well…"

Kurt's face morphed into a smile as Blaine spoke.

"Sure."

He laid the pair of pants on his work table, switched off his sewing machine and took a seat next to Blaine on the bed.

"Okay, just some basic words first."

Blaine nodded eagerly and placed his swatch of fabric off to the side.

"Let's see, um. Let's start with a salutation. Bonjour."

Kurt spoke easily and fluidly, the word coming naturally to him.

"Bonejur."

Blaine, not so much.

"No, no it's bonjour."

"Okay, uh… Bonjour."

Kurt smiled at the success.

"There you go! Okay, um how about…merci."

"Merci."

Kurt smiled brightly at him, starting to understand the attractive appeal of the language.

"Very nice. Let's try something a bit more challenging. Merci beaucoup.

Kurt laughed a bit as Blaine sat up straighter, eager for more French.

"Merci bow…um…"

Blaine's eyebrow scrunched and Kurt supplied the second word.

"Beaucoup"

"Beau…coup…?"

Kurt gave a small nod of approval, giving Blaine a bit more confidence.

"Beaucoup. Merci beaucoup."

Kurt smiled brightly.

"Wonderful! That means thank you very much."

Blaine grinned and nodded at Kurt.

"Awesome. What else?"

"Um…"

Kurt glanced down at his text book, pulling one of the words printed on the cover.

"Oh, uh, combien."

"C- uh, wait. What was it again?"

Kurt had to keep from giggling at Blaine's attempt.

"Combien."

Blaine nodded a second, lips moving slightly as he repeated the word in his head.

"Com…bien. What does that mean?"

Kurt laughed a little bit, the randomness of the word now dawning on him.

"It means 'how much'."

The corner of Blaine's mouth tugged up a bit and Kurt reached forwards, tucking a stray curl back behind Blaine's ear as he spoke.

"How about…Bonsoir. That means 'good evening'."

Blaine smiled, grabbing Kurt's hand and kissing the back of it gently, using an exaggerated French accent as he repeated the word back to Kurt.

"Bonsoir."

Kurt would normally laugh at Blaine's theatrics, but something about the way he said it made Kurt blush instead.

Why is this so…hot.

Kurt coughed a little, quickly shaking away his thoughts and getting back on track.

"Uh…try this;"

Kurt glanced down at his watch, spitting out the first thing that came to mind.

"Uh..L'heure est presque huit heures du soir."

Blaine face suddenly went blank when he heard the phrase.

"…what."

Kurt threw his head back in a laugh.

"It means 'It's almost eight o'clock'. L'heure est presque huit heures du soir."

"Le…Lehu…uh…L-"

Kurt giggled and put a finger on Blaine's lips.

"Okay, stop, stop this is painful to watch. How about we try something easier?"

Kurt realized he still hand his finger on Blaine's lips and slowly let it drift back to his lap. He ducked his head a bit, a small, impish smile spreading towards his cheek.

"Je te veux."

Blaine smiled quizzically before he even tried to repeat it, catching the glint in Kurt's eye.

"What does that mean?"

Kurt opened his mouth slightly, but paused, blushing as he bit his lip.

"…I want you."

Blaine's eyebrow rose while Kurt's eyes peaked up at him. Blaine's voice dropped a little lower, his eyes held the slightest bit of lust and his lips set into the sexiest smile Kurt had ever seen.

"Combien?"

Kurt's eyes went wide, not expecting him to answer. Let alone that answer. He stare shifted to Blaine's parted lips, then back at his eyes.

There was a slight pause, in which Kurt whimpered a small,

"So much."

And then the two of them practically leapt towards each other.

"Hey guys dinner's read- oh god!"

Blaine let go of Kurt and flopped backwards onto the bed with a groan, their lips had been literally inches from each other. Kurt whipped around to face Finn with an icy cold glare.

"Jesus Finn! Do you ever knock!?"

Finn slowly backed out of the room.

"I uh…I'll just be down stairs…"

Finn skittered off down the stairs and Kurt crossed his arms, pissed at the intrusion. Blaine just laughed and gave him a quick peck on the cheek.

"C'mon. Let's go eat dinner."

Blaine: Hey. No practice today. Coach wants us to rest. Wanna meet up by your locker and grab a bite to eat?

Kurt: Sure :)

Blaine: Awesome! See u soon :)

Blaine stood by his locker, looking over a text message again and again. He hesitated for a second more before finally clicking send. He locked his phone, quickly shoving it in his pocket and taking a deep breath. Blaine let his head fall back against his locker, eyes closed and heart pounding. He almost considered running and heading straight to Kurt's locker, just avoiding this whole situation, but he knew this was something that had to be done.

His fingers tapped against his thigh spastically, and he couldn't stand still. Blaine looked to the left, then to the right, glancing around the hall. He took a nervous breath, checking the time on his phone once before crossing his arms and trying to stand still.

Blaine looked back down the hallway, his timing spot on. He turned his head just as Santana turned the corner.

Blaine felt his stomach flip upside down as she sauntered towards him, stalking down the hall like a sleek, black Jaguar ready to take down its prey. He had this feeling like he was about to be eaten alive.

Her steps were steady and strong, quietly pounding down the hall as people scrambled out of her way like terrified little deer. Her high pony swished sharply back and forth in rhythm with the flaps on her skirt. A ferocious smile settled on her face as she neared Blaine, the most terrified deer of them all. As she closed in, Blaine felt every single ounce of confidence slowly drain out of his body.

Is it too late to run? No. No I can do this.

He straightened up, feigning courageousness. Santana stopped right in front of him, hands on her hips in a fierce display of dominance.

Blaine was about to speak and Santana raised a single eyebrow, effectively stopping any words from leaving his mouth. He took a moment, wetting his lips before trying to speak again.

"Santana, um, look we-mmph!"

Before he could even finish a whole sentence, Santana pounced; slamming him back up against the lockers, covering his lips with her own and thrusting her body flush up against his.

The movement in the hallways stopped, everyone turning to look at the sudden assault. The kiss was hot and steamy, Santana taking complete control. More than a few students' jaws went slack and cat calls and wolf whistles were hollered out.

Blaine felt his face turn cherry red, and he was too stunned to move. He began to squirm and fidget, getting increasingly uncomfortable as Santana's hands roamed over his body.

Kurt walked down an intersecting hallway, heading towards his locker with thoughts of Blaine in his head and a smile on his face. He readjusted the strap on his bag as he walked, not really paying attention to his surroundings until he passed by and heard a commotion. There were some whistles and some shouts and he quickly turned his head to see what was going on. A crowd of people were blocking his view and he couldn't quite make out what was happening. He only saw the swish of a curly, black pony tail and the bright red of a Cheerios uniform.

Santana.

He figured it was just some drama that she had started up and he almost walked on. He almost didn't see that familiar mop of curly brown hair; he almost didn't see that tell-tale casual white t-shirt and letterman jacket, and he almost didn't feel his heart stop beating for a moment.

But he did.

He stood frozen, the crowd clearing just the slightest bit and allowing him to see Santana currently mauling his boyfriend. A part of him just wanted to march over there and slap Blaine clear across the face. To scream at him, to out him, anything. But he didn't.

Instead he just shook his head, pushing aside his broken heart and making way for one made of stone. Because it just wasn't worth it. Blaine wasn't worth it.

He turned on the heel of his foot and walked away, missing the moment when Blaine shoved Santana away from him. The crowd of students gasped and he wiped his mouth roughly with the back of his hand. He blinked rapidly a few times at the students surrounding them, and then mustered up courage that he didn't know he had.

"No, Santana. Look, I don't know what this is, but it's over. I-"

Santana's head tilted to the side just the slightest bit and she moved closer to him. But Blaine kept talking, trying not to lose his nerve.

"…I used you to stay popular and it was wrong and I'm sorry. You're a very…uh…nice girl, but it just…"

She moved ever closer, nodding her head with false understanding.

"…it wouldn't work out between…"

She placed a long, tan finger on his lips.

"…us."

He gulped audibly, his heart pounding faster than ever, feeling as though she could practically smell his fear. After a second of silence, Santana's face turned into a smirk.

"Lemme tell how this works, John Oates. I am the hottest bitch up in this joint, which means I don't get dumped by frizzy haired losers like you. So, unless you want me to go all Lima Heights on your ass, here's what I suggest;"

Santana stepped forwards, letting her hand drift down his chest.

"First, you're gonna take me out for lunch,"

She slinked closer, only about half a foot separating them.

"Then, you're gonna stop by the jewelry store and buy me some sweet bling to make up for you blatant lapse of sanity,"

She grabbed a handful of his shirt, forcefully pulling him towards her.

"And then we're gonna head back to your place,"

She put her lips against his ear and let her knee slip between his thighs, voice like a light yet dangerous purr as she spoke.

"And finish what we started at that party."

She lightly bit his ear lobe, tugging on it gently before letting go.

"Am I clear?"

Blaine stood there, slightly petrified and unmoving, trying to figure out what to do as Santana stood with her body practically wrapped around his. He took a deep breath, gently peeling Santana off of him.

"I'm flattered, Santana. Really, I am. But we're done. I'm sorry, but you're just not my type."

He took a few steps backwards down the hall, shrugging lightly as he said one last thing.

"And besides, you're kind of a bitch."

The students surrounding them let out gasps and shouts of encouragement, and Blaine took advantage of Santana's minor state of shock to flee, practically running down the hall before she had the chance to tear him limb from limb.

Blaine: Sorry I took so long. Omw :)

Blaine passed by the choir room, looking flustered and stopping short. His face filled with relief at the sight of Kurt sitting inside.

"There you are! I've been looking for you everywhere."

Kurt didn't even lift a hand in greeting, just kept his eyes glued to the phone in his hands. Blaine walked forwards a bit, confused and concerned, but still trying to stay light.

"I waited by your locker, you never showed up. I was starting to think someone kidnapped you or something. Why didn't you answer your phone? "

Kurt met Blaine with silence.

"Kurt? Kurt, are you okay? Look, I need to tell you something, it just happened and it's nothing serious but-"

Kurt put his phone in his pocket with a deep breath and headed towards the door.

"Kurt? Kurt where are you going?"

Blaine chased after him, grabbing his arm to stop him.

"Hey! Hold up. Did I do something wrong?"

Kurt stood there, his voice dry and uncaring, even a little cold.

"I don't know. Did you?"

He glared down at the hand on his arm for a second before pulling away and Blaine immediately grabbed his shoulder.

"Please don't play that game with me. If there's something wrong just tell me."

Kurt whipped his body around to face him, his eyes cold and piercing and Blaine could almost feel as they stabbed him through the heart.

"I saw you with Santana, Blaine."

Blaine was shocked at the directness, suddenly realizing how seriously Kurt was hurt. He stumbled through this thoughts, trying to figure out how to explain this before Kurt ran out.

"That-that's what I wanted to talk to you about. I should have done it sooner, I know. But everything with Karofsky got me sidetracked. B-but I broke up with her. It's done."

"Yeah, you looked real 'broken up' with her tongue halfway down your throat."

Kurt rolled his eyes at Blaine, pushing past him, heading towards the other door.

"Hey!"

Kurt turned around again, listening half-heartedly, if at all, to what he was saying.

"Look, she kissed me, okay. I-"

Kurt started to walk away again. Blaine was astonished that Kurt wouldn't stay, even for a moment, and he threw his hands up in the air.

"You can't seriously think that I would actually do that with her. After everything, after all we went through together these past weeks? Kurt-"

Kurt tossed a few angry words over his shoulder as he walked.

"I honestly don't know what to believe anymore."

Blaine went to Kurt and took hold of his wrist.

"Can you stop walking away from me? Please?"

Kurt turned around, silent and fuming, not wanting to hear the excuses that Blaine had to offer.

"It's not like that."

Kurt rolled his eyes once more.

"No, Blaine. That's exactly what this is like. That's exactly what this has always been like. All you care about is what other people think about you. About how popular you are."

Blaine took a step back, releasing his grip on Kurt's wrist.

"That's not true."

Kurt's voice began to rise.

"Yes, it is! If it wasn't this stuff with Santana wouldn't have even happened! You'd do anything to protect your precious reputation!"

Blaine gritted his teeth, trying to keep his cool.

"I know I've made mistakes, okay. I can't change that. But I'm trying to fix it now. I'm doing my best to make up for what I've done so we can be happy together. So don't go and throw that in my face."

Kurt just scoffed in reply which only set Blaine off just that much more.

"And don't go preaching to me about popularity like it doesn't mean anything to you."

Kurt's gaze shot over to Blaine and he shrugged, crossing his arms over his chest defensively.

"It doesn't."

Blaine nearly laughed, rolling his eyes as he called Kurt out on his hypocrisy.

"Really? So did you just join the Cheerios because it 'looked like fun'? You hate Sue. You hate half the girls on that squad. The only reason you're there is because you know that as long as you are you won't have to take so much crap from everyone!"

Kurt's eyes flared and he glared at Blaine, hands tensing as he tried to keep from screaming.

"Do not go and turn this around on me! That is not what this is about!"

Blaine matched Kurt's tone of voice.

"Then what is it about?!"

Kurt snapped. He strode towards Blaine, not even trying to quiet his voice, finally laying everything on him.

"You! You and this stupid lie that you're living so that you can feel 'normal'! I'm sick of it, Blaine! I want a real relationship. Not some bullshit one that has to hide in the freaking closet! I-! …I don't want to be a part of this anymore."

A strained silence settled over the pair of them as Kurt bit back tears and those last words replayed in Blaine's mind.

'I don't want to be a part of this anymore.'

He looked distraught, panicked even. There was a sense of desperation as he nearly pleaded with Kurt.

"Kurt…what do you want me to do?"

Kurt hesitated a moment. He knew he shouldn't be making this move.

"…Come out."

That small request sent a chill up Blaine's spine and he felt his entire body go completely cold.

"Kurt…I-I can't-"

Kurt's eyes flashed his disappointment and anger.

"Why!? Because of what other people will say!? Because of what the team might think!?"

Blaine was disoriented, desperately trying to find some solution.

"I'm not ready-"

Kurt challenged his words without a second thought.

"You offered to before!-"

Blaine felt himself slowly losing this battle.

"And I wasn't ready then either, Kurt! You knew that!"

Kurt glared at him, speaking with a harsh, condescending tone.

"Then when, Blaine? When will you be ready? Please tell me so I can mark it on my freakin' calendar!"

Blaine was struggling to stay afloat.

"Kurt-"

Kurt couldn't keep the hurt out of his voice, and he felt himself breaking just a little bit more with each word.

"No! No, I am sick and tired of-of…of all of this! For months I have waited for you! I-I've sat by and watched you try to insanely balance who you are and who everyone else thinks you are! I've compromised. I let things slide. I've stretch myself as far as I can possibly go and I can't handle it anymore!"

Kurt took a deep breath, holding back the tears he felt burning in his eyes, and summoned all the strength he had left.

"…I'm done, Blaine. I'm done waiting for you."

Kurt turned one last time, walking away from Blaine and towards the door. Blaine looked visibly sick, tears already creeping out and streaking down his cheeks as he managed to choke out a few more words.

"Does this mean we're breaking up?"

Kurt stopped, hand on the doorframe. That question was so finite, so drastic, so horrifying.

"I…I don't know."

And then Kurt left, he was out the door in a moment, each fading footstep pounding against Blaine's ear drums. He just sat there; lost, dazed, confused, broken. Desperately needing his other half, who was getting farther from him with every passing second.

His eyes were set on the door, a part of him still hoping that Kurt would come back. That he'd walk right back in the room and they'd fix this. They'd make it work. And everything would be okay again.

But he didn't.

Kurt was gone.