When Quinn realises, her face betrays her anxiety for a split second, but just like Blaine she’s been taught to school her expression and suppress whatever she’s feeling. So instead of calling Blaine out on it, she kisses his cheek and walks away.

Blaine’s left behind. He watches Quinn leave with slumped shoulders. She is disappointed. They’ve been dating for almost a year so of course she’s disappointed.

And now Blaine is moving to Slovenia and this is how he’s going to leave things off?

“Quinn!” he yells and before he can stop himself, he sprints after her.

Quinn looks back over her shoulder and her eyes widen. She turns back to face him and she wants to say something, but before she can, Blaine plants a huge kiss on Quinn’s mouth. It’s utterly romantic and right out of a movie. It’s a passionate kiss between lovers in the midst of a crowded airport with one leaving the other behind.

Well, Blaine is leaving Quinn temporarily behind. He hopes to be back in Los Angeles in the summer and they’re going to do long distance.

Blaine kisses her fiercely in the hope that finally, finally, love will be spurred, but when Quinn breaks away to take a breath, he realises that he doesn’t feel any different. Kissing Quinn is nice, but it’s not the romance he is looking for and the realisation messes him up.

Why can’t he love her?

She loves him, why can’t he love her back?

Quinn smiles and fixes Blaine’s lapels. Her eyes are shining. All the previous disappointment has disappeared.

“See you in two months,” she says, still a bit out of breath. Quinn is indeed visiting in April.

“Right.”

“Call me when you land,” she says sweetly, “I don’t care about the time difference. I need to know you’re alright.”

“Right.”

“I love you.”

“… Right.”

Quinn’s smile falters a little bit when Blaine still doesn’t say he loves her, but she no longer looks devastated. She gives him a last small peck on the lips and then it’s ready to go. Blaine has a plane to catch.

Once Blaine lands in Ljubljana, he immediately calls Quinn, as promised. They talk briefly and Quinn is happy to hear that he’s landed safely. She congratulates Blaine on skipping Monday, since the time difference indeed made him skip Monday by flying from Sunday noon to Monday evening. That is nice.

“Do you know where to go next?” she asks.

Blaine hums. Of course he does. Quinn knows too, but it is nice of her to ask. Blaine has an apartment in the city and he tells Quinn he’ll be fine. His dad arranged it all. After all, that’s why Blaine’s here. He’s in Ljubljana to oversee the first European expansion of the family business.

“But why Lulj-Lju-Jul-” Quinn had muttered when Blaine first told her.

“Ljubljana.”

“Where even is that?”

“It’s the capital of Slovenia.”

“And where even is that?”

“East or Central Europe, right to Italy, underneath Hungary and Austria, and Croatia is to the right.”

Quinn had pouted.

“Yes, but why there? Why not London or Paris or Amsterdam? Why go somewhere that no one has heard of.”

This was a question that had been on Blaine’s mind as well, but Blaine’s dad was certain that Slovenia was the right country since it is incredibly prosperous compared to the other Balkan countries and it’s central position was great. It’s up and coming in the European Union, which is something that he liked as well.

Blaine admittedly didn’t care.

He just wanted to go away from everyone.

From Quinn.

Of course, he doesn’t tell Quinn that. He and Quinn continue to talk over the phone while Blaine claims his suitcases at the baggage claim. Once he’s outside the airport and he starts looking for a taxi he tells Quinn he has to go.

“Of course,” she says, “I love you, speak to you soon.”

Another I love you. She must be desperate to hear Blaine say it back and the pit in his stomach only grows. He cares for her, he really does. They’re a team. They’ve been a team ever since they met at Yale. He’d say that Quinn is his best friend, but he can’t say that he loves her. It makes him feel uneasy and sure Blaine’s never been in love before but he’s pretty sure that is not how it goes.

But he needs to push that away for now. He can’t dwell on his questionable relationship. He’s in a new country!

Luckily, another reason for picking Ljubljana is that Ljubljana has a high English proficiency. Blaine’s looked up some Slovene basics, but he can tell a taxi driver where to go in English and it’s a relief. He’s spent. He doesn’t have the energy to figure it out in Slovene.

Since Blaine lives in the city centre, it is a bit of a hassle to get there, but once he sets foot in his furnished apartment he finds his way to the bedroom and falls on the bed.

It’s been a long two days. He needs sleep. Life can continue tomorrow.

The apartment might’ve been furnished, but it is not stocked. That’s why Blaine immediately goes out into the city to find something to eat. He passed a grocery store yesterday on his taxi journey. Since he forgot to charge his phone in his exhaustion and he cannot open Google Maps, he decides to find it based on memory.

Which soon turns out to be a mistake.

Ljubljana is a relatively small capital, but it is still big enough to get lost if you’re new. Blaine keeps walking aimlessly and he follows the big main road until he sees a small park area. His stomach is still grumbling, but he’s intrigued. He knows that Tivoli Park is just outside the centre, so the greenery is a nice surprise.

His joy gets doubled when he sees a pizza place. It might not be the smartest idea, but Blaine walks towards it.