Blaine had planned to begin to pull away from Kurt subtly and slowly while they were alone. Just with the little things, like cuddling and kissing. They only needed to kiss for the public, and its not like they had to "get used to it" anymore. However, his plan failed after barely two weeks, in which he saw Kurt a total of four times.

Kurt noticed right away.

He let it go the first few times, but Blaine noticed the confusion in Kurts eyes whenever he would sit farther away than normal, or avoid kissing him hello and goodbye.

By the time hed gone to Kurts for the fifth time and tried to get out of kissing him hello, Kurt spoke up.

"Are you feeling okay?" He asked, concern seeping through his voice as he led Blaine to the couch. He pulled Blaine down next to him, but Blaine scooted a little farther away than usual, causing Kurt to send him a look of confusion.

"Yeah, Im... Im all right." Blaine shrugged one shoulder nervously, but he knew he wasnt being very convincing.

"Are you sure? You seem a little.... I dont know, jittery, I guess..." Kurt laid a hand on his arm and Blaine looked at it for a moment.

"...oh." Blaine couldnt think of anything else to say.

"Ill make you some tea, okay?" Kurt said with a warm smile as he stood up quickly.

"You dont have to do that, Kurt..."

"Nonsense! I want to, Silly!" Kurt laughed as he put the kettle on and Blaine watched him from the doorway. Well, at least he wasnt getting mad. Maybe Kurt knew that this was coming to an end soon as well.

You got a fast car
I want a ticket to anywhere
Maybe we make a deal
Maybe together we can get somewhere
Any place is better
Starting from zero got nothing to lose
Maybe well make something
Me myself I got nothing to prove

You got a fast car
Is it fast enough so we can fly away?
We gotta make a decision
Leave tonight or live and die this way

You got a fast car
We go cruising, entertain ourselves
You still aint got a job
And I work in a market as a checkout girl
I know things will get better
Youll find work and Ill get promoted
Well move out of the shelter
Buy a bigger house and live in the suburbs

You got a fast car
I got a job that pays all our bills
You stay out drinking late at the bar
See more of your friends than you do of your kids
Id always hoped for better
Thought maybe together you and me find it
I got no plans I aint going nowhere
So take your fast car and keep on driving

So remember when we were driving, driving in your car
Speed so fast I felt like I was drunk
City lights lay out before us
And your arm felt nice wrapped round my shoulder
And I had a feeling that I belonged
I had a feeling I could be someone, be someone, be someone

You got a fast car
Is it fast enough so you can fly away?
You gotta make a decision
Leave tonight or live and die this way

Blaine poured his heart into the music on the stage at Giovannis, even more than he usually did. He didnt want to think about what was going on in his life right now. He just shut out all of his emotions and thoughts and let the music feel for him. That always seemed to be the best remedy for him.

"Well that was... moving, to say the least." Kayleigh said carefully as she met Blaine in the backstage break room.

"You hated it." Blaine said flatly as he buried his face in his hands and dug the heels of his palms into his eyes.

"I did not." Kayleigh replied firmly as she strode across the room to join him on the couch. "But I know somethings up. Whats wrong, B?" She rested her hand on his back and waited patiently for him to speak.

"Im all right, Kayleigh, honestly." Blaine lied. He was far from all right. Or maybe he was just being overdramatic. The fact that he was probably about to lose Kurt for good shouldnt have an effect on him, not in the way it had, at least. Sure, he was his best friend and they told each other everything, but hey, thats Hollywood. People replace friends all the time; thats just how the city works.

"You can tell me," Kayleigh whispered after a few quiet moments. "Is it something with your family? Or... Does it have something to do with Kurt?" Blaine shook his head furiously, still hiding his face in his palms. She was very good at reading his expressions.

"Its... Dont worry about it right now, Kay." Blaine muttered, his voice muffled slightly by his arms in front of his face. "I just need some time to... figure everything out. Ive got a lot going on right now." He finally schooled his expression and lifted his chin to look over at her. "Ill be okay." He tried a small smile to reassure her.

"Are you sure, B?" Kayleigh didnt let up on her concern, but Blaine squeezed her hand and changed the subject.

"Im sure. Now tell me about Cannon. You start training next week, right? Have you talked to your boss about where youre starting?" Kayleighs eyes lit up as she began to talk about her new job. Her last day at Gios was the following week, and though she was sad to go, she was incredibly excited about the world opening up for her. Blaine couldnt help but smile as she spoke animatedly and explained everything. He really was happy for his best friend. And at least at the end of all of this, hed still have Kayleigh.

Kurts nice and patient behavior didnt last very long. It was another week or so of evaded kisses and sitting farther and farther away before he snapped.

Kurt had just walked into Blaines apartment and Blaine turned away from yet another kiss, causing Kurt to groan in frustration.

"Whats wrong, Blaine?" Kurt asked sternly, a little concerned but more so confused. Blaine thought he heard some annoyance in Kurts voice, but he tried his best to ignore that.

"Um, nothing. Nothings wrong." Blaine tried to sound nonchalant, but failed when his voice cracked.

"Really? Because you havent kissed me in weeks." Kurt still sounded concerned, but the annoyance was trickling in more now.

"Its not that I dont... Sorry, I just..." Blaine couldnt find the words to say what he wanted to.

"Whats wrong, Blaine?" Kurt asked again as he pulled Blaine over to the couch and sat down. He tried to pull Blaine down next to him, but Blaine sat down a few feet away and pulled his hands to himself. "This is what Im talking about. Why do you keep pulling away?"

"I dont... I dont know if this is a good idea." Blaine muttered to his lap.

"If whats a good idea?"

"Maybe we should just..." He trailed off and sighed. "This is for the media, right?"

"What?"

"You and me? Thats what this was about, the media. And at first we shared a lot of personal things, and yes, its perfectly okay to need comfort and to want to comfort someone, but why do we still do it? How often do friends just cuddle up on each other like we do? Dont you think its strange?" Blaine didnt look at Kurt and he spoke barely above a mutter throughout but his words came across.

"Well, yeah, but Blaine, Ive never... were supposed to be close, arent we?"

"Yeah, but maybe not... as close as weve been..." Blaine fidgeted nervously.

"So what? You just want to keep it media only?" Kurt sighed in frustration. "Blaine, I thought we were passed this."

"We are..."

"So why have you been avoiding me? Youre acting as if were in middle school and have to keep two feet between us at all times. I dont have the plague, Blaine." Kurt was definitely annoyed now. He crossed his arms and waited for a response.

"I just... maybe we should..." Blaine trailed off, trying to find the right words.

"We should what?" Kurt asked.

"...Stop." Blaine said quietly, unable to look at Kurt. They were both silent for a moment; Blaine wanted to look up and try to read Kurts expression, but he couldnt bring his eyes above his own lap.

"Stop... what?" Kurt asked with confusion ringing in his voice.

"I... I cant hold you back anymore." Blaine lifted his eyes only slightly before changing his mind and turning to the wall instead. He felt like such a coward, but he couldnt put himself through the pain of what he might have found in Kurts eyes. If Kurt was upset, Blaine wouldnt have been able to handle it. On the other hand, if Kurt didnt seem to care, Blaine would have completely broken.

"What are you holding me back from?" Kurt tried, sounding a little desperate. "I dont... I dont understand."

"Im holding you back from so much, Kurt." Blaine finally looked at Kurt to find his eyes swimming with unshed tears, though out of frustration or sadness, Blaine couldnt tell. He could tell, however, that Kurt knew where this was headed. "You have an amazing life, and it could be so much more. You promised me this and youve already helped me so much and... I just cant take anything more from you. I dont know how Ill ever be able to repay you for your kindness and your friendship, but I need to stop being selfish about this and let you be your own person again."

"Be my..." Kurt spoke in disbelief and squeezed his eyes tight, shaking his head frantically as if that would dispel the tears. "Wow, okay. So, what? You just want to end this and pretend like it never happened?" Kurts voice rose angrily as he stood and began pacing the room. "Should we go back to being ‘just friends or should we just pretend like we never met? Or, better yet, we can stage some huge, dramatic break-up because this was all about the press anyway, so we may as well end it with a bang!"

"Kurt, I just—"

"Why are you hiding from this?" Kurt shouted as he finally stopped pacing and turned to Blaine.

"What—I... hiding...?" Blaine spoke in a small voice, unsure of what Kurt meant.

"You had these spurts of being so affectionate and I mean, come on, Blaine, there was no way you were acting with that and then youd pull back and then give more and its been this back and forth ever since we started this whole thing but you cant deny that its been more than just superficial this whole time." Kurt furiously ran his hands through his hair, messing up its perfect coif, but he didnt seem to even notice, let alone care.

"You... you asked me to do this because you wanted to help me," Blaine said quietly, trying to piece together what Kurt was trying so hard to get across to him. "We had a deal to—"

"Stop thinking about the fucking deal for one second!" Kurt let out a frustrated sigh and pinched the bridge of his nose. "You know what the problem is?" He said quietly, a calm, angry tone that made Blaine more unnerved than the shouting. "You wont stop thinking about it. You cant let me in enough to forget about the deal we made and its just getting in the way of your feeling anything for me." He dropped his hand and looked at Blaine again, dejection filling his eyes. "You wont let me in enough to show you how amazing I think you are."

Blaine stared at Kurt, dumbstruck for a moment. Kurt didnt think that of him; he couldnt. And what was he talking about, anyway? Of course he let Kurt in; he told him all about Casey and everything that followed with what happened. Kurt knew more about him than even Kayleigh did. And not only that, Kurt was the one to propose the deal in the first place. They laid out the rules before they decided to go through with it so they could avoid a mess like this.

"Thats not—thats not fair." Blaine said desperately, trying to explain. Kurt should understand; he was a part of this from the beginning. He knew what they were getting into.

"No, you know whats not fair? Being able to convince the entire world that youre in love with someone but not being able to prove to that one person that those feelings may actually be real!" Kurt was breathing heavily and there were tears in his eyes once more but Blaine was too caught up in his own internal argument to notice.

"You werent supposed to have feelings for me!" Blaine was now raising his voice as well. Why didnt Kurt get it? It would be easier for both of them just to... "We said that this was just for the media and that our relationship would stay platonic!"

"IT WAS NEVER PLATONIC, BLAINE!" Kurt shouted and Blaine stopped for a moment, taking a deep breath as Kurt continued. "It hasnt been since we first kissed, and youre lying to yourself if you try to believe otherwise!" Kurt breathed heavily and stared at Blaines speechless form. "This whole relationship wasnt even platonic from the beginning. Maybe I didnt know it then, but I do now, and I know you do too."

Blaine was still speechless as Kurt sat back down in the armchair next to the couch and rubbed his temples. Blaine dropped back down onto the couch and watched him, unsure of what to say. He knew that Kurt was right, but those feelings he had for him stemmed from their friendship and how close they had become. The things theyd shared between them had made Blaine want to get closer and open up more, but that was just how they were. That wasnt as a result of...

He just didnt even know anymore.

"Kurt, I..." He reached out and tried to take Kurts hand but Kurt pulled it away sharply with a harsh intake of breath.

"I should... I should just go." He said quietly, standing up and blinking his eyes rapidly, though the tears still came. "If you need... If you need me to keep doing this for you, I will. I said I would help you and I meant it." He moved towards the door as he spoke, wiping under his eyes frantically as he went. "It might kill me to be close to you like that, but I care about you and I want you to be successful; you really do deserve it." He grabbed his coat and had the door closed behind him before Blaine could even get a word out, too stunned to speak.