When Blaine arrived back at his apartment, he was completely worn. He felt like he'd been ripped open and stripped of his insides. The only thing he wanted was to get to know Iv-Kurt and he'd blown it. He opened the door to his bedroom, expecting to find Aaron sleeping in their bed, but there was no one. Furrowing his eyebrows, Blaine went into the kitchen -where he had left the note earlier- to find a similar note in Aaron's handwriting.

"Hey babe,

Got your note. Hope you had fun with Wes. I'm going to Andrew's for the night. Lisa left him; he's having a rough time. I'll see you tomorrow (later today, really).

Love you!

Aaron."

Oh. Well. That was probably for the best. He'd feel weird sharing a bed with Aaron after everything that had happened. Fuck. After all of this, he was still engaged. About to be married. To Aaron.

Admittedly, he'd been having second thoughts about everything for the past few months, but he figured it was just nerves.

But he'd cheated on Aaron, and he couldn't stop thinking about Kurt. He couldn't forget the color of his eyes, the soft feel of his skin; the blissful slide of his lips against his own.

He couldn't stand to be alone with his thoughts, though. And before he knew it, he was calling Wes.

"'Lo?" A groggy voice answered.

Blaine grimaced, only then realizing how late it was. "Hey, um… I know you're sleeping but-"

"Was." He grumbled.

"What?"

"Was. I was sleeping. You decided to interrupt that process." His tone was even but Blaine knew he was just giving him a hard time.

"Sorry." He apologized regardless of jest, "I just- I really need to talk to you."

"Oh." Wes seemed caught off guard. "Uh- yeah, just… go ahead."

"Actually, can I come over? Aaron's not home and I don't think I should be alone right now."

"Sure, man." Blaine could tell Wes was worried, "You know my door's always open. I'll see you in a few?"

Blaine sighed in relief, "Yeah. I'll be right there."

"So, what's going on?" Wes sat down on the couch across from Blaine, leaning forward over the coffee table, showing interest.

And Wes… God, he was such a good person. So caring and giving and genuinely nice and he always knew what to say and he would never, ever cheat on someone. He just cared and gave and never took; never selfish.

And that's how Blaine felt. He felt selfish. Because no matter how awful he knows he should feel about cheating on Aaron, he felt a thousand times worse that he couldn't just go find Kurt and do it all over again.

"I cheated on Aaron." He blurted; his emotions getting the better of him.

Wes' eyes widened, but he remained calm as he spoke, "Um… come again?"

"Wes, I-"Blaine swallowed the lump in his throat, fighting back the urge to start crying. "I cheated on Aaron."

"When?" The confusion was etched in Wes' voice.

"Today." Blaine felt small; ashamed that he could even be the type of person to do such a thing.

Wes furrowed his eyebrows, "Wait. Are you talking about at the club? Because Blaine, I know you don't usually do that sort of thing, but getting a lap dance from a stripper isn't cheating. And although Aaron may not be happy about –"

"It is cheating when you shove your tongue down their throat!" He clarified, interrupting Wes' thought.

Wes shut his mouth, frowning. "Oh…"

"Yeah, 'Oh.'" Blaine groaned, covering his face with his hands. "I fucked up. And the worst part is..." He trailed off, debating too late on what he wanted to share.

"There's more?" Blaine expected Wes to be mad, or have a tone of pretense due to the severity of Blaine's actions. Instead, Wes was just worried; his face showing concern for Blaine.

Blaine nodded, "The worst of it, is that even though what I did was horrible, and wrong, I know I'd do it again and again and never once would I regret it." He admitted.

Wes sat quietly, mulling everything over in his mind.

"How far exactly did you go?"

Blaine blushed, "We-uh… Well, we kissed, which you know- and there was a bit of… grinding involved." He paused, remembering something Kurt had said, "But Wes, you can't tell anyone because he could get in trouble."

Blaine pleaded and vaguely realized he sounded a bit like a child who'd gotten caught with his hand in the cookie jar.

Wes laughed, "You cheated on Aaron and you're worried about the stripper's job security?"

A spike of anger surged through Blaine, but he pushed it away, "I told you, I don't regret what I did Wes, and I don't appreciate being patronized right now, and Kurt isn't just 'a stripper'. I don't know. He's more than that which is why I needed to talk to you."

"Wait, 'Kurt'? I thought he said his name was Ivory or whatever." Blaine frowned but didn't elaborate. He didn't need to though; Wes put the pieces together himself. "He told you his real name? What- did you even get the lap dance that I paid for or were you too busy gabbing?"

Blaine blushed, "I told you what happened in that room, Wes. I'm sure that it was worth more than what you paid for." He paused as Wes sighed, "I went back there… when they were closing."

Wes' eyes widened, ushering Blaine to continue.

"I bought him flowers and I went back to the club to stop him on his way out. And we… went for coffee." He admitted hesitantly, expecting the worst reaction.

"Jesus, Blaine." Wes said in exasperation.

"I know. This is a mess, I know… but- well, okay. We were talking, and asking questions and just getting to know one another and I mentioned Aaron probably one time too many and he left; told me not to follow him."

Blaine felt regret heavy in his chest. He felt nauseous just thinking about the look on Kurt's face when he left the caf�.

"Why did you talk about Aaron so much?"

Blaine furrowed his eyebrows, "I don't know. I mean, he is my fianc� and I'd cheated on him and I guess I was just thinking out loud."

Wes closed his eyes and Blaine could tell that he was thinking hard about what to say next. He sensed that he was trying to be careful with the words he chose and the way he acted toward Blaine.

"Do you like this guy?"

"Kurt?"

Wes nodded, "Yes. Do you like Kurt?"

Blaine hesitated, though he knew the answer. Yes. Obviously he liked Kurt. It was plain as day. The man was beautiful, stunning, but more than that. He intrigued Blaine in a way that no other had before. And when he kissed him, god it was absolutely unbelievable. And he felt the need to do it again; he felt the need to learn Kurt inside and out. He wanted to know every sing thing about that man.

He wanted in so many ways; needed in so many more. And that is something he'd never felt with Aaron or anyone before in his life.

"Yes."

"Well, then there's only two options. Call off the wedding and pursue Kurt. Or go on with your life, and try to forget him."

Fear ran through him and before his brain could analyze where it was coming from, he was speaking, "I don't think I can forget him."

"Hello?" Blaine answered his phone, his eyes still closed from sleep.

"Blaine, where the hell are you? I know you said you'd be out late but it's one o'clock in the afternoon and you're still not here."

Blaine's eyes shot open. "Shit. I'm sorry Aar; I fell asleep at Wes' place. I should've sent you a text or something but I honestly wasn't thinking."

"Obviously. I was worried about you." Something about Aaron's tone threw Blaine off and he wondered if he had always sounded so… terse and abrasive.

"I'm sorry," He paused, "Look, babe, I actually really need to talk to you about something. But I want to do it in person."

"Well you could have if you'd slept here last night."

Blaine frowned, "I know…"

"Blaine, I'm not going to be able to talk today. I won't be at the apartment and you have wedding stuff to do anyway, don't you?"

Blaine sighed, a nervous pain in his stomach twisting in a way that made him feel sick.

"Please, Aaron… It's really important."

"I said I can't Blaine. I'll see you tonight. If you even come home."

Blaine was about to respond but Aaron had ended the call already.

"Fuck." He ran a hand through his dark mess of curls.

This issue was extremely time-sensitive, he had to talk to Aaron before Sunday and he wasn't making it any easier to for Blaine to do so.

"Blaine." Wes' voice sounded from his kitchen, "I'm going out. Feel free to stay here or leave; whatever."

"Thanks…" He replied as Wes appeared in the living room.

"You decide what you're going to do?"

Blaine shook his head. "I just know that I have to tell Aaron what I did. Who knows, maybe I'll get lucky and he'll decide for me."

"You mean break the wedding off himself?"

Blaine grimaced, but nodded.

Wes followed his gesture, returning it with a nod of his own, "If you ask me, it sounds like you already know what you want."

Blaine took a look at the list of wedding tasks that he had programmed in his phone.

His stomach twisted as he scrolled through. He should count himself lucky. They'd agreed on a very small, intimate wedding. Only immediate family would be there, and a few close friends – most of whom were in the wedding party.

He mulled over Wes' words from earlier. Had he really decided what he was going to do? Well, no- 'decided' may be the wrong word. That sort of gives the illusion that there was a conscious choice made. Blaine realized that that wasn't the case at all. He hadn't wanted to marry Aaron. He's merely been settling. But, despite the fact that this marriage wasn't what he wanted, he still felt obligated to go through with it.

Yes. That is exactly what a marriage should be based on: obligation. Blaine sighed, closing the calendar on his phone and calling the caterer.

"Yes, hello. This is Blaine Anderson of the Anderson-Bailey wedding?" Blaine pinched the bridge of his nose, squeezing his eyes shut and holding his breath, "Yes, I'm calling to tell you we're no longer in need of your services."

Blaine finished his calls, canceling the florist, the band, and various other services.

He knew he didn't have much time until Aaron found out what he'd done. The florist was his aunt's friend, who had very loose lips.

Leaving Wes' apartment, he decided that he needed to find out where Kurt was so he could talk to him.

He figured the place to go would be the place where it all started. He went back to the club.

"I'm sorry, guy, but I can't give out personal information of our employees."

Blaine sighed; he'd anticipated as much. "Well does he work tonight?"

The man looked hesitant to answer, and Blaine didn't blame him. He probably got this sort of thing a lot. Some creep has a good time and automatically assumes he has the right to more. And a man becoming infatuated with an exotic dancer was not altogether unheard of.

"Please sir, it's very important."

He grunted, which apparently was a somewhat grudging acquiescence to Blaine's request. "Yeah, he's here tonight. Has a few special clients, though… so it might be best to book something."

Blaine nodded, knowing full well that he was being taken for, "Anything. Do you take checks?"

His phone vibrated endlessly in his pocket. Blaine had been ignoring all of Aaron's calls and Wes' as well once he'd realized that he'd started calling too. He sat in his car outside the club, just waiting, letting his brain run away.

He wanted to be sure that he'd say the right thing. He couldn't afford to say anything stupid like he obviously had the night before.

He'd booked the first block of time with Ivory that had been available, which happened to be at 7:15pm. He glanced at the clock: 3:26pm.

He had no idea what he was going to do to pass the time, especially with his cell ringing incessantly. He could just turn it off… but that thought somehow scared him more than answering the damn thing.

He thought, maybe he should just answer it… get it over with. He'd have to deal with Aaron eventually, but he'd hoped to do it in person. Now everything was an even bigger mess.

He's canceled almost everything imaginable that was related to the wedding, he'd scared off Kurt by mentioned his soon-to-be-ex fianc�, and he still hadn't even told said fianc� that he was calling off the wedding.

Yes… he'd officially stepped in it. Actually, forget stepping – we're going to go straight on to swimming in it. The only thing that was keeping him sane was the fact that he was going to see Kurt in less than four hours.

His phone rang again. Aaron. Blaine groaned in frustration. Finally decided that he'd had enough, he answered the call. "Hello?" He tried to keep the irritation out of his voice.

"What the fuck is going on, Blaine? I hear from my Aunt Tessa that you canceled the flowers? What are you- we didn't talk about any of this Blaine. And then, I get an email from the caterer saying that they're 'sorry to see us change our mind'? What are you doing?"

"I told you I wanted to talk to you about something. Something important, Aar. If you would have just taken the time to listen to me, then maybe you wouldn't be so surprised."

"So… did you find better choices for these things? And wanted to run them by me? Is that it?"

"No." Blaine sighed, "No, that's not it, but I told you, I don't want to talk about this over the phone."

"Well tough shit, Blaine, because I demand to know what the fuck is going on with my own wedding."

Blaine's anger spiked, tears stinging in his eyes, "There's not going to be a wedding, okay?"

And he pressed and held the phone button until it shut off completely.

His emotions stole him completely, making him slump against the steering wheel and sob openly. The tears burned as they streamed down his face. Despite the fact that he didn't even want to go through with the wedding, the actual act of calling it off was taking its toll on him.

He'd gone through four years of his life with Aaron, a year of that engaged to him. He thought, for a long time, that he was the one that he was supposed to be with. And one night with someone else had changed everything that he had ever thought about love.

Love.

It would be insane to say that Blaine loved Kurt after spending such a short period of time with him and knowing so little about him.

But the connection between them was definitely something to be reckoned with, whether Kurt acknowledged it or not.

The tears slowed and eventually stopped. And there he sat; his head lying against the steering wheel; nothing to do and hours to waste. He wondered when exactly Kurt would start his night of work. The guy at the desk wouldn't tell him.

Another glance at the clock told him he had exactly three and a half hours left.

A food run and another bouquet of flowers purchased later, it was almost time for his appointment with Kurt. At about 6:45pm, a car pulled into the space next to him. He hadn't thought much of it, since it had happened a few times already.

But a knock on his window told him that Wes had decided to pay him a visit.

Rolling his window down, he smiled sheepishly at Wes. "Heyyyy, buddy."

Wes narrowed his eyes, "Don't 'hey buddy' me! What did you think you were doing hanging up on Aaron and then turning off your phone? You realize I've had to deal with his shit all day since you wouldn't answer either of our calls?"

Blaine grimaced, "I'm sorry, Wes… I told him that I wanted to talk in person. He chose to disregard that and disregard me, so screw him; I can do whatever I want. It's not like he was paying for very much of the wedding anyway."

Wes sighed, gesturing to the car, "May I?"

Blaine unlocked the doors and Wes walked around to the other side and sat in the passenger's seat.

"Blaine, I never told you this…" Wes started, taking a breath to prepare himself, "Aaron's an asshole."

Blaine was speechless. It had become more apparent to Blaine just how thick-headed and frustrating Aaron could be, but he had no idea that Wes felt that way about him. "Wha-?"

"Just… let me finish." Blaine obliged. "Ever since you guys started dating, I couldn't say anything, because you're stubborn and I know how you get about people that you like. And I thought it wouldn't last very long, to be honest. And then it was a year. Two. Three. And he proposed and just… I figured there must be something in him that you see and I don't."

Blaine nodded, understanding but stunned. "All this time? You never liked him?"

"Never." Wes admitted. "I mean, there were times, of course… when he was… tolerable. But he's most just a dick."

"I know… that this guy- Kurt- he's different. With Aaron, I'd never seen this… this extra glint in your eye; this determination. You're you again, Blaine. I just want you to be happy again. You haven't looked happy in four years…"

Blaine's gaze was set to his hands, fidgeting in his lap, "You're right…"

"Of course I am." He smirked.

Blaine laughed a wet, broken chuckled, "Yes, yes; you're the wonderful, great, Wesley the grand and you are all knowing, right?"

"Nail on the head, boy."

They sat in silence, smiling at the lightness of the exchange.

"So, what now?" Blaine asked.

"I may be all-knowing, Blaine. But you have to figure this out on your own."

"Well then what good are you?" He joked, elbowing him in the arm.

"I'm pretty good at stalling your ex-fianc� from trying to find you and give you a piece of his lowly evolved mind."

"Hmmm…" Blaine pondered playfully, "Yes, keep doing that. I have an appointment at 7:15pm. Could make or break this whole thing."

"You bought another lap lance from the stripper that you broke of your wedding for?"

"Well when you put it like that it sounds weird."

"Mmm. Yes. It was definitely my phrasing that did it."

"Shut up and go deal with Aaron."

"You sweet-talker, you!"

Kurt applied a last bit of hairspray, and made his way out of the changing room and into the main room. He stopped at the desk and took a look at the line-up. The name "James Bond" was written in the next time slot for him. He rolled his eyes; these guys get less and less creative with their aliases.

Before he could go look for the man in the crowd, the worker at the desk told him that his client was already waiting in room 3.

Making his way over to the room, he prepared himself as usual. Don't show any proof that you may not find him attractive. Do not make faces at him. Do not remark on his obviously inferior intellect by mocking his choice in 'covert names'. Just go in, do your thing – be charming, and get out.

He turned the handle of the door, and before he could even utter a general greeting, he was stunned into silence as his blue eyes fell onto oddly familiar honey-brown ones.

"Blaine?"

"Kurt, I-"

"Ivory." He corrected, instinctively. He grimaced at the broken look on Blaine's face, "Here, I'm Ivory." He added as a try for comfort.

Blaine seemed to relax. "Ivory… Please- don't ask me to leave, because I- I will and I really need to explain some things before I do, okay?"

Kurt nodded, finally closing the door behind him and advancing further into the room.

"First thing's first: I'm no longer getting married."

Kurt gasped, and was about to speak but Blaine held up a hand, "Please… I- I don't necessarily want to talk about Aaron, considering how well that went last night."

Kurt frowned, looking down at the floor. Blaine continued, "I'm just going to say that Aaron and I were never meant to get married, and… I want to thank you."

Kurt's head snapped up, his eyes meeting Blaine's once more.

"If I hadn't met you, I would have gone through with making the biggest mistake of my life. So thank you, K-Ivory."

Kurt nodded slowly, not really understanding, but accepting it as truth regardless.

"And I came here… to talk to you. To tell you that I'm- I'm still extremely interested in getting to know you. And I came to ask you if you would consider… going out with me… for- for lunch. Tomorrow?"

Kurt took a breath; this was so much to take in. This guy- this… gorgeous, sweet, funny guy had called off his wedding and he wants to take him on a date? He gets offers all the time – marriage proposals, sexual propositions, but never has he received on with such pure intentions.

At the heart of all of this was something real and not just some gross attempt to take advantage of Kurt. He was overwhelmed.

But... the hopeful, doe-eyed look on Blaine's face. The circumstances all stacked up in front of him. All of it was screaming at Kurt. There was only one answer.

"No."