It was late at night – somewhere probably around eleven, though no one was really bothered with the time – and Kurt, Blaine, Finn, and Rachel were walking in Battery Park. Finn and Rachel were walking about twenty feet ahead of Kurt and Blaine, who had slowed to a stroll to take in the calmness of the park at night.

While Kurt talked endlessly about his new job and how his boss was kind of a The Devil Wears Prada kind of bitch, only not really, and, yeah, Broadway was still his dream, but maybe fashion wouldn't be so bad in the meantime and, oh my god, did I tell you that Rachel might sort of be dating this guy Brody and how awful is that for Finn because he came all the way up here from Georgia to fix things with her and a million other things Blaine was having a hard time concentrating on.

All he could think was that he was doing the right thing tonight.

Kurt looked over at him and Blaine must have looked pained or sick or something because he said, "Are you okay? You're being really quiet and look like someone just murdered your best friend."

"I uh…" Blaine glanced over to where Finn and Rachel stood, making sure that they were still sufficiently preoccupied. He really didn't want an audience for this. "We need to talk."

"Four words no one ever wants to hear," Kurt said airily. "But continue." He smiled and Blaine almost faltered because what if he never saw that smile again and…

No, he was doing the right thing.

"I was thinking that maybe we should… should take a um… you know, a break. From each other," he tacked on at the end, not looking Kurt in the eye – he didn't want to see the hurt there, especially not because he was the cause of it.

"W-What?" Kurt stammered and Blaine could already hear the tears in his boyfriend's voice and had to choke back his own – he'd cry later.

"I think that we should take a break," Blaine repeated, the words not coming out any easier the second time around.

"But why? I mean, I know it's been hard with me here and you in Ohio, but I thought we were making it work. We call and text and Skype each other all the time, not to mention email and Facebook and Twitter. It's… almost like I never even left. Why do you want to mess that up?"

"It's just," Blaine paused, running a hand over his gelled hair, trying to phrase what he wanted to say just right so Kurt understood where he was coming from. "I listen to you talk about how amazing everything here is and now seeing you here…" He paused and took Kurt's hand in his own. Kurt didn't exactly hold back, but he didn't pull away, either. "You're just… you're glowing, Kurt - you're happier than I've ever seen you. You belong here, in New York, and I can't help but feel like I'm holding you back from really experiencing everything New York has to offer."

Now Kurt pulled his hand away and stared at Blaine. "Are you seriously doing this right now?" he asked angrily, blue eyes blazing in the faint light from the nearest lamppost. "Because, yeah, New York's great, but this," he jabbed Blaine in the chest, right where his heart was, "this is where I belong, Blaine. Right here."

Blaine had to fight harder to control his tears this time, but still refused to let them fall. "Kurt, just hear me out, okay?" Kurt sighed, sounding much like he did when Finn was being less than intelligent, with just a touch of heartbreak mixed in. "I don't know how to explain this, but I really need you to understand. I will always love you and I will always be there for you, no matter what. But right now you don't need anything tying you to Ohio, me included."

"What?" Kurt burst out, his voice barely above a whisper. Then, in a normal tone, "Blaine, this is insane. There's always going to be things tying me to Ohio – my family, the New Directions, all my memories – because, as much as I hate the place, it is where I grew up and it'll always be a part of me. So it's pointless to try and cut my ties to Ohio, because that's literally impossible."

Damn, when Kurt said it like that, Blaine wanted to take it all back and pull Kurt into his arms and promise to never hurt him again. But then that small part of his mind spoke up again, reminding Blaine that – at least for now – this was what was best for Kurt. "It's just… I feel like you're not really living your life here because you're waiting for me."

"That's because you are my life, Blaine. I can't really enjoy New York without you because everything reminds me of you." Kurt was crying openly now and Blaine couldn't help but think of how beautiful he was when he cried. "Please, please don't do this to me. I've already lost so much – don't make me lose you, too."

Blaine tried to take Kurt's hand again, but this time the other boy pulled away, not that Blaine could blame him. "You are beautiful, Kurt, and you are the best thing that has ever happened to me."

"Please…" Kurt begged.

"And even though this is killing me, I think this is what's best for you right now. I don't want anything holding you back from living your life. And…" He took a shuddering breath, forcing the words out of his mouth. "If you, you know, wanted to date other people, I won't – I won't hate you for it, I swear." Even though the idea of Kurt being held by another guy, kissed by him, made Blaine sick to his stomach, Blaine would deal with it if that's what Kurt wanted.

"Stop, just stop!" Kurt said loudly, causing Finn and Rachel to glance in their direction. Blaine tried to reach out to Kurt again, to apologize, but Kurt shook his head, put his hand over his mouth, and practically ran away, leaving Blaine alone in the middle of a dark park in a strange city.

When Kurt was out of view, Blaine sank to the ground right there and sobbed until he didn't have any tears left to cry.