A/N: I didn't even realize how close to the end we are. At most, there's five chapters left.

Chapter 26: Breaking Apart

One Month Later

Rachel urged her phone to ring. Something, please. Ever since Blaine and Jeff and David had gone for coffee last month, Blaine had become distant. Even when they went out clubbing together, he seemed to be gravitating more towards his ex. Rachel was fine with it- he still paid plenty of attention to her, and she didn't want to be that girlfriend. As time went on, he spent less and less time with her. Still enough to keep her from complaining, but it was getting ridiculous. But now, this week, he hadn't even called her like he usually did. He wasn't at the show. And this worried Rachel. She knew there was a possibility that he had been detained at Sandhurst, but he usually found some way of contacting her so she wouldn't worry.

She and Kurt sat in their apartment, having a Barbra-thon. They were watching her favorite, Funny Girl. And Barbra was killing Don't Rain on My Parade. Even though nothing changed, it always seemed to get better with every time Rachel watched it. She buried her head on Kurt's shoulder, having just checked the clock again. 12:30 am. She'd need to go to bed soon, but she kept hoping Blaine would show up.

"Go to bed, boo," Kurt whispered, "You have an early show in the morning. And Eva needs her rest. If Blaine comes in, I'll send him in with you. Okay?" Rachel yawned and nodded. She got up slowly, and made her way to her room. She tossed and turned for a good hour, but she finally got to sleep.

She woke up, hearing movement in the living room. Dazed and tired, she checked the clock. 4:30 am. Were they being burglarized? She grabbed the knife she kept in her nightstand and crept into the room. The refrigerator was open; she could see its light from over the counter. Rachel's grip on the knife tightened, and the refrigerator closed. She could see the silhouette. And she knew it.

"Blaine?" She whispered, "What the hell are you doing?"

"Hungry," Blaine replied, "Giiiiive me some food, Rachel!"

"Where have you been?"

"With David. And Thad. And Jeff." Rachel narrowed her eyes. She should have known. This was total ludicrous.

"And you were going to call me when…?"

"Jeff took my cell phone." Rachel didn't really mean to get angry. She hadn't planned on it. But it was 4:30 in the morning, he hadn't bothered to call her, and he had been with his ex-boyfriend. This wasn't cool.

"Get out," she hissed.

"What… why?"

"Get out of my apartment. Now."

"But… but… baby…"

"GET OUT, BLAINE. PLEASE!" She exclaimed, tears streaming down her face. She heard the door to the other bedroom open, and she felt Kurt's arms wrap around her. She knew that she was just giving up- but she had seen this before. It had happened between her, Blaine, and Wes. The only difference was the romantic background between Jeff and Blaine. And Rachel really wanted to keep fighting, she did. But she knew what Wes went threw, and she was afraid. Afraid she'd have nothing left in the end. Afraid that Jacob would no longer want to talk to Kurt (and if she couldn't be happy, she'd be damned if her brother couldn't be). And she hoped that if she let him go, let him make his mistakes… he'd come back to her. She hoped. Because she knew that what she and Blaine had was true love, and as much as Jeff may be trying to change that… he would never succeed. And maybe she was wrong, but if she was… well, then she'd done the right thing. At least Blaine could be happy, even if she wasn't. The thought of going back to Finn or someone like him (good looking, sure, but not that bright…) disgusted her.

"What's going on?" Kurt asked, glaring at Blaine.

"Find out what your sister's problem is, would ya, Kurt?"

"What the hell, Blaine?" Rachel's brother snapped, "Rachel has every right to be upset! And I believe she asked you to leave!"

"What if I don't want to?"

"Well then I'm sure the paparazzi would love to hear about the golden prince having the police called on him!"

"What are they going to do, Kurt? I'm the queen's grandson! They won't do anything. And you know it!"

"JUST GET OUT!" Rachel shouted, "PLEASE, BLAINE. PLEASE."

"I'm not going until you told tell me why, Rach. I freaking love you! I'd like to know why you're kicking me out of this apartment."

"Because, Blaine, isn't it obvious what's happening? Jeff has been trying to steal you since day one! And the worst part is… you're letting him!"

"I'm not letting him do anything, Rachel! It's not my fault that I evidently have a jealous girlfriend!"

"IF YOU DIDN'T WANT A JEALOUS GIRLFRIEND THEN YOU SHOULDN'T HAVE KISSED ME ON THAT DAMN STAGE, BLAINE."

"Why are you yelling at me?" Blaine asked, genuinely confused, "I love you, baby. I really do."

"Well if you love me then, you'll get out and give me some time, Blaine. I love you too… but… this is just too much right now."

"Okay, Rach. But… I haven't given up on us. I'll always be there for you."

He was gone in a second. Rachel leaned into Kurt, sobbing. He tried to sooth her, but it didn't really work. She kept sobbing.

"I'm leaving!" She said quickly, "I'm going back to New York… and then I'm gonna get on Broadway, I swear!"

"Don't leave, Rach," Kurt replied, "You can't. The press is involved too, sweetie. And once word of this gets out about this, they're gonna do anything imaginable to get a reaction from you. Keep strong, and show them that you're Rachel Barbra Berry, and you don't need a man to help you." Rachel considered what he said for just a minute, and nodded.

"Because I don't. I'm too fierce to let a man- especially a prince- get me down. But I'm gonna need your help."

"I'll be here whenever you need me, sweetie."

This was really, really hard for me to write. Don't worry. This is a happy story, remember?