"If you want to stay and watch, I can't prevent that, but please stop funneling information about me to Blaine. Think of him like you would if I were funneling information about you to Brody."

She huffed. "Why would you do that? You know what he did to me."

"Brody lied by omission. Blaine cheated on me and said that it was my fault."

"He's really sorry."

"Rachel, stop. Regardless of whether you think I should take him back, he was my boyfriend, so it's my decision not yours. It's inappropriate for you to provide information about me to my ex when I don't want you to. Think about it. He cheated on me 11 months ago."

"But the wedding."

"Was a huge mistake, as I mentioned the last time you brought it up. That night was just one more verse of the song about how he isn't a man of his word. He said it was just a hookup. His exact words were 'bros helping bros'. And afterwards, he said the completely opposite. He manipulated me into having sex with him. He said us being together on Valentine's proved that we were meant to be together for every Valentine's for the rest of our lives."

"Finn said something very similar. It was really romantic. He said that no matter who I was with that he and I were endgame. He came to New York and confronted Brody."

"Which was completely uncalled for and wrong of him and not romantic at all. It was controlling and creepy. If I had known he was here, I would have done everything in my power to prevent that. It wasn't right at all. Brody never did anything to Finn. You weren't Finn's girlfriend. And you aren't a piece of property for two men to physically fight for. You were with Brody in an open relationship. Brody did not cheat on you. Yes, he lied by omission about his job. He may have loved you or cared for you deeply, but he never promised to be faithful to you. And even if he had, it wasn't Finn's place to come swooping in like a vigilante. Despite what movies and TV show, what he did wasn't romantic or loving. Finn could have gone to jail for that if Brody had pressed charges. It was assault, pure and simple."

Rachel was silent.

"Like I was saying, that night after the wedding reception - that was willful deception. He said it was one thing, and then after the fact, he said that it was something else. It's like being given $1000, and then after you spend it being told that it was a loan, not a gift. Willful deception.'"

"Fine. I get it. You're not going to take him back."

"I'm not. Ever. I love Sebastian. Actually, call Blaine back when I sing again. Maybe one last song will get it through his head."

Kurt got up and put his name back on the list one last time. He sat down at the table. He pulled a song up on his phone and showed it to Sebastian. "Do you know this song?"

He nodded. "Do you want me to sing it with you?"

Kurt nodded. "With the karaoke machine."

"Sure."

"What is it?" Dani asked.

He showed her.

"Aww. That will be sweet."

"I'm going to be sick, aren't I?" Santana asked as she reached to turn the phone where she could see the screen. "I am." She rolled her eyes, but winked at Kurt.

"You take the melody. I'll sing the high harmony."

Sebastian nodded.

Chandler spoke up and said, "I'm sorry to bail on what will surely be an epic duet, but I have a few things I still need to do tonight and an early class in the morning. I'll reserve a room again for next Sunday and text everyone the room number as soon as I can." He stood up.

Elliott joined him. "I need to get going too. I'll see you all next Sunday. I'd love to help orchestrate those two new songs of yours, Kurt. I know they're kind of downers and not at all like our other songs, but I think that's good. Not everyone is looking for upbeat music all the time."

"That would be amazing. Thanks. I saw Isabelle recording it. Why don't you give her your email and she can send it to you and we can talk."

They waved to Chandler as he left. Kurt's name came up again while Elliott was putting his email into Isabelle's phone. He waved towards the stage as he left afterwards.

Kurt and Sebastian sang "Truly, Madly, Deeply". Kurt took Sebastian's hand and interlaced their fingers as they sang through the ending.

I'll be your dream.

I'll be your wish.

I'll be your fantasy.

I'll be your hope.

I'll be your love.

Be everything that you need.

I'll love you more with every breath.

Truly, madly, deeply do.

When they finished, he turned and hugged Sebastian tightly before they left the stage. Sebastian followed Kurt to Rachel's table. He stepped behind her and squatted to get to the right height to see her phone screen.

"Flip it back so he can see us instead of the stage, please." Kurt requested.

She did as asked.

"It's been nearly 11 months since you made a choice , not a mistake, a choice - one that resulted in us breaking up. You manipulated my father into bringing you here for Christmas, which was very uncomfortable. And you willfully deceived me about the nature of the time we spent together when I was in Lima in February. You changed the reason you gave me for the choice you made at the picnic. And you never provided a signed copy of a document I requested before I would agree to return to dating you. You may have considered it a done deal, but without the requested document, there was no deal. You asked me to marry you, I turned you down. That's the end. There is no more story to tell because there is no us . There is you, who now attends college in Ohio. And there is me, who attends college in New York City. But there is no us ."

Sebastian spoke calmly. "Blaine, you screwed up. You didn't treat someone amazing the way he deserved. That's on you. He's not an object to be won back. He's not your soulmate. If he were, you would not have cheated on him."

Blaine tried to speak.

"No, stop. Actions have consequences. As Kurt said, you made a choice. Now, you have to live your life with the choices you've made. As Kurt mentioned, the two of you are not in any type of relationship. You need to live your own life and move on. Make a life for yourself where you are."

"You liked me, not Kurt."

"Wrong, but irrelevant. We're both made it clear that we're not interested in having any type of contact with you. You're attending a world-renowned music school. Make the most of it. Become the best musician you can be."

Kurt nodded. "He's right, Blaine. Oberlin is a highly respected music school. You shouldn't take Rachel's absolutely one-in-a-million occurrence of getting a lead role on Broadway as anything that would happen to anyone but her. There are people who graduate from top musical theater programs that never get lead roles. There are people, like Rachel, who get lead roles without a degree. Getting a role is based more on what the director is looking for, either in looks or in skills or a combination of the two. But being the best you can be will always make succeeding more likely. I meant what I said in the song I wrote. I don't hate you. I don't have it in me to hate. But you've tried my patience and I'm through. We split up almost a year ago. We're not getting back together. Stop trying to interact with me, even by proxy. I wish you the best." Kurt reached out and ended the call.

Kurt moved to the seat next to Rachel and faced her. "We're through, Rachel. I love you. You know that. I had hoped that you would change, but you're still so self-centered that you see Blaine and me as actors with side roles in The Life and Times of Rachel Berry. I'm officially bowing out. You can audition people for my role. If you ever get some help and stop treating the people who truly care about you like extras, I might reconsider being a part of your life, but not until then. And even then, I'll only return as an equal, not your 'best gay', which is a term you know I hate. I love and respect myself enough now to not let people keep hurting me." He stood up.

Before he could walk away, she said, "You're friends with Santana. She was terrible to you in high school."

"Actually in high school, I wasn't really on her bullying radar. And she went out of her way to find a way for me to come back to McKinley safely. And the important part is that she's grown up and changed. I admit she's done some crappy stuff since high school. That's why I moved out of the loft, but she's made changes since then. This is her final chance to be part of my life and she knows that." He reached out for Sebastian and led him away from the table.

They sat back down together with Santana, Dani, and Isabelle.

"So, what was going on up there with Rachel?"

"She was FaceTiming with Blaine."

"That wench!" Santana started to stand.

Dani put her hand on Santana's shoulder and spoke quietly. "We like this place. If you cause a scene and get kicked out or banned, we will have to look for a new venue where we can perform."

"Fine, but only because I like singing here." She sat down.

"He ended their friendship," Sebastian said.

"About damn time."

"Santana, you know she can be fun and caring. She just can't seem to move past her self-centeredness."

Santana shrugged and looked at Sebastian. "Did you threaten him within an inch of his life?"

Sebastian answered her sternly. "No. Kurt's not mine to control or speak for."

Kurt said, "You're the one who instigated Finn to come here and assault Brody. That was so wrong. Finn didn't own Rachel. She wasn't his property to defend like a stolen cow or something."

Dani laughed.

"Brody was treating her wrong," Santana defended herself.

"They were in an open relationship. If she didn't want that, then she shouldn't have agreed to it."

"Being a prostitute is a lot different-"

Kurt cut her off. "Brody lied to Rachel. That's it. It may have been a doozy of a lie, but he did not cheat on her. You were out of line to confront him publicly like you did."

She didn't respond.

"Are things any better at the theater?"

"No, not really. She's not winning friends and influencing people, at least not in a good way. She listens to instruction better than she would have in high school, but she still just carries herself with this air of superiority."

"Pot calling the kettle black. You weren't much different in high school. She rose to the top of the social ladder much later than you, but you know that a lot of what you did and who you did in high school was to keep your social status."

"Yeah."

"She's not even 19. She won't be until December. She wasn't even 15 yet when Shelby had Jesse pull that crap."

"I get it."

"I don't," Dani said.

Sebastian was in the dark as well.

Kurt and Santana explained it quickly.

Dani said, "That's seriously fucked up."

"It was," Kurt agreed.

"Shelby should be in jail," Isabelle said.

Kurt nodded in agreement. "Shelby, Mr. Schue, April, and Sue Sylvester. We didn't have the best adult role models."

Kurt went on. "And Finn was a stupid teenage boy and cheated with her. And after they were together, he broke up with her once to go out with you and Brittany. You know how that went." He glared at Santana.

"I was a bitch in high school."

"And you didn't have any friends you could trust back then either. Not even Brittany. I know you loved her then, but what she did with that video was truly terrible."

"I know she wasn't trying to hurt me, but I've had guys meow at me here in New York. I will never escape that." She briefly explained it to Isabelle."

Kurt said, "What you did to Brody had the same effect. He doesn't have a rich family backing him to attend NYADA. He's persona non grata at NYADA now - the lowest of the low socially. He couldn't quit what he was doing and stay in school. Being a sex worker is his choice, not yours. You had no right to out him like that. He's going to face people slut-shaming him for a long time because people talk. I've told Rachel this before, but the gossip chain at NYADA is the most efficient part of the school. Everyone knows that he's an escort now. You were outed. And then you outed him. You know what that's like."

"I didn't think about it like that. I was trying to be a good friend to Rachel, to not let him get away with lying to her and potentially hurting her permanently by, like, giving her AIDS or something."

"Publicly humiliating him wasn't the way to achieve that. You could have come up with a discreet way, one that wouldn't have tarred and feathered him at school."

"You're right. I'll find him and apologize. Not that it will do any good because it can't be undone."

"It's the right thing to do though."

"Being decent sucks."

Sebastian laughed. "Been there, said that. It's easier to just lash out when we're hurt, but it being easier doesn't make it right."

"Yeah."

"And when I look back to that part of my life, it's not with fondness. Whether you believe me or not, once you stop, you will feel better about yourself."

"I know. It's just you lashed out for like, what? Three or four months? This has been my M.O. since I was 12. I'm 20. I'm trying."

"I know, Santana," Kurt said kindly. "That's what made me want to actually try again to be friends with you."

She nodded.

"Rachel's done a lot of crappy things to me, more than you know. Seriously. But when Finn died, her world tilted on its axis. And she feels lost and adrift. She has no one now. And, while I know of all that, I can't let her be a part of my life when she can't respect my boundaries and wishes."

"Good for you. You were tougher than I was in high school. Completely BAMF, but after Dave, and then Blaine and Dalton, you lost your spine. I'm glad to see it's finally regrown."

"You've changed. I've changed. We're still changing. She has to see a reason to change. I can't give her that reason. No one can. She has to decide that the way she's living her life isn't beneficial. I hope she figures it out before she crashes and burns because she's incredibly talented."

"That's true. She's as talented as she is annoying."

"Oh, on a completely different topic, Sam will be coming with us next Monday. He had some kind of floor meeting in his dorm tonight that was mandatory."

"Oh, joy." Her sarcasm made its return.

Kurt glared at her.

"Won't he just report back to Gelmet? They were, like, best bros all last school year. I had the misfortune of hearing about it until Regionals."

"After the proposal debacle, Sam apologized to me. I got him in the divorce. And you won't call him what you did in high school or you're out of the band. And call Blaine by his name."

"Seriously."

"Absolutely. Respect. The members of this band do not bully people."

Santana rolled her eyes. "I don't remember that being on the contact that I didn't sign."

"Feel free to quit. If you bully Sam, that's the end. You were just supportive of me drawing a line with Rachel. You can't have it both ways and be upset when I draw a line with you."

"I hate it when you're right."

"I'm sure." He pulled his phone out to check the time. "We need to get going." He started to slide out of the booth.

Isabelle said, "Wait five minutes and I'll have the car take you home."

"You know you don't have to do that," Kurt said. "We can take the subway."

"I pay the service by the hour. It doesn't cost me any extra to have you dropped off."

"Alright then."

They all got up. Kurt and Sebastian grabbed the cello and bass. Santana held the door open as they all moved out to the sidewalk to wait for the car service.

Kurt turned to Dani. "We're on for lunch on Thursday still, right?"

"Of course. I have a new song I'm going to show off."

"Ooh, I can't wait." He hugged her.

Once they had dropped Santana and Dani off, Isabelle said, "So, tell me why Sue Sylvester belongs in jail."

"You've heard of her?"

"I'll tell that story later. You first."

"It would take longer than the car ride from her to our place to tell all of it, but first off, my junior year she bought a human cannon and was going to shoot Brittany out of it." He went on until they got to Isabelle's place.

"You'll tell me the rest later," she said as she got out.

Kurt and Sebastian worked in silence to pack their bags for the first day of the semester and prep for the next morning.

Once they finished, Kurt turned around and leaned against the counter facing the blank wall in the kitchen. "Maybe tomorrow evening we can tape off the wall and paint the first part of the design we came up with. I can pick up a bunch of paint card samples when I go to get the painters tape and the string."

Sebastian stepped in front of him and wrapped his arms around him and kissed him. "Sounds good to me. The beginning of the semester will be a big change, but I'm sure that we'll have less work the first week than we will once things get rolling."

"That's what I was thinking." He took a deep breath as he leaned into Sebastian and let it out in a huff. "It's been a draining evening. Cutting her out of my life wasn't what I wanted. I do love her."

"I know. She knows. She also knows how she can change the situation."

"Yeah. It's just hard. It's hard to let go of something I've put so much of myself into, but it's time. At least for now. She needs to figure herself out. I know she was holding on to her friendship with Blaine because she's really lonely here and he's lonely there. They are so much alike. If he were bi, they'd either be the perfect couple or they'd drive each other insane."

"I can see both too. They'd either create the most obnoxious self-aggrandizing echo chamber where they would just feed off each other's constant repetitions of how great the other is. Or they'd never listen to each other and they'd both get mad that they weren't being paid attention to."

"Enough about them. I'm going to do my best to make myself a part of my new school. There won't be anyone there that I will feel obligated to defer to out of loyalty."

"I'm going to actually try to do the same. Are you ready to shower now?"

Kurt straightened back up and kissed Sebastian. "Mmm hmm."

Kurt lay wrapped around Sebastian, snuggled up tight with his head on Sebastian's chest. "I want to thank you for not going all Hulk on Blaine and for being calm and just backing up what I said."

"You don't need to thank me for that, but that's what I'll always do. You're your own person. If you had wanted to give Rachel her 367th chance tonight, I would have supported you."

Kurt chuckled.

"I would have also encouraged you to continue to stand up for yourself when she inevitably crossed the line again. Apologizing only means something if the person actually quits doing the thing they apologized for. She hasn't learned that yet, as evidenced by her saying that Blaine was really sorry. It's as if she believes that an apology erases the act that was hurtful."

"I'm pretty sure that she does, at least if she's the one apologizing. Or Blaine, I guess. She just needs to get some help, but that can't be from me anymore. Oh, I got an email back from my counselor. I can pay $25 per session and continue to go there for up to two months. They have some kind of transitioning program when people graduate so that people don't go without counseling, so that at least gives me a little time to see if I like any of the people available at CCNY."

"That's good news." He kissed the top of Kurt's head. "I know it's been helping."

"It has. You've helped more than you know, though. It's one thing to hear that friends behave in certain ways. And that I can make boundaries within relationships. But I had never experienced that with anyone. Here's a story you haven't heard. Sophomore year, I met Mercedes in Glee Club. She developed a crush on me that was encouraged by the unholy trinity."

"Unholy trinity?"

"Quinn, Santana, and Brittany."

"I don't get the moniker, but go on."

"They encouraged Mercedes to think that the platonic shopping trips and movie nights at her house were real dates. I hadn't come out at the time, so when she asked me to make our relationship official, I was confused and I panicked. I told her that I had had a crush on Rachel for years."

Sebastian chortled. "Oh, my God. That's priceless. How old were you?"

"16. Anyway, she decided that her unrequited crush would be satisfied by throwing a brick through the front window of my Navigator. I paid to replace it myself. I never told my dad what really happened. It was my very first foray into friendship, and I just let her get away with it. I replaced the window and went on like nothing happened. She was the first person I came out to - that same week. I've been letting people that I considered friends walk all over me ever since I started making friends. When I came here after the proposal, I pulled in on myself. I pushed everyone away. But you stuck with me. You showed me that friends could respect boundaries and that they could be trustworthy. That was huge for me. I know I've thanked you before for being there for me, but I'm not sure that you ever really understood how significant it was for me." He scooted up and ran his hand through Sebastian's hair and gently turned his face so that he could kiss him. "I love you, Sebastian. With everything that I am."

Sebastian kissed him back with just as much passion. He rolled them so that Kurt was on top and kissed him again. "We worked for this, for what we have. Both of us. And you mean everything to me. I love you so much."

Kurt slipped his forearms under Sebastian's shoulders so he could prop himself up and continue the kissing. Kurt knew how late it was and that it would make them both tired in the morning, so he pulled back a bit. "It's late. Do you want to keep going the way this is heading or do you want to stop and try to sleep?"

Sebastian raised his head just enough to press his lips to Kurt's again.

Kurt smiled and began kissing down Sebastian's neck. "So, no to the sleeping."