Nightbird and Batman
A/N: Hello! I've been struggling to complete a multi-chapter fic, and this completely unrelated story popped into my head this afternoon. I thought maybe I'd get my mojo back for the longer story if I wrote something else. This is set in my "A Hero's Hero" verse, so it will make more sense if you've read that first, but the gist of it is that Blaine is Nightbird and Kurt is his boyfriend who tends to save Blaine every now and again, either physically or emotionally. Heads up – this does take place in a hospital and references an operation, but there is absolutely nothing graphic here.
I hate hospitals, Kurt thought for the hundredth time in the past few hours before scolding himself. It was a ridiculous thought – after all, does anyone really like hospitals? Well, people who work there must not mind it, he mused, and maybe some hypochondriacs enjoyed the…
Ok, now he was rambling in his own mind again. After a brief mental slap, he took a deep breath and looked back over from his chair which sat beside the hospital bed. He bit his lower lip, remembering how frightened he'd been just earlier in the day.
The day had started out normally enough. He'd stopped by Blaine's with some bagels and coffee before heading to his shift at the diner. However, he'd found Blaine lying on the couch, curled up and obviously in a great deal of pain. He appeared to have a fever, too. Without too much argument, Blaine allowed Kurt to hustle him to the hospital.
"Acute appendicitis," the doctor had proclaimed as he walked through the door. Kurt looked up, startled by the sudden voice in the room. Nice way to introduce yourself, he thought, but schooled his features into a passive expression, deciding it was never a good idea to tick off someone who will be cutting you, or someone you love, open.
The doctor looked up and smiled. Kurt was immediately reminded of some type of rodent, but he couldn't put his finger on it. "I'm Dr. Smythe," the man said, finally introducing himself. He shook both Blaine's and Kurt's hands briefly. He explained what the situation was, and what needed to be done, which was an immediate operation. In retrospect, he was perfectly amiable and professional, and Kurt really had no reason to dislike him. That didn't stop him from placing a very obvious, possessive hand on Blaine's arm for the duration of the doctor's visit.
Several hours later, Kurt found himself in Blaine's hospital room, post-surgery. Dr. Smythe had come out to see him in the waiting area right after the procedure to let Kurt know everything had gone well. To the doctor's credit, he hadn't mocked Kurt for the tears that rolled down his face in relief. Kurt even found it in himself to sincerely thank the doctor for taking care of Blaine.
Now he was just waiting for Blaine to wake up. He'd come out of the anesthesia a while ago, of course, but had only been groggily awake for a little while before falling asleep. The nurses told Kurt that the pain medications were probably making him tired, along with the strain of the day. Kurt was happy to let Blaine sleep and be free of pain and worry for a while.
Looking around the room, he thought about all of the times over the past months when he had feared ending up here for some other reason. Being in love with a superhero had its downsides, the worst of which was the constant worry. Most of the time, he thought he handled it pretty well, but there were occasions when Blaine was late, or Kurt heard a siren, or any number of other little things happened that set his fear spiraling until his boyfriend was in his arms again. It was part and parcel of loving Blaine Anderson, and the joy of being with Blaine made it all worthwhile.
The hospital was relatively quiet. It was late, and Kurt had used his charm to talk the nurses into letting him stay past visiting hours. He'd lord that over Blaine later, who always thought he was the dapper one.
A quiet noise in the room drew Kurt's attention back to Blaine as he began to stir. Kurt rose and went to his side, carefully perching on the edge of the bed and reaching over to brush a few stray curls from Blaine's forehead. Slowly, the golden eyes he adored so much fluttered open, and Kurt smiled warmly when Blaine's gaze found his.
"Hi," he said softly, now stroking the side of his face gently.
Blaine opened his mouth as if to speak, but just moaned and coughed a little instead. Kurt reached over to the side table to get the glass of water the nurse had left (small sips, he'd been instructed), and held the straw to Blaine's lips. "Just a little, not too much," he murmured, pulling the cup away earlier than Blaine would have liked, but not wanting to risk upsetting his stomach after the anesthesia.
"Kur…Kurt?" Blaine croaked, lifting his head in an attempt to rise.
"Easy there, tiger," he said, placing a firm hand on his chest to return him to his recumbent position. Kurt chuckled, remembering the first time he'd met Blaine and how he'd had to keep him from getting up too quickly then, also. Some things never changed.
"You had an operation – your appendix. Do you remember?" he asked softly, watching while Blaine tried to clear the anesthesia- and pain killer-induced cobwebs from his brain.
"Operation?" Blaine muttered.
"Yep. You're fine, though. Everything went well. You'll be up and out of here soon, but for now, you have to rest, okay?"
Blaine just hummed, turning his head slightly into Kurt's caress and giving him a little half-smile. He lifted his hand slowly and placed it on top of Kurt's. "'kay," he slurred, his eyes slipping closed.
xoxoxo
A noise from the hallway made Kurt startle awake. After a moment's confusion, he shifted his body around, groaning as his stiff muscles protested from sleeping in the hospital chair all night. The sound from the hall also roused Blaine, who looked groggy from sleep but more aware than he'd been the previous evening. Blaine turned his head and caught Kurt's eye, smiling immediately. "Hello, beautiful," he said, his voice still a little rough.
Kurt rose from his chair, stretched his arms high (trying to ignore the odd popping noises he heard) and stepped over to Blaine. "Good morning," he said quietly, pressing his lips to Blaine's forehead tenderly.
Their moment was interrupted by the arrival of Dr. Smythe, of course. "Well, well. How's our favorite superhero this morning?" he asked.
Both Blaine and Kurt snapped their heads in the doctor's direction simultaneously. Kurt looked back at Blaine, whose eyes were as wide as saucers, and then back at the doctor. "Pardon me?" Kurt managed to spit out.
Dr. Smythe let out a laugh. "Oh, you should have heard this one over here before he went under," Dr. Smythe said with a smirk, pointing towards Blaine with his pen. "He was in twilight and started going on and on about how we had to let him go because he was Nightbird and he had a city to save," he said, turning his attention to Blaine's chart.
Kurt could feel Blaine tremble next to him. Thinking quickly, he gave Blaine's shoulder a squeeze and drew on his drama courses. "Oh, that," he laughed lightly. "That happens every time he has anesthesia." He glanced at Blaine, who was looking at him like he'd sprouted a second head. He gave him a quick, pointed look before returning his attention to the doctor. "The last time, he thought he was Batman. Tried to pull his surgical cap over his face like a cowl."
He felt the moment that Blaine caught on as some of the tension left his shoulders. The seconds after Kurt stopped speaking seemed to last an eternity. Finally, the doctor looked up, first at Kurt, then a Blaine. "Batman, huh? Yeah," he said, and Kurt could have sworn the doctor's eyes swept up and down Blaine's form under the blanket, "I could see that."
Kurt narrowed his eyes, but the doctor just smirked and continued. "Well, everything looks good here. You keep up the recovery, and we should have you back out saving the world in a couple of days, okay, Killer?"
Blaine, still a little tired and trying to recover from the shock of thinking his identity had been revealed, simply gave a nod and a half-hearted thanks to Dr. Smythe, who then excused himself and left the room.
Both men relaxed visibly and let out a deep sigh. Blaine reached an arm around Kurt's waist and Kurt immediately turned to give him a hug, being sure not to disturb Blaine's incision or his IV. "Thank you," Blaine whispered, his voice muffled in Kurt's shoulder.
Kurt pulled back and pressed a chaste kiss to Blaine's lips. "Anytime," he smiled. He went to hug Blaine again, but the movement caused him to wince in pain at a cramp in his neck. Disentangling himself from Blaine's embrace, he stood up and rubbed the back of his neck tenderly.
"Kurt," Blaine asked, looking over and noticing the chair and blanket nearby. "Did you sleep here last night?"
"Of course," Kurt said absently, still rubbing his neck with one hand. He stopped when he felt Blaine's touch on his other hand.
"You didn't have to do that," Blaine chided.
"Yes, I did," Kurt said, returning to sit on the bed gingerly once more. "First of all," he continued, carding his fingers through Blaine's hair soothingly, "I'm your hero, remember?" Blaine smiled and his cheeks pinked lightly at the reference to their past encounters. "What kind of hero would I be if I left you in your time of need?"
"And second?" Blaine inquired.
"Second?"
"You said 'first of all,' which means there has to be a second of all, right?"
"Second," Kurt said, leaning in close and narrowing his eyes, shooting a glance towards the doorway where Dr. Smythe had been standing a moment ago, "I didn't like the way Lawrence Nightingale over there was looking at you," he said in a low, possessive tone.
Blaine snorted a laugh, then immediately winced in pain when the laugh made his incision ache. "Don't make me laugh," he whined.
Kurt kissed Blaine's cheek in apology, then rested their foreheads together. "I'm glad you're okay," he whispered solemnly. Blaine threaded his fingers into Kurt's hair and closed his eyes, the two of them content to just "be" for a moment.
"Kurt," Blaine said, his voice barely a whisper.
"Yes, Blaine," Kurt replied in the same tone.
"Lawrence Nightingale? Really?"
"Shut it, Batman," Kurt responded, silencing him with another kiss.
A/N: There you have it! True story: I had the TV on today and a character was in the hospital. Suddenly, I heard Kurt's voice saying "Lawrence Nightingale" and then this story came from that. Hope you enjoyed and that you have a beautiful week!