Authors Note: You ALL seriously make my day ;) Thanks to VioletBrock, sammygirl1963, Sandy-wmd, Anise Nadiah, kimbee, Hope06, and Qweb for your reviews :)
It was almost an hour later when Phil's family arrived. Clint watched the two cars pull up on to the driveway. Reaching into his pocket he grasped the hawk tightly and forced the nausea he'd felt building up over the past few hours. He was excited, and also terrified. Knowing deep down that he wanted to meet them but also scared that they'd look at him like an outcast, or worse, with pity. He was the homeless kid their son had taken in. Barton hated that look, he'd seen it many times while on the streets. But it was mainly that he didn't want them to like him just because their son had taken him into his home, becoming his guardian, his dad. He wanted them to like him for who he was, 'the troublemaker' as Phil had started affectionately calling him, always with a smile on his face.
Clint heard Phil walking down the stairs and turned to face him. He really hoped the older man wouldn't notice the fear in his eyes, although that was wishful thinking.
"They're here Phil," the teen told him.
Coulson nodded, seemingly pulling himself together for Clint. He squeezed the boy's shoulder. "It's going to be fine, Clint," he promised. "Just be yourself."
The agent knew Clint was nervous about this meeting, they both were. He knew they'd get through it together, just like everything else. Phil was sure he'd thought it before but how had he managed to deal with threats to the country, hundreds of agents, a teenage son who liked shooting a bow and could kick his ass. Yet the thought of dealing with his family was sending him on an emotional downward spiral. Damned if he knew.
The knock on the front door made Phil jump slightly, causing Clint to arch an eyebrow at him in amusement. The agent straightened his posture, took a deep breath and took three long strides to the front door and opened it. He was almost bowled over by his two nieces, his nephew and two sisters hugging him to death. Phil caught a glimpse of his parents getting out of their car, his mom offering a wave while his dad started to pull their bags out of the trunk despite suffering from severe back pain. His mom had made him aware of his father's injury after their phone call a few weeks ago, confirming their travelling arrangements.
Phil didn't even get a chance to say, 'hello' before he was bombarded with questions.
"You're looking great Phil, have you been working out?" his eldest sister Sandra asked as she walked around the living room, easily spotting the differences around the house from the last time she visited.
Coulson smirked in amusement at his sister's comment. His family were aware he worked for a government agency, although he knew they would automatically assume he was just an office worker. When he was younger, the agent was never one to get into fights, he always looked for another solution, a peaceful solution. It was better for them not to know he was highly skilled at taking down bad guys. They'd worry a lot more.
"The house looks amazing Phil, did you actually do some gardening?" asked Trisha trying desperately to keep the tiredness from her voice. Keeping three youngsters entertained for a four hour car ride journey was exhausting.
"Where is Clint, Uncle Phil?" Tommy asked, the blonde haired, blue eyed boy's eyes were wide and filled with excitement. He was Phil's youngest nephew, his other two nephews weren't visiting this time as his sister Jessica couldn't get away from her work. The young boy's eyes were already scanning the house for his big cousin. He was dying to meet him, ever since he found out his Uncle Phil had adopted a kid, Tommy had badgered his parents to come visit. He'd been told that wouldn't happen for a while, and even though he didn't really understand why, his mom had told him he could send pictures or even write. So that's what he'd done. Now he wanted to find out if Clint received the letters and drawings.
Phil ignored the questions as he tried to remove the death grip the twin girls had on each of his legs, unwilling to let their uncle go. The agent struggled to remove the small hands from his trouser legs and glanced around for his back up. Trust Clint to abandon him right now. The kid would probably be hiding up in his room, Phil found he couldn't really blame him if he was. He wished he could hide too.
"Where is he, Phil?" Trisha asked gently, deciding to help her brother by pulling one of the twins away. "Fiona, let go of Uncle Phil."
"But I missed him!" The nine year old whined, her brown eyes pleading not to be moved.
Trisha smirked at her brothers pained expression. "Rachel, you too. Let go."
The little brunette pouted, but did as she was asked.
Phil almost breathed a sigh of relief before noticing his mom was standing right there in front of him, pulling her son into a warm embrace. He couldn't help but relax into her arms, a smile playing on his lips. "Hi mom."
The older woman pulled back, placing both her hands on either side of Phil's head and chuckled. "Hello to you too, Phillip." She planted a kiss on his cheek, before stepping back.
Coulson grimaced at the use of his full name. His dad was Phillip, he was Phil, that's just the way it should be.
"Now, where is my grandson?" She took in her surroundings, smiling as she spotted pictures of her son and Clint plastered around the living room. Some of the pictures she recognised as she had them on the wall of her own home. After Phil had told her he'd adopted the youngster, she had been over the moon and wanted nothing more than to come meet him. Although after hearing about the boys past, the things he'd endured, her son had pleaded with her to wait, wait until Clint wasn't scared of his own shadow before he introduced them. Marie hated that she'd had to wait this long, but she understood, her son was adamant that it would be Clint's choice when he was ready.
"Clint! Happy birthday!" cried Tommy, arms spread wide as he ran towards his cousin who'd suddenly appeared at the bottom of the stairs. Clint's eyes widened as the young boy practically threw himself at the teen. Barton caught him, more surprised than anything else as the small boy wrapped his arms around Clint's waist. "Did you get my letters and my pictures, I sent you loads?"
Clint nodded, trying to pull away but at the same time trying not to hurt the younger boy's feelings. He wasn't used to people hugging him, Phil was the only exception. Even Molly, Nick and Sam refrained from hugging him; they all knew the pain he'd suffered in his young life and weren't offended when Clint sometimes flinched away from their contact. It didn't happen too often now, but the teen had known them for two years. It was going to take time for him to be comfortable with letting anyone else into his personal space, even if it was Phil's family.
Phil noticed the look of alarm on his boy's face and moved to help. "Come on Tommy, give Clint some breathing room."
Tommy nodded, giving the birthday boy another squeeze before running back over to his mom. Trisha gave Clint an apologetic look, she crouched down, speaking quietly with her son before they headed out to their own car to bring their bags inside, the twin girls following.
Sandra watched from her spot beside her mom, feeling a warmth flow through her as she saw her little brother talk quietly to the teenager, his hand resting on Clint's shoulder and giving a gentle squeeze. The eldest sister could practically see the trust oozing from the teen while Phil worked on calming him. She also noticed the grin that appeared on the boy's face as her brother said something else, then they both turned to face them.
Phil smiled, then went ahead with the introductions. "Clint, this is my mom Marie and my sister Sandra. My other sister is Trisha, and her little boy Tommy is the one who couldn't let go of you. The twins are Sandra's, Fiona and Rachel."
Barton stayed attached to Phil's side, giving the older man's mom and sister a shy smile. "It's nice to finally meet you."
Marie smiled warmly at him. "It's nice to finally meet you too, Clint and happy birthday." The older woman wanted nothing more than to walk over and pull the teen into a hug, never letting him go. It was hard for her as a mother and grandmother not to show affection in that way. Yet she knew she needed to give Clint time. "We've all been dying to meet you, if you hadn't already guessed."
Clint chuckled, guessing she was talking about Tommy's reaction, then his expression became sombre. "I'm sorry it's taken me so long."
It was Sandra who started shaking her head. "There is no need for that Clint. We're just happy to have you in our family. Phil needs someone to keep him in line." She smiled at the shocked look that crossed her brother's face.
The teen laughed at that. A genuine laugh that made the others smile. "You have no idea."
Phil grumped that Clint was supposed to be on his side, but the teen noticed the grin on the older man's face. "I'm going to give dad and Trish a hand with the bags." He turned to Clint. "You want to help?"
The teen nodded, following Phil outside. It was there Clint finally got to meet Phil's dad. The older man turned to Clint, his eyes warm and gentle. He reminded the teen of an older looking Phil, the only difference was a smattering of grey hair. He gave the teenager a nod, before extending his hand in greeting. Barton stared at the hand thrust towards him, pausing for only a moment before gripping the man's hand.
"It's nice to finally meet you, sir."
Phillip laughed, squeezing Clint's hand firmly before letting go. "Less with the sir, son. I'm not that old. Unless Phil has told you lies." He arched an eyebrow at the younger man, who stood with an innocent expression on his face.
Barton shrugged, trying to hide the mischievous smirk from the two men. Grabbing two of the bags from the trunk, he headed back inside. Tommy following beside him like a shadow with his own kid sized bag. The younger boy couldn't keep the look of adoration from his young face as he watched Clint enter the house. Barton had no idea what he'd done to make the little boy look at him like that; he wasn't sure what to make of it. He'd ask Phil later.
Phillip turned to his son once Trisha and the twins had entered the house with the rest of the bags. His eyebrow arched as he saw the lines of stress on the younger man's face.
"How are you doing son?" Phillip asked.
Phil sighed, scrubbing a hand through his hair before turning to his dad with a tired grin. "Just the usual dad. Sort of went overboard with the cleaning, think I might have freaked Clint out a bit."
The older man laughed, squeezing his son's shoulder before pulling him close. "Yeah, I know what you're saying. They have that effect." He turned Phil to face him, his face serious. "We're all really proud of you son, you did the right thing by that boy and all of us have just been waiting for the day you'd tell us that he was ready to meet us. But I also know the kid is still going to need time."
Phil felt his face flush with the praise from his dad, then nodded. "He's going to need time, though he's doing much better."
"Good. Then let's get in there before they all start hugging the poor boy."
Coulson chuckled, throwing his arm around his dad's shoulders and walking back inside. The next few days were definitely going to be interesting, that was for sure.