Disclaimer: Still own nothing.
Thank you for the response so far! It's been incredible, so sorry I couldn't update sooner! I hope everyone enjoys this chapter! Oh, I don't know if I mentioned this before, but this story isn't betaed so sorry for any mistakes.
My name is Kurt Hummel.
I was an agent of SHIELD, but SHIELD no longer exists.
Now, the children of the Avengers and I are being hunted by HYDRA,
And they have Supers of their own.
I'm starting to realize that I may not be able to protect my charges
And I'm worried about what will happen to those I do manage to protect.
Location: Lima, Ohio.
Burt Hummel's house
Blaine glanced around the house as Kurt pushed his way in, barely stopping after greeting his father. It was a modest, two story house, neutral colors with pictures of a short woman posing with the man Kurt had identified as his father. The interior was well decorated, though cluttered and very lived in, holding a Midwest feel of domesticity.
He was interrupted from his study by Nick shoving past him, placing the severely burned boy on the couch. He heard Kurt's father blustering in the background, asking questions that no-one seemed interested in answering as Agent Mike Chang knelt beside their friend, pulling aside his clothing for a closer look at the burns.
"Can you heal him?" Nick demanded, refusing to move from his spot by Jeff's head. Jeff moaned in response, his barely conscious body twitching with pain. Mike didn't answer, placing one hand on Jeff's head and the other on his chest. He closed his eyes, his body going still. Blaine reached over to grasp Kurt's hand, tears welling up in his eyes.
"Shh. Just wait," Kurt whispered reassuringly, pulling Blaine into his arms as he ignored the guilty feeling growing in his stomach.
Wes, David and Thad circled around the couch, watching intently as the Agent remained still. Nick cried silently as the waited, his hand inches from Jeff's head, twitching with the need to touch him.
Kurt bowed his head, seeing no change come over the two. The miracle that he had been hoping for seemed out of reach, draining his hope from him.
Mike lifted his head, his brown eyes dull.
"I'm so sorry," He whispered, standing up and backing away from Jeff. Nick choked back a sob, jumped to his feet and facing the Agent.
"No! There has to be something you can do! Please, just save him!" He screamed, throwing himself at the Asian, punching weakly at his chest. Kurt rushed forward, wrapping his arms around Nick as he sank to the ground, sobbing harshly.
"I can't… sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't, I don't know how to control it. I wish I could help, I really do," Mike whispered brokenly, looking at the burnt boy.
"How long does he have?" David asked quietly, tears streaming down his face. Mike glanced at Jeff quickly before looking away.
"Not long. An hour or two tops. I can give him something to ease the pain, but he won't wake up," Mike answered, looking at Kurt for direction.
Kurt hesitated, looking at the broken boy in his arms, his friends standing around him, then back at the injured boy. He turned back to Mike, hoping he was making the right decision.
"There's a way to save him. Or, at least temporarily stabilize him until we can move him to a location to be treated. A hyperbaric chamber," The spy stated, ignoring the startled look the agent gave him. Mike shook his head, glancing nervously at Jeff.
"Kurt, we can't. We don't know enough about the ramifications of being put in that chamber for long periods of time. The results have been unstable. I know you want to save him; he's your friend and team member. But sometimes, the best thing is to let him go".
"And let him die? Mike, this is a way to save him!" Kurt exclaimed, jumping to his feet in excitement. Nick stopped sobbing, breathing heavily as he looked hopefully at the spy.
"Could it work?" He whispered, his voice cracking. Kurt nodded quickly, a smile crossing his face.
"It would stop the destruction of tissue, heal anything that can be healed. He wouldn't feel a thing. We'll put him in it, then when everything calms down, we can get him somewhere safe where they can heal him. He'll be as good as new".
"Or not. The truth is, there have only been a few cases of life-threatening injuries being place in the chamber. A few of them came out fine, but the others. He might not be the same as he was before when he gets out," Mike interjected, worry clear in his voice.
"But he'll be alive. He'll still be my Jeff!" Nick exclaimed, grabbing his boyfriend's hand.
"He might be. Or he could be someone you won't recognize. The thing is, Jeff's in a lot of pain right now. Being in that much pain changes a person. No matter what, if he wakes up, he won't be the same as he was before," Mike argued, "I wish it was a different situation, truly I do. But you have to think about what is right for Jeff, not just for you".
The room was silent as Mike finished talking, everyone refusing to even look at one another. Nick bowed his head, tears streaming down his face.
"Do we even have a chamber to put him in?" Thad finally broke the silence. Kurt nodded.
"There's one here. When I became an Agent, I had them put one here in case of emergency".
Thad nodded, lapsing back into silence.
"Can you read his mind?" Nick asked finally, his gaze never leaving his boyfriend's face. Kurt hesitated for a moment before reaching out, dipping his consciousness into Jeff's.
For a moment all he felt was burning pain, it was enough to almost make him return to his body without question. Then it resided, a black hole of nothing but a voice.
"Kill me. Please, just let me die," It whispered over and over. Kurt threw himself out Jeff's head, bile rising in his throat as he raced out of the room and to the bathroom. He barely reached the toilet before expelling everything in his stomach, Jeff's voice echoing in his head.
He dry heaved for several minutes, tears racing down his face as he realized they had no choice. The spy flushed the toilet, washing his hands and face before staring at his reflection in the mirror. Kurt realized for the first time how old he looked, his eyes filled with pain, shoulders slumped with the weight of responsibility. He was their leader. He had to tell them the truth.
Telling the truth was the hardest thing he had ever done. The look of pain in Nick's eyes as he realized he was losing his love, the loss in the other four faces as they tried to understand the situation. The anger when they refused to accept the truth, screaming their denials, their pain, their anger, each lashing out at Kurt.
Kurt just stood there, taking their abuse. It wasn't as if they were wrong. He had been the one to lead them; he had been the one to encourage them to fight. He was supposed to protect them.
And he failed.
In the end, they deflated, crying as they attempted to say goodbye to their friend. Mike administered to painkillers, then they stood vigil by his side, their teary gazes fixed on Jeff's slow rising chest as each breath became weaker and weaker.
Kurt stood behind them, his gaze cloudy as he watched over his charges. He noted Nick's heartbroken expression as he sat on the ground beside Jeff, reaching over frequently to move his hair or touch his skin. Wes stood coldly to the side, his gaze only lightening when it landed on Jeff. David and Thad held hands as they cried, using one another as a lifeline. Blaine wrapped himself in his arms, shivering as he silently cried.
A small pop startled Kurt from his thoughts. He whipped out his gun, pointing it at the intruder who stood in the middle of the room. Sam waved his fingers at Kurt as he grasped Jeff's arm, disappearing from sight with Jeff as Kurt fired. His shots hit the wall behind where the teleporter had been standing.
Nick screamed in outrage, his hands laying where Jeff had been previously. Nervous shouts rang through the air as they shouted at each other.
"What happened?"
"Where did he go?"
"Why did he take him?"
"They found us!"
"We have to leave!"
Kurt sent out a telepathic shock, startling the crowd into silence.
"I don't know how they found us, but I don't think we are in danger yet. As to why he took Jeff, we will find out. We'll find them, I promise," Kurt swore, standing straight as all eyes in the room fixed on him.
"You promised we would be safe, now look at us. Hiding in a place that they know about, Jeff missing and probably dead by now. Your promises mean nothing," Nick hissed angrily, glaring at Kurt.
"You're right. I messed up. But if they wanted to attack us, they would have by now. We are safe here. I can put up some of those anti-teleportation devices, and we will leave in a few days. But for now, we need to recuperate. We just lost one of our own. We need time to grieve and plan our next move. Please, trust me," Kurt whispered the last part, seeing the mutinous looks on his team's face.
"We're a team," Blaine whispered after a minute. Wes glared at him, "Don't look at me like that, Wes, you said it yourself. We are fighting a war, even if we didn't want to. And wars have casualties. I hate that Kurt lied to us. I hate that we were drug into this mess. I hate that we lost Jeff. But I would hate losing everyone in this room. It might be stupid, but I trust Kurt. I'm staying," He announced, joining Kurt's side. Kurt smiled softly at him, his smile fading at the other boy looked away.
"I don't particularly like you right now," Blaine snipped, looked at the other four, "Are you in or out? Because we don't have time for a discussion".
The four glared at Kurt before nodding, their faces tight with anger.
"Fine. But we don't like it," Thad snapped, joining Blaine's side. The other three nodded their agreement as they joined him.
"That's fine. But we need an experienced leader and Kurt is that. But no more lies, no more manipulations. We are in this together, we either work as a team or we run our separate ways," Blaine demanded, looking each team member in the eye, "No vendettas, no trying to kill one another. We don't have to be friends, but we need to be allies."
"I'll agree to that," Kurt stated simply, holding out his hand. Blaine placed his on top of Kurt's, raising an eyebrow at the other four. David stuck his hand in, followed by Thad, then finally Nick and Wes.
"Then let's get to work," Kurt said, leading them into the kitchen.
The next day
It wasn't as if everything was going to be simple finally. They had lost a team member and they all felt his absence. But the hope that somehow he was still alive fueled them, forcing them to set aside their differences and work together.
But there were still secrets; still hidden pasts that no-one knew about.
And no-one was more aware of that than Burt Hummel.
Burt had lived a simple life before, working as a mechanic as his wife Elizabeth worked a part-time job at a clothing store as they raised their son. He was used to working long days, coming home to a houseful of laughter and peace.
It all changed the day his wife and son had gone missing. For four years, he lived thinking both had died. For years of sadness, pain and longing to come home to his son's laughter and wife's singing. Then Kurt had come back, miraculously alive.
It had killed him to hear that Elizabeth hadn't made it. To hear that his son had seen her die. To hear of the torture both had had inflicted on them in the four years. But he had his son back, a light had been returned to him. But Kurt was so different from before.
It was hard, adjusting to a ten year old, especially one so damaged as Kurt was. Then he found out that his son was able to do something different, something special. Burt admitted, he didn't know how to handle his son and his new powers.
He tried, he really did. For two years, he tried to understand what his son had gone through, what they had done to him. He tried to adjust to the new boy in his life, to his new talents. But in the end, he just couldn't.
When Kurt turned twelve, two agents showed up at his doorstep. They were from a division of the government called SHIELD, which was well-known for dealing with the unknown. And Burt did something unforgivable. He signed his son over to them, giving up all parental rights and obligation.
He regretted in years later, as he grew older and realized he lost his only link to his late wife. Eventually, Burt remarried to a kind widowed woman named Carole, who had also lost her son. And slowly, he rebuilt his life, forgetting all about his son and late wife.
Until his son showed up on his doorstep, beaten up with a group of boys behind him, one severely injured.
He had watched from the background, observing how his son led the group of ragtag Supers, how they banded behind him despite obvious issues and distrust.
It bothered him that other than his "hi, dad", Kurt didn't even look his way. Instead, the boy took over the house, acting as though it was his.
As though he was still the six year old boy that Burt remembered. But he wasn't. This man was a stranger. A stranger who led an army into his home and took it over. And Burt was not about to let that stand.
Kurt was the only one awake this early, it was 5am. He was standing in the kitchen, a cup of coffee in his hand, his gun in sight on his hip.
"Good morning, Son," Burt offered, nervously glancing at the gun. Kurt turned an icy gaze at his father.
"Morning," He answered simply, going back to looking out the window. Burt shifted uncomfortably.
"Where they kind to you?" He asked, curiosity getting the better of him.
"Trained me, taught me, cared for my wounds and mental health. Everything you hoped for, right?" Kurt snipped, sending an incredulous look at his father, "Are you seriously asking me that? You gave me to the government!" Kurt took a deep breath, forcing his anger back down before he did something regrettable.
"I didn't know what to do! You were so different. And that thing you could do. It wasn't right, it wasn't natural. Then you come storming back into my house, acting as though you belong here! My son died when he was six and I don't know who this stranger is that looks just like him!" Burt shouted, slamming his fist into the table.
"Your son is still here! I am your son! But you didn't care. You didn't care that I couldn't be the same after everything that happened. You didn't care enough to try and understand what I went through, what I saw, what they did to me! I didn't ask for any of this! Then you gave me away to people who trained me to do unspeakable things. Just so I was out of your way. Congratulations, it worked. As soon as my team is able, we will be out of here," Kurt wiped the tears off his face, walking towards the door before turning around.
"You know, after all these years, I still said this was the one place I still considered safe. The one place I trusted. Thank you for showing me there is no such place," Kurt bit out as he left the room.
Burt slumped into a chair, burying his head in his hands.
"I still love you," He whispered brokenly to the empty room.
Kurt leaned against the wall in the adjourning room, listening to his father's statement.
"I wish I could believe you," He whispered back before heading upstairs.
He took a deep breath before looking into the first room, seeing Thad asleep on the bed. He closed the door and glanced in the next, checking on David, then Wes, then Nick before pausing outside Blaine's door.
Blaine was awake, staring at the ceiling when Kurt opened the door. Kurt hesitated, going to close it but Blaine waved him in. The spy entered the room, closing the door behind him.
"You should be sleeping," He offered, glancing around the room. Blaine shrugged.
"So should you," He responded. Kurt sat on the edge of the bed, picking at the comforter.
"I'm sorry," The older man whispered. Blaine remained silent.
"I never meant for any of this to happen. It was supposed to be an easy job, protect you, find your stalker, in and out. But then we became friends, and I really liked you. But I knew I couldn't be with you. So I imagined what it would be like if we could be together. But it was imaginary. Then you admitted you liked me, and I couldn't just imagine it anymore. I could feel it. It felt like everything I have ever wanted," Kurt paused, staring at the wall behind Blaine's head.
"Then HYDRA came out of hiding, and I was so scared. I thought I was going to lose you. So I took you with me. Yes, I was told to keep you safe, to continue the mission, but I was planning it before I go that message. After the battle, when you protected me, I couldn't stop myself. And I should have. I am so sorry, I never should have made it personal like that. You saw what happens when you get personal, Jeff and Nick are proof of that. I can't lose you. So I can't have you," Kurt whispered, blinking back tears.
"I'm not something for you to have," Blaine finally spoke up, glaring angrily at Kurt, "I love you. Despite everything that has happened, I still do. But I'm not a possession, something for you to say you have or don't have. I'm a person, and I'm capable of making my own choices. So stop acting like it's all your decision, because it's not!"
Blaine jumped out of the bed, pacing in front of Kurt.
"I've never had a boyfriend. I've never been in love. When I saw you, I felt it. I knew then, you were the one I was going to love. I was so mad when I learned that you were faking everything. Then I realized, it didn't matter because no matter what, I loved you! It doesn't matter if I have you for a minute or for a thousand years, I am always going to love you".
"You don't know me," Kurt whispered brokenly. Blaine knelt down in front of him, grabbing his hands.
"I know that you are the strongest person I have ever met. I know that you care deeply about people and you would do anything to protect your friends. I know that you would die for those you care about. That you believe the best in everyone. I know you've had a hard past, but it's time to make a new future. You're not bound by SHIELD anymore, it doesn't exist. Whatever agreement you struck with my parents will be off the table as soon as they are found, because I believe they are alive somewhere and when we find them, I'm going to yell so much at them they won't be able to do anything but agree to the one thing that will make me happy," Blaine stated, forcing Kurt to meet his eyes.
"And what's that?" Kurt asked softly.
"You," Blaine kissed Kurt furiously, his hands cupping Kurt's face as the older man wrapped his arms around Blaine's neck. Kurt tugged at Blaine's shirt, lifting it over his head and removing his, their lips detaching only for moments. He flipped Blaine onto the bed, pausing for a moment on top of him.
"Making a new future, right?" He murmured, nipping at Blaine's neck. Blaine moaned, weaving his hands in Kurt's hair.
"Together".
I hope you liked it, if you have a minute please review and let me know what you thought? Thanks for reading!