Chapter 1- Start Me Up
They had all warned him not to do it.
Well, Brittany had simply said that she would hate it if he drifted off into outer space like George Clooney in that movie, but Kurt wasn't entirely sure that she understood what exactly it was that he was doing.
When he thought really hard about it, neither did he. He knew why he was doing it, but he wasn't sure that he would've chased down the opportunity if it hadn't have fell into his lap.
Kurt Hummel was not anybody's definition of spontaneous. The boy planned everything down to the last intricate detail. It was part of what made him such a technically perfect singer. While he boiled it down to good sense, others found it rather annoying. Mercedes, for one, would constantly gripe about his obsessiveness and cajole him for his lack of adventurousness. Kurt didn't mind it too much; he knew how it could sometimes irk others how detailed everything he did needed to be. He constantly overstepped word limits in his homework assignments and always went the extra mile to make sure that everything was perfect in everything he did.
That was why it was so difficult for his friends to understand that he was going through with such a preposterous endeavour.
Rachel was the first to point out the drawbacks. "Kurt, what if it affects your singing voice? We need you for Regionals!"
"To mindlessly harmonise in the background while you sing the solo? You don't need me for that. What else have you got?" Kurt put his hands on his hips as the New Directions wagged their fingers and furrowed their eyebrows at him. He was ready for the onslaught of criticism for his latest choice, but nothing they said would change his mind.
The closest they came was when Sam worried about the risk factor of the actual procedure.
"I've read comic books, Kurt, and things often go wrong. Peter Parker never wanted the radioactivity!"
Kurt rolled his eyes. "But when he became Spiderman, he embraced it, didn't he? And he used it to save other people! And if something goes wrong…I'll worry about that then. Look, aren't you all the ones telling me to be more spontaneous, to take more risks? Well, that is precisely what I'm doing and now you have a problem with it? I'm not sure how I can win here.
"Haven't all of you thought about what it would be like if you were more than you are. If you were that person who could step in front of a train to save it from crashing. If you were that person who could race into burning buildings and save people from fires. Wouldn't you reach out for that opportunity with both hands."
"He's got a point," Puck chimed in, waving his hand lazily.
Kurt nodded to him neutrally and he got a nod back. That was about as close as the two would get. Mutual respect, and even that was fleeting.
"I say do whatever the hell you want, Rainbow Unicorn," Santana shrugged. It didn't really make a difference to her day whether Kurt went through with it or not.
Kurt tightened his hands on the strap of his bag and smiled at Santana, who wasn't even looking at him anymore. "That settles it. I'll see you all tomorrow. Unless I've died due to radiation poisoning…guys, that was a joke. They've assessed the possible risks. It's going to be fine. When I come into Glee Club tomorrow, I will be wearing the clothes I came to school in, not the ones I stashed in my locker ready for the first of many slushy emergencies. I will not have a single bruise from locker shoves. I will not tolerate the bullying that has plagued me since the age of four. I'll be turning my cell phone off so I will not receive your last minute worries and queries about my procedure. Thank you and goodnight." Kurt bowed his head and left the room, ready for the scheme that was about to change his entire life.
Right about now, you're probably wondering what the hell Kurt had signed himself up for.
Dr. Cooper Anderson had selected him for the second ever Super Soldier trial.
The first had been done successfully in the 1940's to an aspiring American soldier named Steve Rogers. The process had gone swimmingly, even though they first thought he might not make it. Next, they had found a way to enhance the initiative, tweaking the original design. Dr. Anderson had taken all of Dr. Abraham Erskine's notes on the matter and created something 'even more spectacular' than he had.
His selection had been completely random, or so Kurt had thought. Apparently, Dr. Anderson had been scouting out potential test subjects in the area when an anonymous tip had led him straight to Kurt. When Kurt had protested his eligibility, Dr. Anderson had explained that the point of the initiative was not to enhance the already strong, it was to make the strongest hearts have an exterior that resembled who they were as a person. Kurt's aura had been tested and his genetic makeup and environmental factors had been just what Cooper was looking for. He had given Kurt a few days to mull it over, with instructions to meet him at the Lima Bean after school on Friday to confirm his participation.
It was Friday and school had officially ended.
Kurt walked adamantly to his car, smirking at the thoughts of finally being able to show Karofsky just how much being kicked in the solar plexus really hurt. God, that would feel good, Kurt thought. Demonstrating what torment he had been made to endure, but without actually becoming a bully himself. That was his number one rule. He had to not let the power go to his head. Dr. Anderson rather thought he would be okay in that particular situation. His aura had tested well.
On the drive over to the Lima Bean, Kurt thought about the situation and how he had omitted it completely from his talks with Burt. He knew that Burt would try to stop him and that was something Kurt was not about to let happen. He had to decide this for himself and he knew that Burt's influence was something that controlled him more than any serum would. Kurt figured that Burt would bring up his mother and that would be that. He envisioned the conversation.
"Hey Dad, I'm getting injected with a serum that makes me a Super Soldier like Steve Rogers did in the 1940's."
"Kurt, what would your mother think if you wasted your life should something go wrong? She died against her will and you're potentially giving up your existence to try and become a superhero."
Yeah, Kurt was not telling his father anything. If he noticed something different after the process, Kurt would lie to his face. It was the only way to maintain his already fractured relationship with his father.
He parked his car and quickly hurried inside the coffee shop, seeing Cooper sat at a table by the window.
"I ordered you a non-fat mocha latte," Cooper explained as Kurt sat down opposite it, "I remember you saying that it was your favourite."
"Thank you, Cooper," Kurt replied, sipping his drink casually, like the next twenty hours weren't going to be the most transformative of his entire life. Literally. "How are you today?"
"Amped! It's been so long since I started this journey. I started during my undergraduate degree at Cornell and it's been going ever since. And now I've found you to undergo it. You're pretty important in my life, Kurt. How are you feeling about this?"
"I would be lying if I said I wasn't scared, but I'm more excited. I just want to be able to make a difference. I'm not sure if I'd like to become an Avenger, but I guess what happens to me is largely based on what happens during the process."
Cooper put a hand over Kurt's. "Don't worry. Nothing is going to go wrong, I promise. You just have to do one thing and that's keep going. Even if you want to give up, don't. If you do, it won't work and there may be lasting effects, as we've already been over. Do you have any actual questions about it?"
Kurt and Cooper talked about the project for another hour, finishing several more coffees before the time came that Kurt would have to strap himself into the contraption and undergo the enhancement.
Cooper stood up, leaving a generous tip for the waitress in his wake, smiling. "Are you ready?"
Kurt thought of several answers to this question.
The first was "Yes, of course I'm ready. The rest of my life starts right now. Thank you for choosing me for this."
The second was "No, wait, I change my mind. There are too many risks. Sam was right, what if something goes wrong and I don't survive it? I'm sorry for letting you down."
The third was "Can we hold off a little longer? I need to talk to my dad some more about this before I decide anything."
As Kurt saw it, there was only one plausible answer that he could follow up with.
"I'm ready."