Bet some of you thought I was gone, huh?

Alas, I am still here! And I have brought a gift.

Anyways, read and enjoy.

Also, read my end notes.

And leave a review.

:D

Disclaimer: I own nothing Glee or Marvel related.

"Where are they?" Fury asked the moment Natasha walked into the room and neither teen was with her.

Burt and Carole shared a knowing look with each other. Our kids are good.

Natasha's eye twitched as she explained to the Director, "They decided not to follow me here, Sir."

"Excuse me, Black Widow." Fury walked closer to the red haired woman. "I don't believe I told you to give them the option of whether or not they wanted to come up here. I remember telling you to bring them here."

Natasha whispered something no one was able to catch.

"Try again, Romanov," Fury all but demanded.

"I said, Sir," Nat cleared her throat and pointedly avoided looking the Director in the eyes, "that they snuck away from me."

Everyone except the parents of the two teens looked at the Black Widow in shock.

"Perhaps," Fury said, taking a step back, "you should explain that better. I personally thought that bringing two sixteen year old boys the distance of a couple hundred yards—all in the same building—was well within the abilities of an Avengers member, especially a SHIELD agent of your rank." He clasped his hands behind his back as he studied the agent's face. "Tell me how two boys were able to sneak away from a fully trained assassin such as yourself—one who is technically more than double their combined ages and, therefore, one would presume, at least somewhat more experienced?"

"Well, she fucked up," Tony whispered to Clint and Steve, only to receive to dumb nods in return. He looked down at one of his tablets and started tapping away quietly, making sure this entire scene was recorded for future playback and blackmail.

Natasha's twitch was increasingly noticeable. "Sir—"

"Just find the damn kids!" Fury barked at the room as a whole.

Tony opened his mouth only to have Steve slap a hand over it. "Tony, I really think she would kill you if you say anything to her at this time," he said directly into the other man's ear, careful that Nat couldn't hear him.

After taking a really good look at the woman in question, Tony's self-preservation instincts kicked in and completely agreed with Rogers' words. With a nod Tony turned back towards the big screen they had been using to watch the boys earlier. "JARVIS?"

"Yes, Sir?" The AI voice rang clearly throughout the room.

"Do you know where Kurt and Finn are currently located?" Tony asked the important question.

"Yes, I do, Sir," JARVIS replied.

There was a pause. Everyone was waiting to hear the rest of the answer as to where the teens were.

"Well?" Tony piped up.

JARVIS didn't hesitate in replying. "Well, what, sir?"

Natasha's eye-twitch spread to Tony, who asked more specifically, "Well, where are they?"

"Level ten, section six, Sir."

"Thank you, JARVIS." Tony clapped his hands together and faced the rest of the room. "Well, they're still in the building. That makes things a whole lot easier than last time, and we won't have to almost destroy an ice cream shop," he reported, grinning.

Everyone looked at Tony in the way older siblings look at their younger siblings before they give into the urge to whack them on the back of the head for being an idiot.

No one had noticed the only teen in room pulling out his phone after Natasha walked in without the boys. They also didn't notice when he grinned and snuck past everyone, including Director Fury, who was ranting to Natasha about being duped by a couple of kids.

That is, no one but the elder Hummels noticed. But they were more inclined to sit back and watch the show than interfere with Earth's team of protectors, especially seeing as how they had basically experimented on their kids earlier. No, they would let their kids cause mischief all they wanted for now. Well, within reason. It wasn't always Kurt's fault that Tony's suit kept tripping him.

Sometimes a mechanic has to have a little fun.

Carole sent a text to the boys to give them a heads-up.

"They know where you are, but with the way they're acting, you still have 20 minutes. We think JARVIS likes you boys. —Mom"

"—and can we get one of those, umm…the giant hot pocket things?" Finn looked to Kurt for help as the waiter as the small restaurant stood patiently. Finn was pretty sure the guy was an agent. Everyone in the building was probably an agent.

"Calzone, Finn. They're called calzones." Kurt bit back a laugh because yeah, "giant hot pocket things" was a good description, except calzones tasted way better. Turning back to their waiter, Troy, he finished their order. "We'll take three pepperoni and cheese calzones, please," he said, adding one for Blaine, who had texted that he was on his way. He flipped through the small menu, aware that the man wasn't even bothering to write down anything Kurt was saying. "And a tray of beef and vegetable lasagna—a full tray, please, with three plates. We'll just have water with lemon to drink."

"A full tray feeds twelve, sir," the waiter said, raising an eyebrow at the lean teen, looking him up and down.

Kurt licked his lips in thought, not noticing the waiter follow the movement. "Sounds perfect. We'll take it," he replied as Finn nodded his head in eager agreement.

"Very well, sir." Troy sent Kurt a smile full of perfect teeth. "I'll put your order in immediately." He turned and walked away, leaving the brothers alone again.

"I don't like him," Finn muttered as he frowned at the man's retreating figure.

"Huh?" Kurt bit the inside of his cheek as he eyed the dessert menu, wondering if he should pick something now for after their meal. "What?" He looked up at Finn.

"That Troy guy. He rubs me the wrong way," Finn tried to explain as he grabbed his napkin from the table and fiddled with it.

That caught Kurt's attention. Although Kurt could deduce a person's behavior, attitude, and lifestyle fairly easily, it wasn't the same as what his brother could do. Finn's read on people's intent was usually spot-on even if the boy wasn't always able to fully explain what he meant. "What's his—"

"That was great, guys!" Blaine chirped excitedly as he slid into the seat next to Kurt, scooting over until their thighs touched. "Fury was about to tear Natasha apart when she showed up without the two of you." His excitement ebbed away when noticed the uncomfortable vibe at the table. Looking back and forth between the brothers, he spoke slowly, "What's going on?"

Finn looked around a little as if he was making sure the waiter wasn't nearby. "Nothing, just had a bad feeling for a moment, dude. It's all good. Kurt ordered us cal…giant hot pockets."

Kurt shook his head before looking towards his boyfriend. "He means calzones in Finn talk," he said, bumping shoulders with the shorter teen. "How was the view from up top? I'm going to want to see the playback of that later."

Blaine still looked like he wanted more of an explanation for his question but held back. "Oh, it was pretty intense. It looked like Nat was trying to kill you guys out there. Even Steve and Clint were scared for you." He looked down and grabbed Kurt's hand in his own, lacing their fingers together, smiling. "My dad was…well, acting like he usually does, and I really thought your dad was going to strangle him."

The teens laughed at that. "Not too surprising there. Your dad is in the habit of just saying what he wants," Kurt grinned.

Blaine rolled his eyes. "You have no idea, he keeps asking if we've—you know. I think he just likes making people mad." He frowned slightly as he spoke again. "Fury…he seemed interested…" His frown got bigger. "…too interested in the two of you. I could tell your parents caught on and didn't like it, but no one else really seem to question that they were basically experimenting on two minors. I think Fury is up to something."

Kurt looked from Finn's concerned face to Blaine's upset one and sighed slightly. "I kind of saw this coming. I thought we would stay off his radar longer, but I think Natasha and Clint keep him filled in on everything we do."

"Wait, you suspected Fury would take an interest in the both of you?" Blaine asked confused.

"More like I knew he would." At the looks he was receiving, Kurt explained, "This is SHIELD. The moment I found out your dad was Tony Stark, I knew we'd be on someone's radar. I hoped it would just be your dad's, but like I said, this is SHIELD; they have deeper interests in us than even your father does." He shrugged resignedly. "There was literally no way to avoid having to deal with SHIELD operatives. They tested us for something this morning, and I'm still trying to figure out what. It's safe to say that in Fury's eyes we're a danger to the populous until they either figure us out or have us under their control." He cleared his throat, shifting a little uncomfortably. "There was no way to avoid it from the moment I stepped into Stark tower. The best thing I can do is try to work everything into our favor as best I can and try not to be blackmailed or forced into something by Fury."

Finn looked exceedingly upset as he tried to figure out something that would help them. "He can't do that," he said, but even as the words came out of his mouth, he knew it wasn't true.

"They can. He can." Blaine looked the most troubled of the three. "If you weren't dating the son of Tony—"

"Don't finish that sentence," Kurt cut him off firmly. "None of this is your fault or ours; it solely falls on SHIELD and their belief that everyone can be controlled or eliminated by them." His voice dropped as he clenched his fists, not noticing how the room suddenly got colder. "They won't control us, though, and if they try to hurt…" His eyes seemed to gleam even more blue than usual as he continued in a low, determined voice, "I won't let them."

Blaine felt as if Kurt truly meant what he said, and that anyone who threatened the teen or his loved ones should really fear what they would be getting themselves into. He couldn't bring himself to feel sorry for anyone who did that; he knew he would do anything to keep his loved ones safe, too. Looking at the teen next to him, Blaine knew there still was a lot left unexplained. Only now that he took note of all the sudden changes in Kurt as well as in the temperature of the room, he wondered if Kurt knew everything himself. He saw the look on Finn's face and knew he was thinking much the same thing.

"Kurt, baby," Blaine said softly as he slowly but surely reached out and took one of Kurt's fists into his own hands and gently rubbed it until it loosened in his hold. "We won't let anything happen. SHIELD has the whole of the Avengers to get through before they can lay a hand on any of us. Please, calm down. Come on, please," he continued.

"Y'know, it's getting really cold in here," Blaine pointed out, trying to sound as if he couldn't figure out the cause of the temperature change, but making a mental note to add that to his list of 'Kurt things'. "I could really use a warm hug right about now," he tried again with his best puppy eyes in place.

Kurt blinked at that; he never really felt the cold the way other people did, but he knew when the temperature changed. He looked around, trying to relax, but he faced Blaine and felt his heartstrings tug at the sight of his adorable boyfriend. "Oh, sweetie," he murmured, pulling his boyfriend closer to him and wrapping an arm around his waist. "You're my kryptonite, you know that?" he breathed, burying his face in Blaine's neck.

Blaine sent a small smile to Finn over Kurt's head that the teen returned. "Puppy eyes always get me cuddles," he said playfully, wrapping his arms around Kurt and kissing his forehead.

Kurt let out a soft laugh. "Like you need to use them to get cuddles from me." He relaxed, suddenly feeling more drained than the tests earlier had made him feel.

"Sorry, little dude," Finn piped up from across the table. "Those puppy eyes won't get you any cuddles from me," he teased. Then, sounding more serious, he added, "And no stealing all the Kurt cuddles."

They settled into more comfortable conversation while waiting patiently for their food—well, as patiently as three starving teens could wait after the morning they'd just had. "I'm going to die because my stomach is going to eat my stomach, and it'll be SHIELD's fault," Finn grumbled, glaring towards the kitchen door.

Kurt shook his head amusedly. "Come on, Finn. It's been like five minutes." He paused, thinking, and then amended, "Give it another five, and I'll break into that kitchen myself." It was times like these that Kurt could sound playful but be entirely serious.

"I'm starving, too, and I didn't do anything but watch you guys this morning. I wouldn't be the least bit surprised if you didn't wait even five more minutes," Blaine said honestly as he eyed the two hungry brothers as if anticipating their 'kitchen attack' might happen any second now.

"I'm just gonna—" Finn moved to stand up, but the kitchen door opened, and he settled back down. "Oh, sweet merciful god of hunger—the food's coming!" he said excitedly, eyes locked onto the tray and plates two servers were carrying.

Troy and another server placed the food on the table, a calzone in front of each boy and the tray of lasagna in the middle. "Your order, Sirs," Troy said politely, but directing it towards Kurt, whom his eyes had targeted the moment he had come back into the room.

Said boy was busy trying to figure out what he was going to eat first. "Huh? What?" He shook his head and sent the waiter a smile. "Thanks—this looks great."

Troy grinned at the chestnut-haired teen, seemingly ignoring the other two at the table as the other server returned to the kitchen. "There are far better looking things at this table, Sir."

Blaine frowned, not liking the waiter's interest in Kurt or the way he seemed to be blatantly flirting with his boyfriend. If he had looked toward Finn, he would have seen that Kurt's brother looked ready to pounce on the waiter. Blaine knew he'd eventually have to deal with other guys hitting on Kurt, but the guy was doing it right in front of him, and it didn't sit well at all.

As though sensing Blaine's distress, Kurt intertwined their hands together under the table and gave a soft squeeze. Humming as though he was thinking, he replied, "You're right. This food looks delicious but—" He saw the grin growing on the waiter's face. "Blaine looks absolutely delectable. Maybe I should skip to dessert," he continued with a bit of a smirk, looking towards his boyfriend and kissing his cheek. "Sound like a plan, sweetie? We can take this to go."

Blaine smiled bashfully at Kurt, a little pink on his cheeks. "If you skip out on real food right now, you may end up actually gnawing on me instead of kissing me," he pointed out, relaxing when he saw Troy leave the table looking disgruntled and disappointed.

Finn snorted from his side of the table once he stopped glaring at the waiter's retreating back. "I agree with Blaine on this one. He's gone so we can finally eat in peace before the adults come and do god knows what to us but something that'll involve yelling or torture that's for sure." He looked down and happily started digging into his calzone without another word.

Kurt was still looking at Blaine as though Troy hadn't existed to begin with. "So, kissing later after we're done eating and dealing with SHIELD again?" he asked hopefully.

Blaine smiled at Kurt and nodded. "Definitely, babe." Leaning forward he pecked Kurt's lips before pulling away and turning Kurt's attention back to the food in front of them. "This really does look good, and if the sounds Finn's making are anything to go by, it tastes as good as it looks. I'm just going to…" He dished some lasagna onto both their plates and started eating.

Kurt sent a Blaine a quiet "thank-you" before picking up his own fork. He tried valiantly not to shovel the food into his mouth like he really wanted to, instead, eating at a steady, mostly well-mannered, pace. "So much cheese," he hummed contentedly between bites.

They ate silently, making their way through the food on the table as though someone was going to walk up any moment and take it away from them. "Five minutes, guys. If Mom was right, we have five minutes to finish this before they catch up to us, and as much fun as it would be to play hide and seek with the Avengers, I wouldn't put it past Fury to have SHIELD actually hunt us down since we've piqued his interest," Kurt said before raising his glass of water and drinking half of it.

Finn looked over the remaining food, which was already only a fourth of the original amount. "Could totally finish this in that time!" He served himself more lasagna.

"Finn, dude, there're napkins." Blaine pointed to the pile that Finn had been ignoring if the obvious amount of sauce on his face was anything to go by. When he received a grunt in return, Blaine knew it was hopeless until the other boy was done eating.

It didn't take long for them to finish their food, but just as they put the napkins to good use, they heard the unmistakable footfalls of a group of determined and somewhat angry people.

"Hummels!" Fury spoke loudly as they neared the trio of boys and came to a halt glaring at them with his one eye.

Tony blinked surprised at the sight of Blaine with the brothers and wondered how he missed his son sneaking out, although, from the glances and looks the rest of the team were sending the boy, at least he wasn't the only one that was surprised. "Hey, boys. Have a nice lunch?"

The grins the three sent Tony's way were a complete contrast to the look the Director was now sending the man. "Shut it, Stark," Fury said in his loud voice. "You three, back upstairs right now," he ground out, looking back at the teens. "And, unless you want to be put in a holding cell, I suggest not detouring away from us this time." With that Fury turned and left, leaving no room for anyone to argue with him.

"It's a good thing we didn't order dessert," Finn said as he spotted their parents waiting calmly in the doorway. "Dad, you have to try the lasagna here!"

As they neared the table, Burt eyed the empty plates and tray and laughed. "Looks like I'll have to, since you boys obviously enjoyed it so much." He gestured for them to stand up. "Come on, we have something to talk to you about." Blaine looked a bit uncertain. "You, too, Blaine. C'mon."

It didn't take long for the group to head back up the Tower to the conference room where Fury was talking with Agent Hill as he waited. He glanced their way and gruffly ordered, "Sit down. I'll deal with you in a minute." The Hummels looked at him, unimpressed—the parents, especially.

Carole ushered them towards some seats, giving Fury a disapproving look as she did so. Because, honestly, you don't act rude to a family in front of their mother even if you're the Director of SHIELD.

"Welcome to the nap room," Tony said as he leaned back in his chair, putting his feet up on the black table. "This is where we pretend to listen to what old eye-patch here has to say and then turn around and do whatever we want." At the look Fury was sending his way, he shrugged. "What? This was a nap room before you decided to come into my tower with your little agents. As far as I'm concerned, this is still a nap room—and this is still my tower."

"Stark, don't push me. I can always confiscate your precious tower from you for SHIELD," Nick Fury warned the billionaire.

Tony just smirked at the other man. "You think I don't have contingency plans set up in case you ever try that? Never forget that I built this tower…and the AI running it." Seeing that as the end to the conversation he waved his hand. "Anyway, you wanted us here and now we're here. Talk or we nap."

"One of these days, Stark…" Fury left the threat hanging before looking to the Hummels with penetrating interest. "Seems like you have some explaining to do, don't you," He said, his eye staying on Kurt the longest, but the boy just sat there with a passive expression on his face.

"Don't you think you should be talking to my wife and me in private rather than harassing our kids?" Burt said gruffly, already tired of Fury's attitude—and, to a certain extent, his ability—to demand what he wanted and do as he pleased. "We don't actually have to explain anything to you."

"Mr. Hummel, after what I witnessed this morning of your son and stepson's 'performance', I think you'll find it in your best interests to comply with what SHIELD asks of you." Fury walked closer to the table and sat in his own chair. "Don't make this any more difficult than it needs to be."

Burt sat up and narrowed his eyes. "Listen here, bud—"

"Wouldn't it be safe to just assume that the boys have a mutated genome that has given them increased stamina and strength?" Bruce chimed in, not liking the direction the two men were headed. "We know who Kurt's grandfather is. It's not as if either of them are science experiments or aliens. They're just two teenage boys that have a little extra something about them." His voice calmed the room in a way that the doctor—regardless of his own problems—was able to do to anyone listening.

Fury, knowing better than to turn his aggression onto the anger-sensitive man, nodded his head in acknowledgement. "Is that your story? Just a couple of mutant teenagers who found their way into staying at the Avengers Tower—which, just coincidentally holds more secrets than any government facility you could name?"

Then it started to click for everyone.

"You can't possibly think these two kids are spies, Director," Steve said, sounding very upset at the very idea. "They're boys, barely old enough to be driving."

"Never underestimate a child, Rodgers." Natasha spoke up, her voice void of emotion, from his left, with Clint on her other side. "People are always using children as tools and weapons to do their dirty work, including making child-soldiers." Thinking about her own experiences with the Red Room, she knew first-hand what kids could be trained to do.

Steve frowned heavily, his forehead pinched in thought. "Who would they even spy for? They're Americans; any spying would be considered treason to their country."

"There's Erik. He ran the Brotherhood—"

"Are you all finished talking about my family as though we're not in the same room as you?" Kurt spoke from his spot between Burt and Bruce, effectively cutting off Clint's speculations.

Burt put a hand on Kurt's shoulder and took over. "I don't give a damn what you all do in this place, but let's get one thing straight. You will not accuse my sons of being some sort of villain spies. Got me?" he nearly growled to the room. "The reason we're here is because my son's boyfriend is that curly-headed teen right there, and he just so happens to live in this damn building."

The room went silent while everyone one took a moment to think it over.

"You know, he's right." Tony finally broke the silence. "I mean, they didn't know who Blaine was related to until they showed up. I ran background checks on all of them; until just recently, Erik hadn't even spoken to Burt since the mid-90s. They obviously aren't here because of some sort of Magneto 2.0 type thing; so fucking drop it, and leave the kids alone." He leaned over and put an arm around his son's stiff shoulders and could feel the tension dissipating as he did so.

Fury looked ready to dispute Tony, but Agent Coulson walked closer to the group, shoving off from where he'd been leaning against a wall, listening with Agent Hill. "Director, I believe Mr. Stark is telling the truth. We don't need to classify the Hummel family as spies of any form, even for Erik." He held the Director's gaze for what seemed like minutes before receiving a curt nod.

"Fine, but keep an eye on Erik for any suspicious activity," Fury ordered. "Let's—"

An alarm sounded before he could finish his sentence

As one, the Avengers and SHIELD agents were up and moving, suddenly leaving the room empty except for the Hummels and Blaine. Trying to be heard over the racket, Finn yelled, "WHAT THE…" The alarm cut off. "...heck?" he finished somewhat sheepishly, looking to Blaine for an explanation.

Blaine blinked in surprise himself. Having SHIELD move into his home this summer meant this was the first time he'd had to put up with the new alarm system. He honestly was surprised he hadn't heard it in the last couple weeks. "I really forgot about that thing. Don't worry though," Blaine explained. "We can ask for the full details from my mom or, if she's too busy, JARVIS. Actually…hey, JARVIS?" he asked, getting the AI's attention.

"Yes, Master Blaine?" came the instant reply.

"Can you tell us what the alarm was for, please?"

"Certainly, Sir. The alarm sounded in response to a new mission in Singapore that requires the talents of SHIELD. The Avengers, including your father, of course, already are on their way to deal with the somewhat delicate—and secret—situation. The danger level is not significant, but it does require everyone's presence. They will not return for at least thirty-six to forty-eight hours. Your mother is monitoring from the Situation Room, but undoubtedly will be available by this evening."

"Thank you, JARVIS." Blaine nodded in understanding, visibly more relaxed than he'd been before JARVIS's explanation.

"You're quite welcome, Master Blaine." Most people would tell him he was imagining things, but Blaine always felt as if he could tell from the AI's voice that JARVIS was somehow smiling.

"Well," interjected Burt, looking at his sons, "that must be our cue. Remember how I said we had something to tell you boys?" he asked, getting nods in return before he continued. "We've been gone longer than originally planned, and your mom and I need to get back to business, and that means back to Lima."

"But Dad—" Kurt started, a frown already on his face, but Carole patted him on his shoulder.

"Don't worry, honey. We've already talked with Blaine's mom, and she talked with his dad."

Blaine grinned in a way Starks do. "If I know anything about how moms 'talk' to dads"—he emphasized the word while making air quotes—"then our dads didn't really have a chance." He glanced at Burt, who simply raised both eyebrows and looked at him. "Umm…I…I mean my dad didn't really have a chance," he amended sheepishly.

Burt gave a small nod and, grinning, turned to his sons. "We've all agreed to let you two stay another couple of weeks." He put a hand up to stop the excited looking teens from speaking so he could explain. "We're permitting this because you are supposed to be on vacation and, after all this so-called 'testing' Fury put you through—which I'm still pissed about—we think you deserve some down time. Pepper has been kind enough to offer to look after you, but…" He paused and looked directly at each boy, imparting more than words with his look, "…we fully expect you to be on your best Hummel behavior and use sound judgment—which includes staying in touch with us and staying on Pepper's good side." His gruff voice was firm, leaving no room for negotiation.

Carole piped up, "Honey, I don't know if Pepper has any sides other than good sides."

Blaine smiled at the compliment being given to his mom and said, "Don't worry; Mom has a lot of practice helping Phil babysit the Avengers. She may not have a 'bad' side, but she's definitely got 'firm' and 'strict' and 'don't try to pull that on me' sides, and when it's necessary, she also has a 'scary' side, but that's only for when someone does something they really shouldn't have."

Kurt and Finn looked at each other, grinning the way they do whenever they got more than what they wanted; they definitely weren't going to complain. Two weeks in New York! And there was one particular event they were really looking forward to since they'd finally had the time to look up city events. Blaine looked at them, silently sharing their enthusiasm with his own grin well in place.

"Well, now that that's settled," Burt said, "your mom and I are going to grab a bite and then pack up. We'll leave first thing in the morning."

"I'm beat, but I just want to go back out there and dance or something," Kurt moaned, looking back over his shoulder in the direction of the pier and the celebration they had just left.

Blaine grasped Kurt's hand in his own and gave a hum of agreement. "If we go back, I'm going to end up crashing on a pile of other kids who thought they could make it through the night, too," the normally energetic boy said tiredly, using his free hand to wipe his forehead—only to smear a rainbow of paint colors.

It had been a week since the whole "Fury Testing 101" incident, and for now the next course of testing was the farthest thing from the boys' minds. The Avengers were back from Singapore, but Pepper had agreed that attending the NYC Pride parade was something she could approve. Kurt was especially thrilled; up until now he'd only let himself dream about going once he was an adult.

And now, here they were, a week later, leaving the main party at the pier on the Hudson River, both covered in a wild multitude of colored body paint. They had both dressed in shorts, Blaine in black and Kurt in navy blue, and each was wearing white converse high tops. They had ditched the idea of t-shirts when Blaine said that he really wanted to wear body paint, all but begging Kurt to paint something amazing on him. It actually didn't take much to convince Kurt, and it wasn't long before he knew exactly what he wanted to paint on his boyfriend. The body painting took a while and a little –a lot of- help from Pepper for Blaine to finish. The result was large yellow warbler on Blaine's back; the bird was holding a long rainbow ribbon that wrapped across his chest. On his biceps were music staffs with random notes wrapped around the muscle.

When it was Kurt's turn to be painted, Blaine did the same design on his arms. He took Kurt's idea, but instead of a yellow warbler, there was a big black bird with dark purple edging on Kurt's back, holding a flowing rainbow ribbon that wrapped across his chest. It would have been obvious to anyone who saw them that they were together, and that's what the boys were going for.

Finn had been easier to paint since he opted to wear cargo shorts and a light blue tank top, leaving only his arms to be decorated. He had Kurt put a colorful football on his left arm and brightly colored music notes all over his right. Somehow Kurt talked him into a smiley face on his cheek to top it off.

The boys had promised Pepper they'd send her pictures; so they took a lot of photos and videos and sent some to her before the paint got messed up. They received many compliments from strangers and more interested looks than they could count, but they just smiled, and Blaine and Kurt kept hold of each other's hands as they had fun exploring everything the parade had to offer. Finn, having the height advantage, did a good job of looking over the heads of most of the crowd to find booths and interesting places for them to check out, while taking getting hit on by all sorts of members of the LGBTQ community good naturedly.

After the parade there was a huge party with live performances on the pier that drew the boys in. They met a lot of other teens, and a bunch of them made a group to dance with for most of the party. Kurt never thought he would have so much fun with a crowd that didn't have anyone looking down on him for dancing with his boyfriend. It was one of Kurt's favorite days of his life, and he got to spend it all with Blaine.

But now it was already 3:00 AM, and both boys were too exhausted to keep up with the rest of the party-goers. Finn had left just before midnight in order to give Kurt and Blaine some 'alone time', and the two had time to celebrate as a couple. After sweating and being pelted with more than a few paint bombs, they were quite a sight. At least they had plenty of pictures of themselves and of the pride activities; this definitely was an event to remember.

"I don't think even coffee would help keep us going at this point," Kurt mumbled as he leaned his head down onto Blaine's shoulder. They had left pier 26 and were waiting for their driver to come pick them up. From where they were they could still hear the music, but it was a lot quieter and easier to talk.

Blaine kissed the top of Kurt's head and sighed contentedly. "I'm just glad we got to do this together. This won't be our last time here. We'll come to pride every summer if that's what you want," he promised easily.

Kurt looked away from the water of the Hudson and lifted his head to smile at Blaine. "I'd like that very much." Pulling back he caught the beginning of a slower song starting to play and wrapped his arms around Blaine's waist. "Will you dance with me?" he asked quietly, his eyes shining happily. "Just one more dance before our ride shows up and we fall asleep?"

Blaine couldn't help the dopey smile that made its way onto his face. "Always just one more dance for you." Moving his arms up, he settled them around Kurt's shoulders.

They swayed slowly as Parachute's "She is Love" began to play. But Kurt couldn't leave it at that as he leaned in closer to sing his own version to the shorter teen in his arms.

I've been beaten down; I've been kicked around,

But he takes it all for me.

Kurt changed the pronouns around as he sang softly to Blaine, making his boyfriend smile brightly.

And I lost my faith, in my darkest days,

But he makes me want to believe.

Their driver pulled up, but neither noticed or acknowledged the car, too absorbed in each other.

They call him love, love, love, love, love.

They call him love, love, love, love, love.

He is love, and he is all I need.

Blaine felt his eyes sting a little, but couldn't get himself to look away from the beautiful boy singing to him. But this was his Kurt, and he knew they would have so many more moments like this. These moments were what made him feel as if he was falling for Kurt all over again. He sang out the same line to Kurt.

He is love, and he is all I need.

Kurt's smile seemed to light up the night at that. They finished the rest of the song, humming along and dancing slowly.

"Thank you," Kurt managed to say after the song ended, and they remained standing wrapped around each other.

Blaine tilted his head to the side looking curious. "For what, babe?"

Kurt bit his lip as he gazed into Blaine's hazel eyes. "For loving me," he whispered as if it was a secret.

Blaine shook his head slowly. "You never have to thank me for that because then I'd spend the rest of my life thanking you everyday for loving me back." He reached up and tucked a stray lock of chestnut hair behind Kurt's ear.

Kurt pulled them closer together so they were hugging, feeling only a little pinch pushing against his sternum from the pendant he'd given Blaine. He buried his face in the crook of Blaine's neck. "I love you so much."

Blaine rubbed his cheek against the top of Kurt's head. "I love you, too, so very much." He waited a moment before pulling back and slowly kissing Kurt.

Finally pulling back enough to breathe, but with his lips still brushing Blaine's, Kurt managed to mumble, "Let's go before we fall asleep standing up."

Blaine laughed and separated from the taller teen, but took hold of his hand. "All right, let's go."

Sniffle.

Everyone in the living room, including a spying Finn from the door way, turned towards Clint and Pepper who were both quickly wiping their eyes.

"Whose bright idea was it to spy on them?" Clint crossed his arms, looking away from the TV that was showing the Stark car bringing the boys home from the pier.

Tony was still looking at the screen with a lost look on his face; he hardly felt it when Pepper took his hand in her own. "He's not a little boy anymore." He murmured, his voice sounding surprised.

"I know."

"He's in love." His voice sounded thick even to his own ears.

"I know."

"He's going to marry that boy one day." Saying it felt as if he was confirming what he already knew.

"I know."

Tony tore his eyes from the TV and looked at a teary-eyed Pepper. "I couldn't stop him if I wanted to." Not that he wanted to, but just the thought.

Pepper shook her head in understanding. "No, you couldn't." Her heart was aching for the little boy she once had held in her arms, but swelled with pride for the man their boy was becoming.

"I'm not ready." Tony felt something wet on his cheek slide down.

"I know." Pepper wrapped her arms around her husband as she felt him do the same. "Me neither."

So, there it is, chapter 13.

Tell me how you feel about it, leave a review or a PM. I do read them as some of you know from me replying to you.

I've had some not so good rl stuff going on that's took over my time. Yes, near 5 months worth of time. But I'm still going to finish this story so don't worry about that.

Talk to me and tell me what you think so far.

What do you think is going to happen next?

Guess! Seriously, 'cause shit's about to get real, man.

Thanks, Ancientgleek for being my beta and being awesome!

Till next time,

-The Nemo.