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Two teens sat beneath a tree hidden away from the Xavier Institute for Higher Learning tucked behind the tree’s wide base. A gentle wind blew past, the tree’s branches swayed and the leaves rustled in response to the summer breeze. They both utterly loved this location. Kurt Wager, also known as The Incredible Nightcrawler, enjoyed the peace and quiet of nature as he studied for his upcoming assignments.
Peter Maximoff, aka Quicksilver, took pleasure in the solitude from the difficult and constantly busy school. The two also had a shared love for the spot as it was a place where they could meet and share sweet secret kisses away from the prying eyes of their peers. It was not that the two didn’t trust their friends but rather neither wanted the attention. Peter had been more adamant in the beginning about the secrecy of the relationship but, it was actually Kurt that maintained the professional front near others even after the two had spent a long while together. The couple had agreed that they were not to stand too close to one another during drills, they mustn’t allow themselves to steal too many glances, and they couldn’t be distracted during practice by each other.
They were the world’s protectors and they took their jobs very seriously. Any romantic or inappropriate behavior was left at the door when they entered practice arenas. But hidden behind this tree, tucked away from the pressures of hero work and societal views they could be happy together. It was a naive happiness where both teens refused to imagine the future. Refused people that may disapprove of them, fights that might hurt them, battles they may never return from. They ignored all the nagging in their minds opting to instead wrap their arms around each other and share intense loving gazes. They enjoyed each others company behind this tree in different ways. Peter napped, usually while resting his head on one of Kurt’s legs and wrapping his arms around the other’s torso. While Kurt always had some new book to read during their breaks away.
They didn’t need to speak or preoccupy each other’s time just being there together was enough. Despite both knowing that fact they also took these break to be together. Kurt rarely got through more than two chapters of his book before his fast paced and impatient boyfriend would pull his attention. Peter lifted his head from Kurt’s lap and pushed himself off his stomach “Almost done?”he asked.
Kurt glanced past his book then looked back down to the page “I guess”he smirked.
Once his bookmark was in place and the book set down aside Peter pushed himself at the other. Peter loved kissing Kurt, his lips were always so soft and he would let out small cute whimper like moans that drove Peter crazy. Kurt was no better though, despite his fairly naive and innocent mind his body reacted just as strongly as Peter’s. He often gripped Peter’s shirt tightly his tail flitting through the air wildly. Sometimes his tail will wind itself up Peter’s leg stopping just short of the crotch. Peter was unsure if Kurt purposefully did this to tease him or if his tail truly had a mind of it’s own.
To say the two enjoyed their Wednesday meet ups behind their tree would be an understatement. With their differing schedules and constant practices the two didn’t have a lot of time during the week to see one another. All they had was two hours during lunch break on Wednesdays and their weekends, which were usually busy as well. Of course, evil never takes a break so they were always on half alert during their times off. Never completely letting their guards down. They were always heroes, protectors through and through. The situation didn’t seem to bother Kurt very much or if it did he never talked about it. However, Peter recently began expressing his distaste for their commitment.
“You ever think about how we won’t be able to have normal lives”Peter asked one late Saturday night a little less than a month ago. The two had been dating for over a year when he asked and Kurt lifted his head off Peter’s chest to give a confused face. “I mean, we’re heroes now. Forever”Peter continued. Even though they had yet to experience any villain as horrible as En Sabah Nur, or Apocalypse, they were always on missions, often dangerous missions.
Kurt settled once more on Peter’s chest “I like being a hero”his voice was sleepy and he mumbled out his answer signaling to Peter that he was ready for bed. Peter tried not to bring the topic up to Kurt after that, he sensed that it made the other sightly uncomfortable. Although it didn’t stop Peter from thinking about it and he did so frequently. Mostly he would find himself thinking about the dangers of being a hero when he was with Kurt. It was almost like the blue teen brought the concern deep inside Peter’s mind out and into his stomach.
Peter pulled away from Kurt’s mouth as another swift breeze blew between the two jostling Kurt’s hair only slightly. Peter felt a hitch in his breath and he smirked “You’re beautiful”he said with a suave voice.
Kurt’s cheeks faded into a purple hue and he laughed “You’re so stupid Pietro”. Kurt began using the Italian version of Peter’s name early in their relationship. He said he wanted a name different than the one everyone else uses. He wanted Peter to only think of him when he heard the name Pietro. Peter didn’t mind, in fact he thought it was adorable and loved hearing the German accented teen say the name.
Even as the two enjoyed the seemingly perfect moment under the tree Peter felt a sinking feeling in his stomach. His face must have reflected his confusing change in emotion from blissful to worried. “What’s wrong Pietro”Kurt asked tipping his head to the side although Peter didn’t have a real answer. It was a deep dark feeling building inside Peter’s stomach that made him stop and rethink his blissful enjoyment.
“It’s nothing, don’t worry about it”the silver haired teen let out a sigh.
“We should get back, break is almost over”Kurt pressed his lips together while Peter frowned “Yeah, we never have enough time”. Peter pushed himself off the ground and extended a hand to help Kurt up.
“How about one more kiss”Peter smirked “For good luck”.
Kurt laughed lightly “Good luck with what?”he asked Peter rubbed the back of his neck.
“Fine you caught me. I don’t need any luck just a kiss”he chuckled. After they shared a long passionate kiss they were set to head back to the mansion. “Race you to the library”Peter smiled. Kurt's teleportation allowed him keep up with Peter, or almost keep up. Every now and then he would even win their races, though he suspected that Peter let him win. Kurt was practicing his teleportation speed, is was almost instantaneous—almost. He wanted to appear in his new location in the same instant as when he disappeared from his last, but at his current level he just wasn’t fast enough. They started racing to improve both their speeds though Kurt was gaining more practice from it than Peter was.
“First to the library wins”Peter put on a determined face and Kurt matched it.
“This time I’m gonna win”Kurt bit his bottom lip as he prepared to teleport.
“Oh we’ll see”Peter chuckled “Let’s go”he shouted. When Peter uses his speed time slows, almost to a complete stop. During these races he gets to see everything around him slow as he begins running. He loves seeing Kurt’s burst of blue smoke as he disappears, it always seems so interesting to Peter how Kurt can just vanish. But something strange happened that day only a split millisecond after the two took off. Kurt reappeared halfway between the large willow tree and the mansion. The burst of blue smoke just behind him startled Peter and he halted his running. Peter looked back worried as Kurt sat kneeled behind him.
“Are you okay”Peter rushed over taking a knee next to his significant other.
“I’m fine Pietro, just tired”Kurt let out a shaky breath then went to stand.
“You can’t stay up late reading anymore”Peter laughed nervously and Kurt nodded “I’m sorry to make you worry but, really I’m fine”Kurt smiled in hopes that it would make his boyfriend less nervous. It worked, Kurt’s smile could cure any ailment of Peter’s.
“Alright then. Maybe we just walk to the library today”Peter motioned with his head and Kurt nodded along. When they got to the library they had to say their goodbyes. They both wished they could give a quick goodbye kiss but instead they put on a friendly show parting with a wave and a nod. After hours of being apart the two had plans to meet up in Kurt’s room and watch a movie. They needed a quick hour together to recharge from their day apart, it had been mostly Peter idea to start this habit. He had brought it up a couple months ago when he started missing Kurt more to the point of pain.
When they had to pretend to be just friends or when they had to give short waves or nods of acknowledgment; when they had to be apart, it burned deep in Peter’s soul. He never asked Kurt if he felt the same, the strange new feeling scared Peter if he was honest and the teen was stubborn he wanted to ignore it. As he came closer to Kurt’s room he froze Kurt stood with Raven, or Mystique, in the halls. Mystique preferred her team call her by her powered alias and in turn she referred to them in their’s. The whole team suspected it was a way to keep them all distanced from her though sometimes if they were having a close conversation she would let their real name slip.
Peter had never experienced that since he rarely talked to Mystique alone but he wondered if Kurt had. Peter took to one side of the wall and leaned against it waiting for the two to finish their conversation. He could hear small bits of the conversation when one of them didn’t keep their voice down low enough. Kurt was nodding along and Mystique was speaking in a firm professional manner. Finally she finished and Kurt looked down “I understand, I’ll work on it”. She then turned and began walking away in the opposite direction Peter quickly made his way over to Kurt.
“What was that about”he said ducking slightly to catch his boyfriend’s eyes.
“Um well”Kurt looked around then motioned for the two to take cover in his room. “She said I needed to train harder”Kurt said once they were in the room. He was pacing the floor as Peter settled on the bed. “That I’m not really getting stronger and I need more practice”he let out a sigh.
“That’s kinda rude”Peter looked away Kurt sighed “She is right though”he admitted. Peter wasn’t sure what to say, he wanted to tell Kurt that he was perfect completely perfect in every sense but, he had to be realistic. They were heroes and if Kurt was stagnant then eventually he would be vulnerable to villains. “Don’t worry too much about it. I’m sure you’re getting stronger”Peter stood and held his arms out Kurt took the offering. Peter could tell his boyfriend was still worried he pulled away slightly Kurt’s face stayed pushed into his neck. “Let’s watch a movie. Take your mind off practice. Tomorrow in the arena, you’ll show Mystique how strong you are”Peter smiled softly and Kurt finally pulled away.
“Thank you Pietro”his eyes shown how much he needed the comfort and how much Peter truly comforted him. The flicker of the television screen as the movie played was the only light in the room as the two stole small soft kisses and whispered sweet nothings to one another until eventually both nodded off.
In the morning Kurt’s alarm went off and the two jolted awake. “We have fifteen minutes to get ready”Kurt stretched Peter nodded slowly. He was never a morning person it was always his slowest time of day. Kurt was better at mornings than his counterpart. He was already out of bed picking out his outfit for the day.
“Rested?”Peter asked swinging his legs off the bed Kurt nodded “Thanks to you”Kurt laughed. “Good, I’m gonna go change I’ll meet you in the arena”Peter stood and stretched his legs. Kurt nodded his attention on his dresser when Peter’s arms wrapped around him he looked up. “No good morning or goodbye kiss”Peter said smirking. They kissed but Kurt cut it short as he pulled away quickly leaving Peter still leaned forward slightly.
“We’ve gotta get ready”Kurt said turning back with a small smile Peter chuckled “You’re the boss”. With that Peter was gone in a flash. The two saw each other ten minutes later in the arena this time they stared forward pretending to ignore the other’s existence. Mystique entered the large paneled room. She began a short lecture on the type of practice they were taking part in for the day then went to the control room off to the left. The threat that day was nothing new but the skill level had been raised.
They were to work together to take down a group of battle robots designed to understand and adapt to the teen’s powers. They were also supposed to capture a heavily guarded object in the center of the arena. The back wall of the room lowered slowly bright light shining through. An arena of broken building pieces and fires was now opened up to them. Jean shouted some orders and the team went into battle mode. Kurt’s job was to scout and eventually capture the target in the middle of the arena.
“Kurt get to a high point”Jean shouted Kurt nodded “Codenames” Mystique corrected over the many speakers. Jean mentally chastised herself, she always forgot not to call her friends by their names during battle. Kurt looked around and chose one of the only still standing buildings then warped. The teen tumbled out of his blue mist on top of the building utterly drained of all his energy he pushed himself up slowly. Confusion ran through his mind as he attempted to stand, he shouldn’t be tired he just woke up. He got to his feet swaying slightly he scanned the arena then spoke into his team mic.
“Two right, four ahead. Many in the middle”his breathing was heavy but only one of his team members noticed. Peter didn’t say anything convincing himself that he was being paranoid and over protective.
“QuickSilver and Storm, you guys take the right. Cyclops you’re with me”Jean shouted. They all nodded “Nightcrawler you’re with Cyclops and I”. They all began running towards their designated group of robots Kurt took in a big breath and prepared to warp. He dropped into the dirt a few feet behind Jean and Scott who were already fighting.
He stood shakily his vision blurring and lungs burning he shook his head dismissing his tiredness. He looked up ready to fight, Jean had already taken one of the robots down and was working on her second.
“Nightcrawler watch out”Scott shouted dodging a piece of debris thrown from his robot. Before Kurt could even think about teleporting away he was smacked by a large robotic arm. He was thrown to the side hitting the ground roughly and rolling to a stop against a wall.
“Kurt”Jean yelled Peter froze when he heard Jean shout that name. He disregarded his robot and rushed over to Kurt. “Hey”he said getting down next to Kurt “Are you okay?”he started pulling Kurt up. The blue teen was exhausted almost unable to stand he leaned on Peter for support. “I’m- just tired”he spoke slowly Peter’s nerves kicked in. Then all at once the robots stopped.
“Nightcrawler”Mystique’s voice boomed into the arena “Control room, now!”she commanded. Kurt forced himself to stand without Peter he knew he was in for a lecture. He had let her down especially after what she told him yesterday all he could do was apologize. He couldn’t teleport, he didn’t have the strength, so he began walking to her shame coming down on him as he passed his peers. After a couple minutes of walking Kurt made it to the control room the rest of his team watched from their battle positions. Without the loud clanking of metal, snaps of lighting from Storm, and crackling of fires from Jean the arena was dead silent. Mystique began a lecture about teamwork that quickly turned into a scolding about strength.
“You aren’t practicing enough. You’re aren’t getting any better and as it stands now you are the weakest member of this team”her voice was stern and loud. The rest of the team could hear the harsh remarks from where they were standing. They echoed off the plain practice room walls tunneling into the open arena air.
Kurt’s head hung “I’m sorry, I don’t know what’s wrong with me”he spoke softly the team could only see that he was speaking.
“Well as of this moment all of this”Mystique motioned to the arena “Is too dangerous. I’m gonna have to ask you to leave”she didn’t want to send the teen away but she had no choice. Kurt looked up his eyes full of shock he was being kicked out of practice, did that mean he was being kicked off the team? “Try to get some more rest or something”she shook her head. She didn’t want to hurt him but she also didn’t want him hurt.
“R-Right”Kurt wrung his hands and slowly left the office. He didn’t dare look back to his equally shocked team as he pushed the practice room door open. The slam of the metal door echoed through the arena reverberating in Peter’s mind heavily.
“Let’s continue”Mystique spoke into the mic her voice held a seldom unease as she pushed the group on. The team was slow getting back into the rhythm of fighting after that. Peter couldn’t focus on his fight no matter how hard he tried. When they finally ended their battle successfully they were allowed to leave and Peter was the first one out. He stood outside Kurt’s door only a second later and let himself in.
“Kurt”he shut the door the blue teen was pacing the room once more “I was horrible”he said sadly. “You just had a bad day”Peter said walking up to Kurt who continued pacing.
“But I shouldn’t have- it makes no sense”Kurt ran his hand through his hair he walked all the way over to other side of the room and stopped. Peter was at his side in an instant and Kurt flinched “Please don’t do that right now”he said sighing. Peter cocked an eyebrow “Huh”he asked.
Kurt groaned “Please don’t use your power”he explained Peter was visibly taken aback “Why not?"he asked.
“Peter! Just- I don’t want to think about it”Kurt yelled Peter swallowed a large lump in his throat. “I wanna rest”Kurt bit his bottom lip Peter nodded slowly “Alone”Kurt added his eyes flickering from the floor to Peter’s face.
The silver haired teen sucked in a breath then nodded “Yeah I get that”he nodded “Um just don’t let this day and what Mystique said get to you okay?”. Kurt nodded slowly unconvincingly Peter placed a soft hand on Kurt’s cheek and lifted his face. “Come find me if you wanna talk later”he said Kurt’s eyes glanced away. “Rest up”Peter said faking a smile he leaned forward and kissed the other teen.
The kiss was one sided Kurt didn’t move a muscle and that scared Peter more than anything. A loud knock startled the two and Peter pulled away “Kurt? It’s Jean”the girl outside called Peter stepped away “I’ll tell her you’re sleeping”he said Kurt nodded slowly avoiding eye contact. Peter opened the door slowly and stepped out “Uh Kurt’s resting. I asked if he was okay and he said he’s fine just-”Peter sighed “Tired”.
Over the next two days the more Peter tried to see Kurt the more the other seemed busy. He said he was practicing, which Peter understood, or resting, which Peter also understood but he wanted to be alone, which Peter didn’t understand. Peter knocked on Kurt’s door “Kurt? It’s me”nothing happened for a minute then the door opened. “Hey”Peter said stepping into the room Kurt left the doorway and went to his desk.
“Um you’ve been pretty stressed and stuff I was thinking maybe we sneak out tonight. Get some dinner”Peter shut the door and approached Kurt slowly.
Kurt’s eyes scanned his desk then lifted to Peter “Pietro”he let out a sigh. “I would love to but”he paused “I need to keep practicing. I don’t have the time”he looked down.
Peter pursed his lips “It’ll be fast, just in and out. Back before 9”he pointed to the alarm clock displaying a 7:23 time. Kurt put on a thinking face “Come on we’re the fastest people here, nobody will even notice we’re gone”Peter smiled but Kurt frowned deeply.
“I’m not fast”he looked off to the right “I mean not as fast as me yet but you’re fast”.
“Stop”Kurt yelled instantly changing the mood in the room from comfortable to hostile. A knock sounded through the room once more interrupting the two Kurt sighed and pushed past Peter.
When he opened the door Mystique stood there “I came to ask how you’ve been”she said formally, as if she was a boss talking to an employee. “I’m fine. I’ve just been”Peter cut in with a snarky tone “Tired”. Kurt shot a angry glare towards him then slowly turned back to Mystique who nodded. “Well I’d like to have some one and one practice with you, if you don’t mind”she folded her hands in front of her.
Kurt nodded slowly “Right now, if you aren’t busy”she added making Kurt straighten his spine. “No- uh I’m not busy”Kurt decided. Mystique looked down at her watch and Kurt took the second to look back at Peter. The silver haired teen was pouting but still held a worried look for his boyfriend.
“Good, Professor X will be joining us. We should be going”she turned around and began walking. Kurt ducked into the room to quickly grab his jacket before he began to head out Peter grabbed his hand stopping him.
“Be careful”he whispered his eyes displayed how worried he was for Kurt who nodded. Peter leaned forward, but Kurt turned his head the kiss landing on his cheek instead of his mouth. He kept his head down as he pulled away Peter stood shocked his heart aching. Kurt met the two mentors in the practice room the arena wall was closed up and the three of them stood silently.
Peter didn’t want to be over protective, he trusted that Kurt would tell him about the one on one practice but he knew that Kurt wasn’t going to be in the mood so he pressed himself against the wall outside the practice room door. “We’re just gonna let some basic level robots out and increase difficulty from there”Mystique said she spoke softer this time. It was apparent that she felt bad about her harshness the last time she saw Kurt. Once the two mentors were in the control room two wall panels lifted and four robots set after Kurt.
Four robots was a lot, Kurt could fight he fought well really but his powers were best used in defense and he knew that. His best option was to get some of the robots to take each other out. He sucked in a big breath and teleported clenching his fists and teeth tightly as he landed he felt faint as if he had teleported half across the world five times.
Suddenly a bullet came flying at him and he quickly dodged. He continued dodging attacks for a few minutes until Mystique’s voice came over the intercom “Use your power more, don’t stay put”she said obviously as if he should have known that, he did know that he just wasn’t able to do it. When he didn’t abide by her recommendation she came over the intercom again “Nightcrawler use your power”she said sternly. Kurt clenched his teeth and tried but nothing happened a pit formed in his stomach.
“Nightcrawler”she shouted Kurt ducked under a swinging blade from one of the robots. “I can’t”the blue teen yelled the confession echoing through the room although the two in the control room weren’t aware it was a confession. “What does that mean?”Mystique asked but Kurt was too busy. He moved to the right to dodge a swing but a another robot’s bullet made a sudden sharp cut on his right arm. He hissed and dropped to the ground his other hand gripping the cut. His vision faded in and out he heard Mystique yell “Nightcrawler”. He dropped to his side a burst of blue smoke replacing him the two mentors scrambled to the battle floor after shutting off the robots. Kurt was no where to be found and they looked to one another. Peter could heard the echoing noise of the robots in the practice room. He also heard Mystique yelling over the intercom, scolding in her usual tone, speaking down to Kurt and making Peter angry. Then there was a yell from her, it was mixed with fear and after another second the noise from the drones stopped. The practice room door burst open and Peter stepped away “What are you doing here”Mystique asked him he pressed his lips tightly. “Never mind, we have to find him”she looked to Professor X who nodded.
Peter realized they were talking about Kurt in an instant he looked into the practice room the robots stood silently alone. Peter sucked in a worried breath and took off to Kurt’s room. The silver haired teen knocked on the door “Kurt? Kurt are you in there?”no answer came. He knocked again then grabbed the handle but the door was locked. Kurt didn’t like locking his door, he said it was dangerous in case they ever had to escape quickly. That never made sense to Peter, but it always made him laugh. “Kurt, it’s me. It’s Peter”he knocked at the door desperately but nothing answered him.
Peter could hear Professor X and Mystique approaching from down the hall. Professor X cleared his throat “Raven, why don’t you go check the infirmary”he said she nodded and turned down a different hall. Peter continued to knock at the door. The ground unexpectedly shook and the two looked to one another confused. The shaking got increasingly stronger. “Is this Jean again”Peter asked Professor X shook his head “Unlikely, she is quite in control of her powers”his eyes landed on Kurt’s door and Peter’s head turned back.
“Kurt!”he banged on the door then looked down. A bright blue light was pouring out from the crack below the door Peter stepped back shock overcoming his body. “He’s in trouble”Peter said nervously then shoved his shoulder against the door. “Kurt can you hear me”Peter shouted trying again to break in. “Kurt!”another jolt came about the house shaking the two. Peter clenched his teeth and took a short running start slamming into he door. The wooden door smashed open and Peter stumbled in. His body tensed up and he stared wide eyed up at the wonder above him.
Kurt hung suspended in the air blue mist pouring off him like a great water fall gathering and covering the ground. The patterns etched against his dark blue skin were illuminated in a bright neon blue light. “Kurt?”Peter said scared Professor X was behind Peter the same amount of shocked washing over him as it did Peter. They stood watching in complete bewilderment their eyes captivated by the spectacle. Professor X seemed to have some strange scientific interest hidden behind his gaze whereas Peter was utterly terrified. Popping and snapping electrical charges began dancing on Kurt’s skin spitting off the neon blue etching on his body. The house continued shaking in small bursts until the shaking got increasingly worse. Suddenly Kurt’s eyes opened wide. His eyes flashed bright blue beams of light like two blue bulbed headlights on a car.
The mist began rising around his body and Peter stepped forward “Don’t”Professor X grabbed Peter’s arm stopping him. Electrical bolts stung off Kurt into the blue mist. It looked similar to Storm’s lighting powers but was more electrical and otherworldly. The charges gathered at Kurt’s feet within the blue mist circling like so many sharks in murky water waiting to attack. Finally one large bolt grew from the many and jumped out of the mist zapping Kurt in the chest. The teen dropped to the ground in a heap. “Kurt”Peter yanked his arm away from Professor X and rushed over to Kurt.
Peter dropped to the ground sliding closer to Kurt he pulled the other teen into his arms. “Kurt? Kurt please wake up”he pressed his head to Kurt’s chest and listened for a heartbeat. “He’s alive”Peter reported “Get him to the infirmary”Professor X ordered. Peter nodded quickly he shoved his arms under Kurt and lifted him then took off to the infirmary. Mystique was waiting outside the door when Peter got there. Her eyes went wide “Was that all him”she asked Peter nodded she held the door open from him. “Oh my”the doctor stepped back from a patient she was consoling due to the quaking. “Place him on one of the beds”she pointed but Peter was already a step ahead of her. Peter laid Kurt down carefully on the hospital bed and pulled away.
A hand landed on his shoulder and he looked up to see Mystique “Why don’t we wait outside for Professor X”. Peter didn’t want to leave, he couldn’t stand the idea of being away from Kurt right now but he followed her out anyway. At that moment anyone could get Peter to do anything. He felt so slow and powerless, numb and motionless, weak and scared. The two stood in heavy silence for a few minutes before finally Professor X rounded the corner. “The doctor is taking vitals”Mystique told him to which he nodded.
“He’s never done this before”Mystique said turning to Professor X “Of course not, if he had it would not be such a surprise”he spoke it like a fact. Mystique sighed “Then what is it, does it have something to do with his performance?”. Professor X rubbed his chin “Possible, we’ve never had someone with this power before so everything is new”. They all stood quietly.
Peter could feel their eyes run over his body every now and then. He knew they were wondering why he was there. He hoped that the two adults would just let it be he didn’t want to talk right now, even if they forced him he wasn't sure he could. Peter had always been loud and energetic, it came with the powers but now standing waiting to be told that Kurt was okay. It was the quietest most still moment of his life.
Just when the air seemed to change from horribly quiet to questioning curiosity the door to the infirmary opened. The doctor on staff was young and pushed her glasses up “He’s fine”she said calmly everyone seem to exhale a breath of relief Peter more than the others. “His vitals are fine and the only wound seems to be on his arm. I patched his arm the cut probably won’t even scar”she nodded slowly as the group in the hall listened.
“Can I see him?”Peter asked quickly she smiled “Of course”she stepped back to allow the teen to enter. When he entered he saw Kurt still asleep on one of the beds towards the middle of the room he approached slowly.
“He is still asleep. Although I believe he’ll wake by morning. Perhaps he just needed a good night’s rest”she stood towards the middle of the room with Professor X and Mystique. That passive remark irked Peter, all of this couldn’t be from rest. It just couldn’t. Kurt had plenty of rest the day he got kicked out of practice. He had plenty of rest the day outside under the tree. Peter knew this wasn’t about sleep and he stood wondering, gazing at Kurt’s face for the real answer.
The three adults talked for a little while before Mystique excused herself the Professor left soon after. Now that they knew he was ‘fine’ they could continue on their ways. Ignoring the warning signs and choosing to focus their attention on other more favorable students. Peter didn’t dislike Jean or Scott, in fact they were some of his closest friends and he really cared for them, but they were treated differently by Professor X and Mystique. They were more powerful, and Peter knew it, it didn’t bother him that they were more powerful than him only that they were treated differently, better. He blamed Professor X and Mystique for this dark quelling of hatred inside him. But they had done to Kurt what they had done to him, ignored him and that made Peter most angry.
Peter watched Kurt’s chest rise and fall his face was calm as if nothing had ever happened. “Why don’t you head back to your dorm. He’ll be fine for the night here, you can return in the morning”she gave a sweet smile and Peter nodded slowly. Peter was at the doors first thing in the morning the nurse on duty was an older lady who seemed tired but sweet. Kurt’s bed was surrounded by a light blue curtain brought on to slightly separate the beds from one another for privacy. Peter let himself into the curtain room Kurt still laid sleeping soundly.
Peter waited all day switching between a video game and napping until towards the end of the day he began pacing. The curtain opened and the doctor from the other day stepped in “Still asleep”she said slightly confused and shocked.
“Is he okay?”Peter asked, he felt like he had been saying that more often the past few days.
The doctor placed a hand on Kurt’s forehead “No fever, curious”she grabbed the clipboard at the end of the bed. “Maybe we should take a blood sample, just in case”she nodded then let herself out of the curtain room. All of the worry that was relieved yesterday came flooding back to Peter as the nurse took three vials of blood then left the two alone. Peter’s eyes trailed up Kurt’s unmoving body he wracked his mind thinking about the past week. He had noticed Kurt acting differently, he was more reserved when it came to his power and eventually Peter’s that much was a given.
“You knew something was wrong”Peter mumbled his eyes finally landing on Kurt’s face. “Why didn’t you tell me?”after a minute of silence Peter glanced around. A small chair sat right outside Kurt’s curtain room and Peter pulled it in for himself. “I wish I had known. I’ve been such an ass”Peter shook his head “Telling you that you were strong, that all you had to do was rest or practice”he bit his bottom lip. “I wish I knew what was wrong”he looked down to Kurt’s hand resting in front of him “I wish you would have just talked to me. We could have worked through this together, you don’t have to worry alone”.
Peter could state that fact over and overbut it wouldn’t come true for either of them. They were both too stubborn, or prideful, or over confident, or whatever other maladaptive trait possessed their minds and bound them from talking about their issues. Peter forced himself to deal with his family issues on his own, he never brought up the topic around Kurt. In similar fashion Kurt never seemed to bring up his strength or his place on the team until now. The confusing sinking feeling that Peter often feels began growing once more in his stomach. Heavy like a bowling ball dropping down into a dark pit. He feared something bad would happen, not just in general but specifically to Kurt.
The curtain was pulled back and Peter snapped out of his own thoughts he realized he had been staring at Kurt’s hand for several minutes. Professor X came forward his eyes fixed on Kurt’s face “This is highly unusual”he said.
Peter pressed his lips “Maybe we should have Hank take a look at him”Peter said in a rushed tone.
Professor X kept his calm eyes trained on Kurt “He’s only sleeping, yes it is unusual, but I feel there is nothing Hank can do”.
Peter stood from his chair “Is there anything You can do”he asked, the mentor looked up then cocked an eyebrow.
“Perhaps there is”he closed his eyes his brows stitching together in concentration. A long silence came over the makeshift room until Professor X finally spoke. “There’s static, almost electrical sounding”he said Peter then understood what was happening. The Professor was attempting to read into Kurt’s dreams a small blip of hope grew in Peter’s chest. “I can hear some words though, they repeat”his eyes tightened. “Stop, stop, stop”he spoke like a conduit for Kurt’s mind which brought a horribly heavy stress onto Peter’s mind. “Stop. Peter”the Professor went quiet leaving Peter alone with that final word. His body broke out into a cold sweat, his hands clenching and unclenching without his control. “That’s all. The static is too loud”Professor X opened his eyes instantly training them on Peter.
“Can I ask, do you know what is going on?”he folded his hands in his lap Peter slowly shook his head. “Then, if it is not too personal can I ask if you and Kurt are seeing one another”. The question was simple, or simply phrased, Peter wished that he had Kurt at his side so he could look over for confirmation. Peter looked to his right but Kurt’s sleeping face still held no answers.
“Yes. We are”Peter finally answered. Even though he was unsure about sharing that information it came out confidently.
“Well, I would hope so if not you are one committed friend”Professor X chuckled lightening the mood in the small room.
Peter cracked a smile “We uh- we didn’t want all the drama so we just thought it’d be better if it was a secret”Peter offered he felt he needed to explain why they were hiding away from their mentor.
“There is no rules against relationships on campus, I understand very well that young adults will be young adults but you must know that you two are in a very dangerous field”before he could continue Peter cut in. “I know”he said his voice dropping an octave.
“We’re professional, we don’t let our relationship into the arena. I don’t need him to worry about me while we’re fighting and I don’t want to be distracted worrying about him”he took on a professional tone but then his voice broke. “But-” Peter let out a shaky breath “God do I worry. So much”his head dropped his eyes fixing on Kurt’s hand once more. “I just can’t stop thinking about if we run into battle and one of us- if he, doesn’t make it out”the silver haired teen paused allowing the other to speak.
“This is the problem when it comes to relationships. No matter who is involved, whether it be X-Men or regular people”Professor X cast his eyes downward. “You fear losing them, it’s far too painful to think about. Love is quite dangerous”he spoke from experience and Peter could tell. The word love sent a jolt though Peter’s body, he had been stubbornly ignoring that word for months now. To hear the phrase uttered in conjunction to himself and Kurt, it made him shutter. From excitement or from fear he wasn’t sure.
“So what do you do to stop the worrying then?”Peter asked.
Professor X chuckled bittersweetly “You are asking an impossible question”. He shifted his gaze to Kurt “To love is to lose. It will hurt immensely to lose them but to have them is worth all the pain. It is worth everything”. The noise of someone clearing their throat cut through the conversation then the curtain drew back.
Mystique stood next to the doctor who stepped forward “I’m afraid nothing came up in the blood samples. We’ll just have to observe and hope he wakes soon”she dismissed herself quickly after that sensing the strong intense air about the room. Mystique however was not as easily scared away by the mood she let herself into the room.
“I hope he’s alright”she said Peter couldn’t stop the scoff from leaving his mouth. As soon as the sound of displeasure left his body and made itself apparent he stiffened. He glanced over to Kurt then locked eyes with Mystique “You could have been more understanding with him”he chose his words carefully. The woman raised an eyebrow “He won’t get stronger by being babied”.
Peter shook his head “Sure but he won’t get better by constantly being told he’s getting worse”he paused “This”he motioned over to Kurt. “Might have not happened if you didn’t put so much pressure on him ‘getting stronger’ ”Peter used quotes.
“I only want him safe out there. Real threats aren’t going to ask him how he’s feeling”Mystique gestured vaguely to the outside world.
“That’s exactly why you should. Instead of being another threat, be an instructor”Peter motioned to Mystique.
She faltered Professor X looked between the two “Energy is high, why don’t we all just leave him to his rest”he turned away from the bed. “I’m staying”Peter muttered dropping down onto the chair he pulled in earlier. The two older heroes paused for a second to think before continuing out of the small curtain room leaving Peter alone with Kurt. Peter waited all day. Every second that ticked by brought another dose of nervous toxins into his mind just when he thought he couldn’t be more worried another hour would pass. When darkness fell over the mansion the nurse drew back the curtain.
“You must be tired”she said smoothing the end of Kurt’s bedspread.
“I’m fine”Peter said taking a page from Kurt’s emotionally unavailable book.
“Have you eaten”her presence brought a calm that only a grandmother could bring. Peter shook his head slowly, his eyes never left Kurt’s face as he wondered the same thing about him. When was the last time Kurt ate, two days ago? “Don’t worry about him, I’ll take good care of him. You on the other hand should go get something to eat”she folded her hands. Peter sighed, this was her nice way of kicking him out for the night. He knew he wasn’t allowed to stay overnight so he stood “Thank you”he said nodding. His thanks was not for himself but for Kurt, at this point he couldn’t care less about himself.
The next morning Peter was at Kurt’s still sleeping bedside clutching tightly in his hand the book Kurt had been reading some days ago. Peter remembered back to that hanging willow tree enveloping them in sweet simple naive thoughts. “Hey Kurt uh-”Peter faltered. It felt weird to talk to Kurt and not have his beaming eyes or sweet smile greet Peter. “I saw on t.v. that if you talk to someone in a-”he froze almost unable to say the next word. “Coma then they might wake up or at least it’ll keep them grounded”Peter chuckled nervously he glanced back to the chair and took a seat. “Um I brought your book”he flipped the leather bound book in his hands “I’m not as smart as you so I probably won’t do it justice but I thought I’d read some to you”he looked up expecting an answer. It was so cold in the room, or was that just Peter staring at the blank face of his boyfriend. “Sorry”he mumbled “Its so hard to see you like this”his head dropped.
An IV of water was trailed out of Kurt’s arm and a monitor displayed his heartbeat. All it was doing was administering water and tracking his heart, it wasn’t bad yet it still hurt Peter to see. He pulled in a some air gathering his strength “Okay I’m gonna read this thing now”he dropped the book open on the bed. The bookmark sat pressed between two pages one read Chapter 3 while the other was full of text. Peter drew in a long breath then began reading. It was slow and stumbling but he continued on feeling as though the text itself was Kurt speaking.
He reached a passage and paused then continued “Those who fear love”he pressed his lips “Are selfish”. His eyes lifted to Kurt “Are you afraid?”he asked knowing he wouldn’t received an answer. “I mean you were reading this, you had to have some sense of fear or”he shook his head “Or did you know that I did”he sighed.
“I feel like I should have done more”he took one of his hands from the book and wrapped it around Kurt’s limp hand. “But how can I do more if I don’t know what’s going on”he bit his bottom lip. “I guess it doesn’t matter now huh”his gaze traveled up Kurt’s body stopping on his rising and falling chest. “We’ve gotta start talking to each other”Peter shook his head “I mean I’ve been so afraid, afraid I might lose you. Afraid that something bad would happen”he looked up to Kurt’s face then dropped his eyes down to their hands completely. “I guess I was right”a pained smile found its way to his face “I wish I was wrong- I wish you were okay. I wish-”he stopped “I’ve been wishing too much”. His thumb began brushing Kurt’s hand lightly “I’ve also been asking you if you were okay a lot”he swallowed. “I didn’t mean to make you feel like you weren’t strong enough, you don’t need me to ask you if you’re okay. I mean you’re a hero, I’m sure you’re fine”he paused.
“But I guess I am selfish, I just wanted to hear you talk. I wanted to make sure you would say what I thought you would say. Then you started saying something else ‘I’m just tired’ ” his brows furrowed. “I should have asked why, I kept saying you needed more rest. That’s bullshit, just a stupid temporary answer”. Silence filled the gaps in his monologue he could hear the dripping of water in the IV bag. “God I miss you. You’ve only been gone for what? Three days”he sighed “Gone- you’re right here but, you’re not”his hand tightened. “I’ve been ignoring this for a while. This feeling within me, the feeling of fear and worry. It’s been torturing me but it’s not fear, not really”he licked his lips. “It’s something much worse than fear Kurt. I can’t stand to think of you hurt, I want you by my side all the time, when we’re in a battle I worry. I know you’re strong and I hope you know it too but I can’t help myself. The thought ‘Is Kurt okay’ pops up more times than I can count. Then I look over, so fast that you could never tell. Sometimes”he stopped to let out a small chuckle.
“Sometimes I freeze time, just to look at you. Memorize your smile, your eyes closed so happily. Its just my selfish way of keeping you safe I guess. It’s all because of this feeling. I think, I’m ready now. To tell you- I love you Kurt”. The silence pounded in Peter’s head it was only seconds long but felt like forever, he never wanted to hear that silence again.
“I love you too Pietro”the words felt ethereal as they floated through the air. For a split second Peter was sure they had only been in his mind yet his head snapped up anyway. Kurt’s sweet eyes finally stared back at him “Kurt”Peter jumped up throwing his arms around the other teen. Kurt laughed using his non-pricked arm to hug back Peter felt his worry melt away.
“You scared the hell outta me”Peter pulled away slightly “But I missed you”he kissed Kurt’s cheek.
“Missed me? How long was I asleep”Kurt asked nervousness leaked into his voice.
“Like three days, I started reading to you but then I”Peter paused “Wait did you say you-”. His mind raced as he thought over the few words he believed he had heard. Kurt nodded with a smile on his face “How much did you hear”Peter was slightly nervous asking the question but a wide smile spread across his face.
“I heard enough Pietro”Kurt lifted his hand and placed it on Peter’s cheek. “Say it again for me, please. I like hearing it”Kurt asked as Peter leaned down slowly “I’ll say as many time as you wanna hear it. I love you”. Kurt smiled and the two kissed. The kiss was long overdue and passionate. Kurt gripped at Peter’s shirt as if it were the rope keeping him suspended above a million foot drop. Peter cradled Kurt’s face with one hand and with the other he held Kurt tightly against his own body. He needed to feel Kurt move against him and in order to do so he had to get closer. Peter placed one knee on bed and hovered over the other teen.
“Now now you two. Public displays of affection are still punishable by school code”Professor X’s voice rang out and into the teen’s ears. Peter yanked himself away from Kurt in a quick panic.
“We can- Professor we”Kurt stumbled with his word and wiped his mouth frantically. Professor X held up a dismissing hand “I already spoke with Peter. I’m glad you’re awake”he moved closer to the bed. Kurt’s eyes flashed over to Peter who gave a short nod.
“Thank you”Kurt spoke slowly he could barely wrap his mind around the fact that he was asleep for three days.
“You put on quite a show before you fainted. Do you remember what happened?”Professor X spoke slowly to allow Kurt’s mind to register. The blue teen folded and unfolded his hands “Not really. I remember fighting- the robots. And then”he looked down trying to recall the day “I got hit with a bullet”. He looked over to his shoulder where the bandage wrap still sat a prestige white against his blue. “Then, everything went black”he finished recounting his story. Peter and Professor X exchanged a short glance. Before anyone could explain to Kurt what had happened to him the curtain drew back and Mystique stepped in. There was a frigid air about her aimed directly at Peter.
“How are you”she nodded to Kurt who was surprised at the question “I’m okay”the phrase finally wasn’t followed by a ‘just tired’ which made Peter happy.
“Do you feel any different?”when Professor X spoke every head turned to him.
“Not really, I’m more energized I think”Kurt looked to each face stopping on Peter’s. “What happened?”he suspected that something more happened while he was passed out. Peter almost couldn’t bring himself to say. The memory of his fear in that moment still brought goosebumps to his skin but Kurt wanted and deserved to know.
“I’ll tell him about it”Peter said quickly, he wasn’t going to let Mystique or even Professor X take this away from him. “Um after you were hit by the bullet you teleported back to your room. I guess it was a like an unconscious homing tactic”Peter explained while Kurt nodded along, that made sense to him he had done it a couple times before. This was the first time however that he teleported to his dorm here in the mansion that made him feel much safer than teleporting to some unknown forest in Germany like the last time. “That’s when it kinda got crazy. There was these earthquakes or something like earthquakes. Your door was locked, I’m not sure how it got locked but it was”Peter glanced up to Kurt who looked somewhat worried.
“The shaking was getting really strong then I saw a blue light under the door coming from inside the room. I had to break your door open and”Peter stopped the image of Kurt floating midair surrounded by the dancing blue bolts made his stomach drop. “Um you were hovering, like in the air, there was blue mist everywhere and you- you were glowing”Peter only watched as his boyfriend’s face got more and more scared. “Your patterns”Peter’s hand lifted on its own accord and brushed Kurt’s face. He wanted to comfort the other teen, hold him tightly in his arms whispering that it was all over and everything was okay. Kurt melted only slightly against Peter’s touch but the two went back to their original positions just as fast as they changed. “They were glowing bright blue, and there were these electric charges all around you”Peter sighed.
“There was this really big zap and then you dropped. We brought you here”Peter shrugged his shoulders slightly then let his arms drop like dead things against his sides.
Kurt took in a shaky breath “That’s- wow I. Um”he was at a loss for words.
“We should try to test your powers, see if they changed at all”Mystique, always one for brushing off the dirt and getting back into the fight, spoke up.
“Would you let him rest for a minute. He just woke up”Peter said furrowing his brow she turned with an angry expression mixed with an unbelieving one. She was shocked by his constant disrespect and outspokenness towards her.
“I am well aware of that, why don’t you let Kurt speak for himself”she motioned to Kurt who was watching silently his head turning from one to the other. Peter knew she was right, Kurt was awake he could speak for himself and he knew what was best at he moment. Even so, Peter didn’t want Kurt fighting yet, and a small part of him didn’t want Kurt fighting at all ever again. He had just gotten him back and he never wanted to loose him again.
“I think I will take a couple hours to prepare. Maybe take a shower”Kurt laughed lightly to break the tension.
“Take as much time as you need”Professor X motioned with his head for he and Mystique to leave. The nurse came around a few minutes after they left and removed Kurt’s IV smiling sweetly at him. “I’m glad you are okay”she said as she wrapped his arm “You know, he stayed with you every minute that he could”she glanced up to Peter who’s eyes jolted with attention. “He’s quite sweet”she finished and gathered her equipment “Yes he is”Kurt reached over and grabbed Peter’s hand. The two walked back to Kurt’s room, it would have been easy for Kurt to teleport and Peter to run but the two walked. Maybe it was that they weren’t ready to test out Kurt’s powers, maybe Peter didn’t want to make Kurt feel pressured to use his powers, maybe it was that they simply wanted the time together.
“So yeah Professor X knows about us. All he said was that”Peter paused then sighed “That he hopes we know we’re in a dangerous field of work”. Kurt nodded quietly “I think we know that all too well”he let out a couple bittersweet stabs of laughter.
“I’m not sure if Mystique knows, but probably”Peter shrugged “How about the others?”Kurt looked over. “Don’t think so”they both trailed into silence “Are we going to tell them now”Kurt asked. His voice always held a sweet childlike curiosity when he asked question no matter his age or the question, it was one of the things Peter loved about him.
“I don’t mind”he shrugged Kurt glanced down “Pietro”he called his boyfriend’s attention. Peter’s head snapped over like a dog responding to a whistle command. “Would you say it again”a smile came to his face. A smile full of selfish love and giddiness Peter laughed his cheeks heating up. “I love you Kurt”he repeated for the third time those four words which made Kurt’s face turn a deep purple “I love you too Pietro”. Then, without another word, they took one another’s hands. Peter waited in Kurt’s room while the other showered when he finished he entered in a towel.
“I’m gonna meet Mystique and Professor X in the arena”Kurt announced after locking the newly fixed door to change Peter looked up from his handheld game. “Are you sure you’re ready”he asked cautiously “I mean I know you’re strong but-”he stopped there wasn’t anything more to say Kurt knew the rest. Kurt gave his boyfriend a small smile “I’m a bit nervous too but, I have to try”. He dug through his dresser grabbing out a few items of clothes, most of which was practice gear.
“I get that you have to try, but so soon?”Peter rested his elbows on his knees and let his hands hang between his legs. Kurt dropped his towel and nodded “I don’t think Mystique is going to want to wait very long. Plus, I can do it, I know I can”. He pulled on his tight black performance shirt then turned to his boyfriend now fully dressed “Thank you Pietro, your concern is sweet”he smiled. Peter stood and made his way over to Kurt “It probably goes without saying but- I don’t want you to get hurt again. Promise you’ll stop if you feel tired”he placed his hands on Kurt’s arms “I promise love. I promise”. Peter pulled Kurt into a hug “You’re gonna do great. Go show them how strong you are”.
As soon as Peter pulled away Kurt smiled and teleported. Peter stood for a second worry still lingering in his mind but he forced it away replacing it instead with pride and confidence in Kurt’s strength. As Kurt stood facing the currently lifeless robots he felt surges of energy inside him. He wanted to fight, normally he wanted to stay a safe distance away but he felt the need to defeat these robots.
After many tests all quick and extremely diligent in nature Mystique and Professor X determined that Kurt had doubled his teleportation tolerance as compared to his previous levels. He was faster now, “Jumping between spaces with nanosecond speed as fast as Quicksilver”Mystique mumbled at one point. However, the biggest improvement and the one that shocked them all was a short electrical jolt he could now administer to enemies. The shock was short and not lethal by single dose but mixed with quick temporal jumps through time the jolts of electricity could successfully take down any powerful villain. Professor X explained the new power to the teen although on some level Kurt already knew.
He always had a good grasp of his power despite not knowing the terms for his feelings. “In order to teleport you place yourself in a time altered space unlike anything I’ve ever seen. This jump is very short yet existent. When you transport people there are side-effects. Passengers do not have the same tolerance as you do and therefore you can weaken your opponents. This side-effect teleportation paired with the short shocks can quickly disarm or debilitate a threat”. Professor X spoke with such interest and excitement. He loved learning about new powers and different abilities especially when it came to his pupils. Kurt recounted this to Peter later in his room late that night.
The two tangled were in Kurt’s bedspread the blue teen laying half his body on the other resting his head lightly on Peter’s chest speaking in a quiet but excited voice. When he finally finished Peter was almost at a loss for words “You’re so amazing Blueberry. You leveled up like a video game character”Peter laughed his fingers running lightly up and down Kurt’s back.
“Yes like one of the video characters in your thing”he was referring to Peter’s handheld game.
“But does this mean that you can level up again like later? Am I gonna have to watch you get hurt and pass out again?”Peter said this as a joke but a small bit of nervousness still held true. Although the new knowledge on Kurt’s power did ease a lot of the worry from before.
“I mean I don’t know. I’m not really sure what triggered this but I suppose it could happen again”Kurt rubbed Peter’s chest “Don’t worry though, at least next time we’ll know what’s going on”he chuckled.
Peter nodded lightly “I love seeing you get stronger”. Peter truly did love seeing Kurt grow stronger, it meant that he could worry a little less. The two knew of their extremely dangerous life choice to be heroes, if choice was the right word. A small part of Peter wished that they could just live normal lives though.
Normal: going to school, continuing to college, getting an apartment together, getting married, moving into a house, possibly having some kids. They were not normal however.
“You ever think about normal people. The lives they get to live”Peter asked after the long silence Kurt was slowly nodding off.
“What do you mean? Normal lives?”Kurt asked Peter glanced down then lifted his eyes to the ceiling once more.
“You know, marriage, houses, kids. All that normal shit”that prompted Kurt to laugh.
“We can do that too. Just because we’re mutants doesn’t mean we can’t marry or get a house. Or have kids. We can fall in love just like any one else, obviously”.
Peter smiled “Yeah that’s true”his arm tightened around Kurt’s waist “Very true”.