“H-He is not human,” she murmured, not believing the results that were shown by the screen of her “Humanity Assurance Device.” The boy kneeling in front of her had to be human. His eyes, his expression, she had never seen or read about an android like that. He was even crying! She'd never seen a robot cry before. How could someone have built a machine so perfect as that?

“You! Get away from him!” Walter snorted, looking at Kurt.

“H-he's my dad, he is-” Kurt tried to speak. He didn’t want be away from his dad, and he didn’t understand why those people were there or why they were saying that he wasn’t human. Why were they saying that? Why aren’t they helping his dad?

“Just get away from him,” Walter roughly interrupted Kurt pleas, making the boy take a few steps away from his dad.

“Penny, go check his vital signs,” the old federal agent ordered, bringing his partner back from her shocked state.

“O-okay,” the girl nodded, lowering her gun and kneeling beside Burt.

“Y-you can help him?” Kurt begged Penny, making her heart ache. No, she couldn’t help Burt, he was already dead. There wasn’t anything she could do to help him now.

“I'm sorry, kid, he's already gone,” she said in a small voice, moved.
“No, he can’t be dead. H-he was going to bake w-with me. He was going to pick up some eggs. H-he can’t be dead!” Kurt violently burst out, throwing himself over his dad’s body, trying to awake him up.

“Dad, please! Please!” The blue eyed boy screamed, clenching Burt's clothes. He couldn’t be left alone, he couldn’t. He didn’t have anyone besides Burt.

Penny and Walter watched as the blue eyed android snapped above Burt’s body. They didn’t know what to do. The android wasn’t a human. Kurt was a machine, and machines are cold, soulless instruments. They aren’t supposed to look like that, so desperate, so human.

“P-Please, dad,” Kurt whispered, burying his face in Burt's chest. His dad couldn’t be dead. Those people had to be wrong.

“Get that thing away from the body!” Walter hissed as his voice cracked a little.

“You can’t be serious!” Penny gasped, shocked at the apparent coldness of her partner.

“You know the rules, Penny, don’t let that scene fool you. He is just a machine,” Walter assured, trying to keep his rational side operating. He couldn’t be fooled by a machine, his mission there was follow the protocol. Arrest the owner of the irregular form of artificial intelligence and destroy all the illegal forms of technology.

“You know the protocol,” the curly haired man whispered, fighting with all his strength to not see that android in front of him as a human. He was a machine, a thing, not a boy. And Walter had a mission to accomplish.

“You are honestly saying that you want to just follow the protocol in this case? I am the only one here seeing a boy that just lost his father?” Penny skeptically inquired, seeing more humanity in the android crying in front of them than in her own partner.

“Yes, I am seeing that, too! And that is exactly why we have to follow the protocol, because that thing isn’t human, it's a machine programed to look human and it's our mission not to let this kind of thing happen! Or did you want another Adam Jenkins case on your hands?” Walter snapped, clenching his teeth seeing the shocked expression on his partner’s face. “For all I know, that thing could have killed Burt Hummel and is now making a scene to play innocent!” he concluded, leaving Penny completely stunned.

“You know what Walter? Do it yourself, then! Follow your precious protocol! I am not killing a boy that has just lost his father!” The girl angrily hissed, shoving her Human Assurance device in Walter’s chest. She wouldn’t be part of that, she couldn’t look in that boy’s eyes and just shut down his system.

Walter grabbed the small device, gripping the thing tightly in his palms. He would do it, he had to do it. But surprisingly, even before Walter could approach the android, Kurt stood and looked into his eyes, paralyzing the curly haired man.

“You are going to kill me now?” he inquired as tears ran down his face.

“Y-you heard us?” Water asked, feeling like he was being drowned by the intense glare fixed on him.

“Just do it already,” Kurt whispered, surprising Walter. “It's not like I have anything to live for anyway,” he concluded, seconds after looking at his father’s body. He was alone, completely alone. He didn’t have a mother, he never had friends and the only person who ever loved him was dead. What reason did he have to live?

“B-but Kurt-” Penny tried to say, before the blue eyed android interrupted her.

“It's Penny, right?” Kurt asked, cracking a sad smile at her.

“Y-yeah,” She confirmed, shuddering slightly.

“It’s okay, Penny, if he thinks I'm not human, that I am a thing. He can follow his protocol,” Kurt said to the freckle faced newbie before fixing his glare on Walter again.
“But when you push that button, know one thing Walter, I will die as a human being. That device of yours can say that I'm not, but I am human, my dad taught me that,” Kurt spoke fearlessly. If the man would kill him, he would push that button knowing exactly what he was killing, another human being.

“A-alright,” Walter whispered, holding the gray device close to Kurt’s forehead. He would end it as quickly as he could. He would just type a code, push a button and send an electromagnet pulse through Kurt’s body shutting down his system. It all would happen in matter of seconds and hopefully it would be painless.

“This will be painless,” Walter assured him, not really understanding why he was saying that, why he was trying make things easier on a machine.

Penny began to sob loudly hearing Walter’s words. How was he still capable of doing that insanity, even after hearing Kurt’s words? She couldn’t believe that her partner was capable of such a cruelty.

“What's the point of being human if you don’t have any humanity in your heart?!” she screamed between sobs, making Walter certain that the she would never forgive him after that.

But even then Walter continued. He had to. Penny might not understand him now, but one day she would. After all, he was doing the right thing, he was following the law and that was their obligation there. Not matter how convincing Kurt had been assuring his humanity, he wasn’t human.

And keeping that in mind, that he was doing the right thing, that Kurt wasn’t human, Walter began to type the code for destruction of irregular forms of artificial intelligence.
But then Walter noticed that Kurt wasn’t closing his eyes. The android had his piercing blue eyes fixed on him intrepidly. He was trembling lightly and some tears still ran down his pale face, but Kurt didn’t beg for his life even once. He just kept his head raised, looking into his killer’s eyes, because Kurt Hummel would never beg for anything. No, Kurt would be brave until the end, because that was what his dad taught him, be strong no matter what.

Seeing such a demonstration of courage made Walter’s heart ache, because bravery was the most human of all the characteristics. Fight for survival? Begging? That was instinctive, any animal could do that. But only a man, a human being, could be brave for pride, could die for his beliefs. And Kurt believed in his humanity. He would die
believing.

How was Walter supposed to push that button and just burn the android’s system after such a demonstration of humanity? How he would live with himself after doing such thing?

“Fuck!” Walter hissed letting go of the silver object in his hand.

“W-what are you doing?” Kurt asked, seeing the man walking away from him.

“I don’t know. I really don’t have any idea what I am doing.” Walter sighed heavily before arms suddenly wrapped tightly around him.
“I knew it! I knew it, you wouldn’t kill him, Walter! You are a good man, Walter, a good man!” Penny squealed happily, giving her partner a tight hug.

“Calm down, newbie. I didn’t shut him down, but backup will be here soon, and someone else will,” Walter spoke, making her eyes turn watery again. “I'm sorry, Penny, but he is an illegal humanoid Android and the law is pretty clear about the fate of these things.” the older man stated, feeling bad for hurting his partner's feelings.

“But we need keep him alive!” Penny yelled. Her eyes where shinning in a way that could only mean one thing; she had an idea.

“He is the only connection that we have to discover what happened here,” she began to explain. “Burt Hummel was an ex-mechanic, living in crappy neighborhood. How could he afford all this, this facility? Someone was subsidizing him! And Kurt said that he was fine, that he was planning bake with him this morning. People don’t suddenly die, maybe he was murdered!”

“You don’t know that, Penny, the medical examiner hasn't even looked at the body yet, and you already talking about murder?” Walter spoke quietly, trying to keep things rational.

“Did your father have any chronic disease or health problems, Kurt?” Penny inquired of the android that still was confused with all that was happening.

“N-no, he was fine, t-then I went take a bath. And when I came back, he was on the ground unconscious,” Kurt answered.

“See? That might be a homicide!” Penny said, furrowing her eyebrows in thoughtful expression.

“We are not from homicide, Penny, we deal with irregular technology, not bodies,” Walter sighed, already feeling his head beginning to ache.

“But this is a case of irregular technology! Look at Kurt! He is probably the most advanced android in existence! We have to discover how he was built, who gave Burt money and technology to make him possible!”

“But Penny…”

“Walter, they are going to destroy Kurt without even investigating his origins, you know that! He is the only connection to discovering where all this technology came from!”

“And what your plan, just hide him and began a secret investigation?” Walter sarcastically suggested, rolling his eyes.

“YES! That’s exactly my plan!” Penny beamed at him.

“No! no, no, no,” Walter spoke, shaking his head. Penny had lost her mind, they couldn’t just hide Kurt!

“Walter!” Penny cried. “Think about it, that is the only way we can assure that whoever paid for all this doesn’t open another facility like this and build other androids like Kurt!”

“We can’t hide him and initiate a secret investigation! That would be not only insane, but illegal too!” Walter yelled, trying to bring his partner back to reality.

“Walter,” Penny pleaded with her chocolate colored eyes wide and tearful.

“Penny, we arrest people every day for hiding illegal forms of artificial intelligence. We can’t just began to break laws doing exactly what we are paid to combat!”

“Please, we aren’t going to get ourselves in trouble! If we discover who is behind all this, they will give us promotions and maybe they'll even let Kurt live,” Penny explained finally making it clear for Walter why she was so determined to investigate that case.

“Oh, now I get it! You want do all this, risking us going to jail because you want save that android!” Walter snapped.

“Kurt.” The android interrupted their discussion. “My name is Kurt. You can kill me if you want to, but you cannot call me “thing” or “android” anymore. My name is Kurt Hummel, my dad gave me that name and no matter what I am made of, I want be called by my name.” The blue eyed android shot another fearless glare in Walter’s direction. No one messed with the Hummel’s, and a bitter middle aged man wouldn’t be an exception to that rule.

“Fine! You want to protect him, we'll do it, but if anything goes wrong, this is entirely your responsibility!” Walter grunted at Penny, not believing he was really surrendering to her pleas.

“Are you planning on hiding him in your house or what?” Walter asked rolling his eyes.

“What? My house? I can’t bring him home with me!” Penny frowned.

“And where are you planning hide him, then? In the trunk of our vehicle?” Walter asked, already having the feeling that he was about to hear something that he wouldn’t like.

“Maybe you can hide him in your house?” Penny tentatively asked, already knowing that Walter wouldn’t be pleased by the idea.

“What?! My house? Are you out of your mind? He can’t stay in my house!” the curly haired man shouted. Penny had to be out of her mind, that was the only possible explanation for her behavior.

“I can’t bring him to my house either! I live with my parents and it'll be weird if I suddenly show up with a teenage boy don’t you think?!”

“Sure, because a lonely old man bringing a teenager unrelated to him to his home is so normal!” Walter sarcastically spoke, already thinking of how Ms. Chang from 145 would love to gossip about him living with a teenager.

“Please Walter the backup is coming any minute and I really can’t take him home with me! Pleeeaaseee?”

--------------------------------------------------------

“I can't believe I am actually doing this,” Walter grumbled, sitting on his old red couch, feeling exhausted. He had surrendered to Penny’s pleas, and now he had an illegal humanoid android staring him in the middle of his living room.

“Can you take these things off?” Kurt asked, looking to the handcuffs on his pale wrists.

“I'm still thinking about if I am going to let you walk around without those things,” Walter panted, covering his temples with hands.

“You can’t leave me this way! How I will go to the bathroom? And these things are hurting me!” Kurt shouted. He wasn’t an animal and he would not be treated like one.

“Oh, please, things like you really need to go to bathroom?” Walter inquired with a tired glare.

“Yes! I need to!” Kurt yelled, feeling extremely hurt by Walter’s comments.

“Don’t scream at me, okay? I am having one of the worst days of my life, I am infringing the law, risking going to jail for something that I am supposed to destroy, and now I have to deal with an artificial teen in my home!” the curly haired man spoke. He was too tired, too stressed to deal with Kurt right now.

“You think you are having a bad day?” Kurt inquired offended. “I LOST MY DAD TODAY!” the blue eyed android screamed. “The only person that ever loved me is gone! And now I am stuck with a guy that keeps calling me a “thing” and saying that he was supposed to destroy me! So, don’t you dare say to me that your day was a bad day! I lost everything today! I'm grieving, being disrespected, and I can’t even go to the fucking bathroom!” Kurt snapped as tears burned his eyes. He just wanted go back to the times where he felt safe, loved, human, where Burt was there with him, ruining his recipes and trying to convince him that sports could be as fun as any ballet performance.

Walter regretted his selfish words, seeing how shattered and lost the boy in front of him was. Yes, “boy.” Walter couldn’t see him as a thing anymore. Kurt was a boy, a lost and hurt boy that was being treated as garbage without having done anything wrong.

“S-sorry. I am being an asshole towards you,” Walter murmured, rubbing the nape of his neck, feeling uncomfortable.

“Yes, you are,” Kurt said quietly, wiping the tears of his eyes with his sleeves. “Now, can you please take these things off?”

“Yes, sorry, come here.” the man said before being interrupted by the ringing of his door bell.

“Crap! Who would it be at his hour! Kurt go hide,” Walter hissed.

“What?” The blue eyed android gasped, scared. What was happening?

“Please go! I will get the door,” Walter said, worried about who could be at that hour.
Maybe it could be an agent of the FDTC, or even the police, coming to arrest him and destroy Kurt. And he didn’t understand why, but he wouldn’t let that happen, he couldn’t let anyone hurt that blue eyed android.

When the hazel eyed man open his door, he was shocked. It wasn’t the cops or any federal agents standing there, the person that greeted him was someone way more unexpected.

“Hi, Walter,” a hazel eyed boy wearing a black leather jacket grinned sarcastically. “It's been a while…”