My pursuers ran right past us. They turned into another alley and disappeared. I didn’t move, because really I had no choice. After a while my attacker whispered in my ear.

“Scream or run, you’ll end up dead, understand?” I nodded my head as much as I could. “Good.” He released me. I could have run but I was tired and scared and I really didn’t want to take extra risks.

Suddenly the sound of footsteps coming our way filled the silence. The man, who was in dark clothes with some material covering most his face, swung me round pressing my back against the wall, his back was to me as he crouched in a fighting stance. I was confused, was he attacking or protecting me?

The footsteps got closer and I pressed myself further back against the wall, heart beating hard in my chest. A shrill whistle cut through the silence making a small melody. I nearly jumped out of my skin. There was a beat of silence then the man in front of me whistled an answering tune before relaxing. He twisted enough to grab my hand and pull me out of the alcove behind him. I was too scared to do anything but follow.

“Still alive then Warbler, what’s that?” the new comer and owner of the footsteps said as he turned to face us.

“Like this bunch of hicks could kill me and this,” he pulled my arm up slightly, “is a witness. We need to go,” my attacker (or protector, whatever he was), Warbler replied. Then we were running again, or the two other men were, I was being dragged. Before I knew it we’d exited the back alleys and I was being shoved into the back of a waiting car, Warbler following me in, the other figure riding shotgun.

The car pulled away. I hunched in to my seat terrified; now I was being kidnapped. Warbler pulled his mask off, revealing, what I had to begrudgingly admit, was a handsome face. I still wanted to punch it though, not that I would, I hate violence. His knife had disappeared, whether dropped or sheathed I had no idea as I hadn’t seen it go. He grinned at me for a second, before setting his face back into a serious expression.

“Relax, your safe,” he said. I didn’t relax I wasn’t about to believe him.

“Then let me go,” I asked, my voice coming out embarrassingly high pitched and pathetic.

“That I can’t do, then you wouldn’t be safe,” he explained. I gave him my best bitch glare but it had little effect on him.

“Who are you people?” I asked, trying and failing to bring my voice back to a normal pitch.

“I’m Warbler,” he replied, “that’s Robin in the front seat and Sparrow is driving. That’s all you’ll get name wise. We’re from a government organisation, we catch bad guys. Right now we’re after that gang who robbed the jewellers shop. You are the only witness we have so we need you alive and safe, which includes you not having a heart attack so please relax.”

“Could you be anymore vague,” I asked in irritation, a little of the fear disappearing.

“You’re lucky you got that much. What’s your name?” I narrowed my eyes at him. Did he really think he was getting my name after the aliases he’d just given for himself and his comrades?

“Porcelain,” I answered back snidely. Then wondered why the hell I was giving him the name Coach Sue had given me in High School, it was hardly masculine and empowering. It was just the first one that came into my head. I wondered briefly what Sue would do in my situation but brushed the thought away because that wasn’t going to help me.

“Fine,” Warbler muttered pulling something out of his pocket and grabbing my hand. Before I could do anything about it he had stuck something sharp into the pad of one of my fingers.

“Ow,” I cried yanking my hand back and sticking my abused finger in my mouth. “What was that for?” I asked once I removed my finger.

“For being petulant. We’re on your side,” Warbler snapped back at me.

“Cool it Warb, he’s just scared,” the driver, Sparrow, replied. Warbler sighed and turned to me.

“I know ok, I know you’re scared but you have to trust us, we’re here to help you. If we wanted to hurt you we would have already. Those men chasing you back there would have killed you already if we hadn’t got to you first.”

“O…okay,” I replied shakily. I wasn’t a hundred percent sure I trusted them but I hadn’t been harmed with them, minus being stabbed in the finger, and if I left them it was only so long before the robbers found me.

“We’re here,” Sparrow called, swinging the car round to drive down into an underground parking lot. I wasn’t exactly sure where here was.

“Stay in the car until we tell you to move ok?” Warbler said, getting out of the car once it had stopped. Robin also exited. I watched them out of the window as the checked the area, quickly speaking to someone guarding an elevator. Warbler turned and made a signal.

“Come on kid, time to go,” Sparrow said opening the door. I quickly slid out and he came round to meet me. Taking my elbow he walked me over to the others. The elevator opened as we reached it. I was pushed inside, Warbler following me. He hit a button and we started to go up.

“Where are we?” I asked him.

“A safe house of sorts, it’s a hotel but no one is staying here right now. People from my organisation are all over the place, you’re completely safe here,” he explained. I felt myself relax a little bit more. I didn’t know if it would be a fatal mistake but I was starting to trust him.

The elevator dinged, doors sliding smoothly open. Men stood in the corridor, dressed in black and probably armed to the teeth. One handed a card key to Warbler. He opened a door a little way down the corridor. We entered the room. I looked around; the interior design left a lot to be desired. The walls were cream, the bedspread, curtains and lampshades were a gross orangy/pink colour. The wooden furnishings were a dark wood.

“Nice décor,” I commented sarcastically, dropping my bag on the single bed. I looked back at Warbler as he closed the door behind him.

“You’re not an interior designer are you?” he asked.

“Not professionally, no,” I commented, “but I could do better than whoever designed this room. A phone beeped and Warbler pulled his out reading something on the screen intently. As he did this I studied him. He really was an attractive man, around my age but shorter, he looked to be at the peak of fitness. His hair was dark and kept in place on his head with gel, he facial features were classically handsome and his eyes were a warm hazel. He was certainly easier on the eyes than the room we stood in.

“Assistant to the editor of a fashion magazine, that explains a lot Kurt Hummel,” Warbler spoke, looking up and shooting me a grin.

My mouth fell open rather unattractively. “How did you?” I asked, not quite able to string a full sentence, how the hell did he suddenly know my name and job.

“DNA is amazing, Kurt Hummel, 26, originally from Lima, Ohio, failed to get into New York Academy of Dramatic Arts so instead went to Parson’s to study fashion. Now works for Fashion World magazine directly under the editor Stefan Gardener. Any of that wrong?”

I shook my head. “No but… but how… when did you get my DNA?” I asked. Warbler raised an eyebrow. “Wait, when you stabbed my finger?”

“Full marks, Mr Hummel. According to this you live and work miles away from where we found you, what were you doing down there?”

“It’s a long story,” I sighed dropping down onto the bed. I was suddenly very tired. “Actually that’s not true,” I added, with the tiredness also came anger, I wouldn’t even be in this situation if it hadn’t been for Stefan. “My boss, Stefan, and I were in a relationship, I really loved him until today when I find out he was married all along. I ran out, ran away. I just needed to be alone for a while so I walked, for ages. That’s how I ended up there, now my life’s in danger and… and…” to my horror I felt tears well in my eyes a start to flow down my cheeks.

Suddenly Warbler was there, sitting on the bed beside me and wrapping his arms around me, I gave in and buried my head in his shoulder and just cried. After the day I had I deserved to break down. As my sobs subsided I began to realise I was crying on a virtual stranger, who may or may not have brought me here to kill me, though I was starting to believe him when he said he’d keep me safe. I raised my head to look at him. We locked eyes and oh his eyes were even more beautiful close up, now I could see flecks of green in them.

In a move so unlike me, but desperately needing the comfort, I closed the gap between us and pressed my lips to his, he froze then pulled away.

“Kurt?” he whispered out.

“I need to forget, please make me forget,” I whispered back, pressing our lips together once more. This time he responded, kissing me back, I moved my hand to cup his cheek and one of his hands treaded through the hair on the back of my head. We kissed for a while before he pulled away once more.

“That was unprofessional of me, I’m so sorry Kurt,” he said, standing up and away from the bed.

“Don’t apologise I started it,” I replied, then yawned.

“Go to sleep, I’ll be guarding you all night.”

“Don’t you need sleep?”

“I’ll be fine, goodnight Kurt.”

“Goodnight,” I replied, I was so tired. I lifted the covers and slid under fully dressed, it wasn’t like I had a choice anyway. That was the last I remembered.

A hand roughly shook me awake. I blinked my eyes open to see Warbler looming over me in the half darkness. I was suddenly very alert.

“Get under the bed,” he hissed at me. I did as he instructed silently. There was no noise for a while, then the door opened.