Thank you to Anthony Head for bringing our King and the Magic of Camelot to life, whose talent and legacy will always remain, our King Uther Pendragon 💙💕
Your youngest brother misses you, even if he doesn't always admit it.
The last thing you expected was a lump in your bed. Yes, you were totally used to having brothers who could and would sneak around, hopping in and out of windows as easy as breathing, but your window was on the fifth floor. And locked.
Regardless, there he was. Damian. Your youngest and most stubborn baby brother. He'd brought Alfred the cat with him, you could barely make both of them out from underneath the covers.
"Damian?" You said, sitting on the bed and ruffling his hair. "What are you doing here, baby?"
He stirred, yawning wide before catching himself, then quickly rearranging his face into a neutral—if a bit defensive—expression. "I was on patrol and needed somewhere to stay. Father was being unreasonable."
"Yeah, Bruce can be like that. Except I know that's a lie, right?"
"It is not." He huffed. "I can't believe you'd accuse me—"
"You don't patrol on Sunday nights, Dami. I've known that since I was eight. Bruce never lets you guys patrol right before the school week. What really happened?"
"I missed you." He mumbled, so low you barely heard it. "And I was tired of never seeing you. You visit Dick in Blüdhaven."
His tone was accusatory, his eyes still tired. Alfred snored from somewhere under the mountain of displaced covers. Gotham was surprisingly quiet tonight.
"Yeah, I'm sorry for not coming around more. But you can't go slipping away from home. You're going to give our father a premature heart attack."
"When's the last time you saw your favorite?" He asked finally.
"Who?" You asked, even though you knew who he meant.
"Todd."
"Jay? It's been...I mean, we talked last night. He's fine, if that's what you're asking."
"It wasn't." His eyes were trained squarely on the far wall, one of the few familiar gestures that managed to betray his age.
"Look, Damian. I'm here now. I'm sorry that I haven't found time to see you as often, and I'll work it out, okay? I promise. But you can't actively punish me for something I didn't realize even bothered you. I would've come around more if I knew you cared."
He considered this, and seemed satisfied. "It's a lonely mansion without you."
Bruce Wayne, Dick Grayson, Jason Todd, Tim Drake, Damian Wayne giving their girl the princess treatment…
warnings : only slightly suggestive in these? tooth rotting fluff, the boys are whipped for their girl, female reader, mentions of feet, golden retriever type boyfriends fr
Taglist : @i-dearbambi-dxx | please let me know if you want to be tagged in any of my ongoing works!
note : my first time ever writing a request >.< actually had a lot of fun writing this and will defo do more in the future :)
Based on this request
Bruce Wayne has zero ability in restraint when it comes to spoiling his girlfriend—you. If there’s anything he sees you looking at, humming in consideration of buying at all, he’s whipping out his card and he’s buying it without hesitation.
“What’s this?” You ask, shrugging off your outdoor coat and handing it to a patiently waiting Alfred in the foyer. The butler takes your coat and folds it in his arms, his greying brows raising with intrigue at the expensive designer box in Bruce’s hands.
Bruce holds the box out for you to take, and you do so without hesitation. Though, you give a suspicious look to him before delicately removing the lid and pushing aside the crinkling tissue paper inside.
You gasp as you reach in and reveal the backless designer dress you had stared at for a millisecond yesterday at the store.
“Bruce!” You squeal, eyes sparkling in adoration for the gift. Alfred wordlessly takes the box from your hands as you fly forwards to wrap your arms around Bruce’s midriff. Bruce only chuckles, fondness in his expression, pure adoration for your reaction and you in general.
“Do you like it?” Bruce leans down and presses a lingering kiss to your temple. His fingers, calloused and blemished from the years of his work as Batman, trace patterns into the skin under your shirt. You do your best to conceal a shiver at the touch, but nothing can slip past the detectives trained eye.
You hum. “I love it. You didn’t have to buy that for me—it must have cost a fortune.”
An ironic statement considering Bruce Wayne is the richest man in Gotham. A billionaire philanthropist sitting pretty on a wealth dating back several generations.
Bruce shakes his head and presses his lips again to your skin, this time lower and nearing your mouth. “Money doesn’t matter,” he assures, his voice lowering to a husk. “You’re worth every penny I’ll ever spend.”
You tilt your head back and lift yourself onto your toes, lips gently colliding with his. He reciprocates immediately, his fingers digging into your waist while he holds you steady. Then, he breaks the kiss and glances over at the box that Alfred is still holding—where he’s still standing nearby and not at all looking embarrassed by the affection.
You follow his gaze and rest your head to his chest. “I should try it on—make sure it fits.”
Bruce reaches over and takes the box from Alfred with a small “thank you”.
He turns his steely blue eyes down to meet yours, and you try not to shudder under the intensity of his gaze, the way his eyes sharpen in that way he’s plotting something.
“You absolutely should try it on,” he encourages after a beat, his smile turning deliciously wicked before he adds: “then we can see how it looks on my bedroom floor.”
~*~*~
Dick Grayson is constantly on the move. He’s never known the ability to stay in one place; his thoughts are constantly running in overdrive with plans for the future. And that’s not limited to his role as a leader or vigilante, it also shows in his relationship.
“This was wonderful,” you say with a breathy sigh, closing your eyes as the golden sun sets over the horizon. The final rays of light glow upon your face, a warmth that feels like the sky itself is placing kisses across your skin. “Thank you for planning this, I’ve had an amazing time.”
Dick bumps his shoulder into yours, his hand moving from behind him to rest on your thigh. His thumb moves in small circles, a soothing motion that simply makes you melt at the touch.
“I’m glad you’ve enjoyed yourself,” he admits, his smile as beautiful as the sunset itself. “I was thinking of a shopping date tomorrow—and then we can watch that new movie you were talking about last week. I was also thinking dinner at that new Italian place that opened up last month.”
You turn to look at him, amusement barely concealed in your fond smile. “Another date? Dick, you’re going to go bankrupt if you keep spending your money on me like this. You know I’m perfectly happy with lazy days with you.”
Dick leans his head down and nuzzles his nose against yours, his lips brushing your own. You lean into him and chase the kiss, but his hand reaches up and holds you in place. He knows if he kisses you now he won’t be able to stop, and there’s still more to this night that he planned. Instead, he rests his forehead against yours and closes his eyes.
“I know, but you’re my girl and I want to spoil you,” he admits. He doesn’t sound ashamed by that at all, and the genuineness in his voice melts your entire body into a puddle. “Let me enjoy spoiling you. Please.”
You pretend to hum in thought. “Alright. But you’ll have to let me spoil you at some point, okay?”
There’s a woosh of air and suddenly you’re on your back on the picnic blanket, one hand braced next to your head while the other settles onto your hip. His legs cage you in, and he swoops his head down to press a deep, loving kiss to your lips. You reciprocate without hesitation, a hum vibrating your throat at the unfiltered taste of him. And just as you’re turning to goo underneath him, just when that familiar fire is sparking low in your stomach, he pulls away and steals all the warmth with him.
“You existing is enough for me,” Dick says, his voice low and husky and absolutely addicting.
You reach your hands up and thread your fingers through his thick, dark locks. If he were a cat, you’re sure he would have started purring, just from the way his eyelids droop at the pleasant sensation.
And then Dick is no longer above you. He tucks himself at your side and pulls you into a hug, ensuring the both of you are angled in a way to see the sky perfectly. “Are you ready for the show?” He asks.
You try to look at his face for clues, but find nothing. So you look back to the sky curiously, just as the first star shoots across the darkening background. You gasp in delight at the sight, awed by the series of stars that follow.
“Shooting stars,” you whisper, your hand reaching to rest on Dicks chest. He encases your hand with his own, his thumb rubbing gentle circles across the your fingers.
“Make a wish, baby,” Dick tells you, his head tilting to the side to gauge your reaction.
“I don’t need to wish for anything.”
Dick hums, a little confused. “You don’t?”
You roll to the side and lift yourself so you’re sitting on his lap, legs straddling him and pinning him to the floor—not that he’d fight to be above you, he loves every angle of yourself that you give. You lean down and press your lips to his, devouring him before trailing kisses down his jawline. He groans at the tingling feeling each kiss leaves behind on his skin, craving more.
You stop and lean back, your hand coming up to cup his cheek. “Everything I’ve ever wished for in the past—those wishes were all granted the moment you came into my life, Dick Grayson.”
A shooting star flies across the skyline behind you, and in that very same moment Dick makes the wish that this moment will last forever.
~*~*~
Jason Todd is quiet with his displays of devotion. He’s always felt things more strongly than others, and maybe it’s because he missed some vital development points during his teen years—but his devotion to Gotham, his home city, his love for the people seeps into his love for you.
It’s early evening when you arrive home from work. Sweaty, exhausted, rosy cheeked and desperate for a shower; you lock the door behind you and kick your shoes off into a messy heap. You don’t even bother heading to the lounge room at the end of the hall, because you’re so tired and desperate to just collapse in bed and sleep for the next twelve hours.
But as you enter your bedroom, fingers fumbling with the button on your jeans, you pause in the threshold and blink slowly at the bouquet of flowers placed neatly on your side of the bed. A beautiful arrangement of red and pink roses, tied at the stems with a red ribbon that looks utterly perfect. You shuffle further into the room and scoop the bouquet from the bed, a knowing smile on your lips.
Then, footsteps approach from behind, and two buff arms encase you from behind. Your back presses into a solid chest, and you tilt your head until you’re staring up into the adoring, beautiful eyes of your boyfriend, Jason.
“Was work okay?” Jason asks, his lips brushing against the crown of your head.
You hum and close your eyes, basking in the warmth of his love. “It went,” you answer shortly, not wanting to discuss your gruelling day as a waitress. Instead, you lift the bouquet higher to draw Jason’s eyes to it, and you watch in delight as he briefly looks away from your face and to the flowers.
“Do you like them?” He whispers, leaning down again and kissing your forehead once more. Needy and uncertainty disguised as lazy confidence—you’ve been with Jason long enough to know his tells; the way his eyes crinkle at the corners with worry, the way his lips twitch downwards in an effort to not frown.
“I love them,” you tell him honestly. Without fully breaking free from his hold, you manage to swivel in his arms so you’re standing chest-to-chest. He’s looking down at you still, and you take advantage of the position and brush your nose against his. “I’m going to need more vases, though.”
Jason raises a brow. “More vases? You already have an entire cupboard dedicated to them,” he points out, confused.
You stifle a laugh and pull from the embrace, slipping your hand into his and tugging him out of the bedroom. He follows without question, eyes wide with curiosity as you lead him into the kitchen.
You pull open the cupboard under the sink to reveal very empty shelves, where you like to store the glass and ceramic vases. At the back corner is a cobweb and a tiny spider weaving in the middle, making the most of the vast empty space. You gesture to the shelves with an amused smile, watching as Jason’s face drops in realisation.
“Oh. Where did they all go?”
You resort to staying quiet as you squeeze his hand and take him on a tour around the apartment. There you point out the ceramic vase and flowers on the centre of the coffee table, and then to the glass vase with flowers on the decorative table underneath the window. The bookshelf next to the hallway has two more vases filled with flowers, looking just as fresh as when Jason had presented them to you two days ago.
But you’re not done, even as realisation starts to dawn on Jason’s face. You lead him to the bathroom, where another vase is perched next to the sink, where lilies spill out over the top. Next, you show him to the bedroom, where a vase and flowers are sitting pretty on your dresser, by your vanity table next to the mirror, and one sitting on the window.
You slowly turn to look at Jason, your smile teasing and easy. “Hm—I wonder where my vases have all gone?” You ask with a teasing lilt.
Jason huffs a laugh and pulls you back to his chest. “Okay, I get it. I buy you too many flowers. If you’re expecting me to apologise then you’re out of luck.”
You conceal a snort of laughter and shake your head. “Apologise? Jason, this is the sweetest thing anyone has ever done for me. I can’t imagine ever being upset at the fact that I’ve run out of vases.”
You lean up to press a gentle kiss to his lips. He presses back into you, his eyes sliding shut at the warmth of your mouth against his. He pulls away briefly to gaze down at the roses in your hand.
“They’ll die if we don’t put them in some water,” he mutters, sounding sadder than you’d ever expect a large man such as himself to be at flowers. “Maybe we can put them in a jug for now and I can get some new vases tomorrow?”
You hum in thought. Then, you turn your gaze to your bed and a bright idea sparks behind your eyes.
“I need to take a shower,” you tell him, lifting the bouquet up for Jason to take. He does without hesitation, but he doesn’t look any less confused about it. You continue, “why don’t you decorate the bed for when I finish up? I hear roses always look pretty as petals scattered on sheets.”
Jason opens his mouth to say something, then he immediately shuts his mouth again. The apples of his cheeks morph into a shade of red, and the corners of his mouth twitch upwards into a boyish smile. He gives a firm nod and presses a kiss to your mouth once again, then gently pushes you away so you can go and shower.
“Go shower, baby. I can handle a little bit of decoration. But don’t take too long, yeah?”
~*~*~
Tim Drake can’t exist longer than a few minutes without needing to be in some form of contact with you. Whether it’s through texting updates about his day—including asking about yours, even if you’re doing the most basic, mundane of tasks—or draping his body over yours. There is no scale, because he’s simply content to be with you regardless.
“Your muscles are so tight…”
You strain through a hum of agreement as Tim works his long fingers into the arch of your foot, his thumbs pressing hard and tender to roughly soothe out the tension that’s been bothering you for the better part of your day. You fight a groan at a particularly sensitive spot, one that feels both painful and like instant relief—like pressing on a bruise repeatedly and not learning your lesson that it’s sore.
Even though it was Tim who insisted you sit down and let him ease the stress from your muscles, you still feel riddled with guilt at the fact that you’ve indirectly pulled him away from one of his many detective cases.
“You don’t have to do this,” you remind him softly, brows scrunching together as he starts a circular motion beneath your toes. It takes every ounce of your strength to not openly whine at the sensation. “I can just go and soak in the bath like I usually do.”
Tim shoots you an accusing stare, like he’s offended at the very suggestion. “Like you usually do?” He echoes back, scandalised by the mere thought. He doesn’t ease up with his ministrations, but instead presses firmer into your foot. “You’re telling me you deal with this a lot?”
You watch as he lowers your left foot and begins showing the same amount of attention and care to the right. He dollops a generous amount of lotion onto his pale hands, rubs the cream to spread it evenly, then begins the circular motions to your other foot. The entire process is Heavenly and unmatched, and you question why you’d never recruited him for foot massages before now in the first place.
“Sometimes,” you answer softly, a soft sigh leaving your lips as he digs the pads of his thumbs into another tense spot. With every motion you can feel the discomfort roll its way out your foot. “I don’t want to pester you with how busy your job is.”
Tim tuts and shakes his head, his black hair brushing his pale forehead. “Unbelievable,” he grumbles, like your selflessness is an inconvenience to him, “I can’t believe this whole time you’ve let yourself be uncomfortable when I’m literally right here and capable of helping you.”
You slyly lift your left foot and poke his cheek with your toe, hoping for him to grumble some more. Instead, Tim catches you by the ankle and begins pressing gentle, tender kisses up to the middle of your shin.
“Tim—“ you whine, attempting to tug your foot back so make him stop.
But Tim doesn’t let go, and instead he starts pressing kisses to your right leg for good measure. An even distribution of love and attention for every inch of your body—the very body he worships and would be damned if he had to live a day without.
“Let me take care of you,” Tim mutters, his nose nuzzling into your skin.
~*~*~
Damian Wayne shows his love in the most oddest of ways. Through his childhood of being raised in the League, he had to learn that attachment to others could be exploited and used against him. But after meeting his girlfriend—you—several years after moving to Gotham City to live with his father, he threw himself in the deep end in exploring how to show affection and unlearning the negative repercussions of forming attachments.
“Beloved,” Damian calls out, his voice as sharp as the blade he has hidden at his side, “where are you going?”
He stands in the threshold from the corridor to the lavish foyer, his dark brows furrowed against tanned skin. He watches as you finish buttoning up your autumnal jacket, mind running with replays of the conversations he has held with you over the past few days in search of an explanation for why you’re leaving. But when he finds no such recollection, his heart skips a beat.
You peer up at him through long lashes, your lips tugging into a gentle smile at the sight of his tight expression. “My friends planned a last-minute shopping trip,” you explain softly, offering the reassurance he refuses to admit he needs. “I’m about to head out to meet with them. I think we’re getting lunch, too.”
Damian’s shoulders drop a fraction with relief, but his posture remains steadfast in the way it was vigorously trained to be as a child. “I see,” he mutters, his hand already reaching to his pocket to retrieve the black leathered wallet. The motions are familiar as he flips it open and slips out the credit card with ease, his eyes waiting and expectant of you.
You blink at the offer and sigh. “Dami—you don’t have to give me your card,” you remind him, your gentle hand reaching up to touch his wrist and direct it away. “You spoil me so much already.”
Damian frowns. “I fail to see the issue with that,” he counters, clicking his tongue at your refusal. “Is it wrong for me to provide for you?”
“No, no it’s not. It’s cute. But I don’t want you thinking you have to give me your card every time I go out with my friends,” you say, closing the gap and standing almost chest-to-chest with him. You guide your hands up his arms until they loop around his neck, silently prodding him to lean down until your lips brush close to his. “You already pay for everything when it’s just us. I can fund my own spending habits when I’m with my friends.”
Damian shakes his head and then brushes his nose against yours. You inhale his scent, heart fluttering at the scent of his cologne. “I don’t think I have to,” he corrects without missing a beat, his green eyes boring into your own. It’s then that you feel his fingers brushing the skin of your cheek, a motion that’s loving and adoring. “I want to, my love. Let me spoil you.”
Arguing with Damian has always been futile, so you relent without putting up a fight or attempting a logical argument.
Instead, you suggest the next best thing that you can possibly think of as repayment for his generosity:
“Then perhaps I’ll visit that one store you like so much?”
There’s an obvious pause on his behalf, an extra second taken as he visibly composes himself. His lips curl up at the corners, his eyes creasing. “What time can I expect you home?” He asks, the question feigning pure innocence.
Your eyes sparkle. “Early evening,” you murmur in promise, now standing on your toes to reach up and fully press a kiss to his lips. “Do you want your gift before dinner or after?”
Damian’s forehead presses to yours, and you feel his shuddering breath across your face as he visibly restrains himself. His fingers flex into your hips, a sign that he’s fighting himself to not force you to stay with him.
Instead, he pulls back and firmly places his credit card into your hand, his long fingers closing yours around the plastic. Then he guides your hand to his mouth and kisses each finger, like he’s willing his love into your digits.
“There is no limit,” Damian reminds you, his voice uncharacteristically soft. “I’d like a full show of everything when you come home.”
“Even the boring parts?” You tease.
“My love, there are no such thing as boring parts where you are concerned.”
neglected to regressor batsis! reader x platonic batfam
what if after 20 years of neglect from your family full of vigilantes, you face an unfortunate death, only to find yourself regressed back to when you were 16?
⤷ lots of emotional neglect, reader was batgirl, reader was a tryhard and an overachiever, reader had no social life in her first life, mentions of drugs, mentions of human trafficking, mentions of death, regression themes, toxic and unhealthy relationships, dysfunctional family, toxic mentalities, reader and everyone else needs therapy…, canon typical violence, canon divergence, major character death(s) | tba | based on this
⤷ info! (background) 1 | 2 | read this first to understand the plot and each batfam better :)
⤷ all uf art ‼️
⤷ uf chapter covers ❤️🔥
⤷ uf memes 🫵
⤷ if you’re bored 🌟 (i’ll eventually get to tagging all of posts..)
In which: Bruce Waynes daughter, Y/N Wayne is a full time party girl. Club hopper, party animal, hedonist. Whatever you want to call it. To full the void her father left, she turns to nightclubs, dingy bars and basement raves.
Chapter eleven. If I get high.
Fic masterlist!
cw: Reader is in hospital, breathing machines/masks, medical talk, inaccurate medical information (i tried but im not a doctor), mentions of addiction, mentions of underage drinking, Reader has bad mental health, reader undergoes a mental health evaluation- suicidal talk, depressive thoughts, reader is not well mentally, mentions of trauma. - I DO NOT CONDONE OR SUPPORT ANY UNDERAGE DRINKING OR SMOKING, stay safe stay in school
Jason runs his hand through his hair with a long face. He grits his teeth and sucks a mouthful of air through the cage in his mouth. “Alright, sit down. It’s a long story.”
No one dares to break the silence. Not yet. If they left it unbroken, they could pretend they hadn’t heard what you just said. Everyone could live in la la land, where nothing went wrong and no one ever had to confront anything that made them uncomfortable.
You look from the left of the room to the right and take in the strange picture. From your left, Damian perches on the edge of a blue plastic chair, Dick hovers behind him, Alfred by his side, and finally Bruce, who looks like he’s just seen a ghost.
His grip is tight, as if you might float away, and that feels stupid because you’ve never felt so heavy. Every bone in your body is an anchor tethering you to the bed. Even though it hurts a little, you don’t want him to let go. He hasn’t held you like this before, like you meant something.
You think about saying something smart like ‘well I’m already sat down’ or, ‘it’s not like i can go anywhere else’ but your throat is too sore. It’s a strange feeling, not scratchy like a cough, more like graze. It feels like a scrapped knee. Inside you.
Tim’s eyes dart from Jason, to you, to Bruce. He’s searching for something. You know his tells. The same way he knows yours. Sometimes better than you do. Does Tim know this guy too?
Dick shatters the silence.
“This is Jason-”
“She knows his name.” Damian is the second to break it. His posture is similar to a cat moments before jumping off a ledge. Poised but hesitant. “She just said it, Grayson.” He’s never defended you like this before, if that's what you could call this.
“Both of you shut up.” Jason groans. He exhales, his shoulders tightening up, and then he begins. “I’m Jason.” He says it like it’s supposed to mean something. When you don’t get the hint, he continues. “Todd.” It rings a bell but it doesn’t connect any dots yet. Trying to remember anything feels like flying a kite. You’ll get a running start, and it’ll take off, but then the wind disappears and the kite falls.
All eyes are on you. Again. This whole thing starts to feel like a monkey's paw. You used to be afraid of that story when you read it in the Manor’s library. It went something like this- A married couple are gifted a mummified monkey’s paw. They are told that each finger of the Monkey’s paw can grant a wish, but it will have disastrous consequences. The husband wishes for money. The next day, his son dies at work, but he gets bereavement pay from his son’s employer.
When you think about the story, you remember the tiny note written at the bottom of the first blank page. Property of Jason Todd. Return if found. No. That doesn’t make any sense.
“What?” That's all you can say. You don’t have time to think of a smarter question.
“Just listen to him.” Tim urges with a tone that borders on patronising.
“I used to- shit this is hard to explain. Okay. My name is Jason. When I was a kid I lived ‘round Crime alley. Bruce took me in. But I… I ran away, and didn’t come home. But I’m back now.”
Even under the influence of the medicine, you can smell that bullshit from a mile away. “But you died. Right?” You turn to Alfred in hopes he would back you up, but instead he just gives Bruce a look, a silent message, and says nothing.
“Jason died. You told me he died. And that doesn’t-” You cut yourself off with a violent cough, one that rattles through you like sharp wind in tunnel. It reverberates loudly thanks to the oxygen mask on your face, making it sound worse than it was. Everyone lurches at once. Like that would do anything. You want to swat them away, but a tiny part of you tells you that if you push them away now, they’ll never come back. You wanted this right?
You rip the mask off your face and let it dangle around your neck. The first hit of fresh air is magical. Not perfectly fresh, it tastes stale, but it’s a welcome change.
“That doesn’t explain Damian.” you wipe your mouth with the back of your hand when your coughing fit stops. You feel gross. This isn’t the first time you’ve woken up and felt disgusting. Some days you wake up with smeared makeup and new bruises. Sometimes it's in someone else’s bed. But there’s always a cloud of shame. Over time it’s become something akin to a friend in the sense that it’s familiar, and you know it will always be there.
“Why did you tell me he died?” This time your eyes are on Bruce. Something shifts behind his eyes. Not pity or disappointment. Something else you can’t point. “At the time, we thought he did.” He moves his hand from your shoulder and adjusts the neck of the hospital gown. When you took it off, the cord of the oxygen mask had caught on the edge of the neckline.
He noticed. His movements are slow and tactile, painfully comforting. You could’ve had this before. There could’ve been a world where he held you with that same gentleness, but you weren’t in that world.
“We didn’t know how to explain it to you.” He concludes. “I thought that, given your past, you’d find it overwhelming.” You want to cry. Or scream. Or hit someone, maybe even yourself. Why does everyone treat you like you’re stupid?
“How does Damian know him then? Didn’t you think he’d find it ‘overwhelming’?”
Damian’s posture straightens like he was anticipating a move. “I asked.” He says simply.
“Oh so it’s my fault for not knowing? Sorry, let me understand this- I was supposed to go up to Bruce and ask ‘hey is Jason still dead or did he crawl out of the grave and come home?’ Is that what you’re telling me?” The room goes uncomfortably quiet.
Oh no. No no no. It’s going to happen. They’re going to leave you. You pissed them off. That’s why they’ve shut up. The Monkey’s paw. Behind you, the heart monitor starts to escalate. Your chest feels breathless. But you can’t move.
Alfred clears his throat. He breaks from the crowd around you and ushers Bruce out of his spot without a word. Bruce complies. When Alfred sits, he picks the mask you tore off and holds it to you. Not an order. But you both know it’s not a question. Your fingers shake when you try and put it back on so he has to help.
“I think it would be best if everyone gave you some space. For a minute”
The men, and Damian, take the hint. One by one, they slowly filter out. Dick offers a small smile before he goes. Damian straightens out your blanket but doesn’t look at you. Tim delivers an awkward side hug, careful not to touch the equipment around you. Jason does a slight nod, the kind you give a stranger when you hold the door open for them. Bruce is the last to go. He squeezes your hand and stands up. Hesitates. Then his hand holds the side of your face and he plants the smallest kiss on the top of your head.
You freeze. This has never happened before. Not with him. Ever. Burning tears start to bloom in the corners of your eyes. He leaves before they grow.
Alfred starts to stand but your hand darts out and holds onto his sleeve. “Don’t go.” He sits back down and gives Bruce a nod. Then the door closes.
“Good save.” Dick’s sarcasm is laced with anxiety. No one could’ve planned what just happened. Unfortunately for you, you live with detectives who live double lives 24/7. They created that story on the spot. This wasn’t the first time they’d run with a fake story. Undercover work wasn’t anything new, but this was different. “Ran away? Really Jason?”
“What else was I supposed to say?” Jason chides. He tries not to let his face show it, but he’s scrambling. He’d only ever seen you under the influence, so he hadn’t expected you to be so sharp when sober. This was the first time he’s seen you string together coherent sentences without slurring or stammering.
A lot of things were clicking into place. You had told him about your brothers, now he could put a face, or faces, to the names. The Oolder brother who doesn’t really like you’ was Dick. He pins Tim as the ‘Only nice one’, and all signs for ‘The one who is embarrassed of you’ point to Damian. You never named them, he reasoned you didn’t want to give all your personal life to the big bad Red Hood. Maybe if he pressed you would’ve spilled, but then what good would that have done?
“You think she’d be completely fine with the pit? That wouldn’t raise any questions at all.” He mirrors Dick’s sarcasm but the nervous edge Dick flavoured it with is gone, instead Jason peppers his bite with venom.
Bruce clears his throat and all eyes go to him. Jason feels his shoulders rising, squaring up against a potential threat from Bruce. Like a junkyard dog moments before being thrown into a fighting ring. Bite or get bit. Though they were mostly cordial now, not like how it used to be, there was always a part of him that told him he had to always be ready for anything. To get ready to kick and bite. Sometimes that part felt so big that he wondered if it was a part of him, or if this was him.
“We’re going with Jason’s story.” He decides. And then it’s law. “Jason left, and now he’s back.” It isn’t a perfect story, but he thinks it will pacify you for now.
He did love you, he does love you even, but in a broken way. When hasn’t Bruce loved someone in a broken way? Instead of holding you and telling you every day that you were enough, he left you to your own devices. He wants to lie and say it was out of nobility, that he believed it was the most ethical choice, but it wasn’t. Every time he smelt the alcohol on your breath, or saw the bruises on your legs and arms, when he caught your eye and saw how spaced out your pupils were, it reminded him of everything he was.
Self destruction. Trying to escape yourself. Filling an endless void with material goods, with drinks and drugs, just for the hole to deepen. Being surrounded by people but feeling like you're alone in a lifeboat in a cold and uncaring sea. The eyes that dissect your every move. Chasing pleasure from people you won’t remember thinking that’ll change something, and when it doesn’t, you just find someone else and try again.
You were both in that lifeboat. In the vast unfeeling ocean, and you were clinging to him, begging him to pull you up. There’s a boat in the distance, a ship, salvation. He flags it over. When the boat comes, he climbs the rope ladder. You reach to be pulled up. If he takes your hand, you could lose your balance and fall in. So he leaves you. From the deck, he looks down on your lifeboat. You’re alone. If he lowers the rope back down, it means he’ll have to get back into the boat. He leaves the ladder dangling from the side, an open invitation to a party, but there is no one to escort you there.
Every time he took someone under his wing, they broke. But, at least they could break together. He left you to fall apart all by yourself. If you were going to drown in that sea, he should’ve held your hand and sunken with you.
But you were sinking. Every night you were drowning yourself in a bottle. You had called for help, leaving your proverbial SOS in the sky. Leaving empty bottles in plain sight. Cigarette butts on your windowsill. Eating breakfast in front of him with dark eyebags.
You were shot in front of him.
Even though you cried and begged not to die, he knew that look. Relief. Maybe your conscious brain couldn’t register it, but he’s certain that subconsciously you knew you’d die if you ran down that alley.
He’ll drop the ship’s anchor. He’ll climb down the rope ladder and pull you up, out of that darkness. He’ll pull you onto the ship’s deck and hoist the ladder back up, so you’ll never go down again. The storm will calm, and the waters will still.
Bruce exhales, freeing himself from the image. Today, it will change.
Alfred keeps fretting with the cord of the mask, adjusting it over and over again so it fits snugly without digging into your skin. You want to enjoy the attention, but you can’t focus on anything. Since you woke up, there’s been this… itch. If you can call it that. Like fingernails scratching at your chest from the inside. Everytime you think about the alley, it comes back. When you think about anything but the present, the scratching starts. You’ve felt anxiety before, you’ve had a handful of acid induced panic attacks before, but this feels so much worse. Like the breath in your lungs is slowly being siphoned off by invisible claws.
Neither of you speak, just enjoying the silence. Well, you aren’t enjoying it, but it’s easier than talking. Everything takes effort, breathing, blinking, thinking. You wonder if you’ve actually woken up, or if you’re still dreaming.
“You know you’re lucky, don’t you?” Alfred cracks the silence. There’s a tone in his voice. It makes you want to cry immediately. Normally you’re better at hiding that. But when doing literally anything takes effort, it’s easier for the dam to burst. The tears roll down and trickle around the mask, not breaking the seal. Alfred looks taken aback, instead of continuing his lecture, he just thumbs away the tears.
The anger you felt at your family, for hiding such a big lie, is still hot, but not like fire, like boiling water. It bubbles and rages inside you, but it isn’t quick hot anger, it's a slow, wet kind. The kind that makes you upset for feeling angry. Like a child regretting their temper tantrum after they’ve been put in timeout.
You lift your head when the door opens again, thinking it’ll be the gaggle of men and boys, but instead a single doctor comes in. His clipboard is snug against his chest and he walks like he’s being watched. That’s when you see a shorter doctor behind him, she carries herself with grace and controlled confidence.
They greet you but it feels stiff. Something’s wrong. The scratching gets worse. “Good morning Miss Wayne.” the taller one greets, his voice a little shaky. He looks like he’s five minutes from imploding under stress. “How’re you feeling?”
It takes you a moment to find the words. “Fine. My throat hurts.” You’ve never liked going to the doctors. “My stomach hurts too. But I mean I was shot, so.” Trying to find the humour in the situation backfires because Alfred tuts. That signature, ‘you’re better than this’ tut.
“Considering..?” Alfred pries.
The doctor seems to find it funny at least. The taller one gives a small smile and checks the clipboard again before looking back up to meet your eyes. “Well your charts look… surprisingly good. Considering everything else.”
“Her, uh, condition on intake. Although we can’t trust these charts 100%, there could still be some floating in her system. But all things considered, you’re looking well. But uh, we’ve- uh”’
“I’ll say it.” The short one pipes up, clearly irritated by his stuttering. She takes the board from it and clasps her hands together in front of her. “Miss Wayne, we want to keep you under observation for another seventy-two hours after you’ve healed from your surgery."
“What? You said I was fine-” Alfred takes your hand in his, a silent grounder. The scratching ramps up. “I’m not sick, I didn’t break anything. You already did surgery on me, right? Look, I just want to go home.”
“This isn’t about the surgery.” Her voice is clipped but there’s a softer ring to it. She’s exercising restraint. “We’re concerned about your substance intake. If you drink, or take recreational substances while on the medication we’ve prescribed for you, I’m not going to beat around the bush, it could turn lethal. Do you understand that? If you continue to abuse your body, you’ll die. We want to keep you under observation to make sure you put yourself in danger.”
Humiliation burns through your core. This is rock bottom. You feel like you’re back in school, getting told off for not doing your homework in front of the whole class. You wish you didn’t ask Alfred to stay. Having him hear this makes everything feel so much worse.
You really are the worst daughter ever. No wonder they don’t want you. God if Mother could see you now she wouldn’t recognise you. She’d leave you too. If she wasn’t dead, she’d have left you.
“How long do I have to stay?” Your voice is shaky and embarrassing.
“Depends on how quick your stitches take to heal up. After that, we’ll keep you on some antibiotics, and once you’ve finished the course, you’ll be okay to go home.” The taller one pipes up.
When you don’t reply, but instead just nod, they take their leave. “Someone will come by later and ask you some questions. Don’t think too deeply, just answer them honestly.” The shorter one finishes. “I hope you’ll feel better soon.” And you believe she means it.
The group is divided. Jason and Damian come in just after the Doctors leave. Jason still looks uncomfortable. You wish you could’ve met under different circumstances. It would be nice to be alone. Or make a better first impression. He stands in the back of the room, not making any first moves, so you end up being the first to try and break the ice.
“I’m not normally like this.” You broach weakly. “I mean, I don’t dress like this normally.” Sheepishly gesturing to the hospital gown and mask. “I’m Y/N.”
Jason bites back a quick ‘I know’ and instead just dips his head. “Yeah, well, weird circumstances.” he summarises. You notice the scuff marks on his jacket. His clothes don’t look new and pristine like everyone else’s. They’re clearly lived in. The leather is old and worn, with discoloured patches on the elbows. He must work with his hands.
“I like your jacket.” You try. A tiny, almost invisible, smile tugs at the corner of his mouth.
“Nah, this thing? It’s ancient. Bet it’s older than Damian.”
Damian’s always envied how easily you connect with people. Something so simple as a trivial compliment, and you’ve already started hacking away at Jason’s icy walls. You had a charm that he lacked, and that drove him mad. How are you able to be so likable, even now when you’re practically strapped down to a bed, unwashed and dressed in thin, flatout ugly attire?
“How come you two know each other? I know I asked but you didn’t really answer.” You try again.
“His Mom knew mine. I left home to find her but, well it’s done now.” He puts his hands in his pockets.
“I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be, you didn’t do anything.” He scoffs.
“Where are the others?” Alfred asks, finally standing up and stretching his legs. You wonder how long he waited for you to wake up. How many hours had he been by your side?
“Outside getting air.” Damian clips. He’s sat back on the same chair he was before he left, right by the bed.
“Tim’s vaping, isn’t he?” You muse, a tiny laugh fighting it’s way out. God you’d kill for a vape right now. You normally hate it, and tease Tim for 'not committing to real tobacco', but you’d do anything for a hit. Something to damp down the scratching anxiety.
“Yeah.” Jason makes a noise, something like a laugh but more subtle, like he’s surprised you can still joke in this situation.
“I’m going to join Master Bruce. Some fresh air will do me good.” Alfred lets go of your hand and you miss the warmth when it slips away. You feel so cold. “I’ll be back soon.” he promises, then closes the door behind him.
Great. Now you’re stuck with Jason and Damian. You had turned Jason, or rather the vague concept of Jason, into an imaginary friend for years and vented to the fictitious friend about anything and everything. Now he was real, and old, and breathing. Old was a stretch, older is the right word. Part of you felt guilty for warping him into something he wasn’t. He wasn’t yours, it was wrong to impose an identity onto him when he wasn’t there. But it was nice to have a friend that couldn’t leave, or hurt you.
When the door closes, the shift in the air causes the book peeking out of Tim’s backpack to fall out and hit the ground. You didn’t realise he left it there. Then you recognise the cover, it was the same book you were struggling to get through the other day. The one you were trying to read to pass the time before you went to Roy’s.
Jason bent down to put it back, but when he saw the cover he paused. He turned it over in his hands, checking the back, then looked up at you. “This yours?”
“Yeah.” you admitted with a twinge of embarrassment. It was below your reading level. You found it in the library one day and held on to it. It was a little older than what you were used to, to the prose and language was harder to understand.
“No way. I used to love this one.” He handed it to you with care, like the pages would fly out. During your walks with Red Hood, you never mentioned reading.
“Really?” He swore he could see something in your posture shift, like you were getting less afraid of him by the minute. “I haven’t gotten super into it yet. Is it good?”
He starts a small rant about it. Jason doesn’t get to talk about his interests much. There’s a light in his voice, strong but not overpowering and loud, just passionate in a confident way. He knows what he’s talking about, he doesn’t overexplain anything.
To be honest, you aren’t really listening. A lot of it goes over your head. He talks about the themes and the character dynamics, how the time period influences their choices and actions, but a lot of it gets drowned out. You’re just grateful to have something else to focus on. Something other than the beeping of the monitors, the cords rubbing against you, the way the gown feels against your skin.
Damian doesn’t interject, but you can tell he wants to say something. You won’t force him to. If he feels like it, he’ll talk. It’s still painful to be around him. Everytime you see him in your peripheral vision, you see yourself pushing him. You feel like a monster. A beast.
Before he can finish, the door knocks. It’s a different doctor this time, one you haven’t seen before. She isn’t dressed like the other ones. She’s not in a lab coat, but instead just wearing a simple button up and a cardigan. She looks more like a teacher than a doctor.
“Sorry to interrupt, I’m Dr Wyatt, I’m here to ask you some questions.” Her voice is soft and direct. Jason and Damian exchange a look and reluctantly leave the room.
“You guys are coming back right?” Your hand grips the edge of the thin blanket tightly.
Damian nods. Then they leave. And it’s just you and the Doctor alone. You haven’t had a single minute to yourself yet and it’s starting to drive you crazy.
You sit up in the bed when Dr Wyatt sits down in the chair Damian was in. You’re assuming the questions will just be ‘how are your stitches’ or asking if you want anything to eat, but instead she pulls out a thick stack of papers from her bag. They’re stapled together and frighteningly official looking. You decide to take the oxygen mask off if you're going to be talking for a while.
“Now Y/N, I’m going to ask you some questions, and there is no right or wrong answer, okay?”
“Okay.”
“Okay, good. Now, when I ask you a question, you can answer it with ‘Never’, ‘Sometimes’, ‘Most of the time’, or ‘Everyday’. You understand? And again, there are no right or wrong answers. Or judgement. This is only for me and the Doctors to see.”
“Okay.” your voice quivers a little.
“Alright, I’m going to start now. Over the last two weeks, how often would you say you’ve been feeling anxious, or on edge?”
Oh. It’s those questions. When Mother died, you remember a lady at the social services building asking you similar stuff. You don’t think it went anywhere though. Maybe it’s the near death experience talking, but you don’t feel shame when you say “Sometimes.” Normally, you placate yourself, you water down your feelings, you make them smaller to avoid bothering anyone. But now you don’t want to be small. You want to be seen.
“Okay, and do you have any trouble relaxing?”
The question makes you snort. That catches her attention. You can already see her scribbling something down. “Something funny?” her tone isn’t accusatory.
“No,no, it’s just- I’m really good at relaxing. I don’t do anything. I’m not in school. I don’t have a job. Or hobbies, or friends, or anything a normal person does. So I don’t do anything. I lie in bed. Or on the floor. I sleep through the day. I doomscroll. I drink.”
You’ve never said that part outloud.
“Or I smoke. To pass the time. Then I go out, and I party. It relaxes me I guess. Then I go home and sleep for ages. That’s pretty relaxing.”
She writes something down quickly and looks back up at you. “And do you find yourself becoming easily irritable or annoyed?”
“Back off!” You fight back your growing frustration. It burns in your throat with a flaming chokehold. Your lip quivers under the heat. It’s wet and raw, warm like blood. “I’ve had a shit day and I don’t want to spend another minute here.”
“Sometimes. Yes.” It’s clipped and avoidant.
“Have you felt little interest or pleasure in things you normally enjoy?”
You have to think for a moment on how to word your answer. “Sometimes. I used to really enjoy partying. But, I uh, I don’t know. Sometimes it feels like I have to do it. Like, if I want to drink, I have to go to a party. I don’t just want to drink at home. If I’m outside, and I’m with people, then it feels less… weird.”
“And can I ask who these people are? In your own words you ‘don’t have friends.’ So who are you partying with?”
“I don’t know. Just people. I meet them randomly. I don’t know them. I just talk to them and then we drink.”
“Do you feel down or hopeless?”
“.. Yes. Most of the time”
“Do you feel that you’ve let someone down? That you’ve failed.”
You think about your college friends' graduation pictures. Of the life you could’ve lived. You think about school. How your grades were only ever fine. Average, bordering on underachieving. “Yes. All the time.”
“Do you have trouble connecting with something, like reading a newspaper or watching TV?
“When I try to read I can’t think about the words. It’s like autopilot. Most of the time. I watch TV but I'm not really taking it in, it just passes over me”
Doctor Wyatt pauses before asking the next question. “Do you have thoughts about dying? That you’d be better off dead, or hurt?” Her eyes are soft as the press.
“Yes.” it shocks you to admit it. “When… When I got shot, I think I didn’t want to wake up. I didn’t want to die, but I didn’t want to wake up. Does that make sense? It’s stupid. And pathetic. But I just, I don’t know anymore. I think I’m tired of trying, but then I haven’t done anything. I’ve never really tried to be anything. So what's there to be tired of? It’s disgusting.”
“You aren’t disgusting Y/N.”
You needed that more than you knew. You break into tears immediately. Again. Wyatt hands out a tissue for you and you wipe away the rolling tear drops. One strays against your lip and you taste the salty sweet residue.
“Do you have repeating memories of a traumatic event? Recent or Old.”
“Sometimes I see my Mother. And I see her yelling at me. And I see her body at the morgue. I was the only one that could identify her. She didn’t have friends. Or family. She died- killed- when I was thirteen. I used to get nightmares. But, when I drink, or get high, or whatever to distract myself, she’s not there anymore. And then I get sad that she isn’t there. So I go home.”
“Where’s home?”
“I live with my Father, but my Mother’s home was on Birch street. So I just wait outside the apartment building for her to come out. But she doesn’t.”
“Do you find yourself bothered by strong negative beliefs?”
“What does that mean?”
“Thoughts like, ‘something’s wrong with me’, or ‘the world is out to get me’.”
“Yeah, sometimes. I mean, I know there’s something wrong with me, I know I’m bad, but I think the world is just the world. I think life just sucks for everyone, I think some people are just better at managing it.”
“How many times a week do you consume alcohol?”
“Pretty much every day.”
“When you start drinking do you find yourself unable to stop?”
“Yeah. I just, I don’t want to be sober. I want to stay drunk. Everything feels easier. I feel normal.”
You don’t have an answer. Dr Wyatt continues. “Has a Doctor or a relative expressed concerns, or asked you to cut down?”
“How can you tell when you’re drunk if you’re never sober?”
“Sort of. I mean, my brother does sometimes. But he doesn’t stop me.”
She writes on her notepad and you watch her face twitch. Her eyebrows knit together and droop at the end. When she stops, she gathers the papers together and looks back up at you as she stands up. “Thank you for your time Y/N.”
“It was nice to meet you.” You try a smile but you doubt she bought it. You’ve never been that open with anyone. Not even imaginary Jason. There was something freeing about deciding not to care anymore. “Do you think I can take these things off? I need the bathroom?”
At Dr Wyatt’s request, someone comes in to take off the mask and the monitor attachments, freeing you from the bed. Your feet feel like mud when you put weight on them. For a second you nearly stumble, but you catch yourself. There’s a tall window in the room, so you prop it open to get some air in. Then you head to the bathroom.
One day, those feelings will end, right? They have to, because there must be more to life than this. Chasing something that’ll never come. When you look in the mirror, you see her. The thirteen year old you whose life stopped because one man couldn’t take no for an answer. She’s afraid of you. Of course she is. You look awful. Her eyes are still bright. When did that light go out?
You want to hold her close and never let go. To melt into her and try again. Go back and make better choices. Beg Mother to stay. You’d never fight with her again, you’d be her good girl. You’d let her shout and belittle you without protest if it meant she’d stay. Try school again, make friends that wouldn’t leave you. Become a better person. Be kinder. Less selfish. Choose a normal, uninspiring life. Work a job you feel ambivalent toward. Take home a paycheck that keeps the lights and fridge on. Live in an apartment that feels like it’s actually yours, not just a guest room in a hotel.
In the blink of an eye, she’s gone, and it’s just you and staring at yourself. The last person you want to see right now.
WE’RE HERE TEAM WE DID IT.
GOD LIFE GOT WEIRD AFTER CHP 10. Okay so- I got my apartment keys, only for my landlord to give me the wrong ones, so I had to sort that out. And then when I started to finish packing, i got a tooth abscess which WAS THE MOST PAINFUL THING EVER OMFGG. I literally couldn’t do anything but lie in bed, even sitting up hurt. I was on strong painkillers so I couldn’t focus on anything- ended up just watching Malcolm in the Middle while trying not to move too much.
I finished my assignments and the universe immediately struck me down. We ball. The sun is shining and I’m moving soon. Life will be good.
Eddy’s eyes rake over the selection of bottles when he opens the wine cabinet in the private lounge. His fingers skim over a few before finally wrapping around one to his liking with a sound of approval.
“I know the Crawfords. You’re Barry’s cousin, right?” he asks without turning around as he reaches for the corkscrew on the marble counter. His body is already slightly swaying from the earlier consumed champagne.
Behind him, Leon is giving you a side eyed glare as he watches you sit down on one of the large leather couches casually. He’ll deal with you later.
“Yeah. Good ol’ Barry,” he mutters the lie, grateful that Hunnigan managed to find the perfect fake identities.
“He’s the best,” Eddy grins when he finally manages to pop open the bottle.
He lines three stemmed glasses on the shiny surface in order to pour the alcohol, and Leon moves to sit beside you despite the way you refuse to look his way.
“I was handling it, you should’ve stayed to watch Adams,” you whisper through gritted teeth when he settles a little too close on the cushions, his shoulder brushing yours.
“You can't just leave without telling me first,” he retorts with a hush and a stern glare that you still refuse to meet.
“I do hope you two like red wine. To be honest, I don't get people who don't,” Eddy comments, oblivious to the muttered conversation.
When he turns to hand you each a glass, he’s about to sit down when he halts in his movements. “Ah! Almost forgot,” he chuckles self-deprecatingly and strides right back to the counter.
You see him opening a drawer, and you use the distraction to finally turn to Leon with a mean frown. “You’re going to say you need the bathroom and you will let me handle this.”
The fellow agent nearly scoffs at your order, and he once again feels the sudden urge to kiss the scowl off your face. “Not happening,” he stubbornly refuses, his eyes flickering to your lips briefly.
You chew on the inside of your mouth in annoyance, feeling your irritation rise at the way he’s meddling in your objective.
In the meantime, Eddy opens a box of cigars, and makes a gesture to offer some for you and Leon. You both decline with a synchronized handwave, and that makes the man laugh. It has you thinking of how much the two of you usually work so well together, and the reason you're so often paired up.
Leon just had to ruin it tonight by being so damn unreasonable.
Right then, you decide to do something you’ve never done before. You’re fully aware that your interpersonal feelings are at play, but it's not like you were ever professional about Leon.
“Hey, Eddy? Logan wants to use the bathroom. Do you have one nearby?”
Leon goes impossibly tense beside you, and you can feel the heat of his glare on the side of your face. You’re sure that if you turn, you’ll see the look of utter betrayal on his features.
“It’s right there,” the redhead gestures to a dark wooden door in the corner as he cuts the end of his cigar with a snip.
“Great,” the agent grits out bitterly as he stands with a huff, his hands balled into fists when he walks off.
He slams the door shut behind him loudly, knowing well how childish he must seem, but he can't bring himself to care anymore. He can’t believe you just put him on the spot like that, explicitly going against his demands like his words mean nothing to you.
You’re clearly behaving like this on purpose, and as much as he knows he deserves it, he can't accept that you effectively dismissed him to be alone with the other man—whether that is for the sake of the mission or not.
Standing at the sink, he stares at his tired reflection in the mirror, a million thoughts running through his mind as he tries to collect himself.
He knows you're a professional. You can handle this.
And him? Well, he just needs to get a grip.
As you pretend to take a sip from your glass, you hum in fake approval, complimenting the taste when Eddy sits on the opposite couch facing you.
There's a nervousness running through your system from the stunt you just pulled on Leon, already feeling guilty about blindsiding him. But the feeling is quickly put away as you concentrate on the mission. You want to prove to him just as much as yourself that this was the right call.
“So… Do you always bring strangers up for good wine or am I just lucky?” you drawl with a playful smile.
The man chuckles, slowly exhaling a puff of smoke through his nose. “Only when they're such good company.”
“Well, I’m flattered… Though I do wonder, is the ‘special’ lounge always this empty?”
“The night is still young. It’ll fill up later when more important guests show up... For now, we can enjoy the quiet and privacy.”
You notice his eyes trailing down your blue dress, and decide to cross your legs to get him even more enthralled. At the sight of your bare thigh revealed by the high slit, he clears his throat, then gives the bathroom door a quick glance before lowering his voice.
“You know, if it wasn't for Mr. Crawford,” he mutters the name with a hint of sarcasm, “I could show you an even more special place… Somewhere a lot nicer than here.”
That peaks your interest, and you tilt your head with a small smirk. “What kind of place?”
If he says his bedroom, you’re splashing your glass in his face.
“The kind of place where great minds meet and great things happen…” he grins smugly.
You begin to lose patience with his half-spoken revelations, and suddenly, you decide to stand to make your way next to him, catching the man off guard.
As Eddy eyes your figure, your knee bumping into his as you sit, you swirl your drink and bat your eyelashes, hoping he’s too drunk to see the way you tense under his shameless gaze.
“Is my mind great enough to take me there?”
He snorts, sucking a long breath through the cigar that glints in golden embers at the tip. “Your mind is certainly great if you're sitting this close to me while your husband is only a door away…”
If only he knew.
With an internal pep talk to steel yourself, you take the smoke-emitting cylinder from his grasp without asking, then make a show out of wrapping your lips around it to inhale the fumes that burn your lungs. You just hope indirectly exchanging saliva with a stranger is worth the mission.
“I’m feeling particularly great tonight, Eddy, and I would love to see this special place you speak so highly of. Plus, I can assure you, Logan doesn't mind…”
The redhead keeps his gaze fixated on your tinted lips, and he looks like he’s about to finally give in when he then shakes his head with a laugh. He pauses to take a big sip of wine before setting his glass down and giving you a pointed look.
“I don't know, sweet cheeks. I don't think Mr. Crawford likes to share.”
As if summoned by his words, Leon steps out of the bathroom with an expression so solemn he looks like he’s in mourning. But the second he sees you sitting so close your leg is touching the rich asshole with his cigar in your hand, a fire instantly lights behind his blue eyes and it's all he can do not to rip you away from that couch.
You notice the tightness of his jaw instantly, and you're certain Eddy does too, which would ruin the entire plan you’re working hard on executing. If this goes to shit, you would have lost this opportunity and surveillance on Adams who’s still partying downstairs.
“Logan likes to watch,” you suddenly blurt out, and immediately feel your face grow piping hot.
“What?” Both men look at you in surprise, but only one of them has a smirk slowly etching on his face.
A silence stretches in the room as you collect your thoughts, with Leon looking at you like you just grew another head, while Eddy seems like he just won the jackpot.
“Y-Yeah, um, it’s like his whole thing. Tell him, honey.” You lie further—too late to back out now.
For a moment, you think Leon might genuinely blow your cover right then and there. But some way, somehow, he manages to exhale deeply through his nose, and then, without a word, moves to sit on the opposite sofa with his back straight.
There’s a challenge in his eyes as he keeps his glacial gaze fixated on you and makes your spine shiver, as if saying ‘you better not.’
“Is this true, Mr. Crawford?” Eddy drawls, placing an arm behind you on the couch’s backrest, testing the waters.
Leon doesn't answer, he’s worried anything that might come out of his mouth would be a litany of curses directed at the man and his entire lineage. This might be his tipping point to finally lose his sanity, because how in the ever loving fuck did you manage to frame him as a cuck of all things?
With the tense silence making the air thick, you break it by shoving the cigar back into Eddy’s mouth, internally shuddering at the indirect kiss.
“So, tell me more about this place,” you urge him, a little too desperately as you hope to get done with this masquerade already.
“Hm, you’re a curious little one, aren't you?” he smirks before continuing, “I have to be honest, I may have been too earnest. I can't actually take you there tonight.”
Fucking great.
Fighting the urge to smack him in the face, you give him a tight-lipped smile. “Why not?”
The man takes a moment to think of his answer, stealing a glance at Leon who’s sitting as still as a statue with his burning eyes, before turning back to you.
“Something really special is happening tonight… It’s a private audience—even more private than usual. I can't tell you much more, but one thing’s for sure, you will know about it tomorrow. Everyone will.”
You feel adrenaline rush through you at his coded words, and you decide to push further despite the blue eyes searing holes into you. Something serious is planned to happen tonight and you have a feeling it's not a boyscout bonfire.
With a flirty grin that makes your lips twitch in internal cringe, you throw your bared leg over the older man’s lap and wrap your arms around his neck.
“Oh, Eddy, you’re being such a tease! Why won't you just tell me already?”
He chuckles in a low rumble, then places a hand on your waist as he leans to exhale his smokey breath into your neck.
“You cheeky little minx… You really are curious, aren't you?”
You’re about to retort when you see him make eye contact with Leon and immediately tense up. You don’t dare do the same—you can guess he has a murderous glare on his face that he reserves for the lowest of bastards.
“Are you sure he likes to watch?” Eddy murmurs with a gulp, and that's when you finally turn to see Leon—and God, it's so much worse than you’d imagined.
It would be funny if it wasn't downright scary, but the man is quite literally shaking with anger, his fists are trembling in his lap with uncontrollable tremors, and you know he’s fighting every single atom in his body not to lunge. At Eddy or at you, it wouldn't matter, either way, he’s about to fucking lose it.
“Y-Yeah,” you answer in a squeaky voice, attempting to muster some confidence despite your debilitating nerves.
To your surprise, the redhead seems to believe you—or maybe he’s already too drunk—because he suddenly laughs and tightens his hold on you.
“Oh, I see,” he grins with pearly whites, “he’s not jealous over you… He’s jealous he can't join in!”
You have to stop yourself from bursting out into an ugly cackle at whatever math was done for him to come to that conclusion. But then, Leon speaks, and you feel your breathing stop.
“You caught me,” he strains out and raises his trembling hands in surrender.
What the fuck did he just say?
Without waiting for either of your responses, the blonde agent stands abruptly, and strides directly to the couch just to grab you by the waist like a portable package, and quite literally rip you off Eddy’s side. He then sits in your emptied spot, settling between you and the man, and serving as an impenetrable barrier of hard muscle and storming cerulean eyes.
No one speaks for a full five seconds before the redhead bursts out into a choked laugh, slapping a hand on Leon’s thigh with a smack that makes him jolt.
“Well, I’m not complaining,” Eddy grins between snorted chuckles.
He then cups the startled agent’s face, and leans in to steal a kiss that Leon barely manages to stop quickly enough with a finger on the other’s lips.
In the most deadpanned voice he can muster, he offers an excuse to his newly acquired, overly eager lover.
“Sorry, kissing’s not on the menu. The missus and I have an agreement.”
Next chapter coming soon.
eddy jumping to kiss leon is just like me fr like omg i can diddle him? come here you beautiful specimen
summary: After ten years abroad, Y/N Wayne returns to Gotham—but the girl who comes back to Wayne Manor is not the same one who left. Quiet, distant, and avoiding everyone but Alfred, she seems like a stranger in her own home. As strange deaths begin appearing across Gotham, the Batfamily slowly realizes that whatever happened during those missing years may be far more dangerous than they imagined.
word count: 1.6k+
tags: batfam x fem!reader , batfamily x slightly!neglected!reader
prev | next
Morning arrived slowly over Wayne Manor.
A pale gray sky stretched above the sprawling estate, clouds drifting lazily across the horizon as faint sunlight slipped through the tall windows of the dining room. The long mahogany table had already been set, plates arranged neatly, silverware placed with the precision that Alfred Pennyworth had perfected over decades.Steam curled upward from freshly brewed coffee.The smell of warm bread lingered in the air.
Despite the peaceful atmosphere, something felt off.
Dick Grayson sat at the table with one leg hooked over the other, lazily stirring his coffee. Jason Todd leaned back in his chair beside him, one arm resting over the backrest as he scrolled through something on his phone. Tim Drake sat further down the table with a tablet propped against his glass, his attention split between breakfast and whatever data he was studying. Across from them, Damian Wayne sat upright with perfect posture, cutting his food with precise, measured movements.
No one spoke much. Every so often, their eyes drifted toward the staircase. The seat at the end of the table remained empty. Bruce entered a moment later. His presence filled the room immediately. Even dressed simply in dark clothes, he carried the same quiet authority that always followed him. He moved to his seat without comment, though the faint tension in his shoulders suggested he had slept very little.
“Morning,” Dick said.
Bruce nodded once.
Alfred approached with a fresh cup of coffee.
“Thank you, Alfred.” Bruce slowly took the coffee and sipped from it.
“Of course, sir.” Alfred replied.
“So… she still hiding?”Jason glanced toward the stairs.
“Jason.”Dick shot him a look.
“I’m just asking.” Jason defended himself upon seeing the serious look on Dick’s face.
“Alfred said she prefers to leave her room when no one’s around.”Tim lowered his tablet slightly.
“That behavior suggests avoidance. Why is she avoiding us? Is this coming from her pent up resentment because she was sent abroad? How immature” Damian frowned and sneered.
“We’ll speak with her when she’s ready.” Bruce lifted the coffee cup, his expression unreadable.
The conversation ended there.But as the others returned to their breakfast, Bruce’s gaze drifted briefly toward the staircase. Ten years. It had been ten years since she left. And somehow it already felt like something had gone wrong long before she came back.
10 Years Ago
“I don’t want to go! Can I just stay here?” she asked her father the moment she found out that she was being sent abroad.
“Y/N it’s for your own good, beside those school abroad is well known. It will be helpful to hone your knowledge” Bruce calmly stated to her while he is reading his documents in.
“But I don’t need that! I am good in class anyway, its not like I’m delay or got lower grades” she tries to reason with him. Some of her friends are here, well not that best friend type but atleast she had friends. Besides she still on the process of bonding with his brother—Damian.
“You don’t understand. It’s for your own safety, why can’t you just understand it?” bruce seems pissed evidently as he slowly and subtle massaging is temple.
“I have been understanding everything since I was a child! You can just say that i am too much liability in your life because unlike you, I’m not part of your vigilante life!” Tension rises as Y/N finally voices out her frustration to her father.
“That’s why you won’t understand! You’re a child and not a vigilante. The city needs me and your brother” Bruce stood up as he also increased his voice.
“I also need you! You’re my father too, and I am your responsibility too!” Tears finally descended in her eyes the moment she replied to him.
“Y/N, I —”
“Fine! If im too ‘civilian’ and ‘child’ for you then I’m going to leave. Its not like I can force myself to father who doesn’t want a child.” She cut of bruce and walk towards the door.
“—you are a good person, Bruce. But not a good father. I hope you know that” then she slammed the door hard upon going out of the study.
Y/N started running towards her room and didn’t even looked or greeted Dick and Jason who is walking towards Bruce office.
“Hey—” Dick didn’t even finished his greetings when Y/N walked past him with tears in her eyes.
The moment she entered her room, she immediately took a bag and put some clothes she could wear for awhile. She plan to bought clothes there the moment she arrived instead of taking many clothes. Its old anyway and some are just silly clothes to wear abroad. Oh how wrong she had thought.
The day Bruce decided to inform the others about him sending Y/N away had begun like any other day at Wayne Manor. The afternoon sun had filled the study with warm golden light, casting long shadows across the floor as dust motes drifted lazily through the air.
Dick lounged near the tall windows, balancing himself against the frame while flipping through a magazine he clearly wasn’t reading. Jason sat backward in one of the chairs near the desk, his arms resting on the backrest as he idly spun a pen between his fingers. Tim sat on the couch nearby with a laptop open across his knees.
Damian stood near the bookshelf, reading something thick and ancient-looking that he had pulled from Bruce’s collection. Y/N stood quietly near the fireplace. She had always liked that spot. It was warm, and from there she could see everyone in the room.
“You’ll be leaving next week.” Bruce stood behind his desk. For a long moment he simply looked at her. Then he spoke. The words fell into the room with a quiet finality.
“For how long?” Y/N blinked.
“A few years.” Bruce folded his arms.
“A few years?” Dick straightened immediately.
“Since when?” Jason raised an eyebrow.
“The academy has one of the best international programs available. You’ll have opportunities there you won’t find in Gotham.” Bruce ignored the interruption.
“You really want to get rid of me that much?” Y/N mumbled and hesitated. Her fingers brushed lightly against the sleeve of her sweater. The question hung in the air longer than she expected.
“Gotham isn’t safe.” Bruce answered calmly.
No one argued with that. Everyone in the room knew the truth of that statement better than anyone else. But still—
“She’s not involved in anything we do.” Jason frowned.
“That’s exactly the point,” Bruce said.
Y/N shifted slightly. The conversation felt strange. She had always known she was different from the rest of them. But in that moment, it feels like she is an unknown entity in her own family.
Dick had grown up performing impossible stunts in the circus.Jason had survived the streets.Tim could hack a government system before finishing breakfast. Damian had been raised by assassins. But her…
She was just a girl who lived in Wayne Manor. Nothing else
Dick noticed the uncertainty in her expression and tried to lighten the mood.
“Hey,” he said with a grin, “studying abroad is great. New country, new friends, new experiences.”
“You just want souvenirs.” Jason snorted.
“I like souvenirs.” Dick shrugged.
“You’ll get a normal life there.” Tim looked up from his laptop.
Normal.
That word again. She lowered her gaze slightly. She had never asked for anything extraordinary. She didn’t want to fight criminals or chase villains across rooftops. She just wanted to belong somewhere.
Bruce stepped closer.
“It will be safer,” he said.
“If that’s what you think is best.” She nodded slowly.
“It is.” Bruce’s voice remained steady. The decision had already been made.
….On the Day she left
The Manor stood quiet beneath the early morning sky. And the car waited outside the front steps. Its engine hummed softly as Alfred stood beside the open door, one gloved hand resting lightly against the frame. The air smelled faintly of rain.
Dick hugged Y/N first.
“Send pictures,” he said with a grin.
“Try not to turn into a genius like Tim.” Jason stepped forward next and ruffled her hair.
“I heard that.” Tim adjusted his glasses.
Y/N smiled faintly.
Damian stood nearby with his arms crossed. He didn’t move. But his eyes followed her carefully.
“You’ll be safe there.” Bruce stood beside the car.
“I know.” She nodded.
She climbed into the back seat. The door closed quietly. The car began rolling down the long gravel driveway. Through the window, Y/N watched Wayne Manor slowly disappear behind the trees. The tall stone building grew smaller. Then vanished entirely.
The drive toward the airport was quiet. Streetlights passed overhead as the car moved through Gotham’s streets. She leaned her head against the window. The city blurred past in streaks of yellow light and shadow.
For the first time in a long while, she allowed herself to relax. Maybe this would be good. Maybe leaving Gotham would finally give her a chance to figure out who she was without constantly feeling like she didn’t belong. The car turned onto a quieter road near the outskirts of the city.
Traffic thinned as she slowly getting farther from the city. The buildings grew smaller. Then suddenly—
A truck swerved across the road. The driver slammed the brakes. The tires screeched against the asphalt as the car skidded to a violent stop.
“What the—”
Before the driver could finish, the rear door was yanked open. Gloved hands grabbed her arm.
“What—?!”
“Let go!” She struggled instinctively.
More figures appeared around the car. They moved with terrifying coordination. One of them raised a weapon. A sharp crack echoed. The driver collapsed forward.
“Help—!” Her heart began racing.
Something stabbed into her arm— a syringe. Cold spread through her veins immediately. Her strength vanished almost instantly.The world blurred. Her vision darkened. The last thing she saw before consciousness faded was the face of the man standing above her.
A white mask.
Carved into the shape of an owl.
notes: hi!!! here’s another chapter, take this as my birthday gift since my birthday is on april 1 (hahaha funny). this is a lot shorter than the first one. and more explanation would come in the next chapter. please be also informed that this fanfic will not be religiously accurate to the comics and relay only to some canon. but i will do everything to preserve some actual reference to the comics! anyways, thank you for your support in this fanfic of mine!! I truly appreciate it alot as someone who deems her writing ‘awful.’ Next few chapters would probably posted next week or this week depends on my time. Exam is right around the corner so i’m sure i will need to study for that :)
summary: After ten years abroad, Y/N Wayne returns to Gotham—but the girl who comes back to Wayne Manor is not the same one who left. Quiet, distant, and avoiding everyone but Alfred, she seems like a stranger in her own home. As strange deaths begin appearing across Gotham, the Batfamily slowly realizes that whatever happened during those missing years may be far more dangerous than they imagined.
word count: 1.6k+
tags: batfam x fem!reader , batfamily x slightly!neglected!reader
prev | next
Morning arrived slowly over Wayne Manor.
A pale gray sky stretched above the sprawling estate, clouds drifting lazily across the horizon as faint sunlight slipped through the tall windows of the dining room. The long mahogany table had already been set, plates arranged neatly, silverware placed with the precision that Alfred Pennyworth had perfected over decades.Steam curled upward from freshly brewed coffee.The smell of warm bread lingered in the air.
Despite the peaceful atmosphere, something felt off.
Dick Grayson sat at the table with one leg hooked over the other, lazily stirring his coffee. Jason Todd leaned back in his chair beside him, one arm resting over the backrest as he scrolled through something on his phone. Tim Drake sat further down the table with a tablet propped against his glass, his attention split between breakfast and whatever data he was studying. Across from them, Damian Wayne sat upright with perfect posture, cutting his food with precise, measured movements.
No one spoke much. Every so often, their eyes drifted toward the staircase. The seat at the end of the table remained empty. Bruce entered a moment later. His presence filled the room immediately. Even dressed simply in dark clothes, he carried the same quiet authority that always followed him. He moved to his seat without comment, though the faint tension in his shoulders suggested he had slept very little.
“Morning,” Dick said.
Bruce nodded once.
Alfred approached with a fresh cup of coffee.
“Thank you, Alfred.” Bruce slowly took the coffee and sipped from it.
“Of course, sir.” Alfred replied.
“So… she still hiding?”Jason glanced toward the stairs.
“Jason.”Dick shot him a look.
“I’m just asking.” Jason defended himself upon seeing the serious look on Dick’s face.
“Alfred said she prefers to leave her room when no one’s around.”Tim lowered his tablet slightly.
“That behavior suggests avoidance. Why is she avoiding us? Is this coming from her pent up resentment because she was sent abroad? How immature” Damian frowned and sneered.
“We’ll speak with her when she’s ready.” Bruce lifted the coffee cup, his expression unreadable.
The conversation ended there.But as the others returned to their breakfast, Bruce’s gaze drifted briefly toward the staircase. Ten years. It had been ten years since she left. And somehow it already felt like something had gone wrong long before she came back.
10 Years Ago
“I don’t want to go! Can I just stay here?” she asked her father the moment she found out that she was being sent abroad.
“Y/N it’s for your own good, beside those school abroad is well known. It will be helpful to hone your knowledge” Bruce calmly stated to her while he is reading his documents in.
“But I don’t need that! I am good in class anyway, its not like I’m delay or got lower grades” she tries to reason with him. Some of her friends are here, well not that best friend type but atleast she had friends. Besides she still on the process of bonding with his brother—Damian.
“You don’t understand. It’s for your own safety, why can’t you just understand it?” bruce seems pissed evidently as he slowly and subtle massaging is temple.
“I have been understanding everything since I was a child! You can just say that i am too much liability in your life because unlike you, I’m not part of your vigilante life!” Tension rises as Y/N finally voices out her frustration to her father.
“That’s why you won’t understand! You’re a child and not a vigilante. The city needs me and your brother” Bruce stood up as he also increased his voice.
“I also need you! You’re my father too, and I am your responsibility too!” Tears finally descended in her eyes the moment she replied to him.
“Y/N, I —”
“Fine! If im too ‘civilian’ and ‘child’ for you then I’m going to leave. Its not like I can force myself to father who doesn’t want a child.” She cut of bruce and walk towards the door.
“—you are a good person, Bruce. But not a good father. I hope you know that” then she slammed the door hard upon going out of the study.
Y/N started running towards her room and didn’t even looked or greeted Dick and Jason who is walking towards Bruce office.
“Hey—” Dick didn’t even finished his greetings when Y/N walked past him with tears in her eyes.
The moment she entered her room, she immediately took a bag and put some clothes she could wear for awhile. She plan to bought clothes there the moment she arrived instead of taking many clothes. Its old anyway and some are just silly clothes to wear abroad. Oh how wrong she had thought.
The day Bruce decided to inform the others about him sending Y/N away had begun like any other day at Wayne Manor. The afternoon sun had filled the study with warm golden light, casting long shadows across the floor as dust motes drifted lazily through the air.
Dick lounged near the tall windows, balancing himself against the frame while flipping through a magazine he clearly wasn’t reading. Jason sat backward in one of the chairs near the desk, his arms resting on the backrest as he idly spun a pen between his fingers. Tim sat on the couch nearby with a laptop open across his knees.
Damian stood near the bookshelf, reading something thick and ancient-looking that he had pulled from Bruce’s collection. Y/N stood quietly near the fireplace. She had always liked that spot. It was warm, and from there she could see everyone in the room.
“You’ll be leaving next week.” Bruce stood behind his desk. For a long moment he simply looked at her. Then he spoke. The words fell into the room with a quiet finality.
“For how long?” Y/N blinked.
“A few years.” Bruce folded his arms.
“A few years?” Dick straightened immediately.
“Since when?” Jason raised an eyebrow.
“The academy has one of the best international programs available. You’ll have opportunities there you won’t find in Gotham.” Bruce ignored the interruption.
“You really want to get rid of me that much?” Y/N mumbled and hesitated. Her fingers brushed lightly against the sleeve of her sweater. The question hung in the air longer than she expected.
“Gotham isn’t safe.” Bruce answered calmly.
No one argued with that. Everyone in the room knew the truth of that statement better than anyone else. But still—
“She’s not involved in anything we do.” Jason frowned.
“That’s exactly the point,” Bruce said.
Y/N shifted slightly. The conversation felt strange. She had always known she was different from the rest of them. But in that moment, it feels like she is an unknown entity in her own family.
Dick had grown up performing impossible stunts in the circus.Jason had survived the streets.Tim could hack a government system before finishing breakfast. Damian had been raised by assassins. But her…
She was just a girl who lived in Wayne Manor. Nothing else
Dick noticed the uncertainty in her expression and tried to lighten the mood.
“Hey,” he said with a grin, “studying abroad is great. New country, new friends, new experiences.”
“You just want souvenirs.” Jason snorted.
“I like souvenirs.” Dick shrugged.
“You’ll get a normal life there.” Tim looked up from his laptop.
Normal.
That word again. She lowered her gaze slightly. She had never asked for anything extraordinary. She didn’t want to fight criminals or chase villains across rooftops. She just wanted to belong somewhere.
Bruce stepped closer.
“It will be safer,” he said.
“If that’s what you think is best.” She nodded slowly.
“It is.” Bruce’s voice remained steady. The decision had already been made.
….On the Day she left
The Manor stood quiet beneath the early morning sky. And the car waited outside the front steps. Its engine hummed softly as Alfred stood beside the open door, one gloved hand resting lightly against the frame. The air smelled faintly of rain.
Dick hugged Y/N first.
“Send pictures,” he said with a grin.
“Try not to turn into a genius like Tim.” Jason stepped forward next and ruffled her hair.
“I heard that.” Tim adjusted his glasses.
Y/N smiled faintly.
Damian stood nearby with his arms crossed. He didn’t move. But his eyes followed her carefully.
“You’ll be safe there.” Bruce stood beside the car.
“I know.” She nodded.
She climbed into the back seat. The door closed quietly. The car began rolling down the long gravel driveway. Through the window, Y/N watched Wayne Manor slowly disappear behind the trees. The tall stone building grew smaller. Then vanished entirely.
The drive toward the airport was quiet. Streetlights passed overhead as the car moved through Gotham’s streets. She leaned her head against the window. The city blurred past in streaks of yellow light and shadow.
For the first time in a long while, she allowed herself to relax. Maybe this would be good. Maybe leaving Gotham would finally give her a chance to figure out who she was without constantly feeling like she didn’t belong. The car turned onto a quieter road near the outskirts of the city.
Traffic thinned as she slowly getting farther from the city. The buildings grew smaller. Then suddenly—
A truck swerved across the road. The driver slammed the brakes. The tires screeched against the asphalt as the car skidded to a violent stop.
“What the—”
Before the driver could finish, the rear door was yanked open. Gloved hands grabbed her arm.
“What—?!”
“Let go!” She struggled instinctively.
More figures appeared around the car. They moved with terrifying coordination. One of them raised a weapon. A sharp crack echoed. The driver collapsed forward.
“Help—!” Her heart began racing.
Something stabbed into her arm— a syringe. Cold spread through her veins immediately. Her strength vanished almost instantly.The world blurred. Her vision darkened. The last thing she saw before consciousness faded was the face of the man standing above her.
A white mask.
Carved into the shape of an owl.
notes: hi!!! here’s another chapter, take this as my birthday gift since my birthday is on april 1 (hahaha funny). this is a lot shorter than the first one. and more explanation would come in the next chapter. please be also informed that this fanfic will not be religiously accurate to the comics and relay only to some canon. but i will do everything to preserve some actual reference to the comics! anyways, thank you for your support in this fanfic of mine!! I truly appreciate it alot as someone who deems her writing ‘awful.’ Next few chapters would probably posted next week or this week depends on my time. Exam is right around the corner so i’m sure i will need to study for that :)
That’s the only thought looping through your head the second all of you finally step outside Gotham Mall.
The sky has long since darkened into deep shades of navy, the city glowing beneath the haze of Gotham nightlife—streetlights on, headlights streaking past damp roads, and for a second, you let yourself breathe.
Your gaze drops toward the photostrips clutched loosely in your hand.
The glossy paper bends slightly between your fingers as you stare at the pictures lined across it—Stephanie half-laughing while Damian looked like a grouchy cat. Kon posing finger daggers with his tongue out while Tim was caught mid-blink in one of them because apparently even vigilantes weren’t immune to photobooth timing.
And then there was you.
Smiling. Actually smiling.
“…If I knew taking pictures would get you to smile this much, I would’ve dragged you into a photobooth way earlier.”
Damnit.
You immediately lift your head to find Kon beside you again. Not too close this time. Just… hovering nearby in that effortless way he always seems to do, hands shoved into the pockets of his jacket while he peers down at the photos in your hand with obvious satisfaction at how they turned out.
“Today’s the only exception.”
Kon tilts his head slowly. “Are you sureee?” There it is again. That teasing tone. Like he gets a kick from watching you deny things he already knows the answer to. He definitely does.
You deadpan instantly. “Yes.”
Kon only chuckles under his breath, looking entirely unconvinced.
But before either of you can continue, Tim suddenly steps forward and hooks two fingers into the back of Kon’s jacket collar, physically tugging him a step away from you. Not rough, just deliberate. Instinctive, almost. Like he’s trying to give you space to breathe without outright saying it.
Kon looks scandalised immediately. “Wow. Is today ‘manhandling Conner Kent’ day or something?”
Tim ignores him completely.
“She hates taking pictures.”
What?
You can’t help turning toward Tim at that. And somehow, those four simple words hit harder than they should. You hate that they do.
Because seriously—since when did Tim know about that too?
Why does he still know these small details about you so easily, like none of the distance between you ever really existed in the first place? Like the fracture between you was just all in your head?
It makes everything else feel worse somehow.
The arguments. The awkwardness. The things left unresolved between the two of you that neither of you seems capable of fixing no matter how badly you both keep circling around them.
And just as quickly as you look at him, you look away again before your eyes can meet for too long.
Kon blinks between the both of you slowly. And from the way his expression shifts, that tiny interaction alone probably told him far more than either of you intended.
“Oh? And why’s that?” You honestly aren’t even sure who he’s directing the question at anymore. But it’s there now. Hanging in the air between all of you.
And you feel it immediately.
Tim’s hesitation. The way his gaze flickers back toward you, uncertain.
It’s becoming a recurring thing lately. Something unfamiliar. Something that never used to exist between you before.
As if he’s trying to figure out whether he still has the right to answer questions about you at all. Whether he has the right to tell Kon about that incident.
The silence stretches between you both. Heavy.
”That’s..”
“It’s a story for another time,” you cut in quickly before Tim can say anything else. Your voice comes out quieter than intended.
But it looks like Tim got the hint immediately anyways. You see it in the way his expression stills for half a second, before his gaze drifts away from yours, shoulders subtly tightening as he falls silent without another word.
Thankfully—or unfortunately, depending on perspective—Kon decides the tension has existed for long enough. “Well,” he says lightly, grin already returning, “maybe you can tell me about it over din—ow!” Kon jerks sideways abruptly.
Damian had somehow materialised out of nowhere again and jabbed him sharply in the ribs hard enough to make an actual Super yelp in pain.
At this point, you were beginning to think Damian’s ability to appear out of thin air whenever Kon got too comfortable around you was some kind of instinctual power.
“I have already contacted Pennyworth,” Damian says coldly, like he hadn’t just assaulted someone in public. “He informed me he’ll arrive shortly.”
Kon recovers almost immediately, rubbing his side dramatically. “Aww,” he says hopefully, “free ride for me too?”
“Who says you are accompanying us?” Damian deadpans so flatly it borders on threatening.
And somehow, for the first time all day, you swear you can physically see the metaphorical sweatdrop appear over Kon’s head.
“Oh, come on,” Kon complains. “I thought we were all bonding near the end there. Cut me some slack, will ya?”
“You can literally fly,” Tim says this time, sounding exhausted already. “Why would you come with us?”
Why are you coming with us then? you almost say out loud to counter Tim. The thought sits right there on the edge of your tongue. But honestly? You’re too tired to start another argument tonight. So you keep your mouth shut.
Kon opens his mouth immediately anyway. “To spend more time with—”
“And,” Tim continues over him before he can finish, “don’t you have to get back to Smallville before your ma and pa report you to Clark for disappearing to Gotham unannounced again?”
Kon shrugs like that’s barely even an issue worth considering.
“Eh. I’ll survive.”
“You say that now..” Stephanie mutters. You almost forgot she was still here, were it not for her speaking up at that moment. Usually, she was… well, almost impossible to ignore. You exhale quietly through your nose before speaking up. “Let me talk to Kon for a second.”
Kon blinks before immediately straightening up. “Oh?” A grin spreads across his face instantly. “Trying to get me alone now?”
“Don’t make it weird.”
“Too late.”
You ignore him entirely and start walking a few steps ahead instead, only for Damian to react almost immediately—halting you before you can get very far.
“You are not going anywhere alone with him.”
“Oh my god, Damian. I’m not twelve.”
“That Kryptonian has repeatedly demonstrated that he does not know how to stay out of people’s space.” Damian says flatly.
“And yet somehow, he still has more social awareness than you.”
Stephanie physically coughs to hide her laugh. Damian looks deeply offended. “I am being serious.”
“So am I,” you shoot back, crossing your arms. “I’m literally just going to talk to him for a bit.”
“Then do it here.” Damian crosses his arms too, still glaring suspiciously at Kon like he’s one bad sentence away from being publicly executed.
You stare at him in disbelief.
“Don’t you think you’ve already spied on me enough today?” you deadpan. “Seriously. Just let me have this one conversation.”
Damian opens his mouth immediately—only for Stephanie to suddenly pop up behind him and clamp a hand firmly over it.
“Yeah, of course!” she says quickly before Damian can protest. “Go ahead. I’ll get these two out of your hair.”
And before either Wayne boy can fully react, Stephanie is already somehow physically dragging Damian backward by the arm while simultaneously shoving Tim along with her.
Tim looks deeply offended to be included despite absolutely trying to subtly linger nearby. Damian, meanwhile, is actively fighting for his life against Stephanie’s grip.
“Brown. Remove your hand immediately—”
“Nope.”
“I will sue you.”
“You’re eleven.”
“I am genetically superior.”
You blink once, watching as Stephanie physically drags both boys farther down the sidewalk. The entire sight is ridiculous enough that it pulls a tired, raspy sigh from you. “Hah…Men.”
“Not all men though.”
Right. Kon was still here.
Your eyes flick back toward him now. He’s standing there with the shopping bags dangling loosely from one hand, the other shoved into his jacket pocket. There’s something annoyingly relaxed about him—like he hadn’t spent the entire day bulldozing his way through your personal space and somehow rearranging the mood of your entire afternoon by sheer force alone.
And worse—he’s looking at you with that same expression again. That one look he always seems to wear around you now. Like spending time with you is the most natural thing in the world.
You let out another exasperated sigh, this one quieter. Almost fond despite yourself. “Yeah,” you mutter, shaking your head. “Not all men. But you’re definitely included.”
Kon gasps dramatically, immediately pressing a hand against his chest.
“Wow, (Name). I’m hurt. Truly devastated. How could you say that about me after everything we’ve been through?”
You raise an eyebrow immediately.
“Define everything.”
Kon pretends to think deeply about it. “Well,” he says eventually, counting on his fingers, “I helped you snoop around the orphanage yesterday. And I took you out to have fun today.” He points at you accusingly now. “You cannot tell me you didn’t enjoy it.”
You hate how smug he sounds about that. More importantly—you hate that he knows you can’t deny it.
Because yes. You did enjoy today.
Somewhere between the photobooth, the stupid outfits, the way Kon kept dragging you into moments before you could think too hard about them—you’d actually enjoyed yourself. And somehow, that realisation feels more dangerous than anything else. Because it’s been a while since things felt this… easy.
And maybe that’s why it unsettles you so much. Because once you start enjoying someone’s presence this much, eventually comes the terrifying possibility of losing it too.
“And besides,” Kon continues easily, rocking back on his heels, “we still have plenty of time to create more memories to put it under ‘everything.’”
You gesture between the two of you, a soft scoff escaping your lips. “You and me?”
“Yes, you and me.” His grin softens just slightly. “The girl who’s going to uncover whatever secrets that orphanage is hiding—”
“I can’t even say for certain that there is something wrong with that place, Kon.” You interject, almost too firmly.
And that’s the part clawing at you the most. Because what if you’re wrong?
What if all of this suspicion, this awful gut feeling sitting in your chest whenever you’re near Mrs. Cole—and apparently now, Mr. Travers—what if it’s all just paranoia? What if you drag Kon into this and there turns out to be nothing there at all?
No hidden cruelty or corruption. No danger. Just you projecting… ghosts onto ordinary people because you’ve spent too long expecting the worst from Gotham. And somehow, the thought of wasting his time bothers you more than your own.
“But I believe you.”
The words come out so easily from him. No hesitation at all. Just certainty. Like trusting you is the simplest thing in the world.
“That counts for something, doesn’t it?”
You falter slightly at that. “Even if I end up being wrong?”
“You mean even if we end up being wrong.”
That one correction lands heavier than expected. Your gaze drifts back toward him fully now, meeting his eyes beneath the glow of the streetlights as he shrugs one shoulder casually. “Can’t exactly call myself your loyal partner if I ditch you halfway through, can I?”
…Loyal partner, huh?
You huff quietly through your nose, rolling your eyes to hide the way something warm curls annoyingly in your chest at the phrase.
It’s stupid. The title is stupid.
And yet—something about hearing it from him makes the exhaustion weighing on you feel lighter somehow. Familiar, too. Which doesn’t make sense, because this is the first time he’s ever called himself that. Partner? Maybe, but loyal? You almost want to scoff at the thought. Because really—it’s only been two days since you properly got to know Kon for yourself. Two days shouldn’t be enough to trust someone this easily.
And yet somehow, standing here beneath Gotham’s streetlights with him smiling at you like sticking by your side is the most obvious thing in the world, you can’t quite bring yourself to doubt him either.
Because it was nice. To hear someone say we instead of you for once. Like he’s already decided he’s standing beside you in this with no conditions attached.
You look away first before the feeling settles too deeply. “I better not hear you complain about this later.”
“Wouldn’t dream of it.”
You stare at him for a second longer before another sigh escapes you—this one softer around the edges, sounding dangerously close to a laugh.
“…Thank you, Kon.”
The teasing expression on his face eases slightly at that. Not disappearing completely. Just softening.
“For what?”
You glance away briefly, fingers tightening just a little around the photostrips still in your hand.
For distracting you. For believing you despite every reason he probably shouldn’t. For making today feel normal for a little while. For making you forget yourself long enough to laugh without thinking about consequences afterward.
“For today,” you settle on quietly. And for a second, Kon just looks at you. And something in his expression shifts into something almost unreadable. Like he genuinely wasn’t expecting you to actually thank him.
But then, just as quickly, that familiar grin slides back into place again.
“Well,” he says proudly, “you really shouldn’t be surprised you enjoyed the company of the one and only Superboy.”
You raise an eyebrow at that, tilting your head slightly. “You do realise you’re not the only Superboy anymore, right?”
Kon immediately narrows his eyes. “…Are you trying to say that Jon’s company is more pleasant than mine?”
“Well,” you say thoughtfully, pretending to seriously consider it, “he is adorable. And nice.”
“Hello??!?” Kon gestures toward himself in disbelief. “So am I.”
“Nice, maybe,” you say with a shrug. “Adorable? Not as much as him.” A quiet laugh slips out of you afterward before you can stop it.
And Kon actually looks mildly offended for a second. Like genuinely offended. But then something in his expression eases unexpectedly as he watches you laugh, the fight draining from him almost immediately.
“…Argh, fine,” he groans dramatically, waving a hand. “As long as I’m your favourite Super, that’s good enough for me.”
You glance at him from the corner of your eye, lips twitching slightly.
“To be decided.”
Kon gasps like you’ve personally betrayed him. Again. Which was not far off.
“You Waynes and your terrifying ability to emotionally devastate people.”
You raise an eyebrow at that, before waving him off. “Well, sucks to be you. Now,” you gesture vaguely behind you toward where Damian and the others are waiting, “you should probably hurry off before Damian actually succeeds in kicking your ass tonight.”
“Excuse you,” Kon scoffs immediately, crossing his arms. “I let him do that on purpose to appease him. Somewhat.”
“Whatever helps you sleep at night, I guess.”
Kon narrows his eyes at you for a second, before inevitably breaking into another grin anyway, earning an immediate eye-roll from you.
“Just make sure you come back tomorrow and apologise to that Bat Burger employee, alright?”
Kon perks up immediately. “At least this time,” he says brightly, “it sounds like I officially have an excuse to show up in Gotham again.”
Somehow, despite how ridiculous today has been—the idea of seeing him again tomorrow doesn’t sound nearly as exhausting as it probably should.
You shake your head exasperatedly instead of acknowledging that thought aloud. Kon only grins wider, clearly taking your lack of denial as enough of an answer. Then, with one final wave, he slowly lifts off the ground. You watch him hover backward a little, still smiling stupidly at you beneath Gotham’s streetlights before finally turning and taking off into the night sky.
You keep watching until he disappears completely from sight. Only then do you finally exhale quietly through your nose, before turning to head back toward Damian, Stephanie, and Tim.
But just as you turned around, you immediately collide straight into someone.
“Oh—shit, my bad. You alright?”
The voice stops you cold.
Your head snaps upward immediately.
Duke?
Your breath catches before you can stop it. Because standing there in front of you is Duke Thomas.
Only—younger. Noticeably younger than the Duke you remember. He just looks like… a normal teenager on Gotham’s streets after dark, blinking at you in confusion because you haven’t answered him yet.
And suddenly, your chest feels tight. Because you hadn’t expected this. Not now.
Not here.
Not him.
And somehow, what unsettles you more is the realisation that he hadn’t crossed your mind at all ever since you woke up back in the past.
Not once.
How?
How did you forget Duke? How did you not think of him even once? How could you forget him when—to his credits—he’d been one of the very few people who made life seem more tolerable back in your first life? Who at least made you feel seen in some way that didn’t feel off?
The thought leaves you feeling vaguely sick.
Maybe it was because your sixteen year old self hadn’t met him yet during this point in time. Maybe your mind had unconsciously separated him from this version of Gotham because, technically, he wasn’t part of your life yet.
Was that really the only possible reason?
“Duke? Honey, come on.”
A woman’s voice cuts through your spiraling thoughts. Your head turns instinctively toward the sound. And—your stomach drops. A man and woman were standing a few feet away, seemingly waiting for him to catch up to them.
Duke’s parents.
They still looked fine. Looked normal. Still untouched by what’s going to happen to them.
The realisation hits you so abruptly that your body reacts before your brain can catch up. You immediately step back from Duke like instinct itself is screaming at you to put distance between you and this moment.
“Ah—yeah,” you hear yourself say quickly. “I’m fine. Sorry for holding you up.”
Duke gives you one last slightly confused look before nodding politely. Then he turns and jogs back toward his parents.
And you—you just stand there. Watching them walk away beneath Gotham’s streetlights. Watching his father sling an arm around his shoulders. Watching his mother say something that makes Duke roll his eyes in embarrassment.
They look so normal. So painfully normal.
And all you can think is—they don’t know.
They don’t know what’s waiting for them. Because this is before it happens. Before Joker kidnaps them. Before his parents inhaled the toxin that ruined their lives. Before Duke has to watch his parents become shells of themselves while still technically alive.
Your throat tightens violently.
So… what now?
The question loops through your head immediately.
What are you supposed to do now? Just… let them walk away? Let history repeat itself right in front of you when you know what’s coming?
But if you interfere…what would happen then?
Your chest tightens harder. The question hits harder than it should, because you already know changing things definitely came with consequences.
Adrien flashes through your mind almost immediately. Him being comatose for a few days, All because one of Riddler’s bombs—one that never exploded in your first life—had gone off this time instead.
Because you changed something. Because you quit being Batgirl.
And somehow it feels like the universe… shifted around that choice like reality itself was trying to… rebalance its scales.
Your stomach twists.
So what happens if you did try to save Duke’s parents? Even though you know that eventually—his mom does het cured—wouldn’t it be better to just… prevent the situation from happening altogether? Or would something worse take its place? Would Gotham just… find another way to hurt people? Could you even stop it in the first place?
Maybe you could.
Maybe all you had to do was stop Joker before he got to them. Protect them before the kidnapping ever happened. You just had to remember when it was. You just had to—
Wait.
Your thoughts abruptly snag against themselves.
When did he kidnap them?
Your heartbeat stumbles hard in your chest
No. No, you knew this. You should know this. Because you’ve read the files—his files. Everyone’s files. Back in your first life, after everything that happened, you’d refused to let yourself remain ignorant ever again. Refused to be the one left in the dark while everyone else carried the truth around you. So you made sure you learned. Made sure you remembered every detail there is.
So why couldn’t you remember now?
Your mind starts scrambles desperately through your memories, trying to force the details back into place. But the harder you try to remember, the more everything slips through your fingers. Like trying to hold water in trembling hands.
Your breathing turns uneven.
Why can’t you remember? You remember the aftermath. You remember Duke. So why can’t you remember the actual event itself?
Your ears start ringing sharply. The sound cuts through your thoughts like static, loud enough that it almost hurts. But you push harder anyway, forcing yourself to think.
Remember. You need to remember.
Remember.
Fragments of memories flash too quickly behind your eyes now—but none of it is the right memory. None of it tells you when.
Why can’t you remember? Why does it feel like the harder you try to reach for it, the further it slips away from you?
You barely notice yourself taking an unsteady step backward. The ringing grows louder. Somewhere nearby, you hear familiar voices calling out.
Why does Damian sound so far away? Your head suddenly throbs, sharp enough to make your vision flicker.
And then you feel something warm drip past your lip. Your brows furrow faintly. Disoriented, you lift a hand instinctively, fingers brushing beneath your nose before pulling back into view.
Red.
Your vision blurs. For a second, your brain genuinely fails to process what you’re seeing.
Blood? Why are your fingers covered in blood?
“(Name)!”
Tim’s voice cuts through the ringing. Closer this time. When did he get here?
You barely register the sudden warmth of hands gripping your shoulders—steadying you before you can fall properly. Tim’s hands, you think.
But even standing right beside you, his voice sounds strangely distant somehow. Muffled beneath the violent ringing flooding your ears.
Everything feels strangely disconnected now. Wrong. Like the world around you has drifted several feet away while you’re still trapped inside your own head.
“Hey—hey..! Look at me.”
Why does his voice still sound so far away despite being right next to you? And—
Why does he sound so desperate?
Your unfocused gaze drifts upward instinctively, trying to find him through the blur swallowing your vision.
You think you’re looking into his eyes. You can’t really tell anymore. But you feel him.
The tight grip of his hands against your shoulders. The way he’s holding onto you too firmly now, like he’s afraid you’ll slip right through his fingers if he loosens his grip even slightly. And despite the cold slowly spreading through the rest of your body—your fingertips numb, your head spinning, your skin suddenly freezing beneath Gotham’s night air—that warmth stays.
His warmth.
It settles around you in sharp contrast to the terrifying emptiness creeping through your limbs. You can barely make out his expression through the haze, but even blurred, you recognise the panic there immediately.
You rarely see Tim panic. Not outwardly. Not like this. Not since his father died.
Ah.
As much as you and Tim clash now—as much as the two of you keep orbiting around each other awkwardly, unable to figure out how to exist around the other without it turning complicated—you never wanted to become the reason he remembered that moment again.
The moment that permanently altered the course of his life.
You know what losing someone in front of him did to Tim. You know how deeply that fear carved itself into him afterward. Hidden beneath all that composure and logic he clings to so tightly.
His brows are drawn together so tightly it looked painful. His breathing uneven despite how hard he was trying to steady it.
And his eyes—
God.
Why does he look so.. scared? It wasn’t like you were dying. Even through the haze swallowing your thoughts earlier, you knew this feeling was different. Different from when you actually died. And Tim knew that too. He’s smart enough to tell the difference between panic and death.
So then why had he reacted like that? Was the mere possibility of losing you enough to make him look at you that way?
The thought settles strangely in your chest.
Because it makes you wonder…If the Tim from your first life had been there during your death… would he have looked at you like this too?
Would he have sounded that terrified? Would he have reached for you just as desperately? And somehow, the thought that he might have—that he would have cared enough to panic over losing you too—loosens something deep in your chest you hadn’t even realised you’d been holding onto this entire time.
The thought barely forms before another sharp wave of dizziness crashes through you. Your body feels unbearably heavy now. Your head sags faintly forward before Tim’s grip tightens again instantly, steadying you before you can slump completely.
“Damnit, (Name)—stay with me.” you hear him say, voice lower now. Sharper. Desperate in a way that makes something ache painfully inside your chest. Warped beneath the violent ringing flooding your ears.
Your knees weaken abruptly, and you feel the ground tilt beneath you.
Or maybe you’re the one tilting.
You can’t tell anymore. Your thoughts feel scrambled now, slipping apart faster than you can hold onto them. And before you can properly process what’s happening—your body gives out completely.
The last thing you feel is yourself collapsing into something firm. And somewhere through the haze, just before everything finally fades to black—you feel the vibration of the rapid heartbeat pressed beneath your cheek.
Stephanie practically drags them halfway down the sidewalk before finally letting go of Damian and Tim.
“Seriously,” she mutters, exasperated, “give them, like, five seconds alone before you start growling at Superboy again.”
“I was not growling,” Damian snaps immediately.
“You certainly looked one second away from committing a felony.”
“Tt. That fool deserves it.”
Tim barely hears the rest of it. Their bickering fades into background noise almost instantly as his gaze drifts back toward you instead.
Toward you and Kon. Again.
Earlier today, he’d watched you from across that cafe with Damian and Stephanie while Kon dragged you inside that clothing store. Tim told himself he was only keeping an eye on you because something felt off lately. Because Kon had dragged you all the way here. Because he was worried.
But standing here now, watching you talk to Kon by yourself again, he’s forced to confront something uglier.
You really looked… happier around him. Because somehow, Kon gets reactions out of you so easily.
The small smiles. The eye-rolls. The soft huffs that sound dangerously close to laughter.
And Tim—he can barely hold a conversation with you lately without it turning tense halfway through.
It doesn’t make sense. None of this makes sense.
How did things between you both become this fragile so quickly? Or maybe not quickly. Maybe it had been happening for longer than he realised.
Maybe Tim was just… always going to clash with you eventually.
The thought settles heavily in his chest. Because no matter how hard he tries, every interaction between you both feels like stepping around shattered glass barefoot. One wrong word and everything cuts deeper again.
Meanwhile Kon was just… able to exist around you effortlessly. Tim hates that it bothers him as much as it does.
He watches you laugh quietly at something Kon says, sees the way you shake your head at him again, and suddenly Tim has to look away for half a second just to breathe normally.
It shouldn’t matter. So why does it?
His gaze drifts back anyway. He watches you both finally wave each other off, watches Kon float backward into the air with that stupid grin still plastered across his face before eventually taking off into the Gotham skyline.
“Oh—looks like Alfred’s driving around the corner,” Stephanie says suddenly, and Tim blinks, dragged back to his surroundings. Sure enough, familiar headlights and the sleek black limo turn into the street nearby. Beside him, Damian folds his arms with a deep scowl.
“I am informing Father about this.”
“Absolutely not.” Stephanie immediately interjects. “If you narc on her after today, she’s gonna be upset with you.”
That shuts Damian up immediately. Not completely. But enough. He clicks his tongue irritably instead, muttering under his breath, “Why did she have to befriend him of all people?” He then abruptly points at Tim like this is somehow his fault.
“This is on you, Drake. If you had not been so insistent on befriending that Kryptonian—”
Tim stares at him in disbelief. “You are literally friends with a Kryptonian too.”
Damian glares at Stephanie instantly for the jab, already opening his mouth with what was definitely going to be an offended retort. Tim rolls his eyes, only half-paying attention now as his gaze flickers back toward you automatically. Expecting you to already be walking back over.
Except—you’re not moving.
Tim’s brows furrowed slightly.
You’re just standing there. Still. Something about it immediately feels wrong. And then he notices the way your shoulders rise sharply.
Your breathing. It’s too fast. Uneven. Not just uneven—erratic. Like you can’t pull enough air into your lungs no matter how hard you’re trying.
And then, he sees it. Blood. A thin stream slipping from beneath your nose.
For a second, his brain genuinely blanks. His body moves before his thoughts can catch up. He’s already running before he even realises he started moving. Somewhere behind him, he hears Damian shout his name in confusion, but Tim ignores it completely.
“(Name)!”
Please answer him.
If you answer him right now, he can still convince himself he’s overreacting.
That this isn’t serious. That you’re okay.
But then he gets closer and sees your expression properly. Your pupils aren’t focusing correctly. Your breathing keeps catching unevenly like your body’s forgotten how to do it naturally. There’s blood staining your lip now. Tim reaches you in seconds, grabbing your shoulders immediately like you’re the only thing keeping him upright now.
His eyes scan your face frantically. The blood. Your unfocused gaze. The way your body sways dangerously where you stand. The terrifying absence of recognition in your expression for half a second too long.
Damnit.
Damnit, damnit, damnit…!
Didn’t you say you were going to make sure he didn’t have to “bother” himself with you anymore? Wasn’t that what you said?
That you’d make sure he wouldn’t have any reason to worry about you or what you did?
Then what is this?
What happened in the few seconds he looked away? And why does it feel like if he lets go of you for even a second, you’re going to slip right through his hands?
If this is your way of getting back at him—of punishing him for all the times he had misunderstood you, for all the moments he had unintentionally pushed you away despite helping you clean up the aftermath of your mistakes and dead ends, for all the times his actions have caused you hurt—then at least don’t do it like this. Not when you look like you could barely hold yourself together.
“Hey—hey…!” His voice comes out sharper than intended as he grips your shoulders tighter instinctively. “Look at me.”
Anything.
Just keep your eyes open.
Your gaze finally shifts toward him weakly, but it does nothing to calm the panic building inside his chest.
Because you were looking at him like you were trying to recognise him through fog. Behind him, he can hear hurried footsteps approaching now—Damian, Stephanie—and Alfred.
But Tim can barely focus on them. Not when all he can think about is the terrifying weight suddenly settling in his chest. Because this—this feels familiar. Too familiar.
Unwanted memories try forcing their way to the surface of his mind again, and Tim immediately shoves them back down before he can spiral with them too.
Not now. He can’t afford that right now.
His fingers tighten further without him meaning to.
“Hey, (Name)—” he says again, and this time his voice cracks slightly. Quieter now. Shakier. “Stay with me.”
God, he hates how terrified he sounds. Hates the way his mind keeps flashing between you and the image of his father over and over again like some sick reflex he can’t shut off no matter how hard he tries.
Snap out of it. This is different. It’s not the same.
It’s not like you were dying. Tim knows better than that. He can still feel your heartbeat beneath his hands where he grips your shoulders.
But your body is getting colder. Or maybe not colder exactly. Just… unnaturally cool against his own warmth, enough to make panic crawl further up his spine anyway.
Just as Damian, Stephanie, and Alfred finally reach the two of you—your body suddenly goes completely slack in his arms.
Tim’s heart drops.
“Tim..!” Stephanie’s voice cuts through sharply as she rushes closer, eyes darting between your unconscious form and the blood still streaked beneath your nose. “What the hell happened? Why is (Name)—”
“I don’t know,” Tim cuts in immediately, the words rougher than intended. “She just—she started hyperventilating and—”
“Stop talking and get her to the car,” Damian snaps. Normally, there’d be irritation in his voice. But this time, Tim hears the worry underneath it plainly.
“Master Tim,” Alfred says steadily despite the tension tightening the air around all of them, “we should get Miss (Name) to the manor immediately.”
Tim swallows hard before nodding once. Then, carefully—like he’s afraid you’ll break apart if he holds you wrong—he lifts you fully into his arms and carries you toward the limo, Stephanie and Damian close behind him.
Tim can feel Damian gripping tightly onto the end of your sleeve the entire way there, the younger boy practically pulling him along like he’s trying to hurry all of them forward faster. He doesn’t say anything this time—no sharp remarks or scoffs.
Just silence.
Consciousness returns to you slowly.
First comes the light pressing faintly against your eyelids. Then the dull ache pounding behind your head. Then the uncomfortable heaviness settling deep inside your chest. Your eyes crack open gradually, vision blurry at first as the overhead lights force themselves into focus.
Cold metal. Dim lighting. The distant hum of computers. The Batcave. Of course.
“Ms. (Name), are you feeling alright? You gave us quite a scare earlier.” Your head turns sluggishly toward the voice.
Alfred stands nearby holding a tray with a teapot, cups, and what looks like medicine resting neatly at the side. His expression is composed like always, but there’s a subtle tightness around his eyes that tells you more than his calm tone does.
Right. You passed out. God, that was embarrassing.
“(Name)’s awake??”
Stephanie’s voice cuts through the cave almost immediately. Your gaze drifts past Alfred toward the Batcomputer where both Stephanie and Damian abruptly turn toward you.
Stephanie looks openly relieved, concern written all over her face as she practically rushes over. Damian, meanwhile—looks absolutely furious for some reason.
Which is admittedly a little terrifying coming from an eleven year old trained by the League of Shadows since birth. His arms are crossed tightly over his chest, expression sharp enough to cut glass as he stalks over behind Stephanie like he’s personally offended by your collapse earlier.
Somehow, that’s almost touching. Almost.
Your eyes flick briefly past them toward the Batcomputer again, and that’s when you catch Tim glancing at you. Just for a second. A quick, sharp look.
The moment he notices you looking back, he immediately redirects his attention to the screen in front of him like nothing happened.
Well. Fuck him too, then.
“Hey…” Stephanie’s already beside your makeshift bedside now, staring at you like she’s trying to physically assess whether you’re still alive. “Seriously, are you okay?”
You open your mouth to answer, only for her expression to suddenly shift into alarm again.
“You’re not like… secretly diagnosed with some terminal illness, right?” she blurts out. “And that’s why you suddenly quit as Batgirl?”
What.
What the actual fuck.
Your brain genuinely stalls for a second trying to process how she even arrived at that conclusion. Did she think this was some kind of… tragic, melodramatic soap opera? Some horrible fatal secret you’d been hiding from everyone this whole time?
…Then again. Considering you somehow managed to die and wake up in the past, maybe you weren’t exactly in a position to decide what counted as unrealistic anymore.
Before you can even begin to process a response to that, Alfred speaks up for you instead.
“Fortunately, it is nothing of that sort, Miss Stephanie. I believe I would be the first to know if it were.”
Thank god for Alfred.
Stephanie visibly deflates in relief. “Okay, good, because that would’ve been really fucked up if you didn’t tell any one of us.”
Your throat feels painfully dry.
You shift slightly, about to ask for water when a glass suddenly appears in front of you. You blink, and see Damian standing there, holding it out stiffly. Still glaring. Honestly, he somehow looks even more irritated now that you’re conscious again.
“Drink,” he says flatly. And despite everything, your expression softens almost immediately. Because for Damian, this is his concern.
You carefully take the glass from him, fingers brushing briefly against his, and take a long sip before mumbling a quiet, “…Thanks.”
Damian clicks his tongue instantly and looks away like the gratitude personally inconvenienced him somehow. But he still doesn’t move from beside your bed either.
“We are fortunate Master Tim managed to reach you before you collapsed onto the pavement,” Alfred continues calmly as he begins pouring you a cup of tea. “A head injury on top of everything else would have been most unfortunate.”
Ah. Right. You almost forgot about that part.
The part where Tim had somehow gotten to you almost immediately the second your vision started blurring and your ears began ringing. The part where he’d grabbed onto you before you could hit the ground. The part where he sounded—
No. Nevermind.
Damnit.
Wasn’t this, like… the third time now?
The third time Tim had exceeded your expectations and openly helped you without it turning into an argument? Without him saying something that got under your skin or rubbed painfully against every sore spot between the two of you?
Fine.
You revoke your earlier fuck you.
Your gaze drifts toward him again almost unwillingly. Tim’s still standing by the Batcomputer, shoulders tense beneath the dim cave lighting, eyes fixed firmly on whatever’s displayed across the screen in front of him. Too fixed. Like he’s trying way too hard not to look over here.
What a fake idgafer.
Your fingers tighten slightly around the glass. Conscience biting at you uncomfortably now. Because despite everything, despite how complicated and messy things between you had become lately—he did help you. Again.
You exhale quietly before forcing the words out through your still-rough throat.
“…Thanks, Tim.”
For a second, you genuinely think he might turn around and look at you properly.
“Yeah.”
Instead, you get that. Just one flat response without even looking away from the screen. Not even a glance toward you.
What the fuck.
You’re revoking your revoke.
The cave grows quieter after that. Honestly, the silence probably would’ve been comfortable if not for the fact that you could physically feel everyone staring at you right now. Damian. Stephanie. Alfred. And as much as you genuinely appreciated the concern, it was also making you feel a little trapped. A little too perceived.
“So then, Miss,” Alfred says carefully as he hands you the tea, “would you mind telling us what exactly caused your earlier… episode?”
Oh. Right.
Here comes the hard part.
Because what exactly were you supposed to say here? What explanation could possibly make them worry less? There really wasn’t an easy way to tell them:
Oh, sorry, I’m actually twenty years old but I died and somehow woke back up in my sixteen year old body. Then I saw someone I know from the future and tried forcing myself to remember the details of the traumatic event that ruins his life to try and prevent it from happening here, only to fail so badly my body short-circuited.
Yeah. No.
That would absolutely create an entirely new set of problems. At best, they’d think you were delirious from stress. At worst? They’d start treating you like you were genuinely unstable.
You let out a soft sigh instead, fingers curling around the warmth of the teacup Alfred handed you. The heat seeps slowly into your palms as you bring it toward your lips, buying yourself a few extra seconds to think. Just deflect. “I’m not sure.”
The second the words leave your mouth, Damian stares at you in disbelief. “Not sure?” he repeats immediately, incredulous. His brows pull together sharply as he steps closer to the bedside. “What kind of answer is that? Clearly something triggered that reaction.”
You avoid looking directly at him, taking a careful sip of tea instead. “I know that,” you mumble quietly against the rim of the cup.
“Then explain it properly.”
Your eye twitches slightly. “I can’t explain something I don’t fully understand myself.” Which was true in a sense. Because even now, you still don’t understand how you managed to wake up in the past after dying. You don’t understand why you were given another chance—or whether this even was one. And if you can’t explain it to yourself, then how are you supposed to explain it to anyone else?
“That,” Damian says flatly, “is an incredibly poor excuse.”
“Damian,” Stephanie cuts in quickly, shooting him a warning look from beside your bed.
“What?” Damian throws his hands up slightly, clearly unconvinced he’s done anything wrong. “She collapsed in the middle of the street.”
“Yes, and interrogating her five seconds after she regained consciousness probably isn’t helping.”
“I am not interrogating her.”
“You literally sound like Bruce right now.”
“Tt.” Damian crosses his arms immediately. “Father would have asked better questions.” Would he though?
Despite yourself, you snort softly into your tea. Damian’s head immediately snaps toward you, looking vaguely offended that you dared laugh at him while half-conscious. Stephanie exhales before looking back toward you again, concern softening her expression slightly. “Okay… then do you at least remember anything from when you passed out?”
Your brows raise faintly at that, and instinctively tried to think back. Your expression tightens slightly.
Huh.
You slowly lower the cup from your lips as your thoughts scrape blankly against the attempt to remember anything beyond that point. Nothing comes up. It’s just blank. Like someone cut the film reel cleanly in half.
“…No,” you answer honestly this time. The word feels strangely hollow leaving your mouth. You shift slightly afterward, pushing the blanket away from yourself as you move to sit up more properly on the edge of the makeshift bed instead of lying there like some invalid.
“Do not stand up too quickly,” Alfred warns smoothly.
You pause mid-movement before muttering under your breath, “I’m fine, Alfred.”
Stephanie stares at you like she can’t believe what she’s hearing. “…You literally collapsed and started bleeding,”
“And?” you deflect weakly. “It was just a nosebleed.”
“A nosebleed that came out of nowhere, (Name)!” Stephanie shoots back immediately, stepping slightly in front of you like physically blocking your path will somehow stop you from leaving. “You can’t seriously expect us to know what’s going on with you if you don’t tell us anything!”
Ouch. Well, she wasn’t wrong about that. Your gaze drops briefly toward the floor. But in a family full of detectives, you’re really only delaying the inevitable anyway. Eventually, someone’s going to notice something. Connect the dots and ask the right questions. That’s how it always is. That’s how it’ll always be.
You stand up fully despite the slight dizziness still lingering in your head and carefully step around Stephanie. “Well,” you say quietly, brushing nonexistent wrinkles from your sleeve, “I appreciate the concern, Stephanie. Really.” Then you force out the next part anyway.
“But I’m fine. More fine than I’ve ever been in a long time.” You immediately know how ridiculous that sounds considering you literally fainted less than an hour ago. Stephanie’s expression reflects exactly that disbelief.
But before she can argue further, you feel a tug on the edge of your sleeve. You blink and glance downward. Damian. Not grabbing your wrist like you half-expected him to. Just holding onto your sleeve instead.
…Huh.
Seems even Damian knows when to be considerate sometimes. His tone, however, remains significantly less considerate.
“Where are you going?” he demands sharply. “You are supposed to be resting.”
“I’d rather rest in my own room, alright?” you sigh, gently nudging his grip away. “I think I’ve had enough interactions for one day.”
That was probably the understatement of the century.
Before anyone else can continue prying—or worse, start asking the right questions—you immediately turn and head toward the cave exit. Only to abruptly stop.
A large shadow looms near the entrance.
You look up, only to come face to face with your father. Bruce—who was still in his Batman suit. His cape draped heavily around him.
When did he get back?
You thought he’d still be out patrolling Gotham or dealing with whatever crisis that usually demanded Batman’s attention at this hour.
Instead, he’s here. Looking directly at you. You immediately lower your gaze and move to walk past him without really acknowledging him.
“Are you alright?”
The question stops something inside you cold. More than that—it leaves behind this strange, uncomfortable feeling curling inside your chest.
Because why was he asking that?
Did Alfred really call him back just because you fainted? Was it seriously enough of an emergency for Batman to return immediately?
This feels wrong. Too wrong. Too different from what you’re used to. From him.
“…Yeah.”
That’s all you say. Just one word before continuing past him out of the cave. Never mind the faint sheen of sweat visible along the lower half of his face where the cowl doesn’t cover. Never mind the subtle clench of his fists at your answer. Never mind the way he looks like he still has a thousand things he wants to say—but doesn’t.
You find yourself passing one of the hallway mirrors and slow unconsciously. Your reflection stares back at you, and you frown.
Your reflection looked tired. Worse—your eyes looked red around the edges.
A FEW MOMENTS EARLIER
“Has the Court’s movement near Bristol narrowed yet?”
Bruce’s voice cuts through the cold night air as he stands near the edge of the rooftop, cape shifting restlessly behind him with every gust of wind. Beside him, Cassandra lowers herself from the ledge she’d been perched on, boots landing soundlessly against the concrete.
“Yes,” she answers after a moment. “But they’ve gotten quieter again.”
Bruce’s expression hardens faintly beneath the cowl. That alone bothered him. The Court of Owls did not retreat unless they were repositioning. His gaze drifts toward Bristol automatically, jaw tightening almost imperceptibly. The district had always been one of Gotham’s oldest pressure points—wealth layered over rot, history buried beneath architecture meant to intimidate more than inspire.
“The underground routes?” he asks.
“Still active.” Cassandra folds her arms loosely across her chest. “But abandoned on entry.”
Meaning decoys. Bruce exhales quietly through his nose. Of course they were.
For a few moments, silence settles between them again. Comfortable. Familiar. The kind that only exists between people who’ve spent years learning how the other moves without needing words for it.
“…Report to me on her movements.”
Cassandra doesn’t need clarification about who he was talking about. She nods once.
“Same as usual. She frequents the orphanage with her two friends. Damian has started accompanying her.”
Damian. Bruce’s expression tightens almost imperceptibly at the mention of his youngest son.
That alone said enough. Damian did not linger around people unless he genuinely wanted to. And more than that—Damian trusted his instincts almost obsessively. If he kept seeking you out lately, then it meant he’d noticed it too.
The shift.
Bruce’s gaze lowers briefly toward the streets below. He had intended to speak with you eventually. After your friend’s condition improved. After things had… settled down. A conversation. A proper one. But somehow, that conversation never came.
Instead, the distance between you both quietly widened without either of you acknowledging it aloud.
It was obvious in hindsight. The way you deliberately adjusted your schedule to avoid him—eating breakfast later than usual, or dinner much earlier before his usual nightly patrol. The way you, who used to appear at the cave almost instinctively—no matter the hour, had stopped coming entirely. Not once. Not since the day you stood in front of him and told him you were quitting as Batgirl.
Maybe, in your mind, there was no reason to go down there anymore. No suit to maintain or patrols to report on. No purpose left tying you to him in the way Batgirl once had. And Bruce…didn’t push. Maybe that was his mistake.
Maybe he should have stopped you that day instead of simply watching you walk away with that calm expression on your face—the one that unsettled him more the longer he thought about it. Because that wasn’t calmness, was it?
He remembered it now with uncomfortable clarity. The slight quiver in your lips when you told him you were quitting. The way your fingers kept curling against your palms like you were trying to physically hold yourself together. And your eyes had looked at him like you were waiting for something. Pleading for it, even if you never said it aloud. For him to stop you. To say something that would justify you staying.
Something that sounded less like Batman approving a tactical withdrawal and more like a father asking his daughter not to leave.
But Bruce had ignored it. No—he had seen it and convinced himself not to act on it because your explanation sounded logical enough to excuse his own silence.
You just needed time for yourself, that’s what he told himself. Time had always helped wounds settle eventually. But time also had a way of solidifying things when left untouched long enough. And now Bruce could feel the gap between you both every single time you walked past him without lingering. Every time he caught himself noticing your absence before your presence.
People were not cases. He knew that. God, he knew that.
And you—you were his daughter before you were ever Batgirl. Maybe that was the difference. You had always seen him as your father first before you ever saw him as Batman. You had trusted him simply because he was Bruce. Because he was Dad. You had faith in him as your father long before you ever understood what Batman truly was.
Wasn’t that why you had tried so hard to stay close to him after Dick first left? Even though you hadn’t understood the real reason for the fracture between them back then—all because Bruce had kept that part of his life—that part of himself hidden from you. All because you were the one normal thing in his life. The one thing untouched by Gotham.
Bruce had wanted to protect that. Protect you.
He wanted to shield you from the rot of the city. From the brutality. From becoming someone like him. Maybe, in his own way, he thought if he kept enough of himself hidden from you, then you could still have the childhood he never did.
Maybe he genuinely believed he could separate Bruce Wayne from Batman cleanly enough that you would never have to carry the weight of the latter.
And for a while, he almost succeeded. Even if he hadn’t been so present. Even if he had failed, in more ways than one, to be the father you truly needed. He had almost succeeded in shielding you from the violence Gotham carved into everyone who stayed long enough.
Until he didn’t.
Until the truth came out. About him. About Dick. About Jason. About his death that Bruce carried around like a second skeleton beneath his skin. And maybe that was when everything truly changed between you both.
Because once the illusion shattered, it shattered completely. You had looked at him differently afterward. Not with fear. Not even with anger, entirely. But with hurt. The kind born from realising the person you trusted most in life had hidden entire pieces of himself from you. And after that, you started inserting yourself into this side of his life too.
Not because Bruce wanted you to. God knew he hadn’t. But because somewhere along the line, you had convinced yourself that if you wanted to stay close to him, then you had to become part of that world too. That you had to earn your place beside him.
Wasn’t that why you refused to leave when things got dangerous? Back when Gotham was declared a No Man’s Land. When he was accused of murder and had started pushing everyone away before they could get too close to the fallout. When the Court of Owls started targeting him and everyone connected to him. Why did you keep inserting yourself into situations that terrified him? Why could you never stand the thought of him carrying everything alone? And maybe the worse question was—why did you still care so deeply for someone like him? Someone who, despite loving you, had never truly known how to be there for you in the way you deserved.
Even as a child, you had hated watching people suffer quietly. Especially him.
Alfred used to say you inherited Bruce’s worst traits. Your stubbornness most of all. And at times, Bruce truly couldn’t deny it.
Stubborn in the sense that you refused to let him isolate himself. Selfless in the sense that you would ignore your own wants if it meant easing someone else’s burden. Even as a child, you had always gravitated towards the people who hurt quietly. Towards lonely people. Towards him.
Bruce’s brows furrow faintly beneath the cowl.
When had the tides shifted?
When had it become you trying to fulfill what he needed, instead of the other way around? Because somewhere along the line, Bruce had started relying on your understanding far more than he should have.
Your patience. Your willingness to stay. Your ability to sit beside him in silence without really demanding anything from him except honesty—something he often struggled to give. And that was the problem, wasn’t it?
You did not want Batman. You wanted a father.
Not the resources Bruce Wayne could provide. Not the training. Not the protection. Not the contingency plans or the security or the endless attempts to prepare you for every possible danger Gotham could throw at you.
You wanted him. Something painfully simple.
But Bruce never truly knew how to give someone that properly. Not in the way you deserved. So he compensated in the only way he knew how.
He made sure you had everything you could possibly need. Education. Protection. Freedom. Training. He was able to give you everything except the one thing that he, for some reason—only realised now that had mattered most to you.
His presence. Outside of being Batman. As your father.
The simple ability to sit beside you—his daughter, and make you feel like you did not need to earn his attention through capability. To be loved without needing to prove your usefulness first.
Bruce’s jaw tightens slightly.
The truth is—he did love you. Fiercely. Terrifyingly. Enough that the thought of losing you sometimes felt like someone driving a blade straight through his ribs. But love had always been easiest for Bruce to express through protection. Protection through preparation. Through control. Through distance.
And somewhere along the way, those things had started becoming indistinguishable from each other.
Maybe that was why your eyes had looked so tired lately whenever you glanced at him. Like you had spent years reaching towards someone who only knew how to reach back by building walls around the people he cared about.
Bruce didn’t know when exactly you stopped trying. Maybe it happened slowly. Or maybe it happened the moment he let Batman answer you instead of your father. Because when you were still Batgirl and he was Batman, things had been simpler, hadn’t they?
Cleaner. More structured. Easier to navigate. Strangely more transparent too, despite the fact that the masks themselves were what stood between you and him. When the masks were involved, Bruce knew the rules. So did you. Batman gave orders. Batgirl followed them.
If you made mistakes in the field that could have gotten someone killed, could have gotten you killed—he corrected you immediately. Sternly. Efficiently. As Batman, because Batman could not afford hesitation where lives were concerned.
That was what he always told you, wasn’t it?
That on the field, he was Batman first. That emotions could not interfere with judgment. That was how he maintained control. How he kept everyone alive. Or at least, how he tried to.
And that was the problem, wasn’t it? Batman always knew what to do.
Your father didn’t.
“Do you need me to keep watching her?”
Cassandra’s voice cuts cleanly through Bruce’s thoughts, grounding him back onto the rooftop.
Bruce stays quiet for a moment.
“…No.” The word feels heavier than it should. Because you were not Batgirl anymore. And the realisation still sat strangely in his chest every time he thought about it.
You were his daughter. Not a criminal. He shouldn’t be monitoring you like a case file waiting to spiral out of control. Tracking your movements now—after you had already made your decision—would feel less like protection and more like punishment.
And that would not be fair to you.
You had chosen to quit as Batgirl. That was your decision. The one Bruce had always known would eventually come, even if some selfish part of him had quietly hoped it wouldn’t happen so soon.
So he had to deal with it. The aftermath too. As Batman. What he hadn’t expected, however, was how quickly the news spread. Apparently, word traveled fast amongst heroes. Fast enough that it had somehow reached Barry Allen’s ears all the way in Central City.
Barry Allen. His friend. The Flash.
Barry, who had arrived in Gotham the day before to discuss the situation involving the Trickster and Riddler, only to abruptly bring it up halfway through their conversation like it had been weighing on him the entire time.
Bruce could still remember the slight hesitation in Barry’s voice. The way he leaned back against the Batcomputer afterward, arms loosely crossed as he studied Bruce carefully.
“So… how’s (Name)?” Straightforward as always.
Bruce’s expression had barely shifted at the time. “What about her.”
Barry frowned faintly at that. Not judgmental. Just… concerned. Then, as though realising how direct the question sounded, Barry rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly and let out a small laugh.
“Okay, well—Joan decided to get everyone together for Jay’s birthday,” he explained. “And apparently, a certain grandson of mine mentioned how his friend Tim’s been moping around because his quote-unquote sister stopped talking to him.” Barry lifted his hands briefly in air quotes around “sister”, looking faintly sheepish afterward.
“Something along those lines… don’t take my word for it. Bart’s storytelling gets… dramatic.”
Bruce remembered the pause that followed. Because he hadn’t actually known how to answer that. Tim, moping? Because you weren’t… talking to him? The thought alone had almost earned a quiet huff from him at the time. Maybe even something dangerously close to amusement. It sounded absurd on paper.
But then Bruce thought about the tension between you both. The strange friction that had existed almost from the moment Tim entered your lives. The way conversations between the two of you always seemed to teeter between understanding and conflict without either of you knowing how to properly bridge the gap.
And suddenly, it didn’t sound absurd at all.
Because maybe Batgirl had been the last thing tethering you both together in a way that made sense. A role. A structure. Something familiar enough to navigate around. And now that you had quit… perhaps neither of you knew how to reach the other anymore without the masks in between.
Barry moved away from the Batcomputer then, wandering casually toward the evidence table like he always did whenever he was trying to make a conversation feel less serious than it actually was.
Which usually meant it was about to become more serious.
“You know,” Barry started lightly, picking up one of the loose batarangs sitting near the edge of the table before immediately putting it back down after Bruce sent him a look, “for someone who claims he’s fine all the time, Tim’s actually pretty terrible at hiding when something’s bothering him.”
Bruce folded his arms across his chest. “You got all that from Bart?”
Barry snorted softly. “Please. Bart inherited the Allen inability to mind his own business. Kid practically gave me a full emotional breakdown analysis over dinner.” A pause. “He sounded worried. Is it really that bad between those two?”
Bruce’s jaw tightened faintly. Because frankly, he couldn’t answer that. Instead, he simply turned back toward the Batcomputer, fingers resuming their steady movement across the keyboard as he said flatly, “Who knows.”
Barry leaned back against the console with a sigh, folding his arms loosely across his chest. “Shouldn’t you?”
Bruce’s gaze lowered slightly at that. Right. He should know. But he didn’t. Not when it came to this.
Barry studied him for another moment before rubbing the back of his neck again, expression softening slightly. “She quit being Batgirl, huh?”
Bruce nodded once, and Barry sighed quietly. “Well… that can’t have been easy for her.”
Bruce’s expression remained neutral. “It was her decision.”
“Sure,” Barry said easily. “Doesn’t mean it didn’t hurt for anyone, right?”
Bruce didn’t answer. Barry’s eyes flickered toward him knowingly. “You know,” he said after a beat, “sometimes kids stop asking for things when they think they already know the answer.”
Something uncomfortable settled in Bruce’s chest at that. Because suddenly he could picture every moment lately where you’d looked like you wanted to say something to him—and chose not to instead.
Barry rubbed the back of his neck again before offering a crooked smile, trying to lighten the atmosphere slightly. “Anyway, if it makes you feel better, Bart says Tim’s been miserable enough that it’s apparently affecting his ‘brooding efficiency.’”
Bruce raised an eyebrow slightly.
“…That’s not a real term.”
“It is now.”
A quieter silence settled afterward. Barry glances toward him again. “Sooo…” he dragged out carefully. “Are you going to actually talk to your daughter anytime soon?”
Bruce had looked away then.
Before he could answer, Barry suddenly brightened slightly, snapping his fingers.
“Or..! You could let her stay in Central City for a bit. Change of pace, change of scenery, y’know? Iris and I could show her around. Give her a break from Gotham before she starts picking up your emotionally constipated habits.”
”Absolutely not.” The response came so immediate that even Barry blinked in surprise.
“…Okay, wow. Mr. Protective much?” Barry huffed out a laugh, shaking his head slightly. “I know you care about your kids, Bruce, but how long are you going to keep hiding her away in Gotham like this?”
Bruce’s expression hardened faintly. “Hiding?”
Barry shrugged, leaning his hip lightly against the console. “I mean… it’s kind of obvious how tightly you keep her tied here.”
Bruce’s jaw tightened slightly beneath the cowl. “She’s perfectly fine staying in Gotham.”
“Oh really?” Barry straightens slightly now, sounding entirely unconvinced. “And have you actually asked her that yourself?”
Bruce said nothing. Barry let out a quiet sigh through his nose at the silence before nodding once. “Yeah,” he muttered lightly. “That’s what I thought.”
Bruce’s gaze sharpened slightly at that—not quite a glare, but enough to make Barry immediately lift both hands in surrender.
“Hey! I’m just saying,” Barry defended quickly, grin turning sheepish again. “It’s just a suggestion, that’s all!” Then, stepping backward slightly, he pointed toward Bruce once more.
“Anyway, if you get any more leads on Trickster’s location, ping me. I’ll be here in a flash.” Before Bruce could respond, Barry vanished in a streak of lightning and gold.
“…He’s been there for awhile,” Cassandra says simply, as Bruce catches the way her head tilts slightly toward the far edge of the rooftop.
A familiar voice answers from somewhere above them.
“And here I thought I was being quiet.”
Bruce’s gaze lifts. Clark descends from the night sky a second later, cape shifting softly behind him as his boots touch against the rooftop. The city lights paint faint gold across the blue of his suit.
Bruce gives Cassandra one brief glance. She nods once in understanding before stepping backward toward the ledge. Then, without another word, she drops cleanly off the building, disappearing into Gotham’s shadows to give them space.
Bruce turns back toward Clark slowly. “I don’t recall calling you over to Gotham,” he says flatly, crouching near the edge of the rooftop to retrieve one of the small tracking devices embedded along the gargoyle ledge, inspecting it briefly as though Clark’s sudden arrival barely warranted acknowledgement. Clark huffs out a laugh under his breath at the passive aggression woven into every syllable.
“Is that any way to talk to one of your oldest friends?”
Bruce slots the device back into place before straightening slightly. “That depends. Are you here as my friend or as Superman?”
Clark chuckles softly at that, folding his arms across his chest. “Still charming as ever.”
Bruce finally spares him a brief look. “You came here for something, Clark.”
The amusement lingering on Clark’s face shifts slightly then. Not gone entirely, but edged now with something more knowing. “Well,” he starts casually, “you didn’t tell me Conner and (Name) were friends.”
What?
Bruce stills. Only for half a second. But Clark notices. Of course he does.
Bruce’s cape shifts sharply behind him with the wind. “Explain.”
Clark exhales through his nose, faint amusement still lingering there. “Ma mentioned Conner’s been heading to Gotham a lot lately. More than usual.” He shrugs slightly. “At first I figured he was just going to see Tim again.”
Bruce says nothing. Which, for Clark, says enough.
“So I decided to check in on him before he accidentally landed himself on your radar again this month,” Clark continues. “But turns out he’s been spending time with your daughter.”
Bruce’s expression hardens almost imperceptibly beneath the cowl. Before he can respond, Clark points at him preemptively. “And before you tell me to reign Conner in again—”
“I don’t need one of your boys hovering around my children, Clark.”
Clark blinks once, before letting out a quiet breath through his nose. “You let Jon spend time with Damian.”
“That’s different.” Clark raises an eyebrow slowly at the immediate response. Bruce doesn’t elaborate right away. Instead, he adjusts the gauntlet around his wrist with practiced precision before finally saying, “Damian requires socialisation with people his age.”
Clark tilts his head slightly, studying him. “And you’re saying (Name) doesn’t?”
“She already has her own friends.”
Clark stares at him for a second before spreading both hands loosely in disbelief. “Well it doesn’t hurt to expand her social circle now, does it?”
Bruce finally looks at him properly then. The signature Batman stare. Sharp enough to make criminals fold almost immediately. Clark only takes it with a grain of salt, smiling back instead as he rocks lightly on his heels.
“What?” he says innocently, lifting a shoulder in a shrug. “I’m just advocating healthy teenage friendships here.” Bruce remains entirely unmoved. Which somehow only seems to amuse Clark more.
Clark chuckles softly under his breath before glancing back out toward Gotham’s skyline. “I think (Name)’s a good kid,” he says after a moment, tone lighter now. “And I think it’d do Conner some good too. Hanging around her.”
“I do not.”
Clark’s mouth twitches upward immediately at the blunt response. Of course that was Bruce’s answer. Deciding to push his luck further, Clark folds his arms behind his head casually and leans back slightly.
“Or,” he starts, far too casually for Bruce’s liking, “you could always let her come to Metropolis for awhile.” He grins. “That way I can personally make sure no funny business is going on.”
“No.”
The response comes so quickly Clark almost laughs. “No?” he repeats, eyebrows lifting.
Bruce deadpans beneath the cowl. “No.”
First Barry. Now Clark. Why were two of his closest friends suddenly offering to get you out of Gotham? At this rate, Oliver was probably going to show up next with some absurd invitation to Star City.
Absolutely not. Over Bruce’s dead body.
Clark looks seconds away from laughing again, but Bruce has already turned away from him, crouching briefly near the rooftop ledge to retrieve one of the trackers embedded beneath the stone gargoyle. His fingers move automatically across the device, checking readings out of habit more than focus.
A sharp ping cuts through his comm. Bruce answers immediately.
“Alfred.”
There’s a brief pause on the other end before Alfred’s calm voice filters through the static.
“Master Bruce, I apologise for interrupting patrol, but Miss (Name) collapsed earlier this evening.”
Bruce freezes. Completely. The tracker in his hand stills mid-adjustment.
“She experienced what appears to have been a severe episode of hyperventilation accompanied by a nosebleed,” Alfred continues carefully. “Master Tim managed to reach her before she lost consciousness. Her vitals are stable now, but she has yet to awaken.”
For one singular moment, Bruce genuinely blanks.
Your condition was stable. Alfred said your condition was stable. So why did his chest suddenly feel unbearably tight? Bruce straightens abruptly.
“What happened?” His voice comes out sharper than intended. Immediate. Controlled only by force.
“We are still uncertain, sir.”
Uncertain. Bruce hated uncertainty. Especially when it involved you.
Beside him, Clark’s brows furrow faintly. Of course he heard the entire conversation. Bruce barely even registers him stepping closer now.
“Bruce,” Clark says carefully, “I can get you back to the manor in seconds—”
But Bruce is already moving. The glider deploys sharply from behind his cape with a metallic snap as he steps toward the edge of the rooftop without hesitation.
“Master Bruce,” Alfred’s voice continues through the comm, calmer now, “Miss (Name)’s condition is no longer critical. There is no need for alarm.”
Under normal circumstances, Bruce would listen. Under normal circumstances, he would assess first. Think logically. Move methodically instead of emotionally. Instead, he launches himself cleanly off the rooftop. The wind tears violently against his cape as the glider catches. Something tight and restless coils beneath his ribs anyway.
Because what did Alfred mean you collapsed out of nowhere? You weren’t sick. At least—not physically. Were you?
Clark flies alongside him easily a second later, matching his speed with visible concern now replacing whatever amusement had lingered there earlier.
“Bruce,” he says again, quieter this time, “calm down. I’m sure she’s okay.”
Right. Alfred said you were stable. Consciousness lost, but stable.
Logically, Bruce understood that. But for some reason, none of those explanations loosened the pressure tightening around his ribs. Not when everything around him was reminding him of you. Bruce’s jaw tightens sharply beneath the cowl. He needed to see you himself. That was reasonable.
It had to be.
The manor comes into view only moments later.
Bruce lands hard against the second floor balcony just outside the east hallway, already moving before the glider fully retracts behind him. Clark touches down seconds afterward, cape fluttering lightly as he follows close behind. Bruce strides quickly through the corridor leading toward the Batcave. Then abruptly stops. Clark nearly walks into him.
“Stay here.”
“Bruce—”
“I mean it.”
The tone leaves little room for argument. Clark’s brows furrow slightly, clearly preparing to refute him anyway—only for your voice to suddenly echo faintly from deeper within the cave.
“But I’m fine. More fine than I’ve been in a long time.”
Bruce stills instantly. The words hit harder than they should.
More fine than you’ve been in a long time? Even after fainting? Even after collapsing badly enough that Alfred contacted him directly during patrol? How could this possibly be the best you’d felt in a long time? Unless—
Bruce’s expression darkens almost imperceptibly. Unless whatever you were feeling before had somehow been worse. His thoughts spiral unpleasantly from there.
Had he really pushed you that far? Had becoming Batgirl—working beside him, following him, trying endlessly to reach him—hurt you so much that quitting somehow felt relieving regardless of whatever replaced it? Was distancing yourself from him genuinely easier than staying?
Bruce clenches his fists tightly at his sides before he even realises he’s doing it. Beside him, Clark notices the shift immediately. And, for once, Clark says nothing. He simply steps aside silently, allowing Bruce to stand alone near the cave entrance just as footsteps begin approaching from inside.
Then you appear. Bruce sees you stop the moment you notice him standing there. And immediately—his eyes zero in on your face.
You look exhausted. Not physically exhausted alone. Something deeper. The kind of exhaustion Bruce had spent years learning how to recognise in mirrors.
And then he notices your eyes. Red around the edges. Teary. No—not actively crying anymore. Your tears had long since dried. But the evidence remained there anyway. Something twists sharply in Bruce’s chest.
Because when was the last time he’d seen you cry? You used to hide it too well for that. And instead of saying anything—you try to move past him quietly.
Like avoiding him had already become instinct. Like slipping around him without confrontation was easier now than speaking.
Bruce hates how wrong that feels. How unnatural.
Once upon a time, you would’ve stopped immediately. Talked over him. Argued with him. Demanded answers from him even while upset. Now, you barely even look at him.
“Are you alright?”
The question leaves Bruce before he fully thinks it through. And even as he asks it, he already knows the answer is no. Of course you weren’t alright.
People who were alright did not faint in the middle of Gotham streets without explanation. People who were alright did not look at him like this. You pause slightly beside him.
“…Yeah, peachy.”
Bruce feels his hands tighten into fists almost instantly. Because the sarcasm isn’t what unsettles him. It’s the disconnect. The distance in your voice. Like you’d already decided telling him the truth wasn’t worth the effort anymore.
Or worse, maybe that was the truth. Maybe you genuinely believed this counted as fine now. Maybe things had gotten bad enough that collapsing and emotionally shutting down still somehow felt preferable compared to whatever you felt while standing beside him as Batgirl.
The thought lands like a bruise against his ribs. Because that meant you were slowly becoming exactly like him. The very thing Bruce had spent years trying to prevent.
Learning how to bury pain beneath functionality. Convincing yourself that if you could still move, still speak, still operate—then you were fine. Teaching yourself to endure first and feel later. Or never.
Bruce’s jaw tightens sharply beneath the cowl. He had wanted to protect you from becoming someone shaped by Gotham the same way he was. Someone who mistook isolation for strength. Someone who thought suffering quietly was easier than burdening others with it.
And yet standing here now, watching you walk past him with red-rimmed eyes and a hollow sort of calmness—Bruce can’t help but wonder if, somewhere along the way, you learned it from him anyway. He opens his mouth again, something—anything—already forming at the edge of his throat.
But by then, you’ve already stepped past him completely. Walking out of the cave without another word. And Bruce just stands there watching you leave, the faint redness around your eyes burned permanently into his mind long after you disappear from sight.
“Hellooo? Earth to (Name)?”
The sound of fingers snapping twice in front of your face finally jolts you out of whatever spiral you’d sunk into.
“Cait, I think we lost her.” Adrien leans back slightly afterward, squinting at you with exaggerated suspicion.
“Oh—never mind,” Adrien says a second later as your eyes finally refocus on them properly. “We got her back.”
You blink once. Right. School.
The crowded hallway slowly settles back into focus around you—the noise of lockers slamming shut, students laughing too loudly somewhere nearby, footsteps echoing against tiled floors as everyone poured out for dismissal.
How long had you been letting your feet just drag you along the crowd whilst zoning out?
“…Sorry,” you mumble automatically, rubbing at your temple lightly.
“Girl, are you okay?” Caitlyn asks immediately, concern evident in her tone. “You’ve been spacing out practically the entire day.
Right. You had.
Honestly, you could barely remember half your lessons. Not when your brain kept replaying yesterday over and over again in humiliating detail. Passing out in public. Tim practically catching you before you hit the pavement. Waking up in the Batcave with everyone staring at you like you were one bad cough away from dying dramatically in front of them. And your father.
God.
You exhale the biggest sigh of your life without meaning to. Both Caitlyn and Adrien pause mid-step at that. The two exchange a quick look before slowly turning back toward you with matching concern.
“…That bad, huh?” Caitlyn says carefully.
You drag a hand down your face tiredly. Yesterday genuinely felt like it lasted an entire lifetime. Meanwhile today had passed unnaturally fast, every lesson blurring together into meaningless noise while your thoughts kept drifting elsewhere no matter how hard you tried to focus.
“Yeah, bro,” Adrien continues, sounding both impressed and offended on behalf of the education system. “Mr. Hargrove looked genuinely upset he didn’t get a reason to single you out.” He gestures dramatically. “How were you mentally absent but still knew the answer to that ridiculous question he asked?”
You only offer a weak, sheepish shrug in response. Honestly, you barely remembered the question itself.
Caitlyn narrows her eyes at you suspiciously before suddenly leaning closer. “Also,” she whispers loudly into your ear despite there being absolutely no reason to whisper, “what the heck happened between you and Chloe?”
You blink at her. “…What?”
“She’s been glaring at you literally all day.”
Your brows lift slightly. “She has?”
Caitlyn throws both hands into the air dramatically. “Uh, yeah?? Oh my gosh. Sweetheart, you really were gone mentally today.”
That…honestly tracked. You hadn’t noticed much of anything outside your own thoughts since this morning.
Adrien suddenly gasps beside the two of you like he’s just uncovered some horrifying conspiracy.
“Wait,” he says, narrowing his eyes suspiciously at you, “did you secretly insult her outfit or something and now she’s plotting revenge with that terrifying death stare?”
You stare at him flatly. “…Adrien.”
“What? It’s Chloe.”
“…No,” you sigh tiredly. “It’s a long story.” A very long story.
“Oh?” Caitlyn immediately perks up at that, curiosity overtaking concern in record time as she hooks her arm through yours. “Now I’m curious. You better spill later.”
The three of you make your way out of the school compound together, sunlight spilling across the pavement in warm streaks while students flooded past in noisy groups around you.
Caitlyn is still hooked onto your arm, Adrien walking backwards in front of the both of you as he continues some dramatic retelling of whatever happened during PE earlier. Your phone suddenly buzzes against your pocket. The vibration startles you out of your thoughts almost immediately.
You pull it out absentmindedly, only to frown slightly at the unknown number flashing across the screen.
Probably spam.
Without much thought, you let it ring out.
“Who was that?” Caitlyn asks curiously, and you shrug loosely. “Dunno. Probably spam.”
Except your phone buzzes again almost immediately. Same number. Your brows furrow this time. Seriously?
You decline the call preemptively, thumb already moving to shove your phone back into your pocket—only for a message notification to pop up across the screen.
xxxx-xxxx: declining my calls, (Name)?
A second message appears almost immediately after.
xxxx-xxxx: and here i thought you wouldn’t ignore your loyal partner
Ah. Conner. Your expression deadpans almost instantly. Of course it’s him. And somehow, right as you finish reading the messages, your phone screen shifts back into an incoming call again.
You stare at it for half a second longer before finally sighing and picking up.
“Thought you were ghosting me for a sec there, (Name).”
Static crackles faintly through the speaker alongside distant shouting and what sounds suspiciously like metal crashing through concrete. You blink slowly.
“…I don’t recall giving you my number.”
You hear Kon laugh under his breath. Then a loud bang echoes somewhere on his end, followed by what definitely sounds like someone getting punched through a wall.
“Well,” Kon says casually over the chaos, sounding entirely unbothered, “safe to say even I pick up some stalker-level skills hanging around Rob.”
You immediately unhook your arm gently from Caitlyn’s, shooting her an apologetic look that silently asks for a second as you slow your pace. Caitlyn narrows her eyes suspiciously but lets you drift away slightly. Once you’re far enough, you lower your voice.
“…Are you in the middle of a fight right now?”
Another crashing sound answers you before Kon even does. Somebody yells something incoherent in the background. You close your eyes briefly.
Right. There was your answer.
“Eh—Cassie’s handling most of it,” Kon says easily. “Trust her to hard-carry, y’know? Also, I can literally feel you rolling your eyes at me through the phone, by the way.”
Caught. You pinch the bridge of your nose tiredly. “So what was so important that you had to call me in the middle of your fight?”
“Well,” Kon starts casually, followed immediately by another loud impact noise, “just letting you know I probably can’t make it to Gotham today.” Your brows lift slightly.
“Cyborg wants the whole team doing some… tactical coordination thing,” he continues. “Or whatever you call it.”
“Training.”
“Yeah. That.”
More fighting noises. You swear you hear someone getting launched. “So that means,” Kon continues, completely unfazed, “I can’t go apologise to that employee like you wanted me to today.”
Oh. Your eyes narrow slightly. “…Is this you trying to delay the apology?”
“Oh, come on,” Conner groans dramatically. “What do you take me for?” A pause. “…Actually, don’t answer that.” Despite yourself, your mouth twitches faintly.
“I would’ve tried sneaking out,” he continues, “but this would be like—the third time this week.” Another crash. “Starfire’s probably gonna blast me into orbit if I skip this one too.”
“…Right.”
“You don’t sound convinced.”
“Well,” you mutter dryly, “maybe I’m not.”
Kon laughs again.
Then abruptly grunts like he just punched someone. More crashing follows immediately afterward. Honestly, at this point you’re mildly concerned he’s fighting while holding the phone between his shoulder and ear.
“Also,” he says suddenly, voice turning oddly casual again, “Superman kinda caught me last night.”
You blink. “…What?”
“And he might’ve seen the photos we took.”
Your entire body stills. What.
Kon continues before you can even process that properly. “So it’s probably only a matter of time before your broody batfather tells you to stay away from me or something.” Another pause. “I dunno—woah—!”
A loud crashing noise erupts through the speaker. Someone’s shouting. Something heavy gets thrown. Then Kon’s voice comes back slightly farther from the phone.
“Okay, yeah, I really gotta go now,” he says quickly. “But I’ll come see you tomorrow.”
“Wait, Kon—”
The line cuts abruptly. You stare at your phone screen in complete disbelief. Slowly lowering it away from your ear.
“…What,” you mutter weakly to yourself. Because what the hell was that conversation?? Kon casually calling you mid-superhero fight. Kon somehow getting your number. Kon telling you Superman saw your photos together. And now apparently there was a nonzero chance your father was going to corner you about this later.
Fantastic. Absolutely fantastic.
You let out a long sigh before quickly jogging to catch up with Caitlyn and Adrien, who had continued walking ahead without you. The moment you reach them, Adrien immediately gives you a look. Not suspicious exactly. More… smug.
“You’re not being slick, (Name),” he says teasingly.
Your brows raise instinctively. “Huh?”
Caitlyn is sharing the same look as him. “You were talking to that Conner guy, weren’t you??”
You freeze slightly mid-step. Oh god.
Your silence alone apparently tells them enough. Caitlyn immediately grabs onto your arm again, practically vibrating with excitement.
“Is this the brother’s best friend trope playing out in real life?” she squeals. “Oh my gosh, sign me up immediately.”
You nearly choke. “What—no—”
“This,” Adrien cuts in solemnly, crossing his arms like some ancient scholar delivering prophecy. “will surely be a romantic story like none that has come before.”
You stare at him flatly. “Don’t quote Cyrene at me now...”
Adrien immediately breaks into laughter while Caitlyn nudges your shoulder. “So when exactly are you going to spill the deets.”
You groan quietly, dragging a hand down your face.
“Later,” you say firmly. “When we get to the orphanage.” Delaying the inevitable was genuinely the only survival tactic you had left right now.
Adrien gasps dramatically beside you. “Keeping us in suspense?” he says, placing a hand over his chest in betrayal. “How could you, (Name)? I thought we were friends.” He even pretends to wipe away tears that very obviously do not exist.
Seriously. How the hell did you end up befriending such dramatic people?
“Also,” Caitlyn suddenly says, crossing her arms as she walks beside you, “which one of your family’s gonna show up this time?”
“…Huh? What are you talking about?” you ask slowly, adjusting your bag higher onto your shoulder.
Caitlyn starts counting on her fingers. “First it was your younger brother Damian, ” she says. “Then Tim showed up with his weirdly attractive friends.”
Adrien nods immediately. “Seriously, they looked suspiciously familiar.”
Your eye twitches slightly. Right. Note to self: Never let Adrien meet the them again or he was absolutely going to connect the dots eventually.
Caitlyn grins at you again afterward. “So who’s next?” she asks eagerly. “Please tell me it’s gonna be that ridiculously hot older brother of yours. Richard Grayson?”
Absolutely the fuck not.
“Nope,” you answer immediately. “And I pray he never decides to show up.”
Because the last thing you needed right now was Dick suddenly deciding he wanted to keep you close again. Not when you’d spent years carefully shoving all those complicated feelings somewhere deep enough that you didn’t have to think about them constantly. Not when one more conversation with him would probably crack open emotions you had spent an embarrassingly long time trying to bury.
Yeah. No thanks.
“Woah,” Adrien says slowly, raising both hands in surrender after seeing the look on your face. “That was… intense.”
You only sigh quietly in response. Then pause slightly. Your footsteps slow just a little. “…Wait,” you say carefully. “Can I ask you guys something?”
Caitlyn immediately narrows her eyes. “That sentence never leads anywhere good.”
You ignore her.
“Do I…” You hesitate briefly before awkwardly gesturing toward yourself. “…come off as intimidating or something?” For some reason, you were immediately reminded of Kon’s words from yesterday.
“Sharp, intimidating, rich, and slightly terrifying when you want to be.”
Surely that wasn’t true, right?
Both Caitlyn and Adrien suddenly slow down. And immediately exchange a look. A very suspicious look. Caitlyn squints accusingly at Adrien like he’d apparently revealed classified information somewhere behind your back. Adrien looks equally defensive.
You frown slightly. “Guys.”
Caitlyn sighs dramatically.
“Well,” she starts carefully, “no offense, (Name), but you do kinda give off those vibes.”
Your brows lift slightly. “…I do?”
“I mean,” Caitlyn gestures vaguely toward you, “especially to people who don’t really know you.”
Oh. What. You stare at her in mild disbelief while she rushes to continue.
“But obviously we know better,” she says quickly. “Because you’re actually just this sweet, nice girl who just sucks at expressing emotions properly because you’re emotionally constipated and chronically protective of your personal space.”
“…That sounded more insulting than complimentary.”
Adrien chuckles loudly beside her. “Okay but,” he says, trying and failing to suppress a grin, “your fan club definitely disagrees—”
“Adrien!” Caitlyn immediately yelps. Adrien slaps a hand over his own mouth too late. You stop walking entirely.
“…My what.”
Adrien is suddenly avoiding eye contact while Caitlyn looks very, very invested in the clouds overhead. Your eyes narrow slowly.
“What,” you repeat carefully, “do you mean by fan club?”
You watch Caitlyn visibly brace herself before sighing dramatically. Then she places both hands on your shoulders with far too much seriousness. “Promise me you won’t freak out.”
You immediately frown. “Now I’m even more scared.”
Adrien hides a laugh beneath a cough. Caitlyn shoots him a look before turning back toward you again.
“Okay,” she starts carefully, “so you remember that period a few years ago when your dad got accused of murder and Gotham’s media basically went insane?”
Your stomach twists slightly at the memory. Unfortunately, yes. You did remember.
The cameras shoved in your face every other morning. The articles. The way reporters acted like you were somehow acceptable collateral damage for headlines. You remembered learning how to lower your head while walking through crowds because eye contact only encouraged more questions. How every action suddenly became something people online dissected.
And it didn’t help that during that period of time—Alfred had been staying with Tim at his boarding school. Because him and your father had some sort of fight that you don’t really remember the details of now.
“…Yeah,” you answer slowly.
Caitlyn winces slightly. “Well… yeah, so basically while people online were slandering you too, a bunch of people you’d helped before started defending you.”
“What?”
Adrien perks up immediately beside you again. “Yeah, it was honestly kinda revolutionary,” he says. “Like—you had random Gotham citizens beefing with tabloids online on your behalf.”
You stare at him. “I’m sorry, what?”
Caitlyn laughs nervously. “Okay, see, this is exactly why we never told you.”
Your brows furrow. “And why exactly not?”
“Because back then you were already like—super uncomfortable with all the attention,” Caitlyn says more gently this time. “Like… really uncomfortable.”
Your expression stills slightly. Right. You had been. You hated that period of time. You hated people looking at you like they already knew things about you. Hated hearing strangers discuss your family like entertainment. Hated the way sympathy and judgment always seemed tangled together whenever people spoke to you afterward.
Most of all, you hated how that period of time reminded of you what happened after Jason’s death as well.
Adrien rubs the back of his neck awkwardly. “You kinda started avoiding social media entirely after that too,” he points out carefully. “And every time someone brought up articles or online discourse around you, you looked like you wanted the floor to swallow you whole.”
…Okay. That was unfortunately true.
Caitlyn nods quickly. “So we figured telling you ‘hey by the way there’s an entire group of Gotham citizens aggressively defending your honor online’ probably wouldn’t help your anxiety.”
“Oh my god,” you mutter, dragging both hands down your face now. Your soul was actively trying to leave your body. Caitlyn, meanwhile, looks way too entertained now that the truth was out.
“To be fair,” she says, trying and failing to suppress a grin, “it was actually kinda wholesome.”
“Wholesome?” you repeat weakly.
“Yeah!” Adrien says. “Most of them are people you helped personally. Kids from school. Parents from charity events. People from community centers. There was this one old lady who went viral online because she threatened to sue an entire gossip forum after they called you spoiled and ignorant.”
You stop walking entirely.
“…Who did what now?”
“She was iconic,” Caitlyn says solemnly, with Adrien nodding in agreement.
You genuinely don’t know how to process any of this. Because while you remembered the ugliness from that period vividly—you never really considered there might’ve been people defending you in the background too. People who remembered your kindness more than the headlines. People who cared enough to speak up for you even when you never asked them to.
And somehow…that realisation settles strangely in your chest. Warm. A little painful. Because how you genuinely not know about all this? Even if you had practically avoided social media at the time—even if Adrien and Caitlyn intentionally hid it from you because they knew how badly that whole situation affected you—it was really.. strange.
Too strange. Surely you should’ve come across it at least once afterward. A post. A mention. Something. Your brows furrow faintly at the thought.
But before you can sink any deeper into it, the three of you finally arrive outside the orphanage. The moment the gates come into view, a few of the younger kids immediately spot you guys and come barreling forward excitedly.
“Big sis Caitlyn!”
“Adrien!!”
Chaos instantly erupts.
Adrien dramatically stumbles backward after one of the kids launched directly into him while Caitlyn immediately crouches down to scoop another into her arms with a laugh. You can’t help the small smile that pulls at your face at the sight. Warmth spreads quietly through your chest as you greet the children properly, offering soft greetings and ruffling hair affectionately as they crowd around you. You wave toward some of the caretakers nearby too, including Miss Jenkins, who smiles warmly the moment she sees you.
“That’s weird.”
Adrien’s voice suddenly cuts through the moment.
You glance toward him. “What’s weird?”
Adrien frowns slightly as he looks around the yard. “I thought Elliot would’ve already crashed into you by now.”
Your expression stills faintly. Oh. Wait. He’s right.
Ever since you started coming regularly to the orphanage, Elliot had always been one of the first kids to run toward you. Usually the first. Half the time the kid practically launched himself at you before you even fully stepped through the gates.
That was just… Elliot.
So the fact that he wasn’t here…
Your chest tightens slightly. No. Surely not. Surely—
“Eli says he doesn’t wanna see you anymore.”
You blink. A little girl—Emma, you recall—points directly at you while saying it with complete sincerity. “He says he’s mad at big sister (Name) because you didn’t come see him yesterday.”
Oh. Oh. You glance toward Miss Jenkins almost helplessly, only for her to offer you an apologetic smile.
“Ah, it’s really nothing serious,” she assures gently. “I’m sure he’ll calm down the moment he sees you.”
Somehow, that doesn’t make you feel less guilty. You sigh softly under your breath before nodding. Miss Jenkins gestures for you to follow her. The further you walk toward the back of the orphanage yard, the quieter things become.
Eventually, Miss Jenkins stops near one of the large trees near the fence. You blink once. Then immediately spot a small figure very obviously hiding behind it.
Well. Attempting to hide behind it. You can literally see part of Elliot’s shoe sticking out from behind the trunk. Miss Jenkins coughs lightly into her hand, very clearly trying not to laugh.
“…I’ll leave you two be,” she whispers sympathetically.
And with that, she quietly walks back toward the rest of the children gathered near the yard. You let out a small sigh before slowly making your way toward the tree instead.
“Elliot, hey—”
The moment your voice reaches him, the boy jolts. Then immediately bolts. “Wait—”
Before you can even properly process what’s happening, Elliot dashes past you entirely—straight through the orphanage gates and out onto the sidewalk.
Your eyes widen. “Elliot!” You immediately sprint after him.
Damnit.
You rush past Adrien and Caitlyn so quickly you barely catch their startled expressions before they’re calling after you worriedly.
For a kid, Elliot ran ridiculously fast. Especially for someone with such tiny legs.
You weave through pedestrians quickly, your gaze darting frantically through the crowd as panic slowly starts tightening in your chest.
Brown curls. You just needed to spot his brown curls. Your eyes flick rapidly across the busy street, scanning every small figure you pass.
Your pulse starts climbing higher.
“Elliot!” you call again breathlessly, turning another corner. You catch sight of him briefly slipping between people farther ahead. Relief hits you so fast it almost hurts.
“Elliot!”
The boy glances back at the sound of your voice. And immediately runs faster. You almost groan out loud.
Seriously? Of course he runs faster. You watch as he veers sharply into a narrow alleyway, small feet disappearing between the buildings. You follow without hesitation, turning into the alley right after him.
You immediately skid to a stop. Because he’s no longer running. Elliot is on the ground, sitting back on his hands with a small, startled “oof,” eyes wide as he looks up.
And standing in front of him is a group of men. Three of them.
The smell hits you first. Cigarette smoke. Alcohol. Something chemical underneath it—sharp and sour enough to make your stomach twist unpleasantly. Your body moves before your thoughts fully catch up.
“Elliot.” Your voice comes out sharper than intended as you hurry forward, shoes scraping harshly against the pavement. You crouch beside him at once, hands instinctively checking him over first before gently helping him back onto his feet.
“You okay?” you ask quickly, brushing dirt from the sleeves of his hoodie without even thinking about it. Elliot nods automatically, but his eyes are wide. Too wide.
And when you straighten slightly, pulling him behind you on instinct, you feel it. The faint trembling in his hand. Something ugly twists low in your chest immediately.
One of the men scoffs loudly. “The hell, kid?” he mutters irritably, smoke curling from the cigarette hanging loosely between his fingers. “You knocked our stuff over.”
Another snorts. “Brat came sprinting in like someone was chasing him.”
Your jaw tightens, as you glance briefly toward the scattered contents near their feet. Small packets. Burn marks. A pipe and a baseball bat. Right. Great.
“Sorry,” you say quickly, already trying to guide Elliot away. “He didn’t mean to interrupt you. We’ll leave.”
Your voice stays calm. You just need to get Elliot out of here. That’s it.
You can feel the boy pressing slightly closer behind you now, almost trying to hide himself against your back. The realisation makes your chest ache unexpectedly. “It’s okay,” you murmur quietly to him, softening your tone immediately.
You start moving again. But before you can get more than a few steps away, the three men shift. Blocking your path.
“Listen here, missy,” one of them drawls, scratching at his jaw. “That little guy ruined our smoke. You think you can just walk away like that?”
“He’s just a kid,” you reply tightly. Your fingers curl slightly around Elliot’s sleeve. “And besides,” your eyes flick briefly over them before you can stop yourself, “you guys look like you could do without those anyway.”
Oh, great job provoking them. Stupid.
One of the men lets out a laugh completely devoid of humor.
“You trynna mouth off, missy?”
They’re crowding closer now. Too close. Your instincts kick in automatically as you pull Elliot fully behind you, backing up until your shoulders nearly brush against the alley wall. Elliot’s grip on your sleeve tightens harder.
One of the men whistles lowly.
“Damn, Rick,” he snickers toward the others, “looks like this princess doesn’t know when to shut up.”
Your pulse spikes immediately when movement catches from deeper inside the alley. Two more figures emerge from the shadows.
Shit. You hadn’t even noticed them before. “What the hell do you want?” you ask sharply, trying to keep your voice steady.
“Oh, nothing much,” one of them grins, yellowed teeth flashing under the flickering alley light. “Little compensation’ll do.”
His eyes drift downward toward Elliot. The boy instinctively presses closer into your side, hiding his face against your hip.
“And this little guy—”
The man reaches out toward him. Your body moves before your thoughts do. You slap his hand away hard.
“Don’t touch him.”
The air changes instantly. The friendliness—if it could even be called that—evaporates immediately. The man’s expression darkens.
“The hell’s your problem?” He grabs for you instead. “You trynna start somethin’?”
“…Wait.” Another voice cuts through the alley.
One of the men further back lowers the crowbar resting against his shoulder slightly as he squints harder at your face. Recognition flashes across his expression. Then he barks out a harsh laugh.
“No shit,” he says. “Ain’t that Bruce Wayne’s kid?”
Your stomach drops. Immediately, you tighten your grip around Elliot’s hand and instinctively shield him further behind you. Wrong. This is going wrong. You need to leave. Now.
A rough hand suddenly clamps around your wrist. Hard. You hiss softly at the pressure, immediately trying to wrench yourself free. “Lemme go,” you snap voice finally cracking with genuine anger.
The man’s grip only tightens.
“What’s the rush, princess?” he sneers, leaning closer. You can smell alcohol on his breath now. “Maybe your daddy can pay us a little for wasting our time, huh?”
“I said let go.” You twist your wrist sharply, but the movement only seems to irritate him further. His expression hardens instantly before he suddenly shoves you backward.
Your shoulders slam painfully against the brick wall behind you. “(Name)!” Elliot’s yelp cuts through the alley the moment he hears your sharp wince.
“Damn,” one of them whistles, looking you up and down openly now. “Wayne’s kid’s prettier up close.”
“You know how much cash we could get outta this?”
“Shit, enough to never work again,” one of them says crudely. “Rich people’ll pay anything to keep their image clean.”
“Nah,” another cuts in with a grin that makes your stomach twist. “Forget the money for a second. You think little miss princess here’s ever even been touched before?”
More laughter. Elliot presses tighter against you immediately. Your stomach churns violently. One of them leans closer, eyes dragging over you in a way that makes your skin feel dirty.
“Bet daddy Wayne’d lose his damn mind if he saw his precious daughter right now.”
“Could probably get millions outta him easy.”
“Maybe we should keep her around awhile first,” another says with a disgusting smirk. “Teach her some manners.”
Your jaw tightens so hard it almost hurts. Beside you, Elliot’s breathing starts turning shaky. That does it more than the hands on you ever could.
“If you don’t let me go right now,” you warn, voice low and shaking with restrained anger, “I will scream.”
The man holding you against the wall scoffs directly in your face. “Go ahead.”
You inhale sharply, and screamed as loud as you could—only for the man to retaliate instantly. The slap cracks through the alley loud enough to echo off the walls. Your head jerks violently to the side. Your cheek is burning now, stinging. You taste iron almost immediately. Probably a small split somewhere near your lip.
Silence settles over the alley for exactly half a second. Then you slowly look back at the man. And scoff. The sound comes out almost disbelieving.
“…Right,” you mutter quietly, wiping the blood from the corner of your mouth with the back of your hand before glancing briefly at the smear of red left there. “I was trying to do this the easy way, but okay.”
The man barely gets a chance to react before you move. You seize his wrist suddenly, twisting it sharply enough for a sickening yelp to rip from his throat as his entire body folds awkwardly with the motion.
Then you drive your foot straight into his face. The crack of impact rings through the alley. He stumbles backward with a choked noise, blood immediately pouring from his nose as he crashes onto the pavement a few feet away from you guys.
The other men instantly freeze. Like none of them had actually expected you to fight back. You step in front of Elliot fully now, shoulders squaring slightly as years of instinct settle seamlessly into place beneath your skin.
“You hit me first,” you say evenly, despite the blood still lingering against your lip. “This is just self-defense.”
And before any of the guys could do anything, you lunge at the second guy nearest to you. Fast enough that he barely has time to widen his eyes.
”You—you bi—“ Before the third guy can finish his sentence—or swing the crowbar he’s raising toward you—you move. You sidestep easily, the metal barely missing your shoulder before your hand snaps out to grab his arm. Then your elbow slams directly into his ribs hard enough to force the breath from his lungs.
Once. Twice. And before he can recover, you sweep your leg cleanly beneath him. He crashes onto the pavement with a wheeze.
The fourth guy immediately tries taking advantage of your “distraction,” swinging his baseball bat toward you with a curse. But you duck beneath it automatically.
God, this almost feels insulting. Years of fighting assassins, gang members, trained killers—and these idiots thought they could overpower you because they were bigger.
Your fist connects sharply against his jaw. Then again. And again. Each hit lands cleaner than the last until the man stumbles backward directly into the alley wall with a groan, clutching his face as the bat slips uselessly from his hands. By the time the first man struggles back onto his feet nearby, clutching his twisted wrist, all of them look significantly less confident now.
“You crazy bitch—” one of them spits weakly, saliva mixed with blood hitting the pavement beside him. “You—you won’t get away with this. I’ll—”
You immediately grab a fistful of his hair and yank his head backward hard enough for a cry of pain to rip from his throat.
“You’ll what? Sue me? Get your revenge?” you ask mockingly.
You lean down slightly toward him, your grip tightening just enough to make him wince harder.
“Go ahead and try.”
Your voice comes out almost frighteningly calm now. “Let’s just hope you can actually afford a lawyer against Wayne Enterprises.”
You hated pulling out that card. But it always worked. And if it got these creeps away from Elliot faster—fine.
The man visibly pales.
Good choice.
You release him abruptly.
He nearly stumbles over himself trying to get away from you, clutching at his scalp with shaking hands. The others don’t hesitate either. All that bravado from earlier evaporates almost instantly as they scramble after him, muttering curses and threats under their breath while retreating out of the alley as fast as their bruised bodies allow.
Cowards.
The second they disappear from view, the adrenaline still coursing through your veins suddenly crashes hard against your ribs. You immediately grab Elliot’s hand again.
“C’mon,” you murmur quickly, your voice softer now. “Let’s get out of here.” Your pulse still hasn’t fully settled. Adrenaline continues buzzing unpleasantly beneath your skin as you guide him out of the alleyway as fast as possible, eyes instinctively scanning every corner around you even after the danger’s already gone.
Old habits.
The second you both step back onto the main street, the world feels almost painfully normal again. You guide Elliot toward the quieter side of the sidewalk before finally crouching down in front of him.
“Elliot,” you say immediately, hands gently checking over his arms and shoulders in a near panic now. “Are you alright?”
The boy doesn’t answer. His head stays lowered.
“Elliot?” your voice softens further.
Then suddenly.. he bursts into tears. Not the quiet sniffles. Not the watery eyes. Actual sobs. Small, broken cries that seem ripped straight out of his chest as his tiny hands suddenly clutch tightly at the front of your shirt. And your heart drops so fast it physically hurts.
Oh god. Did he get hurt? Did they hurt him while you were distracted?
Your breathing catches sharply. Because you were supposed to protect him. You were supposed to keep him safe. And instead he ended up terrified. You’re the reason he’s crying. You let this happen. You made him run off. You let those men corner him. You let them scare him.
The guilt crashes into you so violently it almost feels suffocating. Your throat tightens painfully.
“Hey—hey, it’s okay,” you say quickly, except your own voice sounds shaky now too. Without even thinking about it, you immediately pull him into your arms. One hand cradles the back of his head automatically while the other wraps tightly around his small frame, holding him close against your chest.
“I’m sorry,” you hear yourself whisper immediately.
Then again. “I’m sorry.”
Again.
“I’m sorry.”
The words just keep leaving you before you can stop them. Over and over. Like apologising enough might somehow undo what just happened. Elliot cries harder into your chest, fingers clutching desperately at the back of your jacket as he hugs you back with surprising strength for someone so small.
“I thought—” he hiccups through tears, voice breaking badly, “I thought they were gonna… hurt you—”
Your chest aches so sharply it almost feels unbearable.
“No,” you say immediately, tightening your arms around him instinctively. “No, no, it’s okay. I’m okay.”
But your cheek still stings. Your lip still tastes like blood. And somehow, what hurts most isn’t even that. It’s the realisation that Elliot saw it happen. Saw you get shoved around. Saw someone hit you. Saw you bleed. And he was crying—because he saw you get hurt. Not because he got hurt.
You close your eyes briefly.
God.
You hated this. You hated how quickly violence could become normal. How easily your body slipped back into fighting without hesitation. How part of you barely even reacted to being hit anymore because worse had happened before.
But Elliot reacted. Because to him, you weren’t someone trained for this.
You were just… you.
And somehow, despite everything, despite the tears still shaking his small body—he was more upset about you getting hurt than what almost happened to him.
That realisation alone nearly breaks something inside your chest. So you just hold him tighter. One hand gently smoothing through his curls while you keep whispering quiet apologies into his hair like a prayer.
“I’m sorry,” you whisper again, softer this time. “I’m so sorry.”
The two of you sitting on the very same bench where you had first treated the scrape on Elliot’s shin weeks ago. The memory hits you almost immediately the moment you sit down. Now, a crumpled convenience store bag rested beside you, filled with hastily bought popsicles, ice packs, and a small towel the cashier had looked mildly concerned handing over.
Elliot sat beside you quietly, still sniffling every now and then as he sulkily nibbled at the popsicle you bought him. His eyes were puffy from crying so hard earlier, the skin beneath them swollen and pink. The silence between you wasn’t uncomfortable exactly. Just… heavy.
You carefully unwrap one of the ice packs before wrapping the towel around it so it wouldn’t be too cold against his skin. “Here,” you murmur gently, holding it out toward him. “Use this for your eyes. Unless you plan on going back to the orphanage looking like… this.”
Elliot huffs quietly through his nose, clearly still upset, but he takes the ice pack from you anyway. He presses it against his eyes with a dramatic little pout that almost makes you smile.
You glance at him for a moment before asking softly, “Better?”
After a second, he gives a small nod. Silence settles again. Cars pass by in the distance. Somewhere nearby, people laugh faintly as they walk down the street, entirely unaware of how emotionally exhausting the last thirty minutes had been. You exhale quietly before speaking first.
“So…” you start carefully, resting your elbows against your knees slightly, “do you mind telling me why you didn’t want to see me earlier?”
Elliot’s pout deepens instantly. You wait anyway. Patiently. Eventually, he finally mutters, barely above a grumble, “Because… because you broke your promise.”
“Huh?” You point lightly at yourself, genuinely confused, and Elliot immediately nods vigorously.
“You said you’d come by every day…!” he blurts out accusingly. “But you didn’t yesterday and—and—” His voice trails off frustratedly. Your expression softens almost immediately as realisation settles over you.
“Elliot…” you say gently, “I said I would always come back for you.”
“Yeah..!” he shoots back immediately, looking at you like that somehow proved his point entirely. “Isn’t that the same thing?”
Honestly… you couldn’t even blame him for thinking that. You sigh quietly through your nose before reaching over to ruffle his curls softly. “Okay,” you concede weakly. “Fine. I’m sorry for breaking my promise.”
Elliot immediately huffs and turns his head away from you. “You don’t sound sorry.” That actually earns a small laugh out of you despite everything.
“Well… maybe because I didn’t really break my promise.”
The boy immediately looks back at you, visibly offended and confused at the same time. “What???”
You can practically see him trying to piece together a rebuttal in real time, brows furrowing so hard it almost makes you laugh again. “Okay, okay,” you say quickly before he can start protesting again. “How about this instead? I might not be able to come by every single day.” You pause briefly before adding more softly, “But I’ll try to, okay?”
The moment the words leave your mouth, Elliot’s expression crumples slightly again. “That’s what everyone says,” he mutters quietly.
Your smile falters slightly. Elliot stares down at the melting popsicle in his hands now, voice growing smaller with every word. “They always say they’ll try… and then eventually they stop coming at all.” Your chest tightens painfully.
“I thought…” His lip wobbles slightly as he curls inward a little. “I thought you were gonna be the same.”
Oh.
For a moment, you genuinely don’t know what to say. Because suddenly, so many things about Elliot begin clicking painfully into place all at once. Why he always waited for you near the entrance whenever you visited. Why he got attached so quickly. Why he looked genuinely relieved every single time you showed up again.
It wasn’t clinginess. It was fear. Fear that one day you would stop coming back too. Just like everyone else probably had.
“Who’s… everyone?” you ask gently, your voice softer this time. Careful. Like you were afraid pressing too hard might make him retreat back into himself again.
Elliot sniffles loudly, still clutching the half-melted popsicle in one hand. For a few seconds, he doesn’t answer. He just stares down at his shoes dangling above the pavement, kicking them weakly against the bench leg.
“The kids that used to live here before,” he mumbles. “Before they got adopted. They always said they’d come back and visit,” Elliot continues, voice wobbling slightly. “They promised. But then…” He swallows hard. “They never do.”
Oh. Of course.
Elliot had spent almost his entire life in that orphanage. Long enough to watch people come and go over and over again. Long enough to learn what it felt like to get attached to someone, only for them to disappear afterward. Long enough that every goodbye probably started sounding permanent no matter what words came after it.
You glance down at him quietly. “And I don’t want that to happen to me,” he blurts out suddenly, the words rushing out of him now like he’d been holding them in for a long time. “Because I like Emma. And Jackson. And Ethan.” His small hands tighten around the popsicle stick. “I like everyone there. I don’t wanna leave the orphanage.”
Your expression softens almost painfully at that. Because you understood. God, you understood far more than he probably realised.
Elliot wasn’t scared of being unloved. He was scared of losing the only thing that had ever stayed consistent in his life.
The orphanage was not just a building to him. It was familiarity. A home, even if many people wouldn’t consider it as such. The people there were proof that even if others left, there would still be someone remaining afterward. And maybe, to Elliot, adoption didn’t look like being chosen.
Maybe it looked like abandonment in reverse. Like being taken away from everyone else instead.
Your throat tightens faintly.
How many times had he watched kids leave while promising they’d come back for him too? How many birthdays had passed afterward without seeing them again? How many times had he convinced himself not to care too much about the next person, only to end up attached anyway? You stare quietly at the little boy beside you, and for a moment, he suddenly feels far older than he should.
Children were never supposed to understand loss this intimately.
“…Elliot,” you say carefully. He refuses to look at you.
“I think…” You pause briefly, trying to find the right words. “I think people probably meant it when they made those promises.”
His brows furrow immediately, like he doesn’t understand why you’d defend them.
“But they still left,” he says stubbornly.
“Yes,” you admit softly. “They did.”
The honesty of the answer makes him finally glance at you. You look down at your hands resting in your lap for a moment before continuing.
“But sometimes…” Your voice quiets slightly. “Sometimes people leave because life keeps moving even when they don’t want it to. School. Families. Work. New places. New responsibilities.” You exhale slowly through your nose. “And sometimes people think too much time has passed to come back after they’ve already stayed away for so long.”
You knew that feeling too well. The longer distance existed, the harder it became to cross it again. Because eventually guilt settled in. And guilt had a way of making people hesitate until hesitation turned into silence. The kind that stretched for so long it started feeling impossible to break. And unless both people were brave enough to finally confront that silence—to reach across it despite everything—that distance remained exactly where it was. Uncrossed.
Elliot stares at you quietly now, listening carefully. “But that doesn’t always mean they forgot you,” you say. He looks unconvinced.
“…Then why didn’t they come back?”
And that question hurts far more than it should.
Because for a brief moment, your mind flashes elsewhere entirely. To Bruce. To Dick. To Jason.
To yourself.
To all the spaces between people that slowly widened until nobody knew how to close them anymore. You force yourself back into the moment before Elliot notices your expression shifting.
“I don’t know,” you answer honestly. Elliot lowers his gaze again.
“But I do know,” you continue gently, “that being scared someone will leave doesn’t mean you should stop caring about people while they’re still here. About the people that choose to still be here.”
The boy goes very still beside you. You smile faintly, nudging his shoulder lightly with your own. “And for the record,” you add, “you’re kind of impossible to forget.”
That finally earns the tiniest reaction out of him. A weak sniffly laugh.
There he is. You feel something in your chest loosen slightly at the sound.
“…Even when I ran away just now?” he asks quietly.
You deadpan immediately. “Especially then. Do you know how fast you are? I almost lost a lung chasing you.”
Elliot giggles properly this time despite himself, quickly trying to hide it behind the popsicle. And somehow, hearing that small laugh after everything that happened in the alley makes your chest ache in a completely different way now.
Relief. Pure relief. Because he was okay. He was still here.
You push yourself up from the bench slowly before holding a hand out toward him. “So,” you say lightly, “should we head back now?” Elliot nods immediately. He hops down from the bench with a small plop before grabbing your hand with his non-sticky one.
“…Sorry for running away from you earlier, (Name),” he mumbles quietly.
Your expression softens almost instantly. “It’s okay,” you tell him as you start walking back toward the orphanage together. “Just don’t do it again, alright?”
He nods vigorously. Then, barely two seconds later, his entire mood brightens again. “But (Name)—you were so cool back there!” he blurts out excitedly. “Like, really cool! You beat those bad guys up like it was nothing! Like this, see!”
He lets go of your hand just to start dramatically reenacting the fight beside you, throwing tiny punches and exaggerated kicks into the air with special sound effects included. You can’t help the laugh that slips out. “Oh really?” you tease. “Who exactly are you planning to use those moves on?”
“Uhh…” Elliot pauses mid-punch, seriously considering it before shrugging. “Bad guys! Like the ones from earlier!”
You laugh softly before ruffling his curls. “You’re literally, like, two apples tall. Maybe wait until you’re at least Damian’s height first.”
“That’ll be easy! I’m still growing!” He puffs his chest out proudly. “I can totally catch up to him.”
“Sure you can,” you say dryly, though your smile lingers anyway. The boy grins before grabbing your hand again, happily swinging it between you both as you continue walking toward the orphanage together.
By the time you return, the atmosphere outside has settled back into its usual warmth and chaos. You immediately spot Adrien in the middle of a group of boys, fully letting himself become their personal jungle gym while they climbed all over him as though he were playground equipment. Nearby, Caitlyn sat cross-legged on the steps with three little girls gathered around her while she carefully braided their hair, looking absurdly focused on making each braid symmetrical or something.
The sight alone makes something warm settle quietly in your chest.
“Oh thank goodness..!” You see Miss Jenkins hurrying over, before stopping short once her eyes land on your split lip.
“(Name)!” Concern flashes across her face instantly. “Are you alright? What happened?”
“(Name) fought off like…five bad guys who tried to hurt me!” Elliot beams proudly, practically vibrating beside you. “She was super cool!”
Miss Jenkins’ eyes widen in horror. “…What??!”
You immediately shake your head. “I’m fine,” you assure quickly. “Really. It looks worse than it is.”
Miss Jenkins gives you a very unconvinced look, gaze lingering on the faint bruising beginning to form near your cheek before she finally sighs.
“Well… if you’re certain.” Then she turns toward Elliot. “Now, Elliot,” she says gently, “Mrs. Cole wants to see you in her office.”
Elliot blinks. “Huh?” He glances between you and Miss Jenkins in confusion. “Why?”
Miss Jenkins smiles softly.
“It looks like someone’s here to adopt you.”
i be plotting guys… fucking 20k word chapter omfg. don’t be mad at me for the cliffhanger… 😅😵💫 (i genuinely kept rewriting so many parts bc i wasn’t satisfied with it someone save me pls)
baratheonpilled
jacobvanloon
gummygunk
kianamaiart
