Do you think there were moments, early on, when Robin would do something so childlike on patrol (nothing wrong, just small things) that it would suddenly hit Bruce ? The way he’d rub his eyes when he was tired, or how his lip would tremble for just a second after scraping his knee before quickly powering through it. How he’d hum to himself while waiting on a rooftop, swing his legs when he thought Bruce wasn’t looking, or get excited pointing out constellations in the Gotham sky like it wasn’t the same polluted mess as always.
So for a split second, the mission wouldn’t matter anymore. Bruce would just turn around and say, “We’re going home,” leaving Dick confused, tugging at his cape like, “What ? But we just got here.”
On those nights, Bruce would overcompensate by getting Dick’s favorite dessert, letting him stay up late to watch movies, or taking him to the amusement park the next day. It was his subtle way of making up for what he’d almost forgotten : that before he was Robin, Dick was still a child who deserved to be one.
