❝𝐣𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐬❞
𝐩𝐚𝐢𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 — 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐫 𝐤𝐞𝐧𝐭 x 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫
𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭 — 2K
𝐬𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐲 — you move into titans tower after being outed as a meta-human and seem to have caught the eye of one snarky half-kryptonian
𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 — strong language, conner being chill and cute
𝐚𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫'𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐞 — i'd like to thank the lovely @fruitiseavey for requesting this! hope you enjoy!
i don't have a tag list but i do have a library where all of my works live,@galatially-wrote so please check it out! reblogs and comments are much appreciated ♡♡♡
You pushed the strap of your overnight bag higher up your shoulder as you made your way to the front steps of Titans Tower.
What were you even doing here? All you’d done was help some people from getting mugged. You’d managed all of your life to keep your powers to yourself. Kept your head down and steered clear of any situation where you’d risk exposure.
Then last night happened. You’d been walking home after a long shift and saw a strange scene in the corner store you’d frequent in your neighborhood. The owner, Mr. Lim, was on shift like normal, but his movements through the window were off. You lowered the music in your headphones and walked into the store.
“Oh, Y/N! How are ya!” His usually jovial tone was strained and his posture rigid.
You leaned up against the counter. “‘Sup, Mr. Lim. You doin’ okay?”
“Ah, you know me, kid. Workin’ hard or hardly workin’.” His laugh was weak. His eyes flicked to something behind you for a split second that he didn’t think you’d caught. “You want your usual? You just got off work, right?” He nodded to you and went to the far end of the store to make your sandwich: turkey, provolone, tomato, dijon mustard, and Italian mustard. When you were younger, you’d loved watching him make the sandwich for your mother from behind the window.
You nodded, careful to keep your composure. Your thumbs danced along the counter as you played coy with the other figure in the store. They were watching you, circling the aisles as you waited for Mr. Lim to finish making your food.
“So, Mr. Lim, did I tell you about this guy that came into the restaurant today?” You walked towards the deli counter. “He was so rude, y’know? Bossin’ me and the other girls around like he was the owner or somethin’, right?” Your gaze flickered to the other patron, the gleam of his pistol catching the light. You paused, eyeing them as they moved towards you. “How’s that sandwich comin’, Mr. Lim?”
“It looks like I’m outta provolone, Y/N,” he stuttered. “I have to go check the back cooler.”
“Take your time. You know me.” You were facing the other man now, your hands warming. “Matter o’ fact, why don’t you stay back there? I have some business to handle with your friend here.”
The fight didn’t take long; two, three minutes tops. You’d subdued him and saved your friend, but not without some damage to the store and the GCPD snooping around after you ducked into the cover of night. By the time you’d made it to your apartment building, three cruisers sat in front, your super talking to one of the officers.
You were stuck.
So, you bit back your pride and called your best friend, Donna, and asked to crash at her and her team’s place. What better place to hide out than with a group of superhero teenagers?
“Y/N! You made it!”
Donna Troy — tall, dark-haired, and gorgeous — had been your best friend since you were a sophomore in high school and she’d saved your class from a villain attack at the Gotham City Museum. Not far behind was Dick Grayson, eldest ward to Bruce Wayne. They weren’t dating (as far as you knew, anyway) but they were the closest thing you’d had to family in a long while.
She launched herself into your arms. “You didn’t have a hard time finding the place, did you? Dick, grab her bag for her.”
“I can carry my bag, Donna, it’s fine.” You nodded to Dick. “Nice to see you again, Red.”
Dick chuckled and pulled you into a hug. “You must be exhausted, Y/N.”
“Me? No. It’s been a great twelve hours bein’ a fugitive,” you joked. His mouth lifted into a smile as he took your bag from your grasp. “Are you guys sure it’s okay for me to be here? I don’t want to impose.”
“Given the fact that your apartment building is still being watched by the GCPD, this is the safest place for you.” He raised a brow. “Though I don’t know why it took you so long to call us.”
Your features canted into a glower. “‘M sorry.”
Donna smacked Dick’s arm. “Can you for, like, one second stop interrogating our friend? She’s tired and probably hungry and over everything.” She wrapped an arm around your shoulders and led you into the Tower.
Anxious knots tightened your stomach. You had nothing against supers or other meta-humans like yourself, but you never saw yourself among their ranks. Ever since you were a child, you’d taught yourself that no one would accept you. Seeing other metas on the news — good or otherwise — brought out the worst in your parents and you vowed that you’d hide who you were. Keep it hidden and keep your head down.
“Guys, this is Y/N.”
Two pairs of eyes focused on you from the couch in the common area.
“Y/N, meet Kory — ” A tall, orange-skinned, curly-haired girl gave you a bright smile and an energetic wave, “Vic’s the big guy sitting next to her.”
“Cyborg. You went to school with a friend of mine,” you said, nodding at him.
He waved his flesh hand to you. “Nice to meet you, Y/N.”
“Where is everyone?” Dick asked.
“Gar and Raven are in their rooms, Wally’s out with Barry, and Conner’s…somewhere,” Vic answered.
You wrinkled your nose. “Who’s Conner?”
“Conner Kent,” Donna said. “He’s staying here for a little while.”
You hummed and shifted your weight onto your left leg. “So…where do I sleep?”
“Right! Uh, I’ll take your bag to your room and show you where the bathrooms are.” Donna took your hand and led you out of the common area. What you loved most about Donna was that she knew when to take over the dynamic between you two and when not. You were never good with certain social settings and tended to retreat into yourself and coming to Titans Tower was no different. This was foreign territory for you, diving headfirst into the unknown.
“Here’s the bathroom. Leave your clothes in the laundry basket and I’ll wash them for you, okay?”
“Okay. Thanks, Donna. I really appreciate this and I promise I’ll be out of your hair in a couple days, a week maximum.”
She shook her head. “You can stay as long as you’d like. Who knows? Maybe you’ll join the team.”
“Oh, yeah,” you deadpanned, “you guys would love to have the unstable, moody kid on your team.”
“Wouldn’t be any better than the rest of us when we all started out,” she said, shrugging. “Just get cleaned up and I’ll make you something to eat, all right?”
You nodded and closed the door behind her as she left the bathroom. You quickly stripped and ducked under the cool spray of water. As the water warmed, you felt your resolve crack. Fat tears rolled down your cheeks and breathless sobs wracked your body.
What were you going to do? You’d always made sure to be careful. Never drawing any unnecessary attention to yourself and keeping a profile lower than the ground beneath your feet. Now, look at you: homeless and on the run.
I’m such a fuckin’ idiot.
You took in a deep breath and lathered the lavender body wash over your skin and cleaned the tear stains from your face. You turned the shower off and wrapped yourself in one of the fluffy towels they had. You poked your head out of the bathroom door, steam escaping from behind you. After a few seconds of not hearing any footsteps, you tiptoed down the hall and opened the first door that you saw.
“Can I help — holy shit!”
You stiffened at the voice and glanced over your shoulder. Blue eyes half-hidden behind black curls stared back at you. His hands were wrapped around the wireless headphones he pulled off of his ears.
“This…isn’t my room.” You let out a nervous chuckle. “I’m so sorry. I’ll just…”
“You’re that girl that Donna was talkin’ about. Y/N, right?”
You nodded. “And you must be Conner.”
“In the flesh.” He nodded to you. “You need me to take you to your room?”
“Oh, no.! I’m sure I can remember where Donna pointed out my room.” You turned back to the door, fisting your towel against your chest.
“It’s not a big deal.” His mattress creaked and his feet padded against the carpet. “Come on.”
If your nakedness bothered Conner, he didn’t let it show as he opened his door and waved his arm toward the hallway. You nodded and stepped out. He walked ahead of you, long-legged and unyielding.
“I’m sorry for disturbin’ you.”
“You didn’t.” He glanced over his shoulder. “It ain’t every day that half-naked girls find themselves in my room.”
Your face warmed. “It’s not a habit I make often.”
“I believe you.” He put his hands in his pockets and slowed his pace some. “I read about what you did. At that corner store in Lower Gotham.”
“I was just tryin’ to help a friend.”
“I get it. Sometimes helpin’ just makes things bigger than they need to be.” There was solemnity to Conner’s voice, a tired calm that came from experience of doing the right thing one too many times.
“Yeah, well, I’m just glad that Mr. Lim’s safe. His wife and kid love him and he’s a big part of my day, y’know?” You smiled to yourself. “But it was fun seein’ the look on that bastard’s face when I launched him into one of the coolers.”
“How’d you do that, by the way? You a telekinetic or somethin’?”
“Yes and no. I can move things with my mind but it’s not the only ability I have.”
He glanced over at you and you noticed the thin, gold rim of his glasses. Had he been wearing them this whole time? Were you that focused on not looking at him?
“So you didn’t throw him into the coolers?”
“Oh, I did,” a smirk quirked at the edge of your lips, “but I also fried the electrical system in the whole store.” You tightened your hold of the towel with one hand as you raised your palm out in front of you. Electric currents ran along your skin and the lights flickered above you. “I’m still kinda learnin’ how to control that part, hence the runnin’ away.”
A smile spread along Conner’s lips. “I like it.”
You cleared your throat and locked your hands together. “Thanks. I think.”
“You wanna know what I can do?”
“I’d assume fly since your name’s Superboy and all.”
Conner laughed — a low, husky sound that warmed your bones. “Close, but no cigar.”
You raised a brow. “So you don’t fly?”
“Oh, I fly.” He gave you a mischievous dimpled smile. “I just do a lot more than that.”
You stifled a laugh and shook your head. “You’re somethin’ else, Conner Kent.”
He stopped in front of a door and leaned up against the wall, facing you head-on. “This is you. If you need something, I’m the last room at the end of this hall.”
You nodded and shifted your weight to your right leg. “Thanks.”
“And don’t let this get you down, yeah? As someone who went through all of my growing up in the public eye, it’s shitty and it fuckin’ sucks sometimes but it gets better. Donna and the team are good people and they’ll take care of you.”
“And you? Are you not good people?”
Conner snickered and leaned forward. Your noses were centimeters away and you sucked in a breath.
“I’ll be as good as you want me to be, sweetheart.”
