I don't know how he did it but the kid's words really stuck with me, so much so that I found myself standing at the entrance of the batcave, staring at the profile of the man who took me in when my parents died. Who raised me from age nine and taught me to fight. The man who despite all that could never see me as an equal, as anything other than a dumb kid, as a sidekick.
"I know you're there so you might as well come out." He growled without looking away from the monitor.
Some things never change.
I stepped into the light and stood there until he turned around.
"Hey Bruce, long time no see."
"I was wondering when you'd come here."
I don't know what I expected, and some part of me wasn't surprised, but still another part of me had hoped for a different reaction. Who was I kidding, he's Batman for God's sake.
I let out a heavy sigh, "How long?"
"I suspected when Aqualad introduced you, and confirmed it when I went over the briefing for your circus mission."
"So why didn't you say anything?"
He leveled me with that serious bat stare,
"I figured if you wanted to talk about it you would come to me...was I wrong?"
I ran my hand through my hair as I paced the bat cave, I'd forgotten how infuriating he could be.
"I don't even know why I came here."
"Why did you come back at all?"
"Don't do that Bruce, its not about you."
"I didn't say it was, I never thought you would come back for me, but your friends, I knew that was what would bring you back."
"Barbara told me you thought I was dead."
"Briefly, but I soon figured out what had really happened, I'm honestly disappointed in myself that it took that long, all the signs were there, I failed you Dick, I know that now."
I was stunned, I didn't think Bruce was capable of admitting he was wrong.
"We were both young, inexperienced, I needed a father and you really did try, but you weren't ready for that, I realize that now, you did the best you could. That is why I'm here, it took me a long time but I finally get it. You did the best you could."
"Dick."
"I don't know if we can overcome this, but if you are willing to try maybe we could get somewhere."
And there it was, the emotion I secretly wanted but never really thought I'd get, surprise, I surprised the Batman, and too be honest, it felt good.
YOU ARE READING
Under the Mask
FanfictionDick Grayson was fed up with Batman, that's true, but he was also tired, tired of always being treated like a kid, tired of keeping secrets, tired of fighting his inappropriate feeling for his best friend, just tired. At sixteen Dick left Batman, an...
