Dick Grayson Trash

A Lesson in Consent (Part 2)

-how come, on every comic cover, Damian looks like he had to do it to 'em?-

Alfred was going to kill him; his shirt was soaked in KoolAid, and his shoes her caked in mud, someone had taken his locker lock, and flipped it and locked it, upside down, so he couldn't open it. He should have gotten a custodian, but was scared to ask for help.

He trudged out of school and to the car, thinking up excuses for his appearances. 

He hadn't noticed the retaliation at first, at first he thought he was just being clumsy, but he was starting to think it was setup. 

It was one thing that Alice's best friend was the one who'd 'accidentally' split her juice on him, but there was no way it was a coincidence that her other friend had stepped all over his shoes in track, or that her other-other friend had 'dropped' her gum into his hair.

"Hi Alfred." Dick sighed, sliding into the backseat. 

"Master Dick, whatever happened to you?"

"I'm sorry." Dick pulled his coat across his stained shirt. "I need another water bottle."

"Master Dick, You've already lost two this week! I'm afraid I'll have to tell Master Bruce if you cannot shake this habit..."

"NO! Please don't tell Bruce! PLEASE! I'm okay- I don't need a new bottle!" Dick begged, fighting his seatbelt, which had tightened around him. "Please don't tell him."

Alfred drove him the rest of the way home, and sat him in the kitchen to clean him up. Dick waited, in his robe, staring at the floor while Alfred ran him a bath. 

He heard Bruce arrive home. "Dick? I'm home!" The boy heard his footsteps around the foyer. "Dick?"

"In here." Dick said quietly. He wasn't surprised that Bruce heard him four rooms over.

Bruce walked in and looked him up and down: his ward in a bathrobe, sitting alone in the kitchen. But Bruce noticed one thing in particular. "What happened to your hair?"

"Oh," Dick looked at the floor. "Alfred had to cut the back a little. Does it look bad?" He asked nervously.

"...no, it looks fine... why did he have to cut it?"

"Oh, I... uh..." Dick didn't know what to say. "I got some gum in my hair and couldn't get it out."

Bruce tutted sadly, walking around Dick to inspect the damage. He sighed. "Well, it'll grow back... how was school?"

"Okay." Dick said before you hear it from Alfred, I- I lost another water bottle." He said quickly.

"Again? That's three, this week alone."

"Yeah, I don't know. They always disappear while I'm in P.E..." Dick admitted. 

Bruce sighed again. "I'll find you another to use for tomorrow. But don't loose it."

———————————————————————————————————————

Dick was used to hearing rumours about hImself flying around school, so it wasn't Too weird to walk into class and hear whispering erupt around him. 

He didn't know what was happening, but assumed it was just another person saying that he was a princess and made other people work for him.

That is, until he was called into the councillors office. 

"Mr. Grayson, there have been some accusations... we want to keep parents out of this as much as possible. So please answer all questions directly."

"Okay." Dick whimpered. He'd learnt to hate the word 'accusations' from social worker visits. 

"A certain student has claimed that you cornered her outside of school, and forced her to kiss you." 

Dick's mouth went dry. "yes?"

"So you admit you did it?"

"What- NO! I meant... go on." Dick panicked.

"Well, this student claimed that You've done this several times, and won't stop, even when she tells you."

Dick clutched the corners of his chair, starting to cry. It probably made him look guilty, but he just felt overwhelmed. He didn't understand. "Who was it? i didn't do it!"

The councillor didn't want to call in Bruce since he'd probably side with Dick. But the kid was bawling, so he'd have to talk the kid down himself.

"Do you feel bad for what you did?"

Dick shook his head, wiping his nose with the back of his nose. "I didn't do it! Who said it? Alice? She kissed me!"

"She kissed you?" He asked.

"Yeah! I told her not to, but she just got mad."

"Well... maybe you should try being more considerate of her feelings. If she kissed you, she probably likes you."

"I Don't Care!" Dick wailed. "I said no!"

"Richard, you can go back to class for now."

———————————————————————————————————————

Dick was lucky to make it out of school with just a bruise on his ribs and another piece of gum in his hair. 

The bruise was from when a girl in his grade (he thinks one of Alices friends) screamed at and punched him. This ment he ended up in the councillors office twice in one day, so they sent an email to Bruce. Great.

He had been ripped to shreds for his new haircut, and couldn't even wear a hat during class. 

Worst of all, he lost Bruce's water bottle.

"Hey, Bruce." Dick muttered as he entered his office. "You wanted me?" Alfred had just gotten done cutting another piece of gum from his hair.

"Hey, Dick, I got an email from the school today..."

"Yes?" Dick started panicking again. 

"It says that you have been accused of harassing a girl and starting a fight with another girl in your grade..." Bruce stated, gaging his reaction.

Dick bit his lips, hard. He tried to stay calm. "I Didn't! Alice is saying I did, and I didn't! And her friend came up and hit me!" He sniffled, showing his bruise. "And Mr. Florio won't listen!"

"Okay- okay, Dick..." Bruce tried to calm him. "It's not too bad. But if a girl says you hit her, or kissed her, then they have to take it seriously."

"But they don't listen when she kissed me! Or when she hit me!" He started to cry, he felt so ashamed to have been harassed and beaten up by a girl. 

He knew girls were strong, and women were even stronger. But for some reason, the other boys laughed at him whenever a girl beat him in track, so he knew it had to be a bad thing.

Bruce really didn't know what to do. "Hey, why don't you go wash up for dinner."

"Okay." Dick ran off to cry and recover in his bedroom.