Archive of Our Own

It all started with an undercover mission. Honestly, Tim had no idea how he had gotten himself into a situation like this. Yes, he was a master at disguise and acting (he had at least like three personalities in his day-to-day life without the public catching on), despite that, there was about a thirty-eight percent chance none of his teammates ever had to find out about that. And he was so cheering for those thirty-eight percent.

Not that his best friends would judge him. They were best friends for a reason. And there was nothing to be embarrassed about. He knew that. It was logical. Yet, there was a little less tension in his shoulders every time he put on a wig; it was easier to see with colored contacts, and he walked better in shoes that were not his. It was so satisfying to pretend to be someone else for a bit. So what if he was a little scared of someone finding that part of him out? 

He was Timothy Drake, a son of a millionaire, and he was Red Robin. Those were the only personas he would occasionally get sick of. There wasn’t much time to be Tim, to be himself. So sometimes he would put on a disguise when going outside, sometimes he pretended to be someone else while walking through his company, and he took on the most undercover missions he could. With the bats, anyway. 

He’s never liked attention, and he had attention on him all the time. So what if clothing that was not his, makeup that changed his features, and hiding behind a different mask made his heart lighter and his lungs feel bigger?

But success was more important than the possible teasing or stares he could get from his team, so he put in the best effort. 

The job was given to them by Batman, who noticed a possible minor threat in Metropolis. As Superman was off on an intergalactic mission, the investigation had fallen to Young Justice. B let Tim plan the mission himself.

Tim and his teammates had gathered enough evidence to take action, so the situation wouldn’t get any more severe.

He debriefed all of his teammates and let them discuss what roles they’d prefer. Not that it would make a difference, but letting them come to the realization of his plan and assigning roles was the best decision at times. When they had time, precisely, they long since started believing in him and his way of leadership, but it boosts morale, so he's heard.

Kon and Bart were supposed to get inside the building while a gala was held and obtain as much information and data from the inside as they could without getting noticed. Tim and Cassie were to sneak into a gala, blend in, and distract the host.

Tim ended the meeting with the goal of making IDs and backstories for them both. 

The thing was, no matter how Tim thought about it, there was no way to deny that he’d be the best suited for the role of the woman in their relationship. Not that he wouldn’t trust that Cassie could pull it off, but there was a higher chance it’d go more smoothly if he took care of the flirting. Cassie wouldn’t take shit from a man, and galas weren’t her thing. It was Tim’s thing ever since he was six, led by his mother’s hand, her voice clear in his mind as all the advice she had been drilling into him. 

He silently passed her a folder full of information on the man she was going to be impersonating a day later, not waiting for her reaction when she opened the folder.

It was only a few hours and one meeting later when Tim was putting on jewelry. Makeup done, a black wig in place, a dress on, he ran through every single scenario his mind could come up with. His dress was cut down to his upper thigh, and the tightness made his waist look smaller, compensating for his small chest. His mascara and red lipstick highlighted his face. He put on ruby red heels to match the dress and got into his role of Eliza Magnum with a few deep breaths. 

He smiled at himself in the mirror and stepped out to meet Cassie.

He scanned her with his eyes slowly. Her chest was perfectly flat, and the suit hugged her muscles nicely. Along with the makeup that brought out her cheekbones perfectly and the black-dyed hair, she was more handsome than ever.

Cassie’s eyes were wide, jaw almost on the floor. That means he has done a good job. A giggle escaped him. ”Close your mouth before you catch flies, darling. You flatter me too much.” He stepped closer and hooked his arm around her elbow. She wore heels in her dress shoes, so she was a bit taller than he was. ”Shall we go?” He gave her the eyes and a slight smile. Tim knew it'd help her if they kept the act up a little while before getting to the function. It'd be less stressful for both of them.

She had tried to compose herself with a deep breath before nodding her head. ”Of course.”

Their limousine stopped at the entrance, which was swamped by reporters. Metropolis had too many of them, but Eliza had always liked the attention, so she took the flashes with a smile and waved. It didn’t matter that the people behind the cameras had no idea who they were. They were a new, young, attractive couple showing up at the biggest gala of the month - Eliza Magnum and Eliott Manson. No one had stopped them from entering, just as Tim had planned. Eliza grabbed a drink from the first tray she saw. Eliott followed her lead. 

Cassie copied his act magnificently.

They had walked past a few people before engaging in conversation. Eliza had the chance to show off her diamond engagement ring to quite a few people, and it was endearing to watch their faces light up with fake enlightenment. She soaked up the praise and congratulations. Before they knew it, it was 10:38 pm; phase three was about to go down. She had left Elliot to his own conversation as sparks of electricity appeared in the corner of her vision for a split millisecond.

One careless move, a stumble, and her drink was spilled on her target’s chest. “Oh no, what have I done? Please excuse my clumsiness. Bring me some tissues, would you?” she said to a servant nearby. ”I am very sorry. This is a horrible first impression.” She brought her eyes up to meet his. The man was scanning her with a hungry gaze.

“If such an accident brought an angel like yourself into my presence, I have no means to be angered. Arthur Growen, it’s a pleasure.” He kissed the top of her hand, the ring nowhere to be seen, and winked before straightening up. The conversation he had held with a security guard, not even a minute prior, was forgotten.

“Eliza Magnum.” She smiled. “And the pleasure is mine.” She grabbed the tissues someone brought and pressed them to the man's chest, trying to savor the clothing. “Although I wish we could have met in different circumstances.” She chuckled, all elegance and sheepishness. 

Her actions were stopped by a hand on hers. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.” He returned the smile when Eliza pulled her gaze upwards again. “I also have to inform you of how gorgeous you look, Ms. Magnum. Such beauty shouldn’t stay hidden.”

“Oh, please. What’d I do to deserve such compliments, from yourself, nonetheless?” She lowered her chin to look at the man through her eyelashes.

She could see his pupils dilate slightly. Few people looked their way, but averted their gaze quickly when realizing who the man was.

The sudden alarm ruined her plans. Panic seeped through the people; most looked around or to the ceiling. Growen’s brows drew together. “I’m sure it’s nothing to worry about. Let me look into it. I’ll be back by your side any moment.”

“Wh-what is going on?” Tim let his voice quiver and caught the man’s wrist before he could flee. The rapid heartbeat in his chest was not an act — he was not proud of this fact — but it played off well enough. Iritation seeped into his bones at another ruined mission, most likely because of the endless bickering Bart and Kon engaged in. “Please don’t leave me here.” The puppy eyes made him stop for a few moments, but it was not enough.

“It is okay, everything will be fine. Stay here.” A last kiss to her knuckles, and he got lost in the crowd of people. 

Great.

—

In Kon’s defense, it was totally Bart who had triggered the alarm. Rob and Cass were going to kill them for real this time. They may have gotten a little carried away; who can blame them? Bart was Bart, and Kon was just a man. Half a man, but who asks about those details anyway. They knew they were fucked as soon as the room turned red.

They got as far away as they could, but there was no way they’d be able to avoid the dozens of guards coming at them headfirst. The only task they had was to get in, grab what they could, and get out unnoticed. And well, the first half went great, and Kon said so. He might have jinxed it.

They immobilized them all and ran into Cassie, her tie loose and blazer open, as she knocked the guards out left and right and urged them to hurry up. They met a few more guards along the way, and although it was not hard to overcome them, it sure as hell was not pleasant. Their weirdly convenient weapons made Kon understand why this was something to investigate even more. 

They turned the corner and came to a sight he did not expect. Cassie held out a hand and put up two fingers. So they stayed silent, unmoving. Even Bart, who looked like he was ready to start vibrating any second, held on. The CEO of the company stood with his back to them, some tech in his hand. In front of him stood a woman – beautiful and pleading and definitely not his wife, whom Rob had shown them in a few pictures.

“-chaos up there, I got caught up in it.” Her voice sounded so desperate, and it was no surprise the man had fallen under her spell. But no way the woman hadn’t noticed them standing at the end of the hallway.

“I know, I know, sweet thing. But-” Bart made a disturbed sound. Kon thought he heard it thanks to his super hearing, but apparently, it was not as quiet. The man — he forgot his name, but c’mon, the amount of information Robin wanted them to remember for every single mission was unreal — spun around, the thing in his hands immediately pointing to them. He had no chance to do anything; the woman did a flip — could people even do flips in heels, apparently yes — and did a full 360° with her thighs around his neck. He went down, and she landed gracefully. Was she human? This is the kind of cool that only Robin was able to pull off. It did things to his brain.

“My apologies,” she purred, and with a blow to the side of his neck, assured that he would not wake up for some time. She stood up, still elegant, and walked towards them. Her heels clicked loudly in the silent hallway, and Kon was strangely intimidated. She spotted merely a meter before him and Bart, cocked her hip and folded her arms, and finally looked up. The glare sent shivers down his spine, and his eyes unwillingly scanned her posture. “You two,” she started, her voice strict, losing the high-pitcheness it had before, “had one job.”

“You are seriously making me doubt my gayness,” Cassie perked up. Blue eyes turned to her, not as murderous, but still clearly pissed off.

The glare, the sentence, the voice, the-

“Rob,” he blurted out, shocked. It was more of a question and an accusation than anything. Bart did a double, triple, and quarter-take before rushing forward and observing their leader from all sides. Rob huffed out a breath and flipped the wig over his shoulder as if to say, ‘obviously’. There was a slight redness in his cheeks, though Kon could not be sure if that wasn’t just the makeup. And, fucking hell, the make-up. His waist. His revealed thigh, his collarbones, his hips, his eyes, his lips-

Robin is and always will be his kryptonite, apparently.

Bart started to observe the wig and dress more than Rob altogether, so he finally brushed him off. “Time’s running out; focus on the mission.” He started typing away on the hologram coming out of his wristwatch. A tiny part of the wall next to them fell out. Rob pulled up his dress and crawled in, urging them to do the same, and Cassie put the lid back after them. 

Kon had really tried to keep his eyes down. It was distracting.

They made it to some kind of stairwell, and their leader silenced them with a flick of hand. ”We’ll get to ground W27, walk through the hall on the right, turn left, and use an emergency elevator to get to the zero, since all the other entrances are cut off. I will enable the elevator, and you will stay in it for ten minutes and then flee as fast as you can. Do not cause more chaos; the fewer people see you, the better. Wonder Girl and I will blend in with the gala for approximately six minutes, then we leave as planned. We meet at our spot and go to the tower together. Understood?” He took the silence as a yes and nodded. “Carry me.” Moving towards Kon, he put one of his hands over his shoulder. It was instinct by this point that he picked up the smaller bridal style. By the time he took off, Bart and Cass were both far ahead of them.

“You look really good, by the way.” He couldn’t help but pipe up. Not with the cold metal of his gold bracelets behind Kon’s neck, not with his arm around that waist, not with the literal goddess in his arms.

“Superboy,” Robin growled, warningly.

“I know, I know- it’s just kinda surprising that- well, not that I’d ever expect an-”

“Superboy,” he scolded, louder. His brows were drawn together, a piercing gaze on Kon’s face. The redness on his cheeks was still there. 

It’s not that Kon never noticed how pretty Robin was. It was just never something laid out in front of him like this. His suits were multi-layered or at least pretty thick. Kon couldn’t complain since it kept their leader safer. The mask always stayed on, along with the frown. Not that Kon didn’t find it endearing and, in some weird way, attractive. 

What he knew was that Robin was the coolest person he had ever met. And it didn’t even seem like he tried much. It was partly because he was an ordinary human. Well, not ordinary since he could knock out ten people in less than fifteen seconds, but in the sense that he was on the same level as metas and aliens, and he managed to be so clever, levelheaded, and strategic at the same time. 

It was intoxicating. Someone so amazing shouldn’t be allowed to be so pretty.

He wondered if the blue eyes were real or just contacts. The blue suits him. Earlier, Kon couldn’t decide if blue or green would be better; now, he had a clear winner.

Rob tapped his arm twice, and Kon came to his senses again. The elevator door started opening up, and Kon gently put down the boy in his arms. No matter how many times Rob would tell him he’s not made of glass, he would never stop being careful; Rob deserved some gentleness. And Kon knew he liked it, secretly.

Robin used the mirror inside to examine his makeup and hair, which was completely unnecessary. Bart stared at him with sparkles in his eyes, and Kon hoped he didn’t look the same.

Turning around, Robin fixed up Cassie’s tie and jacket.

“Where’s the ring?” Cassie was looking him over.

“Hm, I seem to have misplaced it. You wouldn’t mind buying me a new one, would you?” A smile overcame his face just in time for the door to open. His voice was back to sweet and feminine, and how the hell he managed to make it sound natural, Kon had no idea. It was like a whiplash. He laced his arm through the hook of Cassie's elbow and walked forward. 

“Of course not, you and your forgetfulness,” Cassie responded, following their leader. 

“You treat me so well, darling. Oh, and Mrs. Bowitch wanted me to introduce you two. I may have praised you too much. ‘There is no way such a gentleman exists’, in her words.” They continued ‌their conversation even as the door closed. Kon stared after his teammates even as it did. 

“Holly cows,” Bart emphasized. Kon agreed.

No one spoke of the mission - at least not in front of Kon. He didn’t dare to bring it up; Cassie seemed to just go with the flow, and Bart might have forgotten it even happened. Yet to him, that mission might be carved into the walls of his brain. 

He wanted answers. To question he didn’t have, but still.

Now that he knows just how pretty he can look, how does he look away? Maybe it was the dress, maybe it was the makeup, maybe it was his eyes, maybe it was his confidence, maybe it was the fact that Kon realized just how good Robin was at literally everything, but Kon had never felt so intrigued in his life.

And so Kon realized how much of a problem his crush on Rob was gonna be. 

And he could tell him and confess, yes, if he weren’t a coward. Regardless, there was always some kind of invisible wall between Robin and everyone (excluding the bats).

They were friends, and they trusted each other to hell — occasionally to a different universe and whatnot — and back. The thing was, Robin rarely ever seemed to let himself just be. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that this was all still mostly superhero business (that’d sting), maybe it was because Robin hadn’t revealed his secret identity (nobody minds), or perhaps he wasn’t even aware of this wall and this was genuinely how he was, to everyone; all secretive and cryptid-like (very fucking unlikely).

Robin has been on his mind a lot lately, a lot more than before, and even then, it was a bit of a problem.

Speaking of, they were waiting for Rob to show up. He was already late, which wasn't like him at all.

“It's been half an hour - we should at least try to call him. What if he got himself into trouble?” The worry in Cassie’s voice was evident, and Kon could relate. Not that Rob wouldn't be able to handle himself completely fine; it was just the things he got caught up in were always something no one would be able to predict. No one except the bats, he supposes.

“Superhero trouble,” Bart added, helpfully.

“Guys c’mon, it’s Rob, he’d-”

“Guys!” someone called out. They all scanned their surroundings because the voice was awfully familiar. There wasn’t anything out of the ordinary, and Kon almost got back to the conversation before noticing someone waving. The guy had sunglasses on and looked in a hurry – Kon immediately recognized him. The shock was the skateboard with which he circled people as if they were cones, with clothing he would never imagine the vigilante would wear. It suited him more than anything else. His shorts were baggy enough to fit two people, and there was a long-sleeve shirt under a red, retro-looking one, as big as if it were for someone like Superman. He had a beanie on, too, which may have been for covering up his identity a bit more, for lack of it.

When he was mere meters away, he flipped the skateboard into the air, caught it with one hand, adjusting his hat and glasses with the other, and ran up to them. He had a backpack on his back — as if he had just come from school — and one of the laces of his Converse was untied. Kon notices his necklace and a few rings on his hands when he adjusts the collar of his shirt. The skateboard looked well-used. He never would have thought Robin would skate, of all things. At this moment, it seemed more than obvious.

“Sorry, there was a-an emergency. Didn’t have time to change and- sorry.” Clearly, he wanted to say something more before cutting himself off. Robin didn’t slip up unless in a hurry and there was no time to plan. 

He scanned him with his eyes one more time. And then again. And again. Cassie whistled, and Kon realized his friends had been silent until now. 

“This is how you normally dress?” Bart blurted out, sounding almost offended, and – yeah, same.

“Um,” he started and looked down at himself. The hand not holding the board to his body came up to touch the top of his beanie. Kon’s eyes followed the movement to look at the rings. “Yeah?” He sounded sheepish, embarrassed. Kon did not know what to do with that information. He moved his skateboard to the front of his body to hold it with both of his hands, clearly not knowing what else to say.

Kon had gotten an idea that their reaction might have been a bit too extreme, but considering Rob wore the same pair of black skinny jeans and a simple hoodie always a size or two too big for him on every hangout, sometimes with a cap like a cherry on top, he continued to stare. 

“Never thought you’d have style. No offense.” Rob cringed at Cassie’s comment, his face scrunching up. It was so cute when he did that.

“Can we like- Can you stop staring at me?” he murmured, ducking his head.

“Nah,” Kon answered him. It sounded a bit too breathy for his liking, but Rob didn’t seem to comprehend it, based on the pained sound he let out.

They probably looked like idiots.

—

Kon and Cassie were finishing their ice cream. Tim watched as Bart — only after finishing his fourth ice cream — strode about on his skateboard. More like tried, but Tim appreciates the effort. 

“Rob! Show me some tricks,” he exclaimed. In one blink, he was in Tim’s face. Both Kon and Cassie turned to him with big, sparkly eyes – how was he supposed to say no to that? He felt like Bruce. God knew one puppy dog's eyes, and the man would go as far as buying you a company. But the McDonald’s incident is not to be spoken of. Just like the Spotify incident. And the Amazon one. And- yeah, B was always emotionally constipated; everyone knew that, moving on. 

With a sigh, he stood up to retrieve the board and rode a little farther away before turning around and getting the speed he needed. A bit of zig-zags, an Ollie, and slide on one of the nearby benches, finishing with a kick-flip, and there were sparks in Bart’s eyes. He slid sideways to stop. 

It was hard ignoring all the attention, a positive one at that, while not in his Robin costume. Attention was hard altogether. He had no idea how people like Dick or Kon handled it.

“Yo! Sick moves, bro,” someone yelled after him. He turned in their direction just in time for the guy to stop next to him and kick up his own board. Immediately recognizing the type of person he is, he went in for a dab.

“Thanks, man. ‘Preciate it.” It was easy to slip into different accents and such, especially since he spent most of his free time at a skatepark. Not that he had much, but you work with what you’ve got.

“Hey, I gotta ask. Any chance you got a lighter on ya’?” The guy was sloppy, and he might not have had red eyes, but it was obvious his tongue was heavy based on the way he was speaking.

“Nah, you see that girl, though?” He gestured with his head to a nearby lady sitting on a bench, coffee in hand. “She was smoking before, ask her.”

“You’re a lifesaver, bro. You from Gotham?”

“It’s that obvious, huh?” He laughed.

“I mean – the glasses and all? C’mon, dude.” The guy shoved him on the shoulder lightly, laughing too. “I was there once, just ‘cause of the skate parks. Saw some famous rich skater dude on YouTube. I got robbed when I tried to get back to the station, though. I’d be scared as fuck if I wasn’t cooked and without a penny in my pocket.” He snorted. His eyes were getting smaller the longer he smiled. Damn.

“It be like that. I’m from there, and people try to mug me every other day, too. They won’t do shit if you got nothing on you.” He shrugged. Not that he could get mugged. Muggers usually travel on the ground and in shady parts of Gotham. And don’t attack vigilantes. Or ‘famous rich’ people.

“Bro, you got some balls living there.”

“Eh, home is home.”

“Type shit, brother.” The guy dabbed him up and ran off, jumping on his skateboard. Tim watched him ask the lady and turned back to his friends. Cassie had her thinking confused face on, Bart was watching him with a blank face, head tilted to the side, and Kon shot the guy weird looks.

“What?” He might have whipped out one of his Gotham accents, but he was really not enjoying all the looks his teammates sent him every time he did something out of the ordinary. Secret identities exist for a reason, and they should be glad he’s showing them more of himself. The situation itself makes him itch and want to hide.

(They didn’t know, they didn’t know, they didn’t know, they didn’t know, they didn’t know-)

They knew him more than enough.

“Okay,” Bart yelled and ran up to him. “Show me how to skateboard."

“Down,” came a whisper through his comms. The floor was ice cold; he could feel it through his costume. There were shouts, distant yet louder and clearer with each passing moment. Then came the lights. He counted up to six men, each with a flashlight and a gun or a taser. Their footsteps were loud with the reinforced boots police or security wear. The sound of a broken glass came from an entirely different location, and all the men ran out.

Tim took that as a sign to flee. As he landed on a rooftop and took off, his comms sparked to life again. “You good, kitten?” Tim smirked and focused on the sound of clinging in one of his secret pockets.

“Yeah, meet you at your place.”

—

Tim froze as the alarms rang out. He made eye contact with Catwoman. Her face was neutral, carefully morphed into something emotionless. He saw through it; he used the expression too, occasionally. Sometimes, too often as Robin.

The thing about this ‘mission’, as he liked to call it, was that they were trapped. There were no windows, no emergency exits, and no extra elevators. One way in, one way out. They were stories underground. And it was the first time an alarm had ruined Tim’s mission; the second his eye caught the red in the corner of his vision, he knew they were in too deep.

Selina had told him about the one accident she had had. She was young, in a new city, and still needed practice. She got out, barely. Without what she came there for, but it was worth the freedom.  Gotham was a city in which alarms didn’t possess as much power. Tim had played with them sometimes on particular, slow, easy missions. Selina said she liked his playfulness; he knew she panicked at least for a moment at those she didn’t anticipate. 

Now, as they made eye contact, she understood immediately.

This alarm wasn’t intentional.

They were moving before they had time to breathe. They didn’t turn, didn’t abandon the mission, because this was all or nothing. The depository was the building itself, so grabbing the items was pretty easy now that they didn’t worry about any more alarms. 

Selina had half of their treasure; Tim had the other. And they split. They made sure to remember the plans. Either the maze it was would benefit them and play into their cards, or it would be their downfall.

—

Tim had fit into one of the panels in the walls. Breathing as silently as he could and kept his heartbeat steady. When no one was in the room he occupied, he shared whispers with Selina, hidden in the ceiling two sectors away. They analyzed the situation and tried to make up a plan. They were listening. There were whispers, shouts, footsteps, panic, and firm words. They needed just a moment – then they could get out of here. Tim had a hologram of the place open. The electrical panels were far from each other. He moved once, fitting into another one of the panels – almost getting caught in the process, but closer to the exit. Selina moved twice, under his instructions. They didn’t know how much longer they could stay hidden.

The men moved in groups. Had comms in their ears and still searched the place, inch by inch, room by room. There were nearly forty of them. They kept every hall and nineteen of the twenty-six rooms occupied at all times. Tim could fight his way out, but not without attracting the security as a whole. Not to mention, no one knew the Catwoman herself had a partner in crime at her side. He was supposed to stay hidden.

“Kitten,” Selina’s whisper came to his ear. “I can turn myself in.” Tim was ready to intervene in what she was about to say, but she cut him off as if expecting it. “Listen.” He stayed silent. “I can get out of wherever they throw me in. Once they evacuate me, they’d give up after searching some more, and you’d be able to get out by yourself.” She sounded certain, but there was something hidden there. It may have been the shame of preparing to get caught, or maybe protectiveness. He hated that he could not see her. 

There was no telling they would give up after finding only half of what went missing, though.

“We’re in this together. If you go down, I go down with you.” And he meant it. This was their shared mission, their shared mistake. He hoped the security would give up, but he could tell they’d demolish the walls if it meant finding the intruder, intruders in their case. Selina sighed but did not comment further.

Tim had waited for a mistake – any stumble, a sign of hesitation, one wrong step.

Minutes turned into hours.

Tim’s body was stiff; there was little to no space for movement. But the guards were getting desperate. Slowing down, getting sloppy, started talking, signing. Then, one man left his partner to continue the route on his own. He passed three rooms on his own before another guard followed. Tim was two rooms away.

He slipped out of his hiding spot silently. The only noise in the silent room was his cracking joints. He held himself on the ceiling in the corner of the room, above the doorway. Then, he waited until the guard stepped into the room, and jumped him. The man didn’t have a chance to do anything before his eyes rolled back and his knees buckled. Tim softened his fall the best he could, considering the man was twice his body weight, and sprang into action. He considered he had around fifteen seconds until the next guard could make his way into the room. There was a chance he could let him pass into the next room, but the next group was nearby, and not finding his teammate could be fatal, and the information would spread out, making escaping harder for him and Selina. Fighting him off was also going to create a ruckus. 

Tim put the unconscious man into the far corner of the room, slightly hidden by the exhibition and opposite the entrance from which his colleague would come. Footsteps approached. Tim's heart was beating in his ears. He sprinted to one of the walls, staying on the ceiling and silently moving toward the sound. A man came through a doorway. Tim jumped down, and the guard was down in mere seconds.

Moving the man to the same corner, he checked his wrist holograms. There were two people near Catwoman, not staying so close together anymore, but rather observing opposite sides of the room.

“Catwoman. Two down.”

—

Kon and Bart were chilling in the living room near their headquarters in the tower. Bart was playing Mario Kart and eating snacks. Kon was scrolling on Twitter. The Wayne family was trending for the third time this month. Kon didn’t know many rich people besides Luthor, maybe Robin (though it was never confirmed, it might just be Batman), so he had no idea what to think. He read about them sometimes, though, when he was interested. Sometimes, the things that happen to them get a laugh out of him; sometimes, he doubts humanity as a whole. 

#OnlyGotham and things about vigilantes were there too, if you knew where to look. And Kon learned. There was no way he was passing up on the shit that goes down with Rob and his…family/coworkers(?)...who knew, but he was his best friend, and there was an honest delight spreading through whenever he got a reaction out of Rob when mentioning what he saw online. Cassie and Bart enjoyed it, too. Teasing Robin was one of his favorite activities (he secretly hoped that was a normal, mischievous, best-friends kind of thing rather than a weird sex thing); he would never allow himself to pass up such an opportunity.

Something at the back of his mind screamed, distantly.

Something felt off. He sat up, and Bart immediately stopped the game to focus on him. 

An alarm rang out through their floor. Both Kon and Bart got a notification. They didn’t bother to check it. This was Rob’s emergency alarm.

Kon spread his hearing range. Bart’s heart was running, which was normal enough. Cassie was out in a crowded area, yet she was calm. Jon was flying over Metropolis, Clark right behind him. After that came Robin; always did. Except this time, he didn’t.

He couldn’t find him.

—

Bart’s fingers were still dancing across the keyboard when Cassie stumbled into the room.

Kon felt useless.

Not that he didn’t have any experience with computers and coding and hacking and all the things Rob gave them lessons on, but Bart was faster.

Faster at looking for Robin.

Something he failed at.

Kon knew there were moments he couldn’t hear Robin’s heartbeat. (He tried not to spy, really. He just wanted to know Rob’s safe.) Upon a little bit of questioning, Rob told him it’s another one of the Batcave’s security measures. 

Rob wouldn’t call an emergency at the Batcave. He was in danger, and Kon couldn’t find him.

Cassie patted his shoulder, snapping him out of his thoughts. They’ve been playing on loop for what felt like hours. It’s probably been less than four minutes.

“Got him!” Kon’s wrist watch (made by no other than Rob) dinged with a notification at the same time Cassie’s did. Bart was out of the building. Cassie and Kon were not far behind.

Kon checked the location Bart sent them on the way and flew the fastest he could.

He was passing over Gotham in one second, and stopping at a city nearby the next. Bart was right behind. Cassie met them near their final destination, worry and determination obvious in her face. He beelined it towards a building he didn’t have time to inspect.

It was too small. One floor, no corners. One elevator, though.

He tore through the elevator door and went down. There were guards on him in an instant, and Kon left them to Bart and Cassie. He flew through the halls at the speed of light (possibly).

Robin’s heartbeat rang in his ears (Kon never felt more relieved); it brought him into a room. It was dark and small, and a few exhibitions were spread around. He was on the floor before he could locate the goal of the search.

Robin had him pinned down, face to face. He put a finger to his lips. Footsteps approached. Kon stayed silent. Rob’s heart was beating nearly out of his ribcage. Men ran through the room, yelling about intruders, spreading forces, and rescues.

“Rob,” he whispered, throat tight. Robin eyed him through the red goggles. A simple look shouldn’t make his stomach do a few flips. But it’s Robin, and it definitely did. Rob was sitting on him, dressed head to toe in black - the smooth leather tad thinner than his Robin suit, cat ears sticking out from his head, caging him in and leaning down, keeping to the floor.

“Was that you, kitten?” A voice came from his comms.

Kitten?

“Nah, our way out just arrived though,” Rob whispered back, with a slight tilt to his lips and a pointed look full of mischief and amusement. Honestly, Kon had never seen a man more attractive.

Most importantly, Robin was here (on him), alive and well, no injuries in sight. Witty and smug, despite the situation. Still.

“I was so worried about you! We all were. What are you even doing in here?” He tried keeping his voice down as best he could.

“Sorry, not much time to explain.” Rob started to get up. Kon sat up in time to wrap his arms around him and give him a crushing hug. He released a breath he was holding in for who knows how long and let Rob go only when he realized the position they were in. 

Kon was glad he was the one with superhearing.

There was a little soft smile on Rob’s face. Beautiful and unmistakable. They looked at each other for another second or two, though it could have been an eternity in Kon’s books, before Tim got off of his lap.

Kon needed a second to calm down. Or a minute. Possibly an hour.

—

Bart distracted the guards and led them to the other side of the floor to where the elevator was. Just as he made it back, Bart and Cassie were both ready to take off. Rob stopped them with a raise of palm. Another figure appeared from the hole in the middle of the top of the elevator; they were all crouching around. She had a similar suit to Rob's, except he possessed a belt similar to the one he usually wears.

“Heya, kiddos. Any of ya’ got space for one more?” She scanned them all from behind the goggles, a smirk on her face and a dangerous glint in her eye.

“Catwoman.” Robin cut through the silence, voice tight, although there was some fondness under it all, similar to the way he talked to them sometimes. Like when someone made a non-hero-related mistake or didn’t understand something, talking about how their day went, or in those moments of weakness as they shared their stories of childhood or their experiences with people.

“Hm?” The woman - Catwoman, apparently - turned to him with a smirk plastered on her face. Eyes full of innocence.

“Stop.” His brows furrowed even further. It looked strangely cute without the domino. Although it could look cute with the domino too, seeing his eyes was always a crazy experience. He still wasn’t super sure about his eye color, though. Blue and green were the ones he caught the glimpse of the most. Kon had no idea if Rob was trying to throw them off and had brown eyes all along or if it was one of them.

“What’re you talkin’ about, kitten?” Her smile turned even sweeter. The guards were getting closer, so Kon decided to interrupt their- whatever that was. They could continue somewhere else. Also, he demanded explanations. Lots of them - Bart and Cassie probably did too. He picked up Robin, bridal style and all, and stood up with him. He let out a quiet yelp at the movement but held on immediately. 

“They’re almost here.” He rose in the air. Cassie picked up the woman, a bit hesitantly, and Bart held onto Cassie’s legs - he did that more often than not, for fun or something along those lines. And off they went.

“Gotham,” Robin told him, and who was he not to oblige? 

A few seconds later, he sat Robin down on one of the rooftops close to the borders. No one dared to use superpowers much in Gotham, not enough to attract attention. Cassie came down beside him, and Bart jumped off before hitting the ground. “Okay, well, thanks for the rescue, but we gotta go.” he turned to leave, Catwoman watching him from the corner of her eye, smirk still in place. Bart turned back from looking down the building and observing the streets, standing next to them in less than a second. Kon was ready to protest.

“Hold up.” Cassie cut in. “You’re not going anywhere. We need an explanation. Your alarm - the one you had used only twice before, in life or death situations, nonetheless - goes off, and we find you in an underground museum with guards all over the fucking place, without a scratch. That’s not even mentioning the suit.” She took a few steps forward, leaning into Rob’s space, arms folded over her chest. She looked intimidating at best. Rob didn’t seem to think so, face as stoic as ever. “What were you thinking? You give us a heart attack or two, we fly in to rescue you, give you a lift home, and then we’ll all forget about this? About you using the alarm, and doing god knows what in a whole other city, with…” She gestured to the woman, who snorted. “Also, who is this?” Cassie looked back at Rob, eyes squinted, feet planted steadily on the ground. The stare-off lasted a few long moments, nobody daring to interrupt them. Until Rob signed and looked at his companion. A  silent conversation passed between them.

“Alright, kiddos, follow us.” She turned and walked to the edge of the rooftop. “If you can, that is.” She gave them a final smirk before taking out a whip of some sort and jumping off. Rob chuckled and followed. They all moved at the same time. Bart made his way onto Kon’s back mid-jump, and they tried to stay at their heels, using as little of their powers as they could.

They lost sight of them more times than they dared to admit. Kon’s hearing came in handy often. When they caught up to the duo, they were on a fire escape, leaning on one of the windows by the side of a building. As they reunited, Catwoman opened the window and got inside. Rob didn’t hesitate to get inside as well, so they crawled in too. 

The apartment was small, but cozy and lived in, with good furniture as well. As the woman turned on a lamp, she started to drop bits of the suit. When the coverage of her hair came off, she turned to them with a smile. Robin slumped down onto a couch face-first in the meantime.

“Selina. Nice to meet ya. He’s told me a lot about you all.” She sounded warmer and more welcoming. Probably the masks and all. Although Kon was surprised, he hadn’t heard of her till now.

“Oooh, what’d you tell her about us, Robin? Are you a vigilante then? What were you doing down there? How do you know each other? Are you-”

“Bart.” Rob groaned from the couch he was lying face-first on. Selina laughed at him and went further into the apartment, sending the boy a look Kon couldn’t decipher. As if sensing her gaze, he sat up with a sigh. The glasses on his face weren’t perched on his face anymore, and strands of his hair were sticking out of the suit. Bart examined every inch of the apartment - a few things fell but were caught before they could hit the ground. 

“So?” Cassie prompted, crossing her arms once more. Rob sent her a truly miserable look before burying his face in his hands.

“Look, I’m sorry, okay?” He looked up at them while Bart opened one of the cupboards in the kitchen and let out a noise of joy. “I mean, yes, I probably could have gotten out of that situation, eventually, but…” He took a deep breath. “If we fought our way out, it'd- I’m not supposed to be with Selina. Nobody knows, nobody can know, and I can’t let the bats find out, I can’t let Batman find out.” Kon was too stuck on how anxious his voice sounded to process the things he said. Cass sat down next to him, frustration clear on her face, but the hand she put on his shoulder showed only understanding.

“It’s fine, just, don’t scare us like that again, okay?” Rob nodded and opened his mouth to say something, but was interrupted by the items falling onto the table in front of him. His face lit up as he threw the conversation with Cassie out of his mind. He kneeled down on the carpet for easier access to the table. He reached into his suit before pulling out what he searched for, repeating the process with five other pieces of something and spreading them all out on the table. Kon moved forward to get a better look.

“Care to tell me what I almost got my ass arrested over?” Selina sat down cross-legged on the other side of the table to Robin. Bart ran up to him, cereal box in one hand and stuffing the food into his mouth with the other. The owner of the apartment barely spared him a glance. Rob merely flashed her a grin before putting the pieces together. He held up a small ball made out of pointy green plates, still grinning manically.

“This is the first ever computer nuclear bomb created. I’ve been working on a similar device and stumbled upon this when I did my research. No one ever figured out how it works, no one knows who created it, just that it’s supposed to go boom. Which is and isn’t completely correct. It works on the nanotech possibility and travels through a connection. It’s able to blow up and erase whatever part of the internet it is set to. And I mean every single thread, every mention, every single word, disappearing in a matter of seconds. Getting hold of this is far more beneficial than making one from scratch. I can build one based on its mechanisms if it doesn’t work, which it should.” His voice was intense, his eyes looking at the little object with a calculating look. No one dared to interrupt. “Well, I planned on returning it after I figured out the schematics, but guess not.” He snapped back into his usual act, and Kon caught himself releasing a breath he didn’t realize he was holding. He was reminded once again why he didn’t fancy Robin’s crazy scientist mode. Not that Rob wasn’t really squeezable and lovable in that mode.

“And? My payment, Einstein.” Rob rolled his eyes before he pulled out a necklace from God knows where. It looked heavy, rich, and magnificent. The light of the apartment made the gems shine, and Selina snatched it from his hands with a grin worth more than the jewel. “Alright, kitten, we’re even.” She chuckled and examined the necklace with such care as one would a newborn. Kon had a feeling he had seen it somewhere before.

“Wait, is that the ‘states’ best possession’ thingy the Waynes just bought?” Eyes locked on him. “What, it was on Twitter.” He raised his hands. 

“First of all, it’s called ‘Shredded Blood Necklace’. People call it ‘state's pride’ for its history. And well, the Waynes should have guarded it better.” Selina shot him another look, which Robin pretended to ignore. Bart examined the necklace from all angles while Cassie looked at the exchange with sharp eyes.

“Well, kiddos, now that everything’s cleared up, I gotta send you on your way. It’s almost five AM, and some of us have to go to work in the morning.” She smiled their way, not Robin’s, he noted. Cassie thanked her, and Bart spoke to Robin about anything and everything as fast as he could, with Robin able to understand him. Kon was the last one to leave through the window, sending the woman a thank you and saying goodbye.

“Hey, Kon?” Robin spoke up from where he was taking off his belt. Kon had one leg outside on the fire escape as he looked back at him. “Thanks,” he mumbled before turning away.

“No problem, Boy Wonder.” He grinned and followed after Cassie and Bart.

It was only back in the tower that he realized none of them even paused over Robin being a cat-themed bulgar with some kind of mother figure being his mentor regarding said burglaries. They knew Robin was crazy; that was probably why.

Tim was leaning on the wall on the top of a building across from one of the biggest clubs in Gotham. The music was loud enough to irritate and excite him from across the street. He had nothing to distract himself with – his phone and most of the tech had stayed home just in case, and his burner phone and digital upgraded watch didn’t offer much of a distraction. 

Heels sucked for the kind of surface a random rooftop in Gotham supplied. It was starting to get windy, and had he not been used to running across the city in spandex every night, the windy, the rainy, and the snowy ones included, he might have been about to start shivering. The miniskirt and cropped shirt didn’t offer much coverage or warmth. Tim admired those hookers he met whenever patrolling; they were also always working, but unlike Tim, with his resistant clothing, they didn't have such luxury.

And on that note.

There were some fuckers taking advantage of them – of women as a whole, lately. He won’t let any more people die. No matter if it costs him his dignity and pride, and – hell, life. He’ll blame it on Jason’s influence if anyone calls him reckless.

A rush of wind came by, and Kon was standing in the middle of the roof. He was rushed, which made sense considering Tim texted him last minute. He might prefer to do things alone, but he’s not a dumbass. He’s coming to terms with being able to ask for help and having friends and family to ask. There was no way he was asking any of his siblings or Bruce for help with this particular plan. Stephanie probably wouldn’t be super comfortable even if she didn’t say so for his sake. Bart would get too much attention, maybe wouldn’t be able to pull it off quite how Tim imagined, and Cassie would beat all his targets up on the spot. So, Kon it was. Although it was still embarrassing and a huge favor to ask for, Kon was always the person he could trust, no doubt.

Kon took a second to stare his way, and suddenly, even hiding in the shadows didn’t hide him from the super’s stare. He walked forward, and Kon’s eyes followed the movement of his hips. The wind made the extensions get in his face, but it was strangely comforting for him – and if he swayed his hips a little more than necessary, no one had to know.

“I’ve been investigating the recent disappearances in Gotham for the last three months – the individuals abducting the victims are engaging in human trafficking.” At the mention of the crime, Kon’s gaze snapped up to his eye level, focusing in immediately. “The victims are mostly women. Recently, the most common place of abductions has become clubs, especially this one. The criminals lure them in or get them drunk enough, and then they disappear. I’ve gathered photos of the criminals and sent them to you. I need to figure out the names of those individuals and where they keep their victims, at least.“ Kon was nodding along, his brows furrowed, and checked his wrist watch. “You’re here to assure the mission will go smoothly – follow me, and don’t intervene until we get to the final destination.”

“What if you’re in danger?”

“Final. Destination.” Tim warned him. Kon didn’t seem to like that so much. Tim knew he would follow along as long as he was conscious. He fished out two pieces of comms from his bra – his special ones. They were nearly invisible – tiny and put behind the ear. They wouldn’t need them, but Tim knew he would feel more at ease with Kon’s voice occasionally ringing in his ear. Kon took one hastily and put it on when Tim showed him how to. 

They split up. Tim went down the staircase and walked a little wobbly to the club. Kon would follow.

As he went inside, he was hit with loud music, flashing colors, and the smell of more bodies than comfortable.

He — or Veronica — went straight to the bar across the dance floor. She swayed to the beat, brushed past the people, smiled, and threw her hair around. She ordered her drink and sipped it at the bar, looking around and singing the lyrics to the song playing. She let her crop top slip down her shoulder to let her bright underwear show. She scanned the crowd while she finished her drink. When the second one made its way into her hand, she merged in with the people dancing. 

She swayed her hips and jumped up with her footing strong. A few people danced with her, so she laughed and let the music consume her. 

A strong pair of arms grabbed her waist. Tim pushed the discomfort away. Veronica grinds up back into the stranger’s body. She sipped her drink, and the man leaned down to breathe on her neck, one hand slipping down to her inner thigh. 

“Hi, baby, what’re you doing here all alone?” he said into her ear, close enough that it was heard through the music. She just laughed, carefree and happy and intoxicated.

“Don’t got anyone. Wanna be my company?” She turned her face to him. It was the suspect. It had taken the man less time to notice him than he had anticipated. She finished the drink. Tim’s mind started buzzing slightly – he’d be okay, he was trained to withstand poisons and drugs, even alcohol.

The man wrapped his arm around her waist and led her to the bar. He had a tab under the name Sean Gallivay. She was handed a drink, didn’t question it, and made a remark about money and alcohol.

“Rob.” The voice in his ear startled him, but sent waves of warmth and comfort through his body all the same. “Are you sure about this?” The concern in Kon’s voice almost made him back up for a second. Then the man next to him put a strand of his hair behind his ear. He touched his neck and came so close that Tim had to tilt his head up to look him in the eyes.

Veronica took another sip, letting out a ‘mhm’ for the Kryptonian watching, and let her eyes roll back with a moan. “Oh my god, that’s so good, what’s this thing?” she said, analyzing the drink in her hands. The hand at her neck curled at the back of it, and the man stepped in front of her, towering over her with his height. Tim knew he had an upped hand in most situations, and he could always run, strategically speaking, but for a split second, he felt like prey. As if he were looking into the eyes of something promising to eat him alive (the thought reminded him of a recent cannibalistic case he took on from Jason. It was one of the few moments his stomach turned while writing the report and seeing the pictures, the same reaction his body made the second that man got too close.) The mysterious drink was grasped out of Veronika's hand, and then the man’s fingers were playing with a strap of her thong sticking out of her skirt. One of his legs moved between hers. The man's skin on Tim's was sticky and foreign, like an uncomfortable fiber to touch. He pulled on the thong and leaned down to connect their lips.

Veronica was too drunk to react to so many sensations - Tim’s instincts were yelling at him to run.

Their tongues connected, and the man got even rougher, as if trying to get all of her for himself. He wrapped his arm around her to pull her closer, and his hand squeezed her neck. His thigh was pushed between her skirt.

Tears threatened to fall out of Tim's eyes. What's a bird in a cage, weighted down by pure disgust, to do?

He forced his mind to drift. To focus on the mission. His thoughts came back to the Super watching over him, ready to step in when a real danger showed.

“What are you doing?” she gasped out the moment he pulled back, his body pressed against hers. He smiled at her and led her away from the bar – she followed. They walked out of the club, and Tim– no, Veronica found herself in an alley. The smell hit her like a truck, but it was soon overpowered by the man's cologne. It leaked all the way into his brain. For a second, his throat closed up so violently he almost threw up.

“Come home with me, baby.” He pressed her to the wall. The coldness of it, the breeze, and his words altogether sent shivers down her spine. Tim needed to breathe, he needed a second, just a seconnd of no physical touch. He needed to think, to do something, to let him take him where he takes the others, so he could finally get his fucking fingers off of him. ”I’ll make you feel real good.” He kissed her again, pressing his tongue in her mouth. It was like a snake trying to sneak down his throat all the way to his stomach. Maybe lower. She took a second to breathe when he pulled back and tried not to think of his hands in her hair and on the strap of her thong.

“I came here to dance.” She furrowed her brows. Tim hoped he was not shaking.

“You can dance for me. I’ll play you some good music. You can be on top, ride me to the beat. I bet you’d take my cock real good.” She bit her tongue, her stomach trying to push the little she ate to the surface, throat closing up again. Her eyes stung and watered with the force of the bite and everything else around. He breathed into her ear, kissed her neck, and continued without noticing her reactions. “You can keep the thong on. You didn’t expect nobody to notice you with what you got on, did you?” He bit her neck, and she let out a yelp. Her hands definitely started shaking where she kept them at her sides. “Or I’d put you on all fours and fuck you until your arms and legs would give out,” He growled. His erection pressed into her belly. Tim wanted to stab him. He continued to kiss and bite her neck between his words. He pulled her hair and looked down at her. “But you have such a pretty mouth. I think it’d look even better wrapped around my dick.”

Could Tim get away? Would he have any chance against this man, twice his size with muscles all over, pressed between him and a dirty alley wall? 

Yes, you would.

Without weapons, though?

Tim's breath had been coming out in short gasps since God-knows-when. Eyes blurry, hands shaking, skin itchy, and strategic thinking out the window, he felt useless. 

A bird with a set of working wings. But a fragile body and a fear of jumping.

“Are you imagining it? My cock down your throat, you choking around it, crying for me to keep pushing in deeper.” No. No- His other hand traveled up until it reached her mouth. He pushed two fingers past her lips. She closed her eyes, trying to keep the tears back. 

He watched her, she could tell. The silence scared her. 

“Why don’t you try right now?” He whispered, and suddenly she was pushed to her knees. The fall hurt, and the grip on her hair was so strong it was a wonder he hadn’t ripped out the extensions yet. When she opened her eyes, she was eye to eye with his crotch, his fingers working on the zipper. 

Tim had to close his eyes, pushing the bile back down his throat. His skin felt hot, but he recognised the cold seeping into his bones from the air and the ground. One of his knees landed in something wet. The hand was still in his hair, pulling. His head hurt, scalp pinching as if stabbed by needles. Goosebumps spread over his skin, and a few tears fell from his eyes. His whole body was shaking now, he noted absently. He was much more focused on forcing himself to move. The shock and alcohol stopped him from reaching his full potential – his body betrayed him the most it could tonight. He should have talked to the target. Sweet-talk him into taking him home first. Why did he react like that? Why is he...compromised? Why is his whole body jelly? Why isn't he fighting back by now?

It was hard to breathe without the smell of the man's clear arousal sending waves of nausea through his body, but he managed. He raised a shaky hand, catching on his wrist. It felt like the final act.

He distantly heard himself whimper, still not daring to open his eyes, when he heard a quick zip. His body shook with it.

The man’s body went flying to the opposite wall. His hair was released, and he finally tasted clearer air and space he yearned for – something like freedom. Kon stood in front of him, muscles tense, hands in fists as he faced the man lying on the ground. Tim couldn’t see his face, but there was an obvious anger surrounding him.

For a split second, Tim was so relieved he could kiss him. Then it passed. Because Kon hadn’t followed his instructions. 

The mission. 

The mission.

He’d have to do this once more. A couple of days later, with a different disguise and with someone else, because Kon didn’t follow the plan and intervened (even if a part of his mind wished he would).

Tim swallowed once, trying to get his body to start working again, and immediately hurled his guts out.

He heard the guy - Sean Gallivay, maybe - grunt. A gush of wind, and it was quiet. Tim looked up to see the body laying limpless by Kon's feet.

When Kon turned to him, there was less anger in his body language than before, but the concern was visible. Tim sat on his knees, touching the ground in a way that he hoped would ground him somehow. The hair was a mess, he had saliva on his lips and chin, mixed with his puke, and his whole body was shaking. He hadn’t realized tears were streaming down his face until Kon kneeled in front of him and tried to wipe his cheeks. Tim shoved his hands away, finally snapping out of the trance.

“You,” he started, voice weak, and took a breath, wiped his tears and lips before continuing. ”You weren’t supposed to intervene until the final destination.” He tried for his Red Robin voice, but it seemed his body would keep going against him. His breathing was faster than it was supposed to be, and tears kept spilling out of his eyes. Kon, sitting in front of him, just watching and being here didn’t help him contain his emotions either. 

“There were two of them tonight,” Kon started, his voice softer than Tim had ever heard it. ”I heard them talking. One went to you, the other to a different girl. I know where he took her. I helped her, don’t worry. That’s why it took me so long to get here, I’m sorry. I’ve got the guy on the rooftop. He has an ID that looks real.”

Maybe Tim should have taken more cat naps.

He took a few deep breaths and hugged himself. With a little lean forward, he rested his head on Kon’s shoulder. Neither moved. Tim kept himself silent and let the tears run for a little longer.

—

It took way too long to gather enough information and evidence to be able to stop the ring that night. Tim had planned on doing so the same night, but Kon was persuasive. Way too persuasive – that’s why Kon sat on his bed in one of his safehouses, looking around while Tim got rid of his clothes. The heels came off first. He threw the shirt to the side and carefully put away all the things he had hidden in the bra, before taking it off too. He’d have to return it to Steph. The thong, though, would be worth burning.

Knowing who touched it. Knowing how the man touched him, kissed him, and what he was planning to do. He felt the touch burned into his skin. Felt it on his waist, on his thighs, on his hips, on his neck. There was a feeling in his mouth that Tim could not describe, but it made him want to throw up again.

He bared his fists, nails digging into his palms. He told himself he should get over it. He cried once, that was more than enough – he didn’t have time for this. Kon’s eyes burned holes into the back of his head. He should move, behave normally, and wait for the Super to leave. He could sleep it off. Just like he did before. Maybe it was the fact that he was ready to comply, ready to do what the man would force him to. Maybe it was the fact that his mask slipped. Veronica vanished, and Tim appeared in her place. Useless, weak, and on a mission he could not back out of. But Kon was there. He was there because of Tim, for Tim.

He’d wait to be alone to break down, usually. Or set the time for it (because time management was important — Tim was raised to understand that fact — and he always took that seriously). But Kon had been the person he trusted the most in his life. His eyes burned, and his hands shook instead of taking off the rest of his clothes.

“Rob?” The tears fell, and Tim turned to place his back to the nearest solid surface and slid down the closet. The floor was cold, not as cold as in the alley. He hugged his legs and hid his face in his knees. Kon sat down in front of him – the floorboards creaked. ”Rob.” He jumped at the feeling of touch on his wrist. “Sorry,” Kon whispered, and suddenly Tim had the urge to apologize. He just let out more sobs. 

Tim knew he must look like a mess. He knew he should be more careful regarding his identity. He knew he was showing too much emotion. The makeup wouldn’t offer much coverage, and Tim had to take out his contacts. The only piece of clothing on him was the miniskirt, rising up. He paid this no mind – rather focused on crying his heart out, sobbing uncontrollably, and shaking, trying to catch his breath.

But this was Kon, Kon-el, Connor, his best friend and teammate, and- This had to be allowed. So he moved, crawled into his best friend’s lap, hugged his torso, and let the emotions run free. Kon was slow with his touch, but hugged him back around the shoulders, one hand reaching into his hair (Tim held himself so hard not to flinch), running through it gently.

The Kryptonian was warm; he clung to it, to him. Kon was the closest solid object he had at his disposal. His skin stung – as if it wasn’t really his. As if his body was someone else’s, yet too connected to him. He could feel every inch of himself, the breeze on his exposed skin, the muscles under and around him. The gentle touch.

His heart hurt.

“I’ll run you a bath,” Kon said after he had no idea how long. Tim just nodded, but still held on. “Can you get your clothes off while I do?” He made a noise in the back of his throat. It wasn’t a yes, but it wasn’t a no either.

The tears stopped, and all Tim wanted to do right now was to crawl into the bed and sleep. He squeezed Kon once before letting go and standing up, trying to keep his balance. He couldn’t look at the other’s face, scared of what he might see, so he turned around and began searching blindly for any piece of clothing that could offer him comfort. His fingers brushed against a fabric he found similar and pulled out a hoodie. One from Dick, who probably stole it from Jason. He hugged it to his chest as the water started running a room over. His eyes locked in on something in the closet.

After inspecting, he found Kon’s shirt. He had quite a few of those; one seemed to make it here. He put the shirt on without a thought and threw the skirt along with the underwear and a cup inside it, somewhere where he could not see it. The hoodie stayed in his grasp as he made his way into the bathroom.

Kon was inspecting one of the bottles – bubble bath, not looking up at his arrival. Tim stood in the doorway. Clutching the piece of clothing and watching his best friend.

“Okay, so this one’s raspberry and some flower,” he said, shaking the bottle and gesturing to one on the sink. “That one’s coconut with something I can’t pronounce. Which one-” he cut himself off when turning towards Tim. His eyes locked in on the t-shirt immediately. Tim didn’t move, didn’t utter a word, just…waited. He was positive Kon wouldn’t call him out and call him creepy or weird; he could be way creepier and weirder – Kon was always okay with him being like that. Yet, this entered a completely different prosperity. Tim kept his gaze on his best friend’s face. The silence lasted a few more moments before Kon’s eyes moved up, finding Tim’s. “Um, which one? Which one do you want?” His voice sounded tight. Tim brushed it off and cleared his throat before speaking.

“Raspberry one, please.” His throat itched; it came out hoarse. Kon nodded and poured a bit into the bath. Tim put the hoodie on a counter and moved to stand closer to Kon.

Kon mixed the water with the soup with his TTK before closing the tab. The silence was inviting. Tim didn’t want to move; he wanted to hug Kon again and curl up in his arms before reality could hit him like a truck tomorrow.

“Could you help me take out the extensions?” He looked up at him. Kon had a sad look in his eyes, understanding and worried, but so torn. 

“Of course.” He smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “Do you want help taking off the makeup?” Tim shook his head. Maybe if he knew? Maybe if there wasn’t that invisible thin barrier separating Red Robin and Timothy Drake-Wayne. Tim bit his cheek.

Kon moved behind him and ran his hand through his hair before working on taking out the long strands of straight, black hair. It was comforting. He was never so close to anyone emotionally as he was to the Kryptonian.

It was thoughts like this that made him want to burst into the Titans' tower and announce his name to his friends. Show his face, confess who he really is. He knew it would be allowed if he used his words just right, convincing Bruce. He could get away with telling Kon alone, but Cassie and Bart were just as important, and he didn’t want to leave the rest of his team out – this, someone would notice, and it would be a matter of days before B himself would find out. He ached to tell Kon the most. Why, he wasn’t sure.

His head was lighter without the added weight. Kon stepped away from him when he was done. He looked at him a little longer than necessary, while Tim stared at his feet. 

“I’ll wait,” he whispered as he made his way to the door.

“Kon?” he rasped out before he could think about it. He turned back around to face him, one of his hands at the door handle. “Thank you.” He got a strange feeling of deja vu. Kon smiled, a little wider than before.

“No problem.” He shut the door behind himself.

Tim pushed away the thoughts about the night as he took out his contacts and wiped off his makeup. The bath was warm. He let himself lie inside it and didn’t bother to wash his hair. He scrubbed his skin a little more harshly than normal. The strings of sleep started pulling him in, which was a cue for him to get out. He put on the shirt and hoodie with the hood on and left the bathroom as quickly as he could.

All the lights in the flat were turned off. Kon was sitting on the bed, looking out the window. The lights of the city hit his face in such a gorgeous way that Tim had to look away. He took some boxers out of the wardrobe’s drawers and put them on before hurrying to the bed.

Kon watched him. Tim tried to hide his face behind his bangs. He snuggled up under the covers.

“Are you gonna be okay?” Kon asked. Tim didn’t have the answer to that. He spared a glance his way, so that he wouldn’t think he was ignoring the question. “I can stay, if you want me to.”

Young Justice held ‘sleepovers’ and cuddle piles before. Well, they did still happen, occasionally. He fell asleep in Kon’s arms before. There was something so intimate about the request, but Tim wanted. He wanted a good-natured touch, and he wanted Kon. He nodded, barely noticeable movement, but Kon caught it. He picked out some clothes and changed. Tim kept his eyes closed. Before he knew it, Kon was crawling under the covers too, moving closer and throwing an arm over Tim’s waist. It was hesitant. Tim moved closer, right into his body, hiding his head in Kon’s chest.

He hugged him, and Tim realized he felt safe. Cared about, taken care of. Instead of thinking about stupid emotions, he chose to let the darkness wash over him.

He felt the kisses Kon pressed to his hair and how it warmed up his insides.

Kon woke up to darkness. Which was weird, considering it was Summer, so the Sun was supposed to be out by the time he got up. He opened his eyes to a room he didn’t recognize and was hit with memories of the night before. Rob was nowhere to be found.

The only thing that remained was a note in his handwriting. 

‘Sorry. - R’ Was all it said.

He would be so pissed if he wasn’t worried.

Kon didn’t see or hear from him for the next three weeks. It stung, in a way that it always did whenever someone he loved, platonic or not, seemed to ignore his existence. Rob went silent before, but he always tried to tell Kon why, and when he couldn’t, it never lasted more than two weeks. 

So he thought his worries were valid.

He spoke to the entire Young Justice, Clark, and asked Jon to ask Damian. There was nothing. And he knew he shouldn’t worry. He could hear his heartbeat. But that just made him more frustrated.

It was a Wednesday, a normal day at the tower. Red Robin was nowhere to be seen. Kon was sparing with Cassie when alarms blared. An urgent mission, meeting in five minutes.

Both Cassie and Kon rushed to get changed. They met with Bart, Teen Lantern, Jinny Hex, and Amethyst. Bart was running around, Jinny was cleaning her shotgun, and Keli was flying around chasing Bart. Cassie stood by him. It was strangely comforting. Just before the five-minute mark hit, the zeta tube sprang into life.

Robin was rushing into the changing room. 

“There were multiple explosions across the states less than ten minutes ago,” he said. They all followed. He was wearing his domino, but the rest? He had some kind of suit that screamed rich at the top of its lungs. Was it Armani? Rob was fiddling with the cuffs. “New York, California, Tennessee, Florida, South Carolina, Iowa, Colorado and Washington, D.C. are dealing with the most damage right now.” He put the cuffs into his pocket and began to take off the blazer and shirt underneath. “Some explosions released a gas of unknown chemical formula. Batman is on it. Some laid buildings to the ground, and some released some kind of slime or foam. The Justice League is dealing with the worst of it. Impulse, I’ll have you in at least five to six states; you’ll be on rescue. Superboy, you take all the other ones,” he continued, his clothing dropping until they were in the changing room.

Robin assigned all of them their individual missions while he shoved his clothes into his locker and put on his suit.

“Dismissed.” With that one word, everyone scattered. Everyone except Kon. He could take Rob to his location, at least. Maybe ask him a few questions at best.

Kon didn’t say a word; he waited until his teammate was done securing his utility belt, scooped him up, and left in a hurry. The zeta tube teleported them to a state north of where Robin was going. He didn’t miss the way his body was slightly less relaxed than usual, even with the threat they were posing as of now.

“What were you thinking?” he blurted out before thinking about it. His words came out a bit harsher than he intended.

“Excuse me?”

“You left me in radio silence for three weeks. What did you think would happen? Did you not want to see me? Was it you locking away your feelings again?” he kept going, as his voice wavered involuntarily. “Or was it because of your secret identity?” he asked, voice laced with venom even to his ears.

“Kon,” the boy in his arms snapped. “This is not a topic to discuss in a situation like this,” he said, as if ending the conversation there. Hell no.

“I think I have a right to know why my best friend ignored me for three weeks without any sort of notice beforehand. After that night, nonetheless.” Rob kept his mouth shut, body tensing with every moment, so he continued. “You can’t push people away like that, Rob,” he said, disappointed. After everything they’ve gone through together, Robin was still keeping things like this to himself. The burdens he carried may not be visible, but they were there. Kon wished he would let him carry some. “I was worried,” he finished, voice softer. Robin finally looked at him. 

“I’m sorry,” the other offered. There was no explanation, and no promise to give any later, but he took it. In that moment, he promised himself he'd be there whenever Robin needed or wanted him there. Kon was well aware of what secret identities implied, but this was his best friend, possibly his first love, and hell if he won't make sure Rob is doing okay and at least not handling everything by himself. The first course of action would be to be more in touch after they evade the catastrophe happening across their country.

Kon looked down at him, really looked like he had done so many times before, and he saw a little regret rather than discomfort, but also that determined frown, like his brain was already going through every scenario imaginable, and the solutions to those. Kon gave him a small smile before landing on one of the skyscrapers near the scene of the attack.

“Good luck.” He didn’t stick around long enough to see Rob jump off the building. He heard the little ‘You too’ on his way, though. It made his day considerably better. Along with his motivation.

Call him delusional or crazy; he won’t care. A few words from Robin could make his day. 

He was down bad.

—

Tim’s mind didn’t seem to shut up ever since that night. The realization pushed out all the negative thoughts about what happened before he and Kon went to catch some sleep at one of his safe houses, which he was glad for, but it didn’t excuse the fact that he was now over-analyzing every interaction with Kon, his own feelings and emotions, and hating himself at the same time.

How much of a dumbass was he for not realizing he’s liked his best friend for — according to his calculations — nearly two years?

He didn’t know what to do with himself; he had no idea how to act around Kon. Yes, he could act like himself, but that was easier said than done, considering Tim just realized how calm and safe the Kryptonian makes him feel. And checking him out anymore would be even more embarrassing and prone to Kon realizing he likes him.

The fact that he stared and admired him should’ve been the first sign. But also, Kon was a traditional, well-built, muscular guy his age with blue, icy eyes, curly hair, and a hot smirk. And superpowers. How was Tim supposed to know that was — in Steph’s words — extremely fruity? 

So he couldn’t even give Kon a good excuse. 

‘Oh, sorry. I was going through a groundbreaking bisexual crisis, caused by my wettest dream: you, yourself, and I ignored you because the sole thought of your presence made me want to bury myself alive.’

“Just fucking tell him, what’s the deal?” Steph exclaimed. 

“You don’t get it, I can’t,” Tim murmured from his place on the couch. He raised his head from the pillow, muffling his voice. “That’s my best friend. What if he rejects me? What if we break up and he stops talking to me? He’s my teammate. What if he won’t want to work with me anymore? He doesn’t even know my identity. What if-”

“Tim,” Steph interjected to stop him from going on. “He’s your best friend; he’d understand. Besides, you and I worked out just fine after the breakup. Not that I think you’d let him go so easily.” She rolled her eyes, though her tone was soft. “You could tell him about your civilian identity and get his reaction. There’s no way he’d mind, though. You’re a rich, pretty boy with power. You’re a catch. He’d be crazy to reject someone like you.”

Tim sighed and burrowed his head into Steph’s pillow again. 

He couldn’t help but think she was right about some things. She always is, when she’s not a gremlin.

Which brought him here. He, Kon, Cassie, and Bart were hanging out after a while. They were chatting, laughing, telling each other stories. He was happy. Except Kon was sitting so close to him, he had to fight the blush creeping up his neck and force himself to form coherent sentences.

What was worse was the realization that they sat this close all the time. Fuck him.

“Hey, guys?” he got his friend’s attention. “Do you know about the superhero gala in Metropolis?”

Kon tilted his head to the side. Cassie smiled and nodded her head while Bart jumped up from his seat. “Yeah! Of course, it’s what everyone’s talking about right now. Barry said he can’t take me because he’s already inviting Iris, which is so dumb, by the way. I’m the superhero here! And I’ve never been to a gala before; I wanna know what it’s like. Plus, meeting other heroes sounds so exciting, doesn’t it? I asked several people, but they all turned me down.” The boy pouted. 

“Oh, trust me, galas are the worst. And I’ve attended like three at best. I have no idea how rich people do it.” Cassie said and took a sip of her drink. Kon seemed to remember what they were talking about.

“Oh! I was invited, actually.” Bart turned his head to him at inhuman speed. “I declined, though.” Bart’s jaw dropped. “There were no superheroes I knew closely, except Clark; he said he’s going because of his public image. He’ll have multiple colleagues and people he knows there, so I get why he’d choose to show up, though he didn’t look very happy to be in the same building as Luthor; neither would I,” Kon finished while stirring his milkshake with his straw.

Bart made a sad sound as he fell back into his chair. The fact that he didn’t say anything meant he did understand Kon’s reasons. Who wouldn’t?

“I mean,” Tim started as he brought their attention to himself again. “I can get you all in.”

Bart’s sullen expression turned into a huge smile. Cassie raised her eyebrow, “How?” she asked as Bart yelled out an excited “Oh my god, oh my god.”

“I didn’t see Red Robin, or any of the bats on the invitation list, though?” They all turned to him, regardless of knowing he’d answer vaguely, with their attention on him. They were wrong, though.

“Well, we’ll definitely be there.” He smirked. Kon squinted his eyes. The color was so shiny, so alien. Fuck him and his gorgeous eyes. “We should see each other there. The thing is,” he started as he took a sip of his drink. “It’s our civilian identities that will be attending.” 

Kon froze in place. Bart’s eyes got so big and cat-like, as they always did when his brain ran fifty miles per second. 

Cassie snorted. “I see, so you are a rich boy.” Tim gave her a deadpan stare. 

“Ohhh my god, thank you, thank you. Guys, this will be so cool. We can dress up together and get there- wait, is there any theme? Do these things have themes? I’ve never been to a proper party before. Plus, the food and drinks are free, right? Do you think heroes from other countries will be there?”

Tim had to hold back his laughter. Bart imagined those ‘parties’ with rich people, which he had to endure ever since he was old enough to walk, as something to be excited about. Well, this one gala might be easier to get through than the usual ones in Gotham, but regardless. Galas. Ew.

He realized Kon was staring at him as he took another sip of his milkshake. He hoped his quickened heartbeat wouldn’t give him away as he tilted his head to the side. He bit the inside of his mouth as Kon smiled at him. The smile reached his eyes and made them crinkle at the corners. It was adorable. His heartbeat might give him away. He forced himself to look back at Bart and Cassie; the two were arguing about something. Again.

He could not get the image of Kon’s smile out of his head.

It was a week later, after he gave them the details about the Superhero gala taking place in five days, that they were all in the living room of the Titans’ tower, talking, or in Tim’s case, finishing some work on his computer, this time, Wayne Industries-related. 

Tim listened to his friends as he typed away, and checked over for mistakes in contacts to be signed or read through documentation and e-mails. That’s why he heard when they started talking about the Wayne family. He wanted to curl up and die when they started discussing who was the hottest one of them all.

“Okay, I have to admit; even though Cassandra is the hottest one, there’s just something about Richard.”

“Yeah, he’s got the best ass of them all,” Bart stated, matter-of-factly and nodding his head to add to the weight his sentence carried. Tim stared at his long-abandoned computer, contemplating his life choices. “I like Jason best, though. That man could pick you up, throw you over his shoulder, push you into the bed, and fuc-”

Tim slammed his computer shut. Fuck no. At least Bart shut up.

“What, I’d take you for the type to favor Jason.” Tim could barely keep his hurl down on Cassie’s comment. His friends must have noticed his disgusted face, as Bart laughed behind his hands.

“Which one is it, then?” Kon asked him. He looked down at Tim from his position on the couch, face relaxed, one eyebrow shooting up. Tim wanted to kiss him silly. Shut up.

“Which one is yours?” Bart got into Kon’s face before Tim could start thinking about how to sidetrack this conversation or his escape.

“Oh, Timothy for sure.” He smirked. Tim’s heart skipped a beat. Bart started nodding in approval. 

Oh. Oh fuck. Tim's whole universe and world views had just been shattered to a million pieces in the best way possible.

“Hm, yeah, he’s pretty,” Cassie agreed, thinking about it. “Nice body, powerful, in our age group.” Then she smirked back at the Kryptonian. “I knew you’d like twinks.”

Tim, very calmly and put together, picked his ass off the floor and walked away. He could hear his friend’s laughter from meters away. He did not want to hear the rest of the conversation. 

In the safety of his room, he screamed into his pillow, ignoring the burning in his cheeks.

—

Kon, Cassie, and Bart were all standing in front of the building where the gala was held. Well, more likely a street across. The entrance was swarmed by the press. 

Kon didn’t interact with them unless necessary. Bart was usually avoiding them like the plague. Cassie was the one who was pursuing them to woman up and get over it.

“It’ll be like a minute before we get inside.” She rolled her eyes. “You don’t even need to say anything; just smile and walk through with confidence, and they should let you walk by.”

Kon sighed and looked over at Bart. He looked anxious as ever. It was sad to see him like that, considering how energetic he was moments prior. 

Cassie wore a beautiful red dress. It was sparkly and went all the way to the ground; her heels were only visible when she walked. Bart had his mask and a wine-red suit, while Kon decided to wear his hero costume, just like Clark did. 

He took Bart’s hand in his and dragged him forward, flashing him an encouraging smile. Cassie mumbled something along the lines of ‘oh my god, finally’ and they stepped forward. The second the reporters noticed them, they were surrounded by most of the crowd. And there were dozens of questions thrown their way.

“Wonder girl! Are you currently in a relationship with any of your teammates?”

“Impulse, why is it you refrain from doing interviews?”

“Superboy, are the rumors that you know Lex Luthor personally true?”

“Where is the rest of Young Justice?”

“Wonder girl, who are you wearing tonight?”

Cassie did her best to answer questions aimed at them. Kon held Bart’s hand tightly. They walked through, smiling and waving. The flashes on the cameras made his head hurt; Bart was probably in the same state, as he did his best to hide behind Kon.

“It isn’t very nice to overwhelm our guests like this, is it?” A voice rang out over the reporters. Most stopped and turned to the familiar figure. “Don’t you agree, Cass?” Cassandra Wayne nodded from where she stood next to her brother, Timothy Drake-Wayne. The boy smiled as the microphones and cameras turned to him. Kon thought he saw him wink their way. 

The three of them rushed inside as the teenage celebrity started answering question after question, moving through the crowd slowly and confidently.

Bart released a breath as they passed the entrance; Kon felt the same.

The room was huge. There were so many people, some superheroes in their suits, the rest in clothing that gave away only the word ‘expensive’. Cassie didn’t stop; she led them straight to the table with food. Bart immediately popped multiple snacks into his mouth, now smiling happily. Kon threw a relieved smile Cassie’s way; the latter returned it.

They milled around. Greeted some heroes and stayed to chat with the ones they knew personally. Cassie was talking to Wonder Woman, while Bart and Kon were stuck with Barry and Wally.

The conversation wasn’t entirely unpleasant; it turned around the moment Richard Grayson walked up to them.

“Hey, how is my favorite superhero doing?” he purred Wally’s way, swinging his hips as he came to stand next to him.

“Hi, nice to see you again.” Wally laughed. Bart and Kon exchanged looks.

“Hello, I wanted to thank you all for protecting this country. It must be exhausting, with everything that’s happening,” he said politely, still with a grin on his face. “I believe we haven’t met each other yet,” he said their way. “I’m Richard Grayson, though you can call me Dick; it’s a nickname. Do you have the rest of the team with you?”

“Superboy, nice to meet you.” Kon smiled, still a little shocked. “Uh, Wonder Girl is with her mentor, that’s all we’ve got.”

“Oh my god, hi, yeah, nice to meet you. How do you know Wally? I’m Impulse by the way. The rest of the Waynes are here, too, right? That’s so cool.” Bart grinned back. Dick somehow wasn’t thrown off by that, grinning back.

“Yeah, the rest are here too. I think they’d all like to meet you, too. It’s not every day you get to meet so many heroes.” Wally coughed at his statement, though to Kon it sounded more like a disguised snort. Dick sent a look his way, and the speedster quickly looked away. “Such a shame you don’t have Red Robin with you. I haven’t seen any of our vigilantes. Though it makes kind of sense, they’re pretty much creatures of the night or something.”

“Yeah, we hoped to see him around, but he doesn’t really like crowds,” Kon answered, keeping what Rob told them to himself. Bart was vibrating next to him.

“Superboy, superboy, I wanna meet the rest of the Waynes, please, please.” He did his best to shake Kon. The older couldn’t exactly explain how those kinds of people were supposed to walk up to you first — at least that’s what Rob or Cassie would tell them — in front of the kind of person who was supposed to walk up to you first, so he opted to find somewhere ‘private’ enough to explain.

“Sure, sure.”

They said goodbye to their company, and Kon started dragging him to the other side of the room. His plan backfired as Bart laid his eyes on Cassandra Wayne. He was in front of her in a millisecond.

“Hi, your dress is so pretty! I’m Impulse,” he greeted her. Kon sped over to them.

“Thank you. Cassandra Wayne.” The girl didn’t talk much, as the public got to know through the media. She was really secretive, too, but most of the Waynes were.

“Hello, I’m so sorry for him. Superboy. We can go if we’re bothering.” Bart sent a disappointed look his way. Kon promptly ignored him.

“It is fine.” She smiled. Yeah, she was really pretty, he could admit.

“I’ve seen so much about you, well, not much, since, yeah, the press and things are really annoying. It’s so real of you to avoid all that.”

Kon wanted to smack him. In their delight, Cassandra laughed, hiding her smile behind her gloved hand.

“Cass! There you are.” Timothy came to stand beside his sister before he turned to the heroes. “Hi, it’s nice to meet you. Timothy Drake-Wayne.” He smiled their way. When he turned his eyes Kon’s way, the only thing that went through his head was how blue they were.

The guy was one of the few of his celebrity crushes; maybe the only one now that he thought about it. It didn’t help how similar he was to Robin.

The heroes each greeted him, too, before Bart continued to talk about everything and nothing with Cassandra. She said something back, occasionally, otherwise smiling or even laughing at his words. It was funny seeing Bart talking so animatedly and excitedly to the calm girl (who was also much taller than him, even to Timothy, likely because of the heels).

“Thank you for the press thing,” he said to the boy in front of him. He smiled at his words. It reached his eyes, making them crinkle ever so slightly. Adorable.

Hey, he was allowed to admit to someone’s attractiveness. His heart may be Rob’s, but this guy was a celebrity; the appearing in magazines type of popular.

“No worries, I know how stressful it can be,” he brushed it off with a gesture of his hand.

“You looked very confident, though. It seems easy for you.”

“You know what they say; mother is the practice of learning…or something.” He looked to the side and brought a hand to his chin, frowning and thinking about the proper way of the expression. Kon couldn’t help but crack up.

“What?” he asked, chuckling. Timothy raised his eyebrows at him. The expression on his face made him laugh even more.

“Hey, proverbs are very hard.” He pouted. 

“Sorry, sorry. I’m pretty sure it goes ‘repetition is the mother of learning’ though.”

“Eh, same thing.”

Bart wanted to show Cassandra his favorite snacks, so he and Tim — “and call me Tim; I don’t like Timothy, I only use it for people at events like these” — were left alone. The millionaire was surprisingly easy to talk to. He (and the rest of his family, really) seemed way more genuine than other rich people he’s met. 

“Ah, Timothy,” a dreadfully familiar voice interrupted them in the middle of talking about TV shows. It was a useful and interesting conversation; go fuck yourself, Lex.

(He was gushing about Martha the werewolf. Whatever. Tim listened; that’s what matters.)

“Ah, Mr. Luthor. I was wondering when we’d bump into each other.” Tim smiled at him, though it didn’t reach his eyes. His face was different altogether. His eyes were cold, expression cunning, words sharp as knives, yet seemingly sweet if you didn’t look too closely. Kon blue-screened for a moment.

“Hm, I was thinking the same. Now, how many times did I tell you to call me Alexander? I thought we were past those formalities.” He smiled back, just as sharply. 

“You know I can’t. It’d be impolite of me.” Lex’s eyes sharpened. Was Tim implying something?

“I see you’ve met Superboy,” he changed the topic swiftly, and scanned Kon with his eyes. “I wouldn’t take you for someone who would surround himself with such brash people.” Kon was ready to say something back to him.

“And I wouldn’t take you for someone hiding tons of Kryptonite in the basement of your company building. Floor X26, right?” Kon looked Tim’s way in surprise, while Lex stopped at his statement. “Or would I?” He raised his eyebrow. “Nonetheless, we have very different tastes, Mr. Luthor. If I were you, I’d worry about the backlash and stock drop your company is going through as of now, rather than a teenager and his choice of company.” He turned around, ending the conversation there. It took Kon a second to follow.

“Um, so,” Kon started, not really sure where he was going with this. That was terrifying. But also so fucking badass.

“Sorry about that.” Tim adjusted his cuffs, as if he were nervous.

“Sorry about what? That was freaking cool,” he tried to reassure him. It might’ve worked, considering how the boy smiled at him. 

“Right, thanks. Where were we?”

—

They talked for what seemed like hours. Maybe it was, he didn’t own a watch, and there were no clocks to look at. He was worried about taking Tim’s time; his smile and laughter alone reassured him, though. He actually didn’t know where Cassie or Bart were. He was sure he saw them with familiar people at one moment, so he thought they were okay.

“-so I’ve never actually seen it, but there are way too many broken chandeliers in our basement to be normal.” Tim gestured around with his hands. Kon laughed at his stories. It was funny to imagine tiny Dick Grayson swinging on and destroying chandeliers left and right. As much as Jason — the buff, six feet tall, like three hundred pounds mountain of a man — getting into shouting matches over his favorite writer, Jane Austin. “I don’t know why Bruce keeps them. He’s actually pretty emotional about us, though; he still treats all of us like kids. Jason hates it.” He snorted.

“Oh man,” he chuckled. “I never would have imagined a family like Wayne’s being so chaotic. No offense,” he added, remembering he’s currently talking to a member of said family. Tim just smiled back.

“None taken. You don’t know the half of it, though.” He took a sip of his drink. Kon hoped it was not Champagne, though it looked like it. He didn’t know if he wanted to know if that was the case. Kon raised an eyebrow at his statement. Tim’s been spilling secrets — if it could even be called secrets, perhaps mildly public stunts and weird activities they got up to — about his family left and right, so if he did intend the serious, blunt tone he used, it must be crazy living with them.

Kon didn’t know if he was joking, serious, or being sarcastic sometimes. In the way that slightly reminded him of Robin, though his best friend barely talked enough for him to use it as much as Tim did in the span of the time he talked to him.

Maybe the teenage multi-millionaire talked so much because he was aware Kon couldn’t drop as much information. Yes, he talked to him about Superman, Krypto, Young Justice, and some heroes he was relatively close to. What he told him was always vague and left out details as well as overall information. 

Before he could answer, Bart threw himself at him. Had Kon not been part Kryptonian, the tables with food and drinks behind him would have been over and wasted. Cassandra walked over too, all calm and elegant, before touching Tim’s upper arm gently to get his attention.

“Hi, Cass, you okay?” her brother asked, voice gentle. Cassandra nodded before bringing her other hand up.

“Kon! Kon! Guess what, I met more of the Waynes. Jason wasn’t really talkative, but the stare he gave me was- WHOA! You know? Dick dropped by, and there was…uh, Stephanie! Yeah, a family friend, she said. She was really nice, too. Mr. Bruce didn’t talk to me or anything, but I saw him talking to Superman! Did you meet anyone, too?” Bart started jumping around in the middle of his ramblings.

Kon spared a look towards Tim and Cassandra, recognizing the Sign language they were talking through, but not understanding. He knew a few phrases and could fingerspell at max. “Nah, I was mostly talking with Tim.”

“AH, my favorite twins! How are y’all doing?” A blond burst in, hugging Tim and then focusing on the food around. “Oh, Superboy! Hey, I’m a big fan. Stephanie Brown,” she introduced herself and grabbed some rolls, stuffing them in her mouth immediately. “Mhm, the’e ‘r’ ‘eal’ goo’,ma’.”

Tim laughed at her, while Cassandra watched with mild interest. Bart, too, zipping by and eating the same ones Stepanie did.

“There you are! We were looking for you guys all over the place. It’s bigger than it looks.” Dick came to stand by them, too, hugging his sister with one arm as he did. Tim gave him a weird look, to which Dick grinned even more. It was getting crowded in here, Kon thought.

“Ugh, it is,” Cassie grumbled from next to him. He didn’t flinch, no. He totally knew she was standing there. Cassie raised an eyebrow at his reaction (there wasn’t any).

“What is this, a family reunion?” Tim mumbled, though it was heard by most of the people present.

“Thank god nobody invited Bruce.” Jason was throwing food into his mouth. It was fairly impressive for a human. The youngest of the Waynes didn’t think so, judging from his expression.

“Have you ever tried acting like a civilized human being, Todd?” Damian Wayne scoffed.

“Why would I?” the man answered, shrugging. Damian’s frown only deepened as he removed himself from the conversation, walking around the table to stand between Cassandra and Tim.

Kon wondered if they were supposed to be witnessing this. Bart didn’t seem to have a problem. Cassie started talking to Stephanie when she finished her food.

“I don’t know how you guys survive these things,” sighed the newest member of their family as he draped himself over Dick.

“Oh, c’mon, it’s not that bad.” The oldest of the siblings laughed as he petted Duke’s hair.

“It is, Damian left me with Ms.Gabon; she introduced me to all of her friends,” he whined. Tim snorted at this as he and Damian shared a look.

The younger one crossed his arms. “You were a worthwhile sacrifice, Thomas.”

“Demon brat,” Duke mumbled as he stared daggers at the younger. 

Wow, sibling love. Kon was suddenly really glad to have Jon. And he really wanted to get away from there right now. He was not used to dealing with this. He was social, sure, but not like this. Cassie was occupied, Bart was enjoying the show, and there were no other people he knew. Tim was right in the middle of his family. Not that he knew him knew him, but…it would be better than nothing.

“Jason, I think you jinxed it,” Steph said, dread seeping into her voice. Everyone looked the way Stephanie was looking. It was no other than Bruce Wayne walking their way, swaying on his feet occasionally. 

The second he got to them, he hugged Jason. Kon saw his eye twitch. “Oh my, all of my babies together!” He smiled as he released his son, walking around the table to get to the rest of them. Damian so much as hid behind Tim. Stephanie dragged Cassie to stand next to Kon as she hid behind both of them.

“Uh, what?” he whispered, more to himself than anything. Tim caught his eyes and shook his head, a tight smile on his face. He didn’t know if his expression was horrified or bored, but it seemed to be one of the two, or combined for every single one of the siblings. Except maybe Cassandra. Kon saw Duke slip under the table.

“Cass! I haven’t seen you for so long. How are you, sweetie?” They hugged, and Cassandra whispered a little ‘good’ into his shoulder. Bruce petted her hair. That didn’t seem so bad.

Bruce let his daughter go and opened his arms towards Tim. “No, thank you,” the teenager replied. Okay, damn, that’s brutal. Bruce’s arms lowered as a smile slipped away from his face, his eyes getting all big. Puppy eyes?

Bruce gave up after a few more moments, now close to crying. Tim took a sip of his drink as he watched Bruce collide with Dick. Brutal for sure. Damian tightened his hold on Tim’s suit. Kon was pretty glad the father didn’t seem to notice the young heroes standing by. 

“Oh, uh, hi, dad.” Dick greeted him awkwardly as the man started sobbing. He looked at Tim with a betrayed expression, pointing to his dad. Tim simply shrugged. Dick’s jaw dropped. ‘What am I supposed to do?’ he mouthed at his sibling. Stephanie snickered from behind them, looking over Cassie’s shoulder. Jason was smirking, too. Bart was starry-eyed, still stuffing food into his mouth like popcorn.

“It’s your turn, dickhead,” Jason whispered in a mocking tone. Duke was peeking from behind Jason’s side of the table. Dick frowned at his brother and mouthed: ‘You all owe me one’, gesturing with his hand as he did so.

“C’mon, c’mon, it’s okay, you know how Tim is. We can go outside for a bit, or would you like to talk to anyone? How many drinks did you have anyway? You shouldn’t drink so much, you know this.” Dick started talking in a comforting tone as he dragged the man away. There were multiple releases of breath as they left out of their earshot. Dick still threw them a glare over his shoulder. Damian stepped away from Tim, pretending that he had never hidden behind him in the first place.

“Brutal,” Bart commented, eyeing Tim. There was a grin on his face that made Kon think they might not have such similar thoughts.

Tim turned to him with a matching smile. “Thanks.” What a little shit. Kon likes him.

“So, that went great,” Duke commented as he leaned on Jason instead.

“Why does he ask you for permission?” Jason as much as growled towards Tim, grabbing more food. 

“He asks Damian, too. I don’t know, maybe you’re too old.” He shrugged.

“C’mon, ya know he looks at him like he’s thirteen still.” Stephanie jumped up at the table with food, ignoring the look Tim and Damian sent her in favor of taking more food. “Where’s your teammate, by the way?” she asked, turning to him and Cassie, still standing in the same place. Kon was really trying to figure out what had just happened to process the question.

“Red Robin, you mean?” Cassie asked. Stephanie nodded her head, food in her mouth. “He was the one who granted us the invites, actually.”

“He said he’ll be here,” Bart interrupted, cutting Cassie off from what she wanted to say next. They were used to it by now, but that didn’t mean that Cassie and Rob always lectured him on how rude it was. “But like, without the mask and all, which is kinda rude, considering we don’t know his identity, so we have no way to actually talk to him. Not that we would need to know his identity, but at least he didn’t have to tell us he’d come, you know? It’s sad here without him enough, especially when you know he’s somewhere.” He stuffed more rolls into his mouth, frowning.

The Waynes were, exceptionally, quiet for a few moments.

“Maybe I wanted you to figure out yourselves.” They all turned to Tim. “It was a clue for you to, you know, look.” Kon listened to his heartbeat for long moments, trying to look for anything that could mean he lied. It was then that he realized he knew the heartbeat by heart. 

The roll fell out of Bart’s mouth.

“You really gonna drop the bomb on them like that, huh?” Jason chuckled as he passed him, ruffling his hair as he went, Damian following, with that scowl of his on his face. Duke only sent him a wink as he disappeared into the crowd. Cass smiled and took Steph by her arm to leave, too. God knows Steph would be far too interested in this to leave by herself.

All of his teammates stared at him in shock. Bart was blinking way too fast, with his mouth still open. Cassie was eyeing him from head to toe, possibly analyzing and connecting all the dots she could. Kon just stared, mostly at his face. Tim stepped forward to close Bart’s mouth. 

So, they knew.

Tim wondered what he was going to do with this.

(He knew what to do, he made up the plan, the steps, and orchestrated everything to work out in his favor, while also ensuring no one around would hear, not even through camera mics in their area that he had disabled hours prior.)

They didn’t actually have to know how much of this was planned out and how much wasn’t.

His heart was calm moments prior. Their shock forced it to speed up.

Oh god, he did it, didn’t he?

He tried to tell himself it wasn’t a big deal. He also tried to get himself to tell them his identity for years. He didn’t know what it was that made him so scared of doing it. Nonetheless, it didn’t matter now.

He needed to get them out of here; that’s what’s important right now.

“C’mon.” He gestured with his head and walked to one of the balconies. His teammates followed. He caught a glimpse of purple near the door as Kon closed them behind himself. 

He didn’t know what to do with himself. They were still staring. He hoped they’d say something already.

“Rob?” Kon’s voice came first. Tim turned around and leaned on the stony railing. He forced himself to meet their eyes and smiled.

Bart sped forward to hug him. If he wasn’t used to it, he might have been over the railing already. “Oh my god, oh my god, you almost gave me a heart attack, you know how hard that is? Yes you know, oh my god, you're a Wayne. That’s crazy, okay, I never expected that, what the hell?” Bart looked up at him. Tim laughed and petted his untamable hair.

Before he could say anything, Cassie joined in on their hug. “Thanks for trusting us.”

“Yeah,” Kon added as he spread his arms all around them.

“I trusted you all a long time ago,” he murmured, more into the wind than aimed at his friends. They knew.

The hug lasted longer than necessary. Bart was still reluctant to let him go.

“Anyone up for a flight to Gotham?” he asked as they separated. Bart whooped and jumped onto Cassie’s back. She caught him effortlessly. 

Tim smiled as he stood up on the railing, Cassie flying by in the direction of his city. 

“You ready to go, Wonder boy?” Kon levitated next to him, offering him a hand. Tim eyed him as Kon waited, and proceeded to drop down from the balcony.

Then he was in Kon’s arms, already moving forward. Kon’s TTK spread over them like a blanket. Tim lay his head on his chest for a while. “I hope you aren’t mad about the disappearing thing,” Tim mumbled after gathering enough energy. Kon looked down at him briefly as he avoided his eyes.

“You know I can’t really stay mad at you, right?” Kon chuckled.

Tim didn’t know what to say to that. 

He opted to stay silent, enjoying the warmth the Kryptonian was providing, listening to Kon’s heartbeat and hoping his wasn’t too fast. 

He could relax and spend the night with his friends, the closest ones he had. A second family, one might say.

He felt so relieved. 

(And safe and warm, though that really is only Kon’s fault)

“Wait. Does this mean the Waynes are Bats?” Kon exclaimed, his eyes wide, voice a little strained.

He burst out laughing.

“Bruce Wayne is Batman?” More horror seeped into his voice.

Tim’s giggles didn’t stop until they reached Gotham.