batfakes | (no subject)

[ Adjusting to life in the past wasn't the hardest part about any of this. For the most part, Terry could live without the automation and the other conveniences future living brought to Neo Gotham. Of course, he had to learn how to work a coffee maker that wasn't voice activated and use a manual elevator and remember to use cash because he was pretty sure if he tried to swipe his cash card, he'd be arrested. But it wasn't all bad. Not ideal, but not bad.

So if anyone asked, he'd be quick to tell them. It wasn't hard living retro. It was hard living with Bruce friggin Wayne. He'd always thought the old man was a hard ass, no question about it. But he also got a break from him. He got to go to his own home and sleep in his own bed and maybe sometimes have a social life if his own little merry band of misfits decided they'd behave long enough he could see the inside of a night club.

He thought - stupidly, foolishly he knows - that maybe a younger version of Bruce would be. He didn't know. Mellow? Chill? Not so tightly wound? But he was none of those things. If anything, he was more intense than ever. He'd spent hours interrogating Terry, vetting his story, confirmed what he could of it, looking at the suit and checking the tech in it. And at the end of it all, he still suspicious.

Terry supposed he should have been grateful Bruce hadn't just kicked his ass and tossed him into Arkham the second he popped into existence and claimed he was Batman from the future. And he was! He was even more grateful when Bruce agreed to help him get back to where he belonged. But that meant sitting tight. And it also meant no more Batman of the Future.

He tried. Terry really did and for a while, he was kind of glad to have the time off. There was time to catch up on sleep. To see movies and hang out with the other Bats, when they had the chance. He learned how to boil water and make tea from Alfred, instead of relying on a electric kettle to do it for him. It was nice seeing Bruce's life when it had people other than himself in it. But after a while? It got old. Really old and he found himself itching to get back out there again. When Bruce said no, it made Terry feel like he was going to lose it. He didn't have to be Batman, but Bruce couldn't keep him locked up in the manor forever.

But that was exactly what Bruce intended and that's how Terry found himself on the doorstep of Dick Grayson, after his latest clash with Bruce. It'd been a particularly nasty one and he just needed a few days to cool off. So he packed his shit (he didn't have much) and left. He's leaning against the frame of the door when it opens. ]

Got room for one more?

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[ Dick's well fills Terry up with anticipation. He sucks in a quiet breath, more than when he was having his wound looked at. What might come after it makes his heart beat a little faster. He really hasn't felt like this since...well it's been a long time. Truth be told, it's exciting to be desired, if that's how Dick's feeling and Terry's not reading too much into it. ]

No complaints so far.

[ Judging by the way he tilts Terry's chin up and the way he looks at him, he's not reading too much into it at all. Maybe he's underestimating it a little bit. It's a defense mechanism, you know, if he comes to senses about this. And so the heartbreak that might follow wouldn't sting so bad. Dick doesn't look like he will and that's confirmed when he leans for a second kiss. It takes a moment, but his confidence grows the longer they linger in the kiss. And when he's feeling bold, Terry loops his arms around Dick's neck. Just so he'd know what that feels like too. ]

[ It's a subtle thing, but Dick is pretty sure that Terry seems tentative, if not a little (pleasantly) surprised that he's being kissed again, but that thought gets temporarily shuffled aside in favor of focusing on the warmth and taste of Terry's lips, and how nice it is that he can take his time in appreciating that, without worrying potentially deceptively dangerous head wounds. There's still recon to do after his little escapade with Kobra, he hasn't forgotten about that either, but they'll get to that too. It wouldn't be a good idea to go back in tonight anyway, and they'll probably spend that long chasing their tails trying to figure out how Terry got out anyway.

So he's back to the realization that this is better than nice. That it's way too easy to let his thumb trace a line down Terry's throat, feather-light, while the rest of his fingers curl around the side of his neck.

He still shouldn't let himself get carried away. ]

I should probably let you shower.

[ When he pulls away, which he hasn't yet, and lets this go, if Terry lets him go and no one mentions it again... then that's probably for the best, right? ]

[ It's only tentative for now. He's not ready to commit until he's sure where things between them are heading. Sure, he could ask and he probably should. But there's something awkward about being direct like that so soon. He's impulsive about a lot of things, rash when patience would better serve. It hadn't ended well with the last relationship he allowed to happen too fast. He didn't want to make that mistake again - especially not with Dick.

Not that he'd call kissing on a toilet a relationship specifically. But neither of them seemed to be adverse to seeing what might happen if they took this a step farther. ]

Yeah, I could use one.

[ but he doesn't let Dick go, arms still resting on his shoulders. ]

Might need someone to wash my back for me. If you're up for it.

[ It may be too soon to call this anything in particular but it's definitely something. Dick has kissed more than his fair share of attractive women that he barely knew, and it didn't necessarily mean anything other than there was a mutual attraction between them, but a guy? A part of their extended 'family,' someone he feels protective over, much like he would with another Robin? Yeah, it's all different.

He's more tempted than he would have expected at the suggestion, he's abruptly confronted with the idea of hot running water and how smoothly he could slide his hands over Terry's chest and hips and... everything else with it coursing over them, just touching.

He's already let this get so far away from him.

There's an obvious pause as he lingers, long enough for another slow kiss before a quiet exhale, and he does pull back, a slightly wry smile quirkiness his lips. It's as much at himself as this whole unexpected situation. ]

I'm pretty sure I'd be more of a hindrance than a help. You go ahead, I'll wait for you.

[ He needs a shower too, he'll get to that eventually. Later. Probably when Terry isn't actively distracting him so much. ]

[ Sometimes, he still expects Dick not to take him too seriously. He's got that habit of being a bit mouthy and a lot of times it works for him. When people think of Batman, they think of that stoic, intimidating shadow with eyes. Not a guy like him. He's not built like Bruce and there's no cape and Joker told him the ears were too long (they're not). And he talks. A lot of times it's irritating, throws them off so he can swoop in and deliver the metaphorical kill shot.

Other times, it doesn't and that's alright. Sometimes he takes a bomb to the back. He still won that fight. This time? He gets a kiss out of it. So not a total loss.

As Dick lingers, Terry takes the opportunity to smooth his hands through Dick's hair, even though the actual feel of it is lost while he's still wearing the suit's gauntlets. It's just the motion of it, the tenderness of it. The smile is nice. It certainly doesn't diminish how handsome Dick is. He doesn't want him to go, but understands why he does. Things are new. They should go slow. Figure out how to navigate so it doesn't backfire. It makes sense and Terry won't argue it. ]

Alright, Boy Wonder. [ he finally pulls his arms away so he can start getting the suit off. ] Try not to miss me too much while I'm in here.

[ It is new, Terry's young and inexperienced, especially compared to how much he's gotten himself into since he was even younger, it just wouldn't feel right to keep going past a certain point. It's not that he thinks Terry would have trouble saying exactly what he wants or doesn't want, but... well, it's always harder to tell when it's all caught up in a moment. He's been there, and while he would never say that he's ever taken advantage of that, or been taken advantage of in any way, he has kissed a few people who, in hindsight, he probably shouldn't have. It's a different kind of trouble.

It's hard to imagine this being a regret. but... who knows how things could change when they're not coming right off of an intense situation, when they've had a chance to clean up and get some sleep and see how things feel in the morning.

He has to chuckle when Terry calls him by old nicknames. To be fair that would be ancient history for him normally, he just happens to be living it here and now. ]

I'll throw in some clean clothes for you in a minute.