A SINNERS SONG → DICK GRAYSON

00 | the results are in ... you're bruce's kid!

"How many times will I have to counter that name, Margaret?" Augustine's voice fell barely above a whisper, but it was enough to make the woman laugh. "Seriously, it's August."

"I've known you since you were a newborn, Augustine. You're always going to be Augustine to me." Augustine rolled her eyes in response, closing the open books on the desk. "Your mother asked for me to wake you, she said you were shadowing her at the hospital today. She figured you would want some time to get ready and study for the procedures you're set to watch in today."

"Did she give you a list of what those procedures would happen to be?" Augustine glanced over to Margaret, eyes slightly narrowing as she tried to think about any specific surgery her mother had scheduled. Though, to be fair, Augustine did find it hard to study any procedures in preparation when shadowing her mother. Her mother was a trauma surgeon, so she would fill in for different general surgeries when needed but there was never a specific schedule of routine surgeries her mother completed. Augustine often found herself studying the most outlandish procedures for a "just in case" moment that might or might not happen.

"She wrote some down for you here," Margaret placed them paper down onto the desk. "And then she said to remind you that after your shift tonight, Bruce Wayne will be joining us for dinner."

"Bruce Wayne?" Augustine looked back up from the piece of paper. "Why is he joining us for dinner?"

"That is a question better suited for your mother, Miss Augustine." Margaret bowed her head before turning on her heel to leave the room. Augustine watched her figure retreat to another part of the mansion before returning to the list of surgeries her mother had written down. She tapped on the desk softly, typing many of the procedures into her computer to do some research before forcing herself to get up and get dressed.

Sitting her purse down on the counter, Augustine riffled through the fridge for a water bottle and for something to eat (not that she normally ate breakfast, she just knew her mother would have scolded her for not eating something before going into the hospital). Settling on an apple from the fruit bowl on the kitchen island, Augustine jumped up onto the counter. Her legs dangled slightly as she kicked them out, taking a bite out of the apple. Harlow walked in past Augustine, grabbing the mug of coffee off of the counter, giving her daughter a smile. Augustine gave her mother back a blank stare, blinking a couple of times before she put the apple down on the counter. "So, Margaret told me something interesting."

"Oh yeah? What did she tell you?" Harlow leaned back on the counter, quirking a brow in question.

"She said Bruce Wayne is coming here for dinner," Augustine hopped off of the counter, placing the apple core into the trash. "Then I got a cryptic response for the reason behind why he's coming for dinner."

Harlow set her mug down, turning to face the counter with a sigh. She thought for a moment, Augustine figured her mother was calculating a response. It was a game that the two played, tiptoeing around their words, and it was one they were both good at. Like mother, like daughter. Harlow moved back to look at Augustine, arms crossed over her chest. "It's better if we leave that conversation for tonight."

"Better? Or is it just more convenient for you to not talk about it now?" Augustine quipped back, shaking her head at her mother.

"Let's leave this conversation here before we go in to the hospital."

"Should we?"

"Yes."

"Alright," Augustine nodded.

"What classes are you taking next semester?" Harlow tried to make small talk with her daughter, the comment falling flat in the tense air in the kitchen.