Things Don't Change

"we'd never see each other"

Batman's POV 

Y/n was sitting in the interrogation room all by herself and Tim watched her from the other side. The poor girl fell asleep in the chair. She went through hell that night and I could tell that she just wanted to go home, but we couldn't allow that. 

"Get Orphan" I said to Alfred. "I'm on it " he replied to me. "Tim" Red Robin turned around and faced me. "You're going to talk to her, and sort this out" I continued while adding a mic to his uniform. "I don't think I'm the right person for this" he replied to me. "You're the one who knows her the best" I explained to him. 

Orphan's POV

"You called for me?" I asked Batman. "Yes, Red Robin's gonna talk to her, I just wanna know if she's being honest" he explained to me. "Okay" I replied to him. 

We stood outside the interrogation room and I started making mental notes about the girl. She looked about the same age as me and Tim. Whoever she was, she was very tired and I could tell that she wasn't letting go of something. Just by looking at her sleeping I could tell so much about her.

"Y/n, get up. I need to talk" Tim gently woke her up, not trying to irate her. 

She slowly lifted her head and rubber her eyes. 

"What did you say?" Y/n asked Tim. "We need to talk" he repeated himself. 

Y/n sat up and I noticed that she had crossed both her arms and legs. She didn't wanna open up to Tim. 

"You don't need to get anything outta me Tim, I won't tell anyone who you are" she explained. "We aren't sure about that" he explained to her. 

Her face showed an annoyed expression. 

"Listen Tim, I don't care about what you do with you life anymore" Y/n slightly raised her voice. 

I saw that she was blinking a little faster than before, showing that she was distressed. Tim tried to remain calm but her words were getting to him. 

"What were you doing in that basement?" he asked Y/n. "Do you really think that was intentional? I was walking home and this guy shoves some stuff in my face, it wasn't chloroform" she explained. 

That was true. 

"She isn't lying" I said to Tim. 

He tried not to react but I know he heard me.

"Did you know those men prior to tonight?" Tim asked Y/n. "No, I didn't" she replied. 

Y/n looked at Tim's chest for a second and she saw the mic, causing her to scrunch her eyebrows

"You're joking" she said in a low, but upset tone. "What?" Tim asked. "He's hearing our entire conversation right now, isn't he?" Y/n figured it out. "It's for safety reasons" Tim replied to her. "Bullshit!" she yelled at him. "All I wanna do is go home, I have been through way too much for one night, do you think I have the energy to do harm? Do I look like I care about what the hell you've been doing with your life?" Y/n lashed out.

Tim tried to keep himself calm but that was getting harder and harder every time Y/n spoke. 

"Do you ever stop and think about how much your words hurt Y/n?!" Tim yelled. "Do you ever stop and think about how much it hurt me when you left?" Y/n yelled, tears forming in her eyes. "I couldn't say anything because I wanted to protect you; I had my mom lie to you just to keep you safe and yet here you are in Gotham!" Tim went on. "Janet lied to me! I saw the pain in her eyes that day, she looked heartbroken and she lied on your behalf. Do you realize how much you've left behind and forgotten just to become Robin?" Y/n asked him. 

Tim stayed quiet for a second. 

"I never forgot a single thing Y/n! You've been here for what? Four years and you just gave up and never went back home and you wanna tell me about my mom? I'm almost sure that your parents want you back home, because I know they're the only other people you care about Y/n!" Tim was really mad, no one ever saw him like this. "I only gave up because I thought we'd never see each other again" Y/n was fuming.

 "It's not like it's any of your business, but I've been dreaming of seeing you again for five years Y/n! I took this job because I wanted to help other people like you helped that day in fall thirteen years ago. You think I forgot Y/n? I've always looked up to you and wanted to be as brave as you" Tim confessed. 

Y/n's POV 

My eyes welled with tears after hearing what Tim said to me. He looked up to for years and this is what I've become. 

"...you're way braver than me" I said to Tim. "What are you talking about, I know for a fact you weren't scared of those guys. Even when they threatened to kill you" he said. "That was one time, you do this every night and always come back" I said to him. "Are we good Y/n?" Tim asked me. "I'm sorry but things can never be the same between us, no matter how hard we try" I explained to him before opening the door to the interrogation room. 

Tim followed me out and I saw Batman and some other vigilante. 

"Y/n you can help us, you can become one of us" Tim tried to convince me. "I can't, this is still way too much for me. I just wanna go home" I said to him. "You're safe to go home, but we'll have to do mandatory check-in's on you" Batman explained to me. "What" I asked a little annoyed. 

"We'll check on you once a week until it's safe" Batman said. "Oh wow, so stalk me?" I asked him. "You put yourself and Tim in danger because you know who he really is" Batman explained. "Fine, just don't make it creepy" I said to him. 

Tim's POV 

Y/n left after what felt like hours. She was so tired of everything and part of the reason was because of me. 

"How do you know Y/n?" Cassandra asked me. "We've been friends since kindergarten" I told her after taking a sip of coffee. "What you said was entirely true, why do you look up to her so much?" she asked. 

I hesitated to answer but then I gave in, Cassandra was family and I trusted her. 

"She's always been so brave and bold and I became Robin out of love and admiration" I said, looking down so Cass couldn't see my eyes. "You still love her" she stated the obvious. "I know" I said to her.