Darkness

Abusive relationship

Melissa's POV
After my date with Levi, I rushed into the house after Damian told me what was going on. I got in between babs and Dick, and I slammed Babs against the wall, and she had a magic rope sticking her to the wall. She was squirming. "Melissa, get me out of here!" Dick was rubbing his throat, and there were fingerprints all over him. There were fingerprints on his wrists as I inspected him. There were marks on his throat and chest. "Th-they're just hickeys." He said, noticing how worried I was. "Dick, I can tell they're not just hickeys. How long has she been doing this to you?" I asked, holding his wrists. "She doesn't normally do this. Only when she's drunk. She really does love me. Besides, it's my fault for ticking her off." He said, defending her. "Grayson, it's not your fault. It's hard to fight back against a woman, considering people would take her side if they found out." Damian said. I nodded. "Yeah. Damian's right. She shouldn't be hurting you like that, Dick. You gotta break up with her, dude." Babs started trying to manipulate him. "Dick, I love you. I can be better." She said, sounding sincere. "See?" Dick asked. I shook my head. "Dick, I can't make your life decisions for you, but you gotta hear me out. I'm your cousin, practically your sister. And as your sister, it's my job to protect you. And you know I only want what's best for you. You know that, right?" He nodded. "And you know that I'd never give you advice if I wasn't confident it was good advice. You know that, right?" I asked. He nodded. "But, I believe that she can get better. Hailey needs us to be together." I sighed. "Jason and Kim aren't together, and Laney's turning out great. If you guys must, you could alternate weeks or weekends or something like that. It'll make your life hell and Laney's life hell if Babs doesn't get better. It doesn't seem like she will, so you've gotta make a decision." I replied, looking at him with sympathy. "I...I..." he looked into my eyes, then behind me. I turned around to look at Barbara. He rushed over to her and ripped the rope off. Barbara kissed him on the lips, and I stared at them. I was in awe at his decision. How could I get him to break up with her? "Dick, please. She's only gonna do it again. I can tell that she's an alcoholic." I didn't know how I missed it before, but now I could tell this wasn't a one time thing. He wrapped his arm around her waist. "Sorry, Star, but I love her, and I believe she can get better with my help." I sighed. "Dick, we don't get much time together anymore." I moaned. "I know, but Barbara doesn't like me hanging out with other girls. Especially pretty ones." He replied, folding his arms to his chest. "I'm your fucking sister! Nothings gonna happen between us!" I exclaimed. "I should be the most important girl in his life." She said. Tears formed in my eyes. Dick was one of the most important people in my life. We were always there for each other, and we never gave up on each other. Even the when I got depressed and it seemed like I wouldn't get better, he was there to help. When I was feeling like a disgusting person, and I felt like I was a slut, he was there to  remind me that I wasn't completely worthless. When I felt like all I was good for was being raped, Dick was the main reason I kept going. "Dick, you cannot be willing to throw our relationship out of the window." he sighed. "I'm sorry." I hugged him tightly. I held my head to his, and I held his head in my hands. "What the hell are you doing?!" Barbara asked. "Who's ignorance is that? I think I know. Its owner is quite happy though. Full of joy like a vivid rainbow, I watch him laugh. I cry hello." Our eyes both started glowing. He smiled. My wand appeared in my hand. "I won't let her take you away from me. Break up with her and make her leave us be!" I exclaimed. I aimed my parasol wand at Dick. A black ray shot out from the wand topper, and blasted him. He stood there for a minute. He ran over to me and squeezed me. "I'm sorry, Star. I can't believe that I chose Babs over you. I would never want to stop hanging out with you, especially for an abusive bitch. Can you ever forgive me?" I nodded. "Of course I can. I couldn't stand to see you in a relationship like that." I replied. Barbara was getting extremely angry. "Dick, you belong with me!" She grabbed his wrist tightly. He whimpered, and I could tell she was irritating his current bruises. "Barabra, stop!" I punched her in the face. She was forced backwards and she held her face in pain. "Barbara, get out of here. We're through." Dick said. I was so happy he was finally standing up to her. "You're nothing without me! Soon you'll see how much you need me!" She stormed out of the house. There was a loud thud and Dick flinched a little at the sudden noise. "Are you alright?" I asked in a soft voice. He nodded. I started glowing purple. He stared at the front door. "What's wrong?" He looked at me fearfully. "What if she comes back?" He whispered. I teleported us into the bat cave. I led him to my outdoor garden connected to the bat cave. A plant lifted him up in the air. Another one lifted me into the air. Once I was at his level, I smiled and held his hand. "Dick, she won't come back. And if she does, we'll protect you." I replied. He nodded. "Thanks, Star. I just...I feel weak for letting a girl have so much power over me. Normally, I'm very strong mentally and physically, but after all of this, I just feel weak as hell." I put a hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry, Dick. You're not weak, and it's not your fault." I assured him. He put his hand on my hand while it was on his shoulder. I started working on his injuries. I healed his bruised wrists and the fingerprints covering his throat and chest. "Mind if I check your torso and stomach?" I asked. He shook his head. "I don't mind. Go ahead." He replied, lifting his shirt up. I looked over it, and he was free of bruises and marks. "Okay, you're clear now." I said, lowering us to the ground. Once we landed on the ground, he pulled me in for a hug. I felt so secure and safe in his arms once again. I could feel that he needed it, too. I grinned as he kissed the top of of head. He ruffled my hair a little bit. "You've got a little afro going on." He commented, playing with it. "It's so cute." I laughed. "I never thought of my nappy hair as being cute, but thanks." I said. He wrapped his arm around my shoulders as we called through the bat cave. "Your hair isn't that nappy." He replied. He glanced at me before walking up the stairs "Melissa, thanks for being there for me." He said, smiling. "I love you, dude. If you're in a dangerous situation, I'm always gonna do my best to get you out of it." I replied. "I love you more, Star. Merry almost Christmas." I smiled and put my head on his shoulder. "Merry almost Christmas." I replied. Once we were back in the manor, Bruce was on the couch, clearly waiting for us. "So, Star, you went on a date tonight, and Dick, you broke up with Babs? Why don't you kids tell me anything anymore?" I rolled my eyes and Dick laughed. "I just got done healing and comforting Dick. Babs was being a bitch." I said. I sighed as Dick and I plopped down onto the couch. "Want to tell me what's going on in your love lives?" Dick rolled his eyes. "I'll start. Babs has been drinking too much, and she's an abusive drunk. She came by the manor drunk, and she was fighting with me, and she roughed me up quite a bit, but luckily, Star had been right outside, but I may have interrupted a kiss." He said. He smirked at me. "Are you alright, Dick?" He nodded. "A little shaken up, but we're done now, and Star really helped me through it." He replied, looking down at me as I leaned into him. "And Melissa? How was your night?" I grinned. "It was amazing. Levi is such a sweet guy. He's into the music I'm into, and I could feel that he liked me for who I was, not just because I'm the queen. He's best friends with Emily, Jazz, and Lindsey's boyfriends, so we can all hang out together. I had such a great time with him." Bruce smiled. "You sure you're ready?" I nodded at my father figure's question. "Of course I am, Bruce." I assured him. "Alright. Well, I'm gonna go up to bed. Goodnight, I love you both." He got up and kissed both of us on our foreheads. "You sure you're alright?" Bruce asked. Dick smiled and assured him that he was fine. I snuggled into him and wrapped my arms around his torso. "Star?" He asked, his speech muffled because of his face in my hair. "Hmm?" I asked. "I'm gonna need so much counseling." He said. "I'll be with you every step of the way. I'll go to your sessions if you want, too." I offered, putting my hand on his. He kissed my head. "Can we go to bed?" I nodded. "Do you want to sleep with me? Or do you want to sleep by yourself?" He thought for a minute. "Will you sleep with me?" I nodded. "Of course. Let's go." I teleported us to his bedroom. I led him to his bed. I laid next to him, and I watched as he slowly fell asleep. Eventually, I fell asleep, still a little worried about my brother.

Half an hour later
I woke up, and I rolled over to my left side. I noticed Dick was tossing and turning in his sleep. His face contorted into one of fear. He was panicked and stressed. "No...please..." he muttered. I tried shaking him awake. He started moving around even more. I pressed my hand to his heart, and it was beating really fast. It seemed like he was having a panic attack. I tried shaking him once more, but he wouldn't wake up. "Babs...please." He said. Tears sprang to his eyes, and I felt so bad for him. He started clawing at ha throat, and he seemed like he was struggling to breath. I shook him some more. "Dick! Wake up!" I said. Eventually, I decided to press two fingers on his forehead, and he suddenly popped up into a sitting position. He finally woke up. Tears were streaming down his face like waterfalls. I held him close as he calmed down. "Ssshh, it's okay, you're alright." I rubbed his back in circles. I put my hand on his hand, and rubbed my thumb on his hand. He leaned into me. "It's okay. You just had a nightmare. She can't hurt you." I said, shushing him some more. "I've got you, dick. I'm right here." He wiped his tears away, and I smiled at him. He put his head against mine. "Don't worry, my little bird." He laughed a little. "I love you, Star. Thanks for helping me calm down. This whole thing with Barbara has got me messed up." I empathized with him. "Of course. You're gonna be psychologically messed up, considering what she did. But I promise that you can heal from this." I replied, pulling our heads away from each other. I looked into his blue eyes. His eyes held so much hurt and fear. "I promise you, Dick, that I'll do whatever it takes to help you through this." More tears welled up in his eyes. "What's wrong?" I asked. He pressed his head against mine again. "Nothings wrong. I just can't thank you enough for helping me see that she wasn't right for me, you know. Me and the boys are grateful that you're always here to help us dumbasses navigate through our relationships." I smiled and laughed. "Well, I mean, you'd all do the same." He smiled and nodded. "Damn right we would." He laid back down, and I followed. I snuggled into him, and wrapped my right arm around his side. He faced me and kissed my forehead. "Love you, Star. Thank you for being the best sister ever." He said, grinning. I was so glad to be able to help Dick out. "Thanks for being the best brother ever." I replied. Dick closed his eyes, then opened them again. "Dude, you want an edible?" He asked, reaching into his nightstand. "Hell yeah." I replied. I knew that with time, Dick would get better.