Family Ties : A Batfamily Story

Chapter 55

Thank y'all for dealing with my flaky ass self. No promises it won't happen again, but please Enjoy and Savor this for as long as it can last!

POV Jason

I've fucked up, like big time. Tim, he trusted me not to tell anyone and now I've told anyone. What the fuck is wrong with me? It's all I can think as I race to Wayne Manor, cars honking as I cut in front of them. 

The memory of last night hit me like a tidal wave. I had slept in, not my intent. It was long past noon when my pounding headache finally forced me awake. The sun was already setting over the tallest skyscrapers of Gotham harbor by the time I forced myself out the apartment door and chugged down what probably was an illegal amount of Advil. Even at top speed Wayne Manor is thirty-seven minutes away. Thirty-seven minutes for Tim to find another reason to hate me. For him to decide he can't stand the sight of me. For him to forget me.

God, please don't let him forget me! He is the best thing that has happened to me since I got back to Gotham. Something about the way he looks at me, not as a broken man or a monster, but just as a person. A fucking human being. Now I know he will never look at me the same. I've killed everything good we had with one fatal blow. 

I knew this would happen. I shouldn't have let my heart take over, like that ever works out. I ruin everything I touch.

The looming drive way appears ahead of me just as the last sliver of sun is swallowed by the horizon. I turn sharply down the gravel road, pebbles and dust kicking up in my wake. And as I see the strong steel gates ahead, I turn off my headlights and pull off the main road. Though my memory of last night is a hazy mess, Dick's seething eyes are their, along with the prominent shiner Damian gave me. Last thing I want is their attention

I park my bike beside the wall of the left-wing, the weakest point in the Manor's defense system; at least back when I lived here. Scaling the courtyard's walls and landing on the opposite side with a roll, I race for the manor's wall and began my climb. My best bet of finding Tim's room is the second floor, where most of the bedrooms were built. I curse myself for not bringing more gear before rushing through the door. To be fair, I was trying to avoid a certain ginger and little sister. He's probably furious with me, and I can't even imagine how Robyn feels.

But I can't worry about that now, I have to fix this first. I have to at least try.

Jesus, all the rooms in this fucking house look the same. But just as my fingers start to lose all feeling to the cold of Gotham's falls, I find him. The second widow down from the west corner, yellow light of candles flickering through the over sized windows of the mansion. Inside the room is a mess, but I expected it of him. Overflowing laundry baskets topped with the stained files no doubt stolen from the Bat cave's collection. In the middle of the room stands his bed surprisingly made (probably by Alfred). He sits there, in just a tee-shirt and boxers with a long winter blanket draped over his shoulders. 

My breath catches as I try to think through the noise. He hates you, go home, it screams at me, he's already forgotten about you. And I want to listen to it, go home, probably wake up tomorrow even more hungover. I'd try to forget about him, the best I could at least. Avoid him at every turn but I know I'd miss him every waking hour. He's done something to me I can't explain and I never want to go back.

Taking a shaky breath, I tap on the window.

His eyes dart up like a cat's ears. They run to the window before settling on me, my eyes against his. Then they harden like stone and my heart breaks.

"Tim, please!" I yell through the glass pressing my palm against the cold surface. "You don't have to let me in, just let me say-"

"-Say what, Jason?" His voice is distorted through the glass, yet somehow it still manages to cut me deep.