Everyday Hero

Visitors

"Unde este Tim?" "Where is Tim?"

This time, Wally spoke up.

"Sleeping, believe it or not. Or at least he's supposed to be. Alfred won't let him leave until he has a consecutive eight hours of sleep."

Dick raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah. That's what we thought too. The day you get that kid to sleep that long at once, is the day the Joker decides there's more to life than hurting people for a laugh."

Dick snickered at that, allowing his eyes to once again graze over the paper.

"Sunt bine? Bruce și Tim vreau să spun." "Are they alright? Bruce and Tim I mean."

"Yeah, Dick, they are fine..."

Wally's eyes glanced at the newspaper at Dick's side.

"You need to stop reading things."

Dick rolled his eyes playfully before all heads turned towards the door as another knock came from it.

James's head popped in.

"Excuse me Richard, but the Rowan family is here."

Artemis looked back at Dick, tilting her head a little.

"Do you want us to leave?"

'That's the last thing I want...'

"Nu, poți rămâne. Va trebui doar să-ți faci loc." "No, it's okay. You'll just have to make some room."

They nodded and quickly got up, moving to the side of his bed, leaning against the wall and window.

As soon as they had settled a man and woman with a young boy and baby girl entered the room.

The man had red hair and light brown eyes, his wife had blonde hair and dark blue eyes.

Their children were a perfect mix of the two of them.

The boy had sandy hair and his mother's eyes. The girl, had the same sandy hair as her brother, but had her father's eyes.

The baby was nearly asleep but the boy was bouncing on his heels, eyes wide and gleaming with admiration.

"My name is Asher Rowan. And this is my wife, Odelia. And our children Dillon and Gwyneth. We wanted to come see the man who saved us."

Odelia adjusted the baby in her arms and gave him the biggest smile, full of gratitude.

"We can't even begin to thank you for what you did, Richard. You... saved the lives of our children. I don't even know how to express our gratitude enough..."

Dick raised his head and smiled at them.

He didn't bother to speak. Having Wally, Artemis, or Kaldur translate would take too long.

And quite frankly, may make this visit even more awkward.

The little boy, Dillon, simply couldn't contain himself anymore and jumped up to sit on Dick's bedside.

He was a little shocked at first, kid can move, but then he grinned as the boy proceeded to talk his ears off, not realizing he wouldn't get a response.

"You were so awesome! The way you came through the fire, jumping over furniture-- it was so epic!"

Everyone in the room started laughing at the boy's excitement, filling the room with a happy warmth that has not been present nearly the entire time he's been in the hospital.

"A-and then you took Gwenny out of her playpen and held me at the same time, oh and then when you jumped out of the window-- oh that was so cool!"

The boy paused for a breath and then suddenly looked Dick in the eye.

"Hey... how come you're not saying anything?"

Dick's smile abruptly vanished.

"Dillon, he can't speak right now--"

Dillon's head swiveled from his mother back to Dick. A glimmer sparking in his eye.

"Oh, I'm sorry. Are you mute?"

Dick opened his mouth and then closed it quickly.

"Dillon!"

'Well, in a way...'

"That's okay! My best friend, Jak, is mute. But I can understand him just fine! It just makes you even cooler!"

Dick's smile quickly came back, kid wasn't trying to be invasive.

He was just a curious little kid. Like he had been himself.

"Jak and everyone else at school think you're a hero. And you are, you're my hero!

Dillon glanced at the paper on the other side of Dick.

"Oh wow! Nightwing is so cool too!"

Wally raised an eyebrow, a glimmer in his eye as well.

"He is, huh? What do you think of the other heroes?"

Dillon looked at him briefly before returning his beaming face to Dick.

"They're all super awesome, but Nightwing is the best! He's my favorite!"

At this point, both Artemis and Kaldur were trying not laugh. And Dick...

Well, to be frank, he had the biggest shit-eating grin on his face.

Wally glanced at Dick and, noticing his face, quickly feigned a mock expression of betrayal.

Dick turned his gaze back to his "biggest fan" and ruffled the boy's hair gently, eliciting a delighted laugh from the young boy.

Smiling broadly, he leaned back into his pillows, his eyelids starting to feel heavy.

His pain meds were starting to kick in.

"C'mon son, we need to let Mr. Grayson get his rest."

The world around him started to darken and he faintly heard movement from his other side.

"We need to get going too Dick. But I'll be up in the morning..."

He faintly heard Wally speak, he only gave a flick of his wrist in response.

Then he was out like a light.