Rowan walked into the living room of the cave where everyone was. They had just cleaned up after training and it seemed everyone was wiped out.
"What are we watching?" Rowan asked as she sat down in between Wally and Conner. She quickly grabbed popcorn out of the redhead's bowl, causing him to whine.
M'gann spoke up, "The Hangover."
Artemis chuckled to herself, "With the hottest man ever, Bradley Cooper."
"Hey!" Wally groaned, but all his girlfriend did was pat him on the head with a smirk.
Suddenly, an idea popped into her head. Rowan grabbed the remote and hit pause on the tv, causing outcries to fill the room.
"Hey, hey, settle down," She gave everyone a smirk, "Why not have a little hangover for ourselves?"
Conner shook his head, "Row, the gods are coming in less than a week. Everybody just wants to sleep while we wait for our impending deaths."
"Oh, shut it, Con." She noticed some heads still watching her, "We can go to a bar and just drink the night away." Rowan locked eyes with Dick, but for some reason, he looked away. She could tell that he had been ignoring her for a little, but she had no idea why. "One last night."
There was a pause in everyone's movements, causing Rowan's breath to stop. But, then a series of agreements spread over the room, making her smile.
The members of the first Young Justice League stood in front of the bar. Thor had begged to come, but Rowan told him once he reached the same height as her, he could.
Rogue gave them each a smile, "One last night."
The rest of them nodded and repeated, "One last night."
Rowan clinked a shot glass with Artemis and then downed it. They had been there for at least two hours, but everyone was out of it. M'gann was dancing in the crowd, while Conner watched. According to him, Conner had broken up with her, but not because of the assumed cheating. But, she was messing up with the bad guy's heads, just like what happened to him back in Cadmus.
Artemis grabbed her hand and led her to the dance floor. They danced until their feet nearly gave out from a mixture of alcohol and exhaustion. Rowan made her way over to Conner with a sly smile on her face, "So, Con?"
He grunted, "So, Row?"
"Why aren't you drinking?" She slurred, "Tonight has to be the best night ever."
Conner shook his head, "I can't get drunk."
Her jaw dropped, "You're fuckin' with me."
"Nope," He looked down, "I'd rather be at the cave with everyone than here."
Rowan clenched her jaw in anger. But, not in anger at him, but at herself. Why did she only think about herself sometimes?
"I'm sorry, Con." She nudged him slightly, "We can go back now—"
"No."
"Why not? You want to—"
Conner shook his head, "It's fine, Row. Go have fun."
"No."
The boy huffed, "You can be a child sometimes, y'know that?"
The girl giggled as she leaned on him, "Says you."
"Uhuh."
The best friends stayed like that for a while, just people-watching. They spoke sometimes, but only to ask if the other was okay or to make fun of somebody's dance moves. That's when their eyes caught Artemis and Wally making out against one of the back walls.
"Ew, I didn't think they were one for PDA."
Conner chuckled, "He looks like he's eating her."
Rowan laughed at her friend's words, "How could you ever date someone who kisses like that?" The boy just shrugged, not knowing why either.
Aqualad and Rocket came over to the duo, holding hands, "Is it fine if we head back?"
"Go on. Have fun, but not too much fun!" Rowan giggled at her joke as they walked away, "Text me when you get home safely." The two nodded and left the building.
"Home?" Conner looked at her, a small smile on his face.
Rowan nodded, "Yes, home. The cave is my home, is that a bad thing?"
The boy shook his head and gave her a side hug, "No, it's not a bad thing."
Rowan never had a home. She always believed it was Dick to be her home, but then she left him. So, she decided to find a new home at Olympus, but it wasn't truly a home, was it? It was just a place where her worst memories were stored.
So, she found a home within herself. She was independent and didn't rely on anyone else for safety and comfort. But, then Rowan arrived back at the cave and realized that she wanted that same feeling somewhere physical, so she could hold on to it, close to her chest. That was the cave.
It was where she had met her family, where she trained till she was no longer able to walk, and where she had cried until she couldn't because she felt safe there. The cave was where she was most vulnerable, but Rowan was okay with that.
Because the cave was her home.
"Rowan, can I speak with you?" Her eyes met the ocean blue and it calmed her slightly in her dizzy state.
The girl nodded, "Of course."
He hesitated, "In private?"
Rowan looked toward Conner to see him nodding, saying he will be fine there by himself. So, she looked back to Dick and signaled that it was okay. So, the duo walked out the back door of the bar into the nice breeze of October.
"What are you doing?"
Rowan was a little taken aback by the question, "Excuse me?"
Dick sighed and took a step back from her, "I mean, what are you doing here? We know you want to leave, so do it."
"What?" The girl tilted her head slightly in confusion, "I-I don't want to leave, Dick. This is my home—"
"Is it?" He shouted, causing a wall to slowly build itself within the girl, "You left and then you come back like everything is okay when it's not!"
Rowan hesitated for a moment, "Why didn't you say this earlier?"
"Because I'm trying to figure out who you are!" He breathed in heavily like he was starving for more oxygen, "Who even are you?"
Rowan paused; she didn't even know the answer to that question. She wasn't Abbadon or Rowan, not even Rogue anymore. But, she answered in the best way she could, she yelled back, "I don't fucking know anymore! I'm clearly not Rogue and I'm no longer on Olympus, so I don't fucking know, okay?"
Dick stood there and watched her break down. He wasn't expecting her to blow up, but at the same time, he needed answers. "Did you even think of us? At all? Or were we just simple obstacles you decided to play with?"
"My gods, Dick. How dull could you be? Every single day I thought of you guys. Every one of you was my family and every time I was tortured or fought, it was for you. I didn't even know what family was until you guys came into my life, Dick!" She breathed in a sigh and looked up into the air, trying to put this into better words, "The saddest part is, I can't even go a day without seeing you. In Olympus, I had to keep telling myself that I would see you someday or I would go crazy. And, when I finally saw you, I wanted to go on my knees and apologize for everything I've ever done wrong." Rowan met his eyes and saw how he had a hardened stare now, "Every time I'm away from you now, I feel as if I can't breathe and I'm back there. Because without you, there are no more means to go on at this point. You are my person, Dick. You may not think of me as such, but whenever I see you, I feel lighter even if it's been two years to you." Rowan didn't dare let the tears in her eyes overflow, but she had to show she actually meant this, "You can tell me to leave and never speak to you again, and I will do so. But, please, save me the embarrassment of you telling me you don't love me. I don't think I can handle-" The girl was caught off by his lips on hers. Once she realized he was actually kissing her, she responded back eagerly.
It was like the world was finally lifted off her shoulders. Every burden that she had about this fight she was leading, disappeared once his lips met hers.
His hands grabbed onto her hips, while hers found their way to around his neck. He slowly moved them back to the brick building of the bar, her back hitting the solid material. But, once they finally released each other, he looked into her eyes.
"I'm so sorry—"
All she did was nod with a small smile, "All is forgiven if you kiss me like that again, Boy Wonder."
He did as she said.