Work Text:
“Making up problems that don't exist
Why do I let myself dream like this?
We're floating away, my body's in space
We are going home”
Jason hated Halloween. He was pretty sure he’d always hated the holiday, though he couldn’t quite remember.
The Marcus Casino was packed, which wasn’t much of a surprise since it usually was. It seemed the only impact Halloween had on the establishment was that everyone milling around the slot machines and poker tables were dressed in costumes, some extravagant and elaborate, some obviously last-minute.
But Jason wasn’t here to gamble or participate in any asinine costume contests. He had a job to do and he wasn’t going to allow himself to become distracted by the way some of the waitresses looked at him as he made his way towards the back of the casino where a nondescript door guarded by a large security guard awaited him.
The man said nothing to Jason as he stepped aside and opened the door for him. He supposed the man didn’t have to ask if he was on the list; the red helmet sort of gave it away, after all.
Jason made his way deeper into the room, his eyes taking in the hidden nightclub he’d just entered. It was pretty run-of-the-mill, with a bar positioned off to the side and a stage the centerpiece of the area, a pretty woman who was probably far too young to be there dancing on a pole for some men in rumpled suits, their fists full of cash that they eagerly shoved into the lacy thong she wore, her hips gyrating more and more with each bill.
It made Jason absolutely sick.
There were other girls similarly dressed, each seemingly competing for the world’s sluttiest costume trophy. Some were simple, just black lingerie with a pair of cat ears nestled in their glossy hair, while others seemed to have more elaborate get-ups. Jason watched silently as the women went about their jobs, serving drinks to the disgusting men or sitting on their laps, fake smiles plastered against their faces as large, offensive hands roamed up and down their bodies.
“Red Hood. So glad you accepted my invitation.”
Jason looked up to see the owner of the casino, Roland Desmond, a huge, hulking figure in a tight grey suit, his long platinum blond hair tied up in a ponytail. There was a smile on the man’s face, but it felt more predatory than welcoming.
“Desmond,” Jason greeted, his voice mechanical from behind his helmet.
“I was worried you wouldn’t show, but it just seems as if you’re the type to be fashionably late.”
“Traffic,” Jason lied. “The freeway from Gotham was a bitch.”
In all actuality, Jason had been at one of his safe houses going over the case once more. He liked to be extra prepared when it came to human trafficking cases. There was always too much at stake not to be.
“Of course,” Desmond’s smile widened. “Can I get you a drink? Perhaps a girl?”
Jason wanted neither of those things, but he nodded anyway. Demond snapped his fingers and almost instantly a red-headed woman who couldn’t have been much older than Jason appeared at his side, her costume by far the sluttiest rendition of The Little Mermaid Jason had ever seen.
“Ruby, get our guest here our finest whiskey.”
“Yes, Sir,” Ruby said, turning to leave for the bar. Jason could make out a tattoo on her neck as she moved: her name and a barcode in stark black ink against her pale skin. Desmond caught Jason’s gaze and chuckled.
“Makes it much easier to keep track of… merchandise. Just scan and go.”
Jason’s stomach twisted into violent knots. “How convenient.”
Desmond’ muscular arm wrapped around Jason’s shoulders as he led him towards a table that had a good view of the stage. There was a small place card that deemed the table reserved and Jason assumed this was Desmond’s personal one.
“We have girls of all shapes and sizes to choose from. A few boys too, if that’s your style. They’re the girly types, you see, but a good deal of our clientele likes that. I’ll never understand it, but I suppose I don’t have to to make money.”
Jason wanted to be sick as Ruby came back, depositing two glasses of whiskey on the table.
“Just look around and if you see one you like, they’re all yours.”
Desmond sipped at his expensive whiskey as Jason left his untouched, his eyes narrowing behind his mask. He was just the distraction, he reminded himself. All he had to do was keep Desmond busy down on the floor while one of his bugs ransacked the office. Yet somehow, Jason couldn’t help but feel like he got the hard job.
The girl who had been performing on stage took a bow as men threw more money at her, her nimble fingers collecting it expertly. Jason watched her leave the stage, another woman appearing quickly to relieve her of her duties. Jason allowed his eyes to wander for a few moments before feeling disgusted with himself.
“C’mon, baby, shake that ass for me!”
Jason’s head jerked rapidly over to the loud voice that seemed to echo off the walls of the club, though no one else seemed to pay any attention. He supposed outbursts such as this were common.
“Sorry, sailor, my shift just ended. I’ll catch you when you’re back in port.”
Jason couldn’t help but feel like he knew that voice from somewhere.
He watched a man dressed in a sailor’s costume attempt to wrangle one of the workers back onto his lap, though their back was turned to Jason so he couldn’t get a look at their face. Jason couldn’t really even tell the gender of the person, especially in the revealing fortune teller’s costume they were dressed in, their long black hair and tanned skin the only recognizing features he was able to make out.
“What’s one more dance, c’mon! I’ll pay double!”
The worker twisted their wrist in the man’s grasp, but if anything it only made him tighten his hold.
“Sorry, I-”
The man’s other hand was on their ass now, grabbing it greedily from under the short blue skirt the worker wore. With each movement, the coins sewed into the hip scarf they wore jingled lightly, accompanying the sounds that rang from the bells attached to gold bracelets on their wrists and ankles.
“Five minutes, gypsy. Call it overtime.”
The man’s hand released their wrist and started burrowing under the white cropped peasant shirt they wore, the short sleeves cuffed tightly against their skin that glistened with gold body glitter under the dim overhead lighting.
“Sorry, sailor, I think your ship is-”
The man drew his hand back and slapped the worker across the face. It wasn’t the most brutal slap Jason had ever seen, but it would definitely bruise and it had to have hurt.
“Hey!”
Jason stood, Desmond’s eyes watching him curiously. His gaze followed Jason’s and he chuckled at the scene before him.
“Sapphire giving you a hard time?”
“Stupid bitch won’t do his damn job.”
The worker took that opportunity to scramble off of the sailor’s lap and Jason was finally able to see his face, his cheek already turning red from the slap as his hands balled into fists at his side.
Jason could swear his heart stopped.
“My shift ended fifteen minutes ago and he slapped me,” Dick Grayson said accusingly, his blue eyes even brighter as they stood out from the heavy eye makeup surrounding them.
Jason was frozen in place as he watched his older brother, dressed in a way he never thought he’d see him. There were bruises littering bare skin, peeking out from the terribly offensive costume he wore. His hair was pulled back with a bandana, coins hanging delicately off the edges of the tassels. The top he wore stopped right under his pecks, leaving his entire toned stomach exposed and the belly ring he sported on full display. With each movement he made, the bells and coins attached to him chimed, the golden jewelry moving delicately as he swayed slightly on his bare feet.
“You know the rules,” Desmond said, his eyes stern as he looked at the man. “Get out of here.”
The sailor wasted no time in grabbing his coat and throwing a few bills on his table before nearly running towards the exit. Jason still couldn’t take his eyes off of Dick.
“As for you,” Desmond turned his attention back to Dick. “You know better. If a customer is willing to pay, then you’re staying past your shift.”
Dick looked jaded at the man’s words. “But I’ve been on my feet for twelve hours-”
Desmond backhanded Dick. Jason knew this one was far more intense. He didn’t need to see Dick fall to the ground to know that.
“God, you might have a hot ass but you never know when to shut up, do you, gypsy?”
Dick’s fingers wrapped around the edge of the table as he forced himself back onto his feet.
“I’m sorry, Sir.”
“You will be,” Demsond rolled his eyes. “You’re entertaining our guest here for the rest of the night.”
Dick looked at Jason with something that might have been fear. Jason didn’t want to think about it.
“And you’re going to behave, or you’ll be on private room duty for a goddamn month!”
Dick tensed at Desmond’s words and Jason tried not to let his mind wander about what they entailed.
“Emerald!” Desmond shouted and at once, a small girl with bright green eyes was by his side. “Go get Sapphire ready.”
Emerald nodded, her eyes turning to gaze at Jason.
“Any requests, Sir?”
Jason could feel three sets of eyes on him, all waiting expectantly for him to tell them just exactly how he wanted Dick’s night to go. It made him sick.
“Surprise me.”
Dick’s eyes hid in them something wistful in nature as he was ushered off towards the backstage area to be prepared.
Jason simply willed himself not to down the whisky still waiting patiently on the table.
Jason hadn’t seen him since he died.
Well, he’d seen Nightwing, he supposed. But Jason didn’t count the meetings he had with his family members when they were under masks and cowls. It seemed… wrong to, especially since they had no idea who he was.
For all they knew, Red Hood was just a new Gotham crime lord who found it fun to stick his nose into their business that he knew just a bit too much about. And that’s all Jason needed them to know. That was all he wanted them to know.
It’d been a few years and this was the last place he expected to find anyone he knew on a first name basis.
Especially Dick Grayson.
He’d expected to maybe run into Nightwing that night. Blüdhaven was his town now, after all. But Jason didn’t think for a minute he’d see the older man without a mask, let alone working the floor at Desmond’s less-than-legal nightclub.
No, this was all wrong.
Dick wasn’t supposed to be here because now Jason was distracted. Now he couldn’t focus fully on the mission because now he couldn’t help but worry about what bullshit the golden child had gotten himself into this time around.
A part of Jason wanted to just ignore the new variable in the equation. Another part told him he should save his sorry ass.
He wasn’t sure which part was more logical.
The hallway was lined with doors, all identical save for the number attached to them. They all had signs that either read “occupied” or “unoccupied” in large red letters. The worker whom Desmond had left him with, a brunette by the supposed name of Opal, if the tattoo on the side of her neck was to be trusted, stopped him in front of a door suddenly, opening it wide to allow Jason to enter.
“Mr. Desmond says you may have as much time as you wish. His treat, Sir.”
Jason looked at Opal, not quite ready yet to see what awaited him in the room.
“Thank you.”
Opal seemed a little surprised by his manners, but quickly regained her composure and nodded.
“Is there anything else I may do for you, Sir?”
Jason dug some cash out of his pocket. She obviously needed it more than he did. He handed it to her and couldn’t help but think he was probably the first to do so instead of stuffing it into the straps of her lingerie.
“No, that’ll be all.”
She accepted the cash and went on her way, her heels clicking loudly against the walnut hardwood flooring of the hallway.
Jason forced himself to breath as he checked the progress of the bug he had stationed in Desmond’s office. It had downloaded about twenty-nine percent of the files he needed, which meant he still had to stall for time. With a deep sigh he folded his leather jacket sleeve back over his watch and entered the room, the door closing behind him softly.
It was small but elegantly decorated, with red wallpapered walls and oil paintings accented by velvet curtains. The main centerpiece of the room was the king sized canopy bed, which was where Dick was already sitting, his back to Jason as he messed with something he couldn’t see.
“Sorry, you’re kinda early,” Dick’s voice rang out. He turned and Jason was able to see that he’d been making him a drink. “Whiskey?”
Jason didn’t want it, but he accepted the glass anyway, taking in Dick’s new attire.
Gone was his terrible Halloween costume that Jason knew for a fact had to have pissed Dick off. His makeup had been fixed and Jason could see someone had put concealer over the hand-shaped bruises that had begun to show on his cheeks. They’d taken the hair extensions out too, so his hair curled just a bit past his neck instead of all the way down his back. Jason could see the tattoo on his neck now that he had less hair covering it. The barcode made him feel like he was in the middle of a terrible nightmare. It looked so out of place and foreign against Dick’s tanned skin.
Like it didn’t really belong to him.
Like it wasn’t permanently etched into his skin for the rest of his life.
His outfit was, at least, less offensive this time around, though it was still odd to see on Dick’s toned body. It looked good and in any other situation Jason might have poked fun, but he couldn’t even bring himself to think about doing so.
Everything about this just felt… wrong…
Dick attempted to position himself into a more seductive position, but Jason could tell he was nervous, his fingers gripping the duvet on the bed tightly. The lingerie he was wearing was a light baby blue with a myriad of ruffles, laces, and bows adorning it. The bralette he wore had two bows right where his nipples would be and the bottoms were a small, flowing skirt that was so short Jason could see the entirety of the matching pair of panties, a few layers of ruffles extenuating Dick’s ass. The skirt was attached to a pair of lacy garters, though they didn’t hold up any socks so Dick’s bare, obviously waxed legs were on full display.
His belly button piercing was a sapphire and matched perfectly with the necklace and earring set he adorned. His nails were short and trimmed, painted a blue that nearly matched his eyes perfectly.
“You have me as long as you like, Mr. Hood,” Dick said in a sultry voice, his legs drawn up and his head resting gently against his hand. “How’d you like to start?”
Jason put the glass of whiskey down on the end table.
There was no way he could do this.
He slipped out of his leather jacket and tossed it at Dick, who jumped and yelped a bit in surprise when the heavy fabric hit him.
“Jesus, put some clothes on, please.”
Jason wasn’t paying attention to Dick as he looked at his watch once more, trying to will the progress bar to go faster. It was seemingly staying strong at thirty-four.
“Fuck.”
He looked up at Dick again. He was frozen on the bed still, Jason’s jacket laying in his lap as he looked at Jason in utter confusion.
“Usually people want me to take my clothes off, not the other way around.”
Jason rolled his eyes under his mask.
“Just… put the jacket on.”
“Whatever gets you off, man.”
Dick slid his arm into the jacket and Jason couldn’t help but notice how sensually he did so, as if he was still attempting to perform.
“What the hell are you even doing here?”
Dick raised an eyebrow. “I… work here?”
“Yeah, sure, but why? Big Belly Burger not hiring or what?”
Dick scoffed. “Why do you care?”
Jason checked his watch again. Forty-one.
“Your parents not love you enough as a kid or something?”
Jason was purposely trying to get a rise out of him, but Dick only narrowed his eyes slightly at Jason’s words. He probably heard worse every day in this shithole.
“If you must know, I do it to support my family.”
“Bullshit.”
Dick crossed his arms over his chest, no longer trying to look enticing for Jason.
“You don’t know a damn thing about me, so save me the ‘nice girl like you in a place like this’ routine! What’re you even doing in Blüdhaven?”
Always the detective, it seemed.
“Next time I’ll be sure to call ahead.”
“You’re nothing like they describe.”
Jason supposed that was true, in a way.
“Never meet your heroes.”
It was Dick’s turn to roll his eyes.
“You’re not my hero. You kill people. There’s nothing to idolize about that.”
Fifty-four percent.
Halfway there.
“Okay, look, this is how the night is gonna go,” Jason looked away from his watch. “You’re going to shut the hell up and stop whining and in roughly ten minutes we’re gonna blow this shitty popsicle stand.”
“I’m not going anywhere with you.”
Jason scoffed loudly. “You’d rather stay here?”
“I’m not leaving.”
This was all going to be much harder than Jason originally planned.
“What is this? What’re you really doing here?”
Dick seemed to wrap the jacket tighter around his body.
“I told you, I’m supporting my-”
“And I told you that’s bullshit. That’s like the most cliche story in the book, man.”
“Why the hell do you even care? What makes me so damn special?”
Jason wished he knew.
“I’m not going to argue with you, Dick, just stand up and-”
“How do you know my name?”
Fuck.
Jason looked at his watch. Sixty-seven percent. That would have to do for now.
“Get. Up.”
“Fuck. You. Tell me how you know my name.”
Jason didn’t have time for this and frankly, he couldn’t be bothered to have a heart to heart at the moment, so he did the next best thing and grabbed Dick by the waist, hoisting him up into a fireman’s carry.
“Put me down!”
Dick’s bare feet kicked into Jason’s back and if his top wasn’t reinforced to protect him from bullets, it probably would have hurt like hell. He knew he was capable of landing one hell of a kick, even without his Nightwing boots.
“You can’t do this!”
“Do what, rescue you?”
Jason repositioned Dick’s weight so that he could hold him with just one arm, using the other to open the door. He was banking on the bug finishing up in the time it took to sneak Dick out a side entrance and to the parking lot where he left his bike. He wasn’t too sure what he was going to do with Dick, but he supposed he’d burn that bridge when he got to it.
“I don’t need to be rescued, I want to be here-”
“Like hell. Besides, once I get what I need, this place is going down and you’ll be out of a job anyway.”
“God, you’re insufferable!”
Jason couldn’t help but laugh at Dick’s tone. No one had ever talked to Red Hood like that before. If Dick was truly trying to keep up the persona of a scared civilian caught up with a bad group of people, he was doing terribly.
He sounded like a damn cop.
Oh, shit.
Of course.
“You’re undercover, aren’t you? That’s why you’re still here.”
Dick stopped struggling for a moment and Jason could feel his heart begin to beat faster.
Bingo.
“Who are you?”
Jason took a sharp turn that he remembered from when Opal had led him down the hallway just a few minutes ago.
“No spoilers.”
Jason snuck a peek at his watch. The tech was making good time and he theorized by the time he made it out of the casino unseen the bug would be done with its job and well on its way back to Jason.
“Seriously-”
“Shut up.”
Jason covered Dick’s mouth with his hand, ignoring the muffled shouts that he tried to force out and the way his head attempted to shake the hand off. Jason could hear someone coming and they were too close to freedom to risk Dick blowing it all just because he was too stubborn to leave a mission early.
They ducked into a room marked “unoccupied” and Jason left the door open just a crack so he could watch what appeared to be a few of the workers walk by. Dick’s struggles had ceased a bit by the time the women passed. Jason dropped his hand as he made his way out into the hall again.
“Keep quiet,” Jason said as they finally made it to the emergency exit Jason had noticed when he’d first arrived.
“I still don’t get you.”
Jason hoped the alarm wouldn’t sound when he opened the door. That was the last thing he needed.
“You don’t have to.”
The door swung open and there were no flashing lights or sirens. Jason considered that a win.
“I’m just going to come back, you know,” Dick continued as Jason’s boots hit the wet pavement, his hands gripping Dick’s body a bit tighter as he made his way to his bike. He could feel Dick shivering slightly from his lack of clothing and the cool October air.
“No, you’re not.”
“What are you, my father?”
Jason could hear the faint sound of buzzing and he lifted his wrist slightly into the air, watching as the drone clicked into place and began to transmit the files it had picked up.
“Far from it.”
Jason deposited Dick on the bike and got on right behind him so that he could keep an eye on him during the trip to his nearest safe house. He had no doubts that Dick wouldn’t try to tuck and roll or something equally insane.
“Hold on,” Jason requested as he started up the bike. “And don’t you even think about pulling one of your little Houdini acts.”
“Who are you?” Dick asked again.
Jason knew he wouldn’t give up. He’d been trained not to, after all.
“Just this evening’s entertainment.”
The engine revved and Dick seemed to relax slightly, though it was such a small change that Jason was sure he might have imagined it.
“That’s my line, usually.”
Jason didn’t want to think about that. He didn’t want to think about anything that had happened in the past hour or so.
He elected to drive instead.
The closest safe house was on the outskirts of Blüdhaven, just far enough away from the heart of the city that Jason never really had to worry about Nightwing finding him.
He supposed he wouldn’t have that luxury any longer, but it was a small price to pay.
Jason punched in the security code on the door and pushed it open, jerking his head to the side to signal to Dick that he should enter first.
“Well, chivalry isn’t dead after all.”
Jason closed and locked the door behind him and removed his helmet, depositing it on the kitchen counter. Dick looked over, probably expecting to finally see Red Hood’s identity, but was met with a red domino mask instead.
“A bit overkill, don’t you think?”
Jason kicked his boots off by the door, not caring in the slightest that they landed haphazardly against the wall.
“Please. The helmet is the first thing people go for.”
Dick raised an eyebrow in understanding, his arms pulling Jason’s jacket tightly against his body.
“You hungry?”
Dick blinked at him incredulously.
“Well, I am, so I’m making food. You can go shower and change, bathroom’s that way. Take any clothes you find in the dresser.”
Dick narrowed his eyes suspiciously.
“How do you know I won’t try to escape?”
“Because the windows have bio-metric locks on them, genius.”
“So I’m your prisoner.”
Jason looked up from the cupboard he’d been rummaging in.
“No. You’re not.”
“Sure feels like it, considering you kidnapped me-”
“Jesus Christ, I didn’t kidnap you!”
“The definition of kidnapping is literally-”
Jason slammed his hands down on the kitchen counter. He didn’t miss the way Dick jumped slightly at the sudden noise.
“I’m trying to fucking help you, asshole. To help those women. With the intel I got from Desmond’s computer he’s done for it, but I could really use all the information I can get my hands on. So if you really want to go, just go. But if you want to help those people, if you want to actually save them, then maybe consider cutting me a little bit of slack.”
Dick was frozen in place, his expression nearly unreadable, but lucky for Jason he had enough experience to see beyond the facade. Dick was calculating a million and one variables in his head, trying desperately to figure out who Red Hood was and why he was so willing to help, trying to wager the odds that he made it out of the safe house alive, if he was willing to work with a guy he deemed a villain, if mutually assured destruction was in the cards that evening.
“Don't do it for me. Hell, don't even do it for yourself. Do it for those women who have nowhere else to go, who were stuck under Desmond's thumb for far too long. Put your mission first, Grayson.”
Jason hated how much he sounded like Bruce, but it seemed to be exactly what Dick needed to hear as a moment later he'd turned around and made his way towards the bathroom, the sound of water beginning to run meeting Jason's ears.
“Fuck,” Jason ran a hand through his hair as he turned his attention back towards the fridge, opening the freezer to pull out a frozen pizza. Luckily he’d been at this particular safe house for about a week or so as he prepared to infiltrate the casino, so it actually had real food in it, not just bottled water, cheap beer, and protein bars.
Well, it had all of that too, he supposed.
By the time Jason had put the pizza in the oven, set a timer, and grabbed two waters out of the fridge, Dick was already back, which surprised him a bit. He knew Dick could shower fast when he wanted and needed to, but he’d expected him to take forever, as he was often known to do.
Dick stood awkwardly in the hallway, dressed in a pair of sweatpants that were too long on his legs and too baggy around his waist, the drawstring working overtime to compensate. They would have been too big on Dick anyway, since Jason was taller and wider, but Dick had obviously lost weight since he’d gone undercover, so now he was nearly swimming in the grey fabric. The T-shirt was just as large, a faded Gotham City Knights shirt that Jason couldn’t even remember owning.
“I put a pizza in,” Jason said lamely, taking a seat at the kitchen table and cracking open a water for himself. “Water?”
Dick hesitated, his eyes scanning the waters. He was probably trying to tell if Jason had tampered with them in any way.
“I’m not gonna drug you.”
Dick still didn’t look convinced, but he slowly made his way over towards Jason and took a seat across from him, accepting the unopened water bottle, his eyes carefully analyzing the unbroken seal.
Now that he was closer and in slightly better light, Jason couldn’t help but realize how awful he looked. All the makeup had washed off in the shower and Jason could see every bruise and mark on Dick’s neck and face, that damned tattoo standing out starkly against hand prints and hickeys. There were dark, purple bags under his eyes, ones Jason had seen before when he overworked himself, as he was prone to do. His hair was still damp and hung limply around his face, lacking its usual volume and curls.
He looked… tired. Exhausted. Tense, like he wanted to allow himself to finally relax but couldn’t, not when he still saw Jason as a threat.
“How long…”
Jason trailed off. Dick still understood what he was asking.
“Three months.”
Jason exhaled sharply.
Three months.
Three damn months.
“I thought I had it handled. That I could do this on my own. Blüdhaven’s my city now, after all. I have to protect her. Casino employees were going missing and the cops weren’t doing anything about it. Every time I tried to bring the case up, the chief told me there wasn’t enough evidence to bring Desmond in for questioning. They’re probably on his payroll.”
Jason had to admit, he was a bit surprised Dick was talking to him about all of this, though he had a feeling it wasn’t for his benefit.
“So I made up some story about being a down on my luck kid kicked out of his parents’ house and the next thing I knew I was in, working the blackjack tables. I’d mapped everything out beforehand, had back up plans for my back up plans. But then…”
Dick’s hair hung in his face as he gripped the plastic water bottle tighter, causing it to crinkle loudly.
“It was so much bigger than me.”
Jason knew what he meant. He’d realized that the Marcus wasn’t just a less than orthodox casino, that it was one of many fronts for a human trafficking ring that was making its way down the East Coast. Jason hadn’t expected to take the whole organization down; his goal had just been to get it out of Gotham, which he’d succeeded in until it just popped back up in Blüdhaven.
But Dick hadn't known that. He couldn’t have. He wasn’t in Gotham anymore and he probably hadn’t hacked into Bruce’s computer systems like Jason had. He was probably too moral to, or perhaps just deluded enough to think he didn’t need to. Jason at least could admit he used Bruce’s intel, even if he refused to talk to the man outside of the occasional rooftop confrontation.
“I tried getting them out one night. But they caught me. It’s laughable how easy it was. They threatened their lives, told me they had enough ‘merchandise’ that they wouldn’t miss a few, that I was… That I could always replace them. Even threatened to ship me overseas for my troubles. I was outnumbered and people’s lives were on the line. I had no choice.”
Dick still wasn’t looking at Jason. He couldn’t say he blamed him.
“After that, they stopped underestimating me. Maybe they had their suspicions about who I really was. If they did, they never let on. But they put me in the backroom after that. The security was even tighter than on the main floor. I wasn’t alone for a second, there was always a guard not too far behind, or a camera watching my every move.”
Dick’s hands were gripping his arms tightly, his fingernails digging into the skin. Jason knew what was coming. He’d always known.
“It’s okay. You can tell me.”
It took him a moment to continue. Dick still refused to make eye contact, a hand rising to his neck to rub at the tattoo there.
“They… the tattoo made it so real. I… I was trapped and no one even knew where I was. It was the first time since leaving home that I felt so… alone. I… I felt so stupid. I should have realized…”
Jason didn’t say anything. He wasn’t sure what he would have said.
“It was… I felt like a failure, having to face those women after I’d promised I’d save them. I couldn’t even save myself, I couldn’t even fight back, I just… I just let them. I let them use me, control me-”
“You didn’t let them do anything-”
“Yes, I did!” Dick’s hands slammed against the table as he stood. “I let them parade me around for those disgusting men to ogle at, I let them put me on display! I preformed exactly how they wanted me to, wore what they wanted me to, fucked who they wanted me to! Because if I didn’t, then someone else would have to, and I couldn’t let that happen! And now... now I've left all those innocent people there. I'm a coward.”
Of course. That's why Dick hadn't wanted to leave. Always the self-sacrificing type.
“Hey, you're not a coward and you didn't let them do shit. You didn't consent-”
“Consent means nothing to them.”
Jason exhaled. Three months. He couldn’t imagine.
Three months of not knowing what the next day would bring.
Three months of constantly being on edge, never being able to rest because at any moment, your worst nightmare would come true.
Three months of utter loneliness, of pain, suffering, agony, humiliation.
Three months that could have just as well been the rest of his life.
Jason knew all too well, in his own way.
Dick laughed suddenly, causing Jason to startle, his eyebrows knitted in confusion at the sound.
“Took you one night to do what I couldn’t even fucking manage in months. Some detective I am.”
Jason didn’t like cynical Dick. It was… unnatural. So unlike him. He’d seen it before, during his Robin days, back when Dick and Bruce were still at each other’s throats, before Dick had had enough and left.
“I had help,” Jason said, which he supposed wasn’t a complete lie. It wasn’t like he had Oracle helping or anything, but he’d cashed in on quite a few favors to make tonight work in his favor.
“Sure,” Dick replied, not sounding like he believed Jason at all. “I was an idiot to think I could handle this on my own. To handle this city.”
“Hey, man, you’re doing fine as Nightwing-”
“Oh, I forgot that you know everything about me,” Dick said sarcastically. “And that I know nothing about you.”
Jason opened his mouth to retort, but was interrupted by the timer on the microwave going off. He stood and turned the oven off before retrieving the pizza, leaving it on the stovetop to cool. He found himself reaching his hands towards his face, where his mask still rested. He knew what he had to do, knew that he’d have to eventually, he just hadn’t expected tonight to be the night.
With a defeated sigh, Jason removed his mask and tossed it on the table without fully turning around.
“I guess… if anyone deserves to know…”
Jason turned and watched as Dick’s eyes widened in shock, tears already beginning to well in the corners.
“Jason?”
“Look,” Jason took a deep breath as he mentally prepared himself for whatever Dick would say. “I know I should have-”
Dick tackled him in a hug and buried his face in his chest. Jason was shocked for a moment but quickly forced himself to react, his arms hesitantly wrapping around Dick’s body. He could feel him shaking and he tightened his grip slightly.
“I’ve got you, Dick.”
There was a small sob that barely made it past Jason’s armor, both the physical and emotional.
“I’ve got you.”