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He’d left his car outside for twenty minutes. Only twenty minutes while he grabbed a coffee, and by the time he came out, it was already covered in snow. The crunch of snow under his boots came to a hault as he stopped on the sidewalk. Steam rose up in lazy streams from the paper cup in his hand. It took a few moments for Dick to resign himself to his fate. The snow had been falling without stop all day, the wet, heavy kind that clumped together and coated anything it could stick to. Fumbling in his jacket pocket, Dick pulled out his keys and unlocked the car. The flash of its headlights was already muted by the sheen of ice building up on it. He tried to move quickly without slipping, already able to feel the snow melting in his hair, and fluffy flakes touching the nape of his neck where his collar didn’t cover.
Bludhaven was quiet on nights like this. The streets were empty and still, snow falling in the beams of street lamps and settling gently on the ground, smooth and untouched until morning. He usually found himself out at this time, whether it was as Officer Grayson or Nightwing, but he always found a different sort of peace. The perspective from up high among the gothic rooftops and gargoyles was a little more somber, looking down at the city as it was slowly enveloped in white. He’d always manage to find some crime in progress through the concrete labyrinth, the few who were desperate or daring enough to be out in this weather. Down here, though it may not have been as productive, he was able to see the humanity of the city – even if it was just because most people were sleeping. The holidays had passed weeks ago, and with it, everyone’s adoration for fresh snow.
Dick slipped into the car, spilling a drop of his coffee on his pants in the process. He cursed under his breath as he pulled the door shut. A sheet of snow slipped off the window with the force of it. Trying to maneuver in the small space was difficult enough as it was, so he set the coffee aside and just tried to wipe it off with his hand. Now that he was inside, the silence was a little heavier. The windows were completely covered, aside from the driver’s door, letting in minimal light and leaving him in the dark. Dick patting his pockets until he found his phone, letting the light of the screen glow in his palm. A text from Wally topped his notifications.
Heading back from Central. When do you get off? WW
Dick justified that years spent with Wally had been a bad influence when he replied.
Whenever you do ;) DG
Wally’s response was immediate.
I hate you. WW
Grinning down at the screen, Dick shook his head and typed out his reply like a responsible adult. Even he could fake it sometimes.
Gonna be a late one tonight. Don’t wait up for me. DG
Dick tossed his phone onto the passenger seat. Sticking the key in the ignition, the squad car rumbled to life, the dashboard lighting up and the interior lights fading on. He had a few hours yet before his shift ended and he could turn in for the night, and he couldn’t spend them sitting in his car. With the car on, and the heat on full blast, he hoped it would at least make clearing the ice and snow off the car a little easier. Twisting himself around, he reached into the back seat for the car brush. He managed with a little difficulty to bring it up to the front, and finally opened the door. He didn’t anticipate the small avalanche that would fall from the roof onto the back of his neck as he tried to duck out of the car. Dick shivered, hand coming up to wipe the snow off his neck.
He froze for a moment as his palm passed over the bare base of his skull and didn’t feel the familiar gold chain hanging there. He remembered before panic could creep up on him that he wasn’t wearing it. The ring that it used to hold was settled on his finger. He’d been wearing the chain for so long, he still forgot sometimes.
Putting that behind him, Dick closed the door and got to work on clearing off the snow. It was thick, almost sludgy, passing over the top of the brush and falling back onto the windshield every time Dick tried to pushed it off. He tried valiantly not to curse as he worked. Started to feel more like he was digging his car out of a damn iceburg. So absorbed in his task, Dick barely noticed when he first heard the crunch of boots on the sidewalk behind him.
“I- Excuse me, Officer? Hello, sir?”
Dick paused, turning to find a woman in her 50’s approaching him. She was small, greying hair pulled into a bun, wearing a long denim dress under her old winter coat. Her hands were shaking, fiddling with a beaded keychain, as she sent continuous glances over her shoulder. Dick was immediately on alert, schooling his expression into concern, standing straight, posture unintimidating. “What’s the problem, ma’am?”
The woman swallowed, glancing back one more time. Dick followed her gaze to the Westward Bridge just up the block, a massive suspension bridge stretching over the river to Gotham. She looked back to Dick in pleaded. “It’s just – I was walking on the otherside with my husband, and I didn’t do anything because I didn’t want to frighten her, I wasn’t sure how to handle it, but – there’s a girl on the bridge,” the woman rambled, struggling to get her words out straight. “There’s a young girl on the bridge, right on the edge, and it looks like the poor thing is thinking about jumping. My husband is watching her now, I went to get help, Officer, I don’t know what to do-“
“You did the right thing, coming to me,” Dick immediately reassured her. “I’ll handle it. Thank you for telling me.”
“Oh, bless you, sir,” the woman gushed.
Dick offered her only a hand on her forearm for reassurance before he was quickly shoving as much snow as he could off his window and getting in the car. “Get in,” he said. As the woman slid into the passenger seat, he turned the windshield wipers on at full speed. They groaned under the weight, and probably fucked up the blades, but managed to push the remaining sleet off. Once inside the car, he turned the lights on, but kept the car silent as it rolled up the street and over the bridge.
He spotted the man first, waiting on the other side of the bridge. The man pointed to the opposite side the moment he saw the police car, where a girl was standing on the other side of the railing, looking down at the water. Dick slipped out of the car and nodded to the man, pressing his index finger to his lips as the woman got out to join her husband. With the two bystanders out of the way, Dick held his hand up to the little traffic that was trying to cross the bridge. The cars had already started to slow at the sight of the brilliant red and blue lights, stopping to allow the Policeman to cross. He slowed his pace once he closed in on the opposite stretch of the bridge. The girl hadn’t noticed him yet. He had to be careful. Reaching up to his shoulder, he turned on his radio and spoke quietly and steadily into it. “This is Officer Grayson, 1402, I’ve got a potential jumper on Westward Bridge, Southern side. Young girl, 14-16 years old, over the rails. Need an assist in case she goes over.”
The radio was silent save for light static for a moment, before dispatch responded. “1402, copy that, we’ve got Water Rescue on route. Do you require a road block?”
Dick thought it over only for a moment before respond. “Traffic is pretty light up here, and I don’t want to frighten her. Some back up would be best.”
“Got it, sending 038 to you.”
With the call finished swiftly, Dick let go of the radio and continued his slow approach.
Dick had gone through this training with Bruce, when he was 13, and again in the academy. Talking down potential jumpers, suicidal attempts, and generally tense situations, were all part of the job, no matter what uniform he was in. Dick knew what to do, knew to keep himself low, calm, and nonthreatening, while ready to act without warning – but actually being here and doing it was something else entirely. One mistake, and it was someone else’s life on the line. He could feel his heart flush searing heat through his chest, his pulse ringing in his head. Dick exhaled slowly, fog tumbling from his lips in the cold. Slowly, he crossed the rail between the sidewalk and the road. All that was left was the barrier between the sidewalk and the gargantuan steel beams crisscrossing the expanse of the bridge.
He made his footfall heavier as he got closer, the subtle increase in sound giving her some warning that someone was approaching. She hadn’t noticed the lights of the police car yet, hadn’t looked anywhere but the churning black water and ice below. Out of it, probably in some state of shock. He didn’t need her getting startled and losing her footing.
Gotham and Bludhaven were two smears of twinkling lights, and the river cutting between the sister cities a black void. It might have been a peaceful view any other night, but Dick’s focus was solely on the girl he was trying to save. She was in her mid-teens, that much he had already observed when he was on the radio, but she was – small. Scrawny even. Mousey blonde hair was pulled back into a short pony tail, and she was practically swimming in the oversized maroon sweater she was wearing. She was shivering in the cover, her arms loosely hooked over the rail at her back as she looked down at the rushing water of the river.
Finally, Dick took in a deep, steadying breath, and spoke softly. “Nice night isn’t it?” The girl’s shoulders stiffened, but she wasn’t too startled. Still, she didn’t seem to have any interest in him. Dick cleared his throat, trying to get her used to the sound of his voice. “A little cold for me, personally,” he continued when she didn’t respond. He made it to the other end of the sidewalk, standing just on the opposite side of the rail from her. Trying to look casual, Dick leaned against the rail just a few feet down from her. “Mind if I talk to you for a while?” he asked with a smile. “My name’s Dick.”
She looked at him for the first time, eyes tear-smudged with black eyeliner under a heavy fringe. “…Riley,” she replied in a voice so quiet, he could barely hear her.
“Hey, Riley. Nice to meet you,” he said cheerfully. “So, what are you doing out here without a coat?”
Riley ducked her head – Dick didn’t really need an answer to that, he could figure out enough on his own. She didn’t have on because she didn’t think she’d need one. Likely left her home in a rush, didn’t have time to grab one. She hadn’t thought she’d be cold for long, and if she was, it didn’t matter. It was a way of letting her know that he knew what she was thinking without really saying it and putting her on the spoke. “If you come with me, I can bring you somewhere a little more warm. I don’t know about you, but I’m really craving a hot chocolate,” he attempted a light laugh, letting it die out on his lips when she didn’t spare him a second glance. “Riley,” he began again. “I’m a Police Officer- no, no, it’s okay, you’re not in trouble,” he said firmly when she gasped and flinched away. “You’re not in trouble. I just want to help.”
Riley’s mouth opened without sound, her lips trembling. It took her a few tries to speak. “I-I’m not moving.”
“Alright,” Dick placated her. “You don’t have to move just yet. I’m not going to make you do anything you don’t want to do, okay?” he held his hands up in a show of surrender. “I just want to talk.”
Riley sniffed. She didn’t reply, but she nodded, squeezing her eyes shut as she struggled to hold in the sobs bubbling up from her chest.
“I just want to talk,” Dick repeated slowly. “Talk to me, Riley. I’m here to listen. Why don’t you… I don’t know, tell me a little about yourself?”
Something snapped. Riley let out a harsh sound, somewhere between a bitter laugh and a chocked sob. “I’m not spilling out my whole life sob story to a random stranger,” she spat, eyes manic as she glared at him. With a hitched breath, she tore her gaze away and stared back down at the water. “Sorry but I really don’t need this right now. You won’t understand, anyway, you won’t-”
“Okay, okay,” Dick quickly cut in, hands out, his voice low and calm as he took control again. “Okay, fine, we don’t have to talk about you. We can talk about anything, we can...” He trailed off, trying to think of anything that might distract her, help her ease up a bit. That was when he caught it. The wind was starting to pick up, and a gust billowed through the baggy sleeve of Riley’s sweater, pushing it back just enough to reveal a little rainbow wristband. Oh. Dick felt his gut plummet, and at the same time, a string off hope going taught in his chest. He looked back to her. “Can I tell you about my fiancé?”
Riley scoffed, the sound broken. “Sure!” she sneered. “Tell me all about your perfect life and your perfect fia-“
“His name is Wally.”
Just like that. Riley stopped, a change coming over her. The hysterical expression softened on her face. Her shoulders dropped. Slowly, she turned to look at him over her shoulders. A silent understanding passed between them. Now, she was listening.
Dick smiled gently. “Can I come over there?”
Once again, Riley didn’t respond, but there was the barest hint of a nod. Dick hoisted himself up over the rail and onto the beam, then went one further and lowered himself down onto the next beam jutting out below. He wasn’t too far down, just a stair-step’s distance, but it was important that he position himself lower than her. If she tried to jump, he could catch her, and he didn’t want it to look like he was looming over and judging her. Sitting down on the beam, Dick made himself look as relaxed and casual as possible.
Riley watched him carefully, but her posture gradually began to loosen up. “You’re…”
“Yeah,” Dick nodded, and left it at that. “We met when I was 11. He was 13. My adoptive Dad and his Uncle are friends, and that’s how we met. He’s…” Dick smiled fondly, “he’s my best friend. We started dating in High School, and we’ve been together for… almost 9 years now,” Dick said as he glanced up at Riley. He still had her attention, so he kept going. It was a little funny, that the only thing that could help in this tense situation was talking about Wally – the words came so naturally. “He lived in Keystone City, out in Kansas, and I lived here, so it was sort of… long distance for the most part, but we saw each other often. We would play video games, and watch scary movies, and eat junk food for hours. Sometimes we’d go and hang out with our friends, or go to the arcade… they still have arcades, right? I’m not aging myself here?”
That, somehow, managed to get a dull laugh out of Riley. “There are still arcades.”
“Good,” Dick feigned relief. “I was worried for a second there.”
Silent drifted in as the wind continued to push the snow around them in dancing swirls. Dick wasn’t too pressured to fill the quiet now. She’d let him on her side, that was the important thing. He couldn’t rush this. Sometimes, in situations like this, people needed breaks, some time to calm their minds. Dick glanced down into the water, watching as a few orange lights glided across the river and stopped right below them, waiting.
“Your parents…” Riley started, his voice cracking horribly. She swallowed. “They never… did they ever do anything?”
Dick thought over his answer carefully. “Well, like I said, I was adopted when I was really young. But my adoptive Dad was always pretty liberal. I think he sort of figured it out on his own, so when I told him that I was gay, he was supportive. We didn’t always agree over the years, but when it came to that, he was always there for me,” he replied. “But Wally… he was in the closet for the first year that we dated. We had to keep it a secret, because his parents… they just didn’t understand. He got outed when he was 17, and they kicked him out,” Dick trailed off, leading into his next question with great care. “Does that sound like you?”
Riley pursed her lips, squeezing her eyes shut. She managed an unsteady nod.
Dick felt his chest deflate. He swallowed past the thickness in his throat, breathing evenly. Either of them could have been her. Him or Wally, either of them could have so easily, with just one more push, found themselves in her position. Dick rarely encountered cases that hit so close to home. He’d been desensitized to the worst kinds of violence, knew how to handle himself and carry on, but this hurt. People were always saying that the world was getting better, but shit like this was still happening. Even on the smallest scale – it was too much. Once was too often.
“Well… things weren’t easy for a while, I’m not gonna lie to you. His parents were intolerant, and they fought a lot, especially his Dad… it was hard on him. But, it got better. They learned, because in the end, they love him. It’s still not perfect, but we’re working on it. ” Dick looked her in the eyes. “Riley, it gets better.”
She cracked. Riley’s head dropped, shoulders shuddering with the force of her oncoming sobs. Dick carefully rose to his feet and climbed up to her. She let go of the railing, throwing her arms around him as she completely broke down. Dick sank down with her, keeping her steady as she let out every volatile emotion she’d been keeping bottled up. There was only so much that he could do for her. He could get her safely off this bridge and to a hospital, make sure that she was treated properly and with respect, make sure that she was listened to. But that was all just a band-aid on a larger wound, a complex problem that he couldn’t fix himself. He could get her off this bridge, but the rest, really, was up to her.
The one thing he knew for certain that he could do was show her that she could have a future. That there was a future for people like them. He could be exactly what he’d needed to see at her age.
When Riley calmed down, they just sat together. These took times, and no matter how much Dick wanted to get her off this ledge, rushing things would only make her skittish. She was still upset, shaking with it – either that or the cold. Dick gave her his jacket, shrugging off her protests with an “I’ve been to the Arctic, this is nothing”. Then, they just talked. Now that the floodgates had been opened, Riley poured herself out. She’d tried coming out to her Dad and Step-Mom and it had turned into a screaming match. She’d been depressed for a while, but her parents and school councilors didn’t take her seriously. She was in the 10th grade, and played the drums in the school band, and had a crush on a girl who played the flute. She liked punk rock music, and collecting gem stones, and thought pineapple definitely belonged on pizza.
And Dick just listened. He doubted anyone had really listened to her in a long time. Finally, when the night drew on and the temperature continued to drop, she began to shiver under his jacket again. He laid his hand on her shoulder. “Hey, it’s getting a little cold. How about we get out of here? I’ll make good on that hot chocolate,” he offered. It took a moment of consideration, but Riley nodded. Dick braced one hand on the rail taking Riley’s hand in the other. “Alright. There’s going to be some people waiting for us off the bridge. They’re some friends of mine from the Police Station, and an ambulance. They’ll just check you up, and then we can go. I’ll even let you turn the siren on in the car, if you want.”
Riley tried to smile. “Can I drive?”
Dick laughed. “Absolutely not.” Pushing himself up carefully, he kept a firm grip on Riley. “We’re going to take it slow, okay?” he murmured as he guided her up to her feet.
Riley let Dick lead, let him pick her up and keep her steady, but then she looked down – and she wanted off this bridge. The mortal fear came back to her, a delayed reaction, slamming into her like newton’s cradle, and in her eagerness she stood too quickly. Her foot slipped on the icy beam. Dick tried to keep them steady, but she was throwing her weight around trying to get back on the bridge, throwing herself off balance. She let go of his hand, tipping backwards over the edge with a look of pure terror.
Dick didn’t even think about it. He jumped after her. With a shout, he pushed off the beam and threw her arms around her as they dropped toward the churning black water. His stomach flipped, that feeling of zero-gravity overwhelming him in the few spare seconds he had before the river rushed up to meet them. Riley was screaming in his ear, and over the roar of the water, he could just barely hear yelling from the bridge. He took a deep breath before they plunged into the river.
Hitting the water was like hitting a brick wall, like getting buried in a rushing avalanche, and getting rendered apart by needles all at once. His muscles seized with the cold, senses disoriented, and shock settling in. Dick pushed through it, hearing Bruce’s voice in his head during survival training to keep calm, as he tightened his grip on Riley and surged toward the surface. He gasped as he breached the water. Riley was panicking in his arm, thrashing through the water, but he kept tight with one arm while he treaded water with the other. He tried to keep still, conserve heat, moving just enough to keep his head up while he shouted for Water Rescue.
The boats swarmed them almost immediately. Floodlights momentarily blinded him, but Dick managed to swim toward the life preserver thrown out to him, holding on tight as they were pulled up on deck. Dick gave them Riley first, making sure that she was safe, before he was hauled up too. Sopping wet and shivering down to the marrow of his bones, Dick collapsed onto his back. He let his head drop to the side as he was surrounded by the Rescue Team, momentarily ignoring their questions and examinations. Riley was sitting against the wall of the boat not far from him, similarly surrounded, but alive. Dick allowed himself to smile, completely exhausted. She was safe. That was all that mattered. But it would have been so much easier if he’d had his grappling hook.
Sometimes the uniform he was wearing night to night made all the difference.
.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.
The ambulances were waiting for them when they made it to the shore. The second, of course, had been called in once Water Rescue had fished Dick out of the water along with the girl. They were carted into the backs of the ambulances, with another Police Officer taking over watching Riley while they were both looked over. Dick lost track of her in the chaos, or what his brain registered as chaos while edging on Hypothermia. His vitals were taken, and they found that he blessedly wasn’t dying, they gave him a towel and a warm, dry change of clothes; boxers, a long sleeve, sweatpants, socks, and a sweater all from the GCPD stores. He changed in the back of the ambulance with the doors closed for some privacy. As soon as he was done, he was sat down on the back rim, given a heavy blanket, and told not to move. From the sound of it, he was getting the next few days off from work to recover. Nice.
When everything finally began to calm down, he looked out across the parking lot at the riverside that they’d occupied, scanning the police cruisers and faces until he found Riley sitting in the back of the other ambulance. She’d been given fresh clothes and a blanket too, the GCPD spares way too big on her even in the smallest size. The officer with her was sitting next to her, speaking on the phone (Sierra, he remembered. They’d been at the Academy together. Riley was in good hands). He caught her eyes for a moment, and offered a smile. Riley just shrunk further into herself, but after a moment, managed a small wave peeking out from under the blanket.
A flash of red hair in his peripherals caught Dick’s attention. He turned his head, where through the steady alternation of red and blue lights, he saw Wally speaking frantically with another Police Officer behind a wooden barricade. It looked like a few reporters had gotten wind of what happened and were trying to get pictures, and a sort of perimeter had been set up. To be honest, Dick had hardly noticed. His head was still just a little too heavy, bones aching and stiff. The Officer at the barrier let Wally pass, pointing him toward Dick, who only managed a tired smile and a hand raise to catch his eye.
Wally looked nothing short of frantic as he weaved his way through the other Policemen and EMTs. “Dick?” he called as he rushed to him, immediately tugging him into his arms. “Dick- Jesus, I got the call just as I got home,” he murmured, voice tight as he pressed his lips to the top of Dick’s head, still damp and clinging to his skin. Wally pulled back enough to hold Dick by the shoulders, eyes scanning him over. “Are you okay?”
“Walls, I’m fine,” Dick insisted, even as his voice croaked. He knew he was probably a sorry sight, pale, shivering, and exhausted, but he meant it. He reached up, laying a hand over Wally’s on his left shoulder.
Wally sighed, the breath rattling through his whole body as he stepped closer and wrapped his arms around Dick again. “You scared the shit out of me,” he breathed. Wally rubbed his hands up and down his arms, his back, laid his palm against the back of Dick’s neck, did just about anything he could to comfort and warm him. Dick leaned into him, greedily taking in his fiancé’s body heat. He’d always joked that the speedster was a walking furnace, and he’d never in his life been so grateful for it. Wally whispered into his temple, talking soft nonsense about how glad he was Dick was okay, how scared he’d been, how it was all fine now, as they both tucked this in as another close call.
Dick turned his face in against Wally’s neck, feeling Wally shiver a bit from his undoubtedly freezing skin. Wally, graciously, didn’t move away. “Did you run here?” he asked quietly.
“No,” Wally replied. He sounded almost frustrated. “Knew I had to come here in civvies, and it would’ve been too fast. I drove.”
Dick hummed in acknowledgment, nuzzling in further against Wally’s neck. Wally turned his head just enough to press a kiss to his forehead. It must have been agony to have to drive here. Dick knew just how much Wally feared calls from the GCPD. They never called with good news. He couldn’t imagine the terror of having to answer a call like that. When he tried, all he could envision was a blank white horizon, and a single crimson figure walking toward him – Dick was too cold to think about that. He shut the thought down and just breathed in Wally’s scent. Vetiver and something. Citrus, maybe. Dissecting the complex layers of his fiancé’s body wash was a much better use of his time than loosing himself to frozen memories.
It was a while before either of them could stand pulling away. Wally sat down next to Dick, drawing his arm over his shoulders as the paramedics returned to see how he was recovering. Dick answered their questions, let them do their tests, and before long, was cleared to go home. Wally ran (just ran) out to the car to grab the extra winter jacket he’d brought with him. It was as Dick was waiting for him to return that he looked across the lot again. Riley was still in the back of the other ambulance, but she was surrounded by two adults, a man and a woman – her parents. They were holding her between them, petting her hair, and talking to her. They all looked like they’d been crying.
“Babe, got your coat,” Wally called out from behind him as he jogged over with the coat draped over his arm. “Let’s go.”
Dick tore his gaze away to his fiancé. “Wait,” he said. When Wally only gaze him a confused quirk of his brow, Dick tugged him down enough to whisper in his ear.
It didn’t take much convincing. Twenty minutes and a quick trip to a 24/hr café later, and the two of them were returning with a tray of five cups of hot chocolate. Dick had shed his blanket in favour of his coat as he and Wally approached the ambulance.
Dick stepped forward first. “Riley, hey,” he smiled. “How are you feeling?”
Riley could just barely meet his gaze. “I’m okay…” she muttered.
“Officer Grayson?” the woman Dick assumed was Riley’s stepmother asked. When Dick nodded, the woman surged up and threw her arms around him, anxious in her rambled gratitude for saving her stepdaughter. Riley’s father gave him a firm shake of the hand and a clap on the shoulder, but he could see that his eyes were still watering, jaw tight to keep from shaking.
When the introductions were done with for the most part, Dick turned back slightly, putting his hand on Wally’s back. “Riley, I’ve got someone I’d like you to meet. This is my fiancé, Wally.”
Wally stepped up with an easy grin, holding out the steaming tray. “Heard you might want some hot chocolate? Ultimate cure all, trust me.”
Riley eyed Wally for a long moment, connecting the man in front of her to the man she’d been told about only an hour ago, who’d been in her place years ago. Finally, she reached out from under the blanket and plucked one of the cups from off the tray, cradling the warm in both hands. “Thanks,” she said.
“You’re welcome,” Wally beamed.
Neither he nor Dick failed to notice he somewhat wary looks they were getting from Riley’s parents, but they remained steadfast. Her father stepped forward too, extending another firm handshake to Wally. “Nice to meet you,” he said. It was horribly awkward, but the effort was there. Wally shifted the tray to his left hand so he could shake with his right, doing the same with the stepmother before offering them both a hot chocolate.
Riley’s Stepmother took hers graciously, only getting in a sip before one of the Paramedics was tapping her on the shoulder. She spoke quickly with her before turning back to her stepdaughter. “Riley, your Dad and I need to speak with the Paramedics for a minute. Will you be okay?”
“Yeah, I’ll be fine,” Riley muttered. She hadn’t spoken above a murmur the entire time, but at the very least, she was speaking. With her parents gone, she swirled the hot chocolate around in the paper cup, just staring down at the movement of the liquid and the shimmer of light on its surface. “They’re gonna take me to the hospital,” she whispered when she spoke again.
Dick took a seat on the edge of the ambulance, keeping just a bit of distance between them to be mindful of crowding her. Wally stood beside him, hand settling on his back. “You don’t want to go?”
Riley shook her head.
Dick sighed. “I know it might be scary, but it’ll help. Even if it doesn’t feel like it right away, it’s a step forward.”
Again, Riley didn’t say much, just nodded and continued to swirl the hot chocolate around. “Will you… will you stay here until I have to go?”
Dick, for the second time that night, didn’t even have to think. He felt Wally’s hand smooth up to his shoulder with a loving squeeze, and cast one glance up at his fiancé before looking back to Riley. “Of course I will. I’ll be here as long as you need me.”