Chapter Text
You hummed quietly to yourself in front of Gotham Academy. It was finally the end of the day, and you intended on waiting on Damian. Your class was let out early today, so you weren’t too fussed with reading your book quietly. Taking a seat on one of the wooden benches under a tree, you let your eyes scan each word.
A few pages in, the bell rang, officially signalling the end of the day. Packing your book back into your bag, you began the search for Damian. Or, maybe you didn’t need to. Before there was even a minute to search for him, you felt a slight tap on your shoulder. You spun around to see Damian with an unamused look on his face.
“Are you ready?” He asked, raising a perfect eyebrow.
You nodded cheerfully, taking his wrist. “Come on! Cold Stone is this way!”
Five minutes later, you were seated in Cold Stone, ice creams in front of the both of you. Damian decided to go with a Batman ice cream (it was really a blueberry and vanilla ice cream) while you went with a Robin ice cream (basically banana and strawberry smoothie flavoured). You tried your hardest to connect with Damian; after all, he was like you! Dismissed, rejected, publicly humiliated… you definitely knew how it felt. But Damian’s answers were restricted to “yes”, “no”, and “maybe”.
Ever since then, your presence in Wayne Manor became known. You befriended all of Damian’s brothers and you always stayed over at the Manor during the weekends. It was your safe spot, after all. You and Damian would spend the day lounging around while playing video games, either going to the ice-cream store or a walk around the harbour.
You made it your number one goal to befriend the Wayne heir, and sometimes you were so close to breaking down his walls. But every time, he seemed to realise it and build them back up again, shutting you out once more. It wasn’t until it was your turn to be saved did you get any progress.
It was three years later when both of you were 15. You were walking back home after taking over one of your friend’s shifts because she was sick. Your parents were away on a business trip all the way in Metropolis, so they couldn’t pick you up, and your grandmother didn’t even have a drivers licence.
You walked down the streets, a sharp chill washing over you. With every step you took, you felt as if you were being watched. Taking out your phone, you discreetly turned it onto camera mode, using it as a way to see behind you. Sure enough, there was a dark figure slowly advancing towards you. Panic overwhelmed you and you quickened your pace. The bus stop was in sight and you couldn’t wait to get into the vehicle. But before you were even close to the bus stop, a hand covered your mouth, drawing you into an alleyway.
You tried your best to scream, but the person prevented you from doing anything. Man, you were screwed. Thinking quickly, you bit down on the person’s hand, and they quickly jumped away from you.
“You bitch,” the man swore, his gruff voice filling the once silent air. “You’re going to pay for that.”
“Actually,” A voice said. The voice was modified to sound more robotic and scratchier, but you could still make out what he was saying. “You’re going to pay.”
A small thud sounded from behind the man and he stupidly turned around. He was met with a sharp punch in the face, knocking him out completely. Fear flooded your senses and you tried desperately to back away from the hooded character.
“Please, leave me alone,” you begged, bringing your arms in front of your face. “I didn’t do anything bad!”
A hand wrapped around your wrist, and you flinched, pulling your arm back. “I’m not going to hurt you.” You looked up at his words, realising that he was the infamous Robin of Gotham. “What are you doing this late?”
Lowering your hands, you shifted your gaze to the unconscious man behind him. “My friend wasn’t feeling too good so I took over her shift.”
Damian closed his eyes from under the domino mask. ‘Dammit, (Y/N),’ he thought to himself as he brought you out of the alley, ‘your kindness is going to get you killed.’
“Thank you for saving me back there,” you murmured before turning your attention to the man on the ground. “What’s going to happen to him?”
“The police are on their way,” Robin said through gritted teeth. “I’m going to take you home. I hope you’re not afraid of heights.”
You unlocked the door to your parents’ apartment before turning to your saviour. “Do you want to come inside? I can make tea… I’m sure I can find a few bandages if you’re hurt…” you rambled, wincing at how lame you sounded.
“It’s fine.”
You gulped, your (E/C) eyes on the floor. “Well, thanks… I guess.” But when you looked up, he was already gone.
***
Walking into Gotham Academy was one of the most tedious tasks you were ever met with. After all, you were faced with bullying for at least 5 years. Ever since Damian had a major ‘glow-up’, his popularity skyrocketed. Because you were his friend, your popularity was brought up with him. But you didn’t want the popularity. You just wanted Damian to be your real friend.
Clutching your bag strap just a little bit tighter, you walked to your locker. Before you even knew it, Damian was standing behind you, his signature smirk on his face.
“Hey, Dami!” You smiled, looking up at him. Ugh, you hated how tall he was sometimes.
“Good morning, (N/N),” he addressed, opening his locker beside yours.
You eyed him curiously. “Damian, are you okay?”
“Why wouldn’t I be?”
“You’ve never called me that before.” Were you finally getting somewhere? After 3 years of persisting?
“Grayson didn’t want me to scare you off. He gave me a lecture about how I wasn’t making an effort with you as a friend,” he dismissed casually. You frowned, strangely deflated. “Come on, we’re going to be late for English.”
“Right, yeah. Um, Damian, we’re still on after school, right? We are going to the harbour, aren’t we?”
“Of course we are. But maybe… the art gallery has a new exhibition they opened yesterday. Perhaps we could go there instead.
It might have the way your eyes lit up. Or how you began to walk with a hop in your step, or maybe it was the way you let out a laugh. But Damian Wayne was certain of one thing and one thing only; he was falling in love with you.