Chapter Text
“I didn’t know you were into art,” you said as you walked around the art gallery. Each painting either had a strange burst of colour or was black and white in a depressing way. Maybe that’s why Damian liked art so much…
“It’s a way to express my… non-existent feelings,” Damian shrugged in a poor attempt to make a joke. To his surprise, you let out a giggle.
“Was that supposed to be a joke?”
“Perhaps.”
You let out a laugh, covering your mouth when a man gave you an irritated look. “What’s gotten into you today? Calling me nicknames, taking me to an art gallery, telling jokes… are you sure you’re not sick, Dami?”
“Why would I be sick?” He raised an eyebrow. “I am me, aren’t I?”
“Yeah… but you’ve never really seemed to enjoy talking to me,” you shrugged, offering a slanted smile. “I didn’t think we were friends.”
Damian could feel the guilt beginning to eat the insides of him. It was true; he didn’t want to enjoy the way you spent time with him. But you slowly began to grow on him. “Why wouldn’t we be friends?”
You looked up at him, biting your lip. “You’re right. It’s silly. Hey, why don’t we go check out the Christmas art edition?”
“Of course,” Damian nodded, gently holding onto your wrist. “Let’s go.”
***
Ever since the incident with the bullies 3 years ago, Damian promised himself that he was never going to go to his brothers for help. That was definitely a promise he could get behind… or so he thought. Truthfully, Damian had no idea about love or what a ‘crush’ even was. But there was no way he was going to be able to talk about it without another finding out. So, he decided to ask them all at the same time.
It was a peaceful evening at Wayne Manor, and for once they were all present for Christmas break. Well, Dick was in another room playing with Batcow. They sat at the dining table, all talking heartily amongst themselves. Well, Jason was on his phone while Tim and Bruce talked about statistics and whatnot. Just as Alfred was about to hand out the entrees, Damian decided to speak.
“How do you know if you’re in love?”
Silence. The whole room was filled with silence. They all gaped at him like he had two heads while Damian just raised an eyebrow at them. It was only when there was a loud ‘crash’ from the room Dick was in and a huge, “WHAT?!” did they start to freak out.
Dick came running from the next room, holding onto Damian’s shoulders while shaking him rapidly. “YOU’RE IN LOVE?!”
Damian scoffed, pulling away from his older brother’s grasp. “Who knows? Clearly not you, Grayson, considering the mountain of girls you brought home over the years. I don’t expect you to know.”
The older man pouted, shooting a glare at him. “I have fallen in love before…”
“Damian, what brought this along?” His father prompted, taking a sip from his wine. “Is everything okay at school?”
The green-eyed boy shrugged. “School is fine, Father. It was merely a question that I would like to be addressed. Surely you have felt it with Selina Kyle. Or Drake with Stephanie.”
“Well, Stephanie and I are definitely in the ‘in love’ stage by now,” Tim snickered from behind his hand. “But how do you know? I guess you just… feel it.”
Oh, Damian definitely felt it. Every single time you walked into the room, it felt as if his heart skipped a beat. And your smile? Dear god, he needed help. You were one of the most amazing things he has ever encountered. You were persistent, and it almost annoyed him in a weirdly adorable way.
“I’ve never been in love,” Jason boasted, a proud smirk on his face.
“Oh, really? What about Ari?” Dick raised an eyebrow, a teasing tone in his voice.
The gun enthusiast scowled, scooping pumpkin soup from his bowl.
“Right…” Damian said slowly. “Well, if I may be excused, I’m going to train.”
“You haven’t finished dinner yet,” Bruce pointed out, putting down his napkin. “Are you hungry?”
“I’m fine.” And with that, Damian left the dining room.
“Yeah, he’s totally in love,” Tim said, pinching the bridge of his nose.
“But with who?”
***
The following weekend, Damian invited you over to the manor. Dick had just come back to Gotham a few days prior, and you definitely wanted to see the whole Wayne family in one go. You clearly didn’t know about their ‘nightly activities’, and Damian was perfectly fine with it. After all, there was no way he could risk your safety.
“How many times have I been to your mansion again?” You giggled, rolling your eyes as Damian listed off possible things that could happen during your stay.
“Too many to count,” he sighed, grip tightening on the bag of presents you brought. “But you know what they’re like when they’re all together.”
“Yeah, I do not want to re-live that,” you said, faking a shudder.
Last year when the whole family was back together, you decided to visit them during the Easter Holidays. Jason had come back from his holiday in Arizona (truthfully, it was nothing close to a holiday) and Dick was visiting from Bludhaven. It was the first time you’ve seen them all together, and it was much livelier than you expected. They all practically trampled you before you could even take a step into the household, and you were sure Tim was scared for life when he accidentally walked into the bathroom when you were doing your business. At least now you were slightly more prepared to see them all. Always bring three extra locks to the bathroom.
“Just be prepared, okay, (N/N)?” He sighed.
“When have I not?” A smirk played at your lips as you looked up at him innocently.
It was getting colder and colder, so you were relieved when you finally saw the familiar evergreen trees that were in front of Wayne Manor. Quickening your pace, you arrived at their doorstep, Damian right behind you. Pressing on the doorbell, you waited. It wasn’t even 5 seconds later when there was a loud ‘screech!’ and a loud crash. You were sure you heard Mr. Pennyworth let out a yowl as well.
“(Y/N)! We were… expecting someone else!” Jason said in a very straightforward way.
You raised an eyebrow, turning to Damian whose cheeks became very pink. And you weren’t sure if it was from the cold. “As much as I am curious to know who you were expecting, can you please let me inside? I have presents, and unless you want to miss out on them, I suggest stepping to the side.”
Almost immediately, all 3 of them took a step to the left and formed a straight line. “You’re the only one who can get them to do that,” Damian said, eyes glistening in admiration. “I’ll take your bags upstairs if you would like.”
“I can take them up,” you said softly. “But I am definitely taking the presents. Strangely enough, I don’t trust you.”
“That wounds me, (N/N),” the boy said, rolling his eyes and placing a hand on his heart.
You let out a laugh, poking him on the nose before snatching the plastic bag out of his hands. “Au revoir, humans!” You yelled, before climbing up the stairs, Damian watching you go.
Meanwhile, Tim, Jason, and Dick were watching your interactions, sly smirks growing on their faces. Tim was the first to speak up, “Oh, I see it now. You’re in love with (Y/N).”
Damian scoffed at him, crossing his arms over his chest. “TT, you really do surprise me with your idiocy, Drake. I assure you, (Y/N) and I are just friends.”
“So why do you call her (N/N)?” Dick asked cheekily.
“And why did you offer to take her bags?” Jason smirked.
“I thought you wanted me to have a better connection with (L/N),” Damian grumbled. “There’s just no pleasing you.”
Later that night, you were seated in the dining room of Wayne Manor. From the corner of your eye, you saw Tim whisper something to Bruce who nodded. “Apologies, (Y/N), but we must leave for the night. There’s been an emergency at Wayne Enterprises.”
You frowned at these words. “On Christmas Week?”
“Unfortunately,” Jason said with mock sympathy. “We’ll be back before you know it, kid. Besides, Damian will be there.”
At that, the said boy almost dropped his fork, shooting a not-so-subtle glare at his older brother. “Of course I will be.”
“Oh…” you nodded in understanding, “well, have fun!”
Before long, you and Damian agreed to watch a movie after he took a shower and got everything ready. While you waited, you scrolled through the news on your laptop. So far, nothing was interesting until your gaze fell at one particular article. ‘Batman and his Associates Spotted While Fighting Poison Ivy’. Curiosity overtook you and you scanned through the article.
‘At 7:48 on the 21st of December, Batman and his associates, Red Robin, Red Hood, and Nightwing were spotted fighting the famed villain Poison Ivy’. You furrowed your eyebrows as you read the first sentence. 7:48 at night? That was 10 minutes after Bruce and the others excused themselves this evening. And, hold on a minute, Nightwing was meant to be in Bludhaven, not Gotham. So what was he doing here? And where in tarnation was Robin, the vigilante who saved you months prior?
A salty feeling was left in your mouth. There was no way Bruce Wayne could be Batman, could there? And, if he was Batman, that meant Dick was Nightwing, Red Robin was Tim and Red Hood was Jason. But that meant… a chill ran down your spine. Damian, your Damian, was Robin? The vigilante known for fighting and putting himself in danger? No, that was impossible! Or… was it?
Your stomach lurched at the thought. Wait. You had to find some solid proof that they were the masked vigilantes everyone knew and (probably?) loved. The most questionable thing was: where was the Bat Cave? In their basement? You snickered at the thought. No, that was a little out of the ordinary. You would have seen it at some point. Unless…
Out of all the books in Bruce’s study, there was only one that didn’t have any dust on it. Curiously, you pulled the book towards you and in almost an instant, the wall opened up. You gaped at the hole in the wall, looking around to see if Damian was anywhere. He didn’t seem to be following you… using the flash on your phone as a torch, you slowly walked down the stairs. When your feet met even ground, you were met with a swarm of bats. Waving your arms around like a mad man, you ran around the bat cave multiple times, only to run into a very tall sturdy thing. Oh, wait. This isn’t good.
“What are you doing here?” Damian asked, looking down on you. You flinched. Now you were definitely scared.
“Why didn’t you tell me you were Robin?” Your voice was nothing but a mere whisper and you could hear the blood pounding in your ears.
“How did you find out?”
“I connected the dots,” you said coldly, regretting it almost instantly, “I know that Tim is Red Robin, Jay is Red Hood and Dick is Nightwing. And I know that Bruce is Batman.”
Damian shut his eyes tightly, wishing that this was all a bad dream. “You weren’t supposed to know.”
“Why not?” You countered, frowning at him. “I would have found out sooner or later. Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I wanted to keep you safe.” The way he said it… your heart thundered in your chest as you looked up at his emerald green eyes. “I didn’t want to make you into a target.”
“You don’t have to worry about me,” you muttered before letting out a dry laugh. “How do you think I feel? You’re the one running around putting yourself in danger.”
“I didn’t want you to worry about me, (N/N). You’re always putting people in front of yourself and it scares me sometimes.” His mind wandered back to the time he saved you, and from the look in your eyes, he could tell that you were, too.
“Well, you do that too, don’t you?” You gave a lopsided smile. “I’m sorry.”
“For finding out?” Damian shook his head, “don’t be. Now, come on, I prepared your favourite movie.”
“The Nutcracker?” You giggled. “I thought you forgot.”
“I never forget.” He offered you a hand which you gratefully took.
“Damian,” you said softly, looking up at him, “why do you care so much?”
Why did he care so much? “Because… because you didn’t give up on me.”
You smiled up at him, squeezing his hand a little tighter as you walked up the stairs from the Bat Cave. “I’ll never give up on you, Dami. You mean too much to me.”
“Likewise, (N/N).”
The movie soon became forgotten as you sat cross-legged on the couch, Damian sitting lazily in front of you. He was telling you about the latest heist at the harbour, when Bruce, Tim, Dick and Jason walked casually into the room.
“Hey, guys,” you said from the couch, pulling your attention from Damian for a few moments. “How was the mission?”
“Oh, it was good- wait, you knew?!” Dick gaped at you. “Damian, did you tell her?”
At that, the said boy let out a scoff. “You have no faith in me, Grayson. Of course, I didn’t tell her. She figured it out herself.”
You grinned in triumph at them, letting out a guffaw at their bemused faces. “I’m not that stupid, you know.”
“Right…” Jason eyes you wearily while Bruce was still wondering if he should scold you or congratulate you for the find. “I’m just going to pretend this never happened and leave…”
“For once, I’m going to agree with you,” Tim said, following him out the room.
You shrugged before turning back to Damian. “So, what happened to Two-Face?”
“He’s still in the Asylum, obviously. He’s going mad there, I presume.”
“Wait… I never got to ask.” At this point, Bruce had left the room in search of Alfred. “If you’re Bruce’s biological son, who’s your mother?”
The green eyed boy stiffened, shifting uncomfortably.
Your eyes widened in realisation. “Oh, I didn’t mean to pry…”
“No, it’s fine. I wasn’t expecting the question,” Damian dismissed. “My mother is Talia Al Ghul, a leader in the League of Assassins. I was born from an artificial womb and trained to kill innocent people.” At that, he cringed. “It’s a lot worse than it sounds. When Father took me in, he taught me his customs. He taught me not to kill. But I don’t think he was the real reason I stopped.”
You frowned at him, cocking your head to the side. “Then who is?”
“You,” Damian admitted truthfully. “You never gave up on me and you were… pure.”
You let out a small chuckle, rolling your eyes. “I’m not that pure, Dami.”
The two of you were sitting closer together, and you never noticed how… beautiful Damian’s eyes were. They were an enticing shade of emerald green with soft blue accents. You bit your lip at each thought that popped through your head after.
“(Y/N)…” Damian’s voice was a whisper and his soft minty breath fanned your face. “I think I’m in love with you.”
You smiled at him, (E/C) eyes twinkling. “I love you too.”
“May I kiss you?”
In your response, you hesitantly pressed your lips against his, smiling as you did.
In that moment, Damian learned what it really meant to love. And he vowed to himself that he was never going to let anything happen to you. Never.