Gimme a request I guess
give me a purpose in my life
Tonight had been exceedingly hard for Nightwing and he wanted nothing more than to climb into his bed to sleep the rest of the night off. He felt more tired than usual at the end of this patrol. Perhaps that's because he was blindly dodging tanks of fear gas and was only running on the hearty breakfast he had at 6 am and the Snickers bar he'd won in the raffle at work. He didn't take much notice of it anyway. Once he entered his apartment, he locked the four locks on his door and slid the latch across. He wondered if it was overkill to have that many locks but then he reminded himself where he lived and who he was then the extent people would go to these days for a bit of money. He felt safe when he slid the latch across so he supposed it didn't matter. Then Dick wandered over to his fridge, squinting at the bright light that greeted him. There wasn't much in there. It was mostly just leftover takeaways from the last few nights and one really gross looking salad that went off, God knows how long ago. He decided on the thing that didn't smell the weirdest which was a pepperoni pizza from last night. He grabbed a slice and a bottle of water, accepting that this was how he was spending his early Saturday morning. Most other guys his age were probably leaving the clubs right about now with their partner for the night or their group of friends. They probably had a great night out and were going to end it with something nice before passing out on a couch. He would kill for a night off where he could actually drink himself into a stooper. He once went out tipsy because the person covering him that night got themselves captured. Dick was lucky to have time to call someone else to come save him as well as the original hero. It could've ended a lot worse and be made a PSA for patrolling and drinking. Then again, Jason already fit that brief.
After finishing his rather depressing meal, he sleepily walked into his bedroom. He wormed his way out of his suit and lightly hissed when it applied pressure to his new bruises and cuts he'd gotten that evening. Dick thought about taking some painkillers but he was in his bedroom now and couldn't be bothered walking back into the kitchen to the medicine cabinet. He'd been beaten up enough during the years that the pain was more of an inconvenience rather than something that confined him to his bed. After freeing himself from his suit, he decided he couldn't be bothered to get into his pajamas so he just flopped onto the bed in his boxers and wiggled himself underneath the covers as painlessly as he could. As his eyelids got heavier, there was a dull sense of worry. Like something bad was about to happen but he didn't know what. Dick ignored the feeling in favour of sleeping off whatever it was. This proved to be an almost fatal mistake.
Damian didn't often watch the news but when he did, it was because someone he considered close hadn't answered him in the last ten minutes. The someone close this time was Jon who hadn't answered him after Damian asked him what he was doing up so late. He was clearly expecting a response. If he didn't find out his best friend was mid-battle, kidnapped or nearly killed then he'd scold him for being rude. He watched the usual reports on crime and general celebrity when there was a breaking news alert. A basic logo overlapped the female presenter followed by quick sinister music. Damian leaned towards the TV slightly, intrigued by the sudden news bulletin. It was probably some villains new plot to end the world whilst they forgot they lived in the same world they wanted to descend into chaos. "News just in, Gotham Medical Centre is pleading for Nightwing to seek immediate medical assistance after his latest battle with Scarecrow." Damian choked on his spit in shock and turned up the volume to make sure what he heard was right. Why would they plead for him to seek medical assistance? "After once again saving the day, the hero disappeared before paramedics could inform him of the new potent fear gas formula. Medical professionals have said that the fear gas creates nightmares scary enough to cause eventual heart failure if untreated." Screw Jon, his big brother was in trouble. "They say that if anyone knows the whereabouts of Nightwing or if he is watching this, please come to Gotham General Hospital. They assure the hero that they will not reveal his identity and will treat him for free. We can only hope he seeks treatment." Damian jumped up and raced down to the Batcave, throwing on his Robin suit and quickly looking through the fear gas database for anything that had been similar. Luckily, Batman had received the same gas that week so he was able to quickly formulate an antidote. Once the antidote was safely bottled and secured in his utility belt, he hopped on a motorcycle and raced out of the cave. Technically he was still learning how to ride one but running across rooftops just wouldn't get him there fast enough.
No matter how many times he'd seen Dick have a nightmare or suffer the effects of fear gas, one thing always got Damian. The screaming. It was so heart wrenching and so terrified that whenever he heard it he was shocked. That sound shouldn't be coming from anyone, let alone Dick. He was his big brother, biological or not, and he couldn't take seeing someone so strong so vulnerable. So when he heard Dick's apartment filled with these screams, it almost broke him. He knew from when he stepped in through the window that those screams would forever haunt him. He stalked through the halls of the apartment until he came to the almost closed door of the older's bedroom. Everything went in slow motion. Damian's hand cautiously and almost reluctantly opened the door. He hesitantly stepped inside and immediately took a step back when he saw what he did. Dick was thrashing with all his might in his bed. A blanket was wrapped around his leg, one pillow had been thrown across the room and was probably the cause of the smashed lamp beside him and the other was being ripped by his vice-like grip on it. The fact he was in his boxers only made things worse as Damian could see all the scars, cuts and bruises he'd gained. Sure, he knew they were there and he'd seen them before but when he saw them in combination with seeing his brother was something else.
Shaking his head to get rid of the shock, Damian jumped into action. He pulled out the antidote and syringe, filling it up with the light blue liquid, then tried to figure out on how to keep Dick still long enough to deliver what he needed. He crept forwards, regretting getting close enough to see the streams of tears rolling down the older's cheeks and the deep scars that hadn't healed properly. There was nothing stopping Dick from screaming and kicking and punching. Damian could see why this would make someone's heart give out. The thumping in his chest was almost audible but that was most likely a trick of his hearing. "Grayson, i-it's Damian," he announced, his voice trembling ever so slightly. "I'm here to help." The second sentence was much stronger but there was still fear in there. He couldn't help but be scared. Dick was his rock and now his rock was being broken into tiny pieces with a jackhammer. There wasn't a response but he didn't expect one. Damian got a little closer, noticing that Dick's left leg, the one with the blanket wrapped around it, wasn't moving as much as his right. That was his best shot of injecting the serum. "This might hurt a little but I promise it'll help," Damian assured him. The information was wasted but he felt better announcing it than just doing it without forewarning. Damian gripped onto his thigh harshly, finding a vein, then stabbed the syringe in. He couldn't tell if it actually hurt since the screaming was constant but he hoped it didn't.
Ten minutes later and the room was finally empty of screaming. Dick's chest heaved up and down as he finally stopped moving apart from the shivers. Damian let out a sigh of relief and went about putting the room back in order. He unwrapped the older's leg from his blanket then draped it over him then he retrieved the pillow that had been hurled across the floor. He gently lifted Dick's head and slipped the pillow underneath his head. "Dad?"
"Damian I'm afraid." Dick cackled softly and partially opened his eyes. They were wet with tears and glistened slightly. He looked so tired. He tried to get up but Damian gave him a glare to keep him where he was.
"That's good too. What happened?" Dick croaked.
"The fear gas you received tonight was deadlier than usual. Alongside the nightmares, you could've died from heart failure."
"Fun." Damian shook his head at the comment and pulled the blanket up further. "Thanks, Dami." The younger tutted, perching himself on the side of the bed. He didn't really know what to do next. If he hadn't had woken up so soon, he'd be out of here. Probably tracking down Jon. Now he was awake, however, Damian didn't want to go anywhere where he couldn't see him. "Are you going to be okay?" he asked quietly. Dick remained silent. That was all he needed to do. "I can stay. If that's what's needed." Dick smiled at him, beginning to fall back asleep. Having such an intense nightmare really took it out of him.
"You've got a mission tomorrow. Actually, I guess it would be today? Either way, you best be getting home," he argued. His logic was right but Damian, for once, didn't want to listen to logic. Dick was pouring in sweat and would most likely continue to have nightmares throughout the night. Granted, they wouldn't be on the level of the one he just had but still. It meant his brother would be in pain and, if he left, then he wouldn't have someone to be assured by. "Go home and get some sleep. For me if not for you."
"But-"
"Please," he interrupted. The younger huffed in protest but relented. "Thank you. Give me a hug before you go." Damian lent down and hugged him, holding a little tighter than usual for extra comfort.
"You should take a shower in the morning. You're rather sweaty."
"Love you too," Dick tutted. "Now get going."
Reluctantly, Damian went home. He called Dick the next day, not to make sure he was alright of course, just to know if he was going to be doing patrol that night. When he found it that Dick was taking the night off, he had just so happened been given the night off by Bruce. Totally by coincidence. Definitely not because he was still worried about his older brother and begged Bruce to give him the night off too. The fact that he ended up at Dick's apartment was purely there because he had nothing else to do. Giving him hugs whenever he saw Dick shiver and squeeze his eyes shut to stop remembering something wasn't because he cared. It was just so he could watch the TV without him annoyingly doing those things in the background.