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Oh good. Haven't lost my touch.

[And Dick is right there, and his eyes are so blue, and maybe there's no star canopy overhead or superhero costumes or plans or anything, but Wally can't think of a time more perfect than one-thirty in the morning after losing four rounds of Deep Space Marine to kiss Dick Grayson.

So that's what he does.]

[ It isn't the world's most spectacular kiss. His nose bumps against Wally's when he turns his head the wrong way, and his lips are a little too dry and he's suddenly acutely aware of the rough spot where he split his lower lip in a fight the other day, and it takes him a minute to figure out just how to move his mouth, but.

But he lifts his free hand to Wally's cheek and tips his head just right on the second try, and it's not that bad once he stops overthinking it. Maybe actually almost pretty good, though the fact that it's Wally might be skewing the results. ]

[Nope, not an awesome kiss, and Wally's had a little more experience with this than Dick has but it's not enough to make much of a difference. Rob's lips are too dry and Wally doesn't know what to do with his other hand, and not much is happening but Rob lifts his fingers to Wally's cheek and he feels stupid and giddy anyway.

It's actually not all that different from kissing a girl. Go figure.

So Wally pulls back and away. He lets go of Robin's hand so he can rub his sweaty palms against his jeans.] Okay, cool. [First kiss done. Wally feels a little bit light-headed, but in a good way.] See? Wasn't so hard. [is his grin dopey because it feels like it's probably dopey]

[ Dick hadn't even realized how warm his hand had gotten until Wally let go of it. He can feel his heartbeat in his face, and he's pretty sure he's red right up to the tips of his ears, but he feels almost as light as he does right after he lands a particularly amazing leap. ]

Pretty awesome, actually. [ And if Wally's grin is dopey, Dick's is just as much so. His lips are still tingling and he can't seem to wipe the smile off his face. ]

Okay you're right, it was awesome. [Wally's grin gets a little sharper and he reaches past Dick to open the fridge. He pulls out a 2 liter of Coke, pours Dick a cup and then just drinks right out of the bottle for himself. Attractive.]

C'mon, it's my turn to beat you. [And he jerks his head back toward the living room, but a strange look crosses his face and he leans in to peck Dick on the lips. When he pulls back he's triumphant, I can do that now written all over his face, because he can and he's allowed to kiss Dick and nobody gets to say anything about it. Dick let Wally kiss him. Wally West is allowed to kiss Dick Grayson.

Yep. The walk he uses to get back to the living room is definitely a swagger.]

[ Dick's sure that he's never looked this smitten in his life, but he can't bring himself to care. He follows Wally back to the living room, vaulting over the back of the couch — great houseguest manners, but hey, the parents aren't awake — and then he turns back to grin at him. ]

I'm not gonna go easy on you just 'cause you kissed me, you know.

[ But he might. (Maybe he won't have a choice, if he keeps thinking about that kiss.) ]

Yeah, whatever.

[He doesn't though, and Wally loses again but he's fine with it because when they pass out on the couch sometime between two and three, Dick's head is right against his chest and Wally feels his breath on his shirt and that weight is probably the most comforting thing he's ever had to lull him to sleep.

They both come to an agreement not to tell the team about their relationship. Not out of fear they won't understand, but just to keep things under wraps. Robin makes it pretty clear that he's not telling Batman, and after a couple failed attempts on Wally's behalf to tell his parents about Dick, he decides to give up as well. They keep things in secret and behind closed doors, and considering they don't ever get further than holding hands or exchanging close-mouthed kisses, it's not a big deal.

Weeks pass, and those turn into months and Dick and Wally both creep up onto their next birthdays, Dick approaching fifteen and Wally preparing for seventeen. Dick shoots up an impressive handful of inches while Wally only manages one more, and Dick puts on more weight than Wally does and Wally jokes that Dick's finally catching up to the big boys, which earns him a punch. Wally doesn't think about how if Dick keeps growing like this, he'll be taller than Wally. He doesn't want to consider a day when he might not be able to cart the Boy Wonder around on his back.

The missions Batman gives the team get harder and harder, until instead of the League tackling the Big Bads (as Wally calls them) the team is being deployed to tamp down crises that were before meant for more experienced hands. With the responsibility, though, comes more danger, and it seems like the more success the team experiences, the more of them that return from these missions with cuts and broken bones instead of just bruised egos. Artemis takes a bullet that puts her in the hospital for a month. Aqualad has to be taken back to Atlantis for proper poison treatment after a run-in with the Joker. Even Conner was in the med-bay, for a short time, when someone stabs him with a kryptonite-dusted knife.

Wally's never felt terror like tonight, though. Because they're on the rooftops, helping out in Gotham -with an Arkham outbreak just hours ago- and he gets pinned down and tastes blood and dirty rainwater and gravel on his tongue. He's struggling, fighting against one of Ivy's burly home-grown henchmen when he hears M'gann scream a warning to Robin and the panic of it stabs right through to his heart. He wrenches up his head just in time to see Harley giggle as she clocks Robin with a mallet and send the Boy Wonder staggering over the edge of the roof.]

Robin!

[KF doesn't remember what happens next but then he's tearing down the side of the building and his goggles aren't even on his head anymore so Robin's plummeting figure is just a blur of color against the backdrop of slick lit skyscraper windows.]

Edited 2014-06-11 05:02 (UTC)

[ "ladies and gentlemen, children of all ages"

He's a third of the way down the side of the building when he comes to, wind whipping through his hair and howling past his ears and he recognizes the feeling of weightlessness before anything else. He's flying—

"the fearless Flying Graysons"

No, he's falling. He's falling, and his head is swimming and his eyes won't focus — where, what — he's not supposed to fall, he's never supposed to fall, he's a Grayson, but he can see the edge of the building above him receding into the night sky and the bottom drops out of his stomach and he screams with what's left in his lungs because he's had this dream before, only this time it's real.

"dazzling, death-defying feats"

But he's Robin, and time slows down as his instincts kick in. Reach for your line, reach for your line, he thinks, but at the speed he's going his limbs are fighting a losing battle with wind resistance and reaching for his belt is the hardest thing he's ever tried to do.

And then he sees Kid Flash, and the terror's back because he's falling too and please not him, not Wally, please. Except: he's not falling, he's running? Can he do that, what happens when he hits the ground, Robin's never seen this before but he doesn't have time to think because the ground is getting closer and Wally's the closest thing to a lifeline he's got right now and—

"all performed without a net"

He reaches for Wally's hand. ]

[Robin's hand reaches out for him and like that, time snaps to standstill.

In the span of half a second, Wally exists for what feels like days. Neurons fire at rates of 1,000Hz; 1,300Hz; 2,000Hz, faster, faster. His molecules vibrate, spin, electrons whirling dizzily around protons and neutrons, all he is, just electrons, protons and neutrons in varying combinations,

hydrogenheliumlithiumberylliumboroncarbonnitrogen

and so is Robin, so is everything, like the hand reaching out to him, the one he's grabbing,

oxygenfluorineneon

threading his fingers through Robin's like he had last Saturday, the Thursday before that, Wednesday, weeks ago, months ago, years ago, faster, faster dammit and Robin's Dick's his eyes are so blue it's like looking at a theoretical chemical composition or at the sound barrier as it breaks,

sodiummagnesiumaluminumsilicon

but the transfer from vertical to horizontal is going to be rough because gravity doesn't like to change tracks and Robin is in his hands, Robin's wrapped up in his arms and the ground is coming fast, very fast, not as fast as he and Robin and his team is up there, Superboy was shouting after Wally as he tore over the edge, so was Zatanna, he remembers them screaming like it was yesterday (it was seconds ago West get a grip) and Robin's shaking in his arms and his scalp has a sticky spot on it from the blood, there's the ground, threetwoone-

The transfer is like two railroad spikes to Wally's knees but he doesn't even notice until they're a block down the street, and the pain is gone two blocks after that because his healing time is god, so fast, hours in seconds and Wally runs three more blocks, burning off the kinetic energy as he thinks to himself frantic, one single strain of thought in the storm of too much,

Am I gonna be like this for the rest of my life?

Left turn, left turn, back to the building, back up the side, momentum's carrying him but it's harder to run against gravity than with and nothing's going to change that, not him, not Speed not anything but they make it to the top and Kid Flash feels the soles of his feet burn as he skids them to a stop and hits something solid and collapses against it.

He doesn't stop though, too fast, trembling, buzzing, humming like a livewire and he touches his fingers to Robin's neck to find his pulse and use it as an anchor, to reassure himself, alive, alive, not a mess of differently-arranged molecules on the asphalt below, still in the same pattern, still breathing, slow, slow pulse (fast for him though) right there under Wally's fingers and he wills his heart to slow, slow, slow down-

Slow.

Breathe.

Phosphorussulfur chlorine argon, potassium, calcium. Scandium. Titanium.

Slow.

Robin is warm and shaking in his arms. Wally's curled up against a roof-mounted A/C unit (now dented), cradling him. Their teammates are gathered around, staring at them both; M'gann has tears in her eyes and Aqualad looks astonished. Rocket is gripping Wally's knee.

Someone asks if they're both okay. Wally nods and they see it, so he's back to normal speed.

Robin. Robin. Dick. Robin.

Wally buries his face against Dick's hair and can't look back up.]

You're okay, [he says, trying to be reassuring to him but his voice too thick and shaking, not like too fast but too much, he's crying, he's definitely crying. Robin almost died. Robin almost died. If he'd been one millisecond slower, he'd have spent the rest of his life without his best friend, his partner, without Dick.]

Edited 2014-06-11 18:03 (UTC)

[ In an instant, they go from moving faster than Robin's ever moved in his life to completely still, and it's all he can do just to catch his breath, heart pounding. Other people are saying things, asking questions, but all he can focus on is the way Wally's voice sounds right now, scared and relieved and trembling — he's not sure he's ever heard him sound like that before, and he never, ever wants to hear it again. Not because of him, not for anything.

Robin knows how it feels, the way time goes elastic when someone you (love) care about falls, the way they seem like they're dropping too fast and so slow all at once and there's nothing you can do but watch, and he'd— he'd almost— and Wally had almost had to go through that. He has to swallow around the thick stinging feeling in his throat.

But he's alive, Wally's alive, they're alive and it's gonna be okay. ]

You're amazing...

[ He is. He is, and he always has been. The words come out muffled against the warm, solid weight of Wally's chest, and his voice is small and shaky but unmistakably awed, and it's only then that he realizes his arms are wound so tight around Wally that he's not sure he can let go. He doesn't want to anyway. Maybe they'll just stay like this forever. ]

[Wally manages a bark of laughter that's two parts incredulous and one part tearful relief, and for a second he's not sure if he's slowed down or not because nothing seems to be happening.

No- no, okay, everyone else is also slowed down, just staring at them both before M'gann waves a hand and calls the bioship over.]

You're telling me, dude. I don't think I'll ever move that fast again. [Wally makes no indication of letting Dick go (not that anything would be able to pry them apart with how tightly they're wrapped around each other) as Artemis picks herself up from her crouch and Zatanna finally drops her hands from her face, eyes rimmed red and her smile weak and weary.

Conner and Kaldur help Wally up and Wally just hangs onto Dick, adjusts his grip so he's carrying Robin into the ship on shaking legs with stinging hips and knees, and M'gann makes probably the most comfortable seat somewhere in the back for them to strap into because they still haven't let go of each other.

They're in the air before Artemis comes over with a first aid kit.]

Oh, right. Rob, your head. [Wally jostles Dick with his shoulder; he'd been starting to doze off, adrenaline seeping out of his muscles and taking a lot of his energy with it. He wants to eat an entire grocery store worth of food and then sleep for a week.

Artemis's eyes are sharp and knowing as Wally gently parts Robin's hair and takes the gauze and swabs from her to clean the wound. She doesn't smile, but she doesn't frown, and when she and Wally exchange looks something passes between them that's silent but knowing.

"Cool," is all she says when she snaps the kit shut, and she punches Wally on the shoulder before she leaves. Wally gulps as she walks away. She knows. Of course she knows; they might've only dated for a couple months, but they parted even more amicably than they'd gotten together.

Wally starts and glances back down at Robin.]

You okay? [He wants to take Robin's face in his hands and kiss him stupid, but everyone is right there and Robin might not want to tell everyone about them like that.]

Yeah. We're okay.

[ He'd almost died. It's funny how he hadn't thought about what that would do to anyone else until now.

And realizing that — it drives something home. He's not Batman, and secrecy can't be priority alpha at a time like this. Not over something like a relationship. Maybe he'd been afraid of losing something special between the two of them if everyone else found out, or jinxing it, or he just hadn't wanted that to be the thing people saw them as when they're more than just boyfriends or best friends, they're— they're them.

But he can't really remember what, exactly, the big deal is anymore, because he's untangling his limbs from Wally's just enough to get a hand in his hair and tug him down into a kiss. And Robin makes a little "mmph" sound, soft and muffled, almost like he's the one surprised.

At this point, he doesn't care if everyone knows. Wally's the most amazing boy, the most amazing person in the universe as far as he's concerned, and— and screw stealth and keeping things under wraps. He'd tell anyone. He'd tell Batman.

Just maybe not like this. ]

["We're okay."

We. We.

Robin's fingers curl into Wally's hair and before he even realizes that Dick's pulling him down to kiss him, he's already grabbing Robin's face to pull him up to do the same. They both meet each other sooner than planned; Robin lets out a muffled, surprised sound against Wally's mouth and Wally parts his lips to swallow it. It's their first open-mouthed kiss and maybe if Robin hadn't just fallen forty stories, KF would be more giddy about it.

As it is he's holding back his own whimpers, just barely, so that they're quiet and there but only as far as Robin can hear, and his thumbs are pressed against Robin's ears and his fingernails are curling in his hair and he's- shit- he's so relieved. He's so exhaustedly relieved. The fact that they're making out in front of their team and telling them in no uncertain terms that he and Robin are technically together doesn't even register, doesn't even factor as important. Who cares? Robin's okay. They're both okay.

They pull apart to breathe but Wally doesn't go far. He taps his forehead to Robin's -goggles still gone, he realizes dimly, maybe forever- and closes his eyes.] I don't care how fast I have to run, [Wally whispers, and he's only half aware of what he's saying,] I'm never gonna let you fall.

[It's so quiet that even the barely present trill/hum of the bioship sounds like a tempest, but then someone -sounds like Zatanna- lets out a low, impressed whistle and Rocket digs a twenty out of her jacket pocket, grumbling as she passes it over to Artemis.

Conner asks M'gann to put up a divider if they start kissing again and Rocket retorts that Conner has no room to talk about PDAs, and the bioship wobbles because M'gann keeps craning her neck to sneak peeks at the two of them and squeal, and all of it is background noise because Wally has Dick in his arms, warm and safe and mostly whole, and he's gonna kiss the guy again if nobody minds. Hell, maybe even if they do.]

[ That line should be corny coming out of an actual person's mouth, and maybe it is, but it makes Robin's heart beat faster anyway because he knows it's true. And then suddenly everyone's chattering, and there's a flush rising to his cheeks, but he doesn't move to pull away — just curls up closer to Wally, sore and exhausted but completely content.

And frayed as his nerves are, he has to giggle, even if it's a touch hysterical. He grins against Wally's mouth when he kisses him again, and quiet and teasing: ]

If I'd known there was a betting pool, I would've drawn this out longer.

[ Yeah, right. ]

[Oh no Robin, don't let him get away with that shit. He seems to think he doesn't say the same corny crap the rest of the Flash family does, don't let him think he's cooler than they are.

Also never give him that "most amazing boy in the world" line ever. Ever. Unless you want to see him implode.]

Geez, you didn't put any money in it? [Wally grins and kisses Robin again, and their arms wrap around each other and their lips meet every now and then, and it's awesome and it settles and centers and slows him like nothing else, which sounds like it should be bad but it's the best thing that ever happened to him.] Dude, what a waste of an opportunity.

[And he has to make jokes, he has to laugh and screw up and everything else that's just so Wally because if he doesn't he'll get swept up, overwhelmed by everything Richard Grayson. Maybe it shows in how his hands splay as wide as possible across Robin's back, or how he lingers a little on the brush and drag of their lips between smiles. Or maybe it's in how he calls Dick in the middle of the night and talks until he pretends to fall asleep, until he starts breathing even and hears Robin whisper soft, "Wally?" Just his name. Just that one word, from Dick's mouth, in Dick's voice.

Shit.

Oh shit. He's absolutely, too-far-to-stop stupid for his best friend, isn't he?

And he probably just gave it away, right there, because his laugh is a little choked like he didn't mean to let the whole thing out and he presses a kiss to Robin's to hide it from everyone else but Robin'll know. Hell, he can probably taste it on him.]

[ Robin notices something different in Wally's laugh, but he doesn't entirely know what to make of it. But this is — it's different than before, somehow, different than the chaste, stolen kisses in between rounds of video games. It feels a little like an admission, but of what, he's not sure yet.

... okay, so he has a pretty good idea of what it means to him, but maybe that's just the adrenaline talking.

They keep the totally clingy cuddling for the rest of the trip back, and it's surprisingly natural. He's grateful for the lighthearted teasing, honestly. It makes this feel normal, like they haven't really changed all that much at all in anyone else's eyes. Which maybe they haven't.

It's late by the time they get back to the cave, and into the earliest hours of the morning by the time they're all debriefed and Dick's been fussed over as long as he'll allow it (he didn't need stitches, but just barely). He manages to convince Bruce to let him stay at the cave, and Bruce probably knows how much he needs the time with his friends, because to his credit, he doesn't make an issue of it.

Dick finally escapes to the showers to clean the night off of him. He spends a long time in there, rinsing blood out of his hair and collecting his thoughts. Everyone's gone to bed or at least retired to their rooms by the time he's done, and the quiet hum of the machinery that keeps Mount Justice running rings too loud in his ears.

He doesn't want to be alone. So he goes to find Wally, wondering whether he's crashed or if he's up too late pretending he's not thinking about things. ]

[Wally was slick and snagged a shower before his debriefing. 'Course, when a guy can rinse off in a matter of milliseconds that's not really much of an accomplishment.

Still, it means he's clean and in pajamas and set up pretty nicely in the kitchen with half the contents of the fridge spread out on the island before him, assembling sandwiches and eating leftovers right out of their tupperware containers. M'gann and Conner will probably have to go shopping again tomorrow, but at least it'll be on the League's dime instead of Mary and Rudy digging into their savings to feed their kid again.

Robin emerges from the hallway and Wally picks up his head, a carrot stick dangling from his mouth as he squishes a quadruple-decker sandwich down far enough to fit into his mouth.]

Hey. How's the head?

[ He smiles, tension he hadn't realized he was carrying rolling off of his shoulders. That's normal. It's reassuring. It's Wally. ]

A lot better. Pretty sure I'm gonna have a headache for a week, though. [ It's light and casual. No mention of near-death experiences. Just half-joking about getting banged up in a fight.

He heads over to Wally's side, leaning back against the counter next to him and swinging his foot until his bare toes brush Wally's ankle. ] Nice spread.

Thanks. [Wally finally squishes the sandwich down to an appropriate height and takes a bite. He offers Robin some of the leftover baked macaroni and they sit in comfortable quiet for a little while, side-by-side, occasionally knocking feet or elbows just for the additional touch.

Wally's assembling a second sandwich when he goes into it.] So are you okay then? [And he's not talking about your head, Rob.]

I'm a little shaken up, I guess, but... I'm okay. It's not my first near-death experience. [ It's the first that's hit home like that, though, and if he thinks about it too hard he can still feel the bottom dropping out of his stomach.

He looks up at Wally, his expression softening. ] Are you?

Nothing the required one-hour sessions with Black Canary won't fix, right? [Wally layers on some lettuce, tomato, more turkey, more ham. Mayo, mustard, bread, start it again all over. Shovel some cold mashed potatoes into his mouth.]

Can still hear those screams echoing in my head though. 'Cause someone screamed for you when you fell; I think it was Artemis actually. Originally I thought it was M'gann but nope, pretty sure it was her. And then Supey yelled at me when I went after you.

And then yours, when you fell. [Wally looks over at Dick, not sharp or accusatory, but knowing. You're not all right. Near death experiences aren't anything new for them, but you fell. Wally's heard your nightmares about falling dude, don't try to brush it off like it doesn't matter.]

But, y'know. [He sniffs and shrugs a shoulder.] Hazards of the workplace. We'll be traumatized forever, probably, but we'll be traumatized together. [He cuts the sandwich in half and stuffs nearly a quarter of it into his mouth.]

Edited 2014-06-15 08:36 (UTC)

[ He had screamed. He'd forgotten that part. Dick grimaces, glancing away from Wally, feeling something like shame. He wouldn't have judged anyone else for it, but... ]

I'm sorry I scared you. [ That's what he settles for, at last, because he can't put together the words for all the complicated things he's feeling just yet. It's a start, though, and he needs to say something to address what had happened, all the emotions that had been running high after his rescue. ]

You're sorr- [Wally cuts himself off with an incredulous laugh, shaking his head. He braces himself on the counter with his hands, hunching his shoulders, staring down at his half-eaten sandwich halves.

It takes him a second to gather himself enough to look back up at Robin.] Are you seriously apologizing? For Harley attacking you, for falling off a building? Why are you apologizing for that?

I mean, it's not like I haven't seen you in trouble before. Hell, you're usually in trouble risking your dumb chicken neck for me, so why would I be worried? You've got no reason to be sorry, you hear me? I'm fine. [wally] Yeah sure, I was scared, who wouldn't be scared? But I'm not scared now, and I won't be scared tomorrow or the day after that. [wally]

'Cause this is nothing new! This is nothing new. So why are you sorry over just more of the same?! [Except it is, because Wally saw the terror on Robin's face even with that mask, even without his goggles, even- And right before Robin reached for him and everything screeched to a halt, right before that Wally had realized with absolute certainty that he wouldn't reach Robin in time. He'd known that he was too slow, that Robin would hit the ground before Wally could get to him, that he needed more time and more room and more stable conditions to accelerate to something faster because he can't do that like the Flash can. He'd have to watch his best friend (more, more, he's more than that you idiot) die right there, ten feet from his fingers because he couldn't pick up the goddamn pace-

Wally shoves his sandwich aside and the plate clatters atop the counter, upsetting the bottle of mustard and scattering a fork. He whirls around and presses a hand to his mouth and his ears ring with the silence.]

...Don't do that. Okay? Just don't.

[ "I'm sorry," he almost says again, but catches himself. Dick's throat aches and his eyes prick with— with what, he doesn't even know, and he doesn't know if it's the right thing to do because he just doesn't do this kind of thing (touching, talking, navigating maturing relationships) but he has to try, right? So he drags Wally into a fierce, slightly awkward hug, grabbing fistfuls of his shirt in his hands and pressing his face against Wally's shoulder. ]

Stop it.

[Wally grabs Robin back in his arms just as tight, just as fiercely, and he presses his mouth to Robin's hair and screws his eyes shut. He sucks in a breath, holds it, lets it go and it puffs little strands on Robin's head that have already started drying from the shower.]

You stop it, [he mutters, but its without venom.] This- it's a big deal. For both of us. For me and for you. Got it?