#A Robin’s Song

[puppiesandnightlock]

LINK: Goodbye Was Not Our End

chpt summary: after five years, the boys reunite.

“I have nothing to wear!” Jon stared at his closet, unsatisfactory outfits littered around the room.

Friday had finally come, and Jon was sure he couldn't have been the only one agonizing over this, Damian had always taken care of his appearance as a teen in public. 

“Daddy?” a little head of mussed black curls peeked into his room. 

Ah, dammit.

“Good morning, Laurel!” He called cheerfully to his daughter, the both of them still in their pajamas. He decided to leave his clothing for later, a quick call to Kathy would most likely solve his fashion problems.

He scooped her up, nuzzling her nose with his as she giggled. “How are you on this fine morning, princess?”

“Good!” He carried her to her room, walls painted a light green with flower blossom stickers decorating it. He set her back down on the little wooden toddler bed, speaking.

“What are we feelin’ today? Overalls okay?”

She nodded. “Pink.”

He pulled a pink shirt off a hanger and folded it neatly, leaving her to get dressed by herself per her request.

Nutella was spread across two pieces of bread, Jon slicing strawberries and bananas to set on top.

He pulled a small lunchbox from the fridge and set it next to the little backpack. Laurel came out of her room, fully dressed and a pair of red converse in hand. Jon swept her curls into two small ponytails as she ate the toast, leaving half of it down. 

He tied her shoelaces and ran to get dressed himself, making a mental note to change before lunch.

 He skipped his morning college lecture, asking for the notes from an acquaintance, and heading straight for the Daily Planet. He had managed to secure a temporary job as a remote journalist until he completed his masters and got his credentials, luckily allowing him to work from home most days.

Despite that, Jon often made his way into the office after he’d finished an article, preferring to pick up his next assignment in person then over email.

It was now an hour before his scheduled lunch, and he was a nervous wreck, even after following Kathy’s fashion advice. 

What could he say that wouldn’t make him sound stupid? Does he talk about Laurel? Should he apologize for five years ago? Would they see each other again or was this just…closure?

If it was only closure…he hoped he was able to let go.

Only one way to find out, he supposed, locking his door and going to his parking spot, unlocking his car and setting the course for the little cafe they were to meet up in.

Damian was panicking.

He’d pulled over several times to shove his head between his legs and breathe deeply, humming to himself to calm down. There was a part of him that sneered, screaming out “Pathetic.” at his nerves.

Now, he was entering Metropolis, following the directions on the screen. Too late to chicken out now. He looked at himself as he hit a red light, outfit chosen with careful consideration and Skylar, Steph, Duke, and Maya’s approval. A touch of eyeliner was applied per Akira’s instruction, drawing attention to his deep green eyes, and a dangling gold cuff in his left ear. His right ear had a gold stud and small loop.

He tapped a finger impatiently on the wheel, deep green sleeves of the oversized open sweater he was wearing coming over his hands.

He pulled into the lot, checking the time. He was a few minutes early, and he tugged at the black turtleneck under his sweater, feeling heated all of a sudden. It felt like something had taken him over, drumming energy into his body.

A DM popped up and he fumbled with his phone, nearly dropping it. He took a deep breath before opening his car door, locking it and shoving his phone into the deep pocket of his jacket.

His black combat boots clicked against the pavement as he scanned the cafe in front of him, knowing that despite the years between them, he’d always be able to recognize the boy who haunted his dreams. 

A head of black curls came into his vision and desperation filled him, urging him to go forwards.

 “JON!” He called out. 

Time seemed to slow as he turned, Damian coming to a halt as he met the eyes he’d so missed.

“Damian?” Jon’s face broke into a grin, the blinding smile that was so genuine, it brought him back to high school when he would have done anything to see it appear.

He was taller now, still more then him, and his curls were cut short, styled fashionably. His freckles were still prominent, the glasses he’d carried up into their senior year traded for contact lenses.

Damian’s heart was caught in his throat, palms beginning to gather sweat. His pulse was running wild and he knew he must have looked like an idiot, standing there and staring at his childhood ex-best friend like he was an alien.

Jon didn’t seem to mind, running up to him. It was only then when he snapped out of it, magnetically drawn to the taller boy, letting himself be enveloped in Jon’s arms.

The warmth lulled him, flutters of familiarity and something so right flooding through him. He wanted to laugh and cry and scream all at once, run five laps but stay in his embrace.

He let his arms tighten around the other and kept them both in a firm hug, shutting his eyes before hearing a clearing of the throat.

He let go and stepped back immediately, embarrassment flooding his cheeks. He tugged on the collar of his turtleneck again and looked up ( looked up!! ) at Jon, cooling relief as he noticed the same embarrassment on his face.

“Jon.” He dipped his head in greeting, smile playing on his lips.

“Damian.” Jon responded in kind, grinning all the while. They sat down, the reunion euphoria settling and slowly turning the atmosphere into an uncomfortable silence.

They studied each other, watching for things that had become different during their time apart.

Jon noted the earrings, more bold from the simple gold studs Damian had worn, the only pair he’d owned back in high school. There were two more piercings, and his hair had grown longer, strands of it falling in his face. His eyes were still the same but held a haunting air, speaking of unspeakable things in the past.

It twisted in his heart and he looked down, noting the boots and generally stylish outfit. It was good to see that in that aspect he hadn’t changed much. Even not having much growing up, Damian had always managed to piece something together that made him look gorgeous.

“So…” Jon coughed. “How’ve you been?”

Damian seemed surprised, but he overcame it quickly. “Fine. You?”

“Fine too.”

The silence trailed off. 

“Timothy has told me Kon is doing well.”

Jon brightened, here was something he could talk about. “He is! His fashion line thing is taking off quicker than any of us had expected, and he’s kinda just goin’ around on the internet and stuff, you know? How’ve your siblings been?”

“They’ve been doing fairly well. Cassandra has become a talented dancer, and Tim has started his technology company. It’s doing pretty well, and Steph just entered pre-med school.”

“Jason helped out a colleague of mine in her singing, as well as his own music channel. He’s been cast as lead in the musical his school is putting on. Duke has been publishing poetry and is finishing up his degree, Dick is well, ten, but has shown a strong interest in music himself. And I’m not too bad off myself, what with ROBIN and all that.”

“I know!” Jon blurted out, Damian raising an eyebrow. He flushed pink and stumbled, backtracking.

“I-i don’t know if you remember, but i uh, i was a big fan of yours when you’d first started up. O-of course i didn’t know it was you at time but ah-”

Damian laughed, the quiet noise of joy ringing in Jon’s ears, a beautifully familiar song.

“I remember. I’m surprised you still stuck with him all this time, huh?” he grinned for a split second, fading quickly.

“Have you found your happy ending yet?” The question was a silent murmur, near inaudible.

Jon was brought back to that day, so blissfully unaware of how soon after their bond would break. 

“No.” He said finally. “I haven’t reached it yet. I thought I had, for a bit. But no.”

Haisley’s gone, then.

“What about you?” 

Damian quickly shook his head. “Not even close.” 

I could never, not without you.

“It’s nice to hear you’re doing well. I ever thought we’d get this chance again.” 

Jon smiled softly. “I’m glad we did, Damian.”

They stuck around for another hour or two, chattering about mindless things and catching each other up on their lives. Their last argument, nor the ROBIN stream or Laurel came up in the conversation. 

It would be best to save that for a different time, they supposed.

Damian checked his watch, noting the time. “It’s getting late, I’m sure you have places to be.” 

They both stood, facing each other and unsure of what to do next. Their initial hug had been something long overdue, and not at all thought out. However, the air of awkwardness returned, and they simply stood staring at each other, unsure of how to proceed. 

A dance of attempted hugs, handshakes and fistbumps occurred, before they eventually paused, holding a gaze for a few seconds before collapsing into laughter. 

Damian bumped him with his shoulder gently, offering a smile. Jon pulled him into a quick side hug, and when they parted, he smiled.

“I really am happy we could meet again. If you want we could do this again sometime?” The hopeful look in his eyes, filled with a strange hue of innocence sparked something inside of Damian, causing him to mirror the expression and nod.

“Of course, J.” The familiar nickname flowed off his tongue out of what he thought was a long forgotten habit.

The slip made Jon’s whole being light up, although Damian himself winced. “See you later, then? Just message me and we can sort out a day.”

He began trotting backwards, tapping his phone. The shorter man laughed a bit as he watched him leave, a gentle pang in his chest reminding him of all the things he’d so missed.

They had yet to have the conversion about the past, and both figured it could wait a bit, after all, they had just gotten each other back. Each wanted to bask in it, if only for a little while.

Damian collapsed on their couch moments after entering their house, keys still in one hand.

“How did it go?” Duke called from his room.

“Fine!” he called back.

Ugh. He realized with devastating pain. He’s still cute.

This is fine. It would be fine. After all, it was just a normal observation, it wasn’t an immediate crush, it was a stated fact about someone’s appearance. 

It's not like this would activate any lingering feelings or make him fall in love again, right?

…right?

[elyfonart]

NO they're not 'having fun' UGH you just dont get it!!!

[se-qo]

oh, take me back to the night we met

[batfamhastwitter]

Part 12 and the second and final part of the Bats&Birds Q&A! Thank you again to everyone who submitted questions, I really had a blast with this!

Prev ~ Beginning ~ Next

[o0kawaii0o]

More summer vibes!

Same ref link as my zoro post! [x]

[batbusiness-schooldropout]

Dick: Hurry up Timmy! We're going to be late!

Tim: I just have to find my phone!

Jason: Screw this! I'm just going to call it

Tim: NO WAIT-

*Cardi B's Bodak Yellow plays*

Jason: You realize that I have to beat the shit out of you again, right?

Tim: And in a refreshing change of pace, I actually deserve it this time

[ghost-bxrd]

(“the weather warmer, he is colder”)

— Army Dreamers, Kate Bush

[beeqisch]

who wants to be best friends who secretly hold hands very platonically

[batcavescolony]

Robin&Nightwing: *out on patrol*

Robin: My girlfriends pregnant

Nightwing: *falls off the roof top* WHAT!

Robin: yeah, I hope she does ok, I'm all for whatever she wants.

Nightwing: *crawling up the wall while panicking*

Robin: -it's not my kid.

Nightwing: WHY DIDN'T YOU LEAD WITH THAT!

Robin: it's what she would have wanted.

---later---

Robin: and then Nightwing face planted off the building.

Stephanie: oh that's great 💀 do it with Batman next!

[welcometogrouchland]

♫ I do what I want/Crying in the bleachers and I said it was fun/I don't need anything from anyone ♫

(ID in Alt) you guys ever think about your own posts and get upset?? Anyway Damian Wayne I love you I'm so sorry your life is like that

[tvventystitches]

what is your taylor swift song, the one that nobody else gets or appreciates the way you do?

[puppiesandnightlock]

Link: A Robin’s Song Chapter 5

summary + additional info: here

The song had been finished and recorded without the help of his brothers this time, however he would delay in posting it.

How would Jon react, if he knew that HE was actually Robin, the same Robin Jon followed on everything and fawned over. 

This was a good plan, in his opinion. After all, they’d made a pact to go to every school event in high school, and if they didn’t have dates, they’d go together.

It was right before lunch two weeks before the dance that he noticed Haisley with a ukulele and had a sinking feeling in his gut. 

Two of the cheerleaders from her team came up behind her with a banner between them as Haisley began to strum out the opening notes of ‘I Do Adore’. 

He watched Jon’s inner turmoil before smiling and pecking her on the cheek, accepting the promposal. The bile began bubbling up, leaving the other teen feeling both disgusted at himself and the display. 

He bid them goodbye with congratulations and went to hide in the library, his default setting at this point. 

He bemoaned his woes to Akira, who had been sitting with Skylar, the girl talking their ear off. It seemed as though they’d been cornered and forced into human interaction that was not with a chosen being. They’d both stopped to listen to Damian, sympathetic looks on their faces. 

“Are you still going to prom, then?” Skyler asked, with a hopeful look on her face. 

“Jon asked me to come even if he went with Haisley so i guess so. He wants to set me up so that I'm not going alone.”

Akira stifled a laugh before settling their features. “Sorry, sorry. Just tell him you have a date, he’ll accept it.”

“But I don’t?”

“Go with us!” Skyler chirped. “I’ve been talking Akira up about coming and i think i’ve got them convinced!”

Dark brown eyes held an expression of suffering as they gave a nod. “If you come, I’ll go, but you have to promise to suffer with me.”

“Deal. I’d rather you two over a random person I don't know.” 

And so, our protagonist was roped into going to what is usually the big plot point in most high school centered stories.

He had posted the song, the feedback intense as people psychoanalyzed the latest from him, speculating the more upbeat and hopeful tone of the song.

“I hope this means Robin is closer to getting their person.” Jon sighed one afternoon, as they went through the Kent’s attic in search of hand-me-down suits. 

“Unlikely.” Damian scoffed bitterly. “Life isn’t a fairytale, and I highly doubt this will work out for this Robin person.”

Jon rolled his eyes, the beginning of a scowl tugging at his lips. It was odd, the immediate sense of defensiveness in the air.

 “You don’t always have to be so pessimistic, Damian, and besides, I’m not an idiot, don’t treat me like one.”

“Why are you so defensive about this?” he shot back, pissed at himself for taking the bait.

“Because if Robin can’t get their happy ending, what guarantees I'll ever get mine!?” 

The silence that followed was painful, and Jon swiveled around, continuing his now angry search through the boxes. 

Damian felt a pang of guilt, this had been happening more often than it used to, and the idea that their decade plus a few years friendship was breaking so easily made him panic. 

“Hey.” He said after a beat, a tad awkwardly. He reached for his friend and placed a tentative hand on his shoulder. “Sorry.” 

“It’s fine,” The response came too quick. “I’m sorry too, I shouldn't have snapped like that. I’m just…wound a little tight right now.”

The tension dissipated a bit, the suits they’d been looking for were found after a few more minutes. The attic was more of a mess then it had originally been, and they struggled slightly to get down.

Before Damian left to go home, in a bold action, he grabbed Jon’s hand, the taller one looking down in surprise, twin blossoms of pink appearing on his cheeks.

“You’ll get your happy ending.” He told him, all the sincerity he possessed in the words. “And when you do, I'll be there with you to push you forward.”

Even if I'm not the one you have your ending with.

Jon watched him, some emotion that Damian couldn’t place shadowed in the deep blues, contrasting the smile that appeared at the words.

“I’ll hold you to it, Dame.” He said, squeezing their entwined hands.

The night of the Prom, everyone gathered at the Kent’s, Haisley and some of her friends, plus Damian, Akira, Skylar and Colin, who turned out to be a mutual friend of Jon’s. They would be taking two cars, but not before the customary pictures. 

There were framed ones of Damian and Jon going to several dances together or with a group to dances around the house, and this last one would serve as a closing point.

For everything.

His heart squeezed watching Haisley and Jon take couple-y pictures, but he laughed and smiled and heckled with the rest of them, playing the part of the good best friend.

Anyone who looked close enough could see that it was fake, but the night dragged on until they were finally piled into two cars and dropped off at the school ready for a night of cliche and most likely spiked punch.

Haisley, as predicted, went over to mingle with her other friends, leaving Jon with Damian, Akira and Colin, Skylar having been dragged off to look at some art piece or the other.

Jon and Colin chatted idly, Akira sipping some drink Skylar had offered her and sending meaningful looks to Damian whenever there was a pause in the conversation. He ignored such looks nearly the entire time. 

“I’m going to go get some food.” They pronounced loudly, after several ignored looks. 

“Cool.” Colin paused, looking at them curiously, Damian sending them a death glare. 

They kicked Colin in the shin, looking between Jon and Damian. He mouthed an “oh” and turned to Jon.

“I’m gonna go get some food too, just gonna ah, go..” He jogged off to follow Akira, whose voice was heard sighing. 

“I suppose subtlety is not a word in your vocabulary.”

“Well.” Jon’s mouth quirked. “You have any idea what that was about?”

“Absolutely none.” Damian made a soft clicking noise, turning back to Jon with a small grin. 

“How do you like this so far?” The blue-eyed boy nodded towards the filled auditorium. 

“It's…alright, I suppose.” he shrugged, looking around. He scowled as he turned to see colin and skyler turn around like they hadn’t been staring at them, Akira taking a sip of her drink and nodding towards the dance floor.

He flushed, and ignored them. He and Jon kept up the idle conversation, until one of “Robin”’s covers came on and Jon looked at him, eyes shining. Damian inhaled, and opened his mouth, both him and Jon speaking at the same time.

“Hey, do you wanna…”

“Will you..”

They dissolved into giggles. “You first.” Damian laughed, heart pounding.

“You wanna dance?” He asked, stumbling over the words in a rush to get them out.

Damian felt his stomach flip and a soft smile played on his lips.

“Of course.”

They made their way to the floor, a few cheers coming from Damian’s “wingpeople”, which were yet again ignored.

The two mingled with the rest of the crowd, eyes sparkling and laughter ringing out. They twirled and bounced around, and for that time, Haisley was gone, the worries were gone, the ever-present weight that was bringing down their friendship was lifted.

“Okay, students, it’s time for the first slllooww dance of the night! I’d like to crown out Prom King and Queen,”

The smile faltered as the dance floor cleared and Jon and Haisley walked up the steps.

His other friends surrounded him, offering sympathetic smiles or a hand of the shoulder. 

They would have made it either way, as the high school’s quarterback and the cheer captain, they’d been the it couple since they’d gotten together.

This was normal and it shouldn’t have hurt as much as it did.

Both with shining plastic crowns, they took their places as the opening notes of a slow cover of a song played.

Damian startled as he heard his own voice coming through the speakers in a soft, honeyed tone.

“Wise men say, only fools rush in…but I can’t help falling in love with you.”

They began to dance, and he blocked out the entire room, focusing only on Jon and Haisley, marveling at how the lighting made them both glow. It truly seemed like the ending of a fairy tale, the couple dancing in the moonlight as the screen faded to black.

He could hear the soft sigh, the “Oh, Damian….I’m so sorry..” and his own voice painting a sweet picture of a couple this song was never intended for.

The cover he had done had been after a night going down memory lane, pouring over the pictures both families had kept, strawberry ice cream and cuddling together and all the things that he loved so dearly about their relationship being shoved into those few hours.

None of this was ever intended for Haisley to be included in, not his life, not his relationships, none of it. But there she was, in the spot he wished he could be in.

This only solidified what he knew all along.

That life would never be his. Could never be his.

“Like a river flows, surely to the sea, darling so it goes, some things are meant to be….”

Not them. They weren’t meant to be.

The hand on his shoulder reeled him back to the high school dance and he wrenched away from the grip, turning away from the scene. His back was to the couple and his friends held back.

“Let’s give him some space guys.” Akira said, moving them away. 

“If you need a ride, let me know, man.” Colin pointed to his phone and followed Akira. 

Skyler gave him a cupcake from one of the tables surrounding them and followed the rest to a spot in the back.

He kept his eyes downcast making his way through the crowd, all of couples now heading over to join the Prom royalty.

The hot prickling at the corners of his eyes was becoming more and more irritating and he broke out into a run as he made it out of the Gym.

Dryness turned to tears, burning hot trails down his face. His vision blurred and he slowed his sprint down, coming to the football field. He stayed behind the bleachers and pulled his knees to his chest, angrily scrubbing at the tears.

This was always bound to happen, and he knew for a fact that he never should have held out for a happy ending he knew would never come.

It was funny, however, he supposed, that this happened on prom night. Just like any ordinary cliche high school romance. This was reality, though, and in reality, no one got their happy ending.

‘If I were a girl, I would say I was crying in my prom dress.’ The thought popped in his head and it was so absurd for the moment that he laughed, a small, tearful noise. 

His fingers tapped out a rhythm without his consent and hesitantly he tried out the words, startled to find that out of his misery there was perhaps something in for it.

Damian inhaled deeply, and took out his phone, telling the people to be on the lookout for a new song releasing sometime next month, titled ‘Prom Dress.’

He brushed himself off and decided if he was going to wallow in the disaster that was his life, he would do it in comfort.

Rubbing at his eyes, he reached for his phone and hesitantly let Colin know he’d like a ride. It would be only in his benefit to extend some more trust to these friends of his, after all, what did he have to lose anymore?

He woke up the next morning with a pounding headache, fuzzy images of the night before in his head. 

Rolling over, he picked up his phone, ignoring all the notifications from his ROBIN accounts and going directly to his messages. There were two numbers he didn't know, from both Akira and Skyler telling him they got his number from Colin and asking if he was alright.

One from Colin asking the same, and several missed messages from Jon.

<-- J 

                     9:30

D where r u

                   10:01

Damian

                10:15

Dami

           10:15

Damessssss

                10:30

R u ignoring me

                           10:37

Why did you go home

                           10:37

Did smth happen

                10:40 

R u okay?

                           11:04

Damian pls call me

He felt a pang as read the messages, resolving to call jon the moment he finished scrolling down their messages.

<-- J 

                                                                                11:17

Damian i rlly need u rn pls call me

                                                            11:20

Damian we need to talk

                                     11:20

Like right now

That was the last message and Damian’s heart sank. Would he really be so upset that he left? Or was this something else entirely?

He hit the call button immediately, Jon picking up the line. It was silent as Damian spoke into the phone tentatively, voice still rough with sleep.

“Hello? Jon?”

A few sniffles were heard and Damian zeroed in. “A-are you crying?”

“Dami-” Jon sounded awful. “Damian, can you come over?”

“Yeah, yeah, of course…be there at ten.” He hung up and pushed back the covers, never minding the headache and shoving a moderately clean shirt over his tank top and grabbing a pair of jeans from the floor. He ran a hand through his hair and decided that the Kents had seen him in far worse than his bedhead, going into the living room to see most of his siblings crowded around the television watching cartoons.

“I’m going over to Jon’s, be back in fifteen minutes, Duke’s in charge!” he called out, shoving on his shoes and ignoring the shouts from behind him.

He’d grabbed a pop tart on the way out and shoved it in his mouth on the way down the street towards the larger houses.

Arriving, he knocked on the door, Jon’s mother answering. She looked relieved as she saw him.

“Hi, Mrs. Kent.” He looked past her, searching for jon.

“Lois, Damian. I’ve known you your whole life, You can call me Lois. Jon is in his room.”

She let him in and he went up the steps, calling out, “Thanks!”

Jon was huddled in the corner of his bed, prom suit thrown in the pile of laundry.

“J?” He said softly. “What’s goig on?”

“Dami..” His eyes were red, the unnatural color making the blue of his irises vibrant.

“I’m moving.”

The song had been finished and recorded without the help of his brothers this time, however he would delay in posting it.

How would Jon react, if he knew that HE was actually Robin, the same Robin Jon followed on everything and fawned over. 

This was a good plan, in his opinion. After all, they’d made a pact to go to every school event in high school, and if they didn’t have dates, they’d go together.

It was right before lunch two weeks before the dance that he noticed Haisley with a ukulele and had a sinking feeling in his gut. 

Two of the cheerleaders from her team came up behind her with a banner between them as Haisley began to strum out the opening notes of ‘I Do Adore’. 

He watched Jon’s inner turmoil before smiling and pecking her on the cheek, accepting the promposal. The bile began bubbling up, leaving the other teen feeling both disgusted at himself and the display. 

He bid them goodbye with congratulations and went to hide in the library, his default setting at this point. 

He bemoaned his woes to Akira, who had been sitting with Skylar, the girl talking their ear off. It seemed as though they’d been cornered and forced into human interaction that was not with a chosen being. They’d both stopped to listen to Damian, sympathetic looks on their faces. 

“Are you still going to prom, then?” Skyler asked, with a hopeful look on her face. 

“Jon asked me to come even if he went with Haisley so i guess so. He wants to set me up so that I'm not going alone.”

Akira stifled a laugh before settling their features. “Sorry, sorry. Just tell him you have a date, he’ll accept it.”

“But I don’t?”

“Go with us!” Skyler chirped. “I’ve been talking Akira up about coming and i think i’ve got them convinced!”

Dark brown eyes held an expression of suffering as they gave a nod. “If you come, I’ll go, but you have to promise to suffer with me.”

“Deal. I’d rather you two over a random person I don't know.” 

And so, our protagonist was roped into going to what is usually the big plot point in most high school centered stories.

He had posted the song, the feedback intense as people psychoanalyzed the latest from him, speculating the more upbeat and hopeful tone of the song.

“I hope this means Robin is closer to getting their person.” Jon sighed one afternoon, as they went through the Kent’s attic in search of hand-me-down suits. 

“Unlikely.” Damian scoffed bitterly. “Life isn’t a fairytale, and I highly doubt this will work out for this Robin person.”

Jon rolled his eyes, the beginning of a scowl tugging at his lips. It was odd, the immediate sense of defensiveness in the air.

 “You don’t always have to be so pessimistic, Damian, and besides, I’m not an idiot, don’t treat me like one.”

“Why are you so defensive about this?” he shot back, pissed at himself for taking the bait.

“Because if Robin can’t get their happy ending, what guarantees I'll ever get mine!?” 

The silence that followed was painful, and Jon swiveled around, continuing his now angry search through the boxes. 

Damian felt a pang of guilt, this had been happening more often than it used to, and the idea that their decade plus a few years friendship was breaking so easily made him panic. 

“Hey.” He said after a beat, a tad awkwardly. He reached for his friend and placed a tentative hand on his shoulder. “Sorry.” 

“It’s fine,” The response came too quick. “I’m sorry too, I shouldn't have snapped like that. I’m just…wound a little tight right now.”

The tension dissipated a bit, the suits they’d been looking for were found after a few more minutes. The attic was more of a mess then it had originally been, and they struggled slightly to get down.

Before Damian left to go home, in a bold action, he grabbed Jon’s hand, the taller one looking down in surprise, twin blossoms of pink appearing on his cheeks.

“You’ll get your happy ending.” He told him, all the sincerity he possessed in the words. “And when you do, I'll be there with you to push you forward.”

Even if I'm not the one you have your ending with.

Jon watched him, some emotion that Damian couldn’t place shadowed in the deep blues, contrasting the smile that appeared at the words.

“I’ll hold you to it, Dame.” He said, squeezing their entwined hands.

The night of the Prom, everyone gathered at the Kent’s, Haisley and some of her friends, plus Damian, Akira, Skylar and Colin, who turned out to be a mutual friend of Jon’s. They would be taking two cars, but not before the customary pictures. 

There were framed ones of Damian and Jon going to several dances together or with a group to dances around the house, and this last one would serve as a closing point.

For everything.

His heart squeezed watching Haisley and Jon take couple-y pictures, but he laughed and smiled and heckled with the rest of them, playing the part of the good best friend.

Anyone who looked close enough could see that it was fake, but the night dragged on until they were finally piled into two cars and dropped off at the school ready for a night of cliche and most likely spiked punch.

Haisley, as predicted, went over to mingle with her other friends, leaving Jon with Damian, Akira and Colin, Skylar having been dragged off to look at some art piece or the other.

Jon and Colin chatted idly, Akira sipping some drink Skylar had offered her and sending meaningful looks to Damian whenever there was a pause in the conversation. He ignored such looks nearly the entire time. 

“I’m going to go get some food.” They pronounced loudly, after several ignored looks. 

“Cool.” Colin paused, looking at them curiously, Damian sending them a death glare. 

They kicked Colin in the shin, looking between Jon and Damian. He mouthed an “oh” and turned to Jon.

“I’m gonna go get some food too, just gonna ah, go..” He jogged off to follow Akira, whose voice was heard sighing. 

“I suppose subtlety is not a word in your vocabulary.”

“Well.” Jon’s mouth quirked. “You have any idea what that was about?”

“Absolutely none.” Damian made a soft clicking noise, turning back to Jon with a small grin. 

“How do you like this so far?” The blue-eyed boy nodded towards the filled auditorium. 

“It's…alright, I suppose.” he shrugged, looking around. He scowled as he turned to see colin and skyler turn around like they hadn’t been staring at them, Akira taking a sip of her drink and nodding towards the dance floor.

He flushed, and ignored them. He and Jon kept up the idle conversation, until one of “Robin”’s covers came on and Jon looked at him, eyes shining. Damian inhaled, and opened his mouth, both him and Jon speaking at the same time.

“Hey, do you wanna…”

“Will you..”

They dissolved into giggles. “You first.” Damian laughed, heart pounding.

“You wanna dance?” He asked, stumbling over the words in a rush to get them out.

Damian felt his stomach flip and a soft smile played on his lips.

“Of course.”

They made their way to the floor, a few cheers coming from Damian’s “wingpeople”, which were yet again ignored.

The two mingled with the rest of the crowd, eyes sparkling and laughter ringing out. They twirled and bounced around, and for that time, Haisley was gone, the worries were gone, the ever-present weight that was bringing down their friendship was lifted.

“Okay, students, it’s time for the first slllooww dance of the night! I’d like to crown out Prom King and Queen,”

The smile faltered as the dance floor cleared and Jon and Haisley walked up the steps.

His other friends surrounded him, offering sympathetic smiles or a hand of the shoulder. 

They would have made it either way, as the high school’s quarterback and the cheer captain, they’d been the it couple since they’d gotten together.

This was normal and it shouldn’t have hurt as much as it did.

Both with shining plastic crowns, they took their places as the opening notes of a slow cover of a song played.

Damian startled as he heard his own voice coming through the speakers in a soft, honeyed tone.

“Wise men say, only fools rush in…but I can’t help falling in love with you.”

They began to dance, and he blocked out the entire room, focusing only on Jon and Haisley, marveling at how the lighting made them both glow. It truly seemed like the ending of a fairy tale, the couple dancing in the moonlight as the screen faded to black.

He could hear the soft sigh, the “Oh, Damian….I’m so sorry..” and his own voice painting a sweet picture of a couple this song was never intended for.

The cover he had done had been after a night going down memory lane, pouring over the pictures both families had kept, strawberry ice cream and cuddling together and all the things that he loved so dearly about their relationship being shoved into those few hours.

None of this was ever intended for Haisley to be included in, not his life, not his relationships, none of it. But there she was, in the spot he wished he could be in.

This only solidified what he knew all along.

That life would never be his. Could never be his.

“Like a river flows, surely to the sea, darling so it goes, some things are meant to be….”

Not them. They weren’t meant to be.

The hand on his shoulder reeled him back to the high school dance and he wrenched away from the grip, turning away from the scene. His back was to the couple and his friends held back.

“Let’s give him some space guys.” Akira said, moving them away. 

“If you need a ride, let me know, man.” Colin pointed to his phone and followed Akira. 

Skyler gave him a cupcake from one of the tables surrounding them and followed the rest to a spot in the back.

He kept his eyes downcast making his way through the crowd, all of couples now heading over to join the Prom royalty.

The hot prickling at the corners of his eyes was becoming more and more irritating and he broke out into a run as he made it out of the Gym.

Dryness turned to tears, burning hot trails down his face. His vision blurred and he slowed his sprint down, coming to the football field. He stayed behind the bleachers and pulled his knees to his chest, angrily scrubbing at the tears.

This was always bound to happen, and he knew for a fact that he never should have held out for a happy ending he knew would never come.

It was funny, however, he supposed, that this happened on prom night. Just like any ordinary cliche high school romance. This was reality, though, and in reality, no one got their happy ending.

‘If I were a girl, I would say I was crying in my prom dress.’ The thought popped in his head and it was so absurd for the moment that he laughed, a small, tearful noise. 

His fingers tapped out a rhythm without his consent and hesitantly he tried out the words, startled to find that out of his misery there was perhaps something in for it.

Damian inhaled deeply, and took out his phone, telling the people to be on the lookout for a new song releasing sometime next month, titled ‘Prom Dress.’

He brushed himself off and decided if he was going to wallow in the disaster that was his life, he would do it in comfort.

Rubbing at his eyes, he reached for his phone and hesitantly let Colin know he’d like a ride. It would be only in his benefit to extend some more trust to these friends of his, after all, what did he have to lose anymore?

He woke up the next morning with a pounding headache, fuzzy images of the night before in his head. 

Rolling over, he picked up his phone, ignoring all the notifications from his ROBIN accounts and going directly to his messages. There were two numbers he didn't know, from both Akira and Skyler telling him they got his number from Colin and asking if he was alright.

One from Colin asking the same, and several missed messages from Jon.

<-- J 

                     9:30

D where r u

                   10:01

Damian

                10:15

Dami

           10:15

Damessssss

                10:30

R u ignoring me

                           10:37

Why did you go home

                           10:37

Did smth happen

                10:40 

R u okay?

                           11:04

Damian pls call me

He felt a pang as read the messages, resolving to call jon the moment he finished scrolling down their messages.

<-- J 

                                                                                11:17

Damian i rlly need u rn pls call me

                                                            11:20

Damian we need to talk

                                     11:20

Like right now

That was the last message and Damian’s heart sank. Would he really be so upset that he left? Or was this something else entirely?

He hit the call button immediately, Jon picking up the line. It was silent as Damian spoke into the phone tentatively, voice still rough with sleep.

“Hello? Jon?”

A few sniffles were heard and Damian zeroed in. “A-are you crying?”

“Dami-” Jon sounded awful. “Damian, can you come over?”

“Yeah, yeah, of course…be there at ten.” He hung up and pushed back the covers, never minding the headache and shoving a moderately clean shirt over his tank top and grabbing a pair of jeans from the floor. He ran a hand through his hair and decided that the Kents had seen him in far worse than his bedhead, going into the living room to see most of his siblings crowded around the television watching cartoons.

“I’m going over to Jon’s, be back in fifteen minutes, Duke’s in charge!” he called out, shoving on his shoes and ignoring the shouts from behind him.

He’d grabbed a pop tart on the way out and shoved it in his mouth on the way down the street towards the larger houses.

Arriving, he knocked on the door, Jon’s mother answering. She looked relieved as she saw him.

“Hi, Mrs. Kent.” He looked past her, searching for jon.

“Lois, Damian. I’ve known you your whole life, You can call me Lois. Jon is in his room.”

She let him in and he went up the steps, calling out, “Thanks!”

Jon was huddled in the corner of his bed, prom suit thrown in the pile of laundry.

“J?” He said softly. “What’s goig on?”

“Dami..” His eyes were red, the unnatural color making the blue of his irises vibrant.

“I’m moving.”

[fakakta-art]

digitizing some sketches i made for my etsy and a completely unrelated song, because i like to add songs :)

[shadowpuppetteer]

So we've all heard of the "I Want Song" genre in musicals.

But what about the "Let's talk about the bitch behind their back like they're not in the room" song, or "singing s*** behing a bitche's back". There's a surprising amount of them.

"Belle" from Beauty and the Beast

"Scrooge" from Muppet Christmas Carol

"Maria" from The Sound of Music

"Look at Me I'm Sandra Dee" from Grease

"You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch" from How The Grinch Stole Christmas

"Jackass In a Can" from Galavant

"Phony King of England" from Robin Hood

"Stepsister's Lament" from Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella

"Non-Stop" from Hamilton

And, of course, the man, the myth, the legend...

"We Don't Talk About Bruno" from Encanto

You can learn a lot about a character and story from what they sing versus what other people sing about them.

[bethsvrse]

LESBIAN VISIBILITY WEEK

(some of my favourite wlw fanfics)

late night confession - wanda maximoff by @lives-in-midgard

puppy love - robin buckley by @elliesmainhoe

glue - ellie williams by @whore-era

new in town - lydia martin by @heliads

make you mind this season - kate bishop by @hard-core-super-star

lady oswald - clara oswald by @lanawinterscigarettes

if I could fly - clara oswald by @wlw-imagines

I want you (bless my soul) - river song by @penguinwithitsarseonfire

trick or treat - maddy perez by @suzar

props to all these writers, should definitely check them out :3

[hairmetal666]

By the grace of Robin Buckley, Steve gets into college.

She's his first real friend and it's because he knows her, loves her, learned to be a better person from her, that he's able to smile politely and take the hand of his new roommate. His long-haired, tattooed, dressed in all black roommate, who has already put up dark and menacing posters of bands Steve has never heard of and a bedsheet banner with the words "Corroded Coffin" painted on the fabric.

"Eddie Munson," his roommate says.

"Steve Harrington."

"Good to meet you, roomie." Eddie smiles so big it makes dimples pop. It's a good look. "Parents on the way with the rest of your stuff?"

"Oh, er--just me, actually."

Eddie's smile doesn't waiver. "Need some help?"

Normally, Steve would say no, but he just spent the last hour unloading Robin's stuff. "That would be great, thanks."

So, they work together to get Steve moved in, and as they work, he learns more about his roommate. He is a weirdo, an oddball, fundamentally strange, but Steve can't help but be charmed.

Eddie puts on music, something aggressive with loud guitars and drums, and Steve unpacks. He pulls out a picture of himself with the kids during one of their game nights, displaying it carefully on his desk.

"Wait," his new roommate says. "You? And the dnd children?"

Steve laughs. "They're the kids I babysit. You play that nerd game?"

Eddie's nose wrinkles. Something in the back of Steve's mind notes that it's cute. "Nerd game? Dnd is So. Much. More. It's--it's storytelling and strategy and--" Eddie stops, blinking at Steve. "You're fucking with me, aren't you?"

"Little bit," Steve smiles.

"I can't believe you know dnd. That you babysit nerds. You look like such a jock," Eddie shakes his head in disbelief.

"I am a jock," Steve agrees. "And I love those dorky little shitheads. I tolerate the game."

"Steve Harrington. You're just full of surprises, aren't you?"

"Guess so." The smiles they share are wide and sweet, bringing out Eddie's dimples in way that makes Steve long to touch.

After that, they're inseparable. Robin and Eddie and Steve. They study, eat, go to parties, hangout; anything, as long as they're together.

---

Three weeks into the semester, as Steve gets dressed after swim practice, he pulls a shirt out of his bag that doesn't belong to him. It's a black tee, Metallica logo front and center. He chuckles, puts it on. It's soft from wear and smells of laundry detergent and Eddie--cigarettes and leather and some kind of sweet musk. The scent puts him at immediate ease.

He meets Robin and Eddie for lunch. They were early, already have their food and seats, so he walks over to drop off his backpack. Eddie gives him a bright, dimpled smile, but within seconds his mouth is falling open a little, the tips of his ears turning bright red.

"You alright, man?" Steve asks.

Eddie startles, grabs his cup, jamming the straw into his mouth to chew at the plastic."You're--my shirt?" he says.

"Oh, shit. Sorry. Grabbed it by accident. I'll wash it for you."

His roommate flushes pink. "N--no, you don't have to worry about it."

He wants to question Eddie further--he's being so weird--but Robin interrupts. "Dingus! Go get food. Hurry up!"

He does as he's told, but when he comes back, Eddie is even redder than before, and Robin has a wide smirk across her face.

"What is going on with you two?" He asks as he puts his tray down.

Neither of them answer, andEddie launches into a passionate re-telling of some music student drama, so Steve let's himself be distracted.

---

It's mid-October and Steve's coming home from the gym, the one place that Robin and Eddie refuse to accompany him. As he nears his room, he hears music. It's not heavy metal, but something soft and slow and acoustic.

He tries to be quiet as he unlocks the door and enters, doesn't want to disturb Eddie, doesn't want him to stop playing. He never practices when Steve is home, says he doesn't want to be a bother with the noise.

Eddie's sitting on his bed, guitar in hand. There's a battered notebook open next to him, a pencil held between his teeth. He hums a bit, pauses to jot something down, and goes back to playing.

He looks beautiful, Steve thinks, bent over his guitar.

Steve is just about to announce himself when Eddie stops playing again. He writes something in the notebook before resting his head in his head. "Pathetic, Munson. Get it together," he mutters.

"Hi!" Steve says. It startles Eddie, who jumps and almost drops the guitar.

"Stevie!" Eddie stumbles to his feet. "I--uh--you're home!" His face is crimson.

"You're really good, man," Steve says. "I'd love to hear more sometime."

"Uh-huh, uh-huh," Eddie nods his head, grabbing for the notebook and slamming it closed. "Sure thing." He stuffs his feet into his Reeboks. "I gotta--I gotta go. Back soon."

Eddie stumbles out their door, notebook clenched firmly in hand.

He is so weird.

---

In mid-November, Robin gets invited to a party by a cute girl. They all go.

Steve isn't trying to hook up. He hasn't slept with anyone since they started school, too caught up with Robin and Eddie. But there's a girl, wavy brown curls and wide green eyes (he has the fleeting thought that they should be deep brown, that it's wrong that they aren't), and she's smiling at him.

Flirting with her is easy.

He doesn't know what breaks his concentration, but he turns to face the rest of the room, eyes falling on Eddie. Eddie who is watching him, his deep brown eyes swimming with hurt, with anger.

It sends a shock of pure panic up his spine. "Eddie!"

Eddie turns on his heel, disappearing in the crowd. Steve follows, but by the time he navigates through the partygoers, his roommate is nowhere to be found. He hurries back to their dorm, heart pounding in his ears, mouth dry.

It's dark in the room, though, and for a second he thinks Eddie isn't home, after all. But he turns on the light, illuminates the rigid lump under Eddie's quilt.

"Eddie?" Steve says, voice soft.

He doesn't respond, though Steve can tell he's awake. He tries again, but Eddie curls deeper under his covers.

Steve spends the night wondering what he did to hurt Eddie so bad.

---

They're back to normal after Thanksgiving. Steve is so relieved he doesn't even ask.

They stay up all night every night studying for finals. By the time Steve's last test rolls around, he's giddy and frantic. He grabs his textbook, shoves a notebook into his backpack, gets to the English building with just enough time to take a last look at his notes.

Only, he flips the notebook open and it's not his English notes. It's song lyrics.

Steve should close it. Put it back in his backpack. It's private. But he's already reading the lyrics written there. They're sexy. The song's about a guy, one Eddie seems to be totally gone for.

A line catches his eye, "need you on every surface in our room." He reads it again and again until the only thing he can see is the phrase, "our room." His whole body is warm, heat pooling, and he's chubbing up in his jeans in the middle of his English class.

Steve flips the pages, anything to get his mind off of that song, and that's when it hits him like a ton of bricks. All those weird moments--the t-shirt, the song, Steve flirting with a girl-- Eddie likes him.

Steve wants to rush to the dorm, wants to confess everything, even starts to stand, but--he has a final to take.

He makes himself close the notebook, but catches sight of another song as he does. It's a love song. It's plaintive and yearning and wanting. And every lyric is for him, about him, about things they did together. It's also unfinished, breaking off mid-way through the second verse.

He doesn't know how he missed it before, but as the professor hands out the test paper, Eddie is all he can think of.

---

When he finally gets back to the room, he finds Eddie's frantic, hair frizzed around his skull. All his bedding is on the floor, the drawers of his wardrobe pulled open.

"Eddie?" Steve asks.

"Have you seen my notebook?"

"What?" Steve's heart drops.

"The black one? It's kind of beaten up?"

"I--uh, yeah. Sorry, Eds. Accidentally grabbed it on my way to class." He pulls his backpack from his shoulder, unzipping it.

"Did you--did you read it?" Eddie's voice shakes, his face painfully red.

Steve doesn't know what to say, what to do. He wants Eddie. Has for a long time, just hadn't been able to put it together. And he doesn't know how to fix what's spiraling out between them.

"Eddie," he says. Can think of nothing else, hopes his desperation is clear in his voice. "Please." He closes the distance between them, slowly, carefully. Cups Eddie's chin in his hand.

They stare at each other, Eddie's eyes wide with shock. Steve can feel the other man's breath on his face, smell the tobacco and sweet musk scent of him.

"Every surface of our room, huh?" Steve asks.

Eddie's cheeks flush. He turns away, bashful. "Something like that."

"And if I want it too?" Steve whispers.

The words hang between them for several beats, before they both move to close the lingering distance between them. Their mouths slip together, like it's nothing, like they do this all the time. Steve grasps at Eddie's curls, fists a hand into his t-shirt, totally lost to the rhythm of the kiss, the easy slip of Eddie's tongue in his mouth.

Eventually, the come up for air, both pink cheeked and panting.

"You're full of surprises, Steve Harrington." Eddie breathes.

"Just wait," Steve smirks, moves in to nip at Eddie's bottom lip. "We have so many surfaces."