Night Out - Tim Drake
image source: batboyblog on tumblr
When out at a dive bar with your friends, you step outside for a breath of fresh air and run into the Red Robin. For some reason, he seems... familiar?
AN; writers block is brutal and disgusting and horrible. also. i am suffering from batfamily brainrot so expect more of this (part two can be found here!)
Wordcount; 787
TW; some cursing, mentions of drinking
It's a damp spring night when you meet the Red Robin. You're out with your friends at some college dive bar on the East Side. The area's a far cry from Gotham U's campus, but with free entry and cheap drinks, it's worth the elevated risk of mugging.
"Besides," one of your friends had declared on the way to the bar, "It just means we're more likely to see Nightwing's hot ass."
You're pretty sure the dark-haired vigilante operates exclusively in Bludhaven these days, but you're not a party pooper.
The music was good, the crowd was fun, but a small room of drunk co-eds had a way of heating up quicker than Firefly's flamethrower, and so you'd retreated out the side door for a breath of fresh air. You weren't stupid; you'd taken your small can of mace with you. This was Gotham, after all.
The alleyway was blissfully empty, save for a dumpster--quite the relief, seeing as the last time you'd been here, you'd stumbled upon a couple deep in the throes of a heated make out session. Taking a breath, you leaned up against the cool bricks in the alleyway and let yourself decompress.
"There's definitely better places to hang out around here than dark alleys," a voice says from somewhere behind you.
Living in the city has taught you many things. Most importantly, how to turn off potential predators by acting downright crazier than they do.
You spin on your heel and hold the mace like it's a pistol, coming face-to-face with none other than--
"Holy shit, you're Robin," you gasp, eyes widening.
Thank god you didn't actually mace him.
"That I am," he says, warily eyeing the can in your hand.
"Like... the Red Robin," you continue. You're blinking at him, openly gaping, and it occurs to you that you should probably stop pointing the can at his eyes. You stow the makeshift weapon in your back pocket. "I'm so sorry! I thought you were a mugger or something!"
"Hey, it's fine," he chuckles, rubbing the back of his neck. "If it's any consolation, you definitely would've scared the shit out of a mugger."
You laugh, but it's mostly in disbelief. Red Robin is standing mere feet away from you, domino mask and yellow cloak and green pants and all, and you're suddenly very thankful you'd gotten dressed up to go out tonight. For a split second, you swear you see him give you a quick once over. But no, there's no way Robin's checking you out.
He glances around the alleyway for a moment, almost awkwardly, before speaking again. "...Any reason you're out here?"
"I'm out with my friends," you say, motioning to the building behind you, where the bar's logo is printed in peeling white vinyl. "Needed some air. Somehow, smoke and asthma don't make a good combination," you joke.
"Can't imagine why," he grins, and holy shit Red Robin thinks you're funny.
"You got any fun, exciting plans tonight?"
He hesitates.
"Wait, you don't have to answer. I know, top secret Batman stuff--"
"Nah, not that secret." It's dark in the alleyway so maybe you're not seeing things right, but you swear you can see a hint of color rising to his cheeks. "Just patrolling. Y'know. Keeping an eye out for muggers and mace-wielding asthmatics."
You laugh. "Sounds boring."
"Definitely could use a drink." He glances at the side door with an unreadable expression.
"Rough start to the night?"
"You could say that."
A brief silence stretches between the two of you. Traffic and the faint pounding of the bar's music fill the space, and for some reason, despite never having met Robin and likely never meeting him again, it feels... almost familiar.
"Hey, if it makes you feel any better, you're not the only one stuck at work tonight. One of my best friends, Tim, had to bail last minute since he's got an exam to study for. So, like, you're not suffering alone!" you add, thinking back to the guy you've kind of been maybe having romantic feelings for lately.
Robin chokes.
"Shit, you okay? Need me to, like, slap you on the back or something?"
"Nope," he says, voice raspy.
"You're sure?"
"Positive." He gives you an awkward thumbs-up.
"I should probably let you get back to work, then," you sigh, turning back to the side door and grasping the handle. "And I should get back in there. Don't need my friends worried about me."
When you turn back around, it's just you and the dumpster.
"Fuckin' impressive," you mutter to nobody but yourself. "See ya, Robin."
You step back inside. The door closes behind you and... fuck.
You forgot to ask for a picture.
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