#wait crap this wasnt supposed to be angsty

[icedthoma]

As a dare... with... Kiri please. Congrats on being on tumblr for a year!!!

8. As a dare

Thank you!! 

Being in love with your best friend wasn’t so bad. 

You got to spend lots of quality time together, and you were comfortable around each other, which you were thankful for, because that saved you that whole struggle in the love process of working up the courage to get to know the other person better. Instead, you were struggling with the fact that couple-y things with you and Kirishima were the norm, despite you not being a couple. 

Ice cream “dates” were always a thing in the summer, Kirishima proudly showing off how he could cronch through scoops of the cool treat like it was nothing. During the colder seasons, you held hands on the way to school to share warmth, and even cuddled often in the common room. Many would often comment about what a cute pairing you were, but the two of you always waved them off with a cheerful smile and awkward laugh, reassurances that you were “just friends” slipping from your lips as naturally as breathing. 

Another thing you loved about being in love with Kirishima Ejirou was how he was always up to do anything crazy or spontaneous. You weren’t afraid to act silly and stupid around him, because more often than not he was doing the same. (Plus, he was also best friends with Kaminari Denki. Not much braincells going for the three of you.)

“Truth or dare?”

“Truth.”

“Is it true you’ve never been kissed before?” Kaminari asked, falling back as you pretended to throw the pillow you were holding at him. 

“Uh...” Swallowing hard, you instinctively glanced at Kirishima, who to your surprise had paused in the card tower he had been dutifully building all this time and was staring right at you. Forcing your gaze away, you shrugged and hugged the pillow in your lap closer to your chest. “Yeah. Of course you’d ask that question, Denki. So predictable.”

“Hey!” 

Everyone else laughed, and you couldn’t resist the small rush in you felt in your chest when you saw Kirishima laughing too. 

After a while, it was Kirishima’s turn to get asked. “Dare,” he said confidently. 

“I dare you to...kiss Y/n!” Mina exclaimed, a sly smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. 

“What?” you and Ejirou said at the same time. 

“Listen, Mina,” Kirishima said, looking down at the ground and scratching the back of his neck. “I don’t want to make Y/n uncomfortable. Maybe you could do something el--”

“I’m fine with it,” you blurted out, cheeks burning a shade that could rival his hair when everyone turned to look at you in surprise. “I mean, we’re friends, right? I’m cool with anything. I don’t care. It’s just a game.” 

“I guess?” your spiky-haired friend said, thankfully buying into your nonchalant attitude with the rest of your friends and not pressing any further. 

You were painfully aware of the many pairs of eyes on you as Kirishima scooted over to where you were sitting, an apologetic smile on his face. “You really sure?”

“Yep,” you said, popping the p at the end and shooting your default fingerguns at him. He chuckled again, and you instantly felt much better. 

Leaning in, Kirishima shut his eyes and placed a quick peck on your lips, the moment over and done before you could even blink. In a flash, he was back to his seat on the other side of the room to be subject to your other friends’ relentless teasing. 

“Oh, lay off us, man,” Eijirou groaned, pressing a hand to his forehead. “It’s just a silly game, so don’t get too worked up about it. Right, Y/n?”

‘Huh? Oh, yeah,” you agreed, quickly yanking your hand away from your face where you had been absent-mindedly tracing the curve of your bottom lip, as if doing so would somehow extend the memory of your first kiss in your brain. 

Across from you, Kirishima was laughing and shoving Kaminari around, though this time, your mood only went farther south despite the happiness his laugh usually brought you. You had brought this upon yourself, really. Part of you couldn’t resist the allure of the possible chance of that maybe this kiss would be the start of something more. But he had said it himself, it was all just a silly game. 

For the first time, you found yourself wondering if falling in love for your best friend had been a mistake. 

------------

one year event masterlist

[spreadmywings]

It's Been Awhile

On AO3

for @audreycritter

Summary:

Things have been strained since Bruce "died", and it's been awhile since they've been able to just be brothers. Alfred calls for movie night, so maybe it's time to mend some fences.

Dick stretched and winced, scowling and blinking at the sun angling its relentless way through the slats in the blinds of his livingroom window. He supposed it was his own fault he was awake, now. He should have moved from the couch and slept in his bed the night before, in his bedroom with the blackout curtains that let him sleep no matter how sunshiny and bright the day outside. He'd been sore the night before and hadn't wanted to move after dinner, though.

Of course, that was nothing to how sore he felt, now.

He really should have known better...

Just because an injury was minor or hadn't occurred on patrol didn't mean it would affect the body any differently. The problem was, he'd ignored it because it had been a minor thing... and a somewhat embarrassing one, at that. He sighed and sat up. He wasn't going to get back to sleep, now. It just wasn't going to happen. He supposed he could catch up on laundry and grocery shopping since he didn't have anywhere else to be for the rest of the weekend.

Twenty minutes later, he was in the kitchen, staring at the refrigerator. He'd planned on an omelet for breakfast, but that wasnt going to happen, either. He'd realized that the second he'd reached for the skillet. Stretching his shoulder over his head to reach the pot rack had been enough to have him cursing under his breath, but actually trying to lift the heavy pan had been enough to change his plans in a hurry.

He felt better than when he'd woken up, but he was a lot worse than he had been the night before. Concrete had a way of doing that, especially when the body that hit it wasn't wearing kevlar or body armor. He sighed and grabbed for a yogurt and some juice, making sure to use his left hand, this time. Just moving hurt, though, so he grabbed a bottle of painkillers from the drawer under the counter. At least he had basic first aid supplies stashed a few places around his apartment; he'd learned that lesson the hard way.

When his stomach growled, he remembered all he'd had the night before had been a frozen dinner. He'd been too sore to try for more than that, and then he'd closed his eyes to rest and now here he was. He added a not quite too brown banana and a box of cereal to his collection. It would do until lunch. He'd hit up the deli down the street on his way to get groceries, and then maybe call for takeout for dinner if things weren't any better after laundry. He'd been injured enough times to realize that would be the probable outcome.

He managed a decent enough... well, it wasn't really like the granola and fruit parfaits Alfred made for brunch sometimes, but it was filling, anyway, and the best he was going to manage without actually cooking. He was just tossing the dishes into the sink when his phone rang from what sounded like the couch cushions. He'd have ignored it if he hadn't recognized the James Bond theme.

"Alfred?"

He lowered himself carefully to the coffee table - he knew he'd never get up easily from the depths of the couch cushions' clutches.

"Good morning. Yeah, just finishing up breakfast. No, no plans other than laundry and grocery shopping. Oh. Tonight? Yeah, I can swing by on my way..." Because no, he wasn't going to tell Alfred no. He didn't hide his doubts as well as he could have, perhaps, but he definitely wasn't going to tell Alfred no. Not when he'd asked.

"Okay, got it. Movie starts at seven. Tell Tim I'll start driving around his block at six, then. I'll never find a parking spot near him on a weekend." Especially not when the Knights had a home game that night.

"Thanks, Alfie. You too. Seeya tonight." Dick dropped his head to his knees, ignoring the twinges all over his body. He and Tim were working together, still, but things were still strained if one knew what to look for.

And Alfred did.

Of course he did. Alfred knew everything.

That also meant Alfred knew best.

As much as Dick wasn't looking forward to it, he knew he needed to do this. They were family. And family, whatever form it manifested as, meant something to all of them. It was why they did what they did every night.

Okay. He was going to do this.

.·:*¨¨*:·. .·:*¨¨*:·..·:*¨¨*:·. .·:*¨¨*:·.

It was closer to 6:15 when he made his first slow loop around Tim's block. He'd failed to take into account just how difficult driving was going to be. Especially driving a stick. He was in luck, though. Tim was running late, too, and was just coming out the door of his building as he pulled up. He slowed down enough to let Tim jump in, and he offered up a grin as he watched Tim stow his laptop bag in the back seat. Some things never changed, and he could almost forget all that had happened over the last year.

"Welcome aboard, Timbo."

"Hey."

Okay, it was going to be one of those nights. Well, he'd worked with Bruce for years. He was used to quiet conversational partners. He could do this.

"I upgraded the stereo," he offered, nodding toward the short auxiliary cord hanging from the dash. "We can actually listen to something for more than a two minute stretch at a time..."

Even the reference to the horrid radio reception in his car didn't merit more than a quiet "Thanks," as Tim pulled up a playlist. It wasn’t the unobtrusive classical music he’d expected. It was some angsty sounding guitar ballad.

Dick stifled a sigh. This wasn't going to be easy. Nothing he'd planned on saying seemed suitable now that it was time. Time to wing it, then. He darted a quick glance towards the other seat. Tim was looking out the window, abstracted, but he could see his reflection in the side window. He looked tired. Dick felt like twenty different kinds of a horrible person.

"I'm sorry, Tim. I was so busy trying to take over for Bruce that I ended up doing exactly what he would have. I assumed and didn't explain." He took a deep breath, ready to dive back in and abase himself a little more, anything to ease some of those lines from Tim's forehead, to get his little brother to crack a smile at one of his stupid jokes.

"Dick."

And Dick knew better, but the urgency made him pull his eyes from the road in front of him to look Tim in the face.

"Dick! Watch out!"

"Oh crap!" He braked and down-shifted and it was too much movement, too quick, all at once. He couldn't hide the hiss of pain as he eased slowly into the thickening traffic. He didn't dare look over at Tim, now.

"What were you thinking? Scratch that. You weren't. I can tell. But what happened? Why did Alfred ask you to pick me up if you were hurt?" A moment's pause. "Wait. You weren't hurt on patrol the other night, so Alfred doesn't even know, does he? What happened?"

Dick didn't take his eyes off the road once. "Nothing serious..." He didn't offer anything more. He just focused on what appeared to be a lovely looking traffic jam forming around them.

Wonderful.

"Dick..." Tim's tone carried a note of steel, an audible extension of the Batglare.  

It wasn't at all like Bruce's or Alfred's or even Dick's own, but he felt a sudden need to explain everything.  Dick gave an aborted shrug of his left shoulder, thankful that he wasn't as sore on that side, at least. "I fell."

"Fell? From where? If it wasn't on patrol, then how..."

Dick could practically hear the crinkles on Tim's forehead as he tried to puzzle it out.

"I slipped, okay? On some ice." He could feel his cheeks heat up as he admitted it. They'd been rotating a few nights off patrol each week ever since Bruce had returned, and he hadn't been scheduled to go out the night before, so no one had even had a reason to know. He would have been fine in another day or two, he was just banged up. And sore.

And embarrassed as hell.

"You fell?" Tim couldn't hold in the laugh that burst out. "You mean you fell. Not..." He made a stylized set of bat ears with his fingers.

"Yeah. I guess someone left their hose dripping on their balcony or something and there was a light glaze of ice on the stairs. A kid in my building was taking their new puppy for a walk and he pulled loose from their grasp. I didn't want the pup to get hurt..." Dick had caught the leash before the dog had gotten into traffic, but he'd made the most ungraceful, ungainly landing anyone had ever seen, falling back against the concrete of the stairs and then bouncing onto the curb and sidewalk. He'd been holding on so tightly to the dog that he hadn't braced himself against the fall at all.

"Nothing serious. I just hurt all over." His pride included.

"You injured yourself rescuing a puppy..." Tim didn't even bother asking it, just stated it. "Has anyone ever told you how ridiculous you are?" Dick's cheeks went a little redder. "Yeah. Babs." She'd been bugging him to make up with Tim for the last three weeks. He'd finally snapped and told her what he thought of her interference. The brief flash of anger had quickly given way to guilt as he walked up the stairs to his building.

"Well, she would know." And suddenly things relaxed a little.

Dick shook his head ruefully. "Yeah, I guess she would."

"You really are ridiculous, Dick. Pull over once you get a chance. I can drive."

"Are you sure?" As great as it sounded, Dick didn't want to be a bother.

"What's family for? If nothing else, it will be prime blackmail material for at least a week or two..."

Dick laughed. He'd talk things out more when they got a chance, but things were well on their way to mending, now.

"Okay, okay. When we stop I'll let Alf know we're running a little late. Maybe we won't miss too much of the movie." He frowned. "Actually, he didn't tell me what it was going to be..."

Tim burst out laughing. "Lilo and Stitch, Dick. You know. Ohana means family..."

"And family means no one gets left behind. Or forgotten..."

Alfred didn't even bother with subtlety, sometimes, but they'd cleared things up on their own even before his little lesson. "Maybe we'd better hurry then, Timbo. I'd hate to miss the opening song..."