Love me like you.

~#~#~#~

Raven sat on the roof, staring out at the stars.

Today had sucked.

They'd responded to an armed robbery at one of the banks downtown, one that had quickly escalated to a hostage situation. The police were frantic when they'd arrived, as the robber was acting quite erratic.

None of this had phased Raven though, and she was quite confident she could defuse the situation and get everyone out safely.

Boy, had she been wrong.

The guy had shot someone. Raven had tried talking him down, using every tactic in the book. She'd been using her empathy full force as well, to help make decisions quicker. The robber was starting to calm down, and he had been about to drop the gun, when something had set him off.

As soon as the gunfire had gone off, the rest of the Titans stormed in and took him down. Raven had tried to save the civilian, but to no avail.

She'd failed.

She always seemed to fail.

Raven sighed, burying her face in her knees.

The door to the roof swished open then, and Raven could feel the bright aura of Beast Boy as he padded up to her. Wordlessly, he sat beside her, and she peeked up at him.

"Hey," he said.

She merely hummed in response, not feeling up to talking. Beast Boy didn't seem to mind though, the changeling choosing to merely gaze up at the stars from beside her.

"It looks pretty out tonight."

Raven lifted her head. He spoke the truth; the sky was crystal clear, and a few stars twinkled stubbornly through the city lights.

"You know it wasn't your fault, right?"

Raven all but groaned. Of course he'd bring it up. It was so Beast Boy-like to try and talk about these things. She glared out at the water, her dark thoughts and feelings swirling within her. "I should have been able to do it," she murmured. "I should have been able to stop him."

"Raven-"

"Beast Boy, please. I'm an empath. I should have known he was going to do that!"

They fell silent for a moment, both staring out at sea. Raven couldn't help the storm of anger and depression that swirled within her. It was a constant struggle, proving to herself that she was worthy and competent. She knew it stemmed from her heritage; her self-doubt. But that didn't stop it from consuming her.

"Are you a telepath?"

Raven jerked her head, blinking. "Pardon?"

"Are you a telepath?" Beast Boy asked. She paused to consider his question, confusion clouding her mind.

"I can enter people's minds…but I can't simply read them without accessing them first, no."

"And you didn't enter that guy's head, did you?"

Raven furrowed her brows. "No."

"Then you couldn't have known. You might be able to feel what he feels, but that doesn't make you a mind reader, Rae!" He paused, his intense gaze locking with hers. "You did what you could. That's all that matters."

Raven remained silent for a moment. She allowed Beast Boy's words to turn in her mind, digesting what he said. "Perhaps," she murmured.

Beast Boy hesitantly placed his hand over hers, causing a flush to spread to her cheeks. He smiled, his expression soft with emotion. "You're amazing, Raven. Don't let one bad guy get you down."

He then abruptly leaned forward and pecked her on the cheek, an explosion of nervousness and affection pouring off of him. Raven stared wide-eyed, frozen momentarily.

He kissed her. It was a kiss on the cheek, but a kiss nonetheless. She watched, somewhat dazed, as the changeling made his escape, slipping back within the confines of the tower. A small smile slipped onto her face as she watched him go, and she raised a hand to her cheek.

Raven wasn't sure how she'd gotten so lucky to have someone like Beast Boy in her life. Love was a confusing emotion, but despite its shortcomings, she'd come to appreciate it.

And maybe, one day, she'd learn to love herself, really love herself, like she loved Beast Boy.

Author's Note:

And it's finished. Finally. I'm not sure how I like this little part, as I wasn't sure what to write for it, but hopefully it's sweet. :) Enjoy, and thanks for the support! You lovelies rock. XD

Thanks again!

-vixensheart