Disclaimer: I only own the idea.

Batman sighed as he drearily looked at his computer screen. The words were starting to blur and he was sure his coffee wasn't rejuvenating him anymore. He figured he should probably stop working. The case could wait, unlike so many others he had done in the past. It wasn't huge and the culprit most likely wouldn't strike again. The person could be brought to justice tomorrow.

Getting up, Batman rubbed his face and removed his cowl. It felt nice to let his skin breathe after all the time he spent in the mask. His cobalt eyes were drooping and he stretched to relieve the stiffness in his muscles. A pleased groan escaped his mouth when he felt his spine pop repeatedly before he relaxed again. Before he could change his attire, Alfred popped up beside him with a mug of tea probably laced with sleep aids. He'd done it before in the past.

"Are you ready for bed, Master Bruce?" Alfred asked, seeing how the Dark Knight's form was much more lax than it was earlier. At the time, Bruce had been slouched in front of the computer, tracking down one of his informants. The butler had almost assumed Bruce was going to go find them before he noticed his cowl was down and the younger male was about ready to pass out.

Bruce sighed and nodded. "Yup. I'm beat for the night."

Alfred smiled in glee, happy to hear those words come from his ward's mouth. He stepped forward, patting the younger on the shoulder. "Very well, Sir."

Bruce nodded before he began moving away. Before he could even get a step, a much younger voice called "Hey Bruce, wait a minute, will ya?"

The Dark Knight looked over to see the youngest resident of Wayne Manor walk up to him, holding something behind his back. Jason's expression was nervous and Bruce could hear him fingering a piece of paper in his hidden fingers. With that look and the sound emitting from the younger's fingers as he shifted nervously, Bruce immediately assumed it was a notice from Jason's school and felt dread enter his gut. It was so like Jason to put off something like this until Bruce didn't have any energy to deal with it…

"Jason, what's behind your back?" Bruce asked, holding out his hand and giving the thirteen-year-old a tired 'hand-it-over' look. Jason bit his lip nervously before quickly passing it over. The younger boy averted his blue eyes from Bruce's form and found the floor very interesting.

Bruce was surprised to be handed a plain piece of notebook paper. Suspiciously, he turned it around where pencil marks were across the paper. In Jason's handwriting, were the simple words:

Hugs literally ease pain, reduce stress, cure depression, induce sleep, ad rejuvenate the heart.

For a moment, Bruce stared at the paper in complete and utter confusion before looking back at Jason's nervous form. The boy was standing in his usual casual way but the Dark Knight could tell he was a little anxious with how his shoulders were tense. His eyes weren't meeting his guardian's either, which was another tell-tale sign.

For a minute, Bruce wondered if the person standing in front of him was Jason at all. The kid he had adopted was, in no way, a touchy-feely person. The only time he enjoyed physical touch was when he was beating the crap out of someone who deserved to be beaten within an inch of their life. Jason was one of those people that enjoyed delivering a good surprise you will remember for a good long while.

So why the heck was he suggesting he wanted a hug?

Alfred strode up beside his ward and read over the paper briefly before meeting Bruce's bewildered eyes. He gestured for Bruce to deliver one of the few things Jason had ever asked for. Bruce resisted at first, feeling the most awkward he had throughout his entire life. Alfred fought against his resistance silently, gesturing calmly for Bruce to suck it and hug his ward, for the love of all things good in the world!

As Bruce and Alfred had their battle of wills, Jason remained completely obvious to what was going down and continued to stare at the floor with his blue gaze. He occasionally shifted nervously, unsure of what to do with himself now that he had handed the paper over to Bruce. The Dark Knight hadn't made a move after reading it so he was wondering if he should just go up to his room.

Bruce finally relented to Alfred's will and hesitantly stepped a little close to Jason, who was lost in his own little world. The ebony-haired man looked at his father-figure, who gestured angrily for him to just do it already. Suppressing a whine, Bruce nervously put his arms around Jason, who looked up at him in surprise. The Dark Knight tried to smile down at him but he had a feeling it turned into more of a grimace.

Jason, after regaining his bearings, anxiously slipped his arms around Bruce's torso and turned his head to look farther into the cave, not willing to meet Alfred's or Bruce's stare. His cheeks were as red as cherries and he wasn't willing to let them see that. He hadn't even wanted Alfred around when he gave Bruce the stupid sheet of paper.

The two stayed like for a long time, not sure when it was appropriate to finally take a step back. Neither of them could remember the last time they had willingly partaken in the form of affection and were extremely tense being so close to the other. It was perfectly ok to be this close when they were brutally destroying criminals but, outside of that, it just wasn't ok.

Eventually, the two began relaxing while standing there quietly. The two were still feeling extremely awkward but it was getting better the longer they stayed that way. Neither chose to acknowledge the fact Alfred was still standing a few paces away from them, smiling at the scene with his eyes sparkling brightly. It was refreshing to see his two little fighters hugging for the first time ever.

Jason's eyes drooped before they snapped open again. At the time he wrote the little note, he hadn't believed a word it said. Now he did…

The teenager pulled away first, breaking the contact and dispersing whatever awkwardness they had into the air. He gave his snarky smile and saluted. "Well, night Bruce. See you tomorrow."

Bruce quirked a tiny smile and replied "Night, Chum."

Jason walked off, leaving the two adults standing in the Bat-Cave. As the two were about to begin saying goodnight to the other, they heard Jason scream at the top on the stairwell at the top of his lungs "YUSSSS! I DID IT! I DID THE IMPOSSIBLE! HAHA, IN YO FACE, DICK-HEAD! I WANT MY FIFTY BUCKS NOW!"

A flabbergasted "WHAT?" followed.

Alfred's eyes immediately widened and his mouth dropped open. Bruce immediately froze, remembering instantly that Dick had come over to hang out with Jason, avoiding Bruce all the while. He had assumed earlier that Dick had gone home but, apparently, no he hadn't.

Bruce leaned against his desk and began drumming his fingers against the surface, staring into the distance with an irritated frown on his face. Alfred looked at his oldest ward and sighed. "You're planning on going extra hard on the boy tomorrow during training, aren't you?"

The ebony-haired billionaire hummed. "Oh yeah… The little scumbag's going down."

Jason proves he's a prick, one bet at a time. XD

I wrote one more one-shot before I leave for New England tomorrow. Fun times. See you all eventually.

...I hate that cover-art...I need to make a better one...