Disclaimer: I don't own the Teen Titans. If I did, then everything I wrote about them would become episodes. And Terra wouldn't exist...
A/N: Okay, I think it's about time for another BbxRae story from Draco Blade! This story was inspired by a real-life incident. Namely, flying on an airplane. I am afraid of flying, it's the truth., The thought of being trapped in a thirty-ton vehicle over thirty thousand feet off the ground doesn't appeal to me. As I was riding an airplane this summer, I wrote this story to calm my nerves. And it ended up pretty good!
First of all, all of my friends, and myself included, agree that I'm a lot like BeastBoy. I fool around, I joke, I'm super-sensitive, and I like the color green to a fault. So, I started wondeing, what if BB was ALSO afraid of airplanes, just like me? It's possible!
Enjoy:
JET-LAGGED
It was time for vacation. Robin had booked the Titans a trip to Hawaii for the annual vacation. The Titans East would look over Jump City while they were gone.
BeastBoy was really excited for the trip. He had always wanted to go to Hawaii. Who didn't? He saw this as an opportunity for some well-deserved rest and relaxation. He also saw this as an opportunity to have a romantic moment with Raven, whom he secretly had a crush on. Not that he'd admit it.
Raven, however, wasn't nearly as happy. She just wanted to stay home, and forget about vacation. Why did they have to relax outside the Tower? She didn't even like Hawaii that much. Too many drooling boys and skimpy girls. Heck, she didn't even like vacations in general. This was all very tedious for her.
But right now, all of the Titans were frustrated. Because they were about to miss their plane. The Titans had spent over an hour at the metal detectors, thanks to Robin. The boy had taken out over a hundred various gadgets and gizmos out of his costume. And he said he was packing light! The guard had finally snapped after Robin pulled a portable death ray out of his hair. He had thrown the teen through the metal detector completely naked, to the joy of Starfire, but to the disgust of everyone else.
Then came Cyborg. The guard didn't even let him through the metal detector. Still steaming, he grabbed the mecha-man and shoved him through security, muttering words Starfire shouldn't have heard. The rest had followed shortly.
And now the teens were running full speed (and fully-clothed) through the airport to find their plane. They reached the screaming metal death trap (a.k.a. the airplane) only minuted before departure.
"Finally, we made it!" BB said, relieved. HE looked over at Raven, who didn't share in his enthusiasm.
"Whoopey..." she said, sarcastically in her usual monotone.
"So, where are our seats?" Cyborg asked, lifting up his carry-on luggage.
"In the back! Third class!" Robin said enthusiastically. He stopped as the rest stared at him with hate in their eyes. "What?"
"Third class? THIRD CLASS! What is wrong with you? We're freaking' super heroes, and we're riding THIRD CLASS?" he bellowed, looking about to kill the spiky haired teen in front of him.
"What? It was cheap!" he said, raising his hands defensively. The others sighed and continued back to the back of the plane.
"I didn't even know there WAS a third class..." BeastBoy mumbled angrily. Raven grunted in agreement.
"Friends? Which seats are ours?" Starfire asked, living up to her naive title. There were only six seats in the compartment. It turned out that third class meant six small seats cramped together in the very back of the plane. There were three rows of two seats.
Robin and Star took the two seats in front, and Cyborg took the two in the middle row. He was so big he took up the whole row. This left BeastBoy and Raven to sit together in the back.
'Great, I get to sit next to the annoying green elf for four hours,' Raven thought. She looked over to warn BB not to bug her, but she was surprised. Instead of being his usual, hyperactive self, BeastBoy was looking...nervous. He was strapped into his seat and looking around frantically. And he was sweating...even more than usual. Raven actually felt a pang of concern.
"BeastBoy, what's wrong?" she asked, placing her hand on his green one. His gloves had been left at the Tower, exposing his green hands. And both hands were gripping the armrests tightly. As Raven put her hand on his, he was too nervous to even blush.
"Um, Raven," he whimpered, looking around. "Can you keep a secret?" he whispered.
Raven looked at him, confused, but decided to play along. "Uh...sure."
"Well, you see...um, I..." BB stuttered, afraid to finish the statement. "I'm kinda afraid of airplanes."
"You're kidding me."
"I'm serious! I hate the things!" BeastBoy hissed.
"But, BeastBoy...you ride in the T-ship all the time," Raven said, still confused to how he could be so afraid of something so commonly used.
"Well, yeah..." BB said. "But you haven't seen me during take-off, have you?" he asked. The empath shook her head. She could sense the fear and nervousness he was exuding. "Well, whenever we take off, I'm...scared. I end up having to close my eyes and grind my teeth. I get all sweaty and I grab onto anything sturdy."
"BeastBoy..." Raven breathed. She was amazed. BeastBoy was that afraid of planes? "Why didn't you tell anyone?" she asked.
"I didn't want to be left out. I didn't want to hold you guys back..." he said, looking down. "Please, don't tell the others! They'll think I'm chicken! Please!"
Raven looked at him seriously. She could tell that this meant a lot to him. She wouldn't break his trust. "Okay BeastBoy...I promise," she said. "But you're not holding us back. I'm sure the others would understand and respect your fears. I do."
BB just continued to look down. Suddenly, the plane began to jolt forward. They were taking off. BeastBoy immediately began to sweat uncontrollably. His body shook as he grabbed whatever was closest. His left hand grabbed the armrest. And his right hand grabbed Raven's hand. She blushed slightly as he did this, but he didn't notice. He was too scared.
He began to shake more and more. His eyes closed and he squeezed Raven's hand absentmindedly. She squeezed back. Raven decided that she needed to help him.
"BesatBoy!" she said, demanding his attention. He opened his eyes to look at her. She looked into them and saw just how afraid he really was. He was terrified! "BeastBoy, it's alright! We're okay!" she said. And she gave him a smile.
BB almost fainted. She had the most beautiful smile in the world. It was that smile that he had tried to put on her face on numerous occasions. And now she was smiling. At him! FOR him! Realizing this, BB tried to smile back, but it was a weak smile. Raven squeezed his hand affectionately as the plane continued to take off.
Eventually, the plane began to steady out, as planes often do. The lift-off ended and they began cruising at their height. BeastBoy relaxed a bit and stopped shaking. He opened his eyes and breathed out a sigh of relief.
"Um, BeasyBoy?" Raven asked.
"Yeah?"
"You can let go off my hand now."
"Oh!" He let go immediately, embarrassed. "Sorry."
"It's okay," Raven said sympathetically. They both blushed. BB sighed.
"You must think I'm a total coward..." he said, looking down in shame. Raven reached over and lifted his chin up, so he was at eye-level with her. BB was surprised, she usually wasn't this affectionate.
"I don't think you're a coward at all, and neither should you. We all have our fears and weaknesses. That's what make us human," Raven explained. Before she knew what she was doing, she grabbed BeastBoy's hand again, squeezing it affectionately. This time, BeastBOy smiled ofr real.
"Thanks Raven," he said, no longer embarrassed.
"No problem," Raven said. "But, if you don't mind my asking, why ARE you so afraid of planes?"
BeastBoy looked at her. He had kept that secret for so long, he didn't think he was ever going to tell. But this was Raven. He trusted her more than anyone else he knew. He took a deep breath. "My parents died in a plane crash. Well, actually they were on a boat. But the plane crashed into the boat, so you understand what I mean."
Raven looked at BeastBoy with shock and concern. 'His parents had died on a plane crash, but he still rode them willingly! That was actually...brave,' she thought.
"I'm sorry..." Raven said, sympathetically. BB shook his head.
"Don't worry about it. It's just that...I never really got over it. I could have been there! I could have saved those people! I could have saved my parents..." he said.
"BeastBoy," Raven said. "It wasn't your fault, I'm sure. I'm sure you could've if you were there, but you weren't. Don't worry about it. You had no idea."
"You're right, Rae," BeastBoy said, looking up again. "Um, can I ask you something, too?"
"Um...sure."
"Well...what's your greatest fear?" he asked. Raven was surprised at the question, and looked away. BB immediately started apologizing. "I'm sorry, you don't have to tell me! I didn't mean to..." he was interrupted when Raven turned back and pressed her fingers against his lips.
"It's okay," Raven said. "You trusted me with your fears, so I trust you with mine. My greatest fear...is that I'll lose my friends..." she said. As she finished, a few stray tears began to gather in her eyes. BB moved closer to wipe away her tears. She looked back at him.
"We're not going anywhere, Raven!" he said cheerfully. "You helped me with my fear, so I'm gonna help you with yours!"
Raven looked up at him and smiled. "Thanks, BeastBoy," she said.
"No problem, Rae. Just...thanks for understanding!"
"Sure, no problem," she said, squeezing his hand again. Both of the Titan's blushed deeply. A long silence ensued until BB spoke again.
"Um, Raven?" he asked.
"Yes?"
"I was wandering if you...um...wanted to do something...like, together...when we reach Hawaii?" he asked, scared and nervous.
"You mean, like...a date?" she asked, blushing. So, of course, BB blushed too.
"Well...yeah."
Raven smiled. "I'd love to."
A/N: Well, I hope you all liked it. Sorry if it was too short. I've had this idea for weeks, but I only just now got down to writing it. This will be one-shot, just so you all know. I hop you all enjoyed it! GO BBxRAE!
PEACE OUT!