Ch. 3 Realization

After last night I think it's safe to say that I was one of the luckiest girls in Gotham. I didn't wanna think about what would've happened if Abuse and Robin didn't show up. This wasn't the first time I was saved by a vigilante, but it was definitely different.

I can't believe I ran into Robin yesterday. I wonder how he and Abuse knew each other.

"Hello? Earth to Nell," Tyler called as he waved a hand in front of my face.

"Wha-What?" I asked, shaking my head. Lizzie looked raised an eyebrow while Tyler chuckled.

"You were spacing out again," Lizzie commented. "You okay?"

"Yeah, totally," I answered as I brushed a stray curl from my face. I didn't want my friends to know about what happened.

Tyler, Lizzie and I were hanging out at the Cavern, waiting for Vince's shift to end. It was Sunday and most of the people in the café were college students. I noticed that Lizzie kept checking her phone, trying to see how much longer before Vince took his break. I held back a laugh. I shot Tyler a look and he smirked, knowing full well the message I was sending.

Those two are so in love.

There always seemed to be a connection between Tyler and me. Whenever the four of us all hung out, he'd always stick next to me. Our classmates would always ask why Tyler hung around me so much. I'd tell them that we were best friends. But, I actually think it's because no one else really understood him. Tyler was pretty quiet around others. He always had his nose stuck in a book when he wasn't stuffing his face with something. He could eat all the food in the world but never gain a pound.

Tyler's parents were divorced and his father moved out of Gotham to Central City. He's got a new wife and a couple of kids. Tyler never talks to his father or his half siblings. Whenever we'd ask him about it, he'd just brush it off.

"So Liz," Tyler addressed, breaking my train of thought. "When are you and Vince going on a date?"

That question actually caught me off guard. Lizzie was usually the straightforward one in the group. I looked over to Lizzie and she was turning scarlet. Her blue eyes were wide and her mouth hung open.

"Well, ummm…" Lizzie started.

As if on cue, Vince swept over and wrapped his arms around Lizzie. He shut his eyes as he tightened his arms around her. "Actually, we're going out this weekend."

This made Lizzie even giddier. "Wait, what?"

"Yeah, I made a reservation at that Italian place you like so much," Vince mumbled into her hair. "I was going to ask you in private, but I guess my wingman had other plans."

Tyler chuckled, "I just wanted to speed up the process. Besides, it's not like Nell and I wouldn't hear about it later."

"He's right," I added as I stuck my tongue out.

"Yeah, yeah. Could you guys at least gimmie the chance to ask Liz properly?"

Tyler and I nodded in unison, smiles painted across our faces.

Vince released Lizzie from his embrace. Her blush died down, but her breathing was still a bit quick. Vince then stepped over to the side of the table and took her hand in his. This gesture didn't help with Lizzie's blushing problem.

"Elizabeth, would you go out with me this weekend?" Vince asked, never breaking eye contact. He only ever used Lizzie's full name when it was something important.

A smile splashed across Lizzie's lips as she shot up from her seat. Her arms wrapped around Vince's neck as she stood on her tiptoes. She nuzzled her face into Vince's chest for a second. "Of course I'll go out with you, Vincent."

Tyler and I clapped. This was really a big step for Vince and Lizzie. For months we've seen the two of them dance around the subject.

Lizzie was the one to move back and break the embrace. She playfully slapped Vince across his apron. "You still have twenty minutes before break. Get back behind the counter before your mom yells at you."

"C'mon Liz, no one's even here," Vince whined.

At that moment the door opened and the jingle of the bell filled the room. A girl walked into the café, her book bag slung on her shoulder. She had long, sleek black hair that contrasted her pale skin. She walked over to one of the tables and draped her bag across the back of the chair.

Vince noticed her walk in and cursed his misfortune. He retreated back behind the counter, waiting to see if the new patron was going to order something.

Lizzie sat back down and I turned to talk to her. I was about to speak when I noticed that something was off. Tyler was staring at his folded hands, his eyes wide and his breath quick.

"Ty, you okay?" I asked.

"Hmmm? Yeah, I'm peachy," Tyler grunted.

"Really? Because ever since that girl walked in, you turned into a turtle hiding in his shell," Lizzie added. "Do you know her?"

"Shhhh!" Tyler hushed. "You guys don't know who that is?"

Lizzie and I shook our heads.

"That's Michelle Abrams, she's a junior at our school," Tyler sighed, his eyes stealing a glance at her.

"And what?" Lizzie asked. "Do you like her or something?"

"Shhhh!" Tyler silenced again. "Don't say it so loud! You want the whole place to know?"

This was a side of Ty I rarely got to see. He was flustered and he obviously had a thing for Michelle. I looked over to the counter to see Vince talking with her as he prepared her order. It was like Vince to chat up the customers, it added to the homey feeling of The Cavern.

"How do you even know her?" I asked. "We just started high school, and you said she was a junior."

"Well," Tyler coughed. "I met her once, when we were kids. It was after my dad left."

Tyler paused, his face showed a hint of pain. I could tell that he was hesitant. I placed a hand over his, nodding that it was okay. Lizzie ruffled his hair affectionately as she smiled.

Ty took in a breath. "Okay. After my parents split, my mom was depressed for a while. She'd never seem sad when I was around, but I could tell. There wasn't any life in her eyes, no spring in her step. So one day I decided to try and cheer her up.

"I was about seven at the time. I was on my way home from school when I passed by a flower shop. I looked through the window and saw nice bouquet I wanted to get her. So I went home that day and opened my piggy bank. I had enough!

"After school, I made my way back to the flower shop. I had my money in my bag and I was humming along. Next thing I knew, someone shoved me and I was on the ground. I looked up to see some middle school kids grabbing at my book bag, opening it up and dumping my stuff all on the ground. I started to cry, I was terrified. All I could do was curl into a ball.

"While I had my hands over my face, I heard someone yell at them. The yelling went on for a while. Then there was a slap. I looked up and saw that Michelle slapped the leader. She just kept on yelling and they eventually left me alone. She helped me gather my stuff and brought me into the flower shop.

"It was her Dad's shop and she spent most of her afternoons there. She took me to the back and sat me down. I was still crying. I felt a sting on my knee; I must have scraped it when I fell. Michelle cleaned my knee and wrapped it up. Then she gave me a tissue to wipe my face."

Ty paused for a second to take a breath. His eyes were glossy, as if he was about to cry. I was speechless. He never told us this story.

"And then what?" Lizzie breathed, breaking the silence.

"Then she helped me pick out my mom's bouquet. Mom loved it," Ty smiled. "After that day, I knew. I knew she was the one."

We all hung out at the Cavern for a few more hours. Once in a while I'd see Tyler look over toward Michelle. It was nice seeing this side of him. I couldn't help but smile. Tyler was always the closet romantic. Vince offered to be Tyler's wingman, but Tyler just shook his head. He looked embarrassed.

Before I knew it, it was starting to get dark outside. I knew that Mom would have a fit if I stayed out too late. Tyler offered to gimmie a ride, but I told him that I didn't mind walking since I lived so close. I quickly said my goodbyes and was on my way.

I decided to take the same shortcut I took the other night. Once I stepped into the alleyway, I felt a shiver run down my spine. There wasn't anyone else in the alley, but I could have sworn someone was there with me. I walked a few more inches before I heard something.

"Didn't think you'd be coming through here so soon," a voice said.

"Who's there?" I yelled as I reached for my mace. A chill ran down my spine. Just my luck, of course I'd get attacked two nights in a row.

"Calm down, it's me," the voice answered. When I looked again, Robin emerged from the shadows. He pulled his hood down, revealing his mask-covered face.

"Oh my God Robin, you almost gave me a heart attack," I gasped. I released my mace and ran and hand over my face. "What are you doing here?"

Robin smirked, "I was checking up on you. I'm surprised you actually decided to take this shortcut so soon."

"Why? Because of what happened yesterday?" I asked. "Sure I was scared, but you and Abuse took care of those guys. Besides, I can't let it ruin my life. It happened and it's done."

"tt. You remind me of Batgirl," Robin said.

"I'll take that as a compliment, Boy Wonder," I teased. I could see that Robin got a little flustered at the sound of his nickname. "So, why were you checking up on me? Does everyone you save get this special treatment?"

I turned back to see that Robin had disappeared.

That's getting a really old really fast.

It always seemed like teachers conspired to assign all their work on the same day. Major assignments were assigned in English, Biology and History. We just started the year and I already felt like I was gunna die from stress.

"You okay Nell?" Tyler asked, looking up from the book he was reading. "You look kinda stressed."

"Just a little bit," I sighed. "Got a lot on my plate today."

Tyler laughed. "That's what you get for being super smart."

"What are you talking about?" I asked. "You're taking way more honors classes than I am!"

"Doesn't make you any less smart," Tyler shrugged. I was about to say something when Lizzie and Vince came by.

"Isn't it great we all have lunch together?" Lizzie chirped. She seemed bubblier than usual.

"Oh, it's super," I teased, nudging Lizzie with my shoulder.

Vince and Lizzie sat down and the four of us just started talking about classes. We were laughing as we ate the school lunch. It wasn't the best food, but what can you expect? Then Vince turned to me and asked me a question.

"So Nell, did Damian ever text you after your date?" Vince smirked, fully knowing the chaos he just unleashed.

"What date!?" Lizzie screamed, her eyes wide. Tyler coughed up the juice he was drinking.

I blushed and threw a glare at Vince. He laughed as he threaded his fingers through his hair.

"Spill it Nell!" Lizzie demanded, pointing a finger at me.

I shrugged, there was no way I could avoid Lizzie's interrogation. I took a deep breath and told her the story from the beginning. Lizzie stayed quiet during most of the story, only chiming in to make a comment or ask a question. Once I finished, all I saw was a smile spread across Lizzie's face.

"So, has Damian texted you?" Lizzie asked.

I shook my head. I haven't heard from Damian since he had to go back home to help his sister. To be honest, I've mostly been thinking about Robin. I kept replaying the events of that night in my head over and over.

Robin was always so serious, even though he was about my age. Did he go to school? What if he attended Gotham High? What if I already knew who Robin was under his mask?

"Don't worry sweetie, I'm sure he'll text you soon," Lizzie winked, breaking my train of thought.

I was about to say something when the bell rang. We all got our stuff together and exited the lunchroom. Talk about saved by the bell.

The rest of the day wasn't that eventful, just more teachers handing out difficult assignments with ridiculous deadlines. I wonder if these teachers remembered what it was like being a teenager.

The last bell couldn't have come fast enough. I gathered my books and headed to my locker. Unfortunately, these two kids were making out right in front of my locker and just couldn't get around them. I sighed; this was the second time this week they did that. It took a few seconds but they finally noticed I was there. They apologized and went on their way.

After a long day at school, getting home was the best feeling in the world. I kicked off my shoes and padded over to my room. I laid my book bag on the floor and started up my netbook. Instead of doing my homework, I spent a good half an hour just surfing the web.

Thing was, being online lost its' charm after a while. I couldn't stand the silly things some of the people posted online. What went through people's heads these days? I just signed off when I heard someone knocking on the apartment door.

Who could that be?

I huffed and made the journey through the living room to answer the door. My eyes widened when I saw who was on the other side.

"Erm, hi Nell."

"Damian?" I asked. I was surprised to say the least. "What are you doing here?"

"Well, I thought I saw you getting off your bus," Damian started, his cheeks growing a bit red. He stuffed his hands in his jean pockets. "And saw you coming into the building. I debated actually calling but-"

"Damian," I said, cutting him off. "How long have you been out here?"

"A while," he answered. Our eyes locked for a second and I saw a faint smile spread across his face. The smile caught me off guard; there was something familiar about it. I felt a weird feeling form in the pit of my stomach.

"I was wondering if you were busy," Damian said. "Since I had to leave so early last time, I wanted to make it up to you."

"Oh, no I'm not busy," I stammered, completely ignoring the mountain of schoolwork I had to do. "What did you have in mind?"

"I was thinking of going back to The Cavern and having that scone you promised me."

"Sure," I agreed.

I motioned for Damian to come in while I got some things from my room. I stuffed a couple bucks into my pocket and grabbed my keys. I sat next to Damian and slipped on my shoes. Before we left, I grabbed my jacket off the coat rack, just in case.

Our walk to The Cavern was actually really pleasant. Damian filled the air with questions about school, my mom and my friends. I started to feel kinda bad, because I spent most of the time talking and I never got a chance to ask him some questions. It didn't take us long to get to The Cavern and we were greeted with a wave from Vince.

Crap. If Lizzie ever finds out about this, I'll never hear the end of it.

"Hey Nell, Damian!" Vince greeted. "Ready for round two?"

I sent Vince a look as we took our seats. I turned to Damian, "Sorry about him, he gets real animated when he's bored."

"It's quite alright, my older brother's the same way," Damian smiled.

I never remembered seeing Damian smile so much. When I first met him, he just seemed like such a grumpy kid. It took everything I had to convince him to play. Damian's changed so much the past few years. But the one thing that didn't change was the look in his eyes; they always looked serious.

"There you go staring off into space again," Vince said as he walked to our table. He laughed as I felt my cheeks grow warm. "So, what can I get you guys?"

"Green tea and some scones, please," Damian ordered.

Vince wrote the order down and headed back to the kitchen. I twirled a stray curl with my fingers while waiting. Once in a while I'd catch Damian's eyes glance over my way. There was a comfortable silence between the two of us.

In a few minutes Vince returned with our order. I took a scone and broke off a piece. My taste buds came alive as I chewed. Damian took a sip of his tea before looking back at me. Damian then continued to ask questions about my life. He nodded at every answer and even laughed at some of the stories I told him. Each laugh seemed to widen his smile ever so slightly. The look in his eyes seemed to lighten up too.

Gosh, I hope I'm not boring him. There's no way he could find all my childhood stories interesting.

We kept talking for a while longer when I realized that it was getting a little late.

"Aw man," I sighed. "I can't believe it's this late already."

"Do you need to go?" Damian asked as he popped the last bit of scone in his mouth.

I nodded. "My mom wouldn't like it too much if I stayed out too late on a school night."

Damian looked discouraged. "Well, can I at least walk you home?"

I raised an eyebrow at Damian's eagerness. "Sure, that sounds nice."

Damian took out his wallet and placed a twenty on the table. He put his hand up to stop me before I could protest. "It's on me."

"Y'know I can pay for myself," I teased.

Damian smirked, "tt. What kind of gentleman would I be then?"

"tt?" Where have I heard that before?

We quickly got our things together and said goodbye to Vince. He waved from behind the counter. Before I left The Cavern I saw Vince wink and whisper, "Go gettim."

I shrugged on my jacket as soon as I got outside. I looked over and wondered if Damian was all right just in his t-shirt. The cold didn't seem to bother him though. He swung his arms and for a split second his hand grazed mine. I felt a jolt run through my entire body.

Before I knew it, we were right across from my apartment building. I instinctively started to cross the street when I felt Damian's hand wrap around my wrist.

"Nell!" Damian yelled. I felt a forceful tug that caused me to crash into Damian's chest.

Then there was a rush of air that passed by when I heard a mumbled apology that was quickly lost in the wind.

"Are you alright?" Damian asked, tightening his arms around me.

"What happened?" I asked, still confused.

"Some idiot on a bike was coming down the hill. He almost ran into you," Damian mumbled into my hair.

It took a second for me to realize how close we were. I could feel his heartbeat pounding against my cheek and I could hear his breathing quicken. He held me so close that I could feel the muscle underneath his shirt. After a few seconds I finally looked up, locking eyes with Damian. Instead of the serious look I noticed all night, Damian looked scared. Scared that I almost got hurt. It was a familiar look. One that I got from… Robin?