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You didn’t think much of it at first, it easily could have been a coincidence. Yet as with anything that has to do with your younger brother Damian, you should have known that coincidence has nothing to do with anything he does.
It was something you had mentioned off-handed, a story you had been telling about a classmate of yours when you were younger. The topic had come up with Tim while the two of you had been getting something to snack on after you got home from your classes.
“There’s more than one way for someone to say ‘I love you’ or even just show normal affection.” You were waving your hand around before popping the grape you held into your mouth. “Some people just aren’t good with the ‘conventional means’. There was this one kid in my class back in first grade. He was pretty awkward socially, and he didn’t really like being hugged or much of anything that had a lot of physical contact. He was fine with the smaller stuff though, so he liked to show it by grabbing onto your arm and squeezing it twice if he liked you. If you two were close, he grabbed closer to your elbow.”
“I take it the two of you were pretty close then?” Tim asked with a smirk.
“Yes actually. I kind of related to him. I was a little awkward too back then and it felt nice to be around someone who was like me. I grew out of it for the most part eventually but back then it was nice to be able to express it in a way that was more comfortable to me.”
“I get what you mean. I did something similar when I was younger. I still do it actually.” Tim had leaned on the counter, his gaze flickered to the doorway and seemed to linger on it for a brief moment before the two of you carried on with your conversation. Eventually the two of you moved onto a different topic and after that the memory moved its way to the back of your mind. What the two of you failed to notice however, was that someone had been listening in on your conversation.
It was subtle at first. The first time he knocked his elbow against yours you thought it had been an accident and didn’t think anything of it other than adjusting your elbow so that he had more room. You also failed to notice the subtle disappointment that flashed in his eyes.
It took several weeks before you had managed to start catching on. Up until then, he had kept to just bumping his elbow lightly against yours if the two of you were next to each other for any amount of time, even if no words were exchanged. It wasn’t until after one of your deeper conversations that he switched things up. Before he left the room he quickly reached out and squeezed your wrist. It was just once, and he left the room in a hurry afterwards, only giving you a second to notice the redness of his cheeks. You were stunned and rooted in your spot. The action was unexpected, even for Damian, who had up until that moment had only given you awkward hugs or nods of affirmation after these kinds of talks.
You stood there for at least a good ten minutes before your mind finally started to make the connections. The sudden increase in “accidental” bumps of the elbow that suddenly wasn’t so accidental anymore, the glance Tim spared at the entryway when you two first had your conversation, and the looks Damian had been seeming to give you that always looked like he was waiting and pleading for you to finally answer some unasked question. You groaned and slapped your hand to your face. It all seemed painfully obvious to you now.
You didn’t get the opportunity to speak with Damian alone after that. Crime had picked up in Gotham, and so pulling him aside during patrol wasn’t an option. On top of that, your school seemed to pick up on your need to get something done so you didn’t have much time outside of all the schoolwork everyone was getting to talk with him alone either.
In the end, you settled for letting him know in the same way he had let you know. The next morning at breakfast, you didn’t say much after he walked into the kitchen. You waited until he sat next to you, before gingerly bumping your elbow against his. You felt his eyes snap over to you, but you kept your gaze forward, bringing another spoonful of cereal to your mouth. The only reaction you did give was a slight upturn of the corners of your lips. You didn’t need to look over to know he was grinning back.
After that it became common for the two of you. Overall, your little brother seemed to be a lot happier now that you had caught on. He still would squeeze your wrist, but it was mostly saved for private moments and conversations between the two of you. You also started noticing it happening more and more as you went about your day. Damian didn’t just do it to you, you would often see him do it to other members of the family as well.
Alfred and Bruce had seemed to catch onto it almost instantaneously, which came as no surprise to you. Cassandra was the next one to catch on, and even adopted her own version for the rest of the family. Out of your brothers, Dick was the only other member to be on the receiving end of Damian’s expressions of affection the most. It didn’t happen as often with Jason, as he wasn’t around the manor too often, but Damian always made sure to do it at least once whenever he was. Tim seemed to be one of the only siblings (other than the girls, which you had presumed Cass told them about), to realize that Damian was doing something, but he didn’t yet know what.
You had to hide your smile though every time you saw Damian with Tim. Sure the two had an admittedly rough start, but although Damian had never admitted it, the anger and resentment he once held for his brother were no longer there. He just wasn’t sure how to tell him that, and in one confession he had even confided to you his fear that at this point he wasn’t sure Tim would ever accept him under any other role than the one he currently held.
You weren’t sure if Tim eventually figured it out, or if one of the girls finally gave in and told him, but eventually Tim started reciprocating the gesture. The first time it happened, luck was on your side and you were in the same room as them. For the rest of your life you will never forget the look on Damian’s face.
Over time the rest of your family picked up on it and most of the family even adopted versions of their own. Most of the time they were used during and after patrol, when everyone was too tired for words. But Damian’s were special, and you were the one most often on the receiving end of them, a fact you liked to boast about to Dick whenever you could. Deep down however, you were glad that a simple conversation overheard between you and Tim allowed your youngest sibling to express his emotions in a way that was suited for him. Because at the heart of things the way people choose to express their affections whether romantic or platonic shouldn’t have to fit into a conventional mold, the focus should be on the emotions behind it. You weren’t afraid to say that you loved Damian, and now Damian wasn’t afraid to say it back, albeit in his own way.