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Hearing music bumping through the Manor has become so commonplace that Bruce doesn’t notice it at first. With a weary sigh, he sheds his jacket and kicks off his shoes, wanting nothing more than to throw his briefcase in his office and take a nap. He hasn’t been sleeping well the past few days, a big case keeping his mind running at all hours, social and other obligations keeping him busy when he managed to stop thinking about it. A nap sounds heavenly right now.
He steps towards the stairs, but his stomach grumbling interrupts him. Annoyed, he moves instead to the kitchen, hoping Alfred will be there cooking something up. “Alfred?” He calls, hearing the music finally. It’s circus music, and while that’s usually only something Dick enjoys actually listening to, both Alfred and Bruce have learned to tolerate it.
“Nope! Just me,” Dick replies, sticking his head out of the doorway just as Bruce is approaching. There’s flour on his cheeks. God, he’s adorable. Cheerfully, he skips back to the counter and explains, “I’m making cookies while Alfred’s out in the gardens.”
“Uh-huh, and did Alfred say you could use the oven by yourself?”
Dick smiles sheepishly. “No, but I knew you’d be getting home sometime, so I thought I’d just have you do it. Will you? Please?”
Bruce only holds out for a second before sighing, setting his briefcase down, and going to help the boy. Once the cookies are in the oven and the mess cleaned up, they find themselves with ten minutes of waiting. Bruce is about to suggest a quick walk to his office and back when the song changes from “Entry of the Gladiators” to “The Man On The Flying Trapeze.”
Dick gasps excitedly and hurries over to the boombox, turning the dial so the already loud music is truly blasting. “This is my favorite song!” He shouts over it, bursting into a swinging dance around the room. Bruce watches for a moment, struck again by how adorable Dick is, before Dick is taking his hands and making him dance along with him. Giving in, Bruce tries to copy the movements, but they come much easier to Dick, who sings, “He'd fly through the air with the greatest of ease! A daring young man on the flying Trapeze!”
They make a circuit of the kitchen a few times before the song is over. Dick does a cartwheel at the end, giggling happily. “That was fun,” he says when he’s upright again. “We should dance more, B!”
And really, how can he say no to that smile?