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As much as Dick would have liked to deny it, things had changed after Wally’s Whoopsie, as Artemis called it.
The group’s dynamic would never be the same again. Everything he thought he knew about his best friend, the Wall-man, incurable prankster and shameless flirt, was a ruse, and he was forced to evaluate their longstanding friendship and all the subtle hints Dick should have picked up on earlier… because how did Kid Flash manage to get one-up on Batman’s protégé? Sooo embarrassing.
Wally was an omega.
Mind. BLOWN.
Granted, a crime-fighting, super-powered omega part of a covert team of teenage heroes who kicked butt on a regular basis, so it wasn’t like they had to treat him different. There was really no cause for worry—Wally was more than capable of protecting himself.
Though he was surprised the Flash, aka overprotective mother-hen, was allowing his protégé (and not to mention, beloved nephew) to re-join the team so soon after Wally’s Whoopsie. A few weeks ago, the junior speedster had left his home right before his heat, ending up in the base and nearly causing a brawl between Artemis and Dick (who had both apologized to each other in private) (SOOO embarrassing).
Dick wasn’t about to complain about Barry’s decision, despite his curiosities. The team’s dynamic just wouldn’t be the same without their annoying, flirtatious speedster.
He valued his friendship with Wally greatly, and so made a promise to himself not to let the true nature of Wally’s secondary-gender change how he saw his best friend. There would be some minor changes of course, such as Wally being unable to join them for any long-term missions (not that they had been trusted with any yet), to be benched nearing and during his heats.
Nothing too different. Dick could handle it.
They’ve already been through so much, both as best friends and with the team as a whole. This little adjustment in their lives wouldn’t matter much beyond that.
The summer fair was nothing short of… underwhelming.
Well, he expected as much. This was Gotham, and no matter how much money Bruce Wayne donated to Town Hall, the Mayor always had to redirect donations towards crime-fighting and infrastructure, to earn the public’s vote.
Not rickety old rides and booths only meant to distract from the sweltering heat which ravaged the city every summer.
Wally and Dick were dressed in their summer-best (flip flops, shorts, t-shirts), slurping giant, rainbow smoothies and donning matching cat-eye sunglasses. They had just enjoyed an unhealthy dinner after an afternoon of dizzying rides. Corndogs and cotton candy were surprisingly filling (watching Wally inhale about ten of each killed his appetite faster than you could say Flash).
“Dude! Have we ridden that yet? Up for a little spin?” the speedster points to the tilt-a-whirl, grinning widely and flashing his multi-colored teeth, stained from their beverage.
“Nah. Maybe later,” he snickers. “Don’t want a repeat of last year.”
Dick mimics Wally’s unfortunate puking incident and earns a gentle punch to the ribs.
“Shut up,” Wally scowls. Then pauses to think, something he never did before the Wally Whoopsie. Maybe finally having his secret off his back lessened the pressure to act like he had something to prove. “Yeah. You’re probably right. Ferris wheel?”
Wally points to the giant, circular contraption located on the edge of the boardwalk, overlooking the grey, choppy waters of Gotham Harbour. The one ride almost exclusively for couples looking to make out, an unspoken rule in funfair law. Dick feels his throat closing up. Did Wally not know this?
“Maybe we should just find somewhere to sit down—”
“Come on, dude! Uncle B’s gonna be here to pick me up by seven. Do you really want to waste time melting on a bench somewhere? Live a little!”
“Fine, fine,” Dick smiles, tossing away the remains of his smoothie and wiping his sticky fingers on his pants (Alfred wouldn’t be pleased). “You’re such a nag.”
“Am not!” Wally retorts, sticking out his tongue, stained purple.
The duo heads towards the thankfully short queue, gaining a few raised eyebrows from the fair workers as they’re seated in their private metal box (this place was such a safety hazard) (he’d have to look into the permits they had on these things when he had the time).
“Enjoy the ride, lovebirds,” the attendant waves lazily as the contraption jerks to life, lifting them into the air. Dick feels his ears flushing at the giggles from below, covering his face when he hears the tell-tale sound of a camera shutter going off. He had hoped the shades would’ve covered his face enough, but this was Gotham. Everyone knew Bruce Wayne and Richard Grayson. It was hard to not be noticed.
“You heard him,” Wally laughs, leaning into Dick’s personal space when they’re high enough not to be seen by the people below. “Enjoy the ride.”
Dick groans when Wally starts making loud, gross smooching and moaning noises.
“Shut up, Wally, oh my god,” he’s sorely tempted to push Wally out of the compartment but doesn’t want to have a murderous Flash on his heels, so he’ll refrain. “People are gonna think we’re screwing or something.”
“Pfft! They’re all busy sucking face. Nobody gives a shit, so lighten up, Dick,” Wally teasingly mutters his name in his ear. It’s warm and ticklish and sends a pleasant tingle down Dick’s spine. He might have to cut that ear off after he gets home.
“Stop,” Dick says, firmly pushing Wally away.
The change in Wally’s mood is immediate, a playful grin turning into a disappointed frown.
“Man, Uncle B was right when he said things would change,” the redhead says, slumping back into his part of the rickety metal. “You really have been treating me different.”
Dick sputters, ready to vehemently deny Wally’s accusations. The speedster stops him with a glare, and if looks could kill…
“Don’t deny it! First Conner, then Megs and Kaldur, Artemis and now you! You, my best bro! What, just because I’m an omega means we can’t hang out like normal? I can’t complete missions like normal?”
“Wally, stop. Nobody ever thought—”
“Oh save it!” Wally’s just as red as he is by now, his freckles even more prominent against his flushed cheeks. His green eyes are watery and bright, and it makes Dick’s heart clench guiltily. “My dad was right. I should’ve been smarter. Should’ve kept on pretending.”
“No.”
Wally blinks.
“No, Wally. Stop that right now. You shouldn’t have to hide who you are,” Dick removes his shades (a big Batman NO-NO), looking his best friend in the eye. Wally scowls, pointedly looking away.
“You don’t know what it’s like, Dick. To suddenly have people questioning your capabilities, just because you’re an omega. Even if they would’ve trusted you with their lives just the day before. Declaring you a liability.”
Dick feels his blood boiling at Wally’s words.
Anger, but not at his best friend. No, definitely not at Wally. For Wally.
“Who?”
Wally shrugs. Dick grips Wally’s shoulders and turns the speedster to face him.
“Who? C’mon, tell me. I won’t be mad.”
“… Promise you won’t make a big deal out of it?”
“I promise,” Dick lies, crossing his fingers behind his back.
There’s a slight pause before Wally gives in.
“… Batman.”
Dick swears so violently Wally jumps in his seat. He can see Wally’s mildly impressed at the sort of words he’s using, words no fourteen-year-old should have known.
“I’m gonna kill him,” Dick mutters dangerously, cracking his knuckles. “That fucking—”
“Dick, CHILL! You promised!” Wally gives him a little shake. “See! This is why I didn’t want to tell you—now you’re going to kill him, and we won’t have any more Bats to give us Batglares and covert-not-covert missions.”
“Damn straight I’m gonna kill him,” Dick snaps. “I can’t BELIEVE he said that! He partners with Selina all the time so it’s not like he really thinks that.”
“Selina? Who’s Selina?”
Dick flushes. Whoops! He sends a mental apology Selina’s way, making a note to avoid her for the next patrol (the infamous Catwoman was always able to tell when he had something to hide).
“Uh, nobody! Forget I said anything. Anyway, please tell me you didn’t take that lying down.”
“Well actually, I didn’t have to,” Wally grins.
“Barry?”
“Yeap.”
Dick nods approvingly. They could always count on the Flash to set ol’ Batman straight.
He knew Bruce had Wally’s best interests at heart. His adoptive father was excellent at strategizing and winning against dangerous criminals and the occasional alien invasion threatening to destroy the planet.
Though, when it came to matters of the heart, Bruce often cared more about the results than the execution. Calling Wally a liability was probably meant to make Wally resign from the team out of guilt, albeit for his own safety.
“Thank goodness he was there,” Dick chuckled, nudging Wally in the shoulder as they both reclined back against the uncomfortable metal seats. “Spill. I want all the details.”
Wally grins, launching into the grand tale of Flash and Batman’s one-sided screaming match in Mount Justice, conference room one.
They’ve reached the highest point of the Ferris wheel by now, the sun just beginning to set over the horizon, the skyline of Gotham lit in numerous shades of pink and orange. Dick watches Wally, babbling excitedly about how cool Uncle B had been and how he’d actually managed to make the Bats stutter, which never happened because Bats was cool as a cucumber—
Dick notices how the sunlight hits Wally’s fiery hair, illuminates his green eyes so that they’re almost glowing, sparkling with excitement. His freckles speckled cutely along the bridge of his nose, his lips, slightly pink from biting during Dick’s previous line of questioning—
He leans in, hypnotised, causing Wally to stop mid-sentence and blink confusedly at his friend.
“Dude? What’s up?”
Dick blinks. Realises what he was just about to do.
Forces himself to retreat.
“Nothing,” he shrugs, slumping back and kicking his feet up to rest on Wally’s thighs. “So, what did Barry do after that?”
Seven o’clock comes and Barry promptly arrives in his fiery-red pickup truck, pulling into the litter-strewn parking lot. He waves at the boys as they exit the boardwalk, all blonde hair and smiles.
“Hey, Uncle B!” Wally chirps happily. “Here, for you.”
“Aw, kiddo,” Barry grins, accepting the armful of packaged snacks Wally dumps on him, popcorn, cotton candy, and other numerous cavity-inducing treats. “Thanks! Share on the way home?”
“You got it!”
Wally turns to Dick and envelops him in a tight, longer-than-normal hug. He’s clutching onto Dick like a lifeline, which usually never happens in a hug between bros. He can feel Wally’s chin on his shoulder and the warmth of his skin, where their bare arms meet.
It makes Dick’s cheeks heat up… and Barry’s eyes narrow suspiciously (uh-oh).
“Thanks,” Wally says in his ear, his voice the softest Dick’s ever heard it. It makes his heart melt, just a little bit. “You know, for believing in me.”
“Don’t even have to ask,” Dick answers firmly, wrapping his arms around Wally’s waist and giving him a little squeeze. “I’ve always got your back.”
“Me too.”
Their embrace comes to an abrupt halt when Barry loudly clears his throat. They retract their arms and quickly go for a little fist bump to mask the awkwardness. Dick hears the familiar purr of Bruce’s Lamborghini crawling up behind him and waves goodbye to the speedsters.
“Bye, Barry. See you tomorrow, Wall-man,” He says, grinning as Wally quickly leaps over the hood of Barry’s truck (“Jeez, Wally, watch the paint!”) and swings himself into the passenger’s seat through the window, probably to avoid Bruce seeing him. Which was perfectly understandable, given the circumstances.
Dick slides into the passenger seat of Bruce’s car, about to tear him a new one when they see Barry reverse rather violently out of his lot, the front window of his truck facing theirs.
The Flash gleefully flips Batman off—much to Wally’s visible horror and Dick’s sheer delight, before speeding out of the lot, leaving Bruce at a loss for words.
Dick cackles, wishing he had captured the moment on camera.
“You deserved that.” He sings.
Bruce sighs.
“I know, Dick. I know.”