Work Text:
“What are you doing, kid?” Jason asked.
He and the kid weren’t on ‘great’ terms. He was skittish, and after asking Dick he got the rundown on his parents. They sounded like they both needed a good bullet hole through each of their heads.
The kid was very nervous, according to Dickie he was convinced now that Jason was here he wasn’t needed anymore. Jason understood, when Dick and Bruce had first started reconciling their relationship he was positive it was back to the streets.
Weirdly enough he also seemed drawn to Jason. Constantly staring him down. He couldn’t fault the kid. Jason was constantly in between snapping someone’s neck and budding up with Dick. it must be like looking at a ‘tamed’ wolf.
“Homework,” Tim said. Jason doubted anyone could work with all the mess that Tim claimed to be ‘homework’.
“Looks like casework to me.” Jason batted a folder with his foot. Tim grabbed it and tucked it into his side a mother bird protecting its young from rain.
“It’s both.”
Jason was careful not to cross, there was a clear border of folders that stopped Jason from getting near Tim, and Tim flinched every time he invaded it.
“I thought you were banned from casework, seeing as you have a cold,” Jason pointed out, more to be a shit than anything else.
“Bruce didn’t stop me from taking them.”
“Bruce is downstairs on bedrest - like you should be - because you both fell into the harbor. I doubt he could even sneeze right now without alerting Alfred to movement, no less track your skinny ass while it’s running around stealing case files.”
Tim shrugged. “He’s Bruce, if he didn’t want me working these then he should have hidden them better.”
“Again, let me point out that you both fell into the harbor.”
Tim huffed like Jason was such an inconvenience. “He was in there for a few minutes, I was only in there for a few seconds.”
“It was enough time for you to catch a cold.”Jason can’t believe Bruce willingly put up with this. How did he stand Dick and Jason?
Tim shrugged again and went back to his files. But Jason wasn’t backing down. Alfred had sent him up to check on the kid. And he wasn’t giving Alfred more work by shoving the kid on him. He already had Bruce on bed rest to deal with.
“Come on kid, go to bed. Alfred orders.”
Tim shook his head. “I don’t believe you. Alfred always wants me to get my school work done.”
Jason raised an eyebrow. “I thought we agreed this wasn’t school work.”
“I said it’s both,” Tim argued.
“But are you doing both?”
“No comment,” Tim said turning away from Jason. Spreading out the folder he had been holding on the other side of him, where Jason couldn’t reach to kick at it.
“That’s not how this works.”
Jason quickly stepped over the files and scooped Tim by his armpits. Tim squirmed against his hold like a wriggly kitten. Tim kicked out with an undignified huff.
It could be the cold or sleep deprivation but Tim’s kicks felt like the equivalent of a bird trying to stomp a rhino to death.
“Put me down,” Tim squawked. “I have work I have to get done.” He really stressed the word work, ending it with a whiny voice that shouldn’t belong to someone his age. It reminded Jason of a black-haired toddler trying so hard to act more mature for his age, but Jason couldn’t pin down where the memory came from.
“You need some cold medicine, and rest,” Jason stated while plopping Tim down on Jason’s favorite couch.
“Stay,” Jason commanded.
“I’ve got work,” Tim whined one more time, but Jason didn’t budge. He threatened to sit on Tim if he even dared to think about moving.
After Jason was close to positive that Tim wouldn’t be making a grand except he went off in search of cold medicine. He rooting through the old cabinets hoping that Alfred hadn’t changed where he kept the meds.
He found the meds with a few shelves from where they used to be kept. He poured to correct amount of cold medicine into a measuring tub.
“Drink up, Timbers,” Jason said, handing over the meds.
Tim made a face at the meds. “Grape,” he said with the same amount of distaste rich kids would say to knock-off designer clothes.
“It’s the only flavor it comes in.” Jason didn’t know why he was humoring the kid. He probably should just pour the meds down his throat, but it was almost amusing to watch him fawn over the flavor of cold medicine.
With a grimace, Tim chugged the grape-flavored meds.
“If I leave this room will you just go right back to those files?” He already knows the answer.
“......No.”
Tim, Jason concluded, was a horrible liar.
“K. scooch over, I don’t trust you.”
Tim grumbled but dragged his legs off all of the couch, making room for Jason.
Jason snatched a random book from the side table, hoping to wait out Tim and the cold medicine. It said side effects include drowsiness.
The book had sloppy handwriting all over it. Notes that looked liked were meant for a paper. But most of them hardly meant anything. It looked like Tim had read the book in peak tiredness.
“You reading this for school?” Jason asked while holding ‘Lord of The Flies’ in Tim’s face.
“Yeah,” Tim said sounding tired.
Jason opened the book to the first page and started reading. “The boy with fair hair lowered himself down the last few feet of rock and began to pick his way toward the lagoon. Though he had taken off his school sweater and trailed it now from one hand, his grey shirt stuck to him and his hair was plastered to his forehead. All round him the long scar smashed into the jungle was a bath of heat. He was clambering heavily among the creepers and broken trunks when a bird, a vision of red and yellow, flashed upwards with a witch-like cry; and this cry was echoed by another.”
Jason reached his hands out and started threading them through Tim’s hair.
When his hands started aching from reaching over so far he pulled Tim to his chest with minimal fight. He was already tired and with the cold medicine in his system, he moved like a ragdoll, barely able to hold his own head up.
“Psss, Tim you awake?” Jason whispered.
When Tim didn’t answer he decided him dead. Jason tried to free himself but Tim had wound too tightly around him, he would have to wake him up if he wanted to leave.
He went through the pros and cons of waking Tim up and decided it was too much work. Wiggling into a more comfortable position he started quietly reading again.
Every time Tim would whimper or stir Jason would start reading out loud again, and brush his fingers throw Tim’s hair until he quieted down again.