Chapter Text
Artemis is in love with Wally. A fact that had been true for some time.
The problem, however, arose, when Artemis started to notice Wally's poorly hidden love for his acrobatic best friend.
A love that was anything but platonic.
Artemis found herself not knowing what to do in this situation.
She's pretty sure that Wally at least still liked her. And he hasn't broken up with her yet. Though, she doesn't know if that was because he's too scared to talk to Dick about feelings.
So, she decides not to say anything. To pretend like she doesn't notice the way that Wally reacts around Dick, the way he talks about him, the dreams she knows he has.
She pretends to like her boyfriend is still fully devoted to her and not throwing glances at a certain blue-eyed boy when they hang out together.
There have, of course, been times that were harder than others.
Like when Wally came out as bi.
Artemis was proud of him, though she had known for some time, she knew that this was something that took Wally a lot of work to admit to himself.
But she couldn't help but feel that this was the first of many steps that would eventually lead Wally to Dick, and have Artemis left picking up the pieces of everything around her.
She honestly doesn't know why she doesn't just end the relationship. It was clear that it wasn't going to last, with Wally's heart somewhere else, even if he didn't know it.
But she didn't want to let go.
Realistically, the sooner they broke up, the easier it would be for her to get over Wally, and, the sooner Wally could be with who he truly wanted.
But maybe that was what Artemis didn't want. Maybe by staying with Wally, she could prolong the inevitable.
God, she sounded like a horrible person. And maybe she was. But good people do questionable things in order to protect their hearts.
And Artemis knew heartbreak well.
The longer that her heart could stay at least mostly intact, the better.
So she stayed silent.
"Hey babe," Wally said when he entered their apartment.
It had become a tradition for him and Dick to have lunch together, whether in Central, Keystone, Blüdhaven, or even Gotham, every other week.
"Hey."
Artemis tried to hide her frown as Wally walked right past her to the fridge. Wally hadn't given her a kiss at the door in months. It was one of the many reminders that their relationship wasn't going to be much of anything soon.
"How was your lunch? You were out for longer today."
Wally didn't even glance up.
"It was good. We mostly just talked gossip. Since we're no longer part of the team, I get all of the info about the team through these lunches."
Wally steps back, hands full of sandwich ingredients, and he closes the refrigerator with his hips, a small, almost frown resting on his face.
"Apparently, Conner has taken the new Robin under his wing. Dick is convinced that the new bird's got a crush but I'm not sure how it'll pan out after M'gann. Oh yeah, I know you still talk with some of the team, but did you hear? Conner officially broke up with her. I mean, I love her, she was a good teammate, but, I don't know how you forgive someone for trying to mess with your brain like that."
Artemis watches as Wally taps into the speedforce to make his sandwich before quickly putting the ingredients away.
"Plus, more personal to Dick, but now that Jason's done doing... whatever it is you want to call temporarily becoming a crime boss... he's going after Roy. Which was a fun conversation, not only because Roy's his ex but because of how overprotective he is."
As Artemis watched him, she tried to figure out what was off. Wally didn't seem to be enjoying the gossip run as much as he usually did.
Wally sighs, looking up at Artemis. "And finally, saved the best for last. I'm pretty sure Dick is trying to start something with Zatanna again. Not sure if that'll work but I kind of zoned out for that part, so I'm not entirely sure what's going on. But yeah, he's getting back into dating. I didn't even realize that he'd slowed down till he brought it up."
Ah, so that's what this was about. Artemis thought she'd have more time.
While this didn't necessarily mean Wally was going to leave her yet, maybe Dick dating around again would make Wally notice his feelings.
She still felt bad every time that she thought about it, but nothing changed.
When Artemis looked back at her boyfriend, the sandwich was gone, a pile of crumbs left on the counter.
"I'm gonna head out again. I feel like going for a run. Leftover energy and all that."
Wally gave her something that could maybe resemble a smile if he had tried harder.
"Okay," Artemis replied. "I love-" she let her words die on her lips upon realizing that Wally was already gone.
One week later and Artemis was sitting on the couch, curled up with a book and a mug of tea. (One of the relaxation methods that she had taken up to de-stress.)
Wally announced his entrance with the slam of the door.
"What's wrong, babe?" Artemis asks, already moving to be by his side in the kitchen.
"Nothing." Wally shrugs off the arm she tries to wrap around him. "I went to visit Dick. We were supposed to hang out and play video games and chill. But he was with Zatanna. They were hooking up on his balcony."
Artemis watched as he paced lightly in their kitchen.
She knew she shouldn't ask. It wouldn't help her plan. But she couldn't stop herself.
"Why are you so worked up over it? Dick hooks up with people all the time. He's probably not even dating her. And I thought he told you about it."
The thing about this question is, that there was an easy answer to give.
I'm upset because we were supposed to hang out. or I'm worked up because he forgot.
Wally could've said anything along those lines. But Artemis knew he wouldn't flat out lie.
So, when her boyfriend gave her a semi-guilty glance and replies with "I'm gonna go out for a run. I probably won't be back for dinner, so don't wait up," she knew that it was too late.
It was too late to hold on to the dream of having Wally forever.
Because if Wally didn't answer her question and he felt guilty about something, then he, at the very least, knew that he liked Dick.
The only thing stopping him now was Artemis.
And she had no idea how to plan her next move.