Chapter Text
Tim woke up to the incessant ringing of his cell phone. He scrunched up his face and tried to bury himself in his pillow. For a moment, the ringing stopped before it began all over again. Tim groaned and finally reached for his cell. He didn't bother trying to hide the grogginess in his voice, "Hello?"
"Hi, Tim? It's Bernard. Sorry to wake you so early but...well..." Bernard's nervous voice paused for a moment and Tim found himself suddenly alert.
"What's wrong, Bernard?"
Tim could hear Bernard's nervous gulp over the phone, "I guess you haven't read today's Gotham Gazette?"
"No what's it about?" Tim's stomach started to churn with confusion and worry. What could be in the Gazette that would upset Bernard like this?
Bernard took a deep breath, then started talking in a rush, "It's about us, Tim! On the front cover! There's a big picture of us kissing and a headline in giant bold writing that says 'EXCLUSIVE: IS THIS THE BIG SECRET TIM DRAKE-WAYNE HAS BEEN HIDING?' and then there's a whole article where Vicki Vale goes on and on about how she knew you had a secret, and even though she was wrong about you being Red Robin, she was totally right to be suspicious of you because clearly being in the closet is the same as being a vigilante and it's just so homophobic and horrible."
For a long moment, Tim felt numb as his brain tried to process the shock of Bernard's words. Nausea gripped his stomach as panic choked his throat. He hadn't told anyone in the family yet. He was in his room in Wayne manor, and he hadn't told the family yet, and oh God, oh God, Bruce always read the Gazette in the morning, and Alfred would be there, and oh GOD how was he going to face them? Was Dick home too? Duke? Did Jason read the Gazette? And Stephanie.
How would Stephanie react to finding out from a newspaper instead of him?
"Tim? Tim?" Distantly Tim realized he'd dropped his phone and Bernard was calling his name. With numb fingers he picked it back up.
"I haven't told my family yet, Bernard. I haven't..." and it was only when he heard his own voice, choked and wet, that he realized he was crying.
"I'm sorry, Tim, this is all my fault! I shouldn't've kissed you in public like that. I should've been more careful! It's just," Bernard's voice got softer, "It's just that I really, really wanted to kiss you."
Tim sniffled, but felt his lips curling up in a small smile, "I really wanted to kiss you too."
Bernard's voice suddenly sounded bolder, more confident, "We'll find a way to make this work, Tim, don't you worry! No matter what happens, I'll take care of you!"
"Thanks, Bernard. I..." Tim wiped his eyes, "it means a lot."
///
Bruce stared down at the picture on the front of The Gotham Gazette. There was Tim, by far his most introverted child, wrapped up in the arms of a blond boy Bruce didn't recognize. It's clear that neither of the boys had any idea the picture was being taken. That, more than anything else, sent Bruce's blood boiling.
He looked up at Alfred, who had handed him the paper in uncharacteristic silence, and saw stony anger in the older man's normally calm features. Bruce took a deep breath. It was rare indeed that he had to be the calm one for Alfred, instead of the other way around. But if anyone was more protective than Bruce of the Wayne children, it was Alfred.
"I hardly need to tell you that Ms. Vale has gone too far." Alfred seethed.
Bruce nodded, "Tim will be horrified when he finds out. Have you read the article or did you just see the picture and title?"
Alfred scowled, "I read the whole sordid thing. Poor Master Timothy. Vicki Vale is a bloody witch."
Before Bruce could respond, the phone rang. Alfred picked it up warily, but when he pressed it against his ear, his face relaxed a bit. "Hello, Master Richard... Yes, we saw the Gazette... No we haven't had a chance to speak with Timothy yet...You're on your way? Good. The poor lad is going to need his family."
Alfred hung up the phone and looked to Bruce, "Master Richard is on his way, however..."
Bruce sighed, "Tim knows we would've seen the paper by now." He stood up. "I'll go talk to him."
Alfred gave Bruce's shoulder a reassuring squeeze, and then Bruce headed upstairs to Tim's room.
One of the ongoing jokes in the family has always been Bruce's discomfort with talking about feelings. He was well aware of his lack of skill in that department, God only knew how many times Dick, Jason, Barbara and Stephanie had called him on it. Still, he had always secretly thought of Tim as "the easy to deal with emotionally" one. Mainly because, like Bruce himself, Tim seemed to prefer to avoid talking about his feelings. Now, Bruce was faced with the fact that he would not only have to talk with Tim about his feelings, but he would have to support him through a situation even Batman had never faced before.
How do you support your child when they've been forcibly outed to the world? How could he protect Tim from the gossip and rumours of a world that was so cruel to the LGBT community? This wasn't a problem that Batman could just punch away. This was a problem that needed words and honesty and love...and those were the types of things Bruce found so, so hard to express to his kids.
Thoughts still scrambled, Bruce found himself standing in front of Tim's door. He raised his hand and hesitantly knocked, "Tim are you awake?"
There was a long pause. So long that Bruce began to think that maybe Tim really was still asleep. But then the door opened and Bruce found himself looking down at the wide, frightened eyes and tear-stained face of his son. All doubts and worries flew from his mind as instinct took over. He wrapped Tim in his arms and pulled him into a hug. Despite the way Tim shook in his arms, despite the tears he could feel start to soak into his shirt, Bruce found the words he needed to say.
"It's alright, son. It's going to be alright."