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“Has anyone seen Dick?” Cass asked, craning her neck to look down the dining table. Bruce frowned and scanned the room.
“Now that you mention it, no,” he admitted.
“If he gets to slip away to go on patrol, so do I,” Jason groused.
“I do not believe he would be on patrol. Grayson is quite fond of these ‘family dinners’,” Damian said. Bruce hummed in agreement.
“He could’ve overslept,” Duke offered. “He told me he was hoping for a nap this afternoon. Maybe he’s still asleep. He looked exhausted.”
The eyes of Bruce’s children glinted maliciously, and in the time it took him to blink, they had all leapt from their seats and were pushing and shoving to race up to Dick’s room. Bruce shook his head fondly.
“Poor Dick,” he murmured unsympathetically, but the knot of worry in his stomach refused to loosen. The brigade of children flooded back down the stairs a few minutes later and skidded to a stop… without Dick.
“He’s not there,” Stephanie reported. She sounded nonchalant, but her hands twisted with her shirt nervously. “I—we looked all over the upstairs.”
Alarm surged inside of Bruce, but outwardly, he nodded calmly.
“Alright. Everyone turn on your coms. We’ll spread out and look for him.”
The group dispersed, save for Tim.
“Do you think—I don’t know, do you think someone got him?” Tim asked. Bruce’s stomach flopped.
“He’s a good fighter. I doubt it. He’s probably reading somewhere. I’ve found him in some strange places before.” He offered what he hoped was a reassuring smile. “We’ll find him.”
Tim nodded, and then he was off with the others, yelling for his brother. It would have been almost humorous to hear his name echoing through the house if the situation weren’t so dire; but Bruce had a suspicion about where he might be. He hurried up the stairs and almost slammed into Jason, who was thundering back down already.
“—already looked—”
“—he wouldn’t be there—”
“—looked upset earlier, I don’t—”
Snippets of conversations floated out of the rooms as people wove in and out, yelling and snapping and calling for Dick. Bruce continued until he reached the highest floor, and the furthest room back. When he peaked out of the window—it took some maneuvering to get the right angle—he was rewarded with the sight of his missing son. He breathed a sigh of relief.
“Found him,” he said into the com. A chorus of demands followed, and he winced at the overlapping voices.
“Alfred, keep them away,” Bruce requested, and cut off the protests with a: “he needs space right now. We need to respect that. I’ll assess the situation.”
“Sir,” Alfred said delicately, “remember that it is not a situation, but your son .”
Bruce looked out the window again. Dick looked young, sitting with his knees pulled up to his chest and tucked under his chin. He looked far less like the young man he’d grown to be a more like the little boy Bruce had taken in years ago. A strange lump tried to form in his throat, but he pushed it away.
“Yes, Alfred,” Bruce said, and hesitated before adding: “thank you.”
He pulled the com out of his ear and carefully opened the window.
“There you are,” Bruce said, not entirely sure what else to say. Dick didn’t say anything. One hand came up to wipe at his face. Bruce took the risk and climbed out of the window, settling himself next to Dick so that their shoulders were almost touching.
“We’ve been looking for you,” he said after a while of staring into the night. “We were all worried.”
“I didn’t mean to worry anyone,” Dick murmured hoarsely. “I just…” a heavy sigh left him, and their shoulders touched for a moment. “I couldn’t… I couldn’t pretend to be okay tonight.”
“You don’t have to.“
“I know.”
Bruce didn’t believe him, but he knew better than to push it. They sat in silence for a long while.
“Do you need anything?” Bruce asked. Dick shook his head slowly.
“Just… stay with me. Please.”
“I can do that,” Bruce said softly. He hesitated a moment before he wrapped an arm around the younger man’s shoulders. Dick readily leaned into him. After a minute or so, his shoulders began to hitch and shake with silent sobs. This time Bruce didn’t hesitate before he pulled him closer and tucked his head under his chin. Dick began to sob in earnest and his arms wrapped around Bruce’s ribs with an almost painful grip.
“I’ve got you,” Bruce murmured. He pressed a kiss to Dick’s hair. “I’m not going anywhere. I’ve got you.”