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“Okay, what are you doing?”
Kory glances over at Dick as she asks the question. She has been driving for the past two hours, after taking over for Dick, who drove the first four hours of the trip.
And for the past few moments, Dick, from his place in the passenger seat, has been looking over at her intensely, curiously. He’s not even trying to hide it. He’s leaning forward in his seat and has his head swiveled back to look at her.
He’s not looking at her face. No, he appears to be looking at her torso. He’s not looking at her tits. Kory knows what it looks like when someone’s looking at her boobs (and in particular, she knows what Dick looks like when he’s looking at her boobs). And this is not that.
He’s not checking her out. His gaze isn’t hungry or lustful or anything of the sort. No, his gaze is curious, inquisitive, and enthralled. And Kory can’t think of one reason for it. She doesn’t mind the attention; it’s just that it’s odd.
Which brings her to her question.
“I’m trying to read your shirt.” Dick says nonchalantly, as if he was talking about the weather. Kory didn’t know what answer she expected, but it wasn’t that. A surprised laugh makes it’s way up her throat and past her lips.
“You’re reading my shirt?” she asks incredulously.
“Mhmmm,” Dick hums, again, acting as if that’s a totally normal thing for someone, for him, to do.
Kory glances at him, and he is just happily reading her shirt. She shoots him a weird look that asks for an explanation, a look which he catches.
“Your shirt has words and graphics on it,” Dick points out, as if she didn’t already know that. Kory looks at him like he’s an idiot.
“I’m aware.”
Dick just shrugs, no trace of sheepishness or embarrassment in him.
“Wow, you’re really gonna end up regretting this 44-hour trip if you’re already this bored at only the 6th hour,” Kory remarks.
That draws Dick’s gaze away from her top and to her.
“I’m not bored,” Dick replies, with a lopsided, carefree smile.
“So you say, and yet you’re spending your time... trying to read my shirt.”
“It’s an entertaining shirt.”
“Well, so glad my clothing is entertaining you.”
“Always does,” Dick mutters, as he goes back to examining her shirt. Kory shakes her head, but can’t hide her smile. She’s forgotten how ridiculous Dick can be sometimes. She feels an affectionate warmth spread through her chest.
“Able to make anything out?” she asks, a big smile on her face.
Dick lifts his eyes from her shirt to meet hers. “You don’t know what’s on it?”
“Vaguely,” Kory says, taking one hand off the wheel to make a dismissive gesture. “I didn’t do a close read of it like you clearly want to. I just liked the way it looked.”
Kory shrugs her shoulders slightly. She does really like this top. A lot. But she’s clearly not as deeply into it, or as curious about it, as Dick is.
Dick hums in response as his gaze moves back to her top.
“Risk...something something. Worth? This part isn’t in English. Predictions something been coming...” Dick says as he continues to scan her shirt. “That’s all I can really make out.”
Dick lifts his head to look at her.
“Think I need a closer, in-depth look,” Dick says.
Kory’s gaze snaps to him in surprise. He has a playful look and a twinkle in his eye. And Kory can’t help but smile back at him. She’s about to offer a witty, perhaps flirty, remark in return, when Dick continues speaking.
“And you know, that uhh... I don’t know what it’s called,” Dick points to the purple bustier top she has over it.
“Bustier top,” Kory supplies.
“Yes, your bustier top is obstructing it, sooo...” Dick trails off.
“Are you asking me to take it off?” Kory asks bluntly.
Dick’s eyes widen comically; he’s practically bug-eyed. X’hal, Kory really wants to take a picture; but she’s driving, unfortunately.
“No! No,” he exclaims frantically. Kory can’t help but smirk at how flustered he is. “I was-i was just you know explaining why I couldn’t really get a uh comprehensive-”
Kory starts laughing.
Dick realizes she was just playing with him, and he abruptly shuts up.
A few moments of silence.
“You can be cruel, you know that?” he tells her.
He says that, yet he looks quite happy. Kory doesn’t offer him a response. Instead, she focuses completely on her driving, and trying to quash the fluttering in her stomach.
She can feel Dick’s eyes on her as she drives.
She doesn’t mind it. She would never admit this to anyone, but she actually quite likes it. And she kind of missed it while they were in Gotham. And missed this version of him too. The one who could be light and carefree, and sometimes even ridiculous and dorky.
“Where’d you get it?” Dick asks after a few minutes.
“The shirt?”
Dick nods. And Kory raises her eyebrow at him. She can’t believe he’s still on this, still thinking about it. “Why? You want to get one for yourself?” Kory ask dryly.
Dick huffs a smile. “No, was just curious. And you know, trying to make conversation.”
“I forgot how bad you are at making conversation when you don’t have a mission to talk about.”
“That’s not true,” Dick says affronted.
Kory hums skeptically. “You’ve resorted to asking me where I got my shirt. Not exactly riveting, engaging stuff.”
“It’s not a resort. I am generally curious and interested about it,” Dick protests. Kory looks at him, and she can tell he’s telling the truth. Weird. So weird. “Plus, you never know. Could be handy information when your birthday and Christmas rolls around.”
Well, all that actually is really sweet. But Kory’s not about to tell Dick that. “Oh, I think it would be best if you avoid ever gifting me clothes.”
“Why do you say that?’
Kory looks Dick up and down, eyeing his navy polo short and kakis critically. “I mean, fashion isn’t really your thing.”
Dick’s jaw drops in offense. “Ok, I mean, yes. I don’t care too much about fashion. Not for myself. But I could still buy you some great, fashionable clothes.”
Kory doesn’t look convinced.
“I could! And I will! This Christmas, I’m gonna go to all the stores, and buy you the kind of clothes that you like.”
“Which if different from what you like?”
There’s an accusatory edge in her voice.
“No-no,” Dick stammers as tries to quickly correct the assumption. “I like your clothes! I like them a lot. I just...I wasn’t saying that I wouldn’t like what i’d pick out for you. I was just saying, you know, that if I were to buy you clothes, I wouldn’t just pick out stuff that was like the female version of my style. I would pick out stuff that was in your style, a style that I like very much, even if it’s not what I would go for for myself. But I like it - no, love it on you. I really do like -”
Ok, he’s suffered enough. Although, it is quite cute seeing him nervously ramble. She doesn’t think she’s ever seen him do that before; it’s so un-Dick like, which is what makes the fact that he’s doing it now so endearing.
But time to put him out of his misery.
“Relax, Grayson. I’m just giving you shit,” she tells him in a cool, breezy tone.
Dick’s mouth freezes mid-word for a second, before he shuts it. And then he points a finger at her.
“I would like to amend my statement from earlier,” he tells her. “You can be very cruel.”
Kory starts laughing, her head falling forward by the force of it, causing her hair to curtain around her face (good thing they’re at a stop light). Dick starts laughing too. Kory actually has to force herself to stop to that she can focus on the road once the light turns green. It’s not even that funny. But she had missed this. Missed goofing off and having fun. Missed being happy.
After he stops laughing, Dick turns to look at her. “Seriously though, you realize that now I will have to buy you clothes for Christmas and your birthday. A lot of clothes. I have something to prove now.”
"I look forward to seeing if you’re up to the task.”
They drive in contented silence for a few minutes.
“I wasn't just trying to be polite or appease you," Dick says softly, quietly. "I do love the way you dress.
For some reason, it sounds like a confession.
Dick finishes drying his hair with a towel. And then slips into a pair of sweatpants. He looks around his room in the RV. It’s small and sparse. A twin bed. A nightstand with a lamp. A small closet. A small private bathroom attached to it.
It’s not a lot. But hey, at least he got his own private room in the RV. The only other person to get that is Kory. Hers is similar to his room, but slightly bigger. And has a TV. He was happy to let her have it. He knows she wasn’t exactly thrilled with being stuck in an RV for 44 hours, so it’s the least he can do. And he wants her to enjoy this time.
He is about to get into bed when there is a knock at his door. He walks over and opens the door. As soon as he does, he feels something light and soft hit his chest. He brings his hands up to grab it.
It’s Kory’s shirt. The one she was wearing today.
“Here,” she says. “Some bedtime reading.”
Dick starts to smile. She thinks she's being cute. And she's not wrong.
Dick looks up from the shirt on his hands to look at Kory. And...then he mouth goes dry. She’s wearing a magenta silk pajama set. A camisole that hangs low on her chest, giving him an eyeful of cleavage. And perhaps the shortest shorts Dick has ever seen.
Whatever witty retort he was going to say completely disappears from his mind.
“Uh...thanks,” he says as he stares.
“I expect a full book report during tomorrow’s drive,” she orders him, giving him a stern yet playful smile. And with that she turns on her heels and walks away towards her bedroom door, snickering as she does so, clearly very amused by her own joke.
After staring in silence for a few moments, Dick eventually closes his door, and makes his way to his temporary bed, Kory’s shirt in hand. He slides under the covers and settles in.
And then he does what she said. He does what he was trying to earlier today. He reads her shirt. He even google translates the parts that aren’t in English, just to be thorough. He wasn’t lying earlier; he was, and still is, very intrigued by this shirt. Plus, Kory asked for a full report, and he’s not about to disappoint her.
Once he’s done, he leans over and turns off the light, just about ready to fall asleep. And he stares down at her shirt in the darkness for a second.
And then he lifts the shirt up to his nose and inhales.
It smells of honey and raspberry and jasmine.
It smells of Kory.
Dick takes another whiff, her smell filling his nostrils. It’s both soothing and arousing.
Completely addictive.
And it’s not weird or creepy, okay? It’s not like it’s her underwear or anything. It’s a shirt, a shirt that she gave to him.
And as Dick situates himself to go to sleep, he just can’t help himself; he places the shirt on top of his pillow, right under his head. And he can't help but nuzzle his face into it as he tries to fall asleep.
It’s not pathetic. It’s not.
It’s not.
It just smells nice. And nice smells are supposed to be soothing. And they can even help people fall asleep. That’s all this is. Aromatherapy. And Kory just happens to have a particularly nice scent. That’s all this is. That’s what Dick tells himself as he inhales one last time, before feeling his eyes start to close, a sweet-smelling sleep overtaking him.