Chapter Text
Dick isn't sure what to do, it was a normal patrol, taking down goons, saving pretty girls and racing through Gotham at breakneck speeds. It was his fault for leaving his bike in crime alley, but in his defence, he never would've guessed someone would have the balls to steal from Nightwing.
He checks the bike's tracker, there's multiple on his bike at all times and absolutely no one could find them all, but as he looks at his screen the creeping sly grin fall from his face, his bike has fallen off the map completely, he tries to ping it, but it comes back negative, somebody actually got them all? How? Those were placed by batman, the most paranoid man on earth and in space!
Dick grapples to the top of a worn down building trying to scan for any electric blue objects in the surrounding area, he's sure the person couldn't have gone far, but everything is coming to a dead end, there's no electric blue anywhere in the grimy streets of crime alley.
Dick sees a few working girls laughing and giggling as they call cars to come closer, dick parkours over to the rooftop above them, shouting down "hey girls, have you have seen a bike with this symbol on it?" dick points to his chest showing the bright blue bird, all the girls shake their heads, a few no's and sorries rain from the crowd as dick sighs giving the girls a bright smile and thanks them before jumping away to look for more clues.
He walks the streets confused, who can make an entire motorbike disappear? Why would a villain want his bike? It had to be a petty thief, but a small time thief in Gotham is a big time thief anywhere else. The sun is starting to rise, and his entire body is begging for a break, he taps his earpiece "Barbara? I need some help"
"what did you do this time?" she sounds just as fatigued as Dick feels
"rude, I've actually been having a productive night but…" Dick pretends to be offended, unsure of how to break the unfortunate news
"but?" She questions
"mybikegotstolen" he blurts out, trying his best to keep this embarrassment as brief as possible
Dick can hear her roaring laughter through the comms, "how? Have you checked the trackers? Looked around the surrounding area, you really need to stop leaving things at your ass" Barbara lets out a few more laughs before returning to her professional demeanour.
"Hey! My ass is one of my best assets, if I'm going to leave it anywhere it should be there!" he jokes, he hasn't heard Barbara laugh in a while, maybe something good did come out of this.
Barbara makes a small scoff and starts typing, "all trackers are turned off, all electronics are turned off, and you've somehow not found them yet, they're pretty good, I'll set up an alert for if it goes online or is seen around town"
"thanks, I appreciate it" he says softly
"it's my job, get some rest dick, it couldn't have gone far" her voice is warm, dick doesn't remember the last time he heard her voice like that, they really need to hang out again.
"I will, Barbara, please don't tell the others about this"
Barbara laughs evilly as she disconnects the call, dick knows everyone is going to know about this before morning, he runs his hand through his hair and laughs flatly Gotham's never dull.
The alarm blares as dick moans into his pillow, he barely got an hour's sleep, but he refuses to spend the day in bed and ruin his already ruined sleep schedule. There's a new coffee shop that just opened he'll get some coffee and go for a nice walk, yeah, make the best of a bad situation, dicks always been good at that.
The hardest part was leaving his warm bed and pulling on his clothes, once he was outside in the frosty streets of Gotham he feels wide awake. the bustling streets greeting him as he walks thought the crowd, people rushing to work, kids with their parents and lovers holding hands… maybe dick should call up somebody to hang out, when was the last time he saw the titans? A few months ago? They were all in desperate need of a catch-up.
The coffee shop is pretty fancy for this side of town, its arched windows and wooden door give it a rustic but homely feel, the interior is just as impressive, soft cushion chairs around vintage wooden tables lined in a row the other side being filled with free books, the scent of coffee brewing makes his mouth water, its exactly what he needs.
he walks out into the cold streets, coffee in hand, he can't help but smile up at the clear sky, when was the last time he'd given himself this much grace? It feels nice to not be Nightwing for a while, maybe life was looking up for him.
Just then he walks straight into another man holding mountains of boxes, they fly everywhere and smash onto the sidewalk spilling their contents, dicks coffee falls unceremoniously to the floor thankfully not burning him, but he still mourns the loss of the fancy coffee he didnt get to drink.
"Watch where you're going asshole!" the man shouts as he gets onto his hands and knees starting to pick up the hundreds of small bolts littering the sidewalk, people step over him as he quickly collects them, dick getting down to the ground to help.
"Im sorry, i was too busy daydreaming" he smiles that patented dickie Grayson smile but the other man just scoffs
"yeah, i can tell" he says putting the last few bolts in the box, his brows are knit as he looks at the multiple boxes on the street some unopened but obviously containing expensive heavy-duty items. The man sighs before getting up and trying to stack them onto one arm.
"I can help with that, if you want" Dick says trying to rectify the situation.
The man scowls then groans "Yeah, thanks, they're heavy though" he says taking a few of the boxes off and placing them in dicks hands
"Don't worry, I can handle it! I work out pretty regularly, it's amazing you can carry all this stuff by yourself" Dick beams at the man, but his expression doesn't change.
They start to walk dick looking at the other man his sleeveless muscle tee is covered in grease and his leather jacket sticking to his muscular frame, dick can't help but be a little jealous of the other man's height and structure he could be a model if he cleaned up.
" My job is hard labor so I've gained some muscle from it, I'm Jason by the way, sorry for being a asshole, I'm just really stressed" Jason says shuffling the boxes so he can stick out his hand, dick doing the same and lightly shaking jasons hand.
"No problem, where do you work? I have a night job as security and man, is it tough sometimes" Dick says as the begins to walk into crime alley, Jason's boots crushing the gravel and muck making him scowl and Dick can't help but enjoy the man's expressions.
"I work as a mechanic, I can only imagine the crazies you must see, but I live here so maybe there's some overlap" they both chuckle as Jason dips down into a side street, then another, and another dick will one hundred percent be lost trying to find his way back out but Jason seems very confident about where he's going, they soon end up at an old yard, a small two-story shop in the middle of the abandoned space.
"This is my place, come inside and ill replace that coffee you spilled." the place is falling apart on the outside the AUTO sign hanging on by a thread and as Jason lifts the garage door the whole building seems to shake, dick is hesitant, but he can't just leave, especially when he's being offered free coffee.
As they walk in dick is intrigued by the cluttered space, it's small but mighty with tools littered everywhere, an antique motorbike covered with rust sits on a bike lift surrounded by power tools as other vehicles (presumably bikes) stay hidden under black tarp, he then spots a vintage cruiser on the side of some long metal stairs it looks beat up but still in amazing condition otherwise.
"That's my bike" Jason points to the vintage cruiser, "found it at the scrapyard and saved it before it got smelted, she's a real beauty isn't she?" Jason gives Dick his coffee as he moves away some of the clutter with his feet.
"She is that, you're a lover of old school bikes?" Jason grins and dick can feel his own mouth twitch, it's not everyday you meet someone with a niche interest, Dick and Tim have already exhausted every conversation about them, finding somebody new means that dick can talk about it all over again!
"Old school, new school, It's all the same shit. I like motorbikes, there's just something so exhilarating about driving through traffic, going off-road and feeling the wind as you exhilarate its… magical" Jasons eyes seem to gleam with a childish wonder and Dick feels a kinship, it's the same way dick talks about crime fighting "crap, sorry I'm waxing poetic about stupid shit"
"No, no I've got a bike too, but it kinda got stolen last night" dick looks down feeling embarrassed about his predicament but Jason looks at him with pity and pats him on the back.
"Shit man, if you want I can get one of my old bikes up and running for you, probably dost have all the fancy gadgets of a newer bike, but it can go and stop" Jason's voice is kind, the roughness lessened and replaced with a soft tone that makes dick blush, he couldn't do that to him, it looks like this place barely makes enough money as is, it's not fair to take something from someone who is obviously struggling.
"Thanks for the offer but i think it'll come back to me soon, do you live here?" Dick motions to the stairs metal stairs that lead up to a second floor, he can see a small kitchenette at the top of the stairs, It's already quite cold in here he can't imagine staying here all night the thought alone makes him shiver.
"Yeah since i was a kid, its not much but its home" Jason shrugs as he pulls out a cigarette and lights it
what about you? Still living with your parents?" the question catches dick off guard, parents? How old does Jason think he is?
"Oh no I've not lived with my dad in years, we had a bit of a falling out and i left but were better now"
Jason nods his head "so you're in college or just working security?" he asks curiously, the cigarette smoke creating a barrier between them dick only being able to see Jasons piercing green eyes.
"Oh no, i haven't been in college for a while, i dont think they let old men run around campus" he laughs but Jason quirks his head, unsure of what to make of him.
"Old man, come on what are you 20?" Jason says putting the cigarette back to his mouth and inhaling
"no, I'm almost 27"
"No fucking way!" Jason chokes, his voice booming through the old building as dick tries to hold back his laughter at Jason's disbelief and subsequent coughing fit, dick gives Jason a few hard taps on the back, Jason holding onto Dicks arm as he catches his breath, both men finally breaking the barrier of awkwardness.
Convorcation with Jason is easy, Jason is younger than dick by a few years but still they talk like old friends as dick finishes his coffee he can feel his smile lines setting in, "thanks for this, I need to be getting back home, but maybe we could hang out another day?"
"Sure, I'd like that" Jason grins and goes over to his bench picking up a notepad and quickly scribbling down his number, giving it to dick, both men smile and dick can't help but wonder if Jason swung that way… what?! He was a handsome guy, rough around the edges but still hot.
Nightwing is still looking for his bike, It's turned from slightly irritating to extremely annoying, who knew running everywhere would be such a hassle? Two successful robberies, that would've been stopped if he had his bike and worse, he's had batman in his ear all night wondering what's taking him so long, but Dick refuses to tell him the truth.
He walks the streets staring at the gravel, maybe it did disappear into thin air? Weirder things have happened in Gotham, but just as he's starting to believe that line of thought, he hears some small voices excitedly talking
"no! It really was it! It had the symbol and everything!"
"No way, who steals night wings bike?! It has to be fake|" Dicks mind reels, somebody did take it and somehow these little kids know who did it before him, maybe it was finally time to hang up the suit? He walks into the alley seeing 2 small children, a boy and girl, they're street kids and Dick can't help but feel his heart hurt for them, they're tiny and covered in dirt.
They both look up at him shocked, their jaws opening as their eyes get wide, "hey kiddos, I've been looking for my bike, and I was hoping you could help me find it?" the kids slowly nod their heads in unison, the little girl getting up and pointing further into the alley.
"The garage, the man inside lets us sometimes play, be nice to him." Dick lets out a soft smile and ruffles the girl's hair, giving her a small thank you and instructing her and her friend to stay there until Robin can arrive and bring them back to the Martha foundation, he also gives them a few dollar bills in case they choose to run away instead.
Dick starts to walk further into the backstreet his Escrima Sticks at the ready, he walks for what feels like forever, the passageway feels oddly familiar, he stumbles upon his destination and groans, of course the guy he has the hots for stole his bike, nothing can be easy for Him.
He grapples up to the top of the shaky building hearing power tools inside, Dick wonders if his bike is already stripped of all its parts Or if Jason is planning to keep it whole? Dick decides to jump through the second story window into Jason's humble abode, the sound of broken glass overpowering the loud tools.
Jason has a nice set-up, It's nothing much but It's still clean and neat… except for the broken glass spilled everywher.
"What the hell" he can hear the sound of footsteps running up the stairs, Dick looks down from on high to see Jason halfway up the stairs, he glares at Dick then throws up his arms "Really? Y'know, there's a door right there?! God, you heroes are all the same, I thought you were supposed to protect citizens, not give them more work!"
Jason sighs and starts walking down the stairs, "I'm guessing you want your bike back?" he says nonchalantly, and Dick can't help but be confused he was ready for a fight or an interrogation but maybe this is for the best, Dick walks down the stairs following Jason over to the bike lift where his beautiful motorbike it looks shinier than before.
Jason goes over to the control panel slowly lowering the bike to the ground "i wasn't planning on keeping it for this long but your tech is so high quality it took me a few hours just to unlock it without being detected, I'll be sad to see this beauty go" he places a hand on the bike looking at it sadly.
"you disabled the tech?" Dick is genuinely impressed, he thought Jason was just a simple thief who had multiple people working for him but nope, this was a one man operation.
"Yeah, how else was I supposed to keep it hidden?" Jason starts tapping on the small display on the bike's dashboard it makes a small boot up sound then he pushes it over to Dick waiting hands, Dick grabs onto his precious bike as soon as it comes close enough, marvelling at its sparkle.
"Thank you for cleaning it up, i might give you some business, if you stay out of trouble" Dick throws his leg over the plush leather seat, the bike revs up and Dick can't help but feel excited at the bikes improved visuals, batman liked his vehicle matt but Dick always prefers a shiny finish and Jason brought out the best in his bike.
"You can give me business anytime pretty boy, but sadly trouble likes me too much" Jason says leaning against his garage door, Dick grins as he drives off.