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Chapter Text

Robin stood over the madman with kryptonite in his hands, “Stay away from my friend.” His staff came down over the man’s head, easily concussing him and putting an end to the fight. Quickly, Robin scooped the kryptonite up out of the rubble at his feet and into a lead box in Impulse’s hands. Superboy laid propped up under Wonder Girl’s arm a few yards away from the commotion.

“Is everyone alright?” Robin turned to the rest of the group.

Wonder Girl gave a thumbs up under Superboy’s arm and Impulse nodded so fast it blurred.

“Alright, let’s get SB out of here. Impulse, can you do a quick scan of the area for anyone injured?” Robin rushed to help Superboy up and towards their extraction point. “Kon, how are you doing?” His voice quiet enough that no one else would hear, not even Cassie on Kon’s other side.

“I’ll live.” Kon mumbled back, turning to face his teammate as he spoke.

Two deep cuts framed the sides of Superboy’s face, one directly below his eye and the other high in his hairline. He limped in a way that would indicate something truly awful for an ordinary human, amputation at best. Tim shook his head and tried very hard not to think about that in tandem with the kryptonite. These people had figured out just about every weakness Kryptonians had and used them liberally. Wondergirl and Robin hoisted Superboy up and into the hull of the carrier picking them up, waving in the medical crew waiting for them.

Superboy swallowed and cleared his throat, using the last of his energy to turn fully towards Robin. “Friend, huh?”

A med crew ran out and threw down a cot, getting the straps open. Robin and Wondergirl brushed the crew to the side in order to get Superboy into the restraints themselves.

Robin huffed. “What would you rather I call you?”

“How about boyfriend.” Superboy winked before letting his head loll back on the cot.

Superboy winced as Wondergirl finished strapping him into the restraints. “Stay still, they’ll help keep you stable until we can get you to a doctor that knows how to help more.” Her voice wavered only slightly and Robin put a hand on her back as Superboy was rushed off to the med bay.

Impulse appeared at the bay doors at that moment, prompting the team on the carrier to begin taking off. Impulse and Wondergirl got themselves strapped into the seats on side of the cargo area. Superheroes weren’t allowed in the main cabin of the carrier unless absolutely necessary, a new government protocol. Robin stood in the center of the bay, still staring after where him and Wondergirl were pried away from Superboy. Wondergirl nodded to Impulse with wide eyes, nudging him with her elbow. Impulse rolled his eyes but clipped out of his restraints in a quick snap and was pulling Robin into the seat next to Wondergirl.

“Are you okay, Rob?” Wondergirl asked lightly, barely heard over the noise of the engines.

Robin shook out of his trance and refocused on himself, looking down to check for injuries. Wondergirl grabbed the hands prying at his shin guards to stop it. “I meant like-” She clicked her tongue, looking away for the words and dropping his hand. “Are you going to be okay about SB?”

Robin gave one short nod and didn’t meet her eyes. “Have you ever seen him that hurt before, Cassie?”

Wondergirl’s brows knitted together as she looked over her friend. It wasn’t like Robin to use civilian names in costume. Something was really wrong. She flattened out her costume and sighed. “No. But he’ll be alright, Tim. He always is.”

The sound of his civilian name made Robin sit straighter, clearing his throat and nodding repeatedly. “Yeah, you-you’re right.” He chewed on his bottom lip.

“Okay, Rob, something’s going on.” Impulse popped his head out from next to Cassie. “You’d never admit that Cassie’s right about anything.”

“Hey- I respect all of my teammates and their input.” Robin put his hands up in mock surrender. “I just feel like Kon has been flirting a bit too much. What if those were his last words? I know it’s stupid, but he’s been pushing himself more and more in fights lately and I-”

“Ew.” Impulse leaned his head back on his seat and plugged his ears, as he usually did when Tim or Kon or Cassie would say anything that he thought was too gooey sweet in that crush type of way.

Robin continued, “I don’t think he understands what flirting is, really. Or that people could take it a certain sorta way. That I…” He rubbed the back of his head and sighed.

Cassie turned her entire body towards him, loosening her seatbelt to do so. “Tim, you don’t like Connor, do you?”

“What if he dies, Cassie? We don’t know these people, these doctors, they could be anyone. I’ve only got B to ask about someone who can help with Kryptonite poisoning, I didn’t prepare for this.” Tim shook his head. “We’re fighting all of these things we don’t understand all of the time and I’m trying so hard to make sure you all are safe, but I can’t predict everything. And he’s so reckless. So unbelievably reckless.”

Cassie narrowed her eyes. “That is a legitimate concern, but do you like Connor?”

“Yes, obviously, yes, Cassie.” Tim worried his lip again. “But I hate him right now. And a lot of the time, actually. For doing stupid shit like this.”

“How long?” Cassie crossed her arms, now sitting crosslegged and completely facing Tim.

Tim crossed his arms back. “A year..two maybe. Since we met, I don’t know, does it matter?”

“Tim.” Cassie put a hand on Tim’s shoulder, eyes soft. “He’s going to be okay and you’re going to have a lengthy conversation with him when he’s lucid enough to do more than stupidly flirt with you.”

“That might be never.” Tim scoffed, and Cassie was 60% certain that he was rolling his eyes under the mask.

She smiled back. “But only because he’s insufferable, not because he won’t pull through this.”

The rest of the ride back to their base was spent in the silence of the plane’s engines rattling. They were dropped off without fanfare, with one of the nurses onboard assuring them that Superboy looked to be in stable condition. Wondergirl thanked them as Robin and Impulse got Superboy settled into the make-shift medbay. It took a couple of hours for everyone to calm down enough to order in pizza. Superboy was still out cold and Robin had informed Batman about what was going on. It would take a couple of hours to get hold of anyone worthwhile, but Batman himself was no stranger to the dangers of Kryptonite, and he seemed pretty nonplussed about the whole situation. They were on the couch in the main room, which was the most un-cavelike of the whole place and therefore where they put the TV.

“Cassie, I have an idea and I need you to go along with it.” Tim sat crosslegged on the floor in front of the couch, where Bart had fallen asleep.

Cassie rolled her eyes. “Context first, agreement second.”

“Fine.” Tim checked the progress of the pizza on his phone, still about twenty minutes away. “Connor needs to understand that he can’t flirt with everyone all of the time.”

Cassie cocked an eyebrow. “You want him to only flirt with you?”

“No. Yes. I don’t know.” Tim threw his hands up. “Doesn’t matter, what matters is that he doesn’t seem to conceptualize how his actions affect others. What if there were a way to make Connor look at his relationships with everyone around him and recontextualize them in the context of a romantic relationship?”

“What?” Cassie slipped off of the couch and onto the floor next to Tim. “Before we dated I just asked if he liked me too. You know that’s an option, right?”

“I don’t want to ask him out, I want him to make him realize that he shouldn’t be acting like this.”

“If I didn’t know any better, I’d assume that you really just want to change the parts of him that you like so that you can get over him.” Cassie shook her head and drew her knees up to her chin. “But actually, I don’t know any better and that sounds exactly like what you’re doing, Tim.”

“No, no, you’re making this about me and it’s not.” Tim retorted, copying her movement and resting his chin on his knees. “It’s about helping Connor so that he isn’t constantly leading people on.”

“Right.” Cassie pursed her lips. “I believe that entirely, but if it were about changing him to help you get over him, I’d say that it’s a bad idea and won’t work. And also you should let me help you so that you don’t completely ruin your relationship.”

“You can’t.” Tim sighed. “But I need you to tell him that you’ve been teaching me cursive.”

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Kon woke up alone in the skylight room. He’d added one so he didn’t have to constantly be running outside to recharge. It’d become their medbay as a result, being one of the only places in the entire cave where he could heal. It took a couple of minutes for his eyes to acclimate back to the light of the cave. He pressed the alert button on the pager left by his bedside. Immediately, Bart was at the foot of his bed blinking bleary-eyed.

“You’re awake!” Bart smiled lopsidedly and zipped to Kon’s side.

Kon snorted as Bart wrapped his arms around him in a tight hug. “I’d never leave you without backup, buddy.”

“He’s alive!” Cassie wailed, miming a faint as she approached Kon’s bed.

“Ha ha, very funny.” Kon rolled his eyes, he shifted slightly to look around her to see if Tim was trailing behind. “How long do I have to stay in these restraints?”

“Not restraints, just an IV.” Tim poked his head around the corner and leaned on the doorframe, which had he been more cognizant, Kon might call a cave-frame. “Just another two hours of sunlight and B’s expert says you should be fine.”

“B as in Batman?”

“Yup.” Tim popped the P.

“You- wow that must’ve been a nasty spill I took.” Kon shrugged. “Felt like falling into a volcano.”

“You almost did.” Tim deadpanned, pursing his lips. “The guy had kryptonite, Kon. You could have died.”

“Could have. Didn’t though.” Kon shrugged, sharing a nonplussed look with Bart.

Tim sighed and left the room. His footsteps stretched into an uncomfortable silence as they watched him go. Kon swallowed thickly.

Cassie swallowed and shook her head. “He cares about you Kon, we all do, and watching you get taken out on a stretcher wasn’t fun.”

Bart nodded his head in agreement.

“But I-”

“No ifs, ands, or buts around it. If it were one of us, you would have freaked.” Cassie narrowed her eyes at him but still put a comforting hand on his shoulder. “Let us be a little bit worried about you sometimes too, okay?”

“Okay, I get it. Thanks for…thanks for getting me out of there.” Kon sighed deeply, looking between the two of them as he spoke.

“Anytime…sport.” Cassie gave Kon’s shoulder a faux punch. “Now rest up, we’ll be in the main-cave salivating over the last three slices of pizza Timmy says we have to ‘save’ for you.”

“What kind of pizza?” Kon tilted his head, eyebrow cocked.

Cassie snorted. “One cheese and two of that stupid kind you like so much. What is it again?”

“Pineapple and black olives!” Bart supplied.

“Right, yeah that.” Cassie pointed and nodded, already starting out of the room.

“You really shouldn’t do that again.” Bart scratched the back of his neck, eyes trained on Cassie’s footsteps. “You really got ‘em both worried. ‘Specially Robbie.”

“You weren’t worried?” Kon huffed. “I feel like that should offend me.”

Bart leaned back to recline against the foot of Kon’s bed, hands behind his head. “I knew you’d pull through. You always do.”

Kon laughed softly, shaking his head. “Your confidence in your great leader will be rewarded handsomely, my friend.”

This is where Kon would normally reach out to muss up Bart’s hair or snap his goggle strap. He didn’t have the strength for either though and so he watched Bart became a blur of red hair. The med bay that they’d set up didn’t exactly have Kon in mind and the cot was both too small and too soft for him to sleep comfortably. He’d have to just sit in silence and stare up at the skylight for two hours or until Tim realized that none of them had really good self-discipline when it came to pizza and brought him his promised slices. Either way, some good reflection time. He honestly couldn’t remember most of the mission. There were bits and pieces here and there- he could remember Cassie’s arms around his shoulders and suddenly being a whole lot closer to the ground, Tim knocking some dude out with a force he usually reserved for training room dummies, and Bart slapping his face at some point. Nothing about their plan or what was supposed to happen, or even how he’d gotten knocked out. He closed his eyes against the late afternoon sun, letting it warm him in the cold ass cave he called home half of the time. Something was off- the skylight wasn’t letting in the usual amount of sun, something was blocking a portion of it. Kon narrowed his eyes, a piece of paper, folded and slipped into one of the corners. He didn’t feel like he could fly quite yet, nor would anyone let him live it down if they found out that he had, so this would have to wait. Someone had to have left the paper there, it wasn’t something that could happen accidentally. The cave was desolate and gross sometimes, but not in the way that a paper that small and folded up could be lodged up there by the occasional passing breeze. Well, that would have to wait until later then.

Chapter Text

Two weeks ago Kon had noticed the paper in the skylight. An hour ago, Kon remembered it was still there. He’d been pacing around the empty main room since he got it down, trying to figure out what the hell it meant. 

Superboy,

You have spent too much time flirting and not enough time watching your back. If this doesn’t change, you’ll keep getting more letters until you figure out who is leaving them. One rule: you have to be absolutely certain before you ask someone. If you don’t provide evidence, the letters will only get more cryptic.   

-A Friend

The only clue he had to work with here, was the handwriting. Immediately, he recognized the way that Cassie looped her O’s with a double loop through the top. Other than that, the letter didn’t sound like anyone he knew. Sure, it was the type of weird shit that Rob would pull, but it didn’t sound like him. Tim wouldn’t use that type of slightly threatening language. Bart was just off the table here, he worshipped the ground that Kon walked on- in no world would he leave a letter like that. Obviously, he had to tell Cassie immediately. 

“No, no, and no.” Cassie moved around her room at her mom’s house, reorganizing some old clothes. “I am not helping you with whatever this is. I don’t want to know.”

“I haven’t even-” Kon cut himself off, noticing one of his old shirts in with Cassie’s stuff in the closet. “Let me explain what’s going on before you turn me down.”

Cassie scoffed. “Turn you down? I already did that.” She grabbed a stack of folded shirts into a black trash bag. “Besides, I know enough to know that you tracking me to my mom’s house of all places means that you think you have some earth shattering conundrum that’s just going to turn out to be another social issue I don’t want to be a part of.”

“I agree you won’t want to be a part of this, but-” He flattened himself out on her bed, staring up at the unicorn charms on the ceiling fan. “-you’ll wanna know about it, I can guarantee that. All I’m asking is for a second opinion.”

“Okay.” Cassie crossed her arms, standing over Kon. “Go ahead.”

“I got a letter. No, scratch that, I found a letter addressed to me saying that I flirt too much and I need to watch my back. It sounded like a threat but it…there wasn’t an actual threat attached? It was just like a warning- why are you laughing?”

Cassie was having trouble containing her laughter. Of course this is what Tim had decided to do to tell Kon that he liked him, or to not to him, or whatever the hell he was doing. 

She managed to school her expression into something more normal.  “And why are you coming to me about this, Connor?”

“Because whoever wrote it looped their cursive in the way that you do.” 

Cassie pinched the bridge of her nose and sat next to Kon on her bed. “Connor, I wouldn’t…I wouldn’t leave you some cryptic letter to tell you not to flirt with other people. I don’t care if you flirt with other people because we’re not dating anymore, you can do what you want.”

Kon narrowed his eyes. “So you didn’t write the letter?”

“No, stupid, I didn’t.” She fell back against the bed with him so they were eye level with each other. “But I think you know someone crazy enough to do that.”

“It can’t be him, Cassie, I already went over that. The language of it didn’t sound like something Rob would write, and the handwriting wasn’t anything close to his.”

Cassie nodded and looked up at the unicorn charms on the ceiling fan. That was why she was supposed to mention the cursive thing to Kon. Cassie learned an old type of cursive and Tim already knew cursive, so she didn’t understand why he’d asked that of her but she had mentioned it about a week ago. Leave it to Tim to find the most roundabout way of confessing to his crush. His crush, who was Kon of all people. Her ex. They hadn’t even really talked about that yet. 

“True, but you know he’s crazy enough to completely change the way that he writes just for you.” Cassie turned back to him, hair sprawled out on her old Wonder Woman comforter.

“He wouldn’t do that just for me, he’d do that for a mission or for Batman, but not for me.” He avoided Cassie’s eyes, looking somewhere behind her. 

“He would.” Cassie turned Kon’s head with two hands on his cheeks. “A couple of weeks ago when we were fighting that cult that used kryptonite as their power source, when the medical crew on the carrier took you away, Tim was besides himself, Kon, he-”

There was a faint knock at the door that sent Cassie sailing across the room from Kon. Cassie’s mom popped her head into the room, smiling brightly. 

“Cassie, you didn’t tell me you’d have company over.” 

“I didn’t-” Cassie ran a hand through her hair, still hovering by the door. “Sorry mom, I didn’t know he’d be coming over. It was sorta an emergency.”

Kon nodded along. “Sorry Ms. Sandsmark, I just needed advice for some Superhero-ing stuff.” 

“Well, you came to the right place for that, but please use the front door next time if you can, Connor.” Cassie’s mom left the door open as she retreated down the hall. “Cassie, come see me when you’re done with Connor, I need help going through your old yearbooks.” 

“I’ll be right there.” Cassie called after her. 

She shared a look with Kon and reopened her window. Kon groaned but hopped off the bed to leaned against the wall next to the window. 

“That’s all of your advice for this? It’s obviously Tim?”

“Yes.” Cassie nodded. “Now get out.”

“C’mon Cassie, you don’t think anyone else could be behind this?”

“No. I really don’t. Connor, I’m telling you to go to him right now before he gets crazier about this.”

Kon began climbing out the window but stopped with one leg out, hands bracing the frame. “The note said to not go to anyone unless I had evidence and the only evidence I have is your hunch.” 

“Okay, not a hunch, just the truth.” Cassie pushed him out of the window. 

“What evidence do I have though?”

“You have my word.” Cassie crossed her arms. “And the way that he’s always draped over you after missions.”

“I practically radiate warmth and he usually has sore muscles after our missions. It’s just a way to help him out, since we’re, ya know, friends.” Kon rolled his eyes. 

“Sure.” Cassie pushed his shoulder further out the window. “Whatever, you do what you want but you have my advice.”

Kon smiled and swung his other leg over the window. 

“Wait!” Cassie grabbed his arm, leaned halfway out of the frame. “Conner, I um…I hope that you’ve moved on. Seriously, I don’t want to make you feel like you’re tied to me just because of a teenage romance. We’re both adults and…and I know neither of us have really been seeing anyone since we…”

“Cassie.” Kon grabbed her face in both hands. “I’m sorry I asked if you wrote that letter. I know that you wouldn’t ever do something like that, we’re friends. I believe you. That doesn’t mean we’re not tied together, you’re still an important part of me, we’re just…” He bit at his lip, looking up at the glow-in-the-dark stars still plastered over the ceiling. “We’re not the same people anymore, the memories I have of you are of someone you haven’t been for awhile. And that’s okay, we’re okay.”

Cassie nodded. “Good. That’s good, because I want you to be happy. Really, I mean that Connor.”

“I know.” Kon let his hands fall. “I want that for you too, Cassie.”

“Connor, I’m really glad that we’re friends. I don’t know if I’ve ever said that.” Cassie’s voice wavered slightly, enough that only Kon could tell. 

“Me too.” He smiled, finally making his exit out of the window. 

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Robin fell at his side, a deep laceration in his leg. Immediately, Kon scooped up the smaller hero in his arms and took off. The battle was over, Cassie and Bart would be following after them. It had taken them years to figure out the proper way to get back and forth to battles. If Rob couldn’t swing something with his Batman connections, then it was up to them to figure it out. Young Justice wasn’t a big enough or well known enough team to get some massive outsider investments, as much as Kon thought that they should, so it was usually up to him and Cassie to fly Bart and Tim in and out of wherever they were at. This time it was somewhere far off of the coast in the Bahamas. 

Kon looked down, seeing the wince on Tim’s face as they sped up. “You alright there, Robbie?” 

Tim attempted a smile back up at him. “Fantastic, Superboy.”

“Oh so we’ve reached the level of sarcasm then?”

Tim tilted his head, crossing his arms across his chest. “Where does that fall on my pain scale?”

“Somewhere between ‘still kicking ass’ and ‘holy hell it’s a good thing this kid has insane insurance.’”

“That’s a wide berth.”

Connor winked. “I’m still working on it.”

Tim hummed and leaned into Connor’s chest. “How far is it this time?”

“With how obviously broken your leg is.” Kon sighed. “I’m taking it slower than usual, we’ll probably get back in about four hours.”

Tim pursed his lips. “Could we make it in three, I have family dinner tonight.”

“No can do, boy wonder.” Kon shook his head. “If I go any faster than this speed here I risk putting too much pressure on your leg bone that is less than a centimeter away from breaking the skin.” 

Tim shook his head and went silent. Family dinner nights meant a lot to Tim, ever since moving out on his own, he’d made a very big deal of always taking off the entire day leading up to them. This mission was a spur of the moment thing that Cassie had assured them would be over and done with before Alfred even put the roast in the oven. Kon knew that Tim wouldn’t blame her for this, it wasn’t really her fault, but he’d be mad at himself for the rest of the week for missing it. 

“How about this-” Kon attempted to meet Tim’s eyes, but that proved almost impossible. “I can fly you home tomorrow for tea time with some of those scones that Alfred likes from the place in Edinborough?” 

Tim hummed. “That’s a generous offer.”

“Don’t like seeing you all mopey when you miss your family events.”

“Said family events that you’ve refused to come to since last year.” 

Kon laughed. “Movie night was a lot for me, Timmy.”

“They’re not so bad, ya know.” Tim shrugged. “Just loud and annoying and rude and…okay I see your point, but they’re family.”

“I know. And I know they’re important to you, which I why I offered to fly you tomorrow.”

Tim smiled warmly, wrapping his arms around Kon’s middle. “Kon, I would very much like that. Thank you, that’s very thoughtful.”

“Anytime.” Kon brushed the hair away from Tim’s domino mask with his fingertips. “Anytime, birdy.”

Tim huffed but didn’t let go. They flew the entire way back like that in silence.

Chapter Text

The reminder of Tim’s family got Kon thinking, which Tim almost always advised him against. There was one person in Tim’s family who had a vested interest in Kon’s flirting, mostly because he was usually at the receiving end of it, and that was Dick. He’d have a reason to want it to stop. Logically, he could have planted that note and he could be using Tim as surveillance to see who Kon talks to about it. While it was a kind gesture to drop Tim off at Wayne manor, Gotham was also on the way to Bludhaven. He threw up Dick’s apartment window and slipped in. 

Dick was stood in his kitchen with four plates balanced on his arms. From the other room Kon could hear laughter. Immediately Dick’s eyes landed on him with a concerned glare. He widened his eyes in warning and went into the other room, laughing along with whatever had been said, before announcing loudly that he had to ‘take a phone call’ in the other room. 

Kon was sat on the fire-escape when Dick slipped out next to him. “Is everything okay? Why are you at my apartment?”

“Sorry, sorry, I didn’t realize I’d be interrupting anything. It’s really not important at all.” Kon made to get up, shaking his head in embarrassment. “We can chat some other time when you’re on patrol or whatever.”

“Conner, you’re here now, and honestly I hate these people, please distract me with whatever unimportant thing you’ve got going on.” Dick rubbed the back of his head and gave an awkward smile. 

“Okay.” Kon narrowed his eyes. “I got…a letter. Does that sound familiar to you?”

Dick cocked his head to the side and sat down next to Kon on the railing. “Um. No?” 

“It was about how I flirt too much and how I should be watching my back instead. It was signed from a friend, and I really don’t have loads of those, so I-”

“Was it addressed to Conner or Superboy?” Dick crossed his arms, leaning back.

“Superboy.”

“Interesting.” Dick clicked his tongue and looked away. “Anything else unusual about it?”

“It looked like Cassie’s handwriting, but I talked with her about it, and I really shouldn’t have. It’s obvious she wouldn’t do something like that.”

Dick was still looking around, rounding up his thoughts. “Did they threaten you with anything in particular?”

“No. It wasn’t really threatening at all aside from the language of it, which said I would keep finding letters until I stopped. I haven’t found any others yet and it’s been almost two weeks.”

“That is weird.” Dick met his eyes again with a hesitant look. “And why did you think to come to me about this?”

“Because, and don’t laugh, even though I know you will- you’re one of the only people who vehemently opposes me flirting with them on patrol so you might have written it.”

Dick shrugged and gave him a warm smile. “Don’t blame you there, that would make sense. But, no, I didn’t write the letter.”

“Damn. I was really certain I was getting somewhere.” Kon hit his hand against the railing of the fire escape. “Any ideas?”

Dick ran a hand through his hair. “Well, it sounds like my brother’s work.” 

Kon sighed, chin falling to his chest. “That’s what Cassie said too.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah, she said it sounded exactly like something Tim would do. Which is partially why I thought of you too, since you’re kinda, ya know, similar in a way. But I don’t know, it seemed too mean to be him, if that makes sense?”

“Do you have it on you?”

Kon shook his head. 

“If you send me a picture of it I’ll run it against every sample of his handwriting we have on file in the batcomputer.”

“Cassie said that if it was him, it was probably a new handwriting that he hadn’t used before.” 

“C’mon, Tim’s smart enough to leave you a few clues.” Dick punched his side jokingly, immediately regretting it and pulling his hand back to shake off the pain. 

“Alright, I’ll send you a picture when I get back to the cave.”

Dick huffed a laugh, looking up at Kon through his eyelashes. “You guys still operate out of that cave?”

“Not everyone has millions of daddy's dollars to build a brand new Titans Tower.” Kon shrugged. 

“Ouch.” Dick put a hand over his heart in faux-hurt. “And Tim definitely has enough money to build you guys a real headquarters. What a weirdo that kid is.”

Kon laughed half-heartedly. “Weird is an understatement.”

Dick nudged his side, gentler this time. “So who do you think it is, then?”

“I don’t know. Part of me wants to believe you and Cassie about Tim, but why would he do it? It seems really out of the blue for him to find annoying. I thought he liked my pet names and whatnot.” Kon looked out over Bludhaven, watching the sun reflect off of the glass skyscrapers in the distance.

“That might be the problem.” Dick put a hand on Kon’s shoulder. “Tim is…he’s a weird guy, Conner. He doesn’t know how to express emotions very well, this could be his way of telling you that he-”

There was a crash from inside the apartment and Dick ducked his head back inside. A man’s voice yelled something about Dick missing out on the fun and he yelled something back in a voice Kon had never heard him use before. 

“I’m sorry Conner, but I’ve got to head back inside. Why don’t you come back sometime when I’m on patrol and we can talk more about this.” He clapped Kon on the shoulder and didn’t wait for a reply before maneuvering back inside and closing the window in one foul swoop. 

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Tim crept through the upstairs, hoping beyond hope that no one but Alfred was home. He got past Damian’s door with no trouble, then the study, and-

“Timothy.” Damian stood in the library doorway with his arms crossed. “You missed family dinner.”

Tim mirrored Damian’s stance, crossing his arms in a much less intimidating way with his broken leg and lack of confidence in the face of his kid brother. “Yes. I did.”

Damian raised an eyebrow as his eyes flickered down to the cast on Tim’s leg. “Do I need to tell father about the poor influence of your Superboy?”

Tim huffed. “Do I need to tell him about yours?”

“What are you implying, Timothy?” Damian stepped closer. 

“Oh nothing.” Tim smiled sweetly. “But I know every possible route to sneak out of this house, and I know that I wasn’t the one who used the east gate last weekend.”

Damian brushed past him in a blur of angry tween. Tim would consider that a win. A very tame win, but a win nonetheless. He smiled to himself as he entered the library, finding Alfred with his tea kettle in the westernmost corner by the window. 

“Master Tim, to what do I owe the pleasure?”

The smile that Alfred gave him made Tim’s stomach lurch in guilt. He hated how kind everyone always was to him, even when he felt like he’d done them wrong. Usually he was wrong about how they felt and it made him feel even worse for assuming they’d be upset with him. Maybe something to bring up to the therapist that Bruce had vetted. Or course he couldn’t mention to the therapist about why he’d missed family dinner in the first place, it wasn’t like there was any therapist that Batman believed could keep a secret like that. 

“I um, I brought you scones from Addy’s. Could I join you for tea today?” He rattled the bag of scones in front of him and set it down gently on the white tablecloth. 

Alfred smiled kindly and motioned to the seat opposite of him. “Shall I ask about your leg or is it better left unsaid?”

“No, no, it’s fine. I fell off a-” Tim stopped himself and ground out a laugh. “Actually I think it’s better left unsaid.”

“Master Bruce will be unhappy to hear of your injury.” Alfred began setting out a cup and saucer for Tim. 

Tim winced. “I know. That’s why I’m here with you and not him.” 

“Is this also why you missed dinner last night?” Alfred eyed him knowingly. 

“Yes, I…I don’t like missing family events.” Tim scratched the back of his head, looking out at the grounds outside the window. “I didn’t expect our mission to take so long. It was a time management issue on my end.”

“If it is any consolation, Master Dick has missed the past three dinners that Master Bruce has hosted.” Alfred poured himself a cup of tea and stood to pour Tim his own as well. 

Tim scoffed. “It isn’t, actually, I was hoping to see him sometime soon.”

“He has his own path, I believe you know that quite well.”

“I do, Alfred.” Tim sighed. “I don’t want to be like that though. I’m not going to give you guys up just to hang out with my friends.”

Alfred raised an eyebrow. “Are your friends not a different kind of family?”

“They are, but you’re important to me too.” Tim reached across the table to squeeze Alfred’s hand. “And I don’t know how to do this. My parents weren’t the best at the whole ‘quality time’ thing and I don’t want to mess it up.”

“You are doing much better than what you may believe." Alfred gave him a smile that reached his eyes and squeezed Tim’s hand back before moving to sip at his tea. 

They sat in companionable silence and drank their tea, looking out as the first snowfall of the season covered the grounds. Tim followed Alfred down into the kitchen to help him clean up their saucers and cups, though it was light work for just one person. 

“How are things with your team?” Alfred handed Tim a saucer to dry and put up. 

Tim snorted, opening a cupboard to slide the saucer inside. “It’s going well, nothing new to report on.”

“No new business with that Superboy?” Alfred side-eyed him. 

“Not really, no. Why do you ask?”

“You two were rather at odds at first, and then he came to movie night, forgive me for being curious about where you two stand, but it has seemed rather precarious.” 

Tim laughed and shook his head, looking down at the floor as a blush crept up his neck. “No, that’s a valid question. I’m sorry things have been so hectic I didn’t realize we hadn’t talked about him in awhile. Me and Kon are good, we’re friends.”

“Just friends?”

“Alfred!” Tim burst out laughing in shock. 

“Master Timothy, you have hardly looked at any of your romantic paramores the way that you were looking at that boy when he was here.” Alfred handed him a cup to put up.

Tim rotated the cup in his hand and bit at his lip, still smiling despite the blush that was now engulfing his face. “That was over a year ago, Alfred.”

Alfred didn’t reply, just gave him a pointed look and dried off his hands. Tim put the cup away and leaned against the island. Alfred had been his favorite since he was a kid moving in with only a couple of years until he was out on his own. Sure, Dick and Jason were his idols. They were his everything, but they didn’t really ever got him like he got them. Alfred did. Silence was Tim’s first language, and Alfred spoke it fluently. 

“There’s something different about him.” Tim sighed, he never could beat around the bush with Alfred. “I didn’t immediately like him, it took time to figure out who he was. I like that, it feels like I learn something new about him every day.”

“Have you considered telling him this?” Alfred stood at attention at the end of the island, a completely opposite picture of Tim’s comfortable lean. 

“Not seriously.” Tim stiffened. “He’s not really…sometimes people are straight and that’s fine, I can live with that as a reality. He’s a good friend, a really good friend, actually. I can live with just that.”

“Hm.” Alfred shrugged. 

Tim turned to face him. “What?”

“It seems that you’re making the assumption that he is straight.” 

Tim turned his back to Alfred, staring at the oven door as he spoke. “I am, but that’s the baseline, isn’t it? I should assume straight until told otherwise. As much as I hate it, that’s how the world works, Alfred. I can’t just ask his sexuality without coming across as weird, or god forbid like I’m coming onto him.”

“You are awfully fearful of someone who is such a good friend to you.”

“A lot of ‘good’ people have let me down, Alfred.”

“You would rather torture yourself than know if he would too, is that it?”

“Yes.” Tim conceded.

“Hm.”

“What is it now?” Tim whipped around to find Alfred halfway out of the room. 

“Master Bruce needs assistance in the basement. Would you like to join me?”

Tim shook his head, not ready for the ‘broken leg chat’ yet.

“Very well.” Alfred left him alone in the kitchen. 

The house felt much more ominous alone. Maybe it was a product of a lonely childhood, but he hated walking around the mansion by himself. Even when other people were there, going room to room felt wrong. Like at any moment Bruce himself would strike Tim dead for forgetting a book in the library. He shivered remembering the first time he’d tried to sneak into the kitchen for a snack at 3AM and had been greeted with Bruce in full Bat-gear standing in the pitch black kitchen staring at him with an empty milk jug in hand. It was time to go home, really home. He made his way up to the second story balcony that he’d gotten dropped off at, shivering in the snow. 

“Kon? You got your ears on? I want to go home now, if you can swing by again.”

He buried himself in his sweater, arms winding around his chest. The grounds were almost completely covering in a blanket of white. He’d missed seeing this view. It felt so nostalgic for a certain period of time, those moments when he was just starting to feel comfortable in his own skin. When life was beginning to feel like it meant something. A swooshing of the wind alerted him to Kon’s arrival. 

“Already? I figured it’d be a couple more hours, at least.” Kon sounded a little out of breath, maybe it was the overcast weather blocking the sun. 

“You alright, clone boy?” Tim put his hands on the cold railing of the balcony, eyeing Kon as he leaned back. 

“Sorry, was just-” He took a deep breath. “Running a few errands, when I heard ya.”

“And you still came? I’m capable of waiting, Kon.”

Kon shrugged. “I’d hate to keep you waiting, though.”

Tim popped his lips. “Why is that?”

Immediately, Kon’s face went up in flames. “Because that’d be rude.”

“You can’t take the Kansas manners out of the Kent.” Tim laughed. 

Kon smiled back at him a bit dreamily, eyes caught on a point of Tim’s face lower than his eyes. “Guess not.”

“Alright, let’s get out of here before I become a popsicle.” Tim raised his arms to go around Kon’s neck. 

Kon walked into Tim’s arms, his arms looping around Tim’s waist rather than scooping him into the usual bridal style. Tim barked a small laugh of surprise. 

“This is new.” Tim watched the grounds below them as they ascended. 

“Don’t you think it’s a bit demeaning to still carry you the same way I did as a kid?” Kon’s sunglasses fell to the bridge of his nose as he spoke. 

Tim pushed up Kon’s glasses on instinct, feeling safe enough in Kon’s arms to move his own. “Not particularly. Why change what works for us?”

Kon’s face scrunched up at that, nose wrinkling. “Do you want me to-”

“No, no, I’m fine with this.” Tim cut him off, putting his head against Kon’s chest. 

Kon ran a hand through Tim’s hair, gripping it slightly to get him to meet his eyes again. “Timmy, did you mean home as in the cave or your apartment?”

“I don’t know.” Tim turned his head to the side, pulling out of Kon’s grip on his hair. “Just needed to get out of there. Hate it when it’s all empty.”

Kon twisted his lips, trying to figure out the right way to be encouraging but not prying. “Why’s that?”

“Reminds me too much of home.” Tim cleared his throat suddenly, jerking his head up to meet Kon’s eyes again. “Not like, I mean- I mean my parents’ house.”

“Oh.” Kon nodded. “The cave doesn’t make you feel that way?”

Tim considered this. “It does, sometimes. Only when I know none of you are there. The mansion is always like that, even when everyone’s home. Being in one room alone feels like the world has closed itself off. It’s suffocating.”

“I get that.” Kon swallowed thickly. “Sometimes when we’re all at the cave, I can hear you all through the walls in another room and it feels like you’ll never come back. Like I’ll be stuck behind a wall from you forever.”

“Jesus, Kon.” Tim breathed. 

“What? Too serious?” Kon gave him a small smile. 

Tim snorted, burying his head in Kon’s jacket. “Yeah, I was expecting a witty remark.”

“Well, I’m trying to be a bit more genuine. A little birdy whispered in my ear that I’m too flirty sometimes.”

Tim had to laugh at the wording of that. Kon couldn’t know yet, he was a bit too dense to assume it was Tim right off the bat. “Sometimes?”

“Okay, a lot of the time.” Kon laughed back at him. 

“It caught me off guard, but I do appreciate the effort, Kon. And I hope that you don’t feel that way often.”

“It’s not...” Kon winced. “It’s fine. I think it’s just left over from…everything.”

“I don’t think it is fine.” Tim laced his hands behind Kon’s head to get a better grip on him. “We’re never leaving you, and there’s nothing you can’t tell us. Wether that wall is metaphorical or real, we’ll do our damnedest to break it down. You know that, right?” He did his best to sound as dead serious as he meant it. 

“I know, Tim.” Kon gave him a frankly disgustingly sweet smile. 

“We’re a family. You’re stuck with all of us, for better or worse.” Tim regretted the words as soon as they were out of his mouth. 

Kon’s eyebrows shot up. “And I’m the flirty one?” 

“I didn’t mean like-” Tim was cut off by Kon’s laughter, but he gave in and dropped his head to laugh into Kon’s chest as well. 

“Alright birdy, cave or apartment?” Kon looked down at him with a softness in his eyes. 

“Where are you headed?” Tim shifted his head against Kon, watching the world below them. 

“Um…to dinner. At the farm. Jon got all As this quarter and Ma’s making pie.”

Tim narrowed his eyes, smiling brightly. “Pie? What kind?”

Kon looked down at him quizzically, brows furrowed together. “Tim, do you want to come to dinner?”

“I don’t know, depends on what kind of pie.”

“Jon’s favorite is huckleberry, so I’m assuming that. Did- did you just invite yourself to my family dinner?”

Tim shrugged. “I missed mine and I like your family.”

“Okay.” Kon swallowed. “You like my family?”

Tim hummed and Kon felt it deep in his chest. “Clark’s alright and Jon’s sweet. Lois is amazing, though. You don’t give her enough credit. Is it actually okay if I come? I just assumed you’d be fine with that.”

“Yeah, yeah, it’s more than fine, Timmy.” Kon smiled, brushing the hair away from Tim’s eyes. “You know how much the Kents love having you over.”

“I don’t, actually.” He laughed. 

“Well, you’ll see firsthand very shortly.”

The flight to the Kent farm was shorter than getting back to the cave, which is where Tim was leaning towards if Kon hadn’t let him tag along to wherever he was headed. For how many plans and contingencies Tim had, sometimes he needed the spontaneity of letting someone else decide. Especially when it came to Kon. His conversation with Alfred still pulled at the corner of his mind. If he did decide to say something soon, whenever Kon figured out the whole letter business, he might as well soak up the last few moments beforehand. Just in case. The snow had rolled in earlier in smallville, banks had already begun forming under the railing of front porch.

Tim smiled into Kon’s chest as they descended. “I think I figured out how to solve your thing.”

“My thing?” Kon raised an eyebrow, looking at Tim over the top of his sunglasses. 

“We’ll get a dog, for the cave. That way you'll never be alone, animals love you, and if you ever feel like we'll be stuck in another room forever, you can ring a bell or call it's name or- well, we'll figure something out.” Tim plowed through whatever retort Kon was about to spout. “Everyone will have to take care of it and we’ll take turns taking it home for the holidays and weekends and whatnot. Obviously I’ll train it, but-”

“Tim.” Kon put a hand on Tim’s cheek. “That’s a brilliant idea. I love it.”

They landed softly at the end of the driveway. Almost immediately, a smaller body was breaking them apart from each other. Jon had his arms looped around Kon’s legs. 

“Hey there little buddy.” Kon ruffled Jon’s messy black hair. “You tell your mom I’m home yet?”

“No, I saw you from the window.” Jon looked up at him with big doe eyes. 

Kon rolled his eyes fondly, hoisting Jon up to sit on his shoulder as they walked inside. “Timmy’s joining us for dinner…”

Tim stood stock still where they had landed, watching the interaction with butterflies gathering in the pit of his stomach. A statue watching the world revolve around him, smiling dumbly and barely suppressing the urge to trace where Kon’s hand had been on his face. Kon’s smile was bright as he set Jon down on the porch, ruffling his hair again and holding open the screen door. There was a small moment where that smile was directed back at Tim before it turned into something slightly worried. Tim huffed, breaking out of his statue performance and walking towards the front door.