Work Text:
Three years down the drain, five if you count the years they knew each other prior to dating. Could he even say 'down the drain'? After all, he had enjoyed every minute they spent together, and he would probably continue to cherish those memories for years to come. But he had gone into this hoping for a long, long-lasting love; he never thought it would be cut short like so. Was there anything he could do, though?
No, there was nothing he could do. Danny loved Bruce, loves Bruce. He loves the moments spent by a warm fire together as they read their own respective books. Or running across rooftops as they patrolled the city together. The manor was rarely quiet; it brought a smile to his face, though, whenever Danny would see Bruce's children run amok. Most of them were adults now, and had all given him a what-for when he started dating their dad, but he couldn't imagine life without them. Danny loved the Waynes, but he needed to stop this.
When Danny first walked into that portal, he never expected his life to change as it had. And years later, he never thought being a halfa would lead to this.
The thing about life and death is, they don't mix, not really. While halfas are the pinnacle of balance between the two, there's only so much the laws of physics can ignore. The fact of the matter is, dead bodies are meant to decompose, rot away and become one with the earth again. It was a simple reality of the circle of life. And living bodies remained in motion; breathing, growing, loving. But again, those don't mix
It started with his mind, a terribly extreme place for everything to begin, but the decay of death doesn't care. Danny noticed his brain functioning slower, lagging. It would take him longer to solve cases, or he would forget words here and there. Memories would grow foggy for a while, or there would be complete gaps in his past. He knew his brain was filling with shrubbery, moss taking over the rot.
It spread to the rest of his body, slowly, but surely. His joints grew stiff, his bones ached, his skin hardened. Danny found himself scrubbing away mold more and more often. Fungi and flowers began to sprout wherever he would stay in one place for too long. His body feels as though it's made of stone as daily activities grew harder and harder to do. Patrol was a relief, his ghost form easing the stiffness and aches.
It was when it had all started to spread to his eyes that Danny knew he needed to end this. He didn't want to, god did he not want to, but he needed to. His vision was beginning to blur, getting cut off around the edges and creating narrower and narrower tunnel vision. The smallest glimpses of hallucinations, shadows in his peripherals that weren't really there.
Danny stared longingly at the picture in his hands, willing his eyes to focus once more. It was of Bruce and him together in one of the living rooms in the manor. The soft glow of a fireplace out of frame the only illumination. Danny's eyes were squeezed shut as he gave out boisterous laughter, and Bruce gushed at him with soft fondness. Behind the camera, the 'children' were all hiding behind the creaked open door to the entrance, spying on the two as Tim took the candid photo. The reflection of all of them shown in the window panes.
No. Danny didn't want to end all of this. He needed to. Because suffering in silence is better than suffering with you.
Bruce was taking him out to dinner tonight, and Danny was too weak to say no. It would be one last cherished moment before he said goodbye. Bruce didn't know that, of course, Danny was too selfish to say anything. He would leave without a word, without a trace. Nothing but a memory, like they would be to him until those too faded away.
The dinner was nice, fancy, fancier than any other place Bruce had ever taken him to. It was a nice place to see him one last time. It was just supposed to be the two of them, a romantic outing. Of course, that didn't stop his children. Danny could see Dick, Jason, Tim, Damian, Cass, Steph, Barbara, Duke, and even Alfred all congregated at a table across the way; pretending they were being sneaky, but knowing fully well they had already been spotted. It brought a smile to his face, being able to see everyone he loved all in one place before he left for good.
It was all so wonderful, he almost caught himself bargaining, thinking he could stay. But he knew that wasn't for the best; he couldn't let Bruce watch him suffer as his body failed him more and more. As dessert began to be served, Danny knew the night was drawing to a close, and so was his time with the Waynes, with Bruce. Only…
Bruce got up from his seat, pulling something from his pocket. It was when he started to crouch down, no, get down on one knee, that Danny knew what was coming. He stared at Bruce in both horror and longing as he opened up a small box, revealing a beautiful silver-banded ring with aquamarine gemstones to match his eyes in either form. It was a moment he had dreamed about for a long time, and yet, it was straight out of a nightmare. He couldn't say yes, he had already made up his mind to leave after tonight. But fuck, was it oh so tempting to just give in, to forget all of his problems and just leap into Bruce's arms. Why did he have to ask? Why did this have to happen tonight?
Danny stood up, looking over at the kids anxiously awaiting his answer across the restaurant, then back into Bruce's beautifully deep sapphire eyes. "I'm sorry, I can't."
And without turning back, without waiting for any sort of response, he booked it out of there. Away from Bruce. Away from the kids. Away from the restaurant. Away from the street. Away from the district. Away from Gotham.
Danny kept running, fearing that any one of them was still right behind him. The snow of late November began to fall, dusting him in the white flakes and coating the ground in cold fluff. The gentle fall soon turned to a blizzard, further blinding his vision and slowing his footfall. But Danny kept on running, and then-
Drop.
Drop..
Drop…
He was falling through snow. Through ice. Water. It froze his limbs, numbed his skin, and replaced his breath. It was calm down here, quiet. He didn't have to run here, didn't have to worry; he could just be.
Splash
A blurry figure encroached into his vision, black and white amongst the grey. A person, maybe? Something scratched the back of his mind, but he couldn't quite place it. A tug. First on his arm, then his waist. He felt himself go.
Up.
And up..
And up…
Air breached his face, his lungs. He turns to see him, Bruce, his beloved, still clad in his tux from the restaurant. Oh.
Bruce had jumped into the freezing water… to save him. He had fallen into a lake while running away, the snow hiding the thinly frozen surface from sight. And now Bruce had rescued him, he was safe.
But… Danny was supposed to be running from Bruce, leaving him for good. Because his body was failing him, and he couldn't bear to see Bruce watch his decline.
As the two of them reached stable ground, Danny tried to chime in, say his final piece. "Bruce, please, I-"
"No!" Bruce interjected. His voice booming, causing a cavern of silence. "Danny, I don't understand. I get it if you don't want to get married, but please don't run away again. I thought we had something, I thought we were happy together. "
"We do! I really do love you."
"Then why! Why did you say no? Why did you run away? Was it…" Bruce's voice got weak, almost a whisper. "Did I do something wrong? I-"
"No! God, no, never. I… Bruce, I love you so, so much. I love you, I love your family, I- I cherish every moment with you, but…" Danny took a deep breath, pushing him to finally just say it. "Bruce, my body is failing me. The living and dead… they aren't supposed to mix, I'm decomposing where I stand, mold and moss growing inside me. I- I don't have long."
"Danny," his love's voice cracked, sounding wounded and broken. "Why- why wouldn't you tell me? You know I would've stayed by your side no matter what."
"To tell you the truth… that's exactly why I left. I was selfish. I didn't want to see the ache in your eyes as you watched me grow worse and worse, eventually succumbing to a final death."
"Danny, none of that matters to me. All I care about is that I get to spend my days with you, no matter how they're spent. Please, let me spend those days with you."
Danny looked at Bruce, really looked at him. The man he loved, the man he would do anything for. "You make it hard to say no."
And so, Bruce stood up, took his hand, and helped him up. Danny was soon swept off his feet as his love took him into his strong arms.
"Bruce," he managed to croak out. He had to say this now, or he never will. "I do." Danny caressed the cheek of the man he loves, and brought him in for a passionate kiss. One full of acceptance of whatever may come now. And-
His body suddenly felt lighter, his brain clearer. Danny could see with no obstruction. He looks up at Bruce, the love of his life, the man he is now engaged to. Renewed body to feel his warmth, renewed mind to remember every moment, and renewed eyes to see him fully.
Danny knew his ailment was now gone, as if the universe said, 'This, this is what you live for.' So for the moment, Danny took Bruce in his arms again, and kissed him once more.