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It was a narrow, grimy stretch between two buildings, damp from something that definitely wasn’t just rain. Tim stumbled on impact, boots skidding slightly on the uneven pavement, but Kon caught him easily hands steady at his waist.
For a second, they just stood there, too close, breathing a little too fast.
Then Kon laughed quiet, disbelieving and pulled him in. Tim didn’t resist. The kiss was immediate and messy, like neither of them had thought this through beyond *wanting it*. Tim’s hands found Kon’s jacket, gripping tight as Kon pressed him back lightly against the brick wall.
Just this.
Just them and the brick wall. (WRONG)
Tim tilted his head when Kon’s lips brushed down to his jaw, then lower. His breath hitched, fingers tightening in Kon’s shirt as he leaned into it without thinking. For a moment, he felt light and untethered in a way that almost made him dizzy.
Kon came back up to kiss him again, sharper this time, like he couldn’t quite get enough
until someone gasped.
They froze.
It was instinct, imediate and total. Tim’s grip tightened, Kon went rigid, and both of them turned toward the sound at the exact same time.At the entrance of the alley Batman and Superman were in the same positions as them..
They were just… there.
“…Hi,” Kon said.
Tim shut his eyes briefly. Why would you say that?
When he opened them again, the scene hadn’t changed.
Which meant his brain had no choice but to catch up.
And once it did
“Oh,” Tim breathed.
That single word carried far too much understanding.
“Dad!?” he added a second later, louder, horrified. “Why are you-” Tim with his hands on his face to stop the continuation of looking at what he was dreading , hid away into kon's shoulder.
“Mom!?” Kon blurted at the same time.
Tim turned to him. “What?”
Kon gestured helplessly. “What? I wanted to fit in!”
“That is not the issue right now-”
Tim cut himself off, because looking back had been a mistake the first time and was an even worse one now.
“Conner,” he said under his breath, grabbing his arm. “Conner, they’re-”
“I know,” Kon whispered quickly. “I see it. I sense it. I hate it. I can’t unsee it.”
Because there was no misunderstanding here.
Tim’s face burned. “Don’t look,” he said urgently.
“I already did.”
“Stop talking.”
“I’m panicking!”
“Me too!”
Across from them, Superman shifted back a step, so abrupt enough that it didn’t look planned. Batman turned away completely. Not just his head. his entire body. Batman never hid away. It might have been the most unsettling thing Tim had ever seen.
Kon leaned slightly closer. “Do we run?” he whispered.
“We can’t outrun them,” Tim muttered.
“I could try.”
“You’d make it worse.”
(Outrun them for what? Tim later asked himself... ohhh from sharing the news of Batman and superman FUCKING)
Batman spoke then, voice flat and controlled.
“…You could fly.... we could fly” he looked at superman for the last part.
Tim blinked.
Kon blinked.
“…oh,” Kon said.
“…oh,” Tim echoed.
oh yeah, Right, Flying, mankind's dream.
That was an option that they totally didn't forget.
“Okay,” Kon said quickly, grabbing Tim’s arm. “Get on-wait.”
He froze.
Tim frowned. “What?”
Kon looked down and Tim sadly followed his gaze.
His shoes were half off. Untied, one practically hanging.
There was a beat.
“…why,” Tim said slowly, “are your shoes off?!”
“I don’t know!,” Kon said, equally horrified. “I think I kicked them off don’t ask!”
“I am asking!”
“I was distracted!”
Tim stared at him for half a second longer before dropping into a crouch.
“Hold still,” he muttered.
“What-Tim-!”
But Tim was already tying the laces, quick and efficient despite the situation. His hands moved automatically, muscle memory taking over even while the rest of him was screaming.
Kon stood there, rigid with embarrassment. (almost if his view was something scandalous. Ooo. ) having one hand on his face and one hand on his waist.
beside them, no one said anything. it was a dumpster dividing them but he could hear their sighs.
Superman seemed to have found something very interesting to look at in the distance. Batman still hadn’t turned around.
Tim pulled the knot tight and stood immediately.
“There,” he said.
“…thank you,” Kon replied faintly.
Another pause stretched between all four of them.
Then Tim cleared his throat.
“I think,” he said carefully, “we should all agree to never speak of this again.”
“We will never speak of this again,” Bruce said at the exact same time.
“…okay.”
“Agreed,” Superman added quickly.
“Yes,” Kon said. “Absolutely.”
“Good,” Tim said. “Great.”
“Perfect,” Kon echoed.
No one moved.
Then Batman spoke again, still facing away. “Go.”
They didn’t hesitate.
Kon grabbed Tim and lifted off, not gracefully, not smoothly but fast enough to leave the alley behind within seconds.
The air rushed past them, cold and sharp.
They didn’t slow down until they were several blocks away.
Then more.
Then finally
Kon landed outside their apartment building. For a moment, neither of them moved.Then Kon let out a strangled laugh.Tim pressed his hands to his face.
“What was that?” Kon said, voice cracking between horror and disbelief.
“I don’t know!,” Tim said, muffled.
“They were-”
“I know!”
“We were-”
“I know!”
Kon leaned back against the wall, sliding down slightly as laughter overtook him again. Tim followed a second later, the tension snapping all at once.
It wasn’t normal laughter.
It was too sharp, too breathless, edged with panic.
“I tied your shoes,” Tim said, staring at nothing.
“In front of them,” Kon added.
“They were-”
“I know.”
Tim groaned, dragging his hands down his face. “I’m changing my name.”
“I’m leaving Earth.”
“Take me with you.”