Robin woke up in a cold sweat. He'd been having the same nightmare for weeks, and everytime, she left him. As much as he despised admitting it, the dream frightened him. He couldn't bear the thought of life without her. She brightened his day, saw right through his facade. She always knew when something was wrong, and everytime, she managed to cheer him up. She was the love of his life.
Standing up to stretch, Robin looked at himself in the mirror. 'Coward,' he thought. 'You can't even tell your best friend how you really feel about her.' He quietly walked out of his room and into the hallway, heading for the kitchen. He was just going to get a glass of milk and then go right back to sleep.
He opened the fridge, the blinding light poured out around the room. Robin heard a squeal of surprise and turned around to face his "attacker", only to come face to face with Starfire, whose starbolts were fully charged, mind you.
She gasped and let her hands drop down to her sides. "Robin, I did not see you enter the room of food preparation."
Robin smiled at her choice of words. See, she had already brightened his day...er, night. "Star, are you alright?" He had noticed her pale face, and the dark circles underneath her eyes.
"Yes, Robin. I am fine. Thank you for your concern, but I only had a...nightmare?" She looked at him, seeing if she had used the term correctly. Robin nodded in encouragement, and she smiled triumphantly. "What are you doing up at this hour, as well?"
"Uh, well, I had a nightmare, too. I just came to get a glass of milk." It was then that he noticed her red, swollen eyes. "Starfire, are you alright," he moved closer to her and grasped both her shoulders. Starfire hung her head, letting her hair fall around her shoulders. "Your eyes, you've been crying." Robin gently lifted her chin up so she could see his face, and he brushed her hair away from her eyes. Starfire sniffled and rushed at Robin, burying herself in his embrace. Robin held her tightly as she sobbed. He rubbed her back, trying to calm her, and he felt her lips on his ear. "Robin," she whispered, "please do not leave me."
Robin pulled back and looked into her eyes. "I'll never leave you, Star. I promise." Starfire threw her arms around Robin's neck, clinging to him. "Oh, Robin...," she cooed in delight. Robin chuckled and kissed her on the cheek. "You ready to go back to sleep now?"
She pulled back slightly, allowing him to see her nod. She snuggled into him until he carefully picked her up, then she buried her face into his neck. He reached her room and quietly opened the door. Robin walked over to the bed, and gently laid her down. She peered up at him through half closed eyes, and smiled. He pulled the covers up to her chin and leaned down, gently kissing her on the top of her head. Starfire sighed happily, and burrowed deeper under the covers. Robin looked over his shoulder at her sleeping form one last time before slipping out of her room.