Behind the Smile
Richard John Grayson, the golden boy. He was the glue that held the Bat Family together. He was the one that everyone could turn to when they had a problem. Hell, even Bruce and Alfred came to him. He had been there pretty much since that start. Bruce had only been Batman a few years before Dick came into the picture as Robin.
Bruce could relate to the first Robin. Not only had they both lost their parents to murder, they had been there and witness it. It was because of that fact Bruce allowed Dick to become his sidekick, which involved into a partnership, then to where they were a family. Dick was his first son, though Bruce didn't official adopt him until after the male was already an adult. All those years of being his ward, the reason Bruce never actually adopted him was because he didn't want to repeat John and Mary Grayson.
When Dick became Nightwing, their family grew but one. Jason Todd, the second boy wonder. Jason had looked up to the first, wanting his approval as much as Bruce's, maybe even more. He was there when Jason needed advice, needed anything. It had destroyed Dick when Jason had died, he was destroyed when Jason came back and was so different from before. But even after that, Jason still turned to Dick when things got out of hand, knowing that his older brother was always there for him.
The family grew again when Tim Drake took up the mantle of Robin. Tim had looked up to Dick since childhood. He was a fan since the Flying Graysons days, and he remained one while he was Robin. He would come to Dick about relationships and about Bruce, seeing as he had grown colder over the years due to all that had happened. Just like Jason, Tim could count on Dick to be there for him.
Now the family wasn't just male. The first female member was Barbara Gordon, the first Batgirl. It started out rough for Barbara and Dick, they were always attacking each other with passion, until that passion turned into just passion. They grew up together, fallen in love and made love. Barbara told Dick everything, even after they had broken up and she began to feel things for Bruce. They had been together too long for them to go their separate ways.
The second Batgirl, Cassandra Cain, didn't speak much. She wasn't mute, just lacked the skill. But her actions spoke volumes, and Dick seemed to be the only one to understand. He helped Alfred with her lessons to speak along with other things, but she still preferred to be quiet. And Dick still understood.
Now the third Batgirl and fourth Robin, Stephanie Brown, was much more like himself. That girl knew how to smile past the pain. She knew what she was doing and what she was doing it for. But that didn't mean she didn't have times that she couldn't turn to Tim for. That's where the golden boy stepped in. He helped her through things that he had to help himself. He was there through the break up. He was never leaving.
The final addition was the demon child himself, Damian al Ghul Wayne, the fifth Robin and so unlike the rest of them. Dick was actually the one to give him the mantle of Robin while he was wearing the cowl. Though Damian would never admit it, Dick had became the father that Bruce could never be. He was the brother that neither Tim or Jason could be. Even though Damian said otherwise, there was nothing wrong with Dick Grayson; the man who taught the child of loathe to love.
To the family's butler, Alfred Pennyworth, Dick was highly thought of. The first ward of Bruce Wayne had treated Alfred like a beloved family member, not a Butler. In many ways, Alfred felt as if he were a grandfather to the boy. Dick would listen to his stories of his past, help him out with the choruses and the other family members.
The one thing the whole Bat Family loved about Dick Grayson was his smile. His overly happy, slightly goofy, smile. It was usually on the male's lips, even in the darkest of times. He was their ray of light. He was the golden boy.
But there was a side that they never truly saw. The darker side to the golden boy. The side that was there when he would actually be deadly serious. The side that was there when he got into an argument. The side that was there when he left Bruce on worse than bad terms. The side that was there when Jason was killed. The side that everyone saw, but never paid attention to.
No one was there for Dick. He was alone in his dark world. He tried reaching out, but they weren't paying attention to his needs. It got to the point where Dick couldn't burden them with his problems. He kept his dark side under lock and key for years. But it kept building up. Slowly taking of his life.
The Bat Family didn't noticed. They didn't notice the scars that weren't from battles. They didn't notice the carelessness with who he slept with. They didn't notice how his life style got messier. There were so many signs, and they didn't notice. And it just wasn't the Bat Family. The Titans didn't noticed either. Everyone that was close to him, they didn't noticed.
They didn't even realize the signs when Dick disappeared from their lives completely. He left just after Damian turned eleven. Just after he turned eleven. It hit midnight, it wasn't Damian's birthday anymore and Dick was gone. He was out of Gotham, no where to be found in Blüdhaven. Bruce couldn't find a trace of him anywhere. The Titans couldn't find him. No one could, and that's just how he wanted it.