Disclaimer: I don't own anything and I'm too poor to buy it.
"Speech"; 'Thought'; Narration. We'll get along fine.
Mistress of Suspense
It was one of those times when the Titans actually felt like they could relax. In the past few weeks it seemed as if every villain in the city had been attacking. Now that most of them were locked up, the Titans had some time to kill until someone broke out. It should have been a peaceful time but, then again, these were five teenagers.
Raven walked through the doors into the common room to read. She preferred reading in her room but wanted to at least seem a little social. She normally didn't care what others thought, but Starfire burst into her room the other day and gave her the 'You should not lose the day in your room, Friend Raven' speech… again. She knew it would be futile to find the common room quite, for where there was a TV, there was a Beastboy watching TV. Sure enough, there he was, in the same spot he was in twelve hours ago. Apparently he and Cyborg had just finished watching a movie.
"That was gay, Beastboy."
"No, it was cool!"
"No, man, I mean literally gay!"
"No! It was only meant to look that way- HEY RAVEN!"
"If you say so, man." Cyborg said, as he got up and left.
"What were you two talking about?" Raven asked, sitting on the couch.
"Well, there's an Alfred Hitchcock marathon on and we just watched Strangers on a Train."
Raven raised an eyebrow, not following at all.
"There is a subtly implied relationship between the two main guys, but there isn't."
"Oh." She said, opening her book.
"Hitchcock was the Master of Suspense," he continued, "and one of the most brilliant filmmakers of all time."
"Ah."
"But that doesn't mean he didn't know his way around a Rear Window." He said, laughing.
She slammed her book shut and glared at him, "Not. Funny."
"Huh? Wha- um, sorry?" 'What's she so angry for?' "Oh., I get it."
"What?"
"You're angry because I made a little joke about a supposed horror director."
"Wasn't he?" She asked, calming down a little.
"He was actually more of a spy/espionage kind of guy. Most people only know him because of Psycho, though.
Raven blinked. 'Does Beastboy sound cultured?'
"He also did a lot of crime-drama too. Any genre was fine as long as he could build up a moment for a huge shock. Instead of a plain, old, boring shock."
"What do you mean?" Raven was actually becoming intrigued by what Beastboy was saying.
"It's kind of like comparing the new and old Halloween.The new one was all surprise: Michael busts outta a wall, kills someone and moves on. In the old one, he hides in the shadows most of the movie, and that makes each killing more surprising."
"I guess that makes sense." "Is Beastboy acting… smart? Is this some kind of dream?'
"Beyond a Shadow of a Doubt. Ha ha, and that's up next."
"What?"
"Shadow of a Doubt is on next, wanna watch?" He asked with a gleam of hope in his eyes.
"I don't know." She said cautiously.
"C'mon! It's no Psycho, but it's pretty dark crime-drama." He said begging. "Please!"
"Alright! Alright! Just get off your knees already."
"COOL!" He jumped back on the couch and patted the seat next to him.
She rolled her eyes and sat next to him. He gave a toothy grin and turned back to the TV. She noticed that he gave her a quick side glance and he began to blush as he turned back. She blushed a little too and gave an inward sigh. 'This is exactly the kind of situation I've been hoping to avoid with Beastboy.'
As Raven watched, she realized that she was actually enjoying a movie that Beasboy had picked. She didn't even realize how much the shadows and the darkness were manipulated until mentioned it to her. Her favorite part was the neighbor and his murder discussions with the father. By the end of the movie, she actually thought of taking a look into some other Hitchcock films.
"Soooooooo, watcha think?"
"That was… cool." She said, with a smile.
He blushed and smiled back. 'It's a miracle when she smiles.'
"So that thing between the niece and uncle was another one of those 'Implied Relationships' right?"
"Yep, you're getting good at this. Ya know, now and then I'd actually like to see a 'strange couple' work out."
"Like an uncle and his niece?"
"Wha- NO! Nothing perverted like that." He said quickly.
"Then like what?" She asked as her heart started pounding.
"Oh, I don't know." He said blushing madly. "Maybe a dark girl and a goofy guy?"
"Oh." She looked down, feeling scared.
……………
"Why are we doing this, dear friends?" Starfire asked.
"Because, we wanna see if BB messes this up." Cyborg hissed.
"But why are we watching from the room of monitors?"
"So Raven can't sense us watching them." Robin stated, staring at the screen.
"But, if our friends have the 'feelings of affection,' why do they not show it and leap into each others arms?"
"Cuz BB's slow and raven hates showing emotion. Why won't she say anything? It's not like those two aren't obvious and he looks like he's gonna have a heart attack."
Robin gave a smile, "'High suspense leading to a surprise ending'- maybe she's playing Hitchcock."
"Playing the Hitchcock?"
"We'll explain later. But, man. If she's doing that, than I'll buy her the title 'Mistress of Suspense.'"
"Hmmmmmm." Robin began rubbing his chin, "Let's see."
……………
"So… that's how you feel Beastboy?" Raven asked.
"Yeah." He said looking away.
"Beastboy, we can't."
"Why not?" He asked desperately.
"Well…there's one problem."
"Is it your powers?"
"Beastboy."
"Because you've gained more control!"
"It's not it."
"Cuz we're on the same team?"
"No, that's-"
"Andwewouldn'tbeabletoworktogetherifitdidn'tworkout? Cuz that's no-"
"BEASTBOY!" She shouted, as a lamp broke. She was starting to feel that old feeling of Beastboy Irritation. She took a deep breath, trying to compose herself. "It's none of those things, really."
"So then it's me that's the problem." He said sadly as his ears drooped.
Raven sighed, "Beastboy, you're brave, you're funny and you're attractive. Any girl would be thrilled to have you ask her out."
"But not you?"
"I'm sorry but it would never work."
"WHY NOT?" He souted angrily. "Do you not like me at all?"
"I like you as a friend, Beastboy." 'This is not going to end well.'
"Can't we try though? I promise to be a good sport if it doesn't work out." He said gaining a little confidence back.
"I… should go." She said turning to leave. 'I mustn't hurt him like this. Has he been randomly going though the stages of dying? The only two left are Acceptance and-'
She felt him grab her arm and spin her around to face him. "There isn't a problem that we couldn't work out." He said firmly.
'Denial. He nailed it after all.' He began to lean forward and Raven blushed. 'Is he going to-' She used her powers to phase behind him before their lips could meet and Beastboy gasped as he fell to the floor.
"Ugh. You're killing me, Raven. What's this 'problem' we can't solve?"
"Well, you did show a lot of courage by revealing your true feelings. So I guess you deserve a proper reason."
"And, after you tell me, could I at least have the chance to find a solution?" He asked getting up.
"I'm sorry, Beastboy, but I'm afraid there's nothing you can really do."
"Why not?"
"Because I'm gay."