Okay. Fair warning, it has been a LONG time since I've written fanfiction. But TheImaginativeFox's fic 'This Cage of Glass' inspired me! Let's get to it.
Dick wasn't expecting the call to the principal's office. School had barely started and the only person he'd even talked to that morning was Barbara, so how could he be in trouble already? But he sighed and packed up his backpack, shoving folders and pencils inside, before getting up and heading to the main office.
The hallways were quiet, with a few lingering students rummaging through lockers and making their way to class. He dragged his feet a bit, prolonging the inevitable, but finally he found himself nodding to the principal's secretary as she gestured for him to proceed inside. Dick knocked on the door before opening it and moving forward to stand in front of the principal.
The man looked rather stressed; as Dick entered he was pushing papers aside on his desk as though looking for something. But when he noticed Dick, he looked up. "Ah, Richard, thank you for coming. Will you please have a seat?"
Weird. That didn't sound like a disappointed tone. Maybe he wasn't in trouble after all? He didn't make a habit of it - just the occasional bully that stepped over a line and paid the price. But that hadn't happened in a while.
"Now, Richard, I'm very sorry to be the one to break the news to you, but your fa- er, your guardian is on his way to pull you out of school. I'm afraid there's been an accident."
Dick's heart stopped. That could mean anything. An accident? It could be anything from "the mansion has burned down" to "the world is being taken over by aliens, suit up." But if that were the case, Alfred would probably be picking him up, since Batman would be needed. His mind was racing. But the principal was still talking, so he forced himself to refocus.
"...received a call that a family member was in a serious car accident. I'm sorry Richard, but those are all the details I have."
"...an accident?" Dick repeated, staring at him.
"Yes, that's right. Mr. Wayne should be here very soon to pick you up. Would you please stay in the office until he arrives?"
Dick nodded silently, feeling detached as he got up from the chair. A family member. A car accident. Those phrases could mean a lot of different things. A family member likely meant a member of the league or the team. Probably the team, and probably a serious injury if Bruce was pulling him out of school. The car accident - again, could be anything. The team wasn't scheduled for any missions this week, and if they were he would have been on it with them anyway. So it must have been something outside of a mission. Maybe a baddie had attacked the Flashes. This early in the morning? Dick thought. He was missing something. And he had to know what was going on.
He checked his phone, but he hadn't received any texts. His communicator hadn't alerted either. He was about to text Wally to see if he knew what was going on when the office door swung open.
Dick stood quickly, walking over to meet his guardian. "Bruce, what-"
But Bruce raised a hand, stopping him. "Hold on, Dick, we'll talk about it in the car."
He almost groaned, but the tension in his body wouldn't let him. Bruce signed him out of school quickly, and then they were walking towards the car.
The second they got in Dick was talking. "What happened? The principal said a family member was in a car crash but what actually happened? Bruce I'm dying here, is everyone okay?"
Bruce's silence was telling. It told Dick more than he wanted to know.
"Bruce!" he cried, swiveling in his seat to stare angrily at the man.
"Dick... " Bruce sighed, pulling out of the lot onto the street. "Before you freak out, the situation is as stable as it can be."
"What is the situation?"
"On their way to school this morning, Wallace and his mother got in a car accident."
Dick fell back against the hard leather. "...you're kidding. It actually was a car accident?"
"Mary West is at Central City Memorial Hospital. She has a few broken bones and a mild concussion, but she is expected to make a full recovery. Wallace was taken to the Watchtower for medical attention due to his status as a metahuman."
"And… is Wally okay?"
"It's unclear right now. He received extensive damage in the crash, and because his injuries healed before they were set properly, he is currently undergoing a complicated surgery. He should be fine - Dr. Mid-Nite is an excellent doctor, and Leslie is on her way there as we speak."
Dick was unbelievably frustrated. This was his best friend they were talking about. Why couldn't Bruce just be straightforward? "So if he should be fine, why is it unclear?"
Silence. Again. Of course.
He couldn't believe this. Wally West, Kid Flash, in a car crash. A bad one, from the sound of it. A car crash. He knew that they were common, but… it was hard to believe. It seemed impossible. And yet, here they were, driving toward the manor where they would undoubtedly zeta to the Watchtower, where Dick would probably be sitting outside of an emergency room for hours waiting to find out if his best friend would be okay. His best friend.
This wasn't happening.
He had had enough of the silence. "Bruce. Talk to me."
"It's possible he may have sustained minor brain damage. But it will be impossible to know until he wakes up."
Ah. Maybe silence was better after all.
The next half hour passed at what felt like superspeed to him. He couldn't stop the disbelief from taking over. He was in the Watchtower, wearing his civvies and shades. He'd had just enough time to throw on some clothes other than his school uniform before he and Batman zeta'd up.
Dick led the way as they weaved through the satellite towards the med wing, and he knew immediately which room Wally was in. It was kind of hard to miss the bright red, clearly agitated speedster pacing back and forth outside of it.
"Flash." Batman greeted the man. The Flash barely seemed to notice them. He was lost in his own world. Dick could relate. It was hard to stay grounded when all his brain wanted to do was float up to space and stop thinking about reality. Although, now that he actually was in space maybe it could stay snug inside his skull where it belonged.
Dick looked back and forth between the door and the speedster. "Barry, what's going on? Is he going to be okay? Do they know yet?"
Flash finally stopped pacing and stared at him. "Oh. Hi Robin, Batman." He looked at the door again. "I haven't heard anything new."
There was a moment of silence.
"Maybe no news is good news?" Dick said quietly, hopefully.
Barry sighed and nodded. "Maybe, kiddo. He's strong. He'll pull through." And then he returned to pacing.
Dick ended up sitting on a chair outside the room for hours, just as he'd predicted. Batman had left after an hour, citing important business and telling Dick to keep in contact. He and Barry got periodic updates from Leslie, who had gotten there before them. But while he waited, he had far too much time to think.
He thought about the chairs in the hallway, that had been there since the hospital wing was installed, and how many other heroes had sat in the same spot as he did for just as long as he had, if not longer. Waiting to hear news about their friends and family and loved ones.
Family. Bruce had told him it was a family member in the accident. And while it was a typical code for letting him know someone was in trouble without tipping off others, it struck him in that moment that Wally really did feel like family. In-between school and homework and hero work, almost all of his free time was spent with Wally, either at one of their homes or at the cave. They'd known each other since Dick was 10 and Wally 12, so it had been almost 4 years now. And while they bickered over minor things every once in a while, they had never come close to losing their friendship. Working together on a team had brought them much closer.
Suddenly, Dick was angry at Wally. He was a superhero, a speedster. Why had he not seen the crash coming? Why hadn't he gotten himself and his mom out of the car before the crash could happen? Why did he have to get seriously injured so early in the goddamn morning? And why was the surgery taking so long.
He'd been up here for hours, wasn't that a long time for surgery to take? Too long? Something must have gone wrong in there.
Lightning fast images of Wally flatlining and doctors yelling and blood everywhere flashed through his mind.
But Dick knew it wasn't the case. Leslie had reassured them that the surgery was going well, but because of Wally's superhealing, they had to be careful and precise and take their time. It made perfect sense, but Dick wasn't exactly thinking logically. He was scared.
He was scared.
Of losing his best friend.
Oh god, what if he'd lost his best friend? What if Wally had died in the crash and they had been too late and he'd never see him again-
No. Wally was going to recover. He had to. Dick had to believe it.
And so, Dick waited.
It was early afternoon by the time Dr. Mid-Nite and Dr. Thompkins had finished the surgery. Barry was on his feet in a flash, demanding to know if his nephew would be okay. Leslie raised her hands placatingly.
"He'll recover just fine from the surgery. It went exceptionally well. But like we've already told you, we won't know if he experienced any brain damage until after he wakes up and we can talk to him."
"When will he wake up?"
"It'll be a day at the earliest. We'll keep him sedated to give his body a chance to recover. Go home and rest, Flash. You too, Robin."
Barry shook his head resolutely and stepped around Leslie to enter the room. Unsure if he would be welcome, Dick followed him in slowly, taking in the sight of the boy under the white sheets in a room with pristine walls and an unpleasant scent.
Wally West was pale, which made his freckles stand out almost comically. It was wrong to see him so still, so colorless. He should have been cracking jokes and flirting with his doctor. But at least Dick could see his chest rising and falling. That was good. It meant he was alive. And here, in front of him.
Barry was standing next to his nephew, gently holding his hand and murmuring something.
Dick felt frozen in place, unable to move closer or leave.
Eventually Barry looked up at him and gave him a soft smile. "Dick, come sit down," he gestured to one of the chairs next to the bed. "Do you want to stay here for a bit or head home?"
"Stay here," he muttered, sitting down gingerly, as if a loud noise would wake Wally up.
Barry nodded. "Make sure you tell Batman," and settled down next to him.
Dick didn't realize he'd fallen asleep until Batman was gently shaking his shoulder. He blinked blearily, staring up at his mentor. "What time issit?" he slurred, stretching.
"Late." His words lacked their usual growl. "Let's go."
Dick stood but lingered, staring at Wally. He seemed a bit less pale, but was still fast asleep. Nothing would happen to him here, orbiting hundreds of miles away from the earth. He was safe.
But he should have been safe in his civilian life, too.
He shook the thought away, and turned to follow Batman out of the tower.
It wasn't until after he had gotten home, eaten dinner, and gotten into bed that he let himself reflect on his day. And boy, had it been a day.
He wondered how Wally's mom was doing - he was ashamed to realize he'd forgotten about her in the shock of Wally's state. Bruce had said her injuries weren't as bad though, so Dick hoped she would be fine. He also wondered where Wally's dad was. Most likely with his wife. But he had to know that Wally was in the Watchtower, so he probably thought he was safe enough. That must have been why he didn't come visit. Batman or another leaguer would have taken him up, if he'd wanted to come.
His thoughts turned back to Wally. Everyone was confident that he would recover from the physical injuries. But what if he wasn't the same when he woke up? What if he never woke up?
Dick's eyes shot open. No. He had to wake up. He was just sedated right now, and once the sedatives were taken out of his system he would be fine. He would wake up.
But what if he didn't? What would Dick do without him?
No more squashing each other in video games, no more laughing over stupid movies together, no more partnering up on missions and kicking bad guy butt.
Dick was seized with fear, all the 'what if's' whirling around his mind like a hurricane. He couldn't lose Wally, he wouldn't, it wasn't possible. It wasn't going to happen. Wally was going to be fine, Dick would talk to him tomorrow when he woke up, and everything would go back to normal. Dick could go back to kicking Wally's ass in Mario Kart. He wasn't going to take it easy on him just because he had a few injuries. No way.
Eventually, his thoughts slowed down, and his eyelids grew heavy. Sleeping in a chair in a hospital hadn't exactly been the most restful nap he'd ever had. But this night wasn't shaping up to be very restful either.
Dick had taken the day off of school. He was sitting next to Wally's bed, where he'd been for the past few hours. He wasn't quite as detached as he had been yesterday, and though he was worried about what would happen when Wally woke up, he was eager for the sedatives to wear off so he could talk to his friend.
He was messing around on his Switch, switching between playing Splatoon and Zelda. He had one earbud in, and was half paying attention to the other occupants of the room. Dr. Mid-Nite was there, checking up on Wally to make sure everything was normal, and begin weaning him off the drugs. And Barry was sitting next to him, texting someone. Probably Iris, or Wally's parents.
Dr. Mid-Nite had declared him ready to come off the sedatives, and with Wally's metabolism, they could expect him to be waking up within an hour or so. But it could be longer, he told them. So Dick settled down to find more Korok seeds and continued to wait.
Of course Wally began stirring after Barry had left to get some food. Dick turned off his game immediately, staring at the older teen. "Wally?"
His eyelids were twitching, but not open. It sounded like he was muttering something. Dick got up and stepped softly over to the bed, ears straining to hear what he was saying.
"Mom…"
Oh. Dick winced slightly. Wally probably wouldn't know if his mom was safe, if he'd been unconscious since the crash. "She's okay, dude. She's in better shape than you were, anyway."
Vibrant green eyes met his own. "Dick?"
"The one and only," Dick grinned. Had he been concerned that his friend wouldn't recognize him because of brain damage? No, of course not, that was dumb.
Wally was looking around the room. "I… the car… Mom!" He jolted up, eyes wide. Dick managed to get him to stop moving before he disconnected his IV.
"Whoah, dude, hang on! She's fine, she's at Central City Memorial. With your dad, I assume."
Wally deflated, looking unconvinced. "Are you sure? I couldn't see her… and then-" He cut himself off, shivering.
"She's fine, Wally, I promise. We should call Dr. Mid-Nite in to take a look at you now that you're awake, though."
The doctor arrived promptly after Dick pressed the call button. It wasn't as if there were any other patients here that needed his attention, after all. He spent a few minutes asking Wally basic questions and doing some tests. Wally looked tired, though, so when Mid-Nite was done, Dick let him drift off again.
Barry arrived soon after Mid-Nite left. "He woke up? Why didn't you call me? What did he say?"
Dick glared at him and raised a finger to his lips, gesturing at the sleeping redhead. "Sorry Barry, I was too distracted," he whispered. "And I figured Mid-Nite should look over him. He asked about his mom. Is she…?"
"She's fine, she was released from the hospital earlier today."
"Will his parents come up to the Watchtower?"
Barry shrugged. "I think they're content to get updates from me and know that he'll be home soon. I don't think they're too keen on going into space."
Dick frowned at this. They were his parents, they shouldn't care about that. Their son could have died.
But there was nothing he could do about Wally's parents right now. At least he and Barry were there. Wally wouldn't be alone or anything when he woke up again.
It was late in the evening before Wally began to wake up again. Dick sat back and let Barry talk to him; the older speedster seemed relieved to finally hear his partner's voice. They talked for a bit before Barry asked if he would be okay if he left to eat dinner with Iris, and Wally nodded
"No problemo, Dick can keep me company."
Dick gave a small smile and a wave. "You'll be begging to be rid of me before long, Walmart."
"Hey! Take that back! You'll be begging to get rid of me, birdbrain."
Dick smirked. "You can go Barry, we'll be fine."
Barry smiled at the two of them and said goodbye, and Dick glanced back to Wally. "So… You feeling up for me to kick your butt on Rainbow Road?"
Wally rolled his eyes. "Anytime, anywhere." He patted the bed, scooching over to give Dick room. Dick clambered up, leaning against Wally's warm body as he set up the game.
"Hey, Wally?" he began as they were customizing their cars.
"Yeah dude?"
"I'm glad you're okay."
Some things:
I wrote this in a frenzy last night when inspiration just kind of took over control of my hands. When I went to finish it today I had to force myself to write. So the ending is probably not great! But I did this for fun, so I'm okay with that.
This was somewhat inspired by some events in my life, but obviously mushed to fit the characters and the universe. I initially intended for this to be more birdflash-y, and it didn't really end up turning out that way. Oh well.
- Kes