Touch of Fear
Robin flinched away slightly as Batman approached, but he forced himself to hold his ground. Although his mentor wasn't under the Light's control, Robin's mind was screaming at him to retreat, to hide until he was strong enough to fight again, but he forced himself to remain still as Batman enveloped him in a warm hug. It was so rare for the Dark Knight to show any emotion that Robin knew that his adoptive father wanted to reconcile things quickly, before they got any worse.
"I'm so sorry." The voice in Robin's ear wasn't that of Batman, but of Bruce Wayne.
Robin wanted to respond, wanted to say 'I forgive you,' but the shock of the night's events was still too great. Instead, he gently pulled away from the hug and retreated into a corner, where he sat with his knees drawn up to his chest. It was nearing three in the morning, and Robin couldn't remember a time when he had been so mentally and physically exhausted. The fight with Batman and Superman had taken more out of him than usual, and having to keep his emotions at bay for the last three hours while he worked with the man who had just tried to kill him had been too much. At this point, he couldn't be sure of anything—he wasn't even sure if his kiss with Zatanna at midnight had been real.
Robin crossed his arms over his knees and buried his face in his arms. Tears were threatening to spill over, but he fought to keep them back. He was Robin, the Boy Wonder. Robin didn't cry. That was something he taught himself after he learned that Batman never showed emotion. Robin was the light to Batman's dark and therefore didn't cry. But would there even be a Batman and Robin after tonight?
The thought brought the threat of more tears, and Robin finally had no choice but to expel them from his body. His shoulders began to shake and his breathing came in short spurts and gasps. Everything was just too much right now, and the emotion was forcing its way to the surface unbidden.
A large, comforting hand rested on his shoulder. "Are you alright, Dick?"
Robin shrank away from the words of comfort and tried, in a panic, to escape around the Kryptonian. Superman's arms instantly loosened enough for Robin to slip through them and turn to stare warily at his pseudo-uncle. Superman remained motionless in the corner.
Robin assessed the situation briefly before hurling himself into Superman's arms. "I'm scared Uncle Clark." He knew he wasn't supposed to use civilian identities in the Watchtower, but he couldn't help himself.
Superman massaged gentle circles into Robin's back, soothing some of the physical pain left by the fight. "Everything will be alright." His voice was soft, comforting.
"But I'm afraid of him," Robin protested. "I'm not supposed to be afraid of my own father!"
"No, you're not," Superman agreed. "And I know for a fact he feels horrible about hurting you and wants to reconcile things as soon as you're ready."
"I'm not ready," Robin told him honestly. "But I want to see Batman. The longer I let this sit, the harder things will be."
"Are you sure?" Superman asked, a touch of uncertainty coloring his deep, steady voice.
Robin nodded, not trusting his mouth to agree with his brain. Truthfully, he was in no way ready to face Batman—Robin wasn't to be as far away from him as possible—but if things weren't mended soon, Robin would regret it for years. But no matter what words or gestures passed between them, one thing would remain for the weeks, perhaps even months, to come: the touch of fear.
There you go! A one-shot I wrote a few weeks ago that sat in my notebook forever until I remembered it. Please let me know what you think by leaving me a review or two! It would be greatly appreciated! Thanks for reading!
~Red~