Disclaimer: I do not nor ever will own Teen Titans!

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Just Jealousy: One shot-Paying Prices

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A high pitch giggle erupted through out the room as Raven read, her grip tightening around the edged of the book until her knuckles were white. Although she tried to keep her dark eyes trained on the words in front of her as she waited for the kettle to boil, their chortles kept breaking through her concentration.

Normally, it wouldn't be a bother to her. Starfire's laugh always struck Raven as innocent, and it was almost comforting to hear because of herself being so dark. It was a nice change from the depressing thoughts inside her head. The red head beauty was naïve and always found the best in things. But no matter how hard Raven tried… she just couldn't find the best in this.

A movie played on their large television as the rest of the team ate together on the couch. Although Cyborg and Beast Boy continuously fought over the remote, Starfire and Robin sat curled up on the couch together, planting kisses on each others faces and whispering back and forth. Even though Robin's mask was on, Starfire was so incredibly close Raven could bet she was staring straight into his eyes. The eyes she never actually got to see.

With that thought, a feeling Raven wasn't foreign to burned in her chest and the tea cup she had set out blew up into shards of glass, gaining the team's attention. Although she was no where near the cup and a book was still clamped in her hands, she simply said, "I dropped it." She spoke bluntly, leaving it as she set down her book and went to grab another.

The team glanced at each other before deciding to ignore it, and the four turned back to their previous activities. Raven losing control every now and then wasn't a new thing to them. Unfortunately, Raven didn't even have the book hiding her face from the view anymore as she opened the cupboard, allowing her eyes the full view of Robin and Starfire.

Her chest lit aflame and jealously blazed in her stomach. Luckily, before anything else blew up, the kettle boiled and she quickly set to work on finishing her tea, trying to use it as a distraction. But her heart still ached. Her heart still hurt.

She couldn't understand it. She couldn't understand it one bit. Why did seeing them like that bother her so much? She wasn't in love with Robin. She couldn't be. They were just friends. Besides, even if she was, and she refused to admit it, would it even matter? Him and Starfire have been in love since they first met. She was nothing more than the uncontrollable teammate.

…But as much as she wanted to believe that, that her and Robin were nothing but teammates, she couldn't. He had always been there for her, and she was the only one he talked openly to also. He traveled to Hell for her and he trusted her even when they discovered the Prophecy. Raven had never let her heart freely love before, but she couldn't help it when it came to him.

Another giggle met her ears, and Raven felt like she wanted to scream. This time, the kettle exploded into a mess of molted metal, but she didn't turn to meet the reactions of her other teammates. She simply just carried it to the trashcan and went back to her steaming cup of tea.

After a moment of silence, everything in the room slowly became comfortable again, but the awkwardness still hung in the air.

"Ew guys!" Beast Boy whined, looking over at Starfire and Robin once Cyborg had won the battle for the remote, "Puh-lease get a room!" He squealed, childishly pushing a hand over his eyes.

"Seriously!" Cyborg agreed, but his tone leaned more towards the joking side also, "Don't do it in front of us." He laughed.

Raven wished she could speak up too, even if she said it in a light and teasing tone. But Raven wasn't any of those things. She wasn't friendly or kind, nor was she even pleasant. She was everything Starfire wasn't; her complete opposite. She wasn't anybody anyone wanted to be around.

Sometimes she wanted nothing more than to let all of her emotions out, so she could feel like a normal person; so she could show everyone that she could act nice too. Unfortunately, everything she felt to an extent wouldn't allow her to control her power. She was stuck as cold and uncaring, and she didn't have any ability to fix it. Her heritage and abilities didn't allow her to.

Sighing, Raven raised the tea cup to her lips and sipped at the hot tea. She didn't like feeling like this. She didn't like feeling useless. She hadn't felt this way before... But before what? And what did she even feel?

Shutting her eyes, Raven let her brain wander, trying to figure out what was wrong with herself. The ugly rampage of jealousy continued to run through her mind, and she could feel her blood rushing through her veins. Anger resided in her stomach because she realized that she was in love with Robin too.

Snapping her eyes open, Raven froze in shock as her head processed what she had just thought. And before she let herself fully believe, she began thinking of excuses. It was because of their physic link. It had to be. Why else would Raven be jealous of Robin being with Starfire? Why else would she feel like she loved him? She wasn't attracted to him before that connection was made… Was she?

She wanted to shake her head no. She wanted to tell herself that it wasn't her fault. She wanted to think that meditation and cleansing her emotions would calm her down and that she'd soon be happy for Robin and Starfire like everyone else.

…But she couldn't.

She had always had a soft spot for Robin. He had always been there for her. He had always helped her control her powers. Even when she didn't believe in herself, he'd be there to support her. But he wasn't anymore. He was with Starfire and every waking moment they spent together. And even though it wasn't Starfire's fault, Raven couldn't stop the bitterness in her chest that she resided against her. Or maybe it was just bitterness in general.

Much to her shock, tears welled up in her eyes, and she quickly turned and hurried back to her room. Once she was in the safety of her own headquarters, Raven leaned against the door and slid down until her knees were pressed to her chest, and her arms were wrapped around her shins. The tears continued to spill over and streak across her face as she cried into her thighs, not knowing what to do. She had never been at war with herself over something so silly before. It was something she never wanted to feel.

"Oh Azra." She whispered to herself, "Help me." Her voice cracked, her tone soft and weak. A knock at her door sounded, the metal vibrating against her back, and her hopes shot up way to fast.

"Rae?" She heard the deep rumble of Cyborg's voice, causing disappointment to fill her, "You okay? You've been acting weird lately…" He trailed off uncertainly.

Normally it would've been Robin coming after her. Normally it would've been him she would've confided in. She knew about his past, and he knew about hers, and it was something that brought them closer. Something that made her love him more. Something that was gone.

She cleared her throat, "Yeah." She responded, "I'm fine." She said, waiting until she heard his footsteps wander back down from the hall until her body relaxed again.

But she wasn't sure she ever could be 'fine' ever again. Her heart had finally learned what it meant to truly love, but it came with a price.

The price of not being loved back.

A/N: Why am I constantly writing sad stories? *sigh* Anyways, here's a one shot for one of my favorite ships! I feel like this is what Raven's view would be like after the whole Trouble in Tokyo thing. Well, thanks for reading and please review!