Author's Note: This was a request on my tumblr, and I love writing fluffy stuff, so here we are again! I hope you enjoy it!
If you want to request something, feel free to stop by my tumblr inbox! My handle there is LizzySong, and I always have Anonymous on so if you're shy, don't worry!
She didn't make a habit of going to Wayne Enterprises events, not because it was hard to get in (she fit in perfectly when she wore one of Barbara's fancy — and uncomfortable — dresses), but because she found the whole thing rather boring. However, these events were always full of easy marks, so when she ways running low on funds, she made a point of going.
She had been there from the start, hitting several marks within the first half-hour, so there was really no reason to stay this long, except for the fact that she couldn't stop watching Bruce.
He hadn't noticed her, but she'd been keeping an eye on him since she'd arrived. Something was... off about him, but she couldn't quite place her finger on what it was. He was mingling and making small talk with people — because he had to, she thought, not because he actually wanted to — and to anyone who didn't know him, he would've seemed completely normal. ...But she did know him, and he certainly wasn't himself.
It became obvious to her, however, when he made his speech, just what was wrong with him.
He was doing his best to hide it, but he looked and sounded miserable. His voice was rough, as if he had swallowed sandpaper, and there was a distinct sheen of sweat covering his forehead by the time he had finished speaking.
No one else seemed to have noticed this, however; or if they had, they were too polite to say anything.
Selina rolled her eyes and made her way over to the young man, thinking that if nobody else was going to do anything about this, then she would.
"Alfred let you leave the house like this?" she asked, coming up behind him and placing a hand on his shoulder, noting that even through his jacket she could feel the heat that he was radiating.
Bruce jumped slightly in surprise and turned to face the young woman. "Selina?" he asked, and she could see that despite his surprise, he was relieved to see her, "What are you doing here?"
"I was running low on cash," she said, holding up a small purse that was filled with jewelry, watches, cuff-links, and anything else she found that seemed like it might be valuable.
Bruce gave her a disapproving look, though it was made significantly less effective when he suddenly turned away from her and sneezed into the crook of his elbow. He did his best to stifle it, but still earned a few looks from the crowd — some sympathetic, others disapproving, but he ignored them.
"You should go home, Bruce," Selina said, her tone changing from one of indifference to one of concern, "Where's Alfred? I'll go get him."
"I'm fine; and Alfred isn't here, anyway."
"Where is he?"
"Visiting someone in England — a friend, I think — I told him he should go."
Selina sighed, Alfred was the only other person who could talk sense into Bruce and she could've used his help now. "You know, it's just gonna make more work for him if he comes back and has to take you to the hospital 'cause you don't take care of yourself."
"I'm fine, Selina," Bruce said, irritation clear in his hoarse, congested voice, "It's just a cold, and I am perfectly capable of caring for myself."
Selina thought for a moment before making a decision and grabbing the young man's arm. "Let's go," she said pulling him towards the exit.
"No, Selina, I can't. I have to stay an—"
"—You gave a speech and talked to people. You did what they expected you to; nobody's gonna get mad that you left. Especially since you're the richest person in Gotham."
Bruce hesitated for a moment, caught between the obligation to stay, and the fact that he wanted nothing more than to go home and collapse into his bed. Finally he nodded slightly in response and allowed himself to be dragged out of the building.
They made it to the young man's car after several minutes of walking and he pulled his keys out of his jacket pocket, which Selina grabbed from him.
"What are you doing?" he asked in confusion.
"I'm driving — you're too sick."
"...Do you actually know how to drive?"
Selina shrugged and unlocked the doors, "I know enough. Now get in, it's freezing out here."
They were on the road for some time — Selina driving and Bruce sitting in the passenger seat, trying not to focus on Selina's driving — before Bruce realized they were heading in the opposite direction of his home. "...Wait, where are you going?" he asked, looking over at her.
"What, you thought I was gonna leave you alone at your place like this?"
She gestured at him and he took her hand, leaning over and placing it back on the steering-wheel with a pointed look before sitting back again. Selina rolled her eyes, but otherwise let it go, "We're going to my place."
By the time they reached Selina's current squat, Bruce was beginning to doze off, having finally gotten used to Selina's reckless driving. The young woman parked the car and leaned over to Bruce, shaking his shoulder gently with a quiet, "We're here."
Bruce groaned slightly as he sat up and held his hand out to Selina expectantly; she rolled her eyes as she handed him the car keys.
They got out of the car and looked up at the tell building in front of them for a moment before Selina pulled down the fire escape ladder. "...You're okay enough to climb up here, right?" She asked, glancing over at the young man who was looking more exhausted with every passing minute.
"Yeah," he said with a small nod. His voice was barely audible and he cleared his throat in an attempt to get it back to normal. It didn't do much. "Yeah, I'm fine."
It took them several minutes to climb up to Selina's apartment — longer than normal. Selina didn't say anything, though she did give Bruce a few concerned looks, worried by the fact that he was going so slow.
Selina slid open the window and climbed inside, Bruce following close behind her. The apartment was small but surprisingly comfortable, even though it was sparse. There was a queen-sized mattress with some pillows and a blanket thrown onto it haphazardly in the middle of the room, a small table in a corner of the room with a hot plate set on top of it, a couple saucepans, plates, bowls, cans of food and silverware beneath it, and a small pile of folded clothes in another corner.
"...It's nice," Bruce said, giving Selina a small smile.
"Thanks," the girl replied, returning the smile, though it faded as she took in the boy's appearance. He was trying to hide it, but she could tell that he was worse off than he had been earlier that night. He looked significantly paler than before, and there was a sheen of sweat covering his forehead even though he was shivering.
Selina placed her hand on his forehead, frowning at how overly warm he was. He leaned into her hand for a moment before sighing and pushing her away.
"Selina, I'm fi—" he began, but was cut off by a harsh coughing fit that hurt his throat.
"Uh-huh, you're fine," Selina said with a tone of sarcasm as she crossed her arms, "Bed. Now."
He was stubborn, which she should have expected, but after a couple minutes of coaxing, Selina managed to get him to sit down on the mattress.
"I'm gonna change," Selina said as she rummaged through the pile of clothes, "'Cause I hate everything about what I'm wearing right now. —Here," she added, tossing Bruce an oversized t-shirt and pair of pajama pants that she often wore to bed, and then leaving to another room, the bathroom presumably, through a door that Bruce had failed to notice when they'd entered the apartment.
She reentered the main room only a few minutes later to find Bruce curled up under the thin blanket she'd left on the bed, already nearly asleep, the clothes he'd been wearing earlier now folded neatly and placed next to the mattress. Selina smiled a little and shook her head. Seeing him like this, in her home, brought back memories of the brief time he had lived with her, and it made her happy.
"...You cold?" she asked after a couple moments, noticing how he was shivering under the single blanket he had wrapped around him, and Bruce nodded slightly in reply. "I'll get some more blankets."
She found several blankets, including a thick quilt that would be big enough to comfortably cover both of them, and brought them back to the bed. She covered Bruce with a couple, which he gratefully wrapped closer around his shoulders, and then wrapped herself up in one as she made herself comfortable next to him, pulling the large quilt over both of them.
Once Selina was settled in, Bruce moved over slightly and rested his head on her shoulder with a soft sigh of content. "...Thank you," he said, and Selina smiled.
"Hey, I wasn't gonna let you suffer alone with the flu or whatever you got. ...Whether you wanted me to or not."
"Well, I appreciate it."
"Any time. ...I...like having you here, Bruce. —Now get some sleep," she added before he had the chance to respond, "If Alfred comes back and you're dead—"
"—I'm not dying, Selina."
She gave an internal sigh of relief; maybe he hadn't heard her admit that she wanted him around.
"Still," she said, and ran a hand through his short, but thick hair, "He'll kill me if anything happens to you."
The boy smiled slightly as he snuggled up closer to her, "I'll be fine. I promise."
When Bruce woke up the next morning it was late and Selina was already out of bed, which he realized when he turned and opened his eyes to find the spot where she'd been laying the night before, completely empty.
"...Selina...?" he asked as he sat up a little and looked around the small room.
"I'm here," Selina said from a corner of the room where she was placing a bowl of milk in front of a small cat.
"...What time is it?"
"I don't know; noon, maybe? You slept late. ...Alfred called earlier. You were totally out, you didn't even hear it ring, so I answered. —I told him you're okay, but he said he's coming back to Gotham tonight."
Bruce sighed. He should've known that Alfred would cut his trip short as soon as he found out that Bruce wasn't well — even if he wasn't alone — and it made him feel a little guilty.
"You feeling any better?" Selina asked as she crossed the room and sat next to him on the bed, placing the palm of her hand on his forehead to see if his fever had gone down since last night.
"A little," he said with a small shrug. It was a lie, but for once Selina didn't seem to notice this.
"Are you hungry?"
"Not really?"
"Good, 'cause I don't have any food," the young woman said with a laugh.
Bruce followed her lead and laughed slightly, which turned into a small coughing fit.
"You don't sound so good..." Selina said with a look of concern as patted his back gently.
"It's fine — just a cough."
"Do you want some water?"
He nodded slightly and she stood up, heading over to the small table with the hot plate and grabbing a glass before going to the bathroom to fill it with water and then bring it back to the boy.
"We should get you home," she said reluctantly as he drank, "Alfred's gonna be mad if you're not there when he gets back tonight."
Bruce nodded a little again, though he seemed equally reluctant, "...I need to change first," he said as he sat up.
It didn't take long for the two to leave the apartment and climb down the fire escape to the car.
"Give me the keys — you're still not driving," Selina said and Bruce sighed but, surprisingly, did not argue. Instead he just reached into his pocket and pulled them out to give to her.
"When I'm better I'm teaching you how to drive," he said as he pulled open the passenger-side door.
Selina rolled her eyes and gave him a small smirk, "Just for that I'm gonna go extra fast."
"Then you're paying for the ticket you'll inevitably get."
They both slid into their seats and Selina started the engine.
"Bruce, we both know that you're the one who pays for stuff in this relationship."
"So this is a relationship now?" the young man asked, giving Selina a small smirk.
"...Shut up."
They sat in comfortable silence for the rest of the ride after that, small smiles on both of their faces.
When they made it to Wayne Manor Selina went inside with Bruce, who was beginning to look as worn out as he'd been the night before. They made it into the study and sat down on one of the sofas.
"...What is it about this room?" Selina asked, "Why are you always in here?"
"It... makes me feel safe. Almost like... I can still feel my parents when I'm in here."
Selina smiled a little, sadly, and took his hand in her own, "That's... really nice, Bruce."
They sat together for some time before Selina realized that Bruce was half-lying on the arm of the couch, his eyelids heavy.
"...I should go," she said as she stood up. "And you should go to bed," she added.
Bruce stood up as well, giving Selina a small smile, "You can stay if you want, Selina. You don't have to go."
"I'll come back in the morning, don't worry."
She returned the smile and hesitated before leaning forward and planting a kiss on his lips. When she pulled away he was staring at her in happy surprise, and she could see that his cheeks were tinted pink, but she wasn't entirely sure if he was blushing, or if it was just his fever.
Selina smiled again and cupped one of his cheeks in her hand for a moment, tracing his cheekbone with her thumb, before pulling away and heading for the window while Bruce watched her go with a mixture of awe and amusement.
Selina did come back the next morning, as she'd promised, although not in quite the manner Bruce had expected.
He was sitting at the kitchen table, his head propped up on one hand as he stared down at a half-eaten plate of scrambled eggs and a mug of steaming tea.
Alfred had insisted he eat breakfast, and Bruce agreed without complaint, still feeling guilty that he was the reason his guardian had cut his trip short.
He was startled out of his train of thought when he heard Alfred calling him from the study, "Master Bruce, I think you'd better come and have a look at this."
Bruce sighed and slowly stood up, grabbing his mug of tea off of the table before making his way down the hall to the study.
"Alfred, wha-?" he asked when he entered the room, but cut himself short when he followed Alfred's gaze to the sofa nearest the window. Selina was lying on it, a blanket wrapped tightly around her shoulders.
"...Selina?" Bruce asked, as he sat on the edge of the sofa and gently shook her shoulder with his free hand, "Are you alright?"
The girl groaned softly as she opened her eyes to look up at him. "...I hate you," she said in a hoarse voice, a scowl on her face which became much less effective the moment she turned her head and sneezed into the armrest of the couch.
Bruce smiled sympathetically. "I'm sorry," he said, "...But I do have to point out that you kissed me," he added with a small smirk.
"Not the point," Selina said as she began to sit up, "...Does the offer to stay still stand?"
"Of course. —You're always welcome here. ...I like having you here, Selina."
The girl's eyes widened when she realized that he had heard her admit that she liked having him around two nights earlier after all, and Bruce laughed slightly.
"Shall I prepare a room for miss Kyle, then?" Alfred asked. He smiled slightly at the two. He had, of course, been skeptical of the young woman's intentions when he'd heard that she was caring for Bruce, but seeing them together now, put his fears to rest — at least for the time being. There was no denying that there was something between the two, and this confirmed that they did, in fact, care for each other.
Bruce looked back at his guardian, and smiled, seeing the approval in the older man's expression. "Yes, thank you, Alfred."
"Very well, sir," Alfred said to Bruce, then nodded to Selina with a, "Miss Kyle," before leaving the room.
"...I think he's starting to like me," Selina said with a small smile as she stretched her arms and laid down, resting her head on Bruce's lap.
He smiled down at her and combed through her curly hair with his free hand, bringing the mug he was still holding with his other to his lips and taking a sip of tea.
"...If you get better before me, I'm gonna kill you," Selina said after several moments of silence.
"You do understand that scientifically, since I was sick first, I'll most likely get better first."
"Don't care," she said with a cough, and Bruce shook his head with an amused smile.
With her stubbornness, he didn't doubt that she could force herself to heal before him; but in the meantime, he couldn't be happier that she was here with him. —Even if they were both miserable, at least they would be miserable together.