"I'm sooooo bored." The changeling complained in a whiny tone.

Raven lowered her binoculars and sent a mild glare in his direction.

"We're on a stakeout, it's not supposed to be fun." She handed the binoculars to him. "It's your turn to watch."

The two chromatically challenged Titans had drawn the short straws and got stuck doing the graveyard shift for the stakeout, and had been on duty since midnight. Their lookout spot was an unoccupied apartment in an abandoned and dilapidated building. The room was dank and smelled foul. A cockroach came out of hiding. Raven saw it and used her powers to shoo it away.

"We've been watching for over three hours. No one's gonna show up." He griped.

"We don't know that. Robin got a very good tip off that an illegal Xenothium sale is going to happen in that hardware store sometime tonight."

"If the tip was so good, why isn't he here? I should be in my bed … asleep."

"If it makes you feel any better, I'm not happy about being stuck here in the middle of the night either. You think I wouldn't rather be asleep in my bed right now?"

He nodded his agreement. "Robin owes us, big time."

A tiny smile appeared on her face. "On that I agree."

The room became silent again, matching the night outside. The street was as quiet as a graveyard. They continued to watch in silence until a stray dog walked by and stopped, until it smelled a cat nearby and took off running, barking while it pursued the feline. The ruckus shook the changeling out of his stupor. He cleared his throat as he looked at his teammate.

"So, what should we ask for if we bust someone?"

She shrugged. "I don't know. I mean, this is our job. We already get a stipend."

"Eight hundred lousy bucks a month." He complained.

"Plus room and board, not to mention a clothing and supplies allowance." She remarked.

"We should get more. I always run out of money before the month's over. Don't you?"

"Sometimes. Of course, there was a time we didn't get any stipend at all."

"Tell me about it. I had to take that crummy job at Mr. Meaty's just to have some money. That was gross."

"Not as gross as their food. It wasn't even real meat. And I almost ate some. You know my personal policy regarding eating fake meat." Raven replied with a grimace.

They sat in silence for a bit while he looked through the binoculars. There was no activity anywhere near the hardware store, not even a stray dog this time.

"So, what would you do with more money?" He asked.

She shrugged again. "I don't know. Buy more books, I guess. What about you? What do you spend your money on?"

"Mostly comic books and junk food."

"Let me guess, you want to read even more comic books and eat more junk food. Just how many Kit-Kats do you eat everyday? You know that much chocolate isn't good for you."

"Nah, not for that."

"Then for what? What do you want to buy? It can't be another moped. Cyborg not only fixed yours, he hod rodded it. It's the only moped in Jump City that can fly."

"Yeah, that was cool of him. But what good is a flying moped if you don't have a date?"

Raven, who was slouching as she stared at the hardware store, sat up straight and gave him an odd look.

"A date? You want a date? What's stopping you? You're a popular male superhero. You shouldn't have any trouble getting a date."

He replied with an ambivalent shrug.

"I know. But I don't want just any girl for my date. And I need the extra money to pamper her like she deserves. Nothing but first class for her."

"I see, so you're picky. I suppose I should commend you for raising your standards. I can't believe you once liked Terra"

In a turning of the tables, he glared at the gray girl, and she could feel a primal rage within him. To her surprise, she felt a shiver go done her spine

"Hey, that was below the belt. Do I ever remind you of Malchior?"

"Sorry … so tell me, Beast Boy, what is this ideal girl like?"

He relaxed and grinned as he continued to watch through the binoculars. She could feel the rage replaced by the excitement that swelled within him.

"Well, first of all, she's gorgeous, a world class babe, if you catch my drift, with a smoking hot bod. Real eye candy. I mean, all the other guys will die of envy when they see me with her."

"That seems kind of superficial. So your ideal date is some knockout bimbo. Let me guess, a blond, right?"

He shook his head. "Nah, I'm done with blonds. But her being smoking hot is just the beginning."

"Really?" She asked in a skeptical tone. "So what else? Does she have to be a vegetarian too?"

"That would be ideal, but I can compromise on that. But she has to be smart. I mean really smart. As smart as you are."

"Even smarter than you?" She asked in her deadpan, with a small smirk forming on her face,

"Sure, why not?"

"You wouldn't feel intimidated by a girl who's smarter than you?"

"No, why should I? It isn't a contest, is it?"

"You're right, it's not. I have to say Beast Boy, I'm impressed. I figured you'd go for a curvy blond airhead with an oversized chest. So … anything else?"

"Well, she has to have a big heart and be really classy. And I want her to be strong. I might be a superhero, but I don't really want a damsel in distress, if you know I mean."

Raven smiled. "You seem to have your priorities in order. But where are you going to find a girl like that?"

He leaned back in his chair and a smug smile formed on his face.

"I already did. I just haven't asked her out yet."

"Really? You're telling me that you already found this dream girl of yours?"

"Yup."

"Then why haven't you asked her out on a date, for Azar's sake? What are you waiting for?"

"I've been waiting for the right time to ask her."

"Garfield, don't be stupid. Ask her out before someone else does."

"You think she'll say yes?"

"I'm certain she will."

Beast Boy fell silent and continued to watch the hardware store. Raven noticed that her curiosity was getting the better of her, and she was sorely tempted to ask him just who this wonder girl was, but she held back. She then began to feel a strange feeling she wasn't accustomed to experiencing: envy.

"I was thinking of asking her to go to the Tanzanian music concert that's coming up. You think she'll like that?"

"I think that would be a great choice. You speak Swahili, right?"

"Yeah, I do. So is that something you'd like to do? I mean, I don't want her to get bored." He said as he lowered his binoculars.

"I've read that the performance is very unique and artistic. So I think I would see it, given the opportunity, and would probably enjoy it. You do know that it's sold out?"

He paused as he continued to watch the hardware store. After a few minutes he spoke up.

"I have tickets for Wednesday, at 8PM. You wanna come?"

She looked utterly puzzled. "Gar, why would you want me to come with you on your dream date? I don't want to be a third wheel, even though I would love to attend that concert."

He smiled rather bashfully at her as he rubbed the back of his neck.

"You wouldn't be a third wheel … because you're my date."

"I'm your ... what?"

"Uh … Raven … would you like to go with me to the concert. And dinner too?"

Now the poor gray girl looked shocked. The stakeout was momentarily forgotten.

"I'm your dream girl? Garfield, this isn't one of your pranks, is it?"

He stared deep into her indigo eyes. "I'm dead serious. So, will you be my date?"

Just then a van pulled up in front of the hardware store and it parked in the shadows. The doors opened and four burly looking men got out, slamming the doors shut behind them. One was carrying what looked like a large canister and they headed into the store. Once they were inside the street was silent again.

"Looks like our bad dudes finally showed up. Shall we bust them?"

"No, let's wait for the buyers to show up." She replied.

As if on cue, a black European sedan pulled up. Three menacing looking, armed men who looked like they meant business got out. One was carrying a briefcase, no doubt full of cash to complete the transaction. They headed into the store.

"Should we call for back up?" He asked.

She shook her head. "No, we can handle this ourselves."

She then leaned over and pecked him on the cheek.

"And yes, I'll be your date."

As they both swooped down to the scene of the crime, Beast Boy, in an avian form, smiled inwardly.

Who says nothing good ever happens when it's 3 AM?

The End

-( - )-

Hello Readers,

BBRae week comes once a year and this is the first time I've taken a crack at it, and I can tell you it isn't easy. It's a lot of work, and some really good writers have put together some great stories this week. Believe me, I'm very impressed with what I've read, and I let them know that. And I have a request: you need to leave them more reviews. I know you're reading the stories, as I'm seeing decent view counts. But you aren't leaving them the reviews they deserve. You need to be better about that, OK?

TheForce