Plastic Jungle
Chapter One: Beautiful

)O(

"Look at us, we're beautiful
All the people push and pull
But, they'll never get inside
We've got too much to hide."
- Beautiful, Moby

"Dude! I totally sniped that bastard!"

"Apparently not."

Garfield Logan turned and glared at his massive bulk of a friend, his bottom lip poking out into a some mixture between a growl and a pout. "He was camping."

"So were you." Victor grinned back at him and then promptly shot someone in the head. There was a shower of red and he moved onto his next victim. "So, tell me what happened at Kori's twentieth coming-out party, Dick. Was there a parade through the streets this time? Streams of fireworks spelling out her glorious name as daddy doted on his only child?"

"Absolutely nothing. It was just as dry and boring as the other nineteen we went to." Richard shot someone in the chest, but he scurried around the corner avoiding an effective kill shot. He glared, but held back a curse. "There was wine and dancing. And fawning over her dress. Oh, and a whole lot of giggling. And fawning over her dress, did I mention that?" He shot the wounded character, and then returned to his hiding position.

"Oh, dude. I heard Raven was supposed to be there!" Garfield grinned at his friend, eyes lighting up. "I haven't seen her in forever! She's been in Miami for like a month for her dad."

"You're dead." Richard's voice wavered slightly under the surprising note from his friend. Did he know the Roth family? And why did Garfield know them, but Bruce didn't? Or more precisely, why was Garfield allowed to know them, and Richard wasn't allowed to come within a hundred feet of Raven? Garfield turned to look at his character and frowned as the splash of red moved across the scene. He put down his controller and looked over at Richard, who was glaring at the television screen, avoiding bullets, but was having trouble concentrating. "How do you know Raven?"

"So, she was there!" Garfield laughed. "Dude. Yeah, I know her! She's my friend."

Richard glared, not caring if his character died. There was a shout from the screen, and then the customary splash of red. He set his controller aside and stared at Garfield. "Your friend?"

"Well, yeah." Garfield got up and walked around to grab a soda from the small fridge behind them. Victor was owning the game at this point, so no one else really cared if they lived or died. "She's everyone's friend, although Kori is her best friend. Which I never got 'cause they're so different. It's like night and day. Raven's kinda dark and creepy and if you could bottle pink sunshine, that would be Kori."

"Why have I never met her?"

"Because good and honest Bruce Wayne wouldn't have you hanging around someone like her." Victor didn't even take his eyes off the television screen, but Richard turned to face him. Victor glanced over at him and frowned. "Raven's fathers' businesses are... sketchy at best, and probably downright illegal at worst. Most of our families just turn a blind eye because he's helped us out in one way or another before, and that is sometimes more valuable than money." He returned his gaze to the screen. "Bruce, however is bound and determined to expose the Roths for what they are. Unfortunately, no one knows exactly what that is, and Raven never talks about it."

"But she's allowed to be your friend?" Richard stared at the screen, watching the line of dead bodies fall behind Victor. "I don't understand."

"Look." Victor took his eyes off the screen to stare at his friend. "I don't make or understand the rules. I just know that your benefactor wants to make our kind of life all good and honest and pure. And, for the most part, we try to be. But there are some people that think the rules don't apply to them, Mr. Roth being one of them, and Bruce will have none of those people around you."

"Bruce once said he speculated some of it was some massive drug ring that spanned continents... I mean, Raven goes down to Miami all the time, but never comes back tan. And she hates it, she said it's the worse part or working for her dad." Garfield jumped over the sofa to his controller, his character had respawned somewhere in enemy territory. "I don't care, either way. Raven is a good person, and she said she never wanted to work for her dad anyway. She hates him and her duties, but what else is she gonna do? He's her dad. And, he's freaking scary."

Richard didn't know what to say to that, and so he kept silent. It made sense now, why Bruce didn't want him near her. If he was trying to expose the Roths and keep their society good and honest, Richard would get caught it the crossfire, and that would not only damage him, but the Wayne name as well. It was a debacle that he didn't want, but Richard wasn't sure if he could really avoid. Raven seemed like a good person in the few moments he had spent with her, but then again what did he know? It sounded like she even kept secrets from her friends.

Garfield's intercom buzzed. "Mr. Logan, there is a miss Roth here for you to sign some papers."

Richard turned at stared at the box on the wall before looking at Garfield. "Oh yeah! Those papers for the expansion. Send her up, Clive." He looked over at Richard, who was as white as a sheet at the name. Here? Now? "I didn't think she'd be up here today. I thought I'd catch her in the office tomorrow."

Victor looked over at his friend. There was a long pause as he regarded Richard's expression. "Is there something going on between you and Raven, Dick?"

That was a loaded question. "No... I just find her interesting."

"Uh-huh. And I'm the queen of England." Richard saw a smirk peel across his lips and his stomach dropped. "You liiike her don't you? Pretty little Raven?"

"No. I told you, I found her interesting." Richard was praying that his face didn't look as red as it felt.

"You're lying." Victor chuckled. "But, I'll humor you." He glanced back at Garfield, who was standing next to the door, waiting for it to open. "I will clue you in on a little secret though, Garfield had a huge crush on Raven once. He said he got over it, but I think he might still have one or two feelings for her. So, he's very protective of who gets around her." Richard's face paled a little at the thought. Great, because that added to the dilemma. Garfield was generally a good guy, but push the buttons in the right combination and he could be unstable and volatile.

"Gar! It so good to see you!" There was the click of heels on marble, Raven and Garfield came through the double doors to his living room. She wore a super tight mini-skirt with knee-high boots, and carried a big black briefcase. Richard felt like he was following the line of her legs forever. Raven frowned, and her friendly demeanor vanished in a second. She took a step back before managing to find her voice. "Mr. Grayson... I was not under the impression that you would be here today. I do apologize for the inconvenience I have caused and will not be more than a few minutes."

Garfield and Victor were staring at her as if she'd grown a second head. They looked at each other, then at Richard, who shook his head and shrugged. It wasn't his fault. Raven wasted no time in opening her briefcase and pulling out a contract for Garfield, setting the papers down in front of him. "This is the contract your father signed this morning. I thought I might drop by and have you sign it immediately, so we do not have to deal with this issue tomorrow morning."

"Rae." Garfield's voice whined at her as if he was a small child. "C'mon and stay a little. Hang out with us. I haven't seen you in forever and you're all freaky business with me."

Richard watched as her expression softened a little. She seemed uncomfortable under his pleading eyes. "Garfield, I wish I could. I'm afraid Mr. Wayne wouldn't like knowing I've been in contact with his son. Neither would my own father."

"I won't sign the papers until you play at least one game with us."

"That's fine." Raven gathered the contract up into her briefcase. "I will catch you in the office tomorrow."

"Seriously, Raven? No one here is going to tell Bruce about you." Victor rolled his eyes and tossed her a controller, which she caught deftly. She frowned at him, but stopped fiddling with her briefcase. "You honestly think that anyone here is going to call Bruce up and be like: 'Hey, Richard hung out with Raven today. We sat around, killed some zombies and had a soda. It was one, fine hootenanny.' So, just sit your skinny ass down and play a game."

She rolled her eyes. "Fine. But if either of our fathers find out, Richard, I will probably never see the light of day ever again." She glared at him. "And I am not being melodramatic."

"Same here." Richard tried hard not to think about her words as she moved to sit next to him. If Raven's father was someone to be feared as much as everyone kept saying would he really... no. Mr. Roth could not have been that bad... could he?

Raven plopped down on the sofa between Richard and Garfield. "So, what are we playing?"

Garfield frowned as Victor stole a kill from him. "It's called Victor Owns."

Raven laughed and the sound was delightfully melancholy to Richard's ears. He glanced over at her, hoping he could hear the strange music again. "I think we've played this one before. But, I also think I have the sequel though: Victor Owns until Raven Gets Here."

Victor snorted. "Just because you're cute doesn't mean I'll go easy on you."

"I know." She grinned over at him. "I just have mad skills."

Richard kept dying. He couldn't keep from looking over at Raven, who kept smiling and joking with them. This was an entirely different girl than he met two days ago. Except when she looked at him, her demeanor changed and she became quiet and reserved again, like those invisible barriers were thrown-up, just to keep him away. He knew he should have paid attention to Bruce's words, but he couldn't. Not when she sat so close, laughed so beautifully, and smelled so good. Like lavender.

"Hey." Garfield snapped Richard out of his daze, and he looked at him. He'd actually been talking to Raven, but Richard was determined to be in the conversation too. "Are you coming to the hospital benefit on Saturday? It's Vegas themed." He nudged Raven and she laughed.

"Of course. I already sent in my RSVP, you know that. I even picked out my dress. Well, Arella did that for me, but I pretended to have some say." She put her controller down and folded her legs under herself. Richard was trying to ignore the fact that her knee was touching his, and it felt like his whole side was burning in response. Why, oh why, was he acting like a hormonal school boy around her? She was just a girl.

"Are you coming, Dick?" Victor leaned back into the sofa, the video game forgotten. There was a strange glint in his eyes, and that was never a good sign. He was trying to rip his emotions right out of him, and in front of Raven too. Great. "I mean... you got the invitation didn't you?"

"I... don't know."

Raven looked over at him and blinked, trying to keep her expression blank, but her eyes were unusually dark. "I highly doubt Bruce would allow you to be in the same room with me, Mr. Grayson." His blood boiled a little at the name. He really hated it when she called him that. It was like she was purposefully trying to put distance between them, and he frowned at her.

"I'd love to come if I'm invited, Gar." Robin tried not to sneer at Raven. He knew she was playing a game now, trying to push his buttons like she had a few days ago. It was an automatic defensive move for her when he got to close. But then again, Robin didn't blame her. If it might save her from the possible humiliation of being discovered with Richard Grayson let her play games all she wanted. She could feel safe, for now.

"Awesome! I'll make sure you're on the list." Garfield glanced at the clock, frowning. "Damnit. I have to head over to dad's house for dinner tonight. Sorry guys, I gotta go get Tara before I leave. Mom's cooking her favorite meal, which is never a good sign when my mom cooks. We'll probably end up going out again." Garfield ran into his master suite to change, and Cyborg had suddenly taken to cleaning up the empty soda cans, leaving Raven and Richard staring at each other in silence. Awkwardness quickly ensued.

"So..." Richard began, but Raven held up a hand, silencing him.

"I know exactly what you are going to say, and I am going to stop you right now and tell you this: we can only be friends by association, Richard." Raven looked at him and frowned. "Trust me it's better this way. No one will get hurt, and no one's reputation will be tarnished. So, let's just keep the distance between us and everything will work out just fine."

He sighed and crossed his arms over his chest. "Not even a cup of coffee?"

She looked confused and surprised. "What?"

"I was going to ask you out for a cup of coffee, there's a nice shop down by the river with an outdoor deck. I thought maybe..." He sighed again and ran his fingers through his hair. This was stupid. Sure, he understood where Raven was coming from and her reasons for being concerned. But, they should just throw caution to the wind, it wasn't their mess that they lived in. Why should other peoples' problems be reflected on them? "Look, we didn't start this whole disaster between your father and my benefactor, I don't see how we have to get mixed up in it. I'm not asking for a date, I'm asking for coffee."

She paused and chewed on her lower lip. Richard felt drawn to the sight as the flesh turned red and swelled. Something about the movement was subtly sexy, and he found himself leaning a little bit forward, closer to her. Raven looked up, blinking and Richard reeled back quickly. There was a long pause and the silence grew more awkward around them as they stared at each other. Finally, Raven spoke. "Alright. Let's go."

Richard's stomach jumped into his chest as he stood up, watching her pull on her boots. She picked up her briefcase and walked to the door, giving him a small, half-smile. They called out good-bye to everyone and exited the apartment. Raven seemed suddenly uncomfortable as they left the normalcy of a "get together" to indulge in a private outing. Just the thought of being alone with her was making Richard feel strange. Itchy, almost. As if he wasn't comfortable in his own skin. They walked in silence through the building and on to the street.

"So..."

Raven looked up at him and raised an eyebrow. "You have the uncanny ability to start almost every conversation with that word." A small, sly smile started on her lips. "But go ahead, what were you going to ask?"

"I was going to ask how you met Garfield and everyone else." Richard looked down at her as they walked towards the river. The coffee shop was a few blocks away, but that was okay with Richard. That meant he got to spend a little while longer with Raven. "I don't mean to insult but... you and Kori are polar opposites."

Raven chuckled. "Isn't there a saying: 'opposites attract'?" She shrugged and pulled her coat a little tighter around her. The fall weather was just starting to infiltrate the city, and the chilled wind whipped through the buildings. "I like Kori, she's sweet and honest. I can always trust her with anything, and that's important to me. And I like Gar and Vic, even Tara and Karen. Roy gets on my nerves like you wouldn't believe, but... even he's still a good friend."

Richard frowned at the mention of another male. Something possessive rose in his chest, but he squashed it before it got too big. Raven was a grown woman, she could hang out with and date whoever she wanted. "I don't think I've met Roy yet."

She laughed. "Lucky you. You should keep it that way. He's the biggest headache I've ever met." Her smile faded a little and she tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear. "He works a lot with my father, but he's good friends with Garfield too." There was a pause as they walked across a busy street. "So, tell me about yourself, Richard. How did you meet Vic and Gar?"

"At the eighteen million parties Bruce is always dragging me to." Richard shrugged. "I feel like sometimes it was friendship by default, but I like Vic and Gar, they're great guys. They were the only people that didn't shun me because I wasn't born into money. Although, sometimes I feel like everyone still gives me the 'poor little orphan' stare. I'm sick of it."

"If you want I can give you the annoyed companion stare." Raven laughed and Richard found himself joining her. Her laughter was contagious and he wasn't sure if that was good or bad news yet.

"That should be interesting. I'd love to see the reaction from all our friends." He saw the building on the corner, a large deck stretching out to the edge of the river. "Oh, here it is." They found a seat next to the river and ordered from a petite waitress claiming to be a skilled writer. Raven pretended to care, but Richard was more interested in the water. It was dark and choppy, signaling that a storm was coming.

"If you don't mind me asking... what happened to your parents?"

Richard reeled back from him day-dreaming, nearly choking on her words. "That was sudden."

"I'm sorry... I shouldn't have asked that." A light blush covered her cheeks and Raven turned to look at the boats sliding along the river. "It was rude of me."

"No... I get it a lot." Richard fidgeted with his napkin, trying to keep all of his emotions from erupting at once. "People find out your parents were tragically murdered in a circus show, and things get said. Rumors get passed. And suddenly everyone get's curious about the tragic, orphan boy."

"Is that how they died?" Her question was blunt and to the point, and something about her genuine curiosity made Richard a little uncomfortable. It was like she really wanted to know about him. Not because he was Bruce Wayne's son, or because he was "attractive", but because she just wanted to know more. It was a nice thought.

"Yes, but being sad about it isn't going to bring them back." Richard tried to feign indifference, but he somehow knew that she could see into the emotion in his eyes. She reached out and grabbed his hand, and she stroked her thumb over his fingers. Richard found himself intrigued with the sight and whatever witty comment he had seemed to die on his lips.

"I really am sorry... let's talk about something else."

"The benefit." Richard suggested automatically. He didn't like talking about his parents, and although he tried his hardest to move on from the disaster, it was still a dark shadow creeping at the edge of his memories. He liked pretending that it never happened. "You're going?"

"Mm..." She looked away, as if to hide an emotion, and then turned back to him. "So is my father."

Damnit. Well, there went his plan. He sighed. "I guess that would answer my next questions on whether or not you would be my date."

Raven laughed and pushed at his shoulder gently. "One thing at a time, Richard. Coffee first and then we'll see if I like you enough to go to a benefit with you."

"You're so traditional."

"Hardly. How many girls with purple hair do you know?"

"Hundreds."

Raven laughed again. The waitress returned with their orders and Raven fell silent again, but this time it didn't feel awkward or uncomfortable. Richard watched her as she stared out at the water. This felt good. Whatever this was starting between them, and Richard decided then and there that he wanted it, no matter the consequences. "If your father wasn't there... would you go with me?"

Raven laughed and looked back at him. "Would you risk your reputation?"

"Who needs a reputation anyway?"

"All of us need it, Richard. We cannot run our lives without it. A ruined reputation in our circle of life is like murder in the real world." Her words were pure truth. If his reputation was ruined in their circle the world would know, Bruce's businesses would suffer, and all because Richard made one wrong friend. Raven looked over at him, her eyes sad. "I wish we could be friends."

"Me too." Richard grabbed her hand, but she made no immediate move to pull it back. "I kind of like you."

"You barely know me." Raven laughed and pulled her hand away. "I appreciate the sentiment though."

"I'd like to get to know you, Raven." Richard sipped at his coffee, enjoying the bitterness it left in his mouth. "You are, by far, one of the most interesting people I have ever met."

She smiled coyly over the rim of her teacup. "You must have led a very boring life then." There was an annoying beeping from her briefcase and Raven groaned. She popped it open and dug out a cell phone. "Yes?" Pause. "I'll be home shortly, father." Pause. "The papers have been signed." Pause. "Please do not bother. I will figure it out myself." She turned off her phone and threw it back in the briefcase, glaring at it. "I should have left the stupid thing off."

"I'm sorry." Richard frowned at the waters before looking back at her, trying to hide his disappointment. "Heading home then?"

Raven opened her mouth to say something, but she seemed to have a change of heart and shook her head. "No... I think I'll stay here a little longer, if you don't mind the company."

"Not at all." He leaned forward, closer to her. "Provided you don't mind the boring conversation."

"For once in my life... I don't."

)O(

So... not a lot happened, I know. The next chapter will be longer and have a bit more excitement. Promise! So, leave a review, and let me know what you think!

Also, in case anyone care, I have a poll for Wide Awake as to who should the final coupling be. Because I'm at an impasse right now. So, please check out my profile and vote!