For the second time in his life, Jason Todd had been blown up in a warehouse. Which is two more times than he thought he would be.
He tries sitting up, coughing and choking within his helmet.
"Take it easy, we made it out." unmistakably the voice of Barbara.
"Oh, I survived", he groans, "I love when I do that".
He glances her over as best he can. His voice is ragged still struggling to overcome the damage of the blast, "Shit, you're not hurt, are you?"
"Jason Todd, I am going to kill you." And the two shared a laugh unlike anything either of them had felt in forever.
The two are on a rooftop several blocks away from where the bomb had gone off. Barbara had been able to get Jason out of there before the cops had arrived. They have a perfect view now of the smoke rising over the horizon, the lights of cop cars flashing in the streets below.
"I'm fine, Babs…never…better…", He struggles to get to his feet.
First falling on all fours, bowing over as if he was going to throw up. Perilously, one foot after another, he stands up as straight as possible. Hunched over like a drunk, swaying slightly.
Barbara forces him to lean on her, "C'mon tough guy, let's go get you patched up."
The pair stumble off into the night.
"You got burned pretty badly across your back. Some minor cuts too, but those shouldn't be a problem".
Sitting on his own kitchen table, a bottle of whiskey in one hand. Barbara stood behind him, examining the damage.
It wasn't like what she would have expected. Its only two rooms, a mix of a kitchen and living room and a small bedroom off to the side. There's hardly any furniture in here except for a couch and a TV. Dimly lit, with the blinds drawn and the lights off.
Jason isn't as she expected either. He's covered in scars and burns, more than she would have ever guessed. It had never occurred to her how he had lived since leaving Wayne manor all those years ago.
"My left arm still hurts", he says.
She puts both hands on his arm. One gripping the shoulder and the holding on tight to his bicep.
"It's dislocated. I can't leave you alone for five seconds before you go and get yourself busted up", she whines.
"You can fix it, right?"
"Of course."
"It's gonna hurt like a bitch, isn't it?"
"Of course"
He takes a swig of whiskey and shuts his eyes tight. She jerks his arm, hard and fast. There's a pop from his elbow, and a grunt escapes his mouth.
"Are we done now?" He gasps, lying face down on the table.
Barbara had already stitched him up, and did what she could with the burns.
"Yeah, we're done."
He climbs off the table and walks over to the bedroom.
"You mind if I crash on your couch? It's pretty late already, and I want to keep an eye on you in case the stitches bother you", she says.
Jason doesn't bother turning around, just grunts before shutting the door behind him.
He returns a minute later with a blanket and pillow.
"Oh yeah", he tosses her a simple black T-shirt, "I figured if you don't have anything else to wear…"
It's way too big for her, going down to her thighs. She laughs, glancing him up and down. Only a pair of sweatpants, leaving his upper body bare. She could just barely make out the bat symbols that were imprinted on his chest. One right over his heart, the size of a handprint. A few shades lighter than the skin surrounding it, protruding ever so slightly. The work of the joker.
She puts on her best southern drawl, "Why're you so sweet on me, Clarence?"
But he just looks confused. Well, more confused than usual.
"It's a wonderful life?" she questions.
"What are you talking about?"
"Jesus Christ, it's a classic! Would it kill you to watch something more cultured than The Simpsons?" She whines.
Jason turns away from her. She can see a grin growing across his face.
Just before he closes his bedroom door, Barbara calls out one last time.
"Hey…Jason?"
"Yeah?"
"I'm really glad you didn't die tonight."
Then he closes the door, shutting himself away from her.
Barbara isn't sure why she woke up. The sky is still dark, hidden behind the closed blinds.
She had spent an hour or so watching reruns of Fresh Prince before she fell asleep. She stretches, cracking her back. Wandering around the small apartment. This was the first time she had been in here. Hell, it was the first time anyone from the Bat family had been in here.
There's no pictures anywhere. Why would there be? Jason has no family. Both parents died during childhood, later to be disowned by Bruce Wayne. Barbara had thought Jason would have at least made friends or gotten a girlfriend.
Someone.
She couldn't imagine living on her own. He was loyal to no one.
That's when she first heard the cries.
Barbara's first instinct to grab the kitchen knife. It was coming from Jason's bedroom. She sprints across the room, leaping clear over the couch. She swings the door open and…nobody.
Only Jason, in the middle of the bed. Something is wrong with him.
A low moan escapes his lips, a little more than a whimper. Face contorted, in pain. Grabbing at the bedsheets, chest rising and falling.
She drops the knife. Slowly, Barbara crosses the distance to the bed.
He's covered in sweat.
Now she can make out his words, "N-no…nonononono…pl-please no, no more…".
It was too much for her to watch. Barbara grabs him by both shoulders, shaking him just a little harder than she should.
She says as softly as she can manage, "Jason. Jason, come on, you gotta wake up."
Slowly, he's pulled out of whatever hell his mind had mustered, and he comes back to her.
His eyes open, stare directly into hers. Barbara is on the bed now, straddling him. Their faces inches apart. For a moment, she sees it.
The fear in eyes.
And Jason in return can see the worry in her eyes.
A weak grin breaks through, and he whispers, "When I pictured the two of us thrashing around in bed, this was not what I had in mind."
She pulls him tight, making him pulling up to her. She squeezes him close, and for the first time in his life he's at a loss of words.
"Oh god. Jason…" It's a whisper, shared only between the two of them.
He can't remember how long they stayed like that, in each other's arms. Later when he would think back to that moment, it seems like forever.
Just the two of them. No Joker, no Batman, no Gotham. Only his heart and hers, beating together.