I'm not dead, just obsessed with BTS
As Alfred placed their lunch on the table, Bruce lifted Tim onto his lap and explained, "I'll help you eat right now because I don't want you to use your arm too much."
Tim blushed at being treated like a baby, but he didn't argue and ate the noodles that Bruce brought in front of him. Across sitting next to them, Tim could see Dick wearing a funny smile as he watched Tim blush even more.
Dick was scared for Tim, scared to think of everything he had to go through when he was only six years old, but he liked seeing Tim react like a normal kid when Bruce treated him like a baby. He couldn't help himself from noting, "You're really cute, Timmy."
With no idea how to react, Tim tried to avoid looking directly at Dick and focused on the food Bruce was giving him. He tried to pay attention to Bruce's conversation with Alfred, he was explaining the instructions Leslie had given about treating Tim, but he felt too tired to focus.
As soon as they were done with lunch, Bruce carried Tim upstairs to his room and whispered, "I think it's time for you to take a nap. Today was a long day for you and it's best to get some rest."
Tim could tell that Bruce was right and he didn't argue as he was set down on his bed. Bruce made sure he was comfortable and asked, "How are you feeling, Tim? Does anything hurt?"
"No, I feel fine, Bruce," Tim said softly. He was close to falling asleep and he didn't want to stay awake any longer. Today was a long day and he was ready to peacefully drift off into sleep. He hugged Dick's bear close to him and found a comfortable position.
Bruce closed the curtains to block any sunlight from coming into the room and said, "Alfred is going to come by every now and then to check up on you. If you need anything just tell him."
"Okay, Bruce," Tim answered to show he understood. He realized that Bruce wasn't going to be staying with him until he woke up, but he couldn't bring himself to ask for him to stay. Instead, he watched Bruce turn off the lights and close the door behind him.
He had been too tired to take in his new room last night, but now he cautiously scanned everything as he waited to drift off into sleep. It was much bigger than his old room and had a lot of things laying around, but he didn't know if they were meant for him or just left over from the last person to sleep here. He wanted to look around and explore, but he didn't want to move so he allowed his eyelids to droop down until he was asleep.
As soon as he was finished helping Alfred clean up from lunch, Dick rushed through his homework in his room and immediately ran into the kitchen to find Alfred again. He didn't find him in the kitchen, living room, or library, but he was able to run into the butler in the hallway. Dick quickly asked, "I finished all my homework, Alfie, so can I go see Timmy?"
"I'm sorry, but Timothy is still sleeping. He hasn't moved yet so it's probably best to let him rest."
"It's been so long though. I thought he was just taking a nap. Is he going to sleep all night?" Dick wouldn't really mind it if Tim needed the extra sleep, but he was hoping to have some time alone with the six year old. Bruce got to have his alone time with Tim most of yesterday and all of today and Dick wanted Tim to himself for a while.
"I'll wake him up in a couple of hours for dinner if he's still not up, but apart from that he might sleep all day." Noting Dick's disappointment, he offered, "If you want to sit silently with him and not disturb him, you can." He stressed, "As long as you don't cause him to wake up early it shouldn't be a problem."
Dick was willing to accept this and he quickly made his way into Tim's room and softly closed the door behind him. At first he was a little scared about how still Tim was, he looked too still for Dick's comfort, but once he looked close he could see the slow rise and fall of his chest the worry faded away.
Dick quietly stalked over to Tim's bed and watched him sleep for a couple of minutes. He couldn't help but think Tim still looked scared even as he was sleeping, like he was worried about something. Dick's bear was suffocating in Tim's hold, but it didn't seem to be bringing Tim any comfort. Even in his sleep, Tim still looked scared out of his mind. It just made Dick hate Tim's parents even more and he tried to think about what he should do.
Instinctively, Dick wanted to shake Tim awake and free him from his nightmare, but he also didn't want to make him lose any rest. He decided to simply crawl on the bed until he was on Tim's side and join him under the covers. Carefully, he got comfortable next to Tim and enveloped Tim in a hug. Wanting to make sure he didn't accidentally hurt Tim's injuries even more, Dick was careful to move him softly. Dick felt Tim's breath pick up slightly as he breathed into Dick's neck and he dutifully rubbed Tim's back until he calmed down.
After a couple of minutes, when Tim was comfortable, Dick whispered into his ear, "Don't worry, Timmy. You're safe here. I'll make sure they never hurt you again."
He knew Tim couldn't hear him and wouldn't remember this, but for the moment at least the six year old looked content in Dick's arms. After a while Tim nuzzled farther into Dick's embrace, fitting his nose right into Dick's collarbone, and Dick had to stop himself from cooing out loud at how cute Tim was. Instead, he simply continued rubbing his back and smiling into his hair.
Dick didn't know how long they laid in that position, but after a while he felt Tim raise a balled hand to his eyes as he yawned into Dick's chest. It didn't take him long until he started blinking himself awake and taking in the fact that Dick was hugging him in his sleep.
As soon as he saw Tim start blushing and looking away, Dick smiled at his shyness and explained, "You looked like you needed a hug, Timmy."
"Th-thank you," Tim mumbled. He didn't try to move out of Dick's hold and simply settled on his back so he could look up at Dick. They didn't say anything for a while but eventually Tim asked, "What happens now?"
"Alfred's going to call us down for dinner in a while, but he'll probably let you eat it in bed if you want. Other than that, you're free for the night, Timbo."
Tim frowned at Dick's response and eventually explained, "I mean longer. What's going to happen to me now?"
"You're going to stay with us now. We're going to be your new family and we're gonna be a lot better than your old one," Dick promised. He added, "Alfred is gonna be our grandpa, Bruce is our dad, and we're gonna be brothers."
It was not the answer Tim had been expecting, but he didn't say anything. He studied Dick's face for a moment, trying to see if he was being serious, and eventually nuzzled his face into Dick's collar again. At first Dick assumed Tim was still tired and wanted some more rest, but he eventually felt tear and could feel Tim's shaking. He was obviously trying to hide it, but every couple of moments a small sob shook him and he started crying louder and louder.
Taken aback, Dick didn't know what to do. His instinct was to apologize to Tim and try to make him feel better, but he was lost for words as Tim continued to cry into his shoulder. Not knowing what he'd done wrong and what to apologize for, Dick decided to give Tim the time he needed and silently rubbed his back and pet his hair until the tears stopped.
Tim pulled away softly to wipe the stray tears away before attaching himself to Dick. He mumbled, "I don't know what to do, Dick. I'm confused."
"Confused about what, Timmy?" Dick asked solemnly. He tried to keep his voice light and soft, but his worry betrayed him.
"Everything, I guess."
"That's okay." At Tim's perplexed look, he explained, "You're a little kid, Timmy. It's not your job to know what to do. That's on Bruce and Alfred. They'll figure it out. Don't worry, okay?"
"Okay," Tim said softly. He didn't sound confident, but Dick as happy that he was willing to listen to him.
"Are you hungry? We should probably head down to dinner now."
"No, I'm not hungry," Tim said as he rolled onto his back. He was still content from the lunch they'd had hours ago.
"Is there anything you want to do instead?" Dick asked hoping to peak one of Tim's interests.
"I-I don't know," Tim said honestly. "What can we do?"
"We could go play with some of my games or we could stay here and organize your things," Dick offered. Realizing he hadn't seen any of Tim's bags or things, Dick asked, "Do you have anything that you brought?"
"No, I don't think so. Bruce has the papers that my parents left but I don't think there's anything else." Tim thought deeply but he couldn't think of anything else he'd brought with him.
Taken lightly a back, Dick asked, "Are you sure? Nothing?"
"There were the clothes I was wearing," Tim added trying to be helpful. "I don't know what happened, but I think Alfred has them."
"Oh, okay," Dick said trying to sound positive. "Do you want to get your old things, Timmy? If you asked Bruce he'd go back to your old place and grab them for you."
Tim didn't need to think too deeply about the offer before he decided, "No, it's okay. I don't need them."
"Why not? Don't you miss your things, your old clothes?"
"I like your clothes better, Dick," Tim admitted shyly. "I like them more than mine."
Dick smiled at Tim's confession and kissed his head very quickly before asking, "What about your toys?"
Tim scoffed and said, "I'm six, Dick. I'm to old for toys."
"No your not, Timmy," Dick tried to explain. "You're supposed to play with your toys and have fun all the time. I still have toys. I like to play with them." Putting on a fake pout, Dick asked, "Do you think I'm too old for my toys?"
"N-no. Your different, Dick," Tim whispered more to himself than to Dick. "You're special."
Confused, Dick asked, "What do you mean? How am I special?"
Tim's lips thinned before he said, "I can't say."
Even more confused, Dick pleaded playfully, "Why not? Come on, Timmy, please?"
"I don't want you to get mad," Tim mumbled. He couldn't imagine making Dick or Bruce mad at him, especially not when they had only just met each other.
Dick lifted Tim onto his chest as softly as he could, made sure he was looking at him in the eyes, and stressed, "There is nothing you could ever do to make me upset. I would never, ever think anything bad about you." When Tim didn't look like he believed him, Dick added, "You don't have to be scared here anymore, Timmy. I promise I'll never get mad at you. You're too small and perfect for me to ever hate you."
He didn't know why Dick was so dedicated already, but Tim knew he couldn't tell him everything just yet. Instead he tried to plakate Dick by saying, "I don't want to tell you."
"Okay, you don't have to tell me right now," Dick decided, "But you have to do something for me."
"What?" Tim asked curious. He couldn't think of anything he could do for Dick.
"You have to let me give you some of my toys," Dick said with a cheeky smile. "And you have to play with them too." When Tim didn't seem convinced, Dick pouted again and added, "It would hurt my feelings if you didn't."
His pout must have been convincing because Tim's eyes bulged at Dick's words and he promised, "I'll play with them, Dick. I'll love them forever."
Reaching around on the bed to find his old bear, Dick placed him in front of Tim and asked, "You like him right? He's soft and sweet."
Tim pet his fur and agreed. "What's his name?"
"His name is Theodore." At Tim's giggle, Dick explained, "I named him when I was little, very little. I think I was just a little bit older than you." He held the bear closer to Tim and waited until Tim took him into his arms. "Did I tell you how I got him?"
"No," Tim realized thinking back to last night.
Smiling at Tim's careful handling of Theodore, Dick recalled, "Bruce got him for me when I first moved here. I was scared and lonely. Bruce and Alfred were nice and they tried to help, but they didn't really know how to take care of me. It was weird. They had never had to deal with a kid before and they did their best but I still had so many nightmares of...that night and I was having a hard time adjusting. It was hard, Timmy. I felt so lost and confused and surrounded by strangers who were the only things I had."
Tim couldn't look Dick in the eye and focused on staring at Theodore instead, but Dick knew to expect that. He continued, "Bruce was very awkward, incredibly awkward, even worse than he is now. He tried, but he didn't know what to do. He knew I was having nightmares and trouble sleeping, but he didn't know how to help. He tried to comfort me, but he always seemed to say the wrong thing. One day, out of nowhere, he just drops in in the middle of the day and left Theo here. He said that he'd seen him around and thought that I could use him for safety, that he'd look after me."
Chuckling lightly at the memory and drawing Tim's eyes back to him, Dick remembered, "I think he didn't know how to help so he tried his best. It was weird, but I kept Theo around. The nightmares didn't go away right away, but every time I felt him on my bed I remembered that Bruce cared and he was trying his best. It helped knowing that he cared, even though it was just a bear, that he wanted to help."
Tim looked back down to the bear in his hands and pushed him back to Dick. "You should keep him. He means a lot to you, Dicik. He's special to you."
"I don't need him anymore, Timmy. You do. And I want to make sure you know that I care about you and if you ever get a nightmare that he's there to remind you that I care about you so much." Holding the bear up in front of his face, Dick tried to make the mood lighter as he made the pitch of his voice higher and pretended to be Theodore. "I care about you too, Timbo. You're so cute and I just want to take care of you all the time. Don't worry, I'll be here for you if you ever have a nightmare."
Laughing at Dick, Tim slowly took Theo back and promised, "I'll take care of him too, Dick. I'll make sure nothing happens to him."
Dick prefered this side of Tim and he offered, "Do you want to see the rest of my toys?"
"Yes please," Tim said happily.
Softly placing Tim on the bed, Dick rolled off the bed before motioning for Tim to come towards him. Once Tim was finally in front of him, Dick lifted him up and carried him out of the room. Tim felt weird being carried around by Dick, but he enjoyed it.
Once they were in Dick's room, Dick set Tim on the rug in front of the tv across from his bed. Rummaging through his things, Dick found some controllers and the remote to the tv before sitting down next to Tim. "What video games do you like, Timmy? We have a lot, like literally hundreds. Bruce doesn't like me playing some of the violent ones, but we have friends who sneak them to us."
"I don't know, Dick," Tim said honestly. "I don't play video games."
Dick assumed Tim's parents wouldn't let him play games, but he didn't want Tim to have to think about them. He kept his voice light and happy as he said, "That's okay. We can try all of them and figure out which ones you like."
Tim watched Dick throw the pillows from his bed on the floor and place them against the foot of his bed. He explained, "The first time I thought I didn't need the pillows, but it hurts your back when you don't have anything soft to lean against. It's horrible."
Next, Dick pulled the comforter from his bed and wrapped it around the both of them. He sat Tim on his lap and put a controller in his hands. "Usually when I'm playing I like to turn the lights off because it makes the games more fun, but Bruce says it's bad for your eyes. I don't really care about my eyes, but I don't want to hurt your eyes so we can keep the lights on."
Amazed by Dick's library, Tim asked, "What are we going to play, Dick?"
Scrolling through the gallery on the tv, Dick asked, "Do you see anything you like? If there's anything that you think looks interesting just tell me."
Tim watched the games closely and he stopped Dick at a cover he thought was interesting. "I think I like this one, Dick."
"Good choice, Timmy," Dick praised. He liked seeing Tim preen under the praise and he added, "This is Mario Kart. It's a racing game that I really like. It's a lot of fun." Dick selected the game from his controller and explained how the game worked to Tim.
"I have to remember what each button does?" Tim asked focusing on the controller. It looked strange in his hands and even though he'd seen other people play games, he had never used one himself. He didn't want to mess up in front of Dick on his first chance to impress him.
"You don't need to use all of them," Dick explained. "This joystick is how you move around the track. This button is how you go forward. I usually press it all the time unless it's a sharp turn. When you get a special item, you press this button to use it. I'll explain what each of them do when you get them so you don't have to worry about memorizing them. Are you ready?"
"Yes," Tim said excited. He knew this game was popular and he was looking forward to finally getting the chance to play it himself.
Bringing them to the character selection screen, Dick asked, "Who do you want to be? I'll let you pick first because it's your first time."
Eyes immediately falling on a cute dinosaur waving at him, Tim said, "I want to be the green one."
"That's Yoshi," Dick explained.
"Is he good?"
"He's very good," Dick guaranteed. It didn't surprise him that the smallest praise was enough to make Tim brighten up, but Dick couldn't help but enjoy seeing the boy happy. He added, "You made a great choice."
"Who are you going to chose?"
"I like the OGs, Timmy. I'm gonna be Mario."
Frowning at Dick's word choice, Tim asked, "What does that mean?"
"It means that I like the originals the best, so I'm going to pick Mario."
The next screen asked them to pick the track. Dick decided to make the choice himself and picked the one he thought would be easiest for Tim.
Dick felt Tim tense, ready, when the loading screen started. Noticing all the other racers, Tim asked, "Who are they? Are they playing with us too?"
"Those are the game. They aren't real people, but we are racing against them so you have to beat them all. You're on the right screen, okay. Sometimes it can get confusing, but don't try to focus on what I'm doing so it's easier to play."
Once the game started Tim was ready. He pressed the accelerator and rushed forward as fast as he could make Yoshi. He pouted as soon as he ran into the railing and had to correct himself, but he was happy to see he wasn't dead last just yet.
Tim zeroed in on the game and zoned everything else out. He hunched over the controller and urged Yoshi forward as fast as he could go.
As they approached the boxes of special items, Dick explained, "If you run into them they'll give you a prize, something to help you in the game. They're pretty much random." Dick turned his attention to Tim's screen waiting for him to reach the same point and watched to see which item Tim got. "Congratulations, Tim. That's a blue shell. If you use it you hit the person who's in first place."
Immediately pressing the button Dick had told him to, Tim watched Dick's screen to see him get hit by his shell. He knew it was wrong to feel happy to see Dick's character get hurt, but Tim knew it was a part of winning the game. If he wanted to impress Dick, he'd have to win the game.
"Wow, Timmy, you didn't even hesitate to hit me," Dick laughed as he rested his chin on Tim's head. "You really want to win, don't you?"
"Yes, Dick, and I'm going to win," Tim said confidently.
Hugging him tighter, Dick chuckled, "You're competitive aren't you? You like winning?"
Tim didn't think he was competitive, he didn't usually want to win so bad. He thought out loud, "No, I don't think so."
Dick swerved to avoid a red shell from another character and asked, "Really? You seem competitive right now."
Not knowing how to explain himself, Tim thought for a moment before deciding to be honest. So far it seemed to work with Bruce and Dick. "I want to impress you, Dick. Want to show you how good I am at this game."
Dick was happy that Tim couldn't see his changing expressions because he didn't know what to make of Tim's statement. He was sure he was smiling at Tim's sincerity, but he also knew that Tim might misunderstand. Instead, he simply hugged Tim even harder and said, "You're very impressive, Timmy. You're doing a great job already."
Using Dick's praise as motivation, Tim focused on doing his best and was able to finish in first. Excited, Tim turned around in Dick's lap and said, "See, I won!"
"You did a great job, Timbo. I knew you'd do great, but I'm really impressed. You did even better than I thought."
Dick liked seeing Tim preen because of his compliments. His little brother blushed so easily when Dick said anything good about him. Dick wanted to think it was because Tim was naturally shy and it had nothing to do with how horrible his parents were. Right now he had a sweet six year old sitting on his lap as happy as he'd ever seen him and Dick didn't want to tar the memory. "Do you want to play something else?"
"Can we play another road, please?" Tim asked. "I like this game. I like Yoshi."
"Sure, Timbo. Do you want to pick the next track?"
"Yes, please." Tim said turned back around in Dick's lap to face the tv screen and see his options. "Can we play the rainbow one? It looks pretty."
Selecting the road, Dick warned, "No problem, but this is one of the harder tracks to race on. There's no railing on the side so it's easy to fall off, but I'm sure you'll do great."
As the game started, Dick waited a few moments before accelerating. He watched Tim's screen instead and saw him speed out as fast as he could. As soon as they reached the first turn, Tim ran off the track and fell off. Dick followed him in veering off the track for Tim's sake. "This is a pretty hard turn, I always end up falling off."
"Does this mean I lose?" Tim asked worried that his winning streak was already over.
"Not at all, Timbo. You spawn on the track again after a couple of seconds," Dick explained. "We just need to try going slower so that we don't fall off again."
Taking Dick's advice to heart, Tim tried to control his speed and make careful turns. It helped, but he still veered off the track multiple times. Every time he fell off Dick followed soon after. Just to make sure Tim didn't catch on, Dick fell off a couple of extra times to make himself look sloppier.
In the end Tim didn't make first, but Dick was behind him and he could tell Tim was disappointed. Before Tim could wallow in it, Dick exclaimed, "You did great, Timmy. I never thought you'd do so great on your first try. It was hard and you still did amazing."
"Really?" Tim asked unsure. He knew Dick was nice and he seemed like the kind of person who would lie to make Tim feel better.
"Definitely," Dick said easily. "I had such a hard time the first time I played and you did even better than me. I'm really impressed, Timbo."
Tim didn't seem convinced, but Dick thought he was happy enough, probably because he'd still beaten Dick. Instead of trying his luck with another game, Dick asked, "Are you hungry? It's getting late and I know you haven't eaten in a while."
"Not hungry," Tim mumbled again watching the screen to see what Dick was going to do next.
Dick sighed, "Okay, do you want to play a different game?"
"Yes please," Tim said softly.
Dick couldn't believe the way Tim had deflated so quickly and he wanted to regain the excitement of a couple of minutes ago. Wanting to make the executive decision for a game he thought Tim would like, Dick asked, "Can I pick the next game?"
"Sure."
Lifting Tim up from his lap and to the side, Dick explained, "This game has a different controller and we can't play at the same time so I'll show you how it works."
Once he found the controllers for the Nintendo Switch, Dick put him and Tim in the same position and started explaining the different buttons to him. At first it was hard for Tim to manage both controllers at once, but after a few minutes of practice and heeding Dick's advice of looking down as little as possible Tim was able to get a hang of the game.
Dick kept praising Tim's improvements and was happy to see Tim's spirits lift. After a while Tim decided he didn't want to follow what the game and instead he went around exploring. He wanted to see everything in the game.
They both jumped when the door to Dick's room opened and Alfred peeked in. "How are you two doing?"
"Good," Tim said happily. "We're playing a game."
Walking in to the room to move some of the unused pillows back onto the bed, Alfred asked, "How was your nap, Timothy? Did you get some rest?"
"Yeah. Dick helped me."
"He didn't purposefully wake you up to play games?" Alfred asked eyeing Dick carefully.
"No. He help me and we talked a little after. Now we're playing a fun game."
"That's good," Alfred said sincerely. He wanted to ask how Dick had helped and what they had talked about, but he knew that the boys would want their privacy. Instead he asked, "Are both hungry? Dinner is ready and waiting for you downstairs."
"I'm not hungry," Tim repeated again.
Before Alfred could say anything, Dick asked, "Are you sure, Timbo? It's been a while since you ate lunch. I'm starving right now and you ate even less than me."
When Tim didn't say anything, Alfred tried, "Timothy, I'd appreciate it if you came to look at what's for dinner."
Dick felt Tim tense on his lap. He didn't like using Tim's need to please against him, but he figured Alfred knew what he was doing. "Okay, I'll come."
"Thank you," Alfred said helping Tim and Dick up. "I appreciate it."
After putting the controllers back on the tv table and rubbing his legs to get some feelings back into his legs. Tim watched Dick before waiting to follow him out of the room. Alfred stopped them before they could leave the room and asked, "Aren't you going to clean up?"
"There's no reason to," Dick argued. "We're coming back after to play some more games."
"Aren't you tired, Tim? You've been playing video games for a while."
Looking back between Dick and Alfred, Tim mumbled, "I don't know."
"Are you tired, Timmy?" Dick asked not liking how unsure Tim sounded. "You've been playing games for a while so it's okay if you feel like sleeping now. I'm guessing you aren't used to looking at screens for so long."
"I-I don't know," Tim said not liking having to pick between Alfred and Dick.
"How about we eat dinner first and then we can see if you're tired after?" Dick offered.
"Okay," Tim said waiting to go downstairs. "Is Bruce going to be with us?"
"I'm sorry but Bruce is out working right now," Alfred informed with a quick glance to Dick. "He's not going to be back until early tomorrow morning."
Tim's disappointment was clear, but Alfred and Dick simply led him to the dining room where dinner was set out. As they sat down at the table, Dick said, "Tomorrow's Sunday so I don't have school. If there's anything you want to do I'm free all day. I already did all my homework so I have nothing else to do. We can do anything you want, Timmy."
"Do I have to go to school too?" Tim asked curious. There were a lot of things about his new life that he wasn't sure of.
Looking back to Alfred, Dick said, "Oh...um...I don't know, Timmy. You can ask Bruce tomorrow." When Tim didn't say anything, Dick asked, "What grade are you in?"
"I'm in the first grade, but my nanny teaches me at home. I don't go to school like other people." Tim said softly. Suddenly, Tim shot up and asked, "What's gonna happen to my nanny now? Does she stay with my parents?"
"Oh, I don't know, Timmy. She's probably going to nanny another kid. I don't think they'd keep her around if you weren't there."
"Oh, okay," Tim said with little emotion in his voice.
"Did you like your nanny?" Dick asked hoping to keep the conversation going. Tim wasn't eating, only moving his food around on the fork and Dick asked, "Was she nice?"
Tim sighed and said, "She was okay. She wasn't mean like the other ones, but some were nicer. She was...okay."
Dick didn't like the answer, he didn't like thinking about Tim's mean nannies, but he didn't want to dwell on it. "Are you excited to be starting school? Do you know what school you want to go to? You could come to mine, I really like it."
"Do you like school?" Tim asked curious about what it was like. He'd seen school sometimes in movies and shows, but he didn't know what to think of it.
"Yeah, I mean it's work and you have to deal with a bunch of rules and annoying teachers and some kids, but I really like my school. I like it better than being homeschooled." Wanting to comfort Tim in case he was nervous, Dick said, "My school, Gotham Academy, goes all the way from pre-k to highschool so we can go to school together."
Interested in the idea, Tim asked, "We'd go to school together everyday?"
"If you go to my school," Dick said not wanting to make a promise he couldn't keep. "I'm going to be in the eighth grade next year so I'm going to be in the middle school building. It's right next to the elementary school building so I could come and see you every now and then."
"Really?" Tim asked excited at the idea. He liked thinking about seeing Dick every day at school. "Can I really go to your school with you, Dick?"
"I think that's up to Bruce, Timbo, but he'll probably let you go if you say you want to." Dick added, "I'd like it if you came to my school with me. I'd like to be able to look after you."
"I'd like that too," Tim said sincerely. Dick could see that Tim was feeling tired by the way he'd been reacting slow, but Tim said, "I like being with you, Dick. It's fun."
"I'm happy to hear that, Timmy." Changing the topic, Dick asked, "Did you like the food? You haven't been eating a lot."
Quick to Alfred's cooking's defence, Tim said, "It's good, Dick, but I'm not hungry. I-I'm just not hungry."
"Okay, you don't have to eat if you don't want to." Dick wasn't going to force Tim to eat if he didn't want to. He assumed Tim was too tired to eat and wanted to go back into bed. Instead, he offered, "If you want to you can go back to your room to sleep. I won't mind if you're tired."
"I want to keep you company, Dick," Tim insisted. He yawned a little, but he maintained, "I can go back with you."
Not wanting his brother to wait, Dick ate everything as fast as he could before saying, "Let's go upstairs now, Timmy." Walking over to Tim and reaching out to carry him, Dick offered, "I'll help you get into bed."
Tim was surprised by how tired he was already, he'd taken a long nap after all, but he settled comfortably into Dick's embrace. "I'm not tired, Dick."
Carefully climbing the stairs, something he'd never thought he'd do, Dick said, "I'm not sure about that. You seem pretty tired right now."
"I'm not," Tim weakly insisted. "I can still play with you, Dick. I want to play more games."
As he opened the door to Tim's room and placed Tim on his bed, he said, "I think you need to get some sleep, Timmy. You're tired and it's probably good to get the rest you need. Rest is gonna help you heal from the injuries. Oh- I'm gonna go get Alfred real quick so he can change your bandages. Tim, lay down and I'll literally run back as fast as I can. You won't be alone for long, okay."
"Okay," Tim said losing some of his motivation to stay up as Dick helped him lay down among the soft pillows. He didn't know how long he'd been gone, but to Tim as soon as Dick walked out he was walking back in.
Dick pulled a chair next to Tim and said, "Alfie's on his way over. I'm gonna keep you company until you're asleep, okay?"
"Okay," Tim said once again. Pouting as he realized he was lying, Tim still said, "I'm still not tired though."
"It's okay if you're tired, Timmy," Dick insisted. "You can go to sleep. I don't get why you're so against going to sleep."
"I want to keep playing with you, Dick. I'm having a lot of fun and I want to keep on playing the games."
"We can play them tomorrow, Timmy. Just like I said, we'll have all day tomorrow to do everything and anything you want."
Tim wasn't really paying attention to what Dick said. Instead, he asked, "Can I ask you something?"
"Sure, Timbo, what is it?"
Turning to look at Dick, Tim asked, "W-when you first came here, were you scared of your room?"
Too confused about the question to think about the answer Tim wanted, Dick answered honestly. "N-no I don't think so. I liked my room. It was a little lonely, but it was big and the bed was soft and I liked it." Not wanting to let the topic drop, Dick asked, "Why?"
"Can I tell you a secret, Dick?" Tim asked softly as if he was afraid someone would overhear.
"Yes, Timmy," Dick said quickly "You can tell me anything you want."
"I like being here, Dick, I think this house a lot...but this room is scary," He looked around to the dark corners and the things that were there long before him and whispered, "I don't like sleeping here. It's really scary."
Confused about what to do, Dick said, "I'm sorry, Timmy. I guess it can be scary to come to a new room like this all alone." Thinking for a moment, he decided, "You know what, you can sleep with me in my room instead. Does my room scare you?"
"No," Tim said. "It's perfect."
"I-thank you," Dick stuttered slightly taken aback by the response. "Would you like to sleep in my room?"
"Can I?" Tim asked with a weak voice. "It's okay if you don't want me to."
"I really want you to, Timbo. I like taking care of you." Moving the chair back to the desk, Dick lifted Tim up and carried him across the hallway into his own room. He laid Tim down against the pillows Alfred had picked up a while ago and quickly remade the bed around Tim.
"How does this feel, Timmy?"
Whimpering, Tim rubbed his eye and said, "Better. Good. Thank you."
"What's wrong, Timmy? Why are you crying?"
"You're really nice, Dick. Thank you."
Dick wanted to squeeze all the worry out of Tim, but he settled for crawling in next to him and holding him again. "Anything for you, Tim. Is that why you're crying? Because I'm really nice?"
"Not crying," Tim mumbled hoping Dick would believe him. "I'm not a baby."
"It's okay to cry when you're upset," Dick assured him. "It's how you show that you're not feeling good."
"You're going to sleep with me, Dick?"
Dick promised him, "Long as you need, Timmy. I'll stay here for as long as you want me."
Alfred opened the door to Dick's and sighed, "I thought you were going to be in Timothy's room."
Feeling Tim tense in his arms, Dick quickly said, "I decided to bring him here so we could read a book before going to sleep."
"I understand," Alfred said as he placed the new bandages and ointment on Dick's nightstand. "I'm going to need you to come out from under the covers, Tim. I'll be sure to finish as fast as I can."
Dick throw the blanket off of them and helped Tim lay flat on his back. "Ready, Timbo?"
"Yup," Tim said easily. After going through the process with Leslie he wasn't afraid anymore. "I'm ready."
Alfred walked into Dick's bathroom and said, "I'm going to clean my hands again just to be safe. It's better safe than sorry. Next you're going to need to take your shirt off, Tim. I have some of Dick's pajamas that you can use"
Tim up slowly before working the buttons on his shirt. Dick watched him as he stared at the angry bruises and gauze. "Does it hurt, Timmy? If it does Alfred can give you some medicine."
"No, it doesn't hurt," Tim assured him.
"But it hurt when you got it right?" Dick mumbled more to himself than to Tim.
"Yeah," Tim said honestly, moving his shirt to the side in case it got dirty. "Should I take off my pants too?"
"I don't think you need to yet. You can change when Alfred brings over your pajamas."
Looking to Dick's jeans, Tim asked, "Are you going to change too?"
"I'll do it after your finished, Timmy," Dick said softly.
Alfred pulled out Dick's desk chair to the bed's side and motioned for Tim to hold out his injured arm. Glancing up to Dick's hard expression, gaze low and jaw clenched as he took in Tim's state once again, Alfred asked, "Would you like for some privacy, Tim?"
Turning back to Dick, Tim insisted, "No, I like Dick being here. He makes me feel better."
"That's nice," Alfred said giving him a smile. "I'm going to unwrap your arm, make sure it's healing properly, apply a cream, and wrap it in clean gauze before moving to your rip."
"Okay."
He made sure to be extra gentle, Dick seemed like he'd object if he used even the slightest bit of pressure, and was happy to see that Tim wasn't in any pain. The six year old was still interested in the stitches, confused about how they worked and what they were doing for his arm, and focused on them more than what Alfred was doing.
Once Alfred was applying the cream, Dick asked, "Does it feel better?"
"Umm, it feels like the same from before," Tim said honestly. Confused, Tim asked, "Is it supposed to feel different?"
"Does it hurt?" Alfred asked softly. "As long as it doesn't hurt there's no call for concern."
Tim said happily, "It doesn't hurt. It feels itchy sometimes, but it doesn't hurt."
"That's good, Timmy." Motioning for him to raise his arms, Alfred said, "Let's move onto your torso."
Tim watched him repeat the process again before asking, "Is this going to happen everyday?"
"Just for a couple of days, Timothy," Alfred assured him as he finished wrapping his ribs. "After that this won't be necessary."
"Are we done?" Dick asked hopeful they could sleep now.
Opening another cream, Alfred explained, "I'm just going to put this on Tim's other bruises and then we're done for the night. Now, I know you said that you wanted to go back to the video games, but I'd recommend sleep. It's for the best."
"I'm not tired," Tim insisted again. This time it was a little bit closer to the truth as the cold ointment was uncomfortable enough to make him feel more awake.
Dick knew that Tim was only saying this to not seem weak in front of him and tried, "I'm really tired, Timbo. I'd like to get to sleep as soon as possible."
Surprised, Tim immediately changed his mind. "Oh, okay. We can do that then."
"Good," Alfred said pleased. Once he was done he pulled some old clothes from out of. "Now you can change into these and get to sleep."
Dick helped Tim off the bed and watched him walk into Dick's bathroom with the clothes. "Don't close the door all the way, Timmy, just in case, okay? If you need anything, just call out for me."
"Okay," Tim said as he walked behind the door. Dick said goodnight to Alfred and waited on his bed for Tim to finish before he heard, "Dick?"
Walking into the bathroom, Dick asked, "Is everything okay?"
Tim had changed his pants, but he was having trouble with the shirt. He explained softly, "I can't get my arm in the hole without it hurting, Dick."
Taking the offending shirt in his hand, Dick tried but stopped when he felt Tim tense when it became too much. He explained, "Okay, the shirt is too small. I can get you another one."
He rummaged through his own shirts until he found a soft one he thought Tim would be comfortable in. When he put it on Tim the neck was dropping off of his shoulder and he could easily move his arms into the sleeves. Tim thought it was way too big for him, he could barely see his legs, but Dick said, "You look so cute, Timmy."
Tim blushed again before letting Dick carry him back to the bed and putting him under the covers. He watched Dick find his own pajamas in the dresser and run into the bathroom before stumbling back in as he pulled the shirt over his head. Dick explained, "I don't like leaving you alone, Timbo. Even if it's just for a second I don't want you stuck by yourself."
As Dick crawled back into bed, Tim said, "You're really nice, Dick."
"It makes me happy that you think that," Dick confessed. He rolled over until Tim was close enough to wrap Tim in a hug again and he said, "I like that you like me."
"I really like you, Dick," Tim assured him. After a yawn, Tim added, "I like you, Bruce, and Alfred...happy I'm here."
"I'm so happy you're here too," Dick said back. "I'm never going to let you go."
As they drifted off into sleep, Dick added, "I can't believe how much I love you after just a few hours." Mind thinking back to the first time he'd seen the bruises and Tim cried pleading to not tell anyone and that he'd fallen. "I'm going to protect you no matter what, Timmy. No one is ever going to hurt you again. I'm your big brother now and that means I'm responsible for you."
"I'm your little brother," Tim said happily. He couldn't believe Robin was calling him little brother.
"Yeah and you know what that means?"
"What?"
"It means you have to trust me," Dick said softly. "Please tell me the truth, if anything is wrong. I can't help you if I don't know how to."
"O-okay," Tim promised. He could tell Dick was nervous, scared that Tim wouldn't be honest with him, and he wanted to assure his big brother that, "I'll tell you anything you want."
Smiling at the sincerity in Tim's voice, Dick asked, "Can you tell me why I'm special, that thing you mentioned a few hours ago?"
Tim frowned, he hadn't been thinking about that, he was tired, and he didn't want to break his promise to Dick so soon. Too tired to want to lie to Dick, Tim whispered in a soft voice, "You have to promise you won't get mad and you won't tell anyone, not even Bruce."
"Yeah, no problem. Like I said before, Timmy, I will never be mad at you. I'll keep any secret you want" Dick promised, excited that he might finally get the answer from Tim. "So why am I special, Timmy?"
Tim bit his lip before whispering, "You're Robin, Dick. You're so special. You're amazing. I can't believe you're my brother. You're like the greatest person in the world."
Dick was shocked stiff as he tried to take in what Tim was saying. He was conflicted between not wanting to keep Tim up any longer, wanting answers as fast as possible, and wanting to get answers as fast as possible. He could see that Tim was looking up to him expecting a response and Dick didn't know what to tell him. Softly he just mumbled, "Thank you, Timmy. I appreciate it. How about we both get some sleep and we can talk more about this in the morning?"
"Okay," Tim said happily. He was happy to have the weight of his secret off of his shoulders. He nuzzled into Dick and doze off quickly.
Watching Tim sleep, Dick was too confused to follow him. This was the last thing that he thought Tim would tell him, especially after only being with them for two days. He knew that his brother was smart, but he didn't know that he was smart enough to know their secret. The responsible thing to do was tell Bruce that Tim knew, that others could possible know about their identities, but he didn't want to risk Tim's position in the family. Bruce was protective and would do anything to protect their night jobs, and Dick didn't want to know if that meant abandoning Tim.
Dick squeezed Tim close to his chest and assured him, "It's okay, Timmy. I won't tell anyone that you know as long as you don't tell anyone either."
Dick understood that he couldn't solve anything right now, and decided it was best to follow Tim into sleep as fast as possible. Bruce and Alfred would find out when they needed to know and Dick knew it wasn't right now.
