Dick's apartment was quiet. Barbara was the only voice he'd heard in 26 hours. Bruce always warned him about shutting himself away, as if he knew anything about it. Bruce had no idea what the quiet was doing to him. Hell, Bruce didn't care.

Dick wished for nothing more than to be where he was yesterday. Why did he leave them? Why didn't he stay with Rachel? With Kory? With the people he felt safest with?

It was becoming more and more apparent to Dick that he couldn't allow himself to feel safe and secure. Bruce had left more of a mark on him than he'd let himself believe.

He hated that he'd abandoned them, especially Rachel. She needed him most, and he did just what Bruce did. He fled. He caused Rachel the same pain he swore he'd never cause a single person. He knew what it felt like to feel so cold and alone. What the hell made him think he could do that to someone else?

Dick's phone let off a luminating hue in his pocket. He reached for it out of habit.

Rachel:

Hey stranger, you gonna hole yourself up forever?

She was so young and so naive. She had no idea that he was doing all of this to protect her. Or, maybe she did know, but she didn't care. Whatever it was, he answered nonetheless.

Dick:

Sorry. Been busy. Just trying to figure some stuff out.

Rachel:

What kind of stuff, and why can't you tell me about it?

Dick:

It's nothing.

Rachel:

It's always nothing.

Dick signed. He was in too deep now. He had to explain.

Dick:

Call me.

She happily obliged, and within twenty seconds, her name was on his caller I.D.

"Dick, what is going on?"

He went back and forth on telling her what was really happening with him. As if she would believe or even understand the severity of it.

"It's something-someone-from home," he replied, "that's all. No big deal."

"You sure make it out to be some big deal when you don't return Kory or I's calls, then get pissed when we keep calling. You're gonna have to buy some social skills, Dick."

"Note taken."

He could almost feel her smile on the line. He missed that, and the more he talked to her, the more he felt closer to home.

"I'm going to have to get going," he said.

"Why do I get this feeling that you're still hiding something from me?"

"Not hiding," he corrected, "just not worth sharing."

"Dick, every time you say that, the thing that you were hiding normally ends up almost getting you killed. Can you please just be honest? Just this once?"

"There's really not much to share," he said. "Someone from home called. They need me back. I said no-"

"Wait, slow down. You said no? Why would you do that?"

"I can't go back, Rachel. It's not that simple. Things are, they're complicated back there."

"But those people, they're your family, Dick. I would give anything to have people who cared about me the way these people seem to care about you. You can't just abandon them."

Dick didn't answer her. The line went quiet.

"Where is home anyway?"

"Gotham," he answered, "my home is in Gotham."

He debated sharing any more of himself with her, but secrets hadn't done him any favors.

"The man who needs my help is the man who I grew up with. I thought he was the man I'd lean on forever. I thought he'd never abandon me, at least, not in the way that he has."

"You talked about trusting the wrong people."

"Yeah," Dick said, "I did."

"Even if he's done so wrong by you, Dick, he was also there for you when you didn't have a friend. What if you're the only person in the world that can make a difference in his life right now? Don't you think he deserves that after everything he's done for you?"

"I just don't know how to turn my head and forget about all the hurt he's caused."

"Maybe you don't have to," she said, "go to Gotham. Talk to him. Make things right. You can't keep living this way."

Dick swallowed hard at the thought of seeing him again after all these years.

"Dick," she said, "this is your chance to make amends. You can't keep doing this to yourself. You can't protect your heart by pretending you don't have one."