Ch 4

Raven found the tower surprisingly quiet tonight as she brought a warm mug of tea and a big book into the living room. Making herself comfortable on the couch, she opened her book and started reading. The silence was nice for once. There was no one to disturb her. She read for a while, but it didn't seem right. She almost expected Beast boy to pop up and ask her what she was reading.

"What is wrong with you Raven? You have the place to yourself for once, and you can't even concentrate," she sighed. "And I'm talking to myself."

Before she could think more about her predicament, she heard the doors open and in walked a smiling Beast boy with some takeout food. Once he spotted her, his smile got bigger if that were possible. "Hey Rae I ordered some Chinese. I got everything you like. You hungry or what?"

"Sure, why not?" she said, bringing her tea with her to the table while BB pulled everything out of the bag.

Grabbing a soda from the fridge and some utensils from the drawer, he sat down in front of Raven at the table. They ate in silence, which again made Raven feel uneasy and she didn't know why. At anytime she expected him to prattle on about something that didn't interest her. He was confusing her, and she didn't like it.

"Um are you ok?" asked Raven. "Usually we can't get you to stop talking during dinner."

"Well I thought you'd appreciate the silence," he sighed. "It's just with everything that has happened, I just haven't felt like being my usual happy self."

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"I just don't understand it, even now I can't think of a time where I compared her to who she use to be. Maybe she was just finding an excuse to dump me. I thought we were in a good place, but I guess I was wrong."

Raven sighed. "I'm going to regret saying this, but I always thought you were too good for her. I'm not sure I ever saw what you saw in her."

"Thanks Rae," he smiled. "I don't know. Maybe I liked her for all the wrong reasons. I mean she was the first girl in a long time to notice me and like me for who I was. At the same time maybe I just didn't want to be alone. I mean it's possible one day I could have grown to love her but now I'll never know."

"I know how you feel. I felt the same way about Mal—that jerk. Anyway I don't think anyone wants to end up alone but we shouldn't pursue the first person we're interested just because we don't want to be alone. It's not healthy."

"Yeah. You should want to be with someone because you love them and can't picture a world without them in it beside you."

Dinner was done, and Beast boy suggested a horror movie marathon, which Raven agreed to. Beast boy brought some snacks with him to the living room, sat them down, and started the first movie. Sitting beside Raven, he noticed her snuggled up in her blanket and smiled.

"What?" she asked.

"N—nothing it's just I've never seen you—you look cute all bundled up like that."

Raven blushed. "Shut up and watch the movie."

During the movie she noticed how jumpy BB was as he hid under his blanket when a scary scene appeared. At one point he clung to Raven for dear life, which she found funny. A smirk appeared on her face, and BB saw it as he blushed and removed his grip from the empath.

"Uh sorry about that Rae."

"It's Raven and why do you watch horror movies if you know you're going to get scared?"

"I think they're well done for one thing, and I like being scared."

"Of course you do."

"So, you think the others are enjoying themselves?"

"Probably. Bumblebee told me you helped her and Cyborg get together."

"Yeah we started chatting online and she asked about Cyborg. She hadn't heard from him in a while, and she wondered if he was ok. By the sound in her voice, I could tell she missed him. I asked her why she didn't just ask him out all ready, and she blushed. Right then I knew I had to get them together. I knew he loved her, so it was a no brainer."

"That was very sweet of you Beast boy."

A warm feeling came to the changeling, and he smiled. "Thanks Rae and if you ever need me to set you—

"No, not after Starfire set me up. I still have nightmares about that creepy guy she set me up with. His mouth was so dirty that after the date, I burned the clothes I wore and showered until my skin was raw."

"Fair enough. I guess it's better to find your own date."

"I'm not sure I want to date for a while."

"Me to. It's nice to be single sometimes, but I hate all those people who feel sorry for you just because you're not with someone."

"Me to. Sometimes Starfire gives me that look and I just want to strangle her," she said as BB laughed and Raven smiled briefly.