I woke with a start as my alarm went off. It was Saturday and my clock was set to go off at eight thirty so I couldn't sleep the whole day away. I quickly turned off the loud beeps and glanced over at Bette's bed. Her figure was laying there, the movement of her breathing seeming normal and constant. I let out a sigh of relief. There was always hell to pay when I accidentally woke her up.
As quietly as I could, I got up and started getting ready for the day. I ran through the events of the night before, playing through the last part particularly slowly. Robin hadn't been my first kiss, but it was certainly my favorite. But just then, I was afraid I had simply imagined the whole thing—I had dreamed of the Boy Wonder before. I immediately ran over to my closet and saw the black and yellow cape sitting sadly on the floor. I pulled it out and felt the material, stroking it and running the supple material through my fingers. It was sturdy and from my studies of all things Robin, I knew it wasn't flammable. I marveled at how the cape was made of only one piece of material but was colored in the black and yellow. I wrapped it around my shoulders and inhaled deeply; it took me back to last night, how he calmly lifted me up from the ground and strongly held onto my waist. After relishing our kiss again, I neatly folded the cloth and placed it lovingly in my closet.
I got ready, putting my long red hair up in a ponytail. I put on a pair of jeans and a loose-fitting tank-top and jacket. After slipping on my tennis shoes, I grabbed my backpack and phone, deciding to head to the local mall to kill some time before heading to the sports complex again.
I walked around campus before going to the bus stop. It was a beautiful November morning, the leaves still falling and the crisp breeze not too chilly. Unfortunately, the morning became much uglier the moment I ran into Richard.
"Babs!" he exclaimed, making a beeline for me, totally ditching the girl he had just been romancing. I rolled my eyes and attempted to calm myself before he got to me.
"Barbara Gordon," he said with a sigh, standing back and looking me over.
"What?" I asked, knowing I would regret the decision to humor him.
"I just wanted to ask you if you had a good night yesterday." I stopped breathing, staring straight ahead. Did he know something? Had he seen? I shook my head. There was no way.
"Yeah, I guess. Why?" My voice began riding on the tone of suspicious.
"Oh. No reason…" His voice trailed off as if he was pondering something.
"Well," I began, "if that's all, I'll be going now." Suddenly he called out to me.
"Babs! Wait." I stopped and rolled my eyes again.
"What?" I asked, exasperation flooding my voice.
"I was just wondering if you would join me for dinner tonight." I stared at the boy. Just how dumb was he, really?
"Uh, no thank you," I replied. "Besides, aren't you with Bette?" He shook his head.
"I broke up with her last night. So…" He wiggled his eyebrows up and down and I felt my ears heat up; he really was annoying.
"No. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to be late for my bus." He chuckled smugly and I whipped around to face him. "What is so funny?" I practically screamed.
"Well," he started. "If you were trying for the ten fifteen bus, you just missed it." Just then a bus rolled down the street away from the bus stop and I checked my watch. It was ten twenty. I glared at the boy and he started laughing. "If you want I can give you a ride, since, you know, I made you miss your bus." I titled my head to the side skeptically. I didn't know if I could withstand being with this child for the half-hour ride it took to get to the mall, but I didn't want to walk. I weighed my options. I could just ignore him. But it wouldn't kill me to walk…
"I don't know…" I started. He then grabbed my arm and dragged me off to the parking lot.
"Oh, I insist," he said. I rolled my eyes once again.
He eventually let go of my arm and left me following. It took about two minutes to get to the parking lot when I realized something—I could've driven myself. True, I would've had to find a parking spot and I wasn't even supposed to have a vehicle, but I would've preferred to face the repercussions. He walked around the lot for a bit, looking for his car and finally found it. Richard began walking toward a black Corvette convertible. My eyes bulged and I had to keep my jaw from dropping.
I got inside the leather interior and marveled at the car. You shouldn't be surprised, Barbara, I told myself. He is a billionaire's son. But still; the car took my breath away. Richard turned on the engine and revved it expertly. "Bruce gave this to me as a birthday present," he explained. "Best gift yet," he added cockily.
He pulled out onto the highway, pushing the speed limit. Again, I wasn't surprised. The top was up and on the inside of this luxury, wealthy car, the silence was nearing extremely awkward. He seemed quieter, concentrating and not attempting to impress or flirt with me. The change was welcome, but I felt that I was being ignored. That bugged me and my ears turned slightly red. Richard glanced over and chuckled. "What?" I asked, ensuring that my ears turned scarlet.
"Nothing," he replied. "I just think it's cute the way your ears turn red. Most girls' faces blush—it's just different." He kept his eyes on the road the whole time. "So…." We again sat in silence. "How was your break?"
I pondered this seemingly normal question and thought about my answer. "It was nice. My dad actually got a break from work and my mom baked the dinner. We usually just stay together and don't do a lot of extended family things, so that was nice. What about you? How is Thanksgiving with playboy Mr. Wayne?" I tried to get my voice to sound playful, but it didn't really work out.
"He actually kept his girlfriends away this year. We had a nice dinner that Alfred cooked. The turkey was superb, the pumpkin pie was spectacular. Just like it always is…" The tone of his voice got almost sad at the end and for a moment I felt a pang of sympathy for Richard. Then he added, "But hey, it's nice to always have great food, great women, a great life!" My sympathy, quite literally exploded into tiny bits that I imagined myself slicing to pieces and sending to an incinerator.
For the rest of the trip I was fuming, crossing my arms and uncrossing them, glaring out of the window all the while. Richard, to break the stillness, turned on the radio. To my surprise he went to the most popular country station—something I wouldn't have pegged him for. I actually didn't mind this type of music and calmed down a little; but I didn't forget the comment he had made.
We finally got to the mall and I got out with a murmur of 'Thanks' and a slam of his precious car door. I walked into the mall, still fuming.
As it was almost eleven, I was just beginning to get hungry, since I hadn't had breakfast. I went into the food court and went to the nearest sub sandwich shop and ordered. After devouring my sandwich, I went shopping.
I walked around a bit, going into various clothing and shoe stores before finally heading to my favorite shop; a gigantic, always filled, bookshop. I was an avid reader, and could, quite honestly, spend an entire day in this shop. Books take you away, to magical landscapes, dark alleyways, enchanting castles, and futuristic space adventures. There isn't really one genre I enjoy the best—mostly just a variety of them all.
I spent a good chunk of my time here; and only left when my stomach insisted I get something to eat. I went back to the food court and purchased some cheese pizza and a small salad. I ate and watched the other shoppers walk by. There were elderly couples, teenagers roving, whiny children bawling to go home, and even the occasional person I knew, here with their boyfriend or girlfriend. It made me slightly jealous that I came here alone—and always had in the past. But, deep down, I knew there was only one person I would want here with me anyway.
I finished and threw away my trash. I checked my phone and saw it was almost eight o'clock. I sighed and rolled my eyes, hoping I wouldn't get attacked again—but slightly hoping I'd get the chance to see him again.
I made it to the bus stop without incident and even got partially back to my dorm before my trip became eventful. I was a little ways away, but I could see a man approaching a woman. She shook her head and started running away when he launched himself at her. I sprinted to the fight going on and came to a screeching halt. "STOP!" I shouted and the man immediately looked up. He smiled at me, revealing crooked, yellowing teeth.
"Look, little missy," he growled. "I only wanted to take one, but I can take you too, if you really want me to…" I rolled my eyes and the training Dad put me through took over. This man wasn't ready for me—last night I had been caught off guard, unprepared. Tonight, it was different. I took my stance and as the man approached me I kicked him squarely in the jaw, sending him reeling backwards. He staggered to a kneeling position and I kicked him in the side. He flailed back and onto the concrete, unconscious but still breathing. I pulled out my phone and called the police. Then, I came towards the girl and mimicked what Robin had done for me. I took off my jacket, draped it over her shoulders, and knelt down next to her.
"Are you okay?" I asked, in what I hoped was a soft tone.
"Yeah…" she mumbled and began crying, stuffing her head into my chest and giving me a huge hug. I cradled her like that until the police came.
The report was made, my statement was taken, and the girl was carted off in the ambulance. She couldn't have been any older than eighteen and I felt very bad for her. I began walking back to my dorm and got inside, noticing that Bette wasn't here, when there was a slight tap on the window. I looked curiously outside and saw it was him. I ran over to the window and wrenched it open. He hopped inside and peered around the room before looking at me. "I was watching you tonight," he finally said, his voice sounding even more beautiful than I remembered. His big blue eyes gleamed even in the darkness of the room and he smiled. "I was impressed by how you took charge of the situation. You've got skills." I smiled shyly, my ears turning crimson. He chuckled softly and walked towards me. "It's so cute that you're ears turn red like that…" His comment caused them to burn even more. Robin walked closer to me until we were almost touching. "I guess I did get to see you again… Although it wasn't just by chance."
"Yeah, you did kind of cheat…" I mumbled before he leaned down, engulfing me in himself. I surrendered myself to the kiss much sooner this time. I parted my lips and let his tongue enter again. He placed his hands around my waist and I twisted my hands in his hair. Robin backed me up and I fell on the bed. He landed on top of me and was very gentle, not going further than any polite man should. Eventually he ventured farther and began softly rubbing my thigh and leg. Then, suddenly, the door clicked open and he was gone.
Bette flicked the lights on and I pretended to be asleep. She came in, clattering her things about and sighed when she saw the open window. I pretended to be waking up and apologized for leaving the window open. "I was just so exhausted from spending all day at the mall, I just forgot. Sorry." Bette huffed about the room some more.
"Sure, that's what it was," she mumbled.
I paused. "What did you think I was doing?"
Bette stopped in her tracks and glared at me. "Well, rumor is, Dick took you to the mall today. In his Corvette. He didn't even let me see that fricking car, and you got to ride in it. For all I know, you could've been in here making out with him."
I was totally taken aback. Me? Make out with him? "You do know I hate that guy with a passion, right? Why in the world would I want to kiss him? The only reason I went with him is because he made me miss my bus and he practically dragged me over to his car. I didn't instigate anything, Bette." She just rolled her eyes and continued her huffing. I decided it wasn't worth arguing, so I got ready for bed myself and played over the minutes that Bette had just rudely interrupted.