Robin glared at his guest while the freckled face grinned down at him.
'What are you doing here?' he demanded.
'You go all black ops on me for five months and you expect me not to worry?' said Wally, pushing his hands into the pockets of his jeans, giving his best friend a friendly but curious stare.
Robin didn't answer and refused to meet the other male's eye. He was torn between needing his best friend and his need to be left alone.
'Did Bats send you?'
'No!' said Wally, in a manner that sounded slightly annoyed. Robin believed him. 'I came because you're not answering my texts, Bats isn't forth coming with information and you haven't been to visit in nearly half a year.' When Robin still did not answer, Wally leant in a little closer and lowered his voice. 'I just need to know that you are ok.'
'I'm fine.' Said Robin automatically.
'Are you? Or is that Bat language for, I'm repressing my feelings?'
Robin glared at the older boy again. This week was just getting better and better. He was tired, irritable and on edge and now, here was Wally West trying to read him. There had been a time when the ginger had known Dick better than nearly anyone. Those days were over. These days Dick barely knew what he was feeling, so how the hell did Wally think he could work it out?
'Who's this?'
They both glanced in the direction of the door as Cyborg entered the main room. The half-robot eyed the newcomer, he was dressed in civilian clothes but from how close he was able to stand to the Titan's leader, Cyborg guessed he was a friend of Robin's.
'Hi, I'm Kid Flash.' Said Wally, giving the other Titan a wave.
'KF.' Said Robin in a warning tone, he was mad enough that Wally would show up here in civvies, without giving away his ID to the first person he saw.
'What?' said Wally, shrugging. He knew what Robin was worried about. 'If you trust them, I trust them.' But when Robin glanced away, he eyed the boy he considered his brother suspiciously. 'You have told them your ID, right?'
Cyborg looked between the two, looking slightly awkward. It was clear that this new kid knew who Robin was behind the mask. When the team had first been formed, all of the Titans had assumed Robins' ID was a well-kept secret within the community. Apparently, this wasn't completely true, judging by Kid Flash's reaction.
Kid Flash looked at the Boy Wonder and crossed his arms over his chest, looking concerned at his young friend.
'Dude? What the hell? Talk about taking a step backwards.'
Cyborg could practically see his leaders' defensive walls rising. It had happened a lot in the early days when the team – mainly Beast Boy – had asked too many personal questions. Robin's walls went up and he completely shut off from them, sometimes going as far as to leave the room. He would come back several hours later and no one would mention it again. These days, they had all learnt not to ask the Boy Wonder questions about himself, his past or his work with Batman.
'Shut up, Wally.' Robin snapped.
'Shall I leave you guys alone?' said Cy, he was beginning to feel like a third wheel.
'No, Kid Flash was just leaving.'
The look of brotherly concern lessened slightly. 'Come on Dude, don't be like that.' The red-head said.
Robin was about to push the issue further when an alarm began to sound throughout the tower, indicating there was trouble somewhere in the city. Within minutes the other Titans descended into the main room, they looked a little confused at the newcomer but still waited for their instruction. Robin looked seriously at his friend.
'Stay here.' He then turned to his new team. 'Titans, Go!'
oOoOoOoOoOoOoOo
The trouble in the city was being caused by Control Freak. The overweight villain who wanted to control the world with the use of his TV remote. He had animated a huge creature with multiple legs and it was causing havoc on the Jump City bridge. Control Freak was one of those villains who was more of an inconvenience than a real threat. Although he had caused thousands of dollars' worth of damage to the city, he had never come close to actually killing anyone. Even so, he needed taking down, and Robin hoped it wouldn't take the team too long.
But Robin couldn't keep his mind on the fight in front of him. Wally's appearance at the tower had deepened the cracks in his persona. The feelings he tried to escape by becoming Robin, were slowly creeping around the mask. He felt guilty for neglecting his best friend, he felt angry that Wally had shown up and brought with him all the pain he had been trying to distance himself from, and he felt…distracted.
One of Control Freak's digital monsters' legs swung out and by the time Robin noticed, it was too late. It forced him against a pillar of the bridge and crushed him against its solid surface. Robin gasped for air as his chest was crushed.
'You don't seem on top form today, Boy Wonder.' Control Freak laughed, 'Maybe you should have stayed at home – watched some TV.'
Robin tried to force the limb away, so he could reach his belt, but the strength of the creature was giving no room for him to wiggle free. With each exhale, the limp pushed him tighter against the wall – it was constricting him – preventing him from inhaling properly. Robin knew the tactic well from all the times he and Wally had watched animal planet. One thing David Attenborough never mentioned was how the rat could escape from the snake's grip…that would have been useful information.
Just as darkness began to creep into his vision and his fight had started to diminish; a star bolt came from the side and connected with the creature's leg. It didn't do any damage, but it caused the monster to loosen its grip enough for Robin to slip free. He landed on the ground and rolled out of the way, taking deep intakes of breath and looking up at Starfire. He nodded at her in thanks and she went back to the fight. Once he had caught his breath, Robin rose from his knees and ran forward to re-join his teammates. Unfortunately, Control Freak had taken note of the Titan's distraction and had decided to use it to his advantage.
'Not so fast.' He used his monster to once again lash out at the Boy Wonder, but this time the limb did not crush him against a pillar. The leg sent Robin heavily against the railing of the bridge, the momentum sending him right over the top and down into the water below.
The water was cold, instantly freezing his body, sending it into shock. But the silence was also instant. It entombed him, pulling him down further. The lower he sank the colder and quieter it became. After a few moments, the initial shock of the cold passed and he felt a still calmness wash over him. He wasn't sure if it was a conscious choice or not, but he didn't fight gravity as it pulled him down; allowing himself to sink further into the darkness of the water.
All he could hear was the beating of his heart in his ears which after a while began to slow. Even the pain in his lungs soon faded until he felt completely numb. For the first time in a year, he felt completely at peace. He closed his eyes and allowed the water to swallow him.
oOoOoOoOoOoOoOo
When Robin had gone over the edge of the bridge, the Titan's had assumed he would save himself – he was Robin after all. As predicted, it didn't take them long to take down Control Freak but once he was under custody, they all noticed that their leader had yet to resurface.
'Robin?' Starfire called down to the water. Maybe he had swum over somewhere?
'Is he still under the water?' asked Beast Boy.
A flash of yellow ran past them, stopping momentarily to gauge where the ripples in the water were still lightly resonating. The Titans watched as Kid Flash dove off the bridge and into the water.
They waited, watching the water settled around where Wally had entered.
Beast Boy ran to the T car and brought back a first aid kit and blankets; still, there was no sign of them.
'This isn't good.' Said Raven. 'That water is freezing, even with a thermal suit, Robin has been in there too long.'
'Was he unconscious when he went over?' Cyborg asked.
'I don't know. He hit the barrier, but I didn't think he'd hit it that hard.' Raven kept her lilac eyes on the water. Robin had been her first friend; the thought of suddenly having him ripped away from her was causing feelings she had never before experienced. She tried to push them down, but without knowing what was going on below the water it was hard.
Suddenly, a wet mop of red hair broke the surface of the water followed by the bright yellow of KF's suit. He waved up at them and Raven used her magic to bring them both back onto the bridge. Once on dry land, KF lay Robin on the ground. The boy's skin was tinged with blue and his lips purple.
'Come on, Rob.' Kid Flash began CPR, pushing his hands against Robin's chest. After a few moments, he unclipped the youngers cape and opened the armoured jacket of his suit before beginning compressions again. When Robin did not respond, the red-head brought his mouth down to his friends; pinching the other's nose and breathing air into him, then beginning compressions again.
'Don't you dare die on me Boy Wonder.'
The speedster began doing the compressions a little harder; he didn't want to break his friends' ribs, but he was not going to let the kid die. Not here. Not now. Not like this.
Suddenly, with a splutter and a choke, water exited Robin's lungs. Wally pulled the younger on to his side, so he could expel the water. Robin continued to choke, and as if his body had finally caught up with what was happening, he began to shiver violently.
Wally took the blanket from the morphling and wrapped it around the Boy Wonder.
'Breathe, just breathe.'
Robin took in a gasped breath as Wally rubbed his back in circular motions.
'Can you bring the car over?' The red-head asked, 'I don't want to risk running with him when he's not breathing properly.'
Cyborg nodded and called the car to them. When it was close enough, Wally wrapped his arms around the unconscious boy and lifted him, still wrapped in the blanket, and carried him to the car. He got into the back seat with him and lay the boy over his lap, so he could hold him close, hoping the heat of his metahuman body would help warm him up. Wally cradled the younger to his chest, glad to see his lips were not quite as purple as they had been.
Cyborg and Raven got into the front of the car, leaving the other two to fly back to the tower. The two older teens looked into the back of the car with concerned expressions.
Wally felt for them. They were still new to this game, they hadn't seen the same horrors as Young Justice. This was probably the first time one of them had been properly injured. He knew it wouldn't be the last.
As they drove back towards the Tower, Robin began to become more lucid. Not enough to work out where he was but enough to realise, he was being touched; being held. With what little strength he had in his body, he began to thrash in Wally's arms, trying to get away.
Kid Flash held his friend tighter, not wanting the boy to injure himself.
'I know, I know Rob. I know you don't like to be touched but you need to warm up. Robin, I need you to calm down, you're wasting energy.' The Speedsters plea fell on deaf ears, as Robin pushed weakly against his chest, small whimpers escaping his lips. 'Please Rob, Calm down. It's just me, it's Wally. Please.'
Raven turned around to see the redhead trying desperately to keep his friend still. She focused on singling out Robin's mind, it wasn't hard, his emotions were practically screaming at her. Once she had his consciousness in her mind's eye, her eyes went black and she shushed him with her own consciousness. The boy's panicked movements slowed and then they stopped completely as he fell limp in Wally's arms.
'Thank you.' Wally said to the girl, her eyes returned to normal.
She turned back to the road, trying to shake off Robin's emotions.
'He's terrified.' She said quietly.
'Of Kid Flash?' asked Cyborg.
'No, I don't think he was awake enough to realise it was Kid Flash.' She glanced into the rear-view mirror to meet the speedster's eye. He looked away.
'You know, don't you?' she said. 'You know why he doesn't like to be touched?' The memory of Robin ripping his ankle away from her touch had been playing on her mind all week. She had begun to notice other strange things about the leader of the Teen Titans. He was jumpy, quiet and she doubted she was the only one who heard him scream at night. Then there was the dark cloud of emotion that hung around him. In recent days, it had been growing darker.
Wally looked awkward for a moment, proving her theory that he knew more than he was telling. He shook his head. 'It's not my place to say.'
They made the rest of the journey in silence.
oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo
When they arrived back at the tower, Wally immediately ran ahead, taking his friend to the tower's med bay. He stripped him of his clothes, thankful that the younger was still unconscious. He dressed him in dry, loose clothes and wrapped him in a thermal blanket before placing an oxygen mask over his mouth.
When he was done, he sat at his friend's bedside, watching him sleep. He was somewhat relieved. He had had the chance to assess the boy while he slept. Dick had always been very thin, but he was no thinner than he usually was. He was eating – maybe not enough – but it was something. There were no new uniformed scars. Wally had wondered whether Dick had picked up his old habit; he was glad to see he had not. No, physically the Boy Wonder was fine, all things considered. But there was one thing that bothered Wally, that he couldn't quite put his finger on.
'Will he be alright?'
Wally turned to see that the alien girl had her head around the door. She looked beyond concerned. Wally was once again reminded that these guys were brand new. This wasn't the first time he had sat beside Robin in a hospital bed. Hell, this wasn't even the first time he had sat here after Robin had almost drowned. But for the Titans, this was a scary wakeup call that people die doing what they do. Every mission could be their last.
'Don't worry, he's pulled through worse. He just needs to sleep.'
She nodded.
'Thank you, for saving him. We all froze.' She looked like she might cry. 'Robin is always so strong. We thought he would save himself.'
'It's alright,' Wally consoled her. 'Most of the time he does. But sometimes he just needs a little help. That's what it means to be part of a team.'
She smiled weakly and left them.
Wally leant back in his chair, thinking about what the girl had said. Robin did usually save himself. When Wally had seen the live footage of the fight from the Titan's TV and had seen Robin go over the barrier and into the water, he had assumed the boy was unconscious. Getting up, Wally checked around Robin's hairline for any bumps or bruising. Other than the bruise on his side (and on his chest from Wally's CPR), there were no other injuries from when he had hit the barrier. Robin hadn't been knocked unconscious when he had gone over. Even if he had been too stunned by the blow to catch himself, he should have been able to react once he hit the water. Which begged the question.
Why didn't Robin swim?
A/N: If you haven't already guessed, this story is going to be pretty dark. Please review and let me know what you think, so I know I am taking it in the right direction. Thanks for reading - Karin x
