Disclaimer: Nope, no rights, no ownership of Teen Titans, none of that for me.
Compromise
In the two weeks since he had touched her cheek and promised to be patient, Beast Boy had done everything thinkable to uphold his word. He still acted like himself, bold and impulsive, with a child's eye for fun and opportunity. But with her, he was considerate and sweet, and most importantly, he could compromise.
Nearly everything needed a compromise while they figured out the parameters of their new relationship. The compromises started the morning after her night shift with Robin and Cyborg, when Beast Boy had surprised her with tofu eggs and bacon upon her return.
He seemed so proud of himself for thinking to cook for her. Raven just tried to swallow it.
"You aren't going to ask me not to eat meat anymore are you?" She had asked "Now that we're…us now?"
He had laughed and shook his head, "So long as you never try to make me eat it."
It was a deal, one that eventually sprang into many others.
"So, I know that kissing and really long hugs are out of the question." He had said during one of their excursions outside the Tower.
"That's right." She had said, "Why are you bringing it up?"
"Well, I was just wondering, is hand holding out of the question?" He asked.
Beast Boy was blushing, which she found funny and cute all at once. Wasn't he supposed to be the one who was more comfortable with all of this? She stepped closer and grabbed his hand. After the surprise wore off, he laced their fingers together. The heavy warmth settled over them again.
She smiled, "Just not in front of the rest of the team okay? Cyborg teases us enough, and Robin says I can't send him into a different dimension for it."
There was a gentle squeeze to her hand, "Deal."
Today's compromise was about what to do. Beast Boy had paced around living room, flitting back and forth from the couch, to the windows that overlooked the bay, to the kitchen. Eventually he drove her mad with his endless wandering.
"Bored Garfield?" She had long since taken to calling him by his given name, and he had yet to protest.
"No, just…I'm tired of being in here. Practice isn't until this afternoon." He replied, flopping down on the couch beside her.
"You could always go train in the gym until then." She suggested.
"Nah, that body building stuff is for Robin and Cyborg." He said running his hand through his hair.
Raven took a moment to observe him. He was right; he wasn't one for big muscles. She personally preferred it; his lean and trim features were far more appealing than a mass of bulgy muscle. Though, he had filled out somewhat over the years. His shoulders had broadened and he had grown taller, now an inch or two taller than her.
"Hey, why don't we get out of here for a little while?" He proposed, cutting into her thoughts.
"If you're so tired of this place, go for a walk, don't drag me into it."
"C'mon Rae," He insisted, drawing close to her, "We can go to that bookstore that you like, the one on the corner of I-scream-in-my-sleep and Kill-me-now?"
"Not all of their stuff is that dark." She said defensively
He smirked, "Right. C'mon, I'll even buy you a book, anyone you want."
"You'll buy me a book, just to get out of the Tower?" Raven quirked an eyebrow. "Okay, fine, I'll go."
"Haha! Yes! Alright, lemme go grab my wallet and I'll be ready."
He hopped over the back of the couch and dashed through the door. Raven felt a grin on her lips, one she didn't try to remove.
They had been to this store before. The first time he had trailed her like a puppy dog, half afraid that something would pop out at him from between the book titles. This time he seemed a little more courageous, daring to go down the aisles without her. Raven felt relieved, she preferred to peruse books by herself.
She could see where Garfield got the impression that the store was gloomy, the horror section covered over half of the shelf space, and directly behind it was poetry that would have made Stephen King shiver. She liked that section the most.
She passed a stand marked 'Special Collections' and something leather-bound caught her eye. Raven paused for a moment, and then picked it up. It was old, and beaten up, the leather wearing in places, but that wasn't what concerned her about it.
"A Runes translation book?" She said to herself, flipping through the pages. This store hadn't sold stuff like this before.
Raven looked for the storekeeper, a girl with heavy black eyeliner and neon purple lipstick. The girl was sitting behind the register, popping gum.
"When did you start selling books like this?" Raven asked her.
The girl barely glanced at her, "That thing? We got it in two weeks ago; some old guy dropped it off."
Raven glanced at it again, "Do you know how much it's worth?"
The girl shrugged, "A few bucks maybe, it's so worn out I doubt anyone would pay too much for it. Why, you want it?"
Raven turned stoic, "I'll think about it."
She walked away from the counter, knowing that worth of the book was close to priceless, these weren't the translations of lost and ancient languages. These were the magic runes that were etched under her skin, the ones that had glowed when the time had come for her to be her father's portal. She tucked it under her arm, she wouldn't let Garfield pay for it, but she would get it, just to keep it out of someone else's hands.
Wandering towards the poetry section she found Garfield, a book in his hand. It was thin, but still it was a book.
"Are you actually looking at a book?" Raven teased.
He flipped it over, letting her read the title. The Tell-Tale Heart by Edgar Allan Poe and other stories.
"I never figured you for a Poe fan." She said.
"I'm not," Garfield replied, "It's something Negative Man would read to me, when I was little and scared of the bad guys."
"Do you miss them, the Doom Patrol?" She asked after a moment, Garfield had only mentioned them twice now to her.
"Sometimes." He chuckled suddenly, "When Rita found out he was reading this to me she freaked out, yelling about how I was going to have nightmares or wet the bed or something."
Raven smirked slightly, "And did you?"
"Nah, Negative Man only read it to me after I saw Mala murder somebody. I think Negative Man was trying to tell me that if we didn't get the bad guy, their own guilt might."
He was quiet then, and Raven felt the sudden coldness around him. She moved closer, placing her hand on his shoulder.
"I like Poe's stuff," She said, leaning part of her weight against him as she reached for the book, "I'll take this one."
"There's a better one, a complete works copy, and it's got a nicer cover." He told her, the air warming a bit.
"I'll take that one then." She nodded and he moved away to retrieve it, but Raven could feel the coldness slip off him, and she was glad.
They walked over to the cashier, who was still popping her gum.
"We'll take this," Garfield put the Complete Collection book on the counter, "Oh, and this too."
Before she could stop him, he snatched the runes translation from her and placed it with the other book.
"Did you think I was going to let you pay for that?" He grinned, handing the bubble gum girl the money.
Raven tried to protest, but the deed was done. The girl was already handing back his change and saying in a not-so-sincere tone, "Thank you for shopping at Haunted Harry's Books, come again soon."
Once they were outside, she let Garfield have a piece of her mind.
"I never meant for you to buy that." She glared at him, "You only promised me one."
"Yeah, I did, but you wanted the second one too. And what girlfriend wants, girlfriend gets." He said confidently.
Raven gave him an odd look, "What girlfriend wants, girlfriend gets?"
"Yep!" He grinned, full of self-satisfaction.
"You realize that you just called me your girlfriend, right?"
Garfield stopped in his tracks, "Oh."
Raven listened as he tried poorly to explain himself. He said that he had been calling her that for the last week or so, not to anyone else, just to himself, but then he backtracked saying that he'd stop, if that wasn't okay, if they weren't there yet. He was blushing the same way he had been when he asked if he could hold her hand.
"I'm sorry, I know I promised to be patient, and I swear I'm trying to be, honest." He said, ending his little rant.
Chuckling, she stepped closer and put her hands on his shoulders, "You have been more than patient, Gar, and you haven't broken any promises."
"Really?" He asked
"Really," She nodded, "now stand still for me, please."
Garfield gave her a questioning look, "Okay…"
Raven moved so that their foreheads could touch, and she felt the heavy warmth all over again.
"For the record, Garfield, I like that you call me your girlfriend." She said.
He would have responded, saying something lame like how he liked that she liked it, but he didn't. Instead, the books dropped to the ground and his arms came around her. He would have responded, but he was too busy kissing his girlfriend.