*Yes, I know, horribly late again and all that… Just get used to it, this fic is not going to be updated very quickly, though it shouldn't take many chapters to be finished! ^^ Thanks to all of you who read and favorited/followed, and especially to all those who reviewed. I'm deeply humbled with all your good words. I hope you enjoy this chapter too!*
CHAPTER TEN
Raven considered herself lucky to have performed well during the mission, when all of her thoughts were running all over the place, wondering what Robin wanted to talk to her about. Was it about Beast Boy? Was it about Cyborg? Had he found out? Had Cyborg told him? What was it, anyway?
Back at the Tower, she did whatever she could to postpone the talk; she needed to prepare herself properly. Luckily, again, Robin didn't seem to be pressing the issue much, and so she had all the time she wanted to shower, eat, relax and come to terms with the fact that she had to tell Robin something, though she couldn't really know what 'something' that would be.
After she had calmed down and was ready to face whatever came her way, she decided to go find Robin herself and get this matter over with. Silently as always, she floated over to Robin's door and knocked lightly. Robin casually opened his door and smiled at her. "I knew you'd come." He said confidently and exited the room.
"Aren't we going to talk?" Raven asked, frowning.
"Not here, Raven. Let's grab a bag of chips and head to the top, shall we?"
Raven nodded in agreement and soon, Robin had snatched the bag of chips open and offered her some, trying to tame his cape, that was swinging wildly by the wind at the top of the Tower.
"I'll pass." Raven said. "Chips make me thirsty."
"More for me!" Robin said, shoving a generous amount of salty chips in his mouth. "So, will y' tell meh wh-t's gon'on?" He asked, with his mouth full.
"With what, exactly?"
Robin turned his head just a bit and gave her a good look, swallowing. "You know what I'm talking about!" He said playfully, nudging her. "The reason you don't want Beast Boy has a name…"
Raven was sure she had blushed a bit, even though she was, at that point, a hundred percent sure that was what Robin wanted to ask her about. "Um, you have been getting some things wrong here."
"No need to be secretive about it, Rae." Robin said, shoving another handful of chips in his mouth, "I saw Cyb-rg leave yoh r-um y'strdeh."
Shit, Raven thought. "Okay… So, yes, Cyborg and I have something going on, but my change of heart concerning Beast Boy had nothing to do with that."
"I am going to be nosy and ask, then, what is actually going on with you two? And Beast Boy, really?"
"Beastie and I called it off, as you know, shortly after our split last year."
"Yes, I was aware of that." Robin said nodding, and licked one of his fingers.
"During that year, I guess I just…lost whatever attraction and erotic affection I had for him. It happens, right?"
"Yeah…"
"When I saw him again, when we were trying to piece this team back together, I felt nothing special. Nothing."
"You're sure about that?"
"Yes, Robin, I spent many hours pondering over the matter, I am pretty sure."
"Good to know. So, where does Cyborg come in?"
Raven shrugged. "Somewhere along the way…"
"What happened along the way?"
"We teamed up and we… talked. Like, real talk. We…communicated. Soon I realized I felt something more."
"Simply like that…" Robin said, swallowing another chunk of chips. "I understand. He felt the same, then?"
"I wasn't certain, until a couple of days ago where he, um, he-"
"It's okay, you don't have to share things you don't feel comfortable sharing. I'll just keep the fact that a couple of days ago, you two realized your feelings were mutual."
"Yes."
"And you haven't figured what's going on between you two yet? 'Cause you said 'something', before."
"No, we haven't. I just want to settle things with Beast Boy first, I suppose. Because I… I feel guilty."
Robin nodded. "I see why you'd feel that way, but you shouldn't."
"It's not easy."
"Of course it's not, but you're not doing anything wrong, if you two want it, and you have no feelings for Beast Boy. He'll understand."
"Will he?" Raven asked, turning to look at her friend, with eyes full of wonder.
"Yeah. I mean, he does want his friends to be happy and he'll get over it eventually. You were going to turn him down either way, so…"
"I suppose you're right. Rob, remember when you said that you were going to talk him out of asking me to a dinner?"
"Yes."
"Don't do it. I will settle it with him, it's better. I want to be the one to tell him, not someone out of this whole story."
"Alright, if that's what you want."
Raven nodded. "What do you think, Robin?"
Robin smiled at her. "I think I saw it coming."
"What?!"
He smiled to himself. "I don't know, I just always had this feeling that Cyborg would fall for you eventually."
"Why?"
Robin shrugged. "I told you I don't know. It's not a deduction from something, it was just a hunch."
"And I'm supposed to be the psychic around here…"
"Sometimes very insightful people tend to be blind to their own affairs." Raven smiled and remained quiet. "You know," Robin went on, "I truly do think you'll be quite well with Cyborg."
"Deduction or hunch?"
"A bit of both… Don't you think so too?"
Raven shoved her hand in the chip bag and fed herself a fair amount, nodding in agreement as a response to his question. Robin grinned widely and ruffled her hair playfully. "I'm glad."
OOO-OOO-OOO
"No, Rae, I insist." Cyborg said, folding his arms.
"I don't care."
"I'm his best friend, I should be the one to sort it out."
"Well, I am his ex and the person in between you, so guess what. I'll go speak with him."
"Rae…" Cyborg said, placing his hands on her shoulders. "Please."
"No. End of discussion."
"Well I don't think so, witchy…" Cyborg said, leaning in to kiss her but by the mere sound of his lab's door sliding open, Raven turned into her soul-self and slid down through the ground before the person standing outside could enter.
"Hey, Cy!" Beast Boy said joyfully, waving at his pal.
"Oh, hey, B." Cyborg greeted, thinking that this was the perfect opportunity to settle things with him. "What brings ya here?"
"Just wanting to ask you if you were up for a game or something."
Right when Cyborg was about to answer, his door slip open again, and in came Raven, with a smug look on her face.
"Hello, b-Oh! Beast Boy, you're here too? What a surprise.."
"Hey, Raven!" Beast Boy said and Cyborg looked at her confused.
"Beast Boy," she pronounced meaningfully, "since I found you here, I was wondering if you had a moment. I need to talk to you about something." Cyborg squinted his eyes at her. Oh no, she didn't, he thought.
"Sure!" Beast Boy exclaimed. "Cy, let's play later, okay?" Cyborg just nodded.
Right before they exited, Raven swiftly turned her head around and winked at Cyborg. The door slid close and he was left to stare that way.
"That cunning witch…" He mumbled to himself.
"So, what can I do for you, Raven?" Beast Boy asked, grinning goofily at her.
"We need to have a serious talk about some things…" Raven said, starting to detect tiny bits of uneasiness in herself.
"Oh." He mumbled, losing the grin. "Has anything happened? Are you okay?"
"I'm fine, thanks for asking."
"You almost got me there, Rae! I thought it was something serious!"
"It is serious, just not…health-wise."
"Oh…" He mumbled again.
When they reached Raven's room, she opened the door and led them both inside. "Take a seat." She instructed, starting to pace around.
Beast Boy made his way to her bed and sat on its edge, taking a look around the dark room. "I miss coming here more often…"
Raven sighed and closed her eyes, pressing the bridge of her nose, wondering why he had to make it more difficult than it already was. "Beast Boy, please…"
"What?" He asked playfully.
"This… This is what we need to talk about. It's come to my attention that you-", she took a moment to find the words to phrase it, "have been thinking about asking me out again, right?"
"Well, um, yeah. We're all back together and Star and Rob are together too, so I only found it natural that we-"
"Natural?!"
"Yeah! I mean, it's not like I stopped liking you or-"
"What about me, Beast Boy?"
Beast Boy's eyes widened and shone brightly as he lifted them up to Raven's face. "Don't you like me, anymore, Raven?"
Raven took a good and long look at this face. She remembered very clearly how she liked it more than se ever admitted, how she wanted to spend minutes at a time just looking into those big, green eyes, that no matter what animal he turned into, always had that vibrant shine and how she relished every smile he used to give her. And she felt a wave of sadness take over her, as she realized that this wasn't the case anymore. She now saw the face of her joyous comrade, her goofy friend, her trusted teammate and…nothing further than that. No desire, no erotic love, nothing.
"I don't want to lie to you, Beast Boy."
"Then don't." He said, shrugging. "The question is simple!"
Raven dragged her feet over the bed and sat next to him. "I'm sorry, but…no."
Beast Boy's ears lowered, much like when a dog gets scolded. He scanned her face, his expression betraying his sudden sadness and Raven couldn't help but wonder why he was so certain that she was still interested after all this time. She hadn't given him any false hope, she was sure about that.
"R-Really?" He asked almost whispering.
Raven nodded. "This is the truth. I thought you would have understood by now that my… my feelings changed."
"I guess I didn't, then…"
"Look, during this year, we tore ourselves away from each other. What is only natural, is for them to change."
"I suppose you're right. Just… mines didn't. Neither Rob's and Starfire's, so I thought that maybe you treated me coldly because you were just holding a grudge or something…"
"No, I was trying to discourage you from having hopes that I would have to turn down, like I'm doing now. I'm not enjoying this, you know. I don't mean to hurt you, but that's how it is."
"I see… I guess I should thank you for being honest, I appreciate it…" He made a slight move to stand off the bed but Raven grabbed his arm.
"Sit down, there's something else, too."
Beast Boy sat down again and turned to look at her. Raven frowned and bit her lower lip. She thought she had prepared herself for this moment, but now that it had actually come down to doing it, a knot in her neck kept her from speaking immediately.
"What is it, Rae?" Beast Boy asked, after some moments of utter silence.
Raven exhaled. "I wish this talk wasn't meant to happen with the one we just had…"
"What?"
"Look, I need you to understand that the thing I'm about to tell you, has absolutely nothing to do with the change of my feelings towards you. I just… I need you to know."
"Need me to know what, Raven? You're speaking in riddles."
Raven took a deep breath and summoning up her courage, knowing that she was a hundred percent certain of what she wanted from her life now, looked decisively into Beast Boy's eyes and spoke. "Beast Boy, I want to be with Cyborg."
Beast Boy took a long moment to process what he had just heard. Raven imagined his brain like a well-oiled machine, whose gears suddenly froze, and he was trying to get them to move again slowly. His eyes widened again, but not in terror or sadness. It was a combination of genuine surprise and anger. "What?!" He shouted finally, as it was the only thing going through his head. "Cyborg?! What!?" He sprang up, panting.
"B-"
"Cyborg? You want to be with Cyborg?!"
"What's with that tone?"
He laughed nervously, throwing his hands up. "My best friend with my girlf-"
"Ex." Raven clarified, arching an eyebrow.
That simple word made Beast Boy stop his ongoing burst and spin around to look at her. It seemed like his anger had suddenly been erased and reality came to finally settle inside him, no matter how crushing it appeared. He turned his gaze down. "I'm sorry."
"Don't be… I'm feeling weirdly about this too."
"Is this…new?" He asked calmly, but Raven found something unsettling about his behavior.
"Yes, it's not even official."
"And are you sure? That you really, really want him? Cyborg?"
Raven nodded positively. "Absolutely."
"I see." Beast Boy said through his teeth. Raven noticed he was clenching his fists. What were those mood swings again?
"Look, I-"
"Stay here, please." He said and Raven looked at him in question.
"Excuse me?"
"Stay here. I need to settle something with Cyborg. Don't come." Before Raven could react, he stormed out of her door, turned into a hawk and flew to –she guessed- Cyborg's lab. She wanted to follow him down. But something told her to leave boys be boys, and talk it out between themselves. Cyborg wanted to speak with Beast Boy after all, right?
Beast Boy came rushing into the lab, having turned back to himself. Cyborg gave him an examining look from over his workbench. Beast Boy was angry; maybe Raven's talk hadn't gone too smoothly. He took a couple of steps towards Beast Boy, being extra cautious and remaining silent, as he didn't know what his friend's intent was, or how he would actually react to the news.
"Tell me." Beast Boy said. His voice was abnormally strong and Cyborg tried hard to read his expression. "Do you really want her?"
Cyborg, not hesitating at all, nodded deeply. "Yes. More than you know."
"Do you promise to make her happy?"
"Beastie, wh-"
"Answer me, damn you!" Beast Boy shouted, running to Cyborg, pinning his eyes on his face. "Do. You. Promise."
"Yes, I promise."
"If you ever do anything to hurt her, I'll make you pay, you get it?" Beast Boy warned, and Cyborg noticed his friend's eyes getting watery. He placed his big, mechanic palms on the shapeshifter's shoulders.
"Beast Boy. I don't wanna hurt her. She…means a lot to me, alright? You should know how I feel, she used to mean a lot to you too."
"She still does…" Beast Boy mumbled and Cyborg sighed.
"I'm…sorry, man."
"Both of you do." The green man said and gave his friend a good look. "I want you to be happy. I do, it's just that it-"
"Beastie, don't try to explain yourself, I know how hard it is."
"I'll…get over it, I suppose, eventually."
Cyborg opened his arms and gave Beast Boy a tight, squeezing hug, hoping it conveyed the extent of the gratefulness that he felt.
That moment, the lab's door slid open and Raven stepped inside; her curiosity had gotten over her at last. The sight of Cyborg and Beast Boy hugging relieved her to no extent. The sound of the door made them draw away and Beast Boy turned around, hastily wiping a tear from his cheek. He gave Raven a shy and somewhat sad smile as he walked towards the door again.
"I hope he makes you happy, Rae. More than I did, at least."
"Please, don't." Raven said. "Don't think like that."
He nodded lightly. "I truly hope it works between you." He said as he walked away. "You both deserve each other."
As he moved further, Raven called up and he turned his head around.
"Thank you." She mouthed and he half-smiled. "Thank you too." He mouthed back before turning back again and leaving.
She moved inside the lab and stood a bit, exchanging a long look with Cyborg. He grinned and laughed loudly, as they ran to each other. Raven leaped and wrapped her hands around his neck, as he grabbed her tightly and twirled, continuing laughing louder and louder.
-OOO-OOO-OOO-
Cyborg had rested his head on Raven's lap and caressed her thigh with his pointer, enjoying the peculiar sense of her cool skin. Raven flipped the page of the old book she was reading, holding it with one hand, and running her fingers over Cyborg's neck with the other. Though it was late, way past midnight, Cyborg didn't feel the least bit sleepy. Something about Raven's room always kept him awake longer. In fact, he was feeling quite energetic, and a very specific kind of energetic too. Smirking, he ran his finger up to Raven's pajama shorts –which he was pleasantly surprised to find that they were lacy and dotted- up until he reached her underwear. Raven closed her book with a thud.
"What are you doing?" She asked, arching an eyebrow.
"What does it seem like I'm doin'?" Cyborg replied, pulling himself a bit upwards and planting kisses on her thigh. Just when Raven was ready to place her book down and enjoy some…nighttime couple activity, the alarm sounded around the Tower.
Cyborg groaned loudly. "You've got to be kiddin' me now!"
*So, with that out of the way, the next chapter –whenever that comes- will have some action and some CyRae bliss. I think there are two more chapters and this fic will be coming to its end. Thanks for reading, and please, do leave a small review! Oh, and, sorry for any typos I didn't notice.
Till next time, take care!*