Coming up with escape plans behind Slade's back was tricky. Coming up with escape plans when Rose wasn't around, was even more difficult. Robin and Terra had been spending an awful lot of time together since Terra's initial decree. It didn't take a detective to realize that Rose was becoming suspicious. Robin knew exactly what the problem was. He just didn't exactly know how to fix it. So the day Rose cornered him in the hallway heading to dinner was more awkward than anything.
"You two are dating."
The accusation caught Robin blindside and he stumbled mid-stride before turning to stare at her incredulously. "We- we what?"
"Don't lie to me! I know what I see. You and Terra are always off together, whispering in corners, sharing secret glances when you think nobody is looking," the girl's almond eyes narrowed at him as though she were disgusted. Her voice had been steadily raising and now she was practically shouting at him.
"It's not what you think!" Robin protested, holding up his hands as though to fend of her wild gesticulations. "I don't like Terra."
"You-" the girl stopped, stunned. "You don't?"
"No." he shook his head. "Not like that. She's just a frie-"
The Boy Wonder was cut off as the taller girl snagged him by the front of his shirt and pulled him in for a kiss. His eyes widened in surprise when her face was suddenly way too close to his, and then their lips met they closed. That kiss reminded him of Starfire. His cheeks tinged pink and he stared at Rose in surprise. She stared back, both of them breathing heavily, before she simple turned on her heel and walked off.
Robin stared after her, still stunned, until he finally managed to come to his senses and make it to the kitchen and dinner. He glanced at Rose, but she didn't even look at him, as though she were pretending nothing had happened.
The worlds most awkward dinner ensued as Robin sat down at his place at the table. Though, to be fair, there was never an easy dinner in Slade's Haunt. The boy frowned down at his food and poked at it for a second before finally decided that he should probably eat it or risk offending Wintergreen.
A voice cut through the companionable dinner noises. "Daddy," Rose was glancing up at Slade innocently like she had a question she wasn't so sure she'd like the answer to. Robin curled his upper lip in disgust and took a bite of pot roast. Well...it wasn't Alfred's.
"Yes?" the man asked.
"What do you think about...your students having...relationships with each other?" she was biting her lower lip, her gaze catching Robin's. He dropped his fork in shock.
"Dating?" Slade questioned to make sure he had the idea straight. Rose gave an enthusiastic nod and Slade plowed on. "I suppose as long as it doesn't interfere with your studies I see no harm in it. I trust all three of you know about...the...reproduction cycle?"
Terra made a mewling sound in horror, Robin stared like he'd just been sucker punched, and Rose made a gagging noise. "Dad please!" she added hurriedly. "We all know where babies come from. Right guys?"
Slade chuckled in an amused fashion as Terra and Robin nodded like a pair of bobbleheads.
"Alright." the group relaxed, figuring that the danger was past and they could go back to eating. "Just warn me before you two give me grandchildren," Slade sent a pointed look in the direction of Rose and Robin, who were seated next to each other.
The boy turned bright red and choked on his food.
After that, everything seemed to happen at once. Rose noticed that Robin wasn't able to breath. The boy was making noises and gesturing at his throat. Slade's daughter decided Heimlich didn't know what he was talking about and punched Robin in the gut. The offending carrot that had been lodged in Robin's throat flung itself towards Terra and decided it wanted a new life as a hat. The girl screeched, falling out of her chair and knocking over Wintergreen who was coming back with the desert. The result was a key lime pie dropping on Slade's head and landing jelly side down on his lap.
There was a moment of stunned silence before Rose burst out laughing. Slowly, everyone joined in, even Slade, who reached up to wipe some whipped cream off of his cloth mask.
They didn't actually get to eat desert that night, but none of the teens seemed to mind. Slade excused himself to wash the pie off while the three teens were told to stay and help Wintergreen fix the mess they'd made of the kitchen. They worked quickly, and for the most part, quietly. Occasionally one or two of them would lock eyes and then the giggling would start back up again. They laughed the kitchen clean and when it was done the three teens bid Wintergreen a good night and wandered off to do their homework.
As they walked Robin gave Terra a look, silently telling her to head on ahead. He would talk with her later and they would continue hashing out their plans. First, though, he needed to talk to Rose. Terra turned down the first hallway that branched off, leaving Robin and Rose alone in the hallway. He waited maybe a moment before pouncing.
"What was that?" he asked, sharply.
"What?" it was Rose's turn to feign innocence.
"Dinner!" the boy said, glaring at her sharply.
The girl just shrugged her shoulders and moved to saunter down the hallway. Robin made a soft growling noise and snagged her shoulder, pulling her towards himself and setting her off balance before shoving her against the wall. It was rare for Robin to get psychical, especially with girls he considered teammates. He was usually a perfect gentleman. Right now, there was nothing sweet or innocent about the way he slammed her shoulders back into the wall and held her there.
"No. I want answers. First you beat me up, then you kiss me, then you yell at me! You're giving me whiplash!" he told her, his face set in a hard scowl.
"You're so stupid!" was her retort.
Robin backed off, looking more confused than anything. Then that confusion channeled into anger. "Stop it!" he ordered her.
The way she was looking at him made Robin uneasy. "Are you sure you want me to stop?" Rose asked.
Robin opened his mouth to reply, looking thoroughly perplexed, and suddenly she was kissing him again. The boy's eyes widened in surprise as she grabbed the back of his head, angling it up towards hers and kissing him in a way that no longer reminded him of Starfire. This was a wild, untamable sort of passion, like standing in the middle of a storm with no protection. Lightning bounced up and down his spine before he finally decided to kiss her back.
He could feel her smiling against his mouth.
It would be then that someone would cough lightly behind them. It was a deep cough which could mean only one person. Robin pulled himself out of Rose's grip and whirled around to stare up at Slade. His face was bright red but he managed to not shrink down from the stare the man pinned on him. Then, the gaze was averted to Rose.
"Rose. I need to talk with you," he gestured that she should follow him before the man paused to regard Robin again. "Robin. We'll have another chat soon." he added ominously.
The boy's knees suddenly felt weak and he was pretty sure he wanted nothing to do with that chat. If Slade started explaining where babies came from he was going to run away, bombs or no bombs. He watched as the father and daughter vanished down the hallway before he sought out Terra. She was lounging on the couch in the break room with her computer on her lap. Her face tilted up when she saw him enter and she smiled in greeting.
"You look happy. What happened?" the girl sat up and surveyed him curiously. "Did Rose agree to help us escape?"
"Not exactly." There was some level of irony in this, Robin decided, as his brain struggled to think about escaping and not about the kiss. Hormones, especially teenage hormones, were so not helping. "I...er...she kissed me," Robin said his cheeks tinting pink again.
Terra looked like she'd just gotten punched in the stomach and Robin didn't know why. "Oh." was all she said.
"I can ask her if she wants in," Robin suggested.
Terra gave a noncommittal shrug. "Sure."
"I won't if you're not comfortable with it," the boy pressed, frowning as he plopped down on the couch besides her.
The blond fidgeted awkwardly besides him, before sitting up and shifting her position. "It's not that," she confessed. "It's just...that I..."
This time Robin saw the kiss coming and didn't back away. Terra was everything Rose wasn't. She was unsure, sweet. He barely felt their lips touch before the girl backed away quickly and let her hair curtain in front of her face.
There was a pregnant pause. It gave birth to an apology.
"Sorry," Terra said softly.
Robin reached forward and pushed her hair out of her eyes, a tender gesture. "Don't be sorry. I don't feel the same way," he confessed, pulling back as soon as he could see her face. "But it's nothing to apologize about."
The girl gave him a weak smile. "Thanks. It's okay, I guess. You and Rose are perfect for each other."
"We're not-!" Robin tried to protest.
"And I still like Beast Boy."
The boy gave up trying to convince the world he wasn't going out with Rose and simply smiled at her confession. "That's good. He'd turn into a cow and jump over the moon for you, you know."
The smile she sent Robin told the boy she had always known but just wanted to hear it out loud.
"Now, let's figure out how to see him again."
Authors Note: So. Who wants Slade to give them the "Birds and Bees" speech? Yeeeah. So not me. But hey, talk about teenage hormones. xD I could have probably renamed this chapter the "everybody kisses Robin chapter" but then I would feel obligated to have awkward Slade and Wintergreen scenes. Which is never going to happen.
Also, yes, I did pie Slade in the face. And yes, he is probably going to kill me. But it was so worth it!
Sorry the weekly update is smaller than usual. I haven't had any time to write. At all. It's awful.