Kori strolled up to the doors of the manor as she had done so many other days now. She had barely lifted her foot onto the first step leading up to the front door when Dick suddenly came out.
"Oh... Hello, Richard," She laughed, confused by his meeting her outside the door.
"Hey," He replied, zipping up the front of his jacket,
Kori sensed that he was not in a good mood. She furrowed her eyebrows in concern,
"Is... Everything okay?" She asked, looking up at him carefully.
Dick looked at her for a moment with a straight face. He calmly walked away from the door and gently took her hand in his as he continued to walk towards the gates of the manor.
"Richard? You are scaring me slightly," Kori informed him, causing him to stop and look at her with a soft expression,
"Um... Is it okay to skip the session today? I just... Need to be out of the manor at the moment. I was hoping we could just hang out somewhere." He explained,
Kori absorbed the fact that he was really distraught about something. She nodded, "Of course..." She paused, "Are you not worried about someone seeing us together?"
Dick shook his head, "I know a place that no one else knows about."
Kori accepted that and they continued to wander through the gates of the manor. After a short while of walking, they came to the entrance of a forest. Kori raised her eyebrow. He was right. She had no idea where they were or where they were headed.
They stepped carefully through the woods, with the occasional cracking of a twig beneath their feet. Kori glanced at their intertwined hands and blushed lightly. He had not let go of her hand since they left the manor.
Kori was concerned for the boy leading her. She rarely saw him being so serious and it was a strange thing to witness. She didn't know if he was going to tell her what had happened but she was somewhat flattered. He could have chosen anyone to be with him whilst he was going through an array of emotions and yet, he decided to traipse through the forest with her.
Suddenly, Kori narrowed her eyes as she noticed a clearing of sorts ahead of them. It wasn't like a forest clearing however as she could have sworn she saw water washing up against the ground they would soon be stepping on.
They reached the end of the forest and Kori's mouth fell open. The dark and humid forest had led them to the most beautiful corner of a beach that Kori had ever seen. As the sun had started to lower, the sky had taken on a mixed colouring of pink and purple which caused the atmosphere to become serene. The sand was smooth and there was absolutely no sign of any pebbles as far as she could see and the sea was a clear turquoise colour. For a moment, she thought she was back in Tameran; it seemed that exotic.
"Richard... This place is beautiful..." She breathed as her eyes drank up the sight in front of her.
Dick gave into the smallest of smiles but even that was brief, "Yeah... I used to explore a lot when Bruce first adopted me and I wound up finding this place."
"How are you so certain that no one else knows of this place?"
"Trust me... No one else knows about it. There is a serious lack of people around here who are willing to trek through the forest without a goal to reach."
Kori nodded and they sat down on the sand together. Kori felt a falter in her heart as he released her hand but she did not waver. She wanted to know if he was alright.
She glanced at him subtly. His eyebrows were crossed and he was glaring at the ocean before them. His jaw was visibly set and she was somewhat afraid to say anything to him in case he yelled at her. So, they remained in an uncomfortable silence for the next 5 minutes.
Kori gave into a sigh and tested her luck. She shuffled closer to him and playfully nudged him, "Richard... Has something happened?" She asked, "You seem very... Distant?"
Dick allowed his expression to calm and he turned to Kori with a tired look on his face, "I'm sorry, Kor..." He exhaled, "It's just... Well, I was arguing with Bruce. I wanted to get away from the manor to clear my head and... I knew being around you would help that."
Kori involuntarily smiled at his comment. She genuinely felt her heart melt at his words. Did he really feel that she aided him in feeling calmer? Out of reflex, Kori touched his arm.
"Do not apologize... I am happy to help you in any way that I can." Kori told him, "Do you wish to talk about it?"
Dick nodded slowly. Kori crossed her legs and sat up straight, showing him that he had all of her attention,
"I don't even know how it started... He was talking about how I don't act responsibly and how I should act my age and... I just lost it. I mean, what the hell does that even mean? It's like what we talked about... He expects me to suddenly act like an adult but... He's never been a great role model. He's hardly even around to teach me how to be an adult." Dick clarified, earning small nods from Kori to show that she understood.
"Why is it so difficult for adults to understand that it doesn't work that way? Hell, they were all teenagers at one point; they should understand that 18 year olds make mistakes! Actually, everyone makes mistakes... Ugh... I'm sorry about this, Kori..."
"It is fine, Richard. I would rather you explain it to me than you doing something reckless or dangerous even..."
In a quick motion, Dick had his arms wrapped around Kori's waist and it was clear that he was hugging her. Kori immediately rested her head against him and her hands slid around his shoulders to return the eager hug.
Although Kori wished to be there for him, she was having a tough time trying to push away her feelings for Dick. She had been attempting to tell herself that her feelings were nothing; that they were temporary but they just kept getting stronger. Every time she spoke to Dick, her heartbeat sped up and her stomach did somersaults.
Dick pulled away from her and heavily exhaled. He smiled in a calm manner and brushed some of her hair behind her ear, something that she didn't try to object to.
"Thanks for listening to me rant, Kor..." He mumbled,
"That is okay... However, I must input my thoughts. Although I understand how you are feeling, I do not believe Bruce does it intentionally... Of course, there is stress that comes with being an adult also... Perhaps, he just lashed out at you due to how he was feeling..." Kori suggested, softly,
Dick nodded, "Mm... I guess so... I'll try and talk about it with him when I get back,"
Kori smiled, "I think that is a smart idea,"
"Sorry about skipping the session today. I'll still pay you for it-"
Kori giggled, "Richard, it is fine... I did not exactly feel like teaching you methods of trigonometry anyway,"
Dick chuckled, "Are you okay? I mean, I'm here complaining about my life but... Is everything alright with you?"
Kori gazed at him with a glimmer in her eye. How could she have judged someone so much without knowing them? This boy sitting in front of her; the one she had assumed was a self centred, spoilt brat was truly one of the sweetest and most considerate people she had ever met. She knew he had issues about being like this in front of other people but she couldn't understand why. She was beginning to fully accept that she was in love with this boy.
He may act like a complete jerk when he is in front of a crowd but Kori felt privileged to know this version of him; the real Richard Grayson.
She shook her head and smiled, "No... Everything with me is wonderful. I have no complaints."
Dick grinned and nodded. Suddenly, his phone burst into life and began ringing. Kori signalled for him to take it.
He noticed the caller ID was Wally so he answered, "Hello?"
"Hey man!" Wally replied,
"What's up?"
"Where are you!? There's a party at Roy's and its fudgin' awesome!"
"Sounds fun, I guess,"
"Are you gonna come!? He's starting to let people in the pool!"
Dick paused in answering as he looked over at Kori who was drawing in the sand with a stick that had been lying beside her. He smiled softly,
"I'm gonna have to pass man. Hope you have fun," Dick stated, ending the call before Wally could try and coax him into going,
"You know... You can go... I would not mind-" Kori began,
"No, but I would mind... Sides, I'd honestly rather be here with you than at a party..." Dick returned,
Kori raised an eyebrow at him, "Have I broken you or something?" She laughed. Dick joined in but shook his head. He glanced over at a small sketchbook that was edging its way out of Kori's bag. He nodded towards it, "Can I see some of your artwork?" He hoped,
Kori followed his eyes and blushed, self consciously. She grabbed the sketchbook and held it close to her chest. She closed her eyes and bit her lip, "They are not very good..."
"I'll be the judge of that,"
He playfully put his hand out for the sketchbook. She sighed and handed it to him. Dick smiled and opened it up. There were loads of different scenes in the book; all of which were sketched of still life. He raked his eyes over a drawing of her sister sitting on the sofa with her phone, a drawing of her brother playing video games with his tongue poking out in concentration, a pair of hands, variations of realistic eyes...
He came to a drawing that made him smirk. It was a sketch of the school cafeteria with an array of students within it. He had wondered why Kori and her friends had sat in the corner of the cafeteria; now it seemed to make sense. This way, Kori could get a good perspective of everyone around her.
"Am I drawn in this one?" He asked, flashing a lopsided grin,
Kori scrunched up her face in an adorable way to suppress a smirk, "Yes..." She mumbled. She pointed to a dark haired character on the paper with her slender index finger.
"Hey; that's pretty good, Kor..." He chuckled, looking closer at the drawing, "Actually... It's amazing..."
"Thank you..." She giggled. Dick turned to her but bit his lip.
Kori could sense he wanted to ask her something but she wasn't sure if she was prepared for what he was going to ask.
"What...?" Kori prompted,
"Do you think you could draw me?" He wondered,
"Now?"
"Mhm..."
"I could try... It may prove to be very interesting..."
Dick chuckled and sat back. Kori shook her head and reached into her bag and brought out a pencil with a sharp tip. She flipped the pages until she had a fresh page. She rolled her shoulders slightly and cleared her throat.
"Okay... I need you to relax your face," Kori informed him.
Dick did as he was told and watched as Kori put her pencil to paper. For the entire time that she was sketching him, his eyes never left her. She was unbelievably captivating and his feelings for her caused him to hold a serious face. It wasn't a joke anymore or something to get flustered about. He loved this adorably geeky girl in front of him. Now, he just needed to get over his fear of social differences in front of other people and pluck up the courage to tell her how he felt...
