March 18th

Gotham City

0230 EST

Deke didn't bother getting out of bed to put the candles out, he was far too tired. He had just enough left in him to pull his girlfriend close, laying in the dark together. Outside, rain began to patter on the windows, with lightning flashing in the distance. It was peaceful, calm, just lying together like this.

"Babs?" He said, looking down at her.

"Deke?" She replied, nuzzling comfortably into his chest.

He just stroked her hair, still silky and always fiery. "I'm Marshall O'Connelly, Deacon is my middle name. I wanted to start new so I decided to change my name."

"I know," She murmured as she got herself more comfortable. "I figured you'd tell me when you were ready, but Batman told me first."

"Cool," He said as he rested his arm behind his head on the pillow, just watching the rain fall outside.

"Gordon. My last name is Gordon." She told him after a moment's thought. Bats would not take well to this, but she didn't particularly care. She's been inside her own head her whole life, and she'd been inside Deke's too. She'd been craving the trust for a while now. "When's your birthday?"

"Three weeks from…" Deke said, and looked at the clock on the bedside table. "Today actually. April 8th. Yours?"

"September 23rd." She said, her voice sleepy. His stroking of her hair and the rain outside wasn't helping her any, not to mention the sheer exhaustion she felt after they'd? She wasn't sure what to call it. It was too intense for lovemaking, too emotional for fucking, and too raw for sex.

"I'll get you something nice." Deke said, but he was nearly asleep as he said it. Barbara was already snoring softly.

The next morning, Barbara awoke to the sun beaming through the windows, directly in her face. Deke's arm was still around her, his fingertips just barely touching her breast. There was something hilarious about that, and Barbara couldn't stifle her laugh completely.

She moved his arm and rolled over onto her stomach, an action which was more painful than she'd expected. Their… she just went with lovemaking because it seemed classier, had left her a lot more sore than the other girls had mentioned, but then again, they'd all complained at how quick it had been.

"Hey Cowboy, you awake?" Barbara said as she lifted her feet in the air behind her, vaguely swaying back and forth over her bare bottom. She heard him snicker as his eyes opened, and she decided in that moment she'd found a pet name for him.

"Yep." He drawled, rubbing his eyes. She was beautiful, even with her hair tangled in bed head, and her eyes still trying to wake completely up. A week ago, he would have traded his life for anything. Now, there was nothing in this universe that would make him give up this moment. "M' awake." He muttered.

"Who's getting breakfast and who's making coffee?" She asked, her stomach already rumbling.

Deke pondered it a moment. "I'll do breakfast." He said, and pulled himself to a sitting position, suddenly remembering he was still naked, and sporting a man's traditional morning reaction.

Barbara couldn't resist, reaching out and grabbing it, giving it a light squeeze. "Tonight. I want to do that again."

"You have no idea how happy I am to hear you enjoyed yourself." Deke said earnestly. Barbara took her hand back before it turned into a tease, and rolled off the bed and onto her feet, with just enough bounce to punctuate the point. She was some woman, there was no arguing that. Deke was happier though, that she felt like she could be herself, not the woman in the mask.

"You know for a fact I did." She said, looking around for clothes. Deke rose from the bed and excused himself to the bathroom, leaving her to select something to wear. She went with a comfortable t-shirt and yoga pants, which reminded her she'd missed yoga this week. When he returned to dig for his sweats, she traded him places and ran a shower.

She definitely needed to clean herself up. She'd been extremely wet, and he'd contributed his own to it. As the water ran, she was grateful Canary had secured League level birth control for the girls on the team. Not that Barbara needed to hear it, but apparently the pill she was on would prevent Superman from conceiving, let alone a mere mortal. Barbara knew there were some very unpleasant reasons that Canary had taken the initiative on this, and she'd had that conversation, but the fact that she absolutely refused to tell the rest of the League who'd chosen to take them and who hadn't, was just another reason to respect Canary more. That it allowed her to be perfectly and totally intimate in her first time, she almost wanted to send the older Hero a thank you card for it.

Barbara bathed quickly, and decided to wash her hair again after the sheer amount of sweat she'd produced the night before. She also kind of wished she could have seen it, and that thought brought a naughty flush to her face. She wasn't the kind to be turned on by a camera, especially with how much she knew about electronics and wireless signal, but for that one night, it might have been worth it.

When she exited the bathroom, feeling much cleaner and much more awake, her nose caught a whiff of breakfast sausage. "What are you cooking?" She asked, leaning over the counter of the kitchenette.

In a pan, he had sausage crumbled, and the oven light was on. A quick glance at the trash can showed her a tube of biscuits as well. She had her answer, but she liked hearing him say it.

"Something you can't get made right this far north." He said, adding milk to the sausage in the skillet. "Proper biscuits and gravy, my mom's recipe."

Barbara walked around the counter and kissed him. "Can't wait." She said, and busied herself making coffee. While she went about it, she put a hand on his shoulder.

"I've got some stuff to do this morning and afternoon. I promised my dad I'd have lunch with him, and I have to handle some personal stuff." Barbara told him. "I'll meet you for dinner though?"

"Cool. I saw a sign saying there was some work for Spanish speakers today at some market around lunchtime, and I have to get the stuff for Ropa Vieja anyway." Deke said, still stirring and adding milk until he was satisfied.

Barbara handed him a cup of the coffee she'd been working on, and grabbed the things to set the table while he completed breakfast. (cheating, by using his powers to get the tray of biscuits from the oven). When they were done, he made them each a plate, and then waited on her to dig in. He had this look, like a puppy, when she took her first bite. She found it absolutely adorable, making her squint her eyes and crinkle her nose at him.

She'd had this before. Gotham had more than a few breakfast joints, but the hot mix of sausage and pepper was much creamier and richer than restaurant fare. She smiled and nodded, sticking her fork back in for another bite, an action which brought a huge grin to Deke's face.

They ate relatively quietly, both very hungry after their 'activities' last night. Barbara excused herself afterwards, kissing him sweetly on her way out, leaving Deke to learn that, while he hated seeing her leave, he loved watching her go, especially in those pants.

He cleaned up the breakfast mess, and then decided to throw the bedsheets in the wash. They definitely smelled like sweaty sex and eventually, someone else might want to sleep on them. While they washed, he bathed, though the hot water revealed some welts on his back, four on either side, roughly as wide as Barbara's fingers. He wasn't a detective, but Deke was pretty sure he knew who the culprit was.

He flicked a gesture at the television, hitting the on switch from the bedroom so he wasn't in total silence, and went to the bedroom to put on some actual clothes. He was extremely bummed he'd already lost that suit jacket he'd bought, but when he saw it in the closet with a note pinned to it, he couldn't resist putting it on.

The note read 'I think you forgot this. Thanks for the help.' It was signed with a very flourished letter Z, leaving no doubt who he needed to thank. Deke tucked that letter into his wallet so he wouldn't forget to show proper gratitude, and then sat on the bed to ponder for a moment.

The night previous, it had been intense. Pleasurable for sure, but extremely intense. He didn't have any doubts, but the voice in his head which had been his constant companion was reminding him that Barbara still had plenty of reason to regret every minute of it. It told him that he couldn't possibly have been worthy to be a part of it all, and that it would be a miracle if she even came back to the apartment tonight.

But then, Deke remembered. She'd been the one, every single time, to convince him to be tall and proud. She's the one who asked to be kissed. She's the one who wanted to make love to him. She trusted him to help protect people in Metropolis. She trusted him with her name. She trusted him with her first time. He'd been afraid, and she's the one who'd been building him up. That nasty little voice was the wrecking ball.

"She calls me Cowboy." He finally said with a goofy grin.