Chapter 25

AN chapter 25! I don't know why, but this feels like a milestone. So yeah, Enjoy. :)

That night, after we all talked, we kinda just lapsed into silence for a while, we were all thinking about what was said. It hurt, to know that my brothers were in so much pain when I left them, yet somehow, it also makes me feel better. That I wasn't the only one in pain. And I know that's fucked up, being relieved that my family was hurting, but it's better than the pain of thinking that they just didn't give a shit about me, of thinking that they just didn't care, that they didn't want me around, that they would be fine with me leaving, that they wouldn't go looking for me if I just disappeared one day. Those things that I had been feeling for years now, the feelings of inadequacy, of being a failure, they all kind of just, melted away when they told me how much it affected them when I was gone.

I was pulled out of my thoughts when Jason stood up and cleared his throat, getting our attention.

"Come on, we've got a dinner to get to" he said, not sounding too happy about that fact.

"Cheer up Jay, it's not like those charity galas we had to go to as kids, it's just at Peter's house, El just wants to get to know you guys" I told him

"Yeah that's what i'm worried about, normal people, getting to know me" he said, like as if I should have picked up on that already.

"You'll be fine, I mean, they like me, it's not that big of a leap to say they'll like you too" I told him truthfully.

He just grunted.

"Who has a car we can take?" I asked

"I'm the only one who brought a car with me" Tim said

"Alright, Timmy's car it is" I said cheerily as we all filed out the door. Bruce is gonna meet us there later, he has a meeting to finish up before he can come to dinner. Hopefully no one dies or blows anything up before he shows up.

When we all arrived, I toppled out of the car, a bickering Jason and Damian behind me, if we had been in that car five minutes longer, it probably would have come to blows. The fight started because Damian didn't want to sit in the back, but Jason argued that since Damian was still smaller than him, Damian should be stuck in the back. I ended up in the back, but they just kept fighting, it had evolved to pushing a few minutes ago, but hadn't moved onto punching just yet. Tim was standing in front of me, his fingers slowly rubbing circles on his temples. By the time we all made it to the door and rang the bell, Damian and Jason hadn't stopped pushing and arguing. Tim looked like he just wanted to get away from them, and I was just about ready to explode.

"Shut the fuck up! Damian you're riding home with B tonight, Jason so help me god I will punch you if you do not stop antagonising Damian!" I exploded at them, they looked thoroughly chastised at that. After giving them both a lingering glare, I turned back to face the door, only to find it open with Peter looking at me. Amusement playing across his features, he was hiding a smile as he invited us all inside.

"Hey Peter" I greeted with a smile, recovering from my momentary lapse in control.

"Hello Neal" he said, amusement still lingering in his voice.

"Where is Bruce?" he asked curiously

"He got caught up in a meeting, he should be here in a few minutes though." I answered

I turned around when I heard a thump, it was Damian hitting the floor, Jason with his back turned to him, looking completely innocent. Damian was about to say something when he was quieted by Satchmo trotting over to lick his face. His argument with Jason completely forgotten, Damian sat up and started petting Satchmo, who in turn laid down and soaked up the attention. I just smiled, glad to see that Damian's love for animals hadn't diminished over the years.

A few minutes later found us sitting around the living room making small talk, Damian was still on the floor with Satchmo, and Jason seems to have relaxed some, he was now talking quietly with Elizabeth. Me, Tim, and Peter watching on with interest. We had all been talking together for a few minutes, but then the two of them quietly gravitated into their own conversation. I have never seen Jason take to someone so quickly. I don't think Tim has either, not with the way he's watching them.

After a couple minutes of me, Tim, and Peter making small talk, the doorbell rang, signalling the arrival of Bruce. Peter got up and answered the door, Bruce entered with the same aura of power and safety that he's always had, as he walked further into the room El stood up and he handed her a bottle of wine, as a thank you for dinner.

I could tell by the way he looked slightly puzzled that he saw the way that Jason and El were interacting, and he found it strange too, Jason normally takes a while to warm up to anyone. After he died, he became jaded and cynical, not that anyone could blame him, but it was a definitive change from the happy little boy that he was before, he was wary of new people when B first took him in, but after a while, he opened up, and he really just needed people to love him, but the mistrust that he had when he was living on the streets, was amplified a hundredfold when he was killed and then brought back.

I was pulled out of my musings when everyone stood up and started making their way to the dining room.

All in all, it was a nice dinner, there were no damning topics brought up, there were some questions about what it was like growing up with Bruce, and there were some embarrassing stories shared about my childhood. I think they might have sensed that me and my brothers were emotionally exhausted, because no one brought up anything that would be too hard to talk about, it didn't feel like an interrogation, like my last dinner with them had been like. Everyone laughed, and told stories, it was a lot more enjoyable than I had been expecting. After dinner we had coffee and dessert. Everyone said their goodbyes, and I made sure that Damian was loaded up into Bruce's car, so as not to start another argument on who gets what seat.

And as I collapsed into my bed that night, I was smiling.

AN this is me balancing angst with fluff. I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter, it was a fun one to write. Just kinda a fluffy filler chapter. Thoughts? Good? Bad? Meh? Lemme know what you think. :)