Author's Note: Sorry I would've updated sooner but I went out of town for four days, then I got sick last weekend, and then I got sick again Wednesday and I worked long hours so I was exhausted. I'm back now though! :) Also we're getting closer to the end, don't expect anymore happiness after this chapter because shit gets real… enjoy! ;)

Warning: Language

Disclaimer: Not my babies.

Third POV

Kori practically skipped into the Manor the next day, still having trouble remaining on the ground as she semi-floated across the ground. She hadn't stopped touching and staring at the ring on her left hand all day. Dick grinned to himself as he watched after her for a moment before grabbing their bags; she was so cute. Once she was inside everyone practically flocked to her and she giggled as she showed off the ring on her finger. Bruce and Alfred congratulated her, though they had known already, offering hugs. Tim seemed happy about it considering he didn't even pretend to complain when she dragged him into a bone-crushing hug, and he had given her the biggest smile. Even Damian had given his approval of her in a rare moment of affection.

The redhead was practically glowing. Maybe she literally was just a little bit, but her face hurt from smiling until- She stopped short, looking over the room again with a frown as she noticed something. Well, rather, someone was missing. Noticing Jason wasn't there, she sent a look to Bruce as Dick stepped inside.

The boys went over to Dick, no doubt to tease him, and she whispered to Bruce "Where's Jason?"

"He's at therapy. Alfred is supposed to pick him up in an hour."

"Speaking of which" the butler said, offering a small smile, "I best be on my way."

Immediately she clutched Alfred's arm, asking softly "Could I go and pick him up instead? I think we need to talk."

Bruce and Alfred exchanged a quick glance, seeming to come to an understanding, before the butler nodded. "Thanks" she said, pressing a kiss to his cheek before floating over to her fiancé. God that sounded weird, but so lovely.

Pressing a kiss to his cheek, she murmured "I'll be back in a couple of hours at the most."

"Where are you heading off to?" Dick asked with confusion as the other two boys slinked away to give them privacy.

"I'm going to pick Jason up from therapy."

Taken aback slightly, Dick said "Oh, want me to come?"

"I wanna go alone, if that's alright?" she asked, knowing he had every right and multiple reasons to say no.

Except, as she expected he pressed a quick kiss to her lips answering "That's fine, just let me know when you're back."

She praised X'hal silently for having such an understanding fiancé. "Thank you, Mia'ti lari" she smiled, giving him one last quick kiss before floating towards the door, "I'll be back soon!"

Sliding into the front seat of her car, Kori took a deep, calming breath before turning the key in the ignition. She drove down into the nicer part of Gotham and parked in front of the familiar building. Now just to wait. Mindlessly she flipped through radio stations until she settled on a song she liked, softly singing along as she waited.

As she sat there, singing along to music, the alien went over every possible outcome she could conjure over how this conversation could and was going to go. She thought of a million different ways to start it, and the million responses he could give. Most importantly, she wasn't sure what emotion he was currently feeling the most of. Was he angry? Sad? Irritated? Indifferent? She didn't know, but she tried not to let the panic set in as she sat there.

After about twenty minutes or so she saw Jason appear out of the door and she beeped the horn, just enough to catch his attention. "What are you doing here?" he asked as he slid into the car, raising an eyebrow with a small smile.

He's not angry she thought to herself with some relief. Kori smiled and replied "Well I kind of missed you a little."

Rolling his eyes, Jason smiled and outstretched his hand "Yeah, sure. Alright come on, let's see it."

She placed her left hand in his with a flush as Jason examined the ring, whistling long and low. "It looks even better on your hand. Did Dick tell you it's a special Lucious concoction so it won't melt? Well, supposedly anyway. I wouldn't put too much faith in that theory though."

"Wait, really?" she sputtered, looking at the ring with surprise and then back up at Jason curiously, "How did you know that?"

"Dick asked me to help him pick out a ring for you a couple months ago, and when none of them were right, I helped him design this one."

Internally, Kori felt her chest tighten as she looked over at him. He wasn't angry, but he was definitely in pain. "Oh, I didn't know. Jason, I-"

Except he interrupted her, a self loathing, bitter smile on his lips. Perhaps he was angry, but not at her. "Do you think we can go somewhere to talk before we get into the heavy shit?"

Kori nodded, putting the car into gear. The air was tense and suffocating as she drove up to Jason's secret spot. It was the only place she could think to go where no one would interrupt them. Mindlessly, she rubbed at the band on her finger as she let Jason choose the music. Finally, when they arrived at their destination they both got out and silently walked the path to the cliff. Together they both sat down, looking over the evening sky in silence.

They sat that way for a long time. Kori had so many things she wanted to discuss, but decided against it. It was clearly evident Jason had something he wanted to say, but couldn't figure out how to word it. So she waited, patiently. She would wait as long as it took until he was ready to speak.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Jason said "When Dick first asked me to help him pick out a ring I said no. I could be happy for you two and suppress my feelings all I wanted but that was just too much. He told me he wanted to marry you and despite how happy I was, I am, for you guys it was also like a stab in the heart. I hate this so fucking much. I don't want to be this pitiful thing that you worry about. I want you to be happy about your engagement, not worrying how I'm doing. It's not fair of me to ruin everything for you because I have a crush. I don't even care that it hurts me, I just want it to stop hurting you."

Kori was quiet for a moment, gathering her thoughts until she sighed sadly at the tears welling in her brother's eyes. "Oh birsch'ka, come here" she murmured, reaching out for him. He went willingly, allowing Kori to cradle him to her chest.

"I'm going to talk and I want you to listen, okay? Don't interrupt me, just listen" she said, running a hand through his hair and smiling when he nodded his head in agreement, "You aren't hurting me, Jason. You could never hurt me. You are my brother and I love you very dearly. I tell you time and time again that you don't ever have to worry about hurting my feelings or anything when it comes to how you feel. I understand how hard it is for you right now, and I could never be angry over that."

"You're trying so damn hard for me, and I love you for it. You aren't pitiful at all. In fact, you're one of the strongest people I've ever met. Everyone always talks about how I'm still here after everything I've gone through, but you're still here too. I'm sorry I seem to overshadow that fact sometimes, but Jason you're just as incredible as I am. No matter what you are always there for me. I know you're happy for me, and that's all that matters."

The man in her arms was quiet and she rubbed his back soothingly, pressing a kiss to his forehead. "I love you, Jason" Kori murmured, squeezing him tighter.

"I love you too" he sighed, not making any attempt to move as she hummed that Tamaranian song to him under her breath.

They sat there together on the cliffs until Jason began to feel better. Timidly, he asked "Tell me the story of how he proposed?"

Kori looked down into his eyes and found herself grinning. He honestly wanted to know, the small smile on his tear stained face genuine and it melted her heart. So she told him the story, grinning like a love sick fool and somehow that always made Jason's heartache lesson. Her happiness was just so infectious, as was her smile. Like Kori had said, he was truly happy for her and that's all that matters.

"Dick was so worried you'd say no" Jason hummed some time later as they sat shoulder to shoulder, looking out over the river.

Raising an eyebrow, she looked over at him asking "Really? Why would he think that?"

Jason gave a shrug of his shoulders and then smirked at her "I guess he was worried our love had grown too strong."

With an affectionate roll of her eyes she huffed and shoved his shoulder with a smile, saying "Mhm, perhaps we're playing him for a fool while we run off together."

"Exactly" Jason smiled with a wink, before sobering up, "I honestly think he was worried all the shit he had put you through before would come back to bite him in his big ass."

Kori laughed but then frowned, shaking her head and saying "He'll never forgive himself, will he?"

"No, probably not. He still hasn't forgiven himself for the time he accidentally pushed me down the stairs and broke my arm when I was ten so-" Jason snorted, smiling to himself, "just who he is I guess. At least you have something to hold over his head when you fight."

Shaking her head with a dramatic sigh, she asked herself "What am I going to do with you?"

"Mm, guess that's up to you, firehead."

Kori smiled before standing with a sigh, stretching out her arms over her head. "I suppose we better head back to the Manor before Dick tracks us down."

Jason smiled and stood up as well, following her back to her car. "Yeah, he's got a creepy bloodhound level of tracking skill."

"Agreed" she hummed, sliding into the driver's side. Before she put the car into gear, however, she grabbed his hand and pressed a quick kiss to his cheek.

"I'm proud of you, ya know" she smiled, making Jason blush as they drove back home. No matter what he said, Kori knew he would never hurt her and he would always be happy for her. Always.

News of their engagement spread throughout the family friends and Bruce threw them a small party. All of their friends were there and Kori was on cloud nine. After her talk with Jason things got a lot better. He seemed to be actually happy again, and it was something she could stop worrying about. His cheeky sass returning in full swing.

It was about three weeks before Christmas but she almost couldn't wait for the holiday to be over. After all, she had a special privilege this year. Bruce was having a grand ball for New Years, and she was invited, of course. That meant she got to be fitted for a gown and everything.

Except she ran into a problem; she had no clue where to even start. Luckily, Jason came to her rescue and took her to some fancy dress shops. However, when she first saw the price she nearly fainted, but according to Bruce money was no object and he would pay for it all. Again, she forgot who Bruce actually was to the real world and found herself overwhelmed. He was way too caring, and she had way too many options.

Jason had made her an appointment as soon as he could once Bruce reminded them of the event. Kori was practically vibrating with anticipation. "What color are you thinking?" Jason asked as Alfred drove them over, despite her insistence on driving herself. Apparently she was getting the full 'Wayne' treatment.

It was hard to complain, really.

"I have no clue. I'm hopeless when it comes to fashion. Normally I just pick something purple because it's my favorite color" she chuckled, looking over at him.

Rachel, Jenny, and Karen hadn't been able to make it but luckily Jason never did anything so he was her 'girl friend' for the day. So really, it was no different than any other day- "Hm, well purple is a good color for you, but I think maybe some type of blue would really compliment your eyes and hair."

Wordlessly, she just blinked at him and couldn't help but giggle. Jason felt himself flush as he replied "What? Can't a guy know about complimenting colors around here? Geez."

"I didn't realize you were into fashion" she teased, grinning as he rolled his eyes.

"I'm not, I just get bored and there are way too many fashion shows."

Kori was rather unconvinced, but let it go in favor of absorbing his recommendation. "Blue, huh? I honestly don't own many blue things."

"Well, blue or not we'll find you something perfect. You are the eye candy of Dick Grayson, who is eye candy himself, so we need something that'll blow their spray on tans and fake hair right off."

Giggling, Kori rolled her eyes and shoved him good naturally. "Shut up, am not."

Jason just winked at her and she punched him, though not with even a fraction of her true strength as they pulled up to the dress shop. Again, she felt nerves twist in her gut as they walked inside only to find it way too fancy and extravagant for her. She supposed she should get used to this. Luckily, the shop was empty but she supposed Jason had something to do with that. She didn't even want to think about how much a private appointment costs.

A dark haired woman was waiting for them at the front counter. She smiled and shook their hands, introducing herself as Diana before escorting them to the back. Diana began asking her questions about what she wanted, but all Kori could do was smile sheepishly and explain she had no clue.

"Actually" Jason spoke up, throwing Kori a secretive wink that had her sighing with relief for once, "would it be alright if we just took a few minutes to look around ourselves and we let you know more of what she's looking for?"

Diana smiled, nodding her head saying "Of course. Would either of you care for a drink?"

"That would be wonderful. Thank you, Diana" Kori smiled, the older woman nodding once more before disappearing somewhere in the back. Immediately Kori collapsed against Jason with a groan, muttering "I have no clue what I'm doing."

Smiling, Jason bumped her with his hip saying "Don't worry, firehead, we'll find something."

The alien wanted to throw more of a tantrum but decided to believe him as he lead her to some rows of dresses. They sorted through some and decided something a tad dramatic in the neckline with a tighter fit would look amazing. Kori was looking intently at a deep blue gown, quite taken with it, when she heard Jason call her name from another section of the store.

He was lost in the sea of dresses, but she did her best to try and find him. Suddenly he appeared and startled her into squealing as she clutched the blue dress to her chest. "X'hal, Jason, you scared me."

"Sorry, but Kori guess what?" he spoke, and she rose an eyebrow at how truly delighted he looked, "They have wedding dresses here!"

A flush rose to her cheeks as she replied "Jason, I just got engaged like a week ago. I'm not going to try on wedding dresses already."

"Why not? Oh come on, it'll be so much fun."

"I don't-"

"Kori, you don't have to buy one today, but don't you think it'd be nice to just look and see what you like? Since clearly you have no clue?" Jason reasoned, and she could feel herself cave in as she thought about it. What harm could there be just to look?

Sighing, she said "Alright fine, but I'm not trying any on."

An hour later, and she was trying on just about her twentieth wedding dress. It didn't take long for them to decide what dress she would wear to the Gala, which ended up being the blue one she had found. As soon as they expressed an interest in the wedding dresses Diana practically lit up, bringing her tons of dresses to try. Since she was just looking and not sure what she wanted, Diana brought her just about every silhouette, fabric, and neckline she had to offer.

It was overwhelming, but also so much fucking fun she would say this was the best idea Jason had ever had.

Except, everything came to a screeching halt when she tried on a dress Jason had picked. It wasn't anything she had expected, either. As soon as she stepped onto the stage and she saw the look on Diana and Jason's faces she knew it was it. The gown was white, after she had decided that she wanted the traditional color, and it was in a sort of fit and flare fit. It hugged her hips, but didn't cling to much to her legs.

It was strapless, the top in a modest sweetheart neckline that showed only a small hint of her cleavage. The gown itself was covered in beautiful lace, small crystals making it sparkle in the lights. The back tapered off into a beautiful train behind there that wasn't too long, buttons running down her back. It felt as if all the air had been sucked out of the room as she stepped on stage.

Turning around, she took in her appearance and wasn't surprised to find herself tearing up. "Kori" Jason breathed, he had stood and moved over to stand beside her, "you look- breathtaking."

A wet laugh escaped her throat as she noticed he was tearing up as well, replying "I take it you like it?"

"I absolutely love it."

"Hold on dear, I know what will make this even better" Diana murmured, disappearing for a moment before returning with a beautiful veil. The older woman clipped up her long, red hair before placing the veil and a small, crystal tiara to go along with it.

Kori looked at herself and grinned "I look like a bride."

"The most beautiful bride I've ever seen, and I watch TLC" Jason said, wrapping an arm around her shoulders.

Looking at herself in the dress, Kori sighed softly saying "I don't think I'm going to get it, though."

"What?!" Jason asked incredulously, clearly not happy with that response, "why wouldn't you?"

"I don't know, birsch'ka, I just feel weird buying my dress before I even know when my wedding is going to be and where. I literally just got engaged."

Diana spoke up, saying "If you would like, I could hold this dress for you until you make up your mind? We can hold a dress for a couple of months, and if you give me your phone number I'll call you before I put it back out on the floor."

She was silent, thinking it over before she sighed saying "Alright, I'll do that."

"You know you're going to end up getting it, though next time we'll at least bring Rachel" Jason said with a smile as he stepped down off the stage.

"Yeah, otherwise she'll kill me" Kori smiled before going to take off the dress. She knew at some point she'd come back for it, but today wasn't the right time. Although it did sting to leave with only the blue dress, she tried to focus on the Gala.

Eventually she pushed the wedding dress to the back of her mind and time flew by. Before she knew it, it was Christmas time.

Kori helped to decorate and she made it much easier on Alfred, considering she could fly. He thanked her relentlessly but she didn't mind at all, considering it was so much fun. She helped hang lights, other various decorations, and decorate the big tree in the foyer. Sneakily, she even hid sprigs of mistletoe in the most random of places which lead to some pretty hilarious encounters. Although, she just felt bad when Dick and Jason got caught under one and Dick kissed his cheek. She thought Jason was going to die his face was so red, but she enjoyed endlessly tormenting him about it.

Like last year they invited all their friends over and exchanged gifts. Of course Kori loved everything she had been given, but she was almost more excited for the Gala. After two weeks of getting the dress fitted and making sure she had all her accessories in order, the Wayne New Year's Eve Ball was finally here. Earlier in the day Kori had went and gotten her hair and nails done at a salon. Of course, she had dragged Jason along with her, but he didn't mind in the slightest. She even convinced him to get a manicure, and just grinned when his nails ended up being painted black. Once it was time to get ready though she was vibrating with anxious energy.

Her hands were slightly shaking but she managed to apply her smokey eyes and red lips without incident. Afterwards, she carefully slipped on her dress so as not to disrupt her makeup and hair before she put on her accessories. Deeming herself ready, she slipped on some heels and headed out her door. Her, Dick, and Jason had agreed to meet in Dick's room so they could walk down together. Kori and Dick for obvious reasons, but Jason wasn't comfortable walking down there without either of them, but they didn't mind. To be perfectly honest Kori wasn't sure how she would handle it either.

When she entered Dick's room he nearly fell over and Jason whistled, making her blush and smile. The gown she had picked was a deep blue, mermaid fit with a plunging v neck, and it was backless. The straps were covered in crystals as well as her throat, some crystals hanging from her ears as she offered a smile.

"So I take it I look fancy enough?"

Dick seemed to have swallowed his tongue, but managed a nod and a "Y-You look, um, l-look b-bea-beautiful."

Snickering, Jason patted him on the shoulder and said to Kori "I think he needs a couple minutes to get his brain working. Shall we?" he winked, offering her his hand.

Kori giggled and accepted, laughing when Dick snapped out of his daze as they left the room. "Hey! Wait a minute!"

Eventually he caught up to them and took his fiancé back, much to Jason's amusement. They headed towards the ballroom and Dick entwined his arms with hers, pressing a kiss to her cheek. "Ready?" he asked with a smile.

Taking a deep breath she nodded, smiling at a nervous looking Jason who was following them. As soon as he lead her through the doors people immediately flocked to Dick. Men and women alike vied for his attention but he waved most of them off, offering a polite smile. No one bothered Jason, or even noticed he was there, but Kori felt the eyes of everyone in the close vicinity on her; half curious and half vicious. They eventually sat at a table where Tim and Damian already were at, the hordes of people trickling away once they realized Dick wasn't socializing. Both boys looked bored out of their minds as they watched them sit.

Kori took a deep breath and looked around her, taking in the extravagance of the party. A screen projector was displaying the countdown to midnight on a wall. A small symphony was playing music softly in the background as high class people danced and milled around. Waiters and waitresses carrying around trays of drinks and finger foods were winding in between the people in the crowd. There was a bar tucked away in one corner, people puffing cigars as they laughed over their scotch. In another corner was a table of various foods, a proud ice sculpture sitting in the middle of the table.

It was kind of fascinating.

Accepting the champagne Dick handed to her, she sipped at the glass and looked over at the family. "Is this what all the parties are like?"

Tim sighed dramatically, replying "Unfortunately, yes."

"TT, Drake is right. What makes it worse is that father is not the same around these people."

Smiling sadly, Dick explained to a confused Kori "He plays up the whole 'billionaire playboy' thing for the cameras and for the upper class. He has since he adopted me, but luckily he doesn't throw too many parties."

Looking at the beautiful decorations she had partially helped to set up, she asked "So what actually goes on during these parties?"

"Well, typically Bruce will give a speech thanking everyone and then all the rich get drunk and dance until about two in the morning" Dick replied instantly, pulling up his sleeve and checking his watch as he held up a finger, "and that should be right about now."

Just then Bruce appeared up front, stepping onto a small stage that had been set up. Kori was surprised but happily so when she saw Selina was on his arm, dressed gorgeously herself in a black gown. Everyone clinked their glasses and Bruce smiled, raising his own with a laugh. She found that the boys were right though as she watched him. He seemed different; by now she knew what his genuine smile looked like but this was forced, though not when he looked over at Selina. It unsettled her a little bit but she tried to ignore it as she listened to his speech.

"Thank you all for coming this evening. I just wanted to say these past couple of years have been difficult for my family as many of you are aware, and I'm sure for most of you as well, but I'm hopeful that 2018 will be a better year for everyone. With that thought in mind, I hope everyone enjoys the party and we can all celebrate with a bang. So, I propose a toast" he charmed, everyone in the audience raising a glass, "to 2018, let the new year be better than ever."

"To 2018!" everyone chorused, taking a sip and then cheering and clapping. Kori clapped as well, enraptured by how everyone in the crowd hung off Bruce's every word.

Then Dick was leaning into her space as Bruce stepped off stage, the music resuming. "Oh, I forgot, but there are always fireworks when the ball drops too" Dick whispered and she looked over at him, smiling.

"I love fireworks, luckily" she replied, giggling as he pecked her on the lips.

"Get a room" Jason grumbled into his glass.

Kori shot him a glare and kicked his leg under the table, making it clang and Jason yell "shit fuck!" very loudly. Tim snorted and choked on his drink, water coming out of his nose which made everyone explode into laughter. The people around them sent them dirty looks but they were too busy laughing to care.

Once they had settled down, Kori asked "So we have to stay until 2 am?"

"Nah, Bruce lets us leave after midnight if we want" Jason replied, throwing a wink at her over his glass, "but if you're like me, the Wayne child no one cares about, then you hardly ever have to show up and when you do you can leave whenever you want."

She heard Dick sigh beside her as if he wanted to interject but he kept quiet. She was pretty sure she knew what he had wanted to say. "Well, what do you four do to entertain yourselves?"

"Well if you're Jason you drink or try to stealthily put things in people's hair like a mature adult" Tim snorted, although he stopped snickering when Jason sent him a glare.

Damian sighed, looking around with boredom "And if you're Grayson you go on hour long rants about how we need more friends before getting distracted because of Todd putting things in people's hair."

All three boys laughed as Dick pouted, Kori looking over at him with amusement. "That does sound like you."

"Shut up."

Jason said something that had Damian threatening him and Kori reached over, intertwining her fingers with Dick's as she sat back and simply watched. This was her family, and she loved them. Even as Tim tried to keep the other two separated so they wouldn't kill each other, Dick threatening both of them if they didn't behave. It was perfect. Her life at this moment was as close to perfection as it had ever come before. She had everything she had ever wanted and more.

It was glorious.

Suddenly, Dick was pressing a kiss to her cheek, mumbling in her ear "You're going to start floating if you don't be more gloomy."

Kori realized with some mild panic she was in fact starting to come out of her seat, but luckily that startling realization accompanied by both Dick and Jason's hands on each of her legs to hold her down; the moment passed. Instantly her face flared up as she took a sip of her drink, muttering an apology. Dick just pressed another kiss to her temple and Jason winked at her, making her roll her eyes.

"Why have you picked up that habit all of a sudden?" she asked amusedly.

"I don't know, just feels like me" Jason replied, with another wink.

Snorting, Kori kicked him lightly under the table again as Dick mused distractedly "I need a thing, too."

It was everyone else's turn to laugh as once again the older man pouted, this time Kori pressing a kiss to his cheek. "Dick, your 'thing' is that your name is 'Dick'."

"What? No it's not!"

"Or that you're the 'popular' one."

"Or just the fact that you have a huge ass" Jason said with a smirk, everyone howling with laughter as Dick's face turned beet red.

"None of those are my thing!" Everyone just gave him a look, making him protest and sputter as he said "Well if that's my thing, what's everyone else's?"

Jason answered, counting off on his fingers, "Kori's is she's an alien, Tim's is he's 'smart', and Damian's is that he's a demon spawn."

"Watch it, Todd."

The oldest brother huffed, saying "Well fuck you too, mines the worst."

Kori giggled, squeezing his hand as Jason laughed. Although she didn't miss the upwards twitch of his lips as he sucked down his drink. She kicked Jason again, and he kicked her back. It was hard to hide her laugh. Dick was adorable.

Their weird conversation continued throughout most of the night, until Dick suddenly stood up half an hour before midnight, bowing cheekily and offering his hand, asking "May I have this dance, Miss Anders?"

Smiling, Kori pretended to think about it before accepting his hand and answering "Why, I would be delighted, Mister Grayson."

Dick grinned and began to lead her to the dance floor, calling behind him "Don't kill each other." Not even having to look to know each one of them flipped him off, especially when Kori giggled.

Once they reached the floor Dick clasped her right hand in his own, his left arm wrapping around her waist as he pulled her close. Her own left arm wound around his shoulders, smiling as they began to sway to the music. Everyone around them seemed to notice the young couple, and Kori felt herself become self conscious as she flushed and felt a small stab of panic about the ring on her finger.

"Shit" she whispered lowly, barely loud enough for him to hear as he looked at her, "I forgot to take off my ring the whole entire time. I'm so-"

Shrugging nonchalantly, he interrupted "It's not a big deal, Star, they would have ran rampant with me just dancing with you anyway. Now the stories should be at least a little accurate. Also, you're pretty much guaranteed to be in every magazine and online article in a fifty mile radius in the next week. I'm sorry, I didn't think-"

"It's okay, Richard. I feel safe here with you" she smiled, pecking his lips and making him grin.

He pulled her closer so that they were dancing cheek to cheek, swaying softly to the music. Somehow, he must've known all the gears in her head were turning as he said "I can hear you thinking, Mia'ti lari."

"Only good things, love."

Humming, he rubbed her back soothingly asking "Care to share?"

Despite everything, she felt herself flush as she admitted shyly "I was just thinking about how excited I am to marry you."

Dick grinned, pressing a soft kiss to her lips as he looked into her beautiful green eyes "So am I. I think about it all the time."

"I'll admit, I kind of did something weird a couple weeks ago."

When Dick merely raised an eyebrow as if to say 'continue', she sighed, saying "When Jason took me to buy this dress he found wedding dresses and convinced me to try some on."

Except, she didn't receive the reaction she had been expecting. Maybe shock, confusion, maybe a little anxious, but he merely smiled and asked "Did you find any you liked?"

Flushing, she said "Actually, yeah. He'd kill me if he knew I told you, but I actually made Jason cry."

Dick grinned, answering "Well, did you get it?"

Chewing on her lip, Kori replied "No, I thought it was too soon to choose a dress."

Dick shrugged, saying with a smile and a twinkle in his eye "It's never too early to choose. When you know you know, after all that's what happened with you."

Kori smiled and flushed, murmuring "You're so cheesy, Mia'ti lari."

"Only cuz I'm so in love."

Rolling her eyes affectionately, Kori pressed a kiss to his lips saying "Shut up."

They continued to sway to whatever song was played next, simply enjoying being in each other's company. A chill went down her spine a minute before the ball dropped, but she couldn't be sure why. She didn't give it much thought though as everyone watched the countdown, only for Dick to grab her hands. With a grin Dick tucked a strand of hair behind her ear as he looked into her eyes, and Kori couldn't look away as everyone screamed "5, 4, 3, 2, 1! Happy new year!"

As everyone cheered Dick cupped her cheek, pulling her into a kiss that made her toes curl. She had a hand clutched in his shirt, enjoying the feeling of his fingers running along her bare back. Except, they were right by the window, and when the first firework went off she jumped and squealed. Dick chuckled, pressing his forehead against hers as she giggled and flushed. They watched the fireworks for a while, Kori resting her head on Dick's shoulder as he wrapped an arm around her, until everyone resumed dancing. Before they could resume, however, Jason was suddenly tapping on Dick's shoulder.

"Mind if I borrow your lovely fiancé?" Jason asked with a smirk, making Kori roll her eyes fondly.

"Sure, just keep your hands to yourself" Dick teased, winking at him as he handed her off with one last kiss, "just come back to the table when you're done."

Jason felt himself flush as they agreed and Kori grinned once Dick was out of sight, cooing "Aw, are you blushing because of me?"

With a sigh he dragged her to dance and as he held her, although not as closely as Dick had, he grumbled "You know, why do I even like you?"

"Because I'm awesome."

Smiling despite himself, he said "Yeah, but I think being an alien gives you an unfair advantage," whispering the word 'alien'.

Kori giggled, replying "Maybe, but you get bonus points for being a confused, closeted kind of gay."

Jason full out laughed and she smiled as they swayed, smiling even more when she saw Bruce and Selina dancing. "So I'm assuming they're together again?"

"Who?" he asked, looking around until he found what she was looking at, "Bruce and Selina? Oh, yeah. I saw her sneaking into the house like a month ago. They do this a lot. I just hope maybe this time they'll stay together, I think they're good for each other. Though I always hope that, but it never happens."

Nodding her agreement, Kori said "I think and hope so too." After that they danced in comfortable silence until she asked suddenly "What about you?"

"What about me?"

Immediately Kori regretted opening her big fat mouth as she began to feel flustered. She was unsure of how to express herself properly without making him angry, so she began "Well, I'm not trying to be mean or pushy or anything, I just- You know I want what's best for you, right?"

Jason nodded and looked at her with a raised eyebrow, saying "Yes, of course."

"Well, I know you've been trying really hard to move on this past year, the last couple months especially, and you know I think you're doing great. Especially now that Dick and I are engaged, I think it can help you make even more progress. The last couple weeks you've been amazing."

Jason flushed but smiled, saying "Thanks, sirsch'ka, but I feel like there's more." He rose an eyebrow at her, waiting for her to continue.

Chewing on her bottom lip, she sighed saying "I thought maybe you could try going on some dates? Not right now, but maybe someday soon."

"Kori, I don't think-"

"Jason" she interrupted, looking at him with intensity, "You are a beautiful and magnificent person. Anyone would be so incredibly lucky to have you. I know your sexuality might make it hard to find someone, but I think if you open yourself up a little and give it a chance you'll be surprised."

He was quiet, looking off into the distance with a look of deep concentration. After some time had passed in silence he sighed, saying "Alright. I don't think I can do it anytime soon, but I could see myself making that step in the next year. I'll talk to Dr. Crane about it."

"Thank you, birsch'ka" she smiled, pressing a kiss to his cheek.

"Yeah, yeah. The things I do for you, firehead" he teased, smiling down at her.

Except, a strange thing happened when he looked back up from her eyes to the sea of bodies around them. His smile evaporated as he froze, eyes wide and skin turning a ghostly white as his body became incredibly tense, staring intently over her shoulder.

Concerned, she said "Jason? Jason what's wrong?"

His mouth opened but no sound came out. In vain he tried to speak or move but found himself unable. Noiselessly stumbling over words that refused to come out, Kori was about to turn around when a voice interrupted them as she froze dead in her tracks.

"Mind if I cut in?"

Told you this story lost all joy from here on out. I'm sorry there was no update last week but I was out of town and then I had to work late a lot and over the weekend I got really sick so… Don't worry though, I'll make up for it and I'm not abandoning it this time until I finish it. With that being said, what did you think? I really like how this chapter came out. It's your last dose of happiness for the rest of your ride. Buckle up folks because it only gets more fucked up from here. If you enjoyed this don't forget to fave, follow, review, or all 3! Please and thank you ;)

Coming Up: That voice-? (I'm literally shocked if you don't know who it is)