Chapter Twenty-Five: Farewell, Dick Grayson

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"Are you sure you wanna go there, again?" Ryan asked in an uneasy whisper of concern.

Richard sighed, leaning into the table, entirely unsatisfied with his inability to drown all logic in the obvious mistake he was about to make with a little thorn in his side taking the form of the slim, plastic – smiled Katrina Moth. His eyes wandered recklessly in a slow crawl to Katrina, who currently lounged a short distance; retrieving another round of drinks.

"I don't know. It'll be fine I guess."

Ryan inhaled deeply, giving his all to suppress the clear amount of warning in his tone. He hushed the volume of his voice once more as Katrina turned back to them, drinks at hand. "I just thought you were so hell-bent on avoiding her. Besides, you can do better than prissy Katrina Moth. She's nice to look at but definitely not worth the trouble." A nervous chuckle escaped Ryan as Richard's eyes narrowed over him. In reality, Ryan was perfectly in the right about any stance Richard could take where Kitten was involved. "I'm only pointing out that when you hang out with her it's no fun for anyone." His posture stiffened and a smile forced its way over his lips at the arrival of the inconvenience herself. "Hey!"

Rolling his eyes, Richard greeted Kitten with an impatient hand to retrieve his and Ryan's beers leaving her mouth to twitch in held back annoyance.

"Dickie, we've been here forever." Both boys were found swallowing hard at the suffocating air around them in response to her shrill of a voice. "I was hoping we could take this back to your place." Pink pastel lips puckered in a desperate purr, a finely manicured acrylic nail tracing along Richard's arm. "I'm trying to be patient but I've waited far too long for you to look my way again, and I'm growing anxious."

In any normal occasion where desired affection, no matter how minuscule of an attempt, was displayed usually resulted in a shudder of a response; especially taking into consideration the overall intent belonging to Kitten. But no, her actions continued to plummet him into a feeling much closer to resembling that of nausea. So why then was he here? Why allow it? Unfortunately, the name of the game was forgetting, a task seemingly far easier with the always loyal numbing side-effect of alcohol.

Now, here's my only issue with what is happening as of now. What the fuck? Right? I mean really... I'm all for moving on, trying to forget certain painful memories inorder to restrengthen and build yourself up again. Hell, I'll even go as far to say I understand the helpless feeling that clutches violently and infinitely to ones who have experienced a rather life changing occurrence; I think we've all had our share of those moments. But, come on,... wasn't everything going so well? He might have every right to feel helpless in this situation but come on, this is Dick Grayson people; can't he fight for what he wants? Take into consideration all the events in this story, isn't this his unspoken motto?

Just for a moment, a second even, lets take Kori's perspective out of the equation entirely and focus solely on our poor Richard. Sure, I'm just as hesitant as where this is going as you probably are, but why not try to at least understand it a bit more, shall we?

When we began this the facts were, at best, clouded in secrecy, dark pasts, unspoken attractions, well deserved grudges on both sides, but now... now that things are finding a bit more clarity, only to be overlooked because of yet another rise in conflict in our two star-crossed lovers lives, let just be sure we fully grasp the scenario. Because, lets face it; after tonight there really would be no going back to the way things were.

Dick Grayson: Oh, geeze, what haven't I said about him? We all know he's tied to a past reputation belonging to a playboy. And of course there is always the dark past of his parents and equally as worth acknowledgement is that of where Mr. Bruce Wayne comes into all this but lets pause for a moment. Which taking a pause is actually the best thing we can do, especially when it's precisely what Richard was trying to do himself.

Matter of fact, lets just strip the whole 'Dick Grayson' blinding light and see him for what he truly is. He's a mere man, living in a high paced world having ownership of a childhood which brought him to obtain certain qualities and characteristics. First, the undesired sensation in which vulnerability and jealousy had never been experienced, so its numbing of the brain and overall intense crippling its emotions are capable of... it was taking a toll. Sounds like a ridiculous sugar-coated explanation delivered in the hopes of shielding a spoiled rich boy of average expectations in a world so cold, yet we're not thinking about him as Dick Grayson, remember? Just a man hopelessly devoted in love only to be shot down by the one girl who opened his mind and heart to the extremities of emotion to which he wasn't entirely sure he was capable of; at least not at this level.

Love. Well, it's probably the worst yet equally best feeling in the world; depending on the current circumstances of any relationship. When things are good, it can ignite a flurry of euphoric emotion and happiness that you only dream about, but should things take turn for the worst – as in the situation Richard and Kori now found themselves in - it can cripple the soul, dilute logic, an even sway emotion. So here we are, Richard having expressed his inner most affection for Kori, claiming love, desperate for it to be returned only to be shut out.

Time; it's all she asked for, but recent events proved time was anything but on his side. Sure, he anticipated some small form of hesitation from Kori once her past was officially discovered but was it so wrong to want her to see that he was not a threat? She had looked at him as though he was nothing more than a criminal in their case of love and in these past few days, he had never felt more like one. Perhaps it was selfish, all the confusing emotions he allowed to conspire this evening, but again, this is just a little more complicated than he was used to. In the end, she was leaving. Hadn't made even the slightest of efforts to contact him – as she had promised- and now that sinking, endless heavy feeling circling his veins had reached a point of unbearable toxicity.

Which is why, as he glanced over at an impatient Kitten, awaiting his reply to her demands to leave, the situation served as nothing more than a distraction. Sure, there wasn't exactly a worthy distraction strong enough to defer his thoughts completely from his gorgeous redhead but... that would explain the large intake of alcohol he was working on now wouldn't it? As it were, the whole Kori thing, maybe its best if we just cut him a little slack. Afterall, I think when swimming in the brisk depths of a broken heart, even some of you have resulted to uncharacteristic behavior inorder to cope. Its alright, we're all human.

Finishing off the last of his drink, Richard's attention focused on Ryan.

"Don't let me stop you two," Ryan chuckled, finding the seductive gleam of the woman currently giving him all of her attention from the corner of the bar far more valuable to his attention.

"See..." Kitten purred once more, clasping her hands around the angled arm of Richard and tugging slightly. "Your friend doesn't mind if I steal you away for the night."

Oh, that struck him like fire in the chest. He could be mistaken but those words seemed fairly similar to a moment he had shared with Kori. Again... Kori was the soul factor to be avoided as of now.

"Alright."

It was all he could force himself to say.

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"I'm gonna ask just once more, Kor..." Donna breathed sharply as the car came to a halt outside the bar where Ryan and Dick were located. "Are you sure you're ready for this?"

Kori hesitated. No. Hell no; there was no way any of this was going to be easy. In fact, the longer her gaze remained on the busy street just outside the crowded bar, thoughts of regret began to induce those pesky nerves of hers once more.

"No," she answered honestly.

Donna allowed a small smile to herself, somewhat surprised at the lengths Kori was determined to go to return to her once strong self. Now, to say Donna was against Kori's choice would be wrong, but then again there really was no way to silence the swirling possibilities of outcomes as to what could very well occur within the next few moments.

"I just want to be sure you're okay; that you can handle this."

"You were the one who said this had to be done," Kori said, looking to Donna with a forced smile to exude her attempt at strength. "You wouldn't take no for an answer right?" She stood, eyes still wide against the neon sign outside the building. "If I give myself time to hesitate, then I'll only end up changing my mind."

"That's true," Donna replied softly, finding her way beside Kori now, only the sound of her car alarm being activated needed to spark their footing once more. "I'm not trying to talk you out of this. I just want to be sure you know this truly is the right thing to do." Hesitancy conspired once more, shockingly still just from Donna instead of the anticipation where it would belong solely to Kori. The severe amount of determination blaring her retinas, only causing more concern for Donna. We want things to peaceful, end well if possible, so... why did she get the feeling Kori's behavior seemed far more bold than the past two days had brought? The possibility of a very public conversation, especially among a very publicly known person such as Richard, this could go a number of ways. Unfortunately for Donna, it seemed all the negative ones were taking their turn for acknowledgement in her mind. "So, uh... what's the game plan here?"

Nothing. No response. Nope, Kori's eyes were frozen against the rambunctious crowd, moving in and out of the bar. Feet coming to a halt before the door, she suddenly stopped. Hand curved against the swoop of the door handle, her mind simply... well, flashed blank. What would she say? Was there even a possibility that words would even form from her lips once her eyes met his? What would Richard think about her little surprise visit so out of the blue especially after such a block of silence from her end? Causing a scene was not something she could ever look forward to, and yet... shit.

She glanced to Donna, who was in the process of reading her expression of sudden fear, and something within Kori sprung to life. Perhaps it was the reality of Donna's words and the truth being that this was in fact the proper thing to do, but, somehow with the comforting gaze of her closest friend Kori instantly found strength restored; confidence even.

Jade eyes met the golden trimmed door handle once more and she pulled the door open, coming face to face with her brother. Confidence crumbling instantly at the thought of Richard appearing from behind Ryan, Kori opened her mouth to speak; capable of nothing more than mere awkward syllables having no amount of meaning or order to them, she fell silent; preparing for the worst.

"Kor?" Ryan laughed, a mild slur present. "What are you doing here? I thought I was meeting you?" He paused to acknowledge Donna with a fond smile before moving out of the doorway, only a few feet from the entrance now.

"Where's Richard?" She finally managed to utter, the high tone in which the question delivered itself left an awkward taste in Ryan's mouth; she sounded so... desperate?

"Uh..." He glanced behind him. "He left a little while ago. Why?"

It was Donna who picked up on Ryan's sudden suspicion of Kori, who was nonetheless feeling the stress of anxiety breaking down her insides. Damn, he really wasn't here? After all the courage she had managed to muster? Courage? Matter of fact, it continued to dwindle with each second it took Kori to fully understand the outcome of this situation.

"I wanted to meet him," Donna said with an overly enthusiastic smile; one meant to initiate an intimate interest in the famed playboy. False interest or not, the act was meant to redirect Ryan's narrowed eyes which lay on a still very quiet Kori. Stifling her gag reflex, - surely a natural reaction in regards to the idea of how ridiculous she was about to come across- Donna perked her shoulders with a very believable fangirl giggle. "I overheard you talking to him when you called Kori. Is he really as charming as everyone says?"

"Uh..." Ryan hesitated, unsure of Donna's out of the norm behavior. Then, chalking it up to the major time gap in which he had last been acquainted with her, and knowing if time proved anything it was that people change, he let out a drunken laugh. "I guess." It had been a noble attempt by Donna, but regardless it had failed. Ryan focused down on Kori whose mind was clearly racing. "You alright, Kor? You look a little down."

This comment quickly jolted her mind alert, and with a nervous giggle, Kori shoved at his shoulder playfully. "Of course I'm fine. Tired, maybe... but I'm alright."

"Should we get drinks since we're here?" Donna interjected.

Before either could object, Donna had laced her arm with Ryan's and pulled him back into the bar, leaving Kori with only a small, endearing smile. Perfect. Just... great. Time had been the one thing Kori had wanted inorder to come to terms with her situation with Richard and while it was time which seemed to be working against his favor, now it seemed it was time that was no longer on her side; for it seemed to be slipping right through her fingers.

"Ugh..." she muttered to the wind, which had chosen this precise, suddenly very lonely, instant to pick up.

Even with the quick stop back to the hotel inorder to retrieve a change of dry clothes, her body still shook with an internal, seemingly permanent chill. Karma? Is that what this moment was? Eyes wandering aimlessly at her quick paced surroundings, Kori sighed to herself, nestling in a small slouch back against the side of the building. The truth, she was comfortable with the idea of meeting Richard in a public place to ensure a lack of hostility at the farewell she intended on bidding. Yet, somehow, as she pondered her new options in regards to seeking him out, it suddenly felt more intimidating, and far more stressful to even entertain the idea of facing him alone in his penthouse suite. Without Donna beside her, what amount of courage would she be able to muster? As of now, the answer was clear...

"Forget it." She called to the wind once more before tugging tightly at her large coat, entering the bar.

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"I just knew you weren't over me. You could have turned me away a thousand times but I can always tell. I must admit though... took you longer then I would have liked but..." the release of her smug laugh, brought sensation of remorse coursing his composure. That's okay, just try to ignore the discomfort of actual conversation with such a shallow person. It's not as though he hadn't been in this situation before, or infact mirrored her attitude in certain past situations."... you finally came to your senses. I forgive you."

"I need a drink." He interrupted, leaving her to stand in the living room of his penthouse suite to await his return.

Damn, this idea seemed far less of a chore when sitting beside the brother of his unrequited love only twenty minutes ago. Playboy... playboy... playboy... it's the only word capable of numbing the pit in his stomach which had surfaced at the first touch of Kitten's acrylic nails against his skin. Wait, playboy or not, he didn't have to do this; especially not with Kitten. With a roll of his eyes at the consequences of pathetic choices ringing in his conscience, he paused, looking to the entrance of the kitchen.

Oh... that's why...

His left brow arched, the drink in his hand coming to a pause before his lips, body leaned back against the counter across from Kitten who now stood across from him, hands slowly giving attention to the buttons on her pink blouse.

"Last time you and I were in a situation such as this..." she allowed a small tantalizing sweep of her tongue against her upper lip to commence before continuing; thoroughly enjoying the look of satisfaction on a seemingly no longer hesitant, Dick Grayson. "... you didn't need alcohol to be interested." Richard ignored that aggravating sound emanating from Kitten's mouth in the form of her own voice, and tuned into her small frame which quickly came into view, a pair of lace undergarments all that was stopping a complete evaluation of his urges. "Don't worry though. I'm well aware of whats going on here. You're in need of a distraction." A small smirk formed across his lips as she made a few seductive steps toward him, his hands finding their way to her waist as she leaned her body into his. "I'll make you forget about that ridiculous red-head." As her cackle of a laugh sounded, Richard's eyes narrowed defensively against hers, but the reaction was missed by Kitten as she brought her arms to latch around his neck, her lips in a whisper to his right ear with a soft kiss. "... both of them."

With this Richard's once inviting grasp upon her waist faltered and he forced her an arm's length away from him; one hand remaining on her hip to keep the desired distance as he tried to allow a moment of thought to be processed.

Annoyed, Kitten sighed heavily, using all her strength to challenge the separation he had designated between them. "Come on Dickie,... I was only teasing you." As if that mattered. "I wont even speak if that's what you want." Their eyes met at this and an understanding of satisfaction to her compromise was realized, to which the space between them was allowed to be closed once more. "You can be so serious sometimes."

His eyes fell shut and he placed his drink upon the counter angled away from him, giving in to the caress of small kisses being sent to his neck. It was going alright, just so long as his eyes were shut. Well, that is until Kitten had latched an aggressive hand against his jaw, eyes flaring in temptation. 'Kiss me' she had demanded, but the moment Richard's eyes lowered to her puckered lips, something in him just... stopped working.

"What are you doing?"

"Just uh... just give me a second." He growled breathlessly, removing himself from her possession.

He took a few steps away, moving to one of the further counters, with a hand braced against its surface. Shaking his head, he glanced back briefly at Kitten who was struggling to permit such distance, and the irritation in forced patience for him in this instant had never been more obvious. The only issue was the hostility his lungs seemed to favor in now. Was the air thicker then usual, or was it his lungs themselves that were being stubborn?

"Hello?"

Richard's eyes shut and he shook his head, finding himself unable to focus. Of course his mind would choose this moment to spark a million different thoughts which had swarmed. Maybe bringing Kitten back to his penthouse was the first mistake because his senses were picking up on one thing, and no, it wasn't the Paris Hilton perfume reeking from Kitten but rather...

Wait, what am I doing? You already know where this is going. Did you really think Richard would go through with this? If so, well perhaps at least one of you should have at least alerted this poor playboy, because apparently no matter how hard he tried to turn back to Kitten it appeared his notorious habit, even when with Babs, which he may not have cheated but Kori alone was proof of the flirtation that would still commence. Who new love could induce certain behavior with an expiration date?

This should have been easy. This should lead to nothing more than random meaningless sex. It's not as though sleeping with Kitten meant he cared any less for Kori, or actually felt attracted to Kitten aside from any physical pleasure she could give. She was leaving. No, I'm not referring to Kori this time, but rather Kitten.

"You should just go." He finally managed to say, resulting in the immediate rise in temper from Kitten who crossed her arms.

"This is bullshit, Dick. I'm already here, you've led me on all night now come on... I expect you to deliver."

As she reached for him, he shoved her hand away, moving to the living room now. What the hell was he thinking having brought her here? The memories which flooded his mind as he looked around the room belonged to him and his beloved Kori. If he was going to sleep with Kitten, he didn't want it to be here, not where her presence would strip away the beauty of his time spent with Kori here and the memories they had made; no matter the pain these memories currently inflicted upon him.

"This was a mistake. I..." he felt guilty now, for more than one reason; guilt that was just about to boil over. "I can't do this."

It was actually sad really. I'm not suggesting any guilt should be felt for Kitten only that she was being completely blindsided by the fact that Richard had led her on for a majority of the evening. The only factor in this which she didn't comprehend, nor would she if it had been drawn to her attention, was that Richard was currently enduring a painful and sharp shift in his own mind; one that was obviously reeking havoc on him physically.

Kitten rolled her eyes, attempting yet another chance at getting him to hold her. A hand running sweetly up his arm she gave a pout. "It's nothing you haven't done before. Besides..." her eyes snapped to his; desperation meeting regret. "Wasn't it you who once convinced me that the best way to forget pain is to dabble more in the art of... " She brought her lips against his in a tender peck, testing his mood and how much of a possibility she had at persuading him. Leaving her lips only inches from his, she lowered her voice. "... conflicting physical passion to numb the outside world? A distraction is all you need and you know it." She smiled up at him, eyes wandering his hesitant gaze which seemed to be driving further from her previous amount of control. "Let me help you forget."

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"What happened? You're just going to give up because he isn't here?" Donna whispered, as Ryan gave his attention to the perky brunette beside him.

Kori sighed, staring down at her purse, the plane ticket flashing warning in her eyes.

"Kor."

"Huh?" She replied rather absent-mindedly, shoving the ticket back into place and turning to Donna.

"Oh no..." Donna sighed, her drink finding its way to her lips. "You've got that look in your eyes again."

Really? That's interesting. "What look?"

"A look of indecisiveness in regards to a fairly severe situation."

Duh, she was in a very severe instant within her life. This couldn't be solved with a simple text or phone call, no it...

….wait...

A phone call? Why not? Why had she ruled this out as a possibility? It's not as though Richard hadn't attempted calling her since her silence. Sure, it wasn't the most appropriate way to handle this situation, but hell it sounded a lot less stressful. At least by then she could establish some sort of understanding as to where Richard's mind was at this point.

"I'll just call him."

Donna's eyes narrowed. "I thought we agreed seeing him one last time was the more respectful thing to do?"

"I... well,... well it's not like I didn't try to see him. I'm here aren't I?"

"Right but just because he isn't doesn't mean you're off the hook. I strongly advise you reconsider, Kor."

"I just..." She stood. "I need a minute to myself so I can clear my head long enough to make a decision."

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"You're making a big fucking mistake, Dick!"

It was the last from Kitten he would hear for the night as he managed to force her out of the suite and slamming the door shut; leaving her to find her own way home. But even though she was gone, the infecting variable in the situation being resolved within his own means, being alone with such a pure strain of despair was almost dangerous.

Hands gripped at the sides of his head while he paced the length of the living room, every decision made this evening began to suffocate his thoughts. The aching in his bones in response to the sharp intake his pounding heart managed to keep at such a high frequency, he … I guess you could say for the first time since Kori had turned him away he was actually breaking down. It's one thing to feel unending sadness at a loss of love and stifle it by trying to ignore it but it seemed far less of an option at this moment. He had done everything to keep composure while the one thing he truly cared about was pushing him away, and right now it was as if he really didn't have it in him to fight this feeling any longer; the whole Kitten scenario not making things any easier.

Think about it. If you and I were on edge about his attempt to use Katrina Moth to serve as a coping mechanism because of a broken heart, then just think how ridiculous he must feel now that he allowed himself to realize this immense regret at even entertaining the idea. It didn't matter that he hadn't slept with Katrina, the mere fact he had ever let it be an option, inflicted an insane dosage of disgust with himself, and surprisingly, with Kori.

It had taken him a long while to realize the quickened movements in his pace which had taken a more violent route before he finally paused. Breath harsh, chest heaving, knuckles white in reaction to the tight grip he held with each fist, his eyes searched around him desperate for anything to ease this feeling. Then, without any fragment of self-control, something happened that hadn't taken place with him in a long while; years even...

Just as his nerve-endings felt as though they might implode, he leaned his back against the wall behind him, knees bending as he lowered himself against the floor, head shoved back against the smooth surface, … and a tear fell from his pale gaze.

Upon noticing the extent his emotions had ventured to, he lowered his head into his hands. Breath still lagging in his lungs, his jaw tightened. He couldn't be crying. Dick Grayson didn't cry, and he wasn't so sure Richard really approved, but as of now, who cares. Matter of fact, it was probably safe to say that it was Dick Grayson responsible for this mess in the first place. If he hadn't been recognized by Kori as the infamous playboy perhaps things would have occurred differently. Maybe she would have been more trusting with his claims of love. Either way, this was someone he didn't want to be, someone he wasn't sure he was capable of being anymore. Tonight was the prime example of him trying everything to be that careless, womanizing man once again and yet... he couldn't follow through. Maybe it was pathetic. Maybe all of this, him turning Kitten away, him sitting here alone, actually shedding tears over a woman,... it wasn't in his code; or at least it never had been before. Surely no one would truly believe he was a changed man, but in the end, he was discovering, it was really only the love of a woman who could change him.

He was met with utter confusion and hesitancy at this complicated epiphany of sorts. It made him think back to Babs, and their relationship. It wasn't as though Kori was his first serious attempt at commitment, but this felt different. It felt...

Sapphire's met darkness as he clasped his eyes shut tighter at the sound of his phone vibrating within his jeans. The initial reaction that rushed him was annoyance. It was one thing to accept that he couldn't stop the tears flowing silently from his own eyelids but it was another to bring someone else into the equation. This wasn't exactly his manliest of moments... in his opinion, definitely not mine.

As the phone continued to sound, Richard's anger rising at the intrusion, he gripped the phone tightly, not bothering to glance at the caller – assuming it was another nag of an attempt by Rachel to check on him- and he threw it forcefully at the wall opposite him. Unbeknownst to him, the faded light emanating from the slightly cracked cell phone screen didn't blink with Rachel's name, but rather Kori's. In the end, the only thing on his mind was that Dick Grayson couldn't be apart of who he was anymore. Just because Kori had turned him down, stripped him of his ego and left him vulnerable, that didn't mean he was giving up. Whether he approved of it or not... he would always just be Kori's Richard; Dick Grayson was no more than a fading memory. Now if only he had gathered enough composure in this moment to realize a very important chance at fixing this issue between him and Kori had just passed him by. Uh well, ... here's to the farewell meant for no one aside from Dick Grayson himself.

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