Leaving the gymnasium exactly 2 hours and 37 minutes later, I head straight
for the kitchen. Walking through the cold steely halls of the Titan Tower,
my footsteps echo. Heavy footsteps, I remind myself that they should be
lighter. I should be creeping like a cat. I scowl mentally. My training
just hasn't been thorough enough.
Stalking through the kitchen, I reach the refrigerator and pull open the door a little more violently than I intended to. The various cartons and bottles lining the inner shelves rattle, and I grab a bottle of plain water and slam the door closed again. I hear the innards of the fridge complaining as they shake.
I twist the lid off the bottle and take a good long swig. The water's freezing, to my mouth and throat, and drinking it gives me goose pimples.
/I don't care/.
I finish the bottle, and wonder whether or not to recycle it. I shrug, and aim it into the middle of the green recycling bin in the corner between the counters. It hits one of the sides, and I scowl.
Turning heel, I once again swallow my frustration and begin to stalk back out of the kitchen, fully intending to go to my sleeping quarters, and take some kind of shower. My muscles ache, and I'm glad. It means I've been working out properly, it means my body must've achieved something, even if it doesn't feel like enough now, I now have a new standard to work to every day in the gym.
With that positive thought in mind, my mood lifts a little. I realize that my mood feels heavy.
Someone else is walking towards me down the corridor. I listen carefully, conscious of the fact that my footfalls have suddenly become lighter. Soft padding, not deliberately sneaky... Beast Boy. Even in his 'human' form, he still retains several animal characteristics. He seems to walk like one, quietly, naturally, and I also know that his eyesight is a lot better than humans in the dark.
I refuse to feel any jealousy for his skills, and instead feel annoyance at my own body for not having achieved such an attainment. /Not your body/, reminds the voice, /your mind. You could achieve so much more than anyone else. You're just LAZY/.
I growl at myself in my head, and school my face into what I hope is a natural expression, as Beast Boy rounds the corner.
The green one appears, dressed in his usual outfit designed for transformation I suppose, and sporting the usual big grin with one tooth (fang) visible.
"Hey Rob," he chirps, by way, I suppose, as a passing greeting.
"Hey Beast Boy," I return, attempting a grin.
He passes, and I can feel the grin on his face emanating as he continues down the corridor. I wonder what people feel when I walk away from them, whether I radiate a big grin, or whether it's something else entirely.
The somewhat forced grin falls slowly from my face, and I round upon the cold, hard, dull block of steel that is my door.
"Robin," I announce dully, de-activating the security system. The door slides open.
This is the only room in the entire tower that I put a password on. It's my room. I like gadgets, I like to make high tech equipment, and I built and programmed the lock function on my door myself just after the Mad Mod incident. I can't stand the thought of anyone getting that far into the Titan Tower again, let alone coming into my room while I lie unable to defend myself in a chemically induced sleep.
My room isn't immaculate, but it is more organized than the majority of the tower. The floor is plain metal, the walls are plain metal. There's a desk, with my laptop and a couple of computer games, and the walls are covered in shelves, which are covered in their own right with various tools, weapons, equipment and gadgets.
I figure since no one's coming in my room, I don't have to put anything away.
There's one wardrobe set against the far wall – a tall cupboard sat on top of a collection of 6 drawers. Most of the drawers are empty save for the occasional piece of junk. The rest of the set contains clothing and other things in that category. I do have some clothes besides what I think of as my uniform. I save them for when I want to go out, and not be recognized.
I pull my shirt off my head, and let it fall onto my neatly made bed. I pull off my mask, and look at it for a minute. My mask.
/It doesn't bear thinking about/, comments a sarcastic voice in the back of my head. I scowl. Pesky voices.
I throw the mask on the bed, and turn away from it in a fluid motion, which prompts a walk into my en suite bathroom.
I decide that today, I'll be having a warm shower.
Stalking through the kitchen, I reach the refrigerator and pull open the door a little more violently than I intended to. The various cartons and bottles lining the inner shelves rattle, and I grab a bottle of plain water and slam the door closed again. I hear the innards of the fridge complaining as they shake.
I twist the lid off the bottle and take a good long swig. The water's freezing, to my mouth and throat, and drinking it gives me goose pimples.
/I don't care/.
I finish the bottle, and wonder whether or not to recycle it. I shrug, and aim it into the middle of the green recycling bin in the corner between the counters. It hits one of the sides, and I scowl.
Turning heel, I once again swallow my frustration and begin to stalk back out of the kitchen, fully intending to go to my sleeping quarters, and take some kind of shower. My muscles ache, and I'm glad. It means I've been working out properly, it means my body must've achieved something, even if it doesn't feel like enough now, I now have a new standard to work to every day in the gym.
With that positive thought in mind, my mood lifts a little. I realize that my mood feels heavy.
Someone else is walking towards me down the corridor. I listen carefully, conscious of the fact that my footfalls have suddenly become lighter. Soft padding, not deliberately sneaky... Beast Boy. Even in his 'human' form, he still retains several animal characteristics. He seems to walk like one, quietly, naturally, and I also know that his eyesight is a lot better than humans in the dark.
I refuse to feel any jealousy for his skills, and instead feel annoyance at my own body for not having achieved such an attainment. /Not your body/, reminds the voice, /your mind. You could achieve so much more than anyone else. You're just LAZY/.
I growl at myself in my head, and school my face into what I hope is a natural expression, as Beast Boy rounds the corner.
The green one appears, dressed in his usual outfit designed for transformation I suppose, and sporting the usual big grin with one tooth (fang) visible.
"Hey Rob," he chirps, by way, I suppose, as a passing greeting.
"Hey Beast Boy," I return, attempting a grin.
He passes, and I can feel the grin on his face emanating as he continues down the corridor. I wonder what people feel when I walk away from them, whether I radiate a big grin, or whether it's something else entirely.
The somewhat forced grin falls slowly from my face, and I round upon the cold, hard, dull block of steel that is my door.
"Robin," I announce dully, de-activating the security system. The door slides open.
This is the only room in the entire tower that I put a password on. It's my room. I like gadgets, I like to make high tech equipment, and I built and programmed the lock function on my door myself just after the Mad Mod incident. I can't stand the thought of anyone getting that far into the Titan Tower again, let alone coming into my room while I lie unable to defend myself in a chemically induced sleep.
My room isn't immaculate, but it is more organized than the majority of the tower. The floor is plain metal, the walls are plain metal. There's a desk, with my laptop and a couple of computer games, and the walls are covered in shelves, which are covered in their own right with various tools, weapons, equipment and gadgets.
I figure since no one's coming in my room, I don't have to put anything away.
There's one wardrobe set against the far wall – a tall cupboard sat on top of a collection of 6 drawers. Most of the drawers are empty save for the occasional piece of junk. The rest of the set contains clothing and other things in that category. I do have some clothes besides what I think of as my uniform. I save them for when I want to go out, and not be recognized.
I pull my shirt off my head, and let it fall onto my neatly made bed. I pull off my mask, and look at it for a minute. My mask.
/It doesn't bear thinking about/, comments a sarcastic voice in the back of my head. I scowl. Pesky voices.
I throw the mask on the bed, and turn away from it in a fluid motion, which prompts a walk into my en suite bathroom.
I decide that today, I'll be having a warm shower.