Hello again all! I'm sorry about this chappie being so short, for my excessive use of the "&" symbol, my bad grammar, my tendancy to be angsty, and the fact that this is suspenseful. If you'll accept my apologies, I'll be glad to get to the
Disclaimer: I have not, and never will, own the Titans. :( WAH!
Raven came to in her bedroom, unaware for a moment of what had happened. After a few seconds, however, memory rushed back into her. The locket had a picture of a face in it… Beast Boy's face. Raven thought that she would faint again before she could tell herself that she would explode something if she did. Sighing heavily, she knew that she couldn't deny it, even if she'd wanted to. What had to have surprised her the most, however, was thinking about what she'd have to do to break the curse… she'd have to marry Beast Boy. Again, surprise upon surprise, that didn't upset her. 'But,' she argued with herself, 'that means that I'll have to put up with his video-games every day for the rest of my life! I'll have to wake up every morning and smell tofu cooking! Or worse: I'll have to cook the tofu! And if we got married, there's a possibility that we'd have…kids!' She'd expected the prospect to horrify her, but the fact that it didn't was even more horrifying. She actually wanted to have his kids! Raven thought she would die on the spot from shock and disgust, not with Beast Boy, but of herself.
Beast Boy sat in his room, staring at the floor in wonder… it was clean. Cyborg had barged into his room earlier that morning, complaining loudly that Beast Boy should act 21 instead of 12, and demanded that he clean his room. When Robin heard the commotion, he came running… right into a pile of Beast Boy's dirty laundry. After they revived Robin, he also demanded that Beast Boy clean his room. Finally, after much arguing, Beast Boy and Starfire struck a deal: she would clean his room, and he would eat whatever bizarre foods she cooked for the rest of the month. Unfortunately for Beast Boy, it was October 1st, and that meant 30 more days of repulsive food that could kill a hog… poor Beast Boy. When he came into his room three hours later, though, it was sparkling clean. He discovered that not only did he have a floor, but he also had walls, a desk, a bed, a dresser, and end table, a television set, and a surround-sound stereo. Starfire was passed out on the middle of the floor with a feather-duster in her hand. He carefully moved Starfire out into the hallway and called for Robin, making sure to remove the feather duster. Robin came up a few moments later and almost had a panic attack at the sight of his girlfriend lying on the floor. Thankfully for him, however, she sat up a moment later and hugged the life out of him. Beast Boy shut his door in relief, but couldn't shut a door on the feeling of loneliness that overcame him. Robin and Starfire had been dating since they turned 19, and there was talk of engagement. Jinx had given up crime at 18 and had been a valuable asset to the forces of good, and the Titans gladly accepted her. Soon, however, she became more than a friend for the high-tech Titan, and she & Cyborg had been dating for a year. Beast Boy felt like the only one who didn't have anybody. It was times like these that he missed Terra, at least she would put up with him. But it wasn't really that he liked Terra like that anymore. He realized that he and she were just too much alike, and that it would eventually end in a power struggle. He needed somebody completely different, and how much more different could one get than Raven? He could've said that he simply found her attractive, he could've said that he had a crush on her, he could've said that he even liked her; but no, he was beyond that. He'd already admitted to himself that he loved, that he needed her. But he wasn't sure if Raven liked him as a friend, let alone a love interest! As a wise man once said, there is nothing worse than unrequited love, and it was true. Every time she went off on him, he felt like he would die. But every time she smiled at him, he felt so alive with hope that he wanted to sing and dance. He just wished that she'd quit playing games, even though he knew she wasn't. She was completely unaware that he loved her, so he couldn't blame her for acting the way she did: cruel one moment and kind the next. He sighed heavily and looked at his room, a glint on the dresser catching his eye. It was a picture frame, one with a picture in it that he'd unearthed about two years before. It was a picture of Raven, sitting at the counter with a blue mug of tea beside her. She'd thought that she was alone, he knew, because she was smiling serenely. Her eyes held no anger, like they so often did, and spoke of dreams. She'd been daydreaming. Starfire told him that she had taken the picture purely on chance. It was her first time handling a camera, and she'd snapped the button not knowing what it would do. It was a funny thing, though, because it looked professional. Afterward, as the camera slid the photo out, she dropped it on the floor. He'd never realized until now that she had used a camera before and that she'd "dropped it" under his game console, where he was sure to find it. He smiled to himself, realizing that Starfire had known all along; much longer than he had.
Raven sat in her room, still astounded that the prospect of being in love with Beast Boy, or Gar as he now liked to be called; was a pleasant thing. The thought of Gar sent a flutter through her that she didn't understand. She ignored it and marched solemnly out of her room and into the hallway. She nodded to each of the doors as she passed, almost like a silent respect and thanks to things that could so help insure her beloved privacy. She walked over to the elevator and pushed the "down" button, tapping her foot lightly as she waited for the familiar groan and squeal of the elevator approaching. Soon enough, it came. Slowly, the door slid open and she stepped inside. Just before it closed, however, she heard running footsteps approaching and she held the door with her mind. Soon, a shadow rounded the corner, and there came… Beast Boy! Raven's eyes widened and her knees went weak, her heart fluttered non-rhythmically in her chest as he spoke.
"Hey! Wait! Hold the door! Hold the door!" For a moment, she was so thrilled with the sound of his voice that her mind didn't register what he was saying and she lost her grip on the door. When it started sliding closed, however, she grabbed it and waited breathlessly as he stepped inside. "Thanks Rae!" he said, grinning and out of breath. I was walking down the hall, coming to the elevator, when I heard it coming… so I ran," he said, grinning sheepishly. She couldn't tear her gaze away from him and, when he smiled at her, the world stopped moving. A blush crept up her face and her eyes filled with longing as she stared at his green face. He caught sight of her pinkish face and raised an eyebrow. "Are you all right?" he asked. Her eyes widened, her face reddened, and she forced herself to look away and nod. In her head, she could hear Love and Passion laughing at her…
The elevator ride was a long and uncomfortable one for both of the Titans. Cyborg had been too busy installing a high-tech refrigerator (no laughing!) to heed the others' complaints about the small elevator carts. Now, the size of the cart was all too apparent. Though they stood side by side, they could still feel each other's breath on their necks and the occasional brush of hands against clothes as they attempted to shift around. It took all the self-control he could muster for Gar not to kiss Raven right there on the spot, and the feeling was shared by Raven. She angrily realized that Love and Passion must've done something to her by telling her, because their laughter filled her mind as her heart frenzied at being so close to her love. Half-way down the track, Raven's hard-fought control was lost as Beast Boy's hand, quite on accident, brushed her thigh. The tiny light in the elevator exploded instantaneously, a reaction not lost on Beast Boy, whose face was so red that he was grateful for the lack of light… until he realized that he was standing in the dark with Raven… he balled his hands into fists and bit his lower lip, both wishing for and dreading the end of the trip. Raven's face had gone so red that she knew she looked sunburned, and she was tempted to use her powers to crash through the elevator and be out of the awkward scene. Finally, to both Titans' mixed reactions, the elevator screamed to a stop and lurched downwards a little, and they waited as the door slid open. Jinx was in the kitchen, cooking some kind of chicken/tofu dish that was baked with carrots. She looked up, smiled a little at the red tinge on both of the Titans' faces, and went back to her work, humming a lullaby. Cyborg was in the training room, as they could tell from the R&B humming down the hall. Robin had told the others that he was going to take Star out for a very special night. He didn't need to mention that the "special night" would be made special by the presenting of a ring that he'd been saving up for during the course of a year. Beast Boy stumbled out of the elevator first, making his way awkwardly to the television where he turned on "Animal Planet." Raven floated over to the window and sat there, staring out at the sea. She couldn't even remember why she'd come down here, but settled with the idea that she needed to meditate, and this was as good of a place as any to do so. She closed her eyes and began her chant…
Jinx had watched the two stumble uncomfortably out of the elevator and noted the red hues on their faces. The broken light bulb wasn't lost on her, either. Silently, she slipped over to the computer, leaving her tofu/chicken sit in the oven on a timer, and typed in a code. Looking over her shoulders to assure that no one was there; she selected the video-files from the elevator and rolled the footage from a few minutes ago. She watched as Raven got in the elevator and heard the clack of footsteps. She noticed that Raven held the door and leaned forward curiously. She saw, with fascination, that Raven's eyes widened and her breathing speeded when she saw Beast Boy. Jinx smirked to herself. She watched Beast Boy step into the elevator and heard the few awkward words, noting that Raven's face grew red. She also noted how one Titan went still whenever the other Titan's hand accidentally brushed against him/her. And then, there it was, Beast Boy's hand brushed Raven's thigh. Raven froze, held her breath, and shivered a little…then the light went out. Jinx froze the frame, rewound it to that fateful scene, and put it in slow motion. Both of the Titans' most minor and fleeting reactions were now made oh-so-visible under the computer's revealing glare. Gar's eyes flicked down to his hand and his face went red (which is amusing to watch in slow-mo.) But, to Jinx's surprise, he didn't whip his hand away immediately. Instead, he repeated the gesture and then, only then, did he snatch his hand back. Jinx also saw how Raven's hand twitched towards Gar's before balling into a fist. Again, the light was exterminated as its source was blown to bits. Jinx sat in awe until the timer buzzed, snapping her back into reality. She smiled gleefully. She knew now, without a doubt, that both of the Titans were physically attracted to each other at the very least… She grinned as she pulled out her chicken/tofu.
I'm sorry! I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm soooooorryyyyyyy:'(
