A Garden of Roses

Chapter 6: The Finale: Kiss From a Rose

Baby, I compare you to a kiss from a rose on the grey,
The more I get of you the stranger it feels, yeah
And now that your rose is in bloom
A light hits the gloom on the grey.

Seal, Kiss From a Rose

……………………………………………………………………………………………………..

Robin was surprised at the ease of their movements. How well his tongue seemed to know her mouth! How neatly his arms fit around her, how perfectly her petite form molded to his body. And how she responded! With an eagerness that he hadn't expected, as though she were trying to devour him, capture his essence and take some of it for herself.

The roses were a silent witness to this moment of passionate abandon. This was the moment Raven had been waiting for: free to indulge herself as much as she cared to. She pressed up against him, ran her hands through his hair. It felt cool and silky through her fingers, as though she were sifting water; a part of her brain was still able to register this fact. She suddenly tried to deepen the kiss even more, ignoring her lungs, wishing she could take up a bit of his soul and keep it for herself.

Robin looked into her eyes fondly, their sharp golden hue softened. He managed a small smile. "What about Aqua Lad?" he murmured.

Raven cast him a blank look, before she suddenly remembered. A blush mantled her cheeks. "I…never really went out with him," she said sheepishly. "I just told you that…because it was …painful for me—"

"We were…together…before?" Robin said, correctly guessing Raven's incomplete thought. Raven nodded, biting her lip. Their mental connection was something she had always reveled in, when she was still back at the Tower.

Raven smiled slightly. "It took us almost three years," she said softly. "You were always with Starfire. Everyone really expected it, you know."

"So you never dated Aqua Lad?" Robin asked hopefully.

"Nor Beast Boy nor Cyborg," Raven replied, her voice quiet. She glanced up into his eyes, meeting them, encouraged by their sparkle.

"Good, because then I can do this—" and so saying, he leaned down and kissed her furiously once more.

………

There is so much a man can tell you
So much he can say
You remain: my power, my pleasure, my pain
Baby, to me you're like a growing addiction that I can't deny
Won't you tell me is that healthy, baby?

………

Gar Logan waited impatiently in front of Cyborg's desk. "Where is he?" Beast Boy demanded.

"I dunno, man!" Cyborg retorted, repeatedly punching the same series of numbers into a beeper. "He's not responding to his beeper." He cursed as realization hit him, square in the stomach. "Aw shit," he cursed in exasperation, throwing down his beeper. Robin had gone off and was at this moment canoodling with a patient, and what's more, with one Slade had expressly forbidden him to see! "Dr. Wilson's gonna have Robin's head for this," he muttered.

Beast Boy dropped on all fours and arched his back, hissing like a cat. Cyborg ignored him. "Now, I like Robin and all," he said, "but he's always so damned obsessive about everything. And it's gonna get him in trouble one day—probably today…"

Gizmo came whizzing up to him at that moment. "Dr. Wilson says please to see Dr. Greyson," he said, in an overly unctuous and innocent voice. The message and Gizmo's tone indicated that both knew of Robin's illegal date.

"Shut up, you little weasel," Cyborg said sharply. He had never liked the kid…and on top of that, where had Beast Boy gotten to? He cursed again under his breath, Gizmo looking triumphant and Cyborg's obvious discomfiture. "Why's it always gotta be me?" he cried.

"He's waiting," said Gizmo in a high singsong.

"I'll get him," Cyborg muttered, leaving his chair for the gardens. "And when I get my hands on him—" He made a violent motion in midair, just barely missing Jinx. She sighed—his anger made him so narrow-sighted that he missed even saying hello to her, again, once more, she supposed she should have been used to it by now but she unfortunately found she wasn't.

Her state of mind was not helped by the entrance of Karen Beecher, swinging her hips and pursing her full mouth in surprise that Cyborg wasn't there. She looked imperiously at Jinx, who only glared back in hostility.

"Where'd Cy go?" Karen asked in her honey voice. Jinx had had enough.

"You call him Cy?" Jinx exclaimed. "All right, listen up, hunny! I don't know who you think you are but Cyborg's mine, you hear?"

Beast Boy, crouched on all fours, howled like a wolf.

…….

Now that your rose is in bloom
A light hits the gloom on the grey

……..

Slade was angry. Angrier than anyone had ever seen him before. He strode powerfully to the doors, almost ripped them open, bounded outside. He went over to Robin and Raven, oblivious to the impending danger, and seizing Robin, pulled him off her violently.

"What do you think you are doing?" Slade demanded, his voice dangerously low.

"Dr. Wilson, listen—"

"I told you," Slade said, his breath coming uneven and shallow. "I told you specifically to stay. Away. From. Her." He enunciated each word clearly, making each a different sentence. "I will not have my orders directly disobeyed."

Robin pulled away from him, stepping closer to Raven. "No, you listen, Slade," Robin said, his own voice deceptively calm and low. "Who are you to give orders like that? I'm treating this patient, this is what I'm here for! She's shown so much improvement—"

"Relationships between doctors and patients are strictly forbidden!" Slade yelled. Robin started in surprise—he had never heard that cool, mechanical voice raised in anger. "Not only that, but you disobeyed my direct orders. I cannot run this hospital with people like you always slowing me down, going whichever way you please!"

Raven tugged at the back of Robin's shirt. "Robin," she said quietly, "let this go, it's no use fighting Slade. Just…walk away."

"I never turn my back on a fight," Robin told her. He faced Slade squarely and met the other's eyes.

"I'm afraid there is no fight, Robin," Slade said, his voice back to normal, or as normal as it could ever be. There was a peculiar smile lurking about the corners of his thin mouth. It occurred to Raven just then that all evil people invariably had thin- lipped mouths, whether in fairytales or in real life.

"You see—" triumph was dripping from Slade's every word; Raven would have sworn the man was positively happy. "You see, Robin, I am in charge here, not you, and if I say you go…you go."

Robin shook his head once, licked his lips, and then lunged for his boss. "Robin, no!" Raven shouted, afraid that the scuffle would break them apart once more.

Cyborg was trying to restrain Robin while Jinx attempted to sooth Slade…Cyborg was taking Robin away….

"Robin! Robin, where are you going? Robin….Robin…Robin…"

…

She awoke suddenly to find a concerned face bare inches from her own. "Hey," Robin said quietly, smoothing her violet hair with his hand. "Shhh, Raven, what happened? I'm right here."

Disconcerted, Raven rapidly glanced around. Robin leaned down and pressed a soft kiss on her lips. "Robin, what happened? One moment you were fighting Slade and Cyborg was pulling you away and…"

"Raven, I've been here the whole time," he assured her. "You've been asleep for the past hour. You must have had a bad dream."

"I was alone in a mental asylum," Raven said, "and then you were my doctor and Slade said you couldn't see me and then you fought him and then…I woke up." Robin kissed her softly again and pulled back, looking at her lovingly.

"You're with me now," Robin said, embracing her.

You're with me now.

Fin

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A/N: So, the very short but, nonetheless ( I hope) fulfilling finale to A Garden of Roses. I really thank you all for sticking with me throughout these months and making this my most popular story ever. It was always so amazing to read your reviews! I hope you've enjoyed my writing and this little story. So finally it's resolved: it was all just a dream! Hope that wasn't too anticlimactic for you all.

If you did, in fact, enjoy this story, I recommend you try my latest Rae/Rob adventure, An Honest Mistake. It's a one-shot but it's still the piece that, I feel, represents my apex of maturity as a writer.

Kirish, selfless, and the other ones of you who: Guessed that it was a dream! Thanks a million for sticking around with me and reading this story.

Velvet Death: When I saw you had reviewed An Honest Mistake I swear my eyes just popped and my jaw dropped. I couldn't believe it! Thank you so much for your review: it means 100 times more coming from such an amazing and accomplished author as you.

ELM-Tree10: Wowie, it's a great compliment to be the top 2 on your favorites list! Thank you so much.

Chinxy: hope you had an awesome birthday—consider this a belated gift.

AnnFaithDarknessGoddess: You've been with me since Chapter 1: hope you think this chapter, though short, is even better than the last.

Samisweet: Yes, I do know. Boo (

Cutter-with-a-cause and all the others who were wondering: I really hope that you found this explanation fulfilling.

And now, finally…I'm out.