Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Chapter 16

He was still in the hospital, hooked up to even more machines as Cyborg treated his broken arm. It was starting to mend itself now, but it still hurt. So did his pride and emotions, which were still jumbled up. He kept repeating the same thing over and over in his mind: she kissed me! She kissed me!

And yet he could not deny the joy that filled his heart when he even thought of his Starfire, and there was no turning back now that he had told Raven of his intentions. For once he'd like to hook up with a girl and have it stay that way!

"Looks like you're going to be here for a few more weeks than you thought," Cyborg said as he played with several different instrument.

He glared at Cyborg through his mask. "You mean I'm stuck here?"

Starfire sat herself down beside him, and he felt a little bit better. "I am afraid Cyborg is right. But I will bake you the earthly cake and the chocolate which seems to do very much the cheering up and I shall come to visit you daily until you are better!"

He grinned inwardly. Maybe hospitals weren't so bad after all. Leaning back against the pillow, he gave a crooked smile, saying, "Alright, Star, I give. I won't sneak out any more, I promise."

Her eyes lit up and she almost hugged him, but realized that his arm was still broken and thought better of it. "That is wonderful!" she said, choosing to beam brightly instead.

He grinned back, though he would have given anything to have been able to hug her back, but there was the risk of being stuck here for a longer time, and no cake or hugs could make him feel better about that. "So, what about Doctor Light? Any news on him?" he asked, turning his attention to Red X, who had previously been standing in the corner silently.

"He's still at it, apparently. Apparently he's been stocking up on xinothium and there was a recent attempt to bust Change out of jail," X replied casually.

Robin sighed. He wished he could help them fight, but they were taking precautions now. He'd been informed: the door would be locked at night as well as the windows, and he wasn't allowed to have his belt back. He was going to stay in this room whether he liked it or not, and he was definitely leaning towards "not". "I wish I could tell you more. Just be careful. Xinothium isn't very pleasant," he said finally.

Starfire paused, as if deciding whether or not to do something, then reached out a hand and softly pushed his hair back. "Do not worry about us, Robin. We will be fine."

He could hear X's stifled snicker and could plainly see the smirks on Beast Boy and Cyborg's face...Beast Boy seemed really happy, for some odd reason. But he didn't care. He was going to have to tell them sooner or later anyway. "I know you will, Starfire," Robin replied, reaching up and grabbing her hand as she gently lifted it from out of his mess of hair.

That grin was perhaps the widest he had ever seen her manage, which was saying much since this was Starfire. She jumped up happily, exclaiming, "I shall now go and back the cake!" With that, she had left the room, though he noted she was in extremely high spirits now.

Red X finally let out the laugh he had been holding in. "When are you gonna tell her, kid? About you and the goth girl?"

Robin shot him a hard glare. "Whatever might have been between us isn't there anymore. Why do you think my arm's in a sling?" he asked crossly.

This only made X laugh more. "She took it well, then?"

He crossed his arms over his chest angrily, which was quite a feat to accomplish, considering the sling was in the way. "You have no idea," he muttered darkly.

Beast Boy broke in. "So, dude, when are you going to actually ask her out?" he asked. The question was innocent enough, yet there was unneccessary eagerness in the young Titan's voice as well...What could be the reasoning behind that?

"I'm sure I don't know what you're talking about," Robin said crossly, angry that his teammates were trying to pry into his personal life. When he was ready, gosh darn it!

"Come on, man. There have been sparks between the two of you since we first met the girl! Come on, where are you going to take her?" Cyborg cut in.

It finally dawned on Robin why Beast Boy was acting this way. He was HAPPY that the competition for Raven was gone. He WANTED Robin to break the news to Raven. Well, if the changeling was going to give him a hard time, he'd just play the game right along with him. "And what about you, Beast Boy?" he asked, glad that he now had a way to change the subject.

"Huh?" was the changeling's reaction.

He grinned teasingly. "Oh, come on. Don't think I didn't notice the way you fawn over Raven. Now that I'm out of the picture, when are you going to move in? Or are you afraid she'll reject you?"

Beast Boy puffed out his chest in indignation. "Don't give me that! Raven loved you, and I'm sure I don't know what you're talking about either!"

He'd struck a nerve, it seemed. He'd better choose his words carefully from here on out, for he could see the hurt building in the changeling's eyes. "Sorry, Beast Boy. I didn't mean anything by it. It's just if you can bug me about my personal life, why can't I do the same to you?"

Beast Boy was stumped. He'd been bested, and he knew it. "Fine!" he stormed, sitting down heavily on a nearby chair and glaring at everyone he made eye contact with.

Cyborg gave a hearty laugh. "You had us going for a long time, man. We weren't sure what the deal was between you and Raven, and Star was starting to get nervous."

He raised an eyebrow. "She was?"

The metal man grinned. "Yeah, she knew you and Raven had sparks, and her chances were growing slim. Glad you finally came to your senses!" he laughed.

"I suppose..."

"Kid, if you couldn't see that the girl was flirting hopelessly with you, you're a bit blind," Red X chimed in.

"Would you mind staying out of my personal life?" he snapped, causing all three boys around him to jump in surprise.

"We were just kidding around, man," Cyborg replied dully.

Robin sighed. He shouldn't have exploded, he knew, but he had a lot on his mind and they weren't helping him any. "I know. I'm sorry. I guess I'm just stressed."

Beast Boy yawned. "Dude, we're all tired and stressed. It's, like, three o'clock and we're still up. I say I need my beauty sleep!" With that, the changeling marched off.

Cyborg shook his head in amusement. "I guess we should all turn in, then," he said, switching off the various instruments. "Lock the door behind you, would you, X?" he called back as he wandered across the hall to his room.

Red X remained in the corner. "You need to control that temper, kid," he remarked once Cyborg's resounded footsteps had faded into the night's dismal air.

He sighed in annoyance and waved his hand in the air as if he could dismiss the comment as he would do a mosquito. "Yeah, yeah."

X persisted. "I mean it, kid. You and those emotions are going to dig your own grave one of these days."

"What are you talking about?"

"I mean if you get too involved in how you feel, you'll be blind to what's right in front of you," X shouted. He paused, then added, "You're a good fighter, kid. An equal rival. I'd hate to see you throw it all away for some girl. Or some girls."

"Didn't know you were a philosopher," he replied darkly.

"I'm not. I just know that it's not a good idea to go messing around with things like that, like emotions. Especially not in the middle of a catastrophe. It never ends well."

"Thanks for the advice, now would you mind leaving me alone?" he asked sullenly.

"Whatever, kid. But I'm telling you that when something bad happens, you're going to have to keep your head. Or else," X cautioned as he slipped out the door.

"Whatever," he shot back even as he heard the scrape of a key in a lock.

He sighed, leaning back against his pillows. Everybody wanted to have a part in his personal life, it seemed. But he knew that there was some truth in what Red X was saying. He needed to control himself.

"Robin?" came a voice from outside. A feminine voice. Starfire.

"Star?" he replied with his own question.

Though he couldn't see it, she was grinning, though her expression was confused. "May I enter?"

He grinned cockily. "If you can find the key," he replied.

Immediately, there was the scrape of a key against the lock and the Tamaranean entered, still wearing the same confused look. "Robin, I have a question."

He shook his head. What we he supposed to explain this time? "Okay, shoot."

She plopped down beside him, cookbook in hand. "What is a tsp?"

"A what?" he repeated. "A tusp?"

She nodded. "Yes, a tsp."

Confused, he asked, "Where did you read that?"

She pointed to one ingredient. "See? It says vinegar: two tsp. What is a tsp?"

He laughed. "Ohh..."

She gave him a funny look. "What is so amusing?"

"Star, that's an abbreviation for a teaspoon."

"Oh," she said, though she still wore that same confused expression.

"A teaspoon's a unit of measuring," he replied laughingly.

Her eyes lit up with understanding as she rushed out the door. She emerged a few minutes later with a teaspoon in hand. "Is this what you speak of?"

He sighed contentedly. At least some things never changed. "Tell you what, Star. Why don't you go ahead and get some sleep now and I can help you cook in the morning?"

"But you are not allowed-"

"The early morning. When no one else is up," he interrupted with a twinkle in his eye and a cocky grin.

"Oh," she said, realization dawning on her.

There was silence as he closed his eyes, then peeked one open to find her staring intently at him. "Star?" he asked.

"Hmm?" she replied, as if waking up from a dream.

"You're staring at me," he said simply, a bit deterred.

She smiled innocently. "I was just doing the thinking."

"About what?"

"About us," she replied quielty, as if saying the word would send him away from her.

"What about us?" he asked, though he did notice the slight twang in his throat when he spoke the word.

She leaned back against the pillow so that her eyes could stare into his own masked ones. "I was wondering how these experiences have changed your own feelings."

He nodded in understanding. "Well, I was confused at first. Promise you won't get mad at me, okay? You have to promise that before I tell you the whole story."

Though she raised an eyebrow, she nodded her agreement. "Continue."

"Well, I was having some trouble with my, um, feelings. And, um," he tugged at the neck of his white hospital clothing. "well, I was confused about love."

"Love?"

"Well, yeah. It's a really confusing thing, Star! And I wasn't sure where the line between best friends and relationships was, and it was starting to scare me."

Her eyes widened at this revelationg, for she had not thought that simple emotions could scare her fearless leader. Surely the Boy Wonder would not have these troubles! "Scared?" she repeated, a bit unnerved.

His expression softened. "Only for a little while. But back when I kind of, um, lost my lunch and that little girl and you... It made me think, Star, and I realized, well," he tugged harder at the neck. This was it. He was going to have to tell her sooner or later, and he was too far gone to turn back now. He paused, letting the sentence trail.

"Yes?"

"I realized something about myself. I realized that the answer was right there all the time for me and I didn't see it," he said. Surely she was picking up on what he was trying to say here? No good. She was going to make him come out and say it. "I realized that, well, Star, can I tell you something?" Wow, this collar was getting hot.

Her eyes were brighter than ever now as she leaned forward in anticipation. "Of course," she replied.

"Star, I think I... Do you think...? What I'm trying to say is..." Blank. His mind was a total blank. And he was tugging at the collar like it had something to do with it.

"Go on," she urged.

"Star, would you...? I know... Star I think I...I think I love you." Ha! He'd said it. Stupid collar didn't mess him up after all! Wow, that was harder than it should have been.

Within the next five miliseconds, her expression brightened far greater than the sun's, and she jumped out of the bed and spread her arms wide, touching back down beside him to plant a kiss firmly on his lips.

THIS was close to one of the greatest things that had ever happened to him. If only they could have been in a more romantic setting. But he soon forgot about such things as his mind became lighter than air and his heart soared. They broke apart way too soon, he thought, but he was still smiling and her eyes were still glistening.

"Mm, that was nice," he murmured dreamily.

"I am glad you enjoyed it. As did I," Starfire replied happily.

"Star?"

"Mmm?"

"You're crushing my shoulders." Darn alien strength, ruining moments.

It's me, robbiepoo, not my story. haha. Just to let you know, since I normally don't write stuff down here. Sometimes it can take so much to say the simplest things. haha. Chapter 17 is on its way!