40. Somewhere I Belong

The Alibi was packed for Carla's quinceañera celebration and the party was still going strong. Dora sat at the bar, taking a break from socializing by enjoying an Old Fashioned she had made for herself. Physically, she felt a lot better since starting the antibiotics Leslie had given her a week ago. Mentally… she still felt sore after the emotional beat-down, but for the most part, seeing all her loved ones gathered in one place was mending that very quickly. Anita had invited Leslie to the party because they were friends, but to Dora's relief, she knew she was not welcome after what she had done.

Almost the entire Silva side of Dora's family was here, though—a gaggle of her mother's sisters, their husbands, all their kids, and even some people she didn't recognize but was sure were part of her extended family.

Unfortunately, the Montgomery side wasn't in attendance. She hadn't seen or heard from them since her dad's funeral. The only thing her Uncle Ray had wanted to talk about was inheritance of the Montgomery building. Anita had considered it, but Dora refused to let him have it. He offered to buy it, but she refused again, which led to a falling out… and bridges were burned.

While Dora had tried to stick Mercy with the rest of the small kids in the play area they had set up in the lounge, she had escaped and was running around the party, snapping pictures of everyone with a toy instant camera. She had declared herself the event's official photographer—competing with the actual photographer, one of her aunts. Dora offered to give her her phone, but Mercy liked printing the photos, watching them develop, and handing them to their subjects just to see their reactions.

Of course, the center of attention was Carla, looking astonishing in her bold red dress. Dora could not be more proud of the fashion statement her little sister was making. The garment had black lace embroidered on the strapless bodice and a knee-length tutu-like skirt. Completing the look, Carla wore fishnet stockings, high-heeled Dr. Marten's boots, and a black veil in lieu of a tiara.

Fully leaning into their initial Beetlejuice idea, Carla had encouraged her friends to dress like goths, ghosts, and zombies. Holly came in a genderbent cosplay as none other than Beetlejuice himself, wearing a striped black and white jacket with matching leggings, strappy heels, and she even went so far as to dye her hair green. Holly had taken the liberty to put Mercy in cosplay too—as Wednesday Addams. Dora herself was wearing her favorite black frock dress and boots, but sported some darker make-up than her usual style, as did Rochelle, Jessie, and Lily in solidarity. They all invited themselves because they couldn't pass up the opportunity for free drinks, music, and dancing—and all the aunties' cooking.

To Anita and Dora's aunts, the theme was all a surprise, but not more than when Carla chose Holly for her first dance, appropriately "Jump in the Line" by Harry Belafonte. The dance was traditionally done with a male partner, so it effectively outed their relationship to everyone at the party. Dora was nervous about the idea when she first heard it, but it went over surprisingly well, and it warmed her heart to see (most of) her family accept Carla without making a big fuss. Carla later told Dora that during the mother-daughter dance, their mom had said she already knew Carla was gay—she and Holly were terrible at hiding their relationship. Anita approved because, no matter her gender, she thought Holly was a good influence and kept Carla sober.

For the father-daughter dance, Anita had chosen Dora's Uncle Marco to take her father's place, but Carla kept shrugging off expectations and deliberately sought out Reilly, pulling him onto the dance floor. Anita looked dismayed at first, but as the song and dance progressed (Ruelle's "Carry You"), she transitioned into silent happy tears watching Carla with her godfather. She remarked to Dora, "Yeah, you know what? I do think your dad would've wanted it this way."

Later on during the party, Anita and Reilly would retire to the corner booth, sharing drinks and a deep conversation in Spanish. Dora saw them laugh together a few times, and even noticed a coquettish look on her mother's face. Holly caught Dora spying and winked at her, mouthing, "I told you so!"

Dora finished her whiskey and signaled Cali to make her another.

Someone slid onto the barstool next to Dora. "I'll have what she's having."

She looked over and came face to face with Detective Renee Montoya, wearing a sleek blue pant suit, no shirt, and pumps. Bullock was nowhere to be seen. Nonetheless, Dora said, "Bar's closed for a private party, detective. What are you doing here?"

"Relax," Montoya said. "Is that how you greet family?"

"What are you talking about? We're not family."

"Depends on who you ask, I guess." Montoya saluted Cali as she dropped off her drink. "My brother is married to one of your aunts. Your cousins are my nieces."

Dora frowned. In Latin culture it was totally normal when extended family came out of the woodwork for a gathering like this. "So what? Do I call you Auntie now?"

"Tía's fine," Montoya said, smiling at Cali while sipping her drink. "Or Renee."

Dora noticed that Cali hadn't made her drink yet, even though she had ordered before Renee, and she really wanted a drink right now. "Cut out the bullshit. What do you want?"

Renee looked around at the bar's new fixtures, counter, and shelf. "Seems like this place is doing well. Where'd you get the money for the renovations?"

"I have investors," Dora replied. Technically true, if one considered Jason erasing her debt to the mob and the deal she had made with Ma Gunn.

"Seems like you've been spending a lot of time with the Street Demonz."

"My uncle is a motorcycle enthusiast." Dora pointed at Reilly, still wearing his cut while dancing with Anita.

"Your car's been refurbished," Renee pushed.

Dora gestured at Cali rushing to serve everybody's drinks—except hers, apparently. "Business has been good. I can afford to treat myself."

"Fair enough." Renee turned around to survey the party. She lingered a little on Carla and Holly dancing, their arms wrapped each other. There was a melancholy look on her face. "You know, I think your side of the family is pretty cool. Your mom especially. I wish my parents were as accepting when I came out." She gulped down the rest of her drink and pushed the glass down the counter. "Keep them safe and stay out of trouble, sobrina."

The choice of words didn't sit right with Dora, so she replied, "Will do, tía."

As Dora watched Renee leave the Alibi, her old fashioned was finally placed on the counter in front of her. Dora turned around, ready to give Cali an earful for taking her time.

But she came face to face with Jason.

"Cheers," he said, cracking a frisky smile.

Dora's heart skipped a beat as panic set in. "What the fuck? You're not supposed to be here!" she said, hushed.

Jason scoffed. "Wow, I missed you too."

"People can see your face! Where are your glasses?"

"I can't wear sunglasses at night, indoors. Come on, that'd draw attention," Jason said, leaning toward her, looking into her brown eyes with his own gray blues. For a second, his gaze made Dora's panic disappear and her lips quiver. "Nobody here knows who I am, and I'm not wearing my cut like Reilly is."

"A cop was just here," Dora said, peeling her gaze away from him to scan the crowd for Renee, in case she had sneaked back in. "Apparently, I have an aunt that's a detective for the GCPD's Major Crimes Unit. She's in a blue pant suit, ironically."

"Really?" Jason asked, his smile disappearing for a second.

"If I had known before tonight, I would have told you."

He shrugged. "Okay, then relax already. Besides, I couldn't miss seeing you in a sexy dress. I mean, look at you." He walked out from behind the bar counter and let his eyes roam all over her. "We should start going out on proper dates so we have a reason to dress up. You look hot in that outfit. Are you wearing make-up?"

Heat rose in Dora's face… but in other places too. Jason had called her beautiful, pretty, and cute on various occasions, but this was the first time he had used the terms hot and sexy. Why those words turned her on, she had no idea.

She gave him a once-over—and he looked damn good himself. He wore a slim-fit black suit with a crimson red shirt—no tie and unbuttoned low enough to expose the cleft of his muscular chest.

Dora bit her lip and sucked in a breath, suddenly hyper-aware of the fact that they hadn't seen each other—let alone had sex—in more than a week.

Jason slid onto the barstool next to her, and his cologne made her want to bite him. He grabbed her forgotten Old Fashioned, asking, "Are you going to drink this?"

"You're crashing another quince, you know that?" Dora said, ignoring the cup. "Do you remember last time?"

Jason sipped some whiskey. "Your first quince was ruined before I got there. That frilly pink dress and tiara your mom made you wear? You looked beautiful, but I hardly recognized you."

Dora cringed. "You didn't make it any better by showing up."

Jason turned away. "Yeah, as soon as I saw your face, I realized you weren't ready to forgive me. But I still came with a purpose that night: to make amends. So naturally, I offered myself up to your dad. I was ready for him to castrate me. I deserved it."

Dora laughed. "Really? And what did he do?"

"Monty sat me down and asked how we could redo the whole thing."

"Wait a second, do you mean…" Dora said, realization dawning on her. "The punk karaoke for my do-over quince was your idea?"

Jason held his hands up. "No, I can't take all the credit. It was as much your dad's idea too."

Something in Dora's chest swelled, and it made her eyes tingle. "Why didn't you come? Why didn't you tell me?"

"I wanted you to be happy." Jason sighed. "And you weren't ready to forgive me yet, obviously, so I just stayed out of it. I knew I was going to get you back somehow; when you were ready."

"I knew what you were doing. Volunteering at the clinic to win me back. It was so obvious."

Jason smiled. "Well, it really was Bruce's idea for me to make amends to Leslie, but yeah, I had an ulterior motive. Make amends to you. It worked, didn't it?"

"Shut up," Dora said, shoving him. "I just… I could tell after a few months the effort you were putting in was genuine, that your reasons became altruistic."

"What can I say? You've always been the reason I care for this community. Why I fight for it." He held her hand. "Because you deserve better than me, you make me want to be better."

Leslie's last words to her echoed in Dora's head. "He doesn't deserve your love, He doesn't deserve you." Right now it seemed like her love was all that was keeping Jason's soul intact.

The words "I love you, Jason" were on the tip of her tongue, but now was the not the time or place to say them. Also on the tip of her tongue was the urge to kiss him, but she looked around the bar, at all the people. She couldn't do that here either.

So she reached down and intertwined her fingers with his. Leading him to the kitchen doors behind the bar, she went to the liquor pantry that led down to the cellar. Before she could even get through the doorway, Jason pulled her back and pushed her against the door. Items fell off the shelves, but she didn't care. His lips descended on hers. One hand cupped her face and the other searched for the zipper of her dress.

The kiss was a hot coffee on a cold morning. Warmth spread from her mouth to her whole body, and she didn't want to let go of him for fear that the chill would return.

"So this must be Rojito," someone interrupted.

Dora jumped in surprise and accidentally bit Jason's lip.

"Ow!" Jason exclaimed.

Pulling away from Jason, Dora saw her mother watching them, her eyebrow arched and her arms crossed.

"Um…" Panic made her heart churn for the second time tonight. Her brain locked up.

Miraculously, Jason stepped up. "Yeah, I'm Red." He managed a smile despite his broken lip and held out his hand to shake.

Anita grabbed it with squinted eyes, but didn't shake—instead she squeezed it. "Anita, Dora's mother." She turned her gaze to Dora, who wished she could turn invisible like the Martian Manhunter. She switched to Spanish, saying, "What are you two doing back here? Are you too ashamed to introduce me to your boyfriend?"

The honest answer was yes, but Dora didn't want to tell her the truth. Before she could think of something to say, Jason jumped in. "The bar was out of rum, so we came back to get more, but… we got distracted."

Anita arched an eyebrow, somewhat surprised. "Oye, es un guero?" she asked Dora.

Jason looked confused. "What's a guero? Don't know that word."

Dora was already embarrassed, and the question made it worse. She rubbed her forehead. "A guero is a Latino that can pass for white."

"Oh no, sorry. I'm just plain vanilla white."

"Well, you have a pretty good accent. Has my daughter been teaching you?"

"Thanks, but I learned Spanish on my own," Jason said. "Probably why it's so bad. I lived in Corto Maltese for a while."

"Yeah, Malteseanos talk funny. But then if she's not teaching you, why is she spending so much time with you?"

Jason blinked. "Um…"

"We've been working on the Impala…" Dora tried.

"Every night of the week?"

"He works all day."

Anita scoffed. "Okay, give me a break. I'm not stupid, I know you're Red Hood."

Dora spat a curse. Did Leslie tell her?

Jason just laughed. "Say it louder so the whole bar can hear you."

Anita stepped closer and grabbed Jason by the collar, yanking him down to her eye level—which was more than a foot down. "Watch your tone with me, Rojito, or I will tell everyone."

Dora could see sweat bead on Jason's temple. "Yes, ma'am."

"Asi." Just like that. She let go of his shirt. "And come on, 'Red?' You could've done better than that. What's your real name?"

"My crew picked it," Jason said soberly. "And it will have to do for now."

Anita eyed Dora, who just shrugged and shook her head.

"Now listen," Anita said, "the reason I'm not telling anyone who you are is because I'm thankful for everything you've done for my daughter—the bar, the car, the protection, and the deal with the Vermilion girls that's keeping us afloat. We've done business with mobsters before and each time they've fucked us over."

"I'm not like them," Jason said, straightening his collar.

"I know you're not. My sisters talk. It seems like you got a soul and actually give a damn about this community," Anita said, then looked at Dora. "And it seems like you care about my daughter. I haven't seen her this happy in years."

Jason gave Dora a look, but she was suddenly too bashful to return it.

Anita continued, "But if you ever fuck us over, or hurt my daughter, I'll tell the police who you are and where to find—"

"I—" Jason cut in.

"—your body. After I cut off your dick and strangle you with it."

"Mami!" Dora exclaimed, wishing she had just stayed in bed this morning.

"Don't fuck it up, Red," Anita told Jason, and walked over to Dora. She tucked a lock of hair behind her ear, and whispered, "Es lindo y alto. Buen trabajo." He's cute and tall. Good job.

As Anita walked out of the kitchen, Dora was trying to get her heart rate back down to a normal rhythm. Jason said, "Do you think she recognizes me? From before?"

Dora reached into a refrigerator and pulled out a bottle of water. "I don't think so. She would have lost her shit."

Jason smiled. "Like you did?''

Dora threw a bottle cap at him. "Fuck off."

He swatted it out of the air, and started walking away. "Fine."

"Wait, where are you going?" Dora asked.

"Sorry, but your mom killed the mood. The cat's out of the bag, so let's enjoy what we can of the party and fool around later."

"Are you sure?" Dora asked.

Jason held out his arm, waiting to escort her. "Yeah, let me make you another Old Fashioned."

Dora looped her arm around his elbow. She felt… oddly cordial. "Where'd you learn how to mix drinks, anyway?"

"Spent a minute in Cork, Ireland."

"One of these days you're gonna have to tell me where exactly you've been for eight years, more than just the highlights."

"Happy to—whoa!" Coming out the kitchen, Jason nearly fell over as something waist-high barreled into his legs.

"Ow!" Mercy squeaked, falling to the floor. Her instant camera and a stuffed doll went down with her.

Concern immediately took over Dora' s features. She picked the little girl up and checked her over. "Mercy, are you alright? I told you not to run in the bar!"

"I'm sorry, Dora, but Adam wanted to take my toy! I had to get away from him." She straightened her camera's strap.

"This thing?" Jason said, picking up the stuffed doll with an amused smile—the one Mercy had handmade in the likeness of Red Hood.

Before Dora realized what was happening, the sight seared itself into her memory—Jason holding a toy version of himself, smiling at Mercy. A chord hummed in her chest, bringing up a tentative and nervous feeling.

"Thank you!" Mercy took the plush and hugged it tightly, then she eyed Jason closely. "Who are you?"

"I'm…" Jason gave Dora an uncertain look. "… Red. I'm Dora's friend. What's your name, kiddo?"

"My name is Mercedes, but you can call me Mercy. I'm eight years old," she said proudly. "And I'm Dora's sister."

"Nice to meet you, Mercy. Where'd you get that doll?"

"I made it!" she beamed.

Jason looked at Dora in surprise. "Wow, really?"

Dora finally found her voice. "Yeah, she's crafty. More talented than I was at that age."

"Are you Dora's special friend?" Mercy asked. "The one my mom says she spends too much time with?"

Jason chuckled. "Yeah, I guess I am."

Mercy looked between Jason and her doll, her eyes widening. She leaned towards him, whispering, "Are you Red Hood?"

Jason couldn't fight the smile spreading on his face. "That's supposed to be a secret."

"I can keep a secret!" Mercy exclaimed in hushed tones. "Right, Dora? I'm the best at it."

Dora smiled. "You are, but it seems like almost everyone knows already."

"Well, if it spreads, it won't be because of me," Mercy insisted.

"I know, honey."

The little girl checked that her camera was still working and loaded a fresh cartridge. "Okay, then let's take a photo! Just for us secret keepers."

"I don't know about that," Dora said. She didn't like taking photos. She didn't feel she was very photogenic.

"No, come on, it'll be fun," Jason pleaded. "We all look great tonight. When's the next time we can take a Polaroid with all of us dressed up like this?"

With both Jason and Mercy looking at her with eager puppy-dog eyes, Dora conceded fast. "Fine." The cops weren't likely to get their hands on a single physical photo connecting her to Red Hood.

Mercy and Jason high-fived. She handed him the camera, and held her arms up for Dora to pick her up. "Selfie time!"

Dora obliged and put the little girl on her hip. Jason pulled them both under his arm, Mercy sandwiched between him and Dora. He held out the camera, and said, "Say 'batarang' on three, let's go."

"Batarang?" Dora asked.

"Trust me," Jason said.

"Come on," Mercy said. "One, two… three…"

"Batarang!"

Flash!

Dora felt rushed, but she managed to say the word in time. Mercy immediately hopped down and grabbed the camera from Jason, dancing on the balls of her feet as the photo developed. When the colors appeared, she wooped. "It looks so good!"

Dora and Jason knelt down to see, and it was indeed a good photo. Jason had his playful smirk. Dora had an awkward, but flattering grin. Mercy had her crooked eight-year-old smile, clashing with her Wednesday cosplay, but it was so adorable it brightened the whole photo nonetheless.

"Mercy, time to go home!" one of Dora's aunts called out.

"Keep this stuff safe for me, okay?" Mercy said, handing Dora the photo, camera, and the Red Hood plushie. "I'm spending the night at Titi Cia's house, and I don't want Adam to mess with them."

"Sure, no problem. Have a good night, sweetie."

Mercy gave Dora a quick hug around her waist and ran off to meet her aunt and cousins.

"She's freaking adorable. I didn't know you had another sister."

"Yeah, um…" Dora said, shrugging. "She was born after you 'died." She used air quotes.

"I can sorta see the family resemblance, but she's got lighter skin and eyes than you and Carla. I guess she's what you'd call a guera? Did I get that word right?"

Dora sighed, looking at the polaroid intently, at Mercy's bright blue eyes. "I guess. She does take after her dad."

"Hey, are you okay?" Jason asked.

She snapped out of the fugue she had sunken into. "Yeah, sorry."

Jason noticed the melancholy look on her face, and pulled her into a hug. "Hey, I'm sure Monty would be proud of how well you're taking care of your family." He kissed her knuckles. "His legacy is in good hands. These hands."

Dora scanned the crowd in the bar, and saw Mercy and a pack of their little cousins being escorted out by some of the aunties. Mercy waved one final time at Dora. Dora waved back at her, saying to Jason, "I hope so."

Notes

I'm so glad I didn't scare you guys away with the last chapter! I love you all and appreciate your comments and support for the story. Reading your enthusiastic feedback really does inspire me to write more. I was going out on a limb with that risky twist, and I'm happy how it paid off with the catharsis of the last chapter.

So in response to some people's "Wtf, Leslie?" reactions in to the last chapter, I guess have a few things to explain. I'm huge Batman nerd, and I love to discuss canon and lore, so let's dig in.

I leaned into Leslie's darker side in this story, but I don't think it's too far out of character. (I like to lean into EVERYONE'S dark side, lol). In my view, Leslie's not a saint, and she breaks whatever rules she needs to in order to do what she thinks is right—she's a vigilante in her own way. It's been so long since I posted the first chapter, so if you don't remember, she let Dora treat people in the clinic, even though Dora did not have the credentials to do, which is against the law. In canon, Leslie treats under-privileged people without reporting to insurance, treats vigilantes and criminals alike without reporting to police. Her ethics and morality are her own, not beholden to an oath or the law.

Also, some of you may know that Leslie has "tricked" someone to teach a lesson before, and it was arguably worse. Back in War Games (the gang war Dora keeps mentioning), Leslie let Stephanie (Spoiler/Robin IV) die on purpose just to teach Bruce a lesson about the way he mentors his sidekicks. (Hypocritical, right?)

Anyway, this chapter brings back the tooth-rotting fluff I know you all missed. I kind of wrote myself into a hole the past ten chapters. I could not make it realistic that Jason and Dora's relationship was still a secret. So! I finally just gave up and made everyone lampshade their terrible secret keeping.

Last note, I'm sorry this post is so late after the last one. Work started up again. I don't have grad school taking my nights again, so I'll keep writing and posting, but the updates won't be on a regular weekly schedule. I'll just post the chapters as I'm done writing them, so follow the story and check your inbox.

Thanks for the support, everyone!

Song Reference: "Somewhere I Belong" by Linkin Park

Version 41.1