A/N: 03.18.2020
SYNOPSIS: Bruce makes a decision that could change his life forever. He discusses his decision with Terry and Max, about asking Diana to dinner and the possibility of rekindling a love long considered lost. Takes place post-Good Life.
The More Things Change
Bruce couldn't believe that he let himself think like this. He couldn't believe he'd let Clark's words affect him as much as they did.
But they did. And he had hard time denying them.
He was sitting in his study, waiting for Terry and Max to arrive. Despite himself, he wanted to know what they thought about what he was considering. It was really wasn't the kind of thinking he usually indulged in. But he wanted to try.
A few minutes later, Terry and Max walked in with Terry carrying Grace in her carrier.
"Hey, Bruce," Terry greeted.
"Hey, granddad," Max smiled.
Bruce chuckled, softly. "How are you both doing?"
"Not bad," Terry said. "Don't sleep as much."
"When did you ever?"
Terry stopped. "Damn, you really did condition me, didn't you?"
"I did."
"But," Max said, "I can't lie. It helps me sleep more."
"Aren't you lucky?" Terry asked, sarcastically.
"Terry," Bruce warned. "She's the wife."
"Since when are you the expert?"
"Since I want you to stay married."
"Aww, Bruce!" Max said, sitting down. She picked up Grace out of her carrier and held her close. "You're the best!"
Terry rolled his eyes. "Anyway! What's up? Why'd you want us over here?"
"I needed to talk to you both about something," Bruce said. "And… it's a kind of important."
"Whoa." Terry sat down. "That… sounds big."
"It is."
"What's going on?" Max asked.
"I'm thinking about calling Diana," Bruce said.
Terry and Max looked at each other, unsure. They looked at Bruce. "Forrrrrr?" Terry asked.
"To ask her to dinner."
Terry stared at Bruce, blankly. "Gimme a sec. I need to go look outside to see if the world just ended."
"Terry," Max smiled.
"Oh! I'm sorry, was that too much? The man who wrote the book on being alone is going to ask the woman, the immortal goddess, who's been chasing him for years, his ex-wife, on a date?! And what I said was going too far?!"
Max thought about it. "Go look outside."
"Both of you are so supportive," Bruce chided.
"You have to give us this, Bruce," Terry said.
"No, I don't."
"Oh, yes, you do!"
"No. I do not."
"Yeah," Terry smiled. "Yeah, you do. Because, if you're serious about this, this is the greatest news I've heard since Grace was born!"
Bruce groaned.
Max giggled. "But, seriously, what brought this on?"
"Actually," Bruce said, staring at the baby, "Grace brought this on. And by that, I mean you both making this work to the point that you have a child now."
"Making you think about…" Terry tried to find the right words, "missed opportunities?"
"In more ways than one."
Terry folded his arms. "Okay, let me ask the real question: what do you hope happens at the end of this? Like… this is you, we're talking about. What's the goal?"
Bruce thought for a second. "I don't know. For once, I'm not sure I have a goal. I don't think anything will really happen. I just… want to take one last chance."
Max smiled. "Good enough for me."
"Me, too," Terry smiled. "Sounds like a plan. Want me to get the phone?"
Bruce reached into his pocket and pulled out his cell phone.
"Wow. You're serious."
"I am." Bruce sighed. "I was… hoping to have both of your support on this."
Max giggled, "Bruce, of course."
"Yeah," Terry agreed. "I can't believe you think you had to ask. It's not like you need our permission."
"Permission, no," Bruce agreed. "Just support. This is a horrible idea, after all."
"No," Max disagreed. "Terry dating Ten. That was a horrible idea."
"How many times are you gonna bring that up?!" Terry said, throwing his head back.
"Until it stops being funny. So never."
"We weren't even really friends when all that happened!"
"Just shows that you had a lapse of taste in women," Max pointed out.
Terry rolled his eyes. He looked at Bruce, "You sure you wanna deal with something like this?"
"I've dealt with worse," Bruce replied. "And it was all self-inflicted. I'm sure."
Terry shrugged. "Okay. Want us to leave?"
"No."
Terry jerked his head back again. "Well, okay!"
Bruce looked at the phone and searched for Diana's number. Once he found it, he sighed and hit CALL.
A few hours later, Diana drove up the door at Wayne Manor. She knocked on the door and Terry opened it.
"Hello, Terry," Diana smiled.
"Hey, Diana," Terry greeted.
Diana walked inside. "Is this… really happening?"
"Far as I can tell," Terry closed the door.
"Where is he?"
"Waiting in the dining room."
Terry and Diana walked toward the dining room, finding Max holding Grace.
"Hello, Max," Diana smiled.
"Hi, Diana," Max greeted.
Diana walked up and looked at Grace, "Hello, little one."
Grace actually cooed a bit.
"How come we can't make her do that?" Terry asked.
"Well, for starters, I'm not a goddess," Max answered.
"On that, we have to disagree."
Max smiled, as she blushed.
Diana smiled at them both. Their relationship really did give her more hope for the future. She always worried when she heard Bruce selected a new Batman that they should share the same loneliness.
So far, that didn't seem to be the case. Diana couldn't be happier to be wrong.
Diana looked at the door to the dining room. She wondered if she was as wrong as the original Batman as the new one.
Diana walked toward the door and opened it.
Bruce was sitting at the table, his fingers interlocked. He looked up at Diana and stood up.
"Bruce," Diana greeted.
"Diana," Bruce nodded. "Please, come in."
Diana walked over and sat down next to him.
Terry nudged Max, "We'll just… get outta you guys' hair."
Max nodded, "Yeah, yeah. Catch you guys later."
After they were gone, Diana looked over at Bruce. "Bruce."
"Yes?" he asked.
"Just tell me why. We… tried this before. But… it… was hard. For us both. Why? Why all this now?"
Bruce looked toward the door where Terry and Max were just standing. "Them."
She smiled. "I imagined they had something to do with it. But you wanted to call. They didn't make you call."
"No."
"Bruce…" She sighed. "I don't expect anything from this, as far as taking anything from you. I don't want anything from you. I just…" She stared into his eyes, "I just love you."
He felt his heart skip a beat.
"I have for so long. It's never changed. That's all that matters for me. But… I have to know… what do you want from me? What do you want from this?"
"Nothing more… than just you."
Diana gasped, silently. She slowly smiled, tears forming in her eyes.
"I'll be completely honest with you, Diana." Bruce paused. "I… I honestly don't know where this could end up." He fell silent for a moment. "I do love you. That never changed."
She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. That was worth the wait to hear. She looked back at him.
"I know I'm difficult and sometimes I don't feel like I'm worth the effort. But… I want to try. I just want… to take things a day at a time. See what happens. If you don't mind being seen with me."
Diana smiled and put her hand on top of his. "I don't mind at all."
He smiled a bit.
"And one day a time? Sounds perfect to me."
Bruce stared into her eyes, "Dinner?"
"I'd love to," Diana answered.
Having been listening at the door, Terry and Max moved away, both smiling ear to ear. They walked down the hallway, heading for the car. They heard all they needed to hear.
"So, where could this lead?" Max asked him.
Terry thought about it, "I don't know. What I do know… is that the fact that he's even trying to start down the road… is a miracle by itself."
"Amen to that."
