By the way, sorry if Robin and Starfire seem a little OOC in this. And, er, I don't know if this is a very good chapter...but you gotta decided that on your own, so...here it is.


He couldn't stand it anymore. This silence and dirty looks were driving him mad. Cyborg had come to Robin and Starfire to tell about his fiancé and had hoped that they would be thrilled. But no, they were sitting on the couch, as far away from each other as possible, and exchanged glares with their arms folded over their chests'.

Oh, of course they talked to him and congratulated him, but it was clipped, for they were having a damn who-looks-away-first contest, which had been going on for a good thirty minutes.

With his human eyes twitching in anger, Cyborg finally asked, "What the hell is going on with you two?"

He received a harrumph from them both as they stuck their noses in the air, turning their bodies away from one another. My God, they were immature.

"She's going on a date with a stupid no-good geek."

"Only because you mated with a girl."

Cyborg's eyes widened as he listen to their argument. The little boy sitting in his lap was watching too, but he seemed to be used to it.

"But it matters not. You said there will be nothing between us," Starfire bit out.

"So?"

"So? So? Do you truly expect me to sit back whilst you mate with other women?"

"Yes."

That did it. Starfire's anger snapped and she grabbed the nearest object she could get her hands on. The remote hit the side of his head forcefully. Robin winced, eyes wide as he stared at the now smirking alien.

"You just threw a damn remote at me!" He cried, rubbing the side of his throbbing head.

Smugly, Starfire turned away from him. "You deserved to be hit with worse."

Robin gawked. "What the hell does that mean?"

"It means that I should have hit you harder!" She snapped, turning fiery green eyes to his. He glared.

"You don't just go around hitting people. Especially with goddamn remotes! That could have done some serious damage!"

"The only thing it could have damaged was the skin, for I know first hand you have nothing in that small head of yours that would qualify for a brain."

Cyborg snorted with laughter. God, this was so interesting. Starfire had definitely changed since the last time he had seen her.

"Wha—what? Are you calling me stupid?"

"Yes, Robin, I am. You are dim-witted for thinking that you can have someone while I can't."

"I am not stupid!" Robin yelled angrily, a vein popping up on his forehead.

"That is a matter of opinion."

And then the insults were flying. Cyborg could only watch in amusement as his two friends engaged in a verbal battle.

"Bitch," Robin said after a lengthy pause.

"Jerk."

"Stupid woman."

"Chlorbag."

"Idiot."

"Conceited donkey." Cyborg chortled, just couldn't help it. He figured that Starfire meant jackass. Oh, this was killing him!

Robin's eyes narrowed as he thought of an insult. "Prude."

"Insufferable pig."

"…Naive alien warrior Amazon thingy!" Robin said, eyes narrowed and his mouth set in a pout.

Cyborg couldn't breath he was laughing so hard.

"Oh, Jesus, Robin, that was priceless. The best insult ever!" Cyborg managed, and the two teens finally realized he was there. "Naïve alien warrior Amazon thingy!"

"Yes, truly insulting," Starfire said sardonically. "How shall I ever get over it?"

"I am going to kill Raven for teaching you to be so damn sarcastic." Robin mumbled, gingerly touching the growing knot on his head and wincing.

"Oh, you big baby," Starfire muttered as she went to get ice from the freezer. Tossing ice into a plastic bag( which she did not seal) , she stormed over to Robin and tossed it into his lap. He yelped as ice tumbled out of the bag and onto his lap. He stood up quickly, dusting his wet thighs off.

Starfire bit back a grin. Just what she had hoped for. "Damn you, Starfire!" Robin snarled and before she knew it, she was being hit in the face with a pillow. Starfire caught it just as it hit her lap, eye livid with fury.

Robin was standing beside Cyborg now, dabbing his thighs with a dishtowel and smirking, eyes alight with humor. And damn if it didn't make him gorgeous.

Without thinking, she hurled a star-bolt at him, missing his shoulder by mere inches. It only missed because that idiot jumped out of the way.

"Whoa, hey there! If you're gonna kill him, do it away from me." Cyborg said, jumping up out of his chair with Christian in tow. They hurried of into the kitchen so they would be out of harms way, but still be able to see and hear what was going on.

"I see no reason why you are so mad," Starfire muttered as she exchanged glare with Robin.

"Because you are going out with a geek!"

"And? You mated with a blonde bimbo with a brain the size of a peanut."

"Well, er…so?" Robin was fighting a grin now at the comment Starfire made.

"So I have the right to date whom ever I wish, and you have no choice but to sit back and watch. I will not be alone just so you can have your little escapades with blonde bimbos."

Robin sighed, rubbing the side of his head. "It's just…I don't like Jonathan."

Starfire smiled slightly. "Would you like anyone I dated?"

"No," he muttered grudgingly. "But there's just…I don't know…I just don't like him."

"And I do not like your blonde bimbo." Starfire crossed her arms over her chest and smiled slightly.

Robin couldn't help but grin. "I don't like her either."

Starfire blinked. "You do not like her? But…why…why would you… consummate the mating process with her?"

Robin ran a hands through his unruly hair. "Things are different here on earth when it comes to things like that, Star. You don't have to like someone to…mate with them. She didn't want a relationship and neither did I. It was just a…one night stand sorta thing."

Starfire tiled her head. "So what you are implying is that one can mate with another, yet not be tied to them in any way?"

Robin raised an eyebrow. "Er…yeah, I guess."

"Oh," she said quietly. "On my planet the mating can only be done within a marriage. If done before the marriage, the woman is usually forced to marry him, become a concubine, or live a life of ignominy. "

"Wow. That's tough. So the woman either is forced to marry him, become a whore, or lives a life of shame? What happens to the man?" Cyborg asked.

"Nothing. He is not looked down upon or anything."

"Dude, that's so wrong. Who came up with these laws?" Cyborg questioned, quite interested in the new conversation.

"It is just a customary tradition. But it was developed by my ancestors, so the law applies vastly to me. Well, it did anyway. It no longer applies here on earth, for I am not the Grand Ruler. I can mate with whom ever I wish when ever I wish it—"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, hold the phone there, princess," Robin said, stepping forward. "Are you trying to say you plan on mating with a guy soon?"

"Maybe. Jonathan does seem to type who would be a good family man, and that is what I wish for." She knew the comment would get a response from Robin, but she had expected him to be angry and tell her that she couldn't. But the look of shock and hurt ran across his eyes before he masked them. Luckily, she had caught them both.

"Well, good luck with that. I'm sure he won't be too terribly bad. He probably would make a good father-figure. You could do better, but then again you could do worse."

Eye calm, Robin said down on the chair Cyborg had long ago vacated and pressed his hand to the side of his head, eyes never leaving hers.

Starfire's eyebrows drew together. "Are you saying that you care not if I have the sex with Jonathan?" Starfire cringed inwardly. Though she knew minimal about the subject, she knew enough and the thought of Jonathan doing that was nauseating.

"Nope. I don't really care if you do or not. I've thought about it and decided that you're nothing but a friend, and I can't keep you from doing what you want. I mean it's not like I want you myself, so why hold you back? It's not fair to you, so go right ahead."

Starfire flinched visibly at his words, her eyes bright with hurt. "Oh. Al-alright."

"I've been acting like a jerk, keeping you away from dating other people when I'm doing it. So, from now on, date anyone you like, mate with anyone you like and so on. You already know that we're nothing more than friends so why should you not date? There won't ever be anything between us, and frankly, I'd feel a lot better if you did date, so then I could go my own way without feeling guilty. You said you love me and that's keeping me from being with anyone else because I always feel so guilty. But now with you dating someone, it's not keeping me back from what I want to do."

"Of course," she said softly, wishing he would stop talking.

"Hey, guys, I'm going to head back home," Cyborg said quietly, watching Robin with shock and disgust.

Starfire glanced up at him with a forced smile. "Congratulation on your wedding, Friend Cyborg."

"Thanks." He walked over to her and hugged her tenderly, leaning down to whisper, "Don't worry about him, Starfire. You can do so much better." He pulled back and, with a sympathetic smile, walked out the door.

Christian didn't understand the things Robin was saying, so he shuffled to his room to play. To busy herself, Starfire knelt down on the floor to pick up the ice.

Robin kept talking. "I don't mean this as an insult to you personally, but I finally realized that I'm not attracted to you anymore. Truthfully, the whole naïve innocent thing is a real turn-off. I mean, you don't really know about anything. When I kissed you, you had no idea what to do. I don't like to have to spend my time trying to teach you things like that. It's just…a burden."

"Robin, I do not wish to talk about this." She said softly, the tears she tried to hold back slipping down her cheeks. She had no idea that he thought about her this way. She didn't know she was a burden to him. Had he always thought like this? Had she truly been bad at the kissing? Humiliation mixed with the pain of rejection as she stood on shaking legs to dump the ice in the sink. Her hands shook and she fought off the pain. No, she would not let what he said get to her.

Closing her eyes tightly, she gripped the edge of the counter until pain ran through her arm. The physical pain helped the emotion turmoil.

"And, anyway, you're just too tall. I mean, there's nothing wrong with that or anything, but I just like petite girls. You know, the ones with soft, unblemished, pale skin and who need someone to depend on. You really beautiful Starfire and I don't want you to change, but…girls aren't supposed to be able to fight or lift twenty tons of metal without even breaking a sweat, or have battle scars and callused hands. It's just…not normal."

Now, anger made an appearance. So, he didn't want her because she had scars? Because she was able to fight? Because her damn hands were callused? My God, she had never known that Robin would be so damned shallow.

"Forgive me for knowing how to protect myself. And God forbid I have scars and callused hands. I guess that means that no man would want me because of my scars, and hands, and because I'm tall."

"That's not what I'm saying—"

"The hell it isn't!" She snarled. Never had she been so angry, so hurt. She couldn't take it anymore. He was taking this too far. She knew good and bloody well that he didn't want her, but he had no right to go this far.

With inhuman speed, Starfire made it to Robin's side and picked him up by the collar, slamming his body against the nearest wall. His eyes widened. Good. The jerk was scared.

"I could care less what you think of me, Richard Grayson. I have scars because I protect people, and I have calluses because I save people from falling metal and debris. I'm naïve because I am not from the planet. I am not weak, Robin. I can take good care of myself. So can Raven. She has scars as well. You do, Cyborg does, and Beast boy. These scars of mine prove to the world that I am worth something, that I can do something. But let me make something clear here, Robin," she snarled, bringing her face close to his.

She jerked her arm up so he was now off the ground, the cloth of his shirt almost choking him. "You are pathetic. Truly and utterly pathetic. I'm disgusted that I could have ever loved a selfish, arrogant, obsessed pig like yourself, but believe me, all feelings I had for you are now gone. I'm pretty sure that is what you were aiming for, so now you and you little bimbo can have sex all you want. Because now I realize that you don't deserve me. I am better than you are and I'm not going to let your shallow attempts change me."

Though tears pored from her eyes, she smiled hatefully. "And I cannot have something so vile as a friend." The grip on his collar loosened and he dropped to the floor. But he didn't move. He just sat there, shoulder sagging and his throat working as he held back his emotions.

She knelt before him, and lifted his chin with her finger. She didn't even feel remorse when tears fell from his eyes. "Are you proud of yourself Robin?" She asked softly, her eyes as emotionless as she could make them. "Are you finally happy that you lost the one thing that separated you from Slade or any other villain we've come up against?" She watched the agony run through his eyes. She knew that was his weakness, but she was too hurt to care about him at the moment.

"I don't care about that stupid rule you had, Robin. I could have changed you. I would have loved you with everything I had. But you pushed it all away and now you're paying for it. You got what you wanted, Robin. I won't try to make you love me. I won't be there when you need a shoulder to cry on. You pushed my away. And you don't know how much that hurt. I knew you didn't want me as a possible mate or lover or whatever you earthlings call it. I was fine with that, because I thought I was a friend to you and that was all that mattered."

A single tears fell against her hand and she didn't know if it was his or hers. "I guess, in a way, this was all my fault. When you told me you mated with the blonde, I freaked, and I think I know why you did this. But Robin, what you don't understand is that I knew there was nothing between us. It is one reason why I asked Jonathan to go to the dance of formal with me. I knew that you probably didn't care that I dated, and I was fine with that. But I didn't need to know that I was useless to you. I didn't need to know that I am too innocent, that I am nothing than a burden to you. I didn't need to know that you find me unattractive because I am too tall, that my hands are to rough, or that my skin is scarred. But you brought it up, and I lost all respect for you. You used to be my best friend, Robin. The one I came to when I didn't know what was going on. But…I didn't know I was a burden.

"For that, I am sorry. But you will no longer have to worry about that anymore. You no longer have to deal with my annoying questions of earth customs. I will…confide in my friends from now on. I am not your problem anymore. Nor am I your friend."

Riddled with pain beyond anything she had ever felt, Starfire walked to her room, pressing her hands against her mouth as Robin's deep sobs of pure agony followed her.


Are you finally happy that you lost the one thing that separated you from Slade or any other villain we've come up against? Her words ran through his head as he stood on the roof of the apartments, the rain drenching him.

Was it worth it? He asked himself as his steel heart shattered in his chest. Was losing Starfire in everyway possible worth it, just so I could be guilt free? Robin swallowed, his first clenched so hard that blood dripped down onto the wet cement from where his nails dug into the skin.

He had lost the only thing that mattered to him to save himself from guilt. He had pushed his best friend away from him because he was selfish, because he thought that if she knew there would be nothing between then, that he could date peacefully.

But he had never meant to push her away completely. God, how was he going to survive with out her? She was his joy, his light, his entire being. And now she was gone. She hated him. She thought he was worthless…and she was right.

He didn't deserve her. She was too good for him. She was too innocent, to sweet, to perfect to be with a monster like him. Hell, he didn't deserve anyone.

Cautiously, Robin walked to the edge of the building, gazing at the street below. He could jump and end the pain quickly, rid himself of the sickening truth. All he had to do was take a few steps forward, and it would be over. No more pain, no more heartache.

You're so weak. Robin took in a shaking breath and quickly turned way from the edge, plopping down in the middle of the roof.

If I did jump, would I be missed? He wondered, and knew the answer quickly. No. No one would miss him if he killed himself. They would call him weak, a useless human. He would probably be lucky if anyone even went to his damn funeral. His entire team thought he was a jerk and he was. Starfire hated him because he was pathetic and weak, which he was.

Lying back against the wet ground, Robin closed his eyes tightly, the rain beating against his skin.

He hated himself. Truly loathed everything that he had become. Because he had been so damn selfish, he had lost the only thing he loved in this goddamn world. He had pushed her away because he was so scared. He had never loved before. He had locked himself away from everyone the minute his parents died. And then Starfire had come, and knocked down the barrier around his heart. She had treated him like he was precious, like a king. She had loved him, came to him when he was in trouble, hurt when he hurt. She had been there when he went though his phases with Slade. She had been the only one who hadn't given up on him.

And now she was gone. She didn't want to be the one who took his burdens. She didn't want him anymore. But wasn't that what he wanted when he had said all those lies about her? Hadn't he wanted her to hate him?

He had. Robin had wanted her to see the monster he truly was. He had wanted her to see what hideous creature she believed she loved. Maybe that had been his intention the entire time he had spouted out lies to her. Maybe, in his own way, he had tried to protect her. She didn't deserve him.

And now she knew that. Now she knew what he truly was. A conceited jerk who cared only about himself. She could go on with her life now and never have to worry about him hurting her again. She could be happy now that he was out of her life. She could be a normal teenager who could love and be loved.

Robin realized that he had always loved her. But his love was not enough. She needed more. She needed someone who could be there for her every minute of everyday, someone who could push everything aside so she could be happy. But he could never do that. He had proved it when he went after Slade in the tower. He became obsessed, pushed her away, and she had almost gotten hurt when he became Slade's apprentice.

She didn't deserve that kind of life. If he had pushed away all doubts and fears, he would gave brought her into his life, the life where nothing mattered but catching a sick criminal. And it would have been her downfall. She would have easily been killed or used against him. Maybe even both.

Now, he realized, it had nothing to do with the guilt and dating as he had made himself believe. It all had to do with her safety. With him, she would be miserable. She would have wished she would have never met him.

But none of that mattered now. Starfire hated him. She didn't want a vile creature like himself. She didn't even consider him a friend anymore. And now, he was truly alone. She wouldn't come to him anymore with her adorable question, or look to him when she was in trouble. She would go to her real friends. Friends she could trust, who could be there for her when she needed help.

Robin couldn't take the pain anymore. It felt as though he was being ripped apart from the inside. He scrambled up from the middle of the roof, bare feet slipping against the wet ground. Weak, he was so weak. He was worthless, a monster. His life was not important anymore. No one would miss him. Starfire would never miss him. She hated him. She didn't want him, love him. He was so alone. And he couldn't take it. No more pain, no more loathing, no more knowing what he truly was.

He stumbled to the edge of the building, telling himself that suicide was the only way out of the pain. Sobs racked his body, but it didn't matter. Tears and rain blurred his vision as he stared down at he empty street.

This was it. His last, weak moment on earth. Hell would be a piece of cake compared to this place. Robin closed her eyes tightly, Starfire's smile haunting his troubled mind along with her painful words. Taking a deep breath, Robin swallowed and slowly stepped off the edge of the building.


Oh my. I've never written anything so… depressing before. (Sorry if it was a little too depressing or if it went horribly wong. But hey, it was my first time at angst, and there's a first time for everything.) So, er, well, all I have to say is wait till the next chapter to see what happens.

Oh, er, and if the thing with Robin confused you, here's a little summary: He had made himself believe that the only reason he pushed her away was because of the guilt he felt, but the true reason was that he was desperately in love with her and wanted to protect her from himself. (His obsession with Slade, selfish acts, the monster he things himself to be, and so on.) So he had said all those things in hopes that she would see what he really was and would hate him so she wouldn't get hurt in the long run. But he didn't know that without her, he couldn't survive. So, in a moments weakness, he…

And you'll find out what happens in the next chapter. (I hope that wasn't too confusing.) Until next time!