It had indeed been good to see her again.

Dick Grayson sighed as he entered his apartment in Blüdhaven, the city that keeps him tethered to Gotham and thus inevitably keeping him tied to Batman. Dropping his keys in their usual place by the door, he headed to the kitchen for some water.

The league had requested all the help they could muster for a calamity that had spread across the globe. The league was spread thin, and Dick gathered the urgency and threat of the situation as his call to Key West had come from Batman directly, although knowing that Dick wasn't even remotely close to that area.

Taking a sip of water, he checked for food in his refrigerator only to find a single carton of stale food and a six-pack beer carton. The mission had ended successfully, having all the alien plant-like things destroyed throughout the world. The crisis in Atlanta had also been dealt with. Maybe he could hope for a quiet weekend now but knowing Blüdhaven that seemed unlikely. Dick groaned, wishing once in his life that he could take a break.

After all, he had almost been alien plant food.

"Great," Dick said out loud to no one in particular as he closed the door of the refrigerator. As he usually does after a tiring mission, with just three clicks on his phone he ordered the same three items from the usual Chinese restaurant by the corner. Stretching his arms over his head with a lazy yawn, Dick slouched on the couch in his living room. Too tired to be bothered with anything else he turned on the television, flicking through channels until he stopped onto the news channel covering his and Robin's mission in Atlanta. As he listened to the reporter discuss the after-state of his mission, his phone buzzed with a notification confirming his order, informing him that the food should arrive in twenty minutes. Ignoring the other notifications that were popping up on his screen Dick headed for a shower to unwind.

Tense and sore muscles are a part of Dick's everyday life. Being an acrobat, he has always had flexible yet firm, well-sculpted muscles that at the moment were in dire need of some relaxation. As important as working out and staying in shape was, the maintenance was equally important, and taking a hot shower was Dick's way of taking time for himself to re-center and loosen his nerves. A habitude he picked up from a certain redhead.

Standing below the shower faucet Dick closed his eyes as hot water poured like sizzling raindrops falling from the sky. Droplets of water rolled down his messy jet-black hair, down his hard muscular back only to be washed down the drain. He felt his muscles getting warm and steady, awakening his skin in all the right ways. The warmth against his skin reminded him of the warmth he once shared with his golden sun. Leaning his head on the cold hard steamy wall below the faucet, Dick recalled the feeling of utter bliss when he would lay his head against her curvaceous chest as her warm lips took all his pain away. Soaking in that feeling, Dick opened his memories to the times when he would come home to find the bath illuminated with scented candles and her flaming red hair. The pleasing scent of vanilla and lavender filled his breath as his golden goddess cooed at him with those seductive eyes and a mischievous smile dancing on her lips, beckoning him to join her. A scene he had forever imprinted in his brain.

This was his happy place.

Naturally, he obeyed and slipped in the bath in front of her, Dick would relax against the curves of her sun-kissed body. Taking full advantage of the fact that she was taller than him, he rested his head on her soft breasts, soaking up in her warmth as he snuggled against her while her arms draped around his neck falling gently onto his torso. All his worries faded away under her soothing fingers and gentle kisses. Breathing in her strawberry scent, Dick shut his eyes with a content smile plastered on his lips, thanking the higher power for bringing her into his life.

With skin like liquid gold, she was his own personal sun, radiating gentle loving warmth embracing him completely. When her hands stroked his hair and her lips kissed his skin, he knew he was in heaven in the presence of a divine being. And when she smiled at him, it was like the sun had risen especially for him to savor and enjoy its beauty.

She was the rising sun, bringing with her promise of a new day, new opportunity, and hope.

She was home.

With a sad nostalgic smile, Dick opened his eyes to the empty cold tones of the rough wall. Watching water drip down his body he let out a deep sigh and turned off the hot water, letting the warmth fade from his skin, just as he let her warmth fade away from his mind, from his life, and from his soul.

When she left, she took her warmth with her, taking away his sunrise, his breath, his very life essence.

Putting on sweats and his favorite hoodie he came out of the room just as the bell rang indicating his food was here.

"Evening Mr. Grayson," the delivery boy smiled at Dick, who despite a shower still looked a tad bit tired. "Long day?"

"Evening Kai." Dick greeted the boy with a lazy smile. Since it was a small restaurant by the corner of his street and being a frequent customer, Dick knew the owner and his son well. Kai was a sweet lad, studying in middle school and helping his father with the restaurant. Kai was going to drop out of school, but Dick had convinced him to stay in school and help his father alongside, something his father was grateful to Dick for.

"Yeah, been an exhausting day," he smiled kindly at the boy.

"I got you your usual and I also put in an extra eggroll for you." Kai beamed back at Dick.

"Thanks, I really appreciate it," Dick said taking out his wallet to pay. He always tipped generously as Kai was a little bit proud to accept any financial help directly and this was something Dick respected; so, he tried to help him by tipping him for his services, not extravagantly but well enough.

"So, any plans for tomorrow?" Kai asked nervously as he accepted the money from Dick.

"Why?" Dick asked a bit confused. "What is tomorrow?"

"Don't tell me you don't know!" Kai bewildered. Seeing Dick's still puzzled look, he continued excitedly, "It's valentine's day tomorrow!"

"Ahh" Dick hesitated for a moment then laughed. "Don't have a girlfriend to remind me of it kid."

"Oh! But I thought… that picture of you and the redhead lady… umm," Kai said pointing to a picture frame placed near his key stand by the door, his face turning red as a tomato. "Sorry, I didn't mean to pry." He finished hastily.

"Redhead?" Dick wondered for a moment before it stuck him who Kai was referring to. "Oh, Nah," he finished lamely.

"Umm," Kai mumbled nervously, lingering by the door.

"Just spit it out," Dick said in a mildly exasperated tone. He hadn't meant to get annoyed with Kai, but it had been a long ride back home and he just wanted to eat and relax before patrol.

"Umm, I just wanted some advice on how to ask this girl out on a date," Kai said anxiously, catching the tone of annoyance in Dick's voice. "I really didn't mean to pry; I will go now," he said rather quickly turning away from the door.

This caught Dick by surprise. He hadn't expected this question from Kai, and God knows he's messed up one too many times to be giving dating advice. But he just laughed for the sake of Kai, to not reveal his inner turmoil, especially since it had been highlighted very recently.

"Who's the lucky girl?" Dick smirked, getting into a teasing tone.

"She's a girl from my school," Kai smiled. "She's kind and gentle, and she's got the most beautiful smile," Kai smiled as he closed his eyes, "and" he continued in a dreamy voice, "she is my best friend."

Chuckling at him, Dick put his hand on Kai's shoulder, "She sounds wonderful." He said softly, "just be honest with her and tell her how you feel." Closing his eyes briefly and picturing her kind smile, Dick continued, "treat her with love and respect that she deserves, and don't ever make her feel any less than her worth." He said opening his eyes and smiling the same kind smile she would bestow upon him. "She's your best friend," Dick muttered the last part more to himself. He could have gone on, remembering all the ways he had messed up with his best friend, wishing he could take back a lot of the things he had said and done but Kai didn't need that and neither did he. At least not right now.

"Thanks, Mr. Grayson." Kai beamed. "I shall call her as soon as I get home," he said waving as he left.

Not bothering with plates, Dick grabbed a fork and a beer from the kitchen and got comfortable on the couch deciding to eat directly from the container. Alfred would have mothered him regarding this, but he was allowed to be lazy every now and then, especially since he had just helped in saving the world. Letting out a chuckle at that Dick directed his attention onto the news channel, where some scientists and experts were discussing and debating over the alien plant crisis and the heroes battling them. They were particularly talking about the crisis Cyborg and Starfire had resolved. Ever the diplomat, Starfire had given the interview tactfully. There was a reason why she used to be the face of the Titans in the media, and it is only reasonable that the league would ask her to represent them in the media as well.

Taking a bite of the eggroll, Dick's mind drifted to the first time he had taken Kory to a Chinese restaurant when she was still relatively new to Earth. Kory loved Earthen food and with her unique tastebuds, Dick had thought she would definitely like Chinese. Turns out he was right; she had loved it, especially the eggrolls and so he let her have the last eggroll since it was her first time. The second time however they fought for the last eggroll, claiming they each deserved it more than the other. When that didn't resolve who gets the roll, they tried to bribe the other by offering to do the dishes and the laundry when it was the others turn and when that didn't work as a final solution Dick suggested to toss for it, the coin having been starbolted when it declared Dick the winner. Laughing, he took the eggroll and much to Kory's surprise split it and gave a pouting Kory half of it. Every other time after that as tradition an extra eggroll was ordered and was split between the two.

Smiling at the memory, Dick took out the fortune cookies from the bag, and for a second time this evening, he had a sad nostalgic smile plastered on as he allocated one cookie for himself and the other for her.

It was another one of their Chinese food traditions of reading and collecting the fortune from the fortune cookies and trying to fit it comically into their lives while having a good laugh over it. Kory was quite fascinated with the concept of fortune cookies when Dick took out two fortune cookies on their walk home after the meal. Dick still remembers Kory's confused expression as she read her very first fortune, his heart skipping a beat as the fortune read; "Love is on the horizon. The stars predict he will be a tall, dark-haired, blue-eyed centaur." Sweet naive to Earth Kory had asked Dick if centaurs existed on this planet and on which horizon could she find love! Dick had a good laugh explaining to Kory the idea behind a fortune cookie and how it was for fun while showing her and explaining his fortune that read "Pull your head out of your ass… Life won't be so shitty," to which Kory laughed out loud, telling Dick that one was definitely true for him.

Unbeknownst to her, he had kept both of their fortunes with him.

Dick had started collecting their fortunes even before they started dating. It started when he had Chinese for the first time without her while he was visiting Gotham and she was in Jump. He had gone to one of those fancy restaurants with Bruce for one of their charity outings or something. The ambiance of the place had reminded him of Kory and of how much she would have liked the place and the food. While thinking about her he ordered an extra eggroll just to eat half of it. After the meal when he received his fortune cookie, he smiled at the fortune that read; "Be broke or be wealthy, but never accept mediocrity." Amused at his fortune, he immediately wondered what hers would be. That combined with the desire to share the fortunes with her, he ordered another fortune cookie and dedicated the fortune in it as hers which read, "Because of your melodic nature, the moonlight never misses an appointment." Dick ignored Bruce's raised eyes and questioning look, offering no explanation when Bruce asked him why he smiled at the fortunes and put them in his pocket. Dick gave an ecstatic Kory her fortune when he returned to Jump laughing and making fun of the fortunes as they sat on the rooftop at their favorite spot.

After the breakup, when he had Chinese for the first time without her and when the last eggroll was offered to him, he could get himself to eat only half of it, smacking a very dumbfounded Tim's hand when he reached for the other half. As the fortune cookies arrived, he couldn't stop himself from asking for an extra cookie dedicated to her name. After reading her fortune with a sad smile he didn't have the heart to discard both the fortunes, dating the back of the fortunes he placed them neatly in a small box stashed away in his cupboard; wondering if he would ever give it to her.

"Love, because it is the only true adventure." – 14/2/11 – D

"Focus on the magic of things; yourself." – 14/2/11 – K

It didn't matter to Dick where he was or with whom he was dining, he would continue with this tradition.

Coming back to the present Dick smiled at his extra eggroll lying in front of him. He broke it into half as he normally would with Kory and ate one half of it while leaving the other on the plate. "Bon appetite Kor," Dick said to the giggling Kory on television with a sad smile as he ate his half of the eggroll.

The delightful sound of her familiar laugh brought his attention back to the television. Dick hadn't caught what had been said, but he smiled softly at the unmistakable Starfire giggle that she reserved for friends and loved ones. It appeared that Cyborg had said something to the reporter that made her giggle. Finishing up the interview with the reporter, Dick saw Kory lift cyborg by the shoulders and shoot upwards, probably returning to the watchtower.

Dick let out an exasperated sigh as he clasped his hand over his forehead, giving into the thoughts he had been pushing to the back of his mind. Seeing her on the news took his mind back to the events of two days ago, to the alien plant mission, to her.

The call to assist the league had come directly from Batman, which surprised Dick as usually it would be Oracle who would spread everyone out during a crisis and be an annoying earworm stuck in his head. Dick gathered from Batman that the crisis was global and severe, requiring the help of every hero available. Robin was dealing with the crisis in Atlanta, Red Robin along with Superboy was spread out near California, Red hood was with Arsenal somewhere in Mexico and Batman, well Dick figured he was going wherever he was needed in the Batplane. Dick could have easily borrowed the Batmobile or flown his Nplane or even asked the watchtower to teleport him as it was quite the distance from Blüdhaven but he needed to ride there.

Perhaps it was because he liked the anticipation of the unknown, or perhaps it was because he was still an acrobat at heart; perhaps it was because there was excitement in curves of the unknown, or perhaps it was because of the adrenaline that pumped his veins when he sped across; perhaps it was because he wanted to capture the feel of flying, or perhaps it was because he found freedom at each turn; perhaps because he still is a flying Grayson at heart or perhaps it was all these reasons together why Dick Grayson chose to ride.

Motorbikes were a fervor of Dick's ever since he was Robin. His precious Rcycle had been upgraded to the Ncycle when he made the switch to Nightwing, bringing in lots of modifications and customization that were constantly upgraded with the latest technology. He had speed boosters and nitrogen thrusters, along with wheels that allowed him to ride on any surface and cover any distance in less than half the usual time it would normally take. He never let anyone borrow his bike, nor let anyone ride behind him except for this one alien girl.

For Dick, when he rode, the bike performed as an extension of himself. It was almost cybernetic, the way his body fused with the machine and the way it transmuted the sense of his surroundings and the surface along with the sense of the bike itself to him. A sense of control that he needed, of being in charge of his own life and not under the shelter of his mentor, echoing the freedom he craved. It was like a delicate dance, requiring precise judgment and balance. A dance he danced solo until she came along. Grabbing her falling form when she was hit, he sat her behind him on his bike as they continued the chase. Not giving it much thought at the time, he realized in hindsight that she was the first person ever to have sat on his bike. Getting over the initial blush of his new teammate's hands around his waist, he realized that she had followed his dance in perfect synchronization, molding herself perfectly at his back, balancing the way he needed her to, collaborating on a physical, bone-deep level that skipped past the conscious intellect building trust and teamwork on a level he had never known.

Thereon, she always was in perfect sync with him, balancing him in a battle and in his life.

She was the only person ever who got to ride on his bike.

The evening breeze whistled in his ears as Dick rode along the sandy coast of Key West, where the sky began to paint itself with shades of orange and purple bringing in the colors of the setting sun. The ride had been a thrilling one, as Dick zoomed past the traffic in a blur in order to reach his destination. Slowing down along the sandy shore; Dick gasped at the beautiful sight of pink and green plants dancing across the glowing purple of the sky with a tinge of orange swirling on the horizon, Dick wondered why the Bat had called yet again asking if he had reached his destination. Maybe the situation was even direr than he had assumed.

Unable to respond to Batman, Dick could hardly believe his eyes as the shades of his surroundings entrancingly blended together and descended graciously towards him.