25 Days of 2020
A/N: welcome to a Sladin advent calendar! One part is posted every day up to the 25'th of December. Times of day may vary, and as I'm in Sweden the dates might not always match, thanks to time differences and such, but hey.
Also, each chapter is VERY short. 1-3 pages or so in general. Or I'd die. And yeah, I mean, I know what you would pick, but I still rather like to have me around from time to time, so I'm gonna pick my life over long chapters. This time. 😉
There's no need to review every day, but please let me know that you're here and reading, that would make me very happy!
Tuesday, 1 December ~* That's *~
Robin was humming to himself as he was going through the box of Christmas decorations that Alfred had given him for his new apartment. His very first apartment of his own. He was living as Dick Grayson now, temporarily, but had spent too long as Robin to really think of himself by any other name. He guessed it would come, though. He was barely one semester in at Gotham University, and he was still a bit unused to the idea of being a civilian again. He was sure it had been the right choice, though. He had needed to get away, and he didn't want to miss a chance for a proper education… who knew how long this hero-gig would last anyway?
When he used to picture university life before, he had pictured seminars, new friends, a party or three… but Corona had hit, and by the time he started after summer, all classes were online.
Bruce and Alfred had supported him fully, even when he had told Batman that he thought he should focus on his studies instead of being out during the night fighting crime. If Batman needed him, of course he'd be there, but the man had just smiled at him and told him it was the smart choice. Many took a few years off from studying, to work or travel, he would just do the opposite. Robin was glad for the support. More than glad, because he had to rely on Bruce paying for mostly everything, including the apartment. He had been hesitant to ask, but he desperately wanted to live on his own, be an actual adult, and not at home at the manor or with roommates. Bruce had understood and Robin had picked a decent, but not too top notch, apartment. He didn't want to waste the man's money, and he lived frugally otherwise. He had planned on getting a job, but with the pandemic raging, that wasn't as easy as he had thought. He did some food deliveries for local restaurants on his bike a few evenings a week, mostly for the exercise, but the tip from certain regulars could be nice sometimes. Robin blushed a bit, thinking about it. He knew that certain men and women tipped him based on his looks, and he flirted back. Never going too far, of course, but it was nice to be… seen. It was also nice to not having to be a role model who couldn't as much as cuss unless he wanted 'concerned parents' to flood their social media about how they thought he should be able to save their tyke's lives without exposing them to the horrible reality of a 'bad word'. He had more and more, felt like he was playing a role his last couple of years with the Teen Titans. And, by the end, he had been very tired of it.
The Titans themselves were of course still his friends. But they were across the continent, busy with their stuff while he was busy with his.
He chuckled as he found a dreadful looking Santa-figure made, badly, out of felt and odd pieces of craft supplies. He had made it himself in school, he remembered it clearly. This was before he had found out that the man he was suddenly living with, was Batman. He held the thing for a while, remembering, and then placed it carefully on his bookshelf.
He took a sip of tea. It was from a tea advent calendar that Alfred had given it to him, as a bit of a joke; behind each cardboard door was a bag of tea, different flavors each day. He wasn't a big tea drinker, really, but he had decided that this was going to be his December thing; a cup of tea in the morning, long breakfasts before school or work. Relaxing. Contemplating. Stillness. The tea tasted of apple and cinnamon, and he really felt like Christmas was coming. He smiled at the strange looking Santa and put the mug down again, in favor of the Christmas box.
Alfred had packed all kinds of decorations, including fairy lights and Christmas towels, but those Robin decided to hang on to for a while. It was only the first of December, after all. He was about to reach for the next thing in the box when his phone rang. He checked the number and grinned.
"Hi, Al! I've just started decorating, what's up?"
"Now, don't forget the reading you had to do before class tomorrow, Master Richard," the old man, who somehow always seemed to know his study schedule, warned him. He sounded pleased, though.
"I promise," Robin chuckled. "But I'm guessing you're not calling to scold me… nothing is wrong, is it?"
"Nothing as far as I am aware, sir," the man said airily, meaning the mansion could be on fire, but Al just had it in hand. "I wanted to inquire, however… did you plan to go to Jump City for the holidays?"
"No, I'm staying right here, we have a paper to write, due January," Robin said.
"Ah. Good." The man sounded delighted. "So, may I take that to mean as you are going to join us for Christmas dinner?"
"Of course!" The teen laughed. "I'm feeling hungry just thinking about it. Who else will be there?"
"It will be just us. And…. Miss Carson."
"Ah."
"I have to admit that the young lady… well…" Alfred sounded very uncomfortable and Robin snorted.
"I don't like her either… she's… too self-absorbed," Robin said. "But dinner will make up for it, I'm sure."
"If you would like to bring a… gentleman of your own…?" Alfred said.
"Thank you. I'm not dating anyone at the moment, as you know, but we'll see," Robin said lightly, trying to ignore a stab of pain. His last relationship had… not ended well. It had also led to Al and Bruce finding out that he was gay, something he hadn't exactly hidden, but might not have been quite ready to divulge right then either, as it had been very new to him as well. He mentally shook his head. Water under the bridge. It was a few months short of a year ago, he had to move on.
"Yes, well, there's plenty of room at the table," Alfred told him. "Can we expect you on Sunday for lunch?"
"Yes, please." Robin's spirits were lifted. Miss Mallory Carson, Bruce's latest love interest, never joined them on Sundays, claiming she needed to spend those days at some spa or other, to feel refreshed for the coming week. He preferred it if she wasn't there. It wasn't like she was nasty in any way, she just… didn't quite fit.
After hanging up, the phone rang almost immediately. It was the Chinese restaurant on the corner asking if he could pick up an extra shift tomorrow. Robin agreed, then put the rest of the decorations away with a sigh. If he was going to work tomorrow night, which he needed to, to buy presents for Al, Bruce and, he supposed, Mallory, he would need to read a bit more today than he had originally planned. Studying it was. He sank down in an old, comfy arm chair that he had inherited from the manor, and started reading. He had a small smile on his lips. He was sure it was going to be a great December.
To be Continued…
A/N: to repeat what I said at the top:
There's no need to review every day, but please let me know that you're here and reading, that would make me very happy!
There will be no other A/N's until the last chapter. I really hope you'll enjoy this story and that it will be a little moment of joy in your day up to Christmas, no matter if or what you celebrate. Hearing from you will, hopefully, be MY moment of joy.
All the best!
/Wynja