p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Roy woke up on Saturday to an obnoxious banging on the front door. He was wearing nothing but his lounge pants and he was certainly not in the mood to be dealing with anyone. But, with a heavy sigh he rolled himself out of his blanket cocoon, and with a long yawn and stretch, he padded down the stairs and through the foyer. The glass pane in the door was distorted, making it impossible to truly decipher who was on the other side, but the dark shape was relatively small, or so Roy thought./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Roy unlocked the door, and his eyes were drawn down to find Jason stood on the porch. It wasn't until then, with the patterned glass obscuring Jason's identity and leaving nothing but his height, that Roy realized just how much shorter than him the younger boy was. He was clearly awaiting a growth spurt, and at 15 Jason was sure to shoot up any day. Roy himself was still growing after all, but he'd done the vast majority of his shooting up over the previous summer, gaining at least 2 or 3 inches in height within a matter of months. But now that he was looking, compared to Roy's 5'9, Jason looked span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"tiny./span Roy would put him at around 5'2 or so at a guess./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"They stood for a moment or two without speaking, with Roy confused by Jason's appearance and Jason uncomfortably fidgeting in place. Jason's gaze flickered over Roy, making the elder boy acutely aware of the fact he was shirtless, bed-rumpled and suitably perplexed. His hair was greasy and he knew he must have been sporting so obvious dark shadows under his eyes. He couldn't quite get his sleep-muffled brain to fill in the blanks for him, to comprehend why Jason would be here and if he should've known about it beforehand./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""What're you doing here?" Roy asked, his voice a little husky with disuse./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Uh..." Jason began, his hand reaching up to rub nervously at the back of his neck. "We were supposed to study today?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"It came out sounding like a question, as if he was unsure, which obviously wasn't the case considering that he wrote up the timetable himself. But, Roy was sure that wasn't until noon. There's no way he would have agreed to an early morning meet-up on a Saturday. Then Roy caught sight of the clock in the hall. He cursed, and in his peripheral he saw Jason stiffen./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""I can go, it's no problem if you're not up to it. I would have text you when I was on my way over, but I didn't have your number." Jason explained. He felt a little bad that he'd obviously woken Roy up, but also slightly annoyed that Roy hadn't even remembered he was coming. This really wasn't giving him much confidence for the future of them working together./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Roy furrowed a brow. Jason hadn't done anything wrong, and Roy owed it to himself to commit to this tutoring thing. He sighed, and scrubbed a hand down his face to try and clear away the fast of sleep. Instead of sending the other boy away - though he'd be lying if he said he didn't think about it - he stepped back. He swept a hand out to gesture Jason inside./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Nah, man. It's cool, it's my bad." Roy shrugged, and led Jason through to the sitting room. He grabbed his bag from the bottom of the stairs as they passed and dumped it on the coffee table. "All the stuff we need should be in there, I'll just go get dressed." Without waiting for a response, Roy heading back to his room to clean up and find some clothes./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Jason quickly went to work, digging out the different things they'd need and arranging them appropriately. Being left alone in the large front room, Jason couldn't help but survey the area. There was a games console on the floor, the wires visible and winding up and around the large TV, there was a half-eaten packet of jaffa cakes almost wedged down the side of the sofa cushions, a hoodie was hanging from the door handle. It looked lived in, but these were all indicators of Roy being in the room. There didn't seem to be any evidence of anyone else. There were no family portraits or framed photos at all, no haphazardly placed folders or coats or anything that would indicate an adult having been through./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Jason had asked Bruce about Roy's guardian, but Bruce hadn't known much. He'd said that he hadn't even known that Oliver had a child, said he didn't seem like the fatherly type. Bruce had said that Oliver wasn't one for dinner parties and charity galas, he was more prone to nightlife and parties and magazine tabloids. Jason wondered where Roy factored into a life like that. But, being in Oliver Queen's house now, Jason had the feeling that Roy wasn't included in much of what Oliver did at all. He thought back to his previous observations, about Roy's difficulty accepting praise. He remembered wondering if Roy got enough support at home. Pieces of the puzzle were coming together, and though Jason didn't like to jump to conclusions or make assumptions, he couldn't help but feel his assessment was right./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"By the time Roy returned, Jason had all of the paperwork once again spread out on the table top. A highlighter was gripped tightly in one hand and the cap was held between his teeth. Roy watched the younger boy's blue-green eyes flicker over the text as he read. He saw how Jason wrinkled his nose in distaste at something, inadvertently drawing attention to the light dusting of freckles along the bring of his nose, no where near as obvious and dominate as Roy's own. Roy tilted his head a little in consideration, didn't fully understand why he liked looking at Jason so much. He decided not to dwell on it./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"They worked companionably for a few hours. Jason was a patient tutor, and found ways to explain things so that they would apply to situations that Roy could appreciate and understand. There was an easy humor to their conversation, they laughed freely and it began to feel like they'd known each other a while, like they were truly becoming friends. They took a break for lunch and Roy made them both toasted sandwiches and large glasses of Sunny D. They sat on the floor between the coffee table and sofa, their knees brushed as their legs crossed. It was nice./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Jason liked Roy a whole lot more than he'd first envisioned. When Bruce had taken him in, Jason had just been so determined to put his head down and complete his studies, to make a life for himself and make Bruce proud. He hadn't really thought much about friends. There were a lot of students that he spoke to and was friendly with, but it just wasn't a priority for him at this stage in his life. Still, Jason found that being social with Roy wasn't a hardship at all, and he was beginning to think that there were more benefits to this tutoring business than brownie points with colleges./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"It was starting to darken outside, and Jason knew that Alfred would be getting dinner ready. It was time he headed back to the manor. Even though a part of him had been apprehensive about coming to start this study session in the first place, he found himself reluctant to leave. With a sigh, Jason gathered up his things and packed his bag. Roy looked a little dejected all of a sudden and Jason didn't know what to make of it. Deciding not to comment, Jason began clearing away the plates from their lunch, but he stopped when Roy's hand encircled his wrist./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Leave it, I've got it." Roy murmured and Jason set the plates back down./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""I should probably head out, I'm sure your guardian doesn't need some kid in his house when he gets home." Jason tried for light, but when he saw the sadness that seemed to encompass Roy he realized the weight of what he'd said./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"From what Jason had discovered about Roy, he guessed that the boy spent a lot of time alone, and that it wasn't by choice. So, it seemed that Jason's foot liked to live in his mouth and he'd gone and upset Roy, which made him feel beyond awful. Jason would do almost anything to wipe that look off of Roy's face. Jason reached up his opposite hand to run the pad of his thumb over Roy's fingers, where they still held his wrist, just one comforting swipe that wasn't quite a caress. He gave the older boy a small smile before standing up, forcing Roy to break his light hold./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Roy stood too, and they stared at each other's shoes for a long moment. Jason once again spied the games console in his peripheral, and smiled to himself./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""How about you tutor me in that next time?" He suggested, gesturing to the machine. He hoped that the two of them would get opportunities to just hang out, studying aside, and that Roy would be interested in that too./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Roy smiled and Jason wanted to give himself a pat on the back. "Dude, I'm gonna destroy you on Tekken."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Jason just laughed loudly and mumbled "Can't wait."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Just as Jason was walking down the garden path to meet Alfred at the curb, he heard the door reopen behind him, and turned to see Roy running his way. Roy reached for one of Jason's hands and brought it up, scrawling his phone number and a crudely drawn smiley face on the back. "In case my lazy ass is still in bed again next time," He winked before disappearing back inside./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Roy unlocked the door, and his eyes were drawn down to find Jason stood on the porch. It wasn't until then, with the patterned glass obscuring Jason's identity and leaving nothing but his height, that Roy realized just how much shorter than him the younger boy was. He was clearly awaiting a growth spurt, and at 15 Jason was sure to shoot up any day. Roy himself was still growing after all, but he'd done the vast majority of his shooting up over the previous summer, gaining at least 2 or 3 inches in height within a matter of months. But now that he was looking, compared to Roy's 5'9, Jason looked span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: oblique; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"tiny./span Roy would put him at around 5'2 or so at a guess./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"They stood for a moment or two without speaking, with Roy confused by Jason's appearance and Jason uncomfortably fidgeting in place. Jason's gaze flickered over Roy, making the elder boy acutely aware of the fact he was shirtless, bed-rumpled and suitably perplexed. His hair was greasy and he knew he must have been sporting so obvious dark shadows under his eyes. He couldn't quite get his sleep-muffled brain to fill in the blanks for him, to comprehend why Jason would be here and if he should've known about it beforehand./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""What're you doing here?" Roy asked, his voice a little husky with disuse./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Uh..." Jason began, his hand reaching up to rub nervously at the back of his neck. "We were supposed to study today?"/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"It came out sounding like a question, as if he was unsure, which obviously wasn't the case considering that he wrote up the timetable himself. But, Roy was sure that wasn't until noon. There's no way he would have agreed to an early morning meet-up on a Saturday. Then Roy caught sight of the clock in the hall. He cursed, and in his peripheral he saw Jason stiffen./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""I can go, it's no problem if you're not up to it. I would have text you when I was on my way over, but I didn't have your number." Jason explained. He felt a little bad that he'd obviously woken Roy up, but also slightly annoyed that Roy hadn't even remembered he was coming. This really wasn't giving him much confidence for the future of them working together./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Roy furrowed a brow. Jason hadn't done anything wrong, and Roy owed it to himself to commit to this tutoring thing. He sighed, and scrubbed a hand down his face to try and clear away the fast of sleep. Instead of sending the other boy away - though he'd be lying if he said he didn't think about it - he stepped back. He swept a hand out to gesture Jason inside./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Nah, man. It's cool, it's my bad." Roy shrugged, and led Jason through to the sitting room. He grabbed his bag from the bottom of the stairs as they passed and dumped it on the coffee table. "All the stuff we need should be in there, I'll just go get dressed." Without waiting for a response, Roy heading back to his room to clean up and find some clothes./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Jason quickly went to work, digging out the different things they'd need and arranging them appropriately. Being left alone in the large front room, Jason couldn't help but survey the area. There was a games console on the floor, the wires visible and winding up and around the large TV, there was a half-eaten packet of jaffa cakes almost wedged down the side of the sofa cushions, a hoodie was hanging from the door handle. It looked lived in, but these were all indicators of Roy being in the room. There didn't seem to be any evidence of anyone else. There were no family portraits or framed photos at all, no haphazardly placed folders or coats or anything that would indicate an adult having been through./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Jason had asked Bruce about Roy's guardian, but Bruce hadn't known much. He'd said that he hadn't even known that Oliver had a child, said he didn't seem like the fatherly type. Bruce had said that Oliver wasn't one for dinner parties and charity galas, he was more prone to nightlife and parties and magazine tabloids. Jason wondered where Roy factored into a life like that. But, being in Oliver Queen's house now, Jason had the feeling that Roy wasn't included in much of what Oliver did at all. He thought back to his previous observations, about Roy's difficulty accepting praise. He remembered wondering if Roy got enough support at home. Pieces of the puzzle were coming together, and though Jason didn't like to jump to conclusions or make assumptions, he couldn't help but feel his assessment was right./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"By the time Roy returned, Jason had all of the paperwork once again spread out on the table top. A highlighter was gripped tightly in one hand and the cap was held between his teeth. Roy watched the younger boy's blue-green eyes flicker over the text as he read. He saw how Jason wrinkled his nose in distaste at something, inadvertently drawing attention to the light dusting of freckles along the bring of his nose, no where near as obvious and dominate as Roy's own. Roy tilted his head a little in consideration, didn't fully understand why he liked looking at Jason so much. He decided not to dwell on it./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"They worked companionably for a few hours. Jason was a patient tutor, and found ways to explain things so that they would apply to situations that Roy could appreciate and understand. There was an easy humor to their conversation, they laughed freely and it began to feel like they'd known each other a while, like they were truly becoming friends. They took a break for lunch and Roy made them both toasted sandwiches and large glasses of Sunny D. They sat on the floor between the coffee table and sofa, their knees brushed as their legs crossed. It was nice./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Jason liked Roy a whole lot more than he'd first envisioned. When Bruce had taken him in, Jason had just been so determined to put his head down and complete his studies, to make a life for himself and make Bruce proud. He hadn't really thought much about friends. There were a lot of students that he spoke to and was friendly with, but it just wasn't a priority for him at this stage in his life. Still, Jason found that being social with Roy wasn't a hardship at all, and he was beginning to think that there were more benefits to this tutoring business than brownie points with colleges./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"It was starting to darken outside, and Jason knew that Alfred would be getting dinner ready. It was time he headed back to the manor. Even though a part of him had been apprehensive about coming to start this study session in the first place, he found himself reluctant to leave. With a sigh, Jason gathered up his things and packed his bag. Roy looked a little dejected all of a sudden and Jason didn't know what to make of it. Deciding not to comment, Jason began clearing away the plates from their lunch, but he stopped when Roy's hand encircled his wrist./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""Leave it, I've got it." Roy murmured and Jason set the plates back down./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""I should probably head out, I'm sure your guardian doesn't need some kid in his house when he gets home." Jason tried for light, but when he saw the sadness that seemed to encompass Roy he realized the weight of what he'd said./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"From what Jason had discovered about Roy, he guessed that the boy spent a lot of time alone, and that it wasn't by choice. So, it seemed that Jason's foot liked to live in his mouth and he'd gone and upset Roy, which made him feel beyond awful. Jason would do almost anything to wipe that look off of Roy's face. Jason reached up his opposite hand to run the pad of his thumb over Roy's fingers, where they still held his wrist, just one comforting swipe that wasn't quite a caress. He gave the older boy a small smile before standing up, forcing Roy to break his light hold./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Roy stood too, and they stared at each other's shoes for a long moment. Jason once again spied the games console in his peripheral, and smiled to himself./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;""How about you tutor me in that next time?" He suggested, gesturing to the machine. He hoped that the two of them would get opportunities to just hang out, studying aside, and that Roy would be interested in that too./p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Roy smiled and Jason wanted to give himself a pat on the back. "Dude, I'm gonna destroy you on Tekken."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Jason just laughed loudly and mumbled "Can't wait."/p
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"Just as Jason was walking down the garden path to meet Alfred at the curb, he heard the door reopen behind him, and turned to see Roy running his way. Roy reached for one of Jason's hands and brought it up, scrawling his phone number and a crudely drawn smiley face on the back. "In case my lazy ass is still in bed again next time," He winked before disappearing back inside./p