Chpt. III: Starting Over
Dick woke up when he began to sense the sunlight burn through his eyelids. He sat up on the park bench. He felt tired. His entire body was sore. Sleeping on a metal bench didn't help.
Dick sat up from the bench and began walking down the street. After the accident, Dick kept walking till he saw the park bench. He crashed there for the night, not hesitating to rest. He wasn't concerned about police questioning him. He wasn't even worried about Rodrick finding him. His biggest concern was Nolan & whatever goons he might've sent after Dick.
Dick walked across the street & made his way to a nearby bus stop. He stood casually, waiting for the next bus. He had no idea when it would come or where it would go. He just needed to get out of Gotham.
Dick glanced around him. Next to him stood an older man wearing a suit. His blonde hair was combed over to one side. He carried a briefcase. There was a bench where a rather beautiful woman in a brown leather jacket & skin tight jeans tucked in combat boots sat. Next to her was another man. His dark hair was short & curly. He wore a casual button up vest over a button up shirt & a tie. He wore thick framed glasses. He was carrying a messenger bag.
Dick slowly looked back at the man standing closest to him. He wore a watch on his wrist. Dick was able to read the time. It was 11:13 am.
Dick tapped his foot, waiting patiently for the bus. He wondered about what he'd do once he got to where he wanted. But where did he want to go? He didn't know what he wanted at this point. He made it out of the subways, escaping Nolan & his twisted world. He got his money. He could go anywhere, do anything, be anyone.
The question was who?
Dick had spent so much time creating a plan to get out from the undergrounds that he hadn't thought of what he'd do when he got out. He spent too much time in the dark like a rat. He needed to start thinking like a guy again.
He wondered when the last time he saw Cheyenne was. Dick missed her. He really needed to see a familiar face. The idea of her was comforting for Dick. It actually brought a smile to his face, something he never thought he'd do again.
Suddenly a bus had appeared in front of Dick. Dick blinked for a moment. He was lost in thought & hadn't seen the bus pull up.
The doors on the bus opened up. The man closest to Dick walked onto the bus. Dick stepped aside for the woman to step on. She smiled and nodded to him. Then Dick stepped onto the bus.
Dick knew he needed to pay to get on. He reached for his envelope to get the money. As he did this, he suddenly remembered something. He opened the envelope, confirming his thought: all he had were hundred dollar bills.
Dick silently cursed to himself. He had completely forgotten that he needed change from the money.
Dick looked up at the bus driver. He was a burly man with a large, scruffy beard. He didn't look like a reasonable man.
Suddenly Dick felt a hand on his shoulders. He looked up & saw the man in glasses step up. "I'm paying for him," he said.
Dick watched as the man dropped two dollars & some quarters into the money slot next to the bus driver. The man then walked down the aisle to take his seat.
Dick turned back to the driver. The driver gave a slight grin & gestured to the seats with his head.
Dick let out a sigh of relief & walked down the aisle. He saw that there was only one seat available. It was towards the middle of the bus, right next to the man with glasses.
Dick bit his lip. He hesitated to sit down. He considered standing up, but still walked over.
Dick slowly sat down next to the man. He patted his thighs casually, hoping the man wouldn't look at Dick. He looked straight ahead. Dick could feel the man's eyes burn into his skull like heat vision.
Dick slowly looked back to the man. The man had on a friendly smile.
Dick smiled back. "Thanks," he said softly.
The man nodded. "No problem," he said.
Dick faced front again. For some reason, Dick felt incredibly nervous next to the man. He didn't know what it was about him that unsettled him. So far, the man had been nice. Maybe it had been so long since Dick had met another decent human being.
"Hey," the man next to Dick said. "Is your leg alright?"
Dick turned to the man with a questioning look, then glanced down at his leg. It was the one that he injured in the blast. The limp had healed overnight. It wasn't that bad. But his pant leg was still torn.
"I got mugged," Dick lied. "Some big guys saw me alone, they attacked me, but I got away."
The man nodded."I'm sorry," he said. "Did they go after that money you pulled out in front of the bus?" he asked.
Dick simply nodded. The man nodded too. "I don't mean to pry, but how does a kid alone in Gotham manage to walk around with that much cash?"
Dick's palms grew sweaty. He turned back to the man. "Inheritance," Dick simply said.
The man nodded with a slight smile. "From your parents?" he asked.
"Aunt," Dick responded quickly.
"Oh," the man simply said. He stared down at his bag. He seemed nervous as well. Dick couldn't help but grin slightly.
Suddenly the man came up with another response. "Where are you headed?" he asked.
Dammit, Dick thought to himself. He had no idea where the bus was going. He needed to come up with a cover story.
"I, uh, was living with my aunt for a while," Dick started. "But now I can't live there anymore. So I called up an uncle of mine to let me visit for a bit and hopefully stay."
"Oh, you have family in Metropolis?" the man asked.
Dick had a mini heart attack. He was headed to Metropolis? "Yeah. Metropolis."
The man nodded, smiling. "Yeah, I live there," the man said. "I'm from Kansas but I moved to the city last year. I'm only here in Gotham because I needed to find a story to cover for the Daily Planet."
Dick nodded. "A journalist, nice," he said. "Did you get your story?"
The man shook his head. "Nothing came up. I'm going back without anything for my publisher."
"Oh, I'm sorry," Dick said softly. He genuinely felt bad for the guy. Dick wondered if he'd lose his job at the Planet. "I hope it all works out."
The man smiled. "Thank you," he said. "And I hope it works out with your uncle," he said.
Dick nodded back. He faced the front again, hoping that would be the end of the conversation. Not that he wasn't enjoying it. The man turned out to be really nice.
"I'm Clark," Dick heard the man say.
Dick turned to him & found the man holding his hand out. Dick looked at the hand & back at him and smiled. "John," he said, shaking his hand.
Clark shook Dick's hand for a moment longer. "John," he repeated. Clark removed his hand & sat back. They sat there for a few brief moments. Then Clark spoke again. "The story I was hoping to cover," he started, "it's something of an urban legend. I don't know, maybe you might be able to at least give me some sort of background for me when I get to the Daily Planet."
Dick nodded. "Maybe. It depends on what it is."
"The story about Dick Grayson."
Dick's heart skipped a beat. He was feeling panicky again. Get it together, Dick thought to himself. Play it cool. You'll be alright.
Dick simply nodded at what Clark had said.
"Have you heard about it?" Clark asked.
Dick raised an eyebrow. "About Dick Grayson? I don't know, I haven't heard much about that guy. People have mentioned him, but that's about it."
Clark nodded. "I heard he was part of a family circus. I forget the name. But during a show one night, someone had set the tent on fire. People died, including the boy's parents. Police suspected it was a murder. So they tried to investigate, but nothing came up. The case was closed & the boy was left an orphan." Clark turned to Dick. "I was hoping to locate the orphanage where Dick Grayson grew up. From there, I had the slightest hope that they might be able to tell me where I could find him."
Dick nodded slowly. He felt his fingers tingle with a nervous feeling. Dick forced himself to calm down. "What for?"
Clark let out a small chuckle. "To interview the boy," he said.
Dick's heart slowed down just a bit. He breathed easier. He grinned slightly. Then a question popped into Dick's head. "Wait, why did you say this was something of an urban legend?" Dick asked.
Clark's smile slowly faded away. He bit his lip, as if unsure how to phrase it. He managed to find the words. "When I found the orphanage, it was a dead end. Police officials had sent me to the right one, they were sure of it. But the orphanage claimed they never had Dick Grayson living there." Clark ran a ran through his curly hair. "It was like Dick Grayson was nothing but a myth."
Dick turned away. He fought to hide his emotions. He didn't want to show anything. He didn't want to feel anything. But he couldn't help but regret what he had done to Mother Louise. He wished things had ended differently.
"But it doesn't matter," Clark said, breaking through Dick's thought. "I don't have the story. My editor won't get anything."
Dick turned to Clark. "What will he do when you show up empty handed?"
Clark took a deep breath. "Well, I had actually proposed we send someone down here to get the story in the first place. He decided to send me because I came up with the idea. So it won't look good for me to not have any sort of story."
Dick nodded. He couldn't help but feel sorry for Clark. This man was the first person Dick had met in a very long time that didn't deserve to be punished for a mistake. He didn't find anything to write a story on. It was Dick's fault; he covered his tracks well. Now Clark was going home to his boss without a story. What if he lost his job? This man might not have anywhere to go. He might lose everything. Just like Dick lost everything.
But Dick was back up on his feet, ready to be in the world again. Now all Dick had to figure out was where in the world he would go. He hadn't come up with a plan that far out yet. He needed to figure out what he would do now that he had another chance to start over.
Maybe that was it. Maybe that's what he would start doing. He'd give people another chance. Starting with Clark.
Suddenly the bus stopped. It had pulled up to a transit center.
Dick turned to Clark as he stood up. "Alright," Clark started. "This is my stop. I'm riding another bus to Metropolis. This bus is gonna make some detours before arriving at the city." Clark held his hand out. "It was nice talking to you, John."
Dick shook Clark's hand, smiling. "You too, Clark."
Clark smiled a bright smile back. Clark removed his hand, swung his bag over his shoulder & walked down the aisle.
Dick watched as the man walked away from him. A few more steps, & Dick would never see that man again. And that man would never get a story to his boss. And he might lose his job. Then his home. Then everything else.
Dick shot up from his seat. "Wait up, Clark!" Dick called.