Maybe I do actually own the Teen Titans, but I'm just lying to you guys... ;)
Beast Boy was at a loss for words as he watched Raven snatch another fry from his plate. He found it amusing that the usually stoic girl was being more playful than normal, but he couldn't bring himself to point it out; he didn't want her to stop. He probably hadn't seen her smile so much in one setting - sure, they were nothing more than her signature smirks, but it was still surreal. And the fact that it was happening with him? That was absolutely amazing.
He wanted to say something - anything - to let her know how much he was enjoying himself, but he didn't want her to get the impression that they were on a date or something. Even though he was kind of considering it a date - well, more like a test-trial of a date. He wanted to know whether or not it could work between them, because he didn't want to get ahead of himself again.
Raven was in the midst of stealing another one of his fries when he realized he was being uncharacteristically silent. Not wanting her to become curious as to why he wasn't reacting, he gently slapped away her hand.
Her eyes narrowed dangerously as her hand slowly retracted back to her side of the table. Taking a lingering sip of her lemonade, she continued glaring at him, though he could see the flash of amusement in her eyes. She was playing along.
He wanted to say something witty, but his tongue felt heavy and his throat felt dry. Why couldn't he find anything to say? Sure, he wouldn't ever claim to be the clever one (that title would probably suit the empath better), but his brain had never failed him like this. He was speechless.
"Usually I anticipate your moments of silence, but it's honestly a bit unsettling."
Beast Boy tried not to wince at the sound of her monotone voice pointing out what he was just stressing over.
He opened his mouth to reply, his voice cracking in an embarrassingly prepubescent way.
Raven merely arched a brow as she snatched another fry.
"Haven't heard that happen in a while," she commented dryly, taking a bite (a small, delicate bite from a fry) and swallowing it quickly. "Not that I'm one to be sentimental, but I kind of missed it."
"Huh?" he croaked out eloquently, finally finding his voice, but his brain was still unfamiliar with the use of "words".
She shrugged politely as she popped the rest of the fry in her mouth. With another sip of her lemonade, she continued. "Everything was a whole lot simpler back then," she mused.
Now it was his turn to arch a brow - what was she talking about?
"What do you mean?" he managed.
Her eyes glanced around the restaurant slowly, and he got the most peculiar indication that she was stalling.
And Raven was always one to get straight to the point - unless she wanted to drive him up a wall.
"You know," she began, her eyes returning to his. "Back before all..." Again she paused, before gesturing to the both of them with a wave of her hand. "Before all this happened."
Beast Boy felt his breath catch in his throat as his mind desperately tried to figure out what she had meant. Was she insinuating that she knew he was pretending this was an actual date? Was she pretending, too?
"Before we grew up."
His heart sank as she answered his thoughts.
"R-right," he agreed, trying to hide his disappointment with a large bite from his half-eaten veggieburger.
Raven broke eye contact again as she nodded her head slowly. He watched her purse her lips in thought, and his instincts screamed that she was about to do something he wasn't going to like.
"And before you started hiding from me."
He knew his eyes were bulging from their sockets, and he was suddenly very grateful that he had swallowed his food, as his mouth was hanging open in what he knew to be a very unattractive way.
"W-wha..?"
"I mean," she interjected, casually stirring her drink with her straw, before taking another sip. Pursing her lips again, she tilted her head slowly to the side. "I... I know you're hiding something from me, and I guess what I'm trying to say is... I..."
She trailed off again, and Beast Boy suddenly became very aware of his surroundings. He was seated directly across from her in a restaurant full of civilians and breakable objects. And if she was already having this much of a difficult time trying to ask him what was wrong, he couldn't imagine the damage she'd cause when he actually told her.
Well, if her told her. Unless she already knew.
Oh god.
"I feel like you don't trust me..."
He tried to keep himself calm as he took a deep breath, immensely thankful that her eyes were focused on her drink and not on him. He was also happy (and, admittedly, surprised) that nothing had exploded.
Yet.
Keeping his voice level, he tried to discreetly avoid answering her without flat-out lying.
"I do trust you, Rae..." His eyes darted between her and his half-eaten lunch. "And I have no idea what you're talking about."
Okay, so he lied about not lying. But what else was he supposed to say?
His ears lowered in submission as her eyes snapped to his.
"No, you don't," she deadpanned, though he could see anger and hurt in her eyes. "And you do know what I'm talking about. Damn it, Beast Boy - why are you lying to me? What are you hiding?"
He felt the color drain from his face as he desperately tried to keep himself from blurting out everything. He wanted to tell her; he really did. But he couldn't. He wasn't supposed to like her in the first place, so he had to hide it. And she was never supposed to figure out he knew how to hide things.
If only he could be absolutely certain of who her mystery guy was. If he found out it was him, he could be open with her again. But if it wasn't, he'd have to keep hiding. He couldn't bear the thought of her knowing he was crushing hard.
Suddenly, an idea popped into his head. It was devious, and admittedly cruel, but it was the only way he could figure out what he needed to. And yes, he realized how selfish, and childish, and nosy he was being. But at least he was being himself.
"What are you hiding?" he bit back, internally cringing at the look of utter shock on her face. Which was a strange sight - he hadn't seen her façade slip so easily before. He figure it meant he was getting somewhere.
"Excuse me?"
He rolled his eyes in exasperation, tossing a fry at her playfully.
"Don't play dumb, Rae," he sighed, pretending as if their whole conversation was such a burden. "You're the one who's keeping me in the dark, when I'm trying to be a good friend here. Maybe if you opened up a little, I'd be inclined to do the same."
She stared at him incredulously, and he could tell that she was at a loss for words at his valid points.
Suppressing a smirk at the rare occurrence of making the empath speechless, he continued lazily. "I mean, I know you're not an open book or anything, so I figured you'd be understanding of why I like to keep some things to myself; specifically, my emotions. Honestly, I'm shocked you had even noticed. Are you attempting to sense my emotions for any particular reason..?"
He trailed off, hoping she'd take it as an invitation to confess her undying love for him.
He tried not to wince as her plate cracked in half from her powers. As his eyes darted between her untouched salad and her amethyst eyes, he wondered idly if he had pushed her too far.
Again.
"I don't want to tell you," she began through clenched teeth, obviously trying to keep her emotions and powers in check.
He was starting to feel really bad, and hoping it'd maybe calm her down, he decided not to suppress his guilt.
"...because..." she continued, her knuckles turning white from gripping her glass so hard. He wondered how she hadn't shattered that as well.
He waited a few moments for her to finish, but soon realized she had no intention of doing so as she abruptly stood from the table. He felt his heart sink as she turned away to leave.
"I rather not have this conversation in public," she deadpanned, her back towards him and her voice low.
He cocked his head to the side curiously - she hadn't teleported away yet.
She slowly looked over her shoulder, and he felt his breath hitch as their gazes connected.
"Perhaps we can... get that dessert first," she suggested, maintaining eye contact and keeping her voice steady. But he could tell by the twitch of her lips that she was nervous. And most definitely not looking forward to sharing with him.
Snapping out of his pondering, Beast Boy stood from his seat quickly, nodding like a maniac as he pulled out his wallet and tossed a fifty on the table. He knew that there was no way their meal had cost that much, but he didn't want to wait around for change. Plus, he figured it'd be nice to leave the waitress a good tip, since he had probably damaged her ego a bit back there.
But did she honestly expect him to call her when he was sitting across from Raven in a very date-like setting? He didn't want to be rude, but bleach-blonde hair and baby-blue eyes paled in comparison to the beautiful jewel-tones that Raven's features possessed. Purple was one of his favorite colors.
And Raven was pretty hot.
He quickly followed the empath out of the restaurant and to the T-car, letting his emotions run rampant - though it was mainly his curiosity and anxiety for what she wanted to tell him.
He kept his feelings for her hidden though; after all, they hadn't gotten their dessert yet.
With that thought, he suddenly found himself regretting his large tip. He still had to pay for that dessert.
Sorry for the late-ish update! I was out of town again lol
Hmm, I wonder if Rae-Rae is going to tell Beast Boy how she feels? (Knowing me, probably not - I'm planning on clueing BB in a bit, but no full-on confessions of loooove (yet ;P))!
Anywhoo, leave a review? And I realize the tiptoeing around their feelings is hella frustrating, and I have the perfect ending in mind, but they're just not to the point I need them to be at, so please bear with me? :3 (Oh, and some of you have guessed when and where I'm having the big reveal occur, and *spoiler* you guys are right lol *end spoiler*
Gosh, I'm too predictable!
...Or am I? ;)