Chapter 7
"What the hell do you want?"
It was silent on the other end of the line for a few seconds before a scoff could be heard and then a sharp intake of breath. Robin on the receiving end tapped his foot impatiently on the rug in the living room, gripping the telephone unnecessarily tight.
"Excuse me?"
Jason asked incredulously, disbelief evident in the tone of his voice.
"I repeat- what the hell do you want?"
Robin carefully enunciated each word, effectively drawing emphasis to his previous inquiry. He heard Jason snicker on the other end of the line and wasn't sure why, but somehow he knew this was amusing to him.
"It's quite simple really. I wish to speak with Raven."
Jason replied in a playful tone and Robin knew; he just knew, that he was sporting the same smug face he had when Raven told him he wasn't interrupting them at the party. Robin's hold on the phone tightened and his tone sounded uptight, like that of a strict Catholic father whose daughter has been asked out on a date by a boy he did not approve of in the slightest bit.
"Well, Raven can't come to the phone right now. So whatever it is that you have to tell her, it'll just have to wait for some other time."
On the other line, Robin heard Jason snicker and then chuckle. His eyebrows knit together due to his low tolerance and patience for the guy.
"Well then, Mr. Raven's dad, can you pass on to her my message?"
"Sure."
Robin replied, his jaw clenched tightly.
"Tell her I said… Hi."
And with that, Robin heard the line go dead and realized with the ringing tone repeatedly playing from the phone that Jason had hung up… and so he ever so slowly did the same. His body relaxed, his annoyed expression from earlier gradually changed to a more somber, thoughtful look. He sank down on the couch with a soft thud and rubbed his chin, thinking. The abrupt way Jason ended the call, the way he played him, teasing him along to make him draw his own conclusions with his intentions with Raven and then suddenly thumping him with a mere innocent hello made him annoyed- annoyed, and wary of his intentions. What kind of game is he playing?
The boy wonder sighed and then picked up the forgotten TV remote on the coffee table, looking for a decent channel. He settled on a crime/ detective TV series marathon, lay in a more comfortable position on the couch, hugging one of the throw pillows to his chest, his other arm propping his head up. 3 hours and 5 episodes later, Robin's eyes drooped until eventually his body succumbed to sleep.
The mid-morning sunlight peeked between the small gaps in the dark curtains of Raven's bedroom window, making her shift her position in bed. She hid under the covers, attempting to drown out the bright light but gave up when the sun shone full blast and penetrated through her thin blanket. Hesitantly, she pulled back the covers and glanced at the clock on her bedside table. 9:51 am.
She yawned delicately then stretched like a cat before trudging towards the bathroom, toothbrush and fresh clothes in hand. When she was done, she walked towards the living room, noticed the sleeping Robin and remembered the events from last night. What parts of her sleepy mind the shower failed to awaken, the sight of her best friend did and she smirked. Raven turned off the television, still showing the same program from the night before and decided to make her usual morning drink- tea.
Hmm. Robin always had a thing for these detective and crime shows.
She made herself a warm cup of tea and poured the remaining hot water in another cup for Robin's black coffee. How he ever stomached the taste of it, Raven did not want to know. The stoic girl walked towards the sofa, hands full and set the drinks on the small coffee table before sitting down on a small armchair on the left.
Apparently, the aroma of freshly brewed coffee was too irresistible for the boy wonder since he suddenly opened his eyes and sat up. As his eyes adjusted to the light in the room and the two cups of warm beverages, he found Raven smirking at him and his face broke into a small smile.
"Morning, Rae.
He gestured over to the sitting cup of coffee and turned his body towards her.
Is the coffee mine?"
Raven rolled her eyes before grabbing the cup of tea, seemingly as if to say Duh. She settled down beside Robin, propping her feet up and casually leaning her back on the sofa.
Robin grinned at her, his eyes with a glitter of amusement and friendly affection for his rather sardonic best friend. Her sarcasm did not faze him as it normally did others, and he shook his head at her in a good-naturedly before sipping on his coffee.
The two enjoyed their drinks in silence. Neither wanted to break the non-existent spell that seemed to have captured them both and rendered them to a content and peaceful silence. A silence they so often and comfortably shared with each other; a silence that portrayed so much of their understanding, their patience and tolerance of each other, and their unwavering bond. So it was with a heavy heart as Robin watched the dark girl pick up their cups to wash at the sink, that he felt guilty for neglecting their friendship.
He suddenly realized that he truly, genuinely missed her.
And he knew, he just did, without even asking that she must have missed him too.
She wouldn't admit it openly anyway. Robin smirked at the thought and an idea came to mind. He turned around at the couch to stare at the back of Raven's head as he spoke.
"Hey Rae, are you doing anything today?"
Raven placed the two cups in the small cupboard above her before carelessly tossing the kitchen cloth to the side before turning around towards him, leaning against the kitchen counter, her arms crossed in front of her chest. Her head tilted to the side, which Robin knew from many years of observing her that she was thinking.
"Not really. Why?"
"I was thinking we could spend the day together, hanging out. I don't have any plans either and I could ask Vic and Karen to join us."
"Alright. Besides, I'm more than sure those two wouldn't mind."
Robin smile widened at Raven's dry tone before standing up to stretch and grabbed his now dry clothes hanging by the open window.
"Ok then, I'll drive back to the dorm to shower and ask Victor. I'll pick you up after lunch."
Raven nodded before being enclosed in a warm hug.
Four hours later, Raven sat at front seat of Robin's car as they sped across the highway. Victor sat behind them, talking animatedly about a new video game he was planning on buying when it would come out next weekend. Robin replied with less enthusiasm but remained grinning from ear to ear at Victor's cheery disposition. Even Raven could not help the slight up turning of her lips, leaning on the open window, listening to Victor continue to rant as they pulled up ahead of a few cars.
For a moment Raven felt nostalgic. Feeling like she was back in high school and sitting in front in Robin's car, Victor talking about something trivial while she and Karen would be throwing knowing glances at each other.
She decided to savor the moment, closing her eyes as she felt the wind whip past her, making her hair dance along to a rhythm only the wind knew. They were on their way to Wizard's Kingdom, an amusement park which was conveniently located between Gotham and Bludhaven; where Karen was staying.
At the thought of the spunky female, Raven glanced at Victor from the side mirror and wondered how the two seemed to make the relationship work, despite the physical distance between them. The two were like peanut butter and jelly since freshman year of high school and all throughout, they remained intact in their sweet little sandwich and so it came no surprise to their peers that they remained exactly that way into college. Sure there were a few more layers of bread and filling in between them that tainted and modified their taste, but instead of letting that ruin their original flavor they held on and created a new one of their own.
I can't believe I'm comparing Victor and Karen with a sandwich. She looked at the muscular man at the back and could not keep a small smile from appearing on her lips; blaming Victor's love for sandwiches and Karen's love for anything with sugar in it for influencing the thought.
"What are you grinning about?"
Robin's playful tone shook Raven from her thoughts and she glanced out her window. They had arrived. She opened the car door and got out, catching a glimpse of her two friends hugging, the female one being lifted slightly off the ground from the male's over enthusiasm.
She leaned against the now closed-door looking at them, Robin scuffling beside her, arms crossed. Raven raised a delicate eyebrow at him to which he replied with a smirk.
"Let's go in, the entrance line's pretty long."
A few rides on the roller coaster, the monster wheel and the haunted tunnel and some swings on the many carnival games later, the two birds sat on a bench not far from the Ferris wheel; where Karen and Victor were enjoying their precious "alone time." Robin's stomach made a rather loud grumbling noise and Raven turned to look at him, one of her eyebrows raised. Her eyes gleamed ever so slightly with amusement.
"Hungry?"
She asked in her monotone, sounding more like a statement than an inquiry. Robin nodded his head and turned to the direction of the Ferris wheel.
"Yeah, we should grab a bite after those two get off."
Raven shrugged, in a non-committed manner before gesturing towards a dainty cafe situated in a spot far east from the bench where they were resting at. Robin's gaze followed the direction where her finger pointed to and he turned to look at his companion inquisitively.
"I heard their waffles are pretty good. I haven't had one in months."
"Okay. Waffles sound good."
"Waffles? Did someone just mention waffles?"
The two turned to look at Victor, whose left hand was tangled with Karen's right. Raven rolled her eyes while Karen grinned, mirth in her eyes, her other hand resting on her cocked hip.
"Yes, Victor. Waffles."
"Sweet! Where to?"
Raven plopped down ungracefully on the sofa, her weary body melting into the cheap comfy cushions. She let out a sigh, one of the strands of hair that fell between her eyes flying up to rest on top of her head.
After freshening up, she turned on her laptop and waited for the familiar hum of the machine. She set down her hair brush on her dresser and set down to write her research assignment.
A half an hour and a steaming hot cup of tea later, Raven clicked save with satisfaction in finishing her homework and stretched her arms above her. She grabbed her empty cup and proceeded to wash it in the kitchen sink when she heard a small tap on her bedroom window. Ever the inquisitive person, she faced the direction of the window, ears perked at what the sound could possibly be.
Not another minute passed when the sound was made again and this time, the dark bird saw with her own two eyes the rather large rock that hit the glass on her window which made a louder thud than the previous.
Her eyebrows shot up her forehead in a curious fashion and waited, this time, only ten seconds before another rock collided with the glass. Deciding that the interruption went long enough, she grabbed her phone, a delicate thumb hovering above the campus police hotline as she inched closer to the window.
Standing close to the wall to avoid being seen, incase whoever was throwing rocks would see her and perhaps picture out only two petite girls were inside, she peered down the window and saw… no one. Absolutely no one. Her eyes narrowed and her expression remained unreadable although she felt confused and slightly uneasy.
What the hell?
Raven now stood in front of the glass and against her better judgment, unclasped the lock on her window pane and pushed it open. She cautiously peered down, her head bowing low and her eyes narrowed, trying to decipher any movements on the parking lot below her building.
Her amethyst eyes scanned the vehicles parked, noting the familiar cars and scooters that belonged to the women in her building. It was then that she noticed a motorcycle that for some reason just stood out from the rest of the parked vehicles; a familiar black helmet with a winged eyeball design hung from the steering wheel and she racked her brain where she had seen it before.
I know I've seen the motorcycle before… But where? Definitely not around the campus… It just looks so out of place, somehow.
She saw a flash of pink hair and leaned down the window ledge. Jinx. She glanced up their dormitory window and grinned at her, waving. Raven raised a brow in response even though the pink-haired girl probably couldn't see. She walked up to a parked car and winked at her mischievously before going inside the passenger seat. The driver's seat's window rolled down and Wally waved at Raven before the two sped up.
Weird. I didn't even hear Jinx go out the door.
Raven shrugged off her unease and lowered the volume on her speakers, the song playing blending into the background. She grabbed her tea cup once more and proceeded to do what she was intending to do. She opened her bedroom door and walked down the small, narrow hallway, but before she could take a step into the dainty common area, she bumped into something hard and fell with a grunt; also emitting from whomever she bumped into a surprised cry, her tea cup shattering into a few pieces on the wooden floor where her head lay. Her dazed eyes made out a hand stretching towards her and her instincts kicked in, quickly getting to her feet but not before grabbing a piece of the broken glass to threaten the intruder with.
"Whoa! Hey, ease up, little bird. It's just me… Jason, remember?"
Raven's heavy pants gradually slowed as she finally looked at his face, her shoulders relaxed as her hands came to rest on her sides. Her glare sent a visible shiver down Jason's spine, her intense gaze causing him to fidget and self-consciously tap his foot on the floor.
"Sorry about surprising you like that… Jinx told me you loved surprises, so…"
"Jinx?"
Raven growled threateningly. Jason stepped back, eyes widened slightly at the girl's aggression. But he answered what seemed to be the implied question to her one-word sentence.
"Yes, Jinx. After I parked my ride, I was looking for your room when I saw Jinx's pink hair from the living room window and threw a rock. She went down to meet me and told me she was going out with her boy friend and would leave the door unlocked. I told her I would just throw more rocks on your window 'till you noticed but she insisted you preferred surprises like this instead."
Instead of placating her like Jason thought it would, his answer only seemed to aggravate the pale girl even more. She stepped towards him threateningly, her eyes narrowed and shooting daggers at him. Jason gulped.
For someone as cute as her, she can be really intimidating when she wants to be.
He faintly noted that the broken piece of her cup was still in her hand and he took a step back. Raven continued to glare at him for a few more moments before she sighed and tossed the piece of glass to the trash bin below the small coffee table. She turned back towards him, her arms crossed, looking at him expectantly. When he didn't immediately answer, she rolled her eyes. Raven's patience was really waving thin.
"What the hell do you want, Jason?
She spit his name like acid and shook her head as if to further enunciate her distaste and then spoke again,
"Or a better question would be, what the hell, do you think you're doing in my fucking dorm."
Rather than cowering like most people would, Jason snickered, his cocky attitude resurfacing once again. He crossed his arms across his chest, mimicking her stance and cocked his head slightly to the side as he looked down at the indignant girl in front of him.
"Well if I had known my attempt at a pleasant surprise would cause the Charlie's Angel in you to come out, I guess I shouldn't have heeded Jinx's advice in the first place."
Raven rolled her eyes but did not interrupt his explaining. She uncrossed her arms, cocked her hip to the side and placed a hand there before inclining her head slightly to the side and raising one of her eyebrows as if to say, "And…?"
"You've been avoiding my calls and texts."
In response to his accusing tone, Raven rolled her eyes for what seemed like the hundredth time that night alone and turned around, her back towards him. She opened a small closet door by the mini-kitchen and took out a broom and a dust pan to clean the broken glass on the floor. Jason stepped out before she could sweep any tiny pieces and grabbed the cleaning utensils from her.
"Here, let me do that for you. You're barefoot while I have my shoes on. Besides, it's my fault anyways."
Raven let him clean up the mess and regarded him cautiously, thinking to herself. When he was done, he carefully threw the gathered up glass into the trash bin and returned the broom and dust pan to the closet. He wiped imaginary dust from his hands on his jeans bottom before sitting down on the sofa across the dark girl.
"Well?"
"Well, what?"
"Why have you been avoiding me?"
Raven shrugged, grabbing a forgotten carton of cigarettes on the table and lit one. She blew the smoke into the air and rested her head on the back seat.
"I didn't know accepting your offer of a ride home would make me obligated to be in constant communication with you."
Jason inwardly flinched at her words. I guess I was being a little too persistent. He decided to turn the tables and sat up, propping his arms casually on top of his knees.
"Aw, come on Rae! We've met twice before and you still act like we're strangers."
"That's because we are strangers, Jason."
"You just said my name, Rae. That means you actually acknowledge the fact that we know each other aside from appearance alone."
Raven's glared at him, annoyed at his using her nickname which she permitted only her close friends to use. Jinx. She guessed, as the cause of him thinking he could get away with calling her Rae.
"Knowing a person's name and being familiar with their faces does not mean you're friends with the person. And don't call me Rae."
"Okay… And what would that actually make them, Raven?"
"Acquaintances."
Raven replied without missing a beat which caused Jason to smirk at her, which in turn of course, caused more irritation to the already annoyed bird.
"What the hell are you smirking for?"
"So you do admit it."
"Admit what."
Raven's monotone voice demanded, rather than asked.
"That we are, in fact, acquaintances. And therefore, not as you insist, strangers."
He grinned at her triumphantly and Raven burned out the cigarette stub in the ashtray on the coffee table. Raven's irritation spiked up the roof. How dare he just barge into my dorm as if we were close enough to allow that? And he actually has the fucking audacity to insinuate that I'm supposed to respond to his calls and texts.
"So is that what you came here for? Too eloquently, and failed by the way, to persuade me of our non-existent friendship?
Jason snickered and leaned back on the comfy seat, his gaze on her unwavering.
"You know Raven, my trip here wouldn't be a surprise to you at all had you just answered my calls. But, no- you had to let Jinx and boy blunder answer your calls for you. And to thin-"
"Excuse me?"
Raven interrupted his ranting, the wheels in her head turning. Jason replied with a witty quip.
"Sure I'll excuse you for now, little bird. But next time, try to display some good manners and don't interrupt me when I'm talking."
Raven ignored his snarky comment and bit back one of her own.
"You said something about Boy Blunder?"
"Yeah you know, Robin."
Jason casually reclined in his seat, positioning his arms below his head and placing his feet on the coffee table between them. Raven scoffed and swatted away his feet with her hand.
"When did you speak with Robin?"
"Oh, just last night. I called around midnight I guess, asked to talk to you. Said you couldn't. So I told him to tell you I said hi, didn't really feel like letting him know I would be coming tonight. Tried to call you this afternoon but Jinx said you were out with him."
"Ah."
Was the only reply Jason got from Raven. She sat up from her seat and walked towards her room to grab her phone. She intended to question and maybe just rant to Robin a bit but Jason stopped her just as she pressed call. He let go of his loose grip on her wrist and smiled.
"What?"
"Well, I was just about to tell you what I came here for."
Raven tapped her foot impatiently on the floor. The call went straight to voicemail and Jason continued to smile.
"I was thinking we could go out tonight."
Raven snickered- almost laughing at his suggestion. The thought that he actually had the nerve to ask that of her, after all the calls she dodged and messages relayed from Jinx that went ignored, he still had the audacity and ego to think she actually wanted to go out with him? What was wrong with him?
"Go fuck yourself."
The pale girl clearly enunciated in her monotone voice, her voice unwavering and her face stoic. There was a few seconds of silence before Jason laughed. Laughed at her? She did not know and didn't wish to know either. She turned to leave the room when he spoke again.
"Come on, Raven. It's barely ten in the evening, we should go out, have some fun, you know? If we're only going to be this young and free right now, why let it go to waste?"
Raven could tell from his tone that he was serious, despite the slight pleading towards the end of his reasoning. She tilted her head to the side, her bottom lip jutting out as she weighed out her options. I can't believe I'm actually considering this jerk's proposition. Jason's patient eyes continued to watch her, trying to read what she was thinking. Raven's phone suddenly rang, awakening them from their brief reverie and to reality. Robin.
Raven begrudgingly rejected his call and sighed.
"And what exactly is your idea of fun?"
She asked, raising her hands to make quotation marks in the air at her pronouncing the three letter word. Jason laughed at her dry tone, before setting into his usual smirk.
"Be ready in 5 minutes. And oh, don't worry, I'll replace your broken tea cup."
He called out before stepping out of Raven's room and closing the door.
A/N: This is the longest chapter for this fic that I've written yet. Anyway, thank you to those who reviewed the last chapter, I hope this chapter did not disappoint. I have an idea for a new TT story so I'm trying to finish this one much sooner than I planned.
Thank you for reading and stay tuned for the next chapter~!