Hush
Waves
Blue eyes blinked slowly against his unfocused vision, calmly watching the nimble hands dance across his skin, slowly brought forth from the throes of unconsciousness. He felt unusually tired, his movements sluggish despite himself. The pain medication he was on—which took him exactly three minutes to perceive—only served to make him feel all the more gangly. This train of thought had him slowly take stock of the damages to his body: ribs—a few at least; pelvis; his back and shoulders; skull. All were emanating some amount of discomfort in varying degrees. At least, he considered, the 'doped-up' sensation would be much more welcome than the overwhelming shock of his injuries.
"How are you feeling?"
He looked up, meeting similar hued eyes, and smiled faintly. "Like crap," he muttered honestly, voice faint, flinching as Dinah's fingers pressed against a tender area.
She smiled back dimly, muttering an apology as she finished wrapping his ribcage. "That's much better than you look," she offered gently, not wholly untrue as an observation. Robin was finally coming around it seemed. He'd been in and out for the past half hour and it looked as though he was able to stay awake long enough to hear her this time and respond.
"What can I say? I'm a survivor…," came the halfhearted jest as his eyes trailed lazily about the room.
He sounded substantially weary, which was to be expected, but thankfully he seemed to have a grasp on reality. It hadn't taken him long to fully come to awareness; a few minutes and he was wide awake. Even so, something was off.
Robin was being unusually quiet, simply watching as Dinah checked his vitals and adjusted the IV on his arm, looking dazed if not absentminded. Typically the boy would have already insisted on reviewing the previous mission and data both known and possible unknowns. Yet, as it stood, the boy had only responded to questions directly posed to him, making no effort to speak of his own accord. In fact, he looked rather disinterested in everything.
"So, Richard, tell me," the woman started after a moment, voice casual but eyes riveted on the youth before her, "how did you get this beat up?"
Cerulean eyes snapped in her direction, looking wide and confused at the question.
"What?" he asked cautiously, only to have the question reiterated. He shifted uncomfortably, hands grasping the covers and fidgeting with them while his eyes made to dodge hers.
Black Canary moved and placed her hand atop the boy's own, leaning over him. "Look at me, Richard," she commanded; he complied hesitantly, eyes yet wide. "Do you know why you are here?"
After a brief moment, he shook his head, looking more anxious and pained by the second.
The League member felt reality dawn on her.
She stood straight, gently caressing the child's cheek and smiled, though the display did not reach her eyes. Making a point to check how his cranial wound was healing she pondered how severe this was.
"What is the last thing you remember?" Dinah asked gently, perching on the edge of the bed and taking his hand in hers, deftly rubbing her thumb across the top.
The boy shut his eyes tightly, ducking his chin into his chest; his hands shook and he quickly brought his free one to his temple.
"Take your time, Richard," she amended quickly, worried. "Don't hurt yourself…"
"…Wally and I…switched Superboy's body wash with self-tanning lotion…" Blue eyes looked up at her, a small, pained smile gracing his face.
It was just like the Boy Wonder to try and make light of a situation like this. She couldn't help the humor tugging at her lips: the memory of an orange-skinned Connor certainly had the entire team in stitches…
But Robin was clearly distressed, his hand yet quavering within her own as he delicately chewed his lower lip, something only done when thoroughly beset.
Now was clearly not a time to grill him. His blood pressure was rising and he looked miserable; his free hand still pressed against his temple indicating his headache. The necessity to relay the news to Batman was immense, but the timing was far from ideal and communications to the League member's whereabouts were inaccessible currently. In any case, his absence left her responsible for the team: consoling the youths and aiding the recovery of the injured. Red Arrow had taken it upon himself to dig further into the incident, and she acquiesced, knowing he needed the vent and the team needed answers.
She switched tact quickly but smoothly, asking if Robin was hungry and explaining his current limitations without delving too far into the causes.
And though Dinah did her best to comfort the young boy, dismissing the heavy conversation for another time and ordering him to relax, that prank…that prank had taken place over a month ago…
Wally's mind raced faster than his legs that were presently shooting him in the direction of the nearest zeta beam. Upon receiving word via text from Roy that Dick had awakened, Wally scrambled together his belongings and bolted right out the door without so much as an excuse, leaving his biology teacher and fellow classmates flabbergasted. He literally ditched his last two classes that day.
An amalgamation of emotions locked his jaw together, teeth grinding. Black Canary had banned him from investigating the Mister Twister 2.0 incident with Roy and forced him to attend classes once he healed fully. Such restrictions goaded him as they not only mired his progress in locating the culprit, but also cut down the time he could spend watching over the raven haired boy.
It had been nearly a week since Robin had fallen into a coma and Wally made a point to spend his hours not consumed by school or training at the boy's bedside. He would situate himself on a chair and work on homework, nap or simply speak quietly to the little bird about random things here and there. He would often take his dinner into the room and eat in his friend's company. Roy periodically came by to check up on his two little "brothers", relaying any information gleaned from his investigations—which didn't amount to much—and sometimes consoling the despairing speedster during break-downs.
Owing to the fact that his uncle Barry was accompanying Batman and several other League members on their intergalactic mission, Kid Flash had already made accommodations to reside at Mount Justice until their return—on the strict order that he attend school as per normal. Time spent at school seemed to drag on forever; were he not anxious to know how Robin was fairing, he would reflect on the mission, his mind plunging darkly into thoughts of the mastermind behind the Mr. Twister 2.0 android and his festering desire for a "justice" that did not align with everyone else's…
But now he felt his heart flutter beneath his breast, hands moist with anticipation, as the zeta beam teleported him into Mount Justice and the familiar computerized voice greeted him.
Recognized: Kid Flash, B03.
The beam's light faded to reveal the familiar setting of the cave. Miss Martian happened by and paused to greet him with a smile.
"Hello, Wally. You're here rather early…?" she remarked, wondering at the speedster's labored breathing.
Abstracted as he was, he barely managed to stop himself from running past her boorishly. Bequeathing her an uncommitted smile as he slowly inched passed, he responded quickly, "Oh, um. Hey beautiful! I, uh, gotta go Robin now. Talk later!"
The alien watched as the teen waved awkwardly and shot out in the direction of the medical bay, puzzled by his strange behavior. She had been worried about him lately; his demeanor had deviated from the Kid Flash she had known into something…intimidating… M'gann hadn't known what to make of him much less how to interact with him. Wally had become as irate and explosive as Superboy, perhaps more so in the past week, and she hardly saw him smile or joke around like he used to. All he did was train in the cave gymnasium, spar with either Connor or Kaldur, attend school, and spend extended times in the medical bay with Robin. He'd actually broken the treadmill specifically designed for him after maxing out in speed two days ago.
Attempts made to converse with the teen proved fruitless, amounting to nothing more than a query followed by a grunt or single word answer. Aqualad had assured her that the speedster would eventually improve, but time was necessary and Robin's health played a crucial role—he was emotionally distraught and afflicted by the sensation of guilt.
But just then, when the red-head had acknowledged her salutation, staggering through his lexis to respond in kind before dashing off, M'gann felt she'd glimpsed the old Kid Flash; a flicker of hope danced in her belly. The boy, although failing to make much sense, had mentioned Robin before leaving towards the medical ward in the mountain. Her mind took merely seconds to put the pieces together before her brows shot up, eyes wide and watering as she made to muffle her loud gasp with a hand.
The Martian swiftly flew in the direction of the gymnasium where Superboy and Aqualad were sure to be training, a wide smile forming though tears streamed down her jade cheeks.
When the speedster rounded the corner to the hallway where Robin's room lay, he was greeted by the sight of Red Arrow and Black Canary quietly conversing just outside the room. Their exchange ceased upon seeing him and Dinah shot the eighteen-year-old a pointed look—possibly because Roy had clearly told the red-head about Robin's waking, prompting him to ditch school and come to the mountain.
Wally was in front of the pair in a millisecond, a slight gust of air slithering past from the speed. "IsittruethatRobinisawake?!" he burst out hastily, trying to maneuver around the blond woman who blocked his entry into the room.
Black Canary stood her ground though, leaving no space for him to circumnavigate her body.
"What'syourproblemletmein!" he shouted, words yet blending together at the speed, face scrunching up in clear frustration. He needed to see Robin, now.
He felt a heavy palm clamp down on his shoulder, squeezing lightly, as Roy's voice drew his attention. Toxic eyes whipped around sharply to stare at his friend, irritation and impatience smoldering beneath the gaze. The elder teen took note of the younger male's anger, seeing the trigger that Dick had unknowingly placed in the teen…
"There's something you need to know before you go in and see him," Roy stated matter of factly, tone flat and dominant.
At this the metahuman seemed to pause in interest and worry, leer dimming somewhat in lieu of the curiosity. "What is it," he breathed, voice low and faint; it was evident that his mind was already conjuring up the worst of possibilities.
Red Arrow sighed, running a hand through his short ginger hair. "Robin…has retrograde amnesia…" The younger boy's face drained of its color. Seeing his minute error, the archer quickly added, "Not full spectrum memory loss, he just can't remember what happened in the past month, inclusive of the past mission and how he obtained his injuries."
"Any mention of events taking place in that time frame doesn't sit well and causes him copious amounts of pain and stress," Dinah added, watching the smaller teen slowly take in the news. "If it helps you gauge the territory, the last thing he remembers is the tanning lotion incident."
After a moment, Wally slowly nodded, his shoulders dropping from their tensed perch as he took a deep, shaky breath. A minute more and he finally faced her, steadily asking permission to enter the room. She studied him briefly, wondering at his mental state, before deeming him sound enough to keep his wits about him. The blonde stepped aside, allowing access to the door.
Wally said nothing as he shuffled forward, grasping the handle and disappearing into the room.
Richard stirred from his snoozing upon hearing the door open and shut quietly. He brought a hand to quickly do away with the dry, fluffy feeling in his eyes—strange considering he felt as though he'd slept for a while already…
Bleariness extricated, he directed his gaze toward the door, feeling a smile tug at his lips at the sight of his closest friend. "Hi, Wally," he said; a small giggle slipped through his lips at the other's disheveled and windblown manifestation, an action he swiftly regretted when his ribs seared from the contraction. Ow…
Wally stumbled forward, gaping at the younger boy, feeling the sting behind his eyes and the ghostly obstruction in his throat. Lime irises absorbed the sight before him as he came upon the edge of the bed, his lips stirring breathlessly.
"Dick…"
The smile that graced the young acrobat's features was enough to set the speedster off. His legs gave and he collapsed to his knees, hand coming over his face as sobs ripped from deep within while the other gripped the edge of the cot. His body shook with each suppurate, a string of barely intelligible apologies comingling with whimpers pouring from his mouth.
Robin's eyes went wide, shock and concern taking over him.
"Wally, what's wrong?!" he asked frantically, reaching over to grasp the teens hand.
But the metahuman could only shake his head as the sobs wrenched free from him, tears streaming hotly down his face and off his chin. All the emotions that had aroused within him broke out at once and consumed him. Robin was awake. He was awake and speaking and smiling at him. He felt weak with relief and pure joy, thanking the heavens for bringing his beloved friend back to him.
Richard, on the other hand, could not comprehend what had come over Kid Flash, or why he was bawling his eyes out and cyclically muttering apologies to the raven. He wanted so bad to consol the teen but, bearing in mind his current arrangement on the cot and an array of healing injuries he had no recollection of obtaining, he decided that the best course of action was, well, inaction. He simply squeezed his friend's hand in reassurance and let his thumb run across the top just like Black Canary had done to him when he'd come to; Wally clearly needed to get his sentiments off his chest, but it nevertheless hurt the acrobat to see him this way. The redhead was always smiling, always laughing and goofing off, flirting and playing pranks on anyone and everyone. In the years that he had known the adolescent, Wallace had hardly broken down but a handful of times and never as deeply as this.
Feeling guilty for somehow causing the older male such affliction, Robin gave another tight squeeze to his friend's hand, gently intoning, "It's okay, Wally. I'm here. Please don't cry…"
At this small attempt to calm him, Wally let himself breathe and endeavored to gain control of his emotions. He scrubbed at his face before looking up at the other, feeling his heart flutter at the bright blue eyes staring back, which, he noticed, were moist, apparently on the verge of tears as well.
Wally felt a small chuckle bubble up in his throat. Robin's cheeks flushed red, and he moved his fingers to pinch the other.
"Ow!" the redhead yelped, grin still plastered across his features alongside the remnants of his sentimental overload.
"Doofus," Richard muttered, relieved to see his friend had calmed.
"Jerk," the speedster countered lightheartedly, earning a smirk from the other. Wally's eyes then trailed down to look at his hand still wrapped in Robin's own, the latter yet tracing a thumb absentmindedly across the top of his hand; he felt his ears flush at the realization.
Richard followed his gaze and almost immediately released Wally's hand as though it burned him, face tinting darker and turning his chin away before he cleared his throat…only to wince not a second later.
"So, um, how you holding up?" Kid Flash started anew, rubbing the back of his neck as he settled into the chair aside the bed.
"I feel like crap, dude," the raven muttered truthfully. "Definitely not feeling the aster." And indeed the boy looked just as he felt. The visible bruises that extended to the crests of his shoulders were an ugly shade of yellow-green—a sign of healing—and the extensive bandaging binding his torso and chest on full display now as the cot was adjusted, allowing Robin to sit upright to an extent. At least the bandages around his head were gone now, surely to let the stitches breathe and heal properly, but his skin still lacked the healthy glow it once had and the drugs pumping into his system left the boy slightly subdued.
"Yeah, you look like the definition of 'fuck-my-life' at the moment," Wallace snorted, lips curved at the ends. This earned a mirrored smirk from the other.
Dick attempted to shift his position, grimacing all the while. He exhaled slowly, closing his eyes and taking in shallow breaths as delicately as possible.
Wally fretted silently, reaching over to grab the boy's hand. His anxiety was apparent.
"I'm okay… Just, fractured ribs are never my favorite."
The door clicked open and Red Arrow and Black Canary entered the room.
"You know what sucks more than that?" Roy interjected, casually leaning against the wall adjacent the door. "Fractured clavicle and femur, four broken fingers and a concussion all in one mission."
The two younger boys blanched.
"Who the heck did you piss off?" Kid Flash wondered aloud.
The eighteen-year-old soured at the question, responding, "…I don't intend to reminisce any further."
"Just asking…" Wally shrugged, and Dick stifled a snicker, face scrunching in pain when his ribs made themselves known once again.
Roy was just about to comment when the door to the room slammed open; all inhabitants tensing and directing their sights on the intruders.
At the door stood Aqualad, Miss Martian and Superboy, who had practically mangled the door handle when he'd burst in.
"Robin!" M'gann gasped upon seeing the boy, Superboy and Aqualad equally riveted.
And Robin stared back in shock, his blue, blue eyes meeting their own.
;D You all love me.
::dodges several knives thrown in her direction::
It has finally made it! Chapter 4 is here! :DD And, OMFGawd did you all see what I freaking did on the last sentence?! Don, Don, DOOOON!
I gotta give credit to those lovelies who wrote thoughtful reviews encouraging me to update and expressing their opinions about my fanfic. Ya'll know I love me some good reviews and each time I received one I was motivated to write a bit more until...VIOLA! We have a completed chappy!
Again, I apologize about the wait. My life has been pretty rocky as of late, and continual stress and depressive times do not spur me to want to write. So thank you to all of those who've favorited/followed this story and a big, heartfelt thanks to those beautimous lovelies who took the time to review and tell me what they think! I love you all!
Until next time!
- Edited 1/8/17 -
-Kit