A/N: If you enjoy or even if you don't enjoy please review/let me know what you think/even if it's a flame/I enjoy shutting people down anyway/loljk/I really just want to know what people think/what you might want to see more of/and reviews just give warm and fuzzy feelings.

X

Hard Things

X

"It reminded me of you," he says when she has studied his gift for a few silent moments.

"It's beautiful," she responds softly. She picks up the little silver raven, turning it in her hands. Light glints off its deep blue eyes.

That's why it reminded me of you. But such cheesy phrases are not his style. But beautiful she is. Inside and out. And the level of cheesiness increases. He can't believe that she is really sitting here, across from him. Three months ago if you told him he'd be interested in dating a hero, a Titan, he'd have laughed and told you his hero days were over.

Well, his hero days are still over.

But when she looks up at him now, confusion and wonder and affection in those violet eyes, he thinks he might just do anything for her.

"Jason," she begins very seriously. "Why do you trust me? How do you know I'm not spying for Boy Blunder and going to turn you in as soon as I can clap some handcuffs on you?"

Sunshine, you don't give me enough credit. "You wouldn't be spying for Chuckles. If you were, you wouldn't have mentioned the possibility. That's just simple psychology. I did wonder about that at first. But if you were just playing me, you would likely have tossed your reserves out of the window, gone head over heels for me to take my heart and then break it quickly. But instead, you're even more cautious than I am for reasons I can't fully tell, but I'm willing to bet that you've been hurt before. I hope you gave him what he deserves."

And he does believe that. He can tell she's been hurt. Reservations are normal in any relationship, especially one as complicated as theirs. And she definitely isn't a normal girl by any means. She rarely smiles, even harder to get her to laugh, and her emotions are under Fort Knox. But it's been weeks now. Sure, they haven't exactly been having conferences and interviews every other day. But when she becomes easily withdrawn, the way she avoids certain topics, focuses more on him than bringing up anything about herself, the way she hesitates when the topic of their relationship even indirectly and remotely comes up, the other thousand little details like the fidgeting of her hands, the shifting of her eyes, the slight adjusting of her utensils . . .

He can just tell.

And the way she inhales sharply at his observations simply confirms it.

"Did you?" He pushes just a little further.

And instead of denying or hiding it, she obliges. "Not even close to what I wish I could," she smiles bitterly.

She didn't? So she played nice. But chances are that if anything happens between them, he might not be so lucky. She seems like a quick learner.

But he doesn't intend to let anything like that happen, anyway. "Raven," Jason takes her hand in his, "I don't know who this guy is. I don't know what he did. But believe me, I am not going to do that to you."

She closes her eyes.

When she opens them, he is only slightly shocked to see that they are dry. Completely under control.

"I can't," she says softly. "Not yet."

Can't.

Not yet.

Yet.

"Ok," Jason says after a few moments. "I understand."

She withdraws her hand.

"Thank you."

Yet.

There's still hope, right?

She looks directly at him before saying, "Stop panicking." She smirks.

As completely humorless as he finds this situation, he chuckles in return.

"I just really don't know about this, X . . . Jason. I need to think. I mean, do you even know what you're getting yourself into?"

Now he really does smile. "Absolutely not."

She sighs. "Then we can't do this yet. I can't do this yet. I can't let my emotions dictate my life. I have to know that this is the right decision to make. For now, just for these next few weeks . . . let's just go back to normal."

He knows what she means by that.

But if he wants to get her trust, it just might take some hard things.

"I'll pay this time," she says as she slaps down some bills and rises.

He has no words to stop her.