A/N: Hey everyone! Sorry for the wait. I hope you guys are having better luck with this epidemic than I am. But rest assured, so long as I can type I'll be trying to get more chapters to you! This story is really starting to come together in my mind but if you guys have any suggestions I'm always open and willing to hear them. :) As always leave a fav/follow (and maybe even a share lol) as well as a review and let me know how I'm doing! Hope you enjoy!

A tall apatrment building in the heart of Jump City stood out among its neighbors. It had undergone a tremendous amount of construction after the destruction of the city that Slade and his army of omnidroids had caused the previous year. The neighborhood was by no means the friendliest as sirens could be heard from inside the apartment on a daily basis, making cheap and affordable to just about everyone but nice enough to deal with the constant chaos outside.

Running water of a shower could be heard continuously pouring over the fresh scars and toned muscles of the new solo hero. He leaned against the wall with the shower head as the pouring water weighed down his think growing hair nearly covering his eyes.

Dick's head was lowered as the water ran over his body. His mind was filled with a constant dred of the previous months he had endured. Memories of his failures continued to plague his soul as if he could see them happening over and over right in front of himself.

"I'm disappointed," the evil sound of his nemesis he had been tracking rang in his ears like a droning sound that hid its location, "with your new look and catchy name, I expected more of a fight out of you..." Richard clenched his teeth. After everything he'd been through and all the rigorous training that made his life a literal hell he still wasn't strong enough to take on Slade alone. Hazy images of his fading vision only lead him to assume he was near death. His enemy towered over him looking down at him and in that moment Dick knew he had been bested as he lay on ground struggling to hold on, "I will say I was surprised you came after me alone..."

"He's not alone..."

Faint images of a dark figure falling from the heavens landing in between him and his foe almost seemed too surreal to be true almost like a half remembered dream. But that voice was clear as day. He knew who it was that had saved him and it left a bitter taste in his mouth.

Richard closed his eyes and sighed. He should be grateful. Praising his rescuer for saving his life yet... He only felt disappointment and resentment towards himself. He sighed and lifted his head from the hot water above the stream pointing his closed eyes towards the ceiling.

"Thought you said I was ready?" His voice was filled with depression.

He turned the water off and pulled the curtain back letting the steam fill the rest of the bathroom. He wiped the fog off the mirror creating a circle to see his face and looked at himself. Scars of his latest fight were etched into his chest just below his left shoulder that looked like something had explode from inside his body leaving stretched lines of pink tissue flowing like rivers to one central point where the attack had landed on him.

His eyes were focused. He stared into his reflection as if trying to mentally interrogate the man looking back at him. It was like he didn't even know who was standing in front of him.

Richard sighed, grabbed a white towel off the towel rack and began drying himself off before wrapping the towel around his waist covering himself before he left the bathroom. The steam of the bathroom had faded and all but vanished as it met the cooler air in the living area. His room was furnished with on sale furniture that he got for cheap but it was nice enough to make his room look decent like he was doing well for himself.

He sat on the brown polyester couch and picked up the remote off the small black coffee table and turned on the news while he waited for the day to go by until his date with Starfire. It was still too early to get ready but he just wanted the day to go by so he could get out of his apartment that held his mind captive like a prisoner.

As the news played on he could see his friends had a great amount of success in his absence. Crime rates were way down and the cities moral was at an all time high, praising the titans for fending off the major criminals like Control Freak and The Hive from running rampant.

It brought a small smile to his face knowing they had better luck in their endeavors than he did. But it brought a question to the back of his mind... Did he make the right choice in leaving the team?

As the day continued on, Starfire and the girls continued to enjoy their shopping spree. With her newly purchased dress outlined in a protective cover they began making their way out of the mall and back to the Tower.

Clouds rolled through the sky casting comforting shadows that block the heat of the sun just enough to keep the temperature comfortable. It was almost a shame to stay in on such a gorgeous day. Nonetheless, they retreat back to the Tower to help Starfire mentally prepare for the night ahead.

"Are you excited?!" Terra asked as the date neared closer. Any minute now Richard would be coming by to pick her up.

"Oh very excited!" Starfire replied, "it has been too, the long, since I had a proper a night with my Richard." She blushed as she spoke as if she were revealing a dark secret she kept to herself.

"Yeah... I can imagine," Raven replied with her monotone voice, "just be careful not to get too personal right away."

The room went silent and the girls looked at Raven a little confused.

"What do you mean?" Terra asked curiously.

Raven realized what she said and it dawned on her they didn't see what she saw when he returned. She was about to speak before she hesitated and thought if it was a good idea to put the thought in Starfire's mind right before her date.

"Nothing. Forget I said anything," she quickly dodged deciding not to possibly ruin what should be a perfect evening.

"No, I must insist," Starfire shot back, "if there is something about Richard that I should be aware of I wish for you to tell me."

Raven thought about it again. She looked into Starfire's eyes. She could see the sense of worry that Raven was trying avoid had already set it. There was no point in holding it back now. She sighed and lowered her head...

"Look, this is just an assumption and it might not even be true... but something didn't seem right with him when he came back. I think something might have happened too him while he was away."

Starfire's heart sank. She felt awful she didn't see right away. Only when Raven pointed it out did she notice. His confidence wasn't as strong as it used to be. He hesitated more than usual and he seemed to put hero work as less of a priority. This isn't normal for him. She began to worry more.

"I... believe you are correct," Starfire admit, "he has not been the usual Richard we have known for so long."

"Really?" Terra asked curiously, "I didn't think there was anything that could bring him down."

"Well whatever it is... Just be careful not to force him into saying anything he doesn't want to talk about. Just try to enjoy the night as much as you can." Raven finished. She truly wanted the night to go as best as it could but she feared she may have ruined that already just by opening her mouth.

"I shall," Starfire said softly before looking back up at Raven and Terra with a smile, "and I thank you for telling me. I am truly humbled to have such amazing friends as you."

Terra and Raven smiled back at Starfire and wished her the best on her long anticipated date. Not even a minute later the doors to the Tower opened and Richard stepped into the living room where Beastboy was sitting on the couch watching TV.

"Looking fancy there Dick," Beastboy said with a playful grin, "trying to impress me?"

"You wish," Richard shot back. He was wearing a flashy dark chocolate blazer with a skin tight black t-shirt and dark black khaki pants with dark chocolate dress shoes. It was formal enough for any fancy restaurant but relaxed enough to enjoy the night comfortably, "I feel bad for Raven though... I doubt you ever try to impress her like this," he said playfully teasing back.

"Ha! If I dressed like you, Raven might dump me," he chuckled, "besides... those fancy date thingys aren't really our style. I don't think I've ever seen Rae dress in anything besides her robes." He glanced back at the TV to realize he missed the best part of the re-run epsiode he was watching, "ah man! See that's why I don't dress up. It's too distracting from what's more important in life."

"A re-run episode from a discontinued show?" Richard asked raising an eyebrow.

"Exactly." Beastboy confirmed with all the confidence in the world.

Richard shook his head with a smile and sat next to Beastboy on the couch. They continued to watch the episode play on in silence before Richard decided to ask Beastboy a question...

"So you never go out with Raven?" He said trying to play catch up with his close friend.

Beastboy's eyes remained on the screen so he wouldn't miss anything else but he still respond to the question, "nah... I mean... I tried to see if she'd want to go do something fancy... but she always seems to think I'm gonna embarrass her or somethin'."

Richard thought about that for a second and could see where Raven was coming from, "well... she has a point..." he said under his breath.

"But if I'm being honest... I would give my limited edition, prized copy, of Space Monkeys 2 for a chance to see Raven in a pretty dress." Beastboy finished with a heavy voice as his attention diverted from the show up to the ceiling as if picturing his girlfriend in a tight, revealing dress. He almost sounded like he was starved for affection from Raven.

The doors behind the couch rushed open turning the boys attention to the three girls entering the living area with Starfire in front of Raven and Terra, wearing her new dress. The two girls stood behind her with proud smiles on their faces looking at the beauty of their friend.

"Dude..." Beastboy said in awe as his jaw dropped.

Starfires dress was stunning to say the least. It was a strapless, backless, dress that showed off her flawless skin on her shoulders and chest, tightly clinging to the natural curves of her breasts, torso, and hips before falling like a gracious waterfall over the toned curves of her backside and waist to her ankles revealing dark blue high-heels giving her a few inches of height to her figure. The dress was dazzling with a dark sapphire blue color that made her eyes shine like green dimond-emeralds above a sea of blue jewels. This was accompanied by a small dark blue purse she clasped in both hands in front of her.

Richard's jaw also dropped. He felt he didn't deserve such a gorgeous woman.

Starfire saw the boys ogling her and began to get flustered, " Please..." she started with a nervous voice, "I look... nice?" She said with a blush.

Moments of the first day the met rushed through his mind as this was the second time he had heard her ask that question. Richard stood up and began walking towards Starfire with stars in his eyes. He'd never seen anyone as gorgeous as her in that moment. He almost completely forgot what she had asked because he was so focused on her beauty.

"Richard?" Starfire asked anxiously waiting for an answer.

Richard cleared his throat before finally realizing he wasn't alone with Starfire, "words can't describe how beautiful you look..."

Starfire's anxiety disappeared as her eyes lit up with joy. Raven and Terra looked at each other and smirked. That is exactly what he was supposed to say.