The next three days were a blur of Gotham's streets, Barbara, and bed sheets. It was now Christmas Eve, and we had not found Ricky. The others were here now, and stakes were high.

"Everyone at their assigned spot?" I heard Batgirl ask over the coms.

"Red Robin, affirmative."

"Robin, all clear over here."

"Nightwing, nothing suspicious at this point."

The rest of the Titans, Spoiler, Blackbat, and Red Hood had also confirmed their locations.

"Batman?"

"Yes," I responded, confirming my location.

Lurking in the shadows, all of us were strategically placed around the street of the holiday parade, waiting for Ricky to make an appearance. There were only 30 minutes left of the parade remaining. My calm facade masked the turmoil underneath. The noises of the crowd seemed to be muffled against the sound of my own breathing. It wasn't so much Ricky I was concerned about, as it was Barbara… her seeing him again. I wanted to express my concerns again, but I knew she wouldn't listen. There was no stopping her when she put her mind to something. The sound of Barbara's voice interrupted my thoughts just a few short minutes later.

"Batgirl to all - he's in my custody and is now aware of the situation."

I immediately headed towards her location without hesitation as she continued, "he says the candy was put into cannons in the back of the parade, which are set to go off in ten minutes. Red Robin, Black Bat, and Cyborg there are five. Please diffuse and keep us updated."

I landed softly on the rooftop. Her back was to me, as she was looking down the street at the parade. Ricky was laying on his back, handcuffed to a pipe on the roof. His head turned towards me. My hands instinctively formed a fist. He had a grave, annoyed look on his face and appeared to have no damage whatsoever. If it wasn't for the others arriving a few moments after I did, distracting me, I probably would have changed that.

"Your boyfriend's here, Babs," he said with spite.

"Can you shut up for once?" she replied flatly, not taking her eyes off the street.

"Diffused. All clear," Red Robin said through the coms. "Confiscating as we speak."

"How could you do this to me? You ruined my life," cried Ricky.

Batgirl didn't respond.

"Why did you leave? So you could be with him?" The spite behind his voice was potent.

"I'm not with him now and I never was. Just be quiet until the cops get here," Batgirl said flatly.

"Fucking liar. Your kiss the other night certainly didn't seem like a first." He spat.

I stopped breathing, leaving my expression unchanged. Without moving my head, I shifted my hidden eyes to observe everyone else's. They were frozen, looking between me and Batgirl.

Focusing my attention back to Batgirl, I noticed her jaw was clenched, but her expression remained blank. "I have no idea what you're talking about." She was a good liar, but if anyone could see past the lie, it was this group.

"Anyone with eyes, a window, and common sense could tell where that night was headed. You were cheating on me with him this whole time, weren't you? You're such a lying fucking bitch, Barbara! Who even is this guy?!"

Batgirl gulped then looked towards Raven. "I'm not sure if this is something you can do, but can you wipe his memory of me being Batgirl? Please?" she asked, ignoring Ricky.

I remained still.

Ricky started to panic, pulling at the handcuffs. "YOU CAN'T. THAT IS A VIOLATION OF MY RIGHTS-"

Suddenly, Batgirl took a small box out of her utility belt, pulled out a cloth, and waived it under his nose, knocking him out.

Raven approached him and held a hand over his head. After a few minutes of strained silence, she said, "He shouldn't remember anything tying you and Batgirl together."

"Thank you," Batgirl responded quietly yet gratefully.

Everyone stood frozen stiff as a few more moments of silence passed.

"Okay, no one is saying anything, so I'm just going to ask..." Nightwing gestured towards Ricky, looking to me, then to Barbara, and back to me.

My chest was tight. I gazed down at my feet, which I was convinced were glued to the roof at this point. I wondered how I let things get this far. He'd never forgive me for this. The crowds were loud, but I couldn't hear them over the deafening silence of this moment.

When neither Barbara nor I responded, I glanced at Dick, noticing his lips were firmly pressed together and his jaw was clenched.

"Well, isn't this just a hoot?" Red Hood said sarcastically. Sirens started to echo off of the buildings, getting louder and louder.

"Police are here," Batgirl said flatly. "Let's go."

"So, what? Are you guys like... together?" asked Red Hood.

"Can you give us any kind of explanation here?!" Dick asked tensely, looking between us.

"It's none of your fucking business, Dick! It's not anyone's business. Why do you even care?!"

"Why do you think I care?!"

"I don't know! You tell me! You're married, have one kid and another on the way. Your whole life is away from Gotham. None of this should affects you whatsoever."

Nightwing shot me a glare. Even though I couldn't see his eyes, I could feel his gaze through me like a bullet. "I-"

Voice shaky, Barbara interrupted, "No, Dick. Not another word. I swear to God."

I could tell she lost her control. I didn't blame her.

"I'm sorry you found out. I'm sorry this is weird for you. But you know what?! I don't care, especially if this is the biggest problem in your life right now! I don't give a shit about how you feel or how anyone else feels about the situation. Selina left Bruce a week before their wedding. I spent years in a toxic, abusive relationship, and none of you all were anywhere to be found. I turned to the one person in Gotham that I could actually trust! So, sorry that at such low points in our lives, we wanted to feel better!"

I held my breath again, and everyone fell silent once more. They looked at the ground, clearly unsure of how to respond, taking in what Barbara just said. Suddenly, the sounds of cheering rose in the crowd…

BOOM