Hello again everyone. In light of recent events in America, I've decided to post this fic before any of my BBRae Week stuff. We need a little cuteness, I think. I hope you all enjoy. I may turn this into a one shot series, but I can't say for certain yet. Stay safe everyone.
Disclaimer: Nope. No ownership, save the story. That's mine.
The titans had just gotten home from battle. It was a little tiring. Gang of baddies robbing a bank. A couple of them managed to run away, so it led to a chase across most of the town. Cyborg decided to hang out in his room when he got home. Just tinkering with a few side projects before dinner. Robin and Starfire decided they would be the ones to acquire the dinner and had left not too long ago after placing the order. They might take a little stroll through the park, as young couples are want to do, as the food was going to take some time before it would be ready.
The last two titans decided to stay in the common room. One tried watching TV, but found not a lot was on. The TV guide said one of his favorite movies would be on later, but he'd have to wait till at least after dinner before it started. The other Titan sat not too far from him, reading a book. In fact, she was sitting right next to him, though she had chosen her spot first, and he hadn't paid attention to where he would end up when he first jumped over the back of the couch to sit. Almost surprisingly, neither were really bothered by the close proximity. They were friends, after all, and were used to sitting next to each other on the couch.
Beast Boy turned off the TV because of the lack of entertaining programs and turned to look at his couch mate. Raven seemed a little distracted in her reading, though it was kinda hard to tell with her hood up. Her mouth was facing downwards, which led the young man to think she wasn't too happy about what was going on in her book. He decided it would be better to strike up a conversation than sit in boredom until the food got here.
"How's the book?" Beast Boy asked.
Marking her place with a bookmark, as she was starting to get a little annoyed with the book anyway, Raven closed it and turned her head slightly to face her companion. The slightly bored look to his eyes led her to conclude he was looking for something to pass the time. Given her current reluctance to continue her book, she decided to oblige him. Besides, sometimes Beast Boy could be genuinely interested in her activities, though he usually thought them boring. Perhaps this was one of those times.
"It's quite good actually, but I'm starting to get a little annoyed with the author." Raven answered his question.
"What about a thick book like that could get you annoyed with the author?" Beast Boy asked, genuinely curious. It wasn't often he saw her without a thick novel or tome, but it was extremely rare for her to openly admit to disliking something about such a lengthy novel. Usually, you wouldn't be able to tear her away from a book like that, so engrossed in the goings on of her books would she be.
Encouraged by his interest, Raven decides to fill him in on her current predicament, "It's just getting a little aggravating. The author won't stop talking about..."
As Raven went on, Beast Boy noticed she was still wearing her hood. It was odd, because Raven hardly wears her hood inside the tower. During combat? Of course! It was great to help intimidate bad guys and, he guessed, keeping the sun out of her eyes? But then why did she wear it at night? Whatever. Either way, she rarely, if ever wore it at home. Maybe she just forgot to take it off after the battle. Beast Boy knows if he had an outfit with a hood, he would forget to take it off. Also, it would make him feel cool. Hmm. Maybe that's why. She wanted to feel cool. Eh. Maybe he should take it off for her? It did kinda obscure her face from view. Beast Boy could see Raven's mouth moving, he even knew what she was saying, despite being distracted by her hood (she seems to be talking about the author, and how he's really good, and something about a tree). Yeah, he'll take it off. That way he can see her whole face.
It was rare for Beast Boy to take an interest in what Raven was reading. And he did seem to be interested. Her hood blocked some of her peripheral vision, but Raven could tell Beast Boy was looking at her and listening to what she had to say. Ane her book was very interesting. A classic story by a great author who really was talented when it came to storytelling, his descriptions and characterizations were well known. Unfortunately, the author sometimes fixated on describing things that were completely irrelevant to the plot or the characters. Right now, Raven's on a chapter where the author is describing a tree. Why he's describing the tree, she's not entirely sure. The main characters passed it on their quest in the last chapter and have continued on their journey, but the author is still describing this tree. She's pretty sure that by the time she finishes reading about this tree, the main characters could have finished their quest and been passing the same tree on their way home. It's when Raven's telling Beast Boy this, that his hand reaches out, lifts her hood up, back, and then let's it fall about her shoulders.
Completely forgetting what she was saying, what she was reading, Raven just blurts out an "uh..." then looks down at his hands. Sure, she hadn't thought about taking her hood off after battle, and sometimes she just liked wearing it at home, but Beast Boy had invaded her personal space, grabbed a piece of her clothing, and had basically removed it from her person.
Ok, that description taken out of context sounds bad, but it is technically what he did. Raven would almost be angry, but she turns to look at him and notices he's giving her his full attention. Beast Boy's clearly listening to what she was saying and probably just removed her hood to get a better look at her while she talked. It was a bold move from the shapeshifter for sure. Rarely anyone dared enter the empaths personal bubble. She wondered if she could do the same.
With this thought, Raven's eyes are immediately drawn back to Beast Boy's hands. His gloved hands. His gloved hands which she's never seen gloveless. His gloved hands that, maybe, she'd like to hold. If Beast Boy can be so bold as to remove her hood, maybe Raven can be bolder and remove his gloves.
Raven had been quiet for a while now. She had stopped midsentence when he pulled off her hood. Beast Boy didn't think he did anything wrong. Her hood was kinda obscuring her face and he wanted to see all of her while she talked. Beast Boy hadn't said anything for a while now either, but he was trying to determine if she was angry or not. She didn't look angry, but her face did have a little red on it now. Maybe she was embarrassed? He should apologize.
Just as Beast Boy opened his mouth to do just that, however, Raven had reached over and lifted one of his hands in hers. His eyes bugged out. What is she doing?! He thought.
Ever so gently, and with great care, one by one, Raven pulled on the fabric surrounding each finger of his left hand, until she had successfully removed his glove entirely.
If that wasn't enough to dumbfound the shapeshifter, what she did next would put him into a coma. Setting the glove aside, the empath interlaced the fingers of her right hand with his left.
It's official, Beast boy was dead. His face was burning, his eyebrows were in his hairline, his jaw was on the floor, and his eyes were so wide, for they could not believe what he was seeing.
RAVEN was HOLDING his HAND!
Slowly, his eyes traveled from their hands to her face. She was blushing hard now. Beast Boy could see the red going all the way across her face. Raven had turned her face away from him, looking straight ahead once again. Well now he just had to say something.
Raven couldn't believe she went through with it. Beast Boy wasn't saying anything. She couldn't look him in the eyes. Was he angry? Embarrassed? Raven knew she should have had a lot of emotions running through her head, but even they seemed to be silenced by her bold actions, awaiting his response. This was going to get dangerous soon with her powers if one of them didn't do SOMETHING!
"So, he's talking a lot about the tree huh?"
Why did he ask that?! That had to be the dumbest thing he could've said at that moment! But Beast Boy knew he couldn't address the hand holding. That might cause problems. Plus, he didn't want Raven to stop, so he figured going back to talking about her book was the best option. Or he hoped.
Raven turned her head back towards Beast Boy. His face was red, and his eyes were wide, but he was also smiling. Beast Boy may have been a little embarrassed, but he wasn't unhappy with her actions, at least. After making brief eye contact, both teens turned their attentions to their hands. The green on grey is fascinating to them both, so they continue to stare at their hands, if only to avoid looking in each other's eyes and increasing blushes. When Raven looked back down at their hands, she marveled at the contrast between green and gray, and decided she liked how it looked, before answering his question.
"Yes, he talks a lot about the tree, and I can't understand why. The heroes are on an important quest, and they're on a bit of a time crunch as well, but the author hasn't gone back to them for almost a whole chapter to talk about this tree. It's rather baffling." Raven answered.
"Hmm. Well maybe the author is just trying to relax you a little bit." Beast Boy replied. "Like in videogames, some games have multiple quests you can do besides the main one. Stupid stuff like baking contests or collecting all these feathers or plants or whatever. It kinda gets you a break from the pressure of the main story you know? Maybe this author is trying to do something like that."
"Wow Beast Boy, that's actually pretty insightful." Said Raven, genuinely impressed.
While both teens may still have had red cheeks, they both also had easy smiles on their faces. And as the conversation continued to flow, neither teen let go of the others hand. At least not until the others came home with dinner.
From then on, it became an unspoken rule. Whenever the two were alone, Raven would take off her hood, Beast Boy would remove his gloves, and they would hold hands while they talked. They would talk for a long time.