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Cassandra woke to a familiar blonde hovering over her. The image was in soft focus, but those bright blue eyes and that impish grin could only belong to one person. A warm glow spread through her at their proximity, and she smiled without thinking, hoping Tim’s living room was still dark enough to hide her blush.
“Good, you’re awake.” Steph pushed a pale lock behind one ear as she sat beside Cassandra on the sofa bed. “I thought you were a lighter sleeper. Guess being back in Gotham’s made you soft.”
Cassandra dropped her gaze. “Maybe.” It was hard to think; Steph was cross-legged on top of the covers, causing a dip in the thin mattress. A gravitational field that threatened to pull Cassandra close. Instead, she pushed back the blanket and pulled herself upright against the sofa, even though it meant Steph was blurry again.
That was better. She didn’t need to see the details of the soft curves of Steph’s shoulders, the way the old red tee shirt she wore as a pyjama top could not disguise the roundness of the chest underneath. Below the shirt, Steph wore black short shorts, leaving her long legs bare, and far too close for Cassandra’s heartbeat to relax.
But now Steph was leaning closer, entering Cassandra’s field of focus again, and it took all her strength to pay attention to more than those pink lips moving as Steph said, “I can see you squinting.”
Cassandra tried to draw back, but there was nowhere to go. “Forget it.”
Steph rolled her eyes, bouncing a little. “It’s not that bad to wear glasses. You might even look like Barbara.”
“Barbara isn’t Batg—Barbara isn’t Black Bat.”
“You can put prescription lenses in your mask. Or try contacts. Besides, not everything is about being a vigilante.” Steph stopped bouncing. “You could get your GED, try going to college…”
She could read and write fluently now, but the scar still ached. “I don’t think so.”
“Even Tim’s getting his GED.”
There it was. “I’m not Tim.”
Steph snorted. “I should hope not. But you know that’s not what I meant. You’re smart. Sure, you don’t like reading, but there are lots of other options, especially nowadays.”
There was only one thing she had ever wanted to be. She shrugged. “You want to change me?”
“Nah, I just want you to be happy. Bruce get you a place of your own yet?”
Suddenly, Cassandra was conscious of their haphazard surroundings. “Does Tim want me to move out?” The Robin’s Nest only had one bedroom. Sure, she could sleep anywhere, but maybe Tim was sick of her things strewn everywhere and his hot water depleted.
“No… well, that’s what I came to talk to you about.” Steph uncrossed her legs, casually laying them across Cassandra’s and leaning back on her hands as she spoke. “Tim and I…” Her face grew pink. “We’re going to get an apartment together.”
Cassandra froze.
“I’m sure he’ll mention it to Dick and Bruce soon, but I wanted you to be the first person I told. He’s also taking a break from Red Robin, at least for now—but I guess you know that.”
Cassandra nodded. Tim’s prolonged absence on patrols, even on nights they hadn’t planned to team up, had been impossible to miss.
“This will still be a base. He won’t be living here, but I’m sure he’d set it up for you if you asked.”
She nodded again, peculiarly unable to speak. Steph frowned, leaning so close that Cassandra could smell her shampoo. Then those straight white teeth peeked out as Steph bit her lip.
“Hey, you okay?”
Cassandra had to say something. Before the radiating concern transformed into a keen-eyed curiosity that was sure to unpick the heart that Cassandra had stitched up. She forced herself to form words, but couldn’t make them cheerful.
“I thought being back in Gotham would be simple.”
Steph’s expression melted, and she pulled Cassandra into a hug. “I know lots is up in the air right now, but I’ll still be here,” she promised. “I’m sorry we haven’t had much chance to chat lately—even if it’s ninety percent me talking your head off. But is there anything I can do to make it easier?”
Yes.
She’d accepted Tim’s offer of a place to stay before realising how much time Steph also spent at the Robin’s Nest, despite having an apartment of her own. Before she saw how often Steph stayed the night, not even pretending that she wasn’t sleeping in Tim’s room. Maybe Cassandra hadn’t wanted to believe that Steph and Tim had reconnected so thoroughly while she’d been in Hong Kong, reigniting the chemistry that had always been present, despite everything. Now, she was half a step behind and irrevocably stunted, unable to recognise her feelings until it was too late.
She shook her head in answer. She had already spent years wandering the world, but pride reared its wounded head inside her and made her say, “I’m thinking of travelling.”
“Yeah?” Steph smiled—politely, Cassandra thought. A good friend smiled because she thought you were doing what you wanted, even if she couldn’t agree or relate.
She nodded. Like Batman, she wanted to add, but Steph never had and never would share that unwavering faith in Batman; circumstances had made her far too jaded.
“For how long?” Steph asked.
“Maybe a few months. Maybe a year.”
“Oh.” Steph sounded crestfallen. “Well, if you won’t be in town, do you want Batgirl again? Sometimes I think it’s more your role than mine.”
“No. Batgirl is yours now. Besides… it’s good to move on. Try new things, like you said.” She, too, could make plans. “I’ll bring you a souvenir.”
“You’re squinting again,” Steph said. “Do me a favour—get your eyes checked before you go?”
It wouldn’t address the root of her lack of focus, but maybe Steph still had a point. Stopping herself from shrugging again, Cassandra said, “Okay.”