Chapter Text
“Kent. What the hell did you do to my kitchen?”
Jon startled and looked up, towards the stairs.
“Hiii,” he said with a sheepish grin, trying to scrape the remains of the burnt french toast out of Damians frying pan.
Damian walked down the stairs and over to him, looking at the charred remains, then down at the trash, then up at Jon.
“How did you burn french toast?” He asked with a laugh, stepping away to get a cup of coffee.
“It happens! I was tired and I was trying to get my coffee and then I was texting Kathy and listen, I just forgot .”
Damian snorted and shook his head. “You are, truly, a man of many talents, Jonathan.”
“Isn’t that why you keep me around?”
“Well, I kind of like to think I keep you around because you’re my friend.”
Jon set the pan down on the counter and turned to look at Damian. He was dressed for today’s outing, an outdoors fundraising event for Gotham General Hospital. The Wayne’s would be making a considerable donation, but had made it a habit in the past few years to always attend. As it was outdoors, in Gotham, during July, Damian had dressed appropriately for the weather. Or as appropriately as Damian could dress, since he refused to wear shorts. He had a pair of blue chinos, and a brown linen shirt, with his sleeves rolled up and a pair of brown, low-top sneakers. His hair was still slightly damp from his shower, and pieces were falling out of his usually swept back style.
“Awwww,” Jon cooed at him, then turned and stuck the pan in the sink to soak. “And everyone thinks you’re just some big grump."
Damian sighed, and walked away, filling up the animal’s feed bowls.
“Are you going to be ready to go in a few hours?”
“Yep! I showered last night, remember? So all I have to do is get dressed and then clean up really quick.”
“Good, good. And remember to put on some sunscreen.”
“I remember.”
They ate breakfast together in companiable silence. After a couple months "together", they'd gotten used to each other and their morning habits, especially since Jon had been spending more and more time in Gotham since spring classes ended, and his only summer class was online. Damian was a fairly quiet person, and he was even quieter in the mornings, often preferring to avoid idle chatter until after breakfast. Jon, a trained morning person, had forced himself to get used to this, and to let Damian have his peace, versus at home when his family could have three conversations in five minutes.
"When do fall classes start?" Damian asked once they had finished, picking up Jon's plate and taking it to the sink.
"Uhhhh, August . . . End of August, I don't remember the exact date."
Damian nodded in understanding, finishing his coffee and covering the coffee pot before putting it in the fridge to save the leftovers. Jon watched as he walked over to check his herbs and other various plants.
"My brothers are coming back next weekend."
Damian looked up and over at him. "Really?"
"Yup. They want to meet you."
"Do they still think we're dating seriously?"
Jon hummed in response, his chin on his hand.
"Then I do believe I can arrange that."
Jon smiled fondly at his friend. "They're coming back for my birthday."
"Oh? Really? Is that this weekend?"
"Yeeepp."
"Hmm, what day?"
"Friday, technically."
Damian nodded thoughtfully and then went about caring for his plants. Jon chuckled and got up, walking up to his room to change. At this point he'd just completely taken over Damian's guest bedroom, and had a small wardrobe of stuff he left here now, as well as some bathroom things.
He had pre-planned his outfit for today so it didn't take him long to get dressed. He pulled on a pair of light shorts and a patterned button up, leaving it untucked to give himself a more "hip" look. Then it was off to the bathroom to tame his curls and make himself presentable.
They hung out for a few hours before driving down to the park for the event. They were only an hour late, which meant they were right on time for the Wayne family. Jon had gotten used to this, despite his usually tendencies to be perfectly punctual.
"Here we are, ready to be boyfriends again?"
"Ugh, do I have to?"
Damian shook his head and smiled softly at him.
"Yes, I do believe that is your job description."
Jon chuckled, looking over and grinning at Damian, who smiled back. Something caught his eye, and Jon reached over, on impulse, and grabbing the golden chain that was mostly hidden under Damian's shirt. Damian froze but didn't bat him off as he gently pulled it out. At the end was a small medallion. It was also gold, and had a singular word, but in a language Jon didn't understand. He looked from the necklace, up to Damian, noting they were fairly close.
"What does it mean?" He asked softly.
Damian reached up, gently grabbing Jon's hand, fingers curled around his wrist. But he didn't pull his hand away, and he held steady eye contact.
"It means family," he responded, voice equally soft. "Jason got it for me, when I was little."
They sat there in the silence of the car, in the middle of the parking lot, with no one around to see them, and they just looked at each other.
And Jon tried to ignore the butterflies in his stomach.
"Paparazzi," Damian murmured, glancing sideways.
Jon looked over without turning his head and sighed, seeing the men with cameras.
"Kiss?"
Damian hummed an affirmative, and Jon leaned in the necessary inches, gently pressing their lips together.
They had kissed before, a good many times for video cameras or paparazzi or a photo shoot. Jon never paid much attention to it, it just was part of the job. It was like he had mentally turned off the idea of kissing Damian holding any significance. He certainly didn't mind kissing Damian, he was a good kisser.
They kissed for a moment before Damian pulled away, kissing Jon's forehead quickly before turning to get out of the car. Jon followed his lead, making sure he had his phone before getting out, walking over to Damian's side. Damian locked the door, then leaned into him to whisper in his ear.
"Paparazzi are the most annoying breed of media people," he murmured. "They're like . . . Raccoons. Digging through everyone else's garbage for something they consider to be good."
Jon busted out laughing, instinctively putting an arm around Damian's waist, even as he glanced up to find the paparazzi snapping more photos of them.
"Come on, let's go find your family."
They started weaving their way through the crowds, holding hands and heading in the general direction of one of the large shelters, where Damian must have spotted someone. Sure enough, once they reached the shelter, Jon recognized Dick, and his husband, Wally.
"Richard!" Damian called, lifting his hand to wave.
Dick spun around, immediately grinning. "Little D! And Jonno!"
"Hello, Dick," Jon greeted with a chuckle.
Then he noticed the kids pressed against Wally's legs.
"Well, hello there!" Damian greeted, having noticed them at the same time.
"Uncle Dami!" The girl cried, launching herself forwards to hug the man, who had released Jon's hand and crouched down for the hug.
A boy, not to be outdone by his sister, rushed forwards, hugging Damian as well and nearly knocking him down to the ground.
"Jon, these are my step-kids. Jai and Irey," Dick explained, motioning at them as they chatted animatedly with Damian. "And I believe you met Wally a few weeks ago?"
"Yes! Good to see you again, Mr. West," Jon greeted the ginger, stepping forwards to shake his hand.
Wally ignored it and hugged him. "You too, kid. How's mean ol Damian treating you?"
Jon snorted, shoving Wally's arm off his neck. "Damian's not mean or old, and he's treating me well."
"Oh ho? I think someone's attached," Dick inputted, leaning in.
"Maybe a little too attached, if you get my drift?"
Jon gawked at the couple, then shook his head rapidly.
"Stop it you two!" He laughed, going to stand beside Damian, now that he had stood back up.
As the day went on, they slowly started finding more and more of Damian's family. Selina and Talia were walking around together, both dressed in beautiful summer outfits, Bruce was busy talking with other rich people and politicians and socialising with hospital workers or blue collar workers and just in general being a Good Celebrity™. Jason was apparently in Star City, visiting his boyfriend, and Tim was floating around, sometimes hiding in out of the way places, sometimes commanding the audiences and talking like a practiced CEO.
Jon loved Damian's family. They were an eccentric bunch, and had taken some time to get used to, but now he genuinely enjoyed spending time with them. Which is how he found himself sitting with Talia, while Damian was busy pushing a bunch of kids on the merry go round.
"You're rather fond of Damian, I see?" Talia inquired, turning in her seat to face him.
"Yeah. He's . . . Your son is an amazing person, and he's become a good friend," Jon said, barely pulling his eyes off of Damian to look over at her.
He was for some reason really intrigued by watching Damian interact with kids. It seemed so natural for him, he laughed and grinned and just seemed to click with them. He looked like good dad material.
"And is he truly just a friend?" Talia continued, finally pulling Jon's attention fully to her.
"W-what?"
"I am not blind, Jonathan."
"Ma'am-" Jon started, turning to face her.
She just smiled, and somehow that cut him off completely. They sat there, looking at each other, Jon's face turning red, until he broke eye contact.
"Jonathan, you're a good man, anyone can see that, and I can tell he does truly care for you. However your relationship ends up, I'm happy for both of you," Talia told him gently, placing a hand on his shoulder.
"Thanks," he breathed out.
Talia squeezed his shoulder. "Now, I'm going to go find Bruce and make sure he's staying hydrated, I suggest you do the same for Damian, and don't forget to reapply sunscreen. Alfred gave Wally some."
Jon nodded and watched her stand up from the picnic table, then walk away. He looked back towards Damian, watching him catch the merry go round and nearly got yanked off his feet. A couple kids tumbled off, giggling and swaying, thanking him with high fives before running away to go find their parents. Damian crouched to tie a little girls shoes, glancing up as the girl chatted with him animatedly. It was so interesting to Jon that these parents, in Gotham of all places, would just let their kids run around a park freely and interact with strange adults, but the kids seemed completely at ease with Damian.
Jon didn't even know he was staring, but he was. He was watching Damian laughing and playing with these children, and he was just smiling to himself.
"Mr. Kent."
Jon nearly startled out of his skin, whipping around to see who had spoken to him, and barely hiding a scowl when he recognized a reporter. Vicki Vale, if he remembered correctly.
"Hello?"
"Vicki Vale." So he was right. "I was wondering if we could have a little chat?"
Jon sighed, glancing down at his empty lemonade cup. "No, sorry, I need to go talk to Damian."
"It'll just be a few minutes!" Vicki assured him quickly. "A quick exclusive."
"Ma'am, I'm the son of Lois Lane and Clark Kent, don't ever assume I can be fooled by a reporters "a few minutes"."
Vicki scowled at him.
"Ah! Ms. Vale, is there anything we can help you with?"
Both Vicki and Jon startled, looking up to see Damian approaching.
"Oh, Mr. Wayne. . . " She looked between Damian and Jon. "No, I was just saying hello to Mr. Kent here. You'll say hi to your parents for me?"
Jon hummed a confirmation that really meant "never in my life". Damian raced an eyebrow as he sat behind Jon, sliding his arms around Jon's waist, and resting his chin on his shoulder.
"I'm sure you were, Ms. Vale."
She didn't hide her scowl this time. "Have a good day, Mr. Wayne."
"And you, Ms. Vale."
Jon watched Vicki all but storm off.
"She's just a basket of peaches, ain't she?'
Damian snorted softly. "What does that mean?"
"I dunno, just something my grandma used to say."
Damian hummed, and Jon found himself relaxing back against his chest, putting his weight on the other man.
"So what did she want, really?"
"A quick exclusive."
"Oh of course."
"Yeah. Hey have you been staying hydrated?"
Damian reached over and picked up his water bottle, shaking it to show that it was mostly empty.
"Good."
Jon tilted his head up to look at Damian, and with a soft smile, the other man ducked his head and kissed Jon's cheek. Then they just sat there, looking at each other.
"Okay! Everyone, thank you so much for coming! We're going to go ahead and do our door prizes and raffle tickets!"
Jon looked away, over towards the stage where the announcement had come from.
"Should we go to that?"
"I don't have any reason to."
"Okay."
So Jon didn't move. He just pulled out his phone, snapped a few cute photos of them, and then set about posting to Instagram. Damian didn't speak, but he didn't move or loosen his hold, so Jon didn't make any effort to leave. Besides he was comfortable.
He was comfortable with Damian.
"Hey, there you two are. Jon, Talia says you need to reapply sunscreen."
Jon looked up as Tim walked over, pulling a container of their eco friendly sunscreen out of his pocket and passing it over.
"Man, your mom is just peak mom, isn't she?" Jon asked, looking up at Damian before sitting up.
He didn't see the silent exchange that passed between the two brothers.
"She cares about you," Damian told him softly.
Jon quickly reapplied sunscreen to his exposed skin before passing the container back to Tim. He turned to Damian, who chuckled, and reached up, smoothing a line of sunscreen out, right by Jon's nose.
"Oh thanks."
"Bruce wanted to know if you two were coming out for dinner?"
Jon couldn't help it, he just snorted, smirking.
"What?" Damian asked, eyebrow raising.
"Nothing nothing."
"Jonathan."
"It's just- I came out years ago, Tim-"
Tim groaned and rolled his eyes. "You dork."
Jon snickered, turning to grin at Damian, who rolled his eyes, but was smiling.
"Anyway, yes, we will come to the manor for dinner," Damian confirmed, reaching up to hook an arm around Jon's waist and pull him back again.
"Okay, cool. Six thirty, as usual."
"Right."
Tim eyed them for a moment before turning and walking off.
The rest of the day at the park was rather fun. Eventually some fun and games type things started, Jon beat the Wayne's at Cornhole, with Wally's help (they dubbed themselves team Midwest). Then he spent some time playing with Jai and Irey, and by five, he was all but stumbling back to Damian, tired, but grinning happily.
"Are you ready to go, beloved?" Damian asked, turning away from the group of middle-aged adults he had been chatting with.
"Yeah, it's hot."
Damian smiled softly, slipping an arm around Jon.
"If you'll excuse me, I think I should get my boyfriend back home before he gets overheated."
Jon stood there as Damian said goodbye to everyone, then he let himself be led away.
"Do you want to go back to my apartment and change before we go to the Manor?"
"Please," Jon practically begged, nodding with a smile.
Damian nodded, and once they were in the car with the engine running, he pulled out his phone, presumably to text a family member that they were leaving. They started driving back through town, to his apartment building, and Jon was doing his best not to fall asleep. Once they got back, he went and showered quickly, then changed into jeans and a t-shirt, grabbing a hoodie before walking back downstairs. Damian was sat on the sofa, looking at his phone, and Jon just walked right over.
He couldn’t tell you why he did it, but he just plopped down next to Damian, leaning into him.
“Tired?” Damian inquired, looking down at him as he set his phone down.
“A little. The heat kind of takes it out of ya.”
Damian hummed in agreement, adjusting so his arm was around Jon. “We have a little bit if you want to take a quick nap.”
“Naw, I don’t want to make us late.”
“Shh, nap,” Damian insisted, smiling softly at him.
“Okay okay fine, but don’t let me sleep too long.”
Jon shifted a bit to get comfortable, before closing his eyes. Yep, he was fully intending to nap on Damian, and who was going to stop him.
True to his nature, he fell asleep pretty quickly, and when he woke up, He was practically laying fully against Damian’s chest, and he could feel Damian gently playing with his hair. He inhaled deeply, and adjusted slightly, but otherwise made no effort to move.
“Are you awake?” Damian asked, speaking very softly, practically whispering.
“Yeah, what time is it?”
“Six twenty.”
“What time were we supposed to be at your parents?”
Jon pushed away just enough to rub at his eyes, then tilted his head up to look at Damian, who had his head tilted slightly to look at him better.
“Six thirty.”
“Ah fuck!” Jon exclaimed, sitting up quickly. “I’m sorry! You should’ve woken me up!”
Damian just smiled and shook his head, reaching out to push Jon’s hair back.
“I was content to let you sleep.”
“Yeah but your family!”
“It’s not the first time I’ve been late to something, and it certainly won’t be the last time.”
Jon scowled at him. They weren’t that far apart, maybe just a foot, but Damian wasn’t speaking, just smiling softly, and Jon felt that familiar fluttering in his chest. Neither of them were looking away.
“Um-”
“Can I kiss you?” Damian asked softly, reaching up and gently cupping Jon’s face.
Jon nodded, licking his lips. Damian leaned in and gently pressed their lips together. Jon immediately relaxed into him, eyes sliding close. It was familiar, kissing Damian, but this kiss seemed entirely different then their camera kisses. This one was tender and timid and hopeful. And Jon never wanted to end it.
But Damian pulled away, giving him a slightly wary look. Jon just smiled, moving a hand up to Damian’s arm.
Then his phone started ringing.
Jon startled, yanking back, looking for the offending device. Damian just sighed and picked his phone up from the sofa beside him, and then leaned away, answering it.
“Yes, Grayson?”
“Hey I thought you two were coming for dinner?” Jon could hear Dick through the phone.
“We are.”
“Uhm. It’s almost six-thirty?”
Damian made eye contact with Jon before speaking. “I thought Tim said seven?”
“When have we ever eaten at seven?”
“Ah shit, I’m sorry, I really thought it was later, we’ll get ready and leave now.”
“. . . Yeah, Okay. See you in a bit, little D.”
Damian hung up and set the phone down.
“Why did you lie?”
“Because he doesn’t need to know the truth.”
Jon just shook his head, sitting up properly, and rubbing his eyes again.
“Come on, let’s go, can’t be late again!”
Damian hopped up and headed towards the stairs. Jon twisted to watch him walk away, but stayed silent, thinking about that kiss.
The kiss he had greatly enjoyed.
The realization hit him like a truck. He wanted this. He wanted to live with Damian, he wanted to wake up next to Damian, he wanted to kiss him and cuddle with him and walk around holding hands, and have it be real. He had gotten to fake date Damian for three months now, and now he wanted to real date Damian. And he wasn’t sure if that was a problem or not.
He didn’t move until Damian, having reached the top of the stairs, turned around and reminded him to get moving. He jumped up, quickly used the bathroom, and then put on a pair of sneakers, calling Titus and getting his collar and leash put on. When Damian came back down, he had swapped out his brown button down for a dark gray t-shirt.
“Ready?” He asked, grabbing his keys and wallet.
“Yep, got the dog ready too.”
The drive to the Manor was quiet, and if anything a little awkward, and Jon just tried to shove his realization down so he could focus on the evening with the Wayne’s.
When they got there, it was instantly chaos and noise, even in the front entryway they could hear the bickering. Damian shot Jon an amused look, letting Titus free. The dog ran in, barking as he went to find Ace.
"They're probably already in the dining room."
Damian kicked off his shoes at the front door, Jon hurried to follow after him, toeing off his sneakers and then rushing after Damian. He bumped their arms together. Damian looked over and smiled at him. His fingers curled around Jon's wrist, then he slid his hand down, intertwining their fingers. Jon felt his face start to hear up.
Damian dropped his hand just outside the dining room. He shot one last warm smile at Jon before pushing open the door and entering into the chaos that was family dinner with the Wayne's. At one end of the table, Jai and Irey were loudly bickering, while Tim chimed in and only chased them to argue more. Dick and Talia were deep in conversation, having to talk loud enough to hear each other over the kids, and Bruce and Selina had their heads together so they could talk. Wally was sat in the middle, looking a little dead inside.
"They made it!" Jai cried loudly, pointing.
"Oh thank god!"
"Oh shut up." Damian rolled his eyes and walked over to his usual seat, next to Talia.
"I can't believe you thought I said seven," Tim inputted, leaning around Irey to look at them.
"I just misheard you."
"Uh huh. More likely you were just distracted."
Dick gave a pointed glance at Jon who grinned sheepishly.
"Whoops."
Damian just rolled his eyes. "Listen here, you jerk."
"Well now that everyone is here, why don't we eat." Bruce easily interrupted the inevitable argument. "Jai, Irey, would you two want to help Alfred?"
The twins immediately jumped up and went running into the kitchen. Dick chuckled a bit.
"So how'd you like the picnic, Jon?"
Jon chatted idly with Damian's parents while they waited for food, talking about the picnic, about his parents, about summer classes. They each seemed to have endless questions for him, but the conversation didn't feel forced or like an interview. It was easy to talk to the three.
The actual meal portion of the evening was quiet, soft conversations floating through the room, keeping things from being awkward. Jon was fairly comfortable with the Wayne's by now, they weren't like, a second family or anything, but more like close family friends who you had known for a long time.
After dinner, they all went to the family room, and Jon and Damian got squished onto a sofa with Jai and Irey. The twins were playing a game on Wally's phone, quite intensely focused on it. Since they were sitting four people on a three person sofa, Damian and Jon were pressed together, Damian's arm up on the back of the sofa to make it a little more comfortable. And Jon? Jon ended up just leaning into Damian, accepting their current position and thriving in it.
He made eye contact with Bruce at one point, and the man just smiled at him. A smile that was knowing, and somehow relayed acceptance and permission. Bruce was okay with this. Bruce was okay with Jon pursuing Damian. Jon couldn't tell you how he knew that, but just their little exchange told him, and he knew it undoubtedly.
And that stirred up the butterflies in his stomach.
Jon wasn’t nervous. Why would he be nervous? He had no reason to be nervous at all. Definitely not that fact that his two older brothers are going to meet his fake boyfriend-who-is-kinda-not-really-fake-anymore. Nope, not nervous.
Chris had gotten in two days ago, as he had gotten a longer vacation time then Kon had been able to get. It did help that Chris worked mostly for their grandparents, but specifics. Chris’ first step had been to mock Jon ceaselessly once he had seen just how many fancy clothes he had acquired.
“God, Jon, I thought you were dating this guy, not being his sugar baby,” Chris had said, turning a smug grin towards him.
Jon had choked on his words, he reached out and slugged Chris in the shoulder hard. Chris had just laughed at him.
Kon had, unsurprisingly, reacted the same way, just even worse about the teasing, since half of Jon’s nice clothes from Damian were in his room.
“I swear, I’m surprised you guys haven’t built him a whole new closet,” Kon complained at dinner that night, motioning with his fork. “Who even needs that many clothes? Have you even worn any of them?”
“Yeah. . . I’ve worn each piece at least once, if not multiple times,” Jon countered, poking at his pork chop. Hanging out with Damian made him less interested in meat.
“Oh my god, this is it. He’s converting farm boy Jon. Hello? Do I need to reintroduce myself?” Kon asked with a slight laugh, shaking his head and leaning over to nudge Jon.
“Kon, lay off him,” Chris said, with a grin that indicated he was not about to help Jon at all. “Can’t you see the lovesick expression?”
Jon started, looking up at his brother. “Wha?”
He had started thinking about Damian, which had led to thinking about kissing Damian which had made him fully space out.
“Oh my god, you’re useless. Gay and useless.”
“Boys,” Lois said with a soft sigh, raising an eyebrow at them. “Leave your brother alone, won’t you? Did he ever tease you like this about your dates?”
Kon and Chris both loudly exclaimed yes at the same time. Lois just shook her head. Jon shrugged, grinning sheepishly at her.
He had told his mom, when he’d gotten home after the charity picnic. He had told her about his realization and about their kiss. She hadn’t seemed too surprised, but had listened politely the whole time and given him advice that seemed very simple on paper. Just be honest, she had said. Jon had laughed at her advice, because it wasn’t that easy. It was such a weird situation, all around, with having been fake dating Damian and now having fallen for him. It wasn’t as simple as just telling him the truth.
When Jon had told his brothers that Damian was coming down for the weekend, he had seen their faces light up, like hunters who had spotted their prey, and he instantly regretted telling them.
“Guys, please,” Jon implored, sighing in pre-pain.
“What, Jonno? You’re our baby brother! We’ve gotta haze the boyfriend at least a little, and besides, you’ve been dating him for what, three months now? If your two brothers are the deal breaker here, then I think there’s other things wrong.”
“I hate you both.”
“No you don’t.”
Kon, Jon’s half brother, was older than Jon by five years. He was currently living in Keystone City with his long time boyfriend, Bart Allen, where he worked as a firefighter, and Bart was trying to get a chemist degree. Kon and Jon were pretty close, all things considered, but they had drifted a bit since Jon had started college and gotten busy with that, and that was only on him. Kon was a near identical twin to Clark, other than hairstyle and clothing choices. Whereas Clark tended to dress in business or farmer boy, Kon was nothing but a stylish punk mid-twenty something.
Chris on the other hand, looked nothing like any of the family. Mostly because he wasn’t their biological family. Lois and Clark had adopted him when he was eight, Jon was six at the time. Despite their lack of DNA ties, Chris was undoubtedly their brother. He had dirty blonde hair and golden brown eyes, and a dry humor. He was quieter than the rest of the family, but make no mistake, he knows more than anyone in the house. He was currently living in Kansas with Jonathan and Martha Kent, their grandparents, helping them on the farm and doing some basic agriculture college while he was there.
Jon doesn’t really hate his brothers, he just happens to be incredibly nervous about them meeting Damian. He just doesn’t trust them.
Friday was his birthday, and for his birthday, Kon and Chris spent the day dragging him around Metropolis, to all their favorite locations, just having fun and hanging out while Lois and Clark were at work. For the most part, it was mostly just laughter and teasing, but in the afternoon, they were sitting on some swings in a park, kids laughing as they played on the other playground equipment, Kon turned to look at Jon.
“Hey, sport.”
“Hm?” Jon looked up from his phone. He had been texting Damian, predictably.
“About Damian. . . “
“Oh god, Kon, please. He’s a good guy, okay?”
“I don’t give a shit what type of a person he is. He could adopt every stray puppy he’d ever met and I wouldn’t care, okay? What I need to know is, does he make you happy?”
Jon sighed, setting his phone in his lap, turning to face Kon and look him dead in the eyes.
“He makes me really happy.”
“Do you love him?”
“I love him more than I love chili cheese dogs.”
Kon snorted slightly, glancing past Jon at Chris.
“Does he love you?” Chris asked softly.
This made Jon pause. For their cover, or for the media, he would say yes, always. But this wasn’t the media.
“I think so,” he said, just as soft, looking back at Chris.
“Have you guys ever said it?”
“No- er, well. Not in a way that wasn’t as a joke.”
Chris nodded, glancing up as a kid started crying. A mom jumped up from a picnic table under the shelterhouse and went running over to scoop her child up.
“I’m glad he makes you happy, Jon. But if he ever hurts you, I’m coming for his kneecaps.”
Jon snorted, glancing back to Kon. “Kon, come on.”
“Nope, no arguments. Chris and I will fly up to Gotham, find him, and kneecap that bitch.”
“Agreed.”
They reached across Jon to do their brother secret handshake. Jon just laughed and shoved them both away from him. Like a pendulum, they swung in and smacked into him at the same time, causing all three to groan.
“When’s he getting here?”
“He said he wouldn’t be able to leave until four at the earliest. He had meetings all day,” Jon answered, checking his phone quickly.
“Hmm, a fancy bitch.”
“What does he even do, anyway? Like, job wise?”
“Oh, he’s a model and an environmental activist. He does a lot of talks and stuff for that, and he really works with his dad’s company on their environmental projects.”
“Oh that’s cool, a model you say?”
“Kon no-”
Kon was already pulling up his phone. It wasn’t like they wouldn’t have seen photos of Damian already, but there was a difference between the photos Jon sent them or posted online, and the ones he did for his model shoots.
“Oh whoa.”
Kon leaned across Jon to show Chris a photo of Damian, one of his pride month campaign photos. He was in half drag, wearing heels and a skirt, but shirtless, a pride flag painted over his face in face chalk, some of the powder covering his chest as well.
“Oh hell yeah, we love this for him.”
Jon just groaned and hid his face in his hands.
Damian got there around six-thirty that night. Jon was in the bathroom when he came, and he wasn’t able to get out there fast enough to stop Kon from getting the door. He walked up right as Kon was saying hi.
“Hello! You must be the boyfriend,” Kon greeted, with a shark like smile. “I’m Kon, his oldest brother.”
Damian, true to his training in dealing with people, just smiled and held out his hand to Kon once he had stepped in.
“Damian Wayne, a pleasure to meet you.”
“Oh trust me, the pleasure is mine.”
This feeling that his brothers were going to be the death of him had started to settle over Jon. Luckily, Damian saw Jon standing in the doorway, and a soft smile formed on his face. The butterflies in Jon’s stomach fluttered, making themselves well known.
“Jon,” he greeted, slipping past Kon to come over and hug him.
“They don’t know,” Jon whispered in his ear, then pulled away and kissed Damian quickly.
“Happy Birthday, beloved.”
“Thank you, Dami.”
Chris, from behind Jon, cleared his throat. Jon sighed and stepped back, out of Damian’s arms, turning and pointing to him.
“And this is Chris. Chris, Damian.”
“Ah, yes, good to meet you.”
“Yeah! It’s good to finally meet the guy our brother’s been apparently dating for months now.”
“Chris!” Jon groaned, giving him a stink eye.
“He’s fine, beloved, I do believe a little hazing is appropriate, besides, I doubt anyone can match my brothers,” Damian said with a chuckle, slipping an arm around Jon’s waist.
“That’s. . . a very good point, but not a good excuse!”
Chris and Kon laughed.
“Are your parents here? I should go say hello to them too,” Damian asked, looking up to Jon.
“Yeah, mom’s in the kitchen and Dad is. . . in the office, I guess?” He looked to his brothers for confirmation and they just shrugged. Very helpful.
“Alright, I’ll be right back.”
He kissed Jon on the cheek before turning and disappearing back into the kitchen.
“You two assholes better be nice to him or I’ll never ever ever let you guys get away with anything ever again and I will show each of your significant others all of your embarrassing childhood photos,” Jon hissed, glaring at his brothers.
“Oh-ho! MOOOMMM!” Kon yelled, turning towards the kitchen. “JON SAID A BAD WORD!”
“Tattle tale!” Jon yelled back, lunging to smack Kon on the chest.
This just caused laughter, and an intense glare from Jon.
“I swear, you two. . .”
“What’s going on?”
All three of them jumped when Lois appeared in the kitchen doorway, eyebrow raised.
“Jon said a bad word!”
“Jon’s twenty, honey, I think he can say a few bad words every now and then.”
“Mom, they’re bullying my boyfriend.”
“Damian’s twenty- uh, how old are you?”
“Twenty-two,” Damian supplied from behind Lois, laughing.
“Damian is twenty-two, honey, I think he can handle your older brothers.”
All three of the boys pouted at her. Damian slipped past her, grabbing Jon’s hand and pulling him towards the door. “Come on, help me get my things from the car.”
“Okay!”
Jon quickly slipped on some shoes and followed him out, walking out to Damian’s classic, vintage car, fingers intertwined.
“Your brothers don’t know?”
“No, I didn’t tell them at first because I was worried about the secret getting out, and then it just got to the point of being too late.”
Damian hummed, pulling out his keys, unlocking the door and then reaching into the back, Jon waited politely, glancing up to see Kon and Chris standing at the window, gawking at them, and more likely, Damian’s car. Jon rolled his eyes, shifting his gaze back to Damian. He was dressed like he had just come from a business meeting, which he had. Tan slacks and a white dress shirt, a jacket had been discarded in the driver's seat.
“Jon, close your eyes.”
“Huh? Why?”
“Just trust me?”
“Fine.”
Jon squeezed his eyes closed. He heard some crinkling noises, and his curiosity only spiked higher.
“Okay, hold out your hands.”
Jon did as he was instructed. A box was pushed into his hands, something else on top of it, and that was what was causing the crinkling.
“Okay, look.”
Jon opened his eyes, looking down. Sure enough, in his hands was a box, wrapped in blue fabric, and on top of that was a bundle of flowers, sunflowers, some white roses, and some lilies.
“Oh my god, Damian!” he exclaimed, shifting the box to one hand so he could pick up the flowers and look at them closer.
Damian chuckled. “A good choice then?”
“They’re gorgeous!”
He set the box on the top of the car, and without really even thinking about it, he stepped in, slipping an arm over Damian’s shoulders, and leaned in and kissed him. Damian froze for a moment before his hands landed on Jon’s waist and he pressed back. Jon’s butterflies roared to life louder than ever, because yep, they were kissing for real this time. He let himself lean back against the car, his other arm still holding onto the flowers coming up over Damian’s other shoulder, keeping him in close, and Damian didn’t even try to resist. Damian was eagerly kissing him back.
This went on for a bit longer before Damian pulled away, smiling. He spoke softly, eyes meeting Jon’s. “Happy Birthday, again, Jon.”
“Thank you.” Jon whispered back, equally soft.
Damian’s eyes slipped off of him, looking at the house behind him, and an amused smirk slid onto his face.
“Oh god, what are they doing?”
“Making vaguely threatening, or disgusted expressions at me.”
“I hate them.”
“No you don’t. I’ve heard you talk about them too much to believe that.”
“Shh, you can’t tell them that, it’ll go to their heads.”
Damian laughed, looking back at Jon. “Can I?”
Jon nodded. Damian leaned in, gently kissing him once more before pulling away and stepping back. He turned and grabbed a backpack out of his car before shutting and locking the door.
“You know you don’t have to lock your car, right? We live in the middle of nowhere.”
“Jon, I lock my car on my father’s fenced and gated property with high security. I’m going to lock my car at your farmhouse in the middle of nowhere too.”
“Alright, alright, fine!” Jon laughed, bumping into him. “You can go put your stuff in my room.”
“I’ll see if I remember the way.”
While Damian disappeared upstairs, Jon left the wrapped present in the living room, then headed to the kitchen.
“Oh my god, did he get you those?” Lois exclaimed, turning from where she was finishing up dinner.
“Yes!”
“Oh that is so sweet!” Lois exclaimed, smiling at Jon knowingly.
“Yeah! They’re so gorgeous!”
Lois gave him a ball jar, and he quickly trimmed and arranged the flowers. He’d take them upstairs to his room later, but for now they could sit in the kitchen and look pretty.
It took a while to finally rope everyone together to sit at the table and eat. Jon had specially requested vegetarian enchiladas - because he was a sap and wanted Damian to be able to eat the same thing as them - and Lois had obliged, figuring out the best recipe and spending last night prepping it, so that the moment she got home from work she could put everything together and shove them in the oven.
Surprisingly, Kon and Chris didn’t even realize it was vegetarian until Damian brought it up, and then they were both shocked, and as it seemed, fake betrayed. But it was quite the conversation starter for Damian to talk about what exactly he did, as an environmental activist. Despite his worries, it seemed like Kon and Chris settled pretty quickly, talking to Damian like normal people, instead of just harassing him constantly.
The whole family sang happy birthday to Jon before he was allowed to blow out candles, all twenty of them, and then they had cake and ice cream, sitting in the living room and chatting. Jon was sitting tucked up underneath Damian’s arm, and honestly he couldn’t be happier.
“Okay! It’s presents time!” Chris exclaimed jumping up.
There was a small collection of presents by the TV, Chris grabbed a couple and brought them over to Jon, who straightened, sitting up from under Damian’s arm. He accepted the gifts from Chris, who brought the others over to sit by his feet. There was five total.
Presents were mostly interrupted by hazing from his brothers, and Damian being a distraction, and Lois wanting pictures.
In the end, his parents had gotten him two gifts. The first being a new backpack, which was much needed, and the second being an old Polaroid camera, complete with a couple roles of film. Jon was so excited by the camera that it had to be taken from him so he'd finish unwrapping presents.
Kon had gotten him this large round stuffed seal that was so incredibly squishy and soft. Kon joked that it could be his cuddle buddy when Damian isn't around. And Chris had gotten him The Song of Achilles which he and Jon had talked about a few times, and Jon was excited to be able to read.
Damian's gift, however, had been unexpected. He carefully slipped the box out of the fabric it had been wrapped in, which Damian was quick to reclaim, probably for future use, and then carefully opened the box. It was a fairly flat but long box, and he reached inside, feeling the edge of a picture frame. He looked up and raised an eyebrow at Damian, who just grinned back.
"What did you do?" Jon asked, starting to pull it out.
"Well . . . I figured I'd already bought you so much, I'd give you something money couldn't buy."
Jon had just pulled the picture out and turned it to face him. Immediately his mouth fell open.
"Oh god, Damian!"
The picture was actually watercolor painting. In the painting, it showed a scene of Damian's living room, Jon sat on the floor, Titus' big head in his lap, and Damian on the sofa above him, and slightly to the left, Pennyworth curled up in his arms. It was an absolutely gorgeous painting, all the colors blended beautifully, and the shapes and scenery, everything was gorgeous.
"Damian," Jon whispered, looking up at him.
Damian grinned, reaching over and tapping the back. Jon flipped it over and found a note taped to the back of the picture frame. He took it off, unfolding it and reading it.
Jonathan,
I hope this gift can express what I can't seem too. I've been left, wordless, hoping that you understood. This painting is more of a dream, then a capture of any real situation. A dream of the future. Of our future, if I'm lucky.
Sincerely yours,
Damian
Jon sat there looking at the note for a moment. Then he gently set the painting down on the floor, turned to Damian and hugged him tightly.
"Thank you so much," Jon murmured softly, squeezing his eyes shut.
Damian chuckled softly. "Of course, beloved."
"What is it?" Lois asked, pulling Jon's attention away.
Jon pulled away, leaving the note next to Damian as he stood and showed his family the painting. They all cooed over it and praised Damian for how beautiful it looked. Damian just smiled and shrugged, downplaying his artistic talent like he always does.
"Oh stop it!" Jon said, coming over and sitting next to him, pushing his squishy seal aside so he could, looking over at him.
"Stop what?"
"You're an amazing artist, and I wish you'd just let us praise you." Jon pouted slightly at him.
"I'm nothing compared to Umi."
"Damian."
Damian just grinned in response. They were so close, sitting how they were, and Jon couldn't resist. He leaned in and gently pecked Damian's lips.
"Just accept it, okay?"
"Mm, okay."
They smiled at each other, and Damian kissed him softly again.
"Okay, gross!!" Kon yelled, throwing a wad of wrapping paper at them and hitting Jon in the back of the head.
"Hey!" Jon turned and quickly retaliated, throwing it back.
A full out wrapping paper war started after that, balls being thrown back and forth by the brothers, while Damian, Lois and Clark just watched and laughed.
"Okay, boys, time to get this all cleaned up!" Lois announced after a bit, when Jon was pinned under Kon, being tickled.
"Aww, but mom!" Chris complained, about to shove a pillow on Jon's face to smother him.
Jon looked over at Damian, with a pleading expression. Damian just laughed at him, snapping a picture.
"Ass!" Jon exclaimed.
Eventually Kon let him up, and Jon scrambled off the floor, pushing at Kon as he got up. They spent a few minutes cleaning up, then Jon ran his presents up to his room, setting the painting from Damian on his desk until he could get it hung up. When he came back down, Damian was missing.
"Where'd he go?"
"He stepped outside to take a call," Lois said. "Jon can you come here for a second?"
Jon gave his brothers the "uh oh am I in trouble" look, but followed her into the kitchen. She turned to him, and then spoke softly.
"Did you talk to him?" She whispered.
"No, not yet."
"Really? You could've fooled me, you two are all over each other."
"Mom!"
"Listen, I'm just." She sighed, reaching out and putting a hand on her arm. "You two seem happy together."
Jon smiled slightly. "I am happy."
"Good."
Jon looked up as he heard the front door shut. "I should go keep Kon and Chris from quizzing him about his entire life."
"Probably. And you know they're only doing that to get under your skin."
"Yeah I know."
Jon grinned at her before walking out, finding Damian sitting back on the sofa, looking at his phone.
"What was that about?"
"Hm? Oh, it was just Colin, he's watching the pets while I'm gone."
Jon hummed, sitting next to him. They ended up watching a few movies, and then around ten, Damian stood.
"I need to be getting to bed," he announced. "Good night everyone, Jon."
"Mm, night, I'll be up in a bit."
Jon squeezed his hand as he walked past, then watched him walk away and up the stairs, his family calling good night as he left.
"He goes to bed early."
"Yeah, he likes to keep a good sleep schedule."
"Boooo," Kon called softly. Jon just snorted and rolled his eyes.
"Naw it's actually pretty nice, it makes me go to bed earlier too."
They both gagged, and Jon felt his face heat up a bit. That hadn't been what he had meant to imply, but it was too late now. He shot Lois an embarrassed look and she just laughed at him.
When Jon finally got to bed - which wasn't until nearly midnight - he had to sneak his way into the room, not going in until he had fully gotten ready for bed. He slipped through the door, gently shutting it behind him and then quietly pulling sleep clothes out from his dresser and changing. He quietly snuck over to the bed, and was plugging in his phone when the realization hit him.
Damian was here. In his house. In his bed.
He stopped and looked up, at Damian, just looking at him. He was asleep on his back, one arm on his stomach, the other on top of the sheets, towards Jon. He looked so peaceful. Jon just smiled and set down his phone, carefully sliding under the covers next to him. And then he tried to make himself go to sleep, only it wasn't working too well.
He just laid awake, thinking about Damian, thinking about their relationship, and trying to stay as still as possible.
And then suddenly it was the next morning and he was waking up to light shining through the curtains and Damian on his phone next to him. Jon just smiled and let his eyes close again. This felt right.
"Morning," he spoke after a few minutes of just laying there.
Damian looked over and smiled at him. "Good morning."
Jon rolled onto his back and stretched, then reached for his phone.
"Sleep well?" Damian asked, setting his own device aside.
"Yeah! You?"
"Mm, slept pretty well. Though I think I might have gotten woken up by someone blundering around the room. . ."
"Oops, sorry," Jon grinned sheepishly at him.
"You're fine, I'm teasing."
Jon looked over and they grinned at each other. Silence fell over them as Jon looked through his notifications, clearing each of them, getting caught up on his online life. Then he set his phone down and rolled onto his side to face Damian.
"Hey about the painting. . ."
"Oh?" Damian looked over, eyebrow raised. His face read curiosity, but his eyes betrayed his nervousness.
"And specifically the note."
Damian's eyebrow just arched. Jon pushed up on his arms and moved so he was over Damian.
"I want that."
It took a moment, then a grin stretched across his face.
"I'm glad."
"Yeah?"
"Yeah."
Damian leaned up and kissed Jon softly, and Jon couldn't be happier to press back, then he pulled back, grinning mischievously.
"Jon, I'm sorry, but we have to break up," Damian said, his tone of voice indicating he was joking.
"Oh?" Jon asked, eyebrow raising even as his stomach fluttered with nervousness.
"Yes. I don't think this fake dating thing will work anymore."
Jon snorted softly. "Alright."
Damian waited a second, that huge grin still on his face.
"Jon?"
"Yes Damian?"
"Now that I'm a free man, will you date me? Properly this time?"
Jon just laughed, falling to the bed beside Damian, who was also now laughing.
"God you're a dork," Jon managed to get out.
"Is that a no?"
"Pftt, shut up!"
Damian sat up to look at him, and Jon just shook his head fondly.
"Yes, I'll date you."
"Amazing. Fantastic. Brilliant."
Jon laughed as Damian leaned down to kiss his forehead.
"But I want the dog in the divorce."
"Never in a million years."
Jon was excited. It had been nearly three weeks since he'd seen Damian, and that had been on his birthday.
Damian had ended up going on a trip with Talia to Europe to attend some conservation summit thing. They had been gone for a week and a half, and as much as Jon enjoyed face timing and getting a whole spam of photos, he missed Damian. They had just started dating for real, and then Damian leaves. They hadn't gotten much time as actual boyfriends.
But now Damian was home, and Jon was going down to spend the week at his apartment. He packed up all his things that he'd need for the week, said goodbye to his parents and drove up to Gotham. At this point he knew all the codes to get up to Damian's apartment by memory, and he even had his own key into the apartment. So he let himself in, dropping his bag by the door and looking around the apartment.
It didn't seem that Damian was there, which made Jon's spirits drop a bit, but the lack of Titus led him to believe that the man had just taken the dog out for a walk. So he ran his bag up to his room, located Pennyworth, and scooped the cat up, going and plopping on the sofa, petting him as he watched a video on his phone, waiting for Damian.
The door started unlocking, and Jon got a wicked idea. He pulled Pennyworth to his chest, and laid flat on the couch, waiting. He heard the door open, Damian talking to Titus, and then the dog came running towards his bed. He had gotten laid down on his bed before he saw Jon, and that only caused him to bark and jump up again.
"Titus, shush," Damian scolded.
Titus came running towards Jon, wagging and whining happily.
"Titus, what is wrong with you?"
Jon stoically held his ground even as Titus licked his face aggressively. Damian's face came into view over the sofa, and immediately it lit up.
"Jonathan!"
"Hi," Jon said with a grin, pushing Titus' face away from him and sitting up.
"When did you get here?!"
Damian hurried around the sofa, sitting on the edge by Jon's hip.
"Just like 5 minutes ago."
"Oh! We just missed each other then."
"Yeah, that's what I thought too."
They grinned at each other for a moment, then Jon reached up with the hem of his shirt and wiped his face clean.
"Oh, I'm sorry, Titus is slobbery."
"Noo don't apologize, I love our slobbery boy."
Jon turned to look at Titus, cooing at him.
"Hmm, our boy?"
"Yep, ours."
Jon looked back at Damian, who was smiling softly at him, they just looked at each other.
"What?" Jon asked.
"Nothing, I just missed you."
Jon grinned and leaned forwards, slipping his arms around Damian and hugging him. They leaned into each other, holding the other person up while taking them in.
Damian was warm from walking outside, but he wasn't hot or sweaty. Jon could feel his muscles under his t-shirt, and he could smell his oat and honey shampoo. Being in Damian's arms was nice, it was safe and welcoming. And he never realized how much he wanted this until now.
"How was your trip?"
"It was good."
Damian pulled away, he slid his hands up from Jon's back to cup his face, thumb rubbing gently along his cheekbone.
"Can I kiss you?"
Jon nodded eagerly and then didn't wait, leaning in and kissing Damian. Damian pressed back eagerly, arms sliding over Jon's shoulders, melting into the kiss until it was soft and sweet. Jon pulled away to grin at Damian.
"I don't think I'm ever going to get over this."
"I certainly hope you never do."
Jon giggled slightly. "Okay, but seriously! I want to know about your trip!"
They settled next to each other on the sofa and Damian spent the next thirty minutes telling him all about his week in Europe, and all the places he had stayed. Jon listened intently. He loved listening to Damian talk, his voice was smooth and his accent never ceases to capture his attention.
"Anyways, enough about me. What did you do while I was gone?"
"Oh, not a lot, I guess? I hung out with friends, played a lot of video games, watched a few movies, did my summer classes."
Damian chuckled, shaking his head. "Busy guy, huh?"
"Just running around crazy," Jon joked back.
Damian laughed and leaned forwards to kiss his forehead.
"Do you want to go out to dinner tonight?"
"Sure!" Jon gasped slightly. "Our first official date!"
"It is, isn't it!"
They did indeed go out that night, but to a small local thai restaurant, instead of anywhere big. It was an amazing date, and Jon couldn't stop grinning the whole time. They spent that evening watching bad reality tv and throwing popcorn at each other and Titus.
The next week together was amazing, if a little awkward. They were going from being fairly good friends to now being official boyfriends. There were new boundaries to make and lines to make, and figuring out where those boundaries were was a bit of a messy process. But Jon often caught Damian staring at him with this love struck expression, and frankly it was the cutest thing he'd ever seen.
"When did you realize?" Jon asked randomly, Wednesday evening.
Damian was in the middle of cooking, something he said Talia used to make when he was little.
"Realize what?" Damian asked, glancing back from where he was checking the rice.
"That you . . . Ya know."
"Oh, when did I realize I had feelings for you?"
Jon nodded. Damian shrugged and moved back to the stove, returning to sauteing kale.
"I think it was more of a gradual thing for me. I started getting more and more excited every time I got to see you, as well as trying to come up with excuses to see you more often," Damian explained, speaking softly. "And then one day I realized, and it all made sense."
Jon hummed, watching him move around, getting bowls out.
"What about you?"
"Oh, I just realized randomly one day, and it was suddenly really obvious, my feelings for you, I mean."
Damian shot him a smile. Jon stood and walked over, slipping his arms around Damian's waist while he plated their food. Damian immediately leaned back into him, but didn't stop.
"God that smells good, what is it?"
"Mujadara. I hope you like it, it's been a comfort food of mine for ages."
"I'm sure I'll love it."
Jon kissed Damian's cheek and then took the bowls, walking away to the table.
"I have that shoot tomorrow, do you want to come with?"
"Oh, sure! Am I allowed to?"
"If I want you there then you can be anywhere you want."
Jon laughed and grinned at him.
After dinner, they took Titus for a walk, walking around the block, holding hands. Upon returning home, Titus ran into the apartment, ran straight to his bed in the corner of the living room, and immediately curled up to pass out. Damian chuckled at him.
“I love dogs,” Jon remarked, kicking his shoes off by the door.
“They do make good companions.”
“Yeah. You wanna go change and meet back here for a movie, or did you have other plans?"
Damian shook his head. “A movie sounds amazing.”
Jon grinned and turned, jogging up the stairs and quickly changing, old sweats and a comfy t-shirt, then he headed back down, going to the kitchen to find movie snacks. He managed to produce a trail mix and had just dumped a bunch of it into a bowl when Damian came back down. He was wearing a pair of sleep pants and a hoodie, and went to grab the tv remote.
“What are you fancying?”
They bickered over movies for nearly twenty minutes before settling on a movie, Jon's pick. He knew romance movies weren't necessarily Damian's thing, but look, Crazy Rich Asians is a good movie.
It took them about twenty minutes before Jon was curled up against Damian's side, their bowl of snacks sat in his lap, munching on it occasionally. Cuddling had been slowly becoming a thing for them, and Jon was living for it.
"Jon," Damian murmured randomly, voice loud in Jon's ear, despite the low tone he'd spoken in.
Jon looked up and found Damian was already looking down at him.
"What?" He asked softly, meeting his eyes.
Damian didn't respond, just gently pressed their lips together, setting their snacks down on the coffee table, pushing into Jon a little more as he shifted positions. Jon found himself eagerly kissing Damian back, easily moving with him until he was laying flat on the sofa, Damian over him, locked in a deep kiss.
"You know, I seem to remember a no kissing rule," Damian said, pulling away just slightly, grinning at Jon.
Jon huffed a little laugh, reaching up to push at Damian's face slightly, then immediately give up and gently caressed his cheek.
"I changed my mind."
He leaned up and softly pecked Damian's lips.
Damian grinned at him. "I'm glad."
Neither of them seem inclined to move, but they didn't start kissing either.
After a moment, Damian sat back up, and Jon readjusted to be laying against his chest, mostly between his legs, as they watched the rest of the movie.
“We should go to bed,” Jon suggested after the movie ended, sitting up and looking over at Damian.
He was already asleep.
Jon snorted softly, gently pushing on Damian’s knee.
“Damian, Damian, come on, you gotta go to bed.”
“Huh?”
Jon laughed when Damian pulled an eye open, then groaned and stretched, reaching out and grabbing Jon, tugging on him.
“ ‘Mere.”
“Damian,” Jon laughed softly, but let himself be pulled against his chest.
“Lets just sleep here,” Damian mumbled, burying his nose into Jon’s hair.
“Damian-”
He hummed softly, a gentle hum that indicated a question.
“Come on, we gotta sleep in our beds.”
Damian was silent for a moment, rubbing a hand up and down Jon’s arm.
“Come sleep with me.”
Jon froze. It took Damian a moment before he rushed to explain.
“Wait- no- I meant. . .” Damian sighed, stopping. “Never mind.”
They were silent for a bit.
“Do- if you just wanted me to come to sleep. . . then I’ll come.”
Damian perked up immediately, like an excited little puppy. “Really?”
“Yeah, let me go get ready for bed.”
They got up, and Jon headed upstairs, while Damian walked around, putting things up and turning off lights. Jon had butterflies in his stomach. Not only would he be going into Damian’s bedroom for literally the first time since they’d started “dating”, but he’d also be spending the night with him. Which Damian had specifically requested.
He was excited, and nervous.
Instead of grabbing his phone charger, he just plugged his phone in and left it in his room. He quickly brushed his teeth and took out his contacts. Once he was done washing his face and getting ready for bed, he made his way over to Damian's room, pushing the ajar door open all the way, clutching his pillow to his chest.
A yellow lamp light was filling the room, and Jon took a moment to look around. The walls were a soft green, the furniture either white or a warm brown stain wood. There were a couple plants scattered around, and it gave a neat, minimalist vibe. There was a dog bed in the corner by the window, which Titus had already curled up on, and Pennyworth had made his spot on the window bench.
“Hey,” Jon said softly to Damian, who was sitting on the edge of the bed, looking at his phone.
“Ah, ready?” Damian asked, reaching up to rub his face, and setting his phone down on a bedside table.
“Yeah.”
Jon walked over to the opposite side of the bed, pushing back the sheets and the duvet, then setting his pillow down. He hesitated a moment. Usually he slept without pants, but he didn’t really think this was a good time for that. So he just crawled into Damian's bed and pulled the sheets up to his chest.
His bed was really comfortable, and the sheets were really soft.
Damian laid down next to him, leaving the light on, turning to face him. They just laid there and looked at each other, and Jon couldn’t ignore how his heart was pounding.
“Good night, Jon.”
“Night, Dami.”
Damian was turning to turn off the light, and Jon reached out, grabbing his arm.
“Do you want-” he hesitated, feeling nervousness bubble up in his throat. “Is it okay if I. . . “
Damian smiled. “That is why I asked you to come.”
Jon grinned slightly, and once Damian had flicked off the lamp and settled back down, Jon adjusted, moving so his back was to Damian. Damian just pressed up against him, an arm around Jon’s stomach, holding him close as they shifted to get comfortable, spooned together.
As compared to the last time they'd shared a bed, Jon drifted off easily, safe and happy in Damian's arms.
The next morning when he woke up, he was clearly alone in bed. Silence hung in the air around him, it felt like even the building itself was keeping itself quiet so he could sleep. He laid in bed and stared at the closed curtains for a bit, just thinking.
His mind was so preoccupied with thinking about Damian, and about their relationship, that he didn’t notice the door opening. He did however, hear it click shut. He looked over to find Damian shutting the door, looking like he had just come back from walking Titus.
“Oh, good morning,” he said with a soft smile, walking over.
“Hi,” Jon mumbled, stretching and turning to face him fully.
“Did you just wake up?”
“A few minutes ago.”
Damian grinned and pulled back the covers, getting back into bed, laying on his side to face Jon.
“How did you sleep?”
“I slept good. Your bed is comfy."
"That it is."
Damian reached out to brush Jon’s hair, then let his hand slip down to gently caress his cheek, smiling fondly.
"What about you?"
"Well I woke up with an arm that was dead asleep, but I think I slept well."
"Oh, oops," Jon said with a sheepish chuckle.
Damian just laughed. “I’ve got coffee going, what would you like for breakfast?”
“I dunno.”
Damian snorted softly, leaning over and kissing Jon’s cheek.
“I’ll see if I can find a recipe for that. Stay in bed as long as you’d like.”
Damian stood back up and walked out of the room, and Jon just laid there staring at the ceiling for a few moments. Then he sat up and looked around the room. Usually he'd stay in bed for a while, just looking at his phone, but his phone was in the other room. So he got up and walked across the balcony hallway to get to his room and get his phone.
"Hey, Jon!"
Jon walked back to the doorway, looking out over the rail towards Damian.
"What?"
"Don't forget you were going to come with me to that shoot!"
"Oh, shit, right! How long till breakfast?"
"Long enough to take a shower if that's what you want."
Jon gave him a thumbs up before quickly getting his things and hopping in the shower, shamelessly stealing Damian's products. Boyfriend privileges, right?
When he got downstairs, hair wet and curly once more, Damian had made them fancy oatmeal. They ate at the breakfast bar, Jon just quietly answering texts while he ate, and Damian reading a book. A nice peaceful morning. Jon was learning to love them.
When they got to the studio that morning, Jon had this sudden realization that he'd never been in a professional photo studio like this before. He'd been in some smaller ones, but nothing this big. There were huge background rolls all along the walls of the main studio room, big box lights and fans set around, and what Jon could only imagine was thousands of dollars worth of camera equipment. And despite all the time he had spent with Damian around the social elite, he felt so out of place.
"Ah! There he is, Damian darling, how are you!?"
Jon looked up as a person with a very distinct German accent called their attention over.
"Luka." Damian smiled and walked over to a man who was sat in front of a laptop, a camera set on the table next to him.
Luka stood and quickly hugged Damian.
"I'm doing well. Luka, this is my boyfriend, Jonathan Kent."
Luka looked over. He had vibrant pink hair and warm brown eyes. He immediately grinned, flashing white teeth as he held out his hand.
"Jon, so good to meet you! I've heard a lot about you! I'm Luka, I work with the Wayne family a lot."
Jon shook his hand with a smile.
"It's good to meet you too!"
"Okay, Damian, I need you to go get into makeup and outfit, I've got a few picked out for today."
"Alright. Come along, beloved."
Damian snagged Jon's hand and dragged him away through another door, which led into what was clearly a dressing room of sorts, with a couple make up stations and floor to ceiling mirrors on either end of the room.
Damian was eagerly greeted by a few people who had him sit down and started fussing over him, starting to get him into makeup. Jon stood to the side and watched, listening to the four of them chatter together. It only took about five minutes for one of them to focus on him.
"Oh! And who's this handsome young man?" An older woman asked, walking over to him and grabbing his hands.
"That is my boyfriend, Jonathan," Damian said, smiling at Jon in the reflection of the mirror.
"Oh come here, honey. If I know Luka, he'll want photos."
So Jon got plopped down in a makeup chair and found himself being made to look nice. Damian just shot him a mischievous grin, and Jon suddenly had the feeling he had planned this.
The rest of the day was compromised of Jon watching Damian get photos taken, change outfits, take some more photos, then, go change again. He really was quite natural in front of the camera, but then again, Jon supposed he's been doing this for years.
And sure enough, there was one point that Lukas grabbed Jon, and pulled him into the dressing room. He was given a new shirt and a jacket to wear over it, as well as a different pair of sneakers, and then he was dragged out and shoved in front of the camera with Damian.
"Well don't you look handsome," Damian said with a grin, pulling him in for a quick kiss. "Ever modeled before?"
"Uh, does Kathy count?"
Damian laughed. "Close enough. Just follow my lead."
The photo shoot with Damian was really quite fun, and once he got into it, it wasn't that hard. Luka was really good at instructing them in poses, and getting Jon to laugh when necessary, or sober up when he needed to look serious.
Once they had changed back into street clothes, Luka gave them a sneak peak of some of the photos, and then sent them off into the world.
"We have time for a late lunch, if you want?" Damian asked, looking at his phone for the time as they walked to his car.
"Anywhere you wanna go, I'll gladly come."
"Oh? Even if I want to go clothes shopping?"
"Okay, no. Not there. But." Jon laughed and bumped into Damian. "I'm happy to do lunch."
Damian smiled up at him. "You're a good guy, Jon."
"Says you."
"Naw, you're better than me. I have to try to be good, you just are."
Jon felt his cheeks heat up and he looked away.
"Oh stop it," he mumbled.
The place they went for lunch was on the fancier side. They were part way through their meal when Jon thought of something.
"Damian."
"Hmm?" He looked up, forkful of salad halfway to his mouth.
"I'm your actual boyfriend now."
Damian's eyebrows rose a bit. "Yes, I know."
"You can't pay me anymore. I'm not with you for money anymore."
"What?"
"I'm not going . . . This isn't a job for me now, so you can't pay me anymore."
Damian scowled at him. "But-"
"Nope. I don't want your money."
Damian sighed, rubbing his face lightly. He was silent for a moment then grinned.
"So, I'm not allowed to give you money directly, but as your boyfriend I'm allowed to buy things for you, no?"
Jon was sensing a trap here.
"I guess."
"Good, good."
"Damian, what are you planning?"
Damian just grinned at him. "Nothing, nothing."
"Yes you are! What are you planning!?"
"Oh, just consider your biggest expense in life right now."
It did genuinely take Jon a second. Then his eyes went wide.
"You're not paying for college!"
"I can and will!"
"No!"
Damian was grinning, clearly he had already made up his mind.
"You said no allowance, so instead, if I pay for your college, then whatever money you have saved you can just use for everyday things."
"I'm not going to be able to convince you otherwise, am I?"
"Nope, not at all."
Jon sighed, shaking his head. "We'll talk about this later."
"Sure," Damian said, grin not slipping.
After lunch, they went to the park to walk around, holding hands, stopping every once and awhile to talk about something. Then Jon randomly tugged Damian off the path, over towards a swing set. He jumped on one and started swinging, grinning at Damian like a kid. Damian sat beside him and started swinging lightly, smiling at him.
"Hey, Jon?"
"Yeah?"
"I'm glad we met."
"Me too!"
Jon slowed his swinging, and then twisted, putting his legs around Damian's, pulling himself close enough that he could grab the chains of Damian's swing and hold himself there. He grinned at Damian, leaning in and kissing him.
"Hey, Damian. I have a secret."
"Yeah?"
"I really really like you."
Damian chuckled. "Is that so?"
"Yeah. And I . . . Like like you."
"Hey, Jon?"
"Yeah?"
"I like like you too."
Jon laughed and kissed him again.
Yeah, this was good. Real dating Damian was so much better then fake dating.
"Dork," Jon murmured fondly.
"I get it from hanging out with you."
"Oh, is that so?"
Damian hummed, kissing his nose.
"Yep. You and your goofy family."
"Having met your family, I would tend to argue otherwise."
Damian just chuckled and shoved Jon away so he went swinging back, then twisting crookedly. Jon laughed again and twisted him to bump into him a few times. He was happy, and he hoped to stay this happy for a long time. And sitting here, swinging with Damian, that seemed like a dream that would come true.