Chapter Text
You stood on the roof with Commissioner Gordon. You held the files to your chest and were a mess of nerves. You could feel the tension brewing inside your bones but Jim stood casually, dragging puff after puff from his never-ending cigarette.
"Commissioner-" A deep voice startled you and you yelped, hiding behind Gordon
"Calm down, will you?" Jim chastised Batman, "She's still new-"
"The reports," Your shaky hand extended towards the sword-wielding Robin
He snatched it from your hands, and you shrank back behind Jim. He flipped through the pages and made a sound.
"This one isn't incompetent, Gordon," Robin commented, "Decent job, Doctor," He looked at you
"T-Thank you-" You swallowed
"Red Robin would like some details on this case-" Batman handed you a USB
"Yes, sir-" You said shakily
"Go back down, kid-" Jim told you and you didn't need to be told twice
It didn't matter that you'd met the Batman before. He still scared the crap out of you.
"Nice to meet you," You nodded and quickly left
"Are you crazy?" Jim stared at Bruce, "She's been in this city for five months- You can't have her running intel!"
"She's competent," Robin added as he went through the file, "She'll run intel because she's qualified,"
"Just-" Jim's voice dropped as he stared at Batman, "Don't let her get hurt, okay?"
"I never intend to," He answered in a low, gravelly voice
Jason didn't like being touched. It wasn't that he didn't want to be touched, be held, be cared for. But he didn't like any skin contact without a warning. It was something he discovered about himself as Bruce Wayne's son. Everyone was brushing past him, or accidentally touching him. He knew the reason but he didn't want to admit it. Not until Bruce and Alfred validated his discomfort.
Everyone wanted to see if they were his soulmate. Hence, he got no personal space in return.
Everyone wanted a piece or a way to the Wayne fortune. It was never about him, or even love.
Then Joker happened. He was ruined in more ways than one. The wounds became scars but inside, he never healed. And he never again trusted anyone.
No one but Alfred could patch him up. And hugs were reserved for special occasions. He came back with something broken inside him. And he couldn't share the sentiment with anyone. About how much he wanted to find someone who would make his skin explode into a million colours. About how he really believed in soulmates and how some people are destined for each other. About how he felt that his death probably had severed the connection anyway but it didn't hurt to be careful.
There was a lot that weighed on him. All the time.
But right now, his comms were shot and he was too far from home. He needed help and he couldn't do it himself because his shoulder was dislocated. He didn't know Bane was in town. It was a hot mess.
He figured he could find a place to lay low until he felt okay enough to move again. Hence, at the moment, he was trying to pry open a window.
You were sitting in front of your laptop. The files that Batman had given were massive and indicated towards a serial killer. You realize that you had come across that type of death recently. The music was playing softly and other than that, all you could hear was rain.
It hammered against the windows and the music couldn't block it out. You looked at the clock and the time shocked you.
I need sleep- You groaned and got up to go to the bathroom.
As you walked to the bathroom, you heard something other than just the rain against the window. You heard a clicking sound. Like something- Like someone was trying to pry it open.
You frowned at the thought because this was Gotham Village. The crime rate was supposed to be low and you were on the top floor of your building. Someone had to have jumped from the rooftop to even get on your fire escape. You quickly tiptoed to your side table and got the gun which you kept there. Job hazards and perks, You reminded yourself.
You slowly inched towards the window and pulled the curtains back. A massive shadow sat against the window, he'd already succeeded in opening it halfway. As soon as the curtains were pulled back, lightning flashed in the sky and you saw who it was, you saw the pool of blood and rainwater that was now ruining your floor. You wanted to scream but the fear was actually keeping you frozen.
"Got a first aid kit?" He asked as he fell into your apartment
Your heart was caught in your throat. Lightning flashed in the sky again and illuminated the apartment; your heart skipped a beat.
"You're Red Hood-" You found your voice again and felt like you had to say it to make it more real
"Last I heard," He laughed again and you weren't really sure how this was all happening
"You- You're hurt," You stood over him
"No shit, sweetheart," He groaned and pulled himself to sit up, leaning against the wall under the window
You wanted to point out the fact that you'd just gotten that wallpaper installed after saving up for two months and it won't do well with blood stains but your mind was running a mile a minute because Red Hood was here- In all of Gotham- This is who the universe threw at your window- A crime lord.
"Hold on-" You swallowed and ran to your room to get your first aid kit
When you came back, he'd taken off his jacket and was breathing heavily. You drew the curtains and closed the window. Then you turned on the lights to see everything clearly. It was him, alright. Red fucking Hood. Sitting in a pool of his own blood. You placed your gun on the kitchen counter. Batman is going to kill me!
"If I touch you, will something bad happen?" You asked because you'd heard stories about his electrocuting bat symbol
"No," He said softly and took off the armour-like vest that he was wearing, to reveal a plain black full-sleeved shirt underneath
Everything was too much. It was overwhelming and confusing all at once. You took out your scissors and put it at the edge of his shirt.
"I hope this isn't sentimental to you," You knelt down beside him and cut through the cloth
You saw the duct tape on the large on his abdomen but your eyes widened when you saw the Y shaped scar which was on his chest that stretched down to his stomach. It was an autopsy incision. You knew it very well because you did it every single day.
You swallowed hard, seeing the blood around the tape. You knew it would be a horrid wound.
"I can't do his here-" You stared at it, "You need a hospital," You urged him
"No-" His gloved hand grabbed your wrist, "No hospitals. Just splash some vodka on it, give me some to drink and close it up. I'd do it but-" And then you noticed it, one of his shoulders was dislocated
"Who- What happened to you?" You felt anger coursing through your veins
"Doesn't matter," He winced
"Wait-" You said and got up suddenly, leaving him alone
You went through your closet and threw everything on the floor until you found what you were looking for. You grabbed the plastic sheets and came back to find him in the same position as you'd left him. You nodded to him and pushed the sofa as far toward the wall as you could. You spread out the plastic sheet on the floor and then looked at him.
"Can you move enough?" You asked unsurely and he nodded
He shifted and dropped himself on the plastic. You were about to reach for his wound to peel off the tape when he pulled away.
"Gloves-" He grunted, "Don't-"
"Right! Sorry-" You pulled away quickly
Tossing things out of the box, you found one pair in the first aid kit
"There's a button on the left side," He turned his face, "Press it twice,"
You found it and did as he'd told you to. The helmet hissed and opened up. You pulled it off and put a cushion under his head. He was now shirtless on your floor and the only thing that covered him was the mask on his eyes and his dirty jeans.
You slowly peeled off the duct tape and got to work. He didn't bite down on anything as you worked with his wounds. That was unnerving. You knew it must hurt like hell. You didn't say anything. His eyes followed your hand movements carefully. It was about a while until you finally put the gauze on the stitches, then tended to the smaller cuts.
"Can you sit?" You asked, "I need to do your shoulder-" He nodded and you helped him sit up
Either he had an extremely high pain threshold, or he was acting tough. You didn't know which it was.
"Ready?" You asked, "On 4-"
"Usually it's 3," He laughed softly
"I like to do it differently," You forced a smile, "Ready?" You asked again and he nodded, "Okay. One-" You pushed it into place and he groaned loudly then fell back onto the floor
"That was smart," He offered after a moment of silence. He looked down at all his injuries then at you, "You're a doctor-" You were leaning against the wall, with your legs stretched out
"Kind of," You shrugged; not wanting to give up too much information, "Okay so-" You stood up on shaky legs, "You're all patched up. I won't tell anyone what I saw," You tried your best to keep your voice even, "There's food in the fridge. I'll- You can go when you want-" You took off your gloves and threw them in the trashcan
"Just like that?" His eyes never wavered from you
"Your hand has been on the gun," You pointed out to the one that was strapped on his thigh, "You don't trust me. You keep looking at my gun," You looked at the kitchen counter, "I don't trust you either,"
"Look-" He moved his hand away, "Peace offering,"
"I want you here just as much you want to be here," You sighed as the exhaustion finally caught up to you, "I'm- I can't be in trouble with a crime lord," You picked up your things and then your gun, "I- I hope you feel better,"
"Thanks, sweetheart," He said, his eyes glued to the ceiling
You wanted to correct him. That you weren't his sweetheart. But you didn't want to give him a name. You didn't want to get more involved than you already were. You had too much on your plate already. You went into your bedroom and locked the door. You stuck your dressing table chair under the lock as well and pulled a dresser in front of the door just in case too.
Can never be too careful. You told yourself.
Your knees hurt because of kneeling on the ground for so long. You went to the bathroom and stared at how much blood you had on yourself. You silently cleaned yourself up. You fell asleep as soon as you hit the softness of the bed. The entire fiasco had been far too much.