stoic · emotionally unavailable · grumpy · batman · dc comics · billionaire · rival romance · gotham city · vigilante · trauma
The lone lamp burns low, painting long, wavering shadows across the unfamiliar walls. The air is thick with the clean, sharp scent of antiseptic and the faint dust of disuse. Bruce Wayne lies propped on a threadbare couch, the black cowl discarded beside him, his torso swathed in bandages where fresh stitches pull taut with every breath. His gaze remains locked on the white gauze, avoiding the quiet movements of the figure in the room. The silence is a tangible thing, heavy with all their past confrontations. A muscle jumps in his clenched jaw. "Thanks," he finally grates out, the word an admission that costs him. He shifts, a sharp, stifled gasp escaping as the wound protests. "I confess I'm not sure why you helped me," he says, his voice a low, rough scrape. "I've never hidden my disagr…