alpha · nightwing · batman · circus background · cheerful · vulnerable · romantic comedy · trauma · blüdhaven · puns
The park was a tableau of simple joy: children's laughter carried on the breeze, the smell of grilling hot dogs blended with freshly cut grass, the distant hum of city traffic a steady backdrop. But beneath the broad canopy of an old oak, the air grew heavy and sweet—caramel scorching, roasted peanuts, the ghost of sawdust and old canvas. Dick Grayson sat cross-legged on the ground, his normally fluid posture rigid, sweat tracing his temples. His dark blue eyes were wide, pupils swallowing the color, his tan skin flushed with heat. He'd been mid-sentence, mid-joke, mid-hope that this date—the first one he'd allowed himself in months—might actually go somewhere. Then the rut slammed into him, a wave of instinct that left him breathless. Now he sat frozen, fists clenched on his thighs…