Chapter Text
The sound of the doorbell made Jason stand up almost immediately, but Dick was quicker than him, getting to the door in the blink of an eye. When Jason reached the door, he positioned himself right behind Dick, looking at the people about to pass the threshold.
"Hello," Peter was the first one to greet.
"Heya! God, good to know that trusting this author was a good choice, it's so nice to see you guys again!" Unlike Peter's polite approach, Wade's was all up in their business, taking them both in a hug with his big frame. Both Gotham vigilantes made a sound of surprise.
"Nice seeing you guys managed to reach us, even out of your suits," Dick gasped in the hug. Wilson was probably crushing him. Jason definitely felt himself being crushed.
"Wade," it was just a small tug on his hoodie, but that was enough for Deadpool to drop both Jason and Dick and give all the attention to Peter, who called out to him. "You were crushing them."
"Sorry for that, I am thrilled to see you, that's all." Even with a mask on his face and a hood over his head, he still seemed to be smiling. Jason felt his heartstrings being tugged. And maybe that's what Dick was feeling as well, since the man was looking at the other two with new, resolute fondness. Jason and Dick still had some issues talking to the other two vigilantes; some things remained unsaid, heavy words hung in the air between them, but, unlike how Jason expected it to turn out, the metaphorical wound seemed to be slowly closing.
Healing. Gradually, yes, but still mending itself into a scar that will hold a memory both couples will have to learn from.
Dick made space so that the way through the threshold would be free for Peter and Wade to pass.
"Well, you're officially welcome to our humble abode." He said. His smile might've been plastic at the start, but then he locked eyes with Peter, and Jason could see the shift. That was a real grin, one full of softness.
Jason felt himself smile weakly, too, though, without his helmet and domino mask, he felt a little bit more naked than he would've liked to. He could feel the scar pulling at his cheek, making it show too many teeth for his liking. He didn't know why that mattered now; he couldn't give less of a shit before, but… But maybe this was more than just a simple hangout.
Don't get him wrong, it was supposed to be more than a double date: Peter was going to lead them to Doctor Strange and help them get back home, yet this felt more than just that.
It felt like their last goodbye.
Jason shook his head to get the bad thoughts away from this moment. He didn't want to be sad about an encounter they had planned to be somewhat heartwarming.
"Well! Why don't we offer you something to drink before we jump right into business?" Dick said. Peter nodded while smiling carefully, while behind him, Wade whooped and went immediately for the couch. Jason felt himself smile again when Dick did the same and started talking to Wade as if they had been waiting years to do just that.
"I guess I'll get started on the drinks then. What do you want, Parker?" Peter was right beside Jason, looking rather fondly at Wade and Dick speaking, before Jason's question hit him. He owlishly blinked at him before he stuttered out something about wanting a coffee with one teaspoon of sugar. Jason only nodded in agreement. He didn't move immediately to ask the other two what they wanted; instead, he looked at Peter, looking at Wade, who was talking animatedly to a very happy-looking Dick.
"I know that look," Jason commented, and Peter jolted, like he was a deer caught in the headlights. The spider didn't seem to disagree with what Jason was implying, though. He looked down at his hands and then away at the windows.
"Don't know how to tell him." He muttered to Jason, who tilted his head with a small pout forming on his lips.
"Were you planning?" Peter shook his head in response, and Jason couldn't help but notice how similar they both were. Both of them were fierce but closed off emotionally. Well, maybe Parker was a bit more open than Jason, but the fire in their hearts was all the same.
"I thought it was just a stupid crush, y'know, who gets a crush at twenty-eight anymore, yet here I am." Jason felt himself smile.
"And here I was, thinking you looked and acted so much younger," Peter grimaced at those words.
"Do I want to know how bad?" He asked, and Jason shrugged.
"Around my age."
"Which is?"
"I thought your buddy Stark told you that." Peter shrank in himself, seemingly out of guilt. Jason sighed. He should be slightly less mean, maybe. "I'm joking, don't take me too seriously, I was just taking a jab at you."
"I didn't want to see your whole files, it felt too private. I only wanted your names. I didn't need much more." Jason nodded.
"Twenty-four this year." Peter's shoulders sagged.
"Come on… I get that I look young, but four years?!" Jason directed him a shit-eating grin before he ventured to the two yappers having a rap battle — they were talking too quickly and Jason wanted to go to the kitchen as soon as he possibly could — and ask them about what they wanted to drink. In the end, the requests weren't anything too complicated: just two coffees for him and Peter and, surprisingly, tea for the yappers. He expected Wade to ask for alcohol, but alas. The more you know, he thought to himself as he got to work.
*
"So, what's the dealio with Doctor Strange?" Wade was the first one to ask, shattering the comfortable atmosphere that had built around them, leaving Peter leaning onto him on the couch, meanwhile Dick mirrored the spider by resting his head onto Jason's shoulder, and sitting on the floor on a pillow instead. Jason refused to use one, but stayed seated on the ground all the same, if he got to have Dick basically draping himself all over him.
"As you know, we're from another universe," Dick said, not letting Jason answer and taking the wheel on the conversation immediately, "which means that we need him to send us back to Gotham."
"Hopefully it's the same type of magic as Zatanna, or we are probably fucked." Jason murmured in his mug, taking another sip of his coffee.
"Well, you got here from your dimension, I'm guessing Strange will have a solution to get you back," Peter answered in turn, still all cosied up against Wade.
"Are you sure?" Jason asked back.
"Well, he's one of the strongest wizards I know of in this universe, unless we want to contact Loki," Wade said, and Peter frowned.
"He's difficult to deal with."
"I know, baby boy, but if one solution doesn't work, ya gotta have a plan B."
Jason felt Dick snicker on his side.
"Wise words, Wilson." He then said, and Wade snorted.
"Lil something our old man always does," Jason explained, making the other two vigilantes nod in understanding.
"Well, what are we waiting for? We got a wizard bus to catch." Wade was about to stand up before Peter dragged him back down.
"Not yet," he said weakly, receiving a frown from the merc.
"Something more we need to talk about before we go?" Dick asked while detaching from Jason's side to stretch his arms up, making the shirt he borrowed — stole, Jason's mind corrected — from him reveal a sliver of his golden and tan skin. Jason felt his eyes glued to it.
"Yes, actually," Peter's voice brought him back to the conversation.
"What is it, Webhead?"
"I just want to say that I'm glad you guys are still alive." He said, and if it wasn't for the small tug on the corner of his lips, the atmosphere would've plummeted underground. "I think we got off on the wrong foot. I am still sorry for what I have done." He took a small pause and then said, "I've seen and got to know a lot of good and strong people, and you guys were caught up in… An extremely unfortunate situation.
"Regardless, I'm very glad I got to know you." He looked up from the floor, "It's a shame I won't get to know you better."
Silence fell in the room, tension palpable in the air, as if Peter was expecting Dick and Jason to tell him to fuck off and never show himself again.
"You've got to know us plenty, Parker. Hell, most of the people usually don't even reach the point of us unmasking, right?" Dick nodded at the question, so Jason continued, "I can't promise you that in another universe, we would've been close friends, but I personally like to hope we would." Jason felt himself smile, "After all, Grayson over here used to love studying STEM, and our little brother Tim would probably love you."
Dick giggled at the small, innocuous remark.
"You just indirectly called both Timtam and me nerds. Speak for yourself, 1984." Before Jason could answer back, Dick continued, "Don't look so sad, Pete. Hey, think about it this way: if we get stranded in here again, you'll get more time to know us better." He smiled sincerely, then, "Or we'll force Zatanna to let us make some trips through the multiverse, who knows? There's still so much time ahead of us; we'll figure it out."
Peter looked like he was on the verge of crying. Wade held him with a small smile on his face as he did so.
"All cleared out?" Jason asked, receiving a small jab in his ribs from Dick, making him fold on the chair in pain. "What the hell was that for?!" He hissed.
"We were having a moment, Jaybird." Dick pouted at him, and Jason relented, rolling his eyes, even though he felt himself brighten internally.
"It's okay, let's bring you to Doctor Strange before you cause a rupture in our timeline," Peter said watery, smiling as he got up. "I'm guessing you already packed everything you needed?"
"You know it." Jason said, and then looked at Dick, tilting his head to the bedroom, "Let's go, we've got a wizard bus to catch." Wade pointed at him and laughed, but Dick seemed to still have something to say. Jason nodded at him.
"Polaris." He said, and Peter's gaze softened impossibly, "Won't hurt the timeline too much if we give her a visit, right?"
"It won't." Dick smiled at the spider, "I say the first stop of the wizard bus will be X-Men, then. Let's go."
*
"Old man!" The girl tackled Dick to the ground. Jason huffed a chuckle at the sudden move.
"Old man? What are you? Her new dad?" Polaris was looking better than Jason had last seen her: her green hair wasn't matted anymore, it was cut short; her freckles, which, if she had previously, Jason had not noticed, were now glowing instead of being a darker colour on her skin; and her eyes undoubtedly changed their hue, since Jason only had seen them for a fraction of a second back in the facility. They looked like those of Uncle Clark: seemed normal at first glance, but if you looked closer, the reflection of the irises showed a rainbow of colours; not to mention that, for some reason, her sclerae remained black.
"Not my dad! More… An uncle of some kind." She replied while Dick tried to sit back up to hug her properly, "My dad was much cooler than him."
Dick gasped, offended, and Jason couldn't help the laugh that escaped him.
"Demoted to uncle figure out of sheer loser vibes!" Wade chimed in, making Jason laugh even harder.
"Oh god, I love her, can we keep her?" He said, laughing, "Please?"
"Unfortunately, you cannot, but if you manage to open an interdimensional portal from time to time, you can visit," Peter said, leaning on Wade.
"Visit? Aren't you going to stay here?" Polaris asked. Suddenly, Jason was reminded that the girl was barely a teenager. She was a kid. She looked like a kid now, with her green eyes wide open and her shocked expression. That made him stop laughing very quickly, even though he tried to play it cool.
"Pol…" Dick's eyes were full of what looked like bittersweet realisation. "We're moving out of the state. We're not going to stay here anymore."
"You won't? But I thought…" Dick hugged her tightly against his chest.
"I'm sorry. I wanted to at least get a look at you one last time before going back home." He took her by the shoulders and detached himself from her, just enough to remain at arm's length. "I was worried back there, you know? You're such a sweet and talented kid, you'll take the world by storm." He snickered, "Quite literally if you decide to use your powers."
"I thought you would…" The girl's eyes watered, her tone shaky.
"Hey, hey, Pol," Dick cupped her cheeks with his hands, "my shining star, look at me." When she did, he smiled softly at her, "I might not be able to follow you physically, but…" He dug in the duffel bag he so desperately wanted to bring and… Ah. Now Jason understood why. A silver pendant, with a small, black star engraved on it, hung from Dick's fingers. "You can have this as a memento."
Polaris' eyes shone with unshed tears and surprise, her little hands taking the pendant and observing it.
"For… For me?" She asked, and Dick smiled, pointing at it with a finger, "Touch the star."
As soon as she did, it changed colours, making her gasp. It was some sort of mood ring, but… As a necklace.
"If you ever feel like you're going through a tough time, remember that there will always be somebody willing to help. Even if that someone is yourself. I'll be here," He took the girl's hands in his, "guarding you from afar. You will find a home with these people. A family."
Polaris only nodded before tears streaked down her cheeks.
"I'll miss you, old man. I'll become the absolute best. I'll do it."
"I'll miss you, too, little star. Become your best for you, my dear, okay? I'll cheer you on from the other side."
She threw herself into his arms.
Jason looked at the scene with fondness, storing it for later in the back of his mind. Right now, he basked in the bittersweet feeling of a girl who reminded him a bit too much of himself.
*
Peter stopped in front of a specific building. It looked old, but not abandoned. Actually, it looked pretty gorgeous and well-maintained, if Jason had to say so himself.
"Is this the building?" Jason asked, and the spider nodded, stepping up to the threshold and knocking on the door.
When the door opened, the man who looked back at them did not look like Steven Strange.
"Hey, good afternoon, Mr Wong," the man narrowed his eyes at Jason, Dick and Wade, who seemed to be vibrating out of his skin.
"Good afternoon to you, Peter. Shall I ask for Doctor Strange?" Peter nodded.
"We have a multiverse case to solve." At the words, the man's shoulder relaxed ever so slightly, though he was still holding himself like he was ready to attack if the two Gotham vigilantes ever thought about doing something smart.
Which wouldn't happen unless the wizard attacked first.
"Well, let me welcome you first," Wong opened the door wider and let the four through, leading them to a main hall, with stairs in the centre of it, leading up to the second floor. Everything here looked ancient, but just like Jason observed before, well-maintained. Nothing looked out of the ordinary, if not for some objects that were hanging on the walls, which Jason couldn't recognise even if he tried.
"Please, wait here. Don't touch anything." And as he said those words, Wong's intense stare was directed at Wade, who immediately nodded. Jason worried for a split second that his head would fall from his shoulders from how hard he was doing the gesture.
"I've been waiting to see one of these for so long! Ugh! I'm so excited." Wade whispered. If his whole body could vibrate out of existence, he would've already been gone by now.
"Didn't you travel through time with that… Belt of yours…" Peter asked, and Wade nodded enthusiastically.
"Yes, but this. This is the real deal!"
Before anyone could butt in to say anything else on the matter, the sound of someone clearing their throat echoed through the halls above. When the four gazed up to where the sound came from, a man, floating some inches from the ground, was looking down at them.
He had a mug, which seemed to contain something hot in it.
"Welcome, Peter, Wade and…" He gestured with a hand at the other two, "… Strangers." Jason could see the immediate effort of both Wade and Dick not to make a pun. Strange didn't seem to be phased by it. "What do you need my assistance for?"
Peter gave Wade a stern look before he started explaining the issue. Jason did the same with Dick.
"Hello, Strange, these two gentlemen — Peter gestured vaguely to Dick and Jason — need a lift back home. They're from another dimension. Think you can give us a hand?"
Strange's eyes narrowed before he descended the flight of stairs and finally stood on the floor with them. The big red cloak fluttered behind him like it was alive, almost breathing, in a way.
"Mh… I believe you're from Batman's universe, correct? Earth zero." At those words, both Jason's and Dick's eyes widened in surprise. They both nodded silently. "Then it won't be too much of a chore, I'll just open a portal."
"That's it?" Jason asked, feeling sceptical about how easy their return would've been.
"I say a little portal through dimensions is one of the least complicated things to do. I had a small encounter with one of your most powerful and renowned wizards, after all."
"You mean Zatanna?" Dick asked.
"Also her, but I was referring to that British man, Constantine." Strange's expression didn't morph much, but his eyes were betraying him, a sliver of annoyance shining through. "Definitely not someone I'd work well with, but respectable nonetheless."
"Respectable…" Jason huffed, almost amused at the thought.
"Well!" Dick cut to the chase before Jason could say anything else, "Let's not stand around more. We've got places to be, a family to go back home to, and someone has to ask me on a date." He ended the phrase by nudging Jason on his arm, while the latter looked to the side, grateful that his face was hidden under his helmet. He merely nodded, causing Dick to smile happily.
Wade wolf-whistled, and Peter elbowed him, causing the man to snicker. Strange paid them no mind as he breathed in, and then he gestured with one of his hands in a circular motion. Right before their eyes, an orange portal came to be, showing on the other side the Gotham Jason and Dick knew and loved, despite the tough love that she gave back.
Dick looked back at Peter and Wade. He spread his arms in their direction, and Peter was the first one to run towards him and embrace him tightly. Jason didn't have the time to even think about wanting to hug someone, since Wade decided for him and trapped him in a tight hug.
"Ugh, I'll miss you, big guy. You're so young, yet so stupidly big, I'd feel offended if you surpassed me." Wade mumbled, and Jason, even while holding his duffel bag, managed to hug him back while wheezing.
"Don't push it, old man. I can and will shoot you in the cranium again." He hissed, making Wade gasp in mock offence.
"I am in no way old! Thirty-five is still young! I've got a whole life to live still!"
"Geriatric."
Wade gasped even louder, the offence in his tone getting stronger by the second.
"Young man! I did not raise you to be like this! Apologise!" A laugh interrupted the bit, making Wade let go of Jason, who gasped, but not in mock offence. More like because he needed air. To breathe, you know. Like a normal human being. To the previous laugh, another one was now accompanying it.
When Jason looked over to where Peter and Dick were, he felt his heart clench: both of them were still hugging, looking almost like they had been friends for a long time. It hit Jason then. This was their last goodbye. He found himself hugging Wade again, this time not caring enough if the man stopped breathing from it. Dumbass.
Then something that Jason will always remember from now on happened: Peter approached them first, and Dick did as well right after, and they both added themselves to the hug, starting a laughing fit. Only when Doctor Strange asked them to move did they break the hug, and with one last look behind their backs, they entered the portal, which closed right behind them as they did so.
The smell of pollution should've made him retch; instead, he took a lungful and then exhaled.
"Haaa, smells like pure cat piss. Just like we left her." Jason said, and then he felt a small sob coming next to him. He didn't manage to ask what was wrong; he didn't really have to either. Dick was hugging him tightly as he whispered, "We're home, we made it."
*
He felt his eyes roll in the back of his head as he exited med bay after a whole ass check up of their blood. He didn't miss this. At all. Dick was right behind him, pep in his step as he ran, then jumped to land on Jason's back, who let out a 'oof' before stopping and positioning the older vigilante's thighs around his waist better. He then hooked his hands right under Dick's knees as he felt the latter's arms surround his neck to stay balanced.
As soon as they were in the Batcave, their results were showing on the big screen of the Batcomputer; only one man was standing in front of it, and Jason couldn't help the huff that escaped his lips.
"You're back." Those were the only words Bruce said before he looked back at them. Jason didn't know how to feel at the sight of tears glistening in his father's eyes. One thing he knew for certain was: they weren't for him.
Before the old man could do anything more than talk, Tim burst into the Batcave, Steph, Cass and Duke at his heels, and it took him one split second to register that Jason and Dick were finally back; he sprinted towards them and trapped them both in a soul-crushing hug. Jason had no escape from it, especially when Dick was on his back and then the other three joined them, and whoa, he was about to fucking die of asphyxiation.
"Cass… Loosen up… I'm about to die…" He managed to say, before the girl widened her eyes and slightly loosened her grip she had on all of them, letting them all breathe a little bit better. Dick weakly chuckled, making Tim giggle as well.
Then another door opened, and Damian rushed in to join the group hug and ow, ow, that was his leg. Damian threw himself at his leg. Yeah, he wasn't getting out of this any time soon, was he?
So he stayed in place, even though he perfectly knew everyone was hugging him because Dick was on his back, and this was the easiest option for them to reach the older man. It would've hurt if it wasn't for Damian, who, instead of reaching for Dick when the latter slowly got down from his back, remained attached to Jason like a leech. That made him rethink the hug.
Were they hugging him, too?
When they all disentangled themselves from one another, there were still some light touches, especially from Steph and Cass in his case. And Damian. Who still had an iron grip on his pants, as if he let go of Jason now, he would've disappeared from his sight.
What rendered Jason speechless next was how the boy was trembling.
The boy was sobbing.
"Akhi." He sounded so broken that Jason had a double whiplash: one from the saw emotions shown by the kid, and the second one from the use of Arabic. Shit, Damian was not one to cry, and yet. And yet.
He let go of Steph and Cass. He forgot about Dick's, Tim's and Duke's presence. None of it mattered. His little brother was scared to death of losing him again.
He took Damian's hands in his and crouched down, opening his arms. Damian only sobbed louder, throwing himself into his embrace. Yeah, he wasn't going to be able to detach him any time soon. He lifted him while he stood, keeping him in the embrace as Jason looked back up to find everyone smiling at him.
"Don't you even think about hugging me like before with him in my arms. You're seriously going to kill him by asphyxiating him."
He didn't know how it happened, but if there was one who didn't listen to his own children when they told him stuff, it was Bruce Wayne. The same Bruce Wayne who was now hugging him and Damian together, in the same embrace.
"Old man! You're gonna kill 'im! Loosen up!" Jason protested, but Bruce did not listen.
"You're alive." He whispered, as if he said those words too loudly, Jason would disappear again. Bruce's big hands were placed behind his nape and on his back, respectively, meanwhile his head was over Damian's, almost functioning as a blanket for both of his sons.
Jason was too stunned to say anything. He was shaken deep at his core, and he almost couldn't believe that he, the disappointment, the black sheep of the family, was being hugged first, instead of Dick.
Actually, he couldn't believe that Bruce hugged him, period.
Then one of his hands disappeared, and if it wasn't because Dick was being invited — dragged — into the hug, he would've felt the loss of it.
"We thought we couldn't reach you anymore," Tim was the first one to speak, while Bruce seemed to need a moment in which he realised that both his sons were back home and safe. Alive. "Zatanna searched everywhere, even Costantine, but they both were unsuccessful in tracking you down." Then Tim added himself to the hug, embracing both Dick and Jason from behind.
"Too many dimensions, too many variables, you were sent into different dimensions in the span of a half second." Damian rasped, "Your energy trace was unreadable, not even the wizard himself knew where he sent you." Jason felt the kid's grasp tightening around his neck.
"We lost you," Duke added, as he hugged them too. Steph and Cass followed, pressing themselves right against Jason's back.
"Cass, Babs and I tried to track you down as well, in the hope of finding you still around here, in this dimension, even if it was highly unlikely." Jason felt himself chuckle brokenly at the blonde girl's words.
"Babs, huh? We gotta tell her the news."
"I asked the Justice League, too." Bruce rumbled, still hugging his sons. "No dice."
Just then, the sounds of footsteps took all the attention away from Jason and Dick, leaving the family to slowly disentangle.
A gasp at the stairs of the Batcave was enough for Jason to turn around and meet Alfred's shocked gaze. He was bringing snacks, so it seemed, but they almost fell from the tray. Jason quickly put down Damian, who was pouting at him, before noticing Alfred, and helped the butler not to drop everything in one fell swoop. Then, he plopped the tray down onto one of the tables nearby and hugged the old man tight to his chest.
"Jaylad, you're back…" The man started sobbing, and Jason won't ever forget how that name made him feel like he was fifteen again.
"We're back, Alfred." He stayed there, on the verge of crying as he repeated: "We're back."
Epilogue
A week.
It has been a week.
Jason had no idea how to do this. He barely went on dates; hell, if he did, it was mostly because of a mission, probably. Going undercover using a date? Easy. He did it with Roy too many times; he was impressed that most of his goons didn't comment on any of it, or if they did, he didn't hear about it. Which was fine by Jason, he wasn't interested in stupid rumours, especially during work. Don't get him wrong, he had gossip sessions with the girl bats after dinner with the family, and if he had to be completely honest, they were the highlight of the entire evening. It bugged him to gossip while he was working; that was all.
But back to the previous point of interest, where he was now, he had no one looking at him with interest in gossiping, if not for some ladies snickering at him on the other side of the street. Why? You may ask.
He was holding flowers and standing like an idiot in front of the entrance of Dick's apartment complex. He was categorising how many ways this could end up badly.
He was sure that Venom would've shoved him to ring the doorbell by now, but he felt frozen in place, unable to make a move. Would he get rejected? Dick clearly had said he wouldn't, but a lot changed in these last few days, maybe there was still time to make a retreat and—
His phone rang. He was so worried about how to ask Dick out that when he picked the phone up, he didn't even look at the screen to see who it was; he just straight-up answered. He'd soon learn that maybe he should do that less.
"Yes?"
"How much longer are you going to stand there, Little Wing? Not that I have complaints about the timing, but I'm hungry."
Jason wasn't even surprised to hear that Dick had been observing him this entire time. Dick was indeed raised by Bruce. Those two had more in common than he'd like to think about.
"That sounds like a complaint to me." He replied, feeling his tense shoulders slowly unwind. His shoulders had been this tense this whole time? What the fuck?
"It's not, though! I am asking you a question! If you plan on staying there any more time, I'm preparing snacks!" Jason felt himself snicker, a small sound he couldn't manage to keep to himself.
"Open the god damn door, Dickiebird."
"Do you need me to hold your hand while you take the stairs, or are you able to walk up to my apartment like a big boy?"
"Fuck you, Big Bird." And before Dick could answer that, he hung up.
*
"Come on, come onnnn it's freezing!" Dick whined, not even letting Jason arrive on the floor of the older man's apartment, when the latter took him by his wrist and dragged him inside. "Sheesh, Jayjay, you need to work on your speed while walking up the stairs. Winter is approaching, and I am not asking for a cold."
"With your current Nightwing suit? I'd like to disagree." Dick threw at him a withering look that made him smile. Then the man nodded at what Jason had in hand, and he felt suddenly very, very stiff.
"For whom?" Dick asked, and Jason looked at the flowers and then at the man in front of him.
There was no time to think, only act. So he did.
"You." He said. Dick pointed an index finger at himself.
"Me?" Jason nodded, and when the man took the flowers, he asked: "What's the occasion?"
"Would you like to go on a date with me?" Dick's eyes widened in surprise, almost as if he didn't expect it. Jason knew better than to fall for such a poor display of shock. He would've bet on his left nut that the motherfucker knew as soon as Jason showed up to his doorstep holding flowers. Nonetheless, he couldn't lie: seeing the surprise in his brother's face made him feel tingly with excitement.
"Yes! I mean- wait. Right now?!" Dick exclaimed, and Jason quickly shook his head.
"No! No, no need to have a date now, I wasn't ready to have one today." Dick seemed on the verge of vibrating out of his skin.
"We could do a home date! We can simply hang out here with some takeout! We could count it as a date!" Jason found himself snorting before he shook his head again at Dick's display of impatience. Jason almost forgot why he felt this nervous and insecure about asking him out in the first place.
"Absolutely not, I won't have our first date with takeout. I'll organise it, just you wait." Dick pouted.
"Ow, no kisses until then?"
"And who said that?"
Before Dick could answer, Jason reached out with a hand and took the other man by the waist. He then kissed him, going from unnecessarily harsh — almost afraid that if he didn't do so, he would lose Dick — to soft when the latter cupped Jason's face with one of his hands. They both melted into each other's embrace then, Dick sighing happily in the kiss and Jason finding himself addicted to the taste of Haven's vigilante's lips. Jason didn't know how much time passed, but when they finally put some distance between their lips and let their foreheads rest together, Dick was the first one to huff.
"So…" He started, taking Jason's attention, "Rain check?"
Jason smiled, remembering the first time, back into the other dimension, when they had to do a rain check because of Wade. How fast things changed. Nostalgia could be felt in the air between the two of them as Jason nodded and then answered: "Yes, rain check."