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“You’re thinking too hard.”
Dick turned, his hard stare softening when he spotted her standing across the room, the light from the fire illuminating her beautifully. It had been a long couple of days and he felt like he barely had time to breathe. He thought restarting the Titans would be his second chance to do things right—to help people, but things seemed to be spiraling out of control before they could even start. Dick knew it wasn’t going to be easy, but the added emotional baggage from his old team and near death experience with Deathstroke only made things harder. It was a miracle he was still standing at the end of the night.
“How do you know I’m thinking too hard?” He asked as a half smile curled over his lips.
Kory drew closer, her fingers running over the marble countertop, her eyes still on his tired face. “You have that look on your face,” she explained as she stopped a few feet from where he was, “where your forehead scrunches too tightly and the corner of your lips turn down ever so slightly.”
“You couldn’t see my face.” He said as he quipped an eyebrow.
“I didn’t need to.” Kory stated matter-of-factly. “I know you were making it.”
“Is that so?” Dick asked as he took a step towards her. Her sudden reappearance was like the breath of fresh air he didn’t realize he needed, like she had unknowingly saved him from drowning in a dark and treacherous sea. He had missed her. A lot. He had tried not to think about her, but she was impossible to forget. He didn’t want to come off overbearing and needy, so he did what he did best and kept his distance, holding her at arms length. He didn’t know how long she was staying and that scared him. It scared him because he selfishly wanted her to stay and be his.
“Dick…” Kory clucked softly with her tongue as her warm hands came up to cup his face, her thumb trailing gently over a bruise under his right eye. He melted into her touch, his eyes closing as he basked in her warmth. “You carry so much, you need to let some of it go.”
Dick chuckled slightly. “If only it were that easy.” He said. “You would think after all my past fuck ups I would have learned by now.”
“No one has all the answers.” Kory responded. Dick’s eyes fluttered open and he couldn’t believe the tender gaze she held as she looked at him. “And despite what everyone else wants you to be, you’re not Batman. You’re better than him.”
“You’re too kind.” Dick said as he removed her hands from his face, pulling away, like he always did.
Kory did not back down. Dick was stubborn, but so was she in her own way. She knew the burden Dick carried and she knew he was not one to let things go. While she had defied her birthright and planet to come back for Rachel, she knew more than just one Titan needed her. Rachel needed her. Gar needed her. Donna needed her. And Dick needed her. “You need to forgive yourself.” She said, catching him off guard.
Dick wasn’t used to push back in a romantic or emotional sense. Sure Bruce and even his teammates would push back when it came to the hero stuff, but no one ever really pushed him to confront his darker feelings. It was one of the reasons he was so drawn to Kory. Despite her air of mystery she was upfront and open with him. She never let him go so easily, even when they parted ways three months ago. He knew, deep down, it wasn’t really goodbye. “Have you decided what you’re going to do?” He asked.
“About my sister or Faddei?” Kory asked, eyeing Dick curiously.
Dick tried to keep his face neutral, but he couldn’t stop his lips from twitching at the mention of her former lover. When she had told him about her run in with the royal guard he couldn’t help, but feel jealous at the thought of someone just as beautiful and powerful as Kory sweeping her off her feet. How could he ever compare to someone like that? “Both.” He said simply, the word coming out a little gruffer than he meant to.
Maybe Kory picked up on his hints of jealousy, because she was Kory, and she seemed to know him in ways that no one else did. A knowing smile formed on her lips as she leaned against the counter. “You know why I like Earth?” She asked.
“Gar would say the pizza.” Dick suggested with a small grin. Kory laughed and he felt his heart skip a beat.
“And Rachel would argue it was the coffee.” Kory said and Dick nodded in agreement, his laugh making him feel light, like a small weight had been lifted from his shoulders. “But, on my planet, being a princess and all, I always had my choices made for me.”
Dick felt his smile turn down into a frown as her voice gave off a hint of sadness. He could understand to a small degree, but he could never fully imagine having your life planned out for you.
“Here, you can choose who you want to be,” Kory said a little more lightly, her smile returning and Dick subconsciously drew closer to her, like he was caught in her gravity, “choose who you want to be with.”
“There are a lot of choices here, on Earth.” He said as he floated in no man’s land for a moment, hesitating between wanting to pull her into his arms and running away for good.
“And now I have to decided which one to call home.” Kory said as she remained unmoved, knowing that Dick needed to come to her. She couldn’t make that choice for him, but if he asked, she knew she would say yes.
“This could be your home.” Dick said as he summoned all of his courage, closing the space between them, his hands coming to her waist. “You already know Gar and Rachel will beg you to stay. I bet Rose will like you and I think I even heard Jason say he missed you.”
“Oh,” Kory said with a flirtatious grin, “well, if Jason wants me to stay how could I say no.” She teased.
Silence fell between them and Dick was definitely not looking at Kory’s lips, his heart hammering out of his chest. How could he always be so nervous when he was around her? “I want you to stay.” Dick finally said because it was the truth. He needed to stop running from it and embrace it. He was an emotional mess sometimes and he didn’t know all the answers, but he cared for this team and he knew they were strong, and he wanted Kory to stay. “Stay.”
Kory leaned forward, her lips touching his gently. They closed their eyes, foreheads leaning against each other. “That’s all I needed to hear.” Kory whispered before she kissed him again. This time their hunger, their need, and their desire was felt in that kiss, as hands wrapped around each other. Their problems were momentarily forgotten as they moved to the bedroom, but they would face them together. For now, they were content to fall into each other’s embrace.