Work Text:
Jason was doing his best to avoid Wally. Every time he saw him enter a room, he would find an excuse to leave. Every time Wally tried to talk to him, Jason would shut down more. And with each passing day, he realized that the wall he had erected between them wasn't working at all. If anything, it was making the wound in his chest grow deeper.
The silence was not protecting him; it was just consuming him.
That afternoon, as the sun began to set over the city, Jason found himself back on the rooftop of one of Gotham's many buildings. It was his place to think, the only place where he could be alone. At least, it used to be.
"Hello there Boy Wonder!"
Wally's voice snapped him out of his reverie, and when he turned, he found him standing behind him, a soft smile on his lips and his distinctive yellow and red suit. Jason couldn't stop his heart from racing. He had spent weeks trying to convince himself that those feelings would fade if he ignored them, if he ignored him. But that was a lie. Every time he saw Wally, all he wanted was to be closer to him.
Jason tensed slightly, but did not move.
"Kid Flash," he replied, using their code names, his voice harsher than he intended, "What are you doing in Gotham? Batman doesn't like metahumans in his city, you know that."
"Flash has come to ask for help with a rather special case, you know, adult stuff..."
Wally walked over and leaned on the railing next to him. The two were silent for a moment, watching the lights flicker across the city. There wasn't a hint of tension in Wally, but Jason felt his own grow with each passing second beside him and the silence lingered between them. There was something in the air, something that already he could not ignore. He had been thinking too much about what he should do. He had spent too much time running away from what he felt. Jason couldn't take it anymore.
"Look, Wally," said Jason, suddenly breaking the silence. Wally looked at him, surprised by Jason's serious tone.
"What happened to the code names? " Wally asked with a nervous smile, clearly trying to lighten the tense atmosphere.
Jason took a deep breath. His mind was filling with all the reasons why this was a bad idea. The age difference between the two. Wally's friendship with Dick. Everything that could go wrong. But he was sick of keeping quiet. He was sick of carrying those feelings alone anymore. If he did, at least he'd have an answer, good or bad. And he could put an end to all that bullshit.
"I've been... avoiding this for weeks. But I can't anymore," Jason began, each word leaving his lips with effort. "There's something I need to tell you."
Wally frowned, but didn't interrupt, it was obvious he had noticed the change in their interactions, which only made Jason feel more vulnerable. Jason's heart was pounding, as if it was about to leap out of his chest. He didn't know how to do this, but he could no longer stop himself.
"I've been avoiding you because..." Jason swallowed, looking anywhere but into Wally's eyes. "Because I'm in love with you."
The words hung in the air. One moment, then another. The confession had been quick, direct, but it had taken all the courage he had. It was as if the world had stopped, and Jason didn't know how Wally would react. He didn't want to see his expression. The fear of being rejected, of being a nuisance, burned inside him.
Wally said nothing at first. His breathing seemed slower and his gaze was lost in the horizon, as if he was processing what he had just heard.
"Are you... are you serious? " Wally finally asked, his voice trembling with genuine disbelief. Jason nodded, feeling the weight of the words crushing him. But he didn't stop there. He couldn't just leave it at that, up in the air, just like that.
"I've been in love with you for a long time. And I've tried not to feel it, I've tried to stay away, but... it doesn't work. I can't help it," Jason looked at him, and for the first time in weeks, he allowed himself to be completely honest. "I just... wanted you to know."
The silence between them became palpable, as if they were both walking on eggshells, knowing that one false step could hurt too much for either of them. Wally's eyes showed a mixture of surprise and confusion. It was obvious he hadn't expected this.
"Jason... " Wally began, staring at him, his lips curving into a nervous little smile. "I don't know what to say. It's just that..."
Jason waited, feeling his heart shrink as the seconds ticked by. Doubts were beginning to invade his mind. Maybe he had made a mistake. Wally would definitely reject him.
"I know it's not what you expected to hear," Jason said, his voice lower now, with a hint of resignation. And I know it's probably weird. You and Dick are best friends, and I'm younger than you, but..." he paused, feeling his throat close up, "I know you don't feel the same way, and I understand. I just needed to get it off my chest.
Wally looked off into the horizon, clearly uncomfortable, but not in the way Jason feared. It was more like he was struggling with something inside him.
"It's not that," said Wally, after a long silence. "It's just that..." He scratched the back of his neck, in a clear sign of nervousness. "You're Dick's younger brother. And you know what he's like. If Dick finds out about this, I have no idea how he's going to react. It could ruin everything."
Jason frowned, understanding what Wally was saying. He knew Dick probably wouldn't take it well. After all, Wally was his best friend, someone he trusted completely. When Dick had stepped away from the Batman mantle to find his own identity he had become possessive of what little he had left: his new identity as a hero, the Titans...Wally. As if that wasn't bad enough, he couldn't shake the feeling that Dick wasn't entirely happy with Jason as Batman's new Robin, maybe he felt replaced. Or maybe he thought Jason wasn't good enough to be his successor.
"I won't tell him anything," Jason said quickly. "This is between you and me. He doesn't have to know... If you don't want him to."
Wally was silent for a long moment, looking at him as if assessing the situation. Jason could barely breathe as he waited for an answer, anything that would give him a sign of what Wally was thinking. Finally, Wally let out a sigh.
"Look, Jason... This is complicated. It's not just Dick, it's that... you're younger. You're... different from the people I usually date" Wally admitted, clearly unsure. "And I don't want this to ruin our friendship. Or yours with Dick."
Jason nodded slowly, trying to hide the disappointment that was beginning to form in his chest. He couldn't blame him. Wally was right about a lot of things.
"I understand," Jason muttered, trying not to sound as hurt as he felt. But then, Wally looked at him with a slight smile, that smile that always made Jason's heart race.
"But..." Wally said slowly, "I can't stop thinking about how sad you've been these past few months. And if there's one thing being Flash's sidekick has taught me, it's that sometimes life moves too fast not to give the things that really matter a chance."
Jason raised his head, surprised, and his eyes met Wally's.
"So?" Jason asked, his heart beginning to fill with hope. Wally nodded slowly, his smile getting bigger.
"I'll tell you what," said Wally. "Let's do this quietly. One date. Just one, and we'll see how it goes. But no promises, okay? And for now, Dick doesn't need to know."
Jason's heart skipped a beat. He had expected the worst, but now, with Wally saying yes, albeit hesitantly, it all seemed unreal. A chance was so much more than he had been expecting.
"That seems fair enough," said Jason, feeling a smile begin to form on his lips. Wally looked at him with a spark in his eyes, that spark that Jason had seen so many times, but now seemed to shine with a new intensity.
"Saturday night, then? " asked Wally, with a mischievous grin. Jason nodded, unable to believe this was really happening.
"Saturday night," he repeated, and for the first time in a long time, he allowed himself to feel something other than anger or pain.
As Wally walked away, leaving him alone once again on the rooftop, Jason realized that he had finally taken the step he had so dreaded. And, against all odds, maybe things would turn out all right.
. . .
Jason hadn't said anything to Wally about his trip to find his mother. He didn't want to worry him or Dick. He hadn't even talked to Bruce. Technically, he had run away. There were things he had to do on his own. So, alone and determined, he set off for Ethiopia, where all the information he found had led him.
The journey had been complicated, several times he was on the verge of giving up and returning to Gotham, but in the end the desire for answers always ended up pushing him to continue.
When he arrived, Jason moved quickly, driven by the excitement of finally discovering the truth about his mother. Every step he took brought him closer to what he believed would be an eye-opening and emotional reunion.
He had found Sheila, but the encounter was not as he had imagined. What he thought would be the closure of an open wound from his childhood soon turned into a nightmare. His birth mother was involved in illicit activities, and worse, the Joker was using her for his own ends.
Jason faced betrayal in the worst sense of the word. His mother had handed him over to the Joker, and before he could react, the villain had him tied to a chair, completely helpless, brutally beating him with an iron crowbar. The grotesque sound of flesh being beaten echoed noisily each time the Joker vented his wrath on Jason, as taunts and maniacal laughter filled the air.
The blows had no rhythm or shape, they just landed hard on the teen's body, sometimes hitting his ribs, sometimes hitting his legs and occasionally his face from time to time. The pain was so deafening that Jason was sure that several times he had passed out from the overwhelming and unpleasant sensation, only to have another blow bring him back to reality
I was so tired.
“Oh, little birdie" said the Joker with a chuckle, "You've got yourself in the wrong cage this time!”
Jason tried to fight, but his body did not respond. He was too weak, too wounded. His vision was blurring. Every breath he took was painful and tasted like blood. That was not a good sign.
Despite everything, I couldn't stop thinking about Wally, or Bruce, about what he had come so close to having. It couldn't end like this. I couldn't die without having had even that chance to be with him, to take him out to dinner, to make him laugh, to kiss him.
If at that moment The Joker laughed thinking he was crying over the beating he was taking, it wasn't his problem. Jason didn't owe him any explanations.
“Is there something you regret, birdie?" The Joker asked, pulling Robin's hair back so they could look into each other's eyes.
When the boy didn't respond the metal lever slammed into his collarbone, snapping it in two. Jason's scream filled the room.
“I regret..." Jason's voice was low and harsh, it pained him to utter any words after having been shouting for so long, "That I met Bruce and... that I couldn't take Wally on our date.”
The Joker seemed satisfied with that answer, dropping the metal tool against the floor noisily. When the beating finally stopped Jason lay on the g r o u n d , bleeding and in great pain, barely conscious, while his mother, whom he had come for, watched silently, caught between guilt and fear.
“Tell your boyfriend I said hello," the Joker scoffed before leaving, probably referring to Wally. “But first, I'll make sure you and the big guy have an explosive reunion.”
With what little strength he had left, Jason tried to move once The Joker left the room, crawling across the floor, leaving a trail of blood as he went. Every movement was too painful, but he refused to give up. He found his mother tied up nearby, also wounded, and though she had been part of his misfortune, he could not abandon her, she was still his mother.
With some effort, Jason managed to loosen his restraints, his wrists were red and bruised from the bindings, even bleeding in places, but he didn't allow himself the luxury of stopping to lick his wounds when there was a damn bomb threatening their lives.
The sound of the pump clock ticking, ticking, ticking echoed through the room. Jason knew time was running out. He looked at his mother, desperate for a way out, but the more he looked around, the more he realized it was all futile. It would take too long to pick the lock on the door, and he was too injured to reach one of the windows; it would be even harder to take his mother with him There was no escape. They were trapped and Bruce didn't know their whereabouts.
With his last effort, he tried to protect Sheila with his body, covering her as the clock ticked down to the final seconds. All he could think about was what he had lost. About Wally. He would never get the chance to see him again, to explain to him why he left so suddenly. And he would never have that date he had so longed for.
The world burst into flames.
The explosion echoed in the surrounding area, destroying the building where Jason and Sheila were. And as the smoke and debris began to settle, only the echo of a great loss remained.
Batman arrived too late. When he finally found Jason in the wreckage of the explosion, his body lay motionless, burned in many places and with so many broken bones that it was too painful to hold him in his arms. He looked so small like that. So young. There was no life in him. There had come a time to see the aftermath, but not to save him. The loss of Jason was a devastating blow, one that Bruce was not prepared to bear. He had lost him. He had lost his son.
. . .
Wally had noticed that Jason wasn't responding to his messages, it was hard not to when, after they had agreed on their date, they hadn't stopped texting each other. He had tried calling him several times, but Jason never answered. She knew something wasn't right. She'd felt it in her stomach since the last time she'd seen him. Jason hadn't been the same since that night on the rooftop, and now that they were so close to their date, Jason's silence made him deeply uneasy.
He was a little worried that Jason had regretted asking him out. Although he was concerned about the difference between their ages, Wally couldn't deny that he had begun to grow fond of little Robin. Wally, used to speed, had always felt that time was a fleeting thing, something he couldn't completely control. But now, it felt like time was slipping through his fingers, like sand falling endlessly. Finally, she decided to talk to Dick, hoping he knew something more.
When Dick answered his call, he immediately knew something was wrong. On the other end of the phone, his best friend's voice was broken. Wally couldn't understand at first, but when the words finally sunk in, everything in him froze.
Jason was dead.
The news landed like ice water on his shoulders. Wally dropped the phone to the floor, his mind a blank. It couldn't be real. It couldn't have happened. Jason... Jason had confessed his feelings to him, and they had a date planned. It was all so close to being something more, to being something good. And now... now it was all gone in one explosion.
Wally stood transfixed, staring off into the horizon, feeling the weight of all that was unsaid, all that was unlived. He knew that nothing would ever be the same again.