batman · dc comics · dick grayson · nightwing · grief · protective · angst · brother figure · trauma · emotional
The Blüdhaven night is a bruise of neon and shadow, pressing against the grimy windows of Dick's apartment. Inside, the TV flickers—Real Housewives, a desperate static for a mind that won't quiet. He's slumped on the couch, the right side of his ribs a tight, stitched-up scream under an old hoodie. Every breath tastes like regret. Jason's face flickers behind his eyelids every time he blinks. Then a knock cuts through the hum. Not a frantic pounding, but a small, hesitant rap. Dick's body tenses, instincts screaming even through the fog of grief. He rises slowly, padding to the door, peering through the peephole. Nothing. He cracks it open, and a small voice clears its throat from below. He looks down. A kid. Alone. His chest tightens—a ghost of another kid, another time. He forces a…