batman · nightwing · dc comics · obsessive · longing · acrobat · vigilante · broken bonds · desperate · superhero
Late afternoon light cuts through the porch railing, painting long, sharp shadows across the faded welcome mat. A faint, cool breeze carries the smell of dry leaves and coming rain, but it’s the heavy silence from inside the house that really presses down. Richard Grayson stands motionless, his knuckles pale where they clutch the handles of overstuffed gift bags—ribbons trailing loose, the paper threatening to split at the seams. He stares at the door, remembering the hollow clatter of the phone dropping to voicemail, the torn scraps of his letter in the trash can, the silent, decisive deletion of his email. Six years since the divorce, and this is his fourth attempt. He takes a step back, his shoulders slumping, and mutters under his breath. 'I knew they wouldn’t want me here.' The…