Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Jonathan Kent has never walked a single step.

He was born paralyzed from waist down. And because of that, people deemed him as “not normal”. They treat him like he is delicate or slow or a burden to the “normal” people.

They leave him out on plans because he would only hinder them. They talk to him with a different tone of voice, changing their entire personality. They look at him like they expect him to start drooling or jerking around randomly.

Jon hates it.

His parents always comfort him, telling him that it is not his fault, telling him to ignore all those insensitive idiots of the world. His older brother always promises to beat up anyone who bullies him.

But as he grew older, Jon stopped telling his family of every single incident. If he is going to survive in this world, he needs to learn to stick up for himself. He cannot have his family do everything for him forever.

Jon works hard. He studies harder, getting into many advanced classes. He begs his parents to get him a special workout set that allows him work on his upper body strength. He practices talking to people with more authority, looking them in the eyes.

He starts making friends.

He is still rather unpopular, but Jon has a couple friends who would rather be his friend than be part of the popular crowd.

Then high school starts. There are so many more people, all much crueler than the kids in middle school. Jon is only a little freshman, so people looked down on him for his physical disability as well as his status in the school.

His brother, Conner, is a junior, but Jon insists he find his own way through high school. Conner is worried, but Jon has developed a very determined personality over the years.

School is hard for Jon, but so is everything else. Everything, but video games. Jon is amazing at playing video games. Every day, after he comes home from school, Jon would speed through his homework, walk Krypto, and come home in record time to play video games.

Jon loves playing video games online with other people. Not only do they have the same interests, but on the internet, no one knows who Jon is. They did not see him as some weak boy in a wheelchair. They see him as someone with a sharp mind, quick reflexes, and a charming personality.

In that world, Jon is popular. People like him. He has friends all around the world. He gets treated equally. It is the highlight of Jon’s day.

Sophomore year, Jon has less time to play video games, but he is not too upset. School takes up a lot of his time, and he also volunteers at the homeless shelter a couple times a week.

But there is one day, where Jon had very minimum amounts of homework, seeing that finals are coming up and teachers are allowing students maximum amounts of study time, Jon meets Damian.

Well, Jon already knew Damian, but they had never exactly been introduced. Damian goes to the same school as Jon, and he is in the same grade as Jon. Damian is who Jon wanted to be.

Damian’s entire figure screams authority. Half a glare from him will send one shrinking back and whimpering. He is not exactly a bully, but he does what he has to ensure than no one disrupts the “dynasty” he has built for himself.

Damian is smart, so much smarter than anyone Jon has ever known. He is the best at almost every sport, he is practically inhuman. His black hair, green eyes, and sharp features sent those who were not afraid of him swooning. But Damian did not pay attention to any of them.

Then, on top of everything else, Damian comes from a scary family. From what the rumors said, Damian’s father is a very successful business man with a cold exterior and even colder eye. His butler is even more frightening. No one talks back to the butler. Damian’s mother, with no actual relation to his father, is some badass FBI agent, head of her bureau. And Damian also has three older brother, each better than the one before.

At school, Damian would never spare Jon another glance. They are on completely different levels of status, despite being the same grade.

The day Jon meets Damian online, they talk for a long time. Jon did not know it was Damian at first. He finds out several weeks later. They have been talking nearly every day since, and Jon is so excited to have met his new best friend.

Jon loves his friend’s witty sarcasm and blunt responses. His friend, whom he’d been calling Robin for time’s being, has an aloof way of speaking, but he never rubs it in Jon’s face.

Then, Jon got Damian’s number. It is the best and possibly worst day ever.

They chat that night, having given up on playing a while ago. That is when Damian asks if Jon wants his number in their private chatroom.

RobinIV: I have never once met a girl as invested in video games as you. I will admit it, you have captured my interest. I will give you my number if you like.

Jon did not know how to respond. He sits there for a couple minutes, staring at those words. Robin thinks he is a girl. But he likes Jon. And Jon really likes him as well. Jon decides not to point it out to Robin, to save the boy some embarrassment.

So Jon accepts.

Chapter Text

When Robin reveals his identity to Jon, Jon had drops his phone in alarm. Robin says his name is Damian. As in Damian Wayne, prince of his high school. And Jon feels bad, he really, really does.

But he tells Damian that his name is Jennifer, or Jen.

Each night, they text each other, and Jon finds himself smiling at everything Damian says. It turns out that the boy is actually really sweet under his indifferent exterior. They talk about anything and everything.

A month goes by like this, and a rumor spreads around school. Damian Wayne has a girlfriend. Some cool, badass chick that goes to a different school. She is funny and smart. And the part that has Jon choking on his sandwich? Her name is Jennifer.

That night, Jon finally works up the nerve to ask him.

J: Hey, Dami, I have a question.

D: In order for me to answer, it would require you to ask first.

J: Are we dating?

There is a long pause between Jon’s question and Damian’s answer. Jon holds his breath, his heart thudding loudly in his chest.

D: Would you be uncomfortable if we were?

J: Not necessarily.

D: Then I would like to say yes, we are.

Jon felt like he is floating on clouds over the next week. Everyone around him notices. His parents ask him if anything good happened at school. Conner wants to know if he is taking any drugs (which earned Conner a rather hard slap). His friends want to know who the girl was.

But Jon keeps Damian a secret, his secret. But he kind of feels guilty for it. After all, Damian thinks he is a really cool girl. And in reality, he is not.

He is just a boy, a rather ordinary boy, who is stuck in a wheelchair for the rest of his life.

This realization makes Jon’s euphoric mood pummel. He watches Damian at school from afar. He can see Damian and his friends (who were all older) from where he usually eats lunch with his own friends.

Damian’s friends are also very cool. Jon thinks that Kori was especially pretty. She has dated Damian’s two oldest brothers. Her exotic skin and her fiery hair mark her as the object of everyone’s desires. They either want to be her friend or to date her. Kori is openly bisexual, and in Jon’s opinion, not looking for an actual romantic relationship, but more of a sexual one.

But still, Jon has stopped looking at Kori all the time when he and Damian started exchanging texts. Now, Jon cannot take his eyes off his boyfriend. He is really good looking. But Damian never looks at him. Damian did not even know Jon existed.

They have never spoken, and Jon really wants to. So badly. He wants to hear Damian’s voice directed at him, see that half smirk of a smile. But it seems that it just is not meant to be.

So Jon takes great pleasure in the time he gets to talk to Damian after school. Sometimes, it’s just five minutes a day, sometimes, they can talk for hours. And while these conversations make Jon oh so happy, it also always leaves him feeling a bit guilty. But he just turns away and ignores it.

J: How was your day at school?

D: As per usual. Nothing ever happens at my school, so I cannot say it is better or worse than any other day.

J: You’re so negative! Allergic to positivity, Mr. Wayne?

D: How clever of you. I am not allergic to positivity, I just prefer seeing things for the way they are.

J: Seriously? There isn’t one tiny thing in your day that just makes it a little better?

D: I have a feeling you’re just fishing for compliments now, J

J: You know what I meant! A good score on a test, or even someone just opening the door for you.

D: Nope

J: Wow, well, okay. Since you’re going to be so pissy all night, I guess I’ll just do my homework then.

D: I think your homework can wait. Don’t you feel like cheering up your boyfriend instead?

J: Nope

D: I hope you did not actually think that you don’t make me happy, Jen. Because you do. My day would be considerably worse if I did not have you to look forward to each night.

J: Are you being serious?

D: Yes

Jon takes a few seconds then to hide his face in his pillow and hyperventilate. He makes Damian’s day better. Well, Jen did, but same thing. He is pretty sure he is blushing furiously right now. He slowly picks his phone back up and thinks about how to respond.

J: Dami, you make me really happy too.

He cannot help but blush even more. It just sounds so cheesy. He hopes that Damian would not laugh at him. His heart is pounding wildly in his chest, and he is sure that Damian can hear him through the texts.

J: I’m sorry, that sounded really cheesy! I’m so embarrassed now. How do you make yourself sound so normal when confessing something like that?!

D: You shouldn’t be embarrassed. I think it’s cute.

Jon screams into his pillow. Not only does he make Damian happy on a daily basis, but Damian thinks he is also cute. His heart can only take so much for one night.

J: Stop it, you’re embarrassing me more!

D: Why are you embarrassed? Do you not want me to say such things?

J: It’s just embarrassing! You wouldn’t know with you always being so calm!

D: It is rather hard to express one’s emotions through simple text messages. Jen, I doubt I would be able to say these words to your face without stammering and stuttering through it all. It’s the beauty of it all, I suppose. But you shouldn’t change the way you text me. I like it when you just text whatever comes to your mind first.

J: I swear if you tell me it’s cute, I’m leaving.

D: Well, it certainly makes you all the more adorable.

J: Damian…

D: I did not call you cute. I called you adorable. There is a difference.

J: Dami, you’re killing me.

D: I certainly did not intend to. Forgive me, Jen, my sweet

J: Okay, that’s too far for one night

D: I doubt you mean that.

J: I most certainly do mean that

D: No, you like me just as I like you. So I’m sure you’ll put up with some nicknames.

J: You don’t seem the type to use those cliché nicknames

D: Then you don’t know me very well, Jennifer, dear. But worry not. You have all the time in the world to find out.

They talk all night long. Jon hides under the covers and continues texting Damian long after the rest of his family goes to sleep. His face is in the constant state of “hot and red”.

But sometime around one in the morning, they are talking about their plans for the future, and Jon’s happiness deflates again.

D: I really wish I can meet you someday. Soon, even. You’re so much more interesting than all the other boring people at my school.

Jon reads that text, and he stops. Because at those words, he suddenly remembers who he is. He then remembers who Damian is.

J: I’m not as great as you think I am

D: Nonsense

J: Really, I think you’ve got the wrong idea in your head, Damian. I do like you a lot, and I know for sure that you are the coolest person I know, but I’m really not that amazing

D: I don’t believe you. You’re definitely better than you think.

Jon pauses and stares at those words again, reading and rereading them silently. Sometimes he forgets that it is Damian Wayne answering his texts. Sometimes he has a hard time believing it is Damian Wayne answering his texts. But when Jon does remember, he gets both a fluttery and a sinking feeling in his stomach.

Damian is not at all like the Damian at school, cold and aloof. No, his Dami is sensitive, supportive, and a great listener. But is he really Jon’s Damian?

Jon sighs and decides it is enough for the night. He needs sleep, as he does have school tomorrow.

J: Well, believe what you want, I suppose. I’m going to sleep now. Unlike you, Mr. Brilliant, I have to actually work to do well in school.

D: You are very smart, Jen. Don’t sell yourself short.

J: Hm. Goodnight, Dami <3

D: Night xx

~

“Seriously, Jon?” Mark, one of his good friends, asks, rolling his eyes. “You’re always staring at him!”

Jon blushes, looking over at Mark instead. “What are you talking about? I thought I heard someone shout my name.”

James, his other friend, snorts. “Right. You, with only the two of us for friends? Honestly, J, just admit that you like him.”

“Who?!” Jon exclaims too loudly, laughing. He takes a quick bite of his sandwich. “Don’t know who you guys are talking about.”

Mark gives him a pointed look. “Damian Wayne? You think we haven’t noticed the way you stare at him and watch his every move creepily? It’s fine if you like him, we’re not judging.”

Jon goes red. “I don’t like him,” he mutters. “He’s just… cool, y’know.”

“Oh, give it up, Jon,” James laugh. “You have a crush the size of Canada, and you’re trying to hide it behind a maple leaf.”

Jon pulls a face. “It’s not a crush!” he protests. “He’s way out of my league anyway.”

Jon tries to ignore the fact that his friends did not disagree with him on that fact. He just sighs silently and looks over at where Damian’s sitting with his friends once more.

Chapter Text

“Jon, I really hate to say this, but you’re failing this class,” Mr. Kowalski, Jon’s history teacher, sighs, folding his hands on the desk in front of him, and stares at Jon over the rims of his wire glasses.

“I’m sorry, Mr. K, but I-”

“Jon, look, I’m an understanding guy. I get if you have one bad week, or even two. But this has been going on for a month now. You don’t do your homework, and I’ve caught you falling asleep in this class three times now.”

“I know,” Jon says miserably. “I… I’ll work harder to complete my homework, and I’ll get some more sleep, I promise!”

Mr. Kowalski removes his glasses and cleans them with his shirt. “I don’t doubt that you will, but even if you start doing all of your work now, you’ll still end up with a C in this class by the end of the semester.”

Jon winces eternally. He knows he was not doing well in history, since it is one of his weaker subjects, but he did not think it was so bad.

“You’re a good kid, Jon, and I’m sure whatever you’ve got going on right now, you can figure it out. So I’m going to give you a chance.”

Jon gasps. “Really? Oh, thank you, Mr. K!”

“You’re going to be tutored by one of my other students.”

“Sorry, tutoring?”

Mr. Kowalski nods. “An hour a week. Thursdays after school in the library.”

Jon blinks at him rapidly. “And I can bring my grade up that way?”

His teacher nods. “For each hour of tutoring you complete, I’ll give ten points. Think of it as extra credit, if you will.”

Jon nods, bobbing his head up and down like a bouncy ball. “Yes, sir! I’ll make sure to take advantage of this opportunity.”

Mr. Kowalski laughs. “Good. Your first tutoring session will be tomorrow afternoon. I still must confirm with my other student, to see if he can do it. But go to the library after school, and you can get started on getting your grade back up.”

~

J: Dami, I won’t be able to spend all night up talking to you anymore.

D: Why not? Is it affecting your grades?

Jon winces. Of course Damian will suspect that. Damian is always an exemplar student. He will expect the best from his “girlfriend” too, would he not?

J: No, I’m offering to tutor a classmate.

D: Oh? Replacing me for the company of someone else, I see?

J: Very funny. I’m not replacing you, D, I’m just helping out a friend. We can stay up all night talking on weekends anyway.

D: I suppose our contact has been a bit excessive recently.

J: Bored of me already?

D: I didn’t say that. Jen, I don’t think I can ever get bored of you

J: Aw, thanks, Dami. You’re so sweet

D: You know, now that you brought it up, I was considering tutoring someone too

A spike of jealousy springs up in Jon. The thought of Damian giving his time to someone else makes him upset. But he has no reason to be. Damian is not Jon’s boyfriend. Damian is “Jen’s” boyfriend. And what would Jen do?

J: That’s a great idea! Look at you, opening up to the idea of helping others?

D: That would be your influence, Jen darling

J: Ugh, what did I tell you about the nicknames, D?

D: Hm, that you hate them and they make you uncomfortable and all the more cute of course

J: Unbelievable, just unbelievable

D: Only for you <3

Chapter Text

Jon rolls into the nearly empty library after school the next day, slightly nervous. He gives the librarian a small wave and tucks himself into the farthest table, in the corner. He pulled out his history textbook and started working on the homework assigned on that day while waiting for his tutor to arrive.

Five-ish minutes later, someone walks up to Jon’s table.

“Jonathan Kent?”

Jon looks up, opening his mouth to answer, but freezes. Standing in front of his desk, staring down at him impassively, is his (Jen’s) boyfriend.

“Well?”

Jon quickly snaps out of it. He clears his throat, going a bit red. “Yeah, yes, I am.”

Damian lets his backpack drop to the ground and takes the seat across from Jon. “I’m Damian. Mr. Kowalski assigned me to be your tutor for the semester.”

“Oh?” Jon squeaks. He clears his throat again. “Sorry. Um, nice to… nice to meet you.”

Damian says nothing back. Instead, he gets straight to the point. “What unit are you on currently?”

“Are we not on the same unit? Mr. K said you were his student too…” Jon trails off under Damian’s withering glare.

“I’m in his AP class,” Damian says “We are not on the same unit.”

“Sorry,” Jon says quietly, his hands twisting in his lap. He has never felt so stupid before, and they have not even started reviewing yet. Honestly, it is a miracle Damian does not think of Jen as stupid and incompetent. “We, um, we started the French Revolution last week. Chapter 5, I believe.”

Damian nods curtly and grabs Jon’s textbook. He opens to chapter five and starts reciting the important facts and dates Jon should remember. A few paragraphs in, he looks up sharply to see Jon staring back at him.

Damian frowns, and Jon blushes.

“How do you plan on retaining this information if you are not copying it down?” Damian asks impatiently.

“Oh, sorry! Sorry!” Jon quickly digs into his backpack for paper and a pencil. He spills all his utensils on the ground, but decides not to pick them up in case Damian’s frown deepens. “Okay, I’m ready.”

Damian gives him another glare before going back to the textbook, repeating what Jon missed.

Jon tries really hard to concentrate, to focus on the facts Damian is spilling from his lips like honey dripping from a honeycomb. His words do not process in Jon’s mind, but the sound of his voice does.

Jon finds himself nodding at all the appropriate moments, but not remembering a single word. Not to mention, their close proximity makes it hard for Jon to concentrate properly. The hour came to a close way too quickly.

Jon snaps out of his daze, staring down at the three pages of notes he copied in surprise. Somehow, he had gotten all of the notes. Damian scans through his notes quickly, making little notes here and there.

“Alright, you’re done for the week,” Damian says. He stands and closes Jon’s textbook, sliding it back across the table. He grabs his backpack and pushes his chair in. “See you next week, Jonathan.”

Then, he walks out of the library without another word. Jon stares after him, sighing softly. He knows very well that this Damian is not the same Damian he spends hours texting every night. But which one is the real Damian?

Jon cleans up his papers slowly, sliding his book back into his backpack. He then bent over and starts picking up all the pens and pencils that had spilled onto the floor earlier. It takes him quite a while, seeing that he has to roll his wheelchair out of the way every few seconds. When Jon finally finishes cleaning up, he leaves the library and goes to the parking lot at the side of the school.

He spots Conner leaning against the car, chatting with some of his friends. Jon rolls over, a bit miserable.

Conner notices him. “Okay, I gotta go, guys,” he says. “See you tomorrow!”

“Sure you can’t come grab food with us?” his friend asks. “C’mon, dude. It’s okay if you’re late.”

“Nah,” Conner laughs. “Maybe next time.”

“You sure? The cheerleaders are coming. And I’m pretty sure the swim team’s going to be there too. You know what that means.” His other friend wiggles his eyebrows at him.

Conner snorts. “You’re horrible. I say he’s exceptional once, and suddenly I have a crush on him? Grow up, man.”

The first friend laughs. “Exceptional and hot, if I remember correctly.”

Conner rolls his eyes. “Just go. Or you’ll be late too.”

“Whatever you say, C-man. Next time then, dude.” His friends walk off with a laugh and a wave.

Conner turns to Jon. “Hey, what’s up? You look like someone ran over your dog.”

“Nothing,” Jon sighs. “If you want to go get food with your friends, go ahead. Just drop me off at home.”

Conner frowns, opening the door and rolling down the ramp. “I’m fine not going, Jon. What’s wrong?”

Jon just shrugs as Conner pushes him up into the car. Jon locks the wheels of his chair into the car and Conner checks them. He slides into the front seat and peers at Jon in the rearview mirror. “Does tutoring suck that much?”

Jon laughs weakly. “Actually, it’s much better than I expected.”

“Then what’s got you in the dumps, Jonny?”

“It’s nothing,” Jon says with a touch of exasperation. “I’m fine. Just tired, okay?”

“Okay, okay,” Conner says, backing off.

“So who’s this guy your friends were talking about?” Jon inquires, changing the subject to distract his overly worried brother.

“Hm? Seriously? You too?” Conner asks, but he starts laughing. “Some guy one the swim team. I went with a couple friends to support their first home game, school spirit and all that, and I made an offhand comment about a swimmer having a really good body, that’s all. As in, wow, how did he get to be so sexy, I wish I was like that, not… what they think.”

Jon snorts. “Kon, you’re on the football team.”

“Yes, but there’s a difference between slim and muscular and built and muscular,” Conner insists.

“Uh-huh,” Jon teases. “So this sexy swimmer. Does he have a name?”

“You really expect me to have gotten his name? I told you, it was a thoughtless comment. I don’t know.”

Jon raises his eyebrows slowly.

Conner goes red. “Tim something,” he ends up muttering. “Not because I asked or I saw on the scoreboard, I swear. Those idiotic friends of mine found out and kept teasing me about it. That’s all there is to it. Jon, don’t you give me that look.”

“You’re oddly defensive about this,” Jon continues teasing. “What’s he look like? Is he a senior? Or is he in your class? He’s not in my grade, is he?”

“No!” Conner gasps. “I have more morale than going around ogling half naked underclassmen, Jon!”

“So you were checking him out!”

“Jonathan!”

“Okay, okay, no more of this topic,” Jon relents.

~

Jon feels a bit better after Conner drives him home. He finishes his homework first, keeping his promise to his teacher, before checking his phone. He has two texts from Damian.

D: So I had my first tutoring session today with the kid in my history class I told you about.

D: It went… well, I suppose.

Jon’s heart starts pounding his chest. He bites his lower lip uncertainly. Damian does not sound convinced that it went well at all. His fingers shake as he types in his response.

J: Oh? And what was this kid like?

D: Same old, same old, I guess. Nothing particularly interesting about him. A bit of a daydreamer, I think. Had no concentration skills whatsoever.

Jon is a bit hurt that Damian thought that he could not concentrate at all. But he is also embarrassed that Damian noticed that he cannot concentrate. At least the first thing Damian said is not that Jon is in a wheelchair. That seems to be a common first impression about him.

J: I don’t find history particularly interesting either, so I would daydream too when it comes to that subject.

D: Even if I were your tutor?

J: I think especially if you were my tutor. I’d get nothing done.

D: But he has not excuse, unlike you. He seemed to be a bit of an airhead too.

Jon frowns this time.

J: So am I dumb too because I’m not good at history either.

D: You don’t have to be good at history to be smart, Jen.

J: Then why do you think this kid is dumb?

D: Jen

D: I don’t think he’s dumb, okay? I may have judged him a bit quickly, I’ll admit. I think it was because I was upset that my teacher asked me of all people to tutor someone.

J: Okay.

D: Are you still upset?

J: No

A few seconds pass, and Jon is about to toss his phone away when it starts ringing. Jon freaks out when he sees Damian’s name on the screen. Panicking, Jon declines the call.

D: Jen, I just want to apologize. You seem more upset than you’re letting on, and I don’t want to resolve our first argument over text.

Jon’s heart feels like it is about to burst out of his chest. If he answers Damian’s call, Damian will hear his voice. But at the same time, Jon gets to hear Damian talk to him. He groans weakly, not sure what to do. His phone starts ringing again, and Jon hesitates for a few seconds before slowly answering the call.

He brings his phone up to his ear. “Hey,” he says, pitching his voice higher.

Jon has been practicing pitching his voice higher for a while now. He thought that one day he may get a chance to talk to Damian over the phone, so “Jen” would need a voice. Thankfully, Jon’s voice is not super deep naturally.

There is a soft hitching of breath on the other side. “Jen,” came Damian’s reply. “Hello.” They are both silent for a few seconds. Then, Damian clears his throat. “I’m sorry. I admit, I judged the boy too quickly, and I’m sorry I upset you. Will you forgive me?”

He sounds so formal and so sincere. Jon has a hard time getting his words to work normally again. “Yeah, sure,” he manages.

“No, Jen, I want you to be sure. I don’t want you mad at me.”

“I’m not- I’m not mad, I promise,” Jon squeaks out. “I forgive you, Damian.”

“Good,” Damian sighs. “I like the sound of your voice, by the way. It’s… different.”

Jon nearly drops his phone. Of course he does not sound like an authentic girl. Jon clears his throat and laughs nervously. “Sorry, my voice is a bit odd, I know, and-”

“I think it’s cute.”

Jon’s words die in his throat. His face flares up red. “Um,” he peeps. “Th-Thanks?”

Damian laughs, his voice rich and pure, sending shivers down Jon’s spine. “No need to be shy, Jen. Just because we’re talking now doesn’t mean I’m a different person.”

Jon takes a deep breath. “You’re right,” he agrees. He has to bite back a smile. “So, did you- did you play the new zombie apocalypse game yet?”

Damian hums low in his ear. “Haven’t gotten a chance. Wanted to play with you first.”

Jon blushes harder. “How thoughtful of you,” he chokes out, still unable to believe that he is actually on the phone with his boyfriend at the moment. “But you can play first. Then you can teach me. I haven’t gotten the game yet.”

“I’ll wait, it’s fine,” Damian assures. “I really don’t mind, and… it’s much more fun when I know I’m playing with my girlfriend.”

Jon wants to smile and cry at the same time.

~

They talk for a couple hours. Jon laughs until he has tears running down the sides of his face and several times, he nearly falls out of his wheelchair.

But sadly, their time is cut short. There are three brief knocks on Jon’s door.

“Oh, I have to go,” Jon says quickly. “Nice talking! Goodnight!” He ends the call quickly, just as Conner opens the door and pokes his head in.

“Who was that?” Conner smirks.

“A friend,” Jon lies.

“Oh?” Conner asks. “Calling you?”

“It’s about homework. His, uh, messaging app wasn’t working properly.”

“Really now,” Conner says slowly. “Anyway, Mom told you to get off your phone and get ready for bed. You still have tomorrow to get through.”

Jon nods. “Yeah, got it, thanks.”

Conner gives him one last look before leaving his room. Jon waits a few seconds before reaching for his phone again.

D: What was that all about? So eager to leave me?

J: Ugh, no. My brother came into my room.

D: Ah, so you’re ashamed of me.

J: No! Stop twisting my words! You horrible boyfriend, I was just startled. Thought it was my mom or something.

D: Haven’t told them about me?

J: Not yet lol. They’re a bit… overprotective

D: I understand. You can tell them in your own time. Night, Jen.

J: Night, Dami

Chapter Text

Jon is in a sort of daze all week.

Since his conversation over the phone with Damian, he has been in a dream-like state, floating from day to day. And everyone around him certainly noticed.

“You’re sure happy today,” Conner notes as he drives them to school the next day.

“Yeah,” Jon agrees, smiling out the window.

“Could it be that ‘friend’ you were talking to last night?”

Jon blushes. “What, I can’t just be happy sometimes?”

“No, no, you can, but people usually have reasons to be happy.”

“Maybe I just had a good night’s sleep, Kon, stop picking on me!” Jon groans. “I’m just… happy, okay?”

Conner just laughs, pulling into the handicap spot at the front of the parking lot. He slides out of his car and opens the door, rolling the ramp down. He undoes the straps holding Jon’s wheelchair and place, and steps aside to let Jon roll down.

Conner reaches into the other seat and grabbed Jon’s backpack.

“Alright, Mr. Happy,” Conner says. “Have a good day at school.”

Jon sticks his tongue out at Conner, then rolls away to his first class. As he goes, his mind wanders back to Damian. A dreamy smile floats onto his face again, even though he does not realize it consciously.

“Dude, Jon,” Mark says, nudging Jon in the ribs. Jon frowns at him.

“What?” he asks irritably.

“You’re practically drooling over him. If you’re going to stare, make it less obvious,” he hisses.

“Stare? At who?” Jon asks, rubbing his side. “Jeez, that hurt, you brute!”

“Duh, Damian, of course. You haven’t said a single word to James and I since lunch started ten minutes ago!”

Jon’s eyebrows furrow. “I haven’t? Are you sure?”

James nods. “You just rolled over and started staring over at their table. If you like him so much, maybe you should go say something.”

Jon shakes his head violently. “Are you kidding? Me? Go up to him? He has a girlfriend, you know.”

“Yeah, I know,” James says. “But maybe rejection will help you snap out of it.”

Jon frowns at James. “That’s not very supportive of you.”

James just shrugs again. “Jon, you realize that he loves his girlfriend right? According to the rumors, he does nothing but talk about her.”

Jon does his best not to turn to look over at Damian’s table again. “Really?”

“Uh, yeah,” James says. “You’ve got no chance.”

Jon sighs. “You’re probably right.”

“Cheer up, dude,” Mark encourages. “Lots of fish in the sea, no matter which way you swing.”

Jon pouts glumly.

“Oh, c’mon,” Mark groans. “You’re just upset because he’s your first gay crush. But there are so many more good looking guys out there!”

“Like who?” Jon challenges.

“Like- Like-” Mark says, struggling to come up with an answer. “You can’t ask a straight guy which guys he thinks are hot, Jon!” he finally sputters.

Jon laughs. “I’m just teasing.” He glances back over at Damian, who is talking with Kori again.

“Hey, Jon. Isn’t that your brother over there?” Jon’s eyes follow James’ pointing finger to where Conner stood under a tree, chatting with someone else.

“Yeah, so?” Jon asks.

James’ eyebrows rise. “So? Look who he’s talking to.”

Jon tries to peer around his brother, but fails to do so. Thankfully, Conner shifts. Jon gasps. “That’s- That’s-”

“Timothy Drake? Uh, yeah,” James says, taking a large bite of his burger. “If he’s friends with Drake, then maybe you have a chance with Damian?”

“Are you kidding, no!” Jon sputters. “You see the way Kon’s leaning against that tree? That’s his flirting stance.” Jon’s eyes go wide. “Oh, shit, that’s the hot swimmer he was talking about!”

“Huh?” Mark asks, giving Jon an inquisitive look.

Jon groans loudly and buries his head in his arms. “I’ll never get a chance now! If my brother starts dating Damian’s brother, Damian’s for sure to hate me!”

“What are you talking about?” James asks.

“Everyone knows that the little brother hates whoever his older brother is dating! I mean, I personally won’t mind too much, but Damian’s for sure going to hate Kon, and then, he’ll hate me too!”

“Jon…”

“James, just kill me now, why don’t you?” Jon wails loudly, grabbing the front of his friend’s shirt and shaking him vigorously.

“Jon! Hey, Kent!” James yells. “Dude, calm down!” Jon finally lets go of James. James glares at him. “I hope you’re satisfied. Your man crush over there saw your entire breakdown.”

Jon’s head whips over to Damian’s table. Sure enough, Damian and Kori are watching him. Damian’s eyebrows rise slowly. Jon gives him a small, sheepish wave.

Damian stares at him for another few moments before he nods briefly once in acknowledgement. Then, he turns away.

Jon wants to melt into a puddle of liquid human and just evaporate into the air.

~

Jon rolls into the library on Thursday afternoon, beyond nervous. He spots Damian already at the table in the corner.

He heads over. “Hi,” Jon says shyly, already starting to go red.

“Hello,” Damian says. He gives Jon a nod of acknowledgement. “How are you today?” he asks.

Jon pauses his unpacking and blinks up at Damian for a beat. “Uh, fine, thanks. What- What about you?” he asks. He clears his throat. Fuck, what if Damian recognizes his voice a bit?

“I’ve been well,” Damian says. “And has history been more manageable this week?”

Jon pulls out his textbook, folder and his pencil case. “Yeah, yeah. The, uh, the notes really helped.” He gives Damian a small smile.

Damian actually smiles back. “I’m glad they helped.” He then nods at Jon’s backpack. “I like your pin.”

Jon looks down and sees the bow-and-arrow pin on his bag. It is from one of his favorite video games. And coincidentally, the game he “met” Damian on.

“Oh, thanks! It’s from one of my favorite video games, heh,” he says. He looks down quickly. Damian does not do small talk. He lets his bag drop to the ground and opens his book up to a random page, his face burning red.

“So Mr. Kowalski told me that your class has moved on to the effects of the French Revolution on the rest of Europe, yes?” Damian asks, pulling the textbook from Jon’s hands. Jon quickly let go of his frantic flipping, with no actual page number in mind.

“Er, yeah, yeah.”

Damian laughs quietly and flips to the right page. “Want to take notes again?”

“Oh, um, yeah. I’ll just…” Jon quickly pulls out a pencil and a blank sheet of paper. He smooths it out on the table, hoping Damian does not notice how sweaty his hands actually are and how hard he is shaking.

“You okay?” Damian asks.

Jon flashes him a small smile. “Yeah. Yeah, I’m fine.”

“Okay…” Damian says. “So after the revolution ended with Napoleon’s rise to power…”

In that hour, Jon feels like he has an even harder time paying attention to Damian. His hands shake a bit, so writing is a bit difficult. Thankfully, Damian pauses and waits when Jon has to reach for his eraser and scrub furiously at the third time he spells ‘Prussia’ wrong.

Obviously, Damian takes “Jen’s” advice to heart. He is a lot more patient and kinder this time around, and Jon has an even harder time handling it. Jon is pretty sure Damian thinks him even stupider than before.

So Jon does not actually know if he likes Damian’s change of heart or not. Because Damian’s harsh attitude at least kept Jon’s feelings in check. But Damian being so nice, smiling at him, telling him mistakes are okay, reaching over to point out important details to Jon, only made Jon fall harder for the other boy.

At the end of the hour, Jon is dead tired. Physically, mentally, and emotionally.

And this time, Damian even stays behind to help Jon clean up. As Jon shuffles his papers together and tucks his book away, Damian collects the variety of pens, highlighters and pencils Jon used. He hands the pencil pouch back to Jon.

“Thanks,” Jon says, shivering slightly when their fingers brush as he takes the pencil case from Damian.

“So,” Damian says. “I was thinking, since we’re only meeting up once a week, I thought it might be a good idea if we could contact each other during the week or weekends. In case you need any help with homework or have questions. That way you don’t have to remember them for the next week.”

Jon blinks at him. “Uh, yeah. That’s- that’s a great idea!”

Damian smiles and pulls out his phone. He hands it to Jon.

“Er…”

“Your number?” Damian laughs.

Jon freezes. Inside, he is panicking hard. He is pretty sure he is sweating profusely when he smiles sheepishly at Damian. “I, uh, actually broke my phone last week,” he lies. “And I don’t really know when I’ll get a new one.”

“Oh, okay,” Damian says. “How about email then?”

Jon nods, feeling the relief seep into him. He lets out a long breath. “Yeah, that’s good,” he says. Damian takes a few seconds to scribble his email onto a piece of paper, rips the corner off and hands it to Jon. “Just email me anytime. I usually check it at least twice a day, so I should get back to you within a day.”

Jon nods. “Got it. Thanks, Damian.”                                                                          

“No problem,” Damian brushes off. He shoulders his backpack and stands. “See you next week, Jon.”

Jon’s heart skips a beat. He smiles and waves as Damian leaves the library. “Yeah, see ya.”

Chapter Text

D: So, Jen, I took your advice.

J: Oh? Which one? I tend to dish out a lot to you.

D: Ha ha, no. About the boy I’m tutoring.

J: Ah, him. How’s that going by the way?

D: Surprisingly well. As much as I hate to admit that I’m wrong, he’s not entirely stupid. A bit shy and a bit of a nervous wreck, but he’s pretty cool.

J: You don’t sound convinced at all.

D: I’m telling the truth! He’s a great person. Loves video games too. He didn’t seem the type.

J: And what type of person is supposed to like video games? The cool, jocky type like you?

D: He seems shy and reserved. Not into all the violence, blood and gore stuff. It was unexpected. I think it’s the glasses he wears. Gives him the innocent angel air.

J: Innocent angel? Wow, that’s high compliments coming from you, Mr. Wayne

D: Have I not showered you with enough praise, lately, my lady?

J: I’m just saying I might have to step up my game, lol so you don’t leave me for him.

D: You don’t have to worry about that, Jen. I don’t like boys for one, and two, no one could ever be as great as you are.

Jon stares at the text for a long time, not replying. It is another one of those times where his heart breaks and soars at the same time. He wonders if he is in too deep now. Damian really does seem to be enamored by him. What would happen if he tells Damian the truth now?

J: You really think I’m the only person for you out there, don’t you.

D: I know you are.

J: Dami, I’m going to be realistic for a moment, okay? We haven’t even ever met. You don’t know why I actually am. I could be a completely different person, and I might have a different side to me that you hate. How do you know for sure?

Damian does not text back. Instead, he calls Jon. Jon hesitates just a moment, taking a deep breath and clearing his throat before answering.

“Hey,” he says.

“Jen,” Damian starts without any hesitance. “I don’t know for sure if you’re who you say you are, but I can tell you that the person you are with me, Jen, I could be completely crazy, but I love that person.”

Jon is shocked into silence. He chokes on his words. “I- uh- you- you-”

“I know this is really sudden, and I know you probably don’t feel the same yet, but I’m willing to wait. Even if this whole thing doesn’t work out, I hope you know that I do love you. You’re the first person I’ve dated and loved, Jen.”

Jon’s breathing skyrockets. He is hyperventilating now, not at all knowing how to respond. He cannot tell Damian he is a boy now that Damian just confessed that he is in love with him!

Damian continues, “My friends tease me on a daily basis because they say I’m completely whipped for this girl I’ve never met, and they’re telling the truth. I find my mind drifting to you all the time, and I scares me, a lot, how much I actually like you. And I don’t get scared by much,” Damian finishes.

Jon is completely silent. He basically forgot how to speak the English language.

“Jen, please say something,” Damian pleads. Jon has never heard him like this before.

“I-” Jon says. His eyes fill with tears. Damian thinks his “girlfriend” hung the sun, the moon, and the stars, but in reality, he is just a big fat liar.

“Are you okay?” Damian asks softly. “Breathe, Jen.”

“Dami,” Jon says, his voice barely above a cracked whisper.

“Yeah, baby?”

“I’m not- I’m not as great as you think I am. I really am not. I’m far from perfect, and I’m sure that if you saw all my flaws, you wouldn’t- you wouldn’t love me anymore,” Jon says. The tears start rolling down his face.

“Fuck,” Damian curses. “Jen, baby, don’t say that. I don’t need you to be perfect. I need you to be you, as corny and cliché as it sounds.”

“But-”

“Why are you so insistent on the fact that I won’t love you if I could see you? Do you not show me the real you on a daily basis? Is the girl I talk to every night not you?” Damian asks.

Jon wants to spill the truth right then and there, but it gets stuck in his throat. He just whimpers instead.

“Jen, I don’t care if you’re not perfect, baby. Just… be the person you are every night. Because I love that girl and I think she’s amazing. I would love you no matter who you are.”

Jon laughs weakly, sniffling. “Really?”

“Of course.”

“Even if I'm not who you think I am? What if, for example, I were a boy?” His heart thuds loudly in his ears. He is pretty sure Damian can hear it too. He holds his breath in the few seconds that it takes Damian to answer.

“Then, darling, then you’ll be the pot of gold at the end of my rainbow.”

Chapter Text

“Good, and how did that affect the rest of the country?” Damian quizzes, based off the study guide Mr. Kowalski passed out for the test.

Jon bites his lower lip and thinks. He remembers something about it. “It… hurt the economy and made the people angry?” he guessed.

“That’s correct, but you should probably read over that part again. You don’t sound sure.”

“Okay,” Jon says.

It is Thursday again, and Jon is at his third tutoring session with Damian. This time however, Damian takes a more hands on approach, not giving Jon a chance to daydream about him. They have been over the entire study guide a few times now, and Damian insists that it is good for him to hear the question in several ways and to know the answer for sure.

Damian hands the study guide back. “Great!” he says with a smile. “I think you’ll do well on the test. Better than everyone else.”

Jon cannot help but beam in response. As Damian helps Jon pack up, he says, “Oh, you got a new pin.”

Jon blushes, looking down at his backpack. “Oh, yeah,” he says. “It’s for the new version of my favorite game,” he mumbles, not at all good at talking casually with Damian yet. “I don’t have the game but y- my friend said it’s really good, so I have high hopes.”

Damian hums. “I can vouch for that too,” he says. “You know, I have the game. You could come over and play with me sometime. I don’t exactly have anyone to play with, since my girlfriend has yet to get the game too.” He sighs. "I did promise to play with her first, but I don't know if I can wait much longer. And I got her permission to take it for a test drive first. So... if you're interested?"

Jon’s eyes light up. “Really?” he asks.

“Yeah,” Damian smiles. “I want to see how good you are.”

Jon looks down shyly. “I’m not- I’m not that good. I don’t spend a ton of time playing video games anymore.”

“I’m sure you’re great,” Damian says. “How does this weekend sound for you?”

“Uh, it’s- I’m free,” Jon says quickly. He has a hard time believing Damian Wayne really just invited him over to play video games with him.

“Cool,” Damian says. “I have something early in the morning, but I can swing by your house to pick you up if you want?”

“Oh, no, I don’t- I don’t want to bother you with that,” Jon says quickly. “I’ll just have my parents take me or something.”

“Sure?” Damian asks. “I do live kind of far.”

“No trouble,” Jon assures. His heart is beating like crazy in his chest, and he is sure his face is tomato red.

“Alright then,” Damian grins. “See you?”

“Yeah,” Jon breathes. He watches Damian leave the library before melting into a puddle of happiness.

~

“What’s got you acting like a lovesick fool?” Conner teases when Jon hooks himself up into the car with a dazed expression.

“Huh? Nothing.”

Conner laughs. “Is it… Damian?”

Jon blinks rapidly. “Wh-What?”

“Your boyfriend.”

Jon goes red. “WHAT?! I, uh- What are you talking about, Kon? I don’t have a boyfriend, silly!”

“You’re a terrible liar, Jon,” Conner says with a roll of his eyes. “Besides, it’s the talk of the school. Damian Wayne and his badass girlfriend.” He laughs. “Who isn’t actually girl, nor is he really badass.”

“Hey!” Jon says, offended. He suddenly realizes his mistake and hides his face in his hands, groaning.

Conner laughs harder. “Hey, it’s totally cool, Jon! I don’t care if you like guys.” He goes serious. “However, I don't think it's cool that you're lying to him. I think you should tell him you’re not a girl.”

Jon looks up, wincing silently. “How can I?” he moans. “He’s in love with me!”

Conner sighs. “Better now that later. Especially if he finds out on his own, it’s going to a shit storm, Jon.”

Jon just sighed miserably. “How’d you find out anyway?”

Conner snorts. “With you leaving your phone all over the place? You left it upstairs last week and asked me to go fetch it for you before school, remember? And oh, look, Jon got a text from a little someone called ‘Dami <3’, and the text says ‘have a good day at school, Jen, baby’.” He shrugs. “I made some assumptions.”

“Please don’t tell anyone, Kon,” Jon pleads. “I didn’t mean for it to get out of hand, and I had no idea he wanted to date me, I thought we were just friends!”

“And do you still think of him as ‘just friends’?” Conner asks.

Jon sighs heavily. “No.”

“Tell him while you still can,” Conner says softly. “It’ll only hurt him more later.”

Deep down, Jon agrees. He knows that perfectly well. “I’ll think about it,” he says instead.

Chapter Text

Jon is really nervous. His palms are sweating like crazy, and no matter how many times he wipes them down on his jeans, he cannot stop them from clamming up again.

“Are you okay, Jonny?” Conner asks softly as they pull through the gates of the Manor. “You can still text Damian and say you’re sick.”

“No, I’m fine,” Jon says, taking a deep breath. He feels like throwing up. “Conner, I think I’m going to tell him today.”

Conner is silent for a moment. “Then I’ll stay nearby,” he says. “That way if something goes wrong, I’ll come quickly and pick you up, okay?”

“Yeah, okay,” Jon says weakly. “Thanks.”

“Of course,” Conner says. He stops the car and jumps out, pulling open Jon’s door and starts unlatching him. “Anything at all, okay?”

Jon nods. He rolls down the ramp and lets Conner push him up to the front door. Conner presses the doorbell, and they wait.

Jon expects the butler to open the door, the scary butler everyone talks about behind Damian’s back, but unless the butler was a young man that had a smile splitting his face in half, someone else opened the door.

“Oh, are you Dami’s friend?” the man asks. “He’s in his room, come in, come in!” the man steps aside and lets them in. He gives Conner a long look. “Do I know you? I think I’ve seen you somewhere before.”

Conner shakes his head slowly. “Don’t think we’ve ever met, sorry.”

“Hm,” the man says.

“Are you bothering B’s guests again, Dick?” comes a loud voice. The three of them turned to see Tim Drake walk around the corner, toweling his hair while dripping water all over the shiny tiles. He stopped in the doorway. “Oh, Conner, hey.”

The man, Dick, snaps his fingers. “Oh, right! Conner Kent. You’re in Timbo’s year, aren’t you? I was a senior when you guys were freshies.” He sighs happily. “I remember Tim would not stop talking about this Conner Kent in his chemistry class with the most gorgeous hair he’d ever seen on a guy.” Dick throws Tim a wink.

Tim glowers at him while Conner turns red and chuckles weakly. Tim walks over, still trailing water all over the ground. He smells strongly of chlorine, so he probably just came from a swim. He glances at Jon. “Want me to call Damian down? Or you could go upstairs, if you’d like.”

Jon shakes his head. “Ah, no need to bother with getting me upstairs,” he laughs. “Just… tell him I’m here, I guess.”

“Well, we do have a lift built between the first and second floors. There was a couple weeks where my other idiot brother broke both of his legs at once and was stuck in a wheelchair.”

Dick laughs. “Oh, yeah! Jason was dared to climb onto the roof and jump onto our trampoline from the third floor, and he fell through the trampoline instead and spent a few days in the hospital.”

“Do you find the need to get to know everyone who walks through those doors, Grayson?” Jon turns to look up at the top of the stairs where Damian stood, frowning down at them. He comes down and walks over. “Drake, you’ve gotten water all over the ground. Alfred just mopped this morning.”

“I’ll clean it up,” Tim says. “Jeez, bossy, bossy. C’mon, Kon, let’s go.” He grabs Conner’s wrist and starts pulling him away. Conner looks a bit confused and his eyes flit between Jon and Damian. Jon gives Conner a small smile and nod. Conner disappears with Tim.

“Let us go, too, Jon,” Damian says. “The lift is this way.” Jon gives Dick a small wave as he follows Damian down the hall. Sure enough, Damian pulls away a sheet and there is a wheelchair lift there. He rolls onto it, and Damian turns it on. Damian steps onto it with Jon and closes the little door. Then, they start moving up. “Sorry about my brothers,” Damian apologizes. “They’re a bit much sometimes, I know.”

“It’s fine,” Jon assures weakly. His heart is racing now that they are alone. Every passing second, Jon reminds himself his main goal for the day. He is going to tell Damian the truth.

Jon follows slowly behind Damian down another long and lavish hallway to his room. Damian’s room is like any teenage boy’s dream room.

The walls are painted a navy blue color, and it had a modern theme. It is also impeccably clean. A large flat screen TV is mounted on the wall and beside it, a shelf of video games. Damian walks over and plucks one from the bottom. He flashes the cover to Jon before sliding it into his gaming console. It is the newest game from Jon’s favorite series. He had been begging for it from his parents since before it came out, and they promised it to him if he raises his grade in history.

Jon has been dying to play it, but he cannot find the eagerness anymore, just sick dread in his stomach.

Damian walks back over and hands Jon a set of controls. He sits down at the edge of the couch so he can sit next to Jon. “You’ve never played this version, right?”

Jon nods.

“I haven’t either, so we’ll figure it out together,” Damian says with a smile. “Are you okay? You look a bit pale.”

Jon swallows and smiles. He feels sick too. “Perfectly fine.”

Damian gives him a slightly dubious look before turning to the TV. Jon wipes his hands on his jeans once more before picking up the remote. He fiddles with the controls, getting used to the feel of it in his hands. He takes a silent deep breath, shuddering slightly.

Throughout the first game, they say nothing to each other, both concentrating on the game. At least, Jon tries to.  He loses by a long shot, and he feels slightly embarrassed by it. “I wasn’t ready,” he says quickly.

Damian laughs. “Oh, so you’re one of those. Just ‘warming up’?”

Jon shoots him a glare before turning back to the game. “Again.” He loses a second time, not as embarrassingly.

“Want me to go easy on you?” Damian teases.

Jon shakes his head. “I’ve got it this time.”

They restart the game, and Jon decides to put off his worries for just one game. At first, Damian does go easy on him, but a few minutes in, Jon starts pulling ahead, and Damian notices that.

“How did you do on your history test? I meant to ask,” he says casually, not looking away from the screen.

“I did fine,” Jon says. “It was actually really easy.”

“Of course it was,” Damian snorts. “You had the best tutor to help you.”

Jon scoffs. “Look at you. Fluffing your ego and trying to distract me at the same time. It’s not working, by the way.”

“Oh, really?” Damian asks as he easily wipes out a horde of zombies and pulls up close behind Jon in points.

“Yes, really,” Jon laughs as he copies Damian’s move and pulls ahead again.

“Hey, you cheater!” Damian laugh, amused yet outraged. “You can’t look over at my screen!”

“I didn’t!” Jon counters. “I’m just playing dirty.”

Damian growls. “Oh, so we’re playing dirty now? You should’ve informed about those rules before we started . In that case…” He reaches back and grabs a pillow off of his bed and smacks it into Jon’s face.

“Hey!”

Jon takes the pillow and throws it back at Damian, who dodges it. Damian takes this opportunity to pull the covers off the bed as well and tossed it completely over Jon. As Jon struggles under the heavy covers, Damian regains control of his character and fends off the rest of the zombies while Jon’s character gets brutally beaten to death.

“Yes!” Damian cheers, jumping up on the bed. Jon finally manages to pull the covers off his head.

He huffs, but smiles at Damian’s smug and victorious expression. “You’re sure a joy to play with. No wonder your girlfriend’s jumping at the chance to play with you.”

Damian flops  back down onto the bed next to Jon. He stretches lazily, tossing the control aside. “Ouch, low blow, Jon. And she does like playing with me, thank you very much. We’re just both busy people.”

“What about weekends? You’re free on weekends. Isn’t she?” Jon feels his heart start pounding erratically again.

Damian shrugs. “I’m usually not free on weekends. So today’s actually a rare day for me.”

Jon’s eyebrows raise in surprise. “Then… why aren’t you spending your time playing with her instead?”

“I talk to Jen every day. We don’t necessarily have to be playing video games to converse.”

Jon feels like there’s a large lump in his throat. He swallows hard and takes a deep breath, feeling dizzy all of a sudden. “Damian,” he chokes out. “I-”

There’s a loud knock on his bedroom door. Then, the door opens and his older brother, Dick pokes his head inside.

“Hey, guys! Alfred’s making lunch right now. He wanted to know what you guys wanted to eat,” Dick says. “Oh, are you finally playing that game? You’ve had it for weeks, Dami!”

“Go away, Grayson,” Damian complains. “And whatever is fine. Right?” he glances at Jon.

Jon swallows back the words that had been on the tip of his tongue. “Yeah,” he says.

Dick pouts. “I see how it is,” he says dramatically. “Your friends come over and suddenly you act all cold and aloof towards me to seem cool. Fine. Don’t come to me for cuddles later.” He spins on his heels and marches away, slamming the door behind him.

Damian scowls. “I don’t cuddle with him.”

Jon bursts out laughing, unable to help himself. The anxiety that had been building up disperses.

“I don’t!” Damian emphasizes. “He just likes embarrassing me, which is why I don’t invite friends over often.”

Jon can barely breathe from how much he is laughing. He tries telling Damian he totally understands, but he could barely get a breath out, let alone a word.

Damian continues to scowl at him until Jon calms down enough to speak. “You- You just acted so defensive about it,” he snorts. “That was the funny part.”

Damian presses his lips together tightly. Then, he lets out a small bubble of laughter too. “You’re actually the first person that’s laughed at me about lies that Grayson spouts about me. I don’t know why none of my other friends ever made fun of me for it before.”

“Probably because everyone’s scared you’ll beat them up.”

Damian frowns. “Do people think that?”

Jon shrugs. “You do look pretty intimidating. And your reputation is daunting as well.”

“Huh,” Damian says. “I’ve never… really thought about it before. I just knew that people tended to avoid me because of something. And I’ve always suspected that my other friends are only friends with me for popularity or something. Or they’re already popular. I don’t really know who are my true friends,” he sighs. “Except Kori. She’s my friend because she feels obligated to since she dated both Grayson and Todd.”

“That’s… I’m sorry,” Jon says softly.

Damian rolls his eyes. “I don’t need your pity, Kent. I’m fine with it.” He smiles a little. “My girlfriend likes me for who I am. Maybe that’s why I’m so in love with her.” He sighs contently, looking over at Jon. “And she’s the reason I met you, too.”

“I, uh-” Jon starts gathering up the nerves to tell Damian the truth again. He barely gets past the first word. “Actually-”

“She told me that I should give you a chance, instead of acting really cold towards you. And you know, I’m glad I did,” Damian continues.

Jon’s will weakens once more. Later, he promises himself.

“Hey, Jon, do you have a girlfriend? I’ve never seen you with anyone except those two friends of yours,” Damian suddenly says. He pushes himself up into a sitting position.

Jon is taken aback. “Um, no, I don’t… have a girlfriend.”

“Okay, what about a crush? Do you like someone?”

“I- No?” Jon says a bit uncertainly. He feels terrible about it though. However, if he says yes, he has a feeling Damian would press about it.

“You don’t sound sure about that,” Damian says, narrowing his eyes at Jon. “Who’s this person you like?”

Jon struggles between just spilling the truth right then and there, or continue with his fortress of lies. “I don’t- It’s never going to work out,” he ends up muttering.

“I could set you up with someone,” Damian says, thinking aloud.

Jon becomes horrified. “Oh, no, no, that’s not necessary,” Jon says quickly. “I’m not looking for-”

Damian pulls his phone out of nowhere and pulls up his contacts. “Let’s see. What’s your type?”

“Types?” Jon squeaks. “I don’t… have a type?”

“Of course you do,” Damian scoffs. “Everyone has a type. Maybe you just don’t know yours yet. What kind of hair do you like? Black? Blond? Red? Brown?”

Jon’s eyes flick to Damian’s hair for a split second. “B-Black? Maybe? Damian, I don’t need you to-”

“Black hair,” Damian murmurs instead, scrolling through his contacts. “What about eyes?” Jon just stares at him helplessly. Damian sighs. “How about you just describe your crush to me. You don’t have to tell me who it is.” Damian settles into a comfortable position, putting his phone aside and just staring at Jon.

Jon stares back, unable to look away. He is feeling extremely uncomfortable. He opens and closes his mouth a few times before giving under the intense pressure in Damian’s eyes. “He-”

“Oh,” Damian says. He smacks himself on the forehead. “Duh, I was beginning to wonder why you looked like you were going to run off the moment I brought up girls. Okay. I can still help set you up, though. Alright, black haired dudes. I can do this.” He grabs his phone once more and types furiously on it.

“Damian…” Jon protests weakly once.

Damian ignores him. When he does look up again, he shoves his phone into Jon’s face. “Okay, this is my friend Michael. He’s a year older than us, but he’s a cool guy. I’ll give you his number and I’ll tell him to expect a text from you within the next week.”

Jon looks at the phone screen to see a picture Michael Wong, captain of the boy’s water polo team. His heart falls to his stomach with dread. This entire thing is spiraling out of control. Damian pulls his phone back and finds another picture.

“And this is my other friend Nathaniel. He’s in our grade. He’s an all-around funny guy. I think you’ll like him.” Damian shows Jon a picture of Nathaniel Hugh, the sophomore class president of at their school.

“I really-”

“Just text them and maybe go on a date,” Damian says. “You might be surprised.”

“I-” Jon looks at Damian’s pleading eyes and he cannot find it in himself to say no. “Okay.”

Jon feels sick as Damian beams.

Chapter Text

Jon puts off texting Damian’s friends for as long as possible. After Damian asked whether or not he got in contact with Michael or Nathaniel yet on Thursday, Jon finally decides to do something. Jon texts Michael Wong first, and after awkward introductions, Jon admits that Damian had set them up and Jon actually has no interest in dating anyone at the moment.

J: I’m really, really sorry, but I kind of just want to focus on school at the moment. It’s nothing personal, I promise.

M: No, no, it’s totally cool, dude. Never took D for one to set up his friends, but I honestly thought it was a prank. But nah, man, I totally understand. No worries.

J: Thanks a lot. Please don’t tell Damian though

M: Lmao got it. But if you do change your mind someday, I won’t be adverse to a date.

J: Thanks, I’ll keep that in mind.

M: Great. Tell your brother I said hey.

Jon passes along the message, which causes Conner to ask how the hell Jon ended up with Michael’s number, and Jon admits that Damian is trying to set him up with dates. Conner gives Jon a disappointed look when he finds out Jon did not tell Damian the truth that day.

With a heavy heart, Jon texts Nathaniel. Their conversation mirrors the one with Michael almost line for line. Nathaniel cracks jokes about it, and Jon feels a lot better. He was very nervous about the fact that Michael and Nathaniel may laugh at him for thinking he could ever land a date with them because he was in a wheelchair. But the wheelchair never even came up. And both of them, both of the extremely popular, super good looking guys, tells Jon that if he ever changes his mind, they are up for dates, or just a get together as friends or something.

After all that, Jon is feeling a little overwhelmed. But he is extremely happy about the fact he did not “cheat” on Damian.

~

Thursday rolls around again, and Jon finds himself sitting in front of Damian once more. Jon slowly takes out his things, hoping to stall for time. Damian waits patiently for him. He is smiling widely, and he seems to know that Jon is stalling.

The second Jon set his papers on the table, Damian folds his hands and says, “How were your dates?”

Jon swallows. “They were… good. Yeah, I had fun.”

“Really? That’s great! Who do you prefer? I won’t tell,” Damian says in a stage whisper.

“Uh… Nathan,” Jon blurts out, saying the first one that comes to his mind.

Damian smiles wider. “You should ask him to formal then!”

Jon’s palms start sweating again. He thought it was over. But it only gets worse apparently. “F-Formal? I mean, we only went on one date…”

“So? Then you guys can double date with my girlfriend and I!”

Jon gulps. “You’re… asking your girlfriend?” He feels faint.

“Yeah,” Damian says with a dreamy smile. Jon’s heart skips a beat. Damian wants to ask him, well, Jen to formal. And he wants Jon to ask some guy he pretended to go on a date on to formal. He must look miserable because Damian asks, “Are you okay, Jon?”

Jon nods slowly, still staring down at his paper and mulling over how bad his luck could be.

“Jon,” Damian says in a quiet voice. “Jon, do you like me?”

Jon’s head snaps up and his eyes widen comically. “I- I-”

Damian smiles gently. “It’s okay!” he assures. “I’m not weirded out by it or anything. Just… I have a girlfriend.”

“I know,” Jon says, even more miserable now. He feels like crying, but he really does not want to do it in front of Damian. “I’m sorry, I- you weren’t meant to find out or anything, I promise! I- I’m sorry.”

“Don’t apologize for that,” Damian says soothingly. “You did nothing wrong. But I can’t- I’m sorry, Jon. I really do love my girlfriend.”

“You’ve never even seen her before,” Jon says with a hint of bitterness in his voice.

Damian still smiles. “I know. I don’t need to. Because she’s never seen me either, and she accepts me for who I am. You’ve never met her Jon, but she’s- she’s just amazing.” He gives Jon a sympathetic look. “Go to formal with Nathan. You’ll meet her, and you’ll understand.”

Jon just swallows the lump in his throat and the heartbreak. He nods and looks away. “Yeah,” he whispers. “Yeah, okay.”

Damian gives him one last tight smile before dragging Jon’s textbook over to himself. “So, where’d you guys last leave off?”

~

“Hey, Jen,” Damian says over the phone later that night.

“Hey,” Jon replies in Jen’s voice. He knows what it coming.

“So I wanted to know if you wanted to go to winter formal with me. I know it’s kind of a crappy thing to ask you over the phone, but I didn’t really have any other way to ask you,” Damian says. He sounds nervous, and Jon feels even worse.

Jon takes a deep breath. “Yeah, I’ll go with you,” he says in a fake cheery voice. “Of course I will!”

Damian lets out a breath. “Great!” He sounds so much more relieved now, and it just makes Jon feel worse. “I, um, I’m really glad you said yes,” he admits. “I really want to see you. Finally. I mean, we’ve known each other for nearly a year now?”

“Yeah,” Jon agrees. “I think it’s time you met me.”

Chapter Text

Jon avoids Damian all week.

He stops looking over at Damian’s table at lunch, hoping to catch his eyes. He keeps his eyes down when going from class to class, even taking a longer route to avoid running into Damian, whose class schedule Jon may or may not have memorized.

He does not reply to Damian’s emails, except to tell him that he is feeling sick and cannot come to tutoring that Thursday.

Yet every night, Damian calls him, unknowingly, and Jon puts on a cheerful voice, telling Damian how excited he is, telling Damian about the “dress” he “bought” that weekend, telling Damian how happy he is to finally meet him.

After their conversations over the phone each night, Jon cries himself to sleep only to wake up and repeat the process all over again.

Jon’s friends even notices his change.

“Hey, dude, what’s up with you? You’ve been so moody all week,” Mark pointed out around a large bite of PB&J.

“Hm?” Jon asks absently, chewing his own sandwich mechanically, not tasting it at all. “I don’t know.”

“Yeah, man, it’s kind of making us worried,” James says. “Are you okay? We’ve never seen you so… sullen before.”

“Yeah, I’m fine,” Jon sighs. “Just a long week.”

“Agreed,” Mark groaned. “Like, in English today…”

Conner notices his drastic change as well. Jon sees the worried glances Conner constantly casts him, but he is thankful Conner does not bring it up. Not until two days before formal, at least.

“Hey, Jon,” Conner says, leaning against the doorframe of Jon’s room.

Jon looks up from his homework. “Yeah?”

Conner sighs. “You’ve been looking down in the dumps all week. Are you alright?”

Jon shrugs. “Good enough, I guess.”

“You finally told him?” Conner asks with a small wince.

Jon feels a crashing wave of despair wash over him. “No,” he chokes out. “Not yet. I plan to. Soon.”

Conner walks in and sits down on Jon’s bed. “Jon, I’m really sorry about Damian,” he says gently. “I know you like him, but keeping the truth from him is wrong.”

“I know,” Jon says, struggling to keep back tears. “I know that.”

“Look,” Conner says. “You tell him, and all you have to do is get through another two years of school, and you’re off to college and you never have to think about him again. I get that he’s your first boyfriend, and the first breakup is always the worst, but after a while, your heart heals. It seems really shitty at first, but it will get better, okay?”

Jon nods miserably, his vision blurry. “Thanks, Kon.”

Conner sighs and stands. He walks over and gives Jon a long hug. Two tears slip out of Jon’s eyes and land on Conner’s shirt. “Are you planning on going to formal?” Conner asks softly.

Jon swallows. “Yeah. Why?”

“I was thinking maybe you should stay home. You’re not looking good, and I think you’re starting to get sick.” He pulls away and puts a hand on Jon’s forehead. “You’re feeling a bit feverish, Jon.”

“I’m fine,” Jon says thickly, pushing Conner’s hand away. He wipes at his eyes furiously. “I’m fine.”

Conner purses his lips. “Alright, but if you get any worse or if you don’t get better by Saturday night, you’re staying home.”

Jon just turns away and goes back to his homework. Conner leaves on his own after a few moments.

The next day at school, the day right before formal, Damian corners Jon.

“Hey, are you okay?” he asks.

Jon does not look at him. “I’m fine,” he says flatly. “I felt a little sick the day before. Sorry for cancelling.”

“No, no,” Damian says. His eyes narrow and he looks at Jon oddly. “It’s fine. If you’re sick, you’re sick. But I wanted to know if we could talk?”

“I have to get to class right now,” Jon says, still not looking up at Damian.

“Okay, another time then. Soon?” Damian asks.

“Sure, whatever,” Jon says. He starts to go.

“Wait,” Damian says quickly. “Are you… going to formal?”

Jon shrugs. “I might show up. Don’t think I’ll stay very long. Depends on how I’m feeling,” he says. Then, he turns and wheels away.

~

D: Hey, Jen, want me to pick you up tomorrow night? I can, if you want me to.

J: Nah, I’ll just meet you there. I don’t live that far from your school, actually.

D: Are you sure? It really isn’t that much of an inconvenience.

J: I’m sure, Dami. It’s very considerate of you though.

D: Hm, alright then. I’ll meet you at the side of the school.

J: What, don’t want to be seen with me?

D: Of course not, Jen. I just don’t want my classmates to see me if I start crying from the first time I see how damn good looking you are.

J: That’s… remarkably sweet. Alright I’ll meet you at the side to save your reputation.

D: Haha, thanks. See you tomorrow?

J: Yeah, see ya, Dami.

D: Love you, baby.

J: Love you too.

Jon stares at their texts for a long, long time after they finish talking. His heart is already pounding like crazy. Jon’s plan for tomorrow night is easy. Conner is going to the dance with a group of his friends this year, so their parents will actually be taking them.

Jon lied and told his parents that he was not planning on going to the dance but wanted to pop in and see how it turned out because he helped out with the decorating, which he did not.

Then, he would go up to the side of the school where Damian would be waiting. He would tell him the truth then and there.

If all goes well, Damian will yell at him and walk away so Jon would not have to cry in front of him. If all doesn’t go well, Jon is pretty sure he can convince his parents to homeschool him.

 Jon just hopes for a clean and sharp rejection and have it all just be done with.

That night, Jon has a hard time falling asleep. He tosses and turns. He cries silently to himself, but even that does not lull him to sleep. Some hours he drifts off only to be wide awake again in a couple more. Jon finally crawls out of bed in the early hours of the morning, manages to claw his way to the bathroom and threw up.

Jon feels his own forehead and finds it burning hot. Fuck, he really is sick. He groans weakly to himself. He drags himself back to his room and into bed. He screws his eyes shut and tries to wish it away. The day is barely beginning, and it is already horrible.

All day, Jon tries to avoid his parents and Conner. He pops out for breakfast and lunch and manages to keep his food down long enough to get to his bathroom before promptly throwing it back up. He lies in bed all day, hoping it magically makes the fever and headache go away. But it does not.

Dinner time drew around, and Jon is feeling better and worse. He cannot really feeling his headache and nausea anymore, seeing that he is running on nervous energy now. He eats little, claiming he is not very hungry.

Conner dresses up, and  comes visits Jon before they leave.

“You feeling better, champ?” he asks.

Jon shrugs, keeping his back to Conner. “Does it matter? I’m staying home anyway.”

“Good call,” Conner says. “Get some sleep, you look like a zombie today.”

Jon groans internally. Perfect. He does to finally confront Damian, and he looks like a dead man walking.

“Thanks,” Jon says dryly.

Conner laughs. “C’mon, let’s get to the car.” Conner carries Jon to his downstairs wheelchair and pushes him out to the car. He straps Jon in before getting in on the other side. Their parents sit in the front, chatting about their high school dance experiences.

Jon tunes everyone one out, way too nervous and sick to even open his mouth. He stares down at the black sweatpants he wore, stained with paint from two summers ago when he and Conner painted Krypto’s doghouse. He has his school sweatshirt on, and another sweater underneath because he keeps feeling chilly.

When they arrive at school, Conner runs off to where his friends are all waiting. Jon watches as he is welcomed by his friends, laughing and joking around. His friend Tim throws an arm around Conner’s shoulders and mussed up his hair. Conner just laughs and returns the favor. They all head into the school gym together.

Jon slowly unlatches himself and rolls down the ramp.

“Don’t take too long, sweetie,” Lois calls after him.

“No more than ten minutes,” Jon promises. He gives them a small wave before rolling up to the school and heading towards the side of the gym. From afar, he sees Damian waiting by the door, dressed impeccably. He holds a corsage in his hands.

God, he looks good. Jon nearly chickens out. But no, he promised Damian he would be there, both as Jon and as Jen. Jon took a deep breath, straightened up in his chair and started slowly rolling towards Damian.

As he approached, Damian looks up and smiles.

“Hey, Jon,” Damian says, pushing himself away from the wall of the gym. “I wasn’t expecting you to show up,” he says. Then, he smile falters a little. “You’re not here for the dance,” he states when he sees what Jon is wearing.

Jon shakes his head. “No, I’m not,” he says, hating the way his voice cracks. “I came here to talk to you, actually.” He cannot even lift his head to look Damian in the eye. This is the reason Damian deserves the truth. Because he can do so much better.

“Oh?” Damian says. “Alright, I’m listening.”

Jon takes a deep breath, holding it for as long as he can without him fainting right then and there. Then, he spills it all. “I’m so sorry, Damian,” he chokes out. “I lied to you this entire time, and I feel so honestly terrible about it. Your- Your girlfriend… damn it,” Jon rubs his tearing eyes. He really wished he would not cry, but alas. “She isn’t real, okay? I’m sorry, but it’s actually just me you’ve been texting these past six months, and I’m sorry you thought I was a girl and I’m sorry you fell in love with the person you thought was your girlfriend, and I wanted to tell you so badly but I never had a chance. I didn’t think it would go so far, I really didn’t! When you first thought I was a girl, I just brushed it off and thought it wouldn’t matter, and then you thought we were dating, and I didn’t have the heart to break it to you because I thought it would be over in two weeks, then you fell in love with me and I fell in love with you and it’s all just a huge freaking mess and it’s all my fault and you don’t deserve any of this crap and I’m just so sorry it happened to you. I- I’m sorry,” Jon says. He turns quickly, unable to take it anymore. He just wants to get out of here as soon as possible and cry himself to sleep and just hope the weekend will never end.

He is so busy drowning in his suffocating self-pity that Jon does not hear the footsteps running up behind him.

“Jon!” Damian calls, coming up in front of Jon’s chair. Jon tries going around him, but Damian kneels down on the concrete and puts his hands on the sides of Jon’s wheelchair to stop him from going anywhere. “Hey,” Damian says softly, looking up at Jon. “Hey, shh… No need to cry, baby,” Damian murmurs. He reaches up and puts his hand over Jon’s, wiping away the tears running down his face.

Jon chokes on his sobs and his surprise. He looks at Damian, his eyes wide.

Damian smiles. “That’s right. I’ve known it was you, Jon.”

Jon is completely speechless. He had prepared for every possible outcome, but apparently he was not prepared enough.

“I’m sorry I never said anything either,” Damian says, wiping at Jon’s cheeks again before taking his hand away, still holding Jon’s hand in his. “I thought it would be amusing to see you so torn about it, but I never knew it was eating up at you so much. If I knew, I would’ve stopped it in a heartbeat.”

“But- But I lied to you,” Jon chokes out.

“No, you didn’t,” Damian insists. “I’m the one who made all the wrong assumptions, aren’t I? And knowing you, you never said anything because you were just trying to save me the embarrassment, right?” He meets Jon’s eyes again, his thumb running over the back of Jon’s hand soothingly. “Want to come dance with me?”

Jon snaps back to reality. He pulls his hand out of Damian’s like he is bitten. “I- I can’t,” he says. “I- You can’t just forgive me for that! You’re supposed to yell at me, hit me, something!” Jon says, nearly hysterical. He cannot fathom the idea that Damian is so calm and accepting of this.

“Why would I do that?” Damian asks. “Jon, you said it yourself. I love you, and you love me. So I don’t see what’s so wrong?”

“You- You like girls! And I’m not a girl!” Jon points out.

“Astute observation,” Damian says, smirking slightly. When Jon continues panicking, Damian surges forward , cups Jon’s cheek, and then kisses him firmly on the lips. Jon squeaks then goes silent. When Damian pulls away a few seconds later, he laughs at Jon’s stunned face. “Jon, baby, didn’t I say I didn’t care what you were like?”

“But I’m me,” Jon whispers.

“And you are perfect,” Damian insists.

Jon sniffles. “How’d you- How’d you find out it was me?”

Damian laughs. “It was kind of obvious. I didn’t know at first. But when I met you on the first day of tutoring, I saw the way you looked at me. I thought it was weird at first, but then I realized that I would stare at my ‘girlfriend’ the same way if I saw her for the first time too. But I didn’t know it was you then. I had that epiphany later. After that, there were the pins, which could have been a coincidence, but paired with how defensive Jen got when talking about Jon, and when you kept insisting that I wouldn’t love if you I knew who you really were.” Damian brings Jon’s other hand up and gently kisses the back, still staring into Jon’s eyes.

“I was suspicious of that afterwards. I watched you more closely, and my suspicions grew. Not to mention, you suck at faking a girl’s voice. You sound like you, but pretending to be a girl,” Damian snorts softly. “I think it was all confirmed the day I invited you over to play video games though. You have the same style of playing as Jen, and just the way you act in general. And I asked you if you loved me to see if I was mistaken. And it turned out I wasn’t.

"Jon, you don't know how many times I've nearly called you 'Jon' instead of 'Jen' over the phone because I'd get so caught up in our conversations, and how you struggle to keep your voice from cracking all the time, and the way you try to talk about girl things when it's so obvious you've had to experience with them." Damian laughs quietly. "Imagine what would have happened if I did accidently call you Jon over the phone."

“And those dates with my friends? They were a test of sorts. Sorry about that,” Damian says, wincing a little. “I needed to know if you were just playing with my feelings. I asked my friends to report back to me on whether or not you guys actually went on dates. And Jon, each and every test you passed, and each time you surprised me with your faithfulness to someone who you thought could never be yours, I fell harder and harder for you. It’s completely crazy, but Jon, I love you so much. I know you don’t believe me, but I’d like to think I have all the time in the world to convince you of that, if you’d let me?”

“Then why do you have a corsage?” Jon asks, ignoring Damian’s question and the rest of his long emotionally confusing monologue.

Damian laughs. “Obviously I was not 100% sure, so I got a corsage in the tiny chance that I was wrong. But I’m glad I wasn’t because for the past few weeks I’ve been calling you mine in my head and falling in love with you over and over again. I think if someone else showed up tonight, claiming to be Jen, I would have gone to the dance with her, felt absolutely nothing, and probably broken up with her the next day.” When Jon does not retort, Damian continues softly. “So do you have proper formal dance attire under those or did you really plan on just standing me up?” he asks playfully.

“No, I didn’t… plan on attending,” Jon says faintly, still trying to comprehend everything. "I'm, uh, sick.”

Damian immediately frowns. His hand moves from Jon’s cheek to his forehead. “Why didn’t you say that in the first place?” he snaps. “You shouldn’t even be here then! You’re burning up like an oven, and I thought it was because you were blushing so much!"

“But I said I’d come,” Jon replies weakly. “I had to tell you-”

“Well, congratu-fucking-lations, Jon, you told me, and now you’re on the verge of passing out. You’re such a fucking idiot,” he growls. Damian stands and goes beind Jon before starting to push him out towards the front of the school. “Who brought you here? It wasn’t Conner, was it?”

“N-No,” Jon stammers, unsure of what is going on. “My parents are-”

“Good, because I’m about to have a long talk with them about letting you out here while you’re running on a fever over a hundred.”

“I don’t-”

“It’s not up for debate, Kent.”

Damian pushes Jon all the way to the car. Lois rolls down her window as they approach.

“Oh, hey, are you Jon’s friend?” she asks.

“Mrs. Kent,” Damian says. “Are you aware that Jonathan has a fever? And is severely sick and should probably be in bed with a bowl of chicken soup?”

Lois’ face becomes confused. She looks at Jon, who smiles sheepishly. She scowls. “Jon…” she says warningly. “This better be some prank. If you’re seriously sick and made your father and I drive you out here, you’re in for it, mister.”

“I’m sorry,” Jon says weakly. “I just really wanted to-”

“Please take him home and make sure he does not get out of bed until he is well again,” Damian cuts in, speaking directly to Lois. “I’ll even have Alfred, my butler, send over some of his famous chicken soup.”

“That’s not necessary, Damian-” Jon starts to say, but Damian sends the words scurrying away with the sharp glare sent his way. This night is definitely not turning out the way Jon imagined.

Jon just sighs and straps himself into the car while Damian and his mother talk it out. While he does not know where he and Damian stand now, he has the feeling that Damian will wait for him to figure it out. At least he can count on that much.

Damian raps on his window, and Jon slowly rolls it down.

“I don’t want you texting me, calling me, or even showing your face at school until you’re completely well again, understand?” he says fiercely.

Jon says nothing and nods.

“Good,” Damian says. His glare then melts into a smile. “Hey, I’m glad we talked tonight, okay?”

Jon gave him a wordless nod again, not trusting himself to open his mouth anymore.

Damian nods once briefly, his eyes flitting over Jon’s face rapidly, as if trying to take in every single detail with those beautiful, green eyes in the few seconds he has to say good-bye.

“Alright, get well soon,” he says softly. “Text me when you’re well again, okay?”

Jon cracks a tiny smile and nods one last time. Damian smiles back and steps away from the car. “Take care!” he calls as the car pulls away.

And as they head home, while his parents chide him, Jon tunes them out and touches his cold finger to his lips.

And he fights the little bubble of laughter that rises up in his throat, swallowing it back down. It fills him with a sense of warmth and joy, and Jon closes his eyes.

He has a feeling that everything will be just fine from now on.

Chapter Text

J: Hey.

D: Jon. Hi. You're feeling better, I assume?

J: A bit.

D: I told you not to text me until you're well again

J: Sorry >_< I... missed you?

D: ...

D: Will it make you feel better if I talked to you?

J: Maybe

D: Jonathan Kent, you are shameless.

D: I was joking. I love you.

D: Just so you know

D: A lot. I love you a lot

D: Don't ignore me Kent

J: Sorry sorry, my mom popped in to take my temperature. love you too, Dami.

~

By Tuesday, Jon is feeling much better. He goes to school, nervous but excited to see Damian again. He is terrified that he dreamt up the entire night of formal in his feverish state, but when he sees Damian waiting for him at the front of the school, Jon cannot help but grin.

He rolls up shyly, and Damian walks over to meet him halfway.

“Hey, you’re looking a lot better,” Damian says.

“I feel better,” Jon admits. “Your, uh, butler’s chicken soup works wonders.”

“Of course it does,” Damian says. “Pennyworth makes nothing but the best.” Then he smiles down at Jon again. “So, you missed quite a lot on Monday.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah. Turns out, we’re the talk of the school now.”

“What?!”

“Yeah,” Damian laughs. “Someone apparently saw us kissing on Saturday. Rumors spread that I’m cheating on my girlfriend with you.”

Jon goes pale. His heart starts hammering in his chest again. “Oh my god, I’m so sorry, Dami, I-”

“I’m just kidding!” Damian quickly says. “Don’t panic, it’s alright,” Damian says, laughing a little.

Jon glared at him. “That’s not funny.”

“You’re right, it’s not,” Damian says. “Sorry about that. I didn’t even tell anyone. Not even Kori. In case, you know, you wanted to keep it a secret or something.”

Jon thinks about it. He shrinks down a little in his chair. What if Damian’s reputation is ruined because people find out he is dating Jon? Or what if people misunderstand and really think Damian is cheating on his “girlfriend” that he claimed to love so much? “Maybe… Maybe we should,” he says quietly.

Damian frowns. “If you’re thinking we should keep it a secret because you think you’re not good enough, I’m literally going to shout it from the rooftops.”

“Please don’t,” Jon says. “I just- I need time to get used to this, I think. And even after that, we don’t have to keep it a secret, but maybe just not tell everybody. And, I don’t know, refrain from showing it in public?”

“Fair enough,” Damian says. They start into the school. “Oh, by the way, I’m taking you out on a proper date this weekend.”

“What?” Jon asks.

“You heard me. You, me, date. In public. Together. No excuses. Your brother already told me you don’t have plans, so don’t you dare try lying to me, Kent. No more lies, right?”

Jon swallows hard and nods. “Right.”

“Great. Then I’ll text you the details. See ya, Jon!” Damian gives Jon a wave as he walks off to greet his friends. Jon watches him go before rolling over to his own friends, smiling.

~

The doorbell to the Kents’ place is ringing first thing Saturday morning, even before breakfast. Lois opens the door to see Damian standing there, a bouquet of flowers in his hands and dressed nicely, but casually.

“Hi, Mrs. Kent,” Damian says. “Is Jon awake yet?”

Lois raises an eyebrow. “Not yet… but I can go wake him up.”

Damian smiles. “That would be great, thanks.”

Lois goes upstairs to Jon’s room. She knocks on the door three times before entering. “Hey Jon, your friend’s downstairs waiting for you. With flowers.”

Jon opens his eyes. “Wha?”

“He looks like he’s going to take you out on a date or something,” she laughs. “Don’t know what he wants.”

Jon sits up immediately, feeling dizzy from the sudden movement. “Oh, damn, Damian’s downstairs? Already?”

“Hey, watch your language, young man,” Lois scolds. “And what’s he doing here so early on a Saturday?"

Jon winces, reaching over for a shirt. “He said he’d be taking me out today, but he never specified when,” he groaned.

“So it is a date?” Lois asks hopefully.

Jon throws her a tired glare. “Yes, it is,” he finally relents, smiling a little as he tugs his shirt over his head.

They go to the movies. Apparently Damian buys tickets for every single movie they are legally allowed to watch and a couple they are not allowed to watch, but no one has to know that. They share a bucket of popcorn, an assortment of candy, and a refillable large drink. Damian even spoils Jon with the definitely rigged games lining the sides of the main part of the theater. Damian also made reservations at a fancy, fancy place for dinner, a private room in fact, mostly because they were both underdressed for the occasion. Jon knows Damian’s family was rich, but he underestimated how rich.

After dinner, they go to the Manor. Damian tells Jon to follow Alfred to a room and change. Jon is confused, but does as he is told.

Alfred presents Jon with a perfectly pressed suit and a matching tie that fits him perfectly. Jon dresses himself, struggling only a little, and Alfred tells him there is nothing wrong with asking for help as he fixes Jon’s tie and navy blue jacket. Alfred helps Jon with the cuff links and lets Jon look at himself in the mirror once before escorting him elsewhere.

Alfred opens a large double doors and Jon slowly rolls inside.

It is a large ballroom, richly decorated. There is a small table to snacks for two with two chairs on either side of it. There was a large stereo nearby, and Damian stood in the center of it all, dressed in a similar fashion, but black with a rich green tie. He walks over, nodding at Alfred in thanks.

“Hey, Jon,” he says softly. “You’re looking handsome tonight.”

Jon lets out a startled noise. “Says yourself,” he manages to say, unable to tear his eyes away from Damian. “What’s all this?”

“Well, we never got to dance at formal,” Damian said. “So I thought we could have our own private one here.”

“Oh, I don’t dance,” Jon says. “I can’t, really.”

Damian keeps smiling. “I’ll teach you.”

“No, I literally can’t use my legs, Damian, I don’t know how you’re planning on teaching me to dance,” Jon says more seriously.

“I said, I’ll teach you,” Damian replies calmly. “I’ve been studying up on wheelchair dancing.”

“Damian…”

“Just one dance, baby,” Damian says. “One.”

Jon hesitates a moment before agreeing. Damian goes over and turns on the stereo, and it starts playing a slow song. The lights in the ballroom suddenly dim, and Damian walks back over, reaching out for Jon. Jon slips his hand into Damian’s, and they slowly make their way into the center of the ballroom.

Damian leads, and Jon follows, and for some reason, it is a lot easier than Jon anticipates. It is like a magic connection was made between them. Jon just knows what Damian is going to do, just by looking into his eyes. In those four minutes, Jon could feel the overwhelming waves of adoration and affection flowing from Damian. No, it is more than that. Jon does not know what to call it, but he knows what Damian would call it. Love. He would call it love.

When the music fades, Damian moves his hand from Jon’s, up his arm and to cup his cheek. He gives Jon a quick smile before leaning in and pressing his lips to Jon’s. Jon lifted his head and pressed back. When Damian’s lips move, Jon tenses up a bit and squeezes Damian’s other hand. Damian pulls away immediately.

“Not yet,” Jon whispers. “I-”

“Got it,” Damian promises. “Take your time, baby. I’m not going to rush you into anything.”

Jon swallows and nods. “I don’t mind if it’s just…”

Damian laughs softly before leaning in and kissing Jon again, just lips on lips, nothing more.

And Jon’s heart soars and leaps in his chest. And maybe, just maybe, Jon would call that love.

As crazy as it sounds.