19734/You're Not My Regular Driver

You're Not My Regular Driver
Date of Scene:	22 December 2024
Location:	Lake House - Wayne Estate
Synopsis:	After another long day in NYC, Gwen returns to Gotham to find Dick waiting to pick her up at the hyperloop instead of the regular car service that takes her back to the Lakehouse. After getting everything off of her chest on the way home, the rest of the evening is shaping up to be much more relaxing, and she realizes she finally found someone who she can be completely honest with.
Cast of Characters:	Gwen Stacy, Dick Grayson

---

Gwen Stacy has posed:
"Merry Christmas, Ben."

And then... she falls. As if someone had suddenly tilted reality, her whole body is straight as a board as she simply gives herself over to gravity, tumbling off the side of the Empire State Building in free-fall.

Stories upon stories rip past, her hood fluttering, her eyelets pinched closed. She's weightless, except she can still feel the crushing weight on her chest, like there's an elephant sitting there. And no matter how far, how fast she plummets towards the sidewalk, she can't seem to out run the elephant.

She's twenty feet above the ground before the webline she fires catches her and she swings like a bullet through the air, a flash of light igniting from the holographic projector strapped to her wrist.

"Send a message to Dick," she tells the voice recognition in her hood. "Tell him I'm on my way home."

...

By this point, the travel time between New York City and Gotham has become pretty predictable. The hyperloop that runs between the cities takes minutes, and it runs on a predictable schedule. Added to that predictability, Gwen's GPS location dot pretty much always shows up on Dick's phone. On the rare occasion it doesn't -- which hasn't happened, yet -- she's probably going into some secret lair she's not supposed to share with anyone in the outside world. At that point, the signal blockers probably take care of it...

Aaaaaanyway, because of all of that, it's no surprise to Dick when Gwen, dressed warmly in a puffy winter coat, wool-lined black leggings, a slouchy beanie pops out of the hyperloop station. She's got her regular backpack slung over one shoulder, strands of shaggy, razor-cut pink and blonde hair not quite reaching the strap.

It is a surprise to Gwen, however, when it's not her normal driver, Ted, in the black town car waiting in the pickup line. Instead, it's an equally recognizable car and driver...

Dick Grayson with a silver Porsche 911.

And that look of concern she'd developed when the town car was missing? It fades away instantly, replaced with a broad smile as she hurries over.

Dick Grayson has posed:
It is decidedly frosty in Gotham City today, hovering well below the freezing mark and while actual snow remains elusive, anyone who has the option has likely chosen to stay inside where it is safe and warm.

Technically speaking of course, Dick was one of those with that option. This is one of his rare nights off from the GCPD - not that he won't put on his other uniform and take to the streets before the night's out. But for the time being he is at something of loose ends.

Maybe it's to try and make sure he heads off another incident like the last time she saw Ben in New York, or maybe it is just the fact that he misses her and has the time to come and pick her up in person, but either way Dick did indeed decide to brave the sometimes slick city streets in his wildly inappropriate vehicle choice. At least for the weather. Really, the only way he could have chosen worse was if he picked one of the top down sports car models that Bruce has on display in his garage back at the Manor.

Somehow he expects that Gwen will forgive him and as it becomes clear that she has indeed spotted him and hte fact that she won't be taking a car service this time, he leans over and pops open the passenger side door.

"Can I give you a lift, pretty lady?" he asks sardonically, patting the seat beside him.

It is possible that she is going to be in for something of an interest ride home. It's not like Gotham isn't familiar with storms of course. There is practically no winter that they escape without at least one pretty big storm. So naturally the city has got a jump, the De-icing trucks having already hit the roads with their loads of salt to hold the worst of the ice at bay.

So they shouldn't be slipping and sliding all over the road. That's the good thing. The bad? You don't generally take out a Porsche 911 just to obey the traffic lights and all relevant traffic regulations.

Either way though, it looks a heck of a lot more inviting in there then where Gwen is standing at the moment, the gouts of heat coming from the engine system.

Gwen Stacy has posed:
Gwen slips that backpack off of her shoulder just as she reaches the opening door, and before he can even right himself all the way, she's practically leapt into the passenger seat. The bag is perched in her lap, the door is snagged closed with a quiet *thwip* from somewhere near her hip, and with her free hand, she's found his cheek, leaning across the center console to kiss him.

It's distinctly not a quick, chaste kiss. The heat -- not just of the kiss, but also the _car_ -- is absolute bliss. She lingers, letting it all soak into her pores, her body inching closer as if she might actually climb over the console to get to him.

She doesn't, but it's close. After a long while, she finally leans back again, smiling at him as she dumps her bag into the tiny back seat.

"Have I ever told you that you're my favorite person in the whole world?"

With a lot of people, that's an approximation. There are kids and parents and how do you fairly compare your boyfriend or your husband to that? Does it really boil down to which one you would save if you were presented with a real world trolley problem? With Gwen, it's very likely it's actually a true statement. Yes, she does have a version of her father in this dimension, but it's... it's complicated.

Gwen will always be a Spider. She'll always have responsibility as the primary, driving goal of her life. But as far as people in it, Dick has become the star at the center of her solar system. She gets to go to bed with him, wake up with him, occasionally go on patrols with him -- which she's likely to do tonight, actually, if he'll have her -- and even sometimes be surprised when he volunteers to pick her up at the hyperloop himself.

The surprises always make her day.

"And you are _such_ a welcome sight. Whatever you're up to, just tell me I can spend the rest of the night with you and that will make everything better."

Dick Grayson has posed:
Of course he was fairly certain that Gwen wouldn't be disappointed to see him.

The town car might be a little roomier, but unless he badly misjudged her situation she shouldn't exactly be returning loaded for bear or anything. The car might be a little on the small side, but he also doesn't take out very many of Bruce's collection all that often.

Still, even Dick has to be prtty pleased with just how happy she is to see him and she is barely even into the car and settled into that seat before he is leaning across the console, meeting her half way and returning that lingering kiss, fingers slipping up the back of her neck to curl in her hair.

It might be silly. He saw her just this morning, true, but even still he missed her. Knowing the kind of pressure she has been under, seeing the sort of effect that it has taken on her made him worry just a little. So having her back home, back with him, where she belongs, definitely brings along with it a palpable sense of relief.

The weather might be great, this might still be Gotham City and when they venture out later tongiht who knows what will be waiting for them.

But right now, for this moment, having her back, having her lips on his own, his fingers in her hair, that just makes everything else perfect. Absolutely perfect.

"Mmmm, I'm not sure if it has come up before," Dick admits when he finally leans back a little, flashing a grin her way. "But you're not going to hear me complaining. But then, you might just be at the top of my list too, so it is decidedly mutual," he admits with a grin.

It might be a tighter, more bunched list for Dick admittedly. But then he has a lot more ties in this world. Three decades worth of them afterall. Still, Gwen has rocketed right up the list with remarkable speed.

Like her, he knows a little something about duty and responsibility. In a perfect world he would take her home, he would cuddle up with her by the fire and make sure she knows exactly how much she means to him. Make sure that she is doing okay. And yeah, they'll still do that. Just not nearly as long as he might like before the frozen streets of Gotham call them out.

At least they'll be doing that together.

As he pulls away from the curb, guides the sporty little car back towards the pretty quiet streets of the c ity, he flashes a smile her way briefly before his eyes are back on the road. "Oh, we're definitely spending the rest of the night together," he promises. "Some of it might be a little colder then we'd like, but we can always huddle together for warmth," he points out.

"Come to think of it, that might not be so bad afterall..."

Gwen Stacy has posed:
Gwen wasn't _actually_ fishing to have the sentiment reciprocated. She knows his life is a lot more.. um.. 'full' than hers. Full of people, anyway. Not necessarily full of drama.

...Which also begs the question of whether or not she's making the absolute best choices in any given situation. But that's a whole other conversation.

"Well, I'm glad we finally got _that_ figured out, then. You've been sitting at number-one for a while, so that was apparently long overdue."

Her blue eyes flash with warm mirth. She may not have been fishing to hear those words, but it's pretty clear she doesn't hate them, either.

She settles in as the car starts to move, and though she crosses her legs, she doesn't reach up for the seatbelt. It's easier to get out of a car, when you need to, if you don't have to fight the stupid seatbelt release on your way out. And with her Spider-Sense and durability, she's way more likely to need the freedom of movement.

"Thank. God," she answer his promise of spending the night together, each word punctuated with the weight of her relief. Her head settles back onto the seat, and her hand finds its way over to his arm, just lightly resting for the connection. Maybe he needs to shift. Maybe he needs both hands on the wheel. Whatever. She's not trying to hinder, but it's there -- her hand, the connection -- when it's not in the way.

"I just want to go on the record as saying it's not my fault if you're using me for warmth and we end up getting caught making out the first time I meet Batman. Have you looked in a mirror? It's not even fair to ask me to try to show restraint."

Her tone is light. The jokes flow freely. It's Gwen. It's fundamentally and unapologetically Gwen.

But there's more... a shadow behind her eyes that, at this point, maybe Dick is the only one that would notice. It's not like it was when Alfred called. She's not even really just putting on a brave face, but she's carrying something. A weight. It's in the faintly noticeable tension in her shoulders. In the way she relaxes, the way the relief of being here with Dick is just a little more than an average 'day in the office.'

Dick Grayson has posed:
It is true that he has a lot of people in his life.

There is Bruce and Alfred, and that's just to start. There is the entire Bat-Family really, to one extent or another. There are the Titans. There's the performers at Haly's Circus where he grew up, that still means something to him despite the tragedy that is forever associated with it after his parents death. There's his partner on the force. There are so many people.

But none of them quite hold that same place of prominence that Gwen does right now. He might have more stars in her sky then she is currently blessed with.

But she is by far the brightest for him.

"Well, if you ever need a reminder you just let me know. And I'll be sure to give you one. In lingering detail," he promises with that ready grin, the Prosche beginning to accelerate through the quiet streets, racing away from the Hyperloop station and back to the outskirts of the city. "I'll be sure to do the same," he promises.

In addition to having the heat turned up high, clearly Dick made a few other necessary preparations because the seat warmers were already on, leaving the leather seat beneath her rather toasty warm too, any lingering chill having very little chance of lasting long under the circumstances. And while he might be going a little faster then he might otherwise, it isn't recklessly so. He is still a cop afterall, and it's not like they have an emergency waiting for them.

When he needs to shift gears, when he needs that second hand on the steering wheel that's where it is, but it would seem that he appreciates that contact every bit as much as her, and his own hand strays whenever he has the chance, letting it rest and stroke along her leg.

"Noted," he says with a laugh. "If Batman or any of the others comes across us making out on a rooftop I will be the first to tell them to move along and find their own roof. This one's occupied," he promises wryly, shooting her a quick grin. "Besides, I would say getting caught is definitely worth it." he muses impishly.

He's no more likely then her to be able to restrain himself. They just have to hope the evening is quiet enough to even give them the option. It is Gotham afterall.

But every once in awhile even Gotham benefits from a holiday miracle.

Despite the levity, each time that Dick glances over towards her he does indeed note that there might be a brief shadow on her expression, in her eyes. It might have been banished by his initial appearance, but it still creeps back, again and again. "How did things go?" he asks a little more quietly.

He doesn't think it's going out on a limb to guess that it wasn't a resounding success.

Gwen Stacy has posed:
"Lingering detail..." Gwen echoes, drawing out the words in a slow, sensual purr as the warmth of the seats begins to soak through to her skin. She's suddenly so relaxed that she almost sounds drowsy. Almost. "That sounds nice."

It doesn't really matter how fast Dick drives.

Well, it probably does, in the grand scheme of things, but not to Gwen. Between her trust both in Dick and the tingle of her Spider-Sense, there's no reason for her to worry, and while there might be days that she lets the thrill of going breakneck speeds on their way to something heroic have her, right now she seems to want to savor every second.

She soon finds herself reaching up to slip the zipper of her puffy jacket down, leaning forward so she can slip all the way out of it and stuff it into the floorboard at her feet. Underneath, it's a black sweatshirt of a local band in NYC, the drummer mid-song featured prominently.

"Fair," she answers Dick's claim of it being worth it to be caught, even as she's shifting in her seat to slide her knees a little closer to the console -- easier for him to reach her thigh, a touch that has her humming softly in pleasure as the warmth of his palm soaks through her leggings.

And his fingers... God, his fingers...

...How did things go?

The question has her eyes sliding open again -- she hadn't even really realized they were closed -- and rolling them towards the roof of the car.

"I don't even know where to start. Ben tried to kill one of my professors. At least, I'm pretty sure that's what was happening. I wouldn't even known it was happening if someone hadn't pulled the fire alarm. He thinks Dr. Warren is responsible for the cloning experiment that made him, but there's no evidence and.. I guess he was trying to beat it out of him?"

She shakes her head, letting her eyes close again.

"I talked him down, but... ugh. Anyway, the sprinklers were going off, and I got soaked.. and of course it was freezing. Eddie lives right by campus, so, I stopped to see if he was home. He gave me a cup of hot chocolate and chance to get dry."

Her lips curl into a wry smile as she cracks her eye open again and rolls her head over so she can look at his profile.

"He says you're awesome," she muses, pride shining in her eyes. "I told him I moved in with you, and he recognized your name from the Flying Graysons."

She didn't talk about Dick's parents much, so there's a pause, there... a carefully sharp gaze as she pays close attention to how he reacts to his past being brought up so casually.

Dick Grayson has posed:
There is a better then average chance that they will spend hours out in the cold, patrolling the less than desirable neighborhoods of Gotham together. And yes, they might have a few stolen moments here or there should the occasion arise.

But they still have some time before full dark is well and truly settling over the city, still some time before they need to venture down into the Batcave and suit up. They will both almost definitely meet that sense of responsibility that drives them.

But nothing says that they can't have a little time for just them first.

A little food, a little relaxing in front of the fire, taking in their festive little setup. And hey, whatever happens from there is a suitable reward for a long day.

His hand might not be able to stray quite as often as he might like, but as often as he can Dick's hand is on her leg, playing over her thigh, stroking and soothing and just reminding her that he is right here. That he isn't going anywhere. And that however long the day might have been, they're back together now.

For all that it doesn't sound like the day was everything that Gwen couldn't have hoped, that there is still that shadow hovering around her, there isn't quite that same beaten down, almost frantic quality about her. That's an improvement to be sure.

For his part, Dick has done a little reading up on cloning, on the theory and what practical science exists around it. He won't be able to match her scientific expertise, but at least he has a better idea of some of what she's going through. On the technical side at least.

There's still the emotional side, the fact that it is happening to her ex.

Still, his brow arches as she shares the news, that her day consisted of stopping her ex from killing her professor. That's... not good. Not for Ben, not for her, and apparently not for her professor either. If her ex really believes he's responsible, if he is losing his grasp on things.

"Good thing you were there. Hopefully he was just trying to scare him and wasn't actually out of control," he says quietly. "Any chance that he might be right? Is Dr. Warren's field at all associated with cloning? Any of his work in that area? I mean, if he's one of your professors I assume he's in the biochem neighborhood, but it's one thing if he's just in the neighborhood and another if his life's work is actually on cloning," he says quietly.

He doesn't immediately dismiss the possibility that Ben might be onto something, even if the basic evidence would suggest he might just be irrational, maybe unstable. Good detectives don't make presumptions. They deal in facts.

That her day did not significantly improve from there draws a sympathetic glance from him, fingers squeezing where they rest on her thigh. "Sounds like you definitely need to warm up some. We'll get you by the fire stat," he promises, flashing her another grin, eyes lingering on her for just a moment before flashing back to the road. He doesn't seem daunted by her mention of his parents. It's been two decades and unlike Bruce - but thanks to him as well - he's not haunted by their loss.

Not anymore.

Gwen Stacy has posed:
Okay, good. Gwen blows out a soft sigh of relief. That bodes well for future conversations, which also need to happen sooner rather than later. She opened up about her whole past. It was time for her to ask Dick some personal questions about his. She wasn't going to let herself tall into the same old toxic patterns she had with Ben, where everything just gets glossed over so much she has no idea what's going on.

"Oh, you have no idea how much I need that. The story's not even over yet," Gwen groans, shaking her head as she looks at him. But she's been watching him, listening to his question, formulating her answers...

And in that process, there have also been flickers of doubt. Of regret. Of.. hesitance. Her instinct is to hold back. It _should_ have been told back with Ben, but it was so easy to fall into old patterns once he was talking to her again. It was so easy to switch into collaborative problem-solving mode as soon as Ben told her about the degeneration. She hadn't even considered that the problems he's having keeping control of his emotions might make him fly out of control when she told him Miles Warren acted obsessed with her.

Now she's presented with exactly that decision again, looking at Dick. Does she say that? Does she divulge the whole thing? ... Even the bit about agreeing to work with him next semester?

"I don't know. I've never seen Ben lose control like that. I hope he was just trying to scare him, but even if that's where it would have stopped, that's not how we do business. We don't beat people until they confess. I'm not sure he would have stopped, though, and Dr. Warren... he wasn't confessing. He wasn't even fighting back."

She sighs.

"But... funny you should ask. I did a little digging on the guy when I first started at ESU four years ago because he... um..."

She wrinkles her nose.

"Let's just say he had an uncomfortable level of interest. In me. But he knew Gwen from before. Stuff about her that he would only have known if he was paying attention back then. And, he acts a little... obsessed. It's creepy."

Towards her, she means, since she never got to meet the old Gwen, much less see how Miles Warren would have acted towards her.

"Anyway, yeah. He's on the biochem faculty, but the year Gwen died, 2019, he started co-writing genetics papers. Like.. back to that unhealthy level of obsession again. That was.. what.. six years ago. He's been writing papers on genetics and cloning -- academic papers, no actual experiments. At least, none documented. But, now that I've stepped in between him and Scarlet Spider, he's..."

She blows out a breath, closing her eyes.

"He was very... grateful." A shiver runs down her spine. "I stayed with him until the police and paramedics got there. He asked me to join a research project with him in January, once school is back from winter break."

Her smile thins as she looks over again.

"I said yes. Because short of throwing the guy through a wall, which obviously wasn't working, how else was I supposed to get close enough to find out whether the guy that cloned Peter Parker right after Gwen's death is the some genetics and cloning expert that's now obsessed with _me_?"

Dick Grayson has posed:
Given who he was raised by, given who his mentor is, there was never exactly a guarantee that Dick Grayson would turn out to be a great communicator. In point of fact Bruce is somewhat infamous for being closed off, for being secretive and even a little untrusting. At least to those not in his immediate circle. Even people he works closely with.

Even to those that have managed to make it into the inner sanctum of the Bat Family, they're not likely to find someone who is a particularly warm and cuddly individual. It's just not in his nature. He might work at it a little harder then he did in the past, some of the problems that might have cropped up between them have been smoothed over with time.

But some of that is just Dick changing his expectations. Doing a better job of accepting who he is, and who Bruce is and understanding that while he is his mentor - while he is effectively his father - they are not the same people. They don't do things the same ways. And wishing otherwise isn't particularly healthy.

It helps that Dick has had a lot of other people in his life. People more open with their feelings, more willing to talk things through and communicate. And it would seem that he has taken his cues from them.

Given what he knows about Gwen's recent struggles, given what she has shared about her experiences with Ben, with Eddie, she won't have to fight to get Dick to open up with her. Not about his future. Not about what he is up to now, how he feels about things. Not even aobut his hopes for the future.

Yes, they have a lot to talk about. But they have time.

If Dick gets his way, they'll have the rest of their lives to talk about it all in great detail.

For now though he still very much focuses on listening, even as he guides the sports car through the streets of the city, across that bridge that joins one of the islands of the city to the northern mainland and the affluent neighborhood of Bristol where Wayne Manor resides. Away from the lights and the traffic, it seems to be a trigger for Dick and the Porsche speeds towards that sprawling estate and their waiting home.

That even Gwen isn't sure how justified Ben's suspicions might be is perfectly fair. Under the circumstances, how could she be? He has admitted to blackouts. Who knows if other psychological issues go right along with that. So he nods as she spells out her troubles, her worries about his behavior.

Gotham is a... different place. It isn't uncommon for criminals to end up deposited with the police with a variety of bruises, contusions, sprains, strains, fractures and even broken bones. Most of them don't have super powers, have nothing but their training. And staying alive against thugs with guns sometimes means a certain ruthlessness.

Nightwing isn't above roughing up someone for information. But there are lines. Lines he won't cross. Lines even Batman won't cross. There has to be. It's what separates them from the criminal scum that they protect the city from.

"Fair," Dick agrees quietly, that hand leaving her leg for a moment, seeking out her hand instead and giving it a squeeze. "You're not going to be able to be his keeper Gwen. Not between living in another city and school and everything else you do. So make sure those that you trust know that he may or may not be stable," he encourages quietly.

"And as for Professor Warren," he begins. Does she expect him to discourage her from sticking close to the man? Arguing that if he is obsessed with her it's too dangerous? If so, he does not. "Just be careful," he says quietly. "I think you're right. If he is involved with all of this sticking close to him might just make him tip his hand, or give you the chance to find out for sure."

Gwen Stacy has posed:
There are those that would likely say that Dick and Gwen have moved too fast. That there was no imperative to move in together so quickly. That they should have taken the time necessary to get to know each other better. That it was dangerous, not just to their relationship, but potentially to the trust and health of those they love. Gwen is from a whole other dimension.

If she revealed the secrets about the Batcave under the Lakehouse? If Dick told people about Peter's and Ben's identities? If either of them turn out not to be the kind of person they first thought? The fallout could be catastrophic.

Those same people would point to conversations like this one. They'd say Gwen really had no idea how Dick would take bringing up his parents, much less talking to one of her ex-boyfriends about them. They'd point out that Gwen still had nerves about being honest about Dr. Warren, even though she followed through with it. And they'd be right that the fact that she was ready for a lecture -- if not a full-scale Ben-level freakout -- said as much about how little she knew him as it did him as a partner.

Where their point about moving too quickly would falter is that Dick has never once come up short. He's never once disappointed her. She has never once been surprised by something he's done and questioned whether or not she made the right decision to move in. He has consistently surprised her in all the best ways. And while it may be sad that she was prepared to accept a lesser man than the one beside her, even be grateful for his presence in her life, the fact that she has Dick is, sometimes, staggering.

They still have some potentially dangerous rivers to ford, though. They haven't really been on a random patrol together. Sure, there have been some scuffles they've been in together, but they haven't even sparred. They haven't even tested each other as partners in crime-fighting. Gwen certainly hasn't had to face Dick's method of interrogation... and would she react any differently than she did with Ben? Would she be able to stand back? Or would she trust Dick, as she always did, to show restraint? She's never had to face the question of whether or not she believes in violence as a form of interrogation -- it's been so black and white in her life, so far. What if her methods disappoint Dick? What if they're simply incompatible crime-fighters?

It seems unlikely, given everything else, but it's still an uncertainty...

The mention of being Ben's keeper brings a little bit of heat to her cheeks. Not a full on flush, but there's... there's some guilt, there. Her eyes, too, bare the tell-tale signs of a child being admonished, her eyes dipping down and to the side in shame. The thoughts racing through her mind may be hidden, private.. but they're there, and they bring that shadow back across her face.

It's the lack of lecture, though, that brings her gaze back up to Dick with a sense of... surprise? Awe? She blinks at him a couple of times like she was trying to clear the thoughts she had a moment ago so she could focus on this one first, a little shake of her head moving the hair around her cheeks.

"You... trust me?" she asks, voice incredulous, before she can stop herself. "You're not going to try to talk me out of it? Or freak out and be over-protective? Or treat me like a child?"

It shouldn't be such a surprise. If Gwen stopped to look at the long line of Dick's behavior, there was nothing at all to indicate that he would do any of those things -- only that he would be there if she ever called and said she needed him. Like always.

"I love you," she says, as if the worlds also communicated gratitude and relief.

But then there's another tug at her lips, a sad little smile, and she reaches up to brush her hair back behind her ear with her free hand, never pulling the one she offers to Dick away. Just squeezing when she can.

"Cards on the table... complete honesty... I was starting to worry that I should move back to New York so I could be closer to Ben. So that I could... I don't

Gwen Stacy has posed:
"Cards on the table... complete honesty... I was starting to worry that I should move back to New York so I could be closer to Ben. So that I could... I don't know. Take care of him or something." She swallows, rolling one shoulder. "It was never about my feelings changing about us or you," she clarifies. "But, if he's having blackouts.. if he's having violent episodes, then if not me... who? Who's going to take on that responsibility?"

What was she even picturing? Moving in with Ben and tying a bell to his foot so she'd know if he tried to sneak out? Knowing Gwen, she probably hadn't even thought it through that far.

"But I caught up with him at one of his thinking spots. We talked a little about what happened. He was calmer. At least, he _was_ calmer... until I mentioned... you."

There's a kind of darkness to that last word. Sadness and hurt all rolled into one.

"And, I realized that.. I.. can't. I can't move back there. I can't take care of him. I can't be what he would want me to be. And, no matter how much I care about him and want him to be happy and healthy, I can't change the fact that I understand, now, what it's supposed to feel like when I love someone. And... when someone loves me back."

Her eyes dip back over to him, gaze softening even as her voice does. It's a little melancholic, but it also seems to have quieted something in her mind that had been running frantic for the last few days. Some piece of her that was trying to help Ben while treading on eggshells, trying not let their history become a problem.

"We said Merry Christmas. And we left.. at the same time. We never really had a real break-up, before. He pulled away, and I pulled away, and it just sort of... fell apart. We both just kind of understood that we weren't together, anymore, I guess. But tonight, things... solidified. For both of us, I think. In a way that needed to happen a _long_ time ago."

She squeezes his hand again, then, and a smile pulls back across her lips.

"So, yeah. I could really use some time in front of a fireplace with you. And some time on patrol. I'm not at all saying no to kicking some Gotham bad guy butt, tonight."

Dick Grayson has posed:
Does Dick want her to leave Gotham City? Want her to move out of the Lakehouse? Want her to move back to New York City? Especially to take care of her ex?

Of course he doesn't.

He does not flip out at the mere mention of the possibility, that the thought crossed her mind. Because he understands where the sentiment is coming from. He has some notion of the burden of responsibility that she has taken on herself, but more she says that right up front. It has nothing to do with her feelings for him changing, or a desire to rekindle something from her past.

He listens without interrupting, giving her a chance to get it all out, to organize her thoughts and say what she needs to say. His fingers do tighten around her own, squeezing for just a moment and he lets his hand linger in hers a little longer then before. Out here, without the start and stop of traffic lights being as prevalent there is much less need to shift gears, and he takes full advantage of that to keep that contact. For the both of them right now.

He might understand why it is something that she would feel compelled to consider, even if in a vague, undefined sort of way. He knows all too well that feeling of 'if not me, then who'. It's the kind of sentiment that led him to Bludhaven, away from his family and friends. To becoming that city's protector, away from his usual support system. Because if he didn't do it, who else would?

He doesn't regret that decision, not in the end.

But he also is not at all disappointed that she seems to have come to the realization that, while she might still care, while she might still what she can do to help, there is a limit to just how far she can go. How far she should go.

The dark of the night hasn't settled over Gotham yet. They still have time to talk, time to settle in, time to enjoy a meal, the fire, each other's company before venturing back out into the night. But as they race along the river's edge, as the lights of the city across the water begin to flicker on, as the dark trees loom up on the other side of the road casting shadows across them as they race home, Dick glances her way and shoots her an understanding smile.

"I get it," he agrees quietly. "For what it's worth, I think you made the right decision. Not just for you, or me, but for him as well," he says, shooting her the occasional look. "I know that none of this has been easy on you. I mean, just the drama with Ben - even taking out clones and obsessed professors and everything else - would be a little much to handle." Which might be an understatement.

"You'll still help. I know you will. BUt hopefully in a way that can be healthy for the both of you," he agrees, fingers finally, reluctantly untangling from her own as he guides that car off the main road, shifting down long enough to take the corner.

"We'll go home. We'll get you warmed up," he says before shooting her a grin. "Maybe very warm. And then we'll get ready for the evening. We can take out some of our feels on the worst Gotham has to offer."

Maybe not the holiday dream for everyone. But it will work for them.

Gwen Stacy has posed:
Ever since Gwen reconnected with Dick -- and especially since she came out of the science building to find him standing there waiting for her after class -- there had been no doubt about what she felt.

If she'd had anyone to talk to about it, they might have said it was fueled by loneliness. Or that love at first sight is a myth. But it wasn't first sight. It was four years of harbored feelings. And as far as loneliness? If anything, Gwen feels more like a burden than anything else. Lonely or not, her life is _so_ busy, even without all of the drama that comes with relationships, that she hadn't been out looking for love. She had responsibilities and a career and...

It wasn't loneliness. Or some romantic notion of 'love at first sight.' Or a school-girl crush.

Sure, maybe that first night she met him, that handsome white knight that carried her to safety left her a little star struck. Maybe she'd been swept off of her feet by his kindness and charm. But by the time they reconnected, she'd had years to process those feelings... and they hadn't gone away.

Ever since that night on the balcony, it's felt like her feelings for him had been tethered to some kind of rocket and sent towards deep space with no hope of ever finding a steady orbit. It was like they were just going to keep going, and going, and going.

And today is no different.

She's never been able to be completely open and honest with... anyone. Literally no one, ever, in her entire life. Some truth, some thought she had, some decision she made was _always_ going to push them away. There was always going to be something fundamental about her that was always going to be wrong -- broken, in their eyes. And she knew that the moment they saw it, she would lose them forever. She always had to hold a piece of herself back. She always had to keep a secret. She always had to protect those she loved from the one, fundamental truth that took so many different shapes -- that she was a disappointment.

Until now.

'I get it. For what it's worth, I think you made the right decision.'

Until this man said _those_ words, some part of her was ready for the car to stop. She was ready -- she'd never actually ready -- to see that look of disappointment in his eyes. For the second time today, no matter how much hope she clung to like a child on Christmas morning, she was prepared to see the look of utter disappointment on the face of a man she cared deeply for. The same look her father turned on her when he told her she was under arrest.

The look that comes over her is... joy. Relief. Love.

In that moment, something in her seems to... change. Not just like a heavy weight being set down, but like she found some treasure she'd been looking for. Being able to relax isn't a strong enough word. Her fingers curl and squeeze into his, at least until he needs to shift to take that curve, and she leans over, resting her face on his upper arm.

It's not just love. It's not just having found a home. It's unconditional love, and yet it's still so much more than that.

One day in the future, she would look back on this car ride and realize that this was the exact moment she decided she wanted to spend the rest of her life with Dick Grayson.