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Tim comes home after he knows everyone will be asleep post patrol. He both does and doesn’t expect Bruce to be sitting at his desk.
Tim sighs. He really doesn't have the energy for whatever this is.
“Tim,” Bruce says, standing.
“Bruce,” Tim replies, shortly.
“I don’t think I ever really apologized for the way I treated you when you first became robin.”
Tim tries very hard not to scoff. He wonders what made Bruce come to that sparkling realization. It’s a little late for an apology. At least one that doesn't feel forced, one that means anything.
Tim is so used to being a peacemaker, even as angry as he is, he just crosses his arms and says, “Okay.”
“So,” Bruce says awkwardly and for a second Tim thinks that was the apology, but then Bruce seems to catch on and adds, “I’m sorry.”
“It’s fine,” Tim says, because what else is he supposed to say? He’s too tired to yell. He’s too tired to coddle him. He’s just tired.
“No Tim-”
Tim sighs and cuts him off. “Bruce, I'm really tired. Can we just have this conversation in the morning?” he runs his hand through his hair.
Bruce nods. “Yeah Tim. I didn't think about the time.” He claps a hand on Tim's shoulder and leaves him alone.
He waits till he’s sure Bruce is gone and pulls out his phone. Connor picks up on the first ring.
“Tim!” His voice rings brightly through the phone, and Tim relaxes a little.
“Hey Con. Sorry, I thought you’d be asleep.”
“Nah, it’s only one here. Isn’t it like 6 there? You really need to learn to sleep in.”
Tim laughs. “We go over this every time. It’s a 3-hour difference. It’s four here. I haven’t gone to bed yet.”
“Well, why are you calling me at 4 am instead of sleeping?”
“I-” he hesitates. He always has a place there. They said that even after he had to flee because of everything with Jason. He knows he can go back now. He just struggles to feel like they’d want him back.
Connor cuts him off. “Oh, wait, that reminds me. Sorry, you can keep talking in a minute. I just know I’m going to forget again if I don't say it right now.”
Tim laughs again. “Okay go ahead.”
“Raven has this art show she won’t admit is a big deal, but absolutely is. I was gonna ask if you would be able to come. It’s two Saturdays from now. And maybe you could come for the whole weekend? We’ll all be here, and we miss you. I totally get if you’re too busy or if the tower is too hard. I just figured no harm in asking?”
He knows Con can’t possibly know what he had wanted to ask, but Con was always good at that. Disarming Tim’s insecurities in one rambling sweep.
“Actually,” Tim says, still a little hesitant, “I was wondering if I could come stay for a little?”
“Really!” Connor shrieks, so loud Tim has to pull the phone away from his ear. He hears a ‘volume Con it’s one am’ from who he thinks is Cass in the background. It’s followed by a series of crashes and thumps.
Tim laughs. “What are you doing?”
“Shh, shh wait, wait, how do yo- got it! Okay, you’re on speaker. Gar already went to bed, but Cass, Raven, and Bart are here. Ask again!”
Tim laughs and wow he really missed these guys. “Ask what again? I don’t think I asked anything.” he teases.
“Come on Tim. Con just about broke all the picture frames falling into the roo-”
“I did not!” Connor cuts Cass off.
“I was just asking if I could maybe come stay for a little?”
He’s met with a chorus of yes’s and hell yeah’s.
“So when?” Raven asks, “Because you can’t come two Saturdays from now, I have…a thing.”
Tim smiles, he’s so going to that art show, and he’s going to embarrass the crap out of her. “I was thinking soon? Like in a couple days?”
Connors voice sounds closer suddenly. There’s rustling like he’s moving. “You’re off speakerphone.” His voice is gentle. “What happened?”
Tim hesitates. “What? Nothing. I just-” he trails off.
“Okay,” Connor says, gently, “Get some sleep, okay? We’ll plan you getting here in the morning and just… Tim?”
“Yeah?”
“I’m here if you wanna talk about it. Or anything. I’m just here, okay?”
Tim smiles and nods, even though Connor can’t see him. “Yeah, I know, buddy. Thanks.”
“Anytime.”
Tim can't bring himself to hang up. Connor doesn't either. They sit in silence until Connor goes back to the living room. Tim lets the sounds of his team lull him to sleep.
^^^
“I’m leaving,” Tim says at the breakfast table the next morning.
Tim isn’t looking up, but the sound of silverware clattering against plates follows it.
“What?” Dick sounds surprised and hurt all in one, and Tim flinches against it.
“Tim,” Bruce says, “I thought after last night…”
After you acted like apologizing to me was as painful as having to chew off your own hand? Tim wants to say.
Instead, he says, “It’s not forever. I’m just going to go stay with the titans for a little.”
“I thought-” Tim knows how that sentence ends, but apparently Jason thinks better of it and bites his tongue, going back to stabbing at the eggs on his plate like they offended him.
Tim kind of wants to break something. “I booked my flight this morning. I leave tomorrow.”
“No,” Bruce says. If Bruce tries to stop him, he is going to break something.
“Thank you, Bruce.” Dick cuts in. “Tim, I know-” he actually has the good sense to not try to tell Tim how he feels again. “But you can’t just go across the country because of it.”
“I need-” Tim tries to say.
Bruce cuts him off. “No, I meant no, you aren’t taking a commercial plane. You can take the bat Jet.” It’s a sign he’s trying when he clenches and unclenches his fist before sighing and adding, “I would feel more comfortable if you took the bat jet.”
Tim can give him that. “Okay.”
“Bruce, you can’t just let-” Dick starts.
“Dick!” Tim cuts in. “I-” his voice cracks a little, he hates it. “I need space. It’s not forever.”
Dick doesn’t say anything.
“Can I have your heat tracker while you’re gone?” Jason says.
Tim knows he’s trying to lighten the mood, so he laughs and says, “absolutely not.”
The tension does not lift. The rest of breakfast is had in silence.
^^^
“So you're leaving.” Damian's voice interrupts Tim's packing.
“For a little at least.” He says, setting the shirt he's folding into his suitcase.
Damian scoffs. Tim turns around, prepared for a fight, but then he sees Damian. He looks so young, it makes Tim realize Damian is the one he blames the least. Which is probably a little ironic considering he's the only one who's tried to kill him while in his right mind.
But also, at the end of the day, he's just a kid. Even with everything, he's a kid raised somewhere, he has to prove himself. A kid who was then thrust into a world he didn't understand where having to prove yourself was still very heavily encouraged, despite how much Bruce and Dick would protest that.
He recognizes himself in his little brother. “Okay listen let's start over okay? I promise not to hold any previous murder attempts against you if you promise to stop trying to kill me, deal?” He holds his hand out for Damian.
Damian looks at it wearily. “Why?” He says. Despite the convincing front Damian is putting on, Tim can see right through it to where he can tell Damian is waiting for the other shoe to drop.
"Because'' Tim pulls his hand back and runs it through his hair. "I know what it's like to be the only one who's here after Jason's death." Tim doesn't know if that's really when everything shifted, but he knows that there is a divide, no matter how unintentional, between those who were there before the joker killed Jason and after. "I know what it feels like to feel like you need to work for your place in this family" because he'd had to, but that wasn't important right now.
"Unlike you, my place in this family isn't in question so whatever you're implying-"
Tim bites his tongue. He's an insecure kid, that's why he's being an asshole, he reminds himself before he says, "okay well just so you know I don't hold anything against you. As far as I'm concerned, any murder attempts after this one are the first ones and I will be deeply betrayed." He's going for joking but something flashes across Damian's face. He realizes they are definitely not in the place where he can make jokes like that yet, so he back pedals.
"Listen, my point is I'm not making promises I'll answer anyone else right now, I need time and space, but I know what it feels like to be the outsider. So even if you don't feel it now." Which Tim highly doubts, but he's not going to push that he knows that won't help, "if you ever do I'm just a phone call or a text away okay? For anything. Not just family shit."
“Okay” Damian says slowly, far too untrusting for a kid his age. Tim's pretty sure he doesn't believe him. He hopes, at least, it sinks in enough Damian will reach out if he ever really needs someone.
"I'm going to hug you now." Tim says
"Do no- Drake, release me, or I will make my first murder attempt right now!" Damian hisses and Tim lets him go after half an awkward second.
"I'm leaving" Damian glares as he stomps out of the room.
Tim thinks that was the most successful conversation they've had yet, so he'll take it.
^^^
"You don't have to go" Bruce insists again on the tarmac, he'd also insisted on Tim taking the bat plane instead of a regular plane like he wouldn't have been flying first class and perfectly safe.
"Yes, I do," Tim snaps back, a little harsher than necessary.
"Well, your room will always be in the manor if you want to come home… or even visit."
He knows Bruce is trying, so he nods and mumbles okay, shaking Bruce's hand, the closest he's going to get to a hug.
He lets Dick bear hug him and nods when he says something about visiting, he isn't even sure if dick is promising to visit or asking him too.
Then he boards the jet and immediately bursts into tears. It feels like grief and anger and just a release all in one.
^^^
The Titan’s are all there to greet him when he lands. Kon is grinning like a kid on Christmas. Bart and Cass are either attempting, and failing, to or fighting over who gets to hold up a banner that looks like it was made by overexcited kindergarteners. It reads “Red Robin Landed” with what he thinks is a bird but kind of just looks like a red smudge with a smiley face on it. Raven is leaning on Gar who's shifted into a lion, a tiger, and a bear since Tim stepped out of the plane. Tim’s pretty sure he’s doing it just to fuck with him. It makes him laugh nonetheless.
When they hug him, it feels like resting after a long day. It feels like breathing fully and deeply for the first time in a long time. He feels like he’s finally home.