But what Claire didn’t know—257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrTPYvB12FR
was that the two vigilantes sitting across from her, who only just “introduced themselves” today,257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzRoMQCNbMU
had already raised every internal alarm system they had.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRtRKZODG3S
Their minds kicked into full Batcave-alert mode.
This woman didn’t just know too much—257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIau1QIyZ5k
she had a handle on their most sensitive intel: identities, locations, relationships.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnXnCdzAcde
She had even casually connected Nightwing to his civilian alias and somehow arranged a dinner with all three of them.
This wasn’t coincidence.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6NKrrRD5ty
This was infiltration.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ120Zda1rFK
If she wasn’t intentionally getting close, then she was... some kind of meta.
Thankfully, the food arrived.
It was like the trumpet of salvation sounding across a battlefield.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0hRmgURcRk
Both snapped out of their tactical calculations at once.
And thanks to Alfred’s lifelong etiquette training, no matter how internally wrecked they were, externally they would still sit up straight and eat like gentlemen.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡStAkrnRtPf
The burgers and fries were placed neatly in front of them, and they nodded politely—257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2o40x3QjJE
time to eat first, survive the crisis later.
But their guard never dropped.
Each bite of burger came with a side of intense eye contact and silent strategy meetings.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEJUpcGs4c2
They chewed through American cheese and existential dread at the same time.
—She’s extremely dangerous. Unpredictable.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3Rd4cHSfBg
—She might expose us. She probably already knows everything.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡK9q7F7GswA
—How did she even reach Nightwing’s civilian persona? That’s priority one.
They silently agreed: Contain this first. Then move to extraction.
But the universe had other plans.
Claire, seeing their plates empty, calmly set down her utensils.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBBkUeqYrzC
She wiped her hands with delicate precision—elegant, efficient. Like she was preparing for the next item on the itinerary.
She glanced at the two men still wiping their mouths, gave a small approving nod, and said in the tone of a cheerful tour guide:
“Alright. Let’s go.”
Both of them: !!!!!!?????
Dick nearly choked on his own spit.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb5kRn3fjWy
He swallowed it with effort, forced a crooked smile, and asked carefully:
“Uh... may I ask... where are we going?”
Claire tilted her head, voice light as a breeze:257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvGhVrQnKfn
“My place, of course.”
Dick: …257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCfNFxBFMaK
BEEP—257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtAiX1c1aQc
His brain short-circuited.
If it were just the two of them, sure, maybe this could be chalked up to some kind of flirtatious momentum.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuSvQNg87t5
But it wasn’t.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdS8soYkLF0
Jason was right there.
And this wasn’t just any younger brother. This was Jason.
Dick turned slowly.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUC4VIWVaSn
Jason’s face had frozen over like a glitching video frame.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsFPkD3X2yo
He looked like he was thinking, “Yeah, I know ending a date at her place is a thing...257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnXJ6QuMhqa
but bringing me along? You’ve lost your minds.”
Jason’s brain was screaming EXIT MISSION. NOW.
257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUhJdYqu4Us
He took a deep breath, gently put down his cup, and tried to decline with some grace:257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0QrhdrxXdU
“I’ll sit this one out. Just remembered—I’ve got... stuff.”
But Claire turned toward him, cheeks slightly flushed, wearing that same familiar smile she often gave regulars at the café.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv9Cgz9Kd3k
It wasn’t rushed.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLScQXtRFem
It wasn’t demanding.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfGCQdtf8Lg
It carried that quiet kind of knowing that made your spine itch.
“I know,” she said gently.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsipuu5lq09
Like she was saying, “You like two sugars in your coffee, right?”
I know what you're thinking. I know what you’re about to do.
Robin’s inner sirens went off.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm1QixZeZET
—What else do you know?
Claire lazily added, as if commenting on the weather:257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmrhixTF73X
“Well, obviously, you’re here for Nightwing. He’ll be at my place soon.”
Dick: ???257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjYTkz15tZF
Robin: ????????
The air above the table turned so thick it was practically solid.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqmykWPU6Jd
Both brothers went blank—
She didn’t just know about Robin,257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPopuD0DRnm
She knew Nightwing,257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEpSK08UPCc
She knew where he was going,257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbTGQkzQ0fd
She knew when he’d show up.
What the hell?
Was she psychic?257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7TbCkp07gG
Did she somehow hack into the Batcave’s core database?257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlsNQeYeWG5
—Or was she some kind of secret weapon planted by Batman as part of a top-secret test?
They exchanged another look.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0qPFjPmTqK
Threat Level: Off the charts.
And Claire?257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡimXR0KWJvl
After casually dropping that reality-shattering statement, she stood up—swaying slightly, like the alcohol had just caught up to her balance.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgYksl8kepz
Elegant, but clearly tipsy.
She reached for the bill.
Dick, faster than instinct, grabbed it first.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVJ2Ow79GI5
His voice was calm but firm:257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBObcoM6Pzm
“I’ve got it.”
Claire blinked at him, then smiled and nodded.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡphFLEDnHfl
“Then next time’s on me.”257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8cX4ZIVqc6
She said it like a promise.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsYlHAFZxuL
Like she already knew there would be a next time.
(And there would be.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP5BX2H7p6x
She’d already cooked them dinner—long-term.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVYsWyWTEGV
They just didn’t remember.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt77Ak3JLz4
Thanks, timeline reset.)
257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5yfI9SJq37
The three of them stepped out of the restaurant.
A cold breeze swept past, snapping Claire’s mind briefly out of its alcohol-soaked haze.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHtkaQWBwq8
But it brought a dull ache to her temple, creeping from her forehead to the back of her skull.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4W550cPKCt
A hangover before the night was even over.
She shoved her hands in her coat pockets, turned to the two vigilantes, and said:
“Come on. Follow me.”
Dick finally worked up the nerve to ask:257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHk8NMjWhjA
“How do you know Nightwing’s going to your place?”
His voice was steady—too steady.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnpddzpz2id
Inside, he was already mentally running emergency cover plans.
One thing was clear: She didn’t know he was Nightwing.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPA48R7IXkS
Yet.
Which left him with one big question:257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgFVFdc0WOg
How the hell was he supposed to get ‘Dick Grayson’ and ‘Nightwing’ into the same room at the same time?
Claire looked back at him, cheeks still flushed.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG8lQWNKU3W
She was definitely drunk—257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFRI9Z2Lu0s
Otherwise, she wouldn’t be staring at the cop in front of her,257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡptHwmGe8j2
and seeing the exact same blue eyes as Nightwing.
She smiled—soft, glowing, and dangerously confident.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoi71HXCSkJ
Her voice floated like a breeze,257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcKlfCJBMs1
but hit like a prophecy:
“Because—this is my city.”
Dick froze.
That line...257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN06szgKBxN
It was his line.
Whenever he stood watch over the city under the cover of night, he would quietly tell himself:257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYFOX6gWmLx
“This is my city.”
But today—for the first time—he heard someone else say it.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz9zA82OBOT
So naturally.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWMXQvU83vR
Like she was the one who truly belonged to the night.
Robin sensed something spiraling out of control.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRjv8UKhIfF
He raised a hand like an emergency stop sign.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKCZnJ9QUnb
“Wait, Claire, Dick can’t go to your place.”
Jason couldn’t play the obedient kid anymore.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtF3S2DdVzN
Someone had to step in and stop this rapidly escalating mess of a romantic-horror identity farce.
Claire turned her head, voice still hazy but filled with genuine confusion.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMB9I58quWd
“Why not?”
Robin gritted his teeth.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnIpYxujqsm
“Because... because... they’re love rivals.”
It was the most explosive, absurd, yet somehow believable excuse he could come up with on the spot.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdsLJHNCgLz
Better that than the truth.
Dick turned to him with a look that screamed:257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0k4HjOi3AN
“What the hell are you saying?!”
Claire froze, blinking as if trying to focus her gluey brain. Her eyes slowly widened as realization dawned.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmCSGypvkU7
She turned to Dick with the gleam of gossip burning bright in her gaze.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡY4UNXPVwEF
“Didn’t expect you to have a juicy backstory.”
Then, a flash of clarity cut through the fog of her drunken thoughts:257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd9I7Zhb0NU
“Wait—you said you didn’t know each other.”
Robin felt his soul leave his body.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjHjRvdgNEm
But he still forced out a reply:257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWYOEtt0zzd
“Right… but I know Nightwing. He often says there’s this cop—Dick Grayson—his romantic rival.”
Claire nodded, murmuring like someone piecing together the latest drama at a café:257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡay6Iyqpnjm
“So you like the same girl, huh…”257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj0MWrFkBI2
She didn’t sound surprised—just mildly intrigued.
Then she raised a hand and pointed at Dick, her tone calm and dismissive:257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmOVB0xKf4Q
“Alright. You can go now. Thanks for dinner. I’ll treat next time.”
Dick stared at this woman who’d just used and dismissed him like an old umbrella.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmyXRg2wPCt
His mouth twitched—unsure whether to laugh or be offended.
Eventually, he managed a sentence—wry but polite:257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXn31FaIWaA
“I’ll walk you home.”
Claire nodded.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRUfya7ozpQ
But this time, she didn’t say anything more.
She just kept walking ahead, steady-paced and silent.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrG7Tt0Duwg
The alcohol still lingered, but her tone had lost its playfulness—257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9XMy0iTagk
replaced by a deeper calm.
The two men followed quietly.
They crossed neon-lit corners and passed under dim lampposts until they finally arrived at—
Claire’s café.
This time, Dick remained outside, watching the other two go in.
The streetlight cast his shadow long and thin,257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZFH3BU6yI3
stretching all the evening’s chaos into a single, quiet silhouette.
Just before the door closed, Robin turned back and gave him a look.
It might’ve meant “I’ve got this”,257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxSuK4TSbpH
or “You better explain later”,257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu5OOBE2IIe
or just “My head hurts.”
Dick nodded—small, but clear.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvBfpGG3IYQ
He knew this wasn’t the end.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxT8F3Ju5B8
Just the beginning.
Robin followed Claire up the stairs to the third floor.
She opened the door, pointed toward the balcony, and said casually,257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfJxUgYo2mJ
like she was announcing her morning routine:
“He’ll show up at 11:11. You wait here. I’m going to lie down.”
She said it too naturally—like she was used to expecting mysterious guests.
Then—without another word—she just… collapsed onto the bed.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEE0kV84CRt
Right in front of him.
Robin: …
He stood there, staring like she’d just cast some kind of spell trap.
But she was actually asleep.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnqviRBCIaP
Not pretending.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLxibJerCgV
Not spying.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3jbFDPAaiz
Not scheming.
She’d simply laid down—unguarded, vulnerable.
His eyes swept the room for hiding spots—nothing.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2CWXhF5SyR
He pressed an ear to the wall—silence. Only his own heartbeat.
A few moments later, a familiar thwip echoed from outside.
Nightwing had arrived.
He was already changed—still catching his breath, a few strands of hair sticking to his forehead from rushing over.
Robin was ready.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDTqSKWfvOG
He walked over and opened the window.
Cold air rushed in, snapping his senses back into focus.
Nightwing climbed in, landing with a slight wobble, eyes scanning the room urgently.
Their eyes met—257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡExwVmgVuSN
Then both turned to look at the woman asleep on the bed.
She was curled on her side, breathing steady, cheeks still flushed.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh82nuBOUsZ
One hand rested lightly on the edge of the blanket—257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqZTVrc3FwE
Even in her dreams, she hadn’t fully let her guard down.
The two brothers stood at her bedside.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2NstvgzYEs
Saying nothing.
Only the wind filled the room, rustling the curtain with a soft whisper.
Silence.
Then—257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvPelpTn7EI
Robin shrugged.
As if to say:257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuUUTcvgAvR
“Your problem now.”257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSfdL1UcuOU
“I’ve got nothing.”
Nightwing sighed.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhgD0yRsVC9
Staring at the woman who made him rush between identities just to keep up—257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb1g4CLcPzL
he wasn’t sure if he felt exasperated… or something stranger.
She’d said he’d arrive.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡswue0ClDI6
And then she’d just… laid down.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLbif38NixD
Like she knew he’d come.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡK3qFpnS9ir
Like it wasn’t a guess—257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb4rvHEckwO
but part of some rhythm she trusted without question.
And now, here they were.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzyueauH1NF
The three of them—once again—drawn into the same space.
257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj6LeFOqmcH
The next morning, sunlight poured through the slits in the curtains, casting soft, angled streaks across the room.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB0ywIUoAB2
Claire awoke to the sound of familiar music—gentle, slightly old-fashioned jazz that tugged her gently out of sleep.
She opened her eyes and stared at the ceiling, realizing with mild surprise that she didn’t have a hangover.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeZaLhTBPJX
Her head was clear—clearer than usual, even.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsE4gSCgxeg
It felt like some lingering anxiety had been washed away along with the alcohol.
But—
Her memory of the latter half of last night was… fuzzy.
She remembered dinner.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN1r5qDE5RW
She remembered the cocktails.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGb7qhTWOsG
She remembered the walk home, the chilly wind… and that she’d said something outrageous.
And then…
Did she lie down?257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoV0KkkjyWd
Was Robin there?257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlU9Icioltw
Did she say something weird?
She furrowed her brows and muttered to herself,257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUC5vxx0Rak
“I really shouldn’t have had that drink…”
What had they talked about?257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ13cORl7kKt
She tried to recall, as if piecing together a dream scattered across the corners of her mind.
Ah, right.
Nightwing and Dick are love rivals.
That line leapt into her mind with startling clarity, like a scene from a forgotten film reel.
She remembered pointing at Dick and telling him to go home.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjKOdDpQOYn
Said something like, “Thanks for dinner, I’ll treat next time.”
Claire rubbed her temple and couldn’t help but let out a small, wry laugh.
“So they’re in love with the same girl…” she murmured,257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡylrB5qPIvQ
like she was catching up on an old soap opera—half amused, half pitying.
She stayed sitting in bed for a long while.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKDOp3FpoQO
Her feet didn’t touch the floor.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1F0FD5k1FW
Her back rested against the wall, and both hands pressed into the sheets,257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqvignAYecS
as if trying to coax gravity into letting her stay just a bit longer.
But eventually, she swung her legs over the side.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe5TZCXnjeG
The moment her feet touched the wooden floor, she knew—
It was time to get up.
Time to open the café.
No matter how chaotic last night had been,257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm6qEI6YHlN
today… the café still had to run.257Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu4MZBMWOhC
《End of Bonus Chapter》
ns216.73.216.208da2
and then Add to home screen.