The atmosphere in the Batcave had been… strange lately.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡULU5UsATq0
Not because of a new mission. Not because Gotham was hit by some disaster.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwNDTrHfDZy
But because—Tim was acting weird.
He often disappeared without warning, claiming it was for “patrol,” but he’d just vanish.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXM55DWEC1l
He’d sit alone at the table, staring at his phone with a dopey grin, sometimes even mumbling replies to messages—127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuuwatVWbsL
And his smile was unusually soft. Unusually dumb.
Sure, once he was on duty, he was still the most level-headed tactician in all of Gotham.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCQLylAr2di
But the subtle change was impossible to hide.
At first, the rest of the Batcave observed quietly.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwAv5SpLVBA
But soon, they all said the same thing, almost in unison:
Dick: “He’s in love.”127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBvUJLMR9Er
Jason: “Totally in love.”127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ8RQAFdq1I
Damian: [Frowning so hard he looked like Gotham’s weather map] “….”127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ05yHighNUF
Steph: “He's definitely in love!”127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN3Q7HY4dhW
Barbara: “And it’s going really well, too.”127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlLIiHG2PFK
Lyla: “Yep, Tim’s in love. It’s real.”
Then, everyone turned to look at the one person who hadn’t said a word—127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrMtrjPAXTj
The one still waiting for Tim’s investigation report.
Batman: “…”
Bruce looked up, just in time to see Tim climb in through the window, still texting, so distracted he bumped into a chair—and pretended it didn’t happen.
Regardless, it was now universally acknowledged in the Batcave:127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrtN8JaxpGK
Tim Drake had fallen in love.
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That night, Tim moved through Gotham like a ghost, gliding expertly from shadow to shadow.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGAbKT441OP
His shift had ended, his daily report was submitted on time, and he didn’t linger.
Just as Batman walked into the command room holding the last file Tim had handed in—
“Tim, that report you—”127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7QgiDiR2I4
The chair was empty. The only thing left was the low hum of the computer fan.
Alfred walked past calmly. “Master Wayne, young people have lives too. You should get some sleep.”
Batman paused, staring at the empty chair for a long moment.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5tMyg3qvgo
His frown deepened as if realizing something—and not liking it.
—Meanwhile, Tim had already vanished into Gotham’s night.
He vaulted silently across rooftops, landing without a sound. He knew this path like the back of his hand.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4VZLN4PZsM
Because he’d been here more than once.
This wasn’t a mission.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡat1Iycndtk
It was his own destination.
In front of a small apartment, he didn’t need to hack the lock anymore.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFwrJuYNpz7
He no longer snuck in—he keyed in the passcode openly.
That was his access.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNk6Nfv6u5e
Part of his current life.
He opened the door. The entryway light was off, but a soft, warm glow came from the living room.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVgHCXNXC6f
And just like always, someone was lying on the sofa.
Tim sighed. “Nora… Why are you sleeping out here again?”
He walked over, unsurprised to see her bandages loosened, with the skin around her wound faintly red.
“I told you, I’ll take care of the sheets. You should be sleeping in your bed.”
Nora opened her eyes, raised her arms, and said nothing.
Tim didn’t need to ask.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3BoaxmTGzt
She curled her fingers, and he leaned down, letting her hand rest naturally on his shoulder.
They kissed quietly—127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡexzuf3CmMb
A silent ritual, an unspoken goodnight.
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Time passed. The quiet in the room remained.
Tim gently picked up a cotton swab, carefully wiping away the old scar cream.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡemdo6IY9NY
His touch was soft—like he was afraid of disturbing something fragile.
Just as Nora said, the wound was healing fast.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUWwgYMQ2tV
Though still a vivid scar, it was a mark of survival.
Three days ago, he’d already removed the stitches. Following doctor’s instructions, it wasn’t against the rules.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtMGMjcqxuD
Still, he wasn’t at ease.
He even bought special scar cream—not from the Batcave, but from a medical supply store he went out of his way to visit.
Nora muttered, “A little more pressure. It tickles.”
Tim looked up at the blonde woman lying on the sofa.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVt0MBzfvbi
She was his girlfriend.
Just… not the way he imagined.
This woman, in private, was a total gremlin. 127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiN9mXQHn25
Every time Tim started lecturing, she’d shut him up with a kiss.
She undid her bandages whenever she felt itchy.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC1FWglMs2P
She’d drag him away from his coffee, demand he come to bed and sleep beside her.
And somehow, he actually listened.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡacOdjSGDBo
He’d put down the files, turn off his comms, and get in bed like an obedient boyfriend.
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Tim lay in bed, staring at the ceiling.
Nora had already curled into the blanket beside him—127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZcYG22mZj0
And was now shamelessly acting as a human lullaby machine, gently patting his chest and humming a tune.
This wasn’t the kind of relationship he’d envisioned.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqBaxKEJLYD
It was harder than criminal interrogation.
The first time she did it, he looked at her in confusion.
“…Nora?” he asked quietly, as if checking if she was being serious.
She didn’t answer. Just kept humming the nameless tune.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNVXXYBaw1w
Then she looked up—green eyes meeting his blue.
She reached out and covered the dark circles under his eyes with her fingers—127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUGmznXHhHz
Rubbing them gently, like mocking his sleep deprivation… or maybe, just a soft form of scolding.
Tim’s mouth twitched. His expression was complicated.
Nora giggled, burrowed further into his chest, and rested her face in the crook of his neck.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaCUVmj9N9s
She stopped humming—only her breathing warmed his skin.
In their quiet apartment, night blanketed everything.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGmcggWCBbi
And for once, the world was still.
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On the morning of the new school term, Nora arrived at the kindergarten on time.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFGGOKuFtzH
She wore a neat uniform, her hair in a low ponytail, smiling as she greeted the children arriving one by one.
What surprised her was—no one questioned her "miraculous recovery."127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEXrgBcAMGL
The teachers just smiled and said she looked even better than before the break.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZmuHjYYDA1
The parents merely nodded hello.
It was as if the kidnapping and gunshot never happened.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFy60utFeOl
She had no idea what Tim told them.
Standing in the sunlight, she smiled.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwqw4kxEMPJ
A black car quietly stopped outside the gate.
The door opened, and the young CEO of Drake Industries stepped out.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWn7RBr4dTq
Tim was holding Finn’s little backpack in one hand, slipping the car key into his pocket with the other.
And Finn—127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgKqfayXGtB
The moment the door opened, launched like a cannonball toward her.
“Nora!” he shouted, diving into her arms, his little hands wrapping around her neck.
Nora caught him and kissed his forehead with a smile.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbjrvbxiKNV
“Our boy is full of energy today.”
Tim walked up with a sigh, holding up the backpack. Their eyes met.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTQVbUILjtO
This was the third time this week.
The Batfamily had all voted:127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQwrNf5s3L0
“Tim should be the one to take Finn to school.”127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIGnDaLHRlA
The reason?127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡn9qNSHBKGH
Finn needs emotional security.
Tim didn’t object.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1em57jxGn6
But it meant his routine now was:127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh3npkZHBjy
Wake up at Nora’s → return to Wayne Manor → change → take Finn to school → see Nora again at the kindergarten.
Officially, they were just “Finn’s uncle” and “his teacher.”127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCMKMNcGrKH
In reality? They’d just gotten out of the same bed that morning.
Tim was still wondering how long they could keep this up, when—127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeE7GN8LXnu
Nora raised her hand.
“Oh dear, Mr. Drake, your collar is messy.”
She stepped close, adjusting the collar of his shirt—127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡszb50qkjCM
But her fingers lightly brushed his earlobe, grazing the side of his neck like a feather.
Tim froze.
Nora’s green eyes remained calm, as if nothing had happened.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnfMbsAw7ql
“Finn, say goodbye to your uncle,” she said sweetly.
“Bye~” Finn waved happily, then took her hand and skipped into the classroom.
Tim stood there, feeling like his ear was on fire.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqT4mLZNbEW
He quietly raised a hand to touch the spot—127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQflD3mAx4O
Yup. Still warm.
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Night fell quietly over Gotham.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiudLJRgyOK
The city sank into darkness, lit only by a few lonely streetlights.
But Nora’s apartment glowed with warm yellow light.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiZH36kVc6G
The coffee table in front of the sofa was scattered with needles, fabric scraps, dissected stuffed animals, and a small bag of precision electronics.
Tim sat on the sofa in loungewear, glasses on, carefully stitching a fuzzy green dinosaur.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVgChGbfPAB
He used extra-fine thread, sewing every stitch straight and steady.
A cleaning cloth rested on his knee, used to wipe off glue or thread bits.
Nora sat on the sofa’s armrest, legs swinging, watching him like she was enjoying a drama—eyes full of amusement and affection.
“Are you sure you want this kind?” Tim muttered without looking up. “It has audio monitoring, a camera, and connects to my system’s internal net… Are you sure?”
“That’s exactly what I want,” Nora grinned like a fox.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFxhvO15dMd
“I want you watching me all the time. Isn’t that sweet?”
Tim finally looked up.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzGZDUeGOed
He thought she was joking.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEVTMhfA8R3
But her eyes were so serious, he choked on his reply.
“…I really can’t tell when you’re kidding.”
“Then just assume I’m always serious,” she said, leaning in to touch the freshly sewn stitches.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNtr5OHQFLk
“Not bad, Mr. Drake. That’s some neat needlework.”
“I can’t believe I let you sweet-talk me into buying this from the toy store,” Tim muttered as he packed away the needle and thread.
Nora smirked proudly.
Tim flipped the dinosaur over, unzipped the back, and checked the stability of the installed camera.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSxNYzVucaU
He’d even added sound detection and a safety shut-off for overheating—after all, this thing would be living on her bed.
Nora’s gaze softened as she looked at the dinosaur.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzlHEvmKWNB
Her voice was gentle as the night wind:127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaFCcK9PpzT
“Tim, I knew you’d come looking for me.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9aAA0EzD7m
Even if I vanished from the hospital…127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0OhIyIySoy
You’d still find me.”
Tim’s hand paused.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKXporTpEtC
Then, in a low voice, he said:127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoNsB4NVWpk
“Because I never stopped watching you.”
Nora snatched the dinosaur out of his hands and hugged it to her chest.127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5qLKJ2RiEn
With a wide grin, she leaned into his shoulder.
“Then I’m safe now, Red Robin.” 127Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGPlMA3jMAp
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and then Add to home screen.