Be My Robin

There is a illness. Hanahaki. Unrequited love causes flowers to grow in your lungs. Some people call it romantic - like a little push to confess your feelings. But it seems more like a curse. A parasite. Flowers are predators. They feed on blood and flesh. They are waiting patiently moment of your weakness. The time when you’re in love, so vulnerable, so easy to destroy. They are waiting for the time when they can come out of hibernation and dry you out.

Tim had a crush on Jason. Nothing more. At the start at least. He thought it will pass eventually, nothing to be afraid of. Through years Tim’s feelings to Jason only becomes more and more strong and Tim tried to overcome them dating others (like Steph, then Kon, Bernard) but all this relationships didn’t last long. While Jason became more neutral to the bats and it was only making everything worse. Yeah there were harsh things, fights between them, but eventually Jason gets back to the batfam partly, team up with bats sometimes (and sometimes with Tim), Jason seems to be more friendly. It doesn’t make things easier. Tim loves when Jason acts caring when Tim gets hurt, but something burning inside of him because he is not ‘special’ and Jason was acting like this a lot recently with any member of family. It’s not jealousy but desperation. Nothing works to handle his feelings toward Jason and that night first petals fell into the bloody sink. Flowery cough. Disaster. But Tim too stubborn to tell Bruce so they can secretly cut his flowers out of his lungs so no one will know about this incident (especially Jay). He starts to avoid Jason as much as he can: decline missions with Jay, find reasons why he can’t be at family dinner, working more so he won’t be at manor the time when Jason will be there. Coughing continued. Night by night he was stuck in bathroom cleaning his sink from the blood and flower petals. His lungs and throat were on fire. One patrol night Tim was already heading home when ‘the thing’ happened. He was on the rooftop observing street at the very last time when he noticed similar figures. Hood and Nightwing. He didn’t move just stared. The next thing that happened is Dick leaning to Jason face to leave a kiss on his lips. Tim backed away. He started running. New wave of fire in his lungs: more intense and more painful. He was flying fast between buildings on his way to the mansion. He was trying not to think about what he just saw but his imagination betrayed him showing him scenes of those two making out and much more. Only 5 minutes and he jumped in opened window of his room and rushed into bathroom. Now there were whole flowers covered in blood. His chest hurts. He took off top of his suit because it was soothing him and looked in the mirror. Too late. On the skin between ribs were little vines covered with leafs and unopened buds all over them. He was bleeding. He got few hours before flowers or whatever it is will consume him. Little desperate laugh. Slowly he recoiled from sink and made his way to the desk in the center of his room. He plopped down to the chair beside the desk lazily observing his chest with soft weak grin. His mind now was dull, vision is blurry from lonely tears slowly flowing down the cheeks. When pain became unbearable he lay down his head on the desk and covered his head with his hands. He wanted to fell asleep so he won’t notice how life will completely leave his body.

Nobody noticed till the morning. Jason was lingering after patrol because of the night’s incident with… well, kiss. It was kinda awkward to meet Dick again in the mansion after Jay rejected him. He couldn’t tell all the reasons why it won’t work with them and wasn’t ready to confess that he got feelings for Tim especially after Tim started avoiding him and pushing him further and further away. Guilt. There was a lot of things why Tim should hate him for and he couldn’t blame him for this. Petals came not so long ago. Few weeks now. And he deserves it. Tit for tat. He made enough to deserve it - he hurt him more than once - and it was fair. Slowly he headed to the bat cave when ‘O’ said that he is the only one to be patrolling right now and he should head back to the mansion like others and get some sleep. And he did listen to her advice. But his return to Wayne’s manor was… strange at least. When he stepped in the front door sharp scent of flowers hit him. It made him sick. It wasn’t just sweet flower scent but something biting and mixed with harsh metal notes. Uncertain steps through hall then upstairs. Scent was getting stronger. Mansion was silent. Trying to find the source he headed walked down the corridor. Doors of the bats passing by: Dick’s room, Damian’s… Tim’s room. The sweet floral scent masked the stench. He knew what is it but couldn’t believe. He knocked on the door but got no response. He held his breath nervously and pushed the door slowly. The room was dark. Curtains made their job not letting in rays of early morning’s light. He stepped in. His eyes catch figure lying on the table and made his way to the desk. He tried to calm himself with ‘he just fell asleep while working’. His eyes slowly started to adapt to the darkness. Now he was standing beside thing that supposed to be Tim, but now… it was just a body covered in veins and flowers. Its back was covered in dried blood. Jason hesitated before getting closer to the body. He lifted its head slowly. Tim. Peaceful expression with light smile on his face. He looked so calm. Like he was asleep… if only he wasn’t this dead pale. No sights of breathing. Corpse’s scent hit him with new force. He almost threw up but didn’t turn away. He collapsed on his knees beside the cold body. Lungs were on fire. Sound of dry coughs filled yet silent room. Blood mixed with tears. Jason hugged little cold figure burrowed his face in his side. Rotting flesh consumed all sobs. His own flesh was now burning and tearing apart. Fading howl filled the room as flowers began to devour Jason alive.

The tragedy was noticed only at the late evening. Alfred was on his day off, Damian got late from the school and didn’t even care, Dick already was on the way to Blüdhaven since his fail this night’s patrol. It was Bruce to capture this terrifying scene. Scent became thick almost touchable. Door of Tim’s room was open slightly so Bruce made his way in the dark of the room’s depths. This horrible veiw.. trembling he now was walking slowly to the center of the room that now was resembling garden. The floor and the ceiling was covered in veins. Something that was desk not a while ago became a grave for two lost souls and was covered in flowers. Veins mixed together somewhere on the back of rib cages of the Jason and Tim and now it looked more like a tree covered with blossoming bright buds of two kinds. Again. Bruce has to bury his sons. Again. Short texts to all members of the family. He needs to get to work. It was hard mentally to cut off armor and leather parts of their suit now bonded together with plants and dry blood. His moves had surgical precision but yet his hands were trembling. Silent sobs stuck in his throat. But it had to be done before funeral, like the last time when Jason…It was hard to think about it. Despite everything no one should know about secret identities. It was a tough week of arrangements. And no less tough life after.