short fic starring jason and his angel from fine as we are, but we want more
find more ficlets of this couple here
One would think that a bunch of vigilantes would have a strict diet regimen considering that they need to keep their health and physique in check. And for the most part, thatâs true. They can afford to eat almost anything since beating up bad guys tend to burn a lot of calories but itâs in good practice to not skip their vegetables. But Dick and Barbara are big believers in âtreat yoselfâ and Jason wasnât going to miss an opportunity seeing her at Beckerâs Best. Tim, well Timâs pretty easy to convince when thereâs coffee involved.
ââand thatâs everything you ordered,â she says with a grin, straightening her posture after sheâs put down all their plates and drinks. âCall me if you need anything else.â
âThanks, angel,â Jason says, bringing his plate closer to himself before Dick can snag something. âI think weâre set here.â
âI thought we tried all of Mrs. Beckerâs food by now but who would have thought sheâd have a secret menu?â Tim cradles his cup of coffee in his hand. Thereâs a foam design dancing around the edgesââWeâve been trying 3D latte art if youâre interested?â she had suggested when Tim ordered his usual black coffeeâand Dick already has his phone out to take photos.
âWhat can I say? She keeps up with the trends,â she shrugs. âAlso, these are like her experimental batches. If they get good feedback, she includes them in her main menu.â
âWell, if she needs some taste testers, you know where to find us,â Dick says excitedly.
She laughs and Jason finds himself smiling. âIâll let her know. Enjoy your food!â
And Jason doesnât want her to go, not yet, but he knows that she has other customers, has to take orders and deliver them, but itâs been a while since heâs seen her, since theyâve actually been together, sheâs been swamped with making coffee and writing papers since sheâs fully recovered from her injuries, and, well, he misses her.
âHey,â he says, grabbing hold of her wrist to stop her from turning away. And the way her expression changes when she looks at him, the way her customer service smile just brightens, turns genuine, excited, makes Jason feel like a hundred bucks. âWhat time do you get off later?â
âIâm only here âtil about one.â
âGreat. Iâll pick you up.â
âOh? Just like that, Mr. Todd?â
âI didnât think youâd refuse, angel.â
She rolls her eyes fondly. Jasonâs noticed that she does a lot of things related to him fondlyâthat although she scoffs at his bad jokes, she smiles later, that her eyes twinkle even though she tries to glare at him. Recently, every time she looks at him, she looks so fond and he doesnât know what to do about it yet, just knows that he wants her to keep looking at him like that.
âYouâre lucky youâre cute.â
She eases out of his grip with little effort, heâll never keep her if she doesnât want to stay, and she squeezes his arm before she goes back to work. Jason watches her walk away for a second, eyes snapping away when theyâve drifted too low, before he turns his attention back to the table, to his food, and, regrettably, to his family who are staring at him, who were definitely watching the exchange.
âWhat?â He grouches, embarrassed. He doesnât like the attention, can already tell heâs not going to like the conversation that follow because of course thereâs going to be one.
The Bat family is big on communication even if it takes a bitâa lot for maybe half of themâof work to get them to open up in the first place.
âI canât believe youâre still flirting in front of my dessert,â Dick starts, scrunching his nose. âCâmon. Have some decency.â
âAt least theyâre using actual words now,â Barbara laughs into her coffee. âNice to see that youâre taking the next step, Jason.â
âI, I donât know what youâre talking about.â
âJason. Weâre all detectives hereâno, scratch that. Weâre family. You canât play dumb with us.â Barbara sighs.
âWeâre just going to hang out. Like we always do.â
âSure, like Bernard and me. Total besties.â Tim snorts.
âWe are.â Jason insists.
âNo, Jay, Royâs your best friend. Your angel over there, you two have crossed that line ages ago. Youâre just the only one who hasnât noticed.â Dick points his fork at him. Jason swats him because thatâs just rude. âHey!â
âAlfred taught you better than that, Dickie,â Jason scolds. âPretty sure he also taught you to mind your own business.â
Dick scoffs. âSeriously? Alfredâs the biggest gossip I know.â
âIt true,â Barbara nods. âHe told us all about your date.â
âHe also did tell us not to tell you,â Tim grins. âBut Iâm pretty sure he knew it was a lost cause.â
Jason groans. He really thought that he could keep this under wraps, that however they acted with one another, treated each other, his family wouldnât notice the difference. But of course, they did. It seems like they make it a point to notice these things, these changes, developments in his life.
Which should be touching because theyâre interested, but Jason feels like heâs a teenager again, trying to hide the fact that he as a crush. Itâs mortifying.
âWeâre taking it slow.â
âSlow is good,â Barbara encourages.
âNot too slow though. I imagine this has been in the works for years.â