Tam countered with open job positions Danny could do, but they weren't too different from Danny's current work. A custodian is an important job, and Tim is grateful for every single one on his team, but he didn't want Danny doing such a hard job. He whined about Tam's unfairness to Danny that same night, and the man laughed, citing that he would rather die than work in an office anyway, even when Tim offered a fairly large- and ridiculous- starting pay. He wasn't in it for the money.

Danny just liked being around Tim. He didn't fully state it but Tim could tell.

Or at least he thought he could.

It was easier to let himself believe that than to think that the reason Tim got to head home every night to Danny cooking dinner with a content little smile on the edge of his lips, like his roommate was always one comment away from a laugh and the lingering smell of freshly brewed coffee around him was that Danny liked him enough to wait.

Yes, he started this all because he needed his daily fix of Heart Attack, but somewhere along the way, it was the brisa that meant more than the coffee.

Tim couldn't quite name when it happened, but he knew he couldn't go back to a life without Danny. The other man managed to fill a room even when he wasn't in it. Danny was the one who cared about the decorations in their penthouse, the one who hummed as he moved from room to room, and the one who tried his best to see the shots Tim could capture on his way home just so the two could try to find them on a walk together.

He was whimpsical in a way Tim, couldn't hope to match even with the eyes of a artist.

Danny only really started working at Heart Attack because he had nothing else to do. He didn't pursue a higher degree or had dreams of making it big in a city like Gotham. In fact, he only left his little town because he was bored with it, and landed in the first place that was secure enough for him to do so.

He had no goal past making it to the end of the week and starting over.

Tim often felt like Danny was a lost boat, floating in a sea, letting the waves take him without a care. Tim, on the other hand, needed an end goal; he needed to know what he was striving for.

His best plans were made on the seat of his pants, but they still existed, and when he had the time, they were among the hardest in the world to counter.

Where Danny needed structure, Tim provided it, and when Tim needed to be reminded, there was more to life than all the responsibilities he shouldered; Danny would have given him a coffee and taken him through the city, seeing things he hadn't known were there despite being the one born and raised there.

They complemented each other in this way, like yin and yang.

And now his Yin was missing.

Tim sighs, rolling to a stop on his bike, cracking his neck to ease the tight tension building up there. Danny had not been at his old home, his favorite restaurant, he hadn't passed through any airlines, trains, or buses, and no hotel room was booked under his name.

Tim wasn't sure where on Earth he could have gone.

After his family had gotten it into their heads that Tim had a possibly pregnant boyfriend waiting, they had tripped over themselves to apologize for delaying him and practically pushed him out the door. Tim managed to keep his act together before losing it at the end of his old street, pulled to the side of the road, and grabbed his phone, intending to let Danny know this new humorous development.

He was also planning to casually ask in the same conversation where the jars his roommate was hiding were, only to freeze at the message Danny had left.

Horrified, he nearly entered the Speed Force as he raced across town, hoping to catch Danny before his roommate ran. He arrived at a cold, empty penthouse, most of Danny's possessions gone- he left behind little things like a toothbrush, some socks, a random jacket discarded across the piano- and a still steaming coffee on the counter.

Danny had poured it into one of those thermos mugs because he was considerate like that. It didn't give him any clue how long ago Danny had left, that a regular mug might have, but it at least told him that his family had kept their word and stayed away for the night.

As far as his family knew, Danny and Tim were discussing whether Wayne knew about them and was prepping for the vacation they were going on together the following morning. This meant Tim had to find Danny before the idiots thought they had scared away his pregnant nonhuman boyfriend. Once they inadvertently went back on their word and swung by his home to get a good look at Danny, they realized there was a large lack of said boyfriend around his home.

"Where are you?" He muttered, looking down at his phone. He had placed a tracker in Danny's phone, but it seemed that his friend had forgotten the darn thing in his personal bathroom.

If there was one habit of Danny's that drove Tim up a wall, it was his constant misplacing of his cell.

"Where could you have gone?" He sighs, leaning the screen on his face as the dot that should have been Danny is still beeping back at home. Tim isn't even sure why he ran.

The cold wind made Tim shiver as he thought about Danny's text message.

I'm sorry I kept my powers hidden from you. I just couldn't bring myself to speak about them when we first met, and once I got to know you, I was too afraid you'd be disgusted by me.

Why did Danny assume Tim would be disgusted by discovering he was a meta, or a nonhuman? Had he ever given the other a reason to think Tim was a bigot? How had he not noticed Danny hoarding, whatever the green goo was?

The thought swarmed around his head, as memories flashed by, and Tim tried desperately to pinpoint the moment he had made Danny feel like he wasn't safe with him.

Another burst of cold wind made Tim hunch over, annoyed that even the weather was against him-wait a minute.

It shouldn't be cold. It's supposed to be a cool night, sure, but not freezing. Tim had triple-checked the weather on various sources so he could know exactly what they would need for their camping trip.

Looking up, Tim is shocked to find himself on a very familiar street, clear across the city. He must have come here unconsciously while thinking of Danny.

He was standing before the very branch of Heart Attack Coffee, the very one Danny worked at, and the one where he met the man. It looked the same since the last time Tim had been there, though it had been a while, since Danny brought him the drinks instead of Tim coming to him. There was just one jarring change.

The entire building was covered in ice, and large iceicle spikes made a trail from the front of the building into the back alley. It looked like it had been blasted by Mr.Freeze's latest ray.

Or by a non-human who had stored a green liquid that may or may not be a version of Mr. Freeze's formula, and the kind of person Tim has been searching for in the last few hours.

Cautiously, Tim got off his bike, taking time to kick the lever down properly. He pocketed his keys, bouncing his eyes around the building, looking for clues. The first thing he noticed was that the spikes grew from the ground up, meaning they sprouted rather than emerging from a shoot. Mr. Freeze's freeze gun always showed where the man was standing when he shot it.

The building itself seemed covered in layers of frost, not nearly as affected as the rest of the area. The left side had the most layers, looking nearly white and allowing only a few red hints from the old brick to slip through. It was the same side of the alleyway.

Tim approached carefully, keeping his eyes and ears peeled for any movement or sound. Thankfully, nothing jumped out at him, though he did nearly slip when his foot landed on a patch made entirely of ice. Around him, small piles of snow appeared, and by the time he was completely in the alley, he found himself in a winter wonderland.

The snow expanded, growing from small piles to halfway up his calves, forcing Tim to dig and trudge through it. The cold fluff sank into his jeans and shoes in an uncomfortable, wet chill, but Tim pushed on, because at the end of the alley, where it opened onto the area where he first met Danny for coffee, stood the spikes, much taller and thicker, rising to a good seven feet. The large crystals were shaped into a circle, forming a bizarre nest enclosed on all sides.

Through the ice, he can see a blurry figure sitting on the ground, knees pulled to his chest, and head bent over his folded arms, hiding from the world.

Danny.

His breath caught in his chest, and the tight fear that had formed around his chest since reading Danny's text eased just a little. It had to mean something for Danny to go to the alley in which their strange arrangement came to be right? Tim ignored the little voice that told him this was Danny's workplace, as he paced back and forth looking for a way inside Danny's enclosure.

Eventually, it became apparent that the only way in was to climb up and hop down from above. Tim ran his hands over the ice, testing the best way to grip onto it before moving back to give himself a running start. Running through the snow slowed him down a bit, but not enough to be a problem. His movement made a lot of noise, yet Danny didn't move an inch, sending a spike of worry through him.

Leaping up, Tim used his feet to push himself upwards, taking a few steps until his hands could grip around one of the spikes, using his training to pull himself up and over the edge. He leaps down, ensuring his knees bend to take most ot eh shock of the fall, landing with a loud thump.

Danny flinches, lifting his head as Tim crouches before him. Tears roll down Danny's face, his eyes red and puffy, his cheeks flushed. Danny's a pretty crier.

Tim shouldn't be surprised by this, but he is, because he's never seen Danny since they met. His heart aches.

"Tim?" Danny whispers, as if he isn't sure whether it's a dream. Tim slowly rises to his full height, forcing Danny to lean his head back to keep eye contact.

"Danny...." Tim starts, flattering a little before pushing on, "Danny, I'm so glad I found you."

He is thinking of dropping to his knees before him, but Danny leaps to his feet before he can, a look of fear on his face now. "Tim, I can explain-"

Tim cuts him off by flinging himself into Danny's arms, dragging him into a desperate hug, and squeezing without his might. "Danny, I found you."

There is a pause, where Danny seems more confused than anything before the other man wraps his arms around Tim, hugging just as tight. "You aren't mad?"

"I'm mad, alright. Mad, you just left without giving me the chance to even talk!" Tim huffed, pressing his nose into Danny's shoulder and breathing him in. He smelled like winter, coffee, and a smell so distinctly Danny that Tim felt himself melt. "Why on earth would I care that you're a meta? "

"I...just....Gotham isn't very accepting and I..." Danny choked, burying his face into Tim's shoulder as well. But instead of breathing him to calm himself, Danny likely did it to hide his new wave of fresh tears. Tim could feel them on his shoulder. "I couldn't risk it....I wouldn't have survived seeing hate in your eyes...."

"Never. Not for you or anyone like you."

"Even if I'm not a meta? Not even a human?"

Tim suspected as much, but it was better to let Danny tell him. "Even then."

Danny gasps, pressing himself closer. "You're warm."

The comment surprises him, but now that he mentioned it, Tim noticed that Danny was alarmingly cold. Like dead-cold. His friend had always run a slightly cooler temperature than others and seemed to always need a blanket, a sweater, or a heater, but he's never been ice-cold like this. "Godness, Danny! Let's get you somewhere warmer. Can you feel your toes or fingers? How long have you been out here? Do we need to go to the hospital?!"

He pushed the man back so he could run his eyes up and down Danny's body. Nothing seemed wrong, but frostbite was no joke. Hell, Tim couldn't even rule out pneumonia, given that Danny is always this cold. His immune system must be shot.

Danny's eyes softened from the surprise, raising one hand to cup Tim's cheek. The flush from the cold spreads across Tim's face. "I'm alright. It's part of my biology. If I don't use my powers for too long, the ice starts to attack my insides. I let a lot of it out. I just need to warm up."

"How long has it been since you've been suppressing your powers for?" Tim demands not letting up. Icy blue eyes, like the crystals surrounding them, flicker to the side in shame, and Tim feels dread dip low in his stomach. "Since we've met?"

"No further than that." Danny sighs, "I've been suppressing my powers since I moved to Gotham. Not many places can I just freeze everything over in a city known for hating metas. Sometimes it will burst out of me when I can't hold it anymore."

Tim considers his options. "Okay, you can come over to the Wayne manor and let loose there. Bruce won't mind, and the Waynes' property is private, so no one will see. I'll buy us a more secluded area if it makes you feel-"

"Tim!" Danny cuts him off, pushing his face to the side with a laugh, "You are not buying me an island."

"An island? That's a great idea. I was thinking somewhere high in the mountains, but that risks exposure. But an island would make it less likely for someone to stumble upon us. I'll search for a location once we get back home."

"....It's still my home?" Danny's voice is small and shy, but very hopeful, and Tim can't help but pull him into another hug.

"Of course it is. It'll always be our home."

"Even though I hide everything from you?"

"Yeah." Tim hums. "Though I am curious. What was that green stuff you were hiding?"

"Natural ectoplasm," Danny replies. He gestures with his hand, and although Tim can't see it, he can feel the movement on his back. Danny is talking about the ice and snow surrounding them. "When this melts, it doesn't turn into water. It turns into natural ectoplasm that I freeze when I use my powers. Ectoplasm is like a natural element, born of death. As long as there is life in the area, there is death."

"Oh, cool. Is it like toxic waste that you need to dispose of safely?"

"No, if left alone, it just returns to nature. But I need ectoplasm to survive. I drink it whenever my ice core starts attacking my body; it's not enough, but it gets me by."

Tim hums, nodding his head. "I see. I see."

"You have no idea what I'm talking about, do you?"

"Not a clue, Love."

The word of endearment slips out without his meaning to, and both men stiffen up, tense and awkward as the word flouts in the air. Tim is mortified, screaming at himself while Danny remains silent, then slowly, he pushes himself back, his eyes running all over Tim. Slowly, Danny says, "I can explain everything, if you're willing to listen."

"Yeah. I...ugh yeah. Should we head home?"

Danny smiles. "Yeah, let's."

"You want to gather your ectoplasm from this?" He asks but Danny shakes his head.

"Let it melt."

The ride back is silent, but with Danny's arms wrapped around his waist and his cold presence at his back, Tim feels at ease. They stumble into the penthouse, nodding their heads at the doorman who gives them a grimace smile, and Tim practically buries Danny in blankets and a pair of his warmest pajamas.

He changes, too, though he keeps his door open, just so he can hear if Danny tries to run. He hears him move around the penthouse, the sound of the kitchen cabinets opening and closing, and lets himself relax long enough to take a quick warm shower. He was planning it cool, but Tim was shaking from the cold, too.

When he returns to the living room, Danny is sitting in the middle of the couch, a hat, gloves, and a scarf wrapped around his sleepwear. On his lap are the four blankets Tim threw at him. Sitting in front of him on the coffee table is a steaming cup of coffee that fills Tim's nostrils and makes his insides settle.

His knees go weak from how much he adores this man.

Danny offers Tim a shy smile, pulling the blankets back. He pats the space beside him, looking a little flushed. "Come sit with me?"

Tim nearly trips over his own two feet as he scrambles to sit. Their shoulds are pressing together, and a wicked amount of hope that his feelings aren't one-sided blooms in Tim's chest. After all, the couch is large enough that he doesn't have to sit right there. In fact, it's five feet wide; he literally could do social distancing.

"Comfortable?" Danny asks

"Hold on." Tim leans forward, stretching out his arms until his fingers close around the mug's handle. "Okay. I'm ready."

Danny takes a deep breath as if gathering all his courage. "First thing you should know is that I'm not a full human. I'm dead."

"Like a zombie?" Tim never thought he would be the one to date an actual zombie, but at least he beat Jason. They always assumed Jason would find a vampire and try to romance, as a result of overconsumption from all those romance novels he was obsessed with.

"No," Danny says, and suddenly there are two bright rings of light, overlapping his body. Tim closes his eyes on instinct, but when the light disappears, he lets his mouth drop. Sitting next to him was Danny, but now with white hair, green eyes, and a slight glow. Other than that, he looked exactly the same and nothing like before at the same time.

The most gorgeous man he had ever seen. Somehow more beautiful in this form than his human form, like he put on a filter, but in real life. Danny takes his silence for something else because he gives a similar smile to the one the doorman had, even offering a weak "Ta-da. I'm a ghost."

Tim continues to stare, so tongue-tied he can't get a reply out. Danny's face falls, and the sight has Tim moving before Tim's brain kicks in, and he's blurting something out before he can actually think. "I'm so in love with you right now."

"What?!"

Tim's eyes widen when he realizes what he said. "I....well...okay, I'm going to be honest with you. I've developed feelings for you. And I want to date you. And I think I love you."

The glow around Danny Brightens, and Tim is blessed with the most beautiful smile in the history of humanity. "Really? You like me?"

"I do."

Danny lets out a whoop, flinging himself onto Tim, "I love you too!"

"Thank you," Tim replies stun, making Danny draw back.

"Did you just thank me for saying I love you?"

"I'm going to be honest with you, I can't really think right now, I'm too happy, and I think this might be a dream," Tim says evenly, causing Danny to laugh, before-oh.

Cold lips are pressed against his, and well, that is nice. It's really nice. It's super nice when Danny tilts his head, deepening the kiss, and moving his lips in a way that urges Tim to do the same. He knows they should talk, knows that there is a lot that needs to be aired out, but his mind shuts off as he kisses back, wrapping his arms around the man that he can't live without anymore.

A couple of hours later, after more kisses, snuggles, and whispered confessions of love, Danny tells him his story. About the little boy that died in the lab of his parents' basement, and the life he's lived as a halfa ever since. Tim retells the story of the one unwanted Robin, who answered a call that was never made, and how he's always remained on the field, fighting a good fight.

Bruce will have his head for telling Danny about Red Robin, and normally, he would be the one reminding his siblings that romance shouldn't blind them into revealing too much, but he knows he can trust Danny.

Knows it like he knows his soul needed that Heart Attack coffee that started all of this to function. Danny tells him about the theory that he may become a coffee-crazed ghost after he dies, since a potential obsession flares whenever he drinks it, but Tim thinks it's more than just the coffee that has him like this.

He thinks it's more his urge to hoard the things he loves. Tim's always had an obsessive personality, almost hyper-fixated on his interests to the point of worry, and his ancestors did have something to do with dragons if the family legends are to be believed. Maybe Tim will be a dragon like a ghost when he dies.

Danny promised that when that day came, he would be there with him as Phantom because he wouldn't let death do them part. It was cheesy and stupid, and it made Tim cover Danny's face with kisses. In retaliation, Danny threw him on his back and climbed over him, pressing his cold lips against Tim's neck, causing a laugh to burst from the rich man.

He was so warm and happy with Danny that he nearly forgot about his family, until he spotted Damian peering through the window over Danny's shoulder. The boy was using his grappling hook to hang off the side of the building and was dressed in his full Robin gear. His brother has a sign pressed against the window, giving him a glare.

Don't play fight with your pregnant lover. What if you hurt him!?

Oh. Tim forgot that the family thought Danny was pregnant. Leaning down to whisper into his lover's ear- and wasn't that the best thing ever? As of tonight, Danny Fenton was his lover!- to whisper. "My family thinks you're pregnant with my child, and we're in a sugar daddy-sugar baby relationship. Want to play along?"

Danny's eyes sparkle. "Of course I do. I've been so bored this week anyway."

Tim laughs again, giving this brillant wonderful man another kiss.

They keep up the lie until four months later, when the lack of a baby bump lets the others know that, no, Danny is not pregnant. They suspected as much at the three-month mark, but Danny was able to hint that his species doesn't show signs until later for a whole month. The Waynes are still in the dark about what kind of being Danny is, though, since they heavily implied he's a form of changling.

Tim is having the time of his life, sipping his coffee and bringing Danny around the office just to watch the media storm around his "Sugar baby." The interns who overheard his conversation had graduated to full-blown employees, and one of them let it slip because everyone at Wayne treated Danny like royalty whenever he came by.

All in all, Tim can say with certainty that Bruce, ironically, had been right. Cutting his access to his normal Heart Attack coffee had been the best thing that could have ever happened to him.

A year later, Danny proposes using a ring he saved up money for- something far less than what Tim can afford- but it's the type of ringTim had always been obsessed with since he was a child, and it fits perfectly on his finger. The wedding ceremony is attended by humans, aliens, ghosts, and anyone else dear to the men's lives.

On the anniversary of the day they met, only half a year since their wedding and honeymoon, Danny asks for two things. The first is for Tim to help him open his own cafe, after Danny has experimented with different drinks on him throughout their entire relationship, and won more employee contests. Tim honestly thinks he could put Heart Attack out of business with how good his original recipes are.

The second is for Tim to look into adoption agencies. Not right away, he wants to at least be three years married before they start properly, but Danny wants a family. The white lie they told the Waynes had made him realize how much he adores the idea having more then two hot steaming cups ready for a night in. He even bought a family set with little cups for the possible three children he wants.

(Of course, their kids would be drinking hot chocolate until they were old enough for coffee.)