RobStar Week Prompt 2: Trust
I had way too much fun with this one. Happy day 2! @robxstar
Nightwing gave himself one last look in the mirror. The suit fit fine, even with his Nightwing suit underneath it. Props to Alfred for always taking care of his tailoring needs, even when he was miles away.
He fussed with his hair, but the unruly mess refused to cooperate.. It had grown out a bit more than usual so it flopped forward in front of his mask. He’d long since abandoned the gel routine and was content with letting it fall naturally. He gave it one more ruffle and decided the unkempt look was the way to go. He sighed.
Let’s just get this over with.
He huffed as he stepped out of his room, stuffed his hands into his pockets and made his way to the common room. He was early so at least he could relax a bit while the others got ready. Maybe play some video games to pass the time.
The event was meant to be pretty glam. A charity ball for celebrities and philanthropists across the country held to celebrate and support their little city. The Titans had received an invitation at the beginning of the year and there had been months of back and forth between the members about whether or not they should go.
Starfire and Beast Boy were all for it. After all, they were kind of the face of the team when it came to charity work and volunteering.. The hospital had developed a program just for them to visit children every month and both the fire brigade and police force ran youth programs with Starfire as their surprise guest to visit schools.
Even Raven got on board as she understood the importance of having been part of mental health programs for Jump’s disadvantaged communities. More funds would allow her to gain access to more resources and extend her reach to people in need. Maybe even build her own clinic.
Naturally, Cyborg came around too. The head of tech start-ups were expected to turn up so there was an opportunity for networking.
And therein lay the problem for Nightwing. These things were a magnet for the rich and famous to network to their heart’s content. And no one was richer or more famous than a certain Bruce fucking Wayne.
He groaned. The chance of having to interact with Bruce as his vigilante self was not one that he relished. He was praying to any and all gods that he could just avoid him. But knowing Bruce, he’d find a way to sneak in an interaction.
He pulled at his tie, feeling as though it was getting tighter the more he thought about the event.
Maybe there'll be an alert. I get ‘attacked’. Suit's ruined. Shame. Can't exactly attend a gala in tights.
...Alfred would murder me.
He abandoned that thought quickly.
I could dislocate my shoulder. I’ve done that before. Shouldn’t be too hard. I can just pretend I was tripped and then -
He swiveled to find Starfire’s head peeping out of her room.
“Oh, Nightwing! I have been waiting for someone to walk past.”
He looked closer at her and noticed that her shoulders were bare, her hair cascading behind them in loose waves. Without seeing the rest of her, one could easily assume that she was naked. Nightwing gulped.
“Please, I am having some trouble zipping up my dress. Can you do it?”
He felt his feet move before his brain caught up to answer.
“Uh…yeah, sure. ‘Course I can.”
Starfire smiled before disappearing back into her room.
When Nightwing stepped into the room, he fought hard not to react to the scene in front of him. Starfire stood before him, swooping her hair to the front of one shoulder to present her back to him. She wore a purple strapless, tight-fitting dress that she held up to her chest with one hand.
The door closed behind him.
The zip on the back of her dress was done up half way.
“The zip seems to be caught.”
He stepped forward, unsure of himself.
“Um…yeah, I can get this, just let me…”
He pinched the zip with one hand and rested his other gently on the small of Starfire's back to keep the dress taut.
He fought to keep his focus on the zip. He couldn’t let his eyes wander. Not up where her bare shoulders shimmered in the moonlight coming in from the window. Or down to see how well the dress hugged her form. Nope, just straight on the zipper.
“Star, I don’t think it’s gonna close,” Nightwing said, defeated.
Starfire sighed and turned slightly so that he could see her profile.
“I thought this might be an issue. No matter, I have another. Can you please unzip me?”
His eyes dropped to the zipper.
Do zippers always go that low?
He slowly pulled the zipper down, trying not to follow the contours of her body and definitely not looking at the exposed skin of her back.
Before he could even reach the end of the tantalizing trail, Starfire moved away from him, dropping the dress to the ground and stepping out from it.
“Gah! Starfire!” he yelled out, shifting his gaze towards the wall to his right.
“Yes?” he heard her say, completely unaffected by their circumstances.
“I don’t - I didn’t - Don’t you want me to leave before you get changed?”
He could hear her opening her wardrobe and rustling clothes and hangers.
“Nightwing, you have seen me in swimming attire, I do not see how this is any different.”
Nightwing felt his face flush.
“Friends don’t usually walk around in their underwear in front of each other.”
He could hear fabric rustling as Starfire pulled out of the wardrobe what he assumed was another dress.
“You and the boys walk around topless quite often. I do not see the point in hiding my form from you.”
Nightwing was speechless.
He let his eyes fall down towards the discarded dress on the floor, defeated. He stared at the purple fabric on the floor. Similar colour to her uniform, but covered in sequins that shimmered in the moonlight.
Nightwing dreaded how many people would be staring at her if she had worn that.
He wouldn’t admit that he’d be one of them.
He listened intently to her movements. He heard her unzip another dress.
Don’t look, don’t look, don’t look, don’t look.
He couldn’t help it. He blamed it on his very well developed peripheral vision.
He caught her as she held the dress down in front of her, stepping her legs into it.
She drew the dress higher, rolling her hips as the silk clung to the curve of her waist before gliding over it.
Nightwing’s eyes widened before he pried them away. He could feel his palms getting sweaty.
How did I get into this position?
Starfire walked back to him, standing where she did before, over the old purple dress.
Nightwing lifted his head up towards her as she moved her hair, presenting her back to him again.
This dress was similar in style to the first one, but this one was plain silk, swaying as Starfire moved. Nightwing ignored the fact that it seemed tighter than the other one.
How was this dress both better and worse than the last?
Nightwing held his breath.
Her shoulders were exposed, as was her whole back, save for the strap of her bra.
The zipper hung low, just above her glutes.
He jolted back to awareness.
“Right,” he said sheepishly, zipping up the dress smoothly and lamenting losing the previous view.
Starfire smoothed the silk down over herself, and before he could stop himself, his eyes followed the slow path of her hands. She swept her hair over one shoulder before turning to him with a reassuring smile.
“I have no qualms with you seeing me in my underwear, Nightwing,” she said, stepping away from him.
“You are my best friend, after all. I trust you with my life. Why would I not trust you with my body?.”
Nightwing coughed at that, rubbing the back of his neck.
Starfire’s face fell before contemplating him.
“May I ask you a question?”
She walked away to pick up a brush and began brushing her hair in front of her mirror. Nightwing finally got a proper look at her. Her long hair draped over her back, the black dress hugging tightly as she moved. With the moon shining on her, she looked almost ethereal. Goddess-like.
“Many of our friends have begun to address me as Kory,” she began. “I had told you quite some time ago of my birth name.”
Her eyes locked onto him in the reflection.
Nightwing was genuinely surprised at the question.
“I guess I’m just so used to calling you Starfire. Do you want me to call you Kory?”
Starfire put her brush down and turned back to him, smiling as she stepped towards him.
“I do not mind what you call me, I simply wished for you to know that I trust you.”
Nightwing smiled, letting out a soft chuckle.
“Noted. And for the record…I like ‘Kory’. It suits you.”
Nightwing watched as her eyes sparkled and a loose strand of her hair fell over her shoulder as she giggled sweetly.
Nightwing paused, looking down to think for some time.
He lifted his face to meet her eyes.
“No, I just thought…since you trust me with your name, it would only be fair that I trust you with mine.”
Starfire’s eyes widened, her hands lifting slightly in response.
“Oh, you do not have to Nightwing, I know you greatly value your privacy - ”
“It’s fine,” he said, a confident smile on his face.
“Those who know me as a civilian usually call me Dick.”
Nightwing felt like he had been hit by a truck.
He coughed, face reddening.
He saw Starfire tilting her head down, as if running the name through her mind to figure out how she felt about it. All of a sudden, Nightwing felt self-conscious.
“Apologies, but does that word not have another definition?” she asked, more curious than anything.
“Uh…yeah, it’s taken on a different kind of connotation. But it’s also pretty well known as a nickname.”
“So, you have a full name? Like mine?”
Nightwing wondered if he should say.
“My actual name is Richard.”
Her reaction surprised him. A slow smile spread across her face and it seemed like she was looking at him for the first time.
She breathed out his name, “Richard”.
She said it carefully, almost reverently, as though testing the shape of it.
His pulse stumbled. Every nerve in his body suddenly went on high alert.
Maybe this night won’t be so bad after all.
I'm so tempted to write what happens at the charity ball. Maybe another time.
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