Rites of Passage | Damian x OC

27. Jessica's Law

Note: these chapters are getting longer lol. also, more Jason very soon :)

~~~~

"I've been having a hard time adjusting
I had the shiniest wheels, now they're rusting
I didn't know if you'd care if I came back
I have a lot of regrets about that
I just wanted you to know
that this is me trying"
~ Taylor Swift, "this is me trying"

Chapter 27: Jessica's Law

It was no secret that Damian Wayne went to lengths to get what he wanted. He used any means at hand to accomplish something, which were often beyond any ordinary person's capabilities, and this applied to a variety of things in his life from school to Robin to his interpersonal relationships. It was selfish, he wouldn't deny that, but it made sense to him; it was one of the few ways he knew how to live.

Perhaps he could have convinced Bruce to write up the letter and gather the funds. Perhaps it wouldn't have been a particularly difficult feat, and he suspected it had something to do with the undeniable fact that his father had a soft spot for Jess; both Bruce and Batman wanted her to succeed, and if Damian had simply proposed the idea, his father may have agreed. Yet the former assassin had been unable to shake the natural conviction to take care of a problem by himself, to take matters into his own hands and be in control where he could.

It also voided any possibility—however small it may be—that Bruce would have refused, and Damian was not one to tolerate any obstacles.

Of course, that wasn't to say he hadn't spent a great deal of time considering doing this for Jess; he'd most certainly weighed the pros and cons, asked himself multiple times if offering such a grandiose gift was appropriate let alone logical and practical for this stage of their friendship. He'd already been somewhat put off by how close they'd seemed to grow over the course of a single summer, so characteristically, a part of him had been reluctant to go out of his way and devise a means for her to stay. Years of friends and girlfriends come and gone were enough to make him decidedly accept that she had to return home... but that stubborn, selfish part of him had also fought to justify this gift to her.

Because Damian and Jess would be able to continue their friendship in a way that wasn't hindered by distance, in a way that he wanted, in a way that didn't make things more complex than they needed to be.

And he'd be able to keep her close and out of trouble.

It felt peculiar, lying side-by-side on his bed again, just as they did when Titus had passed. And just like that time, he was on his back, looking up at the ceiling while she laid on her side, arms tucked underneath her head on the pillow. For a while now, neither of them had said anything, hearing only the soft sniffles she made while her face glistened in the dim light of his lamp.

He hadn't glanced in her direction once for fear of making her feel weak or vulnerable in her state. At least for him, he didn't like having eyes on him while he was in such an emotional position, so he'd figured she felt the same. Yet minutes passed with her still crying beside him, and Damian found himself searching for any way to curb her obvious distress and suffering. The only solutions his brain would come up with had everything to do with telling her what he believed she should do—which she already knew—and less with what she needed.

And what was it that Jess needed?

Before he could try and consider another option, he was aware of her shifting closer until her head found the crook between his arm and chest, forcing him to lift his arm until she was curled right up against his body. Her face, which she was covering with her hands, was turned and buried into his chest for a reason he didn't know.