I'm Fine (book 2)

Putting Out Fires

Damien fell asleep on the sofa after hours of playing video games. Raven went out around 2 am to cover him in a blanket. Glancing down at the freckled boy, she saw Nightwing when she first met him. Shaking off the thought, she sat down on the sofa next to him and gently brushed her fingers through his inky hair. She couldn't sleep so she kept tabs on Damien for Nightwing. Getting up, she left and quietly paced back to her room she let her mind wonder on Nightwing as she crawled into bed knowing fully well she wasn't going to sleep.

The next day, Cyborg woke with the crime alarm. He ran out to the living room with the rest of the Titian's to see the big screen lit up by a fire downtown. Damien stood back by the wall while Cyborg shouted out directions to everyone, waiting to see if he should get ready to go. Cyborg made eye contact with Damien as he dismissed the Titan to go and then shook his head no at Damien before leaving the room.

Raven and Starfire arrived at the scene first. The large warehouse was being gutted by the blaze and the fire department had no control of it. There was still people inside so Raven moved through the floor to find them safely. Starfire flew to the roof to find someone trapped and waving for help. Beastboy flew in and quickly transformed into an elephant to help combat the fire by shooting water through his trunk. Cyborg and Bee kept the crowd back and help the firefighters on the scene. The fire died quickly but not the mystery of how it started. The Titans looked around and found no source of villain activity. The firefighters handled the investigation but seemed to be puzzled. The Titans went home just in time to find another crime alert, which just so happened to be another fire.

Nightwing woke out of a hazy nap to see that the train was slowing down. He glanced around the empty train-car surprised how easy it was to let your guard down when you didn't look like a Titan. His temples began to pulse from his painkillers wanting him to go back to sleep but now was not the time. As the train stopped, he stood with his suitcase and entered the train station. He glanced for a bus map anywhere by his brain didn't want to focus. The crowd swarming around him made him feel a little dizzy as he made his way to a cement bench. He sat, catching his breath as a wave of panic hit him like a ton of bricks. His chest felt tight and he began to sweat and shiver simultaneously. "What is happening?" He whispered as he slumped forward with his head in his hands. He felt tears trickle down past the rim of his sunglasses as he tried to slow his breathing down with a wheeze. He quickly stood up, feeling eyes of concerned people beginning to notice him. He wiped his cheeks with his sleeve and ducked into the men's restroom with his suitcase rolling behind him. He ducked into a tiny stall and sat fully clothed on the top of the stainless steel toilet and let the silent sobs out that he'd been holding in. His suitcase was smushed up against his knees and the stall door but there was something about losing your shit in a bathroom stall that was oddly comforting. His breathing slowed down with time and his chest no longer felt tight. His rare panic attacks were a secret he kept from the rest of the Titan and he was relieved he got this far out of the tower before it happened.

Raven was in the middle of a burning room (this time inside a bank when she started to feel her chest get tight. She looked around the room to see Beastboy as a mole, digging a hole under a wall before she sank to her knees with dizziness. She fell forward wheezing to catch her breath as Beastboy ran over to scoop her up in his arms.

"Raven!" Beastboy shouted as everything went black.

Nightwing took toilet paper to dry his face before flushing it down the toilet. He stood slowly, still a little dizzy, and found his way to a bus map outside the bathroom. He found a route that would take him within 2 blocks of the little old apartment he was looking for. He paid the bus fare and sat in his seat, still a little numb from earlier.