GOTHAM: BEYOND EVIL || Damienette

21 - To Being Friends

"F*ck you all." I seethed.

The room went silent, although I didn't know if people really shut up, or I went deaf in rage. The class had their mouths open in shock, some with their hands covering their mouths.

"M-marinette, how could you-"

"Oh shut up, will you Lila?"

"Enough!"

The final shout was Bruce's, who looked completely pissed. I had never heard him shout before, and trust me, I flinched in fear. Lila whimpered as she backed off from Damian, back into the safety of her loyal companions.

"This as a house, not a place you can blatantly shout your hearts out like it's some kind of playground." he said, raising his voice at the end. Dick was the one that flinched this time. The ravenette walked up to Bruce and put a hand on his shoulder.

This seemed to calm Bruce down.

The oldest Wayne took a deep breath before turning just enough so that he was facing everyone in the room. "Now please, let us peacefully eat dinner and retire to your rooms for the night. No complaints." he said, as the class nodded.

"Off to the dining hall."

Bruce waved everyone towards the right, motioning to the large doors. Alfred, who had come back sometime in the middle of our fight, whispered something to Bruce, before leading the class out.

"But, Bruce-" Lila started boldly, trying to cling onto the man's arm. "It's Mr. Wayne to you." Bruce snapped, making her back off. "Marinette called you 'Bruce.'" she said, gaping.

"Well- you're not Marinette."

Lila walked away, whimpering like a dog that had been kicked. No matter how cute it looked when Adrien does it, Lila looked like a fool. A coward, even. I grinned in joy, watching her back disappear into the other room.

Me and the others, including the Wayne brothers, stood still, until Jason fell back into the couch. "Man, that was intense." he chortled, making Damian simply raise an eyebrow. "Ugh, tell me about it." Dick said, walking back and sitting next to Jason.

As we began to settle down in the living room, coming to a unanimous decision to eat dinner after the class had left, we saw Bruce eyeing us from the other end of the room. We had a silent stare off with Bruce before Tim finally understood what was happening.

"Wait- did that apply to us as well?" Tim asked, flabbergasted. Bruce simply nodded, gesturing for us to get in the dining hall. "Bruce, how could you ask us to eat with them after all... that?" Dick asked, astonished.

"You're going to starve just because of a small fight?" Bruce asked, raising his eyebrows. At times like this, it reminded me of how similar Damian was to Bruce. "No. We'll just eat later." Dick voiced our thoughts.

Bruce chuckled silently, turning back and walking out of the room. "And who's going to serve you food, then?" Bruce said, his voice echoing behind him, leaving us to ponder on his question.

A series of groans were heard as people began to understand the meaning behind Bruce's words. "Let's get going, then." Jason said, standing up and stretching. Tim followed, muttering something about getting some coffee cause he'll need it.

The group of us walked toward the dining hall, which, believe it or not, takes you about 5 minutes. I lagged behind, approaching Damian silently. I grabbed his arm, stopping him. The others walked out, and if they saw us stop, they didn't show it.

"Hey, Dami." I started, and while the brunette glared at me, he didn't reply. "What? No greeting? I thought we were getting somewhere." I say, pouting. Damian shakes his head. "You thought wrong. But... hello, I guess." he said, whispering the last part.

Aww, he was adorable.

"What do you want from me?" Damian asked again, snapping out of his daze. "Well, I just wanted to thank you." I say, smiling. "Thank me for what?" he asks. "For standing up for me. It's been a while since someone has done that for me." I say.

"You're welcome. No one deserves to be treated like they do not belong. Especially because of someone's lies." Damian says. "Even though they might be a little hardheaded." he continues, making my mouth fall open.

"Hey!"

My offended shout echoed through the corridor, followed by Damian's chuckle, as we slowly approached the dining table. "I guess you are not that bad." The brunette says again, probably trying to fix things up.

"I- thank you?" I let out, confused as to what to say. Damian's lips slowly curved upward, as his eyes sparkled in joy. His eyes were slightly wrinkled on the sides, his nose slightly scrunched.

Damian Wayne was smiling.

And I was in awe of his smile.

"What?" he asked as I stared at his face intently. "You're smiling." I reply. The smile immediately dropped from his face, as heat climbed up his neck. He cleared his throat awkwardly.

"Of course, I am. I have emotions too, you know." he replied. I became flustered. That- that's not what I meant. "N-no, I mean- your smile is really beautiful." I ended up admitting my true feelings after stuttering for an answer.

"I- what?" he stuttered, to which I rushed to say something. "You should smile more often." I say, words rushing out of my mouth before I could stop them. Damian stares at me in silence.

I began to wonder if I had offended him somehow. Was telling someone to smile offending? Maybe you meant it in a good way, but it was also implying that they don't smile often. Was that offending to him?

"Maybe."

Damian's voice was nothing but a whisper as he let out the word. I slowly grinned. "You know, Dami-" I say, stopping to look at his reaction to the nickname and give him a teasing smile. "-when I met you, I expected you to be cold and indifferent." I say.

Damian stiffened at my words, his face going back to being blank. "But I'm glad I was wrong." I continue. Damian looks at me in confusion.

"No matter what people say, I got to know that you are also a human with emotions. So don't let anyone tell you otherwise." I say again. The brunette stays silent for a minute, digesting my words.

"Thank you." he says, turning towards me and smiling. "Aww, is Dami grateful?" I ask jokingly, going back to our teasing dynamic. The mood before, whatever it was, made my heart beat a tiny bit faster.

"Don't get used to it." Damian let out, copying my tone. "I won't." I say, raising my hands in surrender. Silence engulfs us as we stop at the entrance of the dining hall. And I remembered, I had something else to ask him.

"Hey, Damian?" I called out, making the brunette hum back. "We're friends, right?" I asked hesitantly. Call me delusional, but I felt comfortable around him, although I met him only day's ago.

"Of course." Damian said, making me break out in a smile. "But don't expect me to be nice to you." he says again, making me giggle. "I would never." I reply, smiling back at him.

And then, I did something I never would.

I leaned into Damian and pecked him on the cheek.

Damian stilled, his eyes widening. Not moving back, I whispered into his ear. "Thank you for giving me a second chance. And for standing up for me." I whisper. Before he knew it, I slammed the door open, walking in and taking my seat next to Alya.

I looked back at Damian, who still stood at the entrance, eyes wide like a statue. A rosy blush covered his neck as his ears were completely red. The worst part, his eyes were still fixated on me.

"Damian? Are you coming in?"

Bruce looked at his usually indifferent son, who stood in front of him like a marble statue, not moving an inch. Damian snapped out of his daze, as the Wayne's looked at him in confusion.

"Y-yes, father."

.......

[Q.] Is Damian really as emotionless as they say?