afterthought || d. wayne (2)

FIVE

WAYNE MANOR
JUNE 6TH
9:25 AM

Over a month has passed since the new children's hospital opened in Alfred's honor. Damian's attitude or demeanor hadn't changed much since the hangout at the cafe, but clearly something did.

Because as of seven days ago, Damian hasn't been seen by anyone.

Normally, this wouldn't be too concerning. He went on missions as Robin outside of town a lot. But even so, he would send a text that would alert Noelle that he was safe (unless he had to go offline). Even if he did have to go off-grid for a couple of days, he'd warn Noelle beforehand.

This time was different. Noelle received no warning. No goodbye text, no message indicating his safety. Nothing. Their last interaction began with him falling asleep on her. He seemed okay then, better than the cafe. Something changed between then and now.

The thought of this makes her heart ache.

Noelle couldn't get a hold of him no matter how hard she tried. She called and texted him but received nothing. She texted his brothers, trying to see if they knew anything, but they seemed just as clueless as her.

She even attempted to get a hold of Bruce Wayne through his company, and when he didn't answer, she took the next step.

Now, she's outside the manor's front gate, buzzing the annoying buzzer until she gets a response.

"I know you're in there, Mr. Wayne!" She snaps through the intercom before holding down the buzzer again.

Another awkward moment of annoying buzzing passes before she stops herself. She lets out a sigh before holding down the intercom button.

"Please," she pleads softly, almost ready to admit defeat. "Please, just tell me he's at least okay. Please tell me I'm freaking out over nothing and this is some deep covert operation."

She lets go of the button, hoping to hear the billionaire's voice say he's fine. That's all she needs to hear, that's all she wants.

But she doesn't get an answer. Instead, the gate buzzes loudly and slowly starts to creak open. A tear slides down her cheek.

Once the gate opens wide enough, she starts the trek down the driveway to reach the front door of the mansion.

The first time she made this trek was when she came here for dinner. Despite it almost being night, the mansion and yard seemed bright at the time. All the Robins were living under one roof and a happy Alfred was there to greet her.

Now? It's bleak and empty. The yard is overgrown, borderline neglected. No one had called a gardener in at least a month. It's nine in the morning, yet there's a dark cloud hanging over everything. It's going to rain later, but for now, everything feels gloomy.

She wipes away her tear as another one falls. She will not look weak in front of this man. She takes a deep breath as she gets closer to the mansion and raises her chin slightly.

She's going to get the answers she needs.

That's assuming he has them. The thought makes her confidence falter. What if Bruce doesn't know where Damian is? What is she supposed to do then?

Who are Damian's friends? Maybe she can get their information from Bruce? That's assuming Damian is missing and Bruce has already contacted everyone who's ever met Damian.

Well, shit. If she can't do something simple like that, what can she do?

Before she could attempt to think of a solution, one of the front doors to the mansion opens. She hadn't realized she made it until she was making eye contact with Bruce Wayne.