Hands (SuperBat)

18 Picnic

Taking a deep breath in, Kal watched Bruce walk out the door. He was supposed to follow after him. He whispered to himself, "Nothing to be afraid of."

Bruce repeated, "Nothing to be afraid of." He was just outside the door. He held out his elbow for Kal to grab.

Kal grabbed his arm and looped it with his. Then he took a step out.

It's weird being afraid of a concept. It was something he couldn't see, but he could only imagine it. Even though it wasn't physical, it was just as frightening as if it was everywhere. He could think back to the trauma and pain, but he tried not to.

With Bruce's free hand, he point at the area in the grass where the picnic was set up.

On the grass was a large king sized blanket. On it were containers of food. It was about five meters away from the door they just came out of. It was an easy getaway if Kal needed it.

Bruce and Kal walked to the blanket. The two sat down.

Kal glanced around at the bushes separating them away from the outside onlookers. He looked down and placed his hands on his lap. He didn't notice Bruce opening a container until he passed him a cucumber sandwich. "Oh thanks."

"No problem," Bruce said. "What's on your mind? Are you looking around and listening with your abilities?"

"No," Kal answered. "I don't want to."

"Okay," Bruce said. "Try the cucumber sandwich. It's much better than you would think. That's what Damian told me."

Kal ate a piece and shrugged in agreement. "He was right."

The two of them ate quietly. They would share glances every once and a while. When Kal's eyes were away, they glanced around.

Bruce asked, "What are you looking for?"

Kal frowned and said, "I don't know. It's just this uneasy feeling I get."

"That you might get attacked?"

"No," Kal answered. "That you might get attacked."

Bruce sighed was a soft smile, "It's just like you to worry about someone else other than yourself." He knew that Kal was the one who was hurt, but he ended up with anxieties about the ones he cares about. He wanted to comfort him and take his worries away. He reached his hand up, but put it down to his lap.

"No," Kal said. "Go ahead." He tilted his head down and looked at Bruce, waiting.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes," he answered.

"Okay," Bruce said. He held his hand back up. He slowly reach up to Kal's face. His hand stopped a centimeter before touching his face. He warned gently, "I'm about to touch your face."

"Mm-hm," Kal responded.

Finally, Bruce gently placed his hand on his cheek.

Kal gulped and closed his eyes. He reached up to Bruce's hand and laid his hand over his. He opened his eyes and said, "Bruce, I missed this so much. I haven't been touched in so long." He rubbed his thumb over Bruce's hand. "The last time I was touched like this, it was terrifying."

Bruce nodded, encouraging him to continue.

"I felt so alone with the blood of my family on my hands, body, and mouth." Kal took another breath. "The fact that the one who attacked me, put all their blood on me... I just couldn't do it. I wanted to die, Bruce."

"Well, I'm glad you're alive" Bruce said.

"If you hadn't come, that day, to the Fortress, I might've died," Kal said. "I was so close to figuring out the synthetic Kryptonite-... I'm sorry."