Falling Through The Hourglass | Jason Todd x Male Reader

Chapter Thirteen

"It's up to you, [Name]. It's Your story." "Right." You take a deep breath, making an attempt to silence the cold dread pooling in your stomach, threatening to make you choke up from the pressure.

You clear your throat, a wet chuckle coming from you as you made an awkward start. "So, I was born into a lower middle class family. We were comfortable, as far as I could remember, anyway.

After a few years passed though, things changed. My parents both lost their jobs, having to settle for lower paying jobs. Which, later forced us to move into Park Row." You take another deep breath, sipping your tea as you close your eyes for a second.

Batman waits, silent as he continues to only nurse his cup. He then takes a sip of his own cup before looking back over to you. He clears his throat, catching your attention as you open your eyes. "Jason-" "Also grew up in Park Row. He told me." "Yes. Did you ever meet him?" "Not at that point, no.

See, I can't always control my curse. It has an ambient effect on some people. Some people included my parents. When I was about eleven, they disappeared and I never saw them again. I guess that's where my cime thing started. In a way."

"In a way?" You shrugged, swallowing the guilt over these memories. "I was young. Very young. I had turned to stealing to survive. When I got older, I got an actual job and a better apartment to sustain myself in. It was then that I met Jason."

"I see. And I assume you cursing him was no accident?" You sigh. It was becoming increasingly clear to you just how disappointed in yourself you still are. "no, it wasn't." "Why did you curse him?" "It was dumb. I shouldn't have let it get to me. I had a bad day at work. Unpaid overtime.

Co-worker didn't show up, leaving me to work the job alone. Unaccounted merchandise missing, meaning that it would be taken out of my paycheck. I was upset, and just generally done with it all." Your face turns a little red at your next confession, sounding like some fanboy.

It really did put into perspective how long ago this was. How far you've really come since then. "The highlight of most of my nights was seeing you and Robin perched on the building across from the one I worked at.

It put a bit more of a damper on my night to not see you guys up there. The straw that broke the camel's back was Jason." You could feel tears building in your eyes, a sob clawing at your neck and almost suffocating you.

"He bumped into me and made me drop my water bottle. I was annoyed that he didn't apologize. It shouldn't have gotten to me. I should've shrugged it off and moved on-" "You can't change the past, [Name]. Hindsight is twenty-twenty." Batman's voice is that same, deep and flat tone.

Still calm, at least a bit."Right," you take a quick sip of your tea. As bad as this is, there's an odd relief that came from these confessions. Batman wasn't showing you much reaction, but it was still better than Jason's outright aggression towards you.

Not that you blamed him for being angry. It was, by all means, his right to be. But, feeling the years of guilt being cleansed from your mind like a warm shower was nice."Right. So, I cursed him, I guess figuring 'what's the worst that could happen'.

I found out about his death later on. I found out he was Robin.." Batman seemed to tense a bit at that. "My guilt over his death was why I became a goon. I wanted to both avenge Jason and make up for my own mistake."

Your voice was still a bit tight as you spoke, but nothing near as painful as the start of this conversation. "Well, you certainly risked your life over it." "Yeah, I got that after my apartment got blown up.

"There was a lull between the two of you, each of you taking a sip of your respective cups. Then you spoke up again, the painful lump that had jammed itself in your throat suddenly gone. "So, what now?" "Well, you don't work with Jason anymore,"

Batman stands, walking over to the kitchen and placing the empty cup into sink, "but you still work as a vigilante, correct?" He gestures to your appearance. You never got a chance to change. "Right. Vex. I don't utilize my curse anymore for obvious reasons."

Batman nods, coming back over to the table, "of course. Well, Jason is still out there. He has a plan, and it requires immediate attention." His voice seems less tense now, not relaxed, but he's not as interrogative as he was.

"What does that have to do with me?" "You're still the only person who's gotten close to Jason since his resurrection. I'd still like to pick your brain on what you do know about him." He heads back over to the window, opening it was ease, the subtle Gotham wind flowing through his pitch black cape.

"Meet me on the roof of the Gotham City Police Station tomorrow night." With that, he hops through the window, the thud of his boots landing on the fire escape and the movement of his cape following soon after.

A small smile of relief comes to your face as you stand, finishing off your tea as you head to the window. You sit on its frame, your legs staying inside the apartment you while sit and stare into the sparkling lights that Gotham held.

The night breeze flows, almost cold as it wicks away whatever sweat had remained on your form. Once more, you close your eyes, almost basking in the fresh air of the night. Finally, a moment of peace. A moment away from the turmoil that had stirred inside you for so long.