Veil of Shadows ๋࣭⭑⚝ Dick Grayson

7 ๋࣭⭑⚝ Mature

"Thank you!" she offered the cab driver a quick smile, handing him a generous tip before she slid out of the vehicle, hauling two large bags of groceries.

She glanced up at the tall building and groaned, realizing that she would have to climb about seven flights of stairs since the elevator had conveniently broken down.

"Cooking again? Man, our stomachs are ought to be upset when you leave."

The brunette chuckled, turning to see Hank walking over to her with a smile, hands buried in his pockets.

"What are you doing at this hour?"

"Having a nice long walk. Needed to get out of that place," he grumbled with a sigh.

"I get it. Not too thrilled to have him around myself," she bit her lip.

"Then why stay for him?"

"It's not for him, it's for Rachel. I have a feeling he's going to pull something..." she mumbled the last part quietly.

Hank simply nodded slowly. "Let me help you with the bags-" he paused, catching a glimpse of what was inside. "You're making Ravioli del Plin?"

Jules laughed at his sudden excitement. "Another one of my aunt's famous recipes."

"You're the only good thing about Dick being here," he stated with gratitude.

The two slowly ascended the steps at a brisk pace.

"Dawn wanted you to have something healthy, so, as an appetizer, we're having Carpaccio di Vendure."

"By healthy, you mean..."

"There's still meat, Hank, don't worry," she giggled softly, leaning back to use her free hand to open the door.

Hank then handed her the groceries. The pair glanced up to see an interesting scene play out in front of them.

She immediately felt the tension rising in the air as they locked eyes with Dick and Dawn sitting across from each other at the dining room table, his hand over hers.

"Well, isn't this cozy..." Hank uttered, sarcasm dripping from his tone.

The two's eyes widened before Dick quickly removed his hand, a short breath leaving his nose.

His eyes met the brunette's briefly as she stared at him, her eyebrows furrowed and a slight frown on her lips. She broke eye contact and walked off to put the groceries away, not wanting to be a part of whatever shit show was about to go down.

"Hey," Dawn began, speaking softly and then pushing her chair slightly away from Dick's.

"Just like the old days," Hank stated lowly as he approached them.

"We were just talking things through, okay?" the detective tried to reason.

"Come and go... Take what you want."

"Hank." The blonde stood up, trying to place a hand on his chest to calm him down.

"Don't touch me," he muttered, pushing her away.

This promptly made Dick jump out of his chair and, slightly grabbing ahold of Hank's shoulder, lightly shoved him back.

"Stop."

Jules quickly rose to her feet when she heard Rachel coming out of her room. She grabbed her arm and tried to tug her back as the two men began to engage in some kind of shoving match.

"Don't you ever touch my girl now!" Hank yelled at him.

He charged forward and struck Dick on the shoulder, trying to back him up, only for Dick to grab onto his collar and push him up against the wall.