Stranger Things in Gotham Have Happened

Steve and the Man, The Myth, The Legend, The Batman

   Honestly, Steve's seen weirder. Traumatized child with mind powers and a buzz-cut weirder. So seeing the legendary Batman lying on his apartment's rooftop, bleeding out, wasn't that weird to him. He just blinked, sighed, and went to get his med kit, thinking that at least he wasn't worrying about any of his (children) friends fighting some sort of creature.

   Let him backtrack. After the whole 'Star Court Mall' thing, Steve learned that Dustin had signed him up for a college without his knowing. Which, rude, but so very Dustin that Steve couldn't really be mad. How he learned was the acceptance letter he got in the mail. Steve almost cried at that. He... actually got accepted. Sure, it was a state college from a shitty city in New Jersey, literally known for its crime, but at least he got in. He wasn't going to go at first. The Byers had just moved, Mike's mental state was slowly starting to circle the drain, and Robin was still crushing on Tammy Thompson, which he definitely had to fix. Honestly, Tammy Thompson? The muppet? She needed better taste and she needed it yesterday.

  But then Dustin told Robin and Erica and the three teamed up. Then they brought in Nancy. Nancy. His first true love. Who couldn't wait to get rid of him. He knew she didn't like him, knew that despite everything, he was just a fling for her. A way for her to rebel. But her telling him to leave, that it'd be better if he did? That... hurt—more than he expected.

   ... He ended up leaving. Packing up, saying goodbye to everyone (Nancy didn't show), and finally attending college. He called the Scoops Troop every week, caught them up on the drama at his college and the new city he'd moved to, and they caught him up on the drama back in Hawkins. It was thankfully so mundane. Robin finally developed a new crush, on a girl named Vickie in her band. He didn't know her but Erica gave her the thumbs-up, so he allowed it. Anyone's better than Tammy Thompson. Dustin joined the high school D&D team, made friends with a senior, Eddie Munson. (No, Steve's not jealous that Dustin was taken under the wing of another person, he just...)

   He didn't miss Hawkins. The constant stress, the too-large, too-empty house, the ignorant judgment. He did miss his family. Not his mother or father, they were never there long enough for him to know well enough to miss. His real family. Dustin, Erica, Robin, Will, Mike, Lucas, Max, El, hell, even Nancy and Jonathan. But Will, El, and Jonathan were in California, Max had retreated from the group, Nancy... Dustin, Robin, and Lucas were getting new friends, Mike wouldn't talk to anyone... at least Erica hadn't changed.

   ...Maybe Robin was right, maybe he was friends with too many children.

   Anyway, back to the almost-myth that's staining his favorite smoke spot red. His college ended up being Gotham University in Gotham, New Jersey. It was mostly filled with native Gothamites (honestly, who would willingly live in Gotham, aside from the desperate and the crazy), so Steve stuck out like a sore thumb. Thankfully, his experience with the Upside Down prepared him pretty well. He only jumped at each supervillain the first time, thank you very much. He distinctly remembered the time that Manbat attacked his bus (rude) and he had to beat it back with a book. He started carrying a Safety Knife with him at all times (it was just a regular kitchen knife, sue him, he was on a tight budget) and never letting his precious bat (that he might've named Joyce... what, she scares him) out of his hands while he was in his shitty apartment.

   Honestly, at first, he thought the Bats, especially the Big Bat, were myths, scary stories to scare children into being good, even if he has personally seen quite a few rumored villains in unsettling good detail. It just never made sense to him why someone would willingly get into fights against literal supervillains. Then he saw Batman dying on his roof. Just his fucking luck.

   Due to Dustin and Robin's insistence, Steve decided to take on a Nursing major (totally not so he could look after his bull-headed c(hildren) friends). This means he knew exactly what to do when he saw the vigilante. He sighed again as he crouched down next to the man, grumbling as he realizes that he couldn't see the fucking injury through the black armor.

   "I'm going to take off your armor," Steve told the (maybe unconscious) man before starting to peel away the armor. Asshole got shot in the space between his armor plate, figures. With an almost disappointed grunt, Steve started to pry the bullet out. Honestly, Steve was pretty sure that the man was knocked out. That, or he'd gotten too used to Dustin panicking over the littlest thing.

   After Steve finished patching Batman up, he put the armor back on and started to pack up his bag. He went down to his apartment with a small farewell and stayed there for a whole three minutes before giving in to the concern that Robin and her bad habits instilled in him and going back up with a granola bar, a water bottle, and a flavor packet, just in case.

   He put the items down, then leaned against the roof next to Batman and pulled out a cigarette. Robin hated it, but it was the only way he could manage to feel in control after... just, everything and she understood that. He still limited himself to one per day, for her and his Troop.

   Steve was definitely off his game because he actually jumped when he heard a deep, overly serious voice, "Those will kill you."

   ... Was he really being judged for smoking?

   "So would being a vigilante." Steve shot back, glancing at Batman. Now that he knew that he was awake, his entire body was on edge. The cigarette wasn't helping anymore. Hm. He still finished it, just to prove a point. He put out the butt and tossed it into the mini trashcan he's kept up here for this purpose. He sat through enough of Robin's littering presentations to be reasonably afraid.

   "Did you... help me?" The Bat, for some reason, sounds suspicious. Wow, didn't know he was so rude. Well, fuck him, Steve can be rude back. ... Except he promised himself he wouldn't be rude anymore after that night when Dustin softly admitted he used to be afraid of him. ...He missed Dustin.

   "Yep. And none of that's poisoned or anything." Steve gestured to the stuff he'd brought up. "Just wanted to make sure you were still alive." ... Honestly, would one of Batman's infamous Robins show up and take him away? Steve couldn't relax until that happened. Damn Dustin.

   "And you aren't leaving because...?" Steve could feel Batman's judgment.

   Steve sighed and rolled his eyes. "Just tell your sons to come pick you up. I have a test to study for." Batman tensed, but Steve couldn't fathom why. Was there a criminal nearby or something? Whatever. He finally fully looked at Batman, his eyebrow raised impatiently. "... Is there like a codeword or something I have to say? ...I'm serious, can you please leave my rooftop so I can study?"

   Batman still looked tense and suspicious when he left with Robin (the newest one, who wasn't overly chatty for some reason). He left behind the granola bar, water bottle, and flavor packet. Honestly, Batman was so rude.

   Steve took the stuff with a scoff and went back down to his apartment to study for his anatomy test on Monday. Just to prove a point (to no one in particular), he snacked on the granola bar and flavored water while he studied. He rambled about how rude Batman was to Robin (his Robin, the one in Hawkins) on their weekly call. She agreed with him, naturally. See if he offers anything to Batman next time.

A/N jesus is it odd to make an a/n instead of the notes at the end of ao3-
speaking of! this is crossposted on ao3 with the same name and under the username 'jayybirdhasfeathers'
it has better formatting on ao3 because wattpad hates strikethroughs
i hope you guys are ready for the ride!