Lost Stars

Chapter Thirty Five

-Dick's POV-

It had been about forty eight hours since Red Hood's last appearance.

While Bruce and I were both surprised by his sudden disappearance, neither of us were naive enough to think he was gone for good. I could think of several reasons why he had fled, with Bruce probably conjuring up even more.

He had fled the confrontation with me for seemingly no reason. From what I had seen from Red Hood, I had to admit, he wasn't a coward. He didn't leave because he thought I was going to win or because he was scared. But, his escape left Nightingale open for us to take.

With his partner seemingly compromised, Red Hood might've fled, thinking she had blown his cover to us. Of course she didn't, but how would he know that?

It was up to Batman and I to either find out his secrets while he was gone, or to prepare defenses against him when he returns.

I flew around the city on stakeout, waiting for any reports back from Bruce back at the Batcave. Ever since Athena had walked out, Bruce had been obsessively scouring every ounce of evidence he had on Red Hood. I still wasn't sure how Jason played into the whole thing. Bruce was basing his research off of the lies told to him by Human Play-doh. Clay face -- along with all the other big baddies in Gotham -- was just doing whatever it took to play with and corrupt Bruce's mind. So far, it had never worked on him before. But, suddenly, he seemed to be slowly loosing his sense of logic.

I passed by the Wayne Enterprises building. Thinking of my hard working girlfriend, I climbed up the side of the building, peering into every window until I found her floor. Just I expected, Barbara sat at her desk, pouring over stacks upon stacks of papers. Her hair was pulled up into a messy bun and a pair of hipster looking glasses slid down the bridge of her nose. She was wearing a white button up blouse and a long pleated navy skirt. Despite the conservative nature of her outfit, she still managed to look very high fashion.

From outside the window, I waved, hoping to get her to look up. Across from her desk sat Luke. He also looked just as Tumblr-chic as my girlfriend. Neither of them looked up at each other. I smiled.

Eventually, Barbs stood up to drop some papers off on a different desk. As she passed, her gaze shifted to the window and then away. She took a double take, her eyes filling with surprise.

I grinned and waved again. She strode to the window. I put my lips to the outside of the glass, making her softly chuckle. She tried to say something, but I couldn't hear anything through the thick, bulletproof glass.

When she repeated herself, I studied her lips. "What are you doing?" Her lips read.

I nodded and grinned. "Just checking up on the best girlfriend in Gotham," I mouthed back. A soft pink blush stained her cheeks and nose.

"I have work to do and it looks like you do too."

Barbara's face still reflected her affection towards me, proving that the seriousness she was trying to convey was not what she was truly feeling. That was a con about Babs. Just like Bruce, she was all business most of the time. Even when we would be having fun, she still had to analyze and plan. Her strong sense of responsibility did come in handy sometimes, but it also seemed to get in the way of her truly getting to let loose.

"One kiss for the road?" I said, shrugging my shoulders and batting my eyelashes under my mask. Barbs rolled her eyes, but she checked over her shoulder at Luke anyway. He kept his head down. I wondered if he had even looked up once the entire time I had been hovering outside. Or even the entire time they had been working.

With the coast clear, Barbara pressed her glossy lips to the inside of the glass. I pressed mine again to the cold outside. Despite the lack of actual contact, I still felt connected to her. The gesture still made me feel fuzzy.