Faye Feng → Dick Grayson ✔

Even After

Dick bounced his leg, glancing restlessly at the screen of his phone. He stood by the side of the makeshift stage built in Gotham Academy's courtyard, one of the many chattering students taking photos in their multicolored graduation gowns, gold tassels on their hats swinging as they moved. They were all supposed to be in royal blue, but plenty had their gowns custom made or altered.

He wasn't exempt; his gown was black and red. Alfred had insisted on tailoring it, and fussy British butlers were impossible to dissuade.

Parents and relatives adjusted their children's outfits, cameras clicking from the small crowd of paparazzi that had been allowed on campus. Those who weren't invited were crowded around the gate, hoping to get snapshots of Gotham's biggest names. Tomorrow's magazines would be full of comments on celebrity kids' graduation cap designs – Barbara Landon had bedazzled every inch of hers with diamonds that she swore were real. Dick was suspicious, but he was more worried about Faye. Surely, she hadn't gotten into so much trouble with her family that they refused to let her walk?

"You look anxious."

"She's not here." Dick said to Bruce, who had sidled up to him after talking to Jim Gordon and Barbara.

"She will be." Bruce assured him. "I made it, and I was halfway across the universe."

"Thanks for that. For everything, I mean."

"I understand. Our compromise is the best we could have done."

"You didn't think so when you first heard it."

"No," Bruce admitted. "But after giving it some thought, it's a solution, albeit a temporary one. We must still find a way to wipe their proof on who we are."

"That goes without saying. It's going to be harder than before, now that they know how we got into their system."

"We'll figure it out."

"That is what we do." Dick agreed. "We solve cases."

He looked down again, reading the last text Faye had sent him:

Wardrobe malfunction. I'll get there in time.

Dick was so preoccupied with searching the crowd for her, he almost didn't register what Bruce had said.

"I'm proud of you."

He blinked, arm holding the phone falling to his side. "What?"

"I'm proud of you," Bruce repeated quietly. "I just thought you should know."

Dick thought he was dreaming. Then, his lips formed a wide, cheeky grin. "And all this time I assumed you would explode at showing the slightest sign of affection."

Bruce fought to suppress a smile. He lost.

A surge of noise from the crowd caught everyone's attention, an instantaneous crescendo of shuttering camera lenses. The sound of an engine was louder, and the paparazzi was ushered aside by men in suits, one of them Dick recognized to be Mark.

The door of the car, sleek and sharp and black, was held open. Clamoring hit a new high, threatening to break the line the bodyguards held. Jason got out, dressed perfectly in a crimson suit, a gold handkerchief in his pocket. He winked at the reporters before offering his hand to help his wife out of the car. Sandra stepped graciously out, wearing a red pantsuit, gold top beneath her blazer. She barely gave the crowd a second look before she leaned down, murmuring to the remaining member of the Fengs who was yet to appear.

Dick was convinced that when Faye appeared, the world slowed down. Her gown was a blood red that matched her parents' outfits and the paint on her lips, shining golden accents on the sleeves and hem. The side of her cap was a red ribbon, but the diamond top was gold, with designs like a dragon's scales.