Robin one shot part 3!

Third day of Christmas

VinsuErinGamer suggested Batfam but i got too tired so now it's just tim and dick - let's goooooo

Sleep was a completely foreign concept to the family of hero-themed bats. Naturally, their work made them stay up to ungodly hours so they weren't sleeping at night and their work daily meant they couldn't sleep during the day. There was a sweet spot in the very early morning and late afternoon where they could nap and the rest of the time they chugged as much caffeine as they could. Out of all of them, Tim was the worst at sleeping. There was always a new case and as the new Robin, he wanted to prove himself. He needed to prove himself. Before him had been the first kid sidekick in the League and the kid who had so much going for him only to die far too young. Tim had to live up to them and be better than them so he needed to solve more cases, be stronger, and be smarter. He had to be everything they were and more. His destructive behaviour was hardly noticeable to Bruce who was hardly there. Alfred noted the unhealthy habits not much was done about it because the young hero was still performing well both in school and in work. Luckily, a previous Robin was about to notice.

Nightwing visited Gotham from time to time simply for a change of pace and when he did, he invited Robin out for a patrol with him. Robin always took him up on the invite but with his terrible sleeping patterns, he was struggling to keep focused. "You okay Rob?" Nightwing called, noticing that the boy was staring at nothing. They were taking a break at the time but he knew Robin. He was still vigilant even when they were taking breaks. When he didn't get a reply, he lightly pushed the younger one to get his attention. "Robin?"

"Hm?" he replied, still not really there.

"Timbo, are you with me?" he asked. He grabbed his shoulder and squeezed. It wasn't hard but it was enough to bring the hero around. Nightwing smiled warmly at him. "Hey, kid."

"Hey. Sorry were you saying something?" he replied. 

"I asked if you were okay but I think I got my answer." He stood up and stuck his hand out for the younger to take. Robin stared at his hand, not totally getting what was going on which was a very alien feeling to him. He always understood what was going on. Well not always. Nightwing did confuse him but that was just Nightwing.  "You just gonna stare at my hand?"

"What uh what're you doing?" he asked. 

"I'm giving you a hand up. You, my dear fellow Robin, are coming to my apartment and taking a nap. The only compromise I'm doing is you chilling and not doing any work."

"We have work," Robin pointed out. He was right. They weren't even halfway through their patrol and the night wasn't anywhere near done. Yet Nightwing didn't seem to care. He just pulled the younger to his feet and then pointed over to the rooftop about five roofs down. 

"Alright, you make it there and back without tripping or falling I'll give up. If you don't, you're resting you coffee gremlin. Got it?" 

"Yea yea, keep your mullet on."

"Hey, this mullet is exquisite."

Reluctantly, Robin got up and dusted himself off. He blinked a few times to get rid of the weird blurry filter that had covered the world then shook himself up in an attempt to remain cognizant enough to not get himself either killed or given the night off. He couldn't take a break. He was Robin! He took a deep breath and took a few steps back before running and jumping onto the next roof. No problem right? That was easy. He moved on to the next building. Not his neatest but still pretty good. He moved on to the next one and again he made it. This was easy and he was going to show Nightwing that he didn't need the rest. He was a hero now and heroes didn't need rest. He could run on black coffee and energy drinks for the rest of his life if he wanted to. With this confidence, he ran and jumped off the edge of the roof. Only, he found himself falling. Panic rattled through his small frame as he realised he was just short of the few inches needed for him to grab onto the edge of the next roof. His heart leapt to his throat as he tried to pluck the grappling hook from his belt but he couldn't get his mind working fast enough to grab it. He was going to die. This was it, he was going to die. Not in some cool blaze of glory way. No. Over trying to win a bet! 

Suddenly, the falling stopped and a strong arm was hooked around him. He latched onto the arm that seemed to mean safety and opened his eyes he didn't remember squeezing shut. When he did, he saw he was about a foot off the ground and the arm around him was Nightwing's. The hero wore a smug smirk that only wavered when he saw how pale the new Robin was. "Sorry kid but you needed the wake-up call," he apologised, pressing a button on his grappling hook that shot them back up to the rooftops. 

"But I have a job!" Robin whined. Even if he escaped death, he still wasn't too happy about losing the bet. Batman was going to kill him if he found out they were just bunking off work together. This was a serious job, people's lives were on the line! How could they just take the night off? 

"Robin, do you really think I don't get it?" Nightwing let the younger down and sat down, patting the spot beside him to usher him to sit down. He did so. "I was the first Robin. The first protege too. No one really knew how hard I was supposed to work or how many breaks I should get, least of all Batman. He started out good, only taking me out when needed. Then things got harder and he needed the help more often. Before I know it, I'm spending every night fighting crime. I'm living off coffee at twelve!" Nightwing laughed to himself. It must've been a funny sightseeing a little kid chugging black coffee. Or sad depending on how you saw it. 

"Point is, that really messed with my head. I can't take breaks, I push myself past my limit, and sometimes I make myself sick because I don't know when to stop." 

"Is that why you're not compromising on this?" Robin inquired.

"That and-," he paused for a moment, a distant look on his face. "-and sometimes when you're tired you don't do the right things or say what you mean." He put an arm around Robin, a smile flashing across his features. "But hey, you've got the tester kid at your disposal and as the tester kid I say we're taking the night off."

"What're you gonna tell Batman? He won't be very happy with this will he?"

"I've got it handled. Now c'mon, I'll get my bike and we'll order pizza. Then you nap. Got it?" Robin giggled to him and nodded. 

"Got it."