Claire listened while trying her best to memorize what each gadget did.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW2aWmhtKDb
These weren’t just flashy props—they were more precise, more grounded than anything she'd seen in a movie. Almost everything had a backup system or some kind of emergency override.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwS6FtDAxjc
Calling this place a “safehouse” was generous.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMIb8l81PUB
It was a bunker. A battle-ready one.
“That’s the comm terminal,” Nightwing said, pointing to a row of devices on the wall.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsNq3x5Sgao
“If you need to reach us, hit this. But only during this window—”
“—before the reset kicks in,” Robin finished, matter-of-factly.
Batman added next. He handed Claire a slip of paper with a long string of numbers and symbols.
“This is the door code. You’ll need it to get in. No keys, no fingerprint ID, no voice recognition—none of that survives the loop. Memorize it.”
Then came weapons hour.
His voice dropped, colder. He picked up a gun and handed it to her, but didn’t let go immediately.
“Only use it to protect yourself. Never to strike first.”
His gaze cut through her—through muscle, bone, marrow.
“I know you’re not a bad person, Claire.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPZsIhZb6SW
But that doesn’t mean you won’t make a bad choice under pressure.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡingafwZJ4P
This is a weapon, not magic. It doesn’t solve problems. It just ends them.”
Claire swallowed and nodded.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUwDAqoDdS6
I’m a good citizen.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡspnqzhqiqP
Really.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8fTI2x8jkG
I’ll aim it at the crack, and only at the crack.
They circled back to the crack.
Notes spread across the table. Claire had drawn a few sketches—long shapes, sky proportions from what she saw with her eyes closed.
“What if it’s not just appearing,” Nightwing said, “but actually… approaching?”
“Then the point of contact is her,” Batman replied, circling her name at the center of a page.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ057BbuvVB8
“It’s fishing. Claire’s the bait.”
Every conclusion went onto paper.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVfzQIWIYcT
Paper remembered. Claire had to remember too. Just in case paper didn’t make it through.
By the next noon, Claire was slumped over the table, hand still resting on a sheet labeled PLAN F.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpRy0gsxBjY
Her head buzzed, vision blurred, like someone had pressed rewind on her brain.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlv1G0uEkhm
It was happening again.
“No…” she tried to say.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrZ4nXZXrNA
But all she managed was a twitch of the fingers, a faint tap on the letter F.
Footsteps.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpKSAsJBzAs
Someone approached.
Arms wrapped around her.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE230JHBPMN
Firm, steady. Familiar.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsUTYJ6oVIV
There was the faint scent of shampoo in the air—clean, comforting.
She squirmed, barely.
This isn’t my bed, she wanted to mumble.
But she had no strength. Her body gave in to the embrace, tucked beneath a blanket.
Right before slipping under again, only one thought remained:
Screw it. I’ll just come back tomorrow.
23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwCPHmNArlE
Claire got used to it. For real.
She hadn’t expected to find rhythm in the repetition—not just survive, but start to live well-ish, like some glitch-proof war correspondent who recalibrates her memory each morning before heading back into chaos.
Every day started the same:23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ96hss4tjb1
She woke up and wrote down the number of times she’d repeated the day.
She wasn’t sure if her count was accurate anymore, but at least it gave her something solid to check against.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6S9HBMPWMh
Something to prove she hadn’t snapped.
Then she opened the café.
The soft ding of the door chime gave her the daily illusion that the world was still spinning as usual. The hiss of the espresso machine kicked in. She counted the seconds.
Waited for the footsteps.
If Claire’s bagels weren’t available until 10 a.m.—23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcBaZKNWkOt
That cop named Dick would show up. In uniform. Hands in pockets. Always on time.
If Claire mentioned ghosts, or sounded a little unhinged—23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGxj1nFyl7N
Like asking, “Do you think a soul can get stuck in a single moment?”23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡddXET4KA3z
Or, “If today is yesterday again, then where did yesterday go?”23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡamHtl9VFyO
Or anything else that made her sound like she needed to be gently escorted into psychiatric care—
The informant at the counter would discreetly alert Nightwing.
That’s how she found out “I might be having a breakdown” was an actual trigger phrase to summon a superhero.
She sometimes wondered:23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡektEGMbBHP
Who designed this whole failsafe system? Batman?
And sure enough, Nightwing would show up later that night.
Looking very much like he was “just passing by.”
Then he’d sit down. And start coaxing answers out of her.
But honestly?23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4xRhtFtf90
She’d already discovered a faster method.
Just leave a bagel on the balcony at 11 p.m.—23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBmuRyIGu9Z
Worked three out of three times.
So depending on her mood, Claire chose her summoning style.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRzppBKqkDD
Same result either way. Just different openings.
Still, she preferred the “mental breakdown” version.
Especially since Nightwing always looked visibly conflicted when it happened.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP1ClmV19vz
Every time, he’d stare at her for a few seconds, calculating how much he should trust her today.
That expression—hesitant and tight—like she’d just told him the Earth was about to explode, and he had to smile back and go, “Cool. Let’s finish this coffee first.”
He had range.
Worry. Frustration. Doubt. Guilt.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJ6dwI4ETRP
Claire kept a mental chart: Nightwing’s Emotional Weather: Today’s Forecast.
In some twisted way, it felt like watching a drama series.
And she liked it.
Because in this endless loop, the only thing that really changed…23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3ht3JrZkWK
Was the light in his eyes.23Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4okGPBotpt
