But what Claire didn’t know—13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBEI1ESzvbf
was that the two vigilantes sitting across from her, who only just “introduced themselves” today,13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFSwhwtes59
had already raised every internal alarm system they had.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrHxwv55j0x
Their minds kicked into full Batcave-alert mode.
This woman didn’t just know too much—13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡksJhgqIBJx
she had a handle on their most sensitive intel: identities, locations, relationships.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡch6YENDQD6
She had even casually connected Nightwing to his civilian alias and somehow arranged a dinner with all three of them.
This wasn’t coincidence.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiHSOwSorOu
This was infiltration.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9iEYCeiFos
If she wasn’t intentionally getting close, then she was... some kind of meta.
Thankfully, the food arrived.
It was like the trumpet of salvation sounding across a battlefield.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡg4sVTiG9Nn
Both snapped out of their tactical calculations at once.
And thanks to Alfred’s lifelong etiquette training, no matter how internally wrecked they were, externally they would still sit up straight and eat like gentlemen.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJm5aMriZEs
The burgers and fries were placed neatly in front of them, and they nodded politely—13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfFvuIItelW
time to eat first, survive the crisis later.
But their guard never dropped.
Each bite of burger came with a side of intense eye contact and silent strategy meetings.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxsWuhx0B51
They chewed through American cheese and existential dread at the same time.
—She’s extremely dangerous. Unpredictable.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgy4GIRXwgi
—She might expose us. She probably already knows everything.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwYI3s03BVH
—How did she even reach Nightwing’s civilian persona? That’s priority one.
They silently agreed: Contain this first. Then move to extraction.
But the universe had other plans.
Claire, seeing their plates empty, calmly set down her utensils.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpwA7jrzRrA
She wiped her hands with delicate precision—elegant, efficient. Like she was preparing for the next item on the itinerary.
She glanced at the two men still wiping their mouths, gave a small approving nod, and said in the tone of a cheerful tour guide:
“Alright. Let’s go.”
Both of them: !!!!!!?????
Dick nearly choked on his own spit.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmDuh8qOKvn
He swallowed it with effort, forced a crooked smile, and asked carefully:
“Uh... may I ask... where are we going?”
Claire tilted her head, voice light as a breeze:13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP9QAa2ZwRf
“My place, of course.”
Dick: …13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZarqgHNqkx
BEEP—13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdsuB7W19oq
His brain short-circuited.
If it were just the two of them, sure, maybe this could be chalked up to some kind of flirtatious momentum.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpwvEiZOx8A
But it wasn’t.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkRfD2Z3aKb
Jason was right there.
And this wasn’t just any younger brother. This was Jason.
Dick turned slowly.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvAPwcGKj7m
Jason’s face had frozen over like a glitching video frame.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoddrwIrDlD
He looked like he was thinking, “Yeah, I know ending a date at her place is a thing...13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtTLhLrAdDn
but bringing me along? You’ve lost your minds.”
Jason’s brain was screaming EXIT MISSION. NOW.
13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxz1KzCjAr0
He took a deep breath, gently put down his cup, and tried to decline with some grace:13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGuCb24iw5d
“I’ll sit this one out. Just remembered—I’ve got... stuff.”
But Claire turned toward him, cheeks slightly flushed, wearing that same familiar smile she often gave regulars at the café.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvUaFAOEZ3F
It wasn’t rushed.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpoGPe8qEeH
It wasn’t demanding.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGKuT3kb8S2
It carried that quiet kind of knowing that made your spine itch.
“I know,” she said gently.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTAsIke6s7q
Like she was saying, “You like two sugars in your coffee, right?”
I know what you're thinking. I know what you’re about to do.
Robin’s inner sirens went off.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3VSkGAezxr
—What else do you know?
Claire lazily added, as if commenting on the weather:13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMeDpJX7iwD
“Well, obviously, you’re here for Nightwing. He’ll be at my place soon.”
Dick: ???13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpcBlclo8Uy
Robin: ????????
The air above the table turned so thick it was practically solid.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4jwYPeQQWk
Both brothers went blank—
She didn’t just know about Robin,13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyTdPmzwglM
She knew Nightwing,13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZyT6y2PkPs
She knew where he was going,13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQUISebjqi9
She knew when he’d show up.
What the hell?
Was she psychic?13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxGkeRnlByZ
Did she somehow hack into the Batcave’s core database?13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE49TzB26vx
—Or was she some kind of secret weapon planted by Batman as part of a top-secret test?
They exchanged another look.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5IVOMAjWlq
Threat Level: Off the charts.
And Claire?13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnTV6DJ7rLU
After casually dropping that reality-shattering statement, she stood up—swaying slightly, like the alcohol had just caught up to her balance.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1UvZsbEpqA
Elegant, but clearly tipsy.
She reached for the bill.
Dick, faster than instinct, grabbed it first.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHQuILcc2f5
His voice was calm but firm:13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxsdHWxD0z6
“I’ve got it.”
Claire blinked at him, then smiled and nodded.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU9TLZ0BAFJ
“Then next time’s on me.”13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5cHuRO2tlp
She said it like a promise.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiLWI2VYc2t
Like she already knew there would be a next time.
(And there would be.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡk4KcgXCN0i
She’d already cooked them dinner—long-term.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzhVinkOq3N
They just didn’t remember.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnj0jAOTPzo
Thanks, timeline reset.)
13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYVALOUorSD
The three of them stepped out of the restaurant.
A cold breeze swept past, snapping Claire’s mind briefly out of its alcohol-soaked haze.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCaIlJER28d
But it brought a dull ache to her temple, creeping from her forehead to the back of her skull.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3yJ3n6xVlW
A hangover before the night was even over.
She shoved her hands in her coat pockets, turned to the two vigilantes, and said:
“Come on. Follow me.”
Dick finally worked up the nerve to ask:13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJAD6nMN8Ol
“How do you know Nightwing’s going to your place?”
His voice was steady—too steady.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxYrZOii1FV
Inside, he was already mentally running emergency cover plans.
One thing was clear: She didn’t know he was Nightwing.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ20KzYiHJ4X
Yet.
Which left him with one big question:13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx3P96IQkZ5
How the hell was he supposed to get ‘Dick Grayson’ and ‘Nightwing’ into the same room at the same time?
Claire looked back at him, cheeks still flushed.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF1d3M4BNcR
She was definitely drunk—13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHFwr4QJUoL
Otherwise, she wouldn’t be staring at the cop in front of her,13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXzVXz3MuhJ
and seeing the exact same blue eyes as Nightwing.
She smiled—soft, glowing, and dangerously confident.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdkOWk4h4iI
Her voice floated like a breeze,13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTIMOh8v4wg
but hit like a prophecy:
“Because—this is my city.”
Dick froze.
That line...13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbzHx0QFVTi
It was his line.
Whenever he stood watch over the city under the cover of night, he would quietly tell himself:13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNVf21dqZYb
“This is my city.”
But today—for the first time—he heard someone else say it.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCEEj7MzwTP
So naturally.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgMUc1aq71Z
Like she was the one who truly belonged to the night.
Robin sensed something spiraling out of control.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2UXgmf27Y0
He raised a hand like an emergency stop sign.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj32h8O3y0D
“Wait, Claire, Dick can’t go to your place.”
Jason couldn’t play the obedient kid anymore.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtdJj7yDy0D
Someone had to step in and stop this rapidly escalating mess of a romantic-horror identity farce.
Claire turned her head, voice still hazy but filled with genuine confusion.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8KmbhyJDu0
“Why not?”
Robin gritted his teeth.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡM1mjStyrJL
“Because... because... they’re love rivals.”
It was the most explosive, absurd, yet somehow believable excuse he could come up with on the spot.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡY4R7AFBkYI
Better that than the truth.
Dick turned to him with a look that screamed:13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4KkkUqCz7l
“What the hell are you saying?!”
Claire froze, blinking as if trying to focus her gluey brain. Her eyes slowly widened as realization dawned.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR0t8X3qAU9
She turned to Dick with the gleam of gossip burning bright in her gaze.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuZzzmxTkrw
“Didn’t expect you to have a juicy backstory.”
Then, a flash of clarity cut through the fog of her drunken thoughts:13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzyHs7X8fhc
“Wait—you said you didn’t know each other.”
Robin felt his soul leave his body.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpABZlncl66
But he still forced out a reply:13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0a5QTUnTzw
“Right… but I know Nightwing. He often says there’s this cop—Dick Grayson—his romantic rival.”
Claire nodded, murmuring like someone piecing together the latest drama at a café:13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ28H849RNCW
“So you like the same girl, huh…”13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS84bSPSbmB
She didn’t sound surprised—just mildly intrigued.
Then she raised a hand and pointed at Dick, her tone calm and dismissive:13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBomEb5Mlwz
“Alright. You can go now. Thanks for dinner. I’ll treat next time.”
Dick stared at this woman who’d just used and dismissed him like an old umbrella.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoQSRW2FFvD
His mouth twitched—unsure whether to laugh or be offended.
Eventually, he managed a sentence—wry but polite:13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡylbUqG3QLx
“I’ll walk you home.”
Claire nodded.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡV4BgDjE6DC
But this time, she didn’t say anything more.
She just kept walking ahead, steady-paced and silent.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwkrzTwqJe7
The alcohol still lingered, but her tone had lost its playfulness—13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzrwZFEPN4l
replaced by a deeper calm.
The two men followed quietly.
They crossed neon-lit corners and passed under dim lampposts until they finally arrived at—
Claire’s café.
This time, Dick remained outside, watching the other two go in.
The streetlight cast his shadow long and thin,13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRQUdU6V6Cn
stretching all the evening’s chaos into a single, quiet silhouette.
Just before the door closed, Robin turned back and gave him a look.
It might’ve meant “I’ve got this”,13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc05iPvMyLg
or “You better explain later”,13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYDn7abL1H7
or just “My head hurts.”
Dick nodded—small, but clear.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvGa75NO1qp
He knew this wasn’t the end.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkCIt7Pe9WG
Just the beginning.
Robin followed Claire up the stairs to the third floor.
She opened the door, pointed toward the balcony, and said casually,13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeYhBmfVTgS
like she was announcing her morning routine:
“He’ll show up at 11:11. You wait here. I’m going to lie down.”
She said it too naturally—like she was used to expecting mysterious guests.
Then—without another word—she just… collapsed onto the bed.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWQVFBjOWtB
Right in front of him.
Robin: …
He stood there, staring like she’d just cast some kind of spell trap.
But she was actually asleep.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaRDF7h8KiV
Not pretending.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiz6qzKaBne
Not spying.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDqopGgvy00
Not scheming.
She’d simply laid down—unguarded, vulnerable.
His eyes swept the room for hiding spots—nothing.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF2W1RECCEE
He pressed an ear to the wall—silence. Only his own heartbeat.
A few moments later, a familiar thwip echoed from outside.
Nightwing had arrived.
He was already changed—still catching his breath, a few strands of hair sticking to his forehead from rushing over.
Robin was ready.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcarIqpUa32
He walked over and opened the window.
Cold air rushed in, snapping his senses back into focus.
Nightwing climbed in, landing with a slight wobble, eyes scanning the room urgently.
Their eyes met—13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡM1lO8sSGhK
Then both turned to look at the woman asleep on the bed.
She was curled on her side, breathing steady, cheeks still flushed.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVxgWqTLE7R
One hand rested lightly on the edge of the blanket—13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2xKZuZzg8W
Even in her dreams, she hadn’t fully let her guard down.
The two brothers stood at her bedside.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwxxmoNX17v
Saying nothing.
Only the wind filled the room, rustling the curtain with a soft whisper.
Silence.
Then—13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7CcDCN9zbF
Robin shrugged.
As if to say:13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLCJUG4xZjI
“Your problem now.”13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz2qLOurB30
“I’ve got nothing.”
Nightwing sighed.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC14vHMydkS
Staring at the woman who made him rush between identities just to keep up—13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJafE9YvBY2
he wasn’t sure if he felt exasperated… or something stranger.
She’d said he’d arrive.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKpwwzatmnZ
And then she’d just… laid down.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ98iXTULcwd
Like she knew he’d come.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8wYgOSbbSx
Like it wasn’t a guess—13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaVNTX9HzQM
but part of some rhythm she trusted without question.
And now, here they were.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtL8HKw0bLI
The three of them—once again—drawn into the same space.
13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIVtSSFDucL
The next morning, sunlight poured through the slits in the curtains, casting soft, angled streaks across the room.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvjEeDNWB4E
Claire awoke to the sound of familiar music—gentle, slightly old-fashioned jazz that tugged her gently out of sleep.
She opened her eyes and stared at the ceiling, realizing with mild surprise that she didn’t have a hangover.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvsER7PsI7O
Her head was clear—clearer than usual, even.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8v8doWzGoX
It felt like some lingering anxiety had been washed away along with the alcohol.
But—
Her memory of the latter half of last night was… fuzzy.
She remembered dinner.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2Trx11sey5
She remembered the cocktails.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbgqVvZFU6k
She remembered the walk home, the chilly wind… and that she’d said something outrageous.
And then…
Did she lie down?13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCs9Zz82WkC
Was Robin there?13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCPyJZOpylJ
Did she say something weird?
She furrowed her brows and muttered to herself,13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS6ZVkLIi1k
“I really shouldn’t have had that drink…”
What had they talked about?13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjDnRZMKios
She tried to recall, as if piecing together a dream scattered across the corners of her mind.
Ah, right.
Nightwing and Dick are love rivals.
That line leapt into her mind with startling clarity, like a scene from a forgotten film reel.
She remembered pointing at Dick and telling him to go home.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ19TnGuVyj0
Said something like, “Thanks for dinner, I’ll treat next time.”
Claire rubbed her temple and couldn’t help but let out a small, wry laugh.
“So they’re in love with the same girl…” she murmured,13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpS9py0brdb
like she was catching up on an old soap opera—half amused, half pitying.
She stayed sitting in bed for a long while.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSYUTaCiAjg
Her feet didn’t touch the floor.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkjhGgXzZMc
Her back rested against the wall, and both hands pressed into the sheets,13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRpRZ0r3v6o
as if trying to coax gravity into letting her stay just a bit longer.
But eventually, she swung her legs over the side.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzvqEZx8NGm
The moment her feet touched the wooden floor, she knew—
It was time to get up.
Time to open the café.
No matter how chaotic last night had been,13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuuo0vfmyO2
today… the café still had to run.13Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVwRqzQJ9U5
《End of Bonus Chapter》
ns216.73.216.12da2
