Damian's P.O.V:

I sat with one leg propped up over the other, seated on the cushioned chairs of the reception area in the administration building.

Fucking therapy, I kept cursing to myself. It's such a waste of my time and everyone in this entire school knows it.

I mean, okay, let's say that, hypothetically, I did have anger issues of a severe nature. How did they expect to fix all of it in only one hour-long counselling session every fortnight? Seriously? Wouldn't it take much longer then that?

The whole thing was was pointless.

I leaned back in my seat and stared blankly at the oil painting of the sun flowers hanging in front of me. Van Gogh, I recognized, my eyes drifting along to the second picture, which was just a framed certificate. Gotham Academy had a lot of certificates and awards that they enjoyed showing off around the school. It was irritating and unnecessary.

A door suddenly opened and I snapped my head toward the noise. I had expected it to be the counsellors office, with Mrs Keller standing there, beckoning me inside.

But in fact it was Proncipal Jone's office from down the hall. A cluster of footsteps proceeded toward me and I watched as two familiar-looking adults entered the room. I forced my photograph memory to remember their faces, but before I could, someone followed after them, and I realized quickly who they were.

Summer stood there, holding an empty cardboard box in her hands. She wasn't wearing the Academy's uniform, instead sporting a pair of Adidas sweatpants and a loose white top. Her golden-brown hair was pulled up into a bun, a very messy bun, I realized, which was unlike her. In fact, everything about her current appearance was unlike her.

Summers eyes landed on me almost instantly. She swallowed, visibly stiffening, her grip tightened on the card board box and I noticed her knuckles turn white.

"Do you want to meet us back at the front of the school after you've collected your stuff?" Her parents were asking her, although her gaze still remained on me, those deep blue eyes locked on mine.

She turned to face them quickly. "Uh, yeah, sure. I'll see you in a minute."

They left at that, and Summer watched them take a right turn the second they exited the admisntisrion building through the sliding doors.

"So you're really leaving, then," I spoke blankly, drawing her attention back to me.

Summer stared at her feet for a long while, allowing a small sigh to escape her lips. "You know I can't stay here, Damian. I've told you why."

I just shrugged, sending her a neutral look. "I'm not fighting you on it. I think it makes sense."

And I did think that, despite my friendship with her. Summer was a decent person, a nice girl who cared about people. She was one of the few people who I enjoyed spending time with. But despite all this I could still see the logic behind her decision to leave Gotham Academy. I understood it perfectly, and knew that if I were in the same position as her I'd probably do the same.

She looked at me quizzically, almost a little surprised that I wasn't yelling at her or trying to make her feel guilty like most people probably had. Most people including Sasha, whom although I knew hadn't meant to upset her, had acted out quite emotionally on that afternoon that Summer had confessed her decision.

"Thanks, Damian," Summer said quietly, a small smile gracing her lips as she fiddled with the box in her hands.

Then she glanced around the room, taking in the surrounding offices and the few other kids sitting in the reception area. "What exactly are you doing here, anyway?"

I replied bitterly, "Therapy."

She made a little "O" shape with her mouth, nodding her head understandingly. "Is this about the Drake thing?"

I folded my arms over my chest at that, clenching my jaw and letting out a small grunt. "Don't remind me."

She nodded again, and I noticed how her cheeks tinged pink. She then cleared her throat quite and straightened her back. "Well, I guess I'll see you around, then," she offered me one last half-hearted smile. She moved toward the sliding doors and I watched them open up.

She was about to leave when I jumped from my seat and said "Wait," surprising even myself with the randomness of my actions.

Summer turned, her face almost mortified at the idea that I still wanted to talk to her. I never understood why she acted so nervous around me. She was usually quite confident and easy going, but whenever I spoke to her she grew fidgety.

"Do you want some help," I blurted, and I found myself glancing at the clock above me, realizing that I had fifteen minutes until my appointment and therefore plenty of time to assist her.

Summer stared at me wide-eyed. She looked like she'd just seen a ghost.

"Oh, no, it's okay, I'm fi—," she began but I found myself cutting in with, "No, I want to help."

She continued to stare at me, mouth opening and closing like a fish. I wondered if she was going to say anything when she didn't reply for a solid ten seconds.

"Uh, sure," she eventually spoke, still seemingly startled. I saw that her cheeks had turned even pinker.

We arrived at her locker a couple minutes later. I held the box for her as she dialed her code and began to sort through her items.

She placed her notebooks in first, then some of her heavier textbooks, mouthing a "sorry" as I shifted my arms from the weight. It wasn't heavy, I just had to reposition myself in order to remain comfortable.

"You don't have to do this, you know," she kept telling me, causing me to roll my eyes for the fifth time in only a few short minutes. "Seriously, I can carry it myself, I'm actually a lot stronger then I look..."

I peered down at her tan, slender arms, forcing myself not to laugh at those words. "It's fine," I replied casually, trying not to make it a big deal. She seemed to think that it was some horrendously impossible task.

"Oh, god, I forgot about this," Summer suddenly breathed, bending down and pulling out a handful of fabric. She held the clothes up in the air, and I eventually realised that it is was the Gotham Academy cheer squad uniform.

Summer's voice shook as she said, "I don't know if you ever went to any games, but I was the cheer captain. The girls were all so supportive of me. They were really good, too. I was lucky to have been able to lead them."

I watched as she continued to stare at the navy uniform, her eyes appearing misty. She quickly shoved the clothes into the box and blinked repeatedly, then moved back to clearing the other items from her locker.

We were done in only a couple of minutes. Summer and I walked in a sort of peaceful silence back to the administration office.

"Thank you," she spoke quietly, her voice filling the empty corridor. She swept a couple loose strands of hair from her face and smiled.

I just nodded back, the cardboard box in my arms now full of her belongings. "It's no big deal."

She suddenly stopped walking, her sneakers squeaking on the tiles as she turned to me. I halted alongside her, shooting her a confused look.

"Damian, I just wanted to tell you that I appreciate everything you've done for me," she said very suddenly, her eyes darting to the floor and avoiding my gaze.

She then took a deep breath and added, "And I want you to know that I care about you. A lot. And I think you're a really good person with a good heart, even though you sometimes come off a little dark and mean."

At that last part she chuckled nervously, rubbing her arm and finally meeting my eyes. I didn't know what to say or why to do, I could only stare blankly back, taking in her tanned face, long lashes and freckled nose.

"I'm... I'm going to miss when you when I leave," Summer's voice cracked a little as she turned away from me. "I'm going to miss you, and I'm going to miss Rebecca, and for Gods sake, I'm going to miss Sasha so much."

She glanced at me quickly, blue eyes welling with tears. "Will you tell her that for me? Please? That I'll miss her? And I love her? And that I'm really sorry for how I acted that afternoon when I, well, lost it..."

I just nodded, unable to think of any words worthy enough for a response. Seeing her like this was giving me the urge to comfort her, to share my own wisdom on what she was currently struggling with.

"It gets better, you know," I replied quietly. "Trauma takes... time. You just need to allow yourself the time to heal, and slowly, things will start to improve again."

Summer reached a hand to her face and wiped at her eyes, her lip quivering slightly as she nodded her head.

"Thank you, Damian."

There was the sound of a door opening and the click of heels on the floor. "Damian Wayne? Is Damian here?" A woman's voice questioned from the reception area.

It was Mrs Keller, and I realized then that we'd actually ended up back at the administration building.

"I have to go," I told Summer, and I felt the pit in my stomach grow as I said that.

She nodded back, extending her arms as I carefully lowered the box into them, watching her struggle under the weight.

"You okay?" I checked, and she said she was. She wobbled a little as she took a couple steps toward the exit but managed to get there alright.

With one final glance toward me she said, "Goodbye, Damian."

I offered her the faintest smile in reply. "Take care, Summer."

And with that, she turned around and left, the sliding doors closing behind her as she didn't even look back once.

———————-

Sasha's P.O.V:

"Omg! Did he actually say that?" Rebecca's eyes were wide with joy as I relayed the conversation I'd with Hamish to her.

I nodded my head. "Yep, and then all his friends started to tease him, saying he thought you were hot."

Her eyes went even wider and she grabbed me by the shoulders. "They did?!?!?"

I just laughed and pried her fingers away from me. We were currently in the science lab, dressed in fancy white coats and gloves and goggles. We were dissecting a frog in partners, me and Rebecca up the front while Hamish was down the back with his friends.

"He'll hear you," I told her, still gripping her hands. I looked down at them and realized that they were covered in frog's blood. I dropped them like they were made of steaming metal. "Ew, you just got frog juices all over me!"

She burst out laughing at that, and I noticed the way Hamish's head snapped up at the sound of it. I made eye contact with him and smirked knowingly, causing him to roll his eyes as his cheeks went pink.

Rebecca said, "Promise you'll stay with me the entire time? I'm gonna be so nervous around him. I need you to be my wing-lady."

I nodded my head, though my gut clenched at the thought of being near Drake again. "Of course I'll be there," I assured her.

Even if it means seeing him...

"Thanks, Sasha, you're an angel," she threw her arms around me in a hug. It would've been nice if not for the frog juices though, and I shoved her off me quickly. "Cut it out, you're covered in dead animal!"

We continued to laugh at that until our boring-ass teacher yelled at us to shut up, though we couldn't stop the snickers that escaped our lips.

Lunch rolled around sooner than I expected. Rebecca joined me at my locker as I fished around for the lunch Alfred had packed me. Even though I was technically rich enough to afford the lavish food they sold at the cafeteria, Alfred's cooking always beat it by a mile.

"I haven't seen Damian much lately," Rebecca spoke randomly, glancing around the corridor as if he might suddenly appear. "How are things going with him?"

I almost dropped my food at her words. I realized then that I hadn't told Rebecca anything about us yet. It all happened so recently, especially the two kisses we'd shared the other night.

"Would you believe me if I told you I might have... kissed him," I winced, preparing myself for the scream I knew that would follow.

I was very much correct, because suddenly Rebecca's shrieks filled the corridor, startling everyone within a one-mile radius as she jumped on me and nearly knocked me to the floor.

"OH MY GOD WHEN?!?!" She screamed, her eyes wider than saucers and her jaw hanging open.

I laughed, trying to calm her as she jumped up and down. "Well, the first one happened about two weeks ago but then it happened again for real the other night--"

"WHAT?" She shrieked again, grabbing my face. "Why didn't you tell me? Oh my god, I'm so proud. I shipped you guys from the moment I met you. Holy shit, I feel like my life is complete now!!"

She squealed and let go of me, spinning around and doing a little dance. "And he's so hot, too! I mean, he's not really my type, but like, I'm not just gonna look past those muscles, 'cause damn girl," she made a fanning gesture with her hand, "That boy is like a greek god."

I just shook my head and giggled, turning back to my locker and closing it. "You could say that again."

We walked toward the cafeteria excitedly, and by excitedly I mean Rebecca did, not me. I was anxious as fuck, my heart beating rapidly as my throat constricted with each step I took.

For some reason I wished Damian was with me, which was stupid as fuck because I was a perfectly capable human being who could look after myself.

But that didn't take away from the fact that I felt safer when I was with him. It was crazy, because I was a trained assassin who could beat up a man with ease, yet I still wanted Damian to protect me. It just made me feel special when he took care of me.

As we approached the jock table I watched as Hamish's face lit up at the sight of Rebecca. Some of the guys who I knew from classes greeted me and so did Conner, making room beside him. I felt the eyes of all the other girls in the cafeteria staring at us, probably wondering why the hell we were sitting with the popular guys.

I was wondering the same thing, now that I saw Drake Henderson heading over from the opposite direction. He was surrounded by a couple of his meat-head friends, the tall, beefy and thick-minded kind of guys who only understood the language of sport and nothing else.

Drake took a long swig out of a coke can and scrunched it up, tossing it over his shoulder. One of the many cleaners scrambled over to it and picked it up off the floor. I felt disgusted even watching what had just happened. How could someone be that much of a spoiled dick that they littered on school grounds with the expectations that the cleaners would just rush over and clean up after him?

I was tempted to pull a gagging face, but I contained myself anyway.

"Yo, yo, yo," Drake greeted, sliding into a seat and making himself comfortable.

His mates all fist bumped and cheered at him, while Rebecca sent me a look from where she sat beside Hamish, clearly worried. Although I was terrified, I gave her a reassuring smile, telling her that I was fine. I didn't want her worrying about me.

"You okay?" Conner asked me, taking a large bite of his sandwich.

No, I wanted to say, but I didn't. "Yeah, why?" I asked nervously, pulling out my own food.

Conner just squinted at me. "I've known you since were little kids, Sasha. I can tell when something's wrong."

Of course he could.

I felt Drake's eyes burning in to me as I chewed, and I tried to pretend that I couldn't see him by turning to fully face Conner. "Well, I'm fine. Don't worry about me," I smiled at him, sneaking a glance at Drake.

I saw that he was whispering something to his beefy friends, his eyes narrowed at me. I also noticed how most of his face had managed to heal up well, though there were still some stitches on his chin and nose.

I swallowed a mouthful of my sandwhich and turned back to Conner. "Anyway, how are you enjoying GA? And your new family? Tell me everything."

Conner filled me in on the nice couple he'd been adopted by, Lilian and Michael McGregor. "Technically, my surname should be McGregor now, but we haven't gotten around to changing it yet. They said I didn't have to change if I didn't want to, but I do. Santiago has no meaning to me, I never even met my real parents."

I nodded at that, letting him continue. He spoke about how they live in this really pretty house with a couple acres of land like Wayne Manor. He said he could visit me frequently because it actually wasn't that far away.

"They have this dog called Roofus. He's a golden retriever, I think, and he really likes me. I take him for walks every morning and afternoon. He's really soft and cute," Conner said, pulling out his phone and showing me a photo.

I awed at the adorable picture a little too loudly, drawing the attention of most of the table who now wanted to see what it was. As Conner's phone was passed around I saw Drake leaning back in his seat and glaring at me. I was tempted to leave right then and there, but I didn't want to appear rude by running off.

"I'm just gonna go to the bathroom," I told Conner instead, hoping he wouldn't think anything of it. He nodded and I got up, quickly walking out of the cafeteria doors.

I just really needed to get away.

The hallways were empty as I headed toward the nearest bathroom. I twisted the loose strands of my plait around my fingers out of stress. I wanted to find Damian, wanted to talk to him, wanted to hug him, even. Being near Drake was sending my anxiety through the roof.

I had the worst feeling in my gut that something bad was about to happen to me, noting the quiet footsteps that echoed throughout the hallway. Someone, or rather two someones, were behind me. I shouldn't have been so worried, it could've been any random students.

But my intuition was never wrong. I'd been trained to detect these kind of things, and I knew when something was up.

So as I turned down a second corridor, I slipped into an open classroom before the students saw me. I heard them turn, muttering stuff to themselves quietly. I hid behind the door and peered through the glass.

It was Drake's friends, the meat-heads.

I shouldn't have been surprised.

oOoOhH cliff hanger

so in this chapter i rly wanted to incorporate some of summer and damian's relationship cause he has a lot of respect for her and she brings out a gentler side of him (not saying sasha doesn't but sasha is still an assassin and, well, sasha).

also i've found some of the funniest damian comic excerpts this shit is cracking me up and i just had to share them. i promise they're worth the read!!