{get ready, because this chapter is a mixture of heartbreak, awkwardness and a bit of comedy. }

[ a l i n a ]

Before I could comprehend anything, I was on the ground. My vision was blurry, all I saw was blood.

I couldn't hear anything.

My left leg is stinging. My shaky fingers brushes against it, and I wince.

She poisoned the blade. At this point, I have no faith in anything.

Suddenly my body was overshadowed by something large.

"Don't touch her." A deep, husky voice I didn't recognize spoke up. I look up, and my eyes widen at the sight.

Batman.

But how did he? What? How is he here in Valencia?

Where's Damian..

He wouldn't want to come anyway..

"Ah, of course you have located us." Talia sighs;

Whilst the bat figure slowly picks me up the ground, carrying me in his arms. I felt weak, my energy draining slowly.

This isn't a fair battle. She's more desperate and cowardly than I thought. Playing with poison? This isn't remotely funny.

"You'll be okay." He whispers to me, and all I can focus on is his eyes. Green.. I know those eyes.

Why does he seem so familiar, yet also distant.

"Leave her to me, son."

Son?! What in tarnation is going on?!

And suddenly, the mask opens automatically, revealing his face, and I gasp.

Damian.

But not the Damian I knew. He was no longer the boy I knew. He's now a full grown man. His boyish traits were gone..

His eyes deeper than the sea, a storm happening between those green teary eyes of his.

A stubble, and I notice a small scar by his neck. What have they done to him?

"I said, leave her to me." Talia insists, hair blown by the cold winter wind.

"No, Mother. She's not yours, she'll never be. You've done enough."

"You don't understand! Her abilities! She can destroy everything if she desires!" Talia shouts, desperation in her tone.

"That's where you're wrong. She won't."

I open my mouth to say something, but nothing comes out, just a shaky sound. He shushes me, and I slowly close my eyes, the effect of the poison slowly consuming me.

The next thing I remembered, it was dark.

_________

I woke up, from the sound of mutterings.

The light blinding my eyes, I see a figure.

An old man, tall, inspecting me, with a tray full of.. food?

I guess he is a butler.. I don't remember this room. And this butler.

But I know and remember every single butler? Did Taliana hire a new one without telling me? Oh, she's crossing the limits.

I try to sit up, but winces, pain all over my body.

"Ah.." I hiss, feeling a sharp sting by my leg. I stare at it, horrified. My leg has been wrapped with a white cloth, and I can't feel it.

"Master Damian told me to watch over you, Your Highness. He has some things to.. take care of. By the way, I am Alfred. And this may come as a shock to you, but you are currently in Gotham."

GOTHAM?! MASTER DAMIAN?! He brought me here!? To Gotham? How long had I been unconscious?

"You've been out for the past twenty-eight hours, and don't worry, I've already informed your family in Valencia."

I stare at him profoundly, nodding, then quickly realize something.

I'm in a goddamn night robe!

"Wait, please!"

"Yes?"

"Who.. changed my clothes?"

"Master Damian did."

My eyes widen, a sudden tinge of embarrassment taking over me. I shift in my position, my fingers twitching.

"Oh, and by the way, you're lucky. Master Damian usually never lets anyone in his room." He says, placing the tray onto the table, and walked away.

What just happened..? Dear God.. is this some kind of game planned by Talia, who happens to be his mother?

"You're awake." A voice startled me. Not just any voice. His voice.

I squint my eyes, not ready to see him.

He's changed. I can feel him sitting next to me, as his eyes raked over my body. I don't know what this means.

I finally open them, and his green eyes meet mine.

He's not the Damian I knew.. He doesn't look like himself. He's taller, bulkier, and definitely stronger. He has a stubble, which I found quite attractive..

"Why didn't you tell me, Alina? Was it that hard?" He asks, his tone as cold as the first time we've ever exchanged words.

I guess we are back to step one.

"I didn't know she was your mother. I didn't know he was your grandfather!" I tremble, still feeling the effects of the poison Talia gave me.

"I didn't know you were the subject. If I did, I would've cured you, a long time ago. I had the antidote." He speaks again, unwrapping the cloth that is covering my wounded leg.

"Why didn't you tell me?" I ask him, raising my voice. He continues anyways, as he examines my wound, his fingers brushing against it, and I flinch.

"Why didn't you tell me that you were related?" I ask again, tears brimming my eyes.

"Damian, answer me." I plead. I need answers.

"She might be related to me by blood, but she's nothing to me." He murmurs, eyes meeting mine.

"She killed my parents."

"I know."

"My brother went missing because of that." My voice breaks, remembering Michael.

"I'll tell you everything later, Alina, you need to rest." He stands up, taking a blanket, covering my body with it.

As our faces were only inches apart, I stared at him profoundly. I'm not willing to play this game right now. I'm tired of waiting.

"No. You're going to explain everything to me right now, Damian, whether you want it or not." He stays silent, eyes staring at me.

Fed up, I raise my hand,

And slapped him with all of my force.

I gasp. What have I done? He turns towards me, grabbing my arms, as I'm completely unable to move. I stare back at him, as my eyes starts to brim.

"Don't tempt me, Alina.." He murmurs;

And I feel his soft lips on mine. He kisses me slowly, gently, still holding both of my hands. I feel his soul pouring into mine with just a kiss. I kiss him back, but as soon as I try to free my hands, he pulls away.

"I'm sorry, I can't. I-"

"You're with someone, am I right?" My voice trembles, and I stop breathing. He nods, and that's all I needed. A small crack erupted from within me.

"Is it Olivia?"

"Yes, It's her." I stare at him dumbfounded, as he stares back at me. I should've known.. All this time, I-

I should've seen this coming.

He's in a relationship with Olivia Parker, my former best friend. What am I supposed to say about this?

"It's okay, you uh- look good together." I reassure him, my lips curling into a smile, and it hurts my cheeks. How long have I not been smiling?

"Thank you. I uh, should go. I wouldn't want to disturb your rest." He clears his throat, awkwardness hanging in the air, as he stands up, and not long after, disappears into the dark hallway of the Wayne Manor.

I should've known..

Damian Wayne could never love me. Two broken souls, could never find comfort in each other. Maybe Olivia is meant to be his, after all. I just hope he's happy with her.

__________

[ d a m i a n ]

"You broke up with her?" Dick asks me, as I stood against the wall, as I hear the sky raging. I nod, hands hidden in my pockets, eyes fixed outside.

"Okay.. I mean, I'm not against that idea, but.. Over message?" He sighs, cleaning up dishes. "It's nothing, Grayson. Besides, I have someone else on my mind." I shrug off, walking towards the dining table, helping him out. "Thank you for the meal, it was lovely."

"Damian Wayne is thanking me.. Am I about to die?" He chuckles, putting the dirty dishes in the dishwasher. Grayson's apartment was very much like him. Neat, also disordered, serious, yet funny looking.

I should be thinking on how to solve Alina's problem, yet here I am judging my brother's distorted apartment.

"Not you, someone is." I ramble quietly, not thinking clearly.

My mother. She's going to have a taste of me. She'll regret it. She'll regret everything she did.

"And that person should be terrified. When Damian is angry, all hell breaks loose." Grayson jokes, giving me a smile I haven't seen in a long time.

_________

[ a l i n a ]

"Let me out." I rasp at the dark haired boy in front of me, currently blocking the entrance, eating a bowl of what seems to be.. cereal? Who would want to eat anything as unhealthy as that?

"Damian wouldn't like that." He murmurs, placing the bowl onto the counter. So much from trying to escape through the kitchen door.

The front door was guarded by a cow.
A cow!!

The butler had told me his name; which seems to be BatCow.. And the surprising part is that he belonged to Damian! Along with a cat named Alfred, and a dog named Titus.

I need to teach Damian how to give better names.

This boy towered over me only by a few inches. Slightly tan skin, intimidating brown eyes, messy hair. Something about him made me want to punch him. Maybe I'm just hormonal. Why am I even hormonal?

"Dear Lord, I politely beg you, open this darn oak door, or else, you'll say hello to my fist."

"Jeez, woman, you're just like him, the devil spawn. Couldn't he find a sweet, angelic, maiden to soothe his anger problems? Now that I think about it, he does have some major anger problems.."

I contain myself from rolling my eyes, and I lift my hand.
Before he could process anything, he was slumped into the air. Don't worry boy, this orphan here also have anger problems.

"Powers? Okay. Maybe he did make a nice choice. My name is Timothy, you can call me Tim."

I snap my fingers, and he falls into the marble floor, grunting. I open the door, leading to the outside world, but stops abruptly.

I am in a night robe. What would they think of me, a Princess parading in the streets wearing fine lingerie? This is absurd. Completely absurd.

"Your Highness." Timothy taps my shoulder, and I turn around. "Here, wear this."

He grasps the end of his shirt, lifting it over his head swiftly, giving it to me. I raise an eyebrow, containing myself from coughing.

His toned chest is currently available for me to look at. And I do.

My eyes shift from his chest to his face, clearing my throat. This is awkward. I just want to be back home, curled up between my sheets, doing Nathan's work, or even working out. All fun stuff.

"Thank you. And please, call me Alina."

I close the kitchen door, leaving me and a shirtless Timothy alone in the kitchen. Still grasping his shirt, I try to walk past him, but the injury in my leg suddenly stings, and I fall down.

Before my body could hit the floor, he grasps me, his hands behind my back, pulling me closer to him;

leaving us in a very intimate position.

"Nice, uh, nice curves." He comments, and I hear someone clear their throat.

Not just someone.

Damian and Alfred, both completely mortified, stood by the door. A quick flash of anger was seen in Damian's stormy eyes before it diminishes, and Alfred is completely motionless, mouth slightly agape.

"This isn't what you think. She was trying to run away." Tim puts me back in my normal position, as I run my tongue across my teeth, trying to avoid the burning atmosphere, coming from Damian, whose burning stare I was hopelessly avoiding.

What is he possibly thinking..

"Hence why the awkward position? Let's not forget, you both are barely wearing clothes. I mean, if you would like to do it, it is completely fine! Just not in the kitchen, I cleaned it yesterday." Alfred walks away, a hidden smirk in his face, as he notices Damian's furious yet calm expression.

Damian strides towards us, removing his jacket, leaving him in a gray shirt, and black pants.

He places his dark jacket over my shoulder, as he murmurs. "Cover yourself." He walks past Tim, and I notice something.

They're the same height. Only Damian is slightly more muscular.

Damian glares at Timothy for a second, before striding across the kitchen, disappearing. What's the matter with him?

"He's fond of you." Tim smiles, eyeing me. I try to hide my reddened cheeks. "Don't be silly. He doesn't. He has a girlfriend." I scoff, my fingers tightening around the jacket, which comforted me, because it smelled of him, mint and strong wood.

"He broke up with her, a few hours ago. Don't forget, Your Grace, I'm the detective here. And besides, why would he be angry at me?" He smiles cheekily, before walking away, leaving me alone in the kitchen.

Not exactly alone.

I glance towards my right, and a black and white cat sits in the counter, eyeing me. "You must be Alfred the cat." I nod. The cat meows. "And I am insane, talking to a cat."

I huff, walking out of the kitchen, headed to Damian's room.

We need to talk.

__________

NEXT CHAPTER IS JUST.. NO WORDS.

FACT : I was giggling like a crazy teenage girl whilst writing this chapter. My grandmother could only sigh as she saw me like this. (She has very high expectations of me, which I probably won't ever fulfill it.)

DOUBLE FACT: This might be my favorite chapter yet. I just thought that this book needed a bit of comedy.  And this might be the longest chapter yet. A total of 2300 + words.

By the way, I really enjoyed reading some of your comments, please keep commenting, it brightens my day! Feel free to drop thoughts about the book here! Whether it's negative or positive, it's okay!

Thank you all so much for 7k, I'll see you in next chapter!

-Sophia