| A Bargain | |||||
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| What: Dick pays an unplanned visit on Babs, and the two agree to try to get out more and be more human. | |||||
Richard's interests tend to take him all over Gotham, but he does spend a great deal of time at the Aerial Arts Club which encourages all to play and learn the Circus arts. Who better to help out than one of the 'Flying Graysons'? The trip back, however, brings him by the Clocktower and while he's gone past a few times, today his bike has had a different idea. The motorcycle has decided to cut out for some reason. Right in front. As if it wasn't going to ride by anymore unless he went inside.
Who says mechanical things don't have minds of their own?
A button blinks a few times on her console and Babs taps on it. The exterior camera comes up, showing her Dick's bike, and the Man Wonder himself. She looks surprised, but buzzes the front door open for him. It looks abandoned on the inside, but he knows that's a ruse. The elevator hidden in the back of the hallway, behind a sliding panel, works just fine.
When he hears the buzzer, he can't very well just move on. Dick looks at the door for a moment before he pockets the keys to the bike, grabs the helmet, and swings his gym bag over a shoulder before walking inside. He is familiar with the layout of the place and takes the elevator up to where Oracle should be waiting. Once it arrives and he steps out, he immediately offers, "Sorry...sorry...I honestly don't know what's going on with the bike. It was working just fine...don't mind me if I'm interrupting."
"Not interrupting, it's been a slow night," Barbara replies with a small smile. "What's wrong with the bike? Need me to call Triple-A?" she asks. She turns in her chair to watch him as he makes his way in. She has a cup of coffee clutched in both hands, with a bat-symbol on it. Her hair is in a ponytail, and she's in a Gotham U sweatshirt and shorts. It's a little chilly in here, because of all the computer equipment. "Coffee in the kitchenette, sodas in the fridge," she adds.
"Not too sure," Dick admits. He goes to the kitchenette and grabs a soda out of the fridge before he comes back out and pauses. He looks from Barbara to the soda and back before returning it to the fridge and getting some coffee. "Well, slow nights are good, right?" He comes over and sets his bag and helmet down in a corner somewhere. Pulling over a chair, he then goes to sit next to her, "Did you get a chance to get out at all? It's been pretty nice outside."
"Not tonight. I had classes til noon, then a shift at the library, then a nap before my second job," Babs quips with a smirk, gesturing at the computers. "You're not suited up tonight. Hot date?" she asks, both curious, and not really wanting to know if the answer is a yes. She sips her coffee and slides her glasses back down onto her nose.
"A class? In the summer?" Dick wrinkles his nose at the idea of that. He looks at the computer screens for a moment before he shakes his head, lifting the mug of coffee to his lips, "No date. I'm just on my way back from the club...there's a new kid's camp so they asked me to come give some help. I may go out tonight, but if it's quiet..." He looks back to Barbara, "If it's quiet, want to go grab some real food or something?"
"Well, I can't exactly attend full time, so it's either take a couple classes each semester and a few over the summer and graduate sooner, or skip summers and not graduate until I have gray hair," Babs says with a grin. She seems surprised at the offer, and it takes her a moment to make sure she isn't gawking at him before she responds. She glances at the monitors, then back at him. "I could do that. I can have any alerts patched through to my tablet. As long as you're ok with it if I have to leave for any emergencies?"
Richard Grayson pretends not to notice that Barbara might be shocked at the offer. "We won't go far...there's a good Thai place nearby, is that ok?" He then moves to take his mug...and whatever other cup that might be around over to the kitchenette for cleaning. "And if there's trouble, I'll probably want to get in on it too, so it's a deal." His grin then fades, "Crap, the bike. I can hail a cab if you want, or we can walk."
"Sure, Thai sounds good," Babs admits. She snorts at his comment and calls after him. "You can walk, I roll, Pixie Boots." She winks. "It's beautiful out though, so let's do the latter."
The bag and helmet are left inside then, "Pixie Boots?" Dick looks down at his motorcycle boots, "Really? You're going to go there?" There's a grimace and a roll of his eyes before he waits to walk with her at her pace. "I'll just put the bike inside when we get down there. Just don't roll over my foot."
Babs transfers to her racing chair, which works better outdoors, then leads them back down and out of the Clock Tower. "So, I've been busy, you've been busy. How is life treating you, Dick?" she asks, smiling a little as she glances over at him, maneuvering down the sidewalk.
Richard Grayson shrugs as he walks along with her, "Life? Well, it's...probably not that different from your's. I mean, when you have classes, I'm either called in for stuff with Bruce or some other jobs..." even though he doesn't really get paid for the work. It's more 'charitable work' than anything. "Then...I have my second job as well." It only takes him a moment to move the bike inside where it might be a little safer before he comes back out. "What about you? I mean...are you at least having some fun every now and again?"
"I like my work," Barbara replies. That's totally not the same thing and she knows it. "It's hard, sometimes. After I sit there thinking of everything I have to do and go through to go out somewhere, usually it just weighs up much heavier than staying here at the tower with some microwave popcorn and a DVD." She shrugs a little.
"I like my work too," Dick picks up on the evasion, "But that's not what I asked." His hands go into the pockets of his jeans as he walks along, "You know, I'm not that far away. If you want to catch dinner or movie or a show or something, you can call, you know."
The Genie says, "All right, you cheeky little monkeys. If you want to use extremely naughty words, you may now say them on the Adult Channel. Remember, no racism/sexism/etc. types of offense permitted, but otherwise, ANYTHING GOES on the adult channel. (addcom adult=Adult-NC17)"
"Really?" Barbara asks, surprise evident in her voice. "That'd be nice, Dick. I know things have been," she grimaces, "weird for us since I stopped running the rooftops." She pauses in front of the Thai place. "I don't want you to do this out of pity. Promise me you won't make me an obligation."
Richard Grayson sort of mock scoffs, "Pity? Please. I want some Pad See Yew." On a more serious note, he answers, "I know things are weird. I'm trying to un-weird it...for me. If you want. It's just..." and he might be eating by himself for saying this, "It just doesn't seem like you. Cooped up inside all the time, staring at the computer screens...a sweatshirt."
Babs looks down at her sweatshirt and blushes. "It's laundry day," she lies. "I'm not really me though. Not the me I used to be," she states, her chin coming up and her jaw tightening. "I'm better. I have more of a purpose and more focus. What I do now stretches much further than what I did back then, Dick. But I'll try to be more social now and then, ok?"
Richard Grayson is quiet a moment before, "Ok. I know it's sort of the pot and kettle," since he also has his own focuses and can get to brooding at times. "But if you'll try...I'll try too." And he'll leave it awkwardly at that before opening the door for Barbara.
"Deal," Barbara agrees, before she rolls into the restaurant and can relax enough to enjoy the evening.