Hey guys! This is my first ever attempt at writing fanfiction (though I've been an avid reader for a while) and I'm kind of nervous about putting my work out there, but you've inspired me to try my hand! My experience with Batman is sort of a mix of comics, TV shows, and movies so please bear with me if I make some mistakes. I hope my portrayals aren't too terribly OOC.

The first time that Dick smiles at him takes Jason off guard because until then he'd never seen the older boy smile. Their relationship is tense and angry on both sides, neither boy willing to make the first step in repairing it. But it's fine because Nightwing works in Bludhaven anyway and it's not like Jason needs his approval anyway, or at least that's what he tells himself. But a small part of him can't help but be a little stung by his predecessor's distance and anger, because he knows that gaining Nightwing's approval will be the first step in gaining Batman's.

So when he finishes up a training exercise, some stupid acrobatic thing that Jason doesn't understand why Batman makes him do it, he's surprised to find Nightwing watching him. The expression on the older boy's face is odd, a mixture of pain, longing, grief, and something else Jason can't decipher. He just stands there for a moment, feeling awkward and unsure because this is the first time that he hasn't seen anger on the former Robin's face.

There's a long silence and Jason is just about to turn and leave when Nightwing finally speaks and he freezes because those aren't the words he'd expected to hear. Criticism on the few stumbles he'd made, some snide comment about how he's just a kid, something angry that will hurt despite how much he tells himself it doesn't. But certainly not the hesitant whisper that comes out so much softer and younger than he's ever heard the black and blue clad vigilante ever sound.

"It suits you," is all Nightwing says, but it makes Jason's heart soar ridiculously high. The older boy offers him a small smile, one that doesn't quite reach his sad eyes, and then turns to leave. Jason doesn't move for a long time, shocked by the words and the smile, and wondering why he feels like a huge weight has just been lifted.