"My heart and the elevator, a plummet inside a plummet."-Jonathan Lethem

~#~#~#~

Manual exercise was the worst. Especially after a strenuous week chasing criminals and beating some scumbags into the pavement. At this point, Raven's muscles were utter jelly, and she felt great satisfaction in imagining beating Robin like she'd beat those criminals...

She limped to the elevator, sweat dripping down her back and sticking to her forehead. If Robin ever did this again, she certainly would kill him.

No questions asked.

Raven despised working out. Despite the fact that it was good for her, she really didn't like being all sweaty in a room full of other sweaty people. The tense emotions and sore muscles really wore on her stamina.

All she wanted now was a hot shower and a good book. Nothing was more relaxing than curling up with a good book, and if anything was, Raven had yet to try it.

Okay, so perhaps meditation was up there. But reading won just by a nudge.

She punched the elevator button, leaning against the wall. It felt cool against her hot skin, and she sighed in happy relief while she waited. Seconds ticked by, and the elevator dinged, its doors sliding open.

Raven limped inside and pushed button the ops room floor, leaning against the rail. Ugh. She hated it when her legs hurt like this. It made walking unnecessarily difficult, and standing even worse. She thought about sitting, but the thought of moving more than she had to held even less appeal. So Raven remained put against the wall.

Right as the doors began to slide closed, she heard a yelp out in the hallway.

"Wait!"

She rolled her eyes and smashed the appropriate button, shooting Beast Boy an irritated glance as he hobbled in beside her.

"Thanks," he huffed, clearly as wiped as she was. Which was probably a good thing, seeing as he was less likely to make irritating conversation. Then again, when she was this tired, almost anything was irritating.

Raven nodded curtly, her gaze locked firmly on the floor meter. The elevator sputtered to life, swiftly flying upward. She relaxed as she watched the numbers tick by, her mind wandering to which book she should read tonight. Perhaps the theological one. Or maybe her poem collection, she hadn't read that in awhile... Oh! The fantasy. Raven loved fantasy novels. She'd never dare say so aloud; she had a reputation to uphold after all.

But fantasy was her favorite.

It was then that the elevator shuttered to a halt, its lights shutting off and the alarm bell immediately shrieking in Raven's ears. Her hands flew up to block the horrid sound from her ears, and she turned to Beast Boy. "What the hell just happened?"

Beast Boy shrugged, his expression miserable. "I dunno! Just make it stop!" he shouted. He looked almost ridiculous as he shoved his fingers into his ears, but from the biting pain coming off of him, the sound was probably hurting him more than it was hurting her.

"I don't know how!" Raven snapped desperately. She lurched forward, banging on the various buttons in hopes that the damn alarm would stop. By some utter miracle, it did, and there was sweet relief as quiet blanketed the elevator. Of course, that was before the horrible realization dawned upon Raven; the elevator wasn't working.

The doors hadn't slid open, meaning they weren't on the floor of choice, and the floor meter had unceremoniously stopped. Raven blinked up at it, hoping that she was just seeing things and that the stupid thing would start moving again.

But it didn't.

Before either of them could speak, Beast Boy's communicator started going off, and he scrambled to pull it out of his pocket. "Cy?" he croaked, peering down at the device.

"I got an alert that the elevator stopped. You okay?"

Beast Boy sighed and nodded. "Yeah, we're fine." For whatever reason, there was a nervous air about him, and he shifted uneasily from one foot to the next. Raven furrowed her brows, but said nothing.

"We?"

"Raven's here too." He flashed the screen towards Raven, so she could shoot Cyborg a death glare.

"Get us out," she demanded. Cyborg sighed, shifting in the frame.

"I'm working on it. But it's looking like it might take awhile. Can you teleport out?"

Raven huffed, adverting her gaze. "No," she ground out. "How long will this take?"

"An hour, maybe?"

"An hour?" Beast Boy cried. "What the hell are we supposed to do for an hour?" His voice shook a little, but Raven chose to ignore it.

"Just sit tight," Cyborg said. "I'll get it working as soon as I can." He ended the call before either of them could protest, leaving the two staring dully at the now black screen. Raven bit her lip and slumped to the floor. Great. This was just fantastic. First, they had a busy week of constant fighting and now she was stuck in the damn elevator.

Just her luck, it seemed.

There was a low growl, and Raven looked up just in time to see Beast Boy throw his communicator onto the ground and begin pacing. "Shit! Dammit, dammit!" He punched and kicked at the wall, his anger bubbling over into true panic. Raven watched in horrified fascination as Beast Boy clawed at his wall of choice, tears beginning to stream down his face.

A panic attack?

Raven slowly rose to her feet, stepping quietly over to him. She reached out, her fingers grazing his shoulder. "Hey," she murmured. Beast Boy jumped, whirling around to face her. His chest heaved as he panted, and there was a look of utter terror dancing in his expression. Raven carefully guided him towards the center of the elevator, tugging him down to the floor. "Breathe," she instructed. Beast Boy nodded, taking a few deep breaths.

Her eyes fluttered shut, and Raven focused on emitting a calming sensation. Slowly, the panic levels began to lower, and Raven opened her eyes. She looked up at Beast Boy, who seemed significantly calmer. He offered a shy smile, pausing to scrub away the remaining tears.

"T-thanks, Rae," he said, his voice quiet. Raven returned his smile, shrugging.

"We're friends, right?"

Her comment earned her a wider grin, and Raven relaxed at the complacent emotions pooling around them. It was then that she realized her hand was still draped over his. Raven felt her face heat up, but she couldn't find it in herself to move. Instead, she froze, her gaze becoming entangled in his. She'd never realized how...green his eyes were. How'd she never notice? They were really pretty, with different shades dancing in the artificial light. Somehow, she felt herself draw closer, her eyes fluttering shut. Their lips brushed, and Raven could feel his breath on her face.

It was then that the elevator decided to kick back to life, sending them both scrambling apart.

Of course, it only lasted for perhaps half a second before everything rumbled to a stop. Again. Raven had no idea if it was a blessing or a curse. Her whole face felt hot, and her heart raced. She felt both excited and terrified, and very, very confused.

Raven peeked up at Beast Boy. His face was flushed and his jaw slack as he sat and unabashedly stared. His emotions poured off of him; bafflement, confusion, excitement, bliss, affection. He was just as confused as she was, which provided some comfort.

But not much, seeing as how powerful and puzzling his emotions were. She was drowning in them, losing herself in his gaze once more...

The loud ringing of Beast Boy's forgotten communicator broke the trance. Beast Boy scrambled towards it, struggling to turn it on.

"Hey, guys, I'm gonna need you to force open the elevator doors," Cyborg said. Raven and Beast Boy looked at each other.

"Uh, why?" Beast Boy asked.

"'Cuz I think I got the elevator to the ops floor, so if you pry the doors open, we can getcha' out."

A mechanical groan echoed through the space, making both Raven and Beast Boy wince. Cyborg spoke again, raising his voice over the racket. "We're opening the ones on our side, so hurry up." The communicator clicked off again, leaving them in silence.

"Well, you heard him," Raven muttered, "let's get them open." She stood briskly, ignoring the brewing tension between them, and set to work. At first, she tried her magic, attempting to conjure dark energy to pry the metal doors open. Unfortunately the act made her dizzy and feint, indicating that she still had nowhere near enough energy to utilize magic. Luckily, a pair of warm arms wrapped around her, keeping her steady. She blinked up into the concerned face of Beast Boy, who stared down at her.

"You okay, Rae?"

Raven nodded. "Yes, thank you." She forced herself into motion, prying herself free of his firm grasp. "Magic's a no go," she muttered. "I'm too drained for it. So I hope you're ready to pry it open."

Beast Boy's gaze lingered on her, and he nodded. "Let's do this." He cracked his knuckles dramatically and set to work, grunting and growling as he tugged and pulled. Raven watched, admiring how his muscles bulged from the effort. He had nice muscles, Raven had to admit.

"Uh...you gonna help?"

She blinked. Oh. Oops.

Raven bit her lip and joined him, trying very hard to ignore his bemused stare. She refused to acknowledge how she'd just ogled him. Nope. Wasn't going to happen. Instead, she focused on throwing her weight into opening the damn elevator doors. Which, were surprisingly difficult to open. The two of them pulled and tugged, panting and groaning from the effort. Raven felt like her arms were going to fall off, when at last the doors opened with a jolt.

It wasn't much; just a gap. But the gap made it easier to get a grip, which made it easier to push them open more.

Of course, all that was revealed was a wall.

"Yo, B, Rae, you guys in there?"

Raven looked up. There was a slice of light at the top of the door, where she could see Cyborg's face peering down at them. "Yeah, we're here!" she said.

"Good. You need anything?"

Beast Boy shook his head. "Nah, I'm good."

"I'm fine as well," Raven murmured.

"Okay," Cyborg said. "Well, Star's right here, so let her know if you need anything." He disappeared then, light filling the emptiness. Raven and Beast Boy both fell silent, the bizarre tension between them rising back to the forefront.

There was a beat where they stood staring at each other, unsure of how to proceed. Raven bit her lip, her thoughts running a mile a minute. Should she ignore him? Look away? How? His gaze was rather enticing...

Get a hold of yourself! she thought. This is Beast Boy, for fuck's sake!

Raven huffed. "Screw it," she muttered, lurching forward and grabbing a fistful of his flimsy t-shirt before yanking him close and planting her lips on his. He stiffened a moment, a slice of shock bolting off of him, before relaxing into the kiss.

At first, it was slow. She explored his mouth, reveling in the minty taste lingering on his lips. His fangs brushed at her skin as he nibbled at her lip, making her shiver. Raven released her grip on his shirt, snaking her arms up around his neck and tangling her fingers in his thick hair.

Beast Boy responded by slipping his hands onto her waist, pulling her closer. His fingers brushed at her exposed skin beneath her tank top, eliciting goosebumps. Her skin tingled at his touch, and Raven yearned for more.

She was addicted.

The room felt suddenly hot, and Raven broke away to peel off her shirt. She wore a sports bra, of course, but the action must have caught Beast Boy off guard. He stared at her, wide-eyed. Raven felt a sudden shift in the mood, and the alluring flavor of arousal tainted the air around them.

Oops.

Beast Boy's gaze dragged down her body, his jaw tense as the lust brewed within him. He remained still, as though afraid to push any boundaries. Luckily for him, Raven was feeling very, very impulsive. She decided to blame exhaustion, because she had no other real reason for what she did next.

Raven reached forward, deliberately and slowly tugging at his shirt, peeling it off of him. She admired the sight before her.

While Beast Boy may not have had the best self image, it was undeniable that he was attractive. He was lean and fit, with well defined muscles that Raven had offhandedly admired on more than one occasion. Of course, there was no attraction involved in her admiration. It was just truth.

Beast Boy was good looking.

Well, now Raven wasn't so sure if there wasn't any attraction involved. The way she felt now as she traced his abs certainly contradicted that sentiment.

"What are we doing?" Beast Boy asked, his voice low and husky. Raven closed her eyes, shaking her head.

"No idea," she murmured. Maybe they should stop, think things through. But now, with weakened powers and a hunger she never knew she possessed, Raven didn't care. Thinking felt like a waste of time. Especially compared with what they could be doing. She looked up at him, reaching up to brush her fingers against his jaw. "Just kiss me."

Beast Boy obliged, kissing her hard. Things only heated up from there, and before Raven knew it, her clothes were discarded and forgotten on the elevator floor. No longer were they trapped; she was on cloud nine, gasps of utter bliss bubbling from her lips as Beast Boy pleasured her in ways she never imagined possible.

They were tangled up in each other, and nothing outside of them mattered. Just her, and him, and the way her body lit on fire as he kissed every inch of her skin. Raven was only aware of the cold metal floor on her back, the pressure of his body on top of hers, his breath on her neck. She thought that perhaps she felt a rumble beneath her, and maybe heard a gasp, but it all felt like a dream.

Everything but him, of course. He wasn't a dream. He was very much real, with his warm, firm arms wrapped around her. She sighed into his shoulder, feeling herself drift off to sleep, when she could have sworn someone draped a blanket over them...

Author's Note:

Well, here's a thing. Hopefully it's a good thing. Let me know what you think!

-vixensheart