For Jaytim, could I request you write the fluffiest nap cuddles in the history of man? Or just something fluffy my dude, up to you. Louisa <3

glaciya:

I did something fluffy and a lil angsty because I feel like I’ve been writing a lot of jaytim cuddles lately, which is always wonderful but I don’t want do bore anyone with too many otp cuddles lol. Thanks for sending this in, I hope you like it!

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He’s not sure what it is that makes him take notice of Tim. It could be all his training as a bat, or it could be that B’s briefing is boring enough to make both his mind and his eyes wander.

It’s all the same stuff anyway.

A criminal escaped Arkham again so Bruce wants to take them down again and Jason is expected not to kill killers again. Lame, boring stuff. He’s too tired to argue, so he lets B’s voice fade into the background.

The batcave takes over his attention first, filling him with bitter nostalgia. It’s not a crushing as the first time he came back, so Jason figures he’s made some sort of progress at least. He remembers nearly trembling with excitement the first time he put on the Robin costume, hiding from Bruce and Alfred just so he could try and surprise them. He remembers polishing up the batmobile, lecturing B to be more careful next time he was in pursuit and wondering why his scolding had made Bruce smile. He remembers climbing on top of the T-Rex’s head to study for college placement exams he’d never get the chance to take.

He turns his attention to the rest of B’s little soldiers then, most of them are seated at the large table with Bruce. Bruce is at the head of course, Damian to his right and Barbara to his left. Next to Damian is Dick, Duke sits next to Barb, Steph and Cass are each three seats from Bruce, across from each other, and Kate sits on the end of the table opposite of Bruce. There are still two seats open in front of Kate. One to her right where Jason should sit, but he’s standing a little ways back from the table, leaning against the computer desk. Tim stands behind the one to her left, keeping it pushed close to the table and crossing his arms over his chest.

An odd thought strikes Jason then. A comparison. Jason’s self-imposed distance successfully separates himself from the family he’s no longer apart of. Tim’s distance almost makes it seem like he wants to be apart of the group and something happened to make him question his place with them.

It causes an odd ache in his chest that lasts throughout the rest of briefing and even after they start breaking off into patrol groups. Bruce and Damian head to old Gotham, Dick and Babs take on the Central Hall district, Steph and Cass cover Robinson Park, and Kate goes off on her own toward the Fashion district on the east side. That leaves Jason and Tim with the west side.

The ache intensifies when Jason slaps a hand on Tim’s shoulder and he tenses. It’s not quite a jump, but the way his muscles don’t relax under Jason’s palm and his wary gaze is somehow worse.

“Looks like we’re together for this one,” Jason says, ignoring Tim’s reaction. “Where should we start?”

Tim shrugs his shoulder out of Jason’s grip and takes a step back. “West side is plenty big. How about you start on the central border and I’ll start at the docks. We’ll meet in the middle when we’re done.”

“Yeah, or we could just stick together.”

A heavy pause, then, “Why?”

“Why not?” Jason frowns. “It’s less boring when you have a crime fighting buddy with you.”

“How would you know?”

“Ever heard of the Outlaws?” Jason scoffs before he continues. “Why does everyone think I don’t have any friends?”

This makes Tim laugh. It’s a quiet thing, almost like he’s scared of it. It makes Jason want to hug him. He resists though, knowing just based on Tim’s reaction to his touch earlier it wouldn’t be welcomed.

“Alright, we can patrol together,” Tim says slowly. “If you want.”

Jason grins. “Sweet.”

So together, they take on the streets of west side Gotham. Kicking ass, taking names, saving civilians, and trading quips. Jason shows Tim he can be trusted to have his back in a fight. He shows Tim that he trusts Tim to watch his back in a fight. They never disappoint each other. He makes a point of not letting silences stretch too long, making Tim laugh at even jokes that would earn Jason nasty looks from the rest of the family, and feeling victorious when Tim’s replies come quicker and his laughs more frequent.

By the end of it, Jason suspects that Tim hasn’t had this good of a time in a long while. He still hasn’t tried to touch Tim again, knowing anything unannounced would be unwelcome, so he tries something else instead.

Crouched on his heels on the head of his favorite gargoyle, Jason raises his right hand up, palm facing toward where Tim is sitting on the gargoyle next to him.

“High five for our first successful patrol together?”

Tim smiles and raises his hand to meet Jason, it’s a quick touch and it’s so gentle that the noise it makes is barely there, but it’s something. “First? Does this mean we’ll be teaming up more often from now on?”

“If you want.”

“I want. And you were right, you know.” Tim dangles his legs over either side of the gargoyle’s head and swings them back at forth. “It is less boring with a crime fighting buddy.”