#i redrew that shouldertouch panel for 2 hours

[damijon-supersons]

A safe place - by Jonathan Samuel Kent

He’s wearing a green mask, so you can’t see his eyes. But I know more than anyone that if you could, they’d look peaceful. One thing my super-senses are good for are noticing the little things, like how I can hear Damian’s heartbeat slow contentedly, and how I can see his posture soften the tiniest bit. Even with his mask on, I can tell—every time he glances my way, he can see something wonderful. It was something that you couldn’t see but it was real, something that lets Damian stop to breathe, to talk, to feel.

Every time he looks at me I know he sees it—a safe place.

Damian’s dad, my dad— Dick, Jason, Tim, Kara and so many others—keep saying that Damian got a lot more talkative ever since we became friends. Damian will try to deny it, but you have no idea how true that is. Just take it from someone who spends time with him on a daily basis. He’s loud, he’s rude, he’s snarky and sarcastic. He’s sometimes insensitive, speaks from his gut even if it hurts, he teases and complains.

But I know he talks because he feels he finally can.

Whenever we’re together, it’s so easy for him to say what’s in his mind. I can hear the hidden sounds he makes when he hesitates or has to think of his words to hide a lie, and whenever it’s just us, I don’t hear them at all. I’m not the dad that he wants to impress, I’m not his brothers that he wants to measure up to. He doesn’t have to prove anything to me, and maybe it’s because of that that his mind is free. And even when we end up teasing each other about every silly thing, I can hear the relief in his sarcasm and the comfort in his grin.

Some people ask me why I put up with him. My answer is always ‘I think I’m the only one who can’. I know better than anyone how easily people can find Damian annoying, and I know too well how people can easily hate him. But unlike them, I know Damian more than anyone could…because I know what it’s like. I know what it’s like to have a dad the world looks up to. I know what it’s like to be scared of never living up to their legacy. Because we had that in common, it was so easy to understand each other in ways besides that. It gave us a chance to know each other without the capes and masks.

Without the costumes, we were just boys—two kids who wanted more than what our dads said we could be. I knew, and his smile did too, that we’re the only ones who could ever see each other that way.

So are we really friends? You’d never catch Damian saying so. I can’t even say he’s my best friend. We don’t have to say anything, really. Just watch us together—even best friends don’t do the things we do.

Damian never really needed me as a partner in his patrols. In almost all our cases, he could’ve solved them alone. He could beat anyone I ever could, and he didn’t even need the superpowers I have. But what he did need was someone to talk to, someone to tell him his idea was genius or that his plan sucked so hard. What he needed was someone to jump with, to crash into the mud with, someone whose shoulder bumped against his when fighting together against ten other bad guys.  He needed someone to grab the prize with, or someone to rant to after losing. He needed someone to catch him when he fell and hold him close—and trust me, contrary to popular belief Damian appreciates hugs.

The truth is, Damian never wanted me as a partner, and he never needed me to help. What he needed was me…for me to be there.

And that’s exactly what I’ll be doing because I know more than anyone what his eyes looked like behind his mask. Every time he glances my way, I can hear the relief in his smile.

 I know that with me…he’s in a safe place.