Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Dick can’t really put into words how much he’s missed doing this. Well, he supposes he could try voicing his thoughts if he stopped what he was doing and if he really wanted to… but his mouth is -thankfully- a little occupied at the moment. 

“Ah, Dick…” Conner pants, and even those two words come out ragged, breathless. 

One hand caresses Conner’s bare thigh, the other is wrapped around the base of Conner’s cock, or what he can reach of it. He runs his tongue over the tip before he wraps his lips over the head and sucks a couple of times, gentle, experimental. 

Conner’s muscles tighten. He lets out the softest of moans, and Dick -shirtless and on his knees between Conner’s legs- sucks harder, lowering his head to get more of Conner into his mouth.

It’s not exactly the easiest task, and it’s not because Dick is a little rusty. Sure, he hasn’t sucked anyone off in what feels like a very long time, but Dick knows what he’s doing. He loves it, mind you, so no, he’s not the issue. 

The issue -not that it’s even a bad one- is that while Dick has seen and had longer cocks, he doesn’t think he’s had one quite this wide. 

Because… Fuck. 

Conner is thick, heavy, and still big enough that Dick knows he won’t be able to take it all in one go. As if his mouth getting tighter and tighter every second wasn’t indication enough.

God, Conner has such a fat, perfect cock. Dick can’t help but think that it’s a good thing Conner is his boyfriend, because he’s going to need to shove this cock down his throat a lot after this first taste, and telling that to a casual fling might have been awkward. 

But he doesn’t want to think about the hypothetical. All he wants right now is to enjoy the moment, and so Dick hollows his cheeks, bobs his head up and down and shudders at how full his mouth feels.

His tongue traces the underside of Conner’s cock, and he hears Conner gasp. He jerks his hips, and Dick has to let go of the base of his cock to steady himself with both hands on Conner’s thighs. He keeps taking Conner into his mouth, thin lines of drool sliding down the shaft.

“Dick—” Conner calls. His name comes out hoarse, but there’s a sharp edge to it that makes Dick pause and flick his eyes up to see him. 

“Dick,” Conner repeats. His face is red, and the blush has spread down to his chest. He’s breathing hard, his eyes bright and clear pools of blue, but the way his lips are curving down…

Dick lets Conner’s cock slip out of his mouth with a loud, wet pop. It makes Conner twitch, muscles tightening. He immediately regrets stopping.

“What?” he asks, trying to focus. There’s blood roaring in his ears, drool dripping down his chin. His skin feels as hot as Conner looks. His own cock is twitching, hardening under his shorts. He shifts on the ground, spreading his knees wider and sinking lower into the carpet.

Conner stares back at him, looking overwhelmed. He opens his mouth, breathes hard for a few seconds, then closes his mouth again. He flushes a darker shade of red, and ends up shaking his head in silence. 

Dick wipes the drool off his face with the back of his hand, thinks about behaving himself, then decides he really doesn’t want to. 

“What?” he tries again. He wraps one hand around Conner’s cock and presses the tip against his mouth. He gives the head a couple of long, leisurely licks, then begins licking his way down.

Conner lets out a choked sound. He shifts again, and Dick smiles, dragging his tongue down the shaft. 

“I’m listening,” he offers. He brings his other hand to cup Conner’s testicles, holding them for only a moment before he flicks his tongue across them. 

Conner hisses. “Damn it. Dick.” 

“‘M listening,” Dick whispers, and he really is, even if most of his attention is now on getting Conner’s balls into his mouth, rolling them around with his tongue. 

Conner throws his head back. Dick watches him swallow hard. His hands, which Conner had been careful to keep on the couch, dig into the cushions. 

It’s the first time Dick gets to see Conner like this. It’s the first time he gets to make Conner feel like this. Dick has for sure noticed how attentive Conner is with him, how much Conner prioritizes making him feel good, giving him what he wants. Everything they’ve done since the first time on the sofa has been mostly about Dick, and he’s… mostly okay with that. 

He likes the attention. He likes how much Conner cares. He loves how Conner makes him feel like he’s the center of the world, but Dick still doesn’t like the fact that Conner almost always finishes himself off. He really, really dislikes that. It’s not fair, and with how much Dick enjoys making his partners come… it just won’t do, especially not today. 

So Dick works hard. He keeps doing what he’s doing: he kisses and licks his way back up after a while, sucking and slowly pushing more and more of Conner down his throat. He listens, and he watches. He takes note of what makes Conner gasp and grunt or groan, of what makes Conner’s hips jerk or his legs close around him. 

And it’s fucking bliss. 

Even though he’s a little out of practice, he powers through with nothing but sheer will and determination. He makes sure he can swallow all of Conner’s cock, his nose bumping against Conner’s groin, and that gets a string of curses out of Conner that Dick never thought he’d hear. 

A little bit smug by having managed to crack Conner to that point, Dick enjoys the feeling of the head bumping and stretching the back of his throat. Tears start pooling in his eyes, and he breathes in through his nose. He swallows, and when Conner’s automatic reaction is to thrust forward, Dick remembers that as much as he’s loving this, he’d asked Conner to fuck his mouth, and that is not happening yet. 

Emboldened, Dick lets Conner’s cock slip out of his mouth, one slow, torturous inch at a time. He rolls his eyes up again and finds Conner staring down at him, looking… wrenched between pleasure and concern. 

… But why would he be concerned? 

Dick sucks on the tip one last time before he lets Conner’s cock slip out completely. He breathes hard, wipes at his eyes and looks up at him, a question in his eyes. 

Soon enough, Dick gets his answer. 

“Are you… okay?” Conner asks, voice rough. His eyes are as dark as Dick’s ever seen them, and there’s a light sheen of sweat on his skin. His cock is still standing hard and red and perfect, but somehow he manages to lean over to cup Dick’s cheek, pressing his thumb against Dick’s mouth. He asks it with so much unnecessary worry that Dick has to blink a couple of times to make sure he heard right. 

“M-Me?” he sputters in disbelief, and then has to stop and cough to get his throat working again. 

Conner holds his face all throughout, eyes never wavering from his face. Dick wipes more tears and saliva from his face when he stops coughing, then stares up at Conner, torn between annoyance and bewilderment. 

“Why would you… why would you ask me that?” he asks. Why would he? Why is Conner so concerned about something so silly in this particular moment? Why would Conner care? Can’t he see that Dick is having the time of his life suck—

“Sorry,” Conner says, and he looks even more concerned. “I shouldn’t… I wouldn’t want to presume… I just want to make sure that you’re not… that I’m not…” He pauses, takes a deep breath. 

“Making you uncomfortable,” he finishes, unhappy. “Or, you know… uh. Hurting you… in any way.”

Dick’s tumultuous thoughts screech to a halt. His mouth drops open, and he has to blink again, because there’s no way he heard that right either. 

Hurt him?

… Hurt him? 

Had another man told him that, Dick would have flat-out laughed in their face and gotten to his feet. He’d done it before. Two times, in fact. 

Neither of them had been huge enough to warrant the ‘warning’, and the thought never even occurred to him. Dick had straight-up cackled and picked his clothes up from the floor after hearing it. He knows the two jerks had tried using it as dirty talk. Instead, Dick had simply laughed at their stupidity and inflated egos. 

He had no patience for cringey bullshit like that back then. He doesn’t have the patience for it now, except he knows at his core that this isn’t Conner trying to impress him. It’s not Conner trying to intimidate him, either. This isn’t even Conner trying too hard overall. 

It’s… a genuine concern, for some reason. 

And the only reason that Dick thinks Conner would consider it in the first place…

Have you hurt someone before? Dick thinks, but he can’t imagine how. Sure, Dick knows it’s going to be a tight fit no matter where Conner’s penis goes, but with how careful and sweet and infuriatingly considerate Conner is all the goddamn time…

Had he really hurt someone before? 

… Or had someone told him he’d hurt them, even when he hadn’t? 

Thinking back to what he knows about Conner’s very few partners, what Tim had said about Conner’s almost-fiancée and the fire academy, Conner’s own admission at his lack of knowledge when it came to oral sex… and even the way he behaves overall in situations like this… 

Dick is inclined to believe it’s the latter.

And even though Dick doesn’t know who the girl was, is or will be, he feels annoyed. And even though he has no idea what Conner thinks of her at this point in his life…

No, he can’t think about that right now. She -whoever she is- is not here. He is, and Conner is, and this isn’t about her. This is about them. 

Determined, Dick flattens his palms on Conner’s thighs and raises himself on his knees, spine straight. “I’m fine, Conner,” he says, and the words are a promise more than a statement. “I’m more than fine. You’re not making me uncomfortable, and I can guarantee you won’t hurt me.”

Conner’s brow twitches, almost like he wants to frown. “You don't know—” 

“I know you won’t. I know you wouldn’t.” Dick scrambles his fuzzy brain for what to say next. He likes a little pain sometimes, but this is not the moment to bring it up. “And if anything you do… if it does make me uncomfortable… if anything, for any reason, does hurt… I will let you know.” Dick meets his gaze, hoping Conner can comprehend how much he means it, but more than that, how much Dick trusts him, and how much he wants this. 

Conner presses his lips into a thin line. He searches Dick’s face, trying to find something, but Dick isn’t sure what. Fear? Doubt? Hesitation?

Well, too bad. Dick won’t give him any of that, and when it becomes clear to Conner that Dick isn’t going to back down or flinch, he nods, rubs Dick’s lip with his thumb again. 

“What—?” Conner asks, and pauses. His throat works. “What do you want, sweetheart?”

Dick’s shoulder loosens, and the tension melts out of his body as he sinks back onto the carpet. He smiles up at Conner, relieved and excited. He runs his hands over Conner’s thighs.

“I told you,” Dick says. “Fuck my mouth, and then fuck me.” Something occurs to him, and even though he’s not sure how it’s going to go over… he thinks his chances are pretty good. 

“If you can, of course,” he adds, and gives a wider, cheekier smile. 

As he’d hoped, Conner freezes at that. Dick keeps on smiling, and after a moment, Conner raises one eyebrow, the concern on his face giving way to something lighter, more open and playful.

“... Excuse me?” he asks. The thumb pressed against Dick’s lips immediately digs into his skin a little harder. 

Dick flutters his eyelashes. Bingo. “Pretty sure you heard me, Kent.”

“Did I?” 

“Yup. I mean, you did say that you don’t usually get tired easily, and that you can last longer, so…” Dick lets out a thoughtful hum. “You’ll still be able to fuck me after you come in my mouth, right? Unless you’ve got a longer recovery period. I mean, I know you’re a few years older than me, but I don’t think you do, because I’ve seen—”

“Oh my God,” Conner interrupts with a short, incredulous laugh. “Dickie, you… you’re just…”  He searches Dick’s face again, and some of the amusement seeps away. 

“Is this really what you want?” he asks. 

Dick doesn’t even blink. “Yes,” he states, and because he can’t help himself, “But I do understand if in the end you can’t last longer than—”

“For heaven’s sake. Come here, Grayson.” 

“Happy to,” Dick says, and shifts his weight. 

“Actually, no. Wait.” 

Dick stops moving right away. Conner settles a hand on his shoulder, and they stare at each other -Dick, expecting, Conner, deliberating- until Conner looks away first. 

Dick waits. He watches Conner struggle for a little longer, but then he nods, takes a deep breath. 

He pushes at Dick’s shoulder, and their eyes meet again. 

“Stay down,” Conner says. “And open your mouth.”

Dick’s heartbeat picks up. He feels his face grow hot, and something low in his belly stirs. 

“Yes, sir,” he says. He sinks back into the carpet as low as he can, opens his mouth, and sticks his tongue out. 

Conner checks one last time, tracing Dick’s cheek with his knuckles, asking if this really is okay. After Dick nods with all the determination and frustration in the world, Conner grabs his cock in his palm, presses it against Dick’s lips and pushes himself inside. 

It’s different from what he'd done earlier, swallowing Conner down. He’d been controlling the pace then, working his mouth and throat around the length and width, familiarizing himself with the feeling and taste. He’d taken it slow, mostly because he’d been enjoying Conner’s reactions. 

Conner, however, doesn’t give him the time or space to enjoy that any longer. 

Instead, he tangles his fingers in Dick’s hair, tilts his head back and begins moving. 

He builds the pace slowly, consistently. The first few movements are shallow, a little awkward, as if Conner isn’t quite sure what he should do or how far he should go. He keeps it slow and gentle, testing the waters, letting out a cascade of filthy sounds that sound like music to Dick’s ears. 

He keeps pushing at Dick’s limits, deeper each time, and when he finally realizes Dick can and will keep taking him without protesting, his breath hitches, and he finally starts fucking Dick’s mouth. 

He goes at it hard, fast and, at long last, relentless. 

 Dick takes it, and he does it with unabashed relief and sheer happiness, because fuck, he’s missed this so much. 

He’s missed a strong pair of hands gripping him hard, holding him in place. He’s missed the illusion that he can’t pull away. He’s longed for the feeling of his mouth being full to the brim and stretched out like this.

He likes feeling like he can’t take it any further, or for much longer, but knowing he can, knowing he wants to. He’s missed the sting in his eyes when it sometimes becomes too much, how his body feels like it’s burning up from how aroused he is, the heat tightening in his belly and simmering right beneath the surface.. 

And the fact that it’s Conner this time -his ever-serious, ever-cool, ever-careful Conner- doing this to him right now, holding him in place and using him as he sees fit while raw, deep sounds of pleasure spill from his lips…

Dick loves this so damn much. 

 “Oh—fuck,” Conner gasps, voice strangled. His hands tighten on Dick’s hair, and he thrusts back into Dick’s mouth. 

Dick’s fingers dig into Conner’s thighs, unable and unwilling to speak. He rolls his eyes up, has to blink tears away before Conner’s face comes into focus. 

He sees Conner, flushed even deeper than before all the way down to his rising and falling chest. His hair is matted to his forehead by sweat, his eyes have turned such a dark and feverish shade of blue…

Dick shudders, from the top of his head down to his toes. He loves seeing Conner like this, unbothered, untethered, free. 

He tries to let out a groan, but he can barely breathe. His throat works against his will, and Conner’s grip on his hair becomes almost painful as he shoves himself into Dick’s mouth once again. 

“Dick. Don’t,” Conner manages. Dick swallows again, this time on purpose, and Conner’s rhythm falters. 

“Dick, don’t. If you— I’m going to— I can’t—” Conner chokes out, and the impatient edge to his voice is what Dick wants to keep hearing. 

Dick keeps his attention on Conner, the sudden frustration that flicks across his face, and then he squeezes Conner’s thighs again. He braces his knees on the floor and tilts his head back. 

Conner understands right away. With visible effort and a sharp click of his tongue, his grip on Dick’s hair loosens, and he holds Dick’s head as Dick pulls back, Conner’s cock slipping out of his mouth with an obscene and wet sound. 

“Do it,” Dick says. His voice is barely audible, his throat already raw. His jaw doesn’t ache yet, so it’s still not enough. He coughs as he tries to say something else, and then Conner’s hands are on his chin. 

“Dick,” Conner says, and there’s a flash of worry amidst the heat. 

Dick can’t have that. He won’t have it. He wants more of this Conner. He wants to keep on making Conner feel like this. He wants Conner to fall apart. 

“Do it,” he repeats, and he holds Conner’s eyes as he wraps one hand around Conner’s cock and brings it to his lips again. 

Even as he’s swallowing the rest of Conner’s cum, Dick can still feel him stretching his mouth out, thrusting as far as he could. His jaw is already aching, and his throat burns in the best way possible. It had been exactly what Dick needed. 

He knows a lot of people don’t like swallowing, and he doesn’t blame them. The taste isn’t anything to gossip about, but it’s not about the taste itself. He likes swallowing. He likes knowing he made his partner come. He likes taking them to that breaking point and then sucking them dry. 

And he’s going to enjoy this first time with Conner down to the very last drop. 

“You’re… unreal,” Conner pants, leaning back on the couch, head tilted towards the ceiling.

Dick, still kneeling between his legs, licks his way up Conner’s balls and softening cock one last time. It makes an oversensitive Conner jump. 

“I’ll take that as a compliment,” he says, voice still very hoarse. He braces his hands on Conner’s thighs and pushes to his feet. His own cock bobs underneath the shorts he’s still wearing, but he doesn’t pay it much mind. Instead, he slings one leg over both of Conner’s and settles himself on Conner’s lap. 

Conner lets out a soft and nervous laugh when Dick’s ass rubs against his cock. He wraps his arms around Dick’s waist and raises his face. 

Dick dives in for a kiss right away, even if he shouldn’t. He knows he must look and taste like a mess. He spilled more tears, there’s saliva everywhere, and he must taste like cum, but it doesn’t stop him from kissing Conner like he wants to eat him. 

And much to his surprise and delight, it doesn’t stop Conner from pulling him closer and kissing him back with the same intensity. 

“It’s not a compliment,” Conner murmurs, running his hands over Dick’s back. “It’s the truth. You’re… fascinating. Amazing. Beautiful. God, Dick, you’re… exquisite.”

The words go straight down to his cock, and Dick grinds down on Conner’s lap, bites down on his lip. “Maybe you’re just riding the afterglow, babe,” he says, and he’s kidding, at least  for the most part. 

“A little bit,” Conner admits with an airy laugh. He grabs Dick’s face between his hands and kisses him again, hard enough to make Dick’s jaw ache even more. 

“But you are exquisite, sweetheart. Absolutely, completely,” he goes on. 

Dick would melt if he could. He can’t, but his insides still turn gooey. 

God. Why does Conner have no regard whatsoever for Dick’s poor heart?

“You can’t say that. You haven’t fucked me yet,” Dick hears himself say. Because he can’t help it, because he doesn’t know what else to say, he grinds down harder on Conner’s lap, which draws another airy laugh out of Conner. 

“I don’t think one thing has to do with—” Conner begins, but Dick shakes his head and dives in for another kiss. 

“Fuck me,” he whispers against his lips. And then his impulses get the better of him again. “Unless you need a longer recovery time, of course.”

Conner stops laughing. His hands move back down to Dick’s waist. 

Dick studies Conner’s face, expecting to see annoyance. Instead, all he sees is a big and dopey smile. 

And that’s just not fair. 

“My recovery time is just fine,” Conner says, but the words don’t have any bite to them. He does the silliest thing: he kisses the tip of Dick’s nose, then follows it up by saying the hottest thing: 

“I’ll fuck you,” he says. He moves his hands to Dick’s thighs and gets them off the couch, catching Dick’s lips in another kiss as he does. 

Dick wraps his arms and legs around Conner’s neck and waist and moans into his mouth. 

“My room is—” Dick begins. 

“I know,” Conner assures him, and he takes them there.

Dick isn’t sure if too much or too little time passes. All he knows is that one moment Conner is still holding him upright, and the next, he is on his bed with Conner climbing on top of him. 

“Yes,” Dick breathes, grabbing fistfuls of Conner’s hair and pulling him close and slipping his tongue into Conner’s mouth. 

Conner lets Dick explore his mouth while his hands work on getting Dick’s shorts and underwear off. Dick raises his hips to help, and he shivers when Conner runs his hands over his bare thighs, then moves down to cup and squeeze his ass. 

“Do you—?” Conner starts, and after thinking for a second, Dick nods. He stretches out one arm, reaching blindly for his nightstand. He knows he’s got lube in there, not because he went out recently to purchase some, but because it’s been there since the last time he had someone over. The stupid thing is most likely the chocolate delight that had become a running joke between him and Jason. 

Jason, who’d been the only one Dick had allowed into his house, the only one he’d wanted there.

Until now. 

And if Dick has it his way, he’s not letting Conner leave any time soon. 

“I’ve got it,” Conner murmurs. He stretches his arm out, reaches past Dick’s hand and pulls open the drawer Dick had been trying to get to. He rummages inside, then pulls something out and holds it up to the light. 

And of course, it’s indeed the fucking chocolate delight. 

“Oh God,” Dick groans, and feels his face burn in embarrassment. A laugh bubbles up his chest, and he hides his face against Conner’s shoulder. 

“Dick?” Conner wonders. 

The laugh spills from between his lips, and he kisses Conner’s shoulder to calm himself down. “Sorry.”

“Are you… okay?” 

“Yes. Yes. I’m feeling so good,” Dick says, and ducks his head. “Just remind me to get a different type of lube from here on out, please.”

Conner blinks at him, confused. “Do you not like… the chocolate flavor?” 

Dick almost bursts out laughing again. “You don’t seem like a chocolate guy to me, that’s all,” he says. He tangles his fingers on the short hairs on Conner’s nape. “This is taking too long, handsome.” 

“What about condoms?” Conner asks. “I didn’t touch anything that felt like condoms, and… I’m sorry, I’m really not in the habit of carrying them with me… which seems kind of dumb given that—” 

“Conner, shut up and fuck me. Please.” Dick kisses his chin. “Or do you want me to beg? Because trust me, I will.” 

Conner almost collapses on top of him. “What? No, Dick I didn’t mean—” 

“Please, baby.” 

Conner sucks in a sharp breath. His body goes rigid, and Dick smiles. Flustering Conner is becoming one of his favorite things to do. 

Several seconds go by, and then Conner tilts his head so he can narrow his eyes at Dick. 

“You’re having a lot of fun, aren’t you?” he muses. 

Dick shrugs one shoulder. “Not enough. You’re not inside me yet.” 

Conner almost chokes on his own saliva, but he recovers quicker this time and shakes his head.  “I know we’ve been doing lots of things before… and technically I know what to do, but… you need to tell me if I do something I shouldn’t, or something you don’t like, or the way I do something. Just… tell me, okay?”

Dick nods fervently, swept by Conner’s nervousness and his earnestness. “Yes, sir.”

Conner huffs. “You’re shameless, doll.”

“If you say so, sir.” 

“Oh my God,” Conner laughs, uncapping the lube as he does. 

Reluctantly, Dick has to let go of Conner so Conner can stretch him out first. 

“It’ll just hurt if we don’t do this first,”  Conner points out, settling himself between Dick’s legs. He pumps Dick’s cock with one hand, slides his other hand and lube-covered fingers down Dick’s scrotum and between his ass cheeks, his touch gentle. 

Dick squirms on the bed, spreads his legs wider. “Why does it— ah, kind of sound like you have personal— uh, experience, too?” 

Conner’s fingers graze his hole, and Dick jumps at the sudden touch. Conner lets out a soft hum, then starts rubbing and pressing his fingers against it.

“A little bit,” Conner says, and doesn’t elaborate. He keeps his touch gentle as he probes the tight ring of muscle. 

Dick squirms, a question forming in his mind. He moves his hips, not sure if he’s trying to push his cock into Conner’s hands or his ass onto Conner’s fingers. He knows it’s not the best idea. It really has been a while for him. He knows his body and muscles are tense, and no matter how impatient or willing he is, it will be painful -and not in the way he enjoys it- if he isn’t loose enough. 

“What does that… mean?” Dick manages. He’s distracted, but what does ‘a little bit’ mean? If Conner hasn’t been with another man… does that mean toys? 

And does it involve that same girlfriend? 

Conner lets go of Dick’s cock, but before Dick can get too wrapped up in his thoughts, Conner leans over him, placing his forearm next to Dick’s head. 

“Is that really something you want to talk about right now?” Conner asks, kissing the tip of his nose. He pushes a little bit harder at Dick’s entrance, and Dick’s breath comes out in a whoosh. 

“Keep going,” he murmurs, and wraps his arms around Conner’s neck again. “And— uh, yes, I want to know.” 

“Right now?” Conner verifies. Slowly, so slowly, he pushes a finger inside. 

Dick arches his back. His muscles protest the intrusion right away, and his hips move out of their own volition. “Yes,” he whispers, and he’s not just answering Conner’s question. 

Conner hums. He tilts his head, letting his lips hover over Dick’s, but he doesn’t kiss him. Instead, Conner holds that position and pulls his finger almost all of the way out before he pushes in again. Dick lets out a weak groan, and instead of answering, Conner keeps going until he can move his finger in with ease and until Dick is panting softly underneath him. 

“I really didn’t think I could do it, the first time,” Conner finally says. He pushes a second finger in, and Dick’s arms tighten around him. “I wasn’t sure how I felt about being stretched out like this at first. I’d never felt anything like it.”

“It d-does take some… getting used to,” Dick concedes. 

Conner moves both fingers slowly, giving Dick’s body time to adjust, quickening the pace every few strokes. “Not as much as something bigger, but I get the feeling you enjoy all this just fine, don’t you?”

Something bigger. 

Dick’s skin prickles, tingles. His face and chest suddenly feel unbearably hot, and a dozen inappropriate images pop into his head. Was it a toy? Was it with someone else? Did he try it all by himself? 

God, Dick really wants to know…

“I… I do,” he says, breathless. He grinds down on Conner’s fingers, tugs at Conner’s hair and finds enough strength to ask, “Did… you?”

Conner has the nerve to chuckle, and Dick shivers.

“I would say… I’m thankful for the experience.” Conner starts moving his fingers even faster. “Megan wanted to see if I enjoyed it. Toys, positions. Even if it didn’t always go smoothly, I’m glad I did it.” 

Dick frowns. Well, he tries to frown, but he ends up pouting instead. 

Megan. That’s her name. 

He doesn’t like her. 

“Why?” he asks, and can’t keep the grumpy edge out of his voice. 

Conner presses their lips together, still amused. “Because it can help me make you feel good, sweetheart. It can help me make this so good for you, and that’s all I really want.” 

Fuck.

Dick hates this man. He hates him so much. He hates Conner with every fiber of his—

Oh, hell, who is he kidding? Dick doesn’t hate him. No, if Dick had to pick one word to describe his feelings for Conner, the word he’d choose would be l—

Conner slips a third finger in, and Dick cries out, still feeling like his skin is on fire. 

“Is that okay?” Conner asks, kissing him again. 

“Yes, yes. It’s okay. I’m okay. You’re okay,” Dick babbles like an idiot. “You’re hot, babe. You’re so hot. And big. You fit in my mouth so nicely and I know you’ll fill me up perfectly. God, you’re perfect…” 

And you’re mine. Mine. All mine. 

Conner’s eyes go wide, and for a split second Dick thinks he said the last part out loud. He feels a spark of embarrassment, one of worry. But then Conner gives him another of those beautiful smiles that melts him into a puddle, and he doesn’t even care if he said too much. 

“Look who’s talking about perfection,” Conner muses. He kisses Dick on the lips, continues stretching Dick out until Dick is nothing but an impatient and incoherent mess. 

“I’ve got you,” Conner murmurs. He pushes Dick’s sweaty hair away from his face, then pulls back, gets to his knees on the bed. Dick watches him fumble with the lube, then take his cock into his hand. 

“So I guess you weren’t lying about recovery time,” Dick says. His body feels liquid, on fire at the same time, and he knows he must look like a mess. It’s not like he’s in the best position to tease Conner, but he’ll still—

“What am I going to do with you? Honestly,” Conner wonders, shaking his head.

“I think you know, Kent.” 

Conner wraps his arms around Dick’s thighs and pulls him further down on the bed. Dick moans, and another shiver runs down his body as he watches Conner take his lubed-up cock into his hand. Conner presses himself against Dick’s entrance, and that makes him sigh out in relief. 

“Touché, Grayson,” Conner says, and starts working himself inside. 

It’s a tight fit, just as Dick had expected and hoped for. 

Conner’s cock is wider than his fingers. His body protests the additional stretch right away, and it keeps protesting as Conner keeps pushing himself inside Dick. 

Dick can’t stay still for very long. Or rather, he can’t stay still at all. From the moment Conner starts sinking into his body, his heart hammers the back of his throat, and he twitches, twists, wanting to take everything in one go but not being in the best position to do so. 

“We’ve got time, doll,” Conner reminds him, voice gentle, yet strained. His grip on Dick’s thighs tighten to keep him from squirming. Conner continues swaying his hips  back and forth as he works himself inside one slow inch at a time. 

Dick opens his mouth to complain that he doesn’t care how much time they have, but he can only manage a hoarse moan.

Oh yes, he’s missed this:  the tightness in his body, the way it feels like it’ll be too much at any second. He’s missed this promise of being full, and he knows, he just knows that Conner is going to fill him up so good, that he’s going to make him feel so damn—

Conner grunts. He gives a particularly sharp thrust of hips, and Dick jumps. He lets out a soft, mewling sound. 

Conner thrusts a second time, a third one. He bottoms out on that third thrust and—

“Ah, fuck,” Dick whispers, and when Conner pulls back only to slam all the way back in again, he cries out. 

Yes. Yes. God, he’s dreamed about this. 

Conner is thicker than what he’s used to, and maybe Dick needed to be stretched out just a teensy bit more, but…

No, he doesn’t care. It doesn’t matter. Conner is inside him. Finally. 

And fuck… he feels even better than he expected. 

He tries to match Conner’s movements, needing Conner to fuck into him faster already, harder, but Conner’s grips on his thighs is like steel, and he doesn’t have it in him to fight it.  

Pouting, panting, Dick raises himself onto his elbows instead. He´s not sure if that is the best or worst thing he could have done. 

The view he gets is glorious. He sees down the line of his own body, covered in goosebumps and flushed a deep red all over, his own cock, hard and leaking. He then sees Conner’s hands on his thighs, and he follows that line of sight until his eyes land on Conner kneeling between his legs, skin glistening with sweat, muscles taught, pushing himself inside Dick, jostling Dick ever so slightly with each thrust… 

Fuck. 

Dick wants more. 

“Faster,” he pants, and Conner’s eyes snap up to his: dark blue and unfocused once again. 

“Dickie—”

“I can take it,” Dick promises. He stares back at Conner through half-lidded eyes, and the rest of the words come tumbling out in quick, airy succession. “I wanna. I wanna take you. Faster. Harder. I like it harder.” 

Conner falters. Dick feels it in the way Conner’s hips stutter, the way Conner’s fingers twitch around his legs. He hears it in the way Conner stops breathing. He sees it in the way his expression flickers between surprise, hesitance, and something else entirely: the same heat Dick had seen in his eyes when he had Conner’s cock in his mouth. 

A tipping point. Another one. A moment where everything stops,  and where they both hang teeter there, on the very edge… 

“Please,” Dick murmurs, and the moment implodes, and Conner lets out a muffled, almost tortured sound before he lets go of Dick’s thighs and leans over him, his weight so warm and stupidly reassuring on top of Dick.  

“You’ll ruin me,” Conner says, words dripping with sincerity. His eyes darken even more, and Dick’s breath catches in his throat.

You’ll ruin me. 

He knows those words. He’s said them to Conner before… more than once, hasn’t he? 

 “I—” Dick starts, but then Conner presses their lips together, buries himself to the hilt inside Dick so suddenly that Dick cries out again…

And Dick forgets what words are, or what he was going to use them for. 

Conner is as relentless here as he was before. Dick doesn’t need to ask again. Conner takes him at his word, and he fucks Dick faster, and harder into the mattress, swallowing every soft or loud sound that Dick lets out. He lets Dick pull at his hair as hard and as many times as he wants. He lets Dick dig his heels into his back as if that could somehow press them tighter together, lets him rub his cock against his abdomen for some additional friction…

And when Dick mumbles that he wants to ride Conner like there’s no tomorrow, Conner lets out a huff of a laugh, grabs Dick around the waist and flips them over in one easy movement. 

Dick throws his head back and moans the moment he lands on Conner’s lap and the angle shifts. 

“Fuck… Conner. I want to— wanna—” he heaves, but he wraps his arms around Conner’s neck and settles himself in his new spot. He feels fuller right away, stretched out beyond his limits, but Conner is still hard, and warm, and Dick wants—

“Ride me,” Conner murmurs into his ear. He traces Dick’s spine with shaky hands, presses kisses against Dick’s ear, his cheek. “That’s what you wanted to do. I think.”

Dick shudders. His cock twitches.  “Yes,” he agrees. “I wanna…” And instead of finishing that sentence, Dick braces his knees on either side of Conner’s legs and starts moving.

He can’t really think after that. His brain is too hazy, too dazed and too happy to form many coherent thoughts. All he wants to do is soak and savor every second of what’s happening. 

He wants to enjoy having Conner underneath him, inside him, all around him. He wants to enjoy his own hands and mouth on Conner’s skin. He wants to leave marks that won’t fade after a few minutes or hours, which is something he hasn’t allowed himself to do before. 

So Dick gives himself over to his raw, unbridled desires. He gives himself over to the experience, bounces on Conner’s cock like he was meant to be there all along. He kisses Conner on the lips, on the cheek, on the neck. He bites down on Conner’s neck and shoulder, encouraged by the rising volume of Conner’s labored breaths and moans, the way Conner thrusts up to meet his movements.  

Dick can’t help but groan, curse, pant or call Conner by a myriad of different names. His cock leaks all over his and Conner’s stomachs, and his thighs shake. 

The pressure builds, it grows, and soon enough…

“I’m close,” Dick mumbles. He braces his hands on Conner’s thighs and tips his head back. He stops bouncing on Conner’s cock, but Conner keeps moving, jostling Dick in his lap, because of course Conner handles him like he weighs nothing, he’s just that strong. 

“Close,” Dick echoes. The heat grows, the pressure increases. He can already feel—

“Let me see you, Dickie.” 

Dick’s eyes snap open a second before Conner cups his chin and makes Dick tilt his face forward again. 

Dick blinks, trying to meet Conner’s gaze but finding it too difficult a task at first. “I’m—”

“Look at me, darling.”

Dick cries out. His heartbeat roars in his ears, his entire body trembles, but he blinks again, forcing himself to do as he’s told. 

When he finally manages to focus on Conner, another shiver runs through his body. 

Why are you looking at me like that? 

He wants to ask that, but he seems to have forgotten how to form words. Conner is staring at him in utter fascination. His face shows nothing but fondness, and even more wonder. He’s looking at Dick like Dick is the most beautiful and alluring thing in the world…

And even though it doesn’t quite mirror the hot, burning passion and desperation that Dick is feeling, or what he has gotten from his other partners, it’s more than enough to tip him over the edge. 

“Conner,” he breathes, and when Conner nods his head once, Dick comes with a sound between a scream and a whine. 

“That’s it, sweetheart,” Conner murmurs, and more gentle encouragement keeps falling from his lips as Dick squirms and gasps and taints their abdomens white until he’s empty, oversensitive, and completely spent. 

Conner’s hands hold him as steady as his words do. Conner doesn’t waver, and he doesn’t look away, not for a second. He watches Dick come with something akin to awe, and Dick shivers, gasps when he realizes Conner is still very much hard inside him. 

“Not… fair,” Dick grumbles, and his voice is as shaky as his legs. He tries to move, he tries to fuck himself on Conner’s cock again, but he’s too weak, and too overwhelmed and—

“You’re beautiful,” Conner says, kissing his lips. “Dick Grayson, you’re so… so…” his voice trails off, he wraps his arms around Dick’s waist, and then he rolls them over again. 

“You’re perfect,” Conner finishes, pressing Dick onto the mattress. 

Dick feels his face grow hot. He shuts his eyes, but Conner utters a disapproving ‘nuh-uh’, so Dick has no choice to open his eyes again. He swallows hard and says, “Clearly not so perfect because you haven’t come inside m—”

“The mouth on you,” Conner interrupts with a strangled laugh, but he starts moving his hips again. 

Dick almost purrs. His toes curl, he wraps his arms around Conner, and this time he does close his eyes, letting Conner pound him as hard and fast as he wants until his rhythm falters again.

“Come on, baby,” Dick whispers, and Conner’s pace grows even more erratic. “I want you to come inside me. You’ve already filled my mouth up, I want you to—”

“God damn it,” Conner cries, and he spills himself inside Dick with one last and hard thrust that makes Dick arch his back and shudder. 

Dick kisses Conner all throughout his orgasm. He runs his hands through Conner’s hair,  reveling on how warm Conner’s cum feels inside him, on how full it makes him feel. 

Conner collapses on top of him once he’s finished, and Dick gasps at the sudden friction against his cock, still too sensitive for anything.  

“Sorry,” Conner says right away. He tries to brace his arms on the bed. “Sorry. Give me one second. I’ll just…”

Dick wraps his legs and arms around Conner. 

“Don’t you fucking dare,” he threatens. Conner is heavy on top of him, and they’re both sweaty, and dirty, and the mess Dick made on Conner’s skin is sticky, but Dick wouldn’t trade this moment for anything in the world. 

Conner stays quiet for a couple of seconds, then lets out a breathless laugh. 

“You don’t mind the extra weight?” he verifies. 

Dick shakes his head. 

Conner groans. He drops his head against Dick’s chest. “Like I said, perfect,” he mumbles under his breath. 

“To you,” Dick replies with a bite… then thinks better about it.  “For you,” he corrects gently, and hugs Conner tighter to him. 

Conner’s breathing is slow and even several minutes later. Since all Dick can see is the top of Conner’s head and his own fingers combing through Conner’s hair, he wonders if Conner’s fallen asleep. 

“No,” Conner says. “I’m awake.” 

Dick’s hand freezes. “I didn’t say anything out loud, did I?”

“No, but I could almost hear you thinking it.”

“Oh, come on, it’s not like I’m thinking about a lot right now.”

“No?” 

“No.” Dick pauses. “I’m too happy to think. I’m just enjoying the afterglow, really.” 

Conner lets out a thoughtful hum. He raises his head to peer up at Dick with curiosity. He studies Dick’s face for several seconds, then mumbles, “You do look happy,” and drops his head against Dick’s chest again. 

Dick goes back to weaving his fingers through Conner’s hair. He’s still got his legs wrapped around Conner, and his thighs are beginning to protest. Still, he holds his position and with just as much curiosity as Conner had shown, he asks, “Are you thinking about a lot right now?”

Dick feels Conner shrug. “Not more than usual, no.”

“And are you going to tell me what you’re thinking about?” 

“Ah, are we moving on to pillow talk already?”

Dick laughs at the way Conner phrases it. “Yes, I suppose we are.” He stops brushing Conner’s hair and instead just lets his hand rest on top of his head. “Penny for your thoughts, big guy.” 

Conner doesn’t answer right away. He goes quiet again, his breathing calm and measured, and Dick lets his own breathing match his. 

He stays quiet too, letting Conner gather his thoughts while he continues to enjoy the weight on top of him, the way their bodies fit together like this. He pays attention to the sticky mess between them, at the fact that Conner’s softening cock is still inside him. They’re covered in sweat, and it’s not like there’s much of a breeze to cool them down. It’s still the afternoon, and it’s still summer, after all. 

And just when Dick starts counting in his head how many weeks of hellish summer they have left, Conner raises his head again. 

“Hang on,” he says. He braces his arms on the mattress, slides out of Dick with a quick jerk of his hips - making Dick squirm in the process - and then he rolls over and onto one side so they can lie down next to each other. 

Dick rolls onto his other side so he can keep facing Conner. Conner sneaks one arm under Dick’s head, and Dick huddles close, throwing one arm over Conner’s waist and sliding his leg between Conner’s right away. 

It’s not the first time they cuddled. It’s not even the first time they cuddle naked. Ever since Dick started staying over at Conner’s apartment, they’ve been figuring out how to be together in the same bed. 

Dick would dare say Conner loves cuddling. He always holds his arms open so Dick can accommodate himself however he prefers between them. He lets Dick slide his legs between his thighs and doesn’t mind when Dick presses his cold toes against his calves. He never complains about his arms feeling numb, or about needing Dick to move away because it’s getting too hot. They’re both side sleepers, and that has worked in their favor, especially because Conner sleeps like a very well-behaved log, while Dick often starts the night on one side of Conner and somehow wakes up on the other. 

Conner seems to like rubbing Dick’s arm, his waist, his leg or whatever part of Dick’s body he can reach when they’re sharing a bed. The action seems to soothe him, and so Dick lets him rub and pet whatever he wants. 

It’s never overtly sexual, though. Dick knows, because he tried jumping Conner while they cuddled. He hadn’t gotten very far without having to tell Conner out loud that he wanted to have sex. Conner had fucked his thighs that time, and Dick had learned that  Conner doesn’t really do it as foreplay. He truly enjoys lying down, holding Dick close and exchanging a few (or several) light kisses, and today is no exception. 

“Well?” Dick prompts as Conner throws his other arm over him, looking quite content with himself. 

“Well,” Conner echoes. He stays quiet for another minute, deep in thought. Eventually, he seems to get his thoughts in order, then clears his throat. 

“Can I be honest?” he asks. 

Dick raises an eyebrow. “Are you ever anything but?”

Conner nods. “Fair. I’m sorry.”

“It’s not a complaint, silly. I find that charming about you.” Among many other things. “So yes, I want a truthful and unfiltered report on your thoughts.” 

Conner chuckles. “All right, if you insist.” He pauses, presses his lips together, as if searching for the right words.

Dick watches his face and waits. He’s so focused on every micro expression Conner is making that it catches him completely off-guard when Conner ends up attacking him with that big, blinding and rare smile that lights up his eyes and makes him look twenty instead of thirty-two. 

Dick’s breath catches in his throat, and a thousand butterflies decide to take flight right inside his stomach. 

Conner’s big smiles are so beautiful. Why are they so beautiful? Is it because he doesn’t see them very often? Is it because he draws them out of Conner? Maybe it’s a little bit of both. 

“I… had a lot of fun,” Conner says, and Dick’s brain almost short-circuits. 

Dick blinks. His mouth drops in disbelief. 

Had Conner really said—

“F-fun?” he verifies. 

Conner nods.. “Yes, fun. I had a lot of fun. I—” and there he stops, lets out a disbelieving laugh of his own. “Oh, wow. I… had fun. This was fun.” Another laugh escapes him. “I can’t believe it. This was actually fun.”

Dick’s brain, which had gone on overdrive the second Conner said the first ‘fun’, comes to a very sudden halt. 

I can’t believe it. This was actually fun.

Dick mouth drops open again. He doesn’t know if it’s Conner’s amazement at his own admission or the words themselves, but something important suddenly clicks inside his head, and his eyes go wide. 

“Oh,” he says, and when Conner gives him a questioning look, Dick’s mind goes into overdrive again. 

“Hasn’t it—” he starts, and scrambles his brain for the right words, the right way to put it that won’t spook Conner or ruin the moment. 

“Hasn’t it been… fun before?” he asks, because that’s the best he can come up with. 

Conner shrugs, unfazed by the question. “Not very often, no.”

Dick almost gasps. “Oh. How about… good?”

“It’s always been pleasurable, yes. I think I’ve had some really good orgasms, all things considered. It’s not like I could really complain about anything, even if I wanted to.” Something seems to occur to Conner, and his expression turns panicked. “Oh. Damn it. I’m not saying that having sex with you hasn’t been— I didn’t mean to imply that what we’ve done before isn’t— Shit. I’m sorry, Dick. I didn’t want to suggest—”

Dick feels dizzy from how fast his thoughts are spinning. He hadn’t thought for a second that Conner had been talking about what the two of them had done before today. For once, he hadn’t been worried about the two of them, or about his role in Conner’s sex life. He’d been thinking about the way Conner has spoken about his relationship with Megan, or his hookups with Cassie. 

But now that Conner brings it up…

“So you’ve… had fun -with me- before?” he checks. He’s not fishing for a compliment. He doesn’t want to be praised. Right now, he’s very surprised, and also a little bit worried. This… explains some things about Conner It helps Dick understand him a bit better, but it also gives way to many new questions. 

“Yes,” Conner deadpans, and the quick, firm answer seems to surprise them both just as much. 

“I mean…” Conner amends, but then he frowns. “No. That’s what I meant. I have had fun with you before, Dick. Things have been fun. I think it’s just that today…” Conner’s frown smoothes out, and he blinks, surprise settling over his features once again. 

“I… I really had the best time today,” he finishes. He looks at Dick, and Dick just knows that whatever Conner is about to say is going to devastate him. 

“Thank you,” he goes on. “Thank you for today, Dickie. Thank you for… giving me, and… sharing this with me.” He smiles as he says the last, and Dick’s heart swells so much that for a second he worries his chest might actually explode. 

“Conner…” he says, and that’s as far as he gets before his throat tightens and Conner’s lips find his. 

And so Dick kisses him back with everything he’s got, because for the life of him, he can’t think.  He has no idea what to say, or how to say it, so he lets his body convey what he’s feeling: that he’s as grateful for Conner as Conner seems to be towards him, and that Dick lo—

A very sad whine rings throughout the room. 

Conner’s whole body goes rigid. His lips freeze against Dick’s, and Dick has to blink, think, refocus his entire existence… but by then, Conner is already pulling away from him and turning around. 

A second whine comes, this one louder, sadder. Dick watches Conner sit up on the bed, facing away from him. 

“What’s wrong? You okay?” Conner asks, and it’s only then that Dick realizes where the whines are coming from. 

Sluggish, Dick sits up too. He scoots closer to Conner, perches his chin on Conner’s shoulder to look at Krypto, who’s going around in little anxious circles right underneath the doorframe. 

“Is he all right?” Dick asks. Upon hearing his voice, Krypto picks up the pace. 

Conner rubs his eyes with his fingers. “Yes. He’s fine.” Krypto howls straight away as if to indicate otherwise, and Conner sighs. “Well, he’s not… uh. Sorry to ask. Do you have a spare plastic bag somewhere? And… chell, where did I leave my clothes?”

Dick glances at Krypto, then back at Conner. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out what Conner needs the bag and clothes for. 

“I can take him to the yard,” he offers. 

Conner frowns. “Oh, no, that’s all right. I just need a plastic bag and my shorts. I’ll take him somewhere—” 

“Jesus Christ, Kent. You were just inside me. In more than one place. Don’t go all coy on me now.” 

Conner chokes at that, and Dick smiles as he wraps his arms around Conner’s neck from behind and pulls him back down onto the bed. 

“I’ll take him to the yard, and we’ll worry about everything else later,” he says. He kisses Conner’s cheek before he gets out of bed on shaky legs and goes towards his closet. 

Krypto sniffles. Dick hears the bedsprings creak. 

“Stay down, doc,” he calls, pointing a finger in warning. He grabs the first pair of shorts he can find, slides them on. When he turns around, he finds Conner frowning and propped onto his elbows on the bed, Krypto looking at him with big and needy puppy eyes. 

“It’s the first time I have you in my bed. I’m going to keep you there as long as I can,” Dick informs Conner, which only makes him frown harder, but he doesn’t move. 

“Thank you,” Dick says, voice too sweet. He wobbles towards the door, and Krypto falls into step behind him with a grateful bark. 

“Come on, buddy, let’s take you to the yard,” Dick says. 

Krypto follows him, clearly relieved that at least one of his humans got moving before it was too late. 

Conner has cleaned himself up and has smoothed out the bedsheets by the time Dick ambles back into his bedroom. 

“Crisis averted,” Dick announces. He’d dropped a peaceful Krypto off at the laundry room and had -against his will- picked up Conner’s shorts on his way back. 

“Thank you,” Conner says once he spots the clothes. He’s sitting at the foot of the bed, a small towel in his hand. 

“You got up,” Dick accuses. He sprawls himself onto Conner’s lap before pushing him down again. 

“Sorry, it just seemed like the sensible thing to do,” Conner says. He wraps an arm around Dick, scoots them higher on the bed so their legs don’t dangle off too far, then rolls them over in that easy, effortless way he can. 

“Show-off,” Dick mutters.

“And here I thought you liked me being more than averagely strong,” Conner comments, sliding the shorts down Dick’s legs. 

“So you do know how strong you are, hmm?” Dick asks, and he throws the shorts away with a flick of his foot. 

“You’re impossible,” Conner huffs. He slides the small towel between their bodies so he can clean Dick up as well. The towel is damp, but it’s also still warm, because of course it is. 

“I hope you don’t mind. I took it from your closet,” Conner says. 

Dick shivers. He lets Conner slide the towel between his legs and over his abdomen. This is one of those other things that Conner just seems to enjoy doing, and who is Dick to deny him these mundane little pleasures? “Of course not. Make yourself at home,” he says, and captures Conner’s lip in a kiss. 

“So you’ll let me take over your fridge and your closet today?” Conner asks, amused. 

“My fridge, closet, bed and whatever else you want,” Dick agrees, and then he sees the perfect opportunity. “You’re staying over tonight, right? Your building has no power. You don’t have any reason to go back.” 

Conner hums, eyes softening. He finishes cleaning Dick up and leaves the towel on one side. “If you’re okay with it…”

“I guess I wasn’t really asking. My plan was to tie you down and keep you here tonight even if you said you wanted to leave.” 

“In like, a sexual way or a threatening way?”

Dick thinks about it. “Both. Either. I don’t care, as long as you stay tonight.” 

“Well, if you’ll have me as a guest, I can’t say no, sweetheart.”

“Good. I’ve had you already, and I plan on having you many more times before tomorrow.”

That gets a surprised and slightly nervous laugh out of Conner. The sound is warm and soft like velvet against his skin. “I don’t even know how you come up with this stuff.” 

“If we’re going to talk about come—”

“Oh my God, enough,” Conner says, still laughing. “I’d love to stay. You do have a beautiful house, after all.” He tilts his head to one side. “Or should I say, ‘home’?”

Dick glances around his room and thinks back to their conversation on his sofa. He thinks back to what Conner had said about Opal City and about Smallville. 

“This… is my home,” Dick concedes after a minute of careful consideration. “Opal is my home. At least for now.” 

And even though Dick knows he doesn’t agree, Conner still nods in whole-hearted understanding. “Opal is pretty great.”

“Compared to Gotham? Hell fucking yeah. You really don’t know how horrible that city is.” Dick shudders at the thought, and Conner places a reassuring hand on his waist. “Although I suppose Gotham was my home too… until I moved here.”

Conner lets out a soft ‘huh’. “Really? It  sounds like you hate the place.” 

“I do, a little bit, but it was the only home I had.” Dick snorts. “I wasn’t really looking to move out of Gotham, you know? I didn’t like the place, and I had some great excuses to leave, but I wasn’t actively trying to escape.”

“And how did you end up here, Dickie?”

Dick shrugs. “A colleague told me about Opal Medical Center having an open spot, and this house became available after I’d already applied. The price was pretty good, all things considered. I took out the mortgage to buy and fix it up. I had to room in with some loud college kids until it was ready. It was horrible on my back and on my sanity.” Conner’s hand drifts to the small of his back right away, and Dick can’t help but smile. 

“I moved in as soon as I could, and I’ve been trying to enjoy the house to the fullest since then,” he goes on. “Considering I’ll be paying the bank back for most of my life, it seems kind of ironic to not consider this place home.

“It hurts even hearing you say it,” Conner points out with a frown. “But… it makes sense. I think that’s one of the reasons why I never considered trying to find a permanent place in Central, or here.” 

“Because of Smallville,” Dick says, with only the faintest trace of disappointment in his voice. 

“Yes. It seemed smarter to put my money into making what is already there better.”

Dick raises an eyebrow. “As in…?”

This time, Conner is the one who shrugs. “Helping my parents expand and fix the family house, helping them build a couple of new cabins around the farm for my brother’s family or myself to use in the future.” 

Dick lets that information sink in. “So you are a rich farm guy. And you have a love shack.” 

Conner groans. He rolls off Dick and onto the bed, lying on his back next to him. “Richard Grayson, your imagination knows no bounds.” 

Dick laughs. He rolls onto his side and perches himself half on top of Conner because being apart is not an option right now. “You’re not denying it.” 

“It wouldn’t do me any good.” Conner glances at him out of the corner of his eye. “I… guess you’ll have to wait and see it for yourself.” He pauses. “One day. If you want to.”

And just like that, Conner has checkmated him again. 

Feeling warm all over and speechless for the second time in the past couple of hours, Dick can only press his cheek to Conner’s chest and admit, “I want to. One day.” 

Conner presses a hand to his hair. “I’m glad to hear that.” 

They both go quiet after that. Dick is half-tempted to nod off after a few minutes, but even though he’s spent, he’s not exactly tired. Besides, it’s still hot, and the sun is still out, and a shower is starting to sound good. 

But taking a shower or doing anything that isn’t cuddling means getting out of bed and not feeling Conner’s naked body underneath his, and is he ready to make that sacrifice? He’s really not sure. 

As he continues to weigh his options and tries to pep-talk himself to make a decision, Conner shifts underneath him. “Uh. Dickie?”

“Mmm?”

“I hate to ruin the moment—”

“Oh no.”

Conner clears his throat. “Yes. I’m sorry, but if I’m going to stay over tonight then I probably need to go back to my apartment to pick up some clothes. And… a toothbrush. And food for Krypto. And baggies. And maybe—”

Dick sits up. He narrows his eyes at Conner. “Do you really need all that?”

Conner blinks up at him. “Yes,” he says, and one would think Conner is talking about a survival kit. 

Dick mulls it over. Unlike Conner, Dick can’t offer to share clothes; Conner is too wide to fit into any shirts and shorts he might have. He doesn’t have spare toothbrushes under the sink, and he sure as hell doesn’t have dog food in the pantry (he probably should start keeping a bag around though). It makes sense that Conner would want to go back to his apartment for his things, and it’s only a short walk away, so…

“Fine,” Dick sighs. He crosses his arms. “You go to your apartment and pack a bag. A big bag. Make sure you bring at least three changes of clothes and extra toiletries. Krypto and I will go to the store around the corner. I’ll get new toothbrushes and a bag of food for him. I’ll get a food and water bowl if they have them too.”

Conner frowns. “There’s no need. I can bring everything over from my place. Besides, it’s only for one night.”

Dick shakes his head. “Yes, but I want you to keep staying over, and the more things you bring today, the less you have to leave another day.” 

Conner opens his mouth to protest, but when Dick only gives him a challenging look, he relents. 

“I… suppose you have a point,” he says, and sits up as well. 

“I have many points,” Dick says. He pats Conner’s thigh. “Come on, let’s get going.” 

“Are we in a rush all of a sudden?”

Dick nods. “Oh yes. I plan on having you back in my bed as soon as I can.”

Conner covers Dick’s hand with his own and squeezes it gently. “All right. Let’s be quick so you can tie me down to the bed or whatever it is you want to do as soon as we can.” 

“Your cooperation is much appreciated,” Dick says, and Conner lets out a snort. 

Conner heads to his apartment after sending Dick a message with the brands of food that Krypto eats and how much they usually cost. Krypto doesn’t seem too thrilled to stay with Dick instead of going with Conner at first, but after a few cuddles, Krypto bids Conner goodbye with a bark and goes to his new favorite spot in Dick’s house: the laundry room.

Dick takes a quick and much-needed shower before he leaves for the store. Krypto is waiting for him in the bedroom when he steps out of. When the dog gives what is clearly a disapproving sigh, Dick comes to a sudden stop and ducks back in to grab a towel. 

Krypto lets out a considerably friendlier whuff when Dick walks back into the room with the towel around his waist. 

“I’m sorry,” Dick says. “I’m not used to having company around the house, especially non-human company. I’ll be more careful from now on.”

Krypto tilts his head to one side and snuffles. 

Dick bites the inside of his cheek. “Yeah, okay, I should have apologized weeks ago. I’m sorry, buddy. I’m sure you’ve had enough of your dad and me fooling around like idiots.” 

Krypto tilts his head to the other side. He looks at Dick for a really long time, maybe considering his apology and thinking whether he still likes Dick or not.

“We can get you extra treats today,” Dick offers. 

Krypto seems satisfied with that. He wags his tail, gives Dick a big doggy smile and then pads out of the room, giving Dick enough privacy to change. 

“All right, let’s go,” Dick calls, exiting his room some ten minutes later. Krypto bounces to his side right away, and Dick grabs Conner’s weird waist-leash thingie and a tote bag before he and Krypto head out. 

“Should we—?” Dick asks, holding up the leash as he and Krypto walk down the driveway. 

The dog looks at the leash, then at Dick. He turns up his snout and keeps walking. 

“Okay then,” Dick says, and wonders why Conner had suggested before he left that Dick bring the leash in the first place. 

However, when he and Krypto get to the store and Dick sees the no-pets-allowed sign,  Dick realizes why. To think Conner had even planned on that being a possibility.  

Dick ties Krypto to the railing outside the store. He rubs his ears, promises to be as quick as he can, then dashes inside to try and find all the things he needs.

He gets a bag of the most expensive Conner-approved dog food and a bag of beef treats, because Dick doesn’t want to be a shitty step-dog-dad. He finds some bowls that will work just fine until he can go to an actual pet store. 

His phone pings, and Dick opens his messages to see a new one from Conner asking if he and Krypto are still at the store. Dick shoots back a quick ‘yes’ and moves on to the next aisle. 

He gets toothbrushes and some extra toothpaste. Since he’s already at the store, he throws in some extra soap and disinfectant to replace everything he’d used today. 

He also throws in a box of condoms and a bottle of lube, reminding himself that he needs to throw out the chocolate delight the minute he gets back to the house. 

The cashier maintains his monotone expression as he rings up Dick’s items. At least at first. 

When Dick hands over his card, the cashier’s attention flickers to him for a split second. A small frown appears on his face. “Nasty fall?” he asks, nodding at Dick’s legs. 

Dick looks down. He’d put on another pair of shorts after the shower, and sure, he’d felt a slight burning sensation on his skin, but now that he takes a proper look under bright lighting… 

Well, his knees and shins are somewhat of a red and tender mess. There is no broken skin, but his legs are way redder than they’d been earlier today. 

“Oh,” Dick says. Maybe he had been on his knees too long after all. 

“I fell on the street last summer. Right on the hot pavement. It looked like that after a few days. Hurt like hell every day,” the cashier goes on, shuddering. 

Dick coughs to keep himself from laughing. “Ah, yes. Yes. Hot pavement. Of course. Well, to be honest, it doesn’t really hurt, so—”

“What doesn’t really hurt?” 

Dick looks towards the entrance when he hears Conner’s voice. He finds Conner making a beeline towards the register in a new pair of shorts and a form-fitting tank top, a backpack slung over his shoulder. His hair is damp and falling over his forehead, and he’s got his signature frown on his face. 

Dick’s heart flutters, and he smiles. He can’t help it. “Hey.” 

Conner nods at him and comes to stand at his side. “Good afternoon,” he greets the cashier -gets a blink in return- and then he turns his frown to Dick to repeat,  “What doesn’t really hurt?” 

Dick waves a hand in a dismissive gesture, but the cashier nods at Dick’s legs and says, “That nasty fall.”  

Conner follows his line of sight. And just like Dick had known he would, his frown deepens. “... Did you fall on the way here?” he asks with genuine confusion. 

Dick coughs again. “Uh…” 

“Nuh-uh. Can’t be recent. Doesn’t look that bad,” the cashier supplies, doing his best to be helpful. 

Conner looks befuddled. “Then that’s not from a fall. That’s from—” When Conner realizes what he’s about to say, his face turns a deep shade of red, and he shuts his eyes. “Oh.” 

Emboldened by his reaction, Dick smiles at the cashier. “It wasn’t a fall, but it sure as hell was a nasty—” 

Conner groans. “Don’t.”

Dick bursts out laughing, ignoring Conner’s tortured expression and the cashier’s curious one. 

“Well, I hope you feel better soon,” the cashier says, shrugging. He finishes ringing Dick up and hands back the card. “Rub some aloe on there. That helped me a lot.” He studies the items he’s already bagged and lets out a hum. “Maybe try with the lube, too. It’s supposed to be moisturizing, isn’t it?”

Oh, bless his little clueless heart. 

Conner lets out a choked sound, and Dick almost loses it again. 

“I’ll keep that in mind, thank you so much,” he says. He picks up his bags, smiles at the cashier again and is still smiling as he bumps his arms against Conner’s on his way out of the store. 

Krypto wags his tail as soon as Dick steps out, then barks when Conner follows him out a second later. 

“Hey, buddy. You missed all the fun,” Dick says. He tries reaching for the leash, but Conner’s hands are there first, undoing Dick’s sloppy knots. 

“Fun.” Conner shakes his head and wraps Krypto’s leash around his waist.  “Are you sure you’re okay? The skin does look a little bit too raw.”

Dick rolls his eyes as the three of them start walking.  “I’m fine.”

“Maybe an ice pack will help, or we can stop by a pharmacy—”

“Or maybe I just lie down on the bed while you fuck my mouth later again today.” 

Conner trips over his own feet, which makes Krypto pause and bark right away, ears rigid. 

“I’m fine, I’m fine,” Conner assures Krypto, but his red cheeks give him away

Dick bursts out laughing again. “After you make dinner, of course, ‘cause you still owe me that,” he adds.

Conner shakes his head, but he takes the out for what it is. “I did bring everything I needed earlier today, so it shouldn’t take long.” 

“What are we having tonight, chef?” 

“Some easy herb pizza.”

Dick glances at him out of the corner of his eye. “Define easy.”

“Uh, not round, I’ll just spread the dough over the sheet pan.” 

“And… you already have the dough?”

“Yes. I made it yesterday and let it rest overnight.” 

Dick sighs. Of course he had. “Well, my kitchen is yours, chef,” he says with a wink. He shifts all of the bags onto one arm and reaches for Conner’s hand. “I’m yours to command, too.”

Conner huffs. “I’ll hold you to that, Dickie.”

“Feel free to hold me however you want, whenever you want. Just tell me where you want me… and what you want me to do.”

“Jesus,” Conner says, but he laughs and squeezes Dick’s hand. 

They end up taking the longer route back to Dick’s house. He doesn’t know if it happened on purpose or not, but since Conner doesn’t point it out, he doesn’t say anything either.