Tim awoke with a start, sweat slicked hair plastered to his forehead and clothes sticking to him uncomfortably. His heart was pounding erratically, and he could barely get any air in through his wheezing breaths. Everything was moving too fast, the walls were spinning and closing in on him all at once, and he could barely get a hold on his surroundings.

But there was something warm laying beside him.

That was unusual. And it was enough to get him grounded in the moment so he could take stock of wherever he actually was.

The room was unfamiliar, and he was laying in what appeared to be a massive mound of pillows and blankets. A soft, warm lavender blanket was pulled up around his waist where he was sat up, and a pleated green pillow was laying near where his head had been moments ago.

Oh, and he was hot as fuck. Like sweating buckets, fever, and needing a hospital soon hot.

And the scent…

Right.

He was in heat. His presentation heat, to be precise. He only put that together when the sticky sweet scent of pup-heat-omega-warm-pup finally processed in his mind.

And then, slowly all the events of the previous night came flooding back: Starting his heat, running away, meeting Robin, the alphas, hitting his head, saying Robin’s identity, waking up in the Batcave (he did not fanboy nearly enough about that fact), building a nest with Jason, dragging Jason into his nest…

Dragging Jason into his nest…

Jason was in his nest.

Tim glanced down and finally put a name to the warm being wrapped around his waist. Jason, an omega like him, was sleeping peacefully, arms wrapped around Tim’s waist, seemingly perfectly content to be in a stranger’s nest, seemingly content to have let a stranger build a nest in his house.

There was no way this was all actually okay. There was no reality in which Tim was actually allowed to be safe and warm and cuddled and protected by another person, another omega, in a nest as nice as this one. He could feel sobs beginning to claw their way up his throat, and tears pricked at his eyes.

This was too good to be true. Jason was gonna wake up and remember who he was, remember who Tim was and realize this was all wrong. He was going to leave and kick Tim out. And then Tim would be alone again, no pack, no family, no one to call his own…

A sob broke from his mouth, and Tim’s hands leapt up to stifle it. But nothing could stop the sudden onslaught of tears that wracked his body.

He didn’t want to be alone.

He wanted to stay like this, warm and safe and almost loved.

He could almost delude himself into thinking Jason liked him like this, that Jason and maybe even Bruce would want someone like him in their family, in their pack.

But that was all going to come to an end when Jason woke up. So Tim did his absolute best to shove down his sobbing, to be as quiet as possible, so he could soak up just a little more warmth from Jason’s arms that wrapped tight around his waist.

It didn’t last long enough.

Because in all his haste to quiet his cries, he wasn’t doing anything to mask the scent of scared-alone-terror-packless-need pack-need help-help-scared-puppy-omega-pack-pack-pack that was slowly filling the room.

All too soon, Jason’s eyes sprang open, and Tim couldn’t do anything to stifle the heart wrenching sob that burst from his chest when he saw that.

Jason shot up like a bullet, pupils blown wide, immediately on guard and looking for a threat.

Tim cried harder.

Jason, surveyed the room quickly, but finding no immediate threats, turned his attention quickly to Tim’s shaking form beside him. They were already almost on top of each other, so Jason didn’t have to move much to bring his arms around Tim, pulling him close and beginning to mutter sweet nothings into his hair.

“Shh, puppy, we’re safe. Shh, shh,” Jason crooned, stroking Tim’s hair gently.