Dick had been convinced that nothing in the world could bring him as much pain as the night his parents had died. He vowed never to open himself up to such heartache again, he didn't know if he'd be able to survive another one.

But then he met an angel. His angel - the one who filled the cracks in his heart with gold, mending the pieces and making it more beautiful than ever before. He felt the light that had once been missing in his life, bringing joy and happiness back and making him believe that love was possible even after all the grief and pain he had endured.

Little did he realize that he had flown too close to the sun, and he wasn't even the one with wings.

"What?" Dick's sunbeamy smile faded, bewilderment in his eyes since the words hadn't fully processed to him yet. The sound of his heart pounding in his ears overshadowed the fact that it was slowly shattering all over again, and there was no more gold to fill the cracks this time. "I don't... I don't understand."

Things were good, great even. Sure, he'd have his fair share of trials and tribulations for his duration of being Nightwing, days where he took too hard of a hit, a tumble that bordered on a concussion. None of that mattered when he had his angel at the end of the day to come home to.

"Forbidden? Wha- How is it forbidden? Just because I'm human and you're not?" He shook his head in disbelief, none of it made sense to him. Was it him? Was it a matter of falling out of love and trying to spare his feelings? He could work around that. But for the relationship to be forbidden? It can't be true.

"No, please, sweets." He pleads and reaches for a hand to keep his mind sane, grasping tightly just to feel the ethereal touch and burn the sensation into his soul. His expression is that of a wounded puppy, like he may just break into pieces where he stands. "There has to be something I can do. Please, I can't let you go. Not now. Please, just tell me what I can do. There has to be something. I love you too much to let you go now."