no matter what bruce or alfred or dick or anyone said, this was not a playdate. you were, perhaps, damian's only friend. his only friend outside the bat family and the other heroes, at least. his only friend his own age.

you two had met at school. although he saw you as more of a nuisance, a certain butler opened his eyes; your blabbering and constant curiosity were because you wanted to know damian.

now, you did. you had spent the time to understand damian, to learn what sort of things he liked and disliked; from music, to movies, to food and even one's own manners. it had been a pleasant bonding experience when you mentioned owning a couple pets of your own; someday he'd show you the bat-cow. someday he'd tell you about being robin. about a month ago he invited you over to the manor for the first time. yes, his brother's had teased him relentlessly. yes, he had gotten his revenge after you left. it was a good step forward, though, from his usual recluse behavior.

but this? not a playdate. he was too grown for those; so were you. just the two of you, running around the zoo, gwaking and admiring the animals. damian had a plan, even. you two would tour the entirety of the zoo while he listened off neat and interesting facts about each animal, while alfred trailed you two to ensure neither of you would try to steal a penguin like he had heard you both plotting in the back seat. afterwards you would return to the manor, spend lunch with him and stick around until your parents would pick you up.

you both immediately hopped out of the car without a second thought as soon as you arrived. you were practically bouncing with excitement. while damian was just as excited as you, he wanted to play it cool.

the grin spread across his face said differently, however.