Sunlight streamed through the tall bay windows of the Wayne Manor study, casting a warm glow across the aged bookshelves, leather armchairs, and the long oak table that now served as the group’s makeshift project station. The room smelled faintly of cedarwood, old paper, and—thanks to Alfred—a tray of fresh-baked chocolate chip cookies that rested temptingly on a silver platter.

Jason Todd leaned back in his chair, balancing it on two legs as he lazily twirled a pen between his fingers. His leather jacket was draped over the back of the seat, revealing his black t-shirt and the tattoo peeking from beneath the sleeve. Across from him sat Dick Grayson, sleeves rolled up, hair slightly tousled from frustrated fingers. A color-coded notebook was open in front of him, covered in annoyingly neat handwriting.

And sitting directly between them, focused on the project spread out across the table, was her—the girl they both couldn’t stop thinking about.

She had her laptop open, her brows furrowed slightly in concentration as she clicked through references and drafted their shared presentation. She looked up occasionally, smiling politely, completely unaware of the small war quietly raging on either side of her.

“Okay,” she said, tapping a line of text. “So, if we split the sections, I can do the introduction and conclusion, and you two can divide the analysis part. Sound good?”

Dick immediately leaned in. “Sounds perfect. I can take the case study comparison section.”

Jason’s chair thudded to the floor. “Actually, I was thinking I’d do that one. I've got a better grasp on those stats—remember I was the one who brought the source?”

Dick didn’t even look at him. “Sure, but I actually read the whole study last night. You were out on patrol.”

“Yeah, well, not all of us need to highlight in six different colors to understand what we’re reading.”

She blinked, glancing between them. “Uh, we can split it in half maybe?”

Jason smiled at her. “That works. Long as I get the section on impact analysis. I’ve got thoughts.”

“I’m sure you do,” Dick muttered under his breath, then flashed a dazzling grin at her. “Hey, if you need help with the intro later, I’ve got some outlines already.”

Jason scoffed. “Wow. Did you dream those outlines into existence too?”

“Jealousy doesn’t look good on you.”

“Neither does smugness, Boy Wonder.”

She looked between them, laughing softly, not picking up on the tense undercurrent. “You guys really are like brothers, huh?”

They both answered at the exact same time.

Jason: “Unfortunately.”

Dick: “Yeah, basically.”

They glanced at each other, then quickly looked away. She returned to typing, unaware of how Jason’s eyes lingered on her when she smiled, or how Dick softened slightly every time she leaned a little closer.