Chapter 52 Extra 01: The Proposal

Since the last global mutation ended, Allen seemed to have been intentionally or unintentionally avoiding Dick. At first, Dick could comfort himself by saying that Allen was too busy, until Allen once again rejected his dinner invitation.

This is his third rejection this week, and it's only Wednesday.

This made the usually confident Bluebird start to doubt whether his charm in Allen's eyes had diminished.

Otherwise, it couldn't be that Allen lost interest in him and fell for someone else.

Impossible. The chances of an ER doctor finding the time to have dinner with him without any mishaps are almost equal to the chances of Luthor giving up on having a child with Superman. Besides, Alan recently got a promotion and became Dr. David Peterson's prized student—the kind of student who averages eight chest surgeries a night. He didn't think Alan would have time to go out and fool around.

However… according to some unsubstantiated surveys, the possibility of emergency room doctors having affairs is…

Dick shook his head, refusing to make any further connections.

However, he knew very well that Alan's psychological problems had been personally confirmed by Batman, so he sometimes couldn't help but wonder if Alan's feelings for him were really love. After all... the complexity and psychological problems of ASPD patients meant that their feelings about love and their way of handling intimate relationships were always somewhat different from ordinary people.

Rather than caring for their loved ones, enjoying love, and building harmonious romantic relationships, people with ASPD prefer to control others and satisfy their desire for conquest.

Worse still, Dick found himself enjoying this apparent feeling of being 'controlled'... especially in certain special circumstances. Like the snake tail, or the rabbit ears, but unfortunately, Allen never gave him many opportunities.

Dick sighed, slumped onto the table, and pretended to be a delicate flower about to wither.

Allen, who was passing by, was stunned for a moment.

Dick sighed even louder, "Oh, baby, I feel so sad right now!"

Allen: "...Welcome to the ER in Brodhaven?"

Dick: ...

He turned his head, straightened his back, and stared intently at Allen without saying a word.

Dr. Osborn stood still, staring at Dick with the same serious expression.

The doctor thought to himself—

Dick appeared to be in no discomfort; his lips and complexion were normal, and his pupils did not show any tremors, dilation, or constriction, which largely ruled out the possibility of Parkinson's disease or brainstem damage.

So he carefully recalled the events of the past week in Brodhaven—the robbers from last night were held in place by him with spores, and Nightwing only needed to take them directly to the police station and lock them up, which was very easy; a group of fugitives from Gotham were poisoned by him with neurotoxins until they were foaming at the mouth and their eyes rolled back, and then Batman arrived in time and towed them away in a trailer, and he hardly gave Nightwing a chance to act.

But before leaving, Batman seemed to give him and Dick a deep look, which puzzled him.

Allen didn't know what that strange look was trying to express, but he'd just take it as a thank you.

After all, he transformed that closed-off area in the suburbs into another emergency hospital. The alien creatures, possessing countless spores and shapeshifting bodies, are now all under Allen's control, and can transform into any kind of medical device—convenient, easy to use, and environmentally friendly. As for the evil version of 'Matthew,' he's now a lowly nurse at the hospital, unpaid and working year-round.

The Justice League and the Avengers were well aware of this, because he sent invitations to everyone, sincerely telling the superheroes that he had reserved VIP beds for each of them in the hospital, welcoming them to stay there for an extended period at any time.

There's nothing for Batman to worry about, is there?

Thinking of this, Allen felt much relieved. He was quite certain that Dick was in excellent physical and mental health, and that their relationship remained as stable as ever.

Dick, who was in good physical and mental health, couldn't hold back any longer. He approached Allen with a worried look on his face and decided to cut to the chase. "Allen, darling, do you remember what you promised me?"

Allen looked at Dick, who was full of anticipation, and a question mark slowly appeared above his head.

Dick continued to coax, "When you were a fluffy, white little cutie, you promised me..."

Allen suddenly realized: "I'll find a chance to turn Red Hood back into a panda, right? But he's not in Gotham right now."

Dick: "...No, that's not it." Although he had indeed asked for it that way in the first place.

There's no way to deny it, the red-barreled panda is just too cute.

He also wanted Damian the puppy and Bruce the bat, but unfortunately he forgot to take pictures of them last time.

No, no... The important thing now is his wedding with Alan!

Allen clearly said he wanted to marry him back then, but now he keeps hinting at it, and Allen is just pretending not to understand!

Allen observed Dick's expression more closely and regretfully realized that he still couldn't accurately recognize other people's facial expressions—even though he felt that Dick wasn't sad or upset, his silly boyfriend seemed to be plotting something that sent chills down his spine.

Allen felt a chill on the back of his neck.

Like when Emily looked at him with a smile.

Allen glanced at the ethereal version of Emily, who was standing gracefully by the window waving at him.

He never dared to tell Dick that after the war, Emily was screaming and holding her face in her hands when Dick was holding him, who was covered in fur.

This has made him reflexively look around whenever he's with Dick, to make sure his mother isn't watching him date.

Unfortunately, none of the Bat Family members without magical talent can see Emily in her soul form.

Emily's sudden appearance after that mutation was something Allen hadn't expected.

He later learned that his mother had received the blessing of the Triad goddess Bridgid after her death, thus enabling her to travel the world in spirit form.

On the other hand, this doesn't seem surprising. The reversed triple helix, a symbol of Earth's civilization chosen by extraterrestrial beings, is actually a symbol of the goddess Bridget, representing the trinity of past, future, and present. The reversed spiral arms represent the continuation of life. Alan's escape and return after experiencing everything in the 'Smoke Mirror' was also aided by Emily.

However, Emily's soul had previously stayed in the smoke mirror to help Allen suppress 'Trishkel', but Allen's final decision to fight back at the cost of his life actually freed Emily.

She was even too free; it was the first time Ellen had realized that her mother, after leaving old Norman, was such a lively person.

His mother, with her exceptional social skills, became good friends with superheroes like Wonder Woman and Black Widow. She now lives inside a magical doll, a gift from Constantine, and has joined the Justice League. Black Widow is reportedly quite disappointed that Emily has become another key member of the Justice League's magical side.

He's less a capable man and more a social thug.

Allen sighed, clearly socially awkward.

Compared to his cheerful and lively mother, he was like a gloomy mushroom.

Their lively and adorable mother feeds them in various ways every day, buys them new clothes, and takes them to the amusement park just like when they were little, all in an effort to make him and Harry 'healthy, happy, and strong little boys' again outside of work. He and Harry have also attended several Justice League gatherings with their mother, although each time he feels like Batman is targeting him.

Harry always verbally rejected this childish fun, but he actually enjoyed it very much.

He doesn't dislike it either.

Emily is a romantic and gentle mother, and there are always magical fireworks in her and Harry's room. Their life suddenly slid onto a warm, tender path filled with the aroma of food and good morning and good night kisses.

Allen felt that it wouldn't be so bad for him to go back to being a little boy.

However, as a result, he seems to have been neglecting Dick a bit lately.

No wonder Mom made him bring a bouquet of roses home today.

Unfortunately… he had to rush off to Brodhaven to examine a Tetralogy of Fallot patient because of a phone call from Dr. Edward. Now he returned home empty-handed, with only an equally empty stomach.

A rumbling sound came from Allen's stomach.

Dick, already wearing an apron, brought out a fragrant steak and vegetable salad from the kitchen. A soft tablecloth had been laid out on the table sometime earlier. Candles burned slowly, filling the room with a sweet, warm atmosphere that made you feel sleepy from the inside out.

Allen stared at the candle on the table for a long time before finally fixing his gaze on Dick's handsome face.

He used to always have trouble recognizing people, but at some point, he could no longer fail to recognize Dick. Even when the guy was covered in soot and dirt, looking like a stray dog ​​from fighting a fire, he could still spot the police in the crowd at a glance.

Those blue eyes now seemed to hold only him.

Allen's constantly tense mind suddenly relaxed, so relaxed that he didn't want to think about anything anymore.

Dick walked around the table and quietly approached Allen, a helpless smile on his face.

“Is there something on my face? You’ve been staring at me for five minutes.” Dick touched his nose. “Honey, your burning gaze looks like you want to devour me… But I still suggest you eat something first, and then we can do something more physically demanding, what do you think?”

Dick put his arm around the doctor's waist with a touch of sympathy, guessing in his mind that Allen probably hadn't eaten anything all day again.

Suddenly, Allen reached out and hugged Dick tightly.

Dick paused for a moment, then smiled and hugged Allen.

The two embraced quietly for a while until the sun completely set outside the window and the room went completely dark.

Dick pulled Allen to the dining table: "Okay, let's eat first."

Allen followed closely behind Dick, letting Dick feed him steak.

After a cozy, intimate candlelight dinner, Alan and Dick were both thoroughly satisfied. They enjoyed this rare moment of peace, and even their work phones discreetly didn't ring once.

Finally, they sat together on the sofa and watched a romantic comedy that Allen would never have watched before.

When the last scene of the movie ended and the screen went dark, Allen shifted uncomfortably and didn't stand up immediately.

He glanced at Dick, who seemed still engrossed in the story, then secretly clenched the small, ring-shaped object he had just prepared; it became slightly hot from his grip.

The doctor's usually sharp mind, capable of imagining every detail of the surgery, was now somewhat blank. A certain elegant and moving gesture had been playing in his mind dozens of times, but Allen's fingertips were still trembling slightly.

He stared into Dick's blue eyes, hesitated for ten seconds, and then suddenly stood up in Dick's surprised gaze.

Then he reached out his hand to Dick.

A small ring lay in Allen's palm.

“Dick,” Allen’s voice was a little tight. He swallowed several times nervously before finally uttering what he had been rehearsing in his mind.

Let's get married.

Let's get married.

Dick said the same thing.

Allen looked down and discovered that there was also a small ring lying in Dick's palm.

The handsome young police officer, Brood Haven, has a pair of blue eyes that would captivate the entire world, and now they are filled with Allen.

Dick knelt down on one knee, a smile on his face. "Baby, we're on the same wavelength. I love you!"

Allen thought to himself in a daze—

Oh, wasn't he the one who proposed first? He should be the one doing that!

I don't know if it's because I ate too much for dinner, but Allen is a little out of sorts right now.

He stared blankly as Dick performed all the actions he had envisioned, and just as Dick was about to slip the ring onto his finger, Allen suddenly panicked.

The snake's tail suddenly emerged from under the hem of his clothes, wrapping around Dick tightly.

Dick: "...? Honey, are you in such a hurry?"

Allen stared intently at Dick's face.

A strange competitive spirit filled Allen's mind, causing the doctor, who had never admitted defeat in his life, to preemptively slip the ring onto the immobile Dick's finger before finally letting out a sigh of relief.

Dick Grayson, Unable to Struggle: ...

He looked at the ring on his finger; the diamond on it was almost blinding. Inside the diamond was a huge eyeball that was rolling around everywhere.

Dick: "...These are 'Trishker's' eyes?"

Allen nodded and released the tail: "That's right. Next time you encounter a criminal, it can call me for you."

Dick thought to himself, "So you can use your gun license to legally defend yourself, or use neurotoxins on a large scale, right?"

Did you know that Batman threatened me last time that I had to keep an eye on you and make sure you saw a therapist?

Not the kind of psychiatrist in prison like Hannibal Lecter.

Must be normal and have no criminal record.

Dick grabbed Allen's tail and rolled his eyes in exasperation.

"Okay, you win. The reward is bunny ears. How does that sound?"

Allen: ...

Before he could even express his opinion, Dick picked him up.