A/n: I'm changing canon a bit so we see Jason again next chapter lol and you guys ever have a plot that's good in theory but in practice it's not fun? Cause that happened with this chapter! So, after getting some advice from my best friend, I dropped my Gar plot lol Sam seemed like SUCH an asshole and I did not want that. Gar seemed REALLY ooc and it was a chore to write so lol oops. It's fine, my main plot doesn't actually change that much but just wanted to let you guys know lol

Jason and Sam pause, looking at Dick. Jason looks a bit broken and defeated but Sam looks like she's about to throw Dick off the edge of the roof. After all of that, after they get kidnapped and permanently fucked up, now Dick is gonna take some type of responsibility for it. Jason is still limping a little, he thinks no one notices but Sam and Gar do. And now Dick is saying it's his fault. Where was he a week ago? Where was he fifteen minutes ago when everyone decided to attack Jason for something he didn't even do?

"Can you come inside? I'll explain everything." Dick asks and Sam looks to Jason.

Jason looks hopeless and tired. and he's quiet. Jason is anything but quiet. Maybe Sam should give it all a rest. Maybe it'd be easier if she agreed with Dick and let him say whatever he has to say and just be a silent form of comfort for Jason. But, Sam has never been very good at biting her tongue, even when she should. And especially, when someone she cares about is any type of pain.

Sam turns back around. "You've got to be fucking kidding me, right?" Sam snarls. "Jason nearly jumped off a roof and NOW you wanna take the blame for something?! Dick, literally what the fuck? Do you maybe wanna first tell the other Tirans they're fucking assholes because they're in there defending you so fucking hard that we're out here!!!! You're supposed to protect us! And now you wanna come clean about Deathstroke's son?!" Sam glares at him, her jaw squared and Jason is shielded right behind her. Her hands start to glow and acid leaks from her balled fists.

Jason reaches forward, resting his hand on her shoulder and squeezing. Jason's never had anyone defend him as hard as Sam does. He's not sure anyone has ever even cared that much about him. Her losing control of her powers in her sleep is one thing, but right now, she's wide awake but she's so mad at everyone that she's losing control of it. Jason isn't going to let her completely lose it, not over him even if it means more than he'll ever say. Sam looks back at him and Jason shakes his head, his eyes still glossy and red.

Sam wants to keep fighting. She's just so furious at everyone that it's like she can feel herself slipping into insanity. It's like the trauma of everything over the last few years is all coming to the surface in one go. Every ounce of anger she wasn't allowed to feel, is ranging back through the back of her throat. Her entire body feels like it's being thrown into the sun but she looks at Jason and it just...fades. Not completely because she thinks she'll be mad about this forever but it fades enough for her to take a breath because he doesn't wanther to fight Dick on this. The glowing of her hands fades and she opens and closes her fists a few times and bites her tongue, for Jason's sake.

Sam turns back around, facing Dick. "Whatever." Sam groans with the roll of her eyes. "But you fucking suck, too."

"Fuck it." Jason scoffs.

Sam looks down at her hands, making sure they're safe before she reaches back and grabs Jason's hand in hers. Jason follows close behind her and keeps his hand in hers on their walk back to the kitchen. It seems to calm her down and it seems to ground him.

When the three of them reach the kitchen, everyone is still waiting in the kitchen. Everyone is mostly scattered about, even Rose has joined the party. Dick declares he has something to tell all of them so Jason lets go off Sam's hand, taking a seat at a table and Sam heads over towards the sink to sit by Gar. She shakes her head at him and rolls her eyes.

"Is Jason okay?" Gar's voice is laced with worry.

"I'll tell you later." She whispers to him before Dick addresses the room with his confession.

"I lied." Dick states as he finishes the story. "I lied to you guys because I was afraid you guys would leave this place and me. And if that happened, there would be no Titans. And I lied to you, too." Dick lets out a breath. "I told you guys Jericho was dead when I got to the church. But he wasn't. He was alive. He died trying to save me from his father. I'm sorry." Dick looks to the ground and crosses his arms. "You all deserve more."

The room falls completely silent. Everyone processing what Dick has just confessed but Hank is the first one to make a move. Hank gets up slowly and then walks over to Dick. Everyone in the room remains completely silent, waiting to see what Hank is gonna say. But, then, Hank doesn't say anything. He punches Dick in the face. Dawn quickly jumps up to move Hank away from Dick.

"You lying sack of shit." Hank grits his teeth at Dick as Dawn pulls him away, Kory standing up from her spot near the living room.

"How many fucking half-truths have you told us?" Donna asks, not moving her spot by the snack bar, her voice holding annoyance.

"At least you got a half-truth." Rachel says and just hearing her voice, Sam wants to explode.

She's mad at Dick but a part of her understands why he would lie. If any of the younger Titans knew it was his fault Jericho died, none of them would trust him. They're supposed to trust him with their lives but he went and got another kid killed and by his own father no less. Of course, they wouldn't trust him to keep them safe. It doesn't excuse him from lying because it caused this huge mess, for Sam and Jason specifically. But, she does get it and Jerircho trying to save Dick, was still his decision. Mad as she might be, Sam is almost certain Dick would do that for any of them. It's what they're supposed to do, right? What the Titans are supposed to do? Put their lives at risk for not only the greater good but also each other? Rachel is always on Dick's side, if anyone should understand any of this, it should be Rachel. Why is everyone flipping so easily?

"So, me and Jason got kidnapped and tortured because of you?" Sam asks and Dick makes eye contact with her before barely glancing at Jason and then looking to floor. "Alright then." Sam scoffs and Gar puts his hand over hers, giving her a look of sympathy.

"My brother's dead because of you." Rose states, glaring harshly at Dick. "I'm out."

Jason stands up as Rose goes to leave the room. "I'm going with her."

"Jason--" Dick starts, looking back to him.

"You don't get to decide what I do anymore, what anybody does." Jason states before turning around and heading down towards the hallway.

Sam looks at Gar a bit panicked. Jason? Leaving? And with Rose? It makes sense given what Jason told her earlier but maybe he should go back to Gotham if he wants to leave. Dick almost got him killed, she doesn't blame him but it hurts anyway. And Gar's heart is in his stomach. Gar thought they'd be a team and Jason is his best friend. He doesn't want to lose him because Dick made a bad decision.

"I'm out, too." Donna glares at Dick as she pushes herself away from the counter and heads out of the room.

"I'm going with Donna." Rachel pipes up, hopping off of the counter. Gar snaps his attention towards them and now another friend of his is leaving. "Can I go with you?" Rachel asks as Donna stands in front of her.

"Sure?" Donna questions.

"Rachel." Gar pipes up.

"I can't stay here." Rachel says before turning away from them.

"Let's go." Hank says to Dawn and the two of them leave without another word.

Gar's eyes grow glossy as he watches all of the Titans start leave. "Kinda messed of Dick." Gar's voice is so small.

"Hold the fuck up." Sam groans, not moving from her spot but the Titans look to her. She cannot believe she's about to do this. What a turn of events this is turning into. "Seriously? You guys are just...giving up on him?"

"Give it a rest." Hank's jaw is squared.

"You defended Dick left and right and now that he comes clean about shit, you're just gonna bail? What kind of fucking team are you people?" Sam doesn't even sound angry right now. Gar isn't sure if he be more worried about that than her being furious. "I mean if the roles were reversed and Jason were Dick, I wouldn't leave. You guys almost got Jason to kill himself and for what? To bail because Dick lied to protect all of us? It's fucked up, sure, but at least he had a good enough reason. What the fuck ever." Sam bites the bitter taste of disappointment.

The Titans are not the heroes she once looked up to. None of them are. Sam is a firm believer in not giving up people easily. She's not an easy person to believe in and she's aware of it. But, her best friend didn't give up on her in Gotham, her mom never did, Gar hasn't, Jason definitely hasn't, and Dick didn't. People are deserving of second chances. As Titans, as heroes, they should know that better than anyone. But none of them have anything to say, they all just walk off.

And because things couldn't get more disappointing, Kory's phone goes off and she takes a second to type a quick message before she starts to walk away, too.

"You're leaving, too?" Dick asks.

"Got some loose ends to take care of. Sorry." Kory says softly before she closes the distance between them and rests a hand on Dick's arm. "At least it's out now." She pauses. "The truth." Dick nods. "I'm sure they'll get over it soon." Kory assures him she leaves the three of them, too.

Gar has tears in his eyes and it breaks Sam's heart. The Titans are leaving Dick but in the process, they're also leaving Gar. Jason, completely understandable. There's a weird history between him and Dick anyway because of Bruce. That's understandable but Rachel. Rachel should be staying. Everyone leaving is hurting more than just Dick.

"Interesting how I'm one of two people still sitting here." Sam mutters with the quick raise of her brows, Dick's looking at her with sympathy. Surprised she even came to his defense in the first place. "Look, Dickolas," Sam hops down from her place on the counter.

She can't believe she's doing this. Defending Dick? Understanding Dick's motivation? Maybe she's also lost her mind. But, she just watched her best friend completely shatter and she's not going to watch Dick do the same. Not without making an effort to prevent it. The reality is that Dick and Jason were taken in by the same person. Both of them are not great at communicating and some of that probably has to do with Bruce. This is something that's clearly eaten away at Dick and words matter. Sam doesn't want to talk another person down from the lege today. So, she swallows the anger she feels towards him and let's herself just feel empathy.

"Sam, don't." Gar pleads with her.

"I gotta say my shit on this." Sam lets out a sigh and walks over to Dick. "Look, fuck you, first of all. Me and Jason almost died because of you and you started this shit here today in the grand scheme of things. But, fuck, alright you were raised by fucking Bruce who clearly isn't very good at it. And you did try your best. Maybe, I was wrong about what it means when someone says that." Sam shakes her head as she shrugs her shoulders. "Because you did." There's no snark in her voice, no sarcasm. It's just sympathetic. "It backfired to hell and back but....at least you fucking tried to keep all of us safe and that's doing a whole lot more than a lot of people have done for me and Jason and Gar. So, fuck you because that's shitty. But, I don't think everyone should give up on you either." Sam sucks in a breath. "You didn't give up on me." Sam chews the inside of her cheek as she furrows her brows. She sucks in a breath and clears her throat. "Anyway." She spins around to look at Gar. "I'm gonna try to convince Jason to stay, wanna help?"

Gar shakes his head and there's a hint of a smile on his lips. He didn't think she'd say any of that to Dick, ever. He didn't think she would ever even side with Dick if Dick were right about something. But it was nice and Gar knows that probably wasn't easy for her to say, especially right now. And as for Dick, he's getting the sense she's gonna be okay. Of all people in this tower, Sam is the one siding with him. He can't believe it but it does mean something to him. Maybe he hasn't completely failed all of them.

"If he'll listen to anyone, it's you." Gar nods at her.

"I'll meet you back out here when I'm done." Sam smiles softly at him and heads towards Jason's room.

Sam walks to Jason's room and she's trying to think of what she can tell him to convince him to stay that isn't about her or Gar. It's a little selfish of her to ask him to stay for either of them. But, she needs him. Sam chose Gar but Jason is their best friend. He means everything to the both of them and neither of them want to see him take off and make bad decisions because of one bad decision Dick made. The way Sam sees it, Dick didn't kill Jericho. It's Dick's actions that lead to Jericho getting killed but Jericho was protecting Dick. There was a reason for that. And Sam holds onto that. So, she knocks on Jason's door and opens it slowly seeing him pack a bag by his bed.

"Hey." Sam greets him sadly, leaving the door open.

"You can't fucking stop me." Jason snaps at her, throwing some clothes into a bag.

Sam looks to the floor and sticks her hands into her hoodie pouch. "Yeah...thought I'd try though." Seeing him pack, it puts him leaving into reality and she really, really doesn't want to him to leave and it starts getting heavy again.

Jason looks over at her and sees her eyes starting to gloss over. The hardened expression grows softer. She looks desperate. "Are you okay?" Jason switches it to her, not just because it's what he does. She just talked him down, screamed at the Titans for ten minutes in his defense, and found out it's all Dick's fault. He is worried about how she's going to handle all of this.

Sam pauses and her heart is somewhere between thundering and stopping. The lump grows in her throat and this is getting to be a little too much. The adrenaline from being angry is crashing and now Sam just feels sad. Sam's eyes start to burn while her stomach grows nauseous. It's too loud and too heavy and too fucking much.

She shakes her head. "No." The word is so fragile, Jason swears if he breathes too heavily the world will shatter around her. "I'm....uh, I'm just so fucking mad at them." Sam sucks in a heavy breath, dodging Jason's eyes. "You...you-you just...don't deserve it." Sam shakes her head, looking to the ground, brows furrowed and she swears she can't breathe. "You-you deserve, you deserve better." Sam pulls her hands out of her hoodie pouch, tugging the sleeves over her hands as they shake so bad she almost can't grab the sleeve. "It's...I don't know." Sam finally looks up to him. "And I don't want you to leave." Sam sucks in a breath as if that breath is gonna put all of this back together again.

Jason shakes his head and it's agonizing listening to her try to get the words out. His chest feels like he's being punched over and over again. "I can't fucking stay here, Sam. He fucking lied. I almost fucking died because of that shit. You almost died." Jason's eyes go to her hands, still shaking and he walks over to her, putting his hands on her shoulders. His eyes lock with hers, his left eye still a light shade of yellow from the healing bruise. But the action alone, grounds her. She's able to suck in a full breath with his hands on her shoulders. "They're assholes, okay? I'll be fine once I'm away from all of them."

"You almost walked off a roof half an hour ago, Jay." Sam's eyes water.

"But I didn't." Jason states. "I'll be fine once I'm far the fuck away from any of them, alright?"

"They're all leaving." Sam's voice is almost pleading with him.

"All?" Jason questions af to not believe her.

"Rachel's leaving with Donna, Hank and Dawn are leaving together, obviously. Kory's leaving, too. She has a thing, I guess." Sam pauses and Jason's hands slide down her arms. "It's just..Gar, Dick, and me. Dick sucks but Gar and me are pretty okay."

"I can't, not with Dick still here." Jason keeps his stance, ignoring the feeling of his chest caving in and he drops his hands entirely away from Sam.

He moves back to the bed and continues to pack his clothes. It's hard for him, too. Sam has done more for him than most people have. She means so much to him that he can't even imagine his life without her in it anymore. He knows it's what's best for him but leaving, leaving her, makes him feel like his chest is wide open and bleeding.

Sam hangs her head. Every reason she has to convince him to stay is selfish. He's standing here telling her he can't stay because it's what's best for him. And she still wants to convince him and that's just selfish. It's gonna be painful with him leaving. She's going to worry about him the whole time. He means everything to her. She likes hanging out with him. She likes being around him. He makes her feel fucking normal. The weight of the world doesn't feel like it could crush her at any moment when he's around. Every single reason she comes to, is about how she feels and not about what is actually best for Jason.

It's right now, with the undeniable fact that Jason is leaving, that's him. She likes Gar, of course she does. What's not to like? But, there's Jason and this agonizing thunder in her chest is practically crippling and all he's doing is leaving. He'll call her and text her. But it feels like this is the end of everything. If it weren't Jason, it wouldn't hurt this bad.

Sam wouldn't feel like she's bleeding out. It's always been Jason as much as she wants to deny it because it's easier that way, it is. Because Jason is the one she felt the most comfortable with to tell him what happened first, because he went with her to Jerry's without any judgment or anger, because he welcomed her into his own world. Because, despite everything, Jason feels comfortable and safe and thrilling and fun. Jason feels like a rollercoaster, right before the drop or a loop. You know you're safe, but your stomach drops anyway and there's a thrill that comes with it. It's safe but thrilling and that's what it feels like around Jason. Around Jason, the world is not heavy because when it gets heavy, he crawls under it with her and he helps lift that weight so she isn't alone in it. Because she tells Jason that she's not okay. Jason feels like home.

But, Sam bites every piece of that down because she cannot tell him. He will stay if she does. She kissed him anyway and he doesn't want that. Not right now. If she tells him, she is terrified he will stay and get worse. It's not what's best for him. And she can't leave. She wants to go with him but Gar has been there for her just as much as Jason has. She can't leave Gar alone and telling Jason would mean choosing not just between them on a romantic level, but choosing between them on a friendship level and that is something she swears she will never do. So she swallows the shards of glass with every unspoken word scribbled across the pieces.

"I understand." The words feel like chewing gravel. "I'm...I am really gonna miss you, then, Jay."

Jason almost turns around, her voice is broken and desperate. He almost turns around because he feels bad this hurts her. It shouldn't. He never should have meant that much to her but he does. He almost looks at her but if does, he'll stay and he knows he can't. He doesn't belong here. He's never fit in. Dick has never wanted here. He would rather be on his own than someplace he isn't even wanted.

Three's a silence that consumes them and it's as if they exist in their own bubble. It's always kind of like that when it's just the two f them. It's just Jason and Sam. The world gets quiet, they can breathe, and the heaviness is easier to carry. When they're together, alone, they exist in a bubble that protects them from the outside world. Even with Deathstroke. That whole experience would have been so much worse and so much more terrifying if they didn't have each other. And right now, their bubble surrounds them, it's filled with heartache and guilt, unsaid words that they both swear will never see the light of day. But, then their bubble gets popped.

Rose walks in, seeing Sam watching Jason with Jason's back to her. She plops in one of Jason's chairs before deciding to break the silence. "What? Trying to get him to stay?"

Sam feels the sadness completely fade into more anger with Rose speaking. It consumes every piece of sadness that embedded itself in her chest. Sam rolls her eyes nearly into the back of her head. She doesn't have the mental capacity to deal with her, too.

"Is that any concern of yours?" Sam asks, keeping her back to her.

"He's coming with me."

Sam looks over her shoulder to Rose. "Cool." Sam shrugs one shoulder and turns back around to Jason. "Look, you're our best friend and we respect your decision but....uh, ya know, we just worry about you." Sam does not want to have this conversation with Rose in the room. It's none of her fucking business. What is said between her and Jason, stays that way.

"I'm gonna be fine." Jason shakes his head and if Dick would leave, he'd stay. But with Dick here, he can't.

"You care about him," Rose's voice is snarky from behind Sam and Sam feels her entire emotional stability start to slip. She will explode again. She's fed the fuck up with all of this shit. "But Dick treats him like shit and so do the rest of the Titans. They'll all come back eventually."

Sam narrows her eyes and there is something about Rose that doesn't make sense. Sam doesn't know what it is but there's something rubbing her the wrong way. It's not jealousy, Sam is certain of that because it doesn't feel warm like that. There's something else and it hits Sam that it's the way she just said how the tower treats Jason. Everyone treats Jason like shit besides Sam and Gar. They're the only two that ever gave Jason a chance to not be a shithead. Sure, maybe Rose gave Jason the same, but Sam finds it a little weird.

"Do you wanna shut the fuck up?" Sam looks at her, blinking quickly.

"If you're really his friend, you'd want what's best for him." Rose quips. "Do you even have a good reason for him to stay?"

"Literally, this sounds like we're fighting over him which I'm not gonna do." Sam pauses and turns to fully face her. "No, it's why I simply asked him instead of outright convincing him. I don't have a reason that's not fucking selfish." Jason glances over his shoulder and he wonders what the hell that could possibly mean. "Is there a reason you, specifically, want him to go with you instead of going home?" Sam raises the question and Jason has slowed his packing to watch the girls argue.

"He isn't wanted there either." Rose states and Sam is taken aback by the comment.

Does she know Jason at all? Home is home. It doesn't matter how fucking shitty Gotham is, that place is home. Sam knows for a fact that is his home because he doesn't think she's insane for wanting to go back. The only people who don't think that's completely insane are Gotham people. There is something else going on here and for a second, Sam wants to play every single card she has against Jason to get him to stay. Regardless on if it's good for him or not because going with Rose, right about now, seems like a bad fucking decision, too.

"Interesting." Sam nods her head. "Right, so it's not because you're hooking up and you're choosing to go with saying he isn't wanted there to engrain more negative thoughts into his head so he'll go with you?" Sam questions. "Which, by the way, pretty shitty fucking move considering what just happened."

Jason snickers softly to himself. He's not exactly sure who would win in a fistfight but he's certain Sam could win any argument she's in. Sam will not back down against anyone. Especially when it's about him. Jason swears Rose has no idea what she's getting herself into and Jason isn't about to tell her. He is a little curious about what Rose's answer to any of this is.

"You still haven't given a reason for him to stay." Rose offers this condescending grin and Sam's eye nearly twitches.

"You know what, I got one." Sam narrows her eyes at Rose. "I don't fucking like you." Sam snarks, her voice stern and coursing with venom, Jason's full attention is now on the girls. Sam liked Rose a few hours ago, this is getting interesting.

"Because you think we're hooking up? That's cute. What does Gar think?"

"Nope." Sam shakes her head while a laugh leaves her lips. This isn't jealousy and Sam is positive. "Why do you know it wasn't Jason?" Sam asks. "I mean, I know it wasn't him. But, why do you know that? You're positive it wasn't him. Why? You know him about as well as you know me or Gar or Rachel or Dick. So, why do you think it wasn't Jason? And don't say because you like him because we all know you're a lot smarter than that. So, why?"

Does it seem insane to accuse Rose? Absolutely. But the entire tower has lost their minds and Sam figures she might as well join them. If she shoots enough times, she's bound to hit something. And Jason didn't do it but someone in this tower did. She's gonna find out who it is if it's the last thing she does.

"Why would he?" Rose fires back.

"Exactly. But, see, I ask that question and you don't even point the finger at Rachel or Dick which, by the way, was who I would have said did it. So, why do you know it isn't Jason and why aren't you blaming anyone else in this tower?" Sam crosses her arms. "If you care so much about him, that is, you'd be pointing at anyone else."

Jason glances in front of Sam to Rose and Sam is making a point, a completely insane point but a point nonetheless. He's not entirely sure where she's going with this but he is curious how Rose knows it wasn't him. It is nice that she knows it's not, but curious what the explanation is nonetheless.

"Okay, how do I know it wasn't you?" Rose questions.

Sam gives a cold smile. "See, now you're using me as a scapegoat because I asked. I know it wasn't Jason because I was with him. He's either me, with Gar, with the both of us, or you. So, for you to know it wasn't Jason means you would also know it wasn't me or Gar. So, who do you think really did all of that?" Sam blinks at her.

The dots connect right then and Jason is pretty sure Sam is accusing Rose. He has no idea why she would. How would Rose know any of that shit? It's like him. He wouldn't know any of that, so Rose wouldn't. A part of him is a little annoyed by it because now it's seeming like Sam can't set aside her bias.

"Are you accusing her?" Jason huffs from behind Sam.

"Nah, just asking questions." Sam shrugs her shoulders and Rose holds a stern face. Sam isn't sure how or why it would be Rose but she does find it interesting that Rose is certain without pointing the finger at anyone. Sam turns around, dropping the argument. Of all people, Rose isn't worth fighting. "I won't convince you." Sam backs down and Jason is surprised. Sam doesn't back down from anything besides their game of chicken. "But, uh, just call and text, okay? Me and Gar both care about you." Sam offers a soft smile.

"Yeah, yeah, alright." Jason chuckles softly.

Sam walks over to him and pulls him into a hug. "Just...promise me, you'll be careful?" She whispers to him and she feels him nod against her shoulder. "Good. If shit gets too loud..." Sam pauses and it really hurts saying goodbye to him. "I'll come find you, okay?" Sam pulls away, keeping her hands on his shoulders and smiles gently at him. "Always." Sam offers him a nod, the lump in her throat almost suffocating her.

Jason nods at her, his hands on her waist and he wishes it were just the two of them for this. It should be. It hurts him, too. She is his best friend. She means the world to him. Sam is the only person who ever understood him for who is, all the way through. His chest aches and it's like it's just bleeding, openly for her. But, he has to ignore it but he cannot stay here. It's too heavy.

"Same to you." Jason nods at her. "Just call."

Sam gives him the saddest smile Jason has ever seen. "Of course. Have fun, Jason Todd." There's the slightest break in her voice and Jason always decides to stay. Just almost.

"Don't have too much fun, Sam Carter." Jason winks at her and Sam rolls her eyes.

"Shut the fuck." Sam groans as she heads for the door, giving a quick glare to Rose on her way out.

Sam heads back to the living room, heart heaving and aching. She sits beside Gar on the couch, Dick is outside on the balcony, likely wallowing. Sam rests her head on Gar's shoulder and Gar puts his arm around her, pulling her close against him. He knows she's gone through a lot and it'd be easier, probably, if she would leave with someone. But, he is always going to be grateful that she decided to stay with him. Gar can't give up Dick. Everyone else is and Gar believes in second chances. He has to stay. Someone has to stay. And he is so happy Sam is staying with him because he needs her.

"Thank you for staying." Gar whispers to her and Sam picks her head up, brows furrowed. "I would just get it if you wanted to leave." Gar's voice is soft, almost expecting her to change her mind.

"I know uh, but, I've been running from things forever and..." She pauses, chewing the inside of her cheek. "They're all leaving anyway and you're here. I'm not gonna leave you with just Dick." Sam lets out a weak laugh.

"Thank you." Gar offers her a grateful smile. "Are you okay?"

Sam nods her head and gives Gar a fake smile. "Yeah, yeah, I'm fine. Worried for Jason's sake." Sam swallows every reason she's not okay and the words stick to her throat like static.

Just then, Jason and Rose enter from the hallway. Rose is already on her way to the elevator, not offering anything to Sam or Gar. Jason, on the other hand, offers them a nod of his head. Gar gives him a sad smile but the smile Sam gives him is broken and hollow before Jason heads to the elevator.

"Think he'll be back?" Gar asks.

Sam shakes her head. "No, I think his mind is made up. I think Dick burned him too bad this time." Sam says quietly. "He said he'd call and text though, both of us." Sam assures him.

Gar nods his head. "I'm gonna miss him."

"We'll hunt him down if he doesn't call or text." Sam smiles at Gar. "Dick will owe us and Jason will probably end up back with Bruce so we'll figure it out." Sam wiggles her brows and that gets Gar to laugh.

"Got it all planned out."

"Always do." Sam smiles widely but her smile falls as she watched Hank and Dawn head for the elevator, pausing when they see them.

"Are you guys gonna be okay here?" Dawn asks, her voice as sweet as usual.

"Yeah, if you guys want, you can come with us. You don't have to stay here." Hank nods at them, earning a soft glare from Sam.

"I wouldn't go with either of you if someone paid me." Sam scoffs at the both of them, Gar letting out a sigh beside her. He gets her anger towards them but Gar doesn't have it in himself to be mad at everyone.

"We're okay." Gar offers a somber closed mouth smile at them. "Thank you though."

"If you need somewhere to go, call us, okay?" Dawn asks them.

"We will." Gar assures.

"I will not." Sam nods her head, blinking at them. "Can't--"

"Okay." Gar lets out a sigh, lightly nudging Sam and shaking his head, eyes pleading her not to argue anymore. Dawn and Hank don't say another word before they leave.

"Sorry." Sam lets out a breath. "I'm just so fucking mad." Her voice cracks. "You didn't....you didn't see him, Gar. Just..." There's desperation in her eyes. "I'm so fucking mad at them for how they treat him."

"I know." Gar nods. "Me, too. He's my best friend and them blaming him for stuff he didn't do, that's not right. But, it's not worth arguing. They're gone anyway."

"I know." Sam nods her head with understanding.

The two of them sit together, comfortable in silence together as they watch Rachel and Donna leave together and then Kory following not long after. It's a sad moment. Sam holds a lot of bitterness but she did like having the older Titans around. It's sad to watch them deteriorate over this. Sam doesn't really get it because Dick did apologize and he did it to protect them. It wasn't right but they should understand that. If she can, everyone should. And she just can't believe she feels bad for Dick, but she does.

Dick walks in and looks at them with sad eyes. "I'm gonna leave, too." Dick nods once at them and Gar and Sam sit up straight, nearly jumping from their seats. "You guys can hold down the tower. I'm gonna pack but you guys got this." Dick says as he turns around, leaving the two of them in the living room.

"Uh....yeah, what the fuck?" Sam looks at Gar.

"I'm gonna go to talk him." Gar gets up quickly and leaves, rushing to Dick's room.

Sam stays in the living room while Gar chases after Dick to try and convince him. Her heart is heavy in her chest, it feels like her shoulders are going to collapse. After everything, it all just keeps falling apart. She swore this place could be home, but now everyone besides Gar is leaving. Her best friend, the one she shares so much with, the one who gets her better than anyone, the one who she fights back the burning in her stomach for, left. Gar is here which is great but having everyone else leave, is making this hole in her heart that she can't quite explain. And maybe she swears she's just tired because it's been a long few weeks and trauma is exhausting.

"Yeah, hey, hi, I got a question." Sam hears Gar as him and Dick come walking in from the hall near the kitchen. Gar is facing Dick, stopping him from moving. "What about the unconscious naked dude down the hall?" Gar asks as Sam gets up from her spot, getting a view of Dick with a bag. Even Gar was unsuccessful in getting him to stay and her heart sinks further.

"He's your number one job." Dick says, eyes locked on Gar. "His vitals are steady. Just check on him every few hours but nothing to worry about." Dick explains while Sam moves to stand beside Gar. "He's probably going to outlive us all." Dick pauses for a second. "When he wakes up, call Bruce." Gar perks up with the name.

"Bruce Wayne?" Gar asks without missing a beat.

"No, Bruce Springsteen." Dick states.

"Who?" Gar mumbles, voice slightly deflated.

Dick shakes his head. "Look, Conner will probably want to get in touch with Superman. Bruce can make that happen."

Gar crosses his arm, almost vibrating with excitement as a smile splits his face and it makes the hole in Sam's heart not feel so deep. "So, him and Superman are like..."

"Just call him, okay?" Dick asks and Gar nods. "He's your number one job." Dick nods his head at Gar. "Yours, too." Dick looks to Sam and then back to Gar.

"Number one job." Gar confirms.

"Number one job." Sam lets out a sigh.

"That's all you gotta do." Dick states.

"All I gotta do." Gar repeats and Sam gives Dick a thumbs up.

"Thanks." Dick sticks out his hand but Gar slaps it away and brings Dick for a hug.

Once they pull away, Dick turns to face Sam and she is a lot more upset about him leaving than she'd like to admit. She has her issues with him but she does respect him. At the end of the day, despite everything that happened, he did save her life a few months ago. Dick did do his best and it should have been good enough.

"Yeah, I'll take the handshake." Sam offers Dick a smile and sticks out her hand. Dick chuckles softly, shaking her hand.

"I'll be back." Dick says and he walks to the elevator, Gar and Sam following behind him. Dick gets into the elevator, looking back at Sam and Gar who are stopped outside of the hall. "Keep the faith, guys." Dick says as the elevator doors close.

The elevator takes Dick down, leaving Sam and Gar alone with Krypto and an unconscious Conner down the hall. It's just them. This is the emptiest the tower has been since Gar arrived and he's gotta admit, he does not like it. Gar doesn't like being alone. He has Sam, of course, which he knows will be nice but it felt like such a family, even with the fighting. The fighting made it seem more like a family and he's really gonna miss it, miss everyone.

"Well..." Sam lets out a breath. "Now what?" She squats down and starts to pet Krypto.

Gar joins her. "I have no idea." Gar chuckles softly. "Same as always, I guess."

"Movies, video games, training?" Sam raises a brow at him.

"Any other suggestions?" Gar asks.

"Nope," Sam laughs softly. "Im gonna train then, wanna come?"

"You sure? I mean, we haven't done much training since..."

Sam nods. "Yeah, I'm fine. It just, uh," Sam's brows furrow as she looks past Gar for just a second. "Needed that break."

"From Jason or training?" Gar asks hesitantly.

Sam winces with the questions. "Both." She shrugs as she stands up. "Coming?" She jerks her head towards the hallway.

"Yeah, of course." Gar grins, getting to his feet and gestures for Krypto to follow them.

The two of them make their way to the training room and start to warm up. Sam wonders if this is what it will be like. Still having the same training sessions but with just the two of them and then having breakfast, more training. She wonders if they'll start to slack off or if this will become more of a habit because there's nothing else to do in the tower. They can't very well leave until Conner wakes up so it's just them. The one thing Sam does know is that training will distract her from the heaviness in her chest.

On a list of things she never thought she would have to do it, talking someone down from a roof was high up on that list, especially that someone being her best friend. And of all people, she never expected it to be Jason. Jason is resilient and hard-headed and stubborn as twelve pack mules. But, Deathstroke seemed to break some piece in him and then everyone turned on him. They confirmed every horrible thought he had ever had about himself. Even the most resilient people have a breaking point and Jason hit his today. And it's something that will haunt Sam and she thinks about it as she stretches, swearing that has to be one of the most selfish thoughts she's ever had.

It didn't happen to her, being haunted by it shouldn't happen but she's worried about him. She is here alone with Gar and her only thought is being worried about Jason because he tried to walk off a fucking roof after being dropped fifteen stories.

"You okay?" Gar pulls her out of her thoughts, Sam snapping her attention to him.

"Huh? Yeah, no I'm good." Sam fakes a smile towards him.

"You were ignoring me." Gar gives her a shy chuckle.

"I'm sorry, Gar." Sam lets out a breath. "I'm just thinking."

"You wanna talk about it?"

"Just...Jason, ya know?"

"Yeah, what, uh, what happened out there?"

"He was gonna walk off the roof so...."

"Wait, what?" Gar's entire face falls, his heart dropping into his stomach.

"Mhm, so, uh, Rachel had crucifixes drawn on her mirror I guess. She stormed into Jason's room and immediately put the blame on him but I was with him so I know he didn't do it, not that Rachel wanted to hear that side of it. Jason went to leave and the other Titans blamed him for this random shit he did not do. He just couldn't take it anymore, I guess. I don't know, worried about him."

"Why would they blame him? I know he gets on people's nerves but Jason wouldn't do any of that."

"That's what I said!" Sam yells, flinging a hand out dramatically. "Plus, he's always with one of us or both or Rose so we would know if he did it. It's so fucking stupid and I guess that was just his breaking point."

"That's really shitty." Gar's eyes grow sad. Gar kind of thought Jason went off to sulk somewhere and was more upset than usual. Gar did see the look of hopelessness across his face before Jason snuck off. He didn't think it would lead him to the roof. "Do you think he'll be okay?"

"He thinks he's like a disease or something....like he ruins everything he touches. I told him it wasn't true so I don't know. I got him down which is good but I don't know. I hope he goes back with Bruce, honestly. I don't like Rose."

"Since when? You said she was cool."

"Yeah, but then she barged in when I was gonna convince Jason to say and she was being so......"

"MEAN!?"

"Yeah! And rude! Wouldn't stay out of the conversation! She was pretending like she knew best or whatever!"

"She did the same to me when you guys were....held captive by her dad."

"What!?" Sam shakes her head. "What'd she say?"

"She was basically just blaming you and Jason for getting kidnapped as if it wasn't her dad and Dick that caused everything, not that we knew about Dick but it was her dad. And then she said not to project my guilt on her, Tiger boy." Gar mocks the way Rose said it.

"That's fucking rude, we didn't go out and—" Sam stops mid-sentence before furrowing her brows. "How'd she know you're a tiger?"

"That's what you're gonna focus on?"

"No, but..how'd she know? Dick doesn't tell people, I would know. He definitely wouldn't tell Rose on account of her dad. No one else would have told her besides Rachel, I guess."

"What are you getting at?" Gar didn't think that was all that weird but Sam seems to think so.

"I don't know that's just like a weird ." Sam shakes her head. "It's not that she went with Jason either, it was just the way she was that rubbed me the wrong way and I don't think she has his best interests and hearing what you said, I don't know. Bad vibe."

"Yeah, I get that. But hey, Jason is smart and he's definitely not gullible so if something is off, he'll figure it out."

"Yesh' I know." Sam offers Gar a soft smile and decides to drop. Sam knows she's probably just being paranoid given everything that's happened over the last couple of weeks. "Well, let's train then." Sam gets to her feet and Gar follows suit. "Spar like we always do?" Sam grabs two of the practice swords, tossing one out to Gar.

"Works for me," Gar gets into position and Sam follows his lead. "Ready?"

"Go." Sam states and the two of them meet in the middle, Sam throwing the first swing, smacking Gar on the upper bicep. "You gotta block me, Garfield." Sam teases.

"Ha, ha, funny," Gar chuckles, taking a swing at her and missing as she jumps out of the way and blocks him with her sword. "You know, I don't think we've ever done this, just us, I mean."

"That's because Jason practically lived in here." Sam laughs softly. "This is nice though, we never spar against each other and I'm winning. We usually lose. Today, I'll win though." Sam strikes quickly, smacking Gar's other bicep, wiggling her brows at him.

"Okay, no, I'm gonna win." Gar's smile is wide as he plants his feet firmly on the floor, a little more prepared for Sam to hit him again.

"Well, bring it on then." Sam mocks him.

After two hours so training, Sam winning the sparring session, they call it a night and decide to order takeout. Naturally, they go with a pizza and breadsticks. While they wait, they check on Conner who's still unconscious and they head back to the living room. Gar lets Sam pick the movie since he got to pick the movie last time. She opts for Nerve and goes to Gar's room for some blankets. Sam preps the couch for the two of them, Krypto hopping up next to her and resting his head on her lap.

They watch the movie together and the two of them allow themselves that time to relax. Today was a shitshow, and they should have some time to forget about it. Watching a movie together, eating pizza with Krypto, it allows that reprise. And they deserve it.

The next morning comes around and Gar wakes up first. At some point, they had fallen asleep and Sam used him as a pillow. This is different than the other times they've fallen asleep together because instead of a nightmare that drove her to him, it was just because she was tired and comfortable with him. And Gar thinks she's the cutest person he's ever seen. She doesn't look so angry right now or stressed out. She actually looks peaceful and he thinks she should always have peace of mind. No one deserves to go through half of what she went through. So, Gar carefully gets up, trying not to wake her, and heads to the kitchen to make coffee and breakfast for the both of them.

While Gar gets the food going, he starts thinking of a plan to get the Titans back together. They're supposed to be a team and they were once a really good team. They shouldn't be mad at each other and they can all be a team together. they should be a team together. And part of that is Gar doesn't like be alone. He never has, ever since he was little. He got separated from his parents at a zoo once and it was one of the scariest moments of his life. He hates being alone and yesterday, everyone besides Sam left him. So, he's taking it upon himself to get the band back together.

Sam wakes up the sound of sizzling coming from the kitchen. She looks at her legs and Krypto has made his way over to her, laying on her. A smile pulls at her lips as she pets him. She slides her legs out from under Krypto and sits up, stretching before making her way to the kitchen where she sees Gar, flipping a pancake at the stove.

"Morning." Sam's voice is still filled with sleep and a little hoarse.

Gar turns around, a toothy smile shining bright. "Good morning."

"What're you doing?" She asks, taking a seat at the snack bar, Krypto trotting in not long after.

"Making breakfast. You like pancakes." Gar feels heat creep onto his cheeks as he turns back around.

"You're making me breakfast?"

"You made it for me." Gar chuckles softly. "You were still sleeping and you had a rough day yesterday."

Sam would be lying if her chest didn't still feel heavy from it. Her throat actually feels sore from all of the screaming. "Yeah, it sucked." Sam lets out a scoff. "Thank you, that's very nice."

"Of course." Gar chimes. "How'd you sleep?"

"Uh, okay, actually. I think I was so fucking exhausted that...I didn't have problems." Sam laughs softly. "How about you?"

"Good." Gar states simply. "The couch is surprisingly comfortable."

"Yeah, right?" Sam nods her head in agreement before checking her phone.

Jaybird 🐦: Made it to a house we're fine

Sam: Good stay safe and wrap it before you tap it 🫡

"We doing the usual today?" Sam asks as Gar puts the pancakes on a plate.

"Yeah, but we should try to get the Titans back together." He states, looking over his shoulder, seeing Sam's reaction. She's very expressive.

Her eyes are slightly narrowed. She has no desire to get them back together. The only people she wants back here are Jason and, surprisingly, Dick. Dick is at least somewhat a responsible adult and despite him being the cause for everything, she did feel safe with him at the tower. She isn't sure if that's some sort of growth on her part or if it's her still being mad the other Titans.

"Why?" Sam asks as her phone chimes.

Jaybird 🐦: 😏🥱

Sam: 🤮🤮🤢

Sam scrunches her nose with Jason's reply, but there's still s smile dancing across her lips as she looks back up at Gar. Gar raises his brow, as if silently asking what the face was for.

"Jason, they're fine." Sam brushes it off.

That's kind of the thing for Gar. He likes her, he does. But he is not Jason Todd and he never will be. They're similar enough, it's why they're friends. But they are drastically different people and he isn't him. Sam is smiling a goofy smile at her phone and Gar is pretty sure she's never looked at him in that way. Jason told him to tell her but Gar thinks he'll go against that advice and pick a different route. Gar wants to know for certain before he gets his hopes up, since Jason isn't here.

Jaybird 🐦: take your own advice

Sam: 😑 stfu

Gar places a plate in front of Sam. "It's Jason...isn't it?" There's a solemn but understanding tone to Gar's words, making Sam look up at him again, confused.

"I just...I just said it was Jason?"

Gar let's out an awkward chuckle. "No, I mean...it's him, right?" Gar gains this soft and sad expression and Sam gets it.

It hurts a little to confirm it but it's for the best. Jason said Gar likes her and she always felt like he did. It's not fair to not tell him when she knows for certain. That's not right and Gar is her friend. She would never hurt him.

"Yeah." Sam lets out a sigh, of putting her phone on the counter. "Yeah, it is." Sam's expression is sad, and sympathetic toward Gar.

Gar gives her a soft nod and he looks so sad. "How long have you known?"

"Yesterday," Sam states. "I like you, too. It's...I don't know. Fucking Jason. I didn't...I didn't know until yesterday that it was him, when he was leaving. Like with Deathstroke, near-death experience, that's...too high of an emotional situation but yesterday..." Sam lets out an exasperated sigh. "It hurt too much for it not to be. Telling off the Titans, all of that. Can't really deny that." Sam rolls her eyes, more at herself than Gar. "I'm really sorry, Gar."

Gar nods with understanding. "It's okay." Gar assures her. "It sucks but it's okay. Thank you for being honest."

"I wish I could have been sooner."

It does hurt but Gar also understands. Jason and Sam made it so obvious, he almost felt a little silly for even liking Sam. It aches in the center of his chest but he's at least glad she was honest with him about it. It might not be him, but Gar isn't the bitter type and at the end of the day, Jason and Sam are his friends. He just wants everyone to be happy.

"It's okay." Gar offers her a soft but small smile. "Did you tell him?"

"Absolutely not." Sam laughs. "He would have stayed and I don't think him staying would have been good for him, he was so insistent on it and I get it. I was afraid if I told him, he'd stay."

"Probably." Gar chuckles and he lets the ache in his chest exist, but he pushes past it because Sam is his friend. "Can I ask why you decided to stay then?" There's a hesitance in Gar's voice.

"You're also my best friend." Sam says it so simply that it brings a gentle smile to Gar's face. "You've been there for me and he's going off with Rose. Everyone leaving and stuff, I wasn't gonna leave you here with just Dick. Glad I stayed since he left, too."

Gar looks down with a gentle chuckle before looking back to Sam. "Thank you. It, uh, it means a lot."

"Of course." Sam gives him a sweet smile and telling him feels so good. It's actually relieving having that acknowledgment of it being Jason actually out in the open. She feels bad for hurting Gar but it's relieving.. "Anyway, what's your plan? I trust you and if you think getting the Titans back together is a good idea, I'll help." Sam says and Gar gains a giant smile.

"We give them a few days to cool down." Gar cuts his own pancakes. "Then, we text them for random things, asking for help with some stuff. When Conner wakes up, we'll show them what he can do and they'll have to come back."

Sam finds the mention of using Conner strange, even for Gar. But, at least that sounds like maybe it'll work. Who wouldn't want to work with some who's like Superman?

"The Conner thing might work but they might just text us the answers if we ask them?" Sam offers with a soft laugh.

"Which is why we keep bothering and we tell them that they're better as a team. We can convince them."

"You probably can." Sam laughs softly. "If they don't all hate me from yesterday, I'll be shocked." Sam clears her throat. "But, you, I mean you could probably convince all of them. No one likes to say to you."

"Really?"

"Yeah, you're so...you that you make it hard." Sam chuckles. "Like, you're so kind and innocent about everything. You never ask for anything either so if you're asking for something, we gotta say yes." Sam's eyes widen at him before she gives him a grin. "Dick has never told you no since I've been here and neither has Jason and I think his favorite word is no." Sam shrugs."Well, and fuck but..."

Gar lets out a sigh. "I never noticed"

"Yeah, it's true. So, we'll come up with some stuff to bug them about and then you work your tiger magic to convince them. Plus, who doesn't want to live with a tiger?"

"Thank you." Gar's smile si grateful while the two of them continue their breakfast, discussing the Titans and talking about what show they should start now with all of their free time.

As the day goes on, they train for a few hours, and order in more food. They take turns taking Krypto on short walks around the block while the other checks Conner's vitals. Jason checks in with Sam and Gar throughout the day, too and there is some comfort in that. At least, over text, he seems okay.

The night comes around and they opt for Gar's room where they play a few video games, Krypto still hanging out with them. That's how they spend the rest of the night, occasionally checking on Conner. Eventually, Sam heads to her own room and sleeps there for once, something about sleeping in Gar's room with feeling out in the open feels a little weird.

Over the next few days, Sam and Gar fall into their own routine. They take turns making breakfast before they go into training. They make their own training schedule, having three sessions a day and they schedule walks with Krypto while taking turns checking on Conner. They sleep in their own rooms and Sam deals with her nightmares alone, choosing to keep Gar out of them. She isn't his responsibility and she decides maybe she should try and figure out how to handle those on her own. She tells Gar about them in the morning though because talking still does help a little.

And while this whole thing is nice, they're also growing so bored. At least when Jason, Dick, and Rachel were around, they always had people to talk to besides themselves, people to hang out with and do things with. It's just the two of them following the same routine for the last four days. They can't leave the tower together so they're just trapped here.

On top of that, Sam and Gar both get regular texts from Jason the first two days. Jason texts Sam more but he was keeping in touch. But, the last two days, he's gone silent and makes Sam start to worry that something happened. Jason not texting her back just seems weird and it bothers her. It's that gut feeling that says something just isn't quite right.

"What are you thinking about?" Gar asks as he hands her a Gatorade, the two of them taking a break from training.

"Huh?" The action snaps Sam out of her thoughts.

"You're thinking about something. I can always tell. What's up?" Gar asks, sitting on the bench opposite her.

"I dunno, I think I might just be paranoid." Sam tries to shrug it off because she thinks she's looking for a reason for something to be wrong. The last few days have been going well and Sam is always waiting for the other shoe to drop.

"About what?" Gar lets out a chuckle.

"Jason..." Sam states hesitantly. "And Rose, ya know, it's just weird. We aren't really hearing from him."

"Yeah, no that is weird. But what does that have to do with Rose?"

It's still bothering her. The whole interaction was five days ago. It's not a sixth sense and maybe it's her feelings for Jason that are clouding her judgment but it just does not feel right. And she stacks Gar's conversation with Rose on top of it. The more she thinks about Rose coming to the tower and everything that followed after, the more it bothers her.

"I just mean....it's weird, right? Like, her showing up and being Deathstroke's daughter and everything that happened after?" Sam opens the Gatorade bottle before taking a drink.

"I guess, but Dick brought her here and Deathstroke did try to kill her." Gar scrunches his nose, trying to be the voice of reason.

"Yeah, but....two's a coincidence and three's a pattern, right?" 

"A lot of the time, sure. What exactly are you thinking?" Gar doesn't think Rose had anything to do with anything. Gar isn't her biggest fan because why would she? How would she have anything to do with any of it?

"Dick finds her, coincidence? Definitely. Her being Deathstroke's daughter, Dr. Light attacking the both of them at the same time, me and Jason being kidnapped, that shit with the other Titans Jason was blamed for, her knowing you tuned into a tiger. That's more than three, Gar." Sam sucks in a breath. "And Deathstroke only even kidnapped me and Jason because Dick got Jericho killed. Why would he try to kill his last living child? That doesn't make any fucking sense."

Gar sits on for a second and Sam is making a good point right now. It all does seem a little weird. But, Gar still isn't so sure. That would mean the whole thing, Rose almost being killed and chased by the cops, all of that would have needed to be planned. Deathstroke would have needed to know one of the Titans would go off on their own in order to be kidnapped. It seems a little nuts.

"So, you think it was a setup?"

"I don't know because I think I sound paranoid. But, who else did that shit to the other Titans? We know it was Jason or us. It wasn't the other Titans. The only people left are Dick, Rachel, and Rose. It probably wasn't Rachel. So Dick and Rose."

"I do doubt it was Dick. He was acting weird, but not that weird."

"Exactly, so we're back to Rose. How would Deathstroke even know Rose was here? The tower is supposed to be secure so he shouldn't have known Rose was here, right? How would he know and Deathstroke lost his son, but Rose lost her I brother that day, too. Rose kissed Jason and they were good but she went through the records Jason borrowed and found one that belonged to a Jericho and freaked out. So, he was important to her, it's not like they didn't know each other."

The thing about Sam is that she does not like unanswered questions, mysteries. Whenever there's some unanswered question, Sam will dig and dig until she gets an answer. She was the kid in her science classes asking why the sky was blue and refused to take "because it is" as an answer. It's one of the reasons she always found Batman and Robin interesting. They were masked, no one knows who they are and she did not like that. A mystery. This is another mystery. The difference here is this mystery almost got her best friend killed and she is not going to rest until she gets an answer.

"So, you think Rose is working with her dad? As an inside guy?" Gar's brows are knitted together, not buying this.

"Well, when you put it like that it sounds crazy, but yeah." Sam shrugs casually, taking another drink of the Gatorade.

"Okay, so how did she know we went to find Dr. Light? If all of this was planned, she would have known, right? That's how you guys got kidnapped. Why else would Deathstroke have been there?"

"We aren't subtle. Maybe she saw us leave, Jason in the Robin suit and put two and two together. She did talk to Jason so it wouldn't be that hard to figure out that's where we were going. Maybe she got access to the cameras while we were all asleep and that's how she knew about the stuff with the Titans or maybe Deathstroke knew somehow. Dick said he had pictures of the Titans."

Gar lets out a sigh because she's not gonna let this go and Sam is very convincing. "Okay, come on, let's check the cameras." Gar hops off his chair and Sam offers him a grateful smile.

Even when Sam is being paranoid, Gar doesn't make her feel that way. He's very good about reassuring her and still letting her sort that out. He lets her weigh the reasonable and logical side of situations without being judgmental or condescending and Sam very much appreciates it. Gar really is a really good friend.

"Why would she leave with Jason though?" Gar asks as he sits at the computer, Sam sitting in the open chair next to him.

"Jason said he thinks Rose really liked him and maybe she actually does. So, maybe she does like him and doesn't want him involved in this shit anymore. If he's with her, maybe her dad won't target him again."

"It sounds a little far-fetched." Gar states as he types into the computer, pulling up security footage. "But it's at least worth looking at."

"Yeah," Sam lets out a scoff. "I don't know. It just doesn't sit right."

"So, why would Jason suddenly not be answering?"

"Maybe, Rose thinks we'll figure it out because I don't like her. I was already suspicious of her so maybe she's gotten into his head or something. I don't know, but it's something. Jason would ignore everything else, but he would not ignore us."

"Yeah, that's true." Gar nods in agreement, mostly knowing that Jason would ignore everyone besides her so goes back to the security footage.

The two of them scan over the footage together over the last month, looking for any signs of Rose of doing anything weird. They don't find footage of her sneaking into rooms or laying anything out. But they find Dawn finding the picture of Elis and Rachel storming into the hallway following Jason. They actually didn't find anyone sneaking into the rooms of the older Titans.

"Huh." Gar hums, eyes narrowed at the screen.

"What?" Sam asks.

"Look, the time stamps are off." Gar points at the screen as he goes back a few hours. "Look, there's a jump here."

"Which means whoever planted the picture..."

"Also erased the footage."

"Can you recover it?"

"Maybe." Gar starts typing away quickly, trying to recover the footage. He should be able to get it back as long as the person who deleted it didn't t know about the backup server. It was one of the first things Dick taught him, just in case something were to get deleted. And sure enough, Gar finds the footage. "Wow, okay." Gar beams. "Check it." Gar pulls up the footage on the big screen and its Rose sneaking into the kitchen and planting the picture. "You were right."

"Holy shit." Sam stares at the screen and she can't believe she's right. She really thought she was being paranoid.

"We gotta tell Jason."

"Yeah, I'll call him. You text him. If we're both spamming him, maybe he'll answer." Sam nods her head, getting up and the two of them pull out their phones.

Jason's phone starts going off, vibrating in the futon Rose is sharing with him. The vibrating wakes her up. She looks over and Jason is still sound asleep so she takes his phone. She sees a text from Gar first, telling him to call ASAP it's about Rose. Rose's heart sinks and then she sees the voicemail notification. She listens to it, hearing Sam tell Jason to call her back as soon as possible, they need to talk about Rose and he'll want to hear them out. Rose can't have Jason know, not yet, so she goes back to Gar's text.

Rose types out a quick and short text before hitting send. She glances over her shoulder a few times to make sure Jason isn't awake. Once the read notification goes thorough, she deletes the texts and then deletes Sam's voicemail along with the call log.

She does like Jason, a lot. She never meant to lie to him or use him or hide any of this from him. But she knows that if he knows she's the reason the Titans attacked him, he'll never forgive her. So, she hides it to protect herself and him. Rose swears she'll tell him when the time is right, but right now is not the time. So, she hides the messages from him and puts his phone back.

Jason: She told me it's fine

Gar raises his brows and shakes his head, confused as he reads the text. "He said he knows? She told him." Gar shows Sam the text.

Sam's eyes narrow at the text. "That also seems weird."

"Hey, Sam, look, maybe she did tell him. Jason said he thinks she likes him so maybe she did come clean after they left. Maybe he does know and you're worried because of everything that happened." Gar keeps her feeling out of it. Bringing that up seems kind of like a low blow right now. Gar believes the text anyway. Why would Jason tell them he knows if he doesn't?

Sam lets out a sigh because there's nothing they can do. It feels weird, seems weird. She thought if Jason found that out, he would tell her. Maybe not leave Rose because maybe he really, really likes her and forgives her. Maybe Jason was never supposed to get hurt in all of it anyway. The reality is that Sam doesn't know what goes on between him and Rose and she doesn't have a real reason not to believe his text.

"Okay," Sam lets out a breath and decides to let it go. Maybe it's all fine and Jason is just having fun in his relationship. "Thank you for checking this out with me." Sam gives Gar an awkward chuckle.

"Yeah, of course." Gar nods his head. "You were right." Gar laughs softly. "Let's uh, check on Conner and play Mario Kart." Gar stands up, a glowing smile on his face.

The next morning, Sam makes them breakfast and they sit at the snack bar together, bored of their routine. But, lucky for them, Conner wakes up and joins them. Sam finds him funny. He's very chipper, very excited, and happy-go-lucky. He actually reminds her of Gar in a way but like a little kid version of him. It's funny and kind of adorable.

The two of them explain to Conner what the tower is and who the Titans are. Gar tells him he can be a Titan because of the things he can do. He's special like them and Sam nearly rolls her eyes out of her head with the comment. But, it's kind of true. Gar then goes off to call Bruce before they take Conner into the training room to see more of what he can do, Gar explaining more about the Titans and how everything will be better once they're together again.

Sam is going along with this but she really isn't sure there's anything they can do to get them back. She doesn't even think having Conner around is going to change their minds. Gar looks up to them and she gets that but, shit got hard and they left. They gave up. They have way bigger issues to deal with and Sam and Gar trying to convince them to come back isn't going to be enough. But, she lets Gar talk because she can't crush him.

The next day rolls around and Sam and Gar decide to take Conner and Krypto out, show Conner around some of the city. The two of them have gotten stir-crazy and this way, they can teach Conner more stuff he'll need to know. 

"So," Gar starts, resting a hand on Conner's shoulder as they walk. "Think of San Francisco as one big three-dimensional, interactive, multi-player video game. And you're Player One." Gar points at him and Sam thinks it's funny that Gar compares life to a video game.It makes perfect sense but she knows she never would have thought of that and likely would have ended up confusing Conner further.

"Okay." Conner says as they round the corner.

"And it's your job to make sure everyone stays safe and no one gets hurt."

"Is that what the Titans do?" Conner asks.

"Well, we don't, but the old Titans did." Gar gives Sam a look as if knowing she wants to fight that comment.

So, she bites it back. "Yeah, they kept everyone safe." Her voice is a little flat but luckily, Conner doesn't really pick up on speech patterns yet so he believes her.

"Dick mostly just kept us locked up in the tower. "Gar chuckles awkwardly. "Sam, Jason, Rachel, and I talked about how we wanted more real-life experience. And once the team is back together again, I think he'll get it."

Gar has so much faith and so much optimism. Sam isn't sure if Dick will be willing to allow them ome experience but maybe she's wrong. Maybe with everything that's happened, he'll see that they can do it. They should be allowed to so she admires Gar's optimism. 

"I know this sounds crazy but once the teams knows you're awake and can see what you can do, they'll be back in a hurry." Gar says confidently.

"Yeah, I mean, who doesn't want to work with someone who's half Superman." Sam adds in. Superman at least still seems really cool and nice.

"So, what can you guys do?" Conner asks looking between the two of them.

"I shoot acid from my hands and know when people are gonna attack me." Sam deadpans and Conner's brows furrow. "It's not...it's a thing." Sam shrugs it off while Conner looks to Gar.

Gar laughs sheepishly. "It's-it's no big deal."

Sam's brows furrow at Gar. turning into a tiger is definitely a big deal.

"Come on. Can you show me?" Conner asks.

"Now's not the best...time." Gar winces, looking at all the people around them, minding their own business.

"Well, can you tell me?" Conner asks.

"Just tell him." Sam states. "It's really fucking cool, I swear." Sam looks back at Gar. "Well, I don't really know because I have yet to see it. But It's probably cool." Sam says and she moves next to Conner, almost expecting Gar to do something so she can finally see him turn into a tiger. In the middle of the day. In public.

"Yeah...yeah." Gar's brows furrow. "It's kind of weird but I can turn into a tiger." Gar beams with pride.

Conner looks so overjoyed and astounded. "No way!" Conner laughs.

Gar's chest fills with pride. "Yeah."

"What's a tiger?" Conner's laugh subsides.

Sam doubles over, laughing loudly. Conner's innocence is so precious and Sam hopes he can hold onto that. The world is a rough place and it needs more people like Conner and Gar.

"I'm sorry, it's not..." Sam chokes out. "You just looked so excited and you don't even know what it is. You're amazing. Keep being you, Conner."

Gar deadpans at Sam before pulling them both over to the side. Gar is blocked by the both of them while he starts to growl and then his face starts to shift into that of a tiger, his eyes glowing green. Sam has only seen the green tint, not anything like this.

"That's awesome!" Conner yells as Krypto barks.

"That is sick and also a little terrifying. Nice." Sam beams, surprised Gar was so willing to show her and Conner. It's so fucking cool.

"There's more to it. I'll show you later."

"Finally." Sam states.

Before anyone can say anything else, the three of them hear someone yelling for help. Conner puts his hand on Gar's shoulder, pushing past him softly and Sam sees the guy that's yelling. That's not good. A guy is being arrested and Conner looks thrilled.

"Game on. Hero time." Conner states with excitement before he uses superspeed and grabs the cops but the back of their uniforms.

"That's really not good." Sam states while Gar's expression turns to panic, Conner bashing one of the cops's heads into the window of the cop car.

"Conner, no!" Gar yells but Conner throws the cop into the bushes and then pins the other cop to the ground. He looks at Sam and Gar, happy with what he's going. He literally does not know any better.

They should have been a little more specific about helping people.  They can't get mad at Conner though. He heard someone yelling for help and as a Titan, when someone yells for help, of course, he's going to step in. And they also should have been more clear about how they help and how they go about the whole situation. What Conner is doing is definitely not it.

"What the fuck do we do?" Sam starts to panic. She doesn't want Conner to get arrested. She isn't even really sure how that would work and that would cause a whole lot more problems.

"I have no idea." There's panic etched in Gar's words. If they step in, they risk being involved which also means getting arrested and then what do they do?

Two more cop cars pull up, four cops exiting their vehicles and pointing their guns at Conner. They start shooting Conner. Luckily, Conner is bulletproof but chaos ensues around them, pedestrians fleeing for safety. Conner starts to completely lose it and attacks one of the cops. Krypto takes that as a signal to join in, attacking another one. Gar and Sam hear more sirens coming forward and she hates to do it, but she looks at Gar and decides it's time to run.

"We gotta go unless you go spend several nights in jail." Sam yanks him by the collar of his shirt and the two of them start running in the other direction.

The two of them run all the way back to the tower, chests heaving by the time they get back. Sam looks over her shoulder and no one's followed them. For a second, she hates thinking it, but it was kind of thrilling. It reminded her of her days back in Gotham. Running from the cops, the asphalt hard under her feet. The thrill of possibly getting caught. It's been a long time since she's felt something like that. But, she looks back at Gar as they take the elevator up and he is panicking. Face riddled with guilt.

Sam feels guilty, too. They had one job and they dropped the ball. Then, they ran away. Sam knows they couldn't have done anything to help Conner without digging an even bigger hole but she feels guilty anyway. They abandoned him.

"Hey," Sam puts her hand on Gar's shoulder. "It's gonna be okay, Gar."

"How can you say that? He just attacked a bunch of cops." Gar panics, walking into the tower once the door opens.

"Uh-huh, but he's like...a carbon copy of Superman so...he can beat them. Like, they'll never catch him." 

"That's not the point." Gar grits his teeth and he can't believe that's where she's going with this.

"I mean, kind of. Like, it sucks and everything but...at least he won't get caught. We can sort it out when we find him or he finds us or something." Sam is choosing to be the optimistic one this time. Gar definitely needs some optimism. And none of it is a lie. She does think Conner will escape them and they'll find him. He doesn't have anywhere else to go and they have access to the city's surveillance system.

"It doesn't matter that he won't get caught. He was our responsibility and because of us, he's out there! Now he's alone."

"I know." Sam states, feeling the guilt creep back over her. He was their responsibility but Dick left the two of them alone with a strange man as if they were supposed to know how to handle that. They did not do as asked but...that's not the point here.

"I'm gonna try to call Dick." Gar mutters, walking off towards the training room.

Sam lets out a sigh and she isn't sure what to do. Maybe they should have tried to call Bruce more than once but now they can't since they lost Conner. It's all a mess again. Everything gets okay for a minute and then it gets messy. It's the same routine but Sam can't dwell on it because Gar is the one beating himself up for it. So, she follows Gar and finds him in the display room, sitting in the display that says "Hawk".

Gar puts the phone to his ear while Sam takes a seat in front of him. She rests her hands on his knees, squeezing softly.

"Dick, uh..." Gar's voice is breathy as it cracks, tears coming to his eyes. "I'm-I'm sorry. Something really bad happened and it's my fault. I need your help, so..." Gar's voice is desperate as he holds his arm with his free hand. "Call me back, yeah?" Gar pulls the phone away from his head, hanging it up.

"It's not your fault, Gar." Sam's voice is soft, brows knitted together.

"How?" Gar nearly whines. "He was my responsibility and now he's out there and he just--"

"Stop." Sam cuts him off, shaking her head. "Dick left us in charge of him which was a bad idea. Now, Dick isn't answering his phone. We had no business trying to do this alone. Conner has been awake one day." Sam stresses. "Even if we got ahold of Bruce, maybe it would have happened anyway. Dick didn't say we couldn't leave the tower." Sam is very good at finding loopholes. "It's not your fault, okay? We'll find him and it'll be okay."

"How?"

Sam shrugs. "I don't know." She laughs softly. "Because we'll work together. You survived a demon and I survived Deathstroke. We can find Conner." Sam's smile is gentle and soft, making Gar feel al little better about the whole thing. "I believe in you, Gar." Sam takes her hands off of his knees and stands up, offering him her hand. "Let's get on the cameras and see if we can find him." Gar gives her a thankful but weak smile before taking her hand.