To leave Gotham

"Hi there," Batgirl said. The cape and the pure black mask were too iconic to not recognize. Aaron gently shut the door.

"Cass, good to see you. Um…" Aaron nudged towards the direction of the living room with his chin. Batgirl blinked as she climbed inside and read his body language.

"Bad time?" Batgirl asked, rubbing the back of her neck. Aaron nodded sheepishly. "Sorry," she said.

"It's alright. You really should just give me your number. It would make timing your visits much easier."

"I don't know how to text," Batgirl admitted, embarrassed.

"We can call. It takes only two or three touches to do."

"Oh." Again, she rubbed the back of her neck. He could tell she was turning red. "Makes sense."

There was an awkward silence. She kept coming to Aaron because of the silent, peaceful comfort of his home. Without it, it felt cumbersome. Inconvenient. Simply the knowledge of another individual within their vicinity felt like an atrocity. It made the secretive, forbidden aspect of their meetings less comfortable.

But Aaron was Aaron. He shared a bond with her that went beyond comfort or location. Somehow, he managed to pull her onto the bed, take off her mask, and get her to talk.

"…Leviathan is making moves. I'm nervous," Cassandra admitted.

"That's alright." He put a hand on her back. Usually, it was disciplined and straight but now it was slouched. Weak. Anxious. "Is Batman doing okay?"

"He is."

"What about Nightwing?"

"He's coming from Blüdhaven to help."

"Tim Drake?"

"Him and I are working together."

"Duke too?"

"Yes. I mean, no. Complicated."

Well, that answered Izzy's inquiries. Duke was busy doing something beyond the fight with Leviathan. Aaron had already deduced as much but the confirmation was good to hear.

"Is it a war?" he asked.

Rather than answer, she stayed quiet, her eyes fixated on the floor. Then, she turned to him, eyes burning with emotion. "Leave Gotham City."

Aaron was taken aback. He slowly edged his hand away from her. "What…?"

"Leave Gotham, please. Leviathan is going to fight Gotham's villains in a war. Harley and Ivy have decided to join the Penguin and my mother."

In other words, the scales of power have tipped. Leviathan still held the military advantage but with Ivy there was an X-factor. A variable they couldn't quite calculate.

"Talia has also decided to support the Penguin. She convinced the D.E.O to do it." Cassandra's eyes were pleading–begging him. "So please. Leave before the war. Before everything. If you get hurt, I…"

Aaron put a hand on her shoulder. He could see the light in her eyes. She thought he was going to agree. To run away from this god-forsaken city.

He could do it too. With the money he received from Tanya, he could very easily flee from the city. He could buy out a condo in Metropolis or a farm in Kansas. Anything was possible with the money he now possessed.

Unfortunately, he had to shake his head and break their hearts.

"I can't," he muttered. "Sorry."

To twist the knife in his own heart, she didn't say anything. She didn't ask why. She didn't even argue or act stubborn like he thought she would. She just smiled and said, "Understood."

Cassandra rose but he held her back. Smiling, he said, "I still owe you cupcakes, remember? And you owe me whip cream and chocolate syrup. We'll meet again, Cass. Pinky promise."

She didn't reply. She didn't acknowledge their pinky promise. Rather, she put on her mask, leaned down, kissed him on the cheek through her mask, and left like a shadow. The window closed with a dull thud. His fingers touched the warm feeling on his cheek.

When he returned, Chloe was busy rummaging their load from the mall. Plenty of toys, dolls, cars, and spinning tops for her to fiddle with. She flashed him a toothy smile before returning to her packages. She tore through them like an unforgiving villain.

"You wanna beyblade?" Chloe asked, showing him the pack of five. It was the metal version, not the old plastic ones.

Aaron graced her a smile and said, "Sure."

Gotham, in spite of its faults, was his home. He wasn't going to run away right as things got tough. Not when he had resolved himself to make a difference.