[Third Person Pov]
When Sam returned home that evening, she froze the moment she reached her bedroom door. That space was supposed to be her quiet, personal sanctuary, the one place where she could shut everything out and just exist on her own terms.
Instead, she found Ember already there.
The ghost girl was sitting comfortably on Sam's bed, leaning back against the headboard like she owned the place. Her boots were still on, resting casually against the sheets, and her guitar lay across her lap as she lazily strummed at the cords, filling the room with soft, careless notes.
"Hm? Oh hey, Sam~" Ember greeted, barely glancing up at first before her eyes settled on her. "I was just waiting for you. Since you were at school, I figured I'd let myself in and hang around. Though I've gotta say, you really took your time getting back."
Her grin stretched wide, clearly pleased with herself.
Sam blinked once, then again, taking a brief moment to process the scene in front of her. Once she gathered herself, her expression flattened into a glare directed squarely at the uninvited guest. She exhaled slowly, shaking her head as if to steady her thoughts, then stepped inside and shut the door behind her.
A grin began to form on her lips.
"Sorry about that," Sam replied, her tone shifting into something deliberately casual, almost smug. "I was busy having a little one-on-one time with Danny. You know, since he actually appreciates my company and all that."
Ember's fingers paused briefly against the strings before she resumed strumming, though slower this time. "Oh, were you?" she said, brushing her nails along the sleeve of her varsity jacket—the same one Danny had given her during their date in Metropolis. "Well, I'm happy for you. Truly. Even if it can't really be anything more than friendship right now."
Sam let out a soft chuckle, lifting a hand to cover her mouth as she shook her head.
"Hahaha… oh Ember, Ember, Ember…" she said, her voice dripping with amusement. "I didn't expect you to be this adorable."
The grin on Ember's face faltered, stiffening almost instantly at the patronizing tone. That wasn't the reaction she had been aiming for at all.
"…What?"
"I mean, really," Sam continued, placing a hand on her hip as she shifted her weight to one side, her posture relaxed but confident. "It's honestly kind of cute. Seeing you so happy and proud just because you managed to kiss Danny. And then coming all the way here just to brag about it."
Ember's eyes widened. "How did you—?!"
"How do you think?" Sam cut in with a scoff, her smirk never leaving her face. "Danny told me right away. That's just how important our relationship is to him."
"That… that… blabbermouth," Ember muttered through clenched teeth, her face flushing with embarrassment as she looked away. 'I was planning on rubbing it on her face.'
"Honestly, Ember," Sam went on, stepping closer with slow, deliberate strides, "coming here to gloat over something that small… What are you, a grade schooler who just got her first kiss?"
Ember didn't answer. She simply turned her head further to the side, her expression tightening with quiet shame.
Sam raised an eyebrow, a brief thought crossing her mind. 'Was Danny actually her first kiss?' The realization caught her off guard for half a second, though she quickly brushed it aside. 'Not really my place to judge… but still.'
Her grin returned just as quickly.
Stopping right in front of Ember, Sam reached out and tilted her chin upward with a single finger, forcing their eyes to meet.
"You might have gotten him to kiss you," Sam said calmly, her voice low but firm, "but understand this… when it comes to matters of the heart, I will always win. That's not confidence, that's just fact. So congratulations on your little victory. Truly."
Ember's reaction was immediate. She slapped Sam's hand away with sharp force and clicked her tongue, her irritation boiling over.
"You're such a bitch," she snapped, her voice laced with anger as pale blue flames flared to life around her body.
A second later, she vanished.
The only thing left behind was the echo of Sam's laughter.
"Hahahahaha!" Sam doubled over slightly, clutching her stomach as genuine laughter poured out of her. Tears gathered at the corners of her eyes, and she wiped them away with a finger, still grinning.
"That was way too entertaining," she admitted to herself, her voice filled with lingering amusement. "Who knew teasing her would be this fun? At this rate, I might actually get addicted to it."
…
The next morning, Danny woke up feeling groggy, though at least somewhat better than the day before. He wasn't fully recovered yet—his nose was still stuffed, and the occasional sniffle escaped him—but compared to yesterday, when he had been completely bedbound, this was a noticeable improvement.
With a quiet groan, he pushed himself out of bed and got dressed, moving slower than usual as the lingering fatigue clung to his body. Once he was ready, he stepped out into the hallway at nearly the same time as Dick, their schedules lining up as they often did.
Dick took one look at him and immediately paused.
Danny stood there with messy, unkempt hair, tired blue eyes, and a sluggish posture that made it clear he was still under the weather. But what stood out the most was the black lipstick mark stamped clearly against his temple.
Dick's lips twitched, and he couldn't resist.
"An eventful evening yesterday, huh?" he said, his tone light with amusement.
Danny sniffled, his movements slow as he turned his head toward him. "What?" he asked groggily, clearly not fully processing anything yet.
Dick let out a short laugh and gestured toward his own temple. "You've got lipstick on your face."
Danny stared at him for a moment, completely blank, before scoffing.
"Right," he said flatly. "And I'm guessing I've also got the word 'gullible' written across my forehead too."
He shook his head, unimpressed.
"You got me once, Dick. You're not pulling that again."
"Ah, I—uh…" Dick faltered, caught off guard as Danny dismissed him so easily.
Danny gave him a disappointed look, as if expecting better, before turning and walking past him down the hall, dragging his feet slightly as he went.
Dick stood there for a second, his face twitching as he tried—and failed—not to laugh.
"…I'm the boy who cried wolf, or rather lipstick in this scenario" he muttered under his breath, a quiet chuckle slipping out as he rubbed the back of his neck. After a moment, he shrugged to himself. "He'll figure it out.
From the opposite end of the hallway, Bruce approached, already dressed in a sharp, well-tailored suit. His steps were steady and composed, but the moment his gaze landed on Danny, he slowed slightly.
His eyes flicked to the lipstick mark.
One brow raised, and a faint scoff of amusement escaped him.
Danny noticed immediately. "What?" he asked, his expression flattening again.
Bruce simply shook his head as he walked past, briefly placing a hand on the back of Danny's head in passing.
"Just make sure to wash your face before coming down for breakfast," he said calmly.
Danny frowned, mildly irritated, although that was mainly due to his sickness. "Obviously. Why are you stating the obvious?"
Without waiting for a response, he continued on toward the bathroom, his steps still sluggish as he pushed the door open and stepped inside.
A moment later, he glanced up at the mirror—and froze.
He leaned in slightly, doing a double take.
"Huh? What the—oh," he muttered, the realization hitting him all at once as his eyes locked onto the black lipstick mark on his temple.
A flush of embarrassment crept up almost immediately.
"Why would she even do that? Ugh…" he grumbled under his breath, reaching up to scrub at it. "I probably looked like a complete idiot in front of Dick. Tch… wouldn't put it past him to be laughing his ass off right now."
He continued wiping at the mark, his movements a little more hurried now, clearly wanting to erase the evidence as quickly as possible.
And, to be fair, he wasn't wrong.
Somewhere downstairs, Dick was indeed laughing quietly to himself as he made his way toward breakfast, still very much entertained by the entire situation.
A/N: 🥳 🎊🎉 Wooooh! 200 chapters! And still no Young Justice in sight! Is that a world record or what! Thank you all for the support you've all shown this series thus far 😘
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