DCU Fic: Out of Time (Booster Gold/Kid Flash)
Title: Out of Time
Fandom: DCU
Pairing: Bart Allen (Kid Flash)/Booster Gold, mentions of Booster/Blue Beetle
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: Crack, an informed, consensual relationship between an adult and an underage teen.
Word Count: 1713
Summary: Strong relationships are based on commonalities, and difference.
Continuity note: Wikipedia tells me that Bart Allen is from the 31st century and Booster Gold is from the 25th. For the purposes of this fic I have Booster coming from the 31st century, so that all the stuff will make sense, and because I want it to.
Readers should realize that the following crack fic is the product of me realizing that two of my favorite characters both have names that start with "B". This isn't deep stuff. IDEK.
1. The Beginning
They meet at a JLA mixer. The whole thing is kind of silly because, really, what kind of superhero team has a mixer and not something a little more classy and why the hell would they invite the current team of Teen do-gooders. But they do, and they're both there, and that is where they meet.
Booster hardly even notices him at first (he's too busy hanging off Ted and hoping that Zatanna will get drunk enough to flash some skin) but the Kid's running around like a bunny on crack and he pauses just long enough to catch Booster's eye. The way the Kid is standing sparks something in Booster's brain, a wave of a hand give him a rush of déjà vu. It isn't until he's already striding across the room to place a hand on the Kid's shoulder that he realizes why it's so familiar.
Bart knows, the minute he feels that heavy hand on his arm, that he's being picked up. It's a great feeling, especially since (he's noticed) people of this era flirt in such a strange, roundabout way. Booster is His People. He can tell by the slightly lifted eyebrow and the gaze that doesn't leave his eyes until long after they've started talking. Body language he understands. Bart almost giggles with glee.
"Nice Shoes." Booster says. He pauses. Smiles
"Thanks." Bart smiles too. It's slow a predatory and full of meaning. He might have been raised in a VR bubble, but it was a 31st century VR bubble. Bart knows what he's doing (for once) and it's brilliant.
They leave the party together (although no one notices) and spend a memorable thirty minutes in a broom closet before Booster heads back to find Ted, and Bart heads back to the Tower for a shower. They depart in separate directions with an easy smile and a nod of (sweet) understanding. Each one of them takes with him a piece of newspaper with a scribbled number on it.
And a limp.
2. Coming Out
A week later and Bart has Booster over to the Tower for video games, hot cocoa, and sex (although the sex will come later, now is for Grand Theft Auto). Bart doesn't even think to tell the rest of the team until Robin corners him in the kitchen during a cookie-run with a frown on his face and the growl in his voice that means Bart has fucked up somehow.
"Kid Flash." Tim says, and Bart knows he's pissed because he didn't say 'Bart' or 'KF' or even 'Kid'. Shit. "Why is Booster Gold on our couch?"
Before Bart can reply (and that's pretty fast) Kon is striding into the kitchen, grabbing Bart's cookie, and mumbling out, "Why the hell is Booster Gold here?"
Bart grabs his cookie back and rolls his eyes, "We're playing GTA." He explains, extra-extra slow.
"Why?"
"Because he's my plioramisaga*."
"Your what?" Kon cuts in, "is that some sort of disease?"
"Ummm..." Bart taps his foot on the ground as he thinks and it sounds like an approaching train. "It's like... My older-lover-with-whom-I-spend-casual-time-and-see-as-an-equal-not-teacher... Sort of."
Bart crunches a cookie and gives them time to process. By the time he's onto his fifth (and he's not even eating that fast) Kon has opened his mouth and shouted:
"What?!"
"Okay, fine." Robin says tersely, "Just remember that if you're going to have guests you need to let me know or it's a security threat."
"What?!"
"Okay." Bart says.
"You're gay?" Kon appears to be choking but Bart knows that it'll be okay because he learned CPR from a book. He also knows what gay means. He read the San Francisco public library after all.
"Sexuality is socially constructed." He says.
He steals Kon's cookie and heads back to the lounge.
3. The Middle
Booster likes Bart because he's smart. Really, Booster has always had a soft spot for people who make him feel like an idiot and Bart is pretty damn good at that. He also likes Bart because for all of his smartness, Bart still wants to hang out and have fun and be silly. Booster appreciates silliness.
Bart likes Booster because he's normal. Okay, well, maybe not normal but he treats Bart like he's normal and that's something that Bart doesn't get very often. Booster isn't shocked when Bart can recite the entirety of Grey's Anatomy off the top of his head and he isn't surprised when Bart can't figure out how to work a rotary telephone (Booster can't either). Booster doesn't make Bart feel like he's too dumb or too smart. Booster makes Bart feel like himself.
They like each other because they can spend their time talking about home. They can laugh about how slow the public transportation is and how strange it is to have to pay for food and how the buildings are all so short.
Booster tells Bart about how strange it is to adjust to 20th century dating (he has distinctly more experience in this area than Bart) and how much he wishes he could share Bart with Blue Beetle and vice versa.
"It's like," He says one afternoon as they lounge on the roof of the Titans Tower, "I've been chasing after him for years, and he hasn't even noticed. How blunt does a guy have to get?"
Bart nods and kisses him and tells him that he hopes they get together and Booster feels the fulfilling warmth of finally (finally!) being in a relationship where he doesn't have to hide himself or someone else. It's refreshing and comfortable.
Bart is there for Booster when Ted starts to date that one woman in his office (and it hurts so much only because Booster knows that in this time, monogamy isn't just an unhappy happenstance) and doesn't have time even for a quick chat for nearly a week. Booster is there for Bart when he can't remember which words he's allowed to use in English class and which ones haven't been invented yet. Bart is never too fast for Booster.
Booster calls Bart "Amat-jun*" and Bart calls Booster "Amat-vir*". They're comfortable, and out of time, together.
4. The Family You Make
Bart finally meets Ted on a cold winter’s day, just before the beginning of Christmas break. The man looks uncomfortable, shifting his weight and glancing towards the door and looking anywhere but at Bart's eyes.
Booster, on the other hand, looks happy in ways only Bart could understand. Both of his favorite people in one place, together, sharing an awkward cup of coffee at the local Sundollars. What could be better?
"So... Bart, what do you do?"
"I'm in high school right now, but when I graduate I want to study English Literature."
"English Lit?" Ted might not be a humanities guy, but he's always good for an academic discussion.
"Yeah! 'Cause I suck at it..."
Booster beams and sips his java.
What could be better, indeed.
5. Meeting the Parents
Booster probably deserves the first punch to the face. The second and the third are also, most likely, warranted. But once he's on the ground and The Flash is still pummeling him, Booster thinks it might have gone a bit too far.
"What the fuck is wrong with you?!" Flash shouts once he stops (is pulled off by J'onn), he's panting and flushed with rage. Booster coughs.
"Wha--?"
"He's fourteen! Fourteen years old!"
Booster spits some blood (his force field had been down, it was the watchtower after all) and pushes himself into a sitting position.
"Fifteen, actually." Booster says, "Or if you’re talking about chronological age, he's three."
Flash kicks him in the solar plexus before J'onn can get a hold of him.
"I never took you for a pedophile, Carter." Flash growls while Booster tries to catch his breath.
"A what?" Booster gasps. "I'm not a pedophile!"
"You're fucking my nephew, dirtbag!" Flash all but screeches.
"Who is legal in his time and planet of birth and thus legal here as per the intergalactic protocols put forth by the Green Lantern Corps**." Booster told him, "Not to mention the fact that Bart is a reasonable, responsible person who knows when to say no."
"I don't know what you did to him, but--"
"I didn't do anything!" Booster shouts, finally angry, "I met a younger guy that I liked and we went out. I like Bart and he likes me. You might know a little bit more about it if you talked to him every now and then instead of rushing over to beat the crap out of me."
Flash breaks his nose and leaves.
Three days later, Booster receives and invitation to dinner from Jay Garrick.
6. April Fools
For a single day in the month of April the world is terribly confused when Booster Gold loses about eight inches of height and manages to appear in Paris, Amsterdam, and Smallville, Kansas simultaneously. Kid Flash is spotted (looking a great deal taller and blonder) flying over the San Francisco Pride Parade, spreading glitter and condoms.
When questioned, the two heroes share a glance and laugh.
"Bwa-ha-ha!"
7. The End
On the day he finds out about Ted's death, Booster goes home alone. He's angry (very, very angry) but more than anger is the feeling of emptiness, of the loss of a piece of himself. He sits on his couch for over an hour, looking at his hands.
He doesn't know how Bart finds out, but he's there soon enough. Holding his arms around Booster and speaking comfort so fast and so low that it sounds like the hum of a motor.
It hurts more than anything Booster has ever felt before. Hurts. And he cries his pain in his first language and Bart is crying too but it's alright because there is someone there who understands the words. They share the loss of a love and a friend. They cling together and wish for something familiar.
Booster makes a shrine to Ted in the linen-closet at the end of the hall. Every few days Bart zooms by on his way to one thing or another and leaves a gift. A beetle's shell, a spyglass, a cardboard hot-drink sleeve. A note in scrawling characters that only Booster knows how to read.
*this is not an actual word, I just googled some Esperanto and then smooshed it together.
** This too, is bullshit I made up.
Fandom: DCU
Pairing: Bart Allen (Kid Flash)/Booster Gold, mentions of Booster/Blue Beetle
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: Crack, an informed, consensual relationship between an adult and an underage teen.
Word Count: 1713
Summary: Strong relationships are based on commonalities, and difference.
Continuity note: Wikipedia tells me that Bart Allen is from the 31st century and Booster Gold is from the 25th. For the purposes of this fic I have Booster coming from the 31st century, so that all the stuff will make sense, and because I want it to.
Readers should realize that the following crack fic is the product of me realizing that two of my favorite characters both have names that start with "B". This isn't deep stuff. IDEK.
1. The Beginning
They meet at a JLA mixer. The whole thing is kind of silly because, really, what kind of superhero team has a mixer and not something a little more classy and why the hell would they invite the current team of Teen do-gooders. But they do, and they're both there, and that is where they meet.
Booster hardly even notices him at first (he's too busy hanging off Ted and hoping that Zatanna will get drunk enough to flash some skin) but the Kid's running around like a bunny on crack and he pauses just long enough to catch Booster's eye. The way the Kid is standing sparks something in Booster's brain, a wave of a hand give him a rush of déjà vu. It isn't until he's already striding across the room to place a hand on the Kid's shoulder that he realizes why it's so familiar.
Bart knows, the minute he feels that heavy hand on his arm, that he's being picked up. It's a great feeling, especially since (he's noticed) people of this era flirt in such a strange, roundabout way. Booster is His People. He can tell by the slightly lifted eyebrow and the gaze that doesn't leave his eyes until long after they've started talking. Body language he understands. Bart almost giggles with glee.
"Nice Shoes." Booster says. He pauses. Smiles
"Thanks." Bart smiles too. It's slow a predatory and full of meaning. He might have been raised in a VR bubble, but it was a 31st century VR bubble. Bart knows what he's doing (for once) and it's brilliant.
They leave the party together (although no one notices) and spend a memorable thirty minutes in a broom closet before Booster heads back to find Ted, and Bart heads back to the Tower for a shower. They depart in separate directions with an easy smile and a nod of (sweet) understanding. Each one of them takes with him a piece of newspaper with a scribbled number on it.
And a limp.
2. Coming Out
A week later and Bart has Booster over to the Tower for video games, hot cocoa, and sex (although the sex will come later, now is for Grand Theft Auto). Bart doesn't even think to tell the rest of the team until Robin corners him in the kitchen during a cookie-run with a frown on his face and the growl in his voice that means Bart has fucked up somehow.
"Kid Flash." Tim says, and Bart knows he's pissed because he didn't say 'Bart' or 'KF' or even 'Kid'. Shit. "Why is Booster Gold on our couch?"
Before Bart can reply (and that's pretty fast) Kon is striding into the kitchen, grabbing Bart's cookie, and mumbling out, "Why the hell is Booster Gold here?"
Bart grabs his cookie back and rolls his eyes, "We're playing GTA." He explains, extra-extra slow.
"Why?"
"Because he's my plioramisaga*."
"Your what?" Kon cuts in, "is that some sort of disease?"
"Ummm..." Bart taps his foot on the ground as he thinks and it sounds like an approaching train. "It's like... My older-lover-with-whom-I-spend-casual-time-and-see-as-an-equal-not-teacher... Sort of."
Bart crunches a cookie and gives them time to process. By the time he's onto his fifth (and he's not even eating that fast) Kon has opened his mouth and shouted:
"What?!"
"Okay, fine." Robin says tersely, "Just remember that if you're going to have guests you need to let me know or it's a security threat."
"What?!"
"Okay." Bart says.
"You're gay?" Kon appears to be choking but Bart knows that it'll be okay because he learned CPR from a book. He also knows what gay means. He read the San Francisco public library after all.
"Sexuality is socially constructed." He says.
He steals Kon's cookie and heads back to the lounge.
3. The Middle
Booster likes Bart because he's smart. Really, Booster has always had a soft spot for people who make him feel like an idiot and Bart is pretty damn good at that. He also likes Bart because for all of his smartness, Bart still wants to hang out and have fun and be silly. Booster appreciates silliness.
Bart likes Booster because he's normal. Okay, well, maybe not normal but he treats Bart like he's normal and that's something that Bart doesn't get very often. Booster isn't shocked when Bart can recite the entirety of Grey's Anatomy off the top of his head and he isn't surprised when Bart can't figure out how to work a rotary telephone (Booster can't either). Booster doesn't make Bart feel like he's too dumb or too smart. Booster makes Bart feel like himself.
They like each other because they can spend their time talking about home. They can laugh about how slow the public transportation is and how strange it is to have to pay for food and how the buildings are all so short.
Booster tells Bart about how strange it is to adjust to 20th century dating (he has distinctly more experience in this area than Bart) and how much he wishes he could share Bart with Blue Beetle and vice versa.
"It's like," He says one afternoon as they lounge on the roof of the Titans Tower, "I've been chasing after him for years, and he hasn't even noticed. How blunt does a guy have to get?"
Bart nods and kisses him and tells him that he hopes they get together and Booster feels the fulfilling warmth of finally (finally!) being in a relationship where he doesn't have to hide himself or someone else. It's refreshing and comfortable.
Bart is there for Booster when Ted starts to date that one woman in his office (and it hurts so much only because Booster knows that in this time, monogamy isn't just an unhappy happenstance) and doesn't have time even for a quick chat for nearly a week. Booster is there for Bart when he can't remember which words he's allowed to use in English class and which ones haven't been invented yet. Bart is never too fast for Booster.
Booster calls Bart "Amat-jun*" and Bart calls Booster "Amat-vir*". They're comfortable, and out of time, together.
4. The Family You Make
Bart finally meets Ted on a cold winter’s day, just before the beginning of Christmas break. The man looks uncomfortable, shifting his weight and glancing towards the door and looking anywhere but at Bart's eyes.
Booster, on the other hand, looks happy in ways only Bart could understand. Both of his favorite people in one place, together, sharing an awkward cup of coffee at the local Sundollars. What could be better?
"So... Bart, what do you do?"
"I'm in high school right now, but when I graduate I want to study English Literature."
"English Lit?" Ted might not be a humanities guy, but he's always good for an academic discussion.
"Yeah! 'Cause I suck at it..."
Booster beams and sips his java.
What could be better, indeed.
5. Meeting the Parents
Booster probably deserves the first punch to the face. The second and the third are also, most likely, warranted. But once he's on the ground and The Flash is still pummeling him, Booster thinks it might have gone a bit too far.
"What the fuck is wrong with you?!" Flash shouts once he stops (is pulled off by J'onn), he's panting and flushed with rage. Booster coughs.
"Wha--?"
"He's fourteen! Fourteen years old!"
Booster spits some blood (his force field had been down, it was the watchtower after all) and pushes himself into a sitting position.
"Fifteen, actually." Booster says, "Or if you’re talking about chronological age, he's three."
Flash kicks him in the solar plexus before J'onn can get a hold of him.
"I never took you for a pedophile, Carter." Flash growls while Booster tries to catch his breath.
"A what?" Booster gasps. "I'm not a pedophile!"
"You're fucking my nephew, dirtbag!" Flash all but screeches.
"Who is legal in his time and planet of birth and thus legal here as per the intergalactic protocols put forth by the Green Lantern Corps**." Booster told him, "Not to mention the fact that Bart is a reasonable, responsible person who knows when to say no."
"I don't know what you did to him, but--"
"I didn't do anything!" Booster shouts, finally angry, "I met a younger guy that I liked and we went out. I like Bart and he likes me. You might know a little bit more about it if you talked to him every now and then instead of rushing over to beat the crap out of me."
Flash breaks his nose and leaves.
Three days later, Booster receives and invitation to dinner from Jay Garrick.
6. April Fools
For a single day in the month of April the world is terribly confused when Booster Gold loses about eight inches of height and manages to appear in Paris, Amsterdam, and Smallville, Kansas simultaneously. Kid Flash is spotted (looking a great deal taller and blonder) flying over the San Francisco Pride Parade, spreading glitter and condoms.
When questioned, the two heroes share a glance and laugh.
"Bwa-ha-ha!"
7. The End
On the day he finds out about Ted's death, Booster goes home alone. He's angry (very, very angry) but more than anger is the feeling of emptiness, of the loss of a piece of himself. He sits on his couch for over an hour, looking at his hands.
He doesn't know how Bart finds out, but he's there soon enough. Holding his arms around Booster and speaking comfort so fast and so low that it sounds like the hum of a motor.
It hurts more than anything Booster has ever felt before. Hurts. And he cries his pain in his first language and Bart is crying too but it's alright because there is someone there who understands the words. They share the loss of a love and a friend. They cling together and wish for something familiar.
Booster makes a shrine to Ted in the linen-closet at the end of the hall. Every few days Bart zooms by on his way to one thing or another and leaves a gift. A beetle's shell, a spyglass, a cardboard hot-drink sleeve. A note in scrawling characters that only Booster knows how to read.
*this is not an actual word, I just googled some Esperanto and then smooshed it together.
** This too, is bullshit I made up.