Down to your knees

"Batman... father... please..."Bruce had never heard Damian's voice reduced to an uncertain whisper, almost revealing him for the 13-year-old he was and not the man he had always tried to be too quickly, and in that moment Bruce wanted to hug him, to tell him that everything would be okay in the end and that together - together they would get through this. "Damian...""No...""B-boy, listen to me...""No, no, no!" Damian shouted, his voice breaking. "Please... please, baba... don't..."Bruce could hear Damian's heavy, labored breathing, the sniffling, and felt sick at the thought that he was crying. He had even called him "baba", something he rarely did and meant to indicate how upset he was. "Damian... son... we've had... our ups and downs, times when we didn't... we didn't understand each other... but I'm proud of... you. Of all of you. Being your father has been... the b-best thing that has ever... happened to me."