Work Text:
As Jason lay in bed one night he couldn't silence his thoughts enough to fall asleep. The date of his mother's passing made the memories of his lost family more invasive than ever.
He got extremely lucky, Jason knows, meeting someone willing to adopt a dirty brat like him simply doesn't happen in Gotham. And to get the only guy on the earth who's Batman on top of that? Ridiculous.
He's seen how the older kids end up on the streets and was fully prepared to be one of them. Drunk, stoned, with missing teeth and stinky. And that's him being optimistic, he could think of at least twenty scenarios far worse than that.
The chance he's been given is beyond description. So by all means he shouldn't miss his old life, it isn't worth a second thought. He should focus on the people who are in his life, the people who saved him. But Jason's thoughts still wander to his old home every once in a while. He's sure Alfred knows every single time it happens by the guilty look in Jason's eyes.
The truth is any lonely kid who meets Alfred won't be missing their parents as much anymore. That's just how it is, because Alfred takes care of you more than you've ever been cared for in your life.
Although it wasn't the same for Dick. From what little conversation Jason had with the older boy that didn't consist of Jason and Bruce getting shouted at it seemed like he'd still prefer his parents to Alfred. But that's probably because Dick's parents hadn’t been scums. Jason's mom wasn't bad either so he misses her, but other than that he'd choose Alfred's care any day.
Of course Alfred's care is a pack deal, because you can only get Alfred if you take Bruce too.
Living with Bruce is- different. Different from what Jason has always known and probably different from what living with any other socialite would be like.
Even forgetting the whole Batman and Robin thing, living with Bruce Wayne would always be different, because Bruce Wayne himself is different.
It took Jason some time to learn how to adjust to the man. And even longer to start to understand him, but in the end Bruce turned out to be the person he looks up to the most now.
His care is, again, different from Alfred's. Where Alfred hugs him warmly while whispering assurances, Bruce will pet his arm awkwardly and tell him 'good job' but Jason knows it took all his might to do so, that the man had spent three days beforehand contemplating if that's the right move, maybe even searching articles about it, then plucking up his courage, all for that three second act.
At first even that was too much for Jason. So, in some way, they were a perfect match.
Jason, who didn't know how to receive kindness and Bruce, who didn't know how to properly give it. But one of the main things Jason learned from the years spent on the streets was to observe. So he observed the man and soon realized that he was being observed as well.
They were the same. Learning how to act with each other. And they both had things they couldn't do. It made him relieved to know that the grown up he ended up with was just as helpless as he was in this situation. It was weirdly reassuring. That's why Jason never doubted if Bruce really cares about him, despite the lack of words. And if he could, Jason would make Dick understand too.
Alfred told him Dick always needed words more than gestures because he was raised by people who actually talked about their feelings. But Jason wasn't. For Jason having his friend distract a guy while he stole his wallet was care. Getting half of the bread on a day when he had none was care. Being waited for when he stumbled even though they were running away from the police and every second mattered was care.
Bruce checking up on Jason while he's in bed and supposed to be sleeping is care. Bruce coming back from a business trip with a new book for Jason is care. Bruce checking his homework when he has tons of paperwork to do is care. Bruce leaving his portion of Alfred's cookies to Jason under the pretense of having enough is care. Jason knows for a fact it's a lie, you can never have enough of Alfred's cookies.
Letting Jason fight as Robin to get rid of the anger that follows him whenever he goes is care.
Jason likes to think, selfishly so, that he understands Bruce better than Dick. Not better than Alfred of course, that would be blasphemy, but enough to see Dick expected things Bruce could never be able to give.
Jason will never ask for words Bruce can't tell. He will accept anything given to him. Because, unlike Dick, who started with everything a kid could possibly want from their parents, later in life he couldn't stand for anything less than that. Jason started with nothing, so little is enough for him.