Nora felt like she had been asleep for a long, long time.116Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCWoS4ZIugp
It wasn’t an ordinary nap or a night’s rest—it was the kind of sleep that seeped into the bones and pierced through time and space. When she woke, it was as if her body had been completely rebuilt—no stiffness in her muscles, her thoughts were crystal clear, and even the old, lingering pains had vanished.116Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj6XsHayoPf
She felt physically perfect.
She instinctively moved her fingers and toes. No sluggishness, no pain—116Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOoj9v9LTmp
Only a small voice in the back of her mind whispered: This is too good to be true.
Yesterday, Tim had wanted to check Nora’s physical condition.116Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpR5thFZCtj
She’d told him she had chest pain.
It was a vague, dull ache. The moment Tim heard her say that, his expression shifted. He immediately sat up straight.116Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2HFUgB7jp8
In a panic, he reached out to examine her—116Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3D0tDx6p4m
But the moment his hand moved, Nora’s eyes widened in shock.
His hand had barely reached her chest when, like a secret suddenly illuminated, she saw it: a hand clearly injured—not scraped, not bruised, but frostbitten.116Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPNFpwJFOvL
It was red and raw.
The skin was slightly swollen, tinged with red around the edges. Nora sat up at once, her gaze locked on it.116Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡK5jeBKerzu
Tim instinctively tried to hide it, but Nora was already upright, asking to see the other hand.
He looked embarrassed and tried to pull his hand back, muttering that it was fine, that he just needed some rest. But her expression was too firm—familiar and gentle in that particular kind of stubbornness that left him no choice but to obediently extend his other hand.
Nora cupped both of Tim’s hands in hers, and felt like crying.116Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNuD7l7NqQg
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Tim tried to shift the mood.116Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDVgZBDOfQn
“Nora, don’t be upset. A session in the med pod will fix it.116Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz7yE3tk8fw
Didn’t you say you had chest pain?”
He kept his tone light, hoping to ease the atmosphere. But the forced calm in his voice stung more than silence. He’d become far too used to hiding his pain.
And so, Nora pulled Tim into the same med pod to heal together.116Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCJsNrX3uQr
She didn’t speak—just took his hand, and led him inside.
The pod door closed slowly. The soft blue light surrounded them again, like a gentle embrace.
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When Nora opened her eyes again, she realized Tim was already awake and holding her.116Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGLOBmgt6Be
He hadn’t disturbed her—just leaned quietly against her, breathing shallowly, his shoulders barely rising. Those blue eyes stared upward, focused and serene.
She followed his gaze. At the top of the med pod’s glass ceiling, a small face had appeared—pressed right up against the glass.116Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1PGqZyMgc3
Tiny hands clung to the edge, and a forehead nearly squished flat.
A pair of bright blue eyes peeked inside.116Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzklgvFieqo
It was a child, staring in through the window, face flushed—likely from climbing too fast—his eyes gleaming with excitement and urgency.
Nora saw him and immediately smiled.116Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6kUzwHSgmz
It had been two years, and Finn had grown. He was taller, sharper-eyed. Her heart melted. She had just started to smile—116Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5DDPmFjxfl
And the boy, seeing it, immediately scrambled down.
Tim pressed the button to open the pod.116Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡK19IEHF7Af
A wordless understanding. He smiled too—an expression of quiet relief after long exhaustion. He knew exactly how much that child had longed to see her.
As the med pod opened, Finn clambered inside and threw himself at Nora, sobbing.116Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsRcCBUbcnq
Like a kitten, he pounced, wrapping his arms around her waist, smearing tears and snot all over her clothes—nothing like his usual calm, clever self.116Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaH64rAY8hj
His cries trembled, as if he'd held them in far too long.
“Nora-sensei! Uncle Tim bullies me all the time! Let’s not talk to him anymore!”116Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ934nwf5hQG
He cried and accused at the same time, as if all his worries and grievances over the past two years had finally found an outlet.116Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb3afzscTgg
His words were messy, but his eyes were serious. He meant it.
Nora smiled and ran her fingers through the boy’s black hair.116Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz6jygcBwnP
She didn’t respond right away, just gently stroked his head, like she used to. She remembered the violet-eyed boy who once held her in this very pod.
Tim watched his nephew—116Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyyu9vMPTu5
Still seated beside Nora, gently holding her arm, his eyes fixed on Finn.
A year ago, when Tim had shut himself away, Finn had hidden himself inside Alfred’s food cart and snuck into the Batcave.116Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFmAwevnBK9
Back then, Alfred had just pushed the cart into the main console room when a child suddenly popped out, proud and stubborn, declaring, “I’m here to see Uncle Tim.”
So much for Bruce Wayne’s carefully designed “normal childhood” plan.
From that day on, Finn never left this world.116Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcGTc2yB9MO
All the peaceful daily routines, the distance from the world of heroes—all of it shattered by the boy’s own choice.
Tim glanced at Nora, thinking silently that he owed Finn so much.
He gave her a look. She nodded.116Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbKoqaXmz6o
No words needed—just shared understanding. A promise.
Together, they looked down at the crying child and smiled.116Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡypPMGj9hUX
Finn was still sniffling, muttering “Uncle’s mean” under his breath, unaware that in that moment, Nora and Tim’s smiles had wrapped this bittersweet reunion in warmth.
—The End—
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and then Add to home screen.