Claire listened while trying her best to memorize what each gadget did.50Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpTehq67lNm
These weren’t just flashy props—they were more precise, more grounded than anything she'd seen in a movie. Almost everything had a backup system or some kind of emergency override.50Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsxNRsW4XUm
Calling this place a “safehouse” was generous.50Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeeH0wnFDO1
It was a bunker. A battle-ready one.
“That’s the comm terminal,” Nightwing said, pointing to a row of devices on the wall.50Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZdxeaafbsa
“If you need to reach us, hit this. But only during this window—”
“—before the reset kicks in,” Robin finished, matter-of-factly.
Batman added next. He handed Claire a slip of paper with a long string of numbers and symbols.
“This is the door code. You’ll need it to get in. No keys, no fingerprint ID, no voice recognition—none of that survives the loop. Memorize it.”
Then came weapons hour.
His voice dropped, colder. He picked up a gun and handed it to her, but didn’t let go immediately.
“Only use it to protect yourself. Never to strike first.”
His gaze cut through her—through muscle, bone, marrow.
“I know you’re not a bad person, Claire.50Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWHUxNUl4UQ
But that doesn’t mean you won’t make a bad choice under pressure.50Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFO8gpJxkgI
This is a weapon, not magic. It doesn’t solve problems. It just ends them.”
Claire swallowed and nodded.50Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQSpVJZ00Qz
I’m a good citizen.50Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgXd77wxScl
Really.50Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhXq1iLLdGD
I’ll aim it at the crack, and only at the crack.
They circled back to the crack.
Notes spread across the table. Claire had drawn a few sketches—long shapes, sky proportions from what she saw with her eyes closed.
“What if it’s not just appearing,” Nightwing said, “but actually… approaching?”
“Then the point of contact is her,” Batman replied, circling her name at the center of a page.50Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgArnEPCNI9
“It’s fishing. Claire’s the bait.”
Every conclusion went onto paper.50Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCHWFagYbCb
Paper remembered. Claire had to remember too. Just in case paper didn’t make it through.
By the next noon, Claire was slumped over the table, hand still resting on a sheet labeled PLAN F.50Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6QSUwVqgrb
Her head buzzed, vision blurred, like someone had pressed rewind on her brain.50Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEEjvCQAZMY
It was happening again.
“No…” she tried to say.50Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ39c94QTvVB
But all she managed was a twitch of the fingers, a faint tap on the letter F.
Footsteps.50Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPFkFXleEzH
Someone approached.
Arms wrapped around her.50Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtVB6XRHquc
Firm, steady. Familiar.50Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiliyGdIodF
There was the faint scent of shampoo in the air—clean, comforting.
She squirmed, barely.
This isn’t my bed, she wanted to mumble.
But she had no strength. Her body gave in to the embrace, tucked beneath a blanket.
Right before slipping under again, only one thought remained:
Screw it. I’ll just come back tomorrow.
50Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTBG3HZc7eX
Claire got used to it. For real.
She hadn’t expected to find rhythm in the repetition—not just survive, but start to live well-ish, like some glitch-proof war correspondent who recalibrates her memory each morning before heading back into chaos.
Every day started the same:50Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoJRTNzQDYx
She woke up and wrote down the number of times she’d repeated the day.
She wasn’t sure if her count was accurate anymore, but at least it gave her something solid to check against.50Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ91UjVM4D7D
Something to prove she hadn’t snapped.
Then she opened the café.
The soft ding of the door chime gave her the daily illusion that the world was still spinning as usual. The hiss of the espresso machine kicked in. She counted the seconds.
Waited for the footsteps.
If Claire’s bagels weren’t available until 10 a.m.—50Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVuYEJJTvbv
That cop named Dick would show up. In uniform. Hands in pockets. Always on time.
If Claire mentioned ghosts, or sounded a little unhinged—50Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfIrZPdieYC
Like asking, “Do you think a soul can get stuck in a single moment?”50Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpRnkgUznwF
Or, “If today is yesterday again, then where did yesterday go?”50Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqMTvJH61RK
Or anything else that made her sound like she needed to be gently escorted into psychiatric care—
The informant at the counter would discreetly alert Nightwing.
That’s how she found out “I might be having a breakdown” was an actual trigger phrase to summon a superhero.
She sometimes wondered:50Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCzxIgx9wJb
Who designed this whole failsafe system? Batman?
And sure enough, Nightwing would show up later that night.
Looking very much like he was “just passing by.”
Then he’d sit down. And start coaxing answers out of her.
But honestly?50Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvlK3Rdi8rd
She’d already discovered a faster method.
Just leave a bagel on the balcony at 11 p.m.—50Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡffLUyFuXuE
Worked three out of three times.
So depending on her mood, Claire chose her summoning style.50Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcpu9eVH5zL
Same result either way. Just different openings.
Still, she preferred the “mental breakdown” version.
Especially since Nightwing always looked visibly conflicted when it happened.50Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkuqddtGne0
Every time, he’d stare at her for a few seconds, calculating how much he should trust her today.
That expression—hesitant and tight—like she’d just told him the Earth was about to explode, and he had to smile back and go, “Cool. Let’s finish this coffee first.”
He had range.
Worry. Frustration. Doubt. Guilt.50Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuvX2RCiauV
Claire kept a mental chart: Nightwing’s Emotional Weather: Today’s Forecast.
In some twisted way, it felt like watching a drama series.
And she liked it.
Because in this endless loop, the only thing that really changed…50Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlcFpSyXBEw
Was the light in his eyes.50Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmcCe5eyGag
