Claire listened while trying her best to memorize what each gadget did.45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0bsahD895E
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.45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8nTB44s7Uo
Calling this place a “safehouse” was generous.45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOrmEYxZ4pN
It was a bunker. A battle-ready one.
“That’s the comm terminal,” Nightwing said, pointing to a row of devices on the wall.45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl1sz6aEuGC
“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.45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCIAqOKgeRj
But that doesn’t mean you won’t make a bad choice under pressure.45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxShdU4kgCm
This is a weapon, not magic. It doesn’t solve problems. It just ends them.”
Claire swallowed and nodded.45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpgGPUZO4Iz
I’m a good citizen.45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeW8c4O8Ebt
Really.45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnAO8jBfCX8
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.45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcEgTsOeRmj
“It’s fishing. Claire’s the bait.”
Every conclusion went onto paper.45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS88PfbWB1v
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.45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHg17gFmCtg
Her head buzzed, vision blurred, like someone had pressed rewind on her brain.45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGV77YGC2qj
It was happening again.
“No…” she tried to say.45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKrwYUo5KwL
But all she managed was a twitch of the fingers, a faint tap on the letter F.
Footsteps.45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIGoMWEVlvd
Someone approached.
Arms wrapped around her.45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwFMo4FFgxw
Firm, steady. Familiar.45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLowY2UZhJV
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.
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ90HChQFaMi
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:45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrmFEmZhEy8
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.45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0eoIMB6jKJ
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.—45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡETD5Wv8E1u
That cop named Dick would show up. In uniform. Hands in pockets. Always on time.
If Claire mentioned ghosts, or sounded a little unhinged—45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoFJZ0F4VhY
Like asking, “Do you think a soul can get stuck in a single moment?”45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJCJTN9X1gC
Or, “If today is yesterday again, then where did yesterday go?”45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡssugN6xCge
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:45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGGyELR98U6
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?45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyI0o3pQzQO
She’d already discovered a faster method.
Just leave a bagel on the balcony at 11 p.m.—45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC2gAaS9E1q
Worked three out of three times.
So depending on her mood, Claire chose her summoning style.45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSGYdpRUTwf
Same result either way. Just different openings.
Still, she preferred the “mental breakdown” version.
Especially since Nightwing always looked visibly conflicted when it happened.45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi4LP744Q6w
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.45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyL0L9rNEvp
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…45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpAWBxgjtiZ
Was the light in his eyes.45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2krzHCLDrv
