Veronica finished her exam in just one hour. One.While everyone else was still chewing their pens and flipping pages, she walked out like she'd just microwaved the paper—done, dry, over.
When Vance texted later, he said:
"You walked out in an hour. That's either genius… or villain origin story material."
"Definitely villain. Or final boss."
"I'm scared of you now."
"HEHHEHEH"
When she got home, the war began."On your phone again?" her mother snapped.Before Veronica could speak, the phone was snatched.
"Anchor this! You have exams and you're playing celebrity?""And why did you even audition if you can't handle pressure?"Her father added fuel, eyes sharp and tired.
She stood there quietly, fists clenched.
If only they understood—anchoring wasn't about makeup or attention.It was her voice. Her only stage to feel heard.But even that was too much to ask.
There it was. The script. The routine.A list of complaints, a pile of expectations, and zero room to just… exist.
And just like that, the silence shattered — ping.
Vance.
"How are you still awake?"
"Had to hide from my parents like a fugitive.""You?"
"Doing maths."
She blinked.
"It's 3 AM.""You're doing maths at 3 in the morning?""WHO EVEN ARE YOU?"
Three dots appeared. Then:
"I.""Am.""Batman."
Veronica stared at the screen.Dead silence. Then: laughter. Muffled giggles under her blanket as if someone had just cracked the secret code to her tired heart.
"You did not just—"
"I did."
"Okay no take-backs. You're Mr. Batman now. Permanently saved in my contacts."
"Then I expect an autograph request soon."
"I'll frame it. And sell it when you turn into a mysterious billionaire vigilante."
"Deal. Just don't reveal my identity to the Joker."
They talked all night. About everything and nothing.From coding frustrations to weird exam questions, from her love of novels to his obsession with solving equations like they were riddles.
He texted while compiling code, while half-asleep, even while brushing.
She called him insane.
He said it was passion.
She said he needed help.
He said: "Batman doesn't sleep."
And somewhere between the silly messages, the inside jokes, and the absurd hours… something light sparked in the middle of her exhaustion.
Her home still felt heavy.Her schedule was still a mess.Her parents still didn't understand.
But Vance did.
Or at least — he made her laugh at 3 AM, when the world felt darkest.
And that, somehow, was enough for now.