I think it's entirely ingenuous to question a writer's choices as to why and where a scene took place. Nothing came from Dick and Babs 'interacting' where and when they did other than to verify what Dick and Helena had done, and to make Barbara aware of it. I tend not to see Dick as 'oblivious' in any situation, therefore I see 'passive-aggressive'. He knew what he was doing.
Your assessment is different, but that's where the old 'YMMV' comes in.
I'm still hoping that in the 'new' DCU it never happened.