"Come on, Harvey." Jim said pleadingly to his Irish partner who was currently sitting at his desk eating a Danish.

"Do I need to say it in Spanish? No." The bearded man replied taking a bite. "Find someone else to be your gay lover."

Jim sighed. "Who else can I ask?"

Harvey smirked. "I seem to recall there being a certain umbrella wielding zoo animal who has quite the crush on you. I'm sure he'll be more than happy to help."

Jim glared at the older detective but couldn't help but think that maybe asking Oswald to help him out might not be such a bad idea.

"Hi, Jim," Oswald greeted the detective as he entered the club. "What brings you here?"

"I need to ask a favour." Jim stated.

"Anything for you Jim, but remember, you still owe me for all those other favours." Oswald replied, a sly smile creeping onto his face.

"I'm going to get straight to the point – I need you to be my gay date."

Oswald almost dropped his umbrella. He stood, gaping at the detective, not quite sure if he had heard him correctly. "I... Erm... W-what?" he stuttered.

"A serial killer is targeting gay couples who go to this specific bar on the edge of town. I'm supposed to go undercover to catch the killer and I need someone to act as my date. Harvey refuses so I need you." He said seriously, watching as the confusion on Oswald's face lifted.

"And what will I get in return?" he asked, regaining his composure.

"A favour." Jim replied.

Oswald smirked. "Well then Jim, it looks like we have a deal."

Seeing the smirk on Oswald's face, Jim wondered what the hell he had gotten himself into.

Jim made his way back to Barbara's apartment and was about to unlock the door when Alfred stepped out, looking rather flustered. He stopped short when he saw Jim, his eyes widening slightly.

"Oh, Detective. Good evening. I was just... erm... asking Miss Kean is she would be interested in doing some photo work for Wayne Manor."

Jim eyed him suspiciously but shrugged it off. "Ok...?"

Alfred gave him an awkward smile before rushing off down the corridor. Jim watched him for a moment before shaking his head and stepping into the apartment. "Barbara?" he called.

Barbara appeared from another room, also looking quite flustered. "Oh, hi, Jim. How was your day?"

Jim sighed heavily. "I'm going to be going undercover so I probably won't be here for a while."

The corners of Barbara's mouth twitched up into a small smile which went unnoticed by Jim. "Oh, that's sad. Do you know how long you'll be?"

Jim shook his head. "Only until I find the killer, but I'm not sure how long that will take."

"When do you start?"

"Tomorrow night." Jim placed his coat on the coat rack and headed off to bed.

The next night, Jim found himself walking, arm in arm, with Oswald on their way to the bar. Jim glanced down at their interlocking arms and then back up at Oswald. "You know, we don't have to be this close, we're not even at the bar yet."

Oswald smiled over at him. "Might as well get comfortable with it. We'll be much closer as the night goes on."

Jim gave him a look but chose not to respond, or to remove his arm from Oswald's grip (not that he could if he tried).

They were let into the club with no problems, and proceed to make themselves comfortable at the bar. Oswald ordered them both drinks as Jim scoured their surroundings for anyone who may look suspicious. As he looked around he saw a sight that he never thought he'd see. Harvey and Jerome. In a booth together. Doing things. His eyes widened and he immediately turned his attention to the drinks that had been placed in front of him.

"Are you ok, sugarplum." Oswald asked, noticing the distressed look on Jim's face.

Jim was too traumatised by what had seen to notice the pet name. "Hm? Oh, yeah, I'm fine." He shook his head in order to clear it and went back to business. Everyone seemed pretty normal. Not at all like a serial killer. Then again, then best ones do tend to blend in quite well. Suddenly, Jim felt himself being pulled up from his seat.

"Come on, doll face. Time to dance."

Jim wasn't able to respond as he was dragged onto the dance floor by a very overenthusiastic Oswald. He tried to keep as much distance between him and his companion as he could without it looking suspicious, whilst also attempting to dance in such a crowded area. Someone bumped into him, forcing him to become chest to chest with Oswald. The two looked at each other. Jim felt his cheeks heat up at their close proximity.

He cleared his throat. "I... erm... need the bathroom." With that, he rushed off in the direction of the bathroom. Once he'd made his way inside he went over to the sink and turned on the water, splashing some of the cool liquid over his face. He looked up at himself in the mirror.

"Snap out of it, Jim," He muttered to himself, shaking his head. "You're just undercover. It means nothing." Yeah, keep telling yourself that.

After taking a few more minutes to compose himself, Jim exited the bathroom and began making his way back to Oswald. Only, he wasn't there. Jim began searching the club for his partner but came up empty handed. After half an hour of not being able to find him, Jim assumed he had left whilst he was in the bathroom. Feeling much more disappointed than he should have, Jim decided to call it a night, and made his way back home to Barbara.

The next morning, Jim just got up to his office when someone called to him over his shoulder. It was Gabe.

"Jim, do you know where Oswald is?"

Jim looked at the gorilla of a man confused. "He's not with you?"

Gabe shook his head, looking rather concerned for younger man. "No, he never came back to the club last night and no one has seen him."

"I'll try calling him." Jim took out his phone and dialled the familiar number. All of a sudden, a though struck him and he prayed to God that Oswald would answer. Unfortunately his prayers were not answered. He cursed loudly.

"What's wrong?" Harvey asked from his usual seat at his desk.

"I think Oswald just became the killer's next victim," Jim said, clearly frustrated. "I should have never let him out of my sight."

Harvey just shrugged. "I don't see what the big deal is. The way I see it, it's one less criminal off the street."

Suddenly, a pair of firm hands grasped Harvey's shoulders and forced him backwards. "Don't you dare say that! He is just as important as any other victim!"

Harvey looked shocked at his partner's sudden outburst. "Jesus, Jim, calm down. If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were..." he trailed off, noticing the look in Jim's eyes as the younger detective let go of him. "Oh my God." He said in sudden realisation as Jim lowered his head slightly. "You high, Jim!" he yelled, rising from his seat. "I hope you are. I mean- Oswald Cobblepot! Of all people-"

Jim cut him off, angrily, "I could say the same thing to you about Jerome!" Harvey was stunned into silence and his face turned red.

After a few moments of intense staring, another voice could be heard from behind them.

"I hope I'm not interrupting-" Edward began before being cut off by Harvey.

"Yeah, you are. Go play doctor with your little girlfriend."

Edward attempted to glare at him but failed miserably. "I have a lead on your serial killer case."

Immediately Jim turned towards him. "What've you got?"

Edward smiled, "What is-"

"Just give me the file." Jim said, holding out his hand urgently.

Edward's smile disappeared as he handed Jim the file before turning to go back to the Annex to see Kristen which would quickly bring the smile back to his face.

Jim scanned the information quickly. "The residue found on the last victim seems to be specific with this particular area. The only abandoned building in the area is this one on the corner." He snapped the folder shut and ran out of the precinct towards his car. Please be ok. He prayed. Please...

The drive to the abandoned building was quick, as Jim had swerved past every single car in order to reach his destination quicker. Drawing his gun, he burst through the doors. "GCPD!" he yelled, frantically searching the room for any sign of Oswald. Room after room he searched but still couldn't find him. Eventually he came to a door which was locked from the opposite side. He kicked it with all his might, forcing it open. What he saw made his stomach churn. Oswald was tied to a chair in the middle of the room, face completely covered in cuts and bruises with blood gushing down his face. Without hesitation, he hurried over to the other man and knelt before him, gently caressing his cheek. "Oswald?" he said gently, hoping for a response.

Oswald's eyes fluttered open and he smiled a little as he saw Jim. "Jim..." his expression quickly changed. "...b-behind... you..."

Jim turned quickly, holding up his gun but it was knocked from his hand by a rather large man. The man punched Jim in the face, knocking him down onto the concrete floor and then proceeded to kick him in the stomach. He bent down and picked up Jim's gun from where it had landed and pointed it at the detective. Jim closed his eyes tight, preparing himself for the impact. A shot rang out.

Jim hadn't felt anything. Panicked, he snapped his eyes open, expecting to see the worst. What he saw instead was the perpetrator lying in a pool of his own blood, and Harvey standing in the doorway with his gun. Jim gave him a thankful smile before pushing himself upwards and back towards Oswald and began untying the now unconscious penguin.

Jim was sat beside Oswald's hospital bed. He was just drifting off into sleep when he felt the hand he was holding causing his head to shoot up.

"Wakey, wakey, sweetie pie." He said, a small smile settling on his face.

Jim smiled, relieved that Oswald was ok. "Hey, how are you feeling?" he shifted his chair closer to the bed.

"Oh, you know. Quite well... considering..." He turned his head more towards Jim. "I would've been worse if you hadn't come to get me."

Jim shrugged. "It was nothing."

Oswald thought for a moment, his face becoming slightly more serious. "Why did you save me, Jim?"

"Because..." Yes, Jim, why did you save him? "That's what any good cop would do." Liar.

Oswald looked slightly disappointed by the answer but tried not to show it. "Is that really it?"

No, it's not Jim, and you know it. Just tell him the truth. Jim sighed. "I did it because I... care about you... a lot..." he could feel his face heating up again, like it had in the club and he looked down.

Oswald smiled. "I care about you too, Jim."

Jim looked up and returned the smile warmly. The two continued to gaze at each other like that for what seemed like eternity before Jim finally broke the silence.

"You should get some rest."

"So should you. You look like you haven't slept for weeks." Oswald responded.

"I was too busy worrying about you." Jim blushed again when he realised what he said.

Oswald chuckled lightly at the detective's bashfulness. "Goodnight, Jim."

"Goodnight, Oswald."Jim leaned forward in his seat and placed a soft kiss on the top of Oswald's head before settling back in his chair. The two drifted off into sleep almost straight away, their hands still intertwined.