Here is the rewrite for No Peace in Gotham! Please Review! Special thanks to my new beta MeaganKatherine!
Summary: If it's one thing I'm experienced in it is broken promises. He broke his promise. My whole life is one giant broken promise after another. I hated him. Wanted to hate him. No matter how much I wanted to, I couldn't. Life sucks. Especially now since not only was the love of my life gone, but I had to clean up Tina's stupid vase. I'd do it later. It was ugly as fucking hell anyway.
Chapter 1: Never Say Never
I couldn't be less perfect. But that's only half my problems anyway. The name's Gemmaline-Kenzie Felicity Dawes. Screwed up name? Yes I know. You won't be the first person to say that to my face or behind my back. But people call me Gemmzie. Combination of Gemma and Kenzie. Am I the only one who does see the stupidity behind that? It was one of those nicknames that just stuck with you your whole life created by others. I secretly hated it. Never had the guts to say I didn't. I'm determined to shorten it to just Gemma. Never Gemmzie. Never Gemmaline. Just Gemma. Unfortunately for me, supposedly in my grandmother's will on my father's side, she wanted the child born after she passed to be named after her because she missed her chance with the first. And since my father had no brothers or sisters, guess who that dutiful right when to? You guessed it! Me. So the combination of Gemma and Madeline had been created. What's with all the combinations of names?
When I was seven, I found out that I was adopted. I knew that there was something different between me and my family. For one, I'm not white. Not entirely. My biological father is. His name is Tom Greenwood. He lives in Hawaii with his wife Cecile. My birthmother died when she was giving birth to me. Her name was Mena Salado. Sheer perfection in my opinion. Bright greenish blue eyes, dark hair, perfect skin, and white teeth. She was everything I wanted to be.
My adoptive parents Tina and Alex Dawes found her when she was eight months pregnant over in Portugal when they were on vacation. They brought her back to the U.S. to give birth. Sounds suspicious to me. But when she died, there was no one left to care for me. No father around. No family. So they adopted me as their own child. Of course it did look strange pushing around a caramel skin baby when you were lily white. But adoptions are all the rage right? It's the new Hollywood sensation. As I got older, I noticed the differences more and more. It didn't help that my classmates were making fun of me. They all seemed to know I was 'different' except for me. Because of it, I could never really fit in. They called me Adopted. And I still felt adopted when Tom found me. At Gotham International Airport four years ago. We had taken a trip to Disney Land for my birthday. When we got back that Tuesday, Tom spotted me. In a sea of people, I was the only one that stood out to him. I had the same eyes as her.
I plopped down next to Rachel on our shared suitcase in the airport. Things were busy since it was close to the holiday weekend. My birthday was two days ago. I am now officially seven. Even though I can't pronounce the letters S, T and H because my two front teeth have been gone, since last month. I couldn't take the pain anymore so I twisted my teeth around until they fell out. We went to Disney Land yesterday and on my birthday. All day and night. I saw the light parade. The fireworks were my favorite part. But today we were going back to Gotham. How fun. That meant going back to school. I hated school. Besides Rachel, I only had three friends; Holly Jo Upshaw, who only went by Holly J. as of Kindergarten, Rachel's best friends Crystal Andersen and Bruce Wayne. Yes, the Bruce Wayne. I have the biggest crush on him. He never really pays attention to me like he does Rachel.
Mommy is a landscaper, so she designed Wayne Manor's glamorous yards. That's how they met. Crystal was Rachel's other best friend. She has this golden blonde hair and dark blue eyes. Like one of my Barbie dolls. Holly J. was my only friend my age. We were both kind of weird in terms of the other kids, according to them anyway. I was known as the adopted kid, she was loud, I was a girl who played Pac Man and liked to look at worms, she was always making someone cringe with her constant popping knuckle thing. I felt like I had nothing to hide with Holly J. And she knew all of my secrets so I had to keep her as a friend. She knew I was crazy about Bruce Wayne.
Rachel tapped me on my shoulder. She pulled out a string and tied the ends together. I watched her make the start of cats cradle with the rainbow colored string. I hated that game.
"Want to play cats cradle?" she held out the cradle to me. I pinched my fingers at the X's, taking them over the line and then under then through the small space. We never made it that far because I always messed it up. Rachel took the string to fast trapping my thumb between the knots.
"Gemm you messed it up again!" she raised her voice. I hated it when she raised her voice at me. It made me feel insignificant to her. She was this perfect being I wanted to be just like. Rachel was pretty, had tons of friends, class president and had good grades. She won the city spelling bee. Her medal was framed hanging on the wall in her room. Nagging me every time I went in there.
"Excuse me for getting my finger caught." I started untying the simple knot. Rachel slapped my hands away and said, "I'll do it." I rolled my eyes. She made me feel like I couldn't do anything on my own. And this time it was a knot! My thumb was set free from her stupid cats cradle. If she knew I messed it up, why ask me to play? I saw mommy across the way carrying a white paper bag. She placed the bag in my lap. The warmth made me excited about what was inside. Rachel poked her nose inside. She came back up for air and frowned.
"What?" mommy made the mom face when they know they're going to be annoyed. If there is a face for that.
"We wanted the cookie." Rachel was determined to be a lawyer. I wanted to work at the zoo. Orangutans were my favorite animal. Some might say 'those are the ugliest animals', but to me they're amazing. It didn't matter to me what they looked like. I felt sorry for the orange beasts. It was kind of like how I felt. People didn't really see me the way I wanted them too. Always behind Rachel. The adopted kid. They were lying. I wasn't adopted…was I? Families always look different. Do they always look this different?
"They didn't have any more cookies. Is popcorn good enough?" mommy put her hands on her hips.
"Did you get butter?" Rachel countered. Rach shut-up and take the popcorn.
"It's not healthy for you as it is. You don't need butter."
"But mom!"
"Rachel LeAnn don't you use that tone with me. Do you want me to embarrass you in front of everyone?"
"No ma'm." she pouted. I reached into the bag and took out a handful of the fluffy popcorn. I stuffed some in my mouth.
"Don't eat it all." Rachel snatched the bag from me.
"Give it back I wasn't done!" I shouted. I grabbed the bag pulling it towards me.
"It's my turn! I'm older!" she pulled it back with such force, I could hear the bag rip a bit. I stood up from the suitcase. So did she.
"Give it back Rachel!" she held it up high. I couldn't reach. I jumped like a frog.
"Ooh so close!" she laughed.
"Shut-up Rachie! Stop it!" I jumped up again taking the bag from her. "Ha ha ha." I stuck my tongue out at her. I poured a little in my hand.
"You're so immature Gemmaline." She stole about half.
"I'm not the one stealing food from a seven year old. And don't call me Gemmaline. Rachelynn."
"Oh whatever Gemmdrop." We had made up nicknames for each other. She was Rachelynn and I was Gemmdrop. It was an accident at first, but then we just started calling each other that. It was something I shared with her that nobody else did. It made me feel special. I unzipped one of the pockets on the suitcase. I took out a rolled up Archie comic book. I think I'm more of a Betty than a Veronica. I started reading the latest dilemma Archie and his friends were in when Rachel tapped me on my shoulder.
"What? Can't you see I'm busy?" I put the book in my lap frustrated. She knew not to interrupt me when I was reading my Archie comics.
"That guy is staring at you." she whispered. I forced me head up to observe the crowd.
"What guy? I don't see a guy."
"God. You're blind as a bat. The one over there." Rachel pointed in his supposed direction. I followed her gaze. Who was she talking about?
"I still don't see." Rachel grabbed my head and turned it in the direction. I spotted a light colored man with short blonde hair staring at me. I gave him a weird look back. He was wearing a black leather jacket with a gray t-shirt underneath and jeans. He had one of those weird looks on his face that screamed 'how can it be?' or something like that. Alex came up next to us with the bag he and mom couldn't fit in the thingy on the ceiling in the airplane.
"Girls, Alfred might be late. So make yourself comfortable." He said. Alfred, the Wayne's butler, was picking us up. He had insisted. Alfred was old and British. He told the best stories. When Rachel and I would stay over at Bruce's house, he made us hot chocolate and he always told me a story when I couldn't sleep. Alfred was the best.
"What happened?" mommy covered her heart with her gentle hands.
"The news said there was traffic on the freeway. A truck flipped over." Daddy ruffled my hair a bit. Didn't that only happen to boys? I'm not a boy.
"Hey where'd he go?" Rachel craned her neck all about.
"Where did who go dear?" mommy touched Rachel's shoulder. Her voice sounded wary as always.
"This guy that was looking at me." I said. I chewed on my fingernail. I watched mommy's face tense up. Her gold eyes bleed with intensity of fear. Rachel had that same look when she got scared or worried. I didn't look like that. It was an entirely different face.
"Oh there he is." Rachel pointed to the man. He was standing there with his mouth wide open. It was kind of like a dog. Whenever a dog opened its mouth it looked cute. The guy didn't look cute but you get my point. When I opened my mouth it looked like I was retarded. Don't tell mommy I said the R word. It's a bad word I'm not supposed to say. I waved with a smile. Alex put my hand down with force.
"Don't do that Gemma. Let's go." He started walking away carrying the bags. What was wrong? Mommy picked me up so fast I dropped my comic book.
"Mommy wait!" I touched her face with my hand.
"What is it Gemma?" she sighed. I pointed to the ground. Rachel picked it up and handed it to me.
"Thanks Rachie."
"Okay so now we're all good. Let's go." Tina said. When she turned around, I heard her gasp. Rachel quickly moved to her side.
"What do you want?" I tilted my head to see Rachel standing in front of Tina with her hands on her hips.
"She looks so much like her." I turned my head into the crook of Tina's neck.
"Like who?" Yeah like who?
"Mena. Mena Salado." The man said. I felt her breaths stop and then continue. I lifted my head to have a better look of the man. His light blue eyes got wider than they already had been when he saw me for a second time.
"Who's Mena Salado?" I asked. Nobody answered me. Her name sounded like a movie star or someone from one of those James Bond movies that daddy always watched. I saw daddy's face look sad. Why was he sad? Did he know Mena Salado? Why did her last name sound like salad? I don't like salads.
"Who are you? How do you know about Mena?" daddy asked.
"We were friends for a short time. I could never forget her face. She has the same eyes. She looks like her. She looks like me." The man said. The wrinkles on his face set into a frown and then a smile. How can I look like someone I don't know? I look like mommy and daddy…right? In school we learned about the features of humans. Like different eye colors and hair color. Mommy's eyes are gold. Daddy's eyes are like a light green. Rachel's are light green with specks of golden brown. Mine are bright greenish blue. I think more green. They have a weird shape like ovals or almonds and they're big. Is that normal?
"Are you…?" Tina's voice was cracked like she was going to cry. I held her head in my small hands.
"Don't cry mommy." I kissed her cheek.
"Can I meet her?" the man asked. Mommy gave daddy that look she gave him when he stayed to long in the den, or as he called it 'THE MAN CAVE'. All capital letters in a plaque on the door that looked like a license plate. That didn't stop mommy from not cooking for four. Sometimes daddy had to make his own dinner. I helped. I've learned that I should never set foot in a kitchen. Mommy put me on the ground facing the man. He squatted down to my level. He did kind of look like me.
"Hi I'm Tom Greenwood." He smiled. Tom's teeth were bright white like on those toothpaste commercials. I buried my head into mommy's legs.
"It's okay sweetie. Tell him your name." she said. I rested my chin on her knee.
"What if he doesn't like me?" I bit my lip with nervousness. What if he was like the kids at school? They weren't the nicest of people to me. Mommy smoothed my hair back.
"Can you try?" I nodded. She turned me around to face Tom.
"I'm Gemma Dawes." I held out my hand to him. He shook it.
"Gemma? That is very pretty."
"It's short for something I don't like. Mommy gave me the name I don't like because of grandma. I never knew grandma so it shouldn't count."
"Gemma." Mommy said in her warning voice.
"It's not like you liked her anyway right?" I heard her sigh.
"Where are you from Gemma?" Tom reached his hand behind my ear.
"Goam." I answered. Darn the tooth fairy for not giving me my grownup teeth yet. Don't tell her I said the D word either.
"What?"
"She lost her two front teeth. Can't say T's and H's yet. We're from here." Daddy said.
"Oh! So you're from Gotham." His face lit up like a light. I nodded. Weird. He had the same cheeks like me.
"Where are you from?" I asked. His hand left my ear and came out with a white circular stone. I loved magic tricks.
"I'm from Hawaii." Tom handed me the stone that turned out to be a sand dollar.
"Can I keep it?" mommy wouldn't let me keep things I found on the beach. Safety hazards and such.
"Sure. I have a lot more back home." he smiled at me. I watched him stand up. He was so tall.
"Do you want…a test done?" daddy asked. What kind of tests? I hated tests at school.
"If it's okay with you. I want to be in her life." Tom said.
"What's going on?" I looked up from my sand dollar at them.
"Nothing sweetheart. Rachel, go take your sister and sit down." Mommy ordered. Rachel took my hand in hers. She led me to the seating area next to a giant window view of an airplane.
"What do you think they're talking about?" I asked Rachel.
"Who knows. Hey! What if Tom was like some distant relative."
"Yeah right."
From that day forward I was never really the same. I looked at the world different. At myself different. My life changed forever. Tom has an older son named Tom Jr. We are five years apart. We called him T.J. He immediately took up that big brother role. Tom has another kid too. Her name is Tessa. We're the same age. Cecile treated me and Rachel like we were her own. I called her Cece. Every year we visit them in Hawaii. I learned how to surf like Tess and T.J. Something Rachel couldn't do. I was a natural. After I found out about my birth mom, in my mind I referred to mommy as Tina. I still called Alex dad in front of him but in my mind he was Alex. I called Tom, Tom. Just so it wasn't confusing if I called for one of them. I had a biological family. People that I can relate to.
Not to long after that, they checked back at the hospital for anything about Mena. Mom. She has a family over in Portugal. Two summers ago, we went there after a long string of letters back and forth. Grandma Emilia was so excited to see me. She lived with grandpa on this huge cliff in one of the white brick houses on the top of the hill. I had a family. A real family. That looked like me. And loved me. Connected by blood. That didn't love me only because they felt as if it were their duty to do so; they loved me because they wanted to.
I stared out into the ocean. The sand was warm beneath my feet. I buried them further into the sand. Surf practice had ended early because the waves were dying down. I heard the faint laughter of my other teammates down the way. I never associated myself with them due to their lack of liking toward me. Most people were nice to my face…some of the time. But these people—if you want to call them that—were rude directly.
Rachel was the star. Of course. But out here on the beach, I was. That's how it usually was at Gotham Middle School. If it sounds public, it isn't. Well technically it was, but it was changed to a private school about sixty years ago because of the rich people in the city and something about making money. Bottom line was I hated that school. But Tina and Alex insisted because it was a better education. They were breaking their backs to pay for it. With two kids, Alex had to pick up a second job working at Wal-greens. He worked the graveyard shift sometimes. Tina always stayed up when he had to work the graveyard. Rachel and I stayed up with her when we could.
"Gemmzie." I heard my name being called. I peered up at coach Dan. He was an average old man I guess in his late forties with this curly hair that would make the newest perm blush. He was wearing these bright red swim trunks. Like David Hasselhoff from that show Baywatch Alex always watched.
"What is it coach?" I asked. I knew what he was going to say. 'Why don't you play with the other kids?' he'd say. This happened more than once before. It was expected from him now.
"Don't you get lonely over here by yourself? Practice is over. It's okay if you play with the other kids." See. What did I tell you?
"I'm fine over here sir." I patted the sand next to me with a fake smile. I wanted to be left alone. When I wasn't with Holly J., I was by myself most of the time. At school, I was either in the computer lab at lunch or a teacher's classroom or mindlessly walking around the empty hallways. Rachel didn't make an effort because she thought I was with my own friends I guess. When I couldn't find a seat in the computer lab, I went to the library. Sat at one of the desks in the corner. Yes that sounds very depressing and I seem unsociable. But I just didn't fit in with these types of people. I couldn't find a place where I really fit in. The one thing that scared me the most was after summer vacation when we all went back to school, there would be someone in one of my classes that didn't like me or I would be all alone and everyone would know.
"Well I say you be more involved. Try making friends." He said. I surveyed the other kids down the way playing with flat volleyballs and sticks. These were the next elite of Gotham? Don't think so. "Honestly sir, it doesn't look very appetizing. I'd feel more comfortable over here."
"Well I have to see who is going to be in the competition next month. So you have to go." He folded his arms across his chest. I sighed rolling my eyes. Why couldn't he just leave me alone? It was depressing enough having to watch the others I've known since third grade separate from me. I picked myself off the ground. I could tell that this was going to go bad. It always did. I could never understand why they didn't like me. It never made any sense whatsoever. It wasn't like my braces weren't coming off. What was their problem? Am I not likeable? Or is it because I'm not Rachel? I approached them with a blank expression upon my face.
"Well, well, well. If it isn't brace face." Sheila laughed. And cue the braces jokes. Sheila Ramsey was one of those girls you couldn't stand. Hated her to pieces, but wanted to be just like her. Have her cool hair and her clothes. She was one of the trust funds. Her parents were filthy rich. They didn't share with the rest of the city. I knew Sheila from the parties and fundraisers that Bruce always invited us to. Not that he gave me two seconds of his time. Alfred let him bring us as his guests. I ignored her rude comment.
"Are you deaf? I'm talking to you. Oh, I forgot; there's always something wrong with adopted kids. Crazy and all." Sheila giggled with her friends. Her bright blue eyes were sparklers of evil. Evil bitch.
"I want to see things from your point of view, but I can't get my head that far up my ass." I had actually cursed. I never cursed. It was bad. I'm starting not to care anymore.
"Excuse me?" she did that 'oh no you didn't' tone in her voice.
"Don't you know the train is that way?" Cole Hunter pointed down the beach. God he was gorgeous. All the girls adored him. I didn't like him though. That doesn't mean I can't look at him.
"Your not welcome here foreigner." Sheila stood up from the perch of drift wood she was resting her butt on.
"Be careful Sheil. Stand up too fast and you might lose another brain cell." I said boldly. She dropped her mouth in awe. I don't know what she thought I was thinking because I dropped my mouth in awe too. I hardly stood up for myself. She slowly walked over to me. Her body demeaning me with every step in the sand. She stood a foot taller than me staring me down.
"You want to repeat that foreigner?" her blue eyes reached the level of my green. I said nothing. To scared to find out her response and my suffering from her assault with words.
"Is the baby too choked up to talk?" she cooed. I felt the back of my eyes start to prick with pain. I looked everywhere but her face. She leaned down next to my ear.
"No one wants you around. The only reason people put up with you, is because your Rachel's sister. And the only reason people put up with her, is because she's Bruce's friend." Shelia pulled away from me with a taunting smile.
"Your not going to cry are you?" I tried to stop my lip from quivering. How could anyone be this mean? I hadn't done anything to anyone of these people. It didn't make sense for people to act like this. I sniffed my nose. Was she telling the truth? I did feel the pain of being socially awkward around people. Maybe I did only have a free pass because Rachel was my sister. I turned around and walked away from her. What was the use? She was only going to keep antagonizing me. There was no point.
"That's right pound puppy. Walk away. Just like your no good immigrant mother." Sheila yelled. I locked every bone in my body. She didn't know a thing about my mother. Neither did I. Only from what I was told. I stormed back around to face Sheila. Pulled her hair with all my strength. Surprisingly, she fell to the grown. I straddled her back and pushed her head into the sand.
"Say something else about my mother again and you'll see just how crazy I can get."
I pushed her plastic face further into the sand. Since when would I say something like that? I have no idea what came over me. The power and adrenaline was amazing…I had to do this more often. I got off of her with disdain. I walked calmly back over to the other side of the beach. A surge of power had taken over me. I don't know what happened. I just…snapped. Pushed to the very limits I never wanted to reach. In a way, it was terrifyingly scary, that loss of control. Mom wouldn't act like that. What if I couldn't go back? Lost in rage and anger forever. But what was I mad at? Mom? Rachel? Tom? Tina? Alex? In their own way, they'd abandoned me.
That's a lot to be angry about. But I don't like being angry for the fear of losing myself. I knew I would. I could never go back. It wasn't normal for someone so young to feel this way, it can't be. I wasn't normal. Rachel was normal. She was always normal. Always has been normal. What was normal? Sane, loved, adored...not me? Maybe normal is normal and me is me. Whatever that means. I picked up my purple flowered surfboard from the sand. My sandals with the turtles on them filled with sand as I hiked up the hill to Tina's minivan. I opened the back throwing my board in. I don't know why I threw it in there like that. I slammed the trunk shut with my small hands. I climbed into the back seat and started to take off my rash-guard. Tina pulled away from the curb with a sigh. She always sighed. Maybe it was some condition.
"How was practice?" she turned around looking at me with a small smile.
"Usual. Why do you ask?" she never asked about practice. Tina wasn't into surfing. Thought it was dangerous. Everything is dangerous. Walking out the house is dangerous, eating is dangerous, brushing your teeth is dangerous. I once got a cramp in my finger from tying my shoe laces.
"I ask because Dan said something about you not mingling with the other kids." I pulled on my pink cheetah print bathing suit. I was supposed to meet up with Rachel at Crystal's hours for her pool party. It was in the suburbs. The only place in the city considered 'safe'. If one considers Gotham safe.
"Mom it's nothing." I really wanted to change the subject. My lack of friends was starting to affect her in that motherly concerning way.
"I'm only being concerned Gemmaline. No need to get hasty." Her voice was rising. Not a good sign.
"They talk about her." After that she didn't try to strike up a conversation anymore. The whole ride was silent. I think she knew my secret. That I didn't think of her as my actual mom anymore. We avoided the discussion of her. There wasn't much to begin with anyways. I took off the metal brace around my face. It'd be good to not have that on for a while. I passed time by looking out widow. Tina stopped in front of Crystal's house. The orange and pink balloons hung off the front porch swinging in the wind.
"I'll be back in a few hours. Have fun." Tina unlocked the door.
"Okay." I opened the door and hopped out. I don't know why I was invited to the party. Everyone was older than me. At least two or three years. I rang the doorbell. My nerves were getting the best of me. Crystal's mom Elle opened the door.
"Oh! Hello Gemma dear!" she was so enthusiastic. Like one of those moms that was more of a friend and bought everything for her kids. She had the same blonde hair like Crystal, same eyes, a white sweater around her neck.
"Hi Mrs. Andersen." I said.
"Gemma call me Elle."
"Okay…Elle."
"Come on in, everyone is out in the back." She ushered me inside. I wished my house looked like this. The living room was so clean and big. The furniture was cream colored. Not like the ugly flower couches and chairs with matching carpeting like at home. Even the carpet smelled good with that clean scent. I saw the screen doors in the back near the kitchen. People were running around and water was splashing everywhere. I slowly walked down the way to the back. As I got closer, my breathing picked up. This was not the best time to have an asthma attack. I opened the screen door. With my luck something would go wrong. The air hit me in the face. I walked further into the crowed looking for Rachel.
"Gemma!" I spotted her with Crystal and some other girls. I waved back. I started to cross the cold grass. I felt a sharp pain in the back of my head. Dizziness overpowered me. When did black look so lovely?
Bruce
I laughed at the joke my best friend Sam Macpherson told. I wasn't really paying attention though. Too busy looking at Rachel. I think my friends noticed it also. Did she even notice how I felt about her?
"Hey Bruce, why don't you talk to your girlfriend." Jake Raze said when he elbowed me in the side. I blushed. Guys don't blush.
"She's not my girlfriend. We're just friends." I looked back over at Rachel. She was standing with Crystal and a small group of girls. Her body filled out her black bikini in the most alluring of ways. The way to hugged her curves…
"Ahh, the just friends rule." Sam raised his eyebrows.
"Oh shut-up! Like you know anything." I pushed his shoulder. The tapping of a smooth finger against my back interrupted. I turned around with Rachel wearing a frown on her face.
"What is it?" I asked.
"Have you seen Gemma? I saw her, but now I can't find her." Her lips looked so soft. What were they like to touch with my own? If she only knew what she did to me.
"No I haven't seen her. I didn't know she was here." I scanned the yard looking for her familiar head. My eyes happen to observe the large pool. I saw a head of dark hair gently sinking to the bottom of the pool. It couldn't be. Could it. The feeling of losing her swept through my body like a storm. Without even thinking, I took off from across the grass to the pool. How could no one see her? Why couldn't I see her? I dived into the pool with a one track mind. I grabbed her by her arms, pulling her small frame against mine. I reached the surface of the water in record time. I lifted her body onto the concrete by the edge of the pool. Everyone was crowding around us. She looked like a rag doll. I leaned down and pressed my ear to her chest. Then I checked her wrist for a pulse. I felt none. Was I too late? For an unexplainable reason, my eyes quickly grew wide. My chest felt like it was closing. My hands shaking uncontrollable. I placed my hands on her chest and began CPR. One, two, three. I pressed my lips to hers. One, two, three, breathe.
"Oh my god! Is she okay?" Crystal's voice egged on in my ear. Her hair skimmed my shoulder. I pushed her back.
"I'll go get my mom." Yeah you could have done that five minutes ago.
"Come on Gemma. Don't do this to me." I whispered. Why hadn't I taken the time to know her? What did I know about her other than she was Rachel's sister? Nothing. This couldn't happen to me. Not when I had missed out on so much. How could I not notice her until this? I couldn't lose another person I loved. Love? I didn't even know her. Love. Did I? Could I? With her. No. It wasn't right. Love. What was I thinking?
"Bruce, give up." I heard someone say.
"Shut-up!" I yelled. I pounded on her chest one more time before I breathed into her mouth. She didn't respond. I slumped back on my knees. She was gone. I picked up her head in my arms and just stared at her face. I pushed some of her hair back. To be so young…she was beautiful. Was it wrong to be somewhat attracted to her? My eyes fell in love with her closed ones. I would never be able to see those emeralds of hers again. She would never look at me with such affection. The affection I turned away. I trailed my eyes from hers to her neck. I would never hear her voice again. Her voice would never say my name. Her laughs.
I had almost lost hope; her body lightly trembled. Her throat moved a bit. I heard her take in a soft breath. She gasped for air and turned her head to the side. The water escaped her mouth like a waterfall. I embraced her delicate cheek into my hands. She slowly opened her eyes. The first thing she saw was me. They all crowded around more when they realized she was alive.
"Get back!" I ordered just to have this moment with her. Her eyes never left mine.
"Oh Gemma!" Rachel pushed me away from her. I reluctantly let her go. I watched them hug to no end.
"What the hell is going on here?" Elle's boisterous voice said. No one answered. The only sound I heard was her breathing. And I was determined to never let it falter.
Five years later
Gemma
I fixed my 'Thriller' Michael Jackson t-shirt to hang off my shoulder again. It was a gift from Bruce. He had gotten it for me directly from the King of Pop himself. I was completely floored. It meant so much to me. I wonder if Bruce knew how much. I looked across the room in our A.P Calculus class. I was really good at math; I got an A+ the whole year. Rachel got a C. Who's Miss Perfect now? Still not me. Rachel was still the apple of everyone's eye. She was already an adult. Eighteen going on nineteen. I wasn't even sixteen yet. In a couple months. I observed Bruce sitting at his stool leaning on the desk trying to keep up. I have no idea how he landed this class. Maybe it's because he's Bruce Wayne. The only reason why he was barley getting a C was because I was doing his homework for him. The feelings I felt for him were so strong I couldn't put them into words. Sometimes I thought he felt the same way. The little things he would do. When I told him about a cute guy, he got jealous no matter how hard he said he wasn't. He was protective of me, he listened when I was upset; the way he couldn't control his emotions. He told me everything he was feeling. Things he couldn't share with just anyone. I was bound to secrecy. Almost every love and relationship article I read in the magazines said he liked me. Possibly loved.
He couldn't love me right? I mean…we're just friends. Friends can't be more; it'd ruin the relationship formed already. I was forever enchanted by the way his sleek hair curved at the start of his neck. And the contours of the muscles in his back. They hugged to his tight black sweater. And then…there was Rachel sitting next to him. They were both trying to keep their laughing silent. I wished I was sitting over there; with the popular folk. The seniors and some lucky juniors. The way he looked at her was never the same way he looked at me. Who was I kidding? Bruce Wayne wasn't in love with me; he was in love with my better sister. The whole school practically knew they were bound to end up together whether they denied it or not. I let out a sigh and leaned on the desk. After knowing the man my whole life, one would think I'd be living a Bruce Wayne-filled life. Instead, I was living a Bruce Wayne-less life. In the department I was looking in anyway. Bruce, why can't you know that I'm madly in love with you?
"Miss Dawes?" I was drawn out of my trance by my teacher's voice. I sat up. Everyone was looking at me. And not for the good reasons I wanted them to.
"Yes Mr. Keen?" some people snickered. I looked at the faces of my abusers. Mr. Keen was a nice guy when you did the homework. He's the punch line of everyone's jokes because he kind of resembles a beaver. But overall he was a good teacher. Except when he embarrasses you in front of everyone. Like right now.
"Oh my god." I heard Katie Solomon say. She's Sheila's best friend. Bitch.
"Have you been listening? I've been asking you to come to the problem on the board." Mr. Keen pointed to the board.
"Oh sure." I said brightly. I stood from my stool smoothing down my short little skirt. I approached the board. I could literally feel their eyes burning into my skin. And then I heard Rachel laugh. What was so funny? I pretended to scratch my back checking to see if there was a 'kick me' sign. Nothing. Okay back to the problem. I started writing on the board.
"Gemma can you—" Mr. Keen began. He was interrupted by the phone. He picked it up and stepped outside.
"If I ever look like that, someone please shoot me." Sam joked. Of course everyone laughed. Out of all the boys to date, Sam Macpherson is my boyfriend. Of a little over three months now. How I got Sam was a dream within its own. He was three years older than I was, so technically I was dating an adult because he was turning eighteen next week. I don't know what he saw in me. And if he did see something, why didn't Bruce see the same thing? They weren't even friends anymore. Since Sam asked me out. I could tell Bruce disapproved of us being together. Whenever I said something about Sam, Bruce got so angry he scared me. Sometimes I would wish he got angry from being in love with me. That was never the case.
"Sam that wasn't very nice." I said. Sam had changed since when we were kids. He had gone from cute to this god. He had these amazing pure dark green eyes I was head over heels for. And his hair was a sandy blonde and kind of shaggy. His face was chiseled to perfection and he had these amazing abs. Is it wrong to imagine that it was Bruce I was kissing? That's a dumb question, of course it's wrong. But even in my imagination, with Bruce it felt…right. Like we were meant to be. Could we be…? No. No, no, no, no, no that was a funny joke. I have to get those thoughts out of my head. As cheesy as it sounds what about true love? What if you were with someone but in love with another? Then is it different? What am I talking about; this is crazy talk. Me and Bruce? Yeah right. When hell freezes over twice. I felt Sam wrap his strong arms around me. He pressed his lips on my bare shoulder.
"Baby what do I have to do to make you laugh? Oh I know; you always liked my dirty jokes."
"No I don't. Your jokes are lame and disgusting."
"Bruise my ego why don't cha'." He pushed himself into me. His hands feeling me up. From behind us, I heard someone clear their throat a few too many times. I turned around and saw Bruce staring directly at me. I held his gaze. Without words it still was like we were saying so much. His chocolate brown eyes examined my body in such a way it gave me chills Sam couldn't make me feel. If that's with his eyes what could he do with his fingers? Sam grabbed my head between his hands and turned me back to the board.
"You look this way okay sweetie." He said in my ear. Yeah I should be concentrating on the problem. Not staring off into those hypnotizing eyes of his.
"Wayne do you get off on watching me and my girl?" Sam pulled me closer to him.
"Stop it Sam." I warned. When was Mr. Keen coming back?
"No I jack off watching your mom bleach her mustache." Bruce said. Why couldn't we all just get along?
"I'll squeal about what you really jack off to." Sam fired back.
"Guys can we not do this right now." I put the chalk on the board and pushed Sam away from me. Was there something I missed?
Bruce
Sam made me sick to stomach. He had his hands all over her. I was the one…no. Felly and I weren't meant for each other. I only had eyes for one woman and her name was Rachel. I loved her. And for someone like me to fall in love was rare. I tried everything to get her to take an interest in me. For some reason she couldn't see how I felt. But I think she knew. She wouldn't deny anything. When Gemma looked into my eyes I felt like I was on fire. I let out a growl. That asshole Sam had his hands all over my Gemma. How could she allow that? He showed her off like his property. If she were with me she'd be treated like the lady she is. They way he touched her hips possessively. I would touch them like they're too delicate to touch. She'd be a doll under me. He didn't appreciate how beautiful she was. The way her legs were long but still curvy, her waist was toned from her athleticism and her breasts weren't too big but not small either. Gemma was always talking about how she hated her body, mainly her thighs. Personally I loved her thighs. I would watch her at surfing practice and just want to ravish them. Sometimes I think of her blowing me.
She'd look at me with those seductive eyes and push me on my back. She'd settle her tight pussy over me. I'd keep her steady with my hands as she slammed down hard. Riding me like a pro. I would watch her touch herself. Sometimes I daydream about what I would do to her. First I would take her out to the best restaurant in Gotham. Order the most expensive champagne and listen to the piano play in the background. When we'd leave, I'd take her to her favorite restaurant, which was Tony's Diner down on Branch Avenue. It was a restaurant on one level where the stairs led to the roller disco. She loved roller skating. We'd drive back to the mansion and I'd carry her to my bedroom. I'll sit her on the bed and reach up her short lavender sundress. I pull down her panties gently from her. I take off her dress and throw it across the room. Trail kisses from her toes to the inside of those thighs…and then higher. I would drown myself in her sweetness. Lick her until she couldn't take it anymore. She'd come so hard she wouldn't be able to form sentences. Then I would make love to her the whole night. Show her what a real man could do. You know…if I was Sam. That's what I'd do if I was Sam…
"Mr. Wayne." I raised my eyes at Mr. Keen.
"Yes?" I asked trying to control my breath from my thoughts about Felly. It was wrong to think about her in that way. Her brother T.J. and I were best friends. How would he feel if his friend was thinking like that about his fifteen year old sister? I don't know why I imagine her like that. I could just take one look at her and get turned on. It didn't make sense. How can I be attracted to a fifteen year old? And even before then. When she was fourteen and thirteen and twelve; I'd have thoughts about waking up next to her in my bed naked. I sounded like one of those child molesters. I felt dirty having explicit sexual feelings for her. She was an innocent child. But it also felt…right. What am I talking about? There was no way I would think about her like that again. It was wrong.
"What is up with you guys today? Is anyone paying attention at all?" Mr. Keen went on about squares or whatever. I saw Felly and that asshole share a look between them. Why did she like Sam anyway? With every girl he dated, he got her into his bed and ripped her heart out. He was a player. She didn't need someone like him. She needed someone like me.
I followed behind Sam and the rest of the varsity football team into the locker room. Sweat was dripping off my forehead from practice. I walked to my locker next to the showers. "We could win on Friday with that play. You were on fire." Sam patted me on my back. I was the star quarterback on the team. Sam was the running-back. We were like a triple threat together.
"Thanks man. Coach didn't have to go so hard on me though."
"Weren't you trying to get Josie Cruz's digits?"
"Yeah. It's not like she doesn't want me anyway."
"Well look at you Mr. Player. You've learned from the best." Sam slapped my chest. I rolled on some deodorant underneath my arms. Man was I hungry.
"Hey, are you going to Tony's with us?" I asked. Tony Montoya owned the old roller diner on Sixth Avenue. Hopefully I would see Gemma there. She took up a job waitressing after surf practice. The outfit consisted of a tight white shirt, black hot-pants and roller skates. The main reason why all the guys went there. And they made the best pizza in Gotham.
"…Umm…naw, I'll pass. I already made plans." Sam didn't look at me when he said this. What was going on with him? Since when did he not want to make some sexual comment to his favorite waitress Camilla? I couldn't really stop him because from flirting with other girls right in front of Gemma. He wouldn't listen to me anyway. And it was guy code.
"Since when do you already make plans? I've known you since kindergarten and not once did you ever plan anything." I told him. I pulled my shirt over my head, ready to put on a clean one.
"I asked out this girl. Well she's not just any girl. We know her. Kind of want your opinion." When did Samuel Edward Macpherson need my advice on girls?
"Okay."
"I asked Gemmz out on a date last week. And she said yes." I stopped getting dressed in my regular clothes. I tried to play it off, but on the inside I was raving in anger. What the hell? Since when did Sam like Gemma? Even start to have an interest in her? When T.J. wasn't around, I was the one protecting her. What right did he have over Gemma? My Gemma. I mean…she wasn't really my Gemma. She's my friend. If she's my friend, why do I feel so protective of her? What were the dreams that I've been having about her? The feelings that I had? Being attracted to her so bad by the thoughts I had. Dirty thoughts. Wondering what she looked like naked. What did it all mean?
"Umm…why would you do that?" I asked.
"Because she's hot. I mean she's gone from metal mouth to Playboy in like what, a summer? I'm not the only guy looking at her new assets." He laughed. Is that all there was about her he liked? He was going to hurt her I knew it. I wasn't going to allow that.
"Is that all you think about her? You're not right for her! You're going to break her heart like all of the other girls!"
"And how would you know that?" Sam was getting defensive.
"She's not your type! Leave her alone. If you want a conquest, go find it somewhere else. I'm not going to let you hurt her." I tried to say it more of a matter of fact, but it came out more personal. Maybe I wanted it to be personal.
"That's real funny Bruce. You act like you want her for yourself!" he joked. Did I want her for myself? I didn't answer.
"No fucking way! Rachel's baby sister? Little Gemm? Bruce you can't be serious?" I grabbed him by his shirt and pushed him against the lockers.
"You touch her and I swear to god I'll make you pay for it." Sam grabbed my arms and pushed me.
"Really? And what are you going to do? Drown me in your wet dreams?" I did something I thought I would never do to Sam. I punched him in the face. What had come over me? I was fighting for Gemma. Rachel was the one I wanted… Was I sure…? Sam pinched the bridge of his nose. "Fuck you man!" I could hear the rest of the team gather around our small area. The looks on their faces when they saw the fearsome duo get into a fight. Devin was borderline passed out, Greg's face was so shocked he could start a fire, Bobby couldn't stop laughing…well he's a dumbass and like that 24/7 and everyone else was silent with wide eyes watching their championship dreams slip through their hands. I grabbed Sam by the neck pulling him into a headlock. He tackled me to the ground. I turned him on his back and began to punch him in the face.
"Break it up! Break it up!" Coach Rogers grabbed me my shoulders and pulled me off of Sam. I wanted to go at him again, but Jake Raze held me back. And I had no choice since he was a linebacker and three times my size. Coach lightly pushed Sam.
"WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU TWO? THE WEEK BEFORE THE GAME THAT CAN GET US INTO THE PLAYOFFS AND YOU TWO IDOITS DECIDE TO HAVE IT OUT? HAVE YOU LOST YOUR FUCKING MINDS? EIGHTEEN YEARS YOU COULD HAVE DONE THIS!" Coach was mad. And I mean mad. His face was the color of a tomato. He looked like he was about to burst. He probably knew about his high blood pressure.
"Coach you shouldn't yell. Doctor's orders." Andy Garcia reminded him.
"Screw the damn doctor," Coach pointed from me to Sam. "What's wrong with you two huh?" neither of us answered. "No answer?"
"He knows what he did." I said. Sam scoffed.
"Wayne, you're such a fucking hypocrite. I bet you weren't even thinking about her. All you want is Rachel anyway."
"Shut-up."
"What do you think about her? How she fits around you? How'd she taste? Feel?"
"Shut-up!" I was trying not to react to him, but I couldn't help it. I wanted to ring his neck.
"You know what Brucie? I bet on the first night she'll give it up. It's always the quiet ones. I'll make sure to take pictures of her on her knees with my dick in her mouth." I escaped from Jake's hold and punched him in the face again. He laughed.
"You're just jealous that you wouldn't be the one to make her pop." I tried kicking him with no use from half the team holding each of us back from each other. And while he was saying this, it was all true. I did think about her like that. For a while. I've always put it to the back of my mind though. Until today that is.
"That's it! Wayne you're off the team!" Coach said.
"Ahh ha!" Sam pointed at me.
"You think that's funny Macpherson? So are you!"
"What?" all Sam could worry about was himself.
"I must be out of my mind for doing this. But I can't tolerate you two like this." Coach left the scene. I heard the locker room door slam. After that, everyone seemed to go back to their own agenda. I picked up my gym bag. I just wanted to get out of there. Try to convince her not to go.
"Stay away from Gemma." I warned.
"And what if I don't?" Sam stared me down.
"Stay away from her."
I stood outside of Gemma and Rachel's room in their house in the suburbs. They lived in a New England style house. This is where I grew up beside the manor. So many memories. I opened the door a crack. Gemma was picking out clothes. They were all over the bed. She was wearing a purple tank top and these tiny spandex shorts. Her dark hair was in curls down her back. The signature pink streak I had caused peaking from under her soft locks. I smiled. Two weeks ago for Halloween she asked me to go get hair dye. I'm a guy what am I supposed to know about hair products? I just picked up any fucking dye. Turns out it was permanent. Oops. I liked the streak. It made her more unique that she already was. And I had left a mark. I pushed the door open and stepped into the room. I don't think I've seen so much purple in my life. Gemma's purple plaid bed was over by the window and Rachel's orange one was by the closet. Everything was frilly and…girly.
"Hey." I said making myself known. She turned around with that smile on her face. Her eyes gleaming with happiness.
"Great you're here! You can help me pick something to wear." She pulled me by the hand. I sat on her bed and lay down.
"Get up you ogre! You'll wrinkle my clothes." She tried to roll me over. I scooted over so she would think she did it herself.
"…What's the occasion?" she stopped putting a shirt on a hanger. I could tell she didn't want me to know.
"Umm…nothing. I'm doing some spring cleaning." She said.
"No your not. Because first of all, it's November. Second of all, for as long as I've known you, you have never thrown anything out. And you are against throwing out clothes. So what's the deal?" She bit her lip and opened her eyes wide in that innocent way she did.
"Okay; I'm going out on a date."
"Who with?" I lied. I wanted to see if she would tell me. To hear it from her and to hear it from Sam were two different things.
"Sam." She said.
"Are you sure about this? You barley know him. He's three years older than you Felly."
"Don't call me Felly. And I realized that when I said yes. He's amazing. You're three years older than me." She lay down on the bed next to me. I had the urge to touch her hair as it spread out next to my face. Her shampoo smelled like soft lavender and vanilla. It was driving me wild. This from a fifteen year old? How can I feel like this?
"So you're serious about this?" I turned on my side. The outline of her bone structure. The movement in her throat gave it away. She wasn't sure. There was something she was hiding. She faced me.
"Yes."
"Gemma you can't be serious. What do you really know about Sam huh? Beside that we're friends. Nothing."
"I don't know why you care so much. It's not like its you." she rolled off the bed and went back into the closet.
"What if he wants more from you?" what did she mean by 'It's not like its you.'?
"You mean sex?" the way she said it so bluntly scared me. I didn't want to think about her with other boys like that. They would only use her. But yet…I can't stop myself from doing so.
"Yes I mean sex."
"Maybe I should to get rid of my V-card. Everybody else has. I mean, Rachel isn't as innocent as she plays. She lost hers to Jamie Doyle. Did you know there are fruity flavored condoms? Do they have to be used in sex or can you just lick them because they taste good?" She came out wearing a short little white dress that flowed over her upper thighs. She looked beautiful.
"Is this okay?" I grabbed her wrist.
"I don't ever want to hear you talk like that! And please wear a sweater."
"What's gotten into you Terminator? I know you adore Schwarzenegger, but a little obsessive much?" she pulled away from me. "I want the full experience of dating. I asked Rachel and she said it isn't exactly how it is on T.V."
"I can show you." I don't know why I said that. It sort of came out. Is it what I really wanted? I could protect her if…
"Really?" her eyes were so bright with excitement. Could her innocence be corrupted?
"Sure. If you want."
"Oh absolutely! I should be prepared." She tucked her hair behind her ears and smiled.
"Okay…" I put my hands on her hips and pulled her closer to me. She let her hands travel up my biceps to wrap around my neck.
"What'd you do that for?" I wanted to push her away. I didn't want to resist the lethal feel of her touching me. She furrowed her eyebrows.
"Do what? Wrap my arms around your neck?"
"Yeah."
"Natural instinct. Read it in a magazine."
"Oh…moving on. He'll say something sweet to make you believe him."
"Like what?"
"I don't know; like 'I could drown in your eyes.' Something every guy tells a girl. It's all in the tone."
"What if he's being sincere?"
"Then you'll know. 'You have the most beautiful eyes I've ever seen.'"
"What would you say?" I contemplated saying something I would regret. I already told the truth twice.
"I'd say, 'There isn't anybody else I'd rather be with than you.'" I could see her blush.
"What's next?"
"He'll run his finger through your hair," I tangled my fingers in her soft hair. "And he'll lean down close to you." I lowered my face right in front of hers. Our lips were so close to touching. They looked so soft and plump.
"Gemma! Sam's here!" we both heard Tina call. She looked at me like I she wanted me to make a move. I let her go from my grasp.
"I have to go." She said softly.
"Yeah okay." She grabbed a sweater hanging from a knob in the closet. I watched her stand in front of the door before she opened it. I just made the biggest mistake of my life. I think I'm in love.
"Bruce!" I snapped out of my thoughts eying the small fingers snapping in front of me. Gemma was standing with Rachel and April Chan in a circle around me.
"What's going on in that head of yours? School is over." She smiled.
"I spaced out again." I said yawning. I stood from my chair and picked up my books.
"Watch it Wayne; people might start to talk." Rachel ruffled my hair. I slapped her hand away only to earn a laugh. She walked out with April, leaving me with Gemma.
"Hey so…are you going to be at my surfing thing today?" she asked. I didn't know if she wanted me to go because, most likely, Sam was going to be there. Whenever we were around each other nowadays it ended with a fight.
"Do you want me to be there?" she started walking out the classroom. I followed her.
"Why wouldn't I want you to be there? You're always there. You're my good luck charm." Gemma was always an amazing surfer. If she could she'd live at the beach.
"I'm touched." We walked through the door. Before she could say any more, Sam took her from me. That's usually how it worked.
I met up with Rachel at her locker at the fountain in the center of the school. I banged my head on my locker. "I hate Sam."
"Why? You two were thick as thieves." She put some books in her locker and looked at me strangely.
"Does this have anything to do with a girl? Does her name start with a 'G' and end in an 'emma'?"
"Why?"
"Nothing. I just…forget I asked." She closed the locker door and leaned against it. The girl in question appeared.
Gemma
I opened my locker and took out my surfboard. Bruce gave it to me as a present last year for my birthday. Custom made. It had pink hibiscus flowers on the orange paint. It meant so much to me.
"Hey Rachel can you take my books home for me?" I handed her two lonely text books.
"Okay I really have to go now. Wish me luck!" I turned around to face Sam. He pushed me into the wall and trapped me. He kissed me so forcefully. It was rough and it hurt. I imagined it was Bruce I was kissing. He would never kiss me like this. Sam backed away from me. What the hell was his problem?
"Rachel I'm leaving. Let's go." He said. Rachel scrunched her face.
"I thought we were—" Bruce gave her that 'I know you didn't just say that look.'
"Oh! Gemm I'll see you at home." Rachel waved and walked off with him. I tried to look at Bruce but Sam was blocking my view with his arm. He wouldn't look at me. If I couldn't get respect from him, where would I get it from? I hated it when he wouldn't look at me when Sam was around. It was like I was disgusting to him. I felt disgusting knowing that I didn't feel the same way I felt about Sam with Bruce.
"Some people just don't get it." Sam said. He kissed me lightly on my cheek.
"What'd you do that for?" I asked.
"Kiss you?"
"No. Well yeah. Do you know that not everybody wants to see your hands all over me? You know Bruce is my friend. And I'm starting to think you do that on purpose."
"I don't know why you give a shit about Wayne anyway. It's not like you're with him." I predicted how this would end. This wasn't the first time we argued about my relationship with Bruce and it definitely wouldn't be the last.
"He's my best friend Sam! Why shouldn't I give a shit? He's only being concerned!"
"You two fucking deserve each other anyway! That's what you want isn't it?" Sam had never yelled at me. Sure we got into arguments, but not like this. Something was really getting to him.
"What's that supposed to mean? Sam what the fuck is wrong with you? This isn't you."
"Don't act stupid Gemma, the innocence doesn't suit you."
"What the hell are you talking about?"
"Don't give me that fucking bullshit! You know exactly what I'm talking about! You think I don't see the way you look at him? The way he looks at you?" I lowered my eyes from his. I didn't want to look in the heart of the truth but nor could I deny it. How I felt.
"You're in love with him and he's in love with you. Do you have any idea why we're not friends anymore? Are you that much of an idiot?" I guess I deserved being called an idiot. There was no fooling Sam. He wasn't a dummy. Noting I could say or do would make this situation any better. What's done is done. I lowered my eyes in the shame. The shame of being me, shame for trying to put on this lie everyday and act as if nothing was wrong. Or how I feel.
"I'm sorry for calling you an idiot Gemm." Sam said. He touched my cheek with his thumb brushing away my imaginary tears. I wish I could cry. But facing what I knew was true for so long, I couldn't.
"When I first asked you out, Bruce and I stopped being friends. We got in a fight after practice. The way you look at him isn't the same way you look at me. And…at this point I think we're better off being friends." I looked up for that. The hurt I saw in his eyes was too much for me to handle, but both of us knew this was for the best.
"You're willing to let me go so I can be with your best friend." I joked.
"I must be high right now, but yeah. Something about the two of you makes sense." he stroked his hand through my hair.
"You'll make a girl really happy one day."
"That's what everyone says after they breakup."
"Well it's the truth this time." I smiled. The only truth of many lies.
Two Months Later…
Tonight was prom. It's supposed to be the best day of your life. Instead, so far it's been my worst. One of them anyway. Here I was dressed up in this expensive dress and I didn't even have a fucking date. No one asked me. Sam went with some hoe Callie Freeman. Bruce was wherever, Rachel and I went together with some friends, and Holly J. was going around taking embarrassing photos of people for the yearbook. A month had passed since Sam and I had broken up. And not once had Bruce tried anything. I knew this whole thing sounded too good to be true. Bruce Wayne, of all people, would never be interested in a middle class sixteen year old girl like me. He liked heiresses with skinny bodies and blonde hair. But the way he made me feel made my stomach do back flips. I looked around the ball room of the hotel trying to find someone I knew. I didn't really want to be here. I was Rachel's plus one so I had to go. Look how that ended up being. Alone and hungry with only a pack of gum to keep me company. I'd rather be at home wrapped in a blanket watching reruns of Three's Company and Happy Days on TV Land.
I stood from my chair at one of the many large tables. Everyone was pretty much drunk, high or both. The room smelled like fresh thrown-up Vodka and Coke. And you could see it on the floor. I walked past Deb Tanager throwing up. Ha-ha bitch. What? Don't give me that look. She dumped spaghetti sauce down my shirt in eighth grade at the school bake sale. I opened the door of the girl's bathroom, baffled at how many people were in here. The room was packed with girls and sequins. I was wearing a light blue gown with a mermaid cut, halter straps that crossed over back. My hair had fallen out of its bun long ago. I just didn't care anymore. It's not like Bruce was making a move. I spotted Holly J. standing by the make-up covered sink taking pictures. She was wearing this bright purple dress conjuring the 80's. I knew she made it herself. Her mom Gladys was the fashion columnist for The Gotham Times. Had tons of designer clothes to her dispense and yet she decided to shrug them off.
"Hey babe. Come to watch the fun with me?" she snapped a picture of Pamela Davey with her dress ripped on the side. Pam was nice when she was drunk. Or high off of E. and since that was everyday…
"Are you really going to develop these?" I laughed.
"As many as I can. Would you like to pose?" She smirked.
"No. Have you seen Rachel? I've been looking for her all over. I thought she'd be in here."
"I haven't seen her since we got here. Check the picture booth; I heard there's a lot of commotion with the sail boat in the pool."
"Okay. I'll see you later." Holly went further into the swarm of girls. I hope she didn't get lost.
"Save me a dance!" she yelled. I left the bathroom with a mission. On my way to said mission I found my target. How cheesy did that sound? I could see them so wrapped up in each other. They were looking into each other's eyes like the world was going to end tomorrow. I felt like I was going to throw-up like the others. Bruce was holding her close to him; running his fingers in her hair. The huge walnut in my throat grew bigger and bigger each second I stood there. I wanted to shoot something. They were so into her each other, they didn't even notice me standing there ten feet away. I fought back the tears with a sniff of my nose. I stormed out of the ball room and into the hotel lobby wanting to escape. How could she do this to me? She knew how I felt about him. And she takes it upon herself to stab me in the back. I found Alfred sitting in the Wayne's Rolls Royce waiting. I tapped on the window. He had a shocked look on his face.
"Miss Gemma? What are you doing out here? The formal isn't over for another hour."
"Alfred can you take me home?" I rubbed at my nose, irritated by the stupid corsage.
"Of course dear." He unlocked the doors. I walked around to the front of the car and hopped into the passenger seat. He seemed appalled that I would sit up front with him.
"What?" I asked softly through my sadness.
"Nothing. It's just that…I haven't seen anyone do that since Mrs. Wayne." He said. I smiled.
"Yeah well, apparently there are a lot of things you haven't seen."
"Is anything of the matter Miss Gemma? You seem heartbroken."
"It's nothing Alfred. Some things are just too good to be true. And they always will be."
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