Title: every heartbeat bears your name
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: ~1,000
Characters: Floyd/Harley
Prompt: "How is the baby doing?"
For: essentially-evil
A/N: I think this can qualify as writing on crack, but shush, let me dream that they end up with a Vaguely Optimistic Future.
every heartbeat bears your name
"Oh, no. Hell no."
Harley giggles (fuck, that's always driven him crazy) and glances into the mirror to meet his gaze. He's trying to keep his scowl on but it's kind of hard to do when he's just walked in on these two being adorable. He was worried – like, actually worried – about Zoe and Harley not getting along. He knows Zoe doesn't approve of a lot of the things he's done before, even though she doesn't always say it, and there's no hiding the stories of Harley Quinn when you've grown up in Gotham. He wouldn't have known what to do if his baby girl didn't approve. And, honestly? He was also worried about Harley being around Zoe. Only at first, because fuck. Harley's changed a lot, she has. But it's not like he'd ever seen her with any kids before.
But of course Harley is fucking amazing with them, and of course Zoe adores her.
"It's bad to swear, Dad," Zoe chimes, rifling through the jewelry on Harley's vanity as Harley ties Zoe's hair out of her face.
He was gone for five minutes and his baby girl has makeup on. It's simple, and yeah, obviously she's beautiful, but still. That's not the point. He didn't approve of this.
Zoe has her first high school dance today and he knows she's more excited than she's trying to show. She's always been kind of reserved like that. Between his past and her mom just being a wreck all the time, she'd grown used to not getting her hopes up. He hates that, hates that it took him so damn long to get it together for her, but things are better now.
He just tucked his baby boy into bed and walked in on his fiancé and his daughter giggling as they got her ready for her first dance. Things are definitely better.
He's still not a fan of that makeup on her face, though.
"She looks great, right?" Harley asks, voice teasing as she slides a sparkling clip into place. Zoe beams at him – at both of them – in the reflection, and Harley sets her hands on Zoe's shoulders and gives them a squeeze as she leans in and presses their faces together. Fuck. They're adorable.
"She looks beautiful." Floyd crosses the bedroom, smiles into the mirror at his girls. "Too damn beautiful for any of those boys at that school."
"Dad," Zoe laughs.
"Yeah, yeah. No swearing."
Harley giggles, gives Zoe's arm a little tug so she'll stand up. Her dress is pretty – dark purple with a sparkly skirt and totally gorgeous on his baby girl – and he's totally impressed that she picked it out himself. Fashion isn't something she paid much attention to before Harley came along, but now it's something that they're both into and it's pretty great.
"Go get your shoes and your coat," Harley tells her, dropping a few things into Zoe's clutch before handing it to her. "June is already on her way to get you."
Zoe nods, gives her a hug and then heads down the hallway toward her room. Floyd slides his hands over Harley's hips and draws her to him, pressing their hips together.
"Was that lipstick you put in her purse?" he asks, one eyebrow raised.
"Just in case she needs to reapply," she says – practically sings, lips twitching into a wider smirk – and he scowls. "What? It's not like she hasn't kissed a boy before."
"Harley," he groans, moving as if to step back, but Harley just giggles and hooks her hand over the back of his neck, pulling him in for a kiss. He hums, gives her hips a little squeeze. "Don't know if you really deserve a kiss when you're helping my baby girl grow up too fast," he murmurs, nipping at her lower lip, loving the way she curves against him even more.
Harley grins, scratches playfully at the base of his neck as she stretches on her toes, tugging his earlobe between her teeth. "She was grown up before I even got to her."
"Yeah." And he's damn proud of that. Zoe has always been better than he's deserved.
"Besides, you've still got your pretty hands full." She kisses the corner of his lips. "How is the baby doing?"
He smiles (fuck, he doesn't think he'll ever stop smiling when it comes to his little man). "Sleeping like a kitten." He squeezes her hips again. "It took him a minute to stop fussing, though. I think he missed his mama."
"He better have," Harley laughs, but he sees her eyes sparkle, sees her lips curve into a smile and a bit of pink dust her cheeks. She's so fucking cute, honestly.
"Hey," he says, even though she's still looking right at him with her big, bright eyes. He lifts a hand, cups her jaw and strokes the pad of his thumb over the apple of her cheek. Her eyelashes flutter ever so slightly. "I love you," he tells her, and she sucks in a soft breath, grips onto the material of his shirt a little tighter.
That's why he says it all the time. Not just because he means it and won't ever, ever get tired of saying so, but also because he knows she loves to hear it.
"Pussy," she breathes, lips twitching in a smile as she nudges her nose against his. He chuckles, strokes her cheek again as she kisses him, soft and slow and sweet. Before, he never would've thought she'd be capable of it, of being gentle. But he thinks maybe he's always known. You don't love as hard as Harley Quinn does without knowing how to be gentle.
She'd forgotten that part of her for a little while. He's pretty damn proud of being the one that brought it back.
"I love you, too," she tells him, voice softer. He nips at her lips once, twice—
And then a soft cry sounds from across the hall. Fuck.
Harley giggles, kissing him quickly before drawing back and taking his hand. "Duty calls," she sings, and he laughs, letting her lead him into the nursery.