Jerome opened his eyes. He was never a morning person. He lifted his head to look at the clock at the end of his bed, 6AM. He groaned and flopped his head back down onto the pillow and shut his eyes.

She moved beside him.

He opened them again and looked over to her, she was still sleeping soundly. His eyes wandered down to her swollen belly. She was eight months pregnant, closer to nine. At first, Jerome was unsure of his feelings of becoming a dad. But after some thought, he became quite excited at the concept. He was too busy to go to any of the scans. He was disappointed by this, but she understood. He was a busy man, Gotham wasn't going to cause havoc by itself. But she always brought back numerous pictures for him in a small white envelope. The first time she did this he wasn't too interested. When he looked at the black and white picture, all he could see was a small dot. But as the months began to pass, the baby grew and the pictures became clearer. It had gone from a small fuzzy dot, into a tiny human. He remembers the first time he was able to make out a leg and a tiny foot. It was still fuzzy, but it was definitely a leg and foot. He was surprised as to how quickly the baby was growing. They were both so excited.

Jerome reached a hand over and placed it onto her belly. He rubbed it in soft circles. He wiggled closer to her and reached his hand over further, running it the whole length over her. He felt a small kick. A sleepy smile crept onto his face, he pushed his hand down a little harder. This resulted in another kick.

It was a boy, Jerome Valeska was going to have a son.

He moved his ear to the bump and placed it on her. He felt a small hand swipe across his face. No doubt it was his son, it was too active to be anyone else's. He felt her fingers slip into his hair. He closed his eyes as he rubbed her tummy, his ear still pressed close to it. He lifted his eyes up to see the clock at the end of the bed. He should really get up. But just a few more minutes.

A few more minutes of pure bliss.


He sat at the desk, the lamp next to him was the only source of light. The baby monitor sat next to it, humming softly. His attention was on a map of the lower district. He was in the mists of another genius plan. He was never short of those. The baby's arrival hadn't affected his work too much. The birth was stressful, but that he expected. Both mother and baby were happy and healthy, that's all he could ask for. The first time he held his son, he was nervous, although he didn't admit this to anyone. He was so small, so fragile. Jerome realized he had never understood true love, until he looked down at that tiny bundle. That second he silently promised to be everything his father wasn't to him. This child was going to have the childhood he never had.

She said he was a natural. She had tried for hours to try and comfort the newborn to no avail. She passed him to Jerome and within seconds, the boy was silently asleep. He knew who his father was.

A small whimper came from the monitor.

Jerome looked at the lights flashing on it.

It turned into a cry.

He brought himself to his feet and walked into the bedroom. There stood the cot. He approached it and looked down at the small human. The boy had a set of lungs on him, that was for sure. He looked down at his son, he hadn't much hair, but it was ginger just like his father's.

He bent down to pick the baby up. "You're a noisy one." he smirked.

The baby's cries softened when he heard Jerome's voice. His eyes opened.

Jerome looked down into them with a small smile on his face. The hair wasn't the only thing the boy got from his father. No doubt he would have Jerome's smile when he was older.

The baby cried a little more.

"You hungry buddy?" he asked softly. He fiddled with the blanket a little. "Okay, come on." He walked into the kitchen and opened the fridge. He grabbed a bottle of milk and placed it on the side. After bringing out a small bowel from a cupboard, he filled it with warm water, then placed the bottle into it to warm it. Leaning against the counter, he looked down at his son. He moved the blanket he had wrapped him in away from his face a little more.

A small hand reached out and grabbed his finger tight.

Jerome chuckled and wiggled his finger, "I know, just a few more minutes." he checked on the bottle. He took it and poured a little on his skin, it was warm enough. He took the baby back to where he was sitting. After getting comfortable, he placed the bottle to the baby's mouth.

He took it without question.

Jerome sighed, the boy was hard work. But he was worth it. His eyes shot to the map he was working on, then the pen laying next to it. He looked at the baby, then the map again. His eyes finally rested on the drinking baby.

The world could wait.