I, Kaylin Valentine, never thought I'd end up here. Here is in the arms of someone so dangerous, swaying back and forth, very awkwardly do to his leg, to the sound of an old record that never misses a beat. Although the record never misses a beat, we do, fumbling around in my apartment, probably looking like buffoons to anyone looking in the clear, smudgeless window, but we don't care. Smiling, he looks at me. As soon as I make eye contact, he looks down, a shade of red coming fast to his pale, porcelain cheeks. In his eyes I can see all the trials and tribulations he has been through, all the pain, the sleepless nights, running from something he can't escape from, and all he wanted was somewhere to call home. How we got here, oh it was a bumpy journey.
December 23rd, 2014, was a very nippy day, if I remember clearly. I'm a procrastinator. I was then, and I am now. Shopping for the last of my Christmas presents, I passed by the biggest toy store in Gotham. I stopped looking into the hand print smeared glass. A train track hung from the high ceiling as a small train went round and round over and over again. I turned my attention to the large bear that sat next to an artificial Christmas Tree, also in the window. The brown fur looked so warm compared to the weather outside. A pillow it held between it's two paws read, Baby Girl. Bam, it all flooded back as my dam broke.
The day was July 3rd, 2013. I will never forget it. Standing there on December 23rd, all of these memories became fresh in my mind again. On July 3rd, I stood by the air conditioner in the window trying to cool down. At the time I couldn't afford central air in my two bedroom house. With only one air conditioner in the house it got very warm every single day in the summer. Gotham was always so hot in the summer. That's why I kept all of my windows open and my door, too. That was my fatal mistake. It was all my fault. Looking down at my round tummy, I smiled a broad smile. Soon, my little one would get there, and then I wouldn't feel so alone. That never happened. Blam! My front door slammed into the wall leaving a dent.
"Miss?" a voice drew me back to that freezing December. I looked to my left to see a man hobbling towards me. His nose was pouring blood ,and he was as white as a sheet. As a rule of thumb in Gotham, I didn't read the newspapers or watch the news because I didn't want to see the shambles this city was in, so I had no idea who the man in front of me was. Looking back now, I'm glad I didn't. I turned my head left and then right. The usually bustling city was silent, dead silent. Not a soul was on that street with me and the beat up man. My first instinct was to run, but something was keeping my feet stuck in that one place like they were superglued to the concrete. I guess he just looked so innocent, like a child really. "Please," he pleaded with me as he got within arms reach. My car was only a block away, but I was no runner. I was going to stand my ground, not flee like a small child because I was a woman not a girl.
"Who are you?" I said puffing out my chest as if I was going to be able to establish dominance with this man. His face dropped faster than an anvil in those old cartoons I watched as a child as if he was trying to think up an excuse or a fake name. I commanded in a loud voice, "Your real name." His hand stretched out to me. It was just as pale as the rest of him, and, yet, somehow in the freshly fallen snow he was sweating.
He cleared his throat, preparing to speak. "Oswald Cobblepot," he said waiting for me to take his hand. Against my better judgement, I did. I took that clammy hand in mine and shook it. "I know this is Gotham, and strangers are dangerous here more than most places. I need help. Please, I am hurt badly," Oswald pleaded with me. No, I will not put a random stranger in my car with me. Turn off those human instincts, I told myself to no avail. My brain was telling me absolutely not, but my heart put myself in that position. What if it were me freezing to death, bleeding out in the snow? I would want someone's help, too.
Sighing, I moved closer to him and nodded. "I'm Kaylin. We will get you to my apartment. I'm a nurse at Gotham General. I can patch you up," I told the desperate man before me. His seas of green in his eyes met my oceans of blue. His jet black hair clashed harshly with his pale skin, but in a way it was, dare I say, attractive. Carefully, I moved to his right side and put an arm around his shoulder. He flinched to move away from me as I touched him. "Don't worry," I said, "I'm just going to help you to my car." He nodded slowly, and I placed my arm back on his shoulder.
It seemed like a never ending journey to my car, moving slower than a snail. That was okay though, we passed the time through conversation. "So, I told you what I do for a living. Now, it's your turn to tell me what you do," I prompted to start a conversation with Oswald.
"Nothing as of right now. I'm, uh, sort of between jobs," he responded softly as if he was ashamed.
"That is okay. I've been there, Mr. Cobblepot."
"You have?"
"Yeah," I answered even softer.
Finally, we reached the cherry red Mustang. It was the first car I ever got, and I couldn't bear the thought of ever giving it up. I was tempted to put the blanket I had in the backseat under Oswald to make sure no blood got on my seat, but then again that would have be rude. As soon as I slid myself into the drivers seat, I noticed the gash across his abdomen. It just caught my attention. That's why he was losing so much blood. I looked up to start another conversation as I started the car, but I noticed the look on Mr. Cobblepot's face. Working at a hospital, I knew the look all too well. It was the air of death coming fast.
As I sped down the icy road, I reached for the blanket in the backseat. Finally finding it, I tossed it over Oswald, covering him completely from the neck down. Out of the corner of my eye I noticed his eyes starting to roll back in his head. "No, Mr. Cobblepot, hold on. We're almost there. Stay with me, sir. Please don't let go," I pleaded. I was the desperate one now. I had never lost a patient before. I didn't want to start either. Maybe, if I had moved a little quicker to help, maybe he wouldn't have been in the position he was in.