I would like to thank Amanda for reviewing. It means alot. I didn't realize I said her name that much so I will cut back on that.
A few weeks had passed since Arianna moved to Gotham and she was doing better than she had in a long time. Today however was not one of those better days. To start with her alarm clock didn't go off so she was late getting up. Then she stubbed her toe on the corner on the desk.
What else can go wrong? Arianna thought as she left the house.
When Arianna was riding the bus she thought it was going slower than usual. She kept glancing at her watch every few minutes and it seemed like each second that passed was a minute. She was relieved when the bus finally came to her stop.
She jumped from her seat, exited the bus and took off running to the preschool. The first thing she was going to do after work was buy a new alarm clock.
Arianna quickly looked both ways before she crossed the street. When she didn't see any cars coming she started to run. Arianna heard a horn so she looked over and saw a car coming towards her. She closed her eyes, expecting to be hit, but all she heard was a loud squeal. She cracked her eyes open and saw the car stopped just a few inches from hitting her; she fell to her knees.
"I'm so sorry. Are you all right?"
Arianna glanced up and was surprised at who she saw. She tried to say something, but nothing came out.
"It's Arianna, right?" She nodded. "I'm really sorry."
Arianna finally found her voice. "It's just as much my fault, Mr. Wayne. I should have paid better attention to where I was going."
People soon started stopping and was looking at the two of them. Bruce knew this was going to be in tomorrow's paper. He can see the headlines now: Bruce Wayne speeds down street, almost hitting a woman.
"Are you all right?" Bruce asked as he held out his hand.
Arianna took his hand and pulled herself up. "I'll be fine once my heart slows down."
"Again I'm sorry."
"Apology accepted. I was in a hurry and didn't really pay attention."
"Let me make it up to you."
"You don't have to. You didn't hit me so no damage done."
"It's the least I can do. I feel guilty."
"I'm fine. You don't have to do anything."
"Let me take you out to dinner as an apology."
He was really persistent and Arianna had a feeling he wasn't going to give up until she agreed to something.
Arianna sighed. "All right."
"Great. I'll pick you up at seven." Bruce started getting in his car.
"Don't you need my address?"
"I'll get it from my secretary." Then he got in his car.
Arianna shook her head as she made her way to the preschool, being more cautious. She wondered what Emma was going to say…or do when she finds out about this.
Arianna had finally arrived at work and the first thing she did was pour her some coffee. She noticed that she was still shaking a little. She used both hands to hold the cup as she brought it to her lips. Almost getting hit by a car did scare her, but it also brought flashbacks of the accident she was in a while back.
"Arianna, are you all right?"
Arianna looked up and saw Faye. "Yeah, I just almost got hit by a car."
"I hope the jerk that wasn't paying attention stopped to make sure you were ok. You should sue him."
Arianna chuckled. "I wasn't hurt. And the jerk who almost hit me was Bruce Wayne. It was my fault because I wasn't looking where I was going." Arianna finished her coffee then put the cup down. "Now I better get to work since I'm already late."
Bruce sat in his office as he stared at his desk. He kept thinking about Arianna and how he almost hit her. He had so much on his mind that he didn't see her. He was thankful that he stopped in time.
He had told Emma what happened and she didn't look to happy about him taking her best friend out to dinner. She said there were other ways of apologizing. Of course Bruce could understand why Emma didn't like the idea.
Bruce glanced out the window and saw Emma talking on the phone as she waved her hands around. A small smile appeared on his face. She must be talking to Arianna; probably trying to talk her out of dinner. Emma then slammed the phone down.
"I don't care if I get fired for this." Emma said as she barged in the office. "You can't take my best friend out to dinner."
"Why not?"
"She isn't like those models you always bring to functions. You won't be able to romance her."
"I just want to apologize for almost hitting her."
"So just say you're sorry. Send her flowers or candy, but not dinner."
"I think Arianna is old enough to make her own decisions."
"Yes, but I also know you better."
"You have nothing to worry about, Emma."
"We'll see." Then she walked out.
Later that day Arianna was in her apartment, wondering what to wear. She wasn't sure where Bruce was taking her to dinner so she didn't know if she should dress formally or casual. Of course the only formal dress she had was the one she bought for the fund raiser.
Arianna looked at her clothes that she had taken out of her closet and were now spread across her bed. She really wished Bruce had told her where they were going. She picked up an outfit and looked at herself in the mirror. She then threw down the outfit. What did it matter what she wore or how she looked? It wasn't as if it was a date.
Just then the phone rang. Arianna thought it would be Emma again, trying to talk her out of dinner.
Se picked up the phone. "Emma, I thought I told you-"
"Arianna, its Bruce."
"Oh, I was just getting ready."
"I'm sorry, but I have to cancel. Something came up at work and I have to sort it out."
"I understand."
"Maybe we can reschedule?"
"Yeah maybe."
Arianna hung up the phone feeling a little disappointed. She was actually looking forward to having dinner with him, but part of her knew not to expect anything. After all he is a billionaire so why would he waste his time on someone like her?
Arianna decided that she was going to go out for dinner anyway; she didn't feel like staying inside. She went to a Japanese restaurant that was just two blocks from her apartment.
She walked into the small restaurant and was seated near the window. As she was looking through the menu she glanced at the alcoholic beverages. She quickly turned away from that.
After a few more minutes of looking, Arianna finally decided what she wanted and placed her order. She could have called Emma to come out with her, but she felt like being alone.
Arianna spent an hour in the restaurant just eating her dinner and thinking about her life. Her family and friends told her she has come very far, but she didn't feel like it.
She soon left the restaurant and headed home. Going out was a good idea. It cheered her up and she forgot all about having dinner with Bruce Wayne. It wasn't like she was missing out on anything great anyway.
Arianna was halfway home when she got the feeling she was being followed. She looked around, but didn't see anyone so she shrugged it off. She thought she was just being paranoid. This was the first time she had walked at night alone.
Suddenly Arianna felt someone grab her neck and pull her into an alley and threw her against the wall. Arianna faced her attacker; he had a ski mask on so she couldn't see his face. She did however see the knife in his hand.
"Give me your money."
Arianna wasted no time in taking her wallet out of her purse and handing it to him. He opened her wallet, took out the few dollars she had then threw it to the ground.
"What else do you have?"
"That's all."
"Don't lie to me." He said as he waved the knife in her face.
"I'm not lying. That's all I have I swear."
The man grabbed Arianna and put the knife to her neck. "You better not be lying to me." He pressed the knife harder to her neck; blood trickled down her skin.
"Let her go."
"Who said that?" The man asked as he looked around.
"I did."
The man quickly turned around to come face to face with a man. Arianna had never seen him before, but she knew the masked figure in front of her was Batman.
"Let the girl go."
"Fine with me. She didn't have anything anyway." Then the man pushed Arianna into Batman and took off running.
"Aren't you going after him?" Arianna asked as she moved away from Batman.
"Right now my concern is for you. You're bleeding."
"I'll be all right."
"You shouldn't be walking alone at night."
"I wouldn't be alone if some guy didn't cancel on me." She mumbled.
"Why don't I walk you home?"
"You don't have to. I don't live that far from here." She said as she picked up her wallet.
"I want to make sure you get home without another incident."
Arianna just nodded. The two of them walked in silence while Arianna was lost in her own thoughts. She had read many things about Batman, some of it good, some not. She was undecided on how she felt about him, but she was grateful that he saved her.
After a few minutes they finally arrived at her apartment. She thanked him for saving her. She didn't know what would have happened if he didn't show up.
"Take care of that cut."
"I will."
Arianna then went into her apartment as Batman left. It had been an interesting day. First she almost gets hit by a car driven by Bruce Wayne. Then she gets robbed and is saved by Batman. Emma wasn't going to believe this.
