Disclaimer: Holy crap, you guys really enjoy this story! I started posting it on my tumblr as well. I'm so glad you guys like it. I hope you enjoy this next chapter. As usual, I own nothing related to Jared Leto, the Joker or anything in the DC universe or any reference the characters make. Thanks for the constant follows and reviews.
When Alaina woke up again the sun was high in the sky. She was about to sit up and get ready for the day when she noticed something was pretty much pinning her to the bed. She looked down and smiled softly. J was practically glued to her, his arms around her waist and his one leg over hers. Clearly, he wasn't lying when he had let it slip that he liked to cuddle. Or was she imagining that? She watched him sleep for a few minutes before grabbing her phone to occupy herself till he shifted. She kind of hoped that it would be soon because she had to pee. She noted that it was a little after eleven in the morning and shot a text off to Frost asking if he would take her to the grocery store today. Glancing down at the Joker again she decided she was going to take advantage of it. She silently held the phone up, snapping a picture of the two of them; he looked so peaceful she couldn't help herself.
"Delete it." he groaned out, not opening his eyes.
"Aw! But why?" she teased, putting her phone away. "We look so cute. I might make it the picture for when you call me."
"You must have a death wish, Sugar." he said, rolling over a bit, rubbing his eyes with the back of his hand.
"Only on occasion." she replied, petting his green locks. "Now, let me up."
J rolled back onto her, holding her in place, pretending to be asleep again. "Why should I? Not like you have anywhere to go today." She shivered slightly as she felt his breath hit her neck. "Besides, you're comfy."
"Yes, I've been told that I make a good pillow." She grinned, still petting his hair. "But I figured that I'd go grocery shopping today. Since, ya know, you loved my cooking so much."
He seemed to think about it for a moment as if he were actually contemplating telling her no when her phone decided to go off. "Frost said he'd take me if you agreed."
"Fine." he agreed with a sigh. "But only because takeout tastes like shit after eating it too much. But tonight, you stay by my side. I have some...work...to do at one of my clubs here in the city."
She didn't want to think about what type of work he was talking about. "Okay, but I don't have anything club worthy." She said. "Now, be a good little clown and let me up so I can get dressed and make some coffee."
"But I want food." he whined, falling face first into her pillow as she moved.
"Alright, you big baby," she teased. "I should probably get some pajamas from my place too."
"No." he said, sitting up quickly.
"But I can't sleep in your clothes every night." she said, picking out her favorite jeans and a Sailor Moon t-shirt, not really caring that she was watching. She was a theatre kid; shame went out the window when she was sixteen and couldn't figure out a tuxedo, coming out with just a bra and the slacks on, asking one of the guys for assistance. Besides, she knew she wasn't his type. She had seen Harley and the string of women that he had been with.
Her self esteem began to drop a bit as she thought about Harley. She was straight but had drunkenly admitted to a friend one night that she would fuck her if the opportunity ever came up.
"But you could..." he said, voice strong. "If you wanted."
It had taken every bit of her self control to not whip around and stare at him, silently questioning what little sanity he had. Granted, she knew there wasn't a lot but a little clarity every so often. "I mean, if you really want me to." she said, shrugging as if it didn't matter.
"Good, that's settled then." he said, leaning back on the headboard. "But I would recommend you picking up a hair dye. That blonde on one side doesn't really suit you."
"Well, I didn't get paid before we left last night so that's going to have to wait." she said, pulling her shirt over her head before pulling her hair out of the neckline.
"Who said you were paying, Sugar?" he mused. "Since you're going out with Frost, I figured you could go pick out a pretty little number for tonight. Something with black lace."
"J." she said, adjusting her shirt in the mirror. "You don't have to, I'm not worth the trouble."
"Haven't you caught on yet, babydoll?" he stood and stalked over to her. "I live for trouble." He began to get dressed. "Besides, me treating a pretty woman to pretty things isn't trouble to me. It's an honor."
"Well, to me it says trouble because when this is all over, I'm going to have to pay you back." She wanted to stomp her foot like a spoiled child but she knew it wouldn't do any good.
"You're mine now, Sugar. Take that as you will but I protect what is mine." he practically growled.
Alaina swallowed a bit. She really wasn't used to this kind of treatment from anyone. From the time she was about fourteen she learned that if she wanted something then she had to work and save for it. "Then, at least let me cook or clean." she said, "To work off whatever I'm gonna owe you."
He cackled and she could tell that he was getting slightly irritated. "You're not getting it, Sugar. You don't have a say in what I do for or to you. You will not clean or cook out of obligation. If you make a mess, you clean it up. You cook if you want to." His tone had gotten darker. "Understood?"
"Understood." she replied, a bit of fear lingering in her chest. "But J?"
"Yes, Sugar?" he replied, his voice going back to happy and slightly creepy.
She walked over to him, head bowed as if she were being submissive, a sweet smile on her lips. "Threaten me in that tone of voice again and you will actually need that cane for awhile."
He threw back his head and laughed from deep in his gut. "Feisty faerie of mine." he pressed his blood red lips to her hair, lingering. "Frost better keep you safe today."
"He will." she said, patting his cheek playfully. "You know, I can protect myself a bit."
"You might have to prove that one to me." J scoffed, not believing her.
She backed away from him. "Okay, put me in a wrap around hold, like a straight jacket."
"Sugar..." he said in a warning tone.
"Just do it, J." she huffed. "I'm fluffy, so I'll bounce."
He growled at that comment and lunged at her, pulling her arms over her chest and around her back, like she had asked, holding her pretty tight.
She smirked and pretended to whimper and struggle, noticing how he relaxed his grip when he heard her, as most of the people did then she acted. She crossed her ankles and dropped her full weight so that she landed Indian style. J grunted he went flying over her head, landing on his back, slightly stunned.
She quickly got to her knees and sat on his abdomen, ensuring that he would not be able to get up. She didn't look like it but she was over two hundred pounds and a lot of it was muscles in her calves. She also carried it well, so she looked good in a dress when she wore certain ones. "How many fingers?" she teased holding up her middle ones to him, looking smug.
"Not bad...but you forgot one thing." He wiggled, trying to get free.
"Oh, and what was that?" she asked.
"Never leave yourself open." he said, prodding her stomach and sides with his fingers.
She fell to the side with a squeak.
They both froze. J trying to figure out the noise that just came out of her and Alaina cursing herself for showing that she was ticklish. J began to smirk impishly.
"No. No. Don't you fucking think about it!" she said, holding her hand up as she tried to back away. He slid effortlessly to his knees, eyes glinting playfully. "J! I swear if you...NO!" She got to her feet and took off running through the penthouse as he went to go poke her again. He chased after her cackling madly.
She screamed as he nearly caught her by the elbow, looking over her shoulder. The scream wasn't of terror but one of joy and fun.
Then she collided with something solid.
She had almost toppled backwards but the something solid had caught her and kept her on her feet by locking around her waist. She looked up.
"Well, good morning Laina." Frost said with a smile. "Boss." He nodded respectfully towards the Joker.
"Frost." he replied, trying to hide the fact that he was panting; something which caused Alaina to giggle.
"I've got to say, boss, I'm impressed, you're up before three in the afternoon." Frost said in a playful tone. He knew when it was okay to talk normally to the Joker and when he had to play up the badass bouncer role.
"Yeah, well..." J replied, nonchalantly scratching the back of his neck.
"I blackmailed him." Alaina said, brewing a pot of coffee, smirking, as J tried to pick up her phone.
"Sorry, J, it only unlocks with my fingerprint, so you can't go and delete it. But I won't show anyone, I'll just set you a personal ringer so that I know it's you when you call."
"Well that's easy enough to get." J said, tossing it back onto the counter. "Besides, it's not like I care. Why would I want to call you anyway."
"Well, I don't care either." she shrugged and poured some coffee into a travel mug. "Ready, Johnny?"
Frost nodded and shrugged at J, following Alaina out the door. J stopped him before he walked out it and whispered to him. "You're taking the platinum. If she sees something she likes and then puts it down, buy it on the sly. Whatever she wants she gets. Got it?"
"Yes, boss." Frost said softly, a hint of anger in his tone that alerted Joker that he might have screwed something up.
"Fuck." J hissed as the door closed.
-In the car...-
Alaina found herself sitting in the front seat of one of J's less conspicuous cars, lost in her own thoughts. Was Joker really upset about the photo? Or was he upset over the fact that he couldn't delete it? Or the fact that he thought she would take it the wrong way.
/You're mine now, Sugar. Take that as you will.../ His words rattled through her head. She was his? How could she be his when she barely was her own person? Was it because they were open the night before?
She sighed and rubbed her hands over her eyes, feeling drained even though she had just woken up not that long ago.
"Want to talk about it?" Johnny asked, pulling into the parking lot of a mall just outside the city. "I promise I won't tell the boss."
She looked over at him. "Just trying to figure him out."
"Good luck on that one, hunny." he said, "I've been trying for years. All I came up with was clown, psychopath, anarchist and gangster. Sometimes he has his moments where he's like his old self but they don't last long."
"Do you think he's mad at me because of the whole blackmail thing?" she asked, her voice soft. She was always worried about having people angry or disappointed at her.
Frost pulled into a parking spot and turned to her. "No. If anything, he's upset that you beat him to it." He slapped at the end of her ponytail, making it come up and tickle her face. "Now, he gave me his credit card, let's get you some pretty things."
Alaina smiled. Normally, she hated things like this. But after what just went down and the way he acted. Some retail therapy was sounding pretty good.
-Back at the Penthouse...-
Since he was suddenly alone, J had decided he was gonna work out a bit. He would do the normal things that everyone did at the gym, but after a while he decided that he needed to break or shoot something. Taking his favorite gun, he went down to the torture area, where he also had a small shooting area with stuff that Harley had stolen for him over the years. Since she had up and left him, he would slowly destroy them whenever the urge struck him. Why had he gotten so defensive when she mentioned that he needed her fingerprints? He didn't like secrets. He shot off the gun a few times. It had nothing to do with Alaina; it had to do with Harley. He knew in his gut why he was so defensive. Using her fingerprint as a lock meant secrets. Harley had a lock on her phone and never let him use it; even though she had always had access to everything he had. Then she betrayed him. He shot again, watching the vase he hit as it shattered.
He would have to tell her about it. But that meant telling her about Harley.
He sighed. Harleen Quinzel had been the most innocent women he had ever met. He got her to fall for him, then he used it against her in every way that he could. He used her to get out of prison. He used the love she had felt for him to get her to hate her own life enough that she jumped into a vat of chemicals for him, making her believe that if she did it then they would be together forever.
He had watched her fall, walking away, musing at her naivety. But in that moment that he watched her fall, he realized something that he never thought of before. He realized home much he needed her in his life. So he dove in after her. His arms locked around her waist and back as he pulled her out, panicking slightly when he noticed that she wasn't breathing. He had pressed their lips together, breathing life into her limp body. He remembered the relief he had felt when she gasped into his mouth, locking their lips together, her hand finding it's way to his hair as they kissed. He laughed in relief, holding onto her.
She had become his everything, until the day she had been taken to join that squad of anti heroes and began working for the government. He had everyone of his men looking for her as he slowly crept deeper into loneliness. All he could think about was his Looney Tune. He wasn't able to focus on anything. Hell, if it wasn't for Frost, he would never have survived that time. He had stopped eating and did nothing but drink. But Frost would sneak it in anyway he could through supplements. If he had the capacity to say it out loud he would say that Frost was his best friend.
While he was lost in his thoughts, one of his other henchmen came in, telling him that Frost and Alaina were on their way back. He put his guns away and headed over to take a shower. He wanted it to look like what had happened hadn't really effected him. He got himself showered and dressed just as Alaina and Frost walked in the front door, both carrying a shit ton of bags.
"There they are. Did you have fun, Sugar?" he asked, leaning on the door jam.
"I did. I'm not one for that kind of thing but Johnny and I had fun." she turned to Frost. "Don't forget what we talked about."
"I know, I know." he said, ruffling her hair.
J noticed that she had a new hair color, and it looks like they sat in a salon to do it. Her hair was now black and a burgundy color and it was pin straight. It suited her.
They went into J's room and began to hang up the stuff they had bought. J didn't follow them in though. Instead, he decided to put away the groceries that one of his other henchmen decided to bring up. That was what Frost and Alaina found him doing.
Alaina hadn't said anything else to him but was chatting away with Frost about something. "What are you two plotting?"\
"Plotting?" she said, smirking. "Nothing, we're planning."
"Same thing," J grunted, leaning on the counter top when he was done. "Just one is easier."
"Not really." Frost said, looking anxious.
"Plotting has malicious intent, while planning is helping." Alaina said. "By the way, Frost isn't coming with us tonight but he will be there."
"Oh?" he asked, mocking anger. "Why is that?"
"Because he got a date tonight, hence the planning. People know he's your guy. If he starts dating during your visit, then it makes it look like you aren't doing anything...well...like you usually do."
"I told the date though, that he worked at the club and not as your right hand man." she said.
He considered what she had said. "And how do you plan to get that into action?"
"Easy," she said. "Johnny told me that the club here doubles as a cabaret. So we're gonna practice a number from the Winter Showcase for school." She smiled. "His date loves music."
"I'll condone it." J said, he had secretly wanted to hear her sing again.
"Damn straight you will." she said. "You don't really give these guys much time off."
"With good reason." He said. "So, what's for dinner tonight?"
"I'll figure that out after I take a nap." she said, hopping off the stool. "See you guys later."
His eyes followed her as she walked into the master bedroom. "Aren't you worried?"
"About what?" Frost asked. "We won't get attacked here."
"Not that." he said, "You're gonna be singing in the club in front of everyone, including this date of yours."
"Nah." Frost said. "Alaina and I are good with this song and she's the one who got me to ask this person out. So the other person knows that Alaina isn't my type and is like a sister to me."
J nodded. "Alright."
"Oh, boss." he said, rummaging through his pockets. "Alaina picked this up for you, she thought you'd like it, but asked me to give it to you."
"She what?" He was slightly shocked.
"Yeah. I told her that you wouldn't want it but she wanted to do it anyway." He handed him a box. "Said it was a thank you for getting her out."
J opened the box and saw a cheap looking watch that had a skull on it. It as black and silver, so it would match whatever he wore.
J's lip twitched, he loved it. Now he'd really have to make it up to her.
