Johnny Frost entered his apartment building, making his way over to a ratty looking elevator. He pressed the button, stepping back to wait as the hum of the machine could be heard coming down from whatever floor it had previously been on.
It was very late, later than it had been before. An old pair of elevator doors opened, revealing itself to be almost enitrely empty. Given that the time, it wasn't too surprising nobody was up in this place except for him. He would have at least expected the landlord to be heading up to the roof to get drunk, as he usually did every night. Frost stepped in quickly, knowing very well how those old things like to shut quicker than they opened. He'd learned it the hard way when he and his wife had first moved into this dump, having lost many a tie from previous experiences.
Dim yellow lights glowed in the hallway as he exited at the third floor. The sirens from earlier had quieted, and the city seemed more at peace than it earlier. Though, that could be argued, given how busy the coroners and policemen would be after tonight's events.
It was funny how people in Gotham still yearned for peaceful nights, when the night was anything but.
He padded down the hallway, hearing nothing but silence from the other apartments. 24B was his home, right down at the end of the hall. Not as fancy as you'd expect it to be considering he worked for the Clown Prince of Crime, but he was content with his dwellings. He'd always been a simple man, a quiet one too, which was why he figured he'd been hired in the first place. He never questioned his boss's work and did as he was told.
Tonight had been no exception, and it had been a long night.
A pair of keys hit the floor as he accidentally dropped them upon trying to open the door, and were promptly scooped back up. He unlocked the door and entered, quietly shutting the door behind him. With the blood on his jacket, he'd prefer not to wake his wife up right and have to deal with any of her questions. So, he walked into the kitchen and took it off, setting it down on the one of the chairs.
He noticed a plate of food left on the table, having gone cold from sitting out so long. It caused a small smile to appear on his face, and he then went to the fridge to retrieve a beer, Lord knows he needed it after tonight. It fizzled as it was popped open, but he didn't drink it just yet. Instead, he sat it on the table, placing his hands against it as well. His eyelids felt heavy and he grunted, rubbing at them tiredly. Yes, it had indeed been too long of a night. He was surprised he was even home right now.
It wasn't as if he wasn't used to his boss getting injured; it happened almost all the time considering the price on his head. It was fortunate they even had a doctor who was willing to help out; but given that he was a retired doctor, it wasn't like anyone was gonna want to know what he was up to. Even though Frost had been adament in remaining by Joker's side, the doctor had simply told him to go home and rest, that there was no use in staying and waiting for his boss to recover.
"These things don't happen over night." he'd stated. "With all the bullets I've dug out of your boss, I doubt now is gonna be any different from the other times. No use in worrying."
So he'd left, but with hesitance. The Joker hadn't even been conscious by the time they got the doctor over, having passed out from the blood loss. No doubt he'd up and griping tomorrow, but he should thank his lucky stars that bullet hadn't travelled any farther than it had. It'd been close this time, too close.
He was gonna get himself killed one of these days if he didn't end up doing it himself.
Now seated at the table, Frost picked at the food that was indeed cold on his plate, and took quiet sips of his beer. His mind went back to the photos Ivy had given him, the ultrasound photos of his boss's kid. Of Harley's baby. Both their kid. It was weird to even imagine those two pro-creating, but they'd gone and done it. Unintentionally, albeit.
He hadn't given J the photos yet, obviously, but he wasn't too sure if he wanted to. He also didn't feel good keeping them either. Reaching into his back pocket, he dug around until he found them, pulling them out to look at again for perhaps the umpteenth time that evening.
It was so...odd. He couldn't remember the last time he saw photos like this...but he couldn't shake the feeling that he shouldn't be looking at them. No, this kid's father should be seeing these, even if he didn't want to. It just wasn't right. Frost had never questioned his boss, never ever, but he had to now. The man was crazy, yes, that much was obvious, but what did he have against having a child? It'd mean an heir, he'd have someone to take over his legacy...wasn't that what any criminal wanted?
Just what was holding him back, he wondered.
"Johnny?"
He looked up, seeing his wife standing in the entranceway of the kitchen. She had turned on the light, walking to the table. She was dressed in the same nightgown and bathrobe she wore every night, and her hair was an absolute mess. Yet, he found himself happy to see her. Always did, always would. No matter how she looked, the only thing he valued more than his job was her.
He said nothing to her, as she came over to him. She eyed the bloody jacket, said nothing about it, and looked back at him.
"Long night?" she asked.
He nodded.
"Yeah..." he sighed, massaging his temples as he leaned back in his chair. "I'm-I'm sorry if I woke you up, or something, Shelly. I wasn't really planning on coming home tonight."
"No, I was too worried to sleep anyways. I was actually just reading." Shelly shrugged, taking a seat next to him. They were both quiet, as she poked at the tablecloth. She looked back at him with a concerned face. "I...I saw the news...the charity bash...um...you're not hurt, are you?"
"I wouldn't be home right now if I was, you know I don't like coming hurt to you."
"Yeah, I know..." She motioned towards the plate, clearing her throat. "Um, are you hungry? I could warm that up for you if you wanted."
Frost eyed the plate, but shook his head. To be honest, he did like his wife's cooking, but after tonight, he did not even feel like finishing this beer off. And that was saying a lot.
"Uh, no thanks. Just wrap it in foil or-uh, I don't know. I ain't hungry." he admitted, pushing his beer back. "Tonight was just...ugh. Well, let's just say I won't be wearing that jacket for awhile."
"I can wash it for you, honey, it's not a problem."
Yeah, of course it wasn't a problem. Too many jackets he'd come home with blood on, or torn. She never questioned why, and she was well aware of his line of business, yet she never really bothered him about it, which he supposed, was why he'd fallen in love with her. She was almost like him in a way, only maybe a little more sensitive and caring. Always having the best advice, unlike Frost who could at the very best manage to agree and nod with everything his boss.
"Yeah...yeah, thanks, Shel..." His own attention went back to the pictures, which he realized he still had sitting out. Shelly noticed them, her brow immediately crinkling with interest as she scooted her chair closer to get a better look.
"What are those?" she asked.
"Huh? These?" He took a small swig from the beer and pushed it aside again.
"Yeah, those. I know what they are but uh-" She gestured towards them. "I meant, whose are they?"
Oh. Yeah, of course.
He didn't wanna tell her, he never wanted to talk about work or anything that was even going on at work. But she was always so curious, he wondered how she'd kept her questions to herself in the past. But she was asking now, and maybe it'd been his fault for not putting the pictures away fast enough.
"Well..." he paused, picking one up. "I don't know if you'd believe me, but it's Mister J's kid."
"What?" Shelly looked a little surprised, but he couldn't blame her. "Then why do you have them? Does this have anything to do with what you told me about last week, I mean...I know you only mentioned his um...you know, that girl he keeps around..."
"Harley."
"Yeah, her. You said he kicked her out after I asked you why you'd been more busy lately. I get he's a little short-handed but..."
"That's not even the half of it." Frost muttered, picking his beer up but not drinking it. "You know how he is when she's gone...but he's too damn stubborn to go get her back. The boys have had to pick up double since she's been gone, and it's not been pretty. He-Joker, he got shot tonight, Shelly. I swear, I don't know why it's bothering me so much..."
He groaned, letting his face rest in his hands. Shelly reached over, resting her hand on his shoulder and giving it a relaxing squeez.
"It's because you care, Johnny. Even though you don't voice it, I know it." she said softly. "And you know how much he trusts you-" That was true, he was one of the few people Joker had ever admitted to trusting except for Harley. "-Obviously you were trusted enough with the photos, whoever gave them to you...have you told him you have them yet?"
"No. Don't know if I wanna either."
"Well, that's your own decision." She pushed her chair back to stand up. "But I think you should. Even if that is the reason he kicked Harley out and probably doesn't care...I know it's not any of my business, probably not any of yours...but it's not fair to have those and not let him know. He trusts you, remember?"
She got up, leaving Frost with those last words as she placed a kiss on his head and headed back to their room.
"Come to bed anytime you want, hon. I know you've got a lot to think about."
The lights were dim in the kitchen again, and he could hear the door opening and shutting. He sat alone in the kitchen again, knowing very well that his wife was right. Yes, yes, Joker did trust him, had said it-and he was keeping these pictures. Why? He knew he probably wouldn't want to see them...but Harley had trusted him enough to tell Ivy to give them to him. She must've been confident he would.
Two trains of thoughts flowed in his mind. Show the pictures or not? He'd have all night to decide, as he fully intended to back the penthouse tomorrow morning to check up on his boss...but as of right now, he really didn't know what he wanted to do.
The kitchen light was soon turned off, as he had gotten up, and tossed the half-drank beer into the trash.
It was the loud ringing of her hotel room phone that woke Harley out of a dead sleep.
Her eyelids fluttered, and she tossed one of the lumpy pillows over her head, hoping the ringing would just stop. It was probably like 1 in the morning, even though in other times she'd still be awake, she was finding being pregnant was taking a good toll on her body and making her more tired than she should be, and she was only in her first trimester.
This hotel was such crap anyways, it'd taken two hours to get to sleep no thanks to the obnoxious noises coming from the upstairs room, and the train that constantly passed nearby. She didn't appreciate being woken up after just falling asleep.
Still, the phone persisted it's ringing, combining with the clammer of the same damn train passing by outside. Grumbling, Harley reached up, turning the light on, and grabbed the phone from it's receiver. She didn't even bother checking who it was who was calling, there was only one person who knew she was here and one person who would bother calling her at this time of night.
Not even bothering to sit up, she pulled the pillow from her face, rubbing at her eyes.
"Mmm...hello?" Her voice was pretty thick with sleep, something of which the other person on the other end of the line could make out distinctly. That other person being Ivy, who had just gotten back to her apartment after the disasterous events of the gala. She would've called Harley directly after had she not left her cellphone at home, and she did feel a little bad for waking her up so late.
"Harley? Sorry, did I wake you up or something, I can call back-"
"Huh? Nah, it's fine, I was..." Harley sleepily mumbled, fighting back a yawn. She rubbed at her eye again, prying loose a sleepy tic. "I was already having trouble staying asleep anyways...whaddya want?"
"You better turn on the news right now, I think you're gonna want to see what's going on."
The directness of Ivy's voice woke her up a little more. This time, she allowed the yawn to pass.
"Why? What happened?"
"See for yourself." She could hear noise on Ivy's end, and the sound of her friend huffing. Harley cocked an eyebrow, but did as she said. She grabbed the remote, and shortly afterwards, was met with the sight of the Gotham Event Center surrounded by police cars and ambulances.
Oh...yeah, the gala had been tonight, hadn't it? Well it definitely looked like Mister J had had some fun judging by the amount of bodies being hauled out on stretchers, she had to chuckle. If only she could have been in on it...
"Looks like Mistah J caused hell tonight." she snickered into the phone. "I didn't need to turn on the news to know that, Red. Besides, I told you to tell me about it tomorrow anyways, wouldn't that just be easier?"
"Yeah but-"
"Seriously, I need my sleep. Look, just...ugh...just meet me at the Bluebell Diner tomorrow, you can spill the beans then. Okay? Okay, goodnight."
"But Harley-"
She pressed the button to end the call and tossed the phone aside carelessly. Flopping back onto the bed with a sigh, she continued to watch the report on the news. It sucked, it really sucked that she was missing out on all the fun right now just because of the recent circumstances, but given that it had been almost a week since it happened, she'd began to try convincing herself that Joker would come around. That he'd come looking for her with the promise of not hurting the baby.
But it hadn't happened yet. And he'd gone ahead on his plans without her, just as he always did. She could see the casualities, they were so much more than usual. She never liked to see everybody dead straight away; she preferred there be more survivors, but they'd be too mentally scarred to even manage straight anymore. It was a little more fun to see someone's life ruined like that than to just see them dead then and there.
That was why she and her puddin' had clicked, that's what made them work together, both with opposing opinions that were bound to cause even greater harm than ever. It was probably going to be awhile before she'd ever get to have that kind of fun again.
Soon enough, the television had been turned off, the thoughts of missing out having been just a tad too depressing, and having to listen to what happened didn't sound appealing right now. She slipped back underneath the covers and was content to try going back to sleep.
If only she knew what had really happened that night. If only she'd waited to listen to what Ivy had had to say.
It wouldn't have nibbled at her mind until the sun rose.
Despite everything, the next morning proved to be a somewhat peaceful one. No rain, just sunshine and wind. Everything looked completely normal, as if about a dozen people hadn't been murdered the previous night.
It was late morning, a whole day after the charity bash. Harley sat at the same booth table she'd sat at since the previous week, the same booth table at the Bluebell Diner, the diner that she had been frequenting for nearly every meal from the previous week up to now.
There was a small chatter from some other patrons, but nothing she paid attention to. She only seemed to be focused on a crossword puzzle that was displayed on the table in front of her, and absent-mindedly stirred her spoon around in the cup of tea next to her. Not that tea was her favorite drink, but she was really starting to miss her coffee and was damn determined to not betray her wants and get a decaf coffee despite Ivy's insistance.
Speaking of Ivy, she just so happened to be sitting across from her. A blueberry muffin sat in front of her, uneaten, and she had her chin resting in the palm of her hand. She looked half-asleep, but that probably had nothing to do with how much sleep she'd actually got and rather to do with her mood. The TV blared behind her, on the wall, and much to her displeasure it was on the news. God, god, did she hate the news, if she had the remote right now she swore she'd change the channel herself, to anything other than what was being reported right now.
Because it wasn't anything new. It was everything she'd just told Harley, and why both women were sitting at the table in silence right now.
Last night should have been a peaceful and uneventful event, but this was Gotham, what could anyone have expected? Why was this even still big news, and why was it even still being reported? Joker hijacking some fancy event was old news as far she was concerned. She would have been content to let Harley just find out for herself what happened, if she hadn't promised. The news didn't report everything after all, and could never be trusted to be a reliable source.
But fuck did she hate having to tell her everything that happened.
They always met; 8:00 for breakfast, 12:00 for lunch. Sometimes 11:00 for brunch. In today's case, it was 11:00 for brunch, and Harley had already been seated in the same booth they always met at, the same blue-cushioned seats by the window. It would take a second glance to realize it was her; what with the black wig and dull clothes, but given that Ivy had picked out those things herself, she knew better than to look twice.
The other woman had waited eagerly while her friend positioned herself in the seat across from her, ordered her food, and became impatient whilst she delayed in telling the events of the gala. She'd tried her best to avoid the topic, even asking questions about the baby in hopes that'd sway Harley from her interest in what happened. But no, she should have known. She'd persisted, almost whined, and because Ivy did not want to cause a scene, finally relented and told her everything that happened.
She'd talked so fast, wanting to be done with discussing anything and everything involving the Joker, especially after the kind words the two of them had exchanged. It hadn't Harley had kept interrupting, wanting to know everything she possibly could. In retrospect, maybe her choice of words should have been kinder considering Harley's silence now. She wasn't sure if it was from that or from the barrage of news reports covering the topic. The diner owner had changed the station once or twice, but any local news channel in Gotham was reporting on it. Gosh, it was like they had nothing better to talk about.
If Harley had been smiling that morning, the weariness of the subject had definitely caused it to vanish.
Ivy picked a blueberry out of her muffin, eyeing it before tossing it onto the ground. A small cat leapt off the counter nearby and darted over, snatching it up before running back to it's perch where the diner owner was just setting down a saucer of milk. Ivy looked at it, then looked back at the still-silent Harley, who was still focused on the crossword puzzle. The clanging of the spoon in the tea cup, she had to admit, was beginning to drive her crazy.
"Harley..."
The clinging still continued.
"Harley, c'mon. Can you please stop looking at that damn puzzle and talk to me?"
The clinging stopped momentarily, and only Harley's eyes spared a tiny glance towards her. From behind the glasses, they looked rather icy...not a good thing, considering this was Harley. Something had bothered her, clearly, something Ivy had said. She knew there was no pinpointing it, but she sighed, moving her hand from her chin and folding it underneath her arm.
"Finally, that clinging was driving me nuts." she muttered under her breath.
Harley blinked at her, and as if on purpose, began to stir the spoon around again. The clinging resumed, causing Ivy's jaw to tighten. She tapped her fingers at the table, sighing and looking out the window briefly before turning her attention back to her friend.
"Okay, this is ridiculous. This, this silent treatment you're giving me, is ridiculous." she complained. "Look, I get it. I get it okay, I'm sorry I sounded so harsh. Can you please just...say something? Anything?"
"Do you know a four letter word for disappointment?"
"Huh?" Ivy's face contorted, baffled by Harley having completely ignoring her. Yes, she had just ignored her, obvious by the fact she was still focused on that fricking crossword puzzle.
"A four letter for disappointment. It's literally the last word on this thing and I can't find it." she mumbled, scratching the pencil at the paper's surface. "No offense Red, but I can't focus when you keep naggin' me like that. At least help me out here."
"Har-ugh. Ugh, fine okay. How about..." Ivy slumped back slightly in the seat, groaning. "Okay, how about Joker. How's that."
"Huh..no. That's five words. And rude."
"Alright, geezus. To hell with the word limit, it fits."
"Pammy!" Harley looked up at her friend, that icy spark still evident in her eyes. She frowned, slamming the pencil down. "Seriously, he didn't literally piss in your corn flakes or anything, please."
"Maybe not, but that doesn't change what he did." The diner door opened and closed shut, evidenced by the bell dinging. An old couple was shown to the booth near Harley and Ivy by a teenage girl, as the two women continued their conversation. "I can't believe you're actually defending him, I didn't even tell you everything he said! Do you even know what he called you?"
"I ain't defendin' him, Red. Quit actin' like it." Harley took her spoon out from the cup, setting it down with a loud clank. Inside, she knew that was probably a lie. She was probably defending him, yeah, she was. She was. It was just like her, hell he'd gotten away with murdering dozens of people and she'd defended him then.
You shouldn't be defending him, Harley. He tried to kill your baby.
Look how better off you are without him.
She gritted her teeth at the voices in her head, the voices of so-called reason. They'd bothered her continously since she left, since the moment she found about being pregnant. God were they so annoying...she almost missed taking her meds, but then again, maybe she didn't.
Just maybe.
Oh come on, Harley. Ivy's got a point, you know it.
"Shut up..." she muttered, gripping the pencil tightly in her hand. The cast wasn't off her left hand just yet, but it definitely didn't hurt to hold anything anymore. She'd break it again if it meant the voices shutting up. Not having said anything, Ivy knew this wasn't directed towards her, and instead resumed picking at her muffin.
Harley released the pencil, afraid that she would end up breaking it if she continued like this. Taking a small sip from her tea, she stayed silent as the voices transitioned into more pressing thoughts.
"What else happened..." Her small voice caused Ivy to look up, ceasing in picking at the muffin. "You never finished tellin' me, ya know..."
Ivy hesitated, twiddling several crumbs between her fingers. Their conversation regarding the gala and what happened hadn't exactly finished, it'd only paused the moment Ivy'd began to rant about her conversation with Joker, in which Harley had fallen silent and began to work on the crossword puzzle.
That was the exact reason they were in this mood now.
Well, no use in putting off telling her, she guessed. If the news hadn't mentioned it yet, someone had to.
"You mean...after the conversation, huh. Yeah. About that." Inwardly, Harley braced herself. She knew if Ivy was talking about that, it apparently hadn't ended well. Nothing ever did end well if both of them were in the same room.
"You didn't do anything to him did you, Red? You promised, remember?" she pressed, knowing very well the redhead was one to keep her promises, but if someone started out a conversation like that, you'd think they did the exact opposite of what they promised. Thankfully, Ivy quickly shook her head, very much eager to defend herself after the backlash she'd already gotten.
"No! I swear, I wanted to, but I swear I behaved." she insisted. "I never got a chance anyways, the Bat showed up and kinda took over that job for me."
Her heart dropped at the mention of Batman. Oh, it definitely hadn't ended well.
"And...?" She swallowed, her throat feeling dry despite having just taken a sip from her tea.
"And...well, he got shot."
"Who? Bats?"
"No, Harley. Jo-ugh...Joker did."
Cue her heart dropping even more than it had before, she was sure it was at her knees at this rate. Her hand shook and she sat her cup down, some of her tea spilling in the process. Why should she even be shocked at this, she knew he was bound to get himself injured somehow, she couldn't remember a time where he hadn't left an event unscathed. She'd always been around to patch him up, or at least, make sure he wasn't making Frost's life a nightmare while he whined about his injuries.
It'd happened so many times, and that was enough to show people wanted him gone that badly.
But now at least she could understand Ivy's hesitance in telling her.
"He's okay though, right?" Stupid question, Harley. Stupid. Of course he's not okay you dumb nut, he got friggin shot.
"Is he okay?" Ivy snorted, cracking a grin of disbelief. "No, no he's just fine. He only got a bullet to the shoulder, nothing he can't handle." At the look on Harley's face, her grin disappeared and she sighed. "I'm just joking, Harley. If he can survive a burning helicopter then I'm sure one little bullet isn't gonna kill him. Don't worry so much."
"With him?" It was Harley's turn to snort. "Nah, nah that's impossible. I don't know why you'd expect me not to."
"I'd expect you not to because he kicked you out on the street after almost beating your unborn child out of you. I can't believe you still care." Ivy leaned forward, lowering her voice as the couple in the booth behind them had shown curiosity at her and Harley's conversation. "At least you're being somewhat mature by not going back to him, I'll give you that much."
"And that doesn't mean I don't have to care. I'm always gonna care, Pammy. There's no changin' that." The other woman snapped, leaning forward in her own seat now. "I love my puddin', I always will. You know that."
After those words, her features fell soft, and she leaned back again, looking down at her stomach before pressing her hand onto it.
"But...you know I love my baby too. And that's the only reason I haven't gone back."
Ivy wanted to snap back asking if the only reason she wasn't going was because she was pregnant, but she didn't. She only blew out a sigh, and shook her head, pushing her muffin aside.
"I still think you're nuts-not that you weren't before." she stated. "But okay, okay, I obviously can't change your mind, God knows I've tried. Just don't make me spy on him anymore, okay? I don't think I can do that. I didn't even get to make a compelling argument to those damn city leaders to save my garden."
"I'd like it if you would, but if you don't wanna..." Harley's voice trailed, feeling a little dejected at her friend's sudden change of heart. Not that she couldn't blame her, the gala had not been the only time she'd had her following Mister J around in the first place, it was bound to have worn her out already.
"I don't. I'm done."
"Okay. Fine."
The clammer of the diner replaced their conversation for the next five minutes, as both women just picked at either their food or at the newspaper. Harley almost picked up her pencil again, but her hand froze in midair and she led it fall onto the table, tapping her fingers against the marble quietly.
She eyed Ivy, who was looking at her phone. She didn't bother looking at Harley, remaining quiet. Some sense in Harley tried to tell her that maybe she'd been a little selfish, especially after what Ivy had said about the garden. That was the reason she'd gone to the bash in the first place, and she'd taken advantage of that. She'd said her whole reasoning for not going was because she was feeling sick...but to be completely fair, that wasn't the entire truth. In reality, she was terrified to see Joker again. She didn't want to risk a thing.
And now, it seemed like her list of allies would be back to 0 after today.
"I've gotta go." Ivy's voice brought her back to attention. Her friend had put her phone away, and was starting to slide out of her seat. "No thanks to my lack of efforts last night, I've got a lot of lost time to make up for. I'm sorry, Harley, but I really can't keep being your lackey. If you wanna know what's going on with him then you're on your own."
"I know, Red. I already said it was fine." Harley snapped, unable to contain the bitterness she was feeling. "Just go on already, I'm sorry I made you waste your time."
Thankfully no one was really even noticing their conversation, though some people had looked over in curiosity at the argument. Ivy stopped midway picking up her purse, not liking the sudden uncomfortable rift she felt. No, she wasn't going to leave Harley like this, not thinking that she didn't care, because she did, she really did.
She just had a bad way of showing it, always had.
"Um..." She slowly got up, shifting her purse up her shoulder. "I'll um...hey, if I have time...maybe...maybe we can get dinner later?"
No response.
"We can finish our conversation then...maybe..." She grit her teeth, not liking the words she was about to say. "Maybe, I could find some time to keep an eye on things...if you really needed me to...I just...you know, I don't want things to get bad between us. You need someone you can trust, I know that. And you can't exactly get in touch with that bodyguard of his but..."
She shrugged.
"I guess I could try to manage, just for you. How does that sound?"
At this, Harley's expression lit up, and she slid out of her seat, throwing her arms around Ivy with a small happy squeal. It was amazing how quickly her mood could change, Ivy mused. Very hard to tell if it was mood swings or just Harley, at this rate. But she was happy at least some part of the rift was gone.
"Thank you, Red, thank you so much. You don't know how much that means to me." She pulled back, beaming from ear to ear. "We can meet right back here, 5:00. I have some shopping I wanna do first."
"And apartment hunting I hope?" Ivy raised an eyebrow, smiling slightly. "Look, Harley, I like this place as much you do, but we really need to find somewhere more private to talk. You jumping from hotel to hotel is hurting my bank account."
"Wha? I ain't even spendin' your money, what are you talkin' about?"
"You know what I'm talking about. I've still gotta pay for gas to come see you." She winked, and turned to leave. "No, you better have an apartment by the end of this week or I'm changing my mind on the whole spying thing. You can't just keep hotel hopping forever, you know."
She left, Harley going back to her seat. The door opened, shut, and the bell gave a little ring. Yes, Ivy did have a point. Not that she'd done much hotel hopping...but she'd done enough that would cost a regular person a fortune. She really needed to find some place to settle down before the baby came, not a lot of hotels came with cribs.
If only she was still back at the penthouse, what a nursery she'd craft. It'd be nothing but the best.
The crossword puzzle was still left unfinished, so she picked up her pencil and began to continue with it. The teenage girl who had shown the old couple to their booth came over, carrying two plates with her. She looked a bit confused at seeing Ivy was gone, and looked around.
"Hey, miss?" Harley looked up, gasping in delight at the sight of the food.
"Finally, I was starvin' over here." she shoved her paper aside and patted the table. "Just set those right here, please."
"But...it's two plates, didn't you order this for your friend?" The girl lifted the plate with the french toast on it as if to question, but Harley shook her head.
"Nah, that's all for me." she said. The girl looked a little confused, but sighed and set the plates down in front of the eagerly-waiting Harley.
"Alright then...enjoy, I guess..." No words, as Harley had already begun to devour the first slice on her plate. The girl looked back to see she wasn't even bothering to use her fork, but just shook her head and headed back to the counter where the owner of the diner was standing, writing something in a notebook. The televison was still playing the same dang news report, and the owner looked up, sighing at the sight of it.
"Rae will you change that?" she asked a passing a waitress, who nodded and walked over to adjust the channel. The teenage girl propped herself on a seat, which swirled ever so slightly. Nearby, Harley had already consumed half her food and was now on to the second place, but she stopped upon catching some words from a conversation nearby. Mid-bite, she looked slightly over to see the girl was talking to the owner in a hushed voice. What could they be talking about, they hadn't heard her and Ivy's conversation had they? They hadn't heard her calling her "Harley", had she?
She realized now they had caught her staring, after seeing them both looking over at her. Quickly, she went back to eating as if she hadn't been watching them. Though, this didn't stop the owner from coming over. She stood next to the booth table, clearing her throat.
"Excuse me?"
Harley stopped mid-chew again, swallowing her food hard. God, her stomach was going to think she lost her teeth.
She glanced towards the woman, who had a surprisingly warm smile on her face.
"Yeah, hi. Sorry to interrupt, but I was just talking with my daughter, and she mentioned overhearing something about you looking for an apartment." At the blank expression Harley was giving her, the woman chuckled softly. "I apologize for that, she's got big ears. Got that from her daddy, I guess, always overhearing stuff."
Harley still said nothing, now using her fork to solemnly scoop her eggs. The owner bit her lip, then pushed herself into the seat opposite the other woman, startling her a bit. She folded her hands in front of her, her smile changing to a more quiet look.
"Look, I'm sorry, I must have sounded really sudden just coming up to you like that." she stated. "It's just...well, we don't get a lot of customers, I tend to remember most of them. I tend to end up talking to them like they're friends...I guess it's a bad habit of mine."
"I'm not really in the mood to make new friends." Harley sullenly admitted, taking a tiny bite of her eggs. The woman eyed her, then slowly nodded, as if she understood.
"I get that, yeah. I do notice you keep to yourself a lot." she said. "But hey, look...if you really are looking for apartments, I just thought I'd mention we have some above the diner here. I own them, alongside this place..."
The smile came back, and she unfolded her hands, leaning back.
"If you're interested, I could give you a tour sometime later." At this, Harley glanced up again, though avert her vision from the woman. "Or -I don't know, it'd depend on what time, since I think I've got an appointment at the bank pretty soon...but hey, just some food for thought. You don't have to but..."
"I'd love to."
The suddenness of Harley's voice seemed to have caught the woman off-guard, and she blinked twice, obviously not having expected that answer. But in the span of time she'd kept running her mouth, Harley had thought about her options. She thought about her failed attempts at looking for apartments the previous weeks and the crappy hotels she'd stayed at; any longer, and she was gonna go crazy if she didn't settle somewhere soon.
Not that she totally trusted this woman; hell, it wasn't like she had many people she could trust. Especially considering she was at risk of exposing herself if she kept jumping around so much, people would talk, already were, given that the Joker's number one had suspiciously gone off the radar.
"Really? I mean-it was just an offer..." she heard the other woman stuttering. "They really aren't the best apartments, to be honest, it's just-"
"Honey, after the luck I've had I'll take anything I can get." She interrupted, attempting a smile. Maintain a normal facade, Harley. Maintain it. "Plus, it's not like I got anything better to do. As soon as I'm done eatin', you think someone could give me a tour then?"
This did seem to cause the woman to light up a bit, and her smile returned.
"O-of course! Absolutely!" She let out a relieved gasp, and pulled herself out of the seat, though a bit slowly. "Well like I said, I uh-I actually have to be at the bank soon, but I guess I could ask my daughter if she could show you around. You don't mind, do you?"
"'Course not. Just as long as I get to see the place." So casual. So frickin casual. I don't like this. "I hope it's not too pricey."
"Oh, I wouldn't dream of making anyone pay too much for those apartments." The woman snorted, now fully standing. "They're just average, really. Nothing special about 'em. Are you really sure you wanna look at them though, like forgive me for being nosey but you do seem to spend quite a lot when you're here...I only thought you'd be looking for something nicer."
Yeah, maybe she would be, if she wasn't trying to remain incognito for the time being.
"I already said I'd take anything I could get, lady. Whether your apartments have rats or not is the least of my concerns." Very true, Harley. Well-played. "Now I don't wanna sound rude but uh, I'd kinda like to finish eatin' before we talk business or any of that crap. I don't like talking about this stuff on an empty stomach."
"I completely understand, miss. But hey, I'll tell my daughter before I leave...um-" Still smiling, the woman took a few backward steps as she headed back to the counter. The cat from earlier jumped off and she had to avoid stepping on it as it ran underneath her feet. "I'll just tell her to meet you upstairs, the staircase is in a hallway in the back, I'm sure you'll be able to find it."
"I'm sure I will." Keeping her own smile on was not comfortable, but Harley managed it. A fake facade was something she'd been good at her whole life, not only after her chemical dip, or her meeting with Mister J for that reason. It was a piece of Harleen she did not mind keeping around, as it came in handy in times like these.
Now the owner had left, and she went back to consuming her eggs. The thought of actually finding her own place to live both excited and scared her, as it had been years since she had her own actual place. The penthouse above the club was one she shared with her puddin', the only other place she'd had that was her own was the crappy one-bedroom apartment she lived in during her days as a psychiatrist at Arkham.
To think, this all part of the new start that was happening, whether or not she wanted it. No, quite frankly there was a part of her that still wanted to be back on the streets, on the news, for all the wrong reasons. But for now, she supposed her life was only going to consist of the mundane. It was something she'd forced herself to accept by now.
On the plus side, finally finding an apartment would be nice.
On the downside, Joker was back at the penthouse, without her. It was stupid to lament over to consider it'd already been a week, but after finding out about his incident with the Bat...she didn't know if not going back was wise after all. Sure her baby was safer and better off, but her puddin'...
He'd end up getting himself killed before he ever accepted being a father.
He'd definitely proved that already.
