Hey, sorry for the delay! This chapter has a lot of dialogue...but I hope you like it anyway :)
I straighten my back, surprised by how soft the mattress feels against my spine. The sheets feel much too silky against my legs and the room is serenely silent, the usual noise of Gotham traffic weirdly missing. I open my eyes and see even in the darkness that this is not my apartment. Am I really where I think I am? I reach over my head to feel the engravings I know so well on the headboard: check. I lift the amazingly sleek sheets to see I'm indeed naked: check. I look at the opposite side of the bed…to see it empty. I turn my head to the glowing green numbers as they seem to whisper the 4 A.M. time to my tired eyes. I sit up, trying to separate the images of bodies in my mind from fact and fiction. The haze that was mingling in my system is now clear, which only leaves me confused. I'm pretty sure what happened…but the tangled figures I can remember seem more like an intense, a very intense, dream rather than what I expect occurred a few hours ago.
I swing my legs over the bed as the thought of how thirsty I am begins to dominate my other musings. The hardwood floor is oddly warm against my bare feet…bare, oh that's right, I'm completely stripped. I stand up to kneel next to a buddle of clothing which I realize is Bruce's. After pawing around the floor for some time I'm still unable to find my gown. With a sigh I pick up his white long-sleeved dress shirt and slide my arms through. With all of the buttons in place I'm fairly covered up. Who cares? I'm so thirsty, I inwardly whine as I shuffle out of the bedroom and down the hall. Why is this house so huge? I question this as I walk down the stairs and through two separate rooms before I reach my destination.
The lights of the kitchen are evil compared to the darkness I've been stumbling through. And it doesn't even dawn on me what this mere illumination could signify until I'm facing the refrigerator. Is someone else in here? I hear a muffled sound as if someone were trying to answer my question. Looking to my left I see Dick sitting on the countertop in nothing but a pair of grey boxer briefs, a full plate of roast beef resting in his lap. His mouth is the process of chewing while his eyes are cast down, no not to the floor, but on my thinly veiled thighs.
"Want some meat?"He asks; his suggestiveness very evident in his voice.
"No, just water." I mumble, neither feeling in the mood nor having the mental energy for a fight.
I open the large silver door, letting out a small chill before I grab a bottle of water. Popping the cap, I surprise myself by downing the whole thing. Setting it down by the sink, I begin to breathe through my mouth again and wonder where this sore throat is coming from. The water barely affects me.
"Someone's mouth's been busy tonight." He remarks with a smirk. "Where is Bruce anyway? Handcuffed to the bed…again?"
"No." I mutter bitterly.
"Well where is he?"
"Where is he? Why the hell are you even in here this late?"
"I'm never awake the same hours. Staying up late, running around, locking up psychos like you take its toll. Plus, I'm hungry." He states casually.
"Do you really need to eat like that?"
"Like what?" He asks, wiping his lips with the back of his hand.
"Never mind." I say as I take another bottle from the fridge. "I think I'm sick or something."
"Don't worry; it's just from the laughing gas. It makes you really thirsty." Dick explains with a shocking amount of kindness. "But so do other things."
He raises an eyebrow, his more familiar attitude resurfacing. I roll my eyes and count myself lucky. From my past experiences I know he could be acting a lot worse. I'm actually halfway surprised he didn't try to kick me out again the second he saw me. Maybe he has matured.
"So, how long?" He asks.
"What?"
"How long until you dig your claws in and swipe all of his money?" He questions in all seriousness.
"Dick I don't care about the money. I wouldn't care if Bruce…worked…if he worked at a convenient store or something. I've never cared about the money. Bruce is the only man who has ever…"
"Uh, Selina." Dick interrupts.
"No listen to me!" I demand, now fully awake. "Bruce is…he's…he's…well he's why you're here, letting you stay in his house. He's why I'm still in Gotham, why I didn't run again when I had the chance, why I don't want to be the psychopath you still see. I don't believe he sees me like everyone else, like I do. He's the only person I know who doesn't make me feel like I'm crazy."
I can't tell whether I've gotten to Dick or if he's so bored that he's looking past me. I make a sharp turn to have my nose practically slam into a wall of muscle. I don't really need to look up a few inches to know who the exposed chest belongs to, but I do anyway. He's smiling down at me, his brown hair adorably misshapen with bed head.
"I've never heard you say anything like that." He says in a hush, bringing a hand to my cheek. "I--"
"You're a damn fool." Dick states from behind us. "She's playing you, drawing you in like a purring cat, before she decides to bite you again."
"Dick--" Bruce starts in anger.
"How many times do I have to tell you to stay off the bloody marble?" Alfred's very distinct voice barks.
Dick doesn't waste a second in jumping down while simultaneously trying to hide his late night snack. But Alfred merely marches in front of him and snatches the plate from behind his back. It only takes another glare from the nicely dressed gentleman to get Dick skittering away like his adolescent mentality.
"This is for the lunch I was going to make for tomorrow." He explains, giving Bruce and me an odd look. "I could make a fortune if I worked for Gotham Weekly, catching the three of you in here with nothing but your knickers on."
"Are you unhappy with your pay Alfred?" Bruce asks, a little in jest.
"Of course not Master Wayne. Just considering some part-time work."
"Goodnight Alfred." Bruce says with an arm around my waist.
"Goodnight Master Wayne, Miss Kyle." He replies as he turns to tend to the roast.
XXXXX
"Ouch." I groan as the doorknob presses into my back. "Ow."
"Sorry." Bruce laughs before bringing his lips back to my neck.
He places a hand above my head, steadying himself against his bedroom door, while the other is resting on my hip. I feel a bit ridiculous groping in the hall when a perfectly good bed is waiting just inside. But after the amount of coaxing and waiting it took to get where we are now, I'm willing to take what I can. On the trek back up he explained he was in the bathroom when I woke up and he actually thought I bailed when he returned to an empty bed. It wasn't until we reached the second floor when Bruce made a comment about how much better I look in his shirt than he does and that lead to our current position; the last thing I can think to do is complain.
"Mmm, do that thing you did before." He whispers into my ear.
"What thing?" I ask with a much sexy confidence as I can.
"You know from earlier tonight, the thing."
"Oh right that." I say but don't move.
He looks at me, right into my eyes like so many times before. I swear he's more effective than any lie test I've taken, and I'm not exactly a lie detector virgin. His hazel irises focus on my features for a few more seconds before a pained look crosses his face. He steps back with a sigh.
"I'm so stupid. The laughing gas, you don't remember anything do you?"
"I remember some of it." I answer truthfully. "It's just…a little blurry."
"And you're not mad?"
"No." I laugh. "Why would I be mad?"
I drape my arms over his shoulders and bring him closer to me. I try to reassure him of my seriousness in the matter by kissing him again.
"You two should really get a room." I hear Dick remark.
Bruce abruptly pulls his lips away, spinning around to his younger friend. From the tenseness I can spot in the muscles of his back I can tell he is in no joking mood. But this observation is pretty meaningless considering his stern expression.
"Go to your room." Bruce orders. "You shouldn't be up here; you don't even sleep on this hall."
"Don't talk to me like that. I'm not a teenager anymore Bruce."
"Then stop acting like one." He says a little calmer. "Tell me, tell me what bugs you so much about Selina and I being together?"
Dick stands there, thinking it over as if he asked him what the circumference of the moon was. After some supposed consideration he just shrugs.
"Are you jealous?" Bruce questions.
He shrugs again, smirking as he says, "But I'd always be up for sharing."
"No way, he's all mine." I assert, clutching him tightly.
Dick shoots me a glare before walking away, muttering something about unoriginality and tabloid stories of Batman and Robin. It's my turn to shrug as I dismiss it, glad to have him gone.
"You know I think he was talking about you." He says, returning my embrace.
"I guess." I sigh, closing my eyes. "I'm tired."
"Me too." He yawns, removing one hand from by body to open the door. "After you."
But before I'm more than three steps in, he picks me up from under my arms, lifting me a foot off the floor. I laugh, remembering how often we used to do this, as he carries me to bed. Once I'm under the covers he slides in next to me, coming as close as possible.
"Don't leave." He says softly.
"I won't." I answer with my eyes closed; breathing him in before I try to fall asleep.
As always I'd love to hear what you guys thought! Review :)