Chapter 21

When my eyes fluttered open, there were several things that both shocked and, for the briefest moment, frightened me. First, there was the utter absence of illumination. Not even a sliver of light could be found to identify my whereabouts. There was also no sound, save for my breath and the breath of another person. Along with these things came the feeling of being trapped. Arms stretched over both of my shoulders, their hands pressed tightly to my abdomen; holding me in place against another body. I felt the heat of the person next to me, felt their bare skin against my naked body.

The Joker.

He must have gotten up at some point and drawn the dark, heavy curtains, thus shutting all light out of the room. I had half a mind to disentangle my limbs from his and open the curtains slightly, which would give me enough light to see, at least. However, his arms folded over me were not like those of a gentle lover. Instead, they were like those of a master; powerful and controlling, holding me within a cage.

I had not moved much since I had awoken, giving me the opportunity to close my eyes and at least pretend I was asleep; God knew that The Joker wasn't, and I hardly felt like a confrontation right now.

"I know you're awake, doll face." The Joker informed me, having not moved an inch. I squeezed my eyes shut tighter for a moment, gathering myself before saying anything.

"I know." I returned, turning my head so that I could see him. His make-up was smudged, the black around his eyes now dulled to a shade of charcoal. His ever-smiling lips were curved upward, the red on them having been smeared from his to mine. I bit down on my tongue, struggling with the truth: I had been fucked by The Joker.

"Whatsa matter, sweetheart?" He questioned, propping his head up on his arm. "I would've thought that you'd be all smiles, considering... y'know."

I groaned inwardly at his words. I knew that he wouldn't ignore the opportunity to remind me just how much I wanted him. It was his charm, his mystery, his power; his rejection of not only that which I hated, but what I held dear as well that made me desire him so strongly. He was pure sin, pure danger, pure nihilism.

But… there was also a past to him that I didn't know, nor would I most likely learn. This, strangely, came as a surprise to me. I had only been aware of the psychopathic, anarchy loving side of him that he displayed to the world. That part had hardly faded away (and how could it ever?), but I could see that beneath the permanently puckered scars and the malicious glimmer in his eyes, there was a man. Not a good man, not a loving man, just a human; not just my god of death. He was someone that, though immortal through his actions, could die.

Finally pushing my ruminations away, I gave a shrug. What exactly could I say to the murderous clown that lay next to me?

My lack of response drew a frustrated groan from The Joker. "C'mon, Addie, don't be like this. I think you should at least talk to me after everything I've done for you."

"What is this?" I finally asked, propping myself up to mirror his position. "What are we?"

The Joker gave a sigh at my words. "You women all have the same damn question."

"Just answer me." I hissed, drawing my body away from his, rolling to the other side of the bed.

"Lovers, whatever. Anything that means were fucking now." He responded, giving a chuckle. "See? That's the Addie that I know and…" He trailed off. I bit my tongue, squeezing my eyes shut. I knew that The Joker would never love me; I always had. I knew that he at least cared about my existence, which, coming from The Joker, meant a lot.

I felt The Joker's hands as they latched onto my arms, pulling me to him again. Before I could protest, I was pressed against him once more, his lips connecting with mine. I felt his tongue push past my lips, sweeping through my mouth. Giving a moan, I knotted my fingers into his greasy tendrils. No matter how much I fought against my desires, they would always spring forth, having been easily awoken by him.

Reluctantly, I broke away, sitting up against the head board.

"I have to go to." I informed him. It was Tuesday, the one day that Bruce required my presence for at Wayne Enterprises.

"Oh no, princess." The Joker said, dragging me down to his level and moving so his torso covered mine. "You're never gonna run away again. If you have to leave me, it'll only be after a long, satisfying fuck. Then you'll come straight back. It won't be easy, I can promise you."

"I have to go to work, and so do you." I reminded him, positive that there was some sort of task that he needed to accomplish today in his "job". Giving an aggravated grunt, he rolled off of me, moving to get up from the bed. Before he could stand, though, I placed a hand on his chest, forcing him back down to the bed, climbing on top of him.

"You just said you wouldn't let me go without a long, satisfying fuck." I began, snaking my arms around his neck. I saw a grin begin to spread with his permanent smile. "I thought you were a man of your word."

Flipping me so that he was over me, he answered: "Oh, trust me, doll face. I am."

Hey, guys! I know, it's been almost a month since I've updated. As was my lame excuse for last time, I've been really busy with senior stuff. It's totally not cool. I also apologize for the short length of this chapter. I tried to make it longer, but it just didn't seem right. If I follow my plan that I've attempted to work up for this story, there should be only two chapters left. I've got several little ideas going on in my head for other Batman stories, but my priorities lie in Addie and her story.

Also, I mentioned before that I've been getting loads of questions. I will post my answers not in my profile, but as a chapter within this story. I will try and upload them as soon as possible, along with chapter twenty-two. My goal, though it seems ambitious to me at this point, is to have this story completed by April.

Thanks,

Harley