Barbara couldn't help but shiver against the frigid October air. The breeze seeped through the thin fabric of her jacket, sending shivers along her bones. Nervous green eyes darted back and forth across the yard, in sync with the impatient foot tapping.
"Would you relax? We do this for a living," Jason said. Of course he was in no hurry, he was wearing sleeves and a leather jacket, as well as the insolated pants of his uniform. He was probably toasty warm in there, meanwhile Barbara could feel the icicles forming underneath her ears. Not to mention they were breaking and entering for some reason that had yet to be explained to Barbara.
She rolled her eyes. "Batgirl and Red Hood do this for a living." In a last ditch effort, she breathed into her sleeve. For a brief moment her breath did the trick and she suddenly felt warmer than she had since she exited the car. "I'm not Batgirl, and you're not Red Hood, though." Jason couldn't stifle his chuckle at that. His laughter sparked something akin to anger within Barbara. "It would help if you told me why exactly I'm standing on this porch freezing my ass off at 2 AM."
Her annoyed tone was perfectly timed, because at that exact moment the lock on the front door gave in to Jason's incessant efforts and the door swung open. "I thought you said you wanted more adventures, Babs," he said, standing up and walking backwards into the house. "I'm just trying to do my part to make Barbara Gordon's life a little bit more exciting."
The cold air nipped at her, serving as a reminder at the welcoming heat the big, Victorian style house promised. Barbara rushed inside, practically slamming the door behind her. Only after the cold air was shut away did she realize how close to Jason she was standing. Her face was mere inches from his chest. Without any effort on her part, his scent drifted to her nose easily. He smelt of Kevlar, gun smoke, and her soap. The color of his skin was visible through the white V neck which he wore, the fabric so thin that it hung perfectly off of his muscular chest. She found herself looking up into his sea green eyes, the familiar seductive glint lighting them up even in the darkness. He was smiling down at her, and she could only hope that he didn't see the way she gulped. "Come on," he said.
Suddenly the thought occurred to her that Jason was going to fuck her in this strange house. Yeah, maybe the thought of Jason pushing her against the kitchen island and making her say his name was extremely erotic. And yeah, the part of her that said that would be wrong was battling with the part of her that said but that's why it's so hot.
At this point, either side could win.
But when Jason's fingers grasped hers, the battle was pushed to the back of her mind. He led her through the empty living room and up the magnificent stair case. She had to admit, this was a kickass house. Not quite Bruce Wayne kind of rich, but definitely too rich to be living in a one-bedroom apartment like Barbara's. The floors were entirely hardwood, except for up the stairs, which were coated in plush carpet. The railing was classic; dark wood rail and white painted balusters. It lined part of the hallway, which was exposed to the living room below.
Though the house was mesmerizing, Barbara couldn't help but feel as if they didn't belong. "Jay," she whispered. The house was completely empty, and although she didn't have to whisper, raising her voice to a volume any higher seemed like the equivalent to a shout in the dead silence. "Why are we here?"
Again, the undead teen in front of her flashed her a smile instead of answering her question. "You know; it probably wouldn't kill you to just let yourself be surprised for once." When they reached the top of the stairs, Jason looked around, examining each closed door before picking the one furthest from the stairs.
Jason still having a hold on her hand, Barbara shuffled along behind him. Her feet only barely avoided colliding with his with every step, and she made sure he was acutely aware of the effort she took not to hit them. "No, but it's not pleasant, either." Her voice was more of a grumble now than a whisper. He only barely heard her words, and instead of replying, he simply laughed and continued dragging her through the empty house.
They came upon the doors. Big ornately carved doors that shut off what was likely the master bedroom from the rest of the house. The only clues that this was not just another bedroom was the double doors, and the moonlight streaming in from beneath them.
Releasing her hand, Jason pushed the doors open. The room before them, was indeed, the master bedroom. It had hardwood floors, and a wood tray steeple ceiling. The entirety of the wall adjacent to the door was a mixture of sliding glass door and floor to ceiling windows. In the darkness outside, Barbara could barely see the deck that the glass doors led to. Off to the left, Barbara could see the door of the closet. And to the right, the master bath.
"Holy shit," Barbara said, slowly following Jason into the room. "This room is probably the size of my entire apartment."
"Rich people," Jason scoffed.
"You know, you-"
"Yes, I know. Don't say it."
Barbara giggled to herself at the way his voice sounded so cold. He had that 'done with your shit' tone of voice, and it always made her smile.
Jason was now standing in the center of the room, his arms hanging loosely at his sides and his neck careening upwards to look at the ceiling. "Where would you put the bed?" he asked without looking at her.
The question left her baffled, but only for a moment. Soon her gaze was traveling around the room, mentally mapping out where her things would go. Obviously, with a room this big, she'd need a king size bed, for dog cuddling purposes (the fact that she didn't have a dog was irrelevant. If she had this house and a king size bed, then dammit she was getting a dog). "I'd put it against this wall," she said, gesturing to the wall that separated the room from the bathroom. "And then on that wall," her hand moved towards the adjacent wall, palm out and fingers spread. "There'd be the dresser, and a huge hipster painting above it. Probably green, with some kinda flower."
Without looking, she could feel him move behind her. His fingers were probably tapping his chin thoughtfully, trying to imagine the room Barbara had just described. A smile curled her lips at the thought; his thinking face was so cute.
"We could paint the walls light brown," he said.
Barbara tried to picture it. Sunday morning, sunlight streaming in behind the white curtains flailing in the wind. She would open her eyes and the room was completely bathed in beautiful, serene light. It was all white, so peaceful and quiet and comfortable. Every morning she'd wake up, completely engulfed in the fluffy white of her comforters and pillows and bathed in that peaceful light, bouncing off the walls and giving the whole room a clean feeling.
"No," she said. "If the painting is going to be green, I think the walls ought to be green." Jason's eyebrow rose quizzically, questioning her decisions on the matter. "Not like snot green, obviously." She squinted her eyes, trying to find the best words to describe the exact hue she was imagining. "Like, pale green. Pastel, if you will."
"Don't say 'if you will', you sound like my grandma." Barbara playfully smacked his arm, her flesh clapping against the leather. "Come on," he said, grabbing her hand with a smirk. "Let's go design the kitchen."
He dragged her downstairs once more, and – as expected – the kitchen was stunning. Shiny marble countertops, dark wood cabinets, kitchen island with a sink and stovetop, two microwaves, bottom loading freezer, shiny tile floors. It was any cooks dream kitchen. There was a light hovering above the island, and a few more above the sink on the counters. It was all so neat and pristine. Barbara could hardly imagine doing anything to this kitchen, as it was already near perfect.
If she was being honest, designing the perfect house was more fun than Barbara cared to admit. But if she wasn't careful, she'd make herself sad doing so. There was just something about a life she'd never live that weighed heavily on her heart. Barbara wasn't going to fool herself. The chances of her living the kind of life of someone who owns a house like this were beyond slim. It was next too impossible. And if she was being even more honest, every room that popped into her head was shaped around a life with Jason, who wasn't exactly the suburban life kind of guy. He'd never want to live in a house like this, not in the real world. Not anywhere except in Barbara's fantasies.
As they designed the kitchen, these thoughts went through her head. Jason seemed so into it all, as if someday, he pictured himself as a sixty-year-old businessman with grandchildren running through these halls.
Eventually, they'd made it through all the rooms they could, and even another house. But hours passed and the sun was coming up and they'd been forced to retreat to Barbara's very real, very imperfect apartment. She sat on her bed, wringing out her hair while Jason took his turn in the shower. By now, the sun was shining into her living room widow and she was thanking every god she knew of that the next day was completely free.
Soon he'd joined her in bed, naked and warm from his shower. A feeling of warmth and safety overcame her as his arm wrapped around her waist and pulled her at least six inches across the bed until her entire body was pressed tightly against his. "Good morning, Barbie," he whispered in her ear, his cheek pressing against hers heavily.
"Hey, Jay?" Barbara asked. Her eyelids were heavy with sleep, but her mind was alert with this question. It'd been bugging her since he asked where she'd put the bed.
"Yeah?" his voice was sleepy. He probably hadn't even opened his eyes to respond to her.
"Why did you take me out tonight?"
"Because I love you, Barbie."
"But why to look at houses?" Against her skin, she could feel him crinkle his nose, though he still hadn't opened his eyes. Her questions were mildly irritating him."
"Because I like to think about what my future could hold," he said. Now he'd lifted his head up off of her face and was looking down at her, his arm stationed next to her shoulder holding his body above hers. Barbara herself had shifted so that she was on her back, looking into his face. Now that she was, she felt a bit guilty for keeping him up. His entire face sagged in exhaustion, big dark circles hanging beneath his bloodshot eyes. Maybe she had to stop herself from admiring the way the bloodshot made the color of his eyes even more intense, enhancing the beauty, because timing, Barbara. But the intensity in his eyes hid the way he was feeling in that moment, and more than anything Barbara wished she could see through his disguise and figure out exactly how that was. "I like to think that my future holds anything, including a house and life with you." Now, a smirk lit his sleepy features. "Even in the suburbs."
A moment paused, Jason looking at Barbara and Barbara looking back. A warm smile plastered itself on her lips, and it didn't move. There was a small sliver of sunlight coming in her bedroom window, hitting Jason's hair just right and making it look extra frazzled. He looked so adorable like this, a sleepy smirk on his face and love in his eyes.
"That's ridiculous," she said, and then returned to her side and closed her eyes.
**********LINE BREAKER!**********
Wow this chapter took me like six times to get right and tbh I'm still not overly thrilled with it but it'll do.
As we near the end, I'd like to thank everyone once more for sticking with me on this 30 year journey. It's been great, even though I'm a huge slacker. But, I have another Jay/Babs fic planned out. It's a multi-chapter fic, I'm working on it now. I hope to have the first chapter done by the time I'm finished with Day 30 and I'll post them simultaneously. I'm pretty excited about it (So excited I already planned a sequel but shhhh spoilers).
Anyways, thanks again, please review. I love you all.
