Thanks for all the reviews. I really do love them.
Serenitymoonlight—Thank you for the compliment! I know, it really was the worst part of the movie… I cried when it happened the first time I saw it. I'm glad that Bruce was a good idea. I could decide if he would be or not.
Fairy Skull—Here's more. Glad that you liked it.
Lady Slone—I know that it was short… I'm sorry, but I thought that it was a good ending point. I'm getting back into the writing thing for the summer, which is good for you. More chapters, more often.
Sabre—Glad that you liked it! How could Alex have gotten shot? That woulda killed the story lol. I'm glad that you liked it. It took me a while to get it just right, and I'm so glad that Bruce was the right person to comfort her. Here's more.
Rawemotion—Glad that you liked it. Here's more.
Johanna—I know!! Here's more!
Hannah—In my story, he is, at some points… ;) Good luck with figuring out with what shall come with that statement. Hehe. Here's the next chapter.
Kmcracerx—Well, I'm glad that you found it too! =D Glad that you like Alex. Well, the Bruce/Alex relationship will become very obvious in the last chapter. ;) I'm not saying how though. She has been through a lot with the Joker, and I think that she'll get through it by the end of the "movie" though I'm not sure. I'm glad that you like it, and here's the next update.
Okay, as I promised there would be mourning in this and memories so italics are memories. Enjoy.
When we finally reached MCU and walked onto the level that my dad and I had our offices on, I saw one person say something to everyone and they put everything down. Wilson led me into the room with everyone's eyes on me. There were hushed words fluttering about as I met some people's eyes. Rachel looked at me as she hung up the phone with tears in her eyes. She got up and hugged me tight. I pushed her off and walked into my dad's office. I sat in his brown leather swivel chair, just looking at the unkempt mess that spread across his office. I wiped at my eyes as tears welled up when my eyes spotted a picture on the bookcase on the other side of the room. I stood up and maneuvered carefully across the office and picked up the picture in my hands. I looked at it, remembering the day that it was taken.
The sun shone down on a wonderful summer day. It must've been about mid-June when Dad, Mom and I were all lined up in the park. It was almost a year later that my mom died, and Dad wanted to take advantage of his day off and Mom still being around. We had gone to the park just for a typical, movie-like day; a picnic with a blanket and some kite flying. Mom would sit on the blanket laughing as Dad and I tried to get the kite to fly in the pathetic amount of wind.
Eventually, some random guy came up as Dad and I were taking a break from the kite flying and were laughing and drinking some lemonade with Mom when the guy asked to take our picture. Mom kindly handed the guy the camera. He took the camera and waited for us to get situated. Dad kneeled down behind us with his one hand on Mom's shoulder and one on mine as I sat in Mom's lap. I heard Dad whisper, "The only people in the world that will ever matter to me."
I felt a tear slip past my eyelid as I clutched the picture to my chest. "Daddy," I whispered. I couldn't help but holding my knees to my chest as I slid down the wall into the flood of files that had been tossed on the floor, apparently on the night that the commissioner died. Dad must've felt guilty for that. He was there when he died; maybe that was why he was so much on alert during the funeral. He didn't want another person to die that he was supposed to protect. It made sense, but it still should've been me! I cursed as I stood up abruptly. I lowered my head and sank back into Dad's chair. I felt a little OCD as I began to clear files away and organize his desk again.
There was a calendar underneath all the clutter with one day circled. Written in the circle was "Jenny's anniversary". The word "death" was scribbled out to the point where the paper was ripped all the way through. Dad still loved her. I always kind of guessed that, but I never actually knew until now of course. It was two weeks ago; I had missed it. There was a knock on the door, causing me to curse under my breath. I needed this time to be alone, to think about… stuff. The door creaked open.
"Buzz off," I mumbled.
"Al," Wilson said softly, "we ordered pizza if you want some."
I looked out into the sky, which was dark. Guess I was curled up in my hovel a little longer than I thought. I stared back down at the calendar and waited for Wilson to leave. He didn't. "Wilson?"
"Yeah?" was the reply.
"Leave." It was simple, and probably pretty harsh. I kinda felt bad as the door swung shut, but I wasn't expecting to feel a pair of hands on my shoulders. Something in my head said that it was Wilson just trying to help, but the part controlling my reflexes said it was bad. I drew my gun and held it to his head.
He backed off fast with his hands held up in defense. "Sorry, Al. I'm really sorry." He backed out of the door.
I dropped the gun on desk and lowered my head into my hands. I felt wetness seep onto my hands as I rubbed my eyes. I had just tried to shoot my best friend—okay, one of my best friends, not the point. I really hated today! I curse and let my hair out with one hand as it ran fiercely through my hair. I grabbed a pen from one of Dad's drawers and wrote on today's box in the calendar, "Dad's Death." I dropped the pen and looked out into the main area. The other officers were eating pizza, looked like cheese pizza, and just talking. None of them were laughing though. Must be pretty serious stuff, I mused to myself, but realized that they were probably all pretty broken up about Dad dying.
I spun the pen and continued to stare out at the other officers. Should I be out there? I wasn't the highest-ranking officer, but most of the officers counted on me for pretty much everything. Besides Dad, I held the place together; at least the straight cops. I wondered how fast the Police Department was going to fall apart without Dad, but I didn't worry too much. One day at a time, I told myself. I caught Wilson's eyes and mouthed, "I'm sorry."
He nodded back. He held up a slice of greasy pizza to signal if I wanted some.
I shook my head and stared at the pictures on his desk. One was a collage of me: a picture of me in my eighth grade graduation robe, my first grade school picture and me in my high school prom dress. I smiled and moved onto the next frame: a picture of Jimmy with a baseball bat and ball cap. It was a good picture, and it really suited Jimmy. The next picture was of Jimmy, Barbara and Dad; Kayla hadn't been born yet. It was a good picture of them. The last picture was of Dad when he was really young. It was a wedding picture with Mom in it. She looked gorgeous. I missed her a lot.
There was some shuffling outside and I saw all of the officers follow Stephens out into the staircase; about two minutes later, I saw the familiar bat signal in the night sky. I rolled my eyes. The guy all ready knew, and there was no chance in Hell that he was going to come now, no matter what they wanted to talk about. I took my chance of lonesome and escaped Dad's office and grabbed some pizza. It was kind of cold, but it still tasted good. I sunk down into one of the cheaper rolling chairs and took advantage of the quiet to close my eyes after I finished the slice of pizza. A short while later, I was completely consumed in sleep.
I was in that dang warehouse again sitting on the cold concrete and listening to the crunch of gravel and the Joker's high-pitched voice. Martin was brought in, sliced open and then I killed him. It wasn't as traumatic as it was when it first happened. I was used to it by now. I had gone through it like 100 times, but it was what happened next that scared me.
As I huddled in the corner crying, there was screaming. Not like one person screaming, but an entire crowd. The Joker dragged someone in. I could hear the shoes scuffing along the floor and the struggle that the next victim put up. The Joker cackled, and it echoed off the concrete walls. I felt myself shiver as the sound reached my ears. I lifted my head just to see who it was. I gasped when I saw the panicked face of my dad. He was clutching at the arm sleeved in purple around his throat. The Joker looked at me and smirked; it was one of the scariest things that I had seen. My dad's eyes were wide behind his glasses as he looked at me for help. I couldn't move, but I tried so hard. The Joker pulled a gun from behind his back and pressed it to Dad's temple. I squeezed my eyes shut, not wanting to see my dad get shot again.
"Alex!" I heard Dad yell. "Do something!"
"I'm trying, Daddy," I tried to yell, but no sound came out. My arms and legs seemed to unglue from the floor as I tried to get up one last time. It was too late. A resonating BOOM! filled the air. More blood splattered on the floor as Dad fell to the ground, dead.
I screamed and twisted around in a bed. I sat up, clutching the sheets and sweating. I ran my hand through my hair and took a few deep breaths before taking in my surroundings. I was in the MCU's overnight room. I didn't know how I had gotten there, but it certainly was more comfortable than the chair I was in last night. Everything looked blurry though. I wiped at my eyes and realized that I had actually been crying during my dream/nightmare; not sure what I would call it. I completely wiped my eyes and sat up in the bed. I stripped of my oxford shirt as I moved to my office to grab a towel and my work out t-shirt. My black slacks would have to do for the rest of today, but the white oxford was done in; it was completely wrinkled. I groggily moved down to the locker room to take a shower. Maybe it would help.
I had the showers all to myself so I took the luxury of taking a long, hot shower. It helped to get rid of the some of the stuff I had been carrying around since yesterday, but most of it was mental. It helped me wash off some of the grime that the Joker's image had left on me. I got out, dried off and wrung my hair out before putting it up in a ponytail. I pulled my slacks back on and my white t-shirt. I wiped at my eyes to keep tears from spilling over. I headed back upstairs with my oxford and damp towel in my hand. I didn't think that I could work today, but I didn't know what to do. I remembered about the circled date on my dad's calendar: Mom's anniversary. She was buried in the same graveyard as Martin, so I might as well pay a visit. I'm sure that the other detectives wouldn't mind me taking the day off. I stopped by my own office and dropped my stuff off. I grabbed my messenger bag for some unknown reason, stuffed my keys into my pocket, and put my gun on my belt. I closed the door to my office, just to run into Stephens.
"Hey, Stephens," I greeted in a somewhat depressed voice.
"Hey, kid. How you holdin' up?" He sighed as he put his hand on my shoulder.
I attempted to manage a smile. "I could definitely be better, but I'll hang in there."
"Okay."
"Is it okay if I take off for today?" I asked just to be sure.
"Totally," he agreed. "Just don't do anything stupid."
I knew exactly what he meant by "stupid" as I headed towards the elevator. No, I wasn't going to do anything "stupid" (a.k.a. suicide). Not today anyway. I clicked the down button on the elevator when I heard Stephens call my name as he came up to me.
"Alex, I know that this probably is no consolation whatsoever, but," he paused to take a breath, "everyone pretty much came to a decision last night." He stopped as if he wasn't sure if what he was going to say would be the right thing.
"Yeah?"
"We want you to be the commissioner if the mayor okays it."
"Why?" I was no candidate for that position. I was a field officer, not an office worker.
" 'Cause you're the best officer here, you know that," he explained. "You're straight and would stand up for all of us. In fact, you have, and nearly lost your badge a few times."
I laughed a little bit. I remembered those times.
"You would take good care of us, and the people of Gotham," he finished. "That's why."
I shrugged. "Thank you." I boarded the elevator and got on my bike when I hit ground floor. I turned on my iPod and rode for about ten minutes before turning into the cemetery's parking lot. I shut off the engine and began to stroll through the grassy fields with gravestones strewn throughout. Some people may have considered me heartless for not visiting Mom's grave since I was eight, but it was my way of coping. Even though it had been about 22 years, I still remembered the exact location of her headstone. I let my feet drag through the grass to a willow tree about a football field away from the main building. The sun was barely peeking through the clouds, and it was misting slightly. Not many people were out today. I saw her gravestone, a Celtic design cross with a circle around the joining part of the cross with a Celtic knot in it. The inscription read "Jennifer Ann Gordon (next line) 1959-1986 (next line) A loving wife, sister, mother, and friend (next line) You will be missed" It was simple, but it was an inscription that I had memorized during the funeral. There was a simple crystal vase with a still semi-bright red rose in it. I remembered when Dad and I went to the hospital for the last time.
Dad held my hand as we walked down the relatively dark halls of the hospital. He was still in his uniform because he had just gotten off shift, got me from our house and brought me to the hospital. I followed Dad into the small, isolated room where Mom lay relatively unconscious on the hospital bed. She had been this way for about two weeks, but she had been in the hospital for a month now. Dad would visit her every day at 6:00 PM like clockwork. Some days I would come to, but most times I would be babysat at the precinct by some of Dad's friends. Today was different, I could tell. I sat in the corner doing my homework while Dad sat by her side, holding her hand.
"Hey, Jen," he whispered. "I love you so much, and I can't wait till we can head back over to Washington to see your folks. They'll be so happy to see you." He sighed as he thought of things that we used to do. "Alex is here today, babe. She's been doing so well in school; just like you." He motioned for me to come over.
I put my stuff on the chair as I walked over to her side. "Hi, Mommy." I looked at Dad. I didn't know what to say to her. He just shrugged. "I miss your cooking."
"Hey," I heard Dad joke, but it sounded strained.
The doctor came to the doorway and knocked lightly. "Officer Gordon, can I speak with you a minute?"
My dad got out of the chair. "Of course." He walked towards the door. "Stay here, Sweetie," he said to me.
I nodded and sat in the chair as Dad disappeared into the hall with the doctor. I was silent, trying to catch snippets of their conversation, but all I heard was the rhythmic beeping of Mom's heart monitor. "I miss you, Mommy. I love you." It was all I could think of to say as the heart monitor slowed it's pace to a steady beep. Nurses rushed, but Dad stopped them. I looked at him; he had tears sparkling his eyes and walked towards the bed. He hugged me as tears began to run from his eyes. I heard the heart monitor go silent.
The doctor took my hand. "I'll give you a minute." It was a faint whisper as he led me to the hall.
I stared through the glass with my hands against the barrier.
Dad crumpled against the bed, on top of Mom, and just began to sob. I could see his back heaving as he took in deep breaths so he could continue to cry. I escaped the clutches of the doctor and rushed to Dad's side. Dad took me in his arms and just cried, holding onto me tighter than I had ever been hugged.
I stared at the white marble that was beginning to gather green moss on it. I kneeled down. "Hey, Mom." I sighed. "It's been a while, and I'm sorry. Dad still loved you. I still miss your cooking. Dad did get better though, but never as good as you. I wanted to hear all of your high school boyfriend stories when I got to high school. Dad did an okay job, but I really wished that you were still around. I know that you would be so mad, but I joined the police force, just like Dad. I know that you would have never wanted me to do it, but it just kinda fit me." I shut my mouth to stop my mindless rambling; it wasn't why I was there. "Anyways, that's not why I'm here. I have to be the bearer of bad news, but maybe it's not bad news to you. I dunno." I took a deep sigh. "Dad's dead, Mom. He was shot yesterday doing something that I was supposed to do. I dunno why he thought that he had to do it; I could've done it just as well." It was when I stopped to breathe that I realized I had begun to cry. I wrapped myself in my arms and sobbed for just a little bit before standing up. "Sorry, Mom. I gotta visit another friend here. I promise I'll visit you more often now." I smiled and turned away.
I stuffed my hands into my pockets and walked across the field to where Martin was buried. His was a simpler tombstone considering that his parents didn't want to pay for it. They didn't even come out to the funeral, but they sent their condolences to the police and SWAT members. I didn't want to think about that as I crossed my legs on the ground. I was kind of planning on staying there for a little while.
"Sorry that I didn't bring you flowers, Martin," I joked. "I know how much you loved them." I managed to laugh a little bit. "It's been a while, huh? Still haven't caught the Joker, but, c'mon, he's a pain to catch. Even you said that. He's gotten to us though. Judge Sarillo, Dad, and the commissioner. Not that I'm complaining about the commish. We need someone else in the lead. And ya know what? Stephens said that they wanted me! I don't know if I'm excited or not." I took a little while to contemplate that. "I was the one supposed to getting shot at because Dad said I would actually do it. I wonder if he's disappointed in me because I didn't do it. I was going to, but Dad just did it faster." I sighed and sat there for a few minutes before saying anything else. "I just keep hoping that he'll walk back into MCU, but he won't." Saying it made it final in my heart. "Ya know something, Martin? I really do miss you. You did so much for the city." I didn't know what else to say so I stood up and headed back to my bike, which would take me back to my apartment.
After getting changed into a light blue polo shirt and khaki cargo pants, I headed back to MCU. I figured that I might as well just hang there the rest of the day; try to get some work done. I could hide away in my office and get closer to finding the Joker, hopefully. To me, it was a win-win situation, so that's what I did. I dug everything that we had, did some research into the warehouse where I was taken maybe there was something there. I assigned two officers to watch it for 24 hours from a ways a way with the response "Yes, Commissioner." Apparently, it was a mutual decision on everyone's part; they were just waiting for it to become official.
There was a knock on my door, taking me out of my trance. "Hey, Al." It was Wilson. "Is it safe to come in?" Apparently, he hadn't forgotten about last night.
I smirked. "Yeah, it's perfectly safe. I promise."
He came in, careful to avoid stepping on any stray files on the ground. He sat down in the chair across from me. "Did ya hear?"
"About me being commissioner? Yeah," I guessed.
"Nah, not that," he corrected. "Batman revealed who he was to the press."
Stupid, stupid, stupid! Was Bruce really being that stupid? I tried to mask my frustration by asking, "Who?"
"Dent."
"Dent?" Not who I was expecting.
"Yeah," he awed. "Can you believe it? Dent really is a two face, huh?"
"Uh-huh," I breathed. There was no way that it was true. Dent wasn't even around last year. Was I really that far off guessing who it was?
"They're taking him to county tonight." He must've noticed my stunned face. "Al?"
I shook it off. "Yeah?"
"You sure that you're okay?"
I nodded. "I'm doing better than I thought I would. Visiting Mom and Martin was definitely a good idea."
"They're dead."
"I know, but I was able to get some stuff off my chest about Dad," I explained.
He clasped my shoulder. "I'm glad that you're okay, and remember: if you need anything, I'm right out there." He pointed to his desk.
I smiled at him. "Thanks, Wilson. It really means a lot."
He closed the door, leaving me back to my silence. Eventually the silence began to overwhelm me, and the hole in my heart where Dad was began to burn inside of me. I couldn't seem to get him off of my mind, and it was beginning to affect my head. I couldn't think straight anymore. Tears started to come from my eyes again as the burden began to mount. I felt like an idiot for crying so much, and I tried to stop it, but nothing seemed to work anymore. Not even happy memories of high school with the guys. I lowered my head onto my desk and started crying. I closed my eyes, trying to stop the tears that way. I got them to stop momentarily and went to go get some water from the drinking fountain by the elevator.
As I drank from the cool, clear, mildly refreshing liquid, the elevator binged, and the doors slid open. I wiped my mouth off and stood up straight as Harry walked through the doors with his weapon in his hands.
He smiled at me. "Just the person I was lookin' for," he declared.
"Really?"
"Yeah. Where's that sarcasm that I love so much?"
"All the way on Pluto," I attempted, but it didn't work. "I don't got it today, Harry. Sorry."
"Eh, don't worry," he assured. "Well, I was wondering if you wanted to help deliver Batman down to county tonight with us."
"Not tonight, man."
He tilted his head. "You'll miss all the fun."
A little more sarcasm decided to show itself. "Can't ya see that I got my own party going on here?" I gestured with my hands to show an empty room.
He laughed. "Suit yourself," he gave in and left.
I sighed and headed to the stairwell and headed up to the roof. I didn't bother turning on the bat-signal because everyone knew that Batman had been captured. I sunk down onto the ground. I unclipped my badge and turned it over in my hands. It had always been a crutch to help me if I wasn't feeling well, but now, with Dad gone, it seemed to carry the weight of the world. The brass glimmered in the small light that had been installed over the door. It was the job I wanted about ten years ago and I got it and went far, but now I didn't know if I could continue going on with it. I was the cause of two people's deaths, one of which was my father. I let the badge fall the ground as I let my head fall against the concrete. I closed my eyes to think about the decision I was about to make. What would people think of me? I had reached the top of the ladder and then quit. Yeah, it was slightly crazy, but I didn't know if I could make logical decisions anymore. If I had my way, the Joker would be shot on sight.
After a while, I heard a commotion down on the street, but I didn't even bother getting up. Probably just cheering to have put Dent in prison. Hey, I wasn't going to complain. A little voice in my head whispered, This is your home, Al. They're your family; don't leave. So there. That was my decision; I was going to stay. I picked myself off the ground, dusted my butt off and made up my mind to focus on getting the Joker and move on. I clipped my badge on my belt and headed downstairs. I heard a bunch of cheering coming from the room as I entered the room. I looked at all the smiling faces wondering what the heck was going on. I scanned everyone's faces. There was one face that I hadn't seen that day. He was in a SWAT uniform and everyone seemed to be crowded around him. His eyes locked onto mine, and a light bulb turned on. He wasn't wearing his glasses, but I knew immediately who he was.
The officers went silent as they realized that we had noticed each other. A little pathway had cleared between him and me. My hands went to my mouth as, amazingly, more tears erupted from my eyes. He moved through the maze of desks to the doorway where I was glued. He wrapped me in his arms as tears began to pour from his eyes. I couldn't move; it wasn't possible, but I eventually moved my hands from my face to around his back.
He held me at arm's length with hands on my cheeks and his thumbs wiped the tears away. He breathed deeply with a smile on his face. "Aw, Alex." He took his hand from my face to wipe the tears from his eyes.
I laughed a little bit. Thought it's possible it was to cover up a sob. "Daddy."
He pulled me close again and just stayed there for a little bit. "I'm so sorry, Sweetie."
"You were dead," I reasoned with myself. "There was no pulse."
He smoothed the ponytail and rubbed my back. "It's complicated. Don't try to figure it out."
I sniffed and managed to get myself to stop crying, but I did just stay in his arms. "I love you, Dad."
"I love you too, Al." He let go of me and let me stand back a little bit to breath. "Guess what?"
"You're alive against all odds?" I guessed.
He chuckled. "Haven't you all ready figured that out?"
I nodded and wiped away the few stray tears left.
"We got him." He smiled broadly.
Okay, told you that it would be long, and I think that it was the longest yet. Whew! It took me forever to write, but of course, you know that. I hope it lives up to the other chapters because I was a little distracted while writing it and I couldn't seem to write my thoughts down. This is what I got, and if it's a little choppy, sorry. I was trying to fill up time without having to write down every single detail. Review please! I love reviews, even if they're just to say hi! =D Clicky el button.
