"I still don't think this is the greatest idea."
Selina folded a pair of jeans and tossed it into her suitcase, which was open and half-full on her bed. She was clad in a light blue dress and was mostly ready to depart, even if her mind hadn't quite caught up with her yet. Behind her, Bruce was tossing Helena up in the air and catching her, over and over, and the little girl was almost crying for how hard she was laughing. For her part, Selina was just happy that Bruce was physically able to do such a thing now.
"Well," Bruce said, smiling as he gave Helena another toss, "you'll just have to deal with it."
Selina rolled her eyes and turned, crossing her arms. "Right. Like you can really force me to do anything."
Bruce caught Helena and then held her close, and she dropped her head on his shoulder while she continued to laugh. "I will personally grab you and put on the jet myself if you resist."
"And if you try that, I will personally knock you unconscious, and you would wake up in a very remote South American jungle."
Bruce grinned and set Helena down. "I wouldn't be so sure."
"Really, though," Selina sighed. "It was just a week and a half ago that we... finally started talking, and..."
"And that's exactly why I want you to do this," Bruce said. "Just consider it a chance to breathe and... reset yourself. Clear your head and take a break. Spend a few days with just yourself and your best friend, doing... whatever it is best friends do."
Selina sighed. "I still don't think it's a good idea."
"You will," Bruce shrugged. "Now you should go eat breakfast. Molly should be here in a few minutes. I'll be in the shower."
Selina nodded while he walked off to the bathroom. After a moment, she walked over to Thomas' bassinet and looked down to find him awake and gnawing on his arm. She grabbed a pacifier that he was half-laying on and stuck it in his mouth, and as he looked up at her with his big brown eyes that he'd inherited from her, she again waited to feel that tugging of the heart that she had yet to feel for him.
Still nothing. She then walked away to look in a drawer for a new outfit for him, and to her surprise, saw a certain onesie that she'd forgotten all about. She picked it up and smiled a little bit, remembering the day that she and Bruce had bought it, and noted that Thomas was finally big enough to fit into it now.
When she changed Thomas out of his sleeper and into the onesie, he stared at her the whole time, sucking happily on the pacifier, and she continued to hope that one of those times that she'd meet his gaze, that moment she'd been hoping for since his birth would finally happen.
But, when it didn't, she gathered him up in her arms, and called for Helena to follow her as she walked to the kitchen.
"Aw... oh my God, that's so cute!" Molly smiled and raved, picking Thomas up and out of his bouncy seat as Selina fed Helena. "A little Batman onesie! Where did you get it?"
"What? Oh... that little boutique in Nassau," Selina replied absently.
"Who knew they sold Batman stuff there," Molly wondered aloud, cradling the little boy. "Did you ever see him, living in Gotham?"
Questions like that reminded Selina of how little the people closest to her really knew about her life. With the exception of Alfred and Leslie, those she interacted with on a day to day basis were really extremely ignorant of everything that made Selina and Bruce who they were. "I... yeah. A few times."
Molly's eyes widened and she spun around to give Selina an intrigued look. "Really? Are you serious?"
Selina nodded, then decided to change the subject as Helena grabbed the spoon from her hands and started feeding herself. "Yep. So where exactly is Christian's cottage?"
"Islamorada, in the Florida Keys," Molly replied. "So when did you see him? Was he fighting someone or... ooh! Did he ever save you from anything? Aside from the nuclear bomb, of course. You were there for that, right?"
You have no idea, Selina wanted to reply. Instead she nodded, "Yeah, I was there. I saw it go off."
"So sad," Molly said, looking down at Thomas' onesie. "I wasn't much for watching news back then, but I watched it, like, religiously when all of that was going on."
The conversation reminded Selina of a question she needed to ask Bruce before leaving with Molly on their little three-day excursion to the Florida Keys. "Hey, do you mind keeping an eye on these two for a few minutes?"
"Not at all," Molly smiled. Selina nodded and left the kitchen with a pat to Helena's head.
The whole point of this trip, which Bruce had suggested, planned and insisted on himself, was not only for Selina to take time for herself but to genuinely have a good time with Molly, go shopping or dancing or whatever they wanted to do, but there were a few issues that Selina needed to find a way around. The most glaring one was the result of the fight that Molly had witnessed between Selina and Blake, the one that made her wonder who in the world her neighbors really were, and though Molly hadn't brought it up yet, it was only a matter of time. Selina needed to know exactly how deep into their lives, and secrets, they were going to take this girl.
She walked into their bedroom, saw the bathroom door open by a crack, and started walking there without a second thought. She pushed open the door and walked inside, pausing at the sight of Bruce, hair soaked and pushed straight back on his head, standing in front of the mirror, a towel wrapped around his hips, patting his face dry with a small hand towel after finishing shaving. He glanced at her, and her eyes moved upwards from the towel, settling on broad shoulders and strong arms as they glistened under the the overhead lights.
The bathroom was hot, still humid from the shower he'd stepped out of moments earlier. Bruce watched Selina's hand reach the doorknob behind her as she said, "There's something I need to talk to you about."
She closed the door and locked it, and he looked up at her with amusement. "You don't look like you particularly want to... talk."
Selina shrugged and walked to him, then hopped up on the sink in front of him. "It can wait a few minutes."
Bruce placed his palms down on the sink, on either side of her hips, leaning into her as he felt a brush of her hands and then the drop of his towel as it hit his feet. "Just a few?"
"I've got a plane to catch," Selina grinned, wrapping her legs around his waist and pulling him close.
"Molly watching the kids?"
"Yep," Selina replied before pulling him down for a kiss. His hands moved to her hips and pulled her closer to him, his mouth instantly insistent against hers, and behind Selina's head, the still-cloudy mirror slowly started to fog back up.
Bruce knew he had a stupid look on his face as he watched Selina hop off the bathroom counter and sashay towards the door, adjusting her dress like nothing ever happened, but he was too happy to see that swing back in her step that he didn't care. She glanced at him over her shoulder as she unlocked the door, smiling at that idiotic grin on his face as she said, "Can I help you?"
His grin widened. "It's good to see you like this again."
She raised an eyebrow and unlocked the door while he grabbed the towel from the floor and fastened it around his hips once more, just in case anyone had wandered into the unlocked bedroom in the last ten minutes. "Yeah? See me like what?"
He followed her, the cooler air of the room a shock to his overheated skin. "Well, let's just say that a few weeks ago, you wouldn't have attacked me in the bathroom like that."
Selina watched as he then headed for their closet, and after glancing towards her suitcase that still sat upon her bed, she followed him. "I don't mind the change, myself."
He chuckled, and she leaned against the closet's doorframe as he started to dress for the day. "I don't either. Even if you are using sex as a... rather effective subject changer when you start getting uncomfortable."
She furrowed her brows. "What?"
He was fastening a belt around his black pants as he gave her a knowing look. "Don't try to play dumb. You know exactly what you've been doing."
Internally, she rolled her eyes. It wasn't her fault that all Bruce ever wanted to talk about was her "problem" and potential ways to help it, and that sometimes she didn't want to talk at all. She still woke up in the morning with a knot in her stomach, she still looked forward to Thomas' naps more than she thought any parent should, and she was far from where she used to be, but she felt like herself when she and Bruce were intimate. It was the only time that she truly felt like the person she knew she was, so she didn't think he could blame her for then using it to her advantage.
"It's not that I'm using it to change the subject, Bruce," she said, slightly annoyed.
"I'm not complaining," he said quickly, buttoning up a white shirt over his chest. "I just -"
"No, let me talk," she interrupted. She took a deep breath then, not wanting to say what she was about to say, but honesty was their new policy. This was what they had resolved to do, when they finally had their breakthrough a week and a half ago - talk about everything, hide nothing from one another, even - perhaps especially - when they didn't want to. "It's the only time I feel like myself. It takes my mind off everything and makes me feel better. Even if it's just for a few minutes." He gave her a look, and she quickly added, "Well, usually more than a few minutes."
"Trust me, I get that," he nodded, walking out of the closet to stand in front of their stand mirror and finish dressing. "And I've noticed. It's progress. But this is part of why I'm insisting on you taking this trip. I want you to get out of your routine, not worry about Helena or Thomas - or me - or your job, the lawsuit, anything. I think it'll help."
"And what if I have so much fun that I don't want to come back?" she asked, watching from behind him as his fingers worked on a dark blue tie.
His eyes met hers in the mirror. "If I wasn't confident about that not happening, I probably wouldn't be sending you away."
She wasn't as sure as he was, not by a long shot. She may never stop thinking Bruce an utter fool for the faith he always placed in her seemingly without any hesitation. But then, the tie secure under his collar, he turned to her and smiled gently as he reached out and touched the ends of her hair. They'd curled up just a little bit from the bathroom's humidity, making it appear as if she'd just walked in from the beach. "I don't want you to call or text me unless something truly urgent's happened. And I won't call or text you either. Enjoy the next few days, all right?"
"That reminds me," she said, "I need to ask you what exactly we're okay with telling Molly."
Bruce sighed, looking down at the floor briefly. He remembered vividly Molly bursting in this very room and demanding answers as to who they really were, and the only reason he'd been spared having to give her answers was the following rift between her and Selina. "Well. I think it's only a matter of time before she knows."
"Too many people already know," Selina replied. "Like Raven. And she's not even with Blake anymore."
"Yeah, but... you call her your best friend. If you mean that, then it's only a matter of time before you'll have to tell her."
"The biggest secret isn't mine to tell," Selina pointed out.
Bruce smiled a little at this. "Yeah it is. Everything I have is yours, including the past. I trust you with it."
Again, she wanted to call him an idiot. But the sudden warmth she felt at his words shooed the thought away. His phone made a noise across the room, and she looked away, turning to her suitcase as the moment ended and he reluctantly went to retrieve the device.
She was walking towards the bedroom door with the luggage in tow when she felt a hand on her arm, and swiftly she was spun around and pushed against the closed door.
"Hey," Bruce half-whispered, a tiny grin on his lips as he invaded her space. "I'm gonna miss the hell out of you."
His hands moved to her hips, and hers came to rest on his chest as she smirked up at him. "Yeah, I'm sure you will. You'd better be awake when I come home Sunday night."
"Feel free to wake me up if I'm not," he murmured before capturing her lips with his.
She gave him a kiss that she hoped would keep him anxiously awaiting her return, pulling him close with a hand on the back of his neck and the other gripping his tie, her tongue teasing his before she withdrew with a grin. She then let go of his tie and grabbed the handle of her luggage, keeping the grin on her face as she opened the door behind her. "See ya."
Selina made the rest of her goodbyes quick, especially with Helena, knowing that lingering would only make it more difficult for the mama-addicted little girl. As it was, Bruce managed to distract Helena with a few of her toys while Selina slipped out.
From there, it was a short trip to the jet and an only slightly longer trip to the Florida Keys.
"So," Molly said excitedly as she peered out of her window and across the glistening ocean beneath them, "what are we gonna do for the next three days? Shopping? Eating? Drinking? All three at once and then dancing?"
"Sure, why not?" Selina said, instinctively checking her phone and having to consciously tell herself to put it away and not check it obsessively. Beside her, Molly noticed this, and Selina sighed and said, "This is weird."
"I know," Molly agreed. "I feel like I'm missing an arm or something without Aidan with me. But we're gonna have fun. There's lots to do in the Keys. And we have a lot to catch up on."
"Can we agree to not talk about the whole post-partum depression thing every five seconds?" Selina asked wearily. "Seriously. Bruce tries to talk to me about it until we're both blue in the face, and I can't shut you up the same way I shut him up."
"Absolutely," Molly said, holding her hands up in a that is fine with me gesture. "I'm sure eventually our conversations will turn serious at some point, but my only agenda is to have a blast with my best friend. Can we talk about wedding planning, though? I did a lot of research when you... well, when we weren't talking, and -"
"Jesus," Selina sighed, but with a smile.
"What?" Molly smiled and shrugged innocently. "I wasn't going to slack off on my MOH duties just because I was dead to you."
"You weren't exactly dead to me."
Molly raised an eyebrow and looked skeptically at the other woman. "Really? I don't know about that."
"Well, it doesn't matter now."
"That's right," Molly agreed, putting the thought out of her head. "Let's just focus on having fun. I say after we get to the cottage and get our stuff settled in, we go to Key West for lunch and take a look around. And have a cocktail. It's been so long since I've had a cocktail."
Selina nodded and muttered a reply, her hand grabbing her phone out of her bag again completely out of habit. This time, Molly quickly snatched it out of her hands.
"Hey -"
"Nope," Molly decreed, taking the phone and sticking it in her own bag at her feet. "No phones. Bruce made me promise to make sure you stayed off your phone."
Selina rolled her eyes. Of course he did. "It's just a habit. And what if something happened with the kids or work, or -"
"Then I'll let you know and let you have it back," Molly said. "You're going to have fun, Selina, even if I've got to force you to. And you know I will."
Selina chuckled despite herself. The next few days would undoubtedly prove to be interesting.
"No," Bruce said sternly, giving both of his lawyers a withering glare in the board room of the hospital. Beside the two older attorneys sat Leslie, wearing a look as disdainful as Bruce himself. "Absolutely not. I am not settling with her. I would rather let this drag out for months than settle out of court."
The older of the lawyers, a balding and heavyset man named James who always appeared to be perpetually stressed, leaned forward and sighed, "Mr. Wayne, I understand where you're coming from, but -"
"But I'm not going to debate with either of you," Bruce interrupted. "Settling a sexual harassment case out of court doesn't just admit guilt, it screams it."
"Not necessarily," said the other lawyer, a more outwardly confident man named Marco. "Look, we have witnesses, yes. But so does she."
"Witnesses who have been obviously paid off," Leslie interjected.
"Either way," Marco shrugged, "this is going to become a textbook case of he said/she said. And to be perfectly frank, as a man, the odds are overwhelmingly against you from the get-go. This woman's not stupid, and as we've seen from her press conferences, she's a damn good actress."
"It also doesn't help," James said, "that you haven't said one word to the press directly, aside from written statements."
"I've got a family to protect," Bruce said, slightly incredulous. "And a hospital that I'm trying to run. I don't have time to try to gain the public's sympathy or 'tell my side' of the story, especially when public opinion doesn't even matter in this case."
"It always matters," James muttered. "Always. The judge can rule in your favor but if the public sides with her, that's damage you might not be able to come back from."
Bruce tapped the edge of his pen on the table, silently fuming on the inside. He had to admit, this was all quite a new experience. Gotham's Bruce Wayne may have appeared to the world as an irresponsible idiot who bedded models and actresses, or both, every night, but the Bahamas' Bruce Wayne being perceived as a media-shunning sexual harasser wasn't something he had been prepared to deal with. And the Bahamas wasn't like Gotham, at all. In Gotham, he could have outran this lawsuit with no problem, and the public would have barely batted an eye before eventually forgetting. Here, though the islands were laid back, it was quite smaller and the residents had a longer memory.
"Well," Bruce said eventually, "I'm not going to settle. I'm not paying her one cent unless a judge orders it, and until that happens, I'm going to remain confident that this lawsuit will either get thrown out or that they'll rule in our favor."
In his jacket pocket, his phone vibrated. He pulled it out, glanced at the number, and looked up to his lawyers. "Are we done for today?"
As the lawyers sighed and gathered their things to leave, Bruce motioned for Leslie to stay. When they were gone, he picked up his phone and redialed the number that had just called him.
"For the record," Leslie said as Bruce placed the phone to his ear, "I think you're doing the right thing. Settling is as good as admitting guilt."
"At least someone agrees with me," Bruce smiled faintly as the other line picked up. "Lucius. You called?"
All the way from Gotham, behind his desk in his office at Wayne Enterprises, Lucius Fox replied, "I did. How are you, Bruce?"
"I'm... well, I'm good, all in all."
"All in all," the older man repeated. "Doesn't sound too convincing."
"Life is never dull, I'll put it that way," Bruce replied. "What can I do for you?"
"I was actually calling to see if you've heard from our friend, Mr. Blake, anytime recently."
"Blake?" Bruce repeated. "No, not since he left here a few weeks ago. Why?"
"Well, I just put the finishing touches on something he asked me to throw together last month, but he hasn't been taking my calls or answering my texts."
"When did you last hear from him?" Bruce asked, concern coloring his tone.
"Not since before he flew down to you," Lucius replied. "I asked my niece if she'd heard from him, and she just about took my head off for saying his name out loud."
"I'll try to get a hold of him," Bruce replied.
"All right. By the way, I saw that a pretty strong hurricane came your way just a week or two ago."
"Yeah," Bruce said, "it was pretty intense."
"Everyone okay? And the house?"
"All fine," Bruce assured him.
"Good. How about that wedding? How's that coming along?"
Bruce chuckled. "Ask me in a few more months. But you'll be getting an invitation for Thomas' christening soon."
"I'm glad to hear it. I look forward to meeting your father's little namesake."
Bruce smiled. "Me too. I'll let you know when I talk to Blake."
"All right. Take care, Bruce."
"You too, Lucius."
When Bruce hung up and immediately began composing a text, Leslie asked from across the table, "What's wrong?"
"I guess Blake's been AWOL for a few weeks," Bruce shrugged, typing, Fox is trying to get a hold of you. Text or call me ASAP.
"He's not in a good line of work to go long periods without contact," Leslie noted.
Bruce set his phone down on the table. "Yeah."
As Bruce waited for a reply, Leslie asked, "How's Selina doing?"
"Better," Bruce nodded. "In some areas. She's still struggling, but... things being out in the open, and us talking, is helping."
"I can't help but feel a bit guilty," Leslie sighed. "I'm a doctor. I've known her for years. I should have seen the signs."
Bruce shook his head. "You've barely taken a day off since we opened this place. It's more than understandable. I'm the one who lived with her every day and didn't get it until Molly spelled it out for me."
As Leslie politely accepted Bruce's attempt to ease her guilt, his phone buzzed. He picked it up and read Blake's reply. I know. Been busy.
Furrowing a brow, Bruce began to type his reply. Next time, take his calls before I start sending people to look for your body in a dumpster.
Now annoyed, Bruce put his phone down and noted the time as his mind slowly drifted back to work. Selina should be knee deep into the Keys by now. He pictured her in her light blue dress from that morning, hair down and blowing softly in the breeze as she sipped on something sweet, laughing with Molly as they chatted at some beachfront restaurant.
It would be a long three days without her, but he was confident that the distance was well worth it.
Meanwhile, in Gotham, an unshaven and generally disheveled John Blake entered the Applied Sciences division of Wayne Enterprises by way of a secret entrance and a passcode created long ago for him by Lucius. He was dressed in dark jeans and a black hoodie pulled over his head, and his steps were heavy as he made his way through row after row of prototypes and assorted gadgets.
He found Fox behind a computer, apparently aware of his presence as he said, "Good to see you aren't dead, Mr. Blake."
"... Sorry," Blake muttered. "I've been -"
"No need to explain yourself to me," Lucius said, turning in his seat to look at the younger man before standing up. "If you want to hide in a cave and sulk because of what happened between you and my niece, I suppose that's your prerogative. Very Wayne-like, too, I might add. He also forgot to how shave when his relationships didn't work out."
Blake paused and looked down, muttering, "Look, I..."
Lucius patted Blake's shoulder as he walked past him. "It's all right, son. Come on, let me show you your new suit."
Together they walked, Blake's hands shoved in his pockets as Lucius' calm voice went over the details of the upgrades he'd made to Nightwing's armor, which he showed to the younger man in it's disassembled pieces in a locked drawer. New, stronger biweave, sleeker wing emblem, improved gauntlets that contained more storage for weapons or tools, and instead of a one-time shock if the suit was ever attempted to be taken forcibly off of him, a charge that had a five-shock life. Blake listened with mild interest, and when Lucius closed the drawer and turned to him, the older man raised a brow and said, "Did you get any of that?"
"Yeah," Blake nodded quickly. "Thanks. I appreciate you taking the time to do this."
Lucius let a few moments of silence pass before he spoke again. "Is there anything you'd like to ask me, John?"
Blake paused and stared at the floor for a moment before muttering, "How's she doing?"
"Functioning," Lucius said. "But she's just as vacant-eyed and distant as you are right now."
Blake shook his head and said, "I'm sorry. It's my fault, all of it. I should have known better than think I could have... both."
"Both?"
"This life, and a relationship," Blake shrugged. "Wasn't fair to her. It never was."
"Is that all that's bothering you?" Lucius asked. "I'm sensing that there's something else."
Blake shrugged again before shaking his head and saying, "It's just that nothing ever changes. Not really. The city came together after the bomb, but that lasted about a whole six months. It's been business as usual ever since then. I can spend every night out there doing what I can but it doesn't really change anything."
"Sounds like someone's approaching burnout," Lucius pointed out.
"I'm just sick of it," Blake replied. "I knew what I was choosing when I started this. I knew it meant being alone and fighting a losing battle. But now I'm starting to see how much of a losing battle it really is."
"What happened?"
Blake turned on his feet a little bit, looking down as he stared off and set his jaw. He didn't want to talk about it, but maybe it was best to do it anyway. "It was my first night back here, after I went and saw Bruce last. One of the gangs was having an initiation down near Crime Alley. I got there too late. They left behind this girl, this thirteen year old girl. Just left her to bleed to death in the back of an alley. I told her she was safe and that I was going to help her, but she died before I could even pick her up. And I realized that this... this is Gotham. It'll always be Gotham."
"Surely," Lucius said, "you haven't forgotten the ones you have saved, and the good that you have done. You've been at this for more than two years - you've done far more good than I can even remember."
"But it's swimming against a current," Blake said. "It's fighting against something that just comes back bigger and worse the more you try to push it down, while I try to live up to something that I probably can't."
"You know what I first thought when I found out what you were doing?" Lucius asked. "I thought that you must have been certifiably insane to want to pick up the mantle. I thought you'd be out there for a month before the city ate you alive. I'm being perfectly honest."
"I can tell."
"But you proved me wrong. Here you were, this kid with a streak of idealism who thought you could take on the world because someone you looked up to your whole life handpicked you to continue his legacy. The truth is, John, I'm most shocked that it took you this long to get discouraged."
Blake shrugged. "Can't be an idealist in a city like this. Corruption's still alive and well. Even the mob is starting to come back, despite the Dent Act."
"The city's always going to drain you, if you allow it to. It's always going to be too much. It's always going to be disappointing and brutal."
"So then what am I supposed to do?" Blake asked somewhat miserably. "Just... drown in it until one night I don't make it home?"
"Well, now, that's up to you," Lucius said. "And at the end of the day, you're the one that has to be able to live with yourself and your decisions. But I'll say this - that legacy you're keeping alive? It's not about drowning in the city's filth. It's about rising above it. Don't forget that."
Lucius decided to leave the younger man with that thought, giving him another shoulder pat before walking past him, towards the elevator.
"Fox?"
Lucius stopped and turned his head. "Yes?"
"Do you think I can ever fix things with her? Or is her mind made up?"
"Oh, her mind's made up," Lucius replied. "But that doesn't mean you can't fix things."
"Gosh," Molly smiled, her blonde hair shining under the afternoon sun as she and Selina walked past some high-end shops in Key West, "talk about going from one paradise to another."
"This all feels distinctly more American than home, that's for sure," Selina remarked, eyes hidden by a big pair of dark sunglasses. "It's kind of weird. I'm too used to the Bahamas."
"What a problem to have," Molly joked. "Ooh! Let's go in there, I like that purse in the window..."
And so they went, hopping from shop to shop, Molly spending far more freely than Selina did, if only out of habit than anything else. Selina did her best to enjoy herself, trying not to think about anything going on at home or anywhere else, and when Molly skipped into a small but very rich-looking jewelry store, Selina followed, suddenly reminded of something Bruce had told her during the storm.
While Molly oohed and ahhed over various diamonds and gems, Selina walked slowly among the displays and glanced over each of them. Nothing caught her eye until she reached the end of a far left row, upon which sat a pair of perfect pearl earrings.
She glanced around her. Molly was in her own little world, going wide-eyed over a platinum emerald bracelet, and the only employee was on the phone with her back turned to the rest of the store. The only other customer present was near Molly, elderly and rich, and was mumbling to herself.
It was quick and effortless, just as easy and second-nature as it ever was. A few moments later she and Molly left the store, the pearl earrings now resting comfortably in Selina's ears, matching the strand on her neck.
Molly wasn't stupid, not by a long shot, and she noticed the sudden presence of Selina's new earrings within only a few moments. She didn't say anything, but it did remind her of the conversation that she needed to have with Selina before the trip ended.
She kept the chatting light and frivolous as they continued to walk among the shops, her arms becoming heavier with more bags as they went. Selina still had yet to buy a single item, unless Molly counted the earrings that she'd "borrowed".
Molly expected it to take some time for Selina to get into the swing of things, but she had a plan for that as well. If shopping wasn't quite her thing - at least today - then maybe some more direct sun would do the trick.
"All right, I think I've done enough damage for one hour," Molly said, looking down at the bags hanging from her arms. "Ready to go?"
"Sure," Selina replied, and they began walking in the direction of the parking area. "Where to now?"
"I say we hit the beach," Molly said. "You know what's funny? We literally live on a beach, but I don't think either of us spend much time on it at all."
Selina shook her head. "I've gotten so used to it that I don't ever think to go lay on it or swim, or... anything, really. I just look at it."
"Ugh, me too, and by the way, that needs to change," Molly replied. "Starting today. We're gonna get some sun and actually get in the water for once. You know what? We should totally do some snorkeling while we're here. Man, I wanna go swimming with dolphins, too... I've never gotten to before. Dammit, three days isn't enough."
Selina smiled as Molly continued to ramble on, and at a certain point, Molly looked over to find herself walking alone. She stopped and looked behind her, and found Selina just a few feet behind, looking at a display in an art store.
As soon as Selina noticed that Molly was looking, she quickly began to move on, with a perfectly blank look on her face. But, Molly had seen the split second of something else on her face, something that looked almost - wistful? No... sad? Maybe.
A glance towards the display revealed what had caught Selina's attention. A dark, sprawling, framed painting of a huge city, full of tall buildings and lights underneath a black, starry sky. But amidst the darkness, perhaps even a part of it, was a shadow of a man, standing on the highest building and watching over the city. His silhouette would have been menacing to some, but a great comfort to others, and for the second time that day, Molly found herself wondering what exactly it was about Batman that had such a profound effect upon Selina.
But Selina was very good at wiping all emotion from her face when she wanted to, and as they continued walking, Molly remained silent.
The first day of the girls' trip went by in a blur of sun and sand and food, and when the night came, Molly made sure it was filled with good drinks and better music. She spotted a cute little bar on the shore, where a live band was playing soft music that sounded like a mix of something Hawaiian and the kind of music heard every day back home in Nassau.
Selina gamely let Molly drag her up to the bar, and once they were seated, Molly announced, "Okay. This is what I've been looking forward to the most all day. And you're drinking with me, because drinking alone is sad and pathetic."
Selina chuckled as Molly ordered herself a mojito, and for a moment Selina drew a blank - how long had it been since she'd actually drank, aside from the occasional wine or champagne handed to her by Bruce? She didn't even particularly like drinking, at least not in excess, but, when in Rome...
"Long island iced tea for her," Molly piped up, pointing to Selina with her thumb.
Selina raised a brow as the bartender shuffled off. "Well, so much for easing into a night of drinking."
Molly laughed. "We've only got three days, so let's make the most of it. Ooh! How many guys do you think will hit on us tonight?"
Selina took a look around them, taking note of the people filling up the beach. The sun had long set, and there was a good-sized group of folks congregated under torches that lined the area. Some were couples, others were singles, and most were men, a good number of whom were in fact checking out the two new ladies at the bar.
Just as their drinks got set in front of them, two of the guys appeared at Molly and Selina's sides, each putting a bill down to pay the bartender as they flashed winning smiles.
"Hi," the man at Selina's side grinned, taking the seat next to hers and leaning against the counter. "I'm Charles."
"Selina," she replied, after sipping her drink. She glanced over and saw the other guy giving Molly the same treatment, then heard Molly's sudden nervous giggle, and it suddenly hit Selina how a lack of a filter plus drinking could be quite humorously perilous for Molly.
"Charles" was decent enough looking, tall and sandy-haired, dressed as casually as everyone else there and clutching a bottle of beer. He grinned some more and said, "Selina. Very pretty name. Here on vacation?"
"Actually, yes," she replied. "You?"
"Same. I'm from Minnesota. My family's got a beach house down here, so I figured I'd get away from the snow for a week or two. Where are you from?"
"I live in the Bahamas, actually," Selina grinned. The man's eyes widened.
"The Bahamas? And you go on vacation to the Keys?"
She chuckled and took another sip. "Life's too short to spend it anywhere other than paradise, right?"
"Yeah, if you can," Charles agreed. "Nice. So you here with a boyfriend or... husband?"
"Nope," she replied. "Just my best friend."
By the look on his face, the man appeared to take this to mean that she had no boyfriend or husband, and he hadn't noticed the giant diamond on her left hand either. "All right. Can I buy you another drink?"
Selina looked down and realized she'd drank almost all of her first one. It hadn't kicked in yet. She grinned and said, "Sure, why not?"
An hour passed, and Molly was already on her way to being plastered. She was laughing at jokes that weren't funny and saying everything that popped into her head, extremely loudly - including at one point, when her own drink-buyer, Brian, said something about an upcoming movie, "Oh my God, Robert Downey Jr.! God, I would do such filthy things to him, literally, anything - no, I'm serious, anything" - and when Selina began to tire of Charles' second rate conversations, she grabbed Molly's hand and slid out of her chair.
After almost falling herself, Selina laughed at nothing in particular and dragged Molly out of her own seat. Molly then immediately fell against her, and Selina pushed her upright and dragged her off towards the small group of dancing patrons while whispering, "I'm sick of those guys, let's dance and then ditch them."
"I think they're funny!" Molly said loudly, giggling as she tried not to trip over her own feet. "And Brian said, he said, he told me I looked like some chick on some TV show."
"How sweet," Selina snorted, turning and making Molly stand still by holding her shoulders. They were now in the middle of the dancers. "How drunk are you?"
Molly laughed through her closed-mouth smile. "What makes you think I'm drunk?"
"Aw, Jesus," Selina rolled her eyes. "Just dance with me, okay?"
"Okay!" Molly chirped, almost falling over on herself.
Selina couldn't help it. She started laughing until she was almost in tears, because she was drunk too, and everything was ridiculous, and it was awesome.
The two guys tried to get dances with them but Selina grabbed Molly each time and shook them off, enjoying using a man for his money and then ignoring him just as much as she always had before.
She would have been good to dance for a while longer, but Molly reached the point of barely being able to stand on her own feet and kept falling on other people, Selina decided it was time to get a cab back to Islamorada.
Molly threw up out of the backseat window twice on the way back, and as Selina marveled at how drunk the other girl had gotten, and how easily and quickly, Molly would groan and mumble about never wanting to drink again. Selina, still in the happy stage of drunkenness, laughed like an idiot.
It took a bit of effort, but after leaving the taxi driver a huge tip and grabbing their things, Selina helped Molly inside of the cottage and set her down on the couch in the front room. The next time she turned around, Molly was passed out and snoring softly.
Selina laughed and took the opportunity to grab her phone out of Molly's purse, and after kicking off her shoes, she stumbled down the hallway and fell into the first bedroom she found. She dragged herself into the bed and then held up her phone in front of her face, focusing intensely as she tried to make her tingling fingers work and find Bruce's number.
When she finally found success and had dialed him, she put the phone to her ear and closed her eyes. He answered on the third ring.
"I hope this is important," came Bruce's voice.
"Why? Did I wake you up?"
"You might have, but that's not the point. I told you not to call or text me."
Suddenly, she remembered one of the side effects that alcohol had on her, as just the sound of Bruce's voice made her mind fill with unspeakable thoughts. "Well... Molly's passed out, and I'm still awake, so... the only way I could think of to enjoy myself was to call you."
"Mmm," he muttered. "Are you drunk?"
"I might be," she replied, then laughed.
He groaned. "You're drunk-dialing me... nice."
"Hey, you told me to have fun, so I did. I drank, and I flirted, and Molly puked out of a car window." She laughed again.
"I don't really want to hear about the flirting part," Bruce muttered. "But I'm glad you're having fun."
"I'd be having more fun if you were here with me," Selina replied, suggestively. "I'm here in this big bed... well, it's kind of small, actually... but anyway, I'm in this bed, all alone, and my mind is... racing right now."
Bruce was silent for a moment, and then he asked, "Are you trying to have phone sex with me?"
"Why, do you want me to?" She smiled as she listened to him laugh softly.
"I'm going to need a drink myself if that's what you want," Bruce replied.
"Oh, come on, you boy scout," Selina chided. "Tell me what you'd do if you were with me right now."
"I've always been more a fan of showing, not telling."
She could hear the grin in his voice, but she huffed and said, "You're not going to play along, are you?"
"That depends. Are you going to let me hang up and go back to sleep if I don't?"
"Nope," Selina replied.
"... Fine."
But before Selina could laugh and gloat over her victory, she heard the slightly mechanical sound of crying over the baby monitor that was surely just a few inches from Bruce's head. "Oh, come on. You've got to be kidding me."
Bruce chuckled. "Blame your son, not me."
"Ugh. Call me back when you're done with him."
"I'm sure you'll be passed out by then yourself."
"No, I'll be up. Bye."
"Bye."
She dropped her phone to the bed and rolled her eyes. Exactly two minutes later, she was asleep.
With the next morning came a quiet, silent breakfast at a nearby cafe. Molly stared into her coffee cup with bloodshot eyes and rubbed her head, while Selina fought to make herself eat a muffin.
"Don't let me do that again," Molly groaned, dropping her head down on to the table. "That was stupid... and not worth it... I think I might actually die."
Selina swallowed a bite of the muffin, knowing she wouldn't feel better until she had eaten something. It wasn't easy. "Lightweight."
Molly raised her head just enough to glare at Selina with one blue eye. "You don't look too hot yourself, either."
"I had about twice the amount of alcohol you had. Or more. And you puked out of a car window."
Molly's eyes widened. "I did?"
Selina nodded. "Twice."
Molly groaned again and dropped her head back down. "Okay... no more drinking. Ever."
Aside from breakfast and a generous dose of Tylenol, the girls decided to take the luxurious approach to choosing a hangover cure, and spent the bulk of that day at a spa. Then it was lunch, then back to the beach, and despite the rocky start to the day, the trip was starting to hit it's groove and serve it's purpose. Selina was losing her urge to check her phone every five minutes, she was laughing a lot more, and the anxious knot that had lived in her gut since the day Thomas was born had finally eased.
It wasn't until the end of that second night, when Molly and Selina were on the couch in the living room, in the middle of watching a movie, when Selina remembered that she still had some explaining to do.
The movie was an old one, black and white, plucked from a huge movie collection they found in the master bedroom, and it was a glamorous tale of a thief falling in love with her pursuer, a detective hot on her trail. The irony was painfully obvious.
"So," Molly said as the movie neared it's end, "is this how you and Bruce met, basically?"
"More or less," Selina replied. "But you already know that story."
"Yeah," Molly said. "Although I'm still wondering what exactly I saw between you and Blake a couple weeks ago."
It was painful, literally painful, for Selina to try to find the words to tell the story with. She still wasn't sure how much she was willing to spill, and her instinct would always be to keep her secrets hidden and locked away. It was a big, big step that she was taking, and she didn't take it lightly.
"It's not any of my business, I guess," Molly said, "but, the more time goes on, the more I wonder. For example... I know you were a thief, you told me that a long time ago. But, see, here's what I see from my perspective - this insanely hot, secretive couple buys the island I live on, builds a house next door, and turns out to have a slightly illegal backstory. Which is fine, I guess, I mean, I don't judge, or I try not to. But then I see... what I saw that day, and what I heard you say. And you were a totally different person. It was kind of terrifying. So then I start to think, well, why did you guys leave the states and decide to live as secluded as humanly freaking possible? I know there's got to be more to it all. And technically, no, it's not my business, but you're my best friend and our kids are gonna grow up together. So I kinda do have a right to know."
Selina sighed, staring at the television but not registering anything on it. "No, you're right. You do." She took a deep breath. "I was a thief, yes. I was the best at what I did. But I made some... bad decisions along the way. Got involved with some people that I shouldn't have. Did what I had to do to survive, which turned out to be some pretty bad things. Bruce gave me a way out, and a way to start over."
"How?"
Selina hesitated. "Let's just say that I technically don't exist anymore. At least not in terms of who I was."
"When you say you did bad things..."
"Kidnapping important people. Making deals with the devil to save my own skin. Handing over good people to bad people in return for not getting killed."
"Did you ever kill anyone?" Molly asked, her voice suddenly smaller than before.
"Honestly," Selina sighed, "yes, but it was always really self defense. It was kill or be killed, and when you've got a group of thugs shooting at you... you do what you have to do. That's not something I have guilt about."
Selina looked at the younger woman, expecting to find fear or alarm in her eyes, but instead she saw a quiet acceptance and something that looked like confirmation of what she'd already been thinking.
"And Bruce?" she asked. "For all I know about him, he could have been an ax murderer who would blast 'Hip to Be Square' while he chopped people up."
Selina couldn't help but laugh a little bit, and Molly did the same. "No, he was definitely never an ax murderer. He..." She tried again to find the right words, but failed, and decided to simply do her best. "His life was his city. He lost a lot to it, but he gave it more. He gave it everything he had. And when he was finally ready to let it go... I helped him leave it behind and start over."
"So... okay, you told me before that you stole that necklace from him, and that's what started everything," Molly said, her brain trying to process it all. "How did it go from that to starting over together?"
"We were drawn to each other," Selina replied simply. "We shouldn't have been, but we were."
"I get the feeling that I'm still not getting the whole story."
Selina paused and exhaled. "No, you're not. There's parts that I honestly don't know how to tell you."
"So just tell me about you, then," Molly suggested. "Your parents, your life, how you ended up doing what you did."
"That... is going to be a long conversation." Selina sighed and got up from the couch. "I'm going to need wine if we're gonna go there."
At first, Molly eyed the vintage red wine that Selina dug out with intense fear, after spending the whole morning recovering from last night's drinking, but eventually she found courage and took a glass. Selina had two and half as she recounted her story, all the way from her childhood to her father's abuse, then to her days as a runaway and a protege/toy of her repulsive mentor, and finally to her young adulthood. She even explained who Eric really was and how they met.
Molly nearly choked on her wine. "You... you did what?!"
"Had sex on top of a safe and then robbed it together," Selina grinned.
"You...I don't like you," Molly said in disbelief. "First you tell me the motorcycle-cave thing, and now this."
Selina shrugged with a grin. "Well, the best part was afterwards. We agreed to split the 'earnings', and once we were clear, I dragged him into this empty penthouse I stayed in sometimes - the owners were never there - and got him all worked up for a second round. The second his guard was down I grabbed his share from him and ran off. I think he fell in love that night."
Molly nearly choked again. "God! I don't even... I have no words. Seriously, I hate you and admire you and wish I was you all at once. It's officially ridiculous."
"Yeah," Selina smiled. "I agree."
"But you deserve it, after that hell you went through as a kid," Molly said. "Really. You deserve every good thing that you have. I hope you know that."
"That's what Bruce says," Selina sighed, "but I'm not so sure."
"Well, you should listen to him. And me. Because it's the truth."
"I still feel nothing for Thomas," Selina admitted. "It's been two months now. And just nothing."
"Look," Molly sighed, "I did a ridiculous amount of research on post partum depression while we weren't talking. And everything happened to set you up for it that could have happened - traumatic birth, separation from Thomas after the birth, breastfeeding not working, Bruce's accident - it was all basically a perfect storm of crap. And then on top of that, obviously just judging by what you've told me tonight, you've got some long-running issues about guilt and stuff that you don't sound even close to resolving. And PPD amplifies all that."
When her words seemed to go through one of Selina's ears and then out of the other, Molly took another gulp of wine and then said, "I talked to the old ladies a little while ago. When we still weren't talking. And all three of them experienced some kind of PPD or 'baby blues' at some point."
Selina's eyes widened. "You told them about all of this?"
"I was worried about you!" Molly said, her eyes apologetic. "And you know how they are, they stuff you full of food and look at you with their sweet grandmother-y eyes and you just spill everything."
Selina gritted her teeth and resolved to let her brief moment of anger go. It wasn't like Molly had been gossiping about her or talking about her condition out of anything but concern. "All right, whatever. Did they have anything helpful to say?"
Molly nodded enthusiastically. "I have a notebook at home, and I wrote down everything they told me - suggestions, things that they did that helped, stuff like that. And I wrote down a lot of what I read online too. Oh, and you know how I started school last year? Well, my major's still photography, but I switched my minor to psychology a couple of months ago, and I've got this huge book and there's a section on PPD, and..."
Selina barely heard anything after the word "notebook". Molly trailed off and realized that the other woman's eyes had a telltale shine to them, and she quickly started to worry if she'd said something wrong.
"I... did I say something?"
Selina quickly shook her head. "Nope."
"Then..."
"You really have a notebook of all this stuff?"
It was then that Molly understood why Selina looked like she was about to start crying. She wasn't angry, or annoyed, or hurt, but just entirely not used to having a friend who cared enough to spend weeks filling up a notebook for ideas of how to help her.
Molly nodded. "You know, Selina, I don't really have anyone else either. You know all those girls I had in my wedding? They call maybe once a month, and they all live in California. And you know the situation with my family. Other than Chris, and Aidan of course, you're all I've got."
Out of Selina's mouth came a barely audible "dammit", and when she wiped at her eye, Molly suddenly pulled her into a big side-hug. Selina rolled her eyes but smiled a little at the same time.
Moving to the Bahamas, Selina decided, had been worth it just for the fact of finding this amazing, and sometimes incredibly annoying, bubbly blonde girl from California.
It was with a bittersweet final day of relaxation and shopping that Selina and Molly bade farewell to the Keys. They were ready to get back to their families, but not so ready to return to the routines they'd only escaped for three days. That applied to Selina especially, who battled flutters of nervousness the whole plane ride back.
When they landed and got back to their little secluded island, Molly offered to help Selina get all of her stuff inside of her house, and Selina agreed while dragging her suitcase through the sand.
It was late at night, quite past both babies' bedtimes, and when they stepped inside Selina's mostly darkened house, the only sound to be heard was slightly muffled music coming from down the hall.
"Is that... AC/DC?" Molly asked, squinting as she tried to decipher the sound.
Selina sighed. "I'm going to kick his ass."
"Why?" Molly asked, dropping what she had in her arms and following Selina as she stomped down the hall.
"You'll see," Selina replied. A moment later, she reached the fifth door down the long hallway and opened it with a scowl. The music then hit their ears full-blast as Molly peeked around Selina's shoulder to get clear view of Bruce, shirtless and in the middle of a disturbingly rapid set of push-ups.
"Are you kidding me right now?" Selina shouted over the music. "Are you trying to reinjure yourself?"
Bruce's eyes lit up when he looked up to see his fiancée standing in the doorway, and he sat back on his legs to reach across to where an iPod was docked to turn it off. Then he got to his feet, and Selina kept ranting while he started walking to her, and all Molly could do was gape silently at how horrifyingly scarred he was.
"Good to see you, too," Bruce grinned, shutting Selina up as he kissed her. It was a short, mostly chaste kiss, and when Bruce opened his eyes, he noticed Molly's eyes glued to his right side. She was ogling the permanent reminder of Talia's parting gift to him, and by her look of bewilderment, Bruce suspected that Selina hadn't spilled any of his secrets during their getaway.
"Molly," Bruce nodded, and Molly quickly snapped her eyes up and plastered a polite smile on her face.
"Yeah," she stammered, "hi. Just helping Selina bring her stuff in. I should go. See you guys tomorrow?"
Selina nodded. "Sure. Thanks."
Molly nodded and hurried off, and Selina waited until she heard the front door close to give Bruce's shoulder a half-swat. "Seriously, are you stupid?"
He chuckled and grabbed her hands, pulling her closer. "I'm fine, Selina. Really, you worry too much. I feel fine."
She rolled her eyes and wriggled her hands free of his grasp. "You're still an idiot. Kids asleep?"
Bruce nodded. "Yeah, but Helena's in our bed. Can you move her to her room, and then I'll be in there in a minute?"
Selina nodded, her eyes trailing down his chest as she moved slowly out of the door. "I think you gave Molly a heart attack."
Bruce shrugged. "I wasn't expecting her to be behind you."
Selina gave him a look and then headed towards their bedroom. She didn't mind Molly seeing the scars. On some level, she hoped it would help Molly put the puzzle together herself so that Selina never had to say the words out loud.
She found Helena nestled quite comfortably in the center of their bed, on her side with her hands up near her face, and her little pink lips parted slightly as she slept soundly. Selina smiled at the sweet little girl and picked her up gently, careful not to wake her as she took Helena to her room.
Helena didn't so much as twitch during the transfer, and afterwards, Selina decided to drop in on Thomas before going back to her room.
He was asleep in his crib, on his back with his arms up and hands flat on either side of his head, warm under a blanket decorated with little footballs, baseballs, and soccer balls. Selina leaned over the wooden rails and looked down upon him, reaching down to brush some of his dark brown hair back from his forehead. It wasn't a little tiny patch of hair anymore, having grown to thinly cover the top of his head since his birth. He was healthier looking now, plump like his sister was at his age, and the relief at seeing him without tubes up his nose or monitor leeds stuck to his chest was still palpable.
She was brushing her finger over his smooth little cheek as she got ready to leave, another failed attempt at feeling anything new, but his eyes fluttered open and stopped her short.
Thomas looked up at her, with big brown eyes that mirrored her own so perfectly, and then to her surprise, as recognition dawned on him, his mouth stretched into a smile underneath his pacifier. He smiled so wide that the pacifier fell out, and that was when it finally happened.
It wasn't like a ton of bricks hitting her all at once, or a wave of sudden, overwhelming emotion that washed away the last two months and left her feeling perfectly whole again. Instead, it was a gentle tug to the heart, soft and sweet but undeniably significant, a spark of what she'd been berating herself for being unable to feel this whole time.
She gently placed the pacifier back in his mouth, and as he started sucking on it, his eyes closed and he drifted back to asleep. It had been his first smile, and it had caught her completely by the best kind of surprise, unlike Bruce's presence behind her. He'd never be able to sneak up on her, no matter how hard he tried.
"Spying on me?" she asked quietly, still looking down upon her son. Bruce answered her with a kiss to the side of her neck.
One of his hands tangled with hers, and pulled gently to turn her to him. She obliged, and instead of meeting his eyes, she hugged him.
Bruce let out a breath at the sweet gesture, embracing her back and running a hand down her hair as he whispered, "Did you enjoy yourself?"
She nodded against his shoulder. "It was a good trip. I'm glad you made me go."
"Good."
Bruce was the first to pull away, again taking one of her hands in his as he started to lead her out of the room. They didn't say a word to each other until they had crossed the hall and entered their own room, then stood in front of the door after Bruce quietly closed it.
He looked her over, his hands moving to her face as his eyes trailed from the bottom up, until they stopped on the pearls fastened to her ears. "Those are very nice."
"I thought so," Selina replied.
"I didn't see any recent transactions for a jewelry store over the last three days."
Selina cocked her head and grinned, "Well, well, you sure were keeping a close eye on me, huh?"
He gave her an amused smile of his own. "Did you enjoy it? The rush? Was it everything it used to be?"
There was no point in playing coy. There was also no point in lying. "It was fun. But no. It wasn't as satisfying as it used to be."
Bruce nodded, one of his fingers running over one of the earrings as he asked, "What was the name of the store?"
"I don't remember. It was in Key West, the highest-end jewelry store that I saw. Why?"
His hands moved to her hips, pulling her closer. "I've missed you."
"Doesn't answer my question," she replied, watching his eyes fall to her lips as she spoke.
"No, but I did. A lot."
His words from their last conversation floated through her mind, and her voice melted to a purr as she wrapped her arms around his neck. "Show me, don't tell me."
Then she was off her feet and in his arms, his mouth ravenous as it claimed hers, and before she could squeak out one word to him about potentially hurting his back, she was already on her back and in bed, underneath him and and reveling in being there.
Absence did indeed make the heart grow fonder, even if the absence was only three days long, and what a beautiful thing it was to come home again.
While Selina enjoyed her homecoming, Molly made Christian hold off for a few moments while she made a beeline to her laptop. She spent half an hour fending off his questions of when she would be done and what in bloody hell was so important that it required Googling when there were so many other things they could be doing. She ignored him, and felt her eyes widen as she scrolled through the results of her search.
There had been hints everywhere, but it had taken seeing Bruce's myriad of bodily scars to make sense of them all. Now she was looking at a host of pictures from several years ago and skimming through articles, finding more clues and piecing them all together.
First was an article and a photo of a statue in Gotham's city hall, the one honoring the city's fallen Dark Knight, and at the end of the article were links to several other stories. One was a story about the converting of building called "Wayne Manor" to an orphanage, a home that had been under the care of a man named Alfred Pennyworth until the change. The two names - Wayne and Alfred - made Molly's head spin, and for the life of her, she couldn't remember if she'd ever learned what her neighbor Alfred's last name was.
She continued to click around on different items, until she came to a gallery of photos pertaining to Bane's occupation of Gotham. Much had been speculated about when it came to the final battle there, as understandably very few photos existed of the event. There was the official version of events that had been released to the public, but there were some loopholes and unknowns when it came to the story. One example was a lone photo that existed of a masked woman, dressed in all black and riding atop a motorcycle that was known to belong to Batman, shooting the cannons into a large truck in front of her.
Molly clicked the photo and zoomed in. The woman had long, straight, chestnut brown hair, and the more Molly stared at the photo, the more she started to go into shock.
She sat back and stared over the monitor, everything suddenly making sense, even down to Thomas' onesie and the way Selina would look and speak whenever Batman's name was mentioned. The strange way she'd stared at the painting in Key West also now made sense.
It all made sense. And yet, it also made no sense, because Batman had been incinerated by a nuclear bomb.
Molly closed her laptop, and proceeded to stay up all night on the verge of completely freaking out.
It didn't take a lot of effort for Bruce to figure out which store in Key West that Selina had stolen her pearl earrings from. True, he'd given her the green light to steal if she so desired, but that didn't mean he didn't fully plan on going behind her and repaying every last cent she didn't spend. So, the next morning, he had placed a check in an envelope addressed to the store and stuffed it into his inner jacket pocket as he prepared to head into town.
He and Selina had stayed up far too long last night, and luckily for her, the kids were having a lazy morning, and they were all sleeping in. He slipped away without anyone noticing, but just as he got to the front door and opened it to leave, he nearly barreled into a familiar blonde on the other side of it.
"Molly," he said, immediately noticing how odd she looked. Her eyes went wide when she saw him, and she looked as if she'd been pacing on his porch for an unknown number of minutes before he'd opened the door. "Is something wrong?"
Molly continued to stare at him, looking a bit spastic and disheveled - her left eye seemed to be actually twitching a bit - and he tentatively asked, "... Molly?"
Finally, she seemed to gather her courage and blurted out, "You're freakin' Batman, aren't you?"
A/N: First of all, I apologize for the late-ish update. I ran into some unfortunate writer's block, but thanks to the ideas and help of midnightwings96 and the encouraging of more than a few others (seriously, I whined to errrbody :p), I overcame it! Woo hoo! And I figure since this is one of the longest chapters yet, a few days extra wait was ok :p Anyway, thank you to everyone who continues to review, you all make my day and are full of awesomeness :D I love you all and shall try to not take so long next time :D
A/N #2: Iron Man 3 this week, thus the RDJ reference here :) I'm fangirling as much as Molly already. Heck, when do I NOT fangirl like her? And (fake, imaginary) cookies to you who also spotted the American Psycho reference. Honestly, I have a problem. I don't think it's normal to love that movie as much as I do. O.o "Is that a raincoat?" "Yes it is!" Ok, shutting up now...
