Author's Note- Hey guys here's the next chapter, enjoy.
Disclaimer- I do not own Gotham.
Chapter 11- Ten Things I Like About You
The next morning Barbara woke to find some papers laying right next to her. They were laying in the same spot that Jim slept in. She slowly picked them up, and looked at them in confusion. They were the same forms Jim signed that relinquished his parental rights. She continued to stare at them in confusion as she wondered how they got next to her when she heard somebody walk out of the bathroom.
She turned over, and was shocked to see a shirtless Jim walk out of the bathroom. He glared at her for a bit before he walked over to the closet, and pulled out some clothes. She couldn't help but watch as he got dressed.
A look of anger then appeared on her face as she watched him leave the room. She quickly got out of bed, and hurried after him. "What are you doing here?" She angrily asked when she saw him. Jim looked at her, "What do you mean? I live here. So, does my daughter", he said.
Barbara gave him a dumbfounded look, "But you left", she reminded him. Jim looked away from her, "I decided to come back", he said like it was no big deal. Barbara's eyes went wide as she slowly shook her head, "You can't do that", she said. Jim looked at her, "Yes I can", he said nonchalantly.
Barbara growled in frustration as she took out the papers, that he'd signed, and threw them down on the counter. "You signed the papers, remember? By law you are no longer Barbara Lee's father", she said. Jim stared at her, "There was no witness when I signed them", he told her.
Barbara let out a sigh of disbelief, "So? What does that have to do with anything?" She asked as she threw up one of her hands in frustration. "You need to have a witness, to witness me signing the forms. Otherwise it's invalid", he said.
Barbara growled as she stared at him. He made a good point. There was no way a judge would allow those forms to be filed unless they were signed by a public notary. She couldn't believe this. How could she have been so foolish as to not have someone around when Jim signed the papers? Now she was back at square one.
"I still don't want you here", was all she could say. Jim glared at her, "Too bad because I'm not going anywhere. So, I don't care what you do because I'm not backing down. I'm not giving up my daughter", he said.
Barbara stared at him, "What about Alvarez, or Harper? What about Harvey?" She asked. Jim glared at her, "Harvey already understands why I can't sign away my daughter. Alvarez, and Harper might be a different story. But I'm not gonna let you bully me into giving up Barbara Lee", he said.
Barbara closed her eyes, "Jim…", she said as she searched for the right words. "No, Barbara I'm not leaving", he said. Barbara opened her eyes, "Well then I guess I'll have to go to the DA", she said.
She walked past him as she headed towards the counter. She hadn't wanted it to come to this but Jim had bought it on himself. Jim's eyes followed her as she walked to the hiding spot where she kept the evidence, "You won't do it", he said simply. There was no fear, or worry in his voice.
Barbara had bent down to open the cabinet doors but she'd stopped midway when she'd heard his statement. She stood up, and looked at him. "What makes you say that?" She asked with a glare. "You won't do that to Barbara Lee. That's why you've been finding other ways to get me to sign over my parental rights so you don't have to turn the evidence over to the DA", he said.
"You really don't think I'll do it?" She asked. "I don't put anything past you Barbara but I honestly don't think you wanna risk hurting Barbara Lee by getting me sent to prison", he said. Barbara took a step towards him, "She'll get over it", she said.
"Will she?" He asked. "Yeah", she answered. He could hear the uncertainty in voice which told him that she wasn't very sure of that. Jim narrowed his eyes at her, "She'll hate you for the rest of her life", he said as he played on her uncertainty.
Barbara was about to say something but she held her tough. She clenched one of her fists in anger as she thought about what he said. It was true, there was a chance that Barbara Lee would hate her, or at least hold a grudge against her, and if something were to happen to Jim while he was in prison then the chances of her daughter being angry at her only grew. Barbara didn't want to risk any of that, she didn't want her daughter to be angry at her, and she didn't want her to look at her with disgust, or resentment either.
"You don't have to stay here", she finally said. Jim had his arms folded, "I don't wanna stay here", he quickly added. "But if I allow you to divorce me, without properly signing those papers, you're gonna go after full custody, right?" She asked. Jim glared at her, "Yeah, and if I do that then you're gonna go to the DA with the evidence that you have against me", he said.
Barbara didn't say anything. Instead she could only nod at his statement. "So, what do we do?" She asked after a while. Jim stared at her, "Neither one of us is willing to share custody. We both just admitted that. So, it looks like we're stuck with one another. At least until Barbara Lee turns 18, unless you plan on keeping this going long after that happens", he said. "No", she said quickly. The sooner she could be rid of him, the better.
Jim narrowed his eyes, "Well then it looks like we're gonna have to learn to get along until that happens", he said. Barbara glared at him, "Not possible", she said as she walked to the other end of the counter. Jim's eyes followed her as she moved, "Look, we both don't wanna be in this marriage but we both love Barbara Lee. So, for her sake we have to learn to get along", he said.
Barbara looked at him, "How?" She asked with a raised eyebrow. Jim looked at the floor as he tried to think of a way. He let out a sign. "We're gonna have to think of something", he said as he looked at her.
"Like?" She pushed. Jim shook his head in frustration, "How about we tell one another...ten things that we like about the other", he said looked at her. Barbara let out a bitter laugh, "I'm not sure we can do that. I don't even think either one of us could think of one nice thing to say about the other. Let alone ten nice things", she said as she looked at him.
Jim looked at her, "Come on, we should try it. Just ten things that are good, or that we like about the other. Here I'll start; I…", he said as he trailed off. This really was hard. Barbara glared at him, "Come on Jim", she snapped. Jim held his hand up to silence her, "Okay...I'm...impressed at how good of a shot you are. Even though, when we were together, you didn't know how to use a gun", he said quickly as he looked at her. That really wasn't easy to come up with. But at least he got something.
Barbara shrugged, "Okay", she said. Jim glared at her, "Now, it's your turn", he said. Barbara stared at him, "You're great in bed", she said. Jim gave her a look of surprise when she said that, like he hadn't been expecting her to say that. Barbara just stared back at him in silence as she waited for him to say something nice.
Jim tried not blush as he shifted his gaze away from her, "So are you", he said. Barbara glared at him, "You can't use that", she protested. Jim looked at her disbelief, "Why not? You said it" He said as he flung his hands out in frustration. Barbara scoffed, "Only because it's true", she said. "Well it's true for you too", he countered.
There was a pause before Barbara slowly shook her head. "Okay", she said in defeat. Jim shifted his gaze away from her again, "Your turn", he said. Barbara stared at the clothes that he was wearing, "I think you look good in a suit", she said. Jim raised an eyebrow as he looked at her, "That's it?" He asked. Barbara continued staring at the clothes that he was wearing, "Yeah, I like how good you look when you wear one. It makes me kind of glad that you don't dress in casual clothes a lot", she said.
"Seriously?" He asked. "What? You said, say something nice, and I said something nice. Now it's your turn", she said.
There was another pause. "I like how resourceful you are. The way you're able to use what you have around you to your advantage", he said. Barbara looked at him, "You think I'm resourceful?" She asked. Jim nodded, "Yeah", he said softly.
Barbara stood where she was as she thought up a new one, "I like how you're determined to save Gotham, even though I think it's a lost cause. But you don't, and I admire that", she said. She did admire it on some level. After all, most people would have given up on the city a long time ago. But not Jim, and that was something she admired.
Jim nodded, "I like how you're confident", he said with a smirk. Even when she was just an art gallery owner Jim thought that she had a bit of confidence about her. It was one of the things that had attracted him to her.
Barbara tapped her chin in thought before she thought up something else. "I think it's cute how you blush when you're embarrassed", she said with a smile as she looked at him. "I don't blush when I'm embarrassed", he said as he quickly looked away from her. "Yes, you do", she protested. "No, I don't", he said as he continued to look away from her.
At that moment his cheeks started turning red. Barbara noticed, "See, you're doing it right now", she said triumph. Jim finally looked at her, "Okay, I blush. There I admit it. But it's only when I'm embarrassed", he said in annoyance. Barbara smirked, "Okay, now you say something nice", she said.
Jim thought of something, "One thing that I've noticed over the last few years is that you can adapt to any situation you find yourself in. No matter what it is, you're able to make it work to your advantage", he said. Barbara scoffed as she smiled, "I do, don't I?" She asked. Jim ignored the arrogance in her voice as he gave his head a slight nod. "Yeah, like when we were cut off from the mainland, you were able to keep your club running even though the city was in complete chaos", he said.
Barbara continued to smile as she looked at him, and that caused him to smile a little. "Your smile", she said. Jim stared at her in confusion, "What?" He asked. Barbara smirked, "I like your smile", she said.
Jim's smile widened a bit, "I...like the way your eyes light up when you're happy", he said as he looked at eyes. Barbara laughed a little, "You make me laugh", she said. Jim laughed a little too.
He thought again for a moment before a serious look crossed his face. His eyes shifted to the side. "Back when...we were...together. Whenever I had a hard case, you were there for me. I liked that, a lot", he said as he shifted his gaze towards her again.
A small smile crossed her face when he said that. "Really?" She asked. Jim nodded, "Yeah, I really appreciated it", he said.
Barbara smiled, "I think it's...amazing how you made Commissioner in such a few, short, years", she said. "I'm...glad that you managed to stay safe through the years", he said. "I loved the feel of being in your arms", she said. Jim raised an eyebrow at her, "Really?" He asked. Barbara stared at him, "What? I like the feel of your arms. It's not that special", she said.
Jim stared at her, and there was another pause. "I'm impressed that you managed to keep the gangs from fighting, all by yourself, and I never thanked you for that. So...thank you", he told her. Barbara shifted her gaze away from him, "You're welcome", she said. Jim smiled a little, "Okay, your turn", he said quietly.
Barbara thought back to when she had to keep the gangs from tearing each other apart, and she remembered what else happened that day too. It was the day that Jim had been shot. She remembered the blood, how still he looked on the ground, and how scared she'd been. Barbara looked at him, "I'm glad that you didn't die...after being shot", she said.
There was yet another long pause as they stared at each other. Finally Jim looked at her in the eyes. "You're a good mother", he said quietly. Barbara stared back at him in the eyes, "You're a good father", she said in the same tone.
Jim shifted his gaze from her as he coughed in his hand, "Okay...Well that was…", he said as he trailed off. Barbara looked at him, "Hard?" She asked. Jim smiled, "Y-Yeah", he said. Barbara smiled too, "At least we got it done", she said. Jim nodded in agreement.
Jim looked at her, "So...the next time we think about killing each other we should remember those things", he said. Barbara continued to smile, "Okay", she said as she chuckled a little. "Alright", Jim said as he too chuckled.
"So, what happens now?" She asked. A look of seriousness crossed Jim's face. "We need to set up some new ground rules", he said as he placed one of his hands on the top of the couch. "Okay", she said softly.
"First, you get IAB to back off of Harvey", Jim said. Barbara looked at him, "Okay", she said. Jim sighed, "The other thing, we have got to stop fighting the way we do, okay? I don't want Barbara Lee growing up around it", he said. "Neither do I", Barbara said in a quiet voice.
Jim looked at her, "The last thing is, we run everything, that has to do with Barbara Lee, by each other. Even if it's something small. No matter what we are still her parents, and we both deserve to know what is going on with her", he said. Barbara looked at him, "I agree", she said as she nodded her head.
Jim glared at her, "Okay, so I take it you'll make whatever calls you have to make to stop the investigation against Harvey?" He asked. Barbara nodded again, "Yeah,", she said quietly. Jim continued to glare at her, "Today?" He asked in an unsure voice. Barbara stared at him, "I'll make the call", she said as she pulled out her cell phone. Jim's facial expression softened as he stared at her, "Thank you", he said. Barbara looked at him, "You're welcome", she said. Jim nodded his head at her to show his gratitude then he walked out the door. Barbara watched him go.
Author Note- Well wasn't that a nice chapter? They managed to find common ground. Are you happy that they had a decent, and meaningful conversation? Did you expect them too? You can tell me what you think in the reviews, and thanks for reading.