AN: I'm back!
"Yeah, I'm gonna see if I can get in and out without him noticing. No, It's not that I don't want to see him it's more like," I pause, "I don't want to deal with him, ya know? Anyway, I've got to go, I'm parking now. No, not in the driveway, duh. What do you take me for? I'll see ya when I get back." I finish with a chuckle.
I snap my flip phone closed and sigh. Let's get this over with. I cut the engine of the car and climb out quietly, shutting the door as silently as possible. He should be asleep by now, right? I check my phone before dropping it into my pocket. 2:30am. Yeah, he's dead to the world at this hour.
I tiptoe down concrete steps and up the single step to the front door. I slowly slide my key into the lock. It crunches loudly and slams the deadbolt back with a bang. I frown at the commotion and carefully move the door on its hinges. I enter through the door and tread onto the carpet with silence kept with ease.
I squint around the dark house for the first time in almost a year. I have to admit, I missed it. I enter my high school bedroom and begin gathering the clothes I came for, peering around my memories. I'm shocked to see it hasn't changed at all- right down to the half smoked cigarette in the windowsill. I smile lightly. I remember bitching out my dad about smoking, then not being able to finish the damn thing. That was an argument for the ages. It was actually one of the big fights that led me to move out on my 18th birthday, just like any angsty teen should.
That man put up with so much from me, especially after mom. The scar on my heart throbs painfully when I think of her. When she died, my heart was torn apart, but I was able to stitch it up over the years. I don't think Dad ever managed the same.
Maybe I will say hi to him after all. It's late, but I'm suddenly struck with the intense need to see him. Jesus, I love him so much. I want to apologize and hug him. I'll have to wake him up; I hope he doesn't mind too much.
I abandon my quiet steps and stride to his bedroom. I knock tentatively and wait. Nothing. I just realized how scary the situation might be to him; a stranger knocking on his bedroom door in the middle of the night. I chuckle for not seeing it earlier.
"Dad?" I call, knocking louder, "It's me. I'm coming in." I declare, hoping he was dressed enough not to scar me for life. The room is empty. Confused, I yell his name with reckless abandon.
Nothing.
The house is dead silent except for my voice being swallowed in the darkness. My heart is suddenly beating a bit harder while I search the house. Is he even here? I wonder if he's at someone's place or something. I approach the garage entrance to check for his car.
The garage door is closed and dim moonlight shining through the door's small, narrow windows. It must be almost a new moon. I cautiously pad across the cold concrete ground. My breaths come out in little huffs as I feel around blindly, waiting for my hands to come in contact with a smooth car's hood. Though I'm expecting it, I nearly jump out of my skin when I find Dad's old station wagon. I pause, my hands resting on it's cool surface. He's definitely home, but where?
"Dad?" I try again, only to find my voice shaking and hushed. That's it-I need some light or I'm gonna scream. I feel my way around the car; I think there's a flashlight in the glove box. Even just the car's interior lights will be enough to keep me sane right now. I reach the side mirror and scream. I stumble back several paces, nerves shot and heart leaping. A metal wrench clatters under my feet. I kick it away, clutching my gut and swallow. I just felt something. I shakily return to find whatever it was.
With my sight disabled, I let my other senses take over. My fingertips graze through the air as I move forward until they come in contact with- what is this? My fingers immediately jump back. It's warm. I lightly slide down the length of the thing. I know what it is, but my brain switches off. I'm holding his chilled fingers in my trembling hand. My eyes burn and my chest and stomach heave. Hot rails wet my cheeks and grief forces me to my knees, but my hand refuses to let go.
I look through a skinny rectangle of the garage window into the night sky. A sliver of silver light blurs; what a pathetic moon, perfect to shine on this pathetic girl. The seams on my heart burst.
"Hey, wake up." I hear a voice say, jiggling my shoulders. As my usual reaction to being awoken, I groan and push into the warmth of my bed. Actually, it's surprisingly cold for my bed and not comfortable. My eyes snap open at the realization that took me half a second longer to reach than I would have prefered. I easily evacuate the Joker's hold.
I feel incredibly stupid. I hate this feeling. How could I have let myself fall asleep? I hate the feeling of a pounding heart in my chest. Why hasn't he killed me? I hate this. Stupid, stupid, stupid. Stupid feelings that I don't understand; I need a drink. I rub my eyes
"I wasn't asleep."
"You were snoring. You move a bit in your sleep, ya know." he informs me.
"Shut up. I need to go home." I say, crankily pulling off one of my shoes by the heel.
"Wow, you're grumpy. I'm betting you're not a morning person."
"Look, Joker, kill me or take me home; I'm not up for whatever super fun whatever-"
The Joker laughs. "Well look at you," I hear the grin in his voice, "You've got a really good handle on yourself right now." he observes.
I groan and smack the blunt end of my shoe to his chest, gently he pulls it from my hand laughing.
"Sharper than a tac, you are. Open your eyes." he says, resting a hand on my shoulder and spinning me around; I can feel the heat of his palm bleeding through the jacket draped on my shoulders. I'm face to face with the door to my apartment. He took me home?
That's it; I stamp my foot and whip around. I face the Joker with folded arms, leaning my weight on the foot with the remaining shoe to give myself a little height advantage; my naked foot and chilly toes dangles above the ground. He's still got a couple inches on me, but this is the best I can do.
"Why did you take me home."
He looks confused and says "Isn't that what you were whining about?"
I groan and keep my power pose.
"Women." he says exasperated, throwing his arms up in defeat.
"I'm done with this-" I point between the two of us, "I want you to kill me right now, or promise you leave me alone. I don't want to be scared, waiting around for you to show up, or not show up. I mean, you already know where I live. Ever since we met… I don't know…" I trail off, too embarrassed to admit exactly how often he's been on my mind, "I just want my life back." I finish, not as powerfully as I would have liked, my last word caught on a yawn. The Joker takes a step forward, sneering down at me.
"How many times does tonight make it? Five? By chance, we have met five times in this big wide city of Gotham. That doesn't strike you as odd?" he asks confidently.
"No." I answer bluntly, "And," I add in my head quickly, "it's only been four times. Three, actually, because this last one doesn't count. Half the city was there. "
"They do say 'The Third Time's The Charm', don't they?"
I sigh and surrender to the painful shoe, reluctantly losing my extra six inches.
"Fine, fine, fine." the Joker says, waving his hands, "How about this. We meet one more time, without looking for each other, then you agree it's fate." he proposed, lightly tapping the hat I forgot I was wearing to fall over my eyes.
"What does that mean?" I ask, tilting it up.
The Joker sighs and looks away reflectively with his hands in his pockets. "I guess we'll wait and see."
"You really think so?"
He doesn't answer, but turns to leave. I don't have any interest in stopping him. I grab the handle of my apartment door when his voice stops me.
"The fourth time we met," he starts and I turn to see him standing a couple yards away, "You were rooting around a dumpster like a rat." he smiles and walks away, leaving me to stand with my jaw on the ground. My face steadily warms when I remember the face I saw through eyes of the masquerade rat mask. Great, I laugh quietly, for a minute there I thought I could get away with making a total fool of myself. I enter my building, leaving my shoes behind. I can't wait to get out of this dress and into bed. I disrobe and snuggle under thick blankets. Breath a relaxed sigh for the first time in awhile and fall asleep with fleeting thoughts of the evening.
I'm not totally surprised that he's a good kisser.
Thank you for reading! Please review I hope you enjoy!
