Chapter 31: The Day After

The next day it was a given that all of Gotham was ablaze with the news on Bruce Wayne's marriage proposal and the acceptance of it by the mysterious Silvia Nixx. It was safe to say that fuel was added to the fire when everyone could tell that Wayne's new fiance' was pregnant. The tabloids were littered with headlines such as "Bruce Wayne Forced to Marry Baby Mamma." "Silvia Nixx: Gotham's Premiere Gold-Digger." Bruce did his best the block the media's prying eyes from his estate. Harley was already on edge as is, going through one of her many new and angry mood swings due to the pregnancy, and accidentally coming across the tabloids with their less-than-flattering articles on her. Bruce earlier in the day had walked into the mansion foyer to find a pissed-off Harley shredding the just-delivered by mail magazines into tiny bits. Alfred face dropped as he came upon the destruction that he was destined to clean up for at least 30 minutes.

They had talked it over last night that this was going to happen, but it still seemed like Harley wasn't one to turn the other cheek. If Bruce was not with her, he was worried that she would break out of the mansion and burn the buildings that housed the tabloid staff to the ground. Having a highly trained and acrobatic pregnant woman going through mood swings was something Bruce had never planned for. He almost wished the bat-signal would appear in the sky, until he realized it was daytime.

"How could they say I'm a gold-digger?!"Harley yelled, fuming, "So no girl can fall in love and marry Gotham's Hunky Bachelor without wanting what's in his pockets!?"

"I always assumed you just wanted something else that was in my pants besides money." Bruce teased, preparing himself for the possibility that the joke would send the already stressed-out Harley over the edge.

However the out-of-left-field comment had the opposite reaction. For a second Harley's angered expression stayed on her face, before her lips started to quiver and her cheeks inflated. She tried her best to hold her angry face, but it finally gave way and she burst out in laughter, holding her extended belly.

"That wasn't fair I wanted to stay mad!" Harley said, trying her best to frown in-between her fit of giggles.

"Don't let them get to you Harley." Bruce replied, smiling, "In this modern age no one reads magazines and newspapers anyway."

"...I bet it's all over the internet too then." Harley said, pouting a bit.

"Maybe. But anything about you is probably drowned out by the millions of cat videos on there." Bruce retorted, causing Harley once more to laugh, albeit much more softly.

"Kitties are the best." Harley said, grinning a bit.

They decided it was best to ignore the horde of reporters aside the mansion gates and just spend the day inside, enjoying each other's company and relaxing. The pair spent their time working on their wedding plans, watching horrible movies on Netflix( the streaming service was swarming with them), and eating the supply of junk food from the kitchen.

Harley still had trouble imagining Batman, The Dark Knight himself, eating junk food and watching Netflix, much less seeing it in person. She grinned to herself, knowing that it was thanks to her that Bruce has started to enjoy life once more and actually smile. She had somehow managed to get past his defenses he had built up for years, and he was fine with showing this side of him to her. They were more of a match than she thought they were. And soon, the two of them would be married with two beautiful children to welcome into their life. Harley gazed up at Bruce's relaxed face as he stared at the television screen. She was leaning against him, resting her head on his shoulder as the two were snuggled together on the couch. Harley reached up and cupped Bruce's cheek in her hand, causing him to turn his attention away from the TV and to her. She leaned up and gently kissed his lips, and Bruce was than happy to respond to it. The kiss lasted for a few seconds before Harley pulled away and cuddled back up against him, wrapping her arms around his.

"What was that for?" Bruce asked, placing a kiss on the top of her head, "Not that I'm complaining about it mind you."

"Do I need a reason to kiss my future husband?" Harley answered, winking at him.

Bruce chuckled a bit at that, "I suppose you don't."

For awhile the two sat in silence, watching the movie that was playing. Harley could feel Bruce's hand trail up and down her leg gently, which felt pleasant and oddly arousing. She chalked it up once more to her pregnancy hormones. After all, she was too far along for that kind of fun anyway, much to her growing annoyance. She clasped her hand into his, stopping him from his tender rubbing and hopefully allowing her to cool down quicker. She decided to try to get her mind out of the gutter by trying to distract herself with a question she had been meaning to bring up with Bruce all day.

"Hey Bruce..."Harley started, waiting for him to give her is attention once more.

"Yes?"Bruce replied, turning to face her.

"I want to Waylon, Red, Edward, and Crane to come to our wedding. They are my friends and were the only family I had while in Arkham." Harley explained, "Is that ok with you?"

She knew what that question entailed. Bruce had already stated he wanted the Justice League members to come to their wedding. Heck, Superman himself was going to be one of Bruce's groomsmen. While the two planned to have a simple public wedding to sate the hunger of the media, their real wedding would be as who the two really were, Batman and Harley Quinn, not Silvia Nixx and the playboy Bruce Wayne. However, if Harley's friends were to come to their true wedding, that would mean revealing Batman's true identity to them, something that Bruce had always been wary about.

For a minute Bruce said nothing, deep in thought on the possible ramifications of what Harley was asking. Finally he replied, "Do you think we can trust them?"

"Yes."Harley answered with no hesitation whatsoever, "They have redeemed themselves and I honestly believe with all my heart that they are reformed and will not betray our trust."

"Alright then."Bruce stated simply, "I'll call them together at the base and will reveal myself to them. And then you can give them their wedding invitations you have been working on."

At that Harley's eyes grew wide, "Uhm...yeah. I should probably go get them and set them out for tomorrow."

She got up from the couch and away from Bruce's warm body and made her way out of the living room. She stopped when Bruce called out to her, "You forgot to do them didn't you?"

"How did you-!? Uhm...no!"Harley yelled back, catching herself from revealing that she had forgotten about them.

"World's Greatest Detective here honey." Bruce called back to her, "Besides, you're kinda an open book."

At that Harley sighed in defeat, "Yeah I know. Red always tells me my poker face sucks."

Bruce got up off the couch as well, coming to stand beside her. He wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her closer and kissing her cheek, "Come on, I'll help you with them. After all, we're a team."

"In more ways than one that's for sure."Harley said as the two went to get the invitations, referring to their secret crime-fighting life.

Author's Note: Thanks so much for all the wonderful comments! I find it funny that everyone thinks the last chapter was the end, even though I admit it would have been a great way to have ended it. However, I have much more planned for Bruce and Harley and this story will be at least 60 chapters, possibly more. Thank you all once again for your support!