After Linda asked me to her apartment, we parted ways to get our jackets and say our goodbyes. I said goodbye to the colonel and Bette and waited for Linda at the elevator. That was over half-an-hour ago. I'm leaning against the wall flipping my phone through my fingers. I want to call or text Maggie but since she didn't make the auction, I'm guessing she got caught up with this Intergang mess. I hear laughter and look up to see Linda walking down the hall, jacket hanging over her arm, and speaking to Dinah Lance. I slip my phone into my purse and try to listen in on what they're saying. Eavesdropping; bad habit, great for investigating.
"Alright, Dinah. I'll take you up on that offer," says Linda.
"Make sure Babs comes too."
"I will." Linda hugs Dinah. This is the first time I've seen her be affectionate to someone other than Barbara. Makes me wonder what kind of relationship she and Dinah Lance have. Maybe it was through Dinah, Linda was able to get connected with Oliver. Maybe it was through Barbara she got connected to Bruce. Dinah lets go of Linda first and heads in the direction of the ballroom. Linda watches her until she disappears around a corner then turns to me.
"So, you ready?" I refrain from making a sarcastic comment and nod. "Great." Linda hits the down button and we enter the elevator as soon as the doors open. She presses the button for the 15th floor.
Since the top five floors are lofts and large apartments, Linda and I need get out and go to another elevator that will take us to her floor. The ride down is quiet. It's not until it stops, and we get out that I say something.
"So, what were you and Dinah Lance talking about?" I notice the corner of Linda's mouth curl up.
"Nothing important, just talk of a girls' night out." We show two security guards out ID's; driver's license for me and press badge for Linda. Once we're out of earshot of them, I ask her another question.
"I didn't realize you were on friendly terms with her."
"Technically I was on friendly terms with Oliver Queen first, but that's another story for another night."
"Did, um, did Oliver Queen introduce you to Dinah?"
"No, Barbara introduced us a long time ago. Actually, I met Dinah a year before then, but it never amounted to anything until we found out we shared a best-friend."
"Barbara is Dinah Lance's best-friend?" Linda smiles and pushes the down button for the second elevator and her glasses up.
"Yep. Small world isn't it?" Small world, indeed. Once the elevator opens we step in and Linda hits the button for the 12th floor.
"How do you afford to live here?" Linda's eyebrows rise at my question.
"Being a little blunt, aren't we?"
I shift my feet and hug my coat closer to me. "Sorry, I was just curious."
Linda gives me this indifferent look, as if she's not sure what to make of me, and then answers. "A friend, and that's all you need to know."
Now she's acting like she did on the top floor, serious and closed-off. Makes me wonder if this is the real Linda Lee-Danvers and not the sweet and overly-friendly one I've been given the pleasure to know. I push my shoulder into the elevator wall and relax during the rest of the ride down. The elevator soon opens, and I follow Linda out. As we make the walk down the hallway, my heart picks up its pace. And once she puts that key in the door I feel it stop. It feels like I'm on the verge of a heart-attack. I've never been this nervous before, in fact I shouldn't be nervous at all but… but there is something about Linda that makes me nervous and yet very calm and safe. As soon as we enter her apartment, I let out a long whistle.
Linda smiles. "Like it huh?" I simply nod as I scan the apartment. "Yeah, it's okay. But I wouldn't call it home." I'm not paying attention to Linda because something isn't right. This isn't the apartment I saw her in earlier as Batwoman. Come to think of it, her apartment is supposed to be on tenth floor, not the twelfth. "Make yourself at home, Kate. I'm going to get changed into something more comfortable." I look at Linda, surprised by what she said, and start to feel nervous all over again. But then again, I shouldn't be. This is Linda we're talking about. She's probably going to change into her pajamas or a t-shirt and jeans.
I take this time alone to walk around and get a good look at her new apartment. The furniture is the same and the layout is similar, but the sitting room is bigger and the kitchen too. There is one thing that's new though, a dish cupboard sitting against the wall near the kitchen. There are picture frames on it, five to be exact. The one on the far left is a picture of her and Barbara standing in front of a diner called Beantasm. This was obviously before Barbara was shot by Joker.
The second picture is one of her in front of the Justice League Museum. From the banner in the background, it's obvious this was the opening of the Supergirl gala. The third picture is in the same location, but this time Jimmy Olsen and Lucy Lane are in the picture with her. The way Jimmy is looking at her and how his fingers are interlinked with hers indicates this was during the time they dated.
The fourth one is in front of a yellow house. Linda is standing with an older couple and a tall man with dark hair and glasses.
"This must be her parents and cousin," I say, thinking out loud. It must have been taken years ago because her face is chubbier, and her hair is shorter. The fifth picture is interesting. Linda is standing with a young man with ginger hair and a young girl with brunette hair.
"The ginger is Wally West and the girl was my friend Mary." I jump and spin around to face Linda. She's standing with her hands on her hips and her head titled to the right. I look Linda up and down and I'm a little relieved to see she's wearing a pair of Daisy Dukes that show off her legs nicely and a plane white t-shirt, but no shoes. It's the same thing she was wearing in the picture with her family. In fact, I think they're the exact same clothes. I guess she really hasn't changed that much since then, body-wise anyway.
"W-Was?" I hand Linda the picture frame, she places it back in its spot.
"She died from cancer three years ago."
"I'm sorry to hear that."
Linda gives me a sad smile and shrugs. "You can't change the past. You can only move forward."
"What about Wally?"
Linda turns around and walks into the kitchen. "Wally and I met on a run, so to speak, and sort of hit it off. We dated for a while."
"Was this before or after you dated Jimmy Olsen?" I say, following right behind her.
"After. Actually, to be honest we broke up the same time I came to Gotham."
"Wow, so not long ago."
Linda rummages through her fridge. "Nope, in fact it happened the same day we met in the coffee shop—by the way, do you like grilled cheese? 'Cause that's all I got." I laugh. "I'll take that as a yes." When Linda pulls out the cheese I get a look into her fridge. Other than a gallon of milk, her fridge is practically empty. Linda pulls out two plates from the cabinets and pops four slices of bread into the toaster. She turns to face me and leans against the counter with a smile then frowns. "Do you want something to change into? I'm sure you're ready to rip off that dress by now."
The smile on my face disappears as soon as the words leave Linda's lips. She notices and is about to say something when the toast pops up. She turns her attention to them. While making our sandwiches, she speaks with her back to me.
"If you go to the back of the apartment, you'll find my bedroom. There's a drawer on the far wall. The drawers in the middle are all t-shirts and the bottom two drawers are pajamas and shorts. Why don't you change out of that dress while I get our food ready?" I don't say anything. I just walk dutifully to the back of her apartment in search for more comfortable clothes.