(Author's notes: It's been a long time since I jumped back on this project. For a long time I've wanted to toy with the idea of Chelsea and Wally's story. So as I jump back into this journey and stroll down a new path, I just wanted to thank anyone that returned and decided to give this another read. The beginning of this chapter may seem very familiar, but there will be a point where it moves in another direction. At that point I will put the first line in bold so one can either start at the point of change or get a refresher by reading this from the beginning.)
It's been a while… but as Bob Dylan put it "These times they are a'changin'". Let me catch you up to speed. A lot of things have happened in the last six months since where we left off. First of all… the Thanagarians tried to take over the world. We felt pretty betrayed by Shayera, but honestly I don't think she was really at fault. It didn't matter though, because she put in her resignation and we haven't seen her since. When she left… she took a part of John with her. He still won't talk about it.
Other than that… The Watch Tower has otherwise expanded a bit, partially to the expansion of the league, and also because in destroying the Thanagarian's largest ship, Bruce decided the best course of action was a suicide mission of hurling himself and The Watch Tower onto Earth and crashing it into their ship. I was thankful Clark saved his life. After all, we had just started openly (yet secretly) seeing each other.
Yes, Bruce and I are a couple. Don't confuse that with the traditional sense of the word. We keep it pretty professional at The Watch Tower, and as expected Bruce is gone almost every night keeping watch over his city. I go with him from time to time… but I've been pretty hard at work starting my final semester at Gotham University and being the manager of Wayne Design. Once and a while I get to steal the man underneath the cape and cowl, but every now and then I find myself wishing he had more time (perhaps more than I'm willing to admit). Going into it, I knew this would be the kind of relationship we'd have if we became something more. So I spend quite a few of my nights alone, in my apartment, staring outside my window wondering where Batman is, sort of like I've always done.
I miss Wally.
Things between us haven't been the same since the original leaguers found out Bruce and I had made it official. Wally seemed to distance himself from me after that. No more Friday Night Movie Nights, video games, or 3rd lunches out somewhere that would give the average man a heart attack. We see each other in passing some times. On very rare occasion we get assigned a mission together, but it's only happened a couple of times. I hear from the other members he's found himself a lab job down in Central City and when he's not doing that, he's playing tag with Captain Cold, Captain Boomerang, or some other weirdo that is Central bred. Guess they haven't gotten the memo you can't play tag with Wally and expect to win. There is a hole in my life. Bruce is the man I love. But I miss my best friend.
Life around The Watch Tower has gotten pretty hectic. J'onn spends a lot of his time at the monitors, assigning groups to people and sending them off on missions. Usually one of us originals has to tag along with the new members and show them the ropes. Since technically I was the first addition to The Justice League the newbies tend to look up to me and come to me for advice. It's kind of strange. I've never been deemed a leader before.
It's strange how much has changed… when I look back on it… sometimes it doesn't feel real. Like at any moment I'm going to wake up, walk down the hall and into the meeting room, and there they'll all be; including Shayera. There will be an empty chair between Wally and Bruce where I sit. We'll sit around and listen to Clark talk about something or other. With a chime in from Diana, Bruce or whoever decides to speak that day. The alarm will sound and all eight of us will tackle the challenge of the day… together, as one.
I can't remember the last time I've gotten to work with all of the original seven at once.
Not only do I miss Wally… I miss my family.
Something tells me Clark would tell me, "Your family hasn't gone anywhere. Look at it as it has expanded. When you look at it like that… it's a positive thing." but in order to expand, we must stretch further and further apart. None of them feel within arms reach anymore. And when I think of it like that…
I miss my family.
We Are Limitless
It was early morning around The Watch Tower. In one of the newly added gyms, Chelsea was doing push ups on an exercise mat. She reached her limit and rolled over onto her back until the stars she was seeing would stop haunting her vision. She turned her head to take note of all of the other present members. Looking back to the ceiling she closed her eyes tightly, trying to make the throbbing in her head subside. When she opened her eyes, a man clad in gold and royal blue stood over her with wavy blond bangs hanging downward. He used his hand to pull back his hair, but his eyes were still concealed behind a pair of yellow shades. She smirked and held her hand up to him so he'd help her up, "How're you doing today, Michael?" it was the futuristic hero, Booster Gold, along with his little buddy Skeets.
"You remember my name?" he asked.
"Of course," she nodded, dusting herself off, "You're Booster Gold."
He flashed her a brilliant smile, "Starlight, right? You're as radiant as your name entails." finally someone hadn't called him Green Lantern.
"Down boy," she joked, grabbing a towel and draping it over shoulders, "Is there something you need?"
"Actually… I was hoping you could help me out…" he murmured, looking away shyly.
"They put you on crowd control again, didn't they?" she asked expectantly.
"How did you know?" he asked.
She felt sympathy for the man from the future. Though he was rather full of himself a great deal of the time, one on one he didn't seem so bad, "Tell ya what…" she put a hand on his shoulder, "next time I get permission to lead a group, I'll request you specifically. Sound good? And don't worry… there's no crowd control in my groups." she winked at him.
"Really?" he took her hand in his and kissed the back of it, "I could easily fall for you." he charmed.
She shook her head, "No need to suck up to try to get ahead. I'll try to help you out in whatever way I can." she started to walk away and held her hand up to wave to him.
"She's something, isn't she?" he wondered allowed.
"She's very kind, sir." agreed Skeets.
Green Arrow was lifting weights nearby and had heard the conversation. He decided to chime in, "I've heard through the grapevine she's seeing someone. Apparently he's quite intimidating. Choose your battles wisely."
Booster Gold looked at Skeets with a raised eyebrow, "Who?" he wondered.
Chelsea entered the cafeteria for some breakfast. She had plans to meet someone here. In a corner of the room sat the man she was looking for. She took a seat across from him and smiled, "Good morning."
Batman smiled only slightly, "What took you?" he questioned.
"Booster Gold wanted to pick my brain." she waved it off as she started eating some scrambled eggs that were on her tray.
Bruce wondered what that futuristic showboat was attempting to do now. He could only assume it was something underhanded to get ahead.
"Anyway…" Chelsea looked him over, "Are you… doing your usual tonight?" she knew the answer already.
He took a drink of his water and started to cut a piece off of his omelette. It started to occur to him the last time they had an evening together. It had been nearly a month. He was being rather neglectful. Sometimes it even amazed him how patient she was when it came to his struggle to show a softer side, "Unless you can convince me something more eventful could be happening." he looked up at her from his plate to see a semi-surprised expression flash across her face.
She leaned forward a bit, "Really?" she sounded almost relieved.
"I'll make some phone calls." he nodded. She covered her face, trying to hide the fact she was nearly in tears. She missed him so much more than he could realize. But when he caught onto her reaction, he felt a wave of guilt wash over him. Why hadn't he listened to Alfred when he had warned him time and time again that he needed to do better by her. He knew this arrangement would be complicated, but, "I'm sorry." he told her. He loved her, and there was nothing complicated about that, "I've been so caught up in conferences and Arkham's weak security systems leaking scum back on the streets I've…" he saw her eyes shining with water. He knew whatever he was about to say would fall short of what she needed to hear.
"You know I could help you with those things right?" she asked, "Maybe not in the business conference rooms, but certainly with the streets."
He knew. It was just different with her. With Dick, Barbara, or Tim… he was okay with the idea of them being beside him, because it was their choice. But with Chelsea, despite it being her choice, she had somewhat given him the power to choose whether she could come along or not, by asking permission. He knew sooner or later that would end. She was stubborn after all. So very stubborn. And what's more, he knew how much he meant to her. To spend time with him, any amount, meant more than all of the other moments without him, "I know." he said with a single head nod.
She wanted to reach across the table and hold his hand, but she knew better of it. They agreed it would be safest that the only way they could display their relationship to the public was when he was Bruce Wayne, and even then he did his best not to flaunt it. Kidnapping some billionaire's girlfriend for ransom money had Gotham thugs written all over it.
Bruce rose from the table and stared down at her, "I have a mission to lead with Superman. I apologize for running out on you so quickly. I'll make it up to you tonight. Come over. We'll have dinner."
She forced a smile and bobbed her head, "Can't wait." Her body ached the moment he disappeared out of the cafeteria. Their meeting was so brief. As had many of their meetings been the last few months. Being alone so much was starting to make her physically ill. She pushed her tray of food away and rested her head on the table.
As she rested there, there was a static sound in her earpiece before she heard J'onn's deep voice, "Starlight, report."
She pressed the button on her earpiece, "I'm here." she said quietly.
"I need you to take a mission from me. Are you busy?" he wondered.
"Be right there." she replied, "Hey J'onn… can I request my unit members for the mission?"
There was silence for a moment and then, "Certainly. Keep in mind a lot of ground will need to be covered. I can manage you and two other members. Who did you have in mind?"
Chelsea lifted her head and started to walk her tray over to the trash, "Booster Gold has shown a lot of promise lately… I would like to take him with me."
"Very well. Shall I put Wally on the team as well? I expected his name to be the first to come out of your mouth, considering the conditions." J'onn replied.
Wally. She hadn't seen Wally for some time. How would he act? Would it really be best to be together on a mission as a means of reunion?
"He's standing here with me. If you had someone else in mind it's-" J'onn told her.
She pressed her button hard, "Yes… send Wally. I need him." Never were truer words spoken.
J'onn's voice came over the loudspeaker, "Will the following members please proceed to the teleporter for a mission report: Booster Gold, and unit leaders: The Flash and Starlight." Chelsea started for the teleporter room. When she arrived, there stood Wally. When their eyes met, they both opened their mouths to speak when Booster Gold came busting in from behind Chelsea.
"Star! You are the best!" Booster Gold beamed, patting her on the head.
Wally looked at them both confused. Chelsea shook her head as if to say "don't ask." They all stepped onto the blue platform and were instantly teleported to a large city. J'onn spoke into all of their earpieces, "Someone reported a bomb threat somewhere in the city. We suspect there is two decoys and one legitimate. All must be destroyed to ensure the safety of the civilians. Try not to draw too much attention to avoid rioting."
"Got it," Chelsea replied.
"Skeets has a scanning mechanism," Booster Gold said pointing back at his little robot buddy, "I can input scans for any explosive compounds and when we're near one it will be found. Just give us a destination and we'll cover some ground."
"Then you will have the most important job Michael," she told him, "find the real bomb. Start north and work you way down. If you run into trouble call for help. Wally and I will start in the east and west and meet you down south… sound good?" she looked at Flash.
"Yes'm!" winked Booster Gold as he took flight and started northbound.
"Which way?" asked Wally.
Chelsea was fixated on Wally. It was like staring at a ghost. She wanted fling her arms around him and cry. She wanted to tell him how much she missed him. She had never seen such a neutral expression on his face before. He was always smiling before and now… "Why don't you quickly cover west and then meet me in the east and help me there." she said.
"Sure," he replied, he started to turn when he paused, "Why Booster Gold?"
"Huh?" she asked.
"I heard you ask for him specifically… why?" he wondered.
She lifted her shouldered and let it fall, "It was a favor. Everyone else he gets paired up with put him on crowd control. He's a lot more useful than that… I want to help him get his credibility up."
It was the first time in a long time she had seen Wally smile, "That's so like you." he murmured. He started to take off when she stopped him.
"I didn't hesitate." She replied.
"When?" he asked.
"When J'onn said you could come with me… I don't want you to think I didn't want you here. I wanted you here more than anybody. We never get to do missions together anymore." She told him.
His smile widened, "We're doing one now… sort of." he looked around as if to say they weren't focused on work.
"Yeah we better get moving." she nodded, "See you in a few."
Chelsea was still only about halfway through covering her section when Flash had come to her aid in the east, "I found one of the fakes." he reported.
"Nice!" Chelsea grinned. She put her finger on the call button in her ear, "How're we doing up there Michael?"
"Actually," he replied, "I have found the real bomb. I'm in the middle of dismantling it now."
"Awesome," Chelsea responded, "keep us updated. We just have one more decoy to find and then the mission will be accomplished."
"Well this is going smoothly." Wally said, putting his hands on his hips.
Chelsea hovered above him, "Yeah," she landed in front of him, "I'd say so."
"Say Chels…" Wally mumbled, rubbing the back of his head.
"Yeah?" she wondered.
"How're things going… with you I mean?" He asked, "I feel like it's been forever since we've last really spoken to each other…"
"I'm a little exhausted," she admitted, "I'm the head manager at Wayne Design, I have this, my last semester of college, and all the while I'm trying my best to see Bruce when I can."
"When you can?" he wondered.
"He's busy. He's always busy." Chelsea told him.
Wally tilted his head, "Are you… happy?"
Chelsea paused. She looked around them to see the giant buildings around them, "I knew going in things would be complicated being with Bruce. It's not like anything has changed with his life. It would be selfish for me to expect him to change his whole life because of me. Batman is who he is… it's his life."
"His life changed when you guys became a couple." Wally said, furrowing his eyebrows, "Chels, have you told him? I mean knowing Bats he probably doesn't realize he's doing it…"
"Doing what?" she asked.
"Making you feel overlooked." he answered.
Chelsea thought this over. How did Wally catch on so quickly that she was sad? She realized that despite Wally and her not spending time together, their bond had not faltered in the least. He could tell when she was in pain, "He's not the only reason I feel overlooked Wal." she looked him in the eyes. They had a brief exchange of a look, and she turned away, "Let's wrap this up. Despite his busy schedule I have a date tonight." she started to levitate once more.
"I'm finished," Booster Gold told Chelsea, "Where to next?"
"Check south side for me please." Chelsea told him.
Wally pressed his call button, "Boost, head over to the east. I checked south on my way over here. It's somewhere east. Regroup with us."
Chelsea turned back to Wally with a confused look, "Why didn't you tell me that?"
He shrugged, "I wanted to see that look."
She stared at him dumbfounded then shook her head and smiled. She wanted to get to work, but instead she landed once more and looked at him for a moment, "What keeps you so busy you never come over anymore?" she wondered.
It was his turn to look surprised, "Central has been kind of crazy lately."
"Got a girlfriend?" she wondered.
"No," he shook his head, "nothing like that."
And that's when it hit Chelsea. After all this time. He still wasn't over her. She shook her head, "You should come over some time. We'll get take out or something and watch a movie. Or play some video games. I miss that." she wanted to say I miss you, but couldn't bring herself to do it. She was afraid it would make her break down and cry.
"You're right." he nodded, "I should. I miss that too."
They exchanged a smile, then hers curved into a smirk, "Betcha I can find the last decoy before you." Like that she shot up into the air like a rocket.
"We'll see about that!" he called out to her, running like he had a newfound burst of energy.
After they had completed their mission, Martian Manhunter started to teleport them back to The Watch Tower, "Leave me J'onn," Chelsea told him, "I need to fly back home anyway and it's not too far from here." She turned to Wally and Michael, "Great job guys. I'll see you both later. Remember what I said Wal."
Wally and Booster Gold disappeared, and reappeared back at The Watch Tower, "I like her." Booster Gold told Skeets, "She's a real babe… no wonder she's not single."
Wally heard Booster Gold's comment and looked at him for a moment before walking off. He couldn't really blame the guy. He had felt the same way for a long time.
At the Wayne estate Chelsea was quickly stumbling through the mansion trying to get beautified for Bruce. She had spent about an hour on her hair and make up to look her very best. She even wore the dress she wore on their first date. She tripped on her way into the kitchen fumbling a heel onto her foot, "How do I look Alfred?" she wondered.
He turned to the young woman and smiled genuinely, "Absolutely beautiful Miss." he was putting the finishing touches on their dinner. Chelsea skipped to the dining room table and took a seat to contain her overjoyed jitters. She wasn't sure why she was so excited. It just felt like forever since she got to really spend time with Bruce. With everyone feeling like they were out of reach, being able to spend an evening with him would certainly make a difference on her mood. As Alfred was dressing the table she started to assist him when she heard crackling through her earpiece. Bruce spoke to her on a private line, "Chelsea, are you there?"
Chelsea clutched her ear, "Yep. We're about set here. Are you on your way?" Silence came over the speaker. Chelsea turned to Alfred with worry.
"I'm sorry…" Bruce murmured back to her, "Joker got out… he's made a real mess of things… I-"
Chelsea froze and reached up to undo her hair, "Do you need some backup?" she asked quietly.
"I'll handle this one. Nightwing and Batgirl are already on their way." she heard him take a deep breath, "I hope you didn't go through a lot of trouble."
She looked up at Alfred, trying to keep her tone steady, "No… I'm actually in pajamas," she looked down at her dress and heels, "I was just going to eat with you and watch some Grey Ghost… a cozy night in." Alfred looked at her sympathetically.
"Promise me we can still do that." he sounded so guilty.
"Of course." she replied, trying not to let her voice tremble.
"I've got to go. You can stay the night. If and when I get home I'll crawl into bed with you." he told her, "Batman out."
Her hand fell from her ear as she looked up at Alfred once more. Slowly she fell back onto her dining chair and forced a smile, "We can still have dinner."
"Miss, you don't have to-" Alfred started to protest.
"Please," she begged as tears slid down her cheeks, "please have dinner with me. If I have to eat one more meal alone I'm-"
The door swung open revealing young Tim Drake, the current Robin. He took note of Chelsea's expression. Tilting his head he sighed, "He bailed again, didn't he?"
"Young Master Tim… Miss Chelsea and I were just about to sit down and have some dinner… please, join us." Alfred said, making light of the situation as he turned to check his cooking in the kitchen.
Tim approached Chelsea with a sad expression. She was like the big sister he never had. He had never seen her look so defeated, "What was it this time?" he asked, pulling out a seat and sitting down next to her.
"The Joker…" Chelsea growled.
"And he didn't invite me? What a jerk!" Tim huffed, crossing his arms.
"Apparently Nightwing and Batgirl were already on their way. They must have been there to cover for him tonight… won't they be surprised." She said flatly.
"Hey…" Tim said softly, "are you going to be okay?"
Chelsea took a deep breath, "Yeah… I will be…"
It was a long ascension up what seemed to be a never-ending staircase. Her eyes were clouded and heavy. The curls in her hair had begun to slump from the rain. Her heels made a defined clunking sound with every step.
"...and all the while I'm trying my best to see Bruce when I can."
"When you can?" he wondered.
"He's busy. He's always busy." Chelsea told him.
Wally tilted his head, "Are you… happy?"
Chelsea paused. She looked around them to see the giant buildings around them, "I knew going in things would be complicated being with Bruce. It's not like anything has changed with his life. It would be selfish for me to expect him to change his whole life because of me. Batman is who he is… it's his life."
"His life changed when you guys became a couple."
She had never been to his new apartment before. Would he even be home?
Apartment 34
She rapped her knuckles against the door, pausing and listening to see if she heard any movement. She rolled her lips inward, her tongue wetting them.
There was no reply.
She pressed her head against the door and sighed. Her eyes stared down at her toes peeking out through her shoes.
"Chels?" a voice asked
She turned to see Wally standing there in the middle of the hallway with a light jacket on and a brown paper bag in his hand. He looked her up and down. Clearly she was a bit damp from the rain. Her eyes were glistening. She had been crying. She did her best to give him the best smile she could muster, but her sad eyes gave her away.
"Are you alright?" the ginger speedster wondered approaching her with caution. She had an air of frailty about her. Like her body was a jenga puzzle and she was trying to hold herself together without toppling over.
She bobbed her head, "It's good to see you." she said with relief, "I hope I'm not interrupting anything." she gestured toward the bag.
He exhaled through his nostrils in amusement, "I was out grabbing dinner." He unlocked his door and pushed it open, allowing her entry and then closing the door behind them. She looked around the apartment, examining the set up. There was a dining table to one's left adjacent to a counter that housed a microwave and toaster. An oven was beside that with another counter and the fridge stood guard by the door. Of course Wally wanted quick access to his fridge whenever he came home. Beyond the small kitchen was a living room. A television was against the wall with a couple of lazy boy chairs facing it. Off to the right was a long couch to lounge on with the bathroom close by. On either side of the tv were two bedrooms. It was small, cozy, and simple. It seemed to fit Wally. He never needed to overcomplicate things.
"It suits you." she said finally. She moved forward to sit down in one of the swivelling lazy boy chairs. She turned it toward Wally as he unpacked the bag of goodies on the kitchen counter.
"I moved in about five months ago. Right after the expansion of the Watch Tower." he removed sub sandwiches from the bag, "I got plenty of extra if you're hungry."
"I ate earlier." she confirmed, "Thank you though."
He moved to the fridge and gripped a couple bottles of water with his one hand. In the other he had three subs. Kicking the fridge closed with his leg, he sat down across from his best friend and offered her one of the water bottles. Unraveling the first sandwich from the wrapping paper he took a big bite, chewed, and swallowed, "You want to talk about it?" he wondered.
"About what?" she asked.
"You had a date tonight, right?" he pointed out, his mouth full of food, "Shouldn't you be with Bats?"
She tucked her hair behind her ear, staring at the floor without blinking.
"Chels?" he asked, leaning forward with concern.
She exhaled deeply through her nose and looked up at him. Her eyes were far and searching, "We broke up instead." she said simply.
Wally nearly choked on his next bite. Setting down the sandwich, which was something Wally never did during a meal, he quickly sat on the edge of his seat, "What?"
She licked her lips, never breaking eye contact, "I'm sorry. I know we haven't really seen each other in months, but I…" her voice trailed off, "You're my best friend. I didn't know where else to go." she put her hands together and lowered her head, pressing them to her forehead. A deep sigh escaped her lips.
"What happened?" he was still in shock. Surely, there was some mistake.
"Do you know that I saw him more before we started dating, than I have seen him collectively in the last six months?" she said, running her index finger around the bottle cap. She swallowed, "What you said to me earlier today… you knew that I was unhappy. You caught onto it almost immediately. I'd been trying to bury that feeling, but I've spent so much time on my own lately that tonight finally got myself to admit that I have been unhappy for... a long time."
She removed the cap and took a sip of the water, collecting her thoughts. Wally watched her movements carefully, "It was probably cowardly… insensitive… to leave him a video message on his computer, but if he can't ever find the time for me, how am I ever supposed to do it face to face?" she shook her head with irritation, "I guess I acted on anger…" she got lost in thought.
Down the long descension of steps she trotted. Her heart was thump thumping in her chest. The clunking of her heels echoed off the cave walls as she approached the large computer monitor. She sat down in the oversized leather chair, finding the computer's recording mechanism. She paused, pressed record, and stared into the camera.
Please don't see
Just a boy caught up in dreams and fantasies
Wally sunk down to the floor and knelt in front of her, taking a hold of her free hand. It was trembling, "Come on, it's you and Bats. Relationships are guaranteed to get rocky, but you guys will figure it out."
She gripped his hand gently, "That only works if we both want to work on it." she set the bottle down on the coffee table beside her, "And I'm not sure I do anymore."
Please see me
Reaching out for someone I can't see
"I thought I could do this." she started, the red record button flashing on the screen, "I told myself it wouldn't be a big deal." she shuffled in the big leather chair, shifting her weight, "A lot has changed in the last few months." It was almost like she was giving herself a pep talk, "I spent a lot of time on my own. My whole life. Wandering aimless, without a family. I had only myself to use as a crutch. I found refuge with a band of misfits I would eventually call my family… but even we barely talk anymore. Slowly, I found myself back where I started." She gave a long hard look into the camera. Her eyes were shining, "And all my life, I called you home." she was speaking to Bruce.
I'll be damned, Cupid's demanding back his arrow
So let's get drunk on our tears
She made eye contact with Wally, her hand continuing to tremble in his, "I don't want to anymore." she confirmed.
Wally was surprised by this. She was in pain. He knew he contributed to it somehow. That if he had just stayed by her side, maybe she wouldn't have this air of loneliness wrapped around her like a heavy blanket. He stood up straight on his knees and latched onto her with an embrace, "I'm sorry, Chelsea. I'm sorry." he repeated in a whisper. He was sorry for the distance, not only from himself, but from Bruce as well.
But are we all lost stars trying to light up the dark?
She straightened her posture and continued to speak into the monitor, "I don't feel like I have a home anymore. I don't feel like I have anything." She swallowed the lump in her throat, "I shouldn't feel this way. And I don't want to anymore. I've spent so much time thinking about your life, that I've been denying myself the thought of my own. I thought I could do this. Thought I could sit up every night and wonder where you are. Wonder if you're safe. Keep myself company." she shook her head, "But I can't."
She listened to Wally's hushed apologies and rested her head against his, hugging him gently, "I held back telling you what I really wanted to say earlier, Wally." she told him, "I wanted to tell you that I miss you. I miss our Friday nights. I miss our meals. I miss my best friend. I miss you." she repeated.
But don't you dare let our best memories bring you sorrow
Yesterday I saw a lion kiss a deer
"I'm sorry." she said with a blank stare, "I love you. I've always loved you, Bruce." she tilted her head, her eyes shimmering more intensely than before, fighting back tears, "I always will." she confirmed, "But I realize now that… sometimes we fight for something, we want something so badly, and no matter how much we love," she breathed, "sometimes love alone isn't enough." she rubbed her neck, trying to comfort herself, "I'm not strong enough to do this anymore. Maybe I never was. Maybe you knew that all along." she lifted her shoulder and let it fall, shaking her head slightly, "But I need to move on." she nodded, looking down and breaking eye contact from the screen for the first time during the whole recording, "I would have rather told you this in person, but seeing as we continue to keep missing each other, it was something I needed to do now, before I talked myself out of it." It seemed as if she had talked herself out of it before by the tone of her voice.
Wally ran his fingers through her damp hair, "Anything you need, Chels. If you need to talk. If you need a place to stay…" their green eyes were twisting like currents against each other, "I'm here. Whatever you need. Okay?"
She nodded slowly, "Thank you." she murmured.
Turn the page, maybe we'll find a brand new ending
Where we're dancing in our tears
She stared quietly into the monitor for a good long while. Swallowing the lump in her throat once more she placed her index finger and middle finger against her lips and turned them toward the screen, signalling a kiss, before turning off the recording.
The moment the screen went black she covered her face with her hands. Her whimpers started off gentle and silent, before turning into violent sobs and a running nose. Her hair matted to her face as she kept wiping her nose with the back of her hand and rolling her eyes to try to seize the tears. Running her fingers through her hair in between bursts of tears she continued to sob and whimper. Her eyes burned red in contrast to her green irises. Tears pooled onto the desk as she shook uncontrollably.
And I thought I saw you out there crying
And I thought I heard you call my name
And I thought I heard you out there crying
Just the same
Wally always knew just what to say, "You're home now."
She cracked a smile. Rubbing her hands up and down her knee nervously she started laughing before clasping him into another embrace. They began to rock back and forth slowly. The swaying motion gave her comfort.
Spreading his fingers across the desk, a couple of drops hit his hands, feeling the cold wet feeling under his fingertips of her tears before. With each word he could feel the heaviness in his chest growing. Leaning back in his seat, he laced his fingers together and clasped them over his lips. His blue eyes shined and closed tightly closed. Running his fingers through his raven black hair, his eyes fixated on the cowl that was tossed on the desk beside him. He was listening to every word. Hearing every pause for breath. He could read her so well. It wasn't an easy read. His eyes looked up to watch her signal a kiss and when the screen went blank, he pushed his fingers against his eyelids.
But are we all lost stars trying to light ... light up the dark?
(Author's Notes: The words in bold/italics are lyrics to a song called Lost Stars, performed by Adam Levine. It felt like a fitting break up song for Bruce and Chelsea. Give it a listen to get a feel for the overall tone of this chapter. Chelsea always did seem to be the star to light up the dark i.e. Bruce. I don't know if anyone is interested to see this path, but if you are please let me know. I have some interesting concepts I would like to tackle. Stuff such as Selina Kyle having a role in Bruce's life and twisting some previous occurrences and making them something new. I wanted to get back into writing and I figured one of the best ways was to go back to something that feels familiar and I'm comfortable with. Thank you everyone!)
