"You and Bruce Wayne?! No way!" shrieked Julia the next day. "Tell me all about it!"
"There's nothing to tell," sighed Harley, who had already regretted telling her anything. "He walked me back, and then he kissed me, and then he gave me his card and told me to call him sometime."
"And you're gonna, right?" demanded Julia.
"I dunno," said Harley, shrugging. "He ain't really my type."
"Why? Cause he's rich and gorgeous rather than old and dirty?" demanded Julia.
"Jack's not old or dirty…" began Harley.
"C'mon, Harley, are you crazy?" interrupted Julia. "Bruce Wayne is the richest, most handsome, most eligible bachelor in Gotham! If you could hook him, you'd be set for life! He'd take you on yachts and cruises all over the world, and to parties with movie stars and celebrities! He'd buy you expensive jewelry and shoes and dresses! It's every girl's dream!"
"It's never been my dream, Julia," replied Harley. "I've always been content with my modest upbringing, and I've never wanted more than that. Or different types of people from the ones I grew up with…"
"You need to dream a little bigger, Harley!" laughed Julia. "God, if Bruce Wayne had kissed me, I'd have invited him to bed then and there! You are so lucky! Your first kiss was from a billionaire! And if you don't call him, I'll do it for you!"
Harley sighed. "Ok, Julia, I'll call him. But the kiss really wasn't that great…"
Her phone rang at the moment, and Julia squealed. "Maybe that's Bruce now!" she cried.
"I didn't give him my number," she retorted. "It's my parents. Hello?" she said, answering it.
"Harley, baby, how are you doing?" asked her mother.
"I'm good, Mom," said Harley, heading into her room.
"You having fun?" she asked.
"Yeah," agreed Harley. "Working hard too, though. I got an A+ on my psychology paper, and Professor Crane wants me to send it off to a psychiatric journal. He says it's groundbreaking for a freshman."
"That's great news, baby!" said Mrs. Quinzel. "But not surprising – you were always a super student."
"Thanks, Mom," said Harley, smiling. "How's everyone at home?"
"Same as always," replied Mrs. Quinzel. "Your father's at work. He's made a huge sale this week that he's pretty happy about – he says it's been his most profitable month ever."
"That's amazing!" said Harley. "And…how's Jack?" she asked, hoping her tone sounded casual.
"He really misses you," said Mrs. Quinzel. "Your father says it's like someone took his smile away. He works harder than ever, but he just doesn't look happy."
"Well, tell him…I miss him too," stammered Harley. "But I'm sure it's not me he's depressed about."
"Well, he's been acting kinda funny ever since you left," said Mrs. Quinzel. "Your father says he gets really edgy when he comes and goes from work. Like he's afraid of being watched or something. But he says everything's fine, so there's not much we can do. Your father says he's also spending a lot more time at the shooting range, but maybe a hobby helps him get his mind off whatever's bothering him."
"Yeah," agreed Harley. "Maybe."
"Anyway, baby, the reason I called is that your father says since he's had such a profitable month, and since your birthday is coming up in a few weeks, he wants to do something really special for your big 20th. So he's hired out this nice, function room downtown and a band for a big party! You can invite all your friends from college, and any of the ones from high school that are still around."
"And Jack should come too," said Harley, hastily.
"Sure, if you want," said Mrs. Quinzel. "I'm sure he'd be happy to."
"Thanks, Mom, that'll be great!" exclaimed Harley. "I'll get a new dress, and my hair and nails and makeup done…"
"Is this my daughter?" laughed Mrs. Quinzel. "When did you ever care about dolling yourself up?"
"Well…I'm gonna be twenty," said Harley, shrugging. "I can play grown up for a night, can't I?"
"I guess," sighed Mrs. Quinzel. "Hard for me to think about my baby girl all grown up, though."
"Well, I am, Mom," said Harley. And she was going to show Jack that she was too, she thought. If she could impress him at the party as a grownup, maybe he would change his mind about this girlfriend of his. Maybe he would see her finally as a woman, a grown woman, who loved him madly…
"You should invite Bruce," said Julia after Harley had hung up and told Julia about the party.
"Oh. I dunno, Julia – it would be awkward if he wanted to come as my date or something," said Harley.
"Well, don't invite him as a date, silly," said Julia, rolling her eyes. "That's how you keep him keen! Devote your attention to all the guys there equally, so he'll be desperate to get you all to himself! That's how you get a guy to commit – make him jealous!"
Harley hesitated. "Is that really how you get a guy to commit?" she asked quietly, thinking of Jack.
"Trust me," said Julia, nodding. "It works every time."
Harley nodded slowly. "Ok, then," she said, picking up her phone. "I'll give Bruce a call."