I said this was a oneshot, but I lied.
Lmao, aside from that, last chapter ended pretty abruptly and I was kind of sad that Joker and Alice didn't interact as much as I wanted, not only that there wasn't much to him plaguing her life and what not.
Anyhow, enjoy!
-.-
Alice shot up from her bed with a loud cry of desperation.
The sound was short lived as she quickly came to realize that she was in a calmer environment.
Lowly, the hum of the central air conditioner droned overhead, sending in waves of cool air within her large and dark room.
Moving a hand to her chest, the brunette found her breathing to be incredibly heavy and her body still suffering from an overbearing intensity that had her feeling the slightest bit light headed. Her eyelids dulled considerably while her gaze remained down at her lap that was still draped over by her dove grey colored sheets.
A dream…
It had all been a dream.
Her heartbeat progressively began to slow down and the teen allowed one of her hands to extend to the side of her head.
She could feel herself threatening to become embarrassed due to the fact that she literally screamed herself out of her slumber, but it quickly subsided when she came to remember that she was in her room and in her home. With the way the Sun's friendly yellow rays were creeping inside of her room from her curtain covered windows, it had to be at least nine am and her father had definitely left for work long ago, so she didn't have to worry about explaining a nightmare to anyone.
Alice brought one of her hands over to rub the remaining bits of sleepiness from her eyes away from the moment she felt her anxiety begin to fully settle down. She was a bit startled when her fingers wiped away at small droplets of tears that had somehow formed at the corners of her eyes.
So apparently the nightmare made her cry.
She supposed it was with good reason. The experience had been so vividly real; it was terrifying even up until now.
What dark and dirty crevice of her mind that little night terror crawled out of, she honestly had no clue. It was so spontaneous and without true reason.
Her old imaginary friend appearing out of nowhere, claiming he wasn't going to leave and taking her to some prison-like place where he whispered all those dark things to her while kissing at her body…
A shudder rippled throughout her system as one of her hands moved toward her lips before two of her fingers lightly tapped them. She paused, her index finger resting on both her top and bottom lip and her mind began to formulate the sensation of another mouth on top of hers.
When Joker had kissed her in her dream, she could practically still feel his lips on hers almost as though it had really happened.
A spooky feeling transitioned over her body and the long haired brunette tried to shake it off once more as she now went beneath her pillow to retrieve her phone.
Just clicking the home button to see the lock screen, she didn't become at all bothered at the lack of notifications that appeared and she was simply greeted with the display picture of her, Lorina, and Edith posing together when they had all been younger.
She didn't have any friends the more she thought about it, so her phone background was never really selfies with anyone like she saw those other boys and girls at school have. Truthfully, she was kind of jealous. Though she was close with Julius, he really didn't seem like the type of person to go behind a phone and take a silly picture with her.
Her mind briefly flashed back to her dream.
Joker had said he'd always be there with her because she was always lonely or something of the sort.
"If that's the case, maybe he can pop up and take a decent selfie with me…" She muttered to herself lowly before she began pulling herself out of her bed, her tone incredibly dry and cynical.
After going in the bathroom to freshen herself up for the morning, she stepped out and prepared to go back into her room for a towel so she could go back and take a shower, however, the sound of pans crashing to the floor downstairs came to her ears and she stopped dead in her tracks.
Her fingers clutched her phone in her hand tightly before she heaved a breath, her mind already on the verge of racing a million miles per hour.
The sound had obviously come from the kitchen.
But there wasn't anybody in the house but her.
Her father always left the house for work before seven in the morning and it was well over two hours past that.
Joker's face flickered within her mind and the brunette found her heartbeat picking up just at the thought.
That was silly to think though. He wasn't real. He was imaginary.
Her nightmare was getting her worked up and giving her thoughts childlike fears.
Turning her head in the direction of the staircase, she briefly considered her options and although she was well aware that people that usually took her path always ended up dead in scary movies, she kept her courage high before she began making her way to the stairs.
This wasn't a scary movie; this was real life and if someone was seriously in her house, she needed to see so she could call the cops.
Her feet lightly fell down each step with a nearly inaudible thud while her fingers kept a tight hold on her phone and her free hand held the polished wooden railing firmly until she finally reached the bottom. After going around to get to the kitchen, Alice allowed her walk to slow a bit when it became apparent that whoever was in there was muttering something lowly.
Even with her brave thoughts, she couldn't deny the fact that her heart was beginning to pick up speed like crazy.
She also couldn't deny that she was actually hoping it was a robber and not someone else… Or something else.
The redhead's dark smile came to her conscious and she halted her walk as she was no more but a single step away from the entrance to the kitchen.
Alice couldn't figure out why the nightmare was troubling her so much.
Joker wasn't real and it had only been a dream.
Maybe it was because she just woke up from it and she was still kind of startled…
Catching in her breath, the brunette slowly allowed herself to peek into the kitchen as discreetly as she could manage and the instant she did, she found her eyes widening at the sight of the male within.
"Dad?" She choked out in surprise, her expression clearly matching the tone of voice she used as she now fully stood at the kitchen's entrance to view her father who was currently searching through the fridge for something.
Her dad, Henry, glanced over at her from his position at the refrigerator, his gaze plain and dull in such a way that mirrored that of a lifeless zombie.
His eyes never had emotion in them aside from the rare displays despair and misery he harbored on her mother's death anniversary. It had been so long since she saw happiness or anger or any other kind of feeling in him since her mom passed away.
"Good morning, Alice." He greeted simply before he returned his attention to the fridge.
She watched ahead at him dumbly, her hands gripping at the front of her nightgown uncertainly.
Why wasn't he at work? He never skipped a day.
"Good morning…" Alice lowly responded, her eyebrows still furrowed in confusion, "You have a day off today?" She inquired curiously.
Her father shook his head as he now closed the fridge ahead of him.
This was actually the first time the two of them had spoke directly in such a long time. Even when she had been accepted into her top university earlier in the year, she didn't even tell him because she knew he wouldn't have cared, or at least he wouldn't have showed it.
The two of them lived together in the huge house, yet it always seemed like Alice was alone in it.
"Today we're just starting a couple hours later. I'm actually getting ready to leave now."
Of course that's how it was…
She nodded her head silently as she watched him collect together his papers within his manila envelope before he grabbed a single bottle of water. He spared her a single glance from over his shoulder, "Goodbye." His words were spoken so flat that the female could only turn her eyes away.
"Yeah… Bye…" Alice lowly stated and not too long after that did she hear the front door open and close, the sound seemingly echoing throughout all of the house.
Her mom had died when she was fifteen and Lorina when she was sixteen. After two years of putting up with her distant father, she always thought she was used to it, but for some reason this encounter left her feeling slightly drained.
Those words would probably be the last ones they'd say to each other for a week or so until they bumped into one another in the house by chance once more for a couple seconds.
How depressing was that?
It never really bothered her before, so why was she even pondering on it now?
Sighing to herself, she allowed herself to walk further into the kitchen, her bare feet hitting the cool white tile gently while she made her way toward the cupboard that held the dishes.
After grabbing a bowl and then rummaging through one of the drawers for a spoon, she got to the pantry for a box of cereal before she began pouring it consistently.
Maybe the reason she was thinking about it now was because of her dream…
Settling the cereal down, she made her way to the fridge in order to retrieve the milk from within.
Perhaps that had been her subconscious' way of telling her she truly was lonely.
That was a really gloomy thought.
Her hands steadily dispensed the milk onto her corn flakes until it was at an appropriate level to her liking before she placed it back down on the counter.
Joker had been her imaginary friend because she was lonely as a child. Now that she was older, her brain was definitely telling her to get some friends and the use of Joker was just connecting everything.
With her teachings from Psychology class, she supposed that made enough sense in terms of dream interpretations.
Considering her options, she supposed she could always try to move things along with Julius. He seemed like he liked her enough and the thought of them becoming boyfriend and girlfriend put too much schoolgirl glee in her than she was willing to admit.
She didn't even have to stop there… At school, she could always talk to more people. The Tweedle twins were social butterflies and they often tried befriending her, but her shy and awkward nature usually shut them out.
Loneliness was a choice and she didn't have to choose it.
She had the power to not succumb to it.
"Good morning, Alice."
Alice's entire body came to a nearly inhumane stop. Her hand had now been in the midst of picking up a spoonful of corn flakes for her mouth to consume while she had been slightly hunched over the counter to catch the utensil more easily.
Now, she was just frozen in place. Her ears that had unmistakably heard those few words were now immensely attentive, practically warming up despite the wave of cold fear that shot throughout her blood as she stood in place soundlessly.
That voice was…
"It's a Saturday… You know, compared to most teenagers you wake up pretty early on weekends." There was a chuckle at the end of the words and Alice's body tensed with each sound of the chuckle that undoubtedly came from behind her.
She had to be hallucinating because he wasn't real.
When she turned around, she'd see no one there. Everything was all in her head.
Slowly, Alice allowed her body to rotate around in order to see behind her and when she did so, she felt her terror skyrocket throughout her body along with a vague sense of déjà vu.
What exactly was happening here?
It had all been a dream.
Joker wasn't real—
"Ah, you look so cute in your nightgown!" Joker praised, his scarlet eye sparkling honestly from his spot seated at the kitchen's island counter. He leaned forward on it, his hands holding the sides of his face up as his elbows remained propped up on the marble surface.
Unlike what her memories had been able to pull up, he wasn't dressed normally and was back to his old jester outfit that she had been so accustomed to seeing him in as a child. The sight brought a sickening wave of nausea to her stomach as a hand flung over her mouth, almost as though to catch some vomit that wouldn't rise up from her stomach.
At this rate, she really did feel like throwing up.
Joker didn't appear to notice her discomfort at all and if he did, he certainly didn't show it. Instead, he smiled politely and tilted his head to the side, an action that caused the ornaments that dangled from his hat to give several jingles that filled the dead silent air around them.
"You've really grown up, haven't you? I don't know if I should feel proud, old, or excited."
His words went lost for the most part on her as she felt herself back up against the counter behind her.
Alice's eyes shut tightly for a brief moment and when she allowed them to flutter open once more, she had expected the sight of Joker to disappear, however he remained in his seat at the island counter with his pleasant, nearly dreamy expression innocently.
If this was all really happening, then did that mean that her dream truly hadn't been a dream?
The nausea in her stomach returned and this time it seemed intensified tenfold.
She could feel her head starting to become increasingly light while the vivid memories of Joker pinning her in that cold and barren prison began hitting her mind all at once.
"Y-You can't be real…" Alice muttered out in disbelief as she finally caught herself, one of her hands moved to her chest and she watched at him firmly, "You're imaginary. You were my imaginary friend. You're not—"
Her words came to an end as the older man, still as attractive as she remembered, smiled at her sweetly. "Are you trying to convince me or yourself?"
Alice stopped, her eyes now becoming wide.
Those words were all too familiar.
A weighted silence fell over the both of them once more and Alice couldn't find any words within herself to respond with, her cheeks now beginning to warm up despite her situation.
If he wasn't imaginary, then what exactly was he?
If he wasn't a figment of her imagination, why had he been following her around and plaguing her for those few years when she was younger and why had he decided to pop back up into her life now?
She didn't understand it at all.
With a blink, Joker's spot at the island counter had been transferred and Alice found her breath hitching in her throat as he was now upon her, his presence standing before her eerily similar to how he had her caged in within her supposed dream last night.
At this point in time she didn't even know if it was a dream or not.
This time, his body didn't spook her out as it had before… He didn't feel threatening… He felt strangely comforting.
Alice couldn't help but wince when one of his hands moved to touch at her cheek gently, his thumb softly stroking at her left cheek rhythmically in a way that had her stiffly standing in place.
Even up until now his touch was still so warm and it still felt incredibly real.
However, all this time he had been the one touching her. If she touched him, maybe it'd be different.
She willed one of her hands to rise up and with the smallest trembles, she managed to get her left hand rising upward, her eyes didn't leave his face as she slowly allowed her hand to grasp at his.
His skin was warm to the touch and she nearly jumped when she realized how solid it was.
She could feel him. She could feel him as she could anything else in the kitchen, anything else in the house, anything else in the world.
Joker couldn't possibly be imaginary unless Alice was truly that crazy and she certainly didn't want to think of herself in that kind of light.
The female's body began to quake a bit at this new resolution while her own cognition attempted to make sense of everything developing before her as it could.
On the other hand, her incentive to openly reach out and make physical contact was greeted pleasantly by the garnet eyed man that now appeared to grow in positive spirits from the touch they mutually shared with one another.
"You already know that I missed you… Though I'm not too sure if you missed me as much." He warmly watched into her eyes and Alice's heart skipped a beat with how genuine his gaze appeared over hers. His red hair draped downward as he teasingly lowered his head closer to hers, his smile not fading. "Didn't you miss this? The two of us being together and having fun with one another. You never felt lonely with me by your side. Why are you trying to push me away now that I'm back? I'll take care of you in a way no human can."
His use of the word 'human' brought a distant chill throughout her body as she now attempted to shake him away from her furiously.
The air around her was becoming vastly suffocating far too fast; she didn't like it at all.
Obediently, Joker raised his head upward to give her space when her discomfort became apparent and from the instant there was a little more degree of space between the two of them Alice glared up at him cautiously while she gripped the counter behind her.
She didn't know how she was supposed to go about this with him.
Clearly he had some sort of other worldly abilities if her 'dream' was anything to go by and the thought of ending up on his bad side and within the prison petrified her.
That sounded far too farfetched though.
Supernatural abilities only existed inside of stories.
Alice felt a lump well up in the pit of her throat, her mouth now beginning to feel incredibly dry. It seemed like her life was rapidly becoming one of those supernatural stories that she loved to read and she wasn't so sure if she liked it all too much.
"Joker… What exactly are you?" She lowly breathed out, her teal irises staring into his blood saturated ones dully, unwilling to look away.
How crazy would it be if this truly was all in her head once more?
Any minute now she could rise from her bed screaming as she had this morning, crying because her imaginary friend had been in her dreams.
Joker kept his smile as he now removed his hand from her cheek and took a single large step back from her, thus creating a bit of space between the two of them.
The redhead placed his hand behind his back for a couple seconds before he returned it in front of him, now revealing a single dark red carnation flower within his grasp. He held his hand forward in offering to her for her to retrieve it and Alice found herself watching at it surprise.
She could remember him performing magic tricks like that when she was younger, but now for some reason it just felt odd to her.
When it then seemed to register to him that she wouldn't accept it, he didn't lose his smile and instead walked back forward to her in order to place at it at her ear. Alice simply allowed him to do as he pleased, her mind still warping around everything too quickly to really respond.
After he adjusted it, Joker gazed down at her with a small laugh. "Doesn't this bring back memories?" At the end of his question, he kept his beam pleasant before he held up a finger, "Alice, I can't force you to believe anything that you don't want to, so I'll say this once. My kind has no name translatable to any known human language."
Distantly, somewhere in the back of her mind she could remember him saying that before and she silently nodded.
She half expected him to not continue, however he went on nicely, his tone still polite. "I apologize for how childishly I lashed out at you yesterday. It really was foolish of me to do. I let my jealousy control my actions because it was my first time seeing you in so long and well…" Joker trailed off sheepishly, his eyebrows inclining in a rather anxious way, "I can only beg for your forgiveness at this point."
Before Alice could reply, she found herself jumping as the nearly monstrous buzzing of her phone vibration going off on the counter behind her.
Her head immediately whirled around to view it in surprise with a hand to her chest in a feeble attempt to calm her startled heart.
She had forgotten she even brought her cell phone downstairs with her…
It wasn't until the teen picked up the phone into her grasp that she came to realize she was shaking slightly. Forcing herself to remain calm, she unlocked the device before going to the messages.
From: Julius
Call or message me back when you get the chance.
Alice's eyes widened a bit after she evaluated the message, her eyes reading over the single sentence at least three times over before her brain started to fully comprehend the meaning behind it.
Julius wanted her to call him… He rarely ever messaged her first and usually when he did; it was because Alice hadn't done so in a while.
Entirely eager, she pulled up his contact info because pressing the button to call his number.
Only the tiniest smidge anxious, she bit her bottom lip as the sound of the dialing entered her ears.
She wondered what he wanted and while her thoughts drifted to that, her eyes fell on the sight of her forgotten corn flakes that still remained in the bowl of milk floating purposelessly.
"Alice?"
The moment the male's rough and deep voice came up on the other line, Alice perked up, a smile making its way to her face rather foolishly as she stared ahead of herself absentmindedly, "Oh, hey Julius! You messaged me pretty early. Is something the matter?"
There was a part of her that wondered if he was going to ask her out on a date or something of the sort.
It was a naïve notion and she quickly tried to stomp it away lest she end up hurting her own feelings by getting her hopes up for anything.
Nothing could have prepared her for Julius' next words.
"Is something the matter? Alice, are you serious?"
The steel edge in his tone made her freeze, her eyes widening in surprise.
Julius was usually cold and could come off as rude, but this was clearly different. He sounded more agitated than usual… Maybe even a bit angry?
"I'm sorry? What?"
The male on the other line gave a sigh, this time it was more tired than anything, "I've been trying to call and message you all night. The least you could have done was get back to me so I knew you were okay."
Alice's eyes blinked once while she moved her phone to her other ear. It now came to her attention that her face had grown warmer and she attempted to keep her voice stable. "Calling and messaging me all night…? That can't be right. I didn't have any missed notifications when I checked my phone this morning." She stopped her words for a second to replay Julius' sentence in her mind once more before she cleared her throat. "If I was okay? Why would—"
Her words were cut off as Julius intervened, his tone of voice now suddenly softer and Alice could practically imagine how his exasperated his face looked, "I said trying to call you. Your phone wasn't in service ever since yesterday afternoon. It was like your line was dead when I tried contacting you and even my text messages didn't go through. I apologize if I sound annoying or clingy to you, it's truly not my intention, it's just that after you fainted so suddenly yesterday, I just wanted to make sure you were okay."
The brunette's body easily intertwined with that of paralysis as Julius' words came to an end.
Silently, she clutched her phone, her eyebrows beginning to furrow in confusion as she attempted to process everything to a degree of logic in her psyche.
"After I fainted? I didn't…" She trailed off unsurely, her voice deadly low, practically as though she weren't speaking at all.
She didn't faint yesterday? She certainly didn't remember anything like that happening and she was pretty sure she'd remember if she blacked out or something...
Just like that, her memories of Joker first appearing to her at the bookstore before she ended up in the prison-like place shot to her mind and the female nearly dropped her phone from her grasp in realization.
Although she wasn't sure exactly what happened, she was pretty sure it was all connected.
It just came back to her that Joker was still in the kitchen with her.
That awareness slammed into her conscious similar to that of a car collision on her body to the point that Alice nearly dropped her phone from her hand, her body now beginning to still up in fear.
How did she manage to forget his presence so quickly? It wasn't as though him being there wasn't a big deal at the moment.
It was foolish of her to just so recklessly talk to Julius on the phone with him there, she was really so thoughtless.
Not turning around, Alice inhaled a breath in an effort to calm herself and though it was mostly for null, she still attempted to keep herself level headed.
"Alice? Are you still there?"
Julius' sudden voice startled her for a brief second; however she quickly got over it. Pushing a piece of her hair behind her ear idly, Alice tapped her foot on the tile apprehensively, "I-I'm fine now, I guess. I just… I… Um, Julius, listen. Are you going to be at the shop later or something? I just, I kind of want to talk to you about a couple of things if it isn't too much trouble…" Her words were tripping amongst themselves and with each thing that bypassed her lips; the female could feel a chilling fear threatening to overtake her.
"I'm on my way there to start my shift right now. Feel free to stop by whenever you want. However, I don't advise you to be walking about after you just fainted."
Even throughout everything, he was still concerned for her wellbeing. The very idea of it despite her situation brightened her up slightly as she nodded with a small anxious smile, "I'll be on my way now. Don't worry, I'll be fine. See you then."
"Right."
Alice removed the phone from her ear, her lungs exhaling a large breath that she hadn't even been aware that she was holding.
The overbearing feeling of nausea was tightening around her chest and stomach and she didn't want to turn around at all.
Turning around meant facing him.
She couldn't remain trapped against the corner all day and she'd have to face him eventually, it was a fact.
Now pushing away her fears as strongly as she could, Alice turned her heady over her shoulder in order to catch sight of the redhead that had previously been standing not more than three steps away from her.
He was gone.
Alice blinked her eyes; their teal gaze now glancing around the kitchen in search of the young man that was nowhere in sight.
"Joker…?" She reluctantly voiced out with her hands gripping the bottom of her nightgown, her steps now beginning to take her to the exit of the kitchen.
Where could he possibly have gone without her hearing anything?
Unless he truly didn't exist.
As the teen began making her way to the staircase, she swiftly allowed her feet to ascend upward, her thoughts now trying to erase everything Joker related away.
She had wanted to go to Julius and talk to him about it, but what if she really was just crazy?
After getting into her room, the female shut the door gently right before she turned to lock it for a reason unbeknown to the more rational half of her mind.
Locking a door wouldn't save her from something that either existed primarily in her head or had strange abilities to the extent Joker apparently possessed—if he was even real that is.
Bringing her hand upward to view her phone once more, she walked over to her bed to take a seat.
Thoughtfully, she considered texting Julius first to kind of hint at the problem, but she quickly stopped herself, her eyes now becoming dull.
Julius would probably stop talking to her the second he heard anything about an imaginary friend and these strange 'hallucinations' she was having. Alice herself wasn't even sure what was real and what wasn't at this point, why did she even think about dragging him into the mix with her?
God, she didn't know what to do.
In frustration she ran both of her hands through her hair, a loud groan escaping her body and she threw herself back to lie down on her bed.
Alice's body bounced briefly on the mattress as her vision was overtaken with the view of the cream painted ceiling above her.
Was she supposed to check herself in with a therapist or something?
The thought of suffering from psychosis was terrifying, she was far from being insane, yet this was all so…
Bringing her hand over to view her phone once more, she held it over her head and pressed the Home button in order to light it up once more and she prepared to slide it to unlock, but stopped herself as she viewed her lock screen drearily.
The picture was so old. It was the three of them back at their grandparents' place when Alice had to be around twelve or so.
Her eyes trailed over to Lorina and she found her heart swelling up miserably before she shut her eyes tightly.
She missed her sister so much. If Lorina was here, she'd know exactly what was going on and what to do. Not only that, Alice would be able to tell her everything without a fear of being judged because Lorina was just that understanding to her.
But no…
Lorina was gone and Alice had no one to confide in.
She was all alone.
It seemed like her thoughts kept going in a circle with all of that.
"Is this your way of trying to go back to sleep?"
Alice's eyes fluttered open and as she did so, she found her vision entirely dominated by Joker's face.
The smile on his lips was everlasting and his one visible eye gleamed in nothing but pure curiosity while he leaned down to her, their foreheads only about a foot apart.
She didn't know how many times he was going to do this before she got over the jump scare he gave her when he did it.
Joker appeared to notice that his appearance startled her as he straightened himself up and Alice flew off of her bed to the stand on the opposite side from him, her hand to her heart while she glowered at him cautiously.
"Don't do that!"
The redhead's arms both remained neatly behind his back and he tilted his head to the side, his black jester hat's ornaments following his head movements, "I didn't mean to scare you." Even with that being said he gave a chuckle into his hand briefly. "You were always so easy to scare when you were younger! Doesn't look like much has changed, I'm glad!"
Alice's eyes stared at him, her lips threatening to pull into a mixture of a scowl and a frown while she observed him helplessly.
When he wasn't around it was so easy to just dismiss him off as nothing real…
But when he was right in front of her, he was all too real.
Really, she kept changing her thoughts; nothing was making sense to her at this point in time.
As silence began to float over them once more, she knew she had to find it in herself to speak up once again. For a moment she opened her mouth, but just as she did so, she quickly closed it.
Asking Joker the same repetitive 'What are you' question would just get her the same 'There's no human equivalent' answer.
Taking a breath, Alice kept her stare steady, "Where did you go just now?" She settled on questioning and she was proud of the fact she didn't sound as afraid as she truly was, in fact she sounded pretty strong.
She couldn't be afraid of him.
Joker smiled her way kindly. "Ah, I was gone too long, wasn't I? I apologize. I didn't intend to make you distressed, Alice."
His answer caused her eyes to widen though she couldn't respond as he continued, "I'll stay by your side way more often now. There's no need to worry."
The hairs on the back of her neck began to stand on end with his word and Alice took a step backward before she pointed at him in accusation. "That's exactly what has me worrying! You- You!"
Joker brought his hand upward to point at him black adorned chest, his red eye blinked once with nothing but curiosity seen in the depth of his irises, "Me?"
"Yes, you!" Her eyebrows furrowed while her lips contorted into a scowl. "What do you want from me!?"
As much as she wanted, she couldn't hide the frustration in her voice. Perhaps it was risky to shout at him as annoyed as she was, but she couldn't help it.
He was a problem and she refused to live with him at her side.
Joker lowered his hand now, his smile appearing to widen while his expression became a bit different.
The atmosphere in the room definitely changed and Alice found herself lowering her hand cautiously though her facial expression not losing its negative connotations.
Observantly, she eyed him as he visibly rocked on his heel, his hands both going behind his back once more.
Alice could hear each tap of his boots against the floor of her room. It was rhythmic and somehow felt strangely familiar.
"I don't want anything from you, Alice." He stated simply, his smile not fading.
Alice's lips twitched irritably, "Then why are you—"
Her words came to an abrupt end as Joker suddenly disappeared from sight ahead of her. She didn't even have time to release a gasp before she felt the presence of another being undeniably behind her.
With her body's lagging reaction time, she could only watch ahead with wide eyes as Joker's arms snuggly made their way around her waist and she was able to feel his chin rest on top of her head.
"I don't want anything from you. The only thing that I want is you."
It took a moment before his words managed to register with her and when they did, she frantically began wiggling out of his grasp.
She could feel her face heating up tremendously and she couldn't believe she was seriously getting embarrassed at a time like this.
Keeping a glare aimed at him, she protectively held her body after she made her way across the room from him once more, her breathing preparing to become heavy once more as her heart rate began to increase.
This couldn't even be real.
Stuff like this only happened in books, not real life.
"W-what the hell are you!? Some kind of vampire trying to pick a bride or something!?" Alice exclaimed, her tone a mixture of both desperation and annoyance.
Joker flashed her a grin, his teeth now settling some degree of fear in the brunette's system after her vampire comment, "I'm not 'trying' to pick anything. I've already claimed you, so you're mine. There really isn't any kind of debate about it." His words were so honestly stated, almost as though it were common sense.
Alice clenched her fists at her sides now. "Sorry to burst your little bubble, but there is a debate about it! I'm not yours, I'm not anyone's! So kindly just take your bags and poof out of my life again!"
"Ah, you've still got that spit-fire personality whenever someone ruffles your feathers, I see." He let out a chuckle that made Alice intensify her leer his way.
She had no idea where this anger was coming from and she didn't know if it was so good that she was feeling upset against him, but it was keeping her fear at bay, so she wasn't complaining.
"Telling me you 'claimed' me isn't ruffling my feathers; it's actually really upsetting me. I'm not some kind of toy."
"Oh, I know that. Toys break if you handle them too roughly. You're more durable." He laughed out slightly and in a way that made Alice's hairs stand on end.
He was taking it all so lightly like it was all nothing more but a game to him.
Biting her bottom lip as she felt her anger beginning to leave her and become replaced with a much colder sensation of fear, she eyed him skillfully, "You're not funny."
"Sorry, sorry." Joker apologized warmly, his expression actually looked apologetic, "You're so against being claimed now. When you were younger you seemed so excited about it. How problematic…"
"Maybe because somewhere in the back of my head I actually thought you were a figment of my imagination?"
"It doesn't change the claim."
Alice paused. His tone of voice caught her entirely off guard.
The redhead's eye remained trained on her knowingly, his lips still pulled into that pleasant smile. "Don't act so against it. It's not as if you won't benefit from it. You need me after all."
The creepy atmosphere within the room was slowly returning. It was like a heavy invisible mist that just clogged up her lungs with each intake of breath she took.
Her nightmare came back to mind for a second and she felt her eyes widen at just the memory.
She didn't want to relive that. She really didn't.
However, spontaneously, a new thought dawned upon her.
Clearing her throat, Alice raised her head back upward in order to watch at him stilly. "You told me that the reason you're hanging around me is because I need you since I'm lonely, right?"
Just thinking about it, it made him sound like some kind of leech.
From the beginning he kept her to himself, almost as though he were feeding off the loneliness she got from the lack of friends she possessed.
Could a being that fed off of loneliness even exist?
She was a fairly rational person, though even she had her limits to the number of explanations things could be given and the idea of blaming everything on her being insane was too much.
The brunette's eyes visibly dulled. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say it's the other way around."
Joker gave her a smile, one that didn't entirely reach the look in his eye while he watched at her in a near passive condescending manner that actually threw the female off for a moment. "It's a good thing that you do know better then, hm?"
-.-
I'm so angry because I set myself up for this to have a third part lol. I write too much and I didn't want a 14k word chapter, nah. So I'll be updating/completing this God knows when. I'm praying that it's only three chapters because I can't handle so many WIP stories, I'm not physically capable, oh Lord.
SAT and ACT dates are coming up, I'd say the updates for all of my stories will definitely be slower, but I'm known to hide from my responsibilities so maybe, maybe not lol
But that's all! Hope it was enjoyable!