Disclaimer: I don't own Jonathan Crane (sadly) nor Batman. I don't claim to own them. I don't make any profit off of this. I'm just having fun

08

Don't Trust Me

It had been almost a week since my assault and consequential hospital visit. My face no longer looked like I had been hit by a train and I could finally laugh without feeling like my chest was going to cave in.

I was sitting in the Charger in the hospital parking lot. I had an appointment with Doctor Larson to see if I was finally able to go back to school. I looked at the clock. I was a half an hour early because I misjudged traffic.

Well, there was no use in waiting around in the car. I turned off the ignition and stepped out, making sure to lock my door behind me. I made the quick walk to the main entrance, squinting in the sunlight. I really missed Gotham at times like this. It was November, there was supposed to be snow and cold. Not sun and beaches.

The hospital main entrance was pretty empty except for the bored looking receptionist. I got an idea in my head and walked over. The blonde looked up and gave me a blank stare. "Can I help you?"

Obviously. "What room is Michael Henry in?" This was probably a bad idea, but I'm going with it anyways.

She checked the computer. "Fourth floor, room 412."

"Thanks." I walked towards the elevator. This is probably a very, very bad idea. But I had to know.

I hit the up button and started to bounce on my heels. "D.G.?"

I really jumped. I turned and saw Belinda from Psych class. I looked at the clock, she should still be in school. "Oh, hey Belinda. What are you doing here?"

"Visiting my mom. She's going through a round of chemo and they're keeping her for the week. How are you doing? You look pretty good."

"I'm sorry to hear that." And I really was. "I'm doing better. I'm here to get the okay to go back to class."

"Good, the school misses you." She stood back as the elevator beeped. "But, hey, if you go back to school tomorrow, you and Crane should sit with us at lunch."

I nodded and waved as she walked down the hall towards her destination. I considered it as I walked into the elevator. Maybe it wouldn't be too bad to have a new friend, especially since Jonathan was leaving.

I made way to the fourth floor and found myself standing outside of room 412. I knocked and heard Michael tell me to come in.

I walked in and noted that the room was exactly like mine had been, other than he had a TV. He was sitting up in bed, strapped to monitors and IVs. He looked good, a little banged up. I noticed a wheel chair next to his bed, apparently he hadn't came out of the crash unscathed.

He looked away from the TV and when he saw me, his eyes widened. "Cohen, what are you doin' here?"

I shrugged and made my way over to the chair furthest from the bed. I sat in it, dropping my messenger bag to the floor. "I wanted to see how you were."

"Even after what I did to you?"

"Even after what you did to me." I sat back and regarded him. "Karma did more damage than I ever could have."

He looked down at the bed. "I'm paralyzed from the hips down. I can't feel anything. The doctors said it may get better, but it may not." He looked back up and he looked more vulnerable than I had ever seen anyone. "Sherry is gone. Her funeral was yesterday. I didn't even get to say goodbye."

I stood and moved to a chair closer and grabbed his hand. "I'm sorry, Michael. I really am. What happened means nothing compared to what you went through."

"Why are you being so nice? I heard you had to spend the night in the hospital because of me."

"Because..." I thought for a minute. "Because in the end, none of this shit matters. It's high school. And a girl died. Yeah, she was awful to me. But she's still a human and it's still a tragedy." I stood. "But I have to go. I'm only here because I was early for my doctor's appointment. I wish you luck, Michael."

I started to walk out but the boy called me back. "D.G., there's something I have to tell you." I paused and turned around, an eyebrow raised. "I swerved because I saw someone in the road. I think it may have been Crane."

I furrowed my brow. "Really? I sighed and ran a hand over my face. "Jonathan was at the school getting my books. The librarian vouched for him. He's been cleared."

He looked down again. "I may be wrong... the face was covered by a sack or something... his body just reminded me of Crane."

"It wasn't Jonathan Crane, Henry."

With that, I walked out of the room. He had to be wrong, there's no way it could have been Jonathan.

Right?

I was cleared by Doctor Larson to go back to school. My ribs were healing nicely, I didn't even have to wear bindings anymore. He gave me strict instructions, though, which included no P.E. Damn, I'm really upset about that one. End sarcasm.

I stopped by the store to pick up some dinner so it was almost dark by the time I reached the apartment. I made sure to lock the Charger up before making my way inside the building. I took a deep breath and braced myself. Stairs still sucked, they made my ribs ache. I opened the door to the stairwell and almost jumped out of my skin.

Jonathan was sitting on the bottom stair, one of his many books in hand. He looked up and sent me a small smile. "Hey."

I gave him a weird look and set the bags down. "What are you doing?"

"Waiting on you, of course. I know that stairs still hurt your ribs." He stood and brushed his pants off neatly. "Your mother also told me that she wanted you to pick up a couple things, and that would only make it harder on you."

"Thanks." A small smile came to my face. "How long have you been here?"

"Not long." He shrugged, making his way to me. "Ten minutes, at most."

I didn't know how to act. This relationship thing between us was new, and I know that Jonathan didn't have much experience either. Do I kiss him? Or do I wait to for him to initiate it? This is why I didn't handle this crap well, I never knew what to do. I was debating on telling him what Henry said. I decided against it, it was stupid. No need to get him worked up over it.

Hands on my hips, Jonathan brought me flush against him. I cautiously wrapped my arms around his neck, and looked up at him. His eyes found mine and I found myself enthralled in them yet again. They were just such a bright blue, they almost seemed to glow. He leaned in until his soft lips found mine and my mind finally stopped racing.

I pulled away after a few moments, smiling. "We should probably get this stuff up stairs before Mom hunts us down." I put my head on his chest and yawned.

"Are you tired?" He put his head against mine. I nodded, smirking when he moved his head. "You're probably right then, we should get you up stairs." Jonathan picked up the bags in one hand and grabbed my hand in the other, gently guiding me up the stairs.

We reached the apartment and I pushed open the door for Jonathan, closing it behind me. He disappeared into the kitchen while Mom looked around the counter, a white powder on her nose. I'm assuming it is flour, though sometimes I think that cocaine wouldn't be too big of a stretch.

"Dahlia! How was your appointment?"

I made my way to the kitchen, wincing every now and then. The stairs took a lot out of me, I guess I'm cursing the fact that I was the one who wanted to live in a building without an elevator.

Mom was standing at counter, an apron on and I could smell biscuits in the oven. Jonathan was at the table, pulling apart the chicken. I collapsed in the chair, sore and exhausted. "It went alright. I'm allowed to go back to school,but no Phys Ed for six weeks. Do you need help?"

"You're still in pain, just sit still." I rolled my eyes. "Don't you roll your eyes at me, Dahlia Grace." Isn't funny how mothers seem to have eyes in the back of their heads? "So, we have something we all need to talk about."

I leaned my head on the table and stole a look at Jonathan. He was finishing carving the chicken, a concentrated look on his face. Every movement he made was methodical and perfect. Unbelievable. Is there anything this boy isn't good at? Well, besides contact sports, anyways.

I looked back at my mom and noticed she was looking at me, both brows raised. "Er, right. What about?"

The timer dinged and she moved to the oven, breaking me of her glare. "That."

"What?"

Now Jonathan was looking up, clearly amused. "I think she's talking about us, Dahlia." I gave him a look and he smirked. "Your mother is very observant."

"I know you two are together, and I knew that you would be when I let you move in. But now that it's here we need to establish some ground rules." She pulled the biscuits off the tray, plopping them on a plate. "One- no closed doors while I'm here. Now, I don't care what you two do on your own time-"

"MOTHER!" My face was beat red and Jonathan was barely holding back laughter. Bastard.

A/N: I'm sorry this is so short! My son and I are both sick. =( I wanted to upload this, though, so you guys don't think I'm quitting on you. The next (longer) one will be out as soon as I can think straight enough to get it up.

pourquoibella- Thank you! The split won't be for long, though, so no worries.

forgetmenotflowers- She really is a fun character to write. She's really mouthy and fun, which is the complete opposite of boring old me haha. Hope you enjoy this one, even though it's rather short.

PurgatoryNymphe- The Scarecrow part was pretty fun to write. I've been keeping him under wraps for awhile so I figured he could have some fun for once. You'll see what happens soon. Thanks for the review!

iwishtheskywasgreen- Thank you so much! I hope you like this one, too!

SladeRavenFan- The Black Dahlia is actually a murder victim from back in the 40s. Her real name was Elizabeth Short. She was a young woman in California that was found naked, sawed in half, with a Glasgow Smile carved into her face. That's where I got the name. If you would like, there's plenty more info online. It is a really tragic murder, especially given that they never caught who did it. And I kind of felt back for Collins, too. I've always viewed Crane as being possessive, though, especially since he's not used to regular human contact. So it would be normal for him to hold on to whoever he finally let in and protect it from everything else, I think. I hope you like this one, too!

9aza- Thank you! I kind of worried that it may have been too early, but I'm happy with it. Don't be jealous of my "writing skills", they're really not that great, and I have to fight with them quite often. Thank you again for the continued feedback.

Thanks again for the alerts, favorites, everything! I hope you guys like this one and will forgive me if it's awful. Writing while sick was never a strong suite of mine. The next one will be up next week at the very latest. Once I kick the cold or whatever I have.