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62. To the Mask

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Disclaimer: Thank you to all of you for the wonderful reviews!! My love to you all! In this chapter, I make a Pulp Fiction reference—see if you catch it! I do not own this line—Quentin Tarantino does.

I was stunned—too stunned to move, and too stunned to even notice that I was staring right at Bruce and his blonde mystery woman.

"Giada!" Bruce waved to me. I didn't wave back, I just stared, awe stricken.

"It's…it's not Pixie!" I hissed to the Joker again.

"Joker face," he repeated for the hundredth time. I suddenly whipped around to face him and glared hard at him.

"What the fuck does that even mean?! Joker face?!" I shrieked, tossing my hands into the air in frustration.

"Having a Joker face means having a face that no one else can…see," he explained calmly, raising his eye brows and slowly licking his lips. I paused for a moment, ingesting what he had just explained to me. I nodded in understanding. To have a Joker face was to act as though my face were painted like his—so that no one could see what was really on my face. It was perfect!

"Okay, I think I can do that. I mean, I've painted my face before," I said aloud to myself, as though in a sad attempt at reassuring myself. The Joker and I slowly made our way towards Bruce and his blonde friend. My heart was pounding with each step we took. The closer we became, the faster my heart pounded inside my chest.

"Hey Bruce!" I choked as we embraced finally. I could feel the sweat forming beneath my shirt. Good thing the Joker didn't mind awkward smells. "This is the Joker. I forget if you've met before, but well, here we are!" I couldn't believe how awkward I'd become! Forget the smell that didn't even exist—I was the awkward one. Joker face. I had to remember my Joker face. Hm, well I could just look at the Joker to remember that!

Bruce held out his hand to the Joker. My stomach churned as the Joker casually took Bruce's rigid hand in his purple glove. They shook hands firmly.

"Pleasure to finally meet…Gotham's Clown Prince in…person," Bruce smiled. I couldn't tell if he was being sarcastic or if he was just trying to please me. I think it was a combination of both, because Bruce glanced over at me after he spoke, and then glanced back at the Joker. The Joker just grinned slightly and nodded.

"Ah yes, the…infamous Bruce Wayne," the Joker sighed, with a small chuckle attached to the end of the sigh.

"Infamous?" I asked, glancing back at Bruce and then to the Joker.

"Yes. Infamous—like me," he responded, narrowing his eyes as he stared hard at Bruce. Oh God, he knows! The Joker knows Bruce is Batman! I've ruined it for him!

"Uh, how so?" I asked, trying to remain calm.

"Giada! Everyone in this city knows," he gestured to the gorgeous blonde stand beside Bruce, "This is not…uncommon…for our friend Bruce here. Come on, you should know that!"

I let loose a sigh of relief. I should have known! He was referring to Bruce the playboy. Of course! I suppose that would make him infamous.

I chuckled, "Yeah, I guess sometimes I don't really see that side of you, Bruce, so I forget. But really, who is your…date here?"

I was really trying so hard not to be awkward, but it really wasn't paying off. The Joker could tell. I guess his next move on me was to try and make me less awkward. Since I was standing with my back to a wall, he clandestinely snaked his hand behind me and let his hand fall slightly to a forbidden area, if you know what I mean. I would have jumped at this opportunity to bang him on the bar or something, but Bruce and the soon-to-be-named blonde were in front of me. The Joker's attempt only added to the horribly awkward—I was now unable to speak coherently and the Joker was fingering me through my pants from behind! I really hated my life sometimes…

Bruce raised an eyebrow at me curiously before speaking. He could tell I was uncomfortable, but probably not for the reasons he suspected, "This is Selina Kyle," Bruce introduced us.

"Nice to meet you, Selina," I held out my hand for her to shake. She smiled back at me and shook my hand.

"Selina, this is Giada DiMarco—a very good friend of mine and nurse practitioner at Arkham," Bruce was trying to make up for what I could not speak of in the current moment. I could tell. At least she seemed oblivious to my previous hatred towards her in thinking she was Pixie…and that the Joker was copping a feel in the land down under.

"Giada, that's a pretty name. It means Jade, doesn't it?" Selina asked, nonchalantly. I was completely caught off guard. No one ever knew that Giada was Jade in English. That was interesting to me.

"Yes…it is. How did you know that?" I asked, grinning back at her.

"Oh, it's just something I picked up when I was in Italy a couple of years back when I was living there," Selina responded. Curious—she lived in Italy. Wouldn't have pinned her for the traveling type, but I suppose you can never really judge that about a person.

"That's fantastic! I'm Italian—as you could guess from my name. So, when did you and Bruce meet?"

"Oh, well," she glanced at Bruce with an affectionate smile, "we met here, oh…maybe a week or two ago,"

"How nice," I smiled back at her. She then averted her eyes to the Joker, who had left his hand on my ass and was now just staring off into the club, probably hoping to get another mai tai soon.

"So you're the Joker," Selina said finally, crossing her arms in front of her chest. She bit her lip as she glanced at him up and down. Normally, I would have felt the urge to kick her ass, but since she was clearly very much infatuated with Bruce, I didn't think too much into her gaze. And yet, something about her, made me cringe—her laughing lips and sparkling eyes reminded me so much of Pixie, that just her mere glance at the Joker made me cringe inside.

"The pleasure is all mine," the Joker spoke finally, his voice light as he held out his hand for her to shake.

"I've heard much about you," she said with a small chuckle.

"Well of course," he responded seriously, and yet I could hear the smile in his voice. Bruce and I exchanged glances, but his eyes tried catching mine as soon as I let mine wander. When our eyes met again, I wondered why they burned so deeply into mine. I could only guess he had something to tell me—maybe it involved Selina, or maybe it involved the Joker.

"Giada, I'm heading up to the bar, care to join me?" Bruce asked finally. I glanced at the Joker and Selina, who were both engrossed in small talk conversation. I nodded my head to Bruce.

"Hey, I'm heading up to the bar. Join us if you like," I informed the Joker. He nodded, barely acknowledging me as he listened intently to Selina's soft garble. Bruce and I left the two of them and headed for the bar.

"Two shots of patron, please!" Bruce called out to the bartender. For a moment, Bruce and I were completely silent, avoiding each other's gazes. It wasn't until the arrival of our beloved tequila that we caught one another's eyes.

"Here's to friendship," Bruce said quickly, raising his shot in the air. I held my shot and paused before clanking his glass.

"Bruce, what's on your mind?" I asked sternly, knowing that something was eating away at my friend.

He shook his head, "toast with me first, please, Giada,"

I obliged and clanked his shot glass with mine. Together, we downed the patron and plunked out shot glasses back onto the bar.

"So, now tell me what's eating you?" I asked, leaning my arm on the bar. Bruce's eyes were dark and searching. He glanced in the direction of the Joker and Selina and then back at me, as if to make sure they were out of hearing range. The club was much too loud for them to hear us anyway—I could barely hear Bruce and he was right beside me!

"It's Selina," Bruce said finally, leaning in close to me.

"What about Selina?" I asked, hoping he'd uncover something exciting for me to hear.

"Giada, I've just me this woman, what, two weeks ago, and…well, I am just so drawn to her," Bruce explained. He seemed so sincere—it as incredibly sweet that he felt like that towards Selina. And yet, there was something about her that was different. I couldn't quite put my finger on it, but she struck a different chord with me. Perhaps Bruce was too love stricken to notice it.

"Well that's nice, Bruce. Does she fancy you?" I asked, trying to sound proper in my analysis of the situation. Bruce cracked a smile.

"I think she feels similar—although, now she's met the Joker, I'm not so sure," he chuckled, glancing back at Selina, still chatting up the Joker, who looked ever so bored.

"I don't think you have anything to worry about there," I laughed, noticing the Joker's expressionless face. I could only imagine the lack of excitement in his voice as he spoke to Selina about God knows what. I did hope that he would inform me of their conversation. Maybe the Joker felt something strange about Selina too—maybe he was confronting her about it.

I glanced past Bruce to where Selina and the Joker stood, but to my shock, they had disappeared. I caught eyes with Bruce, "They're gone!" I nodded my head for him to look behind him.

I could see the calmness drain from his face as he turned back towards me. His eyes filled with fear and anxiety for where his beloved Selina could have disappeared to with my beloved Joker.

"Bruce, if this woman steals the Joker from me, I'm going to go Medieval on her ass—just like I still have to do with Pixie—in fact, I'll kill them both at the same time for convenience!" I snapped, suddenly angry with the situation.

"Sh, Giada, it's okay. I'm sure it's nothing. They'll come back—and please don't kill anyone—or at least don't talk about it with me. You know where I stand on that, Giada. Talk to your Joker about that, not me," Bruce stated, a bit dejectedly. I frowned. Guilt suddenly crept into my stomach from out of nowhere. Bruce was such a dear friend to me. I hated causing him angst with my hatred for Pixie and now possibly Selina if she didn't return with the Joker soon. How did I become so jealous? I really needed to stop the jealousy. It was clear that the Joker could love me, but also very clear that he was not willing to accept something so promising.

"Bruce, when did I become such a jealous person?" I asked as a frown formed on my lips. Bruce shook his head and wrapped his arm about my shoulders.

"You're not a jealous person, Giada—you just…love …him, that's all. Love is a strong emotion and you've been waiting for so long to get the response from him that you want. Of course you're going to feel like this when he with other women, especially other women you aren't fond of," Bruce comforted me.

I nodded my head, trying to push Pixie from my mind and his dead love for her—love that he couldn't seem to find for me. It seemed hopeless—that I would forever live in her shadow. And now she was carrying his baby. Come to think of it, I hadn't seen her as of late—maybe she's miscarried from all the drugs. Part of me hoped she did so that her child wouldn't be born into such a terrible life.

"Bruce! You did a shot of patron without me?!" Selina called to Bruce as she and the Joker walked up the stairs to the bar. Bruce's eyes immediately lit up as she approached, the Joker not far behind. I avoided his gaze as he came closer to me.

"Actually, shots of tequila are Giada's and my shot of choice when we go drinking," Bruce stated with a smile.

"That's okay—let's get a…shot of soco and lime," she suggested as she eyed the bartender's alcohol selection.

"Sounds good to me. Do you two want to do one with us?" Bruce asked the Joker and I.

"Oh Giada, let's! Soco and lime will be a nice…change…from tequila," the Joker giggled. I glanced at him and grinned.

"Sure, Bruce. Count us in," I replied, still grinning. Bruce ordered four southern comforts with lime.

The bartender poured the shots and placed them on the bar. We each picked up a glass and held it awkwardly in the air to see if someone would make a toast.

"To the mask," the Joker said finally, smirking at me. I grinned back at him and then over at Bruce, who half smiled back at me and then looked down. I glanced back at the Joker, who had just widely smiled at Selina.