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65. Old Friend

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Disclaimer: I want to apologize, first and foremost for my immense lacking in updates! Life has been crazy since graduating from college! I am taking classes this summer that began the day after graduation (anatomy and physiology basically owns my life!) but I am going to try and update a bit more frequently! Thank you all so much for putting up with this! You are all incredible!

The Joker and I meandered over to the bar to get him another martini—his 6th martini of the night. I couldn't believe he wasn't even close to drunk—either that, or he was ridiculously good at hiding his state of consciousness. I guessed it was something I couldn't entirely rule out, considering it was…the Joker.

"Can we have another martini please?" I asked the bartender.

"Make that a dirty martini," the Joker quickly chimed. The bartender simply nodded and commenced to making the tasty beverage. Meanwhile, the Joker and I stood against the bar, silently awaiting the arrival of his drink. My eyes casually scanned the room for any familiar faces, other than Bruce's. I thought for certain Selina would be present at this such an event—perhaps she would make her presence known later on in the evening. I even found it difficult in locating the Penguin, who had thrown this formal shin-dig into action. Surely he would have greeted me by now!

"One dirty martini," the bartender spoke, placing the delicate glass between the Joker and me. The Joker flashed him a toothy grin and slipped him what appeared to be a generous tip. The bartender hesitantly took the cash and retreated to his next customer, knowing it best not to ask questions. The Joker finally turned to me and held up his murky glass.

"To an evening different from all others," he toasted, grinning widely at me. A smile returned to my lips as I held my glass to his.

"To an evening different from all others," I echoed him, clanking our glasses. I took a sip and placed my glass back down onto the bar, while the Joker finished off his martini in one gulp. I stared at him in disbelief.

"You are aware that you're drinking alcohol, right? And not water?" I chuckled, once he placed his empty glass down on the bar. He licked his lips and shook his head.

"I've always had an affinity for things I cannot taste," he commented, smirking. My eyes narrowed at him in skepticism.

"You mean to tell me you can't taste alcohol?!" I asked, dubiously. The Joker simply giggled and then outreached his gloved hands towards mine.

"My dear Giada…you mustn't interpret so literally…all the time. It makes for errors in judgment," he explained slowly and deliberately, almost serious. The grip on my hands tightened slightly, then released as he placed one of his hands into his pocket, and raised his other arm against the bar.

"Fair enough," I stated, biting my lower lip as I let my eyes scan the room once more, this time searching for Bruce and with whom he may be conversing. As I lost myself in the crowd, I suddenly became aware of the Joker's gaze, heavily piercing through me.

"You look so…serious, Giada. How about another drink?" he asked suddenly as he moved in close to me, brushing away some of my hair with his hand. The stench of alcohol from his breath was pungent and grossly apparent as he whispered into my ear.

I glanced over at the bar where my martini had been placed, "I hadn't even finished the first," I stated, wondering where it had disappeared to.

"Oh, I drank than when you were lost in your gazes," the Joker said, "but I'll order you another. Any preferences?"

"A rum and coke would be nice," I just managed to get the words out when I finally noticed a familiar blonde woman in the crowd of formally dressed guests. "I'll be right back," I said as I started moving away from the bar, my eyes fixated on the woman. The Joker's darkly gloved hand quickly met my arm, preventing me from moving any further.

"Where are you going?" he asked, almost angrily. His eyes widened and his lips narrowed as his grip on my arm tightened.

"First of all, this is supposed to be a nice evening, so I would suggest you remove your hand from my arm unless you are going to be romantically stroking it in a caressing gesture. Second of all, I see someone I recognize and I would like to go and see if it is the person I think it is," I responded in a low, but firm voice, not once taking my eyes from his. The Joker paused for a moment, breathed loudly through his nose and released me from his grasp. "And thirdly, if you ever grab me like that again, I'll kick my foot so far up your ass, my heel will clean out your nasal passageways," and with that final comment, I strode off into the crowd towards the blonde woman who I could only suspect was Selina Kyle.

The Joker, stunned and slightly aroused by my command, turned his gaze to me as I left the bar. He, too, spotted the blonde woman and decided to take off after me.

"Giada, wait!" the Joker briskly made his way towards me. He reached out and grabbed my hand. I spun around and pursed my lips.

"What is it?" I asked, slightly agitated. The Joker licked his lips and leaned in close to me. He knew all too well, the hearing capacities of the guests in this room.

"I know you think that blonde woman is…well…you know—but I assure you, Giada, she is not," the Joker said softly into my ear. I turned my head curiously so that our eyes could meet.

"How do you know?" I asked, truly puzzled by how he could tell who this woman was from such a distance.

"Selina Kyle is not here yet until…midnight or so—that is what I heard from your dear friend Bruce. I think the bar is…calling your name, Giada. Howwww many drinks have you had?" he asked, licking his lips and raising his eyebrows in his typical Joker-fashion. I sighed and shook my head, letting loose a small smile. I looked back up at him, still smiling.

"Not even one,"

"Have a…few more—then we can…search the guests," the Joker winked at me and then raised his eyebrows suggestively. I let out a small laugh as he led me back to the bar where, strangely enough, a rum and coke was waiting for me.

Needless to say, the Joker's power over me was strong that evening—or at the bar. Four rum and cokes later, I was loosened up, speaking my mind (more so than usual) and ready for a romp with the Joker—but of course that would have to be later.

"One more rum and coke," the Joker urged me. He could see how glassy my eyes looked, and yet he still insisted I have one more!

"No, I cannot! It will push me over the edge!" I exclaimed, slamming my fist down onto the bar. The Joker rolled his eyes and ordered me another rum and coke.

"Stay here a minute—I'll be back in just…a moment," the Joker said finally, once my beverage arrived.

"What?! Where are you going?" I asked, grabbing his hand, like he had done so to me earlier. He grinned at me and plucked away at my fingers which loosely held onto his hand in what I had thought was a grasp.

"Bathroom," he lied as he pushed his way through the crowd of tipsy guests. I turned around and sipped on my drink, weary that some two-time mobster was about to sit next to me and slip a roofie into my drink.

"All alone? Where'd your date go?" Bruce asked as he slipped in next to me at the bar. I turned and smiled at him.

"Looks like he's right here…though he left me quite some time ago to mingle with gangsters dressed in Gucci," I teased, elbowing him lightly on the arm. Bruce smiled and ordered himself drink.

"Not much has happened so far, but I'm assuming things will pick up later on, as far as deals and networking goes," Bruce stated quietly to me.

"So how late do you plan on staying here?" I asked, taking another sip of my drink.

"As long as I need to be," Bruce explained, taking a swig of beer. "But in all seriousness, where'd the Joker head off to? He just left you here?"

"Bruce, it's okay. He went to the bathroom—which is not a place I'd like to join him," I chuckled, then averting my gaze quickly into the crowd.

"He did? I just came from the bathroom—I didn't see him go in there," Bruce stated curiously. He and I exchanged glances of concern as we placed our drinks down on the bar and turned our gazes back to the crowd.

"I think I see him," Bruce said as he stood to his feet.

"Where?" I asked, standing to mine, and then hoisting myself up a bit on the bar to get a better view of the crowd.

"Over there—talking to that blonde woman," Bruce said softly into my ear. I glanced in the direction of his gaze and saw that it was the woman I had initially wanted to seek out before my five rum and cokes.

"That woman! She looks so familiar! I was going to go talk to her earlier but the Joker convinced me to have a couple rum and coke's first," I stated, irritated.

Bruce leaned closer to me and wrinkled his face, "Whew, how many did you have?" he asked.

"Five," I muttered, as I began making my way into the crowd. Bruce followed me close behind as I weaved and meandered in and out of the crowd until I finally caught sight of the Joker and the blonde.

"Oh HELL NO," I said angrily as I turned to Bruce. Bruce stood beside me and took my hand in his.

"Be calm,"

"Looks like we're having a little visit from an old friend," I retorted back at Bruce.

"Giada, please, just stay calm," Bruce urged.

"Come with me," I said firmly to him. He had no choice in the matter. I dragged him next to me until the Joker and the blonde were in close proximity.

"PIXIE!" I hollered at them. The Joker and Pixie turned in my direction. So to avoid a scene of anger, I approached her and hugged her, as though I couldn't wait to see her.

"Soo good to see you! Look at your belly! You must be close to the due date by now," I said, clenching my teeth.

"No need for show, Giada. You hate me and I hate you," Pixie sneered, placing her hands on her once very apparent hips.

"Yes, well the difference between us is that I don't care to cause a scene here at such a lovely function with such formal guests," I responded with a wide, fake smile.

"You do realize everyone here is a criminal of some sort, don't you?" Pixie asked.

"With the exception of some billionaire philanthropists," I slurred, suddenly very aware of my drunken consciousness, as I haphazardly gestured to Bruce. Bruce simply smiled and nodded his head.

"Well, it is good to know you made the effort to come to the gathering this evening, Pixie—especially when you are willing to put your own needs before those of the unborn baby you carry inside that God-forsaken womb of yours," I stated.

"You filthy bitch," Pixie scorned, almost ready to pounce.

"I'm a filthy bitch? I'm not the one currently pregnant and using illicit drugs," I nonchalantly commented, "I mean, what do you think, Joker?"

"You leave him out of this, whore," Pixie said with a crude tone.

"You're right. I think we should leave him out of this too, but unfortunately, the man I'm currently in love with just so happened to impregnate you. Believe me, Pixie, if you and I could leave him out of this, I would. In fact, if I could leave you out of my life too, that would be optimal—buuuuuuut I can't! So let's make do with what we've been given: a pregnant, drug addicted criminal who lost her chance with an allegedly psychotic killer clown who doesn't even have the capacity to love any more than you do! You know what?! From the looks of things, we're all just wasting our time here! You're wasting your time being pregnant, because that baby is probably going to die; Bruce is wasting his time here because he is so much better than this; the Joker's wasting his time because he very well knows that you and I are not with his time; and I am wasting my time and energy loving someone in hopes that they will love me back! SO what have we all learned here tonight? Let's not waste time!" I exclaimed, nearly out of breath and my heart pounding inside of my chest.

I don't even think I was completely aware of the things I was saying, mostly because I had used the words "love" and "hope" and "love me back" in front of the Joker. It was clear to all of us how I felt about him. There was no hiding it any longer, except for the fact that I knew I would have to suppress the feeling for a long as I was associated with the Joker. Bruce put his arm around me and stroked my arm gently.

"I think you need some water and something to eat, Giada," Bruce soothed me.

"Food? You think I need food? I think I need a gun so I can shoot the bitch!" I exclaimed again, throwing his arm off of me.

"A gun to shoot me?! I need a bullet to go through that idiot head of yours!" Pixie squealed at me, ready to lunge.

"My idiot head?! How many degrees do you have, Pixie? I have a BS, an MS, an RN, BSN and an NP! AND I'm not addicted to drugs!" I retorted back, suddenly aware that other guests were around and I didn't want to cause too much of a scene. Thankfully it was loud and the band was playing—no one seemed to notice our distress; either that, or it was expected and respectfully ignored.

"Oh, but I have the one thing you want in life—a baby growing inside of me fathered by the man you supposedly love," Pixie spat back at me. My blood was fuming, and Bruce knew this. He calmly placed his arm about my shoulders again and whispered into my ear.

"Giada, he doesn't love her—you know better than she that he probably loves you," Bruce spoke softly.

"Oh, right, and he also asked me to marry him. I don't suppose you were ever engaged to the Joker," Pixie continued probing.

"No. I haven't and I don't suppose I ever will. But you made the mistake of breaking it off—a mistake I would never make. Take care," I stated firmly, and with Bruce, made my way through the crowd, as far away from the two of them as possible.