"Dissolve scar tissue," the Joker repeated her words.
"Yes," Adriana told him. "It's very advanced and could smooth your skin, at least that is what the doctor tells me. Some combination of laser and enzymes..it's complicated and experimental but he believes it could be effective."
The Joker appear to be considering what she was saying briefly before speaking again.
"Okay," he said finally. "When?"
"When?" she asked him. "When what?"
"When do I have to do this laser thing?"
"Wait, I..." Adriana said. "No one is saying that you have to do anything. It's just an option. It's totally up to you and you don't have to do it if you don't want to. Doctor Kapoor just think that it could be beneficial... Perhaps for your mental health going forward."
"I do not have mental health," the Joker said.
"You're making jokes but I'm being serious," she told him.
"Yes," he said jokingly. "Your face is very serious."
"Anyway," she said, seeing in his thoughts and expression that he was not taking the offer very seriously. He did not see the point. "If you decide you would like to try the treatment, you can let us know. This is entirely your call."
"So, I imagine it would be painful to have my face burned off with a laser," he said and shrugged. "I have a high tolerance for pain."
"It won't burn your face," she said. "It more...of a gradual resurfacing type of situation."
"Ah.." he said as if he understood, even though she knew he didn't.
Momentarily, he took off his black baseball cap and pushed the long pieces of hair in front of his face back. Before putting the cap back onto his head he glanced into her eyes.
"So you think it would be an improvement?" he asked her. "Beneficial?"
"Like I said," she said. "It could improve your mental health, if that's what you're asking." She knew that was not what he was asking.
"Yes," the Joker spoke. "You did say that. Well I guess we have our answer then. Laser beam it is."
"Our answer?" she said. "It has to be yours. Yours alone. It's your face."
He was quiet.
"It's a big choice," she said. "You absolutely don't have to if you don't want to. It's not necessary or required in any way-"
He nodded once. She could see in his thoughts that he had no curiosity, no excitement, and no questions about the procedure.
"So we're not pressuring you or anything, just putting the option on the table for you."
"Any particular reason you are telling me this and not Dr. Kapoor?" he asked.
"What do you mean?" she asked. "What does it matter who tells you?"
He was quiet again.
"You think I want you to do this?" she asked him after reading his mind.
"So, you don't?" he asked.
"We aren't going to do this," she told him. "I can't decide this for you-"
"So you do," he guessed.
"Look," she said, putting up one hand. "I'm not contributing my opinion at all here, okay-"
"Why not?" he asked. "You're here with a doctor, helping me."
"I am but-"
"I'm asking you, would you say the benefits outweigh the...existing state?"
It wad her turn to be quiet. She could not fall for this game.
"We have our answer then," he said after a few moments. "Let Dr. Kapoor know, I will do it."
He was testing her. She knew this. But if she reacted the way she wanted to, she would be giving him her opinion...which she knew she couldn't.
"Okay," she said, acting impartial. "I will let him know."
.
.
.
" This is the best welcome I could have hoped for," Bruce said to Adriana.
She was holding Arsenio and they were standing beside the town car that brought them to the landing field . Bruce's private jet had just touched down and they were there waiting for him as soon as he came down the steps.
"We both missed you like crazy," Adriana told him before his lips met hers. He took the baby from her arms and gave him several kisses.
"Not nearly as much as I have missed the both of you," he told her. "He feels heavier. Growing so fast.. Aren't you little man?" Arsenio responded with adorable sounds of made up words.
"When you are gone Alfred gave him a little of that imported Romano cheese," Adriana informed Bruce. "He loves it so much he wants it all the time. Maybe that's why he's growing so fast."
"Healthy appetite, my boy," Bruce laughed as the chauffeur opened the door for them to get into the town car.
.
.
.
Adriana said in front of her vanity that evening and brushed her hair while Bruce showered. She found herself thinking about the Joker's upcoming procedure. For some reason she was incredibly anxious and was not sure why. There was no reason for her to be nervous or preoccupied. She brushed her hair a bit more aggressively in her tension.
"Be careful my lovely Rapunzel," Bruce said behind her, noticing how forcefully she was pulling the brush through.
She began to brush more gently and smiled at him in the mirror. She then gathered a handful of her hair from the ends which were laying on her lap and began to brush them much more softly.
"Done, finally," she said and stood up and noticed Bruce still standing in the same spot with the towel around his hips, watching her.
"At last," he said and wrapped his arms around her and kissing her.
His kiss deepened as he lifted her in his arms and carried her to their bed. She let her fingertips glide through his silky damp hair as she laid on her back and felt his lips kiss her stomach through the satin robe she was wearing.
"Bruce," she whispered as he kissed her lower abdomen.
"Hm?" he said without looking up. When she didn't respond he lifted his chin and looked up into her eyes.
She held his face with both hands admiring him. His skin still glistened from the humidity of the shower. She leaned down and kissed him on the forehead.
"I love you," she whispered.
He pressed his lips together, and looked as if he was struggling with trying to swallow words that he wanted to say. All she could see in his eyes was love as he spoke.
"I want another child," he said, surprising her.
Her lips parted as a million thoughts ran through her mind. It wasn't the right time. Arsenio was still so young and she had her hands full. Shade was needed throughout the city and she was not prepared to take another nine month hiatus. Their baby was less than eight months old. She couldn't stop her vigilantism. All of the thoughts came and went and under 2 seconds. She had no words for Bruce as she looked at him. Her mind suddenly went quiet and all of the reasons and excuses escaped her as she gazed into his eyes. She felt joy, openness, craved unity with him. His thoughts and desires seemed to overwhelm her own. Her mind was with his.
"Me too," she heard herself say, barely above a whisper.
.
.
.
" There are a few steps to this process," the doctor explained to the Joker. "Both Adriana and myself have become fully educated in all steps of this process so that will make things run smoother."
The Joker glanced over at Adriana who was standing beside the doctor quietly.
"The first portion and this process will include a scan with this machine," the doctor said. It will basically create a 3D image and map of the scar tissue. It contains imaging technology that can determine how thick the scarring is in the various areas of your face. Then it will program the laser to treat each region. According to the depth of the scarring."
"Gotcha," the Joker said.
"Once that is complete I will take the results over to the actual laser treatment machine which is a full body device that you will lay inside. While I am setting up the machine and programming it for your treatment, Adriana will get you prepped," the doctor said. "There are a few different anesthesia options. We can offer local anesthesia in the form of a few injections or general anesthesia. The laser itself is extremely painful otherwise. Once the machine here scans your face to give us the determination of the type of treatment you will need, we will know how many rounds of laser treatment are required. My guess is 3 to 4 weekly treatments. Do you have any questions?"
The Joker shook his head and the doctor look at Adriana before they began. Adriana was not sure why but she felt completely numb. The doctor pulled out what appeared to be a large wand attached to a thick cord which attached it to a machine. It reminded the the Joker of being in jail and being scanned with a hand-held metal detector regularly.
Adriana took a step forward and handed him a pair of specialized goggles to protect his eyes. She put on her glasses while he took his, noticing her robotic and cold movements. He put the goggles on but even with them he could see the extremely bright blue light beaming over him as the doctor the wind slowly in front of his face.
Once the scan was done, the doctor left of the room to prepare the laser machine.
The Joker took off his goggles and watched Adriana put the goggles into a small tray.
"Did you decide if you wanted the general or local anesthesia?" she asked very clinically.
"None of the above," he said.
"Don't be silly," she sighed. "This will be an extremely painful procedure without any anesthesia."
"I'm sure I can take it," he said dismissively.
She did not want to go back and forth with him. She felt anxiety building in her again. She almost wanted to shake herself and she did not know why. Why did she feel afraid?
"At least use a bit of numbing cream," she said. "To dull the pain."
The Joker raised and drop to one shoulder and gave a brief nod. He watched her let out a sigh of relief. She left the room for a minute and then came back with a tube of the medical grade numbing cream. He kept his eyes on her as she went over to the sink in the room and scrubbed her hands before putting on a pair of blue gloves. The entire time she seemed to be avoiding eye contact with him.
" Tilt your head up," she instructed him is she and did some of the contents of the tube onto a small dish.
He obeyed, and she walked over to him. She stood in front of him is he sat on the high medical table. Using her fingertips added some the numbing cream on to the ends of the fingers on her gloves. Gently she moved her hand to his face and began to spread the cream over his scars. She kept her eyes on the scarred area on his lower face the entire time. She was almost done and dipped her index finger back into the cream.
The tiny slit scar in the center of his bottom lip was the last area that need to be numbed. She felt as if her body betrayed her because as her fingertip touched his bottom lip her eyes drifted towards his. It was as if she lost control. Neither one of them knew how much time had passed as they fell into locked eye contact.
"I-" Adriana started to say to him.
"Numbing cream?" she her Dr. Kapoor say behind her as he entered the room again, interrupting. "No, no, that simply won't do for this procedure."
"Don't worry doc," the Joker said and stood up.
" I am not comfortable with this," the doctor went on. " Allow us to at least do a couple of spot treatments with local anesthesia."
"Nah," the Joker said and waved him off. "Fire up the machine."
The doctor at him hesitantly and then left the room again, now willing to argue.
"What were you saying?" the Joker asked Adriana once the doctor had gone.
"Oh..." Adriana said as she pulled off her gloves not really remembering. She had no idea what she was about to say. Or perhaps she did but there was no way she could say the words aloud. "Nothing."
"Okay then," the Joker said.
"You...um," she said in dropped the gloves into the medical waste bin. "Can head to the next room."
The room fell silent as he looked at her wondering what she was holding back.
"Right then," he said and turned away.
Again her body betrayed her as her hand flew forward and grabbed his wrist before he could take a step. He turned slowly. He did not ask her what she wanted, he simply waited for her to speak.
She looked at the man in front of her. The man that she had known. He did not care about the procedure that he was getting, it meant almost nothing to him and he did not see what the benefit would be. Adriana on the other hand was somehow overcome with a feeling of grief. He would be dramatically changed forever. It felt incredibly foolish, but she felt like he was about to erase the past. Their past.
I don't want you to do this. Those were her thoughts but he would never hear her say the words. She swallowed.
"You'll um..." she said and pulled out a pair of bright red colored sunglasses. "Need these to protect your eyes."
He took them carefully. He waited a few more seconds for her to speak again but she couldn't.
"Well," he said. "Let's get this over with."