In Love With A Good Man
Chapter 8: Take A Risk
Even the thrill and satisfaction of a successful heist was dulled by the disappointment of a breakup.
Well, technically now it had been two breakups: Joker and now Casey. It was unfair! First, Joker ditches her like the jerk that he is, and then Casey dumps her because of her history with Joker. At this point, she just needed one more person to dump her so she could officially call it a strikeout.
Ivy asked Harley to come with her and help her steal some fear toxin from Scarecrow's hideout. It wasn't much; she just kept watch while Ivy went in and took the fear toxins. Since poisons have no effects on Poison Ivy, she was able to walk through the traps without any issues.
Usually Harley would have something to say, whether it be a snarky comment, a dorky pun, or even just rambling her way through the mission. However, she didn't have much to say at all tonight. It didn't seem like she was even paying attention.
It made for an awkward atmosphere during the car ride home – Harley resting her chin in her hand and staring out the window while Ivy drove silently, trying to figure out something to say and then working up the nerve to say it.
She never understood Harley's relationship troubles, so she could never be sure what she could say that would actually comfort her.
Finally, the two of them returned to Harley's hideout. They got out of the car and Ivy carefully brought the vials of fear toxin inside. Once they entered the building, Ivy brought the vials over to her work station for extraction. That's when she finally said something else to Harley.
"Thanks for all of your help tonight, Harley. You always make these things just a little bit easier." Ivy said appreciatively. Harley sat back against the table and folded her arms.
"Yeah, you're welcome, Red." She replied, sighing to herself and staring at the door. Ivy glanced at her before continuing.
"Scarecrow's fear toxin is exactly what I need for this new fragrance that I'm working on. It will be a big help to the both of us." She explained.
"Yeah? Yeah, sounds good." She muttered her reply.
"Yes...you're still hung up over that boy, huh?" Ivy asked, folding her arms.
"He's not a boy, Red," Harley said defensively, turning around and resting her hands on the table. "I really liked 'im, y'know!" She said.
"Then find someone else to really like and get over him. Or just stop looking for another relationship to make yourself feel better." Ivy said irritably, waving her hand dismissively.
"Hmph!" Harley folded her arms and pouted, "You don't have to be so mean about it!" She said. Ivy sighed, taking a moment to calm down.
"You're right. I'm sorry for saying that. I...well, I just don't understand." She said. Harley nodded.
"Yeah, I get it...I'm annoying and stuff. That's why Mr. J always kicks me to the curb," Harley said sadly, rubbing her arm. "I know it's dumb, but this thing with Casey just...felt different, y'know? It was just clicking right away, and things were moving fast but in a good way!" She described.
"Mhmm." Ivy nodded, listening to her quietly. Harley sighed again.
"I dunno, it's probably just lil ol' Harley being stupid again." She muttered and looked down.
"I've never heard you talk that way before though. Not even about Joker." Ivy pointed out.
"Really?" Harley looked up at her.
"Yeah...Harley, just go back and give it another try." Ivy finally said.
"Really?! You think that I should?!" Harley perked up a little.
"It's your decision. It's not like you need my approval." Ivy said with another wave of her hand.
"Aww, Red!" Harley gave her a tight hug, "You're the sweetest!"
"I know," Ivy said with a faint chuckle, patting her on the head. "So I assume you'll be going now then?" She asked. Harley let her go and nodded.
"Yeah. I've gotta give it a try!" Harley said with a determined look on her face.
"Well, let me know how it goes. If he ends up calling the cops on you, make sure you lose them before you come back here." Ivy said.
"Oh yeah. Hope that doesn't happen..." Harley said with a nervous giggle, pressing a finger on her chin...
So Harley changed out of her costume, removed her makeup, and made the trip to Casey's house. It was a little after 10 pm when she arrived. As she nervously approached his home, she could see that some lights were on inside, so she knew he was still awake.
"Okay, Harley. You can do this...you can do this." She said to herself as she knocked on the door. She waited, but no one came to the door. So she rang the doorbell. This time, she could hear someone coming to answer the door. She could feel her chest tightening as it opened slowly.
Casey cracked the door open and leaned against the door frame. His eyes widened when he saw Harley standing on the other side. His expression didn't look like he didn't want to see her though...it was hard to tell. She nervously smiled and waved at him.
"Hiya...hi Casey." She greeted him through a shaky breath. Casey swallowed.
"Are you here to kill me?" He asked.
"No! No, I'm not. I never wanted to kill ya, Casey. I just wanna talk. Can we talk? Please?" She asked, tilting her head and looking at him with her best puppy dog eyes. Casey swallowed again and nodded.
"Yeah, come on in." He invited her in, opening up the door for her. Harley entered into his home once again. She looked around before sitting down on his couch.
"Everything's still here." She commented before smiling at him. He sat down across from her on the couch.
"Well yeah, of course. Why wouldn't it be?" He asked as he got comfortable.
"Ha, I, uh, figured you might've decided to run for the hills by now." She admitted with an awkward chuckle.
"Heh, well, I can't really afford to do that. For the time being, I'm stuck here." He said.
"Right, yeah. Well, I'm happy you're still here." Harley said, managing another smile.
"I appreciate that...what do you wanna say to me, Harley?" He asked. Harley folded her hands in her lap.
"I...wanted to talk. Casey, I really like you. And I-I feel like I really messed up."
"Yeah, me too." He admitted with a nod.
"Really?" Harley looked at him in surprise.
"Yeah. I did mean what I said, but the way that whole conversation went down was just..." He shook his head. "I'm not usually like that, all that yelling and arguing. So I do apologize for that." He said politely.
"It's okay. Let's just back it up and start over, yeah?" She offered.
"Sure." He agreed.
"Okay...well, Casey, I really like you. I said that already, but I'm saying it again, 'cause it's true...can we get back together again, please?!" She pleaded with him. He flinched in surprise.
"Harley...I still mean what I said. I can't get involved with someone with your criminal status." He stated.
"I can ditch all that, I swear! I'll go straight! I mean, I'm a little rusty, but I can try!" She quickly responded. She said it all so quickly that she even surprised herself. Did she really mean that?
"Really? Would you? Can you?" Casey asked doubtfully.
"Of course I can! And I would!" She answered, "It's not any fun without you, Casey." She said softly.
"I see." Casey nodded, looking into her eyes.
It was easy for him to see that she was being sincere. It wasn't the first time a girl had strong feelings for him like this, but now knowing what he knew about Harley, her promising to 'go legit' for him was hard to believe. Was she that desperate to be with him? Or was she that desperate to escape that life?
"Come on, Casey. I really wanna try this. I do!" She insisted. Casey stared at her as he thought this over. Maybe he was crazy for even entertaining this, but he did feel drawn to Harley. It was hard to deny his own feelings for her.
"Alright, Harley...if you really mean it and you promise...I'll do whatever I can to help you." He finally agreed.
"Really?! Oh Casey!" Harley threw herself onto him, wrapping her arms around him and kissing his face. Casey fell back in surprise. He wrapped his arms around her.
"Wow, Harley! You come on strong." He said with a chuckle.
"Heheh, yeah, that's how I do," She said with a giggle, smiling at him. "I missed you."
"I missed you too...even though we only broke up for like a day." He said with a chuckle.
"Yeah but still!" Harley said before kissing him. He returned the kiss.
Yeah, this was definitely a risk, but he liked her enough that he was willing to take it...
