A rather momentous chapter :)
Chapter 18 – To the Batcave (again)
The next morning, when Bruce Wayne walked through the doors of Gotham's premier jewelry vendor, heads turned. Dollar signs glowed in the employees' eyes. There was an undignified scramble behind the counter as the salespeople jockeyed to serve him.
He was there for just twenty minutes. As a fairly decisive man, it didn't take him long to make his choice, pay with a large-figure check, and exit with the ring box tucked securely inside his pocket.
All day long, he fidgeted with the box so much that he threatened to actually burn a hole in that pocket.
Upon her arrival at precisely five-thirty, Selina was led once again to the study. Unusual, considering Alfred usually brought her out to the patio or balcony on pleasant summer evenings. And when she spied two champagne glasses resting on the coffee table, that only confirmed something was definitely amiss.
Holding a champagne bottle and wearing a euphoric grin was the man of the mansion. Was he actually going to pour that bottle himself? Not Alfred? Yes, Selina decided summarily. This evening promised to be unlike any other she'd experienced here before.
"How was your second day at work?" he eagerly asked.
"Fine," she replied, eyeing him questioningly. "I took some aspirin this morning to ward off another headache. It seemed to work."
"Good," said Bruce, popping the champagne cork. Selina watched in amazement as he poured some into both glasses.
She gasped. "I thought you didn't drink?"
Giving her a knowing gaze, he dodged her question and handed her a glass. "A toast, to your new job. May it be as productive as you hope."
Their glasses clinked, and to Selina's total shock, Bruce sipped his in tandem with hers. It was her turn to question reality today.
"Are we having hors d'oeuvres in here tonight?" she speculated.
"No."
"Will we move out to the patio, or…?"
"No," Bruce was enjoying this. "We'll be going… someplace new."
New? Selina had seen every room in the manor, sat in every chair, even used every bathroom. There wasn't one square foot with which she was unfamiliar. How could there possibly be a new area to visit?
Before she could question him, Bruce stepped over to the corner grandfather clock. She gasped again as he pushed it aside with just one arm, revealing a dimly lit stairwell. Her eyes were as round as the clock's face.
"Shall we?" he reached for her hand.
"I've said it before and I'll say it again, you're full of surprises, Bruce Wayne."
It was good that Bruce had withheld the existence of the Batcave until now. As a whole, the space was as shocking to Selina's system as discovering that Bruce was Batman. One could only tolerate so many shocks of that magnitude over the course of a year. Spreading them apart was definitely humane.
"This is crazy," she whispered, taking in the bizarre range of items on display. It was impossible to choose one feature that stood out from the rest. Was the giant penny more or less absurd than the mechanical T-Rex hunched in the corner?
"You're like Scrooge McDuck with a lucky dime in his vault," she declared.
Bruce chuckled. "I suppose so. I hadn't thought of that," he absently traced the edge of the penny.
"I almost expect that dinosaur to come to life, and all those knights to jump out at us," Selina glanced uneasily at some ancient suits of armor. The swords may be old, but they looked no less sharp.
"I'm glad you find it entertaining," Bruce remarked, linking his arm in hers. "But there's even more."
"More?!"
"Follow me," he beckoned toward a staircase hewn into the cave wall, curving down into mysterious depths. Gently glowing sconces lit their path as Selina gripped Bruce's hand for dear life. If she were with anyone else, she'd have run in terror back to the study… and then straight on to her car.
Their descent ended at a small landing with a rowboat moored nearby. An underground river spanned about thirty feet to the far wall, where another row of sconces illuminated blue-black catacombs. Selina wasn't sure, but she thought she heard the faint rush of water off in the distance, far beyond the river's curve.
"Here," Bruce steadied the boat and helped her step in. "Isn't this better than hors d'oeuvres on the patio?"
"It's better than hors d'oeuvres in Paris," Selina replied, spellbound.
To Selina's intrigue, the rushing water sound grew louder as Bruce paddled rhythmically through the water. Though she couldn't see his face very well, it was clear that the grin he'd had in the study was still there. If anything, it had grown even bigger. She didn't know how much of that was courtesy of the champagne he'd uncharacteristically consumed.
Several turns later, after Selina was thoroughly hypnotized by this underground universe, the crown jewel of the entire Batcave came into view. A fifty-foot waterfall cascaded down before them, illuminated by a natural skylight in the cave's dome nearly twice as high.
"I never knew this could exist anywhere beneath Gotham," Selina said in awe.
"My parents didn't either," Bruce told her. "I didn't find it until a few years after they passed. Alfred and I spent the next decade refining it, installing pathways and lights."
"Alfred helped you with all this? That's amazing."
"He's not as feeble as he looks," Bruce paddled closer to the falls. "He's former British intelligence, you know. Survived twenty-seven kidnapping attempts."
At this point, all Selina could do was let the surprises wash over her like waves in the ocean. They seemed to just keep steadily coming.
They were behind the waterfall now, surrounded by a translucent curtain of water. Bruce guided the boat over to a dry alcove and helped her out, still grinning.
"I'd better not be dreaming," she grinned back at him. "Or I'm going to be very, very upset when I wake up."
"And you'll hold it against real-life me?"
"Absolutely! My subconscious imagination is all your fault," she joked, pulling herself closer to him. The rush of their kiss melded with the water's torrent, and for a moment, it felt like their feet lifted from the rock.
"If I'm responsible for your subconscious imagination," Bruce said as they pulled apart, "then let me provide some good material for it to work with."
When his tall frame began to drop, Selina feared he'd slipped on a patch of water. But that fear quickly vanished when she realized his posture was intentional – and involved balancing on one knee before her.
"Selina," he reached into his pocket, the one whose lining was now half as thick as yesterday, "I know there are probably a hundred reasons for you to say no, but could you find it within your heart to ignore them all… and marry me?"
What he said was technically true. There were a hundred reasons to say no. Selina knew, however, that if she let those reasons dictate her response, she'd have no choice but to admit herself into a psychiatric ward tomorrow. (Where she'd probably cross paths with several of Batman's enemies, tormenting her with endless reminders of him.)
"Yes," she breathed out, her voice blending with the water's hiss. "Yes, Bruce. I will."
The ring fit as perfectly as he'd hoped. The boat ride back was just as magically surreal as the first. And the dinner awaiting them in the main Batcave chamber surpassed any that Alfred had ever made. Just one look from Bruce, and Alfred knew Selina's answer. That, along with the stunning diamond now encircling her finger.
The only one left to inform was young Dick, who sat squirming impatiently in his seat. "What took you so long? I'm starving!"
"Sorry about that," Bruce winked at Selina as they sat down. "Promise it won't happen again."
"That's cool. I guess having Selina here makes it worth it."
"I couldn't agree more," Bruce nudged her with his elbow. "And speaking of Selina… there's another name you'll be calling her soon, son."