Chapter 2: Morning After
A/N: Hey peeps! Sorry it took me so long to get back this story, I promise it won't happen again. I'm juggling four active stories and online classes right now and it can take me a minute to get new chapters out.
P.S: In regards to a certain reviewer of whom I won't name. Let me say this, this is MY story and I'm going to write it however I see fit. If I want my main characters to be black then they WILL be that. I am black, I can only write from that perspective. If you don't like that then go read another story and don't jump in my reviews or PM talking shit because you will be blocked IMMEDIATELY. I accept constructive criticism, not shitty personal opinions. Also, I write these stories entirely by myself on my own time with no help whatsoever. There will be mistakes and typos so chill out.
Waking up from the stage of prolonged consciousness never felt like more of a task than it did in the moment. The first thing brought to your attention was how warm and snug you felt cocooned in the sheets. Your eyelids felt incredibly heavy as they slowly lifted over your unfocused eyes in the space of the bedroom. It was obvious that you were waking from a very deep slumber as a dull pain around your forehead reminiscent of a migraine, encouraged an intense sensitivity to any minimal light. Squinting against the light, it took a moment to summon strength to your limbs in order to move. The muscles in your back, hips, and legs were awfully sore and tight. Considering the type of night you had, this wasn't really all that surprising.
Standing near the bedside was a stone-faced man wearing a black suit. He looked as though he'd been waiting for you to wake up for quite some time. The thought was creepy enough without having to notice that he held a phone to his ear as he stared down at you.
"Boss she's awake now." He spoke quietly to someone on the other end of the phone.
You took a moment to wait for your full awareness to come back before noticing that you were lying in a king-sized bed enveloped with silk pillows and soft linens. Even something as simple as sitting up proved to be somewhat difficult and you groaned with the effort while positioning the sheets over your naked chest. Glancing around the bedroom itself was enormous. A glamorous chandelier hung from the center of the room and there was elaborate furnishing in several areas of the rooms. Overall, the room possessed a very masculine feel to it. There were other mysterious doors attached to the room but you weren't in the mood to snoop around. The original task of finding your friends and going home took precedence over everything. With no bedside clock, there was no way telling whether it was morning or afternoon. However, if you had to guess, there was a huge chance that you slept past twelve.
"Yes sir, I'll make sure she does." This practically solidified the suspicion that someone was giving him orders to carry out. Providing instructions on what they wanted you to do. Almost instantly you had a theory of who that 'someone' might be.
You turned your wandering gaze up back towards the man's impassive face that was watching your every move like a hawk. Waking up to this unknown man made you realize that your green haired lover was nowhere in sight. Frankly, you'd never heard of a one nightstand that wasn't there the next morning. Truly, that was the least of your problems. Just where the hell are your clothes? You expected them to be scattered across the floor only to be surprised that they were not. Your phone just so happened to be missing also. As if things couldn't get any worse.
"Hey." The tone of his voice had you giving him your full attention. "Get up and get dressed."
One of your eyebrows lifted at the rude demand, you likened it to the way in which a dog was given a command by their expectant owner. For several seconds, you merely stared in disbelief, was he being serious right now? "Excuse me?"
Closing the phone and placing it within his suit jacket, the look on his face portrayed nothing but disgust and sheer agitation. As if you weren't worth his time. "Get up. Put on your clothes."
"Are you asking or are you telling?"
"Telling. Now get up."
"I don't even know where my clothes are." You explained to him, irritation mounting with each second.
He moved to procure your heels and clothing from a place near the end of the bed away from your line of vision. Throwing the items carelessly on the bed before crossing his arms expectantly.
This action made you realize just how close you were to lashing out at him in frustration. Could he not afford to spare you at least a minute of privacy. Having made the distinction that this guy was really high up on the asshole scale. Something told you that he was probably used to talking to women this way and treating them disdainfully. "I can't get dressed with you watching."
The sneer on his face and body language informed you that he would not be leaving the room or allow you any privacy to demeanor in which the man regarded you made you feel like absolute shit.
Taking a hold of your possessions, you hugged the thin bed sheet to your form once more, waiting for him to do something over than stare at you in your current state of undress. "Turn around."
"No." He said in a low, heated growl.
"I'm not getting dressed until you turn around." You firmly stated, prepared to protest for as long as it took to get him to heed your demands.
Mr. Asshole narrowed his beady eyes at you, silently contemplating whether or not it would be worth the trouble to throw you out completely naked rather than simply give you what you wanted. "Make one wrong move and you'll regret it." The man lowly growled, opening his jacket to reveal a holstered gun as he turned in the opposite direction.
What a patronizing asshole.
You hurriedly eased from bed as if you were being timed, slipping on the surprisingly untorn dress before fumbling with your tall heels.
Your phone showed not one single text from either of your friends. This meant that they either had to be hungover or were currently in the same bizarre predicament as you. Neither of which was comforting. One thing was for certain, this was one of those awkward times you were looking forward to the walk of shame.
Anxiety was kicking in hard and you were starting to feel trapped. It suddenly occurred to you that you were probably in a worse situation than original thought, waking in an undisclosed location not being able to remember much of the night before. One thing was for certain, that this was your very last one night stand for life. In fact, your 'one night stand' was not normal in any sense of the meaning, being drugged and all. The lines of consent were definitely blurred by a wide margin. The man, if he could even be referred to as that, was not normal. Truthfully, you gathered that when you watched the guy rip a man's teeth from his head.
Suddenly both doors to the bedroom opened to admit two suited, stoney-faced men.
"Get her out of here." Mr. Asshole ordered them with an arrogant wave of his hand.
The men promptly heeded the order without hesitation, both securing a grip on your upper arms and began leading you out of the room. These actions are what caused you to clench your teeth so hard that you thought they might chip. You didn't know the men from a can of paint and yet here he was grabbing you and treating you like the scum of the earth. With you being forcefully guided out of the bedroom, it was only a wonder that you didn't trip and fall flat on your face. You could only move so fast in high heels. There were a number of times where you nearly stumbled and they simply kept moving with any consideration to your well-being.
You attempted to voice your distress to them and how rough they were treating you. "Hey...could you not.."
"Shut up."
"No you shut up! You're hurting me." You snapped.
Considering that it might not be the smartest idea to mouth off to armed men, your lack of fucks to give was a possible contributor. They were being rude as hell and the question was could you deal with it until you found safe harbor. Getting home was more important right now.
The grand interior of the house included stylish decor and high quality furnishings chosen by the owner - whoever that may be. You had to give props where they were due. The homeowner had a great taste. It made you wonder what they did for a living - probably robbed banks. Observing other closed off rooms, asymmetrical designs, and fascinating wall art pieces. The predominant colors seemed to be purple and black with brilliant hues of gold adding to the opulence. You were more than shocked to behold such luxury. This was your first time seeing such a sprawling estate up close. Still no sight of the tattooed man.
The men continued to direct you down a large winding staircase leading to the first floor. In the foyer's threshold stood a beautiful marble fountain, clear water softly cascading in a mesmerizing fashion. The sound melodic as it reverberated in the surrounding area. If you weren't so busy getting roughly escorted out of the place, you would've stopped to admire the decor. A set of tall double doors served as a grand entrance to the mansion and a perfect inspiration for any architect.
The sunlight and cold breeze was welcoming as it swept over your brown skin, insighting chills and goosebumps, a reminder that your freedom was near. A black car was already parked with a driver and another man waiting to take from you from your current tormentors. A dark, hood-like material was placed over your head to incapacitate your vision before you were shoved into the back of a darkened Mercedes. The action played out much like a kidnapping scenario you'd seen too many times on television. Once the car began moving, you fidgeted in an effort to calm your nerves. Having your vision obscured made everything so much worse. You grew more uneasy as the seconds turned to minutes. Just where were they taking you? It wasn't like they knew you were staying with friends.
Who could've thought that your first night in Gotham would turn out like this?
Candice lived in a quaint little two bedroom apartment on a nicer, more decent side of the city. This side in particular, nowhere near extravagant, only adequate. Walking into Candice's two bedroom apartment never felt so pleasant than it did in that moment. Candice was slumped messily over the couch. Diamond on the other hand, didn't even make it to the other couch and was laid out on the carpet with a thin blanket barely covering her sprawled form.
Diamond was the heavy drinker of the group, Candice was a bit of a mild drinker while it ultimately didn't take much for you to get drunk. As a matter of fact, it was practically common knowledge that you weren't capable of holding your liquor well.
Opening the blinds to let some sunshine into the dimmed room, you started to wake your friends. "Rise and shine sleeping beauties."
"I feel like my kidneys are shutting down."
"I think I'm dying. Somebody call 911." Diamond groaned, clutching a couch pillow to her chest.
You snickered at this.
Candice snorted loudly before grimacing and placing a hand over her forehead. "Please don't laugh, I'm already fucked up."
"So dramatic."
"I wonder which drink was the last straw. The henny or the dusse?"
"You mean the 'do whatever you say'?"
They knew that no matter how many times she tried to convince herself that she would never touch another bottle, the trio knew Diamond most certainly would. And there was no amount trying to convince them would change that fact.
While you weren't hungover per say, you were definitely still feeling the effects of the unknown drug slipped to you.
Usually, when a circumstance like this happens, the three of you would laugh about it the morning after. The mood lighthearted and humorous. Turns out it'd been a grueling night for all of them and honestly they all needed a system detox.
"Both of you need to drink some water. Stay hydrated enough to flush out your system. I can make us some herbal tea to ease the headaches too." "Candy where's the tea?"
"Top drawer on the left."
Despite the fact that it was past noon and you'd woken up a little while ago, you could feel the visages of a sleep still putting at you. You could feel a short nap coming on.
Handing them cups of tea and bottles of water, you explained, "I want y'all to hurry up and recover. There's still things I want to do and places I want to visit before I leave tomorrow. I won't spend the rest of the day laying around."
"Scratch that, I wanna talk about where you snuck off to last night."
"No, the question is, where the hell did YOU go?"
"Look, I was busy catching a wild penis."
"What the fuck?"
"I nearly hit it off with the bartender."
"Nearly?"
I ended up throwing up on him and ruining the night. Luckily I'd already told him where you lived before I got plastered or I probably would've gotten thrown out on the street."
As your friends wasted no time gossiping about the parts of the night they remembered. You didn't really feel inclined to discuss your hookup/assault. The experience had left you with an excessive amount of strange feelings that you weren't willing to explore. How could you have a conversation with your friends about undergoing the ordeal you barely recalled? How could you tell them that you were drugged? If you told them, it would no doubt bring unwanted complications and you didn't need that kind of trouble in your life right now. Furthermore, you were relieved they were too distracted by each other's stories to call back any attention to how you avoided speaking about yours. For the sake of not alarming your girls and ruining the visit altogether, you opted to push the entire experience to the back of your mind and keep it a secret.
"I hear Joker was at the club last night."
Lifting an eyebrow, you wondered who she might be talking about. The name certainly sounded familiar. "Who's Joker?"
The two of them looked at you like you'd grown a second head. "You know, crime prince, green hair, pale skin?" Diamond added.
"And don't forget the metal teeth."
"If I'd known he was there then we would've picked a different club. You know how fuckin crazy he is."
The description fueled a new shock factor, things were adding up in your head, coming together like puzzle pieces. Desperately trying to come to terms with that fact that Candice had just very accurately described all the features of your paramour for the night. It was haunting. You refused to believe it. At this point, you were anxious because you only thought your brain was being rational.
As your clueless friends steadily conversed, your mind was working overtime putting two and two together. It all started to make sense, the shady encounter where you witnessed him pulling out another man's teeth, the multitude of crude henchmen at his disposal ready to do his bidding. All of it came to a reasonable yet crushing realization that had you shaking. On a whim, you pulled out your phone and initiated the first google search - the outcome devastating.
There were various articles and news reports detailing how the man had murdered and committed so many atrocities leaving nothing but destruction and chaos in his wake. You saw pictures of him committing horrendous deeds with nothing short of glee edging into his features. He'd murdered scores of people. The 'Clown Prince of Crime' they called him. Most of the reports talked about a prolonged feud between a figure who dressed like a bat. That certainly explained the bizarre green hair color and deathly pale skin that made it appear as though it was deliberately painted white. He definitely wasn't the normal type that usually attracted your attention as there was nothing normal about him. He possessed an unnerving charm that had the ability to send electricity throughout your body. All while being the most infamous criminal in Gotham City. How could you have not known?
Jay's words were still echoing in your mind continuously.
"See me…I like to sprinkle a bit of havoc here and there from time to time. Wrecking things that people consider most important - just to give them multiple perspectives in life."
And that he did. At the time, you had no idea what that phrase meant. But knowing what you know now, he was definitely a man of his word.
You still feel those piercing blue eyes burning into yours intensely.
"So what do ya say little lady? Wanna get wrecked tonight?"
Your blood ran cold. Growing up, you'd witnessed many high school girls falling head over heels for drug dealers and violent criminals just for the rush it gave them. Observing how the women struggled and lost control over their lives quickly. You could safely say that you were never one of those girls and you certainly hadn't planned on becoming one ever. There was nothing any criminal had to offer you other than a lifetime filled with misery and regret. And Jay was no different.
You wished you could find some kind of solace in giving him the benefit of doubt but you saw nothing but as you scrolled and scrolled - you saw nothing but continuous examples of how the man was nothing but a violent sociopath. To top it all off, you'd slept with him - while under the influence of drugs.
It took a while before you realized that you were staring into space, letting your mind race uncontrollably. Of all the women in the club that night, he chose to turn his attention to you and take you home. Although you did spy and witness him engaging in illegal activities then fled when caught. Though you weren't exactly sure if sleeping with a person would ensure their silence after catching them doing questionable acts.
He expressed admiration for your body and attitude. If it weren't for the unique circumstance, you would've felt used.
You had to be careful thinking of your own thinking patterns. The way you manifested things people would think you were a magician.
From your perspective, Gotham City was such a dark, dismal place to live in. Not only that but Gotham wasn't exactly what you expected in terms of prominence, it just seemed so terrible you wondered how people choose to live here. Surely there was a more peaceful, safer city to reside than this godforsaken place. Of course, every city had some rough, poverty filled neighborhoods but this just felt ridiculous. Apparently, crime ran rampant within the gloomy metropolis. The dark clouds up ahead, hinted that it would probably rain later on. Why Diamond and Candice would want to live in such a depressing city was beyond your comprehension.
Nevertheless, you forced the girls to bring you to what looked to be a mall or long stretch of department stores within walking distance of the apartment. There were a lot of people walking around from store to store, their clothing providing an in-depth into the person's tax bracket and what they could afford. Additionally, the stores were at all not what you were expecting. All you saw was Gucci, Prada, Fendi, and Balmain. And you couldn't afford to shop at any of those brands.
"Where the fuck are the normal stores, where normal people, with normal bank accounts can shop?" You irritatingly demanded to your amused friends who looked as if they wanted to laugh directly in your face.
Candice played a hand over her mouth to hide her grin. "These are the normal stores."
"No they're not. Where's the fucking Forever 21? Windsor? A Hot Topic for god sakes!?" You insisted, arms extending in a questioning fashion.
"Oh this isn't that type of mall. This is like...where the rich folks come. Here the best places to shop are online only."
Craning your neck at an odd angle, you regarded both of them with looks of belief. "Could you have told me this before we walked all the way over here?"
"I mean...you're the one who wanted to go so bad." Diamond chimed in having gotten a hold on her giggles.
"This isn't funny. Both of you are assholes and you're on my shit list until further notice."
"Lighten up. I'll make it up to you when we get back to the apartment. Well, at least now you can sight-see."
"Sight-see what? Shit I can't afford?"
"There's a nice food court though."
Shaking your head and rolling your eyes, you slowly started to walk around. "Shut up."
The three of you walked into a few stores here and there but made sure not to linger long since the employees would get antsy expecting you to buy something.
"You guys go on, I need to use the restroom."
You were still a little put off by the fact that there wasn't a Forever 21. Two security guards with a gun at their hips stood at the entrance looking every bit tired as opposed to intimidating.
The employees looked quite skeptical of the both of you the second you entered the store but ultimately said nothing about it. Truth be told, you and Candy had absolutely no business walking your asses in this boujee ass store as it was. The store held heaps of golden rings, expensive platinum watches, and sparkly necklaces. Though you had your eye on a pair of dangling ruby earrings, there wasn't a damn thing you could afford in the entire store. The thousand dollar prices tags solidified that. An older man, obviously the manager regarded you with a watchful eye, never once straying too far away from where you stood. Maybe if you told him that you were poor, he might leave you alone but you seriously doubted it. It was not your first time dealing with a prissy shopkeeper and it wouldn't be the last.
Even as a little girl, you never really owned a plethora of jewelry, especially the expensive kind like the ones you were currently browsing over. The only piece of jewelry you valued was a necklace once owned by your maternal grandmother. Anything beyond that didn't hold much value in your heart.
Ignoring how Candice humorously uttered 'Damn' at every single price, you spotted a beautiful 12 carat diamond as you quietly hummed to Bryan Ferry's 'Don't Stop the Dance'.
Out of the blue, the alarming sound of guns being cocked was heard in the quiet space.
It took a minute for you to realize that this situation was serious. All you wanted to do was look at jewelry you had no chance in hell purchasing, now you were caught in the middle of a robbery. Gotham was just full of surprises.
"Everybody on the fuckin ground!"
You and Candice hit the floor faster than anyone, a lifetime of being black prepared you both for a moment like this. While Candice gave you a look that said, 'I don't wanna say I told you so but', you were quick to give Candice a seething look that portrayed what you felt in the moment. One that answered, 'Save it'.
However, some of the customers didn't take heed to the demand, thinking it was some sort of joke. Without any warming, one of the robbers released a shot into the air, blasting a hole into the ceiling and effectively gaining the cooperation of the disbelieving clients who threw themselves onto the floor.
The men then took to pointing guns at the startled workers, ordering them out from behind the counter and on the floor, ensuring that they couldn't alert the authorities. A bit overwhelmed by the suddenness of the events, it was hard to comprehend what was happening. The scene was very interesting as it played out. One of them took charge of stuffing expensive watches and other jewelry in duffel bags.
You didn't know how, but you could tell that at least two of them were young by the way in which their voices shook as they shouted commands. Why couldn't the trio just walk in and snatch a piece of jewelry then run out like a normal person? It didn't take much to question why a person who lived in Gotham would see the need to want to commit armed robbery.
You briefly wondered if people outside of the store were aware of what was going on. If you had to bet on it, you would say probably not. The trio had obviously planned this out meticulously down to every last detail. Guards and high tech security systems wouldn't stop them from getting what they wanted. Who knows what they could do next. These men had the power and means to shoot everyone in the store but that wasn't their goal. Their goal was to get the expensive pieces and leave as quickly as fate would allow.
How bold do you have to be to rob a jewelry store in broad daylight? With masks and high powered weapons, you instantly deduced that this was the type of shit you expected to see in a movie.
The other unfortunate customers wore looks of confusion and terror as they cowered on the cold, freshly waxed floor in a strained effort to avoid stirring irritation from the robbers who began breaking the glass display cases housing the valuables. These men were doing a smash and grab before the authorities could be contacted. And since they sneakily rushed the store, no one had really had the time to properly react. There were different types of robberies but since this was an unsuspecting incident with unforeseen consequences - it was better for you and Candice to stay out of sight.
First of all, where the fuck were the police!?
Caught in a situation like this, a sane person knew better than to try and be a hero. Of all people, you didn't exactly possess the ability to stop a potential crime when it counted. Of course, you were courageous but you weren't superwoman. Everyone had a different fight or flight response to danger of any kind. People had to make tough decisions in a robbery situation - they could run, hide, or fight. As sensible people, you and your friend had made a decision. Not just that, but you both avoided speaking to one another in order to not draw attention to their hiding spot. Peeping over the counter, you both stared in disbelief at what was unfolding.
A trip to the mall shouldn't result in being held at gunpoint by some brazen crooks. You didn't like being in the vicinity to witness this random act of violence and you surely didn't want a semi-automatic pointing at your head.
"Wait, so the guards robbed the store?" Diamond asked for what seemed like the hundredth time.
"Robbers posing as guards." Candice corrected.
"Okay and then what?"
Rolling her eyes, Candice clarified. "For the last time, we were hiding behind a counter watching everything go down."
Tuning out the sounds of their back and forth, you placed a hand to your head in order to stop the forthcoming headache. You couldn't even stand to hear the details anymore. "This city is horrible. Don't even ask me to come back. Of all the places to live, why this one?" You remarked, wanting to talk about something else other than the robbery you witnessed earlier.
"Listen, if it wasn't for my job I wouldn't be here." Diamond dramatically insinuated with her long acrylics.
"Same."
After the incident at the mall, you pretty much came to the conclusion that you weren't enjoying your visit as much as you thought. More unpleasant things had happened in the past 24 hours than you could keep up with and frankly, it was mentally draining. It was hard to maintain the disposition of someone who was truly happy when they were feeling the exact opposite. Despite the fact that all three of you were able to find a morbid humor in it as you all lounged around the living room while the food on the stove in the kitchen. Since childhood, you've always loved the aroma of food wafting through any place of residence for a reason. Mostly because you found it comforting. It was nearing nine o'clock and the sound of rain pelting the window was easily distinguishable.
Diamond and Candice seemed to notice your lethargic behavior and commenced the operation of doing any and everything to lift your mood. Everything from cooking one of your favorite meals and dancing in the dark with glow sticks taped to their bodies. The sight was both ridiculous and amusing though it still managed to get a few cackles out of you. You had to stifle a laugh at Diamond dancing to Juvenile's 'Back That Thang Up' with the lights turned off before taking a quick video of it before she could notice. When she turned the lights back on, you laid your head against the back of the couch, endlessly scrolling through your social media pages, trying and failing to find another distraction from the awful mood creeping up once more. But there were only so many meme's you could stomach before they became annoying.
On the other hand, there was worry that perhaps your mood wasn't the result of your own doing, but the atmosphere you were in. The atmosphere that surrounded you. Gotham. The city held such a depressing hold on you, hanging over you like a thick shroud of darkness. There was nothing wrong with wanting to take your mind from any stress. You only hoped your mind stopped thinking of things you didn't have the energy to analyze.
You loved your friends so much it hurt. And therein lies the problem, if either of them found out what had happened last night - there wasn't any guarantee they wouldn't do anything drastic. The whole situation was a bag of worms you never wanted to open. By morning, you expected to regain control of your life before things got worse. Tomorrow you'd finally leave this city and everything could go back to normal.
An iMessage notification from an unknown number popped up on your phone just before you hit the side button to turn the device off. The timing, somewhat strange as you were just about to set the phone down. From the notification bubble, it appeared as though some had sent photos instead of actual messages. As a paranoid person who didn't even answer unknown phone calls, someone having your phone to send pictures was unprecedented. Not to mention, bizarre. Maybe you were putting too much thought into it. Someone had probably had the phone number, it was pretty common to everyone who owned a phone. You deliberated for a moment before opening your iMessage icon to sate your curiosity.
The world around you suddenly fell to the background, your friends' playful banter nothing but white noise in your ears. Oxygen trapped itself in your throat for long moments, heart beating loudly in your ears. There were pictures. Multiple pictures of you out with your friends at the mall a few hours prior. There were pictures of you walking in and out of stores and even close-ups where the perpetrator had gotten close. Some lunatic had actually followed and snapped unauthorized photos of you. It was beyond disturbing. Just who did shit like this?
When new pictures appeared and pushed up the other worrisome images, it was obvious that these were of a different sort. Your eyes widened to astronomical proportions, the sight seemed to take the very breath from your lungs. Considering the fact that you could only remember snippets of the events that led up to the sexual encounter, there was no way of telling when exactly the man had whipped out his phone and started taking lewd pictures and videos of you in various vulnerable states. But you knew it was from last night. There's no way that it wasn't. The sheer embarrassment that flooded your cheeks indescribable. Was this some sort of manipulation or coercion tactic?
Clutching the phone tightly with two hands, you expressed fear that if it were to fall your friends would get a glimpse of you in such a distasteful state. It took everything in you not to let your demeanor falter in front of them. Pretending as if nothing was happening was the hardest thing you ever had to endure at this point. Panicking would accomplish nothing. But how could you get around the fact that someone had suggestive content of you in their possession. No matter what this couldn't be overlooked. If this were ever to get out, you'd die on the spot. Your life would be over.
There was a message attached to the photos, a message that confirmed to you who sent it. You could almost hear his voice as you read it in your mind.
"You be good now gorgeous gal. I'll see ya real soon."