Scars

Scarlett groaned as she made her way down the stairs trying to be as quiet as possible. She wasn't able to fall asleep due to her thoughts of Jack, and it was really aggravating her almost to the point as to where she was going insane. She walked into the kitchen and jumped back seeing Chad sitting there; she wasn't expecting him to be on the kitchen stool at one in the morning.

Scarlett: You scared me half to death.
Chad: Well, only half. You're still kicking. Couldn't sleep?
Scarlett: Nope.
Chad: I'll grab you a bowl of fruity pebbles and you can tell me all about it.

Scarlett smiled as her cousin walked over and got her a bowl of the cereal. He was used to doing this for his cousin though, when she had first moved here after the accident she always had nightmares. Chad would comfort her while they ate their cereal. He placed the bowl in front of her and watched her take a bite. He knew something was on her mind.

Chad: So spill, Scar.
Scarlett: It's just.. Jack.
Chad: The guy you've been talking to on the phone and net?
Scarlett: Mhm.
Chad: What about him?
Scarlett: I dunno.. I'm just confused about him.
Chad: Well. I don't really know what to tell you, I'm not Libby or Jules so I'm not good at this girl talk, but any guy would be lucky to have a girl like you Scarlett. So don't settle for anyone below extraordinary.

He said as he placed his bowl into the sink and headed back upstairs. She just shook her head. If only Chad knew what was the real problem, then she was positive he probably would've said something completely different. She finished her bowl of cereal and then headed back upstairs to hopefully get a couple hours of sleep.

He paced back and forth in his room trying to walk himself in to sleep. It was nearly four in the morning and he had been haunted with visions of her every time he closed his eyes. He didn't know what it was about her but something had him mesmerized. He hunched over and pulled back the curtain and let his eyes gaze over to the Falcone Mansion. He wondered if she was sleeping at this very moment, and if she wasn't what was she doing?

Reaching over on his night stand he picked up the cell phone and opened it, finding her contact inside he debated whether or not he should press send. Part of him was screaming to, while the other part was screaming not to. It seemed as if he was having an internal battle with himself. One part being Jack while the other was The Joker. Sighing, he closed the phone and placed it back on the night stand.

He stood up and picked up the knife that was beside the phone and tossed it toward the door, where he had several pictures of Gotham's finest scattered all across. The picture landed on the newest Mayor. A smile curved into his lips and he nodded his head, knowing that tomorrow (well today since it's morning) the Mayor will be giving a speech.

Scarlett groaned as her cell phone started ringing from the night stand beside her bed. She nervously reached over and picked it up hoping to hear that deep voice that kept her up throughout most of the night, needless to say she was a bit disappointed when Libby's voice filled the air.

Libby: Wake up, Scar's! It's after 10 a.m!
Scarlett: I'm up. What's the emergency?
Libby: You know how the mayor's doing that speech today?
Scarlett: Uh huh, I guess..
Libby: Well how about You, Jules, and I go and pass out flyers. It can't hurt the shop opening.
Scarlett: Defiantly!
Libby: Meet us at the shop in a few hours.

Scarlett hung up her phone and headed into the bathroom so she could get showered and prepared for the day. She was pleased that Libby had come up with the idea of flyers. That would be a great way to spread the word of the shop, and handing them out in town while the new Mayor gave a speech would be a even better way to spread the word. She knew she needed to look presentable.

He walked into the room where his men sit and emptied a box in front of them. They looked at him very odd for a second, and then he began to explain the plan. One he was finished he motioned for them to get dressed as he made his way upstairs. Gotham wasn't going to know what hit em, especially since he was pulling a stunt that he had done once before. He knew that they wouldn't be expecting him to do the same thing over again.

He got his men ready and soon they made an exit out of the hideout, off to capture some of the officers that they would be portraying later today. He let a wicked smile curve into his lips when he pictured Jim Gordon's surprised face.

Scarlett laughed along with Jules and Libby as they handed citizens neon pieces of paper with information about the shop on them. People seemed to like the idea of a more alternative shop in the town. It seemed as if all the shops consisted of fancy clothing, nothing appealing to teenagers. Most of the teens that was attending the speech were excited for the opening, promising that they would be their on opening day.

Scarlett watched as Jules and Libby rushed over to a group of guys. Shaking her head she continued to hand out some flyers. She occasionally looked over and watched Libby flip her hair, or Jules giggle with a bit of a snort, which was their ways of flirting. Scarlett felt a tap on her shoulder and turned around. She gave a warm smile to the familiar face behind her.

Scarlett: Zeke, Hello.
Zeke: Hi, Darling. How are you?

He was standing in front as The Mayor began his speech. He and His men were ready for the evening. They had even put the original officers in clown mask and duct taped guns to their hands and put them in windows, so if their was any snipers around they was bound to be distracted. His que came and he shot once, and then shot twice. Looking over at his men he smiled, and then on the third shot he aimed his gun toward the new mayor and bang.

The crowd erupted into a complete riot, and all started rushing. Jim Gordon's face was pure shock and horror once he realized what had happened. The Joker had made his strike again against Gotham, but this time he had succeeded in taking out the Mayor.

[A few seconds prior to the shooting]
Zeke: So how about you and I go out again since our date got cut short?
Scarlett: Zeke, I really don't think it would be a ---

Scarlett jumped back as she heard people scream and start running. Libby and Jules ran back over to their friend. Zeke pulled his gun out of the holder on his side and told the girls to get to safety. He took off running towards the front where all the excitement was exploding.

Jules, Libby, and Scarlett linked arms and dodged through an alley to avoid the crowd. They rushed across the street and met up in the parking lot of their shop. They all bent over trying to catch their breathe, Scarlett looked across the road and saw men in blue loading into a old beat up white van. She shook her head as she put two and two together, figuring out exactly what caused the riot and death of the mayor.

Jules: It was probably The Joker! Didn't he pull a stunt like this before?
Libby: Yes! He pulled the exact same thing before.

Scarlett just listened as her two best friends continued to talk about him. She really didn't feel right to say anything about him. Especially something negative, because now she knew that she didn't mean it, which shocked her. Soon the girls decided to call it a day and got inside their cars each heading home.

The drive home was a big blur to Scarlett. She wondered why Jack, or The Joker.. wanted to kill the newest Mayor. She even wondered if she herself was sane for keeping his hideout a secret. A normal person would be at the cops right now spilling their guts, but not her. Instead she's thinking about what it is about him that makes her stomach turn into knots. Before she knew it she was home. Sighing she got out of her car and shut the door loud behind her. She just wanted to go inside and relax.

When she opened the door she spotted her cousin Chad sitting on the couch watching a news broad cast about the events that just happened.

Chad: Thank goodness you're okay. Mom's called and ask if you made it home.
Scarlett: I'm fine.
Chad: Mayors dead. They think it was The Joker.
Scarlett: Probably.
Chad: That man is unstoppable.

Scarlett only nodded her head as she made her way upstairs. Walking inside her bedroom she tossed her jacket over the chair at her desk and picked up one of her favorite books. She knew that even though she was dying for sleep, it wouldn't come easily right now. Her mind though did need to recharge, and the best way to do that was to lose herself in one of her favorite books.

Scarlett looked over at the clock and realized it was 8 p.m. She finished over half of the book but it still hadn't taken her mind off of him. It seemed like on every page there was a sentence that reminded her of him. She tossed the book to the end of her bed and got up, stretched her muscles. She walked over and placed her jacket back on and walked down the steps. She was sick of this. Sick of not being able to sleep, and sick of not being able to concentrate. She was going to see him, she needed to see him.

She was glad when she noticed her aunt and uncle had yet to make it home, and Chad had went out for the night. She left a note on the table just encase they came home and wondered where she was. She lied, telling them that Libby had picked her up and she was going out with her for a bit. But how could she tell them the truth? She walked out into the crisp night air, and breathed it in. She began to walk to his hideout, hoping he was still there.

She knocked on the door and waited for someone to answer. She knocked once more and looked down at her converse. Sighing, she turned around and began walking down the steps when she heard the door open. She turned around and looked up at the man standing before her.

" Uh, Can I help you?"

She raised her hand up and pushed some locks of hair behind her ear, his eyes widened seeing who she was and moved away from the door, allowing her to enter. She walked in and looked around. Clearly they had decided to stay. She scooted her foot back and forth in the carpet for a second and felt all the eyes upon her. She then placed her foot on the first step of the staircase and wondered if she should really be here doing this.

Gaining her composure and growing some balls she walked up the stairs, and past the doors until she arrived at his. Swallowing hard, she knocked on the door. She didn't know what he was going to do when he saw her. She didn't know if he'd be happy, surprised, angry or what. She just hoped that they would be able to talk.

He looked up from some files he had got from Arkham a few days ago, and looked towards the door. Shaking his head he turned his attention back on the paper and scanned over the file of another patient. He was looking for new men and he thought the best place to find one would be the Asylum. The knock came again. Cursing he slammed his files down, annoyed that someone would interrupt him when he clearly told them all not to bother him and made his way over to the door. He placed an annoyed look upon his face as he opened the door, only that faded when he looked into the eyes of an angel.

When he opened the door, even she had to admit she was shocked. There he was standing in front of her without his make-up on. She studied the features of his face, the rigid scars that were placed upon his cheeks. At first making her completely uncomfortable, but after a moment growing used to them and actually admiring them.

Joker: What are you doing here?

He ask in a rough voice not liking the fact that she was standing before him while he had no make-up on. He tried to play it off, but he was secretly hating the fact that she was seeing him like this. She just let her blue eyes gaze into his dark brown ones for what seemed like ages before she decided to open her mouth and talk.

Scarlett: Hi...