System Reboot || DC

Chapter Eighteen

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Tick Tock

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The Wayne Manor was trapped in a cycle of excited ramblings. Starting the minute Jocelyn left in a hurry. It began as a casual murmur with talk of food, recent events, and other such formalities. Then it deviated. It got to the point where everyone stood up from their seats, and raised their voices, eyes wide with emotion too strong to be admiration.

It was a borderline obsession.

Damian was the one to start the chaos by mentioning Jocelyn's new haircut and how it suited her. Bluntly talking about the way it highlighted her facial features, the dark color making her skin look more pale and supple.

The others erupted into noises of agreement. Jason continued by comparing her current appearance to her previous appearance. The new things he came to love and the old things he would miss.

Others chimed in about her personality. The way her walls slowly crumbled, block by block, each gap revealing a glimpse of the person hidden within. At first, all they cared about was their city and defeating the invaders who threatened its already fragile balance. But as time went on, they came to want to understand the person who fought beside them.

To learn and grow with her. To see what lay beneath her practiced smile. They pulled apart the twisted threads that made up her soul, to unravel the mystery. With her death, their desire blossomed from curiosity to a purpose. To never forget the woman who taught them it was okay to not be okay. Though they came to move on from her loss, her presence never left their minds.

Then again, death was always on their minds.

The types of lives they lived were already filled with death. Day after day, they know that someone will die. Be it them, someone they love, or innocent people they fail to protect. Over time, this fact numbs them. It is becoming a daily routine to push aside their grief to fight for those still alive.

Jocelyn was another name in the death pool.

Another soul was lost to Gotham's hell circle of chaos and destruction.

But for some reason, it broke them. The chain locked around their hearts breaks. The boiling pot overflows. For too long, they have let their principles overcome their human nature.

They want to love and to be loved. Jocelyn's rebirth opened a gate to something they couldn't understand. Emotions once settled and tamed, run rampant like an infectious disease. Spreading from one to another. Until all the boys who knew Jocelyn found themselves projecting this new feeling onto her.

Did they love her to begin with?

Was it a target of fascination and a desire for normality that drove them to obsession?

We don't know because they don't know themselves.

But it is clear that Jocelyn's return to the world of the living gave them a second chance at something they had only ever fantasized about. A meaningful life outside of serving and protecting from the shadows.

Then it clicked.

If Jocelyn is never put in harm's way again, then they won't have to feel such a loss again.

They're more than willing to devote their mind, body, and money to serving and protecting her. Away from the manipulative and hazardous nature of society, there are no accidents or scum bastards around to suddenly take her life. Forever within their sight and arms, she would be safe. They're strong, smart, and devoted enough to do such a thing.