If You Just Listened // Arthur Fleck x Reader // SLOWBURN

Chapter 19 - I Had A Bad Day.

You quickly yanked your coat on, making your way to the lobby and outside as fast as you could. Rain was pouring down, and you had completely forgotten to get your umbrella. But that wasn't important right now, you needed to know if Arthur was okay.

You made your way through the rushing crowds of people trying to find shelter from the down pour, each step you took emitting a squelching sound. Your flats were completely soaked, making your mission all the more difficult. But you were determined. You pulled your coat tighter down against your shoulders, marching your last few blocks towards Pogo's.

Arthur was stiff, his forehead leaning on the inside of a payphone. He almost looked dead.

As soon as you saw him, you rushed to him, grabbing him by the arms and turning him to you.

"Arthur?" you asked, raising your voice over the loud torrential rain.

He squinted at you, almost as if he hadn't recognized you. His face then relaxed in relief, as he chuckled exasperatedly. His hands went up, squeezing your now soaked shoulders. You looked up at him, confused and worried.

"What happened?" you shouted.

Arthur sighed, reaching down and grabbing your hand, his fingers intertwining with yours. He turned around, pulling you under a cluster of awnings of closed store fronts. Up until then, you hadn't realized that you two had never held hands before. Feeling his palm against yours made your heart pound. It gave you a sense of guilt to be feeling this way, since holding hands was definitely not the reason Arthur called you here. You cleared your throat, trying to shoo away these thoughts.

Arthur reached a wall, turning and pressing his back against it. His hand remained wrapped tightly against yours. Under the awnings, the sound of rain was a bit quieter. Thankfully you wouldn't need to shout anymore.

"You're soaked..." Arthur said, his brow furrowing in concern.

You shook your head. "You're clearly having a terrible day and you're worried that a little rain got on me?"

Arthur smiled, chuckling quietly to himself and looking down at the floor. You squinted at his face, suddenly noticing that his nose was almost entirely purple. Your eyes widened.

"What is THIS?" You asked, trying (and failing) to mask the rage in your tone. "Who did this?" You reached up, touching his chin and turning his face upward.

Arthur shook his chin away from your fingers, his gaze shifting downward again. "It was something stupid, I should've known... I'm too gullible, I get excited over things that don't make any sense..."

Your nose crinkled in disbelief. Arthur was one of the least provoking people you had met. Who in the world would punch a man like this?
"I don't understand. Just tell me what happened."

You cupped his hands in yours, staring directly at his eyes. "Come on."

Arthur laughed quietly, but was luckily able to stop it from continuing. He looked back down at you silently for a moment. You had no idea how grateful he was for your company.

"Penny isn't my mom."

You tilted your head. "What do you mean?"

He tightened his lips, exhaling deeply through his nose.

"She... She told me Thomas Wayne was my dad. She was always sending these letters to him... I didn't think anything of them, I never checked them. I thought it was just my mom reaching out to her ex-boss for some money. Until she left one out on our coffee table."

Arthur shook his head, seemingly scolding himself.

"It said he was my dad. I asked her about it, and of course she confirmed it. Otherwise, why would she have written it, right? So... I... I snuck into Wayne Hall today to talk to him-"

He stopped suddenly, his voice beginning to break.
"I should've known he wasn't my dad. Instead, apparently my mom was a mental patient at Arkham Asylum. I went, I dug up her file..." his voice slowly turned into a grated whisper. He quickly covered his mouth as a combination of sobbing and laughter escaped him. You reached upward, pulling his face down into your shoulder and squeezing him tightly. You could feel him shaking against you. The whole world seemed to be against Arthur. You wanted to make things better for him, but you didn't know how.

"She's not my mom, she never was. She adopted me. She let me get beat by her boyfriends," he wept. "That's why I have this f-fucking laugh."

You had no idea what to say. What could you say in a situation like this? You had never experienced hardship like Arthur had. You remained quiet, shutting your eyes and holding him as close to you as you possibly could.

After holding him for a few minutes, you were beginning to notice exactly how cold it was. The fact that you were both completely soaked didn't help.

"Let's get you home and dry," you whispered softly.

Arthur nodded, straightening himself up and taking a deep breath. You looked up at him, making sure he was alright before taking his hand and walking home.

A/N- sad boi arthur hours :( Anyways, I just finished re-reading all of my old chapters and all the amazing comments you guys have left. It really brightened my day 🥰 I wanna know more about y'all, where are you guys from?