Things in Gotham would never be quiet. Night after night, criminals decided it would be the perfect place to cause havoc and tonight it was Mr Freeze's turn.
Almost every inch of City Hall was covered in ice. Massive icicles hung from the windows. Most of them were covered by frost. Chunks of ice lay across the grounds. It was really just a sight to behold. On the rooftop of the building directly across, stood the people who had taken Freeze down. Watcher, who had joined the fight much later, could only watch in amusement as Red Hood, Nightwing, Red Robin and Robin were all shivering. The only two people not affected by the cold were her and Batman.
"You all did well tonight," Batman stated, the barest hint of a smile on his face. "Freeze won't bother anyone for a long time."
Simultaneously, all of them shivered. Nightwing, like the others, kept on rubbing his arms together. "My hands are still numb. Grappling across the city is not going to be fun."
"Seriously," Jason grumbled.
Skylar nodded in agreement. Though she wasn't as affected as the others, she still felt cold. It was a blessing her apartment was not too far from City Hall. She'd swing across the city, if it meant getting to the warmth of her couch.
"I can take you in the Batmobile," Batman offered.
Skylar immediately winced as the four Batboys decide to yell "Shotgun!" all at once. Immediately she stopped focusing on her powers and shut them out. It was fairly obvious that the boys were about to break into an argument. She would rather not hurt her ears because of it.
Batman sighed. He was probably more used to this than she was. "I need to have a word with Commissioner Gordon. Get this figured out by the time I come back."
He swung away, leaving them all on the rooftop. Not even a few seconds had passed since his departure, and the boys broke into an argument. In all likelihood, they had forgotten that Skylar was still there.
If she was being honest though, it was hilarious to see them argue this much. She filed away some of the insults they said for later use. A chill went through her and she rubbed her arms to keep herself warm.
Skylar stretched her arms. "You boys keep on arguing in the cold. I'm gonna take off since my place is close by."
The Batboys turned to look at her. All of them at once. And a second later, another argument broke out.
"I don't think you can have this many people over, so you should just take me," Dick was the first one to talk.
"That is not convincing at all," Damian was next. "And since I am Watcher's favourite and the least messy person out of you all, I should be the one to go with her."
"I would beg to differ," Tim commented, teeth chattering out of the cold.
"I am not going to waste my time arguing with you when I am right," Damian said, shivering yet glaring at everyone else.
Jason put an arm around Skylar's shoulder. Somehow, she could tell that he was smirking beneath his helmet. "None of you are coming. Watcher here owes me a favour and I am cashing that in. Isn't that right?"
Skylar was about to say 'what favour?' when she realised that he was referring to the bike ride. So, he was not being nice for no reason. She probably should have expected that.
She pushed his arm off her shoulder and huffed in anger. "I cannot believe the words are about to come out of my mouth, but Hood's right. I unfortunately do owe him a favour."
"Well, forget it. You don't have to do anything. Just help me out here," Dick grumbled.
"I don't like this either, but if I help him out this time, I don't have to help him out in the future, which is a victory for us both. Right, Red Hood?" She looked at Jason, willing him to agree.
"I would rather die again than owe her anything."
"And I would die than owe him shit."
"Great, we have an understanding," Jason said sarcastically. "Can we get out of here? I am freezing my ass off here."
"Go to hell," Dick glared at him, still shivering.
"Already been, old man."
Oh. God.
"I cannot believe I agreed to this. I really cannot."
Skylar pushed open the window in her bedroom, the one that led to the fire escape and the one which was hidden away in a back alley so that no one could see her. She had sure of that. It was a good spot to hide things. But now Jason was here and things were never going to be the same.
(She was just being dramatic. The window wouldn't change.)
She moved to the side, letting Jason enter the window. "Close the window behind you. I don't want any of the heat to escape."
"What heat?" Jason asked, pulling off his helmet and tossing it to the ground. "It's fucking cold here."
"The thermostat is on, dipshit. It's working."
"It is not." To make his point, Jason walked in the direction of the thermostat, located right next to the light switch. He flicked that on, before looking at the thermostat. The temperature was much lower than it was supposed to be.
"Oh," Skylar said.
"Yeah, oh."
Jason furiously pressed the buttons on the thermostat, bringing the temperature up to its maximum setting. "Now it's working."
"I can see that. I have eyes," Skylar answered. She sat down on her bed, kicking off her boots and removing her mask and goggles. Thank god she had cleaned up before she left. The humiliation she would feel if Jason saw how messy her apartment usually was would probably kill her.
Jason sat next to her, taking off his boots. "Jeez, I'm still fucking cold. And you're already fine. Why the fuck is that?"
"Maybe because I am that much better than you, that's why. And maybe because this is my apartment and I am used to how it is."
"Only that second part is right."
"Yeah, whatever. Do you want me to kick you out? Because I could."
Skylar actually wouldn't. She wasn't heartless. Besides, she was just acting like she was not cold. She was, in Jason's words, fucking cold.
"You know what actually would help?" Jason asked.
"Alcohol?" Skylar answered, half-joking, half-serious. She would not mind a nice glass of whisky or brandy to warm her up. And to help her deal with the fact that Jason was in her apartment.
"I was gonna say hot chocolate, but sure. Let's go with alcohol if you're offering."
"I'm warning you beforehand. Don't drink and throw up in my apartment."
"Wasn't planning on it, darling." Jason was smirking, looking at her like he had something planned.
Skylar ignored the odd rush that went through her at his words. "Keep your mouth shut and follow me."
"Yes, ma'am." And he was still smirking.
For her small apartment, her kitchen was the perfect size. There was enough space and enough cabinets to store all kinds of random things she liked. She had even reworked one cabinet to be a drinks storage. It was no fancy alcohol cabinet like the one at Wayne Manor, but it was perfect for one person. Jason sat on the opposite side of the kitchen counter, on one of the stools that Skylar had brought from the kitchen cabinet.
"I have some brandy and rum," Skylar said, checking the kitchen cabinet. Then she looked at the fridge. "And I have half a bottle of white wine and couple of beers. What do you want?"
"Just the beer, please," Jason said sarcastically.
"Don't be sarcastic around me, Jay," She pretended to sound stern, but really couldn't care that much. She took out two bottles of beer and handed one to Jason, taking the other for herself. They both opened the bottles by their hands (who need a bottle opener when you had enhanced strength?) and clinked them together, before taking a sip.
"Now that's some good beer," Jason put his bottle down on the counter. "I thought you'd have the cheap stuff."
"You calling me broke?" Skylar asked with raised eyebrows. "I don't skimp out my choice of alcohol. I have standards, you know."
"Not calling you broke," He raised his hands in defense, taking another sip of his beer. She just shook her head.
Surprisingly, as the two of them drank their beers, the silence between them wasn't painfully awkward or filled with stupid conversation. It was just what it was. Just silence. And it felt really nice. Who knew both of them could be in the same place for so long without bantering with each other?
(Maybe they could have some semblance of a friendship.)
Taking one large swig of his beer, Jason said, "I just noticed. But your sense of decor is pretty stupid."
Thoughts of friendship instantly disappeared from her mind. Jason wouldn't change after all.
I'm pretty sure I have said this before but I always enjoy writing Skylar and Jason together. Their banter comes so easy to me and it is always so much to write their dialogue. It's just a few (and I promise, few means 4-5!) chapters before we move onto some of the more *ahem* romantic scenes between them. I already have them outline and I can't wait to share them with you all.
I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! Comments and votes are always appreciated <33