Hey everyone!!! I know I've been gone for quite some time and I am so sorry! A lot has happened with me but I am trying to get back into writing so I hope you guys like this one!
Enjoy!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"J-Jerome Valeska???! Are you sure? He is a very dangerous man. Why would you want to start me with him??" I stammer
"Billie you are the most talented writer in this firm. You have been raving about doing an enormous piece like this. Why are you so scared?" Thomas Jameson, my boss raises his eyebrow at me.
"Mr. Jameson, sir. I have been waiting for three years to be even the tiniest bit close to working here. When I got the call to meet with you... I was... ecstatic! But, Jerome Valeska is a known murderer. He would surely take the chance to kill me." I sigh
"If you don't want this piece, Billie than I'll just give it to Peter." Jameson swivelled his chair and stared outside.
"No! No... I'll take it. When do I meet him?"
"Today. You have about two hours before you have to be at Arkham. I would suggest going home, freshening up, and preparing yourself. You better be there fifteen minutes early. This is a huge piece for the entire firm."
"Yes, sir. I'll be on my way then." I smile curtly before walking to my desk and grabbing my things.
I make my way to the elevator and quickly get my bearings together before hopping in my car and speeding my way home. My mind a million miles a minute...
"How can I go through the rest of my day this way?? Jerome Valeska?! How on earth am I gonna do this?! Why would Jameson pick me?" I rambled up all the way to my apartment.
Once I get to my door and step into my apartment , I immediately know there's something off. I look around and grab my umbrella that's sitting by the door and scan my safe space for whatever is causing the disturbance. About half way through the living room someone pops up from behind my bathroom door and I shriek like my life depends on it. Which in this case, it does!
"Mandy! What the hell are you doing?!" I shriek bringing the umbrella down
"Jesus! You weren't answering your phone! Why did you grab the umbrella dumbass?!" Mandy shrieks back
"I thought you were a murderer! God!" I shake my head and put the umbrella back.
I walk past her before heading to the bathroom to relieve myself before hopping in the shower. Reminding myself I am not done for the day, just getting myself prepared for the worst project ever known to man.
"Why are you home so early?" Mandy asks from her room
"I have to freshen up and get myself together before I have to go to Arkham..."
"Arkham!?! Why the hell are you going to Arkham, Billie?!" Mandy comes barging into the bathroom just as I hop in the shower.
"I got put on a piece for the firm... Jameson says I'm the best person qualified to do it. If not, he'd give it to Peter." I sigh
"Peter? That man couldn't get a piece that important done like you would. Screw him."
"I don't have to. You already did that, thank you." I glare through the shower curtain
"OH you can't still be mad at me about it! It was ONE TIME and I didn't know you had a crush on him. I'm sorry." Mandy grunts
"It's whatever, he has a fiance now. She's actually quite perfect for him too! They apparently knew each other in high school and she left to England for college and came back like a year ago! They're really cute together too!" I ramble on
"Whatever! He's too nerdy for me anyway."
"Oh wow!" I laugh
"We're getting off topic!! What's the piece about?"
"Oh... I have to interview Jerome Valeska..." I gulp
Immediately the nerves start flooding my body at the mere thought of the criminal.
"Oh wait! Isn't he the one who killed his mom?? The circus boy!"
"Yeah, him."
"He's hot as fuck! Please tell him that for me." Mandy snickers
"You're such a whore! Oh my gosh! I am going to meet a deranged criminal and you want me to tell him you think he's hot?!" I giggle at my best friend
"Fuck yeah!" She laughs
"Get out,I'm trying to relax in here!" I laugh through my nose.
I hear Mandy laugh and head out of the bathroom. I chuckle to myself and bathe until the hot water starts to get cold. I wrap my towel around myself and head to my room to get dressed and ready. I wonder how long I'm going to have to do this interview... Am I supposed to be in there alone with him or will I have protection? What should I wear? I don't want to be super formal... but I don't want to come off as some college girl either.
"Hmm... what to wear, what to wear..."
"Stop muttering to yourself weirdo... I already picked something out for you." Mandy says walking in.
"You did? Why?"
I look on my bed and sure enough, an outfit sits on the corner. A nice pair of Khaki form fitted pants, with a black tank top, and a black leather jacket. Not super formal but presentable.
"I love it!" I smile
"I know! You never go anywhere without your leather jacket, so I made sure it was work appropriate." Mandy winks
I quickly get dressed before starting on my hair, and I wasn't about to go the extra mile on it so I just left it alone. I have pin straight hair, much to my dismay, and I just let it do its thing. I work on a smidge of makeup to seem more business woman and smile at myself once I'm done. Just a touch of eyeliner on my water line, mascara, white liner on the corner of my eyes, and some lip gloss always works. I grab my combat boots from the closet and shove my feet in them before grabbing my laptop bag and filling it with my essentials.
"Notebook?"
"Check!"
"Questions?"
"Check."
"Four different pens?"
"Check, plus a pencil."
"Recorder?"
"Check."
"Okay! You're good! Just make sure you don't forget your water. I hear Arkham has disgusting water." Mandy whispers
"Ew!" I crinkle my nose and hug her goodbye.
"I should be home by dinner... If I'm not, just go ahead and eat without me." I smile before locking up and running down the hall.
Would Jerome even be up for an interview? Will he be respectful? Probably not... Ugh I cannot wait to get this over with.
I look up at the massive iron gates with the Arkham Asylum in the middle before the extremely long road to the entrance as I drive up. Goosebumps liter my arms and legs as I put my car in park and grab my laptop bag and water bottle. I gulp the nerves down and walk up the few stairs to get inside and make it quick because it's about to start raining and I do not plan on getting wet.
"Name."
"Oh, uh Billie Masterson. I'm with the paper... I'm here to-"
"Yeah, yeah. You're the lady here to see Jerome, yeh?"
"Uh... yes. Yes I am." I clear my throat
The officer looks me up and down before smirking to himself. Disgusting. He cocks his head in a manner that says 'follow me'. I nod and follow him down the long, scary hallways until he stops and tells me to wait here. I just stare at him as he pulls out a giant loop ring with what has to be fifty or so keys on it and sifts through them until he finds the right one and unlocks the room in front of him and gestures for me to get inside.
"Thank you..."
"Yeah, whatever. I'm gonna go get the little bastard. Do not move."
"Sure."
I sit and get my stuff organized around me so I could get started fairly quickly and go home. I'm making sure everything is smooth when my phone rings and I swiftly answer it.
"This is Billie."
"Billie. I heard you got there nicely. Just wanted to let you know that I look forward to your piece."
"Oh! Thank you Mr. Jameson."
"Anyway! Detective Gordon wanted me to relay a message. 'Don't underestimate Valeska. He is very charming and he is not to be trusted'. Got that?"
"Yes, sir."
"Good. Give him a piece of the paper would ya?" Jameson laughed
Time Jump
"Thank you so much for your time, Mr. Valeska. I appreciate you being thorough with me." I clear my throat as I pack my stuff away.
"Pleasures mine! What did you say your name was again?" Jerome smirks
"I didn't." I stare at him
"Hm.. well that won't do... I need a name."
"Why? You'll never see me again." I frown
"I need to know who's name to call out while I-"
"OKAY!" I shriek and cover his mouth
"Oh god! I'm sorry!" I gasp as I look up at what I've done.
"Don't worry about it doll. You could make it up to me tomorrow." Jerome laughs
I scuff before getting up and making sure I have everything when a giant boom ricochets off the walls and gas starts pouring in the air. I immediately plug my nose but it was no use. I was fading into nothingness. I could just feel my legs getting weaker the more I tried to move out of the room, yet there was no use.
"What the hell is this place?"
"It ain't Arkham anyhow! Things are looking up."
"What the heck is going on here?" I shriek
"My name's Theo Galvin, and this is my sister Tabitha." A tall thin man speaks up coming out of the corner.
Suddenly all the men in the group who are tied up like me start murmuring, except for Jerome who just stares at me. I flinch when I realize how intensely he is staring and smiling. It was unsettling and quite frankly very uncomfortable, if you ask me. I just wanted to go home and never leave my house again! Jeeeez! If I make it out of this, honestly I would submit my piece and then get my money for it and quit.
Theo holds his hand up to all of us and the men stop grunting and murmuring inappropriate things.
"I understand your feeling... confused, scared, a little groggy. Please, relax. Today is the first day of a wonderful future for all of you. If you want." The tall scrawny man just slowly goes down the line of everyone before stopping before Jerome.
"Who are you?" A woman speaks up
I whip my head to the left of me to see a beautiful woman, with medium length curly hair and she smelled heavenly! You know, for someone who was in an insane asylum just a moment ago, it was delightful. I don't know how it took me this long to realize that she was right next to me but I'm glad I know now. I just stared at her as if I was in a daze and couldn't get out of it.
"Well... the question now. Is... who are you?" Theo casually walks over to the beautiful woman.
I really gotta ask her, her name. I would love to spend time with her. What the heck are you talking about?! She was in an insane asylum! Am I really arguing with myself right now?!
"The world sees criminal lunatics. I see brilliance. I see charisma. And Power. I see Power." Theo walks over to the beautiful woman again and just stares at her like she is the Queen of Gotham. I mean I don't blame the guy... I would too.
"Yes! Exactly my man..." Jerome moans out looking over me.
"That is so spooky, that is me to a T! These other boso's... oh I don't know... but you're singing my song." The wicked grin that spreads across his face gives me the chills and I physically shake
Jerome turned his eyes over to me and I instantly tense up. The adrenaline running through my body is nowhere to be seen and I just wanted to wake up already. I'm pretty sure I had fallen asleep right after my shower and I'm safe at home in bed. Yep. That's exactly what happened. Okay Bao! You can wake up now! You're gonna be late!
"Quiet Jerome! Keep talking." I hear someone hiss at the end of the room
Jerome rolls his eyes and head over to the person speaking and I notice Theo does as well.
"Imagine... a brilliant group of outlaws, like yourselves. Each selected for a unique ability all working together as a team. Imagine the synergy, imagine the impact. Gotham would tremble before you."
"Uh, excuse me..." I chirp
Theo walks over to me and gives me such a perplexed expression... it was almost as if he is seeing me for the first time the entire encounter. I was taken back by how confused this man was and just how out of place I was. It took me a realize that I was the only captive in regular clothes... everyone else was in a prison jumpsuit.
"And who are you?"
"Oh... uh my name's Billie... I think I got mixed up in the bunch by mistake. I have no idea what's going on and I honestly would just like to wake up now. So do you know how to wake me up or do I have to like go through the dream as a quest in order for me to wake up?" I asked secretly
"Excuse me?" Theo squints
"I- I mean... It just seems weird that I'm supposed to be interviewing this man and right before I have to leave my apartment, I fall asleep? Not only do I fall asleep but now I'm dreaming about him?? That just seems a bit absurd. Don't you think?" I sigh
"Interview? Who are you meant to interview?" Jerome questions
"Uh... you actually." I smile awkwardly
"Why would you wanna interview him? He's a stupid kid. What paper do you work for?" The man who yelled at Jerome exclaims
"Uh... Gotham Gazette... I just started like two months ago! It's actually pretty nice there." I smile
"Okay! Focus on the topic at hand please!" The beautiful woman shouts next to me
"Which is?" Jerome raises his eyebrows
"Who the hell is she? Did anyone notice her lack of uniform? She wasn't a patient at Arkham. So why is she wrapped up like the rest of us?"
"It seems we do have a bit of a problem. Billie, was it?"
I nod. I was beginning to be concerned that this was not a dream and I was actually stuck with a bunch of criminals, including Jerome Valeska. How the hell am I gonna get out of this? Will I get out of this? Oh my god... I'm never gonna see my the ending to my favorite show!! OH NO! What's gonna happen at the end of my book?! I won't be able to finish it! Ugh, should've stayed home, Billie.
"I don't mean to alarm you at all but you are now going to have to stay with us. You know my name and my face, as well as knowing the location of all the escaped patients. Are you capable of cooperating or do I need to threaten you? Or would you like me to just kill you?" Theo smiles softly
I gape at the man in front of me and a squeak comes out of my mouth before I realize I need to answer or he just might gut me like a fish. Thinking quickly and rationally is usually my strong suit. However, I cannot form a single thought on the topic and it literally can save my life.
"Billie?"
"Yes! Please don't kill me." I tremble
"Perfect! We can find you something to do while you stay with us. You said you worked for the Gazette yes?"
"Yes, sir."
"When are we gonna eat?!" Someone shouts
"Greenburg. You are so rude, shut up." The man at the end rolls his eyes
The room erupts in multiple voices and I just shrink into myself as best I could, well being restraint and all. I was trying to figure out how to get myself out of this mess alive! Going through all the things my brother showed me while he was still alive. Every piece of self defense I could remember before I had to fight for my life. I knew I should have stayed working out... Shit. I start to feel the hairs on my body stiffen and raise form being watched and I look over to see both Jerome and the beautiful lady watching me. I look over at Jerome and try to smile but jump from a loud sound at the end of the hall. The room goes silent immediately after.
"Shut it!" Tabitha, Theo's sister shouts cracking a whip
The beautiful lady next to me smirks and looks away from Tabitha. I look to see Theo letting the patients go from their restraints. The anxiety radiating off of my body is definitely felt by someone and I honestly did not give a fuck. I wanted to take a shower and go to bed, possibly never wake up. Kidding! I watched as theo unstrapped Jerome and then walk to me and pause. He was weighing out his options with me and clearly he was gonna trust me. So I was not gonna give him a reason not to. He smiled at me before setting me free as well, before heading over to the woman and doing the same.
"Barbara." The woman smiles and walks away
"You may all go search for rooms and I'll come get everyone for dinner." Theo announces
I nod to myself and start heading through the door he just walked out of and honestly felt like a good time to explore my new home. It was like a huge apartment building or something of the sort but there was just the one floor we were on. So far I counted four doors, I continued walking until I turned the corner and found one last door. I looked behind me and saw the big man going into the first door, the shorter more plump man go into the third room, the weird skittish one goes into the first door on the opposite side of the building, Barbara goes around the corner and disappears with the wall. It was the first time I had seen him, but this super tall and buff man goes through the second door on the opposite side as well, and there is no sign of Jerome anywhere. I shrug my shoulders and open the door and the gasp that leaves my body was so sudden I barely catch my breath.
The room was ginormous! It was easily bigger than my apartment with Mandy! Shit, Mandy! She's gonna go looking for me and causing a ruckus! Ugh but look at that bed!!! The bed was most definitely a Queen sized cloud and I just wanted to throw my body on it and melt away. But I wanted to look through the whole room before I did, also I need to shower. I walk past the bed of dreams and go around the corner to see the bathroom, and let me tell you. The squeal that came out of me was unnatural! It was as big as my room back in the apartment and the detail! It was elegant with a touch of modern.
"It's beautiful!" I gasp to myself
The walls were a beautiful dark grey tile pattern, outlined with dim lighting and the bathtub alone made me wanna cry out in joy. It was larger than everything I have ever seen in life, and honestly I would have never even considered a rectangle shaped bathtub! I am so for it now! There was a shower behind the bathtub and there was even a little bench in there! Holy shit! The mirror on the wall was long, about a little under half of the wall with a double sink underneath it. I have never felt so rich in this moment, especially because I'm not and this is my only chance to feel this way. I make my way back to the room to check out the closet and find Jerome laying on the bed.
"What the fuck!?" I shriek and put my hand over my heart
"I didn't know our rooms came with entertainment." Jerome smirked
"Entertainment? Your room?!"
"Yeah."
"Uh, Jerome. This is my room and I would like you to please leave so I can take a well needed bath."
"No this is my room, I got it first."
"No you did not. Clearly if I was already in here." I roll my eyes
"Listen. Clearly you don't know your wrong from rights... so let's just share the room. Shall we?" Jerome smirks wickedly
"I'm good. I was in here first and I will just like to stay here until I can go home." I snort
It was as if a light bulb just turned on in my brain, and I smiled excitedly. I whip around to look for my bag and realize that it is gone. I frown to myself and look around before deciding on asking that Theo man for some paper. This is a bigger story than my previous assignment! I have a personal inside scoop into what is going on.
"Say Jerome.... Would you answer some questions if I had some???" I look at him wide eyed
"Sure. But only if you stay." The ginger winks
"Fine."
I squeal and dance around! I go wandering around for Theo to ask for that paper and pen but I stumble, literally, into the fat one with curly hair. I apologize before brushing myself off and find him looking at me creepily. I have a horrible gut feeling about this guy so I smile awkwardly and back up. However, he was not about it... so he just follows me. I laugh nervously and speed walk back to my room and smack into the door. I groan and a hand shoots out to stabilize me before I can make it to the floor and realize it wasn't the door at all. I smacked into Jerome and he's naked! What is he doing walking around naked?!
"Holy shit you're buff!" I puff out
I smack a hand to my mouth and stare horrified that I just said that out loud! How embarrassing!
"Greenberg . She's mine. Don't come near her again." Jerome snarls before shoving me into the room and slamming the door.
"Uh excuse me... I am not 'Yours'! I am a person." I make a face.
"I know but unless you want him following you around all the time, I suggest you shut up."
I make a horrified noise and scrunch up my face before protesting by stomping into the closet and find clothes in there so I change quickly.
"Hey do you have any paper?? I have so many questions I wanna ask and my squirrel brain will forget them." I ask and screech from his close proximity.
"Yeah I have a few questions of my own, Billie."
I just stare at this specimen wide eyed, while my heart is beating wildly in my chest. I breath and he just smirks at me.
"How did a rookie newspaper person get mixed up in this shit? Why were you suddenly thrusted in with us criminals? Don't you find that suspicious???" Jerome eyes me
I stand there gobsmacked that he knows I work for the paper... What else does he know???
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Heeey! I hope this wasn't ass! Please let me know! I'm really trying to get back into writing and stuff that I like. It's been so hard and now that I have a baby it's a bit harder but I promise I'm working on it!
Thank you guys so so much for still reading my stories and for wanting more! Please let me know what you guys think! Love you guys.
P.s. I did not proofread read this... so bare with me lol