: IMAGINE : You find yourself in Arkham State Hospital where you meet the notorious Joker and he takes a liking to you
⚠️ Warning: will contain angst, drama & possible smut at some point, idk.
-- 3rd person POV --
Staring up at the ceiling in the dark, Arthur lay on his cot bed chain smoking.
Suffering from insomnia was no fun when you were incarcerated.
The days at Arkham already dragged by unbearably slowly, but the nights were even worse.
He hated the dark. He always had.
It made him feel suffocated, and being locked-up only added to the feelings of claustrophobia and vulnerability.
At times it would get too much for him to cope with and he'd have a panic attack, which always brought on a rib-aching bout of painful laughter.
His fellow inmates had grown accustomed to the laughing and knew better than to taunt him or tell him to shut up.
The last guy who'd done that suffered as a result. Arthur had violently attacked him in the corridor with a razor, slitting his throat and almost killing him.
As punishment Arthur spent three days in isolation. A room with no windows just a partition in the door which enabled the guards to look in on him and yell at him for repeatedly hitting his head against the door due to his frustration.
He sighed heavily, smoke pouring from his nostrils.
He'd almost fallen asleep that night.
For once instead of contemplating his imprisonment and endlessly scheming about possible escape routes, he'd almost dozed off.
But then the heavy silence had been shattered by the arrival of a new inmate.
The lights were switched on, temporarily blinding him as his retinas struggled to adjust to the sudden brightness, and the sound of the door opposite being unlocked then slammed shut again echoed throughout the hallway.
No sooner had he sat up, rubbing his eyes, the lights were switched off again before he'd had chance to take a look at the newest addition to Arkham.
After the interruption sleep evaded him as usual, and he found himself feeling irrationally angered by the newcomer for robbing him of his chance to sleep.
It wasn't exactly their fault, but still.
Eventually 6:00am came and the lights flickered back on, just like they did every morning.
God, he hated the banal repetition of it all.
Even though his life prior to being sectioned had consisted of relentless drudgery, getting up for work, going to the pharmacy, heading home, taking care of his mom, was repetitious...but at least he had his freedom. For what it was worth.
Muttering under his breath, he swung his legs out of bed and sat up.
The cells weren't exactly designed with privacy in mind, consisting of a wall of unbreakable glass so that the guards could keep a watchful eye on what the prisoners were up to.
The cell opposite Arthur had been vacant for as long as he could remember, and he liked it that way. Now he would be exposed, like a fish in a bowl, for whoever had been put in there to see.
Standing, he stretched and turned his attention toward the opposite cell, curious to see who his new neighbour was, and to issue a threat. He intended to tell the guy in the usual way, that he was the Joker, which carried considerable clout, and that if he caught him watching him he'd gouge his eyes out with a spoon.
But as his tired eyes settled on the figure across from him, he let out a shocked gust of breath.
It was a woman.
A very beautiful woman, and the sight of her pacing restlessly back and forth made him question his own mind.
He was taking his medication they issued him each day, so surely he couldn't be delusional. Nor was he prone to having hallucinations any more.
She had to be real.
Maybe there was only one way to find out.
Heading towards the glass he placed his hand on it and called out to her,
"Hey!"
Hearing the voice she stopped in her tracks and turned her head.
Her (y/e/c) eyes met his green ones and she looked momentarily startled, stunned even.
"Welcome to Arkham." He grinned crookedly. "What's your name?"
She didn't respond. Just frowned at him.
"What's the matter? Cat got your tongue?"
Still nothing.
"Aw, come on. You can tell me, I'm a good guy."
Silence.
Growing impatient, Arthur's grin melted into an angry pout.
"Listen, you're gonna be in here a long time princess. And seeing as we're neighbours we may as well get to know each other."
"What makes you think I'll be in here for a long time?" She spoke at last, her tone clipped. "I don't intend to be here long."
"That's what they all say."
Irritated, she turned to face him fully. "There's been a mistake. I shouldn't be here."
"Yeah?" Arthur casually pulled a cigarette from the crumpled packet. "They all say that too."
She scoffed angrily and continued her anxious pacing.
All the while she could feel the heat of those striking green eyes following her every movement, but she tried hard to ignore it. Not wanting to give him the satisfaction of seeing her react.
Arthur dragged on his cigarette, admiring her silently from afar.
She was wearing the standard hospital-issued outfit of white pants and tunic, which was shapeless and not flattering in the least. And yet as she moved, the fabric clung to her feminine curves, making his blood stir.
Well, he thought, she might not be one for conversing but having her as his neighbour might still have its advantages. Now the days might not be so tedious, and she'd be a pleasing distraction when he wasn't obsessing over escaping.
***
When lunchtime came Arthur didn't bother joining the queue in the canteen for food.
His medication affected his appetite, so he only ever ate the bare minimum to survive.
Instead he got a glass of milk and sat at the table in the corner, smoking as his eyes scanned the room for her.
She'd been taken off somewhere by one of the doctors around mid-morning, and she hadn't returned after that.
Spotting a fellow inmate who he was on good terms with, Arthur waved him over.
"'Sup, Artie my man?" The friendly black man greeted him with a warm smile. "I ain't playing you at cards again you cheating son of a bitch."
Arthur chuckled and shook his head. "Don't be such a sore loser, Denny. I don't cheat, you're just shit at poker."
Laughing, Denny sat on the bench opposite him, setting his tray down on the table. "So how's things over in the west wing? I heard you guys got a new roommate."
"Yeah. Boy, news really travels fast in this place. How d'you know about that?"
"Boles." Denny stated with a grin. "You know me and him are buddies. He tells me everything. Man enjoys a gossip more than my old granma used to."
Arthur raised a quizzical eyebrow. He knew of the guard Frank Boles, but he mostly worked over on the east wing where Denny's cell was.
Rumour had it that he was corrupt. Sometimes drank on the job. He'd been temporarily suspended once, and was always open to a bribe.
"So what's her story?" He asked, lighting up another cigarette as Denny tucked into his mac 'n cheese.
"Delusional psychosis." Denny said between mouthfuls of his meal. "Apparently she was caught trespassing on the Wayne estate."
"Really?" Arthur's eyes narrowed. "So how come she's not upstairs?"
"No room." Denny chuckled. "They'll move her if a cell becomes vacant. Just goes to show there's more crazy women than men, right?"
Arthur gave a fake laugh and nodded, though his mind was already zoning out.
So, his new neighbour was arrested for snooping around the Wayne estate.
This information just made her even more interesting.
***
It was later that afternoon in the communal room when she put in an appearance.
Arthur sat on one of the tatty couches, idly staring at the television screen. A soccer game was on and he found it utterly tedious, so seeing her walk in immediately caught his attention.
She sat in the far corner, her arms wrapped around herself comfortingly.
She looked so sad, fragile and vulnerable.
But her arrival had also captured the attention of the others, and two degenerates made a beeline for her, intent on harassing her.
"Come on dollface, you're gonna get real lonely if you don't make some new friends." One of them drawled, as he began pawing at her.
She fought him off as best she could, slapping his hands away, but then the other, much larger, inmate grabbed her and held her still, laughing maliciously as his accomplice tried to grope her.
Arthur stood, picked up an ashtray from the table, and launched it across the room at the assailants.
It hit the wall with a smash, narrowly avoiding the larger mans head.
Startled, they both jumped and turned to see Arthur glaring at them furiously.
"Take your hands off her." He said, his voice eerily calm.
To (y/n)'s astonishment, they hastily let her go and backed away.
"H-hey man, what's your beef?" The smaller one stuttered.
Arthur walked over slowly, his eyes burning holes into the little miscreants' head.
"What's my beef? You should know by now, Jacob. What's my number one rule?"
The small man visibly trembled. "D-don't touch your stuff."
"Exactly." Arthur growled, cigarette hanging loosely from his lips. "You don't. Touch. My. Stuff."
(y/n) stared at Arthur with wide eyes.
Stuff?
How dare he imply that she was his 'stuff'!
"Y-yeah but I didn't know, Arthur. How was I to know--?" His words trailed off as Arthur came closer, standing over him oppressively.
"Well you know now, right? Touch her again and I'll fucking kill you!"
Taking his cigarette from his mouth, the whole room watched in awed silence as Arthur stubbed it out onto the mans' forehead, making him howl in pain.
"You got it?" Arthur spat.
"Yeah we get it, we get it." The large man said, gripping Jacob by the arm and tugging him away quickly.
Arthur grinned malevolently. "Good."
He watched with satisfaction as the two men fled the room, then turning to (y/n) Arthur's unsettling grin miraculously transformed into a heart-stopping smile.
"They won't be bothering you again. Now are you gonna tell me your name? You kinda owe me."
"I don't owe you anything, you murdering monster!"
Feigning injury he clasped a hand to his chest, mocking her. " Ouch. That really hurt. I'm not the only murderer in here, you do know that?"
"Why did you tell them I was your...your...stuff?" She demanded, face turning red. "I'm not anybody's stuff!"
"Hey, calm down princess--"
"And don't call me princess!" She snarled.
The other inmates all made "ooooh" noises, making Arthur himself blush, much to his annoyance.
"Right, come here. You and me are gonna take a little walk." Grasping her firmly by the arm, he marched her out of the communal room and into the hallway.
"Let go of me!" She protested, struggling to free herself, but the grip he had on her arm was too powerful.
Swinging her around, he let go and crowded her back against the wall, trapping her by placing his arms either side of her.
"You don't have to be afraid of me." He said in a low voice. "But some of the other lowlifes in here wouldn't think twice about...well, you know...they would hurt you. They haven't been around a woman in years, except for some of the nurses, so to them you're an easy target. The guards here wouldn't give a shit if you got raped, if they did they wouldn't have locked you down here with the men."
"I shouldn't even be here!"
"I know, you should be upstairs in the women's unit."
"No, I mean I shouldn't be here at all!" (y/n) wailed, tears forming in her beautiful eyes.
Arthur sighed and slowly shook his head. "It doesn't matter what you think. You're here and you can't change that. But as long as those scumbags think that you're my girl they'll leave you alone, trust me."
"Trust you?" She snorted. "You're just as much a lunatic as the rest of them, otherwise you wouldn't be here."
Arthur scoffed. "Ditto, princess."
(y/n) scowled at him angrily. "Why are they so afraid of you anyway? That dick was so much bigger than you, yet you managed to scare him off."
"Let's just say I have a bit of a reputation." He smiled mischievously. "Fortunately for you they're wary of me. I'll look out for you."
She blinked, staring into his bright green eyes made her feel slightly breathless. His gaze was so intense, it felt as if he was reaching in to the very depths of her soul.
"And what exactly would you be expecting in return for your protection?" She breathed. "Nobody does anything for nothing in this city."
Instinctively his gaze lowered and settled on her pink lips. The temptation to taste them was almost overpowering. But he wasn't a slave to his desires. Arthur at least possessed some self control, which many of the other savages in Arkham didn't.
"Nothing." He replied honestly. "I'm a gentleman."
(y/n) gave an incredulous laugh, and even though she was rudely laughing in his face he could forgive her that. The sound was like music to his ears. Like the soft tinkling of wind chimes in a summer breeze.
"A gentleman with a reputation." She sneered. "What exactly are you in here for?"
Arthur shrugged. "Who knows?"
She frowned. "You're playing with me. Don't. I want to know what you've done and who you are."
"Why?" He tilted his head questioningly. "What does it matter?"
"I'd just like to know, being as you're my self-appointed bodyguard."
"Yeah and you still haven't thanked me for that." He said in mock-disgust. "Such bad manners. But never mind, you're welcome."
She huffed and a long pause ensued. Silence enveloping them as they stood in the corridor, his hands still in place on the wall. But she wasn't trying to get away, he noted. So he remained there, enjoying the closeness of their proximity.
She smelled amazing. Like honeysuckle and blueberries. He longed to reach out and run his fingers through her (y/h/c) hair and press his lips against hers.
"(y/n)" She said suddenly, pulling him from his daydream.
"What?"
She smiled gently. "My name is (y/n)."
Her smile was beautiful. He blinked rapidly, as if not believing he was in the presence of such beauty. Perhaps his medication wasn't working. Was she just a figment of his fevered imagination?
"That's...that's a lovely name." He managed to reply, returning her smile with a shy one of his own. "My name's Arthur."
Just then the door from the office at the end of the corridor swung open abruptly, hitting the wall with a loud bang and making them both jump.
Arthur immediately took a step away from her, like a naughty boy who'd been caught doing something he shouldn't, as two guards came stomping towards them.
"Fleck!" One of them yelled at him. "What did you do to Jacob Williams?"
"I didn't do anything." He lied, too distracted by (y/n)'s sudden exclamation.
"Fleck?" She cried, recoiling away from him in horror. "You...you're Arthur Fleck?"
He didn't have time to respond, as the guards were now on him, clapping him in handcuffs while the other gripped him roughly by the scruff of the neck.
"You've just earned yourself a long stint in isolation." One of them stated.
"For what?" Arthur asked innocently.
"You know damn well for what!" The guard blustered. "You assaulted Jacob!"
"If you knew already then why did you ask me what I'd done?" Arthur pointed out, much to the guards' indignation.
"Come on, smart ass! You think you're such a wise guy, huh?"
(y/n) stood and stared as they dragged him away, her mouth hanging slightly open in shock.
The joker himself had defended her against the other inmates, despite him knowing full well that his violence would land him in trouble. Yet he'd still made that sacrifice.
And he'd made it for her.