eddie likes to (riddlethem) wrote in rooms, @ 2014-12-04 01:02:00 |
|
|||
Entry tags: | !dc comics, *narrative, eddie nigma |
always the city
Who: Eddie narrative
Where: Bat mansion
When: a couple days after Damian dies
What: popping the bubble
As promised, Eddie stayed as long as Stephanie needed him to. While the circumstances were awful, those days were bliss. He called it their bubble, their slice of happiness while the world was crumbling around them. Long afternoons were spent in bed or walking around the cold, giant mansion. He cooked for her, he held her when she cried. It didn’t just feel like they were dating or he was some crutch for her to hobble along with. He felt like her husband. He felt like this was what marriage was supposed to be like when things got bad.
After a few days, she gently urged him to get back to the city. To take care of the veteran who they had to use for peace with the mobs. He had business to do, things to look into. To him, none of it really mattered. He’d work as Bruce’s IT guy until they were all feeling better. He’d get used to the quiet, to the ridiculously expensive everything and he’d stay like he belonged there. But, he didn’t, right? Stephanie poked him, said go help the city and he didn’t fight her on it. That wasn’t his brother laying in the cave. He’d always be the green question mark lingering on the outside. She said go, so he went.
After packing his things, he got this idea. He thought she was right about him leaving to get back to Gotham, but why couldn’t she come, too? Sure, his place was a lot smaller than the apartment they had shared before, but they were both so busy it couldn’t get to them. He had this stupid daydream about laying in bed and reading next to her as she took a nap between her shifts at the clinic. He could see them watching tv and eating noodles out of a box in domestic, simple bliss. Sure, it was logically a mistake. Logically he was moving too fast and asking too much. But, he thought he saw something in her eyes while they were hiding in the mansion. Eddie remembered her wish for small, domestic moments together that only couples who had been together forever could enjoy. He thought she’d take that risk with him, that it’d be good.
Eddie said he didn’t believe in true love anymore and that was kind of a lie. Up until this point, before he asked her to stay with him, a tiny puzzle piece knew that romance and whirlwind Gotham love was still a possibility for them. He knew he saw something. He remembered her resting her palm on his chest and he couldn’t see the point of them pretending that they didn’t want to spend every second together.
The pets were put in the car, his travel bag and then he turned to look at her standing in front of that giant mansion. He kissed her, he held her and he said come with me like it was a simple equation. Like her + him = happiness. And for once he didn’t expect a no. He didn’t expect anything but a yes. Instead she looked shocked, she turned him down and all Eddie could see was a memory of looking up at her from a dirty floor on Earth-3 while she said no to that cursed ring. Said no because she didn’t take chances with her feelings the way he did. She didn’t believe in some cosmic romance. And, okay, now he fucking didn’t either.
“Well then, fuck it.” Eddie said and he got into his car. He didn’t want to argue and he sure as hell didn’t want to try and convince her. So, fuck it. The riddled man’s car rumbled to a start and he drove back to the city. Bubble popped.