(for inyourdreams )

[gcpd]

John had been fiddling with her card for the rest of the afternoon. He really thought about it - really thought about calling her and asking her out on a date. She couldn't have had a boyfriend, right? Otherwise she wouldn't have given him her number. But then maybe she just wanted to "hang out" with no romantic connotations...or maybe he was just over thinking it. It was so unlike John to over think things. He had, after all, been called a "hot head" by the late, great Peter Foley.

But then Bane and Batman had messed everyone up. "Fuck it," he said under his breath and dialed her number on his cell phone.

Comments

[gcpd]

He laughed quietly. "I guess not."

[inyourdreams]

"And just for future reference, if you're trying to impress a girl, which I'm not saying you are, you might want to lead with the fact that you do volunteer work at a Boys Home," she teased with a smile.

[gcpd]

He laughed again and shook his head. "Thanks, I'll remember that for later."

[inyourdreams]

She smiled and took a sip of her beer.

[gcpd]

"So how long are you in Gotham for?" He asked.

[inyourdreams]

"I'm not sure yet," she said. "It depends how long I can get work and how much I enjoy the city I guess."

[gcpd]

"Have you been enjoying yourself?"

[inyourdreams]

"A bit," she said. "I've only been here a few days and have spent a lot of it going to meetings. Plus, I don't really know many people in the city. Not that that's ever stopped me before."

She shrugged. It just meant she had to make it a point to get herself out there to do fun things in between the work.

[gcpd]

"Well you know me," he said. "Which isn't really something."

[inyourdreams]

She smiled.

"I wouldn't say that," she said. "You're a former cop who probably knows this city better than anyone. And you're going to bring me to Wayne Mansion. I think that's definitely something."

[gcpd]

He smiled a little. "A former detective if we're being specific."

[inyourdreams]

She raised an eyebrow.

"You really do need to work on this whole 'selling yourself' thing a little better," she said. "A detective? That's a big deal."

[gcpd]

He shrugged. "I suppose." Even now, he still felt like he could've done more - driven faster, ran quicker - he lost his partner because of his own carelessness.

[inyourdreams]

She assumed his lack of enthusiasm had to do with the reason why he also wasn't on the force any more.

"They really messed this place up, huh?" she asked after another drink of her beer. The pictures on the news were hard to believe at the time. Even all the way in Paris she'd felt horrified. She couldn't imagine what it was like to be here during those months and to be personally involved as she imagined he had been.

[gcpd]

"Yeah." He drank deeply from his glass then before setting it down.

[inyourdreams]

"Did you see him? That guy with the face mask?" she asked. "In person I mean."

[gcpd]

"Briefly," he replied. John had always been on the slightly small side so Bane had been a towering man. It was at the beginning of winter and John had been patrolling the south side for the bomb.

[inyourdreams]

"Jesus, he was scary," she said. "Even on TV."

She shook her head.

"I'm sure you don't want to talk about this."

[gcpd]

"It's fine, Ari," he said. "I wouldn't blame you for being curious."

[inyourdreams]

She nodded.

"What about him?" she asked. "The Batman. Did you see him too?"

[gcpd]

"Of course I did." He sat back on his seat.

[inyourdreams]

"Really?" she asked. "What was he like?"

[gcpd]

Wanye had been taller than him as well, and in the suit, he was...legend. "He was...I don't know how to describe him."

[inyourdreams]

"Do you think the city will be okay without him?" she asked.

[gcpd]

John almost wanted to smile at that. He wasn't the Batman. At least not yet, but when he will be, he'd give this city what they need: hope. "Yeah, I think so."