A Billionaire's Bodyguard

Chapter 10: With new jobs come new pains

---------------Bruce's POV: ----------------

(I'm skipping about 4 days; they were all just about the same as the first day)

I'd grown slightly accustomed to seeing Percy in my room, and I was very surprised by her ability to stand there all day. It was quite impressive honestly. She also seemed to be getting along with Duke fairly well, I'd caught the two of them holding a nice conversation about sports as Duke and Damien were leaving for school, though Damien seemed a bit standoffish I knew it would take time for him to adjust as it had taken mostly everyone else.

Today would be the first time that Percy would be staying here while the two were still here, and I suppose it wouldn't change much besides for the fact that the two could now ask for Percy.

It was around noon; I'd just finished lunch and Percy had finished her own lunch a while before.

Though I wasn't sure when I had been paying more attention to the work in front of me. It was almost like there was no end to it, one mistake from an employee here, forms to be approved for new projects which required all new amounts of research to make sure it was something that I'd like my company to sponsor, and don't get me started on trying to keep up with villainous activity around the city, Barbra could only do so much by herself, she still had her job at the library, not to mention the commissioner.

I let out a frustrated groan as I slammed my fist against the table. Somehow an employee had managed to screw up not only a document but an entire project, thousands if not a million had been wasted on a single screw up.

"You okay?" Percy asked quietly, almost as if she were hesitant about asking. I looked up, catching her eyes as she studied me once more, though I suppose I did the same. The first thing that stuck out was the dark circles under her eyes.

I paused and nodded slowly. "I uh, yeah, it's just, someone messed up pretty bad and it's a lot" I said, putting my hand up to reference my computer. Percy just nodded slightly. "But uh, are you okay?" I asked, pushing my papers to the side a bit.

Percy seemed to pause and think over her answer. Eventually she let out a small sigh. "I'm okay, just adjusting" I could see through the strained smile that this was a lie, the way her shoulders seemed to tense all the more.

"You know..." I paused myself, letting out a brief breath. "I could use a break, how about we go take a walk?" I said, pushing myself up and out of my seat, taking one last look at the papers below me. I looked up to see Percy's smile had grown more genuine, she nodded quickly.

"Of course," She opened the door, ushering for me to leave first. I gave her a brief nod as I walked out and into the hallway, adjusting my suit briefly. Usually this would be my day off but then again, my day "off" consisted of me just doing portable work.

A few feet further into the hall I realized Percy had yet to join me. With furrowed brows I turned around to see Percy walking a bit slower then she had after the fight. The question of what was wrong continued to linger on my mind.

Her gaze shifted from the floor and up to me as she put on another smile, quickening her pace to match my own. "Sorry, I was on the way" She nodded as if reassuring someone before turning back in front of her. I started a second longer before nodding.

I could see she was tired, I mean, with Tim you basically learned all the symptoms like the back of your hand.

The two of us walked down the hall and I decided a walk in the backyard could do the both of us some good so I guided the two of us down the rest of the hall and down the stairs. As we walked I continued to note the deep intakes of breath that Percy would take as if she were in pain. I'd have to ask about that when she was comfortable. As the two of us walked we passed by the movie room finding Damien who was busy sitting on the couch with his cat, looking like, an admittedly, super villain as he stroked Pennyworth menacingly. I tried to walk a bit faster because the last time Damien had done that he'd tried to convince me to make Pennyworth a birthday cake out of cat food, and while the idea was cute, he also wanted it to be the size of a limo. I preferred to not have the manor smell like cat food for the next three years thank you very much.

Eventually the two of us made it outside, the greenery welcoming us like a warm cafe. As soon as we stepped outside Percy seemed to relax, taking in a deep breath as her shoulders relaxed. I couldn't help but feel my own chest lighten as well.

Together we made our way out into the garden, passing by the flower bushes and the looming trees that provided a nice shade as well as the sound of rustling leaves.

As we got further out I noted just how serene Percy looked, the way the wind picked up her hair seemed almost like a movie. After admiring for a minute longer than I should have I decided now would probably be the time to ask.

"Percy" I turned my attention back in front of us as she turned to look at me.

"Hm?" she hummed, her sea green eyes looking over with a questioning glint.

I turned to her once again, meeting her eye line. "I understand that before you said you were okay but I know when someone is sleep deprived, one of my boys, Tim, often is, so if there is something you need then we can handle it..." I paused, remembering the scars that had littered her arms. "Or if there is someone you need to talk to, I'm sure we could get in contact with someone."

Percy held strong for a couple seconds before her shoulders deflated and the tired look seemed to double, her eyes falling slightly. She looked away and back in front of us, staring particularly hard at one of the bird feeders. "Nothing's wrong per say." She paused, taking a deep breath. "I guess this is a lot." She hesitated, almost like she was going over every word in her mind. "I live pretty far away from here, and without a form of transport, which this is not my asking for a car by any means, I guess it's just taking a lot more out of me to get here and back then I thought and I'm looking for apartments nearby but nothing really seems to fit within my current budget." She let out a tired sigh, stopping momentarily as she rubbed her face. "It's a lot of change" She revealed her face to have a kind smile. "But it's nothing I can't handle. So really, it's nothing."

I paused with her, turning so that I was in front of her. "Percy, you could've asked sooner, like I said, this job takes up a lot of your time, so I'd prefer it'd be an enjoyable time rather than a nuisance. So let's finish this walk and look for some apartments nearby, I'm sure we can find something much closer within your budget." She froze for a second, looking into my eyes before nodding.

"Okay" her smile grew to reveal a stunning smirk. "Thank you"

I returned the smile, "Of course, now shall we continue?" Percy nodded quickly, walking beside me once more as we continued our walk. 

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1330 words