Making Headlines ~ Bruce Wayne [PAUSED]

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐅𝐢𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐞𝐧

"You better start talking." She says, "Now."

You open your mouth to do as you're told but you stop yourself. Reality had hit you as soon as you understood what was going on, but, sincerely, you had felt stunned right from the start. Answers fail to respond to the questions in your head, and, because of that, you fail to answer your mother's.

You look away from your mother, breaking her authorial gaze, and look over at Bruce, who is staring at you three. He has no readable expression to anyone in the room but you. You see it as a mix of worry with confusion and then, probably, realization.

"You can go home, Bruce." You tell him in almost a whisper.

He looks down at you and seems as if he wants to ask you a bunch of questions. Yet, if he does, he doesn't ask them. He just continues to look at you.

"I'll be okay. Go." You whisper, this time.

Bruce looks over at your parents this time and gives you a short nod before leaving. He walks right past you, and your heart squeezes painfully as your parents quickly get out of his way. It's almost as if they don't want to in any way be near him, therefore, they keep a safe distance. Bruce gets into the elevator and looks at you before the doors close.

Nobody dares to break the silence in the small entrance. Not even your furious mother. She would be caught dead before letting someone like Bruce Wayne see her reacting to anything as bad as this.

You divert your eyes back to her, now that the unwanted company is floors away, and she is not holding back any emotions anymore. She is truly glaring at you with all of her anger. Suddenly, you notice how your hands have stopped to shake, and fear has slowly evaporated from your body. Her gaze does not cause you to fear. Not anymore.

"Why was he here?" Your father is the one that decides to speak.

You look over at him.

"He's the person you're seeing." Your mother accuses you.

You don't answer, knowing that she doesn't need your confirmation. Your silence always seems to be enough for her. It takes a few seconds for either of them to actually say anything after that. Your father doesn't want to believe his wife's words, especially if you don't appear to confirm them. But it's their silence that makes you stare at them just as intensely.

You stare and notice how your mother is dressed. How the both of your parents are dressed. Elegant clothes. The usual type of clothes your mother prefers to make appearances with in expensive restaurants, or anywhere else that could get her in a picture.

"Why are you in my home?" You ask calmly.

"Why-" Your mother tries to ask something else, but you don't let her.

"Why are you in my home?" You repeat, same tone as before.

"We are your parents-"

"And I am a grown adult." You fight back, but your tone never goes higher than hers.

Your words don't seem to sit well with your mother. The anger in her face seems to grow in inexplicable ways, even when you haven't done half of what your brain is telling you to do.

"Are you stupid, sweetheart?" Your mother asks you, not holding back for a second, "Because you sure are acting like it."

You don't answer her, letting her insult you as she gets ready to give you her justification for her unnecessary comment. As she always does.

"You let Bruce Wayne into your home?" She sounds baffled with her own words, "Exactly when our business has never been better?!" She shouts the last part at the top of her lungs.