The Way it Goes

Merry Christmas: Secrets, Secrets

The best Christmases I've ever had had always been with Jade. She may be an assassin and hold no enthusiasm for Christmas, especially decorating, but she can certainly make things feel lively. I hope Lian gets to watch Jade attempt to decorate a tree someday. Nothing has ever been more entertaining.

"Jade! Where did you put the red ornaments?!" Roy yells.
"What is that man talking about?" Jade irritably whispers to herself from the other room.
"Jade?!!" Roy continues.
"What!!" Jade blurts back.
"Where did you put the red ornaments?!!!" Roy now repeats in a frustrating tone.
Jade, practically sleep-walking, stumbles into the living room with her robe wrapped around her body. Half-awake, she then replies, "They're in the backseat of the car. Remember? It was so cold when we got home from the restaurant last night, so we agreed to just bring everything in today."

Roy, scratching his head and slowly recalling the conversation, quickly stands up and begins scrambling for his car keys from one of the drawers in the kitchen. He then hurries outside to the old car.

Jade, still putting her thoughts together and gradually becoming more alert of her surroundings, walks into the kitchen and grabs for her coffee creamer and mug. A few minutes later, after stirring her creamer and coffee together, she hears the front door open up and Roy come tumbling in with several bags full of Christmas decorations.

"Well, Mr. Grouchy? Did you find them?" Jade questions.
"Har, har!! Yeah. Right where we left them. It's a miracle someone didn't break in last night and steal all this stuff." Roy replies.
"What? This stuff? Be real, Roy. I mean really, who in all of Gotham would steal junk like this?" Jade replies.
"Junk?! This isn't junk, Mrs. Scrooge!" Roy blurts out. "Man, are you anti-Christmas or something? I don't think I've heard one good thing come from your mouth regarding Christmas yet. Have you know, I'm quite fond of Christmas myself, especially the decorating. Some might call me Martha Stewart's husband!"
"Oh, yeah?" Jade begins again. "Well, not all of us got to experience Christmas the way you did growing up. In fact, if you even caught my mom in a holiday shop or Christmas decorating, well, the fact is, you wouldn't! Both my mom and dad were very clear concerning how they felt about the holidays: a big waste of time and money."

Roy, his head fixed at the floor, attempts to calm Jade down by placing his hands on her shoulders. He then explains, "Jade, honey, I'm sorry. I didn't know. If I had, I wouldn't have responded the way I did." Jade, with a look of distaste and bitterness slowly dissipating, meets her eyes with Roy's and responds with one word, "Okay." Roy, a million thoughts now racing through his mind, confusingly thinks, "Okay? What did she mean by that?" He then answers, "Um, okay what?" Jade, becoming more and more entertained with Roy's confused look, replies, "Okay. That's all." Trying not to reveal the smirk she's so pathetically wearing, Jade walks down the hallway to the bathroom and shuts the door. Roy, hearing the shower turn on, whispers to himself, "One word, women."

That evening, Roy and Jade decorated the little apartment, slowly turning it from a cold, old building into a bright colorful New York penthouse: red and white beaded strands wrapped around every post, two stockings happily hanging one by the other on the chimney mantle, exotic winter-wrapped creatures arranged so carefully throughout each room, bed sheets Santa-red, tinted ornaments hanging on every needled branch, pined-wreaths with big red bows hung on every door and window.

Yep, things were definitely looking up in the Christmas life of Roy and Jade, everything except for the past childhood Christmas memories of Jade. As she watched Roy hang the sparkly star at the top of the tree, each old memory gradually came back to life.

"Jade, you aright? You look a little pale," Roy questionably explained, noticing the empty look of thought on her face. "I'm fine. Really, I am. Just need some fresh air," Jade quickly replied. She then made her way to the door and stepped outside to where their mini deck was located. Leaning against the metal fence that separated her from the forty-ft drop below, Jade began glaring across the cold, abandoned plains that lay outside of Gotham. Breathing in the cold air, her lips slowly turning the color of purple, her focus is quickly placed on a group of children who are so contently playing a game of ball.

Kid 1: "Hey, Anna, throw the ball over here! Kid 2: "Okay! Here it comes!" WAM!!! Kids laughing: "Ha-ha, ha-ha!!" Kid 3: "Hey, no fair, give it to me, Tom!" Kid 1: "Come and get it then!"

Jade, slowly falling back into her old, Christmas memories, begins to recall the time her and Artemis used a trash lid to sled down their staircase since it hadn't snowed that year. Not to mention the time they placed a tack in their father's big winter boots. Boy, was that something. Recalling the freakish expression on his face always got her laughing hysterically.

Yes, indeed. These were some good Christmas memories Jade certainly held dear to her.

"Well," Jade sighed. "I guess it's time to let these memories go and make new ones with Daddy. Wouldn't you agree, Baby? Maybe, now would be a good time to show him the location of Speedy. Then again, maybe not? Hm. Mmmm, so many questions and yet, so little time, Love. Perhaps, perhaps, it'd just be best not to tell him. Afterall, he's finally starting to get his mind off all of this clone stuff. Wouldn't want to reawake the beast. No, what he really needs right now is to focus on things that really matter. Until then, I stay silent."

As Jade grabs for the door handle to go back inside, she's alerted to find Roy standing right on the other side. "Roy!" Jade blurted out. "You startled me." "Ha! Sorry, Jade. Just came to check on you," Roy explained. "Are you okay?" Jade, thinking over the thoughts she's just pondered, pulls Roy close to her and buries her head in his shirt. "I just love you, Baby." Roy, still a little puzzled about earlier, responds by pulling Jade closer towards him. With this, they begin kissing in a most passionate way.

"Ouch!" Roy expresses. "What'd you hit me for?" "Hit you, what are you talking about?" Jade fervently responds. "I just felt it, my stomach. Always have to get rough, do you," Roy flirtatiously remarks, raising a brow. Jade, feeling the three-month old continue to move around in her belly, just answers in her sly tone, "Oh, you know me, it's either rough or not enough, handsome. Now, are we going to continue talking about this or kiss? Roy, much more pleased with the sound of Jade's second idea, grabs hold of her again and begins a second time fervently kissing her.