Arthur Fleck Archive, 2019

Pieces of a Puzzle

Request: could you maybe do HCs about a reader who's a lot younger? Like 20, say, and they get to know each other and be friends and eventually she confesses to him, but he turns her down because he feels weird about the age difference, but eventually things work out between them

A/N: I went with early to mid 20′s rather than strictly 20, just because that makes me more comfortable and its more flexible to relate to. I also canon that Arthur is like 30-35 (even though the man looks 40 lmao). It doesn't make any real difference in the reading, though.

He just couldn't resist you.He noticed everything about you; the way your graceful fingers pressed against the elevator buttons while you spoke to him, how gentle and considerate your words were when you talked with him about the dull events of the day-yet somehow everything seemed so much more fascinating when he talked about it with you, as if your very presence made everything a little more bearable. He got lost in a trance when he talked to you, admiring how your skin seemed to be glowing with a happiness and freedom that he could never experience; but more than that, he just adored how nice you were, your insides seeming to flow out from your outsides, just as equally beautiful in both directions.He'd read something once that said immature men fell for younger people, and he winced inwardly in disgust at himself. Was he just a cliche middle aged man who was chasing after younger women to make him look good? He just looked so ugly next to you, with his heavy wrinkles and weathered face. You two just wouldn't look......right together, he realized with some shame as he thought it all over. Arthur was a smart man when it came to how life worked; although he was terrible at school, he had a natural intelligence for people and emotional situations, so intuitive was his spirit.He remembered way it felt like to be in his early 20's; Arthur had had a harder time than most growing up, not having the typical experience. He had worked his ass off on minimum wage since he was 14, after being told by his mom that he would have to be "the man of the house" for now on. He didn't have a social life, hobbies, or any few free time to ever figure out who he was. Maybe that was one of the reasons why he was so attracted to you; you were so carefree and innocent and happy, so comfortable within your own skin, your face free from exhaustion and heavy bags like his had been since he was your age and even younger.You reminded him of everything he wished he was; free, happy, soul glamorous with a nonchalant energy towards life.He had vastly different life experiences from you, as if the age gap didn't separate enough differences between you enough as it was. Unbeknownst to Arthur; however; you were drawn to how worn and masculine Arthur was; finding him so much more experienced than you in a way that was very alluring. You found him so mysterious and adorable, a perfect combination of knowledgeable in area of life you weren't, yet seeming to need something from you that only you could give him. He seemed to lack...love. It was blunt and simple, but you could tell by the way his blue pools practically begged you to talk with him for as long as possible, how he fingered nervously with his medication bag, as if having to physically restrain himself from wanting to touch you, that he craved so much more from you than you were giving.The man needed something more important than just a partner his age, than someone responsible; more than anything, he needed someone fun and full of love, someone who could give back some of which he had been cheated from throughout his life.His soul was scarping the harsh world for the basic essentials of the soul, and of being human; love and human connection. It made your heart ache to fully realize this over time.You lived down the hall, and you could tell he never had friends over. His apartment was always quiet, and he only ever seemed to go inside by himself. You two seemed to fit like puzzle pieces; where he lacked emotional freedom and intimacy, you thrived; where you lacked life experience and a endurance for a consistent brutal work ethic, he had more than enough experience.You felt like you could learn from from each in ways that would build the other up, already feeling the love emit from you two even just from your casual conversations, chattering about gentle nothings to each other until 'reason' split you two apart and forced you two to go to your separate spaces.This went on for several months, and your conversations were becoming a little more rich every time, dragging themselves out for as long as humanely possible, until the both of you were stepping backwards to your doors as you continued the conversation for as long as possible. Despite all this, it was obvious that there was no clear way for either of you to take the next step forward, having, again, no 'reason' or excuse to. It just didn't make any sense to do so. He told you as much when you directly asked him out one day. You weren't a shy person; you weren't afraid to go after what you wanted. This, ironically, was one of the things that drew Arthur to you the most, feeling like he could learn so much from your personality differences.But he had turned you down, rather sternly as well, though that had mostly just been a result of his awkwardness, his anxiety making it come out harsher than he intended. "Y/N, that would look so weird. I just can't be with you like that. What if people thought...something else?"Your good mood that you had had when you had dared to ask him out instantly dropped, and your face fell. You hadn't been expecting such a blatant rejection from such a sweet man. "Oh," you whispered, trying to hide your embarrassment and disappointment. "Alright."You two had stood in silence for the rest of the night until you got to your rooms, not speaking a word.You two still talked after that, but your conversations were more stained now, more forced, the words not moving as naturally as they used to. The sting of rejection had tainted your relationship.A few weeks later of this going on, Arthur stepped into the elevator, pushing his foot in front of the elevator to wait for you. He looked forward to your conversations all day, as flawed as they now were. When he waited five minutes, ten minutes, twenty minutes, he accepted that for the first in months, he wasn't going to get his daily talk with you. With an inward defeated sigh, Arthur allowed the elevator door to close.When he made it to his floor, he walked out and down the hall. He was surprised-but relieved-to see you in front of your door; you must have come home before him today. His eyebrows furrowed in concern when he saw your shoulders hunched over, your face buried in your hands.Arthur dared to make his way over to you, then stopped when he was only a few inches behind you."Hey," he said in his soft voice, and you sprung around in surprise. Your face was covered in running mascara and makeup, your lip trembling. It broke Arthur's heart to see you in this state; he longed to comfort you. Despite how he tried to convince himself that he wasn't meant for you, his feelings kept telling him otherwise."Y-uh, you weren't on the elevator today," he stammered awkwardly. He wanted to be of comfort to you so desperately, but he wasn't used to having such a strong onslaught of emotions greet him; having no friends, he never had anyone open up to him. And he still felt so bad for what he had said to you, feeling like he had lost the right to be your friend the way you used to be. You laughed at the randomness of the comment, then wiped your face with your sleeve, sniffling. Arthur smiled inwardly that you had laughed at his comment; he believed that laughter was the best medicine."Yeah, I've been home since three. I got fired from my job today," you hiccuped between sobs. Arthur watched you with a concerned expression; you longed for him to reach out and wrap his arms around you, so comforting did they look, complete with the cozy warm sweaters he wore, but you didn't know how to go about asking. "Been here crying since about then...What time is it?""It's seven," Arthur muttered in his soft voice. His tender feelings for you and his longing to be protect you in any he he could was now overcoming his social awkwardness, and even his conviction that it was wrong for him to love you.You had been here for so long, so upset; you must be starved."Do you want to come into my place for a bit?" Arthur offered. He blushed deeply as he spoke the words, not believing that he was being so bold, but fuck it, he couldn't stand it anymore; he needed to be everything you needed, even if just for one night.You nodded, and you ignored how your heart leapt with excitement at this prospect of taking the next step with this man you had been crushing on for so long; you knew he didn't want you like that. "Yeah, I'd really like that," you whispered with a small smile gracing your of shaky, crimson lips, red from how hard you'd been crying.Arthur beamed, and he offered out his hand to guide your over-not that you needed guiding, but it was an excuse for you both. As your hand was intertwined into his, you were surprised at how much larger it was than yours; it seemed to engulf your hand in the most comforting way. It was worn and aged with time and experience, but that only made it all the more comforting. His warm skin against your cold and shaking hand hinted at how different you were, but how much you could give the other. His very hands wrapped around yours seemed to give a promise that he was here for you, loved you, wanted the best for you, that he could give you answers to things you didn't even know you had questions for.He took you into his apartment, and you felt a warm glow inside of you at how cozy it was; there was a warm light surrounding the apartment, there were pretty paintings adoring the walls, and pink, soft wallpaper with patterns gracing the room. It seemed as if the apartment matched the man you were in love with; a little old, worn, and forgotten, but soft, warm, and full of solace and a wisdom that could only be obtained through experience."In here," Arthur mumbled softly. "Try not to be too loud, my mom is asleep." "You live with your mom?" you blurted out. You then instantly hated yourself; the question sounded inherently judgemental, but you were genuinely surprised; Arthur seemed so isolated, seemed like the kind of man who only had to worry about himself. He obviously took care of himself with the amount he worked, relying on no one else to pay the bills and for food, but you never could have guessed that he took care of someone else too, let alone that person being his mom. Wasn't Arthur too young to have to be concerned over his mothers health?"Yeah," Arthur said, and let go of your hand, looking over at you. "I know it's embarrassing.""No, no, Arthur, that's not what I meant," you reassured him quickly. You were both whispering in the warm but dimly lit apartment, which only added to the intimacy, the tension that was growing between you two. "I actually think that's really admirable, Arthur, to take care of your mom like that." Arthur's formerly worried look, a look that seemed to be his default face, gradually eased up into a smirk of happiness. "Really?"You nodded eagerly, so happy you were making these connections together. You had missed these easy, simple conversations, the connections coming as easy as breathing. "I take care of some of my family too. It's one of the reasons why I'm so upset about losing my job."Arthur nodded solemnly. "I understand what that's like. I always worry about what would happen if I lost my job, too. My mom and I really need it.""I bet you do," you whispered, knowing all too well what that felt like; the pressure of the entirety of your family's wellbeing being balanced on one element that could slip through your fingers at any moment. Arthur paused for a moment, the wheels in his head turning. He has been talking to your facing the living room with you by his side in the small kitchen, not quite making eye contact. Now he dared to, and slowly did he turn himself around and face you fully. His breath hitched at how beautiful your youthful but intelligent face looked against the glow of the lamp, how your tears reflected the warm glow of the room, illuminating your face and making you look like an orange miracle that had manifested in his apartment. You were able to read his face well; Arthur was a man who wore his heart on his sleeve. You felt a glow of happiness as you thought about how unique he was; that he was experienced with the harshness of life and so worn down by the world, yet somehow there was something so pure about him, so touch starved and loving with his every move and glance that made you feel like there was a purity about him that would endure forever, so beautifully made was his soul. It would be a crime not to offer him every ounce of love you had to give. "I..um," Arthur rasped quietly, trying to think of something...'reasonable' to say, but no words came.And then, without one more spoken word of what would go in the category of 'reason', did Arthur reached out and stroke your face softly, thumbing away the tears from one side of you face. You sighed and relaxed into his touch, adoring how it felt so masculine and strong, yet so delicate and fragile, as if communicating to you how much you had the power to hurt him if you so pleased. He had an almost ancient benign energy about him, in a sort of way; he seemed so wise in areas of life that were difficult to navigate for most people. You had a feeling he would be the type to keep you laughing through the hard times, to hold you and love you and guide you through your hardships, even when he didn't always have the answers; he had the kind of wisdom that couldn't be read about in books or studied or learned, only lived. The kind that could only be found in his soul and spoken through his lips. And you? You had a fire of energy and freedom that Arthur had never experienced. Arthur had been born in a cage; you had been born into a wide field of insouciant energy towards life. You had always referred to yourself as a free spirit, always finding a playful way out of even the hardest of circumstances. And Arthur was drawn to that energy, so desperate to feel the carefreeness that you felt, something that was inside of you that could be unlocked and transferred into Arthur's soul. With the power of the two of you, you could conquer mountains.You leaned forward and your lips crashed against his, no longer fighting. Maybe you two would be a quirky looking pair, and there was going to be differences between how you two navigated life. But you could tell this man had a heart full of gold and only wanted the best for you, and you felt much the same. You differences wouldn't separate you; rather, they would only add the richness of the complexities of each other until there was nothing but a loving giving and taking for each other.As your lips curled into a celebratory smile against his, your fingers wrapping into his brown curls, feeling his hands explore your torso, you knew this was the best decision you had made in months.As you felt Arthur's hands curl against your body in a heated passion, you could tell he felt the same.As you melted into one another, forgetting the world around you, you could have sworn that the city of Gotham let out its own sigh, as if there had been a strain on the very universe at the two of you resisting each other, a sigh of at last! reining through the night.