Payment/ Joker

COMPLEX

"Vanessa, wake up sweetie."
My eyes slowly flicker open as the soft voice of my mother wakes me. "We are here." She says with a slight smile. I look around the dark city when my eyes lock on the grungy apartment complex we began to approach. "That's dad's apartment?" I said, rubbing my eyes. Last time I saw my dad, my mom was sobbing and screaming at him as he packed his bags. It's not like it was some childhood trauma. They broke up when I was 16, and frankly I don't know how they lasted that long. Now it's been a little over a year still and I still don't know why they even broke up. But my mom agreed on letting me spend my birthday month with him. My mom has this whole plan that when I turn 18, we will all hang out and go to dinner, and be happy...yeah right. My mom nodded, "He bought it a little after he left." She said with an obvious sigh in her voice. Our house wasn't huge, but it surely was nicer. Finally we pulled up to one of the complex's buildings as the car came to a stop. I grabbed my pillow and my large suitcase and trotted up the steps to his apartment with my mom. I tuned her out as she was giving me a list of things to do, to do to be safe, and to call her immediately if there was a problem. "Mom i'll be fine." I said with a reassuring smile. She pulled me in for a strong hug as the front door flew open. "Vanessa, I've missed you." My dad spoke as he stepped out the small doorframe. He was on the shorter side with brown hair, and bright blue eyes, just as I remembered him. I never realized how much he looked like me, as I was only 5'1 with long curly brown hair, I guess I get my light blue eyes from him too. I smiled at him and we both shared a soft hug, and I noticed he reeked of alcohol. It brought back memories of when he would come home drunk, screaming at me and my mom. He never hit one of us, but I bet he wanted to. My mom abruptly cut into my thoughts, "James, I will be coming back in a month, and I trust you will take good care of her." She said with a strict tone. My dad nodded at her, "Amy, she will be fine, I promise." My mother sighed and kissed me on the head, "I'll call you tonight sweetie, alright?" I rolled my eyes playfully, "Alright mom, i love you." I said as my dad picked up my bag, welcoming me inside. I followed him and closed the door behind me as I heard my mother pull away. I looked around the small living room, it was messy, that was definitely an understatement. There was empty bottles of alcohol on his coffee table. My eyes immediately locked on a large automatic gun on the table. What did he need that for? He doesn't hunt? Protection maybe? My thoughts raced as he called out from another room. "This is where you will be staying." He said as I rushed into a small musty room with an old matress. I looked up at him with a questionable look. "Would you rather sleep outside?" He said sternly and I quickly shook my head. He dropped my suitcase on the bed and turned to me, "Alright well I have to go to work, but in the meantime, there's some food in the fridge, and you can watch whatever's on TV. Have fun." He said and walked out of my room. I sighed and wandered out into the kitchen as he left the old rickety apartment. I walked over to the fridge as I listened to the sounds of a couple fighting in the apartment above us, sadly it was all in Spanish, so I was clueless. I opened the small fridge and there was a half empty bottle of ketchup and black banana. I rolled my eyes and sighed as I walked over to his small couch. I laid down and turned on the cracked TV. I flipped through a few channels and finally decided on the news. I watched the screen as it displayed story after story of nothing but chaos and death, I don't know what I expected from Gotham. Me and my mom lived in a cute house in the country, it was quiet and beautiful. It was far different from a small apartment in a downtown populated city. My eyes again locked on the large gun on the table. Why did he need it? the same question played in my head over and over and over again as my eyes slowly fluttered shut from exhaustion as the sound from the TV drained out.