One Bad Day

Unaware

Harley's POV:

I sank down to the bathroom floor sobbing with my knees pulled to my chest. My Mistsh J didn't want our baby. How could he not want our beautiful baby? The pain I feel hurts more than any physical pain he's ever put me through.

Frost bends down next to me and puts his hand on my shoulder. "No!" I cry, "No please don't kill my baby Johnny!" I plead with a tear soaked face. Mistsh J had given him the order to 'get rid of it'. He always follows orders. I like Johnny, but I'll kill him if he tries to hurt my baby.

"No...no I would never, I don't care what J says," he says soothingly.

"He's crazy Johnny, you know he is! He's gonna hurt my baby! You saw how angry he was!" I bawl.

"He was in shock Harley. He just needs some time to absorb all of this," he sighs.

"I have to leave! I have to go somewhere he can't find me!" I panic.

Johnny looks at me a second and looks down at the floor. "You know there's nowhere you can go that he won't find you."

And I did know that. Mistah J owned every cop and most of the politicians in Gotham City, Midway City, and Arkham City. There was absolutely no way I could ever hide from him. He doesn't give up, not ever, not till he gets what he wants. And he always gets what he wants. Eventually.

I look to Johnny seriously, "Then I'll have to kill him."

His mouth opens slightly and I can see him pondering if he should shoot me. He slightly shakes his head, "No. You don't really want to do that."

And no, I didn't. I live for Mistah J. I had this perfect fantasy in my head of us married with beautiful babies running around. The quentisential normal family life. But I think I would kill him if he tries to hurt my baby.

"Johnny, he'll kill me if he thinks he has to. I mean nothing to him, I'm expendable."

"Harley, that's not true, J loves you as much as he can. If he were a normal guy he could show you that. He's scared Harley."

"Scared," I huff, "he fears nothing! Not Batsy, not even death!"

"No, your wrong," he stands up. I watch as he walks over to the bar in the bedroom and picks up a folder. He walks back into the bathroom and kneals before me again. "He received some news tonight. Unfortunately it was badly timed. But this is what has him scared," he says sitting the file on the floor in front of me and placing his palm down flat on it.

"What is that?" I ask looking at the plain manilla folder.

"It's everything Harley. It's his past, before he became what he is," he says quietly. He looks over his shoulder and up at the security camera. I knew he was praying Mistah J wasn't watching.

"Johnny he doesn't remember his past. I was his therapist. His stories were always inconsistent. He made up things as he went along."

"Yes, I know. But some years ago he managed to get one lead. Luckily there was a paper trail to follow. Then that trail opened another, then another. And tonight he got the final bit of information. It's all right here," he says lifting his hand off the folder.

My trembling hand reaches down to the folder. I open it and am met with a picture of...oh God, it's him. Him before green hair, red lips and white alabaster skin. He was so handsome. So perfect.

I lay the picture down and read a police report. The report was written out by Jim Gordon when he was just a detective. It's about the murder of some woman with grueling crime scene photos. Among them was a police mugshot of my Mistah J as he used to be. I read over the report more. 'The number one suspect in the murder of Marta Napier is her 15 year old son Jack.

I look up at Johnny, "He killed his mother?"

"Both parents actually," he sighs, "but it's the next page I wanted you to see."

I turn the page and begin reading. As I read about my Puddin's life before crime tears come to my eyes again. He had been married...and a baby was on the way. It got harder and harder to read. My heart bled for Mistah J. I look back at Johnny.

"Do you understand now?" He asks. "He's so scared of losing you and the baby that it makes sense for him to think he has to destroy everything himself before someone else can do it. In a very psychotically deranged way he thinks the only way to keep the kid safe is to destroy it. He just needs time Harley. Imagine yourself in his shoes, in Jack Napier's shoes. He came home every day and felt a growing baby in his wife's stomach. He loved them and some drunk driver jumpped a curb and killed them. He blames himself for it because she had left a note for Jack saying that she couldn't raise their child with a criminal. She packed her things and left him. That's why she was on the street when the drunk driver came."

"But he isn't Jack Napier anymore Johnny. He doesn't love anymore. He can't," I cry.

"Are you sure that he's incapable Harley? Maybe it's not because he can't, maybe it's because he's too afraid to. Love was the reason his entire life changed. Love was the cause of him getting into crime. Love put him in that vat at Ace Chemicals. How could he not try to keep love out of his life now? Love makes everything a liability."

What Johnny was saying made sense somehow. Maybe Mistah J was just too scared to love this baby. Maybe he thinks that by loving it he's condemning it. Mistah J has enemies, enemies that would hurt anything he cared about. Maybe that's why he's never told me he loved me. If he did, someone might threaten to harm me. As it is, they just think I'm his creation, his sidekick, his toy, and that losing me wouldn't hurt him one bit.

"Johnny, what do I do?" I ask him.

"I advise you stay out of his way for now. Give him time to grasp everything. Don't worry, I'll try to talk to him," he assures.

I nod. I knew that if Mistah J listened to anybody it was Johnny. He'd proven himself loyal many many times over. His opinion was the only one Mistah J ever listened to. I just pray he can get through to him before it's too late.