Maniacs (Gotham)

Little Sanity

[No Man's Land - Day 88.2]

"Thankfully, we were able to steal some bullets from Penguin's truck; I was almost empty." Kai broke as we walked through the forgotten city on our way to Jeremiah's hiding spot. "But I still hated every minute of that."

It was beginning to grow darker, the sky hidden behind a blanket of gray clouds. Jeremiah was probably frustrated; two days had passed since I last saw him. Our last conversation being one of my favorites, the feeling of his lips remained. I missed having some emotional safe space (well, as safe as it could be).

My eyebrows raised as I glanced at him, "If you decide to stay, get used to it. It won't get better. We make our lives miserable; we kill each other, ourselves and watch as those close to us suffer. It's unbearable. If you value the little sanity you have left, you'll be gone as soon as we reach the mainland."

He looked back at me as if trying to decipher the reason for my words. As if asking, What has she seen? My eyes turned back to the chaotic road in front, deciding not to say anything anymore.

"Too scared to talk about me, doll face?" His voice rang in my brain, my eyes clenched tightly. It was so uncomfortable to hear words that I had never imagined him saying. He made me wonder if he was alive, would he really say those things about me? Probably not because I'd still be with him, wouldn't I?

Sometimes I wish I return to when we first met eyes; I want to be intrigued by him again. When he attempted to kiss me but he didn't get to, the disappointment in his eyes. When he followed me to Ed's even when he was uncomfortable. Despite my negative representation of him inside my head, I just hope he knows the land he's buried in is sacred to me. That a giant chunk of my body is controlled by the love I still feel for him. That his absence turned me into ashes, and despite moving on, I cannot be fixed again.

"Are you really dating Jeremiah?" Kai intervened.

My throat ran dry, thinking about the possibility of being lectured or judged - He wouldn't be the first. I bit my lip and nodded but didn't bother to meet his eyes, "It happened fairly recently."

"Okay... but why his brother?"

I glanced as if asking if he was seriously gonna do this right now; no verbal response was given. He narrowed his eyes to press on, "If I had some sort of reasonable reply, I would give it to you, but I don't." I sighed, my mind wandering back to the beginning of my journey with him. "It happened out of nowhere, honestly."

He hummed, nodding. It seemed understanding, but I had no way of knowing if this was true because I didn't really know him. We were new to whatever this type of acquaintance/friendship was. I didn't know him but I kind of trusted him? Don't know. It's pending.

"Well, look what we 'ave here, Zeke."

The high-pitched voice caused us to spin around quickly; A group of five was walking our way. My blood boiled in my veins upon noticing who was at the very front, strutting closer and confidently. A grin on her rose-colored lips, electric blue eyes scanning Kai and I with blatant suspicion. She'd changed since I last saw her, like her style - she had ditched the Valeska look to something more simpler to understand - and hair.

"Someone new, Reesie?"

My nose scrunched - Her annoyance had yet not changed, "God, I just had to run into you, didn't I?" I said to myself, but she heard it and began giggling.

"Boyfriend?"

Kai scoffed, "A friend."

She made a quiet oh sound, humming, "And how long do you plan to stay in the friendzone?"