Fear Revisited [Jonathan Crane / Scarecrow]

002

One drink had not been enough to prepare her for the conversation which had surrounded her, organically coming about in such a way that she could only conclude that the universe hated her.

She was taken aback by how much the same and yet so different Jonathan looked, the shock plainly written on her face.

He was still very thin, but no longer looked frail in his finely tailored suit. The outdated plastic frames had been traded in for a lightweight, chic set of lenses, and he wore his hair a bit less disheveled, but one thing was undeniably the same -

Those eyes.

She took another long sip of her drink to keep from stumbling over whatever words might fall out of her mouth. It was far too late to pretend she didn't recognize him.

It actually seemed to take him a moment to decide that she was indeed the same girl whose heart he'd mangled a decade ago, his expression denoting some surprise when he did.

Mike, the lone misfit in the silent interaction, seemed to sense the awkwardness.

"Headshrink, huh? Could've sworn I heard dentist. Not surprised, though. Ya always were pretty smart," he said with a laugh before clapping a hand good-naturedly on Jonathan's shoulder.

Johnathan looked offended at the gesture, forcing a smile as he removed the hand gingerly.

"Yes," he agreed simply, "I was."

The tension in the situation increased by the second, Jane refusing to speak for fear of what words her seventeen year old self may have been hanging onto and Jonathan doing little more than observing.

"Well, uh, it was good catching up with you Jane," Mike offered, despite having done no such thing. "You too, Johnny. I'm gonna go grab a bite to eat."

And with that, he excused himself from the conversation, leaving only Jane and jonathan.

"It's been quite some time," he remarked, his formality obviously having only increased over the years, "you look well."

How was this even supposed to go? She had built only scenarios where she'd either see nothing of him or instantly wow him with how tremendous she looked, both lofty ideas once she had a chance to think it over.

"So do you," she answered politely, consuming more alcohol despite her promise to herself to remain levelheaded. "Doctor of psychiatry, hm? I suppose that means Gotham U worked out for you."

"Indeed. I'm a clinical psychiatrist at Arkham, now," he explained. She didn't know what to make of his smug tone, though the edge in it had fallen away somewhat since Mike had left.

"It sounds like you've done very well for yourself," she congratulated him genuinely. Her younger self was outraged by the lack of malice in her tone, but it had been ten years.

And if she was being honest, she had loved him - it was only natural to wish him the best.

"I'll have a scotch on the rocks," he said over his shoulder to the bartender. "And another of whatever she's having."

Jane considered protesting. She didn't like the idea of Jonathan getting her a drink, but it was an open bar, so she supposed there was no money changing hands, and she really needed more liquid courage than was currently in her system.

"Thank you," she said awkwardly, unsure how these sorts of interactions were meant to unfold.

"So, what about you, Jane? Married, children?" he asked. He didn't sound very interested in the answers to his questions, but Jane provided them regardless.