Falling || Scarecrow

Ch.11

"Do you ever smile? Or laugh? Or were you born this way?" Maria pestered Thomas.

They were both eating lunch in the lounge. One eating a cheeseburger, the other eating salad.

"And why do you always eat salad? Don't you like junk food? Why don't you ever answer? You're not mute, so are you shy?"

Thomas gave her the death glare.

"Fine." She sighed. "Don't answer."

He stabbed at his salad. "I don't answer pointless questions."

"But that's how you get to know each other."

"People who do that are friends, we are not friends."

She sighed then took a bite from her own food.

At that moment another doctor entered, they both looked up.

"Um.. Dr. Elliot, you are to show Ms. Gardner how to deal with a second degree burn."

Thomas stood up without a word, and threw his food away. She copied his movements as she looked at the other doctor. "What patient? What room?"

"Room 126. Bruce Wayne."

Out of the corner of her eye she saw Thomas's face turn red, almost matching his dark copper hair. "Please excuse us." She said to the other doctor, who practically ran out.

"Are you going to speak to me?" She asked.

Thomas kept glaring at the floor.

"Fine." She huffed. "I'll do it by myself."

She turned and walked out of the room, her heels clicking against the tile. Then she heard a chair being thrown behind her, and crash into a wall. She tried to convince herself that Thomas was just having a bad day and needed to let off some steam.

Maria went up one floor using the elevator that reeked of sweat, and was soon at the door of room 126. She knocked twice and let herself in. Revealing a man that must have been in his early thirties, and was well muscled.

"Hello Mr. Wayne." She said as she washed her hands in a sink. "What is the problem?"

She turned around to see Bruce Wayne staring at her a bit surprised.

"Oh, I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Maria Gardner your nurse."

"No, it was just... I just thought I recognized you from somewhere." His was surprisingly deep and warm.

"I'm pretty sure I would remember meeting the famous Bruce Wayne."

He laughed in reply. "I guess so."

She smiled and sat on a rolling stool. "So what's your problem?"

"A burn." He held out his arm to reveal a area the size of her hand, that was red and blistered.

"Oh my gosh!" She exclaimed. She got up and started rummaging through the cupboards for some burn cream. "Why are you so calm? That's pretty serious, you must be in agony!"

He smiled in amusement. "I'm use to having a lot of accidents."

She sighed in relief as she spotted what she was looking for. "Hold still." She stated. "This will hurt."

Bruce visibly tensed when she first touched the burn area with the cream. But it was quickly covered, and then she wrapped some bandages around it.

"You're good at this." Bruce said amazed.

She laughed. "That's good to hear. I was hoping to help people when I came here, and you are my first official patient."

He smiled again, but his eyes were serious. "Well thank you."

"It was a privilege." She walked to the door, then turned her head. "Dr. Barnes will be here soon."

He nodded. She left.

...

"Relax. Breathe. Throw." She whispered the words quietly then threw a knife at the target. "Bullseye!" She crowed.

Jonathan came in at that moment, surveying the scene. Taking a double look at her hand painted target on the wall, that had six knifes sticking out.

"What are you doing?" He asked slowly.

"Practicing." Then, "where do you even sleep? I mean, cause I've never seen you sleep here.."

There's a second floor." He stated.

She stared at him with disbelief. "A second floor... That I've never ever heard about before."

"Yes. And you never asked."

She gave him a glare. "I knew you had cells down here, a kitchen that was converted to a lab, the room where I sleep, and a small bathroom at the end of the hall. So what's up there?" Maria gestured to the ceiling.

"Bedroom, another bathroom, and a more confidential lab."

"Oh."

"We're you expecting something better?"

"A kitchen."

"Hilarious."

She smiled. "Well until we can make our own food in a kitchen... Do you want to order pizza?"