Her Protector

Chapter 1

It was pictures that haunted Rose. The very thing she loved the most was what terrified her the most now. Making it worse for her was that they were mental pictures. Jerome's death etched into her brain till her death.

Seeing the knife plunged into his neck. Watching his body drop to the ground. The bloody smile on his dead body.

She wanted these images to stop. To leave her mind. Stop haunting her whenever she closed her eyes. 

Rose wondered how she could sleep at night. Every single time she closed her eyes Jerome's face was smiling at her. His crazed eyes with the smile curving up to his cheeks. 

"Rose,"

The girl looked up from her dinner and at Jim. He was sitting across from her, enjoying their last dinner together before she went to college in the morning. 

"Everything alright?" He's noticed Rose acting a little odd as her move-in day approached. The girl nodded her head though. No need to make him worry about something that he shouldn't have to worry about. It should be Rose worry about college, not Jim. 

"Everything is fine," she assured him before taking a bite of the meal. 'Perfectly fine,' she thought to herself before looking back down at the plate. "You checked the campus security right?" She asked him before putting her fork down. 

It took the two of them a long time to find a safe college for Rose. Of course, the main thing in both their minds was security. With Rose's title being public now, as well as some with knowledge about her relationship with Jerome, both Jim and Rose wanted her to be safe while away at college.

Jim nodded his head while taking a sip of his drink. "I even talked with them about your situation," he placed the glass down on the wooden table. "They will ensure that you are safe during your time on campus." He stared at the girl sitting before him. "Have everything packed?" 

Rose nodded her head again. Something seemed off about the whole security thing. A bunch of people knowing who she is. If they are natives to Gotham, then she wouldn't know who to trust with her life. Is it worth bringing this up to Jim right now? Knowing that they leave tomorrow to drop Rose off at college? 

'It won't be a big deal,' Rose tried to assure herself while gripping the napkin on her lap. 'I'll be safe at college. Jim and I went over this many times already.' 

"I'm going to make sure that I have everything packed," Rose told Jim while putting her dishes away in the sink. She quickly made refugee into her room, the guest bedroom, where it was filled with packed suitcases, bags, and boxes. 

Clothes; all neatly packed in the suitcases. Art supplies; packed within boxes and bags (a complete necessity for the ginger girl). Bedding; also packed away in boxes. It seemed like the girl had everything she needed. Something felt like it was missing though. She couldn't decide what though. 

There was a paper on her nightstand which had her entire college list. There were red exes next to each item written down on the paper. According to the paper, Rose was ready for college. Nothing was missing, and she should be all prepared for move-in day tomorrow morning. 

She opened the drawer to put the paper away, and there it was. A masked girl in a strapless gown in the arms of a masked boy in a simple suit. His drawing. Why did she keep it? The images started to flood back into her mind. Flashing before her eyes. The blood, the smile, the knife. 

Rose quickly dropped the paper before shutting the drawer shut. She sat down on her bed, hugging a pillow tightly to her. She kept taking deep breaths and refused to close her eyes. Rose didn't want to see the images anymore. 

He's gone. He isn't coming back.