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Red Lips, Dark Hearts	By : AsylumWritings Category: DC Verse Comics > Batman Views: 455 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Batman/DC Comics, nor the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 8
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The real lover is the man who can thrill you by kissing your forehead or smiling into your eyes or just staring into space. Marilyn Monroe
“Did you watch the news today?” Bruce asked, as he buttoned up his shirt.
I shook my head, pushing the last pin into place in my hair. “Not today, no. I was feeling a little on edge, and didn’t want to make it worse. Why?”
He held out his phone to me, and I looked at the headline. Batman Sends Joker and Dent to Arkham.
“You did it.” I whispered, sitting down on the edge of the bed.
“I promised I would keep you safe.” He softly kissed my forehead. “You don’t have to come tonight if you’re not feeling up to it. I can host it for you.”
I shook my head. “I can only imagine what they would say if I didn’t turn up to my own charity event. No, I can come. I hired an MC for the night anyway, I just have to be there and make a couple of speeches. And I’m actually feeling pretty energetic today.”
He helped me into my dress, zipping it up tightly against my skin. “Have I mentioned I love this dress?”
“About ten times since I bought it yesterday.” I laughed, turning to face him. “But I guess you should appreciate it while you can, since I don’t know how long it will fit for.”
He softly touched my cheek. “Before we go, I want to discuss something with you. Tonight is going to be emotional for you.”
I nodded. “I know. I’m scared that if I don’t keep it together, everyone will work out what’s going on. If I start looking like I’m about to lose it, could you just remind me to breathe through it?”
“I will do anything you need me to.”
I checked my makeup in the mirror, then followed him out to the car. I was feeling a lot calmer than I did after the appointment, but I was a little concerned that people were going to notice that I wouldn’t be drinking.
“You’re very quiet, Eve.” Bruce commented as we drove. “Is something bothering you?”
I shrugged. “What if people notice that I’m not drinking tonight? I don’t really want to announce this until we’re past the danger zone.”
“Then we just use the designated driver excuse.” He squeezed my hand. “It’s going to be fine. After we get through this, you can take a step back from the spotlight and we can just focus on you.”
“Thank you.” I fell into a comfortable silence beside him.
By the time we pulled up to the theatre that I’d had repurposed for the event, I felt more in control. I’d been preparing for this for a month. Even though I hadn’t planned for dealing with a pregnancy on top of everything, I just needed to stay focused.
Bruce helped me out of the car, sliding his arm around my waist as we walked inside. It looked exactly how I wanted it to, with every table decorated in beautiful golds and reds.
“It looks beautiful.” Bruce whispered, pressing a kiss to the top of my head.
The young woman I’d hired as my MC, also my event planner, was someone who was helped by my mother’s original charity. She was very popular in Gotham, and I was glad I’d managed to hire her for this.
“Ah, Eve!” She came running over, her blonde curls bouncing on her shoulders. “Good, you’re here early.”
“I promised I would be, Laura.” I laughed.
“I’m going to go get a drink.” Bruce softly squeezed my arm, then headed off to the bar.
I could hear voices as people started to arrive, and I followed Laura up to the front.
“Here is the final schedule.” She handed me a sheet of paper. “I have everything under control, all I need you to do is make your big speech at the start, socialise with the guests and smile. I will have them opening their wallets and purses in the first hour.”
She headed off to prepare everything, and I wandered around, starting to welcome the people I had invited. Big smiles, soft words, that’s what my father always taught me.
Bruce returned to my side, handing me a glass of water. We walked to our table, just in time for everything to start. Laura called me up to the lectern to make my opening speech.
“My mother, Lillian, came from a small village in England. Every spare second she had she spent travelling from village to village, volunteering in any way she could. When she met my father and moved to Gotham, she worked just as tirelessly to help here.” I took a breath, feeling emotional. “There are a lot of you here tonight who knew her well, and knew just how generous and caring she was.”
I looked around at all the guests, a soft smile on my face. “There are young women and girls all over Gotham who are running. Running from people who hurt them, from poverty, from all sorts of adversity. I know, and my mother knew, that we can help these women and girls. So I’m asking you all, to open your hearts and your wallets, and help me open the Lillian Huntington Home for Girls. We can help, and we should. Thank you.”
Applause rang in my ears as I returned to my seat beside Bruce. He wrapped his arm around my shoulders, softly brushing my skin with his thumb.
“You did great.” He whispered, pressing a kiss to my cheek. “Take a breath.”
I nodded, resting my hand on his knee. It wasn’t easy holding my tears in when my emotions were so out of control. It was so much deep breathing, all the time, and it never seemed to get any easier.
As Laura took over the night and we got down to chatting up the guests, I was back in my element. I felt confident, excited, and I just wanted this to work.
“I have the final figure for tonight.” Laura told me, as the event wound down. She handed over a piece of paper with the number on it.
I looked down at it, and nearly passed out. It was more then triple my goal, and I felt tears well up in my eyes.
“You should get up there and announce it.” She gestured to the microphone. “This is your victory.”
I nodded. “Yeah, I just… I need a second.”
“That’s fine. We’re not being kicked out for another hour, so take a few minutes.” She wandered off to talk to someone.
I didn’t know where Bruce was, but I wanted to get this announcement done so that we could go home. I took another of my now well-rehearsed deep breaths, then stepped up to the microphone.
“I want to thank everyone for coming out tonight.” I began, waiting for silence, which came quickly. “This is a really important cause to me, and every donation is amazing. I’m pleased to announce that we have tripled the goal I originally set for tonight. We raised a total of fifteen million dollars, which will allows us to bring in enough staff to help over one hundred young women and girls for the next three years.”
The round of applause was massive this time, and it almost deafened me. It felt good, and I was certain that wherever she was, Mum was watching over me. I nearly burst into tears right then, but I felt someone touch my elbow.
Turning, I found Bruce standing there. He pulled me in for a hug, holding me close.
“Let’s get everyone out the door, and then as soon as we get in that car, I will help you through the tears.” He whispered.
“I love you so much.” I wiped away a tear that managed to escape.
He took hold of my hand, and we walked over to the door to say goodbye as people left. It took a long time, and I was struggling to keep my smile up by the time the last guests walked through the door.
“Go home, Eve.” Laura said, walking over to us. “I’ve got it from here.”
I hugged her. “Thank you for everything. I couldn’t have done this without you.”
I managed to hold it in until we got home, but as soon as we walked into the bedroom, I slumped onto the mattress and burst into tears. Bruce sat down beside me, gently pulling me into his lap.
Curling up against him, I just let it all out. I missed my parents more than anything right then, and even with Bruce there, I felt a little alone.
“I want to help you through this, can you tell me what’s upsetting you?” He asked, his voice soothing and calming.
I pulled myself together a little, wiping black, eyeliner-dyed tears off my cheeks. “I just… I wish Mum was here. This was her dream, and I ran when she died, letting it get destroyed. I’m making it up to her, but it doesn’t feel like enough. It feels like I’ve betrayed her memory, like I’ve stabbed her in the back.”
“I know right now it feels like you’re the worst person, and I’m not going to try and talk you out of that.” He softly rubbed my back. “So we’re just going to ride this out. We can sit here all night if that’s what you need.”
It was as if his words flipped a switch inside my head, and the tears stopped. I was already sick of the mood swings, the craziness inside my head, and I still had another thirty-ish weeks ahead of me.
“Feeling better?” He whispered.
I nodded, sitting back a little. “I think so? It’s so hard to tell right now. It just changes so rapidly, and I can’t keep up.”
“There’s a lot going on inside you, Eve. Give yourself a break. I’m not going to hate you if you lash out at me, I can handle it.” He helped me up. “Come on, let’s get you into something more comfortable, and then we can get some sleep.”
He helped me strip down and get into my PJs. Then he cleaned off my makeup, undid my hair, and helped me back to the bed.
“I was looking at a pregnancy timeline this morning.” I said quietly, watching as he got changed too. “We’re at about eleven weeks now, and our baby is this big.”
I held my finger and thumb about two inches apart. He climbed into the bed behind me, wrapping his arm around my waist.
“So small.” I whispered. “And still having so much of a difference in my body.”
“It’s amazing.” He lifted the edge of my shirt, tracing circles on my stomach, his warm skin against mine. “After everything we’ve been through, losing my parents, then yours, being separated by thousands of miles for a decade, we’ve created something amazing.”
I slid my hand over his, almost ready to cry of happiness. “You really think we can do this?”
He pressed a kiss to my bare shoulder. “I think it will take work, patience, and learning, but I think we can do this.”
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- 10
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Red Lips, Dark Hearts