Warning: Mention of murder (?)
-(Y/N) is an inmate at Arkham Asylum, preferring to keep to herself and her only want to get out of that hellhole. But what happens when she catches the attention of a certain red head?-
(Y/N) let out a long sigh, plopping her head down onto the metal table she had seated at. Day 17 at Arkham. All she had to prove that she was sane, which shouldnât be too hard, considering she was. But, alas, her psychiatrist didnât think so. The creep. He probably only wanted her to stay so he can continue to ogle at her and have an excuse to brush his disgusting hand over hers. It made her wanna chop it off, sometimes.
Now, now. She truly wasnât crazy. But taking the insanity plea was better than wasting away at Blackgate for 20 or so years. She figured sheâd be out of Arkham in no time. But the more days (Y/N) spent wasting here, the more she doubted sheâd get to leave anytime soon.
The slop on her tray forgotten, she lifted her head to place an elbow on the table to support her head as she gazed around almost lazily. It was full of crazies and psychos in here. Serial killers, cannibals, rapists... (Y/N) shivered at the thought of it. She didnât have any strong opinions against murder, considering the reason why she was there in the first place, but she certainly didnât want to be the object of those dark thoughts.
It was difficult, though. Being a woman in Arkham made it hard to stay unnoticed. Men, and even some other girls, seemed to watch (Y/N) every time she entered a room. Not because she was drop dead gorgeous, at least she didnât think she was, but because they were thirsty, horny, and, oh alright, she wasnât a terrible sight to look at, but she just couldnât believe there was anything special about her.
(Y/N) tried to avoid the other inmates, mostly. It would do no good to get buddy- buddy, and do even less good if she were to get on bad terms with some of these people. If she stayed away, sheâd be okay.
Thatâs why, when her (E/C) gaze caught the eyes of another, a dark green gaze framed by dark red lashes, standing out against pale skin... she instantly looked away, down at her tray, biting her lip gently in slight panic. They didnât think she was staring, right? Oh jeez, please donât come over.
(Y/N) squeezed her eyes shut as she heard a shuffle from that direction, then footsteps. Please be walking away, please please please?
Nope. Quite the opposite, in fact.
âHi, gorgeous.â A boyish voice sounded above her, and she felt the table shake as someone jumped over the seat next to her, settling down beside (Y/N).
The girl slowly opened her eyes, plastering on a fake smile. Donât piss other inmates off, (Y/N). She turned towards the male, taking him in. Oof. The male looked more boy than man, with boyish features and body shape. Lanky, but she could tell that he had lean muscle hidden under those stripes. Pale skin, freckles scattered across his face. Catching her attention, her gaze flickered up to his fiery red hair, combed neatly into place, or at least attempted to be. It gave off untamable vibes, strands of fire falling over his forehead, leading (Y/N) to his facial features once again. Not gonna lie, cute nose. It wasnât too small or too big, and his pink lips were boyishly thin, stretched into a wide smile. While the smile seemed to portray the male had âfriendlyâ intentions, she couldnât help but be unsettled by it, yet some part of her drawn in, nonetheless.
âAnybody home?â (Y/N) was broken out of her trance as he spoke once more, his words trailing off into a short, contagious giggle. (Y/N) felt her cheeks flame in embarrassment as she realized she was staring, and ducked her head before meeting his gaze once again.
âEr, yeah, sorry.â The girl breathed, and cleared her throat cautiously. âCan I help you?â (Y/N) inquiried, gazing at him curiosly.
âSure ya can, Doll. You can start off with telling me your name.â He hummed, leaning forwards slightly, his eyes sparkling mischievously.
âDidnât you know itâs rude to ask for someones name before giving your own?â (Y/N) shot back without thinking, and she internally face palmed at her stupidity. Why would they care about manners? Weâre in Arkham for goodness sake.
Surprisingly, the males grin only widened, and he placed a hand over his heart, his eyes turning mockingly apologetic. âOh, how rude of me! The nameâs Jerome. I hope you can forgive such that grievous mistake on my part.â Jerome chuckled, teasing her. Well, too late to turn back now.
âWeâll see about that.â She responded, and he tilted his head slightly, one eyebrow raised before she continued. âIâm (Y/N).â Instinctively, she reached a hand out for him to shake, but, with a glimmer in his eyes, Jerome took her hand and raised it to his lips, placing a gentle kiss to the back of her hand. Letting out a soft, nervous laugh, (Y/N) took her hand back and placed it on her lap.
âNice meeting ya, (Y/N). Whatcha in for?â He pressed on casually, as if he was asking about what she was eating. Ah, right. Couldnât forget she was surrounded by maniacs.
âAh...just...murder.â More specifically, her ex boyfriend and ex best friend, even though they were her boyfriend and best friend at the time they decided to bang each other. She didnât mean to kill them, but things escalated, and once she grabbed a knife and drew blood, it was like something else took over her body. She liked the feeling, and thatâs what scared her the most.
âNo way! Me too! Chopped up my mom.â He replied almost enthusiastically. âShe deserved it, though.â He added, his boyish tone discarded and replaced with a type of darkness, his eyes darkening and his smile suddenly appeared to be more sinister. What the frick?
âIâm sure she did, Jerome.â (Y/N) responded after a couple of seconds, trying to gauge his change of attitude. It disappeared in a flash, though, returning back to the bubbly personality he had before.
âYa know, a girl as pretty as you is sure to attract attention around here.â He continued, propping his head up on his fist. âI thought you might wanna have a friend by your side, (Y/N).â Jerome hummed, blinking innocently up at her. Had she just imagined all of that?
âA friend?â She questioned, furrowing her eyebrows. She didnât need a friend. She just wanted to keep to herself and get out of here. âThanks, but Iâm good.â
âAw, come on. Everyone needs a friend! See that big handsome fella staring at you like youâre fried chicken?â Almost reluctant to turn and look, (Y/N) followed Jeromes gaze to see an older looking man, indeed checking her out. Eesh.
âYeah? What about him?â She inquired, instantly looking away and back to Jerome, wondering what he had in mind. She was used to the staring.
âRichard Sionis. Heâs a millionaire. Got his own airplane, got a boat with a hot tub on it. And he killed twenty five people-.â Jerome gave a tiny chuckle at that. âJust for fun.â Why was he telling her this?
âAm I supposed to be scared or something?â (Y/N) huffed. For some reason, this whole exchange had fueled her with the confidence to actually speak up for herself. So thatâs what this was? She was a damsel in distress to him?
Jerome grinned at that, turning to face her more clearly, angling his whole body towards her. âSo. He likes you.â He chuckled, and she lifted an eyebrow, feeling her own smirk play at her lips from watching the male smile so much. What was with this dude? âHe wants to be your friend.â
She spared another glance over to the man, and caught his gaze running over my body. (Y/N) fought back a cringe and turned to lean closer to Jerome. âBut I donât wanna be his friend.â She murmured, frowning. âI donât know about you, but he doesnât seem like the... friendly type, if you know what Iâm saying.â
Jerome giggled, before whispering, almost like they were on some secret mission, âThatâs why you could use a different friend, to protect you from guys like him.â He persevered. Hmm. He had a point. She didnât exactly need protecting, but extra armor couldnât hurt. (Y/N) analyzed him once more. But how would that Richard guy know that she even had a fr- ohhhhhh.... well, public displays worked. She just hoped she was on the same page as him. And if not... ah, well, letâs just hope they are.
âMm... I see.â She murmured softly, letting her gaze travel down to his lips and back, leaning in closer. Jerome blinked in mild surprise as he felt her hands delicately run up his chest, her nails trailing over his neck before resting her thumb on his jawline. âSo will you be my friend, Jerome?â (Y/N) asked with a slight purr to her tone, batting her eyelashes innocently up at him. His smile had faltered slightly, his eyes trailing down to her lips and back, his breathing becoming shallower.
He didnât get to reply before she finally connected their mouths, brushing her lips over his softly before pulling back, his body automatically leaning forwards to try and stay in contact. (Y/N) let out a smug hum as he pressed his mouth to hers eagerly as she ran her free hand through his already untamed locks, grabbing onto it and tugging gently, enticing an almost inaudible groan to to fall from his lips.
It was over quickly, perhaps quicker than (Y/N) would have liked. The girl pushed against his chest lightly, tilting her head away from his as he caught his breath. She was used to kissing, her ex had loved to drag her into bed anytime he could, even if she didnât feel like it. But to her surprise, Jerome was quiet, a large smile taking over his face. Little did she know, that was his first kiss.
Sneaking a look over at Sionis, he could see the man looking away, a disappointed expression on his face. Huh. That was easier than expected.
Turning back to face Jerome, she saw he was now gazing at her, clearly amused. âYouâre bad...â he muttered, and for a moment, she couldnât think of anything to say in reply. Bad in what way? Bad bad? Good bad? Was bad bad a bad thing? Was good bad a bad thing?
Luckily, she didnât have to sort out her thoughts and reply, because the bell signaling that lunch was over rang out through the room.
Without another word, her mind struggling to figure out what had just flipping happened, she stood up and strode away, not even bothering to spare a glance behind her.
If he was serious about her being his âfriendâ, then he should be following like a lost puppy.