Unmasked: Chapter 1: First encounter
Summary: Meet the Batman.
Pairings: protective!Battinson x OC
A/N: All comments/asks(even the negative ones) are welcome. <3
P.S. No spoilers of The Batman.
Warnings: Language, smut, adult content, 18+
Entering the cozy big living room Bruce sat himself on the leather couch waiting for his morning coffee to be served. Well, technically, his afternoon coffee… It was just begging to get darker outside. Still it felt like morning to him as he was just waking up.
A minute or so later Alfred walked in the room with a tray in his hand and put it on the table in front of Bruce.
‘There you go’ the older man smiled. ‘Would you like a snack? Y/N prepared some pancakes before she left. And they are more than delicious if I might add.’
‘Maybe later. Where did she go?’ Bruce asked evenly. Showing lack of interest in her was his main goal lately.
‘She wanted to look around town’
‘Yes, she said she wanted to walk. I offered to drive her. Or let her borrow the driver. She refused’
An hour later Bruce found himself on top of a building in the business center of the city. It was getting darker and darker. Although the falling night seemed exceptionally peaceful, suspiciously so, Bruce felt restless and nervous. That’s why he’d checked Y/N phone he’d hacked in when she first arrived. One might say that was creepily obsessive. And probably they’d be right but Bruce liked to be prepared at all times. He didn’t trust anyone but Alfred.
Gotham was no safe city and it definitely wasn’t a place for an attractive woman to roam around it. Especially at night.
Not that he in particular considered her that attractive. She wasn’t. But there were creeps who assaulted women for less.
So there he was: on top of a building not that far from Wayne Enterprises. Hidden by the slowly spreading cloak of the night, he was watching her. He wanted to make sure she’d get home safe. He used binoculars to get a better view of her. She had sat in a restaurant, apparently for a meal.
God. What was she wearing? This dress was way too short and way too tight. A lot of people might consider it an invitation. A lot of people might not even ask but take instead. That was no dress for Gotham. Not after dark.
Bruce felt a lump in his throat at the thought of someone touching her. And anger. He felt a lot of anger.
Your day in the center was pretty enjoyable. You looked around, saw cool buildings, you visited a gallery, you even passed by Haly’s circus which you found fascinating. Gotham was big indeed. At the end, feeling kind of tired, you’d decided to have dinner at a nice restaurant before you headed home. You were happy to report that it was delicious.
One might wonder if the fact that you were alone bothered you. There were people in this world that wouldn’t eat in a public place alone for the life of them but you found it peaceful. For a moment you were enjoying your own thoughts. Not that you had that many thoughts. Lately, it was just one if you had to be honest: Bruce Wayne.
You sighed and looked down in your phone to check the time while you were walking down the street, trying to find your way towards the manor. You’d refused the ride Alfred had offered earlier. But the more you were walking, the more you were contemplating your choice. Why did you ever decide it was a good idea? It was an unknown city for you and it was enormous. It definitely looked different in the dark. Starting to feel a little nervous, you kept telling yourself that everything was ok and you were just a little paranoid but you couldn’t shrug off the feeling that somebody was watching you.
You took a turn down the street, feeling positive that was the right way home but you found yourself in an empty dark alley. You walked further into the darkness, hoping that eventually you’d walk out on a bigger and hopefully brighter street. Unfortunately, such couldn’t be seen anywhere.
You picked up your pace, feeling your pulse quickening and your mind going in all kinds of directions. The heavy steps you heard behind you out of nowhere didn’t exactly ease the situation.
You stopped for a moment looking around. Was there really someone behind you? Was someone following you or was it really only your paranoia? You couldn’t decide.
You took a few deep breaths, gazing into the dark alley. Just as you thought it was your imagination and nothing else, a slight movement from the right side caught your eye.
The steps got heavier and heavier until a slender tall figure appeared before you. A man. You couldn’t exactly make out his features as the only light was coming from the barely blinking street lamp but you could tell he had long dirty hair and ragged clothes.
‘Hello, doll’ he said, a crazy smile appearing on his face revealing his yellow teeth. ‘What a nice surprise’
‘I – I’m sorry, Sir. I’ve seem to have gotten lost’ you stuttered.
‘Mmm… and I think that’s the right place. Do you like having fun? I can show you pretty good time’
Chills went down your spine as he stepped closer. You instinctively took a step back.
‘You smell so nice. I can smell you from here’ he inhaled deeply. ‘Mmm, can’t wait to see what you’re hiding underneath that little dress of yours’
You could feel your heartbeat thumping in your ears as you continued stepping back trying to get as far away from the guy as possible. Step. One more.
You attempted another one expecting to feel emptiness behind you but your back hit something rock hard instead. Probably a wall, you thought. It took you a few seconds to realize that the wall was moving up and down. Wait! The wall was breathing?
As the realization hit you, afraid to turn around and look, you panicked even more. So there were two of them. You were trapped.
You expected for the man’s grin to grow bigger, he could have you now, he could have his way. God knows what they were going to do to you. Instead his wicked smile was replaced by expression of an utter terror.
‘No…’ he whispered. In a less than a moment all you could see was his back as he ran. As fast as he could.
You were quite shocked. What had just happened? You took a deep breath in an attempt to calm yourself. You were trying to avoid turning around for as long as possible. Who knows what was lurking in the shadows behind you? If that creep was afraid of it, maybe you should be too.
‘These streets are no place for a lady’ the person whispered, you could feel their breath on your ear. The chills for some unknown reason were replaced by a shiver.
You finally mustered the courage to turn around. There was another man but he was nothing like the first one. He was huge: tall and muscular, dressed in some sort of a special suit. He had a mask on his face. On half of it anyway. The only thing that you could see was his powerful jaw and his eyes. You could quite make out the color in the darkness though.
This had to be the Batman. You’ve caught a glimpse of Batman stories in the newspaper.
‘Thank you’ was the only thing you could say.
Finally you were able to relax a little. All the panic and fear from a few seconds ago were gone and weird exhaustion came to their place. You needed a moment. You slowly moved to the wall of the near building and rested your back on it. Closing your eyes you breathed in and out for a couple of seconds.
‘You shouldn’t be alone when it’s dark outside’ the Batman repeated, his deep voice ringing in your ears. If you didn’t know any better, you’d say he was angry. You looked up to find him right in front of you again. Jesus. That man was moving like a fucking ninja. ‘Dressed like that no less’
He looked you up and down and then locked his eyes on yours. You felt exposed under his intense gaze as a strange warmness formed in your belly.
‘I just took a wrong turn. I’m new in town’ Y/N whispered.
‘You picked the wrong dress’ he said through gritted teeth. Maybe he was a little bit out of character. Maybe it wasn’t his place: the Batman’s, or Bruce’s. But he was furious.
‘Excuse me?’ she asked a little louder. He could see the annoyance in her eyes.
‘I’ve seen women in the Iceberg Lounge wearing more’
Now he could see a pinch of anger in her eyes. She opened her mouth to talk but he cut her off before she could even start:
‘Do you know what men are thinking when they see you like that, huh? Do you even know the things they want to do to you?’ he moved closer, her chest almost brushing his abdomen. There was her heavenly smell again. Ocean and something else. Bruce inhaled deeply. ‘Don’t you ever go out dressed like that!’
That last one was a command.
‘You might be the Batman but nothing gives you the right to tell me what to do’ she answered angrily. ‘You’re the one to talk about morality when you’re running around in a cape, beating people up. Last time I checked that was against the law.’
‘This is Gotham. If you want to be safe and sound, you might want to listen to me’
‘Thank you for saving me, Sir but I don’t need your advice – fashion or otherwise’ Y/N pushed his chest with her little hands. Obviously, the force wasn’t enough to move him, but he stepped back anyway, letting her go.
Bruce watched her disappearing into the shadows as she was trying to pull down her dress a little. Apparently Y/N was affected by his words after all.
Even so, he was certain of one thing: he’d make sure she’s safe at all costs. Until she was under his roof, no one would lay a hand on her.
