synthneon | · CALL ME OUT (SPRING) ·

[ mia seems unphased, mostly because she is. she's been around enough powerful men to know how things worked. she tilts her head subtly in the direction of her client who is now glaring at them over his drink. ]

That's cute. I'm already booked. And somehow I don't think my face will end up in the papers.

[ in a way it's her asking for help. it's at least as close as she'll get without openly saying it. because she had learned the hard way that asking for help never led to anything good.

her heart starts to pound in her chest. because she knows any moment now there will be a hand on her upper arm dragging her away from bruce. dragging her away for another night of doing whatever she has to do to keep surviving. this might be her only chance to ask - to tell him. she takes a step closer to him and looks up at him. her voice is barely above a whisper when she finally speaks. ]

So does anyone else here know you're Batman?

[ oh. bruce pretends to look busy by something. he reaches for his phone and makes a few swipes at it. good thing that he's paid for the security at the event. it comes with the benefits of being the host. which means that with a press of a button he can alert them to any guest he feels is putting on a bad impression for wayne enterprise's and their image...

though he'll hold off just one more moment. just enough to read the situation more. ]

Lucky. Wish I knew the feeling. [ it's a serious statement masked in a joke. something tells him that she'll get it.

he presses the button.

then laughs. him. batman? how'd she figure it out? ]

You know, just because I'm elusive and a bit of a night owl, doesn't mean I'm an urban legend.

[ she gets it. and it takes her mind a few minutes to catch up. he may have saved her from another night but she still had to go back to richard and somehow she doesn't think he's going to be happy with her. and she's learned more times than she can count what happens when he isn't happy, the hard way. the last time she couldn't see clients for weeks.

she notices security moving out of the corner of her eye as they head in the direction of her client and his friends. she doesn't look, she doesn't need to see, even if it would be satisfying. they'll cause a fuss and everyone will look and watch. people always love a scene, usually, she does too. instead, she keeps looking at bruce. even when he laughs off what she says it somehow almost makes her more certain. she isn't 100% sure what it is about him. but she's sure. ]

Maybe not. [ she smiles. urban legend, huh? was that really the best he could do? ] You don't need to worry, I'm not gonna tell anyone.

[ bruce instead keeps his eyes on the whole scene. namely because he's expected to as their boss. there's a slight nod when the head of security raises their own head. get the guy and his friends out here. bruce is pretty sure that the bastard kissed someone's ass for a plus one to the event anyways.

he pockets the phone again and plucks a glass off the server that walks by. ]

Tell everyone that I'm the stuff that gives nightmares to the lowlifes of Gotham? I'm a business man. I make sure the city keeps turning. [ he does a smooth turn then to put his back to others and motions for her to walk with him. he won't touch her or guide her physically. he knows what kind of people are in their company.

his voice powers then as they walk away. ] And, given that, I have some ties to high places that can get you out of the situation you're in. I have the right friends that will make sure they keep their hands off you. People outside of Gotham.

[ diana springs to mind. he could even ask lois lane, though he feels that might be a bit of a stretch. ]

You think it's businessmen who keep Gotham going? [ she follows him with a raised eyebrow. from everything she had seen it was people who kept the city going. businessmen didn't care about people like her or any of the other kids out on the street. they just wanted to line their pockets more and live the fancy life.

not that she was going to pass up on enjoying parts of it. a server walks by with a tray of canapés. mia pauses for a moment to take one which she instantly puts in her mouth whole so she can grab a few more. the server makes a face at her which mia responds by going crosseyed at before she continues to follow bruce. ]

What... [ she swallows the rest of the canapé. ] Gotham's Home for Wayward Girls? They say they care but girls like me aren't something most of them want to deal with.

[ because she's tried to go to other places for help before. a child prostitute wasn't' something many people could handle or wanted to deal with. it was too ugly. and mia had seen the blame in people's eyes far too often. but she did what she had to do to survive even if it meant trading one horrible situation for another. ] Somehow I doubt I'm high up on your superfriend's priority list.

[ whether she's alluding to him being Batman again or super as in more powerful businesspeople she doesn't say. instead, she eats another canapé. ]

Do rich people not eat pizza?

They feed money down into the criminals who use it to expand their empires. It comes from the top and the bottom. [ spoken like someone who may have too much information on the subject. ]

I was thinking of people in Metropolis. Maybe even as far out as Paris.

[ the expression on his face says he is deadly serious about that too. he trusts lois and diana. if they'd do him any favors is something different. lois has connections higher up into the government. they could make something happen. ]

Superfriend's? Please. We all know that Superman was the golden boy of Metropolis. Even if the press liked to write puff piece after puff piece.

[ he pauses at that and looks at her. ] Of course we do.

[ mia eats another canapé to stop from retorting. she isn't sure what richard would think of that. even if there weren't rich clients there would always be someone wanting what he provided. not that there was anything wrong with that. over the years mia had come to terms with what she had to do to survive and she wasn't ashamed of it anymore. if it had been her own choice it would have been different..

she stops mid-bite when he says metropolis and even stops walking. ]

Whoa, slow your roll Batty Warbucks you're not shipping me off somewhere. And I don't even speak French.

[ she finishes her final canapé and makes a slight face. she was done feeling powerless, she wanted to make her own decisions. besides, he was batman she wasn't going anywhere.

and honestly, the more they talk the more certain she is of who he is. ]

So bats and aliens aren't friends? [ she makes a face. ]

You know for like a plate of those things you could probably get three large pizzas.

My friend speaks French. She could probably teach you.

[ it's more as if he is testing her. if she's not willing to change her situation then there's no point in constantly getting her out of that situation. ]

So, we're willing to discuss your future over pizza? [ bruce stops and looks at her with an eyebrow raised. he won't even make comments about her bat related jabs. ]

[ mia snorts. she hasn't gone to school since she ran away from home, it had been years. but what she lacked in academics she made up for in street smarts. but she has no interest in leaving gotham as horrible as it was it was also her home. ]

What she can't teach in Gotham?

[ now this was unexpected. but she wasn't sure what she was expecting exactly when she approached him. it had been impulse mostly. the need to talk to him, especially after last night. she hadn't really planned on asking for help. and the last thing she expected for him to do what he did. ]

Pineapple on pizza. Yes or no?

The point is to get you out of Gotham. I thought you could keep up.

[ he knows she's just testing his resolve. it is only annoying because he's trying to get her in a better position and she just outright refuses to even play along. ]

Depends on everything else on it.

Oh, I can keep up. You're trying to get rid of me. But listen, Gotham is my home. Even if it's shitty and I had a lot of bad things happen to me here it's still my home. And I want to see the good it has too.

[ she crosses her arms over her chest. deep down she knows she's being stubborn and stupid. a chance to go to paris? she would be an idiot to pass that up, which obviously she was. but she was tired of other people dictating her life. whatever she did she wanted to make her own decisions. ]

Ham and cheese.

No, I'm trying to put you somewhere safe. Sometimes, you need to be away from home for awhile before you can tackle fixing it.

[ after all, bruce wayne disappeared for a few years. then came back. then suddenly wayne enterprise's was more robust than ever. he also may or may not have received ninja training. ]

Then usually pineapple goes on it.

You don't even know my name how do you know what's safe for me? You're just assuming because of who you are and what you do that you know what I need.

[ she scrunches up her face in annoyance and then sighs. taking out how she's feeling on him isn't fair. but she's heard things like this before. people who have the best intentions without fully realizing what they were doing. ]

Sorry, I haven't had a Snickers today. [ it's a joke. honestly, something she tells her that he probably does have a better idea of what she needs. but she doesn't want charity, not really. ]

Good. Hawaiian doesn't deserve the hate it gets.

Underage people don't s lip into a Wayne Enterprise's gathering unless they've been smuggled in.

[ he says it flat out and pointed. though he cracks something of a smirk at her joke. ]

So, do you need some help excusing yourself? Or do you want to take your chances?

Duh. This isn't my first rodeo.

[ it was sad because it was true. while most of her clients were dirty old men who stuck to hotel room enough of them took her out to show her off. the men bruce had kicked out weren't her only clients here. ]

I've been taking chances my entire life, bring it on.

Obviously.

[ given how he had found her... that part wasn't surprising at all. what was surprising was how much she was fighting him on i t. ]

Then, follow the waiting staff out the back. That's probably your best shot for now. I've got a friend there that can help for now.

[ aka alfred. ]

[ in mia's mind she wasn't fighting, she just wasn't going quietly. she had been pushed around enough, she didn't want him to think he could do the same. that he could just ship her off somewhere - like paris, or anywhere. that wasn't why she approached him. deep down mia knows she could have got help from one of those organizations. for all the good it would do. it would only be a matter of time before richard tracked her down. besides, mia knew that her history would always follow her and people would always judge her. it wouldn't matter she had done those things to survive, they would just see the fact she was a recovering addict and a child prostitute and that would be that.

besides, she doesn't want bruce wayne of all people to send her away, especially knowing what she knew about him. she wanted to know more about him. how he did what he did. what his secret hideout looked liked (because he obviously had a secret hideout). ]

I've heard that one before.

It's my butler. Alfred. He's family.

[ he sighs and gives her a hard stare. ]

I trust him more than anyone else in the world. Would that be enough?

[ mia matches his stare. she knows he should probably be intimidated by him, especially since she knows who he is and had told him as such. but she wants him to know she isn't intimidated. she's seen scarier things than him before. ]

Fine. But I'm asking him to take me for pizza and a milkshake. And later you're going to answer my questions.

I might answer your questions.

[ He isn't beholden to her questions. He doesn't owe her anything. Bruce simply wants her safe and out of the life she's in. Although, if it were that simple, then everyone would have moved out of Gotham ages ago. ]

Uh, how many people have figured it out. C'mon buddy.

[ she smiles then, a genuine one. because she's a little bit proud of herself, but also he's batman and that's cooler than she'll ever admit. she takes a few steps backwards towards the door. ]

See you later Batboy. [ she plucks a champagne flute off a tray off a passing server (who doesn't even blink), guzzles it and then flashes bruce a peace sign before she turns around and heads towards the door. ]

I have no idea what you're talking about.

[ Bruce lets out a deep aggravated sigh before shaking his head. He runs his hand down his face and sends Alfred a quick text. Then, its time to turn his attention back to the event and start shutting it down. ]

· CALL ME OUT (SPRING) ·

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