Chapter 1: The lonely boy and the broken girl
Chapter Text
A flickering light. A 24/7 coffee shop. An old and weak building. A nightclub. A broken motorcycle.
Standing across the street on a common rainy night in Gotham. Your leggings are a little wet, as your shirt was and also as your hair. You look at your phone to verify the street and indeed, you are in the right place. The building wasn’t so tall, you’re looking into the window, the only one that has the light still on, and then you cross the street. Shivers all the way up to your spines, and your nerves are getting wild as you open the door to take the stairs. He is on the 9th floor. How does he look in person? Would he think I’m a psycho? Or a stalker? Will it be okay if tell him I know his identity? And on, and on, and on. A lot of thoughts were going through your mind at that moment and you couldn’t shut up that little voice telling you to step back, but it was too late because you were already in front of his door.
You knock three times, only three. You hear him tripping over some boxes, or at least that’s what you suppose, you suppose is him. Even though the walls of the apartment are thick, you hear a heavy sigh, and then it’s him. He opens the door, still with the padlock on, seeing only one of his eyes on the other side of the door. “Hi?” He whispers, and you know it’s because it’s late, but still, you speak a little louder than him. “Hi, are you Edward Nashton?” Your shaky voice pronounces his name, and then he goes silent, even though he wasn’t talking at all, you felt like everything went quiet after you articulated that phrase. “Yes…" He finally answers, with a still more whispered voice tone. “I… I think you are, The Riddler.” His eyes went blank as you spoke. He doesn’t say anything, he only unlocks the door and invites you to come into the apartment by moving his body to let you in.
His apartment isn’t pretty, or really clean, or well illuminated. He had an entire wall covered with newspaper notes, pictures of politicians, places in Gotham, some things he himself wrote on the wall and so much other stuff you didn’t know what it was.
“I’m sorry this is a mess…" He apologizes as he moves some boxes from the living room to the kitchen.
“It’s okay.” No, it wasn’t, it was odd but you couldn’t really say anything. You walk through the apartment and analyze his artifacts and other things he has in there, probably not decorating but it looks like it is at some point. “You can sit… if you want.” His voice behind you surprises you as you move around to watch him. He isn’t so close, to you, but still, you can appreciate his face and look at it more carefully. He isn’t exactly how you thought he would look, he is more skinny and tall, with long hair and not so muscular.
You actually take a sit, situating yourself on the only couch in his apartment. It was long and green, an old green. He grabs a chair from the kitchen and sits in front of you, and for the first time, you both cross your sights, as you find out his eyes are green too, just as the couch is, but his eyes looked tired, almost as if he had to force himself to open them, but still, his eyes made his face look kind.
A wave of heat passes over your body as you turn your gaze to the open window, the one you looked out of when you were outside, and he follows your eyes. “I’m sorry if I interrupted you.” You look at him again, feeling your hands sweaty and a little shaky. “Oh. No, don’t worry, I’m always up late…” The atmosphere is a bit tense, but you need to control yourself, so you keep your composure, and now he is the one who feels a bit tense, even being in his own house. “Who are you?” Breaking the sudden tension, he speaks. It becomes a game, where both of you want to be in control of this situation, putting tension on the other one.
“Well, I’m…" You take a big breath, not really to breathe but to think about what you are about to say. “It’s a long story, it doesn’t really matter who I am, what is important is what I want.” Your hands are shaky again, which Edward notices this time. “You see, my sister, she worked in the club outside here, the Iceberg Launch.” You start to tell the story, feeling nervous not knowing if it’s because Edward doesn’t take his eyes off of you, or if it’s because he thinks you’re a psycho, even though a few days ago you thought he was the psycho. “We lived alone, I don’t know anything about my parents… " And something on Edward’s face changes, he doesn’t feel defenseless anymore. “She took care of me when there was no one else to do it. I knew her work was a little bit dangerous but didn’t know how much until one day, she didn’t return home.” Your voice is shaky now, by remembering your sister’s face, and all the other things that happened. “When I knew she had disappeared, I went to the police and they told me she had probably run away, which I knew couldn’t be, she wouldn’t do that to me, so I started looking for her, asking people, if anyone had seen her until a girl she worked with told me the last time she saw her, she was with a man.” Edward’s face was attentive to every word you were saying, listening closely. “I followed him, and I found out some things, he worked for the police department, and he… killed my sister after he raped her.” You can’t believe you are telling one of your darkest memories to a guy you barely know, and not just that, but he had let you in his house and was listening to you, without distractions.
Edward couldn’t believe what he did. His hands lost control since he heard you knock on the door in the first place, and when he saw you, a woman—in real life, not through his laptop screen— in front of his apartment door, who knew his name. His mind went blank, so everything he was doing was without really thinking. You are a mystery to him, almost like a riddle he can’t solve, even being so obsessed with riddles as he is. Edward looks into your eyes, seeing a kind of sadness he had never experienced. He had felt sad before, many times, he knew how being sad and depressed felt like and yet, he didn’t understand your sadness.
“I was full of wrath… " You continued, doing your best to not cry. “I wanted him to pay for what he did.” Edward raises his eyebrows a little bit, still listening to you carefully. “But I couldn’t do it, so I went online, to distract myself.” Your voice is firm again, controlling yourself again. “I found you and your posts. I started following you and as time went on, I felt… connected to what you had to say.” At that moment, Edward wanted to smile at the thought that the people following him were real. “So I wanted to meet you in person, but I didn’t know how, it’s difficult when you can’t write a direct message. I used some of my knowledge about hacking, which isn’t much but still, I could find your real name.” And surprisingly or not, that didn’t creep Edward out, maybe because he had done the same before. “I’m a bit your stalker…"
Edward chortled about that last phrase, which makes you smile. “No worries… " he says, making the environment more comfortable, so you continue. “I don’t know what are you planning to do, if you want to do something, I think you said once that you wanted to make everyone pay…" And Edward thinks about it for a second, should he tell you his real intentions? “I just want to know if you-" He doesn't let you finish. “Can I trust you?” He asks. “You can’t trust anyone in this city, but it’s your decision if you want to share with me your real intentions…" Edward takes a deep breath and adjusts his glasses. “I don’t think you would like to hear it,” He says, blinking slowly. “I thought you didn’t want to hear about my sister, but I still told you about it… "
You win, because he is again tense, you trapped him in a little imaginary cage where the only way to escape is by telling you what he is going to do, and thinking, Edward isn’t sure what your real intentions are, but he can tell you half of his plan, leaving the heavy details to himself, details like… killing the mayor of Gotham. So he starts. “Fine, but if you do…" And this time, you don’t let him finish. “I won’t, I won’t tell anyone, I won’t go to the police, I won’t betray you, I won’t judge you.” He looks straight into your eyes, still not confident, but you make him want to tell you everything, even the heavy details. But he won’t tell you that, not now.
Chapter 2: It’s a matter of trust
Summary:
Edward stopped posting after you visited him, which concerned you, so you decided to pay him another visit.
Notes:
hiii, hope you enjoy todays chapter! sorry for not uploading too often, i’ll try to write more now that i’m on school brake ;)
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Days have gone by since you visited Edward, since he sat in front of you, since you told him half of your life, and since he told you part of his plan.
Edward couldn’t stop thinking of you since you were at his house, like… three weeks ago, and to be fair, you haven’t stopped thinking of him either. Edward was still shocked, how could you possibly find all that information about him? What if someone else did too? He was having constant panic attacks, he had to pause his plan for a while, which meant also, stopping posting online.
For you, his absence made sense, but you didn’t know what to do. You continued working, doing your own thing, but every time you could, you would check if the updated something, but he wouldn’t do it. You weren’t exactly worried, it was just weird that after three weeks, he wasn’t posting. Good thing you still keep his IP address.
——————
It seems to be cold outside, august kept to itself all the brightness and warmth, and September brings with it a wave of darkness and coldness that set very well with the street lights and high old buildings in Gotham City. Edward was in his apartment, writing, as he would always do. Lately, his hands had been shaking more than usual, but he could still write.
Knock, knock, knock.
The door, once more, you are outside knocking on the door. Edward stands up and goes to open the door. You could hear his steps approaching the door. "Hello... " He says with a shaky voice, opening the door just to find you standing outside his apartment.
"Hi, can I come in?" You pointed to the inside of his apartment and he nodded at you.
"Why haven´t you posted anything?" Going direct to the topic, you asked when he was still closing the door.
"Don’t feel like doing it" He answers, now looking at you. You feel his gaze over you, he has soft eyes, but he wasn’t comfortable, and his eyes show it. He looked more nervous than the first time you meet him, probably this was because of you.
“Sorry if I made you feel…" Now, you are looking for a word to express what you want to tell him. “Uncomfortable…" And he looks at you like you finally understand. Edward was not just uncomfortable with this situation, he was also anxious.
“I don’t think I can continue with the plan.” He says, taking a sit on his couch. “It’s not… safe." Edward had to say that because you didn’t know the other unsafer part of the plan.
“Come on! That is not the whole plan.” You start. “A guy who talks about rifles and bombs online is planning on doing only a protest against the corruption?” You elevate your voice tone. “There has to be something else, right?”
Edward’s eyes go blank, he is quiet, lost the words. You were smarter than he thought you were.
“Look, I know you may not trust me, but I’m not here to rat you out, if I could, I would like to help. But for that, I need to know the plan.” You’re still standing up, and he is looking at you from below, from his sit. Edward doesn’t know what to answer, he’s still in the blank, but he has to think of something, now, he would like someone to help him out, but, can he trust you?
“Fine, I’ll tell you.” He says, and now you sit in front of him, waiting for him to start telling you the whole plan.
—————-
“You need a way to manipulate the media.” You say when he is done telling you the real plan.
“What do you mean?” Edward knows what you mean, that’s the part of the plan he needed to perfect but didn’t know how.
“Like, a way to keep the eyes on something, give people reasons, divert suspicion to someone else, through the news, you need false evidence, at least for the mayor’s death.” You say as Edward listens closely, he nods and raises his eyebrows like he was analyzing what you said.
“That is a good idea, but where do I get the false evidence?” He asks, almost like trying to prove you.
“Well, you could investigate Mitchell’s activity throughout the day… look for something that seems suspicious.” You say, and he stays still thinking of it. “I could help you on that if you want?“ You offer, and he looks up at you.
Why would she want to do that? To help me, why would she want to be involved in such a… deadly… plan?" Edward asks himself, still looking sharply at you.
“Why?” He finally says.
“I want vengeance.”
The rain intensified as you both discussed the plan, with you giving him ideas and offering to do certain stuff, and him agreeing and nodding while also sharing details.
For you, all this was crazy. He had planned on killing, and you knew that killing was wrong, it’s a bad thing to do, but when you thought of your sister, you couldn’t keep all that wrath inside you anymore. You missed her, you missed someone taking care of you. And as for Edward, well, he was just that thing that impulsed your anger. You didn’t exactly know what motivated him to do such a horrific thing, but you had the idea that it might be a product of trauma, a result of something that happened to him, but still, it was too early to ask.
Notes:
told you this is slow burn lol
Chapter 3: Polaroids
Summary:
The day Edward opens up, the day he takes a polaroid, the day when the Mitchell photo is taken and the day he starts to love you.
Notes:
(See the end of the chapter for notes.)
Chapter Text
"I have a camera." Your voice filled the quiet place where you and Edward were sitting, still discussing the plan. He is now looking at you.
"That could work. What kind of camera?" He answers as he stretches his arms.
"I have several cameras..." Your eyes shine seeing that he looks interested in what you are saying. "I have a digital one, a polaroid, and an analog one too, so..."
"Which one do you think might be better for... Uhm, this?" He asks genuinely intrigued.
"Well, the analog one is a bit old, and it's a little hard to work with it. The polaroid, well, if we want to export the pictures to your computer, it's going to be a bit harder, so... I think the digital one would make a good job." You explain.
"How do you know so much about cameras?" Edward seems surprised about your knowledge of something like... cameras. You certainly didn't look like the kind of person who would have a fixation on cameras at all.
"Well, one thing my dad left to me and my sister was a camera, and my sister didn't want it. I was fascinated with it so yeah, it's my thing."
"You can bring it tomorrow, and we'll see what we can get” Edward says, already imagining you in his apartment the next day.
"Oh... well" You, on the other hand, were thinking about the next day and you had to work early.
"Sorry, Uhm... When you can come if you want... I mean-" Edward felt nervous now, he started speaking impulsively.
For the past hours, Edward talked to you like he had never talked to anybody before, because you almost knew what he was thinking. You understand his plan, and at this point, you've improved it. He felt almost comfortable with you being there, his eyes relaxed after a few hours, and you were trying to make him comfortable, you already knew that he was shy, and for you was easier to talk, it was easier to make people talk to you even.
"Oh no, I can, but maybe at night. What do you think? It might be hard to get something at night but if you just-" You explain.
Edward was methodic, he had things planned way before they happened, he liked being like that, so nothing can go wrong, but he now, somehow, trusted you, saw things in a little different way, he wanted to see if you were smart enough for this whole plan. He didn't want to hurt you, after all, you were the only one who knew about it, and most importantly, the only one who understands.
"It's fine," He replies, with his characteristic calm voice "I'll be here anyway."
---------------
The polaroid and the digital one, you decided to take both with you, both would do a great job.
Edward's apartment building wasn't that tall or big, but he was probably the only one with the lights on that late. It was a Friday, a typical one for you, you went to work as always and tried to concentrate the best you could. You were exhausted, but you felt the responsibility to go to Edward's home.
The Iceberg Launch seemed to be full that day, not like the days before, when just one or two cars would be outside, but then, today, the streets were full of different cars and they seemed like rich people's cars. Maybe Edward haven't noticed this, maybe he ignored it, but you sensed that something was going on in that club.
"Hi, I'm here" You announce when you open the door, which wasn't locked.
No response.
"Edward?" You ask, noticing that everything looked normal and in its place, but somehow, uninhabited
"Hi." Edward almost scared you.
"Fuck..." You whisper, touching your chest as a sign of relief.
"I'm sorry, I didn't-"
"It's okay"
Edward didn't intend to scare you, he was in the kitchen and then he walked to the living room to say hi, but when he saw your scared face, he felt so bad for making you feel this way. It was almost nothing, it was a small thing, a coincidence, a bad moment, but for some reason, it made Edward feel awful, it made him feel something he rarely felt. Guilt. Edward has been having weird dreams, not the type he used to have when he was doped, it was different and he knew you were the reason for that dreams, but he could not accept it. You even made him feel excited, it was weird for him to be excited about something, anything. The last time you were at his place, he was nervous and when you left, he felt alone. Then, it was Friday and he knew you were going to be there, and somehow the image of you sitting on his couch made him smile. What a stupid thing to imagine.
He knows he doesn't understand certain human emotions, be he certainly knows what caring for someone is like.
"I brought the polaroid and the digital" You say, and break the silence. "Also, I think you already know this but rich people are in the club from across the street"
"Yeah, I know" Edward replies with a low rhythm, like he was out of himself, maybe thinking of something else "Can I show you something?"
You nod, mainly for impulse, and he smiles at you like he was waiting for you to say yes. "Wait here" and he goes to the bedroom. You take a seat at the kitchen table while turning on the cameras and checking if everything works well, then, after a few minutes, Edward is back at you, wearing his Riddler mask, a jacket, and a different pair of jeans, gloves and combat boots. You knew that image, the one you would see him in almost every day on your phone, reading his posts and watching the clips he uploaded online. It was him. The Riddler.
"You look amazing on that" You turn to look at him and even wearing his mask, you perceive his shy smile.
You look amazing on that. Something on Edward's mind turned, he now knows what it is. He has a crush on you. Weird. He never thought he would be able to feel this, he never thought he would care for someone like you. No, it's not like he loves you, he just thinks you are cool and thoughtful with him, or maybe it was the fact that the least amount of attention confused him.
When you saw him in The Riddler's clothes, something in your mind also turned. Edward Nashton was so different than this, then.... The Riddler. He seemed nice, Edward seemed like he wouldn't touch a bee, like he wouldn't hurt you. But The Riddler was the worst and the best of Edward, he felt different, you felt him different, you liked that.
"Uhm... here, the cameras" Your voice was trembling, you felt nervous.
"Oh, yes, the cameras" Edward only looks at them.
For a moment, he thought you would be scared, and if he ever does really scare you, he would kill himself, or so he thought.
"Can I- I take you a picture?"
He nods.
You hold the polaroid and slowly press a button, flashing fast, Edward tries not to close his eyes and smile a bit behind the mask. You both wait for the picture to show and after a minute or two, an awkward Edward shows in the piece of synthetic plastic you are holding. You both chuckled at seeing it.
"You take very good pictures" Edward takes the polaroid and stares at it, ignoring the fact that he feels very ugly in it.
"You think?" He nods at you, taking off the mask.
You take the digital camera and walk through the window, looking for something still unknown to show up. "Can I see the camera?" Edward asks, already with the polaroid camera in his hands.
"Sure"
Without your knowledge, Edward examinates the camera, finding how to use it like you, he smiles and takes a photo, waits for it to show, and then puts his mask on again, he then, takes another picture.
"I got something! God, I wish you could've seen it" Back in the kitchen, you show Edward the pictures you got, it was Mitchell with a woman beside him, she was bleeding and looked sad.
"Who is she?"
"I don't know..."
"Let's save them on my computer"
Edward leaves the camera, the two pictures and his mask on the table and turns on his laptop. You, standing there, see the two pictures of him, see how he looks in both of them. Edward Nashton and then The Riddler.
"You look good in these two" You compliment him as he types something on the laptop.
"I don't think-"
"Why 'The Riddler'?" You ask. It's a very stupid question given the fact that you already know he likes riddles.
"It was the only thing I could think about" He says, with a very particular voice tone, not exactly sad, or twisted, just... emotionless.
"Why are you really doing this" You walk near him with the camera in hand, and then you gave it to him.
"Well, there are several versions, which one do you want?" He inserts the chip of the camera inside the computer.
"The one you like the most"
"I was a baby, I don't know why I didn't die that day, I can't remember but, one day I just woke up, because of the cold, next to probably thirty other kids. I was suffering, they told me I was safe there but I wasn't. Until, one day, Thomas Wayne, promised us... me , that the suffering will stop."
He pauses. He's loading the pictures now. He fixes his glasses and turns to look at you.
"Next thing you know, he dies, leaving an orphan son. Us? The real orphans? Forgotten." He sounded angry, keeping his composure, still like there was something really normal for him to tell. "Time went on and I tried to drive the right way, I got a few temporary jobs until this one I had a few days ago" He continued. "I thought that if I did things right, everything would be fine too, but no, that day, the day that everything changed. Renewal. All the money from the orphanage renewal, taken by rats who act like they are doing a good for the citizens of Gotham, no, they ruined my life."
There it was, his childhood. He grew up without parents, without love. At least you had your sister to look up for you, he had no one. He was yearning for something, maybe attention or vengeance... but not like you. He just wanted to make the ones who hurt him pay. He wanted peace.
"They'll pay."
He looks up at you again, and you can see it in his eyes. He felt different. Edward now knows, he needs you, and you need him. It might be the end for both of you, but at least both will find peace.
Notes:
Hi! I'm sorry for not updating lately, I just wasn't feeling motivated to write and I've been struggling with personal stuff too but writing again helped to make me feel a bit better. Thank u for reading and ofc all your comments and suggestions are welcomed :)