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chapter two ━ introduction to a broken girl

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❝ its gotham baby ❞

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THE TEARS WERE GONE and the only thing that was left was a numb feeling in her chest. As odd as it sounded, numbness was her savior. Numbness was the thing that she longed for, a thing that she welcomed with open arms. It was truly the only thing that could help her when she needed it. Not a person, not a prized possession, but a feeling.

Numbness

She lived in a world full of people and yet she had always felt alone. Jerome was the only one who understood her, he was her everything and she was his. Never could anyone believe that two siblings could be so close. They hardly ever fought, knowing that they had lived through enough yelling, pain, and despair. They hardly ever were away from each other (seeing as they were the only people they had). No one truly understood them besides themselves. Everyone thought of them as freaks.

What would she give to see him again? Anything.

A knock caused her to jolt up and Skylar lifted her head to peer at her door that was closed.

"Skylar honey," Barbara called from the outside. The mother was worried about her daughter. And she loved her daughter dearly. But she couldn't just watch her suffer, Barbara couldn't stand it. The blonde had always told Skylar that she was always there if she needed someone to talk to. Jim didn't know what to do either. Sending their daughter to therapy wasn't an option, they wouldn't do that.

"Jim is leaving for the Station and he wanted to know if you wanted to go with him since I'm going to be leaving soon," Barbara explained, still on the other side of the door.

Skylar let out a long drawn out sigh before unraveling herself from her sheets and getting up, her arms wrapped around her waist. When she opened the door, Barbara stood with a concerned expression, thinking that her daughter wasn't going to open the door, and she would have to get Jim.

However, once she saw the familiar brown hair and matching doe eyes of her daughter, she let a smile adore her face.

"Um sure. I'll go I guess," Skylar responded, her red blotchy eyes focusing on her mother's perfectly shaped face.

Barbara smiled even more. "Ok, well I'm going to go let him know and you get dressed ok?" Skylar nodded and shut her door, allowing her mom to turn and walk down the hall.

The brunette walked over to her dark chocolate dresser. In addition to the huge chest full of clothing, Skylar had a bigger walk-in closet on the other side of the room. She never dared walk in there because she knew if she did, she'd never figure out what to wear.

Although the girl loved to dress casually and comfortably, every so often she'd wear something a little fancier. Though she despised dresses with a burning passion, Skylar found herself being forced to wear them here and there by Barbara (but Skylar never argued because she knew how much her mother liked dressing her up).

Choosing a simple long sleeve t-shirt, a grey sweatshirt, matching beany, black jeans, tennis shoes, Skylar looked at her reflection in a tall standing mirror.

Insecurities were something she dealt with since she could remember. And it was wrong for a 5-year-old to be crying because they hated how they looked, saying that they were ugly. Skylar knew for a fact that it wasn't normal. Jerome always told her how beautiful she was, how much he loved her personality, and it lifted her spirits. But now that he was gone, there wasn't anyone else to tell her that.

Sure, Barbara and Jim always complimented her, but she never believed them. Skylar couldn't believe that they genuinely thought she was beautiful inside and out. She just couldn't. At first, she believed them, then after a while, the meaning began to fade. The words became hollow and Skylar no longer believed them. But of course, she just smiled whenever they said it, to make it seem like she believed them.

When she exited her room, she walked down the spiral staircase and into the living room where Jim was getting ready to leave, kissing Barbara goodbye.

Skylar had always loved how close they were, hoping that someday she would have a relationship just like theirs. But who would want her? No one.

Barbara smiled at her and kissed her cheek. "Now don't go wandering off alright. Stay with Jim ok?"

Her daughter nodded, smiling at her mom. "I won't wander off, promise. And I'll stay with dad, don't worry. And besides, if dad ever lost me, he'd probably file a missing person report early."

Barbara laughed, agreeing with her and Jim smiled.

"Ha ha ha, very funny," he joked. "I'll keep an eye on her." He pecked Barbara's lips. "I love you."

"I love you too," she said. She turned to Skylar and kissed her cheek again. "I love you too honey."

"I love you too, mom," Skylar replied, giving her mom one last hug before following her dad out of the large apartment.

---

Skylar wasn't very familiar with the station seeing as she had only gone there only once. The teen had met her dad's new partner, Harvey Bullock, and he had already begun to tease her. But, Skylar knew he only meant good.

Apparently, Gotham wasn't exactly the best place when it came to crime. Cops were working day and night to put a stop to the people that plagued the streets, robbing and whatnot. Skylar knew that Barbara was hesitant in Jim joining the GCPD. He could get hurt, they knew that. Jim was worried that his job could potentially harm his fiancee and his daughter. But they had no idea what the future held for them.

The station was loud. Cops held onto the criminals and Skylar cringed away at all of the powerful noises. It was too much for her, it stressed her out. She preferred quiet spaces, she always had. On many occasions, she and Jerome would just lay on his bed and stare at the ceiling in silence. They always tried to ignore what was going on in the room next door. And this nearly always led Skylar to start sobbing. Jerome would pull her to his chest and would fight the tears, trying to be the strong one for her. He was always like that though. He hardly ever cried because he knew he had to be Skylar's protector.

Skylar sat at her dad's desk, reading a book on her phone. Jim sat next to her, looking bored out of his mind as he tapped a pen on the desk repeatedly. Harvey sat across from him, flipping through a file. The girl didn't mind the noise of the tapping but she could tell that Harvey was starting to get annoyed.

He reached across the table and grabbed the pen, putting it in a drawer and then closing it. Jim gave him a look. "Seriously?"

"Yeah, you're annoying me and I'm trying to focus. Do you mind?"

Skylar rolled her eyes but didn't say anything. Jim leaned back in his chair and looked over at her. His daughter was too engulfed in her book to notice. Skylar wasn't a huge bookworm, but she did read to pass the time. To her, it was nice to escape once in a while. It was the human way to clear her pain considering that crying until she was numb wasn't human really.

"Whatcha reading?" Jim asked.

Her head snapped up and she saw her dad watching her with a smile. "The Mortal Instruments."

"Didn't you already that that?"

"There's six in the series, dad. I'm on the fourth one."

He nodded. "Ah." Jim went to say something else when a voice shouted through the station.

"Where are my pills?!"

The three turned to see a man in a brown robe, with a gun in hand and a female officer in his chokehold. They jumped up and Jim ran down the stairs in a hurry. Skylar went over to the railing and watched with wide-eyes.

All of the cops drew their guns and pointed at the man. Jim hurried down the stairs and shouted at them. "Hold your fire! Hold your fire. I got this." He reached the bottom of the steps and stuck his hand out in a stop motion to all of the cops. "Hold your fire. Hold... Easy, easy."

Jim reached the man and stood in front of him with caution. Skylar tensed as the man blinked rapidly. She realized he wasn't focused on anything like he was in a daze. The teen was awfully innocent even though her childhood said otherwise. Jerome had always shielded her from things like drugs, alcohol, and other things (though he did smoke for a little while before he stopped, knowing that it would be a bad influence to Skylar). He didn't ever want her to be poisoned by their pathetic excuse for a mother's choices. Lila never made good decisions.

"Sir, look at me. Not at them, look at me," Jim directed. The man looked at him as he continued to blink. "My name's Jim. Jim Gordon. What's yours?"

The man grunted. "I need my pills."

"Okay, well, everything's gonna be all right. Look at me, huh?" Skylar saw her dad pick up a random bottle of pills and held it up, showing it to the man. "Got your pills right here. Huh? Want some pills? Here you go, here you go, here's some pills for you, all right?"

Jim handed the pills to the man and Skylar went over to the stairs. She started to go down it slowly just as the man took one of his pills. The man stood there for a moment before saying, "These aren't my pills."

Jim lunged and the man and swung around, knocking the gun out of his hand, hitting him with it, then punching him in the face, knocking him to the floor. Harvey got up and followed Skylar down the stairs.

"You're dad's a retard," he told her, before passing her and hitting the ground floor. Skylar scowled and rolled her eyes, hitting the ground floor as well.

Everyone looked at Jim and he popped the bullets out of the gun. He smiled. "Sorry, guys. Didn't mean to bark at you all like that. Got a little bit carried away."

A few cops came up and picked up the man, throwing punches at him. Jim tried to intervene and Skylar winced. That was definitely something cops shouldn't be doing. But Harvey had explained that things did get crazy sometimes. And Skylar realized that what he meant by sometimes, meant all the time.

"Hey, hey, come on, man, take it easy!" Jim said, trying to break it up.

Harvey went over to him and grabbed his arm, getting Jim's attention. He let go and moved his hand, signaling him to follow. Skylar stood by and ignored the groans of the man who was being punched repeatedly.

"What the hell are you doing? We had the drop on him," Harvey snapped.

"Yeah, well, he's dropped, isn't he?" Jim replied.

"You could've gotten hurt. Rookie mistake. Not to mention you're daughter is standing in the same room. Next time, shoot the son of a bitch."

Jim looked over at Skylar before looking back at Harvey. "My daughter doesn't need to see a bloodbath. If I shoot, that sets everybody off. Gunfire every which way."

"Somebody takes a cop's gun, you shoot him. That's basic."

Jim rolled his eyes and a cop called out to them. "Yo, Bullock, Gordon, you're up! Double homicide, Theater District."

"Give me a break; shift's nearly over," Harvey yelled back.

"Yeah, nearly."

Harvey looked pissed and looked back at Jim. Skylar approached with her arms wrapped around herself. "I have to come with you don't I?"

Skylar felt the sinking feeling in her chest again. Even though it was normal, it didn't feel any different. Jerome came to her mind and Skylar wanted to start to sob right on the spot. But she had gotten good at covering it up.

Jim smiled sadly. "Yeah. It might be quieter than this place though if it makes you feel better. But it is dangerous out there."

He looked over at Harvey to see what he would say but his partner just shrugged and held his hands up in defense. "Well don't look at me! She's your kid."

Jim looked back at Skylar. "Just let me know if you want to go home, okay? I'm sure Barbara wouldn't mind."

"I'll be fine," Skylar told him, even though it was a total lie.

---

There were flashing blue and red lights all over when they arrived. Skylar thought she was the youngest one there. A Do Not Cross tape was stretched across the alleyway entrance from one side to the other. Jim held her hand and it was a silent reassurance that he wouldn't let anything happen to her while she was next to him.

"You sure you want your kid to be here?" Harvey asked as they passed the tape.

"I can't just leave here in the car," Jim pointed out.

Skylar glared. "I'm right here."

Harvey looked at her. "We know."

Her nose scrunched up with slight anger. Skylar looked ahead and saw two bodies were laid on the floor with blankets over them. Blood from their chest wounds was seeping through the fabric and she looked away. A cop stood up a greeted them, chewing a piece of gum. Skylar caught the scent of bubblegum.

"Oh, the legendary Harvey Bullock. No rest for the wicked, eh?" the cop guessed.

He looked quite bored she observed and Skylar was set on edge even more than she already was. Murder really is normal in this city, she realized.

"Tannenbaum, looking crisp. This is my new partner, James Gordon. And that's his daughter Skylar. She's just here because her mommy ain't home," Harvey explained, nodding his head once toward the teen.

Skylar scoffed and Jim let go of her hand. The girl went back to wrapping her arms around her waist and avoided the bloody bodies. Jim nodded in greeting to the cop and started to observe the bodies that were covered.

"What do we got?" Harvey questioned the cop.

"Just got here myself. Male, female, gunshot. Their kid saw the whole thing. Hasn't spoken a word yet."

They all looked at the boy who was wrapped in a blanket and was shaking, looking down as he cried. Jim frowned and Skylar followed their gaze. She didn't know why, but she found herself walking toward the boy. Jim watched her walk away and then turned to Harvey.

Skylar stopped once she reached the boy and smiled slightly.

"Hi, I'm Skylar and that back there is my dad James Gordon. He's a detective." The boy didn't reply so she continued. "What's your name?" He still didn't say anything as he continued to shake in shock. Skylar sighed and then shifted onto her other foot. In a way, she felt for him. But Lila wasn't her mother, she refused to think so. However, Jerome was in a way. He was the "mama bear". He was the one who fed her, made sure she got her sleep even if he didn't. Jerome was her rock. Without him, her rock cracked and then fell into pieces.

"It's okay. You don't have to talk," she told him.

Skylar looked back at her dad who was talking with the other cop, along with Harvey,

"That's Thomas and Martha Wayne," Harvey told the other two. "We don't need that kind of hassle. Call Major Crimes; they'd love to have this."

"Yeah, but they're not here," the cop replied. "And his kid-" He nodded once to Jim. "-is talking to the witness. So... that makes it your case."

Jim and Harvey looked over at Skylar just as the girl realized who he was. "Your name's Bruce?" she asked, even if she already knew the answer herself.

Bruce continued to shake but he managed a nodded. "Yes. My-my name is Bruce Wayne."

Skylar rubbed her arm. "What happened, Bruce?"

The boy looked like he was going to explain it to them before he started sobbing. Skylar didn't know what to do. The teen didn't have experience. Normally, she was the one crying, not the other way around. But she remembered what Jerome used to do. So that's what she did.

Skylar sat next to him and grabbed his hand that clutched onto the blanket. Bruce looked at her as he cried, surprised by her action. The girl smiled at him.

"I'm actually adopted," she explained. "My birth mom wasn't exactly the best. Actually, I'm pretty sure there isn't a strong enough word to describe her. She was with so many men I don't even know who my real dad is. But you're lucky. From the sounds of it, your parents loved you." She squeezed his hand a little bit. "I might not know how you feel, but I know the pain of losing someone you care about. I lost my brother a while ago and the memory still haunts me to this day. He was my entire life and then my birth mom gave me away. And I lost him. But I tell myself that one day, things will get better. Someday, I will see him again. And it might take a while, but it will happen."

Bruce squeezed her hand slightly and Skylar smiled a little more. His lip quivered and he squeezed her hand again. He sniffled before explaining what happened.

"We just got out of the movies. We were walking through the alley to catch an uptown cab, and... a man came out of the shadows. He-he was tall with a black mask and... he had a hat and gloves... and shiny shoes. He took my dad's wallet and my mom's necklace. And then he shot them for no reason. I should've done something! But I was too scared."

Skylar shook her head, looking shocked. "There was nothing you could've done." Where was all of this positivity coming from? She never was this bright. She was never this positive. "But you know what you can do? You can be strong. And if you ever need something to talk to you can talk to me. I promise you, my dad will find the man who did this."

Bruce looked up at her with wonder and he managed a thankful smile. It only lasted a few seconds, but it made her feel like he had accomplished something.

There was an abrupt, "Who the hell is that?" from the cop who was talking with Harvey, making Skylar and Bruce turned to look at a man. He walked toward them and Bruce sprung up, letting go of Skylar's hand and running toward him. The two embraced and Bruce sobbed into the man's jacket.

Skylar followed and stood next to Jim who had met up with them.

"James Gordon. This is my daughter Skylar."

"Alfred Pennyworth," the man introduced, rubbing Bruce's back to calm the boy down.

"We're gonna get the guy that did this, sir."

He studied Jim for a second before he replied, "New boy, are you?"

"You could say."

There was a brief moment of silence before Alfred nodded. "Good luck, mate." He looked at Skylar. "Thank you, miss."

The girl smiled lightly and nodded. Alfred turned and started leading Bruce away. He told Bruce to keep his head high and not to let the people see him cry.

Skylar thought for a moment and then decided to go with it.

"Bruce!" she exclaimed. Alfred and Bruce turned to her as she approached. Skylar stood in front of him and shivered from the cold. "I meant what I said, you know. You can talk to me whenever you need someone. I could use someone to talk too."

Bruce nodded and sniffled. "Thank you, Skylar. I will. Promise."

She smiled and turned away, walking back to her dad who was watching with a proud smile. Bruce and Alfred walked away and Alfred rubbed Bruce's back.

"That was rather nice of her," he commented.

"Yes. Yes, it was," Bruce replied, still not being able to rid of the picture of his parents dead from his mind.

---

It was a long day, as per usual. But Skylar had given up on keeping track of time. Time seemed to drag on anyway so she really didn't see the point. What did she have to look forward to? Absolutely nothing. Nothing at all. The smile on her face was always fake because how could she smile when she was never truly happy? She used her forced smile so often that it looked believable.

Jim had driven them home after their encounter with the Wayne's and it was silent (like always) on the way back. Skylar didn't consider the place they lived in as home. Her home wasn't a place but a person. A person that she hadn't seen in years and would never see again.

Barbara opened the door with her natural award-winning smile and kissed Jim on the cheek and hugged her daughter, kissing the top of her head.

"I didn't think you would be home," Jim said surprised as they entered.

He helped Skylar take off her coat and then took off his own. Skylar took off her shoes and put them to the side, going to sit on the couch by the burning fire her mother must have started not too long ago.

"I just got here actually. Maybe about five minutes ago," Barbara told him. Jim made an hmm sound and then smiled at her. She smiled back and Barbara turned to look at Skylar who she thought was behind them. "Hey, honey-"

But she stopped when she saw Skylar sitting by the fire, staring straight into it. Both of their smiles fell and Jim put his hand lightly on Barbara's shoulder. They both knew their daughter wasn't truly happy where she was. They knew her past, they knew about her mother and what she did to her and her brother. Therapy was not the answer because they believed that it wouldn't help Skylar. The quiet girl did not need to go through any more than she already had.

Putting a soft smile on her lips, Barbara approached her daughter and sat beside her. She looked at Skylar but she didn't move her gaze.

"Are you hungry? I can make you something to eat?"

Skylar shook her head. "No, I'm ok. I think I'll just head up to bed." And with that, she got up and walked to the spiral staircase. It tapped softly from the contact of her bare feet and then it stopped, signifying that she was now upstairs. A door closed and that's when the tear fell from Barbara's eye.

The blonde sniffled and wiped it away as Jim came over and hugged her to his chest.

"I don't know what to do, Jim. She's hurting and there's nothing we can do about it."

He rubbed her back and let out a sigh. "I know. I know."

---

The next day, Barbara had graciously offered a girls day to Skylar to which the girl politely declined, saying that she wanted to go to the station with Jim. But the man had already left so Barbara got her daughter ready for the day and then drove her to the station.

Barbara pulled up to the station and turned off the car. She glanced over at Skylar who was already unbuckling her seatbelt and opening the car door. The mother reached out a hand to her and Skylar stopped, turning to look at her.

"Just be careful ok? Call me if you want to come home and I'll be here as soon as I can." Skylar nodded. "Alright, love you. Be safe."

She kissed her on the cheek and Skylar smiled lightly, kissing her mom on the cheek and bidding farewell before getting out of the car, racing up the steps, and disappearing into the building.

The teen fixed her jacket and looked around the station for any sign of her dad. Skylar then stopped when she caught sight of his familiar work suit. She walked over to see her dad talking with Harvey and the forensic scientist she had talked to several times.

Edward Ngyma was creepy in her opinion. He always smiled in an odd way and was always eavesdropping. But Skylar had to admit, she liked his knack for riddles. And that was probably the only thing she actually liked about him.

Once she approached, they all looked over at her. Jim smiled in surprise and went over, hugging her. "Hey, kid!" He let go and then ruffled her hair. She smiled. "You gonna stay for the day again?"

Skylar nodded, fixing her hair before replying, "Yeah. It was this or a girls day."

Jim chuckled and Harvey made a face. "Should've just picked the girls day, but you can't seem to stay away can you? Man, you two really are alike."

Her dad rolled his eyes. "Ah shut it."

Edward grinned and looked over at her. "Hello, Miss. Gordon. It's so good to see you."

Skylar tried to smile but it came out as a painful grimace. "Hey, Ed. It's good to see you too... I guess."

Politeness was something that she was taught to give out like free candy. Skylar hated it because she never really talked much anyway so she really didn't see the point. However, Barbara enforced it with much enthusiasm so - like usual - Skylar did it for her parents' happiness.

Harvey sighed and looked at the forensic scientist. "What else you got?"

A smile started to form on his face again and she didn't even have to blink twice to know what he was about to do. "What's nowhere but everywhere, except where something is?"

Jim and Harvey glared and then Skylar spoke up quietly. "Nothing."

Edward grinned even and Harvey scoffed. "You need professional help, Nygma, seriously." His grin faded. "Let's go."

Skylar followed them down the stairs but not before waving to Edward as a kind gesture. He returned it with a somewhat non-creepy smile. Jim had started to list off the things he was thinking and Skylar didn't listen as she followed them to the squad car. But she was brought back into the conversation when Harvey revealed, "Essen said we don't catch a break in the first 48, it's time to go see Fish Mooney."

Her head snapped to them and she raised an eyebrow. "Who's Fish Mooney?"

Jim and Harvey looked over at her. Her dad explained by saying, "She runs a club not too far. She works for someone that's very high up in Gotham."

Harvey scoffed at his words and Skylar figured it was better not to ask.

"Yeah, anyway, anything happens down there, she hears about it," Harvey told Jim. They reached the squad car and he glanced over at Jim who was making sure his daughter got into the car safely. He closed the door and Harvey spoke up. "You sure you want your kid to go?"

Jim gave him a look. "If anything happens, I'll protect her."

Harvey opened the door to the driver's side and pointed at him from where Jim stood by the passenger side. "Well don't say I didn't warn you."

---

She wasn't sure which place was louder, the station or Fish Mooney's place. Music blared through the club and Jim kept a protective hold on her arm. The lights were dim beside the stage lights and it gave the place a strange vibe. Almost like they were closed, but that wasn't the case considering that a man stood at the bar, washing some glasses off with a white rag.

He looked up at the sign of their presence and Harvey gave a sharp nod to him.

"Tell Fish I'm here," Harvey told him.

The only response the man gave was setting the glass down, along with the rag, and then walking into another room. Skylar was feeling more and more uncomfortable and out of place. No teenager would just be hanging out at a club; not at her age at least. And the way she was dressed made her even more insecure. However, she told herself that it was just for a little while and soon she'd be in the "safe" place she called "home".

A loud painful grunt sounded through the club and then they looked to see a dark-skinned woman with black hair, a bit of red complimenting her bangs which made her look more authoritative, enter the room. She wore a dress that was a shiny gold, tinted with a green color. Her arms were extended with a surprised face, yet she looked happy to see them.

"Harvey."

The said cop tilted his hat in greeting. "Fish."

Fish dropped her arms down and continued her journey toward them with a smile. "Where have you been?"

Harvey grinned back and replied, "Where haven't I been?"

The woman reached him and they kissed for a few seconds before pulling away. Skylar felt her face grow red. Innocence was one of her many downfalls. True, she had seen Jim and Barbara show affection toward each other, but she was never used to it. Lila was never like that considering she was with someone else nearly every day of the week. But this was just a greeting, she told herself. Nothing strange or weird about it.

Fish turned to look at them. She sized Jim up before looking at Skylar with a surprised yet gentle smile. "Who's your friend and this young lady?"

"Detective James Gordon, ma'am," Jim introduced. "This is my daughter, Skylar."

Never had she quite liked meeting new people. It was always a guessing game as to whether they would like her or not. Skylar thought they wouldn't when in reality it was the latter. Although she always told herself that they were probably just acting that they liked her for show, she never had solid proof.

"You have a beautiful daughter," Fish complimented, still looking at the teen.

Skylar forced a smile. "Thank you, Mrs. Mooney."

Underneath her smile, Fish hid the fact that she could see right through Skylar. She knew that the smile was just for show and that the girl was in pain. And this made her concerned because Gotham was not a nice place and if she could see right through Skylar, just about any crime boss in the city would too. Fish had a soft spot for kids; knowing that Gotham would not be nice to them. "Oh, there's no need for formalities dear, please, call me Fish."

Jim couldn't push away the muffled grunt they heard earlier so her spoke up, nodding toward the doorway she entered from. "Ma'am, was that screaming we heard back there?"

Skylar glanced at her dad and gave him a look that pleaded him not to push his limits. Fish seemed friendly, but that didn't mean anything. And not to mention that Jim told her that Fish was high up in Gotham. When he said that, there was only one explanation that crossed her mind. Crime. Fish Mooney was a crime boss.

The said woman turned her head to look at him with a teasing smile. "Yes, my boys are watching a scary movie."

It was a thin lie that they all saw through. But Skylar knew for an absolute fact that Fish Mooney was not bothering to hide it. After all, what did she have to hide? Jim smiled sarcastically. "Really?"

Fish turned serious and spoke with an agitated tone. "No. Actually, one of my staff has been stealing money from me, so we're beating his punk ass." She turned to Skylar, her eyes visibly softening. "Excuse my language sweetheart."

The apology startled her and it took her a moment to reply. "It's ok. I've heard worse."

Jim still didn't look happy and Harvey stepped in, explaining the situation as the protective father studied Fish Mooney, confused as to why she was being so nice to his daughter when she wasn't exactly the best person. "Relax, junior. Fish gets some leeway. Her staff are rough characters, need firm handling."

Fish let out a small laugh and smiled at him flirtatiously. "So, this isn't a social visit then?"

Harvey kept his expression calm and Skylar's eyes wandered around the club. Her attention span was quite long. But whenever she was in an uncomfortable situation, she couldn't stay focused for too long. It was the nerves as they slowly but surely worked their way up her spine and through her entire body.

"Unfortunately not. Brass sent me by to talk to you about the Wayne murders."

Fish shook her head with a sad, yet genuine look. "Terrible thing."

There was another muffled scream and Jim looked back again. Skylar felt her attention span begin to wither more by the second and her body became hot. The thing that she couldn't understand was why she was so nervous. Perhaps it was because she was in the presence of a crime boss. None of them noticed just yet, but Skylar knew it wouldn't take long for one of them to notice. Or maybe they never would.

Harvey sighed and looked at his partner. "Listen, junior, if you're worried, why don't you go back there and see if anyone wants to press charges? If that's okay with you, Fish."

Fish looked at Jim with her teasing look. "Mi casa es su casa."

Jim turned to leave but Skylar grabbed his hand before he could go any further. They all looked at her and it then occurred to him what was happening. Harvey looked shocked and speechless while Fish was as well, though she was quick to act. "Someone get us a water. Now!"

Skylar didn't even feel it as she was led over to one of the tables and sat at one of the chairs. A glass of water appeared in front of her and she heard the sound of someone urging her to drink it. She listened, knowing the sound of Jim's voice. In that moment, her mind was racing and she only wished Barbara was there with her.

However, her heart began to slow as she listened to her dad's voice. The heat in her body began to fade and she could finally hear clearly. Skylar finished the glass and then wrapped her arms around herself, digging her head into her knees. Jim rubbed her back comfortingly.

It was always like that. After she calmed down, she would curl up like a turtle in a shell. Her parents would be right next to her, rubbing her back and arms, telling her stories that always made her calm down. But that was just the thing. She didn't know what calmed her down.

"I think it's best if I take her home," Jim's voice came through.

Fish nodded, looking very concerned for the girl. "Yes, I think so as well. Thank you for stopping by. And let me know if there's anything you ever need."

Skylar felt her dad pick her up into his arms and carry her. Lightweight. Jim always joked that she weighed like a feather which was the reason he could pick her up so easily. But that wasn't true and Barbara always got mad at him when he said that, saying that it would fuel her insecurities. Jim was just strong, that was why.

And she wasn't

---

I'm splitting the first episode into two chapters because this one turned out longer than expected. But I hope you enjoyed it nonetheless! I'm really excited to get Skylar's character introduced and going because I have a lot planned. Thoughts on this first chapter? I hope you guys have a great day/night and don't forget to vote on this chapter, comment your thoughts, and follow me for updates!