Captain James Gordon

Jim mentioned that he’d been trying to get some sleep, and Barbara felt guilty for stopping by. “Well, I’m glad I didn’t wake you, then. I take it you still prefer working over getting a decent amount of sleep?” she asked. “Some things never change.” In the past, she’d woken up to find Jim’s side of the bed cold more than a few times. Protecting innocent people was more important to him than looking after himself. He’d always been selfless like that.

Barbara couldn’t stifle her laugh as she heard Jim’s words. He knew how she liked it? Well, she couldn’t argue with that. “Oh, I know you do. Preferably on your desk, with the blinds closed. Or open, I’m into that these days.” She knew he wouldn’t appreciate her joke, but it was fun to mess with him. Maybe it’d lighten his mood. His reply to her question was a little too hostile for her liking, and she sighed before putting the photo down. “You’re awfully touchy today.” 

She walked into the kitchen, taking her drink from him. “I know a little something about missing the past.” Inside her purse, there was an old engagement photo of her and Jim. She liked to remember what they once had, unlike him. He only cared about Lee – she was his pride and joy. Barbara was nothing more than a shameful secret. She took a sip from her glass, despite knowing that she shouldn’t be drinking. Not after her latest rehab stint, anyway. “It’s good to see you away from Gotham, Jim.” 

He gave her a bit of a shrug in response. He didn’t have to tell her that, she knew how much of himself that he gave to the city. Even back when they were dating, he didn’t get much sleep unless she was there with him, making him stay with her. She was there the countless nights he’d wake up from a horrible dream. And she was there the many nights he snuck off, wanting to focus on a case. To say he changed would be a lie. That was a constant in his life. They both knew that. 

He nearly choked on air at her words, unable to stop himself from getting out the word. “Open?” He paused, throwing her a look before turning back to focus on pouring the drinks. “Really? -Actually, you know what. You don’t need to elaborate on that, I think I’m good.” He didn’t need to know how her tastes came to change. 

He watched her place the photo down and frowned at her, watching as she approached him and took the glass from him. He in turn started sipping his own. She mentioned missing the past, and he wondered if that meant him or Tabitha. “I shouldn’t have left... but thank you, I guess.” He paused, “It’s good to see you, in general. As odd as that is for me to say. I’ll deny it if you ever tell anyone but, it’s nice talking to you now.” 

Claire couldn’t help but smile because it was true. She had turned in her nurse’s badge before and walked away from Metro-General when they covered up the death of one of her friend’s because they had gotten a substantial donation. Her friend went from being murdered in cold blood by a ninja cult, to being the victim of a tragic accident. But even after walking away from that life… it hadn’t taken her long to find her way back to a clinic. “I’ve never been good at sitting still, or being a sidekick,” she smirked as she spoke. “I guess we are the same. Prefer the action over the sidelines.” Claire nodded her head, bad cops could turn around, but it didn’t happen often, “Trust is hard to rebuild too, it’s an uphill battle, but worth it.” If they succeeded it was worth it. Dirty cops on the rebound were often dead cops. “Be careful, you might end up on the other side of a stapler,” Claire quipped, though that had happened once. But the stapler was reserved for Danny. “It’s nice to meet you too, Jim.”

“You’d probably make a good vigilante in that case.” He joked, giving her a smile. “I mean, I have already. Many times. Not that fun.” He replied. Yet he never stopped, never quit. He still felt bad for taking the weeks of recovery after his face-off with Ecco. Even after he was shot a few times, Jim always came back to work as soon as he could manage it. Maybe even quicker, if he could get away with it. He lived to help people, to serve. So much so that it was difficult spending time to himself to heal, difficult to be left alone with his thoughts. His memories. All of his failures. “My old partner used to be a bit of a dirty cop, where I transferred from, it was the norm. But uh, he changed. He came around. You’re right about trust, it was hard for him to get back.” He smiled at her when she said it was nice to meet him. 

“I like titles, but whatever you want handsome” Sara grinned, he really was attractive. “Food? I can eat” the blonde said with a small nod “can we get pizza? Pizza’s the best. Oh, or tacos, tacos is also the best.”

“Right, good.” He said with a smile, “It doesn’t matter which one, whichever’s closer will be good with me.” Jim reached out and took her hand, leading her away from the rooftop and towards the stairs. He didn’t want to let go of her, just in case she was to fall. “How much have you had to drink?” He asked her, his voice soft. “Not that I’m judging. I’ve had a few of these nights myself, I just want to make sure you’re okay.”

“No, actually. I can take it from here.” Jim said sternly. The man had been a great help in the criminal’s capture, but he didn’t need him beating this man to death. “We have the law for a reason. I don’t want to have to take you in too. I understand, you’re trying to help, and I’ve been known to work with the occasional vigilante. But killing people isn’t justice.” 

soft caring sentence compilation

“I know, this isn’t my first rodeo.” Jim let out a soft sigh. He normally didn’t have anyone with him when he was injured like this. He’d spend a lot of time caring for his own wounds alone, but lately for some reason he was being cared for. First by Oswald who spent a couple weeks nursing him back to health, and now by Babs, who he was grateful for even having. He gave her a small smile. “Thanks Barbara. I really don’t know what I’d do without you.”

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“You know, normally Batman comes when I turn this thing on.” He said, gesturing to the new Bat signal he had sent to New York. “Green Arrow, right?” He questioned. “I don’t doubt that you’re on my side.” He said stretching out his hand for him to take. “I’m Captain James Gordon, and I have a case for you, if you think you can handle it.” 

“It’s already forgotten,” Isabella said. Her smile wavered slightly when he trailed off, and she felt the need to reassure him. Once upon a time, a comparison to Kristen would have been a source of pain and self-deprecation, because she had believed, for the longest time, that she was less than her old self, but now it was a compliment. Especially considering the fact that she had only ever been compared to Kristen by Edward, in a negative light.

“You can say her name, Jim,” she said, softly. “It’s okay. I’m not Kristen, but… I am a lot like her. In some ways.” She went quiet, letting him speak, and didn’t know how to console him. She and Lee had been friends, years ago, when she was Kristen, but now? She hadn’t even know the other woman was in the city, or how she’d changed in that time. “I don’t know what happened between the two of you,” she said, finally, “But, speaking from experience, when someone hurts you, sometimes you just need time. If Lee is anything like she was when I knew her, she’ll forgive you for what you did.”

“No, I should let the past go and get to know you, Isabella.” He told her with a shake of his head and a small smile. He knew she wasn’t Kristen, she just looked like her and shared her memories. She said it was alright to compare the two of them, but he didn’t feel he had the right to. He barely knew Isabella, and Kristen was more of a work friend if anything. She said Lee would forgive him and he gave her a shrug. “I did a lot, Isabella. Even if she did forgive me, I’m not sure I’d deserve that forgiveness. I think we’re long over, there’s no fixing the past.” He said, “But we can look to the future. How about that lunch we were going to have. I’m starving.” He said with an awkward smile, trying to push past the heavy topic. 

“You’re very welcome, handsome” Sara replied with a small giggle, that was definitely not something she usually did. “I’ll hold you to that detective sexy” the blonde smirked at him, even when she’d met him while she was sober she’d found him attractive, she was just a little more forward now. “I don’t wanna go home.”

He hadn’t been hit on by anyone for a while. Certainly not by someone who was clearly out of his league. Not since Lee, anyway. “Detective Sexy?” He let out a small chuckle, “You can call me Jim, you know. No need to use titles.” He joked, “Can I at least get you off this roof? Maybe we can get something to eat. I don’t think I trust you so close to the edge.” 

The way he said her name was a telltale sign that he wasn’t pleased to see her. Barbara chuckled and shrugged a shoulder. “Do I ever do what you expect of me?” she asked. Her eyes rolled at his question. “No, Jim. I just stood out here, hoping you’re psychic these days.” For a smart man, he asked some ridiculous questions sometimes. “Of course I knocked. Quite a few times, actually.” He probably thought she was still into him, seeing as she’d spent hours sitting outside his home. She could imagine the thoughts running through his head, and knew that not one of them would be pleasant.

When he moved to the side, Barbara gave him a gracious smile, then walked into his apartment. It was a typical bachelor pad. “Does my presence really affect you that much?” she asked, looking over her shoulder to smirk at him. “I thought it took more to shake the valiant Captain Gordon.” He could fight in wars, and take on Gotham’s biggest villains, but couldn’t bear to be around her without using liquor to take the edge off. “I’ll take it on the rocks,” she said, eyeing a framed photograph of him and Lee. Looking at it brought back two very familiar feelings – jealousy and rage. “Still think about her?” she asked, picking up the photo. They looked happy, and Barbara hated that. 

“I suppose not.” Jim answered her. Then again, he never really did what was expected of him either. They matched in that aspect. Jim gave her a bit of a glance over. Part of him was wondering why she’d wait for so long for him. He didn’t doubt that she had her own apartment or her own life to get back to. “Sorry,” He grumbled in response. “I must not have heard anything-” She’d probably comment on it if she knew he was napping. Still, she deserved an explanation. “I was trying to get some sleep.” He told her. 

Barbara walked in and he shut the door behind her. Headed towards the liquor cabinet to get the bottle of Scotch he had. “No, actually. I was going to a bar anyway. There’s not much of a difference between drinking here and drinking there.” He replied, “I know how you like it, Barbara. You don’t have to tell me.” He said, pouring them both a drink. Turning around from the kitchen counter to see her holding up the photo he kept of Lee and himself. He knew better then to keep those sorts of memories around. To linger on the past, but he did it anyway. He still loved Lee. He had really hoped for a future with her but like all of his relationships... he ruined that.

“That’s not really any of your business.” He replied, trying to keep his tone even. 

“And I wouldn’t have seen any of it if you used a modern filing system,” she said, waving towards the computer on his desk. Though… if he did file his things on the computer, Barbara could have hacked the information, but Jim didn’t need to know that. Batgirl and the hacking? Two things that Jim never needed to know about. Barbara was quick to return the hug, her arms wrapped around Jim tightly and the only thing she could think of was how much she had missed this. “It wouldn’t be a surprise if I had called to warn you – and you know, I’ve been busy… but I’m here now,” she offered. It might not make up for lost time but it was a place to start. “Well, I actually got a job at the library. Put the cart before the horse I guess, I don’t have a place to stay yet, but I’m thinking long term?” She phrased it like it was still in question, but all the people she cared about – well, most of them at least, were in New York. She was going to try and make this home.”And you know, if I stuck around I could have more of these,” she said, squeezing him a little tighter.

“I like the old fashioned way.” He replied. “I can find things a lot quicker in my filing cabinet then I could ever find it on a computer.” Barbara was always an advocate for technology. She was a whiz, a lot smarter than Jim has ever been. He wasn’t entirely sure where in the family she got her brilliant mind from. “It wouldn’t have been a surprise, no, but at least I would have been prepared. I’m glad you are, Barbara. You know it’s always a pleasure seeing you.” She said she had a job and he couldn’t help but smile. Though, he had to wonder where she was staying at the moment if she didn’t had a place of her own. “Don’t worry about that. I have a guest bedroom in my apartment. It’s yours until you’re on your feet.” He offered. If she was staying with him at least Jim wouldn’t have to worry about how she was getting on. He couldn’t help but laugh when she snuck in another hug. “You can have as many of those as you want,” He commented. He could feel a bit of pain in his rib but it wasn’t too bad. Nothing to worry her over. 

“That’s the best offer I heard all day.” Bruce didn’t liked to drink however after Selina and Trish, a drink didn’t sounded so bad. “I heard Barbara is around, you must be happy about that at least?”

“Of course, I love that kid.” He answered as he began walking, gesturing for Bruce to walk with him. “It’s been so long since I’ve seen her. It’s nice, you know? She may not be my actual child but... she feels like it. Having her around, it’s like I have more of a purpose. I’m sure you feel the same about your sons. How are they?” 

An exasperated sigh left Barbara’s lips as she stared down at her watch. She’d been sitting outside Jim’s apartment for hours, and he still wasn’t home. That didn’t surprise her, though. His job had always meant more to him than having a life. When they were together, she’d lost count of the number of times he’d put work before himself. “Typical Jim,” she said, rolling her eyes. If she weren’t so eager to see him, she would’ve left after the first five minutes. 

Barbara tilted her head back, furrowing her brow when she heard the sound of a handle being turned. She dusted herself off as she got up from the ground, and mumbled a few curse words under her breath. When the door opened, her eyes met Jim’s, and she couldn’t help but smile. He still looked as handsome as ever. “James Gordon. Don’t you know it’s rude to keep a lady waiting?” she asked, looking him up and down. “Or maybe you do, but you just couldn’t face me. I’ve been out here all evening.”  

@captaingordcn

He had a rare night off. One he was hoping to spend with Barbara Gordon, but hie niece had other plans. So instead, Jim decided to turn in early. He wasn’t exactly getting a lot of sleep lately. The dull pain still in his side from his broken rib was enough to keep him up most nights. As the night went on and he couldn’t seem to sleep more than a couple of hours, he decided to instead visit a bar. Getting up and dressed, he headed to the door. His gaze meeting Barbara’s. Blinking with surprise, Jim cleared his throat before speaking. “Barbara...” He hadn’t been aware she was waiting for him. Let alone that she was back in New York. He really was going to need that drink, wasn’t he? 

“All evening? Can’t say I was expecting that. Did you knock?” The two of them stood staring at one another as Jim contemplated letting her in. If what she was saying was true, then she’d been waiting hours in the hall. God, he was going to regret this wasn’t he? He moved out of the way and gestured for her to come inside. “I’m going to have to pour myself some scotch. I take it you’ll want some?” 

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“Part of me thinks you might just being saying that so I don’t arrest you.” Jim paused, “But it is nice to hear that, Selina. I feel the same way.”