Chapter 34 Reason

The person next to him slumped over in the chair. Bruce straightened him up and helped him fasten his seat belt.

Then he stepped on the accelerator and the car rushed out like an arrow.

I'm sorry, he thought, if possible, he didn't want to take such measures.

His thoughts were intertwined like a ball of thread, difficult to separate. In a trance, the familiar clown came back to his mind.

"Batsy, Batsy," the clown chanted, as if imitating the feeling of an opera singer, "Why did you do this to poor Jack?"

Bruce ignored him, he focused on the road conditions in front of him. It seemed that concentrating on driving could drive away this mental harassment.

The clown laughed, and there was a hint of sarcasm in his laughter.

"You don't want to talk to me. Are you running from something? Are you feeling guilty? Are you regretting what you've done?"

"I'm not."

"Of course, of course." The ethereal, comical tone tormented his nerves. "Of course. You know I'm not real, right? I'm an idea, a thought. I came from your heart, and now you're denying your own thoughts!"

He laughed, a sharp, piercing laugh that pierced his brain.

"Batsy, you're crazy. Are you admitting you're a lunatic now?"

Bruce clenched his hands on the steering wheel, his expression grim. In contrast, the Joker's tone softened, a sweet inflection.

"You don't have to answer me," his voice was as sweet as syrup. "I know everything about you. I'm the side of you you don't want to admit. You treat him like this because you don't trust him. You can't let someone you consider unstable reenter the community. Oh, poor Jack—"

The voice was like a hook, channeling the rage within Bruce.

"I'm Batman," Bruce retorted harshly. "I can't let a criminal back into society. I have a responsibility to the citizens of Gotham!"

"Really? Then what are you feeling guilty about?" The voice lingered in his mind, tormenting him. "Isn't this your job? Why do you look so upset?"

He wasn't! He was just...

but his throat felt like it was stuck, and he couldn't form any excuses.

"Are you running away, sweetheart?" The Joker chuckled, a cold, sharp laugh that chilled him to the bone. "What are you going to do next? Take him back, and then what? Keep him captive? Treat him like a prisoner? Or do you have some other plan that even I don't know about?"

Anger raged within him like a hurricane, and thunderclouds filled his eyes. He didn't want to pay attention to the Joker's taunts, but he couldn't suppress the rage within him.

"Oh, sweetheart—" There was something in the voice that held a profound meaning. "You don't know what to do, but you still act like you have everything under control—"

The voice paused for a few seconds, then continued, "You want to see me, right? You want to catch me and ask me questions, but you're afraid I'll get out of control. You want Jack to be around forever, but you need my help? Bat, this is such a funny joke!"

The neurotic laughter echoed in his mind, making his scalp tingle. Bruce slammed on the brakes, the wheels carving a long rut on the asphalt.

"Shut up!"

he roared.

"Honey, you can't shut your brain down, okay? Maybe you could try a gentler approach, just stop thinking about—"

"You're the one who's been pestering me!"

Bruce's forehead veins bulged, and he looked like a powder keg on the verge of exploding.

"Okay, honey, don't worry. I think you need to calm down a little. I think you know it's stupid to talk to yourself—"

The Joker's voice suddenly fell silent, and at the same time, there was a sound of something heavy falling from the roof—

a head hanging down, looking at him through the window.

"Bat?" the man asked, "Who are you talking to?"

Bruce was stunned, and the familiar voice quickly extinguished his anger.

It was Jason in Robin uniform.

He was silent for a second, quickly adjusted the expression on his face, and buried all the fluctuating emotions in his heart.

"It doesn't matter, why didn't you wait for me at the meeting point?"

"I just saw your car coming here from upstairs." Jason yawned, and he jumped off the roof of the car, pointed at Jack, and asked, "Were you on a date just now? He fell asleep?"

"Yeah." Bruce nodded, he opened the car door and got out of the car, "Go to the Batmobile, I have to change into my battle suit first."

Jason didn't ask any more questions, he glanced at the quiet Jack, and followed.