"John, you better take a look at this."
At the entrance of a branch of the Forgotten Bookstore, located on the corner of a commercial street in downtown Gotham, Zatanna was pushing open the glass door with some effort.
Constantine was standing in front of the newly moved-in bookshelf, unpacking bundles of new books and putting them on the shelves. Since all his physical and mental ailments had been banished, he appeared more than ten years younger.
Right now, he was wearing a casual white shirt and ankle-length suit trousers, holding an unlit cigarette in his mouth, while his originally messy platinum hair, now grown longer, was disjointedly spread across both sides of his face. He rather resembled a British hipster.
Upon seeing Zatanna push the door, Constantine quickly walked over and courteously opened the door for her, saying, "What's got you reading the newspaper?"
Zatanna had her long hair tied up in a high ponytail at the back. She was wearing a dark purple corset and satiny wide-legged pants, along with a pair of flip flops. Her figure exuded a rare girlish roundness, and her casual clothes emphasized her vibrancy.
Zatanna leaned slightly towards Constantine, gesturing to the front-page headline on the newspaper and saying, "Look at this. Someone is accusing Bruce Wayne of mind manipulation and emotionally abusing his female companions using his wealth and status. Apparently, he even drugged them during their dates. Oh, my God!"
Constantine's eyes widened slightly. He used one hand to gather the long hair that was covering half his face to the back of his head and carefully read the text on the newspaper.
At this moment, Zatanna suddenly looked up at him. With Constantine's hand still holding the glass door, and Zatanna standing right in front of his chest, the height difference allowed her to see Constantine's sharp jawline while looking up.
His appearance remained unkempt, with rugged stubble extending from his chin to the sides of his ears.
But there's a saying, the bed is the best beauty parlor. When one lacks sleep, a haggard appearance is unattractive. But when one sleeps well, maintains a healthy routine without bad habits, and is mentally vibrant, such an unkempt appearance can be wildly attractive.
Constantine subconsciously touched his chin and said, "I am curious who had the guts to accuse him, surely not social butterflies?"
Zatanna seemed a little taken aback, taking a moment to respond once Constantine's gaze fell on her, saying, "Hold on, are you saying you believe he did this?"
"Hasn't he always been doing this?" Constantine released his hand from the door and walked back to the shelves, kneeling down and continuing to put books into the last compartment while saying, "He even managed to graduate successfully from Shiller, do you not expect him to be able to do such things?"
"What I mean is, even if he's learned these tricks, he may not necessarily use them, right? He isn't that kind of person... or is he?"
"When was the last time you saw him?"
"Just over a month ago..."
"I mean, when was the last time you spent a long time with him?"
Zatanna stood still, one hand on her hip swinging the newspaper in the other while she tilted her head back to recall, "That was many years ago, he was my first love."
"You might not have been his first though."
Zatanna suddenly realized something was off. She hugged her arms, laughing, shaking her head and saying to Constantine, "You wouldn't be...jealous, would you? John?"
Zatanna walked over to Constantine, kneeling by his side, prodded his ribs with her knee, then leaned on his back, resting her chin on his neck, and said, "Don't tell me you've forgotten your old nickname, 'Dissolute John'?"
Constantine hummed a few times while crouching in place, then said, "That was my most flattering nickname. Alright, tell me, do you really believe that Bruce didn't do such things?"
After contemplating for a moment, Zatanna replied, "I believe he didn't do it intentionally. When I knew him, he was indeed a bit gloomy and seemed abnormal, but he's truly a man with high moral values and kindness, isn't he?"
Constantine slowly sat on the floor, resting his hands on his knees and said, "I also believe he wouldn't intentionally abuse someone, but him drugging his accuser... something doesn't seem right."
"What do you mean?"
"Putting morals aside, do you really think something manipulated by Bruce Wayne's hand would be so simple? If he genuinely wanted to drug someone, how could an ordinary hospital detect the residual drugs?"
Zatanna leaned against him, resting her chin on his shoulder, then nodded and said, "That makes sense. So, someone wants to frame him. Should we help him?"
Again, Constantine dropped his head letting his long hair cover half his face. Through his hair strands, he looked at Zatanna with a rather hurt expression. Zatanna slapped his back and said, "Don't play this game with me. How many people have you taken to bed with those poor stray dog eyes?"
As Constantine continued to play his part, Zatanna scoffed, "Including Bruce Wayne, right? That face of his is your ideal type."
Constantine immediately burst into laughter, playfully shoving Zatanna off him before standing and saying, "Are you jealous?"
"Are you jealous that I managed to take him to bed despite all the effort you put in?" Zatanna rolled her eyes before also getting up.