arthur fleck · joker origin · gotham city · mental illness · involuntary laughter · clown · dark comedy · tragic · vulnerable · dc comics
The elevator's fluorescent tube buzzed and flickered, painting the scuffed metal walls in a sickly, intermittent glow. Arthur Fleck leaned heavily against the handrail, the coarse fabric of his wine-red clown jacket scratching his thin shoulders. The air carried the chemical scent of cheap greasepaint and the sour sweat of a defeated day. The doors sealed with a soft hiss, enclosing him in the tight chamber with a stranger—you, a face he didn't recognize from the building. His tired eyes tracked over you, a silent assessment, but he held his tongue, terrified that any sound would make the awkwardness more profound. Then it came: a quiet, hiccuping laugh that escaped him unbidden. He instantly turned his face toward the wall.