Please see the feedback thread for story notes.
This story is a sequel to some next gen stories that I wrote many moons ago. You don't necessarily have to read them first, but it would
super helpful to at least read one or two, especially in establishing the characters. So your pre-viewing homework is at the following links:
Dawn of Discovery How I Spent My Summer Vacation It Runs in the Family Professional Loyalties Personal Loyalties I'll Be You For Christmans Meet Sam Wayne And now...
Gotham Nights
By: C. Leuch
Dedicated to my Dad.
---
The Gotham Theater was the jewel of old downtown Gotham, a relic from the days of vaudeville acts and gas lamps, a stately reminder of a time long past. Throughout the years the neighborhood around the theater had morphed into a modern arts and entertainment district, a bustling place with a half dozen more venues, but none with the prestige of the Gotham. The bright sign out front was two stories tall, blazing with the incandescent glow of hundreds of light bulbs, the marquee below announcing the charity showing of the new Superman movie that night.
Across the country, the movie had opened to limited engagements in a new city every night, starting in Metropolis. The premiere had been a spectacular affair, attended by the usual host of stars, producers, and Hollywood elite. Swooping down from the sky and landing in the middle of the red carpet had been the guest of honor, Superman himself, accompanied by his wife Ultra Woman. She had only been revealed to the world a couple years earlier, although the fact that Superman did, in fact, have a wife had been assumed once the Crimson Superman showed up in the skies of Metropolis. She was fairly enigmatic as far as heroes went, only actively performing rescues around the time she was formally introduced, though she still flew in with her husband to the occasional charity outing or public appearance. On this night, she and her husband were given prominent seats in one of the loges, and by all reports they enjoyed the movie, as did the other critics in attendance.
Tonight, the moneyed class of Gotham streamed in the doors, forking over $1,000 per ticket for the privilege of being among the first to screen the movie, and garnering an invitation to a reception later that evening hosted by the Superman foundation. Among the crowd at the Gotham Theater were Sam Wayne and his very pregnant wife Jennifer. This was one of their rare evenings out together, their social schedule taking a large hit when their son Adam came around three years earlier. Between the baby and Sam’s nighttime activities as part of the “other family business,” sometimes it felt like they hardly got any time alone anymore, but this was an opportunity they couldn’t pass up. Sam was always game for a good laugh, and this movie promised him more bang for his comedy buck than he figured he would get for a long time. To all appearances, this would be a straightforward superhero movie, a live-action comic book based on a fictionalized version of the life of Metropolis’s Man of Steel. But Sam Wayne, the adopted son of Bruce Wayne and former CJ Kent, had spent 18 years under the roof of the actual Man of Steel, and he doubted that anything in the real life of Superman would be all that compelling on the silver screen. Sure, there was the flying, the life saving, the adoring crowds, and the occasional foiled evil plot. But there was also the spectacle of putting three kids to bed every night, helping with housework, paying bills, and the threat of a home cooked meal by Lois Lane, surely the stuff that horror movies were made of.
Sam and Jenny hadn’t been disappointed. In trying to imagine the life of the Last Son of Krypton, the writers had taken certain liberties that had left the couple giggling in their seats, drawing dirty stares from the surrounding moviegoers. Of course nobody outside of the Kent family could imagine Superman starting out as a baby in a spaceship, spending his formative years in America’s heartland. As far as the world knew, Superman arrived in Metropolis as a full grown man, straight off his spacecraft sporting a well-rounded vocabulary, 100% authentic American accent, and full knowledge of society’s conventions. According to the movie, this was all thanks to some sort of Kryptonian computer and incubation chamber that could immerse him in Earth culture as he passed the years away, isolated, in his arctic Fortress of Solitude.
“All the boring old poems and stuffy literature, and the place didn’t even have cable,” CJ whispered.
“Can you imagine a Superman indoctrinated on celebrity gossip, sports, and old Mork & Mindy reruns?”
“Just look at my brother,” CJ replied. Jenny snorted a little as they both snickered a little too loudly.
The main plot of the movie involved some alien invader trying to conquer Earth, massive destruction of Metropolis…standard comic book superhero stuff, and not all that interesting. The interesting part was the introduction of Ultra Woman, here envisioned as another of the New Kryptonians, ushered to Earth in advance of the others and finding a kindred spirit, a soulmate. Jenny thought the intimacy scene, imagining the two together on the ceiling of the Fortress of Solitude bedroom, was worthy of a chuckle, but when she turned to discuss it with CJ, she could see the crimson burning in his cheeks even through the darkness of the theater.
“What…?” she asked.
“A little too on the nose with that one,” he whispered. At her questioning look he continued. “Please don’t ask me how I know that.”
In all, the movie was about what they expected, and none of it seemed to hit too close to home, or at least not close enough to be of concern. It would be interested to get Clark’s take on it, and Lois’s take, since a character with her name had actually had a small but important role in the film. The crowd had an excited buzz to it as the house lights went up, and CJ couldn’t help but overhear random comments speculating about the plot line of a sequel, and of the potential inclusion of children like the Crimson Superman. It sounded like the potential for more unintentionally hilarious stories, though most people believed it would be based on the Ridley Davenport Superboy books from a decade earlier.
Jenny and CJ trailed the crowd out of the theater, choosing to wait until the ending of the credits before leaving their seats. The hour wasn’t especially late, but the sky was dark and the crowds had grown sparse. They had parked their car in a parking ramp several blocks away, and the shortest route there led through a dark, lonely alleyway adjacent to the theater. CJ and Jenny exited the side door, pulling their coats somewhat tighter around themselves as they meet the cool evening air. Out of habit, CJ scanned the alley, sighing as he saw the stereotypical setting for practically every movie mugging ever put on film. A lone lightbulb over the door provided the only illumination for the better part of a block, and dumpsters and boxes abutted the building as far as he could see. Rusty fire escapes clung to the walls, leading up to darkened windows high above street level. Atop the building opposite the theater, two security cameras dotted were perched on the roof, one pointing toward the entrance of the alley, the other facing the door the couple found themselves in.
“Twenty bucks says some bad guy is hiding halfway down the alley waiting to jump us as soon as we hit the shadows,” CJ said as they turned toward the darkness.
“No bet,” Jenny said, her sensitive ears picking up movement in front of them. One of the many blessings of pregnancy, at least for her, was the fact that the baby fueled the return of superpowers that she had gained one Christmas several years ago, then gradually lost. Under normal circumstances she would probably get a little nervous heading down a dark and deserted alleyway, even with her capable husband at her side. But right now she knew there probably wasn’t much that could harm her, evidenced by what had happened when she had a little slip up cutting an apple for her son over lunch that day. The knife definitely got the worst of the deal, a little thumb-shaped dent in the blade leaving no doubt.
The two walked along in silence for a minute, before a man dressed in black jumped out from behind a neighboring dumpster wielding a gun. Jenny could practically hear CJ’s eyes roll as the man asked for their money and valuables.
“Come on, man,” CJ said, exasperated. “You really don’t want to do this.” Neither he nor Jenny made any move to put their hands up, instead choosing to give the man their most annoyed looks.
“No, your money!” the man shouted back, raising the gun. “You must have loads of it. And a guy like me deserves it way more than some rich snob like you.”
Jenny quickly suppressed a sigh, though it only served to antagonize the man with the gun. The two of them certainly looked the part of the moneyed elite, CJ in an expensive shirt and coat, Jenny in a nice dress and somewhat gaudy jewelry. It was the wardrobe expected of members of the Wayne family, especially when on their way to a charity social, but it was more of a disguise than anything. Even though the two of them had technically been part of the moneyed class for a few years now, they still considered themselves very middle class and privately tried to live their lives that way. Not that the robber knew that.
CJ looked at Jenny. “Nine o’ clock,” he said, squinting his eyes at her. Jenny got his meaning right away, looking over her left shoulder toward the security camera above. Whenever he was in public, Sam Wayne sported a pair of glasses, which made it difficult to utilize his heat vision in a pinch. Jenny zeroed in on the wiring and gave the camera a zap, causing a small spark and further startling the robber. Jenny looked back just in time to see the man tense his finger over the trigger. CJ lunged forward and put his hand over the end of the barrel just as the bullet was fired. As that hand squeezed down and distorted the barrel, the other swung around and connected with the man’s jaw. The robber staggered for a moment before Jenny cocked her arm back and got a punch in of her own, finally knocking him out.
The sound of the gunshot reverberated off the surrounding buildings. “That was kinda fun,” Jenny said, rubbing her fist absently, expecting a stinger to come that never did. “Though I hate that I only have the talents to be a badass when I’m pregnant.”
“Still, nice work,” CJ said, bringing up the hand that he had used to stop the bullet into a high five which Jenny quickly returned. They both groaned, though, as they realized that the hand had been coated with gunpowder. CJ held his hand out for a moment, then absently went to wipe it on his pants before Jenny stopped him.
“That would’ve been a fun one to explain to the dry cleaners,” she said, then held up a finger before rooting around in her cavernous purse with her clean hand. After a moment she produced a packet of baby wipes, getting one for each of them.
As CJ wiped his hand off, a smile spread across his face. “Is there anything these things won’t get out?” he marveled. Jenny could only shrug. In her experience, emanations from a baby or any other toxic substance, gunpowder included, could be removed from any clothing, upholstery, floor coverings, or any surface imaginable simply through use of a baby wipes. Truly, they were one of the wonders of the modern world.
“If there is I haven’t found it,” she said, her sentence interrupted by the sound of a thud behind them. They both quickly turned, then smiled as they saw who it was. Their visitor’s expression morphed from concern to borderline annoyance as he saw his charges.
“You are aware of the tragic story of the death of Bruce’s parents, aren’t you?” Nightwing asked after a moment as he surveyed the scene. During CJ’s tenure in Gotham, Nightwing had been his partner in crime fighting, taking over on the nights when CJ was unavailable due to a sick kid, date night, or business reasons. They worked together on the more expansive investigations, and had started hanging out more during the daytime hours, though CJ still got the feeling that Dick wasn’t especially comfortable being under the same roof as Bruce Wayne. In all he had become a good friend, and had even developed the ability to tease, though it still didn’t come naturally to him.
“I believe I’ve heard the story one or two hundred times,” CJ answered. Jenny nodded. “A dark alley after a family outing to the movies…”
“You wound up a little less dead than they did,” Nightwing said, then approached the incapacitated robber.
CJ shrugged. “Guess now I don’t have the required tragic backstory to become a superhero,” he said, then stuck out a thumb toward the camera. “The wife took care of the camera, so we’re in the clear.”
“You just can’t stand to have a night off, admit it,” Nightwing said, restraining the robber’s hands and feet.
“I think he just likes to show off,” Jenny said, wrapping her hands around CJ’s arm and winking at Nightwing. “Though I finished him off, so...”
“Chivalry really is dead,” Nightwing said, straightening up, a twinkle in his eye.
“So you’re going to take the credit for this one, I suppose. “ CJ said. “And as much as I’d like to stay and give an official explanation to the cops…maybe join in on some of the fun…”
“Go,” Nightwing said. He was well aware of the plans for the evening, of the reason for their presence at the theater. “I know you have a soiree to get to. Give my best to your Dad.”
The rest of the walk to the parking garage was incident-free, and the two walked together in companionable silence, something that was all too rare anymore. It hadn’t been just banter when Jenny told Dick that CJ was probably showing off for her. And she suspected that the shortcut through the dark alley was in hopes of getting a little action. Their late night rooftop rendezvous were getting further behind them with every passing day. Life for them had settled into comfortable domesticity – CJ headed into the office everyday and Jenny usually worked from home while watching Adam. CJ would generally be around in the evening for family time, though he prowled rooftops about every other night after their son was in bed. Every now and then some big case would come around and she wouldn’t see much of him – those were the tough times. Going to sleep alone in a cold bed was hard, but it made the times he was there all the more special. As she walked, she leaned up against him, and he wrapped his strong arm around her waist. Intentional or not, their alley diversion had provided a little spark in the evening, and it felt like old times, at least for a moment.
They were at the car a few moments later. The reception they were headed to was being held in the restaurant at the top of Wayne Tower, the tallest skyscraper in town. It would be filled with the crème of Gotham society, along with Superman, of course. CJ and his father had been two ships passing in the night in recent months, and hadn’t even managed a phone call in that time. Jenny knew that CJ was itching to talk with Clark, but tonight they had to be strangers, and conversation limited to generalities and topics acceptable for public consumption. If they were meeting in costume, at least they could acknowledge their connection. Batman’s outfit has a symbol of his heritage on it, an S-shield embroidered black-on-black, in full view for anyone who bothered to look, but not obvious enough to glimpse if you weren’t looking for it. Batman had also taken to doing the occasional rescue, and to publicly performing deeds that wouldn’t be possible for a normal, non superpowered person. Sam Wayne, though, had never officially met Superman.
CJ piloted the car into the Wayne Tower parking ramp, expertly avoiding what he referred to as the world’s most interesting pothole, an out-of-place crater of broken concrete created one fateful night when his alter ego wanted to quickly get from the roof to street level. While in costume, CJ routinely leapt off of shorter buildings, able to take off at full sprint from jumps of 10 stories or so. 85 stories, however, plus or minus the mechanical rooms, lead to a lot more force on the landing, and the pavement definitely wasn’t designed for the stress. It took a second after hitting the ground to catch his bearings and absorb the impact from the shifting pavement before he was able to sprint away. He supposed that the experiment had been a relative success, since the jump ended up being quicker than taking the elevator or stairs. Still, for the sake of the Gotham public works crew, he didn’t think he would be doing that again anytime soon.
They parked the car and headed toward the elevator, which lead them to a reception area. A second elevator would take them directly to the top floor, and as they stepped in, they paid no attention to the other couple that had gotten on before them. As the elevator doors closed and the cab began to ascend, though, Jenny felt CJ tense up beside her. Looking at his face, she saw him staring wide-eyed at their companions, before turning his face away from them, taking up the most awkward “nonchalant” pose possible. He never was a very good actor, Jenny thought as she turned to get a look at the other couple.
In their three years in high society, Jenny had gotten to know a lot of the big-money types in Gotham. A lot of times the wives would gather while the men conducted business or played golf. She was on friendly terms with the wives of the mayor, district attorney, Gotham State’s chancellor, and some of the more influential bankers and businessmen in town. Even some of the more famous Hollywood actors and actresses would come through town on show tours and whatnot, but this couple wasn’t familiar to her. As if on cue, the man turned toward her and flashed a smile. CJ tried his hardest to act distracted.
“Hey, I’m Dax Springfield,” he said with a wave. “Going to the Superman party?”
Jenny put on her most cordial smile. “Wouldn’t miss it,” she said. She glanced up at her husband’s face to see almost a look of panic in his eyes. She squeezed his hand and turned back to their companions. “You?”
“Oh, of course! I’m a big fan from way back. Went to school at Metropolis University – I was actually on the same field as him once. Used to see him flying around town…kind of miss that.”
Jenny nodded and tried her best to look impressed. “So, what do you do these days, Mr. Springfield?” she asked.
“I play for the Knights,” he said, puffing out his chest ever so slightly. CJ gave a half grin for show, though he still averted his eyes. Springfield’s grin faded slightly and he leaned forward, trying to get a look at CJ. “I’m sorry, but you look so familiar,” he said after a moment. “Have we met before?”
CJ’s face set into a neutral expression, though Jenny could still see something in his eyes. “I’m Sam Wayne,” he said, his voice a little too deep. “And this is my wife Jennifer. She went to school at Metropolis University, too,” he said. Springfield looked at her for a moment, then slowly nodded. “My, uh, father owns the Knights, or at least a stake in the Knights. We go to games upon occasion…maybe we’ve seen each other on the sidelines, or at a meeting or something.” At this point, CJ would normally give his self-effacing smile, but his face was still neutral, the usual twinkle in his eyes gone. Jenny frowned slightly.
Dax Springfield nodded more vigorously, but his eyes stayed on CJ’s face, and Jenny could tell that he was not convinced. Before they were able to continue the conversation, though, the elevator reached its destination and the doors opened with a chime. “Enjoy the party,” Jenny said with a wave as the other couple walked out, and then she nudged CJ ahead. As they left the elevator, instead of crossing the lobby to the restaurant and the assembled crowd, he turned and led her the other way, down a deserted hallway toward the restrooms. As soon as they were out of sight of the rest of the partygoers, CJ leaned up against the wall, took his glasses off, and ran his hand across his face.
“Holy crap was that close,” he said, taking a couple deep breaths. Jenny didn’t say anything, instead looking at him expectantly. After a moment to get his composure, he slipped his glasses back on and straightened up. “We played together on the same football team in college for three years.”
Jenny felt a shiver pass over her. “Oh, wow.”
“He was a receiver, I was a D-lineman. We never had to scrimmage against each other or anything, and we practiced with different units. There are a hundred something people on a football team, so it’s impossible to be friends with everyone, but you know of them, especially the good players, and we were both good players.”
“I don’t remember seeing him at your service, after you ‘died’,” Jenny said, using her fingers to put quotation marks around the final word.
“Well, he was already pro by then,” CJ replied. “Good thing, too, because if he recognized you, too…”
“I don’t think he did.” Jenny shook her head and gave him a wry smile. “Anyway, since when did you become the negative type? I thought you were mister confident all the time.”
He looked at her questioningly, though his good humor seemed to be creeping back into his features. “Since a former teammate threatened to expose my carefully crafted persona. A couple fewer concussions and maybe we’re having a different conversation.”
“Oh, your persona would’ve been fine either way. Have some faith. Heck, I hardly recognized the new you when we first met. There’s just something about a change in wardrobe, a new look…”
“Ugh, glasses…” CJ said. The grinned at each other for a second, then kissed.
“Come on, this is supposed to be a party, and I am looking forward to having some fun,” she said. With that they walked back past the elevators and into the crowd. The restaurant was roomy and intimate at the same time, the high tables lit by candles and the overhead lights turned down such that they were barely on at all. The widows around the exterior were devoid of shades, allowing a full, stunning view of Gotham City. The streets beyond spread out like a spiderweb, the shorter building all around jutting into the sky, the widows lit up in random colors and patterns. The city seemed to stretch on into infinity, and the lights from distant cars on the streets and highways made it appear alive.
A waiter greeted them upon entry, offering champaign. CJ gladly took a glass, while Jenny put her hand over her belly and shook her head. Once upon a time, the pair would’ve split up and worked the room separately, but given that this was an official date night they decided to stick together. They located Bruce in a dark corner of the room, standing back and observing, no doubt keeping an eye on the interactions of the politically powerful. CJ and Jenny gave a wave, but didn’t stop to chat. CJ and Bruce met quite often back at the mansion, discussing the business and city politics, sometime holding animated discussions about the role of the Batman in Gotham. Bruce came from a time of supervillans and dangerous maniacs, a time that had long ago given way to the modern white collar criminals and street gangs. CJ felt that the police were more than capable of handling the vast majority of cases out there, and that it was presumptuous to think that some vigilante who operated without rules and without subpoena power could come by and solve cases without or in spite of them. He found himself angling toward the cases that had gone cold due to lack of evidence, cases that could be helped with a little super-powered assistance. He wanted to be a hero that inspired others, that could be trusted, not one that struck fear into criminals and average citizen alike. Bruce didn’t necessarily agree, but he couldn’t argue results, and CJ tried to keep him in the loop to the extent possible, because he knew how much it was killing Bruce not to be in on the action. Jenny would classify their relationship as familial – CJ’s patience and positive outlook were a good counterweight to Bruce’s stubbornness, and his intelligence was such that Bruce couldn’t help but respect him. There was also some affection, at least toward the rest of the family, and Jenny could see that Bruce enjoyed having Adam around. In a life that had been so filled with darkness, it was nice to have a little someone around to remind him that there was innocence and love in the world, too.
In the back corner of the room was the guest of honor, Superman. A large crowd was gathered around him, but his eyes locked onto Jenny and CJ almost before they even entered the room. In the name of keeping up appearances, they made their way slowly around the room from couple to couple, eventually winding up on the outskirts of the crowd, waiting patiently for an audience with the Man of Steel. As expected, it was an almost painfully public setting, with other partygoers gathered closely around as they finally met him face-to-face.
“Ah, the infamous Sam Wayne and his lovely bride,” Superman said, shaking CJ’s hand and kissing the back of Jenny’s. “So, what did you think of the movie?”
CJ tool a sip of his champagne and arched an eyebrow. “It was educational,” he said after a moment. “I mean, I never would’ve guessed that the paragon of truth, justice, and the American way is actually Canadian. Or is it Russian? Who controls the Arctic?”
“Greenland?” Jenny chipped in.
Superman crossed his arms across his chest. He had spent enough years at the receiving end CJ’s shtick to grow immune to it, though the familiar dancing in his eyes told them loud and clear that he was enjoying the exchange. “Santa and I take turns being supreme leader of our little patch of the ice flow,” he said. “Though I’m not sure you came to talk politics.”
“Santa never struck me as the type to be a dictator,” CJ mused.
“Are you kidding me? He must have hundreds of elves up there working as slaves,” Jenny replied. “Not to mention sentient reindeer.”
“Where do they get all the food to feed all those elves and reindeer anyway?” CJ turned toward Superman. “And Utlra Woman probably needs a constant supply of Double Fudge Crunch Bars.”
“Well, we just got a Sam’s club, so there’s that.” Superman’s mouth turned up ever so slightly, then he gave a quick exhale and cocked his head to the side. “So, uh, Sam. I just read an article talking about one of your new technological breakthroughs.”
CJ smiled and took another sip of his drink. It was safe to say that he had found his niche at Wayne Enterprises, and it all started one lunch hour when he made a friend in the engineering division. What started out as mere spitballing lead to a more active interest, and he started to get more involved in the day-to-day management of project development. With Bruce’s blessing, his role in the company shifted to finding innovative solutions to everyday problems, developing products that would change the way people lived their lives. He liked to think that he fit in the same mold as Elon Musk, though Bruce wasn’t going to let him burn through the kinds of cash it would take to actually compete with Mr. Musk. There had been successes and failures, and CJ had learned enough through it all that now even the negative experiences led to the positive, and more importantly led to a profit. And just maybe a little bit of publicity.
“As much as I’d like to take the credit, it was actually one of our employee’s breakthroughs. I just applied it in a way he hadn’t considered,” CJ answered.
“And changed the whole conversation on energy supply in the process,” Superman answered with a smile. “In a few years we’re going to look back and see it as something that took us out of the relative stone age and ushered in a new future. Bet your father was proud; I know I would be in his shoes.”
Jenny blushed, but CJ didn’t outwardly react to the comment. Clark was always quick with a compliment, especially to his children, and he’d probably been wanting to say that since the news of the discovery broke. “Well, maybe next I’ll turn my efforts to reverse engineering some of those Kryptonian crystals. Those things can do anything – grow a fortress, supply the furnishings, and fly a spaceship. Amazing!” CJ said, softening the sentiment with the interjection of some humor.
“Or maybe turn toward innovations in construction. I hear there’s a very interesting pothole outside the building, here,” Superman said.
“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” CJ said, trying to hide a grin.
“Riiight,” Superman said under his breath, then thrust out his hand. “Well, it was good finally getting to meet you, Sam,” he said. Jenny suspected that further conversation would only lead Superman to say some un-Supermanlike things, and that’s why their meeting was being concluded. It’s not like they wouldn’t be seeing each other again soon. “And good to see you again, Jen.”
With that, they stepped away and let another partygoer have their turn with the guest of honor. Jenny lead CJ over to the large bank of windows, and together they took a few quiet moments to appreciate the view. She knew CJ was probably immune to it by now, having spent more nights that he would care to count observing it from one skyscraper or another. Although, she supposed as she observed the city, it was possible that he missed the forest through the trees. His sensitive hearing and vision, which she now shared, let him see the finest details at street level, even several miles away. Even now she could look toward the housing projects off the edge of downtown and see drug deals going down in the relative shadows. She winced at the distant sound of gunshots, and quickly located the sound, from a police operation in a shady neighborhood to the south. At hundreds of locations around the city came the sights and sounds of a vibrant city: passion, anger, joy, sadness. It could be overwhelming, but, she thought as she pulled back her senses, that was only true if she let it be.
“Do you two have a standing bet on whether or not you can make him laugh in the suit?” Jenny asked, drawing a chuckle from CJ.
“That would seem horribly one sided. The bet is actually between Jon and me.”
“Good to know.” As she said the words, a distant rumble began to echo over the city. At first she almost had to strain to hear it, but it quickly grew in intensity until it attracted the attention of others around them. After a moment, a large orange fireball rose up from a residential district not terribly far away, punctuating the rumble with a loud blast. An audible gasp went through the room.
“Damn,” CJ said, then downed the remainder of his champagne. A whooshing sound announced that Superman was on the case, and Jenny was sure that CJ wasn’t far behind. After rooting through his pocket for a moment, he pressed the car keys into Jenny’s hand, then gave her a quick peck on the cheek. “You can get yourself home okay?” he asked. At her reassuring nod, he smiled, then strode across and out of the room, fighting against the crowd that was now rushing toward the windows. After a moment, Jenny was surprised to hear a voice from the roof, audible only to the sensitive ears of superpowered individuals. Looking up, she saw Clark standing above them, his gaze following CJ as he made his way to the staircase.
“You don’t mind me helping out with this one?” Clark asked.
“No, go save people. That’s your thing,” CJ answered. “I’ll be there in a bit to clean up.”
“Need a lift?”
“I have a motorcycle downstairs. Go, don’t worry about me.”
“You’re not going to take a flying leap of the roof again, are you?” Clark’s smile was almost painfully wide.
CJ’s chuckle reverberated in the stairwell. “I’m never going to live that down, am I?”
With that, Superman was off, and all eyes turned toward the now raging fire.
