Clark landed on his balcony. It was getting late - just after eleven at night. He'd spent a lot time with Lois, giving her the interview that would make every reporter in the world green with envy - the exclusive, very first, interview with Superman. He yawned and rubbed at his eyes and the back of his neck, feeling tired but not yet sleepy. His adrenaline was running too high to allow him to go to sleep just yet, despite the fact that he felt utterly drained.
He'd done it.
He'd introduced the world to Superman.
Every corner of the world knew, by now, that there was an alien in their midst. Not only that, but they knew at least a fraction of the things he could do. By the morning, they would know the rest, once the article was released.
Clark stopped in his tracks.
"No, they won't," he whispered to himself. "Unless Perry pulls off a miracle, we don't have a place to print the paper for the moment."
He sighed, feeling a lance of pain twinge through his heart. He stepped into his apartment, shed his Superman costume, and headed for the shower. When he emerged, clad in soft black pajama pants and an old Gotham Knights T-shirt, he noticed the red light on his answering machine was blinking. He flopped onto couch and pressed the button.
"Kent? Where in the name of Elvis are you?" Perry's voice boomed from the machine. "Well, wherever you are, I'm sure you know about what happened at the Planet today. And I'm sure you're worried about what's gonna happen now. Where we're gonna work, how we're gonna print the paper. For the time being, work from home, email me your stories. Turns out, Mr. Stern has an unused printing room for a magazine coming out next year, thank the King. It’s not ideal for a paper the size of the Planet, but we can make do with it. Anyway, check in with me when you get this message. Call or email, it doesn’t matter. I still have the rest of the staff to call."
The message ended with an abrupt BEEP! Clark smiled to himself, the vice around his heart slipping away. The Planet would continue on as if nothing had happened, never missing a beat, dedicated to its mission to bring the unbiased news to the world.
The world.
Clark grinned. The world had met Superman. And they liked him, by all the accounts he’d heard. No. They loved him. He'd flown around the globe after leaving Lois' apartment, never landing, just merely cruising by, slowly enough to scan and get a general idea of how the people were reacting to the caped hero's arrival. He’d heard overwhelmingly positive reactions. Oh, sure, some people had expressed doubts and fears, but it was the vast minority of what he’d heard.
He'd been right.
He'd stepped out of the shadows - quite literally, once he'd left the character of Nightwing behind - and into the light.
And it felt so right.
He'd made the right choice. Superman was the hero he'd always been meant to be. Nightwing had been a great way to prepare for this new role, but that's all Nightwing had ever really been - a practice run. He was still Clark first, and always would be. Clark was who he truly was. It was his real identity. Superman was merely an avatar of what it was that he could do - how he could help better the world and protect the people who might not be otherwise able to help themselves. It was his best chance to be a physical force for good while taking the least amount of risk
.
"At least," he mused aloud, "in a more immediate way than I can as a reporter."
Ring!
The phone rang, breaking his reverie. He reached out without thinking and answered it in the middle of its second ring.
"Hello?"
"Nice work today," came Bruce's voice, pride and approval more than evident in his words.
"Thanks, Bruce," Clark replied, relieved that Bruce sounded pleased.
"Mind if I stop by to give you my congratulations in person?"
Clark shook his head, although, Bruce couldn't see it. "It's faster if I come to you. Where are you?"
"About six blocks from your apartment," Bruce replied and Clark could practically hear the man's grin. "I just got out of seeing Cats at the Victory House Theater."
"Well, by all means, come on over," Clark agreed.
"Great, I'll be there in about ten minutes."
"You want me to fly out and pick up anything? Snacks? Drinks? I have the freedom to fly wherever now," Clark joked, grinning like the Cheshire Cat.
Bruce chuckled softly. "Thanks, but no."
Clark shrugged. "Meh. Your loss," he teased.
"Yeah, yeah. See you in a few minutes."
Click!
The line went dead. Clark looked around his apartment and, at super speed, tidied up a few things, then unlocked the apartment door when he heard his friend's footsteps approaching. He opened the door just as Bruce was about to knock.
"That still creeps me out, you know," Bruce playfully complained.
"I know," Clark said, shrugging and stifling a laugh. "That's why I do it."
He shut the door behind Bruce as the man made his way into the living room to sit on the couch. Clark followed behind.
"Coffee?" Clark offered.
"Yeah, that would be great. Thanks," Bruce nodded.
"Coming up," Clark replied as he set the coffee maker.
"So, that was some debut today," Bruce said after a moment.
Clark shook his head. "Of all the scenarios I could have imagined, a bomb at my workplace was not one of them." He sighed. "Perry called and said we have a place to print until the building is repaired. But, for now, we're all working from home."
"Good," Bruce said with a curt nod. "The world needs the Planet to keep bringing them the news."
"Yeah. Whoever planted that bomb obviously didn't want us to be able to do our jobs." His expression and mood darkened considerably.
"You think they were after the building, rather than an individual?" Bruce asked.
"It has to be. If they were after one person in particular, there are easier ways to get to them. Ones that are a lot less likely to fail."
"Good point," Bruce conceded. "Any leads yet?"
"No," Clark said with a sad shake of his head. "The police kept everyone away. Even Superman. I can't really blame them - they don't know me yet - but I wish I'd gotten a chance to check things out for myself. I was too busy looking for further threats to check for clues about who might have set the bombs."
"I'm not surprised they didn't give you access. Like you said, they aren't used to Superman yet. They're still gauging whether or not to trust you. I'm more surprised that you didn't just go in anyway."
"I couldn't," Clark tried to explain. "If I'd gone ahead and ignored them, they'd never have reason to accept me as their ally. I'd always be the guy that thinks he's above the law."
"You always have liked playing by the rules," Bruce allowed. “For the most part.”
"Maybe," Clark said with a shrug. "We always did play it kind of fast and loose with the law in Gotham. I guess I was never one hundred percent happy about it, even if we did do a lot of good while we bent the rules. But Superman has to be different. He's not like Nightwing or Batman. He's not the guy in the shadows. He's right out there, in broad daylight. He needs to be an example to the rest of society."
"Part of the price you need to pay for giving up the anonymity," Bruce supplied.
Clark shook his head. "Not really. I don't feel like I've given up anything. It's just...it's what I need to do. I want people to look at Superman and know he's on their side. That he's not going to break the rules and ignore the law, just to get what he wants. Granted, I'm not saying I'll never use my powers on a story to uncover a lead if the trail goes stale. I’ve already done that…several times. Nothing major and nothing illegal, of course. But enough to get Lois and me moving in the right direction."
Bruce was silent a minute, his face unreadable. Then, slowly, he nodded. "Okay," he said with approval. "I get it."
Clark audibly sighed with relief. "Thanks."
“But, even if you do abide by all the laws, you’re still breaking one. You’re a vigilante, the same as Batman or Nightwing.”
“I know,” Clark admitted. “But what choice do I really have? I can’t just sit back and passively watch all of the horrible things going on in the world.” He sighed heavily. “It’s not something my conscience would ever allow.”
"I know. I have, ever since you ignored my direct and very firm refusal to let you roam around Gotham with me at night. You’ve got a good heart. Too good of one, in some ways. And I hope that doesn’t backfire on you. I don’t want to see you get heartbroken out there, if you aren’t able to help someone.”
“I won’t,” Clark vowed.
“So...how did you like it out there, in the public's eye?" Bruce asked after half a minute.
Clark brightened. "It was amazing, Bruce. For the first time, I felt like...like using my powers where I could be seen was something to embrace and celebrate, instead of something to be terrified of. It was amazing, to not have to hold back, to not have to watch from the sidelines with guilt eating me alive while someone else's life was on the line. I feel like...like everything I've done...all the time I spent perfecting my control over my powers, all the years spent roaming Gotham's streets with you as Nightwing...has led up to this. To Superman. It feels like...like I've finally found my destiny."
"I thought your destiny was to be the world's greatest reporter," Bruce said, sounding mildly confused and frowning a little.
"That's not what I meant," Clark clarified. "I meant...Superman is a huge part of my destiny. I can’t deny that. But it's not just him. It's everything that's been happening lately. Moving to Metropolis. Being hired by The Daily Planet. Meeting Lois. Falling in love. Getting Lois to agree to date me. Becoming Superman. All of it feels like its always been my destiny."
"Wait. Back up a second. This morning you were saying it was too early to ask Lois out. Now you’re saying you’re dating her? What happened?"
Clark smiled. Bruce was acting as both his friend and his older brother at the moment. It felt comforting, just like old times when Clark had been a teenager struggling with his new role as a member of the elite society.
"I thought it was. But she kind of asked me...or almost asked me to ask her out, I guess. I went to check on her after the bombing, which I would have done, even if I wasn’t interested in dating her. She’s my best friend and my partner at work. I brought her a bottle of wine that she likes and some chocolates. Anyway, apparently, getting stuck in the elevator during the bombing made her reevaluate how she felt about things. About me. And I suppose, maybe, the gifts didn’t hurt either." He shrugged as he fought down an embarrassed blush. He cleared his throat. "She, uh, also happened to mention that you got her started on the thought process last night when you oh-so-helpfully outted my feelings about her."
Bruce grinned impishly. "No need to thank me."
"I'm not entirely sure I want to," Clark laughed. "I still can't believe you said that...even if it wound up helping me in the long run."
“What are friends for?” Bruce replied, amusement dancing in his eyes. “Just don’t forgot to invite me to the wedding.”
“Invite you?” Clark roared a laugh. “Bruce, if this works out, you can officiate it!”
Bruce slapped his knew as he laughed in turn. “I’ll hold you to that.”
“I’m sure you will, Bruce. I’m sure you will,” Clark said, wiping tears of laughter out of his eyes.
***
"Clark? Is that you?" came Lois' muffled voice from behind the door of her apartment.
"Are you expecting a different date?" he teased.
He heard the locks to her door being undone, then the door swung open to reveal Lois in a tasteful maroon dress with a plunging neckline. Clark knew in an instant that he'd never seen her wear that one before. This was a dress he would remember, his flawless memory aside. She was still trying to put in one diamond stud earring. Clark felt his heart rate skyrocket as he gazed upon her beauty while his mind screamed its disbelief that she was going out with him on a date.
"Come on in," she invited him.
He stepped inside her apartment without the slightest hesitation.
"Lois...wow," he breathed, unable to say more than that. "You look..." He shook his head, her beauty rendering him mute. "These are for you."
She blushed, the color rushing into her cheeks in less than the span of a heartbeat. But she took the bouquet of pink roses that he held out to her. She took a moment to sniff their sweet scent.
"Oh...thank you. You too. The charcoal suit is..." She was struggling as much as he was to get the words out. "The flowers are beautiful. Thank you, Clark."
"Thanks," he quickly stepped in, rescuing her from floundering for words. "And you're welcome."
"Is it new?" she asked before blushing again. "Uh, the suit?"
He smiled nervously. "Oh...no. I've had it a while. I just haven't really worn it before."
"Well...it looks good on you. The charcoal color suits you somehow."
It was Clark's turn to blush. "Thanks. Maybe I'll have to get some more in charcoal." He rocked on his heels. "So, uh...are you ready to go?"
"Almost. I just need to grab my shoes."
Clark chuckled as he snuck a peek at her stockinged feet. "Yeah, I guess that might help, what with us going outside and all."
Lois laughed too and, just like that, the nervous tension in the room seemed to break a little.
"A little bit, yeah," she joked back. "Be right back."
"Sure," he replied, nodding. "You want me to put the flowers in some water for you?"
"Yeah, that would be a big help," she said, smiling. "I think I have a vase under the sink on the left side."
She darted off to her bedroom while Clark found the vase and arranged the flowers, adding the little packet of plant food that the florist had attached to the bouquet. Lois emerged a minute later in a pair of low heels that matched her dress perfectly, just as Clark was wiping his wet hands off on the dish towel. Clark took a moment to admire her and she stood before him.
"Wow," he said, repeating his earlier elegant appraisal of her wardrobe.
Her only response was a slightly embarrassed looking smile.
"Lois?" Clark asked, hesitating.
"Yeah?"
“Can I ask you an honest question?”
“Of course.”
"Are you...a little nervous? About this date?"
"Well...yeah," she admitted hesitantly, as if ashamed of herself. "Like I told you, you're my best friend and I'm still afraid of what happens if tonight...doesn't go the way we hope it will." She paused, then, "Why? Are you nervous?"
"Very," he confessed. "Not about our friendship staying intact. I know it’s strong enough to survive anything. I just...I just want tonight to be perfect for you."
"Me? What about you?"
"Lois, you saying yes to this date has already made it perfect. I mean...it wasn't so long ago that I never thought I would be...well...good enough to date a woman like you. Brilliant. Strong. Fiercely independent. Passionate. You know. All around perfect."
"Give yourself a little credit," Lois said, smiling and bumping her arm into his. "You're the best man I've ever known. You could probably have any woman you want. I'm just...well..." She turned away, unwilling - or unable - to meet his gaze. "I'm flattered that I'm the one you asked out."
"Lois, if I can continue to be completely honest here, how could I not ask you out? You're exactly the woman I'd always hoped to meet." Clark smiled shyly as the back of his neck heated in a blush. He gestured to the door to take her attention away from his face. "Shall we?"
"We shall," Lois grinned, pulling on her coat and slinging her purse over her shoulder.
***
"This is a nice place," Clark commented as they sat at the small, intimate table in the back corner of The Lobster Claw. "I've been meaning to check it out, ever since I arrived in Metropolis."
"The food is everything you've heard and more," Lois assured him. "Granted, it's been a while since I was last here," she quickly amended.
"I hope so. I'd hate for our first date to be remembered with terrible food," Clark joked.
"First date?" Lois playfully smirked. "Feeling confident about a second one, huh?"
Clark shrugged in an exaggerated fashion. "Maybe." He purposefully dragged the word out a little for dramatic effect.
Lois laughed - a light, airy sound that Clark knew was born of genuine amusement. "Oh yeah? Going to sweep me off your feet, are you?"
"Give me a chance to, and I'll do more than that. I'll fly you to the moon," he vowed, though he played off the remark as casual and almost off-handed.
"We'll see, Farm Boy," she replied with another grin.
Clark smiled at the term "Farm Boy." Ever since he'd told Lois of his roots - his true ¬roots - she'd called him that. It was a nice reminder to him of his simple upbringing, before the world had been turned upside down and inside out on him. Back when his mother and father had been alive. Back when school and his chores had been his biggest worries. Back before he'd been forced to grow up too fast. Back before Nightwing and Superman and innumerable powers kept carefully hidden from the world. Back when life had been simple and straightforward.
The waiter appeared with their drinks and a basket of piping hot, fresh bread. Lois and Clark each reached for a piece - the same piece. Their hands briefly touched - a light brushing of Clark's fingertips over the top of Lois' hand. Sparks ignited in Clark's brain and his skin felt aflame where it had made contact with Lois. They'd touched before, it was true. They were forever exchanging little touches - a pat on the shoulder, a hug, even a kiss on the cheek once, when he'd brought her wine and chocolates after her near miss when the Planet had been bombed.
But this was different.
The circumstances weren't the same. This wasn't two friends congratulating each other after cracking a particularly difficult case. This wasn't a gentle touch to get the other's attention. This wasn't done out of relief that the other was safe or done out of gratitude. This was accidental, that much was true. But it had been done outside the bounds of coworkers and friends. This touch, fleeting as it had been, had been done in a romantic setting. If Clark hadn't already been hopelessly in love with Lois, it would have sent him spiraling over the edge of friendship into love.
You're a hopeless romantic, his inner voice told him with great amusement.
There are worse things, he reasoned back with a mental shrug.
"Sorry," he apologized to Lois. "Here, you take this one." He picked up the piece of bread and offered it to her.
"Thanks," she said. Was it just Clark's imagination, or did she sound as flustered by their shared touch as he felt?
She took the proffered slice of bread and buttered it, while Clark took a different piece. Following her lead, he skipped the plate of seasoned olive oil on the table and went for the butter as well. Together, they took a bite. Clark's eyes closed in delight at the first taste of the hot, flaky bread.
"Well, if the meal is as good as the bread, this place might be my new favorite place in Metropolis," he offered after swallowing down the bite of bread.
"Mmm," Lois agreed blissfully. "I'd forgotten how good their bread is."
"You said it's been a while since you last came here. How come?" Clark asked, by way of starting the conversation.
"I'm not really sure you want to know why."
"Try me."
Lois shrugged. "Okay. The thing is...remember how I told you I dated a coworker, once?"
"Claude, right?"
"Right. We only had a handful of dates. Our last one ended up with him...spending the night. When I got up the next morning, he was gone. And so was my story off my laptop. He'd stolen it and handed it to Perry as his own work."
"Let me guess. You had dinner here that night," Clark supplied.
Lois nodded her confirmation. "I couldn't bring myself to come here after that. It left a bad taste in my mouth. Not because we - obviously - broke up, but because any time I thought about what had happened, I got so mad at myself for ever allowing myself to be put in that position, to be so badly taken advantage of."
"Oh, Lois!" Clark said, his heart breaking for her. "Why didn't you say something? I had no idea this place had such a bad connection for you. We could have gone anywhere else."
Lois shook her head. "No. When you suggested the place, I thought it might be nice to have a good memory associated with it."
"I won't let you down," he promised.
"I know," she said earnestly. Then, to shift the focus, she asked him, "So, what about you?"
"Me?"
"Yeah. What about you? You know all about my disastrous love life. What about your previous relationships?"
Clark chuckled. "Turn about is fair play, huh? Well, the truth is, there isn't much to tell. I was working my nerve up to ask out my friend Lana, back in Smallville, right before my parents died. Then I was shipped off to the halfway house, never to see Lana again. While I was living at Grandma Tildy’s, I knew this girl in town, Jen. We used to hang out sometimes, but she liked me more than I liked her. I really only liked her as a friend, but I got the feeling she was planning our life together. Then I was on the streets for a while. It was a struggle enough just to survive. I didn’t have the luxury of even thinking about dating, let alone doing it."
"Once you and Bruce met, you must have met a ton of women," Lois said, taking a sip from her wine glass.
"I did, but most of them were much older than me.” He fidgeted with his glass of ice water. “At seventeen, eighteen years old...even at twenty-two...it was a bit...off putting. It wasn't like a year or two difference between me and the women who tried to…be with me. It was usually like ten or twenty years of an age gap, and I turned them all down. I dated a little bit in college, but nothing that lasted long. I got the impression that most of the girls who were interested in me were actually interested in my perceived wealth. I couldn't...I didn't want a relationship that was based on something so...material. They didn't really want me for me."
Lois reached across the table and took his hand. "I can't fault you on that. I've been in that position before and it hurts. Like Claude. All he wanted was to ride my coattails. He never cared for me. But…it doesn’t matter. Please, continue."
He nodded. "Yeah. So, for a while, I just...focused on my work. I was all over the globe for the Gotham Gazette anyway, so a sustainable relationship wasn't really something I could give my full attention to. Even after I left the paper, I stayed out of the dating pool while I tried to figure out what to do next."
"Are you saying...I'm the first one since then?" Lois asked, picking up on the subtle signs he knew his body was giving off.
He squirmed a little in his seat. "Well...yeah," he admitted, feeling embarrassed.
"So...we both haven't had the best luck in the dating world," Lois said with a shy smile. "I'm not sure if that makes me feel better or if it puts more pressure on me to give you a good dating experience." She grinned playfully.
Clark laughed. "I guess we both feel a bit of pressure to have this work out," he said.
“Yeah,” Lois agreed. “But…not as much pressure as we have to figure out who bombed the Planet.”
“True,” Clark conceded. “Oh! That reminds me. I saw Superman earlier. I guess he recognized me from our byline or something. He said he was going to try and get a look inside the boiler room, to see if he can find anything we can use to track down whoever it was. If the police will allow it, that is.”
“If the police are smart, they’ll give him access,” Lois said. “I mean, if it hadn’t been for him, the building might not have even still been standing.”
Clark shrugged. “He’s new around here. I guess I can’t blame the police for being a little wary, until they get to know him.”
“Oh please,” Lois replied, passion and fire in her voice. “He’s already proven himself to be their ally! He saved all of us, the police on the scene included. He walked…flew…around in broad daylight. It’s not like he’s hiding anything. He’s not…skulking around in the shadows, like Batman or something. Even though, from all I’ve heard, Batman does a lot of good too,” she swiftly amended. “But I can see why Gotham PD is a little leery of him. Superman, however…” She shrugged, allowing her voice to trail off.
“You know that, and I know that,” Clark said, choosing to avoid the topic of Batman. “But the MPD…this Superman guy…he’s pretty powerful. Anyone would be smart to get to know him and his motives before trusting him without question.”
“I guess. But…no offense. You weren’t there, Clark. When he got Jimmy and me out of that elevator…it was like I knew him. Call it intuition or whatever you’d like, but I knew I could trust him. You said you talked to him. Didn’t you get that same feeling?”
“Yeah,” Clark said, ransacking his brain for a way out of the conversation. “He does seem like he’s trustworthy. But for a lot of people, he’ll have to prove it. In any case, he promised he’d let us know if he finds anything. That is, if the MPD allows him in there.”
Lois nodded. “That’s nice of him.”
Clark nodded in turn. “Anyway…let’s not focus on the Planet right now. As much as I want to catch the person responsible, the paper can wait until the morning. Right now, I want to know more about you, Lois.”
“Only if you promise to tell me more about yourself,” she countered with a smile, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear and biting her lower lip in a shy manner.
Clark laughed. “Deal.” Then he grinned impishly. “I know if I don’t, Bruce will offer stories. And we definitely can’t have that,” he joked.
Lois laughed. “Don’t be so sure, Farm Boy. He gave me his cell number and said he would be more than willing to swap stories.”
Clark rolled his eyes playfully. “Of course he would. So, what do you want to know?”
To Be Continued….
