Wow I didn't expect him to invade Supermans privacy like that. He really is messed up.
Well, you know what they say. Curiosity killed the cat
Plus, he called more out of a need to help himself than to discover Superman's innermost secrets. Very different motives, I think. TicAndToc said it best:
He isn't really focusing on invading Superman's privacy as much as he is focusing desperately on how they do it, how they cope.
I'm glad you all liked Lois
I really, really wanted to include her in this story, even if she could only be present by proxy. It was only by Yvonne's offhanded suggestion that I even got this scene in there, so THANK YOU to Yvonne
You portrayed her exactly right, and she put her finger on it, didn't she? It isn't that he doesn't love them, that he can't feel, it's that he's pushed it all so far away that he can't find his way back.
You hit the nail on the head. Jake has detached himself from those he knows he should love, mostly to save himself further pain.
I'm also wondering how the children have been coping. They're still very young; possibly they aren't able to remember their mother. Jake refers more than once to the "years" since his wife died-- it could be just 2 or 3 years,
Annie was 2 and Claire was four when the mother died. It's around twoish years later. Annie doesn't really remember, but Claire does. I dropped in little bits of this here and there:
"Well," I began, though my voice sounded strange and shaky, even to my own ears. "Remember when Mommy used to go out with wigs on?"
Claire nodded, though Annie appeared lost. "Yeah."
For example.
Anyway, thank you SO MUCH for this insightful feedback
It's such a rush to see so many people enjoying my work
