“Now get out of here and get me that story I just assigned you.” He looked at his watch. “The press conference is in an hour at city hall. I want that announcement in the afternoon edition. You have half an hour after the conference to phone in your story. Got it?”
Part 2
Clark nodded and stood up. “I’m on it, Chief.” The twenty seven-year old reporter walked through the door, pulling it closed behind him. The padding in the shoulders of his forest green jacket did little to hide the slump of his shoulders. His well-polished black shoes practically scuffed the floor as he returned to his desk. Susan, the receptionist from the city desk that received phoned-in stories, was walking toward the lunch table with a box of donuts. She paused and smiled at Clark, who selected one as she extended the box to him.
“Thanks,” he mumbled as he took a bite, his mind still spinning from thoughts on photographic possibilities. How in the world was he supposed to manage this? Superman couldn’t give the camera to some bystander and ask for photos. Could he? If he could somehow let Jimmy know where Superman was heading, Jimmy could be on site. But then, that wouldn’t be Clark bringing home a photo of Superman. Clark reached his desk and sighed as he slumped into his chair, spinning it toward his monitor.
****
Jimmy watched Clark and Perry through the office windows. “The Chief sure is mad. It’s times like this when I’m glad I’m not a reporter. What do you think he wants with CK?” he asked Lois. She shook her head. “I sure hope he’s not going to get fired.”
“Perry wouldn’t fire you guys. You’re the best reporters in the newsroom!”
Lois shot him a glare. “You heard him mention Clark’s many appointments. You saw him look at me, didn’t you?”
“Huh?”
“Oh, never mind. Did you get that research Clark and I asked for?” She looked at what he was carrying.
“Yeah, here it is.” Jimmy handed her a fat manila file.
“Thanks, Jimmy.”
“No problem. I guess I’d better get back to work,” he said and headed back to his desk, his eyes and ears open for clues beyond the editor’s office wall.
Lois tried to focus on work, going crazy to know what Perry was saying to Clark. They’d done a good job on their latest investigations. They’d been big stories, too. There was the Norton’s tax fraud scandal. That had resulted in millions of dollars recovered and dozens of arrests. Then there had been the Hybrid car cover-up. That had really rocked the airwaves. LNN had carried their coverage for days. There was the story of the leaking sewer system yesterday, too. That had taken a lot of breaking and entering to crack that case.
She watched as Clark left the office, looking thoroughly chastised and dejected. Whatever had Perry said? Had he fired him? She got up and neared as he spun his chair toward his computer.
Putting her hand on his shoulder, she whispered, “Clark? What happened? What did Perry want?” Clark shook his head and muttered, “Nothing.”
Lois slid onto his desk in front of him. “Clark Kent! It wasn’t ‘nothing’! You look like a boy who just got grounded from cartoons for a month!
Clark didn’t even smile, she noticed. “Lois, could you please leave me alone for a little while?” Clark’s eyes met hers.
Lois was worried. “What is it, Clark? What did he say to you? You look awful.”
“Thanks,” Clark sighed. “I don't feel like talking about it right now.”
Lois stood up, annoyed that he wasn’t going to tell her what had happened. “Fine! I thought we were friends!”
She was gone when Clark looked up and sighed again. “Lo-is!”
She jerked her chair out, muttering about their partnership. Clark closed his hearing off to her. He had bigger problems to think about now. Photographing Superman at work. How about letting the camera take photos automatically? He could look for a place to set the camera. It wasn’t as if he could take along a tripod...
A young man in a tan uniform appeared alongside Clark’s desk, checking his nameplate. “Package for Clark Kent?” At Clark’s nod he handed him the box. “Just sign here, please.” Clark accepted the clipboard and pen and scrawled his name on the line.
He turned his attention to opening the box and pulling the camera out, examining it and trying to get familiar with it. Lois watched as he laid the camera on his desk and opened the instruction booklet.
Lois spoke across the aisle. “Now that’s good, Clark. You’ll be prepared when we…uh…stumble on some evidence.”
Clark met her eyes with half a grin. Leave it to Lois. Jimmy came over with some papers for Clark and paused when he saw the camera. “Nice little camera, CK.” He didn’t look too pleased, however.
Clark could hear the twinge of jealousy in his friend’s voice and sought to reassure him. He knew that Jimmy wasn’t going to be very pleased when Clark started bringing home Superman photos. What if he took blurry photos? Perhaps Perry would reconsider.
“Perry thought I should have a camera along like Lois does.” That much of the truth should satisfy them. At Jimmy’s raised eyebrows, he added, “Don’t worry, Jimmy, my photos won't be as good as yours. Maybe when you have a minute you could give me some pointers.”
After Jimmy had left, Lois came back to lean on Clark’s desk, “I take it this isn’t everything Perry told you in there.”
The sincere smile on his face faded into a frozen one as he coined another lie for his partner. “I just don’t want to hurt Jimmy’s feelings if I bring home a photo that makes it into the paper.”
Lois leaned forward, her eyebrows nearly touching, “Clark, why would your photos EVER get into the paper?”
Clark shrugged. “Perry would like some Superman photos with articles I file.”
“Oh.” She remembered how much more time Superman spent with Clark than with her. She’d never come to terms with how often he chose relating stories to Clark instead of her. She patted Clark’s shoulder and nodded at the small camera and paraphernalia on his desk. “That shouldn't be too hard for you.” He wished he could just spill his problem to her. She’d know what to do. He longed to tell her what Perry required, but he’d just have to wait to talk to his parents about it.
“Listen, Lois, I’m heading down to city hall for that tax cut announcement. Shall we discuss our strategy for this pollution story when I get back…maybe over lunch?”
“Sure. Jimmy brought me the background material. There’s a lot to cover. I think we’d better split up for interviews or we’ll never be done by tomorrow. Perry’s really dreaming if he thinks we can…”
“We’ll be fine, Lois. I’ll be back right after the conference.”
His mind churned as he left the building. The sight that always reminded him of home greeted him. A horse tossed its head and neighed in front of the cart in the enter of the busy downtown street. Tourists waited for their turn to tour Metropolis in a buggy pulled behind a swishing tail of a clip-clopping quarter horse.
Motioning to one of the city’s yellow taxicabs that was waiting along the curb, Clark fiddled with the camera in his pocket as he sat down in the taxi. He had the remote control in the other one. He needed a positive attitude. He’d scout for places to put the camera as he worked. For goodness sake, Superman could handle this. The camera would catch him in at least one photo.
He pondered Superman catching a suicide jumper, and photographing it at the same time. Was it even possible? Was his job as a reporter this important? Not if it jeopardized a life. What about a bank robbery? What if someone saw him put the camera down? Only a few of his rescues were done in front of reporters and photographers, at least when he arrived. He happened upon most crimes, or responded to cries for help. The bigger accidents or disasters that he heard about on the radio or television usually had photographers on the scene. It was the smaller ones where he’d need some shots.
