Meet Sam Wayne, Part 15
By: C. Leuch
Wayne Manor had literally hundreds of rooms, most of which were closed off and forgotten, visited upon occasion by the cleaning staff in order to clear out the cobwebs and dust. One forgotten room was particularly out of the way. Located in what could almost be described as a subbasement, it was between the lower level of the mansion itself and the upper reaches of the Batcave. It was a room that for many years had served as storage, but after CJ moved in, he had cleaned out the accumulated clutter of decades of Wayne family habitation and claimed the room as his own. Hidden away from the Wayne Manor staff and the rest of the world, it was the perfect place to establish his own private office, and to house all the remnants of his former life without fear of discovery.
Upon returning from his visit to the commissioner, CJ found himself inexplicably drawn toward his new office, despite the knowledge that his family was probably finishing up their outing and waiting patiently for him to arrive before heading off to supper. It would only take a second, he thought as he entered the room and flicked on the light. Easing into the creaky wooden chair in front of an old metal desk salvaged from another shuttered room, he drank in the sight of the accumulated tokens of his former life. Yearbooks, trophies, photographs, cards…some were in boxes, some were on shelves, and some were perched lovingly in strategic positions throughout the room. All seemed to call to him. Without thinking about it, he reached for the nearest picture, and almost immediately the memories began to flow. After a few moments he set the picture back where it had been, then reached for another memento, turning it over in his hands and remembering what it had felt like when he had taken it home. Soon that item was replaced and another was looked at, the memories growing thicker with each passing moment. Time lost meaning as he relived the past, wallowing in his former life, and he found himself unable to stop. He was trapped by an emotion that was happiness, sorrow, excitement, and pain all rolled into one, excruciating and intoxicating at the same time. After an indeterminate amount of time he was forced out of his thoughts by a light rapping on the door. When he looked up, he saw that the door had been pushed open, and his wife standing in the opening, her expression worried.
“Clark?” she asked, taking a step toward him. CJ set aside the photo album he had been browsing and reached out to her. As soon as she took his hand, he pulled her toward him and into his lap.
“He’s still dead,” CJ said, his voice betraying a surprising amount of sadness. Maybe the Batman persona was rubbing off on him, after all.
Jenny wrapped her arms around his neck and looked at him for a moment. “You stopped the bad guys, didn’t you?” she asked.
CJ gave a small smile. “Yeah,” he answered, looking into her eyes and feeding briefly off the optimism that they held. After a moment he looked away, immediately seeing again the reminders of his old life. “I stopped the bad guys. I sent the men who killed 200 people, including me, to jail. My one singular mission for the last…however many weeks it’s been since I came here is over with, but….”
“Nobody notified the guy who sets off the fireworks,” Jenny said with a grin. Even through the melancholy that he found himself mired in, CJ couldn’t help but smile. He reached up and found a stray lock of her hair, wrapping it gently around his finger before cupping her face in his hand. No matter how dark things seemed, she was always his ray of sunshine.
He found his smile fading as the heavy emotions that she had briefly chased away descended upon him once again. “It’s like the nightmare is over but I can’t wake up,” he said softly after a moment.
Jenny placed her hand on top of his, then leaned in a kissed him tenderly. Time stood still for the second time that night, and he groaned lightly as she pulled away from him. “Did that feel like a nightmare?” she asked, and he smiled gently as he shook his head.
“That felt like heaven,” he said, trying to recapture her lips, although she wouldn’t let him. She looked around curiously, then turned her gaze on him, her expression completely serious.
“You had a wonderful life,” she said, reaching for a photograph of CJ and his family on vacation, the pose very spontaneous, the smiles very genuine. “You had a loving, wonderful family, loyal friends, and a gorgeous wife. But you still do.”
“It was just all over with so quickly,” he said, his throat tightening to the point that he could barely speak the words. His emotions had been bottled up for so long, and he had never let them out, partly out of some half-baked idea of manliness, and partly because he had always tried to look at the positive side of everything. How could he be upset when he lived a life as charmed as his? But all the blind optimism couldn’t hide the simple truth of what was, and had hindered him from properly saying goodbye to the life that had been his.
He closed his eyes and turned away from Jenny as his vision began to mist up. “I think everyone wonders from time to time what they would do if something were to happen to them. The old what-if-the-world-is-going-to-end-tomorrow question, you know?” He looked back at Jenny, locking into her gaze with his. “What would you say to your friends and family? How would you say goodbye? Would you apologize for all your perceived failings or would you go down unapologetically in a blaze of glory?” He shook his head and gave a sad smile. “Almost as soon as the thought comes, it’s dismissed. When you’re twenty something years old, how bad can your life get, right? And, really, what are the odds of the world ending in the near future? But then the inevitable ends up happening, and you realize that you never got the opportunity to finish it the way you wanted to.” He looked up and gestured toward the football team photographs that used to flank the couch in his old apartment. “Then all you’re left with are memories, photographs, regret, and a whole lot of goodbyes that you wish you could’ve said.”
Jenny sighed and leaned against him. “One of the things that makes life interesting is that nobody knows how or when they’re going to go. In a perfect world, maybe you would’ve made all those plans and given all your fond farewells, but we don’t live in a perfect world. You can’t change what happened, but I think you can at least be consoled by the knowledge that you didn’t need to say anything for your friends and family to know how you felt about them.” Her smile was loving, and he found it hard to remain pessimistic in the face of her unwavering support.
“I know,” he answered, tightening his arm around her. “But there’s something to be said for closure. And maybe I needed a moment to…mourn what I lost.”
Jenny nodded lightly. “I understand,” she said. “Just don’t spend so much time reliving your past that you forget about the present.” Her voice was quiet, the words almost solemn, and he understood immediately that he hadn’t been the only one to stare at the surrounded mementoes and remember what was while lamenting what could never be again. She had already made peace with the past, and had probably done so before coming to join him in Gotham City. It could be upsetting having to relive that experience through someone else’s eyes, and that thought above any others made him decide that he had already found the closure he needed, if only through her.
CJ gave a quick outrush of breath and a genuine smile. “I wouldn’t dare,” he said. “The present certainly has its advantages, and I think you and Junior are proof that the future won’t be so bad, either.”
She wrapped her arms around him and cocked her head to the side, her eyes taking on a mischievous twinkle. “Rather than spending your time down here surrounded by the ghosts of the past, you need to get out and gloat a little. After all, you just saved countless lives. If that isn’t worth a little ego trip, I don’t know what is.”
“I don’t know. Gloating’s not really my style.”
Jenny’s expression became incredulous, and she pressed the back of her hand against his forehead. “Are you feeling all right? The man I married used to love to gloat, especially during family gatherings. Your dad’s already done a fair amount of it himself since he returned from watching your escapades. Why should he get to have all the fun?”
CJ shook his head and smiled. “Good point.”
With that, Jenny stood, although her hand remained locked in his. He got to his feet, and a moment later they exited the room hand-in-hand. Before closing the door, he took one last look at the collected memories of a lifetime, mentally said goodbye, then turned off the light. As Jenny tugged him down the hallway, he left all his emotional baggage behind and turned his attention to the present once and for all. “So, how’s your mother been doing?” he asked.
They started to ascend the drab stairwell to the next level of the mansion. “Once you and your father left, the rest of us got pulled out onto the course to take over for you guys, and she started having fun despite how much she almost seemed to be trying to keep herself upset.”
“What, she wasn’t intimidated by Bruce?” CJ asked, his eyebrow raised in anticipation.
“No, I just think she wasn’t intimidated by his golf game.” They both laughed and continued onward and upward, toward their assembled family and the first complete gathering since the crash. It would be like old times, but the beginning of a whole new era, as well.
***
Dick Grayson took a sip from his now nearly empty mug of beer, looked at his watch, and sighed. Although Superman had said that the Wayne clan would be arriving around 8, it was now almost an hour later and there was no sign of them. In a moment of blind, stupid optimism, Dick had decided to come see his old mentor again, although after the passage of time and couple of drinks he was finding the desire to reconcile with Bruce fading. He wasn’t sure why, exactly, he thought this would be the magical night that all the bad blood between the two of them would go away, although he suspected that the likely presence of Superman was a large part of it. Superman was the one person that Dick respected more than anyone else on the planet, and his almost fatherly words of encouragement atop that factory had helped to spawn a feeling that Dick hadn’t felt in a long time: hope. With hope, almost anything was possible, even an unlikely reunion with someone who Dick still didn’t entirely forgive.
Hope was one of the last emotions on Dick’s mind as he took a long look at his surroundings before finishing his drink. Juliani’s was a popular social gathering place with a unique atmosphere, comfortable lounge and colorful history, but it was primarily known for the upscale clientele that frequented its restaurant. He hated places like this, especially since he had walked away from Bruce Wayne and the lifestyle that he represented. It wasn’t just the expensive drinks or the endless beat of techno music coming from the overly loud sound system, it was the people and their attitudes, the butt kissing and flattery that seemed to flow whenever someone rich and famous showed up. He had personally met most of the people in town worth meeting, and knew what kind of shallow personalities generally lurked behind the famous smiles. There wasn’t enough beer in the bar to keep him around much longer, especially when faced with the rapidly increasing crowd of people.
Dick was seriously pondering walking out of Juliani’s and never looking back when the rear door to the establishment opened. Normally, the door was fairly private, almost invisible to other patrons of the restaurant and lounge, but Dick had situated himself so that he could see it through a reflection in the large mirror over the bar. As Dick watched, a vaguely familiar young woman entered the building and started down the hallway, followed by an older couple. The three turned as they reached the entryway to the restaurant’s private dining area. Dick’s mouth went flat with disappointment, but he couldn’t stop watching. Soon enough, the rear door opened again, and someone very familiar entered the building, followed by a host of men and women who seemed just familiar enough that their identities could be assumed. Dick stood as they filed toward him, and his mouth went dry as Bruce Wayne finally arrived, the last to enter, a cellular phone to his ear.
So intently did Dick stare at Bruce Wayne, that he momentarily missed a familiar voice call out to the bartender from right next to him. As he turned his head, he saw Sam Wayne, complete with his fake glasses, high-end wardrobe, and well-coiffed hair. Dick stared for a moment, then cleared his throat, drawing the slightly annoyed glance of his companion. Almost immediately, Sam Wayne’s expression changed to one of good-humored familiarity.
“Well, Dick Grayson! Holy revelation in flannel,” he said as he thrust out his hand. “We had a bet going as to whether or not you would show up. Looks like I won.” Dick reached out to shake the offered hand, but before he got a chance to speak, Sam Wayne looked past him. “Hey Jon,” he said, using his free hand to point at Dick. “Look who’s here.”
Startled, Dick turned back toward the hallway, and saw Jon Kent coming toward him, his expression congenial. “Mr. Kent,” he said, releasing Wayne’s hand and extending it toward Kent.
“Mr. Grayson. It’s nice to finally meet you. The real you, that is,” Jon Kent said.
“Likewise,” Dick said, shaking his hand. It was amazing, Dick thought. Having already met the Crimson Superman and seen pictures of the man who stood in front of him, he had been pretty sure he knew what to expect if they ever met in real life. The real Jonathan Kent, though, was startlingly, almost disappointingly ordinary. Dick had expected the alter egos of the Supermen to be magnetic and imposing even without the costume, their sheer force of personality and inherent strength making them stand out. Their very presence had always been heady enough that he wondered how a pair of glasses and change of clothing managed to give them private lives without everyone knowing who they really were. The man in front of him now, though, could easily get lost in a crowd, and it wasn’t just because of the wardrobe. He didn’t seem powerful or strong, and he didn’t carry himself with the air of authority that always seemed to follow his alter ego. When he stood, his posture was relaxed, his expression was amiable, almost amused, and his handshake was something short of firm. It was disconcerting to be faced with such a dichotomy, but as someone who had to maintain his own identity, he supposed it was comforting, too.
Beside them, Wayne gave a drink order to the bartender, then turned back to Jon and Dick. “So, you owe me twenty bucks,” Wayne said to Jon.
Jon gave a sarcastic grin, then held his hand out toward Wayne. “Can you loan me twenty bucks? I need to pay back this rich guy who likes to swindle wage slaves out of their hard earned cash to prove a point.”
Dick tried not to laugh. It was easy to forget that the two men beside him were brothers, although the banter made it obvious. The interplay was amusing, but also educational.
Sam Wayne flashed a sly smile then shrugged. “If you can’t pay, then you shouldn’t play,” he said. “I would take payment in beverages, though, I suppose.” Two drinks were placed beside him at that moment, and he cocked an eyebrow at his brother, whose expression was now icy. Kent reached down for his wallet and paid the tab, causing a triumphant smile to form on Wayne’s face as he picked the beverages up. After another moment of silent interplay, Wayne turned to Dick and gestured toward the dining room. “You’re welcome to join us for dinner,” he said. “It would be nice to get to know the real you, and I know other members of our little entourage feel the same way.”
Dick tried to smile, but the thought of seeing Bruce again, face to face, made him freeze up momentarily. Jon Kent and Sam Wayne exchanged glances, turned toward the rear of the restaurant, then looked back toward Dick.
“He went out back to conduct a little business over the phone,” Sam Wayne said, apparently sensing the source of Dick’s apprehension. “I guess having one of your factories bombed makes you a popular guy.”
“One would think,” Dick answered, more relieved than earlier, but still apprehensive. “Are you sure it’s okay?”
“I’m sure,” Sam Wayne answered. “And since I’m paying, that’s all that matters.”
Dick couldn’t argue with that logic, and with a slight nod, he followed the brothers into the dining room. For a moment it felt like he was intruding on a private party, although he reminded himself that he had been invited, and probably half the people around him were hardly strangers. He stood tall and forced his sudden timidity away as all eyes in the room seemed to lock onto him, appraising him, though none seemed upset at his presence.
Sam Wayne looked over his shoulder to make sure that Dick had closed the door behind him, then turned back toward the crowd. “Everyone, I’d like you to meet Dick Grayson,” he said. “He’s part of the local wildlife, a former associate of Bruce’s, and he helped us on the case today. We invited him to our little soiree to show our appreciation.”
After the group collectively nodded, Sam Wayne introduced the people in the room to Dick. The first couple, an older man and woman, were introduced as Wayne’s in-laws, or at least his former identity’s in-laws. The man, Randy, was pleasant and seemed at ease, but his wife Sheryl seemed a little overwhelmed, and Dick could certainly sympathize. If he allowed himself to think about the accomplishments of all the people gathered in the room, he felt a little dizzy himself.
Jon Kent had settled into an empty chair next to the in-laws, and seated next to him was his wife Diane. Diane Kent was at first blush an intimidating woman. Unlike the rest of the assembled Kent clan, she seemed outwardly cynical and calculating, her body language less than friendly. When Dick was told that she was a cop, he wasn’t surprised in the least. It was startling, then, that when her husband touched her, or leaned in to say something to her, the unwelcoming façade melted away, replaced by a smile that was beautiful and radiant. She seemed to be two people at the same time, the hard policewoman and the soft, pleasant woman that her husband coaxed out of her. That seeming duality probably helped her to fit in very naturally with this family. When Sam Wayne introduced her to Dick, she responded with a cordial smile and a nod, although he could tell that she was sizing him up, watching him, like a good detective would. He liked her, Dick decided, returning her smile with one of his own.
The next couple needed no introduction. Clark Kent, like his eldest son, was a vision of normalcy outside of the spandex. Although he was probably only a dozen years younger than Bruce, Clark didn’t appear to be a day over thirty. It was a fact that hadn’t occurred to Dick when he had been in Superman’s presence, probably because he was, well, Superman, someone who had always seemed to be just as much of an unchanging part of the landscape as the skyline that he flew above. Here, though, surrounded by family, it was hard not to notice that his children seemed more like siblings. Lois, by comparison, had aged gracefully, but time had also been very kind to her. Her husband might be a good reason why.
Sam Wayne knelt between his parents, draped his arms over their shoulders, and smiled. “Dick, I’d like you to meet my mom and dad.”
For a minute, Dick couldn’t speak as he looked at the trio. When he had first met the new Batman, he hadn’t really seen his resemblance to Superman, although Dick would be the first to admit that his memory was a little fuzzy as to what the famous superhero looked like in person. Then, after working with both in close proximity, he admitted to seeing some similar features, but nothing that would convince him of their relationship if not for the powers. But as Sam Wayne knelt between his parents, there was absolutely no doubt about his pedigree. It wasn’t just his strong resemblance to his mother that made the picture complete, it was the impish smile he shared with the civilian version of his father and the sparkle in both their eyes. Now that Dick knew Sam Wayne a little better, he could also see the keen intelligence hidden beneath the exterior, not unlike his mother.
“Ma’am, sir, it’s an honor,” Dick said as he shook hands with them.
“I’m glad you were able to come. I’ve heard so much,” Lois said to Dick, then glanced over her shoulder. “It’ll be nice to finally be able to sort out the truth from the fiction.”
“Are you implying I’m a little flexible with reality?” Wayne asked her.
Lois Lane raised an eyebrow and just smiled at him knowingly. “Sweetheart, you have three identities right now. Don’t forget, I also have a well-functioning mom-radar that’s been detecting your little distortions since the first time you snitched on your brother….”
“I missed you, Mom,” Wayne said, leaning over to give her a peck on the cheek as she rolled her eyes.
Beside them, Clark Kent laughed gently, then regarded Dick. “You look a little nervous,” he commented.
Nervously, Dick grabbed for his arm and shrugged. “Too many nights alone on darkened roofs and too many years out of high society,” he said, smiling weakly. Clark smiled knowingly.
“Don’t let the junior executive fool you,” said the woman seated next to Clark. As Dick looked at her closely, he couldn’t help but notice that her stomach seemed a little out of proportion with the rest of her. “We’re hardly high society, and we’ve all seen our fair share of lonely nights atop darkened rooftops. You’ll fit right in.” She approached him and held out her hand. “Jennifer Kent. I’m the grieving widow.”
If Dick squinted his eyes and blurred his vision, he could see why she seemed a little familiar at first glance. “Oh, sure. I’ve seen your picture,” he said, taking the offered hand.
She gave a long-suffering sigh. “You and half the country,” she said. “This one, though, is a new addition to the tabloid pages,” she said, motioning to Laura Kent, the final family member, who was separated from Jenny by an empty chair.
“Laura,” Dick said with a nod. Out of uniform, his teenaged rooftop companion finally looked her age. “You’re Sam Wayne’s hot new date, huh?”
Laura Kent rolled her eyes and fidgeted ever so slightly, looking toward her father for comment, although he didn’t offer any.
With the introductions out of the way, Dick settled into an empty chair and listened as the conversations started up again, feeling more at ease with each passing moment. Snippets of anecdotes were relayed, stories that were tantalizingly interesting, and he would have loved to hear more of if given time. This was a family that functioned remarkably, Dick mused, even though it had every opportunity to be dysfunctional. Given his experience with the Bruce Wayne school of heroes and secret identities, he would never have thought it possible to don the spandex and still live a normal, loving home life, but the Kents seemed to handle it just fine.
He was just beginning to truly enjoy the company when the door to the dining room opened and the patriarch of the Wayne family walked in. Bruce didn’t look around as he entered, concentrating his focus on Lois and Clark, and apparently missing the stranger in the room. “Sorry for the delay,” he said, swiftly walking toward the head of the table. “Hopefully we won’t have any more interruptions.” His demeanor seemed pleasant, but not in the phony way that Dick was well acquainted with.
Bruce sat down next to Clark Kent and immediately turned toward Sam Wayne and smiled. “The kid’s already proving to be a good investment,” he said, bringing smiles to the faces of the assembled family members, but the smiles seemed strained. Nobody seemed to want to point out that Dick was there, but their expressions said more than words ever could. As all the other sets of eyes settled on Dick, Bruce finally saw him, and for a moment his smile seemed to falter.
“Dick,” Bruce said quietly, a hint of surprise in his voice.
“In the flesh,” Dick answered. He attempted to muster a smile, but the memories from years ago wouldn’t let him. It was hard to decide how to feel, faced with a man who had done so much to shape his life, both for the bad and for the good.
“Dick helped CJ with the ARB case,” Clark said, trying to break the uncomfortable silence. “He was good sport about the whole thing, so we went ahead and invited him here tonight.”
Bruce looked toward Clark, a brief flash of anger in his expression before it went blank and became completely unreadable. That neutral expression had always aggravated Dick more than anything, if only because it meant the end to discussion and reasoning. Once Bruce pushed away his emotion, his mind was made up, and the decision he made would not be pleasant for the person he was regarding. Far from shying away from Bruce’s blank stare, though, Clark raised his eyebrows, then smiled. It was the same maddeningly charming expression that his son had mastered.
Watching the interplay between the two willful heroes was fascinating, but it only lasted a second. “I also thought it was appropriate that he be here tonight because, really, he’s family,” Sam Wayne said, the statement appearing to catch even himself off guard. He blinked a couple of times, gave a half smile, and looked curiously at Dick. “We both fell on hard times, were both taken in by Bruce, and were both taught the ways of being a detective and entrusted with the ultimate secret: who the Batman was. In a way, maybe that makes us, I don’t know, adopted brothers.”
Dick nodded gently, although he was too shocked to speak. As his mind struggled to digest the statement, he looked around, noting the smiles that were regarding him. He hazarded a glance toward Bruce, and was equally surprised to see that the old man was also affected by the statement.
“He just needs someone to pick on now that he’s not around Jon all the time,” Jenny chipped in, lightening the mood. Dick smiled, though he couldn’t look away from Bruce. Soon enough, Bruce turned toward him, and although he seemed to be trying to emulate the stony exterior that he was famous for, he couldn’t hide a look of regret. In a way, it was the apology that Dick had been waiting for all those years.
“In that case, I say welcome to the family,” Jon said, drawing snickers from several people in the room. Dick and Bruce just looked at each other, and he knew that the reconciliation had come. Later that night, after the food had been served and the atmosphere had morphed from the calm family gathering to the party for the new hero, he and Bruce would probably go out to the bar and talk, maybe catch up on what had happened over the past quarter century, and mend their fences. Until then, Dick supposed, he would enjoy the company, and would be sure to thank Sam Wayne for making it all possible.
Soon enough, the heavy mood seemed to relax, and the room took on a low hum as several conversations started up at the same time. Somewhere in the middle of the socializing, a waitress came in, took the food order, and it seemed as if only a couple of minutes had passed before the meal was served. The Juliani’s staff provided everything the group needed, then promised to leave the family alone until summoned. Almost before the door had closed behind the last of the wait staff, Sam Wayne took his glasses off. He then reached for his button-down shirt, grabbed it with two hands, and pulled it open, revealing a faded, snug, Metropolis University football t-shirt underneath. From the back of his pants, he produced a baseball cap, which he put on backwards after running his hand through his hair a couple of times. In a matter of moments, he transformed from a prototypical member of the moneyed elite to the average college jock. All of a sudden, his personality seemed a perfect match to his wardrobe, and the real Sam Wayne, the one that was social to the point of almost being over the top, began to blossom.
“I’m free!” he said, easing comfortably into his chair. “Back for a limited, one night only engagement.”
Laura, seated beside Dick, nudged him in the ribs. Started, he turned toward her, but as soon as he did, she nodded toward her brother. “I know you’ve seen a lot of different sides of my brother, but let me assure you, THAT’S the real deal.”
“And what about you?” Dick asked her.
Laura, who had never been fazed by his questions and wasn’t about to start now, arched an eyebrow and looked down at herself. “Hey, with me, what you see is what you get, no matter what the wardrobe.”
“And your family? They don’t seem all that embarrassing,” Dick answered, but Laura only smiled.
“Just wait,” she said.
Dick smiled at her, then turned back toward the main attraction. Sam Wayne was looking curiously at the scattered buttons that had been torn off as he opened his shirt. “You must spend a fortune at the tailor’s,” he said to his dad.
“One word: Velcro,” said Lois. Clark raised an eyebrow and reached down, revealing a small strip of Velcro holding his shirt together. Sam Wayne stuck out his lower lip, cocked an eyebrow, and nodded.
Dick turned back toward Laura, who just gave him her best I-told-you-so expression, one that was much more pointed when not muted by the mask. He couldn’t help but laugh. From that point on, he had no problems participating in the increasingly colorful conversations. At one point, Jon Kent leaned across the table and gave Dick pointers on making the most of his role as Sam Wayne’s new adoptive big brother. Dick promised that the advice would not fall on deaf ears, and started planning ways in which to assert his new position. Somewhere in the middle of the socializing, it began to occur to him that this was the beginning of something that had the potential to change how he lived his life. From here on out, loneliness would no longer be his constant companion, and a friendly ear was no more than a phone call or a cry for help away. Finally, after years of resenting Bruce Wayne for his intrusion in his life, Dick could now silently thank him, if only for giving him the opportunity to be a part of this new, wonderful family.
***
8 months later
CJ couldn’t wipe the smile off his face for the entire trip. Even before leaving Gotham City, Metropolis pulled at him like a magnet, guiding him along the highway and ultimately into his old neighborhood. Soon enough, he was piloting the car down the street where he had grown up, and into the driveway of the house that he had feared he would never see again. After the better part of a year, he was home.
The old neighborhood never changed, he decided as he cut the engine and looked at the house for a moment. The last year had seen his death and rebirth, had seen the establishment of his new identity and his success both in the business world and the underworld, yet the house seemed untouched by the passage of time. The flowers still bloomed in the same places they always had, the bushes stayed perpetually two feet tall, thanks to regular pruning, and the dead potted plants that had been sitting on the stoop were just as dead now as they had always been. CJ’s dad had always referred to them as “Mom’s garden,” and kept them around, though CJ could never figure out why. It was probably another one of those private jokes his parents shared, little things that CJ never understood but always enjoyed.
The sound of an uncomfortable squeal brought CJ’s attention back to the car, and he glanced into the rear view mirror to see its source. Before he could react, though, he heard the sound of the passenger door closing behind his wife. As the baby started to squirm and his face distorted in anticipation of a full-blown fit, CJ couldn’t help but smile. Adam was a miracle in so many ways that he would never know. In a world where CJ Kent would ultimately be remembered for nothing so much as dying young, his son would represent his the lasting legacy, ensuring that CJ’s name and memory would never be allowed to be forgotten. More importantly, though, he was also the anchor that tied the new Wayne family to CJ’s old family, which made trips like this possible.
CJ liked to think that Adam would also be his proxy in a way. Although he was only a couple of months old, CJ swore he could see mischief and keen intelligence reflected in his son’s eyes. The timing of some of the things he did was almost too perfect to be coincidental, but it was only conjecture at this point. Even his birth was timed perfectly, coinciding with a several day break in the raging mid-winter snowstorms that had pummeled Gotham. The storms had made things pretty quiet, crime-wise, when Adam entered the world, although CJ supposed that it wouldn’t have mattered anyway. It would’ve taken something just shy of the apocalypse to tear CJ away from his son’s birth, but the ebb in crime made Batman’s disappearance less obvious. It helped that Dick Grayson, now a regular social guest at Wayne Manor, had agreed to keep a watch over the city for a while after Adam’s birth.
The rear car door opened, and Jenny made comforting sounds as she unhooked the latches on the baby seat and lifted Adam up. CJ decided that he should probably tackle the baby bags, and forced himself into action. He got up and went around to the trunk of the car, looking around somewhat nervously for nosy neighbors before shaking his head and proceeding to the task at hand. The date chosen to venture back to Metropolis just happened to correspond with the yearly vacation time for at least one of the more outwardly social neighbors, and the time of day of their arrival was meant to mitigate the possibility of running into the rest. Even with his new wardrobe, hairstyle, and glasses, CJ was pretty sure he’d never be able to fool the neighbors into believing he was anyone other than, well, CJ Kent. Rather than be nervous about the potential of discovery, though, it was better to trust in their detailed planning and not let himself get upset at something that he couldn’t do anything about at this point.
Almost as soon as he had weighted himself down the collection of various bags, CJ’s parents emerged from the house and rushed to greet Jenny and the baby. It wasn’t the first time they’d met Adam, but that was hardly common knowledge to the world at large. Clark had flown Lois to the manor the day Adam had come home from the hospital, and there had been plenty of fawning at that time. This was their first public meeting, though, and they were certainly making the most of it. CJ wasn’t sure what it was about babies that turned normally rational adults into cooing, blubbering messes, but his parents weren’t any more immune to it than anyone else. Neither was he, CJ though with a wry smile as he closed the trunk, arranged the bags around himself, and stepped toward the rest of the family. Even Bruce had been taken in by Adam’s charms, a fact that CJ found interesting and was willing to exploit if he had to.
The baby was quickly pacified by all the smiling faces surrounding him, and seemed almost overwhelmed for a moment. “Who are those weird people?” CJ asked as he looked over Jenny’s shoulder.
“We’re the people who will give you all the attention in the world for the next couple of hours, then hand you back to your parents as soon as the time comes to do all the icky stuff. Yes we are,” said Lois, her voice high-pitched and syrupy. She waved her finger at Adam, who seemed fascinated with her.
Laura joined them outside, and as she stood behind her parents, she smiled smugly. “Are you sad because you’re not the baby in the family anymore?” CJ asked her.
“If it means that someone else gets all the attention for once, then no, I’m not sad at all. I’m yesterday’s news and I couldn’t be any happier about it if I wanted to be. I feel free at last.” Laura had teenage sarcasm down to an art, CJ was sure, and he felt like it was almost his obligation to help chase that sarcasm away. Besides, he was supposed to be the wiseacre in the family.
“Here, if you’re so free,” he said, stepping around the rest of the family, shrugging several of the bags off his shoulder and thrusting them in her direction. “You can be a good little sister and help me out.” He couldn’t help but smile at her consternation as she reluctantly took the offered luggage. “Come on,” he said, wrapping his unencumbered arm around her shoulder and guiding her toward the house. The rest of the family took that as their cue, and followed behind.
Adam was well aware that he was the center of the universe as they all gathered around him in the living room. Everyone got a chance to hold him, and he made his best effort to be adorable, bringing an ample amount of baby talk from the assembled family. CJ hovered in the background, letting Jenny take the lead as Laura, Lois, and Clark fawned over Adam. After a while, CJ began to feel an acute stab of hunger, no doubt a byproduct of the meager breakfast that he’d managed to grab before leaving that morning. Silently, he took a step away from the gathering and headed toward the kitchen, making a beeline for the refrigerator and the treasures that it held. Swinging the door open, he smiled widely as he beheld the assortment of Little Debbies and Hostess snacks that his dad hoarded and his mother actively ignored. They probably wouldn’t mind if he took one or two treats off their hands, he thought, reaching for the snacks and a can of pop. He straightened up and began to swing the door closed, letting out a yelp as he realized that he was not alone.
“Sorry,” Clark said with an amused smile. “I saw you heading toward the kitchen and thought I’d join you.”
CJ held up the handful of goodies. “You want one of these?” he asked. His dad nodded, paused for a moment, then grabbed for the cupcakes. Without another word, the two made their way toward the kitchen table, took a seat, and dove into their food.
“So,” Clark said after a few moments. “You’ve been a father for two whole months now. Does it feel any less surreal yet?”
CJ raised his eyebrows, looked Clark in the eye, and shook his head. “What about the grandfather thing?” he asked.
“We don’t use the g-word around here,” Clark said, his tone humorous. “Either of them. They imply old age and I sure don’t feel old enough to be a…you know.”
CJ smiled. “Denial is not just a river in Egypt,” he said, and they both chuckled.
“At least being a g-word comes with limited responsibilities. We get all the fun and don’t have to deal with all the rest of it.”
“Well, you know, I could probably hire someone to deal with the rest of it, but it just seems like cheating. Besides, even if it means dealing with toxic baby emissions, I find myself wanting to be there to experience all of his life and not abdicate that to hired help.” The thought of baby emissions caused CJ’s eyebrows to knit together, and he looked down at the food he was holding, silently asking his stomach what it thought. When there were no protests, he shrugged and took another bite.
“You only get one chance to see them grow up,” Clark said. “One day you’re grousing about diaper duty, and the next they’re heading off to college.”
“Kind of makes you want to stick around and not miss it, which kind of makes you become a homebody, even if you never had been before.” Things changed, CJ mused. The very though of watching life pass by outside his windows used to scare him, to the point that he almost forgot what the inside of his apartment looked like when he was in college. Home was a place to keep your stuff, not a place to spend your life. But somehow, now that home also contained a family, it became the place to be.
“So has your alter ego suffered because of your new worldview?” Clark asked. He could probably write volumes about what it meant to juggle a career, a secret identity, and a family, although he seemed genuinely interested in CJ’s take on it.
“I wouldn’t say he’s suffered at all,” CJ joked. He smiled at his father for a minute, then looked down at the table. “Seriously, though, the urge to go out there and clean up the streets hasn’t gone away since Adam came along. It surprised me for a moment, but then I realized that there’s more than one reason to go out there and fight. All the old ideology still holds true, and there’s still plenty of work to do, but now I also have an added motivation. Stopping bad guys, saving lives, ridding the streets of drugs, all those things make the world a better place for my child. It seems kind of corny to say, but it’s amazing what lengths you would go to because of it.”
“It’s not corny or surprising at all,” his dad said, his tone soft and serious. “It’s just the natural reaction of a responsible father.” A half-smile formed on his lips and he reached out and ruffled CJ’s hair, just like he used to do years ago. “You’ve grown up, kiddo. Who would’ve thought, huh?”
CJ bobbed his head in agreement. If that’s what growing up meant, then so be it, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t still be a kid at heart. Being responsible didn’t have to come at the expense of his sense of humor, or his sense of fun. “I may be grown up, but somehow I found my way back here to Neverland,” he said, looking around.
“Where nothing ever changes?”
“It’s like you freeze dried this place the day I left and thawed it out this morning.”
Clark smiled. “I think you might be surprised.”
CJ raised an eyebrow, but didn’t pursue the comment. “Speaking of surprises,” Clark continued, pointing to CJ’s left hand. “I can’t believe you’ve managed to keep that thing hidden from the tabloids as long as you have.”
Clark was referring to CJ’s new wedding band, which was more cumbersome and gaudy than his old wedding band, although the sentiment it represented hadn’t changed at all. Their remarriage had been quiet, the ceremony performed on the Wayne Manor grounds by a magistrate who was also a family friend. The only witnesses had been Bruce, Adam, and Susan. It was the polar opposite of their last wedding, but somehow the intimacy made it that much more special.
CJ shrugged. “We’ve been taking your advice and haven’t given them any bait. After while they just went away and never came back. I’m sure that one day word will get out and our pictures will be splashed all over the tabloids. Until then, though, it’s sure nice to have a life that’s private. You don’t realize how much you take that for granted until it’s gone.”
“Look who you’re talking to,” Clark said, his expression showing that he found the media’s intrusiveness humorous rather than burdensome. “So, you’re a real family again. That must be a relief.”
“We’re a conventional family masquerading as an unconventional family, and that’s kind of weird. It’ll get a lot weirder if the poor kid ends up looking like me.”
Clark smiled somewhat uncomfortably and captured CJ’s eyes with his own. “And what if he does? What are you going to tell him?” he asked.
CJ took another bite of his snack and chewed thoughtfully for a second. “I’ve thought about that a lot, to be honest,” he said. “Do I let him know from the beginning that I’m his real dad and not just his stepdad? Do I let him believe what the whole rest of the world believes, and then tell him the truth before nature starts to take its course and he develops powers? Or do I just ignore the situation and let him come to me? Maybe one day when he’s a teenager and well on his way to becoming bulletproof, he’ll decide that he needs to consult the only other bulletproof guy in town, and he’ll find himself on top of Gotham’s tallest building staring the local superhero in the eye.”
Clark laughed gently, then looked down at his hands. “It wasn’t my plan for you to find out that way, you know.”
“Oh, I figured. You can’t plan for something like that,” CJ said with a chuckle. “But I was never upset about the way the revelation happened. And now that I’m faced with the decision of what to do myself, I’m beginning to think that your approach to things was the way to go, even if the execution maybe wasn’t the best.”
“What made you decide that?” Clark asked, surprised. He probably thought that CJ, Jon, and Laura all harbored some sort of internal trauma about the way the family secret was revealed to them, but nothing could be further from the truth. The temporary trauma went away when things were put into perspective, and CJ knew that his siblings were also acutely aware of what their father’s thought process was, especially now that they all had their own secret identities to protect.
“I just imagined what I would’ve done if I’d have known the big secret as a kid.” CJ smiled. “You know how kids do the whole my-dad-could-beat-up-your-dad thing? I wouldn’t have been able to resist the opportunity to say, ‘Oh yeah? Well my dad is Superman.’ Kids like to show off. They also live in a world where certain things are absolute, and having someone refer to me as his stepfather when he knows otherwise would surely bring a completely innocent revelation. Rather than put that kind of responsibility on his head, I’ll let him live an innocent childhood and give him the truth when he’s old enough to protect it.”
“So you aren’t concerned that he might resent you for keeping that from him?” Clark asked.
CJ shrugged. “I didn’t resent you for keeping your secret,” he answered.
Clark nodded gently, but his face was pensive as he looked toward CJ. “This is a different situation, though. Spandex aside, you always knew I was your father. You might not have known all aspects of who I was, but you knew the basics.”
“And I knew that you loved me,” CJ said. “I think that trumps biology. Adam will grow up knowing that even though his father supposedly died before he was born, he still loved him. Likewise, even though I’ll just be his stepfather, at least as far as he knows, I’ll make it darn clear that I love him, too. It’s hard being too mad at someone when you know that they’re only looking out for what’s best for you.”
“Well,” Clark said, his expression becoming amused and almost pained at the same time. “That’s all well and good from an ideological standpoint, but reality isn’t usually that kind. Maybe when all the smoke has cleared and he’s come to terms with the truth, there will probably be no hard feelings. When he first finds out, though, rest assured there will be fireworks. I say that out of personal experience.”
CJ nodded, fully understanding his father’s perspective. “I appreciate what you’re trying to say, believe me. I witnessed the ugly aftermath to at least one of the fireworks shows, and don’t think that it didn’t come to mind when I made this decision. It’s just that….”
“I’m not arguing with your approach,” Clark said, putting up his hands. “I think you’ve got it right, I just want to make sure you’re ready for the consequences.”
“Got it,” CJ said. With that, the conversation moved into more mundane areas. They both finished their snacks, but neither seemed particularly motivated to end the first real, one-on-one conversation that they’d had since the day CJ left Metropolis.
After a while, Jenny’s voice called out from the other room. “Clark?” she said.
“Yes?” both CJ and his dad answered in unison. They looked at each other and smiled, both listening as Jenny muttered to Lois and Laura that the response was one of the reasons she decided not to name the baby after his father.
“Are you coming back anytime soon? I think Adam’s beginning to realize that he’s surrounded by women.”
“We’ll be right there,” CJ said. As he stood up, he balled up the used food wrapper and shot it basketball style at the trash can. Clark groaned as it careened off the side. He then followed suit, his wrapper landing squarely inside the can. “He shoots, he scores,” CJ said.
“It’s all in the wrist,” Clark said, demonstrating. CJ laughed lightly and led the way out of the kitchen, toward his waiting family. As he went, he took a long look at the pictures that lined the hallway walls, remembering. Unlike before, though, the memories were happy rather than bittersweet, and he knew it was only a matter of time before future portraits, of Jenny and his family, replaced them. No matter how timeless a place could seem, time marched along. The past gave the present value, but it was the hope of the future that made the present worth living, even when times seemed dark. The dark times were now behind him, though, and the future shined brightly on the horizon.
As CJ entered the living room, he made a beeline for his son, scooping him up and thrusting him high up into the air. Adam let out a squeal of delight, enjoying his momentary flight and the new face that was looking back at him. Genetics had given CJ a respite from death, but it was Adam who gave him a new life, and a new family. It was almost poetic that the last contribution that CJ Kent made to the world would end up being the best part of Sam Wayne’s life. As Adam settled into CJ’s arms, CJ leaned over and planted a gentle kiss on his forehead, then kissed Jenny. It was hard to be anything but grateful for everything that happened with such a wonderful new life.
