I decided to post this now, because I don't think that I would manage to do that on Saturday or Sunday. I hope you like it.
Feedback is welcome.
And thanks again LaraMoon, you'll get the next part ASAP
From Part 1:
“So did you get the job, daddy?” Becca wanted to know. Clark turned to her and tried to smile, but he failed.
“Not yet, Becky,” he replied. “But I’ll try again this afternoon.”
Part 2:
Becca didn’t answer; she only glanced at the boxes that were spread all over the apartment. Clark’s glance followed her gaze. They still needed to unpack things and preferably as soon as possible. He sighed. He would need his laptop to write the article and moreover a place for it. Becca was the queen of unspoken suggestions. One glance was enough to tell anything she wanted to say. That didn’t mean that she usually kept silent. It was just a special ability of hers. Clark knew that she was right.
“You go upstairs, Becca. I’ll do this the quick way and I don’t want you to be anywhere near me, comprende?” he stated firmly, but with a smile on his face. Becca nodded and grinned. Clark was aware that she loved watching him do super-stuff. And sometimes she tended to be more curious than it was good for her.
“Okay, daddy,” Becca replied and went over to the spiral staircase. She climbed it and was out of sight.
Clark scanned the boxes and then vanished into a blur. The books seemingly appeared out of nowhere on the bookshelves. Dishes and clothes found their way into cupboards and wardrobes. The number of boxes diminished. In a few minutes most of the empty spaces in the apartment were filled and it looked even homier than it had before. When Clark was finished there was only one box left and Clark carried it upstairs to Becca’s room.
“Here you are, pumpkin. That’s your job,” he said softly. “You can start to do that while I’m working on an article.” Becca looked at him with disappointment. She had probably hoped that he would spin through her room and place the thousand things she had. But she was old enough to do some things on her own. And after all, she knew where the things should be. He tousled her hair and made his way down the staircase. “It won’t take long, honey.”
“Okay, daddy.” Becca glanced with unhappy eyes at the huge box and sighed. Clark knew that she hated cleaning up. Putting everything her room contained into place had to be hard for her.
When he returned downstairs, Clark walked over to the kitchen where he had left the laptop. He booted up the computer and sat down. Clark launched the word processor and started typing. The old woman had fascinated him. She had told him about the theater and her life. He had felt her grief and all the joy she had felt herself. Jimmy had told him what kind of article Mr. White expected, especially concerning the length of it. Clark had been right, it didn’t take him long to write the article. When he was finished, he printed the document.
“Becca, honey. Please, come down. I want to go to the Daily Planet again,” he said. Rebecca was in front of him in almost no time. He suspected that she would rather go out with him than have to cope with the box. He couldn’t help but smile. “Get your jacket, pumpkin. You know, it’s cold outside.” Clark took his own coat and handed Becca her scarf. “Ready?”
“Yes, daddy,” she smiled and laid her small hand in his big one.
“Okay, let’s go, then.”
It was the first time that they left the apartment and went for a walk trough the streets of Metropolis together. Snowflakes were falling down, but it was still too warm for them to remain on the ground. They could see their breath hanging in the air. Becca told Clark what she had seen today. His parents had taken her to the zoo and to Centennial Park. When Becca mentioned the funny penguins in their black tuxedos, Clark couldn’t help but laugh. She could describe them so vividly that he had the impression of having been there with her. It didn’t take long until the two of them reached the Planet.
At the sight of the building, Clark felt his heart rate increase again. Would Mr. White even listen? After all, he had wanted someone to write the article, but would he accept Clark’s version? Or had he convinced Ms. Lane to write it? Clark assumed that she was a very tough woman. But she surely wasn’t as hard as she claimed to be. Why was he thinking about this woman again? He should be worried about the job, because even if Mr. White printed his article, that didn’t mean he was hired.
Clark swallowed hard when he entered the Daily Planet. Having Becca with him now made it a little easier, despite the earlier rejection. The entrance of the building obviously impressed Becca. Her mouth gaped open and she fell silent. Clark noticed, embarrassed, that he hadn’t really listened to her before. But now that she wasn’t talking he was aware that she had been earlier. Hand in hand they went over to the elevators and took the first one that arrived. In a matter of minutes the two of them reached the newsroom.
Clark’s nerves were frayed and he felt sweat appearing on his forehead. Becca’s presence, though comforting, wasn’t enough to calm him down. Being turned down had been bad enough, but what if it happened a second time and in front of Becca? Clark didn’t want to think about it. She had no idea that he had problems and she never needed to know. Walking across the newsroom hadn’t become any easier. But Becca wore her incredibly sweet smile that melted every heart. This time everyone looking at him was smiling back. Clark felt a rush of gratefulness washing through him. He would read her the best possible story tonight; cook her favorite meal or anything like that.
As they arrived in front of Mr. White’s office, Clark bent down to Becca. “You wait here, pumpkin,” he whispered gently. “It won’t take long.” With a sigh, Clark got up again and gathered all his courage to knock at the door. Mr. White called him in and Clark glanced at Becca for affirmation. She nodded at him and gave him a bright grin. Then he entered the office.
“Mr. Kent!” Mr. White sounded surprised. “What can I do for you? Did you forget something?”
“Uhh, no, Mr. White. Excuse me, it’s just….I overheard that you wanted an article about a closed theatre and that Ms. Lane wasn’t going to write it. I…” he stopped and handed Mr. White the article.
The editor took the paper and began to read it. His face didn’t show any feeling, and left Clark worrying what Mr. White thought about it. Clark wished that reading the minds of others was a part of his powers, but he couldn’t do anything but wait. Time didn’t seem to pass. Clark had no idea if he stood there minutes or hours. Then, finally, the editor looked up and studied Clark’s face.
“You might lack experience, Mr. Kent. But there is one thing that I honor more than this. Courage and initiative are vital character traits of a good reporter. And you have both. Please consider yourself as hired. Welcome to the Daily Planet!” Mr. White said and shook Clark’s hand. Clark barely trusted his ears. He had made it. He had gotten the job! A rush of excitement filled him.
“I…thank you, Mr. White,” Clark stammered.
“I’ll see you on Monday at eight o’clock in the morning, Mr. Kent. We’ve got your address, haven’t we?” He asked. Clark weakly nodded his head. He still couldn’t believe it. It felt like several tons of stone had been lifted from his shoulders and he could breathe more easily.
“I’ll be there,” he managed to reply. ”See you on Monday, Mr. White.” Clark shook the editor’s hand again and was guided out of the room. Something disturbed him about Monday. He couldn’t quite put his finger on it. Suddenly it hit him. Becca’s first day in school! Clark swallowed hard. There was no way he could ask for a day off on his first day at work. That was downright impossible! But how was he going to explain that to Becca? And even worse, how was he going to tell his mother? She would figure out a way to skin him.
A little shaky, Clark returned to the patiently waiting Becca.
“Did you get the job?” she asked curiously.
Clark nodded. “Yes, honey,” he replied absent-mindedly. How was he going to make up for such terrible news for Becca? She definitely didn’t deserve having to go to school for the first time without him to be there for her. Damn, why couldn’t life be easier?
Becca jumped up and down, pulling at Clark’s arm as if she wanted him to do this little dance with her. Clark lifted her up and hugged her. When he set her down again, Clark gave Becca a soft push towards the elevators. Again the reporters in the newsroom were watching him curiously. But this time it didn’t bother Clark. He didn’t need to be nervous anymore. His dream had come true. This moment was almost perfect. Ms. Lane wasn’t around, which disappointed him slightly. They hadn’t reached the elevators when Jimmy approached them.
“Did it work?” he wanted to know and studied Clark’s face nervously.
“Yes. Mr. White has changed his mind.” Clark said happily and a big grin appeared on his face.
“Welcome to the Planet!” Jimmy sighed with relief and returned the smile. ”And who are you?” he turned to Becca.
“I’m Rebecca Kent, his daughter,” Becca replied in a dignified tone and offered Jimmy her hand. “Nice to meet you, Mr. ...”
“Olsen,” Jimmy answered, startled. Clark chuckled as he looked from Becca over to a very bewildered Jimmy, who shook the little girl’s hand.
“You have to say: It’s nice to meet you, too.” Becca whispered. Clark started to laugh. This was just so…Becca. He could have sworn that he had admonished Becca with just these words not so long ago. She made a habit of copying adults.
“I’ll see you on Monday, Jimmy,” Clark laid his hands on Becca’s shoulders to drag her away. “Thanks for everything. I owe you one.”
“No, problem!” Jimmy managed to say. “I’m glad that I was able to help.”
“Good-bye, Mr. Olsen.” Becca waved at Jimmy and went over to the elevators along with Clark.
“Good-bye, Rebecca.” Jimmy replied, obviously still fascinated by the little girl.
* * *
Clark and Becca returned to the street, which was very busy, though it was already getting dark. The wind was even colder than before and Becca started to shiver. Clark looked over to her and drew her closer.
“Come on honey, let’s return home. You can have some hot chocolate, if you like. And I think your grandma left us some cookies,” he offered. He had briefly thought about taking her to the ice-rink in Centennial Park. But there was still a whole weekend to come. And he still had to find a way to apologize for what he would do to her on Monday. There was just no possible excuse for not attending her first day in school, regardless how badly he needed money. But what was he going to do? Give up the job? He couldn’t do that either. Clark really felt bad about this.
Becca agreed to go home. Clark saw that she was tired. It had been a long day for her. Again she laid her hand in his and together they walked towards their new home. This time Becca didn’t speak. She had fallen silent and Clark wondered what was going on under the sweet little curls of her hair. Was she freezing and her mouth to cold to open? Usually Becca never stopped talking.
“Since you have this job now, does that mean that we’re going to stay here?” Becca asked suddenly.
“Becky, I told you that I’d do my very best. I want to find a home as much as you do, honey. Really,” he confirmed when he noticed her doubtful glance. She nodded, but remained silent. He knew that he had disappointed her once too often to make her believe him so easily. He knew that she trusted and loved him. And she could rely on him in almost any possible way. But concerning his abilities, he was unreliable. He hated himself for it, but his need to help was so strong that he couldn’t ignore people in danger.
It was right at this moment that Clark’s promise was tested. He heard screams of fear. People were coughing violently and things were crushing on the ground. Something was burning but sirens from the fire trucks were nowhere to be heard. Hadn’t they been called yet? Clark turned to Becca and lifted her up quickly, ignoring her protests. He knew that she wouldn’t be able to keep up with his pace when he started running. Clark followed the noise and hurried to get there. The fire couldn’t be far away, but he still didn’t hear sirens. He frantically looked out for a payphone, but he didn’t see one. What would he tell the emergency services, anyway? He didn’t exactly know where this fire was.
tbc...
