From last time:
“Hey honey, what do you think of these borders?” Clark asked as he wandered back toward them, his nose in a book of nursery-themed wallpaper samples. The presence of animals – farm animals, circus animals, jungle animals – dominated the selections. Lois took the proffered book from her husband and turned the pages slowly with Jon.
“That one,” Jon announced as he pointed at a pattern of teddy bears. “Little kids like teddy bears.”
Lois shared a proud and knowing smile with her husband. With the impending arrival of a new baby, Jon had decided to show all the ways in which he was ‘grown up’ and not a ‘little kid.’ He started taking showers instead of baths and indicated that he didn’t want any help. He was picking out his own clothes for nursery school (with an occasional intervention from Mommy or Daddy because galoshes weren’t appropriate when it was going to be warm and sunny) and tying his own shoes. She knew it was natural for him to assert some independence, but it was hard to imagine where the time had gone. Lois hadn’t yet begun to think of him as anything besides ‘her baby’ even as he was growing up. He was going to start kindergarten in the fall, and for the next fifteen or twenty years, carry a backpack with him wherever he went.
“Teddy bears sound good to me,” Clark said.
“Teddy bears it is, then,” she replied.
********
New Stuff:
He handed his young friend a beer and picked up his cue stick. “Whose turn is it to break?” Clark asked as he circled the pool table in the rec room. They rarely used the room if there wasn’t company over, it was a big space, great for entertaining, but not a room they used much as a family.
“Yours,” Jimmy replied as he leaned back against the bar, his beer in hand.
Clark fished the billiard balls out of the net pockets and re-racked them to begin a new game. “So Lucy will be in town next week,” he said as he lined up his shot.
“I know,” Jimmy replied. “She told me about her interview with the PR department of that insurance company.”
Clark broke, knocking two of the striped balls into the pockets.
“How do I know you’re not cheating?” Jimmy asked jokingly.
“If I were cheating, there wouldn’t be any balls left on the table,” Clark said with a grin.
“I think she’s really serious, about moving back to Metropolis,” Jimmy said as Clark sunk another ball.
“It seems like it,” Clark agreed. “She’s pretty excited about this interview.”
“I think maybe she wants us to be serious, too,” Jimmy said, his tone somewhat hesitant.
Clark lined up the 12 ball against a corner pocket and carefully took his shot. But as soon as he’d made contact with the cue ball, he knew he’d missed. The 12 ball rolled slowly toward its intended target, hitting both bumpers at the corners of the pocket and gently rolling away. His consolation was that he’d left Jimmy with a particularly difficult shot to get the three ball into a side pocket. “Is that what you want, too?” he asked, following up on his young friend’s comment.
Jimmy leaned over the table to exam the particularly unhelpful angles of the shot he had to line up. He surprised Clark by banking the ball off the bumper just next to the side pocket. It rolled back toward the middle of the table, striking another solid ball and causing it to roll into the opposite side pocket. “I don’t know, I think so. I mean, I’m not a kid anymore. I got serious about my job, I should probably get serious about my personal life, too. It’s just that…How do you know? I mean, how do you know someone is the person you want to spend the rest of your life with?”
As Jimmy rounded the table, trying to find his next shot, Clark thought about his answer. “I knew right away. Like two seconds after I met Lois, I was in love with her. It took her two years to get to the same place. I don’t think one of us was right and the other wrong. We each needed to figure it out for ourselves.”
Without another shot worth taking, Jimmy settled for playing defensive pool and positioned the cue ball to make Clark’s turn as difficult as possible. “I’m not sure I’m there yet,” Jimmy said as he picked up his beer.
“No one said you have to be,” Clark replied simply. “When you know, you know. You won’t have to wonder. She’ll make you want to be a better man. And being with her will make that possible.”
Jimmy grinned. “No wonder you convinced Lois to marry you.”
Clark gave him a wry smile. “It took a couple of tries. Just be honest with Lucy about how you feel.” He lined up the cue ball, striking it to cause just the right amount of sidespin to curve around the cluster of solid billiard balls in the middle of the table. He managed to tap the nine ball into the far corner pocket. He smiled as he looked at his bemused opponent. “Do I have to warn you about what’ll happen if you hurt Superman’s kid sister?”
Jimmy shook his head. “Sorry, Clark, but I’m not afraid of you. Lois on the other hand…”
Clark laughed. “That’s probably wise,” he said.
********
“You guys did an amazing job,” she said as she admired her husband and father-in-law’s handiwork. The room was a cheerful yellow, much like Jon’s room had been when he was a baby. The white rocking chair and crib looked perfect in their new surroundings.
Clark turned around and smiled at her as he wiped his hands on his paint speckled jeans. “Thanks,” he said.
“Well, this was much easier than building a nursery from scratch,” Jonathan chimed in with a smile.
“It’s still much appreciated,” Lois replied, placing her hand against her stomach where the baby was kicking vigorously.
“Lemonade and oatmeal raisin cookies for the conquering heroes,” Martha declared from the doorway, where she stood, smiling and holding a tray.
“Mom, you’re still the best,” Clark said with a grin as helped himself.
“I want cookies!” Jon shouted from the hallway. He ran into the room, wearing his Superman cape. Their little boy was taking a stronger interested in Metropolis’s resident superhero and just the prior week had proudly declared that when he grew up, he was going to be a superhero, too. It was an announcement that led to a lot of suppressed smiles and knowing looks exchanged among the four adult residents of the household. If their little boy only knew…
“So what do you think of the baby’s room?” his grandmother asked him as she handed him a freshly baked cookie.
“It’s okay for a girl’s room,” Jon announced.
“Just okay?” his mother scoffed.
“It’s a baby’s room,” Jon complained. “Baby’s don’t have any good toys.”
“Well, babies have to play with soft toys, like teddy bears, when they’re little,” Clark said patiently. “When she’s bigger, you can play together with big kid toys.”
“And you can be the one to teach her how,” Lois added. “She’s going to need her big brother’s help.” She moved her hand as the baby decided to kick another spot. It didn’t hurt in the least, but as she moved, Lois couldn’t help but think of all the conversations she’d had with Jon as he’d wondered what the baby was doing in there. Was she smiling? Sucking her thumb? Was she afraid of the dark? Did she need to sleep? Despite his misgivings about having a sister, he was completely fascinated by her.
“Is she kicking?” Martha asked.
Lois nodded. “Sweetie, do you want to feel her kick?” she asked her little boy.
“Doesn’t it hurt when she kicks you?” Jon asked.
“No, honey, it doesn’t hurt,” Lois assured him. “Come here and feel it.”
Jon put his hand on his mother’s stomach. He’d felt the baby kick before, but as the pregnancy progressed her little girl’s movements were more pronounced. Jon leaned close to his mother’s stomach and whispered, “Hey, stop kicking Mommy. It’s not very nice.”
Lois couldn’t help but smile and she heard her husband chuckle. “She’s just restless,” she told her little boy. “She probably can’t wait to come out and meet you.”
“How much longer?” Jon asked.
“Almost two months,” his father told him gently.
Jon patted his mother’s stomach. “You’re taking an awfully long time in there,” he said, causing all the adults in the room to laugh.
********
Clark took the hand his wife outstretched toward him and knotted his fingers through hers. He walked with her on the cobblestone pathway through the park toward the fountain. He’d proposed to her there. And she’d proposed back on the same spot. The day was mild, the breeze welcome and pleasant on his skin. The blossoms on the trees showered little petals upon them as they walked slowly under the canopy they created. The late afternoon sunlight dappled the ground, the rays filtered by the tree branches.
“I love you,” he whispered quietly.
She squeezed his hand gently. “I love you,” she replied.
There were times when he still couldn’t imagine how they’d gotten to this place. How could one man live through so much joy and sorrow? So much exhilaration and so much tragedy? It didn’t make any sense, really. But then, theirs had always been lives less ordinary.
Six years ago to the day, they’d married. In the darkened newsroom, with only his parents as witnesses and a confused editor presiding, they’d exchanged heartfelt vows, holding at bay the tears they’d been fighting so bravely. It was a chaotic and confusing swirl of emotions that swept him up that night. How could he possibly love this one person so much? And after finding her, how could he possibly think about leaving her?
They’d made love that night with a fierce and defiant passion. And their son had been conceived. But before he could find out, before he could bask in the joyous news that he was going to be a father, he’d turned and walked away from the only parents he’d ever known, the only woman he’d ever loved, and the only home he’d ever had.
After years of hopelessness, after having thoroughly and completely given in, the way home was illuminated before him. He’d crawled and clawed his way across the galaxy to get back to his wife. To restart the life he’d cherished. And amidst the anger and violence that had consumed him for so long, that life almost turned to ashes.
But the stubborn woman who now held his hand had refused to give up on him. She’d pulled him back from the brink of darkness and helped him find his way once more.
It would only be mere weeks before their lives drastically changed yet again. Soon, he’d be able to look into his daughter’s eyes, instead of just imagining them. He’d be able to marvel at how small she was, be fascinated by her tiny fingers and toes. He would hold her while she slept and soothe her when she cried. And be there to see her first smile. Her first steps. Her first words.
He would be the father his little girl deserved.
It still pained him that he’d missed all these parts of Jon’s life. It hadn’t been fair to his son. Or to Lois. But it had been the hand they were dealt. Even if control over time had been among his powers, he couldn’t have undone and fixed those mistakes without undoing the very circumstances that had led to his son being conceived. It was like Lois had told him, you couldn’t untangle the good from the bad, sometimes.
She slowed down and then stopped right in front of the fountain. He took both of her hands in his and leaned forward to press his lips to her forehead. “I want to spend the rest of my life with you, Mr. Kent,” she said softly.
“I intend to hold you to that, Ms. Lane,” he said. “I am going to spend every day of my life trying to make you happy.”
“You make me happy every minute of every day we’re together,” she replied.
“Ditto,” he whispered.
********
“Martha? Is Clark still handling those wildfires in California?” Lois asked as her mother-in-law opened the door to the apartment.
“I think so,” Martha replied, still drying her hands on a dishtowel. “I know it’s his night to cook, but I don’t mind getting started on dinner, or we can order in…” Martha began as she stepped aside to let her daughter-in-law enter.
Lois smiled. “It’s not that,” she began, placing her hand on her abdomen. In her other hand, she held her overnight bag. “It’s time.”
Martha gave her a slightly puzzled look. “Time? Oh! Time!” she exclaimed. “Jonathan, come quick! It’s time!”
“Time for what…” her father-in-law began as he approached them. “Oh!” He echoed his wife’s startled reaction. “But the baby isn’t due for weeks!”
“Well, apparently she’s impatient,” Lois said, feeling yet another contraction.
“Do you need to fly? Or should we drive? What should we do, dear?” Martha asked.
Lois smiled, trying to be the calm one. “We can drive,” she said. “Or, well, one of you has to drive.”
“I’ll get the car keys,” Martha said.
“I’ll get Jon,” Jonathan replied. Her in-laws eased passed her, through the doorway, and up the stairs to the main house.
“And I’ll…just wait here,” Lois added with a bemused smile.
********
Clark scanned the entire house as he approached, frowning when he found it empty. Sure, he was late for dinner, but was that reason enough to just abandon a guy for the night? He landed in the library and headed downstairs, figuring someone might have left him a note. At the base of the stairwell, he spun back into the t-shirt and jeans he’d been wearing before the fire had caught his attention on the afternoon news. He dug his hands into his pockets, finding his cell phone.
His cell phone!
He flipped it open, cringing to find that he’d missed seventeen calls. He hit the voicemail button and waited for it to connect.
<<Clark, honey, Lois is in labor…>>> his mother’s first few words were enough to send him back into the suit and rocketing toward STAR Labs. There was no way in hell he was going to let her down like this twice. He was going to be there. He was going to hold her hand. He was going to welcome their daughter into the world.
A few seconds later, Superman landed outside the lab and rushed through security. He made his way to Dr. Klein’s lab, dialing his father’s cell phone number as he walked swiftly through the corridors.
“I’m here,” he said simply when his father picked up.
His father must have moved with super speed because he was there to greet Clark as he reached the door to Bernie’s lab. His father let him into the normally secured lab and once inside, Clark spun back into his own clothes.
“She’s over here,” Jonathan said, leading the way to the space that Bernie had converted into a delivery room.
“All right, Lois, keep breathing,” Bernie coaxed. Lois looked up as he approached and smiled at him.
“Thank god you’re here,” she breathed.
He rushed to take her outstretched hand. “Wouldn’t have missed this for the world,” he said, feeling tears blur his vision.
********
“Lois, how are you doing?” Bernie asked.
“Good,” she said simply. “Trust me, superpowered is the only way to do this.”
“I can imagine,” Bernie deadpanned. “Okay, you’re fully dilated and effaced, it’s time to start pushing.”
Lois nodded somberly. Of all the deliveries Clark had witnessed, this was the most surreal. He’d never imagined what it would be like to see an invulnerable woman go through labor. He kept holding his wife’s hand, as much for his benefit as for hers.
His mother hovered nearby, obviously knowing she’d be needed soon. For now, all she could do was wait. He felt Lois give his hand a squeeze as she concentrated. The contractions were close together now. It wouldn’t be much longer.
He listened as she exhaled a long, deep, slow breath. “Oh wow!” she exclaimed.
“Another contraction?” Clark asked.
“Yes,” Bernie replied. “You’re almost there, Lois.”
She pushed again, her eyes closing as she concentrated. “Come on, sweetheart,” he said softly.
“The head’s crowning!” Bernie declared. Moments later, Clark could hear the sounds of a baby crying.
His baby.
His daughter was crying.
Tears flooded his eyes.
“My, she is beautiful. Why don’t you give me a hand here, Dad?” Bernie asked as he held up the little girl.
Clark rushed to take the towel from his mother’s hand and held it up to wrap his daughter in. “Okay, let’s cut the umbilical cord,” Bernie announced. He clamped the cord and let Clark cut it. Clark took his daughter fully into his arms and rocked her gently to soothe her crying. His vision blurred by a film of unshed tears, he stared lovingly at his little girl. She continued crying, wriggling her little arms and legs, her tiny, perfect fingers and toes.
“Lois, we’re almost done,” he heard Bernie say.
“Hi sweetheart,” Clark whispered, unable to help the giant grin that spread across his face. “Your daddy loves you so much. So does your mommy.” Her cries slowly subsided to soft whimpers.
He carried his daughter to the head of the bed. “Your little girl,” he whispered to Lois.
“She’s so beautiful,” Lois said tearfully.
He nodded and the first tear slipped down his cheek. Clark let his wife take their daughter into her arms. He leaned down to kiss Lois’s forehead. “Thank you,” he whispered. He watched as tears slipped down her cheeks as she looked down at their baby.
“You were right,” he said softly. “She looks like a ‘Keira.’ Keira Lane Kent.”
********
As his wife and daughter lay sleeping, both enjoying a well deserved rest, he slipped out of the lab and floated high into the atmosphere, to the place where the sky was stretched thin. He stared up into the darkness, not knowing which way to look. New Krypton was still easy enough to find, but the planet that had once existed, that had given that little barren space rock its name, could no longer grace any star chart or be seen by any superhuman eye.
“I don’t know what to say,” he began truthfully. “‘Thank you’ has never been adequate. But I think I understand more now about what mattered most to you. How you found the courage to keep fighting. And how much was taken away from you. You never got to see either of your children grow up. You knew more of sorrow and heartache than any person ever should. I wish you could meet both of your grandchildren. I think I know how happy that would have made you. But I can promise you I will take care of them. I will protect them. And when they’re old enough to understand, I’ll tell them about you. Because they need to know where they come from. How brave their grandparents were. And how a good person can change the world.”
********
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to disturb you,” he said softly from the doorway.
She smiled at her husband. “You’re not disturbing us,” she said. “Come inside.” Lois looked back down at her daughter as she nursed contentedly. It was a deeply intimate experience and one she’d always wanted to share with Clark. He sat down in the chair beside her bed and watched silently. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see the look of awe on his face as he admired his baby girl. The thin wisps of brown hair on her head, her tiny little pink ears, the impossibly small nails at the ends of her perfect fingers.
Keira stopped nursing and Lois readjusted the loose-fitting hospital gown she was still wearing and lifted her baby onto her shoulder to burp her gently. “That’s my girl,” she whispered quietly as she lowered Keira back down to cradle her in her arms. Within mere moments, their baby was fast asleep.
“I still can’t believe she’s finally here,” Clark said.
“It was a pretty long nine months,” Lois replied, trying not to think too much about how difficult the first half of the pregnancy had been on both of them.
Clark smiled at her, his eyes suspiciously bright. “She looks like you,” he said softly.
“She has my ears,” Lois replied. “But she has your eyes.”
“She’s perfect,” he said reverently.
“She’s our kid, she couldn’t be anything else,” Lois said as she smiled at her husband.
********
He was awake even before his daughter started crying. The change in her heart rate from peaceful sleep to the distress of an empty tummy or wet diaper was enough to bring him back to the waking world. By the time she’d started to cry, he was in her room, gently lifting her out of her crib. It was definitely the diaper, he realized. After just a week and a half, he was an expert in diaper changing and swiftly dealt with the source of his little girl’s discomfort.
Holding her in his arms, he paced the nursery slowly, hoping to rock her gently back to sleep. “That’s my girl,” he whispered. But instead of falling back into a deep slumber, she stared up at her father with wide, brown, inquisitive eyes.
“I love you, sweetheart,” he whispered as he bent to softly kiss the top of her head. “Your mommy and I are going to take good care of you. You are going to be a happy, healthy little girl. I wish I could say that all your problems in life will be as simple as the ones we can fix with a bottle or a new diaper. But I promise we will be here for you no matter what.”
He walked over to the window with Keira silently lying in his arms. He stared up at the night’s sky, completely free of stars because the bright lights of Metropolis, even at two thirty in the morning, made the light of the stars impossible to see to the ordinary human eye. “It’s a big, crazy, confusing, amazing world out there,” he whispered. “And none of it is going to be foreign to you. You’ll see the world in a way other people can’t. It’s the most incredible thing I can imagine. And I can’t wait to share it with you. But being different like we are means you’ll have to be brave, too. You will see a lot of amazing things in the world, and a lot of things that are going to break your heart. We won’t be able to protect you from all of them. But you will always be loved. And you will never be alone.”
She’d fallen back to sleep in his arms, her tiny chest rising and falling with each deep breath. “I guess that’s all way too much to be worrying about for now,” he admitted with a soft chuckle. “You are, after all, only ten days old.” Carefully, he laid her back down in her crib, letting his fingers brush over the soft down of her hair. Clark leaned down and kissed the top of her head gently. “Good night, honey,” he whispered. “I love you.”
To be concluded...
