The obligatory "I-don't-own-any-of-the-characters" line: Of course Superman doesn't belong to me.
The obligatory "Please-review-on-my-story" line: They are nice after all.
It's been three months since Richard left. I can't blame him for doing it. Working for the BBC has always been a dream of his. Plus, what reason did he have to stay in Metropolis? To end up editor-in-chief of the Planet after Perry retired, living with a woman whom he knew loved another man more than himself, and with her child whom he knew wasn't his?
No, I never told him, but I could see it in his eyes sometimes when he looked at Jason. It was undeniable: Jason's intensely blue eyes, his growing strength, his affinity for sunlight. His allergies and frailties were even disappearing almost daily. He no longer needed his inhaler or as many vitamins. And once when I was picking up his room, I thought I saw a pair of small scorch marks on the ceiling.
Richard knew when he asked me that night in the kitchen if I had loved Superman. He knew better when I said, "No." He always did know when I was being less than truthful. He was noble, especially in returning to save Superman during the New Krypton ordeal. He probably saw it then too, while I was lovingly nursing Superman, cradling his head in my lap and removing the toxic kryptonite from his side. The softness in my voice when I exclaimed, "You're hurt!" when he said that he needed to go back. I know that in that moment, I betrayed my true feelings. And though I reassured him that nothing could happen between Superman and me, that I was through with the Big Blue Boy Scout, and though he had held on to that false notion as long as he could bear, Richard finally tired of being runner-up in the race to my heart.
We were doomed. From the moment I saw Superman flash past the small round window of that 777 on that fateful day, he had recaptured my heart, and no matter how much I wanted to deny it, he will always have my heart.
As Lois stood on her balcony, inhaling the crisp night air, feeling the light breeze blowing softly through her hair and her silk robe, she reflected over the past three months without Richard. Superman visited occasionally, coming in the middle of the night to visit Jason after he had gone to sleep. She always made sure to leave the window unlocked for him, because a father deserved to see his son. But he hadn't made any effort to pursue things with Lois. He had made sure to stand at least far enough away from her that she couldn't feel his radiating heat. Whether that was conscious or not, she didn't know.
All she knew is that she wanted to feel that heat again.
She sighed, looking out across the water, seeing the moon reflected in the water, shimmering and undulating with the waves. The stars were out, what few she could see with all the light pollution of Metropolis. Her dream had always been to live somewhere that she could see the stars at night, but her passion for journalism had taken priority, leading her to the big city, where her only exposure to stars was in interviews.
She searched the skies, hoping to see a flash of red and blue, but knowing that if she did, her heart would only ache all the more. She needed to be with him, even if she had to share him with the entire world. She wouldn't be so selfish as to think that she could ever have him all to herself. Despite what she wrote all those years ago, the world does need a savior; she needed a savior.
"I need you, Superman," she whispered, feeling the tears burn behind her eyes. "I need to be with you. I need to love you. I need you to love me. I need for you, me, and Jason to be a family. I love you. I've always loved you." Silently, a single tear fell down her cheek.
Just then, she heard that tell-tale swoosh that signaled the arrival of a certain Man of Steel. As she turned to face him, she wiped away the tear and hoped that her eyes were not red enough for him to tell that she had been crying.
"Good evening, Lois," he said, standing on the other side of the balcony with his fists resting on his hips, far outside her perimeter of personal space.
He must have heard me, she thought, both fearing and rejoicing at the thought.
He took a step forward. "I was just visiting Jason, and I saw you down here. I hope you don't mind my intrusion. I just wanted to see how you were doing."
She crossed her arms across her chest, a futile defense against the growing chill of the night, and the growing warmth in her chest. "I'm doing well," she said. "Very well. Thanks."
But her voice must have betrayed her true feelings, because a look of concern crossed his face.
"Are you sure? You don't sound well. Have you been crying?" He took a few more steps forward, and for the first time since she had taken that piece of kryptonite out of his side, she felt his warmth.
She turned away, looking back out over the water, feeling the flood of tears begin to fall down her cheeks.
"Honestly, no, I'm not well. I'm not well at all. I'm a wreck." She fought to refrain her tears enough to get the words out clearly. "I haven't been well since…" Her head dropped, and her next words came out in a whisper. "…since you left."
She could hold back the tears no longer. She just let them flow, not caring anymore about her pride or trying to appear strong and in control in front of Superman. She just didn't care about seeming weak anymore.
As the tears began to fall freely, Superman was struggling inside. His head told him to keep his distance, to let her cry and just offer her verbal support, like he would any friend who was in distress. You can't get involved with her, he told himself. Look at what you've done to her already. Don't give her false hope that you could be a happy, normal little family. Keep your distance. It's the only way to spare her any more pain.
But his heart said otherwise; his heart told him to rush forward, to gather her in his arms, and to assure her that he did love her and that they could try to make things work. He wanted to kiss away her every tear, to take her up to see the stars, like she always loved doing. He wanted to take away her pain, because he knew that he had caused it. And in his heart, he knew the only way to do that was to let himself love her again.
Ultimately, his heart won out. He closed the gap between them and pulled her to himself. She looked up, surprised and relieved, and then buried her face in his chest, pouring out her heart and soul to him, the only man she had ever truly loved. She didn't care if he understood a word she said; it was simply enough to get it out. But by the way he squeezed her at certain points, she knew that he did understand. He always understood.
When she had cried enough to satisfy her anguish, she stepped back and met his piercing blue eyes with her watery brown ones. They held each other's gaze for several moments. How she longed to kiss him, but she wasn't sure if this sudden display of affection was because of his feelings toward her, his former lover and the mother of his child, or because of his sympathy toward her, a human being in such obvious pain. So she simply continued to look into his eyes, willing him to kiss her.
Can you read my mind? Kiss me. Please, kiss me. Love me. I need you to love me.
But he didn't need to read her mind. He wanted to kiss her as much as she wanted to be kissed, and now that Richard was out of the picture, no matter what his head told him, he did not feel the need to exercise the same self-control he had had that night on the rooftop of the Daily Planet after the first time he had taken her flying since his return. He leaned in and gently placed his lips upon hers.
At first, she simply enjoyed the feeling of his lips on hers, then slowly she began to grow hungry for more. She reached up and put her arms around his neck, pulling him closer. He allowed her to do so, as he placed his hands around her waist and pulled her closer to himself.
It was a kiss of release for all the years of pent-up passion they'd endured. It was everything that Superman had dreamed of every second he'd be away from Lois, especially these past several months. But at the same time, it was so much more; it was like they were exploring new territory all over again, almost like a second first kiss. When he had returned and found another man in his place at Lois' side, he had resigned himself to a future without her. And he believed that that was the best for everyone involved. But now he knew that what was best was for him and Lois to be together, to raise their son properly. To do that, though, he would need to come out with everything. No more secrets.
When they finally pulled away, both of them smiled. Neither of them spoke for several minutes, but there was no need for words; the kiss had said it all for now. At one point, he even squeezed her lightly three times, their silent way of saying "I love you," which they had invented that night in the Fortress of Solitude, when the silence was as perfect as it was now, and which they often used on flying trips, when the sound of the rushing wind and his flapping cape was enough.
Smiling more broadly, she stepped up onto his boots and wrapped her arms around his torso.
"Take me flying?" she asked.
Without a word and without taking his eyes from hers, Superman lifted them up from the balcony, ascending higher and higher, eventually leaving the light pollution of the great city below them, so that Lois could see every star. She cast her eyes around, taking in the million points of light surrounding them.
She felt every burden that had been placed on her shoulders over the past five years lifted. The constant dull ache that had been in her heart since Superman's sudden disappearance, and that had sharply grown since his return, faded as the stars twinkled around her. His heat warmed any coolness still left in her heart toward him. She understood why he needed to go, and though she still couldn't quite grasp why he couldn't have told her that he was leaving, she no longer felt betrayed. She knew that they could make it work, though it would take a lot of sacrifice, especially on Lois' part. But she knew that this was where she belonged: in Superman's arms.
When she brought her eyes back to Superman's, she found him gazing at her lovingly. She smiled, reaching up to run her hand through his hair. He closed his eyes as she did so; he had always loved that feeling. Then she twirled his curl around her finger, which cause them both to chuckle. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she placed another gentle kiss on his lips, lingering and looking into his eyes again. That look said everything.
"We should get back, in case Jason wakes up," he said. She nodded, and he began the descent.
Once back on the balcony, Lois stepped off of his boots, but she did not leave his arms. She knew what they must now address, and she was finally ready for that subject.
"We need to talk," she said, and he simply nodded.
"Shall we go inside, then? It's a bit chilly, and not all of us are invulnerable to cold."
He smiled. "Sure."
Taking his hand, she led him inside to the living room, where they sat facing each other on the couch. Just as Lois took a deep breath and opened her mouth to speak, Superman held up his hand to silence her.
"Wait, Lois. There's something I must tell you first." He looked nervous, something that Lois didn't see in Superman very often. "I don't want to hide anything from you anymore. And I know that I can't if I want to make this work. I want you to know who I am, who I really am."
This was the moment that Lois had been awaiting for years. Since she first laid eyes on him, she had wanted to know him, to really know him, in every way possible. Sure, from the journalistic standpoint, this would be the story of a lifetime. But Lois would never betray the secret that he obviously worked so hard to keep under wraps. She was glad that he was finally going to trust her with such precious information.
He reached behind his back and plucked something from his belt. When he brought forth a pair of glasses with thick black rims, Lois looked at him quizzically. He extended them to her, saying, "Put them on me."
She complied, and as she studied his now spectacled face, everything came together, slowly. She saw how muted his bright blue eyes were behind the frames and how the shape of his face seemed to alter, especially his strong jaw line. His shoulders even hunched once they touched his face, making him lose a few inches in height. When he pushed the curl back into the rest of his hair and smoothed it down, Lois finally understood.
With wide eyes, she simply said, "Clark."
He nodded, still nervous and unsure as to how she felt about this realization. "Yes, Lois, I'm Clark Kent. I would have told you sooner, but I wanted to protect my loved ones. If people like Luthor knew–" She was smiling widely now. He stopped and looked at her, bemused. "What, Lois? What is it?"
She took the glasses back off his face and then replaced them, seeing the instant change both times. She laughed out loud now. Finally she took them off and studied them intently. She looked though them and saw that though they were immensely thick, she could see perfectly. She even saw a tiny, pinprick hole in the middle of each lens, where she assumed his heat vision came out when he had to use it in disguise.
She laughed again. "Ingenious." Still studying the glasses, she said, "I can't believe I never saw it. Some investigative reporter I must be. Yet somehow," she looked up, "I always knew. There was something inside me that, when I saw Clark, would jump, and it felt right to be near him. I protested being put on assignments with Clark so I would not have to feel that feeling every time we locked eyes. I even teased him mercilessly when we were younger to further hide those feelings that were growing, ever so slowly, beneath the surface. I was scared, because I knew what I was doing to Richard by still loving you, and I didn't want to do that to anyone else. Clark's such a nice guy, I couldn't break his heart. I knew that my heart belonged to you anyway, and I didn't want to hurt any more people than I had to." She went silent.
After a few moments, Superman carefully said, "So, you're not angry?"
She smiled. "No. I understand why you did what you did. You had to protect yourself. And like I said, I somehow knew all along. I guess I was just trying to subconsciously convince myself that it couldn't be true. But now that I know it is true, this makes things so much simpler."
He furrowed his brows. "How? I thought that this would make everything more difficult."
She scooted closer, excited. "No, no, everything works out so much better this way! You told me once that you couldn't be with me because if you were, then I would be a target to those that want to hurt you." He nodded. "Well, instead of being with Superman, I can be with Clark Kent, the mild-mannered reporter from Smallville, Kansas. No one would suspect it. I know some people suspect something between you and me, especially at the Planet, but that doesn't matter. If we make it clear that you, as Clark, and I were together, everything would be perfect. You could even legally adopt Jason. We would be a family, finally."
He understood, and he rather liked the idea. This way, he wouldn't have to worry about Lois' or Jason's safety, so long as his secret remained under wraps. But there was still a catch.
"You do understand, though," he said carefully, taking her hands, "that I will constantly be coming and going, and I can't be yours alone. You will have to share me with the entire world, because I can't give up helping people. It's what I was sent here to do. There will be many nights where you will go to sleep alone, and many mornings where you will wake up without me by your side. I can't be home every night for dinner, and you will have to tuck Jason in many nights on your own. It will be hard, a great sacrifice for you. I can't offer you a stable life, like you and Jason need. That's why I didn't pursue anything while you were with Richard. I knew that he could give you what you needed."
She scooted closer still. "What I need is sitting right in front of me. I may not be able to have Superman all to myself, but Clark Kent would be all mine. I only have to share him with his sweet, grey-haired old mother down in Smallville."
"Silver-haired," he said automatically, causing them both to laugh.
When the laughter subsided, Superman looked lovingly into Lois' eyes, which were still twinkling with mirth. "So you really want to do this?"
"More than anything."
He smiled, thinking how perfect everything could be. But then a shadow crossed his face. "What about Jason? How will we tell him? This is a lot for a six-year-old. The only father he's ever known is Richard. How do you think he'll handle knowing that some alien from another star is actually his father?"
"I think it's cool," Superman heard a small voice say. He looked at Lois, who apparently hadn't heard anything, as she was still thinking about how to tell Jason.
Superman stood and released her hands.
"What's the matter?" she asked as he sped up the dark stairwell. When he returned, he was holding Jason in his arms.
"Seems as if we had an eavesdropper," he said, sitting down and holding Jason in his lap.
Lois tried to appear stern. "Jason, what were you doing up? You should be in bed, asleep."
"I was in bed, but I couldn't go to sleep. Everything was so loud. I could hear every word you guys said, like you were standing right beside me. I could even hear the people down the road and their TVs."
Lois looked at Superman, alarmed. However, he just smiled.
"I remember when that happened to me, though I was quite a bit older, and temporarily blinded."
Jason looked up at him, wide-eyed. "You mean, I'll have super powers like you?"
Superman ruffled Jason's hair. "Seems that way, little man. But don't worry, I'll be able to help you through their development. I remember it being really scary for me and my parents when I was growing up, but I know how to deal with it now, even though it seems to be happening differently with you. In fact, if you want, I can take you back upstairs and help you go to sleep."
Jason shook his head. "Not yet. I wanna know what you and Mommy decide. Can you be my dad, Superman, please?"
He chuckled. "Well, little man, technically, I wouldn't be your dad; Mr. Clark would. Is that okay? You'd have to remember that and never accidentally call me Dad when I'm outside in the suit, all right? It's very important that you don't."
"Okay, I can do that," said Jason, jumping off Superman's lap and standing on the floor between his parents. He held out his hand, saying, "Goodnight, Superman."
Superman looked over his head at Lois and exchanged a smile with her. Superman swept Jason easily into his arms, leaning him backwards and blowing raspberries on his stomach. "Come on, I'll tuck you in, just this one time."
Jason was giggling as Superman tickled him. "Okayokayokay! 'Night, Mommy!"
"Good night, sweetheart!" Lois called after them.
Superman and his son floated upstairs and to Jason's bedroom, which Superman had visited many times. And though he had memorized the constellations made with the glow-in-the-dark stars on the ceiling, he still couldn't help but look up at them, especially the red star that Lois had made sure to include, placed right over Jason's bed. Superman laid the little boy in the bed and pulled the covers up to his chin.
"Is everything still loud?" he asked softly.
Jason nodded.
"All right, here's what my parents taught me to do: focus on one sound, a soft, sleepy-like sound, like the waves of the water outside. Can you hear them?"
Jason closed his eyes and furrowed his eyebrows in concentration. Then his face softened. "Yeah."
"Good. Focus on them and let them rock you sleep."
"Okay," he said, already drifting off.
Once he was fully asleep, Superman kissed him on the forehead and felt his warmth, which wasn't a fever, but only a remnant of having absorbed the yellow sun's energy during the day.
When Superman joined Lois downstairs, she was sitting on the couch with her legs tucked up under her, her eyes closed and a slight smile on her face. Superman walked over to her quietly and placed a gentle kiss on one eye. She opened them and looked up at him.
"Did he go to sleep all right?"
"Yes, I just told him to focus on the sound of the waves and he drifted off easily."
"Good," Lois said, standing up. She placed her arms around Superman's torso and rested her head on his chest. He followed suit and wrapped his arms around her back.
After a few moments, she lifted her head and took his hand, leading him upstairs. He allowed himself to be led down the hallway and to the last room. Once in Lois' bedroom, she closed the door and turned around, closing the gap between them. She placed her hands on his shoulders and removed the cape from the blue suit. Superman was a little uncomfortable with this and tried to pull away.
"Lois, I really shouldn't—"
"Shh." She put a finger to his lips. "Stay with me tonight," she said softly right next to his ear, sending chills down his back. She let the cape drop to the floor and got to work on the fasteners of the suit. She undid it all the way down to the small of his sculpted back, where her fingers fluttered, making him shudder and pull her body closer to his. Then she peeled the skin-tight suit from his shoulders, down his arms, and over his hands, letting it rest on the top of his yellow belt and red briefs. She admired his muscles, running her hand across his pecs, biceps, and abs, enjoying how his eyes closed at her soft touches. He grabbed her waist and pulled her up against himself, nuzzling her neck.
She smiled as his breathing became more ragged. After all these years, she still had that effect on him. It was nice to know that no matter how much changed, some things would always stay the same. She wanted to jump into his arms and fall onto the bed with him, releasing years of pent-up passion, but she was having fun teasing him, so she backed away.
She reached her mouth up to his ear, as if to kiss the tender spot just below it. But instead she said, "I'll leave the rest to you." Then she turned and headed toward the bathroom.
He stood there, recovering from her caresses, unsure of what to do. He knew he had nothing on under the suit, and he was not about to sleep in the nude, not even with Lois. He scanned the room for any sort of leftover men's pajamas, but Richard had taken everything. Then he noticed in one of the drawers a pair of boxers. He took them out, but they were obviously made for women and would not accommodate him. He hastily redressed himself, sped out the window and back to his apartment, threw everything he could into his largest bag, and sped back to Lois' before she would miss him. He stripped off the suit and donned his own pair of boxers. He placed his bag in the closet and draped his suit over the chair in the corner. Then he waited, not knowing which side of the bed Lois preferred.
When she finally came out and saw him in his boxers, she smiled.
"Now, I know you don't wear those things under that suit."
He returned her smile. "No, I went home and gathered my things. I'll go back tomorrow and get the rest," he stepped forward and rested his hands lightly on her waist, "if you want me to."
She nodded, placing her arms around his neck. "This is your home now."
He smiled and carried her over to the bed, laying her down. She claimed her side, and he occupied the other. They covered up and she turned out the lamp on her bedside table. They turned to face each other, and Lois saw the moonlight reflected in his eyes. She knew that this was how it was supposed to be. He pulled her against himself, her back to his chest and held her, and nuzzled her neck again. He wanted more than to just hold her, but he knew that they must take it slowly. She sighed contently and soon drifted off to sleep. After watching her sleep for several minutes, he fell asleep, feeling like he was where he belonged for the first time in his life.