Here's a quick oneshot. I hope it's still good. Please enjoy and review.

Never Alone

Conner sighed as he focused on reading his book. Over the years, he was getting use to life. Thanks to a certain friend, he gained a love for reading, not a big one though. He remembered when his friends, the original members of the team, saw him reading a fiction book for fun, they were a little shocked. Somehow, 'Superboy', 'reading', and 'enjoying' didn't seem to belong in the same sentence. Superman was shocked too.

Really, it was insulting to think that he was all brawn.

Anyway, he was trying to distract himself. Today was March 21, his birthday. He was six now, even if he couldn't age. Yet, no one seemed to have remembered. He understood with what has happened with Artemis's death and everything. It just hurt a little that they remembered Raquel's bridal shower and not his birthday too.

It was just that times like this where he wished things were like the old days, where Nightwing was still Robin, Kaldur was on their side, Wally was seen more often, Artemis was alive, and M'gann was still a sweet and innocent girl.

Don't get him wrong. The new Robin, the third one, was like a cute little brother, he liked a few of the rookies, and he was moving on from M'gann.

It was just they were happier times.

Feeling something snap under his chin, holding something on the top of his head, he turned his head to look behind him. A party horn was blown on the other side of his head in his ear. Conner looked over into beautiful familiar light moonlight blue eyes.

"Happy Birthday!" the owner of those eyes exclaimed with a smile and the party horn in hand.

The said owner of those pair of eyes was someone Conner should have known would have remembered his birthday. This person was Terry McGinnis-Wayne, son of Batman, his best friend and current boyfriend.

Batman found Terry shortly after his escape from Cadmus. He was Project Batman Beyond. Unlike Superman, Batman took Terry in, making him the hero, Beyond, for mostly Gotham territory. There was times the team needed an extra hand, so Beyond would lend one.

Because of Terry's own connection to Cadmus, Batman allowed the Superboy to come over to Gotham to meet each other. He just looked into the clone's eyes, into his soul, and deemed him as a good person. They were best friends ever since. He even had the guts to give Superman the cold shoulder and the genetically inherited bat glare.

Terry became his confidant. He told him everything that went on this life with his powers, his team, Superman, Lex Luthor, and M'gann. He was an open ear during his rants. He was wise advice when he was confused about the outside world and with Superman and Lex Luthor. He was a comforting shoulder after the break up.

While M'gann took a few days to find a new boyfriend in La'goon, it took Conner six months to try to find someone else. He decided to ask out his best friend. He had found out that Terry had feelings for him for a long while. He felt bad about being ignorant of his friend, and he thought it was cool to at least go on one date.

That date was best thing he did. He felt at peace in Terry's pretence. The pain was gradually lifting. He could more on from M'gann. He felt comfortable. Being together seemed right.

M'gann might have replaced him with La'goon, but Conner never replaced her with Terry. He was genuinely falling in love with Terry on his own right.

M'gann and Terry were totally different people:

She was a Martian girl. He was a human boy.

She had red hair with brown eyes. He had black hair with blue eyes.

She baked cookies and made other foods for her friends. He baked muffins and made even more delicious food after years of cooking with his mother.

She was a girl who had copied a character off a sitcom. He was all natural with a feisty and loving spirit.

It took one heck of a fight to convince Batman that he really liked Terry with no intend to use him or hurt him in any way. He managed to the okay, so he wouldn't have to worry about secretly getting poisoned by kryptonite.

He has never regretted moving on.

"Hey Terry, thanks," Conner greeted, smiling.

"So, how old are you today?" Terry asked sitting down next to him and kissing him on the cheek.

"Six."

Terry raised an eyebrow, saying, 'it was a test, silly. You failed it.'

"I mean, twenty-two. I turn twenty-two at six p.m. exactly," Conner tried to correct himself while taking off the party hat Terry had put on his head.

"Nice save there," said Terry sarcastically with a sly smile, "So, is there a party going on later today? I remember you telling me every year you were given a huge surprise party."

"Yeah, I hated those parties," Conner said with a sigh. Remembering M'gann still caused a bit of pain, even though he was getting better and would never return to her.

"I don't buy it," Terry told him with a look, "You, Conner Kent-Luthor, just pretended to hate them. M'gann threw those parties for you. She was happy to, so at the time, you loved them."

Of course, he loved them, because he had loved her. M'gann put everything into those surprise parties. It made him feel special and loved. It was one of those moments where he truly embraced being out of the pod. That's why it nearly killed him when she betrayed him by trying to force him to forget he was mad at her and when she immediately got a new guy after the break up. It was for the best, though. He began to fall out of love with M'gann, since the betrayal, and in love with Terry now.

"You know me pretty well," he commented, pulling Terry closer to him and kissing his lips.

"You know it, darling. So, you didn't answer my question. Any parties this year?"

"No," Conner answered sadly, "This year you're the only one that remembered."

Terry just looked up at him stunned. The news shocked him a bit.

"What!" he exclaimed, "You mean, Black Canary, M'gann, Karen, Mal, and Dick too? The lady heroes are going to a bridal shower, and they haven't remembered your birthday?"

If it weren't for the situation, Conner would be laughing now. His boyfriend was so cute getting fired up, protective, and ranting for his sake.

"Well, with everything going on, like Artemis and the invasion…" he tried to defend his friends.

"They are still going to a bridal shower! They are still partying, which is all right, but that gives no excuse for not even acknowledging your birthday. Dick will be hearing from me! That does not stand right with me. All right then, I will be taking care of your birthday from now."

"What do you mean?"

"You and I are going out for your birthday, since it's too late for getting a party ready. We'll go have fun and eat some goodies, all my treat."

"Terry, really, you don't have to."

"Oh no, you are not going to get out of this. Today is your day. And as your boyfriend, I want you to have a great day… Artemis would want you to be happy."

Terry met Artemis as himself and Beyond, though she never connected the two. They still got along. Terry thought that she was a cool girl to be friends with. She was practically Conner's sister.

Conner sighed but smiled. Terry was a Bat. Who could win against a Bat?

"Yes, dear."

He really should've known ever since he started dating Terry, since he met Terry, that he was never going to be forgotten or disregarded by Terry.

That's why he could say… he loved Terry, his beloved.

A few hours later back at the Cave, Nightwing was in the debriefing room with Mal, Karen, M'gann, Robin, Bart, and Garfield, going over a few things.

Well, they were, until Nightwing's cell phone rang. Seeing the name on the ID, he answered it. "Hello, Beyond?"

The heroes around him understood when they heard the name, it was just his older brother.

"Nightwing?" asked Beyond from the other end.

"Yes?"

"YOU ARE IN BIG TROUBLE WHEN YOU GET HOME, MISTER!"

The sudden raise of volume made Nightwing jerk back and drop his phone, having the impact turn on its speaker so everyone in the room could hear clearly.

"What did you do now?" Robin asked the cowering Nightwing hiding behind his person.

"I-I don't know," Nightwing admitted. His big brother was angry. You don't want Beyond angry, especially when you're the target. He had been a few times, thanks to some pranks he pulled. All members of the family faced it. Even Batman faced that fury when he disregarded his health again. The only ones who haven't were Agent A and Robin. He knew that Agent A and Beyond were in cahoots when it came to taking care of them, and they got along great. For Robin, Nightwing was pretty sure that he was Beyond's favorite. Now everyone was going to witness the wrath of Beyond, because this tone is the protective tone, his most fierce.

"DO YOU HAVE ANY CLUE ON WHAT TODAY IS?"

"March 21?" answered Garfield, the green animal shifter hero.

"The first day of spring, the equinox…?" Bart named off.

"Wait, March 21. That's today!? Then it's…" Nightwing said, panicking.

"Yeah, it's Conner's birthday," finished M'gann, feeling a little guilty about not doing something for him this year. Though she was confused on why Nightwing was getting yelled at by his brother about it.

"IT'S CONNER'S BIRTHDAY! NIGHTWING, WHAT KIND OF FRIEND ARE YOU? YOU SHOULD HAVE ACKNOWLEDGE IT AT THE VERY LEAST!"

"Uh, Beyond, really, you don't have yell…" Conner's voice came in the speaker.

"Shush, darling. I'm yelling."

"Yes, dear." (a/n: I got that from yaoigirl22 in her Harry Potter story, Bleeding Feather, chapter 3. It was so funny when I read that.)

Hearing Conner with Beyond was surprising to those who didn't know about Conner finding someone else (pretty much everyone but the Kents and the bat family). M'gann twitched when she heard the pet names they called each other.

"With everything going on lately, we… well… there didn't seem to be time to remember," Karen said into the mouthpiece of the phone, immediately drawing back if case Beyond was going to stare yelling again. She was right.

"AND YET, YOU LADIES WENT OUT TO A BRIDAL SHOWER! Which is all right on the circumstances alone, and oh, tell Raquel congratulations for me. BUT THAT'S NOT THE POINT!"

"All right, all right, you're mad at me because I wasn't being a friend, remember other important things. I get it. I feel very bad about it."

"Be prepared for a large prank attack, and I will have the assistance of Agent A, Red Hood, and Dark Bat*. I will get you, Nightwing," Beyond warned him calmly.

"But what about Robin?" asked Nightwing. He didn't think the new little bird knew that today was the Superboy's birthday. Speaking of which, Robin hasn't even batted an eye during Beyond's rant, and he seen Beyond at it before.

"He didn't know yet. He's spared. Besides, he's my favorite brother."

"Ha! I knew it!"

"Oh, be quiet, and beware. Night!"

Beyond needed the call.

"So," Mal said casually, "He's Con's boyfriend?"

M'gann saw red.

"HE'S WHAT!?"

It was going to be a long night.

Terry cheerfully put his cell back in his pocket before turning to Conner.

"Ready for dinner?" he asked. The Superboy chuckled and nodded.

They walked hand in hand to a diner for a nice, decent birthday meal.

Conner looked over at Terry. He looked so beautiful and so sweet. Like on their first date, he felt comfortable, safe, and warm. The pain was almost gone. He was glad for it. For loving Terry made even more content than loving M'gann ever did. He felt himself coming back to life and enjoying it again.

Pulling the smaller young man into a kiss, he felt the spark of passion, love, and joy that lit with each kiss and touch, confirming his beliefs of belonging with Terry.

This was a good birthday after all.

Oh, and that unable-to-age thing, once the two consummated their love, his Kryptonian half claimed and confirmed its mate in Terry, binding them together. Conner began to look his age more. His age process was speeding up, while Terry's was slowing down. They were destined to be together, even beyond death.

They were the world finest soul mates after all.

~End

*Dark Bat is 23-year-old Damian Wayne, the eldest and biological of Batman, the possible next Batman.

Any questions? This one was a little shorter than others. I just wanted to do something after wanting the episode 'Satisfaction'. Hope it wasn't too bad.