Chapter 2: Spoiled

Thanks for the reviews and reading my story! I did not think I would get such a huge response.

Summary: Clark thinks Dick is spoiled. More fluffy then the first chapter. Dick is 11

Got the idea because I was rereading some comics and a came across my Batman and Robin #20 when everyone (Bruce, Tim, Damien, Dick, and Alfred) is about to watch a movie and Dick sees the new TV and says "is that only a 50 inch" and Alfred says "I do believe it's the size of a car and will suit our needs." The TV ends up being a 70 inch. Spoiled much?

Summer 2008

It was a hot summer day and Bruce lounged poolside under a lawn chair and an umbrella. On the glass table next to him sat a large glass of Pina Colada. The atmosphere was exactly the way the man liked it, nice and quiet. Behind shaded lenses, he closed his eyes ready to doze off. For a second everything was the way it should be, but then he felt a presence beside him. Without even opening his eyes, he knew who it was. If he had less dignity he would have groaned in annoyance. Instead, Bruce opened his eyes, looking over his sunglasses, to meet the large smile of Clark Kent.

So much for peace and quiet, Bruce knew he would not get any now. His eyes narrowed. "What are you doing here?"

"Nice to see you too Bruce," said the man completely unfazed by the bristly attitude. Clark's smile grew even brighter. It was a good old American boy scout smile. Bruce grimaced at the cheesiness of it. "I was in the neighborhood and I dropped by."

Bruce took in Clark's attire, his completely cape-less attire. "You happened to be in the neighborhood in your swim trunks."

Clark grinned sheepishly. "It's really hot."

Bruce gave him an annoyed look.

Clark's smile faltered. "Come on, you know I don't have a pool."

"Maybe next time your lease ends, you should move to an apartment with a pool, instead of always coming over here to use mine."

Clark's shoulders slumped ever so slightly. "You know how expensive it is to live in Metropolis. I can't afford an apartment with a pool on a reporter's salary!" The boyish grin slipped back on Clark's face. "Besides, you hardly use your pool anyway."

"I'm using it right now."

Now it was Clark's turn to give Bruce an annoyed look. Bruce looked bone dry.

"And Richard uses the pool all the time."

Clark looked at the Olympic sized pool in front of him. No boy wonder in sight.

"He's in the trees."

Clark almost rolled his eyes. Of course Dick was in a tree. They should call him monkey not Robin. Clark smiled at the thought, Batman and Monkey. It sounded ridiculous, but then again so had Batman and Robin at first. Clark scanned the nearby tree line and spotted a tree house. Dick was sitting on one side of the tree house feet dangling off the edge.

"That's new."

Bruce did not say anything, just took a sip from his Pina Colada.

Clark remembered building a tree house with his pa when he was little. It had been so much fun. "Hey Dick!" Clark waved.

Dick looked up and waved back while holding something on his lap with the other hand.

Clark narrowed his eyes, using his super-sight to get a closer look. It was a laptop. Dick stopped waving and was now typing something. Clark frowned and looked back down at Bruce. "Is the tree house hooked with electricity?"

"Yup."

"What kind of tree house has electricity?"

"A Wayne tree house."

Clark raised an eyebrow. "You just let him climb up a tree with a laptop."

"I do not see why I would not."

"What if he drops it?"

"I will buy him another one."

"What if he drops that?"

"I will buy him another one."

"Well . . ." said Clark getting frustrated. "What if he drops that one?"

"I will buy him another one. Clark, do you not see the pattern here?" Bruce swiveled the drink in his hand. "But feel free to ask again. It is not annoying, whatsoever."

Clark's eyes widened slightly."You can't just keep buying things he breaks . . . it will spoil him and he won't learn responsibility."

Bruce tapped a finger on his Colada glass in annoyance. "Dick is absolutely responsible."

"I'm not talking about Robin. I'm talking about Dick."

Just as Bruce was about to defend his ward, there was a yell from the tree house. Both men looked up.

"Oh my god! Not again . . ." Dick swung down from the tree landing perfectly on the grass below and picked up the two pieces which were once his laptop.

Clark looked back down at Bruce. "Not again? What number is he on?"

Bruce paused in thought, trying to think of a number. There were the laptops Dick broke because he dropped them, the laptop whose hard drives got ruined because of hacking related stresses, and the laptops he took apart, but never put back together again. "I don't recall."

Clark looked at Bruce in disbelief.

Dick looked at his two split laptop pieces and then across the pool at Bruce. "It's broken! Can I have a red one?"

"Sure thing!" Bruce took another sip of his Pina Colada.

Clark threw his hands in the air. "Do you not see what I am saying?"

Bruce pulled off his shades to glare at the man."You show up unannounced to use my pool and then you have the nerve to reprimand me? Really, Clark?"

Clark had enough decency to feel embarrassed.

"Besides, it is not like you do not give Dick things."

Clark shook his head vigorously. "Me buying him an ice cream and souvenir whenever I take him someplace does not qualify as spoiling. You buying him an R2D2, an actual R2D2 from the movie set, because he likes Star Wars is spoiling."

Bruce opened his mouth.

"The kid has, like, ten bicycles! What kid needs ten bicycles? "

Bruce shrugged. "I have twenty-six cars. I do not see why he cannot have ten bicycles."

"Way to miss the point, Bruce. You do not need twenty cars."

"In my defense, some of them are classic," said Bruce with another shrug. "Besides, I like to be prepared."

Clark snorted."For what? The day you try to go to work and for some reason all twenty five cars fail to start and only the twenty sixth car works?"

"You make that sound improbable. It could very well happen."

Clark looked at Bruce incredulously. "Name one instance where that would actually happen."

"Aliens invade earth and discharge a massive EMP disrupting all electronics. By luck, the twenty sixth car works."

Clark's mouth opened and then closed. He frowned.

Bruce smirked.

"Anyway, since we are on the topic of excessive amounts, how many game consoles does Dick need?"'

Bruce was not even going to bother answering that. "Aren't you the one who is always saying that I need to let him be a kid?"

"And your way of showing that is buying Dick whatever he wants."

"You can't put a price tag on love," said Bruce flashing a stellar smile.

"Yes, but you sure are giving it a try."

Bruce slipped his sunglasses back on. "One day when you and Lois have a kid, maybe you will understand."

Clark folded his arms. "My kid is not going to be spoiled he's going to have strong American work ethic, like my pa taught me."

Bruce snorted. "All right, Smallville."

Clark glared.

Bruce brushed off the glare; after all, it was not very intimidating. "You said 'he.' What if you have a girl? Are you really going to sit there and tell me she would not be spoiled?"

"That would be different," said Clark nonplused. "She would be a girl."

"Don't let Diana hear you say that."

A silence filled the air between the two men and for a second Bruce thought he had managed to shut the Man of Steel up.

"What happens if you lose all your money one day?"

Bruce chuckled. "If there is ever a time I lose all my money. I would have more things to be worried about."

"Like what?"

Bruce smirked. "The collapse of the economy."

Clark rolled his eyes."You do not have to be so smug."

"You only feel the way you do, because you are not use to money." Bruce leaned back into his chair. "Dick will turn out just fine. Mary and John Grayson raised a well grounded kid. Besides, I grew up with money and I turned out okay."

Clark almost let out a bark of laughter . . . almost. Sure Bruce was fine. Dead parents aside, deciding to go into crime fighting at the age of twenty one just because you were a billionaire with an unlimited access to the newest technology was totally normal.

He sat on a lawn chair next to Bruce. "I'm not even going to touch that comment with a ten foot pole."

Thanks for reading!