Peace
Beep…beep…beep…
Love shifted in the chair, hearing the beeping. It sounded as if her alarm was going off. She reached out her hand and tried hitting the snooze button. Her hand connected with nothing, but air. The beeping was starting to becoming so annoying. Love wondered why the beeping wasn't speeding up like it normally would when she wouldn't hit the snooze button after fifteen seconds. She opened her eyes and drank in her surroundings with a sad sigh. She wasn't in her home. She was in a cold place where death filled the halls.
Love sat up straight and realized that they had spent the entire night there. The sun was rising and shining over the freshly laid blanket of snow. It was so dreary, but beautiful. Lois was sitting in a chair with Caleb in her lap. They were both asleep. Evelyn looked peaceful in her coma state. Love just hoped that she wasn't feeling any kind of pain.
Love stretched out her arms and stood up to stretch her legs. Her eyes felt so heavy as she walked to the window. She remembered such a long time ago that Evelyn would sit by the hospital window waiting for Kara to come back with Clark. Love hoped that Clark was going to come flying in any moment and everything would be better again.
There was a knock at the door and Love turned around a bit startled. She didn't want to get the door. She didn't want anyone's condolences right now.
Lois woke up and gently set Caleb down. She got up and opened it. "Bruce?" you could tell that Lois had barely woken up.
Bruce gave her a sympathetic smile, but he groaned slightly. He could hardly smile thanks to a black eye. "Chloe told me what happened."
Lois looked over to Evelyn. "Yeah." she closed her eyes and fought off a wave of tears. "I don't know what to do Bruce. First Clark, now Evelyn…" her voice began breaking.
Bruce pulled Lois into a hug and she gladly welcomed it as she wrapped her arms around him. When she had been with Bruce while she was pregnant with Love, he had been a rock for her. He was going to have to be a rock for her again.
"I wanted to talk to you about something." Bruce said. He looked over to Love who was looking on in semi-interest. "In private."
Lois nodded and turned to Love. "Can you watch your brother? Make sure he doesn't leave the room." she said.
Love nodded her head and went to sit next to Caleb. She didn't know if she could do that. Last time, Caleb had disappeared. Clark had to go look for him.
As Love was walking towards Caleb, she stopped. If she had been taking better care of Caleb last night, then Clark wouldn't have gone to look for him. If Clark had never went to look for him, he never would've found Doomsday. He would still be alive. It was her fault. This was all her fault.
Love sunk into the chair feeling numb. Her fault.
Lois followed Bruce out into the hallway and the two walked into an empty room. Bruce closed the door.
"Are you all right? I mean…you took a nice beating last night…" Lois said softly.
Bruce nodded his head. "I've just got a few bruised ribs. I'll get over it."
Lois grimaced. Bruce was going to get better. Bart and Oliver were probably already recuperating. But Clark…there wasn't any chance.
"J'onn took the body to the Fortress." Bruce interrupted Lois' thoughts.
She cringed when Bruce said 'body.' It wasn't right. None of this was right. "Did he say that there was any possible chance of him…coming back?" Lois asked with hope filling her body. It had been done before.
Bruce shook his head sadly. "He's really gone."
Lois closed her eyes and nodded. Of course it was silly to think that.
"I know that with Evelyn being in a coma, it's hard for you, and losing Clark also. You might have a hard time really grieving for him openly since the world doesn't know that he is…um, was…Superman. I've arranged a story for the death of Clark. All you have to do is give the word and I'll put it through. You can have a real funeral for him. Oliver and I are willing to pay for everything."
Lois sighed as she sank into a chair. This was way too much for her to handle right now, but there was no other time. When else were they going to be able to do it? "What are you going to tell people?"
"Clark went to Coast City to visit a friend. On the way, his car fell off a cliff. His body hasn't been recovered."
"The world won't know that he died a hero." Lois said softly. She didn't think it was possible, but tears were forming in her eyes. She had thought that she spent up all her tears last night as she cried herself to sleep, holding Caleb tightly.
"Yes, but the people he cared for will know the truth." Bruce said as he kneeled in front of Lois.
"I just don't know what to do Bruce." Lois said as tears began falling.
Bruce leaned in and gave her a hug. Lois welcomed it and hugged him tightly. He grimaced as she hugged him. She was squeezing his ribs a little too tightly. "It'll be okay Lois. You'll get through."
Lois nodded into his shoulder.
"Um, I also could make arrangements for Evelyn to be sent to Wayne Manor. I could get the equipment she needs and you, Love and Caleb could stay there. I know how much you hate hospitals."
He was right. Lois had seen too many hospitals in her life. Maybe being someplace that was filled with friends and family could help them more. "That'd be nice." Lois said quietly as she wiped away some of her tears. "Do you think that you can get Alfred to be her doctor?" she asked. She didn't trust any doctor to treat her children.
"I can get anyone that you want."
"Can it possibly be done before the end of today?" Lois didn't want to spend any more time here. Everything here just reminded her of how much she had lost.
Bruce smiled. "I'd figured you'd want it done before the end of the day. Alfred's already setting up the equipment and I've got a few more paper to get signed."
Lois stood up and so did Bruce. "Thank you so much Bruce."
"I'm always here to help." Bruce said with a sincere smile. They walked out of the room and Bruce gave her a hug. "I'll see you guys in a little bit."
Lois walked out of his embrace and they started walking opposite ways down the hallway. She stopped in front of the window to Evelyn's room. The doctors had said it would be best if they kept an oxygen mask on her. While she was in a coma, her body was still having problems breathing normally. It was just to ensure her survival. Love was sitting down in the chair next to Caleb and it seemed as if she had just finished crying. Right now, she was trying her best to fight off sleep. Caleb was still sleeping soundlessly. He didn't know everything that had happened. Lois was going to have to tell him soon.
She opened the door and Love lifted her head. She gave her a slight smile, but it wasn't very warm.
"Good morning, Lovely." Lois said as she gave her a kiss on the top of her head.
Love gave a wry smile. What was so good about this morning?
"We're going to be moving Evelyn to Wayne Manor." Lois said as she took a seat.
Love nodded her head and let out a shaky breath.
Lois gave her a curious look. "Are you feeling okay?" she asked as she reached over and brushed away some of the hair from Love's face.
Love swallowed the lump forming in her throat. No, she was feeling horrible. Everything that was happening to them was her fault. She had been irresponsible. But Love couldn't find the words to tell Lois. She only nodded her head.
Lois sighed as she brushed away some of Love's hair. She knew that Love wasn't telling her something, but Lois let it go for this moment. She would find out later. Instead, she pulled Love into a hug.
Love let herself be held by Lois. She could feel a small amount of comfort coming from her, but it wasn't enough. This wasn't real. It couldn't be.
Caleb opened his eyes and saw a few doctors talking with Lois and Bruce. Love was sitting next to him, but she was trying to pay attention to what the grown ups were saying.
He let out a yawn and rubbed his eyes. He had been sleeping for such a long time, but it felt good. He looked at Evelyn. She was still asleep. Caleb wanted to get on her bed and wake her up, but something inside of him told him it might not be a good idea to do that.
"Mommy, where's Daddy?" Caleb spoke up.
Everyone turned to look at him. He noticed that Lois, Love, and Bruce were looking at him with sad looks. He didn't like that. "Mommy?"
Lois excused herself from the discussion and walked to Caleb. She picked him up and hugged him. He could hear her sniffle. "Come on, let's go for a little walk." Lois set him down and grabbed his small hand.
Caleb looked up at him mother with confusion and worry written in his young eyes. He looked back at Bruce. He had already started talking with the doctors again. Love was sitting with her head in her hands. She looked worn out.
The two walked out of Evelyn's room. Lois grabbed a coat for her and Caleb and they walked outside. They were walking around the hospital grounds, not once did Lois let go of his hand.
Caleb looked up at Lois. "Mommy, how come Daddy hasn't come back yet?"
Lois let out a shaky breath as she prepared herself to tell Caleb. "Do you remember anything about what happened last night?"
Caleb pulled up the memories instantly. He gave Lois a huge smile. "Daddy got rid of the boogie monster!" he said with so much pride in his voice.
Lois gave him a small smile. "He sure did." she stopped at a bench and took a seat.
Caleb gave her a curious look as the smile faded away from her face and was replaced by a sad look. He had a sinking feeling in his gut. Something had happened to his daddy. "What's wrong Mommy?" he asked as he jumped up on the bench and sat down with her.
Lois wrapped her arms around herself, feeling a chill come in through her coat. "Caleb, Daddy's not coming back home." she said softly. More tears were threatening to come down.
Caleb frowned and leaned away from her. "Yes he is. He always comes back. Aunt Chloe said that he was going to come back and take me flying."
Lois choked on a sob as a few tears came out. He was so innocent. How could something like this happen to him, to them?
Caleb tried his best to wrap his mind around what Lois was trying to tell him. "Is Daddy…" there was only one word that came to his mind. Dead. His daddy was dead. He remembered finding a tiny lizard on the front porch of the farm. He grabbed it and put it in a jar. He was going to keep it as a pet. A few hours later, he went to check up on the lizard and found that it wasn't moving. He complained to Lois that the lizard wasn't moving and that it was no fun. Lois explained to him that the lizard wasn't going to move anymore. The lizard had died.
Caleb suddenly felt very angry. This was just a very mean joke that they were trying to play on him. Caleb stood up and looked at Lois with a very cross look. "No. Daddy's not dead!" he balled up his fists as he yelled.
"Caleb, please…" Lois had woken up with a headache and his yelling wasn't going to help any.
"No! Daddy's going to come back! Watch!" Caleb said as he turned his back to her. He took a deep breath and yelled at the top of his lungs. "DADDY!!!"
"Caleb Joseph Kent, stop yelling!" Lois yelled herself as she stood up. They were starting to make a scene, but neither seemed to notice.
"No! Not until Daddy comes back!!" he took another deep breath and yelled again. "DADD-"
Lois clamped her hand over Caleb's as she lifted him up in her arms. "Enough!"
Caleb looked straight into Lois' eyes with such anger in them, but they started to soften and tears filled them. "I want my Daddy." he said barely above a whisper. He buried his face in Lois' shoulder and poured out his little heart.
Lois rubbed his back soothingly. "I know sweetie. I want him back too." Lois gently swayed back and forth as she held him.
"Do you have the permission of Mr. Kent to move his daughter?"
Love's head shot up as she looked at the doctor that had spoken. How dare he?! If she could, she would've incinerated that man in a second. She tensed up, feeling threatened for some reason.
Bruce looked at Love and could see the anger burning behind her eyes. "Uh, yes, he knows…" Bruce said awkwardly.
The doctor nodded and wrote something down. "I'll be back in a few minutes." the doctor walked out of the room.
Love was still tense as the doctor left. Bruce walked towards her and took a seat. "Love, calm down. He doesn't know. How could he?"
Love clenched her jaw and crossed her arms. She knew that, but it still hurt. She looked down at the tiling.
"There's something bothering you, isn't there?" Bruce questioned her.
Love's body tensed even more. She didn't want to talk about it. She thought that if she told someone what she had done, they would hate her. All of them. She wouldn't belong anymore. She wouldn't have a family that would love her.
"You may not want to talk about it right now, but if you bottle it up, it won't do any good." Bruce said. "I'm telling you from experience." he said softly.
Love calmed down a little, but she still didn't speak. She didn't know if she wanted to tell anyone.
Lois came back inside with a sleeping Caleb in her arms. They had been out there for an hour. Caleb had cried for most of it and Lois tried her best to be strong for him.
Bruce was signing some papers when Lois came in and Love had fallen back asleep. Bruce gave the papers back to the doctor and turned to Lois.
Lois set Caleb down on a chair and let him sleep. She looked up at Bruce, waiting for him to tell her the progress.
"I have a helicopter en route to take Evelyn. Alfred's already outside the hospital waiting for us in the limo. We can go ahead and leave right now so that when we get to the mansion, Evelyn will be arriving in the helicopter around the same time."
"Thank you so much Bruce."
There was a soft knock at the door. Love got up and opened it. A faint smile touched her lips when she saw who it was. "Hey Nana."
"Hello Love." Martha said. Her eyes were red and puffy and so was her nose. It looked as if she didn't get much sleep last night.
Love didn't wait for Martha to give her a hug. Love went ahead and did it herself. She squeezed her tightly and shut her eyes and Martha wrapped her arms around her grandchild. After a few moments, Love let go of her and Martha walked to Lois. Immediately, they were in each others arms. There was some comfort from the hug, but it wasn't enough to make the pain go away. There was nothing out there that could take the pain away.
Martha pulled away and wiped at her teary eyes. "Lois, I'm so sorry. Chloe called me and told me what happened with Evelyn. And with Clark…I saw it on the news."
Lois closed her eyes for a half a second. "It's just so hard…" she said in a shaky breath. Her eyes slowly wandered to Love. She had hardly spoken a word today. Lois looked back to Martha then to Bruce. "Uh, you remember Bruce Wayne?" she said as she took a small step back so they could both see each other.
Martha gave him a gracious smile. "Mr. Wayne, it's nice to see you again." "Please, it's Bruce." he said as he shook her hand. "I'm truly sorry about the loss of your son. He was a great man." Bruce said with a grim expression.
Martha had to hold back a wave of tears. It hurt when they would speak of Clark in the past-tense. It was going to be happening from now on, but it was too soon. He had gone too soon.
"Martha, Bruce is having Evelyn transferred to Wayne Manor. We're going to head out there in a few minutes. You could come if you want."
Martha nodded her head as she walked to Evelyn. She grabbed her hand. It was so cold. She went for the blanket at the foot of the bed and spread it over Evelyn.
"We should be heading out already." Bruce said. He picked up the sleeping Caleb and stood in the doorway. He ignored the pain that shot up from his ribs and continued holding Caleb. Love stood up and monotonously started walking out.
Martha went to Lois and grabbed her hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. "Everything will be all right." she said.
Lois nodded and Martha walked out. Bruce looked at Lois, waiting for her to follow.
"I'll be down in a few minutes. I kind of want some time with Evelyn." Lois told him.
Bruce nodded in understanding and walked out, closing the door behind him.
Lois let out a heavy breath and took a seat next to Evelyn. She placed her hand over Evelyn's and looked at her. She was so fragile in her hospital gown, with an oxygen mask over her mouth. Lois looked up to the monitors. There was little brain activity and her heart was beating steadily, but slowly. Lois held her breath as she waited for some kind of change in the monitors. Nothing. They stayed the same, showing the same horrible news over and over again. Evelyn was in a coma.
"Evelyn, I want you to listen to me," Lois started in a shaky breath. People would always say that when someone was in a coma, they could still hear what was going on. Lois held onto this saying tightly. "You are going to get better. You're going to wake up and we'll be able to sort through this whole mess together. I'll make sure that Lex Luthor stays in jail permanently." Lois wouldn't have been surprised if he might've cause Evelyn's illness.
Lois smiled fondly as a tear slipped out. She could hear Clark behind her calling Evelyn his little bud. What he always called her. Lois stood up and gave Evelyn a kiss on her forehead. "Please get better honey." Lois walked away from the bed reluctantly and grabbed her coat. She stood in the doorway as she slipped the coat on. She watched Evelyn. She seemed so peaceful, oblivious to the troubles around her. Maybe it was better that she didn't know how bad things were.
Lex stepped out of the elevator and walked onto the top floor of the Daily Planet. He inhaled deeply and could find that distinct smell of a newsroom. People were bustling about, taking care of all the stories they had. Chasing leads, meeting sources, pulling up ancient files to complete an article. But there was something different in the air. It was more somber. A smile came to Lex as he realized why it was.
It was the morning after the huge showdown between Doomsday and Superman. The morning after the great and rising super hero, Superman, had died as a sacrifice. The morning after Clark Kent had died.
Lex looked up at the TV and focused on what the anchors on the news channel were saying.
"…reports are unclear as to what happened to Superman's body. It was believed that the police had his body, but sources say that they saw an African-American male leaving with the body. Some even claim that he flew off…"
Lex furrowed his brows. He didn't like knowing that Superman's body was missing. Someone might be stupid enough to try and bring him back to life. But Lex doubted it.
His eyes wandered over the newsroom and noticed Lois' desk empty. He didn't think it strange. Clark had been her husband. Of course she was going to take some time off to grieve. Lex also heard that Evelyn had slipped into a coma. It was tragic, yes, but he didn't really care. "Jimmy!" Lex called out.
Jimmy looked up with a surprised expression. He stood up and quickly went to Lex. "Uh, yeah Mr. Luthor." he answered nervously.
"Where's Lois?" Lex already knew the answer, but he asked anyways. He didn't need anyone here getting suspicious. Most of them were investigative journalists.
"Um…Evelyn went into a coma last night." Jimmy remembered Chloe telling him what happened. "I'm pretty sure she's at the hospital."
"Uh-huh. And how many days has she been out?"
"About a week and a half…" Jimmy wasn't liking where this was going.
"How many days of vacation does she have left?"
Jimmy gulped. He really didn't want to answer. "Gee, I, uh…really don't know…"
"If you still want your job, you'd better tell me."
"Wait, you'd fire me just because I didn't tell you how many vacation days Lois has left?" This was ridiculous. In that moment, Jimmy could feel a spine in him growing. "No. I'm not going to tell you." he said firmly and a bit loudly. They were starting to get the attention of some of the people there.
"Jimmy, just tell me and you will still have your job."
Jimmy frowned. "No. I'm not going to tell you anything because I quit!" Jimmy said as he pulled out his press pass and tore it in front of Luthor. "Eat that!" Jimmy said as he tossed his shredded press pass to the ground. He brushed past Lex and stepped into an empty elevator. As the doors closed, Lex could see a look of defeat come over Jimmy. He was probably really regretting quitting right now.
Lex went into Perry's old office and turned on the computer. He quickly logged into the database and checked up on Lois' vacation days. Today was her last day of vacation.
A satisfied smiled spread across Lex's face. He may be done with Superman/Clark Kent, but he still had the whole family to toy with. His new project of destroying the next superhero, Batman, could wait a few more days.
Alfred pulled up to Wayne Manor and parked in front. All of the passengers stepped out. Lois was holding Caleb and Love was walking close to her mother. Martha followed them and they waited for Bruce or Alfred to open the door.
Bruce couldn't get the door unlocked until Alfred took over. He opened the door with ease and Bruce gave him a frustrated look before he walked inside. The group followed after him and Alfred closed the door once they were all inside.
"I keep telling Alfred we need to get that doorknob changed." Bruce said, trying to lighten the mood.
It didn't work. "Uh, I'll show you to your rooms." Bruce said as he started walking up the stairs.
One by one, he showed them to their rooms. Lois laid Caleb down on the bed in his room and Love stayed there with him. Martha and Lois were being led by Bruce down the hallway. Bruce had already showed them their rooms, but he was now going to show him where Evelyn was going to stay.
They walked in the room and it had a few machines beside the bed. It was a queen sized bed with a canopy over it. Right across from it was a large window. The sun was shining on the snow, but the snow showed no sign of melting.
Lois admired how beautiful it was. It was so much better than the hospital and she knew within a few days it would feel homey. "Bruce, I can't tell you how much I appreciate this."
Bruce held up a hand to stop her. "I know Lois. You don't have to tell me anymore." he said as he put his hands in his pockets "So have you decided whether or not you want to run with the car accident?" Bruce knew it was still very tender to talk about it, but he needed an answer.
Lois looked over to Martha. On the way, they had discussed it. Martha believed it would be a good idea. Lois let out a sigh before she looked back to Bruce. "I think it would be good if you went through with it."
Bruce nodded his head. "I'll get right on it."
The sound of a helicopter landing could be heard outside. Lois and Martha looked out and there was a helicopter in Bruce's yard. Evelyn was here.
"I'll make sure we get Evelyn set up properly and please, if you need anything just tell me." Bruce said as he walked out to the hallway.
Lois nodded, but how could she ask for anything else? She was so used to being independent, but after Clark…died…everything changed. She was now feeling so dependent. Lois felt a chill go up her spine as she began thinking of herself as a dependent woman. She felt tears rising up, but then she heard a voice she had blocked out so many years ago.
'Soldiers don't cry, Lois.'
It was her dad's voice. He told her that the day of her mother's funeral. She closed her eyes and actually listened to that voice. She knew it was foolish, but what else could she do. She was completely and utterly lost without Clark Kent by her side.
Love looked at the time on her phone. It was three already on that Saturday afternoon. A week and a half away from Christmas. She got up and started walking around Caleb's room. She stopped in front of the large window and looked outside. She could feel the sun's rays hitting her and it felt good.
Her phone gave a small buzz in her hand and she looked at it. It was a message from Ella. She opened it and read what she had to say.
'Love, Josh's really worried about you. So am I. Please call me or him.'
Love closed the message. She could call one of them later, when she felt like talking to someone.
Outside the window, she could see men coming out of a helicopter with Evelyn in tow. They were bringing her in and were going to have her set up.
It was cold. He never felt cold. Something wasn't right. He groaned softly as he willed his eyes to open. He blinked a few times and began focusing on objects. Things were still a little blurry, but he could make out some things. He was surrounded by ice, everywhere he looked. His mind told him to sit up, but his body told him he couldn't. He tried moving and felt blinding pain shoot up through him.
"You must rest, my son. Your body has only begun to recover." came a loud, powerful voice.
But how could he rest? He needed to see his family."
"Your family is safe." came the voice. It was as if the voice knew what he was thinking. "They are being watched over."
Peace came over him. His family was safe. That was all he needed to know. He allowed his eyes to close. His kids were safe, his mom was safe, his friends were safe…Lois was safe.
A/N: So it seems like some people thought that I had ended this story with that last chapter...it isn't over! Sorry about that :P Here's the next chapter. Read it and review it. I like hearing what you people think about the story. :D And I promise, things will start getting better...soon.