Chapter 10: The Power of the Sun
The city was alive with activity, even at night. As Superman flew over Metropolis, arriving back from his short trip around the world, he focused on what was happening below him. It had been very difficult for him to keep going out night after night since the birth of his daughter, and Jason's lapse into a coma, but he knew that he had to keep up his appearances if for no other reason than to keep his family safe. A frown formed on his lips as he hovered high above the city and he mentally shook himself from that thought. He had been sent here to help humanity. "Never love one above the rest," he spoke to no one in particular. Even as those words drifted away, he knew they no longer held true for him. There were three people he loved more than the rest, three who he would die for if it came right down to it.
His super-hearing picked up on something and quickly he shot down out of the sky, landing on the rooftop of Star Labs without being seen. He walked briskly to the door, changing back into the slacks and shirt he had been wearing before he left. Clark Kent drifted down two flights of stairs and arrived at the nursery as things began to calm down. He pushed the door open and found Doctor Klein jotting down notes in Michaela's files. Looking past her, Clark saw that his daughter had a tiny cloth mask over her eyes, and a sort of light shining on her. "I heard a commotion," he said as the Doctor looked up at him.
"She forgot to breathe again, and her jaundice is serious enough that we decided to start photo therapy for her."
"Does Lois know?"
"I was about to go in and wake her, but I won't if you don't think that is a good idea."
"I will go to her in a little bit," he said. Once the doctor had gone out of the room, Clark walked up to the incubator. He knew that premature babies sometimes forgot to breathe from his talks with Lois about Jason, but the jaundice had been something he had not heard of until earlier that day. He opened a small door on the side of the incubator and reached in, placing his hand over top of her tiny head. She didn't move, and he could tell by her heart rate that she was asleep.
Clark shut his eyes for a moment, fighting off the guilt he suddenly felt at being away. He knew his presence didn't make a difference as to the problems Michaela was facing, but somehow he couldn't help but feel that leaving her made things worse.
"Clark?" Lois shuffled up beside him and Clark held out his arm gently pulling her to his left side. "She had another breathing episode," he said softly.
"And her jaundice has gotten worse. Jason went through the same thing and had photo therapy for three days before any of it started to clear up."
"I should have been here."
He felt Lois move from him and looked into her eyes, seeing her love for him and understanding there. "You have been here for them, for all of us."
"There must be more that I can do to help both of them. I have been thinking that the sun's energy is the key to their recovery." As he told her about his theory, he let his wife lead him away from the nursery, leaving Michaela under the care of one of the nurses. "It's easier with Jason. I can fly him up into the atmosphere where he can get the most direct rays of the sun. Michaela is too fragile for any of that, and with the past few days being overcast…" He sighed and looked down as they entered their room.
"We will think of something, Clark. I want to help you but I'm so tired."
Upon looking down at her face Clark noticed the dark circles under her eyes. He reached out and placed his hand on her left cheek and leaned in until his lips brushed against her own. "We can discuss this in the morning. I need to go out again," he said ruefully.
He walked with her to the bed and helped her get settled in. When she was, he leaned in and shared another kiss before he headed down the hall to check on their son.
Morning brought relief to both parents because Jason had woken up while Lois was giving him a sponge bath. He had just endured another examination, and was trying to catch his breath as Lois held him on her lap. "It's all over with now," she crooned as Clark came over with Jason's favorite stuffed animal. Jason reached out and took Lucky, holding him against his chest as he let his dad blot the tears away from his cheeks.
"I want to go to my house now," Jason whispered.
"Hopefully we will be able to go soon," replied Lois.
Suddenly Jason sat up and looked down at her stomach. "Mommy your belly is soft now," he said, worry evident in his voice.
"My belly is soft because your sister is here with us now. When you feel better we will take you to see her."
"But I want to see her now," he whined.
"May I come in?" asked a deep voice.
"Noo," Jason hid his face against her chest as Lucius Fox entered the room.
Fox walked over and stood beside Clark, waiting for Jason to calm down which he quickly did. "I came to tell all of you that the new cells in Jason's body are multiplying. Jason what that means to you, is that you won't have any more sickness."
"Not any at all?" Jason asked.
"Not any at all, but, I want you to get plenty of rest," Fox said as he knelt down next to them. "Rest is very important because your body is going to be very busy healing what the virus left behind."
"Like how my lungs are still hurty, because of my coughing?"
Lois smiled at her husband as Fox explained the situation to their son and was relieved to know that at least one of her babies would be healthy again.
When Fox left, Clark left with him, and Lois managed to get out of the chair holding Jason cradled to her chest. "Now you get some rest and while you do that I'm going to check in with your Nanna and Grandpa."
Her little boy rubbed his eyes, claiming that he wasn't tired but fell asleep before she managed to get her parents on the phone to tell them the good news.
Later that day, after they had explained to Jason about the baby, Clark held his son in his arms as they entered the nursery as a family. Michaela was under the photo therapy lamp again, and Clark felt Jason hug him around the neck just a bit tighter. "All of those tubes are helping her, just like they helped you," Clark whispered as he felt Lois take his free hand.
"She has a sleeping mask on her eyes."
Lois let go of his hand and took Jason's. "That is to protect her eyes from the lights."
"I want to go and play checkers with Granny again," Jason said turning his head away from the incubator. It was obvious by how tense his body had become that he was not comfortable, and while Lois remained in the room with their baby, Clark took Jason back to his room.
When they arrived, they found Martha seated on the sofa knitting something, and Ben was beside her reading the paper. "Granny, I want to play checkers now." Clark leaned over and put his son down, and was about to stand back up when Jason hugged him again.
"I don't like the baby being sick," he whispered.
With both of his arms wrapped around Jason's body, Clark stood back up seeing the worried look in his mom's eyes and Ben's. "I don't like her being sick either Jason, and I'm going to try and find a way to help her."
"Can we hold her when she is all better?"
He smiled at that thought. "When she is better we will hold her as much as we can. Now will you stay here and make sure your Granny and Pappa behave while I go talk to Mommy for a while?"
"Yes." Jason let him go and once Clark was sure he would be alright he headed back down the hall to tell Lois his idea.
"My daughter was born early, like her brother. I don't know if it is something that just happened or if it has something to do with both of them being part Kryptonian," Kal-El said to the image of his mother embedded in the crystal in front of him.
He had been debating coming here for some time, knowing that in the past his father had not been willing to give him any advice on his children. He didn't seem to agree with any of this, and that vexed Clark. After watching his daughter struggle to breathe when they tried to remove the ventilator the debate had ended. His mother seemed to have more understanding than his father, and Clark hoped and prayed that she would have an answer.
"I do not have the answers that you seek, my son, as to the cause of their early births." Clark hung his head as her words were spoken and felt his heart thud painfully in his chest as he thought about all that Michaela had already been through.
"The yellow sun will help your new daughter heal and grow strong enough to overcome all of the medical problems. Since she is too fragile to be moved, she must draw that energy from you. Your touch is what she needs Kal-El."
The answer had been there all along and Kal-El felt like an idiot for not figuring it out on his own. "Thank you for helping me, mother," he finally said.
As his father had once done, the figure of his mother came out of the crystal and walked up to him. She reached out and touched his cheek, but all he felt was a whisper of a true touch. "You have chosen a very difficult life, Kal-El, but I know of the love you feel for this woman. If it is like that love that I felt for your father then it is one to hold on to. You must not forget your obligation to your world, and I pray she will help you find balance."
Before he could speak, she disappeared and in another moment Kal-El was flying at top speed toward Metropolis and his family
Seated in the rocking chair placed very close to the incubator, Clark glanced at Lois before his eyes focused on Michaela. Nurse Judith had unwrapped her from her blanket and in a moment she was resting against his bare chest. Her tiny heart was beating fast again as Lois helped the nurse put a receiving blanket over her, and Clark had his doubts as one of her monitors began to beep. "Shh," he whispered, putting one of his hands over most of her body. He began to rock her and a minute later everything began to settle down again.
They had held her before but not skin to skin as he was doing now. "She's so tiny," Clark said looking back at his wife.
"I know. I didn't realize just how much until they put her on your chest. I think she likes having you hold her."
There was longing in her voice and Clark reached out and took her hand. "Maybe we will both have the chance to hold her as much as we want if this works out the way I hope it will."
Their family moment was interrupted as Judy came back to check on things. Clark shifted his hold on the baby so they young nurse could listen to her heartbeat, and take her temperature, both things that Michaela didn't seem to like as she began to squirm and make little grunting sounds.
"Her heartbeat is almost normal for a baby this small and her temperature is almost normal too. I'll go tell Doctor Klein."
Once she had finished, Clark adjusted the blanket back around his daughter's body and rubbed his free hand over her back.
Night time arrived and with it some trouble with Jason who was ready to go home. Lois and Martha had gotten him ready for bed, but when they time came for him to lie down and rest he had a meltdown. Lois knelt by his bed trying to explain to an overly tired boy why they had to stay here. "Jason, Daddy and I have to stay here with your sister and we don't want to be so far away from you or her."
"I want my bed," he sobbed as he huddled in on himself. An emergency had called Clark away and any other time Lois would have been able to crawl under the bed with her baby and get him out. Finally, she reached out and caught him under his arms and gently pulled him out holding on to him as he tried to struggle away.
Ben was behind her and when she was ready he helped her stand up and carry Jason to the sofa. Her baby was tired, and Lois knew he wanted to be away from the place where he was constantly poked and prodded. "Shh, shh, I have you baby," Lois whispered over and over until his cries finally gave way to sleep. There had to be a way, and Lois knew that Jason's unhappiness would grow the longer they remained here. Her head began to ache as she thought about how much work they had missed over the past few days, and how they would balance things out between work, Michaela's needs and Jason's.
"Would you like me to tuck him into bed?" Ben asked, drawing her thoughts back to the present.
"Yes, help me." He stood by her side and put one hand on her back pushing gently as he helped her stand up. He helped her walk over to the bed and supported her as she leaned forward to put Jason in his bed. Her son didn't utter a sound as she pulled a warm quilt over him.
"If you would like, and if Jason doesn't object, Martha and I could take him home in the morning."
Ben and Martha had been so supportive, and Lois knew he meant well but right now she couldn't think about that. "I think we should see how it goes after tonight. Will you sit with him while I get a few things from my room?"
"I would be happy to do that."
Lois gave him a quick hug before she left, her mind still awhirl with all the things they needed to do.
It was still early in the morning when Clark arrived at Jason's room finding his wife awake, finishing up another session with a breast pump. When she looked at him he instantly knew that something had happened while he was away from the worried look she gave him and how her hands shook as she tried to screw on the cap of one of the bottles.
He moved to her side and sat down taking the bottle from her as she almost dropped it. He put the lid on it and leaned back on the sofa bringing her with him. "What happened?"
"Jason wanted to go home, and had a meltdown when I told him we needed to stay here. We need to go back to work. I know that Perry has told us to take as much time as we need but how fair is that to the paper and everyone else for that matter?" Her voice had risen in pitch and she was shaking more.
Clark put both of his arms around her, holding her close as she did her best to regain control over her emotions. When she was calm he kissed the top of her head, shutting his eyes for a moment, to calm his own emotions. "Why don't we go home tomorrow, just for a couple of hours? My mom and Ben can stay there with Jason when we come back, and Michaela should be fine here with Doctor Klein and her staff." He didn't like the idea of leaving her alone, but it had become evident that they all needed to go home and try and figure out how to deal with all that life had dealt them.
"I hate leaving her here. We had to do that with Jason, but I was there everyday to hold him and talk to him."
She was quiet after that and once she was asleep, Clark got up and eased her body back against the sofa, propping a pillow under her head. He stood up and brushed some of her hair away from her face and just stood there watching her sleep. There were no regrets on his part for the decisions they had both made so long ago, and the choices they were facing now. The next few months would likely be hard on all of them, and there was still Luthor to consider, but they would find a way just as they always had done. Clark left the room, and headed for the nursery to spend time with his daughter, and to try and get some sleep of his own before the new day began.
With Jason asleep, cradled in his left arm, and his right arm around Lois, Clark led his family up the walk to the front of their house. A cold breeze was blowing, and Jason snuggled closer to him. It felt good to be home, but also different. Leaving Michaela had not been easy for any of them. Even Jason had been sad when they went out the car, but their reassurances had comforted him.
As they arrived on the front porch, the door opened and his mom smiled at them. "I have some breakfast waiting, and some decaf," Martha said.
"Coffee sounds great," Lois told her as they all walked into the house.
"I'm going to put him in bed." Clark reached out with his free arm and drew his wife into a much needed hug.
"I love you," she whispered.
"I love you, too." They kissed and he went upstairs finding Jason's room ready for him, and again Clark was thankful for his mom and Ben for helping out. After his son was settled in bed, Clark walked down the hall to his room finding Lois already there with a cup of coffee sitting on the bedside table and her sitting in bed with the laptop. "I thought we were going to relax," he teased.
"We are, but I wanted to check my email."
Lois winced as she continued to look at her computer and Clark frowned. He walked over to his side of the bed and sat down gently not wanting to jostle her. Once he had taken his shoes off and propped a pillow behind him he scooted next to her and waited. He couldn't make her rest and hoped that she would do that now that he was here.
"I forgot how much it hurts after you have a baby," she said as she shut her computer down and leaned against him. "There is too much to do to let it get in the way but I feel tired and grumpy,"
"Then why don't we rest for a while." He leaned back bringing her with him and smiled as she turned slightly and kissed him. Cuddled together, both of them drifted into a much needed rest until his hearing picked up Jason's footsteps just outside of their door and very quickly without waking Lois, Clark slipped out of bed and greeted their son right as he was about to knock.
"Was Mommy tired?" Jason whispered, looking past Clark at the bed.
"Yes, we were both tired. Are you hungry?" When Jason nodded his head, Clark picked him up and the two of them headed downstairs to see what good things Granny had cooked up.
It was so nice to be at home, even though her mind drifted back to Michaela. Lois had wanted nothing more than to get her and bring her home, and when it was time to go back to Star Labs for a visit later that day, she and Clark left a teary-eyed Jason at home with his grandparents.
"I hated leaving him," Lois muttered as they made their way down SR. 124 headed to Metropolis.
It was quiet, and they hadn't said a word for nearly five miles. When she said that, Clark reached out and took her hand and Lois drew comfort from that touch. "Maybe this won't last too long, us going back and forth like this."
"Richard and I spent nine weeks going from our house, to work, to the hospital and home again. It was so good to feel normal for a while."
They chitchatted about mundane things as they drove and when they finally arrived, Lois was anxious to see their baby and hoped that she would finally get to hold her again. As soon as they arrived inside the back entrance to the special ward set up, Anna greeted them. "We had some progress while you were gone, come see."
They followed her down the hall and when they arrived in the nursery, Michaela was resting on her tummy breathing on her own. Lois let go of her husband's hand and closed the small distance between herself and her daughter. "Is it possible for me to hold her?"
Judy smiled and nodded her head. Very quickly Lois took off her coat letting Clark take it, as she walked over to the sink where she washed her hands and arms, using a special sanitizer for both. When she got back to Michaela everything was ready. Lois sat down and unbuttoned the top few buttons of her blouse, and a moment later as Clark had done a few times now, she held her daughter against her chest as Judy put a blanket around her.
"So what do you think?" Clark asked once Judy had gone.
"I think I could get used to this," Lois said softly as she tilted her head down and placed a kiss atop her daughter's soft hair. "I love the way she smells." She looked up as her husband stepped closer, and lifted her head accepting his kiss before they parted and he gave one to their little angel.
Their time with their daughter lasted almost an hour, at which point they were able to give her a sponge bath and get her ready for bed. Tomorrow with any luck they could try feeding her, and Lois hoped that soon after that they would all be able to go home, and have life get back to normal.
A.N. : Alright, I'm on a role, sort of. I know there have been longer periods between posting and likely there will be between this and the next chapter due to me having surgery in a few days. Fear not though this story is about to come to an end happy for all except for Luthor who will get his..evil grin Thanks to all of you who have stuck with me thus far, and you know what helps me keep going, so hit that nice little purple review button. Thanks also to htbthomas for her help this time around with the Beta reading. Hope you liked this..