He had promised her his first interview, and he had every intention of keeping it though a part of him felt he should keep his distance now.

He met her on the rooftop of her apartment building. She looked as vibrant ever, ready to take on the world. He tortured himself by looking at her left hand. If her engagement ring had wounded him, the gold band finished him off, but he tried to maintain professionalism. "Ms. Lane."

She smiled, eyes lighting up to see him. "Kal-El, I've missed you."

The squeeze on his heart became a vice grip. "You have questions for me?"

A flash of pain appeared as she realized their relationship had changed. He wanted to comfort her, but that was another man's job. "Yes," she said, reverting to professionalism herself and picking up her prepared questions. She hit the record button. "Where do your powers come from?"

She knew the answer already, but she wanted to hear it from him in his own words.

"I'm not from this planet. The sun in your galaxy affects my body differently."

"Does that mean your powers go away at night?" she asked with a soft smile. She was asking questions readers would ask.

"No. My body stores up the energy like a battery."

"With all your powers, you seem like an immortal among mortals. Do you have any weaknesses?"

"Well, I can't be everywhere at once, and I have a hard time letting go of the fact I can't help everyone all the time."

She stopped the recording. "That's not a bad answer."

"You understand of course that I can't give my physical weakness away. There'd be those who would use that information against me."

"I do understand, and I promise your secret is safe with me. I'll carry it with me to the grave."

He believed her. She would never release a story that would hurt anyone, no matter the fame it would bring her. She knew there were times when the public didn't have a right to know.

She turned the recorder back on. "So outside of saving the world, what are your interests? Your favorite food?"

"I like watching baseball. And apple pie."

She chuckled. "You're very American for an alien."

"Should I change my answers?" he asked. He was glad his first time was with her or he'd be a lot more nervous about the interview.

"No, it's perfect. It humanizes you. You can't expect people not to be frightened until they get to know you, but little things like this will help them to see your humanity."

Sergeant Luthor came out. "How can a non-human have humanity?"

"Alex," she said, saying his name like a growl.

He must have been a bone of contention between them. It gave him a warm feeling to know she defended him to her husband.

She looked back to him. "If you think you'll want another identity in the future, you might want to consider keeping those things under wraps. Maybe you'll want a normal life someday with a wife, two kids, a dog. You know, the whole ball of wax."

He had thought about it, about being Clark Kent again, but he didn't want anyone ever knocking on his mom's door again, asking about him or using her to get to him.

As for starting a family, he didn't think he could ever love anyone else even if he could find someone willing to overlook his alienness. And if he did get a dog, a furry friend wasn't going to care what name he went by. Why bother hiding his likes?

Kal-El was who he was now. And no one even knew his old name except those from his old life, of course. General Lane kept information from his previous life highly classified, so he doubted Luthor even knew it. Probably Lois had heard it, having gone to see his mother, though she still called him by the name he'd gave her. "No, feel free to use it."

He felt uneasy under Sergeant Luthor's glare. He had possessively wrapped an arm around her as if defending his territory though there was no need as he would never pursue a married woman no matter how he felt about her.

Lois sensed the shift in mood and knew she would no longer get open answers from him. "Maybe we can finish this some other time?"

He nodded. Was it wrong that it thrilled him there was an excuse for them to meet again? Was an affair of the heart as bad as one acted on? He would try to stop feeling them, but he didn't know if he could stay away from her.