Disclaimer: Jerry Segal and Joe Schuster created the sandbox, DC Comics and Bad Hat Harry Productions own it, and I get to play in it.

Superman settled down toward the roof of the Daily Planet building. With his arms opened slightly and his face turned toward the sun, he basked, soaking up its radiance.

"Can't a girl get a smoke up here in peace?" While Lois's face smiled, her eyes betrayed some sadness and pain.

Hovering back up a few feet above the roof deck, his cape billowing up in the breeze, Superman saw the perspiration on the backs of her hands, heard her slightly accelerated breathing and heart rate. Even after five years away in space, Lois was like an open book to him. Seeing her inner turmoil, caused him no small amount of consternation. He had been in love with Lois since his first day on the job at the Daily Planet. His heart went out to her, but he was Superman, the world's rock to lean on, he had to project calmness and grace under pressure. "Is that how you really feel Lois?"

"Well, let's see; shall we?" Lois took a drag on her cigarette. "How do I feel, hmm?" She began walking across the roof away from Superman. She called out over her shoulder, "I'm winning a Pulitzer for master criminal Lex Luthor's favorite column ever. My son threw a grand piano across a room. And whom I thought was one great love of my life has finally returned from the stars. How do you think I feel?"

"Conflicted?"

Spinning around to face him, Lois called out, "Yes!"

"Do you really want me to leave you alone up here?"

"How should I know?" Lois walked over toward Superman, who lowered himself back down to the roof. Burying her face on his Kryptonian crest, she pounded her fist on his chest. "Oooow." She shook her hand. "I'm a mess right now. Do you realize how many nights I cried myself to sleep while you were gone?"

"And who was there for you?" Superman spoke softly into her ear. He put one arm gently around her shoulders, expressing strength and his confidence their abilities to work through the emotions and find truth.

Sniffling, Lois answered, "Richard was there for me, either in person or on the phone. I never really explained it but I think he sort of knew."

"Try to pull yourself together Lois. Richard and Jason are coming back up."

She sniffled again and grabbed Superman's cape to wipe her tears. The tears didn't soak in, just beaded up and ran down. "Maybe Clark will be down there." Lois shuffled off toward the elevator house, "He helped when I asked about you not saying good bye," her posture grew more erect and her strides, more purposeful with each step.

"Ah, yes, Clark." Superman called.

Lois turned her face back toward him. She dabbed the tears off her face with a tissue from her purse.

Superman continued, "I met him when I came here to talk with Richard. He seems like quite the milquetoast on the surface, but I believe he has great strength within."

"Alright," she stopped for the moment, "but you and I have got to talk about Jason. He's allergic to Kryptonite and he threw that piano. It doesn't make sense."

"It will soon enough." Superman smiled

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Look behind you."

Richard and Jason emerged onto the roof. Lois ground out her cigarette, took a deep breath, straightened up and ruffled Jason's hair affectionately as she walked past. She smiled at Richard and muttered something about having to find Clark. The hinges of the door to the elevator house creaked and she was gone from sight.

"Hi, Superman!" Jason said and rushed over like he was going to hug him. Then he stopped short and looked down for a moment.

Superman put a hand out palm facing up. "Give me five, my man."

"No one says that any more." Jason looked back up at Superman. "You talk like Mr. Clark. He always says things that are out of style like 'swell' and 'jeepers.'"

"So what do kids say these days?"

Extending a fist, he said, "They don't say anything. They just look at each other in the eyes and touch fists."

"Like this?" Superman looked into Jason's eyes touched his fist to Jason's.

"Yeah, like that."

Richard took a step back and watched the natural rapport between these two. It was like instant companionship. They understood each other.

"Oh, my dad and I have photos for you."

Richard pulled the pictures of the shipping magnate's mansion out of his blazer and brought them over. "Thank you." Superman flipped through them quickly, and picked out the one of the huge crystal in the shattered basement."Tell me about this one."

"Uncle Jimmy and me and Trish figured it out. The bad bald man tried a 'speriment in his basement. He put a small piece of your crystal in the water to see what it would do before he made all those ones out in the ocean."

"And this was the result?" Superman's eyes were wide.

"Yeah, I guess. Uncle Jimmy took that pitcher a few days ago. I think while you were in the hospital."

"Very good explaining Jason," said Superman. "Now, I understand you have something to talk to me about?"

Jason's voice lowered with a note of concern, "Yeah, but I don't know if I can talk about it in front of my dad."

Leaning close, the Man of Steel asked, "Does you dad love you?"

"He does." Jason's face brightened and his eyes misted slightly as he thought about the depth of Richard's feelings and demonstrated commitment to him. "More than anything in the world. Except maybe for Mommy."

"Then you can say anything in front of him." Superman glanced up at Richard expressing confidence and trust with his eyes while his left hand gestured for Richard to move back just a bit and give them some space.

Jason paused and the asked with an expression of wonder, "How did I throw that piano?"

Superman thought fast. Over a hundred times, he had rehearsed the moment when he would tell his son the first part of the truth about them. But he always envisioned himself beginning the revelation. Nevertheless an open, direct question like that deserved an equally honest and open answer, but how to phrase it...? "You made my strength your own," he said taking a knee and gently placing his right hand on the lad's left shoulder, "Just as I made Jor-El's strength my own."

"Who is Jor-El?"

"Jor-El was my father."

"Can I meet him?" Jason's excitement was beginning to build.

"No." Superman's face showed a wistful, distant sadness. "He died on Krypton when I was only a few months old, way before you were born."

"I don't get it." Jason began backing up. "I have a Dad." He looked at Richard. "Richard, right over there," Jason pointed to his dad using his whole hand. "He's my Dad. How can I have two Dads?"

"I had a Dad, too. His name was Jonathan. Jonathan was a farmer in Kansas. He died in Kansas, also before you were born."

"Is my Dad gonna die?" Jason looked concerned.

"When we're all very old, when it's his time, then Richard will die." Superman reassured.

Jason paused. He looked up and away. Superman could see the wheels turning in his son's mind.

His son continued, "So, you're my father, like Jor-El was your father. And Richard is my Dad, like Jonathan was yours."

"Right you are, sport." Superman smiled his approval.

Jason looked pleased with himself. "What's your name?"

"I think you already know that."

"Jor-El Junior?"

Superman chuckled, "No. Try again."

"You are Mr. Clark."

"Right again." Superman smiled again, even broader this time.

Jason looked tentative as though he weren't entirely sure he wanted to ask the next question. He looked over at his dad who smiled encourageingly, "Did you have a Mom here?"

"Yes. Her name is Martha, she lives in Kansas."

Jason's face brightened. Clark's mom, his grandma, was still alive. "So, I can see her?"

"Yes. I think we all will see her soon."

"What are we gonna tell my Mom?"

"We don't exactly have to tell her, not really," mused Superman, facing away from Jason and standing erect, floating up off the roof of the Daily Planet building just a bit. "I could just remove the hypnotic suggestion that's keeping the memories surrounding Jason's conception suppressed."

"But would that be the courageous thing to do?" pushing himself up from his relaxed pose leaning against the elevator house, Richard posed a rhetorical question, gesturing with his left hand.

"No, it that would be taking the easy way out," replied the Man of Steel.

"We hafta tell her," pleaded Jason. "How else is she gonna know?"

"We'll tell her son," Richard rubbed the boy's back reassuringly.

"We'll tell her soon," affirmed Superman.

"What's that chirping sound?" Jason's bright eyes darted around.

Richard reached for his Palm Pilot. "It's not mine."

"It's mine," from the folds of his cape, Superman removed a Blackberry.

"Is it from the President?" Jason's face swelled with pride.

Chuckling, Superman replied, "No. No, I didn't give him my email address. This message is from the Space Agency. They're reminding me about an asteroid headed for Earth. They asked me to handle it for them back in 2000."

"When does it get here?" Jason asked.

"Middle of next year. My plan is to fly out there once a week and slow it down just bit. That way it will fall closer to the sun and miss us."

"You know the Pulitzer ceremony was rescheduled for the end of this week." Richard changed the subject. Slowing down an asteroid might be an abstract exercise in celestial mechanics to Superman, but it would mean global cataclysm to the lad if the conversation continued

"Mommy's gonna get a Pullitzer trophy. Like my dad's baseball trophy."

"Will you be there?" Richard leaned his back against the elevator house, with his right hand in his pants pocket, looking to all the world like he was perfectly relaxed.

"I'll probably go with bow-tie and glasses, rather than the cape." Superman responded.

"Bruce Wayne is hosting it. The guest speaker is going to be someone you should meet." Richard walked back over and collected the photos.

"Oh, Really? Bruce, huh, do tell." Superman rolled his eyes.

"Wait, you know Bruce?" Richard stopped, completely still. "Do you know him as Clark or as Superman?"

"You don't really want to know the answer to that question." Superman held his right hand out flat and moved it slightly up and away.

"I don't want to know the answer?"

"You want to tell me about the guest speaker." Superman made the hand gesture again.

"Of course I want to tell you about the guest speaker, she's been asking to meet you." Richard looked slightly puzzled.

Jason burst out laughing and Superman chuckled slightly.

"What just happened here?" Richard took a step back out of the shadow cast by the giant globe atop the Daily Planet building. "Were you trying some kind of Krypton hypnotism or something?"

"No, Dad, Superman was doing a Jedi mind trick, like Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi in Star Wars." Jason drew an imaginary lightsaber and did some swashbuckling sword fight moves.

"You saw those movies? Did Superman just made a Star Wars joke?" Richard gestured with both hands framing a picture of Superman as thought it were a Kodak moment.

Jason stopped his imaginary lightsaber duel for a moment. "Of course, Dad everyone has seen Star Wars. Man I can't wait for Episode IV – A New Hope, when does that come out?" Jason moved his right hand to the side and pushed with his left then jumped back into duel.

"Of course, Richard. If anyone ever makes a movie about me, I want it to be George Lucas or Richard Donner."

"How 'bout Bryan Singer, Superman," Jason called over his shoulder still battling an imaginary Sith Lord. "he made X-Men."

"Weren't those the icky mutant movies?" Superman scrunched up his face, slightly.

"Yeah, they were great. All my friends at school love them." Jason's face looked dreamy for a moment, then he abruptly changed the subject, "Come on, Dad, tell him about the Amazon Princess."

"Don't you mean the Princess from Alderaan?" asked Superman.

"No, he's talking about the Pulitzer ceremony again." Richard looked calm and collected once more. "The guest speaker, Princess Diana of Themyscara, Consul General to Metropolis, Gotham and New York City, has been asking to meet you."

"Not another stuffy diplomat?" Superman exaggerated a mock complaint.

"No, she's da bomb. She played soccer with my class at school." Jason jogged back over toward Superman, dribbling an imaginary soccer ball. "And she's even buds with Mommy."

"Lois did an interview with her while you were gone. We've all been friends ever since."

Jason stopped and looked up solemnly at Superman, "She knocked down bullets just like you do, Superman."

Another chirping sounded. Jason reached in his pocket and pulled out an iPod. "It's not mine," Jason kept a straight face.

This time Richard and Superman both laughed heartily.

Superman was still holding his blackberry. "Yup," he glanced down at it. "12.30 Eastern Time, I need to go change into my suit and tie. I want to go meet Trish's journalism class this afternoon. It runs from 13.15 till 14.00. I've got to jet, guys. I'm taking the subway."

"Really, why do that when you could fly?" Richard was chasing after Jason trying to keep him from dribbling his imaginary soccer ball too close to the edge of the roof.

"So, I can work." Superman made typing motions with his hands. "I'm going to organize some notes in my laptop for a feature story about online games that your uncle said I could write for the Sunday Magazine."

Superman started to fly off.

"Eh-hem" said Jason.

Superman looked down and saw that Jason wanted a hug. He glanced over at Richard who smiled approval. Maybe this whole thing could work out after all. Superman knelt down and traded a gentle hug with Jason.

Jason looked up into Superman's blue eyes, "When are you gonna come to my school?"

"We'll talk about that tomorrow."

Richard offered his hand. Superman reached up with one hand and shook, then pulled the other man down for a half hug, with a vigorous manly pat on the back. "We're all in this together now." The three stood and bumped fists. Superman zipped skyward.

Moments later, Clark emerged from the washroom. Lois walked over, "There you are. I want to talk to you. You were such a help when we talked about saying goodbye."

"Lois, hi." Clark breezed past her pulling his tie up to his collar and buttoning his vest. He grabbed his blazer and started to put it on over the vest.

"You know, Clark, this is the second time this week you've worn a blazer and khakis." Lois said without even glancing up from her computer screen. "That's really not like you. And that vest so doesn't go with the blazer and khakis."

"Oh, really, Lois?"

"Yeah, you should read GQ or the J. Crew Catalogue or something." She called over her shoulder, looking this time. Lois stood and walked over to Clark's desk.

She took his blazer, while he unbuttoned his vest. "I'm really in a hurry, Lois. I'm meeting Trish's journalism class this afternoon. If I'm not on the subway in ten minutes, I'll be late."

"I'll give you a ride."

"Through midtown traffic?"

"Yeah, I took the NASCAR Weekend with my guys last year, while you were gone. I don't understand that sport, but I definitely understand fast driving."

She grabbed her keys, "Come on, Smallville, time's a wastin'."

Clark grabbed his laptop bag, "Er, why don't you talk with Richard, I really have to, ah, get some work done on the train ride."

"I can't talk to him about this. I can't really talk to Superman about it either. Not until I understand my own feelings better. So, that's why I need to talk to you, Clark." Lois looked up and Clark was gone.