Chapter 6

Autumn had already colored the leaves of the trees in the park in front of the hospital. The air was cooler now and September almost over.

The last weeks had been awful. Jerome's condition worsened and every day he seemed to become weaker and weaker. He often had high fevers and his will to resist his sickness was decreasing. He stopped playing, even with his best friend, making him eat was becoming difficult as well. He was barely able to watch his favorite cartoon on TV. This had become a fun habit for Jerome and Clark. Jerome had become used to cuddling up in his big friend's arms while watching his favorite cartoons. But more and more often the child fell asleep before the end of the episode.

The doctors and nurses tried to make him laugh more often lately but it was too big an effort for him. Jerome's room was often very crowded, but since his visitors were mostly medical staff, no one cared about that.

Even Clark was allowed to visit whenever he wanted. He seemed to be the only one able to make the child feel better. And Jerome's mother too.

Lois had just left the room to go home to shower and change into some clean clothes and bring some back for Jerome. Clark, as usual, stayed to keep Jerome company. For the time being they were alone since the nurse had monitored Jerome's vitals not long before.

The child seemed nervous, more than he had been in the last few days.

"Clark, can I ask you something?" He bit at his lip.

"Sure, Jerome, whatever you want..." Clark sat on the bed near the little boy.

"I guess... it's not a very good thing..." Jerome seemed quite insecure.

"Okay... well I'll try to answer your question... " Clark tried to be more reassuring.

"Well, what does... alien bastard mean? Exactly?" The child didn't seem to have the courage to look at him.

Clark froze "Jerome! Where did you hear that?"

"It's bad?" Clark caressed him. The child seemed even more little and so sad.

"Yes, that isn't a very nice thing to say..." The child lowered his head further.

"No, I mean it's not a good thing to be, right?"

"No... Honey, it's not a good thing..." The child was silent for a while.

"Clark, when I... die... promise me you'll take Mom away. Right away."

"Jerome... you won't die... "

"I will, soon... the doctor will make me die soon. But he promised me that I'll be here for Mom's birthday. And that will be in a couple of weeks."

"But that means nothing... you'll be fine soon..." Clark tried to reassure him.

"NO! Promise me that you'll take mom away... that you'll protect her from dad!" Jerome cried out, clenching the blanket in his fists. Clark froze, then took a deep breath and tried to calm the thoughts that were filling his mind.

"Jerome... why does Lois need to be protected? And why are you so sure you'll die?" he asked more calmly than he thought was able.

"Dad is going to kill her after me..." Jerome's voice trembled. He was so serious. It wasn't a joke.

"How can you believe this?! It's impossible!"

"Dad said it to the doctor. The doctor didn't want to, but dad said that Sammy would die too if the doctor didn't do as he said or if he tried to warn mom or the... cops... or Superman... he said... that I'm just an alien bastard... that I deserve to die and mom too. I don't want my mom to die!"

This was too much. Clark tried to understand every word. "First, who is Sammy?"

"The doctors daughter. She's so pretty!"

"When did you hear this? I mean...maybe you misunderstood..." Clark was trying to sift all possible hypothesis.

Jerome simply shook his head, staring the blanket.

"Sometimes ... sometimes I can hear things ... I don't know why ... I just heard them outside the door... They were almost whispering but it was so clear... My dad... called me alien bastard... and said I'll die... and mom after me."

"That would explain why you have Kryptonite in your drip-feed... But... you can't be ..." Clark seemed speak more to himself than to Jerome.

"Superman's son?" Clark smiled at the child. It was all so strange. And could it really be possible? No... it couldn't... six months...

"But Dad said ... Am I so bad?" Jerome's voice was so uncertain that Clark couldn't help but hold him tightly.

"No, Honey, you aren't bad. You are the sweetest child I've ever met in my whole life."

"You'll save my mom, then?" Jerome seemed to be so hopeful.

Clark didn't know what to do. He kissed Jerome's head. "Jerome... I'll do more that that... I'll save you both!"

"Really?"

"Sure Honey... I love you... but we need to talk with your mom ... before..."

Clark felt Jerome's tears against his neck. He was so similar to his mother - the expression of grief and fear on his face was the same one that Clark saw so many times in Lois' gaze. The way that the little boy was holding him was the same way that Lois had clung to him when they'd met in the chapel a month ago. Jerome was trying to take from him the same relief that Lois had, that she'd been looking for on the night they conceived their child.

THEIR CHILD?

Jerome was really THEIR child?

The doctor Lewis knocked on the door in the same moment that the thought hit him, and came into the room with a smile.

"How's my favourite patient today?" Clark turned toward him and the look on his face really scared the doctor.

"Close the door!" ordered Clark. The doctor did as he was told. "What are you giving this child?"

"What?"

"I know what you've been doing. Why are you giving Kryptonite to Jerome?"

The Doctor was silent for a couple of seconds, then he answered in a whisper, "I'm sorry...but I had no choice!"

"Why Kryptonite?!" Clark's anger was growing quickly.

ooOOoo

Lois returned quickly to the hospital. She was happy that she could spend some additional time with Clark and Jerome.

Lois' smile vanished as she approached her son's room. She could clearly hear Clark's yells from the corridor. She slowly opened the door.

Lois froze. Never - never - in all her life had she seen Clark so angry with someone.

"Luthor'll kill my child if I don't... don't...! I'm sorry I only wanted Samantha to be safe... Luthor gave me the Kryptonite and told me that Kryptonite would killed Jerome in a very slow and painful way... I'm so sorry..."

"WHAT?!" Lois cried.

Jerome held Clark's arms as though he was sure his friend was going to hit the doctor and wanted to stop him. "It's not Doc's fault! He didn't want to! He gives me something else too...it stops the hurt! It makes me feel better...and..."

"What's happening here?!" Lois was overwhelmed.

"Lois... Lex... is trying to kill Jerome!!"

"No!! No!! It can't be... it... NO!" Tears were streaming down her cheeks. Clark jumped up from the bed and ran across the room to her.

"Lois, believe me..."

"NO! Clark, stop it! How can you say that in front of Jerome! Lex is his father!" Lois stepped back, away from him, shaking her head violently.

"Mrs. Luthor... Luthor isn't Jerome's father..." The doctor said quietly.

"That can't be true!!" she cried.

"Lois, please... let me explain!"

"NO!" Lois stared at Clark. If Jerome was really Clark's son...then all that she'd done was wrong. She'd been suffering all these years hoping to forget Clark's love for nothing... "No...it's impossible..."

Jerome tried to sit up on the bed and reached to Lois. "Mom...please...trust Clark. He's the only one who can save us..."

Lois ran to her son and held him as though she feared he would vanish at any moment.

The doctor picked up a piece of paper and something on it. He handed it to Clark. "This is a friend of mine, his name's Klein. Doctor Klein. He works at Star Labs. His name, phone number and the directions to his office are on it. We've been working on a vaccine for Jerome's illness, to counteract the Kryptonite. We're close to a solution but we need more time. I'm sorry... Sammy..."

"Doc, you helped me... sometimes I pretended to be asleep and I heard you... I know you care about me..." The doctor caressed him and Lois held her child again, in order to protect him against the man that had made them both suffer so much.

"Doc, run away from here, catch your child at school, just now, and go at Metropolis police department... ask of inspector Henderson. Explain him all... He'll protect you and your family..." then Clark approached him. "Please don't speak about Jerome's real father..." Clark's anger toward that man vanished, that man seemed really care of Jerome, and Jerome really loved him, he simply tried to save his daughter from that devil of Luthor.

"I don't know...it's dangerous. For both - "

"Go get your daughter ... now!"

"But what about Luthor? When he finds out that I've betrayed him ... "

"Inspector Henderson will help you get to a safe house with your daughter and hopefully by that time we'll have taken care of Luthor so he'll never be able to hurt anyone again." Clark said. "This is your best chance to be safe but you have to leave immediately!" He paused for a moment. "Go to Sammy... now!" The doctor left the room quickly and Clark breathed a sigh of relief, now he only had to concern himself with Lois and Jerome.

Lois was silent once more as she held her son tightly.

"It's not possible... It's not possible," she kept saying, over and over.

"Lois... I have to tell you something..."

"How could Lex do it to us... How..."

"Lex is a madman."

"But Jerome has to be his son... Clark... I... you were the only one...I ... I..."

"I know, Honey. But listen to me."

"Mom... Is Clark my dad?"

Lois burst into sobs. "I don't know...I don't know..." Clark gathered them both into his arms.

"Lois... please... let me explain..." He started to caress her hair.

"I wanted to run away from Lex. I wanted to be with the man I loved. But I found myself pregnant with his child! How could I leave him then? I didn't want my child to go through what I did, I wanted him to grow up with his father there..." Tears streamed down her cheeks.

"Lois, we have to get away from here - now. I need your help, we have to get Jerome out of here. It's dangerous to stay here."

She nodded, but she seemed to be living a nightmare. She didn't understand...why Kryptonite? Why was Lex doing this?

"Lois, you hear me? Lois?"

Jerome pushed her away in order to look into her eyes. "Mom... it's all right... Clark'll save us... " Lois got up. She wiped her tears with a hand and nodded again. She took a deep breath. She started to gather Jerome's stuff, the most important of it anyway, into a suitcase and helped him to dress. Jerome was so pale. He was barely able to stand.

Suddenly, a thought occurred to Lois. "Lex is going to be here soon!"

"What?"

"I told him Jerome was really weak. So he said he'd come check on him."

"So, we need to leave quickly." She nodded again.

Jerome was at the window. "Mom, he's here. That's his car. Right?"

Lois ran to her child. "Oh no... "

"It's all right, Lois. Come on, we're going!" Clark picked up Jerome with one arm and the suitcase with his free hand. They ran toward the elevators but both of them were busy. "The stairs..." They ran toward them. Lois started to go down, but Clark stopped her.

"Not down. Up. To the roof."

"Why?!"

"We need to escape from him! His men will be waiting for us downstairs."

Clark moved the suitcase in the same hand he was carrying Jerome, then with the other one caught Lois and he started to run upstairs.

Four floors later they had reached the roof and could stop.

The roof was empty, there was no sign of anyone.

"They'll be looking for us! They'll find us..."

"No. We're going to fly out of here."

"You want to call Superman?" Clark took a deep breath. This time she needed to know.

"Lois, there is no Superman. I am HIM, I am Superman."

"What?... You are... ? No... I can believe it..." Images and emotions flow in Lois' head. Everything that had happened between her and Clark ... and Superman. Between her fatigue and the shock it all became too much to bear. "I can't ... I was wrong all... I..."

Lois wasn't able to finish. All around her became dark and she felt her legs grow weak. Clark caught her before she hit the floor.

"MOM!!" Jerome cried, but Clark kissed him on his forehead.

"Don't worry... she's fine... She'll be fine... we must go... now..." Jerome nodded without moving his gaze from his mother. Clark spun into the Superman suit and they flew away.

oooOOOooo

In less that a minute a senseless Lois, Superman and Jerome arrived at Star Labs. Clark was very careful to not let anyone know they were there. In the last few years Star Labs had experienced a lot of financial troubles: years ago they had been the only rival in the town against Luthor's Labs, but now the competition was at an end. Star Labs was close to bankruptcy and would soon be closing its doors so the security at the entrances was really very weak.

Clark followed the instructions he had been given by Jerome's doctor earlier and started toward Dr Klein's laboratory. He knocked, even though the door was already open.

Doctor Klein was so busy that he barely noticed his visitors, nor did he particularly care who they were. He turned however, and saw the most incredible thing in his life - there was Superman, in front of him...well, there was Superman with an unconscious woman in his arms, a suitcase in his hand, and a pale child clutching onto his leg.

"Superman! Please - come in! My name is Klein, Bernard Klein, I suspected that you'd arrive, sooner or later. Here..." Klein looked around helplessly for a moment and then brightened, "If you want you can lay your...friend...down on the couch here. The boy can rest here too if he wants. Do you want me to look at your friend first?"

"No, thank you Dr. Klein, she's just had a bit of a shock from the flight over here, she'll be all right in a few minutes."

Doctor Klein smiled. "So you must be Jerome, right?"

"How do you know?" Clark said, with a concerned expression on his face.

Superman was worried and embarrassed. That was something that Bernard never thought to see. Not in his office, at least.

"It's not very often that Superman visits Metropolis then you come here with a child... and a woman who I know to be Lois Luthor so I just assumed that this is her son Jerome. I've been working on something with a friend of mine to try to help him. Are you sure she's all right?"

"Yeah, she's just had a lot to deal with today..."

Jerome was sticking close to his mom. Clark laid her on the couch. He caressed her hair softly. "Lois? Lois, wake up..."

Slowly she opened her eyes and turned toward him.

She stared him for a long while. For a moment she thought that what had happened earlier was a nightmare. Then suddenly she sat up. It was real. It was true!

Clark stretched one hand toward her but she avoided it. There was so much sadness and anger in her gaze. She got up.

"Where are we?" she asked in an expressionless tone.

"Star Labs. This is Doctor Klein." She didn't seem to be listening.

"I... I need to use the rest room," she said in the same tone.

"Out this door... last door on the right..."

"Thanks," she said stiffly.

She tried to avoid Clark's gaze, and Jerome's too. She needed to be alone for a while.

She needed to think.

She needed to reflect.

She needed to understand.

To be continued