Chapter 6: The Ceremony
Clark hovered in the clouds above the APD headquarters. The sky was overcast, so he was hidden from the crowd of people gathered below. They were held back from the building by barricades along the sidewalks. News crews lined the street. Lois was in the crowd on the right side of the doors. She had worked her way to the front so she was pressed up against the barrier. She glanced up every few minutes, knowing that he was probably up there. He watched her as he stalled, building up his courage.
His heart rate was elevated, even though he was breathing deeply. He tried not to, but he couldn't help listening to people's conversations. He hadn't heard anything negative yet. The main sentiment was of impatience and excitement for his arrival. Several people had made signs, all of them positive.
He wasn't running late. The ceremony was going to start in about 11 minutes, and he didn't care to show up any earlier than necessary. It wasn't going to last very long, thankfully; just 25 minutes. He was pretty sure that was due to the fact that Fontaine could sense his anxiety. Fontaine was going to give a speech, then Maryl Estevez, the woman in the purple suit who he saved during the robbery. After that, he would be awarded the medal. They had offered him time to speak, but he declined. He had never given speeches before, and he was too nervous to bear it, anyway.
He continued breathing and closed his eyes. He let the breeze blowing over his face calm him, then slowly began floating down to the ground. The water droplets condensed on his suit, skin, and hair, providing a cooling sensation. He opened his eyes as he emerged from the clouds. A few seconds passed before anyone noticed him. As his feet touched the ground lightly, he made eye contact with Lois. She smiled reassuringly and subtly waved at him, and he gave her a tiny smile.
He was good at filtering out all the noise, but he noticed a child calling out to him. He looked behind him, to his right and saw a little girl of about 7 standing behind the barrier with her hands clutching the bars, and her face pressed between them. She was wearing a shirt with his emblem, and her parents stood behind her. She made a shocked expression, as though she hadn't really expected him to notice her. He walked over slowly, making sure her parents were ok with it. They smiled at him, and the girl suddenly became shy, as she turned and hid between their legs. Her mother bent down and touched her shoulder.
"Anila, look, it's Superman. Didn't you want to meet him?"
She didn't answer and fidgeted. Clark smiled and kneeled down.
"Hi," he said gently.
She looked over her shoulder.
"Hi," she mumbled.
"My name's Kal. What's your name?"
She turned towards him, but remained glued to her parents. She stared at him unblinkingly.
"I'm Anila."
"That's a pretty name. It's nice to meet you."
He extended his hand, and she stared at it for a few moments before reaching between the bars and putting her small hand in his.
"I like your shirt."
"Thank you."
She came closer and pressed her face between the bars again.
"I think you're really nice," she said bashfully, "and I'm sorry people were mean to you. You're my favorite superhero."
He was taken aback.
"Thank you…That's really sweet. I think you're nice, too."
They smiled at each other.
"Well, I have to go inside now," he said, "It was nice meeting you, Anila."
"Nice to meet you, too."
When he entered the building, Fontaine was waiting for him in the hallway with a few officers behind him. He strode forward and shook Clark's hand.
"Kal-El, it's an honour to meet you. I'm Chief Evan Fontaine."
"It's an honour to meet you, as well."
"Did you have a good flight here? The weather's not too good."
"It's much more amicable above the clouds, Sir."
Fontaine looked amused that Clark called him "sir."
"Glad to hear it. You definitely didn't leave any time wasted. The press room is down here, if you'll follow me."
He led Clark through the station. Most of the officers standing in the hallway or looking out through office doorways stared at him in awe. Some of them smiled at him, and he smiled and nodded back. Fontaine reached the door that said "Press Room" and looked back at Clark.
"Ready to go in?"
He enjoyed how casual Fontaine was with him.
"Yes."
As soon as the door was open, cameras flashed rapidly and reporters called out. Fontaine went straight to the stand.
"No photos, right now, please. Thank you."
The flashes died down, and he readied himself to speak.
"Good evening, everyone. I'd like to thank you all for attending this ceremony. I'd especially like to thank Maryl Estevez for coming to share her story with us. Lastly, I'd like to thank the man we are honouring today. He is a fierce warrior, an inspiration and an example to us all, and I would argue, despite turning down the citizenship, an exemplary citizen. Ladies and gentlemen, Kal-El."
As they clapped, Clark fantasized about melting into the floor. He wished he could say the ceremony was a blur, but it was impossible for it to feel that way when everyone was talking about him the entire time. Fontaine rambled on about why he deserved the Medal of Service, then Ms. Estevez recounted the robbery. She spoke with teary eyes about her terror as Tanan jabbed her with his rifle, how she wasn't sure if she was going to survive, then the overwhelming relief when Superman dived in and gently lifted her to safety. He was entranced by her gut-wrenching story, especially since she often glanced at him as she told it. It was always poignant to hear events from the other perspective. He could never truly understand their fear or how his actions affected them. He found comfort in the fact that he did the right thing this time.
After Ms. Estevez finished, a sergeant brought forward the medal in a wooden case with blue felt padding, and Fontaine placed it over Clark's head. Everyone applauded, and he shook the hand of everyone who was on stage. Ms. Estevan walked up to him and asked if she could hug him, and he said of course. She held onto him tightly.
"I'm sorry you went through that," he said.
He knew it didn't make a difference, but he wanted to say it anyway. She was a good person. It wasn't fair what good people went through. It wasn't even fair what bad people went through, sometimes.
"There's no need to apologize," she said as she pulled away. Her eyes were slightly red, but she was smiling, "Something's always happening to somebody in the world. We can't stop it. We're all due a bad day. I'm just glad you were there for mine."
He smiled back and tried not to tear up. After they said goodbye, Fontaine approached him.
"Would you like to go out the back?" he whispered.
Clark chuckled.
"No, the front is fine. Unless, you usually have people go out that way."
Fontaine laughed.
"Nope. Suit yourself."
He shook his hand again.
"Thank you," Clark said.
"Thank you."
Clark exited the building still wearing the medal. He wanted to take it off, but thought it might be rude to do so right after they gave it to him, and on their doorstep, too. His heart thudded and adrenaline (or whatever the Kryptonian equivalent was) raced through him as he walked straight up to Lois before she even called out to him.
"Kal-El, congratulations on the award," she said, grinning, "Would you consider giving The Daily Planet an exclusive interview?"
"Of course. And would you mind if I gave you a lift?"
The words "Certainly not" were scarcely out of her mouth before he reached over the barrier and flew away with her. They landed lightly on a rooftop a couple blocks away.
"Oh my God, Clark," she giggled as he released her, "If you keep acting like that, you're gonna confirm what the tabloids are saying."
"You're the one who asked for the interview."
"You're the one who came straight to me like a puppy."
She reached into her bag and pulled out her notebook and pen.
"Ok, so, first thing's first…how do you feel?"
"Terrible," he said, though it wasn't entirely true.
"Mmm," she mumbled, pen hovering over the paper, "Try again."
"I thought I was gonna die at first, but now I'm ok."
She gave him a look that said, "Yeah, that's not going in a newspaper."
He sighed.
"I'm really honoured by everything they said, especially Ms. Estevez. I was very nervous going in, but now I feel…touched. And appreciative. I wanna thank the APD for organizing this, and everyone for believing in me."
She scribbled furiously.
"Good. Next question: where are you gonna keep the medal?"
"In a drawer. On top of a table, maybe."
She shook her head bemusedly as she wrote it down.
"Annnd, do you think you'll be accepting any more awards in person?"
"Probably not. It would depend on how busy I am."
"How are you going to celebrate?"
"I don't know if that's any of their business," he said suggestively, and she couldn't help but smirk, "How about having some dinner?"
"The Man of Steel is going to eat some dinner," she recited.
She flipped the notebook shut, put it away, and pulled out a camera.
"I have to take a picture."
He stood a few feet away, and she lifted the camera.
"Big smile."
He sneered.
"You know Perry will print that."
He smiled properly.
"I'm gonna make copies and put them in our apartment," she said cheerfully as she put the camera away.
"Please, no."
"And I'll send some to your mom, too."
"Lois, no," he said as he stepped forward and hugged her.
He relaxed in her arms, and she hummed sympathetically as she kissed his cheek.
"Was it too much pressure today?"
He groaned.
"Oh, poor baby," she sighed as she reached up and patted his head, "I'm sorry, but I have to go back to the office."
"Mm…"
He didn't let go.
"Clark…"
He pulled back and looked at her. The next second, they both leaned in for a kiss. It started out normal, but slowly became more passionate. She pulled away before it got too far.
"Clark, can you please put me on the ground?"
"Gladly," he said, grinning.
"You know what I mean!"
He conceded and flew her down to an empty alleyway. She touched the side of his face.
"I'll see you later, ok?"
"Ok."
"You did so good today. I love you. And so do a lot of other people."
He took her hand from his face and kissed her palm.
"Thank you, Lois."
"You're welcome."