Clarks POV
Waiting rooms of hospitals are generally uncomfortable. They're too warm, the seats have no cushion, and they always have some weird soap playing on the tv. I don't have to wait more than thirty minutes before they tell me I can go see her. I'm anxious, this woman has been a light in my life since the day I first met her. We've been in situations like this before, but she was losing a lot of blood, and it made me slightly sick to my stomach. I guess even Superman can get squeamish.
Lois sits on the hospital bed, she's holding gauze against her forehead, and motioned me inside as soon as she saw me. The doctor was preparing to start the stitching when I arrived, however, the hospital is overloaded, and so she gets called away for an emergency. "Hey, sorry I'm late!" I apologize. "Are you ok? What happened?"
"I'm fine." She tells me and I believe her. She's a strong woman, I'd follow her anywhere, and I knew she was going to be alright. The doctor comes back in a moment later and begins the stitching. An hour later she's discharged and I take her home.
I get her situated in her apartment. She changes into pajamas and crawls in bed while I get her water and something to eat in case she gets hungry. I ask how she's doing and she gives me a half smile. "You asked me to keep an eye on Stiles and I led him straight into a dangerous situation." She says and my gaze intensifies slightly. "He convinced me to go walk around, and we were casually strolling along, when we hear a shrieking coming from the old bank on 3rd. I snuck in and motioned for him to follow me. I should have never put him at risk like that. I'm sorry, Clark." She says apologetic and bummed.
My eyebrows furrow. "Lois, what were you thinking? You're lucky Superman got to you in time! You could have been hurt worse!" I scold gently and she looks at me pitifully.
"I know, I wasn't thinking about our safety. I was Lois Lane, reporter on duty." She looks down at the bed shamefully. "Where is he? Is he ok? He went pale and looked scared after I hit my head, poor kid."
"I've not seen him." I lie. I was so mad that Lois had gotten hurt I hadn't really considered listening to his side. I assumed he had completely ignored me and had convinced Lois to go find the Merchant on their own. "That's what I get for assuming." I think to myself.
"Then what are you doing here? You need to go find him!" She scolds me this time. "Manjaro and the Merchant are still out there. What if they find him, or he finds them, or what if some thugs get him? He's just a teenager, Clark." The pain meds she's on must be good for her to be openly worrying like this, I find her absolutely adorable, but she's right, he is just a teenager.
"I'll find him." I promise her. "He's probably at my apartment or something." She gives me those big eyes, like the hamster on that tiktok app, and I want to immediately hug her. "Don't worry, you're almost done." I reassure and she gives me another half smile before leaning back on her pillows.
I leave soon after, and use my super hearing to see if I can find him that way, but come up empty. I check my apartment and there's no sign of him. I change into my super suit and take to the sky. I scan the streets looking for him but I still can't find him. I check the planet since I ran onto him there before, still no signs. I check around the hospital, and down neighboring streets, still no luck. The daylight has been gone for well over two hours now and the dangers of Metropolis are already worsening. "Where are you kid."
I fly up until I'm just beyond the earth and I listen. I listen for the slightest thing he may say but all I'm getting is car horns, people arguing, and emergency vehicles blaring their sirens. I focus harder, but still, absolutely nothing. I continue to listen, internally begging that if he needs help to yell, but nothing comes.
I keep my mind clear while I search for his voice. The silence gives me dread, and I start to wonder, what if something happened to him? I made him leave, so if it has, it's entirely on me. I shouldn't have lost my cool, and told him I wouldn't help him anymore, knowing the danger he was in. I abandoned him when he needed me the most.
Maybe a minute passes when I hear screams erupting in the city. I can hear footsteps rattling lamp posts and the ground. "Manjaro." I say under my breath. Why is he near the park, though? "Stiles!"
I approach Metropolis as fast as I can. I see Manjaro moving down South Street, he's flipping cars, and busting windows. It's almost as if he was causing a scene to get my attention. People are freaking out and dodging out if his way. I shield a woman from getting hit by a car and a guy from being smashed by a billboard sign.
As I fly around to the front of him my stomach drops at what I see. He's got Stiles in his fist, limp like a ragdoll, his arms loosely hanging. For a moment, I think he may be dead. I listen for a heartbeat and relief washes through me when I find one. He's not dead, just unconscious, but he looks awful.
"Let him go!" I demand and Manjaro just laughs and his knuckles tighten. Stiles starts to stir a bit, weakly trying to push at his hand, but failing to make a difference. The giant smiles, it's a sickening one, and my blood begins to boil a bit. "I said let him go!" I command sternly and rush him. My fist collides with his chin and he stumbles backwards.
He keeps his footing and remains upright. Stiles is barely fighting him still, I assume he's in and out of consciousness, and from his current condition, I'd say that assumption was accurate. "Hold on Stiles." I try to reassure him but I doubt he can even hear me.
I slam into Manjaro's back. I'm hopeful that the sudden force will distract him enough for me to get Stiles away from him. He lunges forward and goes face first into the side of a building. He let's out a roar of frustration and turns to face me. His grip is still tight and Stiles still struggling to not fully go back under. I send my head into the giant's, and he falls backwards, dazed, but still standing. I take the chance I'm given, and go for the rescue, and Stiles opens his eyes.
"Superman?" His voice is barely a whisper.
Manjaro regains his composure, and knocks me across the road into a rock wall of an apartment complex, but I bounce back quickly. Stiles is trying to push his hand away again and I x-ray him. Manjaro is crushing him, two more ribs are broken, and one is cracked. I have to get Stiles free from before he's crushed to death. I launch out of the building at full speed and ram both of my fists into the side of his head.
Manjaro stumbles sloppily, zigzagging sideways, and drops Stiles. I swoop in, catching him immediately, and his head rolls into my shoulder.
"Don't worry, you're going to be ok, I've got you." I tell him but his eyes are closed again. "If I would have listened before, this whole mess could have been avoided, I'm sorry, Stiles." He doesn't move or make any noise so I'm more than certain he can't hear me.
Manjaro is back on his feet and starts glaring at me. "Mine." His voice is deep, nasally, and he's staring at the teen in my arms.
"No, not yours!" I tell him. "You don't get to lay claim to someone!" The disgust, that twists and grows inside of me, it doesn't want me to put Stiles down anywhere. He's safer with me but the city is not.
"Mine!" Manjaro roars and I fly Stiles to the park. I set him down gently at the top of one of those slide houses with a roof. It's somewhere kind of safe, and he's hidden from view, then I take off for the giant to end his reign once and for all.
A/N: I hope you enjoyed this chapter! I struggled to write it and ended up rewriting it twice. Idk why I'm struggling so much. Either way, I'll catch y'all next time :)