Chlark Fanfic: Agenda, Chapter 14

[babydee1]

Banner by sylvanelfmistre.

Title:              Agenda
Author:          babydee1
Pairing:          Chlark
Rating:           NC-17 (mostly PG-13)
Warnings:     None  
Timeline:      Futurefic; follows Season 8’s Injustice & Failsday Doomsday 
Disclaimer:   All known characters belong to the CW & DC comics. 
Summary:     More than a decade after the Doomsday Rampage, Clark makes a shocking discovery that changes his life forever. 
Feedback:      …makes me squee. :-)  
 
Written for the 2011 smallvillebbanglong Fanfic challenge.  Many thanks to twinsareinfor all her tireless organisation and support!
 
Beta’ed by legendarytobes& The Fallen Sky at KSite.
Art by sylvanelfmistre& go_clo.
 
 
Read previous chapter here.
Read story from the beginning here.
 
 
Chapter 14
 
The gentle strains of the piano played softly as Chloe stared at Clark’s smiling face, a blush warmed her cheeks. “Me?”
 
“You’re the only woman I’ve made love to whilst fully powered,” he said pointed out wisely.
 
“But you and Lana---”
 
“…only ever had sex when both of us were human or had abilities,” he finished.  “Never when either of us was our ‘normal’ selves.”
 
She nodded, remembering a stilted conversation she and Clark had had years ago in the Daily Planet basement on the sore subject of his and Lana’s non-existent sex life. 
 
When I was human, my relationship with Lana was fine; it was perfect, she remembered him saying haltingly.  But ever since my powers came back our…sex life…has kind of been on hiatus. 
 
You can hold my hand without crushing it, Clark, had been her swift reply (after she’d finished blushing seven shades of red).  So what’s really holding you back?
 
What indeed?
 
“You could have tried,” she hedged, and he sighed heavily and stared at the ground.  “At least attempted to be intimate with Lana just once…”
 
“I could have, but I guess deep down I didn’t really want to,” he finally admitted.  “As much as I convinced myself she and I were perfect for each other, something always held me back, kept me from being myself with her.”  He paused and lifted his gaze to meet hers.  “Or rather, someone.” 
 
She stared back at him, desperate to believe what he appeared to be telling her, but not wanting to ever have that hope only to be crushed again.  Baby steps, she told herself.  Ever since her return to Metropolis Clark had indicated a sexual interest in her, that much was sure; however, she was determined not to be sucked into anything more, lest she start believing that she was his soulmate, or something.  
 
Yeah, right, she scoffed inwardly.  Next she’d be expecting him to put a ring on it, or a bracelet, or whatever it was thatKryptonians gave their girlfriends.  That really would be too sad and pathetic for words – and, she admitted to herself, far too much to hope for. 
 
Musings over, she cleared her throat and steered the conversation back onto its original topic.  “So, Diana and this guy; this, er…”
 
“Steve,” he supplied.  “Steve Trevor.”
 
“Steve,” she repeated.  “Are they together now?” 
 
He nodded.  “Yep.  They’re together, and they’re happy.  Very happy.  And Diana’s becoming more familiar with her adopted nation and its ways everyday.  Steve’s really good for her.”
 
“How did I not hear about this?” she asked with a pout.  “I may not be running Ground Control anymore, but I thought I was at least up to speed with all the League gossip.” 
 
“Because the League doesn’t know,” he said.  “She doesn’t want them to know, and I’ve promised to keep her confidence.” 
 
“Well, you’ve always been a good secret-keeper,” she said wryly.  “And she’s a tough cookie, that one.” 
 
“She is.  She’s very much the silent, strong type, very direct,” Clark stated, studying the stem of his wine glass.  “Kinda like a female Bruce, I think.”
 
Chloe’s frowned, and then her eyes widened.  “You know, I never really noticed it before, but…you’re right.  We’re drawn to similar types, it seems.”
 
Clark stared hard at the water in his drinking glass.  “So…what was he like, behind closed doors?”
 
It was her turn to blush.  “Do you really want to have this conversation?” she murmured, toying with the breadsticks as her cheeks warmed profusely. 
 
He winked at her.  “Just curious.” 
 
She leaned forward and gave him a sly grin.  “Intense, and enigmatic.” 
 
Clark nodded and lifted his glass in salute.  “Nicely played.”
 
She chuckled and chinked her glass against his, and took a sip of her drink. 
 
“Let’s steer this into safer territory then,” Clark went on.  “How and when did you two meet?”
 
Chloe groaned and covered her face with one hand.  “Metropolis City Hall, July 2009,” she said.  “…when I puked all over his nine-hundred dollar shirt and designer shoes.”
 
He gasped. “What?”
 
“Hey - three months pregnant and dying of morning sickness at the time,” she explained wryly. “You do the math.”  
 
“Oh.  What were you doing in City Hall?”
 
Her smile faded.  “Terminating the lease on the Watchtower,” she said softly.

Clark lowered his gaze, feeling sober as his cold, hard words came back to haunt him.
 
This place, Chloe…get rid of it, he’d said tersely.  Just walk away, and never look back. 
 
He swallowed.  “Chloe, I…I didn’t mean---”
 
“I was going to do it anyway,” she quickly added.  “There was no way I was ever going to stay there, not after…” she fell silent, and he nodded.
 
“Anyway, and I’d spent hours on my feet at the Lands Registry office, and by the time they were finally done and the paperwork was filed, I was a nauseous wreck.  I stumbled out of the building into the bright light of day, and promptly swooned.” 
 
“Oh my God.  Were you okay?”
 
“Well, a strong pair of arms caught me before I fell, and this gentleman asked me if I was alright.  He told me to take deep breaths, which  I did, but it turned out to be a huge mistake, because he was holding a bacon and meatball sub.”
 
Clark winced.  “Aaaah.”
 
She nodded.  “Exactly.  Greasy meat and pregnant bellies do not go well.  My stomach roiled, and my breakfast ended up all over my mysterious helper.  And his bacon and meatball sub.” 
 
To her intense surprise, he’d been more than patient and understanding about the whole situation.  Completely ignoring the disgusted stares of passers-by, he’d taken her straight to the Metropolis Hilton hotel where he was staying, and booked her into her own room so that she could freshen up in private.  He’d also been kind enough to order some new clothes and arrange for her current ones to be laundered. 
 
When he’d come to check on her and offered to contact her friends or family, she’d promptly started bawling uncontrollably.  Once again, she found herself in this stranger’s arms, though not throwing up all over the brand-new suit he was wearing this time.  Rather, she was babbling non-stop in a hormone-induced funk about a dead ex-husband, a missing cousin and an AWOL best friend. 
 
“I was…pretty lost,” she said, her expression pensive.  “After the funeral, I never heard from Oliver and the others again.  They just stopped taking my calls, and after a while I just stopped bothering them.  Lois disappeared and never came back to this day.  You were gone…” 
 
She sighed and smiled as the waiter returned with their starters.  As soon as he left she resumed the conversation. 
 
“He told me not to lose faith in humanity, and said that if I ever need help I should give him a call,” she went on.   “It was only after I’d returned home that I recognised him as the Bruce Wayne of Wayne Enterprises. 
 
“I decided to take his advice and make a fresh start away from Metropolis and Smallville, so I packed up what little I had and headed for Gotham,” she said as they slowly sipped their soup.  “Bruce was kind enough to put me in touch with the editor of the Gotham Gazette, and after a few scrutinising interviews I got a job there.  Not fancy, mind you; I started out writing puff pieces for the self-help/feel-good section and finally worked my way up to front page articles.” 
 
“I always knew you’d rise back to the top of your game,” he said quietly, and she gave him a rueful smile. 
 
“Oh, it wasn’t easy, especially since I was pregnant when I started there; the general idea is that you won’t take the job seriously.  But my Editor, who’s female, understood and gave me lots of support – as did Bruce.” 
 
“Did he tell you about his hero identity?” he asked.   
 
She shook her head.  “No, I found out on Christmas Day, a week before Gabby was born,” she replied.  “He’d promised to come by for leftover turkey, but he showed up four hours late, covered in bruises and with a cock-and-bull story that didn’t quite add up.  While I was tending his wounds, I noticed he had a particularly nasty gash that looked like one the Batman had picked up that morning whilst stopping a robbery.  I told him straight up what I suspected, and dared him to deny it.  He couldn’t.” 
 
“What is it with you and your inner magnet for superheroes?” he said with a perplexed smile.  She grinned back. 
 
“Beats me.  I must have hero pheromones, they flock to me like bees to a honeypot.”  
 
“Agreed.  How did he take it?  You discovering his secret, that is?”
 
“Pretty well.  I gave him my word that I wouldn’t tell anyone, and in the course of the conversation he mentioned a super-hero database that he had co-created with one Victor Stone.”
 
His eyes widened.  “Cyborg?” 
 
“Mmm.  Turns out we had a few acquaintances in common.” 
 
He nodded, and she continued.  “So I got on board and provided him with support in setting up the Justice League and helped get all the gang back together, along with several other members.  But because of the baby, I didn’t want to be too close to the action, so I created the role of Watchtower and handed it over to a lovely young woman by the name of---”
 
“Barbara Gordon,” he completed with a smile.  “I know her well.” 
 
Chloe smiled.  “She’s an even bigger computer nerd than I am, isn’t she?  Perfect timing, though, because Gabby was born a few days after the setup was completed.”  
 
“You said she came early,” he remembered, and she nodded. 
 
“Yeah.  My waters broke at 36 weeks, so she was technically a preemie, but there were no problems with delivery.  She was born at dawn on New Year’s Day just as the sun was creeping over the horizon, started breathing on her own, and got a perfect score on her Apgar Test.”
 
“Apgar?”
 
She gave him a brief explanation of the summary assessment given to all newborns minutes after birth based on their Appearance, Pulse, Grimace relexes, Muscle Activity and Respiration.  “She was given ten out of ten, and was cleared to go home almost immediately.”     
 
He smiled.  “That’s my girl.” 
 
She grinned and sipped on her wine, and after a few minutes she noticed that Clark’s smile had disappeared and he was drumming his fingers on the table with a stern expression on his face.
 
“Didn’t anyone question Gabby’s paternity?” he asked suddenly. 
 
Chloe blinked, startled.  “No; why would they?”
 
“Maybe not everyone, but Oliver, Dinah, Bart…surely they would have wondered about who your baby’s father was.” 
 
“All they saw was that I was pregnant and that I was with Bruce,” she replied softly.  “They put two and two together, came up with an obvious four, and I didn’t try to convince them otherwise.” 
 
“And no-one questioned the fact that you appeared to have had a full-term baby after barely a six-month relationship?” he queried, and she shrank back a little, startled by his harsh line of questioning. 
 
“No-one had a clue what became of me after Jimmy’s funeral, and none of them saw me again until a week before I was due to give birth,” she said shortly.  “For all they knew, I could have met Bruce the day after you all left.” 
 
She could see the realisation dawning in his face as he nodded.  “That makes sense,” he admitted.  “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to be rude, I just…guess I’m still playing Choose Your Own Adventure in my head and hoping for a different outcome,” he muttered thickly. 
 
“I’m sorry, what?”
 
He sighed.  “I was wondering how anyone could take one look at Gabby and never have connected her to me,” he explained, his expression glum. 
 
“How could they have?” she said quietly.  “Nobody knew you and I were ever intimate.” 
 
He closed his eyes, and grudgingly admitted to himself that she had a point.  “Right.” 
 
“I suppose they might have remotely considered that Jimmy may have been Gabriella’s father, but he and I had been over for months before he was killed,” she went on.  “Heck, our marriage was never even consummated.  Bruce was the only person they saw me with, and when my baby was born with dark hair, it only added credence to their assumptions.” 
 
“I see.”  He drummed his fingers on the table again, his jaw tensing.  “You mentioned that Bruce was with you when Gabby was born.” 
 
Chloe squirmed a little in her seat and glanced pointedly towards the kitchen door.  Where were those damned pesky waiters when you needed them, she thought desperately. 
 
She nodded.  “Yes, he was.  We were still just friends then, but it was obvious that there was an attraction between us.  We were, however, hesitant to pursue it for several reasons; I was pregnant, the love of his life had been murdered not quite a year earlier…it was all very complicated. But we found our way eventually.” 
 
“And he didn’t mind that you had another man’s child?”
 
She smiled.  “He said that being a mentor to Gabby gave him purpose.  He’s been an amazing support to us, Clark.  I don’t know what we’d have done without him.” 
 
***
 
Chapter 15…

Comments

[laurelnola.livejournal.com]

"however, she was determined not to be sucked into anything more, lest she start believing that she was his soulmate, or something."

Yeah, think how awkward it would be to find out you're carved next to him on a stone cave wall! "or something"! *evil grin*


"She smiled. “He said that being a mentor to Gabby gave him purpose. He’s been an amazing support to us, Clark. I don’t know what we’d have done without him.”

I can see this. Bruce was a natural mentor. It just turned out that he helped raise Gabby before Robin came along, so no wonder he knew what he was doing!