On the Road to Gotham

Clark had barely set his briefcase onto his ordered and tidied desk at the Daily Planet when he was attacked. “You ungrateful hayseed!” The crumpled newspaper hit him square in the back, small warning of a Lane on a rampage.

“Lois?” With obvious reluctance he turned to face the diminutive figure in pale blue stomping towards him. The older woman was disconcerting in such a soft color, but the lines of the suit were harshly angled, stripping her of her femininity, but not the force of her presence. It made her scarier.

“You.” A small thin finger jabbed into his chest. “Know.” Another jab. “Whitney.” Jab. “Fordham.”

“I’m not sure -“

“He’s from that same rinky dink farm town as you! Why didn’t you tell me you had an inside connection to Lex Luthor?” Heads were briefly lifting around the bullpen, but everyone was used to the volume of Lois’ voice. Assured she wasn’t targeting them, people returned to work.

“Because I don’t and I thought you knew,” Clark calmly answered. Lois had used to scare him more, before he met the likes of Batman. “Whitney’s entire life is on record in the society section.”

Lois gave an unladylike snort. “I use that drivel to start my fireplace. We need an in to Luthor so start practicing your Romeo skills, bumpkin. Time to re-new an old acquaintance.”

“Trust me, Lois, that won’t work. After I tried to warn Whitney about Luthor he won’t say two words to me. Repeatable ones, anyway.”

“Warn him?” Her eyes narrowed, finely honed predator instincts scenting a weakness in her prey. “What is this, Kent, you never appreciated the grass until you saw another cow munching on it?”

“That was horrible, Lois,” Clark winced.

“Yeah, but I’m still right,” she smirked. “Face it, Clark, Lex Luthor has everything your little farmboy heart wants. Including the boy next door.”

sSs

The annoying thing about superheroes was that they were never around when you wanted them. Swooping in out of the sky to save the day looked dramatic on the six o’clock news, but it left the implication said superhero was ‘swooping in’ from somewhere else. Not here. And despite all the countless interviews given, no superhero ever said, ‘I was sitting on my couch in Boise when the hotline rang. And if you don’t have that number at home, folks, (big dumb Kansas smile) it’s 1-800-IMA-ASSH x OLE’.

In the end, he went home. While Lex was at work he took one of the cars, a bright yellow one, and returned to Smallville. Namely, Luthor castle. It was a drive he’d rarely taken, from Metropolis to Smallville, but he did it on autopilot, his mind elsewhere. On the futures of great men. On superheroes and geniuses, and what the world could be like. Alone on a stretch of highway he admitted that he loved Lex. It was frightening, but more so was that he seemed to be moving into the center of Lex and Clark’s war. He didn’t understand it; nor could he ignore it. Another bone for them to fight over and he worried to where they would take this, two of the most powerful men in the world. They fought over nothing and everything, each imagined slight blown out of proportion and further injury heaped upon. They acted like jilted lovers still carrying the other’s torch, and somehow Whitney had fallen into the middle. Clark loved Lex still, he was certain of it, beneath all the hateful words, and the detective knew his lover still harbored feelings for the puppy dog eyed gorgeous farm boy. So where did that leave Whitney? He had a proposal to marriage, and his mother would have told him to fight for his man, but he doubted she ever thought he’d have Superman as his competition.

Not that Clark was still in the game and Whitney realized that was one of his biggest obstacles. Clark was some kind of specter to them now, a lost opportunity that kept showing up in blue tights to remind Lex what he could have had. No matter what Lex said about Clark not making a good spouse, he was still a better fit to Lex than Whitney could ever be.

He wondered what kind of surveillance Superman had on the castle when the superhero knocked politely on the library’s balcony doors two hours after Whitney had rolled into the driveway. Sprawled on the couch with the collected essays of Dave Barry the blond barely spared the younger man an acknowledging eye lift, but it was enough to prompt Clark’s entry.

“Whitney.” The green eyes slowly swept about with a slightly unfocused stare before refocusing on him. “Does Lex know you’re here?”

So he’d figured out Whitney had come on his own by staring at the walls? Taking the time to carefully mark his spot the blond closed the book then swung his legs down to sit up with a bone popping stretch. “Does it matter if Lex knows?”

“Of course it-“ the brunette stopped, then frowned with renewed determination. “What are you doing here?”

“Lex told me he had the works of Dave Barry here. The man’s a genius, you know? His ideas on tanks alone could revolutionize society and you’re not in the mood, are you? Oh well,” Whitney stood to replace the book in its niche on the shelf.

“Whitney, I realize you must be angry about last night,” Clark began, but stopped when the blond swiveled about to level him with a dark look.

“’Infuriated’ doesn’t even begin to describe how I feel about you and Lex’s bullshit.”

He’d obviously thrown the superhero with his show of rage if Clark’s dumbstruck expression was anything to go by. “Whitney?”

“I’m sick of watching you two dance around what you really feel for each other. Carrying your martyrdom about like a fucking neon sign.”

“Whitney, Lex is a criminal!” Clark shouted in frustration.

“Really?” A sandy blond eyebrow arched. “And what crime exactly has he committed?”

“Illegal experiments, weapons testing, and more I’m sure of.”

“You saw these experiments?” The detective challenged.

“No, but I saw documents on Lex’s desk and when I confronted him, he didn’t deny it.”

“My God, you cannot be this dense," Whitney moaned.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Clark growled.

"Clark, did it never occur to you Lex set you up, to force you into becoming Superman? That he staged his betrayal?"

"No," the dark head shook in stubborn, desperate denial. "I'd been planning something like Superman for years. Finding out that Lex was just like his father simply expedited matters."

"Bullshit!" the smaller man shouted. "If you'd stayed with Lex, you never would have stepped up!" Clark made to protest, but Whitney's cutting glare stopped him. "Boys who feel safe don't become heroes, Clark, and Lex made you feel safe. He realized that. He chose to give the world Superman because you couldn't decide between saving the world and saving Lex."

Superman looked poleaxed. Or about to faint. Erring on the side of caution, Whitney shoved him into a chair and went for a glass of whiskey. The brunette dumbly took the glass, but made no other move.

"Lex . . ." Clark breathed, the enormity of his loss welling in his eyes.

Whitney, however, felt little sympathy for the man who had so easily cast aside his lover. "Maybe he thought your love was stronger than a few sheets of paper," the blond softly continued, determined to bring the point home, to end this half life once and for all. "Did you ever find solid proof against him? Have you ever?"

"But he's always so," the brunette's hand wave encompassed years of bickering and sloshed alcohol onto the expensive carpet.

"You accused him of being little better than his father, Clark. Even I know that's a sure fire way to piss him off," Whitney dryly commented.

"He never said he didn't do it!" Clark cried, desperate for forgiveness from any quarter.

Whitney gave none, to neither of them. "Never said he did either, did he?"

***

Did he? Superman floated high over his city, lost within his thoughts and memories, hours slipping past unnoticed. The last fifteen years played before his mind’s eye, near photographic memory allowing him to re-examine every altercation, every loving embrace and hateful word. For the first time in too long he actually looked at himself and too much of what he saw he didn’t like. How did the rest of the Justice League put up with him and his constant harangues against Lex? They must have thought he was unhinged. Or at least obsessed, he granted, knowing full well Batman would not have agreed to work with anyone he didn’t at least marginally trust.

Briefly, he felt anger towards his parents and friends, that no one had been the voice of reason earlier. He even blamed Batman for not saying something until he ruefully acknowledged Batman could care less, battling his own demons. No one had wanted him to be with Lex and that hurt, but not near painfully as his guilt. If he had had more confidence in himself, in Lex, none of this would have happened. He had just been so naïve back then, so easy to wound. Now? As both Superman and Clark Kent he had battled great evil, knowing both victory and defeat. His world was not as black and white as it had once been. But what would that mean to Lex? Did he still have his heart to give to his old lover or had someone else neatly stolen it?

Long into the night he mulled over his desires and planned on how to go about achieving them. The morning sun was well into its ascent when he at last moved, blurring from sight.

***

Whitney returned to Gotham without telling Lex of his conversation with Clark. Making notations on his third quarter projections Lex wondered what his fiancé had hoped to accomplish. The man was an enigma at times, but Lex knew his misguided heart was in the right place. Whitney didn’t like seeing his lover and old classmate argue. The solution, however, was not mediation. To corral these romantic flights of Whitney’s Lex made a note to Margaret to renew the restraining orders against Superman and the Daily Planet reporters, Clark Kent especially, and to include Whitney‘s name with his own. His lips twitched to think of the blood vessel Clark would pop when Lex had him arrested for speaking to his fiancé, perversely humored. This game between them might be old but he was still firing all salvos.

“You lied to me.”

The deep, angered voice speaking almost the exact same words from seven years ago froze the billionaire in place. “You doctored reports to play on my fears. You manipulated me to think I had misplaced my trust in you! That I was wrong to love you! Look at me, Lex! Did I mean that little to you?”

Was there a point to lying? The world had grown a darker place from ten years ago. Truly, Superman didn’t need Lex Luthor anymore and that acceptance hurt. He did not want to lose this last tether to his first true love. But he could not let Clark keep him from fully committing to Whitney. Slowly he spun his chair about, tiredly meeting the furious green eyes. “You meant everything to me, Clark. Just as I believe I meant to you.”

The honesty seemed to surprise the younger man, but he recovered quickly enough. “Whitney was right? You sacrificed our relationship to create Superman? How dare you make such a decision about my life! I thought you were happy with me, but obviously not if I proved so easy to throw away!”

SMACK! Lex’s hand smarted, but he ignored the pain. He didn’t even remember standing. Shaking with anger he wanted to slap the egotistical brat again and curled his hands into fists. “Don’t you dare. You refused to listen. I tried every way I could think of to get you to take up Superman but you. Wouldn’t. Listen! Our life was perfect! You were everything and don’t you fucking dare say otherwise!”

“Then why didn’t you fight for me?” Clark whispered, a wealth of hurt shining in his eyes.

Lex forcibly ignored that pain, convinced of his strength to do what needed doing. “Because I needed you more than anyone else and that wasn‘t how it was supposed to be!” Lex shouted. It was too much to look at the man who had once been cause for his redemption and became the reason for his downfall. “You broke me, Clark. You wouldn’t let me surrender to my father’s destiny. You forced me to become a better man deserving of your love. And the better man could not be so selfish to deny the world your gifts.”

“Damn your arrogance, Lex,” Clark rasped. Hearing the condemnation Lex stepped back, a hand going to his desk as he turned away. He had been right all along and no naïve confessionals were going to change that. Superman was a man of conviction and there was no swaying him from believing Lex Luthor was anything less than evil incarnate.

His tongue was a wooden thing in his mouth and he berated himself to think of something that would force Superman to leave. He wanted his solitude, and later, his fiancé. Maybe it was time to implement his plan to have Whitney transferred to Metropolis. He no longer wanted the convenience of a couple thousand miles of privacy. Not when he’d rather have the convenience of three inches of door.

Best not to think of the man standing behind him at all, but Superman was not a man to be dismissed. Lex did not expect the hand that clamped onto his arm, for Clark had not touched him in years. Not even in anger as he had that last time. “Clark?” Was that his voice, sounding so very afraid? Had he ever truly feared Superman before?

“Shhh, Lex. Just let me kiss you,” Clark shushed, his large palm cupping Lex’s smooth chin and tilting him to receive long denied benediction.

Kissing Clark was much how he remembered. He could not resist moaning under Clark’s assault, plunging his tongue into the scorching heat of the brunette’s devouring mouth. For a few brief minutes he lost all of the anger and hurt they held against each other and remembered how they used to move together. Maybe love had given too easily to hate. Maybe it was all still there, shivering along his skin until he had to tear away or risk falling completely.

“No!” he grunted, shaking his head as he struggled to breathe, to settle into his skin. “I can’t do this! I won’t!” Bitterly, he spoke the truth. Whitney had gifted everything of himself; Lex would not sully that gift. “I won’t do this to Whitney. I’m sorry, Clark, but we are too late.”

With inhuman gentleness Clark pulled him back. “For you and I, yes. But it’s not just you I want. I get you and Whitney come as a package deal.”

Both of them? A part of Lex growled, hearing a challenge for Whitney’s affections, but an equal part was viciously aroused at the idea, at the image of the three of them. Could he have them both? Would such a relationship work or long last? Was he willing to try?

Would Whitney?

“I . . .” For one of the few times in his life, Lex Luthor was without words, a state that seemed to amuse Clark immensely. The taller man’s smirk deepened at his scowl, thumb rubbing his cheek.

“We’re not going to fix this overnight, Lex, so just think about it, okay? Maybe too much hate has passed between us, but you were once the best part of me. Since we’ve split . . . I’m tired of hating you, of only talking to you in anger. I don’t think we could make it back, just the two of us.”

But with Whitney . . . Lex slowly nodded, but before he could answer Clark his office door burst open. Margaret looked visibly shaken, more frightened than her employer had ever seen her.

“Margaret?”

“Sir, there’s been an earthquake! Gotham, it’s been leveled!”
***

End Part 1. Gotham is declared a war zone and is closed off from the rest of the world. What will Lex do to reunite with his lover? With his old friend out of the picture for the foreseeable future, will Bruce Wayne finally see what it takes to win the heart of one temperamental police detective? Not if Superman has anything to say about it!

Thanks, Kiana and Lucy for your reviews! I hope to get Part II up soon. Just need to decide who should end up with who!

Next: After Quake.