Chapter Text
Somewhere in the middle of Kansas, in the farm town of Smallville, tucked away in an idyllic plot of land, there stood the Kent Farm Bed and Breakfast, a little spot of paradise for the wandering traveller. Jonathan Kent had inherited the estate from his father, and Martha Kent had used her combined business savvy and masterful cooking skills to turn the previously unused guest house into a new source of income. The two revitalized the previously struggling estate, turning the guest house into a refuge for city folk tired of the rush of daily life or travellers passing through in need of a night's sleep.
Clark Kent grew up surrounded by people coming and going from the farm. It wasn't unusual to find an excitable raven-haired boy asking the newest guests where they came from, chatting them up with a sociability one wouldn't expect from someone his age. As time went on, Clark was officially hired to help out during the summer, maintaining the guest house for the next weary souls to rest their heads there. Even as he grew from a toddler into a teenager, Clark maintained his positivity, always happy to share a story with whoever wanted to talk.
Though the guests came and went, the memories remained, and Clark had a head full of stories from people all over the country.
Yet there was one guest above all who stood out, and even though they'd parted ways what felt like ages ago, he knew he would cherish what fleeting memories they'd shared for the rest of his life.
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It started with a knock at the farmhouse door.
Clark looked up from his comic book, confused. He wondered if he'd accidentally locked the front door and one of his parents needed to be let in, but if that were the case, they normally would've yelled for him by now. Curious, he bookmarked his page and went downstairs to open the front door.
The man on the other side wasn't his father, nor was it anyone he recognized from around Smallville. He was an older man, balding with only a strip of gray hair remaining, with a well trimmed moustache and a calm yet stern expression. He seemed very out of place in Smallville, wearing a suit and tailcoat.
"Hi, can I help you?" Clark asked. "Did you book a reservation?"
"I'm afraid not, sir," the old man said. "Our car has broken down not far away, and I was wondering if we could call for help."
"Sure, let me get my dad," Clark said. "You can come in, have a seat if you'd like."
"Thank you, sir," the old man said, stepping inside for a break from the heat. Clark turned and went deeper into the house, shouting for his father.
"Dad?" Clark called as he made his way into the kitchen, where he found his father grabbing himself some water. "We've got someone who needs help, he says his car broke down."
"Alright, let's see," Jonathan said, making his way out to the living room. The old man hadn't moved from his spot, still standing by the doorway as Jonathan came to greet him.
"Hi, I'm Jonathan Kent," he said, reaching out to shake the man's hand.
"Alfred Pennyworth, sir," the old man said as he shook Jonathan's hand. "I'm terribly sorry to intrude, but I was wondering if I could use your home phone to make a call to a mechanic. Our car has stopped working, and we're not sure why."
"I don't know about the garage, it's closed on weekends," Jonathan said, "but I can go out there and take a look. I'm good with cars."
"That would be much appreciated," Alfred said.
"Hey Clark, could you grab the toolbox?" Jonathan asked. "I'll pull the truck around."
"Alright," Clark said with a nod before making his way to the garage. As he passed through the house, he saw Martha in her office and leaned in the doorway to tell her, "Hey Mom, Dad and I are gonna be out for a bit. There's a guy who said his car broke down just up the road, we're gonna go check it out."
"Alright, just be careful," Martha said with a nod and a smile.
"See you in a bit, Mom," Clark said before going into the garage. He quickly fetched his father's toolbox and went back out to the living room, where he saw that Jonathan had pulled the truck and trailer out front.
"I'll drive you there," he said to Alfred. "Just show me the way."
"Thank you, sir," Alfred said as he climbed into the passenger seat, with Clark climbing into the back with the toolbox. Once he was sure everyone was buckled up, Jonathan started off down the dirt driveway onto the main road.
"It should be about a mile down," Alfred said. "I told Master Bruce to stay with the car, I do hope he's alright."
"Master?" Jonathan repeated. "Are you a servant or something?"
"A butler," Alfred said, a note of pride in his voice as he added, "although guardian may also apply."
Jonathan nodded in understanding, but Alfred had piqued Clark's curiosity. If this man was a butler, who was the person who hired him, and why were they this far away from any nearby cities?
"Right there," Alfred said, motioning to a rather expensive car on the side of the road. Jonathan nodded and pulled over, parking in front of the car, making sure the trailer didn't hit it.
"Alright, let's see what we've got," Jonathan said as he got out of the car. Clark followed Jonathan with the toolbox, setting it by the car as Jonathan popped the hood open.
One of the doors swung open, and out stepped a boy about Clark's age who, like Alfred, looked very far from home. He was tall and lean, with black hair disheveled from sweat and the heat. His skin was strikingly pale, as if he'd never seen a day of sunlight in his life. He seemed to be close to melting from the heat under his custom tailored suit.
"Is everything alright, Alfred?" the boy asked in a quiet voice.
"I found help further up the road," Alfred said. "Mr. Kent here has offered to take a look at the car."
"Just call me Jonathan," Clark's father said with a smile and a wave of his hand. "Nice to meet you."
"Hi," the boy said with a curt nod. "I'm Bruce."
Clark raised an eyebrow, surprised that this was the "Master Bruce" Alfred had mentioned. Still, Clark smiled and waved at Bruce, offering a, "Hey! I'm Clark."
Bruce's gaze met Clark's, and Clark noticed his eyes widen slightly before he looked down at his feet. Inwardly, Clark cringed at his eagerness.
Great, he thought. I scared him.
"Yeah, you're gonna need to get this fixed," Jonathan said. "Your transmission is shot. Looks like it's gonna need replacing. I'll tow it back to our place and get a better look at it, see what model you'll need."
"Thank you, sir," Alfred said with a polite nod. "If I may, do you know of any place we could stay until the proper repairs are made?"
"Oh, sure, you could stay with us," Jonathan said as he started to prepare the trailer. "My wife and I, we run a little bed and breakfast back at the farm. Clark helps us out during the summer. We can hook you up with one of the rooms if you'd like."
"If it isn't too much trouble," Alfred said. "How much do we owe you?"
"Don't worry about that," Jonathan shrugged.
"Oh, please, I insist," Alfred said.
"I said don't worry about it," Jonathan said. "Just consider this a favor. Now, let's get this in the trailer, and I'll bring it back to the farm."
Alfred nodded and got back into the car as Jonathan stood next to the trailer. Bruce and Clark stood off to the side as Alfred drove the smoking car onto the trailer and parked it. Once the car was safely on the trailer, Jonathan strapped the wheels to the trailer so it wouldn't go anywhere.
"Alright, let's go," he said, motioning for them to go back to the truck. Clark grabbed the toolbox and carried it back, climbing into the truck. With Alfred in the passenger seat, Bruce had to take the seat next to Clark, the two boys only separated by the toolbox.
"So, where are you from?" Jonathan asked as he started to drive. "Don't think I've ever seen you around here."
"Gotham, sir," Alfred said. "We landed in Kansas City yesterday. We were on our way to Wichita when the car broke down."
"That's a long way, isn't it?" Clark piped up. "Isn't Gotham out in New Jersey?"
"It is," Alfred said with a nod. "We're here on personal business."
Jonathan nodded in understanding. "Well, you can stay with us until everything's fixed up," he said, "but it might be a few days. I'll have to see if there's any chance to fix the transmission."
"Your kindness is greatly appreciated," Alfred said.
"It's just how we do things around here," Jonathan said as he pulled back up the driveway, parking by the garage.
"I'll get a better look at what's going on," Jonathan said. "Clark, get them set up with a room, would you? We should have some open ones available."
"Sure thing," Clark said with a nod. "I'll bring in your luggage."
"It's fine, I can get it," Bruce finally spoke up.
"Seriously, it's alright," Clark said with a little smile. He looked up to Bruce and noticed that the other boy was staring at him, but the moment Clark saw, Bruce looked down at his lap. Clark just chuckled as he got out of the truck and opened up the trailer. Alfred unlocked the car and brought out their suitcases, and Clark took one of them and started to carry it out to the guest house, Alfred carrying the other one.
"We don't have anyone else staying with us right now, so you'll both be able to get your own room," Clark explained. "Mom makes all the guests breakfast at ten, but we can probably drive you to town if you need anything to cook or if you just wanna get dinner."
"I can cook for the both of us," Alfred said. "You don't need to trouble yourselves more than you already have."
"Alright, just let us know if you need anything," Clark said as he brought the suitcase to a pair of open rooms. "You guys will pretty much have the house to yourselves, and if you need anything, you can come back over to the house and let us know. Just don't go near the farm without Dad."
"Thank you, sir," Alfred said as he took his suitcase into his room. Clark started to leave, but stopped as he heard a quiet voice say, "Thank you."
Clark turned around to see Bruce holding his suitcase, offering Clark a little smile. Clark smiled back and said, "It's no problem," before leaving the guest house, letting the guests get set up in their lodging.
Making his way back to the house, Clark passed by Jonathan working on the car. "Any luck with that?" he asked.
"It's not looking good," Jonathan said. "It might need to be replaced entirely. I'll have to go down to Harvey's once it opens again and see about getting a new one."
"How long do you think it'll take?" Clark asked.
"Depends on how long it'll take to order a new one," Jonathan said. "Could be a few days, maybe a week."
Clark nodded, his face pensive as a new thought popped into his head. "What's Mom making for dinner?" he asked.
"I think she mentioned wanting to grill out tonight," Jonathan asked. "Why's that?"
"Think we could make some extra?" Clark asked. "Since their car's broken down, they can't really go anywhere. We could get them dinner tonight."
"I don't see why not," Jonathan said. "You go help her with dinner, I'll see what I can do here."
Clark nodded and went back into the house, making his way to the kitchen, where he found Martha cutting tomatoes for dinner.
"Hey, mom?" Clark said as he poked his head into the kitchen. "Think we could make extra?"
"Sure, what's going on?" Martha asked as she lifted her head from her work.
"Remember when I said that a guy's car broke down and Dad and I were gonna help him?" Clark asked. "Well, Dad was thinking they could stay in the guest house until the car gets fixed. It might take a while. they can't go anywhere, so I was thinking we could make some extra for them."
"Alright, how much should I make?" Martha asked.
"It's just two people," Clark said as he went over to the counter to help Martha prepare the corn. "Probably not too much."
"I can do that," Martha said. "Who are they? Are they from out of town?"
"You can say that," Clark said with a little smile. "They're from Gotham, if you can believe it."
Martha whistled and said, "Quite the hike from there to Kansas!"
"Yeah, it's a guy my age and his butler," Clark said.
"A butler?" Martha said. "So they're rich, too?"
"Seems like it," Clark said as he set the corn aside to dry. Martha got a little smirk on her face as she said, "You said one of them was your age?"
"Yeah, his name's Bruce," Clark said as he grabbed hamburger buns from the pantry.
"Is he cute?" Martha asked, which made Clark sputter a bit. "Mom!"
"Just curious," Martha said with a knowing grin, which just made Clark shake his head. As grateful as he was that his parents were accepting of his bisexuality, it only gave them double the chances to tease clark about any potential crushes he might have.
"I'll get the grill started," Clark said as he made for the back door.
"Love you, too," Martha called after Clark, who just rolled his eyes and smiled as he left.
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It didn't take long for Clark and Martha to finish dinner.
Jonathan soon returned from the garage to clean up, and together, the three carried the food out to the guest house. Jonathan and Martha set the table while Clark knocked on the guest room doors.
"Hey, we've got dinner ready out here if you want some," Clark said. "Do you guys like burgers?"
A few moments of quiet followed, but eventually, Alfred came out of his room with a polite nod and a, "Thank you, sir." Bruce came out of his room a minute later, clutching something in his hand. He seemed rather stiff and standoffish, but appeared to relax when he saw Clark on the other side.
"Dining room's this way," Clark said as he led Bruce through the guest house. "We've got a little burger bar set up."
"Thank you," Bruce said softly as Clark brought him into the dining room. By then, people had started to fill their plates, so Clark dug in, making himself a burger and adding some of Martha's potato wedges and an ear of grilled corn on the side. Satisfied, Clark took a seat at the table, Bruce sitting a chair away from him.
Clark started to tune out as the adults talked. He could vaguely hear his parents talking to Alfred about showing him around Smallville, maybe finding them some places to eat while they waited for the car to be fixed. Clark was too preoccupied with food to care. He could think about plans later.
Turning to glance at Bruce, he noticed something resting against Bruce's chair leg. Curious, Clark asked, "What's that you've got?"
Bruce had a slight deer-in-the-headlights expression before realizing what Clark was talking about. "It's nothing," he said, shaking his head. "Just some comics."
"Oh, that's cool," Clark said. "Which one?"
Bruce started to squirm in his seat, and Clark wondered if he'd scared Bruce again. "Warrior Angel," Bruce said quietly.
Clark's face lit up in recognition. "Oh, hey, I read those!" he said, which made Bruce turn his head towards Clark.
"You do?" he asked.
"Yeah, I've got a big collection of them, they're my favorites," Clark smiled. "Which issue is that?"
Bruce's shoulders began to loosen up, a smile beginning to grow on his face. "I'm rereading his backstory arc," he said. "It's one of my favorites."
"Oh, that's a good one," Clark said, his smile growing a bit. "How many do you have?"
"Not a lot," Bruce said. "I'm still trying to hunt for the Devilicus storyline."
"I've got that one," Clark said. "If you want, I can let you borrow it while you're here."
"Thanks," Bruce said, his expression growing excited. "I don't usually have a lot of time to just read."
"Really?" Clark asked, raising an eyebrow. "Tell you what, you said you were on your way to Wichita? There's a big comic shop down there, Hero Haven. It's where I get mine. We all go down there on occasion, and I'll always get some while I'm there."
"Hero Haven," Bruce repeated. "Thanks, I'll have to bring some back home."
Clark offered Bruce a friendly smile, and Bruce smiled back, his normally shy exterior beginning to fall away.
He actually is pretty cute...
"We'll leave you two to settle in for the night," Jonathan said, pulling Clark's attention away from Bruce's smile. "Come on, Clark, let's get these dishes done."
"Alright, Dad," Clark said as he got up from his seat and started to take the dishes. He turned to Bruce and said, "I'll see you tomorrow!"
Bruce's face went still, as if he were thinking for a moment, before the smile returned to his lips. "Yeah, I'll see you tomorrow," he said, as if he'd just made some groundbreaking decision. Clark flashed him a smile, bid Bruce and Alfred goodbye, and followed his parents out of the guest house, carrying dishes back to the farmhouse.
"So, what do you think, Clark?" Jonathan asked. "I think they're pretty alright."
"Yeah, they're cool," Clark said. "Bruce is pretty nice. He's into Warrior Angel."
"Is he, now?" Martha asked.
"Yeah, I'm gonna let him borrow some of my comics while he's still here," Clark said. Martha and Jonathan looked to each other with knowing smirks.
"What?" Clark asked upon seeing their smiles. "What did I say?"
"Well, they'll be here for a while," Jonathan said. "You two will have plenty of time to get acquainted."
"Dad, just because I like guys doesn't mean I have a crush on every guy my age," Clark grumbled.
Even if he is cute.
"Alright, I hear you," Jonathan said in mock defeat as they went back into the house, bringing the dishes into the kitchen.
After he and his parents finished the dishes, Clark made his way to his bedroom to relax. Climbing into bed and picking up where he left off with his comic, he made a mental note to bring some of his favorites over to the guest house tomorrow when he got the chance. Bruce seemed like he wanted to open up a bit, and Clark was eager to talk to him some more. The fact that Bruce was attractive in an unconventional way certainly helped.
Finishing up the issue, Clark got himself ready for bed, hopeful for what tomorrow would bring.