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Jimmy Olsen enjoyed people watching in the Daily Planet news room.
He liked it because these people were all professionals he admired and would someday (hopefully) be like. He spent the time he had between assignments, and being yelled at by Parry, watching his favorite people work. More often then not he watched Clair and Luis. Which was why he noticed something was wrong immediately.
The fact that something was wrong was obvious the second they sat down in the morning. The air between them, usually full of sniping and good natured put downs or advice was silent and tense.
While Luis was avoiding looking at Clair with the single minded determination of someone embarrassed and determined not to show it, Clair kept sneaking little heartbroken looks at him out of the corner of her eye and then quickly turning back to her work. As the day drug on and things didn't improve she slumped down over her desk and kept her face hidden from the room.
Jimmy had been watching the drama of Luis and Clair pretty much since the beginning, or at least since he noticed it. And if he was being honest he had noticed in the first week. They were two of his most favorite people and they so perfectly completed each other. He had been looking forward to them getting together and being an even more kick ass team. He’d been sure they were close too. He would catch little looks that they would give each other when they thought no one else was watching. When they’d left early together the day before he and Cal Grant had been ready to collect on the pool the news room had going.
It was a good thing they hadn’t. Something had obviously gone wrong.
Jimmy tried to work but he kept getting distracted by Clair’s miserably slumped shoulders. He wasn’t the only one. He noticed several people around the news room looking with concern. Cal made exaggerated questioning gestures at him. Jimmy shrugged back and Cal gave Clair a worried look. Well worried for Cal, which was more like curious with a touch of pity.
Luis jumped up and everyone in the news room held their breath. But he didn’t try talking to Clair. He grabbed his coat and headed out the door throwing a causal, “going to lunch,” behind him.
Jimmy slumped back. He’d been sure Luis was going to fix it. Clair had stayed at her desk, working diligently without looking at anyone. Jimmy couldn’t stand it. She was obliviously miserable and if Luis wouldn’t fix it then Jimmy would have to at least try.
“Hey Clair,” he called. Clair looked up slowly and smiled a strained smile at him.
“Morning Jimmy,” she said in a bad imitation of normal. Jimmy took a breath and realized the whole news room was watching them. He could feel the eyes of everyone on his back, hostile because Clair was hurting, weighing him up and finding him lacking to the task of cheering her up. His face started to go red and he stammered, “Want to get lunch?” in a strangled cough. Clair just looked at him blankly for a moment. Then she smiled, small, sad and strained, but trying anyway.
“Sure, let me get my coat.”
Jimmy let out a breath. Behind him the news room relaxed a little. He hadn’t made it worse.
Clair picked up her coat and switched off her monitor.
“Let’s go.”
=//=
They ended around the corner at Dad’s Café. Jimmy found them a corner booth and grabbed them both coffee, then settled down to wait. Clair stared down into her coffee like it would show her the future. Jimmy waited for several minutes before he decided that, even if it wasn’t his business, he was her friend and she was hurting, so it was his job to make it better.
“Hey C.K?”
Clair looked up, startled. “Yeah Jimmy?”
“What’s wrong?” He tried to sound gentle and compassionate but he didn’t think he quite got there. More like wheedling.
Clair pulled a face. “I’m that transparent, huh?”
Jimmy bit his lip but nodded. “I know something happened between and Luis and you seem really sad. So what’s wrong?”
Clair’s face crumpled and for a second Jimmy was scared she was going to cry. She didn’t. Instead her face twisted into a self deprecating smile.
“I did something stupid and it’s hard to act like it didn’t happen.” She said.
Jimmy didn’t say anything. She had taught him that sometimes, when you let someone talk they would answer all your questions without you having to say a word.
Clair looked back at her coffee and her smile slipped away.
“I thought it would be okay. Even if he said no, I thought it would be okay, but it’s really not. I just… He said.”
She paused and Jimmy noticed that while she wasn’t crying she had teared up.
“I should have known I couldn’t compete with Superwoman.”
Jimmy’s eyebrows raised involuntarily. What?
“He said what?" He couldn’t even get it out.
“No! No, he didn’t say that he just… We’re friends and that’s it. I thought maybe it could be something more but… he wants someone like Superwoman, and I'm a socially awkward farm girl from Kansas.”
Jimmy was a little shocked. Sure she was a little socially awkward, but she was Clair, who was so nice and sweet and always tried her best to help everyone even when they sniggered behind her back about her naiveté.
“He loves Superwoman. I knew that, I did.” She was pulling herself back together now, her voice steadier, eyes still bright but dry. “But I guess I thought it was a love from afar thing. Like how people say they love this celebrity or that one but they don’t let it affect their everyday life. But he really does love her. And how could I ever compete with that?”
Jimmy didn’t know what to say so he just sat and let Clair get her breathing back to normal.
On the one hand he could understand, he loved Superwoman too. She was so cool the times he’d talked to her, so confident and composed. She held herself like she knew the world looked up to her. She was genuinely nice, not to mention she was hot. She was built like a maxuim model and her costumes tiny red skirt did nothing to hide that she had gorgeous legs. The boots didn’t help either.
But she was a hero. She was Superwoman. She wasn’t… she wasn’t real in a way. Jimmy didn’t want to say anything against her because she was his friend too, even if she wasn’t as great a friend as Clair, but she wasn’t someone you could have over to watch movies with, or complain about the morning commute to, or even hug when it was needed. She was a world apart, a world meant for other people like her, heroes.
Clair was someone who smiled at Luis (and Jimmy, and everyone really) every morning and helped with all the non-life-or-death problems that made up life. When he was over whelmed she did her best to lighten the load, or brought coffee for late night last minute edits and gave constructive criticism or advice or was just a sounding bored when it was needed. She always stood up for him if she thought it was needed, and she was teaching him to stand up for himself too, to see himself as good enough and just as professional and amazing as the rest of the Daily Planet staff.
When Superwoman came to the rescue Jimmy was happy to see her, and so grateful that she had gotten whoever needed her help out in one piece, that she had saved the day; but Clair saved the day everyday in a million different ways that had nothing to do with death and everything to do with just being nice in a city of people who were too wrapped up in themselves to bother.
“Hey Clair?” Jimmy waited until she looked up, eyes red and a little shiny, but she still wasn't crying. “You’re just as good as Superwoman you know. You’re better even. She’s like the queen you know?”
Clair looked confused but Jimmy kept going, needing to explain this and make her believe it. He needed her to be okay.
“She’s like the queen. You’re glad to see her, and you love her, but she’s not, it’s like she’s not a real person, you know? She doesn’t live like any other person, she’s above that, not because of anything she does but because of who she is. I mean,” He paused embarrassed because it sounded like he was singing Superwoman’s praises instead of explaining her otherworldlyness.
“You could never sit down and have lunch with Superwoman.” He burst out, “Even if she agreed to take time out her schedule to eat lunch with you, you couldn’t just joke and steal things off her plate, or ask her if she was okay. You would always be worrying that you were wasting her time so you would stress over what you said and what you did and you’d never actually sit down and just be.”
Clair still looked confused so Jimmy tried one last thing.
“I would much rather hang out with you then Superwoman.”
And slowly, Clair smiled. A real smile. Small but happy and bright enough to make the afternoon already seem like it would be perfect.
Jimmy swallowed. His face was hot again and he didn’t know exactly why.
“Thanks Jimmy. I like hanging out with you too." Jimmy nodded and Clair finally took a sip of her coffee before pausing and cocking her head to one side. She stood abruptly, grabbing her coat.
“Thanks for lunch Jimmy. I needed a friend. I’ve got to run an errand real quick. I’ll see you back at the planet.” Then she was out the door.
Jimmy sat in their booth and thought about why she always ran off so quick.