Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Around the Daily Planet on a typical afternoon, one devoid of giant robots and blasting lasers, several sounds could be heard. The tapping of keyboards as journalists wrote out their articles and made quick edits. The steady drip of the coffee pot in the corner of the room. The printer running. High heels on the tile floor. Perry White keeping the machine in motion.

And of course, the clicks. Couldn’t forget the clicks. The pen Clark was fiddling with in his kitty corner cubicle. And the mouse beneath Jimmy Olsen’s palm as he manipulated the photo on his screen.

It was a picture he had taken. A good one. Luna Moth, kneeling down in front of a little girl at an event at the Metropolis Public Library. It had been a Metahuman awareness event. Luna Moth was a new superhero on the scene. A young woman who, because of her large, translucent green wings, had no choice but to live openly as a Meta despite the stigma that carried. But in her brief impact in the public, she’d already been taking a stance to make the public less afraid of people like her.

He’d gone along with Clark to the event. Clark knew her from college. Apparently she’d been studying film, so he’d had some media classes overlap with hers. That was why she had agreed so easily to an interview, unlike Hawkgirl and Green Lantern, who had also been in attendance. Certainly Clark didn’t know her from…anywhere else.

It wasn’t front page stuff, like the details of Lex Luthor’s detainment, following his criminal trial, but it would be a nice fluff piece, he was sure.

Jimmy let out a breath, taking a long sip of coffee while his trained eyes scanned over the photo. The colors looked good. Her wings were so stunning, draped behind her like a cape, catching the fluorescent lights just so, glinting the tiniest bit of a rainbow into his lens. He grinned to himself at that small accomplishment.

“Hey, Clark?”

“Mmm?”

“You think you could get Luna to come to my niece’s birthday party?” Jimmy asked, calling the question over his shoulder. It was mostly a joke, but his sister’s kid really did love Luna. Had a poster on her wall and everything.

Clark thought on it for a moment, the clicking ceasing. He tilted his head. “You know, she keeps weird hours, but I can ask. No promises.”

Jimmy laughed. Clark wasn’t kidding. But the two of them went about their day, finishing up their work with…surprisingly minimal interruptions for a Tuesday. It was nice. Refreshing, even.

Obviously he didn’t know that one little joke would change his entire life. But that was just his luck, wasn’t it?

A few days later, Jimmy milled through the Metropolis Public Museum, a warm coffee from Jitters in hand, his camera bag slung over his shoulder. Sunlight streamed through the windows. He’d finished up early at work, so Perry had turned him loose, as he did sometimes on slow news days. Jimmy tended to get good shots mostly by sheer luck, getting insane angles of the insane conflicts that so often came to a boiling point in their beloved city. Right place, right time.

Which, surely, must have been at play at the moment.

He walked in the revolving doors, as he did any other day, showed his annual pass to the girl at the door, who giggled a greeting and grinned as he passed. Lois and Clark were always astounded by his “natural charisma,” but truly, any conceived “rizz” he had with the ladies of Metropolis was entirely by accident.

He’d headed up the stairs, through the empty nature exhibits to the space section. There was a visiting exhibit on Metahuman history opening in a few weeks, it would seem. Maybe that was newsworthy. Metas Through the Ages, it was called. He’d have to let Clark know. That seemed to be his wheelhouse of late, what with all the Superman interviews.

Jimmy chuckled to himself. He wasn’t sure who Clark thought he was fooling with that. No one who knew him, anyway. He’d always worn his heart on his sleeve. But still, the general public hadn’t caught on yet, so his secret was safe, ironically, in the hands of one of the world’s biggest news publishers.

And there, around the corner, staring at the recreation of Mars’ surface, was Luna Moth, in all her glory. Or, as her personal friends knew her, (Y/N) (L/N).

Jimmy found a small gasp entering his lungs, his heart speeding up just a tad as the streams of sunlight hit her wings just so through the windows. His shutter-finger itching at the sight. He pushed that instinct down along with another swig of coffee.

Honestly, if he hadn’t spent so much time editing photos of her, he wasn’t sure he would have recognized her like this. She had her hair up. In one hand, an iced coffee, a bag hanging from her shoulder. A pair of headphones covered her ears as she read the display plate in front of the exhibit.

Well, there were the wings, of course. Kind of a dead giveaway, but still.

And he wasn’t sure how or why, but his feet carried him a little further, closer to her, preparing his first words to her on the tip of his tongue. They’d been introduced, sure, but it had been brief and strictly business. This was different. Her private life. You know what, on second thought, maybe he shouldn’t—ah, shit, she turned around.

You smiled warmly, pulling your headphones off. “Hey.”

“Hi there. Jimmy Olsen, Daily Planet. Off-duty, though. Obviously.” He said with an awkward chuckle. “You’re…here.”

“I come here a lot, yeah. Helps clear my head. And I know who you are, Jimmy.” You grinned, tapping your temple. “I always remember a face. Clark texted me a few days ago. Something about a birthday party for your niece? Next Saturday?”

Jimmy chuckled, rubbed the back of his neck, freckled cheeks a little flushed. This was not usually how his interactions with women went. “Oh. I was joking, mostly. Clark can never tell. She, ah, she loves you, though. My niece. She’s seven. Has a poster of you on her wall. But that stuff is way below your paygrade. You do not have to come to her birthday party.”

“No, I want to.” You replied, sipping your drink casually, as though you hadn’t just promised him a Hail Mary miracle that would cement him forever as the “bestest uncle ever” in Cecilia’s eyes.

He replied very eloquently. “Huh?”

“It’s kind of a hallmark for a new hero. Being invited to a little kid’s birthday party. This is my first. Obviously I’m going to go.”

“Oh. Okay. Cool, that’s cool. I’ll, uh, email you my sister’s address. She lives in the suburbs.”

“Cool. Sounds awesome. But keep it a secret. This job of mine…makes planning things kinda difficult. It’s a weather-permitting kind of situation. But, barring a giant robot or an alien invasion, I’ll be there.”

He nodded, blue eyes wide in thought, locked on the wheel of the Mars rover beyond the glass. “Awesome. That is awesome. Any preference in cupcake flavor?”

Chapter Text

The morning of the party, Jimmy kept his eyes both on the skies and also his phone, expecting the unexpected to strike at any moment, even as he strung up streamers and balloons in his sister’s backyard. Somewhere inside the house, his little niece had no idea Luna Moth herself had been invited to her bug-themed birthday extravaganza. That was the kid’s thing. Bugs. It was kind of adorable when she didn’t have a spider cradled in her tiny hands, all excited to show her uncle her latest creepy crawly find.

And yet, no disaster came. A few of the guests started to arrive around noon, and Jimmy thought maybe you’d forgotten. Maybe this all really was below you. Until there was another ring on the doorbell and he pulled it open to reveal you standing there in your uniform, wings extra perky, hair flawlessly done, and a large giftbag in your hand.

“This the right house?” You asked with a grin that he quickly reciprocated, stepping out of the way so you could walk into the house.

“I can’t believe you’re here. The kids are just getting here.” He chuckled, eyeing up the bag you’d brought. “Whatever this is, it’s too much.”

“Oh, nonsense. You said she had a poster, you said nothing about toys. They had some stuff at the store.” You said, handing him the bag.

He took it without asking, leading you through the house, toward the backyard, his camera around his neck. “Do you mind if I take some pictures? I can make sure they don’t end up on social media. They’re just for Cece’s scrapbook.”

“Post them wherever you want once the party is over, I don’t care. I trust your vision. You always get my best angles.” You chuckled.

He grinned, a little more comfortable now that it was clear you were just a person who happened to do hero stuff. “Oh, you noticed that, huh?”

“It would be hard not to.”

Jimmy pushed open the backdoor, stepping out onto the deck where the dads had convened, grilling up some hotdogs and burgers and suitable substitutions for the little ones. A few of them stared at you, jaws slack, their beer bottles almost slipping from their hands. “Hey, Cece, this random lady wandered in the front door, you think she can stay for cupcakes?”

Cecelia sat straight upright, little eyes wide, her bright red hair pulled up into two spacebuns. With a squeal, she came running over right as the two of you stepped down onto the grass. “Luna Moth!”

“Hi, Cecelia! Hope you don’t mind me crashing your awesome party. Your Uncle Jimmy told me you like bugs, so I brought you some goodies.” You gently took the giftbag back from Jimmy, handing it to her instead.

“What do we say?” Jimmy asked, but he barely had the chance before the kid yelled out “THANKYOUTHANKYOUTHANKYOU!!!”

She took you by the hand, confidently guiding you over to where all the kids were settled on the grass, looking at you in shock and awe.

“You’re not the reallll Luna Moth…” A little boy insisted, his eyes suspicious.

“I am.” You said softly, confidently. You gave a shrug.

“Prove it!”

“Alright, well, if you’re twisting my arm…” You chuckled, raising your wings and giving them a performative flutter. They changed their tune pretty quick after that.

In the middle distance, you heard Jimmy’s camera shutter as he snapped what you were sure were great photos. He had a real eye for it. Anytime you saw him credited for the photos in an article about you, you knew they’d be kind. A lot of photographers weren’t, just based on your status as a Metahuman alone. It was the one silent, blameless way they could detest your kind, an unflattering photo.

But here, in the Olsens’ yard, that wasn’t a concern for you. You sat with the kids, excitedly discussing moths and their wingpatterns, theorizing what might be inside Cecelia’s birthday presents, and enthusing about the cupcakes that were chilling in the fridge.

Eventually, the kids were guided to other activities. You participated in some, but got some respite during others, the chance to eat a hotdog, get a can of soda from the cooler. Jimmy stood beside you, shuffling through his photos on the screen of his camera.

“Thank you so much for this, again. I can’t repay you for this. She’ll never forget it.”

“Nah, don’t worry about it. Like I said, it’s a big deal for me, too. And I was promised there’d be cupcakes.”

He chuckled, smiled a genuine smile. “I made sure we got your favorites in addition to the birthday girl’s. Least I could do.”

“It will not go unnoticed. I hope she likes her toys. I only ever really shop for my little cousin and his thing is LEGOs and Fortnite.”

“Whatever it is, she’ll love it.” He promised. “She’s a good kid.”

“She is. And she’s got a good uncle.” You replied, nudging him. 

The comment didn’t come out in a flirty way like every other woman that was ever in proximity to him. Instead it was just, genuine. Friendly, even. Like you were on the same playing field even though you were literally a superhero that could hold a car over your head on a good day and he was a photographer. Clark was right. You really were down to earth. 

And not just because you’d come there from space, or so the story went…

Chapter Text

The next Tuesday proved to be far less refreshing for the reporters of the Daily Planet. Perry White shouted orders as a large creature stomped through the city. And before he knew it, Jimmy was outside with his camera, dodging through whizzing attacks and running people. It was the reason he was allowed to wear running shoes to work.

Superman was out and about, red cape billowing in the wind. Jimmy lined up a shot, the shutter firing. Moved further down the street, got a few more. And then, lucky him, snapped one right as Luna flew into action, the momentum of her wings giving her the energy to punch the thing square in the chest. She used her energy to hit a frequency that shattered all the streetlights. Jimmy shielded himself from the falling glass. And then the thing collapsed, knocked out cold and snoring loudly.

Jimmy tucked himself in an alley, looking over the pictures he’d gotten, searching for good ones. He loved a good action shot, but if he hadn’t gotten any in-focus ones, he better get back out there to get Superman and Luna reveling in their victory. But nope, sure enough, a good handful to let Perry choose from, his favorite being the one of Luna swooping in, wings perfectly poised behind her, almost like an air glider, fist making impact.

Yep, that was the money shot.

Perry agreed once Jimmy got back inside, the damage to the building very minimal. Like clockwork, Clark stumbled out of the bathroom a few minutes later, hair wind-tousled, tie a little crooked until he fixed it with a practiced hand, trying to smooth his shirt back down.

“Woah, what happened out there?”

Jimmy ignored it, instead motioning him over behind his computer monitor. “Look at this sick shot I got.”

“I don’t know how you do it, Jimmy. Not even a scratch on you.” Lois said with a chuckle. “You’ve gotta be more careful out there.”

“Yeah, I know. Tell it to the front page splash and the bonus I’m gonna get. Hazard pay.” Jimmy chuckled, locking in on the photo as he played around with it in Lightroom. 

Honestly, it was already really good, the way the light caught her wings, the way Superman was just out of focus behind her, holding one of the creature’s giant hands to prevent him from swinging at a building. He brightened Supes’ cape a little, but besides that, it looked good. He couldn’t help but smile, admiring it. Her wings filled out the frame so perfectly, the forewing (yes, he had looked up wing terminology) fell so meticulously into the lower right third, right where the axes met. He didn’t even have to shift it over at all.

His eyes raked down the translucent veins on its surface. He’d never captured those before, despite the quality of his camera. They were iridescent, almost. No wonder she cast rainbows everywhere.

Lois chuckled and glanced over to see what had her cracking up, but her eyes were squarely on him. “What?”

“Nothing, just…the interns are going to be devastated, Jimmy.” She said with a grin, snacking on a bagel as she outlined her article about the fight that had just happened.

“About what?”

“I’ve never seen you look at anyone like this before. But given the women I’ve seen you pull, maybe this isn’t entirely out of the realm of possibility.”

Clark perked up, looking up from his phone at Jimmy’s screen, pretended to squint through his glasses. “Who, Luna? No shot.”

Jimmy laughed. “No shot?”

“Yeah, no shot. She doesn’t date humans.”

Jimmy’s eyebrows furrowed, the humor chased from his face. “What? Are you serious?”

“Yeah, man. She said so herself. Finds our lack of wings ‘uncanny and disgusting.’ That’s a direct quote from college. Could have had any guy on campus and stayed single all four years aside from a few flings here and there.”

Lois chuckled. “Huh. Seems his bottomless rizz isn’t going to come through this time after all.”

Jimmy spun his chair back around, looking over the picture. “The one time I actually need it to work…”

Some nights, Fridays, namely, the museum stayed open later than usual. It was a popular date night spot for college kids. It wasn’t as overdone as a dinner and movie date. They turned the regular lights down low, turned on some fun colored lights instead, and lowered the price of admission to half of what it usually was.

Jimmy walked through the aquarium portion of the museum, bathed in the vast blue light. Clark had said once that he liked the ocean because it made him feel so small. At the time, he hadn’t understood what he meant, but once Jimmy picked up on the Superman thing…yeah, it made sense.

Jimmy didn’t need to feel small. Being a human guy in Metropolis did that well enough.

As he walked further, he couldn’t believe his eyes, but…you were there. Again. You were a little more undercover this time, wings hidden beneath an oversized hoodie. Well, mostly hidden. The apexes were peaking out from the hem, glowing faintly beneath the dim lights. You were staring up at a sea turtle as it coasted along near the surface of the water before diving down deeper.

He thought you hadn’t noticed him standing there, but a little smile tugged at your lips. “Listen, I figured you knew my schedule, but this is ridiculous.”

Jimmy laughed. “Hey, Luna.”

“Hey. Nice night.” You said with a grin as rain pounded on the skylight, thunder rumbling in the distance.

“Super nice.” He still had rain caught in his caramel hair. “You are…glowing.”

You glanced down at the tips of your wings, chuckling. “Yeah, they do that.”

“Makes night shots of you tricky, let me tell ya.” Jimmy huffed, scratching the back of his neck.

“Night shots?”

“Oh, uh, yeah. I like to get photos of the city at night. Sometimes, I’ll climb up the observatory. Once in a while, I catch you in the distance. Not in like a creepy way or anything, just—”

“Right place, right time.”

“Yeah, that.” He nodded, letting the moment settle to see if he’d messed it up. But you didn’t seem to be disgusted or anything, so that was a good sign.

“So, can I see them?”

He nodded immediately, fumbling for the tablet tucked into his camera bag. “Yeah, one sec.” He scrolled through his portfolio until he found them.

Sure enough, there you were, floating beside a skyscraper, hand on the glass, wings pointed down, but glowing their mint green hue, making you look ethereal, even in your alienness. Pink and purple was reflected from some signs on the other buildings, filling out a beautiful palette pretty effortlessly.

“This was a few months ago. Saw you floating out there and…couldn’t help myself.”

“Wow.” You murmured, staring at it. “This is insane.”

“I thought so too. How do you, uh…I mean, your wings weren’t moving, so…”

“The wings don’t make me fly.”

He perked up at that, interested in the science. “What?”

“I’m only half Motharian. My wings are about two thirds the size of a full Motharian’s. They’re like fancy landing gear, basically. They help me steer and cushion my landings, but that’s about it. The flying stuff comes from inside. Like literally, I have a gland that produces an antigravity enzyme and—” You chuckled, stopped talking. “I don’t need to bore you to sleep with the technical stuff, but yeah. Two separate things.”

“Wouldn’t have come to the museum if I didn’t wanna learn.” Jimmy shrugged, still holding his tablet aloft, illuminated by the photo on the screen. It really was something.

“True. Can you send that to me? I’ll post it on my Insta. With credit, of course.”

“Oh! Uh, yeah, I can, absolutely. I’ll send you the hi-res version later. Check your DM slush pile.” Jimmy was practically vibrating at the prospect. You had seven million followers. Compared to his 3k…Yeah, it was a nobrainer.

“Oh, I won’t need to. I’ve been following your account for about a year now. The photography one, anyway. On my burner.” You said with a shrug. “But obviously I’d post that one on my main.”

He blinked a few times. “You are?”

“Well, yeah, dude, you’re the only photographer that doesn’t like…make me look like a freak.”

“There are a lot of words I could use to describe you. Freak is not one of them.”

You scoffed. “Thanks. You’re sweet, Olsen.”

“I’m a journalist. We’re honest. We’re supposed to be, anyway. Those other guys are assholes. I get cool shots of you because you’re cool. They get lame ones because they’re lame. That’s no reflection on you.”

You gave a soft little smile, a nod. “I think I’ll just continue to believe you’re ridiculously talented, if it’s all the same to you.”

He laughed at that, his smile breathtaking in the soft blue light of the aquarium as the sea turtle coasted by the glass. “Yeah. Yeah, that works, too.”

Chapter Text

Every once in a while, your superhero work let you contribute even more directly to causes you cared about. In this case, the construction of a new children’s hospital in Metropolis. It was set to be state of the art, with a revolutionary cancer research center. And if you, Superman, and the Justice Gang had anything to do with it.

You worked your way through the room, talking up billionaires and millionaires with something to prove and more money than anyone reasonably should. It was fairly easy enough, batting your eyelashes a little, fluttering your wings, and mentioning how nice their names would look on the signs outside the building. You were rarely all dolled up like this, face fully done, wearing nice eveningwear instead of your uniform. It got a very different reaction out of people.

“Doesn’t the Fitzgibbons Center for Neurology have a nice ring to it? So…intelligent. So sophisticated. What do you say?”

In the distance somewhere, you heard a camera shutter going off.

“I think…you’re right, Ms. Moth.”

Hook, line, and sinker. “I often am. The funds coordinator is right over there, with the clipboard and the cool earrings.”

Sure enough, not too far from the bar, was a familiar head of red hair, face obscured behind his camera as he snapped a picture of Superman mid-handshake with some oceanside tycoon.

You didn’t have time to go over and talk to Jimmy, the way you were immediately swept up with another potential sponsor, but eventually, you did find the opportunity to slip away for a moment while he was at the bar, getting some water.

You put a gentle hand on the sleeve of his cornflower blue suit, ordering a water as well. “I thought I recognized those camera shutters.”

“Oh, hey! You…look great.” He murmured, eyes scanning down your figure, dressed in a lovely evening outfit.

“Thanks.” You said, proud. “You clean up nice, too. These heels are killing my feet. Gonna get into my slippers ASAP when I get home.”

He glanced down, chuckled and then let them slide back up to yours. Jimmy wasn’t a particularly tall guy, so the shoes on your feet gave you a few extra inches on him. You kind of liked him looking up to you like this. And the little gulp he did up close like this suggested he did, too. “Well they, I mean, they sell the look. Seems like you’re doing really well out there.”

“I’d say so. Got most of the cancer wing funded, I think. Picking up some of Guy’s slack. He’s not exactly great at the whole people thing.”

Jimmy nodded, grinning knowingly. “Yeah, I figured as much.”

Your eyes wandered down to his lapel, where he was sporting a little moth pin. Well, that sealed it, then. No chickening out now. “I, uh…I don’t suppose you have any plans after this?”

He thought for a long moment, the wheels whirring behind those vibrant blues a mile a minute. He let out a disappointed breath. “Ahhh, well, I’ve gotta edit these photos. I’m on deadline. Otherwise, I…I’d love to do…well, anything you had in mind.”

“Actually, uh, Lois and Clark are coming over to my place. I live up the street. She’s gonna finish her article, Clark is gonna proofread, I’m going to play Animal Crossing on my Switch. But if you want to edit photos there, you’re welcome to. We’re gonna order some food, put on some movies.”

Jimmy blinked a few times and found himself nodding. “Yeah, that sounds great, actually. I’ll be there.”

“I’ll have Clark send you the address.” You said, giving his arm one last touch before turning back towards the waiting hoard of heirs and heiresses ready to performatively throw their inherited fortunes at you. Performative or not, it was going towards a good cause, and you were more than prepared to harness it. “See you later, Jimmy.”

He took a breath and almost asked you for your number then and there, but stopped himself, letting things remain professional with so many eyes on you. “Keep fanning those wings for me. I got some really good ones earlier.”

You winked, sending a jolt down his spine. “You got it.”

You and Superman stayed after the event ended to help clean up a bit and then made your exit, reaching your apartment long before the other two. Jimmy had to stop at the Daily Planet to get his laptop. 

As soon as you got into the apartment, you kicked your high heels off, Clark chuckling as you did. You hovered across the floor to get the weight off of your sore feet. Clark got to ordering the food while you took your ensemble apart in your bedroom. It was a new record for how fast you got out of that dress and into your Daily Planet sweatpants and a baggy tee, wiping the makeup off your face. 

You hovered back into the kitchen, where Jimmy and Lois were just coming in. Jimmy shrugged off his jacket, draping it over the back of one of your barstools. He froze when he saw you, dressed all the way down, hovering through your apartment, wings drooping down low. His eyes darted away. There was something so…unexpectedly intimate about it. Domestic, really. He’d seen you in street clothes, sure, but this was different.

“When’s the food getting here?” You asked, floating over towards your Switch and grabbing it, settling down on the couch with a groan.

“Twenty minutes.” Clark said.

“Sick.” You looked up at your guests. Lois had been there a few times before for girls’ night with some of your lady friends, but Jimmy was still studying your decor like he’d be tested on it later. “Come on in, get comfortable. I already did.”

Jimmy unpacked his camera bag, getting his laptop out, unfurling the charger. He surveyed the seating options before setting the computer on the coffee table, pointing to the other side of the couch from where you were settled. “This seat taken?”

“Not at all.” You said, the opening notes of the Animal Crossing theme drifting from the device in your hands. You were almost horizontal, legs up on the end of the sectional, wings folded beneath you somewhere. “There’s a powerstrip on the side of the coffee table there.”

“Oh, thanks.”

Lois came over with a glass of wine, handing one to you. She settled into her usual chair, laptop on hand. She got to work quickly, tapping out the article with incredible speed. You could tell she’d already had it mostly outlined in her mind. Something like this was hardly the hardcutting journalism she was so good at, just an overview of an evening event. But seeing as there had been some very famous Metas there, Perry had sent the Daily Planet’s best. And speaking of…

Jimmy had plugged his SD card into the adapter connected to his computer and was already looking at pictures. You tried to focus on the fish you were supposed to be catching on the tiny screen in front of you, but it was hard not to let your eyes be drawn to the—seemingly hundreds of—photos of you he’d gotten that night, looking like a goddess with your wings perfectly poised as you charmed the fancy socks off those billionaires.

There were some silly pictures of Clark, too, making faces directly into Jimmy’s camera, some more serious ones of him taking the responsibility that had been handed to you as vow, but it was clear that his photos were a little you-heavy. Not that you minded.

Lois noticed you looking, but didn’t say anything.

The food arrived not long after and Clark got it plated up for the rest of you. He didn’t really need to eat. It was a weird Kryptonian thing. He ate for pleasure, but that was it. The rest of you, however, were starving. There hadn’t been much in the way of refreshments at the gala, despite the sponsors that had put it on.

“Thaaank you.” You sat up a little straighter, setting your Switch down.

“Of course.” He took a seat in the chair next to Lois’. He looked at Jimmy. “You get my good side?”

He rolled his eyes, grinning. “Dude. Shut up. You know they’re all good sides.”

It struck you a little, how open Clark’s secret was. He’d told you in college, of course, the alien thing, but you’d assumed that was because you had something in common and Clark didn’t want you to feel alone. He was just like that. Putting others before himself, always. It made sense to you that he’d told Lois, since they were dating, but you were a little surprised Jimmy knew. But you could tell he’d keep it secret. And that applied to anything else you told him, you were sure.

Jimmy readied a selection of photos for the article in record time, doing some basic edits and getting captions written up for them. Lois finished up her article not long after, and Clark proofread it, taking the laptop from her with a kiss to the temple. It was sweet, what they had. A journalist and a superhero.

“This one good?” Jimmy asked softly, turning his laptop screen towards you. On it, a picture of you shaking a CEO's hand, smiling, wings on display. They were glowing ever so slightly under the dim lights, but he had captured them perfectly anyway, framed up nice.

“Does every subject of yours get direct approval?” You asked, leaning a little closer to see better.

“Only the really special ones.”

“Offense taken.” Clark piped up with a smirk, earning chuckles from the rest of you.

“It looks great, Jimmy. Thank you.”

“Don’t thank me. I just let my camera do the talking.” He replied, sending the files to Lois.

They were done with their work not long after that, the article and related photos submitted for approval. Once Perry looked them over, he emailed them to let them know that they were all set for the night. But the four of you stayed up a little longer, chatting and joking around, putting away the leftovers before Lois and Clark retreated to the guest room for the night.

It was approaching three in the morning. Far too late for Jimmy to go back home. But it seemed he wasn’t in too much of a rush to get to sleep, instead helping you pack up the kitchen. You snapped the lid down on a tupperware container, tucking it in the fridge while Jimmy ran the silverware under the faucet before tucking them in the dishwasher.

Your phone was sitting on the counter and buzzed with a notification for a dating app. Jimmy chuckled. “That must be hard. Finding aliens on Bumble.”

You raised an eyebrow. “Huh?”

“Clark said you don’t date humans.”

A slow, confused smile spread on your face. “He said what?”

Jimmy looked like a deer caught in headlights. “Well, he…It came up at work, I guess. That you…don’t date humans. Find them…uncanny or something because we don’t have wings.”

That rang a bell. You laughed. “Oh my God.”

“Not that I blame you, I mean…I find us pretty disgusting, too. If I had other options, I probably wouldn’t choose us either, so—” 

“Jimmy.”

“Yeah?”

You closed the fridge, looking at him. “I date humans. I date humans all the time. I…used to say that when I was in college to get guys off my back. That humans were disgusting or whatever. When you’re different, you become a different kind of passport stamp, you know? The guys at school were all super gross about my wings, so I wanted to get them to leave me alone and stop trying. That’s all. Clark must have thought I was serious. We haven’t really talked about my dating life since then.”

That made sense. “Oh.”

You studied him, halfway dressed down after the event, his shirt unbuttoned a little, bowtie tucked away in the pocket of his blazer that was hanging on the barstool. It gave you just the tiniest glimpse of the hair on his chest. “Yeah, oh. But yeah, I hate the online stuff. It’s hard to meet anyone real that way.”

“On that, we can agree.” He nodded, swallowing the lump in his throat, nerves cresting now that this was…real. A possibility.

You gave a soft smile. The moment felt right, and you were never one to beat around the bush when it came to stuff like this, so you said softly, “Jimmy, you know I like you, right?”

He blinked a few times. “And…you know I’m just a guy, right?”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“You…you’re Luna Moth. You punch monsters and fund cancer departments for children’s hospitals and…you have these literal, actual, beautiful wings and…I’m a guy with a camera.”

“I know.”

“Then why are you still looking at me like that?” He asked, drying his hands on your kitchen towel.

“Because I happen to like the guy with the camera.” You shrugged. “I think he’s funny and smart. Makes me look like a goddess when everyone else makes me look like a freak.”

He shook his head, more serious now than the last time it had come up. “You’re not a freak.”

“I know.” You said, taking a few steps closer. “But you’re the only guy with a camera in this city that seems to know that.”

“There are plenty of camera-less guys in this city that would die for a chance, you know. Guys with your poster on their wall and…you know…the action figures and Funko pops and whatever…other merch there is of you.”

“Those are the guys I was trying to chase away in college.” You chuckled.

He gave a little scoff, amused. “Yeah, well…still.”

“If you don’t feel the same, I get it. You’ve got girls crawling all over you, from my understanding. I just thought you should know.”

“They’re not you.” He said simply, as though that explained all of it. “But I do. Like you, I mean. I’d be an idiot not to. You’re…” He shook his head, letting out a sigh, a pathetic little chuckle. “God, I’m not used to being on this side of it.”

You laughed a little at that, crossing the distance to him. He was at eye level again, but he was still looking at you as though you were towering above him. You guided one of his hands to your waist, but the other wandered up to your cheek of their own accord, brushing the hair out of your eyes.

“(Y/N)...” He murmured, his real name rolling off his tongue like it was meant to be there.

“You keep looking at me like that, I’m gonna kiss you.”

He smirked. “Promise?”

“Listen. I…can’t promise you anything normal. I float. I have a fucked up schedule. I keep weird hours. And then there’s these…things.” You gave one of your wings a little wave.

“My hours aren’t exactly normal either. And my work is about you a lot anyway, so…” He shrugged, letting a very gentle hand drift down one wing, like it was made of glass. “Besides, you already know I love these things.”

“So does your camera.”

He chuckled. “And my paycheck.”

“Right, can’t forget that.” You murmured, searching those impossibly blue eyes of his. You supposed you’d never realized how many freckles he had until now.

“I mean it. I’m all in.”

“Okay.” You nodded, leaning closer. You pressed your lips to his, slow and sure, an arm winding up around his shoulders.

His hand steadied on your waist, curling around your back to pull you closer, fingers careful at the base of your wings as his lips melted against yours, nose nudging against yours as he slotted closer. He tilted his head, pulling away for just a moment to look at you. “Okay meaning like…we’re going to keep doing this? Or okay as in this is a tonight type thing and you’re letting me down gently?”

You giggled, kissing his lips again, soft and chaste. “Not just tonight.”

“Cool. Yeah, I thought so too.”

“Great. Glad we’re on the same page.” You chuckled, pressing a kiss to the corner of his lips as his arms slotted further around your waist, pulling you closer. One hand smoothed across the space between your shoulders as he let out a long breath.

“I’ll still sleep on the couch, though.”

You laughed, shaking your head. “You don’t have to do that.”

He pulled away to press another long kiss to your lips, then your forehead, blue, blue eyes scanning across your face, memorizing every detail.

“A picture might last you longer.”

“I know.” Jimmy grinned. “But I’ve already got enough of those to last me a lifetime. Not that I won’t…you know, take more tomorrow, but still.”

You remembered mid-kiss that Clark had superhearing. That he had probably heard all of this and relayed it to Lois. That he could see through the walls with his X-Ray vision, could see the two of you tangled up in each other. 

Tomorrow, this would be news to a very small subset of people. But tonight, it was you and him, sharing this small moment in your kitchen, just before sunrise. Swallowing up each other’s smiles and laughs and warmth. This was your little corner of the universe now, and you were very glad to be living in it.