Archive of Our Own ^beta

"Are you and Damian having sex?"

His mother's question was so direct that Jon didn't see it coming, and he almost choked on a mouthful of pancakes while his father looked on, worried.

It wasn't really a secret that he and Damian were a couple. After years of uncertainty, unspoken feelings and failed relationships, and after Jon had found some courage on his seventeenth birthday, helped along by the beer Kon had brought back from wherever he had been, Jon finally felt ready to face Damian. A little drunk, he had taken Damian aside and tried to open his heart, talking about it so much that Damian had looked at him the whole time with an arched eyebrow; then, perhaps a little kindly, his best friend had made him be quiet by putting a finger to his lips and had looked at him with those wonderfully green eyes of his that Jon had automatically leaned toward him with a strong desire to kiss him, cartwheeling to the floor like the complete idiot he was and waking up in his bed the next morning.

Jon said that he had panicked that day. He had looked around, his eyes bright with excitement. He had reached for his phone to check if anyone had posted anything compromising on Instagram or done something he would later regret, and he had also searched the chat with Damian, his heart in his throat. He was terrified of reading words of contempt or, even worse, being blocked by his best friend. When he read "Try to ask me out sober" with a winking smiley face, Damian never put on smiley faces, and Jon almost had a stroke. Jon jumped to his feet so fast that he got the sheets tangled, almost slipped in the shower, and went downstairs like a tornado, waving goodbye to his parents on the way to fly to Gotham like a crazed splinter.

What was even funnier was that Damian was already waiting for him. Jon had found him already awake and looking perfect, wearing the burgundy turtleneck that Jon had given him for Christmas. This had made Jon's heart race as he sat on the chest under the window, looking up at the sky. They had looked into each other's eyes so intensely that it felt like the world had stopped for a long time. Jon was suspended in the air with a bouquet of wildflowers in his hand, red trainers on his feet and a flannel shirt. Damian was resting with one elbow on the window sill, his turtleneck and a smirk on his face. It was Damian who broke the tension and asked where he planned to take him on that "first date" of theirs. Those words melted Jon's heart. Despite the bad weather, they had the best day of their lives and laughed about it. They laughed for a long time, but the rain did not stop. They found shelter under a canopy and huddled close to each other, enjoying the sound of the rain and the cool air.

It had been more than five months since then. Their story had become very well known, and Bruce still could hardly believe it - "Oh, Jonathan and I have started dating," Damian had said during breakfast, and Bruce had almost choked on his waffles -, his parents looked a bit surprised, but his dad looked a bit confused. His mum had asked that question so suddenly during breakfast that Jonathan had to drink at least two glasses of orange juice to get his breath back.

"What?" Jon finally asked, looking at his mother with eyes full of confusion. He didn't want to talk about sex with either her or his father, but they were watching him so closely that he felt amazed. Why did he feel as if the phrase "For whom the bell tolls" was actually ringing in his head, and moreover in Kon's voice?

His parents had sat down at the table with him for breakfast. His father was sipping his coffee, which he had made half an hour earlier and then left to cool. His mother had just put waffles in the middle of the tablecloth. Jon was no longer a child, but at that moment he felt like one, like a child who had done something wrong and was feeling very embarrassed. But in a family like theirs, it shouldn't have been so hard to talk about anything and everything, and even include topics like that without any effort, right? Especially now that Jon considered himself an "adult". So why did he feel his cheeks burning?
His mother sat down in front of him and filled his coffee cup too. "Listen, we don't want to embarrass you..."

"Maybe your mother does," his father hinted, his face half-hidden by the cup.

"Maybe I-- ehi, what are you talking about, Smallville?" his mother called out, tapping him on the shoulder as she returned to stare at Jon. "We don't want to embarrass you, but it's good you know how a 'physical relationship' can affect you."

"We didn't talk about this last year, did we?" Jon said, as he cut into his pancake and looked at it angrily. But his father put his hand on the back of his own on the table.

"We did," he hinted, looking into his eyes. "But we hadn't gone into detail."

Jon pushed his hand away, putting his head on shoulders before crossing arms over his chest. "It's embarrassing, come on," he moaned. "Besides, it's not like we...I mean..."

"Do you use protection?"

"Mom..." Jon said, covering his face with his hands at his mother's question, wrinkling his nose. "If we did, and I'm not saying we did--"

"You're not even denying it," his father added after taking a sip of coffee, and Jon looked at him with a frown.

"Which side are you on?"

"Yours, boy. That's why we're talking about it."

Jon felt frustrated. He let out a groan. He knew he would not be able to avoid that embarrassing conversation. When they got into it, his parents could get pretty "intense," like when they had attended Pride in a rainbow T-shirt with the words "Proud Parents" on it during the year he had confessed to being bisexual. It couldn't have been worse, could it? "We're seventeen years old. Do you think we look each other in the eye?" he asked angrily, without explaining. But his parents understood what he meant and looked at each other quickly.

"You know, kid, at your age I..."

"No, no, no, Dad, no! I don't want to know." Jon waved his hands in front of his ears, ready to block them if he had to. "Damian and I are doing really well, okay? We don't need this 'alien sex education' or whatever you're trying to do."

"Jonathan, you need to know that you could hurt yourself too if you put too much pressure on. Worrying is normal," his mother said, sounding so serious that Jon didn't know what to say.

He kept thinking that everything was fine, but it wasn't true. His mother was absolutely right. He and Damian hadn't done much of anything yet, and Jon admitted that that was one of the things that had stopped him from getting involved up to that point. There had been one night when they had tried, but it had not gone well, and Jon still felt embarrassed about how the evening between them had ended. It had been a silly, crazy moment. He had found himself lying on the couch with Damian straddling him. But Jon had frozen when he had squeezed Damian's wrist too hard. Damian had let out a moan of pain. Jon had apologised in every way, despite Damian's jokes about how he loved "rough play". Jon had gone red from embarrassment, because of his erection pressing against Damian. In the end, they had decided to just touch each other and masturbate, so they could still give each other relief and "cuddle" a bit, too. But yes, Jon had been worried about what it meant that he had sex with a "normal person". At that point, his parents started talking to him about sex and protection. It could have been worse.

"I know. I don't want to hurt Damian," he whispered finally, looking away. He started to find the magnets on the fridge quite interesting, because he didn't want to look at his parents. "I would never be able to forgive myself. That's why we don't... that we... I mean, we..."

His father's big, strong hand was on his shoulder, and Jon looked up slightly at him. "I know how you feel, boy." He had a warm and understanding voice. "When I was your age, I had the same problem. The only thoughts that were a little more intense activated my heat vision and X-ray vision. It could be quite embarrassing when ---"

"What your father is trying to say," his mother interrupted, noticing how nervous Jon looked, "is that you should take your time and not rush things if you don't feel ready. I'm sure Damian will understand too." His mother smiled and patted his face, even though Jon wrinkled his nose. "If you take things slowly, it will be good for both of us, especially you, 'cause it won't feel rushed."

"It's really important to be self-controlled in situations like this," his father added, and Jon felt like he wanted to drop his breakfast and fly out of the window. "We had already talked about the possibility of pregnancy."

"You don't need to worry about that now," Jon tried to joke, but his joke was ignored.

"That's still not a good reason to not use condoms."

"I never said I wouldn't use them, but I don't think they are so necessary."

His father immediately shook his head. "You might have an STD without knowing it, Jon," he said, grabbing his arm. Jon looked at him in shock.

"What?"

"You are half human," his mother added. "And, even if you and Damian haven't done anything yet, it's still something you need to pay attention to."

"The important thing is that you are both involved and sure about what you are doing," his father repeated, before putting his hand on his shoulder. "Your powers are strongest when you're feeling strong emotions. So it's important to control these emotions so that you don't get hurt."

Jon would have liked to say that the only one who could have been hurt was Damian himself, but there was also the emotional part to consider and not just the physical. If he had hurt Damian, he would have been upset, and it would not have been easy. "Sometimes it's not easy... especially when kissing him still makes me fly," he admitted, sounding a bit annoyed, as she rested her head on her shoulders.

"It's nice that you two are so in love," his mother hinted with a smile, trying to reassure Jon and wipe that sad expression off his face. "Even your father sometimes floats. You know?" she said, winking at him and laughing when he poked her in the side. Even Jon looked at her and snorted with laughter.

"Really?"

His father raised his hands in surrender, smiling. "I'm guilty," he said, running a hand through his hair. "So believe me when I say I really understand how you feel. Our bodies are similar to human bodies, but also different. Every part of our body has a special structure that increases our powers, especially during intimate situations. That's why you need to know your way around."

Jon listened carefully, but he could not lie to himself about how uncomfortable he felt about the situation between them. His father had been smart enough to tell him to follow him around the farm so they could talk "between men" and not make his face go redder. But it had still been hard to listen to the "red light" version of the talk they had started a few years earlier. She had told him how he could avoid breaking Damian's bones. She had also explained to him what sex might be like and that he could stop if he wanted to. Jon felt red in the face when his father reminded him of what had happened with the bathroom tiles. Jon had tried to fix them, but it had made things worse. His father had also said that even having sex would have to be controlled. It had been hard to listen to him talking about what he thought happened with Damian, and how to use condoms and lubricant.

When that heartbreak ended and his parents left for a conference, leaving him finally alone, Jon took over the sofa. After searching for the tub of ice cream his mother had hidden in the freezer (the one Jon had discovered months earlier but had not yet touched), Jon scrambled onto the sofa with his feet up on the coffee table and switched on Netflix to watch a film. It took him a while, but he finally opted for a romantic film he knew practically by heart. This would help him stop thinking about the things he had talked about with his father until a few hours ago.

Jon had recently fantasised about having sex with Damian. He had looked on the internet to find out how two guys had sex. He had watched lots of gay porn and imagined himself doing the same things with Damian. He had bought a pack of XXL condoms and a tube of lube and hidden them under his underwear in his drawer. But none of this had helped him understand what it really meant to have sex like the Kryptonian he was. He could have asked Kon and not had his father's explanation, but would that have been the best choice? Kon had made mistakes and learned from them. He had even offered to help several times if anyone needed advice. Maybe he should have tried talking to him.

"Is this what you do when you are on your own at home? Do you eat salted caramel Häagen-Dazs? "

Jon almost choked on his teaspoon. He was getting into a bad habit. He turned quickly towards the living room window. "D!" he said, looking shocked. He put the jar down on the coffee table as if he had something bad happen there. "Damn, I never understand how you can be so quiet."

"You said you knew my heartbeat, didn't you?"

"Well, yes, but it's not like I was concentrating now!"

"I noticed that," Damian said, smiling, and mentioned the TV. A man with big signs had just rung a woman's doorbell and was showing them to her. Damian recognised the scene from "Love Actually", one of the few romantic movies he and Jon had watched together during the early days of their relationship.

Maybe surprised, Jon coughed and looked away. "What? I like it."

Damian just laughed, moved over the window sill, took off his boots and jacket, and jumped over the back of the couch to sit next to Jon. "We could have seen it together," he repeated, grinning sardonically, which always made Jon give in, and he himself sighed, resting his head against Damian's.

"Sorry," he whispered. "It's been a rather ... intense day."

"Mhn?"

"My parents," Jon explained, fidgeting with his hair with one hand. "They've been telling me what to do and what not to do during sex the whole time." Jon touched his face, aware of Damian's interested look. "It was awkward."

"If it's any consolation," Damian began, resting his head on Jon's legs as if nothing had happened and looking at him from that position, "Grayson explained to me how sex with a 'metahuman' works, while my father gave me a lecture on Kryptonian anatomy that they wouldn't even do at Harvard." Damian rolled his eyes at the memory. "As if we weren't mature enough to know these things without them getting involved."

"To be fair, they've got a point, hasn't they?" Jon retorted , biting his lower lip, and Damian glared at him from that position.

"Did you bump your head?" he asked, noticing Jon looking up at the ceiling.

"I'm just saying... I don't know." Jon ran his fingers through his hair, looking a bit annoyed. "I really have to learn to keep my cool, because I don't want things to go the way they did last time."

Damian pulled himself up when he heard that, then sat down next to Jon to watch him from there. "Still thinking about it?" he asked, and Jon buried his head in his shoulders.

"Shouldn't I be?"

Damian gave him a quick once-over and looked him straight in the eye. "Oh, beloved." He didn't usually call him that, except on special occasions, and this seemed to be one of them, especially as Jon seemed really upset by the situation. "We don't have to do this if you don't want to."

"I'm not saying I don't want to, it's just that I'm worried it might feel so good that I could hurt you. And more than last time."

"It was just an accident. You didn't hurt me on purpose."

"But I did," Jon insisted as he ran a hand through Damian's hair, entwining his fingers between the longer strands. "I want to make sure I know how to control myself before I... before I do it. Sorry."

Damian snapped his tongue under his palate. 'Are you really apologising?' he asked, smiling slightly. 'I can wait. But there's nothing stopping us from having some fun anyway if we feel like it,' she said as she sat astride him and gently took his face in her hands, kissing him so gently that she barely touched his lips.

Jon closed his eyes and lost himself completely in the kiss. He slid his hands over Damian's hips, holding him firmly against him. Damian's mouth was warm and his lips were soft, tasting of mint as if he had brushed his teeth before going down on him. Resting his hands on Jon's shoulders, Damian began to rub himself against him, moving his hips back and forth and deepening the kiss. The friction of their pants rubbing together began to arouse Jon. Damian didn't move any further; he just tightened his arms around Jon's neck, pulling out the tip of his tongue and lapping at the curve of his lips before creeping between them and tapping his teeth gently. Jon opened his mouth, entwining his tongue with Damian's as he dictated the rhythm, savouring it. Jon slid his hands down to Damian's buttocks, and they both moaned at the touch. They caught their breath shortly after, looking into each other's eyes amidst a flurry of gasps; their mouths were swollen and glistening with saliva.

" Where did you learn that? " Jon asked with a hint of amusement. Damian lifted one corner of his mouth in a sardonic grin.

" I was trained in the art of seduction. "

Jon chuckled. "Liar. You were ten years old; your mother would never have done that. "

" In fact, it happened last year with a teacher, " Damian exclaimed earnestly, and Jon's eyes widened.

" Are you kidding? "

"Who knows.. . "

" D...! "

Damian laughed, covering his face with his hands, before literally sighing into his palms with his eyes closed. " Of course I'm kidding, you idiot. Now kiss me again, " he murmured. Jon brushed his lips against his, then rested his hands on his shoulders and pulled him away a little.

" Wait. " Seeing Damian's stunned expression, Jon waved his hands and quickly added, " Let's go to bed. We'll be more comfortable, " he said, causing Damian to huff hilariously.

" I was beginning to think you were tired of making out. "

" Never,' " Jon replied with a hint of amusement, picking Damian up despite his surprised exclamation.

Although he had complained that he could go upstairs alone, Damian said no more when Jon flew up the stairs and stole a kiss from him. He immediately took advantage of the situation, sinking his fingers into Damian's hair and drawing him closer for a deeper kiss. Between half-mouthed phrases, with their backs pressed against the walls and their legs entwined around their hips, they soon found themselves on the mattress, kicking off the sheets amongst tossed clothes and fleeting touches. They made love throughout the night, holding each other tightly until they collapsed, and neither of them knew how much time had passed.

The alarm on his mobile phone made him open his eyes, which he didn't remember closing. Jon muttered a few complaints about forgetting to turn it off. Reaching out to grope for the phone on the bedside table, he turned it off. Yawning soundly, he smiled as he lowered his gaze to Damian, who was sleeping placidly with his head on his arm.

The previous night had been peculiar. There had been no racy encounters or full intercourse, yet it had been pleasant to be able to receive and reciprocate Damian's attentions with his mouth. They had kissed so intensely that he had even had to catch his breath at one point. If he thought about it, he became aroused at the memory of how they had masturbated each other, rubbing against each other between gasps and sighs. If those sensations were only from petting, he dared not imagine what it would be like when they finally made love.

Jon smiled at the thought as he shook a strand of hair off Damian's face. Damian wrinkled his nose and grumbled something as he turned away. The T-shirt Jon had lent him — the same one he was beginning to think looked better on Damian, despite it being loose on him — lifted up a little to reveal his boxers. Jon lingered for a while, observing the firm roundness of his buttocks, and swallowed at the thought of biting them. Shaking his head, he patted his face twice and ducked into the bathroom to clear his thoughts and take care of his morning erection, before flying downstairs to the kitchen.
Cheerfully humming and grinning from ear to ear, Jon opened the fridge and glanced inside, looking for milk. He opened the carton and took a couple of sips. Perhaps he could have made breakfast without using the ready-made pancakes he usually ate alone. Maybe he could have taken it upstairs and eaten it in bed with Damian, in a pale imitation of domesticity.

" Don't drink directly from the milk carton. "

Jon choked on the gulp of milk he hadn't swallowed completely. All right, all right, the universe must be mad at him if he can't even drink or eat something without risking choking to death. Sputtering and coughing, he turned quickly towards the voice coming from the kitchen archway. " Mom?! " he exclaimed, hiding the package behind his back as he closed the refrigerator door with his foot. " What—what are you doing here? "

Lois scowled. " Need I remind you that it's my house too, young man? " she replied sceptically. Jon chuckled nervously and massaged his neck with his free hand before setting the milk down on the counter.

" Um, right... " he said softly, moderating the tone of his voice and words. " But I thought you and Dad wouldn't be back for a few days, and— "

" I came back to get some things. We— "

" Jon? What's going on? " Damian, wearing only Jon's Meteors T-shirt which covered his legs almost to the knee and hid his boxers, had looked out onto the stairs leading to the kitchen. He fell silent for a moment upon noticing Lois, blinking several times in response to the strange look she was giving him. " Good morning, Ms Lane, " he said calmly, ignoring the way Lois had slid her gaze over him.

" Lois, Damian, " she replied calmly, but shot Jon a look that said 'You and I need to talk', which left him rather awestruck. " I didn't expect to see you here. "

" It's a good strategic rallying point after a patrol, " Damian asserted earnestly and bluntly, like his father, paying no mind to the fact that that excuse reeked of a lie. And Lois Lane was no fool.

" A farm. In Kansas. Miles away from Gotham. "

" Exactly. "

Lois lifted her gaze to the ceiling and rolled her eyes. " I wasn't born yesterday, " she said, crossing her arms over her chest and looking at both of them. " I used to do these things to drive my father crazy too when I was your age. "

Jon and Damian exchanged a quick glance, their cheeks flushing slightly with embarrassment. However, it was Damian who quickly regained his composure, coughing and straightening his back. Despite his oversized shirt, bare legs and dishevelled hair from sleep, he appeared perfectly composed. Lois remembered watching a similar scene more than a decade ago when Damian was wearing Jon's pyjamas and there was barely a friendship between them.

" I'd better go and clean up, " he finally said, stepping back onto the stairs. " See you later, Lois. "

" See you later, Damian. I'll put the coffee on for you before I go. "

" Thanks. Jon is not capable. "

" Hey! " Jon retorted, but Damian shot him a wry look before bolting upstairs, choosing a dignified retreat and leaving Jon at the mercy of his mother. What a coward.

" You got busy right away, I see. "

Jon tried to play dumb when he heard his mother's words, but her look said it all. " It's not what it looks like, " he said, massaging the back of his neck. " Damian just came to see me. "

" Is that what you call it now? "

" Mom... " Jon complained, but Lois laughed softly as she moved closer to him. She took his face in her hands and kissed his forehead.

" I'm just kidding, honey, " she reassured him, looking into his eyes. " Next time you and Damian want to be alone, though, let us know, " she said, smiling as she watched Jon wrinkle his nose before nodding briefly.

" Mmm, yes. Sure. "

" And don't make that face. " Lois gently tugged at his cheek. " You know we're happy for you and Damian. "

Jon mumbled something, but finally smiled. " I know. " He hugged his mother tightly, being careful not to use too much strength, and then buried his face in the hollow of her shoulder. " Thank you, Mum. "

" You don't have to thank me, honey. I love you. "

And it was true. Despite the ups and downs they had experienced in their lives, and despite Clark's initial scepticism about Damian during their early days and adventures, Damian had proven to be a loyal friend to Jon. He had kept the promise he made ten years ago, never putting Jon in danger and always protecting him. Jon had done the same, and Lois knew they would continue to look out for each other now they were together. Her son was definitely in good hands, and she was happy — that was all that mattered.

Bonus:
All in all, that breakfast together was not the tragedy Jon had imagined. His mother joked around some more, and everything between them was so perfect that it warmed Jon's heart. Seeing Damian sitting at the breakfast table with them, chatting with his mother as they sipped coffee and ate pancakes, teasing each other as if nothing was wrong, made Jon wish those moments could become normal family life and that Damian would never lose the relaxed smile he had at that moment.
It was a moment that Jon would never let go of again — a moment that tasted like home and family.