Chapter Text
THREE YEARS AGO
THE DAILY PLANET BULLPEN
Clark Kent is late!
Like, the-cows-have-been-grazing-for-hours-and-the-chickens-should’ve-been-shepherded-back-to-their-coop-hours-ago, late!
He had to save a cat stuck in a tree—— he couldn’t just ignore a crying six-year-old next to an impatient and irritated mother.
“You’re late again, Kent,” Perry White—— the strict and yet extremely fair and surprisingly lenient boss, huffs gruffly, an unlit cigar in his mouth.
Clark wishes he could gather the courage to ask him why he always carried it around but it seemed quite rude to do so.
“Sorry, Mr. Chief, uhh, Mr. White, I mean Chief——” he winces, his eyes widening apologetically. “Superman sighting near tenth and Alexander.”
“You get any pics?” Perry walks beside him in stride, never slowing down much to Clark’s relief. He is far too energetic to force himself to slow down to match a normal human pace.
“Ah, no,” Clark rubs the back of his neck sheepishly.
Can’t exactly take selfies, can he?
“So you just,” Perry halts, turning around, “stood there?”
“Erm,” Clark swallows the embarrassment. “Yes? I mean, no!” He adds in a panicked voice, noticing the disapproval in Perry’s furrowed eyebrows.
“So, which is it, Kent?” Perry rolls his eyes. “Yes? Or no?”
“I mean, I don’t get any pictures,” Clark takes a deep breath. “However, I did get a quote,” he feels horrible, lying like this, but it needed to be done.
He hasn’t even been at the Daily Planet for longer than a couple of months.
“What quotes?” Jimmy—— the closest to a friend Clark has at the Daily Planet—— walks up to the two of them and slaps Clark on the back.
Clark assumes he’s supposed to stumble, so he does.
“From the Man of Steel,” Perry shrugs. “Print it. Unless you have something more interesting,” he looks intrigued.
“Nothing so far,” Clark smiles sheepishly, adjusting the straps of his bag.
“Whatcha printing?”
Clark whirls around, bumping into Jimmy who takes a step back with an indignant huff as Perry sighs audibly.
Lois Lane tilts her head in amusement, her brilliantly light blue eyes trained on Clark.
She arches an eyebrow.
Clark takes a note of the red blazer and white top paired with a red skirt and black heels. Her hair is open, flows and straight. Her eyes magnified with the familiar winged eyeliner and her lips painted a neutral shade of pink—— the strawberry lipgloss she got from her siblings on her birthday last month.
She tucks her hair behind her ear as Jimmy nudges Clark.
“Huh? What?” Clark clears his throat, flushing bright red in embarrassment.
God, he was pathetic!
“I asked,” Lois crosses her arms in front, “Whatcha printing?”
“Superman,” Jimmy grins.
Clark watches as Lois’s amused smile morphs into a thin line and she hums in disinterest.
He feels his chest sinking.
“What did he do this time?” Lois walks towards her desk which is a mess of clattered papers and a variety of sticky notes on her monitor. “Save a kitten?”
“Yes, actually,” Clark pipes up, feeling a tad bit defensive. “It made Annette’s day and her mother seemed grateful she didn’t have to deal with a crying six-year-old.”
Lois Lane frustrates him as much as she intrigues him.
He admires her a lot.
And gets annoyed by her constant pessimism from time to time.
“How cute,” Lois deadpans, looking him in the eyes.
He arches an eyebrow in challenge.
“O-kay,” Jimmy stretches the end of the word, glancing between the two before turning to Clark. “I have some photos of cute kittens if you want any for your article. Let me know.” Patting Clark, he walks towards the coffee station.
“Get it on my desk by noon, Kent,” Perry pivots and walks towards his office, slamming the door shut as Lois and Clark watch him go.
Lois swivels in her chair, grabbing a hair tie from several scattered on top of a stack of files, before arranging her hair into a messy ponytail.
“Chop, chop, Kansas,” Lois smirks, glancing at him out of her periphery, “Your deadline is in two hours.”
“You’re enjoying this,” he narrows his eyes at her.
“Am I?” She turns her face, resting her cheek on her palm as her elbow rests on the table.
The rosy glow of her cheeks and mischievous glint in her eyes solidify his theory, but it does nothing to quell the ever growing crush on his coworker.
Sighing in exasperation—— and yet unable to get rid of the fond twinge mixed in—— he walks to his own desk near the pillar and plops down carefully on his chair.
He has a deadline, after all!
———————❖———————
It’s been about an hour since he’s submitted his report on Perry’s desk—— the older man preferred a physical copy he could mark with pen and markers—— and doused a burning bodega and saved an elderly lady from getting charred.
Clark fixes his tie as he stumbles into the bullpen, smiling apologetically at Ron Troupe who looks up at him sharply from his desk.
“Clark?” He turns around, pushing his glasses back onto the bridge of his nose as they slide down to look at Cat who fixes him with a smirk. “We’re going out to grab some dessert. Wanna join?” She tilts her head, batting her eyelashes.
“Oh, I don’t know if,” he glances at the paper on his desk which is lined with red. “I should turn in the edited version soon or else Mr. White will be extremely disappointed and I——”
“I told you he’d be busy,” Clark turns to look at Lois who stands behind Cat, fixing the strap of her purse. “Come on.”
“You’re going?” Clark blurts out.
Lois halts, turning around to face him with a frown. “Why do you sound so surprised?”
“You always turn down invitations to hang out,” Jimmy points out helpfully.
“A few times,” Lois dismisses him with a wave of her hand.
“Lois, someone has to drop off lunch on your desk or drag you by wheeling your chair to the break room,” Clark folds his arms across his chest, looking at her pointedly.
She flushes adorably, glaring at him. “Some of us are swamped with dealing with crooked mob bosses and shady capitalistic assholes.”
“And you do a great job,” Clark shrugs. “But you’re not that much of a social person.”
“When did this turn into Analyse-Lois-Lane hour?” Lois huffs.
Cat chuckles, running her fingers through her voluminous blonde curls. “There, there, darling,” she pats Lois on the arm. “Come on. We don’t want to be late. The sooner we’re back, the sooner you can finish the article and the sooner you can leave to meet your new beau.”
Clark swallows the metaphorical chainsaw—— noting the pitying look Jimmy throws his way, but chooses to ignore it—— as he follows the three, plus Steve Lombard and Ron Troupe out of the bullpen and they all huddle into the elevator.
“Lane’s got a date,” Steve whistles.
“It’s not a date,” Lois rolls her eyes as she steps inside the elevator. “It’s an interview with the investment banker who’s being threatened to pay an anonymous group of people because of some incriminating evidence they’re holding against him.”
“Your latest case,” Clark adds.
“Yes,” she nods.
“Then why are you dressed so nicely?” Cat frowns. “I’ve seen your interview Senators in nothing but a pair of jeans and a simple sweater.”
Lois glances down at her outfit. “This isn’t fancy.”
“No, but it’s nicer than your usual clothes,” Cat looks at her pointedly.
“Gee, thanks, Cat,” Lois glares at the other woman who shrugs.
“Isn’t it your sister’s birthday?” Jimmy pipes up.
“How do you know?” Lois whirls around as they step off the elevator, and Steve pushes past all of them muttering about starving.
“Uhhh, your cellphone nearly buzzed off the table with all of the notifications she was sending you when you were in Perry’s office,” Jimmy shrugs.
“Were you snooping?” She stops in her tracks, glaring at him coldly, making him take a step back.
“No,” Jimmy says hastily. “As I said—— the vibrations caught my attention and I saw that it was about to fall off your desk so I grabbed it and placed it back.” He rubs the back of his neck sheepishly, “And saw a few of the texts in the process.”
Lois sighs, turning around and walking through the revolving doors out into the street.
“It’s your sister’s birthday?” Cat looks intrigued.
“I’m meeting her afterwards,” Lois mutters. She gestures to her outfit, “I thought I’d actually dress nice for once.”
“Awww, the Lane sisters bonding,” Jimmy coos. “How cute.”
“Shut up,” Lois shoves him, prompting him to bump into Clark who places a hand on Jimmy’s back to steady him.
“Sorry, bud,” Jimmy laughs.
“No problem,” Clark smiles, as easygoing as ever.
He observes as Lois seems to walk a bit stiffer than she had been at the start of their journey. She twists the buckle of her purse, shoulders set straight as she marches to follow Steve and Ron who turn around the corner of the street.
“Is she okay?” He asks softly, once she’s around the corner and momentarily out of their sight.
“Who? Lois?” Jimmy looks at him with a smirk. “Why? You gonna lay it on thick?”
“What? No,” he widens his eyes in shock. “We’re friends, Jimmy,” he shakes his head. “Honestly!”
Jimmy opens his mouth only to be cut off by Cat. “She doesn’t talk much about her family.” She smiles flirtatiously—— and yet Clark notes the warning glint in her eyes: don’t push Lane—— patting his shoulder, letting her hand caress his bicep.
Clearing his throat, he steps to the side, successfully getting Jimmy to slot himself in between Cat and Clark as he boisterously talks about his plans for the weekend.
They turn around the corner to see Lois holding the door open, tapping her foot impatiently.
“Whatcha ordering?” Jimmy gestures wildly to the menu displayed on the wall. “Crusty’s Signature Cupcakes?”
“Switch it up once in a while,” Steve snorts, shouldering past them to walk to the counter.
As he begins to talk to the barista who looks at him in boredom while Cat, Ron and Jimmy talk rapidly about what to get, Clark walks towards Lois who is eyeing the display case with a frown.
“Hey,” he says softly, hoping to not startle her.
She glances at him briefly, “Hey.” Turning back towards the cupcakes on display.
“The caramel corn is good,” Clark jerks his head towards the orange and brown delicacy with little candied corn sprinkled on top.
“My sister is allergic,” Lois shakes her head.
“Oh, I thought you were ordering for yourself,” Clark blinks, taken aback.
“I’m not a big fan of cupcakes,” she turns to face him fully, a twitch of the corner of her lips giving away her amusement. “Are you?”
“Me?” His eyes widen.
Lois’s eyes are a piercing blue.
He feels captivated by the intense stare as she looks at him, not blinking once.
“Yes, Kent, we’re the only ones here,” she looks away first, gesturing to the lack of people in their vicinity.
“Oh, right,” he clears his throat as he tries to fight the blush that he knows for sure is visible on his face.
Gosh, this is embarrassing!
“Oi, Lane and Kent? What do you guys want?” Jimmy hollers from the counter.
“An espresso,” Lois shouts back.
Clark blinks, “You’re not gonna try anything?”
“No,” Lois frowns. “I don’t like cupcakes, Kent. I just told you.”
“Surely there must be one flavour you like,” he protests. “I know Crusty’s are a bit,” he looks at the display and winces, noticing the heaps of cream and toppings, “over the top, but what about a simple red velvet or blueberry?”
“Nope,” Lois says, popping the ‘p’ as she shakes her head. “They’re always far too sugary and sweet.”
Clark blinks.
“Too sugary and sweet,” he echoes.
She nods, “Yes.”
Folding his arms in front, he looks at her, a smirk on his face. “Lois Lane, Miss I-Need-To-Add-Twelve-Packets-Of-Sugar-To-My-Coffee thinks cupcakes are ‘too sugary and sweet’,” he air quotes the last four words with a snort.
“Shut up,” Lois swats his arm and he feigns getting hurt prompting her to narrow her eyes at him. “You’re insufferable.”
“What’s the real reason you don’t like cupcakes?” Clark nudges her as they walk towards the cash register. “And no lies this time.”
“Fine,” Lois rolls her eyes. “I tried baking in college and ended up burning every batch of cupcakes I ever made so now I don’t like them, happy?” She crosses her arms in front, glaring at him in annoyance.
Clark purses his lips, trying to stop himself from laughing. “Ah,” he coughs. “I see.”
“Don’t you dare laugh, Kent,” she states warningly.
“Who? Me?” Clark raises his hands, widening his eyes to convey his innocence. “Never.”
“What do you guys want?” The barista interrupts in a deadpan voice.
“Oh, I’m not——” Lois shakes her head.
“A pecan and buttercream for me,” Clark interjects. “And the lovely Miss Lane here will try your Key Lime,” he grins at her.
“I told you,” Lois huffs.
“You’re gonna love it, Lois,” he smiles gently. “Trust me.”
He holds her gaze, watching as she contemplates silently before huffing in exasperation. “Yeah, sure,” she grumbles. “Why not?” He beams, taking out his card to pay at the same time as she does. “Uh uh,” she shakes her head.
“Lois, let me,” he shakes his head.
“No, beat it, Farm Boy,” she tries to push past him, only to be blocked by his frame. “Clark,” she narrows her eyes.
“Lois,” he replies, holding out the card to the barista behind him who groans an annoyed grumble before accepting it. He looks at Lois with a satisfied smirk as they pay and she glares at him all the way while they walk towards the seats their colleagues have occupied.
“What were you guys arguing about, back there?” Jimmy pushes forth a cup of espresso which Lois snatches right away and begins to add packets of sugar into at an alarming rate. “That’s disgusting. And I can’t believe you refuse to eat cupcakes because they’re,” he raises his hands to make quotations in the air, “‘too sweet.’ I mean, you’re adding like a kilogram of sugar in there!”
“Don’t be ridiculous, Olsen,” Lois rolls her eyes.
“What did you order?” Cat turns to Clark, resting her chin on her fist.
“Oh, the pecan and buttercream,” he smiles in return.
“Argh, you always order the same one, Kent,” Steve groans. “Boring! Do you not like spontaneity?”
“I like that one,” Clark pipes up defensively. “It reminds me of home.”
“Barf,” Steve gags.
“Shut up, Steve,” Cat frowns at Steve before smiling apologetically at Clark.
“You’re eating the new Protein Power-Up Special,” Lois adds drily as she takes a sip of her drink. “Which I’m sure you’re only having ‘cause your favourite baseball player made an ad promoting it.” She arches an eyebrow, “That’s pathetic.”
Jimmy snorts, placing his hand over his mouth to muffle the sound.
Clark glances at Lois, surprised.
“Here,” the waitress sets down two plates, one in front of Lois and the other in front of Clark. “Anything else?” She beams brightly, making Clark wince.
“No,” Cat smiles sharply, dismissing her with a wave of her hand.
As they both bite into their cupcakes, Clark feels a rush of pride as Lois hums appreciatively, her eyes closed in pleasure while she chews slowly.
“Wait, you ordered a cupcake?” Jimmy stares at Lois, flabbergasted. “I thought you said you didn’t like cupcakes and that Crusty’s were extra stupid because they always have over the top frosting and decorations?”
“Smallville insisted,” Lois shrugs, taking another bite. She glances at Clark, “It’s good.”
“I’m glad you like it,” he tilts his head in acknowledgement.
She smiles, the corners of her eyes crinkling, as she places a hand over her mouth. His eyes drop to her lips momentarily, noting the cream on the corner.
He doesn’t know what prompts him.
Okay.
That’s a lie.
He does.
It’s the stupid ginormous Bigger-Than-The-Entire-Galaxy sized crush he has been harbouring for months!
Clark reaches out to swipe his thumb over the corner of her lips and licks it clean off his own fingers.
Had it not been for the sharp intake of breath from Lois or Jimmy’s little, “Holy shit!”Clark would’ve completely not realised just what he’d done.
His eyes widen as he stares at Lois who is looking back at him, wide eyed. “Err, sorry,” he says hastily.
He looks around their table to notice Steve and Ron engrossed in a conversation about Metropolis Meteors’ last match, while Jimmy stares at him open-mouthed.
Cat looks intrigued, with a hint of disappointment laced in her gaze which Clark ignores.
“Are you two——” Cat begins.
“Excuse me,” Lois stands up abruptly, her chair scraping across the floor, drawing the attention of their other companions. “I need to review the bank statements and cross reference them before meeting with my sister.”
“But didn’t you and I already——” Jimmy frowns.
“And,” she forces a smile on her face, glaring pointedly at the redhead who quietens at once. “I’m yet to select a gift for my sister. So,” she gestures vaguely, “yeah.”
“You can get her cupcakes,” Clark blurts out, desperate to keep her with them a bit longer.
Shoot!
Dang it!
Has he messed up?
Why are you even asking? Of course you did, Clark, you bumbling idiot!—— he groans internally.
Jimmy looks at him, staring at him open-mouthed.
“They have a great Birthday Cake cupcakes here and you can get them to spell out her name or something,” he rambles on, watching in horror as Lois fiddles with the straps of her purse.
“Oh, no that’s fine,” Lois shakes her head. “Thanks for the suggestion.” She adds hastily before pivoting on her feet and hurrying away.
Clark watches her leave with a pout, before sighing and turning to eye his pecan cupcake with a frown.
“Wow,” he looks up at Jimmy who is shaking his head in disbelief, “That was one hell of a disaster!”
“What was?” Steve pipes up, glancing away from Ron.
“Nothing, shut up, Steve,” Cat waves him off. She looks at Clark for a beat, as the man in question avoids her gaze before gathering her coat and handbag. “We should get going. Perry’s gonna have our heads if we miss our deadlines.”
“Well I have nothing to do,” Jimmy shrugs. “Clark, why don’t you and I take a walk in Centennial Park?”
“I need to turn in my edited version soon,” Clark finishes his cupcake in the blink of an eye, shaking his head. “Sorry, Jimmy. Maybe another time.” Smiling apologetically, he rushes out of the cafe at a speed he knows is normal for humans in a hurry.
As soon as he is outside, he manoeuvres his way through the busy streets, apologising as he bumps into people, making his way to a deserted alley.
Looking around to ensure no one’s there, he changes swiftly and takes off into the sky, letting the wind cool down his cheeks which are burning in embarrassment.
He groans, burying his face in his hands as he comes to a standstill in the sky and looks around.
“Darn it!” He murmurs.
Has he messed up what little fragile friendship he’s been building with Lois Lane over the past few months?