Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

           
           Conner had to admit, having a Dad like Lex Luthor came with its own trademarked brand of stress. Having Dads like Lex Luthor and Superman? It was a miracle he had turned out the way he had. Bless Ma and Pa for giving him a place to recuperate away from Metropolis when Lex and Clark had been too much.

            And although, at newly turned twenty, Conner knows he has matured a lot – he can still admit, grudgingly, that Lex and Clark both can still manage to completely stress him out... Just in totally opposite ways.

            …which is why he’s pacing, furiously, back and forth with his hands in his hair.

            “…and I know they aren’t doing this on purpose, but dude, they are doing this on purpose.”

            Tim was staring at him in that quietly bemused way he tended to get when Conner let himself rant.

            “I mean, come on. We haven’t seen each other in a week, and when we get together to go on a date where its just the two of us – both of my Dads suddenly invite me to the same event!?”

            Tim flipped the invitation over in his hand with a hum.

            “Well. To be fair, Clark invited ‘Conner’ through email. Lex, though, sent you an invitation to his event and labeled it to, ‘Superboy.’ And he sent it to you… with a car?”

            Conner made a frustrated noise, plopping down on the couch and spreading his arms along the back of it.

            “At least Dad is being transparent. He’s totally wanting to use Superboy as his publicity stunt because he knows Clark would never peacefully show up as Superman to one of his events. That has to be why he's inviting me instead of Superman, right?”

            “Definitely sounds like a thing Luthor would do.”

            “Mm-hm. Clark’s invitation also confuses the hell out of me. I mean, why is he inviting me to Lex’s event? Normally he does everything he can to keep me away from Dad. Sure, he’s not as bad about it now but… Ugh, I mean, I know he and Lois are planning to cover it but its just supposed to be a surprisingly tame exhibition for Dad. Heck, he’s really just advertising it as an Meteorfall Day celebration.”

            Which in reality was just about a day commemorating Superman for how he had saved Metropolis from a meteor two years ago, and then some years before that too. Truthfully, Kon was amazed Lex was hosting an event in Superman's honor. Either he was being strong-armed into it because it was an anniversary event and someone had to host it, or he was just intentionally trying to rile Big Blue up. Honestly, knowing his Dad it was probably a combination of both.

            Tim silently mouthed ‘heck’ to himself, which, okay rude, before walking to stand in front of Conner. He gently kneed Conner’s leg as he admitted, “Having Superboy turn up to an event always draws a lot of publicity. Especially since you're always seen as an emissary of sorts between Luthor and Superman." At his droll look, Tim cracked a grin and added, "...and because Metropolis goes crazy for a Super in a leather jacket of course. Luthor is probably just using Superboy as a PR stunt after his announcements tonight because this whole event is on the smaller scale compared to what Luthor usually does. He’ll probably have you on stage before the evening fireworks as he promotes whatever new evil product he has.” At Conner’s long-suffering groan, his boyfriend hurried to add, “…hey, it might not even be a totally evil product. I mean, it’ll definitely be capitalistic, but it might not be supervillain evil? Luthor has been pretty good with that lately. Silver lining.”

            Miserable, Conner offered, “Tim, I’ll trade my Dad for one of your siblings.”

            “Tempting, but I’ll pass.”

            “Okay, I’ll trade for two of your brothers. I’ll even take Jason and Damian. I know Jon would buy Damian off me.” And I could probably ditch Jason on a farm somewhere.
 
            “Oh, don’t tease me like that Kon-El.”

            Suddenly, Conner found himself with a wonderful lapful of Tim. His hands, proving themselves to be independent thinkers, attached themselves immediately to Tim’s lower hips like magnets. Already, Conner could feel his own agitation lifting like a fog clearing.

            Tim idly wrapped his arms around Conner’s neck while one of his hands started twirling a piece of his curled hair. The soothing touch felt so warm that Conner felt it would make him melt then and there.

            “You can always not go, you know.”

            The thing was, he did know. He could completely blow Lex and Clark off. This was supposed to be his and Tim’s time. He desperately wanted to, but another unwanted thought kept him from doing just that. Clark might not look too closely into why he was blown off, but Lex definitely would.

            Which wouldn’t be such a big issue if it wasn’t for the fact that he and Tim were trying to keep their dating life a secret. Conner didn’t mind the spotlight, and didn’t see a problem with announcing he and Tim were together and had been for months now – but he knew how much Tim valued his privacy and they both agreed his situation wouldn't provide him the same problem-less transition from “seemingly straight” to “actually quite bi, thank you.” It could cause a media fire and the advanced scrutiny would only cause Tim headaches going forward. The last thing Conner wanted was to add to Tim's list of Problems.  

            Because of that, neither of them wanted Lex prying too deeply into why he’d been ditched.

            …and as much as Conner wanted to be able to proudly show his boyfriend off to the entire world, there was no way he wanted to do it at the expense of Tim’s happiness.

            Conner shifted, drawing Tim closer who came willingly, obviously relishing the embrace in a shameless way that always made Conner’s heart beat faster.

            “I know. I also know it’ll go down like it always does. But I’ll show up regardless.”

            “Lex’s passive scheming is at least easy to plan for. When he knows a routine works, he tends to keep using it.”

            Conner buried his face in Tim’s shoulder, closing his eyes as he enjoyed how Tim immediately ran his fingertips along his scalp.

            “…so really, it’s just Clark being the contrary one, now.”

            Tim made a noncommittal hum that caused Conner to squeeze him until he squeaked.

            “Eep.”

            “Dude, if you have a theory just tell me. I mean, I know you have a theory, or three, but just tell me.”

            “I won’t if you keep calling me dude when it’s just us here.”

            He pressed an apologetic kiss into Tim’s collarbone.

            “Sorry baby. Honeypie. Snugglekins. Sweetcheeks.”

            “I am going to divorce you.”

            “You have to marry me first, babe.”

            Tim snorted, but Conner kept his face hidden. Truthfully, joking about getting married really flustered him. Ever since Bernard he was pretty sure on how he felt about marrying his long-term best friend, but he knew now was definitely not the time for that particular conversation.

            One crisis at a time.

            Tim shifted until he held Conner’s face and tilted it up until the larger man met his gaze. Tim’s iced-baby-blue eyes were charmingly clear and warm today as he gazed down at him. 

            “…Clark probably invited you for three reasons. One, probably because he knew you were planning to be in Metropolis today. You told Ma that, and if he called her… You know what a socialite she is.”

            Conner quietly groused, “You don't call her a socialite. When you say it, it sounds like an insult because you’re from upper-class Gotham.”

            Tim ignored him, as he tended to do.

            “…two, he probably invited you because he knows Luthor better than anyone. Lex won’t be likely to spring any kryptonite traps if he’s back on his ‘kill Superman’ vendetta with you there, possibly in the crosshairs of his super-evil-villain plan. Lex is still Lex, but the three of us know he cares for you in his own twisted way enough to not want you dead. Superman... really shouldn't bank on the same promise by himself.”

            “Gee, thanks. You actually think Clark is using me as a human shield? Well, halfish-kryptonian shield?”

            Tim’s face did that glitch-like motion it did whenever he just ran a bunch of scenarios together in his head, and he took a moment before playfully knocking his head against Conner’s. Conner pretended not to notice Tim’s painful hesitation.

            “No, you big lug. I don’t think Superman invited you to be his shield. Most likely, I think Ma told him, or Jon did.”

            “Jon?”

            “When I said I was leaving Gotham, Damian wanted to know where I was going.” Tim rolled his eyes, and Conner wisely left that can of worms alone, “…so I told him I was coming to see you.” Tim paused, weighing something in his mind before continuing. “Jon’s been sneaking into Gotham lately. He’s actually done really well at avoiding Batman’s attention and heavily patrolled areas. No doubt Damian has been coaching him. Have I ever told you how much I adore Jon, and how much I appreciate the universe for giving him to us? Really big fan of the way he has helped teach Damian to chill out.”

            Conner hummed in just the right way to let Tim know he was on to him regardless of what he was saying. “Also gotta love how your baby bro is teaching mine to be a sneak.”

            Unrepentant, Tim shrugged as he said, “It’s good training.”

            “But clearly, he’s been spotted.”

            Tim admitted, “He’s been avoiding Batman’s notice pretty well. Oracle, not so much. Also, some of the areas he thinks that are lightly patrolled are actually watched over by the Birds of Prey so he’s tripped a few alarms here and there. But he’s learning. They’re all secretly very proud of his progress and keep an eye on him.”

            A little concerned, he asked, “They aren’t up to anything too dangerous, are they?”

            “No, not really. Sometimes they just sneak around the manor and play video games. I cannot believe gaming is one thing I have in common with Dames.”

            Stunned, Conner asked, “…and Batman seriously hasn’t noticed a clumsy kryptonian child stumbling around his house?”

            At his words, Tim looked both smug and bemused.

            “Who exactly do you think keeps turning off the alarms and distracting Batman?"

            Conner snorted, burying his face back into Tim’s chest. The flutter of Tim's heart was as addicting as always. 

            “Your relationships with your brothers are needlessly complex. I think I need a flowchart.”

            Tim sighed, wistful.

            “Well, if you get your hands on one can you give it to me? I could use a study guide sometimes.”

            They took a moment to cuddle with each other quite frankly, shamelessly, before Conner forced his gaze up again. Tim was watching him, contemplating something. Whatever was on his mind, he kept to himself.

            “So, two-out-of-three of you believes Clark’s just being… family friendly?”

            “That’s not what that means, but yes.”

            Conner sighed noisily, nuzzling Tim for a moment as he innocently groped him.

            “…I’m pretty sure we don’t have time for that. Besides, aren’t you sad right now?”

            Ignoring the way Tim was just-as-innocently trying to break his finger, he hummed, “No, not really. I haven’t been sad for a few minutes now.”

            “Oh? What changed?” That was Tim's coy voice. He loved that voice!

            “My totally hot boyfriend came and sat on my lap and cheered me right up.”

            Tim bent down and kissed him, and Conner was like, two-thirds sure it was just to shut him up. He hummed happily into the kiss regardless.

            Kissing Tim nowadays always made him feel like he was flying high on an especially sunny day. Although their first kiss had been startlingly good Conner could proudly say months of practice and good feedback had really done well to grow Tim into a kisser who knew what he liked, and who didn’t hesitate to take it. 

             …and boy was he taking it.

             Conner was motion, already shifting them with the intent of laying Tim down on the couch so he could start undressing them both when Tim gently bit him and disengaged. Conner was quick to complain. “Babe, you can’t just kiss me like that and stop. I’m only a man.”

             Amused, Tim climbed off of his lap and made a point of looking at his watch.

            “That was payback for the grouping. Suffer. Except, do it quickly because if we’re going to Lex’s event we need to go in the next few minutes.”

            “You’re awful. Like, so bad. The worst... You know what? Mom said it’s my turn with the divorce, I want it now.”

            Seeing as Tim was doing the worst possible thing he could do right now, which was ignoring him, Conner plopped down on the couch with a dramatic groan.

            “I’m serious Conner. Go get changed. If we’re going to meet up with Clark today at a reasonable time we need to get going.”

            “I can literally fly us over there with plenty of time to spare. We’re great on time.”

            Tim made an offended noise, and he turned his head to look at where Tim was scowling at him.

            “What?”

            “Conner Kent, we are not flying. We’re already in Metropolis. We’re going to this event as esteemed gentlemen.”

            “Huh? Why can’t we fly? It’s literally just over at the park.”

            Tim sent him a look that obviously meant get a clue.

             “Lex Luthor sent your invitation attached to a Mercedes SL 300 Gullwing.”

            Oh Rao, Tim had almost risen to his toes just by saying the name of the fancy sportscar downstairs. Earlier, he’d almost squee'd when he had seen it dropped off outside Conner’s apartment. He thinks the only reason he had controlled himself was because of how upset Conner had gotten once he’d read the invitation inside.

            Clearly, that was no longer considered an issue.

             “I am driving that car, Conner.”

            “You know he probably only sent me that car so I could RSVP with him and have one of his personal drivers take me, right? Or just fly there myself? I seriously doubt he was expecting me to drive it, Tim.”

            “I am driving that car, Conner.”

            Sighing, then shrugging, he got up. If Lex didn’t plan to have one of his expensive vintage sports cars stolen by a tyrannical mastermind, he shouldn’t have put it in easy reach of Conner’s boyfriend.

            Pleased Conner had clearly learned Tim was taking the car no matter what, Tim clasped his hands together in a rare display of childish excitement, before rubbing them together aggressively in a clear display of megalomania.

            “Okay, goodie, you finish doing your whole… Super thing. I’m going to go check the car for cameras, mics, tracking devices, and explosives!”

            As Tim practically skipped to the front door, Conner called out, “Most people don’t say those horrible things with a smile, Tim! Remember to repress!”

            “Bite me,” he sung.

            Copying Tim, Conner mocked, “Goodie,” before heading into the bedroom to suit up. He grabbed a pair of slacks and a dress shirt, forgoing the tie and picking a simple pair of black loafers. He placed them in a suitcase, before turning and going into his closet. Tim had installed a reinforced closet with a thumb-lock just so Conner’s go-to space for storing his Superboy suit would be more secure. Tim still complained it wasn’t nearly enough, but personally Conner was proud Tim had restrained himself this much.

            He suited up at normal speed, giving Tim all the time he would need to run a quick diagnostics, before grabbing his suitcase as he listened in to Tim whistling downstairs by the car. It was a surprisingly jaunty tune, and it echoed throughout the private car garage. Amused, he turned to where Tim stood several stories below and could see his tongue sticking out slightly from the side of his mouth as he lightly bit it. He was clearly done examining the car for the sake of safety, and was now clearly doing a circle around the car for pure pleasure.

            He watched as Tim opened the doors, with the doors lifting upward toward the sky like a pair of wings. Huh. So that’s why it’s called a Gullwing. Tim mumbled something pleased under his breath, before hopping into the driver’s side. Taking that as his cue, Conner stepped out onto his balcony, and then used super speed to bypass the front garage entrance when Tim clicked it open. He arrived in the car seat shortly before Tim closed his own door. He sat the suitcase down between his legs and turned to see Tim already looking his way.

            There was a wicked look in Tim’s eyes that went straight to Conner’s groin.

            “She’s beautiful.”

            Conner reached over and firmly clasped one of Tim’s shoulders.

            “I think you may have a problem, Tim.”

            You’re also giving me a problem. 

            Serenely, Tim sighed, “This is legitimately, a classic Mercedes SL 300 Gullwing. Sure, she can only go about 160 miles per hour – which admittedly is horrible performance by a sports car of today’s standard. But she’s from 1954. Back then? Mercedes blew people’s minds when they came out with this baby, nobody was expecting it. Only about three-quarters of the originals have survived. And we’re sitting in one of the survivors right now.”

            “She’s impressive,” Conner admitted, “but this is a little cramped for my taste.”

            “I want you to make love to me in this car. Hell, I want to make love to you in this car.”

            Conner was already moving to open his car door and twist when Tim stopped him with a hand. Dejected, Conner looked at Tim pleadingly.

            “Not yet,” Tim chided. “We have to stop your supervillain father from being too villainy. But tonight? After the event?”

            “Tim, I seriously doubt he’s going to let us keep this car. He’s probably going to 'blow a fuse' knowing someone other than one of his vetted drivers or Mercy isn’t driving it.”

            Tim laughed in that hot, kind of threatening way he did on occasion.

            “We are not asking for this car, Conner. We are taking the car. He can have it back when I say he can.” Then, he scoffed. “What is he going to do, arrest Superboy?”

            “I love you Tim. Like, I really, really do. You know that, right?”

            Tim gazed back at him in a pleased, flushed, sort of way that did nothing to settle Conner back down. Embarrassed, Tim looked back at the steering wheel.

            “I love you too.”

            Then Tim reached into his suit and pulled out a severed face and whatever Conner was about to say died in his throat. Clearly distracted by his own thoughts now, Tim shook out the face as he rambled, “Okay, so. Plan. Yes. The plan is we’ll drive there and I’ll let you out. I’ll park the car and blend into the crowd while you talk with Lex. Hopefully he’ll be quick about it and then you can come find me and we can find Clark and everyone. We’ll do a little meet and greet, and then we’ll take the car and run.”

            Tim reached up and pulled the face over his own, tucking it down into his dress shirt collar and the relief Conner felt that it was a mask, a horrifyingly detailed and realistic mask of an old man, caused him to sigh. As Tim pinched and pulled at the wrinkled cheeks, putting them into place, he gave him a quizzical look.

            “Something wrong?”

            “No, no, nothing. That was a totally, completely, very normal thing to do. Go on, Mr. Man With a Plan.”

            Tim grinned, and the mask grinned alongside him suspiciously well. Conner decided then in there he really didn’t want to know what kind of technology made it. Disgusted, Conner watched Tim pull out two more skin-sleeve things and pulled them on like human gloves. They were also well-wrinkled.

            “You seriously just had those on you?”

            “They’re from my stash at your place.”

            “What? What stash?”

            Coyly, Tim said, “I can’t tell you all of my secrets.”

            Conner narrowed his eyes, and Tim’s wrinkly face broke into a grin before he admitted, “Honestly, I’ve been trying to see how long I can access it without you noticing.”

            “I want you to know you’re a horrible boyfriend. If I had x-ray visioned the apartment and seen a severed face in the walls I think I might have died.”

            Tim reached over and gave him a kiss on the cheek through the mask, which was sssooooo grooossss, and then sat back, smug in knowing exactly what he’d done.

            “I didn’t say it was in the walls.”

            “Uh-huh.”

            “Besides, I thought I might need something like this. This is the apartment Luthor rents for you. We only come here when he tells you he left you a gift. I thought it might be prudent to keep some disguises handy. After all, Tim Drake can’t be seen so casually with Superboy.”

            His boyfriend, the Man of Contingencies.

            Slumping back against the seats, he grumbled under his breath.

            “We’re not even at the event and you’ve worn me out already.”

            “That’s nice.”

            Tim had the nerve to patronize him.

            “You’ve changed since you put on the mask, Tim.”

            Tim’s nose scrunched in amusement as he started the car. Immediately, his face broke into a wide grin. Conner purposefully used his x-ray vision to see underneath the human mask, refusing to miss out on Tim’s gaze excitedly looking around the car as he reached down and shifted the car into the right gear.

            Conner wasn’t a huge fan of noisy cars, considering his super hearing, but as the car thrummed throughout the garage he did appreciate focusing in on the way Tim’s heart skipped a beat.

            Tim could stare down death incarnate and face the apocalypse with a steady heart. He could lie to The Batman and Starfire herself, and still his heart wouldn't lose its rhythm. But give him something he’s genuinely really excited about, something that makes him smile? Tim's heart will skip just like a little kid’s. Conner could listen to it all day long. For the rest of life, in fact.

            “She purrs so good.”

            Conner rolled his eyes and knotted his fingers behind the back of his head.

            “You’re a weirdo.”

            “Yup.”

            “But you’re my weirdo.”

            “I will kick you out of this car. Don’t hallmark-moment me.”

            Conner laughed as Tim drove them out of the parking garage and out onto the street.
 
                                             
 
                   
                                                                                                                                                       
                                             
 
                                             

            The sun was already getting close to setting when they arrived at the park. The outside venue that had been set up inside it was full of streamers, balloons, and banners commemorating the anniversary of Meteorfall Day. Already he could see people lounging on picnic blankets or loitering around with drinks in their hands. It would be the perfect time for Superboy to arrive and get greeted on stage by Lex, and then he could retreat by the time the fireworks would be starting as his Dad revealed whatever was up his sleeve.
 
            Tim’s cheerful mood had gone unbroken until they arrived at the venue, and then he disdainfully blew off the valet who had offered to take the car. Conner barely resisted a snort, climbing out the car as he purposefully said goodbye in a distracted manner. “Thank you for the ride, old man.”

            Tim hmphed at him, just as purposefully distracted, as he defended his elderly rights, whatever that was, to park his own damn car. Conner knew he could handle it. They had already promised to meet up again soon, so he flew off over the crowd as he headed toward the stage where Dad was no doubt planning to unveil whatever it is his Lexcorp scientists had concocted now. He touched down on the stage and immediately went on inside, behind the curtains.

            Lex was waiting for him, casually swirling a glass of some type of expensive liquor while Mercy stood at his side. Someone was showing him a holographic chart, but she put it away when he arrived and then scurried off. Usually that could be an obvious sign of suspicious activity, but it was actually quite a usual response. The people who got to talk to his Dad directly tended to realize quickly Lex didn’t like anyone butting their way into his and Superboy’s talks.

            “Superboy, welcome.”

            “Hey, Dad.”

            “I’m glad you were able to get my invitation in time. Did you like the car?”

            There was a clear line of amusement in Lex’s grin, a dishonesty to his smile, that let Conner immediately know Lex had been informed about his arrival as soon as he had pulled up. Pointedly, that whoever Superboy had been driven by wasn’t one of his men.

            Part of him wondered if Lex was maybe concerned that Superboy didn’t realize he hadn’t been driven by a Lexcorp employee, but Superboy had a hunch that maybe it was just annoyance that someone unknown had driven one of his vintage cars. Dad doesn’t even like vintage cars. He prefers the more cutting-edge, borderline illegal new models. Despite that… His Dad was not a man who liked to share. Unfortunately, Conner wasn’t entirely sure of which scenario was most likely right now.

            “It’s a Mercedes SL 300 Gullwing, isn’t it? Pretty vintage.”

            Conner hated to compare anything Lex did to Tim, but he could tell his comment had caused Lex to revise something in his head. He swirled his liquor in thought, and the strong familiar amber notes in the scent told him it was part of his Dad’s favorite brandy. Lex scoffed, “Hmm. The SL 300 was a remarkable feat of innovation and ingenuity at the time of its release. For civilian commercial use, anyway. It wouldn't be unfair to say that it was a completely unexpected play from Mercedes. I thought the symbolism of the car and tonight’s exhibition would not be lost on the more prose-minded reporters, should you have elected to be driven here in it.”

            There it was, a little dig to see Conner’s reaction. Conner, having had five years to get used to Lex Luthor’s little displays and machinations, couldn’t really say he was too surprised by his Dad’s explanation for the car. Still, he didn’t want to give anything away too readily for now.

            “I’ve heard that about it, yeah.”

            But apparently, he already had because Dad made a vaguely interested noise. Which was rarely a sign of good things to come.

            “I seem to recall a young adolescent who only ever judged a car by its appearance and cared very little for their names and ages. Well, unless it was brand new and clearly cutting edge. Alas, even then they never held your interest for very long. But how could they, when you could out speed them so easily.”

            Conner was old enough to feel confident that he wasn’t the same jackass of a fifteen-year-old that he had been.

            Still.

            “I guess that assumption had me dead-to-rights. Besides,” he gestured to his ear, “never was a big fan of the loud motors.”

            “Understandably, yes.”

            Dad seemed pretty intrigued by something.

            “I suppose, you could see why then I find it so curious you elected to be driven here by a stranger in one of those, what did you call it? ‘Loud motors?’”

            Not for the first time, Conner genuinely wondered if his Dad did actually have a superpower. His ability to keep up a charade of mind games was definitely super annoying. 

            Crossing his arms with a sigh, Conner grouched, “You’ve literally invited me here for a publicity stunt for an event I know nothing about, and you’re seriously giving me the third-degree because I showed up in the car you sent me?”

            Dad paused, in the calculating way Conner had learned to read as concern but was now old enough to know better. His Dad experienced concern like every other person on the planet, but Conner had learned the hard way he almost never displayed it in constructive, or even healthy ways.

            “I don’t mean to interrogate you, Superboy. I’m sure you’ve faced enough of that from people who were supposed to care about you already.” Ah, geez, not this stuff again. “My… questions were not meant to make you feel attacked.”

            “They were more meant to probe, you mean?”

            Idly, his Dad took a drink before clarifying, “Actually, I believe the phrase here is ‘small talk.’”

            “Small talk. That was you making small talk with me? You hate small talk.”

            “Yes,” he deadpanned, “I do. However, you showed up in a car that I had calculated you most likely would not show up in. You still did something expected, but it was not the most likely outcome. As your Father, I am wanting to know if anything has changed recently that elicited this response.”

            Tim had once told him about something he and his siblings called, Bruce-speak. Which was to say, their uncanny ability to read between the lines to understand what Batman was really thinking or wanting, even when he said or did the opposite. Tim claimed Dick was the best of it, but Dick had said same thing about Tim. Conner had briefly thought they were both far too vested in understanding the psyche of an incredibly emotionally constipated man to be healthy.

            Standing here in front of Lex, not for the first or the last time, Conner tasted his own foot in his mouth.

            He hated that he was able to read between the lines about what his Dad was trying to ask. Conner sighed, rubbing a hand down his face before recrossing his arms.

            “If you’re trying to ask if I’ve taken up a new hobby, Dad, then no, but sort of yes? I still prefer flying as my main means of travel… but as of lately,” today, really, “I’m sort of coming around on vintage cars?”

            If it made Tim smile like that, Conner could come around on anything.

            Why his Dad couldn’t just ask him outright if he was interested in vintage cars now was beyond Conner, though.

            …though then again, if Lex started asking him to the point questions he’d probably be concerned his Dad was planning something.

            Abruptly, almost overwhelmingly, Conner felt like he had a sudden insight into Tim’s complex relationships with his family and their ‘spying-is-caring’ ways.

            Perhaps he owed Tim an apology.

            …no, actually, he was pretty sure ‘spying-is-caring’ was not an actual love language, despite what Tim and his siblings might say.

            “Oh? What new friend got your interests piqued?”

            “No one new. Just been talking with Tim.”

            It always felt awkward to mention Tim by name to his Dad. Before, he had only referred to him as Robin for obvious reasons. But one day, around a year ago or so, Tim had approached him and unceremoniously announced that Lex knew who he was. Tim had had suspicions, before, but apparently Lex had outright approached him and they had some sort of conversation where Lex had not so subtly let Tim know he Knew. Regardless, he and Tim had never outright admitted the truth to Lex, and they both had no plans to do so. Tim was still sketchy about sharing what exactly he and Lex had talked about that night, but there had been a surprising amount of certainty in Tim’s voice when he had stated Lex would keep his secret identity between them. 

            Conner still wasn’t sure how he felt about being kept out of the loop, hint, not great, but he trusted Tim enough to know that if Tim said it wasn’t something to worry about, especially in regard to Lex Luthor, he would believe him.

            Lex drank the last of his drink before handing it off to Mercy. For some reason, he was wearing a satisfied smile, edging on a smirk, as if Conner had just told him something particularly interesting.

            “Oh? Tim likes my car, does he? I take it he was your driver then.”

            Conner had to remind himself that although he was here as Superboy, he was here for a publicity stunt for his Dad. He and Lex had a still-standing Truce about what that meant to both of them. He didn’t need to be so on-guard. Telling him Tim was here would not be used against either of them.

            “Yes.”

            Dad was outright smirking now, but for the life of him Conner couldn’t tell why.

            “Is something funny?”

            “Hm. Perhaps not to you. However, let us just say that I will now be having a most fascinating talk with someone in Gotham tomorrow night.”

            “Gotham? Who?”

            Conner couldn’t keep the wariness out of his voice, but Lex nonchalantly waved his concern away as if it were a physical object.

            “Oh, don’t worry. It is a business meeting… and I do mean business. You’ve just given me a new talking piece that will surely liven up the meeting room, that’s all.”

            Conner couldn’t imagine what that meant, so he shrugged it off.

            “If you say so, Dad.”

            He’d give Tim a heads up about where Lex was going when they met back up, if his boyfriend didn’t already know. Tim could pass it along to Batman and then it would be the Bat’s problem. After this exhibition, it was going to be just him and Tim no matter what.

            Dad came forward and clasped him by the shoulders. Occasionally, Lex really did look like a father. Pa had held him similarly when trying to get a good look at him. Although Pa’s gaze was always warm and inviting. Dad’s occasionally came across more of an examination.

            …it still was comforting, somehow.

            “I’m glad you could be here, Superboy.”

            “…I’d say I’m glad to be here but I don’t really know why you want me here in the first place. Maybe you could tell me?”

            Lex let go of him and adjusted his tie.

            “I’m afraid we’re about out of time for explanations. We really must be getting out there. All I really need you to do is be the Superboy they are expecting you to be.”

            “…so just showboat while you talk?”

            “…I would appreciate you staying here until after I have said my part. It won't do to have them missing everything I have planned to say after all. Then when I signal you, come out as you always have, play the crowd, and then you’re free to leave.”

            Conner lifted a brow.

            “…you aren’t even going to have me demonstrate whatever it is you’re advertising?”

            Lex’s smile was not comforting. His voice lowered in a way Conner did not like.

            “…ah, actually son, I would advise you to make your leave right afterwards.”

            Conner felt his stomach drop.

            “Dad… You aren’t seriously… Are you really planning on attacking Superman, here, now!? After all this time!?”

            His Dad chuckled patronizingly, which Conner especially did not like.

            “I said no such thing. All I am saying is you should not linger. I really must be going now.”

            Before he could stop him, Dad and Mercy walked out from behind the curtains onto the stage, where already a large scale of people had gathered. Reporters were already out in front but Conner couldn’t spot Clark before the curtains closed again.

            Immediately, he knew he was on a time crunch. Should he look for whatever Lex was planning to show off? Would he even recognize it if a weapon was concealed back here? Dad had seemed completely confident leaving him in here, alone. Which probably meant whatever he was planning to demonstrate was already set up and ready to go.

            Should he call Clark?

            Except Clark might not pick up now that Lex was on stage. Big Blue might ignore his phone call in prioritizing keeping his focus on Dad.

            Also, if I'm the one to set off the alarm - especially if it proves false - I'll never hear the end of it from either of them. 

            Annoyed, he pulled out his phone and sent Tim a text.

            Hey man, my Dad gave me what sounded like a WRNG? He might be up to his old tricks 2nte w/ SM. Maybe??

            Tim texted him back almost immediately.

            Got it. I’l wrn SM.

            Outside, he could hear Dad waxing to the crowd. It sounded like he was talking about going “eco-friendly,” which really didn’t sound like anything his Dad would normally be sharing. What a Meterofall Day celebration this was turning into. Just what exactly was Lex planning?

            Still, at this point there was nothing he could really do but sit back and wait. Clearly, whatever Lex was planning was already underway. Conner really wanted to believe Dad was just being his enigmatic self, but…

            Crossly, he waited until he heard Lex signal him.

            “…and Superman was too busy to show up for a proper congratulations. You know how he is.” There was some laughter in the crowd, and Conner winced at the thought of whatever face Clark was probably making. Still, as far as whatever back-and-forth his parents usually had, this was pretty tame stuff.

            “…but Superboy gladly answered the call to accept this plaque on Superman’s behalf.”

            Well, that was news to Conner, that’s for sure. Though, he started to see how Lex was setting this evening up. Even though this wasn’t his fault, he’d make sure to apologize to Clark afterwards.

            “He’s here tonight to accept it, in fact.”

            Oh, that was his signal he supposed.

            Conner flew out past the curtains and appeared on the stage, hovering in place as he looked over the crowd. Immediately, camera flashes and some excited fangirling went off in waves. He waved, smiling bright, and  even tried to mean it as his gaze searched for the only person he was really interested in seeing right now.

            Tim was pretty far back, surprisingly, and looked vaguely put out. Jon and Lois, which was an even bigger surprise, were with him. Tim noticed his gaze quickly and smiled crookedly back at him. Clearly, Tim had picked up on something that had made him uneasy.

            “Superboy?”

            He turned and saw Dad looking up at him, one eyebrow raised in impatience. He must have asked something or – oh, he was holding the plaque. Conner touched down and Lex walked up beside him, and together they held a plaque commemorating Meterofall’s anniversary as cameras went off like crazy. It felt an awful lot like he was the one being celebrated for saving Metropolis, and he tried to hide his grimace as his eyes scanned for Clark.

            Clark was up front with the other reporters, but his hard gaze was locked on Lex and not him at first. When Clark’s eyes met his, Conner tried to mouth ‘sorry’ at superspeed, but it only seemed to cause Clark to continue glaring at Lex.

            “Thank you for everything you do for Metropolis, Superboy. This city has always needed a hero like you.”

            “No biggie, man. You know how it is.”

            Lex looked entirely displeased with that reaction, but Conner didn’t care. He cocked a purposefully smug grin. If anything, his Dad shrugged it off and turned back to address the crowd with a wave.

            “I know you’re time is important, Superboy. But let me just say thank you for showing up despite your incredibly busy schedule. I know you have to be off, but do turn back to tonight’s celebration when your out of the city. I think you’ll see a celebration you’d hate to miss.”

            Ooh, a clear dismissal and an ominous warning – Dad was really on his game tonight. 

            Conner opened his mouth to retort, but his gaze locked on an excited fan who had pushed her way past the reporters. She had one leg up on the barricade, and her expression was frenzied with excitement. She was clearly planning to climb over, but she must have badly misjudged where to put her foot because as she was standing up to climb over her shoe slipped and she was heading face-first into the hard ground.

            Conner moved on instinct. One moment she was falling, and the next he had her on stage with him as she held on tightly from shock. The only reason she didn’t have whiplash was because of his TTK.

            Immediately, the crowd burst into loud ooo’s and aaa’s, and the girl in his arms blushed scarlet-red, giggling in a shock. Someone catcalled from the crowd and Conner blinked as the girl immediately leaned into him.

            “Whoops, thanks Tiger!”

            Conner side-eyed his Dad, because if he put some random civilian up to this… Except Lex looked vaguely annoyed, before he smoothed his expression out and started adjusting his cufflink. Conner knew that was one of his Dad’s very few actual tells when he was annoyed.

            The girl in his arms giggled again, a tad bit uncomfortably, and Conner realized he was still holding her above the stage as cameras went off like crazy. He quickly floated back to the stage and set her down on her feet. Embarrassed, he apologized, “Uh, sorry for holding you like that.”

            She grinned around red lips, clearly bemused, as she said, “If it’s anyone’s fault, it’s mine. Sorry about that Superboy. I just wanted a good picture. I’m your biggest fan!”

            Looking more closely at her, he could see she most certainly was a fan. She had on a white crop top with a big House of El shield emblem emblazed on the front with a picture of his face on top of it. Her daisey-dukes also had Superboy written all over them in custom fonts. In fact, just about everything she was wearing looked designer brand quality - he made a mental note to check up on that and find out if a corporation was making merch for him and what his royalties should be. 

            Lowering his guard slightly, he remembered his manners.

            “Well, you shouldn’t be climbing on barricades, but if you came this far… How about we take a selfie?”

            She grinned brightly, moving to lean against him as she pulled out her smartphone for a picture. Conner smiled his showboating smile like usual as she held up a peace sign and took a picture. Conner was about to step away when she leaned further against him again, this time taking another picture as she noisily kissed his cheek.

            The crowd ate it up, and she stepped away with a wink. “Thanks for the pictures!” Hurriedly, she grabbed his hand and scribbled her number on it as the camera flashes went off like never before. She was giggling happily even as Lex’s guards arrived, clearly intent on carrying her off the stage if she didn’t go with them willingly. Conner watched her go, still a bit embarrassed despite the fact that he had experienced that very reaction dozens of times in the past.

            He was rubbing the back of his neck, faux smile still in place as his eyes drifted back toward the crowd. Unnervingly, his gaze settled almost immediately on Tim.

            Tim, who was watching him with a blank expression on his face.

            The crowd was still acting like a circus, but he might as well have been deaf for all the impact it had on him then.

            Oh boy, Tim…

            “Superboy, is something the matter?”

            Lex had his diplomatic smile on his face, but he was speaking quietly as to not be heard. He had a bit of an odd expression in his eyes but at that point Conner didn’t care enough to even try to discern what it may be. Tim was the only person he wanted to focus on right now, and he was clearly walking away toward the portable toilets.

            Conner turned to the crowd and although he was aware he was saying some sort of grand goodbye to them, his heart wasn’t in it enough to pay attention to whatever he was saying. He waved goodbye, and then took off before anyone could try to question him.

            Once he was safely airborne, he flew away from the park and then used superspeed to fly back incognito. He touched down behind the portable toilets and found his suitcase waiting for him. Tim was leaning back against the side of the box, taking the lookout position while Conner used his superspeed to change into his dress attire.

            Though Tim didn’t need to – Conner was already slipping his last loafer on as he hopped over to Tim’s side, tugging him back slightly. For some reason, Conner felt like his heart was up in his throat as he anxiously waited to see Tim’s face.

            Tim turned back to him without resisting, face carefully neutral. It was a different blank look compared to the one he had seen before.

            Conner blurted, “Are you okay?”

            Tim looked slightly caught off guard, before nodding. Despite his words, Conner noticed Tim seemed to be steadily meeting his gaze in a way that was almost unnerving.

            “Yes, of course. Why? Are you alright?”

            Conner didn’t know where his own anxiousness had come from. He just knew when he had seen Tim looking back at him in the crowd… His heart had hurt. He didn’t know how to explain it. Maybe that’s why he just kept blurting whatever came to mind.

            “Yeah, I’m good, I just um… I just missed you.”

            Tim’s shoulders seemed to relax at Conner’s words, even if his expression became slightly baffled.

            “We were only separated for twenty-minutes.”

            “I still missed you.”

            He felt like he had to make certain Tim knew that… and he trusted his gut on this one.

            “Is this because… one of your fans kissed you?”

            “I… I don’t know. Is it?”

            “Conner, I’ve seen you get kissed like that so, so, many times.”

            Then why does it feel so different now?

            Tim must have been able to read him like a book, because his expression softened and he reached out to take Conner’s hand, giving it a tight squeeze.

            “I’m not angry you got kissed by a zealous fan, Superboy.”

            That was good. That was very good, but…

            “…but you are angry?”

            Tim’s lips thinned in that way they did when Conner had seen through him and he wasn’t supposed to have.

            After a few moments, Tim settled on his answer.

            “Not at you. Never at you.”

            He squeezed Tim’s hand back, intent on saying something – hopefully something Tim needed to hear – but Lex’s voice swept out over the park through speaker systems.

            “Now that the sun has gone down, feast your eyes on the main attraction of tonight’s event!”

            A whirling, noisy stream streaked through the air and Conner tensed before realizing it was fireworks being set off from around the park.

            “Wait, what’s going on?”

            Tim looked at him quizzically, before answering, “…Lexcorp apparently invented a new type of more, ‘eco-friendly’ fireworks. He’s setting them off now.”

            Just as Tim finished speaking, loud bangs exploded overhead and brilliant green colors exploded everywhere. It seemed as if the night sky had gotten swallowed by green-fire in but a moment's time. Conner felt his stomach drop as a sickly familiar green continued to explode above the park. 

            “Oh god, is that…”

            Tim squeezed his hand tightly, scowling upward at the firework display.

            “Calm down, its okay. It’s just a bluff.”

            “What?”

            Tim reached into his suit jacket and pulled out a green firework with the Lexcorp brand stamped on it. Part of it was cut open, clearly already inspected.

            “I already ran diagnostics on it through my wrist computer. It’s made with a fusion of pharmaceutical dyes and synthetic gunpowder. There isn't even a nanogram of trace amounts of kryptonite.”

            “So then…?”

            “It seems completely harmless, yes.”

            Together, they watched as the nightsky lit up with even more brilliant green. The explosions were already giving him a headache, and it looked like the main action was right above the stage where Clark still was. Conner eyed the firework in Tim’s hand distrustfully.

            “Where did you even get that?”

            His boyfriend was still watching the firework's display as he answered.

            “…I saw some of Lex’s men’s moving things when I got out of the car. Followed them to see what was up, then my bat senses just went off and I snagged one.”

            “Are you sure the one you grabbed isn’t just a blank?”

            Tim was eyeing the sky in annoyance as the crowd loudly exclaimed about how bright the flashes of color were.

            “…it’s possible there could be one or two with kryptonite in them. But… there aren’t.”

            “Tim, are you sure? It’s not just me and Clark here. Jon’s with Lois.”

            Conner stared hard, and Tim finally turned to face him, a slightly crooked quirk to his lips.

            “It’s safe. I’m certain of it. Lex doesn’t have enough kryptonite to use it as sparingly as this. Besides, you’re here. So is Jon. Lex doesn’t want you dead, and Lex isn’t stupid. He’d know if this attack didn’t kill Superman but badly hurt his sons, nothing would stop Superman from putting him away… permanently.”

            “Then what the hell was the point of this?”

            Tim eyed him for a moment, before looking back up at the sky as finally, finally, fireworks of white and silver and gold started to decorate the night sky in vivid displays. Any color other than green helped relieve the tight feeling in Conner’s chest.

            “…Luthor doesn’t do anything without a reason.” Conner watched, fascinated, as Tim bit his tongue as he worked through scenario after scenario in his head to find an answer for him. “…Lex likes to put Superman down. He likes to keep your reputation up. He’s not attacking… I think,” Tim sort of floundered for the right words, before squeezing his hand again. “…I think your Dad is being petty.”

            “…come again?”

            “Did Lex tell you to leave after he gave you the plaque?”

            “More-or-less, yeah.”

            “…I bet Superman was listening in to your talk. If he was, there was nowhere he was going to be besides upfront in case Lex was up to no good. I think… Lex was betting on that. He wanted to put Superman down, while awarding you something he believed Superman doesn’t deserve… and I think the whole ‘eco-friendly’ bit is just Lex wanting to sell these powerful fireworks for a profit since the 4th of July is just around the corner.”

            “But why?”

            Tim gave him a Look.

            “Conner, you’re literally squinting at me and grinding your teeth. These fireworks are loud and stupidly bright. The public is going to fall in love with them. But for you, and Clark? They aren’t hurting you at all, but… They’ve got to be super annoying. I bet Luthor is looking down on Clark right now as the fireworks are probably near blinding and deafening him upfront.”

            Conner didn’t realize he’d been scowling for some time because of the fireworks, but now that he was aware of it he openly glared up at the night-sky.

            “…seriously? This is just my Dad being petty? What did I do?”

            “I don’t think you did anything. He did tell you to leave. I’m pretty sure this is a… domestic dispute? Look, my take on it is that Lex feels like he has been slighted somehow. He did this to rile up Clark.”

            “…so what you’re saying is, whatever this is, it’s between them?”

            Tim interlocked his fingers with Conner’s.

            “…on the downside, your parents are fighting again. On the bright-side, I don’t think Luthor is actually trying to kill Superman right now. Silver linings?”

            “So… what. We just walk away?”

            Uncomfortable, Tim hedged, “We could get involved…?”

            Conner thought about how Lex had talked with him before, and then his stomach twisted at the thought of Dad using him against Clark the same way Tim had hesitantly suggested Clark might being using him against Lex.

            He ran a tired hand down his face.

            “…I seriously thought we were over these kinds of disputes. Well, whatever. I’m over it. This is a Superman–Luthor argument, and I don’t want to be involved in it anymore. Tim, I want to go home.”

            Tim winced slightly, and Conner felt his heart drop. He could already read a thousand apologies in his partner's eyes. 

            “Tim?”

            “I’m sorry… It’s B. He texted me a little while ago. He wants me to come back to Gotham. Apparently the Riddler is setting up a widespread deathtrap across Gotham, and Batman and the littlest bat have their hands full with Croc right now. For some reason he’s been rampaging lately, and they don’t know what set him off since he’d been lying low for months now. The Ridder's plans at least always have a timer set before he springs his traps. If he's calling me in now then that means he doesn't have the time he needs to save Gotham from both rogues at once.”

            Tim gave a world-weary sigh, and Conner very much wanted to just pick him and fly them back to their apartment – or anywhere really – where it would just be them.

            “You have to go?”

            He didn’t mean for his voice to sound so lonely, and hated how sad Tim looked at the sound of it. Backpaddling, he hurriedly added, “I mean, I can always come with you. We can work the case together!”

            “Not this time. You need to go do something fun after… all this. Let me handle the Riddler. We’ll get together for some alone time afterwards.”

            Conner tried, “You were supposed to steal my Dad’s car after this. We were going to leave him a present in it.”

            That caused Tim to smile again, albeit weakly.

            “I’ll definitely steal that car, just you wait. And we will do bad things in it, but we won’t be leaving your genetic-tampering father any gifts.”

            Conner winced.

            “Right. Well. That's alright. I know you have to go. And I know you'll save Gotham like always. I would just really hate to be the Riddler right now. And not just because of his fashion choices.”

            Tim's icy eyes sparkled as he raised up on his toes. Conner moved, wrapping his arms around him as he all but pulled Tim off his feet.

            "I'm sorry for ruining tonight."

            "Don't be. Occupational hazard." Conner let his voice drop. "Besides, you can make it up to me later."

            Tim grinned against the touch of his lips. "Make up for it? Like the way you made it up to me last time when...?"

            "Yes. Like that."

            "I'm amendable to that, Kon-el."

            Tim pressed his lips against his, clearly intent on getting an early start on their 'making up promise,' when a young, childish voice shocked them both. 

            “Conner! Kon! Heyyyy, where are you?”

            They sprung apart like two startled cats, and Conner felt his body tense like crazy as Jon came into view. A smile lit across Jon’s face, even if he was covering his ears from the fireworks.

            “Mom! They’re over here just like you said!" Lois soon came into view, and she took one look at them both before tilting her head to the side. As Jon ran and tackled Conner, her inquisitive gaze drifted from one boy to the next.

            “Everything okay? You boys looked spooked.”

            Conner felt himself fall into the hug, squeezing Jon enthusiastically to hide how annoyed he felt at himself. He knew they were hiding their relationship, but for some reason he was filled with self-loathing.

            “Yeah, we’re good. Just… saying goodbye.”

            Lois had a funny look on her face, and for some reason when Jon stepped back, he was giggling as he looked up at Conner. He could get back to that. One thing at a time.

            “Tim, do you need a ride?”

            Tim shook his head, smile friendly, but tight. No doubt the recent scare he’d just been given had set him on edge. Conner felt like it was his fault. It wasn't exactly easy to get Tim to untense when he got spooked. He as the one with super-hearing - he should have been paying attention. 

            “Thanks, but I’m okay. I have a spare of my Redbirdcycle around here. I’m going to suit up and then be on my way. Driving will give me time to focus before I get on the plane B sent for me. I have a lot to go over before I touch down in Gotham if I want to catch the Riddler quickly.”

            A little dejected, Conner crossed his arms and nodded. He really wanted a proper goodbye kiss, but it looked like he wasn’t going to get one.

            Tim nodded at Lois.

            “It was nice seeing you again, Lois. You too, Jon.”

            Jon grinned up at Tim as he said, “Good seeing you too! Will you tell Damian I said hello?”

            “I can do that.”

            Lois crossed her arms and kindly said, “Don’t be a stranger, Tim. It was good seeing you tonight.” There was a fondness to her look that set Conner at ease.

            Tim flustered slightly, in that way he did when someone said something he wasn’t expecting.

            “…ah, yeah. You guys take care. Uh, see ya!”

            Tim waved, letting his eyes linger on Conner’s face for a long moment before he turned and disappeared into the crowd. For some reason, Tim’s look unsettled him slightly, and he wasn’t sure why. Beside him, Jon was giggling again.

            …actually, he was pointedly giggling at him.

            “What, do I have something on my face?”

            At that, for some reason, Jon burst into laughter. He looked Lois in the eye. “I love him, Lois, I do. But I think puberty is making him mean. If he keeps this up I’m going to punt Jonner here into the sun.”

            Lois, clearly bemused, sighed and then walked toward him. She pulled off the ascot she had around her neck, then licked it before walking up to him and rubbing his cheek.

            “Uh, is that sanitary?”

            “I don’t know, Romeo, is it also sanitary to get kissed by so many strange women?”

            When she stepped back, he saw her handkerchief was covered in red. Shocked, he felt his cheek – almost believing he was bleeding before he realized the place Lois had been scrubbing is where the woman from earlier had kissed him.

            “Ugh, seriously…?”

            Lois handed him her ascot and he scrubbed at his face irritably.

            “It’s a good thing we came by when we did. We can’t have you walking around with a lipstick mark in the same place Superboy just got kissed, can we?”

            He was going to kick Tim’s butt the next time he saw him. He really didn’t tell him he still had…

            Conner winced, suddenly realizing what a dunce he was. Oh, Rao, and Tim had been staring right at it. 

            I am literally the worst boyfriend, ever.

            He pulled the silken cloth from his face and said, "Uh, I'll wash this for you." Except Lois was already shaking her head, accepting it back from him as she tucked it away. "It's fine, Loverboy Jr."

            The comment only managed to make him wince as he remembered the look Tim had in his eyes, and also Tim admitting he was upset, just not at Superboy. Then, like the beautifully frustrating weasel he was, Tim had allowed Lex’s distraction to steal Conner’s focus so he wouldn’t have to explain what he was actually feeling in any detail… and now he had run, before Conner could check back in with him.

            He ran a hand down his face tiredly, and Jon looked up at him curiously.

            “Word of advice, Jonner… Adulthood is really just about realizing things. Constantly, constantly, realizing things…”

            Locking his hands behind his head with a grin, Jon mocked, “Whatever you say, *Konathan. Let me know when you become an adult. I’m sure I can give you some advice.”

            Lois watched on in bemusement as he then proceeded to headlock her son as Jon sputtered in joyous outrage.

            “Boys… Can’t take you two anywhere.”

            She looked behind her as Clark came into view, placing his hand along her back. His expression seemed stormy for him, and Conner immediately let go of where he was about grapple Jon to the floor as that look settled on him.

            He placed his hands up pacifyingly, and at once Clark’s expression became alarmed, then ashamed.

            An awkward silence settled, as Clark looked at Conner and Conner looked back at him and Jon and Lois exchanged glances… Finally, Lois grabbed Clark’s arm.

            “Relax, Smallville. You know you getting frustrated is exactly what Lex wants. That’s exactly why I told you not to talk to him again.”

            Despite her words, her voice wasn’t very chiding. If anything, it sounded vaguely exhausted. Conner appreciated Lois covering for not just Clark, but his own slipup. It had been a long time since Clark had worried about him interacting with Jon, much less them rough-housing. Conner was just the one who freaked when Clark’s – or really Superman’s – dark expression had settled on him.

            “He was goading me, Lois. I had to know how serious he was being.” Then, annoyed, he muttered, “…had to know why he was doing all this tonight.”

            Conner wanted to know that too, but he knew Clark well enough to know that he wouldn’t be disclosing anything to him while he was so visibly upset. It annoyed him greatly, but Lois had more than once told him that sometimes Clark and Lex’s fights were just their own.

            …Conner felt like he couldn’t agree with that sentiment, not when it involved him.

            Regardless, he was tired, he missed Tim, and he very much wanted to put this entire day behind him.

            Something must have shown on his face, because Clark’s expression became concerned. He moved forward, slowly, and clamped a hand on Conner’s shoulder.

            “Thank you for coming, Conner. I didn’t know Lex had invited you as well… I’m sorry we didn’t get to spend any time together. Truthfully, whatever was in those fireworks is causing me to have a headache. I honestly just want to get out of here.” Clark paused, an idea coming to him. “How about we all head back to our apartment, and have takeout together? We haven’t caught up in a while, and Jon still loves sleepovers. He's been begging to have you in the house again.”

            “Dad!” Jon gave an embarrassed squeak, but was looking hopefully up at him. Lois had her hands over his ears to protect him from the firework finale, and she was giving Conner a look that reminded him of another time and place, where they had both had a heart-to-heart that had helped put things into perspective.

            Conner was honestly just wanting to turn in, but he knew an olive branch when he saw one. “Sure, Clark, I’d like that.”

            He took in the way Clark visibly relaxed at his words, smiling for the first time tonight. He still needed to talk to him about a few things regarding tonight, but for now, it looked like they were making their peace. Besides, as Jon came over to tackle-hug them both in his excitement, Conner enjoyed the warmth of his embrace.

            He still needed to check in with Tim again, to figure out what was really on his mind – but that looked exceedingly like it was tomorrow’s problem.

            Please just let this mess be yesterday’s problem, already. 

            As the four of them turned to start heading to the cars as Jon talked a mile-a-minute, Conner thought he saw the girl from earlier run by with a friend of hers, both of them giggling like crazy. Absently, he looked down at his palm as he remembered she had written her number there earlier.

            Huh, it’s gone. It must have gotten rubbed off when he was holding Tim’s hand earlier. Well, good riddance.

            Hopefully, today would completely blow over and the next time he and Tim got together everything would be fine again. Still, he had an odd feeling about tonight that followed him all the way to sleep, but he couldn’t put his finger on what exactly was causing it.

            Oh well, looks like that’s a tomorrow problem.

Chapter Text

            A firm shake in the morning woke Conner from where he’d fallen asleep sprawled out on Clark and Lois’ pull-out couch. Last night everyone had implored him to stay, and he’d obliged at Lois and Jon’s insistence. Now, he blinked tiredly up at where Clark was smiling softly down at him.

            “Sorry for waking you up when you looked like you were resting well. But you asked me to make sure you were up by 7:00.”

            “Right.” Conner dragged a hand down his face as Clark stepped back, giving him some space. Clark was chuckling quietly.

            “Still not an early riser?”

            Rolling his neck out, Conner grumbled, “…I like early mornings just fine. Jon just wore me out last night. No eleven-year-old should be that hyper.”

            Clark’s smile was wry.

            “We’re not sure where he gets it from, to be honest. Lois likes to say as long as the sun’s up, he’s up. Which sounds kryptonian, I’ll give her that… but lately he’s been ignoring his bedtime for as long as possible. We’re not sure what’s keeping him up.”

            Remembering his conversation with Tim yesterday, Conner had an inkling that very reason started with a D and ended with Wayne.

            Not that he was going to repeat that conversation with Clark now. Conner had seen Tim lie to Batman with a surprising amount of success, and he liked to think after five years he had learned a thing or two about keeping a good poker face. That, and lies of omission.

            “Oh, you know how kids are at that age…” As if I know that…

            Clark made a noncommittal hum, clearly a little distracted by his own thoughts.

            Conner stood up with a stretch as he followed Clark into the kitchen. Clark was moving about, putting a pot of coffee on as Conner leaned against the door frame to watch him.

            “Any big plans today?”

            It seems they were trying small-talk this morning.

             What should have been a simple question took Conner a moment to think over.

            “…not sure. I was planning to fly back to the farm to do the chores today, but after that… Well, I was wondering if…” he bit his lip, debating finishing his thought, before chugging on ahead. Better to get it over with now. “…if I was going to have to stop in to see Dad today.”

            Abruptly, Clark turned to look back at him.

            “What, why?”

            Idly, Conner answered honestly.

            “See, that’s the thing. I don’t know why.”

            At Clark’s confused look, he clarified.

            “Look, I mean… You invited me to Lex’s event out of the blue, and then Lex sent me his own invitation… I figured something was up with you two before I even went. Then there was Lex’s little performance with the whole giving me a plaque thing… Which,” he hurriedly added, “I was not briefed on. I wouldn’t have accepted that if I knew what kind of stunt he was pulling.” He’d given it to Lois last night, and she had advised him to bring it up later. He’d agreed easily enough yesterday, but now he rambled on, “Seriously, besides speculating it was one of Dad’s big publicity stunts I was flying in blind, honest.”

            Clark’s lips thinned, and Conner thought: Great, here we go. Lecture time.

            “Conner… I know you and Lex have your own… truce, but I don’t want you just showing up on Lex’s whims. He’s not a man you can just trust casually no matter what he says.”

            “I think I know my Dad by now, Clark.”

            “That’s exactly what I’m worried about. I’m worried you’ll get too comfortable and he’ll blindside you.”

            “Look, Clark, Dad and I have an agreement. He’s never going to stop being the man he is, no matter how much I wish he would change… But he’s sworn off personal attacks on me. He knows mind control doesn’t ever stick with me and he never really wanted that sort of relationship with me anyway. He knows I’m a hero. He knows that when there is a choice to be made, I am always going to side with the heroes. He even respects that believe it or not. As much as he disagrees with it.”

            “That… That doesn’t make up for anything he’s done, Conner-”

            Did Clark think he didn't know that?

            “No, it doesn’t. It really doesn’t. The only person who understands him like you do is me.” Conner blew out a frustrated breath, feeling his temper rising before he forced himself to backtrack at Clark’s expression. “Hell, maybe no one knows him like you do, but I think the reverse is true too. There’s a reason Lex hasn’t been part of any world-controlling or world-ending plots for the last few years. I’m not dumb enough to think he still doesn’t do shady things whenever the opportunity strikes, but I know he meant it when he said he wanted a relationship with me. No matter the circumstances of my creation, he sees himself as my father. He knows if he crosses the lines we made when we made our Truce he loses me. Forever.”

            This time, Clark let out a frustrated breath, and Conner could feel it, how he was gearing up to really get into this debate. Conner cut him off quickly, “Besides I wasn’t even alone. Tim was with me. If Dad had tried something, Tim would have had my back.”

            Clark froze, his face going purposefully unreadable almost at superspeed.           

            Conner felt his temper flare at Clark’s reaction. It wasn’t the first time he’d noticed Clark suddenly clamming up when Tim was brought up, and he was getting annoyed to notice it was a pattern.

            He was about interrogate him, really dig in to why he kept being so weird about Tim, when Clark said the unexpected.

            “Tim... That boy really is someone you can rely on isn’t he?”

            “I… Yes?”

            What kind of question was that?

            The non sequitur was so out of left field, it completely replaced his anger with open confusion. So much so that Clark winced.

            “Uh, sorry… It’s just…” Clark turned around to pour himself a steaming cup of coffee, taking his time to collect his thoughts. He offered it to Conner, who took it for no other reason than to do something with his hands, while Clark poured his own drink and took a piping hot gulp right away. The scene reminded him of the several times he’d done that very thing in front of Tim, mostly to purposefully scandalize him after stealing his drink just to watch Tim hiss at him in displeasure.

            The memory almost put a smile on his face before Clark started speaking again. “Sorry, I know I threw you a curve ball there… It’s just, Tim sometimes reminds me of Lex. Back before everything got… bad. He was my best friend. He was someone I ca… He was someone I could depend on. It sometimes worries me when I think about some of Lex's and Tim's more… eccentric similarities." Clark paused, before hurriedly adding, “Mostly all of their differences comfort me though.”

            “Oookay?”

            Conner couldn’t fathom where this was going. He wasn’t entirely sure if Clark was insulting Tim at the moment so he was purposefully holding his tongue. If Clark had complaints against him, fine. But if Clark had something negative to say about Tim? If those negative things involved comparing Tim to an actual supervillain? He was going to sock him. Clark must have seen his wariness for what it was because he grimaced as he tried again.

            “What I mean to say is… It comforts me, that you know with certainty that you can depend on someone so… reliable. I have… also seen you two together. I’m certain he feels the same way about you.” Oh, you have no idea Big Guy. "I know you both have each other's backs. Even back at the very beginning, once you two started getting along it was abundantly clear you both were as thick-as-thieves with one another." 

            Clark chuckled then, sort of tiredly. “The sheer amount of conversations Bruce and I used to have about you two…”

            Not all of those conversations were good, I’m sure. In fact, I bet in a fair number of them you weren’t on my side.

            His sour mood must have bled through more than he meant it to, because he practically snapped at Clark as he asked, “Can we change the subject please?”

            Clark looked heavenward, almost as if he were searching for help.

             As the silence stretched, Conner tried to focus the conversation once again.

            “…Look, Clark. I appreciate the concern when its concern, but clearly, my way of dealing with Dad is doing something right. I’m not… a dumb teenager anymore. And I know I’m not alone. I’ve got this. What I don’t have is whatever went on yesterday. Tim said Dad was just being petty, and I know I wasn’t his target last night so… Will you tell me what happened, or do I have to swing by Lexcorp after the mornin’ chores today to hear Lex out first?”

            Clark pinched the bridge of his nose.            

            “…don’t give me an ultimatum, Conner. It sounds like a threat.”

            Shifting uncomfortably, he hedged, “It isn’t a threat, dude… and I wish it wasn’t an ultimatum, but… if it has to be that way whatever. It’s just, if it is just you two having a dick measuring contest great, keep me out of it. But if it concerns me and if it’s something I need to nip in the bud now…”

            “Oh, Rao Conner don’t ever say those words again…!”

            He shrugged, a little amused at scandalizing Clark no matter what mood he was in.

            Finally, after another long moment, or two, Clark looked back at him.

            “… Look, Conner. Lex contacted me. He wanted me to show up as Superman yesterday to accept that stupid plaque. I didn’t trust him enough to go, and I didn’t even want a plaque – especially not from him. And I still stand by my decision.” Clark hesitated, before meeting Conner’s gaze with a newfound determination. “I knew if I turned him down, which he knew I would, he’d probably contact you next. So I invited you right afterwards. Apparently, Lex took exception to that move.”

            Clark grumbled into his coffee, and Conner blinked at him in rising exasperation.

            “…seriously, dude? You invited me knowing I’d have to make a choice between you two?”

            “That’s- I mean… No, that wasn’t my intention. I really did want to spend time with you Conner. I just also knew Lex would try to make his issues your issues.”

            But didn’t you do the exact same thing?

            Glumly, the little Tim who lived in his head chimed, Told you it was a domestic dispute.

            “So, basically, you and Dad did the divorce parents fighting for weekends with your kid routine, except this time out of pettiness.”

            It was a bit of a low-blow, but hey, maybe pettiness ran in the family.

            Clark’s brows furrowed.

            “…I wouldn’t undermine what Lex was doing yesterday by calling it pettiness.”

            “I would. We both know some showboating and fireworks are pretty low down on the tier list of threats he could have done. Hell, was that really even a threat? Looking at it now, I think Lex was just celebrating.”

            Clark turned away to pour himself another drink.

            A moment ticked by, then another. Finally, Conner hedged, “Look, if that really is all it was yesterday… I’ll drop it. I know you two have one of the most complicated relationships in the world, but… If this is just you two being complicated I know to mind my own business. But, I mean… you know if Lex was actually back to threatening you, or attacking you again… I’d back you a hundred percent. You do know that, right?” Haven’t I made that crystal clear by now?

            Clark finally turned back around, shoulders untensing slightly.

            “…I know that Conner. I learned that awhile ago. Not soon enough, and I am sorry about that. But I know it now.”

            “Then this conversation is over and we’re all good?”

            Relieved, Clark nodded. “Yeah, yeah that’s everything.”

            “Okay, cool, cool… I guess I should be heading out then.”

            Clark’s expression fell.

            “Oh. You’re leaving already?”

            “I mean… I need to go before too much longer. Got chores to do.” Clark’s expression made him feel bad, and honestly Conner didn’t want his time with Clark to only be this, whatever this was. “But… I guess I could spare another fifteen minutes or so. I mean, if you’ve got time to chat.”

            “I have time for you, Conner. I will always have time for you.”

            Together, they both sat down at the kitchen table. Both of them must have felt slightly unsure of where to start, but Clark took the lead.

            “I’m sorry. With all of this mess, and even last night… I haven’t asked you how you’ve been. Have you been busy?”

            “A little, but not too bad. My team, uh… Some of us decided to take a little break from it a few months back. It wasn’t because of anything bad, but just because of some… changes.” Mostly me and Tim, and what we meant to each other. And also, to give Cassie time.

            Almost eerily, Clark must have been thinking of her as well.

            “Oh. I think I remember Ma mentioning that to you were taking a break from your team but she didn’t make it sound like anything serious. I didn’t know you were still on break.” Then he hesitated, before asking, “Is it because of Cassie?”

            Conner felt his skip a beat, and almost blanched. Clark wasn’t supposed to know about that. Conner had told Ma about he and Cassie breaking up, but that was around a year ago. Clark wasn’t supposed to know about why Tim and Conner were taking a break from the Team, and how it was because they were both giving Cassie some peace from them both.

            The only person he had even hinted about being in a relationship with Tim to was Lois, and he’d only gone to her for advice because of a very, very specific issue that he had been terrified would cause him and Tim to break up if they couldn’t fix it.

            …and even back then, he had only admitted he was seeing a boy and hadn’t mentioned Tim by name. It had been a mortifying conversation, but even more so it had been terrifying because he and Tim had really suffered over it. He had trusted Lois…

            If Lois had tattled to Clark, after he had made her promise to keep it between them no matter what, he was going to have words with her…!

            Whatever he was feeling, it must partly shown on his face because Clark clarified, “I mean… I know you and Cassie broke up sometime ago. But I thought you both might have tried getting back together again… and things might have fallen apart again. I’m sorry, I know breakups aren’t easy and you probably don’t even want to talk about this with me. I swear, it’s like I can only put my foot in my mouth when I’m talking to you. Why am I so bad at this…?”

            Conner straightened, physically trying to hide how relieved he was that this was what Clark had actually meant. He could handle this.

            “No, no its okay… I mean, yeah, Cassie and I broke up about a year ago. It wasn’t an easy decision, but I needed some time. She respected that.”

            This time, Clark blinked in surprise at him.

            “You broke up with her?”

            Conner tried not to be annoyed by Clark’s incredulous expression because, yeah, he got it. This wasn’t the first time he’d seen that expression from Clark, or anyone else who had asked about their breakup. Cassie was… Well, Cassie definitely was.

            Conner slowly explained, “Yeah. I mean, it ended up being pretty mutual after I explained what I was going through…? It’s Cassie, so she kind of…” She’d known before I did. “Well, we both didn’t want to hurt each other so our breakup was pretty mutual even though it still hurt like crazy. Took some time apart. Things got good again, I figured some stuff out and did what I needed to,” Tim and I got together, “and because of personal reasons, I decided to step back away from the Team for a while again.”

            Cassie had taken it well when he and Tim had gone to tell her about their relationship. She'd already seen the signs, and had given them both her blessing. But it had still hurt all three of them. Neither he or Tim wanted her to think they loved her any less. So he and Tim decided to step away so Cassie could have the Team and time away from them both. They were still… They were still working things out, to get back to where they were before. Or maybe... to find a new 'better place' for all of them. 

            Clark looked like he didn’t fully understand, but his gaze was accepting regardless. Conner appreciated it.

            “I’m sorry. It sounds like you were going through a lot of stuff I wasn’t aware of. I wish I could have helped you more. I want to help you now, if I can.”

            Conner shrugged.

            “It’s okay. It was a lot of personal stuff I needed to work on by myself. Now, now I’m doing really, really good.”

            The happiness that lit Clark’s face made Conner feel flustered.

            “That’s great to hear, Kon.” Clark looked down at his coffee for a moment, before smiling back at him. “Diana has always been a rock for me. I don’t how I would have managed my life until now if she hadn’t been there for me... and Cassie has always been an independent kid with so much character. Diana has always respected and loved her for it, and I know that Diana feels nothing but pride when Cassie dons her Wondergirl uniform." Clark looked at him with something beseechingly soft in his eyes then. "We may be incredibly gifted with our powers, Conner, but its headstrong, dependable, and responsible people like Diana and Cassie that help keep us on the right path. I’m glad you still have her in your life, regardless of whatever is going on right now.”

            Conner couldn’t help but agree. He wouldn’t be the man he was now without Cassie… and he also couldn’t imagine his life without her in it.

            “Heh,” Clark said tiredly, “time really flies. It’s hard to believe you’re already twenty. You’re old enough to start really knowing what’s best for your life. I’m sure you’ll be able to work through whatever happened and you all will come out stronger for it. I know it’ll all work out for you in the end.”

            Conner could feel a flush traveling up the back of his neck. Idly, he scratched at his cheek. He hadn't been expecting Clark to go from lecturing him one moment to deciding to lovebomb him all of a sudden. It make it hard to be annoyed when the big guy showed how much he really cared. A forthright affectionate Clark was still something he didn't know how to handle, especially without a buffer. 

            ...it seemed time to change the subject, if only to spare himself from fumbling for some sort of response. 

            Awkwardly, Conner winced, sort of dramatically.

            Clark blinked at him, confusion evident.

            “Conner?”

            “Twenty-one.”

            “Huh?”

            “I’m, uh… not twenty. I turned twenty-one in March, remember?”

            Clark looked like the floor had fallen out below him.

            “…no you’re not. You are definitely twenty.”

            Completely straight-faced, Conner let his eyebrows raise as he watched panic begin to race through Clark’s expression.

            “Conner.”

            “….”

            “Conner I would know if you were twenty-one. I, I attended your twentieth birthday party at the farm. I got you a twentieth birthday card. Conner.”

            Cracking a grin, Conner couldn't help but start to laugh.

            “Calm down, I’m just messing with you dude, yeah, I’m twenty.”

            Putting his face into his hands, Clark groaned.

            “Oh Rao, Conner don’t do that to me… I was thinking I was the worst person ever for a moment there… I know how old you are.”

            Conner was still trying to keep his laughter down when Lois walked into the kitchen. She tiredly took in the sight of them both, his cackling and Clark’s miserable expression, before walking by them and smacking Clark’s shoulder in passing.

            “If you’re going to drink all the coffee, at least put on another pot.”

            “Sorry, Lois.”

            “Here,” he offered his mug. “I’ve only taken a sip.”

            She accepted the mug graciously, taking a long drink before sighing in contentment. Then she looked at the time with a hum.

            “Conner, would you mind waking Jon up for me? If we don’t want him up all night again he needs get up earlier.”

            He could recognize a gentle dismissal when he heard one. With a shrug, Conner said, “Sure,” and headed out from the kitchen to Jon’s room so they could have a private moment. Secretly, he sent her a silent apology in his head for having doubted her integrity and ability to keep a secret earlier.

            He knocked his knuckles against Jon’s door for a second before letting himself in. Much to his surprise, then amusement, Jon was floating about three feet off the floor, just to the side of his bed. His blanket was completely tangled around him, and he was drooling into his arm.

            “Tsk, tsk, little brother…”

            No normal sleepovers for you until your parents get this little habit of yours fixed.

            Floating, he moved until he was hovering just over Jon. Bemused, Conner pulled out his phone and took a picture. He sent it to Tim. Then, crossing his arms, Conner grinned as he sent out his TTK. He started by swiping a kinetic finger along Jon’s nose, as more fingers began to ghost gently over Jon’s unprotected sides. Jon immediately started fidgeting in his sleep, scrunching his nose. Grinning, Conner stepped up his game and immediately what had once been feathery-light touches became unescapable tickles.  

            Jon woke with shrieking giggles on his lips, windmilling and swatting at his sides, before screaming as he saw Conner’s grinning face right above him. He immediately plummeted and hit the floor with a gaff, before begging complaints and more giggles left him as Conner tickled him for a few more moments for good measure.

            What could he say, big brother privileges were pretty great.

             “Ko- Kon- Konathan!”

            “Rise and shine, Jonner-boy.”

            He finally gave Jon mercy when the boy began to curl up and clutch his sides, and he listened as Jon’s frantic laughter tampered off into relieved and exhausted giggles.

            “Th-that was mean…!”

            “Sure was.”

             He left Jon to sort himself out, ignoring his little outcry for ‘Revenge!’ as he strolled back into the kitchen. Lois and Clark were giving him bemused looks as he reported, “Jonny-boy is awake.”

            “So we heard.”

            “I think our neighbors did too.”

            “What, you mean, that isn’t how you’re supposed to wake kiddos? I mean, I could do the Bart method – but usually that involves throwing him off his bed.”

            “Please don’t throw my boy.”

            Clark grumbled, “We can’t keep getting noise complaints, and any more damage and we’re going to lose our security deposit.”

            Conner snorted, before his phone chimed and he got distracted. It was an answering text from Tim.

            Heh. Cute.

            Tim had sent him a picture too, and it appeared to be a very tired looking Bruce in a fuzzy robe. It looked like they were having breakfast, which probably meant he and Bruce were up especially early.

            They grow up so fast, Tim joked.

             Conner texted back, Sorry dude, but I think that is one ugly baby. My condolences.

            Rude.  

            Conner was about to wish Tim a good morning before Tim texted him again.

            By chance, have you seen the papers yet?

            Blinking, Conner sent back, no?

            He turned to see Lois and Clark watching him with soft smiles, which, hmm, before he asked, “Hey, what’s The Planet posting this morning?”

            Lois and Clark exchanged a look before the former shrugged.

            “…Clark and I were supposed to be covering the venue, but Mr. Overprotective didn’t want me by the stage yesterday.” Clark ducked his head, and his shoulders were hitched in just a way that let Conner know for certain he’d gotten royally chewed out last night over that. Lois kept her glare on her husband for good measure, before chiding, “and because someone was too busy being an out-of-costume Super, they forgot to take pictures.” She sighed. “…and mine were too far away and full of people from the crowd to be usable. Thankfully, we had another correspondent on sight who had been there on leisure time. He saved our bacon.”

            She reached over and grabbed her kitchen tablet and turned it on. A few clicks, and she was scanning the screen before turning it over to him. Conner scanned the screen and saw the front page showed him accepting the plaque from Lex, both their hands on it as they looked at the crowd. About what he expected, honestly.

            The first and second page gave him a little pause, however. Because where he expected to see a big exposé on Lex’s new eco-friendly fireworks, was actually a page dedicated to him and the woman from yesterday. The page was blown up with pop-ups showing him carrying her, her kissing him as they took a selfie, and then his lipstick marked face with a needless amount of columns speculating on if the Mysterious Woman was his lover, a girlfriend, or just some fan. Any talk about Lex’s fireworks was pushed to a tiny section on the bottom of page two.

            “Huh.”

            It wasn’t anything he hadn’t seen multiple times before, but he figured his Dad wouldn’t enjoy how attention had been taken away from his new capitalistic venture. Truthfully, Conner was glad though. He hoped those fireworks wouldn’t get much attention – they were needlessly loud and bright.

            And hey, at least Dad got the front page showing off the plaque.

            He pondered what he was supposed to be looking for. What had Tim noticed that Conner couldn’t see?

            “Something wrong?”

            Lois was giving him an analytical look as Jon walked into the room with a big yawn. He immediately gave Clark a hug, who readily accepted it as he placed a kiss on Jon’s bedhead.

            “I don’t think so?”

            He sent Tim a questioning text.

            What do your elven eyes see?

            Tim didn’t immediately answer back, and absently Conner mumbled, “Ow,” as Jon slugged his arm when Lois and Clark weren’t looking. He gave Jon the side-eye as the little twerp smirked up at him.

            “Oh, you wanna go, little man?”

            “Bring it…!”

            Jon brought his fists up, but quickly lowered them as Lois glanced back at them with a raised brow.

            “Did you say something?”

            “I said I want bacon-eggs-and-toast,” Jon blurted.

            Lois gave them both another look of suspicion as Clark reached up to grab a glass from the top-shelf. If he had heard anything, he was pretending to not have.

            “I think we can work with that.”

            Lois asked, “Care to stay for breakfast, Conner?”

            He glanced at the time.

            “…no, I think I’ll take off. Ma will feed me second breakfast otherwise.”

            There was a collective snort at that, and Lois came around and gave him a big hug that Jon joined in. Lois, he was sure was doing it to show him affection, but he didn’t trust Jon at all. The kid was definitely trying to get on his good graces to make him forget he’d been hit last.

            He stepped away from them and said, “See you soon?”

            Clark came forward and brought him in for a hug too, and Conner let him hold it for what was definitely an awkward amount of time before they both stepped back. It was still a good hug, though.

            “Of course. Be safe, Kon.”

            He nodded, and as Lois and Clark walked him to the door he saw Jon linger back a step or two. The brat had the audacity to stick his tongue out and make faces at him behind his parents’ backs, thinking he was safe now.

            Sweetly, Conner said, “I will. You guys take care. Bye Clark, bye Lois… Bye, Jon.” As he said the boy’s name, he harshly tweaked the boy’s nose using his TTK, and barely resisted laughing as the front door shut behind him as he heard Jon yelp on the other side, to the confusion of his parents.

            “Jon?”

            “You okay, son?”

            “Uh- y-yeah! Just… super!!”

            Conner made a show of cracking his fingers and shaking out his hands as he grinned.

            Still got it.

            He was still smirking as got in the elevator, when his phone chimed. It was Tim again.

            Are you free next weekend?

            The non sequitur took him by surprise a little. He almost wanted to ask about his boyfriend’s prior, more mysterious message, but thought better about it. That message and this one was probably related, somehow.

            Nothing I can’t get out of, why?

            Tim replied almost immediately.

            Good. Let’s meet up in Metropolis next weekend. At the park. @ 12.

            That sounded fine to him, but Conner texted back, Sure ?

            It’ll be a date.

            Immediately, Conner felt his mood skyrocket. He and Tim had been secretly dating for about five months now, and they had rarely done any in-public dating because they’d found out Tim had a hard time letting his guard down when he was having to wear a disguise.

            Still, their last in-public date had gone well. Maybe it meant Tim was feeling more confident about them now?

            He wasn’t sure what had brought about his change, but Conner was quick to reply.

            Great!! I’ll be there no matter what! What we doing?

            He winced afterwards, wanting to facepalm. He knew he shouldn’t leave the whole thing up to Tim – his boyfriend was an overthinker. Though, he had texted first? He probably had something in mind.

            As if on cue, Tim texted him, We’re stealing your Dad’s car.

            Conner froze, suddenly unsure of what to reply.

            Tim double-texted him.

            We’re stealing your Dad’s car.

            I have a plan.

            Conner found himself grinning in bemused exasperation even as he texted: That’s what I was afraid of.

            Bite me.

            Conner snorted, weighing the pros and cons before shrugging as he texted: I’m game. What’s the plan?

            A pause, before: It’s a secret. Just be ready.

            His eyebrows rose high at his boyfriend’s rather cryptic reply.

            That’s not ominous or anything.

            I’ve got to go. Bruce is about to ground me. Got to playgood son.

            Conner, despite his confusion, found himself enamored with Tim’s drive by weirdness. Although Tim wasn’t giving him any answers, he could parse that it looked like his boyfriend was about to get off his phone for awhile so he hurriedly texted: Should I come get you?4 date?

            NO came the immediate reply followed by: JBR

            Tim?

            Tim?

            His ominous boyfriend, everyone.

            He wondered just what in the world Tim was up to, but he shrugged it off. He’d known Tim for years – he knew what he was signing up for the very first time they had kissed. He’d let Tim have his little mysteries until this weekend. Then he’d figure out whatever ill-advised, diabolical, and quite frankly insane plan his beautifully enigmatic boyfriend had devised this time.

            Sighing, Conner was about to put his phone away when he noticed the time.

            “Oh, shit!”

            Ignoring the dirty-looks people around him were giving him, he made his way toward a nearby alley and then looked around before taking to the skies. It was a lot later than he had planned to stay – if he didn’t get to the farm soon Ma would never let him hear the end of it.

            Questioning Tim could wait a little – Ma’s patience could not.