DISCLAIMER: The Justice League of America
characters are the property of DC Comics. The story contents are the creation
and property of Djinn and are copyright (c) 2007 by Djinn. This story is Rated
R.
Trinity: Favorite Things
Part 1:
Raindrops on Roses
by Djinn
Bruce sensed rather than saw
Diana reaching for him as he worked at his desk in the batcave. "Time to go?"
"They just got
here." She leaned in, hugging him
close. "I'll miss you."
He turned, pulling her down
into his lap. "I want you and Lois
to be good on Themyscira." At the
girl-on-girl heaven his woman was taking Clark's wife to for an exclusive
article on a "Weekend in Paradise."
He sighed. There was no way they
weren't going to be doing it like minks.
"Define good." She smiled, but her eyes lacked their normal
sparkle. "It's just..."
"What?"
"I don't like leaving
you during the holidays."
"I'll be okay."
She snuggled in, her hands
finding all the right places. "Kal
brought Justin. Maybe they could stay
here with you?"
His best
friend and his son, here for a few nights. Bruce didn't meet her eyes.
"It would be good for
you to spend time with him."
He wasn't sure which
"him" she meant, but it really didn't matter. He wanted too much from both of them. Taking a deep breath, he ran his hand through
his hair. "I don't know. Justin and Clark here. You and Lois off somewhere else doing God
knows what..." Shit, why had he
said that? If they hadn't been planning
anything before, now she would know he thought they had been.
She kissed him hard, then held his face, forcing him to look at her. "Get to know your son, Bruce. And as far as Kal goes, don't worry so
much. You'll know what's right."
"Like we knew what was
right before?" He wondered if she'd
been doing what felt right with Clark lately.
Whoever thought the swinging
life was easy was a damned fool.
She wriggled against him, then got up, pulling him off of his work stool. "Come out of the batcave,
Mister Wayne."
Following her up the stairs,
he saw Lois first. She looked wonderful,
laughing at something Alfred was saying, her head thrown back, neck bared. She glanced over at them, smiling at him
warmly, then gestured to Diana. "You ready, Princess?"
Diana gave her a look that
was probably supposed to be a glare, but looked too full of affection--or
something--to be that. "Ready, Mrs. Kent."
"I've told you not to
call me that. Only Clark gets to call me
that." Lois walked over to Clark,
who was looking particularly handsome and very paternal as he held a sleeping
Justin in his arms. "Take care of
our boy."
Bruce felt a pang. "Their" boy. His son was their boy.
He felt a hand on his
shoulder, a fleeting feeling of connection.
"It gets easier," Alfred whispered, but Bruce knew that Clark
heard him because he looked over at them.
"I'll see you out,"
Alfred said, letting Lois take him by the arm.
Diana threw Bruce a last,
thoughtful look before she disappeared down the hall.
"So." Bruce walked
over to the bar, not sure what he was doing.
It was too early to drink.
"Diana suggested we
stay."
"Yeah, she said that to
me, too."
"It's probably an
inconvenience..." Clark looked down
at Justin as if making eye contact with Bruce was too difficult. "I don't want to put you out."
"I have a gazillion
guest rooms. I think we can fit you and
the bambino in." Bruce sighed and
went over to sit next to Clark. But not
too close next to him. Not so close he
might be tempted to remember--
"Diana also hinted that
maybe..." Clark was actually
blushing. He looked at Bruce, catching
him with the full force of sky blue eyes.
"I miss you. You've been
staying away."
"It's difficult."
"I know. But it doesn't have to be this difficult." He looked down at Justin. "He should know you."
"His
kindly uncle?" Bruce got up, walked to the window, clutching
at the frame. "His father's
BFF."
"Someday we'll tell him
the truth. When it
makes sense." At Bruce's
look, he laughed shortly. "Okay,
when it makes as much sense as it's ever going to. And when we tell him, if you've been in his
life from the beginning as, yes, an uncle or some kind of trusted family
friend, it'll be easier."
Bruce thought about
Alfred. Finding the
truth out from him. It hadn't
been easy. Would it have been any easier
if Alfred had told him he was his father earlier? He laughed; it came out a bitter chuckle. "The trusted family
friend who occasionally makes love to his mother?"
"And
his father." Clark said it so low that Bruce almost didn't
hear him.
"That,
too."
Clark made a makeshift crib
of pillows and settled Justin in it. He
walked over, standing close to Bruce but not touching him, the saddest look--a
tired look--on his face. "I miss you.
I don't know if you miss me or just Lois. If you're mad at me for raising your son or
for being a lousy best friend, or because you want me too much in ways you'd
rather forget."
"What if I don't know
why I'm mad?"
"That's fine. Just...admit it. Don't shut me out." He looked over at their sleeping son. "Don't shut him out."
Justin moved, gurgling a bit,
his smile sweet and innocent in sleep.
Bruce couldn't remember the last time he'd felt innocent. He turned away, pain flooding him as he
contemplated what he'd lost--what he'd never had a chance to have.
Clark moved closer, rubbing
his hand on Bruce's back, gently and not in an overtly sensual way--but it was
sensual. Bruce should break away, not
lean back into his friend's strong hand, a hand that could hold his full weight
without effort. A hand moving up to his
neck, to ruffle his hair along the collar line, causing shivers to run through
him.
"Alfred said you had a
Christmas tradition." Clark's
breath was hot in his ear. "The
zoo, all bundled up, with cocoa at the monkey cage and hot dogs at the
nocturnal house."
Bruce knew his laugh was
still bitter. "I inhabit the
nocturnal house."
"Diana might not think
that was very flattering." Clark
mock punched him. "It's a chance to
get Justin used to bats. I think that'd
be a good thing." He walked away,
cooing at Justin, who was awake and looking over at Bruce.
It had been weeks since Bruce
had seen him, but the toddler smiled at him, blue-green eyes mirroring his own
as he felt a sappy smile answer.
Clark picked Justin up and
carried him over, depositing him in Bruce's arms. "You're a natural, my friend."
"I am not going to
engage in babytalk." But then Justin reached up for him, grabbing
his chin and giggling. "Who's the
silly boy?"
Clark just laughed, his eyes
tender and finally at ease. "So, the zoo?"
Before Bruce could answer, Clark called out down the hall, "Alfred,
you want to come to the zoo?"
Alfred smiled as he walked
through the door, his eyes lightening as he saw Bruce holding Justin. "Oh, I have a great deal to do
today. Maybe next
time."
"But it's your
tradition."
"And now it's time to
make it yours." Alfred walked over, gave Justin a kiss on the forehead,
and the baby gurgled happily, then reached for
Alfred's glasses. "No,
Master Justin. I need
those."
It seemed like Justin was
laughing with his whole body, as if he knew how much fun it was to tease
his...grandfather. "Here,"
Bruce said, easing Justin into Alfred's arms.
"I need to get ready."
He actually was ready, but Alfred didn't seem inclined to question
him. He carried Justin off with him,
making baby smalltalk not at all as silly sounding as
Bruce's.
Clark followed him up the
stairs.
"Something you want,
Clark?"
"That's pretty much the
problem we all face, isn't it? This
whole situation is because of something we wanted."
"Not something. Someone. Several someones." Bruce stopped at the door to the
bathroom. "What do you want?"
He wanted to hear Clark say
he wanted everything. He wanted him to
say he just wanted to use the can. He
wanted everything that ran the gamut between the two answers.
God help him, Bruce didn't
know what he wanted.
"You look really
good." Clark touched his
cheek. "It's been too long."
Bruce tried not to lean into his hand.
He failed miserably. Closing his
eyes, he knew Clark was going to kiss him, was surprised when his friend
didn't. He opened his eyes to see Clark
smiling in a knowing and gentle way.
"That would make it
easier, wouldn't it? If
it was just me doing this?"
He pulled Bruce to him, a fierce hug that left him breathless, then
turned and walked back downstairs.
Bruce sighed and went into
the bathroom, trying not to think what might have happened if Clark had
followed him in. He stared into the
mirror, assessing that he was starting to look older than Clark, that
eventually he would look too old for Diana, as well.
He and Lois would age; the
other two wouldn't catch up. Would
Justin start to think of them as his grandparents--but Justin was human,
too. Would Justin eventually look older
than Clark and Diana?
He let out a breath he wasn't
sure why he was holding. This wasn't
solving anything, was only giving him a headache. It was time to go.
Clark had Justin bundled up
against the weather. He smiled at
Bruce's look. "Yep, this is the
coat you sent." He tucked the boy
into the backpack carrier. "I never
know if it's too cold for him--Lois has to tell me. So you'll have to let me know if you think
he's getting overheated."
Bruce had a feeling Clark was
lying, that he could tell if Justin was uncomfortable the same way he could
tell how far along his partner was when making love. But Clark was trying to include him, trying
to make him feel necessary.
Trying to make him feel
loved?
"Have a good time, my
boy," Alfred said, his hand again lingering on Bruce's shoulder, and
suddenly Bruce wished he was coming with them.
Alfred seemed to read his expression.
"You'll be fine."
Bruce followed Clark out, then realized he didn't have
a car seat. But Clark was opening a dark
green SUV, putting Justin into a car seat in the back. "You didn't fly?"
"We did. On an airplane." Clark looked at him. "For his sake, we're trying to appear to
be a normal couple. It would be sort of
hard to explain Lois and Clark's son flying in Superman's arms."
Bruce was pretty sure Lois
had just flown that way to Themyscira--in Wonder Woman's arms, even if Diana
hadn't been in her star-spangled armor--but he decided not to mention
that. He appreciated what Clark was
saying, what lengths he and Lois were willing to go to keep their son from
being a target. "Their"--it
could mean so much.
Clark was a better driver
than Bruce expected, and they got to the zoo quickly. It wasn't as crowded as it would have been in
any other season, but it was decorated with garlands and lights and there were
enough people around to make it festive.
It had been years since Bruce had come here with Alfred. His most recent times at the zoo had been to
capture some bad guy or put escaped animals back.
Should his son be at a place
where animals escaped with such seeming regularity?
"Your heart's
racing," Clark murmured as he walked with a bounce that made Justin
giggle.
Justin's laughter grew as
they made their way to the giraffe habitat.
The boy reached out as if he could touch the giraffe's neck, and he made
nonsense sounds that would someday be words Bruce could understand.
But he wouldn't be the first
to hear those words. His son would say
"daddy" to someone else.
"You know, my back's really sore," Clark said, lying with noticeable
ease as he took off the baby backpack and settled Justin on Bruce's back before
either of them could protest.
"Perfect."
Bruce felt the unaccustomed
lightness of Justin, the movement of small legs against his back, the soft feel
of his hands in his hair. His son.
More nonsense sounds, and
Clark led them around the zoo as if Gotham was his home town and not
Bruce's. When they hit the monkey cage,
he walked off to the concession stand and Bruce swung Justin's carrier gently
off his back and sat on a bench with him, the soft material letting him hold
him without taking him out.
Justin gurgled some more, his
bright eyes taking everything in. Then
he smiled at Bruce.
Running his hand over
Justin's silky hair, Bruce said, "You're a good kid."
Justin slapped his hand
lightly on Bruce's shoulder, and Bruce made himself not read anything into the
movement. There was no underlying
message in that, just a child doing what children do. Expressing himself
any way he could.
"He's beautiful."
Bruce nearly whirled off the
bench, had to grab for Justin. He saw a
woman--how the hell had she snuck up on him?
Had he been so wrapped up in his son he'd forgotten to be wary?
Who was she? Did she mean harm? Should he incapacitate her?
"How old is
he?" Her smile was easy and
non-threatening.
He settled down, wondered if
she had any idea the danger she'd been in.
"Eleven months." Nearly a year old.
Soon they'd have that first party with cake and toys and too many
parents.
She sat down for a moment,
holding her hand out for Justin to play with.
"My nephew's that age."
Bruce wasn't sure what to say
to that, so he just nodded.
"Oh, sweetie, that's so
cute." Clark's voice was full of
amusement as he sat down on Bruce's other side, holding both hot chocolates and
smiling at the woman. "Showing off
our boy..."
The woman stood up
quickly. "Well, like they say,
three's a crowd..." She hurried
off.
"Should we break it to
her that in our experience it's not?"
Clark sipped at his hot chocolate.
"This is good stuff. I can
see why you liked to come here." He
held Bruce's cup out to him, didn't spill a drop as he tilted it slowly for
Bruce to drink. "So were you
interviewing for a fifth? Going for our
own basketball team? The
Gotham Players, maybe?"
"She talked to me. I didn't..." Bruce sighed.
"You're teasing me."
"I am. And I'm not." Clark leaned back. "We do make a nice couple. I'm sure she was jealous of how pretty we
are."
"Shut up,
Clark." Bruce stood and carried
Justin over to the monkey cage.
"That's your daddy's distant relatives, kiddo. Your real dad's." He'd have to stop saying things like that
pretty soon. Kids took everything
in. "Your fake dad's distant
relatives were flies."
He heard Clark laugh.
"Or
maybe cockroaches. Flying ones."
Another
laugh. Smiling, he turned to look at Clark. Sitting on the bench, his hair lighting up
blue in the wintry sun, he did look very pretty.
"I miss you, too,"
he murmured, knowing Clark would catch it.
A beaming smile was his
answer.
He walked back over to the
bench, sat down, and held Justin on one side while he took the hot cocoa from
Clark and tried to keep it on the other.
Justin knocked his arm, and he spilled, but on himself, not on the
child. The cocoa stained his shirt--he
had a lot to learn about fathering.
Or uncle-ing. Whatever the term would be to cover the
strange relationship they all had with each other.
"So," he asked into
the silence, noticing Clark perking up, "you going to stay?"
"The night, you
mean?"
Bruce nodded.
"Sure. I bet there's one of your gazillion guest
rooms that's baby safe."
"Probably
one near my bedroom." Alfred no
doubt had the one right next door fixed up with a crib by now. He'd had that look--the one that meant he was
doing something for Bruce's own good.
"Sounds
great." Clark's voice was casual, nonchalant, but
Bruce imagined if he had Kryptonian hearing, he'd be able to hear Clark's heart
going double time.
"That way, if Justin
gets lonely, you can call for me."
Which made no sense but he needed a set up for what he wanted.
What he wanted. Isn't that what Clark had said? What Diana had hinted at?
He sighed--this was a
slippery slope they were on. Would they
be handing him Lois next? What he wanted
covered a lot of acreage.
"What
about if I get lonely?" Clark's retort was less happy than it might
have been--he'd heard Bruce's sigh, no doubt.
"Same deal
applies." He leaned in, his
shoulder tight against Clark's. They
sipped their cocoa while Justin made noises that sounded very much like the
monkeys'.
"When he's older,"
Clark murmured, "you should bring him here."
"Yeah. It'll be
fun."
"I mean just you."
Clark squeezed Bruce's shoulder, his smile so sweet and caring that Bruce had
to swallow past a lump in his throat.
"It could be your tradition.
For the holidays."
"Yeah. Maybe. That'd be
nice." But he had a feeling the
smile that threatened was more than just a "that'd be nice" smile--it
was a "that'd be everything" smile.
He hugged Justin to him, managed to do it without spilling a drop of his
cocoa.
Clark gave him a smile that
was half friend, half lover. It was a
look they could never have shared before all this, a look that maybe wasn't the
best idea to share now.
But he wanted it. He had Diana and Clark
had Lois, and their women were off doing who knew what to each other, and that
didn't matter because all Bruce wanted to think about was how soft Clark's lips
looked and how strong his hands would be as they held him.
It was going to be a long
day--hard to wait for what he wanted.
Justin giggled again, and
Bruce looked down, saw that the boy was smiling up at him. They still had the rest of the zoo and hot
dogs at the nocturnal house. Would
Justin cry in the dark? Or would he
laugh at the bats and the sloths?
There were bears to watch play with their logs, and lions to hear roar, and
elephants to marvel at.
It was going to be a long
day. Over far too
soon.
Continue to Part 2?