Chapter Text
"I'm telling you, Bruce Wayne would fuck anything pretty!" Conner exclaimed.
Clark shook his head while reaching for another slice of pizza.
Ever since he had realized how badly he messed up with Conner, Clark was attempting to patch things up between the two of them. They did small things. They met up at the Watchtower for training and periodical check-in how-are-you-doing phone calls. What seemed to stick the best was pizza night. Once a week, Conner would fly to Metropolis, and they would order a mountain of pizza. They would proceed to spend the rest of the night chatting or watching movies while demolishing the stack of cardboard boxes. Some of their best conversations had happened on his couch phasing in and out of a carb coma. Clark always looked forward to pizza night. He was almost certain Conner did too.
"Isn't that part of being Bruce Wayne?" Clark mused. He tried to picture a version of Bruce that didn't come across as flirtatious and, when the right person showed up, sensual. It didn't seem possible. While Bruce was a quiet, contained person in private, he always exuded a low level of charm. His charisma wasn't something he could hide, even when he was Batman.
"Sure it’s part of his cover." Tim pointed at Clark with a gooey slice of pepperoni that was losing its structural integrity. "But he has definitely slept with at least 70% of the people flirts with."
Sometimes Conner asked if Tim Drake could join pizza night. Clark didn't mind. Conner didn't get to see much of Tim ever since the Robin had stopped working with Young Justice.
According to Clark’s conversations with Bruce, between Wayne Enterprises and Bat duties, Tim liked to work himself into the ground. If pizza night was also a night off for Tim, Clark didn't think that a little less one-on-one time with Conner was a bad tradeoff.
"You guys started without me?" Jason climbed through the apartment window with a grocery bag of cupcakes and Lofthouse frosted cookies.
Somehow, Jason had gotten wind of pizza night and had started inviting himself as well. Neither Tim nor Conner seemed to mind, so Clark always put out the invite when Conner asked if Tim could join.
"You didn't text me you were coming, Jay," Tim shrugged. "I assumed you were busy tonight."
"What? Bullshit, I totally texted you." Jason pulled out his phone. "Huh, I guess I forgot to hit send. Oh well, I'm here now."
"I'll order more pizza." Clark picked up his phone and began to dial the pizzeria number from memory.
"Can you get some cheesy bread as well?" Conner asked. Clark shot him a thumbs up as the young woman on the other end of the line asked if he wanted to try the special for the day.
"What were you guys talking about?" Jason sat on the floor and took a slice from the supreme box.
"I was telling Clark about the last beauty Bruce went on a date with," Tim explained. "And that Bruce is definitely a manwhore."
Clark said his thanks and hung up the phone.
"Oh he absolutely is."
"Are you two slut shaming your own father?" Clark stuffed his cell phone back into his pocket.
Jason made retching noises at the word 'father.'
"Not slut shaming," Tim said demurely. "I'm just saying that while Bruce Wayne is a cover, he definitely gets something out of that cover."
"And I'm saying under the right circumstances he would sleep with anyone age appropriate," Conner grinned. The two bats nodded in agreement. Clark scoffed.
"Supes, I'd bet $100 on the fact that Bruce would jump your bones given the chance," Jason said.
Clark laughed. "There's no way."
"When it comes to gender, Bruce doesn't discriminate," Tim pointed out. "If Superman gave Bruce Wayne the time of day, he'd definitely try to tap that."
"I suppose that's in character," Clark snorted. "But he would definitely not flirt with Daily Planet reporter Clark Kent in order to 'tap that'."
"You're underestimating the old man." Jason shook his head. "I fucking dare you to go up to him at a gala and see where it gets you."
If Clark was being honest with himself, he had found Bruce to be attractive even before he and Lois had split ways. He had been drawn to Lois's spark, her passion for justice and her drive to find the truth. In many ways Bruce Wayne and Batman had a similar spark. However, where Lois was an open flame and roaring passions, Bruce was a calm lake, a placid pool of endless patience.
When Perry had demanded Clark attend the Metropolis Natural History Museum fundraiser, he thought back to Jason's words. Once upon a time, Clark had considered asking Bruce on a date, but he never went through with it. Not for any esoteric reasons about the taboo of superheroes becoming lovers, but simply because he did not think Bruce was attracted to him.
While he had initially disagreed with the boys' assessment of the situation, he couldn't contain his curiosity. What if he had been underestimating Bruce?
Across the museum hall containing the dinosaur exhibit, he saw Bruce talking to the director of the museum, laughing at something the other man said. Bruce smiled and gestured as he elaborated on some inane point he was making. While his smile was intended to be charming, it had no business making Clark's heart stutter as it did.
Clark turned abruptly towards the popup bar and ordered a drink. Alcohol didn't really affect him, but he liked to think it helped him relax in these high society situations. He thanked the bartender and placed a tip in her jar.
"I haven't seen you in a while, Mr. Kent."
Clark turned to see Bruce standing next to him.
"It's been a while since Perry had me cover the society beat," Clark admitted. "How are you, Mr. Wayne?"
Bruce grinned, and it was even more devastating up close. "Better now that I'm seeing my favorite reporter." This was an opportunity. Clark could deflect like he normally did, and they could continue an amicable conversation. Or, he could take what he was being given and shoot his shot.
"And how does your favorite reporter look?" Clark took a sip of his drink. Bruce's eyes traveled slowly up and down his figure.
"Pretty handsome, especially since the suit fits correctly." Bruce slipped a finger behind the suit button, checking for the perfect half inch of extra room while simultaneously copping a feel. Leave it to Bruce Wayne to flirt with him and question his fashion choices at the same time.
Clark cleared his throat. "Would you be interested in stepping away to give a quote for the evening?" Clark had pulled Bruce away from the main party of galas before to pass off information. If Bruce took the offer as a signal for superhero info, then he would simply feed some information that he had discovered earlier today and forget the whole thing. Maybe he was a coward for doing things this way, but he didn't care.
"Why, certainly." Bruce gestured towards an empty wing of the museum across from the bar. They walked towards the door and Bruce let a hand rest on the small of Clark's back. It sent a thrill up his spine. They entered the wing and slipped into a small access corridor for employees only. As soon as they crossed the threshold, Bruce slammed him into the wall and leaned in to ravage his mouth. Clark was so startled that he forgot to reciprocate.
Bruce stopped and looked up at him with concern. "Did I misread the situation?"
"No!" Clark's brain finally caught up with him. "No, this is exactly what I wanted." Bruce's smile returned and it made Clark's blood simmer. He cradled Bruce's face in his hands and attempted to plunder his mouth. Bruce tasted like bourbon with a hint of mint, and it was making it very hard for Clark to think straight. Bruce unbuttoned Clark's tuxedo jacket and allowed his hands to roam the plane of Clark's chest. He shuddered when Bruce found a nipple.
"Do you need to talk to anyone else from the gala?" Bruce asked in between kisses.
"What? No, I'm good."
"Then why don't we take this somewhere else?"
They somehow made it to Bruce's Metropolis apartment without taking their hands off of each other. Apparently his attraction to Bruce hadn't been as mild as he thought. If the exploration of Bruce's hands was any indication, it seemed that Bruce felt the same way. Clark really hoped Bruce had given that taxi driver a huge tip.
By the time they were on the bed with Bruce pushing into him, Clark was scrabbling for a pillow to hide his moans.
"Let go, baby, I want to hear you," Bruce panted as he continued his brutal pace. Clark couldn't hold back.
As they laid sprawled together on the king-sized mattress, breathing hard—even Superman was winded after that bout of sex—Clark turned to Bruce with a smile.
"What?"
"I almost came when you did that thing with your fingers." Clark made a twisting motion with his hand.
Bruce chuckled. "I almost came when you made that noise while my fingers were inside you." He leaned over and kissed Clark on the jaw. "I bet I could make you come with just my fingers, though."
"You want to test that theory?"
Bruce rolled over on top of Clark, getting his second wind. "Why Mr. Kent, I thought you'd never ask."
The next morning Clark woke up with his arm slung around Bruce's chest and their legs intertwined in a complicated knot. He untangled himself and sat up in the sunlight streaming through the curtains. He had just had mind-blowing sex with Bruce Wayne. Porn levels of mind-blowing sex. The expensive kind that was behind paywalls.
Bruce grumbled at him and pulled him back to the bed by the arm. Clark grinned and let himself be brought down. Bruce crawled on top of him and snuggled to his chest. Clark let himself run a hand through Bruce's hair, eliciting more grumbles from the half-asleep man.
"Do you want to go get breakfast in an hour or two?"
Bruce peered up at him from one sleepy eye.
"Clark Kent, are you asking me on a date?"
"Yeah." Clark wasn't sure how casual Bruce Wayne was as a lover. If this was only a one-time deal, he would be okay with that, because Bruce had fucked him into oblivion and then cuddled with him.
Bruce stared at him for a minute. "Okay."
"Really?"
"Why do you keep sounding so surprised?" Bruce sat up so he could look down at Clark. "I wouldn't agree to something I don't want to do."
"I honestly thought you weren't interested in me. Otherwise, I might have asked a long time ago."
Bruce was silent for a moment.
"I think if you had asked a few years back I probably would have said no," Bruce admitted. "But I've worked through a lot of things since then, and I'm at a place where I can admit to myself what I want." Bruce kissed his jaw and spoke in a low voice. "And I've wanted this for a long time."
Clark's lips curled into a smile and met Bruce's for a sweet seduction of a kiss. "Okay. That sounds good." He traced Bruce's mouth with a thumb.
Bruce let his head sink back to Clark's chest. "Okay. Now let me sleep a little bit longer, and we'll go get some breakfast."
Surprisingly, none of the tabloids had captured their time together of either that night or the morning after. Clark wondered if the fifth dimensional beings that influenced newspapers had thrown him a bone.
The breakfast had been greasy diner food and full of laughter, a kind of fresh happiness that he had never experienced with Bruce. They had gone to places as friends before, but this meal had an intimate closeness that was sugar sweet. The conversation had been mundane, but Bruce had never smiled at him so much nor held his hand at the table. Clark was pretty sure the handholding had been a distraction technique so Bruce could pay the bill, but Clark wasn't even sorry that it worked.
They talked and set up a date for the next week, and Bruce had kissed him before getting in his car to return to Gotham.
By the time Monday rolled around, he was grinning like a lunatic at his computer screen.
"What's got you in a good mood, Smallville?"
Clark turned to Lois with a shrug. "I had a good weekend. It was calm, and there were no major disasters." I ate out Bruce Wayne's ass, and he texts back now with emojis.
Lois stared at him for another moment and turned with a shrug of her own. "Good for you."
Clark realized since he hadn't shared the info he collected at the gala, he needed to contact Batman and do a drop-off. They decided to meet on the edge of Gotham closest to Metropolis. When Superman was landing, he noticed someone was already there with Batman.
"Red Hood." Superman greeted as he floated down to the roof of the apartment complex. He had forgotten Crime Alley was close by. If Batman was coming into Hood's territory, then he would inevitably show up to whatever the Bats was doing.
"Hey Supes." Red Hood gave a wave. "Thanks for the info the other night. I owe you one." Last month Red Hood had been working a case that involved an intergang deal between Black Mask and Mannheim. Superman had managed to find some crucial details about their dealings and had passed it along the Bat grapevine.
"Oh." Superman fished something out of a hidden pocket "I forgot. I actually owe you something as well." He motioned for Hood to put out his hand and placed a hundred-dollar bill in it.
If a mask could look confused, it did on him. "You don't owe me one hundred-ohmygod." Hood squeezed the bill, looking from Superman to Batman in disbelief.
"If you don't think you've earned it, you can always use it to front pizza night." Superman's expression was carefully neutral.
"Hood, are you having money problems?" Batman asked with a note of concern.
"Oh my god. I didn't actually think you-oh holy shit." Red Hood didn't answer Batman's question. "REALLY SUPES? YOU'D STOOP THAT LOW?"
Superman was trying very hard to keep a straight face.
"What's going on?" Batman looked between Superman and Red Hood.
"Oh fuck off, old man, you just had to prove me right. Jesus Christ I never wanted to know this." Superman noted that he still slipped the hundred into a pocket. "Have you told Conner?"
Superman shrugged. "I will eventually."
"Jesus fucking Christ," Hood muttered under his breath. "This is what I get for opening my goddamn mouth. You know what? I'll see you guys later; I need to go bleach my brain." Hood took off into the night.
"What was that?" Batman turned to Superman for an explanation.
"I owed him $100," Superman said innocently.
"Uh huh." The tight line of his mouth said he didn't believe him.
"Here’s part of what you were looking for." Superman passed him a file. "I couldn't find much but I figured it was better than nothing."
Batman flipped through the file, then closed it with a nod. "I think Oracle and Red Robin will be able to do something with this."
"Glad I could be of service," Superman said with a grin.
"Did you make some kind of deal with Red Hood?"
"No?"
"Then why are you giving him cash?"
"We made a bet the other day," Clark admitted. "He won so I was honoring the terms."
"What was the bet about?"
"Why don't you ask him yourself?"
"So it was something embarrassing," Batman deduced.
Clark shook his head with a smile. “I can't keep anything from the world's greatest detective, can I?"
"Not really." Batman stepped into his personal space. Superman had tried to keep a professional distance from Batman since it was their civilian identities that were dating, but it seemed that didn't matter much to Bruce in this moment.
Superman wet his lips. "I guess I better go now."
Batman drew closer. "Can I have a kiss before you leave?"
"Yeah," Superman whispered.
Their lips met in the dark night on a rooftop in Gotham.
"Conner, your dad is an absolute asshole" was the first thing Jason said walking into Clark's apartment with a tower of pizza boxes.
Conner furrowed his eyebrows and turned to Clark for an explanation.
"I slipped him $100 while we were talking to Batman." Clark helped set the pizza boxes on the table. "Because he won the bet."
Conner's confused expression did not change, but Tim nearly dropped his phone.
"You tapped that?"
Clark grinned sheepishly. "I did. We actually went on our third date last week."
"First." Tim held up a finger. "I wish you had taped the massive freak out Jason must have had because I'm sure the reaction was fantastic."
Clark nodded his agreement.
"And second, are you saying that the two of you are going steady?"
"We're trying it out for now. I don't know if we can make a relationship work, but we'll see."
"Does this mean that I have to call him Batdad?" Conner's face held equal measures of delight and worry.
"No, but I'm sure you'd get a pretty fantastic reaction out of him if you did."
Conner considered the pros and cons of such a move.
"Is this okay?" Clark's words held a note of concern. Sure, it was his life and his decisions, but they definitely would impact Conner.
Conner nodded with a smirk. "It's nice to know my pops has some game. And if that makes you happy, then I'm happy for you." Clark laughed and pulled him into a side hug.
"As revenge I'm going to call you dad every chance I get." Jason pointed a finger threateningly.
"So you're admitting that you see Bruce as a father figure."
"Oh fuck you, Big Blue." Both Tim and Conner laughed.
"Daily Planet, Clark Kent speaking."
"Hi sweetheart, I was calling to see if my favorite reporter wanted to get dinner on Wednesday."
Clark grimaced at the phone. "Sorry, I have a standing event on Wednesdays."
"Is that when your chess club meets?" Bruce teased.
"It's pizza night with Conner. Sometimes Tim and Jason come as well."
"I didn't know you met so often with Jason."
"They only come every once in a while. How about Thursday or Friday?"
"I've got a business trip."
So not this week, then."
Bruce hmm'ed into the phone. "I could come pick you up for lunch?"
Clark froze. Picking him up for lunch meant walking into the Daily Planet and escorting him out—a public declaration as any. They had talked about keeping their relationship private for the time being, but if someone accidentally found out, it wouldn’t be an issue. So far, no tabloids had gotten wind of their relationship, but that would definitely change if Bruce walked up to Clark's desk. Were they taking the next step?
"If that's okay with you?"
Apparently Clark's silence had unnerved Bruce. Clark had never heard Bruce sound so hesitant.
"Yes! Yes, of course that's okay—that's more than okay!" Clark was stumbling over his words. "I'd like that."
"I'll see you in an hour then. I'll swing by and pick you up."
Clark hung up the phone to find Lois staring at him.
"I didn't know you were seeing someone." Her tone was more curious than accusatory.
"It's new. We're still feeling out this whole dating situation."
"Do I know her?"
"Why are you assuming it's a her?"
Lois blinked. "Okay, do I know him?"
Clark shrugged. "You might." Lois narrowed her eyes.
"Clark Kent, don't you act all cryptic on me."
Clark grinned. "You'll meet him in an hour."
An hour later Clark got the reaction he wanted to see.
"Hello Mr. Wayne.” Lois waved as he stepped out of the elevator. “Here for a meeting with Perry?"
"Actually, I came to get lunch with Clark." Lois whipped around to give Clark The why-didn't-you-tell-me-you-were-dating-a-billionaire-playboy Stare.
Clark grinned back. "Let me send this article to Perry and I'll be ready."
As if being summoned, Perry popped out of his office. "Kent! Where is that article about-"
"Sending it now, sir!"
"Good! Ah, Mr. Wayne to what do I owe this visit?" They shook hands.
"I'm taking Clark out for lunch."
Perry looked nonplussed. "Yes, well, make sure you return him in an hour."
"If you give him two hours for lunch, I'll give Cat Grant the address of the restaurant and she can have the exclusive on our relationship." Clark went pink.
"Bruce, you don't have to-"
Also as if summoned, Cat materialized out of her cubicle next to Perry. "This would be perfect. Bruce Wayne hasn't really been in the society pages and things are getting a bit dry. This exclusive would be a delicious morsel for those hungry for more Brucie." Clark wondered if Bruce felt like a piece of meat.
Perry harrumphed. "Fine. But you're sending Kent down to HR when he gets back! We're going to have this above board before it ever goes to print."
"You've got a deal." Bruce took one of Clark's sticky notes and wrote down the restaurant name and address.
Cat took it with a grin. "See you in thirty minutes!"
"Why two hours?" Clark asked once they were in the privacy of the elevator. "Will the wait at the restaurant take that long?"
"No, lunch will probably only take about 45 minutes. I was thinking we could go back to my place for a little while." Bruce slid a hand under Clark's jacket to the small of his back. Clark's face turned red.
"So you asked my boss for more time just so you could fuck me?"
"We don't have to. We could go up for... a cup of coffee."
Clark rolled his eyes. "Fine. But my performance will depend on how good this lunch is."
Bruce grinned as the elevator doors opened. "Then I'll be ready to have my mind blown."
The food at the restaurant had been amazing even with Cat snapping photos across the room like a bird of prey armed with a camera.
He wasn't going to admit to Bruce that he had been right, but when Bruce brought them back to his place and asked "so how was lunch?" with a smug expression, he may or may not have given Bruce a blowjob that almost sent him into cardiac arrest and then ridden him like a cowboy.
"We've got to do this again some time." Bruce kissed him as he tied Clark's tie in place.
Clark rolled his eyes and grinned fondly. "There is no way you could ever get Perry to agree to another long lunch."
"Oh yeah? Watch me."
Bruce dropped him off at the Planet building with a kiss. After Clark finished the HR paperwork, he went back upstairs to the news room. He had hoped his appearance was normal enough that no one would notice a slightly rumpled but very well-sexed reporter. Unfortunately for him Lois had eagle eyes.
"A full Windsor, huh."
"What?"
Lois pointed to her neck. "Apparently that's the knot Bruce Wayne likes."
"I wouldn't know, Lois."
"Clark, we dated. I know you tie your ties with a half Windsor. Wayne clearly tied your tie. But the real question is what did the two of you do that had Wayne tying your tie."
Clark flushed pink. "Don't you have work to do?"
Lois grinned, but before walking back to her desk she patted him on the arm.
"I'm happy for you, Smallville."
Clark smiled up at her and nodded before turning back to his work.