The Not Quite Justice League in... The Bee's Pleas!!!

[stands_for_hope]

[continued from here]

Finishing his article, clearing everything with Keith, those things took time. That was why it took a few hours before Clark was ready to make his usual call to Lois that night. He had worried that he might not make the time window that she cleared every day to talk to him and the others, but he was proud to say that he'd left himself an even half an hour as long as everything was to schedule.

After the fifth time she didn't pick up (didn't so much as text or ping him), it became clear that things were very much off schedule.

Clark made his way back to the main floor where everyone seemed to congregate and headed straight for Tony, holding up the phone to him.

"I know we're all tired and we've certainly had a long day, but... can you find out where Lois's phone is from the number here?"

In all the madness of the day, all the fighting and the close calls and the weakness brought on by the proximity of kryptonite, he'd lost track of her heartbeat. Usually, it was simple enough to pick up over the phone once again, a steady pulse that he could find his way back to once the phonecall had ended.

He couldn't hear her. He couldn't tell where she was. And she wasn't answering her phone. She always answered her phone. He didn't want to think anything was wrong, but he wasn't naive enough to discount something like this. Not after today. Not after they'd pulled out kryptonite weapons.

Comments

[granularity]

"You're good too," Sandy said as he looked at Mike, met his eyes, meant every word.

"I'm sure we'll get to know each other, your father and I. I plan to stick around."

[secondtry]

"Just wait 'til he starts asking your intentions toward me." Mike raised an eyebrow in Sandy's direction before breaking out in a smile. "There's a lot of him I like. It's... just kind of hard for me to believe anybody's going to stay."

The smile faltered. Fell. And he shrugged.

[granularity]

"That's why I aim to prove it," he said, and if there was any worry in his face, it was for Mike, not his doubts. For the pain they caused them, not that he had them. They were understandable. And Sandy wouldn't belittle them by trying to say the right thing.

He'd prove it. He'd live it.

Wes had told him to let himself be open, to let himself find happiness. Wes had told him when he had, he'd best not let go. He didn't intend to.

Like he'd said: Wes had been a pretty good mentor for the most part.

[secondtry]

"I'm gonna show you into the Kitt-cave sometime. Four-story shaft, straight down, underneath a hangar. Should be easy for you to find." He grinned. "Especially since it's in an empty part of town. It'll be great, sneaking my boyfriend in."

A light squeeze to Sandy's waist and he teased, "It'll be like being a teenager again, only better."

[granularity]

"If it's underground, I can probably get there pretty easily. There's a reason I tend to do recon."

He leaned up for a kiss.

"If I didn't mind missing a minute with you, I'd say I should try and find it on my own. After all, I've got pretty good incentive."

[secondtry]

"Mmmm..." Smiling, he leaned in and kissed him, slow and warm. "We might have to switch back and forth between the cars on the way out there. My dad's Kitt is actually faster than mine, but he gets bored easier."

[granularity]

"We'll figure it out," and he was content to start the kissing again. The kissing wasn't nearly as complicated.

[secondtry]

And with a contented sigh, he happily sank back into it, feeling... warmer. More relaxed. Easier. This was what he wanted. And he'd work to keep it.

[granularity]

"You should know," he said softly, in between kisses, "I'm... due another nightmare tonight."

[secondtry]

"S'okay," Mike murmured. "Anything special we need to do?"

[granularity]

He looked over at Mike.

"If I leave... it's because the dream told me something I have to go do. Something like what brought me here. I'll be back as soon as possible, or I'll let you know what's going on so we can meet back up."

He took Mike's hand.

"I'm not trying to get away from you."

[secondtry]

He threaded his fingers with Sandy's and brought them up to his lips to kiss. "Okay. Leave me an email or something if you're gonna be gone for a while. ...I'll give you my phone address."

[granularity]

His lips quirked in a lopsided smile.

"Hopefully, it'll be something I can call Alan about and let him handle it. I've... pretty much done nothing but build up vacation time since I came back from that trip I mentioned."

He reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone, holding it out for Mike.

"Before we forget. Load anything you can think of in there."

[secondtry]

Mike took it - and then pressed a finger into his ear before saying, "Hey, hot stuff, got a phone in my hand. Put my stuff on it, please? You know I can't remember all those numbers." And a few seconds later, after the phone's screen had moved between address books and contact lists faster than a human could manage, he said, "Perfect as always. Thank you."

And he clicked his earwig off, holding Sandy's phone back toward him. "And here you go, sexy."

[granularity]

He blushed at the moniker before tossing the phone over onto his coat. He wouldn't need it for... at least a few hours.

"Good. I'll text you if anything comes up."

He looked down at Mike as he leaned on one arm.

"Well, I'll try to wake you up but I didn't want to tell you and have you forget because you weren't awake enough. Ted's terrible with that one."

[secondtry]

"Mm, I understand." He nodded and kissed Sandy's forehead. "I wake up quick. Army training. But if I go back to sleep, with my Swiss cheese memory, who knows."

[granularity]

Sandy tipped his head back to kiss him on the lips.

"I don't want to leave anything to chance. I don't want you to have to worry even once."

He met Mike's eyes.

"Not once."

Then he leaned up to start kissing him in earnest again.

[secondtry]

Mike nearly purred, smiling into the kiss and letting his smile fade in favour of it. His arms lifted to drape around Sandy's shoulders, giving him a bicep for a pillow, and giving his own fingers some beautiful blonde hair to play with.

[granularity]

If they spent most of the night kissing, it was after a job very well done. If they fell asleep on the bed, curled around each other... they'd certainly earned it. And if Sandy got another night of uninterrupted sleep, there's only a small chance that his mentor used what power he had as a spirit to withhold the nightmare visions from his dreams and let him rest with the man he was very quickly falling in love with.

They were important, yes. Their job had always and would always be important. But so was his protege.

[secondtry]

Certain things could give Mike the chance to rest. Actually rest. Kitt's presence had been the first after sex and alcohol. He slept with his earwig in and trusted that, no matter what, Kitt would be watching. It let him sleep through the night without fear, without nightmares most of the time, and that was how he slept, his arms draped around Sandy. Between the reassurance of having Kitt watching and the knowledge that he had someone he felt comfortable with in his arms.

And when dawn woke him, he blinked - and he smiled to find Sandy still close, still right there with him. He didn't really want to wake him. Sleep, he knew, was a precious commodity to his dear Sandy.

[granularity]

Which was why Mike got to discover that a sleepy, fluffy-haired Sandy who got to wake up naturally was one of the most adorable things to be found in the world. Especially one who was holding onto him with one sleep-heavy arm.

[secondtry]

"G'morning, beautiful," he murmured, smiling and kissing his forehead. "You must've gone out and back without me noticing."

[granularity]

"Mmmnnnr."

Which wasn't so much an answer as a noise as Sandy shifted a little.

"No dreams."

A small miracle and he didn't so much pray as send a kind thought towards Wesley and Daniel both for it.

[secondtry]

"...Hm, you didn't go, then?" Mike's arms tightened around him just a bit. "Nice."

And he kissed Sandy's cheek. "I'm glad you could sleep."

[granularity]

"Someone decided to be kind."

He wasn't sure who it'd been, but he wasn't questioning too hard.

"Or we did so much yesterday, evil decided to take a day off."

He looked up at Mike.

"You sleep all right?"