serendipity. [superbat]

sweet.

Clark should be working. He should be working tirelessly until the sun sets on Smallville and he's forced to retire his tools. However, Bruce is here. Bruce who's curled up in Clark's pickup truck with a book in his hand and blanket draped over his lap. He looks warm, inviting. 

A cool, brisk chill has hit the air and he's in one of Clark's thick sweaters. He can see Bruce's eyes leave his book to peer down into his lap where Binny is, no doubt, trying to get comfortable. 

So, with such an obvious and delightful distraction, Clark only manages to get half of his workload done. The skeleton now has walls, floors, half of a roof and functioning electricity and plumbing.

He can't help the way he finds himself lingering, watching. Part of it is adoration, the other fear. He'd taken his eyes off of Bruce for a couple of hours and had awoken to him writhing in pain. Bruce was trying to move on, acting as if it hadn't shaken him, but Clark could see it in his eyes. He could see the worry compounding in them. He can see the way Bruce holds his breath when it's been too long, for his liking, since the baby kicked. The sigh of relief and the tension leaving his jaw when he finally feels something.

He knows it's coming. Steels himself for it with each passing day, each distressed pause and shaky sigh of relief, the impending crash. 

So, that's why he drops Bruce off and heads into town. 

"I'll be back soon. I just need to pick up some things." He informs Bruce, who looks curious, but doesn't protest as he allows Clark to peck him on the forehead. 

Ma manages to temporarily distract him with a bowl of homemade chicken noodle soup while Clark slips past the screen door.

He was starting to realize that Bruce needed a bit more than a break. With a break, he could climb into his own head and allow his thoughts to fester into new worries. He needed something that kept his brain busy enough that he could relax. So, Clark takes advantage of Ma's upcoming, week-long "girl's trip" to plan something to keep Bruce from working himself up. Then, once he'd managed to loosen the man up a bit, maybe he could get him to talk.

So, he makes his way into the grocery store and dodges every granny with a granddaughter to pawn off until he's in a row of self-care aisles. He finds himself sniffing a concerning amount of candles and bubble bath. He settles on something subtle, the least likely to give Bruce a headache. He gets a bottle of massage oil and hides it under a mountain of Bruce's current favorite snacks. Then, he actually buys groceries. 

                                                                                                                                                                                               

He's halfway to the truck with his haul when his phone starts buzzing in his pocket. He pops open the passenger side door and puts all of the bags on the seat before slipping the device out of his pocket.

"'Lo, what's up?" he mutters as he makes his way around to the driver's side. 

"Nothing interesting. What's up with you?" 

Clark wondered when it would come, Lois' uncanny ability to catch him. She always knew when he was on the cusp of losing his shit. 'Cause as much as he wanted to give Bruce some relief, make him feel as if everything was going to be alright, he was also worried. He also paused to just listen to them. Both of them. 

Clark lets out a sigh, eyes going towards the doors of the supermarket as he watches patrons make their way towards their cars.

"Clark?" He hears Lois timidly call from the other end of the line.