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Lois
He finds her staring vacantly over what used to be a perfectly good bowl of cereal. It's soggy now, brown mush in caramel-colored milk. Her coffee is cold too, but that's easily fixed. It always amazes him how much of a thrill it is to do something as simple as reheat a beverage - and he's caught so many falling skyscrapers he's lost count.
"Everything okay, honey?" he asks her when she doesn't realize he's there.
Lois doesn't even flinch, no doubt used to him appearing out of nowhere after twenty years of building a life together.
"I'm just worried about the boys. We moved to Smallville so we could get away from everything and I feel like we've been through so much. It's a lot to wrap my head around sometimes."
"Lois..."
"I don't know. I'm being dramatic, I guess." Lois turns and smiles at him. "So, busy night?"
It's a habit of hers, changing the subject to super business when she feels like her worries aren't important in the grand scheme of things.
"You're not being dramatic. I'm worried about them too. And you. How are you handling things?"
Lois sucks in a shaky lungful of air, and her bottom lip trembles. "Sometimes it feels like the world is crashing down around me. And then you show up and I know everything is going to be okay."
He just saved twenty-five people from a multiple-car pileup, but this moment right here is already the highlight of his day.
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Jordan
Clark never thought he'd be that father. The one who didn't connect with his kids, yet, with Jordan, he's always on edge. He's out saving people and it feels like he can't help the one person who needs a super save the most. It's wishful thinking on his part. There is no magic wand that'll make Jordan feel better. He can't open up his son's head and blast the bad thoughts away.
Instead, he has to use his words. Easier said than done when Jordan is nibbling buttered toast with a pair of giant headphones on top of his dark curls. Jon and Lois are oblivious, chattering away about a story the paper is covering. He spares a smile for them, noting for the umpteenth time how similar they are and then he turns his attention back to Jordan.
"Hey, buddy?" Clark says. "You okay over there?"
It's a whisper, quiet enough that only Jordan can hear it.
For a second Clark thinks Jordan didn't hear him, but he catches the slight nod and feels a burst of fatherly pride - maybe there's hope for them yet.
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Jonathan
For every misgiving Clark has felt with Jordan, Jonathan has always been different. From when they were babies, Jonathan was a fiery bundle of joy, always running around and getting into trouble. He's so much like Lois that Clark often wonders if Jordan is like him. If he's watching his mirror image every day. And that worry means he screws things up with Jonathan.
They moved to Smallville in order to make the world less big for Jordan - to give him space to grow and breathe without too many eyes on him. It never occurred to him that it would be the opposite for Jonathan. He's lost his friends, his place on a football team, and still…he watches him joking around with his brother each morning. He's always there for Jordan, always being the protective brother.
"Are you doing alright, Jon?" Clark asks one morning when it's just them. Lois is with Jordan at his weekly therapy session and it only occurs to Clark that they should ask Jonathan if he wants to talk to somebody too. "With school, being in Smallville and…everything?"
"Define alright." Jon takes a large mouthful of cereal, his blue eyes twinkling in that way that has Clark wondering if he's being glib on purpose.
"How are you settling in?"
"It's not Metropolis, but Smallville isn't so bad." Jon's eyes flick across the kitchen. "It's kind of cool being in the house you grew up in."
He's not answering the question, and it breaks Clark's heart. Still, if Jonathan really is like his mother, his inner thoughts will stay locked away tighter than the fortress until he's ready to share. All Clark can do is to be there for him.
"I'm happy to hear that, Jon. And if you ever have anything to ask me, I'm around."
There's a long pause and then Jon looks up at him, the hard glint momentarily gone from his eyes. "Thanks, Dad."
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Lois
It's Mother's Day, and she's not handling it so well. She's thinking about Natalie, what she lost. What they lost. Clark thinks about it every day. It's different for her, though, he knows that. And he struggles for the words to soothe her so he does the next best thing.
He takes her flying before the boys are up, taking care to listen out for them while she's nestled in his arms.
"Why did you bring me up here?" Lois asks in her characteristically blunt tone. It's one thing he loves about her. Her honesty, and her inability to hold anything back. After a life of keeping everything in, he loved that he'd found someone who saw no reason to hold back.
"I wanted to remind you that anything is possible. And that we can't control what happens to us."
"Did anyone ever tell you how happy you are?" Lois says, although, the bright gleam in her eye gives her away.
"You say sappy, I say emotionally inclined."
"Whatever." Lois nestles further into his arms. "Thank you, Clark. I love you."
"I love you too, Lois."
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Jonathan and Jordan
They're arguing over something, and all the super-hearing and X-ray vision can't help Clark figure out what it is. He's just flown in from Nicaragua, a relatively simple earthquake clean up and rescue, and bone weary as he feels, he doesn't really get tired. Especially with making sure his boys are okay.
"Guys?" Clark tries to cut in. "Guys! Hey! What's going on with you?"
Jordan stops, jabbing a finger in his brother's direction. "He started it."
"What?" Jonathan scoffs. "I started nothing. When have I ever started anything?"
"What are you even arguing about?"
There's a pause when Jordan and Jonathan look at each other, unable to pinpoint the cause of their tiff. It was a lucky guess on his part - half of the time, there is something very specific that's set them off, but hey, he's taking the win.
Hiding a smile Clark says, "Okay. If I promise to take you to that arcade place you like after school, will you table this disagreement?"
Jonathan and Jordan share a look and communicate in that special way that even Superman can't decipher.
"Fine," they say in unison.
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Clark
When Clark makes his way down for breakfast, his family is waiting for him. They’ve covered the table with more food than they can eat.
Jonathan holds out a red, blue, and yellow offering. "We washed and pressed the suit."
"You washed and pressed it?" Clark laughs at the mere mental image.
"Well yeah," Jonathan says. "It's not like Mom did it."
"Hey, I heard that!" Lois shares a smile with Clark. "We just wanted to show our love and appreciation for you. We saw what you did on the news last night..."
It's then that Clark notices the concern in Jonathan's eyes and the fear in Jordan's. They're worried about him. This is them checking in on him, making sure he's got what he needs.
"You know, on nights when it feels like I can't save everyone, it's all of you that keep me going. I might be the world's greatest hero, but you guys are mine."
"Yeah, right," Jonathan mutters. "I'm nothing like you or Jordan. Not that way."
"I mean it, Jon. You might not have powers, but your strength is your resilience and relentless pursuit of justice. I know you keep the hope alive when I'm not here."
"What about me?" Jordan asks.
"Dude!" Jonathan rolls his eyes. "Powers. Hello?"
Clark places a hand on Jordan's shoulder. "You keep us honest. You keep us real."
Lois puts another plate of pancakes in front of him, pressing a kiss to his jawbone. "Did you practice this speech in the mirror, babe?"
"Even if I did, words wouldn't be enough for how much I admire you, Lois. You're the head of this family. You're our heart. You're my heart. You always will be."
"Clark…" Lois trails off, but he knows exactly what she wants to say. That he’s her heart, too, along with their amazing boys.
"How bad was it, Dad?" Jonathan's always known how to read between the lines, long before he knew Clark was Superman. "You can tell us."
"It was pretty bad, Jon." Clark looks at his family again. "... but being here with you guys makes it better."
They gravitate towards him and he extends his arms and wraps them in a bear hug; he breathes them in and casts his mind back to a time when he was young, angry, and alone. He never thought he'd have a family, but here he is with everything he needs in his arms.
Superman might not have had a good night, but Clark Kent is the luckiest man in the world.