Chapter Text
Clark woke the following morning to sunlight streaming through the balcony windows, catching dust motes swirling in the still air of the bedroom. Bruce was still wrapped in his arms, a fine layer of sweat covering his body due to the heat and the proximity to one Kryptonian who could serve as a personal body heater if the need arose. Clark briefly wondered what had woken him - Bruce was still sound asleep - before he looked up to see Alfred in the bedroom doorway, carrying a breakfast tray.
To his credit, the butler didn’t look at all surprised to see the two men tangled up in Bruce’s bed. He merely nodded and left the room, returning ten minutes later with a small cart that held enough food and coffee to satisfy at least four men.
“Good morning, Master Clark,” he said, wheeling the cart over next to the bed. “I trust you slept well.”
Bruce stirred in Clark’s arms at the sound, face instinctively turning away from the bright sunlight, but he didn’t actually move out of Clark’s embrace. He’d count that as a win.
“Very well, Alfred, thanks,” Clark said, smiling as he felt Bruce’s pulse pick up - he was awake, and undoubtedly already aware of the position they were in.
“Alfred, I hope you brought coffee or I’ll never forgive you for this,” he grumbled, voice muffled by way of Clark’s chest.
“I did, Master Bruce,” Alfred said, opening the balcony doors to let in some fresh air before making his way back to the door. “You have a meeting with the board in an hour and a half. Shall I tell them you’ll be late, sir?”
“What kind of question is that?” Bruce asked, finally looking up at Alfred. His hair was a complete mess, and the effect of the Bat-glare was lessened somewhat by the whole image.
“Very good, sir,” Alfred said before backing out of the room and closing the door behind him.
Bruce collapsed back on Clark’s chest. “What time is it,” he asked, voice still raspy with sleep.
“Ten,” Clark said, carefully moving Bruce off him so he could get them both coffee.
“Ten? Nobody should be awake at ten,” Bruce said, only sitting up when he saw Clark holding out a cup of coffee, black, just the way he knew Bruce liked it.
In the light of day, Clark looked over Bruce’s body, saw the bite marks and hickeys he’d kissed into the pale skin, and felt his stomach turn at the bruises on Bruce’s hips. He made an abortive movement to touch the marks before looking down at his hand and realizing he was still wearing his wedding ring. He snatched his hand back as if he’d been burned. Alfred must have seen it - Alfred knew Clark was married, of course, but catching them together like this, with the band still on Clark’s finger -
“Clark,” Bruce said, cutting across his frantic thoughts. “About last night….”
And here it was - the point where Bruce would end it entirely, send Clark back to Lois, tell him that it was the right thing to do, that they would forget it and try to move on with their lives.
When Clark glanced over at Bruce, he found the other man staring at his coffee cup, his body turned away from the sunlight, away from Clark.
“What?” he asked, and the question came out more as a croak, because he didn’t want to hear the words, didn’t want to give this up.
Bruce frowned at his coffee, and then spoke so quietly Clark might not have heard him if he wasn’t Superman.
“I want you to leave your wife.”
The whole world stood still, and Clark’s heart stopped right along with it, because suddenly, everything fell exactly into place.
He swallowed, took a sip of coffee, and said, “Okay.”
Bruce glanced up at him sharply, shock plain on his face. “Okay?” he said disbelievingly. “That’s all you’re gonna say? Okay?” He paused, took a breath, and continued in the same voice, “This is Lois. Your wife. And you’ll just… walk away from her?”
Clark looked Bruce straight in the eye, because he knew that Bruce needed to truly hear what he said next. “Well… yeah, Bruce. I’m in love with you. What else am I going to do?”
Bruce froze, and the coffee cup looked to be in danger of slipping out of his hands, so Clark grabbed it and set it on the nightstand.
“You’re in love with me.” His voice was so quiet, so perplexed, that Clark almost wanted to cry.
“How could I not be?” he said instead. “You’re my best friend. The person I go to when I need to talk something through, the first one I call when something comes up as Superman that I’m not strong enough to handle on my own. You’re who I think about before I go to sleep every night, the one I dream about, and the first person I want to see when I wake up every morning.” Bruce wasn’t making any move to speak, so Clark plowed on ahead. “You’re brilliant, and passionate, and you challenge me to be better than I ever thought possible.
“So yes, I’m in love with you. How could I not be?”
Bruce stared at him like he was seeing Clark for the very first time, before reaching out to trace Clark’s lips with the tips of his fingers. “You’re in love with me,” he said again, more certain this time, with wonder in his voice.
“Yes, you idiot. So I’ll leave Lois, because even though I love her, I can’t live without you.”
Bruce leaned in and planted a small kiss at the corner of his mouth. “I….” He stopped, then took a deep breath. “I’m in love with you too. I think I’ve been in love with you since the day we met.”
“I’m sorry it took me so long to come around,” Clark whispered.
Bruce smiled. “That’s okay. We have all the time in the world.”