[AU] SV Futureverse

[dovelike]

Metropolis Children's Hospital

Days like today are what keep Eirene coming back to this small hospital in the middle of Kansas. Watching a thirteen year old with once-inoperable pancreatic cancer walk down the hallway to her parents, who are standing with the resident cancer specialist and trying to figure out what happened.

Eirene knows and she glances down at her hands with a faint smile.Miracles. One 'twenty year old' volunteer can do more in the weekend mornings she volunteers than the vicious decease still trying to kill a host of other kids on this floor. If she's lucky, she can save another life today, but her energy reserves haven't been replenished by rest in the last few days.

She's settled into a booth at the corner diner not half an hour later, sipping an herbal tea and flipping through the Planet for anything out of the ordinary. For the curious: she looks like any other college student; a Met U sweater, jeans and Birkenstocks.

Comments

[eirenikos]

Yeah, Eirene'd place her money on Chloe too. The woman is more stubborn than a locomotive when she wants to be.

"Yes, yes it is." The rueful grin on her face, because, hey, she just kissed him for the firs time in years, suggests that Clark isn't the only one who's been celibate.

"How about I buy you lunch and you catch me up on ... everything?"

[hero_farmboy]

"Sure. Lunch sounds great. And you can do the same."

Beat.

"At least on things from your end. I think Chloe's about talked my ears off over the past few weeks making sure I knew every minute detail of every news event that's happened since I left."

Which would be why the Batman comment didn't get much of a reaction. Clark might even be tagging along with Lois next week when she skips off to Gotham to interview one Bruce Wayne for the society pages.

[eirenikos]

Aha. Which means Clark probably knows how many times she's visited her 'cousin' since he left to go meditate with polar bears. Could be why she's blushing. Probably. Also, if she knew Clark had a future chance to meet Batman, she'd be totally jealous.

"Groovy. Here or somewhere else? With tables." Since he's packed into the booth like a tuna in a sardine can ... and she really has been hanging out with AC too much. It's not her fault he's the closest thing she really has to family here.

[hero_farmboy]

Chloe, to no one's surprise, has been somewhat coy in talking about what Eirene has and hasn't been up to, or how many times. Probably because it's been often enough that she's lost count - five years is a long time, after all - but also because she feels it's up to Eirene to tell him. He can respect that.

It doesn't mean he hasn't asked Chloe about it regardless.

"Wherever you like. I'm not really up on what the good places to eat are around here anymore."

[eirenikos]

"Fair enough. How about we stay here and get a table, because you look like you're not trying to breath so the table doesn't break." Also, Eirene's starting to get hungry, now that the strain of her recent activities has begun to fade.

Lifting a hand into the air, she holds it up long enough to get the attention of the waitress. "There's an excellent steakery place a few blocks from here."

[hero_farmboy]

Clark chuckles softly, because while it's not quite that bad (he's lost a little weight being away from a home cooked meal every night) he would be more comfortable with a bit of extra breathing room.

The waitress arrives after a moment and leads them to a table, only to roll her eyes but silently acquiesce when Clark requests a table more out of the way.

When he and Eirene are re-seated he frowns looking at the menu. "I don't think our waitress likes me very much."

[eirenikos]

Clark, to no one's surprise, is big. Regardless if he's suffered through the loss of his mother's food or not. Also, unsurprisingly, Eirene is trying to further that comfort along. Sometimes it's a handy thing to date an empath.

At least their new table affords a nice measure of privacy; or, at least, as much as you can get inside a popular diner at lunchtime. She already knows what she wants, so the goddess ignores her menu in favor of the conversation.

"O, you she likes just fine. It's me she's not too happy with."

[hero_farmboy]

"What, did you two get off on the wrong foot before I got here?" He can't really imagine anyone not liking Eirene. Five years hasn't changed some of the obliviousness, it seems.

The menu is disregarded after only a few moments; Clark's known all along what he wants, it's just curiosity more than anything else that he flipped through from drinks to dessert. He can't shake the feeling that despite all of Chloe and his mothers reassurances, there's something majorly different about the world and he just hasn't cottoned on to it yet.

[eirenikos]

"Not exactly." She tilts her head, watching him for a few seconds, and then sighs - having come to the conclusion that she'll have to explain. "She thinks you're cute, Clark, and is therefore annoyed because I'm talking to you and she isn't." If he doesn't get that, then there may be a bit of interpretive dance involved to get the point across.

There is something different now, very dark and menacing. Luthor has become the supervillain he was meant to be. Through AC, Eirene has even met some of the others assembled to fight against him, and has played nurse a time or ten for injured heroes.

When the waitress finally decides to come back, though, she's quick with, "Could I have an ice tea and a cup of the chowder, please?"

[hero_farmboy]

Well. Lex is something Clark was almost expecting. Chloe's kept a file for him and when he hasn't been slowly trying to make his way back into society, he's been pouring over the clipping and reports she's saved over the years, detailing exactly what Lex has become, and how the world has responded.

This would be why it's taken weeks for him to finally decide a job might not be a bad idea. What he's more concerned about, oddly, is that it'll suddenly start raining fish or something equally strange and he'll be the only one confused because it just does that now.

He's lost count how many times his mom has told him it's natural to feel out of place after all this time and he tries to chalk the feeling up to just that, but some days are harder than others.

"Oh." He hazards a glance up at the waitress when she returns to take their order, asking for a burger, fries and a coke with another polite smile.

[eirenikos]

Eirene has a small idea of what Clark is going through, aside from the empathic thing, having been parted from the people on her world for a number of years as well, though the circumstances were vastly different. It allows her to reach over and lace her fingers in his without comment.

Or, several minutes without comment while the waitress jots down the orders and then flounces off again.

Shyly: "I'm here two more weeks," she always stays for a month and then re-invades the Bar, "so if you want help with that furniture stuff, I wouldn't mind lending a hand."

[hero_farmboy]

"I'd like that," he replies, resting his free hand atop their joined ones. "I got everything I had from storage, so I have a couch and a bed, at least, and a couple of old dressers, but I pretty much need everything else."

He pauses for a moment's thought. "Plus I have the truck, so we could go back up to Smallville for a day or something and check out some of the second hand stores." Rural is cheaper, after all. "Of course, it's not like I have much room."

[eirenikos]

"A couch, a bed and two dressers." The smile becomes a grin, and the grin morphs into a brief giggle. Then another. "You are such a guy, Clark. Okay, we'll go hit up second hand stores. I can paint anything ugly we find. How big is the apartment, so I know what size of stuff to look for?"

You'll have to excuse Eirene. She saw Oliver Queen's apartment once and had to be physically carried out because his couch was too comfortable to move. Also, she was asleep at the time.

[hero_farmboy]

He doesn't even have a TV yet.

"I'm a guy who sort of dropped out of the materialistic race for a while. I have a lot of catching up to do." He takes another moment to think about his apartment. "It's... not that big. One bedroom about three blocks outside Suicide Slums, so stuff that isn't going to take up much more space than I am."

[eirenikos]

Which is clearly an invitation to look over and admire the man across from her. And after a minute of that, when her pulse is racing faster than normal, "So you want a small table, probably that sits two or three comfortably, and four a little cozy. Probably a small desk for your computer or laptop. Coffee table. Nightstand next to the bed. Maybe a couple pictures or other wall art."

Though, if he asked, she'd make things for his apartment at the drop of a hat.

[hero_farmboy]

He nods at all her suggestions, although the art gets a bit of a face pulled at it.

"How about we just concentrate on the basics and we can leave esthetics for later." Remember, this is the man who was, in fact, raised in a barn. Then, oh so casually, "If you wanted, you could come take a look at it after lunch so you have a better idea. I do have a coffee maker." It was a house warming gift. Three guesses who from.

[eirenikos]

"Okay. I'll sneak paintings in later." She grins, falling silent as the drinks arrive, and inhales half of the tea in one go, proving she's stretched a little more thin that previously admitted to, and then blinks.

"Sure, I just gotta go back and try to heal that other kid tonight."

[hero_farmboy]

"Eirene," he says and then stops, thinking how best to put this. "I think you can take the night off to rest. You'll be better able to help him if you go in the morning with your energy back."

[eirenikos]

Sigh. He's going to be stubborn about this. Nevermind that's he's right, it's just that Eirene wants to save one more kid.

"Alright. In the interest of you not glaring at me," bright grin, "I'll take the night off." Beat. "Provided you keep me occupied for some of it." Or she'll go nuts without something to do in the motel room.

[hero_farmboy]

"I think I can handle that," he agrees, taking a sip of coke. Ah, sugar. He missed sugar.

He has the distinct feeling, however, that she'll be so mortified at the spartan state of his living quarters that she'll demand they do something to it immediately. Either that or she can help him with his "How I spent the last five years soul searching" as his first test article for Perry.

[eirenikos]

Clark should hope he doesn't live within easy reach of a paint store, then, if he thinks his apartment will horrify the girlfriend. Especially since she's in the sort of mood that might lead to full contact body painting. Maybe. The result would certainly be a conversation starter.

"Groovy." She'd be happy to help with either option, seeing as how she'd find out what the training was like.

[hero_farmboy]

Eirene may find out on her way there. They'll be walking, public transportation aside.

He grins at her in response, but then the food arrives and well, he hasn't had enough hamburgers to make up for not having one for as long as he did and she's momentarily forgotten in favour of red meat.

After a few bites, "So, what else do you do when you're here besides visit kids in the hospital?"

[eirenikos]

Walking is awesome. Or, rather, some walking and some blurring, though she'll behave since Clark's around.

Eirene politely waits until he's devoured most of his burger, sedately eating her own meal (one spoon of chowder at a time) and occasionally sipping at her tea until she deems it safe to actually answer that question.

"Oh, I've been bandaging up and providing moral support for a certain four-person team of idiots who repeatedly go up against bad guys."

[hero_farmboy]

"So I've read." Chloe might be respectful of Eirene's activities, but those records she's been keeping for Clark are detailed because they have to be. "Thanks for that, by the way." Anything that keeps Chloe out of the morgue on a regular basis is something he's in favour of.

[eirenikos]

"No thanks necessary. AC is family, Chloe's family, the rest of them are knuckleheads who need a keeper." Eirene is, when she's there, a very non strict keeper. "Besides, it's given me a chance to see another side to relatives that I never would have thought possible. Dad's kinda nice here."