Fic: A Christmas to Remember
Fandom: Superman/Batman-I had no particular version in mind I think the movies, comics, or the Timmverse all fit.
Rating: PG
Pairings: Bruce/Clark
Disclaimer: I own nothing. The two boys are property of the DC Company, unless they’re having more copyrights disputes.
Summary: Bruce and Clark are sent on vacation. Both are determined to have a miserable time. Things don’t quite work out the way they planned.
A Christmas to Remember
"You’ve made this a Christmas to remember
Springtime feelings in the middle of December
Strangers meet and willing surrender
Oh! What a Christmas to remember"
-A Christmas to Remember, Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers
Bruce Wayne was going to fire his butler. Or at least not eat any cookies he offered for a month. Alfred had insisted he needed a vacation and as an early Christmas present had made arrangements for a week long stay far away from the dark streets of Gotham, and so Bruce found himself unpacking a suitcase in a lodge in Whistler, Canada. He didn’t even like skiing! What the hell was he supposed to do for seven days? Oh, there was other stuff to do of course, but that would require going out in public without the aid of hats and scarves. Bruce Wayne wouldn’t be caught dead exercising of course and being at the pool would only increase his changes of being recognized by scantly clad women. He didn’t want to be here and have to play Brucie on top of it all.
He finished unpacking and flipped on the television where a familiar Christmas special was on.
“Bah humbug!”
“You said it.”
***
Clark Kent was sure the raffle had been rigged. He had only entered once, the money had been going to a good cause after all, he had seen some people entering at least ten times, how had he won? He didn’t even need a seven day getaway ski vacation in Whistler! He had tried to tell his mother that hoping she might like to go or knew someone else who would. Instead she had just told him to have a wonderful time and let her know if he met anyone nice. He had also tried to give it away at work, but everyone already had plans; and so Clark found himself at the front desk as the lodge employees tried to figure out what happened to his room reservation.
“Well sir it appears there was a mix-up and your room went to another couple. I do have another room available for tonight and I’m sure will have this all straightened out for tomorrow.”
Clark sighed, he had been so close to getting out of it. With his room card in hand and his suitcase he trudged off to the elevators. Arriving at his floor he entered his room, dropped his suitcase onto the bed, and pulled open the drapes to see he had a wonderful view of the lodge parking lot.
Merry Christmas to me.
***
The next day was crisp and cold and Clark had gotten to the slopes early hoping to have a few less dozen people around to see him make an idiot of himself. This had turned out to be a good decision as Clark discovered that he was abysmal at the art of moving down a steep hill on polished toothpicks.
Meanwhile Bruce had also hit the slopes early too figuring if he stayed out long enough maybe he would catch pneumonia or maybe break his leg and then Alfred would feel guilty and agree that he should stay home next year. The broken leg seemed to be the better option at the moment he thought, as he watched a man in front of him fall flat on his face for the third time and they weren’t half way down the slope yet. Well at least there was someone up here having a worst time than he was. Carefully Bruce worked his way down to see if he needed help.
“Well I can tell you’re new at this.”
Clark looked up to see a man dressed in black snow-gear.
“What gave it away?”
“Well for one thing the fact that you don’t even know how to fall.”
Clark tried not to blush while Bruce offered him his hand and pulled him up.
“You know they do have classes for this sort of thing,” Bruce said, as Clark dusted snow off his jacket.
“I didn’t think it was worth it for something I never want to do again.”
“If you don’t like this, may I ask why you’re here?”
“Won this trip in a raffle, and I really just wanted to support the cause. I tried to pawn it off on someone else, but everyone insisted I go and so here I am.”
“You could have stayed off the slopes.”
“I thought if I broke my arm maybe they’d feel guilty.”
Bruce chuckled. “Well as nice at that sounds I could help you down if you want.”
“Thank you umm…”
“Bruce Wayne.”
“Clark Kent-wait, Bruce Wayne? As in billionaire Bruce Wayne?”
“Yes and don’t spread it around I’m trying to keep a low profile.”
“So you decided to stay at one of the most popular Christmas vacations spots?”
“My butler’s idea. For some reason he thought I needed a vacation and practically threw me on the plane up here, shall we?”
Clark paid close attention to Bruce’s instructions and, as they began moving down again, he watched his body twist and turn in time to the hill. He was graceful and well filled out he could see why women tended to lose themselves around him…and himself too apparently as he came back from La La land just long enough to steer himself right into another snow drift. Bruce came over again as Clark picked himself up feeling like a total idiot.
“Are you all right?”
“Yeah, this happens all the time. I think my body’s developed an extra layer of protection with me being such a klutz.”
Bruce laughed again; Clark enjoyed hearing it. “Like a coating of steel?” Bruce asked.
“Yeah, something like that.”
***
Three hours and several falls down the mountain later both men were ready to call it a day.
“Well I’ve had all the fun, fun, fun I can handle.”
“You know it is actually kind of fun when you don’t spend half the time face first in the snow. You know I really can’t thank you enough for this, Bruce.”
“You don’t have to thank me.”
“Well at least let me do something to repay you. I hear this one café by the lodge makes the best hot chocolate the side of the Rockies, my treat.”
“All right.”
Bruce let Clark lead the way while admiring how well he filled out that dorky looking snowsuit.
***
After the hot chocolate someone had suggested an early dinner and after heading back to the lodge to change Clark stood outside Bruce’s door adjusting and re-adjusting his tie. Bruce opened the door and Clark got a good look at the room he was staying in.
“Wow.”
“Money has its uses at times.”
“No kidding! This is amazing mine looks like such a dump by comparison. I swear I must have the smallest darkest room in the whole place. This makes me never want to go back there.”
***
Dinner had been spectacular, and went late into the night do to an inexhaustible amount of topics for conversation. Clark insist on seeing Bruce back to his room afterwards, because he couldn’t in good conscience let Bruce go back on his own after all that eggnog.
They came back up a different set of elevators and were admiring several decorations when it happened. Both men looked up above their heads at same time to see a tell tale plant hanging in the archway.
“I’m usually so good at avoiding that stuff,” Bruce said.
Clark dropped his eyes to floor feeling foolish for thinking that maybe there might be anything at all between them; until Bruce leaned in and kissed him tenderly under the mistletoe.
The rest of the week flew by in a haze of more skiing, several dinners together, an entire evening spent watching Christmas specials, and Clark never did return to his room.
On Christmas Eve most of the lodge guests could be found in a spacious meeting room drinking, virgin, eggnog and singing Christmas carols. Clark even managed to get Bruce to sing a few bars of ‘Do you hear what I hear’.
“You have a wonderful singing voice you know.”
“Don’t spread it around.”
At the end of it all they headed back up to Bruce’s room to admire how much each others' skin glowed in the warm fire light.
***
Christmas morning dawned bright and clear. Bruce opened his eyes and looked out the window at the clean crisp mountain view. Seeing the world like that it almost made Bruce forget the everywhere wasn’t like this. That his home wasn’t in need of him and that he could just stay like this, with him, forever. He rolled over looked at the man asleep beside him. Clark was so happy and content…and now he had to wreck it. Still he lay there in silence, until the last possible moment, taking in just how beautiful he was as Clark woke up.
“Good morning.”
“Hey.”
“What is it?” Clark asked sitting up wondering if he had done something wrong last night.
“Clark, I don’t think we can continue this beyond here.”
“What?! Why?”
“Because life isn’t a vacation, Clark, I have responsibilities and I just… can’t do this. Not now.”
Here he could forget about Gotham and Batman, but the city still needed him and to truly focus on the mission there couldn’t be distractions. Especially distractions that had piercing blue eyes and who wanted to see him happy, there was no place for Clark in the real world.
As Bruce wallowed in his thoughts so did Clark and though he didn’t wanted to admit it he knew deep down that Bruce was right. People always acted differently on vacation and all of this had happened so fast. When he finally returned to the real world again Clark Kent would go back to being an on the go ace reporter and Superman would go back to being needed. Bruce Wayne didn’t have a place in that world. Not now maybe not ever.
“You’re right. There’s just one thing I want to know.”
Bruce stilled, was it possible Clark had seen the reserve costume had put in his suitcase just in case?
“Can we do this next winter?”
***
Another year was nearly over and it had been a busy one. An alien invasion, discovering team-mates, forming a Justice League, and getting a watchtower into orbit, sometimes Superman was amazed they were all still standing. The year had been full of surprises as well. He glanced over to the man in black that hovered over a monitor. It was still hard to believe that Batman and that man he’d met in the mountains were one and the same. He supposed it was hard for Bruce to believe that that soft-spoken klutz on the slopes was the indestructible Superman the held up fallen bridges and flew around saving kittens from trees. Still the discovery hadn’t changed what they had agreed upon, the relationship had formed there and it would stay there. Not that Clark would have minded it to be otherwise. He smiled wistfully as the memories drifted back to him. Then frowned, Batman probably wanted to forget all about it. They were co-workers now and that was just one more reason why they shouldn’t be together. Among the dozen of others that Batman probably had a whole alphabetical, categorized list of on his computer. Still it couldn’t hurt to just have a friendly conversation with him.
“So do you have any holiday plans?”
“The usual, crime doesn’t stop just because it’s December.”
“You’re allowed to take a vacation you know.”
“I don’t do vacations. What about you? What are your plans?”
“Promised Ma and Pa I’d come by tonight and afterwards, well nothing really.”
There he’d left an opening just in case Bruce was willing to keep that promise made last Christmas.
“Sounds nice,” Batman said, and went back to work on the computer.
Clark sighed and wandered off to look out a window in defeat. No mention of any joint get-together at all. So that was it then. It was really over. He was so caught up is self-pity the he almost didn’t notice when Batman handed him an envelope. Batman didn’t wait for him to open it and instead left the monitor room in a swirl of black.
As Clark opened the small envelope, his eyes grew wide as a room key-card fell out. He smiled as he pulled off the note wrapped around it and read it.
Same time, same place. I’ll be waiting.
Merry Christmas, Clark.
The End
Rating: PG
Pairings: Bruce/Clark
Disclaimer: I own nothing. The two boys are property of the DC Company, unless they’re having more copyrights disputes.
Summary: Bruce and Clark are sent on vacation. Both are determined to have a miserable time. Things don’t quite work out the way they planned.
A Christmas to Remember
"You’ve made this a Christmas to remember
Springtime feelings in the middle of December
Strangers meet and willing surrender
Oh! What a Christmas to remember"
-A Christmas to Remember, Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers
Bruce Wayne was going to fire his butler. Or at least not eat any cookies he offered for a month. Alfred had insisted he needed a vacation and as an early Christmas present had made arrangements for a week long stay far away from the dark streets of Gotham, and so Bruce found himself unpacking a suitcase in a lodge in Whistler, Canada. He didn’t even like skiing! What the hell was he supposed to do for seven days? Oh, there was other stuff to do of course, but that would require going out in public without the aid of hats and scarves. Bruce Wayne wouldn’t be caught dead exercising of course and being at the pool would only increase his changes of being recognized by scantly clad women. He didn’t want to be here and have to play Brucie on top of it all.
He finished unpacking and flipped on the television where a familiar Christmas special was on.
“Bah humbug!”
“You said it.”
***
Clark Kent was sure the raffle had been rigged. He had only entered once, the money had been going to a good cause after all, he had seen some people entering at least ten times, how had he won? He didn’t even need a seven day getaway ski vacation in Whistler! He had tried to tell his mother that hoping she might like to go or knew someone else who would. Instead she had just told him to have a wonderful time and let her know if he met anyone nice. He had also tried to give it away at work, but everyone already had plans; and so Clark found himself at the front desk as the lodge employees tried to figure out what happened to his room reservation.
“Well sir it appears there was a mix-up and your room went to another couple. I do have another room available for tonight and I’m sure will have this all straightened out for tomorrow.”
Clark sighed, he had been so close to getting out of it. With his room card in hand and his suitcase he trudged off to the elevators. Arriving at his floor he entered his room, dropped his suitcase onto the bed, and pulled open the drapes to see he had a wonderful view of the lodge parking lot.
Merry Christmas to me.
***
The next day was crisp and cold and Clark had gotten to the slopes early hoping to have a few less dozen people around to see him make an idiot of himself. This had turned out to be a good decision as Clark discovered that he was abysmal at the art of moving down a steep hill on polished toothpicks.
Meanwhile Bruce had also hit the slopes early too figuring if he stayed out long enough maybe he would catch pneumonia or maybe break his leg and then Alfred would feel guilty and agree that he should stay home next year. The broken leg seemed to be the better option at the moment he thought, as he watched a man in front of him fall flat on his face for the third time and they weren’t half way down the slope yet. Well at least there was someone up here having a worst time than he was. Carefully Bruce worked his way down to see if he needed help.
“Well I can tell you’re new at this.”
Clark looked up to see a man dressed in black snow-gear.
“What gave it away?”
“Well for one thing the fact that you don’t even know how to fall.”
Clark tried not to blush while Bruce offered him his hand and pulled him up.
“You know they do have classes for this sort of thing,” Bruce said, as Clark dusted snow off his jacket.
“I didn’t think it was worth it for something I never want to do again.”
“If you don’t like this, may I ask why you’re here?”
“Won this trip in a raffle, and I really just wanted to support the cause. I tried to pawn it off on someone else, but everyone insisted I go and so here I am.”
“You could have stayed off the slopes.”
“I thought if I broke my arm maybe they’d feel guilty.”
Bruce chuckled. “Well as nice at that sounds I could help you down if you want.”
“Thank you umm…”
“Bruce Wayne.”
“Clark Kent-wait, Bruce Wayne? As in billionaire Bruce Wayne?”
“Yes and don’t spread it around I’m trying to keep a low profile.”
“So you decided to stay at one of the most popular Christmas vacations spots?”
“My butler’s idea. For some reason he thought I needed a vacation and practically threw me on the plane up here, shall we?”
Clark paid close attention to Bruce’s instructions and, as they began moving down again, he watched his body twist and turn in time to the hill. He was graceful and well filled out he could see why women tended to lose themselves around him…and himself too apparently as he came back from La La land just long enough to steer himself right into another snow drift. Bruce came over again as Clark picked himself up feeling like a total idiot.
“Are you all right?”
“Yeah, this happens all the time. I think my body’s developed an extra layer of protection with me being such a klutz.”
Bruce laughed again; Clark enjoyed hearing it. “Like a coating of steel?” Bruce asked.
“Yeah, something like that.”
***
Three hours and several falls down the mountain later both men were ready to call it a day.
“Well I’ve had all the fun, fun, fun I can handle.”
“You know it is actually kind of fun when you don’t spend half the time face first in the snow. You know I really can’t thank you enough for this, Bruce.”
“You don’t have to thank me.”
“Well at least let me do something to repay you. I hear this one café by the lodge makes the best hot chocolate the side of the Rockies, my treat.”
“All right.”
Bruce let Clark lead the way while admiring how well he filled out that dorky looking snowsuit.
***
After the hot chocolate someone had suggested an early dinner and after heading back to the lodge to change Clark stood outside Bruce’s door adjusting and re-adjusting his tie. Bruce opened the door and Clark got a good look at the room he was staying in.
“Wow.”
“Money has its uses at times.”
“No kidding! This is amazing mine looks like such a dump by comparison. I swear I must have the smallest darkest room in the whole place. This makes me never want to go back there.”
***
Dinner had been spectacular, and went late into the night do to an inexhaustible amount of topics for conversation. Clark insist on seeing Bruce back to his room afterwards, because he couldn’t in good conscience let Bruce go back on his own after all that eggnog.
They came back up a different set of elevators and were admiring several decorations when it happened. Both men looked up above their heads at same time to see a tell tale plant hanging in the archway.
“I’m usually so good at avoiding that stuff,” Bruce said.
Clark dropped his eyes to floor feeling foolish for thinking that maybe there might be anything at all between them; until Bruce leaned in and kissed him tenderly under the mistletoe.
The rest of the week flew by in a haze of more skiing, several dinners together, an entire evening spent watching Christmas specials, and Clark never did return to his room.
On Christmas Eve most of the lodge guests could be found in a spacious meeting room drinking, virgin, eggnog and singing Christmas carols. Clark even managed to get Bruce to sing a few bars of ‘Do you hear what I hear’.
“You have a wonderful singing voice you know.”
“Don’t spread it around.”
At the end of it all they headed back up to Bruce’s room to admire how much each others' skin glowed in the warm fire light.
***
Christmas morning dawned bright and clear. Bruce opened his eyes and looked out the window at the clean crisp mountain view. Seeing the world like that it almost made Bruce forget the everywhere wasn’t like this. That his home wasn’t in need of him and that he could just stay like this, with him, forever. He rolled over looked at the man asleep beside him. Clark was so happy and content…and now he had to wreck it. Still he lay there in silence, until the last possible moment, taking in just how beautiful he was as Clark woke up.
“Good morning.”
“Hey.”
“What is it?” Clark asked sitting up wondering if he had done something wrong last night.
“Clark, I don’t think we can continue this beyond here.”
“What?! Why?”
“Because life isn’t a vacation, Clark, I have responsibilities and I just… can’t do this. Not now.”
Here he could forget about Gotham and Batman, but the city still needed him and to truly focus on the mission there couldn’t be distractions. Especially distractions that had piercing blue eyes and who wanted to see him happy, there was no place for Clark in the real world.
As Bruce wallowed in his thoughts so did Clark and though he didn’t wanted to admit it he knew deep down that Bruce was right. People always acted differently on vacation and all of this had happened so fast. When he finally returned to the real world again Clark Kent would go back to being an on the go ace reporter and Superman would go back to being needed. Bruce Wayne didn’t have a place in that world. Not now maybe not ever.
“You’re right. There’s just one thing I want to know.”
Bruce stilled, was it possible Clark had seen the reserve costume had put in his suitcase just in case?
“Can we do this next winter?”
***
Another year was nearly over and it had been a busy one. An alien invasion, discovering team-mates, forming a Justice League, and getting a watchtower into orbit, sometimes Superman was amazed they were all still standing. The year had been full of surprises as well. He glanced over to the man in black that hovered over a monitor. It was still hard to believe that Batman and that man he’d met in the mountains were one and the same. He supposed it was hard for Bruce to believe that that soft-spoken klutz on the slopes was the indestructible Superman the held up fallen bridges and flew around saving kittens from trees. Still the discovery hadn’t changed what they had agreed upon, the relationship had formed there and it would stay there. Not that Clark would have minded it to be otherwise. He smiled wistfully as the memories drifted back to him. Then frowned, Batman probably wanted to forget all about it. They were co-workers now and that was just one more reason why they shouldn’t be together. Among the dozen of others that Batman probably had a whole alphabetical, categorized list of on his computer. Still it couldn’t hurt to just have a friendly conversation with him.
“So do you have any holiday plans?”
“The usual, crime doesn’t stop just because it’s December.”
“You’re allowed to take a vacation you know.”
“I don’t do vacations. What about you? What are your plans?”
“Promised Ma and Pa I’d come by tonight and afterwards, well nothing really.”
There he’d left an opening just in case Bruce was willing to keep that promise made last Christmas.
“Sounds nice,” Batman said, and went back to work on the computer.
Clark sighed and wandered off to look out a window in defeat. No mention of any joint get-together at all. So that was it then. It was really over. He was so caught up is self-pity the he almost didn’t notice when Batman handed him an envelope. Batman didn’t wait for him to open it and instead left the monitor room in a swirl of black.
As Clark opened the small envelope, his eyes grew wide as a room key-card fell out. He smiled as he pulled off the note wrapped around it and read it.
Same time, same place. I’ll be waiting.
Merry Christmas, Clark.
The End