-I need to lay off the black coffee; my dumbass misspelt 'Lois'. I had to go back and edit it lmao-

Usually, you find out you colleague is having a kid by them excitedly telling you, or letting it slip in breakroom gossip. The last thing you expect is to go into work and be giving the assignment of interrogating them about the kid you didn't know about.

Either way, Clark Kent was on his way into Gotham. He couldn't believe it:  What did Bruce Wayne know about children, much less caring for one. And don't even get him started on the whole... Batman thing

Why would someone so angry and heartless, who actively fought violent criminals, want to take in a little eight year old child.  

He looked down at his phone (at a red light, obviously). the messages went something like:

Clark: Are you sure this is real?

Lois: Of course! Haven't you looked at the news?

Clark: I usually don't need to

Lois: Clark, we are the news.This is the biggest scoop this side of Cuba.

Clark: Why do I get the idea I'll be fighting with a few others for this story

Lois: Almost certainly. You'll be lucky to get one quote from him

Clark: Bruce or the kid?

Lois: Either

Clark: Well, I'm here, I'll let you know how it goes

She left him on read after that.

He turned off his phone and slid out of the van. Why couldn't he just get an assignment in Metropolis?

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Dick dared to peak out the curtains. There were a lot of people. It was Two months since... well, since the last time he was at the circus. He'd only been at the manor for a few days, he didn't care to count how many.

"Are they still out there?" Bruce asked to the room. Dick nodded in silence. If Bruce didn't leave in under fifteen seconds, Dick would. He didn't dislike Bruce, he'd been very kind, but being in his presence made Dick feel like a parasite; leeching off Bruce's generosity. the best thing for him to do was stay out of the way. "How are you feeling?"

Dick shrugged. "Good."

Bruce exhaled deeply. Is this what Alfred dealt with for twenty years?

God, how did Alfred handle it? He had no clue how to help the boy, he wanted to, but he didn't know how, at all. Dick spent all his time hiding, and Bruce doubted if he'd said ten words in the four days he'd been there (He counted every hour).

Okay, Bruce wasn't exactly outgoing with the kid, he spent most of his time in the cave under the guise of locating Tony Zucco. He was trying to do that, he obviously wanted to bring justice to Dick, but he'd been actively spending the daylight in the cave. 

He couldn't stand looking at Dick. The shame of not being able to fix this lay heavy on his chest. He wished he could make the boy move on and be happy. But he couldn't

"I'm going to tell them to go away."

"Okay." Dick said quietly. 

"Do you want to help?"

Dick shook his head. "No. thank you."

Bruce left him alone. He took the risk of opening the doorway. After a half-second delay, there was something of a explosion of shouting:

'Mr. Wayne-'

'-it true that you were present on the night-'

'-any different than other children in the foster care system?'

'Where is the boy?'

'-planning to adopt-'

'do you think you're qualified-'

'-in Gotham?'

'-school?'

"EVERYONE STOP." Bruce pinched between his eyes. No way was he was getting rid of them so easily. 

"Mr. Wayne, will you answer a few-"

"I said, stop." He repeated. It was clear he wouldn't get out of this so easily. "Okay, five minutes. one at a time." He closed his eyes for a second, breathing deeply. He opened his eyes and pointed into the crowd. "Yes?"

"Mr. Wayne, of all the children currently in the foster care systems, why would you choose to take in a child who was only recently orphaned."

Bruce didn't need to think about it, but he pretended to, just to waste time. "Well, I was there on the night, and I empathised. I never planned to foster a child before that day..." Shit, he could've phrased that a lot better.

He tiredly pointed to another reporter. "You say you never planned to foster a child until about two months ago, do you think you're equipped to care for a child."

"I hope so, I've been doing my best so far." It was half-true, but didn't portray his pure terror of fostering Dick. "Yes, you." He nodded to someone in the back. The someone straightened up. SHIT. He knew that person! What the HELL was Clark doing in Gotham?

Bruce kept a poker face, staring discrete draggers into the crowd.

"Uh, yes- uh-" Clark stared at his notes, how was Bruce able to hit him with a batglare without anyone else noticing? "Are you considering potentially adopting The kid?"

"Richard?"

"Yeah." Clark had forgotten Dick's name.

Bruce actually struggled with that one. He already felt the need to protect Dick, and the idea of someone else adopting the boy made him uncomfortable, worried, and a little... Jealous? That's a weird thing to feel, considering the situation.

He didn't know if he could let Dick stay; Bruce Wayne was always busy, and Batman got injured. A lot. He didn't know how he'd raise a child on top of everything. 

Still, he couldn't put Dick though more, he couldn't make him feel unwanted.

"That's a very personal question." He sidestepped. "and, seeing as Dick only came to live with me four days ago, we're both still very overwhelmed."

Perfect.

That was the best possible way for him to avoid the question. But, knowing the press, they'd probably introduce their own narrative, anyways.

He essentially just sidestepped every other question for the next three minutes. Kicking them out was the best thing he'd felt all week.

Clark waited around slightly, pretending he'd dropped something. 

"Can I help you?"

Clark practically jumped from his skin. How did Bruce sneak across a gravel driveway in silence? "Uh yeah, I'd like to ask you a few things."

"Sorry, I'm asking all reporters off the property."

Clark sighed and tore his glasses off. "Now can I ask you?"

"No."

Clark looked around them. "I thought it was weird that I hadn't seen in the tower much over the past few weeks. I thought it was just... life, so imagine my surprise when I got my latest assignment last night, and it was about Bruce Wayne's new ward."

"Mr. Kent, if you don't leave my property, I will contact the authorities, along with your superiors at The Daily Planet."

"Look, Bruce, I respect that's it's your choice-"

"You clearly don't, since you still haven't left yet."

"Bruce, he's so young!" Clark sighed. "He needs a proper family, and no offence, but you don't seem qualified to help him work through his trouble..."

"I didn't ask for your input."

"You didn't have to! Bruce- are you sure you can take in a child? He needs a parent who is available to help him, not one who goes off every night, fighting crime."

Bruce stared at him, simultaneously angry and emotionless... some how. "Get off my property."

"Bruce-"

"Now."

Hit with a stinging glare from Bruce, he started to turn away, when his eyes caught a tiny face, peaking at him through the curtains. He forced a smile, and nodded at the face. Bruce dropped his glare and glanced back at the curtain, just in time to see Dick duck out of sight of the windows.

"Can I at least see the kid?"

"No." Bruce stated, pointing at the open gate off the property. 

"Another time, then." Clark said, he didn't trust Bruce with this poor, little, boy. He just wanted to make sure the kid wasn't being emotionally neglected.

"No. Leave." Bruce glared him out, and locked the door. Clark didn't trust him with Dick. Whatever, Bruce was not taking parenting advice from some fucker with living parents.