A door on the front of a house opens. A house.. located in Smallville, Kansas. A house, that house, with that door, is located on a farm that just so happens to be in Smallville, Kansas.
An excited boy runs out of that house, a baseball mitt on one hand, clearly happy to be doing whatever he’s doing.. and an older man, exits behind him. The older man is chuckling, watching the boy leave the house. He doesn’t speak quite yet, but the man is starting to show signs of aging. A bit out of shape, maybe a little bald, not as quick as he used to be. But the smile on his face shows that he’s happy to be here with his boy. And that’s all that will ever, ever matter. To either of them.
With a chuckle, the man finally speaks as he steps onto the porch of the house, staring upwards into the sky while raising a hand over his eyes to protect from the sun a bit.
“.. c’mon, Clark. Don’t go too far out, your old man doesn’t have the throwing arm he used to.”
He says, smiling down at his boy, his son— Clark Kent. Who, with a big smile, responds himself. The only way he knows how.
“.. I’m not! You just don’t usually wanna do this, anymore. C’mon, I can feel it! I’m getting better at it, really.”
Clark says, running out just a bit further, and looking back at the man who’d raised him. And the man laughs a bit, and pitches the ball to Clark, who catches it, as the man speaks. The man, his name was Jonathan. Jonathan Kent. And Jonathan Kent was a good man.
“You are, son. You are. There was a time when I was scared to let ya’ throw this ball. Scared you’d break a window.. or three. But how you’ve managed to pull your strength back, it’s..”
Caught up in his reminiscing, he almost doesn’t even notice Clark pitching the ball back to him. He catches it, but it’s a close call, having to jog a bit to ensure it didn’t hit the house. Clark’s eyes widen a little in fear, the son of the Kent family reaching back to rub his neck a little. Must’ve gotten too excited. Ever since he learned that he had extraordinary gifts, he had struggled to truly control them. It’s both a gift.. and a curse.
Clark immediately yells out a “sorry!” to the man that had raised him, and the man waves a hand to dismiss it. He knows his boy meant no harm. If he had, he hadn’t raised him properly. From the day Clark was taken in, before all that even, all Jonathan Kent wanted to do was help people. He was a good man. He had his flaws, same as anybody else. But all him and his wife had ever wanted to do was be good people. To see the beauty in life.
Then, when their boy came to them..
.. there was nothing more beautiful.
The man chuckles and toss the ball back to his son, and his son catches. Despite everything, the abilities, the.. extraterrestrial nature of his boy, he sees himself in him. But he doesn’t put that onto him.
See, the boy’s path is his own. How he does good, how he helps people. He can’t tell him what to do. The only thing he can do is guide him, and hope he makes his own path. The best path this planet has ever seen. These planet has seen a lot of mishaps. Failures, morally, as a people. But.. if he himself can do one thing, it’s do right by his family. And that boy is going to do great things.
There’s a moment where Clark looks down at the ball in his hands, and then back up, at his old man. He’s a little more gentle this time; and it’s a caught ball. But Pa chuckles, and stares at Clark. A happy glimmer in his eye. They hadn’t done this in awhile. The man, well.. he really was getting older. Physical activity like this, it was getting more difficult. But it made him think back to a time when everything was more simple. When babies didn’t fall from the sky, like a shooting star. Not causing a wish. But answering one.
Clark can’t help but smile too, though.. for different reasons. He’s just happy to see his father up and moving, outside, enjoying the day. It’s a beautiful day. The kind of day that makes you appreciate life. Living, really. And then, eyes up, as Jonathan throws the ball high into the air, just for Clark to leap up and catch it. No flight, but.. definitely an inhuman leap. Before coming back down, with a laugh; though the laugh was short-lived, as dirt and debris fly out, some moving against the house rather harshly. Causing both of them to flinch.. and for the older of the two to chuckle, and help to adjust their positions. Clark now with his back towards the house; probably for the best. If only you knew how many times he’d broken windows on accident.
“.. sorry,” says the boy, chuckling and rubbing the back of his head. There’s a smile, and a nod from his caretaker. Obviously he meant no harm, they both just got a bit overzealous.
He then holds onto the ball, before aiming.. and throwing. He was a bit more confident, this time. Maybe a little overly so. Just like before.
Pa, well.. he doesn’t see it as such. He sees how the ball is going. And he’s feeling good. He backs up.. and up.. and up. Rushing himself, knowing that if he doesn’t move, he’s going to miss it. And he does catch it. And he smiles at Clark, and Clark is.. happy. And his father is happy, too.
“Great throw, Cl—..”
The sentence isn’t finished. Not clearly. There’s a deep inhale, and a deep exhale. And a hand on the chest, for the father. Something’s wrong. Clark can hear it, his heart’s moving too fast. Breathing too hard. He’d stressed himself out. There’s a sprint, and a catch, before the man can fall. Glove off in a moment’s notice. Immediately beginning to help the man over to the porch of the house they’d both walked in and out of so many times.
There’s.. immediate comfort for the man, able to sit, and breathe. And his son, who was his greatest gift, wraps his arms around him. There’s a silent apology. But the man, well. He doesn’t do anything but look his boy in the eyes, and hug him. He kisses the top of his head.
He doesn’t think the boy notices, but there’s a silent tear. Silent, if it weren’t for the boy not hearing the sniffle. His hearing is a little too impressive, for his own good.
And somehow, someway. They aren’t sure how they’re going to make it. Money’s tight. But the only way their family does this, is together. The only way the world works, is together. No matter the price. No matter the cost.
Talk is cheap. Actions can be the ultimate cost.
Eyes glance upwards, to the sun.
In the sun, Clark sees his destiny.