clark kent gets switched with another clark from a universe where he and bruce are dating. he's been hiding his feelings for bruce for years, and seeing everything he's ever wanted so close yet so far away makes him ache.
clark wakes on a couch in the manor, supremely confused, considering bruce has been on a space mission for the past month, so he has no reason to stay over.
he follows the sound of the front door opening, surprised to see bruce closing it behind him with his coat over his arm. he's in his civvies. when would he have had time to change out of his batsuit from the watchtower?
"you're home early," clark says, unable to keep the delighted warmth from his voice. any length of time without bruce is less than pleasant, but the mission bruce was sent on had been especially stressful because of its distance from earth. even the first sign of trouble would be too late to respond to from so far away. "is everything okay?"
bruce smiles at him, his eyes crinkling. it steals the breath from clark's lungs. "thought i'd surprise you," he says, moving closer. he puts a hand on clark's hip, drawing him near, and before clark can even understand what's happening, bruce pulls him into a kiss.
it's over before clark can truly reciprocate. his lips tingle as bruce pulls back to look at him.
"want to go out for dinner?" bruce asks, his hand still warm against clark's side.
it's then that clark realizes he's not where he's supposed to be. the floor beneath him is the wrong type of wood. the artwork on the walls is different from what he remembers. and bruce wouldn'tā he would neverā not with clark.
he must be in an alternate dimension. with his fair share of good and bad dimension-travel, clark decides to be cautious, to feel this bruce out, see if he's trustworthy.
clark agrees to dinner. they go to a quiet, modest place in downtown gotham. bruce has them seated in a secluded corner with his back to the wallāa typical habit clark has seen on the rare few times they've had meals together in actual restaurants.
they talk. clark tries to fit in and figure out if bruce is batman, if he can trust him with the knowledge of the unfortunate travel. he aims to glean as much as he can from bruce, subtly probing for information that a bruce who dates clark kent might be more willing to share. it almost feels like an interview, like the first time he spoke to bruce wayne and felt like he was being led in circles. nothing deep, everything surface-level.
after a while, clark realizes that's exactly what it is. he catches a familiar glint in bruce's eyes, almost smug. a barely-there smirk.
clark's shoulders drop as he sighs in defeat. "how long have you known," he asks with a groan.
bruce smiles at him, teasing. with a shrug, he replies, "oh, only since i kissed you."
clark puts his elbows on the table and his face in his hands as a flush rises to his hairline. "i didn't know if i couldā" he starts, muffled.
"trust me?" bruce finishes, still smiling. clark wishes he weren't so beautiful. it'd be much less distracting. "i must be rubbing off on you."
"i wish you were rubbing off on me," clark mutters under his breath. thankfully, bruce doesn't seem to hear him.
"we aren't together where you're from," bruce says, sobering quickly. his eyes search clark's face, and clark has always found it hard to hide from bruce.
he pulls his hands from his face and shifts in his chair, avoiding bruce's gaze. eventually, he shakes his head.
"but you want to be," bruce continues. it isn't a question; bruce knows.
clark nods reluctantly anyway, face flaming.
bruce offers him a smile, almost sad, and says, "let's get you home."
they work tirelessly in the cave to find clark's universe. bruce keeps asking clark about specific things his bruce does, prying for something. clark isn't exactly sure what, but the answers are harmless: yes, his bruce's heart beats faster whenever clark catches him from a fall; yes, his bruce doesn't truly relax around the league but he does around clark; yes, his bruce has dozens of safety measures to protect clark specifically.
all reasonable, all explainable. clark eventually realizes what this bruce is trying to point out.
"he's not into me like that," clark says after bruce's third time asking a different, highly specific, pointed question. the words pain him to say out loud, but it's the truth. "trust me. it's been years. there's never been any indicationā"
"are you seriously about to argue that i wouldn't be able to hide my feelings and emotions for as long as i felt i needed to?" bruce asks, deadpan.
clark deflates. "well, no, butāwhy would he need to? i don't know what i'm doing wrong. why won't he even consider me?" he asks, his voice thin.
bruce sighs, glancing over at the data pulled up on the batcomputer. they're close to finding a solution, but not quite. clark can tell that this bruce misses his clark sorely. he only wishes his bruce felt the same about him.
"have you given any indication that there's anything to consider?" bruce asks after a long moment.
"sure i have!" clark protests. "i bring him dinnerā"
"you bring lois and jimmy dinner."
clark frowns. "sometimes, we patrol together and talk the whole night."
"your night is his day. he doesn't seeing it as staying awake to chat with you because he'll be up either way."
"clark," bruce says, turning in his chair. clark supresses the shiver in his spine at bruce's low tone. "have you looked him in the eye and asked him out. told him how you feel. said anything that would make him believe he had a chance."
"he's bruce," clark stresses. "he's always had a chance."
bruce inclines his head. "i'm sure he doesn't think so."
"how could you possibly know that?" clark asks, irritation blooming.
bruce looks him in the eye and says, levelly, "because i didn't either."
they come to an understanding after that. clark apologizes, promises to return the right clark to this universe, and bruce smiles and says i know you will.
they finally manage to build a sort of wormhole in the manor's backyard.
clark tells this bruce thank you.
bruce tells clark to hug his bruce and listen.
with those odd instructions, clark says goodbye after ensuring the right clark returns to this bruce.
when clark finally returns, he learns that an entire month has passed. his bruce had returned from space unharmed, his mission successful, and got right down to work, figuring out how to return the new superman to his dimension.
bruce stares at him in the cave. clark stares back as the portal closes behind him.
"i tried to come back soonerā" clark starts.
"don't be ridiculous," bruce cuts in. "with nobody on this end to keep the portal open, it would've been impossible." bruce sighs, a frown etched on his face. "i should have returned the moment i heard something happened."
"it worked out," clark says, smiling despite himself. "did that clark tell you he and the other bruceā"
"are dating?" bruce finished. "yes, he mentioned it. kept going on and on about wanting to propose." bruce sounds almost bored when he says it, but clark hears the way his voice catches on the last word.
"what?" clark exclaimed. "did youāwhat did you say?"
bruce peers at him carefully. eventually, he says softly, "i told him to ask alfred for my father's engagement ring. my father said he wanted me to have it from the moment i was born."
"bruce, that's," clark swallows the lump in his throat, "that's so thoughtful."
clark can't help himself anymore. he surges forward and wraps bruce in a hug. "i missed you," he whispers, something inside him finally settling with bruce safe in his arms.
bruce slowly returns the hug, his breath catching when clark squeezes harder, heart pounding between them.
clark hears it. he gasps.
"spending time with himāwith the other bruce," clark starts. "it made me realize that...well, i want you to know that iā"
bruce pulls back a fraction. "yes," he breathes. "yes, i know. the other clark told me."
clark smiles, his eyes wet, and pulls his bruce in for a long awaited kiss.
