[Third Person Pov]
Clark started softly laughing at the stunned look on Komi's face. She was completely silent, simply staring at him with wide, disbelieving eyes as if her mind was still trying to catch up to everything he had just told her.
"What's wrong?" he asked, wearing a mock-arrogant smirk that somehow only made him look more confidently amused. "Having trouble believing everything that happened?"
Komi shook her head slowly. She took her time gathering the words, carefully choosing how to explain herself. "I guess… part of me is still having trouble coming to terms with the fact that you're actually Superman. It's all still so new to me."
"Yeah, I totally get it," Clark said. His smile turned a little distant. "Honestly, I'm the same most of the time." He sometimes still woke up half-expecting the entire thing—powers, responsibility, the whole impossible life—to turn out to be nothing more than a long, vivid dream.
Komi's concerned expression pulled him back. She was looking at him worriedly, clearly trying to get his attention.
"Huh? Oh—sorry. I'm fine," he said quickly. "Just reminiscing a bit."
Komi suddenly started vibrating in place, as though a current of nervous energy was running through her entire body. Her hands gripped the hem of her shorts tightly, and she fixed Clark with an intense, almost glaring stare.
Clark raised a brow, studying her for a moment. Then it clicked, and he had to fight hard not to burst out laughing.
'She's mustering the courage to reach her arms out and offer me a hug? Okay… that's cute as all heck.'
"Shouko," he said gently, trying to reassure her, "you don't have to do it if you aren't comfortable or ready. Like I keep telling you—I'm fine."
Komi's body froze for a second as she stared at him. Inside, her thoughts were racing.
'He protects the planet and constantly puts his life on the line… and I can't even offer him the comfort he needs. How can I call myself his friend if I can't do even that?'
Her arms felt like lead as she forced them upward. Her face was flushed a deep red with embarrassment, but she dug into every last scrap of courage she possessed.
"C-C-Come… h-h-here," she stammered, then immediately bit her tongue accidentally.
'I'm going to die… I think I just found my Kryptonite,' Clark thought, suddenly feeling strangely shy himself.
He rubbed the back of his neck. 'I can't really reject her now, can I?'
His eyes drifted to her trembling shoulders and the faint sheen of watery determination in her eyes. The sight practically melted him.
"Okay…" he surrendered quietly, and stepped into her embrace.
His arms circled carefully around her, mindful of his strength. He rested his head near her shoulder and found himself breathing in the soft strawberry scent of her hair.
An invisible weight of fatigue began to lift from his shoulders as he allowed himself to lean into the warmth of the hug, something he himself hadn't realized he was carrying.
"Thank you, Shouko," he murmured, voice soft against her. "It's… one of the only few hugs I've ever actually enjoyed."
She continued to tremble with nervousness for a while, but the tension slowly eased at his words. In a tiny whisper she answered, "You're welcome."
Then, after another moment of gathering courage, she added, "I-I'm available… whenever you need it."
'How warm…' Komi thought, closing her eyes and quietly basking in the solid heat of him. Her small hands rested against the broad expanse of his back. A private, slightly guilty part of her suspected she might be enjoying the hug even more than he was.
When the heartfelt embrace finally ended, the two of them settled into lighter conversation about the outing they had been planning.
"You're curious about when would be the best time, huh…" Clark said, resting a hand under his chin thoughtfully. "How about this Friday after school?"
Komi nodded firmly, her eyes suddenly blazing with quiet determination.
Clark chuckled under his breath at the fire he saw there. Then his expression shifted. "Oh shoot… sounds like your mother is heading this way."
Komi instantly panicked. She began frantically scanning the room for somewhere—anywhere—Clark could hide. Explaining how a boy had ended up inside her room in the middle of the night would be impossible.
In a hushed, hurried tone Clark spoke quickly. "I better get going. Thanks for worrying about me. We can keep talking through text. Bye."
He leaned in, pressed a light kiss to her cheek, placed one foot on the window frame, and shot out into the night in a controlled burst of speed, leaving Komi standing frozen in place.
Her hand slowly rose to the cheek he had kissed. A moment later her mother knocked and entered, carrying a laundry basket.
She paused when she found her daughter staring blankly out the open window, face redder than she had ever seen it before. Komi quickly used her long hair to try and hide the flustered expression, but it was far too late.
…
Clark arrived back home just in time to find everyone already changed into formal ceremonial shrine attire. Even Krypto and Lala hadn't been spared. The dog sat primly in a miniature version of the traditional garments, while Lala looked surprisingly natural in the layered robes and headwear.
"Clark, be honest—how do I look?" Lala asked, spinning in place with her arms spread wide so the sleeves flared out elegantly.
Clark blinked, taking a moment to actually look. Before he could answer, Momo leaned in with a knowing smirk.
"I think he really likes it~"
"Shut up," Clark said, rolling his eyes. He reached over and gently patted Lala's head, careful not to disturb the headpiece. "I think you look great, Lala. You'd make a pretty convincing priestess."
"Hehehe… you really think so?" Lala giggled behind one large sleeve, clearly pleased.
Seiko stepped forward and shoved a folded set of matching robes into Clark's arms. "Here. Change."
He took them without complaint, vanished for less than a second, and reappeared in the exact same spot fully dressed in the ceremonial outfit as if he had never left.
…
A short while later they stood inside the main shrine hall, lined up behind Seiko as she began the ritual. Incense drifted through the air. The atmosphere was solemn—until Momo decided to speak up mid-ceremony, explaining everything he missed while he was away.
"Turbo Granny appeared over Ken for a second and basically froze everyone," she said. "It's pretty obvious she's holding his dong hostage until we come get it."
Clark couldn't help the quiet snicker that escaped him. The entire situation was still absurdly funny to him.
Ken sniffled, looking thoroughly depressed about his missing member. "You'll help me, right, Superman?"
Clark sighed and shook his head. "No. I have things I need to sort out after this."
"Eh?" both Momo and Ken said at the same time.
"What the heck? Why don't you want to help us?" Momo demanded, frowning. "Isn't that your whole thing? You always prioritize helping people when they need it."
"My 'thing,'" Clark said, making air quotes, "is helping those who genuinely can't help themselves. Don't get me wrong—I'm not refusing because I don't care about you. I'm refusing because there's literally no need for me to step in."
He noticed the tears welling in Ken's eyes and sighed again. "You two are really misunderstanding me. Momo, be honest. What exactly do you need me for?"
"I… well…" Momo blinked, momentarily at a loss. "To help us fight Turbo Granny?"
"And you can't do that yourselves?" Clark raised an eyebrow. "Then what was the point of all that training we did together when we were younger? Was it so I could just swoop in and solve every problem for you?"
"Well… no… but still—" Momo muttered.
"Let me ask you both something," Clark continued, looking between Momo and Ken. "What do you think Superman is? What is he to you?"
"A superhero?" Momo answered, though she already suspected that wasn't the answer he wanted.
"A friend…?" Ken offered quietly.
"Sure, those are part of it," Clark said. "But not what I'm looking for."
"A symbol," Lala said confidently from the side.
Clark turned to her in mild surprise, then smiled. "That's right. At least, that's what I'm trying to be in my own way."
He took a breath, his tone growing more serious without losing its calm.
"A symbol isn't something you're supposed to lean on forever. It's something you're supposed to draw strength from. Superman exists to inspire people to become better, braver, and stronger than they thought they could be. If I solve every problem for them, I'm taking away the very thing I'm meant to inspire. I'm not here to carry everyone across the finish line. I'm here to show them they already have the strength to walk there themselves."
He glanced at the group again.
"That's what Superman is supposed to be—a reminder of what people can become. Someone who shows them they can stand up for one another, that they don't have to wait for someone stronger to come save them. If I spend my whole life solving every single problem for everyone, then I've accomplished almost nothing. The goal isn't for people to need Superman. It's the opposite, it's so there comes a day they no longer need him. The greatest thing Superman can do isn't saving the world by himself. It's inspiring people to believe they can help save it too. The real goal is for them to become the kind of people who can carry that ideal on their own."
Clark's gaze settled on Momo. Without warning he reached over, pinched her cheek, and stretched it while adopting an exaggerated baby-talk voice.
"Or is it that you perhaps need your big brother to help you out~?"
"Ouch!! You bastard! Stop it!" Momo smacked his hand away, glaring and baring her fangs. "Who the heck needs you anyway?! Don't worry, Okarun—I'll help you find your ding-a-ling. We don't need that pompous asshat!"
"Thank you," Ken muttered, ears burning red with embarrassment.
Krypto and Lala both chuckled quietly at the exchange. Seiko, on the other hand, simply looked thoroughly annoyed that they were being so loud during their ceremony.
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