Hope

02 - kent

Morning came too soon. Alex heard her phone buzzing against the wooden side table, making a painful growling noise that simply annoyed her enough to get up and shut it off. She rubbed her sleepy eyes and pulled her knotted hair back into the messiest bun she had ever created before slipping out of bed and groggily making her way to the bathroom. The tiles were cold, and she hadn't unpacked her slippers, so Alex flexed her feet slightly as she walked, feeling goosebumps on her forearms.

After she brushed her teeth and showered, now feeling fresh to start her first day at work. Alex blow-dried her hair and straightened it, putting on a pair of dark red pants and a white blouse with black strips going across horizontally. She then applied some mascara and a neutral lip color before grabbing her belongings and heading out. Parrish didn't have time to sit in for breakfast, so she just decided to grab a coffee and a bagel from the nearest Starbucks.

The wait for her coffee took some time, since everyone was there at the same time, but it didn't bother her much, since she had a while before she needed to be at work. Suddenly, as Alex allowed herself to get lost in her own thoughts, a voice calling her name caught her attention.

"The infamous Alex Parrish?" The voice said, and as Alex turned her head to see who called, she saw a tall man with black, thick-rimmed glasses, dark hair, and unbelievably blue eyes. He looked close to her age, maybe a few years older, but he had the biggest smile on his face, which caused Alex to give a small smile in return, "what are you doing here, in Metropolis? Um, may I?" He asked permission to sit across from her.

With a nod, she waited until he was seated before she spoke, "I uh, I moved here."

"Oh, wow. May I ask why?"

"Just... needed a change, I guess. The usual deal."

"Well, how do you like it, so far?"

"I mean, I've only been here for a day... but I actually love it. It doesn't look different from New York, but it feels that way."

"I'm glad. Um– Clark Kent, from the Daily Planet."

"The Daily Planet? I feel like I've heard of that. Aren't you the ones that wrote articles about some man in the sky?"

"Ah, that's us, yes."

"I'm by no means trying to offend you, Mr. Kent, but I don't think of myself as a believer in aliens."

It was true. When Alex first heard of the arrival printed by these journalists about a man in the sky, an alien that has apparently changed atheists' beliefs in a god. She thought it was ridiculous, and probably some stunt by a bunch of rich teenagers with fancy technology.

"No.. you're not offending me. We knew there would be skeptics."

"It's not that I think you're making it up.. I just... find it hard to believe. I mean, if someone this powerful seemed to be here for a long time... why didn't he stop attacks from terrorists, and I don't just mean the September 11th deal, but much of the like. There were lives that could have been saved there too."

Clark just stared at her as she spoke. He believed she made some accurate points, but refrained from defending the man in the sky too much, in hopes to not make anything too obvious. From what he had heard about this agent, she was very good at her job. He admired her confidence in speaking her opinion on this subject so openly, knowing that many people thought of Superman as a god, an only hope, and that they would most likely get offended by what she said.

"I understand, Agent Parrish."

"Oh, please just– its Alex." She said, giving a kind smile. Finally, her name was called out, indicating her drink and breakfast were ready for her to pick up. She picked up her order and stuffed the bagel into her purse to eat on the way, holding the warm cup of coffee in her hands as she came back to the table she sat at, conversing with the journalist. "I've gotta run to work, but it was nice talking to you, Mr. Kent."

"Of course, it was a pleasure, I'll see you around, Miss Parrish." He said calmly, waving as Alex walked out and to her car. Clark already had his coffee, so he threw away the cup and headed out to his work as well. Since it was walking distance, he rarely took his car, unless it was crazy weather, not that it bothered him, but who wants to show up to work in a wet or frozen suit? He walked into the building and went up to where he would find his desk. Just before reaching the seat in the cubicle, he nearly bumped into Lois Lane. Lois. A lover— a former lover. Clark was the one that did the breaking up, which did hurt Lois, since she seemed to have plans for their future, but Clark felt they didn't have the spark anymore. It broke the redheaded lady's heart, but she still cared about him, which is why she never told anyone about his heroic identity.

"Sorry-"

   "It's fine."

Clark had always been very calm and collected. He trained himself to be that way, since if he let his emotions take over, it would be bad, since he can do things humans can't do. He just let Lois be angry with him, since he didn't feel the need to call her out on her being dramatic as most exes do. He just decided to let it be. Making his way to his desk, he noticed a file sitting next in the empty spot where his laptop would normally sit. It read 'Parrish, Alexandra.'