A Tale of Two Reporters [Vicki & Clark]

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Standing in the lobby of The Gotham Gazette, star reporter Vicki Vale tapped her high heel shoe as she waited impatiently for her friend and fellow news reporter Clark Kent to arrive and meet her.  They had made plans for Vicki to show Clark around Gotham, since he was new in town and was on assignment indefinitely for The Daily Planet.

Looking at her watch for the umpteenth time, Vicki raised her eyebrows and blew air, purse on her shoulder, pulling on her jacket.  Her boss, George Ackerman, had given her a news lead, and she was anxious to get on it as soon as Clark showed up, before the competition got wind of it.  She had arranged a meeting with one of her sources for coffee at a bar on the east side of Gotham to see if the story was legitimate or not.

Walking to the glass doors again, Vicki breathed a sigh of relief as she saw a man approaching in the distance.  She’d recognize that fedora anywhere!  When she noticed him, her face displayed a sudden and unexpected warmth.  How could she stay mad at him?  Yes, she had a soft spot in her heart for – what did Lois call him? -- Smallville.

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Hurrying through the busy streets of Gotham City, Clark Kent struggled to keep his hat on and not knock people over. He flailed around awkwardly, all arms and legs, as he ran toward the curb shouting for the taxi driving away.

"Ex-excuse me, sir," he stuttered as he knocked into a man with a briefcase. "So sorry," he apologized to a woman he accidentally bumped into, knocking her purse onto the sidewalk. Clark quickly bent down to pick it up, but tilted it the wrong way and the contents spilled out all over the pavement.

His hat fell off his head as he quickly tried to put everything back in, his grey fedora getting trampled by the passing Gothamites, and a stray curl falling free from his carefully combed hair, hanging over his forehead. Finally, he managed to return all the fallen objects to the woman's purse and handed her the bag, smiling sheepishly. "Here you go, ma'am," he said politely. The woman snatched her purse and hurried away without a word. Clark then had to chase after his hat, dusting it off and trying to give it its former un-trampled shape. When he decided he'd done the best he could, he put the very out-of-fashion accessory on his head and went back to hailing a taxi. This time one finally stopped for him, and the reporter climbed into the back seat of the car.

"Where to, mister?" said the driver, chewing on a cigar.

"Gotham Gazette, please," said Clark, trying to get all of him into the car. His coat tail caught on the door as he closed it, but the driver paid him no heed and sped off.

"Put your seatbelt on!" he barked, and Clark quickly obeyed, getting his bag caught in the strap. Once he was strapped in he went back to trying to tug out his coat.

The ride was quick; traffic wasn't as bad as it was in Metropolis, and they pulled up in front of the Gazette after a pretty short amount of time. Clark hurriedly paid the driver; he was running late for his meeting with Vicki--and rushed into the Gazette lobby, searching for hie fellow reporter. When he spotted her, he grinned, and approached, a little more carefully this time.

"Hi Vicki!" he said brightly.

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Clark’s boyish grin melted Vicki’s heart right away.  Smiling, she tried to imagine him growing up on a farm in Kansas.  She knew he must’ve been a cute kid.  Suddenly, she found herself fighting the overwhelming urge to pinch his cheek!

“I was beginning to worry about you, Smallville!” she exclaimed, releasing an exasperated sigh of relief before greeting him with a hug.  “The work day must start a lot later in Metropolis than it does in Gotham City!”

Letting her sarcastic comment register with Clark, she pulled away to look at her wristwatch.

“Have you eaten breakfast already?” she asked, peering up at him again.  She noted his height and stared at his thick-rimmed glasses.  She thought his nerdy look was adorable.  Then she noticed his slumped shoulders and his rumpled blue suit.  “We’ll be touring the east side of Gotham this morning,” she explained, fixing his posture and then straightening his tie and smoothing out the shoulders of his coat.  She neglected to mention the real reason they were going to visit that seedy section of town.

Although Vicki was presenting a professional, all-business attitude, she knew Clark could see through her facade.  She revealed her generous heart to only a chosen few, and Clark Kent happened to be one of those fortunate individuals.

“There’s more I need to tell you, but we can chitchat about it on the way,” she continued, taking his hand to escort him to the parking deck across the street.  She didn’t want to say anything about the story they would be working on until they were alone in her car.

As they waited on the street corner for the crosswalk signal, Vicki squeezed Clark’s hand.

“Stay with me, Smallville,” she ordered.  "I mean it.  Don’t let go of my hand.  I promised Lois I would look after you.  If anything happens to you under my watch, she’ll never forgive me, and I'll never forgive myself!”