Metropolis #254

"I hear you're rich. I'm sure you don't need it," Supergirl said, raising an eyebrow as she let go of my wrist and rushed towards Super Boy as he recovered from having his ears violated.

"Relax, Conner. This man is Grayson. He's a friend..." Supergirl said as she gestured towards me, trailing at the end of her sentence. "I think..." She added with a sigh, causing me to chuckle.

"If you vouch for him, then it's fine, I guess..." Superboy said after a moment of hesitation as he held his forehead and grunted, still feeling a headache.

"But I'll keep an eye on you, so behave yourself; this here is Metropolis, not Gotham," Superboy said, giving me one final glare before he flew away.

"Thank you for stating the obvious, tough guy," I said, shaking my head in exasperation as I watched the boy of steel fly away without bothering to reply.

"I thought he was supposed to be a clone of Superman, not Batman," I said, raising an eyebrow as I turned to Supergirl, to which she winced, and I could see Superboy stagger and almost lose balance in the air some distance away from us.

"That's a sensitive topic for Superboy... please don't bring it up again..." Supergirl said after waiting for the boy of steel to make some distance, speaking in a hushed tone.

"I'm just saying. It's got nothing to do with me," I said with a shrug as I raised my wrist to look at my wristwatch. "In any case, I'm heading to a police station to report what happened down there," I said as I pointed down at the still-burning ship.

"Feel free to tag along if you wish," I said as I slowly flew past Supergirl, and she nodded as she followed behind me. "So... broke down any ceilings lately, or was mine a special occasion...?" I said, smiling as I turned to the Kryptonian, much to her chagrin.

"You..." Supergirl said, sighing as she rolled her eyes at me in annoyance at my words. "If you keep bringing it up, I'll just leave and call Superboy," She added, crossing her arms.

"Alright, geez, you win..." I said, raising my arms in surrender. "Learn to take a joke, will you," I added, shaking my head, to which she just smiled as she flew behind me.

...

Sometime later

"See, that wasn't so bad..." I said, giving Supergirl an amused look as we walked out of the police station's door. "In and out through the door, no busted down ceiling, no property damage, no problem," I added with a chuckle, earning a tired sigh for the Kyrptonina.

My meetings with inspector William Henderson, the man in charge of the police station, went well enough. I explained the Religion's and Intergang's plan to burn down Gotham, how I "learned" about it after helping Batwoman, and how I didn't make it in time.

I went out of my way to say that Manheim blew up the ship because I didn't want everyone to think the Question went out like some crazed suicide bomber, which he technically did.

I also didn't mention that the Question was there since he relied on inspiring fear in criminals, pretty much like Batman did, so detective Montoya would have an easier time mantling him and carrying on his legacy.

There were still some hiccups since Superboy decided to be an asshole as he reported the alien metal he saw in my hand, and I merely replied with a simple "what alien metal?" when the inspector asked me about it.

Ultimately it would be my word against Superboy's, as they couldn't prove I had the metal in my possession since it was in my inventory. It would still make the Metropolis police department suspicious and wary of me, but I honestly couldn't care.

I usually stuck to Gotham, and today marks the second time I've saved the city from utter destruction, so there was nothing anyone could do to me there, no matter how much they disliked me.

"Seriously, what will it take to stop you from even bringing up ceilings again...?" Supergirl said, pouting as she crossed her arms and gave me a bemused look.

"Well..." I said, putting a show of thinking about her words as I rubbed my chin. "I've never been to Metropolis before, and I've got nothing planned for the rest of the day...." I added, nodding my head as I smiled at the blonde Kryptonian.

"I'll tell you what, you show me around, and you will never hear about any ceiling from me again..." I concluded, shrugging my shoulders as I trailed at the end of my sentence, maintaining my smile.

"If it'll get you to stop..." Supergirl said, rolling her eyes at me. "But I'll need to get changed first. I'm not about to let you parade me around in my costume," She jokingly said, crossing her arms.

"I know how you boys think," Supergirl went on with a chuckle as she flew into the air, gesturing for me to keep up as she zoomed away, much to my shock.

"The thought never crossed my mind," I said with a chuckle after a short pause as I briefly blanked at her words. Ultimately I could only shake my head as I flew after the Kryptonian blonde.

...

"What's wrong, haven't seen a Kryptonian in something other than tight spandex before...?" Supergirl said as she walked out of her bedroom, dressed in a causal red dress beneath a black jacket.

"No. I'm still processing the fact you took me to your apartment," I said, shaking my head. "You Kryptonians sure are quick to trust people..." I added, giving her a blank look.

"Why not? I heard you already know almost everyone's secret identities..." Supergirl said, shrugging her shoulders. "And I bet I can take you on if you try something," She jokingly added, flexing her biceps at me.

"I'm sure you do," I replied with a chuckle. "So, what should I call you when you're not in tight spandex, as you put it...?" I asked, giving her outfit a once over.

"Kara will do," She replied, nodding as she headed for the door. "And I'll call you Gray, don't wanna make you feel old, after all," She added as she opened the door and gestured for me to move.

"I see you did your homework. You a fan or something?" I asked as I moved towards Kara, giving her a weird look as I stopped next to the door's step.

"Nope, I just read all of Lois Lane's articles and follow her work," Kara said, rolling her eyes at me as I exited the apartment. "Come on, let's go," She concluded as she closed the door and headed for the elevator.

"Alright, so where are we going first?" I asked, still unable to process how the girl in front of me was the same one from several months ago that almost exploded from embarrassment at some light teasing.

Then again, the idea of being in the same room with someone like Kara (anyone capable of lifting more than a ton) for more than five minutes, never mind having her show me around, was ludicrous for me several months ago.

After all, I wasn't the only one capable of changing.

"New Troy, of course. The giant globe on top of the daily planet building is a must-see in Metropolis..." She said as she pressed the elevator button and turned to me.

"It's much better than those depressing gargoyles you have in Gotham, you'll see,"

...

"Is that so...? Maybe I should go on a self-discovery trip into deep space too..." I said with a smile, sipping at my coffee. "When I'm not knee-deep swamped in work, that is," I added, sighing and shaking my head.

The sky was already dark. Time quickly moved as Kara showed me around Metropolis city, from New Troy all the way to the Little Bohemia district.

Naturally, we didn't spend the time in awkward silence, and we chatted casually about all sorts of matters, ranging from the city's landmarks to how I liked it compared to Gotham.

Metropolis was the solar opposite of Gotham. Whereas Gotham was dark and grimy, Metropolis was too bright and clean, almost strangely and uncomfortably so, but that's neither here nor there.

Eventually, our conversation became more serious, and we discussed some rather personal topics as we got to know each other better. I realized that I had much in common with Kara. A lot more than I expected, at least.

The initial estrangement for everyone and everything, the anger issues, and the red ring, among other emotional baggage. 'Wait, isn't this...' I froze, my expression shifting as I realized this little outing had turned into a date, my first since coming to this world.

"What's wrong...?" Kara asked, tilting her head as she noticed my weird expression, instantly snapping me out of my daze. Luckily I didn't need to answer as a loud alarm sounded from the bank across the street before I could speak.

Metropolis thugs to the rescue!