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It was, for all intents and purposes, a charity function. It also happened to be a public relations kind of event for the Justice League, where the League members could interact – in a limited, professional capacity – with the public, vetted media representatives, and the sponsors who kept the League funded.
Well. Sponsor.
Bruce Wayne almost singlehandedly funded the Justice League on his own dime – funds they accepted because Bruce Wayne didn’t have any stipulations attached to the money.
“Why’s Spooky always get out of this kinda shit?” Hal griped.
Barry looked torn between hushing Hal and agreeing with the sentiment. Barry was more of an introvert at heart, mile-a-minute talking notwithstanding. Parties weren’t his idea of a good time.
“Batman isn’t really the same, in terms of public exposure,” Clark offered. He kept his eyes on the doors, waiting for the arrival of their benefactor. “A lot of people don’t think he’s real.”
“Yeah, well he is,” Hal grumbled. “And he shouldn’t be able to get out of this shit just because he’s more of a recluse than the rest of us. I mean, come on. Even J’onn goes to these things.”
“Peace, Lantern,” Diana said, stepping up to their small group. “The Bat has his reasons.”
“Oh, so if I just have reasons, I can stay home, too?” Hal muttered.
Diana chuckled. “You would have the Flash suffer such things alone?” she teased.
Hal glanced at Barry mutinously. They all knew the two were a package deal, though. And the third member of the package deal they made up, Iris, was one of the vetted media representatives. Not that Iris could claim them, or they her, while Barry and Hal were in costume.
Clark straightened up a little – just enough that Diana, at least, noticed – when he heard Bruce (namely: his heartbeat) finally approach the building. “Be good,” he said, mostly to Hal. “Our sponsor’s here.”
“Great,” Hal sighed. “The rich snob with more money than sense.”
“Be good,” Clark repeated, frowning slightly. “Or do you want the League having to look for a new benefactor?”
“Oh, please. Bruce Wayne? He’s not smart enough to feel insulted. I could say anything to him and we’d be fine,” Hal scoffed.
Clark knew that wasn’t true, of course. Diana had some inkling, too, that Bruce Wayne was more than he put forth. But the others? They saw his act and took it at face value. That was Bruce’s intent, of course, but it rankled Clark a little – not just because he knew Bruce better than that, but because it showed how shallowly some of them looked, even at the man pouring millions of dollars into their activities.
Around the League, security and staff milled. Beyond them were the other invitees, the media, and whoever else was there.
It was an opulent setup, with expensive decor and spreads of food that would have been exorbitant, if it weren’t for the Flash’s presence. Due to Barry’s presence, the amount of food on display wasn’t exorbitant or wasteful so much as thoughtful – speedsters needed a ridiculously high caloric intake and the amount of food present meant that Barry, like the rest of them, would probably be able to actually enjoy the proceedings and the food, both.
Bruce was thoughtful that way.
Or maybe he was calculating that way?
Maybe a bit of both.
Besides the food, there were the tables, extra seating, and stage area. The intent for the event was to connect with the public, give an update on what the League had been doing and intended to do going forward, and then for the invited charities to pitch their missions to the essentially captive audience – in front of the media invitees, who would no doubt be looking to see which guests were stingy with their wallets.
That was Bruce, too. The calculating front-and-center presence of journalists, reporters, and photographers ensured that the charities would receive a mildly artificial boost in donations, as a means of guests looking better in front of cameras and reporters.
Jimmy and Lois were in there somewhere, and Lois hated these things – normally, she’d have found some way to have Clark go in her place – and through sheer annoyance and pettiness, she’d be watching the guests even more sharply than usual. She could practically rival Cat Grant and her society section observations when she got into a petty mood like that.
There was also a live band, naturally. Though Clark wasn’t sure if they were there just for background music or if there was some intent for people to… dance? It didn’t seem like a dancing kind of event, but the Gotham galas tended to be more opulate ball than trendy press conference, and this was an event arranged by Bruce. So… maybe?
Clark didn’t have much more time to ruminate on the intents of the live music’s inclusion before the doors were thrust open, dramatic as anything.
“Here we go,” Hal muttered under his breath.
Barry elbowed him again.
Clark didn’t quite light up, but he definitely felt a bit lighter with Bruce’s arrival. Though the dramatic entrance wasn’t Bruce – it was Dick, all of thirteen and beaming at the room as he entered, waving to folks on either side.
Ollie – not in costume like the rest of the League, as he was there as a guest – moved in a bit closer to them. “That kid helped Roy light my couch on fire two weeks ago. Look at him. No one would ever believe me if I said that,” he muttered.
“Why was Roy – wait, get out of here, Oliver,” Barry shooed Ollie. “Guests are over there. You know that.”
“I’m rich enough to get away with it,” Ollie disagreed.
“Oliver,” Diana chuckled. “Please.”
“Fine, fine. Only for you, Princess,” Ollie sighed.
Clark turned his attention back to Dick, and Bruce a few steps behind him.
Bruce was all charm and polish. He was supposed to have a model on his arm, a date for the evening, but it looked like he'd changed his mind at the last minute, going alone instead. Clark didn't mind the fake dates, per se, but Bruce foregoing that part of his public mask did make Clark feel… warmer.
Bruce had done a hell of a lot less fake dating stunts since he and Clark had put a name to the thing between them, however hesitantly.
And that was the thing he had told the League. The thing that probably mattered to interpersonal dynamics. If they had a proper HR department, it would probably be having a conniption about Clark dating the League’s biggest donor. Who also happened to be one of the League's leaders.
“There he is,” Hal sighed. “Not a thought in his head.”
Clark rolled his eyes before he could quite catch himself.
“Do you not think there is more to him than what he puts forth?” Diana asked.
“Sometimes, sure. But look at him. Look at how often he’s in the gossip section for something utterly avoidable,” Hal griped.
“He lost his parents when he was just a kid,” Barry said.
And Hal quieted. He knew that Barry, of all people, could relate to that level of loss, what with the death of his mother and the imprisonment of his father. “Yeah,” Hal said. “It's a wonder he turned out… you know, functioning. I guess I'd probably want to throw money around and have a good time, too, if I had that kind of thing haunting my footsteps.” It was a bit begrudging, but – for Hal – it was growth.
“Most of the money he ‘throws around’ goes to charities,” Clark said, glancing back at Hal. “And us.”
“Thanks for not including us in ‘charities,’ at least,” Hal muttered.
“We do a little more frivolous spending than the average charity,” Diana deadpanned, lips quirked into a smile. “Not many charities can say they have their headquarters in space, on a state-of-the-art space station, either.”
“I wouldn’t call that frivolous,” Hal grumbled.
Barry patted his shoulder in a pantomime of sympathy that he wasn’t really offering Hal. If anything, he seemed amused at how petty Hal’s complaints were.
“Ah, the Justice League!” Bruce said.
Hal swore and jumped half a foot in the air. “When did he—!” He spun around and pointed at Bruce accusingly. “You—!”
“Must be a Gotham thing,” Barry muttered. He hadn’t jumped, but his flinch had been enough to show that Bruce had caught him off-guard, as well.
“Fuck!” Hal hissed.
Bruce smirked at him, almost seeming to relish his discomfort. (To Clark, it was clear that Bruce was, in actuality, relishing the opportunity to menace Hal, but to anyone else he seemed as polite as ever.)
“Mr. Wayne,” Clark greeted, with the appropriate amount of respect and gravitas.
“Mr. El,” Bruce returned, grinning a bit wider. He turned to Diana. “Princess.”
“Mr. Wayne,” Diana smiled politely. “The event is impressive, meticulously planned and executed. I expect the donations will be very generous. Congratulations to your team and yourself.”
“Thank you, Princess,” Bruce said. He took her hand and bowed over it to kiss her knuckles, then grinned up at her. “Your good word means a lot to me.”
Diana smiled and shook her head slightly, withdrawing her hand. “Of course, Mr. Wayne. If you don’t mind, I will mingle with the guests. I am here in ambassadorial Themysciran and official Justice League context, after all. It would be beneficial to make the rounds.”
“Naturally,” Bruce nodded. The flirtatious edge to his words had dulled a little, respecting the distance Diana had put between them, but then he was turning to Clark, smile widening with a touch of mischief. “And you, Superman? Will you be making the rounds?”
“I suppose so,” Clark said, glancing around briefly.
He spotted Lex amongst the invitees and felt himself grimace before he could quite prevent it. He knew there was a certain amount of thought put into whether or not Lex would be invited, and that Bruce would almost certainly be playing a role in getting Lex to ante up donations. But still. Lex’s presence was never comfortable, what with his oppositional role to Superman.
“But not yet?” Bruce sidled in a bit closer.
Clark’s attention returned to him. “No, no yet,” he agreed.
“Is he flirting?” Hal muttered to Barry. Low enough that it was almost private between them, except for Clark’s exceptional hearing.
“Who?” Barry asked.
“What do you mean ‘who’? Bruce Wayne!” Hal hissed, loud enough that Bruce probably heard it. So much for discretion.
“I mean, he is bi,” Barry said.
“What? Since when?”
“Don’t you read any of his interviews? Any of the society pieces on him? It’s been all over the gossip section and society section and, like, even Forbes,” Barry returned. “He came out as bi during an interview about funding an at-risk youth shelter, where unhoused LGBTQ-plus youth would be the…the targeted demographic. The kids they want to help and are trained and prepared to help.”
“I wasn’t even in space three months—” Hal complained.
“The interview was last spring,” Barry deadpanned.
All the meanwhile, Bruce was playing up his effervescent public persona, his tone light and teasing as he bandied words with Clark. It wasn’t anything particularly meaningful – that was in the subtext. The “I’m glad you’re here” and “it’s good to see you” and so on, caught between compliments and flirtations.