Clara Kent Superwoman

Chapter 10: Football

Kevan the flour baby didn't need much maintenance, keep him dry, pretend to feed him every 2 hours, pretend to change him, carry him around and generally make sure he didn't end up as white powder on the floor. It wasn't so much the practical aspects of feeding and changing Kevan was meant to teach Chloe and Clara. It was more an issue of responsibility and care giving, someone had to have Kevan at all times, you couldn't leave the packet on its own, it was meant to teach what it was like to constantly be tied to a schedule. Clara didn't mind though, Kevan weighed nothing to her at all and she was used to an early morning routine. Chloe's life was more erratic; she would sometimes stay up late in the night to write or follow an important lead, or suddenly leave to chase up a source. When it was Chloe's turn to look after him Clara felt it was more of a lesson than for her.

Well that is, Clara didn't mind until it was her turn to look after Kevan and she had to go the deliveries with her Dad. Not that it was awkward to carry the trays; Clara had been carrying them in one arm since she was little. But to keep up appearances she had to pretend to labour, so her Mother, ever the inventor, had wrapped a scarf around her like a sling and put Kevan in it. It freed her hands to work while making sure the little bundle of flour didn't burst on the floor.

She'd gotten knowing looks from their patrons with High School children, everyone had the babies. Old Mrs Higgins got reminiscent of how she used to carry her Gerald (now a grown man of 55) in a sling like Clara's when she used to work in her garden.

When they arrive at the mansion she asked her father if she could speak to Lex for a little while after they'd carried everything in. Her father told her reluctantly it was fine, there was still over an hour before school.

Clara felt the burning behind her eyes and dug her nails into her hand and concentrated, the burning receded, thankfully. She hoped her cheeks weren't red; it was awkward to have feelings for a friend. Needless to say the presence of Kevan had Lex confused.

"Good Morning Clara, how's my favourite farm girl?"

Then, Lex spotted the sling with the flour in it and got a quizzical look.

"Clara, are you aware there is a sack of flour with a face on it strapped to your front?"

Clara and Chloe had gotten creative with marker pens; Kevan had big blue eyes, Clara's black hair, a little nose and a cartoon pacifier.

"Oh, this? It's for Science class; we have to look after flour babies. Chloe and I partnered up, we named him Kevan."

Lex went from quizzical to amused.

"Ah, Excelsior Academy didn't participate in this particular rite of passage. I think they thought better of giving a class full of teenage boy's flour. Parental instincts don't run particularly strong in private boys schools, our offspring were bound to become the first casualties of a food fight. Your little Kevan looks like he's doing great though. I assume it's a mixture of Kent and Sullivan? Clever."

"Thanks, today it's my day to look after Kevan, but Chloe's taking him for my birthday tomorrow."

"Right, you said that, 18? Does it make you feel old?"

"Well it hasn't happened yet but no, not really."

"Well it's got to be a lot of responsibility, being a mother to a flour baby, he'll put grey in your hair once he starts High School."