He wants Clark to kiss him as hard as he wants, to sink teeth in, to push back and actually feel his muscles burn in protest when Bruce holds him down. The purpose of these experiments is to make sure Clark is safe even if something unthinkable happens, but Bruce is constantly hyper-aware of all of this, too. It should be an undercurrent, or they should be pretending that it's further down the priority list than it is—

But that would be beyond the pale of dishonesty, considering the way they started their entanglement in the first place.

Bruce opens his eyes, even though he knows he'll see spots. He does.

"Emergency three button," he says through a reedy-sounding inhale, and if anyone could manage to roll their eyes in exasperation while falling unconscious, it's Bruce Wayne.

Smash cut transition: two of the smartest people on planet Earth sitting in the lake house's living room, enduring the muttering chastisement of a man who's punished his son with a bag of frozen peas for the bump on his head. Alfred is busy in the kitchen, and Bruce, for his part, doesn't dare slink away even though a childhood instinct demands it. Instead he just looks over at Clark from where he's laying on the sofa, undignified.

"Headache gone?"