At that very moment, inside the Parker household—
May Parker and Ben Parker stood together, watching the child sleeping peacefully.
Both of them were thinking the same thing: unless the authorities were complete fools, they would still be searching for the child. That meant they had to be extremely careful—this could not be exposed under any circumstances.
But there was one big problem—
They didn't have a single baby supply in the house.
For nearly ten years, they had longed for a child… yet in the end, what they got was a "firstborn son" who had literally fallen from the sky.
"Ben, why isn't this child crying at all? Aren't babies supposed to cry when they're hungry?" May asked, sitting by the table in the living room.
Ben glanced at his wife, then thought back to the child's behavior since arriving. She had a point.
"How about I go out and buy some baby supplies? I doubt S.H.I.E.L.D. would start investigating people just for purchasing baby items. There are countless children in New York, after all."
With that, Ben wasted no time—he grabbed his coat and headed out. The longer they delayed, the greater the risk. He absolutely refused to hand the child over to S.H.I.E.L.D. or any government agency. That would be a tragedy.
Opening the car door, Ben Parker looked out at the light snowfall, wondering which stores might even be open on New Year's Day.
In the end, he could only think of one place—his neighbor's shop.
So he drove straight there.
Pressing the horn—
Beep, beep, beep!
Inside the house, an elderly man wearing glasses—Stan Lee—looked up from his newspaper, puzzled by the noise outside. He stepped out and quickly recognized Ben's car.
"Well, Ben! What's this? Trying to give me a big surprise on New Year's Day? Or did May kick you out already?" he joked with a warm smile.
Ben didn't waste time. He opened the door, ushered the old man into the passenger seat, and drove toward the shop.
Stan looked a bit confused, clearly not understanding what was going on. Meanwhile, Ben's mind raced, trying to figure out how to explain the sudden appearance of such a child.
"Uh…" Ben scratched his head before finally speaking. "May and I… we have a child now. But we don't have anything at home for a baby, so I had to drag you out like this."
It was only half the truth—half real, half fabricated.
"A child?!" Stan was delighted. He had been neighbors and friends with the Parkers for years. But then something clicked. "Wait—how? I was just at your place a few days ago, and May didn't look pregnant at all!"
Ben fell silent, an invisible string of ellipses hanging over his head.
Sensing his awkwardness, Stan chuckled and chose not to press further. Instead, he helped him cover it up.
Soon, they arrived at the shop. Stan opened the door and gestured for Ben to go in.
But the moment Ben stepped into the baby section—
Rows upon rows of colorful packaging filled his vision: "S Size," "M Size," "L Size," "Newborn Care"… As a man with zero experience around infants, Ben's head started spinning.
"That child…" Ben tried to recall, gesturing vaguely with his hands to estimate the baby's size.
In the end, he gave up and nearly decided to just buy everything.
Fortunately, Stan stepped in, shaking his head at the flustered new father.
"You're completely unprepared, Ben. That's not like you."
"Maybe the kid scrambled my brain…" Ben muttered.
Stan helped smooth things over naturally. "Not actually yours and May's, right? A relative's child—or one you found last night?" he said casually, already picking out the right items. "If the baby's just born, use these. You'll need warm water—not too hot. Test it on your wrist first."
Ben nodded gratefully. He truly had no idea about any of this.
"Yeah… a distant relative. Something happened, and the child was entrusted to us. You know how unpredictable the world can be."
That was the nature of lies—once you started, you couldn't stop.
And now, Ben was fully committed.
"For this child," he thought, "I'd deceive the whole world if I had to."
"These days, accidents happen far too often," Stan sighed sympathetically. He didn't question why an "orphan" had appeared overnight. "Go on, Ben. May's a good woman—she'll take care of the little one. And if you need help, you know where to find us. I've always liked kids."
"Thanks, Stan. Let's head back—I'll drop you off first, then go home."
Ben carried three full bags of baby supplies back to the car. Stan followed with a smile.
They drove back.
But Ben couldn't shake the feeling—
Someone was watching him.
It was a sixth sense honed during his years in the military.
—
Meanwhile, back at the Parker house—
May was gently playing with the child, wrapped snugly in blankets as she rocked him back and forth.
Running her fingers through his soft hair, she couldn't help but wonder which star he had come from.
But it didn't matter anymore.
Now, he was their child.
A Parker.
"Who are you, little one?" May murmured tenderly. "You must be a gift from God, aren't you?"
"Clark? How about Clark Parker? Do you like that name?"
She tapped his tiny nose lightly.
Hearing the name, the baby broke into a smile—clearly pleased.
As for him—
Though he was a transmigrator, he barely understood what she was saying. It was English, after all, and back in his previous life, he'd been terrible at it. The only words he really caught were "name" and "Clark."
So he simply smiled.
But deep down, he already understood his identity—
A son of Krypton. Kal-El.
Now known as Clark.
That said, he hadn't read much Western comics. Aside from knowing Superman was incredibly powerful, most of his knowledge came from quick summaries.
—
Soon, the sound of a car pulling up echoed outside.
Ben had returned—with baby supplies.
After parking, he hurried inside, set the bags down, and immediately said:
"Quick, May—close the curtains!"
May looked confused. "Why? Did… the police track us here?"
"Worse," Ben said gravely. "I spotted a black Chevrolet in our neighborhood. That's the kind of car government agents love to use."
"They have a lead? They know we took the child?" May calmly continued changing the baby's diaper. Her movements were steady—maternal instinct had driven away all fear. "Clark is ours now, Ben. No one is taking him away."
"I know, I know…" Ben took a deep breath. Then paused. "Wait—you named him? Clark?"
"Yes."
"That's… a great name."
Clark Parker.
At that moment—
A car stopped outside.
Then came a firm knock on the door.
knock. knock. knock.
Ben exchanged a glance with May, signaling her to take the baby into the bedroom.
He adjusted his collar, steadied his breathing, and forced himself to appear calm.
Walking to the door, he didn't open it immediately. Instead, he called out:
"Who is it?"
"Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement, and Logistics Division. Mr. Parker, we need to ask you a few questions regarding last night's unusual atmospheric event."