Chapter 172: Christmas Wishes

Ever since returning from their latest trip, Daniel and Susan had been somewhat at odds with each other.

Daniel wanted Susan to come home with him for Christmas, but she refused. In Daniel’s mind, since he planned on staying on Earth for the foreseeable future, it was about time they settled down

After all, he wasn’t exactly young anymore, he was already twenty-seven, although most people would never guess his actual age just by looking at him.

So, Daniel felt it was time to bring Susan home to meet John and Mary properly and start preparing for marriage.

Even though John and Mary had known about Susan for quite some time, Daniel still felt that bringing his girlfriend home to meet his parents was something he should do.

Susan, however, didn’t see things the same way. She wasn’t ready to get married yet, especially now that her career was at its peak.

She loved Daniel deeply and had no doubt that she wanted to spend the rest of her life with him. She just wasn’t ready to get married yet.

…..

On Christmas Day, Daniel looked at the breakfast Susan had brought him and deliberately let out a dissatisfied grunt.

Susan completely ignored him. She placed the breakfast on the table, sat down, and calmly started eating her bread.

“Alright,” Susan said with a smile. “Hurry up and eat, then you can head back.”

“Why aren’t you coming with me?” Daniel frowned slightly, clearly disappointed.

Susan sighed before explaining, “I have to spend Christmas with Johnny. He just went through another breakup, and he needs someone to keep him company.”

“Johnny breaks up with someone every couple of weeks…”

Daniel shook his head, but when he saw Susan’s expression, he decided not to press the matter.

“Fine. I guess we won’t be spending Christmas together this year.”

He knew Susan well enough to know when to let something go. There was no point arguing when she had already made up her mind.

…..

Once Johnny arrived to pick Susan up, Daniel said goodbye and headed off as well.

First, he left Earth and headed to Mars to retrieve his ship. Then he packed some of the gifts people had given him into a box before returning to Smallville.

Carol had already been back for quite some time. When Daniel pushed open the door, he found her sitting with their parents, chatting away happily.

“I’m back.”

Daniel opened his arms, expecting a hug, but nobody paid him any attention.

Carol and the others simply continued their conversation as if he didn’t exist. Daniel stood there for a while, eventually, Mary noticed him.

“Find yourself a seat.”

Daniel’s expression immediately soured.

When he was a kid, his parents had doted on him more than anyone. Now that he was grown up, all that affection seemed to have disappeared, and honestly, it was depressing.

Carol glanced at him and gave him a smug little smile. Daniel’s blood immediately started boiling. He seriously wanted to drag her out into space and have a proper sparring match.

Sulking, Daniel dropped himself onto the sofa. Unfortunately, he used a little too much force, and the sofa collapsed underneath him.

“Why are you always so clumsy?” Mary said.

Daniel “…”

“Mom, you should know him by now,” Carol said from the side. “He’s been like this since he was a kid.”

‘I can’t take this anymore.’

Daniel felt like he was about to explode. He set down the box, forced a smile, and looked at his parents.

“Mom, Dad, I think I’ll go outside and have a few words with my dear sister.”

“What could you possibly have to say that you can’t say here?” John asked.

Daniel didn’t answer. Instead, he opened the box and pulled out the gifts he’d brought for the two of them.

The moment John and Mary saw the presents; their attention was successfully drawn away.

Daniel took advantage of the opening, grabbed Carol, who immediately started resisting, and dragged her out the door.

Carol wanted to resist, but how could her strength match Daniel’s. Then she tried to call out to their parents for help, but John was feeling the fine wine Daniel brought, and Mary was studying the manual for the domestic housekeeping robot. Who had the time to care about her.

Just like that, Daniel dragged Carol all the way out into space. Once they were there, Carol asked peevishly, “What do you want to do?”

“Nothing,” Daniel said with a fake smile. “I just want to see if you’ve gotten weaker.”

“I’m not fighting you.”

With that, Carol turned around, ready to leave. As if she would actually fight Daniel, she’d have to be out of her mind.

Five years ago, she had barely managed to knock Daniel into the sun after an incredibly difficult fight. After all this time, there was no way she was going to pick a fight with him now.

Daniel stepped in front of her and threw a punch.

Carol instinctively dodged. Years of combat experience kicked in, and she immediately launched a counterattack. The instant she did, a single thought flashed through her mind.

‘Oh, crap.’

Apart from that bald old woman who loved watching from afar, another old man had also joined in to watch the siblings fight.

Meanwhile, everyone else remained completely unaware of the battle taking place in space. At most, they noticed the occasional asteroid being shattered or a satellite getting clipped and damaged.

To ordinary people on Earth, the only noticeable effect was that there seemed to be quite a few more meteors in the sky over the next few days.

…

When Daniel and Carol finally returned, Carol was rubbing her shoulder and glaring murderously at Daniel, who was walking ahead with a satisfied grin.

Daniel was in a great mood. Carol, on the other hand, was furious.

She had been knocked around like a punching bag. If she hadn’t known she couldn’t beat him, she would have loved nothing more than to grab Daniel and smash his face into the nearest planet.

What a bastard!

…

That evening, the Danvers family gathered around the dinner table, enjoying a rare moment of peace and harmony.

“Cheers.”

Everyone raised their glasses with smiles on their faces.

“I don’t have any other wishes,” John said after a few drinks, his voice carrying a slight drunken slur. “As long as you two can live happily together every day, that’s all I need.”

He looked at Daniel and Carol with genuine pride.

“I’m really relieved about the two of you. And I’m proud to have you both as my children.”

John truly was proud of them.

Daniel and Carol had never hidden their abilities from their parents. John and Mary both knew their children were, to put it mildly, a little special.

Both of them could fly through the sky and move through the earth. Honestly, if he weren’t already getting old, John sometimes wished he could fly too. He had even secretly tried, but unfortunately, he didn’t have a single superpower.

John had often thought about it with some frustration.

‘It doesn’t make sense. My kids have superpowers, and they got their genes from me. So why don’t I have any powers?’

Now that he was getting older, John had mostly let that regret go. Mostly… but he was still a little envious.

Recently, he’d taken to reading books about heroes and strange ways of awakening their powers. Some of them claimed that great heroes could unlock their abilities by jumping off cliffs.

John had actually given it some serious thought. Maybe he should try it and see if he could awaken some kind of superpower.

Unfortunately, just as he made his way to a remote spot outside town, he was stopped by a group of men in suits.

John had no idea who they were.

…

“There’s just one thing,” Mary suddenly said. “You two aren’t getting any younger. Don’t you think it’s time you started a family?”

Carol immediately looked like she wanted to disappear. Daniel, however, nodded enthusiastically.

“Yes, absolutely. We’re not young anymore.”

By the time he finished speaking, Carol was already almost back in her room.

Daniel immediately turned to his parents and began asking them for advice on how to propose, completely drawing their attention away from Carol.

For once, Carol managed to escape without having to deal with him. And so, Christmas night passed with John and Mary patiently giving Daniel advice on how to propose.

———————–

(Just remove all spaces and then search)