Disclaimer: All recognisable characters etc are property of DC Comics, Warner Bros and December 3rd Productions, not me.
Author's Note: Eleventh in the series started by At First Sight and based on the episode Honeymoon in Metropolis. Thanks goes to Trina for beta-reading.
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Everyone has facets to their personalities that they prefer to keep hidden.
No one is all good; conversely, no one is all bad either.
I discovered a few hidden facets this week, and they surprised me.
…
In the few months since I moved to Metropolis, my relationship with Lois-as Clark Kent- has changed. It's been a gradual thing, from resented interloper to occasionally useful subordinate to unsought partner and finally, begrudgingly, to friend.
Our friendship is still new and fragile. We went to Smallville a few weeks ago as partners and returned as friends. Since the Revenge incident, however, Lois has been a bit... skittish.
I suppose I can't blame her. Waking up and finding that you've been throwing yourself at a co-worker for two days has to be embarrassing at best. Now, of course, I know she's attracted to me and as far as she knows, I'm not attracted to her.
That couldn't be further from the truth.
I was content to just not mention the episode. Not mention it and let things between us just settle back to normal.
Being thrown into close quarters at the Lexor changed that.
I know I teased her a lot over the past few days- maybe even a little too much. But I had to. I had to keep it light so she wouldn't feel threatened, or she'd bolt. I'd go back to being the interloper, and I don't want to lose her friendship.
That wasn't the only reason I had to keep things light.
I had to hide how comfortable I was around her. Staying in the same hotel room, it was easy to imagine that we were in a committed relationship and I loved every minute of it.
I was a little too comfortable, in fact. I slipped up so many times that I'm surprised she doesn't know I'm Superman.
Once you manage to get her away from the newsroom, Lois is actually a lot of fun. Competitive, argumentative, stubborn, yes- those are just Lois Lane traits, not something limited to her work. But also fun. When she chooses to let herself unwind and put aside her workaholic tendencies, she becomes almost a different person. Softer, somehow. I got a glimpse of it in Smallville, too.
I love that she trusts me enough to relax.
…
Luthor surprised me. Having to call him when Lois disappeared- having to ask my greatest enemy for help- didn't sit well with me, but what could I do? The lives of 12 million people were at stake.
It was his reaction to the information we gave him about Shockwave that surprised me.
I expected more worry about the money he's invested, but he skimmed over that and asked about Lois.
As much as I despise his faults- his ruthlessness, his greed, his corruption, his contempt for human life- his concern for Lois is something I can admire.
I thought he intended her to be just another notch on his bedpost, but maybe he does actually care for her.
As much as he's capable of caring for another human being, that is.
I can only hope she doesn't feel the same way.
