Title: Every Time We Say Goodbye
Author: Sue S.
Rating: PG/PG13ish
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Previously:Clark floated down to street level and took a seat on the bench across the street from Lois' building. He looked up at her darkened windows, and then over to the parked car. He couldn't see their faces clearly from this angle, but he did see a shadowy movement inside the vehicle. He gave them a slow nod of acknowledgement and turned his face back to Lois' building.
A moment later his ears picked out the soft beeps and blurps as a cell phone was dialed. Clark listened intently as the call was answered.
"Yes?" A female voice, clipped and impatient.
"He's here," one of the men in the car said.
"What's he doing?"
Clark closed his eyes, focusing all his attention on the woman at the other end of the line. He knew her from somewhere...
"Just sitting outside her apartment."
"Does he know you're there?"
Clark couldn't help it, he instinctively turned his head, looking in the direction of the car again.
"Oh, yeah. He sees us."
The woman hung up abruptly and Clark let out a small sough of bitter recognition as he finally recognized the voice. It was Mrs. Cox, Lex Luthor's personal assistant.
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Part 4/12
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From the moment she picked out Lex from the crowd Lois knew that their lunch date was going to be a disaster. The billionaire was dressed in khaki pants and a golf shirt, looking as though he had just stepped out of a sportswear catalog. His sudden sartorial change set off every mental alarm she possessed. Either this was the mother of all coincidences or Lex somehow knew what she had said about him last night. In her head Clark's voice whispered that Lex had tapped her phone. The idea didn't seem nearly as ridiculous now as it might have a few days earlier.
Lex took hold of her hand from across the table and raised it to his lips for a quick kiss. "I hope you're here to accept my invitation for this weekend. You're going to love the villa. It's paradise, my darling. I can't wait to show it to you."
"Actually, Lex, I--"
"I believe it will be good for us to get away from Metropolis and spend time together in a more neutral setting."
A flicker of annoyance shot through her that, if Lex had been eavesdropping, he was certainly going overboard in pretending not to know why she was here.
"It's not the setting, Lex." Lois pulled her hand from his grasp. "I've thought about your offer, a lot. But we're from two completely different worlds. I'm afraid my answer has to be no."
"Perhaps another time?" He reached for her hand again, but she moved it away.
"I don't just mean this weekend. I meant that I, uh, I can't marry you."
His mouth tightened momentarily and then his eyes closed, as if he was in pain. When he opened them again she felt a stab of guilt at how bereft he looked. Lex seemed genuinely stunned so maybe he wasn't tapping her phone. She'd made a huge assumption simply because he'd shown up in a golf shirt.
"You're right," he said quietly. "I've been impetuous, my darling, and I've rushed you. I apologize." He shook his head and gave her an embarrassed-looking smile. "Please don't judge me by my foolish eagerness. Give me a second chance. Could we begin again as friends?"
Lois stared at him, shocked into silence that a man as powerful as Lex Luthor wanted her friendship.
"We are friends, aren't we?" he asked, his eyes anxiously searching hers. "Surely we have that much between us. I don't drop my guard easily but I have with you, Lois." His hand lightly touched hers but this time she didn't pull away.
"Have you?" It felt like her voice was coming from miles away as she searched her memory. With shame she realized that Lex had, on occasion, been relaxed and familiar. There was the time he had been at the Metro Club when she was undercover. He hadn't blown her cover or done anything to give her away. Later that night she'd come home from a fight with Clark and Lex had shown up on her doorstep. He had been charming and flirtatious and had eaten ice cream straight from carton with her.
And then there was the time, only a few weeks ago, when terrorists took over the Planet and they had spent the night handcuffed to each other. During a quiet moment, as she lay with her head in his lap, he had enumerated all the things that money couldn't buy and one of them had been "brown eyes." His thumb had stroked over the bare flesh of her upper arm when he said it, his voice soft and sultry. Their eyes had met for a moment and a shiver of pure desire had run through her.
Now those same intense eyes were looking into hers as he quietly added, "I love you, Lois. I would do anything for you. Name it, and it's yours."
"…Whatever she wants, or needs, I'd do it. Clark's words came back to her in a rush.
"Her happiness matters more than my own."Across the table Lex was still looking beseechingly at her. It was almost hypnotic, and certainly heady, to be the absolute center of his attention in this way. Maybe she had been wrong when she said that they didn't really know each other. There had been moments between them; brief and tender interludes that were surely enough to build a relationship on. She had certainly extrapolated every tiny little encounter between herself and Superman into tokens of undying love and devotion.
So this was it. Lex Luthor was in love with her. He had actually said the words and he'd said he would do anything for her.
Anything! With Lex's wealth that opened endless possibilities. Just like she'd told Clark, all that money could come in really handy. She could investigate anything she wanted, write anything she wanted. Lex would never begrudge her anything -- he'd just said as much. He already used his wealth for philanthropy, bankrolling her exposes would merely be an extension of that altruism.
Out of the corner of her eye, Lois saw Owen rise from another table and move to head off someone coming towards them. The sight of his bodyguard was an abrupt reminder of all the other things that Lex seemed to be doing with his power and wealth. He was most likely stalking her, and tapping her phone, and God only knew what else. Lex had crossed a line and nothing was ever going to uncross it for her.
In spite of the warmth of the afternoon, Lois shivered. She saw Lex's eyes narrow slightly and the chill inside her increased. Suddenly the slight pressure of his hand on hers felt menacing and the intensity of his gaze was making it hard to maintain eye contact.
"I…" Lois shook her head and eased her hand out from under his. "I don't think so, Lex. I'm sorry."
For just a moment she could have sworn she saw his eyes burn with rage. Then he blinked and his features resumed their usual pleasant, slightly sardonic, mien.
"We don't have to make any decisions today," he told her and picked up a menu. "Shall we order?"
"Actually, no" she said as she stood up quickly on shaky legs. "Something came up before I left to meet you and I really should be getting back."
"I'll call on you later. Perhaps we could share dinner tonight?"
"No, thank you." She fumbled to get her purse unhooked from the back of the chair. "Don't call me. And don't come to see me, either. I think we should give each other some space for a while."
In other words, she thought fiercely in his direction,
stop stalking me!He gave her a patronizing smile. "If you change your mind, the offer to go away together still stands."
Lois yanked her purse free and moved rapidly to flee the restaurant.
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It only took Lois a few minutes to walk back to the Planet but it felt much longer. The entire time her heart was pounding and her knees were shaking as if she had just made a narrow escape. She found herself looking over her shoulder again and again, searching for Owen or Lex, but neither man was following her.
She was too rattled to go back to her desk so she entered the parking garage and headed for her Jeep. All she wanted was to get away, to drive somewhere far outside the city and take deep breaths without feeling like she was being followed. Lois got inside her vehicle, put the key in the ignition, and then froze.
He'd find her. It wouldn't matter where she went, Lex would somehow find her. He hadn't missed yet in the past couple of days.
In an instant she had the door open and was on her hands and knees peering beneath her Jeep. She crawled around it, not caring about the oil and dirt on the concrete floor, as she searched for anything out of the ordinary. As near as she could tell there was nothing there. So how in the heck had Lex known where to find her the past few days? Maybe she was just as crazy as Clark and it all really was one big coincidence.
Or maybe the tracker was inside her car.
Lois began a slow search of the interior of her Jeep, starting at the front seat and working her way towards the rear. She felt along, beneath, and between the seats. She patted the carpet, checking for lumps. She scrutinized the doors and the glove compartment then opened the back hatch for inspection. In the end she found sixty-seven cents in loose change, two pens, the pearl earring she'd lost months ago, and a crumpled straw wrapper, but not a single sophisticated little gizmo.
Her gaze shot sideways to the purse she had dropped onto the passenger side seat. She had left it in the coat check at the museum on the night of the dinner. Ever since that night, Lex had been able to find her at will.
Lois picked up the purse and dumped its contents onto the seat. She didn't see anything foreign amidst the objects that were hers. She started kneading the lining of the purse. It took her less than thirty seconds to find a lump in a seam at the bottom. She used cuticle scissors to snip the lining open and found a small and cylindrical metal object, less than an inch long. Her hands began to shake and she dropped it back into the purse as if it had bit her.
It was for real. She was being stalked by someone who wasn't exactly taking 'no' for an answer and had unlimited resources.
"…He's far more ruthless than you realize..."The prospect of going home was daunting. What if Lex hadn't stopped at simply bugging her phone and her purse, but was also monitoring her apartment? What if he had cameras there? It made her skin crawl just thinking about the possibilities. Lois opened her wallet and took out the two twenties she had inside, tucking them into her pocket. Then she shoved everything back into her purse and took the elevator to the newsroom. She opened her desk drawer, putting her purse and cell phone inside before locking it and pocketing the key.
A glance at Perry's old office showed Chip was standing near the interior window and staring at her, his lips pursed in displeasure. Lois turned away and headed for the elevator. It was just past two o'clock but she didn't care much at this point if she did get fired for leaving early. She had to get out of the building before Lex came by on some trumped up errand.
It was entirely possible that she might have missed a tracking device on the Jeep if it was as small as the one in her purse so she left it parked in the garage and walked away. She took a circuitous route for the next few blocks, checking constantly in storefront windows and over her shoulder to make sure she wasn't being followed. Once she was certain that she was in the clear, she put up her hand to hail a taxi.
Lois wondered exactly where she could go now. Her apartment was definitely out. She wasn't about to put her family or Perry in danger by going anywhere near them. Any hotel room that cost forty dollars or less a night was bad news of a different kind. That's when it occurred to her that there might be one safe place available. It was also possible that Lex might not think to look there right away.
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Clark had been all over Metropolis, literally putting out fires since early that morning. It seemed that no sooner did one fire stop, than another began. Even more disconcerting than the thought of a serial arsonist wreaking havoc on the city was the fact that three separate times after the flames went out he had suddenly become weak and nauseated. The sensation was exactly like when he had been exposed to kryptonite last year. Each time he had scanned the crowd but no one looked familiar or even particularly menacing. After the last incident he'd walked away, not quite trusting his ability to fly while his body felt so weak.
His frustration deepened when he realized he'd missed Lois' lunch with Luthor. By the time Clark reached the restaurant Luthor had been walking out, followed closely by Owen. There was no sign of Lois.
"Superman," Luthor greeted him, his eyes sparkling in amusement. "What brings you down among us mortals?" The quirk of Luthor's smile instantly made Clark suspect the billionaire had somehow procured kryptonite and was setting fires simply to lure Superman close enough to test its effectiveness.
"I enjoy a good walk as much as the next man," Clark answered.
"I'm afraid you're too late. She has already gone."
Clark shook his head, hating that Luthor had guessed why he was walking past this particular restaurant at this particular time. "I don't get your meaning. Who has gone?"
Luthor's smirk deepened. "Come now. Don't dissemble with me. There's no need for pretense between us, is there?"
Owen stepped around them and opened the back door of a limo that was idling at the curb. He gave Superman a cursory glance before bowing his head in deference as Luthor entered the vehicle. The bodyguard then shut the door and jogged around the back of the limo to enter on the other side.
From the inside of the limo, Luthor murmured, "I promise she'll never be yours, Superman. Never."
For a long moment Clark stood on the sidewalk, watching the limo through narrowed eyes as it drove away. He thought about Lois and the tight tone of her voice last night when she confessed that Owen might be following her. He thought about the car parked down the street from her apartment and wondered if she was currently being tailed by more of Lex's thugs at this very moment.
What had happened between Lois and Luthor at lunch? Luthor's phrasing made it sound like Lois had kept their appointment. Had she turned him down? Luthor was as unflappable as usual, so it was hard to tell. If Lois had refused his proposal, it clearly wasn't any kind of deterrent.
Galvanized into action, Clark shot up from the sidewalk and flew swiftly in the direction of the Planet.
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Just as Lois had hoped, the spare key to Clark's apartment was still beneath the flower pot outside his door. Her fingers shook as Lois opened the door. She was half-expecting Lex to be waiting for her inside. It seemed to take an eternity before she had the door locked firmly behind her.
She came down the stairs and looked around, finding a strange sense of peace just by virtue of being there. Even without Clark present his apartment had an aura of safety. Lois could actually feel the tension slowly draining away from her.
Her gaze caught on the picture of his parents that Clark had sitting on the end table next to his couch. It dawned on her that now was the perfect time to do a little unauthorized snooping. It was entirely possible that Clark had some memento or maybe a few love letters from his mystery girlfriend lying around.
Lois made a slow, visual inventory of Clark's apartment but came up empty. There were no love letters, not even a sticky note, to give her a clue. The only pictures she found were of his friends or his parents. On top of his headboard there was a group photo with Clark, Perry, Jimmy, herself, and Cat. A wry smile twisted her lips as she wondered if he had been protesting too much when he denied being attracted to Cat.
No. Surely he had slightly more taste, not to mention common sense, than to pin his hopes and dreams on Catherine Grant.
On Clark's nightstand she found a black and white snapshot propped up against the base of the lamp. She picked up the picture and couldn't help but smile. It was another picture from work -- Clark obviously needed a wider social circle. This one showed Lois sitting at her desk, her hands on the keyboard and her head turned, looking back at Clark who was standing behind her, one hand gesturing at her screen while his other hand rested on her shoulder. They both appeared to be laughing.
She had no idea when that picture had been taken; no idea that it even existed before this moment. Maybe it was from the day when Jimmy was experimenting with shutter speeds and had gone through about five rolls of film, taking pictures of pretty much every square inch of the newsroom.
Her stomach made a funny little lurch as she focused on Clark's smile and the obvious mirth in their expressions. God, she missed him! Lois sat down on his bed and took a longer look at the picture. She'd give almost anything to have him back in Metropolis at this moment. Maybe it was the day (week!) she'd had, but she really, really missed Clark at this moment. It was just her luck that it took him falling in love with someone else for her to realize how much she enjoyed his company. Now that she had Lex stalking her she even missed Clark's annoying inclination to be protective of her. An odd aching sensation seemed to hollow out her chest at the thought that someone else had a larger claim on his heart.
Lois put the picture back, replacing it carefully so that Clark wouldn't know she had been snooping. She meant to rise but gave the bed a test bounce instead. There was absolutely zero chance that Clark would catch her so she laid back, spreading her arms wide and staring up at his ceiling. Her gaze found the industrial beams that were probably his first glimpse of the world in the morning, assuming he could see them without his glasses.
A smile played over her lips at this stolen glimpse of Clark's personal life. A little tug of guilt went through her at the thought that she was sorta, kinda invading his privacy, but she brushed it away. Looking at his pictures and trying out his mattress didn't even begin to rise to the level of tapping his phone and tracking his whereabouts.
Unbidden, her thoughts turned to the memory of the time she and Clark had been undercover in the honeymoon suite at the Lexor. One moment she had been speaking and the next she was sprawled across the bed with Clark's mouth on hers and his hand cupping her face. Lois touched her cheek but it felt nothing like his caress had. Her lips parted slightly at the memory of his kiss. She'd been so shocked -- and so completely amazed by the gentle pressure of his mouth -- that she hadn't thought to protest. For a fleeting second or two she had even started to kiss him back before the maid came barreling in and Lois realized why Clark was kissing her.
"Clark…" she sighed and idly wondered what it would be like to kiss him for real. Had he kissed his mystery woman yet? Had he touched her cheek when he did it?
There was a soft click and she lifted her head to see Superman coming through the door to Clark's patio. In an instant Lois was scrambling frantically to get off Clark's bed. Superman shut the door, his eyebrows raised in silent question.
"What are you doing here?" she blurted out to cover her embarrassment.
Superman gestured in the direction of the closet. "Clark asked me to bring him a change of clothes."
"Oh."
Silence descended and Lois could practically hear the obvious question:
What was she doing there? "Please don't tell Clark I was here!" she begged. "I, uh, I only came here because, well..." Flustered, she wheeled around and pulled at the bed's quilt, smoothing out the wrinkles, before turning to face Superman again. "It's stupid, really. Never mind."
Her gaze dropped to the floor, unable to meet the warm curiosity in Superman's eyes. Geez, this was so embarrassing! She should never have come here. In fact, she ought to be leaving. She took a step, then stopped short at the realization that she had nowhere else to go. That thought hit her like something with weight and mass and her shoulders slumped.
Superman moved closer to her. "Lois, are you okay?"
She swallowed hard against the lump that was suddenly forming in her throat. "Yeah, fine," she whispered.
"Are you sure?"
The caring tone of his voice further tightened her throat. She nodded and turned away. "I should be going now anyway. When you see Clark…" To her horror, her voice broke on his name. She cleared her throat, but her voice was still raspy as she added, "Tell him, uh, tell him to call me at the Planet. I won't be going home tonight."
Lois stumbled, half-blind as her vision blurred, in the direction of Clark's front door. She was on the second step when Superman took hold of her elbow.
"Lois, wait."
More than anything right now, she didn't want to start crying. Especially not in front of Superman.
"Come on, come sit down." His arm went around her waist, gently but firmly guiding her down the stairs and towards Clark's couch. He urged her to sit, then took a seat several respectable inches away from her. "Tell me what's wrong."
"What's wrong?" she squeaked in a voice that had suddenly gone up about three octaves. "I miss Clark! My best friend is thousands of miles away just when I need him the most. And the worst part of it is I'm pretty sure Lex sent him away on purpose."
Superman nodded solemnly.
"I never realized before how much Clark… That I, that he, uh…" Lois found herself suddenly unable to articulate a clear thought. Even worse, a tear came loose, rolling down her cheek. She quickly swiped at it with the back of her hand. "Did you know that he's head over heels in love with some woman who works at the Planet? And he won't tell me who she is, either."
Superman's eyebrows drew together in confusion and Lois was immediately horrified that he might think she was getting this worked up over Clark dating someone else.
"That's not why I'm here," she hastened to add as she impatiently wiped away another rogue teardrop. "I told Lex this afternoon that I couldn't marry him and…" She hiccupped softly. "It was like he didn't even hear me or something. He still wants me to go away with him this weekend. He thinks we just need some alone time together in a neutral setting." Repeating Lex's words caused a nervous laugh to bubble out of her. "You don't know how much I hate it that Clark is probably right about him."
"How so?"
Lois took a deep breath and blew it out slowly. "For the past couple of days Lex has been turning up everywhere I go. At first I thought I was imagining it. Then I thought I was being paranoid. And then he showed up dressed in casual clothes for our lunch today."
Superman's eyes widened a little but he didn't say anything. Lois felt encouraged that he wasn't dismissing her fears.
"See, the thing is, last night on the phone, Clark and I were kind of making fun of him for always being in a suit and tie. It just felt like too much of a coincidence."
Superman nodded.
Lois drew in another deep breath, letting it go in a shuddering sigh. "It gets worse, though. I don't think he's just listening in on my phone calls. After lunch I went looking through my purse and I found a tracking device in the lining."
A tic began to twitch in Superman's jaw. "And that's why you came here?"
"Yes. I left my purse and phone in my desk drawer. I would have gone to a hotel but who's to say he isn't tracking my credit cards." It felt like her blood suddenly went cold. "Oh god, there aren't any bugs in here, are there?"
Superman stood up, turned in a slow circle, and then sat down next to her again. "No. It's clean. You should stay here tonight."
"I don't know, I--"
"I insist." His hand touched her cheek, his thumb skating lightly over the moisture left by her tears. "I'm certain Clark would insist you stay, too."
Lois looked down, suddenly achingly aware that she was completely alone with Superman. It wasn't nearly as awkward and weird as she thought it might feel. Maybe that was because he wasn't quite as formal as he usually was around her. Yes, he'd made it clear that he wasn't interested in her but a tiny little piece of her was absolutely certain that he didn't really mean it. What was it she had said to Clark? That all those faint possibilities kept hope alive? Besides, if Superman didn't care about her, just a little bit, he wouldn't be sitting here, wiping away her tears.
Superman's hand left her cheek and his head turned in the direction of Clark's patio door. It was far away, but Lois could faintly pick out the wail of a siren.
"You should go," she told him.
Superman touched her shoulder. "You should stay."
Lois nodded, grateful that she could blame Superman if Clark ever found out. "I will. Only, uh, don't tell Clark I'm here, okay? I don't want him to worry about me."
Superman's expression softened and he gently squeezed her shoulder. "He already does."
A moment later he was gone in a rush of air, leaving her still tingling from his touch. She realized Superman hadn't taken any clothes for Clark. Her spirits lifted a little at the thought that he might come back again later.
Lois turned on Clark's television, switching it to the local news station. There was a breaking story about a fire in the Market District. Her stomach rumbled, and Lois realized she hadn't eaten anything since that piece of dry toast and black coffee she'd called breakfast. She moved into Clark's kitchen, opening and closing cupboard doors until she found a can of soup. She heated it up, then sat on Clark's couch to eat it.
A camera crew had arrived on the scene of the fire. It was in an abandoned warehouse and the fire had been put out quickly by Superman. By the time Lois finished eating Superman was answering questions from the press. He confirmed that no one had been inside the building and refused to speculate about the spate of fires earlier in the day.
Before the station cut away to commercials Lois saw a fireman slap Superman on the back in congratulatory thanks.
"I know," Lois murmured, "you can't help but want to touch the guy."
The thought occurred to her that it was an even more heady feeling to be deliberately touched by Superman. She really hadn't wanted to stay but once his arm was around her he had been damn near impossible to resist. She wondered what Clark would have made of that. Would he consider that manipulation on Superman's part? Or just weakness on hers?
Lois rose from the couch and returned to Clark's kitchen. She washed the bowl and spoon she had been using and put them back in place. The next time she went to the store she'd buy Clark a can of soup to replace the one she'd used. Or maybe not; it was only a can of soup, after all. She didn't exactly want to have to explain the circumstances under which she'd used it.
She puttered around Clark's apartment for a while, continuing her snooping, but keeping one ear open in case Superman returned. Lois made a slow inventory of the books in Clark's sizeable collection and privately wondered if he'd really read all of them. Some of them had to be for show; they were simply too obscure, or in a foreign language, to have been read for enjoyment. Lois wondered if his girlfriend had been impressed by the display.
"That's a little manipulative, isn't it, Clark?" she muttered to her absent friend.
Eventually she ended up in Clark's bedroom, staring at his bed. It felt a little weird to know she was probably going to sleep there tonight. Not weird enough to leave, though. Staying at Clark's was infinitely preferable to facing whatever surveillance Lex had installed in her apartment. She supposed she could sleep on the couch but she was feeling a growing anticipation at the idea of sleeping in Clark's bed. She was never again going to have such a near perfect excuse so she wasn't about to waste the opportunity.
It would, however, be far too disconcerting to sleep there in her underwear. Or even, heaven forbid, nothing at all. She opened Clark's top dresser drawer and peeked inside. It contained socks and underwear and she quickly shut it again, her cheeks coloring just a little bit. She'd only had a glimpse but she had definitely seen a pair of dark boxers. She'd seen Clark in nothing but a towel once and the memory of that played through her imagination again -- only this time her partner was in those dark boxers.
Lois blew out a quick breath and silently conceded that, whoever she was, Clark's girlfriend was a lucky woman. Not only was he witty and fun to be with but he had an amazing physique. And he could kiss. The man could definitely hold his own in the kissing department.
She opened the next drawer down and found t-shirts. Lois picked up the shirt on top and experimentally held it to her chest. It was a dark maroon with the Met Nets logo. It was also long enough to make an acceptable nightshirt.
"That's a good color on you."
Lois nearly dropped the shirt in her surprise. She looked over to find Superman standing in the open doorway to Clark's patio. His arms were crossed over his chest and he was leaning with one shoulder against the doorframe. Either she was imagining it or the glint in his eye was further proof that he harbored deeper feelings than mere friendship for her. She wondered just how long he had been standing there.
"You really don't think Clark will mind?"
Superman smiled and shook his head. "Not a chance. When he finds out you wore that to sleep in he may never wash it again."
Lois laughed even as her cheeks grew warmer. "Then I hope it's not one of his favorites."
"I think it is, actually. Maybe we'd better not tell him." He nodded toward the closet. "Let me just grab a few things and I'll be out of your hair."
She watched him walk across the room, admiring the play of muscle beneath the tights and the regal sweep of the cape as he moved. Superman opened the closet and browsed past a couple of shirts before selecting a blue and white striped oxford. He turned and she took a step back as he went past her in the direction of the dresser. He opened the top drawer and took out the dark boxers.
Lois looked away, her cheeks growing even hotter.
"Will you be all right here alone?" Superman asked.
When she looked up again he had folded Clark's underwear into the shirt. Lois shrugged. "Are you offering to stay here with me?"
His eyebrows rose in surprise. "I'm not sure that would be a good idea."
"Can't resist me?" she teased.
In an instant his features changed from politely friendly to amusement as he chuffed out a surprised laugh. He grinned at her and shook his head. "It would take a stronger man than me, Lois."
For a moment longer Superman seemed to hesitate then he gave her a wink and disappeared in a rush of wind. The door clicked shut in his wake and, a second later, a sonic boom rattled the windows.
"He can't resist me," she whispered to herself.
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End 4/12
Feed me, Seymour!
