It seemed to take forever to get to the hospital. By the time they pulled into the first available parking spot, Lois' nerves were frayed. But that was only the beginning of the longest wait of Lois' life. Once inside the hospital, the nurses wouldn't divulge Clark's location. They wouldn't even confirm that he was there, even though Mayson herself demanded access to him. In the end, Lois had to have Dr. Klein paged - another waiting game.
"Lois," Dr. Klein said, wiping at the sweat on his brow with a handkerchief, once he spotted her in the waiting area. "And...I don't believe we've met," he said, looking at Mayson.
Mayson shook the hand that the doctor extended. "Mayson Drake, Deputy D.A. I'm a friend of his."
"Mayson's the one who found him in his...unwell state," Lois clarified, purposefully staying as vague as possible, in the event of prying ears.
"Well, any friend of his, is a friend of mine." He looked to Lois again. "But, uh, what are you doing here?"
"We'd hoped to check in on him," Lois said.
"Well, of course you've here for that," he replied. "But, uh, it's a bit late."
"I told him I'd meet him here. We did," she said, pointing first to herself, then to Mayson. "Can we see him?"
Dr. Klein nodded. "Come with me."
He turned and led them down a series of hallways and into the elevator. He pushed the button for the ninth floor - intensive care. Lois' stomach dropped when she realized that fact.
"I thought it best to bring him straight here," Dr. Klein explained, likely seeing Lois' returning fear. "Just in case, you understand. Plus, it's a bit more private up here. I thought it might...stem the spread of the news that he's sick."
Lois nodded, feeling only minor relief. "Thank you. I'm sure he appreciates it." She paused. Then, "How is he?"
Dr. Klein shook his head with a worried look. "Not well, I'm afraid. You did the right thing in bringing him here. He's got a fever unlike anything I've ever seen. We're doing all we can to try and break it, but he's so different than someone like you or me, than I'm not certain any of the traditional methods are going to work. Still, we can try and hope."
They reached the room where Clark was resting, but before they could go in, Dr. Klein turned and faced them.
"Listen, I want to be frank with you. I don't know if I can do anything for him at all."
"W...what do you mean?" Lois couldn't help the wobble in her voice.
Dr. Klein glanced around, but at that hour, no one else was in the hallway. "I mean, what he has...I don't think it's anything this planet has ever seen."
"Are you saying...?" Mayson started.
Dr. Klein interrupted. "My best guess is that it's something only Krypton has ever seen. Where he picked up the illness, I couldn't tell you. Maybe it was something that was dormant in his system that, for whatever reason, started acting up now. Or maybe he was exposed to something containing the virus. He said he started feeling unwell while tending to a leak at a nuclear reactor. It's possible the radiation stimulated the virus."
"Could it have been, I don't know...something that someone released at the site?" Lois asked, her mind spinning. "This isn't the first time he's been exposed to high levels of radiation. Remember the 'leak,'" she said, making air quotes with her finger, "at Lex Luthor's facility, which caused that freak heat wave?"
Dr. Klein shrugged. "It's very possible, though I have no idea where someone would get their hands on a Kryptonian virus."
"Believe me," Mayson said seriously, "I've seen too many murder and attempted murder cases to count. If someone wants to kill someone badly enough, they'll always manage to find a way to do it."
"I suppose that's true," the man conceded with a shrug. "In any case, I'm running every diagnostic test known to mankind. The problem is, he's not born of Earth. Chances are, the tests are going to be useless. Still, I have to try."
"There has to be something else," Lois pleaded.
Dr. Klein signed and rubbed at his tired eyes. "I'm trying to manually cool his body. We've got cooling blankets and ice packs on him, but it's a gamble at best. Again, his body doesn't work quite like yours and mine. Normally, I'd give him some Ibuprofen to try to help the fever to break, but his body burns it off too fast for it to have any effect. I'm sorry. I wish I had better news to give you."
"No, no. I get it," Lois said absently, her gut twisting into knots of fear. "It's uncharted territory, to care for a sick Kryptonian."
"Thanks for being so understanding about that. It's stressful enough trying to heal him. I don't think I could deal with being judged on it," Dr. Klein said. He paused a moment. "There was one other thing I wanted to speak to you about, Lois. It's probably best if we speak in private."
"If it's about the medical proxy, he already told me, when we called for the ambulance," Lois said knowingly.
Dr. Klein nodded. "Then I guess we're all up to speed. Just, uh, he needs to rest. And visiting hours ended several hours ago. So if you two could make your visit short, I think we'd all appreciate it."
"Of course," Lois said.
"We appreciate that you're giving us any time with him at all," Mayson added with practiced professionalism.
"I'll be back in a bit," Dr. Klein said, opening the door for them.
Once they were inside, he turned and left to attend to whatever other duties he had. Lois and Mayson made a beeline for Clark's bedside. Clark immediately reached for Lois' hand, amid the wires and tubing that was attached to him. Lois knew it was merely meant to monitor his condition, but the sight of it all was terrifying regardless.
Over his body, which was now clad in a white and mint green hospital gown rather than the distinctive blue, red, and yellow of the hero, baby blue blanket had been carefully placed. Lois could feel the coldness radiating from it as she took Clark's hand. She noted the ice packs in his armpits and the one cradling the back of his neck as well. But his skin still felt aflame to her touch, which only fueled her worry.
"Clark," she said, speaking in a low tone. "Are you okay? How are you feeling?"
"I'm all right," he said. "Dr. Klein thinks I have some kind of Kryptonian virus."
"He told us all about it," Mayson said, moving from his side and sitting in one of the visitors' chairs.
"It makes sense," Clark continued. "At least, a little. I've come in contact with pretty much every disease known to mankind as I've helped people around the world. I've never gotten sick before. But where a Kryptonian virus would have come from has me stumped."
"It had to have been at the nuclear facility," Lois said with confidence. "You said that's when you started to feel ill."
Clark managed a small nod. "Yeah, I think so too. But where it came from in the first place..."
Lois cold see that his breathing was labored. Clark coughed hard and then panted with the effort to regain his breath, despite the oxygen tubes in his nostrils.
"Are you okay? Should I get a doctor to up the oxygen?" Lois asked, concerned.
Clark lolled his head from side to side. "No. Dr. Klein said it wouldn't really do anything. You know what's weird? Three days ago, I was at a mudslide in Chile. Toward the end, I rescued this little girl. She couldn't have been more than nine, I'm guessing. She was having this bad asthma attack and her mother couldn't get to her right away because she was injured. I sat with that little girl for...I don't know. Two hours? Maybe closer to three? I sat with her until her mother could join her. Once the girl was feeling better, after getting medicine at the hospital, she told me about how hard it had been to breathe, how every single breath was an exhausting effort. I nodded and offered what words of encouragement I could, but I didn't understand it in the least. Now I feel like I understand a fraction of it. It feels like I've got this weight on my chest, making it hard for me to get air in and out of my lungs. It's a weird feeling of heaviness that I can't shake. And I'm scared it's going to get worse."
"Can't the doctors do something? Give you some medicine, like they would for an asthmatic?" Mayson wanted to know.
"They tried it in the ambulance. It didn't work. My body doesn't react to medicine like a regular person's body would."
"What can we do to help?" Lois asked.
"You being here is enough." A thought seemed to come to him. "Wait...you walked in together, didn't you? Did you two...come to the hospital together?"
The surprise in his voice broke some of the tension in the room. Lois and Mayson both chuckled a little.
"Yeah," Lois confirmed. "Leave it to you to figure out some way to make old rivals into tentative new friends."
"Now I understand why you get called in on peace negotiations between enemy countries," Mayson joked.
Clark gave them a smile. "I won't lie. It's nice to see you two getting along. It makes me happy."
"Well," Lois said, trying to hide a blush and knowing she was failing, "it helps that I don't have to be so insanely jealous and competitive with her." She looked to Mayson and pointed a stern finger at her. "If you tell anyone I was jealous of you, I'll deny everything."
Mayson chuckled lightly. "I don't doubt it. But, to be honest, I was jealous of you too. Still am, a little. Clark's a great guy. Even if he does fly around as a vigilante superhero in his spare time."
Lois nodded and turned her attention to Clark. "Can I get you anything? Something to eat or drink? Another pillow? Anything?"
She knew she should still be mad at him for lying to her. And she was, deep down inside. But seeing him so sick and vulnerable pushed away her anger, letting concern and fear master her. She still loved him, which amazed her, in a way. If anyone else had tried to pull what Clark had, she would have had no problem turning her back on them and walking away without a second thought.
It was a skill she'd gained back when she was a child, after one too many friends had intentionally hurt her. She'd perfected it once she'd first stepped into the dating pool, and boys had hurt her heart in new ways. Paul had been the first to really, truly use her. Well, Paul and Linda had, but Paul's betrayal had, perhaps, caused the bigger wound to her heart. For a while, she'd shut everyone out, until Claude had waltzed his way into her life and sweet-talked her long enough to sleep with her, steal her story, and win an award for it. Lois' only consolation had been that Perry had been on her side. With his help, she'd proved that Claude hadn't written the story and he'd lost all credibility. She wasn't sure what had happened to the man once his actions had become common knowledge in the journalism world, but he'd never again done any kind of reporting, which was just fine with Lois.
There had been others as well, but none that stuck out as prominently in Lois' mind. Lois had walked away from each of those weasels, as she called them, easily. They weren't worth her time. They'd each shattered her trust in new and devastating ways.
And now Clark.
Now Clark had lied to her about something so huge, so trust-breaking, that Lois was still reeling from it. It hurt. He hadn't trusted her with the secret he carried. There was entire half - no, an entire other person - of himself that he hadn't told her about. He'd deliberately lied to her - for years! her mind screamed at her - despite the fact that he knew how rare and fragile her trust was.
But...could she really blame him?
Had she stumbled upon his secret in those early days, when he was an unwanted partner and a brand new superhero, she absolutely would not have hesitated to print the story of his dual identities. Back then, it would have seemed like justice. She would have had the perfect excuse to dump the "hack from Nowheresville," as she'd thought of him at the time, and a story that would have guaranteed her the Pulitzer. She wouldn't have even felt guilty about it either, because she hadn't yet learned what exposing his secret would have done - how it would have destroyed the most caring, loyal, decent, and amazing man she'd ever met. Not only that, she knew now that if Clark's identity had been made public, she would have destroyed not just Clark, but his parents and friends too.
She supposed too that she couldn't blame him for keeping the Superman thing a secret while she'd so actively fawned over the hero and ignored the real man who'd been pining after her from the moment they'd first met. Because, she knew, Clark hadn't been lying when he'd said that he was the real man and that Superman was only his cover - a costume he wore like a suit of armor to protect himself. She supposed she wouldn't have wanted to divulge her secret identity in a case like that, if the tables had been turned.
But that still didn't excuse the fact that he'd continued to lie and hide even after he was secure in the knowledge that she loved him. He'd had ample opportunity after they'd first said those three magical words - "I love you" - and this evening for him to finally come clean with her about everything. It still would have hurt, of course. He still hadn't been completely honest with her, but it would have been less humiliating if he'd told her the truth earlier. She wouldn't have proposed to him like some desperate idiot, as she viewed herself now. She wouldn't have stormed Mayson's apartment, thinking that Clark was cheating on her with another woman. She wouldn't have spent all evening berating herself for laying out her heart to Clark, only to think he'd rejected her and fled in terror.
"No, but thanks. Dr. Klein wants to keep an eye on everything I eat or drink, at least for the time being, and I'm comfortable enough, I guess."
"You guess?" Lois asked. "I'm not sure I understand."
"It's not the bed or pillows or anything. It's just that...my entire body aches. I don't know if it's from whatever this virus is, or if it weakened me enough so that I overexerted myself at the nuclear facility. I think I just want to get some rest, if that's okay."
"Of course," Mayson nodded. She touched his shoulder gently in a show of support and comfort. "Get some rest. I...I, uh...I'm not sure if I should..."
"Come back when you can," Clark encouraged. "I'm glad to have you here. I know we don't exactly see eye to eye on Superman's legitimacy as law enforcement, but Superman isn't the one who needs you right now. It's nice to have a friend by my side."
He looked to Lois, worried, as though she might throw her hands up in the air and walk out of his life now that she knew he was getting what medical help Dr. Klein could offer. "Lois?"
She gave him a small, sweet smile. "I'll be back first thing in the morning, once the visiting hours start."
He breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank you. That means a lot, especially considering how unfair I've been to you."
Lois shook her head. "You hush about it. I just want to see you get better. And then we can work through all of this and, knowing the two of us," she said with another little smile, "be stronger for it. All relationships have rough patches. We're no different. If anything," she said, taking his hand and giving it a squeeze, "I'm surprised. For the first time in my life, I want to fight for a relationship, instead of walking away."
"I...I'm glad," Clark said. "You know something? Every day, I ask myself why you deem me worthy of your time. Tonight is no exception. I've spent the last couple of hours wondering how I've been so lucky as to have found you."
Lois fought down a blush and gave him a wobbly smile. "Get some sleep, okay? You need it in order to get well." She patted his shoulder and bent to place a chaste kiss on his feverish brow, as though it might bestow some strength or restorative powers to him.
He nodded in complete obedience. "See you in the morning."
"Night, Clark," she whispered.
"Goodnight, Lois."
Lois and Mayson left the way they had come in - together. They saw Dr. Klein, who locked eyes with them and inclined his head in acknowledgement. They nodded to him - a silent thank you for allowing them to see Clark, even thought it had only been for a few brief minutes. Silence ruled until they reached Mayson's car.
"I don't know about you," Mayson said, finally venturing to break the fragile peace as she cranked up the heat in the car, "but seeing him put my mind at rest, even if just for tonight."
"Yeah," Lois agreed. "I'm still afraid for him, but at least he's with Dr. Klein now. If anyone can help him, it'll be Dr. Klein."
"Do you really think so?" Barely concealed hope clung to the edges of Mayson's words as she began to drive.
"I do. Dr. Klein is the absolute best. Clark couldn't be in more capable hands," Lois replied confidently, even though, deep inside, she too wondered if Dr. Klein would be able to help.
"If you say so, I'll trust you on it."
"Look, Mayson..."
"Yeah?"
"Thank you, for tonight. For driving me to the hospital. For being there for Clark when he needed you. I appreciate it all."
"You're welcome," Mayson said humbly. She sighed, as if weighing some decision in her mind. "Lois? I'm glad that Clark has you. I think...I think I always knew, on some level, that you were the only one he'd want. I think that's why I fought so hard. Why I was so...so forward and persistent with him. So aggressive. And I'm glad that, even in light of everything that's happened tonight, we both seemed to have moved past our past animosity toward each other. The truth is...I don't have many friends. I know, I know, how pathetic, right?"
Lois shook her head and sighed as she answered. "No. Truthfully, I don't have many real friends either. Coworkers, yes. Acquaintances, absolutely. But real, honest to God friends? Just a few."
Mayson laughed a little. "I guess we're more alike than we thought."
Lois smiled at little and chuckled in turn. "I guess so. So, what do you say? Friends?"
"Friends," Mayson affirmed, briefly shaking Lois' outstretched hand at a red light.
Lois leaned back into the leather car seat. She rested her head against the backrest and sighed, rubbing her tired eyes. "Well, this is not how I pictured tonight going when I made these plans. The man I love has a secret identity. He picked up some weird extraterrestrial disease no one has the slightest idea of how to treat. And now you and I are friends."
"All I had planned was a long, hot bubble bath and then settling down with the Napoleon I bought at a bakery on the way home from work," Mayson said with a wry grin.
Lois chuckled again. "Crazy night."
"You said it."
"I just wish there was more that we could do," Lois mused aloud, more to herself than to Mayson.
Mayson sighed quietly. "So do I. I guess all we can do is to go home, rest up, and be ready to see him in the morning."
"I guess so," Lois hesitantly agreed. She checked her watch. "God, it's already the middle of the night." She tried to stifle a yawn and lost. "It's been a very, very long night."
Mayson merely nodded and silence fell between the two new friends.
After a few minutes, Mayson spoke again. "Lois? Listen, I'm sorry about how things turned out tonight. When I first discovered the truth about Clark, he asked me to keep it a secret, even from you. He wanted to be the one to tell you. Not for you to figure it out on your own, because he knew you'd find it insulting. And not for someone else to - deliberately or accidentally - spill the beans, because he didn't want you to be hurt like that. To know that someone else knew the secret before he told you. Just...tonight...with him in trouble...I didn't think. I just assumed he'd told you by now. If I was wrong to call you, then I apologize."
Lois shook her head gently. "No, Mayson. You did nothing wrong. I'm grateful that you called. And as for the secret...I don't blame you at all. I mean, how could you have known that he hadn't told me yet? I guess...I guess if I'd been in your position, I probably would have assumed the same as you did."
"Still...I feel bad. He really did want to be the one to tell you. I should have asked him before I called you. But he was asleep and I was scared and..."
"Mayson," Lois interrupted in a soft tone, "I might not have known Clark's secret, but I do know Clark. He doesn't blame you for doing what you did. He's not mad. Trust me on this. It's just not in his nature to condemn a person for doing what they thought was right."
At first, Mayson didn't react. Then, slowly, she nodded. "He's a pretty special guy, huh?"
Lois nodded in turn. "The best."
"So...can I ask? And you can feel free to tell me to buzz off if you'd like. But..." She hesitated, as though unsure how to phrase her question.
But Lois knew what it was she was asking. "Am I mad at him? Can I forgive him for lying to me?"
"Yeah," Mayson said, checking both directions after stopping for a stop sign.
"I don't know yet. So much has happened. I haven't had a chance to sort through it all. The only thing I know for sure is that I won't be able to concentrate on anything until he's well again."
They rode in relative silence the rest of the way. Mayson dropped Lois off by her Jeep, and Lois took off in the direction of her apartment immediately. She was never so glad to be home as she walked in through the door and set the locks behind her. Toeing off her sneakers, she shuffled to her bedroom. She didn't even bother to change into pajamas before climbing into bed, but once her head hit the pillow, her mind started to spin with all that had happened that night, with fear for Clark leading all of her thoughts.
She reached out to the night table and grabbed the little stuffed black and white bear that resided there. It was the bear Clark had won for her at the Smallville Corn Festival. She could clearly remember how he'd struggled to hit the hammer onto the target with enough force to ring the bell and win the prize for her. Or...had he struggled at all? Had it all been a ruse? Had everything he'd ever done in front of her been a lie?
"No," she said after a moment. "He didn't lie about that."
She'd seen him bleed during those couple of days out in Kansas. In fact, there'd been times when he'd looked like "death warmed over," as Ellen always called such a sickly pallor. He really had been sick.
"The Kryptonite," she said with sudden realization. "It really was there. Trask must have found it. But if he really had it then..." Her stomach clenched. "Clark! That whole time, he would have been vulnerable. Trask could have killed him."
Of course, she'd thought Clark was no more than a regular Joe at the time, so it wasn't a new thought that his life had been in danger. But there was something to knowing that the deranged psychopath had nearly attained his goal of murdering Superman. A shiver ran down her back at the unbidden mental image of Clark laying dead at Trask's feet.
The more she thought about it, the more she came to the conclusion that Clark must have been confronting the threat of Kryptonite for the very first time, during those scary few days out in Kansas. How terrifying must that have been? To go from the strongest, most invulnerable man in the world to completely weak and helpless in the presence of a piece of that glowing green stone. To know, for the first time, that something could easily kill him. And yet, Clark hadn't complained once. He hadn't even appeared all that worried for himself. Lois' safety had been first. Hers and the Kents and Wayne Irig.
"That's his true strength," Lois murmured to herself, the words nearly lost into the bear's soft fur as she hugged it close. "His heart." She sighed as she turned out the lamp, plunging the room into darkness. "Please be okay."
To Be Continued...
