Ghost From the Past
Folc4evernaday
Part 6
The next morning, Clark awoke to the most incredible feeling, holding the woman he loved in his arms after spending all night making love to her. He gazed at her sleeping figure curled up so perfectly against him…as if she was meant to be there forever. He brushed a stray hair out of her face, cupping her cheek, “Clark?” she mumbled in her sleep, not quite waking up.
“Good morning, beautiful,” he whispered as she opened her eyes to gaze up at him.
“Morning,” she mumbled against his chest. “Oh, God, what time is it?”
“A little after five,” He whispered, “Go back to sleep.”
She shook her head, “No, I’ve got to start getting ready and you…” she gave him a lingering gaze, "need to go home and change."
“Change?” He teased, feigning confusion. “I just thought I’d wear what I’m wearing now…”
She rolled her eyes, wrinkling her nose at him, “I don’t think so….Some things are better left in the bedroom…” she said, running her hands up and down his chest seductively. “I was ready to jump your bones the minute you took your shirt off…I can only imagine how Cat Grant would react if you came to the Planet like this…” She gazed down at him appreciatively.
“Really?” He teased, cupping her cheek as he outlined her jawline with his thumb and index finger.
She raked her fingernails against his chest as she nodded her head, brushing her nude body against him. “You’re so …” She whispered as he nibbled at her neckline, “I don’t know how we’re going to make it through the day…”
“Five times wasn’t enough for you last night?” He murmured against her skin as she tightened her thighs around his waist. “You’re insatiable. What am I going to do with you?”
She reached in-between their bodies, “I have a few ideas…” she whispered, hovering over him as she felt him begin to respond to her touch.
“So, do I…” he murmured.
“Oh, Clark…” she moaned in pleasure as she leaned forward, recapturing his lips with her own, intent on repeating last night’s activities.
“Lois??” The bang of the front door to her apartment caused both of them to look up.
“Oh, God…” Clark groaned in agony. “Who is that?”
“Lucy…” Lois muttered, covering her face with her hands. “I’m going to kill her…”
“Lois?? Where are you??? Your front door was open….”
Clark stifled his laughter and she covered his mouth with her hand, “Shhh, do you want her to come in here?”
“It’s either laugh or cry at this moment…” He said glancing downward.
“I know. I’m sorry…” she whispered. “Maybe if we’re really….”
“She’s in your apartment. I don’t think you can pretend not to be…” He began to argue but was cut off with the bedroom door swinging open.
“Lucy!!!” Lois pulled the sheet up over her and Clark, trying to maintain some sort of modesty with her sister in the room even though she was in her bed completely naked, straddling him. It didn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out what Lucy had interrupted.
“Oh, my God!!” Lucy slammed the door behind her then spoke through the door, “Sorry! Seriously really really really sorry…”
“Guess it’s time to get up,” Lois reached for a tank top and shorts that were on the floor and began to pull them on. Clark watched her get dressed and held a hand up, “I’m going to need a minute…”
She nodded, “Sorry,” she whispered before heading out of the bedroom to deal with her sister.
***
Lois stepped out into the Living Room to find her sister sitting on the couch, toying with a loose thread on the arm rest. “Hey, Luce,”
“Hey,” Lucy still wasn’t looking at her.
“So…”
“So…” Lucy echoed.
“Uh, what’s up?” Lois asked.
“Nothing compared to what was up with you…” Lucy said shaking her head in embarrassment. “I am SO sorry…I…” she shook her head.
“I get that,” Lois said. “Just…knock first …”
Lucy nodded. “I just never thought ….”
Lois sighed, not wanting to get into her personal life with Lucy just yet, “So what’d you stop by for?”
“Oh, uh, mom is being….well, MOM.” Lucy shrugged. “I was hoping maybe I could get some reinforcements?”
Lois sighed. Ellen Lane was a force to be reckoned with. She always steamrolled right through everything and would leave disaster in her wake if she had to. She had struggled to deal with her mother growing up and even still today. When her father had left their mother in her late teens it had caused her mother to go through a downward spiral of drinking and self-loathing that only seemed to stop once Lois defied her father’s wishes and began to pursue a career outside of the medical field. Once she’d declared her independence Ellen had begun attending AA meetings and began her recovery one step at a time. Despite the changes for the better she still was hard to deal with at times for both Lane sisters.
“What now?” Lois asked.
“Well, you know how I’m graduating next month, right?” Lucy prompted. Lois nodded. “Guess who mom refuses to allow to attend MY graduation?”
“Daddy?” Lois guessed sheepishly, knowing the answer already.
“Not, JUST daddy….but grandma and grandpa and the entire side of the Lane family. It’s MY graduation. Can’t they get along …or at least pretend to get along for a day…a few hours???” Lucy cried angrily.
Lois sighed. Lucy hadn’t seen the worst of their parents' fights. A lot of the times she was at a friend’s house or locked up in her room when fights would break out. The relationship between the two was very volatile. “I’ll see what I can do, but I can’t make any promises…”
The sound of the bedroom door opening caught her attention and she turned just in time to see Clark step out of the bedroom with no shirt. She gazed at him hungrily before turning back to her sister who had caught her gaze as well and was mouthing, “Oh, my God!!” to her inaudibly. She couldn’t help but grin happily to herself, knowing every inch of Clark Kent was all hers. She groaned inwardly when she watched him put his shirt back on from last night.
“I gotta get changed. I’ll see you at the Planet,” he said, leaning in to give her a kiss before leaving. Lois nodded, watching him leave.
As the door closed behind him Lucy smacked her on the shoulder, “Oh, my God! Wow….”
“I know…” Lois smiled back at her sister.
“He spent the night, huh?” Lucy teased.
“Oh, yeah…” Lois grinned impishly, unwilling to divulge any more information as she headed back to her bedroom to get dressed.
***
Lois stepped off the elevator to the Daily Planet with a smile. Last night had been ….incredible. As scared as she and Clark both were at the beginning both of them seemed to have gotten over any insecurities by the end of the night, making love well into the night when they both passed out from exhaustion.
She dropped her things off at her desk then headed towards the photo department to have her photos from last night developed. An elderly man in his mid-sixties was at the drop-off window, reading through the latest edition of the Dirt Digger.
She raised her hand to get his attention, waving it in his face, “Excuse me? Phil, right?”
He looked up at her and smiled, “What can I do for you?”
She handed him the film, “How soon do you think I could get these developed?”
Phil glanced at the stack of pending requests then back at her with a smile, “Anything for you, Ms. Lane,” He took the film from her and gave her a big grin. “Hot lead?”
“Maybe,” she admitted.
“I’ll get these brought up to you by nine,” He said.
“Thanks,” she smiled back at him.
“No problem,” He turned towards the large machine that was used for developing the photos and began to get to work. Lois turned back towards the newsroom to get started on the latest research requests.
When she arrived at her desk the newest reporter, Claude Cluny sat on the edge of her desk, “Getting in a bit late this morning, aren’t you chéri?”
Lois rolled her eyes as she took a seat, “Running an errand. What do you want, Claude?”
He fingered the stack of requests on her desk, “Oh, just wondering what a research assistant could possibly need in the photo department…”
Lois glared at him, “Wouldn’t you like to know?”
He stood up, standing behind her, “You’re working on a story, right? Don’t you think you need a mentor to help….piece everything together?”
She cringed as she felt his breath hit the side of his face and pulled away, pushing him away, “If I did need one….you wouldn’t be my first choice…”
“Oh, come on,” He teased, placing a hand on her shoulder, “How else do you expect to …. move up the ladder? Who do you think gives Perry the recommendations?”
“I have a boyfriend…” She stammered, pushing him away once more, “…and I can do just fine on my own merits…” She shot him a disgusted look before turning away.
“Don’t say I never offered…” He shrugged, walking away.
“’Don’t say I never offered’…What an ass!” she muttered to herself as she opened the first file on top.
“Well, gotta give him credit, Lois. He never stops trying to hit on the help,” Cat said walking up behind her.
“Cat!” Lois turned around, surprised, “You scared me!”
“Aren’t you jumpy this morning?” She teased, handing her a file. “I’ve got a tip on the Mayor’s new campaign manager. Can you run a background check and let me know what you find? Let me know once you’ve got something.”
Lois nodded, taking the file from her, “Sure, no problem.”
Cat glanced at the desk adjacent to Lois’, “Where’s Clark?”
Lois was quiet a moment, unsure how to respond. “Um,” She glanced up at the elevators and saw Clark stepping off the elevator with a pastry bag and two cups of coffee, headed in her direction, “Speak of the devil,”
“Hi,” he said warmly, handing her a coffee when he approached them.
Lois smiled back at him, before looking down at her desk, trying to avoid eye contact as much as possible. Who were they kidding? Cat Grant could smell dirt from a mile away and she was staring them down as if they were little red riding hood and she was a the big bad wolf. ‘She knows’ she thought to herself, recognizing that look Cat was giving her. She tried not to make any sudden moves.
“Uh-huh,” Cat nodded before turning to walk back to her desk.
She breathed a sigh of relief once she saw Cat was out of relief, “Thank God…”
“What was that about?” Clark asked, confused as he took a sip of his coffee.
“She KNOWS…” Lois whispered. “I could see it in her eyes…”
“Knows what?” He asked confused.
“Knows…knows…” Lois whispered.
Recognizing what she was referring to he raised his eyebrows and nodded, “I don’t think so,”
“You didn’t see the look,” Lois whispered as he took a seat at his desk.
“What look?” He asked.
“A look…” she whispered back.
He shook his head at her, “I think you’re reading too much into looks.” He pointed at the stack of files on her desk, “That this week’s?”
She split the stack in half, “Here you go.” She then lowered her voice and whispered, “I, uh, dropped our film off with Phil to develop. Should be ready by nine then we can talk to Perry when we get back from class,”
He nodded, “So, what’s the plan?”
***
Metropolis University was almost always busy and filled with the noise of people going from one place to another no matter what. For some reason that noise seemed to stop the moment they headed towards the Met Daily. Clark looked around skeptically as they turned the corner and stopped. A sound only he could hear…
He pushed Lois back against the wall, “Stop,”
She looked at him incredulously, “What?”
He shook his head, “Something’s wrong…”
She glared at him, “You mean other than us being late?” She pushed past him and he pushed her back again, “Clark, stop it. This isn’t funny…”
The echo of a single gunshot being fired at the ceiling rang throughout the halls and an alarm began to blare. “Lois, I think we need to get out of here…”
“What the …??” Lois gasped when she saw a blonde figure with a gun raised towards them.
“Get Down!!!!” he pressed her against the wall, shielding her with his body as best as he could. “Don’t move…” he whispered in her ear, holding her close. She nodded, shaking against him as they listened to the shots fire off. Every instinct in him wanted to go over there and help stop whoever it was from firing shots off but he knew if he tried his secret would be exposed. Instead, he would have to focus on protecting Lois.
The gunfire stopped. He looked around hesitantly with his enhanced vision and saw the person with the gun was reloading and heading towards the Met Daily. He scanned the office and noticed a group of people huddled on the floor. He had to do something. He turned to Lois and whispered, “Get to a phone and call the police…” he shoved her towards the door and disappeared around a corner at super-speed.
She looked over her shoulder, “Clark?” He could hear her calling his name as he raced as super-speed to grab the gun from the perpetrator.
“I know you’re in there Paul! Do you really think you can DUMP me on a freaking POST-IT and I’m not going to do anything about it??? Get your skinny….” The gun disappeared from her hands and she looked down at her hands. “What the…?”
Clark blew the guns a few feet away, careful not to touch them from a distance then watched as the campus police approached with tasers drawn. He sighed in relief, turning back to find Lois who he found standing right behind him, “Are you CRAZY???” She smacked him against the chest. “What are you DOING??? Trying to get yourself KILLED???”
He held his hands up, pretending to try and defend himself, “I’m sorry. I’m sorry…I was just…” He stopped when he saw the fear in her eyes. “I’m fine, see?” He held his hands up for inspection. “Looks like Paul’s fling of the month didn’t take it too well,” He motioned to the young blonde being escorted down the hallway in handcuffs.
Lois stared at him angrily, “Don’t you EVER scare me like that again, Clark Kent!” She stared at him a moment before grabbing him by the collar and kissing him fully on the mouth. He wrapped an arm around her protectively, sighing in relief. It didn’t appear she’d seen him.
He looked down at her leg and saw blood. “You’re hurt,” He said, kneeling down to look at it.
She shrugged it off, “I’m fine. It just grazed me,” She shrugged him off. “Unlike SOME people that decided to go barreling into a HOSTAGE situation ….” She smacked him against the head, “What were you thinking?”
“I ….thought I ….I don’t know…” he finally stammered out. He couldn’t tell her what he’d really been doing was trying to stop the hostage situation. There were so many things he just couldn’t tell her because he didn’t understand them himself.
She relented a moment, “Remind me to smack the crap out of Paul for being such a…” She stopped when she saw Paul being loaded into a stretcher by ambulatory workers. “Oh, my, God…”
Clark was quiet for a moment. He’d thought he’d gotten to her before she’d hurt anyone. Paul had been shot. Lois had been grazed by a bullet and a few workers had been hit by stray bullets. All these gifts and he still couldn’t stop it.
***
Present Day…
Lois stepped off the elevator with Lucy in tow and headed for her desk, “Jimmy!”
Jimmy Olsen looked up at her in surprise and ran up to her, “Morning, Lois!”
“Not for me!” she snapped angrily, throwing a glare at Lucy. “Someone turned my phone off this morning.”
“Oh, would you let that go already?” Lucy fumed angrily.
“Lois…” Jimmy began.
Lois turned back to Jimmy ignoring her sister. “Jimmy, remember that government agency I had you help me dig into awhile back, “Bureau 39?”
“You mean the one that doesn’t exist?” Jimmy asked skeptically. “Look, the Chief…”
“If they don’t exist then why did they appear in my apartment this morning?” Lois asked with an arched eyebrow.
Jimmy just gave her a skeptical look but Lucy spoke up, “They had guns and were threatening Lois about helping Clark…”
“Clark?” Jimmy asked confused. “Look, Lois, the Chief wanted me to…”
Lois gave him a shaky sigh then said, “He’s alive.”
Jimmy nodded, “Well, there was some weird guy looking for you earlier. Perry has him in his office. Wanted to see you when you got in…”
“What???” Lois slapped him across the chest. “Why didn’t you say anything???” She stormed towards Perry’s office and opened the door, closing it behind her.
Jimmy just stared at her retreating figure and sighed, “I TRIED…”
***
Lois stared at Perry who was sitting at his desk, tapping a pencil against the notepad in front of him, “Lois?”
Her eyes were shut tightly as she sank to the floor in tears. “Is it true?” She managed.
“Yes,” She gasped, holding a fist over her chest as she began to cry harder. He took a deep breath and approached her cautiously. “I’ve got Dr. Helene Friskin talking to him in the Conference Room right now. She’s supposed to be one of the best with….” He stopped a moment, watching as Lois struggled to come to grip with everything. “Lois, he doesn’t remember a thing. He said something about a green room…I’m not even sure he remembers who HE is, but…”
“He doesn’t remember???” Lois looked at Perry in shock. “How could he not remember??” She gingerly fingered the ring on her finger Clark had placed so many years ago. “Five years…” She cried.
“I know, honey,” Perry knelt down next to her and wrapped an arm around her shoulders as she continued to sob. “But I think he DOES remember YOU….” She began to cry harder. “I found him by your desk. He said he was looking for you and said your name.”
“I don’t know how to do this, Perry…I….” She began to cry harder, burying her face in her hands.
“I know,” Perry sighed, “Lord knows you’ve survived more than anyone should ever have to endure. You can do this. I know you can. He needs you…as much as you need him.”
Lois rocked herself back and forth for a moment, struggling to regain her composure before standing up. She began to pace around the office as Perry stood up and took a seat on his couch. “It’s not that simple. Those men I told you about…that secret government agency?” Perry nodded. “They’re here. They came to my apartment and threatened me…thought I was hiding Clark.”
“What??”
“Apparently, he had information they wanted and he wouldn’t give it to them so they kidnapped him and faked his death…How I don’t know…” She said as she continued to pace. “What am I supposed to do? I can’t take him back to his apartment…or mine…” She huffed angrily.
***
TBC...
