Missing Lois - TOC Where we left off in Chapter 2: Part 1...At lunch, Clark,” she whispered and then glanced nervously back at Jaxon’s desk. He was on the telephone. “Is he keeping his lips sealed?”
Clark’s brow came together as he listened a moment to Jax’s conversation. Printing out his article, he pointedly did not answer her question. He handed the article to Ralph, before grabbing her elbow and escorting her to the elevators. As they waited, he started in on her. “I cannot…”
“Not here, Clark,” she hissed. Something was amiss, she was spooked. The doors opened and they stepped inside. As soon as the elevator doors closed, Lois collapsed against him.
“Lois!”
“It’s Lucy, now, Clark. Please, remember that, especially here. Do you think you can get me that job? Did Jimmy really make you that promise?”
“James Olsen owns this paper, Lucy. We’ll see. What’s wrong?”
She took a deep breath, but before she could answer the car stopped. “At lunch, Clark. I’ll tell you at lunch.”
The elevator doors opened and there waiting to enter were the two men Clark least wanted to see, Mayor White and Mr. Olsen.
Chapter 2: The Twilight Zone - Part 2 Lois paled. Clark, who still had hold of her elbow, led her out as she casually covered her face.
“Chief. Mr. Olsen.” Clark nodded as they passed.
“Clark! Just the man we wanted to see. Take lunch with us.”
“Thank you, Chief. Mr. Olsen, but I’ve already have…”
Lois glanced up at their former boss at that moment and Perry noticed her. “Oh, sorry, Clark.” He grinned, tipping his imaginary cap. “Miss.” His eyes widened as his voice dropped. “Lois?”
She made a noise that sounded like an “Eeeppp” and made a swift shake no with her head.
“Clark, what’s going on here?” Mr. Olsen asked as they all stood in the middle of the lobby.
Things were rapidly spinning out of control, when suddenly Lois took things in hand. “Actually, gentlemen, Clark and I were just on our way to find you. Do you think we could go somewhere private to discuss this over lunch?” She gave a quick apologetic glance to Clark, before turning the full force of those chestnut eyes on Perry and Mr. Olsen.
“Of course, little lady,” Perry stammered, his old newshound curiosity peaked.
“Let’s go to my penthouse. We can order up something,” Mr. Olsen suggested, leading the way.
Lois shook free Clark’s grip on her elbow and hooked her arm through his, whispering so low that the others could not hear, “Follow my lead. I know what I’m doing.”
He wanted to believe she did, but he couldn’t see how.
When they arrived to Mr. Olsen’s apartment, which was the entire top floor of Lois Lane’s former apartment building, Clark was still in the dark on her plan.
“You are full of surprises,” Lois said in awe at the simply decorated, yet stylish and comfortable apartment. “No skyscraper. No private chef. What kind of multimillionaire are you?”
“Quite forward of you, Ms. Lane. I have what I need. I tried the party lifestyle at first. It didn’t suit me.”
“Lois,” Clark growled under his breath. “He’s my boss.”
“I ordered some sandwiches from the deli,” Perry announced, hanging up the phone. “You still like pastrami, don’t you, Lois?”
Clark watched as the thought of pastrami turned Lois’s weak stomach. Her face actually changed to a pale green. Just how was she going to get out of this one. He sat down to enjoy the show.
“Well, actually not, Perry. The truth of the matter is I’m not your missing Lois Lane.”
Clark sat up; he wasn’t expecting the truth.
“Great Ceasar’s ghost!”
“What’s the meaning of this?”
They focused their attention on Lois.
“My name is Lucy El; that’s spelled E-L, for the record books. Clark and I went to Kansas state together.”
Great, she was dragging him down this rabbit hole with her. His former boss and his boss’s boss looked at him and he smiled back weakly, but kept silent. He had no idea where she was headed.
“Are you telling me that you are not the woman who showed up in my bullpen a couple of months ago announcing you had just woken up from a coma in a Congo mission?” Perry pointed to her.
“Yes, that was me.” She smiled.
Mr. Olsen leaned toward Clark. “I’m lost.”
“Clark and I were talking one day about your missing reporter Lois Lane,” Lois continued. “When he shot out the idea that if someone knew something about her disappearance the best way to fish out the culprit would be to have Lois Lane suddenly reappear. If she had been killed, then the person would want to double check that this new Lois wasn’t the one he killed. If she was in hiding, which we both doubt, it might make her mad enough to reemerge. And if she had been kidnapped, the kidnapper would wonder who the imposter was. Either way, Clark surmised, it was the best way to get a new lead on the story.”
Clark had heard about the great Lois Lane in action. Now, he knew what they meant. She was amazing.
Perry laughed, clapping Clark on the back. “You just hate leaving a story unfinished, don’t you, Kent?”
“It was a puzzle, Chief,” was all Clark added.
“So,” Lois plunged on. “When I found a photo of Lois, I realized there was more than a passing resemblance between us. I decided to surprise Clark and put his theory into action.”
“I was certainly surprised, Lucy.” Clark chuckled. “Not as surprised as Lana was.”
“How many times do I have to apologize for that, Clark? If I had seen her there, I wouldn’t have kissed you. I know how jealous she gets.”
Mr. Olsen raised an eyebrow and exchanged a look with Perry.
“Then Tempus messed up the plan by kidnapping her and dropping her off a building.”
“And Superman was born,” Mr. Olsen said.
Clark nodded. “Lucy and I go way back. With my abilities, I couldn’t just let her die. Tempus knew that.”
“What I’d like to know is how Tempus learned about you in the first place?” Mr. Olsen asked.
Lois and Clark exchanged a glance, before Clark answered, “He must have seen me fly at some point and done some investigating of his own. Figured, he could win the mayoral election on fear.”
“He didn’t count on you being such a super guy,” Perry laughed. “Too bad we never could lock him up.”
Lois and Clark exchanged another look. This time Lois answered, “Someday, somewhere, Superman will catch him.” She smiled. He already had; Tempus was in a maximum security insane asylum in her dimension. “Well, we thought our Lois Lane theory got lost between Tempus, the election, and Clark’s arrival…”
“Didn’t it?” Clark was stumped. Now, she had lost him.
Lois stood up and started pacing. “Tell me about Jaxon Xavier. When did he start working at the
Daily Planet?”
“Jaxon?” Clark and Mr. Olsen asked at the same time, both surprised. “Why?”
“Ever hear of Lex Luthor?”
Perry and Mr. Olsen both shook their heads.
Clark’s felt like his head was about to explode. “No!”
“Jaxon’s full name is Jaxon Xavier Luthor. He’s the illegitimate son of Lex Luthor, but there’s enough of a family resemblance to believe it.”
Perry glanced at Clark. “Who’s Lex Luthor?”
Clark’s hands were turning to fists and he was relieved when Lois answered this question. “He’s a ostentatious, egoistical, super rich tycoon who is bent on taking over the world by destroying everything in it that is good and pure, piece by piece, especially if it means more money for him.”
OK, maybe Lois was a little bit biased.
“Uh-huh.” Perry rolled his eyes at Clark. “You’d think I would have heard of him.”
“Lucy doesn’t like him much” Clark explained.
“It was pretty big news back home when he ruined my wedding,” Lois snapped. “It was payback for Clark and I ruining his wedding with a damning exposé; his bride-to-be didn’t want anything more to do with him after that.”
“Clark?”
“Before I came to Metropolis, Chief.” Clark shot Lois a warning look. “Then he disappeared. Lucy has been trying to track him down since.”
“Lex pretends he’s this charitable do gooder, but it’s all a disguise. He’s completely untrustworthy. But all I have on him is rumor and hearsay, no cold hard proof.”
“There’s the rub,” Perry said. “Without the facts, you just have conjecture, nothing printable.”
“Tell me about it,” Lois said, sitting down next to Clark. “Jaxon appearing on the scene is the closest he’s come to making a mistake in years. When did he start working at the paper?”
“Well, I found Jaxon about two months ago at a computer conference. We got to talking,” Mr. Olsen said. “He has mad skills. Better than mine. I was shocked when he jumped at the chance for a lowly research position at
The Planet, but then he suggested a new format for the website that just blew my mind. He could be running companies of his own, but he said he wanted to do some good.”
“So, he convinced you to hire him after the election?”
“Fairly shortly after, why?”
“Do you think Lex Luthor is behind Jaxon being at the
Daily Planet?” Clark asked. “Behind Lois Lane’s disappearance?”
“From what you know about Lex Luthor, Clark, don’t you think that is a possibility?”
“For his sake, he better not,” Clark growled. Lois set her hand on his arm to calm him down; strangely, it worked.
“So, you figure this Lex Luthor person knows what happened to my Lois?” Perry asked.
Lois looked at Clark and then at Perry. “There are three possible scenarios. One, the fake Lois drew him out. Two, Superman coming on the scene did. Or three, a combination of both. My guess, Jaxon was sent here to spy on Clark, aka Superman. Lex is a big fan of Sun Tzu and does research on all his potential enemies, before he acts. He probably sees Superman as the perfect foil against his villainy. He will try to test you in a whole manner of ways. I’m sorry to say it like this, Clark, but it probably saved Lana’s life, her leaving you. He hurts the ones closest to you first.”
Clark paled, taking her hand. “Then you aren’t safe.”
“Not as long as I’m staying on your couch. Thanks for the hospitality and all, but I think the sooner I get a job and a place of my own, the better. I’m sorry, Clark.”
“Not as sorry as I am, Lo…Lucy.” Clark sighed. It was for the best, anyway. “So, Mr. Olsen, do you think you could give Lucy El here a job as my research assistant? I could use someone I could trust and who also has the brains to keep an eye on Jaxon.”
“If she wants the job, it’s hers. And she doesn’t have to spy on Jaxon. I’ll have him fired by the morning.” Mr. Olsen picked up his cordless phone.
“No!” Lois, Perry, and Clark all said at once.
“No?” Mr. Olsen asked, putting down his phone. “If he’s a spy at my paper…”
“There isn’t any proof that he is a spy,” Perry reminded them. “That’s one big lawsuit for wrongful termination, Jimmy.” He turned to Lois. “Do you think this Jaxon fellow knows what happened to my Lois?”
“When I introduced myself to Jaxon, earlier, he automatically asked if El stood for the letter L, like Lane, Lucy Lane? His exact phrasing. He wanted to know if I was Lois’s little sister.”
“That’s circumstantial, Sweetie.”
She sighed. “That’s all Lex ever let’s me get.”
“If Jaxon’s let go, Lex will know we are on to him,” Clark explained to Mr. Olsen. “And we’ll lose our only lead.”
“I guess, there is more I need to learn about the newspaper business.”
“If I were still running the
Daily Planet, I’d see if this Jaxon character has planted any bugs around Clark’s desk. And check to see if anyone has accessed his computer,” Perry suggested.
Mr. Olsen grinned, rubbing his hand together. “Now, that’s something right down my alley.”
“Does your father still work at the NIA?” Lois asked her new boss. Clark’s jaw hung open. She did not understand the word boundary, did she?
“How? What? I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Mr. Olsen stammered.
Perry laughed. “Man, Jimmy, I think you just hired yourself the best researcher out there. Luckily, she’s on Superman’s side.”
“She is trustworthy, Clark, isn’t she?” Mr. Olsen looked at Lois suspiciously.
“I’d trust her with my life,” Clark answered.
“Can’t get a better referral than that, can you, Jimmy?”
“James, White, please. Don’t call me Jimmy.” Mr. Olsen looked Lois over one more time. “Next time, Ms. El, remember where your paycheck comes from. I’m not a bad guy.”
She smiled endearingly at him. “I know.”
The doorbell rang and Mr. Olsen went to answer it. Clark pulled her to the side. “Don’t smile at him like that. He’s a highly eligible bachelor. We wouldn’t want him to get the wrong idea.”
“Jealous much, Clark.” She grinned. “I’m taken, remember. Anyway, I tried to make myself look as horrible as possible; are you saying, he’d be attracted to this?”
Clark looked at her ridiculous outfit from head to toe. “Some of us can still see the beautiful you.”
“Don’t try to charm me, Clark Kent.” Lois patted him on the chest. “Jimmy’s a sweet puppy, nothing more.”
“Mr. Olsen is now your boss, Lucy.”
“Jimmy is one of our best friends. I always smile at him that way.”
“I just realized I’ve been spelling stubborn wrong all this time. It is spelled Y-O-U.” Clark threw up his hands.
Lois laughed.
“We’ll talk about this later,” Clark informed her.
She continued to laugh with a slight salute. “Yes, boss.”
“Hey, you two, lunch,” Perry called from the dining room.
Lois grabbed Clark’s arm. “Hey, thanks for getting me the job.”
“I didn’t; you did. That was some pretty amazing investigative work in there, Ms. El.”
Lois sat down at the table and looked down at the pastrami sandwich Perry had ordered for her. The scent of it hit her nostrils and she bolted from the table with her mouth covered in seconds flat.
“Down the hall and to the right,” Clark called to her.
“What in heaven’s name…?” Mr. Olsen asked.
Perry leaned over to Clark with his eyes on where Lois disappeared into the bathroom. “Clark, is there something that you failed to mention between you and Lucy?”
Clark placed an innocent smile on his face. “I have no idea what you mean, Chief.”
“Son, I wasn’t born yesterday and I didn’t become editor because I could yodel.” Perry held up his hands. “But if you’re not ready for any announcements. Fine by me.”
Clark looked over at Lois’s pastrami sandwich. “Mr. Olsen, you wouldn’t happen to have any fruit in your kitchen, would you?”
Mr. Olsen waved him on. Clark took the sandwich into the kitchen. While cutting fruit in the kitchen, he overhead Olsen and White discussing him and Lucy.
“Fireworks, White?”
“Oh, definitely. I miss the newsroom, Jimmy. Something’s always happening.”
Clark returned a minute later was a cereal bowl filled with cut fruit. He took a sip of his ice tea and took a bite of club sandwich, before Lois returned.
“Oh, you didn’t have to do that. Thank you, guys.” She beamed at them.
Mr. Olsen looked at Perry as Perry looked at him. They both turned and looked between Lois and Clark and nodded. Lois was oblivious. He had to do something to cauterize this wound.
“Lucy, are you okay? Don’t tell me you’ve got the stomach flu?” He look Lois straight in the eyes and then rolled them toward Perry.
Her face went white. Good; she understood.
“Oh, no, Clark. Have you forgotten? I’m a vegetarian. Just the sight of meat…” She shivered for good measure. “Go animals!”
Perry raised a skeptical eyebrow, but didn’t say anything.
Clark sighed in relief. Lois reached under the table and squeezed his hand. He knew she was just trying to say thank you for the warning, but she was acting like she had forgotten that he wasn’t her Clark. He let go of her hand, patted it, and placed it back on her leg. For a split second her eyes went wide, then winced, as if she realized what had happened, and then she concentrated on her fruit salad.
“Hey, Jimmy, do you still have Lois Lane’s apartment here on automatic payment?” Perry asked out of the blue.
“Yeah. The
Daily Planet still pays her rent on the first of every month, White. Were you thinking we should cancel the arrangement? It’s a draw for me. I don’t mind holding on to her stuff until we find her, especially if it seems we might have a new lead.”
“Excuse me, gentlemen, did I hear you right? The paper pays Lois’s rent? Her apartment downstairs is just as she left it? It’s just waiting for her to return?” Lois’s eyes clouded over.
“Sure. It was the least we could do since she disappeared on assignment,” Perry answered, taking a bite of his potato salad. “And when Jimmy here took over the paper, I suggested he buy her building, too.”
“Wow.” She smiled, batting her eyelashes slowly. Clark could see that they were sparkling with tears. “That’s very nice of you, Perry. Mr. Olsen.” Her voice broke as she sniffed.
It appeared to Clark like Lois wanted to reach over and hug her old editor. He took a sip of his ice tea, ready to fly the two of them out of there if she tried. The moment passed and he relaxed.
“I was just thinking that it’s a shame that apartment sitting there and you needing a place to stay,” Perry continued. “It’s been… what… three years.”
Lois seemed too excited by the prospect of what Perry was on the verge of suggesting.
“Oh, Chief. That’s overly kind of you to suggest, but Lucy can stay with me until she finds something she can afford,” Clark offered. “I’d hate to think what Lois Lane would do to you, should she return and find you subletted her apartment with all her stuff in it to a total stranger.”
“Clark!” Lois gasped. “Don’t listen to him, Perry. What were you saying, before he so rudely interrupted?”
“I’ve stayed on your lumpy couch, Clark,” Perry reminded him. “She needs some place better to stay. And I know how little a research assistant gets paid and how high rents are in this town.”
“As mayor, you should do something about that…” Clark proposed.
“Hey! I pay a fair wage, White,” Jimmy interjected.
“I’ll take it under advisement, Clark,” Perry retorted with a chuckle. “And this isn’t a discussion about Metropolis’s minimum wage, Jimmy. In the meantime, this little lady needs a nice place to stay, instead of a rat hole in Suicide Slum with a half dozen roommates. Don’t you think she deserves better, Clark?”
He smiled the smile of a matchmaker and Clark knew he was sunk. Perry didn’t buy the vegetarian plea one bit. His old boss was doing this for him. Mayor White thought that he – innocent Clark Kent from this dimension – had knocked up his ‘old friend’ from college, who just happened to look like Lois Lane. Had he known all along about his crush on Lois? Nothing got past Perry, but he couldn’t tell him the truth.
“Yes, Chief, you are right. I would never let her stay in a place like that.” Clark sighed as Perry grinned in triumph.
“Well, Jimmy, what do you think? Should we let Lucy stay at Lois’s until she gets back on her feet?”
If Mr. Olsen was hesitant about the proposition, he hid it well. “I didn’t know Ms. Lane, White. None of us did. If you think she would be fine with it, as her boss and landlord, I see no drawbacks, if Clark here vouches for Lucy. You aren’t a vandal or a thief, Ms. El, are you?” Mr. Olsen smiled at her. Clark couldn’t believe it, she had charmed all of them.
“The only time things get broken in my apartment is when Clark visits.” She laughed.
Perry raised his eyebrows toward Clark.
Clark cleared his throat. “Because of the super strength.”
“Oh, right.” Perry nodded.
“Would you like to see the place?” Mr. Olsen volunteered. “I’ve got the key somewhere.”
Lois nodded. “Would I ever.”
They all got up from the table and Clark volunteered to clean up, while Mr. Olsen searched for his master key. Lois helped clear the dishes.
In the kitchen, while they were alone, Clark whispered, “Stay with me. I can protect you.”
She smiled and patted his arm. “No, you can’t, Clark.”
“Excuse me?”
“Even Kal knows that Superman is too important and busy to be any one person’s bodyguard. He would want me to take some the responsibility on myself. Lois’s apartment is a good option and it’s only temporary.”
It was the first time, Lois had referred to her Clark as Kal. It even sounded weird to Clark. He sighed; he hated to admit it but her reasoning was correct.
“Perry,” Clark asked, drying his hands on a dish towel as he returned to the dining room. “Has anyone been in there, since she disappeared?”
“Sure. Sam and I took her fish tank to my house. And then Alice and I returned to clear out her fridge.”
“I bet that didn’t take long,” Lois mumbled.
“Oh, Lois used to throw the most wonderful dinners. She’s a gourmet cook. Had to learn after her mom left.”
Lois dropped to the sofa and stared at the Chief. “Mom left?”
“Oh, yes. She was about eight or ten at the time. Her mom ran off to L.A. with some plastic surgeon and took her little sister, Lucy, with them. It crushed Sam, so Lois said; I’m sure it crushed her too. Neither she or Sam has seen them since. That’s when he started drinking. He was on the wagon when Lois disappeared.” Perry shook his head. “Her disappearance ruined him. Quit his practice. Started drinking full time and working on strange experiments in his garage, until the bank took his house. She was all he had left. Where was he when you last spoke with him, Clark?”
Clark felt like an animal facing down a barrel of a shot gun. He was never so glad that he was the one with the heat vision; the daggers her eyes shot at him would have been deadly.
“Clark?” Perry repeated.
“The homeless shelter on Fifth, Chief,” he mumbled.
Lois grabbed the arm of the sofa, her eyes filled to the brim with tears. “That’s horrible.”
Clark sat down next to her. “I’m sorry,” he whispered.
She brushed off his apologies. “Later.”
He nodded, understanding why she would not want to discuss this new information here.
Mr. Olsen appeared at the moment, dangling keys from his upraised fingers. “Are we set?”
Lois wiped the tears from her eyes and nodded. After the other two had left the room, Lois socked Clark on the arm. “You should have told me.”
“I was meaning to…”
Perry looked back to them. “Coming?”
“Just have to get my bag,” Lois said cheerfully, grabbing her sack of books.
Clark took a deep breath and slowly released it. He wished he had known about Lois’s apartment being available when he was still in the heat of the search for her two and half years ago. He was both excited and apprehensive about what he would find inside. Despite knowing he and this dimension’s Lois were destined for each other, he was afraid what he would learn inside would change how he felt about her.
***
Day 5
Dear Clark;
Wow! What a day! Where to begin? I guess, I should begin at the beginning. I found my father…well, this dimension’s Sam Lane, or what’s left of him. He was still living at the shelter on Fifth. Actually, to be honest, I found him several days ago. But today, I got up the nerve to talk to him. He’s a shell of the man you and I know. I’ve got to get him sobered up. I know the brilliant doctor, I know and love and need, is still in there, but it’s like someone killed his hope. My secret identity of Lucy El is working so well that he didn’t recognize me. It hurt; physically hurt, Clark. It was as if someone had pulled his soul out. Like Jimmy’s photo of… never mind. I brought him lunch. Pastrami, his favorite. This time, I was able to make it through lunch. It’s hard to breathe through only your mouth, when your nose isn’t stopped up. Well, you wouldn’t know much about stopped up noses, would you?
I tried to bring Kal – this dimension’s Clark – with me to introduce me to this Sam Lane, but he refused. Do you what excuse he gave? “Sam doesn’t like me.” I have yet to meet a person who doesn’t like Clark Kent, either of you. Even those who would swear you – or Superman – was their dire enemy, still like Clark Kent. There is just something inherently decent about you that everyone likes. And if it takes the rest of my life to figure out your secret, so be it. I actually saw what I could only describe as fear in Kal’s eyes when I suggested he come with me to talk to Sam. I wonder if it has to do with… No, I’ll hold my verdict on that until I have more details. I’ve been doing my own private research on that front… OK, now, I’m just confusing you. I just don’t want to write anything without all the facts. You know how I hate to rescind my theories.
I moved into my old apartment last night. Kal wanted to make sure it was spotless before I moved in. He was worried the dust might upset my health. He even did most of the cleaning himself. I was beginning to think he wanted some time alone there before I cluttered up the place with my Lois-ness. It wasn’t even really dirty, just dusty. It was weird being ‘home.’ It didn’t feel like my apartment. The clothes I’m sure would have still fit (for the moment at least – thank you, morning sickness, best diet I’ve ever been on), but Clark boxed them up, along with all her private papers. Like I would have…
What am I saying, of course, I would have. I riffled through Kal’s papers. I’m an investigative reporter who has been put on a leash. I hate it.
At least I have my pet project of looking for this dimension’s Lex Luthor. I know it makes your skill crawl thinking of me working on this project, but he doesn’t know I’m Lois Lane. As far as I know, he doesn’t even know who Lois Lane is. I’m just sloppy, sweats wearing, gum chewing, glasses wearing Lucy El, lowly researcher at the D.P. (The Daily Planet) Lex makes my skin crawl too, Clark. But if we can dig up something on him before he actively starts to try to ruin this world, I’ll feel like I accomplished something other than being an incubator while I’m here.
Remember, how I mentioned finding Jaxon working at DP? Well, I started my job in research this morning. And my desk is right next to his. Hopefully, I’ll be able to learn something at this proximity. Kal told me that Ralph threw a fit when Jimmy – I’ve really got to remember to call him Mr. Olsen – told him he’d hired me for Kal’s research assistant. Kal says Ralph’s an okay editor, but that he’s a much better guy since he got married. I know. I couldn’t believe anyone would marry him either. Did I tell you how he hit on me the day after C.K. went undercover? (i.e. you left on your trip to New Krypton.)
I miss you. I wish you’d come home. I dreamed about my other self last night. She’s obsessed by what Star told her the other night about you coming home soon. I’m really proud of her… myself. I was up on my feet at the D.P. one day after being pulled three months into the future. There were a few hiccups, like not knowing Jimmy’s girlfriend’s name is Isabelle. I know that, so the other me should have known it, too. Part of me is worried that that’s the reason they broke up, because L.L. didn’t remember her name. My gosh, does the world always circle around me?
Anyway, this younger me sees you in every brown haired, glasses wearing man she sees. It’s like the first days after you left, again. Perry’s thrilled that she’s eating pastrami once more. He really blamed my yogurt and banana diet on my breakdown. If he only knew the truth…
Back to my big day in this dimension. Day one at the D.P. as Lucy El. Nobody likes Ms. El. I think it’s because Kal and I are so chummy – I mean, friendly. And everyone else wants to work that close to the man in blue. Poor Kal, I hadn’t realized how hard it was to merge S.M. and C.K. into one public entity. I’m so glad my C.K. is still my secret S.M. or is it the other way around. My S.M. is my secret C.K.? Either way, I’m glad you’re mine.
Come home soon. L.L.***
Clark knocked on her door, again. Where was she? He told her that he would escort her to work. What had she replied,
“I’m a big girl, Clark. I don’t need a baby sitter.”Lois opened the door. She was rubbing her head with a towel. “Sorry, I overslept.” Grinning, she stepped aside to let him in. She seemed almost bubbly. He hadn’t seen her that happy since she had that dream about the other dimension. “Kal’s home! He was waiting for me on my front stoop when I got home from the
Daily Planet. The younger me thought he was a mirage, but it was really him.” She closed her eyes and sighed.
“Lois, the staff meeting.”
Startled back into this reality, Lois ran to the bathroom. She returned a few minutes later, her hair still damp. She grabbed her purse and headed toward the door.
“Are you up for work today, Lois?”
“Of course.” She glared at him.
He tapped his glasses and her eyes went wide again as she felt her face, then dashed back to her room.
“How do you remember all these things?” She laughed, double checking her appearance in the mirror.
“Practice,” he said as they stepped into the hall. “Tell me about Kal. I know you’re dying to. Might as well get it out of your system before we get to work.”
“I will never get Kal out of my system,” she retorted. “Any more than you’ll get her out of yours.”
Clark’s brow furrowed. “Her who?”
Lois smiled. “You know who.”
He sighed. “I’ve never met her; she’s dead, remember.”
“If you say so.” Lois grinned.
“If you don’t tell me about Kal now, you won’t get another chance.”
“Right. Kal’s back.” She sighed. “He missed me as much as I missed him and he still loves me and still wants to marry me.”
Clark rolled his eyes. “And?”
She pouted. “Just like those pesky nagging feelings I’ve been having, he didn’t come back alone.”
“Brought the new wife?” Clark said without thinking. Lois hit him in the bicep. “Sorry, Lucy, that was uncalled for.”
“Be nice to me, Clark Kent,” she mumbled under her breath as they walked down the street. “I know how to kill you.”
“I don’t doubt it.”
“The Kryptonians came back with him. And he was gone again after a minute.” She sighed. “At least, it didn’t take him eighth more months to return.” She groaned, taking his arm. “It’s exhausting living two lives. Especially one in disguise.”
“Are you okay?” he asked, concerned.
“Same old. Same old.”
Clark knew what she would say in response, but he couldn’t avoid the subject much longer. “Did you call any of those doctors in the phone book?”
Lois slowed her gait. “You know I didn’t.”
“Why not?”
“You know why.” She kicked a non-existent rock. Then she glanced at him from the corner of her eye. “Did you speak with Dr. Klein?”
Clark groaned.
“You said you would do anything to help,” she reminded him.
“It’s not exactly the easiest topic to bring up, Lo… Lucy.”
She patted his arm. “Do you want me to come with you?”
“No!” Clark shook his head. That would be worse. It was bad enough that Perry thought Lucy El was carrying his love child. He didn’t want her anywhere near S.T.A.R. Labs.
“Will you come with me to the Fifth Street Shelter?” she asked quietly.
Wiley woman. There was no way he could face Sam Lane. Not after all the horrible and true accusations the man had lobbied at him. “Just let him be, Lucy.”
“She would never forgive you, if you do, Clark.”
Direct hit, he winced. Stopping at the doors to the
Daily Planet, he said, “She’s dead, Lucy. Give it up.” He continued inside, leaving her under the big metal globe.
“He’s my father and she’s my sister. I’ll never give up. And neither will you.”
Clark stopped just inside the lobby; she knew how to use his super hearing to her advantage. He rubbed his face and sighed, waiting for her to catch up. When she was standing next to him again, he murmured, “I’ll stop by S.T.A.R. Labs after work today, okay?”
“Thank you.” She smiled.
“But you need to stop all this sister talk. Jax already half believes you’re Lucy Lane,” he said in the privacy of the elevator.
“My sister!” Lois struck herself in the forehead with the palm of her hand. “Why didn’t I think about that…”
“Lucy!” he warned as the doors opened. “Don’t do anything rash.”
She grinned at him with an innocent expression he didn’t believe. “Who? Me?”
*** End of Part 2 *** CommentsChapter 2: Part 3
