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Wrong Place, Wrong Time, Wrong Clark TOC can be found Here

Part 34

Part 35

Lois sat on the park bench nearly twitching with excitement, and dread. She had been bouncing between the two emotions all morning. Sleep? Ha! Fat chance knowing that Superman said he wanted to see her. She could count on one hand, balled into a fist, the number of times they had made plans, definite plans, with a time and a place.

Maybe her being shot had pushed Superman out of being indecisive. Had he finally determined how much she meant to him? Because, frankly, all this wishy-washy behavior had gotten tiresome roughly a month ago.

Clark had parked her on this bench in Centennial Park five minutes earlier and left to give her and Superman privacy. It wasn’t one of those benches on the edge of the park, but a bench in under the trees. It wasn’t exactly private, at least not private enough for them to kiss, but then again, Superman could fly her anywhere if the urge to kiss her was strong enough. Oh, please, let it be strong enough.

Getting ready for this date took almost all of the five hours since Clark had left that morning. Lucy had insisted that Lois eat something for breakfast. Another Lane gourmet chef only able to make toast and burn coffee. How had her sister nursed Jimmy and had him improve? Probably discovering that he had to fend for himself drove his will to survive into recovery.

Lucy had tied Lois’s arm up in a plastic bag for her shower as they had explained in her discharge papers from the hospital. Her sister had offered to help her wash her hair, but the whole ordeal seemed too much hassle for the simple chore. Instead, when Lois stepped out of the shower and had finally dried off, she called her hair salon and ordered an emergency appointment. She trusted a professional with her head more than her sister, especially since Lois wanted to look her best for Superman. Honestly, her hair and Lucy’s hair were on the other sides of the spectrum, and the last thing she wanted was to show up for her date with Superman with teased hair.

Lois had deliberated back and forth whether to wear a skirt, a dress, or casual slacks for her date with Superman. Lucy suggested function over beauty. Which outfit would be easier for Lois to use the restroom in, since she would have to do so one-handed? Would it be easier to push down slacks and then pull them up again? Or pull up a skirt? For some reason, when she considered her skirts in her closet, all Lois could think about was how warm Clark’s hands would feel on her waist as he unzipped her skirt to get her ready for bed. How his hands could then move up her back and undo her bra. His hands then could possibly rub her shoulders and back to get rid of any tension built up there. Mmmmmm. A back massage Kent style.

No, skirts were definitely out!

She finally decided on a sleeveless rust colored dress she had bought recently thinking that Superman would like her in this color. The lack of sleeves would cause less awkwardness with her bandage. Her arm was pretty well hidden in her sling, so she didn’t have to worry about it being too visible. Its one drawback was the zipper down the back. That was preferable to the other dress she had considered, a black dress with buttons up the front. If she couldn’t get them undone by herself, would she rather ask Clark to unzip the back of her dress or unbutton the front? Her initial gut reaction said “front”, so of course, she went with the zipper down the back.

Between their real kiss and their dream kiss, it took all Lois’s internal willpower not to fantasize about Clark: touching the flexing muscles of his arm, caressing his bare chest, running her fingers over his lips. Damn Cat for removing the last barrier, Lois’s last objection, to Clark. She meant, of course, other than her total and complete love for Superman and her desire never to cheat on him. She knew that these feelings she was having for Clark were wrong; her heart belonged to Superman. She knew that it was partially lust, partially liking the way Clark took care of her, and partially Superman’s fault for never initiating anything between them. Hopefully that would all change with their meeting. No, not meeting, date.

Stockings weren’t even considered. Lois picked out a pair of her favorite black pumps. She wouldn’t want to wear a new pair of shoes and end up with blisters. Of course, Superman could always cool off her hot feet with his super cooling breath, like he had when she twisted her ankle on her hunt for the elusive Super Godzilla. Not too high, because if she fell, she’d only have the one hand with which to catch herself and the last thing she needed was two dysfunctional arms. Not flats, because she liked what a bit of a heel did to her calf muscles and butt, and she was sure Clark… Superman, Superman!... would too.

While Rudy washed her hair, Lois had closed her eyes and relaxed, imagining it was Clark running his fingers over her head, rinsing her hair with water, massaging conditioner through her hair. She was practically flushed from desire by the time Rudy had popped her up in front of his mirror and asked her what he should do. Cutting her hair short would be preferred, especially after her fantasy about Clark washing her hair. Plus, she wouldn’t have to deal with styling it and it would be easier for her manage one-handed. But if Lois went and changed something in her life every time she had feelings towards Clark, or what she thought he might desire, she was letting him rule her life instead of her. Lois decided to keep the style, only asking Rudy to shorten it to just under her jaw line.

After her hair was done, the salon insisted on giving her a one-handed manicure, pedicure, and a light make-up application. Lois figured it might have something to do with Lucy telling them all that not only had Lois been shot the night before, but she had a hot date… with Clark. Well, technically, Clark was taking her out to lunch, so Lois didn’t correct her sister’s error. Whether Clark would actually stay for the lunch was another thing entirely.

So, by eleven thirty Lois was sitting on her sofa waiting impatiently for Clark to arrive. She had been nervous as all get out. Hell, she still was.

The wait for Clark to arrive to take her to Superman had practically driven her insane. Would Clark stay for her date? Would Superman carry them both off somewhere? Because, frankly, Lois didn’t think she could handle being somewhere with both Clark and Superman at the same time. That much testosterone together in one spot, and Lois was liable to internally combust.

What did Superman want to discuss with her? That was her number one question. Did he want to discuss something with her? Or did he only want to check on her condition? Was he ready to confess his undying love for her? Or would he tell her that she was too fragile for someone like him? Would he fly her off to… ? Lois had no idea where Superman lived, but she imagined it was secluded in the clouds. Would he kiss her?

Clark had arrived at exactly the wrong moment. Wrong because she was fantasizing about him, imagining what he might have done the night before if she had asked him to help her remove her bra, or if she had kissed him while he was asleep on her bed.

She knew she shouldn’t think of Clark in this manner. He was her partner, for goodness sake. They had to work together. She needed him. Besides, she was in love with Superman.

Lois had tried to think about what it would be like to kiss Superman, but she didn’t have anything to base it on. Every time she pictured Superman leaning forward to kiss her, it was Clark she was actually kissing.

Lucy had opened the door, mainly because Lois hadn’t wanted to deal with battling all those locks with her left hand. Clark was framed in the doorway, once again looking entirely wrong. His tie was another one of his unimaginative ties, but somehow it matched her dress perfectly. Wait a minute, it was the same exact tie she had complained about at the Bureau 39 warehouse. Hadn’t he gotten rid of it yet? Other than that, he was dressed for work. She would have loved to see him in a charcoal grey suit, but she guessed that was a bit formal for work on a Sunday.

Lois had stood up, straightened out the skirt of her dress, and turned to face Clark. “Good morning? Did Henderson give you the goods on Menken?”

Clark hadn’t responded, he merely stared at her. Lucy, from behind the door, had given Lois a grin and thumbs up gesture. Obviously, turning Clark catatonic was a desirable trait.

“You got your hair cut,” he murmured, pointing at her.

Lois self-consciously ran her hand over her hair. “Just a trim. We decided that having a hairdresser wash my hair would be easier than having Lucy do it,” she said. “It’s a little short.”

Clark shook his head, finally stepping into the apartment. “It looks beautiful… you look amazing. That color on you…” He clearly was at a loss for words.

She glanced down at herself as if to say ‘this old rag?’ Then she raised her eyes to his again. “I should get shot more often,” she teased without thinking.

All the color drained out of Clark’s face. “Not funny, Lois.”

“I thought it was funny,” Lucy giggled, thankfully breaking the silence that took hold of the room.

Lois guessed that maybe it wouldn’t be Clark after all who would be laughing with her about being shot by the third richest man in the world. She slugged his arm and grabbed her purse. “Come on, Chuck, I’m starving.”

On the elevator ride down to the ground level, Lois could feel Clark staring at her again.

“Do I look that different with this shorter style?” she asked, nervously biting her bottom lip.

“No, sorry, I didn’t mean to stare. Did you get any sleep?” he asked, changing the subject and turning his gaze to the doors.

“Clark,” Lois said with annoyance, slapping him in the chest with the back of her hand. “Do you have to apologize every time you say something? Have a backbone already. You’re allowed to have an opinion, so own it when you do.”

“I am? I mean, am I? I didn’t realize I was doing that. An old habit, sor… my apologies,” Clark stammered. He was quiet a moment as the elevator neared the lobby, then he murmured, “I’m having second thoughts about this meeting with Superman.”

“What?!” Lois roared, turning towards him.

He had the nerve to wolfishly grin at her. “With you looking this stunningly beautiful, his interest in you would be clear for miles around in that uniform of his.”

“Oh.” Lois blushed. “Well, that would be…” She straightened her shoulders and marched out of the elevator. “— just desserts for his not doing anything about it before now.”

“Yeah, she’s mad,” she heard Clark mumble to himself. “Did you bring your pain medication?”

“It doesn’t hurt,” Lois grumbled. Much.

“Fine. We’ll go back to denying what we’re really feeling. What do you feel like eating?” he asked as they turned to walk down the sidewalk.

“Who said I’m in denial about anything?” she snapped as his words sunk in. “We’re going out for lunch?” She thought that she and Superman would… would what? Have a picnic in the clouds? Right. She lost that bid.

“I said that I’d come to take you to lunch at noon. Were you expecting someone else?” he asked, that firmness returning to his jaw as he crossed his arms. She had forgotten that he did that whenever she expressed interest in Superman.

“You’re jealous,” Lois teased.

“Yep,” Clark admitted, refusing to look at her.

“Oh, Chuck, don’t you know that no one can touch me like you do?” Lois whispered.

He stopped and turned to her. “Am I allowed to touch you?” he asked, raising his hand to caress her face.

Lois closed her eyes and braced herself for the onslaught of desire that would come with his touch. “Please, don’t,” she pleaded.

“Tell me what you want from me, Lois, because I don’t know where I stand with all of these mixed messages,” Clark said, resting his hand on her shoulder instead.

Until she knew where her relationship with Superman was going, everything else in her life was still up in the air. She couldn’t make any decisions either way until she knew. “Time. You deserve better, Clark, I know. I’ve got all these feelings spinning me in all different directions at the moment that I don’t know whether I’m coming or going or if I should just stay where I am. I like you. I like being with you. You make me laugh, you challenge me, you listen to me, you don’t take my crap, you’re there for me, and you care about me in a way I haven’t had in a long time.” She took a breath. “But I love him. I can’t just turn that on and off. Nor do I want to risk losing it forever by rushing into something with someone else.”

Clark nodded. “Time, okay,” he said, removing his hand from her shoulder. “I’ll be whoever you need me to be, Lois. Just tell me, so I know. Who am I? Who do you need me to be?”

Lois took hold of his hand again and studied it, so she wouldn’t have to look him in the eye. “I need a friend I can talk to, someone who doesn’t pressure me or judge me, who I can turn to when my life goes crazy. Someone I can depend on to always be there for me, through thick or thin,” she said, her voice growing quieter. “Someone whose shoulder I can cry on.”

Clark sighed. “Time and a friend. Got it. I can do that,” he said with a confidence she didn’t share.

She turned and continued down the sidewalk. “And a typist.”

“Oh, so you’re only using me for my hands,” he teased. “That’s why you asked to be my partner.”

“I didn’t ask to be your partner, Chuck. We got thrown together.”

“Nope, you asked me to be your partner,” he said, a gloating tone to his voice.

“You’re mistaken there, Chuck. You’re the one who has wanted to be my partner from day one,” Lois corrected his error.

He smiled. “That’s right. If I’m going to work with anyone, it’s got to be the best.”

She returned his smile. “I knew I was right.”

Clark laughed. “Come on, let’s go to lunch.”

At lunch, Lois had ordered a Cobb salad. She had wanted to order a pastrami sandwich, but that would have required two hands. She had also considered the pasta with creamy chicken sauce, but then thought about all the possibilities of drippage ruining her outfit for her non-lunch date with Superman. Clark had ordered a hamburger and a side salad. She really shouldn’t have been surprised.

“You don’t like French fries either?” she asked, disappointed at the switch. She had hoped to steal some.

“No. Growing up on a farm, you get used to eating fresh fruit and veggies, I guess,” he said with a shrug.

“But hamburgers aren’t out?” Lois challenged.

Clark smiled. “You caught me. I’m an American.”

Lois scowled at his diversionary tactics. “Just tell me already.”

“Tell you what?” he replied, being Clarkly obtuse.

“About your strange eating habits,” Lois demanded.

“My eating habits aren’t strange where I come from,” Clark said with a wink. “You’ll just have to deal with the fact that I’m mysterious.”

“You’re just weird,” she countered through pressed lips.

He grinned at her with a smug look that said ‘but, hey, it works for me’.

Lois wanted to slug him. Instead, she gave him her world-famous silent treatment. He lasted a whole four minutes, before he caved. Good thing, because she didn’t think she could stand the silence any longer, but instead of talking to her, Clark flagged down the waitress.

“Can we get a side of fries for my friend?” he asked, melting Lois’s heart at the same time heating up her ire.

The waitress gave Lois and her salad a quick glance. “For your friend? Sure, buddy,” she said.

After she walked away, Clark leaned across the table, and whispered, “I don’t think she believed me.”

“I can’t believe you. ‘For my friend’? Thanks a lot there, Chuck,” she grumbled.

His face fell completely misunderstanding her complaint. “You don’t want them?”

“Of course, I do, but that’s not the issue here…” Lois started before the waitress returned with a pitcher of water. “Oh, and can you bring me one of those chocolate milkshakes for my friend?”

“Lo-is!” Clark gasped. “I told you I don’t want it.”

Lois gave the waitress a wink. “He wants it.”

The waitress glanced between them. “Okay, coming right up,” she responded and then walked off.

Clark scowled at Lois once the waitress left. “I’m not going to drink it,” he said.

“Good, because I didn’t order it for you.”

“Huh?” He looked at her as if she had hit him upside the head with a bat.

Lois rolled her eyes. “Yes, but how would it look if I ordered both fries and a chocolate shake?”

Finally the lights were switched on at the Kent house. “Oh,” he mumbled, his cheeks flushing.

“And here, I thought you were a gentleman,” she said, shaking her head.

“Superman’s the gentleman. I’m clearly a cad. I’m just going to put that into a box marked ‘things to apologize to Lois about when she once again accepts my apologies’,” Clark said and took another bite out of his burger.

Superman. Lois’s insides seemed to tighten in anticipation. She leaned forward, being careful not to jar her arm, and whispered, “What did he say exactly this morning when he stopped by?”

Clark sighed, but was interrupted by the return of the waitress who set down the fries and shake in front of him. “Thank you.”

The waitress smiled at him and continued on.

“Well?” Lois hissed.

Clark took a sip of his water, and moved the two items towards Lois. “He came up to the window, glanced around the apartment for a moment, and said, ‘Tell Lois that we need to meet later’. Then he...” He made a motion of his hand like it was going upwards.

“So, he didn’t give you a time or place for a meeting?” she asked, her heart sinking. All day, she had been sure that Superman had made a lunch appointment with her. She should have known better. She pulled her chocolate shake over to her and put her lips to the straw.

“We’re meeting after lunch at Centennial Park,” Clark replied.

Lois was going to see Superman after lunch. She could feel her own heart rate increase. “Did he say what he wanted to talk to me about?”

Clark brought his burger to his mouth again. “Something personal.”

Personal? Lois gulped. This was it. This was the conversation she had been waiting for. Superman had made his decision about their relationship. He was either going to make his move, or break her heart. This was it. “Did he seem happy?”

“Happy?” Clark asked, perplexed.

Lois waved the question out of the air. Superman was too stoic to be seen as ‘happy’. She thought about that night several months earlier when he had stopped by after she had dreamed about kissing Clark. He had laughed, full on laughed, at the thought of Lois and Clark kissing. She stole a glance at Clark. Superman wouldn’t be laughing now, if he knew how often she had dreamed recently of kissing Clark. While Superman was good, and kind, and did wonderful things for the world, Clark was good, and kind, and did wonderful things for her.

Well, that was a half-hour ago, and here she was sitting on a bench, waiting for her man… her Superman to arrive. She took a deep breath and looked around the Centennial Park again, wondering why he hadn’t arrived yet. Lois didn’t know why this meeting with Superman was making her nervous. In her heart of hearts she knew what he was going to say already. She had known about it all week, since he wasn’t able to be there for her the night that Allie Dinello had died.

Superman would probably say something honorable like, “You deserve a man who can be there with you, when you need him to be there. A man whose love you will be able to declare openly in a church, before family and friends. Someone who can put you before everyone else. It’s time we recognized that will never be me.”

Lois would then argue for a passionate affair. True, so totally not her stock and trade but she would argue for it nonetheless. Then Superman would go on to tell her that if he could not love her openly and honestly, the least he could do would be to respect her. An affair would just cheapen their love, and make them want more than they could have, or ever hope to have. Then he would chastely kiss her for the first and last time, and fly off as a friend. Lois would then be stuck with picking up the pieces of her broken heart and trying to put them back together. Try as she might, there would always be a few small fragments missing because they would be embedded into Superman’s impenetrable skin when her heart exploded.

If Lois was lucky, Clark would patiently remain by her side, helping her put the pieces back together. Maybe someday, after all was said and done, she would be able to look at Superman as just a friend and not as her one truelove lost, and look at Clark as someone caring, loving, there when she needed him, who just happened to have this killer body, and who she wanted to share her life with.

She could do this. She was mentally prepared.

Lois looked around again. Where was he? Then as if he had read her mind, Superman swooped in.

“Good afternoon, Lois,” he said, standing there in front of her.

She stood up, breathless. “Hi,” she said, unable to say more, as she stared at him. It still felt like he was some dream, or mirage, made real.

“How are you feeling?” Superman asked. He looked stiff, uncomfortable, as if he was about to bear bad news. She wanted to reassure him she already knew the bad news, but there was also a part of her who wanted to make this as difficult as possible for him.

“Better,” Lois lied.

“I know that you’re angry at me…”

Lois held up her hand to interrupt. “Angry?” He hadn’t even begun to see her angry if he thought he could blame himself for her getting shot.

Superman glanced around. Even Lois could hear the other people enjoying a hot Metropolis summer’s day at the park.

“This isn’t the best spot for us to talk,” he said, moving closer. “Do you think you’re up to flying?”

She smiled. “I thought you’d never ask.”

Before Lois knew it, she was in his arms and above Metropolis. She wrapped her left arm around his neck.

“You let me know if at any time you feel uncomfortable or in pain,” Superman insisted as they rose higher into the blue.

Lois could see the ocean off to their side and knew they were flying north. They passed over cities and villages and countryside until he finally started to lower them down in a slight clearing on a rocky mountain mostly covered in trees. He hovered over the area for a minute and then landed, setting her back upon her feet.

“Where are we?” Lois asked, with a slight shiver. It was cooler here in the mountains than back in Metropolis, especially now that she was no longer in Superman’s arms. She certainly hadn’t dressed for hiking.

“The Adirondack Mountains,” Superman replied. Then indecision marred his face. “Either that or the Laurentian Mountains in Quebec.” He shrugged. “I don’t always see borders. There is nobody in the area, so we can speak freely.”

Lois stepped back to him and wrapped her good arm around his neck, and whispered, “And nobody will see us kiss.”

He took a step back as she expected he would. They were alone for miles, and still he wouldn’t kiss her.

Her lips pinched together. “You were saying something about anger.”

Superman bowed his head. “I know that you are angry with me for not being there for you last night…” he began again, before Lois raised her hand.

“Angry? For what? For you being busy fighting three of my father’s cyborgs? For not getting there on time? For not protecting me? For allowing me to get shot?” Lois retorted, her anger building, but not for those reasons. “Just tell me if I hit the nail on the head with any of those.”

“Yes, Lois, I have failed you on all those accounts,” he admitted.

Lois spun around, and as best she could in her heels, marched off. She found a thick branch and picked it up awkwardly with her left hand.

“What are you doing?” he asked.

“I’m going to hit some sense into you,” she hollered. “Do you think I blame you for this?” She raised her right arm, which she realized was the wrong thing to do as pain shot through her. She bit back the scream that rose in her throat.

“I blame me,” he whispered, and she threw her branch. He let it hit him, but it thudded to the ground.

“Well, you shouldn’t. You aren’t my babysitter. You aren’t here to protect me and me alone. You…” she yelled at him, frustration coursing through her. She started looking around for another branch to throw at him. “— are here to help all of mankind!”

“Yes, I am. I am here because of you, Lois,” he said softly. “Only you.”

A chill that had nothing to do with the temperature coursed through her. “Then prove it to me,” Lois insisted. “Prove that you love me! Show me how much you love me!”

His eyes closed as he shook his head. “I am showing you how much I love you by not kissing you. Should you become my significant other, I will endanger you just as your father did by building those cyborgs. Menken came after you to get to him, just as someone will come after you to get to me. Trust me, Lois, I wish that I could, but this man…” he said, gesturing to himself. “Superman cannot love you as you deserve to be loved.”

“I know that,” she retorted.

“You do?” he said in surprise.

“Yes, I’m not an idiot. I know that Superman cannot be with me in public, that you can’t hold my hand and let me cry on your shoulder when my friend dies, that you can’t pop into the office and take me to lunch. I know that!” Lois crossed the few steps separating them to touch his face. “It doesn’t matter to me.”

“It should. You deserve all those things, and more, that I cannot give you,” he said, brushing back that lock of hair he liked to tuck behind her ear, only now with her new haircut, it wouldn’t stay. “You deserve a man who will always be there to protect you.”

“I deserve you,” Lois said, almost to the point of pleading. Why couldn’t he see that?

“We’ve been over this, Lois,” he said, dismissing the topic out of hand. “This isn’t why I needed to talk to you.”

Her fury started to boil. “Kiss me!” she insisted.

“No, Lois. I’ve told you that once I kiss you, I won’t be able to stop,” he said.

“So, don’t stop. Nobody will see us out here. It’s just us. Can’t we just have one night of passion before we say goodbye forever?” Lois asked as she knew she would ask. She hated to beg for anything, and here she was begging for one measly night of love with the man of her dreams. “I’ll never ask for anything from you again. Please, give me this to remember our love by.”

Superman caressed her cheek. “We both know it won’t stop there. One night will turn to two, which will turn to one night a month, each week, then daily, until we are living together. Anyway, you’re hurt.”

“Well, which is it? I’m hurt, or we won’t want this to end?” she snapped. Damn Clark in raising her expectations, by telling her that Superman wouldn’t be able to resist showing how much he wanted her.

“Lois, I know my resistance level to you. I want you with every fiber of my being. I…” Superman said, drawing in a deep breath. “I do love you.”

Lois leaned in to his caress. “Show me how much. One little kiss.”

“I can’t,” he murmured, even though it sounded to Lois as if his resistance was fading. He took a step away from her.

“You stubborn, pig-headed, guilt-infested oaf! You bring me to the middle of nowhere, leading me on, and yet, you still won’t even kiss me. I think you’re lying. You don’t love me,” she said, marching across the clearing. She found a fallen log and sat down on it with a harrumph.

Superman closed the distance between them, kneeling down in front of her, so that they were at eye level. “I do love you, and I hope that someday you’ll understand why I’ve made the decisions I have.”

Lois grabbed onto her right arm with her left, in a vain attempt to cross her arms and turned away. She would not cry.

“I didn’t bring you here in the middle of nowhere to lead you on, or even to talk about us, Lois,” he continued, speaking softly. “I have something to tell you that will make you very upset…”

“There’s more? What? You’re heading back to Krypton? Leaving me forever? Is that it?” she said, grinding her teeth together. Personally, she couldn’t see anything worse than the day she had already had.

“No, Lois. When I stopped by this morning to see how you were doing, I discovered that someone bugged your apartment,” Superman said.

Lois turned her gaze back onto him, her eyes wide. “What?”

“I found that someone was recording video and audio of your apartment, including tapping your phones,” he repeated.

“What?” she sputtered, raising her hand to her head.

“I stopped by the Daily Planet to inform Clark of this…”

“Clark knows?” Lois growled. “Clark knows that someone is watching my apartment and he didn’t warn me? Some friend he is,” she scoffed.

“Don’t blame Clark, Lois, I asked him to let me tell you,” Superman said. “As your protection is my duty.”

“No, Superman, it isn’t. My protection isn’t your job. It’s mine,” she snapped at him.

“The reason I told Clark I needed you to meet me, was to give me time to go in and remove all the surveillance equipment,” Superman continued as if she hadn’t said anything. “I gave all the cameras, bugs, and everything to him.”

“Cameras? As in plural? How many were there?” she growled.

Superman pressed his lips together and glanced down as if he didn’t want to answer this question. “I found six.”

Lois gulped. She raised a hand to her head as it started to spin. “Six? There were six cameras in my apartment, and Clark didn’t warn me? Where were they?”

“All over,” he murmured.

“Like in my living room?”

Superman nodded. “Two.”

If only two were in her living room, where were the other cameras? Kitchen, hall, that made four. “My bedroom?”

He nodded again.

That was five. “The bathroom?”

Superman winced, and nodded once quickly.

“Oh, God! I changed my clothes today. Someone watched me shower, naked, and Clark knew this and didn’t warn me?” Lois couldn’t understand how Clark could have kept this from her. She pushed past Superman and started pacing. “How long? How long has someone been watching me? Oh, my, they’ve been watching Lucy too!” She felt sick to her stomach.

“Please, don’t blame Clark. All indications point to the cameras having been there for a while, Lois, and there weren’t any cameras in Lucy’s room. We felt it was better not to spook the voyeur by letting him know that we knew by informing you earlier. It was better to remove all of the devices first.”

“Oh, so you guys felt we should give my stalker one last hurrah. Look, here’s Lois showering with a bandaged arm,” she grumbled, shaking her head. “Look how the water runs over her naked breasts. Look how she contorts in pain while trying to put on her underwear.”

“As I said before, I stopped by the Daily Planet, only to discover someone had put another camera pointing at your desk chair,” Superman informed her.

“What? Like up my skirt?” Lois asked a creepy shiver coming over her.

“No, over your computer monitor, but definitely aimed at you,” he explained.

“Who? Who’s done this?” she asked him, all her fight gone. She felt dirty and alone. All she wanted to do was curl up into a ball and cry.

“I don’t know,” Superman said, his jaw tense as if he wanted to tear someone in two for doing this to her. “I wish I knew.”

Someone knew her entire life. They knew when she got up in the morning, what she did in her shower, when she got dressed, how she made her coffee, when she left for work, arrived at work. Her stories. Every conversation she had entered into. Clark’s hug that made the office grapevine announce that they were back together. Oh, no! Their kiss last night. Lois glanced over at Superman. Did he know that she and Clark had kissed? Did anyone know about her and Superman? She scoffed. There wasn’t a her and Superman to know about.

“Why would they do this?” she asked.

“Clark thought it might be those men who raided the Daily Planet back in May, trying to catch the two of us…”

Lois looked at him and started laughing. It was one of those hysterical laughs one got when one’s life was falling apart, and nothing felt funny. “Well, the joke’s on them. You won’t even kiss me.” She continued to laugh as the tears started pouring down her face turning her laughs to sobs.

“Don’t cry, Lois,” Superman rough voice murmured, moving closer to her. “Please, don’t cry.” He wrapped his arms and cape around her but did not pull her to his chest, probably not to hurt her damaged arm.

She dropped her head upon his chest, landing right on his ‘S’ crest. “Why shouldn’t I cry, Superman? I can’t use my right arm, somebody is spying on me, and the man I love loves me too much to kiss me. And Clark…” She shook her head. She didn’t even want to think about Clark. “Take me home, Superman.”

He nodded and lifted her up into his arms. They rose into the air. This time Lois didn’t notice the view, or the blue sky, or the ocean. She wanted to memorize every aspect of being in Superman’s arms, this one last time.

***End of Part 35***

Part 36

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