Okay, okay! You can put the spears away.
I'm actually surprised to find out that this story has such an enthusiastic following, espiecially since I have no clue what I'm doing. <g>
I'm still a little bit stuck. There's nothing currently written beyond what's here. Also, I'd like to remind you this is unbeta'ed, so Read At Your Own Risk!
Feedback/input/constructive critiscism is both appreciated and desired. Please tell me what you think.
Enjoy!
----------------------------
From Part 10: “Bye, Lois!”
“Lucy, wait!”
There was a click, followed by the buzz of a dial tone. Lois hung up the phone and slumped in her chair. Tomorrow was going to be a very long day…
**********
And Now, Part 11:It was a dream, Lois told herself, just a horrible, horrible dream. She wasn’t really---people simply didn’t---it defied physics, for crying out loud! No, it had to be a dream. She was feeling lightheaded, that was it. It had only *felt* like she was---she was---it was just a dream. That was all. It had to be!
As she wiped the mucus from her face, she wondered what had possessed her mother to have *two* children. Speaking of which…
She showered and dressed, grateful that she had not yet begun to show, and headed out to the kitchen to get her keys. She stopped when she smelled something baked and noticed a brown paper bag sitting on the table with a hastily scrawled note next to it.
‘Dear Lois---
Sorry I couldn’t stay, but I wanted to make sure you got this.
*Please* eat something!!!
Take care,
---S’
Inside the bag was a croissant, along with some fresh strawberries, an orange, a peach, and a large yellow banana. There was also a container of some kind of liquid. Lois had no idea what the mystery-beverage was, but the label advertised that it was “specially formulated for expecting mothers-to-be.” She took a swig, then promptly poured the rest of the vile concoction down the sink. What flavor was that supposed to be? Mud? The label insisted it was chocolate. Chocolate, her eye! Lois snorted, tossed the container in the trash, then collected the bag and her purse and headed out the door.
She managed to nibble on a few of the strawberries on her way to the airport. It was awfully kind of Superman to bring her breakfast. He was so caring and considerate.
He was also in love with her.
Lois frowned. She needed to figure out what to do about that. She also needed to figure out what to do about her feelings for Clark Kent. Should she just tell him? No, she couldn’t tell him. If she gave so much as a hint that she was attracted to Clark, Superman might get wind of it. Then what? He’d be heartbroken, that’s what! And Lois just couldn’t bring herself to do that to him.
On the other hand, she shouldn’t lead Superman on. The longer she put off telling him that she didn’t love him back, the more pain there was going to be when he found out. Granted, she still cared about him very much, but she’d given up her Superman fantasy. He deserved to know that. The sooner he learned the truth, the sooner he could get over her and get on with his life.
Of course, should she tell him so soon? She had no idea how or even *if* things were going to pan out with Clark. What if she confessed her feelings for Clark only to have him reject her? There was an old saying about burning your bridges behind you. At least with Superman, she knew where she stood. Plus, they were having a baby together, after all!
Oy. When did her life get to be this complicated? She was in the middle of a catch 22: she couldn’t talk to Clark until she’d talked to Superman, and she didn’t want to talk to Superman until she’d found out where she stood with Clark.
And in the meantime, she had to pick up Lucy and drop her off at the apartment so she could get to work and pretend to be Jimmy’s girlfriend.
Lois rested a hand on her stomach. Maybe the best thing would be to put all the romantic stuff aside for now. The only reason she was even *in* this mess was because she wanted to have a baby. Well, now one was on the way, so she needed to focus on getting ready for its arrival. She’d already set up a college fund, so all she needed to worry about was names, daycare arrangements, a nursery, Lamaze classes, clothes, toys, formula…
She pulled into the pickup area outside the airport’s baggage claim and saw Lucy standing there waiting for her. Lucy saw her too, waved, then grabbed her things and ran toward the jeep. Once her bags were safely stowed in the back, Lucy hopped into the passenger seat.
“Hi, Sis!”
“Hey, Lucy.”
Lois listened with one ear while Lucy rambled on about the faults of her latest ex-boyfriend. Suddenly, Lucy noticed the bag.
“What’s this?”
She was opening the bag and looking inside. Lois felt a surge of alarm. If she discovered Superman’s note…
“I don’t believe it!”
Oh no, it was too late! The gig was up! Maybe not, maybe she could still persuade her that there was nothing going on. “Lucy---”
“Lois, you actually brought me something to munch on! How thoughtful! Thanks, Sis. You know they didn’t feed us on the plane?”
Lucy stuffed her face and went on to tell Lois the details of her trip. Lois sighed with relief.
**********
The elevator dinged and deposited Lois in the Daily Planet newsroom. Her eyes immediately went to Clark’s desk, only to find it empty. Perhaps it was just as well…
She could see Jimmy off to the side of the room, talking with someone she didn’t recognize. He was apparently showing the other young man the reporters’ equipment. They turned and saw her; Jimmy said something to the stranger, then waved Lois over.
Lois figured the other man must be Tommy. Sighing, she pasted a fake smile on her face and walked over to them.
Jimmy smiled. “Lois, this is Tommy. Tommy, Lois.”
“Hi, how do you do,” Lois said in an overly saccharine tone.
“It’s nice to finally meet you, Miss Lane!” Tommy said, shaking her hand. “I read all your articles, and Jimmy’s told me so much about you in his emails. I almost feel like I know you!”
“Oh really?” Lois asked in what she hoped was a light, casual tone. “And just what has Jimmy said about me in his emails?”
“Oh, nothing bad, Miss Lane; don’t worry. He just wrote about how beautiful and talented you are…”
Lois managed a genuine smile. “Well, that’s true.”
Tommy continued, “And he also told me all about how the two of you go on investigations together, and how he always brings you coffee and helps you edit your copy.”
“Uh huh. Yes, he’s a sweetheart all right.” Lois leaned toward Jimmy and gave him a kiss on the cheek. While her lips were near his ear, she whispered, “This is going to cost you, Jimmy.”
“So, Jimmy,” Tommy said, “When do we get to see your office?”
Lois nearly choked.
“Uh…” Jimmy stammered, “It’s---uh, being cleaned. We can’t really go in right now. All those cleansers---it’s just not safe.”
“Oh. Too bad.”
“Yeah.” Jimmy checked his watch. “Well, look; I’ve got to get back to work, soon. Perry just can’t run this place without my guidance.”
“Yeah, I’ve got a lot to do in town myself. But it was nice to see you, Jimmy, and it was certainly nice to meet *you*, Lois! Tell me, are there wedding bells for the two of you?” Tommy grinned.
Jimmy cut Lois off before she could respond. “Well, we haven’t even discussed marriage, but,” he slipped his arm around Lois, “yeah, things *are* pretty serious.”
Lois fought the urge to throw up.
“I’m happy for you.” Tommy smiled.
They said their good-byes and started escorting Tommy to the elevator. When they were halfway there, Tommy suddenly turned around. “Hey Jimmy, I just had a thought.”
“Yeah?”
“Since I’ll be in Metropolis all week, maybe we could all hit the town, sometime!”
Lois and Jimmy’s eyes widened. “WHAT?”
“Oh, don’t worry; it’ll be my treat. I know Sandy’s just dying to meet you. We could double date!”
Lois glared and opened her mouth to speak…
“We’ll think about it!”
Tommy smiled again. “Great! I’ll call you tomorrow, Jimbo!”
“Yeah!” Jimmy gave Tommy a thumbs-up as he stepped onto the elevator and vanished behind the closing doors. “Tomorrow. Right.”
Lois turned on Jimmy with a viscous glare. “Hit the town?! Double Date?!?! Jimmy, you said this was just for one day!”
“Lois, I’m sorry! I didn’t realize he’d be in town a whole week. I must have misread his email. Please, Lois? Just until he leaves?”
“Jimmy, if you expect me to keep this charade up another day---”
Jimmy dropped to his knees. “Please, Lois? You’ve gotta help me out! This guy’s a real big-shot back in New York! He’s dating a model! Please? Just a few more days---I’ll do anything! Please!”
<<The gopher dies>>
“I will owe you for the rest of my life, and I’ll never ask another favor from you as long as I live! I swear!”
“Okay, fine!”
Jimmy began kissing her hand. “Oh, thank you Lois! Thank you so much!”
“But Jimmy, you have to tell him the truth!”
“What?”
“You heard me! If you don’t tell him by the end of the week that we’re not really dating, *I* *will!*”
Jimmy hung his head. “Okay. Fair enough.”
Lois withdrew her hand from Jimmy’s grasp and headed back to her desk. As she booted up her computer, a cup of coffee mysteriously appeared on her desk. She looked up and saw Clark.
“Hey.”
“Hey, yourself.”
“I heard you disemboweling Jimmy. What was that about?”
Lois snorted. “He wants me to keep playing girlfriend. Turns out Tommy’s here for the whole week.”
“Yikes.”
“Jimmy has one week to tell Tommy the truth. If he doesn’t, they will never find his body.”
Clark chuckled, then seemed to study her for a moment. “So. How are you?”
“Fine.”
“Um, did you get your---have you eaten?”
Why was he suddenly so concerned with her eating habits? “I had a few strawberries.”
“That’s all?”
She started to say that was all she could manage on her queasy stomach, then realized that would give too much away. “I---wasn’t very hungry.” Well, that was true enough.
“I see.” Clark shifted a bit and nervously fiddled with his tie. “So, are you okay? Do you need anything?”
She turned her chair so that she faced him fully. “All right Clark, what gives? Why are you all of a sudden constantly trying to nursemaid me?” She thought for a moment. “Does this have to do with my appendix? I’m not the first adult to go through an appendectomy, you know!” Though she was certainly the first to get knocked up by Superman upon being diagnosed with Endo during one…
Clark seemed flustered. “I---uh---what? No! No, Lois, it has nothing to do with your appendix. I just---I care about you, that’s all.”
He cared about her? Lois raised an eyebrow. Did that mean---?
“---As a friend! You’re my best friend, and I care about you.”
Oh. That kind of caring. For a minute, Lois had thought---but that was a silly idea anyway. Yes, of *course* Clark cared. He was a caring kind of guy. That was partly what made her fall for him; he was so caring, and sweet, and gentle, not to mention incredibly hot…
<<Stop it, Lane! If you start drooling now, he’s going to think you’re nuts!>>
Lois forced herself to snap back to reality and turned back to face her computer. “Well, you’re off the hook this time, Farmboy. Just remember: I am Lois Lane. I am not some fragile china-doll who needs to be constantly mothered and treated with kid gloves. I can take care of myself!”
“Yes ma’am.” She felt him move away from her and heard his footsteps as he began to head back to his own desk. She whirled around and caught his sleeve. “Clark?”
He stopped and turned immediately. “Yes?”
“Some antacids would be nice, if you have any.”
He grinned. “Sure, Lois.”
**********
TBC
