Aha! Time to write a comment on part two of this fic!
All it had taken was ten seconds of his life--ten seconds when he had allowed himself to let go of Superman and be present as Clark...to be with Lois…to kiss her.
Ten seconds. That was all it took for Mayson Drake to die.
And he was responsible. It was his fault.
Reading this I thought that maybe the title for this story should be Ten Seconds. Clark, wanted to be present with Lois, to spend time with her, have a normal date and share a soul-searing kiss with the woman he loves. While taking those precious seconds to be with her, someone he cared about died. The very thought is tearing him apart with guilt and anger. Naturally it is very easy for us to say, it is not your fault, but Clark doesn't see matters that way. As was mentioned by another comment, Lois has her work cut out for her.
He'd been with Lois when it happened. And he couldn’t tell her. He couldn’t tell anyone.
As Delenn of Babylon5 once said, "Why not?" She is the woman you want to spend your life with. If you cannot tell her now about the other side of yourself, when will the proper time come? Each day delayed means delaying the healing for Clark and the pain for Lois.
No. She knew he was here already. She'd tensed ever so slightly when he'd looked over. No, today was not going to be a good day.
You think?
Even if she knows you are there, turn around and get that coffee!
But then the story kind of took off, and became about way more than the ten seconds.