Lois drowsed peacefully in Clark's arms, drifting in and out of blissful consciousness. She'd never felt so comfortable after making love to someone -- so safe and cherished. She hadn’t planned for the night to end up here. After all, they hadn’t even gone on a real date and now she’d slept with him? She wasn’t the kind of person who jumped into bed or a relationship this quickly, and yet…was it really too fast?
She’d known Clark for two years now and though she had only just realised her feelings, she knew that they had always been there. No, this was exactly where she should be. And the best part was that she was absolutely certain he felt the same way. Nobody had ever made love to her with such exquisite care and attention. And now, laying together in the dark, nobody had ever made her feel so alive and yet so perfectly at home.
She could spend the rest of her life falling asleep in his arms. The scary part was that the realization didn’t frighten her at all.
"Lois?" His voice came out of the darkness like a soft blanket.
"Hmm?"
"Merry Christmas."
She glanced over at the clock radio on the side table to see that it was, in fact, after midnight. A wave of love washed over her as she realized she was getting to spend Christmas with the man she loved. THE PLAN had worked perfectly.
"Merry Christmas, Clark," she said, a little more awake now. “I’m so glad you’re here.”
“Me too,” he replied, running a hand gently through her hair. “I thought you were asleep just now.”
“I was,” she murmured as she gently drew little circles on his chest. She could feel his skin react to her and smiled in wonderment at the effect she had. Had she always had this effect? If so, he had been really good at hiding it for so long. “I’m awake now though.”
“Same,” he said, sitting up slightly. Lois did as well, realising there was a bit of a chill in the cabin. He must have seen her shiver because he pulled her closer.
“You cold?” He asked, kissing her lips softly. She sighed happily.
“A little,” she admitted, “but that might just mean you have to hold me closer.”
“I’ll do that no matter what,” he promised. “But maybe we should get the fire going again.”
Lois grinned and leaned forward to kiss him, gently at first and then with an intensity that surprised both of them. He pulled her closer, running his hands gently down her body and she felt her breath catch.
“I think the fire is just fine,” she breathed. He swallowed and nodded, reaching out to caress her face, as if trying to stop time.
"I'm so glad my parents won that radio contest," he said fervently. He leaned forward to kiss her again and Lois couldn’t suppress the giggle that bubbled out of her. He still didn’t know…
“Something funny?” He wondered. His confusion only made her giggle turn into a laugh which only grew as his face became more and more bewildered. Her head fell forward and she shook with laughter against his chest until eventually she had to wipe the tears away.
She sat up and tried to suppress another outbreak of laughter as she looked into his bemused but still very loving face.
“Lois?” He said again with a chuckle. “I feel like I’ve come in at the end of the movie here. What on Earth is so funny?”
“Oh, Clark,” she said with a sigh as she placed a hand gently against his chest. “I’m sorry, I don’t mean to laugh. It’s just…your parents are just as bad at excuses as you are.”
“What do you mean?” he asked, “are they not in Nashville?”
“No,” Lois admitted, becoming a little bit more serious. She composed herself and took his hands in hers. “I asked your parents to tell you they couldn’t have you over for Christmas this year. I wasn’t sure you would agree to come with me to this cabin, otherwise. I know how much you love going to Smallville.”
“You didn’t think I would want to spend Christmas in a romantic cabin with only one functional bedroom?” He said, his eyebrow raised skeptically. She laughed a little bit.
“I didn’t know about the bedroom, I swear,” she insisted. “And…I hoped you would, but I wasn’t sure. I know I’ve hurt you in the past. I was scared you wouldn’t be willing to give me another chance, and I needed to tell you how I felt.”
“And you got my parents to go along with this?” He sounded a bit shocked.
“I told your parents I knew you were Superman,” she told him. “They tried to deny it at first, but when I explained how I knew and that I was in love with you…”
She felt warmth flood through her as the memory of her conversation with Martha played in her mind.
“Your mother is a wonderful woman, Clark. She understood and she wanted to help. I hope you’re not angry that you thought they didn’t want you to come for Christmas dinner. The truth is, we’re both invited…if you’ll have me of course.”
She had no idea why, but admitting all the details of THE PLAN suddenly made her feel slightly insecure.
“Angry?” He shook his head, looking slightly dazed with happiness. “How could I possibly be angry? You’ve literally given me everything I’ve ever wanted. I love you so much. That you would go through all this trouble for me…”
“It was no trouble,” she interrupted, touching his face gently. “In fact, this is the best Christmas I’ve ever had.”
He kissed her then, pulling her into his arms with a ferocity that surprised her. She knew by the way he touched her that this was something he’d been longing for the same way she had. She allowed herself to get swept away by the kiss until they both broke apart, panting.
“Let’s go sit by the fire,” he whispered, “I have a present for you.”
She nodded wordlessly and threw on a t-shirt, a pair of sweatpants, and a robe, while he threw on a pair of flannel pyjama pants. They padded out to the living room and Lois watched as he lit the fire once more with the remaining wood and his heat vision. She sat on the couch, allowing herself to freely admire how beautiful he was. There was certainly one advantage to the fact that he didn’t feel the cold. He must have noticed her staring, because he turned and grinned.
“What?”
“Nothing,” she said, feeling her face flush slightly. No, she reminded herself, you just slept with the man. You’re allowed to admire him. “I was just…looking at you. Do you know how sexy you are?”
He laughed and looked down at his feet, slightly embarrassed which only made him even more attractive. How did he not know?
With the fire at full blaze, she made her way back into the bedroom to grab the gift she’d planned on giving him. She’d wrapped it fairly haphazardly as she was trying to get everything ready for THE PLAN. The wrapping doesn’t matter, she told herself.
“Here,” she said, thrusting the gift at him. He looked somewhat surprised, taking the gift and opening it slowly. He looked a little confused at first as pulled out a picture frame. He looked at the contents of it and turned it silently over for a moment, saying nothing. Feeling nervous as the silence stretched on, she spoke.
“It’s….”
“Our first story that we wrote as official partners,” he said, sounding slightly dazed. “We wrote it on the cyborgs your father was building as boxers.”
“I never told you how much it meant to me to have a partner on that story of all stories,” she said, fighting the emotion that threatened. “It meant so much that you supported me. I never wanted a partner. I never made that a secret. But you made it so easy to trust you and soon you were my best friend and eventually…well, I realised I couldn’t live without you. And I didn’t want to. I know it’s just a piece of paper, but…”
“It’s not,” he said, his voice gruff with emotion. “It’s everything. I…thank you.” He looked away and she saw a muscle working his jaw and her heart filled with joy to know that he loved her gift – humble as it was.
“Your turn,” he said, as he headed over to the corner of the room where he’d set his bags down and pulled out a small gift expertly wrapped with a bow on top. Somehow, she knew he’d wrapped it himself. He gave her that still slightly hesitant smile and handed it to her.
Lois didn’t blame him for not trusting this newfound intimacy. There was a part of all this that all felt so unreal still. Like at any moment reality would intrude and they would lose it all.
She took the gift and opened it slowly, gasping when she saw the velvet case that held a beautiful pearl necklace, each pearl different from the next.
“It’s gorgeous,” she breathed, feeling tears prick at the back of her eyelids. “Where did you…?”
“I remember you told me about how your sister Lucy broke the necklace your mother gave you,” he said by way of explanation. “I’d planned on telling you that I got Superman to find each pearl for you, but I guess now I don’t have to.”
“You did all that for me?” She asked, her voice shaky.
“I would do anything for you,” he said, his own voice equally tremulous. “You have to know that by now.”
“I do,” she said with a tearful smile. “But feel free to keep saying it.”
“As many times as you want,” he vowed. “I’ll say it forever. I just wish I had something better to give you. Your gift was so special, Lois…”
“You do,” she interrupted. He looked up, his eyes hopeful and full of love. She took a deep breath. “I know we’re going to Smallville tomorrow via Superman express, but I thought…well…would you take me flying?”
“Now?” He asked, in slight surprise. She nodded.
“I’ll put on something warm. It’s just…I’ve wanted this for so long.”
“I don’t understand,” he said, confused, “you’ve flown with Superman before.”
“I know,” she replied, moving close enough to him to touch his arm. Their eyes met and she was lost. “I want to fly with Clark. I want to fly with my best friend.”
He reached out and caressed her face slowly, oh-so slowly. She closed her eyes, reveling in the feel of his hands and the anticipation of what was to come. Would she ever tire of the feel of his lips or hands on her?
“Let’s go flying,” he murmured, taking her hand and standing up.
They both dressed quickly, neither able to take their eyes off one another for long. Eventually they were both ready, each excited to begin this new chapter together.
As he lifted her into his arms, he looked at her and grinned.
“Are we really both going to my parent’s for dinner tomorrow?” He asked, as if unable to believe it. She laughed and nodded, kissing him gently.
“Your mother insisted,” Lois replied feeling giddy as he stepped out into the night holding her in his arms.
“You know,” he said as they lifted off into the night sky, “I only know one other person who flys on Christmas.”
Lois laughed and leaned into his arms, feeling freer than she ever had before.
The End
