“Sure, Mom. Six is fine,” Clark said into the phone.
“Is Lois there with you?” Martha asked, and Clark smiled at the eagerness in her voice.
“She’s upstairs getting ready. We’re going to head back to the square for a few hours before we head your way.”
After the race, they had come back to the house to shower and change and wound up sitting around talking until lunchtime. But now they were ready to venture back out, and were planning to meet up with a few of his friends for a while before heading straight to his parents’ for dinner. He had told Lois there was no need to change before dinner, but she had insisted that she wanted to freshen up before they headed out, so he had been waiting for her when his phone rang.
“Oh, that's nice,” Martha said. “It seems like…she’s having a nice time.”
Clark laughed. “I think so, Mom.”
“She’s just the prettiest thing. And she’s so funny. She had me in stitches yesterday.”
“I know,” he agreed. “She's great. I’m excited for you to get to spend some more time with her tonight. I think you two have more in common than you’d think.”
“How has it been having her stay at your house?” she asked, her voice low and excited, as if someone might overhear.
“It’s fine,” he said. The understatement of the century. He heard her footsteps on the stairs and smiled. “I gotta go, Mom. We’ll be there a little early. I want to give Lois a tour before it gets dark.”
“Ok,” she agreed. “We’ll see you when you get here.”
He said goodbye and hung up the phone, then looked up just in time to see Lois finish descending the stairs. She paused at the bottom, hands clasped behind her back, a bashful smile on her face, and his mouth dropped open.
“What is this?” he asked, utterly charmed.
She had shed her trendy jeans and designer top, exchanging them for a sweet floral dress that looked far more Smallville than Metropolis.
“When in Smallville…” she said with a little shrug, clasping her hands in front of her. She looked so nervous, and he couldn’t for the life of him figure out why.
“Come here,” he said, opening his arms to her. She smiled and came straight to him, burying her face in his neck, and he stroked her hair.
She lifted her head, and he held her at arm’s length, looking at her.
“You like it?” she asked coyly.
“You look beautiful in everything,” he said. “But…yeah. I like it a lot. I didn’t imagine you owned anything like this.”
“I bought it yesterday,” she confessed. “At that little store on the square? The one with the moon and stars hanging in the window? The woman who worked there was really sweet. She helped me pick it out.”
“That’s Maggie Pritchard,” he said with a smile. “She’s my friend Charlie’s mom. With my mom out of the mix, she’s shoo-in to win the cornbread bake-off.”
Lois laughed, and he was surprised by how much he enjoyed seeing his little town through her eyes. He had been so worried before she arrived that she would hate it – that she would be uncomfortable or bored or appalled. But instead, she seemed genuinely delighted by all of it. Even when she laughed, it was done fondly. It may be way outside her comfort zone, but she gave no indication that she found it beneath her.
“No wonder she was in such a good mood yesterday,” Lois teased.
They gathered their stuff and headed out, strolling casually to the square in a way that had become deeply comfortable and familiar in less than 48 hours.
At the festival, they wandered around, watching a corn shucking contest, eating caramel apples, and stopping to talk with various friends and neighbors. After each conversation, Clark would fill her in on how that friend was related to various other people she had met. Eventually it became a guessing game, with Lois coming up with more and more preposterous connections.
“No wait! Don’t tell me…” she said, as his boss, the high school principal walked away. “He’s the illegitimate son of the town sheriff and the long-lost identical twin brother of the mayor.”
“Close,” he said, laughing. “His wife is an elementary teacher who works with Tim’s wife, Becky. And his brother is married to Pete’s cousin.”
Lois laughed. “I’m never going to keep all this straight. I really hope there’s not a pop quiz at the end of the weekend.”
“Oh,” he added, as if it were merely an afterthought, “and the town sheriff is a woman our age. I took her to senior prom.”
Her head whipped around. “You did not!”
“I did,” he said, trying to hold back his laughter.
“But you said-”
“We just went as friends,” he clarified. “I’m sure Rachel will be around at some point today, and you can meet her.”
Near the stage in the center of the square, they found Lana and Pete waiting for Sophie’s appearance in the Corn Princess competition. Caleb screamed when he spotted Clark, despite having just seen him the night before, and Clark lifted him up onto his shoulders for a better view of the stage, where the Corn Queen was currently being crowned.
“Corn Queen?” Lois asked skeptically.
“Hey, Corn Queen is serious business,” Lana replied immediately. “She has official duties around town – ribbon cuttings, Christmas tree lightings….”
Clark watched with a smirk as Lois narrowed her eyes, considering Lana’s response. “I don’t suppose,” she said. “That you were the Corn Queen.”
“Three years in a row,” Pete said with a laugh.
The teenaged girls filed off the stage, the Corn Court wearing their sashes and crowns, and filtered into the audience. The queen and one of the members of her court, two seniors who he had taught three years running, sashayed by and gave him a flirtatious look that made him frown with disapproval.
“Hey, Mr. Kent,” Miranda said, while Jessica giggled behind her.
“Congratulations,” he said, nodding to the crown.
She thanked him, and they ran off blushing and giggling. He turned to find Lois and Lana with identical smirks.
“Someone has a little crush?” Lois teased
“They all have a little crush,” Lana corrected.
“Lana,” he said, trying to convey his displeasure to no avail. She ignored him entirely and continued talking to Lois.
“You should hear them. Every year they do senior superlatives – Most Likely to Succeed, et cetera, and they always include a Favorite Teacher superlative. You can guess who’s won the last three years. Rumor has it, the girls call it the “Hottest Teacher” award.
Clark rolled his eyes and sighed. “They’re children, Lana.”
“Yeah, yeah. We know. You disapprove,” she said with an eye roll. She turned to Lois again and whispered conspiratorially. “It’s not just the students. It’s the teachers too. You should hear the gossip in the teacher’s lounge when he’s not around.”
He sighed, and Lois wrapped her hands around his arm and rested her head against his shoulder, gazing up at him with a twinkle in her eye. “We know how hard it is, being adored by everyone around you. You have our deepest sympathy.”
Pete snorted out a laugh, and Clark smiled, forgetting for the moment about the awkwardness of teenaged girls and their crushes, and just enjoying watching Lois become comfortable with his best friends.
Caleb started to squirm suddenly, bored and ignored up on his shoulders, and Clark shot out his opposite arm to grab Caleb’s ankle before he could accidentally kick Lois.
“You want to get down, buddy?”
“I wanna play catch! I brought my football,” he said, bouncing up and down.
Clark hesitated. A quick glance around told him there was room to play off to the side, but he didn’t want to abandon Lois.
“Go,” she said, as if reading his mind. “I’m fine.”
She dropped her hands from his arm and took a step back, and he missed her touch immediately. It must have shown on his face, because she laughed affectionately and stretched up to kiss his cheek.
He grinned as he lifted Caleb from his shoulders and watched him scamper to the large bag at Lana’s feet, retrieving a soft football. Then he herded the little boy off to the side of the crowd so they could play catch. He saw Lana lean in toward Lois conspiratorially and hesitated for only a second before listening in on their conversation, bracing himself for more of Lana’s nonsense, and wanting to be able to rescue Lois if it got out of hand.
“So,” Lana said slowly. “Seems like you’re enjoying your visit.”
Lois laughed. “Let’s just say, I’m having even more fun than I expected.”
“I still can’t believe he didn’t tell me you were coming,” Lana grumbled. “He’s been all cagey talking about you for months. I thought maybe your visit in June didn’t go well, and you’d moved on.”
Lois laughed dismissively, and his heart fluttered at the sound.
“Our visit in June was…wonderful. And then he left for a month, and I was honestly a mess. I… I missed him a lot more than I expected. It was…not great.”
He inhaled sharply at the vulnerability in her voice. He was glad that she had shared his longing, but he hated for her to hurt.
“And then his letters started arriving,” she continued, her voice filled with wonder. “And then he changed his return flight so he could have a longer layover and visit me on the way home. And…. “
“He what?” Lana asked, obviously stunned.
“Yeah,” Lois said.
“So that’s how this all… And now you’re officially together?” Lana asked eagerly.
Lois hesitated. “We haven’t really discussed…. I don’t know exactly what we are. Lana, I don’t think he’s holding out on you to drive you crazy. I think we’re both having a hard time…. Our lives are so different. We live so far apart. We’re still trying to figure out what this means.”
“So, you’re saying I should lay off,” Lana said with a grin.
“Eh,” Lois said. “He can deal with some good-natured teasing. I’m just saying don’t take it personally if he’s not saying much.”
“You missed!” Caleb squawked with delight as his throw went wild.
Clark laughed and tuned out Lois’ conversation, deciding she was more than capable of handling Lana, and focused on Caleb for a while.
By the time Caleb grew tired of their game, Sophie was about to take her turn on stage, and they wandered back over to the crowd. Caleb went to hang all over his dad for a while, and Clark came to stand behind Lois, wrapping his arms around her and kissing her cheek. She hummed happily, resting her hands on his, and he smiled. He thought guiltily about the conversation he had eavesdropped on, and wondered if she was reluctant to define things between them because she was unsure of what she wanted, or if she was just waiting for him to broach the topic.
He had been hesitant to push, knowing how reticent she had been initially. Things had definitely shifted between them after his letters and his second visit. There was no misinterpreting the way she flew into his arms or responded to his kiss. But then the distance was there between them again, and though they talked daily, they carefully avoided any discussion of their feelings until her heartbreaking confession about missing him.
Having her here in Smallville was incredible. And it was as if a switch had been flipped. They couldn’t stop touching. He couldn’t be near her without holding her hand, wrapping his arms around her, resting his hand on her back. And she clearly welcomed his touch and reciprocated with her own. There was nothing he loved more than the way she hung on his arm or stroked his cheek…except for the way she kissed him.
He wanted desperately to take their relationship to the next step, to talk openly about their feelings and make a commitment of some sort. The thought of her seeing anyone else made him sick with grief and jealousy. He pushed the thought from his mind, and focused on enjoying the feel of her in his arms.
Sophie charmed the crowd with the talent portion of her routine, a song and dance number to the tune of The Good Ship Lollipop with the lyrics changed to The Good Crop Candy Corn.
Lois tried valiantly to hold in her laughter, but finally broke during the final chorus. “Is this real life?” she whispered, cracking him up as well.
“I’m pretty sure this is one of Lana’s old routines,” he whispered back.
Lana turned to look at them, and Lois twisted in his arms, trying to hide her laughter. Lana tried to glare at him, but lost the battle and started laughing too when Pete muttered, “I helped her create a clone, and we’re all going to pay the price.”
After Sophie was crowned Corn Princess, an ending to the event that seemed almost inevitable, they drifted apart, with Lana and Pete promising to meet them and the rest of their friends in an hour near the band and dance floor, once they had foisted their kids off on the grandparents.
They watched some corn husking and then a corn on the cob eating contest that was almost as disturbing as it was hilarious. Clark shook his head in amusement when he spotted a few of his players lined up at the tables for the contest.
Over in the judged exhibits area, they found the cornbread bake off, and Clark nudged Lois and nodded toward the blue ribbon on Maggie Prichard’s entry.
Ribbons had been handed out in the Corn-o-Rama, as well, and Clark wondered if his mother would be pleased or disappointed with her second place finish.
Eventually they made their way to the band area, and found a handful of couples out on the floor dancing and a few more seated in the white folding chairs off to the side. Clark spotted Tim and Becky out on the dancefloor, but no one else from their group seemed to have arrived yet. He was about to ask Lois if she wanted to go grab a drink first, when he heard someone behind them calling their names.
“Mr. Kent? Ms. Lane?”
They turned and saw Sarah and Henry approaching. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Lois’ gaze flick to their joined hands and a small smile turn up the corners of her mouth.
“Sarah!” Lois said, sounding genuinely excited to see the girl.
“I heard you were in town,” the girl replied, flushing with pleasure at the enthusiastic greeting.
“I am! But I didn’t expect to see you. I thought you were at KSU?”
“I am,” she said, nodding. “But everyone-”
“-comes home for the corn festival,” Lois finished, laughing. “So I keep hearing.”
Sarah laughed. “I didn’t expect to see you here, though,” she said with raised eyebrows and a grin.
Lois laughed and shrugged, then shot Clark a quick smile before replying. “The last time I saw you, I would not have imagined I’d be spending this weekend at the Smallville Corn Festival either.”
He chuckled and slid his arm around her waist, resting his hand on her hip and giving her a little squeeze.
“Tell me about your classes,” Lois said. “Are you taking anything fun?”
Sarah wrinkled her nose. “I can’t take any electives in my major until next year. They all have prerequisites. But my 101 class is fun.”
She didn’t sound very convincing, and Lois cocked her head.
Sarah shrugged. “It’s pretty basic. I’m not really learning anything new yet. Everyone else seems to be learning a lot, but…it’s a lot of review for me.”
Lois laughed and bumped her hip against him. “Ah, so you’re saying your high school teacher may have prepared you a little better than most?”
Sarah laughed. “Something like that. I really like my 101 professor though. He also teaches an investigative reporting elective that is apparently super hard to get into, but I’m going to try next year.”
“Is it a lottery?” Lois asked. “Or would my recommendation help?”
Sarah’s eyebrows shot up. “I don’t know, honestly.”
“Well, let me know if you need me to give him a call.”
“Seriously?” Sarah looked as if she was about to have a heart attack, and Clark forced himself not to laugh at her. To be fair, he’d had his share of shock and awe moments when it came to Lois.
“Of course,” she assured her. “I can’t guarantee you it will do any good, but I’m happy to make some calls and give you my recommendation.”
They talked for a while longer about Sarah and Henry’s classes as more of Clark’s friends began to arrive, and finally the younger couple said goodbye and went in search of their own circle of friends.
There was a good mix of people Lois had already met along with more friends who were new to her, and Clark smiled as she jumped right in. Before he knew it, she had been drawn into a conversation about a popular television show he had never seen, and he drifted over to catch up with Pete for a while.
“Lana’s smitten with your new girl,” Pete said. “She won’t shut up about how perfect you two are together. She’s convinced she deserves all the credit. Apparently she set you two up at the conference?”
Clark snorted. “If by ‘set us up’, you mean ‘embarrassed me at dinner after I invited Lois to join us.’”
He drifted back to that weekend, and realized that – to be fair – it was Lana’s insistence that had led to their drinks in the hotel bar after dinner, and for that he did owe her a debt of gratitude.
Pete changed the subject abruptly, apparently at his limit for gossip, and they fell into a discussion about football and the team’s chances for another run at State. The magic word attracted more attention, as always, and soon a whole group of guys were clustered around him talking about State championships both past and present.
The topics of conversations and configurations of participants shifted naturally as the afternoon wore on, and eventually Clark found himself seated next to Lois, but participating in an entirely different conversation. While he talked to Pete, Tim, and Charlie about the unseasonably warm weather and its effect on the harvest, he could hear Lois being introduced as “Clark’s friend from Metropolis” to Amanda Quinn, the new social studies teacher at the high school, who had just joined them at their table.
After Amanda had moved to town last year, there had been an awkward period of speculation when the two of them had socialized at a few group events early in the school year. He had done nothing to encourage that speculation, and they had never so much as been on a date, but they were in the same social circle, and he frequently found himself thrust into the role of her companion when they were the only two unattached.
She was undeniably pretty, with long blonde hair and blue eyes, but he hadn’t felt any of the sparks others had clearly hoped for, including possibly Amanda. By Christmas break, she had seemed a little too hopeful that those rumors might hold a kernel of truth, and Clark had made an effort to give her some extra distance.
Immediately Amanda began quizzing Lois about how she knew Clark and how long they had been friends, but Lois didn’t seem to mind. It was just more of the same for her, and she seemed to be tolerating the magnifying glass of Smallville’s local gossip machine quite nicely.
He tried to tune out their conversation and focus on his own, but gradually he could sense Lois stiffening.
“I could just go on and on,” he heard Amanda say cheerfully. “He’s such a sweetheart. This other time, Clark and I were at dinner-”
Whatever else Amanda was saying was drowned out by the sound of Lois’ racing heart. He was just about to turn around and break into the conversation and check on her, when he felt her hand on his thigh.
His own heart started to race, and he turned to her immediately, tucking her hair behind her ear and leaning in to whisper to her. “Come dance with me?”
She nodded, but her smile didn’t reach her eyes. He stood and held out a hand to her, and she took it immediately, rising to stand next to him.
“Excuse us,” he said to the group at large. “I was promised a dance to this song. It’s one of my favorites.”
He slid his hand onto the small of her back and guided her away from the group before anyone had a chance to comment. A slow song was playing, thankfully, and he led her out onto the floor and opened his arms to her. She was stiff and awkward in his arms, and his brow furrowed as he tried to figure out what was wrong.
“I didn’t know you liked this song,” she said quietly.
He looked at her for a minute, confused, and then laughed. “Lois, I don’t even know what song this is. I just wanted to dance with you.”
She smiled, more genuinely this time, but he could still feel the tension radiating from her body.
“You sure you didn’t want to dance with Amanda?” Her tone was joking, but suddenly he understood.
“I didn’t ask Amanda. I asked you,” he pointed out, tightening his grip on her waist.
“Seems like you two do a lot of things together,” she said with a shrug.
“You’re jealous,” he said, laughing at the absurdity of it. He could not believe this woman he so clearly adored, who he had pursued despite feeling utterly hopeless that she could ever be interested in him, could be jealous of his affection.
She jerked back, her face a mask of amused condescension. “You’d like that wouldn’t you? Me, home alone, in a shlumpy bathrobe, crying in a tub of Rocky Road? In your dreams, Kent.”
He laughed harder, and she glared at him.
“No, honey. I would not like that,” he said once he stopped laughing, lifting a hand from her waist to cup her cheek. “I don’t want you to be jealous. Or sad. Or angry at me. I want you to know that you have nothing to be jealous about. I don’t want to dance with Amanda. Or anyone else. I only want to dance with you.”
She hesitated and then the annoyance slid from her face, and she smiled at him tentatively. “I’m sorry,” she said, rolling her eyes.
“It’s okay,” he said, moving his hand back to her waist and tugging her close. She melted into him this time, and he sighed happily at the way she felt so right in his arms. She was having the same unsettled feeling about their relationship that he was, he realized. Those undefined, undiscussed boundaries were quietly eating at both of them. He resolved to talk to her about it before she left, but not here, not now.
For now, he focused on dancing with her, enjoying the feel of her in his arms. She nestled her head against his neck, and sighed, her breath tickling his neck and sending a shiver through him. He stroked her back, thinking suddenly that by this time tomorrow she would be landing in Metropolis.
The song ended and a faster song began. She pulled out of his arms with a sweet smile, and he looked around, realizing that they had been joined on the dance floor by Pete and Lana as well as Charlie and Jenny.
“We can go sit back down,” he said as the crowd on the dance floor began to arrange themselves into lines.
“No way,” she said. “I want to dance.”
“Lois, this isn’t… you know this is a line dance, right? There’s a specific set of dance moves?”
“I’m not an idiot, Clark,” she said, eliciting a laugh from Lana. “I can do this.”
To his utter shock, she could. She fell right in with the group, sliding and scooting and turning in time.
“You can really do this,” he said with a laugh.
“Last year I had a friend convince me it was a great way to meet guys.”
“Was it?” Jenny asked, craning her neck to hear Lois’ response over the music.
“Depends on how you define guys,” Lois replied skeptically, then turned her gaze on Clark and gave him a suggestive grin that clearly indicated he had no competition.
Clark threw back his head and laughed, eager for the next slow song so he could show her some moves of his own.
