Counting the costs indeed!
I don't think I have ever felt so sympathetic, just so sad, for Clark as in this moment. He has saved Lois and she will be okay. But now he's facing the terrifying reality that Lois knows he isn't '
normal'. And maybe others will figure it out too. Just when he could almost grasp the future he had longed for, he's afraid he could lose everything and more.
His hand slipped from hers, and she watched as Clark took a step back, his eyes like a hunted animal.
Oh, that line says it all! I hope he doesn't resort to his default defense mechanism and RUN AWAY! Because Lois may be confused about what has happened. Who wouldn't be? But this near death experience made her acknowledge what she wants her future to look like more than anything else; and that future includes Clark Kent.
They definitely have a lot to talk about! Please give Clark a few more minutes of courage; enough to stick around.
P.S. Annie & Kathy, you did a great job of helping this reader clearly understand the risks that Clark took to save Lois. He is so close to potentially losing everything, including that idyllic life in Smallville. That's real courage! I can't help but think of the alt Clark in the series and how he lost so much when his identity was revealed.