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Joined: Jul 2005
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Hack from Nowheresville
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OP
Hack from Nowheresville
Joined: Jul 2005
Posts: 247 |
Oh wow. Yet another excellent installment. I loved seeing Lois bond with the fat black cat. I especially liked the monologue while she was feeding her. I also enjoyed hearing about Clark's childhood from Jonathan. And of course, such humorous, completely Lois Lane thoughts like these: It was pretty darn thoughtless of the Kents, actually, not to leave a more conveniently-sized ladder in a place where it would be available to nosy guests. It would have been considerate of Clark to leave behind a journal in which he’d poured out his pubescent angst, always make me smile, because I find them so endearing. But then you bring us to the end with: “And I’m not saying anything else. Because I’m not ready to say anything, and I don’t think you’re ready to hear the thing that I’m not saying, and if I did say it, which I positively am not going to do, I’d probably mess it up, because let’s face it, we haven’t exactly been communicating all that well lately, and I’ve already told you I’m confused…and…and… and She felt as though she were perched at the top of a cliff, feeling the edge with her toes, her head swimming with vertigo as she contemplated a thrilling, terrifying leap. “Clark?” she whispered.
“Yeah?” His voice was husky, and she knew that he’d felt something, too.
“That thing that I’m not saying…I think I might be ready to say it soon.”
He took a shuddering breath and pulled her close. “If I were you, Lois…”
“Yeah?”
“If I were you, I’d wait,” he said softly. “I don’t think I’m quite ready to believe it yet.”
And she deserved that, she knew, but it didn’t keep it from hurting worse than anything he’d ever said to her.
“Do you think you ever will be?” she asked, drawing back to look into his eyes once again.
“I want to. God help me…but I want to.” And ohhhh. Painful and beautiful and real. I just absolutely love this story. You're doing such a wonderful job of weaving this tale, Caroline. Thank you.
Chris
"Superman is a guy who's seen wonders we'll never see and Lois is to him, one of those wonders."
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Joined: Oct 2003
Posts: 1,363
Top Banana
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Top Banana
Joined: Oct 2003
Posts: 1,363 |
Oh, Caroline...another wonderful segment to a wonderful story. I love how Clark made the sneak attack on Lois and caught her red handed. Though he felt slightly invaded, I think he secretly liked sharing that part of himself with her. After all, he hadn't until that time been able to share this with anyone else except his parents. This story is so emotional. Lois loves him so much that it hurts. And Clark loves her so much, but I understand him being guarded.  Oh so many great points...just fabulous! 
I'm a firm believer in the fact that God doesn't put any more on us than we can bear. He does however make us come to Jesus every so often.
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Joined: Nov 2004
Posts: 794
Features Writer
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Features Writer
Joined: Nov 2004
Posts: 794 |
more plz i love this story more and more each day  i feel them getting closer and closer each time i read it 
I will and always be a big fan of Lois and Clark forever and forever.
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Joined: Jun 2003
Posts: 1,763
Merriwether
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Merriwether
Joined: Jun 2003
Posts: 1,763 |
I have been throughly enjoying this. I love the walking on egg shells type of atmosphere. It is very interesting to work through it.
I love the whole cat thing!!!
I will follow this one to the end.
I've converted to lurk-ism... hopefully only temporary.
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Joined: Apr 2004
Posts: 271
Hack from Nowheresville
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Hack from Nowheresville
Joined: Apr 2004
Posts: 271 |
I immensely enjoyed reading this post!!! Wonderful banter between Jonathan and Lois. Even with the pregnant cat, too!  I just hope that Clark and Lois overcome the invisible obstacle in their relationship soon. Can't wait for the next part!!!!!! 
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Posts: 4,058
Pulitzer
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Pulitzer
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 4,058 |
Wow, I loved this bit on many different levels. Each character, including the cat, had a special way of entering your heart. Great job! Laura
Clark: “If we can be born in an instant, and die in an instant, why can’t we fall in love in an instant?”
Caroline's "Stardust"
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Joined: Aug 2005
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Nobel Peace Prize Winner
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Nobel Peace Prize Winner
Joined: Aug 2005
Posts: 5,797 |
Awesome as usual, Caroline. Got to quote some favorite parts of mine: "You poor thing," Lois said softly. The cat's ears twitched at the sound, but she didn't stop eating. "We have a lot in common, you know. He brought me from an alley in Metropolis, too. Guess this is his solution to everything - find a city girl in trouble and take her to Kansas." Previously, you have compared Martha and Lois in a most delightful way, stating that neither of these two women was perpared to admit how like the other one she was. That's just totally adorable, and it tells us something extremely important about why Clark fell so hard for Lois: it was because ultimately, she reminded him of his Mom. Which, of course, really tells you something about what sort of woman Martha is. Here, Lois is insightful enough to compare herself with the unfriendly cat, and again it is absolutely adorable. And seeing that the cat is like herself, she decides to apply the same strategy on the cat that Clark has used on her: give it time, try to win its trust, break down its resistance slowly. It's totally adorable. I love the fact that you credit CC Aiken's wonderful "Something the Cat Dragged In" for inspiring you to bring the cat into your own story. I can see more interesting similarities between your story and CC's. In CC's story, Lois breaks into Clark's apartment to learn more about the connection about Clark and Superman, and she learns rather more than she had bargained for. Clark, however, all dressed up in his Superman suit, is kind, long-suffering and amused with her, not vexed or distrustful. But in your story too, Clark is ultimately warmly disposed towards Lois because of her forced entry into his private space. Because somehow he understands, even if he doesn't yet dare to believe, that the reason why she broke into his treehouse to learn more about him is because she loves him. Well, it's time for my second absolutely favorite quote: Since Jonathan had told her the history of the treehouse, she'd come to think of it as a cocoon of sorts in which an amazing metamorphosis had taken place. She knew the idea was completely fanciful, but she had a mental image of a scrawny boy going in - scared, frustrated, and confused - and, several years later, a young superhero emerging. This is amazingly wonderful. Somehow I will always associate Clark with a glorious butterfly after this - he had to withdraw from the world, spin a chrysalis around himself, until he could finally emerge from his cocoon as a magnificent, graceful, colourful being of the air. Wow, Caroline. I just keep waiting for the rest of your story. Ann
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Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 3,147 Likes: 3
Pulitzer
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Pulitzer
Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 3,147 Likes: 3 |
May I echo the previous posters? Thank you for this insightful story. The A-plot (Get Luthor!) seems to have faded into the background, but it's okay because the image of both Clark and Lois slowly groping around trying to touch each other gently and intimately but instead jabbing each other in painful and emotionally crippling places is compelling.
I understand how Clark has been deeply, profoundly hurt, and he's (pardon the reference) having kittens trying to resolve these feelings. Lois, of course, is trying to blend Clark with Superman in her mind (the scene in the treehouse tells us that she's not finished with that process yet), and she's also trying to blend her feelings for the two men into one (a process which is still a work in progress). Their hearts are still raw and bleeding, and both are afraid that they won't ever get to the finish line.
Clark's reaction to Lois telling him that she's investigating him tells us that while he obviously still loves her, he's not sure he trusts her. And lack of trust is one of the most corrosive things you can apply to a relationship. If she can't assure him that she's worthy of his trust, this relationship won't survive.
But I have faith that you'll put your toys back in place, even if they have a bit more wear on them. And their relationship will be stronger for the testing they're going through. I'm eagerly looking for the next chapter, and the one after that, and the one after that...
Life isn't a support system for writing. It's the other way around.
- Stephen King, from On Writing
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Joined: Aug 2005
Posts: 738
Columnist
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Columnist
Joined: Aug 2005
Posts: 738 |
Great part. I loved it that both didn't say it out loud but both knew what the other wanted to say. Oh I can't wait to see if they find a way to trust each other. I liked the way the cat played its part and how Jonathan helped Lois understand.
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Pulitzer
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Pulitzer
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 3,846 |
Hi, Great part. She have a point. :rolleyes: But the "investigation you", that a big oops! More ASAP, please. MAF
Maria D. Ferdez.
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Don't like Luthor, unfinished, untitled and crossover story, and people that promises and don't deliver. I'm getting choosy with age.
MAF
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Hack from Nowheresville
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Hack from Nowheresville
Joined: Apr 2006
Posts: 289 |
Awwwww! This is terrific! I too loved the Lois and the cat scene. And the conversation between Jonathan and Lois. And then you had me  at this: As she glanced over her shoulder and slipped into the barn, she had the grace to feel a little guilty about her behavior as a houseguest. That morning, she’d been pilfering tuna from the pantry, and now the afternoon found her creeping into Jonathan’s storeroom to steal a ladder. However, the only one she could find was about a mile long and made of sturdy wood – no lightweight aluminum for Jonathan Kent, apparently. She thought of how far she had to drag it and growled in frustration, no longer troubling herself with guilt. It was pretty darn thoughtless of the Kents, actually, not to leave a more conveniently-sized ladder in a place where it would be available to nosy guests. A thorough inspection didn’t reveal any such thing, though, and she was too impatient to spend time looking in the other buildings. She took a deep breath and lugged the ladder out of the cool barn and into the sunshine. The muscles in her arms were twitching before she’d made it as far as the farmhouse, and she vowed that she was buying Jonathan a smaller ladder for Christmas. Delightful! You have got to love this Lois. Yes, she is noisy, and driven, and on a mission but how can anyone not admire her? I am glad the confrontation between Clark and her turned very quickly into something so much more! I was definitely at the thought of Lois and Martha uniting in order to protect and help Clark. And the way she reassured him that he really does belong, was so , cute and funny. I am glad they are both almost ready to admit their feelings for each other. Yes, it would be too soon right now but soon... Looking forward to more, Natascha (who thinks that Clark never stood a chance)
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Joined: Aug 2003
Posts: 3,109 Likes: 41
Boards Chief Administrator Pulitzer
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Boards Chief Administrator Pulitzer
Joined: Aug 2003
Posts: 3,109 Likes: 41 |
Well, Caroline... I'm sitting here trying not to cry, though I'm not sure why I'm fighting it. Beautiful. Perfect. Brilliant. Perfect..I'm having trouble coming up with the words to tell you what I think of this story. Though I honestly love every bit of this, I managed to pick out a few lines: “For the most part, tennis is a sport where you succeed or fail as an individual. Football is a team sport, and that makes all the difference to Clark.” I love this. “Maybe he doesn’t mind getting noticed for his writing because it’s something he can do without his superpowers,” Lois suggested. “It’s something he’s had to work hard at, just like any other writer.”
Jonathan nodded. “I think you’ve probably got the right idea. That, and the kind of writing you kids do is the kind that makes a difference in the world, which is important to Clark whether he’s wearing a cape or not. The bigger the paper, the bigger the difference.” I really, really love this. “You poor thing,” Lois said softly. The cat’s ears twitched at the sound, but she didn’t stop eating. “We have a lot in common, you know. He brought me from an alley in Metropolis, too. Guess this is his solution to everything – find a city girl in trouble and take her to Kansas. Awwwww! Based on what Jonathan had told her, young Clark hadn’t retreated to this fortress because he craved solitude but because he’d thought he didn’t belong anywhere else. And even though he no longer hid himself away in the top of a tree, she suspected that some of that doubt remained. AWWWWW! The muscles in her arms were twitching before she’d made it as far as the farmhouse, and she vowed that she was buying Jonathan a smaller ladder for Christmas. ROTFL She jabbed a finger right in the middle of his “S” and he bobbed backwards a little in midair. LOL! I love this little detail! She felt as though she were perched at the top of a cliff, feeling the edge with her toes, her head swimming with vertigo as she contemplated a thrilling, terrifying leap. “Clark?” she whispered.
“Yeah?” His voice was husky, and she knew that he’d felt something, too.
“That thing that I’m not saying…I think I might be ready to say it soon.”
He took a shuddering breath and pulled her close. “If I were you, Lois…”
“Yeah?”
“If I were you, I’d wait,” he said softly. “I don’t think I’m quite ready to believe it yet.” I can't even begin to tell you... I really, really loved the ENTIRE treehouse conversation. Seriously every word. Though, really, it didn't even feel like I was reading it; I was watching it unfold and feeling the emotions. This last part really got to me, though. It's what made me cry, and I'm sorry that I can't explain much more than that. Maybe it's its beauty? Truth? The raw emotions? It's something, that's for sure. Sara 
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Pulitzer
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Pulitzer
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 3,627 |
Oh, I think Chris said it best: painful and beautiful. JD 
"Meg...who let you back in the house?" -Family Guy
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Posts: 2,571
Pulitzer
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Pulitzer
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 2,571 |
Ooo, part 10 is up! It's just that the TOC hadn't been updated yet! Yay! lol, I love the explanation about the Cat, and you did a great job with Lois's convo with Jonathan in general. I've been wondering how he'd come out. We haven't really seen much of him before this. Can't say I'm at all disappointed. Wow, Jonathan's take on team sports... Remember I was talking about your original and beautiful twists? That's definitely one of them. "You know, I don’t mean to have a near-death experience every other day!" lol! Oh, and I like the running gag with alleys, too. "She had no idea why, but she kind of liked the thoroughly unlikable cat." Kindred spirit, eh Lois? (Eep! Don't tell her I said so!) Then Lois carefully not saying those particular words, but babbling right around them... That's just great! "Who wants to live someplace where you’d have to go a bazillion miles through space for decent Chinese takeout?” LOL! New favorite line!! Oh, and the cat is from CC's story? Wow, cool! But... aww. I'm done. Where's part 11?? Paul
When in doubt, think about penguins. It probably won't help, but at least it'll be fun.
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Posts: 299
Hack from Nowheresville
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Hack from Nowheresville
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 299 |
What can I more? I love the kitten, the discussion between Lois and Jonathan (good that he was once given a chance to talk about Clark) and the tree scene.
This is simply a great story.
Gabriele
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