Hi Corrina!
“Yes, it was great,” Lois replied, careful to pat down any stray tendrils of enthusiasm.
Yes, always make sure the campfire is out, or you might get a raging inferno.
“If the editor was someone else, someone more aligned with Clark’s values, do you think he would consider it?” Lois asked, keeping her tone casual.
And Clark could even commute!
Lois heard the tinge of anxiety in Martha’s voice. “But you don’t think my help will be enough to get all the hay in?”
“No. But he’ll get in what he can.”
Did he regret the time lost yesterday, finishing early to prepare for their date?
Had he thought about their date?
Did he consider it a date?
How did he feel about her kissing him?
Cooties!
“I… Do you mind if I stay here with Lois?” Lana asked.
Oh boy
“Can you watch the cookies please?”
“Ah… yes,” Lois said. “How will I know when to take them out?”
Lana’s there. And now I wonder if Martha signaled Lana to make an excuse, so the cookies are watched.
“They’ll be just starting to brown.”
/Shows Lois lump of coal/ *this* is too much browning.
Lois figured that if Lana could ask direct questions, so could she. “Do you want to marry Clark?”
also
Lana twitched a little in surprise. Then she smiled softly. “That is the impossible question.”
. If he really wanted to marry me, if he thought that was best, I would marry him.”
Oooookay? So…Lois is free to … mix and mingle with Clark?
. “I was so excited when I heard he took you out last night. I have been terrified he would come and propose to me.”
“I can’t stay here. Not for much longer. I have… a job, a life. I have to get back.”
And it’s not like Clark is a piece of seashell she can pocket and take with her.
“You don’t love Clark?” Lana asked, looking disappointed.
“I… well… I hardly know him.”
That wasn’t the question.
“I don’t want to interfere,” Lana said. “But can’t you see he’s a great guy? He’s perfect. And gorgeous. And his body…” She giggled. “Have you ever seen him with his shirt off?”
Aaah, she doesn’t love him in the Lois way, but in the Cat way.
“Have you ever seen him with his shirt off?”
“Ah… no.”
“Pity,” she said. “He’s spectacular.”
“I would be so grateful,” Lana said. Suddenly, she jumped up. “The cookies! We almost forgot them!”
There’s still time. The local fire brigade has not yet been notified by the neighbors. Also, what did you expect, with Lois in the kitchen!
And why was it so hard to think about leaving?
I’m still waiting for Lois to milk Bessie so I can use this fic in the December scavenger hunt.
That their worlds were too far apart for anything to be possible between them.
Yes, but once she knows, she can spend her days getting into trouble and her nights getting rescued by a commuting Clark.
“Clark!” she said, standing up. “Did something go wrong? I was expecting you an hour ago.”
“Nothing went wrong,” he said. “I just decided to bale a bit more.”
You do not leave a lone Lois waiting. Bad(TM) things happen.
Also, he was considering whether to bail some more.
“Drive slowly between the rows. I will throw the bales onto the tray and the trailer. Sometimes I’ll need to get aboard to stack them.”
It is important she focuses on the trail and not the robot’s physique.
“I’ll throw them up into the loft.”
“What can I do?”
Stare in wonder. Don’t tell the other farmers.
“I don’t need to rest. How heavy are the bales?”
“Forty-five to fifty pounds.”
Oh, that’s not too heavy. Somehow I thought of the 3m diameter, 1m thick cylindrical shaped type common over here.
He wasn’t convinced. “Lois, I can’t stand the thought of you doing anything too hard for you.”
It’s a bale of hay. She’s used to three times that weight hanging off her fingers while she waits for Henderson to show up and pull her back onto the roof.
Lois put her hand on his arm. “Can I help if I promise to stop the moment it gets too heavy?”
Trick question!
“OK,” Lois said, not sure if she would obey.
Otherwise, the twine will tear your hands to shreds.”
“Why aren’t you wearing gloves?”
“Because I do this a lot.”
Hmm…
Lois watched him, remembering what Lana had said about seeing him without a shirt. She could easily imagine the effect this hard physical labour would have had on his physique.
actually, It’s from relaxing in the sun. Also, this is the main reason why Clark had stopped hiring women as farm hands. They always got distracted while he was baling hay and then accidents happened.
By the third load, Lois was tiring, but Clark hadn’t noticeably slowed. He seemed to be working faster to decrease the number of bales she hauled.
As they drove into the barn with the fourth load, Clark said, “Would you go and get us some lemonade please?”
He’s not going to finish this on his own and play all innocent, is he?
Lois agreed, trying not to show she was a little relieved. When she got back to the barn with their drinks and more of Martha’s cookies, Clark was coming down the ladder and the truck was empty.
“Wow, you were quick!” Lois exclaimed. “Aren’t you getting tired?”
He took the glass of lemonade. “Thanks,” he said. “I’ll drive back to the next field. You stay here and rest.”
Doesn’t want to lie, does he?
“I’m driving,” she said firmly. “Finish your lemonade, and let’s get this hay into the barn.”
“Lois…”
“How did you get it unloaded so fast?”
Aaand we go driving!
“Yes. But it’s too dark to see you. I’m worried it’s too dangerous for you to be near a moving truck in the dark. What if you get caught between the truck and the trailer?”
Then he’ll have to fix the twisted axle.
She also experienced a kind of elation she’d only previously felt after nailing a big story.
Awwww
Who would have thought that chasing down a story and storing away hay would produce similar feelings?
Same mystery to uncover.
Five minutes later, she stepped under the hot stream and figured she had probably never felt anything quite so wonderful.
So , about that bit of nookie the author never promised or implied…?
Michael
).
But I can just imagine the absolute FIT she'd end up throwing if Lana was interested in chasing Clark, lol.
Love every part of this! SO fun the way you apply their character traits to this totally different scenario that we see them at the Planet in the series.