Continued from:
-
A ring of truth (1/?) -
A ring of truth (2/?) -
A ring of truth (3/?) -
A ring of truth (3½ /?) ~.~.~.~.~
I'm sorry it took me such a long time to finish this. I had a really hard time with a couple of the scenes... I've never written romantic stuff in my life, so it felt somewhat strange and awkward and it just took me forever to get the words onto the screen.
I hope I didn't make too much of a mess with it!
If I'm lucky I'll get at least one "awwww" about a certain line; and if that happens, then I'll be doing the happy dance for quite some time.
~.~.~.~.~
From the previous parts:
Somewhere between the time she admitted she probably had feelings for her partner and her last check of the clock, Lois had decided that she wasn't going to let the chance of... something... slip by her that evening. She was done with missed opportunities. If there was even an inkling of a possibility, she would explore it. Slowly, yes, but surely. This time, Lois vowed, she would stop and check the water level before jumping in the pool.... It wasn't a relationship yet, anyway, was it? It was just dinner for now. She could worry about things later on, *if* there was a 'later on' to have to worry about. ...
He prayed that the world would be able to manage without Superman tonight. Lois had already started to notice his habit of disappearing without a word at the worst possible moment. He didn't think he'd be able to find a possible reason of abandoning her right in the middle of dinner if he'd heard a cry for help. How would he be able to explain that he absolutely *had* to leave? It was likely she'd never want to speak to him, ever again. For just this once, it would be really nice if Superman didn't get in the way of Clark's life. Just this once - if wishes were horses.... ...
"Well..." Clark took a step towards Lois and looked her straight in the eyes. "Would you... like it to be? An actual real date, I mean."
Lois looked at her feet. She was blushing madly, now. She looked up again after a moment and took his left hand in her right. She swallowed and said, "Yes, Clark, I'd like that... very much."
He slowly brought her hand to his lips and placed a soft kiss on her fingers. "So would I," he said. ~.~.~.~.~
Part 4:When the hostess down at the restaurant had realized that Clark was calling from the Honeymoon Suite, she'd reserved a nice little table for the couple, just out of the way enough that they would be able to enjoy a quiet dinner together. Newlyweds would definitely appreciate the privacy, she knew.
However, she got a strange impression that there was trouble in paradise when they arrived downstairs. Upon greeting them as "Mr. and Mrs. Kent" the woman had seen obvious signs of discomfort in Lois: her eyes had grown wide and she'd started to shake her head, then had stopped, blushed and mumbled some sort of apology. Definitely something odd going on, the hostess thought. She then happened to notice that neither of them was wearing a wedding band. She wondered if perhaps they weren't even married at all.
"He looks too nice for her anyway," the woman thought as she grabbed a couple of menus and hastily directed them to their table.
"I'm sorry," Lois told Clark once they were alone. "It didn't occur to me that she'd think... you know...?"
"Huh.. yeah, it didn't occur to me either," he confessed. "You seemed about ready to give her a piece of your mind, I'm surprised you didn't. Or are we still pretending to be..."
"Oh, no, please!" Lois cut him off, waving her hand. "Besides, I've done enough pretending to be someone I'm not. I'd like to be just me tonight, not the award winning investigative reporter or the bold career woman, just Lois."
"I see... but I should tell you, I happen to like the award winning reporter," Clark told her with a warm smile.
Lois blushed slightly. He liked her? Well, of course he did, she knew that! But the way he said it... it sounded as though he meant he liked her because of her faults and mood swings and crazy tangents, not in spite of them. For a second she thought she had probably misunderstood... and then she looked at the man sitting across from her and from the look in his eyes, she knew he'd meant exactly what she'd understood.
"I'm kind of fond of her myself," she admitted. "We're basically the same, except for a few things we don't see eye to eye about. And of course *she* has a tendency to fly off the handle over nothing. They don't call her Mad Dog for no reason!"
"Oh! You meant *her*?" Clark said with a teasing grin. "Yeah, they warned me to stay out of her way when I started working at the Planet. You think I should worry that she might find out that you and I...? Because, I hear she has a pretty mean left hook!"
"I don't think you have anything to worry about," Lois told him, laughing heartily. "She's off taking some R and R for a while. Besides, I don't think you're really her type of guy."
"Oh no? Shame!" he said, pretending to be saddened by the revelation. "What about 'just Lois', though, what's her type of guy?"
The words came out of Clark's mouth before he realized what he was saying. What a stupid question to ask, he thought. Things had been going so well up to now! He pretty much knew what the answer to that question would be... Superman. Superman was Lois' type of guy. And even though he, Clark Kent, was in fact Superman, he also wasn't. Not really. It was really just an act, but Clark Kent obviously lacked the hero's extraordinary confidence and strength of character. The sad thing was that it was a big part of the reason why Lois was so enthralled by his heroic alter ego and tended to ignore his more subdued reporter persona.
"Well, my sources tell me she has a thing for this one guy... He's, huh... let's see... caring and intelligent, strong but gentle. They say he's got the world's most charming smile. And I guess he likes having his name show up on the front page of the Daily Planet, 'cause he manages to get it there quite often...."
<See, I *knew* she was going to say Superman! I couldn't just shut up, could I? No! Had to force him into the conversation. I swear, sometimes I wonder why I created him... he's doing a great job of ruining what little life I have!>
"What?" Lois asked, noticing his far away expression.
"It's nothing," he lied.
"No... seriously, what?"
"Oh... it's just... ah... well, you know, it's kind of hard for the rest of us to compete with a superhero," Clark told her, reluctantly.
"Who? Superman?" she asked, confused.
What did Superman have to do with this, she wondered.
And then it dawned on her that her description could easily apply to either one of them. Lois berated herself for sticking her foot in her mouth so spectacularly. Here she'd been trying to say something nice about Clark and she'd ended up hurting his feelings instead!
"No, no... Oh, Clark, I'm so sorry!" she said, regretfully, "I... ah... I'm really making a mess of things, aren't I? I didn't think it would come out that way... I wasn't talking about Superman. I... I hadn't even realized it sounded like that at all. I meant you, Clark. I meant you all along."
"Me?" Clark's eyes grew wider.
She meant him? Him, the farmboy from Smallville - not him, the godlike hero in blue tights? He thought about it for a second, but Clark couldn't figure out when or how he'd become Lois' type. Maybe he was dreaming... Clark Kent had won the battle over Superman? Seriously?
"Yes, yes, of course I meant you. Is that so unbelievable?" she asked, frowning.
"Huh... well, I guess I forgot we weren't talking about the investigative reporter. I must say I'm really starting to like 'just Lois'," he answered with a smile that melted her heart. "So, what else can you tell me about her?"
Lois smiled back at him with a great deal of relief. She hadn't spoiled everything, after all. Thank God! If she could just get through this evening and not scare him away, Lois thought, then maybe... maybe there would be a 'later on' for them.
~.~.~.~.~
Sometime during dinner, a large group of people who were seated not very far away had started making an awful lot of noise. They'd been drinking and having a good time, telling jokes and laughing very loudly. Clearly they were in the mood for partying and weren't being very respectful of the restaurant's other patrons.
Clark had noticed Lois looking over to them a few times with a frustrated expression, but she'd said nothing. He guessed she was desperately trying not to let 'Mad Dog' out, but by the time they were getting ready for dessert, he knew she wasn't going to be able to keep it up much longer. So he suggested perhaps they could have dessert up in the suite instead.
Lois smiled shyly. If she agreed, she thought, that would mean they'd be up there alone again... and without the excuse of having to spy on anyone. It would get awkward and she'd likely stick her foot in her mouth again, she just knew it. But then... she'd been looking forward to dessert - they made the most amazing chocolate cakes and it would be such a shame to miss out on that!
Seeing that Lois was hesitant to agree, Clark told her it was fine either way, whatever she'd rather do was OK with him. "But I can see you're getting a little annoyed with them," he added, tilting his head in the direction of the group, "besides, we're going to have to go back up at some point... your coat is still up there, remember?"
"Well, OK, then. But only if you're not planning on another round of Trivial Pursuit along with dessert," she told him with a semi-serious expression.
"Oh, so I guess 'just Lois' also likes to win all the time?" he teased.
"You better believe it!" she said with a nod.
"OK, OK...." he said with a lopsided smile, "You win."
Lois giggled while she looked through the dessert menu.
She picked something that looked especially chocolaty and then asked if they could have that brought up to the Honeymoon Suite, with some coffee. The waiter promised them it would be there shortly.
~.~.~.~.~
As they left the restaurant, Lois took Clark's arm. He felt a pleasant tingling sensation emanating from where her hand laid on his arm. He smiled. Upon realizing that the world had managed to keep on going without Superman so far tonight, he smiled even more.
A few minutes later, they were getting off the elevator. Making their way back to the suite, they noticed a maid's cart in the corridor. Just then, a maid came out of the room next to which the cart had been left. It was the same woman who had barged in the suite a few days ago, causing Clark to throw Lois onto the bed and kiss her.
Lois turned to Clark and whispered, "Remind me to send her flowers, will you?"
"Flowers? Why?" he asked, curious.
"Oh, for not bothering to knock before she enters a room," Lois added, winking at him.
"Ah! Gotcha!" He chuckled.
She gave his arm a squeeze. For a second, he thought he might not be able to keep his feet firmly on the ground.
~.~.~.~.~
The chocolate dessert made it to the suite just minutes after them. Lois looked at it with an air of pure delight.
She grabbed the plate, a couple of forks and napkins and set them on the coffee table.
They sat on the couch and smiled at each other. Clark, happy to have Lois next to him and Lois, happy to have both Clark *and* chocolate close by.
"It looks positively scrumptious!" she told him.
"Here," Clark said, taking a morsel from it with his fork and raising it to Lois' mouth. "you're the chocolate fanatic, you should get the first bite."
She closed her mouth over the piece of cake and slid it off the fork suggestively. "Oh, wow!" she said after a moment, "Clark, this cake is heavenly! Here, try," she added, feeding him a bite.
"Easily the best piece of cake I've ever had," he told her, with a contented air that really had a lot more to do with the company and the hand holding the fork than the actual cake itself.
~.~.~.~.~
When the cake was all gone and she noticed there wasn't a single drop of coffee left either, Lois knew that was her cue to head on back home.
"It's getting late," she told Clark, "I should really go." She got up and picked up her coat, then walked towards the door.
"I'd... walk you home, if... you know... it wasn't halfway across town," he said apologetically. "I'm sorry... I can see you down to the lobby, though..." He walked over to the door himself.
Lois took a step towards him. "I'm fine," she said, "I can find the way down there myself. I'm a big girl." She smiled and took one last step, bringing her within inches of him. She looked into his eyes, expectantly.
Clark smiled for second, but his smile faded slowly as the moment became more intense. Her expression, her eyes, they seemed to be pleading with him, begging for a kiss. He surrendered to her silent request and lowering his head, he brought his lips to hers, kissing her softly. She responded to his kiss, gently at first, then more passionately and for a few minutes' time, all conscious thought escaped him.
Before Clark even realized what was happening, Lois had ended the kiss, murmured an apology, thanked him for the evening and escaped the room at maximum velocity. He was left rooted in place, completely clueless, wondering if he should chase after her or not. He decided it probably wasn't a good idea to go running after her. If she was mad it would probably anger her even further. And if she wasn't, well... no, she had to be, he thought, or she wouldn't have left like that!
He sat on the couch for a long while, trying to figure out what he could possibly have done that wasn't right. He couldn't find *anything* at all. He'd even been there with her the entire evening - no running off with a silly excuse. And he was quite certain that even though his mind had been in a very far away place as they kissed, he hadn't lost control of any of his powers and harmed her in any possible way. So why had she left like that? It made no sense!
He thought of calling her. After all, he could claim he just wanted to make sure she'd gotten there all right. Then he thought, maybe a short flight would help clear his head and while he was up there, he'd be able to see if the light was on at her apartment and if so, maybe he could stop and chat and...
...the phone rang.
He frowned. Who? It was late... he hoped this wouldn't have anything to do with work, because he was no more in the mood for chasing after sources than he was for chasing after criminals, tonight. He picked up.
"Hi... I just... I'm sorry I ran off," Lois said on the other end of the line.
"Lois?" he asked, his voice filled with sadness and confusion, "Did I... huh.. Did I do anything wrong? I thought you wanted... I mean... I'm sorry if I misread your expression."
"No...," she said in a little voice, "that's not it, I'm sorry I made you think that. I'm so bad at this. I didn't mean to hurt your feelings, I... I just... got scared. I know it's stupid, I'm sorry, I was just a little frightened, that's all."
"Of me? Why?" If anything, Clark was even more confused then he'd been just a few seconds ago.
"Of me," she corrected, "I was scared of me... I know this probably makes no sense, but see, I have this really nasty habit of jumping in the pool without checking the water level first and... well, I... I just don't want to rush into anything," she took a deep breath before continuing, "I would really like if this didn't turn into another 'federal disaster' on my list. Us, I mean. I'd really like there to be an 'us'. You know... unless you don't think... unless you don't want... I mean..."
"I'd very much like for there to be an 'us', Lois," he whispered.
For a few seconds, she said nothing. She couldn't wipe the smile off her face long enough to articulate words. He didn't say anything either, it was enough for him to hear the beating of her heart.
Finally, Lois managed to get her lips moving and thanked him for the evening again, then wished him goodnight and hung up.
As she got into bed and hugged her pillow close to her, Lois couldn't help but wish it was Clark she was hugging instead. She'd been so blind... he'd been there all along, right under her nose, smiling at her, teasing her and she had managed not to notice he was there at all.
She might never let 'Mad Dog' come back from where she'd sent her off. Life was a lot simpler and happier without that woman!
Happiness, she thought, was being with someone who would encourage and understand her; happiness was having someone to count on when she needed it the most, someone to comfort her and tell her everything would be ok; happiness was someone who cared for and her that she cared for in return; happiness was a warm, friendly smile. It even came mixed in with her coffee every morning...
Lois considered all these things, as sleep slowly overcame her. Her very last thought, she knew, had a definite ring of truth to it: happiness, for Lois Lane, looked a whole lot like Clark Kent.
~The End~~.~.~.~.~
Feedback thread I picked a few lines from a song to go with the story (I could have posted it with the first part if I'd decided that was what I wanted to use, at the time... hehe!) anyway, this is it:
If I gave you my hand would you take it
And make me the happiest man in the world
If I told you my heart couldn't beat one more minute without you, girl
Would you accompany me to the edge of the sea
Help me tie up the ends of a dream
I gotta know, would you go with me
"Would You Go With Me" by Josh Turner
