To recap:
The phone was ringing as she opened her door. Lois ran into the kitchen and picked up the receiver. "Hello?"
"Lois Lane?" It was a man's voice, low and deep.
"Yes?"
"I hear you're looking for me."
A stab of excitement shot through her. "Who is this?"
"I want you to give a message to your buddy, Superman, for me. You tell him to back off or next time I'll pick your brain instead."
"Excuse me?"
The line went dead. Lois looked at the phone, irritated that he had hung up so soon. She put the phone back in its cradle, wondering if he might call back. Then she caught sight of what was sitting on her kitchen counter.
A brain. Pale gray and whorled.
Lois froze, blinked a few times and then reached for the phone. She dialed with numb fingers and the room seemed to shift seismically as she waited for Clark to answer.
"Hello?"
"Brain," she managed to say before the room went dark around her.
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Part 8/20
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"Lois?" Clark heard the phone clatter onto a hard surface. Lois made a low moan but there weren't any other sounds. What had happened? Was Bad Brain there? Had she fainted? He hung up the phone and flew out the window as Superman.
When he got to her apartment she was lying on the floor as her phone intoned, "If you'd like to make a call, please hang up and try the number again… If you'd like to make a call…"
Clark hung the phone up, then paused as he noticed that there was a brain sitting on her counter. A card was propped up next to it with a drawing of a grotesque cartoon brain. It was signed "Bad Brain".
He knelt down next to her, touching her shoulder. "Lois? Can you hear me?"
"Clark?" Her eyelids fluttered open and she looked at him in confusion. "Oh, Superman. I'm sorry, I… I was talking to Clark and…" He helped her to sit up and she leaned heavily against him. He put his arms around her, letting his cheek rest against her forehead.
"Is there really a brain on my counter?" Her voice was muffled by his shoulder.
"Have you called the police?"
"Not yet, I called Clark… I have a brain on my counter. Did I tell you that already?"
"Yes, I saw it."
Lois knew she should probably tell him she was okay and stand up now, but this was nice. She had thought she'd never be this close to Superman again. He certainly didn't seem in any hurry to get away, unlike the last time she had seen him. She closed her eyes, tilting her head so that her cheek was touching his. His arms seemed to tighten, just a little, around her.
Don't say anything, she cautioned herself. Don't break the spell. He'll leave just as soon as he realizes you're enjoying this.
You can't do this, not as Superman, he chided himself. Clark pulled away and stood up slowly, taking Lois' hand and helping her over to one of her kitchen chairs.
"Are you okay now?" he asked, feeling awkward. Should he sit at the table with her? Leave now and come back as himself?
"Bad Brain wanted me to tell you to back off or it would be my brain next," Lois said quietly. She could feel the panic bubbling up inside of her. Why her? Why had Bad Brain singled her out?
A ripple of anger went through Clark. "Bad Brain was here with you?"
"No, he called me. It wasn't until after he hung up that I noticed the brain." Lois looked in the direction of her counter. "Do you think I should throw that plate away now? Or would it be okay if I just washed it in really, really hot water?"
"What did he say to you, exactly?"
"I think I'll just throw it away. I couldn't bear to spend the rest of my life wondering if the plate I'm eating off of is the one…" She looked down, feeling her throat close off as tears sprang to her eyes. He had been here, inside her apartment. He had gone through her cupboards, taken out one of her plates and left a grisly warning in her kitchen.
"Lois?" He knelt in front of her, fighting the urge to hold her again.
"He was here," she whispered. "He got into my apartment and he left that sitting on my counter. I just feel so… exposed. My door was locked. How did he get in here?"
"The window?" he suggested.
"I guess I shouldn't leave it open for you anymore, huh?"
"No." There were so many reasons for her to lock her windows he couldn't begin to list them all. Only a few of them involved Bad Brain. The rest were concerned with his newfound lack of control around her.
"Do you think he'll come back?" She trembled a little as she asked this and he felt a tic jump in his cheek. It wasn't very often that Lois would admit to being scared - and it never failed to affect him deeply. An urge to protect her welled up inside him and he took her hand in his, kissing the side of her thumb before he could think better of the gesture.
"I'll keep an eye on you, I promise. He won't hurt you." His eyes focused on her mouth as he spoke. Little prickles of excitement danced across his skin as he thought about kissing that mouth only a few hours ago.
Lois gave him a shaky smile, confused by his sudden tenderness. "Thank you," she whispered.
His other hand lifted to slip through her hair. Leave now, he warned himself. Leave!
"Lois," he whispered, lured closer to her lips.
"Yes?" Lois shivered at the thought that Superman looked like he was about to kiss her. No sooner had the thought formed than his mouth touched hers. Startled, she let out a gasp that parted her lips.
Clark kissed her deeply, his tongue sliding over hers to taste the inner recesses of her mouth. She let out a soft moan and he answered her with one of his own. Lois was confused. This felt so right. It felt so natural and familiar and… deceitful. What about Clark? Are you going to turn around and do the same things with Superman that you did with Clark? Why did it matter? They had an arrangement, and nowhere was it specified that they were exclusive.
She turned her head, "Wait," she whispered. "I…"
"I'm sorry," he whispered. Lois gave him a curious look, her head tilting.
"Do you know, you sounded just like Clark…" her words trailed away. Suddenly she didn't know what to say to him. Luckily, there was a knock on the door.
"Speak of the devil," Lois jumped up, confused even more by the fact that she was grateful for the reprieve. How was it a reprieve - this was Superman! "I bet that's Clark now." She went to the door, peering through the peephole and furrowing her brow in confusion as she opened the door.
"Inspector Henderson?"
"Hey, Lois. Some nut-job called dispatch and insisted that you had a key piece of evidence in the Gatenby murder."
Lois stepped back to pull the door wide open and gestured towards the brain on her counter. Henderson entered along with a couple of detectives. They all nodded at Superman as they walked over to look at the brain. "What time did you get home tonight?" Henderson asked Lois.
"About half an hour ago."
"And the brain was here? Have you touched anything?"
"It was here before me and I certainly didn't touch it. I didn't even realize it was here right away." She told him about the phone call and relayed what Bad Brain had said.
"Are you attached to this thing or would it be okay if we took it with us?"
"Take it, please. And just keep the plate. I don't want it back." She turned to look at Superman. He was already halfway to the door.
"It looks like you'll be safe now. Be careful, Lois." He gave her a tight smile and left. Lois went to sit on her couch, not wanting to watch them fussing over the brain. There was a knock on her open door and she turned to see Clark.
"Lois? What's going on? Are you all right?" he asked.
"I'm fine. Bad Brain left me a present, that's all." She waved for him to come over and he took a seat next to her.
"Do you want me to stay here tonight?"
Lois considered the question for a moment. "No, I'm fine. But, thanks for asking." She gave him a shy smile.
After everyone left she found she missed Clark. Why had she told him to leave? She could call him... No, it was too late at night now. Besides, what if Superman came back? He said he would keep an eye on her, didn't he? Why had Superman kissed her like that? There was nothing in his kiss tonight that had said "not ever".
What about Clark? What about what they were doing? She meant it when she had told him that sex had never been so sexy before. Had three years of abstinence just dimmed her memory? His worry that he had hurt her had been sweet, if misguided.
Besides, hadn't she said her farewells, as it were, to the idea of Superman as a boyfriend? Well, sorta. But that was before he showed up and kissed her again.
Lois punched her pillow, ostensibly to plump it, but mostly in aggravation. She was a slut. That's all there was to it. She was in love with one man and having the best sex of her life with another. Worse, the two men in question were friends and it was only a matter of time before someone slipped up and ruined everything.
Should she tell Superman? What would she tell him? Um, sorry, I can't be with you because I'm kind of having a thing with Clark and, well, I just don't want to give that up yet. Why couldn't she just tell Clark that the arrangement wasn't working for her? Then she could pursue Superman again.
Except the arrangement with Clark really was working for her. Rather too well, actually. And Superman, for all his good qualities, certainly seemed disinclined to make a commitment. His words were all "no" even if his actions were more positive. That was twice now that he had kissed her and then looked troubled about it afterwards.
Why was that?
Maybe he's afraid he'll hurt you, she thought. Not like Clark thought he hurt you, but like Bad Brain threatened to hurt you. Maybe Superman kept his distance because having a girlfriend could be hazardous to her health?
"Lois, I can't really date anyone. Surely you can understand that."
Superman had told her that when she asked him why he wouldn't go out with her. A curious kind of relief flooded through her. His actions almost made sense now. He wanted her, but he couldn't have her. And, unlike her, he couldn't make an arrangement with someone else to ease the tension.
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Clark reached out and tested the window. It was locked, just like he'd asked her. He had wanted to protest when she kicked him out tonight but he knew she needed some distance. He was tempted to knock on the window, he could hear her muttering and sighing, he knew she wasn't asleep yet.
If only he hadn't already complicated things far too much tonight. He had to start avoiding her as Superman again. Or he had to tell her. Clark grimaced at the thought. He went to the next window and tested that one, too. Also locked. He flew quickly past her window, checking the lock faster than she could see him. Then he paused, catching a glimpse of her through a break in the curtains.
"Good night, Lois," he whispered.
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Clark held up a folder as she was sitting down at her desk the next morning. "Henderson sent over the autopsy report on Dr. Gatenby. " He walked over to give her the folder as he spoke.
"Let me guess - his brain was missing." Lois took the report from him.
"Yep. Although he was dead before his brain was removed."
"What was the cause of death?"
"Cardiac failure." Suddenly Clark looked away. "Lois, can you handle this on your own for a little while? I have to run back to my place."
"Checking on Mrs. Dixon again?"
"Who?"
"Your diabetic neighbor?"
"Um, yeah. Be back soon."
Lois watched him go, toying briefly with the idea of following him to see where he was really going. She shook her head in resignation and went back to reading the autopsy report.
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Lois wasn't the only person in the newsroom watching Clark leave. Cat was watching, too. Or, more accurately, she was watching Joe, the new sports writer, watch Clark leave. When Joe's attention shifted to Lois, Cat smiled. This was just too good to pass up.
"Hey, Joe," she purred. "Who's your buddy?"
Joe winced. He hated that damn tagline and hated even more the upper management idiot who had insisted he use it. Even having a woman say the name in sultry tones didn't help. Still, this was a lucky break, if anyone would know the relationship status of his co-workers, it would have to be the gossip columnist.
"Hi, Cat. Tell me something, is there anything going on between Lois and Clark?"
"Lois and Clark?" Cat permitted herself a chuckle, Joe was going straight to the heart of the matter. You had to love a man who knew what he wanted. "I doubt it. She's never really liked him. He adores her, but she's always had a thing for blondes."
Joe unconsciously smoothed back his hair. "Really?"
"Mmm, yeah. Too bad for Clark. But good for you, huh?"
"What?"
"You. Don't you like her? I've seen you flirting with her before. And I've seen the way she looks at you when she thinks no one is watching."
"How does she look at me?"
"Very… tenderly."
"Really?"
"Really. One thing you should know about Lois. For her it's all about the thrill of the chase. She'll pretend she's not interested, but she really is."
"How do you know that's not what she's doing with Kent, then?"
"Oh, she's not doing anything with Kent. Go on, Joe, faint heart never won fair maiden, or whatever."
"Thanks, Cat."
"Happy to help."
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Lois was making notes to follow-up on about the autopsy when someone touched her elbow. She looked up, expecting Clark. She blinked in surprise when she saw it was Joe instead.
"Hi, Lois." He gave her the smile that had half the newsroom a-twitter.
"Hi." She returned his smile. "How are you?"
"Great, thanks for asking. Hey, uh, I have these tickets for a play on Saturday night… would you be interested in going?"
"Oh." Lois looked down at her keyboard, caught off-guard. If he had asked her a week ago, she would have said 'yes'. She glanced over at Clark's empty desk. "I, gosh, I really would love to, but I don't know whether I can. I mean, I'm on this story now and I just don't know if I'll be able to… I'd hate to say 'yes' and then have to back out."
Joe shrugged. "Hey, don't worry about it. I understand. Some other time, then?"
"Yes, some other time."
Lois looked at the papers in front of her without really seeing them. Why didn't she say 'yes'? Why did she kiss Superman back last night? How could something feel so wrong and so right at the same time? Why had she sent Clark home when the truth was she had wanted him to stay? Why was it so hard to admit she had wanted nothing more than to be held by him?
No. That was exactly why she had sent him home. She needed time to think. She needed to get out of this building, preferably before he came back. She scribbled a note for Clark and was setting it on his desk when he stepped out of the elevator. She watched him walk towards her, a little shiver working its way through her when his eyes met hers.
"How is Mrs. Dixon?" she asked when he was almost to his desk.
"Doing fine." Clark pushed his glasses up, hating the lie more than ever.
"Are you okay?" Lois peered at him in inquisitively.
"Yeah, sure." He looked at the note she had put on his desk. "STAR Labs? What were you going to do there?"
"See if the receptionist recognizes the picture from the bank as the Johnson who came to pick up the ESW research. He would have had to wait in the lobby, maybe she'll remember him."
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"Ohmigod! This guy? You think this guy is the one who killed Tony and Dr. G? I mean, yeah, I remember him. He had crazy eyes, you know? Really intense. He was just really intense. He sat here in the lobby for about twenty minutes and he gave me the creeps the entire time."
"Do you remember his name?" Lois asked.
"Oh," the receptionist closed her eyes and pressed her fingers against her forehead as she thought. "It was something common. Johnson or Jones or something like that." Her hand fluttered away from her face as though she were trying to snatch the name out of the air.
"What about a first name?" Lois pressed.
The receptionist opened her eyes and shook her head. "Sorry, no." She looked at the picture again before handing it back. "Mostly I remember his eyes."
"Thank you, you've been a big help," Clark told her.
"I was looking at the autopsy report after you left to check on your neighbor," Lois said as they walked away from STAR Labs. "The medical examiner said Gatenby's cardiac arrest was caused by a severe electrolyte imbalance. What if Bad Brain used the ESW weapon to kill him?"
"That would make sense."
"What confuses me is the heavy water from the manhole cover. Where did he get it from? That stuff is regulated by the government, it's not just sitting around in bottles at the corner market."
"Maybe he didn't know it was heavy water? It's hard to tell the difference."
"None of the labs in Metropolis that use the stuff recognized his picture, though."
"So maybe we need to start looking outside of Metropolis?" Clark suggested.
"Or we need to start looking somewhere else that would have it. Didn't you say they use it for nuclear reactors?"
"Yeah, they use heavy water to slow down the neutrons so that they can react with the uranium in the reactor. But Metropolis doesn't have nuclear plant."
"No, but we almost did… Clark, isn't the Hobbs Bay Tower close to the nuclear power plant that Lex built? The one Superman shut down when we found out Lex was using it to create that heat wave last winter?"
Clark considered. "It's a couple of blocks away, yes."
"Close enough you could drag a body there?"
"Lois, Superman shut it down for a reason!"
"He also sealed the reactor so there wasn't a leak. We'll be fine! Bring a Geiger counter if you're so worried. My point is that the plant sits on top of an aquifer, that's how Lex was heating up the city. Didn't Kevin tell us that all the tunnels under Metropolis were connected? And that there were cisterns? If you have an aquifer, it stands to reason you'd put a cistern there. Cisterns have access tunnels, right? What if the reason no one has seen this guy is because he travels underground?"
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"I can't believe I let you talk me into this," Clark said as he boosted Lois up to the open window - the open window she had just broken.
"Oh, honestly! It's an abandoned building. If I hadn't broken that window, someone else would have eventually." She disappeared inside. Seconds later the door near the window opened and she grinned at him. "Piece of cake," she told him.
"Lois Lane and Clark Kent!" Ken Randall exclaimed from behind them. Clark turned in the doorway to see Ken standing there, smirking at them. Behind Ken stood his cameraman, apparently filming.
"Hello, Ken," Clark said warily.
"Are those your real names? They're just so TV-ready! Lois Lane, all those soft alliterative syllables. It's very sexy, isn't it? Lovely, lissome Lois Lane. And Clark, you have those sticky consonants. Makes a name stand out. Clark Kent. Very strong." Ken struck a pose like a bodybuilder. "Never fear, Clark Kent is here!"
"I can't believe you're an award-winning journalist," Lois told him.
"Lois, that compliment goes double for you."
"Are you following us?" Lois asked, her voice pitched higher in irritation.
"Lois, if I was following you, you'd be the last person to know it. We were staking this place out when Mike," he indicated his cameraman, who waved to them but didn't stop filming, "and I saw a couple of vandals breaking into the building. It's a terrible thing, but luckily we caught them on film."
"Why you… " Lois started and then stopped herself, fuming. "Come on, Clark, let's take a look around."
Ken and Mike followed them into the building. They didn't get very far. As they came into the next room they all stopped in their tracks at the sight before them. Blood was pooled on the floor and spattered on the walls. And, on the far side of the room, a man lay motionless. Clark focused on him but couldn't detect any signs of life.
Ken started to walk towards him but Clark grabbed his arm to stop him. "You're going to destroy evidence! He's dead, don't disturb anything."
"Please, give me credit," Ken snapped. He turned to face Mike, "Can you get the shot from here?"
Mike nodded and gave him a thumb's up.
"I'm going to go call the police," Lois said, then pointed at Clark. "You stay here and watch them."
"Does she always boss you around like that?" Ken asked after Lois had left.
"Maybe I like it when she's bossy," Clark replied. He smiled to himself - that was kind of true.
"We're ready to roll," Mike said.
Ken's demeanor changed, his expression becoming concerned. "This is Ken Randall, bringing you another exclusive…"
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Lois was pacing her apartment, unable to sleep. She kept checking and re-checking her windows, making sure they were locked. The dead man at the defunct nuclear plant appeared to have been a vagrant. None of the blood in the room was his. How had he died? How had he got in the building to begin with? It was frustrating to have to wait until the next day to get the answers.
Her phone rang and she nervously went to answer it. Would it be Bad Brain again, calling to gloat?
"Hey, Lois," Clark said. "What are you wearing?"
She smiled, looking down at her shorts and t-shirt. "Nothing but a pair of thigh-highs. What about you?"
"The same," he deadpanned, breaking into a smile when she laughed. "Actually, I called to ask you something else."
"What?"
"I got a copy of the plans for the nuclear plant. I was thinking they might show us where the access tunnels are."
"You sure know how to sweet talk a girl. I hope you were planning to bring them over."
"Only if you weren't busy."
"Come on over."
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Two hours later they still hadn't found anything. All the old tunnels had been sealed off during construction. There had been one new tunnel constructed, but that had been sealed by the EPA during the ecological cleanup.
"So how did he get in?" Lois asked, standing up to go into her kitchen.
"Maybe he has a key? What if Johnson worked at the plant before it was shut down? We can check on that tomorrow." Clark looked over to see Lois leaning on her elbows on her kitchen counter, staring at the coffee maker. He got up and walked over to her. "Are you okay?"
Lois nodded, transfixed by the drip of dark liquid into the carafe. "I'm just tired," she sighed.
"Get some sleep, I'll go home now."
"Don't be silly. I'm making coffee."
"You look exhausted." He put his hands on her shoulders, giving them a soft squeeze and she stood up.
"I'm not. I'm just tired of thinking."
"So take a break from thinking." Clark began to gently massage her shoulders. Lois dropped her head forward, leaning into his touch. Soon she was sure she was about to fall asleep standing up.
"Are you still with me?" Clark whispered.
"Just barely," she said as she relaxed back against him. Her hands dropped to hang loosely at her sides. Clark put his arms around her, gathering her close against him, his cheek against hers.
Her hand came to rest low on his thigh. Without thinking about it, she began to caress the material, shaping out the muscles underneath. Feeling bold, she moved her hand to the back of his thigh, then up to the firm curve of his buttock.
Clark kissed the nape her neck. She pressed back against him with her hip, shifting to give him a little friction. "I thought you were tired," he murmured against her neck, placing a line of tiny kisses to her ear.
"I'm not that tired anymore."
"Me neither."
She turned in his arms and kissed him, long and deep. Their bodies rocked slowly against each other as their hands explored and teased.
"Lovely, lissome Lois Lane," Clark whispered, breaking their kiss to lift the hem of her shirt and pull it over her head.
"More like lousy," she amended as she relieved him of his shirt.
"Laudable." He slid her shorts off her hips.
"Lunkhead." She unzipped his jeans and pulled them down.
"Learned." Her bra dropped to the floor.
"Lunatic."
"Legendary."
"Libidinous," she whispered with a soft giggle.
"Mmm. I like libidinous Lois." He leaned down to kiss her again. "My lovely, long-legged, luscious, lickable, lovable Lois." He punctuated each word with a kiss.
"Lucky," she added. "I think I'm about to get very, very lucky."
"Yes, I think you are," he laughed and scooped her up into his arms, carrying her towards the bedroom. "But I'm the lucky one."
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Clark kissed the top of her head as he fought the urge to blurt out the truth, all of it, to her. Not now, he told himself. Not now while she's naked. Tomorrow. You can tell her tomorrow. You can buy her flowers, take her out to dinner and… fly her home.
Lois propped herself up on his chest and touched his cheek. In the dim light of her bedroom she could barely make out that he wasn't wearing his glasses. She leaned forward and kissed his closed eyes. "Do you know, I was starting to think you were entirely too attached to your glasses."
"Maybe I just want to be able to see you." His heart squeezed painfully. He couldn't do it. He couldn't lose her. Not yet.
"So why make a rule about turning the lights off?" she teased.
He couldn't think of anything to say. She had him there. "That's… different," he said lamely.
"We've broken so many of the rules tonight. I say we just turn the light on - it was kind of a dumb rule anyway." Lois reached over him for the bedside lamp.
His glasses were on the other side of the bed. There was no way to get to them when she was lying on top of him. Feeling panicked, he caught her wrist firmly to stop her. "No," he said quietly.
"Oh, come on," she laughed. "I bet you're really cute without the glasses."
"No lights, Lois. That was my rule and I get to say if we break it. You can break your rules, but not mine." Something in his voice sent a chill through her. She was only teasing and his response seemed out of proportion.
"You can let go of my wrist now."
"You promised you would stop if I said 'no'."
"Okay, fine! What is the big deal?" Lois shook her wrist and he let go. "Is it me? You don't want to see me?"
"No, that's not it."
"You don't want me to see you? I'm pretty sure you have nothing to worry about. Do you have some horrible birthmark? Is that it?" She moved away from him, clutching the sheets to her chest.
"Lois…"
"Actually, that can't be it. I've seen you without your shirt and, um, there's nothing wrong with you. Have you got an embarrassing tattoo?"
"No."
"Is that where you went this morning? Did you get a tattoo? It's not my name, is it?"
"No, Lois. It's nothing like that. I just think it would be easier to keep this from spilling over into our work partnership if we can maintain some sort of distance. It's not real, remember?"
"Not real? You think this isn't real?" Lois completely forgot that it was her rule to begin with. Not real, she tortured herself. He doesn't think this is real. It's just sex to him. Well, what did you expect? That's what you asked him for. Did you think he would fall in love with you? He already was! Wasn't he? Why did it matter? It was just sex. That was the agreement. It was only sex between friends - it could never mean more than that.
"That was your rule," Clark pointed out. "You didn't want this to mean anything more."
"What about friends?" Her voice was small and quiet.
"That hasn't changed, has it? We're still friends, aren't we?"
"Yeah, I guess." Lois sat up against the headboard, her throat felt like it was going to close off. She wasn't about to cry in front of him. She took in a couple of deep breaths, fighting for control of her emotions.
"Not real…"
"Do you want me to leave now?" Clark asked quietly. He hadn't meant to say this wasn't real. Those were just the first words that sprang to mind. If he tried to explain them away now it was only going to get messier.
"Yes." She hoped he didn't hear the waver in her voice.
He sighed. It stung that she wanted him to leave. You started it, he told himself. You hurt her first. Why couldn't you think of any other reason to leave the lights off? You're shy? Couldn't you have told her you were shy?
Lois rolled onto her side, not wanting to see him leave. She heard him walk through her apartment. She listened to the faint sounds of his getting dressed. She could smell the coffee she had brewed and it made her want to cry. What the hell had just happened? She laid there, blinking back angry tears as her front door clicked shut.
"My lovely, long-legged, luscious, lickable, lovable Lois."
He was such a liar! How could he say those things and still claim this was just sex? Would it kill him to admit that maybe, just maybe, he actually cared for her as more than just a friend?
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Part 8/20
