Happy Birthday, Jose!
My Big Truth "I've never seen something so beautiful in my entire life," he says.
Lois lifts her face to look at him. He's staring ahead of him, but if she isn't mistaken, he is not talking about the globe. No, he's looking at her. Could that really mean...
Of course, she always knew he cared for her. Maybe even loved her. It had just been simpler to avoid him in that particular way. Being friends, best friends even, was far easier. Chances of bruising her heart were kept at bay that way. Yet he had found his way to her heart. As she prepared for her wedding to Lex, she had finally recognised him for what he really was. And she had dared to admit it to herself.
Lois Lane had fallen in love with Clark Kent.
She realises she has treated him very badly. He has never done anything to deserve it, but he's stuck by her. She thought she'd really blown it the last time, though. It had been a shock to have him tell her he loved her. So she had said no, and run head long into the arms of other men.
First, there was Superman. She blinked as she recalled his harsh words, the last thing he said to her. No, she would not think about him just yet. Those memories were still too raw and painful.
And then she'd run to Lex. The man who was now dead. Who'd betrayed her and the entire world.
Would Clark still care enough for her to forgive her for all of that? Does she dare risk even trying?
She looks up to him, and notices the tiniest of smiles on his face. Slowly, she walks to him, stopping just before him to lean against the pillar.
She smiles back at him, before giving him a reply. "You never gave up. On the Planet. On your friends." She halts, but decides to add the last bit as well. "On me," she finishes in slightly more than a whisper.
There, she said it. Looking through her lashes at him, she tries to see his reaction.
"I couldn't. You've just named probably everything in this world that's precious to me." He flashes one of those killer smiles at her that make her knees go weak.
"I don't think I have ever... will ever meet anyone quite like you." She dares to be a bit bolder now, and moves closer to him, all the while hoping he won't reject her. This is it. She really should tell him just why she said no to Lex in the end. Who really won the fight for her heart. She prays he'll still have her.
"Clark?" At the same time, she hears him say her name.
The look on his face tells her enough. "Please, let me go first," she pleads.
He looks at her curiously, squinting his eyes a bit. Then he nods for her to continue.
She stares at her feet for a moment. Where to start? She only gets one try, and she likes to do it right. "Clark, over the past few weeks, I've been thinking."
"Yeah?" he urges her on, after she falls silent.
"I've tried to envision my future and how it would look at its best. And, well... I only came up with one answer."
"Oh." He looks lost now. As if he has just lost everything that's dear to him.
"I need you in my life, Clark," she whispers to him, still afraid of his reaction.
"Yeah, I know, as a brother," he scoffs.
She swallows. That remark hurts. Yet she said so herself. She has to convince him that it's different now. Make him believe her.
"Clark, no! It's not like that."
"Then what, Lois?" He's still looking at her, but she can't read his expression at all.
It's now or never, so she takes a deep breath. "I... I love you, Clark."
She watches his expression closely. Quite a range of emotions cross his face. Shock is quickly replaced by disbelief before turning into wariness, then changing to hope. There's a hint of something else in his eyes as well, something she can't define. Or maybe it's just too good to be true. She clings on to that hope, nonetheless.
His ability to form a coherent sentence has returned. "I don't know what to say."
Those six words shatter her hope. She really has messed things up beyond repair. She slumps her shoulders in defeat. She's losing him. Not that she ever truly had him. But he's out of her reach now, she's sure of that much.
His hand reaches out to squeeze her shoulder. "Hey, tell me where this suddenly comes from. I just don't understand," he says gently.
Her shoulder tingles where he just touched her. It's quite a pleasant feeling. She scolds herself. Why did she never notice it before? All the signs were there.
She tries to smile at him, but doesn't really succeed. "Like I said, I've been thinking. While I was getting ready to marry Lex..." He still cringes at the mention of that name, but she bravely continues. "I tried to picture my life with him, and I just couldn't. I couldn't see a future with him. Instead, all these images of you and the great times we spent together ran through my mind. That's when I realised. It's you who can make me laugh, who makes me feel important, needed, wanted. That's why I said no to Lex at the altar. Because of you." The last bit comes out as barely more than a whisper.
He merely stares at her, making her feel uncomfortable. She just poured her soul out, and his initial response is not something to give her hope. That maybe, just maybe, he is able to return the feelings. That that day in the park was as real as she now wants it to be. All she needs is for him to say something. Do something. This staring is unnerving her. Just then, his eyes light up.
"Oh, Lois." He sighs and pulls her into his arms. "You know I care about you. Always have and always will."
She relaxes in his arms. It feels so nice and safe. Like she's home, in the place where she belongs. She doesn't want it to end. Nothing can ruin this moment.
After what feels like forever, he moves away from her, putting just enough space between them so she can look at his face again. His beautiful face and gorgeous eyes and there are lips as well...
"I've said the words once, Lois, and I will do so again. But not here and now."
"Oh." Now she's the one lost for words.
"Come here. I'll just show you." The last thing she sees before his lips claim hers are his eyes grinning down at her. She moves closer to him, pressing her body against his and arching her back. She feels one of his hands on her back, holding her steady while the other is playing with her hair. She reaches up to pull him closer to her and sighs.
Some time later, she stares into his eyes, a little bit dazed. She never knew he was such a good kisser. Having faith in them, and their future, she starts to reach for him again, but he holds her back.
"Lois, there's something I should tell you first."
The End
