Okay, here we go. I've been working on this story for a loooooong time. I've gotten pretty far into it, over half way I'd guess, so I thought that maybe if I started posting now it would give me the kick in the rear I need to finish this story. I plan on posting Mondays and Thursdays to start, although I might go to posting weekly later on down the line. We'll have to see what happens.
I want to send out a HUGE thank you to DSdragon for being such an awesome beta reader on this. I've learned so much from you and this story wouldn't be nearly as put together without your invaluable help. Thank you.
This first part has huge chunks taken directly from BatP, but I do venture off into new territory as I'm sure you'll soon see.
I don't own any of these characters, or the show, for that matter. I've just taken the liberty of borrowing the characters and situations so that I can have a little fun with them. I promise I'll give them back later, though.
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Part 1
“Devane has located the kryptonite.”
Lex Luthor puffed on his cigar as he eyed his beautiful assistant. “Excellent! Good work, Mrs. Cox. When can I expect delivery?”
Mrs. Cox smiled before sitting on the edge of Lex’s large desk. His eyes were immediately drawn to her long, shapely legs as she crossed them alluringly. The woman always had known how to draw his attention. It was one of the many reasons he kept her around.
“We can expect a call as soon as Devane returns to Metropolis. His asking price is five million.”
“Then five million it is. It’s only money, whereas the death of Superman…now that’s priceless.”
“Devane came across some interesting information regarding the kryptonite.”
“Well? I’m listening,” Lex replied, gesturing for her to get on with it.
“The shipping crate in which he found the meteorite, according to Devane, was labeled ‘Smallville, 1966.’”
Lex raised his eyebrows at that tidbit of information. He had first read about kryptonite on the front page of the Daily Planet a few months back. Clark Kent and his partner, Lois Lane, had been in Smallville on what Lex could only assume was official Planet business when Jason Trask, front man for Bureau 39, had kidnapped Clark and his parents in a desperate attempt to draw out Superman.
Trask had believed the rock to be fatal to the alien, and had been hoping to put the theory to the test. But Superman hadn’t made an appearance, and Trask had been killed before he was able to harm Clark or his parents. And the rock, which had been named kryptonite, was believed to have never existed in the first place.
Lex, however, had thought there might be something to the whole story. If there was even the slightest chance that kryptonite was real, Lex thought it worth looking into. So he’d sent Devane in search of the mystical rock that was believed to have the power to render Superman helpless. His search had led them to an abandoned warehouse that had once been owned by Bureau 39.
“Interesting is an understatement, Mrs. Cox. I think *revealing* would be a better word. It would explain why Bureau 39 was sniffing around in Smallville a few months ago, instead of some other location.”
Lex got up from his chair and walked over to the window that overlooked Metropolis. He stared out over the city, his thoughts racing. Lex had made it his business to know every aspect of Lois Lane’s life, including the people she was closest to. He felt that in order to defeat a battlefield opponent, one must destroy their support system, their allies, and any avenue of retreat. And Lex suspected that Clark Kent could become an unwelcome obstacle in his path to the possession of Lois Lane. She was just a little too comfortable in her friendship with her partner.
So he’d had the man checked out. A background check on Kent had revealed that the reporter had grown up in Smallville, Kansas. His parents were Martha and Jonathan Kent, and they ran a small farm. He certainly hadn’t discovered anything of interest.
Until now, that is.
One critical detail that was unimportant before was now blaringly significant. Clark Kent was adopted, and the adoption papers had been finalized in 1966. Some would say that it was all just an amazing coincidence. Lex Luthor wasn’t one to believe in coincidences, though.
A few weeks before, Lex had been fortunate enough to get his hands on a globe belonging to Superman. The messages projected from the globe had been telling. Superman was the last of his kind, and in an effort to save him as an infant, his Kryptonian parents had sent him to earth as a baby. Lex suspected that Superman had been living among them under a different identity all along.
“Mrs. Cox, make arrangements to have Clark Kent’s apartment put under surveillance,” he ordered. “I need to test a theory, and I want the proof on video.”
“I’ll get on it right away, Lex.”
*****
Lois Lane had a lot to think about.
It had been a very busy and confusing week. First Lex Luthor had swept her off her feet, flying her to Italy for probably the most romantic dinner she’d ever had. But the real shocker had been when he’d asked her to marry him. She was still trying to wrap her mind around it. The third richest man in the world—a man who was sophisticated, cultured, generous, and absolutely handsome—had asked her to marry him.
“Wow” didn’t even begin to describe what she was feeling. She was flattered, to say the least. She’d never thought herself the type of woman a man would want to marry. She was strong willed, independent, stubborn, and a terrible cook. That someone would want to marry her was incredible. That Lex Luthor was the man doing the asking was astonishing.
And the surprises hadn’t ended there. She had shown up at the Planet the following morning to find that the paper—her life’s blood—was probably going out of business. The Daily Planet was in major financial trouble, she’d been informed.
But then Lex had shocked her again. He’d waltzed into the newsroom that very day and announced that he had bought the Daily Planet. Everyone would get to keep their jobs. His words had caused everyone in the newsroom to break out in loud applause, with the exception of Clark, of course. She still couldn’t figure out why her partner, her very best friend, hated Lex Luthor, a man who had done so much good in the city of Metropolis—a man whose marriage proposal she was considering.
Then her world had been turned upside down only two days later when the Daily Planet had exploded, leaving her and all of her co-workers without a job. The others, it seemed, had already given up on trying to reopen the Daily Planet. But the Planet was her life, without it she didn’t know what she would do. She’d be utterly lost. Perry, Clark, and Jimmy could sit around and cry into their coffees, but Lois Lane certainly would not. She just knew that Lex would help them rebuild. He had to.
It was those thoughts that motivated her as she entered Lex’s study that morning.
“Lois! What a surprise,” Lex said happily before kissing her tenderly.
Lois eyed the woman who stood by Lex’s side. She was very striking, with a flawless, dark complexion and exotic-looking features. Lois vaguely remembered seeing her with Lex somewhere before.
“I don’t believe you two are acquainted. Lois Lane, Mrs. Cox,” Lex introduced the two women.
“So pleased to meet you,” Mrs. Cox said smoothly. She doubted that the woman was being sincere. Her obvious possessiveness of Lex spoke volumes to Lois.
Who was this woman?
“Mrs. Cox is my personal assistant,” Lex explained, answering her silent question.
Lois eyed the two suspiciously. “And what exactly does a personal assistant do?” she asked, almost challenging.
“Whatever’s necessary,” Mrs. Cox stated smugly before leaving Lois alone with Lex.
Lois watched her go, already disliking her, then shook all thoughts of the woman out of her head. She’d come here for a reason, after all.
“Lex, I need your help.”
*****
A few hours later Lois stood in the middle of LNN’s very modern newsroom. Lex had been unable to help her by rebuilding the Planet, which hadn’t been properly insured, he’d said. Lex’s hands, unfortunately, were tied.
However, he’d had a job for her. He’d offered her a fabulous job with LNN. It wasn’t the Planet—nothing could replace that—but after a lengthy tour of LNN, she had to admit that she was exited at the prospect.
Now she waited, somewhat impatiently, for her partner. Surely Clark would want to come and work with her at LNN. It was a great opportunity, especially considering that their jobs at the Daily Planet were history. Lois had finally accepted that fact. There was no going back now.
Lois spotted Clark as he exited the elevator. “Clark!” she called out, waving to get his attention. He spotted her and made his way over to her. “Thanks for coming,” Lois said gratefully.
“What’s going on?” asked Clark as he looked around the newsroom.
“Plenty. I’ve been here all afternoon,” Lois said excitedly.
“But what am I doing here, exactly?”
“I’m going to work here. I want you to work here, too. We can still be partners!”
**
Clark stared at her in surprise. Had she lost her mind? She wanted him to work at LNN, a place that Luthor owned? He would never work for that monster.
“I’m a *newspaper* reporter,” Clark pointed out, trying to be diplomatic. The last thing he wanted was to start another argument. He had so much to tell her. He had to make her understand how much she meant to him, and only hoped that it was enough to stop her from marrying Luthor.
“You’d still be writing the news…copy for our reporters. Or, you could be a correspondent.” She tried for the next few moments to convince him how great an opportunity it was to work for LNN, but he wouldn’t be persuaded.
“Lois, I will never work for Lex Luthor.”
“But what about us…what about us being partners?” The look in her eyes was pure desperation. “I know I haven’t always been the easiest person to work with, but I thought we made a great team, Clark. I can’t imagine not working with you.”
Her words surprised him. Clark knew that she considered him a friend. And her willingness to admit that they made a great team professionally was music to his ears. He hoped he could convince her that they would make a great team romantically as well. He’d be lost without her, and it was time that he told her how he felt. He only hoped that she would take his confession well.
“Lois, is there someplace where we can talk alone?”
“Sure, Clark. Are you up for a walk?”
“A walk sounds nice.” Clark followed her out of the LNN building in silence. He was too nervous to make small talk. The moment of truth was almost upon him. He swallowed hard, trying to keep his nervousness at bay.
Could he really do this?
The thought of her *marrying* that monster was the only answer he needed. Even if she wasn’t ready to pursue anything with him, he had to try and save her from Luthor.
They reached the park way too soon for Clark’s liking. He glanced at her nervously, wondering how to put into words what had been in his heart for so long.
“What is it, Clark?” she asked.
Clark began slowly, “When I thought about losing my job at the Planet, saying goodbye to Perry, Jimmy, everyone…I realized something. I realized that I could lose all of that and still go on. I realized that there was only one thing I didn’t want to live without, and that was you. Seeing you every morning, working with you, being with you—”
“That’s why you should come and work—”
“No, Lois, listen to me,” Clark pleaded as he sat down on a park bench, silently willing her to hear him—willing her not to turn him away. “I’m not talking about being partners at work. I’m talking about us.” He looked deeply into her eyes before plunging ahead. “I’ve been in love with you for a long time.” Now that the words were out of his mouth he could hardly believe he’d had the courage. Clark watched in apprehension as her eyes widened in surprise. She obviously hadn’t seen that one coming. But he wasn’t that good at hiding his feelings, was he?
“You must have known,” he said, voicing his thoughts.
“I knew, well, I knew that you liked me, were attracted to me. But, Clark,” Lois paused, and Clark’s heart dropped as he noticed the regret in her eyes, “I’m sorry, I just don’t feel that way about you…romantically. Clark, you’re my best friend, and the only partner that I could ever stand to work with. I admire you, respect you, and I do love you, but only as a friend.”
Her words pierced his heart, draining the last shred of hope he had that she would return his feelings. He’d even thought on a few occasions that he had seen a certain look in her eyes, a look that gave Clark cause to hope that maybe the attraction was mutual. But apparently he’d been wrong.
He got up from the bench, suddenly needing some space from her. “And what about Luthor? Do you love him?” he asked, not really wanting to hear the answer. She couldn’t possibly love that monster. How could she? How could anyone? Her answer confirmed his suspicion.
“I don’t know. I know that I have feelings for him,” she explained. “I haven’t told him yes yet, and I won’t until I talk it over with someone.
“Who?”
“I think you know. If you see him, can you tell him that I’m looking for him?” she asked hopefully.
How could she ask that of him? She had just ripped his heart out with her teeth, and she wanted him to contact Superman for her? Clark fought to keep his pain under wraps, at least until he was alone. Numbly, he nodded.
“Thank you, Clark. That means a lot to me.”
Clark started to back away from her. He needed to get away and find some place that was isolated from the world. He needed to get out of there before he lost it.
“Lois, I have to go. I’ll talk to you later.”
But would he really? Could he really go to her as Superman?
*****
Later that night Lois sat in her living room, trying unsuccessfully to find a comfortable spot on her couch. She held a romance novel in her hands, but the words on the page barely registered. She was far too distracted to concentrate. Lois glanced at her window, hoping to see Superman hovering outside.
She was dressed in one of her most feminine night gowns. Now Superman just had to show up. She had to convince him that they belonged together; the time had come for Lois Lane to put all of her cards on the table concerning the super hero.
A sudden breeze stirred Lois from her thoughts and she looked toward her window again, her heart in her throat. Sure enough, there he stood.
“Superman!” she exclaimed as she jumped up from her couch.
“I heard you wanted to see me?”
“Yes, please come in. Just give me a second to put on a robe,” Lois said, suddenly feeling exposed and vulnerable in her nightgown.
“Unless it’s lined with lead, Lois, it’s a waste of time,” was Superman’s cold reply.
The tone of his voice gave Lois pause, but she quickly covered it, pasting an embarrassed smile on her face.
“I guess so. Well, I asked you to come here because I’ve been trying to figure out some things. There have been so many changes in my life, and I’m trying to make the right decisions, but I can’t do anything until I know…how you feel,” Lois said softly as she stepped forward, resting her hand on his chest. She sighed, trying to gather her courage and hoping against hope that he would tell her what she wanted to hear.
“Superman, is there any hope for us? I’m so completely in love with you. I can’t do anything without knowing.” She waited for what seemed like an eternity, her heart pounding so loud she was sure he could hear it even without super hearing.
Superman sighed, a look of regret in his eyes. Lois felt her hopes plummet to the ground. “Lois, I do care for you, but there are things about me that you don’t know—things that you may never know,” he said, his voice tinted with a sadness that she didn’t understand.
“But I do know you. And I don’t mean the celebrity or the super hero. If you were just an ordinary man living an ordinary life I would love you just the same. Can’t you believe that?”
**
Clark stared at her, her round, dark eyes so sincere, so full of hope. But her words had just crushed the pieces of his broken heart. He sighed, trying with difficulty to hide the bitterness—and the anger—that lurked behind his dark eyes.
“I wish I could, Lois. But under the circumstances…I don’t see how I can.”
Her eyes started to fill with tears. “But it’s true. From the moment I first saw you I’ve felt this connection to you. And the longer I’ve known you the stronger it’s become. I love you because of your kindness, your gentleness, and your unwavering belief that this world could be a better place. I love you for all the things that you do and for all the things that you are,” she told him, her eyes pleading with him to believe her.
Her words only angered him further, though. She had been working beside him for a year now, and he had shown her, as Clark, that he was a kind and gentle person who believed that the world could be a better place. Yet she’d continuously ignored the very ordinary man that she claimed she would love. The fact that she believed him and Superman to be two different people didn’t keep it from hurting any less.
Shaking his head, he backed away from her, trying to harden his heart against the tears that started down her cheeks. “Lois, I’m sorry. But I just can’t believe you.”
“Why? Why is it so hard to believe? I’ve never lied to you before,” she pleaded.
He winced at that. “No, Lois, you haven’t. But I’ve been lying to you from the moment I came here. There are things about me that you just don’t know. And I can’t tell you what they are, especially now that you’re involved with Luthor.” The words flew out of his mouth before he could stop them.
Why did he tell her that? She may be confused and a little blind where he was concerned, but she was still a brilliant investigative journalist. Did he *want* her to figure it out? Before he could say anything else that he’d regret he was out of her window and airborne.
*****
Lois lay in bed later that night, tears still streaming down her cheeks. She was thoroughly confused. Everything that Superman had told her just didn’t make any sense. What had he been lying to her about? And why couldn’t he believe that she loved him? He had seemed so different. She couldn’t put her finger on it, but something was telling her that she was missing something.
Something huge.
She wiped at her eyes, wishing she could wipe away the hurt as easily as she did her tears. Her life was falling apart. She’d lost the job she’d dreamed of having all of her life. Even worse, she worried that she was losing her friends—losing Clark.
Clark.
Just thinking about him made her cry even harder. She’d been totally clueless about him. He would never forgive her for her words earlier that day. She had been cruel to him, first turning down his love, and then asking him to contact Superman for her. At the time she hadn’t thought about it; she’d been too focused on finding Superman. But later she realized just how cruel it had been to have asked that of Clark. She remembered the look in his eyes after she’d told him that she didn’t return his feelings. That look haunted her; it had all day.
Lois realized now that turning Clark down had been a gut-instinct reaction. She’d been down that road before with a colleague. She’d met Claude soon after she’d started at the Planet and had fallen hard for him in an instant. Claude had taken advantage of her naivete and inexperience. His betrayal had hit her hard. She knew that Clark was nothing like Claude, but even so, she wasn’t willing to risk their friendship by trying to turn it into something more.
She could hardly believe that Clark was in love with her. She’d been horrible to him, constantly putting him down and pushing him away. But somehow, he’d gotten past her barriers. She didn’t know how he’d done it, but he had. A devastating smile and a pair of warm brown eyes had worn her defenses down, and that scared her. She refused to think about it. She couldn’t think about it.
Thinking about Lex’s proposal was a far safer subject. She couldn’t kid herself into thinking that she was in love with Lex, regardless of what she told anyone.
But could she marry him?
At that thought, Superman’s rejection flashed through her mind. She didn’t know what she was going to do.
Lois had never been more confused.
*****
That same night, in the penthouse at the top of the highest building in Metropolis, Lex Luthor smiled, an evil sparkle in his eyes as he held a glowing, green rock in his hands. The rock was a wonder, really it was. Of course it would have to be tested to ensure that it would work, but he was confident that it would.
And the icing on the cake was that his earlier theory had been proven. Superman had unknowingly revealed himself as Clark Kent, and Lex had gotten it all on tape. Lex laughed wickedly as he pressed the play button on the VCR, once again watching the video that would give him ultimate power over his enemy.
“Superman, you should have been more careful,” he playfully scolded the super hero in the video, watching as he landed on Clark Kent’s balcony. Modern surveillance technology was a beautiful thing. Lex stared at the kryptonite, feeling the weight of the five-million dollar treasure in his hands. He had what no other man had—the power to bring Superman to his knees. The mere thought brought a devilish smile to his face. He really was on top of the world.
Superman—or should he say Clark Kent?—would soon be a dead man.
Before killing Superman, however, Lex would have to destroy the do-gooder’s reputation, knock him off the pedestal onto which Lois had placed him. She obviously fancied herself in love with the super hero, and had told Lex earlier that day that she had to “settle something” before she could give him an answer to his proposal. He’d hoped that offering her a job at LNN would persuade her to marry him. But she still had not given him an answer. He had a suspicion that her hesitance had something to do with Superman.
Lex Luthor was not a blind man. He knew that as long as Superman was around, the super hero would always be Lois’s first choice, and Lex Luthor would not tolerate playing second fiddle to anyone.
The alien’s flashy powers and appearance as the ideal man obviously had her blinded when it came to Superman. But what would his dear Lois think of her precious super hero if she found out that he was only Clark Kent? What would she think of his deception? Imagine finding out that her super-powered, cape-wearing freak of a fantasy was only a lowly reporter, a mere farm kid.
He knew that Lois considered Kent a friend, and therefore, revealing Kent’s identity as Superman had some risk to it. But he was confident that Kent wasn’t the type of man Lois Lane would want. She was a woman for whom greatness was reserved, and Lex Luthor was greatness in spades, whereas Superman was only a farce.
No, he was confident that Lois would turn her back on the super hero once she found out that he was really Clark Kent. Why eat bologna when you can have filet mignon? Lex laughed wickedly. Lois was in for a surprise, as was the whole world. Clark Kent’s life was about to become a living hell.
Too bad the hell would be short-lived. Merely destroying the man’s life wasn’t enough. No, he’d have to die, no doubt about it. Superman had been a thorn in his side from the moment he’d arrived in Metropolis. Right after the super hero’s debut, Superman had visited him in his study and had told him that he knew who Lex really was. But that wasn’t what had angered Lex the most. It had been Superman’s parting shot that had sent his blood to the boiling point. Superman had told him that if he ever needed to find him, all he had to do was look up.
Lex Luthor didn’t live in the tallest building in Metropolis for nothing. He relished the fact that every citizen in Metropolis was beneath him.
Every citizen now, he reflected with disgust, but one.
Lex glanced at the green rock again. The glow of the kryptonite mesmerized him. He could feel the power coursing through his fingers—the power to kill Superman. Before long, the irritating do-gooder would be no more.
Metropolis was Lex Luthor’s city, and people looked up to *him,* not the other way around.
*****
Utter chaos greeted Lois the next morning when she arrived at the LNN newsroom. Her new co-workers were running around in a frantic state, papers flying in every direction possible, and the noise level was near deafening as people shouted and yelled to one another from across the room. Lois shook her head in bewilderment as she continued to walk toward her new office. Maybe LNN had just broken a big story. Whatever it was it must be huge.
Lois had just opened her mouth to ask someone what was going on when the entire newsroom suddenly went eerily silent. Every person in the room stared at her, their eyes wide. Lois looked down, checking to make sure that she hadn’t arrived at work half dressed. By the way they were all staring at her she almost expected to find that she was wearing her underwear over her dress slacks. She immediately squashed that thought; it only led to thoughts of blue tights and that led to thoughts of the person wearing those blue tights.
And thinking about that particular person was way too painful at the moment.
“What are you all staring at? Don’t you have work to do?” Lois barked, immediately wishing that she’d had the foresight to bite her tongue. Just because she was having a bad week didn’t give her the right to take it out on her new co-workers. Besides, introducing her co-workers to Mad Dog Lane on her first day probably wasn’t the smartest idea she’d ever had.
Lois sighed as everyone quickly averted their eyes before getting back to whatever they’d been doing before she had walked into the newsroom. Her day was looking to be a long and lonely one, considering that her mood matched the dark cloud of melancholy that seemed determined to follow her around. Lois shook the thought from her head and continued in the direction of her office once again.
LNN was most likely breaking a huge story and what was she doing? She was wallowing! What was wrong with her? A week ago she would have continued to bark up a storm until some poor soul who’d had the misfortune to cross paths with Lois Lane told her what she wanted to know.
A week was all it had taken to change her life as she knew it. Now the only thing she wanted to do was hide away in her office. The events of yesterday still haunted her, leaving a cold feeling in the pit of her stomach. She couldn’t get rid of the feeling that she’d made a huge mistake yesterday, a mistake that she couldn’t put a name to. Her gut was telling her…something. It was that unknown something that had kept her up half the night. She’d finally given in to exhaustion at four in the morning, allowing her eyes to drift shut. Her mind had been another issue, however, never fully shutting down, never allowing her to forget the look in Clark’s eyes after she’d rejected him.
Lois sighed as she came upon the door to her new office. She’d never get any work done today if she couldn’t keep her mind on track. Her eyes were drawn to the name plate on her door.
Lois Lane.
How weird it was to see her name on the door of an office in the building of LNN. She no longer worked at the Daily Planet, it no longer existed. She would never again walk into the bullpen, the sound of reporters typing furiously at their keyboards filling her ears and the smell of coffee filling the room. She’d never again step off the elevator and catch herself looking for her partner. She’d never again see his dark eyes light up as she found him. She didn’t know what upset her more—the distance that was growing between her and Clark, or Superman’s rejection of her love.
Even though her life seemed to be at a stand still, Lois was very much aware that the world around her was still alive and kicking. She finally opened her door and stepped inside. It wasn’t an overly large office, but it wasn’t small by any means. And the view was incredible. The amazing view held little appeal to her at the moment, though. She finally shut the door before making her way to the desk. Sighing heavily, Lois collapsed into her office chair, wondering how she would ever be happy working at LNN. Her mind cleared of all thought when a video tape caught her attention. It sat on her desk, a note attached to it. Lois quickly reached for the note, excitement replacing the cold feeling in the pit of her stomach.
“Ms. Lane, you should find this interesting,” the note read.
Beyond intrigued, Lois went to the small television that sat in the corner. Yes! It had a built-in VCR! She didn’t hesitate to load the tape. She pushed play, and then stood in stunned silence as an astonishing scene played out on the screen.
The video showed an apartment balcony, a balcony that Lois recognized all too well—Clark’s balcony. A moment later, Superman landed on the balcony, then in a spinning whirl of color, morphed into her partner. Lois covered her mouth with her hand, her eyes wide as a voice came over the video.
“What you see is not a trick. This video footage proves that Superman has a secret identity. That identity is none other than Clark Kent, reporter for the recently-destroyed Daily Planet,” the ominous voice said.
<There are things about me that you don’t know.>
Superman’s words from the night before came back to her like a slap in the face, and what an understatement they were! She hadn’t known that she’d been working alongside Superman for a year. She hadn’t known that he led a double life. She certainly hadn’t known that he was Clark.
Lois felt the anger come over her immediately, blinding her with its intensity. But with the anger also came undeniable pain. She had never felt so betrayed in her life. How could he have kept something like this from her? She was supposed to be his best friend! She’d told him things that she’d never told anyone else. She had trusted him, allowing him to see a side of her that very few people saw. Lois shut off the video before taking it out of the VCR. She bolted from her office, flagging down the nearest LNN employee.
“Who left this in my office?” she demanded, her voice loud enough to catch the attention of several other employees.
“Maybe the same person who left this video?” someone suggested while pointing to the LNN screen standing nearby.
Lois’s heart dropped to her toes. “No! It can’t be. Please tell me you didn’t run this!” she pleaded. But she knew it was in vain. It was obvious that the video had been running on LNN all morning. Now all of the commotion she’d noticed upon her arrival in the newsroom made sense. The video was incredibly news-worthy; it was sure to cause a media frenzy. No wonder everyone had gone still the moment she’d arrived. She had worked with Superman for a year. She had been his partner. Little did anyone know that she’d been the blindest person alive.
“Ms. Lane, are you all right?” someone asked in concern.
No, she was definitely *not* all right! She’d just found out that her partner, the person she had thought was her best friend in the whole world, was really Superman. She couldn’t even begin to think about the implications of that revelation. She was definitely not all right. But what bothered her most was the fact that the video had been plastered all over the news.
“I have to go somewhere, I’ll be back later,” Lois said frantically as she headed for the building’s exit. Clark had a *lot* of explaining to do!
End, for now
