The Reason
by Cape Fetish
It's a tad bit late, but this one goes out to Mona (Zoar3). I hope I did your request justice.
As always, huge thanks to LaraMoon for the beta, and for giving me the courage to post.
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The Reason
As the sleigh descended slowly towards the ground, Lois realized that the uneasy sensation in her gut was due more to their destination than the ride. Flying with Superman had never made her nervous, and while being pulled around in a sleigh was different from being cuddled up closely in his arms, it was sort of fun as well.
She shifted carefully to the edge of her seat to peer over the side, pulling the blankets tighter around her as a shield from the wind. The view of the snow-covered fields stretched out below them made her question her decision again. Never in a million years would she know what had possessed her to tell Superman to bring her here – she must have taken one too many sips from that wine bottle while preparing dinner. That would teach her to drink alone.
For the first time since she was a little girl, she had wanted to try and enjoy Christmas. She had called to invite everyone she cared about, had decorated her apartment in all that commercialized bologna, and had even learned how to cook a decent holiday meal. Yet it had all been for nothing, and one by one, her friends and family had backed out on her, until she was left alone with enough food to feed a small army and a bottle of wine in which to drown her sorrows.
Lois hadn't gotten too far into the drowning process, however, before a familiar pair of red boots had landed on her windowsill. Along with the red boots had come a smiling superhero and a sense of hopeful relief unlike any she had ever felt. She hadn't been completely abandoned.
They had wished each other a merry Christmas, made small talk for a little while, and she had laughed when he pointed out the sleigh he had parked outside of her apartment after dropping off Perry. Then, like something out of a crazy dream – or countless embarrassing fantasies, actually – he had offered to take her anywhere she wanted to go.
But never, ever, in any one of those fantasies had she answered the way she had done this time. Lois had felt just as surprised as Superman had looked when, without hesitation, the answer “Smallville” had leapt out of her mouth.
It could have been anywhere! Tahiti, Paris, Bora Bora, Rome...anywhere! Yet her big mouth had gone and spit out the name of a middle-of-nowhere hicksville, and she somehow couldn't bring herself to take it back. Besides, Superman's expression had turned from surprised to oddly self-satisfied, and she hadn't wanted to disappoint him.
So he had bundled her up in the back of the sleigh with a bunch of warm clothes and blankets and here they were, barely an hour later, landing in front of the Kent household. Lights glowed warmly through the windows, and the amazing smells of a Christmas dinner wafting on the air were enough to make her stomach growl.
Despite the welcoming scene, Lois couldn't help but feel a tightening in her gut. Was she really planning on just showing up on their doorstep without so much as calling in advance? How would they react when they opened the door to see Clark's nosy partner butting in on their family celebration? What was she doing here, anyway? Smallville was pretty nice for a small town, but it's not like it was a dream vacation for her or anything. And she certainly wasn't here out of some completely unfounded desire to see Clark.
“You'd better get inside before you freeze,” Superman said from surprisingly close by. She looked over to see he had come around and offered his hand to help her out. With a small smile she reached out and took it, hopping down into the snow.
“Yeah, I guess so.” She afforded the house a wary glance before turning to watch Superman gathering the blankets. “Do you want to come up with me?”
A look she couldn't quite read came over his face before he shook his head. “I should get going.”
“Right. Of course. You probably have something more important to be doing,” she agreed quickly, hoping she didn't sound too disappointed.
He gave her an almost regretful smile, then passed the blankets into her arms. “I hope you have a wonderful Christmas, Lois. You deserve it.”
And then he was off, leaving her staring at the picturesque winter farmhouse that somehow made her feel even more isolated. For a brief moment, she considered calling out to him and telling him to take her back home, but something was drawing her towards the house as if it had its own gravitational pull – probably the same obnoxious something that had made her say 'Smallville' when she had really meant to say 'a private island with white sand beaches.'
Before she was aware of what was going on, she found herself on the porch, rasping glove-covered knuckles against the solid wooden door. From here, she could hear Christmas music and the pleasant murmur of conversation from inside. Judging from the sounds inside, and the number of cars parked outside, the Kents had some company.
She was just about to turn around and start the long trek into town when the door opened and she was greeted by one of Martha's kind smiles.
“Lois! What a surprise!” The woman pulled her into a big hug, blankets and all, before releasing her to bring her quickly inside. “Come in here and warm up!”
“Thanks, Martha.” Lois shuffled into the house, taking in the cozy scene. Some people milled about, making conversation and sipping eggnogg as children played with new toys next to the Christmas tree. The tree itself looked huge in the fairly small room, and had been laboriously decorated along with the rest of the living room. The entire place looked like it had been taken off of a greeting card, and it didn't help her feel much better about her failed attempt at the holidays. “Sorry if I'm intruding, I shouldn't have just dropped in like this, but-”
“Don't be silly!” With a wave of her hand Martha dismissed whatever excuse Lois had been about to make. “As a matter of fact, we were just saying how nice it would be to have you here. Now there's plenty of food in the kitchen. Let's get this coat off of you and see what we can do about getting you settled...”
Martha wrapped her arm around Lois' shoulders to usher her further inside and, prepared or not, Lois found herself in the midst of a Kent Christmas celebration.
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Maybe it was the good food, or the surprisingly enjoyable company, or maybe it was just the three glasses of eggnogg she had drank, but there was a definitely warm glow-y feeling settling over Lois. Sometime in the past couple hours, she had realized she was having a good time. Not only was Lois Lane surviving a holiday party, but she was enjoying herself. It was a true Christmas miracle if there ever was one.
She had had nothing to worry about after all. Jonathan's welcome had been just as amiable as Martha's, and Clark had seemed thrilled to see her. In fact, up until a couple minutes ago, he hadn't left her side. With all the excitement of a kid on Christmas morning, he had introduced her to family and friends, kept her entertained with lively conversation and stories about past holidays, and had made sure she always had enough to eat and drink.
She was beginning to realize that it didn't just stop at having a good time. For the first time in as long as she could remember, she really felt like a part of the celebration, and, even more amazing, like a part of the family.
Not that she would ever admit it, but she had always been a bit jealous of Clark and his ability to so thoroughly enjoy things like this. But how could he not? If this was what all his holidays had been like while he was growing up, she could hardly blame him. And now that they had opened their home and their hearts to her, she was beginning to understand exactly how he could see such beauty in the season.
Speaking of that partner of hers, she was beginning to wonder where exactly he had gone off to. Another one of Clark Kent's amazing disappearing acts, no doubt. Tonight of all nights. She was really going to have to ask Martha about that...
A resounding “Ho! Ho! Ho!” drew her attention towards the stairs, down which a pair of black buckled boots thudded heavily. The children in the room all squealed and gathered around the red-suited figure, and Lois had to hold back a squeal of her own as she recognized the man beneath the costume – none other than the disappearing man himself.
She laughed as Clark struggled his way through the throng of excited children to take a seat in the armchair next to the fireplace.
“My now, aren't you the lucky ones tonight?” he asked as the kids took their seats on the floor at his feet. “I was on my way home to the North Pole after delivering presents to children all over the world, when I realized I had one more bag left in my sleigh! Well, that just wouldn't do. So I looked at the names on the presents, and it turns out I've got something for each of you in here!”
One by one, he started pulling the presents out of his bag, reading names off of them and letting the kids come up and claim them before moving on to the next. Pretty soon the last child had his gift, and the crowd dispersed as they all left to play.
“Oh ho ho, but what's this?” Clark asked as he reached into the bag to pull out a final gift and read the tag. “A special gift for a very special person.” His eyes lifted and locked immediately with hers as he extended the present towards her. “I believe this is yours, Lois.”
She felt her cheeks flush a deep crimson as she move from her place on the couch to take the brightly wrapped package. “Thank you, Santa.”
“Merry Christmas, Lois,” he said softly, and the megawatt smile he gave her threatened to melt her into a puddle right there in the middle of the living room.
Instead of collapsing, she managed to find her seat again as Santa excused himself to get his reindeer back to their stables.
----
The cold night air actually felt sort of nice to Lois after spending so long in the toasty farmhouse. The night had finally wound to a close, and from where she was standing against the railing of the back porch, she could watch the last of the guests' taillights fade from view. There was a fresh sheet of snow blanketing everything, and Lois had excused herself to get a better look. The clouds had cleared and there were so many stars visible, it almost looked like the sky was covered in a layer of snow, too.
The squeak of the screen door announced Clark's arrival, and a moment later he was beside her, donned in his winter jacket and the hat from the Santa costume. “It's beautiful, isn't it?”
She nodded her agreement, trying to keep a straight face despite his choice of headwear. “Do you feel like walking?”
“Sure,” he agreed, offering his arm for her to take as they walked down the porch steps and out into the falling snow.
For a while the only sound was the snow crunching beneath their feet, but it wasn't long before Lois felt the need to talk. “Thank you for tonight, for...well, everything. I had a really good time.”
She couldn't believe how inadequate those words were to describe her gratitude. Clark had been absolutely wonderful to share all of this with her, and yet it didn't really come as a surprise. Lately she had been realizing just how wonderful he really was. He had done so much for her, and that was just the tip of the iceberg. That's what had brought her here when Superman asked where she wanted to go – the knowledge that she could count on him for anything, at anytime...and he hadn't disappointed.
“So did I,” he said. “Did you like your present? I know it's a little late to decorate your tree this year, but I thought it might be nice for next year.”
“I love it,” she was quick to assure him, smiling as she thought of the beautiful star tree-topper he had gotten her. “I feel bad, though. I didn't get you anything.”
He shook his head quickly, stopping them in their tracks and moving around to face her. “Honestly? Having you show up was the best present I could have asked for.”
His voice was thick with sincerity and the look on his face made her breath catch in her throat. She was almost positive that, if she let it happen, he was going to kiss her right then. His expression turned hesitant, however, and he made as if to step away from her.
In one bold move her arms were up and around his neck, pulling him even closer. “Really? The best present?”
There was a moment of stunned silence before his hands came to rest on her hips, his breath warm against her face as she spoke. “Well...maybe not the best.”
“No?” She tilted her chin up, looking him square in the eyes. “What is it that you want, Clark Kent?”
“This,” was his simple answer.
As his mouth closed over hers she was certain she had found the reason for her trip to Smallville.
The End
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Mona's request was:
1. Clark playing Santa
2. A kiss under the stars
3. C and his parents sharing a Holiday tradition with Lois.
