Here you go with the last part. Thanks to kmar and Maggs for their beta.
From Part 3:
Lois shook her head, annoyed. If he wanted to be her partner he should be careful that his bed stories wouldn’t distract him. From the very beginning she had known that a hack from Nowheresville just wasn’t prepared to live in a big city like Metropolis.
“So, let’s find out who is doing research on cyborgs at the moment,” Lois said matter-of-factly. “Who of these persons could possibly be criminal? That should shorten the list.”
Clark nodded. “I’m going to work on that. And you...”
“I am meeting with Lucy. She is in town and I’ve promised mom to take care of her”, Lois said instantly and managed to look down on Clark although he still was about a foot taller than her. Actually, Lois had wanted to take Clark to the meeting as well. He had something like a calming influence on Lucy. In his presence, her sister wasn’t so combative. But Cat turning his head was already more than she could endure.
“Lois, I...” Clark said, but she didn’t let him finish his sentence. She didn’t want to hear that Cat had changed, that she was someone special or whatever he imagined in his love struck brain.
“See you later, Clark,” Lois replied rudely and ditched him in front of the jeweler’s store.
Nightmares
Part 4
Two days later things hadn’t really become better for Clark. Lois didn’t fight with him, she ignored him. She didn’t talk to him beyond what was absolutely necessary. No matter how hard he tried to clear up the misunderstanding, she didn’t give him a chance. Even Cat’s departure hadn’t soothed her. Clark tried to make himself believe that Lucy and her new boyfriend Johnny were responsible for Lois’ sulkiness. But he knew that Lois would already have broken their partnership if hadn’t it been for Metallo.
Clark sighed and sadly stared out into the pouring rain. Water was running down the windows, blurring the view. But he couldn’t have seen anything anyway. Although it was too early for dusk, it was almost dark outside. Thick thunderheads were covering the sky blocking the sunlight.
‘Now, of all times!’ Clark thought grimly and growled. This just wasn’t his week.
He shifted his weight from one foot to the other, flinching as his ankle protested painfully. Clark grimaced and turned away from the window. A soft stomach rumbling broke the silence, but Clark was not yet sure if he was actually up to eating anything. The fight with Johnny Corben still sent shivers down his spine. But could you call it a fight if one was punching while the other just kept landing on his butt or worse?
The flight back to his apartment had taken its toll on him. His last reserves were spent. The sprained ankle wasn’t even Corben’s fault. Clark had managed that with a crash landing on his balcony. But he wasn’t to blame for his bruised ribs. Grimly, Clark vowed to give Corben a hard for time battering Superman. He would arrest him and let the police take care of this metal guy. Corben wasn’t going to hurt anyone else, never again
Clark limped into the kitchen, vaguely intending to prepare dinner. Since it was raining he would be stuck in his apartment for a while. His powers wouldn’t return any time soon as long as there was no sunlight. Superman had a night off, whether he liked it or not. It was no use standing there staring into space. He wasn’t going to solve any of the mysteries concerning the cyborg. It worried Clark that someone had obviously managed to get kryptonite. But before he could take care of any villains, he was well advised to wait until his powers returned.
A loud knock interrupted his thoughts and made him pause for a moment. Clark wondered if there was anything outside that might have hit his door. But then there was another knock on the door and Clark realized that someone had to be outside. But who wanted to see him so badly that not even a thunderstorm like this could stop him? Usually, Lois would have been the first person to come to mind. And almost certainly he would have been proved correct. But lately every single glance of her, every word and each tiny gesture just told him how much she disliked Clark.
After the short but painful *fight* with Corben, she had looked at him without daggers in her eyes. That had been the first time after days and days of reproachful glances. But the man she had looked at so worriedly had been the bruised Superman, not Clark.
“Open the door, Clark,” Lois yelled impatiently and pretty angry. “Come on, I know that you’re at home. I mean, where else should you be given this torrential rain? Come on, I want to talk to you!” Clark heard a loud curse before she pounded on his door. She didn’t sound like she was up to clearing the air between them.
“I’m coming, Lois,” Clark replied and limped on, heading for his door. “Would you please stop damaging my door? It’s innocent.” He tried to ignore the pain in his ankle while he trudged up the stairs. As much as he had wanted to talk to Lois the past few days, at this moment he would have preferred to be alone. She had a real talent for showing up at the worst times. With a fatalistic sigh Clark opened the door.
Lois was dripping wet. Her clothes were clinging to her body and water was seeping from her hair, running down her cheeks. In her hand was something that once must have been an umbrella. The metal had been too weak to withstand the wind. Lois’s sheer power of will had to be the reason why the wind hadn’t simply blown the umbrella away. But that hadn’t changed anything for Lois, really. The water puddled at her feet and the puddle grew with every passing second.
“Lois,” Clark said and didn’t manage to hide that her appearance surprised him.
Considering the pouring rain, he shouldn’t have been astounded. Nevertheless, a dripping wet Lois just wasn’t herself, despite the determination that was written on her face. The wet Lois appeared to be lost rather than professional. It took Clark a moment to get a grip on himself and just step aside in order to let her in.
“That was about time,” Lois complained, handing Clark her ruined umbrella as she went past him. She left several puddles on her way. “So, Clark, tell me what you know!” bluntly getting down to business. Lois eyed Clark challengingly and folded her arms in front of her chest only to lower them again. Her face told Clark that the wet clothes clinging to her body were obviously feeling pretty unpleasant.
“What are you talking about?” Clark asked and followed her down the stairs. He did his best not to limp to badly. “And would you like to change into dry clothes?
“I....” Suddenly Lois had to sneeze violently. Clark flinched. “I...” Lois sneezed again. “First of all I want to know what happened to Superman! How is he?” she explained as dignified as her runny nose would let her. “After all you’re talking to him all the time! So tell me!” she demanded resolutely.
She stood there with arms akimbo. But once again she didn’t manage to keep her threatening pose for long. Another sneezing fit undermined her authority. She stood in Clark’s living room, shivering violently. Lois was obviously angry at herself. She grumbled and shot Clark furious glances whenever she could.
“What about a nice hot shower, Lois?” Gently he forced her to go towards his bathroom, ignoring her protest. “You’ll catch an awful cold,” Clark mumbled. “I’ll go and see if I’ve got something in my closet you could dress in.”
“Clark, I...” Lois fought against Clark, but she couldn’t keep him from pushing her to the bathroom. He had her in a firm grip and wouldn’t let go of her. “You’re not going to push me around like that!” she yelled while Clark was inexorably leading her towards his bathroom. “Hey, I’m talking to you!”
“Later, Lois. I’m not going to take the blame if you wind up ill and confined to bed,” Clark replied and Lois shot him a furious glance. But she stopped fighting against him, although she kept grumbling. Maybe she thought that she could argue better, once she was dry?
“Don’t even think you’re off the hook! And don’t you dare run out on me claiming that you’ve forgotten to do something!” she warned him.
Clark shook his head, thinking of his sprained ankle that hurt with every step he took. “Don’t worry, Lois. I’m not going anywhere.”
* * *
Lois wondered how she had ended up under Clark’s shower. The warm water felt good on her skin. When she had first stepped under the shower it had hurt like pinpricks on her numb, cold body. But Clark had stolen her thunder and she wasn’t even really angry at him because of that. He was gentle and caring, Clark as she knew him.
On their way towards the bathroom he had handed her a pile of dry clothes that was now waiting for her next to the washbasin. Lois enjoyed the warming and soothing effect of the water for another moment. Then she turned it off and stepped out of the shower. Right next to her was a large, fluffy towel that she wrapped around herself. Suddenly, she thought of Cat and the old rage enflamed her all over again.
‘And what if he had saved Cat from the rain, just like me?’ a low voice asked from the back of her mind.
That was nonsense. It hadn’t rained that day. Moreover, why had Cat been there at all? No, it had been exactly what it looked like. It was simple as that. She didn’t need to come to his defense. When it came to women, Clark was just like all the other guys.
With a sigh, Lois strolled over to the pile of clothes Clark had given to her. She found a sweatshirt that certainly would go down to her knees making it look more like a dress than a shirt. Next to it was the most embarrassing pair of boxer shorts Lois had ever seen. They were colorful to put it politely. Looking at them, Lois couldn’t think of a color that wasn’t in it. The word *sweatheart* was printed on them in bold, black letters.
A note was stuck on the fabric. Sorry, Lois. Ralph was my secret Santa. The shorts are too small for me, but they might fit you.
Lois chuckled softly and wondered how Clark had managed to smuggle this splendid specimen of a boxer shorts past her. She felt her rage subside. Taking on the obnoxious shorts, she thought about a suitable present for Ralph should she ever end up as his secret Santa. Then she donned the sweatshirt that smelled a bit like Clark, which somehow soothed her. The sweat pants were too large, but Lois managed to tie the ribbons so tightly that the pants fit her. Last but not least there was a warm pair of socks that Clark’s mother had surely knitted herself.
Lois squared her shoulders and remembered the reason why she had come here in the first place. Superman! She needed to know how he was and why he had left so quickly. Clark’s gentle behavior had distracted her, soothed her. But that didn’t mean she had lost her determination. And she would need it if she actually wanted to learn something about the hero. When it came to Superman Clark was often reserved. But this time she wouldn’t let him off the hook. She knew her partner well enough to notice when he was keeping things form her. And now she was going to find out what that was! This decision made, Lois stormed out of the bathroom.
“Now, spit it out!” she yelled before she had even made her way to the living room. “What’s the matter with Superman. With her arms akimbo Lois stood in front of Clark who was sitting on the sofa. “And don’t try to play fool with me. I can tell by looking at you that you talked to him.”
“I think he’s doing fairly well,” Clark replied cautiously.
“Fairly well??” Lois asked incredulously. “Fairly well?” she repeated and sounded even more enraged than before. “But he didn’t look like he was doing well! He barely managed to fly away. So please don’t tell me that he is doing well!” It was incredible. She just had to come close to Clark and was instantly fuming with anger. How had she ever been able to believe that she loved him? And why was her heart beating so madly just because he looked at her?
* * *
Clark sighed. “Lois, if he managed to fly away, he had at least had his powers.” Or so you would think, Clark added silently.
“Are you sure?” Lois asked and sounded a bit more hopeful, though still not convinced. “And what if he has just gathered his last reserves?” she threw in. There she had hit the bull’s eye. He should have been more careful visiting her as Superman. “So, where is he now? And don’t change the topic!” she warned him.
“I have no idea where he is,” Clark replied and for the first time he felt that he was telling her something that resembled the truth. For the rest of this night, Superman had vanished into nothingness. “I guess he will rest and think of a way to get rid of Corben.”
In the meanwhile, Lois had lowered her hands and didn’t seem as angry anymore. She sat down next to Clark and sighed.
“I’d really like to know where Superman is now. He must be feeling terribly lonely,” Lois mumbled sadly.
“Maybe he isn’t so lonely after all,” Clark said softly. “Do you know for sure that there is no one he could turn to?” He knew that he was walking on dangerous ground. Clark usually didn’t talk about his intimate knowledge of Superman’s life.
Lois gazed at Clark intensely. “Do you mean that he has someone?” she asked, almost disappointed that she wouldn’t be able to save him from loneliness. “Clark, please tell me what you know. I’m sorry that I reacted so badly when I learned about you and Cat. I’ll try to change for the better,” she added. But her expression told him that she’d rather marry Ralph than accept Cat.
“Lois, concerning Cat...”
“Forget about it, Clark. After all, you’re free to spend your leisure time...” she swallowed and again the words sound pretty reluctant. “...as you please.”
Clark watched her sadly and had to admit that his hopes concerning Lois were futile. Cat had been wrong. Lois’ feelings for him hadn’t changed in the least. He was her friend, but he would never be more than that. She would ignore his *love affair* for the sake of their friendship. But she wouldn’t love him like she loved Superman. Unfortunately there was no Superman there this evening. He couldn’t offer her more than the man who was sitting right next to her.
What would happen if he told her the truth? She could spent the night with Superman, the normal man. She could kiss him and let all her dreams become reality. But what kind of dreams did she have? Which kind of wishes could he grant her, given the circumstances? Nothing, that Clark hadn’t been able to give her. And she had turned him down. So, what was the point in telling her if that was only going to disappoint her?
“Lois, please let me explain,” Clark managed to say despite himself and hoped that he would at least be able to clear up the misunderstanding.
He didn’t make it far. The door bell rang, once, twice. Clark looked at the door. He could see the slender shape of a woman behind the glass. What was going on that everyone wanted to see him despite the bad weather? Lois studied Clark thoroughly. Her lips were extraordinarily small and her brows were furrowed. Clark knew that he was going to be in trouble if the woman in front of his door didn’t happen to be his mother. And judging from what he could see, his chances for a miracle like that were pretty bad.
Clark had a hart time trying to hide that his ankle was one throbbing, painful bulge. It was exhausting to walk his way to the door. He suppressed a moan as he put weight on his hurt leg. Sweat was covering his forehead, which wasn’t a pleasant experience at all.
The bell rang again before Clark had managed to reach the door. “I’m coming,” he said with his teeth gritted against the pain. If this wasn’t the fairy godmother, who wanted to spirit all his problems away, this evening was going to be worse than any other disastrous evening. When Clark opened the door, he realized that his visitor certainly didn’t qualify for the role of the fairy godmother.
“Mayson,” he said in a mixture of politeness and sheer panic. He had no idea how it was possible in a rainstorm like this, but Mayson looked drop-dead gorgeous. Not a single strand of her hair had gotten wet and her suit emphasized just the right parts of her body. Her eyes were glowing and she smiled at him. Clark would have liked to close his eyes and pass out. “Nice to see you,” he mumbled and hoped that he didn’t sound wry.
“Clark!”
Mayson was all smiles. With something like a secret magic spell she made him step aside so she could get past him. Clark couldn’t think of another reason why he should have let her in, hard as he might try. He almost wished he was back in that small alley right next to Johnny Corben. This couldn’t be worse, actually.
“I had to work all day and as I saw the rain... you’re place is closer to my office than mine. I hope you don’t mind,” Mayson explained and continued to smile broadly. She obviously didn’t care about the fact that her apartment was actually closer to the DA’s office than his. Not that he had really checked the distance, but considering his second job, he knew the city like the back of his hand.
“That’s...uh... great,” Clark managed to say and closed the door behind Mayson. She had frozen on the last step to his living room and stared at Lois. His partner returned the gaze with the same deadly intensity.
“Hello, Mayson,” Lois said icily and didn’t even try to hide her feelings. Contempt was written all over her face.
“My timing is bad, I guess,” Mayson replied offishly. She eyed Lois suspiciously and then turned to Clark. Her eyes were pleading with him to tell her that she was welcome. Clark wondered if he would be particularly sad if Mayson would turn on her heels like Lois had a few days ago.
“No, it isn’t,” Lois said dangerously calm. “Clark just wanted to tell me if Superman is all right. Then I’ll leave the two of you alone.” Her pretended composure was betrayed by the threatening tone of her voice that made Clark’s hair stand on end. He couldn’t help thinking that Lois would rather leave him to Cat than to Mayson Drake. Maybe she was jealous after all?
But the fight of the furies that was about to take place in his living room, dampened this small gleam of hope. The two women stared at each other contemptuously and with daggers in their eyes. Both had their hands balled to fists, but an invisible force seemed to keep them glued to their places for the moment. In the view of the strange scene in his living room, Clark had remained at the door. But then he decided to intervene before Mayson and Lois could start to kill each other.
The air seemed to be on fire. Mayson’s eyes had become small and she eyed Lois carefully, disparagingly. Lois’ gaze wasn’t any less fierce. Even without super hearing Clark could almost hear the sound of their heart beats filling the air. Their breaths had quickened, but still everything was quiet. It was the silence before the storm, the brief peaceful moment, before one of them would finally pick the quarrel. The tension was becoming unbearable and Clark wondered how he was going to prevent the explosion.
Clark’s mind raced, he searched for the right words to say. Completely focused on the task that lay before him, Clark forgot about his foot.
* * *
“Clark, you’re limping!” Mayson stated, shocked. “What happened to you? Why don’t you sit down and rest?” she asked thoughtfully.
Mayson’s exclamation had effectively cooled down the heated atmosphere. Lois, too, had heard Clark’s muffled moan. But she had been far too busy scowling at Mayson to really care about its meaning. Now that she was actually looking at Clark, she realized that he was indeed limping. And Mayson that snake had noticed it first. How could she? After all, Lois knew Clark much better than her!
“It’s nothing,” Clark replied airily, standing in front of them with his arms folded in front of his chest. “Nothing, really. I’ve just played basket ball this afternoon and unfortunately I twisted my ankle.”
Lois saw the slight flush on Clark’s cheeks. Instantly, she knew that he wasn’t telling the truth. Meanwhile, Mayson had reached for Clark’s hand, gently leading him towards his sofa. She verbosely apologized for having disturbed him and told him that a bag of ice would do wonders to heal his sprained ankle. In no time, she had placed him on the sofa. Her argument with Lois was obviously forgotten and with a triumphant smile on her lips, she vanished into the kitchen.
Lois stood there, frozen. Her hands were still balled to fists. She didn’t know how to deal with the situation. It wasn’t long until Mayson returned with the same happy smile, presenting the ice bag like a trophy. She looked at Clark and ignored Lois, as if she wasn’t even there, as if she had vanished into thin air. Lois’ fierce posture suddenly seemed pretty ridiculous. Automatically, she relaxed her hands.
“By the way, Clark. I heard that you’ve saved this woman. What was her name again? Grant, or wasn’t it? That was so courageous!” Mayson said enthusiastically and shot Clark a sultry glance. “You’re a real hero!”
Lois felt her heart beating madly. A lump was in her throat and the world around her seemed to fall apart. Clark had saved Cat!? Was that the reason for her being in his apartment that night? Maybe this was all just a huge misunderstanding and Lois had been needlessly rude? But what had been going on in the newsroom? Why had they flirted so passionately?
“Thank you, Mayson. I appreciate that,” Clark mumbled and blushed. He put the bag of ice on his hurt ankle and smiled at her, briefly. Then he looked at Lois, who still hadn’t moved.
“You have saved Cat?” Lois asked softly, as her dry mouth finally managed to form the words. “Why didn’t you tell me?” Because you didn’t give him a chance, Lois admonished herself silently. She hoped that she didn’t sound too reproachful. Were her brows still furrowed? Did she look angry? Lois tried to turn her expression into something friendly. Her smile was a bit forced, but maybe it would help her win the fight against Mayson.
In the meantime, Mayson had sat down next to Clark, possessively taking his hand in hers. Lois had a hard time keeping herself from strangling her, before Clark could start to tell her about Cat. Lois breathed a joyful sigh of relief as Clark freed his hand from Mayson’s grip on his own accord. That served her right! Mayson sulked a bit, but not for long. Maybe she thought that Clark would declare his love for her as soon as Lois was gone? She could wait until hell would freeze over!
“I didn’t get around to telling you,” Clark replied apologetically. He quickly told her what had happened that night. Even though he gave her no more than a summary Lois could almost feel Cat’s fear.
Lois somehow knew that there hadn’t been anything more going on between him and Cat than he was admitting. Cat’s strange behavior in the newsroom became all the more mysterious. But Clark certainly wasn’t going to discuss that issue in Mayson Drake’s presence. Lois looked over to the window as if she could stop the rain by sheer power of will. Mayson seemed to have similar thoughts. But the weather wasn’t going to obey them and so the two women exchanged dirty looks.
“Clark needs to rest,” Mayson declared and resembled a fire-spitting dragon, rather than a caring nurse.
Lois wanted to give her a piece of her mind, but Clark was faster. “Mayson, I appreciate that you care so much about me. But that’s really not necessary. Besides, it’s about time that Lois and I are having this conversation.” He left the word ‘alone’ unsaid. Yet, he couldn’t have been more obvious, had he shouted it. Lois couldn’t suppress a satisfied grin at Mayson pouting.
“Well, if the two of you have to discuss such important issues, I’ll better leave,” she snapped. She gazed at Clark defiantly, obviously hoping that he would hold her back.
“Mayson, I...” Clark muttered and for an agonizing moment, Lois feared that he would really do it. Clark was polite. Moreover, Mayson certainly had treated him kinder than her. “... Lois and I need to work on that new story. I’m sorry, but I guess that we actually should see each other another time.” He shrugged apologetically and smiled at Mayson in a way that would turn any woman’s legs into jelly.
“Okay,” Mayson sighed and shot Lois another angry glance. Her eyes were gleaming dangerously and suddenly she started to smile, sure of her victory. “I just came to ask you, if you’d like to spend the weekend with me. I’ve got a cabin in the mountains. It’s cold there, but there’s a fire-place and...” her voice trailed off, leaving the rest to imagination.
Lois heart missed a beat. This sly....! She couldn’t think of any swearword that would have even come close to describing Mayson. That woman was set on winning Clark over and Lois was beginning to fear that she would be successful. Honestly, Clark couldn’t but happily accept Mayson’s offer. Any man would rather want a caring woman who smiled at him, worshipping him for everyone to see. Why would he choose the snarling fury that lashed out at him and wouldn’t even give him a chance to explain anything? There wasn’t actually a choice, was there?
“Mayson, I...” Clark mumbled. “Thanks for inviting me. But honestly, I’m not sure this is a good idea. I don’t really know you well enough, yet. I appreciate your friendship, but...”
“Ah, okay...” Mayson said somewhat depressed. Her eyes became misty, but she blinked the tears away that threatened to roll down her cheeks. “I understand,” she added thickly. “Maybe you’d like to join me for dinner on Monday?”
Clark didn’t reply at once. The brief moment of silence seemed to extend to an eternity, in Lois’ regard anyway. She had hoped for Mayson to give in, to vanish into nothingness. But she kept looking at Clark. Her confident expression had faded and now she was pleading with him not to break her heart. There was no way Clark could reject her once again. Much to Lois’ dismay it wouldn’t be Mayson who had to leave this place, defeated. It was going to be her!
“I can’t,” Clark said hesitantly and looked around as if his living room would somehow hold the solution to any occurring problem.
“Do you have an appointment with somebody else?” Mayson helped out. “We could postpone the dinner...” Her puppy dog eyes were still on Clark and she smiled at him warmly, completely ignoring how uncomfortable he felt.
“No, you don’t understand...” he replied, obviously struggling for the right words. “Mayson, I really need to talk to Lois now. I promise you that we’ll see each other next week. There is something I should tell you...”
There was something final about the tone of his voice that left little doubt what he was actually trying to say. Not even Mayson was able to miss that he wasn’t willing to date her anymore. She stood in front of Clark, frozen in place and shivered violently as despair and anger welled up in her. Looking at Lois with daggers in her eyes, she seemed to hope for the right reaction to come to mind.
“Mayson, I’m sorry, I like you a lot, but I can’t help the impression that the two of us are expecting different things out of this...”
He couldn’t finish his sentence. Mayson’s eyes had become wide and tears were about to roll down her cheeks. The next thing Lois heard was Mayson slamming the door. The staccato sound of her steps indicated that she was storming down the stairs. They became softer and then died away. Clark looked at Lois.
“What...?” he managed to say.
Lois rolled her eyes. “She’s desperately in love with you and you tell her that you like her a lot...” She chuckled softly. She wasn’t actually gloating, but rather relieved that Clark obviously wasn’t interested in Mayson either.
“You’re a fine one to talk!” Clark replied sourly. “I’d never wanted to do something like this.”
“But you did!” Lois corrected him. “About half a year ago as we were celebrating the reopening of the Daily Planet. I wanted to tell you that I was in love with you. But you wanted no more than friendship!” She lowered her head, feeling that her cheeks were blushing. Now that she had admitted it, she was kind of relieved. At the same time she had jumped head first into danger. She had provided Clark with the opportunity to hurt her deeply. If he told her now that she should better search for someone else to love her, it would be worse than anything she had lived through in the past few days.
Clark watched her both bewildered and appalled. “That was what you wanted to tell me?”
Lois shrugged in a pretty tense attempt to appear composed. She didn’t want him to see the raging storm inside her. Her trembling fingers and her panting breath would inevitably give her away. Her voice almost refused to work, but finally she managed to say something.
“I wanted to tell you. I wanted to tell you when I found you here with Cat. I thought that the two of you were dating. And what happened in the newsroom only seemed to confirm that you were having some sort of relationship.”
Clark closed his eyes and groaned. “She wanted to do me a favor by making you jealous,” he explained and again looked at Lois contritely. His eyes, his lips, his whole expression was begging her to believe him. “I tried to stop her, but you know Cat. She can be pretty stubborn.”
Lois realized that she was still standing in the same place as if she had been glued to the floor. The distance that had initially offered her safety was now becoming awkward. She put down her arms that had been folded in front of her chest. Even though she tried she didn’t yet manage to relax completely.
“She made me furious,” Lois admitted embarrassed. “I would have loved to strangle her. But I thought that I could somehow manage to forget you. But the truth is that I can’t. The mere idea of being without you is more than I can bear.” Her cheeks were blushing deeply as she looked at Clark. Averting her gaze again, she insecurely stared at her hands.
Clark got up from the sofa and limped towards her. Taking her hands in his, he kissed the tips of her fingers. Then he looked at her, studying her face with his dark brown eyes. Nothing in his gaze made her feel like she had made a fool of herself. There was just sympathy and a gentleness that seemed to be undeserved. Still, it was very soothing.
“I love you, Lois. And only you. I’ve loved you since the day I first saw you,” he said softly. “No one will ever change that, not Cat and certainly not Mayson. She doesn’t know me well enough and I doubt that she’ll be able to accept me the way I am.”
Her fingers rested in his hands and he looked at her seriously. His eyes and his whole stance radiated warmth and reliability. Lois wondered how she had ever been able to doubt that Clark was hers. She clasped his hands gently and closed in on him, approaching his lips with hers. It wouldn’t be long before they were going to share the kiss that was going to clear up all misunderstandings more thoroughly than any conversation possibly could.
Lois saw Clark swallow. He looked at his feet and interrupted the magical moment. Her heart was beating madly and she opened her mouth to tell him that she loved him the way he was, with all her heart. But before she was able to say anything, he covered her lips with his index finger.
“I hope you’ll be able to forgive me,” he whispered and blushed. “There is something I should have told you some time ago, something you need to know before you say anything that you might regret.”
He seemed to be smaller than usually, more vulnerable than she had ever seen him. He didn’t stand upright, but was a bit slumped down. It was as if he was bearing a heavy weight that was threatening to bury him. Again, he swallowed and his flushed cheeks had paled awfully. Sweat was covering his forehead. Seeing him like this made Lois’ heart beat even faster.
“I... I still owe you an answer concerning Superman,” Clark mumbled hoarsely. “He is... he is... here.” Lois stared at him dumbfounded, seeing him more clearly than ever before. Yet, his words seemed to reach her ears through a haze. “I am Superman.”
Suddenly, so many things made sense - Clark’s injuries, his inexplicable knowledge of Superman, his tendency to vanish when a situation was becoming dangerous or when Lois just wanted to talk to him. But why had he never told her? Why did he keep infuriating her when three little words would have explained everything? The glasses no longer hid the truth and Lois wondered how she could have missed it before.
“Why?” Lois asked calmly, although a raging storm built up inside her. “A year and a half, Clark! You’ve been hiding this for a year and a half?” It was incredible. Saying these words, Lois realized what they really meant. For over a year he had been lying to her, day by day, each and every hour they had spent together. It was a painful realization. Still it was not half as painful as his kissing Cat would be. Or Mayson, for that matter.
“I’ve been keeping this secret for so long...” he replied. “It got harder to admit the truth. I think I was afraid that Clark would lose you once you knew that you could have Superman instead.” Clark didn’t dare look at her. “I’m aware that this doesn’t make any sense. Not when I’m saying it.”
They stared at each other. Clark was right. His explanation was abstruse. Even so, it was absolutely understandable – in a weird way. She had told Superman that she would love him if he didn’t have any powers. And that very day she had rejected the normal man she had claimed to love like she loved the hero.
“I’m sorry, Lois,” Clark said, sounding increasingly desperate. “I know that there is no excuse for my lying to you. I should never have kept this from you...”
For a moment, Lois had no idea what she was supposed to do. Her best friend, the man she knew better than anybody else had lied to her. She felt betrayed. His admission unsettled her faith in him that had been so hard to regain. But the way he looked at her, the despair in his gaze melted her heart. She knew that she hadn’t exactly made it easy for him to trust in her. She wanted to forgive him, just like he had forgiven her.
And then she decided that she would do what was on her mind. Taking a step forward, she stood on the tips of her toes until her lips touched his. A jolt of electricity ran through her. It was the feeling Lois had secretly been dreaming of for days. In this moment there was nothing they couldn’t overcome. Of course they needed to talk, about a lot of things. But that could wait for a while.
Her tongue caressed his lips gently. Lois pressed herself against Clark, enjoying the exciting contrast of his strong chest and his soft mouth. She felt his hands on her back, firm and secure. But as he opened his lips, returning her kiss hungrily, everything around her faded. She was lost in the fascination of this ancient dance that inebriated her. Clark’s warm breath tickled her face softly. She wanted to enjoy the moment, wanted it to last as long as it possibly could. Maybe forever.
The End
