Many thanks to my fabulous betas – Kelly, Beth, and Carol!
From Chapter 6
Chad ruffled my hair once again. “Just because he has a facility for languages you don't doesn't mean you don't have skill sets he doesn't.”
“Have you read his stuff?” I asked.
“Aside from things you've written together?” Chad asked. “I don't think so, but maybe. I don't make special attempts to read his articles, if that's what you mean.”
“Well, he's good,” I said.
“Better than you?” Chad asked with raised eyebrows.
I giggled. “Maybe not. But he is good.”
“Well, anyway, it was fun to listen to all the places he's been. Although, I forgot to ask. Why'd he move around so much anyway?”
“I think he said he just never felt like he fit in anywhere before,” I said.
“That must be tough. To move from place to place and never feel like you're home,” Chad said. “I wonder why he had trouble, though. He doesn't seem like someone who would have trouble making friends.”
“He doesn't,” I said. “He already has more friends at the Planet than I do. But… you know, you're better off asking Clark why he moved around so much,” I said. I had been about to make something up, but I just couldn't do that. Not telling Chad Clark's secret was one thing. Lying to Chad directly was another, and it was a line I wasn't willing to cross.
Chapter 7
“Good morning,” Clark called as he passed my desk two weeks later. It had been a good two weeks. The news had finally picked up again, and Clark and I had been working on some meaty stories. I liked working with Clark. He was talented, but to Chad's point, our strengths were not the same, and we balanced each other out well.
Plus, he was fun to be with. I had learned early in my career that I don't work well with others. Linda and I had partnered on more than one article during our college years and as much as I liked Linda, working with her was not so great.
I realized after I got to the Planet that it was not Linda's fault, it was mine. I am incredibly picky and not good at compromise. They say knowing the problem is half the battle, but that doesn't appear to be the case with me. I know I need to be more flexible and not expect other people to just work around me, but doing it is another thing.
Clark, though, either fits perfectly or is much better than other people at letting me do my thing and making sure he doesn't get in my way. I've never worked better with a partner, and it shows. Perry has been whistling a lot more lately, and Clark and I are actually acquiring a name for ourselves. I've always been one of the top reporters at the Planet, but newspaper reporters are not exactly local celebrities. I was well known within the local newspaper business, but while the average person walking down the street was likely to read my work, they had no idea who Lois Andrews was.
The paper had started to realize that that was changing. People were switching from the Star to the Planet just to read Andrews and Kent stories. So, the marketing team had started advertising us. It was weird to see my face plastered over signs around town. I mean, this is still the newspaper business, the Planet hardly took out ads on prime time television, but there were several areas of town with print ads outside buildings and stuff showing Clark and me. It was odd.
Chad thought it was funny – there was an ad in front of the hospital that he had taken to showing to people whenever anyone was stupid enough to say yes to “Would you like to see a picture of my wife?” He informed me that his patients got a kick out of it, but of course, he had stopped pulling extra shifts in the ER, so his patients were mostly under the age of thirteen.
“What is with you this morning?” I asked Clark as I realized he was singing - off key, no less.
“Is it a crime to be in a good mood?” he asked me with a smile.
“No. But if you're in a good mood, you should at least be polite enough to let me know why so I can share in it. Chad was on-call last night and got calls from a hysterical mother every hour from two to six. I'm grumpy!” I informed him.
Clark wandered away at that, but I was used to that sort of behavior from him. Working with Superman had its benefits - while Clark preferred to leave his superpowers out of investigations, he was willing to use them if we needed them. On the other hand, having a partner that moonlit in tights meant that sometimes I was left alone at the most inopportune of times.
“Here you go. One hot chocolate with extra whip cream,” Clark said as he placed the decadent breakfast drink in front of me.
“Okay, there really is something wrong with you,” I said. “You're buying me presents now?”
“Last night when I came home you know what I found?” Clark asked.
“You'd left the stove on and your apartment burned down?” I suggested. “The site of your apartment is right over the old Metropolis Land Fill?”
“Wow,” he said. “You really should think about sleeping somewhere else when Chad is on-call. You clearly need more sleep than you've been getting,” Clark teased me.
“Stop it!” I said, laughing at him. “Tell me what you found.”
“Rachel,” he said simply.
“Rachel as in your girlfriend, Rachel?” I asked.
“Well, yes,” Clark said, looking at me quizzically. “Who did you think I meant? Rachel Green?”
“That would be weird,” I said. “So, did Rachel just pop in to Metropolis to surprise you?”
“Pretty much,” Clark said, still smiling.
“Slow crime week in Smallville?”
“Lois, every week is a slow crime week in Smallville,” Clark deadpanned.
“So, how long is she here for?” I asked.
“Just through the weekend,” Clark said. “So, I am sort of hoping we can wrap things up a little early here. I want to take her to the Metropolis Art Museum. As you can guess, Rachel thinks the big city is the root of all evil, but she's a sucker for impressionist art, so I'm hoping I can show her that it's not all bad here.”
“Why don't you go tomorrow?” I asked. “Then you'd have all day.”
Clark grimaced. “I said Rachel is a fan of impressionist art. I, personally, can not stand spending time in art museums. The museum is open late tonight, so we can probably spend three or four hours there after work which will already be more than I need.”
“Good plan,” I laughed at him. “So, what did you two do last night?”
“Nothing much. It's been three months since I've seen her. So we caught up a bit,” Clark said.
“Don't you guys talk?” I asked.
“All the time,” Clark said. “It's not the same.”
“I guess not,” I shrugged my shoulders. What did I know? The longest I had ever been away from Chad was the year he was away before he started college and it wasn't even really a year. It was a school year, but he came back early in the summer, so it was really like nine or ten months. Plus, Chad's grandmother was so thankful for all the help he was providing, she paid for us to see each other once every month. There was a stretch of two months we were apart when his grandfather had gotten very sick, but for the most part we never went long stretches without seeing each other.
Of course, there was no reason Clark and Rachel had to go that long without seeing each other either given that he could have flown to see her every weekend if he wanted. That involved telling Rachel his secret, though, and Clark was still stubbornly insisting that he could not do that.
“I don't see any reason we can't get out of here by four today,” I said looking at my calendar. “We have that meeting with the DA's office at two and nothing for the rest of the day unless you have something I don't know about.”
“No,” Clark said looking at his own calendar. “Let me give Rach a call to let her know and then we can start on the lead-in to the Warvass story.”
************************
“Hey,” I said smiling. I could almost hear Clark's smile when he answered the phone. Having Rachel around was good for him. I had never heard him so happy before and since this was Clark, who was always in a good mood, that was really saying something.
“Hey, Lois,” Clark said. “What's up?”
“Chad and I were just wondering what you and Rachel are doing for dinner tonight,” I said. “I know you're not spending the day at the museum, and if you have something else planned, we completely understand – even if it's just staying at home alone since you haven't seen each other in so long. But, it would be kind of nice to finally meet Rachel, so we thought maybe you could come over?”
Clark paused before answering and I was ready for him to tell me that they'd rather hang out alone when he said, “Sure. I'm not sure what we're doing today. Rachel had fun at the museum last night, but I think she's museum'ed out now. She has a pretty low tolerance for being indoors too long.
“She's in the shower right now, so I can't ask her, but I'm sure she'd be okay with it. Why don't you guys come over here, though? Chad's cooked me dinner twice now and I have yet to really prove to him that some journalists can cook.”
I laughed. “I was going to say yes until you said that. I don't want him to know that you can cook. He may try to turn me in for a model that can.”
I felt Chad come up behind me and move my hair away from my neck. He kissed me on the newly exposed skin softly. “I didn't know that was an option,” he whispered and I laughed.
“What?” Clark asked.
“Nothing,” I said. “I've already got Chad daydreaming about a cooking Lois.”
“She doesn't have to be a Lois,” Chad called from across the room.
“Oh, really?” I asked him.
“Is she hot?” he asked me.
“I don't know. You're the one who said it didn't have to be a Lois. What are your requirements?”
“Um, Lois?” Clark said into the phone.
“Oh, sorry,” I said. “Chad and I got distracted.”
Clark laughed. “I could tell.”
I watched Chad move into the bedroom to get dressed and whispered into the phone. “So, any need for... you know last night?” I asked. I didn't want to say it out loud, but I knew Clark had been worried about needing to be out on Superman duty while Rachel was visiting. He had decided to skip his patrols, but wasn't comfortable not answering any calls for help.
On the other hand, that was a rather tricky proposition given that she was staying with him and he had given her his bed which was near the balcony. He was sleeping in the living room – some weird hang up about not being able to do that with her until he told her his secret. How Rachel had not wondered what was wrong with him before now, I had no idea. If Chad and I still hadn't moved forward in our relationship to that after several years together, I would have thought he was gay.
Clark assured me, though, that things were different in small towns where everyone knew everyone else's business. Premarital sex was much less common because you knew (or suspected) that everyone who knew you knew what you were doing. So, I guess Rachel hadn't wondered.
“Yeah,” Clark said. “Right when we were in the museum, too. There was a fire in that new development in the suburbs. Three homes caught fire.”
“Oh my goodness,” I said. Those homes were brand new.
“Yeah, we can talk about it more later. I think there's a story there – I don't think the houses were far enough apart to pass code. Anyway, Rachel's somewhat used to my seeming a bit hare-brained so when I left to go to the bathroom and didn't come back for twenty minutes she just laughed at me. She's pretty laid-back about that kind of thing.”
“So the fire was the only interruption?” I asked.
“Well, there were a few minor incidences last night, but Rach sleeps like a rock so it was no problem to sneak past her to use the balcony,” Clark said.
“Yeah, I guess it's pretty easy to move around noiselessly when you can float,” I said.
“Something like that. Listen, I just heard the water shut off, so I should go. Does seven sound okay to you for tonight?”
“Sounds great,” I said before I hung up the phone.
************************
The most surprising thing about the night was that I liked Rachel. I don't know why, but I hadn't really expected to. I think from her easy acceptance of all of Clark's oddities, I had expected her to be a bit stupid. It was an unfair assessment, particularly since I didn't know her, and I was pretty accepting of Clark even before he told me his secret, but it's the truth.
Clark definitely seems like the kind of guy that manages to go beyond looks, although that's clearly not one-hundred percent true. I did ask him a couple of questions about the girl he dated before Rachel, Lana, and he hadn't been able to say much more about her than that she was bubbly and pretty. Rachel is pretty, too, but more in a Midwest way and less like a cheerleader. Of course, she's also an adult, so who knows what she looked like in high school, but she seemed too down-to-earth to be described as bubbly.
Still, there was a reason he thought Rachel and he may be right for each other now, and I just couldn't see him with someone stupid. As it turns out, he's not. Rachel was much more intelligent than I expected and really kind of fun to have around.
She's pretty knowledgeable about world events, but even more than Clark, she really has a small town view. We spent some time talking about the elections that had just past, and Rachel explained to me the current issues with ethanol. I'd been doing some reading on it, but could not separate out the facts from the lobbyist's propaganda, but since corn is the basis for Smallville's economy, Rachel knew a lot about it.
Most impressive to me, though, was that the things she said weren't all pro-ethanol just because that would be best for Smallville. She pointed out that there are better sources in South America and said she wasn't completely convinced that corn-based ethanol was the way for the US to go. I never would have expected that from someone as devoted to Smallville as she clearly is.
The second surprise of the night was Clark. He had done some preparing of things the couple of times he had come over to cook, and he had told us he could do so, but he really didn't do himself justice. He was a phenomenal cook – pretty much on par with Chad and I think Chad should have gone to culinary school. Chad joked that we'd be coming over more often now that he knew he didn't have to do all the cooking to get good homemade food.
Poor Rachel, though. We were sitting over dessert – strawberry shortcake and chocolate mousse. Rachel's favorite is strawberry shortcake and Clark rightly assumed I'd prefer something with chocolate in it, so he made both. His mother would be proud of his hospitality, I'm sure.
Anyway, we were sitting over dessert when the questions started.
“So, how many people are in Smallville?” Chad asked. I gave a quiet groan beside him and he reached out and grabbed my hand in a silent "Be quiet!' gesture.
“Two thousand three hundred and thirty five,” Clark answered. Of course he would know the exact number.
“Thirty six,” Rachel corrected gently. “You're forgetting – Jenny and Brian Maddox had their baby last month.”
“Right,” Clark said. “I did forget. And soon to be two thousand three hundred and thirty seven as Anne Marie is due this month.”
“You are so weird,” I said around a spoonful of mousse. “Who knows exactly how many people are in the town they live in?”
“People who live in small towns,” Chad said.
“Really. You think everyone who lives in a small town keeps track of how the population size changes?” I asked.
“No,” Rachel laughed. “I think even if you asked my parents… well, maybe not my parents, but Clark's, they'd tell you it was just over two thousand. But when you're sheriff…”
“Or dating the sheriff,” Clark added.
“Then you kind of know this type of thing. The paperwork for new babies and deaths get passed through my office,” Rachel explained.
“And the information gets passed to me,” Clark said, grinning at Rachel.
“And your parents?” I asked.
“Well, my dad was sheriff before I was. He likes to keep on top of these things. He's one of those guys who had no business retiring,” Rachel said.
“So, you took after your dad. Is that common in Smallville?” Chad asked.
“Honey, ease up. Let Rachel have some of her cake,” I said rolling my eyes at him. “Sorry,” I said to Rachel. “Chad apparently grew up on Little House on the Prairie and he thinks all small towns are just like Walnut Grove.”
Clark laughed. “Well, it's not as different as you might think given that it's been about a hundred years since Walnut Grove was the home of Laura Ingalls.”
Rachel swat at Clark's shoulder playfully. “It's not the same.”
“Well, there are telephones for one,” Clark said.
“There were telephones in Little House,” I said. “Towards the end.”
Clark shrugged. “Maybe they're the same then.”
“You're horrible,” Rachel said with a grin. “Three months here and you're turning into a city boy.”
“Oh, trust me,” I said. “Clark is no city boy. For one thing, no city boy would make more than one dessert to make each of his guests happy.”
“That's right,” Chad said. “With us city-folk, you get one dessert and you like it. And if you don't, we put a bullet in your head.”
“So, how was the museum?” I asked after our laughter had calmed down.
“It was great,” Rachel said. “I love art museums. One negative to Smallville is that there are no museums around. Although, if Martha gets her way that'll change soon.”
“Who's Martha?” Chad asked before I had a chance to.
“My mom,” Clark said. “She's a bit of a city-girl herself. And she's gotten into art recently.”
“Is she any good?” I asked.
“Dad doesn't think so,” Clark chuckled.
“It's hard to say. It's not my kind of art,” Rachel said. “But she really enjoys it.”
“And she can't be that bad,” Clark added. “She won second place at last year's art show in Kansas City.”
“Wow!” Chad said. “Sounds like she's really good.”
“Yeah. Her stuff is just weird,” Clark said. “I don't really understand it.”
Chad turned to me. “Can I ask more Smallville questions now?” he asked with a teasing glint in his eyes.
“I think we should get going, honey. Clark and Rachel might not want us around all night.”
“No, please stay,” Rachel said. “Really. We do want time alone, but we were alone all day today and yesterday and we so rarely get to socialize with other couples.”
“Although, tomorrow is definitely off limits for alone time,” Clark said and Rachel leaned over to kiss him on the cheek and whisper something in his ear.
“So what did you do today?” I asked. I was sort of hoping that Rachel was loving Metropolis. She and Clark looked very cute together and I was starting to worry that if she really hated it here, Clark would move back to Smallville. Now that Perry had me working with a partner, he was likely to want to keep it that way and I couldn't imagine working with someone besides Clark.
Rachel blushed, “Well, we went hiking actually.”
“Where'd you go?” Chad asked. “I didn't know there was any place to hike in Metropolis.”
“There's not,” Clark smiled. “We caught a bus to New Troy National Forest.”
After we cleared the table, we moved to the living room. For awhile, we sat around and talked – Chad and I on Clark's couch and Clark and Rachel huddled together on Clark's big comfy chair. Then Rachel admitted she had a weakness for board games.
“No, no board games,” Clark said.
“Why not?” Rachel asked, turning to look at him with puppy dog eyes.
“Because I have neighbors and I don't see us being able to play any games where you and Lois don't start shouting at each other. You're both too competitive for your own good.”
“I'm not competitive,” I said.
“You're not?” Chad asked me with his eyebrows raised.
“I am,” Rachel admitted. “But I can be quiet, Clark. Really.”
Clark finally relented and we agreed to play Taboo. Clark and Chad decided we should play boys vs. girls so there would be less reason for Rachel and me to argue. No one won in the end, though. Chad and I left right after Clark's upstairs neighbors came down to ask us to keep it down. But it wasn't my fault that Rachel used one of the taboo words. Was I supposed to keep quiet about that?
