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Awwwwwww

Wonderful ending, Nancy. I never would have guessed from where you started this.

Michael

Yay for Lois and Clark!!! This part had some well-placed bittersweet moments (like when Lois remembers falling in love at sixteen), and I loved it, but the ending...was wohoo!!!!

Loved the entire story immensely :-)

I absolutely adored this story!! At first I couldn't find myself to follow it because it was so out of the norm for me...I don't like to read fic that do not involve our two favorite main characters. But I enjoyed the transitions and relationship changes between Chad/Lois and Clark/Rachel to Lois/Clark, Chad/Rachel. And of course the fact that L&C finally got together at the end was just an added bonus. =)

Is there a sequel in the works? Or an epilogue?

Lola

I have a monster cold, so this is going to be short.

What a beautiful wrap-up! You pulled it off masterfully. You showed us how Lois is still honoring her many years with her loving husband, Chad. Can she really move on? Or should she accept that she had her chance and blew it?

I was moved to tears when Clark confessed that he had had the chance to move on, but he hadn't been able to. Apparently he was the one who had broken up with that girl you showed us a little while ago. She would have been happy to settle for him, but he hadn't been able to settle for her, since she was not Lois. And when he confessed that to Lois, not in so many words, she understood how much he really loved her. And finally she was able to acknowledge her love for him, too.

What a beautiful story!!!

Ann

I had a couple of chapters to catch up on, so I'll post more feedback tonight. I wasn't expecting the Lois and Clark getting together ending, but it was nicely written.

Congratulations on finishing this story. However, as written, it's begging for a sequel! Is a sequel planned at some point?

Oh, I loved the end! You began with an unusual (and pretty unpopular around here!) premise, and you wrote a fantastic and believable story.

And yes, I did just get caught up with the whole thing...I have no willpower when it comes to fic and available parts to read!

Thanks for a great story!
Amber

Thanks, everyone. I'm happy the ending worked. Even though I know many/most of you expected it, I was still worried it was a bit unbelievable.

Michael - You know, when I started this, I didn't know where I was going with it. I really just wanted to write more Chad after Triangle. And as you know, several times along the way, I considered abandoning this ending all together. But I did get to a point where I felt like I would just keep writing and see what happened, and then darn it! Lois kept thinking about Clark. I'm so glad it came off as waffy rather than contrived.

Thanks, AnKS! I agree, moments where she thought of Chad are somewhat bittersweet, but then expected. After a relationship that was so much a part of her life, moving on means relegating it to the past. Forgetting it is not really an option.

Thanks, Lola! There's no real sequel planned. Or at least, it's far enough in the list of WIPs to be unlikely to be done. I sort of see the last two chapters here as an epilogue of sorts - I recognize that Lois and Clark first get together here, but since the story is mostly about Lois and her break up with Chad, I see her getting together with Clark as the end of that story and the beginning of a new one.

Ann - I hope you feel better soon!

I have to say, I wasn't actually thinking that Clark broke up with Lydia. I was more thinking that he never was really all that interested in her, but dated her anyway. Mainly as he wasn't sure he'd ever stand a chance with Lois. So, she still broke up with him as she had met someone else, but he never really cared. Lois did mention that, but she saw it as his thinking he wasn't ready to marry Lydia when she was ready to get married. In reality, Clark felt like he'd never be ready to marry Lydia - how could he be when the only woman he wanted to marry was Lois? So, he wasn't at all hurt by the breakup because his heart had always been somewhere else.

What I did envision instead was that when Clark started dating Lydia, he had hoped that would get him to move on since doing nothing wasn't doing it. But it didn't help at all, he still was in love with Lois and Lydia never mattered enough to him so that even when she potentially cheated on him, he didn't really care.

Grinch - I can't believe I surprised you with a Lois and Clark ending. I was a little afraid I might be lynched without it.

Seriously, I really did just let the story guide me at the end as I was having such a hard time deciding between Chad and Clark for the end and this is where I ended up.

As for a sequel, see my response to Lola. Honestly, I'm already fairly into the next story which is vaguely related (in that it, too, is related very peripherally to Triangle). And, in fact, writing for that is going so well that I'm going to wait another week to see if it continues at its current pace and if it does, start posting since at this pace, I'll almost certainly be finished before my due date. My thought is after that, I'll probably be needing a short break from writing to deal with the parasitic worm currently residing in my abdomen (whom, I'm told, is actually a bit more of a handful once s/he comes out). And once said parasite starts sleeping through the night or whatever it needs to do for me to have time and energy to write again, I have another story also sort of started that I keep thinking about. And a new idea I just came up that I'm also interested in (although, I am thinking about putting that one on the challenge board so someone else can take care of it for fear I'll never get to it).

A sequel to this is a potential for after that although I also have another WIP I'd like to try at some point, but I'm guessing we're now talking about sometime in 2011 or so, so who knows?

Thanks, amber! I knew the premise was going to be unpopular, so I'm happy to have so many people stick with me despite that. Luckily, Carol and Beth were very encouraging when this story was in its infancy or it may never have gotten written because of that.

Thanks for deciding to read it even though it started in such an unpopular way!

this story was wonderfully written and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I think this paragraph sum it up for me

"I looked down and saw Smallville stretched below us. My chest still tightened slightly when I looked down at it. I had almost made a life here. Almost. And it might have been a good life. Maybe. But it would have been the wrong life. I looked up and smiled at Clark. The life we were going back to – in Metropolis and together - was the right life."

As Lois said it would have been the wrong life. not just because she got to be with Clark but her and Chad's relationship belong to a different time when they were in different places in their life. Once they both matured I believe their relationship was meant to be a deep and abiding friendship. Their love seemed young.

Ah...sweet WAFF!

Well done.

Sorry for the delay. You mentioned buck-eyed balls in your last chapter. I knew you had given us a link or something to what these actually were, so I went back to some previous chapters last night, and ended up reading the whole story again. Really great story, Nancy! I'm glad you stuck with it.

Really? I was open to Lois and Chad staying together. I mean, I didn't love Chad, but he was nice to Lois, so I let him be. I thought you got this sense when you first started breaking them up, and we kept saying, are you really going forward with this! That being said, I'm all for Lois and Clark ending up together (that shouldn't be a surprise).

I'm wondering though, on what path will these versions of Lois and Clark take. I'm reminded of H.G. Wells telling Lois that her love for Clark was so great that it changed her for the better and for ever. With Lois previously being married, and having Chad in her life, she wasn't the isolated, needy, and wanting to be loved person as canon-Lois. So, with Clark now, is there room in her personal development, for this life-altering transformation? As readers, we get the sense that it was more than distance that broke up Lois and Chad, it was something more fundamental and basic to any relationship. I hope Lois realizes this, and doesn't think of hers and Chad's love story as the perfect fairy tale. Otherwise, it could be in that in your universe, Lois may think Chad to be her soul-mate and Clark to be the guy who gets her through this lifetime when Chad couldn't.

Also for Clark, here is a Lois who doesn't need to be saved every two seconds. This Lois doesn't need Clark to be patient and show her that not all guys are scum. Given this, what role will Clark play in her life? Also, since Chad's been a decent and straight up guy, will Lois constantly be comparing Clark with Chad? Given Clark's relative inexperience, I'm sure insecurities could develop based on this notion alone.

All that rambling aside, I agree with robinson that Lois and Chad's love seemed very young. That's why I've been questioning all along, whether they really did love each other, or they thought they did based on what they knew at the time. This young love thought is reinforced by Chad's comment in the second to last chapter. Chad says something to the effect of, in junior high, it singled you were over your ex if you kissed somebody else. I understand where he's coming from, but still, for a 28 year old guy to be saying that, just supports the idea that Lois has yet to be involved in a more adult, mature, type of relationship.

Given these ramblings, a sequel could so be in the works, even if we have to wait until 2011.

One last thought, it would have been nice when Martha mentioned Lois and Clark's last article, for you to stick in a "Lane and Kent" byline mention. The last we saw Lois, she had said she wasn't quite sure the difference between Lois Lane and Lois Andrews. I would hope that the Lois who admitted she loved Clark, would have been comfortable with the Lois Lane she had become again.

It's only fair that I give some feedback since I did faithfully read the entire fic.

First off, I'll admit that I never cared for Chad, I never saw him as a fit companion for Lois. He just always seemed 'weak'. Every time he tried to do something that was 'right' for him, he seemed to only be able to do it by apology. If he'd been more true to who he was he and Lois should have reached this point earlier. He loved Lois, yes, but he was too subserviant to her wants. All the compromise seemed to be on his part.

Now I can see Lois being with someone besides Clark more than I can see Clark with someone besides Lois, but I still prefer Lois with Clark (or me!).

Having said that, I have to give credit where credit is due. This was a very well written story. You established your premise and followed it to a logical conclusion, and kept your characters personalities consistant within the parameters that you set up.

As I said, I didn't care for Chad, but I was still on board the whole way. That has to tell you something.

Write more... I'll read it.

Tank (who has to mention that he is particularly partial to stories where Lois is the main focus)

Sorry for the long absence. I really do appreciate the feedback - it's just been a busy week.

robinson - I'm not sure Lois and Chad couldn't have worked it out if they really wanted to, but in the end, I agree that this was a better place for them. I feel like the only way they could have been together was to make compromises, and now they are in relationships that don't require that. Plus, of course, this way we get the somewhat requisite Lois and Clark ending.

Thanks, IontheAlias!

grinch - Thanks so much! I can't believe you reread the whole thing! I still can't get up the energy to get this ready for the archive.

I knew you were open to a Lois/Chad ending, but I think you were in the minority there. I appreciate your willingness for that, though, as I still feel like I could have gone that way and been true to the characters.

I don't think she will. It is why I had this interchange with Lois and Martha:

I think Lois will always look back on her life with Chad with fondness, and she's certainly coming into a relationship with Clark very differently than canon-Lois. But I also think she sees that in the end, Clark may be a better fit for her than Chad.

I think you are right - Clark could feel insecure. But I don't know that Lois will be comparing them. I think Clark's role here will be similar to what we saw in season 4 of LnC - Clark wasn't so much Lois' savior anymore, they were true partners and equals. I think in this 'verse, their relationship is starting off there rather than building there.

Personally, I saw this as more about Chad's inexperience than a sign of where their relationship had been. They hadn't dated anyone else, ever, so when Chad thinks of breaking up, it's a bit more like the break ups of his friends in high school than a divorce. He's never been through a break up before since he fell in love and married the first girl he ever dated.

So, while I never thought of putting it here, I did want to include it when Clark told her he loved her for the first time, but I left out Lane for a reason. While Lois talked a lot about changing her name back to Lane, I had trouble being 100% sure she had done it before now. I could really see her dragging her heels on that, feeling like it was her last tie to Chad. So, I wasn't really sure if her name was Lois Lane here or Lois Andrews. I see her as being different here, but I can also see her being Lois Lane, but still wanting to think of herself as Lois Andrews.

Although, you can be sure if she hadn't changed her name yet, she was going to be doing so soon.

Tank -

I definitely think this was true. While Lois was a softer version of herself here, she did seem to "drive" her relationship with Chad quite a bit. I feel like a pattern was set up between them a long time ago (some time we didn't see) where Chad did everything he could to make Lois happy and as he realized he needed more than that out of life, he felt guilty for that.

I actually feel like he finished this story in a much different place than he started even more than Lois. Lois is with someone who "fits" better than Chad since Clark isn't compromising on his desires to make her happy. Chad is also with someone who fits better, but additionally he knows who he is now.

I guess this is my reasoning for why he was always the one doing the compromising. While he always knew he wanted to be a doctor, he didn't realize he wanted to be a small town doctor until later. Lois always knew she wanted to be a reporter for the Planet, so those desires drove their decisions as a couple. Chad has just recently realized who he is as an individual.

Now, all four of the main characters are in relationships that fit the lives they chose for themselves individually and that should lead to more stable, happier relationships.

Thank you!!

If I haven't caught the deadly cold my husband has (which I think I might have), I plan to start posting the next story this weekend. It's a bit more Clark-focused as it's a first person Clark POV, but Lois plays a much more significant role in the story than Clark played in this one. (I should say, though, that it's also a very different Lois than the Lois in this story.)

This was such a beautiful story. I am so glad that Lois and Clark found their way together.

This had to be the most beautiful part of this chapter; Clark being so unsure of himself and wanting so badly for Lois to know that he wants her without making her feel pressured. And she wants him, too. And Martha was just so--Martha with this whole scenario. Such a wonderful ending to a wonderfully written story.

Loved it!

~Sheila

Thanks, Sheila!

I'm glad you liked the part with Martha. I'm not sure why, but it was really important to me that we see Lois and Martha talk about her relationship with Clark. Maybe just because Lois and Martha's relationship in this story was very separate from Lois and Clark's relationship, I could see Lois being uneasy about how Martha would react. Of course, I couldn't see anyway for Martha to react except with happiness, though.