Well, here is Part 3.
This is the last part I've already posted on the 'n' side. From now on, I'll post each part at the same time on both sides.
Any feedback would be very much appreciated. I'm still very, very, new to this.
The fic is based on the Lois and Clark episode ‘Resurrection,’ written by Gene Miller and Karen Kavner and includes some directly quoted dialogue. There are also some quotes taken and references made to previous Lois and Clark episodes, which I am sure you will recognise!
The characters involved are, of course, not mine and belong to Warner Brothers. I am just borrowing them for fun and not for profit etc.
Text between < > indicates a character’s thoughts and text between // \\ indicates a dream/memory.
Emma
Previously……
Her eyelids were closed, her cheeks flushed and her lips slightly parted. Clark bowed down to kiss her, intending to carry her beautiful, sated body to the bedroom, when he heard…
“Help, please help! The kids, we can’t get them out!”
<Oh no, this can’t be happening!>Part 3
Clark eased himself off the sofa, mumbling a farewell to the sleepy-looking Lois. He was conscious, however, that whatever he said to her in the seconds before he left would not be anywhere close to sufficient under the circumstances.
“Lois, I’m so sorry. I have to go. I will be back. I will explain.”
He headed swiftly towards the door as he spoke, barely fastening his jeans, knowing that he was going to have to immediately zoom home and change anyway. Nobody would get the chance to see him in his state of partial undress. He knew his t-shirt was still laying somewhere on Lois’ floor, but it would have to stay there until he could make it back.
Clark knew how his departure would look to Lois, it couldn’t look much worse, but he had no alternative. She would hate him, he couldn’t stand the thought, but he had to focus on the rescue now. He would go straight back to her afterwards and tell her everything, including confessing that he was Superman, and pray that she would understand.
*****************
Lois’ eyelids fluttered open just in time to see her apartment door close behind Clark. She couldn’t begin to comprehend what had just happened. He had muttered some kind of apology, but she hardly heard it. One minute she was floating in a blissful state of afterglow, the next she felt cold, empty, and desolate, as if he had never been there, holding her.
She had felt so warm and cherished, exactly how she expected to feel making love to Clark, and now all she felt was……cheap and dirty. She never thought those words would be used to describe what she had with Clark. He was the kindest, gentlest and most thoughtful person she had ever known. He just wasn’t the love ‘em and leave ‘em type - was he?!
Suddenly, Lois felt like she didn’t know Clark at all and it hurt. It all hurt. She must have initially been too shocked to cry, but she began to weep uncontrollably, pulling her gown around her and drawing her knees up to her chest. She didn’t want to move, or think, it was just all too raw.
Lying curled up in the corner of her sofa, Lois could almost have tricked herself into believing that she had just awoken from one of the vivid dreams she had been having lately. She had the same confused, lonely feeling, only this time there was added to that hopelessness and betrayal. After all, her dreams had always ended with the promise of something wonderful. Now, she had experienced the wonderful, and in an instant it had been shattered to the point where it didn't really seem real. But it was real, far too real, and impossible to undo.
What had possessed her to have unprotected sex on a whim like that? It wasn’t a whim. She had been thinking about it all week, longer if she was honest, and she loved him. She had trusted him too. She trusted Clark more than anyone. Who could she trust now?
She was on the pill at least, but she hadn’t given a second thought to any other kind of protection. It was Clark, ‘her’ Clark. She knew him. He made her feel safe. He was a responsible farmboy; he wasn’t promiscuous, was he? She hadn’t seen him with many other women, except Mayson.
Even though she hated herself for it, the thought of Mayson made Lois shudder, or more particularly Clark and Mayson. That was how this all started after all. Clark was distraught over Mayson’s death and came to her for a shoulder to cry on. Was that why he left, because of Mayson? Had they…? Is that what she wrote about in her diary? Lois felt sick. She knew it was awful to feel this way, poor Mayson was dead, but Clark was very much alive and with her in the most intimate way possible just a short time ago. Surely she couldn’t be blamed for feeling a little like the other woman.
Lois summoned the strength to drag herself up from the sofa. She felt urgently in need of a shower. It was only about an hour since she stepped out of her luxurious lavender-scented bath, but it felt like a lifetime ago; the calm before her relationship with Clark changed forever.
As things had begun to heat up between them, she knew they would never be the same again, but she hadn’t contemplated in what way. She hadn’t considered that Clark would be so scared, or disgusted, or whatever he was, that he would tear away from her at his very first opportunity with scarcely a word.
As Lois headed for her bathroom, she noticed Clark’s t-shirt on the floor, along with the discarded sofa cushions. He had left her apartment shirtless! He had evidently felt so awful that he couldn’t bear to spend another minute with her, preferring to roam the moonlit streets of Metropolis bare-chested. She couldn’t begin to make it make sense. This just wasn’t Clark. Granted, Clark had an infuriating habit of disappearing at a moment’s notice, but this?! It really was something else entirely, something she would not have thought him capable of. Whatever faults Clark had, she genuinely never thought he would hurt her.
What could have possibly made him want to escape in such a hurry? There was no scenario Lois could come up with that was in any way favourable to her, or that made her feel any better. Was he disgusted with her, himself, or both? Was it that bad? Was she that bad? Did he regret taking that step with her? Did he feel guilty because of Mayson? What kind of a man would leave so soon after..?
It wasn’t the same man who gave a lame excuse about being snowed in so that he could be with her at Christmas, and who then held her hand while watching carollers. It wasn’t the same man who soothed her and carried her to bed when she got sick from Chinese food. It wasn’t the same man who fed her chocolate cake on their near-perfect first date. It wasn’t the same man she ate caramel apples with in Smallville, and who won her a teddy bear. What had made him run from her when most guys would barely have been able to stand? Even Claude stayed until the semi-early hours of the morning!
Why didn’t he talk to her? He owed her that at least. He didn’t say a word to her afterwards, except gabbling an apology before sprinting for the door.
Until recently they talked about everything. Tonight, at last, he had come to her for comfort, finally managing to open up about how he’d been feeling since Mayson’s death and she...jumped on him. How was she ever going to look him in the eye again? She hadn’t just lost a short-lived lover; her best friend was gone now too. They could never go back to being the same. Sex changes everything.
<But it was good; really, really good!>
Lois had never known it to be like that before. She suddenly gasped. Clark was such a skilled lover, even in the situation they had been in. What if whatever Mayson had written in her diary had been true! Had he made her feel that way? If he had, it was pretty apparent he had also hurt her. Maybe that was the real Clark Kent under the nice-guy disguise. After all, Lex Luthor had almost charmed her into his bed.
Lois had thought her appalling taste in men had finally come to an end the day she decided to go on a date with Clark; could he really be the same as all the rest?
She snatched hold of the barely-touched bottle of red wine she had opened so much earlier that evening, poured herself a glass, and gulped it down. She wasn’t usually one for drowning her sorrows, but she was in such a state she was keen to slow down her whirring thought-processes. With any luck, it may even help send her to sleep.
Discarding her robe into the laundry basket in the bathroom, before climbing into the shower, Lois continued to battle through tears and began to descend into panic. How would she ever be able to work with Clark again? It was only just over a week since she burst into Perry’s office demanding a new partner after their date had gone too well. What would Perry think if she went back to him again with the same request? He would think she was losing it, and he would probably be right.
As the water splashed over her body, Lois recalled the events of just minutes ago.
//“Lois, should we be……..? I mean, are you sure?”
“Sssh, it’s ok, relax, kiss me……mmm…….kiss me.” \\
Her still constant flow of tears mingling with the water from the shower, Lois became increasingly angry with herself. She had pounced on him! She had been the one that heated up the encounter. He didn’t exactly protest, far from it, but…
<He is a red-blooded male who was feeling extremely vulnerable; with enough encouragement of course he wasn’t going to say no, it doesn’t mean that he loves you! He was crying for God’s sake when you leapt on him!>
//“Lois, I need you too, I want you so much.”\\
Need, not love. He hadn’t told her he loved her. He hadn’t showered her with praise, as was the usual tactic of a man trying to get a woman to have sex. He didn’t tell her she was beautiful until she gave him what he wanted. He had hardly said a word. The kissing was mutual, but the rest?Well, he was certainly a more-than-willing participant, but the fact remained that she had initiated the whole thing. No wonder he had no respect for her. She was responsible for the entire mess.
<It doesn’t excuse what he did, leaving with no explanation. He is your best friend.>
“He was my best friend.” Lois sobbed quietly.
She had thought that he may be in love with her. He must have had feelings for her to ask her out, mustn’t he? Maybe that was why he couldn’t face her, because he wasn’t in love with her and felt guilty. She was so confused.
Lois turned off the shower and enveloped herself in her faithful old towelling robe. She wiped the condensation from the mirror and glanced briefly at her reflection. She looked shocking. Her face was red and blotchy from the heat of the shower combining with her tears.
She plodded into her bedroom, pouring herself some more wine on the way. With all her energy completely sapped, Lois collapsed down onto her bed, curling up into the foetal position with her hair still wet. She tried in vain to lift herself back up, in order that she could dry her hair and actually get underneath the covers, but she was rooted to the spot.
Clark had come to her weak, looking to be consoled, and she had ended up taking advantage of him, throwing herself at him! Of course, it wasn’t deliberate, but that was what had happened. Why couldn’t she just have held him, just been a friend?
Why had she done it? Was it because of Mayson? Was she trying to get reassurance Clark hadn’t gone off her after all the uncertainty of the past week, reassurance that he hadn’t been in love with Mayson after all? Well, if that had been her unconscious plan it had definitely backfired.
No, the kiss had happened because they both wanted it, and what followed….. Lois really didn’t know anymore and she was so tired of analysing. She just wanted to stop thinking, to go to sleep and wake up to find it had never happened and that she and Clark could go back to normal. Most of all, she didn’t know what could possibly erase the pain of him leaving her. No matter how much she blamed herself, she couldn’t begin to forgive him for that.
****************
Lois eventually cried herself into a fitful sleep, littered with memories of the infuriating enigma that was Clark Kent and her relationship with him.
//“You like to be on top, got it.”
“Don’t push me Kent you are way out of your league.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~
“You are a strange one Clark Kent.”
“Am I?”
“Yeah but I think I’ve got you figured out…..”
“………Don’t fall for me farmboy, I don’t have time for it.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~
“You'd like that, wouldn't you? Me home alone in a schlumpy robe, crying into a tub of Rocky Road. In your dreams, Kent. In your dreams.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
“You don't need a partner, Lois. You never did.”
“Well, maybe not, but I was starting to like having one.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~
“I guess I'm just not attracted to you, Lois.”
“Liar! You are so attracted to me.”
“I guess not.”
~~~~~~~~~~~
“You're a weird guy, Clark, that's a given, but you're my partner and I thought my friend. Half the time I don't know where you are or where you're coming from and that's usually okay, but this time it's not. I want an explanation and I want it now.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~
“I have been in love with you for a long time, you have to have known.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~
“The truth of the matter is Lois, it wasn’t true. I’m not in love with you.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~
“In one, lousy, second, I lost my partner, and my best friend. He died without ever knowing, I never told him…”
~~~~~~~~~~~
“Lois, I want you to go out with me…..you know like a date…..”
“Clark, I’m afraid things will change if we start going out…...It’s a big deal, we work together. What happens if, you know, it bombs?”
“We’ll always be friends.”
~~~~~~~~~~~
“You know, when you think about it, the only time people really seem to express themselves is when they’re passionate, and the polite veneer of society drops off, you know like when they’re fighting….”
“Or make love.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~
“Fortunately there’s no doors here tonight.”
“Fortunately..”
~~~~~~~~~~~~
“You’re not yesterday’s news Lois, you’re so much more…..”
“……..Lois, I need you too, I want you so much….”\\~~~~~~~~~~~~
At that moment, Lois awoke shaking and crying. She grabbed the stuffed bear Clark had won for her at the Smallville Corn Festival and threw it across the room.
“Damn you, Clark Kent,” she screamed.
As she sat up, Lois was completely disorientated but quickly ascertained she had a splitting headache. She lay back down again and closed her eyes. The content of her dream, and the fact that it was an entirely accurate representation of her life, hit her. Unlike every other night this week, everything she had dreamed had been real, and it got much worse.
She crawled across her bed to peek at the clock through half-open eyes and was surprised to note it was six a.m. She hadn’t expected to get that much sleep after what had happened. She had to get up. There wasn’t really time for more sleep, and the way she was feeling it would take some time for her to feel in a fit state to entertain going to work.
She sat up again, clutching her head, and noticing the empty wine glass on her dresser. Drinking and crying herself to sleep were no doubt to blame, and Clark.
<Argh, get a grip!>
Lois stumbled into her bathroom and, despite how she felt, what she saw in the mirror was still a shock. Her hair was all over the place, a frizzy mess, her face was red and her eyes were very puffy. She had a vague recollection of lying down with her hair still wet. It was only meant to be for a moment, not the whole night; though at the time she really didn’t care.
<Come on girl, how have you let a man do this to you? Clark, of all people.>
She wandered into the kitchen and drank a large glass of water, along with two aspirin, before putting on some strong coffee. She then dampened her hair quickly under the shower and put in large curlers. She splashed cold water on her face and applied a heavy layer of foundation in an attempt to conceal the redness and puffiness, followed by waterproof mascara and a slick of deep red lipstick.
Lois went to her closet and chose a loose-fitting, fairly conservative, cream checked trouser suit. There was to be no plunging neckline today and no short skirt. She wanted to look the best she could in the circumstances but ultimately professional, not sexy. She certainly felt anything but sexy and wanted to dissociate herself from the idea.
After finishing her coffee and a quick blow-dry of her hair. Lois prepared to leave for work. She wasn’t yet sure how she was going to face Clark Kent, but face him she would, with her head held high as Lois Lane, not the snivelling wreck she had become. Lois tried to channel her pain into anger and determination. She wasn’t going to wallow around like a victim. If there was one thing she was resolved about above all else it was that she would not let him see her cry.
*********************
Clark Kent had never felt that the universe was more against him. First Mayson’s life was so cruelly taken, just as he had finally made a breakthrough with Lois, and then his fledgling relationship with Lois was put under strain as a result.
Seconds after making love to Lois, (the first time he had ever made love to anyone, and the most perfect moment of his life) he was called upon to save trapped children from an orphanage fire without even having chance to explain to her the truth about his secret identity and why he had to leave.
To top it all off, he was unable to return to Lois. He heard a news bulletin on a radio in a passing car about a devastating mudslide, and that was what occupied the remainder of his night.
Clark had felt awkward and embarrassed when he arrived at the orphanage. He couldn’t shake the nagging sense that it was obvious what he had very recently been doing. Of course, compared to rescuing the children, this was of no significance, and thankfully he had achieved that objective with ease within seconds. He lingered at the scene until the blaze was extinguished, then swiftly made his retreat, he had hoped back to Lois, but he was barely airborne when he heard the news report.
Of course, he blamed himself for everything. He should never have got so carried away as to make love to Lois without telling her the truth about himself. He had broken a long-held personal vow and now it was likely he would well and truly pay the price.
**********************
It was around seven-thirty a.m. when Clark made it back to his apartment. The chance for any sleep long-since lost, he spun out of his Superman costume and headed straight for the shower. Only then did he really get a chance to stop and properly consider the previous night in any logical detail. Lois’ words of comfort echoed in the forefront of his mind.
//“I’m here for you, I always will be. I want to help you if you’ll let me.”\\
Would she still want to be there for him now? Now he had seemingly used her and left with no explanation? It wasn’t the first time Lois had been abandoned in that way, Clark recalled, and it sickened him. She had told him about being let down by a co-worker in the past, not long after they first met...
//“It was a long time ago, when I first started at the Daily Planet – Claude. He was
French. I must've been in love with him, or thought I was. Anyway, one night I told him about my story, and the next morning, when I woke up, he was gone. So was my story. He won an award for that! Didn't even thank me for my 'input'."\\
He was no better than Claude, or at least he wouldn’t be in Lois’ eyes. Of course, he wasn’t using her, he loved her. He had longed to make love to her; it meant so much to him the comfort she unconditionally gave. It was his first time and it had been with the only woman he had ever truly loved. It should have been perfect. They should be so happy. If only he had gone about things in the right order. He wasn’t truthful with her first and now he had probably destroyed their relationship before it had even begun.
Still, he had to try. He had to tell her everything as soon as possible and face the consequences. It was the only way he could limit the damage and the hurt his leaving must have caused her, and besides, if in the unlikely event she did still want a relationship with him, he would have to be completely honest with her about himself. The first opportunity he got he would tell her that he loved her and that he was Superman. Was there any chance she would forgive him? Either way, he definitely owed her the truth.
Clark had been more than a little surprised at how forward Lois had been. It was a far cry from the insecurity that had led her to slam the door in his face after their first date. After their date had gone so well (or so he thought) last week, the prospect of going further than a kiss had crossed Clark’s mind, but he was more than happy to finally be dating her. He had been pretty sure Lois would want to take things slowly and he certainly wasn’t going to push her, particularly not until he was prepared to tell her he was Superman. Was it because he ignored her this week, is that what had driven her to it? No, how could he be so conceited as to begin to think that! There had been a connection, a moment when they both knew what was about to happen and had both felt it was right. She must have felt it too; he knew she did, though she must surely be regretting it now.
//“Oh Clark, I need you.”
“Lois, I need you too, I want you so much…..I lov…..”\\
Yet another deep regret burst into Clark’s consciousness. He hadn’t told Lois he loved her, at least not so that she was aware. At this point in time she had no idea that she or their lovemaking had meant anything to him. In fact, his actions suggested very strongly that they didn’t. His mind had been so quickly overtaken by the physical sensations, but that was no excuse. He had completely and utterly let her down. She would never take a leap of faith like that with him again.
As wonderful as the memory was it was tainted, perhaps irretrievably, by what followed. Even after he explained everything she may never speak to him again, never mind let him hold her and touch her.
He switched off the water and stepped out of the shower. It was eight a.m. Clark didn’t think he’d ever had such a long shower and he was no clearer really as to how he was going to handle talking to Lois. What he did know was that he needed to get to The Planet sooner rather than later, before the day got going and Perry or something else distracted them. That was assuming Lois would be at work after what happened? Clark was sure her professionalism would get her there.
He finished getting ready at superspeed and headed out of his apartment, feeling the most nervous he had ever been. He was about to have the most difficult and important conversation of his life.
***********************
It was around eight a.m. when Lois arrived in the newsroom. Despite her conservative appearance and careful attempts to appear normal, she still felt like she screamed ‘I had sex with Clark last night.’ She looked around awkwardly, mainly to check whether he had turned up yet, before heading to pour herself a mug of coffee to which she added cream and sugar.
As she walked to her desk she scanned the bullpen once again and quick trip over to Clark’s desk confirmed it, he wasn’t in yet. His computer was still off and his desk undisturbed. Clark always left his desk tidy at the end of a day. Lois was relieved, but trembling, and willed herself to stop. She couldn’t be in this state when he appeared, if indeed he did.
Maybe he wouldn’t come in at all. Perhaps he couldn’t face her. His behaviour had been pretty appalling by anybody’s standards. As nervous as Lois was about seeing him, she did not like the idea of him not showing up. She needed to get the initial humiliation over with sooner rather than later.
She slumped down at her desk, sipped her coffee, and tried half-heartedly to read the letters Sean Macarthy’s mother had given to her the day before. The letters Clark had been so keen for her to get through. Hopefully focusing on work would help her make it through the day. Something had to.
*************************
Riding up in The Daily Planet’s elevator, Clark’s nerves hadn’t subsided at all. Not only that, but everything seemed so different. Everything was so different. He had made love to his partner last night. He could still smell her, taste her, yet somehow he had to focus enough to coherently put into words why he behaved as he did last night. Most importantly of all he had to tell her ‘the’ secret. She would have been angry enough under the very best of circumstances, but now it was going to be so much worse.
In any other situation Clark wouldn’t have contemplated telling Lois at The Planet, but the way he had left things between them he couldn’t very well start the working day pretending everything was normal and leave the talk until later. The elevator doors opened and Clark took a deep breath. He was really going to need some luck to get through this successfully, and he certainly hadn’t had much of that lately.
************************
As the newsroom began to fill up, Lois dreaded having to talk to anyone. She couldn’t take pressure from Perry or boundless enthusiasm from Jimmy about his date last night, not right now. She attempted to read but it was futile, all she could think of was when Clark would finally arrive. How was she going to handle it? What was she going to do? She tried to take some slow breaths and calm herself.
<It didn’t happen. He didn’t come to my apartment last night in tears. I didn’t attack him like an animal on heat. He didn’t kiss me and touch me and make me feel… We didn’t make wild, steamy, passionate, love on my couch and he didn’t leave without his shirt seconds later…>
“Lois.”
<Oh God!>
He was here. Lois’ stomach did a gigantic flip. She was pleased she hadn’t attempted to eat any breakfast. Completely stunned, her hands were shaking as she gripped the letter she had been trying to read. She attempted to switch on work autopilot, before turning round to look at him.
<He’s seen me naked-ish! I’ve seen his….>
“Clark.” She tried to keep her voice steady. “Why are you so late? I thought you were really anxious to get to the bottom of this investigation.”
Clark was taken aback by her casual tone, although it was clear all was not right.
“I’ve been looking into the orphanage fire last night that Superman went to. Can we talk Lois?”
Clark was almost willing her to put the pieces together, although he knew she wouldn’t. It would be easier than him having to find the words.
Lois tried to remain composed.
<Oh, so he’s been so preoccupied with Mayson he’s barely been able to talk, he left me last night with barely a word, but this morning he’s up and about covering Superman rescues!>
“Oh, right. I didn’t hear about that. Are all the kids ok?”
“Yeah, he got them all out. Looks like it was just accidental. Lois, can we talk?”
“I’ve been reading Macarthy’s letters and I think we should….”
<Uh-oh, defences well and truly up. She’s in full-on mad-dog work mode.>
“This is a little awkward Lois, please. We need to talk about last night. I owe you an explanation.”
“No Clark, its fine.”
Lois looked down at the letter in her hand as she spoke, trying to look like she was engrossed in reading it, though of course she wasn’t. She was still trembling. She didn’t want to talk, not about that, she couldn’t, she just didn’t want to hear it.
Clark was puzzled and frustrated by Lois’ attitude, but he knew he had no right to be. He couldn’t begin to know what effect last night may have had on her. He was still determined, however, to say his piece and then take whatever the consequences were. There was just no other realistic way forward.
“Lois, can we go somewhere and talk, please?”
Lois looked up, though she avoided eye-contact. He wasn’t going to give up. She reluctantly stood up and followed Clark to the Conference Room. This was exactly what she didn’t want to do, talk about it, go over what happened. She was surprised that Clark did, although maybe his Kansas-boy conscience had got the better of him and he felt the need to apologise.
All Lois knew was she couldn’t face the rejection again; it was still far too raw and she really didn’t want to cry. What on earth could he have to say? That it was a terrible mistake? That he is not in love with her? That he was in love with Mayson and feels as though he has cheated on her memory? Her stomach was churning as she walked slowly behind him and she was furious that he had reduced her to this.
Clark let Lois go in first, then closed the door behind them. His repeated request that they talk no doubt gave the impression he had a clue what he was going to say, when actually he still had no idea. Where was he going to begin? Was this really an appropriate place for him to tell her he was Superman?
“Lois, I really should explain. Last night…”
Lois jumped in, cutting him off mid-sentence, terrified of what he was about to say.
“No need Clark, it’s ok. It was what it was. Not a mistake as such, but something we needed to do, something to get past. We’ve been confusing working respect and admiration for something more. There’s been this attraction, simmering beneath the surface and now we’ve got it out of our systems, like an itch that needed scratching.”
She spoke hurriedly and paced the room, avoiding any eye-contact with Clark. She knew she wouldn’t be able to get the words out if she did, particularly because she was lying through her teeth and concentrating so hard on keeping tears at bay.
Clark just stared straight ahead, shell-shocked. Lois continued.
“I’ve always said you should never mix business with plea…..personal stuff. I know I’m not always good at following that but well, it’s true.”
She was still pacing. Clark wasn’t sure what to think. She definitely wasn’t giving him chance to speak. He couldn’t blame her for being angry or upset, but indifferent? He really wasn’t expecting that. Still she carried on.
“At least now we can move on, so you don’t have to worry. We’re fine, partners, ok? Where were we? Oh yes, Macarthy’s letters...”
Lois walked towards the Conference Room door. She felt claustrophobic and was anxious to get out of there in order that she could breathe. Her eyes were stinging from suppressing tears and she was very glad of the waterproof mascara.
She didn’t really want to let him off that easily, but she knew she would have cracked if she had given him the opportunity to say whatever he was going to. At least this way she had minimised the hurt and humiliation, if that was possible.
Clark wasn’t really sure what to say.
“Lois….”
“Clark, come on, I know how strongly you feel about this story. Let’s get to work.”
She left the Conference Room without looking back and vaguely beckoned Clark to follow. Instead, he remained, watching her walk away from him back to her desk. It had been a long time since he’d heard that tone in Lois’ voice. It was such a sharp contrast to last night, when she showed him such compassion, patience and affection.
He was pretty sure she had just put her barriers up, and he couldn’t blame her, but her words stung nevertheless. It may have been hurt or rage talking or she may have been speaking her true feelings. Either way, at that moment, she could just as easily have pelted him with shards of kryptonite. The effect was the same.
