PREVIOUSLY FROM THE TIME TRAVELER’S WIFE...
She gasped, struggling to keep her balance when she found herself standing on the street, Charlie about ten feet away.
“I’m sorry,” Charlie gasped. “I shouldn’t have... It’s not... I just...”
“Charlie?” she asked.
“I’ve got to go,” Charlie said.
She watched in complete confusion when he began backing away and then... a gust of wind and he was gone.
“Charlie?” she asked again when she suddenly found herself standing alone across the street from the Daily Planet.AND NOW...
* * * * * * * * *
PART FOUR
‘To Love And To Cherish’
* * * * * * * * *
Lois stood in stunned silence across the street from the Daily Planet. Well, that certainly answered the question of how fast Charlie could move.
She barely noticed as the sun set and the street lights began slowly blinking on. At first, she was hurt. And then, angry.
Her first instinct was to say that if he didn’t want her, then she didn’t want him even more. With that thought in mind, she began stomping through the streets of Metropolis on her way back to NTU. Men were pigs. What did she need them for anyway?
But that thought only sustained her for a time. Soon, she was thinking about his face, his eyes, the sound of his voice, the touch of his hand, his kiss... Most definitely his kiss. His lips, soft but strong, moist but dry, insistent but tender. The way she responded to him, heart, soul and body. In all of her imaginings about what it would be like to kiss Charlie, never had she envisioned anything like that.
Besides, whereas other men might be pigs, Charlie wasn’t. He was sweet and gentle and strong and smart and his touch was all it took to awaken emotions that, until now, had existed for her only in romance novels. What she felt for him made what she had felt for Paul seem meaningless in comparison. In fact, since Charlie had first walked into her life, Paul had barely crossed her mind - as if Paul were a mere footnote in the history of Lois Lane. A history in which Charlie played a dominant part.
It was then that the truth sunk in.
“I’m in love with Charlie King,” she said, her feet coming to a complete stop, unaware of the people having to step around her as she stood motionless in the middle of a busy sidewalk. It was a revelation, but it wasn’t, as if some part of her had always known that one central truth.
Her mind flashed from one moment to another of her time with Charlie. Her first glimpse of him when he’d caught her falling from that tree when she was nine. That embarrassing moment where he’d first entered the kitchen at the Apha Nu Rho house. That electric filled moment outside his motel room when she’d first become aware of... something between them. Eating hotdogs at the ball park. Trying to sneak past security guards at the stadium. Batting around ideas for approaching the investigation. Falling asleep on his shoulder while watching a video. Moments of fun. Moments of tenderness. Moments of excitement and passion. Until finally, her mind settled on that kiss.
The kiss that had changed the world as she knew it. He had felt it, too. She knew he had.
As soon as that realization sunk in, there was only one option open. To find him. To insist that he talk to her. To take as long as it took to hammer this out.
Because if there was one thing she knew for certain it was that she was not about to let Charlie King go without a fight.
* * * * * * * * *
Clark paced his motel room in frustration. How could he have done that? Kissing Lois had been... wonderful... amazing... mind-blowing... life-changing... and a mistake. Definitely a mistake.
The crazy thing was that he’d never even seen it coming. One minute, they’d been celebrating. A moment later, they’d really been celebrating.
But he couldn’t do this to Lois. She didn’t know. Didn’t understand that he couldn’t stay. He had to get back to his own time and the second he figured out how to fix the time machine, he would. Starting something with her now would be completely unfair to her. If he had any integrity at all, he’d make certain never to see her again - at least until he could continue what he’d had accidentally started tonight. He would take the time machine to that deserted tropical island and stay there until he figured out how to fix it. He would leave tonight and not look back.
He also shouldn’t have flown out of there. She had to have noticed how quickly he’d left. On the other hand, if he hadn’t, if he’d stood there for one more second, he knew he’d have been back in her arms. And... what then?
Someone knocking at the door stopped him in his tracks.
What now? He’d paid the manager for a week when he’d first arrived, recognizing that it would likely take some time to get the time machine working. But that meant he was paid up until tomorrow. So if the manager was wanting next week’s payment...
Taking a moment to throw the tarp over the time machine and tying it down, he walked over to the door and threw it open, freezing in his tracks when he saw who was standing on the other side.
“Lois,” he breathed.
* * * * * * * * *
“Do you want to tell me what that was all about out there, Charlie?” Lois demanded, pushing her way past him to enter his room.
“Lois, I’m...” he said, glancing at the door, as if unsure what to do with it, before deciding to close it.
“I don’t want to hear it,” she said, cutting him off. “I know you feel something for me. I know I’m not wrong about that.”
“You...” He took off his glasses and rubbed the bridge of his nose.
She couldn’t help notice how cute he looked without his glasses, even as her mouth continued spouting words. “You kissed me, Charlie. I mean you really kissed me. It wasn’t just me and I won’t allow you to pretend it was. And then you just...” She made a wavy gesture with her hands. “And I want to know what that was all about?”
“Lois, I...”
He closed his eyes, his hands now rubbing his temples. He appeared to be getting a headache, not that Lois was going to let a little headache stop her.
“And don’t feed me any bull about how you just had to leave either. If there was some reason you didn’t think we should be kissing, you could have stopped and told me. You could have said, ‘Lois, we can’t be kissing because I’m married. Sorry I forgot to mention that little detail this past week, but it just sort of slipped my mind.’ Or you could have said, ‘Lois, we can’t be kissing because... Charlie!” she exclaimed when he suddenly doubled over, holding his head in his hands.
She rushed to him just in time to catch him as he collapsed onto the floor. Or, well, sort of catch him. He was heavier than she’d expected and all she was able to do was to slow his fall so that he didn’t hurt himself when he landed.
Her hand went to his forehead to brush off a strand of hair, causing her to realize that he was burning up. “Charlie, what’s wrong?” she asked. “How can I help?”
“Lois...”
His voice was soft and strangled, as if it were an effort to get out just the single word. His knees came up to his chest and he groaned, holding himself as if trying to keep himself from being torn apart.
He needed help.
“I’m going to call 9-1-1,” she said, preparing to rise.
“No!” The gasped command was accompanied by him grabbing her wrist.
“But, Charlie...”
“No! No doctors!”
His grasp on her wrist, which was almost painful, relaxed.
“No doctors,” he breathed this time, before seeming to turn in on himself once again.
Lois sank back down next to him, torn. And terrified. He wanted no doctors. That was abundantly clear, but...
“How can I help you?” she asked, running her fingers through his increasingly damp hair.
He didn’t answer, completely lost to her at this moment. Not knowing what else to do, she quickly rose to her feet and rushed into the bathroom. Grabbing a towel, she soaked it in cool water before returning to Charlie. Sinking back to the floor next to him, she began gently using the towel to wipe the hot sweat from his face, his brow, his neck, everywhere where his skin was exposed.
His body shook as tremor after tremor seemed to ripple through him. He finally relaxed against her and she started to breath again. His breathing calmed and he became peaceful.
When he finally started to rouse, she experienced a moment of pure joy. The relief was almost palpable, as if it were a third person in the room with them.
“Charlie,” she whispered, even as she helped him move into a seated position.
The completely exhausted look he gave her tore at her heart.
“Do you think you can move onto the bed?” she asked.
“Give me a moment,” he replied, closing his eyes.
“What happened?” She didn’t want to push, not when he was still so weak, but she had to know.
“It’s nothing.”
Nothing? What she had just witnessed might be a lot of things but ‘nothing’ wasn’t one of them.
“A headache,” he added.
“Charlie, I’ve had headaches before and that...”
“It’s nothing, Lois,” he interrupted.
She let out a breath. Well, now was not the time to pursue this, not when he was so weak. But she would get to the bottom of it. For now...
“How about we get you into bed,” she said, instantly blushing when she registered the words.
For a moment, he was silent. Finally, he nodded.
Even working together, it took her some time to get him settled. Helping him remove his jacket and shirt. Trying not to notice how well defined his chest and stomach muscles were. Watching him struggle to make his hands undo his belt - until she took over the task. Trying not to watch as he proceeded to strip out of his jeans and crawl under the covers.
Once he was finally settled, she sat down on the side of the bed and gently stroked his hair. It wasn’t long before he fell asleep.
Unsure what to do, she simply continued to sit beside him, watching his chest rise and fall. Looking around the room, she spotted a large chair. She slipped off her shoes and crawled onto the chair.
Even though the danger had passed, her mind wouldn’t calm. Terror ate at her belly. What was wrong with him? Was he dying? Is that why he’d run from their kiss? Did he know he only had a limited time left and didn’t think it was fair to get involved with her?
She had assumed the reason he’d run was that he was a time traveler. But what if that wasn’t the reason at all? Did he have some horrible disease that he knew would shortly take him from her?
Everything suddenly became so clear to her. If he’d been trying to protect her, he was already too late. She had already fallen head-over-heels in love with him. And losing him was going to kill her now whether or not they ever got involved.
So really... no matter what was wrong with him, she was not going to let him go. He was hers for whatever time he had left. She’d deal with the consequences to herself after he was gone.
Crawling out of the chair, she walked back over to the bed, her eyes caressing his beloved face.
“I love you, Charlie King,” she whispered, kissing his forehead lightly before returning to her chair to watch over him while he slept.
* * * * * * * * *
The knocking woke Lois. Disoriented, she looked around, her eyes eventually falling on the man sleeping in the nearby bed. A slow smile began to form on her lips until the circumstances that had lead to her spending the night seeped back into her conscious mind.
More knocking pushed those thoughts aside. Realizing someone was knocking on the door and not wanting the intruder to wake Charlie, she rose to her feet, rushing over to the door and opening it.
“Molly?” she asked, quickly stepping outside and closing the door behind her.
“Oh, thank god. When I couldn’t get hold of you last night... and then again this morning, I was worried that... Well, considering what happened to you... I was just worried that whoever slipped that drug into your drink might have decided to finish the job. I was hoping Charlie might know where you were.” She suddenly smiled. “Turns out I was right.”
“Molly, it isn’t what it looks like.”
“It looks like you spent the night together.”
“Well, we did, but not like that,” she quickly added when Molly instantly grinned. “He...” She hesitated, suddenly unwilling to share Charlie’s secrets, even with her best friend. “It’s a long story.”
“Uh, huh,” Molly said, obviously not accepting the flimsy explanation.
“So why were you looking for me?” Lois asked, attempting to change the subject.
“Well, last night I was just calling to see if you wanted to go out and celebrate your first story in the Daily Planet,” she said, before glancing at the door behind Lois. “But it seems you found someone else to celebrate with.”
“How did you know that I got my story published in... Oh, right. I told you when I called you to get a quote for the story.”
Molly nodded. “Never been an anonymous source before. It was sort of cool. Anyway, the reason I was trying to contact you this morning is because I got a call from someone looking for you.”
“Who?”
“She wouldn’t leave a name. But she said she needed to talk to you about your story. When she couldn’t reach you at the dorm, someone suggested she try the sorority house.”
That got Lois’ attention. This woman really did seem determined to reach her. “Did she say why?”
Molly shook her head. “Anyway, I told her to come over to the house this afternoon. Since you weren’t in your room at the dorm, I took a look at your schedule and ran by your first class, hoping to catch you. When you weren’t there...”
“Class! Molly, what time is it?” Lois looked down at her watch, staring in disbelief at the time.
Molly laughed. “Guess you forgot, huh?”
“Yeah. I guess so.”
“That will happen when you are up half the night... not doing what it looks like you were doing.”
“Molly, I told you...”
“Nothing happened,” Molly completed. “Okay, okay. But I can’t say I understand why not. He’s a great guy, Lois.”
Lois glanced back at the door to the room. “He really is, isn’t he.” Even she heard the wistful longing in her voice.
Molly laughed. “You got it bad, girl.”
“Yeah. I sort of do.”
“Okay, well I’ve got a class of my own to get to. So I’ll see you later. The girl who called said she’d be by at one, so...”
“I’ll be there.”
“Oh, one other thing. I picked up a dozen copies of the Daily Planet this morning. They’re in my room if you want to take a look.” She winked at Lois. “Pretty impressive story on the front page that might interest you.”
“Yes! Absolutely.”
“Okay, I’ll see you later.”
Lois watched as Molly turned to leave. Once her friend was part way down the street, Lois glanced back at her watch. If she hurried, had a quick shower, she could make it to her second class. Then she glanced back at the door to the room and changed her mind. She and Charlie needed to talk. Today Lois was going to do what everyone else seemed to do on a regular basis. She was going to play hooky.
* * * * * * * * *
Clark woke to the sound of someone entering the room. He moaned in response to the aroma that hit his nostrils almost immediately.
“Freshly baked croissants,” he said without even bothering to open his eyes.
“Hey, look who’s finally awake.”
Charlie smiled. He knew that voice. Opening his eyes when he felt the bed next to him depress, he looked up to see the most beautiful woman he’d ever known sitting next to him. She’d obviously been up for a while. Her freshly washed hair was still wet - although she smelled like his shampoo rather than her normal floral scent.
“Did I really just spend the night with the most beautiful woman in the world?” he asked, smiling up at her.
Her laughter was like music to his ears. “No. Sorry to disappoint you. It was just me here.”
“Then I was right the first time.”
She ducked her head and pushed a strand of hair behind her ear. He couldn’t help but smile. He wondered if she had any idea how completely adorable she was when she did that.
Suddenly, her expression changed, almost scaring him in its sudden intensity. “How long do you have, Charlie?”
“Huh?” he asked, completely baffled with this sudden change of subject.
“You’re dying, aren’t you?”
“Dying?” he asked, his mind a swirl of confusion. He pushed himself into a seated position. He couldn’t help but notice when her eyes flicked to his bare chest. He could hear the involuntary increase in her heart rate and see a blush rise in her cheeks, and couldn’t help but smile in response.
“Well, after what happened last night, I thought...”
“Lois, I’m not dying. I told you, it was just a headache. Okay, a very bad headache,” he added when she looked as if she was about to object. “But just a headache, none the less.”
“How long have you been having these headaches?”
“Not long.”
“Have you seen a doctor about them?”
He suddenly felt very uncomfortable. “Listen, Lois, I don’t want to get into the reasons, but I can’t see a doctor.”
“Is this about insurance? Because I’m sure I could get my father to see you for free if you...”
“It’s not about insurance,” he said, reaching out and taking her hand. “Lois, relax,” he said, keeping eye contact with her. “It was just a headache.”
“But...”
His free hand came up and he lay his fingers over her lips. “I’m fine. Now... was that croissants I smelled a minute ago?”
She looked at him for a moment more before she finally seemed to let the subject go. “Uhh... yeah, I just... well, I thought you might be hungry when you woke up. I certainly am. I didn’t know what you might like so I got an assortment. And coffee. I hope you like coffee in the mornings.”
“Coffee is always the right choice.”
“Okay, then why don’t you get up while I lay things out.”
She moved over to a table on the far side of the room, having to step around the large tarp covered contraption sitting in the middle of the floor. He felt slightly confused, but at the same time grateful that she almost seemed oblivious to its presence. Maybe there was enough on her mind at the moment without worrying about what was under the tarp. On the other hand, it was rather strange, given who she was, that she wasn’t more curious about it.
“Given how late you slept, we’ve sort of got to get moving here. We’ve got a source to meet with at one.”
“You had time to get breakfast and a source all before I woke up? Don’t suppose you managed to snag a copy of this morning’s paper while you were out.”
Her smile was almost dazzling when she held up the Daily Planet, her article prominently displayed on the top right hand side of the front page.
“Congratulations. Your first front page story.”
“Thanks,” she said, now looking somewhat embarrassed. “So why don’t you...” She gestured towards the bathroom before seeming to deliberately turn her back to him once again. When he suddenly realized just how little he was wearing, he understood. Quickly, he grabbed some clothes and ducked into the bathroom.
* * * * * * * * *
A headache. Could that really have been just a headache? She supposed so. After all, weren’t migraine headaches supposed to be pretty incapacitating? And she had to admit, she’d never seen anyone get a migraine, so maybe... Besides, he wouldn’t lie to her about something this important, would he? Either way, she supposed she would have to take his word for it - at least until she had evidence to the contrary.
She let out a breath. He was okay. He wasn’t dying. She closed her eyes for a moment and let that information sink in, allowing the tension to drain from her body. Anything else they could work through.
They still had to discuss why he’d run away from her last night. But there wasn’t time for that now - given how late he’d actually managed to sleep. But until they did, there was no way she planned to let him out of her sight. There was no way she was going to let him get into that time machine and simply disappear on her until they had thrashed the whole thing out.
He might not know it yet, but Lois Lane had a bone in her teeth and she wasn’t about to let go until he came clean with her... about everything.
She heard the water stop and hurried to complete breakfast preparations. He would be out of the shower soon. Drying off that gorgeous body. Slipping into his briefs and jeans. Pulling a shirt over those impressive shoulders. She shook her head in amusement when it occurred to her just how excited she could get just imagining what he looked like doing all those things.
Molly was right. She had it bad.
* * * * * * * * *
“Mayson Drake,” the blonde said, offering Lois her hand.
“Lois Lane,” Lois responded.
“Who’s he?”
Lois glanced over at Charlie. “He’s a friend. Charlie King.”
Mayson couldn’t seem to look directly at Charlie. Instead, she looked decidedly uncomfortable about his presence.
“Uhh... Charlie, would you mind going to see what’s keeping Molly? I really could use that cup of coffee.”
Charlie seemed to pick up on her hint immediately. “Sure. Nice to meet you, Ms. Drake,” he said before leaving the room.
“I’m sorry about that,” Mayson said the instant he was gone. “I have a bit of a problem with men I don’t know.” She shrugged.
“No problem,” Lois said. “Look, why don’t we go into the study? We can have some privacy there to talk.”
Mayson nodded.
After they took a seat in the study, Mayson began silently studying her fingernails. Not knowing why Mayson had wanted to see her, Lois felt a little lost about where to start. From Mayson’s reaction to Charlie, she suspected that something very bad had happened to this woman. But since she didn’t know that for certain, she didn’t want to jump to conclusions. Well, this was really Mayson’s show so Lois decided to wait, see if Mayson would talk if she just gave her time.
“I read your story,” Mayson finally said.
Lois nodded. Molly had already mentioned that.
Mayson looked around the room, taking in all the books lining the walls. “I went to New Troy University last year, you know. Seems like a lifetime ago.”
“What were you studying?” Lois asked, because it seemed a neutral enough question - but one that would tell Mayson she was listening.
“I was in my first year of law school.” Mayson gave a humorless laugh. “I wanted to be Perry Mason. My hero. I figured it was my destiny... given his name and mine - and the fact that Perry Mason’s chief investigator was named Drake. Couldn’t be a coincidence, right? I was going to defend all the wrongfully accused. Be the greatest criminal defense attorney who ever practiced law. Talk about irony.”
Molly chose that moment to enter, bearing coffee.
“Do you two want to talk alone?” Molly asked, as she poured the coffee and handed it out.
Lois looked over at Mayson who merely shrugged so Lois gestured for Molly to join them. Molly took a seat and all three women sipped their coffee for a moment before Mayson continued.
“Anyway, after reading your story... I’m sorry. I’m kinda having a hard time with this.”
“It’s okay. Take your time,” Lois responded, wishing she could pull out her tape recorder but knowing it would spook Mayson. At least with Molly here, she had another pair of ears. It briefly occurred to her to wonder if, given how good Charlie’s hearing was, he could hear them from the front room or kitchen or wherever he was currently waiting.
“Last year... One night last year... It was February sometime. A bunch of girlfriends and I decided to go to a party at the Beta Beta house.”
Molly and Lois shared a look.
“We were having a good time. Drinking a bit, I suppose. But not overdoing it. Meeting new people. That sort of thing. Anyway, we sort of got separated. You know how it is. Someone spotted a friend she knew and wanted to talk to him. Another wanted to dance.” Mayson shrugged.
“Anyway, I wasn’t sure what happened. I figured I’d just had too much to drink because the next morning I woke up in my room with no memory of how I got home. Funny thing was, I only remembered having a couple of drinks over... probably a couple of hours. I don’t even remember feeling particularly tipsy. Until... Well, all of a sudden I felt drunk. I don’t remember anything after that.
“At first, I didn’t know anything had happened. Oh, I knew a few things were sort of strange. I mean, I found my shoes in a different spot than where I normally kept them. And I wasn’t wearing a top. I always sleep in an old sweatshirt. But I just figured I must have had more to drink than I remembered and maybe passed out before getting fully changed.”
She hesitated for a long moment, studying the dark liquid in her cup.
“But there were other things, too.”
When she didn’t continue, Lois finally spoke. “Like what?”
“Bruises on the insides of my legs. One of them actually looked like a hand mark. I didn’t notice them until I was showering.” Her voice cracked slightly.
“Did you see a doctor?” Molly asked, when Mayson didn’t seem able to continue.
The question seemed to bring Mayson back to her surroundings. She blinked, apparently trying to focus on the question. “Uhh... yeah. Not until the next day, though. I wanted to get the morning after pill. You know, just in case. I figured I must have gotten drunk and...” She brushed at the tears that had formed in her eyes. “The whole thing made me a little uncomfortable, not knowing who I had been with or exactly what had happened. But I was too ashamed to mention it to anyone. I figured it was my fault. That I’d had too much to drink and then done something incredibly stupid.
“I was never exactly a prude about these things, but... To be pretty sure you had sex with someone and have absolutely no idea who...”
She fell silent once again.
For a moment, Lois thought that was all she would say, but breaking the silence suddenly, Mayson continued.
“A few days later, the nightmares started.”
“What sort of nightmares?”
“They were always the same. Feelings mostly. Never solid images. But I would have this overwhelming feeling that I was trapped. I would be begging... Not sure what for, although in the dreams I did. And trying to push my way free. Always trying to push my way free....” Her voice trailed off, as if lost in the nightmare. Then, she seemed to shake it off. “I would wake up screaming, tears running down my cheeks, often with my roommate shaking me awake.
“After that, I became increasingly paranoid. I wasn’t sleeping well and my marks took a nose-dive. I couldn’t stand to be alone with a man - not even some of my closest friends if they were male... And if someone touched me... reached out and touched my shoulder... brushed past me...” She shook her head, as if still trying to come to terms with that aspect of what had happened to her. “Finally, I dropped out of school.
“So when I read your story... I don’t know. Maybe I did just drink too much, but...”
“Your story sounds a lot like what happened to me,” Lois said softly. “I had one glass of wine and after that... I really couldn’t tell you what happened then.”
“You’re the one in the story?” Mayson asked.
Lois nodded. “That’s not for public consumption, but... well, I sort of figured you needed to know.”
“Do you think you were...” Mayson didn’t say the word, but that didn’t keep Lois from knowing exactly what she meant.
“No. I got really lucky. Charlie - the guy you met when you first arrived - ran into me just as I was leaving the party with a couple of guys and he stopped them. Then he got Molly and they took me home. But my story could have so easily been just like yours.”
Mayson nodded. “I don’t suppose there is any way to know for sure if that’s what happened to me, but I thought...” She shrugged, as if not entirely certain what she thought.
“Maybe not. But... you mentioned a party at Beta Beta. There were a lot of Beta Beta guys here the other night. Maybe...” She glanced over at Molly.
“I could probably get a copy of Beta Beta’s membership list,” Molly said. “Say I need it because... of an idea I have for our next joint party or something.”
Lois nodded. “Then maybe we could compare it to our list of suspects.”
“I’ll get right on that,” Molly said, rising to her feet.
“Do you remember anything else about this guy?” Lois asked. “Even if it’s just from your dreams.”
Mayson shook her head. “That’s what so insidious about what happened. It could have been anyone. Every time I’d see someone I was like... Is that him? All a guy would have to do was smile at me or look at me funny and I’d have a full-blown panic attack. It’s like... you’ve been invaded and everyone you see could be the suspect.”
Lois nodded. Although she couldn’t exactly identify, she could imagine well enough what that might be like.
“So do you think you’ll be coming back to school?” Lois asked, needing to know that this young woman was going to be okay.
“Not here. But I have been accepted in law school out in California starting next semester. I have a sister living there, so I’ll be staying with her.”
“Good.”
“And... I managed to get into some good counseling. One thing I can tell you though, I no longer want to be a defense lawyer.”
Lois couldn’t help but smile at that. “No criminal law for you, hey?”
“Oh, I didn’t say that. In fact, I now want to work for the District Attorney’s office. Maybe after I graduate, I’ll be able to return to Metropolis and get a job here.”
“Me investigating; you prosecuting... The criminals of Metropolis won’t know what hit them,” Lois responded, finally provoking a smile out of the other woman.
TO BE CONTINUED...
ML
