The Time Traveler’s Wife - Part 5c
PREVIOUSLY FROM THE TIME TRAVELER’S WIFE...
“I love you, Lois Lane Kent,” Clark breathed into her ear.
“I love you, Clark Charlie Kent,” she breathed back.
He stepped back, releasing her slowly, his eyes never leaving hers. Finally, only their hands were touching. She could tell that a window of some sort had opened, but she didn’t take her eyes off Clark. Then, contact was broken as he released her hands to pick up his bags.
“I love you,” he mouthed to her one final time before turning towards the window to follow Wells through.
“I love you, too,” she finally managed to get out just as the window closed behind him. Her knees giving out, she fell to the floor, her heart broken. It felt as if a part of her had suddenly been ripped away, leaving a giant hole inside her.AND NOW...
* * * * * * * * *
June 1997
* * * * * * * * *
“Where are we?” Clark asked, looking around at the beach and palm trees.
“Uhh... yes. Well, we are on a small island in the South Pacific.”
“Why?” Clark asked cautiously. “No... wait. When are we?”
“June... 1997. Just a few hours after you left.”
“Then why haven’t my memories changed? You said I made changes to the past. Surely when I came back here, I should have had the new memories. How does this work, anyway? Will I spend the rest of my life not knowing what happened during the past ten years?”
When Herb opened his mouth to respond, Clark rushed to continue. “No wait. None of that matters. I only need to know one thing. Did Lois survive?”
“Please, my boy. I know you have questions. And I’ll answer all of them - I promise. As for your memory not having changed... it will. It will probably take some time for the new history to become part of your consciousness. In the meantime, there is something I need to do. I’d ask you to wait here until I get back.”
As he spoke, Wells began playing with his time machine.
“Wait!” Clark said, grabbing onto Well’s arm. “At least tell me if Lois survived?”
“I will tell you everything. But, please, there is something I must take care of first. And as I said, it is essential that you wait for me here.”
“Why?”
“Please. I’ll explain momentarily.”
Without waiting for a further response, Wells opened a door in time and stepped through, leaving Clark standing alone on the deserted beach.
Reaching into the inside pocket in his leather jacket, Clark pulled out a piece of paper. The most important piece of paper he had ever possessed. His marriage licence to Lois Lane.
“Survive, honey,” he whispered to the document. “I can’t live without you.”
* * * * * * * * *
November 1987
* * * * * * * * *
The tears hadn’t dried; Lois had simply run out of them. Forcing herself to her feet, she stepped over to her bed, intending to curl up on it, hoping sleep might relieve some of the pain. Besides, she was exhausted. She hadn’t got any sleep last night.
In spite of her current circumstances, she found herself smiling at the memory of exactly why she hadn’t got any sleep. Every inch of her body was sore, but she wouldn’t have missed a minute of it for anything.
She sat down on the side of the bed. It wasn’t until then that she first noticed it. A soft faded blue t-shirt with KU in red letters on the upper left corner almost invisible from repeated washings. Underneath, equally faded, was ‘University of Kansas.’ The t-shirt she’d worn after they’d first made love. She raised it to her nose, needing one last smell of its previous owner.
She’d seen him put this with his stuff when they had gone to get his things from The Cozy Motel before their trip to Vegas the previous day. His leaving it here hadn’t been an oversight. It had to have been deliberate, probably left here even before they’d gone to get married.
Suddenly, the room was too claustrophobic for her. Dropping the t-shirt on her bed, she grabbed her phone and dialed a familiar number.
“Molly?” she asked when the phone was answered.
“Lois? What’s wrong?” Molly asked immediately.
Lois quickly bit back a sob.
“Where are you?” Molly asked.
“In my room at the dorm.”
“I’ll be right there.”
“No. No. I need to get out of here,” Lois said.
“Are you okay?”
“No, I’m really not.”
“Do you need me to call the police?”
“No, it’s not... I just need my best friend.”
“I’ll come pick you up.”
Lois smiled through the tears she hadn’t realized she had left. “Just have the hot chocolate waiting,” she responded.
“It’ll be hot and loaded with chocolate when you get here, sweety,” Molly responded. “Just get your butt over here pronto or I’m going to have to come fetch you. And trust me, if I have to hunt you down, it will not be pretty.”
Lois knew that her laugh was watery, but, boy, did it feel good to laugh.
* * * * * * * * *
She probably shouldn’t have told Molly all that. She certainly hadn’t meant to. But in spite of her best intentions, the story had just come pouring out - everything from time travel to alternate dimensions to flying aliens. Or sort of... she was pretty sure a lot of it hadn’t made a lot of sense. It had been pretty disjointed, after all.
Besides, other than the time travel and alternate dimensions, Clark had told her that everyone in the future knew that Clark Kent was Superman.
And Molly was her best friend. If she couldn’t trust Molly, who could she trust? Over the next few weeks, even months, she knew she would need someone’s shoulder to cry on and Molly certainly fit that bill. So telling her everything was the only practical thing to do. Now if only Molly would...
“Quit looking at me as if I’m crazy,” Lois said, staring into her cup of hot chocolate.
“You’re married?” Molly repeated.
Lois couldn’t help but roll her eyes. Of all the things she’d told Molly, that was what Molly kept coming back to. Nothing seemed to have phased the other woman nearly as much as...
“You eloped?” Molly said. “With Char.. Clark?”
“Well, it seemed better to do it with someone than to do it by myself,” Lois said, hoping to snap Molly out of her obsession.
“Oh... what... oh, of course,” Molly said.
“I was joking, Mol.”
“Huh... Oh, right. So... you got married, huh? Wow! I mean, that’s a big decision, is all. It’s not like getting a puppy.”
“Oy!”
* * * * * * * * *
Wells stood in front of room 213 and raised his hand. He’d set the time machine to bring him back a little later, hoping that Lois had worked through the worst of her grief and would be willing to hear him out. Everything depended on it, after all.
He knocked, waited a moment and then knocked again.
“Ms. Lane,” he called through the closed door.
“She’s not there,” a young woman said from behind him.
He turned to see a blonde standing in the doorway to two ten.
“I see. Would you be able to tell me where she went?” he asked.
The woman shrugged before stepping into her room and closing the door.
Oh, dear. It hadn’t occurred to him that she might not stay in her room. Now what did he do? He couldn’t put this off any longer, after all. No. This would not do at all.
Well, once when he’d seen Lois, she’d been coming out of the Alpha Nu Rho house with a friend. Maybe he should check there.
* * * * * * * * *
“Okay, so let me get this straight,” Molly said, finally seeming to have recovered from the shock over Lois eloping. “This guy marries you and then takes off back to the future.”
“It wasn’t like that. I knew he was leaving.”
“And he still asked you to marry him?”
“Actually, I asked him.”
Molly’s eyebrows rose. “You knew... and you still asked him to marry you knowing that as soon as he did, he’d be leaving you?”
Lois cringed. “I guess when you put it like that, it does sound a little crazy.”
“A little?”
“Molly, I love him. It’s only six years. Women have waited longer than that for soldiers to come home from war.”
“Yeah, but in those cases, there is a danger that one of them is going to die and so they want to marry - sort of an affirmation of life, I guess.”
Lois immediately looked down.
“Omigod,” Molly gasped. “That’s it, isn’t it? But... if you’re supposed to meet him in six years he must survive... It’s you, isn’t it? You’re the one who’s in danger of dying.”
“No. No... I’m not. We think the changes we made to the past have solved that little problem. And now that I know what to avoid...”
“Little problem?”
“You know what I mean.”
“I’m not sure I do. Maybe... Look, I’ve got a feeling here that we’re going at this backwards,” Molly said. “Why don’t you start at the beginning?”
Lois took a sip of her hot chocolate before nodding. “Okay, well it all started when I was nine,” she began.
She had just finished telling Molly her tale when a knock at the study door and Tracy sticking her head through the doorway interrupted them.
“There’s this strange little man here asking to speak to Lois. He won’t give his name. Says you’ll know who he is.”
“Would you mind sending him in?” Lois asked, rising to her feet. She could only think of one man who fit that description. But why would he be here? Had something happened to Clark on the return trip? She forced herself to keep calm. Maybe he’d just stopped by to make sure she was okay - after everything. Please, please, please, let her have misjudged him. Let him just be concerned about her.
“Sure. No problem,” Tracy said, stepping back into the hall.
“Ms. Lane,” Wells said, appearing in the doorway a moment later.
“Is Clark okay?” Lois asked immediately.
“Uhh... yes... well... about that...” He glanced around at the two other women in the room.
Taking the hint, Tracy quickly excused herself.
“She knows, Mr. Wells,” Lois said, gesturing to Molly. “Is Clark okay?”
“He is... at the moment. But he won’t be for long unless you help him.”
“What do you need me to do?” Lois asked.
“Forget you ever met him.”
Lois stared at Wells in stunned silence.
“And just exactly how is she supposed to do that?” Molly asked.
“Uhh... yes... well, I have a machine here that will alter your memories. Essentially, it will take specific memories... in this case all memories of Clark... and remove them from your mind.” He set down a large, black bag on the table and opened it, removing a large metallic cylinder and something that resembled a football helmet’s inner skeleton with wires.
“Just... you mean...” Lois began as it sank in what the machine was for. “You mean, you want me to ‘literally’ forget Clark. This isn’t just a figure of speech?”
“Obviously not,” he said, while working on connecting a number of wires to the metallic cylinder. “I know you could never forget Clark on your own. This machine will help with that. It’s based on a machine your folks will eventually invent. The Bummer-Be-Gone. Originally, it was invented to remove bad memories. But future scientists were able to refine it so that it can be set to target very specific memories, removing them while leaving all the memories surrounding them in tact.”
“What?” both Molly and Lois gasped.
“Is she the only other one who knows any of the details about Clark or the future?” Wells asked.
“Yes, but...” Lois said.
“Fine. Fine. Then if you will both just have a seat here... I have a second head device and since we will be erasing memories of Clark for both of you, I’ll be able to erase both your memories at the same time. Well, I’ll erase your memories of me, too, since it wouldn’t do for you to remember me either.”
“Uh uh,” Lois said.
“No way,” Molly echoed.
“Oh dear,” Wells said, finally cluing into the fact that they weren’t exactly with him on this. “Perhaps I should start from the beginning.”
“You think?” Lois said.
“I should begin by telling you that you and Clark did manage to change the past... Or I guess, in your case, the future.”
“We did?”
Wells nodded. “I traced the change and it happened following your first kiss. After that, I suppose it was impossible for you not to recognize him when he approached you at the airport before you boarded your fateful flight to the Congo. You never got on that plane. The culprits who were after you did make an attempt on your life here in Metropolis, but you were on your own turf and easily managed to avoid your fate.”
“Who?” Lois asked.
“Excuse me?” Wells asked in response.
“Who were they? The people who killed me. Or will try to kill me or... Or whatever.”
“Oh, I’m sorry. I never thought to enquire about that.”
“Of course not,” Lois said. “Why would that little detail be important?”
“Precisely,” Wells said, obviously not picking up on Lois’ sarcasm.
Lois and Molly shared a look.
“So... isn’t this good news?” Molly asked.
“Oh no!” Wells said. “It ends up destroying everything.”
“Uhh... maybe you should explain,” Lois said cautiously.
“Paradoxes,” Wells said. “Are you aware of what those are?”
“A paradox is a seemingly contradictory statement that turns out to be true,” Molly said.
“I guess I meant paradoxes within the context of time travel. Basically what it is... Perhaps it would be best to explain by example. The most common example of a paradox is that a man goes back in time and kills his grandfather. If he kills his grandfather, how would he ever be born? And if he was never born, how could he go back in time and kill his grandfather.”
“Okay, but what does that have to do with this? Clark didn’t kill anyone.”
“Until now the idea of paradoxes in time travel has only been hypothetical. Not anymore. When you and Clark kissed, it marked a turning point in your relationship. You trusted him. So when he approached you at the airport, you believed him and didn’t get on the airplane. As a result, you survive, you and Clark meet when he comes to work for the Daily Planet. You fall in love and get married. You even help him to create Superman”
“So far I’m not seeing the problem.”
“The problem is that as a result, Tempus... the man who originally brought the alternate Lois and me to this dimension, chose to take us to a different one. One that didn’t have a Lois Lane or a Superman since those were critical elements in his diabolical plan to take over the world.”
“So...”
“Ms. Lane, it is because of that adventure that I even became aware of this dimension. I got to know and respect this dimension’s Clark Kent and, eventually, began trying to help him locate you. As a result, I ended up leaving my plans for the time machine in Clark’s apartment. Without those plans, Clark could never have come back in time.”
“And if he had never come back in time, he wouldn’t have been able to warn me not to get on that plane to the Congo. So I would have died. Then, in the next loop, he comes back and saves me, only to have me die again when he can’t get back to save me the next time.”
“Precisely,” Wells said. “And on and on in an endless loop. It’s like... instead of throwing just one rock in a pond and watching the waves it creates ripple through time, you’re throwing rock after rock after rock into the same pond in a never ending progression. Eventually, the pond no longer exists. The water has been replaced by a pile of rocks.
“When I took Clark to the future, I left him in a spot in the world still unaffected by the changes this time loop is causing. But Metropolis now looks like a war zone. Most of the buildings have been leveled. Most of the people are dead. And now that the destruction caused by this loop has begun, it will continue to accelerate. We don’t have much time. So please...” He gestured to the head sets.
“But surely... why can’t I just remember. I’ll get on that plane. I promise. I just... I don’t want to forget what Clark and I shared,” Lois said.
“If you know your life is in danger, you’ll never be able to react as you should. Please, Ms. Lane. Everyone you care about is in danger.”
“But you’re asking her to...” Molly began.
“I know what I’m asking,” Wells said. “I also know whom I’m asking. Ms. Lane, please. I’m asking you to trust in fate.”
“I don’t really have much choice, do I? I can live for four additional years, when the entire world will be destroyed, killing me anyway. Or I can do what you need me to do to save my world. To save Molly and Clark. To save my family.” She glanced over at Molly. “Not much of a choice.”
“Very well, then,” Wells said. “If you two will just...”
“But there is a problem,” Lois said.
“Please, Ms. Lane, time really is of the essence.”
“Mr. Wells, if I die, Clark is only going to build another time machine and come back again. And without my memories, I’m not going to remember why it’s important for me to get on that plane to the Congo.”
“Oh, my, I hadn’t thought of that.”
“So... I need to make sure he doesn’t come back.” She closed her eyes, trying to marshal her thoughts. “A dear John letter. I’ll date it a couple of years from now. Make him believe I’ve met someone else and want to live my own life.” She pulled in a shaky breath. “It’s going to kill him.”
“There is no other choice, Ms. Lane.”
“Will that really stop him from coming back to try to save you?” Molly asked. “From what I saw of Char... Clark, he would want to save you even if you never loved him in return.”
“She’s right,” Lois said, letting out a slow breath. “Then I need to level with him. Tell him the truth. Make sure he knows this is my decision. And pretty much beg him to accept it.” She looked at Molly. “It’s still going to kill him.”
“Okay,” Molly said, “I can see why you need me to do this, too - so that I don’t say something that might keep her from going to the Congo, or mention Clark, or give something else away that changes the past. But... how does this work? Won’t we just have big gaps in our memories?”
“Yeah,” Lois said. “And what about Stafford? I don’t want him walking because I can’t remember something.”
“Don’t worry. The mind is a remarkable thing. It will fill in the holes left behind by Clark’s absence. You won’t have any idea that anything is missing.”
“Why doesn’t that exactly reassure me?” Lois asked.
“So... does this mean the two of you agree?” Wells asked hopefully.
“I don’t see that we have any choice,” Lois said. “Just... give me a few minutes to write a letter to Clark and...”
“Very well,” Wells said, turning his attention to preparing the machine.
* * * * * * * * *
It was the hardest thing she’d ever had to write. And in a rush, she didn’t even have a chance to consider her words. The break had to be absolute, final. There could be no doubt left in Clark’s mind that not only was there no future for them, but to try to change that fact would destroy the world.
When she wrote that she was choosing this fate a small sob rose in the back of her throat. When she talked about how they’d tried and failed and that he had to let her go, her hands shook. When she added that she wanted him to find someone else, to fall in love and be happy, the tears started.
She moved back from the desk slightly so that none of her tears fell on the letter. If he saw water marks, he might not buy the confidence with her decision that she was trying to convey. He might see them and decide to come back, just to be sure of her feelings. She couldn’t allow that to happen.
Knowing it was time to end the letter, she told him to get on with his life. To forget about her. To accept that they were never meant to be. That she was certain there was a wonderful woman out there, just waiting for someone like him to notice her. Then she signed it: ‘I’ll always love you. Please respect my decision. Don’t come back. Your wife. Lois.’
“Are you ready?” Wells asked as she put the letter into an envelope.
“Yes,” Lois said, hesitating only slightly before handing Wells the letter.
Molly and Lois sat on the sofa and picked up the headsets.
“Just put them on,” Wells said. “I’ll take care of the rest.”
“Are we really doing this?” Molly asked.
“I don’t think we have a choice,” Lois responded.
Molly nodded before both Lois and Molly put on the headsets.
Well, this was it. Her last time to remember Clark. His love. His touch. His kiss. The kiss that had saved her life. But... wait a minute! If the kiss had saved her life, what had changed as a result of them making love?
There was a jolt of energy and then... darkness.
* * * * * * * * *
Lois blinked as she took in her surroundings. What had happened? Some sort of dizzy spell, she supposed. After all, she’d heard... or was that read somewhere that she could expect some dizzy spells after GHB poisoning.
It took her a moment to remember where she was. The sorority house. She’d come to see Molly... who was sitting next to her. But who was the strange little man putting something in a black bag. Or... was he taking it out?
“Who are you?” Molly asked the man, voicing Lois’ thoughts.
“I came to see if you wanted to buy a vacuum cleaner. The nice young woman at the front door let me in. So if you will just allow me to explain to you the advantages of...”
“Sorry,” Molly said, interrupting him. “We really aren’t interested in buying a vacuum cleaner.”
“Are you sure I can’t convince...”
“I’m sure,” Molly said, rising to her feet. “Now, if you’ll just allow me to show you to the door.”
“Oh, certainly. I guess if you’re not interested, you’re not interested,” the man said, zipping up his bag and turning towards the door.
Lois was lost in thought as she watched him leave. He’d almost looked relieved that they weren’t interested in buying a vacuum cleaner. She gave her head a shake. What was wrong with her? Getting paranoid about the motives of a vacuum cleaner salesman was not exactly... normal.
“Is he gone?” Lois asked when Molly reentered the room.
“Yeah. I’m glad. I don’t know why, but for some reason, I really didn’t like that guy.”
Lois nodded. Funny. She’d felt the same way.
* * * * * * * * *
June 1997
* * * * * * * * *
The sound of a low growl like thunder continued to grow until it was a roar. Clark doubled over when this headache hit. He grabbed his head and collapsed to his knees. This headache was worse than the others in that not only did his body feel as if it were being pulled apart, but this time, his heart felt as if it was being torn in two. The thunder finally passed and the pain eased.
“Lois,” he gasped.
Something had happened to Lois.
He couldn’t wait for Wells any longer to get his answers. Lois. He had to know that Lois had survived. A moment later he was airborne and on his way to Metropolis.
THE END OF PART 5
TO BE CONTINUED IN PART 6
ML
