From part 4 ...
Lois followed his gaze, then looked at him apologetically. "I managed to grab one of them as I followed you down, but I couldn't get them both. Here, hold my skis while I hike up to get it for you."
Before she could pop them off, however, Clark stopped her. "No, that's OK. I can get it. Even though they're rentals, I have them pretty well trained."
Lois just looked at him in confusion. "Trained? What are you talking about?"
Trying to smother a smile, Clark pointed to the ski. "Watch," he told her. Pursing his lips, he gave a sharp whistle in the direction of the ski, then quickly inhaled. Sure enough, the subtle use of his super breath caused the ski to disengage from the small chunk of ice that had been holding it in place, and it began to slide directly towards him. As it came into reach, Clark quickly grabbed it and popped it back into place on his foot. Only then did he meet Lois's look of complete astonishment.
"How did you do that?" she gasped.
Clark winked. "Ancient snowball's secret," he answered, his face breaking into a grin as he saw her eyebrows crawl up into her forehead. Before she could formulate a response, Clark leaned over and pressed a kiss to her mouth. "Race you to the bottom," he teased, then pushed off once more.
*****
and now, part 5 ...
*****
Lois took her time skiing the rest of the way down the mountain, watching Clark as best she could to make sure that he wasn't showing any negative effects of his fall. It had been a pretty impressive tumble, and she couldn't deny that her heart had stopped momentarily when she'd watched him go down. Fortunately, he didn't seem to be injured, or at least he didn't seem to be favoring any part of his body. She could only hope that he wasn't simply brushing off the effects of an injury to save his pride.
She did expect him to be a bit sore tonight, though, even if he hadn't fallen. She knew she was working muscles she wasn't used to working, and she could only assume the same would be true of Clark. But there was nothing wrong with a little soreness, especially if it gave them the perfect excuse to use the hot tub and exchange massages. In fact, Lois thought with a grin, even though she had won their bet, she might even be convinced to give him the first massage, just to get her hands on that gorgeous body of his.
Lois was still smiling as she and Clark reached the bottom of the run and took their place at the back of the lift line.
"Pretty pleased with yourself, aren't you?" he asked.
Her smile widened, even as she batted her eyes at him. "Why, whatever do you mean?"
"You're wearing your 'I turned Clark into a human snowball and I'm proud of it' smile."
Lois laughed. "Actually, I wasn't thinking that at all." She moved closer to him and dropped her voice to an intimate murmur. "I was thinking about how good the hot tub was going to feel tonight and how good you're going to look in it. And," she added, meeting his eyes seductively, "how good it's going to feel to massage each other once we get out of these bulky ski clothes."
Clark's eyes lit up with definite interest. "I certainly like your explanation a lot better than the one I came up with."
"Mmm, maybe we could give each other a little preview of what's to come when we get into the chairlift."
"OK, this line is way too long!" he declared, looking around at the number of people waiting.
Laughing with him, Lois glanced up at the lift above them, but when she saw that the chairs were stationary, her expression turned into a grimace. "I hate to say it, but it's going to get a little longer. The lift isn't moving. Must have had to stop it for some reason."
That broke the mood. She watched as Clark swallowed uncomfortably and pulled back. "Then I guess it's just as well we're not on it."
Lois patted his arm reassuringly. "It won't take long ... someone probably just took a little spill while getting off. No big deal." Still, as a few minutes turned into a few more, she noticed that Clark kept fidgeting and looking over the top of his glasses. "What are you doing?"
He quickly pushed his glasses up on his nose and gave her a guilty smile. "Nothing ... I was just wondering if maybe we should try another lift. I bet this is the only one that's stuck."
Lois shrugged, noticing that other people in line were making similar suggestions to their companions. "Sure, that'd be fine. Which one do you want to try?"
As they stepped out of line to make their decision, however, the sound of a shriek sent a shiver down Lois's spine. "Help!" she heard a woman scream. "I think he's having a heart attack!"
Looking all around, Lois gasped as she finally located the source of the sound. A quarter of the way up the mountain, a middle-aged couple was stuck in one of the stationary chairs, and the man seemed to be frantically gasping for air, struggling in his seat. His wife was clutching at him, clearly terrified as she tried to prevent him from falling the fifteen feet to the ground. "Help!" she screamed again.
On instinct, Lois moved forward towards the commotion, but she quickly stopped as two ski patrol vehicles roared past on either side of her, carrying medical equipment. Glancing over at the chairlift mechanism, Lois wondered for a moment if the man could just hang on until the lift began operating again, but the behavior of the panicked chair lift operator wasn't reassuring -- yelling into a walkie-talkie, he seemed nearly as scared as the couple on the broken lift.
Suddenly, however, the crowd behind her in the lift line began to cheer excitedly. "Superman!" she heard them shout. "Look, it's Superman."
Lois sighed in relief. She had no idea how Superman had managed to be upstate at this exact moment, but he was a very welcome sight. "Oh, thank goodness," she exclaimed, turning back to the lift line to address her partner. "Clark, isn't that wonderful?" As she searched the crowd, however, Lois furrowed her brow. "Clark?" He was nowhere to be seen.
Another cheer caught her attention and when Lois looked back to the chairlift, she could see that Superman had already lowered both the man and his wife to the ground and was consulting with the ski patrol workers as they brought the man the rest of the way down the mountain. "I looked at his heart and I didn't see any signs of damage," Superman was explaining as the group neared the bottom, "but he should definitely be seen by a doctor as soon as possible. It may have just been a panic attack brought on by being stranded up there, but you don't want to take chances with things like this."
Her curiosity getting the better of her, Lois popped off her skis and rested them against a nearby rack, then trotted over to where he was speaking with the ski patrol. "Superman!" she exclaimed.
Superman looked up at her and gave a little smile. "Hi, Lois."
"I'm so glad you were flying overhead. At least, I assume you were ... I don't think even your ears are good enough to hear a cry for help this far from Metropolis!" Then, as an image entered her mind, Lois couldn't help but grin. "Unless you decided you wanted to go skiing with me and Clark and thought you'd come by for a few runs," she added teasingly.
Instead of laughing as she'd expected him to, however, Superman just looked uncomfortable. He opened his mouth to respond, but after glancing over at the ski patrol workers who were still gathered nearby, he seemed to rethink his words. "Uh ... yeah," he finally answered. "I just happened to be in the area."
"Well, it's that man's lucky day," she told him. "To have you hear his wife call for help."
"So are you having fun skiing?" he asked quickly.
Cocking her head for a moment over his abrupt change of subject, Lois nodded. "Oh, yes. Clark and I both are." As she thought of her partner, though, she couldn't keep the smile from her face. "We came here for a romantic get-away weekend, and we're having a wonderful time."
He smiled then, the first genuine smile she'd seen from him since he'd arrived. "And has it been romantic?" he asked, his voice becoming a bit more tender.
She sighed happily. "Very romantic. Superman, he is just the most ..." She sighed again, and knew her voice was getting a little dreamy. "Well, you're his friend so you know how special he is. He's wonderful."
The smile on Superman's face softened. "Oh, Lois," he whispered.
Before she could respond, however, she felt herself being jostled from behind and noticed that a crowd had gathered behind her, chattering excitedly and clutching pens and their trail maps. "Well, I better get out of your way and let you greet your adoring public," she said with an amused grin.
His eyebrows lifted in amusement. "My adoring public?" He glanced at the crowd and grinned back, his eyes twinkling at her. "And here I was expecting you to ask me to fly you up to the top of the mountain so you wouldn't have to wait in line at the chair lift."
She laughed. "No, I need to go find my boyfriend first. We'll wait in line together." She scooted off to the side to let the people behind her get closer to him and gave the superhero a little wave. "See you back in Metropolis!"
The sounds of the delighted crowd grew behind her as she made her way back to the lodge and Lois couldn't help but glance back over her shoulder and smile. Superman was being his usual friendly self, signing a few autographs and even dropping down on one knee in the snow to give a child a special smile. He really was a terrific guy.
Lois furrowed her brow. But speaking of terrific guys ... she was starting to miss her favorite one. Where in the world had Clark gotten to?
She began to search the area in front of the lodge, but after coming up empty, she entered the building, deciding to check out the restroom area. A disappointed sound from the crowd outside told her that Superman had probably just left the area, but she spared them only a distracted glance. Her attention was focused on finding Clark. When he'd first disappeared, she'd assumed it had been due to something so mundane as a needed trip to the bathroom, but when he hadn't appeared at her side while she was talking to Superman, she'd started to get a little concerned as a new thought struck her. What if, given his worries about the chairlift, he was off somewhere having a panic attack of his own?
Fortunately, she hadn't taken more than a few steps in the direction of the bathrooms when she saw Clark coming towards her. He looked serious, as if he was lost in thought, but when he saw her, his face lit up with a smile. "Lois! There you are," he exclaimed.
"Where have you been?" she asked, relieved. "I was getting worried."
He looked chastened. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to just disappear on you like that."
She took his hand, feeling a little guilty that she wasn't being more understanding ... he clearly looked distracted, which only made her worry more that her guess about his panic attack had been correct. "No, that's OK. I kind of wondered if the whole mess with the ski lift ... well, I know it's not your favorite thing, and to see that man--" When he just stared at her like a deer caught in the headlights, she quickly smiled, wanting to reassure him. "But it all turned out OK because Superman happened to be flying by ... turns out the guy wasn't having a heart attack at all. He just panicked--" When Clark only looked more uncomfortable, however, she grimaced apologetically. "I'm sorry, I'm not helping, am I?"
That earned her a smile. "You always help me," he said sincerely. "More than you know." Then he glanced outside. "I think the lifts are running again. Should we, um ...?"
Lois hesitated, then shook her head. "You know, it's almost four o'clock ... they're going to be closing down soon anyway. Why don't we beat the rush and head out now? It won't be quite so crowded in the rental area."
"But if you want to do some more skiing--"
She gave his hand a squeeze. "We still have all day tomorrow. Besides, I'm ready to relax in that hot tub of ours." When his face brightened at the suggestion, she couldn't help but laugh. "Come on," she said, tugging him towards the door. "Let's get our stuff."
*****
It didn't take them long to gather up their skis and head back to the rental area. After placing their equipment into a storage locker they had rented, they gratefully slipped back into their regular boots.
"Ah, these are a lot more comfortable," Lois pronounced as they made their way back outside and found the path that would lead them back to their condo. "It feels funny to have them on after wearing those bulky ski boots, though!"
Clark just smiled and took her hand as they walked. "Are you sore?"
"No, I actually feel pretty good ... my shins sometimes get a little tender the first day from pressing against the boots, but my muscles probably won't really start protesting until tomorrow morning."
"Soaking in the hot tub tonight should help with that," he commented. He squeezed her hand affectionately. "And I owe you a massage."
"And I fully intend to take you up on that!" she exclaimed. Then her smile softened. "And I'll return the favor."
He paused for a moment. "I'm lucky to have you, Lois," he finally replied, his voice quiet. "I don't know what I'd do without you."
She looked over at him, wondering what was causing him to sound so melancholy all of a sudden. "That's good," she said, affectionately bumping him with her hip. "'Cause I don't intend to let you find out."
That earned her a smile and Clark released her hand in order to loop his arm over her shoulder. "I'm very glad to hear that."
Lois wrapped her arm around his waist. "You should be," she teased, giving him a flirty smile. "There aren't many men I feel this way about, you know."
He returned her smile, pulling her closer, but when he finally spoke again, his voice sounded a little strained. "Lois ... about Superman's rescue ..."
"Yeah, you missed it." Lois gave a little laugh. "He did his usual great job. But it was funny to see the reactions of the crowd."
"Funny, how?"
"Oh, just how shocked and excited everyone was. I guess, living in Metropolis, we forget how awestruck people from other places can be the first time they see him."
Clark paused. "And you're not ... awestruck anymore?"
Lois looked at him, puzzled. He sounded almost ... disappointed? But that didn't make any sense. Given his past jealousy of the superhero, shouldn't Clark be happy that she wasn't fawning all over Superman anymore?
"Well, sure I am ... just not the way I used to be, that's all," she explained. "I mean, don't get me wrong, I think he's great. He's wonderful!" She gave a little self-deprecating chuckle. "And I certainly spent a long time putting him up on a pedestal. But now ..." She trailed off, uncertain over how to continue. It wasn't that she wasn't impressed by Superman anymore -- just the opposite; she admired him more than she could say - but how could she explain to Clark that the two men had so completely switched roles in her heart? That her best friend had become the man she fantasized about spending her life with, while the superhero was now simply her good friend? "But now that I've gotten to know him ..."
They'd reached the door of their condo, but Clark made no move to go inside. He was staring at her, his brow even more deeply furrowed that before. "Now that you've gotten to know him ... what?"
Lois reached up to stroke his cheek, trying to caress his worried expression away. "Clark! It's nothing to be upset about. I just finally realized that all of one ordinary man is so much better than a piece of one super man." She gave him a tender smile. "Superman belongs to the world, Clark, but you belong just to me ... and I wouldn't have it any other way." Then she wrapped her arms around his neck and gave him a big hug. "Come on," she said, pressing a kiss to his cheek. "Let's get inside ... I want to have a romantic dinner with my boyfriend."
*****
As he listened to the sound of Lois's hairdryer running in the other room, Clark put the finishing touches on his dinner, even as he wondered for the dozenth time how he had gotten himself into this mess. The meal had come together nicely, and he was sure that Lois would be very complimentary of his efforts once she rejoined him in the kitchen following her shower. But while his plans for the occasion had originally included looking deeply into her eyes over dessert and confessing that for the last twenty months he'd been moonlighting as the superhero she'd been pining over for so long, Clark now found himself confronted with the ultimate irony. After spending most of the last year and a half agonizing over whether Lois would ever come to prefer Clark Kent to Superman, Clark had finally won her love ... only to learn that she apparently no longer wanted to be romantically involved with his alter-ego!
Raking a hand through his hair, Clark shook his head in bewilderment. He could hardly believe how everything had turned around on him. All the words he'd been practicing were centered on apologizing to Lois for not telling her sooner, but now he couldn't shake the concern that this wasn't going to be the part she was upset about. What had she said outside? That she had lost interest in Superman because she didn't want to share him with the rest of the world?
Clark took a deep breath, trying to calm his nerves as he lit the candles he'd placed in the middle of the table. Was it possible that he might finally get up the nerve to tell Lois his secret tonight, only to have her respond that she had no interest in dating someone who had taken on a such a big responsibility? Certainly, she'd reacted to Superman very differently recently than she had in the past -- where before, it had always been a given that Lois idolized the superhero, her attitude towards him this weekend had been one of casual indifference.
Yet while her disinterest would have delighted him a few months ago, it was, Clark suddenly realized, the last thing he wanted from her now. He'd spent so much time wishing Lois would love him as an ordinary man that he'd forgotten that he *wasn't* ordinary ... and that if they were to have a future together, Lois would have to love his other identity as well.
Was he now going to have to woo her as Superman??
He closed his eyes and groaned. "I can't believe this is happening!"
A pair of slender arms encircled his waist from behind and gave him an affectionate hug. "Can't believe what is happening?" Lois asked, clearly amused.
Clark gulped and turned in her arms. "Nothing! Just, um ... dinner. That's all, just dinner. The food is ready but you were still finishing your shower and I wasn't sure how much longer you'd be and whether I should keep it warm. But now you're out, so we're all set." He gave a nervous laugh, hoping the squeak he heard in his voice was all in his mind. "See, no problem."
Lois just lifted an eyebrow as she studied him. "I think you've been hanging around me too much, Clark. You've picked up my babble gene."
He opened his mouth to defend himself but as her words filtered, he couldn't help but raise an eyebrow of his own. "Are you actually admitting that you babble?"
Lois blushed and ducked her head. "I'm not admitting anything."
Despite himself, Clark gave a little chuckle as he returned the hug she'd been giving him. He felt himself relax, as he usually did when he was in her arms. Maybe all his worrying was for nothing. Maybe he could convince her that Superman wasn't so bad while they ate dinner ... yeah, that's what he needed to do. "Come on," he said with a smile. "Let's eat."
"So what are we having?" she asked, pressing a quick kiss to his mouth before taking her place at the table. "It smells wonderful."
"Thanks." Clark placed a bowl of leafy greens on the table, then turned back to the counter to retrieve the basket of crusty rolls he'd been keeping warm. Giving them another quick once-over with his heat vision, he turned back to Lois with a smile. "I hope it tastes as good as it smells."
"I'm sure it will." She took the rolls from him and, after placing them on the table, picked up the bottle of red wine he'd opened earlier. "Shall I pour?"
"Please." He placed their main serving dish on the table between them and placed a portion of food on each of their plates before being seated himself. "It's pork tenderloin medallions in a cherry sauce," he explained as he added some salad and a roll to his plate. "I hope you like it."
After filling her own plate with the side dishes, Lois cut a portion of the meat and tasted it experimentally. Her eyes widened a bit as she chewed, then they closed blissfully. "Oh my God," she murmured around the mouthful before swallowing. "Clark, this is incredible. Beyond incredible."
He beamed at her reaction and dug into his own meal. "I'm glad you think so. It's one of my favorites."
"It's going to be one of my favorites, too!" she exclaimed, taking another bite. "I mean, I know I'm hungry after all that skiing, but this is fantastic! I can't believe how good it tastes."
"It's actually my mom's recipe," he explained, taking a sip of wine. "The cherries are from a tree we have on the farm. The dish is great in the summer, when the fruit is ripe, but I love it in the winter, too."
"How do you get cherries in the winter?"
"My mom freezes the extra. I still have a few packages in my freezer, so I can make it again for you after we get home. They're tart cherries, not the sweet kind, so they aren't real good for eating plain. But they're great for pies and other baking." He paused, taking another bite, then added carefully, "Of course, with his ability to fly all over the world, Superman could probably find cherries in season all the time. Or at least other fruits that could work as well."
Lois gave a little shrug, considering this. "Yeah, I guess he could." She dipped a piece of her roll into the sauce and popped it into her mouth. "Mmm," she sighed, her expression blissful again. "But you're the one who knows how to turn the raw ingredients into these amazing dishes." She shot him a grin. "A much more important skill in my book, Clark."
Despite the fact that his ploy hadn't gotten her talking about how useful Superman was, Clark couldn't help but smile at her impish expression. "So you love me for my skills in the kitchen, is that it?"
She leaned forward, resting her chin on her hand. Her smile became more flirtatious as she looked him up and down, almost as if he were part of the menu. "I can think of a few other rooms you're pretty skillful in," she said, her voice dropping seductively as her gaze flickered briefly to the bedroom door.
"Oh, really?" he asked, leaning in a bit closer himself.
"Absolutely," she purred, her eyes beginning to twinkle. "Take the newsroom, for example."
"The ... newsroom?" he repeated. The corners of his mouth twitched as he realized that she'd gotten him. "And what skills do you find so useful there?"
"Oh, too many to count," she replied. She ran a fingertip sensuously over the rim of her wine glass and looked up at him from under her lashes. "We both know that you're the best *partner* I've ever had."
There was something about the way she'd emphasized the word "partner" that told Clark she was talking about much more than just their shared byline. Remembering the enjoyable moments they'd shared after a chance meeting in the file room the other day, a low sound of satisfaction rumbled deep in his throat and he was sorely tempted to reach across the table and capture her mouth with his. Fortunately for his plans, however, the more rational part of his mind realized just in time that she'd given him a perfect opening. Clearing his throat, he went for it. "You know, Superman would be pretty handy to have in the newsroom, too."
Lois blinked, clearly not expecting this response. "Excuse me?"
Clark chuckled nervously at her arrested expression and quickly turned back to his meal in hopes of covering it up. "Well, just think about it, Lois," he explained as he began working on his salad. "Those powers could come in pretty handy sometimes, don't you think? He could ... oh, I don't know ... use his x-ray vision to find where the secret papers are hidden when we sneak into someone's office, or his super-speed to find the right combination on the security system." Clark took a sip of wine, warming to his topic. "He could listen in on conversations when we're on stake-outs, and if the bad guys come back before we're done, he could fly you out of there before we get caught. Not to mention, if he knew what you were working on in advance, he'd be more likely to be around when you really needed him, to save you if things got out of hand."
Glancing up as he finished his monologue, he noticed that Lois had sat back in her chair and was staring at him, completely baffled. "You ... sound like you've given this a lot of thought," she finally responded.
Clark blushed slightly, then tried to smile in what he hoped was a disarming manner. "Well, some. You just got me thinking outside, that's all. You know, how you were talking about not wanting to share Superman with the rest of the world? I mean, yes, he does have to run off sometimes, but there really could be a lot of benefits of being with him, too."
"*Being* with him ..." she repeated slowly. She started to say more, but then closed her mouth again, clearly rethinking her words. Finally, she began to chuckle. "OK, I get it ... you want me to seduce Superman to advance our careers. You had me going there for a minute, Clark." She laughed out loud. "I've heard of sleeping with the boss, but this is ridiculous!"
Clark dropped his head into his hand, even as he had to laugh himself. She was right -- this was getting ridiculous. And he had no one to blame but himself. "I didn't mean it that way," he reassured her, realizing it was time to pull back for the moment. After all, if he wasn't careful, she was going to decide he was crazy and break up with both of his identities!
"So ..." he began, giving her a dazzling smile as he poured them each a little more wine. "You never finished the story of how you broke your ankle on that Daily Planet ski trip a few years ago. I want to hear all about it."
*****
To be continued, in part 6, on Saturday.
