Now, the inspiration for this story was
Phero-Moan My Lovely by Mary Pots (Queen of Capes) I have no talent for comedy, so my version goes a very different direction.
Thanks again to Morgana and The Fabulous Beverly for the beta support.
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Identity
Chapter 2 – After
Revenge + 46 hours
Lois woke up and realized immediately that she wasn’t at home. Before she could spend any real time reviewing her memory, she had a second realization… she wasn’t alone in bed. Then it came back to her. She’d gone to Clark’s. She was in his bed. And she was naked. One quick glance in his direction told her that so was he. She’d never felt so good waking up in the morning in her entire life.
She rolled over and slid up next to the well-muscled body next to her. He was sleeping on his back with the covers pulled down so that his upper torso was exposed. Seeing him now took her back to that day right after they’d met when he’d answered the door wearing only a towel. Clark was an incredibly attractive man. She reached out and ran her hand gently across that chest. Not only did he look good, but he felt good as well.
As she caressed his skin, memories of their lovemaking last night came rushing back. Being with Clark had been far beyond anything in Lois’s experience. Now she had a reference point for differentiating having sex and making love. After last night, she never wanted to settle for ‘just sex’ again. Of course, she never intended to do either with anyone but Clark ever again.
As she gazed at her lover, she’d continued the more or less random motions of her hand on his body. He felt so very good, but simply caressing his sleeping body was not going to be enough. The motions of her hand weren’t causing him to wake, so it was time for stronger measures. She shifted her attention to his face, ran her hand through his hair, then kissed him as gently as possible on his lips. “Wake up, sleepyhead.”
His eyes fluttered open and there was an instant of confusion, but as soon as he saw her face Lois could see the memories of the night come flooding back. It was fun to watch him go through the same recollection process that she had only a moment before. It was extra pleasant to see those memories trigger a smile. As he started to smile, she leaned in and kissed him again, much harder this time. “You’re pretty when you sleep,” she said.
That triggered an even brighter smile from Clark. She’d watched that smile disarm almost every woman that she’d seen interact with Clark over the past few months. How had she let so much time go without making this man hers?
“Pretty? I thought men were supposed to be handsome,” he said with a note of mirth.
“No. You look way too good for handsome. But how about sexy?”
He thought about that for a second. “I think I can accept that. And, if you think I’m pretty, then I can accept that too… from you.”
Then he pulled her closer. A few seconds later she was lying on top of him. His chest felt good when she’d caressed it with her hand, but that had been nothing compared to the electricity being generated by his bare chest against hers..
“You feel... fantastic,” he said.
The desire in his voice was unmistakable. “That's exactly what I was thinking about you,” she confirmed.
She felt his hands slide down her back and buttocks. The feeling of his hands caressing her skin was so powerful that she was almost shivering from excitement. As she was basking in the exhilaration his touch was triggering, she could see in his expression that he was experiencing the same passion that his touch was eliciting in her. “This... Us being like this… is every dream I've had for the past few months come true,” he said after a moment.
No more words were necessary. She lowered her face to his and they had their first real kiss of the morning.
When, a long time later, they separated, Clark looked at her for a long time. “I love you, and nothing is going to change that, but I think you’re still being affected by whatever caused you to… lose your inhibitions.”
He was right. Something had changed. None of these feelings were new, but they were so overwhelmingly powerful. She knew that one of her strengths as a reporter was that she never let herself be driven by emotion. Others called her reckless, but her position was that others let their fear get in the way. Fear, and all the other emotions, had always been something that she’d ignored. But now, the feelings were so… wow! If other people felt things like this all the time, no wonder they did things differently that she did. For the first time in her adult life she had no second thoughts about acting on the tidal wave of emotion. “I think you’re right,” she conceded. “But I don’t care. I feel great, and I have you, so everything is fine.”
“Can you tell how you feel different?” Clark asked.
She concentrated for a few seconds. “My emotions are stronger… or maybe brighter. It’s like I‘ve been wearing dark glasses and suddenly I can see the world… feel the world… in bright colors. Also, I feel very comfortable opening up to you. Loving you… and having you know it feels great. Knowing that you love me makes it even better.”
“I still worry that you’re going to hate me later,” Clark said somberly.
How could he have any doubts about what they were sharing? “How could I hate you? I love you. And you love me.”
“Do you feel different any other way? I mean besides how you feel about us,” he asked.
“I feel less… I don’t know. Angry? On edge? I feel sort of like I did when I was young. Maybe like when I was back in high school. I feel an optimism that I haven’t felt for a decade or more.”
“Are all your memories intact?”
She thought for a moment. Everything seemed to be there, but the memories felt different. “I think so. I remember things that bothered me in the past. It’s just that now they feel different. I guess I realize that for the most part the world wasn’t really out to get me. I can see now that I’ve spent too much time fighting and worrying about things when I should have simply relaxed and enjoyed the world. I feel really good about life this morning.”
“It sounds like whatever else has happened, you’ve been given a precious gift.”
She thought for a moment and realized that she agreed with Clark. “I think you’re right. But feeling better is only a part. The best part of what's happened to me is that I have you now.”
She shifted against him and he must have read the amorous intent from her body language because he pulled back ever so slightly. “There’s something you need to know. Something about myself that I’ve been keeping secret. Given the state of our relationship, I need to tell you before things go any further.”
A sudden fear washed over her. Was this something that was going to keep them apart? “If it's bad, I don't want to know,” she pleaded, suddenly the tiniest bit fearful.
“It's not bad, at least I hope you don't think it's bad.”
“Then tell me,” she said as the fear disappeared. “I’m going to spend the rest of my life with you. I want to know everything.”
He sighed deeply. “There isn't any good way to say this. Umm, I suppose you’ve noticed how much Superman likes you?”
“Yes,” she answered. “But that doesn't matter anymore. I only want to be with you.”
“Well, it does matter. You see, the reason that Superman finds you so attractive is the same one that I do. I'm Superman.”
She loved his sense of humor, but this wasn’t the time for a joke. “Very funny, Clark. And I suppose your dad uses super powers to work on his farm,” she countered.
“Don’t you remember my telling you that I'm adopted? Well, I am. It's just that my birth parents were a little farther removed than for most orphans.”
“You're serious?”
“Look around,” he said in a mischievous tone.
Laying on Clark it had been easy to focus on only him. He was really pleasant to look at, and he felt even better. Now she looked around and realized that the room didn't look quite right. Then she looked past Clark's face. There was the bed – four feet below. “We're floating!” she exclaimed.
“I told you,” he said with a crooked smile.
She was trying to process all this. Clark was Superman. That did explain a few things, such as Clark’s utterly fantastic body, but it really didn't matter very much. “Was that the only secret that you needed to tell me?” she asked.
He looked surprised at her casual tone. “Yes. I thought it would be a big deal.”
“It might have been, before whatever changed my outlook. But for now, I'm just glad that you're Clark and that your secret isn't anything that will keep us apart.”
“Now that you know, you do understand that we have to be extra careful,” he cautioned. “If anyone realizes that you are the one special person in Superman's life, you would become a target for people trying to get back at him.”
The way Clark said “the one special person” sent a warm feeling through her. “I get it,” she answered pleasantly. “But the only thing that the world will see is that I'm the one special person in Clark Kent's life. If you can behave yourself in public when you’re dressed as Superman, then so can I,” she said calmly.
“Now that we’re together, it will probably be easier,” Clark said thoughtfully. “In fact, if we’re careful, you should be even safer. If Clark Kent and Lois Lane are a couple, it's less likely that anyone will think to use you against Superman.”
“Clark Kent and Lois Lane a couple,” she mused out loud. “I like the sound of that. But you know what I think sounds even better?”
“What?”
“Clark and Lois Kent”
His eyes went wide, but to her relief she could tell that his reaction was surprise, not terror. “I...” he stuttered.
She could see that he still didn’t get it. “You said that you were dreaming of a relationship with me. But we both know if you just wanted to sleep with me, you could have done that as Superman months ago. So, am I wrong in thinking that's what we both want?”
Clark was silent for long enough that she started to have doubts. “No, you aren't wrong,” he confirmed finally. “I've known for some time that you were the only woman I wanted in my life. Lois, I've never felt anything like what I feel for you. I do want to spend my life with you.”
His confirmation triggered another rush of joy. “Good! Then let’s get married. Your being Superman will come in handy. We can get married in Las Vegas as soon as you can fly us there.”
“No,” he said flatly.
He could be so exasperating. “Why not?”
“Because that’s the one line I can't cross until we know that when your – good feelings – wear off, you really do want to be with me.”
“I'm sure of how I feel,” she offered.
“But I'm sure that you aren't yourself. I love you, and that's why I can't take you across that line.”
Every time he said, ‘I love you’ was like a warm wave washing over her. She took a second then considered the rest of what he'd said. “Do you promise that as soon as I'm back to normal, we'll get married?”
“If you still want me,” he replied, a nervous tone in his voice.
“I will,” she said brightly.
“I hope you will. If this… relationship was to be wrong, and you were to hate me for starting it, I’d never forgive myself.”
“You’re such a worry-wart.”
“Lois, I…”
She put her hand to his lips. “I understand. You’re going to worry. That’s part of what makes you the man that I realized I loved.” She removed her hand and they shared another deep and passionate kiss. “Enough talking,” she said sharply. “I want to have a good reason to be late for work.”
TBC
Bob
