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From Part 2:Clark had decorated for Christmas. And since he hadn’t done it before this morning... he had to have done it for her.
She stole a look at him. He knew what she was looking at, that much was clear, and a tiny muscle twitched in his jaw. And she noticed something about Clark Kent that she hadn’t realised, and that if anyone had suggested to her about him she would have laughed in disbelief.
He was lonely, too.
“Lois?” His prompting reminded her that he was still waiting for an answer.
“Uhh...” She hesitated, still wondering what the right thing to do was, but then made a sudden decision. “Clark, I’m really not sure that I’m ready to meet anyone yet.”
His smile could have powered the city’s grid for a week. “Then you don’t have to. You can stay here for as long as you want.”
********
Now read on...She was staying!
This was going to be a great Christmas, after all.
Okay, she might want to be taken to her sister’s place later, but still... she was here for now.
She’d looked so sad, so forlorn, when she’d said she wasn’t ready to meet anyone yet. So lost and alone.
Just like him.
And he wanted to show her that she would never be alone as long as he existed. He wanted to enfold her in his arms again and tell her how much he loved her and how he would protect and love her for the rest of his life.
But it was too soon - far, far too soon, if indeed it would ever be the right time for him to tell her that. She would run screaming in the opposite direction if he even so much as hinted at it now.
No; he had to tread very carefully. Right now, the most he could look for was friendship - and even that would take time.
Taking a risk, he reached out with one hand and touched her shoulder lightly. “So, you’ll stay?”
She gave him a tremulous smile. “If you’ll have me. If you didn’t have any other plans for today...?”
“Nope. No other plans. Not a thing,” he assured her, smiling broadly again. “So... hey, how about a flight over the city?” he offered, not above grasping at any means of holding her in his arms again. “You haven’t seen Metropolis from the air, have you?”
She gave him a wide-eyed stare. “Flying? With you?”
“Well, only if you like the idea,” he said hesitantly, unsure how to read her reaction.
“It sounds... Wow!” she exclaimed. “I mean, I’ve never known anyone who could fly before, and... well, I’m still not convinced that I’m not dreaming that bit.” She grinned.
“Nope, not dreaming,” he said. “Okay, how about you find a coat or something warm? If you don’t have one in that box I brought down, I guess I could lend you one. And then we’ll get going.”
********
Flying.
There was simply no experience in the world like it, Lois thought dazedly as she gazed down at the city spread out beneath her under its white blanket. Held securely in Clark’s arms, cushioned against his chest, she felt very safe and not at all nervous at being so many hundreds of feet above ground level without a parachute, as he’d joked when they’d stood together on his balcony. He’d seemed worried that she might not enjoy the experience, and for a moment she’d wondered if he was about to withdraw his invitation. But then he’d done a sudden whirl, coming to stop in his blue and red regalia, and in a smooth movement he’d scooped her up... and then stepped up onto the rail and off into thin air.
And now they were flying, cruising effortlessly through the sky.
She recognised buildings below her... the LexCorp tower, now the headquarters of a multinational bank, Clark told her, and she idly wondered what had become of Lex Luthor, millionaire philanthropist and, she’d suspected five years earlier (or a few weeks earlier, by her time), probably not as squeaky-clean as he pretended. She’d have to ask Clark.
And there was the Lexor Hotel - still called the Lexor, Clark confirmed - and the Metropolis Power Company plant. The harbour looked exactly the same, as did the river as it wound its complicated path through Metropolis. There were new developments: the run-down West River area had been redeveloped, with new and expensive-looking apartment blocks overlooking the river, and rows of shops and small businesses between them and along the side-streets. That area had badly needed redevelopment, she mused, but she couldn’t help wondering what had happened to the low-income families who had once lived there. They certainly couldn’t afford a river-front apartment!
And then they flew over the Daily Planet. Lois almost wept as Clark flew her down to look at the big globe; there’d been a few times over the past week or so she’d spent in the jungle when she’d thought she would never see the Planet again. It had been touch and go; apart from hiding from the members of the gun-running gang whom she knew were on her tail, the jungle itself had been fraught with danger. She’d had a narrow escape, a couple of nights ago, from some unidentified but very large creature which had come crashing through the vegetation in her direction; only a swift scramble up a tree had removed her from its path.
But now she was back in Metropolis, and she was safe.
Even safer, given that she had the strongest, most powerful being in the world taking care of her...
But she shouldn’t get too used to that. Clark was just being kind, after all. For some reason, she’d been brought to him, and he clearly felt some sort of responsibility towards her for that reason. Later tonight, or tomorrow, he’d take her to Perry and Alice, or to Lucy, and his duty towards her would be discharged.
Although... The thought struck her, then, that he did work for the Daily Planet. Now, if she could persuade the new editor, whoever that was, to give her back her job, maybe they could work together? For some reason, the thought of Clark Kent disappearing entirely from her life was very unpalatable...
And that was highly unusual for her. She usually took a long time to decide whether someone was trustworthy or not, and she’d never before felt herself drawn to someone as quickly as to Clark Kent. Never before felt that someone was as indispensable to her life as Clark Kent. It was scary... but at the same time, oddly comforting. Something about him was telling her that he needed her too...
They flew further across the city, even heading out across the bay and looking down at the dark sea and across to the circle of lights surrounding Hobbs Bay, and the entire experience became almost dream-like. She stopped asking excited questions and Clark stopped murmuring the answers in her ear.
And they were alone, hundreds of feet above the surface of the earth, with nothing between the earth and the sky but them.
The panorama below seemed to melt away, and Lois became aware only of Clark, his strong arms around her, his soft breath against her cheek, his body so close to her.
She could fall in love with this man.
And the prospect frightened her.
Why should he have any interest in Lois Lane, reporter? Especially when she was behaving like a flake over the fact that she’d been abruptly wrenched five years into the future? When the first thing she’d done when she’d awoken in his apartment was attack him?
Clark Kent, Superman, could have all the women he wanted. He wouldn’t want Lois Lane.
A little while later, at her request, he took her to the cemetery, a bleak landscape in the wintry snow. He stood a little way back as she walked across to her father’s grave. She saw, as he’d told her, the stone tablet dedicated to her; and, next to it, the headstone which had been her father’s had been added to.
“And his beloved wife, Ellen Lane
1946 - 1996
Rest In Peace”Lois took a deep, shuddering breath, feeling tears prick at her eyes. “Rest in peace, Mom,” she choked out. It was for the best. Her parents were together again, which was all her mom had ever wanted. But she missed the loving mother she remembered as a kid. And she had missed her chance to say goodbye.
But she was alive, she reminded herself. If she hadn’t been brought here, now, she too would have been dead.
“Goodbye, Mom,” she whispered.
And then she felt a strong arm come around her, and she was being tugged back against a hard, solid, wonderfully comforting chest.
He held her in silence for a long time. Then, when she took another deep breath, he murmured, “I lost both my parents when I was ten. It does get better, Lois. I promise.”
She turned in his arms to look at him, and he hugged her close. And as crazy, as unexpected as it was, she felt herself even more drawn to him. She didn't dare to put a name on the feeling just yet, but she was afraid she already knew what it was. How could she be falling in love so fast?
And yet she was. And with every second Clark held her, she fell even deeper in love with him.
*********
Later, after they’d eaten - and Clark had even impressed himself at the way he’d managed to conjure up a respectable Christmas dinner almost out of nowhere - they adjourned to the living room. It was dusk outside, and the room was lit only by a couple of small lamps and the Christmas tree.
He was feeling more Christmassy than he had in years. For the first time since his parents had died, Clark was enjoying this time of year.
And Lois was having a good time, too. Although she’d been upset when he’d taken her to the cemetery, he’d sensed that her tears had also been healing. Back in his apartment, she’d relaxed with a glass of wine and they’d actually had a conversation which wasn’t about Superman, or Clark Kent, or Metropolis five years on, or what Lois had been doing in the Congo... or, the question he was dreading, why he had been looking for her; why Wells had brought her to him.
They talked, they laughed; they discovered that they had a lot in common. And Clark discovered that he liked this Lois Lane even more than he’d liked her counterpart.
She was different. He’d always felt somewhat inadequate next to that Lois. After all, she was the one with experience of Superman; she was the one who’d made him what he was, and to whom he looked to for advice. Even when he’d been in her world, by which time he’d been Superman for over a year, she’d still been the one calling the shots.
With this Lois, they were equals. And he even felt protective towards her, in a way he hadn’t really had the opportunity to be towards the other Lois. He’d even felt awkward about comforting her in the absence of her husband; after all, there had been that dangerous moment when they’d almost kissed.
She settled herself on the other end of the sofa, making herself comfortable, and then turned to him.
“So, Clark... why were you looking for me? I mean, it’s not as if you even knew me. What’s going on here that I don’t know about?”
Clark’s heart sank. This was the question he’d been dreading... but he had to give her an answer. And he had to tell her the truth, too. Not doing so simply wasn’t an option.
“Well, this is going to sound pretty crazy,” he said awkwardly. “I mean, really, really off the wall.”
“You think?” she threw back at him, mildly sardonic. “Come on, Clark - I’ve just been brought five years into the future by a time-traveller who’s also a dead writer, and I’ve met an alien from another planet who can fly... I mean, what can be weirder than that?”
“Parallel universes?” he suggested wryly.
”What?” she exclaimed.
“Parallel universes. Or, specifically,
one parallel universe. Where there’s another Clark Kent... and another Lois Lane,” he explained, his heart in his mouth. “I met the other Lois Lane about two years ago - when she was dumped in this universe by a meddling guy from the future.”
Any second now, she was either going to have him hauled off to the funny farm, or she was going to yell at him and walk out.
“There’s really another universe?” she asked sceptically.
“Yeah. At least one other that I know of,” he assured her.
“And because there was a Lois Lane there, you thought there had to be one here?”
“I knew there was one - had been one - here,” he explained. “The memorial stone in the cemetery, remember?”
“Yeah.” She bit her lip.
He took a deep breath, then forged onwards. “Anyway, once I knew that there was a Lois in the other world, I... started to look for you.”
“But why?” she asked, puzzled. “I can’t see why it would matter to you.”
“No?” He shrugged. “Lois... the other Lois and Clark Kent... they’re partners. They work together at the Planet in their world.”
She frowned. “And you wanted a partner? But why would Superman need a partner? I mean, with what you can do, wouldn’t you work better alone?”
“In the other world, people don’t know that Clark’s Superman,” he said. “So I guess - well, apart from the fact that he and Lois love working together - I guess she covers for him when he needs to... you know,” he finished vaguely.
Lois gave him a considering look. “There’s something you’re not telling me, isn’t there?”
He gulped. Then he acknowledged the reality of the situation. He had to tell her the truth. If he didn’t, and at some point she found out some other way, he could have destroyed her trust in him for ever. No, there was no way around it; he had to tell her.
“They’re married,” he said quickly.
“Who are married?” she demanded, giving him a wary look.
“Clark and... Lois.”
“Oh.” She bit her lip, and he watched her through worried eyes. She was looking very nervous now, and he held his breath, just waiting for her to accuse him of wanting her only because he was already in love with the other Lois and couldn’t have her. Seeing
her as a substitute. Of already deciding that she had no choice but to be his girlfriend... lover... wife... whatever; of giving her no choice.
********
Lois barely knew what to say. She’d accepted the parallel universes bit - well, because, as she’d told him, it wasn’t much more fantastic than everything else she'd discovered that day. She’d even accepted an alternative Lois, and an alternative Clark Kent. She'd been delighted to hear that they were partners at the Planet - that told her that her thoughts earlier, about wanting to work with
her Clark, weren’t too much of a fantasy.
But... her counterpart was married to his counterpart...
That was... scary.
And her Clark had met that other Lois... and it was after that meeting that he’d started to look for
her. Was that because... oh god, he’d fallen for that other Lois, but since he couldn’t have her he’d been looking for a substitute, hadn’t he?
And yet... She’d only known Clark a matter of hours. But something about him told her that he’d have looked for her anyway, once he’d discovered that she was missing. Because that was the kind of man he was.
“So...” she said awkwardly.
“Yeah?” he prompted once she didn’t continue.
“So... you kind of figured that we were supposed to be together too? To... fall in love with each other?” she asked him, needing him to tell her something she could believe. Needing him to reassure her that he wasn’t just seeing her as a substitute for a woman he couldn’t have.
********
Of course she thought he saw her as a substitute. He reached for her, caught her hand and held it firmly in his. “Lois, you’re your own woman. Sure, you look like her, and you have the same job as she does - and I’m Clark Kent and Superman, just like her husband. But I’m very different from him in lots of ways - as you are from her. Having met you, I could never confuse you with her, if that’s what’s worrying you.”
“I guess... a bit,” she admitted.
He had to reassure her, even if it meant... well, being not entirely honest about his feelings. “You wouldn’t be human if it didn’t occur to you,” he told her. Then, figuring that he’d better deal with the marriage stuff, he added, “Lois, I don’t want to push you into anything you don’t want. I... I mean, if it’s all you want, I’m happy to be your friend and nothing more. Just having you around is enough.”
It would be enough. It would have to be!
And he could live with it, too. His counterpart had shown that it could be done. The other Clark Kent had waited two years for his Lois to fall in love with him, after all.
“So... you’ll settle for just being friends?” Lois questioned him.
“Of course. If that’s what you want. I mean, if you want me to be your friend.”
Again, he held his breath. After this, he couldn’t blame her if she tried to get as far away from him as possible.
********
She gave him a long look. Did she want to be his friend? Did she believe him when he said he wanted
her, that he wasn’t confusing her with the other Lois?
Actually... she had a sneaking suspicion that she did. It was something about the way he looked at her, the way he’d possessed himself of her hand. And the expression on his face when he’d told her that he was different from the other Clark Kent. Something told her that he hadn’t liked being confused with the other Clark, any more than she would like being considered a substitute for the other Lois.
Yes, she believed him.
Enough to be his friend?
Just his friend? But she wanted more than that. And, beneath his caution and reassurance, he was telling her pretty clearly that he did too - something she hadn’t even dared let herself dream about.
A cautious smile edging across her face, she said, “Actually, I’m not sure that I could settle for just being your friend, Clark Kent.”
Sounding as if he was barely able to believe his ears, he exclaimed, “You can’t?”
She held up her hands in a wary gesture. “Whoa, whoa! Look, can we take this
very slowly here? I mean, I’ve only just met you, and I have kind of had an eventful day. But yeah, I mean, I think... in time, I think I’d like to be... your girlfriend,” she finished softly, her heart in her mouth.
*********
Clark stared at her, barely able to believe his ears. She wanted to be his
girlfriend?
This was unbelievable. His dream was coming true. Lois - his Lois - wanted him, too.
Outside, he could hear bells again. It was late afternoon, and people were still celebrating Christmas according to their particular tradition.
Inside, he’d just been given the very best Christmas present he could ever have. Lois was back and with him, and she thought she might like to be his girlfriend. Some day. In time.
“Lois,” he said huskily. She smiled tremulously at him.
“Oh, Lois...” he murmured; then he gave up on words and simply reached for her. She came willingly.
Tugging her gently into his arms, he murmured, “I’m not rushing you. But do you think we can... well, sort of do this just as a promise to each other? That maybe one day we’ll be more than friends?”
“A sort of trial kiss?” she said softly.
“I guess.” He smiled. “But for me it’s more of a promise - that I will wait for you and in the meantime I’ll be there for you whenever you need me.”
She slid her arms around his neck. “I like the sound of that, Clark. Me too. And... also to say Merry Christmas?”
“Oh, that too,” he agreed, chuckling gently. “But mostly... because I want to kiss you.”
“And I want to kiss you,” she admitted. And then their lips met, tentatively at first, but then eagerly, and nothing else mattered.
Outside, bells rang, people chattered and wished each other a merry Christmas. Snow fell, and traffic moved, and children ran about and played. Inside, the occupants of the room were oblivious to everything except each other.
And Clark Kent rediscovered the magic of Christmas, just as Lois Lane found her way home.
~ The End ~
Merry Christmas, everyone! 
