Consequences | Chapter 4/4

[sanalayla]

It had been exactly forty one days, sixteen hours, and thirty-three minutes since Lois had broken up with him. Clark leaned back in his chair and watched her, covertly, across the surface of their two desks. The buzz and hum of the busy bullpen swirled around him, but he ignored it, choosing instead to focus on the sound of her beating heart and the scratching of the pen as she edited the article he’d handed to her a few minutes ago.

Every once in awhile, she’d let out a sigh and absentmindedly chew on the tip of the pen, as she read what she probably considered an especially poorly constructed sentence. When she started to glance up, he quickly turned away and pretended that he’d been focused on reading the latest edition of the DP, rather than staring at her.

He heard her get up and she came around their desks, tossing his article on his keyboard. “Here you go.” Lois leaned against his desk, right in front of him, and added, “It’s not bad.”

Clark looked up at her and put down the paper. He picked up the draft and quickly flipped through it, noting that she’d red-lined pretty much every paragraph. “This is your idea of not bad? What would you have done if it was terrible?”

Having the grace to look a little chagrined, Lois shrugged and explained, “Look, I think the article is good and it’s really well written. It’s just that….” Lois glanced around, as though she were checking to make sure no one was listening in. Leaning down closer to him, she lowered her voice and added, “I think you hold back when you write stories about the Blur. Leave out a lot of the detail and write the bare minimum.”

Rolling his eyes a bit, Clark replied, “That’s because I’m afraid I’m going to give too many details.”

“I know.” Lois nodded, her eyes full of understanding. “I get it. But… you have to get over it. You don’t want your day job to suffer because of your night job. You have to figure out how to balance it better.”

Clark contemplated her for a moment. “And how am I supposed to do that?”

“Easy. You make me your wingman,” Lois offered. “When you write your first draft, go for broke. And then I’ll read through it and let you know if you let slip any blurry-little details.” Lois smiled, her lips curved up into her trademark grin. “What would you do without me, Smallville?”

Her hand came up and she started to smack him lightly on his shoulder, but he grabbed her arm before she could connect. Looking straight at her, he said, seriously, “I already know. I’d die inside.”

Lois stared at him for a moment and then looked away. He knew she was thinking of what he’d told her of the alternate future that she’d never had to witness. And that was the point. After a moment, she cleared her throat and said, with a slight smile, “It was a joke, Smallville. You’d be fine without me.”

Clark opened his mouth to argue the point when he heard someone call out his name. He turned to look and saw Cat Grant walking towards them.

“Clark!” Cat said again, with a huge grin.

Cat hurried towards their desks and Lois tried to extricate herself from his hold. After a few seconds, he let her.

“Cat,” Clark said, with a warm smile. “How are you doing?”

“I’m doing fine. Settling in at the DP; learning the ropes.” Cat turned to Lois and added, “Lois. How are you?”

Lois, who had never really gotten over her initial dislike of Cat, smiled stiffly in return. “I’m fine.”

The niceties apparently out of the way, Cat shifted her attention back on Clark and asked, “So, what are you doing this weekend? I’ve got an extra ticket to the Sharks game. I thought you’d be interested.”

Clark’s brows rose at that. Flushing slightly, he looked towards Lois for support. And saw that she wasn’t even looking at him. She was staring at Cat much the same way he’d seen her once stare at a rabid dog. Somewhat revolted, but quite ready to fight. Her arms were crossed and she’d straightened up. A little amused and more than a little gratified by Lois’s response, Clark couldn’t help but decide to use it to his advantage.

“I don’t know, Cat. When’s the game?” Clark asked, as though he didn’t have the Sharks schedule memorized. “It depends.”

Lois’s head snapped in Clark’s direction in surprise. He couldn’t seriously be considering taking the bimbo up on her invitation, could he? Her eyes narrowed on his face, as she tried to discern what was going on. For all intents and purposes, he looked sincere. But this was Clark Kent. He looked like a freaking angel even when he was knocking out muggers. (Something she’d recently witnessed first-hand and had to admit was really hot.)

Cat smiled at Clark, showing off all of her even white teeth in her too-tan face. “Tomorrow. We should probably get there at one? And maybe have dinner afterwards?”

Before Lois could stop herself, she blurted out, “He can’t. Clark’s helping me move tomorrow.”

Both Cat and Clark looked at her with surprise.

Clark was the first to recover. “I am?”

“Yes, you are,” Lois answered, emphatically nodding her head. As though that would make the lie all that much more truthful. “I asked you last week. Remember?”

Clark - who had a memory that rivaled the most complex of computers - studied her for a moment and then nodded slowly, as he lied, “Um… yeah. I forgot.” He turned to Cat and said, apologetically, “I’ll have to take a rain check.”

Since that implied that he’d be taking Cat up on her offer at some point, Lois shot him a dirty look. And then promptly ordered herself to stop acting like a jealous harpy and tried to school her features into what she hoped was a pleasant façade. “Yes, he’ll have to take a rain check,” Lois told Cat, in as supportive of a voice as she could muster on such short notice. “Sorry about that.”

“No problem.” Cat glanced between the two of them and hesitated for a second. And, then, added, in a speculative tone, “You know, I have never met two exes that were as friendly as you two.”

Clark and Lois exchanged a look and then Lois asked, after clearing her throat, “Um… what do you mean?”

“Well, usually, it’s been proven that exes who work together are a disaster.” Cat looked both of them over again and then quirked a brow. “But you two genuinely seem to be good friends. How do you do it?”

Lois looked down, not knowing exactly how to answer the question. After all, she had no clue how she did it. The past month – actually, forty-one days (not that she was counting) – had been torture for her. Every day, she had to remind herself that she had broken up with Clark for a reason. And that she should just trust her gut instincts and keep their relationship in the ‘just friends’ category. All of that was easier said than done.

Clark seemed to sense that an answer from Lois wasn’t forthcoming, because he jumped in. “Well, we were friends long before we started dating, Cat.” Then he cast an unreadable look in Lois’s direction and smiled faintly. “And anyone would be lucky to be considered Lois’s friend. There was no way I was going to let her go, even when we stopped being a couple.”

Swallowing thickly, as a well of emotion rose to her throat, Lois offered Clark a half grin. “Right back at you, Smallville.” She punctuated her comment with a light punch to his arm, being careful not to connect too hard or she’s break her own hand.

“Hhhmmm,” Cat glanced between the two of them again. “Well, that’s great. I’ll call you later, Clark. To cash that rain check.” She nodded towards Lois. “Have a great weekend, Lois. Good luck on your move.”

“Thanks,” Lois answered, easily. But she couldn’t help but make a face at the other woman’s back as Cat walked away. “Could you get anymore perfect? Those teeth have to be fake. And I don’t mean her teeth.” Lois muttered softly under her breath.

Letting out a slight laugh, Clark leaned back in his chair and surveyed her, his eyes twinkling with amusement. “I don’t think so. They’re not.”

With a start, Lois glanced at him sharply. “You heard me?”

“Well, it was hard not to,” Clark answered, while he indicated towards his ear.

“Hey!” Lois started, indignantly. “We talked about abuse of….” She hesitated and lowered her voice to a bare whisper. “… of your… abilities… around me.”

“I wasn’t abusing.” Clark looked a little affronted. “You whisper loud.”

Lois’s jaw dropped. “What? That’s….” Lois stopped and realized there was probably some truth to that. “Anyway… how would you even know?”

Clark glanced away and did a half shrug. “Let’s just say I have excellent vision,” he replied smoothly.

Squinting at him suspiciously, she considered his statement. “No way.” Shaking her head slightly, she began to walk towards the back table, where the staff kept the coffee supplies. “I know you, Clark Kent. You would never do that.”

Clark got up to follow her and stood by as she poured herself a cup of coffee. “Really?”

“Really,” Lois confirmed, with a firm nod of her head. “Unless…” she stopped, as a thought occurred to her. “Unless you were on Red K.” She whirled around to face him, her pony-tail whipping across her cheek, but she ignored it. Her voice hitching a little higher than usual, she asked, “You weren’t ever around Cat when you were on Red K, were you?”

Clark stared at her for a second and then smiled. “No.” Before she knew what he was doing, he took the coffee out of her hands and took a sip. At her dirty look, he said, “What? I’m helping you move tomorrow – a favor you never actually asked, by the way – so the least you can do is give me coffee.”

Lois made a face, knowing he had a point. “Yeah, sorry about that. I did actually mean to ask you, but I kept….” Lois paused, not wanting to tell him the truth, which was that she had been debated whether to ask him at all. “… forgetting,” she finished, a bit lamely.

For his part, Clark didn’t seem to notice her inner debate. “It’s not a problem. I didn’t know you were moving, though.”

“Yeah, well…” Lois shrugged slightly. “Things used to be weird with Chloe and Jimmy. But now? Chloe and Oliver? It’s just downright creepy.”

Nodding slowly, Clark took another sip of his coffee. And, then, his tone casual, he asked, “How are things with you and Chloe?”

Lois felt a stab of pain somewhere near the region of her heart. Blindly, she turned her focus back on making another cup of coffee, as though the amount of milk she put in was of paramount importance. “Uhh… fine.”

“Still not talking to each other, then?” Clark guessed, correctly. His tone was sympathetic, but also a little despondent.

Lois concentrated on adding sugar into the cup, stirring vigorously.

At her silence, he said, “I’m sorry, Lois.”

At that, she turned to face him and asked, sharply, “For what?”

“For coming between you and Chloe,” Clark responded. She could tell from the expression on his face that he was feeling incredibly guilty. “You were as close as sisters and, if it weren’t for my secret, you two would --.”

“Stop, Smallville.” Lois lifted a hand to interrupt him before he went into full-on guilt and mope mode. “Chloe is responsible for her own actions. Not you. Not me. Not Oliver. And we clearly weren’t as close as sisters if she managed to spend the past six years lying to me without blinking an eye.” Lois paused and closed her own eyes at the thought. After a second, she controlled her emotions and opened her eyes to add, softly, “Look, we’re cousins. Blood. It’ll work out. I just need some space, that’s all. It’s not your fault.”

It was clear that her little pep talk did nothing to alleviate his guilt, but Clark must have decided to drop the subject. “So, I’m helping you move tomorrow, huh?” His lips curved up into a teasing smile. “When were you planning on letting me in on this plan? Tomorrow?”

Letting out a slight laugh, Lois shook her head. “Hey, it’s not my fault you’re capable of doing the move in ten minutes. And, really, if you think about it, I haven’t taken advantage of your… talents… quite enough.” Looking up at him teasingly, she informed him, “You’re going to save me five hundred bucks.”

“Well, I’m glad my talents can help you out, Lois,” Clark answered, his grin widening as he stared down at her. His eyes strayed to her lips and he added, softly, “I’m always happy to be of service.”

Lois blinked up at him in confusion and then her cheeks heated up as what he said sunk in. Glancing away, she stammered, “Um… well… you know….” Letting out a slight sigh, she snuck a peek in his direction and saw that he looked amused at her discomfiture. Rolling her eyes, she said, “If you want to go with Cat to the game, that’s fine. I really don’t have a right to ask you to cancel that.” Swallowing slightly, she looked him straight in the eye and finished, “It’s okay if you can’t help me move.”

“So, you’re telling me I can do whatever I’d prefer?” He was silent for a moment, as though he were considering his options. Then, with a slight grin, he leaned down towards her. “I’ll see you tomorrow. By ten, barring any emergencies.”

Trying not to show how happy his choice made her, Lois gave a nonchalant shrug. “Emergencies. Of course.”

Before Clark could respond, his phone beeped, indicating a text was coming in. Not taking his eyes off of Lois, he pulled out his phone and then glanced down at the message. With a frown, he said, “I’ve got to go.”

“Watchtower?” Lois guessed, indicating towards his phone. “Speaking of emergencies….”

“Something like that,” Clark answered, vaguely. With an apologetic shrug, he stepped closer and leaned down, as though by rote, to kiss her good-bye. Almost instinctively, she moved back. Frozen in place for a second, he gazed down at her and something indefinable flashed in his eyes. Before she could say anything, he said, “You’re wrong, you know. You have every right.”

With that, he blurred away, leaving Lois staring speechlessly at the empty spot before her where he had just been standing.

*


“Here,” Oliver said, as he handed Clark a cold bottle of beer. Settling down into the chair in front of Clark, he propped his legs up on the table and added, “I know it’s not your thing, but we deserve one after the day we’ve had.”

Clark considered the bottle in his hand and then figured why not. He didn’t usually drink, but there was nothing really stopping him. It’s not like it would impact his judgment. With his bare hand, he popped off the cap and then took a long pull from the bottle. Making a face, he set the bottle down on the table and leaned back more comfortably on the sofa he was lounging on.

Letting out a weary sigh, Clark agreed, “Yes, it has been a long day.”

“How goes Operation Lois Lane?” Oliver asked, his tone semi-teasing, but his expression quite thoughtful. “You wearing her down?”

Clark thought back to the morning. “Yeah, I think so. I’m helping her move tomorrow.” With a slight smile, he added, “And she was jealous this morning when Cat asked me out. I think it’s progress.”

Oliver took a long sip of his beer before responding. “Cat asked you out? Maybe you should consider it.”

“No.” Casting a sharp look in Oliver’s direction, Clark couldn’t help but scowl. “Why would I go out with another woman when I’m in…” Clark stopped and then amended, “When I should be with Lois?”

Oliver’s brows rose coolly. “How will you ever get over Lois if you don’t go out with another woman? You need to consider the possibility that things may always stay in the ‘just friends’ category with Lois.” Slightly under this breath, he added, “God knows, I’ve been there.”

“That was different,” Clark shot back. He took another swallow of his drink and leaned forward on the sofa a bit. Looking at Oliver intently, he said, “You and I are very different.”

“Really?” Oliver eyed Clark skeptically and then let out a snort of derision. “Let’s see here. I dated her and hid that I was the Green Arrow from her. When she found out, she decided we’d be better off friends. You dated her and hid that you were the Blur from her. When she found out, she decided you two would be better off friends. Yeah, it’s a completely different story from where I’m sitting.”

“The difference,” Clark pointed out, “Is that I’m not going to give up. Besides, what Lois and I have is….” Clark paused, debating whether this was a proper conversation to have with Lois’s ex. Then he decided it didn’t matter, because Oliver was – first and foremost – their friend. “What we have is stronger than anything either one of us have had with anyone else. Than what I had with Lana. And what she had with you. It’s even stronger than the both of us. I know that. And I just have to make Lois understand that, too.”

“How long do you plan to wait for her to figure that out?” Oliver asked, his voice full of sympathy and more than a little curiosity.

“Forever, if I have to,” Clark answered, honestly.

A new voice joined in on the conversation. “I don’t know, Clark,” Chloe said, as she walked into the corner of Watchtower, where Clark and Oliver were lounging. She tossed her bag to the side and sank down on the chair next to Oliver. Grabbing his drink out of his hand, she took a tiny sip from the bottle and then looked directly at Clark. “Sometimes, the consequences of our mistakes are too high. And we don’t have any control over that.” She glanced at Oliver and then back at Clark. “That’s something I actually learned this past year.”

Clark considered that for a moment and then asked her, gently, “Are you talking about my actions or yours?”

Clark knew that it was killing Chloe that Lois wasn’t talking to her. Out of all the things that he thought would be impacted by Lois knowing his secret, he had never considered the effect it would have Lois’s relationship with the people she loved. When she had learned that Chloe, Oliver, and Lana – almost everyone she knew – all knew Clark’s secret and had actively hid it from her, she’d been devastated. But the biggest sting of betrayal had come from the knowledge that not only had Chloe known about Clark’s secret, but that she’d spent a considerable amount of time making sure Lois never found out. Both Clark and Oliver had tried to intercede on Chloe’s behalf, but to no avail.

Chloe played with the paper on the beer bottle, slowly unraveling it, piece by piece. “I’m talking about both of us.” Then, she glanced up and smiled. “So, I hear you’re helping Lois move tomorrow? I guess Oliver and I should make ourselves scarce and I should keep all Watchtower interruptions to a minimum?”

Realizing that Chloe wanted to change the subject, Clark nodded. “Yes, that would be great.”

Handing the bottle back to Oliver, Chloe turned to Clark and said, briskly, “Look, Clark. I know I haven’t been the biggest cheerleader in the Clark and Lois love game, but I really do hope that it works out with you guys.” With a tremulous smile, she added, “Even if it doesn’t work out with me and Lois.”

Nodding in understanding, Clark recalled with Lois had said earlier in the day. “I know Lois. And I don’t think she can be mad at you for long, Chloe. She’ll get over it. You’re cousins and that matters to Lois.”

Chloe bit her lip. “I hope so.”

*


Attempting to salvage the day and trying to be at least a little productive, Lois read through her latest article for the eighth time. But, again, her mind wandered. Try as she might, she couldn’t get Clark’s voice out her head or the way he’d looked at her before he’d sped away to deal with his emergency.

“Penny for your thoughts?”

Lois swiveled around in her chair at the familiar voice. “Perry!” With a grin, she shot up to her feet and gave the older man a quick, affectionate hug and a peck on the cheek. “What are you doing here?”

Grimacing slightly, Perry set his briefcase down on her cluttered desk. “Second interview.”

“Second interview?” Lois repeated. Her brows furrowed in confusion, Lois crossed her arms. “For what?”

“Editor-in-chief position,” Perry explained. “I had a phone interview about a month ago. Then, a face-to-face with a few key individuals a couple of weeks ago. And, now, I just got out of a four hour meeting with the board.”

“Perry!” Lois’s face split into a huge, excited grin. “That’s fantastic!”

“Well, don’t get too excited, yet,” Perry cautioned. “Yours truly is on the short-list, but I don’t know if I’m at the top of it.”

Lois frowned in confusion, as a thought occurred to her. “Wait, didn’t Stern want the job? How does that work? Is he causing problems?”

Perry let out a slight laugh. “No. In fact, he’s the one who made me apply. Turns out he enjoys owning the paper more than running it.”

With a relieved smile, Lois gave him another hug. “You’ll totally get it. You’re the most talented reporter on the planet.” With a pause, she added, cheekily, “Other than me, of course.”

“Of course,” Perry replied, a bit dryly. “Speaking of which… I got a call from an old friend of mine. He’s the editor-in-chief at the Central City Chronicle.”

One brow in question and Lois asked, “What does that have to do with me?”

“He’s new and he’s looking to expand his roster with talented journalists.” Perry shrugged slightly. “He’s already got some. Iris West ring a bell to you?”

Lois nodded slowly. “Yeah, I’ve read some of her stuff. She follows the stuff that the kid… Impulse… does a lot.” Even though it hurt her a little to admit it, professional decency dictated that she be honest. “She’s good. Iris, I mean.”

“Yeah, so, apparently, Iris has read your stuff and feels the same way about you. She gave your name to her boss.” Perry paused and made a gesture with his hand, as though indicating that Lois could fill in the rest.

“So, he called you, since he knew that we’d just worked together in Kenya?” Lois guessed.

“Bingo.” Perry gave her a long look and then admitted, “Look, kid, it’s not in my best interests for you to meet with this guy. If it turns out that I do get this gig at the DP, then I’m going to need you here. I’m putting you on notice right now that if you move to Central City, my first act as editor will be to bankrupt the DP’s coffers trying to woo you back.”

Gratified by the level of faith he had in her, Lois couldn’t help but smile. “Thanks, Perry,” Lois replied, fondly.

Then her smile faded as she looked across the desk and saw Clark’s name-plate. There was a part of her that wanted to leap at the chance to pack and move to a new place where she didn’t have to see Clark every day. Be reminded of all that she had lost. But then again, the thought of not seeing him seemed like it was even more painful than actually seeing him. It was a disconcerting thought and Lois frowned in confusion.

Perry caught the look and misinterpreted it. “So, you’re considering it?” Smacking his hand against the desk lightly, he shook his head. “I knew I should have kept it from you.”

“No, no,” Lois rushed to reassure him. “I’m not. I just….” Her eyes travelled to the empty chair across from her again and she let out a sigh. “As tempting as it is to just start over fresh somewhere, I can’t. The DP is my home.” Glancing around at the bustling bullpen, she added, “These people are my family.” Sitting down on her chair, she looked up at him earnestly. “I spent my whole life looking for a place to put down roots. Now that I have? I can’t just pick up and leave.”

Perry turned to glance back at Clark’s empty desk. “Are your roots connected to the DP? Or to a town called Smallville?” Perry guessed, as he picked up Clark’s name plate.

Fixing her eyes on the plate in Perry’s hands, she avoided her mentor’s question. “Clark and I broke up, Perry.”

“I know,” Perry answered. Gently, he set the name plate back down Clark’s desk. “Martha told me.”

“Right. So he has nothing to do with this.” Lois glanced away from Perry as she delivered the lie.

Since he was Perry, he didn’t buy her lie. “So, I take it that the girl decided he couldn’t earn the trust back?”

Sharply, Lois looked at him. “No, that’s not it.” The realization hit her like a ton of bricks that trust wasn’t really the issue. Clark had a long ago regained her trust. Maybe he’d never even lost it. What was holding her back had nothing to do with trust. “I…. I… just… think that the girl decided that it hurt too much.”

Perry was silent for a second, slumped against her desk as he contemplated her words. “Did you know,” he said finally, “That I’m almost seven years sober?” He pulled out a chip from his pocket and held it up.

Lois stared at the chip in his hand. “I didn’t. I mean, I knew you’d had some rough and crazy times, but….”

“Yeah, rough and crazy is one way to describe it,” Perry replied, wryly. He pocketed the chip and looked at her. “Even after all these years, every day is a struggle. It’s an uphill battle all the way, Lane. And you know what? I wouldn’t have my life any other way, because that struggle is so worth what I get out of it. My life is so much better.”

“Wouldn’t you want a life where you’d never have gotten addicted to begin with?” Lois asked, finding what she considered a huge flaw in his argument. “Then, your life would be great and without the struggle.”

“Ah, yes, of course,” Perry answered, with an easy grin. “But that’s the ‘what if’ scenario, Lane. I’m talking about reality. The reality is that I can’t change that. My past, I have no control over. It’s my future actions I can control. It’s similar to love, kid. We can’t control who we love. But we can choose how we deal with that love.”

Lois stared at him for a moment and then started to laugh. “I never pegged you as a romantic, Perry.”

“Two wives and currently working on number three?” Perry asked, looking a little affronted. “How can I not be a romantic?”

Shaking her head, slightly, Lois chuckled. “Let me take you out for dinner, Romeo. We’ll have a premature celebration.”

“You’ll jinx it, Lane,” Perry said warningly, as he followed her out to the elevators.

Lois turned to face him and smiled softly. “How can one jinx fate?” She threw her arm around his shoulders and steered him towards the elevators. “C’mon, White. I know a place where they make a mean burger.”

*


Lois put her hands on her hips and blew a few strands of stray hair out her eyes. She surveyed her new apartment, turning around slowly a few times. Clark couldn’t help but smile at how cute she looked in her old jeans and gray t-shirt, with ARMY written across the front. Her jeans were a little dusty and there were a few streaks of dirt across one cheek. He had no idea how she’d even managed to get so dirty, when he’d done most of the work.

“Awesome, Smallville!” Lois looked across the room at him, her eyes shining with gratitude, and his heart leapt in his chest in response. “Thank you!”

“You like it?” Pleased by her reaction, he grinned at her. “I even stocked your fridge.”

Blinking in surprise, Lois headed towards her tiny kitchen and opened the refrigerator door. Her voice a little muffled, since her head was buried in the fridge, and she exclaimed, “Oh, my God. You totally did!” She grabbed two diet cokes from the fridge and then popped one open. Quickly, she bridged the distance between them and handed him the cold drink. “Here. It’s the least I can do. Since you not only moved all my stuff, but you set up my apartment AND made sure I’d be fed for the next week.”

Not knowing how to respond, Clark took a sip of his drink.

“Seriously, Smallville,” Lois continued, as though she hadn’t realized he was silent, “You are, like, the best moving company ever. You need to go into business.” She plopped down on her sofa and looked up at him laughingly. “The Blur’s Moving Company, Inc. We deliver in record times.”

At that, Clark let out a slight laugh. “It’s hard enough to juggle two jobs, Lois. I’m not adding a third one into the mix.” He sat down on the closest arm chair and gave her a semi-teasing look, “The Blur’s going into retirement after this move.”

“But think about all the extra money you could make,” Lois pointed out, with a teasing smile. “I really feel like you’re missing a lot of great opportunities to parlay your talents into serious cash.”

Letting out a wry laugh, Clark responded, “If I wanted to use my abilities to make money, I could just rob an ATM machine.”

“You’d never do that,” Lois answered, immediately. “There’s making money and then there’s just illegal.”

Clark winced and sheepishly admitted, “Um… actually, I have done that.” At her questioning look, he explained, “I was on Red K.”

“Oh, right, that makes more sense,” Lois replied. Looking a little bemused, she considered him for a second and then said, slowly, “Every time I think I’ve got a handle on you, you tell me something that makes me think that I’ll never fully figure you out.”

Clark’s brows rose at that. With a slight grin, his voice smooth as glass, he responded, “That’s only fair. Since you’ve been doing that to me since the day we first met.”

“It was night time when we first met,” Lois corrected automatically. Then she blushed, as though embarrassed that she not only remembered, but that she’d felt a compelling urge to point it out.

Laughing a little, he glanced around the living room, to give her a chance to compose herself. In an effort to change the subject, he said, “Your new place looks great. I like it.”

“Thanks,” Lois answered, gratefully. “I can’t believe it only took you two hours. And that includes unpacking and set-up.”

“You know, it would have been even faster, if you’d let me just bring the stuff myself. Instead of using the moving truck,” Clark commented.

Lois had started to take a sip of her drink and, at that, the can paused mid-way to her lips. “No way,” Lois declared emphatically. “And risk damage to all my valuables? I don’t trust the Blur express quite that much.”

“What valuables?” Clark gave her a bemused look. “Your Whitesnake collection?”

Lois made a face that indicated that she wasn’t amused. “Actually, now that you mention it, valuable is not a strong enough word. Try ‘invaluable’.”

“Do you know the meaning of the word?” Clark shot back, with a grin. “Because I don’t think it means what you think it means.”

Letting out a laugh, Lois shook her head. “Quoting ‘Princess Bride’? I’ve taught you well, young Skywalker.”

For a long moment, the two just shared happy smiles, not even realizing that they were staring at each other. Lois was the first to break her gaze away. She looked down at the drink in her hand and began playing with the tab.

It took that small action for Clark to come to the conclusion that he couldn’t take it, anymore. He’d missed Lois. He’d missed this. Just hanging out with her and having her make sarcastic comments while she teased him. And he teased her back. When they were dating, this sort of back-and-forth between them always led to a make-out session on the sofa or the bed (or, really, whatever nearest flat surface they could find). Now, the distance between them was only four feet, but it may as well have been a galaxy, for all the good it did him. And he was sick of it.

Clark had super-speed and an arsenal of super-powers at his disposal, but he didn’t have the power to make Lois see reason. To make her realize that what they had was rare and that it was something worth fighting for. He’d told Oliver that he’d wait forever for her to realize it, and he meant it. But he also had no intention of just standing around waiting for it to magically happen. Clark had promised himself that he’d give her space and time. But, now, it was time to up the ante.

Resolutely, he set the soda on her coffee table and took a deep breath. “Lois, we need to --.”

“Clark, I --,” Lois began, at the same time.

They both stopped and stared at each other.

“Go ahead,” Clark said, gesturing towards her; Lois said, simultaneously, “What?”

Again, they paused awkwardly. Finally, Lois broke the silence. “Go ahead, Clark. What were you saying?”

“No, it’s fine,” Clark insisted. “You go first.”

Lois seemed to consider it for a moment and then she nodded. “Perry stopped by the DP yesterday.”

Taken aback by the topic, Clark could only give her a confused nod. “Okay. Why?”

“He’s applied for the editor-in-chief job,” Lois explained.

Clark didn’t respond. Truthfully, he had mixed feelings towards Perry White. There was, of course, the weirdness of the man dating his mother. And, then, there was his relationship with Lois. It seemed that whenever Clark turned around, Lois was either working on a story with the guy or rushing off to Africa because he offered her some job. And, now, he may very well end up both of their bosses, and chances were that this meant that Lois would be getting into even more danger and working even crazier hours than usual. Perry wouldn’t be one of those editors that would try to curtail Lois’s more risky tendencies. If anything, he’d encourage it.

Letting out a sigh of resignation, Clark asked, “You think he’s going to get it?”

Lois shrugged. “Probably. Perry’s the best.”

A flash of irritation shot through him. “You barely know the guy, Lois.”

Lois gave him a look. “Actually, I know him pretty well.” She paused and added, softly, “And he gets me. In a way that even the General never has. He’s like the dad I always wished I had.”

Clark swallowed, hating to see the look in her eyes whenever she mentioned her father. He understood the void that Perry filled in Lois’s life, but he couldn’t help but hate the fact that she thought this guy understood her on some deeper level.

It was petty, but it doubly hurt because she was categorically refusing to acknowledge what they had between them. And Clark wanted her to feel that way about him and feel like she could talk to him about anything. Not some reporter she’d just met two months ago and was just as crazy about chasing after stories that led to getting killed as she was. Although, now that he thought about it, he supposed it made sense that Lois had figured she’d found a kindred spirit in Perry. They were both equally danger-prone.

“Anyway,” Lois said, blinking a bit as she came out of whatever thoughts she’d been lost in. “That wasn’t the point. The point was that Perry told me about this job opportunity in Central City and --.”

Clark’s eyes widened and, before he could stop himself, he blurted out, “No.”

Lois paused, clearly confused by his interruption. “What?”

It wasn’t hard for him to piece things together. Since he didn’t like where this conversation was headed, he repeated, more firmly this time, “No.”

“No, what?” Lois rolled her eyes. “Repeating the same word, Smallville, is not going to help me understand what you’re saying any faster.”

“No, you can’t go to Central City,” Clark answered, expanding on his original statement. Before she could respond, he finished, “I don’t care how great of an opportunity it is. Or, if you want to go , that’s fine. But I’m going, too. And I’ll wait there for you to come back to Metropolis.”

Lois looked amused. “I didn’t realize super-stalking was one of your powers.”

Clark looked down and then glanced back up at her, admitting, “Only when it comes to you.”

“And what about the Blur?” Lois asked, softly. She chewed on her lip a bit, as she considered him. “He’d just leave Metropolis?”

“Well, there are criminals in Central City, too,” Clark pointed out. Then he thought about Bart and added, “Although, Impulse does have a good handle on it. He’s probably not going to like me hanging out in his city.”

Lois nodded slowly, her lips twitching as though she were holding back a smile. “Impulse? You know him?”

“We’re friends,” Clark answered, cautiously. “I can’t tell you who he is, though.”

“I know,” Lois replied, holding up her hand. “I get it.”

Clark let out a sigh of relief. “Right.”

“Smallville….” Lois started, tilting her head to the side as she gazed at him. “I have no intention of moving to Central City. What I was trying to say was that the idea of moving away made me start thinking of all the reasons why I would never want to leave.”

As Clark studied her, his heart started to pound as the implication of what she was saying started to hit him. “And?” He tried, but couldn’t completely keep the note of hope out of his voice.

“And, I realized that….” Lois stopped and she swallowed as she looked down. She began fiddling with the frayed edge of a hole in her jeans. “I…” She glanced back up at him and said, in a rush, “This apartment, it’s a new beginning for me, Clark. A fresh start. And… maybe I needed a fresh start in more ways than one. I want us to try again.”

Carefully, Clark got up and sat down next to her. He wanted to make sure he understood exactly what she saying. “Try what again?”

“Us,” Lois responded, thickly, after swallowing. She looked at him, clearly anxious. “Our relationship. I want us to try it again, but right this time. No more secrets. No more lying.” Letting out a mirthless laugh, she added, “And no more splitting ourselves in half in a misguided effort to protect each other from things we can’t even control.” She got up and sat down on the coffee table, so she was facing him. Looking straight at him, she finished, earnestly, “I want us to try it right, with all of our cards on the table.”

Holding his breath, almost scared to think she was saying what he thought she was saying, Clark couldn’t help but question the abrupt change in her attitude. “What made you realize this?”

“Honestly?” Lois shook her head slightly and then shrugged. “I don’t know. What we have between us… I don’t know… maybe it’ll blow up in our face. But I can’t go through life wondering what I would have had if it didn’t. You never gain anything by being afraid of pain.” Suddenly, she looked at him and asked, nervously, “Um… that is if you feel the same way? If your feelings for me are the same as they were before?”

Clark felt warmth spread through him in a way that rivaled how he felt when the sun’s rays were touching him. With a slow grin, he shook his head and stated, “No. My feelings aren’t the same as they were before.” At her sharp intake of breath and widened eyes, he quickly added, “I love you more now than I did before.” He grabbed her hands with one hand and brushed away a smudge of dirt on her cheek with the other. “I want to spend the rest of my life proving to you that we’re meant to be and --.”

The rest of his sentence was cut off by Lois’s lips, as she launched herself into his arms and began to kiss him. Momentarily stunned, Clark just sat there and then clasped her waist to bring her closer; he began to kiss her back just as urgently. She slid one hand up his shoulder and then the other raked into his hair, her mouth soft and warm, as she did things with her tongue that made him stop thinking coherently.

After a long minute, Lois broke away and said, breathlessly, “I love you, too.”

Clark blinked and cleared his throat, but his voice still came out a bit husky. “I figured.”

With a slight laugh, Lois leaned down and began kissing him again. Clark responded by shifting their bodies until her legs were firmly wrapped around him. Standing up, he carried her to bedroom, since it looked like they’d need to find the nearest flat surface, after all.

~ The End ~

Comments

[ladygawain.livejournal.com]

OH and, if the spirit moves for a tiny epilogue to this story... please feel free. I mean, that poor, neglected bed didn't get to feature this entire story ;) - you could change that miserable fate.

Seriously, I love this story, and am suddenly wishing that I see something like this or better (is the latter possible? not sure).

You're brilliant, chica. Wish I could feedback line by line but I'm at work and already breaking the rules to read, lol.

[sanalayla.livejournal.com]

Aw, thank you, hon. I could change the bed's fate, couldn't I? Given that I do have those smutty privileges here.

However... I have some other smutty commitments that must be met first.

[ladygawain.livejournal.com]

'other smutty commitments' you say....? *scratches head, nods* Okay!

I can deal with that, can't wait - am possibly frothing at the mouth (no pressure and all).

[sanalayla.livejournal.com]

You'll have to wait until 8/1 - that's out of my control. ;)

[fates3.livejournal.com]

Oh, I love this! And I love that you had Lois be angry with Chloe. I think that's the hardest for me to swallow from last season, is how horrible Chloe was to Lois. She demeaned her to Clark, she attacked her, and she continually lied to her. Chloe used to be my fave character on the show, and they turned her into someone I can't even watch anymore.

I love the relationship between Perry and Lois!

Awesome!

[sanalayla.livejournal.com]

Thank you! We know, now, that it's not going to go down this way. But I definitely had fun writing this.

I don't think Lois will get mad at Chloe (I don't think it's even going to be addressed that Chloe actively hid all this from her). But I had to go there, because I think it's all been highly unfair to Lois.

[mayicita.livejournal.com]

Perfect! as always... I really needed something like this to help with the withdrawal symptoms I´am having for the lack of Clois.

How do you do it? how do you get into their heads and create something that is totally in character for them?

It can´t be easy to get into their heads and think how will they react to the mess they are now after "Salvation"... Lois knowing, Clark not knowing... and let´s face it, she broke up with him, then told him that she would give up Africa to be with him if he was honest with her, and he just told her to leave... and then she realizes he is the Blur... I can´t imagine how I would react to that, let alone think how they would. You have a gift girl, definitely... you are an awesome Clois writer!

[endorajournal.livejournal.com]

i waited 'til the end of the reading to leave you my comment :)
first of all, it's quite interesting reading this almost 2 years after the S10 premiere, because, although it had become completely AU, when I think about the spoilers and speculations back then i see that if i'd had read this at that point i could totally see many of the things you wrote here happening, specially regarding Clark's rescue from the fall and Lois going to Africa and their relationship.

really loved how you used Perry here because he was there for Lois through the first steps of their relationship that we know so well.

Another thing i loved was how you handle Lois and Chloe relationship. Seriously, the moment Chloe made Martha Kent lie through her teeth to Lois the way she did, i swear, i wanted to beat the blond out of her! LOL You made Lois be mad at Chloe!!! Believe me, that's the least she could do before how Chloe treated her during SV's years and how little supportive of Lois she always was. Yeah, i don't like Chloe. Sue me! *roll eyes* LOL

i'll keep reading your other works ;)

[sanalayla.livejournal.com]

Oh yeah, Chloe annoys the crap out of me. I hate that they didn't allow Lois to get mad at Chloe ever.