City By the Sea
By stopquitdont@bellsouth.net
Rated: PG-13
Submitted: September 2004

++++

This story takes place at the end of S1. You'll understand 
completely and be able to follow. However, I took a huge 
liberty with the timeline. You'll see what I mean extremely 
early on. From there, everything unfolds easily.

Warning: this story contains rather explicit language. Not so 
much so that it's above the PG rating, but right up to that 
mark. Also, there are situations that place our couple with 
other people. So, if you don't like reading about Lois or 
Clark interacting with anyone besides the other, this might 
not be for you. However, the scenes are brief and mainly 
referred to in dialogue.

Some credits include whoever came up with the name for a 
movie with this same title. I liked it (the title) so much, 
that I created an entire story around it. While this was 
supposed to be a nice *little* relationship piece, it morphed 
into something much, much more. Words from various songs kept 
coming to mind, as well as several different scenarios. So, I 
combine them all into one story. Among those I wish to thank 
for their inspiration, and so proper credit is given where 
it's due, are Victoria Shaw, Garth Brooks, Milton Sledge, 
Taylor Dunn, Tom Shapiro, W. Wilson, J. Yeary, Joe Diffie, 
Buck Moore, Gary Duff, Tracey Lawrence, Jud Friedman, Allen 
Rich, James Newton-Howard, and Rod Stewart. They wrote and/or 
sang some of the most inspiring songs I've heard in a while, 
and I couldn't resist the images those lyrics presented me 
when writing this piece. A few phrases are quoted directly or 
indirectly. There was no intention of infringements of any 
kind. I just wanted to borrow a few beautiful words to play 
with for a bit.

Also, to my beta-readers. Jenni Debbage, without whom I'd be 
lost. Wanda Detroit, a new and refreshing change of pace in 
my life. And CC Aiken, who I never imagined would agree to 
help me with this when I wrote to compliment her on her own 
writing. One thing led to another and now I have a new 
friend! I'd like to say thank you to another new friend I 
know only as Simona. She's been responding privately to me 
for while now and because she said some things at a time I 
really needed to hear them, I gave her a preview before I 
posted. You guys are truly the best beta's anyone could ask 
for.

Now, for those that can handle a change of pace from my 
normal stuff, read on!

All other disclaimers apply. The characters are not mine, 
unfortunately. I borrowed them to play for a bit, but put 
them back the way I found them.

++++

City By the Sea


Looks were deceiving, Clark thought as he stared at himself 
in the mirror. To outward appearances, one would never know 
it took every once of strength he possessed to get up and get 
dressed today. It was early spring and the birds sang a happy 
melody. The wind blew softly and warmth from the sun made one 
glad to be alive. Everything was new again. Spring was a time 
for starting over; starting fresh.

But not today. Today was a time for endings. Today his world 
would end.

For days, he'd carried out the investigation of his life, but 
had come up disastrously short. He'd played every hand he 
knew to play and had still been forced to fold. Out of 
weapons in his arsenal, he prepared to surrender. Defeated 
and battered, he gathered up the last pieces of his shattered 
heart and left his apartment.

Twenty minutes later he stepped from the cab across from the 
hideously ominous building that represented total agony. He'd 
dressed in his suit and tie, prepared to admit that *he* was 
the better man. Yet, he just couldn't bring himself to go 
inside. So, he sat alone, on a bench across the street, and 
watched a tall, skinny chauffeur smoking cigarettes by a 
long, white limousine.

He imagined what was taking place inside. She was probably as 
beautiful as ever, dressed in a gown fit for a queen. He 
could see her there, smiling as the sunlight danced across 
her face. Would she have flowers in her hair? Definitely a 
twinkle in her eyes. She would be nervous, excited. A 
gorgeous smile would grace her lips as she stood at the 
alter.

And him... that man would stand in a place Clark had only 
ever dreamed of being, would be the one her smiles were 
directed at.   

"Do you take this man…?" An age old question, asked over and 
over through time to every bride and groom in history. It 
would be asked of her. And did she? Did she really want that 
man?

Suddenly Clark didn't want to know the answer. However, in 
less time than it would take for his tears of grief to fall, 
bells rang out like thunder and the doors to the building 
flew open. His eyes were riveted to the couple as they made 
their way through the crowd of well wishers. She was laughing 
and looked like she might be crying as well. She stopped and 
tossed the bouquet. And when they climbed into that limo, 
Clark walked off the other way.

She'd made her choice, he told himself as he stepped up to 
the next curb and summoned a cab. He'd be damned if he'd stay 
around to watch as Lex Luthor destroyed the dynamic person 
Lois Lane had been. For weeks he'd wondered. He'd wondered 
how she could be so blind. He'd wondered why she wouldn't 
listen to the person who was supposed to be her best friend. 
He'd even wondered if she'd actually follow through with her 
wedding. Now he didn't have to wonder anymore.

As the metro cabbie drove away, the disheartened man inside 
felt himself going under. Until today there had been hope; 
there had been a chance. That had all changed just a short 
time ago. 

++++

Nearly two weeks had passed before Clark had read the 
headline on the front page of the Pershing Publisher. 'Lex 
Luthor Behind Bars-- Billionaire Speaks Out'. He couldn't 
believe what the words said as he sank to a park bench and 
tried to make sense out of what he was reading. The noises of 
small town were shut out as he skimmed the article about the 
Fall of the House of Luthor. Perry, Jimmy, and Jack had done 
it. They'd really done it. The evidence had been discovered 
to nail Luthor to the wall. 

A broad smile, the first one since that day, spread across 
Clark's face. The police had stormed Lex Towers while the man 
was still away on his honeymoon. At the same time, a raid was 
underway at his island hideaway in the South Pacific. They'd 
arrested Luthor in his suite as he rose to spend another day 
getting to know his new bride. Luthor had been hauled off to 
jail, and Lois left behind to sort out the mess.  

Immediately Clark's thoughts turned to his former partner. 
She had probably been devastated. So sure Lex was someone she 
could spend her life with, she'd married the man. How must 
she have felt when the man she thought she knew was proven to 
be an illusion? Clark had tried to tell her what Luthor was, 
but as obstinate as ever, Lois had refused to listen to him. 
She'd been convinced that he was merely jealous. What must 
she think now?

Clark sighed heavily as he leaned back against the bench. His 
relationship with Lois had deteriorated severely over the 
weeks leading up to her wedding. She'd resented him for his 
interference in what she thought was the happiest time in her 
life. They'd argued countless times; Clark accused her of 
getting in bed with the devil. He'd even demanded she 
investigate Luthor, see for herself what kind of person the 
billionaire really was. He'd walked away from Lex Towers that 
day, and Metropolis later, because he'd been unable to take 
anymore. For so long he'd ached for a relationship with Lois 
Lane. Around every turn she'd refused to see him… really see 
him. Then she'd had the gall to tell him she would love him 
if he were just an ordinary guy.

But he wasn't ordinary. Her refusal to see him and his 
bruised ego kept him from telling her that he was Superman. 
Clark was tired though. He was tired of loving someone who 
would never return it. He was tired of just being a best 
friend when he wanted to be more. Most of all, he was tired 
of being drooled over one minute only to be ignored the next. 
So, he'd packed a bag, changed his clothes, and left the 
city. He wasn't sure where he was going or how long he'd be 
gone. All he knew was that he needed time alone. Time to 
think… without deadlines, Superman, or Lois Lane. 

He cast another glance at the paper he held. Lois had refused 
to comment about her husband. Clark knew she was probably 
reeling from all that had happened. Part of him wanted to be 
there for her, but another part, a part he hadn't known 
existed until recently, just wanted more time to decide if he 
could ever live in the same city with Lois after everything 
that had happened. After all, Lois being a widow wouldn't 
miraculously change her feelings for him.  

With little effort, he heaved his bag back onto his shoulder, 
dropped the copy of the paper in the trash and headed once 
again for the highway. Just outside the city limits another 
blackout occurred. There had been several periods of darkness 
over the last few days, as if something was completely 
blocking the sun. Officials insisted it was not eclipses, but 
had not elaborated further. Again, Clark wondered if he 
should be worried about the incidents. He'd thought about 
checking with officials as Superman, although he'd abandoned 
that thought immediately. He hadn't used his powers since 
he'd left the city. Mostly because he'd felt he needed time 
to think. He was being just an ordinary guy and had admitted 
more than once it was nice to pretend not to have a care in 
the world.

++++

Sometimes it would take Clark a while to flag down a ride on 
the highway, hitchhiking being his chosen mode of 
transportation when he set out on his road to discovery-- as 
he'd dubbed his journey. He didn't mind because walking at 
normal speed wasn't much of an effort at all. The only thing 
he didn't like was the time it gave him to think. Thinking 
meant pain because his mind seldom drifted far from Lois and 
everything he didn't have.

With a thumb stuck high the air, destination anywhere, Clark 
turned toward a particularly thick line of traffic. He'd just 
started walking again after having rested beneath an 
underpass, which had allowed his mind to drift off to sleep 
for a bit. He was bone weary and no closer to a decision 
about what to do when a car stopped way up ahead, breaking 
suddenly when it passed him. He hurried to keep whoever had 
been generous enough to stop from having to wait too long. He 
climbed inside and thanked the female driver for the ride.

"You're welcome," she replied with a smile.

Clark sank into the passenger's seat as the woman pulled the 
small, black Nissan back onto the interstate. They rode 
several miles in silence before she introduced herself.

Kathy was a beautiful lady with dark red hair, a college 
student on the way home to Texas. Very talkative, she barely 
took a breath for the next ten miles. Clark would nod, smile, 
and try to say anything to be polite. He laid back and closed 
his eyes when she pulled into a convenience store for 
something to drink. Thoughts of everything he'd learned 
earlier in the day about Luthor chased their way around 
inside his head. 

"To repeat the top story… Eprad confirms that the recent 
blackouts are the result of a asteroid on a collision course 
with Earth. A rock of yet undetermined size, which scientists 
have named 'Nightfall', is believed to be just a very small 
portion of a much larger chunk that has already by-passed 
Earth. Though small in size, Nightfall is still large enough 
to cause havoc the likes of which is almost unimaginable. It 
will make contact with the Earth in three short days. Several 
experts warn that 'Doomsday' is around the corner…"

The call to Superman wasn't heard by the dark haired man that 
scrambled from the car he rode in because he'd already made 
it around the back of the store and was airborne. There was 
no question about using his powers anymore. The world would 
be destroyed if Clark chose to remain in the middle of 
nowhere.

A confused lady returned to find her rider gone. She waited 
for several minutes before shrugging and continuing on her 
way.

++++

He'd had no choice. He was mankind's last hope for survival. 
Clark had flown straight to his folks' farm, apologized about 
his recent absence, and explained that he had to fly to Eprad 
and offer his services. Of course, Martha and Jonathan both 
knew he'd go, even if knowing couldn't stop them fearing for 
his safety. They made sure he knew they supported him, loved 
him, then wished him well. They would wait, with the rest of 
the world, and they alone would know the true meaning of 
sacrifice.

She was there, as he'd known she'd be, among the many 
reporters that surrounded the launching platform from which 
Superman would depart. Clark refused to look directly at her 
for fear that he'd betray his emotions. And to her credit, 
Lois held her head high with a professional air to rival the 
strongest competition.  

There was a plan. He'd fly directly into the asteroid after 
gearing up to maximum speed. He was certain he'd hit it with 
enough force to destroy it. It was time for Superman's limits 
to be tested.

A small, state of the art air pack was strapped to his hip, a 
microphone and speaker hooked to the side of his head so he 
could communicate with officials at Eprad, and a final 
statement was made before he took a look back. A look back at 
her. Their eyes locked and for a moment he wanted to go to 
her, tell her how he felt, and beg her to love him. With such 
a monumental task ahead of him, he might never get another 
chance. But he refused to think about not succeeding or that 
he might not make it back. Instead, he turned his head and 
focused on the task before him. With a final deep breath, 
Superman launched himself into the air. 

Lois watched with the rest of the media, and the world, as 
the blue streak left their field of vision. In less than an 
hour he'd collide with the massive structure threatening life 
on the planet. She gathered a few final quotes, then headed 
off downtown to the temporary offices of the Daily Planet.

++++

Shouts of elation could be heard throughout the entire city 
as the population rejoiced in Superman's victory over the 
deadly Nightfall asteroid. He'd made contact and it had been 
confirmed that the largest piece had been deflected from its 
collision course with Earth, meaning that Nightfall no longer 
posed a threat to the planet. The world, thanks to the 
selfless acts of a super man, would live on. 

All but one woman celebrated mankind's victory. She sat at 
her desk in the small makeshift newsroom of a rented building 
across from the Daily Planet. Construction crews had been 
hard at work to restore the majestic old building to its 
former glory. In the meantime, daily editions rolled off the 
presses set up in the temporary home. Lois stared out the 
window, unable to join with her fellow humans as they 
rejoiced in their continued survival. She didn't share their 
joy because of the piece of paper she held in her hand.

Lois had returned to the Planet from Eprad, after watching 
Superman's departure with the rest of the gathered news 
media, to find a letter on her desk. Inside was a note from 
Clark. After two weeks of worrying, calling everywhere 
looking for him, searching his apartment for clues to where 
he could be, and constant frustration, she'd finally heard 
from him.

'Lois, 

I realize I'm probably the last person you might want to hear 
from, but I felt I owed you some kind of explanation. There's 
so much to tell and I fear there won't be enough time. So, 
where do I start?

I need to say that I'm sorry. I'm sorry for the way our 
relationship fell apart; I'm sorry for walking away without a 
word; I'm sorry about Lex and not being there for you; And 
I'm sorry for the pain I'm about to cause you. Things have 
changed, and they can never be the same again.

I was there, on your wedding day. I was dressed and prepared 
to swallow my pride to support you, but at the last minute I 
couldn't force my feet to step into the building. But I 
watched as you came out. I saw your smile... and your 
husband. You'd started a new life and it didn't include me. 
The pain was almost intolerable, so I fled. I packed a bag 
and just went. I wanted to get as far away from you as I 
could. 

For over a year I've worked beside you. We've sure been 
through our share of laughter and regret. We've had our bad 
days and more than once we've disagreed. There were times I 
thought you just liked to fight. I still don't know why 
things happened like they did, but until that day, until 
Luthor, you'd always been a friend to me. Another time I 
might have remained your friend, able to support you and the 
decision you'd made. But you see, Lois, I didn't just work 
beside you. I loved you, longed for you. There was no way I 
could force myself to be happy for you and your new marriage. 
While I will always mourn the passing of the relationship we 
shared, I can't go back. I fear I might not survive the next 
heartbreak you'd deal. And you'd surely deal it because I 
could never be more than just your friend.  

I hadn't read about Luthor's arrest until just yesterday. I 
know you must be devastated. A lesser man might say 'I told 
you so', but I'll simply say I'm sorry. I do wish you well 
and I pray that you find peace and happiness again some day.

For all we've shared I felt you should be introduced to Clark 
Kent. Not the man you thought you knew, but the real me. You 
see, life has blessed me with a biology unlike any other on 
this world. In fact, it wasn't even this world that afforded 
me these abilities. I'd plunged so far into despair following 
your wedding, I'd made the decision to stop using those 
gifts. That decision has recently been taken from my hands. 
Nightfall threatens us all, and I'm afraid I am the world's 
only hope. By the time you read this, I hope that I've 
managed to avert catastrophe.  

I've struggled with the decision to tell you this for so 
long. I've also agonized over your feelings for a two-
dimensional character I've created. Lois, dearest Lois, why 
couldn't you have seen me? Why couldn't you have meant those 
words you spoke that night in your apartment? My feelings 
remain unchanged, even after all that's happened. That's why 
I've chosen to stay away. For once, I've chosen self 
preservation over the needs of others.

However, the needs of billions are not worth me remaining 
hidden away in my guilt and agony. I have every faith that I 
will be successful. If, however, for some reason anything 
goes wrong, always remember that you have been truly loved. 
When tomorrow dawns clear and remains so, after Nightfall is 
destroyed, I will say good-bye publicly. And to you now, 
privately, I say good-bye. I have loved you from the 
beginning, but I cannot live day after day within reach of 
you and never be allowed to touch. I will also love you till 
the end.

Live well, Lois, and be happy. 

Clark'

She sat there in stunned silence for so long after she'd read 
his letter. Everything made sense. It all came together. The 
past year was explained even while tons of new questions 
sprang up. How had she been so blind? How had she not seen?

A silent tear was wiped away as she glanced at the crowd 
around her. The human population was happy to be alive and 
even happier to know they'd live to see another day. Superman 
had done it. He'd unselfishly flown out into space and 
destroyed the asteroid. The world would live. But for Lois, 
her small world was falling apart. Clark had been her best 
friend, the only person she had ever been able to work with. 
He'd accepted her for who she was, gently coaxing her from 
her shell. Time and again, he'd been the one to take her hand 
when she felt she'd lost her way. He'd given her a piece of 
his very soul. Yet, she'd never known him at all. Blinded by 
fantasies of a 'God in a cape', Lois had been unable to 
connect her friend to that mythical hero she worshipped. 
She'd admitted that Clark was a lot like Superman, even while 
she'd shielded the developing feelings within her heart. Now 
she might never again know the elation of absolute 
contentment she got from simply looking at his face.  

Superman had offered himself up as hope for a dying world. 
Clark had flown out into the blackness of space and faced a 
frightening enemy, even though his heart and mind were 
heavily weighted down with unbearable pain.

In doing so, he might have paid the ultimate price. There had 
been no word from the super hero since he'd taken off from 
Eprad. He'd disappeared from radar just after his final 
transmission. Nothing but static remained on his radio. A 
short two hours later, the media was already beginning to 
speculate that facing Nightfall might have cost Superman his 
life. And if Superman was dead, that meant Clark was dead.

Lois sniffed again and rose to stand at the window.

<Why? Why hadn't I seen?> She'd grown up hearing 'tomorrow 
may be too late', but had never given it much thought. Now 
she understood! Yet another mistake she'd made in an ever 
growing list.

++++

Miles away from Metropolis, a naked man sat up in a car sized 
crater. He'd ripped through the air in a blaze of fire to 
land with unforgiving force in the middle of a shipping yard. 
He searched his surroundings, only to find empty box cars 
flanking either side of the hole he was in. Dazed from his 
recent journey, he could only scratch his head absently.

"Hey, buddy, you okay?"

The man looked up at the concerned face of an older gentleman 
peering down at him. "I... I think so."

"What the hell happened?"

The naked man looked around for a minute before he answered. 
"I'm not sure. I woke up here, and my head hurts pretty bad."

"I'd say you were robbed," the older man answered as he 
extended a hand down to the stranger. "C'mon. I got some 
clothes that should fit ya' in my car."

With a slight blush, the confused young man allowed himself 
to be led in the direction of a nearby boxcar, gratefully 
covering himself with the clothes offered by the older man.

"Name's Pete," the old man told him. "What's yours?"

For a moment it seemed the younger man wasn't going to 
answer, as if he didn't know who he was at all. Finally a 
name came to him and he smiled in relief. "Charlie. My name's 
Charlie."

"Well, glad to meet you Charlie." They shook hands, then Pete 
managed to dig out a pair of shoes that would fit Charlie. 
"So, Charlie, if you can't remember how you got in that hole, 
can you at least remember where ya' from?"

"I'm a drifter. At least I have been for the last few years. 
I've been working on merchant ships mostly."  

"You in luck then. The docks is just a mile over yonder." A 
frail hand pointed in the distance to indicate where he 
meant. "After we catch breakfast at the mission in the 
mornin', I'll walk ya' over an' see if we can't get ya' on 
another ship."

"Thanks, Pete. That sounds great!" 

Pete didn't have much to offer in way of hospitality, but he 
shared his boxcar for the night with Charlie. The following 
day the men ate breakfast together just as the older man had 
said, then ventured to the docks. With a grateful handshake, 
Charlie told Pete good-bye. 

The Captain of the Lydia Dalton was more than happy to take 
aboard another sailor with a strong back. Most merchant 
sailors preferred crewing the more affluent vessels, but 
Charlie seemed a perfect match for the smaller, privately 
owned ship. 

Still a bit confused from his strange awakening the night 
before, Charlie stood on the deck of the small merchant ship 
gazing out to sea. He was sure with time all his confusion 
would be cleared up. Until then, he had a job and with it 
came a place to stay. What more could he need?

++++

Lois adjusted her sunglasses as she drove along the coast in 
the beautiful late summer sun. It had been over two years 
since her wedding to the most evil creature alive, but still 
she hadn't recovered. It had taken her almost a year for her 
divorce to be finalized. Lex had adamantly refused to sever 
ties with Lois willingly. She'd written an expose about him, 
detailing his criminal behavior in detail, primarily because 
she'd had to see for herself that the evidence was all there. 
She'd needed to grasp what had happened and try to put it all 
into some sort of perspective so she would be able to go on 
with her life. That had angered Lex and he'd tried to have 
her killed from within his prison cell. That attempt, along 
with the many other crimes he'd been convicted of, was enough 
for a judge to grant Lois her divorce. Still, she'd had to 
live in his evil shadow. Constantly hounded by the media, she 
spent more time being the news rather than reporting on it. 
Even though it had calmed drastically from those first few 
months, there were still times she wished she'd listened when 
she'd been told to investigate Lex *before* she married him.   

She often thought of the many things that had happened during 
the time leading up to her wedding to Lex. The Planet had 
been destroyed, Perry retired, then of course she'd lost her 
best friend. Clark Kent had managed to worm his way under her 
carefully constructed walls in the year they'd worked 
together. He'd become a respected colleague and eventually 
the best friend she'd ever had. She hadn't known just how 
special their relationship had been until it was gone.

Clark had never liked Lex. He saw through the philanthropist 
almost immediately and had warned her on more than one 
occasion that the businessman was not who he seemed to be. 
But she hadn't listened. She'd allowed herself to be dazzled 
by Lex's power, unable to fathom such psychotic tendencies 
underneath.

And to complicate matters, Clark had to go and confess he was 
in love with her just before her wedding. When she'd told him 
as gently as possible that she didn't feel the same way about 
him, he'd been hurt. Ultimately, both had been unable to deal 
with their pain and had allowed the other to slip from their 
lives. She'd said yes, married the biggest criminal in the 
country, and hadn't even known it. She'd said yes even though 
she'd thought of Clark as she made her way down the aisle 
toward her future husband, actually disappointed because he 
hadn't come to support her decision.

Afterwards, Lex had swept her away to a dream honeymoon. 
She'd felt extreme trepidation on her wedding night, but 
somehow she'd managed to survive. Three short days later, 
just as her nervousness had started to settle, Lex had been 
arrested. The following days were filled with confusion, 
nausea, guilt, and unbelievable reality. Clark had been right 
all along.

Why hadn't she listened to him?

He hadn't been there. Clark hadn't been there... at the 
wedding... and after, when she was alone and reeling from 
everything that had happened. Oh, how she'd wanted Clark-- 
how she'd needed him. Hours of crying over her disastrous 
mistake had followed. Then she'd tried calling Clark. She'd 
needed to see him-- needed to tell him how sorry she was and 
beg his forgiveness. She'd needed her best friend back. 

But he hadn't been home. He hadn't been anywhere. Lois called 
for days with no luck. She'd called his parents, had even 
yelled for Superman without success. It seemed the caped hero 
had disappeared as well. Of course, Lois didn't really want 
to see Superman, not after having made a complete fool of 
herself when she'd confessed her love for him. He'd rejected 
her, of course. How could she have expected anything more? He 
belonged to the world, and she could only fantasize about him 
being with her. Superman hadn't come though. 

Worry turned to horror for at least one of the men Lois 
sought when a Kryptonite infused cage had been discovered in 
the wine cellar of Lex Towers. There had been no one inside, 
but since Superman hadn't surfaced, Lois began to wonder if 
he'd met his demise. Luthor wasn't forthcoming with any 
explanation. However, the Man of Steel finally did surface 
when the Nightfall asteroid threatened to end life on the 
planet. He came forth to do what he could to keep that from 
happening, and he had done just that. He'd saved the world... 
and had broken Lois Lane's heart all over again.

In the form of a letter, Lois was introduced to the real 
Clark Kent, aka Superman. She'd received the letter after 
he'd taken off from Eprad to face Nightfall. His confession 
piled more confusion on top of the already overflowing load 
she carried each day. How had things gotten so out of 
control? A question she asked herself every single day, but 
had yet to find an answer.

The Planet had been rebuilt; she'd won another award for 
investigative journalism; had even made a few new friends. 
There had been a new beau, though it hadn't been very 
serious, a new apartment, and change of style. She wore more 
casual business suits, sported shorter hair, had taken an 
actual vacation or two. She used her days off to write and 
had recently published her first novel. There was a weekly 
phone call from surrogate parents in Kansas. She'd stood next 
to the Kents and said good-bye to a very dear friend when he 
hadn't been found. She was the reporter who had written up 
the official farewell to Superman. And she'd attended her own 
parents' second wedding ceremony. Time had marched on, 
whether Lois Lane had wanted it to or not. 

Now here she was, driving along the coast of Connecticut, in 
search of a small out of the way town to spend the next few 
weeks writing another book. She planned to stay connected 
with her job at the Planet through a column she and Perry 
were experimenting with, so her income would still be intact. 
Why she'd chosen now to do this she wasn't sure. However, she 
had started to get excited about publishing another novel. 
Her first one had soared to the top of the best seller lists 
and was hugely popular among her peers. So, Lois was anxious 
to find a place that might stoke her imagination into 
producing another hit. 

"Next stop," she said aloud as she lifted the road map, 
"Mystic, Connecticut." She shrugged her indifference. "Sounds 
good to me."

++++

The sun had faded behind the tree line before he'd made it 
back to his cabin. Mrs. Nolan had sold all of his statues 
this week and he'd splurged at the market, so he could almost 
taste the steak he was going to cook for dinner. A happy yelp 
from the old dog that kept him company greeted him as he 
stepped up onto the porch.

"Hey there, boy." His large hand rubbed the shaggy dog, 
eliciting an excited thump of his tail as it beat a rhythm 
against the wood beneath. "Don't get up or anything," the man 
replied in soft tones. He laughed softly, shook his head as 
he passed the dog, and entered the cabin.

It wasn't much of a home, but the rugged wood structure 
served its purpose. There was a small living room separated 
from the kitchen by the stone fireplace. Off the far end of 
the tiny cooking area was a bathroom, not much bigger than a 
closet. And straight across from the front door was the 
opening to the bedroom. It wasn't ideal, but it allowed him 
to stay warm in the winter, offered shelter from the sun in 
summer, and kept him dry. Besides, he didn't really need 
much.

The furnishings of the small cabin were as bare as the 
construction. A large arm chair and a table with a lamp sat 
in front and off to the side of the fireplace in the living 
room. On the opposite side, in front of the large window, was 
a table covered in wood working tools and half finished 
wooden statues. A table with one chair sat against the wall 
in the kitchen while an icebox and stove completed its 
furnishings. In the bedroom there was a bed and side table 
that held a couple books. Clothes were stacked inside the 
tiny closet and a pair of boots sat under the window. There 
were no pictures, no mementoes of any kind that usually 
graced a home. The cabin was inhabited, but far from lived 
in.  

Charlie King didn't need any of that. He was content with 
what he had. If he wanted something, he'd go out and get it. 
Only most things he wanted could be found around him. He 
liked the outdoors and took advantage of it. Carving 
beautiful statues from gathered wood kept him fed while an 
old Labrador retriever served as a friendly companion. He 
kept to himself a great deal at his little cabin, although 
there were a few people in town he enjoyed seeing. 

Mrs. Nolan reminded him of his mother, or at least that's who 
he thought the woman he remembered fondly was. He could 
clearly picture an older woman with graying, blonde hair. Her 
gentle expression reminded him of other mothers he'd seen. 
So, Charlie had figured the woman he pictured had to be his 
mother. 

There was Mr. Taylor at the hardware store who liked fishing. 
He liked fishing as well. There was a lot Charlie seemed to 
be confused about, but just as many things were recalled with 
absolute clarity.

He could remember growing up on a farm, although he couldn't 
remember where. He was sure he'd gone to college even if the 
name of the school eluded him. He'd discovered he could write 
extremely well. How? He wasn't sure. There were faces with no 
names in his memories. Places had been pictured, events 
recalled, yet Charlie hadn't been able to put it all 
together. He'd discovered that it was just as well. He was 
alone in the world; he'd recalled telling someone, an older 
couple, that his parents had been killed. No siblings to miss 
him that he could remember, and he was pretty sure he hadn't 
been married. No kids came to mind either. Charlie was happy 
to just keep his life moving forward without looking back.

Work on the small merchant ship had been traded for work on a 
fishing boat after three months. Much more exciting, catching 
fish kept his mind busy right along with his hands. He'd 
revisited the ship yard where a homeless man named Pete had 
clothed him one night, only too happy to return the favor. 
After that, there had been over nine months of fishing trips 
up and down the East coast of the United States before they'd 
docked in a small city by the sea. Charlie had been 
completely enchanted with the atmosphere of the whole place. 
He was reminded of a Norman Rockwell painting just walking 
down the street. Yearning for something he hadn't known was 
missing, Charlie traded in his fishing gear for a complete 
set of carving tools. He'd been convinced by a little old 
lady that the wood carvings he'd produced during his free 
time at sea could provide him with a nice income. His 
relationship with Mrs. Nolan had begun and Mystic had become 
his new home.  

++++

Early mornings in Mystic, just before the sun completely 
broke over the horizon, were one of Charlie's favorite times. 
Looking out across the sea, knowing all the wonder that could 
be found there, somehow reminded him of flying. Soaring above 
the clouds, free from the retraints of the world-- how 
exhilarating that must be. There were times he could almost 
imagine being up there... the wind whipping around him, the 
scenery passing beneath him. It had to be a wonder to behold.   

Charlie took a deep breath and continued his walk along the 
beach. The cool surf washed around his bare feet, threatening 
to soak his pants, which were rolled up almost to his knees. 
He smiled as he watched Joe setting up for the day. Joe was a 
retired veteran who came down to the beach most mornings to 
paint pictures for the tourists. As he continued to watch, 
the old man dabbed his brush to wet it and lovingly painted 
the deep blue of the ocean against the morning sky. The 
strokes he would add would bring to life the breaking waves 
as they danced upon the sand. Charlie had asked him if he 
only painted ocean scenes, and Joe told him that for twenty 
dollars he'd paint anything.

Further down the beach an elderly couple, the Langfords, were 
holding hands as they took their daily walk. Charlie smiled a 
little brighter as he exchanged greetings with the pair. Mrs. 
Langford never failed to kiss his cheeks when she saw him. 
And today was no exception. Charlie could only laugh softly 
as he walked away from them.  

He reached a pier that stretched several hundred feet out 
into the surf and divided the beach from the small bay, 
creating a cove that had long since been procured as a marina 
for the multitude of fishing boats that frequented the sleepy 
little town. Charlie took the steps up to the boardwalk two 
at the time, then stopped to wash his feet at the hose 
provided for the many swimmers that would fill the beach as 
the day wore on. He slipped his loafers back on and headed 
toward town, his journey taking him past a popular pub called 
O'Malley's. The establishment was a favorite watering hole 
for the many sailors who docked most every Friday night. He 
often went in for a drink, and occasionally when the solitude 
of his life closed in around him, he sought out a friendly 
face. A large crowd could be found inside nearly every night 
of the week. Whether you were in the mood for billiards, 
wanted a strong drink, or just company for the night, 
O'Malley's seldom disappointed.

It was there that Charlie had met a young woman with brown 
hair and brown eyes on a rainy Saturday night.   

@@@@

Several boats had docked and O'Malley's was overflowing. All 
around him were the sounds of happy chatter punctuated by an 
occasional shout as Charlie sat against the back wall nursing 
a beer. He'd been awakened by another of those weird dreams 
that had started just days after he'd awakened in that hole 
in the ground so long ago. They'd come often in the beginning   
.Heneverunderstood them, but remembered them very clearly 
when he woke up.

His dreams seemed almost like memories, but he was sure there 
was no way that was true. In those dreams he'd seen a busy 
office of some sort. People hurried around, as if on a 
deadline to accomplish their work. None of the faces were 
clear enough for him to make out, which served to frustrate 
him.

He'd pictured a large, fancy room filled with people dressed 
to impress. There were couples dancing and a man, who he 
viewed as important, had made some kind of announcement. Then 
there had been scenes from a cozy little house; he'd assumed 
that was his childhood home because those pictures were 
always accompanied with those of fields, a barn, a tractor, 
and an older man working steadily. He'd come to see that man 
as his father. There were many more. Planes, soldiers, a 
bunch of kids at a warehouse, a festival in a small town, a 
nuclear plant that he associated with unbearable heat, a 
boxing match, and some guy named Murry. Always something 
different, always clear and unmistakable. Yet, he had no idea 
what it all meant.  

But those dreams weren't the ones that kept him from his 
sleep. The ones that managed to unnerve him involved a woman. 
She had dark hair and a confident air that Charlie would be 
hard pressed not to recognize, even during a hazy dream. In 
his dreams, she was someone important to him. He knew her 
well, if the many images were an indication. Was she a singer 
he'd met during some of his travels? He could clearly picture 
her on stage, in a bar, singing. But there was more. He'd had 
dreams of her being in another place. Was it her apartment? 
It seemed to be a home of some sort. Or maybe she'd been his 
lover because the dream that had awakened him tonight was of 
him and her, in what he perceived to be a hotel room. He'd 
thrown her to the bed and devoured her lips in a passionate 
kiss. He'd broken away to stare down at her, both gasping for 
breath. Instead of being allowed to relive that adventure, 
he'd shot straight up in bed. 

Shaken more than usual from one of his dreams, Charlie had 
gotten up. Restless and feeling closed in by the solitude of 
his little cabin, he'd dressed and made his way to 
O'Malley's.

"Hey, you look like you could use some company."

Charlie looked up at the smiling woman before him. She was 
beautiful. Long, brown hair lightly touched her shoulders as 
she waited patiently for him to acknowledge her presence. 
Allowing the smile tugging his lips to spread out, he 
gestured to the seat across from him. "Especially if you're 
it."  

The woman glanced at the seat, then sat. She eyed Charlie, 
deciding quickly that he was easily the best looking man 
she'd ever seen. "So, why aren't you at home in bed with your 
wife?"

"Because I'm not married," he told her softly as he continued 
to take in her features. Her skin was tanned from obvious 
time spent on the beach. She carried her solid frame on a 
pair of long, slim legs. And confident shoulders left little 
to doubt that she was a woman who was sure of herself.

"Girlfriend?" she asked somewhat suspiciously, obviously wise 
to the sailors who claimed to be unattached, only to be 
married or have a girlfriend somewhere.

"Nope. No girlfriend." Charlie leaned up to hold his chin on 
his hand. "How about you? Married? Involved?"

"Not married. And give me a while to get to know you and I'm 
willing to bet I'll be involved." She smiled mischievously at 
him to drive home her point.

He hadn't missed her meaning at all. The twinkle in her eyes 
told him that this lady knew what she wanted and right now it 
was him. His smile faded and he lowered the hand under his 
chin so that he could run a finger lightly across the back of 
one of her hands. "Just how involved are you willing to bet 
on?" His voice had dropped an octave as his eyes stabbed into 
hers.

"Why don't you buy me a drink and tell me your name, and 
we'll lay odds?" she replied as she leaned closer, completely 
drawn in by his piercing eyes. 

Charlie stared at her for several moments, deciding that she 
held just the right amount of appeal for him to take up her 
bet, before he drew back and rose to his feet. "Whatcha' 
having?"

"Club soda." When his brows rose, she explained, "I'm working 
tomorrow."

He nodded before he made his way over to the bar to order 
them another drink. Suddenly his mouth felt incredibly dry. 
This woman was so much like the one from his dreams. Maybe 
for tonight it would be all right if he pretended she was the 
woman he saw when he closed his eyes. It sure would be nice 
to put a distinctive face with those images. He smiled at the 
bartender, slapped down a few bills, then made his way back 
toward his companion.

She grinned at him seductively as he settled again. "Got a 
name, sailor?"

"Charlie... But I'm not a sailor," he told her when he'd 
swallowed a hefty amount of his beer.

"Really?"

"Nah... I was, but I got tired of always being on the move. I 
live here in Mystic. Well, outside of town. I rent a cabin 
from Mr. Nichols."

"At the hunting retreat?" Charlie nodded. "My brothers used 
to go up there a lot. I'm Melissa by the way." She extended 
her hand to him.  

Charlie reached out for the offered hand, grasping it firmly 
with his much larger one. Her skin was delicate, soft. Her 
small hand was almost lost inside his and he found himself 
instantly aroused. He hadn't been with a woman since he'd 
arrived in Mystic. Or even before that. Hell, he couldn't 
remember when he *had* been with a woman. Oh sure, he'd had 
opportunities when he was working at sea, but he hadn't 
wanted to sleep with any of those women. That hadn't felt 
right at all.

He glanced up at Melissa and was glad to see she, too, seemed 
affected by his touch. Her eyes had glazed over and the smile 
had faded into a serious expression of wanting. He lowered 
their hands to the table, but continued to hold her captive. 
"So, Melissa, do you live here, too?"

"No. I live across the bay."

"New Haven?"

"Just outside." She relaxed, enjoying the feel of his hand 
wrapped around hers. "If you're not a sailor, how do you 
manage to feed yourself, Charlie?"

"I carve statues, mostly animals. Mrs. Nolan sells them for 
me at her shop in Center City."

Melissa's eyes widened. "Those detailed statues are your 
work?"

"You've seen some?"

"Sure. The eagle you carved for Jack Paine has been the talk 
of the town. He has it displayed in the lobby of his office. 
People can't get over the work that went into that thing."

"That one was special order. Jack brought me a sketch of an 
eagle with it wings spread and asked if I could replicate 
that. I never meant for the statue to be as large as I made 
it, but I was happy with the finished product." He added a 
smile and stroked her hand with his thumb, enjoying the 
closeness they shared.   

She glanced at their hands briefly before focusing on his 
incredible eyes again. "Jack's definitely happy with it. He's 
placed it inside a glass case and takes every opportunity to 
praise your talents."

Charlie smiled, lifted his beer for another gulp, then 
refocused on Melissa. They sat in silence for a long time, 
just looking at one another. Finally, he cleared his throat 
and looked down at their hands. Reaching forward with his 
other hand, he stroked her forearm, reveling in the feel of 
her soft skin.

"Charlie?" 

He looked up at her, seeing his rising desire reflected right 
back at him. 

"Let's get out of here," she whispered, straining to suppress 
the raging fire he'd stoked by simply stroking her arm.

He nodded, rose from his seat, and followed her outside. In 
silent agreement, they hurried through the rain toward the 
little motel at the end of the docks. A room was rented, a 
key taken in hand, and a decision made. There was no 
mistaking their intention.  

++++

Charlie stared at her in the dim light of the room. Her hair 
was damp from their run through the downpour outside. He 
lifted his hand to brush a strand from her face, his eyes 
drinking in every detail. She wasn't the woman of his dreams, 
that he was sure. But she was beautiful, very desirable, and 
here with him. He pressed his lips to hers, gently at first, 
then more demandingly. Melissa didn't fight it; she opened up 
for him immediately. Their tongues danced together as their 
hands began to rid each other of their clothes.

They fell to the bed, exploring hidden areas of pleasure. But 
before they could get too carried away, Melissa interrupted 
them with her need to have protected sex. Understanding 
perfectly, Charlie resumed their explorations once prepared 
to take the next step.

He stared down at the woman beneath him. Her brown eyes, 
hidden by incredibly long lashes, peered out at him with 
urgent desire. Her kiss swollen lips evidence of their mutual 
consent to share their bodies with one another. Slowly he 
began to smooth his hands over her body, just as anxious as 
she was to take things to the next level.

However, at the last possible second, Charlie began to recall 
his past sexual experiences. There had been kisses in the 
hayloft of his father's barn. He could clearly remember the 
poor girl had been horrified when his lip had gotten caught 
in her braces. There had been an auburn haired girl-- very 
pretty. She had allowed him a few bold touches as they'd made 
out in the back seat of her parents' sedan. And he could 
remember exactly how he'd felt the night he spent with that 
lovely blonde beauty after a Friday night football game. She 
hadn't allowed him to take things further than intimate 
touches and he'd gone home extremely frustrated.

Another girl, light colored wavy hair, was a good kisser, but 
that was as far as it went with her. He remembered doing 
homework with yet another girl, who liked to end those study 
sessions cuddling on his bed in his dorm room. Things had 
eventually gone way beyond touches and kissing, but she'd 
been adamant about not having intercourse until marriage. He 
could remember a princess who'd taught him to dance. She'd 
asked him to make love to her, but he'd refused. Oh, he'd 
wanted to... desperately. She was a very beautiful woman. He 
just wouldn't be the one to take her virginity or to ruin 
such a deep rooted tradition.

There were others sprinkled throughout his life. He'd become 
an acceptable kisser from hours of practice with women only 
too happy to experiment with him. Had even gone nearly as far 
as he was now. He'd spent time with a lady in London. She was 
traveling, like him. They'd shared many of the same interests 
and were incredibly attracted to one another. They'd spent 
nearly a month together when they'd found themselves naked in 
her bed. It had been so wonderful... until he froze. He'd 
completely lost his resolve. His embarrassment ruined the 
mood and ended their night much too soon. He'd left the 
following day without saying good-bye and couldn't remember 
why. And yes, even memories of his dream lady danced inside 
his mind. Yet, for all he could remember, there was just as 
much he couldn't. No names, just blurry images. No 
explanations, only hazy emotions. Why couldn't he recall? Why 
couldn't he put all his memories together? Why couldn't he 
recall who he was? His life?

But here, with Melissa, her body just as sexually excited as 
his, his resolve was as strong as it had ever been. He 
glanced down at his body and hers. Yet, he didn't move-- 
couldn't move. He remained there, his arms trembling as he 
held himself in check.

As if sensing his internal struggle, Melissa gently pushed 
him backwards until he lay on his back. He was about to say 
something, but she placed a finger on his lips, smiled at 
him, then started kissing his body.

Charlie shut his eyes and allowed her this. Why hadn't he 
recalled one single moment where he'd actually gone all the 
way with a girl? He hadn't hesitated tonight when they'd come 
to this room. He'd reacted confidently, his body producing 
all the necessary results needed for sexual pleasure. He had 
enjoyed the kissing and the touching, had even looked forward 
to the final act of making love. So why had he frozen at the 
crucial moment? 

He groaned appreciatively as Melissa continued to kiss and 
touch him. He briefly wondered how often she did this, but 
his mind was still preoccupied with the things he'd recalled. 
Or more accurately, what he hadn't recalled. Not remembering 
any women in the last couple of years was understandable. He 
hadn't encountered anyone remotely interesting enough to take 
to his bed. They'd tried. They'd flirted with him, kissed 
him, even come right out and told him they wanted him. But he 
just hadn't been inclined to go beyond mindless groping with 
any of them.

Melissa had looked so much like the woman in his dreams; he'd 
been unable to resist the overwhelming urges of his body. He 
wished desperately that he could figure out why *that* woman 
haunted his nights. Unlike any of the others he'd recalled, 
his dream lady kept coming back time and time again. Was she 
the reason he'd been unable to perform tonight? Did she mean 
something so special to him even his body recognized her when 
his mind failed to recall her?

A sharp intake of breath escaped him when Melissa hit a 
particularly sensitive spot. For a few blissful moments, his 
mind was completely blank. He heaved to catch his breath, 
lost in his pleasure.

The woman who'd brought him peace for a few seconds stretched 
out beside him. Slowly Charlie leaned up over her. His gaze 
locked with hers and moments later, she melted against him.

"I want you to know that picking up guys in bars and going to 
a room with them is not something I normally do," Melissa 
told him after a long while.

He gently cupped her cheek, knowing that she'd just told him 
the absolute truth. "I know," he said softly before touching 
his lips to hers. A strand of hair was tucked behind her ear 
when he leaned back. "I'm sorry I froze up on you back 
there."

"No need to be sorry." Her fingers allowed his long hair to 
slip through them just above his ear. Then she moved on to 
smooth the soft hair on his face.

He offered her a smile, allowing her the indulgence she 
sought by touching him. "I should go... use the restroom." He 
gestured toward the open door off to his left. She nodded and 
he climbed out of bed to disappear behind the bathroom door. 
Inside the small room, he stared at the man in the mirror.

"Who are you, Charlie King?" The man before him didn't 
answer, just looked back with unfamiliar eyes. The hair 
falling almost to his shoulders, the full beard, and haunted 
expression all came together to form an image he was familiar 
with, yet didn't know at all. His past had never bothered him 
before tonight. He'd always been so certain that whatever it 
was he couldn't remember was best left unknown. Now he wasn't 
so sure.

He remained in the bathroom for several long minutes before 
he ventured back into the bedroom. Melissa had fallen asleep. 
Her expression was peaceful; a small smile playing on her 
lips. So much like the woman he'd dreamt about, she had been 
exactly what Charlie needed tonight. 

He smiled down at her, then turned to dress. He scribbled an 
apology on the notepad by the bed before he slipped from the 
room. Outside, he took a deep breath before heading out into 
the rain that continued to pour.

@@@@

That night had been over six months ago, Charlie recalled as 
he turned the corner toward Mrs. Nolan's little shop. He'd 
seen Melissa a few times since. They'd even gone to dinner a 
couple of times, shared some heated kisses when they parted, 
and even spent one night giving and receiving mutual pleasure 
again. But they had still not fully consummated their sexual 
relationship. Each time, for reasons he still couldn't 
explain, something stopped Charlie. Though Melissa was more 
than willing to take that final step, she seemed to easily 
understand his hesitation. Charlie felt he'd found a friend 
in the nice young woman he'd met that night. 

He had also been out with two other women, both he found very 
attractive. He'd enjoyed talking with them, had even kissed 
them. But, as with Melissa, he could not bring himself to 
have sex with either one. He blamed that on the mystery woman 
from his sleepless nights. For some reason his body 
instinctively knew when the woman he was with was not her. At 
least that's how he'd come to explain his actions. Now if 
only his mind could figure out why.

++++

Mystic was perfect, Lois reflected, looking around her as she 
sat at a table of an outdoor cafe inside a shopping center 
called Center City. She'd been in the town for two days and 
had managed to produce more than fifty pages of her new 
novel. It was a first draft and she'd have rewrites to do, 
but her muse was flowing well and at this rate, she'd be done 
in no time. Smiling brightly, she gathered up the remains of 
her breakfast and rose to leave.

"Thanks, Mrs Nolan," Charlie called out as he left the little 
gift shop that sold his carvings. Another profitable week had 
provided him with enough money to buy a new pair of jeans. 
He'd asked Melissa to go to a movie on Saturday and wanted to 
look nice. They might not be 'couple' but she'd turned out to 
be a really good friend and he enjoyed their time together.

Busy scoping out a place to look for jeans, he failed to see 
the woman who was walking toward him with her head lowered to 
read a piece of paper in her hand, completely oblivious to 
her surroundings. They collided, knocking everything she held 
to the cement.

"Oh, I'm so sorry," a contrite male voice said at once, as he 
bent to help gather her papers before they flew off in the 
breeze.

Lois huffed her indignation as she reached out for some of 
her strewn papers. "It's okay. I wasn't looking where I was 
going."

"Yeah. Me either." The last of the mess was picked up, and he 
raised his head to see her. He offered her a smile as he held 
out the papers he'd recovered.

"Thanks," she told him as she took the offered items, sparing 
him only a polite glance. 

"Are you okay?"

That got her attention. Lois lifted her gaze to see the man 
before her. Warm, friendly eyes stared back at her in 
concern. Large hands rested between his legs as he leaned on 
his bent knees, and for a moment she wondered if they were as 
rough as they looked. Smooth, black hair glistened in the 
sunlight. His smile was partially covered with a full, neatly 
trimmed beard. There were faint lines reaching out to touch 
the corners of his eyes, but it didn't take away from his 
overall beauty. 

And he was beautiful. Well built, she was certain he was 
incredibly strong, yet he looked just as graceful. His thin, 
loud shirt hung open down the front allowing her to see a 
very sculpted torso underneath the tight tank top he wore. 
White cotton pants were rolled half way up his calves and he 
wore brown loafers without socks. For a brief moment Lois was 
reminded of her partner, only she had no idea why! 

"Miss?" he asked again when she failed to answer his first 
question. "Are you all right?" His smile faded to concern as 
she continued to stare at him, a blank expression on her 
face.

His voice... It sounded a lot like her partner's. Another 
glance revealed compassionate, brown eyes.

<Clark had brown eyes.>

Again, her eyes skimmed the man's features. A strong jaw, 
silky black hair, and those eyes... It all reminded her so 
much of her partner. Was it possible this man was...? 

<No way! He couldn't be... Could he?>

Lois looked closer, but struggled to make a connection with 
the man before her and her best friend. For the life of her, 
she suddenly couldn't recall what Clark had looked liked-- 
the details. He was never far from her heart, but she'd long 
ago stopped dwelling on her memories of him because it was 
just too painful. And now she discovered that his features 
had blurred in her mind. How had she managed to retain the 
beauty and not the precision? 

Surely she was just missing Clark today. That had to be why 
this man reminded her so much of him. She'd never seen her 
partner as relaxed as this man. The clothes, the hair, his 
very presence was so un-Clark like. Yet, her best friend was 
all she could think of as she stared at the stranger.

"Miss?" He sounded worried. "Did I hurt you?"

Seeing the concern on his face, Lois shook away her thoughts 
to answer him. "I'm fine."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah. I just... you look like someone I once knew." She 
opted to tell him the truth, realizing there was something 
about him that automatically seemed to relax her.

He smiled again. "I'm glad you're okay. Let me help you up." 
He stood, his hand grasping her elbow, tugging her up with 
him.

"Thank you," Lois said, her eyes still glued to him and her 
arm was humming where he made contact. The warmth from his 
hand seemed to radiate throughout her body and the question 
of whether is touch was rough had been answered. His grasp 
had been firm, but very gentle, just like that of another 
she'd known once. 

<Even his touch reminds me of Clark.> Lois might be having 
trouble recalling his features, but there was no way she 
could forget Clark's touch. He had been soft, gentle. The 
first time his hand had made contact with her skin it had 
shocked her beyond belief. Never before had anyone's touch 
affected her in such a way. As they'd gotten to know one 
another, she often found it hard to resist lying her hand on 
his chest or touching his arm. His nearness had always been 
comforting, even if she hadn't realized all that until it was 
way too late.

She had to stop doing that, she reprimanded herself silently. 
<Everyone you meet is not Clark.> She had to be missing him a 
lot, that's all. 

"You're welcome."

Lois could sense that the man was as reluctant to walk away 
as she was, while her conscience was screaming at her not to 
let that happen. She didn't even know his name. "You should 
let me buy you a drink to repay you for your kindness. Not 
many people would have bothered to ask if I was okay after 
bumping into me," she said hurriedly.

He held her gaze for a long moment, almost as if he was 
focusing on her for the first time. His dark eyes held hers 
captive; she had the oddest feeling that he was branding her 
into his memory.

"I'd like that," he finally answered. Was it her imagination 
or did he sound as thrown off as she was? "But we should make 
it coffee at..." He looked down at his watch. "... 9 am."

She laughed softly, suddenly feeling very shy and off center. 
It was sheer craziness to be imaging a total stranger could 
possibly be her long gone friend. And even crazier to find 
yourself more attracted to that stranger than to anyone you'd 
ever met before. But that's exactly how Lois felt. She 
couldn't describe her feelings, but she knew with certainty 
that she did not want this man to just walk away. "Guess that 
would be a good idea."

"Yeah." They continued to stare at one another for a moment 
before he glanced up at a cafe. "This place has good coffee, 
but Corley's Corner, down on the boardwalk, serves coffee to 
die for."

She should have felt a little apprehension about being asked 
to follow a strange man around an unfamiliar city, but it 
never entered her mind to fear this man. His very presence 
seemed to radiate trust, something she might later question. 
Right now she wanted to find out more about this mysterious 
stranger. "Lead on."

++++

Charlie offered her a wide smile and set out toward the 
boardwalk. They walked in companionable silence the short 
distance to the restaurant near the beach, each needing the 
time to collect their wayward thoughts. 

Who was this mystery woman at his side? When he'd held her 
gaze for the first time, he'd immediately been reminded of 
his dream lady. She was easily the most beautiful woman he 
could remember ever seeing. Her dark eyes held his captive, 
as if branding him to memory. Long lashes, longer than any 
woman's he'd ever seen, gave her deep pools more allure than 
he'd thought possible of any woman. Her professionally styled 
hair was cut short, and it was pushed behind her ears on 
either side, making her too adorable for words. Very little 
make-up had been used to hide her natural beauty, which made 
her all the more attractive. So delicate, fragile, yet the 
firm set of her jaw told Charlie this woman was a force to be 
reckoned with. The dark hair, the dark eyes, the petite frame 
all reminded him of the woman from his dreams. But it was her 
sheer presence that intrigued him.

Lately, Charlie's dreams had grown in frequency, waking him 
almost nightly. Every one featured a beautiful woman he was 
sure he'd known well. There were even a few that felt more 
like memories. In one particular dream she was looking quite 
flustered and dirty,  ranting about being bitten by 
mosquitoes. Apparently he'd sent her somewhere to find 
something that wasn't there. He'd set her up in retaliation 
to some misdemeanor of her own, and she'd told him she 
respected him for what he'd done. Whatever it was he'd done!

In another he'd argued with her over a decision she'd made. 
He'd wanted her to change her mind, but she'd refused. There 
were many dreams of them arguing. Almost as if that was 
something normal for them. Still another time revealed them 
sitting on the floor of her apartment, him hugging her close 
and telling her he wasn't going to leave her. So, whatever 
relationship he'd shared with this woman had to have been 
something very special.

Then there were those dreams that felt too surreal to have 
actually happened. In those, he kissed her with all the 
passion he could muster. He caressed her, made love to her 
slowly, repeatedly. She'd lie across his chest in their 
afterglow, her cheek pressed to his skin. His fingers stroked 
her hair and each would whisper endearments to one another in 
the dark. Something that good, that unbelievable, couldn't 
possibly be true.   

Now, in the sunshine of Mystic, a woman that was eerily 
familiar, yet a total stranger as well, silently kept pace 
beside him, obviously lost in thoughts of her own.

They stopped at the walk-up window of the little cafe and 
placed their order.

"Here. Let me get this," Charlie said when the man inside 
told them how much money was needed.

"I'm buying and that's final," Lois told him as she handed 
over the bills.

Charlie surrendered with a shrug. A second later, they'd 
gotten their drinks. 

"Should we sit?" Charlie asked his companion, automatically 
assuming they'd share their drink together.

"How about we walk on the beach?" Lois cast a glance at the 
crystal water and gleaming white sand. "I haven't actually 
made it onto the beach yet. I've been listening to the waves 
from my room, but it's just not the same."

"Sure. I think we have time for a peaceful walk before the 
place fills up for the day."

++++

Lois noticed his smile, but he turned away too soon for her 
to get the full effect. They paused when they stepped off the 
boardwalk to remove their shoes before starting toward the 
north end of the white blanket stretched out before them.

"So, I have to admit this is the first time I've bought a man 
coffee and didn't even know his name," Lois started after a 
few steps.

Charlie grinned over at her. "Charlie. My name's Charlie."  

"Well, Charlie, I'm Lois."

He looked at her closely, as if trying to decide if her name 
fit. 

"Lois," he repeated with an unreadable expression on his 
face.

"You're right, Charlie. This is great coffee," Lois commented 
as she gazed down at the cup she held, needing something-- 
anything-- to say. She shifted the folder she held, and her 
shoes, to the other arm and looked out across the ocean. 
"Coupled with such beautiful scenery and one wonders how they 
could ask for more."

"I'll drink to that." He lifted his cup to take a full 
swallow.

Lois had to blink quickly to hide her surprise when he turned 
up his cup. Their coffee was still very hot, but he didn't 
flinch.  

"Is it safe to assume that you're a visitor to our fair 
city?" Charlie asked Lois, bringing her from her 
contemplation.

"Ah, yes. I came to Mystic for inspiration for a new book." 
Why had she told him that so easily?

"You're a writer?"

"Yes." Again, she was reminded of Clark when she glanced over 
at Charlie. The more she looked at him, the more he reminded 
her of her friend. There was no way her overactive mind could 
be right though. Was she really missing her best friend so 
much that she'd think a good looking stranger could be him? 
This man was not... 

"I'm also a reporter." That should have some kind of effect, 
she decided quickly. And her mind was off to the races.  

They never had found a body. For all she knew Clark could 
have come back to Earth. He could have been hurt and only 
just recovered. He could have had amnesia, which would 
explain why he hadn't returned home. Of course, he could have 
simply chosen to stay away. His last note to her had told her 
that he wouldn't, couldn't be around her. He couldn't be 
near, loving her the way he did and not be allowed to touch. 
Not for the first time she'd thought about him simply staying 
away, refusing to come home. She'd dismissed those ideas on 
several occasions for one reason: his parents. Clark might 
have been devastated by her rejection of him, but he would 
have never willingly left his parents without a word for over 
two years. She had every argument imaginable with herself 
over Clark. It just wasn't logical that he was still alive. 
But her heart... sometimes her heart refused to give up.  

Like now, walking along the beach with a stranger who looked 
like Clark's twin.

Charlie looked over at her. "A reporter?" Genuine surprise 
sounded in his voice.

"Yep." He'd paused. He hadn't expected her to say that. Did 
that mean something? "I work for the Daily Planet in 
Metropolis."

Charlie let out a low whistle. "Impressive. That's probably 
the largest paper in the world."

"And the best," Lois added with pride. He hadn't reacted at 
all when she'd told him she was a reporter, yet he still 
looked surprised. Maybe she'd been wrong. Maybe he just 
hadn't pictured her as a reporter and was truly impressed. 
Maybe, maybe, maybe... 


Why did she have to allow her mind to stir up those memories 
today? She was on the beach, drinking coffee with a gorgeous 
man. For once in her life, she should just *stop* thinking 
and enjoy the moment.

"Is that a note of vanity I hear?" He grinned to soften his 
statement.

Lois blinked when he spoke. His question was exactly 
something Clark would have asked. 

<Could it be possible?> Taking another look, she decided the 
only way to find out for sure was to keep him talking. "I 
like to call it confidence." She beamed brightly as they 
continued to stroll along the sand.

"And something tells me that you don't lack much of that at 
all."

She only shrugged. Her confidence had taken a horrible blow 
because of her failed marriage and all the events surrounding 
that mistake, but with support of good friends and a renewed 
relationship with her parents, she'd regained a little of her 
self-esteem. Admittedly, she might never be as self-assured 
as she once was, but crying over the past did no one any 
good. 

<And neither does all this thinking!>

"So, what does a local do to pass the time around here?"

"Well, most of us work."

She smiled at his expression. "That would make sense."

"Just a little." He laughed softly, apparently enjoying his 
company. 

"And what kind of work do you do, Charlie?"

"I make hand-carved statues."

Lois blinked a little, not expecting that answer. "Really?"

"Yeah. Did you notice the large animal statues in the window 
of that gift shop back at Center City?"

"The tiger and the bear with her cubs?" He nodded. "You made 
those?" she asked in awe.

"Yep. I started carving as a hobby a while back, but Mrs. 
Nolan, the lady who owns the store, convinced me that I could 
make money selling them. She was right. I sold one two months 
ago for almost a thousand dollars."

"Wow!" This time, Lois was the one impressed. "Must have been 
some statue?"

"It was a large eagle with outstretched wings. I cut out each 
feather separately, then glued them together. It's very 
detailed."

"I'd like to see it."

"It's in the lobby of Paine's Investment House on the East 
end of Main Street."

"I'll be sure to go take a look at it then." They walked on 
in silence for a few moments, Lois once again questioning who 
the man next to her really was. It was foolish to think he 
could possibly be Clark. She'd led an investigation into his 
disappearance, searching almost nonstop for a year before 
being forced to face the cold reality. If Clark had survived 
Nightfall, he would have been found. Still...

"So, Lois, tell me what your novel is about."

She looked over at him, struck once again by his resemblance 
to her partner. "It's about a woman growing up in rural 
Southern America and befriending a boy when it was considered 
a sin to be seen with a boy after dark without a chaperone."

"I'd have thought you would go for mystery and intrigue."

Her brows lifted in surprise of his insightfulness, but she 
figured he'd made that connection because of her revelation 
of being a reporter. "At one time, I would have definitely 
been driven by a story like that." Why had she told him that? 

"And now? What happened to change that?"

"So many things changed my outlook on life," she told him as 
she stared down the beach. Lois had realized the hard way, 
after it was far too late, that there was nothing in the 
world more important than friendship and being true to 
yourself.

He remained silent, not commenting. Almost as if he was 
sensing her anguish. So like Clark…

Lois pushed her troubled memories to the back of her mind and 
stopped a few paces from an old man who was happily chatting 
with a couple of women as he painted on a large canvas.

"That's Joe," Charlie told her when he saw where she was 
looking. "He comes out most every day to paint for the 
tourists. He's a retired Vet and this is how he makes extra 
money."

"How long have you lived in Mystic?" she asked, suddenly 
curious to know more about Charlie.

"Over a year now, I guess. I was enchanted by the atmosphere 
the first time I saw this place."

"I can certainly agree with that," Lois told him. She, too, 
had been enchanted the moment she'd driven into this small 
town. The Lois of old might not have been so impressed, but 
the changed Lois took the time to appreciate the world... and 
people around her. "You know, I have a friend that would love 
a painting of the ocean." 

Charlie shook his head with a smile as she set off toward 
Joe.

Lois waited patiently for the two women to collect their 
painting before addressing Joe. "Hi!"

"Hi, young lady," Joe greeted her. "Are you interested in a 
painting today?"

"I am. I have a friend that would love a painting of the 
ocean."

"I can do that." He smiled at her before he saw Charlie 
approaching. "Charlie! It's good to see you. Noticed you go 
by this morning. Been to see Mrs. Nolan?"

"Oh yeah. Had to see if I'd impressed anymore gullible 
tourists." 

Joe grinned over at Lois. Obviously his young friend had 
impressed someone else and not with his carvings. "So, would 
you like to be in this picture?"

Lois looked at him for a moment, then shook her head. "I 
don't think so."

"Okay." Joe lifted his brush and set to work creating his 
next masterpiece.

Lois and Charlie chatted about the scenery and finished their 
coffee while Joe quickly brought a white canvas to brilliant 
life. Several moments later, his work was being admired.

"I would never have believed that would take only..." She 
glanced at her watch. "... ten minutes for you to paint."

"Ocean scenes are easy. I've been doing them for years. You 
know, Charlie, one of these days you're going to have to let 
me paint you something. I think everyone in town has an 
original but you."

"Then we'll have to change that. How about I trade you a 
carving of old Red over there for one of your ocean scenes?"

Joe looked back at the red dog that slept next to his bag. 
Red had been with him for many years now. "That sounds like a 
deal."

"I'll bring it by tomorrow," Charlie told him.

"And I'll have you something special."

"Great!" Charlie smiled at the older man as Lois pulled a 
bill from her pocket to pay for her art.

"That's too much, ma'am," Joe told her when she handed him 
the money. "I couldn't accept."

"How about you hang on to that and I'll come back and get you 
to paint me another one before I leave Mystic?"

Joe smiled at her before reluctantly accepting her payment. 
"Don't you disappoint me by not showing up."

"I won't." She exchanged a few more pleasantries, took her 
painting, then turned to go.

Charlie had tossed their coffee cups in a nearby bin, freeing 
up one of Lois' hands, but he quickly offered to help her 
with her burden. He held the painting by his side and they 
continued down the beach. 

"How long do you plan to be in Mystic?" Charlie asked Lois 
after another period of silence.

"Oh, I don't know. Until my novel's done." She shrugged, her 
eyes fixated on the waves lapping the white sand. At one 
time, spending an undetermined amount of time away from the 
Planet and the newsroom would have been the furthest thing 
from her mind. Now she looked forward to peaceful days filled 
with memories of another time. So much had changed for Lois.

The couple continued their idle chatter for several more 
minutes before Lois stopped at a connecting bridgeway back 
onto the surface street. "This is my stop." She would have 
loved to stay and talk with Charlie all day, but suddenly her 
thoughts were overwhelming her. She needed to be alone, to 
think.

Charlie glanced up to see where they were. "Are you staying 
at Donovan's?" 

Donovan's was a locally owned hotel on the beach front. A 
majestic old house, renovated into a modern oasis, attracted 
many tourists each year. When Lois had spotted it, she'd 
known right away that was where she wanted to stay.

"Yes. I liked its charm."

"Not to mention the incredible view from the ocean side 
rooms."

"Yeah," Lois added with a grin. "I'm on the top floor. I 
couldn't resist being up high enough to see the entire bay."

Charlie nodded and lifted her painting. "I hope your friend 
enjoys this painting."

"She will," Lois said as she took the painting, admiring yet 
again the skill of the artist.

"Thank you... for the coffee," he said, appearing reluctant 
to actually leave.

For an incredibly electrifying second, Lois felt as if a 
burst of ice cold air had slapped against her face. Those 
eyes, Charlie's eyes... dark, compassionate, all-consuming. 
They were *his* eyes. Lois saw Clark looking back at her from 
behind that beard and those amazing, familiar eyes.

"Clark?" she croaked, just barely above a whisper.

++++

To Charlie, the name was as clear as a bell. Not for the 
first time he'd heard something very audible that he 
shouldn't have. Of course, that wasn't the only thing that 
was strange about him. 

Strange, that was an understatement, Charlie thought. Strange 
was a man who liked to talk to himself in public. The weird 
things about him were downright unbelievable. No man he'd 
ever met could cause a fire with his eyes! Incredibly 
frustrated one morning after he'd broken his fifth razor, 
Charlie had gotten angry. 

Why was his hair so coarse that it broke razors?! What was 
he? Some kind of freak?! 

He'd glared at the mirror, at the man he didn't know, and was 
horrified when a light bounced back at him. He'd jumped in 
shock, his heart pounding against his chest. It was sometime 
later before he realized that beam had cinged the hairs of 
his beard. After calming down, and several pep talks, he 
concentrated his stare on the mirror again. Once more the 
light was produced and it seared his facial hair. With a 
little practice, Charlie had learned to trim his beard... 
with his eyes!  

For days after that Charlie had walked around completely 
mystified. How was he able to do such a thing? Over and over 
he could produce the steady beam of heat when he 
concentrated. He'd wondered if all of his senses were 
unusual, so he'd decided to try doing the same thing with his 
hearing. That's how he found out some his fellow sailors were 
lovers. That had been quite embarrassing!

There was more. He'd learned that he could speed read, 
although about the only thing he read anymore was pointless 
dribble. He liked fiction novels and chose to stay as far 
away from the news as possible, though he had yet to discover 
the reason for his aversion. Then there was the speed in 
which he carved his statues. More than once he'd found his 
hands moving at impossible speeds. The masterpieces produced 
during that time were simply out of this world. He couldn't 
believe it himself. Yet, it was all true. He was some kind of 
walking, talking, breathing freak. Normal enough to outside 
appearances, no one would ever suspect him of being more than 
an ordinary guy.

But he wasn't ordinary. Ordinary guys couldn't do those 
things. Charlie had been plunged into a deep depression for a 
while as he tried to make sense of it all. He'd even read 
briefly of another who possessed some strange abilities like 
his. Superman, the flying hero who'd disappeared without 
explanation, had been just as unusual. Charlie had briefly 
wondered if there was a connection between him and the 
incredible caped man. He'd decided there was no possible way 
there was link, partly because there was no way he was going 
to see if he was bulletproof and partly because of his desire 
to just remain Charlie King, a simple sailor without a past. 

Why did he feel that way?

And for reasons beyond him, he was hard pressed to stay so 
maudlin. It seemed his natural personality was good hearted 
and light. He enjoyed people and helping others. He respected 
the world around him and used it wisely. So, he decided that 
if the only way to trim his beard was to use his strange 
vision gizmo, that's what he'd do. He'd use his hearing to 
appreciate the sounds around him and his speed was put to 
good use carving him a living. He didn't know why he could do 
the things he could do and he'd stopped trying to figure it 
out. As long as he didn't grow two heads or fly away, he 
could handle the things he didn't know or understand and when 
he hadn't developed any more strange abilities, he figured he 
was all right.  

Yet Lois had looked at him and whispered a name. The name of 
another man. Did she think he was that man? His brows 
furrowed as his mind rolled the name around. Clark. Who was 
he? Was he someone special to her? A husband maybe or perhaps 
a lover? For the briefest of moments he felt a swell of 
jealously for this Clark. Charlie was completely and utterly 
impressed with Lois, and for a second he wished *he* was 
Clark.

"Excuse me?" were the only words that left his mouth as he 
stared down at her.

++++

He was confused, she could tell that, but the name had 
provoked a reaction deep within him. She tried to tell 
herself that it just wasn't possible. There was no way 
Charlie could be Clark! But her heart pleaded differently. 
"Would you like to have dinner with me?" The question rushed 
from her mouth before she even had a chance to realize the 
thought had entered her mind. She couldn't bear not seeing 
him again.

"Dinner?" he asked unsteadily and Lois could see a struggle 
behind his eyes. Had she been wrong about the mutual 
attraction? Or was there something else? 

The silence continued and Lois was certain that he wasn't 
going to answer at all. But then he lifted his hand out 
toward her. 

<<He's going to touch me!>> Anticipation swelled within her, 
but quickly died when he apparently thought better of his 
action and his hand dropped away.

With a thundering pulse and trembling legs, Lois took a half 
step toward Charlie. She had purposely not explained why 
she'd said another man's name, hoping it would trigger some 
kind of response. Logically she knew she was wrong. Wanting 
him to be wouldn't make it true, but he was dangerously 
alluring and she found herself unable to corral her growing 
attraction to him. "Yes, dinner. Maybe we can throw in a 
drink or two and some conversation for flare." She added a 
positively staggering little grin to fan the small flicker 
she saw behind Charlie's now smokey eyes.

++++

Her grin could be compared to rushing wind as it glides 
across your body, cool and intimate, Clark thought as he 
continued to stare down at this incredibly tempting woman. 
Who was this Lois? So much like his dream girl... so 
alluring. He remembered how he'd immediately thought of his 
dreams the first time he'd seen Melissa, but she'd never made 
him feel the way he felt right now. His heart had started to 
race a moment ago and he actually felt dizzy. There was 
something about this woman. He wanted to know everything. 

His blood thundered through his veins, every nerve ending now 
on high alert. Taking a half step forward as Lois had done, 
he smiled back at her. "Why do I get the feeling you think 
I'm somebody else?" he asked her softly, needing her to 
understand that he wouldn't be mistaken for another man-- 
couldn't be a replacement-- even as he wondered why it 
mattered so much. 

"Who are you, Charlie?" Lois whispered, seeming to be lost in 
his very aura as he entered her personal space. 

"And you? Who is this woman before me? Dark haired beauty 
with enough familiarity to have been in my dreams." The words 
had slipped out as he continued to stare deeply into Lois' 
eyes. She was so beautiful. He found himself unable to resist 
her pull. Charlie felt as if he was falling. Falling into an 
unknown abyss that he wasn't in a hurry to escape.

"Could you be…?" she whispered with a different sort of look 
in her eye, as if he had somehow fueled a fire in her 
thoughts.

Charlie lifted his free hand and gently stroked Lois' cheek 
with his finger tips. She was so incredibly beautiful, just 
like the woman in his dreams. Same delicate features; same 
creamy smooth skin; same deep mysterious eyes. The hair was 
the same color even if the length was different. And her 
presence... Even in his dreams, Charlie's lady had managed to 
captivate him with her nearness. Much as this woman was doing 
now. This Lois... 

"I know a place with a breath taking view. We could watch the 
sunset," Charlie said softly. His hand had dropped back to 
his side, but his whole body hummed in an effort to keep from 
touching her again. What was it about this woman he found so 
irresistible?

"When?" she asked without hesitation. 

"Tomorrow night. I'll meet you in the lobby of your hotel at 
five."

"And dinner?" Her eyes never left his as they exchanged the 
details of their interlude, almost as if her mind had ceased 
to function.

"Allow me." He moved again, brushed his hand against her arm 
before turning to walk away. He looked back, smiling. "Until 
tomorrow, Lois."

"Tomorrow," she agreed and watched as he strode quickly down 
the beach, left to try and understand just what had happened. 

Charlie didn't slow his pace until he stood on the boardwalk 
again. Lois. Who was this Lois? This woman who had managed to 
unnerve him so completely? In the two years he could recall 
with clarity, there had been no one who had made him feel so 
off balance. He had the sudden urge to run, to get away as 
quickly as possible. At the same time, he wanted to run 
straight back to her. She was intoxicating. So much so there 
would have been no way he could have refused her a thing, had 
she asked. With thoughts of their impending date, Charlie 
forgot about Lois calling him another name. His focus was on 
how he'd survive an entire night in her presence.

++++

The view from the fifth floor of the hotel called Donovan's 
was worth every cent of the price she'd paid to stay here. 
Lois sat, coffee mug between her hands, in the plush arm 
chair looking out of her huge picture window. Below her 
stretched the small bay several fishing boats called home. 
Others, those boats that only docked to refuel and pick up 
extra workers, came and went steadily at all hours of the day 
and night. A cliff created the back drop on the other side of 
the marina, covered with the lush green vegetation of summer. 
Just beyond that cliff was a neighboring city, more expansive 
than Mystic and certainly devoid of the drugging charm that 
had lured her to this place. The sun was just beginning to 
rise in      totheclearbluesky.Anotherbeautiful day would 
dawn, creating a lazy atmosphere in which to lose yourself. 

Since her fateful meeting with a stranger the day before, 
losing herself was exactly what Lois had done. She'd sat in 
the chair in her room, staring out the window, or sitting on 
the balcony allowing the breeze to flow over her skin. It was 
as if she was searching for answers that could only be found 
as they rode in on the waves. But with each crash against the 
land, she was brought back to harsh reality. There were 
questions, tons of them. And she simply didn't know the 
answers to any.

All ability to think clearly had left her when she'd taken 
her first good look at Charlie. He was tall, dark and 
handsome, just as every stranger you meet should be. The 
whole scenario reminded Lois of a romance novel, only she 
knew this fantasy couldn't be real. 

Or could it? Was this Charlie really Clark? They looked 
almost exactly alike-- she'd come back to her room and dug 
out the picture of herself and Clark she carried in her 
purse. A beard covered Charlie's face, but the eyes were the 
same. She'd looked at those eyes a million times without ever 
seeing the real man. In both of his guises she'd been the 
recipient of an incredible amount of warmth and compassion 
from those dark windows of his soul. Huh! How could she say 
that? You can see through windows, but she'd never seen... 
never realized. How could one person be so blind? When she'd 
looked deep into Charlie's eyes, she'd instantly seen Clark 
for the first time. Yet, her mind still labored over the 
truth. If Charlie really was Clark, why was he here and why 
hadn't he been home? 

Every theory possible had come to mind. Maybe he'd been hurt 
and when he recovered he couldn't remember who he was. That 
explanation seemed to make the most sense. If Clark had 
consciously made the decision to stay away, there would have 
been some kind of recognition in his eyes when he'd first 
seen her. But there had been nothing. He hadn't recognized 
her at all. She'd argued with herself all night that if Clark 
saw her again, he'd know her and she'd know him. However, she 
had to admit that she didn't know him-- had never known him. 

They might have been friends and maybe in another time, if 
Lois had been a different person-- as she was now-- they 
might have been more. They'd worked together, spent free time 
together, talked, shared things, but she'd never truly seen 
Clark Kent. Not the Clark who donned a brightly colored suit 
to save the world with his awesome abilities. No, that's not 
the man she should have seen. She'd never seen the whole 
person Clark was.

Through his mother, and through her own memory when she'd 
finally taken off the blinders, she'd gotten to know Clark. 
And she'd grieved for so long because she'd only done that 
after the man was gone. Maybe, too, that went both ways. 
Maybe there had been no recognition because Clark had never 
seen her either. She reluctantly admitted that had been her 
fault. In keeping herself so emotionally closed off, she'd 
made it impossible for anyone, even Clark, to have possibly 
seen the real Lois Lane. 

And who was that? Who was Lois Lane? Charlie had described 
her as 'so familiar she could have been in his dreams'. Did 
some subconscious part of his mind recognize her? He had 
certainly been drawn to her, just as her partner had been. 
Yet another reason to believe Charlie was Clark.

A striking resemblance, a mumbled question of vague 
recognition, and all the wishful thinking in the world didn't 
prove Charlie was Clark though. She'd have to learn more 
about him, be around him more to know for certain. 

But what then? What if Charlie really *was* Clark? What did 
she do? Should she tell him who he was? It was likely he 
wouldn't believe her. She couldn't very well tell him that 
she'd known him and had ripped his heart out. If he'd been 
hurt and lost his memory, as she felt might be the case, it 
would be best to bring him around slowly, gently. Should she 
just spend time with him? Infuse bits of his past into their 
time together? She'd searched the web for insights into 
memory loss during the wee hours of the morning. All the 
experts said the same thing: surround them with the familiar 
and allow them to recall on their own.  

How did she surround him with the familiar? If indeed Charlie 
was Clark? Mystic was nothing like Metropolis. His life now 
was nothing like that he'd lived once. She'd read an article 
that suggested sometimes those with memory loss failed to 
recover because they were repressing something painful. Was 
that true? Was Charlie, Clark repressing painful memories? 

She could answer that question at once. He'd told her that 
he'd been outside the Lexor the day she married, described 
how much it hurt. There had been another declaration of love, 
the reason he could never come back. He'd said good-bye 
because he was in pain. Could that be the reason his 
subconscious kept him from remembering who he was? Could 
*she* be keeping Clark from coming home?

That thought caused her excruciating pain, comparable to that 
she felt right after her wedding when she realized what huge 
mistakes she'd made. Without ever knowing she'd done it, Lois 
had caused one of the best men she knew to suffer. She'd 
known that his feelings were bruised, but had never imagined 
the extent of his agony. Clark had loved her, truly loved 
her. Unaware of what the emotion really meant, she'd 
foolishly declared her love for his alter ego after pushing 
him away in his real guise. How awful it must have been for 
him to hear her tell him that she'd love him even if he was 
just an ordinary man. For so long her behaviour had consumed 
her with guilt. It was only when faced with his loss did Lois 
finally realize how deeply she did care for Clark Kent.

What now? If Charlie was Clark, what was she supposed to do?  

And what about Clark's parents? Should she let them know what 
she suspected? Only, she didn't know for certain, and giving 
them hope again, when that hope might be false, would be too 
cruel. 

Lois pushed up from the chair and walked to the window. The 
sun shone brightly now, bathing the sleepy little town in 
brilliance. It was a beautiful day in the city by the sea. 
Maybe she'd go out, walk on the beach. Or maybe she'd go look 
at some wood carvings in one of the gift shops.

++++

Hands moved around the piece of wood, faster than humanly 
possible. When they stopped, a perfect replica of an old red 
dog lying on the sand stared up at him. Charlie smiled softly 
before starting the delicate process of sanding his creation. 
However, today was not a day to waste. Today was a day for 
burning off frustration. His hands became a blur again and 
this time when they stopped, the statue had been sanded and 
stained to perfection. He'd carry this down to the beach to 
old Joe.

Charlie pushed back from the table, sighing heavily. What was 
wrong with him? Why couldn't he remember his life? The 
previous day had been riddled with thoughts provoked by his 
meeting with a reporter named Lois. Memories seemed to flow 
heavily, but hadn't stopped long enough for him to piece them 
altogether. How could he remember so much and so little at 
the same time? And why did a stranger stir such powerful 
emotions within him?

He'd sat outside in the warm air the day before recalling the 
last two years of his life. The fact that he hadn't been able 
to recall much had never bothered him before. He'd been happy 
with his meager existence, content to work out his days and 
spend his nights in blissful slumber. Only his nights were 
hardly ever blissful. Those dreams woke him often. They'd 
grown in intensity, especially over the last few months. Her 
image roared through his mind over and over. Was she real? 
Had she been someone he knew? If so, why wasn't he with her 
now? Where was she?

As the darkness had ended the day, another voice had 
whispered his name. The soft, velvety tones echoed loudly in 
the quiet night air surrounding his cabin. The voice belonged 
to someone he didn't know, yet felt he'd known forever. Lois 
had filled the empty spaces between the thoughts of his past 
the entire day, and she was the one who greeted the night 
with him as he'd sulked alone on his porch.

Now, as he stared out the window, she was the only thing on 
his mind again. Who was she? Why did she affect him the way 
she had? His desire to get to know her better warred with his 
sexual desire as he continued to recall their meeting. 
Standing before her as she'd asked him to dinner, his body 
had been consumed with primal hunger. He'd felt almost 
predatory in nature as he'd willed himself not to reach out 
and grab her. That's why he'd walked away so suddenly. How 
could a woman have such incredible power over a man by simply 
looking at him?

<<What does it mean?>>

His chair scraped the floor as he stood abruptly. There was 
no way he'd make it through an entire evening with that 
woman. Yet, there was no way he'd miss it either. It was time 
to test the limits of his control.

Charlie fumbled around inside his refrigerator for a cool 
drink in an effort to calm his nerves. After downing half a 
cold beer, he drudged over to the easy chair and plopped 
down. He'd been content with his life. There was no need to 
worry himself about his missing memories; they'd come 
eventually. Of course, he'd often wondered if he really 
wanted to remember. Maybe his life hadn't been so great. 
Maybe he was a criminal or owed some bookie lots of money. Or 
maybe there was a woman he wanted to forget. 

Was that it? Was his dream lady some woman he'd rather 
forget? Was she the reason he couldn't recall all of his 
past? And what did Lois have to do with any of it? He'd asked 
himself over and over if Lois could be the lady from his 
dreams. It was just plain silly though. If she'd known him, 
she would have certainly said something... Wouldn't she?

Of course she would. No. Lois wasn't the woman from his 
dreams, but she was damn close. She certainly got Charlie's 
blood boiling like nothing ever had. So, maybe for tonight 
he'd just pretend that she *was* his dream lady. After all, 
it seemed she wanted him to be someone else.

++++

She could only stare. Lois was dumbfounded as she stood 
before the large carved eagle statue in the lobby of Paine's 
Investment House. It wasn't the quality of the work that had 
obviously gone into the piece, but the name that fascinated 
her. 'Charlie King'. The gold plaque held the name of Charlie 
King. Sure, it could simply be a huge coincidence that the 
Charlie she'd met-- who looked a lot like her partner-- would 
have the same name as an undercover identity used during the 
Metro Club investigation by the team of Lane and Kent. But 
somehow she knew it wasn't. She knew now that Charlie was 
really Clark.

What happened that day so long ago? Had he been hurt? The 
thought pained her horribly. He could have been out there 
somewhere hurt and alone. Had he lost his memory? It was 
pretty apparent from talking with him that he didn't know her 
at all. She'd seen those small flashes of recognition but 
nothing else.

How was it possible that Superman couldn't remember a thing? 
Was he so much like other humans that he could suppress 
memories because of pain he'd been caused? Or was there some 
other reason? Had he truly been injured and unable to 
remember? That couldn't be true though. He'd remembered 
enough to take on an identity he'd used once as Clark. So 
there had to be something else going on. Was it his 
Kryptonian biology that kept him here, away from his past... 
away from his life?

There had to be some small hope that she'd get her Clark 
back.

But was he really her Clark? Had he ever been? More to the 
point, did she want the relationship they'd once shared back 
again?

It only took a split second to answer that question. NO! She 
couldn't-- they couldn't go back to how things were. Not now. 
Not after she'd come so painfully to the realization that 
she'd made some of the worst mistakes of her life.

And obviously Clark couldn't either. His scars ran far deeper 
than Lois had imagined if his mind refused to remember his 
agonizing past.

But had she expected any different? Clark had been devastated 
by her rejection, then by her marriage to Luthor.

<<That's funny. When did I start thinking of him as Luthor?>>

<<The day you finally realized who he was.>>

That had been the day she'd wised up and taken Clark's 
advice. She'd investigated. What she'd found had made her 
sick inside. It might have been Perry, Jimmy, Jack, and yes, 
even Clark, who had dug up the evidence to bury Luthor. But 
when she'd gone back over the entire mess, she had clearly 
seen all of her mistakes. The horrible truth jumped out at 
her, as if begging for her to see the man Lex Luthor had 
been. How had she ever called herself the best investigative 
reporter in the city if she'd been too blind to see through 
such a transparent act?

She hadn't wanted to see. Just like she hadn't wanted to 
admit that her partner had become so much more than just a 
colleague, just a friend. She'd wanted to hide away, safe 
inside the loveless relationship she'd known her marriage 
would be. 'If I don't love him', she'd told herself, 'then he 
can't hurt me.' How ironic that thought had been.

Luthor had hurt her in so many ways he never imagined. By 
choosing to marry him and turn Clark away, she'd lost 
something much more precious than she could have known. Love, 
true love comes but once in a lifetime. For Lois, it came and 
until today, she thought it had died right along with her 
partner.

Numbly she made her way out onto the sidewalk into the 
brilliant sunshine. She couldn't help but appreciate such a 
place as Mystic. Nestled close to the sea as it was, you 
could smell the salty air of the ocean nearly everywhere you 
went. Standing on Main Street, a full two miles from the 
water, was no different. Lois inhaled deeply before her 
tortured thoughts returned to the issue at hand.

What did she do now? Charlie was Clark; she had no doubt. But 
he was someone else entirely now. Or was he just himself for 
the first time in his life? Maybe an odd mixture because she 
was certain that even his super side was part of what shaped 
his character.

That had been an issue she'd rolled around in her head for so 
long the first time she learned who Clark really was. As 
Superman she'd placed him on a pedestal. Yet as Clark she'd 
refused to see what had been so blatantly clear. One didn't, 
couldn't, exist without the other. Even if Clark had wanted 
otherwise, he would not, could not, ever be himself without 
both sides. And for all her brilliance, all her investigative 
knowledge, it had taken losing him for Lois to finally 
realize that. To finally admit that. She had seen, yet 
refused to see what was right in front of her face.

And she'd thought it too late to change that. Ironically, in 
a way it still was. Clark wasn't the same person anymore. He 
was different, more. There was no way she could just walk up 
and say 'Hi, I'm the woman who broke your heart.' No. If she 
wanted to get any part of Clark back, she'd have to get to 
know the person he'd become. Which wouldn't be such a 
hardship because from what little she'd seen and spoke with 
him, Charlie King was someone she could very easily come to 
love. She already liked him and was definitely attracted to 
him physically. So, she would get to know him, all of him, 
the way she'd never done before. In doing so, she'd finally 
get to know Clark as she never took the time to do before. 
With any luck, maybe one day his memory would come back and 
they could work out all that had gone wrong before. 

Until then, she had a date to get ready for. With a smile and 
slight lift in her step, Lois bounded across the street 
toward a small salon. A facial and a manicure were just what 
was called for.

++++

Mystery and intrigue... and unexplained allure, he decided, 
as he watched her exit the elevator. That's how Charlie 
viewed Lois Lane. Her face was lit with a smile that made his 
heart skip a beat as she made her way toward him. She wore a 
knee length sundress made of thin, flowing material. The top 
hugged her gorgeous curves, making him glad to be a man. He 
could almost smell her perfume which served to further fan 
the flame that was starting to burn just below the surface.

"Hi," Lois told Charlie when she was within a few feet of 
him.

"Hi, yourself," he returned a bit breathlessly. She looked so 
good, better than yesterday and he would have sworn that 
wasn't possible.

"Is that for me?" she asked of the yellow rose he held in his 
hand.

He glanced down at the flower, but quickly lifted his eyes 
back to her. He was powerless to stop his gaze from roaming 
down to her ample bosom, much of which was displayed out the 
top of her dress. Had she worn that dress to purposely entice 
him? Before he could stop it, a groan escaped his lips and he 
forced himself to look back into her eyes. Glad to see that 
she hadn't been offended by his primal action, his 
temperature rose to almost massive overload when he saw her 
pupils darken. Obviously she appreciated his response.

Charlie had to mentally shake himself to keep from grabbing 
her right then and there. He couldn't stop the overwhelming 
rush of desire to hold this woman, kiss her, caress her...

Why did he feel that way about a woman he'd only met the day 
before? More precisely, why did he feel that way about *this* 
woman?

"Charlie?" Lois called sweetly. "Are you okay?"

With great effort, he managed to focus on her face. "I'm 
fine, just..." Again his gaze swept over her body 
appreciatively. "You look fantastic," he breathed at last. 
"This is for you," he told her as he held out the rose, 
completely oblivious that she'd asked him about the gift.

"Thank you." Lois smiled as she brought the rose to her nose 
and inhaled deeply.

Oh good grief, Charlie thought as he watched Lois in rapt 
attention. Why did she have to do *that*?! He was already 
having trouble convincing his raging libido that throwing her 
to the floor and ravishing her body in the lobby of the 
Donovan was not a good idea. The expression on her face as 
she took in the scent of the rose almost had him bolting for 
the door. Or the ice machine.

<Not now, Charlie! You don't even know this woman! Just this 
morning your attraction to her made you question if you'd 
known her in another place and time. Silly! Plain 
ridiculous!>

Then again... Could it be possible? Could he have known Lois 
before? In another place and time? Surely not. Surely if she 
knew him she'd have told him by now. Wouldn't she?

<Yes, Charlie, she'd have told you before now. Lois is just a 
pretty lady you met and now you have a date with her.>

Their date! He was finally wrenched from his thoughts and 
turned quickly to grab the picnic basket he'd set on a table 
behind him. "As much as I'd love to just stand here and stare 
at you, I'd like it even more to stare at you somewhere 
else." He flashed her a gorgeous smile, then extended his 
arm. "Shall we?"

Lois hesitated, as if uncertain that she wanted to go with 
him after all. But then she smiled and thrust her arm through 
his. "Lead on, James!"

Charlie chuckly softly. "Oh baby, by the end of this evening, 
James will be the last person on your mind let alone your 
lips," was what immediately came to his mind, and almost 
slipped from his mouth. But the intense feelings that were 
welling inside him made it impossible to speak. For a moment 
he'd been transported to another place: a sidewalk in a large 
city walking with a woman who had her arm through his exactly 
the way Lois did right now. The image felt so real. Could it 
be an actual memory? Or was it just wishful thinking? 

He glanced down at her, temporarily mesmerized by how the sun 
made her beautiful dark hair glisten. Again he wondered just 
why this woman seemed so familiar, yet so totally unfamiliar. 
Maybe what he'd felt had been just wishful thinking-- him 
wanting her to be his dream girl. No matter, he wasn't about 
to let it ruin his date. He'd just have to ponder those 
things later, alone, away from Lois.

Once on the sidewalk, Charlie led her in the direction of the 
boardwalk. 

"We'll hail a cab on the other side of Center City. That's 
usually the only place to find one. I don't own a car." He 
shrugged apologetically, but simply smiled.

"We could take my car. Then we wouldn't have to worry about 
getting back," she offered.

Charlie smiled down at her a second before deciding that he'd 
definitely like to ride in her car. For some reason he wanted 
to surround himself with as much of this woman as he could. 

"Are you sure you don't mind?" 

Lois patted his bent arm with her other hand. "Wouldn't you 
rather be alone?" she almost breathed.

Damn! She was doing it again. She was purposely trying to 
torture him! 

Charlie halted their progression and looked down into Lois' 
dark eyes. Her lashes were long, caressing her face ever so 
lightly when she blinked. The rich deep brown of her deep 
pools captivated him, pulled him inside. 

"I'd most definitely like to be alone," he told her honestly. 
If she could play the seducer, why couldn't he play the 
seducee?

Lois inhaled deeply, as if trying to regain some form of 
control. "It's back at the parking area beside the hotel." 

"Okay," he said softly, but refused to look away. She was so 
beautiful. If he hadn't been holding the basket of food, he 
would have reached out to touch her soft skin.

<Thank God for picnic baskets!>

She smiled and turned them in the direction of the hotel 
parking lot. Charlie reluctantly tore his gaze from her so 
they could make the short walk without tripping over 
something. He wasn't sure what was wrong with him, but he had 
to stop. She was just a woman. Decidedly a very beautiful, 
very mysterious, very sexy, very...

<Enough!>

"Here we are," Lois announced as they made it to her car.

Charlie raised a curious brow at her choice of vehicles. A 
silver Jeep Cherokee, pristine in appearance, was not 
something he would have thought she'd drive, but it worked. 
Of what he knew about this lady so far, it seemed to fit her.

He stepped up to set the basket inside the hatch she'd opened 
before going around to the driver's side to hold her door 
open for her.

"Wow! Aren't we a gentleman?" she remarked as she eased down 
into her seat.

"Nah... just trying to impress you," he teased, offering her 
a bright smile.

"Well, it's working," she told him, an equally bright smile 
gracing her lips.

He chuckled softly, pushed the door closed, then jogged 
around to the passenger's side. Settled inside he immediately 
felt like Lois' entire essence surrounded him. It was hard to 
breathe, to concentrate. Every sensory nerve in his body 
seemed to be on high alert. And for a brief moment, he had an 
overwhelming sensation of familiarity.

His eyes darted around the interior of the car. Why did he 
feel as if he'd been in this car? In the car of woman he'd 
only met a little over twenty four hours earlier? Not for the 
first time he wondered again just who this Lois was. Could 
she be someone he once knew?

He glanced at her as she skillfully maneuvered the vehicle 
onto the road. Who was this woman? Her profile revealed even 
more strength than looking at her directly. He could tell she 
was confident in her actions and pursued what she wanted with 
fierce determination. Yes, he decided, she definitely looked 
like a Lois. But more importantly, who *was* Lois? Had he 
known her at some point in his previous life? Maybe his mind 
associated her with someone he had known. Could his 
subconscious make connections to another that his conscious 
mind couldn't? Again, he asked himself if the way he felt had 
anything to do with his dream lady. Was he so entranced with 
that mysterious figure that he was casting his thoughts onto 
another woman?

"Charlie?"

He mentally shook himself when she spoke. Above all else, 
there was no way he'd let Lois know how utterly confused he 
was. And he was certainly not about to ruin his date 
wondering about questions he didn't have the answers to.

"Yeah?"

"Are you okay? You seem a little distracted." 

He smiled at her. "I'm fine. I was just... wondering how I'm 
going to survive this evening."

Lois screwed up her face in confusion. "What?"

"Honestly, I don't think I'll be able to stand being around 
you all evening." He offered her a heated gaze that left 
little to doubt what he meant.

"For what it's worth, I feel the same way about you," she 
confessed with a blush.

He exhaled a deep breath, tearing his gaze away from her to 
gain a little control over his raging libido. He'd been bold 
with other women before. Hell, he'd taken Melissa to a motel 
only a short while after meeting her. But he didn't think 
he'd ever felt the way he felt in Lois' presence. She was 
bliss and agony wrapped in one petite, gorgeously sexy 
package. And unlike when he'd met Melissa, he wanted to get 
to know Lois before he ever invited her near a room that 
contained a bed.

Torture never felt so good!

++++

Lois could barely sit still as she drove toward the place 
Charlie had directed her to go. When she had first seen him 
back at the hotel, it had been all she could do to breathe. 
He wore a faded pair of blue jeans, that fit in all the right 
places, a shirt with a loud print that covered a black, tight 
fitting t-shirt underneath, and the same brown loafers he'd 
had on when she first met him yesterday. He looked fantastic. 
And if she thought it had been hard to breathe just looking 
at him, she'd nearly passed out when he smiled directly at 
her. There was no doubt at all now that Charlie was Clark 
Kent. She'd know that incredible smile anywhere. 

She kept stealing glances at him, just making sure he was 
real. She couldn't imagine how in the world she was going to 
manage spending time with him and not revealing what she 
knew, but somehow she would do it. There was no way she'd 
mess this up a second time. Clark, Charlie, deserved for her 
to see the real person behind those heated gazes.

And those gazes... wow! Certainly Clark had looked at her 
like that before, but he'd always been careful not to let her 
notice. Here as Charlie, not knowing his former self, he was 
completely uninhibited. He could cast lustful stares her way 
without fear that she'd rebuke him for it. Truth told, those 
looks made her feel amazing, had always made her feel that 
way. She'd never admitted it before, not even to herself. 
That had been a different person. The Lois she'd become 
enjoyed the attentions of the good-looking man next to her. 
She eagerly awaited more as well.

"Turn here," Charlie interrupted her musings. "And you can 
park over there." He pointed to spot and she carefully 
brought the jeep to a stop.

Charlie had brought them to a cliff overlooking the ocean. As 
Lois climbed from the car she couldn't help but be awed by 
the sight before her.

"You were supposed to let me open the door," Charlie told her 
as he made it around to her side just as she stood erect.

Lois smiled at him. "I'm sorry. I'll remember next time." She 
watched as the look of admiration filled his eyes again. He 
reached out to take her hand.

"Come on." Charlie brought them to a stop closer to the edge 
of the cliff. 

"This is beautiful," Lois remarked after a moment of soaking 
in the awesome display before her. The sun was still a good 
way from sinking into the horizon, but she could see for 
miles. The crystal blue of the water glistened brightly in 
the late afternoon sunshine. The cliff was on a point where 
the ocean cut inland to form an alcove, creating a private 
beach below.

"Not as beautiful as you."

Charlie's husky whisper cut into her thoughts once again and 
her eyes quickly found his. His irises had darkened and his 
whole body seemed to be held in check to keep from touching 
her. It was amazing the differences between this man and the 
man she'd once known. Maybe being around him without 
revealing what she knew wouldn't be so hard after all.

"Is that you trying to impress me again?" Lois asked with a 
quirk of her lips.

"Nope. That's you trying to make me embarrass myself." He 
squeezed her hand gently, groaned, then turned to look down 
at the beach. "I should have told you to bring a bathing 
suit. I'd forgotten about this beach."

How in the hell had she never noticed this man before? She 
might have fawned all over his alter-ego, but she'd be blind 
not to see the incredible person before her now.

"Then again, I don't know if I could have survived seeing you 
in a bathing suit," Charlie told her with a grin.

Lois could only smile brightly at him. His open admiration of 
her was very refreshing and incredibly heady. With any other 
man, she would have cut out their spleen by now. But this man 
was someone she was as comfortable with as she was with 
herself. She knew him almost intimately, yet she didn't know 
him at all. And she wanted to learn everything there was to 
know in the space of one evening. Charlie was sadly mistaken 
if he thought he was the only one who would have a hard time 
surviving this night.

++++

Charlie had carefully laid out the contents of the picnic 
basket he'd brought along. A huge, plush blanket of deep 
blues and reds was spread before he set out the meal he'd 
carefully chosen. Fresh fruits and vegetables along with 
three different kinds of cheeses and ham were accompanied by 
a bottle of the best wine he could find. For desert there was 
a variety of chocolates, including melted chocolate to dip 
strawberries in.

He was sure she knew just what he was thinking as he kept 
casting sultry gazes her way. Watching Lois eat had to have 
been the worst and most delightful experience known to man. 
With every bite of her pearly white teeth and every lick of 
her luscious tongue, Charlie had wanted to throw her to the 
blanket and explore those areas personally. He'd had to close 
his eyes when she'd bitten into the first of the chocolates. 
Her expression was one of absolute bliss. She'd raved about 
all of his selections, especially the treats. But it had been 
all Charlie could do to force himself to keep the 
conversation going. 

After dinner and a quick clean-up, Charlie moved the blanket 
closer to the edge of the cliff so they could watch the 
sunset. He'd been momentarily stunned to realize they'd 
talked for nearly three hours. He was completely intrigued by 
his date, even if he did have to keep reminding himself to 
keep his hands to himself.

"I don't think I've ever seen anything so amazing," Lois 
commented as they sat side by side watching the golden hues 
as the day faded away. Cast against a backdrop of blue, red, 
and purple it was truly breathtaking.

"I've seen some of the most beautiful sunsets known to man," 
Charlie commented, remembering many evenings watching as the 
sun faded into the ocean while on one fishing boat or 
another. 

"I'll bet you have," she said, an expression on her face he 
didn't completely understand.

Again, he was reminded of the overwhelming familiarity of 
this woman. So much like the lady in his dreams, yet so very 
much more. Never had his mystery woman responded to him so 
openly as Lois did. She'd smiled at him. Friendly, caring 
smiles. Not the sultry flashes he'd seen tonight. Those held 
enough heat to start an inferno. An action that made him 
particularly uncomfortable.

He'd managed for the most part to be a perfect gentleman. But 
every look, every word seemed to get thicker with underlying 
desire. His body was certainly doing everything in its power 
to thrust him into a very awkward position. Charlie shifted 
uncomfortably, deliberately *not* looking at Lois.

"When you see the sunset out on the open ocean, with no one 
or nothing around, it has the power to render you 
speechless." He decided more idle chit chat might help to 
control parts of his body that had become too independent.

"I bet it's breathtaking from above. You know, flying over it 
and looking down. Or even flying into it almost."

Charlie looked at her with furrowed brows. Why would she have 
mentioned something like that? Then again, she did have a 
point. It was probably even better that way than out on the 
ocean. If he closed his eyes, he could almost envision what 
she was talking about. 

His lids closed slowly as images flooded his mind. Crystal 
blue sky filled with puffs of white. Darker hues of blue and 
red, running together to create an unbelievable purple shade 
of perfection. The loom of golden fire provided the backdrop 
to an awesome display of nature.

Suddenly his eyes popped open; the images much too real to 
contemplate. Not here. Not now. The last thing he wanted was 
for Lois to think him crazy or something.

A warm, gentle hand reached out to touch his arm and he 
turned to see brown orbs staring at him with compassion 
and... understanding?

Nah. That couldn't be right. There was no way he'd just 
completely understood the expression on Lois' face. He didn't 
know her well enough to understand what she was thinking... 
Did he?

"Why is it you're so familiar to me?" he asked before his 
mind fully registered what his mouth had let slip.

"Maybe I've been in your dreams," she reminded him of what 
he'd said to her during their first meeting. A smile slowly 
graced her lips as he continued to stare at her.

He said nothing for several long moments. His mind was awhirl 
with thoughts. Could he really know this woman? 

"Have we met, Lois? Do we know one another?" Lame; it sounded 
so impossibly lame. It was something he felt he had to ask, 
had to know.

"I don't know you, Charlie, but I'd love to," she told him 
softly as she smoothed her hand down his arm and into his 
hand.

He watched as her small fingers wrapped around his larger 
ones, intertwining them. An onslaught of emotions roared 
through his body from her touch. Her smooth skin was warm, 
encompassing, pulling him yet again into that deep ravine 
that he was powerless to escape. He gently squeezed the small 
hand in his, rubbing his thumb across the back in delicate 
circles.

His eyes slowly lifted back to hers and he almost gasped when 
he saw what was reflected back at him. Understanding, 
compassion, and... love? Absolutely not! That wasn't 
right!...Was it? Charlie looked closer. If what he saw in her 
dark eyes wasn't love, it was damn close. And there was also 
something else there. Longing, intense longing. Had this 
woman known the pain of loss? Was it that Clark she'd 
mentioned? What happened to him? Did he leave her? Or was 
Clark just a dream like his mystery lady? 

And just how was he able to read everything she felt with a 
single glance? She became even more familiar in the span of 
just a couple of seconds and he realized that some of what he 
saw in her eyes, he felt himself. 

Love? Did he feel love for this woman? Was love at first 
sight something real? Or did Lois resemble so much the images 
that haunted his sleepless nights that his mind had reflected 
what he felt for that lady onto this one?

Charlie leaned closer to Lois, brought his free hand up to 
cup her cheek. "I feel as if I already know you," he 
whispered.

He watched as she closed her eyes, struggled to take a deep 
breath. Slowly her hand came up to cover his on her face, 
then she opened her eyes to look him. Charlie had to fight 
the urge to pull her into his embrace when he saw that her 
eyes were shiny, but she smiled in an obvious attempt to 
lighten the moment.

"I feel as if I know you, too, Charlie. I don't think I've 
ever been so comfortable with a man before."

He didn't fight his urge any longer. He used the hand holding 
hers to pull her into his side, his other hand slid into her 
hair. He released her hand to wrap his arm around her 
shoulder and the hand in her hair held her head against his 
chest. "Look at it, Lois. Look at the sunset. That's pretty 
much how I feel at this moment." There was no other way to 
describe what he felt. Actually, it was impossible for him to 
understand it all himself. 

He sighed contentedly as she slid her arms around him and 
snuggled closer into his side. He smoothed his hand down her 
neck, shoulder, and arm to grasp her hand as they sat in 
silence and watched the sun sink further into the ocean. No 
words were said; none needed to be said. Two ships had 
finally found one another after hopelessly sailing the 
endless seas.

++++

Lois couldn't remember a time she'd ever felt so good. Her 
hand was securely tucked into Charlie's as they walked toward 
her hotel. They'd sat on that cliff overlooking the ocean, 
talking and holding hands, until nearly midnight. Finally, 
reluctantly, they'd trekked back toward town.

Charlie stopped them just outside the main entrance of the 
Donovan. "I'm going to say goodnight out here."

"You can walk me in," she said hopefully, not wanting the 
night to end just yet.

His fingers grazed her cheek and he smiled at her. "Lois, 
tonight was beautiful. I had a wonderful time. But if I walk 
you inside that building, I'm afraid I'll let my traitorous 
body lead me to do something I might regret later."

She had to smile back. She felt exactly the same way, but she 
also knew it was too soon for them to be contemplating what 
her body had screamed at her all night to do. "You're right. 
I'm just missing you already."

"It's nice to be missed," he said softly as he leaned to 
press his lips to her forehead.

My God! Why had she never noticed how good it felt to be 
admired by Clark Kent? He held his lips to her face for 
several moments before he drew away. Immediately she felt a 
loss, even more profound than she ever had.

"Tomorrow," he promised as both his hands grasped hers in 
front of them. 

"Early?" She grinned widely as they continued to look at one 
another.

"Very early," he replied.

"I'll be watching for you."

"I'll be here." He held another beat, then groaned and 
released her hands. 

Lois giggled as he walked backwards down the sidewalk. He 
finally threw up his hands before turning and hurrying away. 
She wrapped her arms around her body as she swiveled to stare 
out at the bay. Finally alone, she could allow her raging 
emotions to calm.

From the first smile to the last look, Lois had been in 
heaven. Following her horrible marriage catastrophe she had 
felt that she'd never recover. The first person she'd wanted 
to talk to had been Clark. He'd always been her outlet when 
the world closed in on her. When tragedy followed soon after, 
and she realized she'd never again have that solace, Lois was 
certain once more she'd remain in constant pain for the rest 
of her life. And even though it had dulled with time, there 
was always a constant ache buried deep inside her heart. Her 
elation when she realized she'd once again found her special 
friend had been turned onto its ear tonight.

Charlie was Clark. There was no mistaking it. Not after 
tonight. When his hand had come up to cup her cheek, she'd 
had to stifle the gasp that almost escaped her lips. No way 
to deny that touch. She'd felt it too many times. The tears 
had threatened to spill out from sheer happiness. But one 
look into his deep eyes reminded her that she'd never known 
her partner at all. And the rest of the night proved that 
fact beyond doubt.

Yes, she loved Clark. Had finally admitted that she'd always 
loved Clark. It had taken so much pain and heartache to do 
that, but it was true. However, she'd fallen in love with 
another man tonight. She had fallen in love with Charlie 
King.

As Charlie, Clark was allowed to be himself. He allowed his 
thoughts to be voiced. He acted upon his urges. Things Clark 
would have never done. Charlie's experiences were a bit 
different, but she'd heard the remnants of Clark's past 
weaved into the conversation as they'd talked into the night. 
This new man, this man she'd never known, was so much more 
complex than she'd ever imagined. And he was so much more 
simple than she'd have thought possible.

When she'd stood in front of that statue that morning, the 
decision made to get to know Charlie was an easy one. She'd 
been convinced that she could sew in threads of his past to 
stoke his memory, but now she wasn't so sure she wanted Clark 
back. At least not the Clark she'd once known. Of course, so 
much had happened. If Clark ever got his memory back, he 
might be different than he was before. Lois definitely liked 
this new man. His openness, his honesty was refreshing. His 
admiration was heady. Though c