Faustian Bargain
by Sue S. <sistersuze@gmail.com>
Rated: PG-13
Submitted: October 2006

This starts out shortly after 'House of Luthor', in that
netherworld between the first and second seasons. 'All Shook Up'
happened in a different way. But that will be explained in
flashbacks. 

And now for a round of disclaimers:
Warning! This story contains a couple of WHAMs. If you're
expecting fluff, you've opened the wrong story. Don't get me
wrong - there will be mind-candy and banter and some
lighthearted exploits. There are also a couple of really unhappy
detours lying in wait for our heroes. Consequences are a bitch.
You can't abandon your principles and not pay for it somehow. 

I wasn't a science major so I did an exhaustive (to me) amount
of research in the course of writing this story. I've tried to
stay true to the basic properties of electricity but there will
probably be inaccuracies to anyone who really does know what
they're talking about. I hope that an author might be given a
little leeway in a science fiction story. Right? Please? 

The characters in this story don't belong to me. Indeed, some of
the dialogue they use is quoted directly from the ABC television
series. I'm not making a profit - this was written solely out of
love and admiration for said television series. You know what
they say about imitation being the sincerest form of
flattery...

Speaking of riding on the coattails of geniuses, I would be very
remiss if I didn't single out Hasini, DJ, Julia, alcyone,
Andreia and Sara for praise and gratitude. This story wouldn't
exist without their guidance and support. Longer declarations of
love and undying devotion to my amazing betas are posted at the
end of the story.

I must also sing the praises of Jeanne for helping me whip this
into shape for the archive. Thanks so much for all your time and
effort! It was no small task and yet you were very gracious and
gratifyingly thorough.

Sections following //***//***// are a flashback. Smaller flashes
of memory are encapsulated between //.

For Hasini - because it was her idea. 

<><><>

He was doing it again. 

For at least the sixth time since the meeting started Clark was
chewing on the end of his pencil and it was driving her crazy.
Actually there were a lot of things about Clark that drove her
crazy. He was a singularly annoying person. He was like Dudley
Do-Right without the horse, constantly clouding any angle on a
story with his over-simplified views of right and wrong. Maybe
he was smarter than Dudley, but not by much. Clark was one of
those athletic guys with great shoulders and a small mind. She
definitely knew the type.

All right, fine. So he didn't actually have a small mind. He was
just bordering on unimaginative - never a good quality in a
reporter. He was definitely nothing like Superman. And she
didn't mean the superpowers. She meant charisma and force of
personality. Like practically every man she knew, Clark Kent
didn't seem to have either of those qualities going for him.
When was the last time Clark had swept a woman off her feet? 

And *that* night didn't count.

Lois looked away from the hapless pencil. *One time*. You sleep
with your co-worker one time and this is what happens. No, she
was not going to think about *that*. They had both sworn never
to mention it. Never even to think of it. It was an aberration.
A fluke. It never happened.

But it had. And now he was sitting there nibbling on his pencil
and it was driving her absolutely
take-that-thing-out-of-your-mouth-you-don't-know-where-it's-been
insane. A tiny little corner of her mind brought up the
possibility that it was actually the thought of where that mouth
had been that was driving her around the bend but she quickly
discounted it. 

He was an amazingly talented kisser. That had been her downfall.
Then again, she supposed there wasn't much else to do in
Smallville on a Friday night and Clark had no doubt refined his
technique on Rachel Harris or some other corn-fed
gingham-wearing farmer's daughter who voted for his 4-H project
at the county fair.

Damn, but he had good lips. It had started with a very firm and
decisive kiss - exactly the opposite of the sloppy wetness that
most men seemed to think counted as passion. Not that she had
ever given much thought to kissing Clark Kent before that night.


And since that night? Oh, since that night she had wasted far
too much time remembering his unexpected assertiveness. They had
thought it was the end of the world, she told herself. And he'd
had amnesia. He would never have been so bold if he had been
himself. That night he had shown almost the same kind of
take-charge intensity as Superman had when he was drugged and
kissed her. Now there was a kiss! Why couldn't Superman try
something like that again? God knows she'd dropped more than a
few hints that she was perfectly willing to be more than friends
with him.

Cat Grant, seated next to Lois, leaned over to whisper, "I'd
love to be that pencil right now, wouldn't you?"

Lois let out a small sigh of annoyance and didn't answer her.
Clark looked up, took the pencil from his mouth and actually
seemed a little disconcerted. Lois was pretty sure he didn't
hear them but he could hardly have missed the hungry look Cat
was giving him.

Actually, Clark had heard Cat's observation just fine. When he'd
glanced over Cat had given him her usual flirtatious wink. But
Lois - it was Lois' sigh and blush that made him take the pencil
out of his mouth. She actually looked guilty. He glanced at the
notepad in front of her. It was no surprise to see that she had
spent the meeting sketching Superman's 'S'. She turned the pad
over when she realized he was looking at it and shot him a dark
look.

In retaliation, he put the pencil back in his mouth and
deliberately sucked on the eraser. Both Cat and Lois let out
faint gasps. Clark had to look away to keep from smiling. This
was a rare moment, one that he should savor. The last time, the
*only* time, Lois had ever looked at him like this she was under
the influence of Miranda's perfume. Or, of course, every single
time she had seen him as Superman. 

What about that night? No - don't torture yourself. That night
never happened.

He dared another glance at her but she was watching Perry now,
her chin tilted stubbornly upwards. Was he mistaken? Or had Lois
actually looked at him, however fleetingly, with lust in her
eyes? 

Did she ever think about that night?

//***//***//

** 26.04.10 to Impact **

"Clark? It's Lois. I, uh, I was just wondering if you could
stand a little company?"

"Sure. Come on over."

It wasn't until she was knocking on his door that she felt the
first anxious flutters of doubt. What was she doing here? If he
were Clark it would make perfect sense that she would be with
him, but he wasn't really Clark right now. How do you find
comfort with a man who has no memories? Maybe it was only his
physical presence she needed for solace? Clark was a
reassuringly solid guy. Was it taking advantage of him to find
consolation in those sturdy shoulders now?

When he opened the door her eyes were drawn to his shoulders. He
was wearing jeans and a tan long-sleeved shirt that only
emphasized his muscular physique. Embarrassed that she was even
thinking of him like that, she looked down and saw he was
barefoot. Somehow that seemed far too intimate to her so she
quickly dragged her attention up to his face.

"Hi," he said and then stepped back to let her in. "I've just
been watching the news. They're about to launch the Asgard
rocket to take out what's left of the asteroid." 

Lois hesitated. She should have joined Perry at the Planet
instead of coming here. She told herself it was only because she
didn't want Clark to feel alone that she had come over. The poor
guy had lost all his memories; she was being selfless in coming
here. It was one last good deed to go out on. 

Clark turned and was going back down the stairs into his living
room. She shut the door behind her, throwing the deadbolt as a
precaution. Clark didn't live in the best part of town and all
hell had broken loose in the city the past couple of days. Right
now his apartment felt like the last safe place left in the
world. It was familiar and it had always seemed cozier to her
than her own apartment. Maybe it was just that his furniture was
more comfortable than hers?

She followed him to his couch and nestled herself into the
corner of it. Somehow it was easier to breathe now that she was
here. It dawned on her that she had always felt that way around
Clark. She had taken it for granted, this feeling of safety and
comfort that he imparted. This was why she had come, she
realized, she just wanted to be with *him*. If these were her
final hours, there was no one else she wanted to spend them
with. No, that was wrong. If she had known where Superman was,
she would have gone to him. Clark was just the next best thing.

He's better than that, she amended. At least you don't act like
a schoolgirl with a crush around Clark. It was better to be here
with him, then. Better to be able to maintain a thin edge of
control. Better to be the one calling the shots.

Clark kept casting curious glances at her until she finally
asked, "What is it?"

"I just... I guess I was surprised to get your call. I know you
said we were friends, but it didn't sound like I would be the
first person you'd call in a crisis. Are you only here because
you didn't want to be alone?"

For a moment her eyes had flared with anger and then, just as
quickly, she seemed to sink into herself. "I had other places I
could be..." So why wasn't she there? Why come here? Was it
because, even without his memories, Clark was familiar to her?
Because just sitting here next to him gave her that sense of
security and calm? "I guess I am alone. I've pushed people away
my whole life. It shouldn't surprise me that no one wants to be
with me now." This admission brought tears to her eyes and she
quickly blinked them away.

"I want to be with you," he told her softly.

Lois searched his eyes and found only sincerity in them.
"Obviously your memories haven't returned yet. I wasn't always
nice to you, Clark. In fact, I was kind of a snob when we first
met." She cringed inwardly as she remembered telling him that he
was low man and she was top banana.

"But I liked you," he persisted.

"Yeah, I guess you did. I have no idea why."

"Don't you?" His gaze was steady and she blushed at what he was
implying. Was there something else in his eyes? Something else
she had never wanted to notice? No, she had noticed it before -
she just never wanted to think too much about what it meant. She
had figured if she ignored him long enough he'd grow tired of
the game and find someone else.

Lois hesitated. "Well, I guess there was an attraction there,"
she allowed. "I mean we are two fairly attractive people working
closely together. It's only natural that..." she trailed off,
not wanting to finish that thought. If it was only natural then
why had it never materialized? Or had it? Had she allowed him
close in those moments when she thought it didn't count? She
must have because somehow he had wormed his way far enough into
her affections that she chose being with him over everyone else
she knew.

"You felt it, too?" he asked, his eyes never leaving hers.

Had she felt it, too? Between his intense gaze and the world
possibly ending she found she couldn't really lie about it. What
did it matter now? It wasn't like he could go bragging around
the water cooler about it tomorrow. "I guess, maybe. There were
moments. There was this one time, when we were working late on a
story and ate at our desks. You sat back and smiled at me and I
felt... Well, then I said something snotty to push you away."

"Don't fall for me, farm boy?" he mused in a distant voice.

"Yes! You remember that?" God, please don't let him actually
remember *that*. Let him remember something else, something less
abrasive. Like what? She was horrified to realize she couldn't
think of a single time she had praised him or told him how nice
she actually thought he was.

"Sort of. It's like a dream or something." Clark's forehead
furrowed as he tried to remember more but it was gone.

"Do you remember anything else?"

"No, sorry." He shook his head in frustration.

"It's okay." Lois was kind of grateful that he didn't remember
just how poorly she had treated him. Or, in the case of that
pheromone perfume, how she had thrown herself at him. She looked
away, unable to continue to meet his eyes, and caught sight of
his bare feet resting on the edge of his coffee table. Had she
ever seen his toes before? Why did it make her feel so
off-balance to see them now?

"So we never... it was strictly platonic between us?"

"Yeah," she said quietly, looking past his feet at the
television just in time to see the words 'Approaching
Apocalypse?' flash onto the screen. "It was strictly platonic."

With a jolt she realized why she was here. She could have been
safe underground with Lex in his bunker. She could have gone to
the Planet to be with her surrogate family. Instead she had come
here. Because, when it came right down to it, she didn't want to
be alone. Lex and Perry were company, someone to commiserate
with, but they weren't Clark. Clark was the one person, besides
Superman, with whom she felt absolutely safe. Tonight he was the
only person in the world who could keep the rising panic inside
her tamped down. 

"I have a feeling I wished it was more," he said wistfully.

Lois looked at him, feeling as though she were seeing him for
the first time. In a way, she was. There had to be something
more than friendship here. She could feel a tidal pull of
attraction for him. The look in his eyes told her he felt the
same thing.

"You know what, Clark? So do I." 

<><><>

The meeting was now over and Lois sat at her desk, staring
absently at her computer monitor. She should be putting the
finishing touches on the article about the construction of the
new museum, but her mind was still on Clark's pencil. Or, if she
was absolutely honest, where that lucky pencil had been.

"Remember the scientist from STAR Labs who was killed in that
freak electrical accident on Monday?" Clark asked as he touched
her shoulder. 

Startled, Lois looked back at him. "Anthony Weir? What about
him?"

"It's happened again."

"Where?" Lois turned off her computer's monitor.

"On the corner of Twelfth and Bessolo. I'm heading down there
now."

"I'll come with you." She stood up and grabbed her jacket from
the back of her chair.

Clark smiled and took the jacket from her, holding it out to
help her into it. "I thought you might."

As they walked to the elevator she gave him a curious look. "How
did you hear about this?"

"Police scanner."

"Oh, right. How long ago did this happen?"

"Maybe twenty minutes."

When they arrived at the scene it was controlled chaos. A police
line had been set up and throngs of curious onlookers had begun
to assemble. They flashed their press passes but the policeman
shook his head. "I can't let you through; it's too dangerous."

"Oh, come on!" Lois was irked. "We're not going to step on
anything metal, just let us go in."

"If we can't go in, can we ask you some questions?" Clark asked,
trying to position himself between Lois and the cop to head off
the argument he knew was coming. "What happened here?"

The officer sighed and lifted the tape so they could pass
beneath. "No way I'm talking to the press. Just stay clear of
the immediate scene, okay?"

It was hard to tell where the immediate scene was. A blue van
with "MetroEdison: Power For The People" on its side was parked
half-on the sidewalk and three men in identical blue coveralls
were arguing vehemently with each other next to it. An ambulance
was parked a little further away and an EMT was checking out a
woman sitting at an outdoor cafe table in front of the coffee
shop. A plainclothes detective was talking to a fourth man in a
MetEd uniform; both of them looked grim.

"Let's try them first." Lois nodded towards the detective and
the MetEd employee.

As they came closer they could hear the MetEd employee.
"...Wouldn't have been so bad except someone watered the plants
this morning." He pointed to a puddle on the ground, part of it
had pooled on the manhole cover. 

"But why was the manhole cover electrified?" Lois asked. 

The man half-turned and then glanced at the detective. The
detective shrugged and answered for him. "There was a stray wire
that was left uncapped."

"Shouldn't someone check for that kind of thing?" Lois pressed.

"Absolutely!" The MetEd employee looked agitated. "I inspected
this entire block a month ago and it was fine." 

"You checked it yourself?" Clark tried to confirm without
sounding accusatory.

"Yes, I did. I'm telling you it was completely kosher. The line
was grounded! Someone spliced into the main line and ran a wire
to underneath the manhole cover."

"Who would be able to gain access?" Lois asked.

"Anyone willing to go down in the sewer." The man made a
helpless shrug. "I don't know why anyone would want to do this.
That's just sick!"

"Is this the same kind of set-up as the accident that killed
Anthony Weir on Monday?" Clark asked.

"Yes. And now we have two more victims. Luckily, one of them
survived." The detective gestured at the woman, now sitting
alone at the cafe table, her hands clasped in front of her. Lois
tapped Clark's arm and indicated that she was going over to talk
to her.

"Hello," Lois said softly, taking the seat next to the woman.
"I'm Lois Lane with the Daily Planet and this is my partner,
Clark Kent. Would it be all right if we asked you a few
questions?"

The auburn-haired woman nodded numbly. "Rachel Eames," she said
softly. "It was supposed to be me."

"What do you mean?" Clark asked, sitting down on the other side
of Rachel.

"My co-worker, Tony? He was killed the same way two days ago.
And then this morning, I was coming out of the coffee shop but
that lady was in a hurry and she went to go past me. This man
seated at one of the tables stood up and bumped into both of us,
but she fell first. I got shocked but she... oh god, it was
supposed to be me. I just know it."

"You worked with Anthony Weir at STAR Labs?" Lois looked over at
Clark as she asked the question. His expression told her that he
didn't believe it was a coincidence either.

"Yes, but I can't really talk about what I do there. I'm sorry."
Rachel shook her head. "This is just so unbelievable. What if I
hadn't come here this morning? What if I hadn't slowed down so
she could pass me?"

"What did the man look like?" Clark asked.

"I don't know. Tall, thin... I really wasn't paying attention."

"Do you have any idea why someone would want to kill you? Or
Tony?" Lois asked.

"It's unbelievable," Rachel muttered to herself, shaking her
head. Then she looked over at Lois, her blue eyes welling with
tears. "We just never realize how much our lives are based on
chance. You make one random decision and everything changes.
Don't you ever look back and say, 'What if?'"

//***//***//

** 25.23.32 to Impact **

"The Asgard rocket has missed its target. Repeat, the Asgard
rocket has missed its target."

Both of them sat unmoving on the couch, not wanting to
comprehend what this meant. "Superman," Lois finally said
softly. "He's the last hope we have."

"Jimmy found a piece of his uniform in a crater over in Suicide
Slum. So he did make it back."

"Then he'll save us."

"So why hasn't he done it already? Why would he wait?" Clark
felt a nagging sense of frustration at her mention of Superman.
Was he jealous of Superman? It would seem that way, but it just
didn't feel right.

"I don't know." Lois shrugged, trying to ignore the cold knot of
dread that was growing in her stomach. "Nothing the past couple
of days has made sense to me."

Clark chuckled, a sound darker than his usual laugh. "I know the
feeling."

"Oh! I'm sorry! I didn't think..." She felt like an idiot. 

"You never do, huh?" he asked. 

This sounded so much like Clark's lighthearted teasing that she
had to remind herself that this man was a stranger to her. It
was almost frightening that he was figuring her out so quickly.

Lois flushed and muttered, "You're just guessing now."

"Yeah," he admitted as his eyes took on a sad look. "I wish I
remembered you."

"I wish you did, too." She gave him a small smile and moved
closer to him so she could take his hand in hers. "If you did
remember me, it wouldn't have taken me so long to come over here
tonight. You're the best friend I've ever had." 

This confession sprang freely from her heart and she cursed
herself that she had never told him this before. All those
qualities that she had found so irksome in him - his steadiness,
his goodness, his easy-going nature - seemed so much less dull
tonight. In fact, tonight they seemed to be the only things
keeping her grounded. There was a rising sense of urgency to
everything tonight. Last time, she told herself, this is the
last chance you'll ever have to tell him that you do care about
him. That there was more than just an eensy-weensy microcosmic
part of you that's attracted to him.

"Really?" He looked pleased with that tidbit of information.
"Tell me something about us. Anything. Your favorite memory."

Lois looked at their joined hands. "Well," she said slowly as
she thought about it, "I have this teddy bear that you won for
me at some corn festival when we were on assignment in your
hometown."

"How did I win it?"

"Feat of strength," she grinned at the memory. "It took a few
tries, but you got it. I barely managed to get my suitcase
closed to bring him home with me, but I just couldn't throw him
out."

"Him? Did you name the bear?"

She flushed and would have pulled her hand away except he had
gently tightened his grip. "I didn't really name him, I just
know he's a he."

"So where do you keep this bear?"

"He sits on my bed."

"Do you sleep with him?"

"Maybe, sometimes." She could feel a blush starting - what did
it matter if she slept with the damn thing?

"Then I hope you named him 'Clark'."

This time she did pull her hand away, uncomfortable with the
thought that sleeping with Clark was sounding more and more like
a really good idea. What would it hurt? Superman would never
need to know that she'd been unfaithful to him. Was it really
being unfaithful? Superman had never really returned her
affections and heaven only knew where he was now. He had
abandoned her first. Clark, on the other hand, she could depend
on Clark. She always could - she just hadn't realized it until
now.

"What else?" he asked. "Tell me another story." He gave her one
of Clark's guileless smiles.

Lois looked away. It was one thing for the old Clark to be
charming - he never crossed the line. This new Clark she wasn't
so sure about. The thought kind of thrilled her in a way she
didn't want to dwell on too much. What if he made the first
move? That would be okay - it would prove she wasn't chasing him
like Cat had been. 

"A few weeks ago we were on a long stakeout. We had to spend two
days stuck in this hotel room, and we passed the time playing
games. It was fun. It was... nice." Nice and fun seemed a flimsy
way to tell him about those two days in the honeymoon suite. It
had been comfortable and even kind of sexy, in a weird way. He
really did look decent first thing in the morning. She hadn't
minded his little digs and teases either. Unlike other men she
had worked with, Clark flirted but he didn't cross the line. 

And that little stunt on the bed had been driven by necessity.
He hadn't prolonged it any longer than was needed. And he had
never told a soul, despite the ribbing he had endured from some
of their colleagues to spill the details about what had gone on
behind closed doors.

Clark grinned. "You're a sore loser."

"You're just guessing again." 

He shook his head. "No, I don't think so. I have a very distinct
impression of you arguing with me over a word or something."

"Chumpy?" she prompted.

"Chumpy's not a word."

"How would you know? You don't remember anything!" She lightly
shoved his shoulder as her eyes sparkled, belying the harshness
of her words.

"I haven't forgotten my language skills. There's no such word."
Something like delight filtered through him when she touched him
as she argued with him. This is us, he thought. This is what we
were like.

"You know what? I'm not going to argue this with you twice. I
was right then, and I'm still right now." Lois felt a flicker of
irritation. Amnesia or not, he could still push her buttons.

"I didn't let you use that word. And you were a sore loser over
it." This time he really was guessing, but it felt like more of
an educated guess to him.

"I didn't lose the game!" she huffed. Did it even matter
anymore? With the world ending tomorrow? Somehow it was
important that he didn't think she was a loser. He had to
remember that much. 

"Lois, will you do me a favor?"

"What?" she asked suspiciously.

"If you really haven't named that bear yet, maybe you could call
him 'Chumpy'?"

She laughed before she could stop herself. "You know, I wish I
could say it was the amnesia, but I think you were always like
this."

"Like what?"

"Infuriating. You always acted so nice and naive but you're just
as bad as me."

"Bad? In what way?"

"You think you're always right."

"Are you saying I'm not? I bet my track record is pretty good."

"Maybe," she said grudgingly. "You have been wrong before,
though."

"Tell me one of those stories. When have I been wrong?"

She didn't even have to think about it. "I was working
undercover and you deliberately honed in on my story, then you
exposed my cover and threw me in a dumpster."

"Wow. So I'm a jerk?"

"No, not a jerk. Just... infuriating."

"You already said that." His eyes twinkled in a tease and for a
moment she wondered if he was making this whole amnesia story up
just to mess with her. Surely Clark wouldn't go to this much
trouble for a joke?

"So? I didn't realize I was being graded." She narrowed her eyes
at him in assessment.

"You're not. I'm just curious about me. About you. About us."
This was spoken without a hint of irony; he couldn't possibly be
that good at lying. If there was one thing Clark would have
known, it was that there was no "us".

No, that was wrong. He wasn't the liar - she was. There was an
"us", it just wasn't that kind of "us". So what was it? Whatever
it was, it had drawn her here tonight. There were so many things
left unfinished in her life, she didn't want Clark to be one of
them. 

"I'm not sure what it is between us," she told him. "There isn't
really an us, not like that. You should know that I'm in love
with someone else."

"Superman?"

"Yeah," she gave him a weak smile. "Is it that obvious?"

"Pretty much." His hand reached out to stroke over her cheek, a
move that surprised both of them. His fingers lingered for a
moment before combing through her hair to the back of her head.
He was so certain in the gesture that Lois felt her head tip
back to rest against his palm as though he had willed it to
happen. He was going to kiss her... Her heart trip-hammered at
the thought. 

She parted her lips to speak but any words she might have formed
were lost in the firm pressure of his mouth on hers. His lips
moved deliberately against hers, enveloping her upper lip,
pulling it into his mouth and smoothing the leading edge of his
tongue across it to get a good taste of her. Then his head
tipped back so he could look at her. 

"We've kissed before," he whispered. It wasn't a question.

Lois took in a shaky breath. "Sort of. I mean, I kissed you so
that I could get close enough to give you a message when we were
being held by this psycho named Jason Trask. And then you kissed
me when we were on that stakeout..."

"The maid was coming," Clark murmured, nuzzling her ear and
placing a tiny kiss on its lobe.

"Right! That's good, you're starting to remember." Lois suddenly
felt dizzy, as though the world's axis had shifted. Clark would
never have been this bold with her. Would he? Was this just
Clark freed from all restraint? The thought sent a little shiver
of something dark and sensual right through her. Was this why
she had come over tonight? Oh god, it was. 

"It was only those two times? I know I've kissed you more than
that." He pulled back, both his hands framing her face, and
regarded her with serious eyes.

Lois gave him a weak smile. "It must have been in your dreams."

Clark smiled back. "I can believe that."

He kissed her again, this time with ever-increasing intent.
Clark slipped one arm low around her waist, drawing her along
with him as he leaned back against the cushions. She came
willingly, a fact that seemed to send all his blood south. Her
mouth opened to him and they shared several long, slow kisses.
Lois wrapped her arms around him, freely yielding herself to the
sweet oblivion he offered. His tongue slid against hers, tasting
her deeply while his fingers brushed lightly over her jaw. After
they were both dizzy he broke the kiss, letting them catch their
breath.

"I think," he said in a husky whisper and then paused to clear
his throat, "I think you might want to leave soon." His hand had
slipped beneath the hem of her shirt to languidly stroke over
the soft skin of her back. God, he wanted to touch her
everywhere. 

"Why?" She knew exactly why - she just didn't want to go. She
was feeling drawn to this more brazen version of Clark. If she
went home now, she'd just lie awake all night and wonder about
him. There was nothing left to lose in taking a chance tonight.
"Don't you want me to stay?"

She wanted to stay. Wanted him. She wanted this to last. She
wanted someone to hold, something to distract her from thinking
about how her perfectly ordered life meant nothing now. All she
really wanted was to be loved, cared for and desired one last
time. That was what she had ignored in Clark's eyes and actions
all this time. He really did love, care for and desire her. He
had all along. Even losing his memories hadn't changed that.

"I may not remember who I am, Lois. But I do know how I feel.
And I know what I want."

"I know what I want, too," she told him, her heart pounding at
the realization. "I want to stay."

//***//***//

** 24.55.11 to Impact **

Lois snuggled closer against him, hoping he wasn't really asking
her to leave. This was the first time since Superman had gone
missing that she felt peaceful. She had been exhausted and
frightened tonight until she got here. It wasn't just that she
didn't want to be alone. She was seeing a new side to Clark - a
side she really liked. Had he always been like this and she just
hadn't noticed? 

"Tell me another story," he whispered, his fingers still tracing
idle patterns across the skin of her lower back. "Tell me about
Superman. Did he just show up out of the blue one day?"

"Yes, he did," she said. "It was at the launch of the space
station Prometheus shuttle. I had snuck on board and was hiding
in a galley when I found a bomb in there with me. And then this
guy in tights and a cape just swooped in from nowhere and ate
the bomb."

"He ate the bomb? Wow."

"Yeah. They had to scrub the mission because the rockets had
already fired so he lifted the shuttle into space. I watched
from outside the command center since they made me leave when
they discovered I was a stowaway. Afterwards he offered to fly
me back to the Planet."

"Is he in love with you, too? Superman?"

Lois evened out a wrinkle on Clark's shirt with her fingers. "I
know he cares about me. But he always seems to be holding back
around me."

"Maybe he's shy?" 

"I don't think that's the reason." Lois sighed. "This is just
sad, really. You're the one who knows him better than I do. You
guys are good friends." Even though the wrinkle was gone, she
couldn't make her hand stop smoothing over his chest. She could
feel the taut contours of his muscles under the material of his
shirt. Clark had always had a kind of quiet strength about him;
she found herself mesmerized by the physical evidence of that
strength beneath her fingers.

"Really? I'm friends with Superman?"

"Yes. You can get in touch with him faster than anyone else. I
wish you could tell me how you do it."

"If I knew, I'd tell you."

Lois almost smiled as she rolled her eyes. "If you knew, I don't
think you would. You seem pretty protective of him, actually.
I've asked you before how you always seem to find him and you've
never really answered the question."

"Hmmm." Clark closed his eyes and thought about it. He knew
Superman? That seemed right. And yet, something felt wrong about
her saying he was good friends with him. Why would a man strong
enough to lift a shuttle into space need protecting?

He was distracted out of these thoughts when Lois' hand slipped
under his shirt to glide tentatively across his stomach. He
opened his eyes to find she had lifted her head to watch him,
her dark eyes questioning. He touched her cheek, drawing her to
him for another kiss.

As their kiss built in intensity Lois admitted to herself that
she had sometimes wondered what Clark would be like as more than
a friend. If only she hadn't seen him in that towel, her idle
thoughts might never have strayed from Superman. But she had
seen him. Had wondered. Now, tonight, she was discovering that
he was even more incredible than her memory and imagination had
allowed.

Their kisses became more demanding and his caresses became
bolder. Lois groaned into his mouth and fumbled for the hem of
his shirt as she broke the kiss. She wanted to see him, wanted
to touch him. Even as her fingers tugged his shirt higher a
familiar voice was screaming inside her head. What the heck are
you doing? This is your partner! Lois Lane does not do this with
her co-workers! Clark isn't even your type!

Clark sat up, helping her to strip his shirt away. Lois' eyes
widened as she drank in the sight of Clark's powerfully-built
upper body. Oh wow, he was definitely her type. She had listened
to her fears for too long. And where had that gotten her? She
was seducing a man with no memory of her just to get a little
action. It was a good thing no one would be around tomorrow to
judge her.

Clark gave her a feral grin and tossed the shirt aside. Lois
traced her fingertips over the smooth muscles of his arms and
shoulders. How had he managed to hide *this* beneath a suit and
tie?

"How do I compare with Superman?" he asked.

Lois gave him a delighted smile. "Not bad. Pretty damn close,
I'd say."

Clark tucked a rebellious strand of hair behind her ear. "I
could make you forget him," he whispered as he kissed her lips
softly.

Lois shivered. She had no doubt that he could make her forget
everything. More than anything she wanted to lose the panic that
was right there below the surface. Nothing matters anymore, she
told herself. There was nothing left but this moment, this man.

Lois pulled her shirt off, throwing it behind her and took his
face in her hands. "Make me forget all of it, Clark," she said
with a kind of desperate fierceness. "Please, just help me
forget."

<><><>

"Just what are you implying?" Ron Fraser didn't even try to
conceal the contempt in his voice as he looked at the two
reporters. He glanced over at the crowd still gathered behind
the police tape, some twenty yards away, and pitched his voice a
little lower. "This kind of thing happens all the time. Why,
just in the past two years we've had several dogs, a couple of
people and even a horse that have been mildly shocked when they
came into contact with an unshielded electrical source."

"But this wasn't a mild shock," Lois bristled. "This was an
electrocution!"

"Still, we have a very good record. One little
electrocution..."

"Two people have died." This came from Clark, who was likewise
glowering at him.

"Well, yes. It's unfortunate. You do realize that there are over
100,000 miles of electrical wiring beneath this city? You can't
honestly expect that every single inch of the system can be
monitored that rigorously. So I'm going to give you a comment,
on the record, and then I'm going to ask you to excuse me."

Lois let out a disgusted sigh and waited, holding her tape
recorder up a little higher.

"MetroEdison deeply regrets the incident this morning. Our
hearts go out to the families of those involved. We are
launching an investigation into this week's incidences. The
citizens of Metropolis should rest assured that such an
occurrence is extremely rare and steps are being taken to insure
it does not happen again." Fraser gave a self-satisfied nod.
"That's all. Thank you for your time."

Fraser stalked away from them but was stopped by Ken Randall,
the investigative reporter for WMET. Lois couldn't hide her
smile. Randall was a shark and no one interviewed by him ever
came out of it looking very good. Usually she frowned on his
lack of ethics but Fraser deserved what was coming to him.

"So what do you think?" she asked Clark. "Gross negligence?"

"Just putting that guy in charge of public relations was gross
negligence. That worker was absolutely certain that someone
spliced into the line deliberately. And all those incidents in
the past weren't as high a voltage as these two accidents."

"Because they weren't accidents." This came from behind them.
They turned around to see the same MetEd worker who talked to
them earlier. He tipped his head to indicate they should follow
him as he ducked into the alley next to the coffee shop.

"This wasn't an accident," he told them again.

"And you are?" Lois asked.

"Kevin," the man indicated the badge clipped to his chest
pocket. "But I don't want my name in the papers."

"Okay, Kevin. Why don't you think it was an accident?"

"Leaving aside the fact that the line was deliberately spliced
into and run beneath the manhole? The water on the surface is
salt water."

Clark's eyes widened. "Salt water would conduct the electricity
better."

"Exactly. Water isn't a good conductor. It's the minerals and
elemental traces in the water that conduct electricity. Salt
water is an excellent conductor. The police are sending a sample
to their labs, you should follow-up with them on it."

"We will. Thank you, Kevin." Lois said.

"Look," Kevin glanced behind him. "Meet me back here tonight at
ten o'clock. I want to show you what I mean, but I can't do it
with them around." He jerked his head to indicate Ron Fraser and
Ken Randall.

"We'll be here," Clark assured him. 

"Wear something you don't care about; we'll be going down in the
sewer."

"Great," Lois said, wrinkling her nose. "Thanks for thinking of
us."

"Now what?" Clark asked as Kevin walked away.

"What about that man that Rachel said pushed them? He didn't
stick around after the accident. Maybe he deliberately bumped
into them to send them sprawling onto the ground?"

"Let's go talk to Rachel Eames again." Lois inadvertently
brushed against him as she moved past. 

Clark closed his eyes, leaning back against the wall for a
moment to steady himself. If she knew what that did to him she'd
never come within six feet of him again. If it was one thing
when she accidentally touched him as Clark, it was agonizing to
be anywhere near her as Superman.

Just over three months had passed since that night. Three months
that had been a waking hell to him. In that time she had made it
clear to him that she saw him only as a friend. She had turned
him down cold when he told her he loved her and then she had
almost married Lex Luthor... It seemed that night was erased
from her memory as completely as if it had never happened. And
why wouldn't she want to forget it had ever happened? The
circumstances had been appalling. His lovemaking had been far
too brief. It was probably a mercy if she had forgotten how
disappointing he had been.

If only he could forget. If his life had become a waking hell,
his nights were even worse. It was a rare night indeed when he
didn't dream about making love to her. He was ashamed to admit
that if he had the chance to live that night over again, he
would still have made love to her. 

//***//***//

** 11.43.09 to Impact **

He dreamed he was flying. More than that, he was flying and Lois
was in his arms, her expression one of awe and trust. They
floated to the ground, somehow it was like he was willing that
to happen. Then he set her down and she gushed, "Thanks,
Superman..."

He stepped back, wanting to correct her. He wasn't Superman, he
was Clark - but the dream had changed. They were in a conference
room at the Planet now. Lois was pacing. He was throwing
crumpled paper into the garbage can. The paper was about to fall
short so he blew gently, suspending it in mid-air before
stopping abruptly as Lois turned to face him. He felt a niggle
of concern. Had she caught him? Did she know he was Superman?

Superman? *He was Superman?*

The dream changed again. Lois stood in front of him, dressed in
a harem outfit and doing a sultry dance. She peered up at him
and said, "I never noticed it before but you look an awful lot
like Superman..." 

Fear gripped him. Had she discovered his secret at last? He
opened his mouth to protest and his surroundings changed.

Lois was still standing in front of him, but she was fully
dressed now. Worry was etched on her features. "I'll be back,"
he was telling her. "We'll go flying." Even as he spoke the
words he was memorizing her face, wondering if this would be the
last time he ever saw her.

"I hope so," she said. 

He went to turn away and she grabbed him, pulling him close for
a last desperate kiss. He kissed her back, finding no elation in
being this close to her. There was only regret and dread mixed
with the love he felt for her. This has to work, he thought. And
if it doesn't, what will she think happened to me? Will my
parents tell her the truth? The kiss ended and he gave her a
regretful smile before turning away again.

And then he was flying again, somewhere deep in space, the
asteroid looming in front of him. "I know what I have to do," he
said and strained for every last bit of speed he possessed. He
rocketed towards the asteroid and...

Clark opened his eyes. 

Faint morning light was coming through his bedroom window. A
thousand memories cascaded through his consciousness. It wasn't
just a dream. He really was Superman. And last night he... 

Clark was suddenly aware that he wasn't alone in the bed. There
was a slender leg entwined between his own. He could feel warm
breath on his neck. He looked down to find a tousled dark head
on his shoulder and a small hand resting low on his chest.

Lois.

Oh my god, what had he done? He wouldn't have... but he must
have because here she was, snuggled up next to him with
absolutely no clue how dire the fallout was going to be. 

He was going to have to tell her about Superman now, he owed her
that much at least. His only defense was that he didn't know at
the time. And she did the undressing first, he reminded himself.
She took off your shirt first. You were just following her lead.
Maybe the near-death experience had made her see him with new
eyes? It wasn't the best start, but they could build from here.
Couldn't they?

There was no way. She was going to have the largest meltdown in
history when she realized that she had thrown caution to the
wind like that. He was going to lose her forever when she woke
up. Lois had been more vulnerable last night than at any time
since he had met her. He was quite certain that no one had ever
seen her that open, that honest or that passionate.

There was no question that he was going to have to go and save
the world now, no matter what the personal cost to him might be.
Truthfully, the asteroid didn't frighten him nearly as much as
what Lois was going to do when he told her she had unwittingly
slept with Superman. Would she still work with him? Be friends
with him? Or would she only see him as a constant reminder of
the fear and desperation she had felt? What was she going to do
when he told her the truth?

The answer was simple. She was going to kill him.

Could he pretend that he didn't remember what had happened while
he was amnesiac? No - she'd never believe him. There wasn't
really time to lie here and think about it either. He was going
to lose more than just Lois if he didn't get a move on. He eased
out from beneath her, holding his breath for a heart-stopping
moment when her eyelids fluttered.

When he came back he would talk to her. He couldn't tell her the
truth; that would destroy any and all hope of something more
with her. So he would lie and tell her whatever she needed to
hear. Whatever would keep her from pushing him out of her life.

He took one last long look at her. She would kill him if she
knew he was memorizing what she looked like naked in his bed.
The chances were almost zero he would ever get to see her this
way again. He'd be lucky if she was still speaking to him when
the day was over.

"I love you," he told her softly. She slept on, oblivious. He
pulled the covers a little higher and regretfully turned away.

//***//***//

Lois woke up and stared at the ceiling above her. This was not
her apartment. Truth be told it looked an awful lot like
Clark's... oh. 

She winced. In the cold light of day it was suddenly
embarrassing beyond belief that she had taken advantage of him
like that. She was more than a little relieved that he wasn't
lying there next to her. Why wasn't he lying there next to her?
Did he realize how potentially awkward this morning could be?
Should she be grateful or insulted that he had fled before she
woke up? This was so like him, running off without much
explanation. Either his memory had returned or the urge to flee
at odd moments was deeply ingrained in his psyche. 

How many hours had she wasted? Hours that should have been spent
looking for Superman, not sleeping with Clark. How could she
have been so unfocused? Had she completely lost her edge as a
journalist?

She heard his front door open and then close. Lois tugged the
sheet higher to cover herself and leaned her head out to look
towards the door. Clark stopped at the bottom of his steps and
their eyes met. He held up a paper bag and a cardboard tray with
two coffee cups.

"I got us some breakfast," he said, continuing into his kitchen
as he spoke. She appreciated that he was acting nonchalant. Lois
took a deep breath to steady herself. She'd get dressed and go
make one last attempt to find Superman.

Lois pulled on the sheet, managing with some difficulty to free
it from the bottom of the bed and wrap it around herself. She
came around the corner and hurried over to where her clothes had
been tossed away last night.

"I'm not really hungry," she lied. No sooner had she spoken the
words than her stomach growled loudly. He gave her a nervous
smile and held out one of the coffees.

"I really think we should talk," he said softly. "Please?"

Lois took in a deep breath and blew it out as a long sigh. "Let
me get dressed first, okay?"

He nodded. "Okay."

She fled into the bathroom, pulling her clothes on with some
difficulty since her fingers felt numb. She needed to get away
from here. There was a new reticence in his manner, or actually,
his old reticence in his manner. Were his memories back? Was he
going to read too deeply into what happened last night? 

Looking in the mirror she ran her shaky fingers through the
tangles in her hair. Was there time to go home and shower? How
many hours were left? She had no idea. She had to give him
credit - she asked him to make her forget and he had done
exactly that.

So what did he want to talk about? If he was himself again was
he expecting her to suddenly profess her love for him? She did
love him, but as a... well, she really shouldn't say "brother"
anymore. She loved him as a friend. Thank goodness there were
only a few hours left for her to avoid him.

Lois came out of the bathroom to find him sitting at his kitchen
table. He rose as she came into the room and pulled a chair out
for her.

"Clark..." she started as she sat down but he held up his hand.

"Please, let me go first, okay?" he asked.

Lois sighed, mentally gearing herself up to let him down as
gently as possible.

"When I woke up this morning I remembered everything. Who I am.
And who you are." His eyes looked steadily into hers. "And then
I think I panicked. It's nothing to do with you, please realize
that. It's just, well, you're my best friend, Lois, and I don't
want anything to ruin that." He was relieved that so far he
hadn't even had to lie.

Lois felt a small glimmer of hope. He wasn't declaring his
undying love. This was followed by a flicker of annoyance - was
she not worth falling in love with? 

"Clark, it really doesn't matter, does it? I mean, we only have
a few hours left, we should just be grateful for what we have...
or had, I guess. I'm glad your memories returned."

"Thanks," he nodded. "But they aren't all that's come back."

"What do you mean?"

"Superman's back, too. He diverted what remained of the asteroid
about half an hour ago."

For a moment she couldn't speak. Superman was alive and flying
around. He had saved her - saved them all. And what had she done
while he was wrestling with his inner demons to get up the nerve
to fly back into space and save the world? She had slept with
his friend. How could she ever look Superman in the eye again?

"Oh," she finally said. "That's... great."

Clark, misreading the horrified expression on her face, rushed
to finish speaking. "I don't want to say that last night meant
nothing to me. It was amazing. You were amazing. And I think we
both found some comfort in what happened. But you are, first and
foremost, my best friend. I just don't want to lose that."

Lois closed her eyes. She didn't want to lose his friendship,
especially over something like this. But Clark was good friends
with Superman. What if he told him? Would he do something like
that? Could she trust him to keep this secret?

"Clark, I meant it last night when I said you were my best
friend. But after last night, well, I, can we just forget it
ever happened?"

He felt his heart sinking. Rationally, he knew that the very
fact that this was going so well was nothing short of
miraculous. The lack of a nuclear Lane meltdown probably meant
that his guardian angel was working overtime. 

So why was he feeling so crushed? Was it because there had been
a tiny vestige of hope in him that last night had been more to
her than just comfort on a bleak night?

Clark swallowed the hurt. "Yes," he nodded solemnly. "I can do
that."

"But you have to promise me that you'll never tell another
living soul. *Ever*. No one can know. We'll never even talk to
each other about it. Never even think about it!"

Clark had continued nodding as she spoke. "I promise," he told
her and held his hand out to seal the agreement. "It will be
like it never happened."

Lois felt a little queasy. Really, it was out of her hands. If
he told or didn't tell, she had no control over that. She was
going to have to trust him. "Okay, then," she said, shaking his
hand. "It never happened."

<><><>

Inspector Henderson was sitting at the table where Rachel had
been and he shook his head at them as they walked over. "If
you're looking for Ms. Eames, she just left in the ambulance."

"So what do you think?" Lois asked Henderson, taking the seat
next to him. "Doesn't it seem a little coincidental to you that
two people who work for STAR Labs have met with the same
accident this week?"

Henderson shrugged. "Don't you believe in coincidences, Lois?"

"Not if I can help it," she replied.

"Well, I do. The world is full of them."

Clark had been scanning the crowd, trying to see if there were
any tall, thin men who seemed overly interested in the accident
scene. He couldn't see anyone matching Rachel's earlier
description. 

"Inspector, there's an ATM on the outside of the bank across the
street." Clark pointed at it as he spoke. "It's possible the
cameras might have captured an image of the man who pushed
Rachel."

Henderson nodded. "We're already looking into it. If we find
anything, I'll let you know. We'll have you run the picture in
the paper, see if anyone recognizes the guy."

"We heard the water on top of the manhole cover was actually
salt water. Was that a coincidence?" Lois asked.

Henderson broke into a grin and stood up from the table. "It's a
hell of a coincidence, isn't it?"

"How about we check out STAR Labs?" Clark asked Lois. "I don't
think that's a coincidence."

"Do you believe in coincidences, Clark?" Lois asked him as they
walked away.

"It depends," Clark said. "Give me an example and I'll tell you
whether I think it's a coincidence or not."

"Take Superman, for instance."

"Superman?"

"Yes, he's always there to save us. Does he follow us around? Is
he stalking us? Is he really that fast? Can he read our minds?
Or is it just the most amazing coincidence that he's always
there when we need him?"

"Superman saves lots of people."

Lois frowned at his answer. "Have you seen him recently?"

"Yeah." Clark glanced at the front window of the store they were
passing and caught his reflection. "I've seen him."

"I never see him anymore. I haven't really spoken to him since I
got engaged to Lex. Is he mad at me?"

Clark winced. It was true; he'd been avoiding her as Superman.
He had stopped the occasional nighttime fly-by of her apartment.
He didn't want to give her false hope that there could be more
than friendship between her and Superman. If she wanted to
believe it was her near-wedding that was behind his evasion,
well, he wasn't about to correct her.

"Why would he be angry with you? He's a busy guy, Lois, that's
all."

"He finds time to visit you."

"I didn't say I visited with him. I just said that I had seen
him."

Lois shrugged. That was semantics as far as she was concerned.
Superman didn't even get close enough that she could see him
nowadays. She stopped and looked up, shading her eyes. Come to
think of it - where was he when these electrocutions had
happened? Of course, they weren't noisy, so maybe they hadn't
drawn his attention. It seemed unlike Superman not to show up
and put in an appearance.

Not for the first time she wondered if Clark had said something
- even inadvertently - about that night to Superman.

"Lois?" Clark had taken a few steps before realizing she wasn't
alongside him. She was looking up into the sky and guilt washed
over him when he realized who she watching for.

Lois' attention shifted back to Clark. "Sorry," she told him. "I
just miss him."

Clark nodded, his dark eyes almost sad. Whatever the reason,
Lois was almost certain Clark knew why Superman was avoiding
her. Getting him to tell her - that was another matter. It was
Clark's complete silence on the matter that gave her hope he
hadn't said anything to Superman about that night.

It was fine for him to keep her secrets, but surely he could see
how terrible she felt about Superman's silence. Why didn't Clark
just tell her the truth? Didn't he care about her feelings at
all?

//***//***//

Clark had never been this nervous before. It was the first time
Lois would see him as Superman since that night and he was
terrified. It was only his fear that Dr. Winninger's killer was
stalking her and her refusal to let him bodyguard her that had
spurred him to such drastic measures.

He wasn't sure he could trust himself to be around her as
Superman. He was afraid that he might have a reaction to her
presence; one that the suit would make extremely obvious. But
since she wasn't listening to him as Clark he was going to have
to give it a shot. 

He hovered outside her window. She was going to take one look at
him and recognize him. How could she not? She had seen him that
night without the glasses. Or was she not paying attention? She
had been a little preoccupied by the time he took the glasses
off. Clark wavered and was about to fly away when Lois caught
sight of him.

"Would you like to come in?" she asked as she parted the
curtains for him.

He took a deep breath. Put her on the defensive, he told
himself. And don't look anywhere except her face. 

"If I were you, I'd want to know what I was doing outside your
window."

"Just hanging around?" she lightly teased.

Clark shook his head, not trusting his voice. She was wearing a
shirt tied at her midriff and he could see bare skin. I've
touched her there, he thought. No! Look at her face. Don't look
anywhere else.

"You ran into Clark and he told you I was in danger and I
wouldn't let him bodyguard me. Am I right?"

Clark hesitated for moment. She really didn't know it was him.
"Yes."

"So Clark asked you to be my bodyguard? Why not just knock on
the door?"

When did he ever knock on her door as Superman? "I thought it
would be better if I stayed inconspicuous."

Lois looked at Superman, taking in the snug way the suit didn't
hide much. Had she really told Clark he came close? What was she
thinking? There was no one else like Superman. "I'd change
tailors if you're gonna go for the undercover look."

"Well, that's why you should let Clark keep you company."

Clark? Sure, she could have let Clark stay. But Clark's
'protection' so far lacked any of Superman's finesse. Clark's
idea of bodyguarding consisted of accosting an innocent
skateboarder and throwing her down on the steps of her building.


Lois loosened her hair from its ponytail and casually tried to
fix her hair. "Are you, um, staying for dinner?"

"No, thank you. I have some errands to run. But I'll come back."
He couldn't maintain eye contact with her like he used to.
Surely she noticed how he kept looking away?

"Errands?" she laughed. "That's funny. I never think of Superman
having to run errands."

"Well, I do have a life, you know."

"Really? What kind of life?" She sat down, looking up at him
with unabashed curiosity.

Clark hesitated, he couldn't possibly tell her. What would it
hurt to let her think his entire life was community service?
Maybe that would make her think of him as something neutral and
genderless. "Well, tonight I have a neighborhood watch meeting.
Tomorrow, prison."

She laughed. "That's cute, I, uh, guess."

Look at me, he thought. Do you really not recognize me? How
could you have sex with me and be this clueless? He felt the
all-too-familiar twitch of interest from his groin as he
realized just how many buttons she had left undone on her
blouse. It would be reckless to stay around her much longer.

"Well, I'd better be going. You'll be okay?"

"Sure, I'll be fine."

Shouldn't there be some primal alarm bell ringing in her head
right now? There sure as hell was in his. Catching sight of the
paper he decided to lecture her as Superman, at least he knew
she would take what he said seriously. "You'd better be careful.
If the killer reads between the lines of your story and realizes
that you were there..."

"You read my work?"

"Always," he told her truthfully. And you especially hate it
when I edit your copy.

Clark put the paper down and turned to go out the window. Lois
hurried over to the window, brushing against him as she moved
past. He panicked - she was too close. 

"Let me, uh, get this," she said as she fumbled with the
curtains.

Clark walked over to the door instead. He had it unlocked and
open before she could cross the room. Don't touch me, he
thought. Please don't touch me. 

"Lock your doors," he told her as he slipped out into the
relative safety of the hallway. "And windows." If she locked her
windows it would keep both him and her stalker out. 

"I promise."

Safely out of her apartment, he changed back into his clothes
and bought a paper. Clark settled on a bench across the street
to watch her apartment. A cold night on the bench would be even
more effective than a cold shower.

<><><>

"I'm very sorry," the receptionist told them. "But STAR Labs
will not be issuing any statements at this time."

"So that's a 'no comment', is it?" Lois asked sarcastically and
turned away from the desk in time to see Ken Randall enter the
lobby through a side door. Her mood darkened further. Had they
talked to that charlatan and not to them? 

"Ah, Lane and Kent. So what's your angle?" Ken asked.

"What's yours?" Lois countered.

Ken gave her the megawatt smile that beamed down from countless
billboards throughout Metropolis. "No angle. A really good story
just tells itself."

"So they didn't tell you anything either, did they?"

At that Ken let out a genuine laugh. "When are you going to
leave that dinosaur you lovingly call the Planet and come work
where the future lies - in television? I heard you were working
for LNN for a while."

"It wasn't really me. TV news is a wasteland for fakes and
hacks."

"Then you would fit right in. Just look at you! A broad with
your looks? You bleach your hair blonde and you'd be a top
anchor in no time."

"I don't look good as a blonde."

"Mmmm, tell me you have pictures of that somewhere. If there
are, I may have a new goal in life."

"I've seen koi ponds deeper than you, Ken." Clark couldn't hold
back any longer. Ken Randall might be popular with the public,
but he was a pariah amongst his peers.

"Good thing you brought someone along to fight your battles for
you," Ken said without even glancing at Clark. "I heard you lost
your edge after Luthor went splat."

Clark's hands fisted, but given Ken's current line of argument
he couldn't say a word without making things worse. Besides,
Lois had definitely *not* lost her edge - as he was sure Ken was
about to discover.

"At least I had an edge," Lois said evenly. "But then I guess
you can't really miss something you never had."

Ken's demeanor changed, his expression softened. "That was low,
bringing up Luthor like that. I'm sorry. Do you miss him?"

"No," Lois said curtly. "Never once."

Ken shrugged and switched tactics. "I've heard things about you.
There's a rumor that you boffed Superman."

"What?" Lois exclaimed, her cheeks flushing in a way that let
Ken know he'd finally found a nerve to prod. "I've never!"

"I bet you would, though, wouldn't you?"

"You'd do the same if you thought it would be a good story,"
Lois shot back.

"Alas, I'm only partial to dark-eyed beauties who sleep with
their sources."

Clark tapped Lois' elbow to caution her against saying anything
else. "Let's go, Lois."

"Superman isn't a source. He's a friend." Lois turned her back
on Ken and stalked out of the lobby.

"I wouldn't mess with her," Clark couldn't hold back the words.
"She could tear you apart with her bare hands if she really
wanted to."

Ken laughed. "Lois Lane doesn't scare me. And neither do you,
Kent."

Clark leaned in and asked in a deadly calm voice. "What about
Superman?"

Ken didn't even blink. "Superman is much too good to smack me
around over a few comments to his little girlfriend."

"Don't misjudge him. Even Superman would make an exception for
you."

Clark grimaced as he walked away from Ken Randall. The nerve of
that guy! He wasn't sure which remark was worse - the one about
Luthor or the one about Superman.

He knew Lois didn't want, or need, his protection. It didn't
matter to him. He would protect her as best he could from the
Kens and the Luthors of this world. And, most importantly, he
would protect her from himself. If she thought it hurt that
Superman was avoiding her, he knew it would kill her to learn
what had really happened that night.

//***//***//

Lois' alarm went off at six o'clock. Clark could hear her
wandering through her apartment, making sounds of frustration.
The reason behind her dismay became obvious when Mr. Tracewski,
the super, came out of the building complaining about the poor
quality of pipes. 

Clark went back to reading the paper in his hands and then he
heard it - a sound that made his heart stutter. Lois was
struggling; fighting against someone. He ran up the stairs and
burst through the door. To his horror Lois had stopped fighting
and was losing consciousness.

"Let go of her!" Clark ordered. 

The man, who looked exactly like Mr. Tracewski, only tightened
his grip on Lois' throat. 

Clark held up his hand to calm the double who was beginning to
look frantic. "Let her go now," Clark said slowly.

The man dropped her and Lois fell limply to the floor. Clark's
heart sank; she was lying there so still. He let the man run
past him. He could only see Lois and how she wasn't breathing.
God, please, no. He couldn't hear her breathing...

"Lois!" He knelt next to her, turning her over with unsteady
hands. He caught sight of the fake Mr. Tracewski disappearing
through the still-open door as he bent to breathe into her
mouth.

One little puff and she gasped. He gathered her against him as
she sputtered and choked.

"Okay," he murmured into her hair.

"Cla..." Lois' hands sought him and he pulled her closer.
"Clark. Clark," she murmured.

"It's okay. It's all right, it's all right, it's all right," he
repeated mindlessly, as much to reassure himself as her.

"I couldn't breathe. That nice Mr. Tracewski..." Lois couldn't
seem to draw enough air into her lungs. What the hell had just
happened? She still felt so confused. When did Clark get here?

"No. No, it wasn't him. It must have been somebody else. I saw
the real Mr. Tracewski leave."

"He tried to kill me." Her throat burned as she formed the
words. It was for real. Someone really was trying to kill her.
And Clark was here. She was safe now.

"I'll find him." Clark started to set her gently aside. He was
just itching to catch the man.

"No!" Lois clung to him with all the strength she had left.
"Please don't leave me."

"Okay, I won't. I'm here. I'm right here. I'm right here." He
held her close against him and rocked her, the rhythmic motion
soothing them both.

Lois tried to hold the sob back but it broke through anyway.
Clark murmured softly into her hair that it was okay. She
thought about that night, how she went over to find comfort in
his embrace and found forgetfulness instead. Today there was
nothing but comfort in his arms. His voice and his touch were
strong and soothing. Lois clung to him, afraid of what the world
was going to look like when he wasn't holding her anymore.

Finally she disentangled herself from his embrace. He let her go
easily and stood up, holding out his hand to help her rise. For
a second she thought about ignoring him and standing on her own.
Before she could fully form that thought her hand had taken his
of its own volition. He pulled her up and let go, taking two
steps back to lean against her kitchen counter.

"Do you want me to wait outside while you get ready?" he
offered.

Lois blinked, surprised that he'd even make the suggestion. "No,
just... have a seat..." She waved in the direction of her living
room. "I'll get dressed and we can go."

As she dressed she realized that Clark must have got up very
early to be over here in time to see Mr. Tracewski leave the
building. Or had he spent the night outside? No, he couldn't
have. It was far too cold out there. But he did come over
awfully early.

Lois smiled to herself. He really was very sweet. Naive and
trusting and very, very sweet.

//"I could make you forget him."//

Lois took in a shuddery breath. She would never have believed
anyone could make her forget Superman, but for a short time that
night her entire world had consisted of only Clark. She brushed
her hair a little harder as penance for her wandering mind.

<><><>

"Are you sure this is where we were supposed to meet her?" Clark
looked around the hotel's bar but couldn't see Rachel anywhere.

Lois glanced at her watch. "She told Jimmy seven o'clock in the
bar of the Hotel Britannia's lobby. It's only five after seven,
maybe she's running late?"

"No, there she is." Clark pointed across the bar where Rachel
Eames had just emerged from the restroom. Rachel waved and made
her way unsteadily towards them, plopping down in the chair next
to Clark. She smelled of whiskey and her eyes looked a little
too bright.

"Can I get you a drink?" she asked them.

"No, thanks, I'm not really thirsty," Lois said.

Rachel's expression darkened. "I'm not usually a drinker, you
know. I'm just having a very bad week."

"We're very sorry for your loss. Were you close to Anthony?"
Clark asked.

Rachel traced her fingernail over the wood grain of the
tabletop. "Close to him? Oh god, I don't know how to answer
that. We worked together, you know?" 

"Can you think of anyone who might have wanted to hurt the two
of you?" Lois asked.

Rachel took a deep breath and let it out slowly, shaking her
head the entire time. "Maybe his ex-wife. She wasn't taking the
divorce well."

"You were involved with Tony?" Clark asked in surprise.

"Involved is the wrong word for it, really. We... had an
arrangement. I've been through a lot of disastrous relationships
and he was just coming out of his divorce. We neither one of us
wanted to get involved with anyone but, you know, there are
certain things you miss when you're not seeing someone. There
was an attraction between us, and it was such a relief to not
have to make small talk, or remember birthdays, or any of that
other garbage that you have to wade through in a relationship."
Rachel's voice trailed off on the last few words.

Lois tried hard to sound neutral as she clarified, "You were
sleeping with each other?"

Rachel let out a laugh. "No, not sleeping. That was one of the
rules - we never spent the night. We had sex. Lots of it. And
then we'd go home. No recriminations, no guilt."

"Huh." Clark didn't know what else to say. Rachel looked at both
of them, picking up on the shock they were trying to hide, and
felt defensive.

"Hey, everyone has needs. Relationships can get so messy,
though. Sometimes all you need is the physical act, not the
emotional baggage that comes with it."

Lois openly gaped at her now. "But doesn't sleeping with your
co-worker create problems? Work baggage?"

"I didn't think of him as my co-worker, or even as Tony. In my
mind he was Brad Pitt or Superman."

"Superman!" Lois echoed. 

Clark coughed to cover his laugh.

"Mmm, yeah. That was a good one. It was just sex, Miss Lane. We
were both clear on that. In his mind I was Cindy Crawford or
that cute new lab assistant or...whomever" Rachel shrugged.
"Neither of us ever asked."

"What? You just acted out each other's sick little fantasies?"
Lois scoffed.

"We each had a night of the week that was ours. What we did on
that night was our choice. There were ground rules, of course,
which we both were in absolute agreement on."

"Ground rules?" Clark was sure if his eyebrows climbed any
higher they'd fall off.

"How often? What's permissible? Where? Surely a reporter can
think of all the questions you'd need to settle beforehand."

"That's so unromantic," Clark said.

"Romance has nothing to do with it, Mr. Kent."

"Sex and romance are two completely different issues," Lois
muttered.

"Exactly! So how long has it been, Miss Lane?" Rachel asked.

"I beg your pardon?" Lois spluttered.

"How long has it been since someone tripped the light fantastic
for you?"

Clark's mouth twitched as he fought a smile and Lois thought for
sure she was going to have to kill him. "I don't see how that's
any of your business!"

"Look at yourself, though. You're a mess! You're in a demanding,
high-pressured career. You don't have a husband. I'd wager you
don't even have a boyfriend. You go to bed alone every night.
And when you go back to work in the morning you have all the
frustrations from the day before that you drag into the office
with you. And it grows exponentially. Don't you ever wish there
was some kind of release?"

Clark pressed his lips into a straight line and shrugged. It was
taking all his willpower not to laugh, if only because Lois had
never looked so unabashedly horrified before.

"So when was the last time?" Rachel persisted.

Lois swallowed, turned even redder and shook her head. "I don't,
I'm not about to tell you."

"It's been months, hasn't it? If not years. Do yourself a favor,
find a buddy to sleep with. Maybe even Mr. Kent here."

At that, Lois rose and left the bar.

"Well, thanks for your time," Clark said, hastening to leave
before Rachel could start in on him. "If we have any follow-up
questions, we'll call you."

Clark caught up to Lois outside the hotel. "So, I'll pick you up
at nine-thirty?" he asked her.

"For what?" Lois was still flustered. What did he think he was
going to do with her at nine-thirty?

"We're meeting Kevin from MetEd at ten, yes?" 

"Fine. I'll see you at nine-thirty." Lois was grateful he didn't
say anything about Rachel's comments. She shook her head as she
watched Clark walking away.

Just when she was certain she knew him, or knew what he was
going to do in a given situation, he surprised her.

<><><>

As promised, Kevin was waiting on the corner of Twelfth and
Bessolo when they arrived. He gave them each a hard hat with a
light attached and gestured for them to follow as he took off
down Twelfth Street. 

"If you really want to know a city, you should go underground,"
he told them. "There's a labyrinth of tunnels beneath
Metropolis. The first sewage system was built in 1848. It was
well designed and the majority of it is still in service. There
are multiple cisterns under the city as well that were built at
the same time. We'll be in a newer tunnel tonight, one
designated for access, not sewage, so don't worry too much about
getting your feet wet."

They turned a corner onto a side street and Kevin stopped them
at a manhole cover. "I think your guy came in here, although
it's possible he could have entered the system from anywhere.
They're all interconnected but this is the only place for at
least a half-mile that you don't need a ladder to get into."

Kevin pulled the manhole cover off, dragging it aside and sat
down, letting his feet dangle into the black space of the tunnel
below. He put on his hard hat, switched the light on and quickly
disappeared into the darkness below. When Kevin reached the
bottom he took a flashlight from his backpack, turned it on and
waved it towards the opening to alert them to come on down.

"Ladies first," Clark said, gesturing at the open manhole.

"You know, Clark," Lois told him as she sat down and prepared to
enter the sewer, "you don't always have to be a gentleman."

"I can't help it. It's the way my mother raised me."

Lois smiled to herself as she climbed down the metal rungs.
Clark's parents were both such nice people; it stood to reason
that their son would be just as nice. So what did that make her?
Her parents were neurotic and often borderline insane. Her smile
disappeared. Some thoughts were best left alone.

Like thinking about Rachel's drunken confession. Rachel had made
it sound so practical, so clinical, even. Sleep with someone
just for the sex. And why not? Lois didn't want to think that
she was a prude, but it just seemed so... like Cat Grant. If Cat
was to be believed, she had scored with Clark before Lois had.
Then again, Clark insisted that nothing happened. Was it the
same kind of nothing that happened that night? It made her ill
to think of Clark doing the same things to Cat as he had to
her.

Time for some new thoughts. What about Superman? His demeanor
had definitely changed towards her. Had he told Clark how she
had thrown herself at him before she accepted Lex's proposal? Or
did Clark guess that for himself since she had asked him to find
Superman for her? Lois watched the light on Clark's hardhat
bobbing as he descended towards her. How much did he know? How
many secrets was Clark carrying around? Was he everybody's
confessor?

Once Clark reached the tunnel floor Kevin took off again. The
tunnel was wide enough that they could walk three abreast.

"You can get to the Metro Transit system, the phones, the
electrical, the water, the sewer and even the mail from here,"
Kevin told them.

"The mail?" Lois looked around. There were pipes and wires
affixed to the walls and ceilings of the tunnel and she had a
hard time picturing a mail truck driving around in there.

"Most of Metropolis' mail is shuttled through a pneumatic tube
system from the main post office to the satellite branches. It
cuts down on traffic and it's much more efficient."

"I guess the only thing missing are catacombs," Clark said.

"Nope, we've got those too. There was an outbreak of yellow
fever in the 1870's - some of the bodies were hurriedly buried
in here when the death toll became overwhelming. Some people say
it's haunted. They give tours through here around Halloween."

"Got any alligators?" Lois asked sarcastically.

"I haven't seen one yet, but there's always a first for
everything. You guys need to stay with me. If we get separated,
stop where you are and wait. Don't try and find your way out.
You won't know the meaning of the word 'lost' until you've
become disoriented down here."

Clark leaned down to whisper to Lois, "He means you."

"Hmph," Lois let her elbow swing back and strike his ribs. "I
never get lost. I have an innate sense of direction."

"Oh, right. I must have been thinking of someone else."

"Here we are," Kevin said and shone the light on a thick braid
of insulated cables. "See anything out of place?"

They both shook their heads, their headlamp beams dancing over
the cables. "No," Clark said.

Kevin directed his flashlight's beam over a smaller cable
running out from the cluster. "There you are. It would have been
quicker to just pull a line out and shove it under the manhole
there." He pointed with the light so they could see the
underside of the manhole. The insulated wire ran over to it.

"Whoever he is, this is a professional job. This guy has craft.
He didn't just splice in a wire. Look at this." The flashlight's
beam focused on a small box, about a foot away from the end of
the wire. "That's a breaker box that operates off a remote
control. He was able to turn it on and off so that no one but
his target gets zapped."

"And you've just left it there!" Lois was aghast. "What's to
stop him from doing it again?"

Kevin pointed with the light at the very end of the wire. "I've
capped it, it's not a live wire now. We left it like this for
the police. Guys who take this much pride in their work usually
leave a signature. Hopefully the police can track the bastard
down. I know you guys are friends with Superman. I was hoping
you could ask him to keep an eye out, watch for anyone working
solo or late at night. The city's just too big to be able to
check for his handiwork to prevent him from doing this again."

"Thanks, Kevin. You can count on Superman's help. And we'll cite
you as an anonymous MetEd technician," Clark assured him.

"Thanks. I appreciate that," Kevin said with a nod.

Kevin led them back through the tunnels to where they had come
in. Lois took hold of the rungs above her and had climbed a few
feet when she slipped. Clark reached out and steadied her with
his hands on her hips. 

"I've got you. Are you okay?"

"Yeah." Her voice wavered, but it had nothing to do with
slipping. She took a deep breath, let it out and started to
climb again. Clark's hands dropped from her hips but the lamp
from his helmet tracked her as she climbed. She gave a rueful
grin. Clark would never let her fall.

//"Do yourself a favor, find a buddy to sleep with. Maybe even
Mr. Kent here."//

Lois mentally cursed at Rachel for putting the idea in her head.
No, she told herself. That idea was already there and you know
it. 

Lois reached the street and then watched as Clark's light
bounced closer and closer as he climbed up.

//"I could make you forget him."//

What about Superman? No - she couldn't ask him. The last time
she had thrown herself at him had ended in her humiliation. He
was still avoiding her, he'd probably leave Metropolis and never
come back if she offered him no-strings-attached sex.

Clark helped Kevin slide the manhole cover back in place. As
Clark stood up straight he caught sight of Lois' face. She had
the same intrigued expression on her face as she had that
morning when he caught her watching him chew the pencil. What
was she thinking? Was she thinking about that night? 

They handed back their hardhats and thanked Kevin again. Clark
watched him walk away, not trusting himself to look at Lois. He
should have been thinking about what Kevin had just shown them,
but he wasn't. His mind was replaying that conversation with
Rachel. More specifically, something that Lois had said.

//"Sex and romance are two completely different issues."//

He knew that night was not about romance for Lois. At the time
he couldn't really say it was about romance for him. He had
seduced her; his only defense was that he wasn't himself when he
did it. He was grateful for the reprieve, for the fact that
neither of them ever mentioned it. It was only at moments like
this, when he'd catch Lois looking at him curiously, that he
allowed himself to remember what had almost been. 

Clark was full of the deepest shame that he had let things go so
far that night. It was harder than ever to keep her at arm's
length when he was in the suit. He wanted her so desperately -
wanted to touch her again, to make her cry out in pleasure like
she had that night - it would almost be worth allowing Superman
to make love to her.

It was only the fact that it would create an even larger
deception that kept him from breaking down and giving in to her
seductions. She was killing him, slowly but surely, with every
passing day. The time was coming when she was going to drive him
right over the edge and get exactly what she was asking for.

Why, oh why, couldn't she just want him as Clark? 

<><><>

Lois spent the next day with Rachel's words in her ear. Every
movement Clark made held new importance. She couldn't stop
watching his hands. Dancing over the keyboard, gesturing to
Perry, holding a mug of coffee... God, it was enough to drive a
girl crazy.

Near the end of the day she left to cover a warehouse fire.
Perry had wanted to assign it to Clark but, once again, he had
skipped off to who-knows-where. Lois arrived in time to see
Superman talking with the building's manager. Lois strode
towards him, calling out his name loudly.

"Hello, Lois," he said politely as she bore down on him, a
determined look on her face.

Superman was too polite. He had been so distant for the past few
months and it hurt. What was his problem? Not the first time she
bitterly regretted telling him her true feelings. She had told
Lex "yes" almost immediately after declaring her love for him.
What must he think of her? That she was desperate for a man? How
could she ever explain her actions to him?

"Can I ask you a few questions?" She asked as she came close
enough that he couldn't fly away without appearing rude.

"Of course," he nodded.

She knew this was unfair. He was expecting an interview about
the fire, not an ambush. "Superman, are you avoiding me?"

"No, of course not." He looked almost guilty as he answered her.
For the first time she wondered if Superman was lying to her. 

"It feels like you are. Do you realize this is the first time
I've really seen you since... well, since before I almost
married Lex."

"I guess you've been staying out of trouble." Clark shifted
uncomfortably, looking over Lois' shoulder for an excuse to
leave but not finding one.

"Should I start jumping off of buildings if I want to see you?"
Lois asked flippantly, hoping that the question sounded casual
and not anxious.

"I wouldn't recommend it."

"Could I ask you out? You know, I'll buy if you'll fly?"

"Lois, I... We can't have this discussion right here."

"*This discussion?* This isn't a discussion! This is one friend
asking another when she can see him."

Clark took hold of her arm, gently leading her around the corner
and into the alley. He had to end this, right here and right
now. He couldn't avoid her as Superman for the rest of his life.
"Lois, I can't really date anyone. Surely you can understand
that."

Lois wasn't about to give up without a fight. He cared about
her, she knew he did. There wasn't anything that love couldn't
work out. "You hang out with Clark; why can't we be friends like
that?"

"That's different." He flushed and looked away. "I should go."

Now or never, she thought. "Wait!" She grabbed his arm to delay
him. He half-turned and she made up the difference, grabbing him
and kissing him. He wavered for a second. Then his hands moved
to her shoulders and she was certain he was going to set her
aside and fly off. Instead his mouth opened hungrily against
hers while one of his hands moved to the back of her head to
hold her in place. Lois groaned, wrapping her arms around his
neck as his tongue slid possessively against hers.

Suddenly he pulled away, his eyes wide with shock. "I have to
go, Lois. This can't happen. We just, I can't do this. Not with
you. Not like this. Not ever. I'm sorry."

She leaned back against the building behind her and watched him
disappear into the clouds. Her throat felt tight and her vision
had become blurry. He had just rejected her. Utterly and
completely without offering much of a reason. 

//"Not with you. Not like this. Not ever."//

He made it sound so personal - he couldn't be with *her*. He
didn't say he couldn't be with anyone, just her. What was it
about her that repulsed him so much?

Her lips still tingled from the kiss. The only man who'd ever
come close to kissing her like that was... Clark.

That night.

If she was honest with herself she really did want to see if
that night was a fluke. Was it that good because the world was
ending? Or was Clark really that skillful? Was she a slut for
wanting two different men? Would Clark turn her down if she
offered him the same deal as Tony and Rachel? Superman certainly
wasn't about to take her up on something like that and she'd die
before she'd throw herself at him again.

Would Clark agree to it?

It was possible, she thought. Very possible. She had seen the
way he looked at her when he thought she didn't notice. They had
slept together once and the world hadn't ended. She grinned to
herself. Literally, it hadn't ended. And their partnership,
their friendship, had continued without a hitch. 

Was it worth a shot? She blushed as she remembered the way he
had touched her. Yeah, it was worth asking him. They'd already
proven they could compartmentalize sex from friendship. 

Just being around Clark anymore was distracting. She wasn't sure
if it was the memory of what had been or the thought of what
might be. She only knew she wanted more where that came from.

<><><>

Lois went over to Clark's apartment but he wasn't home yet. She
took out her lock-pick kit and made quick work of his front
door. She let herself in and sat on the couch to wait for him.

Fifteen minutes later Superman landed on the back patio. Lois
stood up in panicked astonishment, her instincts telling her to
hide, quickly. Which was ridiculous. Like he wouldn't hear her,
or find her with his x-ray vision. Superman came inside and then
stood absolutely still when he caught sight of her.

They both stared at each other in dismay. Lois spoke first.
"Clark's not here."

"Oh," Superman said, looking more flustered than she had ever
seen him before. That kiss must have really rattled him. "I'll
just be going then."

"It's okay! We didn't have plans or anything. I was just going
to talk to him."

"No, that's okay. Good night, Lois." It was blatantly obvious
that he didn't want to be anywhere near her. She was grateful
she hadn't propositioned him more than she already had. 

"Did you want me to give him a message?" she asked.

"No, no message. I'll catch him later."

Was he coming over here to talk to Clark about her? Did they
talk about her? Did he know about that night? It was too
mortifying to even contemplate. Lois rushed across the apartment
and then froze on the steps as the door opened.

"Lois, what are you doing here? Is something wrong?" Clark tried
to look surprised to find her inside. It didn't matter, she
wasn't looking at him.

"I, uh, I was just leaving."

"You waited for me to come home so you could leave?" Why was she
there? He thought at first she had come to ask him to find
Superman, but her shock on seeing him in the suit had ruled out
that possibility.

"You know what? It was stupid of me to come over tonight. I'm
sorry. I shouldn't have come here."

"But you're here now and obviously something is bothering you.
Stay, please. Talk to me."

Lois wavered. She wanted to know if he had said anything to
Superman, if maybe that could explain why Superman didn't want
her.

"I have to ask you something and I want you to swear on a stack
of bibles that you'll tell me the truth."

"Okay," he told her.

"Promise!"

"I promise." He held up his right hand as he said the words.

"Do you ever talk to Superman about me?" Lois watched for his
reaction and was reassured to see that Clark looked perplexed
and maybe even a little offended.

"What?"

"Superman was just here and... something happened earlier. I
don't want to talk about it, so don't ask. Anyway, I thought he
might have come here to talk to you about it. So do you two
discuss me?"

"No."

"Never? Never ever? Not even a 'you wouldn't believe the dumb
thing Lois did today' kind of conversation?"

"No, I promise." He held up his right hand again. It was
basically the truth.

"Does he know? About that night?"

"I've never told him about that night." Clark figured that was
the best way to put it. Did he know? Duh. But he certainly
hadn't *told* Superman about it.

"So what do you two talk about?" Lois couldn't help the stab of
jealousy she felt at the thought of Clark and Superman hanging
out without her.

"Sports. Stories I'm working on. Stuff like that."

"Oh." Lois glanced around his apartment. She suddenly seemed to
be able to look everywhere but in his direction. She sat on his
couch, clasping her hands in front of her. Clark noticed they
were shaking. He sat down in the chair and waited. She obviously
had something else she wanted to say.

Lois took in a shaky breath as her heartbeat seemed to thunder
in her ears. She had to ask. She had to know. "Do you ever think
about that... night we agreed never happened?"

Clark looked away. He couldn't believe she was bringing this up.
She had made him swear they wouldn't ever discuss it again. "I,
uh..." Did she really want him to answer that honestly? Was this
a trick question? What if she was testing him to see if she
could trust him to keep it secret?

"I do," she added softly. "I think about it a lot."

"You do?" Clark looked at her in complete amazement. His own
hands started to shake. 

"So how bad do you think about it?" she asked.

"What?" His mouth had gone dry. Why did she want to know?

"Just answer the question." Lois looked him directly in the
eye.

"Bad," he admitted in a whisper. "Really bad."

Her stomach tightened and she knew there was no way she'd be
able to stand up right now without her legs giving out. 

"Me, too," she admitted. "What if it happened again?"

Clark shifted uncomfortably. She was asking him as Clark. She
wanted him as Clark. Was it because she didn't dare ask Superman
again? It was good, wasn't it, that he was her second choice?

"Why would it happen? We're not... like that. Are we?"

"What if we were? What if we were like Rachel and Tony? What if
we had an agreement? Something to ease the stress of our jobs?
The problem with sex is that everyone imbues it with all this
importance when the truth is it's just..."

"Procreation?"

"...an urge. An urge to be satisfied. Who's to say that a
good... um, a good time, every now and then wouldn't help? We'd
be more relaxed. More focused on work. It would be a good
thing!"

"... an urge. An urge to be satisfied. Who's to say that a
good... um, a good time, every now and then wouldn't help? We'd
be more relaxed. More focused on work. It would be a good
thing!"

He just stared at her, unable to speak.

"Look, if you're not interested, I'll ask someone else. I have a
list," she lied.

She had made a list? Clark hesitated. Would she really make a
list? He'd just bet she would. Leave it to Lois to plan an
impulsive move. "Who else is on the list?" he asked.

"I don't see how that's any of your business," she huffed. He
raised an eyebrow, almost certain now that she was lying. Lois
plunged ahead, giving him the first name she could think of.
"Joe Benton, the new sports columnist."

"Joe's Your Buddy? That Joe?" Clark clarified. Jealousy flooded
through him at the thought. Joe was single and attractive. Clark
had overheard the giggles and whispered conversations of his
female colleagues every time Joe came through the bullpen. It
didn't help that Joe made a point of going past Lois' desk on a
regular basis. Clark had seen Joe touching her shoulder or her
elbow to catch her attention as he said "hi" to her.

"That's the one," Lois lifted her chin, pleased to see something
flare in Clark's eyes. Had she scored a direct hit? Let him
think about that one for a while.

Clark sat there, conflicted by the mixed signals from his head
and his groin. She was lying, he was sure of it. But he was also
certain that if he turned her down she might actually go and ask
Joe to be more than her buddy. Then again, someone with Lois'
unhappy past relationships wasn't about to go looking for a
mindless romp, no matter what she might have convinced herself
it meant. She wanted more; she just couldn't admit it. Given
time and tenderness, who was to say that she wouldn't realize it
was him that she needed?

It definitely wasn't Joe. His fists clenched at the thought of
her in anyone else's arms. How many nights had he imagined her
with Luthor? That torture had been even worse because he knew he
could have prevented it - if he would have just deepened the lie
and let Superman woo her. If he had to sit back and watch Joe
touch her with real intent... No, he couldn't go through that
again. Not for anything. Especially not now when she was here,
offering herself to him with absolutely no strings attached.

"Okay," he said quietly. 

"Uh, so... was that a yes? What about tonight? Or did you want
to wait? Maybe you need to think about this some more?"

For his part, Clark was thinking that waiting was probably a
really good idea. If she had another twenty-four hours to
consider this she might change her mind. All of a sudden he
desperately didn't want that. But he had the suit on underneath
his clothes. And there were other precautions to be addressed.

"I need to run to the store, really fast. Will you still be here
when I get back?" He stood up, putting his hands in his pockets
to tent his trousers out. He didn't want her to know just how
her offer had affected him.

"You're leaving?" How very Clark of him. 

"You can come with me. I'm just going to the pharmacy on the
corner."

"Oh," her cheeks turned hot as she realized what he meant. "No,
I... I'll wait here."

"I'll be right back," he promised.

"Yeah, I've heard that before," she muttered.

He turned at the door and flashed her a smile. "I'll be right
back."

<><><>

She was still there when he came back. 

Clark took in a few steadying breaths before opening the door.
Was this really a good idea? Probably not, but he couldn't think
of a single reason to stop this when the only thing separating
them was a door. He had left the suit tucked behind a dumpster
in the alley. He had endured the one-sided awkwardness of buying
a box of condoms from a disinterested clerk. There wasn't
anything he was forgetting.

Except common sense, he reminded himself. You're throwing that
to the wind here. It didn't matter. She wanted him. She had
actually waited for him to come back - he had half-expected that
she would flee before he even got out of the building. She
really did want him.

Lois stopped her pacing, turning to watch Clark shut and then
lock his front door. He locked it, she thought. And why wouldn't
he? Neither of them were going anywhere for a while. She watched
him closely as he came down the stairs. Was he nervous? Eager?
Smug? She looked at the paper bag he held and fought the urge to
gulp.

She cleared her throat. "We need rules. Tony and Rachel had
rules."

Wow, she wasn't even going to try small talk first. Clark
grinned at her. "Should I assume you've started a list?"

Was he mocking her? He wouldn't really, would he? Not right now
when he was about to get laid? She ignored his question and
ticked the rules off on her fingers. "No staying overnight. No
telling anyone. We schedule this ahead of time or call before
coming over, there are no drop-ins." 

"We leave the lights off," Clark added. 

Lois blinked. Lights out? He wouldn't be gawking at her. What a
great idea! 

"No lights," she agreed. "And most importantly, we both
understand that this is just sex. It doesn't mean anything,
right?"

"Right." Clark nodded, but mentally he was shaking his head. She
was deluding herself. She had told him she didn't think of him
that way, and yet here she was, asking him to make love to her.
She couldn't have it both ways. Eventually she had to wake up to
the fact that he had always been there for her. And he always
had her best interests at heart. If she slept with Joe she'd
only regret it somewhere down the road. It might take some time,
but sooner or later her brain would catch up to what her body
already knew - she wanted him. 

Lois eyed the paper bag he was holding. It was a small bag. How
many condoms had he bought? Was he waiting to see whether she
was any good before he bought a bigger box? She looked away from
the bag, feeling an odd mix of lust and panic wash over her. 

"So should I change?" she asked, even though she had not brought
anything to change into. "Would you rather I was wearing
something else? To start with, I mean? We didn't really discuss
foreplay."

"Are you going to make rules for that, too?" The question was
only half in jest. For all he knew she had a checklist. Was she
going to time him? Did she not understand about performance
anxiety?

"I..." Lois looked down, flustered that he would tease her at
this moment.

"Lois," he set the bag down and came over to stand in front of
her. Clark tipped her chin up so their eyes met. "I'll only
agree to this if you can promise me we'll still be friends."

Relief flooded through her. "Friends," she promised. "No matter
what else happens. That doesn't change."

"Yes." He placed a small kiss on her forehead.

Lois closed her eyes. What in the hell was she doing here? Was
she really going to have sex with Clark again? 

She was. And she couldn't really say that she felt all that
guilty about it. Why should she? What if Rachel and Cat were
right and this was nothing more than a visceral experience? What
if it was wrong to imbue it with all that emotion and meaning?
It certainly put your heart through the wringer afterwards when
things inevitably didn't work out. She and Clark would still be
friends afterwards. Friends with some smokin' hot memories to
share between them. What could be better than that? 

This way she was with someone she genuinely cared about. Joe was
nice, but she didn't really know him that well. Clark, on the
other hand, she could trust Clark. He hadn't said a word to
anyone about the first time they had done this. He had always
been there for her. He was her best friend. It was so much less
slutty to sleep with a friend. At least it meant something this
way. Or, at least, it meant just enough.

She tilted her head back to look up at him. "So... do we kiss?"

"I'd like that," his voice sounded lower.

"Okay." She went on tiptoe and tentatively brushed his lips with
hers. She giggled and pulled away, sinking back to standing.
"Please tell me you're nervous about this, too."

He chuffed out a laugh. "I definitely am."

"It's silly, huh? I mean we have done this before."

Clark hugged her, resting his chin on the top of her head.
"Lois, we don't have to do this."

Her heart sank. She had just realized she really wanted this and
he was turning her down? "You don't want to?"

"I've never wanted anything more."

"Oh." She took in a deep breath, inhaling the clean scent of
him. "I want..." Lois bit her lip as she hesitated. What should
she say? He might make fun of her, but she really needed to get
the rules straight, if only for her own sanity. She tilted her
head back so she could see his face. "I want to touch you. Do I
have to ask first? Can I take this off?" She took hold of the
knot of his tie, looking up at him through her eyelashes.

Clark let out a small gasp. This was going to be fodder for a
thousand fantasies. Had she really just asked to touch him? To
undress him? "Lois, you can do anything you want with me. I'm
all yours."

She gave him a pleased little smile as she loosened his tie. He
had hoped he would be able to hold it together longer this time
but he feared he was about to give her a repeat of their first
too-short joining. 

His tie loosened, she pulled it free from his shirt. The
material whispered as it slid over his neck and shoulders. The
sound seemed so loud in his ears, especially coupled with the
increase in her breathing. Then she started on his shirt, her
fingers brushing and teasing his flesh as she worked his buttons
free. 

Lois spread open the front of his shirt. Wow, he was more buff
than she remembered. She touched him, awed by the well-defined
body he kept hidden beneath those oxford shirts. Her fingers
smoothed over his chest and he shivered. She gave him a knowing
grin and kissed his nipple, flicking her tongue over it. Clark's
hands went to her waist as he let out a small moan.

It was his moan that was her undoing. This was empowerment,
touching him like this. Seeing and feeling his reactions,
knowing that she could have this effect on a man. She went back
on tiptoe to kiss his mouth and let out a moan of her own when
he kissed her back. She thought she had remembered what a good
kisser he was. She was wrong. He was better than she
remembered.

She was dizzy by the time the kiss broke. Anticipation coursed
through her. Was he going to touch her? Was he waiting for her
to give him permission? Did he really think he needed to have
it?

//"Lois, you can do anything you want with me."//

She shivered at the thought of Clark doing anything he wanted
with her. He certainly hadn't asked before taking charge the
last time. Lois tipped her head back to look up at him, "You're
allowed to touch me, too, you know."

"I know." His lips placed a soft kiss just below her ear and
then he whispered, "Am I not allowed to enjoy this?"

"Enjoying this was the whole point," Lois whispered back.

Clark lifted his head so he could look into her eyes. "I would
enjoy taking your shirt off."

Lois swallowed - her mouth had suddenly gone dry. "Then I guess
you'd better do it."

His fingers brushed against her as he slowly unbuttoned her
shirt. She swayed closer to him with a moan, wishing he would
just get on with it already. What if Superman came back and
walked in on them? With a jolt Lois realized that she was almost
hoping that would happen. This was payback. Let Superman come by
and see her in Clark's arms - he'd realize that he didn't know
her as well as he thought. Lois grabbed Clark's head and firmly
kissed him. In response he picked her up, carrying her towards
his bed. He set her down and said, "Wait, I have to...," and
then walked away. The light in his living room went out, then
the light in his kitchen. 

Lois sat on the edge of Clark's bed, her mind racing. As the
room became darker her anxiety increased. They were really going
to do this. The mattress dipped beneath Clark's weight as he sat
next to her. Then his hand touched her cheek, turning her face
to his. "Lois," he whispered and then his lips softly pressed
against hers as his arms went around her.

Lois stroked over the taut muscles of his back. Superman, she
thought. Just pretend that he's Superman. It wasn't that hard to
do, really. He was muscular and, in the darkness of Clark's
bedroom, he was close enough. Clark was as gentle and as
attentive as she imagined Superman might be.

//"Not with you. Not like this. Not ever."//

Not like this? Superman didn't want her like this? Well, Clark
certainly did. Lois moved backwards to lie across the bed,
tugging Clark along with her.

Forget about Superman, she told herself. He didn't want her.
That was fine. If he flew by now, he'd be sorry. 

Lois let out a sigh and tipped her head back as his lips traced
over her throat. Don't think about Clark, she reminded herself.
Thinking of Clark would make this too personal. She should just
concentrate on the solid feel of his body next to hers. 

Did he imagine someone else in her place? Who was he pretending
she was? Or was the who not as important as the fact that this
was happening? A fissure of heat shot through her as she
realized that he had whispered her name as he kissed her.

Her name. Clark was thinking of her. For a confused moment she
wavered, unsure whether she should be angry or proud. Why should
she be angry? She had never told him he couldn't think about
her, only that he couldn't think this meant they were in a
relationship. In the end, her pride won out. She kissed him,
feeling that for the first time that she had Clark Kent exactly
where she wanted him. He was practically speechless and he was
deferential. He wasn't about to argue with her or rewrite her
stories now.

<><><>

Clark lay silent, unable to believe this had happened again.
Equal measures of guilt and pleasure washed over him. 

This was all wrong. It wasn't meant to be this way. And yet, how
else could he have her? This was her idea, he reminded himself.
She was the one who suggested this. Even when he'd given her the
opportunity to back out, she had insisted on going forward.
Besides, it felt so good - how could he possibly be expected to
resist her?

Lois turned and squinted at him, unable to see much more than
the outline of his body. Maybe that was better; she wasn't sure
she wanted to know what he thought of her now. A few more
seconds passed and she realized that she really did want to know
what he was thinking.

"Clark, what have we done? And are we going to keep doing it?"

"What do you want to do?" he asked quietly.

Go for broke, she told herself. Tell him the truth and see what
he says. "I want a nap and then I want to do that again."

She could clearly make out his grin in the faint light coming
from his window. "I could live with that." 

"So this doesn't go beyond this bed?"

"Nope."

"Swear it!"

"I swear. This never happened. Again. Cross my heart, hope to
die."

Lois let out a relieved sigh and turned her pillow over,
plumping it before lying back down.

So was she serious about the nap and doing it again? She seemed
to be settling in since she had pulled the covers up and was
nestling into the pillow. He listened to her breathe for a few
minutes, content just to know that she was here and that she
wanted him. Eventually, though, he realized that neither of them
was falling asleep. He felt awkward just lying here and saying
nothing. Finally he blurted out the question that had been on
his mind since the first time they had slept together.

"How long had it been for you, Lois? Before we... got
together."

"How long? Oh, about three years. What about you?"

Should he tell her? No, that would just complicate everything
further. "Longer than that," he said.

"Really?" Lois propped herself up onto her elbow.

"Really."

"So you didn't sleep with Cat?" Lois was already pretty sure he
hadn't, but she just had to know for certain.

"She's not my type," Clark said, shifting so that he, too, was
propped on his elbow facing her.

"What is your type?" Lois thought about Toni Taylor. Clark had
kissed Toni right in front of her. Did he like blondes?

"Not Cat," Clark said with a laugh.

What did he mean by that? Maybe he didn't like assertive women?
"I'm no better than she is," Lois said, feeling a pang of
regret. "I mean look at me, seducing a man without a thought for
a relationship."

"You're nothing like her," Clark hastened to reassure her.

"Weren't you even tempted, just a little, to sleep with her?"

"No."

"You said I wasn't your type either after that perfume didn't
make you fall madly in love with me."

"Maybe I didn't get sprayed very much."

"So I am your type?" Why do you care, she asked herself. The
only answer she could come up with was 'because'.

"Maybe," Clark teased. How could she seriously believe that this
meant nothing to her when it obviously mattered whether or not
he found her attractive?

"Seriously, what is your type?" Lois found she was consumed by
curiosity. What did someone like Clark look for in a person?

Clark considered the question for a moment before answering.
"Dark hair. Intelligent. Bossy. Mostly I just know what I like
when I see it."

"You think I'm bossy?" Lois pushed herself up a little higher,
indignation flooding through her.

"You think you're not?" Clark asked lightly.

She fumed. Was he just teasing her again? 

"Come here." He urged her closer to him. "Why don't you boss me
around for a while? Let's see if it suits you."

<><><>

Afterwards, lying against him, Lois wondered how long she should
stay. She didn't want to go. She wanted to just lie there all
night, snug and secure. Whose idea was it to leave the lights
off? She felt cheated somehow that she didn't get to see him.
Then again, if she didn't see him it was easier to pretend he
was someone else. 

"I should go now," she whispered against his skin.

"Stay as long as you like." His hand smoothed over her shoulder
and her eyes closed. She could feel herself sliding towards
falling asleep.

"Mmmm, no sleeping over," she mumbled. "It would set a bad
precedent to break the rules."

//"We both understand that this doesn't mean anything..."//

Clark kissed the top of her head. He wasn't about to tell her
that he was already breaking the rules. "Are you even awake
enough to get home okay?" he asked.

Lois sighed and rolled away from him. "I'm fine." She sat up and
swung her legs over the edge of the bed. Where were her clothes
again? Actually, 'no lights' was a good rule after all. It would
be even better if, next time, she could remember to take her
clothes off in his bedroom instead of his living room.

Clark got out of bed as she rushed into the next room. He put on
his glasses and a pair of jeans while she was getting dressed.
Once she was fully clothed he turned his kitchen light back on
and walked with her to the door. They both looked at their feet,
feeling suddenly awkward.

"Well..." Lois started. What should she say? Thanks? We should
definitely do this again? Remember you promised you wouldn't
tell anyone? She settled for "Good night."

Clark gave her a wry smile. "Good night, Lois." He started to
bend to kiss her but she leaned back, her eyes wide. He couldn't
kiss her good-bye! Didn't he realize that would make this more
than just sex? Clark grimaced and opened the door for her.
"I'll, uh, see you tomorrow."

<><><>

Lois was nearly late for work the next morning. If anyone asked,
she was going to tell them she overslept. The truth was she had
changed her clothes multiple times, unable to decide on an
outfit. Something prim and severe, so that Clark wouldn't think
she was easy? Something sexy just to mess with his head? In the
end she settled for a dress suit, but one with a short skirt. 

She was the last one to arrive in the conference room. The only
open seat was next to Clark. He looked up as she came around the
table to sit next to him but his dark eyes betrayed nothing.
That was even worse somehow and she blushed.

"Good morning, Lois," he said softly as she took the seat next
to him.

"Hi," she answered shortly.

As Perry started off with a tirade about making sure that
expense reports were turned in within thirty days of the
expenditure, Lois dared to glance at him. A rush of heat shot
through her when she realized he was watching her. She gave him
a tight smile and turned her head away. 

She could feel the heat of his leg next to hers. They weren't
touching, but it was damn close. She drummed her fingers on the
table, wishing she were sitting next to anyone else. It wasn't
enough just to have that not-unpleasant cramp low in her
abdomen. No, she had to sit next to the man who put that ache
there. And, fate willing, he would do so again in another twelve
hours. 

Twelve hours? She glanced at her watch. If they cut out of work
a little early, they could be back at her place by six o'clock -
that was only ten hours away. 

It was still too long to wait. 

"Where are we on the MetEd electrocution story?" Perry asked.

"We ran a background check on Tony Weir's ex-wife, Evelyn. She
has no electrical experience, nor does she know any
electricians," Clark answered.

"What about STAR Labs? Are they still being closed-mouthed?"
Perry directed this question at Lois.

"Yes," Lois said. "But we'll go down there again today and see
what we can get out of them."

"Is that something Superman would be willing to help you on?"
Perry asked.

"We'll ask him," Clark said.

Lois turned to fume at him. Had she forgotten to mention to
Clark that she wasn't really talking to Superman right now? "We
don't need his help," she hissed. 

Across the table, Cat snorted. "Did Superman turn you down
again, Lois?" Cat leaned forward with a smirk, giving everyone a
spectacular view of her cleavage. 

Lois glared at Cat and then glanced at Clark. He was looking at
her, not at Cat's wares. He tilted his head ever-so-slightly in
Cat's direction and half-rolled his eyes. Lois looked away to
hide her smile. 

Something tapped her hand and she looked down to see Clark had
slid his notepad in front of her. He had written, "Not nearly
bossy enough."

This time she didn't try to hide the smile. 

She moved her leg, bumping her knee against his, and waited. For
a few seconds there was nothing, then the length of his lower
leg deliberately came to rest against hers. Lois swallowed but
didn't dare look over at him. She casually took her right hand
off the table and let it rest in her lap. No one looked over at
them. Perry droned on. Cat filed her nails. Lois moved her hand,
letting it rest on Clark's mid-thigh.

He didn't even flinch. She dared a glance at him but he was
watching Perry intently. His eyes looked a little bright,
though. She moved her hand a little higher, watching him out of
the corner of her eye. He blinked and swallowed but otherwise
looked as bored as everyone else did.

Lois didn't dare move her hand again. This was already far too
risky. Besides, it was enough. The longer she left her hand
there, the more Clark seemed to be affected. He had started
breathing through his mouth and he could no longer maintain his
interest in Perry. His eyes closed and he snapped the pencil he
was holding in two.

What was her game? Was she testing him? If so, he was failing
miserably. Didn't she realize that he couldn't sit next to her
without remembering what it felt like to be a part of her? She
gave his thigh a squeeze and put her hand back on the table,
folding both her hands chastely in front of her.

"...And that's all people. Now get to it!" Perry instructed
them. 

Clark didn't dare stand up. He guessed if he held his notepad
low in front of him that might hide the evidence. Lois turned
and looked directly at him and then froze, her mouth still open
but her question forgotten. 

Their eyes met. Lois blinked, taken aback by the naked lust she
saw in his gaze. "Clark," she managed to say in a low voice. "I,
uh, think I need, um, some help."

"Okay," he rasped. 

They stood up together and he followed as Lois swiftly walked in
the direction of the supply closet. She glanced around the
newsroom but absolutely nobody was paying any attention to them.
She tugged him inside with her and quickly locked the door.

Clark's head was still swimming with the realization that she
really wanted him when she pushed him against the wall and
kissed him like she thought she would never see him again. 

<><><>

Cat looked over just as Lois came out of the supply closet. Her
hair looked a little tousled and she had a hazy smile on her
face. There was barely time to register the thought that maybe
Lois wasn't in there alone when Clark appeared in the doorway,
straightening his tie.

She blinked. Would wonders never cease? Had they really? It was
plain to anyone with eyes that Clark adored Lois, but how had he
finally managed to get her to see past Superman and notice him?


Cat grinned at them. Something was wrong with this picture. Lois
might not believe it, but she also had a reporter's instincts.
Those instincts told her that this wasn't an office romance. 

Whatever it was, she was going to figure it out.

<><><>

As they came out into the bullpen Clark was distracted from
thoughts of Lois by a breaking news bulletin on the TV. The
newsroom quieted down as the anchorwoman smiled into the camera
and said, "We have breaking news this morning. The freak
electrocutions this week in Metropolis were not accidents.
Here's WMET's own Ken Randall to explain."

The screen changed to show Ken standing in the same tunnel that
Kevin had shown them two nights ago. The camera panned over the
electrical setup beneath the manhole cover as Ken
sensationalized his story. "Metropolis is dealing with an evil
genius. Someone who has no compassion, no morals..."

"Is he talking about himself again?" Lois asked.

"How can he be so irresponsible?" Clark wondered aloud. "Doesn't
he realize this is just going to set off a chain of copy-cats?"

"And the real killer is going to change tactics," Lois pointed
out. "I would bet anything that this guy isn't finished yet, but
he isn't going to try the same thing a third time."

"I don't think he would have anyway," Clark said. "I think part
of the thrill for him is getting away with it. He'll want to do
something different next time to show the police how clever he
is."

"We should get down to STAR Labs," Lois suggested. "There has to
be a connection between Rachel, Tony and the killer."

<><><>

The receptionist at STAR Labs gave them a polite smile and told
them that, due to security issues, they could not release a
statement to the press. When Lois started to protest she put her
hand on the phone and smiled as she said, "Please don't make me
have to call security."

"Having problems? I could help you, for a price," Ken Randall
said from behind them.

"Oh, Ken, really?" Lois asked as she turned around. "Where's
your film crew? I've heard you can't do anything unless there's
a camera involved."

Ken raised his eyebrows lecherously. "Sweetheart, no one knows
that better than you. Don't piss me off, Lois. I still have
everything on tape."

Lois shook her head at Clark.

"Did you know Claude left an epic poem about you on the wall of
the men's room at the Press Club?" Ken gave her a nasty smile.

Clark shook his head at Lois.

"Ah, Kent, you're right. It was actually more like a limerick.
It was a damn shame when they painted over it. Don't worry,
though, I've got it committed to memory." Ken tapped his head
and winked at her.

"Let's go, Clark." Once they were outside Lois turned back,
looking through the plate-glass window of the lobby to see Ken
waving cheerfully at them. "That man is vermin. He must feel
right at home in the sewer." She blew out a sigh and put her
hands on her hips, looking at Clark through narrowed eyes. 

"What?" Clark asked.

Lois shrugged. "So have you talked to him?"

"To who?" Clark shook his head, confused by who she meant. "Ken?
You think I tipped him off about the sewer?"

She gave him a disgusted look. "No, Superman! Have you talked to
him?"

"No." Clark shook his head again. "Does this mean you're willing
to ask for his help now?"

"No, this means I'm willing for *you* to ask for his help now,"
she clarified. "You go find him, I'll see if I can round up
Bobby Bigmouth. Maybe he's heard something. I'll meet you back
at the Planet."

"Okay," Clark turned to leave.

"Clark?"

"Yes?" He turned around to see that she hadn't moved and was
watching him with worry in her eyes.

"You're not, I mean, you won't, uh, last night and, um, this
morning, that's..."

Clark felt the urge to laugh even as guilt twisted through him.
"I won't say anything to him, or anyone else, about that. I
promise."

She looked so relieved - it made him feel even worse. You're
just digging that hole deeper, he told himself. So deep he was
trapped. There was no way to tell her anymore without her
turning it into a felony.

<><><>

It never failed to amaze Clark how differently people treated
him when he was dressed as Superman. That same receptionist who
had barely glanced at him before couldn't seem to take her eyes
off of him as he waited in the lobby for Dr. Gatenby to meet
with him. 

Ken Randall was still lurking at STAR Labs, although he was
camped outside the building now. Ken watched him intently
through the glass but he didn't seem willing to approach. So who
was he waiting for? Did Ken have a source here? Clark toyed with
the idea of having Superman tell Ken to back off on harassing
Lois but decided that would do more damage than good.

The elevator doors behind the receptionist's desk opened and a
tall, wiry man with tousled black hair stepped out. "Superman,"
he said, smiling and holding his hand out as he approached.

Clark shook his hand as the man introduced himself as Dr. Weston
Gatenby, the supervisor over electronics research at STAR Labs.
Not wishing to mislead the man, Clark hastened to let him know
the purpose of his visit.

"Dr. Gatenby, you should know that I'm here at the request of
Lois Lane and Clark Kent of the Daily Planet. Unless you
specifically forbid it, I will tell them everything that I can
concerning what we discuss."

"You trust them both?"

"Absolutely."

"I hope you can understand my hesitation. Both Tony Weir and
Rachel Eames were working on a top secret project here at STAR
Labs." Weston gestured towards the elevator. "Please, let's take
this somewhere less public and I'll explain. If you feel
comfortable sharing that information with your reporter friends,
I will trust your judgment. But none of this can be attributed
to me."

"I understand," Clark reassured him. "I promise they'll cite you
as an unnamed source."

As the elevator doors closed, Dr. Gatenby began to explain.
"Some years ago STAR Labs did contract work for the government
on EMP weapons, electromagnetic pulse, that is. We had a limited
success but nothing that was ready for the military. Last year
we were asked to shift our focus and work on a creating an ESW
weapon. That's short for electroshock wave. It's very similar to
a taser, but they wanted something that could travel further and
was less messy, no wires, you see." 

Clark nodded his understanding. "And have you succeeded in
creating such a weapon?"

"Ahhh," Gatenby ran his fingers through his hair. "Mostly. The
human body is full of electrolytes, all those electrochemical
impulses that make it possible for us to think and move. We were
focusing on creating a short burst weapon, one that could
scramble a person's electrolytes enough to impair them."

"Or kill them," Clark added. The elevator doors opened and he
followed Gatenby down a brightly lit hallway.

"Or kill them," Gatenby allowed, "if necessary. And we were very
close to having a workable solution when our funding was yanked
and we were informed that since our research was the
government's intellectual property it had to be turned over to
Lex Labs. They had just won the contract and we were to cease
and desist from going any further with the project. This was
just a few weeks before Lex Luthor, well, you know, died
unexpectedly." Gatenby pushed open an office door and gestured
for Clark to enter.

"So you turned the research over to Lex Labs?" Clark asked as
Gatenby sat down behind the desk inside the office.

"Yes. Please, have a seat."

"No, thank you. And then what happened?" Clark had found that it
was almost always better to stand in the suit. It projected
confidence and it made whomever he was talking with much more
forthcoming in their answers.

"And then nothing happened. Mr. Luthor died just days after the
information began to change hands. Right now the project, so far
as I know, is in limbo."

"Who was working on it at Lex Labs?"

"We met with a man named, ahhhh," Gatenby closed his eyes and
thought about it. "Something common, like Smith or Jones or...
Johnson, that was it. His name was Johnson but that's all I knew
about him. He took all our files and our prototype and that was
it. It was no longer our project. I'm sorry I can't be of more
help than this. It's tragic, what happened to Tony. Do you think
his accident is related to the project?"

Clark gave Dr. Gatenby a grim smile and reached across the desk
to shake his hand. "That's what I'm hoping to find out. Thank
you for your time, Dr. Gatenby. If they have questions, would it
be all right for Ms. Lane or Mr. Kent to contact you directly?"

"As long as they don't ask about anything proprietary, yes."

"Thank you. I'll tell them." Clark gave him a nod. "I'll show
myself out."

<><><>

As he stepped off the elevator at the Planet, Clark found
himself face to face with Cat Grant. She flashed him an even
more knowing smile than usual. "Clark," she practically purred,
"are you ever going to let me make up that dinner to you?"

"I'm sorry?" Clark tried to move past her but she linked her arm
through his and fell into step beside him.

"We never really did get to finish our dinner. Do you have a
girlfriend now or are you still available?"

"Oh," Clark picked at an imaginary spot on his tie so he
wouldn't have to look at her. "I, uh..."

"Back off, Cat," Lois said from behind them. "I'm pretty sure
Clark's spent enough time at your place that he doesn't want to
go back."

"Is that true, Clark?" Cat put on a hurt expression. "Don't I
have anything to offer you?"

"I, uh, need to return a phone call," Clark gave Cat a polite
smile and stepped sideways to free himself from the hand she had
on his arm.

"You're not his type," Lois said with a smug grin.

"Lois, I'm every man's type. It's just a matter of whether they
admit it. So, do you think you're Clark's type?"

Lois blinked and Cat noticed with delight that her gaze
skittered over to the supply closet door. "I don't care." 

Cat didn't say anything as Lois pushed past her to go to her
desk. She grinned widely, relishing the feeling of being hot on
the trail of good gossip.

They definitely weren't dating.

<><><>

"And that's it?" Lois asked. "That's all he told you?"

"That's everything Dr. Gatenby told Superman. Did you want me to
make up something more interesting?"

Lois rolled her eyes and sighed. "No, of course not. It's just
that Lex Labs is defunct now. They closed down after..." She
looked away from him and cleared her throat nervously. 

"I did some checking. They're called Vibrant Technologies now.
The board of directors took out a multi-million dollar loan and
bought the lab outright from Luthor's estate last month."

"Oh," Lois said in a small voice. She hated that the mere
mention of Lex's name still gave her chills.

Clark looked away as he continued speaking to give Lois time to
compose herself. He'd noticed her reticence whenever Luthor's
name came up in conversation. He knew the memory had to be
painful for her, but he didn't dare to ask if it was because she
still had feelings for the man. The longer it went, the more
awkward it would be to ask her about him. 

"I called Vibrant Technologies," he said, "but I couldn't get
anyone to talk to me. A lady in Human Resources told me that Mr.
Johnson no longer worked for the company. She wouldn't give me a
first name or any contact information. She wouldn't even tell me
when he left or why. She did hint that many people were let go
after the lab changed owners."

Lois frowned. This wasn't going well at all.

"Did you get something from Bobby that we could follow-up on?"
Clark asked.

She shook her head. "Bobby didn't know much. He said he'd keep
his ears open and contact me if anything came up."

"So now what?"

Lois tapped her keyboard softly, not typing, just thinking. "We
do a check of all the Johnsons in Metropolis? See if any of them
are electrical engineers? Can we pull the last census and see if
we can narrow it down by occupation and surname?"

"What if Johnson was an alias?"

"Not likely," Lois said. "Lex Labs did background checks on
everyone working there."

"Okay, you compile a list of Johnsons from the phone book and
I'll go pull the last census." Clark stood up and headed towards
Research. He glanced back to see Lois still staring moodily at
her keyboard. 

Sensing his gaze, she looked over at him. He gave her a
tentative smile and turned to leave, but not before he saw her
smile back.

<><><>

By six o'clock Lois was slumped over her keyboard, her eyes
bleary from staring at the computer's screen. She rubbed the
back of her neck and looked over at Clark. He was typing away,
occasionally pausing to read his screen. Suddenly his head
turned, looking across the newsroom with that puzzled expression
that usually meant he had forgotten something.

No wagering, she told herself, but she had already made the bet
in her mind. He was going to come over and tell her he had an
errand to run. 

Sure enough, he came over and touched her shoulder. "I need to
check on my neighbor, Mrs. Dixon. She's diabetic and her husband
is out of town; he wanted me to look in on her. Are you hungry?
I can pick up something and bring it over. You still want me to
come over tonight, don't you?"

Lois flushed. "Um, yeah. Bring dinner over and we can, uh, work
on the story."

She shook her head as she watched him jog away. A diabetic
neighbor? Either Clark was the most altruistic man in the world
or he was the worst liar.

<><><>

"Are you going to eat those?" Clark pointed at her chips. Lois
pushed them across the table to him.

"Nope, take them."

"Thanks."

Lois crumpled up the wrapper from her sandwich and took aim at
her kitchen garbage can about six feet away. The wrapper
ricocheted off her cabinet, bounced against the rim of the can
and fell to the floor.

Clark raised an eyebrow and began to slowly wad up the wrapper
from his sandwich. He looked sideways at the can, then back at
Lois. He tossed it in the direction of the garbage without
looking over again. It dropped in easily, never even touching
the sides.

"Show off," Lois said.

"If I was showing o