Remember When It Rained By princessanna Rated: PG Submitted August 2007 ----------------------------------------------------------- Author's Note: This is my first L&C story and is set at the end of 'And the Answer Is' onwards. I utilised a tiny bit of the script at the beginning, but from then on it's my own interpretation/story. Thank you very much to my beta, Miriam. Her help was hugely appreciated. If it wasn't for her laughing with me over several title ideas, we might never have come up with the title as you now see it! Disclaimer: I do not own Lois and Clark. This story is not for profit and all characters (apart from Diana and Dougal) belong to those people who made Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman. Thoughts are shown by single quotation marks (ie. 'He's stupid,' she thought.) -------------------------------------------------------------- "Lois, will you marry me?" Clark dropped to one knee, displaying a ring. His question was followed by a brief moment where all Clark could hear was Lois' heartbeat, the rain, and their breathing. Then Lois leaned closer, coming so close their lips were almost touching. She dropped the bombshell. "Who's asking? Clark...or Superman?" Clark's face registered his astonishment, but Lois' was harder to read. This was one of those times when superhuman powers were not going to get him out of a sticky situation. "Wha-? I...um... L-Lois?" He stumbled and stuttered over his words, not producing much of anything. Eventually he was able to construct a sufficient sentence. "When- How did you find out?" The expression on Lois' face was still unfathomable. "Well, which is it, Clark?" she asked in a neutral tone. "When, or how?" "Um, how, I suppose." He watched her warily, just waiting for the classic 'Lane explosion'. It didn't come; not yet in any case. What he got instead was an answer. "When you touched my face." When Clark looked rather confused, she continued. "Just before you froze me, you touched my face in a certain way. Only Clark had ever touched me in just that way before. When you did it as Superman, everything clicked into place somehow. I've been thinking about it ever since you woke me up." "A-and, you're not angry?" He had to find out. Her tone and inscrutable expression was unsettling him somewhat. "Not angry? Oh no. I'm angry," Lois said. It was only at that moment that she began to show any emotion about the situation. "In fact, I'm more than angry, Clark. Like I said, I've been thinking about it since you woke me up. It may not be an overly long period of time, but believe me, I've had ample opportunity to get to 'angry' in my long, long list of emotions regarding this-this deception." "Oh. Um-" Clark paused, glancing around them as the rain stilled. "Maybe this isn't the best place to talk, Lois. Shall we...walk?" "Walk? All right, let's walk, Clark." Lois began to stride away from the fountain where they'd been situated, letting loose a tirade that rivaled any of her previous bests, if not in length, then in the force behind it. All that Clark could do was follow. "You lie to me for well over a year; you hide one half of yourself from me; you let me think that you were dead, for goodness sakes! How could you do that to me, Clark? Do you know how that made me feel? And don't get me started on trust in this relationship, because obviously there isn't any!" "Lois!" Clark resisted using his super speed to force her to stand still long enough to look at him. "There were reasons, circumstances! I wanted to tell you! And I did trust you -- I mean, I do trust you!" "If you trusted me so much I wouldn't have been blaming myself and feeling the agony of losing you when you d-d-died!" Her voice subsided as she dissolved into the tears she'd been holding back in one way or another since waking from her frozen sleep. Clark, hardly able to stand seeing her like that, made a move to put his arms around her. But she shook his hands off. "Don't you touch me, Clark Kent!" One hand moved to wipe her tear-stained cheek. "Don't you dare touch me right now!" The anger that he'd thought gone was still very much an issue, it seemed. "What do you want me to say, Lois?" Clark asked in a tight voice. "That I'm sorry I lied to you? Because I am, if it makes any difference. I'm sorry, more than I can express in words. But like I said, I had reasons for not telling you. You were in love with Superman, there was Lex and-" Lois cut in acidly. "Lex hasn't been around for months now, Clark. And I told you I chose you! So don't you use any of those as excuses for why you didn't tell me. At the very least you could have told me after we agreed to take the next step. Before proposing to me!" "I thought the next step was proposing!" Clark whispered forcefully, aware that, having arrived back at Lois' apartment they were now surrounded by her neighbours, any of which could be listening eagerly at their window. Lois unlocked the door to her building and stepped inside. "Well you thought wrong," she said firmly. And she slammed the door in his face. ***** The next morning, Clark tried to get to Lois' apartment early so that he could have it out with her before work. But the wily Ms Lane was long gone when he arrived at her door. Heading to the Planet, Clark stopped off and brought a bunch of purple hyacinths. While at the florist, he also composed a short note to Lois to go with the flowers. Then, reflecting that it couldn't hurt, he stopped in the Planet's foyer and bought a box full of Lois' favourite comfort food, Double Fudge Crunch bars. When the doors of the elevator opened to reveal the newsroom, Clark's eyes quickly scanned the room for Lois. He saw her sitting at her desk, talking with the paper's newest import. Dougal Finnegan had transferred from the London office of the Planet just one week before. His coal black hair and intriguing blue eyes had had most of the paper's female population under his spell by the end of his first day. On the verge of walking over to talk to Lois, Clark heard his editor, Perry White, call: "Clark, my office now!" When Clark complied, his editor waved him into the room, closing the door behind the two of them. "Have a seat, Clark," he said, gesturing towards a chair. "This won't take long." "What's up, Chief?" asked Clark, wondering what it was that his editor wanted to talk to him about, without Lois also being involved. He racked his brain: her birthday wasn't coming up, so it couldn't be a surprise party. Did Perry know something that he didn't about his partner? Was Lois okay? Did he want him to keep an eye on her? "Well, Clark, you see... It's like this. You've got a new partner." Seeing the perplexed look on Clark's face, Perry White hastily amended his sentence. "Oh, ah-just temporarily, of course!" "But, Chief... Um, can I ask why? What about Lois?" "She has a new partner too. Also temporarily." When Clark looked sceptical about the 'temporary' aspect of the arrangement, Perry explained. "Lois came to see me this morning, son. She asked me for a favour -- for the two of you to work separately for a time. Now, I know, I know: why would I break up my best reporting team, simply to cater to Lois Lane's wishes? Well, although I suspect this sudden need to work apart from you is neither more nor less than the result of a fight you two have had, I thought that it might be a good idea to split up the team of Lane and Kent for a while. It'll do you both good to learn to work with other people. Lois especially." "Lois requested this?" Clark was sure he could feel his heart sinking in his chest. "Aw, now don't look so down, son. It's only temporary. For a couple of weeks, I promise you. By the way, I've set you up with Diana Harwood. She's shown she's got potential and I'd like to foster that and give her a chance or two to prove herself with her writing. And Lois is teamed with-" "Dougal," Clark finished, his heart plummeting even further. He glanced out into the newsroom and watched his erstwhile partner laugh loudly at something the dashing Irish man had said. Perry nodded. "I know you'll do the Planet proud, Clark, and I know that you'll do all you can to help Diana." He could see the disappointment in his reporter's eyes. But he also knew that Clark wouldn't let him down when he put his trust in him. Clark exhaled a little loudly, but forced a smile on to his face and said, "Of course, Chief." "That's all, son. I believe that Diana is out by the coffee machine," his editor said in dismissal. Clark stood slowly, making himself walk to the door and open it. He marched to the coffee machine to talk to Diana, pausing on the way to place the flowers and chocolate on Lois' desktop. He looked up at her quickly, but she seemed too busy talking to Dougal to notice his gift. Clark hoped that she'd at least notice the note before throwing the flowers out, and put her anger at him aside long enough to read it. 'There's Clark,' Lois thought, sensing rather than seeing her partner set the presents down. She'd observed him closely while he was in talking to Perry, only half listening to what Dougal was saying at the time. Her vision wasn't quite 20/20, but she'd still been able to clearly see the confused and hurt expression on Clark's face. For just a moment she'd felt bad about hurting him like that, but in an instant her little devil had poked it's head up and berated her for feeling sorry for her partner. After all, he'd hurt her. He'd lied to her and he hadn't trusted her; she was very angry with him. And it was with this spiteful little voice whispering in her ear, that Lois leaned into Dougal, giggling at something else he'd said. On the inside however, she was pondering who Perry would have teamed Clark up with. "Diana?" Clark paused beside the slim blonde woman. She turned, displaying her sunny expression. "Clark, hi! Perry told me you'd be working with me for a while. I'm so excited! I might actually get the chance to write something for the front page!" Diana's energy and enthusiasm was infectious. Clark couldn't help but feel a little less grumpy about the situation. "I know you'll do great," he assured her with a smile. "Perry has faith in you." "Thanks, Clark." Diana grinned. "I just hope I don't screw it up!" From the other side of the newsroom, Lois surveyed the interactions between Clark and Diana Harwood. "I see that Perry's paired up Clark with Diana," she commented, a hint of jealousy tingeing her tone. 'Hmm... She's always had a crush on Clark. Of course, he's never been aware of it. He simply has no idea that most of the female staff under the age of fifty gossip about him in the ladies room. I'll have to keep an eye on her...' At her voice, Dougal glanced up from a report he was perusing. "Sure seems like it," he replied, watching his partner's face. Right now she was studying Clark Kent and Diana Harwood as they talked. He saw her eyes narrow as Diana placed a hand on Clark's chest briefly, flirtatiously. He raised his eyebrows. He had to hand it to Clark's new partner -- if she continued as she was, pretty soon Lois Lane would be using him to make Clark jealous, with just a little subtle suggestion to help her on her way. And that could work to his advantage. Lois Lane was the person he'd always hoped to work with. And her good looks were only part of the reason why... ***** Later that day, Clark and Diana returned to the newsroom after covering a press conference where the mayor was addressing sexual harassment claims made against him by a former assistant. Upon exiting the elevator, Clark became acutely aware of Lois and Dougal sitting very close together as they eagerly discussed something. "-and Bobby said that they were involved in the robbery," he heard Lois state as he tuned into their conversation. "That makes perfect sense," Dougal replied. "After all, what criminal activities have Intergang not been involved with in the past few years?" 'Hmm... So Lois is on to a story involving Intergang,' Clark mused, a frown sliding on to his face. 'Some of the most dangerous criminals in Metropolis, and I won't be with her while she's investigating. She's made sure of that!' He sat down at his desk, absent-mindedly shuffling a pile of papers as he thought. 'I know that she's mad at me; I expected it. But why does she have to take this so far? I won't be able to protect her so easily when I'm not with her.' "Clark?" He glanced up to see Diana logging off her computer before stuffing some files into her bag. "I'm going to head home, okay? I'll go over the copy of the deposition that the mayor's assistant made, tonight. Something about what the mayor said at the press conference rang true to me. I think that somewhere in the assistant's statements there's an inconsistency just waiting to be uncovered." "Maybe you should have gone into law," Clark joked, putting down his stack of papers and focusing on her. "But seriously, I'll see you tomorrow, Di. Have a good night. Don't work too hard." "Thanks, Clark. See you later!" Diana headed for the elevator, and Clark quickly focused his attentions on Lois and her partner once more. He watched as Dougal leaned into Lois, pointing at something on a piece of paper she held. Clark gritted his teeth, fighting the urge to run over there at super speed and yank the suave Irish man away from her. Instead, his fists clenched beneath the desktop and he looked away from the scene momentarily, trying to regain his composure. When he glanced back, Dougal was standing and heading over to his desk. He started to pack up his papers. Lois also began putting things into her briefcase and subsequently the pair walked out of the newsroom together. Forcing himself wait to for a full fifteen minutes after they'd gone, Clark eventually headed home, his spirits at what seemed like an all time low. He was determined to visit Lois that night. Despite her obvious attempts to avoid him at work and the fact that she'd barely glanced his way all day, it wouldn't be so easy in her own home. Of course, she could always shut the door on him like she had the night before, and the window for that matter. But he didn't think that she would. Lois liked a good fight far too much; she wanted to yell at him some more. It was all a part of getting it out of her system, he assured himself. Lois would want to talk. After all, he'd checked: the flowers were still on her desk, but she'd taken the note. ***** Lois had indeed taken the note. And almost an hour after reading it through for the first time she was still sitting, virtually motionless, at her table. It wasn't so much the words themselves that had floored her, it was that she'd realised that she hadn't been thinking about Clark's feelings in this situation at all. "But he lied to me..." she muttered aloud, her brain processing thoughts frantically. "Why should I consider how he feels? He certainly didn't consider how I'd feel..." The frown on her face softened slightly. "However angry I am, I do miss him... But the question remains: can I really forgive him that easily?" It was as her thoughts lingered over these confusing deliberations that the devilish little imp inside of her spoke up for the second time that day. "Clark Kent lied to you! Don't back down now. Let him lose sleep worrying. Let him agonize over thoughts of whether you'll take him back. He deserves it!" A scowl descended over Lois' features. "He did lie to me. I can't just forgive and forget, not so quickly. It's not that simple. I have to decide whether a deceptive, distrustful Clark is the sort of man I want to be involved with, let alone be married to." She sighed and allowed her head to fall forward on to her outstretched arms. This time when she spoke, her voice was muffled. "Why did I even read that note?" Just then, a tapping sounded at her window. She knew that tap. Only one person ever tapped at her window, two stories up from the street. And that was the one special person who, out of all the individuals in the world, could fly. The one person that she really didn't want to talk to. The one person who, despite all the words she'd said, still caused her head and her heart to become utterly confused. "Go away," she mumbled, positive he could hear her. "Lois." His voice came, barely audible, through the window. "Please, let me in." "I said go away!" She could feel her temper rising as she raised her head and gazed at his silhouette through the filmy curtains covering her window. "I don't want to talk to you. Or didn't I make that clear enough at work today?" Hovering outside the window, Clark listened to Lois' last sentence and felt again the tumult of emotions that had been swirling around inside of him since the previous night. The pain was acute, and Lois didn't seem to care. That's what hurt the most. "You made it perfectly clear," he said, biting back the cutting remarks being batted about by his brain. It was urging him to hurt her as much as she was hurting him. "But I value our relationship too much to just walk away from you now." There was a slight scuffling sound from inside before the window was thrown open. A dishevelled Lois stood facing him, a fierce look upon her face. "Okay. You want to talk? Let's talk. I'll talk." And with that statement, Lois Lane went into full babble mode. "I do not want to have anything to do with you right now, Clark Kent. And do you know why? You should know why. It's because you lied to me. You deceived me; you misled me; you tricked, swindled, hoodwinked, conned and betrayed me. You lied about your identity for over a year and in the midst of it all, you allowed me to believe that you were dead when you weren't. I was in so much pain that night, Clark! I thought that you were gone! And I thought that it was all my fault! How on earth could you do something like that to someone you supposedly love? No, wait; don't answer that. I know why. Because you had to keep your secret; your precious secret." Her voice had taken on a slightly mocking tone. "Well, you know what I think about your secret right now, Kent?" Lois' mouth twisted in a grimace. "I think it would serve you right if everyone knew." A wave of fear washed over Clark. His eyes widened. "Lois, you wouldn't...?" Lois turned her back on the window and started walking. Finally she stopped, as far away from him as she could get in the small apartment. "No," she said with a sigh, "I wouldn't. But only because I know what it would mean for your parents. Jonathan and Martha don't deserve to be embroiled in this." He exhaled in relief. "Thank you." She spun around once more, the ire still evident in her expression. "Don't thank me. Just go." A final word was uttered, squeezed out of the side of her mouth as if she didn't want to let it go. "Please." Clark studied his partner for a moment, watching the set of her jaw and the way her arms were folded tightly across her chest. Silently he nodded, and without another word he extended one arm and shot straight up, looking to the emptiness of space for solace. Back in her apartment Lois sagged, relaxing her body. She'd stayed incredibly tense throughout the entire encounter and it was a relief to have him gone, so that she could be alone with her thoughts once more. It was dangerous having Clark around. Seeing him was like a king size block of chocolate being flourished in front of a person on a diet: hazardous both to the dieter and to the person brandishing the chocolate. If she were to give in now, simply because she missed him, her anger would overwhelm the relationship, effectively killing anything that was there. She needed to take a little time to forgive his iniquities, and to get to know him again. Time to reconcile her head with her heart. ***** Getting dressed the following morning, Lois reflected on the conversation she'd had with Clark. She hadn't been entirely honest with him, saying that she'd keep his secret solely for the sake of Martha and Jonathan. The truth was that she wouldn't tell a soul even if his parents didn't exist. She just wanted him to feel a little of the pain she felt. Because while her anger appeared to be dissipating, the hurt still remained. For some reason she seemed to be feeling more...more.... More what? Lois shook her head as she pulled on a shoe. Well, just more than she'd felt before. But what on earth did that mean? As she drove to work, her mind was still puzzling through how her feelings could possibly have an added intensity to what they'd had in the past; the last time she'd felt betrayed by a man. Claude. It was only as she turned into a parking space at the Planet that she became conscious of the reason, of the 'how'. Clark. Clark just meant...more. More than Claude, more than any other man had ever meant before. The list of other men wasn't exactly a long one, given the distrust of men instilled in her by her father. But Clark... Well, Clark was just different to all of them. Unlike the others, he'd firmly inserted himself into her life, first as her partner, and then as a friend. As a friend he'd become incredibly important; a central figure in her life and seemingly vital to her continued sanity. Now, as a man -- the only man really -- that she could envision a future with, he was infinitely more precious. However scary that was. This revelation caused Lois to walk into the bullpen of the newsroom with a frown fixed securely upon her face. Her heart jumped in her chest at the sight of Clark, before she noticed that he was with Diana Harwood. The young blonde was beaming at him, her chair pulled as close as it could get to his while they worked on a story. Frankly, Clark looked a little uncomfortable with her proximity, but he wasn't putting extra distance between them. Lois' grimace became more pronounced. Giving every indication that she was ignoring Clark and Diana, Lois swiftly crossed the newsroom floor to her desk and started thumbing through her Rolodex. When a hand landed on her shoulder, she jumped, startled at the interruption. Turning, she was ready and willing to give whoever had surprised her like that a piece of her mind. "Sorry, Lois," Dougal got in first, his usual slick smile firmly in place. "I didn't mean to scare you." Disconcerted, Lois wasn't sure what to say. Instead she sat down in her chair and turned on her computer. "We've got a lot of work to do today," was what she finally managed to get out. A sigh escaped her lips. "Did you get a chance to go over those dates of supposed Cost Mart shipments last night?" "Yes, I-" "Well? Did any of them match up with our other information regarding Intergang?" Dougal's smile wavered. For some reason, this morning Lois Lane seemed immune to his natural charms. "Not really. That's why I'd like to talk to you about-" "They didn't?" Lois pulled a face. "How can that be? I was so sure..." "Sometimes these things just don't work out, Lois," Dougal said soothingly, placing his hand on her shoulder in what Lois was sure was supposed to be a reassuring manner. "Sometimes you just need to give up and move on to something else." Irritated at his words and at his presuming touch, Lois shifted pointedly in her chair, jostling his hand free of her shoulder. She was about to inform him that Lois Lane did not give up, when something -- later, she wouldn't be able to say quite what it was -- caught her attention about her partner and stopped her. Her instincts told her that something was wrong in this situation. That 'something' was either the words being said, or the actions, or simply the person. She glanced at Dougal: what was it that had made her wary enough to bite back her retort? That was something else that Lois Lane didn't do. Not usually, anyway. Something wasn't right here... "So, what did you have in mind? To, uh, move on to, that is?" Lois said flashing Dougal what she knew was an overly bright smile. Dougal didn't appear to notice her rapid shift to excessive cheerfulness. He was too busy touching her again. Lois stifled the urge to thump him and quietly decided to do some investigating later on her own. Across the room, Clark had been watching the exchange with a growing feeling of animosity towards the Irish man. He wouldn't go so far as to say that he'd like to hurt Dougal, because Superman, not to mention Clark Kent, did not intentionally harm people. But to be completely honest, he was close to changing his mind. Just a little bit: just enough to allow him to throw one punch Dougal's way. Then, just as suddenly as he'd started touching Lois, Dougal stopped. Clark watched for a moment or two more, but no further handling of his partner ensued. So he made himself listen to what Diana was saying. "-and then the mayor's assistant said that she'd left the office at eight-fifteen, right? So I checked the mayor's statements and he said she left no later than six-thirty. There's a whole hour and a three quarters difference! So I asked around, and those sources who watch city hall closely report that the mayor's assistant did in fact leave at around six-thirty, and, I quote, 'She looked fine'." Clark grinned at the young woman. "Good work, Di. Looks like you're becoming almost as tenacious as Mad Dog Lane." Diana blushed and looked up at him from under her long eyelashes. "I'll take that as a compliment, Clark," she giggled. Then she became more serious. "Look, I have something I'd like to ask you. You can say no, but I hope you won't. You'll remember that the Kerth ceremony is coming up in just over a week, and I was wondering -- hoping -- that'd you'd go with me." Clark glanced down at where her hand had landed, laced with his and holding on with a pleading grip. All of a sudden his chest felt constricted and he nervously began to fiddle with his tie. "Oh...um, well you know I usually, um, go with..." He paused here, somehow afraid of saying Lois' name. "With Lois," Diana finished for him. "I know. But I was just thinking that maybe, since we're partners this time round that you might forgo tradition in favour of...friendship?" From over at the coffee pot, Lois rolled her eyes at the flagrant flirting that Diana was engaging in. After watching the exchange between Clark and his partner she'd wandered closer to them, pretending all the while to be filling her coffee mug. But her real objective was of course to listen in on the conversation: the urge to investigate just what Diana Harwood meant by clasping Clark's hand and looking at him in that overly amorous manner couldn't be ignored. The poor naive farm boy was going to get himself roped into doing something that she'd-um, he'd regret. Meanwhile, Clark was debating the situation internally. Taking Diana to the Kerths would certainly make Lois jealous; Clark wasn't sure whether that was a good thing or a bad thing. On the other hand, did he really want to go with Diana? Would he enjoy himself with her? He'd have a better time with Lois it was true, but that was simply because she was Lois and he loved her. However, in her present state of mind and with all the anger she was directing towards him, realistically it wouldn't be the same; she'd probably spend the entire night yelling at him for lying to her, if he could even get her to go with him in the first place. Clark stifled a loud sigh: in spite of everything, he'd still rather go with Lois Lane. That settled it. He had to say no to Diana. He had to stop her flirting -- because that's what it obviously was; even he, the naive farm boy, could see that -- and let her down easily. She was young: she'd bounce back quickly. Maybe he could even set her up with Jimmy at some later date. 'You just have to say, 'Diana, I'm sorry; I can't go with you to the Kerths. It wouldn't be right.' It's easy, you can do it,' Clark told himself. But the words that came out of his mouth did not seem to match those swirling round inside his head. "Uh, do you mind if I think about it and get back to you, Di?" Instantly he berated himself for this response, but nevertheless he couldn't seem to get his mouth to form the right words: the harder words. Because he didn't want to hurt Diana, but it would be inevitable, eventually. He couldn't lead her on -- but he was! Clark pictured himself pounding his head against a brick wall in penance for his stupidity. Even done mentally, it didn't hurt him either; he supposed wryly that that meant the Man of Steel had a steel brain as well. Still listening with the coffee pot in her hand, Lois was shocked to hear Clark's response to Diana's question. She had thought that he would reject her outright. It'd undoubtedly be done in his usual polite, gentlemanly manner but even so, he would reject her. So absorbed was Lois in her eavesdropping, that she didn't realise her hand had tipped ever so slightly, tilting the open coffee pot towards the floor and her feet. Clark, however, was on full Lois alert as always. He moved at a speed that was almost too fast for a normal man, coming to rest at Lois' side. Rapidly reaching out, he seized the hot coffee pot and carefully set it down upon the table. "Careful, Lois," he said quietly, throwing her a small smile. "Wouldn't want you to get burnt." "I, uh... T-thanks, Clark," Lois stuttered, grateful to him at that time, despite her mixed feelings towards him in general. At that moment she became aware of their close proximity to one another and felt her heart begin to hammer against her chest in that old familiar way. She looked down. Her face felt warm: she could imagine the crimson countenance she must now be presenting to those close by. Attempting to collect herself, Lois counted to ten under her breath and then glanced up, directly into the deep brown eyes of the man she'd been trying so hard to avoid. Her heartbeat seemed to quicken again and she found her breathing hard to control. She had to get away from him; he was dangerous, even now, even when she was mad at him. He was chocolate and she was the dieter. But those eyes -- a careful balance between an intense untapped passion and Clark's own extraordinary tenderness and compassion... No! It had to be done, while she still retained enough control over her body to move. "E-excuse me," she stuttered once more, edging away from him and back towards her desk. She almost stumbled along the way, catching herself at the last moment and trying to make it look as if she'd meant to lean against Ralph's desk. 'How does he do that to me?' she asked herself, sitting back down at her desk. 'How does he manage to make me so incredibly weak in the knees every time I'm near him?' The answer, Lois discovered, was simple: it was because despite everything, she was in love with him. ***** Later, in Smallville, Superman paced the floor, his agitated state apparent in his creased forehead and clenched fists. "I understand why she's mad, Mom. What I don't understand is why she's asked Perry to partner her with Dougal instead of with me! I mean, surely the entire situation would be easier on both of us if we just talked it over? Right?" "Uh, Clark..." "I mean, talking about a difficult situation helps to work out the problems and to solve them! Talking soothes hurt feelings. If I don't get to talk to her, how am I ever going to convince her that I'm sorry and get her to see that I had to keep this," gesturing at the Superman suit, "from her? And Lois likes to talk: she likes to babble. I love that about her. So why won't she talk to me now? I want to talk: she doesn't want to talk. Doesn't that seem like a complete paradox to you? I-" "Clark Jerome Kent! Stop!" Martha Kent stood in front of her son, her eyes firm behind their glasses. "You're babbling just as much as Lois does. Now calm down, take a deep breath and stop pacing! You're making me dizzy." Properly chastened, Clark did as his mother told him and once he was seated, spoke again. "Sorry, Mom." "That's all right, Clark. But you know, just because Lois isn't talking doesn't mean she isn't thinking. She'll talk to you when she's ready. She probably just needs some time to process everything!" Clark looked at his mother thoughtfully. "You know, you're probably right. And I haven't been allowing her to do that. How did you get so wise?" "I'm not particularly wise, Clark," Martha said, trying to hide a grin. "I just know how women think." "That makes you wiser than me," Clark chuckled, but his face quickly became serious once more. "I've been pushing Lois to talk to me since this happened. And every time I do, she just succeeds in yelling at me some more. I guess I handled it wrong. I'm just so frustrated about the whole situation!" "We understand that son," Jonathan Kent spoke for the first time, moving over to sit beside Clark and place a reassuring hand on his shoulder, "but Lois, from what we've seen and heard of her, is a very independent young woman. Independent and-" "Headstrong," Clark finished with a sad smile. "One of the things I love about her the most." "Then let her get her head around the situation, honey," Martha interjected. "Let her realise how much you mean to her. Because Lois loves you; I'm certain of it." "How can you be so sure, Mom?" "Because I've seen it in her eyes." Martha smiled gently at her son and there was a moment of silence between the family members. Clark was the first to break it. "Waiting is going to be hard, but I know it'll be worth it in the end." ***** "And he-he just drives me nuts! You know? One minute we're enjoying dates with one another, the next I find out about this secret of his and it changes everything. I'm not even sure if he's the same guy I-" Lois paused mid-sentence, looking uncertainly at her therapist, Dr. Friskin. "Yes, Lois? What was it? Come on, it's not that difficult to say, is it?" Lois shook her head and backtracked a little before continuing. "-the same guy I fell in love with." "What makes you think that he may not be the same man, Lois?" Dr. Friskin asked calmly. There it was, the question she'd been expecting from the doctor. She'd been anticipating it, but yet she had no idea how to answer it. How on earth was she supposed to explain that the reason her boyfriend didn't seem like the same man to her was that he was also, well...Superman? Lois thought fast; she knew Dr. Friskin was waiting. "I've...seen another side of him," she finally said, giving a slightly apologetic smile at how weak her explanation sounded. She was usually so good under pressure... "Another side?" Dr. Friskin nodded. "I see. And this 'other side', does it appear often?" "Almost everyday," answered Lois with a sigh. "Are there any situations that bring out that side more?" "Um...life and death situations, usually," she said truthfully. "He feels like he needs to lend a hand." "Ahh... We call that the 'Superman Complex'," Dr. Friskin nodded for a second time. "Go on." "He's more...aloof; more reserved in that guise. He doesn't have as much time for me." "But does he help people at all, Lois? Or does he merely hinder them?" "Oh no...he helps. He's actually pretty good at it. He's helped me a number of times. In fact, he's saved my life." Lois smiled, remembering the times that Clark had saved her without the Suit. In particular, the times when he hadn't even used his super powers, unless of course you counted his incredible compassion and tenderness as powers... "So, if he's helping, why do you feel that you can't love that side of him also?" Dr. Friskin's voice broke into her thoughts and her words made Lois think. Why couldn't she love the super side of Clark? Didn't she love that side of him anyway? "I guess it's not that I can't love that side of him, it's more the fact that I'm feeling hurt over him hiding that side from me for so long. I was angry as well, but I think that that feeling's gone now." "So now it's just the pain that's left." The doctor wrote something down, and Lois suddenly registered that she'd been writing throughout the session. That she, an investigative reporter, had missed such a small detail made her realise how much she was concentrating on her fight with Clark. "Um, Dr. Friskin?" she said hesitantly. "Yes, Lois?" The elder woman glanced up. "Do you think I'll ever be able to forgive him?" "I think that that's entirely up to you, Lois," said the doctor. "But I do know that in the past month or so I've seen a real willingness in you to make positive, life altering decisions where before you were too scared. Perhaps forgiving this man might fall into that category." "Yes..." mused Lois. "Perhaps it might." ***** Early the next morning, long before many of the Planet staffers had crawled out of bed, Perry White was in his office looking for all the world as if he were reading that morning's edition. There was a knock at the door. "Morning, Chief," Jimmy Olsen poked his head around the edge of the slightly open door and grinned. Perry nodded in response and the young man continued. "I just wanted to let you know that I finished fixing your singing fish last night. It's in that box over there." He gestured towards a box that Perry hadn't noticed just inside the door. "Is there anything else you wanted me to do right now?" Perry thought for a moment, and then signalled that Jimmy should come in. "Step into my office, son," he said with a smile. "And close the door; quickly, before anybody else arrives and wants to ask me a question, or Ralph wants to continue to beg for a story assignment covering the alleged steroid use of women in the strip clubs." Perry chuckled. "I think we both know his real aim behind a story like that!" Jimmy laughed along with his boss, wondering all the while what the Chief wanted, pulling him into his office like that. He stepped inside and closed the door behind him. When the laughter died down, he asked, "What's up, Chief?" A guilty look stole over Perry's face and for a moment Jimmy could almost sense his internal deliberation. "Well, Olsen," he finally said, "you're friends with Clark. And this situation with him and Lois...it's getting out of hand. Has he said anything to you about what happened? Now, I don't want you to think that I'm looking for newsroom gossip. I just consider those two my best reporters and I'm worried about them. Notwithstanding Lois learning to work with other people, I want them back as Lane and Kent as soon as possible." "Yeah. Lane and Finnegan just doesn't have the right ring to it, huh, Chief?" Jimmy grinned. "But unfortunately, CK hasn't said anything to me. I don't know what they fought about." "Well, what do you think it might have been, son?" Perry inquired curiously. "I have my suspicions, but I'd like to hear the opinion of another person they're close to." "I-I think it may have had something to do with a marriage proposal," Jimmy ventured, a slight blush staining his youthful cheeks. "I uh, saw CK putting a ring box into his pocket last week." "Well, your thoughts match my suspicions," said Perry, heaving a loud sigh. He studied his hands, which were clasped upon the desktop. "And how long do you figure this argument will continue?" Jimmy shrugged. "Who knows, Chief? With Lois and CK, it could be over anytime between now and...well, the end of time." Perry sighed again: this time it was almost a groan. "That's what I was afraid of..." ***** Upon entering the newsroom that morning, Lois wasn't all too sure that she wanted to be there. Now, for the Planet's top reporter, this was an unheard of attitude and the sort of thing that, when presented in other people, she'd normally quietly mutter that they should suck it up and get on with things. However now she knew what they were all moaning about. Not wanting to be at work just transformed the day into a complicated maze of problems where the only solution was to plod on and on until an opportune time came to leave. The reason Lois didn't want to be at the Planet is because that is where she'd usually find Clark. And today was no exception: there he was, sitting at his desk. His head was down and he was muttering to himself, reading back a paragraph he'd written. This was something she'd often found rather endearing and, in spite of everything happening in their lives, she still did. She couldn't help a small smile appearing on her face as she sat down at her own desk and waited for the appearance of her partner. As was becoming usual for him, Dougal was almost quarter of an hour late and when Lois shot a partially disapproving, partially questioning glance his way, he just shrugged and took a seat. Lois frowned. Frankly, he was another reason that she didn't want to be at work. His constant touching of her the day before had been rather creepy and she foresaw another long day of fending off his advances. And she still hadn't quite figured out what it was that bothered her about him. She needed to do some investigating into Dougal Finnegan's background to find out what made him tick. Of course, in the past she would have done this sort of thing with Clark, but under the circumstances she wasn't about to ask for his help. Not just yet in any case... "All right!" Perry's voice rang out across the newsroom. "Staff meeting in Conference Room Two in five minutes time. Bring me your information: your notes, ideas and quotes, people! Five minutes, I repeat, five minutes!" At Perry's call, Lois began gathering her notes together. She glanced at Dougal, intending to double-check with him regarding their Intergang story; she wanted to know what they were going to say to their editor when he asked why they'd given up on it. But Dougal wasn't collecting his papers; he wasn't even getting ready for the meeting. Instead he was answering a call on his cell phone that had apparently just rung. "No, no of course not!" she could hear him saying as he cradled the phone between his shoulder and jaw line. "Hold on -- just let me go somewhere more private so we can talk about this." And with this statement, Dougal rushed for the door to the stairwell, evidently feeling that the person on the other end of his call didn't like to be kept waiting. Lois waited a moment and then, sensing that this occasion might perhaps give her some more insight as to what it was that bothered her about her partner, she followed. Well practiced in the fine art of eavesdropping, Lois knew better than to leave the door to the stairwell to swing shut of its own accord, no matter how much she felt like hurrying. So she held it tightly, helping it slowly and quietly to its natural port: the doorjamb. Once that had been achieved she began her slow, tiptoeing trek up the stairs. Before she'd ascended many flights, Lois detected a faint voice coming from about one story above where she stood. "Yeah, she's completely oblivious to what's going on," Dougal's voice said. A chuckle and a pause. "Yes, five o'clock tomorrow. I will, Mrs Church. Don't you worry -- Lois Lane won't know what hit her." Lois' heart started wildly thumping inside her chest. 'Lois Lane? But that's...my name! That's me!' She pressed herself against the wall of the stairwell, willing her legs to stop shaking and to hold her up. "Why me?" she said in an undertone, looking up and addressing the question to a panel of imagined deities seemingly controlling her life. "Why on earth is Dougal talking to the head of Intergang about me?" Lois shook her head and eventually forced her legs to quit their trembling. She spoke sternly to herself: "This is not what Lois Lane, top reporter of the Daily Planet does when faced with this sort of information. No, Lois Lane, top reporter of the Daily Planet-" she hesitated at a familiar sound descending towards her and then made her decision quickly, "-hides!" Lois rapidly slipped through the nearest door and ducked down so she couldn't be seen. The footsteps that she'd assumed to be Dougal's paused near her door and she peeked through the window in the door to see him looking around. Evidently he'd heard something. 'Lois, you've got to learn that voices, no matter how small, tend to become magnified in an open stairwell,' she reproved herself. Quietly she continued to watch as her apparent villain of a partner decided that he must have imagined hearing a voice and continued down the stairs once more. Sighing loudly in relief, Lois slowly stood from her crouched position. "Thank you," she breathed, addressing her gratitude to those imaginary gods, then, pausing a moment longer, gradually made her way to the elevator, thanking her lucky stars that the floor she'd ended up on mainly consisted of offices whose occupants weren't yet in for the day. She really didn't feel like answering any questions regarding her presence there. As Lois stood in the elevator, Dougal's words were still ringing in her ears and running through her brain. "-completely oblivious" he'd said. "-won't know what hit her." At that moment, she remembered their conversation about Intergang the day before and his quiet words: "Sometimes these things just don't work out, Lois. Sometimes you just need to give up and move on to something else." Almost as if he was deliberately trying to steer her away from exploring further... Along with the recent phone call that she'd overheard, everything suddenly seemed to slot into place. Well, not quite everything. She still needed to find out what it was that Intergang was up to this time and why they wanted her out of the way. Well, actually *why* was pretty obvious. It was the same reason villains usually wanted her out of the way. She liked to investigate; they didn't particularly admire that trait in her. It got them in trouble you see. With the Metropolis police department, not to mention the FBI, Interpol and so on... Lois sighed. In spite of her knowledge of Dougal's collusion with Intergang, she was going to investigate them. There had to be something big going on for them to actually send someone in to ensure she was out of the way. Unless... Had Dougal been planted at the Planet, or was he simply in the right place at the right time and corrupt enough to happily bow to any offer Intergang pushed his way? Was he really that kind of man and did he kill for pleasure or for profit? Lois stopped herself. 'Oh, who cares about any of that? The fact remains that he's going to kill you if you let him! Don't be stupid. Just let it go, like he said. Don't risk your life for a story again.' Oddly enough, Lois had a feeling that this time the voice in her head sounded more like Clark's than her own... She exited the elevator, walking over to slump into her desk chair. Ignoring the meeting in the conference room that she was now horribly late for, she closed her eyes and massaged her temples: she was beginning to get a headache. Again she voiced the quiet question: "Why me?" ***** Inside his living room, Clark Kent paced. When the pacing didn't seem to work, he sat down on the couch and placed his head in his hands. However, when the lack of movement became unbearable he took to pacing once again. Quickly concluding that this was not enough, Clark spun into his Superman suit and headed out the open window. Perhaps patrolling would help keep his mind off Lois and the situation they found themselves in. Even though he'd told his mother he'd wait -- and he would -- Clark was finding it easier said than done. He'd decided that he needed something to keep his mind off Lois, so he'd tried watching a college basketball game: that didn't work. Then he tried doing press-ups, hoping the constant movement would distract him. Again, his plan didn't succeed. And so finally Clark had resorted to the pacing. As evidenced, this hadn't worked particularly well either. So his method of putting her out of his mind had become patrolling...and hoping desperately for something -- anything -- to occupy his attention. As he flew, Clark involuntarily did a lot of thinking. Somehow, being up there among the clouds always caused his thoughts to wander down all sorts of weird and wonderful roads. Now it wasn't so weird, nor was it wonderful. Instead it was...contemplative. Much as he'd been trying to banish her from his mind, Clark thought about Lois. More specifically he thought about their fight; his part in it and everything that had happened between them. The irony of his thoughts occurred to him more than once as he soared above the city: the entire reason he was flying was to escape his thoughts of Lois, yet she'd followed him on his flight. 'Just like Lois Lane,' he thought with a wry smile. 'She refuses to be forgotten.' Clark sighed. Maybe he should just give in to the thoughts and allow them to take him where they would. Maybe then he'd find some sort of peace. So Clark gave himself to the reflections, allowing them to take control of his mind. He stopped fighting it all and he even stopped flying. He just floated up there among the insubstantial haze, feeling the dampness make his exposed skin slick with moisture. And he thought and thought...and thought. Various emotions assaulted his consciousness as he mulled everything over. Frustration was one that seemed to prevail, and interestingly enough so was guilt. At First, he'd considered himself somewhat justified in how he'd handled things; but only for an hour or two after having Lois slam her door in his face. Then commonsense had resurfaced and he'd instead felt a terrible sense of guilt just as he was feeling now. He now recognised his part in the whole debacle -- he had finally admitted to his role in what had become like a soap opera version of his life. The problem was that he wasn't quite sure of the best way to fix it. Or even if it was possible to mend this thing they called a relationship...this love. Did Lois even want to try, or was it too much to ask? Had he hurt her too much? The idea that she was hurting because of him caused a sensation like a vice gripping his heart. He squeezed his eyes shut against the ache pervading his chest, knowing that whatever pain he was feeling was, in a roundabout way, of his own creation. He should have told her earlier. She was right; he should have told her when they'd agreed to take the next step. He didn't *have* to keep it a secret anymore; that had just been an excuse because he was scared. But he should have put his fear aside. He should have simply said, "Lois, I'm Superman." Or possibly something a little more eloquent. Either way, proposing at that point in time had been stupid. He should have told her first. He should have told her about Superman and he should have told her he loved her... Now he might never get the chance. ***** Lois sat at her desk, twisting a tissue around her fingers. She stared into space as her stomach churned and the sweat beaded on her brow. Today was the day that Dougal had alluded to in his phone call with Mrs Church. Today was the day she would investigate Intergang and find out what it was they were up to. The way she was feeling was not unusual for Lois, but she didn't usually allow herself to reveal those feelings in such a public place. The Planet was where she always kept her cool, where she was known as a tough reporter with a hard exterior. Only one person had ever really gotten under the stiff surface of her personality: Clark. Lois watched the clock, her eyes intent upon its hands slowly ticking closer to five pm. She glanced over at the object of her current thoughts, still at his desk. He hadn't been called away on many Superman duties lately. Somehow just his presence today was soothing her. Studying him acting so...so Clark-like, calmed her nerves and made the waiting bearable: just. She only hoped he would stay until the moment of truth; him being there would help her to make the decision she knew she should make, for the sake of her investigative principles. His presence made her feel brave, as if she could do anything. She needed to follow Dougal wherever he was going; she needed to find out what was going on with Intergang. Today was the day where Lois Lane found out just what she was really made of, without Superman always around to pluck her out of danger. She wouldn't call him; she couldn't. She just prayed that she wouldn't have the need to. But she knew that she might, because there was the very real possibility of failing...and of not living to tell the tale. ***** Clark's sharp ears were attuned to Lois and he could hear the rapid beating of her heart. He sensed that something was going on with her, but what it was he couldn't be sure. She was so impulsive; he prayed, as he had when this 'new partner' thing began, that she wasn't about to do something stupid. On her own. Without him to protect her. But knowing Lois Lane, if he offered she'd just tell him that she didn't need protecting. Well, maybe she didn't need protecting very often, but she certainly needed saving half the time... Clark felt his heart constricting inside his chest as it had the night before. He knew he'd hurt her; he knew that the way he'd gone about things had been wrong. Nevertheless, he also knew he had to give her time like his mother had told him. He wanted to run over there right that minute and start talking before she could tell him to stop. But this wasn't the right place or time. So he had to be content to wait patiently. Unfortunately, Clark felt like he couldn't be patient for much longer. ***** Lois kept an eye on Dougal. At four forty-five pm he left his desk and made his way to the elevators. She waited until the elevator doors closed and then followed. Hoping that she'd be able to pick up his trail once she made it to the bottom floor, she got lucky as he was waiting for a taxi right outside the Planet's door. Lois lingered in the foyer until he slid inside one and then raced outside. Dougal's taxi zoomed off and Lois immediately threw two fingers to her mouth and whistled shrilly. Another taxi pulled up. As Lois got inside she fumbled in her bag for her cell phone. She wasn't about to let Clark know where she was going and why -- he'd just try to stop her. But she would leave a message on her own home phone so that if something happened and she went missing, someone would eventually know where to look. At this thought, Lois' stomach took a sharp dive. "Where to?" the driver asked. "Uh...follow that car!" she squeaked, the nervousness constricting her vocal cords. She hastily cleared her throat. "Uh, that one right in front of us. The taxi." The driver nodded. "I see it." He put the car in gear and they were on their way. They followed Dougal's car to a warehouse out near Hobbs Bay. Lois instructed her driver to park just around the corner and she paid him, asking him not to wait. As he drove off she crept towards the door that Dougal had entered the warehouse through, first looking around cautiously to make sure that no one else was nearby. The coast was clear: she was good to go. Lois wasn't quite sure when the attempt of her stomach to toss around her lunch had stopped, but it had. Now it was replaced by another feeling suffusing her body with a lighter sensation; a feeling that falsely told her she could do just about anything. 'Adrenaline,' she mused. It was the feeling she often got just before sneaking into the lair of a bunch of criminal masterminds. Unfortunately, her sneaking usually got her tied up next to a bomb or something equally as terrifying. That thought cut the adrenaline rush pretty quickly. "What am I doing here?" Lois had her hand on the door to the warehouse, yet she was frozen by her descent from adrenaline junkie to normal, scared Lois Lane. She was a very human, and therefore very mortal, reporter. What was she thinking? Lois tried to steel herself. 'I can do this. I mean I'm here now. I might as well go through with it... But is that a good enough reason?' Her fear began to take over. 'Oh, I'm an idiot. I shouldn't be here. I should have listened to Clark's voice in my head. But I *am* here now...and I told the taxi driver to go away. Good one, Lois. Very forward thinking.' Just then, Lois heard voices. She pressed her ear against the metal door and listened. She couldn't make out what they were saying, but it was obvious that they weren't far inside the door. 'Good thing I didn't burst in there after all,' she thought dryly. That would have resulted in the tied-up-next-to-a-bomb situation pretty quickly. Lois looked around for somewhere to listen where she wasn't quite so conspicuous. Finally she spied a small but broken window high up in the warehouse's wall. Luckily there was a tall pile of wooden crates stacked up against the wall, so Lois went over to look. 'I could make it up there...' Before she really knew what she was doing, Lois was ascending the pile of crates. When she made it to the top, she leaned forward towards the broken window. "-shipment came in on Friday. The next shipment is scheduled to arrive at the Cost Mart head quarters this Thursday. Do you want us to do the usual?" A man's voice: not Dougal's. "Hmm, yes," came the familiar childish tones of Mindy Church. Lois could see the top of her bleached blonde head and she suppressed her gag reflex. That woman; honestly, how could men possibly like that sort of thing? Blonde, tight fitting dresses, big b- Oh, right. They were men. "The artifacts from Imhotep's tomb are due in that shipment, Mrs Church," said Dougal's voice. "I understand you have a special buyer in mind for them?" "Yes," Mrs Church replied. "So just put them aside, won't you?" Lois could well imagine this woman fluttering her eyelashes at the men. "We wouldn't want them to get broken, now would we?" 'Imhotep... Imhotep... Where have I heard that name before? Wait, artifacts? Tomb? Of course! Imhotep was an Egyptian physician and the chancellor to that Pharaoh...what was his name again?' Lois searched her brain for the information she'd learnt in elementary school while making a diorama. She shook her head. 'Oh, who cares? The important thing is that it sounds like Intergang are importing stolen -- at least, I assume they're stolen since the shipments are *hidden* in Cost Mart shipments -- artifacts from Egypt. This is big news! I was right that something was going on! I've got to tell Clark!' Here, Lois' internal triumph fell flat. Tell Clark? What, when she was barely speaking to him? 'But I want to talk to him, especially about this,' she thought sadly. 'I want to share this investigation. I want him to be by my side while we crack the case, just like old times.' Suddenly her thoughts took off in another direction. 'But do I want him to think that everything's okay? Because he might and it's not. How do I communicate that to him? How do I let him know that I still need some time?' Lois was mulling over this problem when she heard her name being spoken by the people inside. "And Lois Lane?" Mrs Church said. "When are you taking care of her?" "As soon as possible," Dougal responded grimly. "Probably before the next shipment comes in. She's getting too curious for her own good, Mrs Church. Like I told you, she'll never know what hit her." "Perfect," giggled Mindy. "I want Lois Lane dead, no matter what it takes." Her tone changed, into something harsher. "She always gets in my way." Lois felt she'd heard enough. Now was the time to make a quick getaway, before they all came outside again. She had just climbed off the stack of crates and was making her way around towards the front of the warehouse when she heard the door open slightly. "Hold on a minute!" a voice said. The door closed again. Lois felt that she didn't want to stick around to see how long it stayed closed this time. Taking her high-heeled shoes off, she ran from the warehouse, down the street and into a more populated area. As soon as she saw a taxi, she hailed it and told the driver to take her home, giving him her address. Far above, Superman watched her go. ***** Lying on her bed, Lois Lane stared at the ceiling. She watched the fan lazily rotate round once and then complete another circuit. She was thinking, her mind stuck on one topic in particular. "Hmph," Lois grunted forcefully, flopping over on to her side. A fist shot out to punch her pillow as she made another similar noise, indicating her perturbed state. The pillow was often her companion as she dreamed of Clark, receiving her unwitting embraces with its usual soft ease. Tonight the poor cushion was getting the beating of its life. Lois tossed and turned some more, her brain refusing to let go of the train of thought it was on. This thing with Intergang...well, it was big. From the sounds of things, they were importing ancient Egyptian artifacts from the tombs of various pharaohs and other distinguished peoples from their courts. And that it was being done inside Cost Mart shipments just proved its lack of legality. After Lois had gotten home, she'd done a little research and checked up on the name she'd heard Dougal mention to Mindy Church. Everything that she'd read had told her that Imhotep's tomb had never been discovered. 'Well, not by proper Egyptologists anyway,' Lois thought irritably. 'Either the thugs at Intergang discovered his tomb by accident, or somehow they knew where to look. Whichever way it happened, they're stealing what they find and selling it to the highest bidder.' Lois knew deep down inside herself that she worked better as part of a team in circumstances like these; someone to bounce ideas off; someone to have her back in difficult situations. She spared a thought as to whether she would have been able to work with Dougal if he wasn't already implicated, but after a moment decided that Clark was without a doubt the only person she could ever see as a possible partner. So what should she do? What was the best way to go about enlisting Clark's help? She needed -- no, wanted -- his help. Yet she didn't want to give him the wrong idea: that everything was all right and that he should feel free to lie to her whenever he so chose. 'But Clark wouldn't lie to you,' piped up the virtuous foil to her fiendish inner voice. "Oh yeah?" Lois retorted, remembering back to the moment when she'd recognised that her boyfriend was not simply the mild-mannered reporter he claimed to be. Then she groaned: "Oh great; now I'm talking to myself!" 'You certainly are,' said the obliging voice. "Well, I suppose there's nothing for it then." She grabbed a jacket and headed for the door: right now, for Lois to think was to act. She paused a moment to turn out the light and sighed dramatically; inside she had the beginnings of butterflies in her stomach. "It's only Clark," she told herself. "No big deal. Only Clark." 'No big deal? Yeah right.' ***** , Clark paused, his hand suspended mid-air with a pen dangling from between his fingers: how best to start? The alter ego of Metropolis' favourite superhero heaved a sigh, unintentionally blowing his budding letter to the floor halfway across the room. He raced to retrieve it, sighing once more as he went. "How do I even begin to explain how I've been feeling during the time that I've known Lois?" he said aloud. "There's been so many thoughts, so many emotions." He took his seat once more and began to tap the end of his pen against the tabletop. "What do I say?" Clark nodded to himself -- that worked. Maybe he could do this after all!