I see that part 3 has been posted, but since you haven't replied here yet, I'm going to leave feedback for part 2 before rushing to finish the story.
Now, seriously, I can't be the only one mentally yelling, "Clark, enough with the excuses; just leave already!"
That countdown was amping up the tension, and I couldn't figure out how he was going to get out of there without either telling her the truth or just leaving anyway. But you found the perfect 'out' -- he knew how to contact Superman, and he wasn't going to tell her how he did it. I'm just glad he made the decision with enough time to rescue everyone!
I really liked Lois's rationalization once it was all over. The obvious answer to us -- that Clark was Superman -- never even crossed her mind. Instead, the impossible, huge, massive "fact" that she refused to accept was that Clark *knew* Superman. Really nice misdirection there, and perfect for the timeframe of the story.
Now off to part 3. Whee!
Kathy
