>>> from the journal of H. G. Wells
I approach this new alternate universe with joy, and not a small amount of trepidation. In this time, in this universe, I have the opportunity to help Clark Kent and Lois Lane to meet for the first time, at a moment when they are somewhat older than they were in my own home universe. They have been separated for a number of years, and apparently – I know not how, nor do I particularly care – they have each been completely unaware of the other’s existence. This moment is an historic one, and I also feel what I can only describe as a measure of youthful giddiness. I truly wish I could reveal myself to both of them and observe their first meeting.
This Clark has, of course, met the Lois Lane who is married to Clark Kent in her home universe, which is my home universe also. For better or worse – and I believe that history will agree that it has been for the better – I brought her here to help this Clark become Superman, and some months later he assisted me in recovering the original Superman from Tempus’ time trap. I feel as if I owe the young man a great deal, and this will begin the repayment of that obligation.
I have seen some worlds where Lois never loses her heart to Clark, or Clark loses Lois to some seemingly random tragedy either early in their relationship or before they even meet, but this world is unique in my experience. The poor woman in this universe apparently survived being assaulted in the Congo only to fall victim to a kidnapper who, rather than demand ransom for her release, fell in love with her and forced her to remain with him for some seven years, all of it against her will. The story she related to me pained my heart, despite the paucity of detail.
Miss Lane was, at first, understandably apprehensive about my offer to return her to Metropolis, but I managed to convince her to ‘give it a go,’ as some might phrase it. I have just now set her down on the outskirts of Gotham City, where she will purchase a ticket to travel in an omnibus to Metropolis. I envision a cautious meeting between these two, especially since this Clark has never met this Lois, and nearly six years have elapsed since I brought the Lois Lane from my world to set him on the path to being Superman.
I believe is it time for Utopia, guided by the linked examples of Lois Lane and Clark Kent, to begin to take shape in this version of Earth, despite the difficulties in beginning their relationship, difficulties for which I blame my nemesis Tempus and his attempts to derail the history of this world. I hope I am able to remain for a sufficient period of time to witness the results of their reunion – or, perhaps I should say, their first meeting.
>>>
Clark stirred the potatoes and called out, “Dinner’s almost ready. Who’s up for setting the table today?”
“I’ll do it,” answered Lucy.
Lana stood and put her hands on her hips. “Hey! It’s my turn.”
Lucy smiled at Lana’s tone of mock offense. “Lana, Clark is flying you and Pete back to Miami tomorrow morning. You’ve knocked yourselves out every time I’ve been over here with you guys. The least I can do is let you be guests on your last Friday in Metropolis.”
Without standing up from his chair, Pete tugged on Lana’s wrist. “Come on, honey, let Clark serve lunch.”
“It’s the big meal of the day. It’s dinner.”
“At one in the afternoon? It’s lunch.”
She frowned down at him. “It’s dinner, Pete. Supper is the evening meal.”
“Oh, all right, if you say so. Will you have dinner with me and let Clark serve us? He wants to.”
She turned and leaned down for a quick kiss. “Okay, but can I at least go wash up before the stampede?”
He grinned. “Oh, I suppose so. Hey, can you go to the bathroom for me while you’re in there?”
“Oh, I don’t know if I could stand that.”
Clark winced and grinned at their terrible jokes even when they gave away Entirely Too Much Information. He truly enjoyed their byplay. Once again he was thankful that he had friends with whom he could forget he was an internationally famous super-hero. He’d been Superman for more than half a decade, and people still mobbed him when he showed up in the Suit. Civilian clothes were better, but not by much, because then he’d be a target for hordes of young women – or even some not-so-young women – as soon as someone recognized him. And because, unlike his counterpart from that other world, he hadn’t traveled the globe at a younger age, he didn’t have the same easy facility with other languages. He could stumble along in Spanish or Italian or even German, but anything more than that pretty much eluded him.
And if he went anywhere, someone inevitably recognized him. Several times he’d been on the verge of asking Lucy if she’d pose as his companion for public occasions at which he couldn’t avoid appearing, but after thinking about it he always changed his mind. They were good friends, and had been ever since he’d ended his frustrating and ultimately unsuccessful search for her sister Lois, and he didn’t want to jeopardize their relationship. Besides, such a role would surely blunt her own chances of meeting someone special.
And surely Lucy deserved to meet someone special. She’d suffered so much in her youth, first when her parents divorced, and again when Lois had gone missing. Then the ‘other’ Lois had appeared for a few days, but before Lucy had even known she was there, she was gone again. The ‘other’ Lois had spurred him to become Superman, but did she know the emotional collateral damage she’d left behind? Did she understand how hollow and empty he still felt, how incomplete he seemed when he looked at his life? Had she even considered how lonely he would feel without someone to share his being Superman, with all the attendant stresses and problems?
Did she even care that she’d wrecked his world?
He stopped and checked his own emotional reaction. There was still that lingering emptiness in his heart when he thought of Lois Lane, either the one from the other dimension who had invaded his life and turned it upside down forever, or the one from his world whom he’d never met and whose ultimate fate was still unknown. But the emptiness didn’t threaten to split his heart any more. He’d moved on, as much as a man who’d been in love with an apparition might ever move on. If the Lois of this world was still alive – and he didn’t believe it was possible at this point – she didn’t want to be found. She’d been declared legally dead three years before, and there had been a quiet memorial ceremony attended only by her family and closest friends. Clark would not have been there had not Lucy and her parents insisted. Were Lois to appear now, it would open several huge cans of both legal and personal worms. And he didn’t think he wanted her to.
He banished his dark thoughts and sprinkled another dash of garlic salt in the mashed potatoes, stirred them for a moment, inhaled deeply, and decided they were done. “Feed bag’s ready! Come and get it!”
Lucy stuck her head in the kitchen doorway. “Hey, Clark, you got any pickles?”
He nodded to the refrigerator. “Bottom shelf in back. Big jar of whole dills. What do you need them for?”
“Lana wanted some.” She slid past him with easy familiarity and pulled out the jar. Behind her, Clark poured the potatoes from the cooking pot into the serving bowl.
“So Lana wants pickles.” He lowered his voice. “You think that means anything?”
“You mean, is the first Ross child going to make his or her debut next spring?”
He grinned and lifted the bowl. “Isn’t a yen for weird food a symptom of expectant motherhood?”
She canted an eyebrow at him. “I’ve never been pregnant, so I don’t know. Why don’t we just let them tell us in their own time?”
“Sounds good to me. Shall we eat before it gets cold?”
“You’re the host. It’s your call.”
“Then come, let us go and went to dinner.”
Pete and Lana were already seated. Their eyes bulged with anticipation as they surveyed the steak and potatoes meal Clark had prepared. They all fell to with gusto.
Clark observed the feeding frenzy and cautioned, “Hey, save room for dessert! Lucy made lemon cake with vanilla icing and it’s great.”
Lucy grinned past her fork. “You tried it already?”
“Of course not. I just know what a good baker you are.”
Pete asked, “You baking for anyone in particular these days, Lucy?”
“You mean, am I dating anyone?” Pete nodded, and Lucy frowned at him. “No. I guess it’s kind of a downer for a guy when I tell him I’m a personal friend of Superman. Hard to compete with that.”
Pete’s eyes widened. “You mean you tell guys that right off the bat?”
“No. Just when they ask me for a date.”
Lana grinned and shook her head. “Maybe you should save that piece of information until later on the in the relationship.”
“I tried that a couple of years ago. Clark, you remember Darrin?”
Clark frowned. “Yes. A complete waste of polyester and DNA, if you ask me.”
Lucy half-grinned. “I didn’t ask, but I agree with you. He grabbed me so often I thought I was eating dinner with an octopus. I must have slapped his hands a dozen times before the check came, and I even slapped his face when we left the restaurant. All it did was make him that much more certain that I couldn’t live without him, so when he pushed me against a wall and tried to unzip my skirt, I yelled for super-help.”
Lana was drawn into the story. “So that’s when he let you go?”
She bounced once in her chair and waved her free hand. “Oh, it gets even better! He kept at me until Clark landed behind him and pulled him back and said, ‘The lady said no.’ Darrin got all huffy about Superman minding his own Super-business, and then Clark saw me trying to refasten my skirt and got just a little bit miffed. He picked Darrin up and carried him over to the restaurant dumpster and dropped him in, then welded the top shut with his heat vision.”
Pete guffawed. “Clark, you didn’t!”
“He did! You should have heard Darrin cuss and yell and threaten, until I went over and kicked the side of the dumpster hard enough to make his ears ring and told him that if he tried to make any trouble for Clark over this I’d have him arrested for attempted sexual assault. That shut him up but good. Haven’t heard from him since.”
Lana giggled. “I guess you showed him a really good time!”
Clark blushed slightly and frowned. “The dumpster was only half-full, and I only spot-welded one side of the top. All he had to do was move over and push the other lid open to get out. And he could have broken that spot weld if he’d really wanted to.”
Pete grinned and lifted his glass. “Dude, I think you did real good. From now on, he’ll think twice about forcing himself onto some woman who doesn’t want him.”
“I hope so. Next time I might have to seal him in a sewer.”
Lana almost spit out her tea. Pete handed her a napkin and said, “You shouldn’t be surprised at some of the things Clark says. You know he’s been doing super-stuff since high school.”
“Yeah,” she choked out, “but I didn’t know he enjoyed it so much!”
They all laughed aloud at that, especially Clark. When Lana calmed down, she asked, “Lucy, since your personal life is currently on hold, how are things at work?”
Lucy swallowed a mouthful of steak and smiled. “They’re great. I got another raise along with my five-year anniversary, and we’ve added twelve new positions in my office, all of whom report directly to me. I’m fully vested in both the company retirement program and my personal retirement savings fund, and my IRA is as healthy as a horse. Wayne Information Services is a pretty good place to work, people. Hey, do either of you two have a deep, long-repressed desire to join the best Information Technology company in Metropolis? Or on the Eastern seaboard, for that matter?”
Pete laughed. “No thanks, Lucy. We’re expecting a big shipment of rare antique porcelain items from the Middle East in a couple of days, and I’m pretty sure Sayid wants us to sign for it personally.”
“So, you guys are still importing exotic goods?”
“Just the cool ones, thank you, no hot merchandise.”
Lucy’s eyes widened. “Hot – you mean like stolen?”
“Not if we know about it,” Pete said. “About a year ago, we tipped Clark and the Florida state cops about a man who wanted us to buy some stolen artifacts. No one else has bothered us since then. Of course, it’s probably due to Clark flying over there and letting all the slightly shady dealers know that he’d take it very personally if anyone tried to hurt us or deliberately damage our business.”
Clark poured more tea in Lucy’s glass. “I meant to ask you if you lost some suppliers because of that.”
Lana took up the narrative. “Yeah, we did, but they were the ones we could afford to lose, know what I mean? The ‘guys who know some guys’?” She lifted her hands, then for a moment she bent one ear forward and pushed her nose to one side for what everyone knew she called her ‘gangster face.’ “You know, the mooks with broken noses and cauliflower ears. But the honest dealers flocked to us. They figured out that with Superman looking over our shoulders, we couldn’t afford to cheat them any more than they could afford to cheat us. Our gross cash flow has almost doubled since then.”
Lucy nodded. “That’s great, you guys.” She took a bite of potatoes. “Wow. Your news is almost as good as this dinner. Clark, you’ve just about outdone yourself this time.”
Pete stabbed the last bite of steak on his plate. “Yeah, this is fabulous.”
Lana sat back and sighed. “Oh, if I had known you cooked like this, Clark, I might have kept you.”
Pete swallowed hard and hesitated a moment, but before he could say anything, Lana continued, “But then, I would have missed out on marrying Pete. And despite your obvious strengths, Clark, I wouldn’t trade him for you if you threw in a CostMart franchise.”
Pete’s expression softened. “Thank you, Lana. That means a lot to me.”
She turned to him. “Hey, babe, you – wait – oh, no! Honey, I’m so sorry! I was just stupid again, wasn’t I?”
He took her hand. “No, I don’t think so. You just said you prefer me over Superman, so what do I have to complain about?”
“I’m so sorry, darling!” She lifted his hand and kissed it gently. “I didn’t mean I regret not being with Clark. I love you, Pete, and I’m glad you’re so patient with me.”
He cupped her face with his hand. “It’s only because I love you, too.” He leaned in to kiss her. She kissed him back. They seemed to forget they weren’t alone.
Clark smiled to himself, glad that his friends were happy with each other. He snuck a peek at Lucy, and he was surprised to see that her eyes were shiny and her face betrayed a longing he hadn’t known she felt. As Pete and Lana threatened to continue their lip gymnastics, Clark said, “Much more of that and you won’t get dessert.”
They pulled back and leaned their heads together. Pete muttered, “Why’s that?”
“Because you’ve already ingested enough sugar to cause an insulin reaction.”
All four of them laughed, and Lucy took the opportunity to dry her eyes. Clark deliberately didn’t look at her, thinking she’d prefer her reaction to remain unnoticed.
Suddenly she got up and walked into the kitchen. “It may be early, but I’m bringing the cake out now.”
Lana called, “Okay,” but as Lucy disappeared from the dining area, Lana whispered, “Go help her, Clark!”
“What? Why?”
Lana gave him the ‘look’ that said he was a really dumb male and denser than depleted uranium. “Just go, okay?”
He shrugged and stood. As he entered the kitchen, he saw Lucy standing beside the counter with a dish towel pressed to her face. He stood behind her and put his hands on her shoulders. “Hey, are you okay?”
She lurched away from him. “Y-yes, I’m fine, Clark. Those two! They’ve been married for what, almost four years? And they can’t keep their lips off each other even after all that time together.”
“Yeah, it’s kinda nice. I’m glad Lana’s happy.”
She was still facing away from him. “Are you – do you regret not staying with her?”
His voice softened. “No. I like her and I think she’s a nice person – at least, she’s a nice person now – and I’m sorry I hurt her when we were together. But no, I don’t regret what happened. It was for the best.” He almost touched her shoulder, but pulled back at the last second. “Lucy? Is something wrong?”
She turned towards him, still holding the towel over her eyes. “Why are you in here?”
He shrugged again. “Lana told me to come and help you.”
She pulled the towel down and revealed damp eyes. “Since when do you do what Lana tells you to do?”
“Since she gives me that ‘look’ that scares Pete so much.”
“Oh.”
“Yeah, ‘oh.’ So, do you know why she told me to come in here?”
“How could I know that?”
“Because you and she are both women, and despite my special abilities, I’m just a dumb old insensitive man.”
Lucy grinned despite her obvious discomfort. “I think she wants you to talk to me about something.”
He stepped closer. “What might that be?”
She looked up at him warily, but didn’t move away. “Probably the same thing she mentioned to me day before yesterday.”
He tilted his head and lowered his voice. “And that thing was?”
She slowly reached out and touched his elbow. “You and me.”
His eyebrows rose, but he didn’t say anything.
“I know what you’re thinking, that there’s not a ‘you and me’ right now, and you don’t want to take advantage of me, or maybe you don’t want to risk being rejected, and even though Lois is gone we both still remember her and—”
“Hey.”
She pulled her hand back. “What?”
Clark recaptured her hand in his. “It’s okay. I wasn’t thinking about Lois.”
Lucy leaned closer. “What were you thinking about, Clark?”
“You mean besides your babbling?”
She smiled and shifted her feet towards him. “Yeah, besides that.”
As opened his mouth to answer, the phone on his kitchen wall rang.
They both snapped their heads around and stared at it. Only about a dozen people ever knew his unlisted home phone number, and he changed it every few weeks to keep it secret. Someone always seemed to dig it up somehow.
It rang again. Clark turned to Lucy, but she said, “You have to answer that, I know. Go ahead.”
He picked up the phone and spoke the recognition phrase in a high, reedy tenor. “King Pizza Parlor, this here’s Charlie. You want a Royal Large Sampler with breadsticks? On special fer half-price today only!”
“Clark, this is James Olsen. I need you to come to my office at the Daily Planet.”
Clark resumed his normal baritone. “Now? Jim, I have dinner guests. Can’t this wait a while?”
He sighed. “No, Clark, it can’t. I wish it could, but I need you here as soon as you can get here.”
“That fast, huh?” There was no response. “I guess you mean it, don’t you?”
“Yes. Please apologize to your guests for me, and make sure I get all the blame.”
“Don’t worry, I’ll do that. Can you tell me what to expect when I get there?”
Olsen hesitated for a long breath, then said, “You can expect to meet Lois Lane.”
Clark almost crushed the telephone receiver. “What! What did you just say?”
“I know it’s a shock, Clark, but a woman claiming to be Lois Lane is here. I need you here to help verify her story, preferably before we release this news to the public.”
“Yeah. I’ll be there in two minutes.”
“I’m sorry, Clark. I wouldn’t have called if I hadn’t really needed you.”
“I know. I – ah – I need to get going.”
“Right. Bye.”
Clark hung up the phone and almost ran into Lucy as he turned. She stopped him with a touch to his wrist. “Clark! What’s going on? What is it?”
He opened his mouth to tell her that her sister had returned from the dead, but something held him back. ‘A woman claiming to be Lois Lane’ was what James Olsen had said. He didn’t think he could break Lucy’s heart over her sister again, not until this woman’s claim was verified.
“I – I’m sorry, Lucy, but I can’t tell you, not now. Will you wait here?”
“Wait for what?”
“For me to either come back or call you. This – this may involve you.”
“What? Me?” She pulled her hand back. “How am I involved?”
Their previous conversation came back to him, along with the possibility that Lois was actually alive. “I’m really sorry, Lucy, but I just can’t tell you yet. Please? Please trust me on this one?”
She frowned, but nodded. “Okay. I trust you.”
“Will you wait for me to contact you?”
She nodded. “I’ll make myself busy somehow.”
“Thanks. I promise I’ll be back as soon as I can.”
She smiled. “Okay. Smooth flying!”
She leaned in for what had become a custom between them. When he’d leave her company, if they weren’t in public, he’d give her a quick, light, almost-but-not-quite brotherly kiss on the forehead or the cheek. Lately he’d suspected that if he kissed her somewhere else – like on her lips and in an other than brotherly fashion – she wouldn’t object.
He pursed his lips for their customary parting kiss, but suddenly he froze. Instead, he patted her awkwardly on the shoulder, then jogged out to his open patio and spun into the suit before launching himself skyward.
*****
Lucy was disturbed by Clark’s behavior. First, he’d almost spoken tender words to her, words she’d wanted to hear for a long time, then he’d gotten some shocking news on the phone, then he’d almost run away from her. And all without offering his obligatory parting kiss on the forehead, the one that lately was making her wish that either she were several inches taller or Clark would bend down a little more.
She was certain she hadn’t done anything to offend him, so what was bothering him? And how did it concern her?
She shook her head and her eyes found the cake. At least the three of them could enjoy her creation, even if the one for whom she’d really baked it wouldn’t get the first piece.
As she carried the plate to the dinner table, Lana leaned back and crossed her arms. “He ran out on you, didn’t he?”
“What? Oh, no, he got a phone call and had to leave.”
“Uh-huh. What was so important about a phone call that he left you her with us?”
Lucy focused on cutting the cake. “He didn’t say.”
Pete’s head snapped up. “Wow. If Clark didn’t tell you what it was about, it’s got to be important.”
“Oh, I don’t know. He doesn’t tell me everything.”
Lana stopped Lucy’s hand with a touch on the wrist. “And you don’t tell him everything either, do you?”
Pete looked at his wife, then at Lucy, then said, “Please excuse me. I – have to go do something in another room where I won’t hear a word either one of you say.”
Lucy sensed rather than saw him exchange a glace with Lana. As soon as he was gone, Lana said, “I thought you were going to tell him how you felt about him.”
Lucy sniffed and wiped her nose with a napkin. “Oh, yeah, I can do that! ‘Hey, Superman, did you know I’m carrying a torch for you?’ He doesn’t need another woman chasing him through the streets.”
“But you’re not just carrying a torch for him, Lucy, you’re all but standing in front of a flamethrower. And you aren’t chasing him. Besides, I know that Clark thinks the world of you. He’s told me so more than once. And I know what you think of him, too. To you, he’s Clark Kent, a truly fine man who just happens to have the most interesting part-time job in the world.”
Lucy chuckled. “That’s what makes him such a good friend. And I wouldn’t risk that friendship for all the rugs in Persia.”
Lana feigned a pout. “Now that’s hitting below the antique silken belt, girlfriend. Look, you have to be honest with him. And you have to be honest with yourself. You two make a great couple, and there’s no reason for you to put yourself down.”
Lucy lifted her eyes to her friend. “Lana, do you know how many guys I slept with by the time I was twenty-two?”
“No, but I don’t think Clark cares about your past—”
“Fourteen.”
Lana’s eyes bulged for a moment. “Oh. I mean, that’s – you – yeah, okay.”
“Right after the last one, and I mean when I was still finding his orphan socks in the laundry, I met Clark. Superman, actually. He was hunting for Lois and wanted to talk to me about her. He thought the more he knew about her the better his chances of finding her would be.” She dabbed at her eyes with her napkin. “It didn’t help.”
Lana frowned. “Did you know that I met that other Lois, the one Clark said came from another world?”
“Yes. Except for having short hair and being a little thinner, she was a dead ringer for my sister.”
“I didn’t like her.”
Now Lucy’s eyes bulged. “What? You didn’t – but why not?”
“Because she was so – so absolutely certain she was right. Because she was convinced that Clark was destined for greater things than just reporting. Or for working in my father’s bank. And because she made his eyes light up like I never could.”
“Oh. I’m – I’m sorry, Lana, I never knew that.”
“Nobody except Pete knows. And if you tell Clark I’ll wrap you up in a rug and ship you to Timbuktu.” The two women shared a smile before Lana continued. “Ever since that Lois vanished, Clark’s eyes have been muted. I’ve never seen them twinkle like that again.” Lana reached out and took Lucy’s hands in her own. “Until recently, that is, when he looks at you. Now they sparkle like diamonds at high noon.” She tugged on the other girl’s arms and said, “Lucy, you have to tell him what’s in your heart. Tell him how much you love him.”
Lucy’s mouth moved but nothing came out.
“I mean it, honey! You need to talk to him. Assuming, of course, that your eyes light up for him, too. And I’m pretty sure they do.”
A smile slowly made its way across Lucy’s face. “Okay. I’ll give it a shot.”
Lana smiled back. “Attagirl! You’ll be amazed at the good things that can happen when people talk to each other.”
