Whine No More
Folc4evernaday
Part 3
***
Lois glared at the television angrily, watching the coverage from an amateur video that had captured Superman’s rescue at the street fair earlier that day. It showed Superman rescuing the man a mere second before the amp fell and crushed him then showed the man yelling at Superman about something before the man of steel flew away with the man. “Sources are saying the man Superman ‘rescued’ today was injured and taken to the hospital by the man of steel. We have yet to confirm anything from the man of steel.”
“Give me a break!” Lois growled angrily. “He’d have been a lot more injured if Superman HADN’T rescued him.”
A light knock at the door came with the sound of Clark’s voice, “Lois?”
Lois glanced at the clock. Almost five hours. Five hours? Where had he been for five hours that he couldn’t have picked up the phone and called her? She had run through every possibility in her mind, and the only thing she kept coming back to was he lied. He said he wasn’t going to shut her out and then turned around and did it again. Disappeared on her without a word.
He knocked again, “Lois?”
She was not going to give him the satisfaction of seeing how much he’d hurt her. She was not going to give him the chance to apologize or give her another lame excuse. She was
done. He knocked again, “Lois?”
“Go away, Clark!” She called out angrily. “I don’t want to talk to you. I don’t want to see you. Just leave me alone!”
She waited another minute and sighed when she didn’t hear anything else. Just to make sure she cracked her door to see if he’d left and found a single red rose on the door mat. She reached down to pick it up. It was simple and beautiful.
‘No.’ She reminded herself.
‘Never again,’ She threw the rose in the trash and headed back to the couch.
***
The next morning Lois arrived at the Planet earlier than usual, hoping to miss running into Clark. She wasn’t ready to see him. She was still SO ANGRY at him. He had left her in the middle of a date. He’d never done that to her before. How could he just….? After everything that happened Saturday night, how could he do that to her?
She couldn’t understand.
The story on Superman’s rescue of the guitarist that had been rescued yesterday had been filed and Perry had requested a follow-up. That required talking to Superman, which meant she needed to either jump out of a window to get his attention or talk to Clark. She didn’t like either of her options at the moment.
Lost in thought, she began typing furiously on her computer what she really really wanted to say to him. “Whoa! That must be some story!” Jimmy said passing by her. He stopped when he saw her screen.
She arched an eyebrow at him angrily, fighting back the tears she knew were threatening to escape, “Seen enough?”
“You’re not actually going to say all that stuff to CK are you?” He asked weakly. Lois glared at him, “Mind my own business?” She nodded giving him a fake smile with an arched eyebrow, “You got it.” He muttered, walking away from her.
***
Clark stepped into the newsroom, mentally preparing himself to deal with a furious Lois Lane. He’d scanned the newsroom when he’d arrived and spotted Lois typing furiously at her computer. He’d overheard Jimmy’s conversation with her. She was angry. He’d left her for four hours when they’d been on a date. He’d hoped she would be more understanding, but it seemed she was still upset with him.
Jimmy approached him, complimenting his new suit, “Hey, CK, nice coat,” He glanced at his coat self-consciously as Jimmy continued, “Although a flack jacket might have been a better call.”
“She mad?” He asked hesitantly. He already knew the answer.
Jimmy chuckled lightly, “Ooh, you only wish,” He said patting him on the shoulder in sympathy.
Clark shook his head, “Hey Jimmy do me a favor? That guy Superman rescued yesterday? Calvin Dreggs?”
“You mean the guy that got injured?” Jimmy clarified.
Clark rolled his eyes, “It was a sprain. It’ll heal.” He then continued, jotting down the names on a pad, “Anyway, run a check on him and an Elise Carr for any domestic disturbances or abuse cases and let me know what you find?”
“You think he’s abusing his girlfriend?” Jimmy asked confused.
“I don’t know, but the way they were acting…I mean, the way Superman said they were acting…Just let me know what you find out,”
Jimmy nodded, heading back toward his desk, “You got it CK,”
Clark followed him, heading toward Lois’ desk, “Lois…” She continued typing, ignoring him as she continued to stare at her screen. He sighed, repeating himself as he took a seat next to her, “Lois…”
Jimmy approached them with a file in hand and Lois looked up at him, “Jimmy, did you hear something?”
“Like what?” Jimmy asked uncertainly, looking between her and Clark.
“It sounded a little like my name. You didn’t say my name, did you?” She asked.
Jimmy bit the inside of his lip, uncertain if he wanted to get any more involved than what Lois was making him. “Uh, no. Clark did.”
“Clark, who?” She asked.
Frustrated, he hung his head, “Lois...”
“There it is again,” Lois joked, looking around as if she was looking for the mysterious voice.
Jimmy glanced toward him and mouthed, ‘Good luck’ before retreating. Clark reached out to touch her wrist, “Lois…”
She shook her head at him, pulling away, “Clark, don’t even start! Allow me, ‘Lois, I can explain I suddenly remembered that my mother's sister's poodle needed a haircut and so you can see why I had to leave you in the middle of a date with your thumb in your ear, but I'm sure you understand.' How am I doing so far, Clark?”
He stared at her incredulously. Did she seriously think he’d WANTED to leave? “Lois, what are you talking about?” He asked in confusion. Then in a hushed whisper, he continued, “You know exactly where I was….I didn’t expect to have to take that Dreggs guy to the hospital…otherwise, I would have come right back.”
She glared at him angrily, “What are YOU talking about? You disappeared…like you always do!” She hissed angrily. “How could you? How could you just…?After everything?” The tears she’d been fighting back escaped, and she looked down, not willing to meet his gaze.
He let out a long sigh, “We need to talk,”
She glared at him, “Why, so you can just run off in the middle of the conversation? I don’t think so. I’ve had my fair share for the week.”
“Lois…” He breathed irritated with her behavior.
“What??” She shot back angrily.
“Come with me, now,” He said, pulling her to her feet.
She glared at him angrily, tugging her arm back, “Excuse me? Who do you think you are?” She fumed angrily, “No, I cannot listen to another STUPID story about your barber or your doctor…”
“What are you talking about?” He asked, confused.
“What you owe me is some damn respect!” She fumed angrily. “How can you expect us to have a relationship if you don’t respect me enough, to be honest with me?”
What was her problem? He knew she’d been upset about him being gone for so long yesterday, but there was no reason for her to be acting like this. She knew where he had been. It was all over the news last night.
“I have always been honest with you, Lois,” He argued, trying to keep the conversation as neutral as he could in the newsroom. He noticed the looks from their co-workers and realized they’d been watching the whole time. He needed to get Lois out of here before she said too much in her anger. “Lois, come with me now. We need to talk,”
“Make me,” She dared, pulling her chair out to sit back down and he hoisted her up over his shoulder carrying her toward the stairwell. At first, she was too shocked to respond. He closed the door behind them, and she began shouting, “You jerk! Put me down right this minute! You are so dead!”
He didn’t respond, x-raying the stairwell to make sure no one was in there before climbing the stairs at super-speed to the roof, so he didn’t have to worry about anyone overhearing them. With how angry she seemed to be he didn’t want to risk something slipping out and someone finding out his secret.
“Put.. me… down…NOW!” She growled slowly after he closed the door to the roof.
He complied, setting her down on her feet, “I’m sorry, but we need to talk. I know you are upset about me disappearing yesterday, but it couldn’t be helped. You have to understand sometimes I can’t always…”
She slapped him across the face. “You LYING, no good, rotten, backstabbing…” She growled angrily as she paced
Lying? What was she talking about?
“What is your problem??” He fumed angrily. “Why are you acting like this? And what was with the crack about me disappearing? You knew exactly where I was!”
She looked at him like he was crazy, “Uh, no, SUPERMAN” She glared at him, pacing around him as she raged. “How could you do that to me? How could you sit there and LIE to me like that? I mean almost THREE YEARS and you didn’t even have the decency to… ”
“Oh, for the love of…What ARE you talking about? I told you the other night! ” He shook his head, unsure what game she was trying to play. Was she trying to be difficult? “I’m sorry, all right? I HAD to LEAVE. It’s not like I WANTED to. That amp was gonna crush that guy, so I slipped away and got to him before it did…not that it did any good. The guy was a complete jerk…started blaming everyone for everything…Verbally abusing his girlfriend like that…”
“Wha…” She took a seat, “Hold on now. Back up.”
“What?” He asked, confused.
“What do you mean you TOLD ME the other night?” She instructed.
“Saturday night?” He prompted. “I told you ‘I’m Superman’ and you responded with…”
Realization seemed to dawn on her, and she breathed barely audible, “Yes you are.” She sank to the ground shakily, “Oh, God..”
“Lois, what is going on?” He asked confused, realizing her response wasn’t normal, “I told you. You said
‘Yes you are’ like you knew…” Realization began to dawn on him as she buried her head in her hands.
“Oh, this is so embarrassing,” Lois asked shakily.
What?
“Lois, please talk to me,” He pleaded, crouching down, so he was eye level with her.
“Oh, God…” She breathed.
He ran a hand through his hair, “I’m sorry. I thought… Believe me; I NEVER…would have…”
“I’m an idiot. Oh, God, how did I not see it?” She buried her face in her hands as she rocked herself back and forth.
“If I’d known…” He stammered, trying to get her to look at him.
“No wonder you looked so familiar….Oh, God…” She began to cry.
“You’re not an idiot.” He argued. “Lois... I’ve hated keeping this secret from you. I’ve wanted to tell you so many times…Everything just got so complicated.”
“You made me believe you were DEAD,” She spat out angrily. “and then you…you…” She fumed angrily as realization began to dawn on her. “How could you?”
“I’m sorry,” He apologized again, reaching for the hand she was wringing.
“I…I…” She looked around the room in confusion, “I need some air…”
“We’re on the roof,” He reminded her.
“Right.” She nodded, looking around. “Roof. Air. Got it.”
***
Elise rummaged through her studio apartment as she finished getting ready for work. Calvin sat on the couch with his arm resting on a pillow to keep it elevated. The doctor had assured her it was ‘just a sprain’ but the way Calvin was acting you’d think he’d been amputated. He’d demanded a cast which the doctors had given only to get him to stop complaining. She hated the looks they gave her. The looks that crossed their faces. Looks of pity.
When Superman had rescued Calvin yesterday, he had been more than accommodating. He’d even intervened when Calvin began verbally attacking her. He had surprised her. He never looked at her in pity. He had looked at her in concern and at Calvin with annoyance but never pity.
“Calvin, have you seen my keys?” Elise asked, lifting pillows on the couch.
He shook his head at her, “You’re not going to work?! What if I need something?”
She pointed to the coffee table behind her, “Everything you'll need is on the coffee table, Calvin.” She lifted the pillow he was resting his arm on.
“Hey!” He shouted at her.
She grabbed her keys from beneath the cushion, “Sorry,” She apologized. “I have to go.”
“What if I need to write something down, like a phone message?”
She sighed, “Use your other hand.”
“What if I need to open a beer?” He asked.
Beer? He didn’t need to open a beer. “You don’t NEED to open a beer, Calvin. You shouldn’t be drinking with the medication they gave you,”
“But…”
“What if I need to go to the bathroom?” He asked.
She opened her mouth to retort but thought better of it, “I'm sorry, Calvin, really, you know I am, but I have to go to work.”
***
She was useless. Here he was injured, and his WIFE had left him to fend for himself. Calvin clicked the remote on the television angrily. Didn’t she know it was her job to take care of him first?
“Have you been injured?” a powerful voice on the television asked. He looked up and saw a balding man in a sharp blue suit, “Then just call me, Barry Barker!”
Calvin looked at the television in interest. This could be the answer to his prayers. Superman had injured him. He would make him pay.
“I'll go to the mat for you! I'll sue anybody for anything! And when I say anybody, I mean anybody !”
Calvin jotted down the number eagerly before reaching for the phone, “Yes, I’d like to speak to Barry Barker!”
***
“Man, did you see that?” Allan asked eagerly, jabbing Jimmy in the ribs.
“Yeah, that was something,” Jimmy said, trying to feign enthusiasm. He wasn’t nearly as interested in the Planet grapevine gossip today after witnessing the confrontation between his friends.
“You jerk! Put me down right this minute! You are so dead!” They could hear Lois yelling through the steel door of the stairs.
“She is going to kick his butt,” Allan laughed giddily. “I can’t believe Clark did that. I didn’t know he had it in him.”
“Yeah, uh, me neither,” Jimmy said uncomfortably. “Listen, I gotta get on this or I’m gonna be next on his list,” He pointed to the file in his hand.
“I hear ya,” Allan said patting him on the shoulder. “See ya around,” With that Allan disappeared.
Jimmy sat at his desk staring at the stairwell Lois and Clark had disappeared through. He’d never seen Lois so angry…or Clark Kent so forceful. Normally when Lois tried to brush him off or give him the silent treatment, he waited her out. Not today. Lois had gotten in his face, and he’d done the same, not as intensely, but it still had the same effect. Then when Lois couldn’t get him to back off, she’d turned childish and told him to ‘make her’ talk to him, which he did.
He hoped Clark would be able to make amends with Lois. He wasn’t sure why he had disappeared yesterday but knowing CK it had to have been a good reason. He wouldn’t just leave Lois like that, especially not with Call me Daniel Scardino lurching around.
Jimmy cringed recalling his confrontation with the DEA agent yesterday. All that guy seemed to do is run his mouth about CK. The crack about CK being a
wuss really struck a nerve in him. He’d been pulling for CK and Lois to get together for awhile.
There was a poll in the newsroom on how long it would take Lois to dump Scardino. No one seemed to like him because he showed up at the most inopportune times. Allan from Research couldn’t stand him because he kept calling and he was the one that had to take down Lois’ messages.
There was another poll on how long it would take before there was PDA in the newsroom between Lois and Clark. He’d won that bet. After Lois had gone out with Scardino CK had stepped up trying to get Lois to give him a second chance. Last Saturday it seemed she did. He’d caught them in a tight embrace and even spotted her kissing him before darting toward the elevator a few minutes later. After seeing Lois and Clark Sunday afternoon, he’d assumed the date must have gone
really well for them to be out two days in a row.
CK said he didn’t care what Scardino
‘did’ meaning past tense. He was a part of the past. Scardino didn’t seem to think so, though. He’d been acting like it was just a little spat between him and Lois. For CK’s sake, he hoped Lois didn’t change her mind.
He glanced down at the file Clark had dropped on his desk. Background check on Calvin Dreggs and Elise Carr... Domestic disturbances...
Before he could finish that thought, Daniel Scardino approached him with a bouquet of daffodils, “Hey, Jimmy, you seen Lois?”
“You know Lois is allergic to Daffodils, right?” Jimmy asked, not looking up from the file he had in his hand.
“Oh,” Scardino threw the bouquet in a nearby waste basket. “Well, maybe you could enlighten me on Lois’ preference of flowers?” He asked, taking a seat at Jimmy’s desk.
Jimmy glared at him, “Nope, you’d have to ask CK.”
“Yeah, I’m sure he has to buy a lot of ‘I’m sorry’ flowers,” Dan sneered.
“No, most of the time it’s just ‘thinking of you’ or ‘just because’ flowers.” Jimmy retorted, hoping to give his friend an edge against Dan Scardino’s dig since Clark wasn’t here to fight his own battle.
“Well, he has to have someone ordering them for him,” Dan said, picking up the Rolodex off of Jimmy’s desk. “Come on, what’s her favorite flower? Carnation? Hydrangea? Lily?”
Jimmy grabbed the Rolodex back, “Nope. Handles it himself. Even if I did know I wouldn’t tell you. Don’t you have some DEA Agent stuff to do somewhere else?”
“I’m waiting on Lois,” Dan said. “After yesterday I figured she’s probably done with Kent. So I figured I’d offer her a shoulder to cry on…take her to lunch,”
“There’s not much crying going on,” Jimmy retorted.
“Just tell me where she is,” Dan said with an exasperated sigh.
“You’d have to ask CK,” Jimmy shot back. “They just left here a little while ago,”
Dan frowned, “Well, the day is young. I’m sure given enough time he’ll find a way to make her mad again,” He stood up readjusting his jacket as he said, “Tell Lois I stopped by,”
Jimmy handed him a message pad, “Tell her yourself. I’m busy,”
***
Lois stood on the roof of the Planet, pacing back and forth as she went over every detail over the last two and a half years, trying desperately to make sense out of everything. Clark sat on the ground next to the globe watching her silently. He hadn’t said anything else.
<<“Lois, I’m…Superman,”>>How had she not realized what he was saying? How had she heard that and not realized?
‘Yes, you are’ She shook her head.
‘That’s what I said to him.'Yes, you
are.Okay, so he hadn’t PURPOSELY lied to her before making love to her. He just hadn’t handled the situation very well.
He left his glasses off the whole time.
We were FLOATING
Why did he wait so long to tell her? Didn’t he trust her? Didn’t he…? Was he just waiting until her defenses were so far gone she couldn’t say no? Recalling how far involved, they were in she didn’t think there was any possibility of her stopping when he’d made his ‘confession.'
‘Why now?’
<<“You know he didn’t seem that special to me. Except for the flying and the uniform he could have been any ordinary guy,”
“Ordinary? Give me a break!”>>
<<“Clark is the before. Superman is the after….Make that the way, way after…”>>
<<“Maybe all this frenzy isn’t what he expected. Maybe he’s gun shy.”
“That’s ridiculous. He has no reason to hide….especially from me…”>>
<<“We? There is no ‘we,’”
“How do you know I don’t have the inside track on finding Superman?”
“Sure, Clark. And when you run across Jimmy Hoffa and the Easter Bunny why don’t you reel them in too?”>>
<<“Now there you go using that word again Clark. There is ‘you,’ there is ‘I,' there is no ‘we,’”
“Not yet,”
“Not ever,”
“We’ll see,”
“How long can you hold your breath?”>>
<<“I was saving for Tahiti. But a date with Superman…that would have been a real adventure. Oh, Clark, he doesn’t even know I’m alive. Maybe it was stupid of me to think that he really cared…”
“Not so stupid, Lois…Did you ever think that maybe Superman was afraid to reveal himself…his true feelings?”>>
<<“You’ll always be special to me, Lois,”
“I will?”
“Of course you’re the first woman that I hel….um, interviewed me,”>>So many clues. Why didn’t she see it before? Clark came to Metropolis at the same time Superman did. He had practically come right out and admitted it when they were interviewing Baines. He always seemed to know how to ‘contact’ Superman. Seemed to know what he was thinking or how he was feeling. All along, every conversation with Superman had been with Clark and vice versa. She had been fawning over her partner like a love-sick school girl and didn’t even know it. How had she not known? How had he let her believe he was two different people for so long and not said anything?
<<“You feel normal.”
“I am…normal.”>>
<<“I’m…bleeding.”
“Haven’t you ever had a paper cut before?”
“Not that I can remember,”>>
<<“You should have been there, Perry. Here’s a man so far around the bend that he starts beating on Clark to get to Superman,”>>
<<“This rock that Trask convinced himself was gonna hurt Superman. What’s it called?”
“Called you want a name? Nobody can even find it. Even the sample Irig sent to the lab disappeared.”>>Kryptonite. That was the only explanation. Clark had been bleeding. Trask had been right. She shuddered slightly recalling Trask’s intentions for Superman. He’d almost succeeded.
“Lois?” Clark’s voice interrupted her thoughts, “Are you going to talk to me?”
<<“Superman is in the shower? Did you actually see…I mean…Does the outfit actually come off?”
“I didn’t look.”>>Of course not. He was Superman. Why would he look? She blushed, recalling where her mind had wandered during that conversation with Clark. It made her even more embarrassed to realize she had been talking about him ….with HIM.
“I, um, I’m trying…really…hard to make sense out of this and NOT lose my temper,” She began.
“It’s a bit late for that, don’t you think?” He asked, cocking an eyebrow at her.
“I said, I was TRYING,” She said, trying to feign a calm she didn’t feel at the moment.
<<“You can’t leave.”
“I don’t have a choice.”>>
<<“Goodbye? We’re partners!”
“You don’t NEED a partner, Lois. You never did.”
“Maybe not, but I was starting to like having one.”>>
<< “Goodbye, Lois,”>>
<<“First Superman then Clark. I don’t know who I’m going to miss more.”>>Why hadn’t she seen it? Superman left at the same time Clark was trying to leave, and Clark came back when Superman came back. How had she been so blind for so long?
“Can you at least TALK to me?” He asked, bringing her back to the present.
“I don’t know if that’s a good idea right now,” She said coolly.
“Why not?” He asked. “I don’t think you could say anything worse than what you’ve already said or what I’m over here wondering what you’re thinking. Can you please talk to me?”
<<“I have been in love with you…for a long time. You had to have known.”>>
<<“If you had no powers, if you were just an ordinary man leading an ordinary life, I’d love you just the same. Can’t you believe that?”
“I wish I could Lois, but under the circumstances, I don’t see how I can.”>>
<<“Where’s Clark?”
“Right here.”>>She cringed, recalling the way she’d thrown herself at Superman after dismissing Clark’s declaration of love. No wonder he couldn’t believe her. She’d been so blind back then. He’d tried to warn her about Lex over and over, but she’d ignored him. She’d almost married a sociopath just to prove him wrong. Wait. He was Superman. Why didn’t he save Lex? Did his hatred run that deep? A memory popped into her mind…
<<“I…can’t…”>>Can’t? What did that mean? Could Lex have found out about Kryptonite and hurt him? It was the only explanation that made sense. She recalled how he’d been intent on getting his hands on Kryptonite during his rise from the dead. Destroying Superman and getting her back were his main goals. She shuddered, recalling the pit of rats she’d been rescued from. Lex had known…even back then. Did he know Clark’s secret?
Lois finally felt ready to initiate a conversation without yelling and turned to him, “So, how many people…know?”
“My parents of course. Trask before he died. I suspect Jack figured it out after our hostage situation at the Planet and the messages he saw, but he never said anything.” Clark said, “I wanted to tell you so many times. I never actually told anyone before now.” Lois let out a sigh of relief as he spoke and he looked at her curiously, “What?”
“I was wondering if Lex might have figured it out. He seemed to hate you both so much…Then when he jumped…” She continued, noticing him hang his head as she spoke. “I don’t think you’d willingly let anyone fall to their death if you could help it…which means he must have had Kryptonite.”
His jaw tightened as he looked away. “The day before your wedding I had a message that Luthor wanted to meet with Superman. So, STUPIDLY I met with him. It was a trap. He had me trapped in a Kryptonite cage.”
Lois placed a hand over her mouth in shock, “He did WHAT??”
“It was my own fault.” Clark sighed, running a hand through his hair.
“Your fault?” Lois asked.
“I knew what he was capable of. I was so used to being invincible I underestimated him. I didn’t think he’d find Kryptonite. It was stupid on my part…underestimating him. Never again.” He sighed looking back at her. He seemed to be contemplating something but wasn’t willing to elaborate.
“Clark? What aren’t you telling me?” She pressed.
“Nothing,” He shook his head. “Nothing,”
“You’re lying,” She pressed, looking at him.
“You don’t want to know.” He said. “You REALLY don’t want to know.”
“Why don’t you let me decide that?” She said, crossing her arms over her chest.
“I can’t right now, okay. Just please let it go for right now? I promise to tell you everything but not right now,” Clark pleaded softly.
***
At Barry Barker’s office, Calvin relayed his story to the hopeful attorney, “Superman?” Barry asked happily. Calvin nodded. “Superman?” Calvin nodded again, “Finally, I'll be famous! Finally, I'll get respect! Finally, women will sense my power!” Barry rubbed his palms together greedily.
Calvin shook his head, “Excuse me; this is about ME!”
Barry nodded happily, rushing Calvin out of his office, “Of course it is, my boy. I know that. I never lose sight of the client.” He extended his hand to shake Calvin’s good hand, “I'll take your case, and it won't cost you a cent, I'll be working absolutely on contingency, forty percent of the settlement when we win.”
Calvin’s eyes widened, “Forty percent??”
Before Calvin could argue, Barry shoved Calvin out the door, “Could you ask the receptionist to step in here please?” He shut the door on Calvin before he could argue and began reciting headlines, “’Barry Barker versus the Man of Steel!’”
The door opened, and his receptionist entered, “You wanted to see me?”
Barry nodded happily, “You’ll have to work late tonight, Mother. There’s something I need you to do.” He rubbed his hands together greedily. This was going to be his big break.
***
Lois stared at Clark in disbelief. After everything he was still trying to hide something from her, she just didn’t know what. It was evening now. They’d spent most of the day on the roof of the Planet trying to sort through everything. She was still pretty angry, but mostly she was hurt and confused. She still had so many questions.
“Fine,” She muttered bitterly, taking a seat on the concrete next to him, “You don’t want to tell me I’ll have to find out for myself…which you know I will do,” She added with a warning glare.
<<“I know our relationship has always been …difficult to define. But, when I thought about how much I missed you, how much I was going to miss you for the rest of my life…well, I started to think maybe there’s more to our relationship than just friendship.”>>
<<“I don’t want to die.”
“Lois, I would never let that happen,”>>
<<“Oh, Clark, I don’t care if he used Crazy Glue! You’re back!”>>That was the part that kept coming back to her. He lied to her about his death. He made her believe he had DIED. For what? Keeping his secret? He should have told her. He should have given her a chance.
He snorted, shaking his head, “You are so pig-headed,”
“Look who’s talking!” She retorted.
<<“Wait! What are you doing?”
“I’m going to stop the train.”
“You can’t…You gave your word.”
“I have to, Lois. You know that.”>>
<<“Clark, that’s not what attracts me. It’s his intelligence and caring. He has integrity and innate goodness. I mean…he’s a lot like you.”>>
<<“Lois, yesterday you saved my life. I want you to know…I’ll never forget that.”>>Surely he should have known she wouldn’t betray him. She kept Kryptonite a secret. She’d done everything she could to protect his image in the media. Even going so far as to prevent Jimmy from doing his job. Even out loud she seemed to subconsciously realize Clark and Superman were similar in traits.
<<“We need to talk to Superman and the only way I can get his attention is to fall out of a window which I’d rather not do right now or tell you. So, here I am.”
“I, uh, forgot my mail downstairs.”
“Clark, this is important. You can get your mail later.”
“I’m expecting my, uh, Cheese-of-the-Month shipment. I’ll be right back.”>>
<<“Did you lie to me?”
“What makes you say that?”
“Either you know what I mean, or you don’t…”
“I didn’t…lie.”
“All right, did you lead me to believe something that wasn’t exactly true?”
“Yes.”
“I wouldn’t have expected that from you…You know when I kept Kryptonite a secret it was because it was life threatening. This is news.”>>“Have you MET yourself?” He shot back.
She glared at him, “Takes one to know one,”
<<“I want you to know that I think what you did for Clark took incredible bravery.”
“It was nothing.”
“Was it?”
“No, I guess not. I guess there isn’t anything I wouldn’t do for him.”
“I think you two are very lucky to have each other.”>>That had been the last time he’d come to her apartment as Superman. She’d thought it was strange he’d push her towards Clark one minute then seemed to be flirting with her the next. She smiled, recalling her dance with him after the Charity Ball in her apartment.
<< “You know this isn’t really dancing,”
“It’s not?”>> She’d been so mad and hurt and confused after Mayson had interrupted her dance with Clark. She had been so mad at that woman for butting in. That night they’d gone to the ball as friends but the way he was looking at her…She’d been really close to telling him how she felt that night. Then Superman showed up to cheer her up, leaving her even more confused about her feelings for Clark. How could she have the same feelings for two different men?
“Well?” She prompted, looking at him expectantly.
“What?”He looked at her confused.
“Aren’t you going to say anything?” She asked.
“You’re not going to let this go are you?” He asked.
“I think considering everything I’m being REALLY generous right now,” She said, “No more lies. No more secrets. What aren’t you telling me?”
<<“…and here in this apartment, we find the final piece of the puzzle which tells us that Superman is none other than Clark Kent.”>>
<<“Sometimes what it seems people are doing isn’t what they’re actually doing.”>>There had been so many signs. How had he managed to get that press conference together? How had he ended up with Kryptonite inside of him? He seemed to be practically spelling it out to her the last few months. The closer they got the more he seemed to be leaving hints to her.
<<“When you think about it, the only time people really express themselves is when they're passionate and the polite veneer of society drops away... like when they fight...”
“Or make love.”>>“I only lied about….ONE thing,” He said, emphasizing ‘one’ emphatically.
“A very very important thing that you neglected to bring up for almost THREE years,” She shot back.
“Well, it’s not easy to bring up when you’re having doors slammed in your face every five seconds,” He shot back. “...or car bombs exploding, or DEA Agents popping up…”
<<“Lois, this isn't the best time, but I've always wanted to tell you something...”
“I like you too, Clark. I'm sorry what I did on our date.”>>
<<“You slammed the door in my face last night.”
“That was a... mistake.”
“Don't let it happen again….Fortunately, there're no doors now.”
“Fortunately…”>>
<<“The last thing she said was 'Resurrection.' What was she trying to tell me?”>>The pieces seemed to be slowly fitting. He hadn’t been pushing her away he’d been feeling guilty. He was Superman, and he didn’t get there fast enough. Did he blame her? After all, he’d been kissing her when Mayson’s car exploded.
“You should have told me,” She bit back angrily.
“When?” He asked. “Before this weekend the only time I could talk to you was at the Planet, and it’s not exactly something I can blurt out in front of everyone. Every time I turn around someone’s either needing to be rescued, or you’re ignoring me for leaving, or DAN is showing up unannounced….AGAIN.”
<<“ I need to know...if I’m yesterday's news?”
“What?”
“You know. Stale, old. It's been over a week since our first date... and... our first kiss. And... you haven't said a word about it. It's like... it never happened.”
“Lois, I’m sorry if It feels like I’ve been ignoring you lately, but...”>>
<<“Agent Scardino just dropped by to uh... chat about the case.”
“It must have been some chat for you to need a shower.”>>She cringed, recalling the look on his face once more when he’d found Dan in her apartment after he’d broken in. That seemed to be the turning point when he’d mentally withdrawn himself from her. No more friendly banter. No more flirting. They still hadn’t talked about that.
<<“I lied,”
“What?”
“I said, I lied ... In front of the Planet. After everything you went through I didn’t want to complicate things even more for you so…”>>
<<“Are you listening? I’m kinda pouring my heart out here, and you seem to…”>>
<<“I love you so much, Lois, I can’t believe I almost lost you,”>>Lois looked down at her lap, “I’m sorry.” She mumbled softly.
“What?” He asked.
“I said, ‘I’m sorry,’” She repeated grudgingly. “I wasn’t being fair to you this last month. I was just SO TIRED of you running off in the middle of…”
He got a funny look on his face and held up his finger, “Uh, Lois…”
“WHAT??” She fumed. “I’m trying to apologize. It'll probably only happen once in this lifetime ... Don’t interrupt!”
“I know, but…” He stood up, taking his glasses off as he hooked them in the inside of his jacket. “…as much as I’d LOVE to hear it…” He spun into the Superman suit before her eyes “I’ve gotta fly.” Before she could protest further, he was gone.
“Wow…” She breathed, looking at the spot he’d just vacated.
***
Later that evening Barry Barker stood at this open window on the top floor of his office building with his receptionist and the subpoena against Superman. The only way he knew how to serve Superman was to create a disaster, so he had his mother call for help.
“Help!” a frail cry for help came out.
Barker grimaced, “Louder Mother. He can’t hear you.”
“Help! Help!” She cried a little louder.
“I said louder,” He leaned her forward, causing her to cry out in terror.
“Hellllppppp!!!”
“Good! Mother!” Barker cheered, pulling her back. The familiar sonic boom echoed around them, and he came face to face with a very angry Superman.
“What exactly do you think you’re doing?” He asked, approaching him in anger.
Before he could grab him, Barker slapped the subpoena against him, “Superman, you have just been served.”
***
TBC...
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