Rules of Trust
Folc4evernaday
Chapter 1
A/N: Huge thanks to DC for looking this over. Hope everyone enjoys!
***
“Bye Molly,” Lois gave her friend a hug before leaving. It had been nice catching up with her friend and not worry about ulterior motives or criminals to chase. She’d spent most of the day yesterday resting and catching up on the sleep she’d missed out on during the investigation into Ryan Wiley. She headed for the exit and walked toward her Jeep.
So much had changed in the last few years….the last few days.
She recalled her and Clark’s fight last week. They’d both said things ….done things they’d regretted. She knew she had at least. She’d been so confused after Superman had left her apartment the night of the charity ball. When she’d arrived home that night, she’d been hurt, reeling from the emotions that had risen up watching Mayson dance with Clark. It was yet another reminder of what she couldn’t have…or so she thought at the time. When Superman had arrived and surprised her with a dance, she’d been over the moon.
She’d gone back and forth over the past year with her ‘Superman crush.’ She’d given up hope after she’d practically thrown herself at him the night before she’d accepted Lex’s engagement. She’d put it all on the line and told him how she’d felt and he’d crushed her dreams with one sentence.
<<“Under the circumstances, I can’t.”>>What he’d meant by that she’d never know. He claimed she didn’t know him. Looking back on the previous year she figured he was probably right. There wasn’t very much outside of the printed stories she knew about him. She had known how she felt and in her mind, that had been enough. After she’d accepted Lex’s proposal Superman had disappeared from her life; as had Clark and everyone else she’d thought she was close to. She understood—anticipated Clark’s reaction. Superman’s she hadn’t.
To this day she had questions about what had happened during that time. It was like he had disappeared from Metropolis for a few weeks after her wedding. Her relationship with the man of steel continued to be complicated. She still cared about him, but anything more than friendship seemed like a pipe dream. She’d promised herself she’d never talk about that night at her apartment with Superman again. Things had normalized between them again. He was back to saving the day, and she was back to reporting and doing what she loved. Things were fine.
At least they were until she’d screwed them up again. Her fight with Clark over her misinterpreting the situation with Clark and Superman had caused her to lash out at Superman. She’d never done that before.
<<“You wanted an answer, and I gave it to you as clearly as I could. I’m sorry if you didn’t like the answer I gave you. I never meant to hurt you, but...”
“No? You certainly did a great job at trying to hide that.”
“You were trying to force a decision. Superman belongs to the world and…”
“What did you just say? Why do you keep talking about yourself in the third-person?”>>
<<“Do you have any idea what you were asking? The only reason you were asking that…The only reason you were asking that was because you were scared that what Clark had warned you about Luthor was true…”
“Is there anything you two don’t talk about?”
“Like you said, we’re friends. We talk.”
“So I see.”
“I wasn’t trying to hurt you, but what you were asking wasn’t something—still isn’t something I can give. Superman –what I do—saving everyone everyday… It’s not a regular job. It’s not something that allows me the freedom to ... I can’t give you what you were asking—not like that anyway.”>>
‘Not like that.’Those words continued to tease her brain for days. She had no idea what he meant by that. It was obvious he was hiding something. It was confusing. It was draining. The more she thought about it, the more confused she got.
‘Not like that.’The words continued to nag at the back of her mind on repeat as she parked her car in front of her apartment building. She still felt apprehensive about her dinner date with Clark. It wasn’t like she could just avoid his calls the next day if things went badly.
He was her partner.
He was her best friend.
She’d spent the last few months beating herself up over turning him down in the park. She’d tried convincing herself repeatedly that the feelings weren’t real. It was just a crush. It would go away. She’d even allowed her sister to set her up on a few blind dates last month, but she hadn’t been able to go through with any of them. In the back of her mind, she’d been comparing them to Clark when her sister had sent over the pictures.
It had been painful…watching Mayson throw herself at Clark. It had been even more painful when she’d shown up at his apartment and caught what she’d assumed was a good-night kiss. The subtle reminder that no matter how much time she and Clark spent together or how close they got he didn’t see her like that…at least that’s what she’d thought.
<<“I lied.”>>She’d never been so relieved to hear two words in all her life. After spending almost a full day of arguing with Clark like cats and dogs she’d gone to him to apologize and gotten the surprise of her life when they’d finally talked about what had happened last summer. When he’d confessed his feelings for her then turned around and taken it back.
Months of suppressing her feelings had fueled the intense kiss they’d shared in the doorway of his apartment. She’d never, ever felt anything like it. Her head had been swimming. All she knew at the time was she never wanted it to end.
How they’d gone from fighting one minute to her in his arms the next she wasn’t sure. Her relationship with Clark had never been like any other she’d experienced. He challenged her in ways others never would have dared to. He found a way to lift her spirit when she was in the most foul of moods. He just seemed to get her. Which made her reasoning for agreeing to marry Lex in the first place all the more confusing.
Lucy’s theory was she was desperate for something familiar amidst the chaos that was happening around her. With the fall of the Planet and everyone she cared about disappearing one by one she needed something to keep her grounded. She’d been alone and trying to find some sort of normalcy in her life. Without the extenuating circumstances of the Planet being gone she never would have accepted Lex’s proposal. She hadn’t been thinking clearly. Which was probably how Lex had wanted it. He’d had a way about controlling everything. It hadn’t been blatantly noticeable until she started looking back on it.
There had been plenty of signs. Clark had tried to warn her about Lex from the beginning. Her first dinner with Lex had been met with Clark doing a complete one-eighty from asking her to dinner to asking how far she’d be willing to go to land the ‘exclusive’ with Lex Luthor. She’d been furious with him at the time, but looking back she realized he hadn’t been wrong. She never did get the ‘exclusive’ on the real Lex Luthor, and she’d almost married him.
It was one of the many headlines that had been plastered on every newsstand at the time. How could Lois Lane have missed the biggest story right under her nose? How could she have missed the signs? Being proven wrong about someone was hard enough, but dealing with the fallout in the public eye had made things even more painful. She’d been wrong about Lex. Wrong in a humiliating, egg-on-her-face kind of way. It had been painful to see how wrong she’d been as more and more had come out about his criminal activities. Through everything, Clark had been there to help her through one of the most humiliating experiences of her life.
In the end, she couldn’t marry Lex. Something had stopped her—Clark. He’d stopped her from making the biggest mistake of her life, yet not one word of
‘I told you so’ escaped his lips. Not once did he get smug with her when news of Lex’s underground criminal organization broke. He’d been her friend—just as he always had. The only difference was, she wanted more. After his ‘confession’ and being forced to see what her life was like without him in it she’d begun to question her own feelings toward him. She’d put up so many barriers after the fallout from Claude. She’d swore she’d never again let anyone get to her. But Clark had. He’d broken down her barriers without her even realizing it.
She closed the door behind her, glancing at the time. She had an hour before Clark was supposed to arrive. She dropped her things off on the couch and headed for the bedroom to begin getting ready.
‘This is it.’ She told herself.
‘No going back now.’***
Clark finished the final touches for his and Lois’ date tonight. He’d gone over and over how he wanted to do this. He needed to do this in private. He had spoken with Dr. Daitch at the EPRAD to help with his revelation. Over the last year after he’d found the globe and discovered more and more about his origins. The new telescope at the Planetarium had been donated by EPRAD and was powerful enough to show the coordinates he’d been given from the globe of where Krypton once had been.
Knowing Lois’ inquisitive mind, he figured the best way to tell her everything was to show her. Keeping the date private and just the two of them would allow him to do that with her. Hopefully showing her how much he trusted her would make her forget the fact that he’d lied to her for over a year.
***
Lois stared at her reflection in the mirror, tussling her hair for the hundredth time. A date. She was going on a date with Clark. Despite how heated things had gotten between her and Clark the other night she still felt knots in her stomach at the prospect of tonight’s date. Normally, the first date was where you got to know the other person. She already knew everything there was to know about Clark—or at least she thought she did.
<<“I love you, Lois, I don’t want a one-night-stand, and I don’t think you want that either. I want forever…”
“Forever?”
“Forever.”>>
<<“After all this mess is cleared up …. A date.”
“Several.”
“Whatever.”
“Say it.”
“Fine, several dates.”
“Are you laughing?”
“No, of course not, I just find it funny that you insist on emphasizing these ‘several dates’ when we’ve yet to have one.”
“You shouldn’t laugh. You’re about to fall head over heels in love.”
“I thought I already was.”
“Not yet, but you will be.” >>What did that mean?
She felt a smile cross her face as she recalled the flirtatious way Clark had made her agree to several dates the other night. She’d seen a side to him that was new to her. Feeling free to think of him in a way other than friendship was new to her. For months, she’d been trying to talk herself out of the feelings she knew were there. She’d suppressed the need to hold him, touch him…
Lois glanced at the clock, dabbing a spritz of perfume on her wrist.
‘Ten minutes.’Clark hadn’t told her where they were going. Hopefully, she wasn’t overdressed. She looked down at the simple violet dress. It hung loosely on her, allowing the skirt to flow naturally as she walked. The spaghetti straps came together in the back to create a zig-zag pattern on her upper-back. It was sexy yet elegant at the same time. She ran her hand through her curled hair, checking to make sure nothing was out of place. She couldn’t remember a time when she’d been so nervous for a date. Even when she’d thought she was having dinner with Superman she hadn’t been this nervous.
‘Breathe.’ She reminded herself.
‘Just breathe.’A soft knock on the front door penetrated through her thoughts. She glanced at the time.
‘He’s early.’“This is it.” She told herself, repeating over and over as she approached the door, “Just dinner. Just dinner.” She took a deep breath before opening the door.
***
Clark felt his entire throat go dry as he tried to force his mouth to come up with a coherent thought. “Hi,” he finally said, offering her a weak smile. This was it. No going back.
“Hi,” Lois smiled back at him, running a hand through her hair nervously.
“You look….” He couldn’t seem to find the right word to describe how perfect she looked.
Lois blushed, smoothing the sides of her violet dress, “Thanks.” Panic crossed her face for a split-second, “I’m not overdressed, am I?’
“No, no,” he reassured, finally finding his voice. “You look …incredible.”
“Really?” She grinned back at him.
“Are you ready?” He asked hesitantly.
“Let me just grab my purse.” She pointed to the black pocketbook on the table.
***
Lois smiled as Clark held his arm out for her to hold, escorting her inside the Metropolis Planetarium. “What are we doing here?”
“You’ll see.” He said with a reassuring smile.
“I thought we were going to dinner.” She reminded him as the doors behind them closed.
“We are.” He pointed up the spiral staircase.
The room was dimly lit with security lights. Just enough light emitted for her to be able to see her way through the tall staircase that led up to the observatory on the roof. “How far are we going?”
“All the way up.” He answered, pointing up toward the observatory where she could see the reflection from the stars shining through the stairwell.
“I thought you said I wasn’t overdressed.” She shot back half-teasing.
“You’re not.”
“Why are we climbing twelve stories of stairs?” She asked.
“You’ll see.” He explained behind her. “It doesn’t have the same effect if you go through the elevator.”
“If you say so.” Lois sighed, still not sure what to expect when she finally did reach the top.
“I could carry you if you want.” He suggested.
The thought had crossed her mind but given that they were now only one flight of stairs away and she’d already made it this far she squashed the idea before it could be entertained. “I, um…” She stopped when she turned toward the final flight of stairs. The glass ceiling showed the night sky with stars shining down on them. The view was breathtaking.
“See what I mean?”
She smiled back at him, uncertain how to respond. He was right. The view was out of this world. She took the final step into the room, leaning back into Clark’s arms when she saw he’d already set up a picnic in the middle of the room. “Clark, it’s beautiful,”
“I told you I’d feed you.” He grinned back at her. “And now you don’t have to go to the gym tomorrow.” She gave a light chuckle and allowed him to guide her toward the blanket he’d spread out, looking up at the stars with a picnic basket in the center. He took a seat on the left side, pulling out a cooler where he offered her a choice of beverage. “There’s a bottle of Merlot, or I’ve got Cream Soda.”
“I’ll take the cream soda for now.” She smiled, taking a seat next to him.
He grinned, pouring her cream soda into a glass and handing it to her. He then poured himself a glass and held it up, “To … new beginnings.”
She allowed her smile to widen at that, “To new beginnings,” she repeated, clinking her glass with his. She took a sip, allowing the creamy liquid to dance on her taste buds for a moment. “So, is there anyone else here?”
“Nope.” He grinned back at her. “I rented it out for the evening. The request is not as uncommon as you’d think.”
“I’d say it’s a very original place to have a date.” She agreed, staring up at the stars. “but the view is…”
“Incredible. I know.” He finished for her. “Are you hungry?”
“What’s for dinner?” She looked at him expectantly.
“Glad you asked.” He pulled out a familiar looking wooden tote, spinning the lids open and revealing fried rice, dumplings and teriyaki chicken.
“The Chinese takeout we had on our first story,” Lois said, looking at the spread of food he’d laid before her.
“You said you really liked it.” He recalled, meeting her gaze with a slow smile as he handed her a plate.
“It was out of this world.” She said, taking the plate from him. “You know, I’ve looked all over Metropolis and I still can’t find where this place is.” She said, eying him as he made himself comfortable on the other side of the blanket.
“I’ll have to take you there sometime.” He grinned back at her.
“I’d like that.” She said, taking a bite of the dumpling. “Still out of this world.” She sighed, savoring the taste.
“Good.” He took a bite himself, reaching for his own glass of cream soda.
“So, not exactly how I imagined tonight’s dinner. Staring up at the stars over Chinese takeout.” Lois smiled at him, taking another bite of her food.
“How did you imagine it?” Clark set his glass down, looking at her expectantly.
She smiled, “I don’t know. I mean, we’ve shared hundreds of meals together over the past year. I wasn’t sure what to expect.”
“Are you…disappointed?” his tone remained hesitant as he looked at her quizzically.
“No,” she said softly, meeting his gaze. “Just trying to figure out where to begin.”
“I know,” He smiled good-naturedly at. “Most first dates begin with getting to know you and we….already
do.”
She smiled at him in relief, “Yes, exactly. It’s like starting out on the fifteenth date….without the dating.”
“I know,” He smiled at her, “but we still don’t know
everything about one another. I don’t think even on the fifteenth date we’d know everything.”
“True.” She reasoned aloud, taking another bite of her chicken. “So, maybe we start with sharing something the other doesn’t know about the other? Sorta break the ice.”
“Okay,” Clark stirred his fork on his plate, taking a bite.
“You go first.” She said nervously.
“Okay,” He smiled, running his hand through her hair. It was a simple gesture, but his touch had a way of sending chills down her spine. “Let’s see, something I haven’t told you…” He grew thoughtful, “I
hate Double Fudge Crunch Bars. I only keep them around because I know you calm down when you have one.”
Lois laughed, “
Really?”
“Really.” He nodded. “I can’t stand them.”
Lois smiled at him, “I do appreciate that you keep them around for me…even if you do hate them.” She sighed, looking back at him as she tried to think of something she hadn’t shared with him yet, “I guess it’s my turn. I hate crowded restaurants and operas and ballets and every other excuse to spend an exorbitant amount of money for very little entertainment.”
“Duly noted.” Clark chuckled. “No ballets. No operas. No crowded restaurants.” She smiled back at him and pushed her plate away. He took the plate from her, setting it to the side with his. “I guess it’s my turn,” He sat up, meeting her gaze. She watched with a smile as he fidgeted with his glasses. “Remember the Godzilla goose chase I sent you on?”
“Vividly,” she blushed.
“I actually had changed my mind halfway through. I was trying to stop you from finding it, but you were already halfway out the door.” He said with a half-smile.
“Why? I deserved it.” Lois shrugged, “I was being a jerk.”
“True, but my parents always taught me to keep my cool. I planned that scavenger hunt in the heat of the moment when I was mad at you for stealing Jimmy’s idea.”
“And your story?” Lois prompted.
“That too.” He gave her a good-natured smile.
“I felt really bad about stealing your story.” She admitted. “I actually kept Lucy up all night the night before talking about it.”
“So you weren’t teaching a lesson?” Clark prompted, reminding her of the speech she’d given him to excuse her actions.
“No,” she shook her head. “I just didn’t want anyone else getting the story. I was more angry at Perry for letting everyone else horn in on the Superman story. I was sure it would have been my next Kerth…or a possible Pulitzer. I’m sorry.”
“I figured.” He shrugged good naturedly, “but thank you for the apology….even if it is a year later.”
She lightly smacked him on the chest. He placed a hand over hers, running his thumb over the back of her hand. “So, whose turn is it now?”
“I don’t know.” She said thoughtfully, “I guess we lost count.” She stared at him, watching as he looked at her shyly. She brushed a hand through her hair. She’d been so nervous about tonight. Then Clark had put her at ease like he always did. He’d surprised her with a picnic under the stars. It wasn’t something she’d expected from Clark. He’d spent the whole evening showing her a different side to him. He’d planned a romantic evening for just the two of them and remained his same fun-loving self. He was still her best friend but different at the same time. He was romantic and charming and sexy. Her stomach was doing butterflies contemplating when and if he was going to kiss her.
***
Clark nervously readjusted his glasses, meeting Lois’ gaze. The reflection from the stars reflected off her face with a glimmer. He did his best to keep the conversation light while they finished dinner.
“You’re full of surprises, Clark Kent.” She whispered, leaning back to stare up at the stars through the glass ceiling. “I never would have thought to have dinner somewhere like this.”
“I thought it would be….unique.” He smiled back at her. “Are you having a good time?”
“Yeah,” she gave him a half-smile. “I’d say date number one is a …success.”
“Good.” He cracked a smile at her, standing up, helping her to her feet with him, “Did you know they got a new telescope here? It was rented out from EPRAD.” He explained, guiding her to the telescope.
“Really?” Lois looked at him in surprise. “I had no idea.”
“Take a look.” He pointed to the eyepiece.
“Okay,” she leaned over, looking through the eyepiece and he adjusted the focuser for her.
“You see that red dot?” He asked.
“Yeah,” she said softly, “What am I looking?”
“It’s the red sun from another galaxy,” Clark explained solemnly.
“Another galaxy?” She looked up at him in surprise. “How is that even possible?”
“Pretty amazing, huh?” He smiled at her.
“Yeah,” She smiled at him.
He moved his hands to her shoulders, moving her back in front of the telescope. “There’s more. Keep looking.”
She leaned over, looking through the eyepiece once more, “What am I looking for?”
“You see the space between those two stars?” he asked, checking the settings as he spoke.
“What am I looking for? There’s nothing there.” She said.
“I know.” He began hesitantly, “You’re looking at Krypton….or what
was Krypton.”
Lois’ head shot up, looking back at him in surprise. “What?”
He watched her expression change from surprise to wonder, and he continued, “You’re probably wondering how I know that.”
“The thought crossed my mind.” She said hesitantly.
He moved his hand to cup her cheek, “There’s something I haven’t told you…about me.” He began, fingering the frame of her face with his thumb.
She smiled at him, “I didn’t know we were still playing that game.”
“You know how I was adopted, right?” he began, forcing himself to continue.
“Yeah,” Lois began slowly, running a hand up his chest. He held her hand, meeting her gaze. He wanted to kiss her. He wanted to pick up where he’d left off two nights ago and take her in his arms and never let go.
It would be so easy to just continue the date without saying anything. They’d been having a great time. It had been a perfect date. He knew he could have finished the evening and not told her anything about his alter-ego. He could have, but it wouldn’t be right. They were supposed to be getting to know one another. Part of that would include him telling her everything about himself. He just hoped him telling her wouldn’t ruin what they’d started.
“I wasn’t your typical adoption.” He began hesitantly, diving into his confession full-force, “My parents found me one night when they were driving by Schuster’s Field.”
“Clark…” Lois reached up to stroke his cheek.
He closed his eyes, savoring the feeling of her tender touch.
‘Please don’t hate me.’“Mom said they saw what looked like a meteor when they were driving by one night.” He held his tongue allowing the information to slowly process in Lois’ mind.
“A meteor?” Lois looked at him quizzically.
“They found me ….Mom said I was maybe seven or eight months old at the time….in a space ship.” He felt like a thousand ton weight had just been lifted off of him as he continued, feeling her eyes bore a hole into him as he continued. “It was around the time of the Cold War. They weren’t sure
where I came from.
I wasn’t sure. I never knew anything about where I came from until recently.”
“R-Recently?” Lois echoed, “You w-were in a
space ship. You f-found your birth parents?” He could tell from the look on her face she was still processing everything.
“Not exactly.” He continued. “There was something with the ship. A globe…that told me where I came from…who I was.”
“A globe?”
He nodded, reaching for the globe he had placed on the table next to the telescope. He’d brought it with him back from Smallville to show her. Her eyes widened in recognition. “I know you have a lot of questions. I know you’re probably mad and angry, and maybe a little shocked, but you have to understand I spent my entire life trying to avoid people like Jason Trask. My parents spent my entire childhood looking over their shoulder afraid someone would come and take me from them …or worse.”
Her breathing hiked, and he closed his eyes, hoping against hope that she wouldn’t pull away. “The globe. You have
Superman’s globe. Why? How? Your parents…”
“I
am Superman, Lois.” He whispered, placing a hesitant hand on her lower back and allowing them to float a few inches off the ground.
“Oh, my God.” She looked down, then back at him. “How is this possible?”
“Lois,” he repeated, cupping her cheek, “I’m still me. Superman was just a disguise I created so I could help people.”
“Oh, God.” She whispered softly, “We’re flying.”
“Floating.” He corrected.
“All those lame excuses.” She began to put the pieces together.
“I had to rescue someone.” He explained. “I only started using Superman as a way to rescue people this past year. Before that, I kept moving around when anyone got too suspicious.”
“I guess seeing a man who can fly and put out fires with his breath would be a little alarming. Raise a few questions.” Lois reasoned aloud, staring down at the floor below them. “Can we maybe get back on the ground? I’m still trying to process all of this, and this is just…
not helping.”
“Yeah,” he slowly floated them back to the ground.
She let out a long breath and whispered, “Thanks.”
For a moment he thought she was going to run, but she surprised him, turning to look at him with an uneasy expression, “So, why now?”
“What?” he asked surprised.
“Why now?” She repeated, continuing to stare back at him with a blank expression. He couldn’t tell what she was thinking.
“I wanted you to have all the facts before anything between us….started,” he explained softly, moving to cup her cheek. “Lois, I’ve never told anyone this….ever. I know this is a lot to take in and I know you’ll need time to think things over. All of this is new to me. Trusting someone with …this secret. It’s not something that comes easy.”
“No, I don’t think it would be.” She looked around, seeming to be still processing everything. “You lied to me every day for over a year.”
“I know.” He said softly.
She bit her lower lip, “You let me make a fool of myself for months.”
“You were
not making a fool of yourself. I didn’t know how to react or what to do. Everyone around me was treating Superman differently. I didn’t realize ….” He stopped mid-sentence, seeing the hurt expression on her face. “I’m sorry.”
She stared down at the floor, “You broke my heart.”
“I know. I’m sorry.” He whispered.
“I’m such an idiot. How did I miss this?”
He felt like a knife had just twisted in his chest as he watched a single tear fall down her cheek. “You’re not an idiot.”
“No?” She asked, shaking her head. “I feel like one. It all makes perfect sense. You arrive in Metropolis at the same time as Superman. You’re never in the same place together. You both seemed to know things you shouldn’t…”
“You’re the smartest woman I know.” He said, tilting her chin to look up at him. “If anything I’ve had to work harder to make sure you didn’t find out. The whole point was for people not to connect Clark Kent with Superman.”
“Well, it certainly seemed to work.” She whispered, turning away from him. He frowned, watching as she paced. The shock was slowly wearing off and he could see the glint of anger in her eyes as she spoke, “I spent the last year proving over and over what an
honest and
trustworthy person Superman was. I put my reputation on the line. Perry put the paper on the line for you. You
lied to me! Over and over and over and….I mean, you had so many chances to tell me! Why didn’t you tell me before? I confronted you about the globe in your apartment. You could have told me then. Why now?”
A single tear rolled down her cheek and he fought the urge to brush it off her cheek. He wasn’t sure how she’d react to him touching her right now. “I know I lied. I lied about a lot of things and I’m not proud of it. I did what I had to do to protect everyone I care about.” He said, taking a step toward her.
“Your parents,” Lois said softly, brushing the tear off her cheek.
“And you.” He said, taking another hesitant step toward her. “I was afraid of what would happen if anyone realized the connection between you and Superman…or Perry…or Jimmy.”
“A little late for that.” She said softly.
“I know.” He looked down, staring at the half-foot gap that stood between them.
“All those things about Lex you couldn’t prove?” she began piecing things together aloud.
“Conversations with him and Superman.” He explained.
“You should have told me.” She said in a soft whisper.
“I
tried.” He argued.
“You tried?” she shot back. “You didn’t give me any proof. Just your
‘gut’ as if that was supposed to convince me. If I’d known you had
actual conversations where he’d admitted…”
“He never came out and admitted anything. He insinuated. Gave veiled threats.” He corrected. “The evidence I had was circumstantial at best. You
never would have believed me.”
“You never gave me a chance.” She shot back, stepping toward him angrily as she jabbed her finger in his chest, “What were you trying to prove?”
“I wasn’t trying to prove anything.” He said, “I was trying to bring him down the best way I knew how.”
“Do you have any idea what you put me through?” she jabbed her finger at him.
“I know I hurt you, Lois, and I’m sorry for that, but I can’t change what I’ve done any more than you can.” He reached out to cup her cheek.
“You broke my heart.” She accused.
“I never wanted to do that, but what you were asking for was something I couldn’t give…not like
that.” He took a step toward her, closing the distance between them.
“Not like what?” she asked, “What’s changed?”
“This.” He leaned in to kiss her. His other arms moved up her spine, finding his way to the other side of her face, holding her to him as he kissed her thoroughly. He could feel her respond, moving her hands to his hair briefly before letting out a soft moan.
He slowly broke off the kiss and looked at her tenderly, “I’m sorry I hurt you and I know I have a lot to do in earning your trust back. All I’m asking for is a chance.”
“A chance?” she echoed, finding her voice.
“A chance,” he repeated. “I love you, Lois, and I have hated having to lie to you about this. I hate what this secret has done to both of us.”
“Yeah, I can’t believe what an idiot I was.” She said, shaking her head. “That’s why you pulled away. Why Superman disappeared for those weeks…I thought it was a sense of loyalty to you, but it wasn’t. I didn’t lose two people I lost one. I just didn’t know it.”
“What are you talking about?” he asked, confused.
“You—Clark—Sorry, it’s just easier to talk about like this. You disappeared. After our fight about Lex when you stormed off. I tried calling you, and you never returned my calls. I tried calling for Superman, and he never showed.” Lois accused. “You
abandoned me and I…”
He felt a wave of nausea wash over him as he recalled the pain from the Kryptonite cage he’d been trapped in. He moved his hands to her face, running his thumb against her jaw, “Lois, I would never abandon you….
ever.” He took a deep breath, steadying himself before he continued.
“Then why didn’t you answer?” she asked, covering his hand with hers.
“I couldn’t answer because ….” He took a deep breath, contemplating whether or not to tell her.
She seemed to sense his hesitation and pressed, placing a hand on his chest, “No more secrets. You want a chance you need to be honest with me.”
“It was a trap.” He explained softly. “I got arrogant and never thought he’d get his hands on it after it was destroyed in Smallville.”
“What was destroyed?” she asked, her tone soft.
“Kryptonite.” He took a breath, “Luthor had a cage of Kryptonite.” She let out an inaudible gasp, and he continued, staring down at her small hand, “I laid in there for a day and a half. Listened to Luthor taunt me about how he’d finally won and what he was going to do to me…and everyone I cared about. I used up all of my strength to get out of there…had to hide behind the barrels of wine when he came in there with an axe.”
“Clark…”
“I made the mistake of being over confident when I confronted him. I never scanned the wine cellar. Never thought to check for Kryptonite. I never thought he’d get his hands on it. It was destroyed…so I thought.” He continued.
“But Arianna…” Lois interrupted.
“I think that’s the same sample Luthor had. I suspect it came from the sample Wayne Irig sent to the lab.” Clark explained.
“There really was Kryptonite there.” She mused, putting the pieces together. “I knew it existed from when she’d shot you but….I guess I just wrote Trask off as insane.”
“He was, but in this
one thing he was right,” Clark explained.
“I never understood what he was doing in Smallville.” She said softly, “Now it makes sense.”
“Are you still mad?” he ventured cautiously.
“I don’t know.” She whispered. “I mean, I get why you did what you did. It just hurts that you lied to me for so long. I don’t even know where to go from here. I thought I knew you better than anyone. You’re my best friend and I had no clue that…”
“You’re
my best friend, Lois. The only one I would
ever consider sharing this with.” He ran a hand through her hair. “It was never a question of trust. It was a question of my being ready to share this with someone….someone I could hopefully share everything with.”
“Everything?” she echoed uncertainly.
“Everything.” He repeated softly, stroking her jaw with his thumb. “I told you the other night ….I’m not looking for anything temporary. I want
forever.” He heard her heartrate pick up pas he spoke and pressed on, “I’m just looking for a chance.”
“I feel like I hardly know you.” She said softly.
“I know, and I’m sorry for that.” He apologized. “Superman was just a disguise I dreamt up. He was never supposed to be anything more than that.”
“He wasn’t a disguise to me.” she said tearfully.
“I know.” He looked down. “I had a hard time hiding how I felt about you in the suit.”
“You did?” she asked, looking up at him with a half-smile.
“Yeah,” he grinned back at her. “I want to show you something.” He said, picking up the globe from the table behind the telescope.
“The globe,” Lois said, recognizing the object in his hand.
“It has maps of Earth and Krypton.” He explained, “but it also holds messages from my birth parents.” Her eyebrows rose in wonder as he brought her hands with his to touch the bottom hemisphere of the globe. “Just watch.”
The room lit up, and the hologram of Jor-El filled the room. He looked toward Lois who stared in shock, “Wow...”
***
Lois stared at the globe that had just gone cold in her hands, still reeling from everything she’d just seen and heard. “That’s amazing.”
“Yeah,” he gave her a half-smile, but she could tell the images they’d seen were painful for him. Seeing his birth parents prepare to send him into the cold dark universe with no guarantee he’d make it.
She was still unsure how she felt about everything. There was a lot they would have to work through. He’d lied to her. Moving past it would take some time. Connecting Clark with Superman and vice versa would take time. Everything would take time.
He was staring at her expectantly. His hands remained on her waist, unmoving as if he was afraid she’d bolt out of his arms. “So, you seem to be taking this a lot ….better than I thought you would.”
“I think I’m still in shock.” She explained gently. “I won’t tell anyone. I know this wasn’t easy. You can trust me.”
“I know. Lois,” He smiled at her. “I trust you.”
She could feel her heart hammering in her chest as he spoke. It was so hard being this close to him yet feeling so torn about how to act with him. “Thank you for showing me the globe and those messages. I can’t imagine how hard that must have been to hear and see for the first time.”
He smiled at her, “I kept getting the messages when Jack had stolen the globe. I’m not sure, but I suspect he knows.”
“Does that scare you?” she asked, apprehensively.
Clark shrugged, “Anyone knowing makes me a little uneasy…vulnerable. I’m not used to that.”
“I can understand that.” She began slowly, fingering the lapels of his jacket, “As far as you and me goes?" she prompted uneasily, "There’s definitely a little more than a chance.” His face broke out into a wide grin and she continued, “but I’m still processing a lot of this. You lied to me. That hurts. I never thought you’d lie to me. You kept this huge part of yourself from me, and I’m still….” She stopped, seeing him looking at her with a surprised expression. “I understand why you did it. Really, I do. It’s just hard. I have to learn how to trust you again and that's going to take time. Plus, trying to take two men I love and combine the two is just….complicated.”
“You still love me?”
“Yes.” she asked cautiously. “I couldn’t stop if I tried, but don’t you dare lie to me again.”
“From this point on, you know
everything.” He promised, leaning in to kiss her softly on the lips.
She smiled against his lips, feeling his other hand move up her spine until it found its way to the other side of her face, outlining the frame of her face with his palms as she moaned against him. It would be so very easy to get caught up in the moment right now. He’d just taken her on a romantic date, shared something with her he’d never told another living soul outside of his parents and showed her the last images of his birth parents. It was an emotional roller coaster for both of them. She could very easily lose herself in his arms and not give it a second thought.
He pulled back, “We need to stop.” He whispered against her lips.
She nodded, watching as he stepped away from her, looking at the ground before looking back at her.
“You owe me an exclusive. A real exclusive.” She said, moving her hands up his chest, “Everything that didn’t get printed.”
“Okay,” he tightened his arms around her.
“No more secrets.” She repeated.
“No more secrets.” He echoed, leaning in to capture her mouth with his, sealing the promise with a kiss.
***
TBC...
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