Clark stood still for a moment at the railing overlooking the bullpen of the Daily Planet. For several heartbeats, all he could do was close his eyes and drink up all the familiar, though distant, smells and sounds of the paper. Frenetic tapping at keyboards. Phones ringing. Insistent voices speaking pleasantly, but without yielding, to unknown people on the other end of the phone. Small talk being made in the break area. Footsteps rushing to and fro across the newsroom. The coffeemaker brewing a strong, rich pot of coffee. Someone dropping coins into the vending machine.
Lois put her hand on the middle of his back and he opened his eyes again. Nervous butterflies were in his stomach, but he was elated and excited to be back. And having Lois by his side soothed him.
“How are you feeling?” she asked him in a gentle tone meant only for his ears.
“Excited,” he answered honestly. “A little nervous too. It’s been a long time.”
“You’ll do great,” she said, cheering him on.
He gave her a smile. “Thanks.” He looked back over the bullpen. “It looks so different than I last remember it. I mean, the layout is basically the same but…everything is so…different,” he ended lamely, failing to express what he meant.
It was true. While the basic layout of the room hadn’t changed much – the conference rooms were still conference rooms, the editor’s office was still in the same place, the break area hadn’t moved an inch – things were far more modern. Gone were the worn wooden desks that had stood in place before the Planet had been bombed. Newer cherry-colored desks were everywhere. Not a fax machine was in sight – email had long since replaced the old dinosaur-sized machine at the far end of the office. Every desk had a small printer and a docking station for the reporters to plug in the laptops they took with them.
While Clark saw some people on regular phones at their desks, many more had cellphones pressed to their ear. Some scribbled notes on old-fashioned note pads, while others made notations on smart phones or tablet devices. Even the dress code was a little laxer. The younger members of the paper’s staff wore business casual clothing. Clark felt overdressed in his black suit and navy tie spotted with a handful of hibiscus flowers. Thankfully, a few “old-timers” still dressed in formal business attire, so Clark wasn’t entirely out of place.
Like Lois. He’d noted each day the no-nonsense business suits – some with skirts, others with pants – that she donned to go to work. Today, she was in a maroon pants suit with a white shirt and low black pumps. He was glad Lois hadn’t succumbed to the appeal of the business casual approach. While he liked her in whatever she wore, she made a powerful presence in her work attire – as stunning as any sunset and dangerous as a hurricane if you were caught in her crosshairs.
“It’s pretty amazing, huh?” she said, leaning on the railing and looking out, perhaps trying to see it with fresh eyes, as he was. “After the bombing, it was amazing that Mr. Stern bought the paper and brought us back. I thought we were high-tech then – and we were – but we’ve only gotten better as the years have passed.”
“They never did find the real bomber, huh?” Clark asked sadly.
“No. But at least we were able to prove that it wasn’t Jack,” Lois replied in kind.
Clark nodded mutely. Then, squaring his shoulders and once again smiling at her, he gave the bullpen one last look. “Let’s get to work, partner,” he said with determination and eagerness.
“You read my mind,” she said, grinning back widely, with a look that Clark knew well.
Let’s nail Lex Luthor to the wall, it said. And Clark couldn’t have been happier to make that happen.
***
Fall died and winter came on strong. Spring broke timid and weak, but relentlessly fought back the bitter cold and melted the ice while ushering in milder, warmer weather. The first brave shoots of flowers and tender blades of grass peeked cautiously out of the ground. Lois and Clark hardly noticed unless they were out on a date. And even then, it was usually at night, for even on their days off from work, they were constantly building their case against Lex Luthor. It turned out to be a bigger, more extensive investigation than even Clark had imagined it would be, even in his wildest dreams.
Luthor had procured most of his wealth through illegal means, was lord and master of the organized crime in half the Northeast – let alone Metropolis, as Clark had often suspected - and had, it seemed, retained that control even now as he sat in the Oval Office in the seat of the President. Lois and Clark both suspected foul play in the election that had given Luthor the Presidency, but, as of yet, they could prove nothing beyond a shadow of a doubt. If Luthor had somehow used illegal means to sway the vote, he’d been very, very careful not to leave a trace.
And that was only a portion of what they dedicated their time to. They still had plenty of other stories to investigate, and Clark was only too happy to take on whatever it was that Jimmy wanted him to cover. The annual dog show, a police graduation ceremony, a corrupt landlord, the arson at City Hall, it didn’t matter. Clark showed the same enthusiasm for them all. It wasn’t just for show either. He was genuinely happy to cover any story and still marveled over the fact that he was back to work, even though he very quickly learned that none of his old training had abandoned him during the long years of disuse. He was still as competent a reporter as the day he’d gone missing. Still, he often leaned on Lois for help. He liked having her edit his copy and give him suggestions.
“You’re never too old or too smart or too practiced to learn something,” his father had once told him, after Clark had questioned why Jonathan had listened to Wayne Irig when the man had been explaining a different way to rotate the crops. He’d thought the way they were doing things at the time was fine enough and couldn’t understand why his father, a great farmer in his own right, would consider changing a tried-and-true method. Jonathan had smiled and ruffled his hair affectionately as he’d explained his reasons to Clark. “There’s no such thing as perfect. There’s always room for improvement.”
Clark hadn’t really understood it at the time. What super-fast, super-strong twelve-year-old would have? But as he’d gotten old and wiser, he’d learned what valuable advice that had been. He took it to heart, especially now, and constantly looked for opportunities to learn more and be better.
He threw himself into his work and into learning all the new things he needed to know as a reporter. But not when he was out on a date with Lois. As a rule, he refrained from discussing work with her if it could be avoided while they were on a date. He knew they both needed to step back from their jobs if they ever hoped to come back to things in the morning with fresh eyes. And while their work was important, it made for weary conversation over dinner.
They went out almost every night, trying new restaurants and revisiting old favorites that were still thriving in the city. Or they might wind up at a late movie or shopping together or at the zoo. Clark tried his best to think of different ideas to keep things new and exciting, instead of a routine of dinner and home again to watch TV together. He wanted to make Lois the happiest she’d ever been. She was already making him the happiest he’d ever been in his life.
Every moment with her was magical. Every dinner was a feast fit for royalty, so long as she was with him. Every movie had at least one redeeming quality in that he’d sat next to her to view it. Every outing to the zoo or museum or mall was an exciting adventure. Every time they returned home for the night, he was home. It wasn’t the four walls or the furnishings or even that it was the only place he’d lived in since he’d been rescued from the asylum. It was Lois. He could have been living with her in a cardboard box under the Metropolis Bridge and still been home. He was immensely glad he hadn’t moved out and had, instead, obliged Lois in remaining at her house.
Everything in his life felt like it was finally going in the right direction. He’d recovered everything he’d ever lost. And he’d gained more than he’d ever dared to dream he’d have. But one thing was still not the same.
Superman remained missing.
Clark still found that he had extreme anxiety every time he thought about resurrecting the presumed-dead hero – or at the very least a jerk for just up and leaving Earth without so much as a word of goodbye. Nor could he convince himself that there was any way that he could explain away more than twenty years of ghosting the world.
Lois made him insanely happy.
The situation with Superman made him profoundly sad.
At least one course of action was clear. And one early April day, while he and Lois strolled along the docks at sunset after a wonderful seafood dinner at the newly-opened Lobster Hut, he acted on his decision.
“Lois?” he asked as they stopped to watch the sky flare into a brilliant painting of golds, oranges, and reds, tinged with just a hint of blue. “Can I ask you something?”
“Of course,” she immediately replied, tearing her eyes from the sunset to study him. “What’s up?”
“Are you happy?” he asked.
“What do you mean?”
“Well, we’ve been dating for just about six months now,” he hedged cautiously.
“Of course I’m happy,” she replied, giving him a funny look. “Why wouldn’t I be?”
Clark shrugged. “I had to make sure. Because being with you has been the most amazing thing that’s ever happened to me. And I’m just so happy. You make me happy, Lois.”
She shrugged into his side a bit and looked up at him with a contented sigh. “You make me happy too,” she said. “For a long time, I wasn’t. And I don’t mean just during the years you were missing. I was miserable then, but not for the first time. Before I met you, I was lonely and sad, even if I didn’t show it. I tried to cover it up and harden myself to the world and to avoid getting hurt again.” She stretched up on her toes and gave his cheek a kiss. “Then you came along and, once I stopped trying to push you away, you made me happy. Having you back in my life again…dating you…I never could have guessed I’d ever be this happy and peaceful in my life.”
“Good,” Clark said with a crooked smile. “Then maybe I’m not crazy for doing this.” With that, he extracted himself from her hug and went down on one knee. In the same fluid motion, he removed the small jewelry box he’d had tucked away in the breast pocket of his coat. He popped the lid open and looked at her with such seriousness, hope, and love that he hoped she’d understand just how much he wanted to spend his life with her.
“Lois Lane, you are my heart and soul. You’re my hero, and not just because of everything you’ve done for me in the last year and a half.” He gave her a crooked, but shy, grin. “You’ve always been my hero. You’ve always held my heart. Your fire and passion inspire me to be a better man. Your heart is so gentle and kind and loving that I’m humbled to be given the chance to love you.” He paused for a moment and took her hand. With his thumb, he stroked the back of her hand tenderly. “I lost you once already and now that we’re together again, I don’t ever want to be apart from you for any reason. I love you so much that I don’t even have words for it…because any description I can come up with falls utterly short. So, Lois? Will you do me the honor of letting me be your husband?”
A single silver tear rolled down her cheek as she reached out to him. “Yes,” she said breathlessly. “I love you, Clark. I want to spend my life with you.”
His heart almost bursting with joy, he reverently plucked the ring from the black velvet box, then solemnly placed the solitaire diamond on her finger. He stood then and drew her close. His lips crushed down on hers and she responded in kind, matching the unbridled intensity of his passion. Liquid fire raced through his veins and he nearly floated up off the ground in his excitement. It was only at the last second that he realized what danger he was in and he willed himself to remain earthbound. Some long moments later, he finally broke their kiss. Breathless, he rested his forehead against hers.
“I love you,” was all he could manage to say.
“I love you too.”
After a moment of blissful, comfortable silence, he pulled back. “So, when should we plan the wedding for?” he teased, eager for the planning to begin.
“Tomorrow, noon, at the courthouse?” Lois offered with a smirk.
“Lo-is! I’m being serious,” he gently admonished.
“I’m not joking,” Lois said. “Okay, yeah, maybe we can’t do it tomorrow for real, but…” She shrugged.
“Don’t you want a traditional wedding?” Clark asked in surprise. “The white gown and the chapel and rose petals thrown down the aisle by your nieces?”
Lois shook her head. “Maybe once upon a time,” she admitted. “But I’m not sure I want to wait. I waited long enough to be reunited with you. The real you. The one with all his memories,” she said, reaching out and tenderly stroking his cheek. “I’m not sure I want to risk waiting.”
“Risk?” he asked.
“Well…yeah,” she replied, withdrawing her hand and gesturing for them to keep walking. “Someone – presumably Lex – has tried to kill us several times now. I mean, last week? With my Jeep’s brake lines being cut? If word got back to him that we were planning a wedding…”
Clark paled. He hadn’t thought of that. “Good point,” he conceded. “But we can always wait until after Luthor’s in jail. We’re not far from making our case against him.”
“No. I’m done waiting. I’m done having Lex figure into our lives – even if I didn’t know it was him keeping you hostage,” she said, her voice going hard as she spoke of Lex Luthor. “I just want to marry you. All the trappings of dresses and flowers and limos and the like…they’re all just decoration, that’s all. Like wrapping paper on a Christmas present. It’s what’s inside – the marriage – that counts. The rest just gets thrown away after being glanced at.”
“Well…if you’re sure,” Clark said, dragging the word out slightly.
“Unless…” She paused, looking suddenly uncertain. “Did you want all the trappings? I mean, I know you’re the kind of guy who loves traditions and the like. If you rather wait and do the whole big wedding thing, I can do that.”
“Lois,” he said, stopping her mid-babble, his hands resting gently on her shoulders. “None of that matters to me. Like you said, it’s the marriage I want. I can take or leave all the rest. I’ve waited my whole life to be your husband. All I want is to say my vows and really, truly start our life together.”
“It’s settled then. We’ll talk to our families and get them here just as soon as we can. Because we’ll never hear the end of it from my side if we just run off and elope,” Lois said with a laugh.
“Judging from what I’ve seen with your family, I’m guessing we’ll never hear the end of it anyway,” Clark laughed in turn. “I’m not sure who will give you a harder time. Lucy, for not doing the over-the-top wedding, or your mother, for doing it so soon.” He turned to her as they walked and wiggled his eyebrows at her playfully.
Lois rolled her eyes good-naturedly. “Right. We’ll be married after not dating long enough but she’ll also be on our backs about when we’ll give her grandchildren.”
“I’m willing if you are,” Clark said in a quiet, contemplative tone.
Children.
He was absolutely ready to have a family with Lois. He only hoped she was willing to have children with him. After all, they weren’t in their twenties anymore. Conceiving might be more challenging because of that, if their unique blend of Earthling and Kryptonian genes even could usher in new life.
“One thing at a time, Farm Boy,” she grinned teasingly. “First the marriage and then we’ll work on bringing a baby or two into the world.”
“So…that’s a ‘yes’ then?” Clark only half-asked with a grin.
“It’s a definite ‘yes,’” she confirmed with a nod. “And you can thank our nieces for that. I’ve watched them often enough to have lost most of my fears about having kids of my own. Oh, I know it’s not really the same thing, but…they’ve been a big confidence booster. And besides,” she said, gently knocking into his side with her shoulder, “with you by my side, we can accomplish anything. Even the terrible twos,” she jested.
***
Two weeks later, on a warm early May morning, Clark Kent – a man who’d once been no one at all – married Lois Lane at City Hall, before the tear-filled eyes of their family and a select few friends – namely Jimmy and Perry, though well-wishes filtered into to them from various superheroes who knew exactly how hard-won that marriage had been. He dressed in the charcoal suit that she loved him in the best. And she wore a simple white gown that she’d picked off the rack in one of the local shops near the City Center where they’d had their first date. Amanda and Kelly, Lois’ nieces, stood next to their aunt, as Lois and Clark exchanged their vows. Lucy was the matron of honor. Jimmy was Clark’s best man. Sam Lane beamed. Ellen and Martha cried.
Clark felt like he was flying, though his feet remained firmly planted on the ground. His heart was full to the point of bursting. And the way Lois looked in her wedding dress broke his heart in the best way possible. She’d always been beautiful in his eyes. But not even radiant could accurately describe how she looked as they stood before the judge. She looked as ethereal as an angel, as gorgeous as any depiction of Aphrodite he’d ever seen, as regal as a queen. He felt insignificant compared to her and incredibly humbled to be her husband.
Love.
Luthor had tried to take that from him.
First, the billionaire had pursued and wooed Lois right before his eyes. Then he’d tried to marry Lois, while at the same time trying to drive a wedge between Lois and everyone she’d cared about, but most especially with Clark. He’d kidnapped Clark, held him in a cell for a decade, slowly beating the life, memories, and identity out of him. He’d destroyed every trace of Lois in his mind, leaving Clark a loveless, empty husk of a man. Not satisfied with even that, Luthor had shipped Clark off to an asylum to be held for another ten years while everything that Clark had ever known had been seared away by electrical charges shot into his brain.
And yet, despite all the time and effort Luthor had dedicated to his twisted cause, Clark had the one thing he’d always yearned for.
Love.
All his life, Clark had hoped to find the other half of his soul. Someone he could be himself with, without having to hide anything. He’d wandered the world, trying to find his home, trying to find out where he belonged. He’d found it with Lois. And now, he was finally getting to pledge his love and his life to her, for now, and for always.
He’d never, ever in his life been this happy.
“Clark? You have your own vows?” the judge prompted, breaking him from his thoughts.
He nodded. “Lois, from the moment I met you, during my interview with Perry, I have loved you. I don’t know how or why, but the second I laid eyes on you, I just knew you were the person I’d spent my whole life looking for. Over the years, as I’ve gotten to know you better and better, that love has only grown. Our relationship hasn’t always been easy…life has torn us apart from one another…but we’ve managed to find our way back together. And I love you all the more. In you, I see a future so happy and bright that it’s nearly unbelievable. You are my heart, my soul, my very reason for being.”
He took her hands in his and easily slipped the wedding band they’d purchased just the day before over her finger. “You make me happier than I ever dared to dream I’d be. I promise to always love you, to always be faithful to you, to be your rock, and to spend the rest of my life making you as happy as you make me. I love you, Lois.”
Lois gave him a watery smile as she fought back tears. She squeezed his hands before speaking.
“Clark, you’re my best friend. I never really understood what it was like to have one until I met you…until you made me see you and get to know you. You have brought so much light and joy into my life. Every day you make me happy. My life is so much richer for having you in it. I know that we’re supposed to pledge our love and fidelity to each other going forward from this point on. But the truth is, you’ve always had my love and faithfulness. You’re always held my heart. I will always be there for you, loving you, supporting you, protecting you from anything or anyone that ever tries to hurt you again. I love you, Clark.”
She slid the ring onto his finger then, the plain gold band the perfect twin to the one she now wore. Clark smiled. The thick band weighed practically nothing, and yet it carried significant weight. It bound him – in the best of ways – to Lois. It shouted to the world that he was Lois Lane’s husband. It was the most incredible title he’d ever had.
The judge asked them if they swore to take each other as husband and wife, to love one another for richer or poor, in sickness and in health. They both eagerly responded with an “I do!” that was solemnly, but excitedly, spoken.
“By the power vested in me by the state of New Troy, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may now kiss the bride,” the judge said with a soft smile.
Clark gathered his new wife in his arms and kissed her deeply and passionately. In all of the times he’d kissed Lois before, this one made him weak in the knees. He wasn’t just kissing Lois. He was pledging himself a thousand times over to his soul mate. Still, he kept the kiss short, ever mindful of their audience.
Light, but enthusiastic, applause followed them as they made their way out of the courtroom. Congratulations and pats on the shoulder came after as everyone made their way into the hallway after them.
He and Lois treated everyone to lunch at The Reef, the restaurant they’d had their first date in. They lingered until the midafternoon, and the staff, seeing that it was clearly a bride and groom celebrating their wedding, allowed them to stay as long as they liked, even bringing out complimentary slices of red velvet cake for everyone. Then, as the afternoon wore on, it became apparent that their little party would need to go their separate ways. Lucy was the first to speak up after little Kelly started complaining that she was starting to not feel well. Everyone else quickly seemed to follow suit. Jimmy’s kids were getting restless and Sam had to finish packing for a conference he needed to fly out to early the next morning.
Clark didn’t mind. He was more than ready to start his honeymoon with Lois. He’d lost more than twenty years with her; he wasn’t willing to waste another second. And in all the time he’d had his full memory back and had begun to date Lois, and despite all the evenings she’d crawled into his bed or invited him into hers, they’d always refrained from crossing the threshold of physical intimacy. Each had wanted to make sure the moment was perfect when they first stepped over that boundary.
“Ready to go home?” Clark asked after bidding goodbye to his mother once they dropped her off at her house.
“More than ready,” she replied, giving him a dreamy look from the passenger seat of the Jeep.
“And just think; tomorrow we’ll be on a tropical island, far, far from Metropolis,” Clark put in with a contented, eager smile.
“Mmm,” Lois hummed in agreement. “Two weeks of being completely unreachable. Two weeks of sun, sand, and you.”
“You say sun and sand like we’re ever leaving the hotel,” Clark quipped as he gave her a wolfish look.
She laughed hard. “Someone’s a bit…enthusiastic,” she shot back with a gentle slap to his bicep.
“I was locked away for twenty years without so much as a glimpse of you,” Clark responded lightly. “And we’ve both been…pretty patient as we’ve dated.”
“As I recall, that was your decision,” Lois playfully teased.
“I seem to remember it being mutual. And I’m not saying it was a bad thing. I’m just…completely done waiting,” Clark replied with a smirk.
“On that, we agree,” Lois said, choking back a chuckle. “But Clark?”
“Yes, dear?”
“We could be home much faster if you’d drive a little swifter,” she teased.
Clark only laughed…but he did begin to push the speed limit.
To Be Continued…
