I don't know if you want feedback on the edited version, Terry, but I'm assuming that you do. Well, I think that the edited version is better, but still not as good as I'd like it to be, when it comes to Clark's (and Perry's) behaviour.
For example, Perry still makes me squirm here:
Then he got a devilish look on his face. “Son, did you mean it when you told her that Lana looked better?”
Perry is downright creepy here, like a boss who wants to know about his female employee's physical assets. Boy, would I hate it if my boss asked that sort of questions about me.
I really don't like how Perry is amused by what Clark tells him, either:
Clark smiled. “Truthfully? I'd say it was pretty much a dead heat, Chief. And I'm not sure now if she was mad because I'd seen her wearing so little or because she was afraid that she didn't measure up to the standards she thinks Lana set for me.”
Perry leaned back and partially stifled his laugh. “I'm sure glad you didn't tell her that!”
And I sure wish that Perry wouldn't discuss Lois that way. Perry was always portrayed as very fond of Lois, almost as if she was his daughter. He doesn't sound particularly fond of or protective of her here.
He becomes better here, though:
“Just why did you say what you did?”
Well, I'm glad Perry made Clark ask himself that question. Clark answers that he doesn't really know why:
Clark pursed his lips. “I don't really know. I just got this irritated feeling when she was ragging on me. I know I shouldn't have said that, but it just popped out before I knew what I was saying.”
I don't much like Perry's explanation:
“Uh-huh. Didn't one o' y'all say that your mental link might affect your behavior?”
Clark dropped his chin to his chest and sighed. “Yeah, one of us did. And maybe that's part of why I was so rude to Lois just now.”
This suggests to me that Clark becomes a worse sort of person because of his link to Lois. She is an angry sort of person, she says rude things, so Clark becomes angry and rude, too.
So it is Lois's bad influence that makes Clark rude to her?
![[Linked Image]](http://www.buddhastate.co.uk/images/designs/dontdo3.gif)
I like this addition:
He suddenly realized that he was once again comparing Lois to Lana. And that Lois seemed to be coming out the winner in more and more categories.
But he couldn't be attracted to her! Not now, not ever. Sure, she was beautiful and talented and brilliant and a great writer and a terrific dancer and a top-notch investigator, but she was also pig-headed and stubborn and prone to awkward logic-defying deductions which might or might not be accurate. And she was sometimes too proud to admit that she needed help or that she might have been wrong.
Another part of his mind whispered to him that her heart was in the right place, though, and she was as honest as the day was long. She understood that money and fame were important, but not as important as the people in her life. It was a lesson that Lana had struggled to learn all of her brief life, and as far as Clark knew she'd never fully mastered it.
But Lois was dating another man and seemed to be happy. He couldn't mess that up for her, not if he was truly her friend. And he did want to be her friend.
Besides, his conscience reminded him, he was dating Rebecca. And she didn't seem to be the type to lean towards three-sided relationships.
For that matter, he told himself forcefully, neither did he.
Good. This was a good addition.
Now I'd like Clark to remember to appreciate Lois. He never thanked her for going to a lot of trouble and discomfort, both physical and emotional, to save him from the kryptonite.
Ann
