Place for comments!

Wow, so much happening in this part. Clark faces his fears and talks to Lois as Superman. Clearly, writing in his journal has helped him see everything he went through from Lois's point of view. I'm glad he's starting to see that he can't blame her for treating the two sides of himself differently, when he's the one who has kept it from her that they were the same man. For the first time, we actually see Lois asking Superman the tough questions, even if they are off the record. And he didn't run away from revealing at least some truths to her. Good steps all around!

I like that Lois realized what a wonderful friend Clark has been to her -- why he became her best friend -- and how she hasn't been much of a friend in return. I'm excited to see Lois enacting her new plan to befriend Clark on his terms. It's amazing how even just a little effort can mean so much and I hope Clark accepts her efforts and reciprocates.

I am so glad for this chapter ...

Clark, I think, is starting to understand how HE--his two identities--creates a lot of the pain that he is feeling. That's a big step. And he's starting to cut Lois some slack for not reacting in ways he wanted her to react (when she had no basis for that wanted reaction).

Something tells me that what Lois does, what she shows Clark, in the coming chapters is going to do wonders. Clark has been 'giving' to Lois for the last year, without a lot of reciprocation. Creating more of a balance between them and their friendship, I believe, will have a huge effect on its quality.

Hopefully, better terms will lead to honesty--about double identities, and about hurt feelings. They've both been through a lot, and they need each other to move on.

Great part!!!
Laura

As I mentioned before I have been waiting for this part and hopefully the parts that will follow. The MX plot gives the framework but this is in its essence an introspection piece and one that I am really enjoying. The distance between Lois and Clark while not pleasant is necessary to set the stage for the self-reflection required to make it past the issue of Lois' basically slap in Clark's face. This is very Lois (jump in before looking/thinking). Until both of them come to the conclusion that Lois went to Lex and Superman because, in her opinion, Lex could not hurt her because she did not love him and Superman would not hurt her because of who he is. Of course the intricacies of a relationship with Superman had escaped her (she IS Lois afterall). In her mind all relationships end badly and Clark was the only one she could not stand to lose hence...

Once they both get on the same page with that conclusion things will begin to move back to what they both want and need.

I can't wait to see where you go next.

Mike

I thought this part of the story was very well done. You've given us a serious and thoughtful reflection on how both characters could have realistically been thinking through the fallout from the BatP/HoL events. Hopefully as the story progresses, they'll be able to work through the pain they've both caused and come through the other side together.

YES! Love how Clark and Lois are both seeing how they've contributed to the distancing in their relationship, and are thinking of ways to repair it by looking at the other's point of view and trying to change their own thoughts, words and deeds. I've been looking forward to this part of the story.

It's perfect how Clark realized he needed to apologize as Superman to try to repair that bridge with Lois rather than destroying it. And that in turn led to her seeing him as behaving differently. Then her step by step process to realizing how her behavior both before and after Luthor have contributed to Clark's reactions, and the coldness & distance in their relationship.

I'm glad she recognizes how important he is in her life. Nicely done that she is planning to show him with specifics and in more than just one way. She's really taking her insights to heart and has a strategy to change more than one aspect of her behavior. Looking forward to seeing her working to get through his defenses, and his reactions.

So glad she's finally putting Clark at the top of her "To Do" list. I think putting him there is an important part of healing their partnership and friendship. That's one thing that bothered me in earlier chapters, especially deciding that finding out the extent of the criminal behavior of her dead fiance was more important than figuring out why her live partner was distant. It seemed as though Clark was always coming in a distant second or later, Lois was choosing to deal with him later and as Scarlett O'Hara would say, "to think about that tomorrow." It's nice that tomorrow seems to have come!

Great part!

Thanks for the enthusiasm, guys!! Super fun to hear!

I can't remember if I've said this somewheres before (I should have if I haven't), but this fic runs through Wall of Sound, and we all know how that episode went, so yeah........ personally, I'm excited because I think it provides a necessary push for them to come to some realizations, especially about them together (vs. themselves individually), but don't break out the champagne yet.

I really love that Lois got to come around some too! It's so great having her actually be aware of how one-sided their friendship was before, even if wasn't exactly on purpose. I mean, we all know it's just her self-protective mechanisms, but she seems less than aware that they hurt other people.

I just started writing what I'm pretty sure is the last chapter, btw, just as an update in case y'all are still worried about the unfinished quality of this fic.