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From Part 23:Yes, she was falling in love with Clark Kent. As she climbed into bed, Lois admitted that to herself at last.
The good news was that, unless her instincts were completely askew - which wouldn’t be unheard of where personal relationships were concerned - Clark was far from being indifferent to her.
If her guess was right, he just needed to be persuaded that she wouldn’t reject him. And that was just too ironic for words - Lois Lane, the woman who’d been rejected by just about every man she’d cared about. But then, her experience did mean that she understood how he might feel.
Later... they’d talk later...
*********
Now read on...“Great work, you two! Sales of the afternoon edition are up by 10%!”
Clark smiled with pleasure at Perry White as he and Lois entered the newsroom. Lex Luthor’s arrest had dominated the media all day, from what he’d been able to tell. When he’d driven Lois’s Jeep over to her place - she’d given him her key for that purpose earlier - he’d stopped to pick up a copy of the Planet’s evening edition on the way. Their story was on the front page, and occupied two further inside pages as well, even though they hadn’t been able to say much about the nature of the charges when they’d written that story.
So far, among other things, they hadn’t identified Lex Luthor as the mastermind behind the Messenger explosion and the attempt on his and Lois’s life the previous evening - and they wouldn’t be able to do that for a while yet, since they had no intention of jeopardising the fairness of Luthor’s trial. But, once they were free to write everything they knew, they had the exclusive on the whole story - their own eyewitness accounts and evidence as well as Henderson’s promise that they’d get full co-operation and that no other media organisation would get the information from the police.
Now, they had to write up what could be printed in the Planet’s morning edition, and then he’d promised Lois the best takeout she’d ever had.
And they would talk.
She’d insisted on it. She’d been ready to go when he’d come for her, looking tired but exhilarated. But, once they were in the Jeep ready to drive off, she’d paused before turning the key in the ignition.
“We’ve got a couple of hours’ work to do, Clark,” she’d pointed out, although he’d been well aware of that. “But once that’s over, you and I are going to have another talk.”
“We are?” he’d asked, unsure what she was getting at.
“We are. I told you that this morning, remember?”
“About...?”
“You and me, naturally,” she’d said. And he’d had to be content with that explanation.
He was still barely daring to hope. Despite his decision that morning not to attempt to prejudge or predict Lois’s feelings towards him, it was very difficult to set aside years of conditioning and the decision he’d come to after Lana. Lois was attracted to him; she’d proved that by taking the initiative and kissing him after he’d taken her home. But she’d been dead on her feet - she couldn’t have been thinking straight!
And anyway, there was a huge difference between being attracted to someone and actually wanting a relationship with them.
And, of course, he knew that Lois hadn’t had nearly enough time yet to come to terms with what he was.
Abnormal.
Probably not even human.
What woman would want to build a relationship with someone like him?
At least, that was what he’d always thought. Was it possible that Lois was the one woman who could accept him as he was?
Those thoughts had occupied his consciousness all the way to the precinct, and Lois had had to speak to him twice to attract his attention. Thereafter, he’d tried to push thoughts of anything personal between them out of his mind. Not that it had been easy - but it did help that Lois was such a consummate professional.
So they’d got the information they’d needed, plus some more for later use, from Inspector Henderson, whom Clark was coming to respect more and more. Lex Luthor, it seemed, already had his own lawyer, one Sheldon Bender, on the case and, according to Henderson, was doing his best to tie things up in procedure - but the DA’s office, the detective told them, was completely on board, having seen some of the evidence against Luthor. It might take time, Henderson had said, but they would get a conviction.
The arraignment hearing was the following afternoon - he and Lois planned to be there - and the DA’s office was opposing bail. Bender, of course, would pull out all the stops to convince the judge, but Henderson’s view was that in the light of the charges and the obvious flight risk - especially Luthor’s attempt to escape and take a police officer hostage in the process - prosecutors were confident that bail would be denied. Which was fortunate, in Clark’s view; he was very sure that Luthor would seek revenge on Lois. Not that being confined in prison was likely to hamper someone of Lex Luthor’s resources, of course, and he was determined to keep a very close guard on Lois for the time being.
So far, though, things had gone very well. A murderer and conspirator was in custody, having been charged and awaiting arraignment, almost entirely due to his and Lois’s work. And, Lois had added as they’d headed back to the Planet, Lane and Kent would certainly get a Kerth nomination.
Lane and Kent.
It sounded good. No, it sounded *great*, Clark decided as he finished off the section of the story he and Lois had agreed that he would write. And things were sounding as if he and Lois would be a permanent team. Lois had earlier hinted pretty clearly that she liked that idea, but it wasn’t her decision, he knew. Work assignments and any teamworking were up to the editor.
However, Perry White seemed well pleased with his newest writing team. Calling Lois and Clark into his office once they’d both finished their stories and agreed the final versions, the editor beamed at both of them.
“Good work, you two. I took a call earlier today from the paper’s major shareholder, and he asked me to pass on his personal congratulations to the two of you.”
Lois beamed, and Clark couldn’t help grinning in response, both to the compliment on their work and also at his partner’s delight.
“Just doing our job, Chief,” Lois said matter-of-factly, to Clark’s amusement.
“Well, that’s fine, as long as you keep it up!” Perry replied, but with a grin. “So, Lois, you decided that Chuck Carlton was right about Kent here?”
Clark grimaced inwardly; why did the editor have to remind her about their inauspicious beginning as colleagues? But Lois shrugged. “Even Homer sometimes nods, Chief.”
“And even Lois Lane occasionally gets things wrong,” Perry added with a wink. “Okay, kids, you’ve done a couple of days of excellent work, and I can see that you’re tired. Now get out of here - I don’t want to see you until tomorrow afternoon.”
“Thanks,” Clark said. “I appreciate it, Perry. But we were just doing our job, like Lois said.”
“Okay, okay.” The editor brushed his token protest aside. “One more thing. You two obviously make a great team. Either of you have any objections to being partnered permanently?”
The question was addressed to both of them, but Clark noticed that Perry’s attention was primarily directed at Lois. He wondered if the editor was expecting resistance from her. She smiled, however, shaking her head. “I think that’s an excellent idea, Chief.”
“Are you feeling all right, Lois?” Perry asked, concerned.
“Never felt better, Chief,” Lois said airily. “Why?”
Perry rolled his eyes, Clark noticed. “Doesn’t matter. I’ll see you tomorrow!”
**********
At last they were on their way out of the Planet building. Normally, Lois would have been itching to stay, to see what else was going on and what the other big stories for the morning edition were. She’d have wanted to watch the TV screens to see how the story of Luthor’s arrest, broken in full by the Planet and followed by every other media outlet in the city, was being covered, and she’d have revelled in once again being the Planet’s star reporter.
But not tonight.
Now, all she wanted to do was to get Clark Kent alone and have that long talk with him she’d been promising herself.
She was in love with Clark. His kisses had the power to drive her to the brink of insanity. And if he so much as
tried to tell her - for her own good, as he insisted on putting it - that she shouldn’t get involved with him, she'd tell him what happened to the last person who tried to make her do something ‘for her own good’. That particular individual was still walking with a stick last time Lois had seen him.
Not that those kind of tactics would work on Clark... Maybe she should just kiss him senseless instead, she decided as they emerged into the parking garage.
That thought made her grin.
“Lois?”
She came out of her abstraction and saw that Clark was giving her an enquiring look.
“Nothing.” She waved a hand idly. “Just thinking. So... you’re coming back to my place with me, yeah?”
He nodded. “If you still want me to.”
“You don’t get away that easily!” she told him.
He grinned. “Okay. How about I get takeout? If you’re hungry, that is.”
“What kind of takeout?”
Clark shrugged. “Whatever you like. Chinese, Thai, Italian, Indian, Greek, Mexican...”
It suddenly occurred to Lois that he probably wasn’t talking about calling a restaurant somewhere down the road. “You... you mean you’d go to
Bangkok if I asked for a Thai green curry?” she asked, incredulous.
“Sure! Want any side orders?”
Metaphorically putting her jaw back in place, Lois caught Clark’s arm before he could fly off. “Maybe another time. Tonight... well, let’s just have pizza delivered, okay?”
“If that’s what you want.”
Clark seemed nervous, Lois thought. “Hey, relax, partner! I’m not going to eat you!” she teased, then blushed as she realised the potential meaning of her words.
But Clark didn’t appear to have noticed. “You know, that really surprised me. That Perry would make us partners just like that.”
“Why not?” she responded, surprised, unlocking the Jeep as she spoke. “He knows what’s good for the paper - and on the evidence of the last couple of days, you and me working together is definitely that. Why wouldn’t he team us up?”
“Yeah, but you’ve been at the Planet for years; you’ve won three Kerth awards. Whereas - to quote an Irish friend of my dad’s - I’ve only been there a wet weekend.” Clark gave her a wry smile as he slid into the passenger seat.
“If that mattered, I’d still be covering dog shows, while Ralph got all the plum assignments,” Lois countered with a grin.
“I guess you’re right.” Clark flashed her a smile, the same one which still made her feel weak at the knees every time. It was just as well she was sitting down - although, since she was in the process of reversing the Jeep out of a parking space, she had to ease her foot off the accelerator for a moment while she regained her composure.
It really was just as well that mind-reading wasn’t among Clark’s many talents. She fully intended to tell him how she felt about him - well, at some point, anyway - but she had no desire for him to know just how much she already needed to be with him. How necessary he’d already become to her happiness...
...and how much the whole thing scared her.
The conversation remained neutral as Lois steered the Jeep through the Metropolis streets, which were now getting darker as dusk fell. Lois had no intention of discussing anything personal until they were safely inside her apartment, and she got the feeling that Clark felt the same way. At any rate, he seemed happy to continue chatting about the newsroom reaction to their Luthor story and speculating on what might happen at the arraignment.
Until, suddenly, he broke off in mid-sentence.
Lois jerked her head around to look at him after a couple of seconds had gone by and he still hadn’t spoken. “Clark?”
Then she noticed the expression on his face... distant, apparently listening, and desperately torn.
“Someone's in trouble?” she asked.
He nodded. “Mugging - just a block away.”
“Can you help without being seen?”
“I think so.” His need to do something was written all over his face.
“Go,” she said instantly, pulling the Jeep over to the kerb. “Meet me back at my apartment, okay? I’ll order pizza.”
He opened the door and was out on the sidewalk in under a second. “Thanks,” he said briefly, and then ducked into a nearby alley so quickly she almost couldn’t see him move.
Was this going to be the future of her relationship with Clark? Lois wondered as she pulled out into the road again and continued on her way home. Both professional and personal? Seeing him rush off to help people; seeing his anguished expression when there was nothing he could do? Comforting him afterwards if he hadn’t been able to save someone? - she already knew Clark well enough to understand that the immense reserves of compassion he possessed would also make him very vulnerable.
And, if he did need to disappear from time to time to rescue people, chances were that it wouldn’t always happen at the most convenient times. It was quite probable that she might frequently be left on her own when they were supposed to be working - and in the circumstances, she reflected, it was very fortunate that Perry had partnered Clark with her. At least she’d know why he had to leave; she couldn’t imagine anyone who wasn’t aware of the situation putting up with continuing vanishing acts.
Yes; she knew why he’d be dashing off occasionally, and that also meant that she could cover for him. She’d probably better start thinking up some good excuses!
*********
Dealing with the mugger was child’s play. The combination of the gloom of dusk and the dark alley the mugger had dragged his victim into meant that Clark was barely visible. He dragged the young punk away from the woman victim, used the kid’s own belt to tie him to a lamp-post and then told the woman to call the police. She wanted to know who he was, of course, and to thank him, and to ask if he’d be a witness for her - and how he’d managed to pull her attacker off her in the first place. But he didn’t answer any of her questions, simply stealing away into the darkness once he was sure that she was safe from further harm.
And then he took off, into the night sky, heading for Lois’s apartment.
He had somewhere to go; somewhere in the big city where he was welcome. Where his host knew all about him - how he was different, and that he might not be human - and she still wanted his company. His companionship. Maybe even his friendship.
He just hoped that he wouldn’t blow it. Like he’d blown it with Lana, by hoping for too much.
Landing in an alley just along the street from Lois’s building, he checked Carter Avenue carefully before emerging and hurrying up the steps of No. 1058. Lois was already there, he knew; he’d seen her Jeep parked outside.
“Hey.” She opened the door wide in answer to his knock. “Everything okay?”
He filled her in on his rescue of the woman, and she patted his arm approvingly. “Nice work! You weren’t seen?” she added anxiously.
He shook his head. “Not so that I could be identified. And I’m not sure anyone would really believe that I did anything out of the ordinary - if they noticed anything, they’ll probably convince themselves that it was no more than their imagination.”
“You’re used to that, huh?”
He grinned. “I’ve had plenty of practice! But sooner or later people started talking, and they’d put things together until there were a few reports of strange things happening, and that was always when I had to move on.”
“Well, this time you won’t need to move anywhere,” Lois said firmly. “I’ve just found the only partner I’ve ever been able to work with, and there’s no way on earth I’m going to let you get away!”
“Thanks, Lois. I don’t want to have to leave either.” Awkwardly, he moved further into the apartment. This was the first time he and Lois had been properly alone since the early hours of the morning - when she’d thrown herself into his arms and demanded that he kiss her.
The memory of that kiss was as fresh in his mind as if it had only happened five minutes ago.
And standing close to her, inhaling her sweet fragrance, as completely aware of her as he was, it was sheer torture trying to prevent himself from reaching out to take her in his arms again.
He still wasn’t sure why she wanted to talk. He knew that it was about
them, but was he wishing for the moon in longing for her to want to pursue their wonderful kisses from last night? How could she - how could any woman - possibly want a relationship with someone like him? A freak like him?
Last night, you said you wouldn’t assume anything where she was concerned! So why are you assuming she’s going to reject you? Or, worse still, thinking about making that decision for her?Old habits died hard, Clark thought as he turned to gaze out the window. He’d kept himself distant from others at university: making friendships, but avoiding any kind of intimacy. No close friends, no girlfriends, and definitely no lovers. He had no right, he’d thought, to raise expectations in a woman - to expect things of a woman - without telling her the truth about himself. And then she’d reject him anyway, so what was the point?
As for close friends, his fear there was that if he got too close to someone, then sooner or later he’d do something to betray himself. And that was far too dangerous to contemplate.
So he was far too used to keeping his distance, to avoiding relationships, and to assuming that in any case no woman he was interested in would be able to accept him the way he was.
Lois, on the other hand, knew what there was to know about him. And she not only accepted it; she seemed to revel in what he could do. So didn’t that suggest...?
A rap at the door broke into his thoughts. Lois, he noticed as he turned back to her, looked almost relieved at the interruption. He’d been very impolite, he realised. He’d practically ignored her for the past couple of minutes, and he was pretty sure that he’d been so lost in thought that he wouldn’t even have heard her if she’d spoken to him.
“That’ll be the pizza,” she told him, going to answer the door. It was only then that he noticed she had the table set with cutlery and glasses; a couple of cans of diet soda were by the glasses.
She’d ordered two pizzas; “I didn’t know what you like,” she explained. “So this one’s pepperoni and the other one’s a vegetable supreme.”
“They both sound good,” he assured her. “Thanks, Lois.”
She shrugged. “It’s only pizza.”
“I don’t mean that. For putting up with me,” he explained. “I haven’t exactly been the perfect guest so far.”
“I guess you have a lot to think about,” she said casually. “I mean, you’ve been keeping this big secret all your life, and now suddenly someone else knows about it. And I want you to go public with what you can do - and even if it’s in disguise, that kind of step can’t be easy for you.”
Grateful for the distraction she provided, he nodded. “You’re telling me.”
“It’ll work out,” she said confidently. “Now, come and have some pizza.”
Taking her lead, he sat down with her at the table and they began to eat; to his relief, the conversation stayed light and impersonal for a few minutes. He let himself begin to relax.
“I dated a Planet reporter once before,” Lois said, her tone apparently idle, before picking up another piece of pizza.
That ‘once before’ struck Clark instantly; she really did seem to be saying that she wanted them to date. He tensed again. Of course he wanted that too, but... She couldn’t have thought about it properly; he’d have to make sure she understood exactly what it would mean, he resolved again. But that thought got pushed aside as he saw her expression. She seemed to be making strenuous efforts to look casual, he thought, but in her eyes there were shadows. Remembered pain? he wondered.
“Oh?” was all he allowed himself to say. He wanted to let her tell whatever story she had to tell, in her own time. And, suddenly, he had a feeling that he knew at least some of this story; the newsroom gossip he’d done his best to avoid hearing had made mention of a French reporter, once upon a time.
“I was in my first year at the Planet - fresh out of college, young, ambitious, but still too idealistic,” Lois went on. “I still believed that everyone who worked at the Planet had the same kind of - well, ethics as I did. That we all believed in truth and integrity. Informing the public as openly as we could. That while advancing our own careers was good, we had a greater loyalty to the paper. That... well, I guess that we all worked on one big team. Stupidly idealistic,” she finished dryly.
“Not stupid, Lois,” Clark corrected instantly. “You believed in high standards - what’s wrong with that?”
“Oh, Clark, life’s not like that, and we both know it,” she said with a wry shrug. “Anyway, there was this guy - he was about ten years older than me, and he was one of the paper’s stars. Front-page stories every couple of weeks, got a number of the best assignments, you know the type I mean.”
“I know.” Clark nodded.
“He was sort of a hero to me. I mean, I wanted to be where he was. And he was a newsroom star but, Clark, he wasn’t standoffish. He always smiled at me and asked how I was getting on. He actually talked to me about what I was working on - and then the kind of stories I was pulling really was in the dog-show beat. But I was also following another lead that Perry didn’t know about. I’d overheard something in a bar one night about a scheme to pass off sweatshop-made clothes as genuine designer goods. I was checking it out, chasing down leads and I was really getting somewhere. And I told Claude about it.”
He knew what was coming next. And suddenly, so much fell into place for Clark. Why she’d been so hostile when she’d discovered that he was a reporter too. Why she’d been so insistent that it was
her story and he wasn’t going to muscle in on it. Why she’d tried to push him out altogether. And why, once he’d been taken on by Perry White, she’d been distant and downright rude.
She’d been afraid that history was about to repeat itself.
“He stole your story, didn’t he?” he said quietly.
The now-cold pizza lay forgotten on the table between them. Lois nodded. “It was even better than that. The first time I mentioned it to him, he asked me out for a drink - he said we’d have more time to talk in a social setting, and he could give me some advice if I wanted. You know, if I needed some tips on getting closer to the people I needed, or how to approach someone without giving away what I was up to. So we went for a drink. And then he took me for dinner - a romantic restaurant, soft lights, the works - and he walked me home. He kissed me, Clark. He didn’t try to come in - he just kissed me at the door, told me I was beautiful, called me ‘ma cherie’, and left. And... it felt like a fairytale romance come true.”
The only words which came to Clark’s mind were, he thought, better left unsaid. Silently, he reached a hand across the table and covered Lois’s. She smiled at him.
“It’s okay. I mean, this is ancient history now. I just wanted to tell you so that you’d understand,” she assured him. “Anyway, over the next couple of days I did a lot more work on my story, and I found the last missing piece of evidence. I wrote it all up - it was all ready to bring to Perry. And I told Claude. And that’s when he moved in again. He said we should go to dinner to celebrate. And he asked me to bring my story - he said he was so proud of me that he wanted to read it.
“So,” she continued, “we went to dinner. That same romantic restaurant. And he brought me home. And this time he said he was coming in for coffee so that he could read my story and congratulate me on it. And he read it. He liked it, I could tell. And then he kissed me. And -” She broke off, this time looking angry, but with herself, Clark sensed. “And he seduced me. I woke up in the morning and he was gone, and so was my story.”
“He claimed it was his own work?” Clark asked, knowing the answer.
“Yes. He took it to Perry, and it was printed under his byline. I wanted to tell Perry that it was mine, but how could I, Clark? I’d been there less than a year. I was a junior - the only stories I’d had printed were piddling little court reports on things like speeding and parking violations. There was no way that Perry would have believed I’d written that story. Especially as Claude took everything - my notes, my list of contacts, everything I’d used to write it. I had no proof that it was mine.”
Clark frowned. “Not even files on your computer?”
“I didn’t have a computer of my own then. In the newsroom, I used any free terminal I could get hold of - so I wrote up the story at home, on an old portable typewriter. One of the first things I did after that was to buy a personal computer to use at home. They were even more expensive then than they are now - but it was worth it.”
“So where’s Claude now?” Clark asked. “I’ve never heard the name...?”
“Oh, he got a better job in California. He won a Kerth with my story -” Lois curled her lip bitterly. “And he was inundated with offers. I was glad he went. Not content with using me to get my story, he then told most of the guys in the newsroom that he’d got me into bed. And that I wasn’t worth more than the one night.” Her eyes glittered, and her hand clenched under Clark’s.
Feeling anger welling up inside him, Clark said, “If you want, I can find him and teach him a lesson for you.”
She turned her hand so that she was touching him, palm to palm. “No, Clark. It’s not important any more. I just needed to tell you, that’s all.”
“So that I’d understand the way things were - the way you reacted - when you found out who I was,” he said. “Yes, I understand. And it’s really not important.”
“It is important,” she said, contradicting him. “But that’s not the only reason why I needed to tell you. I think you have something you need to tell me too. About the reason why you can’t let yourself trust me when I say that I’m attracted to you. The reason you assume that because you’re different no woman could ever want to be with you. Don’t you?”
Clark stared at her, dumbfounded at the way she’d managed to turn the conversation around to him in a matter of seconds. And at the fact that she was right. But then, he should have expected that of Lois Lane.
“Who was she, Clark? What did she do to you?”
**********
...tbc
