As I promised to Maria... Yesterday I received it and reviewed it, today I post it.
It's longer than my usual parts. I hope it makes up for the delay.
Enjoy!
AnnaBtG.
TOC here From Part 7:They both rose, and Clark put his hand in his pocket to find his wallet.
“No!” Lois exclaimed. “My treat.”
“Oh, come on, Lois…”
“No, it’s *my* treat,” she insisted. “*I* brought you here. Besides, I have some things to arrange with the waitress.”
Clark thought he’d better let her pay, if she wanted it so badly. “Okay, then.”
Lois grabbed the bill. Three bucks. She let five on the table.
<She’s the only waitress I know that has a good timing when interrupting a conversation,> Lois thought, hiding a grin. “Come on, farmboy” she wryly said to Clark, “let’s go.”
He grinned. “Where?”
She grabbed his hand and winked to him. “Anywhere.”
She happily waltzed to the door, and he followed her in genuine pleasure.
Part 8:Later, Lois and Clark were sitting on a bench in a small park near the fast food they had been before. Clark’s hand was around Lois’s waist, while her head was leaning on his shoulder. They were silent, staring blankly at the pigeons fluttering a few feet away from them.
Mixed feelings were running through their veins; excitement, safety, fear, anxiety, happiness. Feelings that they weren’t able to put into words.
Simultaneously, they turned to each other. Their eyes met in silence for a few instants. Then, shutting them, they let emotion bring them closer and closer, until their lips got together. It was a soft, sweet kiss that didn’t last more than a few seconds. But, although brief, it was enough to transfer them to another world. They kissed again, smoothly at first, but soon, the emotion overflowed them and the kiss grew deeper. Lois put her arms around Clark’s neck, pulling him closer, quickly becoming oblivious to her surroundings.
Unfortunately, someone else still remembered them perfectly well.
“Guys?”
They turned to the voice’s direction, angry but feeling a little guilty too.
It was Jimmy, holding a paper bag and looking at them with wide-opened eyes.
“Hi, Jimmy!” Lois said, trying to sound cool.
“What are you doing here?” he asked.
Lois stared at Clark for a second. He stared back at her, and they both wondered whether asking the wrong question in an obviously uncomfortable situation was a matter of practice or it was part of the Olsen genetic heritage.
“We were kissing,” Lois replied faking naturalness, but her eyes were flashing in fury. “What are *you* doing here?”
“I had just gone to buy some sandwiches,” he said, showing her the bag. He still couldn’t believe what he had just seen. He paused, then asked: “Were you guys really kissing?”
Lois tapped her fingers on the bench’s back, behind Clark’s body. What in the heck was Jimmy expecting to hear?
“No, we just saw you coming and thought we could play a little joke,” she said impatiently.
Jimmy’s face was red in embarrassment. He didn’t really know what to say.
“I… should go now…” he tried.
“Yeah, you should,” Lois coldly said. “Bye bye.”
Jimmy almost ran away from them, and Lois and Clark stayed there, blankly gazing towards his direction.
“We’re in trouble,” Lois said, blankly.
“Why?” Clark turned to her.
“Because Jimmy gossips even more than Cat.”
“Oh, come on…” Clark protectively embraced her, and she leaned on his shoulder. “It’s not big deal.”
“It’s not that…”
“Then, what?”
“I don’t want people to think I’m lazy, sitting in parks and kissing guys instead of researching.”
“Come on, no one’s going to think that!”
“Okay,” she said, “but we better find a story.”
“But what if there’s no story?”
“We keep looking until we find one. Come on.” She rose and gently pulled his hand. “Let’s find something.”
“Okay.”
Holding hands, they began wandering in the city.
-----
Three hours later, they got back to the Planet, exhausted. They had walked around almost half of the city, but found nothing worth a story. Not even a car crossing the street while the red light was on. As a result, their mood was not any good. And it was certainly going to deteriorate even more, as the first person they encountered at the Planet was Jimmy.
Lois breathed heavily and hurried to her desk, trying to drag Clark away from Jimmy too.
“Hey, guys,” Jimmy timidly said.
Lois let out another breath of frustration, as Clark replied “Hi, Jimmy.” She sank on her chair, and that earned her a questioning look from Clark.
“I hadn’t noticed you were *that* tired,” he commented.
“I’m not. I would just rather not see Jimmy for the rest of the day.”
“Lois, Clark, in my office *now*!” Perry yelled from behind.
“Comin’, Chief!” they both replied.
Lois, with a sigh, rose and headed to Perry’s office, with Clark on her heels.
-----
Closing the door behind him, Clark noticed something that Lois had already seen: The look on Perry’s face. He didn’t seem too pleased, that was for sure.
“Sit down, Clark,” Perry said. Lois was already seated. “So, what have you two been up to all morning?”
“Investigating, Perry,” Lois unwillingly replied.
“Jimmy said he saw you kissing in Elm Park.”
“That was just for a moment…” Clark tried to excuse them, but Lois rose interrupting him, in an explosion of anger.
“So, what?”
Perry was surprised by her reaction. “It doesn’t matter, Lois, really…” he said, unconfidently. “But, you know, since Jimmy began gossiping around about it, no one is… really working.”
“And who told him to start gossiping around? Are you trying to put the blame on us?” she yelled.
“No, Lois, I just…” He sighed. “Nothing. So, how was your investigation?”
Lois sank down in her chair, depressed. “Nothing.”
“Oh…” Perry said. “It’s okay. Now, I have something for you. I arranged an interview with Glory O’Gerald. You two will meet her at her house, 75 St. John Street, this afternoon at five. And I want the piece for the morning edition.”
“You got it, Chief!” Lois exclaimed, suddenly feeling extremely better.
“Great. Until then, do whatever you want.”
“Thanks, Chief!”
Lois, pleased, almost danced out of the office. Clark stared at her for a moment, then walked out of the office too.
“Lois, why are you so happy?” he asked her, surprised by her change of mood.
Lois turned to him with a happy smile. “I’m happy I’ll interview this woman. We owe her book a lot.” She walked close to Clark and put her arms around his neck.
“Not in here, Lois,” Clark reminded her. “But you are right.” He gave her a bright smile.
“If not in here, why not someplace else?” Lois mischievously said.
“Lois!” Clark turned around, making sure they hadn’t become an entertaining show for the rest of the Daily Planet’s staff. “What’s going on? What’s all this impatience about?” he asked, clearly puzzled.
“Oh, Clark…” She fell on his chest. “From the first time I saw you, I was in a dilemma. Now that everything is clarified, it feels so good, and I really don’t want it to be ruined.”
Clark smiled. He had been unsure and scared at the beginning. He didn’t know what he was feeling, why he was feeling it, or if he should be feeling it. He had been in a dilemma, just like her. But now, she was close to him, and he didn’t want to let go of her. And it indeed felt great.
“I don’t want it ruined either, Lois,” he said, rubbing her back, “but being this way is only going to attract the others’ attention. Why don’t we save it for whenever we are alone?”
Lois stared at him. “All right. And when is that going to be?”
“How about after we finish writing the interview, tonight?”
She smiled. “Very good idea. And until the time comes…?”
“…We could have lunch together.”
“Okay.”
With that, they left the building.
-----
After finishing lunch, Lois went to her apartment to take a rest and change clothes. Clark had an appointment with one of the landlords he had called the previous day. The apartment was a nice one and quite cheap and Clark decided to rent it. After going back to his hotel room for a while, he met Lois outside Glory O’Gerald’s house at five to five.
“Punctual,” Lois observed, seeing him coming. “I like that.”
He smiled confidently. “Ready?”
“You bet.” She ringed the bell.
A young, short and casually dressed woman with brown hair appeared at the door.
“We came to see Ms. O’Gerald,” Lois explained.
“This is me,” the woman replied. “You must be the Daily Planet’s reporters.”
“Exactly. I am Lois Lane and this is my partner, Clark Kent.”
“Nice to meet you. Come in.”
They all entered and Glory led them to the living room. The house was not very big, but it was cosily and elegantly decorated, although the room seemed a bit dark.
“Would you mind if I use my tape-recorder?” Lois asked, once they were all seated.
“No, of course not.” She gave them a pleasant smile.
“Good.” Lois pressed the ‘REC’ button. “So, Ms. O’Gerald…”
“Glory.”
“Okay, Glory. Since your book was first out, two months ago, this is the first interview you give. Why did you decide to be interviewed now?”
“I used to think there was nothing I could say. I’m not fond of celebrities and such things. I didn’t intend to become one. But after so much pressure from the people around me, I decided to have one. But it’s the first and probably the last time.”
“Tell us about your book,” Clark said. “Why did you decide to write it? What were you inspired by?”
“I love to write, especially poems. It is a safe way to express my feelings. But ‘The Wall Between Us’ is the first piece of literature I wrote, if you consider it literature, of course. I wrote it because I am sick of the way people keep their eyes closed when it comes about love. I’ve seen this thing for like a thousand times. People are afraid of love, and I really can’t understand why. Love is supposed to be something wonderful, not something that should make us feel embarrassed or scared. And the only reason I actually wanted it to be published was to see what people would think of it. I think that everyone who read it thought: ‘Oh, how stupid can these people be! Can’t they see that they are both in love with each other?’ But how many of them actually thought ‘hey, this is how I behave, too’?”
“Do you think that you’ve achieved your goal?” Clark asked.
“I’m not sure, but I think that some positive steps have been taken. Mr. Kent, weren’t you the one that wrote a couple of days ago an article titled ‘Let’s Break The Wall Between Us’?”
“Yes.”
“Well, although you didn’t know my motives, you very well transcribed my point of view. We don’t have to be falling in love with anyone around us, of course, but opening our eyes and trying to recognize true love once we find it. It’s not difficult.
And, forgive me if I’m wrong, but I believe that you really felt all these things you wrote about. And if more people felt the same things, then, yes, the book achieved its goal.”
“Were you expecting your book to become a best-seller?” Lois asked.
“I had a feeling it was going to go well. But it went far better than well, something I wasn’t really expecting. And I’m happy about it.”
“Some companies are interested in making a movie out of your book. Are you interested in selling the rights?”
“I don’t know yet, but I don’t think so. I think it would make a very common movie. Love stories look very much different when written, but when in movies, they’re quite the same.”
“Are you going to write another book?” Clark asked. “Or publish your poems?”
“I’m certainly not going to publish my poems. They are very personal, like pieces of myself, and I don’t want them to go public. As for a book, well, the truth is that my publisher wants me to write more, but I’m not willing to do it just because I’m asked to. If I have an idea, I’ll give it a shot though.”
“A last question,” Lois said. “Are you in love?”
Glory smiled. “No, Ms. Lane. I guess I haven’t found my soulmate yet.”
“So you believe in soulmates?”
“You said that was the last question,” Glory observed, not annoyed.
“Well, you still have to define ‘soulmates’,” Lois replied with a smile.
Glory smiled back. “Well, maybe not in soulmates. I believe that there are several people someone can love, but once they fall in love with one of them, everyone else is left behind, just as stories that could have happened but didn’t. When two people fall in love, love creates bonds between them, bonds that don’t break. If there’s anything that can bring two people apart, then they were never really in love. Not even if it’s someone else. *Especially* not if it’s someone else.”
“And you’ve never met one of the people you could’ve loved?”
Glory shrugged in negation. “I’d have recognized them.”
“All right.” Lois rose and shook hands with Glory. “Thank you very much for your time.”
“You’re welcome,” Glory replied, then shook hands with Clark. “I hope you’ll be happy together.”
Clark froze, unsure of what to think, and Lois widely opened her eyes. “How do you know?”
Glory turned to her, smiling. “I see it. There’s this… aura, between the two of you. I mean, don’t worry, you’ve been acting in a perfectly normal way, but there’s just something about you. Something like ‘Oh, look how cute they look sitting next to each other!’.”
Lois grimaced. “Do you happen to be a psychologist?”
Glory’s smile widened. “Yes, I’ve studied psychology, and I work in the ‘Woman Today’ magazine. I run the ‘Relationships’ column under the name of Ellen Nichols.” Suddenly, her face became serious. “Don’t print that!”
“Don’t worry, that’s off the record,” Lois reassuringly said, as Glory was walking them to the door. “It was nice meeting you.”
“Pleasure’s mine. Maybe I’ll see you again some time.”
“Goodbye.”
“Goodbye and take care.”
“Thank you,” Clark said.
Glory shut the door behind them.
“There is an aura between us,” Lois quoted Glory, leaning on Clark’s shoulder.
“Yes…” Clark admired.
“Do you believe in soulmates, Clark?”
He kept walking, silent, until they reached Lois’s parked car. “I don’t know. Perhaps. But maybe what Glory said is right.” He turned to her. “Do *you* believe in soulmates?”
She raised her eyebrows in a ‘who knows?’ way and then headed to the other side of the car.
-----
About one hour later, they were at the Planet, finishing the piece with Glory’s interview.
“I like this woman,” Clark commented. “She seems to be so strong-willed and independent…”
Lois turned to him, with an evil grin. “Is this supposed to be some kind of criticism on me?”
“No, no, of course not…” he said, feeling his cheeks warming up. “I was just… commenting… She’s like you, in a way. Maybe that’s why I liked her.”
She rubbed her forehead against his cheek. “Now we’re talking. Come on, we’re ready. Are we going?”
“Yeah, I guess…”
“My place or yours?”
“I’d say yours…” he hesitatingly said. “My room in Apollo is too small and uncomfortable.”
Lois stared at him, incredulously. “You’re still staying in *Apollo*?”
“Yes…”
“Oh, God, Clark, you have to leave that place as soon as possible, it’s just a cheap hotel for losers!”
“I’ll leave… I’ve found an apartment… I’ll move in next week.”
Lois sighed. “All right… So let’s go to my place for now. We can sit there, watch a movie, have some take-out… whatever.”
“Sounds great,” he smiled, putting his arm around her waist. “Come on.”
The whole newsroom stopped working just to watch them walk embraced to the elevator.
“What do you think?” someone commented.
“Mad-Dog-Lane in love…” his partner admired. “Not something you get to see every day.”
“Do you think it’s going to last?”
“Nah…” The man shook his head, grimacing. “Once he finds out what kind of woman she is, he’ll dump her.”
“Well, she’s not ugly…”
“But she’s wild! I can hardly bear talking to her, let alone have a love affair with her. I wonder how she even lets him kiss her. I’d think she’d rather cut him into pieces and eat him.”
“If you were like *him*,” a young, blond woman with manila folders in her hands interfered, passing by the two men talking, “not only would she kiss you, but she’d completely suck you up.”
The guy who had last talked turned to the woman, staring at her with a what-does-he-have-that-I-lack look. The woman silently examined his head, which was beginning to bold, estimated his height (at nearly 5,5 feet) and weight (at nearly 75 kilograms) and went her way, preferring not to comment.
-----
Clark was hardly keeping himself from floating, making his way from Lois’s apartment to his hotel. He had just spent a wonderful evening with her. They had got to know each other, they had teased each other and laughed together, they had caressed each other and kissed passionately. For the first time in his life, Clark was feeling really happy. How wonderful love could be…
He recalled some of the things Glory O’Gerald had told them earlier in the evening. “When two people fall in love, love creates bonds between them, bonds that don’t break.” She was just so right. Despite the facts that he and Lois had only known each other for three days, and that they had been together for less than a day, he could already feel the bonds tying his heart with hers. He knew that he’d never give his heart to someone else, and that he’d love her until his last breath. And he hopefully wished that she felt the same way.
He arrived at the hotel and hopped up the stairs to his room. Seconds after he got there, the phone rang. He quickly picked it up.
“Hello?”
“Clark, honey, it’s me.”
“Oh, hi, mom.”
“I just finished this…” She cleared her throat. “…new piece of clothing you asked for. Will you stop by to see it?”
“Sure, mom. I’ll be right there.”
He hung up the phone and flew out of the window as quickly as he could.
-End of part 8-
