TOCChapter 30:Lois had managed to keep her tears at bay as they'd forced Clark across the hall toward SuperLex. She'd blocked out his quiet grunts as he'd leaned on her heavily, attempting to keep up with Kelly, on his other side, who'd urged him on without mercy or remorse. The lines of concern creasing the doctor's face had left little doubt how gravely injured Clark was and that it would soon be too late to switch the souls back into their rightful bodies.
So Lois had gone against her better instincts and had dragged Clark with her even though she knew he was hurting and needed rest. It was a good thing that the corridor lay in darkness. Streetlamps illuminated a few spots through the broken windows, but that was hardly enough to see more than shadows. Still, even in the faint light, Lois could see that Clark’s features were scrunched in pain.
She hadn't cried as he recoiled in agony while trying to find his way back into his body. Her heart had clenched in sympathy as she'd realized that even though Clark had been in pain before, what Superman was going through had to be much worse.
She'd almost yelled at Clark to stop then, to not do this to himself, but she'd kept quiet because there was no other way. And she kept the tears at bay so that he wouldn't have to worry about her.
But as Lex' body slumped in a heap on the floor, as Superman's eyes rolled back in his head and the stone fell from their hands, the tears spilled.
"Lex!" Kelly squealed.
She knelt beside Lex' body, turned him and started to remove his jacket to examine his injuries. Her motions were frantic and her hands trembled as she pulled a flashlight from her pocket to get a better idea of what was wrong with him.
Meanwhile, Lois hurried to put both pieces of kryptonite back into the lead case she'd brought with her, hoping that Clark had found his way back into his own body.
Her own hands were shaking and her heart was racing. She felt sick to her stomach, because she’d taken that extra moment to watch Lex’ body and hadn’t even considered the devastating effects of the kryptonite. As she returned to Superman’s body, she stood between the two men, watching them both with a sense of unease. Part of her wanted to finally cradle Superman into her arms and make sure that he was all right. But at the same time, she was scared that she'd comfort the wrong man.
"Lex's body is bad off." Kelly's hoarse voice gave away that she was fighting tears. "I don't know if it's really him inside, but we don’t have the time to find out."
She took a shuddering breath, then she threw a quick glance in Superman's direction. The flashlight darted over his body, casting light on his pale face and limp form.
Kelly’s eyes widened. "What about him? Is he still alive?"
"I…I think so," Lois muttered.
Her ears were ringing as she realized that she didn’t know for sure. Lois forced herself to calm down enough to really have a look at him. Her gut twisted painfully. Another thing she hadn’t wasted a thought on because Superman couldn’t be dead. If he even was Superman. Her gaze involuntarily darted back to Lex’ body before she forced her concentration back on Superman.
She spotted Superman's chest rise and fall in the flicker of the flashlight. Lois’ heart clenched. It should relieve her. It should make her deliriously happy. But for the better part of the last two days, she'd convinced herself that Lex was Clark and Clark was Lex. She was both scared for Superman and the man Kelly tended to. But who had nearly killed the other and who was dying?
"We need to get him prepared." Kelly let go of Lex' body and hurried over to Superman's. On her way, she handed Lois the flashlight with a terse, “Hold that for me.”
Kelly knelt next to Superman and checked him out with practiced motions, listening to his breathing and taking his pulse. Then she rolled up his sleeve and wrapped a tourniquet around his arm. Just as she tightened it, he stirred and rolled over, pulling his arm away from her.
“Lois?” His voice was barely a whisper.
She thought she recognized it. Well, of course she did. He sounded like Clark. Superman had always sounded like Clark, though she'd never realized it. But was he really? Could the simple uttering of her name be enough to tell the difference between Clark and Lex?
He looked around confused, searching for her. With a grimace he struggled to sit. Kelly pressed him back down without much of an effort. He was still weak.
"Yeah?" Lois’ throat was tight and the pounding of her heart thundered in her ears.
She knelt next to him and looked into his eyes, searching for the gleam that would tell her who he was inside. But after the exposure to the kryptonite, his eyes were glassy and unfocused. He was pale and his eyes drifted shut, his eyelids apparently too heavy to keep them open. Once again, he attempted to shift his position and get away from the doctor.
"Hold still.” Kelly pressed him back down and fought with the tourniquet on his arm.
Lois laid her hands on Kelly’s and held her back. "Leave him alone."
The doctor jerked her hands away and focused her attention back on her patient.
It tore at Lois’ heart to see Superman struggle. Surely that had to be a sign that this was Clark because she couldn’t imagine defending Lex. The mere thought made her stomach lurch. She'd been able to tell the difference between them before. But in the darkness of the corridor, with nothing but a flashlight to see him, her instincts felt off. Her gaze drifted back to Lex's unmoving body. The rise and fall of his chest were barely visible and his face was drained of all color.
"What are you doing? I need the light here." Kelly snapped. She grabbed Superman by his shoulders as he once again tried to sit. "You promised me your blood. You owe it to me. I saved your life! Now hold still! Lex is dying! The love of my life is dying.”
Her voice broke and she sobbed. Awkwardly, she rubbed her eyes with her forearm. Then she blinked and set her jaw firmly, fighting even harder to control the confused man, who was semi-lucid at best.
“Lois,” he rasped again.
“Clark?” Her hand trembled as she reached for his, giving it a soft squeeze.
She felt the tingle, or maybe she just wanted to feel it so badly that her mind made it up. Once again, she looked into his eyes, that finally regained their focus and found hers. A smile tugged at his lips, a warm, wonderful smile. But could she trust it? Hadn’t Lex smiled at her, too? Hadn’t he managed to fool her into believing that he was Clark for an entire workday? What if he tried again? She needed to know for sure.
“Stop pulling your arm back, dammit,” Kelly fumed. “Lex will die unless you give me your blood.”
“You have no right to take it.” Lois caught Kelly’s arm in hers.
“I’m not gonna let you get in the way!” In one swift motion, Kelly used her free hand to pull a pistol from her bag. She aimed it at Lois. “Get out of my way, or I’ll shoot you.” The doctor’s cold eyes pierced through Lois as Kelly freed her other hand. Her aim remained steady. There was no doubt she would pull the trigger.
Lois’ blood ran cold. She took a step back. “Can’t you see that he’s not even fully awake yet?”
In her heart, she knew she couldn’t make the other woman see reason. But she couldn’t give up, either.
A small sob escaped Lois. “After everything you did to Clark, you have no right to hurt him!”
Superman’s groan startled both Lois and Kelly. Their heads whipped around as he slowly pushed himself into a sitting position. He pinched the bridge of his nose and swayed a bit, steadying himself with one arm.
“Actually, she does, Lois,” he said hoarsely. “She’s right, I made a promise. My blood in return for her help regaining my body. She kept her word, so I must keep mine, too.”
Lois didn’t know what to say or feel. A sudden rush of elation went through her. The quiet determination on his face, the tone of his voice, the slight smile that was supposed to soothe her, everything about him was so Clark that every last shadow of doubt just vanished. But at the same time, her heart clenched with fear. After everything they’d gone through because of Kelly and Lex, how could he still willingly give his blood?
His eyes wandered toward the pistol Kelly kept firmly trained on Lois and a deep frown appeared on his forehead.
“Put the weapon down, you won’t need it,” Superman said softly.
He started to roll up his sleeve.
Lois felt her throat constrict as she realized that he was going to go through with it. "Clark, no!"
As their eyes met, he shook his head almost imperceptibly. His jaw was firmly set, leaving little doubt that he stood by his decision, regardless of how they both felt about it. Lois wanted to say more. The urge to persuade him otherwise was overwhelming. But he’d already scooted back to the wall and rested his back against it. As he looked up at her again, Lois could see the rueful gleam in his gaze. Then he rolled up his sleeve completely and held out his arm for Kelly.
“Do it,” he muttered.
The way his voice was trembling revealed that he, too, was scared. His lips became a tight line and he averted his gaze. Kelly knelt beside him and eyed him warily. She put the pistol on the floor next to her, close enough that she could reach it before anyone else. Then she tightened the tourniquet around his arm. Her gaze drifted toward the lead case containing the kryptonite and already her hand jerked toward the pistol.
Clark followed her line of sight and pursed his lips. “That won’t be necessary."
“I don’t trust you!” Kelly got to her feet, the pistol now trained on Clark’s chest. “First you fight me off and then you change your mind? I can see that you’re getting stronger already. I won’t let you trick me into-”
"This is not a trick." He showed her the back of his hand.
In the light of the flashlight Lois could see that his knuckles were bloody. The sight sent a shiver down her spine and her muscles tensed. She balled her hands into fists, ready to take on Kelly despite the pistol. Lois couldn’t let her open the lid of the lead case. Part of her wanted to knock Gretchen out right away and get Clark away from here somehow. But what if Kelly shot at them? How could she ensure that Clark got out of this alive? Lois’ fists tightened, but she remained where she was.
Clark’ eyes locked with hers and he shook his head again, more firmly this time.
His jaw worked as he focused his attention back on Kelly. "Luthor did this when he lost his temper. As you can see, the scrapes haven't healed yet. I’ve been exposed to kryptonite already. I can barely move. It's dark. My powers won't be coming back any time soon. Now, get on with it and do what you have to do."
Kelly knelt back down, but her gaze kept darting back to the lead case. “I only have this one set for collecting your blood. If the needle bends-”
“It won’t.” Clark narrowed his eyes on her and his voice was now simmering with anger. “Unlike Luthor, I’m not a liar. I don’t deceive people to get what I want. I said you could have my blood, so draw it. All I want is to get the hell out of here and have my life back. I’ve been through enough already. I don’t need another exposure to kryptonite. There are enough shards of glass lying around on the floor. Get one and see for yourself that I bleed if you can’t believe it.”
Lois gasped. “Clark!”
Terrified, she watched as Kelly got up, snapped the flashlight right out of her hand, and held it between her teeth while she kept the pistol trained on them. Awkwardly she looked for shards below the broken windows. It took Lois a moment to get her frozen body to move and crouch down beside Clark.
She took his hand in hers and briefly looked over her shoulder, making sure the crazy doctor was really just picking up glass.
“We should get you out of here,” she whispered into his ear. “This is insanity.”
Clark cupped her cheek with his free arm and caressed her with his thumb. “I wouldn’t be fast enough. I’m still too weak. She’d shoot us before we’d make it anywhere. Neither one of us is bullet proof at the moment. And…” He heaved a sigh and lowered his gaze. “I’m not sure I’d survive another exposure to the kryptonite, Lois. The last one was rough. So don’t do anything stupid. Just let her have the blood.”
“What are you two talking about?” Kelly pressed the flashlight back into Lois' hand. “Hold this, I need light here.”
The doctor sat down next to Clark and practically shoved Lois out of her way. She wanted to hold Kelly back, but Clark gave her a warning glance. And he was right, too. Kelly held all the trump cards. Lois’ breath caught in her throat as Clark held out his arm and allowed Kelly to nick his skin with the glass. He grimaced as blood oozed from the wound.
Excited by her success, the doctor got to work. She readjusted the tourniquet and pulled out a plastic bag that was connected to a line. She removed a plastic cap from the end of the line, revealing a huge needle. Lois remembered that she’d seen similar equipment the last time she’d donated blood.
Clark tensed at the sight of the needle. His whole body went rigid and he eyed the metal with wide eyes. Kelly expertly slipped the needle into one of the veins in the crook of Clark’s arm.
Blood filled the line immediately. Kelly removed the tourniquet. “Pump with your fist.”
Clark obeyed. While his blood filled the bag, Kelly went back to check on Lex. Once again, she started to examine him, her movements becoming more frantic by the minute.
“Pump harder,” she ordered. “We’re going to lose him if I can’t apply the serum soon.”
Lois had just taken a seat beside Clark, but as she heard the doctor’s words, she wanted to get up and give her a piece of her mind. Couldn’t she see that Clark did what he could? She felt his hand on her knee.
“Don’t,” he said quietly. “Just a few more minutes and it’s over.”
He leaned his head back against the wall and closed his eyes. Lois raised the flashlight and spotted the beads of perspiration covering his forehead.
“You’re not doing well. I can see it.” She touched his face and felt his hot and clammy skin. “Clark, please…”
The pistol lay next to the doctor, all but forgotten while Kelly tended to Lex. Perhaps Lois could get to it, perhaps…. But Clark tightened his grip on her knee, seemingly reading her thoughts. No unnecessary risks, his eyes implored. Lois nodded but felt utterly torn. She turned and stared into the dark corridor. She looked at the door, wishing that Henderson would choose this moment to barrel in. Where was the man when she needed him? Had Jimmy managed to contact him? How much time had passed since she’d left the S.T.A.R. Labs? It felt like ages ago, but as she glanced at her watch, she realized that little more than an hour had passed.
That wasn’t much time to get back to the Daily Planet, call Henderson and have him arrive in this part of town. They’d have to get by on their own for a little longer. And Clark was turning paler by the minute. She wanted to rip the needle from his arm, but she feared that Kelly would make good on her threat to shoot Clark or expose him the kryptonite.
He’d said that he might not survive that.
Her gut clenched with fear as she watched his blood drain into the bag. It already seemed like an awful lot. How much more would Kelly need? Given the poor state Lex’ body was in, she supposed they weren't done yet. Lois reached for Clark's hand, giving him a soft squeeze.
"I'm okay," he mumbled.
His eyes fluttered open and he smiled for her. But she could see the tense lines in his face. He looked down at his arm and watched the bag with morbid fascination. Droplets of blood were still oozing from the cut on his forearm. Clark grimaced and started to look a little green around the gills.
"I can't wait any longer." Kelly rushed back to them and pushed Lois to the side.
She pulled the needle from Clark's arm and darted back to Lex. Lois scrambled back to a sitting position and helped Clark, who awkwardly tried to press a part of his cape to the puncture wound.
She wanted to ask him how he was, but his expression made her think better of it. His face was a tight mask of sheer concentration. Ragged breaths let his chest rise and fall much too fast for her liking. Her heart clenched with worry as she realized that Clark was just barely keeping it together. If she forced him to talk now, he might lose what little composure he'd left.
Blood still ran down his arm, despite his efforts to stem the bleeding. In the faint light Lois suddenly spotted something glistening. She recognized the shard of glass Kelly had used to pierce Clark's skin. She picked it up and used it to cut some fabric from the cape. Quickly, she ripped it into a makeshift bandage that she wrapped around Clark's arm and pressed firmly.
His head sank back against the wall in relief and he closed his eyes. She gave his good arm a gentle squeeze, hoping to offer some comfort at least.
Suddenly there was the noise of approaching cars outside the hospital. They stopped, doors clapped open and people got out, many by the sound of it. The next moment the dark corridor was bathed in light coming through the windows, revealing a sickening scene of crumpled metal and scorch marks on the wall.
Then everything happened fast. Many feet hit the floor in quick succession. Lois was blinded by the light of at least a dozen flashlights.
A voice startled her. "Everybody raise your hands! Keep them up where I can see them!"
Lois followed the order and beside her, Clark did too.
"Damn, Lane’s tip was right," a familiar voice said somewhere behind that wall of lights. It was Inspector Henderson. One of the lights illuminated Nigel’s broken body. "This one looks dead."
"I said hands up!" the first man yelled at Kelly, who was still working on Lex.
"This man is dying!" She threw a quick glance over her shoulder. Streaks of tears lined her cheeks and the fury in her eyes almost made them gleam. "Shoot me if you have to. I'm not going to stop working."
What happened next was a blur. Lois registered policemen running in every direction. Only a handful remained behind, their pistols still trained on Lois and the others.
Someone had asked Clark if he was okay. He'd given a tight nod, his features a mask that gave nothing away of what was going on inside of him. Lois wished she could talk to him and find out how he truly was. But with all those strangers around, she knew that she'd never get him to open up.
A few feet from Lois, Kelly still worked on Lex, her motions now frantic, her hands shaking badly. One of the policemen was watching her warily, his pistol aiming at her head, ready to pull the trigger if need be. But he let her work.
Her hands still raised, Lois let her gaze drift across Clark, whose arms were slowly sinking as if they were too heavy to keep them up. His eyes were now screwed shut and his head was resting against the wall. She'd never seen him looking this sick and pale.
Her heart went out to him.
Henderson returned from wherever he had been and spoke into his radio. "The building is secured. Send in the paramedics."
He went further down the corridor, still talking into his radio, but Lois could no longer make out the words.
She turned her attention back to Clark. His expression had relaxed somewhat, but he was still taking deep breaths.
More people entered the hospital. Their dark uniforms and the equipment they carried identified them as paramedics.
One knelt next to the broken body of Nigel St. John to confirm he was dead. After a brief examination he got up again and shook his head. A second paramedic went over to Asabi, and after checking on him, the paramedic suddenly flurried into hectic motion. He waved at one of the others to join him, and they both went to work.
The first paramedic came over, looking back and forth between Superman and Lex. For a moment he hesitated, the shock about the superhero's poor state evident on his face. But then he seemed to decide that Lex was even worse off.
The paramedic laid a gentle hand on Kelly's shoulder. His voice was calm and confident. "Give us some room, we'll tend to him and get him to a hospital."
The doctor's head whipped around. "I'm his personal physician. I don't need your help. Now get out of the light."
Her eyes were narrow with fury, and it seemed like she wanted to strangle the paramedic. She shook off his hand and the hapless guy stumbled back a few steps, shocked by her violent reaction. With trembling hands, the policeman keeping an eye on her adjusted his aim, but the paramedic gestured for the policeman to stand down.
Kelly focused back on her task, her motions more frantic than ever. Lois couldn't help but watch her with trepidation. But then the paramedic approached Clark and Lois forgot about the doctor.
"Superman, are you hurt?" the paramedic asked.
"I'm fine," Clark replied mechanically.
He didn't look at the man who was talking to him, just kept staring ahead. His hands fumbled with the bandage on his arm, belying his words.
"You're bleeding," the paramedic stated softly. His voice trembled and he took in a sharp breath. "Is the blood in that bag over there yours?"
Clark's body seemed to tense even more. "Yes."
Lois saw the other man's eyes widen. The question of how something like that was even possible was written all over his face, but before he had a chance to ask it, Henderson appeared next to him.
"What happened here, Lane? I can't believe that Luthor is still alive, if barely so by the looks of it. And what the hell is the matter with him?" He pointed at Superman, who still seemed to be caught in his own thoughts, fighting his own demons.
She couldn't fault Clark for it, though she desperately wished that he wouldn't try to keep it all bottled in.
"Lois?" The inspector demanded her attention.
"I'm sorry, Inspector," the paramedic chimed in. "I'm pretty sure Superman needs medical attention. Perhaps you could do your interview after I had a chance to look at him."
"I'm fine," Superman repeated tersely.
"You lost a lot of blood and we should put you on an IV to replace the fluid you lost and-"
Superman got to wobbly feet. He swayed precariously and caught himself against the wall, breathing through the dizziness and obviously trying to lock his legs more firmly underneath him.
Both Lois and the paramedic rushed to his aid, but he warned them off with a firm glance.
"Perhaps you should sit back down and let me get that infusion ready," the paramedic mumbled.
"I said I'm fine." Superman's jaw twitched and his hands curled into tight fists.
The color drained from his face, and he sagged against the wall.
Lois' heart clenched. "Superman, he may be right. You did lose a lot of blood on top of the exposure to the kryptonite. Perhaps you should-"
"Nobody is going to stick anything else into me," he said vehemently.
He gritted his teeth and pushed himself off the wall. Only sheer force of will seemed to keep him from toppling over.
Ignoring the worried glances of the people around him, Superman locked eyes with Henderson. "You wanted to know what happened here. Let's go to the precinct, and then we can talk. You and me."
Stiffly, Superman walked down the corridor, steadying himself against the wall. Lois desperately wanted to help him, but she sensed that Clark wouldn't appreciate the gesture. He'd feigned indifference while Kelly had taken his blood. But it was more than obvious now how much the experience had rattled him. She wished she could just pull him into a tight hug.
But she couldn't do that with Henderson around, and so she had no choice but to watch helplessly as Clark stumbled toward the exit. He was too proud and surely also too mortified to ask for or accept help, even though every single one of his steps was a painful testament of how much he required it.
As much as she hated to see him struggle, deep down she thought that she might have an idea of what was going through his mind. If only there was a way to comfort him.
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