Sorry for the long break. A big 'thank you'
to everyone who commented on the first part. I know not everyone is a soap fan, but even those of you can see the humor in the plots and characters! The name i've given the town is a nod to each in the ones i watch; Harmony and Salem.
Here's a little refresher....
from part 1
Clark listened in utter amazement as Lois explained the day-to-day goings on in her favorite soap opera. He had never found them worth watching, but obviously, they held a deep fascination for his partner, which in turn gave him another precious glimpse into Lois Lane's mind.
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now part 2
Her voice rising in pitch and speed snapped him out of his out of his thoughts.
“But you know, as mean as Stephanie is, she's really just a puppet. The real villain in all this is Isabelle Chadwick, Stephanie's mother. She's actually blackmailing her own daughter into not revealing the truth about her true identity, or else she'll tell the police that it was Stephanie's fault that her father, Daniel Chadwick, died in a mysterious fire years ago. Which it's not!” Lois clarified.
“It's not?” he repeated, trying amusedly to keep up.
“No!” Lois continued, her eyes wide. “It was Isabelle who started the fire! She killed her husband, but silently let Stephanie take the blame when they found out that the fire was caused by a candle left burning in the kitchen. Stephanie, or rather Sara, tearfully confessed that it was her candle! The fire marshal and the police deemed it a tragic accident, Sara was emotionally shattered, and her mother decided to let everyone believe it was Sara's fault. That way, Isabelle could use her guilt to control her, which she's been doing ever since. Isabelle's quite the manipulator,” Lois said, shaking her head.
“I thought you said the girl's name was Amanda,” Clark interrupted, trying to keep the names straight, despite himself.
Lois stared at him blankly for a moment. “No, no,” she shook her head. “Amanda is Rick's wife, but she's been trying to seduce her brother-in-law for the past three years.”
“Has she succeeded?” Clark asked, dismayed that he was actually asking. <How did she drag me into this?> he silently groaned.
“Well, almost. But Megan, Sara's archenemy, is also in love with Brian. Megan found out about Sara's plot almost immediately, and has been trying to stop her all this time. Unfortunately, Megan is one of those good character's whose life seems to be cursed; here she is trying to stop this lying, scheming, man-hungry b…uh, woman from stealing her man, and all she's succeeded in doing is making herself look bad. The last time she tried to foil one of Sara's plans, Brian suggested she get professional help to get over her "obsession with Sara'”, Lois sneered, pantomiming quotes.
“I take it you don't like Sara,” Clark chuckled, setting the cassette case back down on the table.
“Ugghh!” Lois grimaced. “Please! She's worse than Cat!”
“Really?” Clark said, filing the unusual bit of symmetry away for further use.
“Yes, "really',” Lois replied, then fell silent.
Clark just grinned, watching her as she took several deep breaths to calm down. He found it absolutely fascinating that his hard-bitten partner, one of whose rules is "never get emotionally involved in a story', could get so worked up over a fictional story. Although it had stunned him to find out why she'd been crying when he first got there, and even annoyed him a little, he was now grateful that he had. This whole evening had given him tremendous insight into her mind; she had unwittingly lowered one small barrier to him revealing, even if only a fraction, her true self.
After another moment Lois began to speak again, her voice again becoming animated.
“What really drives me crazy, in a good way, is the name of the town where "Ivory Tower' takes place. It's set in the fictional town of Tranquil Coven,” Lois said slowly. “Can you believe that name? And of course there are the other townsfolk, some of whom are related to these families, and some who are not, and some we're not sure,” she lowered her voice conspiratorially. “You've got your good characters, your shady characters, those who sort of get caught in the middle. And no soap would be complete without the villain, who in this case is Stephanie, er, Sara, courtesy of her mother. She has been so vicious to Gwendolyn, manipulating her, messing with her mind, pretending to be her sister!”
“She sounds pretty bad,” Clark agreed, smiling.
“And it's so obvious that she's not! For one thing, we know that the real Stephanie had blue eyes, but her eyes are brown! Pul-leeze!” Lois moaned. “Who wouldn't notice a difference like that?”
Up to that point, Clark had merely listened patiently, asking the occasional question to show interest in her obsession, trying not to let himself be drawn in too much. But at the mention of the character's blindness to detail, he began to shift uncomfortably, and unconsciously reached up to adjust his glasses.
“I mean, really,” she continued, oblivious to his discomfort. “Who wouldn't notice a little thing like eye color? And in someone you see every single day?” She paused, and then something occurred to Lois, making her giggle.
“What?” Clark asked, a bit uneasily.
“I was just thinking; it would be like me not noticing some minute difference about you! I work with you, closely, everyday; I spend most of my spare time with you. What if there was something about you that was different, staring me right in the face?” she theorized, then laughed out loud at the sheer absurdity of the idea.
“Yeah,” Clark laughed with her, trying to hide his nervousness. “That would be, uh…uh…” Clark stammered, trying to stall. He could feel his heart pounding in his chest, and he was sure all the blood had drained from his face. “That's really…” he trailed off, feigning ignorance to let her come up with something.
“Ridiculous?” she suggested.
“Exactly!” he agreed. “Absolutely ridiculous.”
“More than ridiculous,” she countered. “Absurd, ludicrous, insane, preposterous…” she continued, ticking each word off on a finger. “It's not possible. For one thing, I know everything about you already, not that you're that much of a mystery, no offense. But I know where you grew up, I know your parents. Heck, I've even met your high school girlfriend. You're well traveled, well educated, but so incredibly naïve it scares me sometimes. I mean, you don't even know when a woman is attracted to you, for real I mean!”
“Hey!” he mock-protested. “I do too know when a woman is attracted to me,” he retorted. <I just haven't had the right woman, the one I want, be attracted to me,> he thought glumly.
She glared at him dubiously. “Give me one good example.”
“Well, Cat flirts with me all the time,” he replied reasonably.
“Clark, Cat flirts with anything in pants,” she shot back, then turned her head slightly. “Preferably if they're not in pants,” she muttered disgustedly under her breath.
Clark's superhearing picked that up, causing his eyebrows to shoot up at her brazen remark, but she didn't seem to notice.
“Okaaay,” he said slowly, trying to get back on track. “What about Antoinette Baines, or Toni Taylor?”
“Clark, both of those women flirted with you to get something from you, remember? They were using you. And don't even suggest Cat! We all know what Cat wants,” she muttered.
“All right all right,” he agreed, raising his palms in surrender. “They used me to get information, and I can't deny I did the same thing.”
“There you go!” she declared, pointing a finger at him triumphantly. <Wow, I just got him to admit that he did something sneaky and underhanded. There may be hope for the farmboy after all.>
Clark noticed the smug look on his partner's face, and an idea began to form. Adopting a serious expression, he asked, “Are you saying any woman who flirts with me is just using me, that they don't actually find me attractive?” He knew he was baiting her, but he couldn't resist
“No, of course not, Clark! I've seen lots of women throw themselves at you, not because they were trampy but because you're so…” she stopped instantly, and blushed when she noticed the look on his face. Nervously, she began to sputter, “Well, uh…um, you're, good-look…you know, kind of attrac...” her mouth snapped shut, and she blushed harder. She couldn't believe she was admitting to thinking he was attractive! And he'd tricked her into it. That Rat!
“Never mind what I think Clark,” she said finally, annoyed. “But you've proven my point for me.”
“I have?” he asked, still grinning at her discomfiture. <She practically admitted she thinks I'm attractive! This evening is definitely going well.>
“Yes. As I said, you're naïve, because even when the women flirting with you aren't liars or criminals, you don't respond to them, or even seem to notice.”
Clark sighed. <Because I don't notice any other women, Lois. I only notice you.> Afraid that he'd voice the thought aloud, he looked around for some type of distraction. Luckily, one was provided for him when Lois yawned. He looked at his watch. “Wow, look at the time!” he exclaimed, a little too enthusiastically. “Um, it's late, you should probably get some sleep, and I need to get home,” he said, hoping she wouldn't notice he'd changed the subject.
“Hmm,” she murmured, then looked at her own watch. “Oh, geez, you're right! How long have we been talking?”
“Couple hours.”
“Really?” she asked, and stood. He nodded, and stood with her. “That's amazing,” she said softly, then shook her head. “But then I lose track of time when I'm with you,” she said casually, unaware of the warm, fuzzy feeling it left in Clark stomach. She looked at the case on the table, giggled slightly, then nodded. “Yeah, I guess I can leave Gwendolyn and Sara and Jack, and Megan and Brian, and Isabelle and Daniel till tomorrow. I can't wait to find out what's happening with Teddy and Wendy, and Oliver and Yvonne, and Christine, and…” she went on.
“Who are they?” Clark asked beginning to get alarmed again.
“What? Oh, they're some of the other people who live in Tranquil Coven,” she replied, the gleam returning to her eye. Then she saw the look on his face, and she smiled. “Another time Kent, I promise, another time.”
“I'm not sure I could handle much more of those people,” he said as she walked him to her door.
“Thanks, Clark, for coming over,” she said as she opened the door for him. “For letting me cry on your shoulder,” she added wryly.
“You're welcome, Lois,” he replied warmly. “Anytime.”
“I know,” she said softly, her eyes fixed on his. <Is that a trick of the hallway light, or are his eyes really shining at me?> “Well, goodnight Clark.”
“Goodnight, Lois,” he said, maintaining her gaze. <Incredible, even in the dark of the hallway her eyes sparkle.>
Finally, she closed the door slowly, then listened as Clark's footsteps retreated. She leaned against the door for a moment, then blew out a breath, wondering why her heart was beating so fast. <I should be used to it by now; it happens whenever he's near. Just like losing track of time.> She started at the random thoughts. <Why is Clark having this effect on me? It's not like he, well, it's not like I'm…no, it couldn't be…>
Clark walked slowly down the steps of Lois's apartment, his hands in his pockets. He could hear the sound of Lois's rapidly beating heart, and though he wished it was because she felt the same way he felt for her, he knew differently. He turned to look up at her window, saw the light go out, and sighed.
