I have to admit that I'm a little short on new parts in beta-version and since RL is rather hard on a poor, though pretty amazing one of my betareaders, I can only beg for your pardon. Unfortunately, she's the one with the language skills 
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This part is a little shorter than it could have been and I only did this to get a bit more time. You really wouldn't like me to post my - so far -last part too soon.
Thanks to my betareaders Schnuffichen, Classicalla, Tahu, Dandello and LaraMoon. TOC **************
From Part 2:He wondered what kind of relationship they had. She had kissed him for real, so there had to be something. Friendship? Was she his girlfriend? Could she be his wife? His heart raced as this idea came to his mind. How wonderful would it be to be married to this woman? He stared at his hands. There was no ring. Clark let out a silent sigh. She wasn’t his wife. What a shame.
Separate Lives
Part 3:He followed her back to her car. His head was still hurting, just like his side. For a short while he had forgotten about it, for she had kissed away the pain. But now he noticed just how tired he was. He had no idea which way to go; he just wanted to make sure to never leave her side. Clark was relieved that she had given up on trying to take him to the hospital. He wasn’t so sure he would still have the strength to fight her, particularly not with the memories of their kiss still replaying in his mind. Clark thought that she might lure him into anything she wanted by kissing him like that. Did she know about the power she possessed and how easily she could have him at her mercy? It was almost frightening.
Parts of him were still lingering on cloud nine, but the pleasant feelings kept mixing up with the crucial picture of the bleeding man back in that alley. He badly wanted to help him. But he needed to accept that he wasn’t able to and that almost killed him. When he hadn’t found the way back to him, the brief moment of release that he had felt as Lois had found him had been brushed away. He had to face his own weakness and somehow this seemed to be almost impossible to him. Why did he think that he should be stronger than that; that he wasn’t allowed to fail?
He lacked words to describe how frustrating it was to know nothing about himself. And he didn’t dare ask the woman next to him because he was still afraid that she would bring him to the closest hospital if he told her that he had lost his memory. He cursed himself for being such a stupid coward. It would be so easy to learn everything he so desperately wanted to know. And how could he honestly expect that he could easily continue to lead her on? She would guess that something was wrong with him. After all she probably knew him better than he did.
Soon they were at the car before his weariness could slow him down again. Clark wasn’t sure whether he should be relieved. He sure was glad he could sit down for a while and close his eyes. But he would feel more at ease if he knew that someone had found the injured man and cared for him. Lois opened the door and waited until he had taken a seat. A moment later, she was sitting in the driver’s seat and had started the car. The roar of the motor indicated that the decision was final. They were going to leave the area. Clark leaned against the headrest and closed his eyes.
He realized that he wasn’t prepared for whatever was going to happen now. He tried to pretend that he knew everything about his life. But this could lead to things going terribly wrong. He didn’t like the idea of lying to Lois, but did he have any choice? It didn’t seem fair. She had helped him unconditionally and how did he reward her efforts? But it wasn’t just that. He despised lying in general; it made him sick to his stomach. And yet he did this to a woman who had to be really special to him. He could only hope that Lois wasn’t too curious and wouldn’t ask many questions. But he wouldn’t bet on his being lucky.
“I’m so sorry, Clark,” Lois said, making Clark feel even more guilty as he noticed how sad she sounded. They were turning off to a busy street which obviously belonged to a better part of the city. Clark realized that he still had no idea which city he was in. He only knew that it had to be somewhere in the USA. Lois, too, had an American accent. Okay, so he had learned a little more, compared to earlier this night.
“What for?” he asked uneasily, assuming this was a safe question.
“For not trusting you, I thought you had left me. I should have known better. Clark, what happened to you, in Suicide Slum? Who hurt you? I can’t imagine why anyone would do this to you. I mean, Lex Luthor is still in jail and there is no one else I can think of who would attack you. They all say that Superman… but no, it can’t be him. I know him, he wouldn’t…you’re his friend and…” her voice trailed off. There was an almost desperate sound to it as if she was afraid of something.
It was needless to say that he had no idea what she was talking about. Both names she had mentioned didn’t ring any bells. He couldn’t understand why someone would call himself Superman. But he wouldn’t be so stupid as to ask that question. Particularly after she had mentioned them being friends. And even if this was a misunderstanding, it was quite obvious that everyone else would know. Someone called Superman couldn’t exactly be shy and he bet that this man was really famous. Clark had no idea who this Superman was. His name sounded more like one of a cartoon character. But that made no sense, so this Superman had to be someone else. Why would this man be interested in someone like him? They were even friends if Lois had told him the truth.
“I have no idea how I ended up in Suicide Slum,” Clark said and hoped this bit of honesty would suffice in satisfying her for the moment. He wasn’t in the mood to discuss whether she could trust him or not. Particularly, since he didn’t know if she could. Maybe he had really tried to leave her. How should he know? Clark thought back to the kiss. If he had been able to leave a woman like that, he certainly was a nut case.
Lois shot him a worried glance but quickly looked back to the street. The traffic had become busier with every mile that separated them from the horrible place he had woken up in. She fell silent for a while and Clark used the opportunity to look at his surroundings. With every new block they passed, he hoped he’d recognize something; anything at all. But all the streets resembled each other strikingly, and there was nothing that looked familiar. Maybe it was because it was dark outside, but he was starting to lose hope for a quick solution to his problem.
<You’re not going to give up so easily,> he admonished himself and added reassuringly that his memories were going to return as soon as he arrived wherever he lived.
“Clark, please tell me…” Lois started but fell silent again. They slowed down and soon she parked on the side of the street. “We’re here,” she said as if this took her by surprise. For Clark it was a more than a welcome interruption. She would be distracted for quite a while now. That meant she wouldn’t have time to ask him questions he should be able to answer but wasn’t. He was walking on dangerous ground and he didn’t exactly like it. Maybe he could somehow make Lois leave him alone until the next day by claiming he needed to sleep. Though, if he was honest, that was no pretense. He had trouble keeping his eyes open.
Clark got out of the car, surely more slowly than usual. The pain in his side hadn’t really receded, but his head was a little better, though far from well. He wondered how he could make Lois go to his apartment first. She was going to notice that he didn’t know the way. Trying not to appear too suspicious, Clark self-consciously moved towards what could be the entrance to the apartment building next to the car. To his great relief Lois followed him and soon she got ahead of him, climbing the stairs considerably more quickly than he could. The staircase seemed endless, somehow. Clark wondered why he would chose to live at the top of an apartment building that didn’t even have an elevator. He obviously hadn’t thought about what would happen if he was ever hurt.
He was panting by the time he had made it upstairs. Lois was already waiting for him in front of the door, impatiently. Clark couldn’t help the impression that she wanted to go inside, but didn’t dare to. He searched his clothes for a key, but his pockets - or what was left of them – were all empty. He shrugged helplessly and murmured something unintelligible. Lois rolled her eyes and for a moment Clark thought she was going to lash out at him for losing his keys.
“Clark, really,” she exclaimed and shook her head in disbelief. “Don’t tell me you are stupid enough to store a spare key under your flower pot and forget about it! When will you realize that you’re not in Smallville anymore but in Metropolis?” She let out a grunt of disapproval and reached for the key. “Let’s go inside. But you really should be more careful with your apartment,” she lectured him.
“If I was, we wouldn’t be able to get inside now,” he teased her, surprised by his own nerve to risk a fight with this woman.
He grinned experimentally as she let out an exaggerated groan and received a beautiful smile. It was as if someone had turned on a light in the darkness. Not only did she kiss like a goddess, she also had an incredible, intoxicating smile. If he stayed with her, it would take a lifetime to get sober again. Why was it that he felt this strong attraction to a woman he hardly knew? Lois impatiently tugged at his sleeves and obediently he followed her inside. Something about this felt right and suddenly he wasn’t quite so nervous anymore. Maybe things were going to be easier than he thought. Lois didn’t seem so difficult to get along with.
Clark bit back a gasp of surprise as he saw the apartment. The interior looked a lot homier than the apartment building did. He really liked it. There were large bookshelves on one wall and he somehow felt drawn to them. So he obviously liked books. Everything looked positively neat except for a rather small amount of chaos on the table in front of his sofa. Lois obviously had noticed his glance and gestured towards the table.
“I’m sorry. I waited for you here and didn’t clean up...” she said as she moved towards the pile of Chinese take-out to throw it away. Clark held her back.
“It’s okay, Lois. I can do that tomorrow.” He glanced towards a clock that was standing on one of the bookshelves. “Uh, I mean later today. I’m really tired now.” He yawned as if to prove his point and looked through the apartment, searching for his bedroom. Or should he rather start with the bathroom? The latter seemed even more appealing. A little indecisive about which door he was going to try first, Clark remained in his living room.
“You cannot go to bed, yet, Clark. Look at your side; you’re still bleeding a little. We’ve got to clean your wound and bandage it,” she stated and pushed him towards what was supposedly the bathroom. She made him sit down on the toilet after she had closed the lid and started to search for bandages. “Are you going to tell me where you store them?” she asked after closing the medicine cabinet with a somewhat helpless shrug. Clark didn’t know what to say. He’d surely have something, wouldn’t he?
Lois didn’t wait for his answer. She made a very frustrated sound and muttered something like, “In the kitchen, perhaps?” Then she was gone.
Clark stared at the door that had fallen shut behind her. It was strange to be alone again and he noticed how he had come to rely on Lois, even though he had only just met her. For a moment he sat there motionless and had no idea what to do. Of course he could wait for Lois to return, but somehow this seemed pretty silly to him. He was a grown man, although he surely *felt* that he was barely one hour old. Clark shook his head, annoyed by his own helplessness. He could care for himself. With a longing glance he looked at the shower. His skin was covered with dirt and sweat. It would be so much nicer to sleep when he was clean. He stifled a big yawn and decided that sleeping could wait for a short while.
Clark started to unbutton the shreds of his shirt and listened for any sounds from Lois. Wherever she was, she wasn’t approaching. A bit surprised Clark noticed just how soaked his clothes were. How could he have missed that earlier? It felt rather good to get out of them. He got up again and undid his trousers, which was considerably more difficult than to deal with his shirt. A jolt of pain reminded him that he needed to be careful. Muttering a soft curse, Clark stepped out of his boxer shorts and glanced down at himself. His left side looked rather ugly, covered with dried blood and dirt. From what Clark could see of the wound it was a nasty gash. A few small piece of glass were stuck in it and, carefully, Clark tried to get them out. He cursed and winced in pain in the process, but managed to get all of them without cutting himself. The gash was bleeding heavier and for a moment he wondered if taking a shower was a good idea after all. Clark decided to give it a try; he could still stop if it was too painful.
He stepped under the shower and turned the water on, enjoying the warmth of it on his sore body. But he quickly learned that it wasn’t all pleasant. He bit back a cry as the water rinsed over his wound. He turned around so that most of the water hit his back instead. He washed himself as quickly as possible then promptly dried himself with a fresh towel he had seen earlier. Clark found it strange that Lois hadn’t returned yet. His kitchen couldn’t possibly be that huge. Not that he minded having his privacy right now. He wrapped the towel around his waist in case Lois came back.
Clark studied his side more thoroughly. It didn’t look so bad anymore now that all the dirt was gone. Clark lacked any idea where he could have cut himself with glass. He didn’t remember any in the place where he had woken up. On the other hand, he wasn’t thinking very well right now. Blood was oozing from the gash and Clark reached for a second towel to press against his side. Now he was ready to search for Lois in the kitchen. And maybe he could find some clean clothes on his way. He put his glasses back on, figuring it would be easier to find everything he needed if he wore them.
“Lois?” he asked, as he stepped out of the bathroom.
There was no answer and no sounds from someone rummaging through the kitchen.
“Lois?” he repeated a little louder.
Maybe Lois hadn’t heard him, or maybe he was just afraid of the silence in this unfamiliar place. It wasn’t long until he had found the kitchen, but Lois was gone. Clark was confused and wondered if she had just left. Had he done something wrong? Or maybe it was a habit of hers to regularly disappear on a moments notice and without telling him why. It was a possibility, though he didn’t really believe in it. She had been so eager to help him. She probably had her reasons to leave him alone.
Clark walked out of the kitchen and back into the living room. He looked around. At least he could find out more about the man he had been before he had lost his memory. Lois would surely ask him why he was having such a close look at the photos sitting on the shelves and hanging on the wall. But she wasn’t there to watch him. He saw an older couple. They were most likely his parents, given that they appeared in most of the photos. They surrounded him as a child, a teenager and a grown man. In addition to his parents, Lois obviously played an important role in his life, though he couldn’t really tell what. Was she a good friend or was there more than that? He definitely wanted her to be more than a mere friend. She looked so happy in those photos. Clark could have stared at her forever, but the pictures became blurred before his eyes. He couldn’t stifle another yawn. Wearily, he set the last photo back in its place and turned to find his bedroom.
Clark had to admit that he was afraid. Ever since their kiss, he was dreaming about kissing her again. In fact he wanted to do so much more than that. But considering what he knew, Lois could just as well be his sister. This was highly unlikely because she wasn’t in any of those pictures with his parents. Besides, a sister wouldn’t kiss him like that, would she? But it was, nonetheless, possible. He would have to be careful around her if she came back. He didn’t want to destroy his future because his past was mysterious to him.
Walking around a corner, Clark found the way into his bedroom. The sudden prospect of fresh clothes and a bed excited him beyond belief. He opened several drawers of an old armoire at one side of the room and shortly thereafter he was dressed in boxer shorts. Clark had a look at the t-shirt that he had thrown on his bed, but he didn’t feel like he had enough energy to take it on as well. With a sigh he lay down on the bed and closed his eyes. He didn’t really care if Lois came back now or if she stayed away. If only he could sleep this nightmare off. He felt himself drift away slowly and his last conscious thought was the hope that everything was going to be back to normal after a good night’s sleep.
To be continued...
