Hi!
I still can’t believe I’m now in the double digits. You guys have been such a great and loyal fandom to this story through the funny stuff and the sad stuff. Thank you all.
Mona, Kmar, and Mellie, thanks a lot for betaing this part so quickly and leaving me with so many great suggestions. And boy, don’t I know I’ve cut it close this time around. You rock
And after reading through this part for a last time, I can’t help but put up a little WHAM-warning. At least, it doesn’t feel like a happy dance part to me
But let me know if I managed to mix the funny stuff and the sad stuff in good proportions
Michael
Disclaimer: The recognizable characters and settings in this story are the property of D.C. Comics, Warner Bros., December 3rd Productions, and anyone else with a legal right to them, and I have no claim on them whatsoever, nor am I profiting by their use. It’s just the original stuff, that would be mine, written down to bring some entertainment to other FoLC.
The setting is right after “Season’s Greedings” in Season 2.
Blocks in >> << are literal thoughts by the character.
Rating: PG-13
**********
The last time we saw Lois she had just been chewed out by her sister and at the same time, Clark had had a chance to talk to his parents. But how is Lois going to deal with the realization that she has done some quite despicable things during the last twenty-four hours. And will Skip deliver the chocolates Clark had bought for Lois?
Part 10 /
TOC /
Comments **********
Lois was still quite shaken from the tongue lashing she had received at Lucy’s hands. And when her sister had told Lois to shape up and take responsibility for her actions, two things had happened.
The first was for Lois to come to the startling conclusion, that Lucy had indeed grown up during her stay in California. Oh, sure, Lucy had never been shy to tell her sister what she thought, but usually it was related to men and to Lois’ nonexistent love life. But to have Lucy tell her in no uncertain terms that she – her big sister – had screwed up, had shown Lois just how mature and independent her little sister had really become.
The other thing that had happened to Lois was her immediate need to cry once more in the face of what she had done. Only this time she had fought valiantly against it. Yes, she had been a brave young woman for all of thirty long seconds. And then Lucy had been forced to go and hunt down every available box of Kleenex in Lois’ apartment, for her latest crying fit didn’t seem to stop for a very long time.
Lois wasn’t sure if her sister was disgusted by her weakness, or if she secretly delighted in seeing the great Lois Lane down on her knees. But regardless of what Lucy may have thought, she still kept Lois’ head cradled in her lap and handed her one tissue after another while Lois let all the hurt wash out of her with her tears.
And after what must have been an eternity, Lois had stopped crying. Her tears simply stopped as fast as they had started and she pulled herself up on the couch and started to look for the quilt lying around somewhere. She knew it had to be there. She often used it to wrap herself into when she watched the Ivory Tower tapes late at night. Then she remembered. She had put the quilt away in her attempt to clean up her apartment before Clark had arrived yesterday.
Of course, now she had absolutely no clue why she had done such a thing. Clark had seen her place in all states of disorder and her quilt had always been a fixture. And even when he came to visit as Superman, it had usually been too unexpected a visit for her to clean up beforehand. So why had she made an extra effort last night?
And how could she get Lucy to bring her the remainder of her Rocky Road? She was sure there was still half of it left and ice cream did tend to go bad if left too long in the freezer. She was quite certain about this fact because she always made sure her frozen chocolate got eaten within a few days. Anyway, she didn’t have the mind right now to ponder the storage guidelines for the basic food groups according to Lois Lane – chocolate bars, chocolate ice cream, and baked goods with chocolate in them. She had to figure out how to break the news to Clark that she hadn’t been the victim. And for this she *needed* the chocolate ice cream.
**********
Lois raised her head to look at her sister and started to ask Lucy for the treat, when the expression on her sister’s face stopped her cold. Lucy certainly looked less than inclined to play her maid, Lois thought, before she sighed and pulled herself up to walk into the kitchen to get the cold goody. And if she was already up, she could just as well go and get her quilt, too.
After a brief stop at the freezer followed by the cutlery drawer, – not to mention, a first, healthy dose of the icy soul balm – Lois shuffled into her bedroom, the spoon sticking out of her mouth and the tub of ice cream dangling from her left hand.
There she again saw the mess left behind from last night’s bout of passion – or was it insanity? Yes, Lucy honestly hadn’t had a chance to misinterpret the scene when she had snuck into her apartment. Did they really leave that much stuff lying around in their haste to get naked? She couldn’t really remember it now, except for a very warm – and very unwelcome – feeling in her lower abdomen.
Shaking her head at her own foolishness, Lois decided to use the time and change out of her clothes. They certainly looked like she had lived in them for a week. Could curling into a ball of despair really do that to business attire? Lois let go of a defeated sigh and settled for having to visit her dry cleaner again. At least she got a frequent customer discount at ‘Mr. Wo’s House of Silk’.
Her jacket went down to the floor and was soon followed by her skirt, blouse, and bra before she dug into her cupboard for her favorite flannel pajamas. At least, they were her favorites now that she was feeling down. And unlike a certain partner – ex-partner, or best friend – former best friend, or whatever, they were trusty and comfortable. They never disappointed her and they waited patiently for when she needed them to feel safe and secure. Why couldn’t men be like that? Warm, and comfy, and there to hug her at night without demanding anything in return? Flannel and chocolate, yes, why couldn’t men be made of flannel on the outside and chocolate on the inside?
Realizing that she had started to go off the deep end again, Lois shook her head to clear her thoughts, drew the almost forgotten spoon through the ice cream once more before the tub could get lonely and run off and put a healthy dosage of frozen endorphins into her mouth. Then she grabbed her PJs and slipped them on before she picked up her ice cream and the quilt and shuffled back to where her sister was waiting for her.
>>Time to talk,<< Lois sighed again.
**********
Lois flopped down heavily on the love seat, immediately cursing her furniture for not providing an adequate cushion. One day she was going to get bruises from these things and if she ever did get a boyfriend, they would have to go. It wouldn’t really be funny to fight the suspicion of spousal abuse because she had unexplained bruises on her backside.
Dragging her feet up on the couch and wrapping the quilt around herself, Lois nestled the tub closely to her chest and began dragging the spoon around its inside. Then, in order to prepare herself for the verbal onslaught soon to be unleashed, Lois put another healthy spoonful of the brown ice cream into her mouth. Lois couldn’t help but sigh contently at the feelings the sweet, cold cream evoked within her.
It was only when Lois raised her eyes to look at her sister, that she noticed the way Lucy was staring at her. There was a hunger emanating from her gaze that was quite disturbing and there was no way she was going to go along with that. Sister or not! This ice cream was all that stood between her and the loony bin and she was *not* going to share it!
Lois cuddled the tub protectively even closer to her chest before she began to talk.
“So I will have to tell him,” Lois probed.
“Yes. And would you mind-”
Lois slapped Lucy’s hand away from her frozen Prozac held tightly against her chest and continued.
“And then I will lose him.”
“Possibly. And don’t you think you should-”
Again Lois had to defend her precious chocolate and put another spoonful into her mouth, as if to make a point in regards to whose ice cream it was.
Lucy took the opportunity that Lois’ mouth was occupied with things other than producing distinguishable sounds and continued to muse while still rubbing her offended finger.
“But you know, after the way you’ve treated Clark today, I wouldn’t worry about losing him tomorrow when you tell him.”
“Wha-“ *Slurp* “Whuad?” Lois finally managed to ask without choking on her mouthful of frozen chocolaty goody.
“Talk or eat, Lois! Didn’t Mom teach you anything?” Lucy scolded before getting back on topic. “You’ve made your partner feel like a cheap lay, a looser, and a used towel. Do you really think he is going to even want to talk to you, even if you *don’t* tell him the truth?” her sister exclaimed exasperatedly.
In the meantime Lois had managed to swallow the ice cream and it probably was only thanks to her extensive training in this department that she hadn’t developed brain freeze in the process.
“So you think it doesn’t matter what I do?” Lois asked in a subdued voice and was fully aware that Lucy didn’t even know half the stuff she had done to Clark. And it would most definitely make a difference whether or not she told him the truth. Because if – no, when – she came clean, Clark would be completely disgusted with her. And then she would have really lost him.
“Let’s just say I wouldn’t start writing wedding invitations,” Lucy told her, driving her sister to dig another trench into the noticeably depleted tub of chocolate ice cream, determined not to fall apart again at the very bleak outlook of her future.
Then Lucy got up for a few moments and Lois wondered what her sister could be up to now, when suddenly she noticed that a second spoon had started digging in her ice cream.
“Dammit, Lucy, that’s my ice cream! Don’t you know not to kick a girl when she is already on the floor?” Lois wailed, but for some strange reason allowed her sister to proceed. This certainly didn’t bode well for her if she couldn’t even bring herself to properly care about not sharing her chocolate ice cream anymore.
**********
Lois was still wallowing over her – now empty – tub of Rocky Road, when the sound of her doorbell ringing interrupted her thoughts. Well, she would let it ring. Whoever it was would just have to leave a note or something. Or try to visit her again. Whatever! It didn’t matter and she certainly didn’t care!
It was only when she heard the door open, that Lois remembered she was not alone at home this night.
“Yes?” Lois heard her sister greet whoever was standing on the other side of the door. Turning her head ever so slightly, she noticed that the door was partially open and the chain was *not* in place. It was *very* late and her sister had opened the door to a stranger. Did she never learn anything?
“Ya Miss Lane?” she heard the male voice from the other side of the door.
“Yes, why?” asked Lucy.
“Me, I’m Skip from ‘Fred’s Express’ and I hav’ a package for ya, miss.”
A delivery boy, at – what was it – almost ten in the evening? Lois shook her head before the next sentence shocked her to back to reality.
“Yeah, a package from ya boyfriend. Seems quite distraught, the mista. But if ya want, I hafta night off now and a fifty here that can get ya a nice movie. Ya wanna go?”
Lucy had a boyfriend in town already? Not that it surprised her, but apparently they were having trouble, too. Okay, that wasn’t that big a surprise either. But did the little twerp just ask her sister out while delivering a gift from said boyfriend?
Lois was still rolling her eyes when Lucy’s next statement followed the sound of the door closing.
“Can you believe that, Lo? Delivers a package from a supposed boyfriend and asks the supposed girlfriend on a date even before handing over the delivery. At least now I understand where you developed your sense of dating, what with living in this sink of iniquity.”
Lois was startled at the meaning behind Lucy’s words and straightened to defend herself.
“What are you saying, Luce? I’m not the one who has just gotten back and already has a boyfriend and a fight on her hands.” Lois exclaimed in an irritated voice.
“*My* boyfriend?” Lucy shot back. “I don’t *have* a boyfriend. No, dearest sister of mine, I believe this package is for you.”
“Wha-“ Lois tried before Lucy cut her off.
“Well, it certainly does look like your partner is even more house trained than you’ve made me believe. I certainly wouldn’t try to get back together after being treated like that,” explained Lucy while pulling the card from its envelope.
>>And shouldn’t that be my card?<< Lois thought, her ire rising at her sister’s remark.
“’My sweetest Love,
My soul aches for your forgiveness,
My heart bleeds for your smile,
Lois, please consider this humble token of mine.
Forever and eternally yours, Clark’”
Lucy folded the card back into its envelope before she sat down on the other love seat, well out of the reach of her still bundled-up sister, before speaking again.
“So, Clark really does come crawling back, groveling for your forgiveness? I don’t believe it! Is he still drugged or something? Spill it, sister, what is going on that you haven’t told me? Why is he groveling?”
Lois, herself, on the other hand, was still in shock. Had she really heard what she thought she’d heard? Had Clark just written her a card and apologized, again, after everything she had told him today? And would he continue to do so, until she told him the truth? Was she really that awful a person that she had actually managed to turn the whole thing into a twisted nightmare? And was her sister eating *her* chocolates?
“LUCY! Give me those! Get your own boyfriend if you want chocolates. I’m the one hurting here!” Lois screamed while diving for her sister.
Lucy only barely managed to keep her sister at bay and away from the treat she had appropriated, before she was able to douse her with a figurative tub of cold water.
“Those chocolates are meant for a woman who had been hurt by her boyfriend. Since you neither have a boyfriend, nor have you been hurt by said nonexistent boyfriend, I don’t really see a reason why you should have them!”
“What!? I have so been hurt. He has lied to me for a year and a half. He had died on me. And... And… And I don’t have any other chocolate left at home, so give me those if you don’t want to lose an arm!” Lois snarled back.
“Are you *nuts*, Lo? They’re just chocolates and you freak out like I was about to take Clark to bed instead of eating his apology. Geez, here you go,” and with those words her sister pushed the box of pralines into Lois’ hands.
“What? I… Why would I…?” stammered Lois, while she flopped back onto her own love seat. The box of pralines dropped unnoticed onto the coffee table separating the seating arrangement.
Had she really just gotten jealous of *chocolates*? Or was Lucy’s sarcastic remark about her being jealous of another woman snagging Clark maybe too close to the truth for her own comfort? And what *would* happen, once she told Clark the truth about yesterday? For one, he would definitely stop sending her apologies. And given how the other women at the Planet eyed her partner, she was quite certain that a heartbroken Farmboy would get even more propositions than he already received.
Lois eyed the now orphaned box of candy only a foot or two away from her and decided her sister was right. She didn’t deserve them. She didn’t deserve Clark. And she didn’t want to explain any of it to her sister.
In fact, the only thing she really did want to do right now, was crawl into her bed and die.
**********
Rising from the couch, Lois choked out a “Night, Luce” before grabbing her quilt by one corner and dragging it with her into her bedroom. Once there, Lois briefly thought about going into the bathroom to wash up, but immediately decided to just continue straight into her bed. After all, she was already wearing her pajamas and her teeth wouldn’t rot from one night without brushing them.
Then she felt the edge of her bed against her legs and just let herself fall forward onto her pillow, dragging the quilt over her in the same motion.
It was only when she took a breath to calm herself enough to fall asleep that she noticed a familiar scent wafting over her. Why was her bed smelling of Clark? Dumb question. More important was what she was going to do about it. She definitely didn’t feel like changing the sheets, or getting up again and crawling into the bed in her guest room and leaving Lucy to deal with finding clean sheets.
No, she was definitely not up for any further movement today. And so she did the next best thing and threw her pillow to the side, only to grab the other one, the one with the imprint of Clark’s head on it, and pulled it over to her side of the bed.
Yes, that was much better. Clark always soothed her when she was distressed. He had always been there for her. He had always-
And before she could wonder about her latest thoughts, Lois had finally drifted off into a deep sleep, a few tears trickling down her cheek.
**********
“You have come back to me,” Lois breathed when she saw Clark floating through her bedroom window and making his way over to her bed.
“Shhhh, sure I have, Lois,” he replied. “Where else would I go in the middle of the night?”
“But you said you weren’t coming again. You said you found someone new,” she choked out, trying to keep her tears in check.
“Don’t worry about that, my Dear. I’m here now,” he continued while pulling back the light sheet that had been covering her, “And I can see that you have been expecting me, haven’t you?”
“Expecting…?” Lois probed, unsure what Clark was going at before she noticed where his eyes trailed down her body. She was only wearing a flimsy nightgown made of translucent silk, and it was easy for Clark to study every curve of her body even without resorting to his special vision.
“Oh, you are so beautiful, Lois,” he reassured her, “You don’t ever have to wonder if I were to come back to you. *She* may be wearing my ring, but you are carrying my child”, Clark soothed while caressing the curve of her expanding midriff.
“Oh, god, I…” Lois exclaimed as his hand began to wander further down and began to work on pushing the nightgown upwards.
“Shhhh, don’t talk, Lois. Let me enjoy this. *She* always talks and destroys everything. Let me take comfort here.”
This was wrong, Lois knew, but it didn’t matter. Right now she was with the man she loved and still wanted. And even if she couldn’t give her heart to him, she was giving him something else. He had assured her that it didn’t matter how often he went to the woman who wore his ring, he would always come back to her. She had to trust him on that. He would never abandon her. He would always be there. She shouldn’t worry about it, but just enjoy.
Then Lois felt that his hand had begun to travel upwards again, caressing her. That his other hand was still working on pulling her gown upwards. And then even her semi-coherent thoughts seized and she gave herself over to the ministrations of her lover.
She heard someone moan and belatedly realized that it was her. Oh god, how was she to say no to this? She couldn’t deny his body any more than she could deny her own. This was never going to work and yet here he was, working the flimsy material over her head while attacking her newly exposed skin with his mouth.
“Yessss!” she heard her lover hiss, as he began the age-old movements she had come to know so well over the past months. She shouldn’t be doing this. She shouldn’t be his mistress. She should push him away for betraying what they had had with that other woman. She shouldn’t enjoy this the way she did. It was wrong. It was humiliating. She deserved more. She deserved even less. She-
“Oh, yessss, Wanda!” she heard him scream out in abandon, the name of the woman he loved on his lips, while her own eyes shed tears he was oblivious to before he pulled away and quickly made his way back out of her bedroom again.
**********
“Noooo! Please, Clark, don’t…!” Lois heard herself sob when suddenly the lights were turned on and her sister was sitting next to her, holding her, stroking her head.
“Lois, what’s going on?” her sister asked her, trying to comfort the sobbing heap of sorrow in her lap.
“I’ve…“ *Hick* “…lost him.” *Sob* “Lucy, I’ve lost Clark. I will tell him and he will never love me again. Oh Luce, what have I done?” Lois cried into her sister’s arms while trying to forget the dream she had just had.
She had already fallen back into a fitful sleep when her sister’s voice whispered, “Trust him, Lois. Trust your love to survive.”
**********
“Noooo! Please, Clark, don’t!”
Lois’ scream had shocked Clark back to reality when he had been drifting over his Love’s apartment during his patrol. Clark had been listening for a little while now and before those fateful words had been uttered, he had heard her mumble sounds he was only too familiar with after last night, but finally he realized what he had been doing.
He had no right to invade her privacy like that. Not even when he was worrying about her. And yet at the same time, it was so completely natural for him to watch over his sleeping Love. Only now he knew she had nightmares about what had happened. How he had turned what should have been the most beautiful moment in their lives into a twisted monstrosity. And after hearing her voice scream out in panicked despair when she remembered their encounter, he wasn’t sure how he would ever be able to fix it.
Lois had sounded so scared. He had heard that painful tone in other women before, usually shortly before he managed to swoop in just in time to prevent them from being assaulted in a back alley somewhere in Metropolis. But to hear the woman he loved scream his name in this tone, he couldn’t even begin to imagine the nightmares she was living through right now.
>>How could I be so stupid? So inconsiderate. So completely driven by my hormones that I have taken advantage of the most precious person in my life?<< he obsessed while hovering nervously over her apartment building’s rooftop. >>How will I ever be able to make it up to Lois for what I have done to her? How I have violated her?<<
It was then that he noticed how her sister had entered Lois’ room and started to soothe her. Relieved and eternally grateful for the younger Lane woman, Clark took off to the Arctic, ready to scream out his frustration.
And then he would return to Metropolis, and tomorrow he would start to investigate this entire affair. Anonymous had no idea what he had started. This was personal now. And Clark would make sure to find out exactly how everything had transpired. And then he would take all his findings to Lois and offer them up for her to do with as she saw fit. Yes, Anonymous had no idea what a hornet’s nest he had stirred with his dirty tricks.
**********
tbc
