That One Great Love
This is a rewrite of the Pilot episode, and much of the dialogue has been borrowed from that ninety-minute (without commercials) series premiere. However, there are some significant changes to it, along with one very significant change to the basic premise of Lois’ history. And while it’s not WHAM-worthy, it is a doozy of a change. There is also a huge dollop of angst in Clark’s past in this story, and it impacts his behavior and attitudes toward Lois in what I hope is a surprising and believable manner.
Much well-deserved credit goes to Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, the creators of Superman; to Deborah Joy Levine, credited with the development of the series we write and read to perpetuate, and who is also credited with writing and co-producing the Pilot episode; and to both Teri Hatcher and Dean Cain, who gave faces and voices to the characters we all enjoy so very much.
I’d also like to credit Carol Malo for the inspiration for this story and its title. It grew out of a comment she made in feedback to a story where Clark had a serious relationship with someone other than Lois.
And a well-deserved shout-out goes to four of the best beta readers on the planet – Carol M, DsDragon, Elisabeth, and Iolanthealias. Anything that’s positive in this story has been greatly enhanced by these four brilliant people. Y’all did a fantastic job!
While this story has some heart-wrenching moments, I can assure the gentle readers that the toys are put back in the box at the end – with a few changes, but no permanent damage.
Chapter One
Lois leaned in closer to hear what was going on in her boss’ office. Yet another happy dreamer was applying for a job as reporter for the Daily Planet, and Lois’ scripted mini-drama with Perry to discourage said dreamer was about to hit center stage.
“Mating rituals of the knob-tailed gecko?”
Lois grinned at Perry’s tone. He was really giving this applicant a hard time, and she didn’t catch the man’s reply.
But she heard Perry’s response. “I’m sorry, son, but I just don’t have a spot open for you right now.”
That was her cue. She pushed the door open and began her pre-planned verbal assault. As generally scripted, Perry managed to stem the flow long enough to introduce the tall man with the plastic-framed glasses and shaggy hair to her.
“Clark Kent, this is Lois Lane, the best investigative reporter in this city, best one this paper has ever had. Say, Lois, have you turned in that mood piece on the 42nd Street Theater demolition yet?”
She’d been waiting to deliver her next line for nearly an hour, ever since she’d glimpsed the man wandering hopefully into the editor’s office. “Sorry, Perry, I just wasn’t in the mood.”
Perry played his part perfectly. “Not in the mood? Doggone it, Lois, that theater is historic! The Barrymores played there, both Junior and Senior! Tennessee Williams directed one of his own plays on that stage! It’s coming down tomorrow morning and I need that article for – “
“I’m on the EPRAD story, Chief. I’ve got a great lead.” And then she was out the door.
The details of their little play varied, but it always worked. It always discouraged the ones with no chance, the ones with stars in their eyes and no shot at lasting at a major news organization like the Daily Planet. This made three – no, four men and two women in the last five months who’d walked in off the street with high school newspaper stories in the clip file or dreamers with some vague idea of working for the best paper on the East coast. All of them had been overwhelmed by their first impression of Mad Dog Lane and had never darkened Perry’s doorsill again.
She glanced at the framed picture above her workstation and felt the familiar double jolt of loneliness and loss once again. Her mother continued to insist that she’d eventually get over his death and learn to love again. Other people had told her that the hurt and the emptiness would lessen in time, and indeed it had. But she was beginning to think that the hole in her heart would never be filled again.
She sighed and forced herself to focus on her assignments. The theater story was a straightforward history piece, the review of the mayor’s latest budget proposal was unremarkable and would require little effort, and the EPRAD story driven by Samuel Platt’s rants of sabotage in the space program would occupy a large block of her time for the next several days. There was no slot in her day to schedule crying time about being the youngest widow ever to work for the Daily Planet. And she had work to do, work which would keep her heart from aching quite so badly.
At least it would distract her from the pain.
*****
It was impossible. It simply didn’t happen.
But it had.
She couldn’t believe it.
He’d scooped her.
No one scooped her!
This was totally unacceptable! No one in the city – no one in the entire state! – had beaten Lois Lane to a byline since she’d first put her fingers to a keyboard in Metropolis! Second rule, no one else got there first! Yet this – this hack from Nowheresville, a man who hadn’t had any single mailing address for any six-month period of his adult life since his college graduation, had covered her assignment, presented his story to Perry, and actually gotten hired!
And then Jimmy Olsen had had the nerve to pronounce Kent’s article “Smooth,” to which the disgusted Lois had replied, “Sure, if you like that kind of thing!”
Obviously Perry loved it. “I admire initiative in a reporter, young man. It’s a necessary attribute, and you’ve got it in spades.” The editor held out his hand to the young man. “Welcome to the Daily Planet, Kent.”
The rookie smiled like he’d just won the lottery and floated out of the office on a cloud. Lois waited for Jimmy to leave so he could set up the new kid in the various systems at the paper, then she lit into her boss. “Perry, he stole my story! That was my assignment! You can’t let him get away with that!”
“Now hold on, Lois. He didn’t know that. He thought you’d blown it off, remember? As far as he knew it was wide open. And your story wasn’t bad, but his – man! He lit up the paper with that prose!”
“Oh, yeah, all that touchy-feely kind of garbage! I heard it, remember? He’s no investigator! He doesn’t belong here!”
“He can learn.”
“From whom? Who has time to show a rookie like him where the vending machines are, much less how to be a reporter for the Daily Planet?”
“You can teach him.”
“What – you mean – oh, no, no, no-no-no-no-no! Perry, you can’t do that to me!”
“Why not? You’ve needed a partner for quite a while now, someone you can show the ropes to and help you with legwork.”
“We’ve got a research department for legwork!”
“You need a partner to help you with some of your stories.”
“What? No! If I need help there’s Jimmy or Myerson or Eduardo or – “
Perry lifted an index finger and paused for a moment. “Listen to me, Lois! You’re too reckless. You need some responsibility to give you a reason to slow down a little.”
“Slow down? Are you nuts? I don’t need – “
“Stop it!” Perry leaned forward and stared into her eyes. “You’re working yourself too hard. I don’t think you need time off, but you do need to back off a bit. Ever since Claude went to Africa and – “
“No!” She spun around and all but ran to the door, but this time she stopped herself before she flung it open and sprinted across the news floor to cry in the restroom.
She felt Perry’s comforting hand rest on her shoulder. “I know how hard it is to face this, honey. Alice has been gone for four years now, and sometimes I still turn around in the kitchen or in the living room and expect her to be standing there with that sweet smile on her face.” He gently turned her to face him. “I can tell you that it gets easier as time goes on. I can’t tell you that it gets better.”
She sniffed and tried to smile up at him. “Th-that’s – not very comforting, you know. Aren’t you supposed to tell me that – that I’ll find someone else someday?”
He sighed deeply. “Maybe you will, maybe you won’t. I don’t know. All I know is that I haven’t, not yet.”
His pain – old and comfortable as it was – still stung him, still cut him deeply, and she knew she hadn’t made him feel any better. “I’m sorry, Perry. I didn’t – I didn’t mean – “
“Now, now, never mind that. Just tell this broken-down old editor that you’ll work with Kent and show him the ropes.”
“Okay,” she sighed. A tissue from Perry appeared in her hand and she wiped her eyes with it. “Thanks. Okay, I’ll work with Kent. As long as he doesn’t slow me down too much, that is.”
Perry grinned at her. “I think that young man might surprise you. He’s already surprised me, and this is just his first day.”
*****
She wasn’t quite ready to face the new kid, not with damp eyes and damaged makeup. So a quick trip to the ladies’ lounge was in order.
She opened her makeup case and looked into the mirror, but she didn’t see herself. All that was in her mind was that Claude had given her that makeup case for their six-month anniversary. It had been one of the last presents he’d given her.
The next thought that hit her was that he was gone. It felt just like it always felt, as if she were hearing the news for the first time. She left her purse and makeup case on the counter in front of the mirror and stumbled through the door to the entry foyer and onto the couch near the entrance.
And just like always, a scene surged out of the reservoir of her memory and overwhelmed her.
*****
She lurched up out of a sound, silent, and dreamless sleep. She thought she’d heard a noise. Her hand drifted to the other side of the bed –
He wasn’t there. And the sheet was cold. This wasn’t a quick trip to the bathroom.
Silently, she slipped a t-shirt and sweat pants over bare skin and picked up the baseball bat leaning against the wall between the nightstand and the bed. Perry would have yelled at her if he had known what she was doing, but he wasn’t here.
And, apparently, neither was Claude.
Had she heard an intruder, or was her new-found lover raiding the refrigerator? Or had Claude simply slipped out into the night and left her alone? Whatever it was that she’d heard, she needed to investigate the sound.
She held the bat at ready and cat-footed from the bedroom to the living room. The slender strands of the city lights sneaking in revealed no damage, no missing valuables, no misplaced furniture, no creeping prowler.
Only a man slumped on the couch.
“Claude?” she whispered. “Is that you?”
The man only slumped lower on the couch and emitted a sound somewhere between a groan and a sob. Lois crept closer and lowered the bat. “Mister, I’m going to whack you with this baseball bat unless you prove to me that you’re Claude Rochambeau.”
The man snorted, but without any humor. “It is I, cherie. There is no need to – to ‘whack’ me with your bat.”
The bat slipped from her hands and leaned against the end table. “Claude? What’s wrong? Why are you out here?”
She clicked on the end table lamp and sat beside him. There were tear tracks on his cheeks and his eyes were still damp. She gently took his clenched hands in hers. “Claude? Honey, what’s the matter?”
He pulled his hands away from her and covered his face with them. “The matter? The matter is that I am a thief and a fool.”
Her first thought was that he was confessing to living a double life of some kind, but that didn’t make sense. The man was too busy to work as hard as he did during the day and live some kind of secret life at night. “I don’t understand. What are you talking about?”
He reached under his jacket and pulled out a folder. “This. This is what I am talking about.”
She took the folder and opened it. Her story stared back at her, the story that would make her reputation on the Daily Planet and make Perry White respect her abilities as an investigator as well as her skill as a writer. “Claude? Why do you have my folder? This is the story I’m going to give Perry in the morning. The one I – “
The penny dropped. This was the story she’d bragged to Claude about the night before, as they’d laid in bed together wrapped in each other’s arms, his skin warm against hers –
No! She couldn’t think about that right now. She had to find out what he was doing with her story.
“Claude?” she began softly. “I want you to tell me why you have this folder, and I need for you to tell me the whole truth.”
He sat up and took a deep breath. “Yes. Yes, I will tell you the entire truth, though it shall reveal me to be a cad and a bounder.”
She waited while he composed himself.
“Lois, my – no, I have not the right to address you in such a manner, or in any manner at all. I must tell you that I am not an honest man. I invited you to share dinner with me tonight because you are a beautiful woman, and I accompanied you to your apartment because I did indeed hope to be allowed to – to share your bed. But I did not plan for you to tell me of your story. And I did not plan to steal your story and claim it as my own.
“But that is what I have almost done. I left you and dressed after you fell asleep, then I found the folder in your briefcase and placed it under my coat. But I – I could not do such a terrible thing to you! You are too young, too beautiful, too talented, too innocent for me to ruin in such a selfish and criminal manner.”
He ran his hands through his hair and sighed. “And now you must report my actions to Monsieur the editor Perry White. He will be angry with me – with just cause – and perhaps he will release me from my employment. If he does so, it will be no less than I deserve.”
He stood and took a step toward the door, then stopped and half-turned to her. “Lois, I cannot tell you how sorry I am to have betrayed you. You are the most beautiful woman I have ever held in my arms, the most intelligent, the most – “ He closed his eyes for a moment and took a deep breath. “No. I will no longer flatter you. I have not the right.”
He walked slowly toward the front door. “I will leave now. Should the office gossips wag their tongues about us, I shall tell them that I was not good enough for you, that you overwhelmed me with your love and crushed me. I will tell them that your heart was too big for me, that I am not man enough to fill it.” He sighed. “And that, at least, would be the truth.” He stopped beside the door and turned back to her.
And she slammed her arms around him and held on for dear life. “Don’t go! Please don’t go! I won’t let you!”
He gently tried to disengage her. “Lois, please, I am not worthy – “
“Then why are you still here?”
He froze in place. “What is it that you mean?”
“Claude, if you’re such a horrible man, if you’re so terrible, why didn’t you leave already? Why did you tell me all about your plans? Why did you give me back the story? And why are you volunteering to be the bad guy?”
“I – it is what I deserve – “
“No! No, it isn’t! Please, darling, don’t go! Please stay with me!”
His hands cupped her face. “What did you call me?”
Her eyes began to water and she looked into his face. “I said – please, darling, stay with me.”
He let out a shuddering breath. “Lois, my – my love. I am not worthy – “
One hand covered his lips while the other gripped his shirt. “Let me be the judge of your worth to me, my darling.”
*****
Three months later they were married.
Seven months after that he was dead.
The tears came again and she slumped to one side. She heard the flush in the next room and water running in the sink and then she heard the door open, but she couldn’t lift her eyes to see who was there. She put her head down on the couch and tried to smother her sobs in the cushions, hoping that whoever saw her would simply pass by and leave her to her agony.
But that didn’t happen. A moment later she felt familiar hands on her shoulders. “Lois! Oh, honey! Come on, sit up. Here, use this towel.”
It wasn’t some random female passing by. It was her best friend at the Planet, and Lois was lucky to know her.
She took the cloth from Cat’s hands and pressed it to her eyes. She felt the other woman’s hand stroke her hair, then tug her into an embrace as Cat knelt beside the couch to offer whatever comfort she could.
As always, Lois eventually ran dry. The analytical part of her mind told her that this crying jag was shorter than the one before and that there had been a longer gap of not crying over Claude than before the last episode. The other part of her mind, the part that was connected to her heart and still desperately missed the man who’d promised to love her for the rest of his life, kicked the analytical part to the curb once again and told it to shut up and let her wallow in the jagged security of her pain.
But she didn’t want to wallow. Eight months was long enough to wallow. She could miss her husband without breaking down in the middle of the day. Enough was enough.
She sat up and tried to smile at Cat. “Thanks. I’m sorry for – “
“Don’t be. That’s what friends are for. And don’t worry about your face, it’s not that bad. Besides, I can’t have you looking sexier than me. I’m not sure I could handle the competition.”
They shared a quiet laugh, then Cat asked, “Hey, who’s the new tight end in the office?”
Lois fought back a smile. “Why don’t you throw your usual forward pass and find out?”
Cat chuckled. “I will if you don’t have him running too many deep patterns for you. Perry told me that he’s your new partner and that you get to show him around.”
Lois sighed and stood, then made her way to the mirror and her abandoned makeup kit. “Yes, I get to babysit the new kid. Lucky me.”
Cat hugged her across the shoulders. “Well, if you get bored with him, just let me know. I’ll take him off your hands.” She frowned in mock concentration. “In fact, I think I’ll go introduce myself to him now, find out if he needs a guide to the big city.”
Despite her emotional state, Lois laughed openly. “Are you kidding? That hayseed farm boy? I’ll bet you a dollar right now that he falls into an open manhole his first week here.”
*****
Her face repaired and her emotions under control, Lois exited the lounge and made her way to her desk where she knew Clark would be waiting for her. She watched Cat try to hook her claws into him, and then she was pleasantly surprised to see him skitter away with more grace than she would have suspected he had.
Then someone called out, “Hey! On the TV! The shuttle’s on fire!”
Horrified, Lois stared at the screen along with the rest of the newsroom crew. “I knew there was something to Platt’s story!” she muttered to Perry. “I just knew it!”
“Now, Lois, just because one madman’s prediction came true doesn’t mean that there’s a conspiracy to sabotage the entire space program.”
“But with more than a hundred colonists going up in the next launch, are you willing to take that chance?”
Perry didn’t speak, but she read his answer in his eyes. She had a story to cover. And she was sure it was a certified Kerth winner.
If only Claude were here to –
No. No dwelling on what might have been. Focus on what was. Focus on what was in front of her and get the story. It was the only way to get through the day.
*****
“I need a task force, Perry. I can’t cover this story alone.”
“You can have Jimmy.”
“Chief, we’re talking about the space program. Jimmy’s too young.”
“Okay, take Kent.”
“Kent?” The impulse to say ‘yes’ was surprisingly strong, but she forced it back. “No! He’s greener than grass! I need someone with some experience!”
“He’s better than you think he is, Lois.”
“Still no.” She folded her arms and paced. “What about Myerson?”
“He’s busy.”
“Burns?”
“Budapest.”
“Nelson.”
“He’s on vacation in Jamaica. Use Kent.”
“Forget Kent.”
“Uh-uh. Kent is a good man.”
“He’s a hack from Smallville! Even I couldn’t make that name up.”
“Kent – or nobody.”
For a moment she felt like the rabbit who’d convinced the fox to throw him into the briar patch – which was where he wanted to be – by insisting that it was the last place he wanted to go. “Fine! Don’t ever let anyone say I’m not a team player.”
As she stalked out of Perry’s office, trying to act as if she’d been forced into drinking stale drain cleaner, she waggled her fingers in her new partner’s direction. “Come on, Kent, let’s go. I have an interview and you get to watch and learn.”
He caught up with her just short of the steps to the elevator. “Right,” he said. “I’ll follow your lead.”
“You bet you will, rookie. Let’s hit it.”
Clark nodded. “Mind if I ask where're we going?”
“To interview Samuel Platt. He's convinced that the Messenger was sabotaged. I'll brief you on the way.” She stopped and turned to face him. “And let's get something straight. I didn't work my buns off to become an investigative reporter for the Daily Planet just to baby-sit some hack from Nowheresville.” She started off again, then turned on him once more. “And another thing. You're not working with me, you're working for me. I call the shots. I ask the questions. You're low man. I'm top banana. That's the way I like it. Comprende?”
A flicker of amusement crossed his face and he appeared to think about saying something, then he apparently reconsidered. “You’re in charge. I understand completely.”
“Good.” She started off yet again and they stepped into an empty elevator. “And I’m driving.”
At this, he chuckled. “Got it.”
They made the journey to Lois’ Jeep in silence. As she put the key in the ignition, Clark put his hand on hers and said, “May I tell you something? Just this once, and I’ll never mention it again.”
She nodded warily. “Sure, go ahead.”
He removed his hand and looked away, then spoke softly. “Perry told me about your – your husband. He also told me that I’d better not hurt you in any way or he’d yank my head off and put it someplace it wasn’t appropriate for anyone’s head to be. So if I do or say anything you think is personally inappropriate, please let me know and I’ll apologize immediately. Sometimes I let my sense of humor run ahead of my judgment, but I promise you in advance that I don’t ever intend to be mean or thoughtless.” He turned and caught her gaze. “Besides, I like my head where it is.”
Lois didn’t know whether to be angry or amused, so she settled for a sharp nod. “Fine. You get out of line and I’ll knock you down and sit on you.”
His starlight smile broke free. “I was right.”
“Huh? Right about what?”
“You do like to be on top.”
She tried to be angry for a moment, but for some reason her fury refused to ignite. She settled for rolling her eyes and grunting. “Don’t push me, Kent. You are way out of your league.”
He didn’t say anything, but his smile was eloquent enough for her.
*****
Wow.
In the space of just two days, I’d gone from hopeless rejected job seeker to rookie reporter for the Daily Planet. And I was working with the great Lois Lane! Hopefully I’d also be learning from the best instead of just running errands and doing legwork for her.
But it didn’t matter. I’d made it! I’d gotten hired!
Although I felt bad about stealing Lois’ story – even though, technically, I hadn’t stolen anything since I thought she’d refused the assignment – I thought that particular piece was one of my best. Perry White loved it, and instead of buying it (which I’d really hoped he would), he hired me and printed it! I might as well have been in heaven at that point. I wasn’t sure how things could get better.
And then it got better. He partnered me with Lois Lane. Beautiful to the point of being stunning, powerful, intuitive, aggressive, and somehow tender all at the same time, she scared me. Even with all of my special abilities, I wasn’t sure I could keep up with her. I was going to have to stay on my toes.
And even though I knew she didn’t want anyone watching over her, I was going to try to do that, too. My new boss had given me a very short and intense lecture about Lois being a fairly new widow and that I wasn’t to try anything with her. I agreed, because I didn’t want to mess up this chance in any way, and because I didn’t think I was ready for anything like that yet.
Yet there was something which appealed to me about Lois on a very personal level. She was certainly tough, and she was the last woman I’d pick to need help defending herself, but she still had an air of fragility about her, as if her tight control was far more tenuous than she was willing to admit, even to herself. When I told her what Perry had said to me and that I promised to behave myself, I meant it, and I hoped that she’d accept me as I was despite her situation.
When she didn’t blow up at my “on top” joke, I knew I was in good with her as long as I didn’t make a career out of pushing the humor envelope. I couldn’t wait until I said something intentionally funny and she actually laughed at it. Even though I hadn’t heard it yet, I just knew her laugh was lilting and musical.
She was trouble with a capital ‘T’ but I didn’t care. I was living my dream, and maybe – just maybe – this time I could put down some real roots and build a home for myself. And maybe, somewhere in this huge city, there was a woman who would love me in spite of my differences, a woman whom I could respect and trust and love. I thought I’d found her years ago in Rachel, but I’d been wrong. I’d looked for her all over the world since then and hadn’t found anyone who could come close to my ideal. And now I had the chance to do nearly everything I’d always wanted to do with my life.
All I had to do was survive my initiation to big-city reporting with Lois Lane.
Sometimes being invulnerable is a very useful thing.
