J is for Jet Set
part 6
Table of Contents by Pam Jernigan
****
The next time Clark woke, it was to a welcome absence of pain. And something else was missing. It took him a moment to work out that the world had suddenly gone very quiet. Someone had turned down the volume, and eliminated many channels of sound entirely. The only heartbeat he could hear was his own, even though -- he peeked -- his mother was sitting just on the other side of the room.
He was afraid he knew what this meant, though it scarcely seemed possible. The world hadn't been this quiet since he'd been a pre-teen. He tried levitating, hoping against hope... nothing.
He must have made some sort of face; he heard his mother move toward him. "Clark?"
"Hi, Mom." With only a minor amount of effort, he opened his eyes. It wasn't just the volume that had been turned down, he confirmed. The brightness and contrast were cranked way down, too.
She sat down on the edge of the bed. "How are you feeling?"
"I'm okay." He forced a smile.
She looked him over for a second. "Uh-huh. Try again."
He sat up against the headboard. "Ow."
"What is it?"
"My arms... and my shoulders. Ouch. I didn't feel it until I moved. But really, Mom, I feel okay. It's just..." he hesitated, as if saying the words could make things worse. "Things look... different. And I can't hear."
"What do you mean, you can't hear?"
"I can't fly, either."
After a second of confusion, Martha sat up straight. "Oh. My."
"Yeah." He tried to see the bright side. "Well, I always wanted to be normal..."
"You're still recovering," she insisted.
"I guess so," he replied, more to reassure her than because he believed it. Still... there was always hope. "So, what did I miss?"
"Your father and Lois are still over at Wayne's place. They should be back soon. I was wondering if you could tell me what I've missed," she added, with a touch of asperity. "Last week, you were pretty pleased about just being Lois's partner at work. Then today, you show up here with her, and she says she knows about you and that she's your girlfriend..."
"She said that?" Clark felt absurdly touched.
Martha nodded, her eyes narrowing. "Isn't it true?"
"Well, I wanted it to be... we've only had one date. Last night." He smiled. "It was a great date. She's a great person, Mom."
"Yes, but what happened, Clark?"
"Well... we were working, and the bad guys were about to find us talking in a closet." He grinned at how that sounded. "She kissed me. Just to deflect suspicion, I thought."
Martha's lips twitched. "Did it work?"
"Ah, no. We were both kicked out. But then we talked, and -- I couldn't believe my ears, Mom. She said she'd been thinking about me, and ever since last month--" Clark stopped, abruptly. He hadn't told his parents about his impulsive night with Lois, for a variety of reasons, some of which still applied. "Well, anyway, she'd finally decided she could trust me, I guess."
"So is that when you told her about you?"
"Err, no, actually. I was going to, but before I could, she figured it out. It was pretty funny, in retrospect. I'm there trying to figure out how to tell her, and she's asking me to fly her out of the window."
Martha looked startled for a moment, then chuckled. "Now that I've met her... I can believe that."
"Yeah..." Clark's smile faded. "Of course, that was back when I could still fly... I don't even know how we're going to get home," he realized, in mild dismay.
Martha shook her head. "Don't worry about that. You and Lois are staying here until tomorrow -- she said she'd brought some overnight things -- and tomorrow... well, we'll see. If it comes to that, we can always buy some airplane tickets."
Clark made a face. "Now *there's* an incentive to get better!" Not that it would make much difference. The powers that had gradually developed and been there for all his life were suddenly gone without a trace. And he didn't have the slightest idea what to do about it.
****
"We have to go get it back," Clark stated grimly.
Sitting next to him on the porch swing, Lois nodded, and squeezed his hand. "Your dad and I talked about it -- we only came back here so he could grab a few things, then we're going in to town. He thinks maybe we can get someone at the post office to give it back to us, since everyone knows he and Wayne are close friends."
Jonathan had disappeared upstairs shortly after Lois and he had returned to the farmhouse, and Martha was bustling around doing mysterious things in the kitchen. To Lois's great relief, Clark was sitting on the front porch, looking much improved. She'd filled him in as quickly as she could, including the detail that the chunk of -- whatever -- was hidden in the tool shed, until they thought of a more secure place for it.
Clark looked doubtful, but didn't argue. He took a deep breath and announced, "I'm going with you. I'm sure they'll let us borrow the car."
"Clark, no! That stuff almost killed you, and--" She stopped abruptly, and looked at him in confused dismay. "Why would we have to borrow a car?"
"Well... I told you I was fine, and I am," he reiterated, watching her carefully. "But at the moment... I'm grounded."
She frowned at him. He couldn't be saying what she thought he was saying.
"When I woke up, I realized... my special abilities -- my superpowers --" he paused, and looked away from her. "They're gone."
Lois stared at him in horror. "What? How is that possible? Oh my God, Clark, are you okay?"
He hunched his shoulders. "I'm fine. I feel fine, I can do anything a normal person can do. And right now, that includes going with you to find that sample!" he added, with an edge in his voice.
"No..." Lois whispered. Watching him pass out had been terrifying, but this seemed worse, somehow. "No, Clark -- that rock nearly killed you. You can't go anywhere near it."
He brushed that aside. "Yes, I can -- and anyway, that was the reaction to the big piece. This is just a little sample."
"So you'll only be a little bit dead? Yeah, Clark, that's much better."
"I can stay away from it. Maybe we can come up with a way to shield it -- you thought it was emitting something like radiation, right?"
She narrowed her eyes at this change of subject, but went along with it. "That's the closest analogy I can think of, yeah."
"Well, there are things that block radiation. Lead, maybe -- I can't see through it, anyway. It's worth a shot."
"Clark, there's no point getting this stuff back if it kills you in the process." She rolled her eyes, impatient with his inability to see this basic point. "I can do this, and your dad will help."
He frowned at her. "Wouldn't you rather have me along than my dad?"
"Well, of course! I'm not trying to ditch you here, Clark. But it's only for an hour or two." Lois mentally crossed her fingers for luck. "Then we'll both be back here and it'll all be over."
"What if it's not?"
"What?"
"What if you go to the post office and can't get it back? I think there are federal laws about these sorts of things." His voice edged toward the sarcastic. "I know that wouldn't bother you, Lois, but some people pay attention to laws."
Lois glared at him. "Oh, now you're saying I'm a criminal?"
"Only when you think it'll get you the story -- just ask Henderson!"
"I can't believe this. Just because I *bend* a few rules -- and I don't hurt anybody, by the way -- in an effort to bring *real* criminals to *justice*--"
"The ends justify the means?" he asked dryly.
"Yeah, sometimes they do. It depends on the means, and the end! And don't act like you're all so pure, either, Clark, Mr. I-Lie-To-People-Constantly."
"Oh, come on, Lois -- that's to protect people; I have to do that!"
She smiled at him sweetly and went in for the kill. "Oh, so now you're saying that the ends justify the means?"
A noise from the other end of the porch interrupted them, as Martha loudly cleared her throat. When she had their attention, she moved forward. Her voice was mild as she said, "Here you go. I brought some iced tea." She gave each of them a cold glass. "I thought it might help cool you down."
Lois stared at her as she retreated back inside, once more suspicious of Clark's mother's mental health. "Doesn't she know it's October?"
Clark sighed, hunching forward in the seat. "That's not the sort of cooling down she meant. Look, Lois, I'm sorry -- I'm not trying to insult you here. All I'm saying is that it might not be that simple to get the package. For all we know, it might have already been shipped out of town. Then what?"
"Giving up is *not* an option," Lois replied automatically, then frowned. "If we have to, we'll chase after it."
"And that's why I'm going with you." He turned his head to look over his shoulder at her. "You need someone local, and my dad can't exactly take off for a road trip with no warning."
Lois saw the logic, but refused to like it. "Are you sure you'll be okay?"
His head dropped forward again, obscuring his face. "I keep telling you, I'm fine. Stop babying me."
"I'm not--" Lois cut herself off, finally realizing why Clark was this edgy. His ego was normally very resilient, but this morning's events had evidently pushed him to his limits. And she was making it worse by trying to take care of him. Well... good. She'd never been very good at this tender-loving-care stuff; it would be a relief to drop it. "Okay, you're right."
He swung his head around again to stare at her suspiciously.
"What? It'll be more fun with you, anyway." She hurried on, not wanting to dwell on her abrupt surrender. "What can we drive? Your dad's truck isn't the most comfortable vehicle I've ever been in, but--"
"No, that's okay," Clark interrupted, his voice sounding less strained. "They've got a car, too."
"Well, if they'd be okay with us borrowing it for a while..."
"No problem."
"...then let's get going." She set her untouched tea down on the porch rail. "It's time to get this show on the road."
****
Clark tried to hide his smile as he watched Lois rant and rave on the sidewalk outside of Smallville's post office. Despite his personal crisis, there was something magnificent about Lois on the rampage. Even if it was a thwarted rampage.
"The nerve of that woman! Where's that famous small town friendliness -- hasn't she heard about neighbors helping each other out?"
Clark motioned her back toward the car, and when that hint failed to penetrate, he took a light hold on her elbow to guide her. She scowled at him, but didn't resist. "Well, technically, Lois, being in a small town just means that they all know each other... not necessarily that everyone *likes* everyone else..."
"Well..." she paused outside the driver's side door. "Aren't they supposed to pretend?"
He laughed. "Sometimes. I guess Mrs. Phipps just wasn't having a good day today." He crossed to the passenger side and let himself in. After a short belligerent pause Lois followed suit. He was still a little surprised that his folks had let Lois drive their car. He suspected a conspiracy to keep him from exerting himself. Maybe his mother and his girlfriend were getting along a little too well. Although to be fair, a guy who keeled over with no notice was probably not the best one to put behind the wheel.
"With customer service like that," Lois muttered, starting the engine, "it's no wonder the post office has such a stellar reputation."
"Well, you have to admit, Lois, our cover story was pretty thin." Clark buckled his seatbelt, and winced as Lois pulled out of their parking space with unnecessary force.
"It was not! She knows you and your family are friends with Mr. Irig -- and if you're even half the do-gooder here that you are in the city, it's perfectly reasonable that you'd run some errands for him. Which way do I turn, here?"
"Turn right," he directed, mentally mapping out their shortest route to the highway, and converting it from an aerial view. "Go through the next light, over two railroad crossings, then turn left at the next light. After a block on that, you turn right, and that'll take you right to the interstate."
"Oh, well, as long as it's not *complicated* or anything." Despite her grumbling, she drove as indicated. "Why are we heading toward the interstate?"
"After the mail leaves here, it goes to the central office in Wichita." It was a good thing they'd thought to bring both Lois's much-used duffel bag and an overnight bag for him. "If we get there before the package maybe they can stop it for us. Or if they won't help us, we'll at least be close to the state lab."
She turned toward him, and Clark was briefly distracted by the way her hair moved, flaring out slightly as she turned, then settling back obediently to frame her beautiful face. Or in this case, her indignant face. "Can't people change their minds after they mail something?"
"Generally, no." Clark hesitated, then decided he should try to defend the small town's honor somehow. "C'mon, Lois, she was just doing her job. You know, federal laws and everything."
"Well, if looks could kill, I'd be a goner. I don't think there are any laws requiring her to be nasty. Granted, if any organization would have laws like that, it would be a government agency of some kind, but as far as I know, she was going above and beyond the call. And it's easy for you to talk, she was being nice to you. How do you know her, anyway?"
"What? Oh, Mrs. Phipps... well, just in general, of course -- oh, and her daughter Janice was in school about a year or two behind me, so we used to run into her at school events."
"Ah!" Lois looked enlightened. "That explains it, then."
Clark remained unenlightened. "How do you figure?"
"Simple. I'll bet you anything that her daughter had a crush on you, and you never even noticed, and now here you are with another woman."
"Well, maybe," Clark said, not really believing it. Little Janice Phipps, with a crush on him? "But even if she did, she must be over it by now -- she's getting married at Christmas."
"Janice may have moved on," Lois allowed, "but her mother hasn't. And shouldn't we be eating lunch? I'm hungry."
Clark glanced at his watch and realized with some shock that it was past noon. "Oh, yeah... and now that you mention it, I'm hungry, too. Or at least I think I am," he added. "It's been a long time."
Lois glanced at him sympathetically, but to his relief she didn't say anything. Being normal wasn't that difficult a thing, surely -- billions of people did it, after all. There was no need for her to fuss over him.
"So, where do we eat?"
"Well, let's see," Clark replied, going into tour director mode. "There are a couple of chain restaurants in town -- including the ever-popular Dairy Freeze -- or we could do something more local."
Lois tilted her head, considering this. "Well, let's see. So far today, I've locked horns with your mother, practically told off your father, and have been thoroughly dissed by a postal clerk. I'm not sure I'm up to any more of this small town hospitality."
"Lois, you know Mom was just being protective of me."
She flashed him a smile. "I know, and I'm okay with that, really. It's just that if I keep making such wonderful first impressions, I'll end up being run out of town on a rail."
Clark chuckled at her wry tone. "No, you won't. Let's give it one more try. We've got time -- we're definitely going to get to Wichita before the mail truck. A friend of my mom has a diner just up the road." When she hesitated, he tried to tempt her. "She does a killer chicken salad."
"Well... okay. But if I end up getting banned from Smallville, I'm blaming you."
****
tbc...
