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Chapter Text

He didn't know what had taken over his body, he knew destiny had a hand on this, before he could process it, he had already taken off to catch that space plane. He flew in front of thousands of people, but his only worry was to get the shuttle and its passengers back on the ground in safety. He had carried very heavy stuff before, but this was on another level.

The moment the fuselage touched the ground and the door opened, a woman shouted, running towards him almost like a force of nature. But when they got closer, seconds before the crowd surrounded them, they just looked at each other, locked in each other's gaze, nothing could be heard and nothing could be said. The whole world seemed to have stopped for those few seconds. Everything froze. Were they holding their breaths? And suddenly the noise and the mob came back into existence, interrupting whatever passed between the two.

He flew off before the woman could say anything.

***

"I can't believe I did that!!" Lois threw her purse angrily at her desk.

"It is unusual for you to blow things like that, Lois."

"I know!!" She put her hands on her waist. "I can't believe that! I just lost the scoop of the century, because of what?? I don't even know what happened there!!"

"Good thing you know and I don't need to tell you."

"I'm telling you, Perry, I'm going to get the first exclusive on this flying man!!"

"We need to get him a better name, I'm sure you will come up with something."

***

"I can't believe I did that!!" Clark sat at his parent's table, with his head between his hands, in despair. "I flew in front of all those people!! They saw my face!!"

"But it's not like you've been recognized, isn't it?"

"There were lots of reporters there, Ma, I won't be able to keep it a secret for much longer. Even more if I land that job at the Daily Planet." He put his head even lower in his hands. " And the crowd there! They were all over me! It was really scary. They all wanted a piece of me! As if it had unleashed the worst on everyone."

"Why did you stay there? Why didn't you just fly away right after putting the thing on the ground again?"

"I don't know, Pa, I just… couldn't move."

"Mmmm… so what are you going to do now, Clark? Stop helping people? To protect your identity?"

"No, even if I wanted that, I know I couldn't do that. I want to use my powers to do good and help people in need. But the way the… mob reacted was terrifying and now that they know I'm out there… they will be expecting me, looking for me… I just don't know how to deal with it!"*

Pa smiled. "I think I do."*

***

Lois felt the pressure of the water subduing and strong arms carrying her and her car to safety. Her plan had worked and she didn't even need to use her plan B.

He gently put the car on the street and, very gallantly, opened the door for her.

"There you go."* His dashing smile was accompanied by an extended hand to help her get out of the car. "Are you all right, Miss Lane?"*

He knew her name!

"A bit water-logged… But otherwise, fine."* She accepted his offered hand to stand, her winter clothes were soaked and heavy. "Thanks to you!"*

"Don't mention it, but it'd probably be wise if you got into some dry clothes as soon as you can.* With this weather, we wouldn't want you to catch a cold."

Before she could react to the unexpected attention, she was scooped in his arms. "Here, let me fly you home."* And they flew away.

Just a couple of seconds later they were hovering above her apartment building, she hadn't even time to wrap her mind around what was happening. After weeks of chasing him with no success, suddenly give her a lift home.

"Wait… You… know where I live?"*

"Of course, Miss Lane. I know where everyone lives."* His voice was full of enthusiasm. He deposited her on her balcony. "Here. Now, if you'll forgive my dashing off, there are other matters I need to attend to."* He jumped on her parapet and waved his hand in farewell. "Take care now.*

"Yeah...er... bye." Lois was still stunned by his presence, but when he flew a couple of feet above her balcony, she finally snapped out of it. "Hey!! Wait!!"

He didn't stop getting height.

"YOU CAME BACK HERE!!!" She shouted without really realizing it and suddenly was afraid of having lost her opportunity. But she was even more baffled when Superman slowly flew back in her direction.

"Yes?"*

Lois gaped at him. He only seemed mildly amused with the whole thing.

Lois took her wet clothes off and changed for a very flattering robe. She wouldn't waste the opportunity again, she was going with everything she had, which included her best wine and cheese. They sat on her couch to begin the interview. Her cat wasn't very happy with this new person in his territory.

"Thanks again for waiting while I cleaned myself a bit… Er… I thought we might have a little snack, some white wine, and brie…?"

Dammit, what was wrong with her?? She was so nervous! Just like a damned newbie!

"Well, I hope you won't think me too ungrateful, Miss Lane… But I don't drink when I fly." His playful smile made her relax immediately. For someone who didn't give interviews, he seemed very proficient. "And I never really acquire the taste for brie."*

She shrugged. "Your loss. It's one of life's great pleasures."* She then changed fully into reporter's mode. “Now, where were we?”* She made sure to show him the recorder was on and put it next to the brie, grinning widely when he didn't seem bothered by being recorded. “From what I’ve picked up, you can fly, you’re very, very fast. You can see through anything… and you have some kind of heat-ray zap in your eyes.”* The man raised both of his eyebrows, which Lois chose to interpret as being impressed with her observation skills. And while he did that, Lois realized how impossible bright the hue of his irises were. She leaned closer to have an even better look at his handsome face. “Which are blue.”*

“Yes…”* He smiled, even shyly, and Lois could avoid thinking about the chiseled jaw moving around his mouth. “But as I’ve already said, Miss Lane. I don't think knowing all of this will be of much use to you.”*

“You’re too modest.”* Smirking, Lois leaned forward to pick the glass of white wine. The smirk turned into a soft smile when she noticed his eyes stayed firmly glued to her eyes. “You happen to be the story of the century… mister… Er… just what do we call you by the way?”*

The man chuckled, his eyes crinkling in some amusement. “I think the name you gave me seemed to have caught on, Miss Lane.”*

“Superman?”* Lois raised one eyebrow. Was he really gonna be called that? He only shrugged in an easy manner. “All right, Superman it is! Now, is there any way I can get you to call me Lois?”*

“Of course. I’d be delighted… Lois.”*

With that, the man - Superman - relaxed and put one arm on the top of the couch, not exactly on her shoulders, but close. 

“Good.”* Leaning back on the couch, she could feel the warmth emanating from his forearm being her. She smiled at him, somehow she felt flattered by his seemingly comfort around her… or… was he flirting with her? Or… was she flirting with him? Lois cleared her throat and strained her posture a little bit, not the time to daydream about the dreamy man sitting so close to her, she had a job to do and a story of the century to get. “Now, what about some of the other details? Like where you’re from?”* He shifted now, a sign of unease. “Are you a metropolis boy, or are you from out of town?”* A little push might help.

Superman relaxed again. “I’d have to say ‘out of town’, Lois.”* Hm, interesting. Evasive answer. But what he said next surprised her. “To be honest, I don’t really know exactly where I’m from.”*

“You... don’t?” She repeated, dumbly. “As in…?”

“As in… I don't know. I might be human, I might be an experiment… I might be… an alien… I don't know.”

Lois’s mouth hung open with the glass of wine completely forgotten in her hand.

He recovered his smooth smile. “But I guess it really doesn't matter. What matters is that this planet, this country, is where I chose to call home.”

Forcing her brain to work again. “Y-You could do a lot worse, I suppose.” He thought he could be an alien?? Her eyes traveled over his body, his muscular perfect body cladded in those deep blue tights that left practically nothing to imagination. “You look like a man.” Her mouth betrayed her before she could stop herself.

“I am a man, Lois.”** Her breath caught in her throat, his voice dropped a baritone, didn't it? “Just like you're a woman.”**

That same spell when they first met outside the space plane fell upon them again. The world faded away and the only thing in front of her was this mysterious and fascinating man.

He then suddenly stood up. The spell broke once again.

"Are you leaving?"* She hated how her voice sounded so desperate upon seeing him turning to the balcony.

"Yes. There is nothing more I can tell you, Lois… And, as I said… what I have told you will not be of much use. So I will say goodbye, for now." He walked towards her balcony doors, but stopped after sliding them open and looked back at her. "Just out of curiosity… Do you always drive around with an Aqualung under the front seat of your car?"* His lips bent knowingly.

"Er… Ah…"*

He flashed her a sly smirk before flying away.

***

"Stop the presses, Perry!!!"* Lois stormed inside her editor's office. "I've got the story on Superman!!"*

"What??"* He gaped at her. "Lois, didn't you pick up the message I left on your answering machine?"* He asked carefully.

"Message??"* She was taken aback. "No! I didn't check my messages... I was too busy writing this story!"* She frowned at the older man. " Hey, is it just me, or do I detect a lack of excitement over this super-scoop??"*

Perry sighed and picked the afternoon edition on his desk. "I'm sorry, Lois." He was really trying to keep the smile out of his face to tell her. "I know how hard you've worked for this, but I can't get all wound up over a story we already have!!"*

"Already have… ALREADY HAVE???"* She practically shattered the copy on her hands, buffing with disbelief.

"Relax, Lois. Relax."* He walked around his table and reached for one of her shoulders for support. "You were beaten to it. That's all. Happens to the best reporters. Used to happen to me all the time."* He then walked to his door and pointed to a new face she hadn't seen coming in the newsroom. He had huge glasses on his face and an awful pulled-back slick hairstyle. Not to mention the stiff suit and tie.

"And you might as well take a good look at the fella who got the Superman story ahead of you."*

It was Lois' time to gap. That twerp??

"He's joined the Planet staff, as of today."*

He looked around, clueless, then found the other two looking at him and opened an awkward smile.

Perry walked in his direction with a suspicious Lois on his heels.

"Lois Lane, meet Clark Kent!"* Perry introduced him, so he stood and offered his hand to shake.

"It's very nice to meet you, Miss Lane."

Lois frowned and crossed her arms in silence, glaring at him. He stood there with his hand in the air for a fraction of second before retrieving it into his pocket.

"I have never seen your name in a byline before, Kent."

"I am kind of new to this."

"So… How exactly did you get the story?"

"I got lucky, I guess."*

"Really?"

He shrugged in an easy going manner.

"Well, you better count on that luck next time. Because you won't beat me again!"

Chapter Text

Her feet hurt and she could barely feel her nose with the freezing wind, but she was stubborn and wouldn’t leave the rooftop until she got what she wanted. Lois Lane never gave up on the things she wanted. Wrapping herself closely on the coat, she looked at the sun setting between the surrounding skyscrapers. She liked the view from there. It calmed her. She wondered why didn’t more of her coworkers come here to unwind or think? But then stopped herself. She prefered to have the place just to herself. She wouldn’t want the likes of Kent butting in on her space. The blasted man kept scooping her on Superman stories, and it was driving her insane. That was exactly the reason she had been for hours on the roof now. Suddenly, the wind changed and Lois smiled triumphantly.

“I was hoping you’d drop by.” She grinned, spinning on her heels to look at the newcomer. But she wasn’t expecting the punch on her chest when the 6 feet of super powered god-like muscular body shone in the golden light of the sunset with a sunny smile on his handsome face. His cape waved on the wind when he approached her on the rooftop, floating just a few inches off the parapet.

“I couldn’t help noticing you’ve been up here for a while, Miss Lane.” His smooth, but powerful voice brought her back from the stun state she was in and she had to remember how to breathe again. “Can I help you with something?”

She berated herself for behaving like a smitten schoolgirl. “Uh, Lois, I told you to call me Lois.” Yes, pull the power play again. “I know you don’t make a habit of talking to the press.”** Then grumbled under her breath. “Except blasted Kent.” And she had the impression Superman was trying to suppress a smile, but she shook it off. Why would he do that? “I was wondering if you’re willing to have a few words about that series of arson attacks you are having trouble with? Or… whatever else you want to go into print?”

“Oh, you’re digging for an interview, Lois?”

“You bet I am.” She lifted her chin defiantly. “And don’t think I came to the battle unprepared. I have information on arsonists… if you wanna trade.”

“This is hardly a battlefield.”

“Speak for yourself.” Lois gritted her teeth. The image of Kent’s sly smile crawled under her skin. She wouldn’t lose to him!

Superman landed on the rooftop, and Lois took it as a positive for her offer.

“I believe this is an organized operation targeted specifically to the West Side River.”** Superman tilted his head, his interest picked. The movement felt somehow familiar, but she ignored it and kept her line of thought. “There are other minor attacks on the neighborhood, but the major ones concentrated on the waterfront. The question now is who’d benefit from it?”

Lois waited, and Superman put a hand on his chin to think, and the feeling of familiarity returned. “Insurance scam? No… hm… Real estate speculation?” He pondered finally, looking back at her, and Lois grinned. So the man wasn’t just brawn, after all. His smile almost blinded her again. “Thank you, Lois. I know where to look now.”

“Don’t forget your side of the bargain, buster.”

Superman chuckled softly. “There’s not much more to say that I’d like to go on print, Lois.”

Lois crossed her arms and took some time analyzing that handsome face. “Are you sure? You’ve been so cryptic in the little you say about yourself. You didn’t really answer my questions before and neither Kent’s article had much hard facts about you, apart from being from another planet, that is. We don’t know much about you just yet, to know what to think of you. In fact, since Kent’s article, it only raised more questions surrounding yourself. And frankly, even stirred some fear.”

“I know you don’t really know me, but you’re someone whose opinion I respect. I’m a big fan of your work.”

Lois gasped. “You read my work?”** Then she hated how infatuated her voice sounded.

“I always read your work, Lois.”**

He read her work! He read her work!

“So if I could ask your opinion, what do you think of me?”

“Uh…” Lois cleared her throat and put her gears to work again. What was wrong with her?? She was here to work and land a super interview! “Don’t get me wrong. I think you’re great, actually.”* She deflected the effects of his sunny smile this time. “There’s no question about how much good you’ve been doing. But the question remains, and people on the streets are all making it too.” There it is, the time for the blow. The main reason she stood in freezing temperatures for hours today. “The presence of an alien who, if he chose to, could destroy us all by breakfast.”** Superman tilted his torso slightly, a clear sign of discomfort. Yes, that was her bread and butter. Squeeze people until she had the truth out of them. “What happens the day you stop caring about us… or worse?”**

“No conditionals on the question, huh?” A flick of sadness crossed his impossibly blue eyes and her heart quenched.

“I’m only doing my job, Superman. That is to ask the hard questions.”

“I’m here only to help, Lois. Nothing more.”

“Somehow, I find that hard to believe.”

“I’m not gonna tell people what to think or believe. That’s not my place and it will never be. I’m planning on showing people who I am and let them decide for themselves if they can trust me or not through my actions.”

Lois opened her mouth to counterargument, but nothing came out. Was this guy for real? All her life, she came across many men who wanted to win the world, own the world, and bragged about it. This man could very well have the power to do so, but that didn’t interest him. She didn’t want to throw cold water on his good intentions, but the world wasn’t the nice, fair place he seemed to believe it was. “You give people too much credit. Most people are skeptical and selfish.”

“And you seemed to give them too little.” Was his firm answer. The super hero hovered in front of her, preparing himself to fly away, signaling this interview was over. Had she spoken too much? No, she would never be sorry for speaking her mind. “Most people are good, Lois.” He tilted his head in a farewell gesture. “Good night.” And disappeared into the darkening sky.

Lois watched the point Superman had just vanished for a few seconds in silence. Her heart was pounding inside her chest. Superman seemed to have much more underneath that skin tights of his than just muscles. This little peek she just had was… intriguing. She wanted to believe in this flying, mysterious alien guy. She really wanted to.

***

"Perry… you can't be serious…?"

"Kent's a good enough writer, but he lacks experience."

"Perryy…." She practically whimpered.

"What's your problem with him, Lois?"

"I don't know, I don't like him… he makes me nervous and I don't trust him." She practically grumbled the last part.

"Really?" Perry tried to hold the amusement from his voice.

"Don't you think it's strange?” She waved her arms in annoyance. “An obscure rookie reporter got the story of the century! Fresh from a farm in Smallville!! Smallville! I wouldn't even be able to come up with a name like that!"**

"Oh… I see your problem… You're scooped by some bright-eyed farm boy."**

"Yes! No!!… The point is… I think it's odd. How can he beat us in our own city??"

"How do you even know where he comes from?"

"Please, give me some credit, Perry…. I don't know… I don't buy that All-American smile of his."

"All-American smile?"

"My guts are telling me he's hiding something!"

"Well, no one has better instincts than you. If you are so convinced, use the opportunity to get to know him better."

"Perry, I'll never share a byline with Clark Kent."

"I'm not asking you to write a story with Kent. I want you to stick with him until he gets the hang of things…"

"Are you really asking me to babysit a hack from No-wheresville?"**

"Lois, could you look at my door, please?"

"Yes?"

"What does it say?"

"Editor-in-chief."  She grumbled.

"Yes, thank you. Now go find Kent."

"Ugh!"

Slamming the office door open, Lois strode in the direction of the slime, he raised his head at the noise and smiled at her approaching form. It raised all the hair on her arms and she gritted her teeth. How could someone smile like that without motive?? At this time in the morning?? No one did that unless it had a second intention to that!

"Kent, with me!"

She didn't even stop to talk to him, just made her way to her desk. He stood up awkwardly, almost turning over his own desk when his knee bumped into it. Lois released a deep sigh. How could she be scooped by a guy like that?? 

Clark approached her carefully. "Why do I have the impression you don't like me very much?" He said, while taking in the complete mess that her desk was.

"Because… I can tell when people are hiding something…” She leaned on a stack of manila folders and pointed a finger at him. “And you, Kent… you are screaming ."

"Am I?"

"Yes, and it makes my skin crawl." 

"Oh, I get it… you can't stand not being able to know everything about everybody else."**

"It's what makes me a good reporter."

"You know, Miss Lane, sometimes people keep secrets for a reason."

"Ugh, please don't call me Miss Lane. I'm not that much older than you."

"Lois."

"That's better and yes, people keep secrets for a reason and 10 out of 10 are not good reasons."

"How can't you be so sure?"

"Because I am."

"There are no good people left on the planet?"

"No."

"No one with no secret agenda?"

"No. Well, there's Superman, but he's from another planet, so it doesn't count."

"Ah… Neither you?"

"Absolutely not."

"That's very cynical, Lois."**

"You know, Kent, maybe you're in the wrong profession."**

Chapter Text

Lois had her camera with her, but that wasn't ever her strength, she needed to get a photographer to herself. The train tracks were completely shattered, they had a tip on a hijacked train just a few minutes earlier, but the place was already gathering other reporters. She was grumbling something with an old acquaintance about how she might have been assigned a photographer when she got a Pulitzer. Maybe.

Another acquaintance approached her. “Hey, Lane. Where's your handsome rival?”*

Lois was too preoccupied trying to get the focus right, they could hear the train getting closer. “What? Who?”

The other woman just laughed maliciously. “Never saw someone push your buttons like that.”

“Kent?!?”* She had to look at the woman, she wasn't talking seriously was she? “Handsome?? Hah! He's scheming slime!”* She returned her attention to her camera. “This scoop is so fantastic, White will wonder why he ever hired that dweeb!”

The woman raised her eyebrows. “All right.”

“There it comes!” Lois exclaimed when the train came into sight, together with a red and blue blur.

Superman was just magnificent stopping that speeding train with his bare hands.

Clark sat in the kitchen with his parents, he was glad he could get to Smallville in time, after the train incident, the meeting with Green Lantern and all the other heroes showing up, his day was loaded full, he barely got the story ready for the evening edition deadline. He was rattling with his parents about his new job and, especially, about a certain reporter.

“Seriously, Lois Lane hates my guts.”* Clark finished telling them about her last snarling at him. He put a huge portion of his mother's pie in his mouth, “Has a rivalry going with me over Superman stories.”* Swallowing the sizable portion. “I'd say we're neck and neck and I am Superman! I have no idea how she does that!”*

His parents exchanged a knowing look, but Clark didn't notice. 

“How does she manage that, indeed?” Pa humored his son, glancing at his wife with a small smile on lips.

“She’s smart*… and cunning .”

Pa scrunched his eyebrows. “Aren't you worried she can figure out your identity?”

“I’m being careful, Pa, don’t worry… And Lois doesn't seem to be a bad person.”

“Oh… Tell us more about this woman, son.”** Martha asked, picking up the plate in front of him, and taking it to the sink.

Clark smiled in thanks, then frowned, thinking about his answer. “Lois is… well… she’s complicated.”**

“Complicated how?” His mother sat by his side on the table again.

“She’s… domineering, uncompromising, pigheaded….”** He paused for a couple of seconds, then tilted his head, having to acknowledge. “ Brilliant. ”**

“And beautiful too?” Ma couldn't help herself.

Clark suddenly reddened up and looked at his hands with a shy smile. “I guess…”

The parents exchanged another glance.

***

Clark flew down the emergency staircase, changing into his civilian clothes and before entering the newsroom, he checked his reflection at the glass door to adjust his tie. He walked in, greeting his coworkers, he noticed the poor flower waning and passed through a bored out of her mind intrepid reporter.

“Morning, Lois.”*

She grumbled something in answer without looking at him, she had her chin resting on her hand and he could see her lightly biting at her nails.

“Working on a hot story?”* He teased, knowing very well she wasn't.

She groaned. “Stupid feature filler.”* She clicked on something on her screen with the mouse almost with disdain. Clark found a forgotten bottle of water in his desk. “D’you know how long the Amu River is?”* She asked.

“In miles?” He asked in return, opening the bottle and walking toward the poor flower. “One thousand, five hundred seventy-eight.”* The plant immediately felt more alive with the water Clark poured into the vase.

Lois gasped and jerked to finally look at him. He was already sitting at his desk. “That's right!”* He booted the computer. “How did you know?”*

“Walked it once.”* He began typing something..

“Uh-uh… Sure you did.”* His typing didn't slow down and Lois frowned, standing up and walking in the direction of his desk. “All right, Kent…”* She leaned behind him to look at his screen. “What's the story?”*

“Hmm?” He was completely focused on the writing now. “Oh… Superman finally caught the last three members of that drug ring he broke the other day. Happened over on Cassidy and Third, about five minutes ago.”

“What?!” She hustled upwards again, exasperated. “And I suppose you just happened to witness it??”*

“As a matter of fact… yes.”* He tilted his head, but did not avert his eyes from his screen.

“Of all the luck!! I don't believe this!! Not one bit! How do you really do it, Kent?”*

“Trade secret, Lois. Maybe I’ll tell you all about it someday…” He finally looked at her and there it was his annoying amused grin again. “Say, once we’re married?”*

Lois half huffed and half snorted for so baffled she was. “Why, Clark, this is so sudden! How could I ever pass on such a gracious offer?”* She leaned again over him, grabbed his tie, with forced playfulness. “To settle down…” Her face got closer to his. “And raise a family with such a…”* She tugged on his tie harshly to bring him closer to her.. “No-good, rotten, swine.”* The words rolled out of her mouth sweetly and poisonously. “Me marrying you? Hah!”* She pushed him back at the back of his chair. “In your dreams, Kent!”* She stood up angrily. “I still haven't forgotten who beat me out of the story of the century! “ She stormed out from his side “I'll never forget!!”*

He turned the office chair at her walking form. “Aw, Lois! That was months ago!”*

“Four mouths, one week and three days!!”* She shouted, carelessly pushing her own chair.

They sat at their desks with their backs to each other, sulking on their respective thoughts.

***

“Earth to Kent! Earth to Kent!”* Came her voice from behind him.

“Hm?”* He was frozen with his hands over the keyboard.

“Better get on the ball, Kent! Perry gave me the afternoon lead again!”* Her teasing was light this time. “You just haven't been yourself lately.”* Her voice changed to more of concern now. She approached him and perched on the edge of his desk, taking in his face. “Been spending your evenings trying fiction again?”* Her teasing was back, he supposed his face mustn't be looking so bad.

“Fiction? No…” He answered seriously, looking down. “Far from it.” He then looked up, forcing her his trademark cheeky smile. “I’ve, uh, just had trouble sleeping, Lois. That's all.”* He couldn't of course tell what had really happened, that the first time in his adult life, he felt vulnerable.*

She nodded and seemed to have believed in him. “Hope you snap out of it soon.”* She then grinned a sly smile herself and leaned on him. “I miss the competition!”*

Clark beamed at her for that and Lois snorted, standing up from his desk to return to her desk.

“See you on the front page!”

Chapter Text

Clark frowned suspiciously at Lois' forced innocent face exiting the chief's office. And when she grinned menacingly at him, he felt the mixing feelings of dread and excitement swimming on his stomach, like only Lois could make him feel. 

“You’re with me today, Kent!” Pointing a finger to his nose, and walking past him.

“Uhm, sure.” Clark’s frown deepened. Lois was never happy when they're assigned stories together. It must have a catch.

“I just have to grab something off my desk and we’ll be good to go.”*

He dropped his bag on his neat desk and followed her as fast as he allowed himself to. Lois grumbled something under her breath in irritation in front of her desk and leaned down to rummage on her overflowing drawers. Clark knew they’d be there a while and put his hand in his pockets to wait for her.

“It’s here somewhere!”* Lois grumbled loudly again.

“Along with everything else you own.”* Clark adjusted the glasses in front of his eyes and smiled to himself upon seeing her press her lips in annoyance. 

A half eaten apple slid from the messy pile of folders, which Clark instinctively grabbed before hitting the floor and dropped the blackened fruit on the trash bin.

“Hey, Lois?” Dana’s singing voice rang by their side. She had a cute little flower arrangement on her hands. “These just came for you. They’re simply wonderful.”*

It was Lois’s time to frown, receiving the flowers from the secretary.

Clark had to control the green monster in his stomach before speaking. “Those should brighten-”* Lois’s face turned into a grimace when saw the name on the card, and threw it all, vase, water and card, in the trash bin without giving it a second look. “...things up?”*

Clark and Dana watched in shock for a moment as Lois answered their unvoiced question. “I don't like flowers.”* And returned to her task

Dana shrugged before also returning to her tasks, and Clark kept watching Lois unearth all sorts of stuff from her drawer.

“Now where is it?? Where!?”* Huffing, she stood up, putting her hands on her hips to glare at her desk.

“You know, they say the key to a clear mind is an organized desk.”*

Lois didn't answer him and sunk into a duffel bag under her chair. “Hold this.”* A purple bra hit him on the chest, which he also grabbed on reflex, quickly exchanging for the tip of his fingers upon realizing what he was holding exactly. It made him shut his mouth. Clark had to hold back his smile, Lois knew how to handle him like no other.

“AH-HA!”* She pulled a blond wig from the duffel bag and a pair of sunglasses so extravagant that he doubted even his eccentric middle aged lady neighbor would wear it. If Lois planned on using it as a disguise, it’s a terrible one. But then who was he to say anything? He hid his identity behind a pair of glasses, and a bad hairstyle too. “Let's go!”* Grinning, she grabbed her purse and darted to the elevators.

Clark stood for a second without knowing what to do with her bra between his fingers. “Uhm, Lois?”

“Come on, Kent! We're going to be late!”*

He deposited the bra carefully next to her keyboard and hurried to her side. “I didn't know we had an appointment to keep.”*

Lois only deemed him a huff in answer and entered the elevator car as soon as it opened with a ping.

“So… Where are we going?”

“We’re crashing a party at Lexcorp.”*

“At Lexcorp?”*

“Rumor is that Lex Luthor finally returned to Metropolis after years overseas.”

“Really?”

“Really.”

“And you need my help for…?”

“Come on, Kent. I'm sure I could use your insight on the elusive billionaire.” Her bright smile could only mean trouble.

Clark grunted, not convinced with her answer. But he didn't have time to argue further as he felt himself being dragged outside by his tie. Translation: shut up and follow me.

It seemed the rumors spread quickly, since the entrance to Lex Tower was packed with reporters, camera crews and even more security than a presidential escort, but Lois didn't stop at the gates.

“Uhm, where are we going? The entrance is that way.”*

“You do what all the others do, you will keep eating dust forever, Kent!” She smirked, analyzing the walls and bars around the building. Her lips formed a menacing slit when she found what she was searching for. “Help me up.”* Lois ordered, walking towards a fenced garden area in the back of the building.

“Help you up?”

“Yep. Quick, before someone sees us.”

“But… that’s breaking and entering.”

“Yep.”

“That's a crime.”

“Yep.” She lowered her torso, grabbed the hem of her pencil skirt and lifted up almost to her hips, leaving practically all of her very shapely legs visible.

“Lois!”

Not bothering with the blushing creeping on his cheeks, she balanced her high heels precariously on the small wall and hung herself on the steel bars. “Just a little push, Kent!”*

For an instant, Clark pondered if he should help her commit a crime or not, but then she perched on the bars and he found himself lancing his fingers to create the support for her without his conscious consent. He made a scene of pretending to have problems hoisting her up and bit back a smile when she yelped losing her balance.

“Come on, farmboy! I can’t weigh more than a bale of hay!” Lois huffed in annoyance, using his head as a balance point.

“Hay bales don't usually have limbs, you know! And they stay quiet as we throw them!”

“You are not going to throw me anywhere-YAA!” Not bothering to hide his smirking, Clark hoisted her up without warning, causing her to yelp again. “You’re NOT throwing me over this fence, Kent!” Lois hissed, still balancing herself with her foot on his laced  fingers.

“You’re right, Lois.” Clark smiled, making a superhuman effort to divert his eyes from her tantalizing long legs practically on his nose.

Lois huffed somewhat satisfied and perched herself on the top of the fence. Clark had to look down, as she raised one leg to skip the structure, avoiding any underskirt awkwardness for both of them. The burning returned to his cheeks and stomach, with one hand Clark lifted her up a bit more and end the torture, with the other he kept the oversized pair of glasses glued to his face to hide his embarrassment. No matter how attracted he was to her, he would never take advantage of a situation, any situation. His parents raised him better than that. Even if he suspected, she was doing it on purpose to throw him off kilts.

“So, uh, why are you so interested in this Luthor person?”

“NFF!”* 

Lois plummeted to the ground on the other side of the fence.

“Why am I interested in this Luthor person??” Lois repeated incredulously, lying on her butt on the grass, her blazer had popped a  button and her hair disheveled around her face. “Are you even serious about this question??”

Clark heard rumors about the billionaire around the world on his travels. He heard even more rumors since he arrived in Metropolis, very, very quiet rumors. But he never met the man, never had any concrete proof of the whispering rumors about him, he always tried to give people the benefit of the doubt.

“The man’s self appointment himself Metropolis white-hope!”* She jumped to her feet, pulling the skirt back on its proper place and retrieved the blond wig from her purse.

“Superman isn't like… more or less that too?”

Lois grimaced, halfway putting the blond strands over her brunette ones. “Superman didn't self-appointed himself anyone’s hope! I did!”

Clark smiled, his chest fluttered every time Lois defended him so fiercely.

“Lex Luthor played monopoly against Metropolis and won. But he shouldn't go or collect two hundred dollars, he should go straight to jail!”*

“Is Perry on board for tackling one of the most influential men in the country?”

“He hates the man.”

“Did he approve of the story?”

“The Daily Planet is the only paper in Metropolis that had the guts to take on that self-righteous megalomaniac.”*

Clark was sure Perry didn't approve the story, and she knew he knew it. Her stuck up chin begging him to challenge her further.

“Fine. What can I do to help?”

Lois opened a wide grin. “SECURITY!!”

“Wha-at??” Clark heard footsteps coming from inside the building. Was Lois doing?? Getting caught trespassing into Lexcorp was trouble!!

“Be good and get caught by the guards.” Lois laughed and darted inside through a service entrance on the courtyard.

“Hey!” Menacing voices came from the doors. “Get lost!” Two men the size of wardrobes walked outside the garden. “Are you looking for trouble, pal??”

“Hm, no, sir… I’m leaving…” Clark quickly put some distance between him and the bars. “Don't want any trouble.”

Glancing discreetly with x-ray vision, he saw Lois using what seemed to be a maintenance elevator to move further into the guts of the tower without attracting attention. Clark couldn't really get mad at her, he came willingly, but he wouldn’t let her win that easily. When at a safe distance, he shot to the sky and super sped inside the building through a window close to the office Lois had just sneaked into.

“Y’know, you have to do more to get rid of me.” He spoke as soon as she exited the door.

“Kent!!” Lois jumped, scared with his voice coming out of nowhere. He smirked as her heart rate shot up. After a couple of deep breaths, she grabbed his arm and dragged him to a corner. “How did you even get here??”

“Secret.” Was all that he answered. “But you need to hurry if you want to get out unnoticed.” Clark could hear people coming from the elevator.

Lois shook her head, deciding something and dragged him inside another office. “Well, since you're here, make yourself useful.” She pointed to a set of file cabinets, while directing herself to the desk and its drawers.

“What’re we looking for?”

“Word is that he's unveiling another government contracted weapon disguised as a technological achievement today.*” She disappeared under the desk. “That's why he returned to the US. Government contracts.” Her head appeared back. “And just to be clear here, Kent. This story is mine!”

“Yeah. Yeah.”

“Don't you dare-”

“Looois.”

She grumbled a list of light expletives towards him that he wasn't supposed to hear and returned to her search. With his ear now tuned to any movement outside the office, Clark also began to work. 

“What do you expect to find here?” This cabinet only contained employees' vacation records, and he turned to the second one. “If Luthor really has some skeletons in his closet, I doubt he’d just leave it lying around like that.”

“Most people in positions of power have an entire graveward.* I just need a place to start digging!” Lois huffed, shutting the drawer after an unsuccessful search.

They searched this and other three offices - with no success - before Clark had to suddenly grab her and get out of there. A bunch of official-looking people arrived at the floor they’re exploring.

Halfway down, the freight elevator they sneaked into opened and security appeared on the other side of the door. Luckily, this time Lois didn't punch her way out of a pinch, she ran. They managed to get out without too much trouble, thanks to one or two quick abuse of his powers and some clever misdirection techniques Clark was curious to know where Lois learned them.

“Well, that was close.” Safely outside the garden once more, Lois sighed, eyeing the top floors of the tower. Surely regretting not having found the clues she hoped for.

“I’m sure you will find what you're looking for soon enough, Lois. Besides, Perry wouldn't be happy having both of his star reporters in jail.”

“You're not going to charm your way into my story, Kent.”

“You think I'm charming?”

“Oh, shut up.” Lois finally took off the blond wig, storing it on her purse, and crossed the street. “Come on, Kent! Try to keep up!” Clark joined her on the sidewalk grinning like a fool as they walked back to the Planet. 

Clark couldn’t keep the smile away from his face, this had been fun. He probably would have to stay clear of any story remotely related to Lex Luthor for the time being, so as not to arouse the ire of Lois Lane, but being able to just do silly things with her was better than any story. He was well aware of his crush on his colleague, which he hoped to call a friend soon, and maybe one day… something more. But for now, just having her company was too precious and cherished that was worth any wait. 

After a while, he noticed the troubled side glances Lois shot at him once and a while. 

“Tell me the truth, Kent.”* Clark missed a step and tripped on his own feet.

“T-the… truth?”

“This is all an act, isn't it?”*

“W-what is?”* His heart raced inside his chest. Did he push his luck too far this time?

“The bad suits, and even worse ties. The slouching, the bad hairstyle… the clumsiness. You want to be underestimated, don't you?”*

“I-I don't know w-what you’re talking about, Lois.”* He stuttered miserably, always unable to lie properly under pressure. Even worse with those fiery purple eyes glaring at him.

Her hand suddenly appeared in front of his eyes, reaching for his glasses. It was it, he was doomed. But she only poked the bridge of the frame closer on his nose. “Those glasses completely overtake your face. Your prescription distorts the shape and the color of your eyes. But I can see your eyes tell me a completely different story.”*

Clark gaped at her not knowing what to say.

“Well, better than being scooped on the story of the century by a low man.” And with that, she entered the Planet’s lobby, leaving Clark on the sidewalk unsure if he just received a compliment or an insult.

***

Even from the way the doorbell rang he knew it was her. He walked still in the process of changing his clothes to open the door. The woman behind it sported an incredible dress with a very tantalizing neck line. He had to make an effort to not look there.

“Lois! You're so early! I haven't even shaved yet!”* Better stick with their usual nitpicking.

“So I see.”* She answered, propping with one hand on his door frame and the other one her waist. “But my ride picked me up sooner than I'd expected, and since you're supposed to be coming with me… here I am.”* She looked at him still holding his door. “So, are you going to let me in?”*

“Oh.”* He seemed to snap out of something. “By all means, do come in.”* He invited her.

Lois pushed herself from his door and walked past him. Clark couldn't avoid checking on her frame, despite himself.

“You look… fantastic!”* He closed the door and turned to look at her again, she was glaring at him. “That's some dress!”*

“Mmm. A loaner from our host.”* It was all what she said on the matter and began walking around in his living room. He could see her smart eyes searching and cataloging everything. Good thing he took time to hide anything unusual earlier. “So this is your apartment, Kent? Very nice. Almost spartan. And very tidy.”* She turned to look at him again. “Every other bachelor I've ever know has lived in a cross between a pig-sty and a bomb-site… Not you though. I guess I should have guessed as much from a man whose stories never have typos.”* She grumbled that last part.

“Well, I'm not really here much between my time at the Planet and… my other interests.”*

“Other interests?”* She frowned then glared at him. “With all the hot stories you turned over, I'm surprised you even have time for anything that isn't job related.”* She crossed her arms and tilted her head, watching him with her reporter's predatory glare. “What kind of interests are that?” But before Clark could come up with something to say, her attention was drawn to a photo and a few trophies in his shelf. “This is you??” She asked almost incredulously.

“Why, yes… I played a little football in High School…”* Lois raised her eyebrows in disbelief, he didn't seem the type of a jock. “Kind of lost interest over the years… of course I still try to keep in shape…” He made a ridiculous impersonation of lifting a bench press.

Lois' eyes rapidly flicked over his body. “Mmm. You succeed.”* She then immediately changed the subject, picking a framed photo from his buffet. “And these are your parents? They look like a very nice couple. How did they wind up with a son who's such a swine?”*

Clark groaned and covered his eyes with his hands. She was still going over that. “Loois, you're not going to start in on that again, are you? It's been… over a year!”*

“Seventeen months, two weeks, four days and an odd number of hours and don't you forget, Kent!!”*

He sighed defeated. “No one holds a grudge like you do, Lois… You know I didn't scoop you on that story out of spite or anything*… I hadn't even met you then!” He waved his hands to try emphasize his very worn point.

“And you think that makes it easier, you big dope?? I could--ughh!!” She grunted angrily, waving her fists at him, barely holding up. “Go scrape your face!” She ordered him. “I don't want to discuss it any further.”* That argument was really getting tiring.

Clark sighed in relief. “All right. I'll be about ten minutes.”* He said, walking in the direction of his bathroom. “You can snoop around if you like it.”

Lois’ heels taped on his building's corridor and Clark had almost to jog to keep up. They had another bickering, this time about dumbbells, how did that even happen?. “Er.. Lois? Where are you going? The elevator is over here…”*

“I know, but the stairs to the roof are down this way.”* She answered, opening the door to the staircase.

“The… roof? But why do you want to go to the roof?” He had to shout, since she was already two flights of stairs ahead of him.

“Because that's where our ride is waiting, Kent.” Her voice was almost lost when she opened the door, but he could still hear she was annoyed.

“Our..? Oh…” He heard the helices, of course. He had caught up with her now. “You don't mean to tell me that helicopters have been sitting up here all this time?? The roof wasn't built to take that kind of stress!!”* His voice was partially strained with worry. Lois only rolled her eyes and grunted.

He followed her inside the cockpit still looking around concerned and sat at her side. “In fact, surely something like this is illegal.”*

“Oh boy.” Lois rolled her eyes again. “You lived long enough in Metropolis to know anything with the name ‘Luthor’ on it is pretty much above the law.”*

“And you approve of that, Lois?” He frowned at her.

“No. Lex Luthor owns this town, Kent. It doesn't do much good to disapprove.”*

His frown became even deeper. “As if you would let a bone drop like that, Lois?”

“No one was able to connect his name with anything remotely shady and believe me, no one’s dug deeper than I have.”*

Clark grimaced and went silent for a few seconds, then leaned a bit closer to her. “Are you really dating him?”

Her face was a mix of outrage and affront. “Dating him, Kent??”

“Well, everyone in Metropolis knows Lois Lane and Lex Luthor are a pretty hot item.”*

“Hot item??” She was offended now. “Are you serious, Kent?”* She scoffed. “And here I thought you had the makings of a good reporter!”*

He tilted his head. That was the best of a compliment one could get from Lois.

“He's a collector, Kent. He wants to own at least one of everything in the world. He's fascinated with me, because I'm not interested in becoming part of his collection… And I‘ve told him so.”*

Clark nodded. “But you still went to dinner with him more than once.”

Lois frowned at him. “Of course I did! Imagine the scoop if someone uncovers some dirt on him!!”

Clark adjusted his glasses and smirked at her.

“And don't even think of trying to steal this story, Kent, I doubt you would look as good as I do in this dress.”

He couldn't avoid opening a true smile this time and risked a slower glance over her body. “No doubt about it.”

To his susprise, Lois only pressed her lips together and said nothing about his obvious move.

Something about him made his skin crawl and Clark usually gave people the benefit of doubt, this Luthor person was bad news. The received the tour on his ridiculously big and expensive yacht and he was now making his advances towards Lois. Clark could barely keep the goosebumps out of his arms, the man was slimy on his words and gestures at her. He was more than pleased to leave the same room as him when he was asked to, but of course he stayed around in case Lois needed him.

And she did, he heard her voice raising and her characteristic snarling and bark. “Kent!!”* She knew he was around.

“Yes, Lois?” He opened the door to see her standing from the couch and marching towards him, possessed in fury.

“Lend me your jacket, Kent.”* She ordered.

“My…?”* Her glare was enough to make him start to undress right away. “Er, sure, Lois, but what for?*

She snatched his tux jacket from his hands and grabbed his arms to spin him between her and Luthor.

“I’m returning Mr. Luthor’s gift, Kent.”* Her forced politeness was even scarier than her usual bite. “Now just stand there and be as wide as you know how.”*

“What?” He began to turn to look at her.

“And eyes front, Mister!!”*

He had a glimpse of her now bare shoulder and quickly jerked his head back to look straight in front of him.

After a few seconds of only the sound of her changing her outfit, Lois threw the dress at Luthor, holding Clark’s immense jacked around her body, he tried to argue, but she was already storming out of the room.

“C’mon, Kent, the party is over! I need an escort home and you're elected!”*

He could only stumble behind her and of course, Lois being Lois, she couldn't hold herself and shot him with more insults and references to his receding hairline before leaving to the corridor..

And when Lois thought the night couldn't get worse, she saw a weapon being pointed at her. She startled and took a step back, before she could get her mind around it she felt a big shadow entering between her and the weapon.

“Lois, get back!”* The shadow was a big gray vest.

“Kent??”* How did he get in front of her so fast??

Clark tried to reason with the, apparently, leader of the punks, but they didn't want to talk. The man struck him with his weapon, his glasses flew away and a terrible sound of crack filled the space.

“Clark!!”* Lois tried to reach for him, while he slipped to the floor, but another punk grabbed her and pointed a weapon at her again.

He felt the other men grabbing his limp body and threw him overboard, during his fall, he heard Lois calling his first name again.

***

When the man dressed in an army uniform entered the bullpen, all of Clark's nerves went on high alert. He managed to avoid any major issues with the military so far, but he knew sooner or later he would have to deal with it. It surprised him that it took too long for them to reach out, as he and Lois were the reporters with most stories with the super hero. He hoped his dad wouldn't have a heart attack when he told him about- The man walked past him, not even batting an eye at his direction, going straight to Lois’s desk.

“Lois, I see you got my flowers.”* The man frowned, his voice carrying on in the newsroom as someone used to saying things out loud. Flowers? Clark's stomach roared in jealousy.

Lois raised her head from the keyboard, grimacing at the newcomer. “John Corben. Does this mean my father’s in town?”*

Father? Was this guy related to Lois somehow? Why was he sending her flowers?

“What are they doing in the trash can?”* The man asked in an proprietary manner that it didn't sit right with Clark. And he had to remind himself that's none of his business. He knew Lois dated around. It wasn't any of his business.

Lois sighed in annoyance and returned to her story, clacking on her keyboard loudly to make her point clear. “I didn't have any room on my desk. Besides, I asked you to stop sending them. Four times!”*

Clark laughed internally.

“Not even a hug, Lois?”* The military man stepped closer to her chair. “I know we’re exes, but-”*

She scoffed, without diverting her eyes from her screen nor stopping typing. “Exes?? John, we went on one date. One!* When we’re teenagers! We're nothing more than acquaintances.”* She then gave him a pointed look. “And I stopped doing things to please my father a long time ago!”

“But your father is right. We’d be good together, Lois.”*

Clark wriggled uncomfortable on his chair, trying hard not to stare at the duo in front of him. The blasted man seemed to have her father’s blessing, not that it seemed to matter anything to Lois, but still roared him with jealousy.

“I would take good care of you.” The man kept going, seemingly unbothered with Lois increasing anger. “Settling down, having a few kids. Maybe that would clear your head of all the insanity you surround yourself with.”*

Ugh. Clark’s body all tensed up. Did this guy have some death wish or something?

“Or at least temper your ridiculous crusade about spreading the truth. A reporter can't change the word.”*

Oh-ow. Even if Clark couldn’t hear her rapid beating heat or her shallow breathing, Lois’s ire emanated from her in waves practically visible. The whole bullpen now had stopped pretending to do something else and was watching the exchange holding their breath as Lois would explode at any moment. And why on Earth would Lois' dad want someone like him with his daughter?

Surprising everyone, Lois took a few deep breaths to calm herself. “I’m busy, John.* Please, leave.” With that, Lois returned to her keyboard and screen.

Clark’s blood boiled when he saw the man grabbing her hand from the keyboard, turning her back at him with violence.

“Don't dismiss me, Lois.”* The man growled menacingly, pointing a finger in his free hand at her face.

Lois glared at the man, her anger now in full display. “Take your hand off me.”

The pencil on Clark's hand turned into graphite dust as he held himself back, Lois would hate it if he intervened. She could handle herself. But the man did not release her, his grip on her wrist only tightened, as his face distorted into something almost beastly. Maybe this guy had some serious anger issues to take care of, and he worried even more about Lois being around a person like that.

“John... You're hurting me.”*

Okay. That was all he could take. Before he could rationalize, his legs took him toward the duo and he touched the military man on the shoulder. The bullpen atmosphere went from high alert to catastrophe-in-the making instantly.

“Excuse me.”* Clark had to use all of his superhuman willpower to control his voice and strength. 

The man startled and grunted displeased as he turned to face Clark. At least he released her wrist, probably because he never thought he would be interrupted.

“Hi!” Clark managed a smile, and raised his open palm in a, he hoped, friendly manner. His self-control was thin at the moment. “I hope I'm not interrupting, but Lois and I were supposed to discuss a story over lunch.”* Then glance at Lois, who raised one eyebrow at him.

The man smirked, looking down at him. “And you are?”

“Hi, Clark Kent.”* And offered his hand to shake.

“John Corben.”* The man answered and immediately grabbed his hand on a handshake clearly meant to hurt.

“Nice to meet you, Mr. Corben.”*

“It’s Sergeant Corben.”* And he tightened the grip on the handshake. The smirk on his face widened as he grasped his hand even stronger. It could have injured his finger if he wasn't who he was. But Clark only kept a pleasing smile on his lips, stood on all of his 6 '3 and didn't flinch, making the smirk vanish from the man’s mouth after a moment of stare-down.

Sergeant Corben was the one to release the handshake with a sour face. Clark's smile widened and his voice was firm when he spoke.

“I hope you have a pleasant stay in Metropolis.”* Translation: leave.

The man straitened his back and glared at Clark for an instant before giving them their back. “I’ll tell your father hello.”*

“Don't bother.” Lois barked at the man, joining Clark’s side.

A collective sigh echoed in the newsroom when the elevator door closed in front of the army uniform.

Clark tilted his torso toward her and whispered. “I hope I didn't overstep here.”

“You did.” She crossed her arms and glared at him. The newsroom held their breaths again. “John Corben's one of the deadliest soldiers in the U.S. Army, Clark. He's a heartless killer.”*

“Really?”*

“I’ve never seen anyone stare him down before.”*

“Huh.”* Clark adjusted the frame in front of his eyes. “Must be the glasses.”*

Lois pressed her lips as something like an inside joke bounced between them and smiled. “Must be.”

Clark smiled too, hopeful. “Well, I guess I owe you lunch now.”

“I guess you do.” Lois grabbed her purse and his arm and the bullpen released their breaths finally.

***

Clark poked his pie with the fork, without taking a bite with it, then picked his coffee mug in both hands. The fight had been so terrible, despite his best efforts to decrease the collateral damage, a good part of downtown was now in ruins. He never thought his outing as Superman could cause such a level of destruction. His sole objective was to use his powers to help people, not attract crazy super powered enemies.

“Not hungry?” Her voice startled him. He had completely forgotten the woman in front of him.

“Mm, yeah. Sorry.” After all this time, after all what he's done to earn people's trust, everything slipped to the drain in one lousy second. He could hear the people, he could hear the news... He could hear the fear.

“Out with it, Clark!”

“Nothing, I was just thinking.” Lois even wrote an article about it, her opinion was still not here or there. He understood it was her job - asking the hard questions as she always put it - but it raised the doubt in him and everyone. Was it safe to have him in the city?

“About Superman?” Sharp as ever, Lois Lane. And he couldn’t hide that she was right. As always. “You didn't like my article.”

“It's not that I didn't like it. You're right. You wrote the truth.” He had to control his strength not to break the coffee mug in his hands. “Seven blocks were leveled to the ground, three people still died, thirty more in the hospital. What makes you think if we didn't have Superman zipping around, we would have any monsters? It was a thirty foot tall monster!* Isn't something that normally happens anywhere!”

“Clark, I understand that we're all a little in shock here…. Something like that never happened before… but you are heightened. You are unreasonably heightened.”** She shook her head. “Have you even read what I wrote, Clark?” Lois put her own mug with a loud clug in the saucer. “Seven blocks were destroyed and three people died! If Superman wasn't there, how many did you think would have died??”

“No one!” He shot angryly, then thought it was better to rerelease the mug before something he didn't want to explain to Lois happened. “This whole thing was a mistake.” Clark shook his head and turned to the booth’s window overlooking the street. He shouldn't have come out of hiding!

She widened her eyes in surprise and whispered. “Don't you believe in Superman anymore?” 

“It was all fine when he's just helping old ladies across the street, saving cats from trees and stopping burglaries every now and again, but this? Metropolis doesn't need this.”

“And what do you think Metropolis needs?”

“I don't know… not having seven blocks blown up?”

Lois shook her head troublingly. “I thought the only thing we were on the same page about was Superman!”

“Right now, I don't know what he needs to be. What Metropolis needs him to be.**” He then gazed firmly at Lois. She had always a good grasp of thinks, even when they were confusing and murky. “What do you want him to be, Lois?”**

The question seemed to take her by surprise, she widened her eyes and opened her mouth twice before saying anything. “What do I want him to be?”** She smiled a shining smile. “I want to believe there's someone out there who doesn't suck, Clark.”**

Clark blinked twice. “That's it?”

“Yep.”

Clark frowned, clutching his hands in fists. It couldn't be that simple, could it?

“You don't believe in me.” She rolled her eyes. “I guess I can't blame you. Before Superman I would roll my eyes at myself, but I want him to be someone who believes in something and stands for it. Against injustice, against corruption, even against the eventual giant monster. I want hope, damn it. Is that too much to ask?” 

Could he be this person? Superman became so much more of what he initially intended. He looked at the window again. People going about their normal day, as if the previous day hadn't been a hell. Did they want that too?

Lois grimaced, observing Clark's face carefully and for a moment, he worried she had read too much into his upset state.

“Let me pick your brain, then. You were the first one to ever talk to him. What was your opinion of him?”

“I… I wanted to believe he's just… a nice guy with super powers and spare time**… who wanted to help.”

She squinted her eyes at him, then smiled softly, somewhat relieved with his answer. “And you're sincere.”**

“I'm sincere a lot. It’s my thing.”** About most things, at least.

“I thought thick-rimmed glasses were your thing.”**

“‘Behold, I am a great pile of things.’ Albert Einstein said that.”

“No, he didn't.”**

“He did.”

“He didn't.”

They glared stubbornly at each other for a moment until Lois sighed annoyed and averted her eyes. Lois was right. The reason he became Superman didn't change. It was still simple.

“Thank you, Lois.” He reached over the table and squeezed her hand.

For froze for a moment, then smiles sofly. "You are a shining mixture of naïve and cunning, Clark. You're really going to confuse some nice girl one day.”* And as if finally realizing what she said, her body tensed up.

Noticing her discomfort, he decided to end the conversation there, retrieved his hand and looked at his wristwatch for an excuse. “Look at the time, we better go back to the office, Perry must be wondering where his best reporters are.”

Chapter Text

The woman by his side was not happy. Just because he got a couple of minutes late, it didn't even take that much time.

"You said you wouldn't be late, Kent, now we have to stand on this line. If I really have to take this cruise with you to write this ridiculous puff piece, I'd better get a very good cabin."

"Lois, it wasn't even 5 minutes." Clark sighed again. The muggers didn't even resist. To tell the truth, he would have been much later if Batman hadn't had helped him fight those weird fellows earlier downtown.

"Five to many. I said 10 o'clock, it was 10 o'clock."

They were the next.

"Why did Perry send both of us, anyway?? Neither of us had to come to write a piece about the Bermuda triangle!!"

"Maybe he thought we needed a vacation."

"Vacation?? Ha!! This is a nightmare more likely."

The frail blond and terrified looking clerk finally called them. Lois huffed and gave a step forward, he could see in her face that even his ridiculous mustache was irritating her.

"Oh, Mr. Kent and Ms. Lane!" The small man said with that forced pompous voice. "We're delighted to have you two on board!" He received their documents. "I trust that your little article will cast The Princess in a favorable light."*

"I guess that depends on whether I have an inside or outside room." Her passive aggressive playfulness was scary. Clark looked at Lois and the clerk looked at Clark. "Kidding."* She opened a terrifying smile. "Not really."* Her voice lost all the warmth, Clark adjusted his glasses, waiting for the man's reaction.

The clerk opened a yellow smile. "What a charming little harridan you are."* Lois immediately closed her face. "Level 2, just above the boiler room.""

Clark had to bite the smile out of his face. The little guy surely had guts, too bad he didn't know what he had just unleashed.

"What did you just call me??"* Her tone of voice meant trouble, he needed to interfere before things got ugly.

"It's a seafarming term, Lois."* He put his body in front of her, blocking any harsh action on her part. "Okay, sir, I-"

Another body cut his front, a man in a very expensive looking blazer with two hot blond women in bikinis hanging on his arms waved three tickets in front of the clerk. "Garcon! I require champagne, silk sheets and bath salts!!"* He looked at the women in his arms with no doubts of what was in his mind. "I've captured two mermaids and I need nourishment for all the… snorkeling we plan to do!"*

The clerk opened a big, menial smile. "Mister Wayne! What an honor, Sir! I am Henri, and I assure you all of your needs shall be attended with the utmost discretion."*

"Discretion?"* The billionaire squeezed both women on their waists. "Do these ladies seem the shy, retiring type?"* The blondes laughed as if he had said the most funny thing in the world.

Clark tried to get their attention again by raising one arm. "Um, excuse me, I-" A wheel bag was thrown in his arms and he held it more out of instinct, not that it weighed much for him.

"Right, thank you, gopher."* The wealthy man said with that easygoing tone of voice. "There's an extra twenty in it for you if you press the silk boxers in the side compartment… they got kind of ruffled on the ride over."* The blonde giggled behind him.

Clark was just stunned for a while, then saw Lois saying something to the women, who ran faster than speeding bullets to the nearest bathroom. Whatever wicked thing she said to them, it snapped him out of the shock and he threw the bag back at the playboy.

"If you don't mind, I was here first, Wayne."*

"I'm sorry…"* The other man caught the bag with ease. "If you aren't carrying a drink tray or happen to be a gorgeous blonde, why are you speaking to me, mister…?"* He snubbed. Lois just watched the scene with her arms crossed and a highly amused glint on her eyes.

"Kent."* He grumbled. "Clark Kent. And money doesn't entitle you to be rude, Mister Wayne."* He said firmly then. The man really got under his skin.

"Spoken like a true pauper."* The other man retorted.

"Um, gentlemen?" The clerk tried to get their attention now, he was sweating and his voice was more constricted. "We have a… minor issue."*

"I should say so..."* Wayne agreed.

But the man corrected it. "No, I mean… oh Lord."" His voice was almost squeaky now. ""It's the blasted computer system. Infernal machine! All other cabins are completely booked… and you two were accidentally assigned to a single room."*

"What??" The two men jerked their heads at the same time at the clerk.

"If you, uhm, want to accompany me to the room, we can see what we can do about the situation." His voice was now close to tearing.

Bruce Wayne and Clark Kent followed the small clerk to one of the outside rooms with Lois just on their heels.

When he opened the door, Lois couldn't hold a loud snort.

"Aannd there's just one bed." She was now openly laughing.

Wayne reached for his wallet in his inside pocket. "I'm certain that Mister Kent understands he'll have to find other accommodations."* Clark crossed his arms in defiance. "I'll even throw in something for his trouble… to spruce up that wardrobe, Kent."*

Clark only raised one eyebrow. " I'll remember that kind offer in my article. It should fall between my description of the shoddy service and your reprehensible behavior…"*

"Please, gentlemen." The clerk had now a very greenish color on his skin. " You understand my position… a generous and influential businessman and a reporter from a prestigious newspaper… Surely one of you can relinquish?"*

The two other men glared at one another. " I'd rather fly coach."* Said the man with gray blue eyes. "Then it's settled… Roomie."* The one with baby blue eyes answered in kind and they continued to angrily glared at each other. 

Lois had finally recovered from her burst and was drying her eyes. "And I thought this was going to be boring..."*

***

They had managed to not find each other for the rest of the day, until it was time for the dinner ball. 

"I don't say it often, so mark the calendar..."* Lois said while Clark flipped her in his arms according to the song. "You impressed me, farmboy."* He couldn't hold a silly smile. "I'd have bet solid money you would have caver under the weight of 'Wayne.'"*

His guts turned inside, the man really had a way to get under his skin. " A windbag doesn't weigh much at all, Lois."* He grumbled.

She opened a feral grin and the glint in her eyes was indication of a teasing on the way. "Well, you'll find out sleeping with him, I suppose."*

Clark groaned, but quickly recovered and coughed awkwardly.

"Well, I wouldn't have to if someone would..."* He coughed again and had to divert his eyes from her. "Share their room."*

"Right." Lois laughed goodheartedly. "Been working on that one all night, haven't you?"*

"Since lunch." He mumbled.

She spun him, still smiling and it took him by surprise. 

"Keep swinging, Clark, but I can't take on a roommate. I may need my privacy."* She raised one eyebrow suggestively.

"F-for what?"* He asked, but the feral grin on her lips only made him regret it.

Before she could give him what would be a teasing answer, a pair of hands grabbed her by the waist and dipped her.

"Miss Lane… Perfection." Wayne dipped as well and practically purred at her. Lois was surprised at first, but then smiled charmingly. "Our table is ready."* They assumed a dancing position.

"Lois!"* Clark felt that green eyed monster crawling from his stomach.

"A good reporter never goes on vacation, Kent!"* She answered when Wayne began to waltz with her.

"Try the buffet, Kent?"* The billionaire had that snobbish grin. "I understand it's 'all you can eat.'"* And swung Lois away from him.

He stood there for a moment trying to wrap his mind around what happened. It was when he began to walk in the direction of the buffet that he saw a familiar looking waiter, though he couldn't point from where, slipping two pills in a martini. He followed the man with his eyes to check who was the target and saw him walking in the direction of Wayne helping Lois sitting at their table. The monster in his stomach stirred again and he reached his super hearing at them.

"You really must explain it to me. Does the planet have an 'equal opportunity for hayseeds' program?"*

That nasty-

"He's a good reporter." His stomach filled with warmth. "Be nice, Mr. Wayne or I won't let you try to sweep me off my feet."* But then sunk again.

"I still have to try?" If Clark had something on his hands it would have definitely turned into dust by now. "Then this evening is way behind schedule-"

The suspicious waiter approached their table. "Your martini, Mister Wayne."*

"Ah, this should help."* He reached for the cup, but right after he lifted the glass, it exploded in his hands, spilling the content on his arm and front jacket.

" 'Hayseed' "* Clark adjusted his glasses over his eyes again. "Jerk."*

"Are you all right?"* Lois asked, offering her napkin for Wayne to dry the spilled drink.

"It isn't a party until something breaks."* Wayne charmingly maneuvered his way at the situation. "Waiter-? He searched for the man, but he was already out of sight.

That made Clark snap out of it and looked around for the man. But he also had lost him, distracted with his burst of jealousy, he gave himself a moment to feel bad for using his powers this way. They weren't meant for that, well, the suspicious man had spilled two pills in the drink, but still… he shouldn't have done it. Clark sighed, disappointed with himself, but this Wayne person was incredibly annoying. And Lois… Lois seemed to like his attention!! Just when they were finally getting over the whole 'stealing the story of the century' story!!

But duty first, he x-rayed the ship head to tail and didn't find the man. That made him wary, he would keep his ears- something bumped into him. It was Wayne on his way to the buffet with Lois laughing and hanging on his arm. He gritted his teeth and followed them to get some food too.

***

It was late night already when they left the dining hall, Lois was slightly tipsy and hung on both their arms walking down the starboard aisle. She was babbling about the trivia she found for the article, because for course she had researched for that, even if it was just a stupid puff piece, as she put it.

"This whole Bermuda Triangle nonsense started in the fifteenth century… But those people thought the sun revolved around the Earth too, so I shouldn't be too harsh on them."*

Wayne seemed annoyed with the extra pair in pants by Lois' side all night and grunted. "A little late for you, isn't it, Kent? 'Early to bed…' And other such down home wisdom?"*

Clark huffed. "I'm surprised you aren't falling down after that magnum of champagne, Wayne…"*

They stopped and glared at each other, Lois between the two, held a smirk on her lips.

"It isn't exactly like drinking moonshine out of a pumpkin."* Wayne said, annoyed, now a little mad.

Clark answered in kind. "Especially when you can afford to buy a hollow leg to match a hollow head-"*

"Ooookay…"* Lois called for their attention, disentangling her hands from theirs arms. "I know when I'm being a third wheel..."* She raised both hands in defeat. "I will leave you two sailors to play 'Who has the bigger mizzenmast.' in peace."*

"But-"*

"Wait-"*

The men called her at the same time, grimaced and glared at each other again.

Lois snorted. "Hasta mañana, chicos."* And began to walk away.

The men turned at her with fake smiles.

"Until morning, Miss Lane..."*

"Okay, 'night, Lois..."*

She gave them a final smirk and turned waving her hand at them. "Sleep tight!"

They groaned in unison.

"I will give you one million dollars to throw yourself overboard."*

"Up yours, rich boy."*

They began to walk in the direction of their cabin, speeding up step by step trying to keep the lead over the other.

"If you think I'm sharing that room with you, farm trash, you're dumber than you look."*

They were practically running now.

"My thoughts exactly."*

"Been saving that one since dinner?"*

"Try the second I met you."*

They reached their door at the same time, Wayne unlocked with his card and they both looked inside the room from the threshold. The champagne still on the ice bucket and the petals over the double bed looked back at them.

"Okay, this is just awkward."* Clark sighed.

"You think?"* Wayne groaned back at him and entered the room, with Clark on his heels, he didn't want to give him a chance to lock him out of the cabin.

They awkwardly were able to get ready to bed without eye contact, each one occupying the opposite side of the room respectively. They laid in bed almost the same time, Wayne in his black silk pajamas and Clark in sweatpants, t-shirt and glasses, and despite the furniture being very good sized, the two men we're big and they occupied too much space on it, especially Clark, so their backs ended up touching, despite their efforts to avoid. They sighed in resignation at the same time.

A while later, Wayne covered himself and stole the point Clark was hanging on to cover himself. An awkward tug-of-war for the sheet took place, with Clark giving up the dispute soon after, not that he felt the cold anyway.

The uncomfortable silence remained after that, as they both knew the other would be awake for a long time.

Their tortured stillness was then interrupted by a terrible scream. The men were on their feet and alert almost instantly. Their cabin was lit by a strange purplish light coming from the rounded hatch. They sprinted to the window to see what was happening. Clark's mind was already racing about what he could do to help. He could lift the ship, if the hull could withstand the stress, or he could tow it-

He looked at his side and Wayne was also pensively watching the odd lights outside. Noticing the other man looking at him, Wayne then turned and frowned at Clark's frown at him. They stared at each other for half a second in silence.

"Shouldn't you… Grab a pad and pencil or something? And, I don't know, go report?"*

"Yeah… um, Lois has my pencils. And I feel seasick."* He needed to foil the man and find a way to slip into costume without drawing too much attention to the timely coincidence. "Maybe you…?"*

"Can't."* He seemed agitated himself. "Insurance reasons, I'm sure someone has a fire extinguisher or something."*

"Right..."* He was very sure those lights weren't coming from any fire.

The men watched the other stay put and wait for some reaction from the other.

"I have no time for this."* Wayne's tone of voice changed slightly and pointed a finger at Clark's face. "Goodnight, Kent."*

A dart fired from inside Wayne's sleeve and bounced off from Clark's neck, who caught the wrecked needle in the air, before falling.

The men widened their eyes at each other while the realization sank in.

Wayne tsked. "The chin."*

"I always vibrate a little when people take my picture. Messes with the details."* Batman had said once he was looking at Universities' books for his chin to figure out his identity.

"Son of a-"*

Suddenly an inverted colored Deathstroke jumped in, sword in hand.

"Howdy, Sailors!! Hate to interrupt this production of Brokeback Titanic, but Bruce Wayne..."* Clark instinctively put his body in front of Wayne's, but Inverted Deathstroke jumped on the bed and maneuvered himself between the two men and the window, who had now a suspicious shadow on it. "It's time to play 'I'm saving your capitalist pig life' starring everyone's hero-". It was completely weird to see Wilson being funny, it was so out of character. The sound of an automatic rifle interrupted whatever joke he was going to make and he got shot multiple times protecting Wayne with his own body.

The other two men, still stunned, watched the whole thing happening with raised eyebrows.

"Your vacations always like this?"* Clark glanced sideways at Wayne while Inverted Wilson's body slowly slipped to the ground.

"Pretty much."*

The shadow one again appeared on their now broken window and shot inside again. Something kicked on the floor.

"Grenade!!"* Clark jumped, pushing Wayne's body out of the way just in time for the bomb exploded on the left side of his body.

This wasn't a normal grenade, it destroyed the whole room and part of the corridor, Clark quickly checked if the other passengers were safe. Apparently, all had already left when the first alarm went on. Good.

He threw a few debris that had fallen over them, they were still on fire and half of his clothes were gone too. He got up and the man underneath him huffed, standing as well.

"Must be nice the whole 'Man of Steel' thing."*

A quick x-ray glance showed Wayne was unscathed. "Doesn't stink."* He assessed the completely wrecked room, then turned to the man in silk black pajamas. "Got a plan?"*

"Of course."* Wayne's voice assumed the gruff he was more familiar with.

"The assassin will be back, no doubt, just to check his handiwork. I'll deal with him, you handle the science fiction above decks."* He was totally in Batman's mode now.

Clark tilted his head. "Okay, I'll buy the logic..."* Then pointed to the mess of blood, bone and orange clothes. "But what about him?"*

Wayne turned to the now burning corpse. "He isn't going anywhere."*

"That's cold."* Clark answered, but they both knew Wilson would likely recover from those injuries. Probably.

"We don't have time for 'warm'. Catch the assassin, then answers."* The place was beginning to crumble now, Wayne turned to Clark again. "Did you notice-" In front of him was Superman. "How did you do that?"*

"Oh, I always keep my 'work clothes' in a super-compressed ball hidden on my body…"* He could hear him holding his breath. "Then I..."* Bruce pressed his lips tightly together. "I change at near-sound speed… and..."* A snort. Clark stopped talking and his ears turned a bit reddish, he looked sideways and coughed to hide his embarrassment.

"Sorry."* Bruce laughed. He could actually laugh! "It sounds so silly when you say it out loud."*

"Yeah, but 'batarang' sounds like Shakespeare."* Clark grumbled petulantly in response, Wayne just smirked back. "Try not to get blown up before I'm gone."* And flew off to see whatever mayhem was happening above decks.

The only thing he saw before charging in superspeed, was Lois being harassed by someone dressed just like him. His stomach once again turned and he snatched her from the other man nastily holding her by the shoulders.

He hovered above them with Lois hanging from his neck, he really liked the feel of her body against his. "I'll give you gentleman one second to- Whoa!"* He just now had a good look at the man that was harassing Lois.

"Okay."* Lois' hand went to his chest, since he was now holding her by the waist and she knew he wouldn't let her fall. "I'm glad it's not just me.... that … is you, right?"* She asked, unsure.

The other man by his double's side  finally stirred into action and reminded Clark of a very familiar person. 

"The directional rift from this morning… Ultraman, I think that's you from another universe…"*

"I am one handsome devil."* The other him smirked. "Hey!! Could you kiss Lois? I want to see what it's like from this side."*

Superman and Lois raised one eyebrow each and frowned at the man's request. But the one who answered him was his own companion.

"How do you not drown in your own filth?"* A pause. "Kill it."*

Superman barely saw the punch, the only thing he could do was get Lois out of the way and receive the full blow on the face, making him fly away and taste the unfamiliar taste of blood in his mouth. 

The other him laughed like a mad man. "Is it just me, or is there something really hot about this?"*

Lois fell into Owlman's arms. "Nice touch. It's good to keep appearances while he plays with himself."* And kissed Lois on her lips, starting her, but he was also startled and broke apart quickly. "You're not Superwoman."*

"My tonsils must have given it away… And what's a Superwoman?"*

***

A few levels under them, Bruce Wayne tried to get out of the ship and into the Bat-ship underwater, but he was now being chased by two Deathstrokes and a completely out of her mind dominatrix Lois Lane.

She had laced him with a weird glowing rope and was trying really real to choke him and she was almost in ecstasy.

"Make it good for the cameras, Lover…"* She purred. "Let the big blue idiot think we killed you-"

"Unhand him, super-whore!"* She was hit by an arm on the head. The unattached limb of the Inverted Deathstroke.

They began to pick on each other and beat on each other while Wayne was almost out of air. They were talking nonsense, about how Wilson was hired by Bruce's father. The rope only gave away when a desk knocked Crazy Lois out cold and Bruce could finally breathe.

Inverted Deathstroke continued to say nonsense and he took the chance to slip away, just in time when another  Deathstroke, the one with the right colors, stuck his katana in the inverted Deathstroke's medulla oblongata. Crazy Lois was also getting up again. Wayne jumped overboard and grabbed a rail to land just in front of the other Lois who was caught by a really familiar looking guy.

The other quickly let go of Lois and grabbed his silk pajamas, drawing him close to look at his face better. "Wow!* It's… All of us… Where is your uniform?"*

"My… uh-"* He warily watched the realization sink on Lois's eyes.

"Oh, no. I'm not a retarded in this universe, am I?"* Owlman let go of his shirt, but the menace didn't leave his stance.

"Oh my god." Lois breathed. "Bruce Wayne is-"

He reached for her neck and pressed a point, making a terrible sound. Lois collapsed in his arms.

"Oh."* Owlman said. "Secret identity. Got it. Sorry… Nerve cluster?"* He asked almost casually.

"Yes, should disrupt the transfer of short time memory."* He carefully laid Lois on the floor.

"Why didn't you just kill her?"*

Wayne glared at the gun in his hand.

"We aren't going to get along, are we?"*

"Apparently not."*

Owlman began to lift the gun when Crazy Lois and the two Deathstrokes fell through the ceiling between them and chaos ensued again. Bruce took the opportunity to finally dive in the water.

***

Up in the sky the two Clarks were still fighting neck on neck, the ship navigated in a limbus, the sky had a weird color and the lights around it indicated that whatever rift or portal they went through was still activated.

Clark finally could get a hold of the crazy him. "People are in danger down there!! If you are me at all, you have to stop this and-"*

"No, if you were me at all, you'd have been ready for this."*

Clark had never felt pain like that, he saw white and couldn't keep his ability to fly, he didn't even notice when he dropped in the water, the only thing he could pay attention to was his groin feeling like burning and the ache that went all the way in his spine.

Ultraman found him soon after and they started trying to wring each other's necks.

"I'm getting readings that the rift is closing, I want to be back through it before-"*

"Deal with it!"* Ultraman managed to say. "I'm busy!"* Though underwater it was unclear if Owlman was able to hear him. Superman was the one with his arms around his neck now.

"You want to play dirty? I can do dirty!"*

"Somehow I doubt that!"* Ultraman was able to free himself and gave a super slap on the water.

On the surface, the wave emerged and started to go in the direction of the ship. Owlman and Superwoman sighed.

"I really don't know what you see in him."*

"He drives you crazy. That's enough."*

"In the end, we're all going to kill each other. You know that."*

"But it will be a fun ride while it lasts."*

Underwater, Ultraman managed to get behind Superman this time. 

"You maniac! The peopl- Glghhh"*

He punched him on the neck, but because they were in the water the punch didn't have the expected effect.

"Jeez, is everyone around here as 'nice' as you are?"*

"No."* A digitally enhanced voice came from behind them and they saw a black ship coming in full speed. "The ship. We have ten seconds."*

Superman flew as fast as he could to try to reach the hull of the ship before the wave.

Ultraman scoffed. "What are you gonna do with that?"*

"Something I've been itching to do all day…"* Batman smirked to himself inside the bat-ship. "Has my double invented kryptamite yet?"*

Clark had managed to get to the ship and was carefully lifting it above the water when saw a green glow coming from underwater and a big burst throwing Ultraman out of the water.

"Kryptamite??" He said between his teeth. "Any other day I'd be really ticked off at you!"* Clark could hear his grin over the comm. "Meet me up top."* Superman began to lower the ship now that the wave had passed through. "Playtime's over."*

Owlman was able to rescue Ultraman from who knows where and they were rattled about their double actions.

Superman and Batman returned to the upper deck and Clark instantly took notice of Lois laying on the floor.

"What the hell have you done to Lois??" Of course he was listening to what happened inside the ship before.

"Where the hell have you been before??"

Before they could continue their bickering, the doubles attacked and an all-out fight started. Superman against Ultraman. Batman against Owlman. Deathstroke against Deathstroke.

Superwoman looked at Lois beginning to stir on the floor and sighed.

"This is turning out to be one big sausage fest. And not in the good way."* She looked at the lights in the sky. "I'll try my luck in the rift."* And walked away from the fight, flying in the direction of the strongest lights on the sky.

The men were breathing heavily and their fights were clearly going anywhere. Clark was just about getting up from a Ultraman's blow when Batman reached for his wrist and held him in place.

"We're out of time. The rift is closing."*

"I'll never be able to fly the ship out of here with idiot-me in the way. We need a plan. Switch opponents?"*

"You read that in 'metahuman combat for dummies'?"* Batman retorted.

"If you have a better idea, you don't have to be obnoxious about it."* Superman grumbled again.

"I do… and I do."*

Superman successfully lured Ultraman to a race and the pressure-wake from their flight was able to drag the ship into the rift. Meanwhile, Batman was able to catch Deathstroke and tied him up for the authorities.

As soon as the portal closed behind the ship, the weird colors were gone and so were their doubles. The ship was now navigating in the calming and clear waters of the Caribbean.

"No sign of our doppelgangers."* He landed at his side after x-raying the ship.

"No doubt they went to their universe when the rift closed, just as we went to ours."*

"Soon as we get back, we'll get to work on finding the source of the anomalies. I know some people who can help."*

"Good. And I will deal with the would-be assassin…"* Batman offered his hand. "Then you and I have a lot to discuss, I think."*

Superman accepted the handshake enthusiastically. "I'm looking forward to it."*

"You two!! Move and you die!" 

Superman and Batman startled and turned to see Lois coming up from the stairs completely out of her mind.

"There is no way in holy heck that both of you just happened to be out in the middle of nowhere when this ship went wacko!!* I know I had something figured out and it's on the tip of my tongue!!"*

The two superheroes shared a glance.

"Really, Miss Lane, what it could it be?" Batman challenged her.

"Wait."* Superman tried to stop his colleague. " Trust me-"*

"Your secret identity!" Lois pointed a finger at Batman. "I knew I knew your secret identity!"

"Lois!!" The familiar voice came from behind her. "Thank heaven you're okay!!"*

She turned away from Superman and Batman and saw Clark Kent and Bruce Wayne coming from the stairs too. They were both in boxers, Clark in a t-shirt and Wayne in a robe. The billionaire was slightly leaning on Clark's torso. Lois gapped at them.

"It was horrible! Some maniacs were trying to kill Bruce during all the ruckus! Can you believe it?"* He held the man a bit more firmly. "Luckily, Superman and Batman showed up and saved our bacon... "* He couldn't avoid adding. "Mostly Superman..."* And smirked at the non responsive man on his arms. "Though I think Bruce might need some medical attention..." He burped, disentangled from Clark's supportive arms and ran to the overboard rail. "... He took a nasty blow to the head when he's cowering in the closet. I hope you'll show some discretion and keep this out of the article."*

Lois couldn't hardly believe her eyes and ears.

"Why didn't you tell me, Clark?"

He frowned. "Told you what?"

"That you're gay."

Clark froze in place with his mouth hanging open. The coughing coming from the overboard rail turned into a burst of laughter.

"I'm…uh, not homosexual, Lois. Believe me." He smiled nervously. Thinking back he could see why Lois would mistake their actions. He didn't really mind what other people think, but if there's one person he didn't want to be misunderstood about his sexuality, it was Lois.

"Uhm." She didn't seem convinced and raised one eyebrow. "Did you at least see what happened? I can't believe I passed out through the whole thing!!"

"Uh-hum. But the story is mine, Lois. Fair and square."

"You!!! Uh!! You just die!!"* She huffed. "I can get the story on my own way, Kent!!!" And stormed off.

Clark saw her receding form and sighed sadly. He then joined the kind of greenish and now crouched to the floor man on the rail.

"It serves you right, Clark, did you undress me and put me in this… At superspeed*." Even completely sick the man was still capable of sound menacing. Not that it ever affected Clark, anyway.

"Yeah, at about mach 4. Sorry, I didn't have time to warn you about the nausea*… You're welcome, by the way."

He grimaced and groaned, displeased.

"She needed to see it with her own eyes, knock gas would have only made her more curious.*" He defended himself. "When Bloodhound Lane smells a scoop you have to bring the big guns to stop her."

"What did-"

"Ventriloquism. I used to practice in High school."* Clark gave him that teasingly guileless grin of his. "But the robe brings out your eyes."*

Bruce reached for his t-shirt and grabbed it in his fist. "Do this again and I will shove kryptonite down through your nose."

***

In another place on the planet, a ball of fire hit the earth and from its flames it was possible to see an unconscious young woman with big breasts clothed in white collant and a red cape.

Chapter Text

Clark sat at his desk with a stack of files Jimmy had left him to revise. The kid was quick and smart. He was glad he could improve his life. No one should live inside a boiler room and scrape meals with the change money from generous newspaper street buyers. Clark almost didn’t believe it when he scanned the room with his x-ray vision and found a kid sleeping there. He smiled seeing the red-haired and freckled boy serving Lois her coffee. He was no longer thin and his color was much better now. The kid smiled back when he saw Clark watching him. He pointed to the research material on his desk and gave a thumbs up, making the kid open a full grin. His attention then was caught by the anchor detailing the President’s visit to Metropolis. Lois was the only reporter to have an interview with him and didn’t waste her time to goad about it with him. Barbs apart, it was for the best. That way, he could make sure the president was safe the whole visit. There has been some political tension lately. A familiar but unexpected voice reached his ears. It was coming from the front desk downstairs.

“I’m here to see Clark Kent.”* He specially asked for him and his mind immediately went to the president visiting again. Something was so serious that they thought he needed backup?

“Is he expecting you?”* Jessica, the secretary, asked with a breathless voice as if flirting. Clark chuckled a little. He guessed he was already old enough to have women hitting on him on the street.

“I’m not sure.”* Was his answer and Clark smirked. Of course, he deducted he could be listening.

“Why are you grinning like a fool?” Lois’s voice startled him and he looked around to find her raising her eyebrow at him from her desk.

“Your name?”* He heard the woman still trying to be flirty with the visitor at the front desk.

“Dick Grayson.”* The familiar voice answered..

“Ahm, no, nothing, Lois. just… thinking of someone.”

That made Lois raise both of her eyebrows. Her interest picked even more.

“Really? Finally, is someone crazy enough to go out with a farm boy?”

“We’ve gone out plenty of times, Lois.”

“We didn’t!” Lois huffed. “Those were business!”

“Yeah, yeah.” His eyes shot for the newsroom glass door. Maybe he should pretend to take a coffee break and avoid him walking inside a room full of reporters.

“What? Is she coming here??”* Lois widened her eyes, and spun her head to look at the door too.

“It’s not like that. I’m expecting the… son of a… friend?” And just on the moment he saw the young man pushing the door open. It's too late now.

He looked around and smiled when he saw Clark watching him. The man waved in greeting and stood up to meet him before he got too close to Lois. The last thing they needed was Lois getting curious about their relationship.

“Hi, Clark!” The young man wearing blue jeans and a red sweatshirt waved his hand too, when they were at a human hearing distance.

“Hey, Dick.” They shook each other’s hands and Clark clasped him on the shoulder, turning his face away from his colleagues’ curious eyes. “Why don’t we talk outside? I was thinking of taking a break just now.”

“Oh, sure.”

Once they were inside the elevator, heading to the rooftop, Clark gave him an apologetic smile.

“Sorry, we don’t want to stir Lois Lane’s nose for a story, do we?”

***

Lois squinted her eyes at their backs while entering the elevator. She knew that kid from somewhere. Clark called him Dick… wasn’t it short for Richard? She knew a handful of Richards, but they were all much older. The way Clark almost tripped over his desk to get to him and practically grabbed him out of the bullpen was extremely suspicious. She bit at her nail and picked up the phone to call the front desk.

***

Clark opened the staircase door, and Dick slipped outside of the building. Metropolis was so bright, that he had to block his eyes with his hands. So different from Gotham, that even in daylight cast more shadows than light.

“What happened? Are you all right?” Clark noticed he wasn’t the cheerfully talkative person he usually was on the ride up.

“Hm…” The young man shrugged and put his hands in his sweatshirt’s pocket. “Bruce fired me.”

“ Fired?”* Clark frowned. “How can he fire you?”*

“He said, ‘You’re fired.’”*

“It’s not a job!”* He shook his head, still frowning.

“It is to Bruce.”*

“But… but you’re partners. Robin Hood and Little John. The Lone Ranger and Tonto… You’re his good right hand!”*

The youngest man sighed and let his head fall in front of him. “His cave. His car. His rules.”* He shrugged again. “He pays the bills, Clark… and in his eyes, I screwed up.”*

“That’s just nonsense! I don’t believe that!” Clark huffed and began to pace. “He can't fire you!!”

***

“Jimmy!”* Lois called and the young boy appeared by her desk almost immediately. Since he got a chance to work inside the building, and not in front selling newspapers, the kid was giving everything he got. She couldn’t avoid feeling some sort of affection for his eagerness. She didn’t know what kind of deal Perry had to make to hire someone so young. Everyone knew, despite his bark, Perry was a person with a heart of gold inside. “Dig everything you can about a… Richard Grayson!”

“On it, Miss Lane!”*

***

“It doesn’t make sense, Dick.” Clark shook his head again, refusing the young man’s words. “You’re not just his partner. He adopted you, you're his ward! You’re family! Certainly, he would just dismiss you like that! It’s… it’s insane! He just wouldn’t do that!”*

“Well, he did, Clark.”

The big man’s mouth opened and closed, still not wanting to believe it. 

Dick gave him a tired look. “Even ordered me to leave the suit and equipment behind.”

Clark clenched his jaw and fists. “Do you want me to go talk to him? I’m sure I can punch some sense at that big head of his!”

The young man had to control a snort. “No, no! Please, don’t!”

***

Jimmy came running, almost tripping the delivery cart. “I found him! I found him!” He waved a printing stack of papers and gave it proudly to Lois's waiting hands. He knew she was in a hurry and didn’t lose time ripping the perforated guide this time.

She hummed appreciatively, reading the information. It even had a photo. “Good job, Jimmy.” And smiled at the boy. “Richard John Grayson, 18. Gotham City. Adopted ward of billionaire Bruce Wayne.”* She found the story of his parent’s tragic death on the other page and the adoption one on the next… that was written by Clark! How could she have forgotten that??

“How does Mr. Kent know someone so high profile like that?”

Lois grinned at Jimmy. “It’s a long story. I didn’t know they kept contact after that… and apparently, they’re more than just friendly acquaintances too if Clark is on a nickname basis with his ward.”

***

“What led him to do that? I’m not sure I can believe it just yet.”

“Ah, I screwed up on a mission…” Dick started, unsure, but Clark remained in silence, encouraging him to continue his story. “We’re tracking Clayface down and I went ahead on my own. Things didn’t work as I planned and I ended up captured. I arrived later and was in a hurry because I thought a baby’s life was at stake! But Bruce didn’t tell me the kid was never really in danger!! He always keeps things for himself! I could have done my job better if he had trusted me!”

“Dick… maybe… maybe he got scared. You’re captured...”

“Batman isn’t scared of anything.” He grumbled.

“We both know that’s not true.”

Dick sighed, and when he was starting to say something else, Clark held his hand for him to keep quiet.

“Company,”

The door opened just half a second later.

“Oh! Clark! I didn’t know you’re here.” She said, walking through the door.

He gave her a knowing look and sighed, then gestured between them. ”Dick Grayson. Lois Lane.”*

The young man assumed the social posture he used when attending functions with Bruce. “I read your series on Lexcorp, pretty scathing stuff.”* He shook hands with her with a polite smile.

“Really?”*

Oh-oh. She had that tone of voice.

He adjusted his glasses before imposing himself a little more. “What is it you want, Lois?”*

“What makes you think I want something?” She shot her head at him, not even trying to hide her true intentions.

He snorted. “Come on, Lois.”

She smirked and gave a step closer to the young man. “So, how do you and Clark know one another?”*

“Um…”* He faltered under her piercing gaze. “We’re… both hockey fans and…”*

“Hockey?? I’ve never heard Clark mention-”*

“Oh! Snap!” Clark slapped himself on the forehead. “I’m sorry, Dick, I know I promised to have lunch with you, but I just remembered I had a dentist appointment today.” He gave a few steps before turning around and running through the door. “And I’m late!”

It was Lois’s time to sigh, watching the door closing at his heels. “That’s just like him… always-”* She then looked back at where the young man was and no one was there. “Disappearing?”*

***

Superman caught the terrorist with one hand and Dick with the other. They’re both falling towards the presidential motorcade. Two attempts at the same time. It was a good idea, but in Superman’s city, it made little difference. He could catch both of them.

***

He dropped him on the rooftop of his apartment and landed at his side..

“Hockey?”* Superman asked with an amused bent of his lips.

Dick ran his hands through his hair. “It was the first thing I could think of!”* And groaned, his head now filled with much better explanations.

Superman chuckled. “Yeah, Lois can be… intense.”*

“No offense, Clark, but she a kitty-cat compared with diving off a skyscraper hugging a bomb.”*

“That was incredibly selfless, Dick.”

“Or stupid!”* He had used non-authorized equipment without Batman’s sanction and wasn’t wearing a disguise. If Bruce wasn’t too angry with him, he would be now. He exhaled.

“Thanks for the help, anyway. And I wouldn’t have let you blow up, you know?”

Dick scratched his head. “I wasn’t sure of what had caught your attention. You could have been halfway to Jakarta to wrestle a volcano, just deduced it was something to do with the president being in town. I guess I understand now why you don’t have partners.”*

“Look, Dick, I’m not looking for a partner.”*

“That’s not why I’m here, really… I…  just needed someone to talk to. Someone I respect. Someone who’ll understand.” He gave him a shy smile, and it reminded Clark of the first time he asked for a lift on his shoulders. Dick was just half the size he was now. Clark smiled affectionately at the man in front of him.

“Why don’t we go inside so we can talk over a cup of tea?” He offered softy.

“I’d like that.”*

Superman quickly changed into his civilian clothes and led them inside the building by the emergency staircase and then to his apartment. Dick had never been there before. It was all tidy and clean. And very normal.

“Not what you imagined?”

“No.”

“No super-cave, I’m sorry.” Clark grinned and switched the kitchen lights on. “But maybe I should have one, to keep all the weird stuff I come across. There’s only so much I can stack at my parents’ storm cellar.” He put two mugs in front of him at the dinner table.

“Earl Grey is okay?” Clark offered.

“What? No Kryptonian tea?”

Clark shrugged. “‘Fraid not. I know very little about Krypton.” He put water on the mugs and the tea bags package on the table.

“Earl Grey is great, thanks.” Dick sat on the chair, still looking around at the very normal home of Superman.

Clark smiled and pushed his glasses from his eyes, holding the frame on his forehead and heating the water with his heat vision. He pressed the frame back on his nose, dropped the tea bags inside the cup, and gave one of them to Dick before sitting at the corner of the table.

“Thanks…” The boy-wonder-no-more watched the water turning brown with the tea while the big guy waited for him patiently. “After everything that happened back in Gotham…” He began. “I figured it was time I got out of the dark and tried my luck in the light… I kind of wanted your perspective.”*

“As a costumed hero?”*

“As an objective observer of the human race.”*

“As an alien, you mean.”*

“No offense.”*

“None taken.”* Clark sighed, taking his glasses off and putting them on the table next to his tea mug. “Actually, it’s refreshing to drop the facade every now and again.”* He closed his eyes for a while. “Your mentor once asked me the same question… keeping me honest, I reckon.”* He then opened and regarded the young man at his dining table. “Ask away then.”

“What made you take this route?* As a hero you are practically the opposite of Batman.”

“Fundamentally, we are the same. We fight for those who can’t fight for themselves. We want to help people. I chose the route of hope, he chose the one of fear. I help people with a smile on my face, with kindness or even just a hug, because sometimes that is what they need. But I sincerely doubt my approach would be much effective with the kind of criminals you deal with in Gotham.”

Dick twirled the tea bag into the mug. “I don’t think I can’t do it, neither of them. Your way or Bruce’s way… not entirely anyway… I… never told anyone that, but… I dedicated my whole life to being Robin and I always thought-”* He stopped himself and then took a sip of his tea, diverting his eyes from their conversation and blushing on his cheeks.

“That someday you’d be Batman.”* Clark completed gently.

“I’m not sure I want that anymore. I’m not sure where to go now or what to do… I’ve taken a leave of absence from the Titans to sort things out…”* Dick looked at the mug again.

“Have you ever thought of simply pitching it all? Just living the rest of your life as Dick Grayson?* Or at least finish your college degree with no other worries?”

“That seemed like a really sane thing to do for about five seconds …”* He opened a self-deprecating smile. “I could never do it. That much I know for sure. I want to help people too. I just don’t know how.”

“Your dilemma reminds me of one of the few legends from Krypton I was able to learn in my encounters with other aliens over the years. It’s part of the creation myth of Krypton. Rao, the red sun, the father god, had many children. Also gods. One of them, Nightwing, was responsible for destroying the evil hidden in the shadows since he himself was a creature of shadow.”

“Nightwing…”*

“In rough translation, of course.”*

“I like it... “*

“He had to live separately from the other gods because of his nature, but eventually he fell in love with another god, his sister, Flamebird. A deity of light and fire, the god of destruction. And despite their dichotomy, they become lovers and life partners... He was a creature of shadows that loved the light.”

“I got your meaning, Clark… not sure about the lonely part, though.”

Clark smiled and took a sip of his tea. “Sincerely, Dick, I’m not sure how much I can add as an alien to help you sort things out. I grew up on Earth, after all, so I can help you better as Clark Kent… Whenever I have a problem or something to figure out in both of my works, or just unwind after the craziness our lives can become, I go home. I go to Kansas. Sometimes I speak it out to the people close to me, sometimes all I need is the solitude of the fields, the stillness of the vast horizon, the peace of the grass waving with the wind or the golden reflection on the crops to untangle the knots in my brain… or heart… Do you have a place like that, Dick?”*

He swallowed and clenched the mug between his hands. “Not anymore.”

“Are you sure?”

“I had a place like that… years ago. But mine has always been a moveable feast…”* Dick then stiffed a chuckle. “And solitude was not an option.”

“Why don’t you start from there? To figure out what to do in the future, go back to where you come from. You’re an amazing person, Dick, smart and kind. The world definitely could use more people like you and Gotham definitely could use your optimism every now and again. In my opinion, you have always been something else than Batman and I personally hope you don’t give up. You’re too young to retire anyway, but that’s an answer you have to find on your own.”

“Thanks, Clark… I… I’ll do that. Go back to the circus, that is, and start from there.”

The men drank their tea in silence for a while until Clark opened a big grin.

“I guess I will have to start watching hockey then.”

Dick almost spilled his tea in laughter.

***

Lois slid over his desk with a feral glint in her eyes. “Sooo… How did the Marauders do last night?”*

Clark raised his eyes from the files in his hands. “The Marauders? Oh, they lost two-to-one in sudden death… I think they could have tied it if LeFevre wasn't in the box for high sticking.”* He gave back a smirk of his own.

Lois raised one eyebrow. “Really?”*

“Really, Lois. The penalty on LeFevre allowed Gotham a powerplay in the final minutes.”*

She crossed her arms in front of her. “You know very well what I mean, Kent!”* She then pointed a finger at him. “You really expect me to believe you’re into hockey when you never mention it before in your life?”*

He opened his unnerving sly smile. “Why the sudden interest in me, Lois?”* He leaned closer to her and whispered. “Could you be looking for something more than a professional relationship?”*

She snorted. “You and I have no relationship! Professional or otherwise, Kent! I was interested in Dick Grayson.”*

“Bit young for you, isn't he?”*

Lois huffed.

“Careful, Ms. Lane. The Planet is a family paper.”*

 “You- you-”*

Clark laughed and it halted her wrath of blowing up. “Lois, I’m just teasing you. There’s no story there, really. When Bruce asked me to write the story on his adoption, the kid was still very tight lipped. And I don't blame him, after what happened to his parents. So I had to find a way to make him comfortable to talk to me.”

“So… you talked about hockey?”

“We talked about many things, including hockey.”

She squinted at him, crossing her arms again. “Why I don't believe in you?”

Clark only shrugged in answer, just in time to see Jimmy almost colliding with a trash bin, since he was holding the Planet’s afternoon edition in front of his eyes and didn't see where he was going.

“I guess I won the front page today, hm?”

“You’re playing with fire today, Kent.” Lois said between teeth. His coverage of the attempt on the president's life obviously got the headlines today. But she still had her interview with the man the next day. She would get the front page, no doubt. “Careful, tomorrow you might get burned .”

Clark grinned at her then turned his attention to the absolute joy on the kid's face in seeing his name printed under the photograph. It was a fine idea Lois having him tagging along. She even gave him her camera. He just hoped she didn't drag Jimmy into trouble as well. Superman already had his hands full with just Lois Lane. His eyes wandered to her sitting on his desk - and papers - and smiling softly at the boy too. She hadn't noticed he was looking at her. It was so rare to see an unguarded Lois. All her features softened and Clark always thought she acquired another kind of beauty. He was firstly smitten by her fierceness and wit and brilliance. His crush on her was never secret. But whenever her good heart and caring side surfaced, his heart thrummed differently inside. Maybe Jimmy’s happiness was why she wasn't too put off by losing the front page to him today. Lois then noticed him watching her and grimaced. She jumped from his desk, hiding her face, and stormed to the office kitchen.

Clark chuckled and followed her there to find her refilling her mug with coffee, his eyes picking the faint pink in her cheeks. He put his hands in his pockets and walked toward her, stopping more or less in a whispering distance.

“Why do you hide this side of you?”

“I don’t know what you're talking about, Kent.” Her voice carried some bark, but he could see her forcing the coldness to it.

“Your soft side.”

“I don't have a soft side.” She shoved two sugar cubes in her coffee.

“Right… If you didn't care, you wouldn't be in this line of work, to begin with. You hide it pretty well, Lois, but I have pretty good eye-sight.”

Lois scrunched her nose and turned to shoot him a nonsensical glare. “You wear glasses!”.

Clark just shrugged and gave a side smile.

Lois rolled her eyes, resigned, and relaxed her shoulders, then turned to the counter again and reached for the cream. “Everyone has something to hide, farm boy.”

He tilted his head. “Can't disagree with you there. ” Then pressed his glasses back on his nose. “But… don’t forget… that I see you, Lois Lane.”

He took a few steps back and spun on his heels to leave the kitchen. After he disappeared through the door, Lois glared at her mug and gave a long sigh. “Dammit!”

Chapter Text

Lois groaned and threw her head backwards, these City Hall’s conferences were always endless and boring as hell. If only it was about something polemic so she could blow some steam, yelling and scaring the mayor off. She spun her head and saw the blasted man adjusted the glasses over his nose and kept his incessant notes. As if there was enough content to fill all of those pages. She didn't know why Perry kept sending them to those assignments together. Clark was fine on his own for ages now. Infuriantingly as it was, he was a decent reporter. Sometimes even a great reporter, she had to begrudgingly recognize.

“There's something on my face, Lois?”

She groaned and sat upright on the uncomfortable metal chair. “Yeah, those awful glasses.”

The man had the gall to snort and gave her a knowing crooked smile. Heat arose from her stomach and she had to hold back the urge to give him a piece of her mind. She hated that patronizing, knowing it all manner of his, it infuriated her to no end. Especially when he beat her in a story. At least he stopped hitting on her, though she had the feeling he only did that to drive her mad.

Suddenly, Clark stood up, startling her and some of the other bored reporters around them.

“Uh, bathroom.” He said in a pathetic voice and tried to look as small as possible while excusing himself to walk out of the conference room between the chairs.

It was Lois’s time to snort. Clark was one hard to read sometimes.

BOOOMMMM!!

The floor shock and fire invaded the room. She instinctively jumped to the floor, bringing a couple of people next to her as well. Chaos ensued, people panicked and she worried they would be stumbled over. Her ears were useless from a moment, but she could feel her legs and arms, so it was a good sign. Debris and smoke came from the corridor, blocking the exit, just where Clark had disappeared too. Oh, no! He wouldn’t get the story before her!! No freaking way!

Jumping over chairs, she managed to reach the other door, which was intact so far, before everyone else. The destruction outside the conference room was even worse than inside. Lois ran against the current of people screaming and crying, usually the right path to the action, and found the dark haired head she was looking for.

“Kent!” She shouted, and he widened his eyes at her, and something of a worried urgency crossed his features, followed for a poorly hidden frown of frustration. Ha! He wouldn't get the story all for himself!

When she managed to cross the flow of people, commanding voices in a foreign language reached her ears from  the room ahead of them.  Lois grinned, it seemed this was getting better and better! It could be an award winning story! And she made a beeline in the direction of the voices. But then she noticed Clark wasn't right on her heels to compete for the story. In fact… he had been here way before her, why was he stalling back there? Lois stopped and looked over her shoulder to check, Clark was bending down to the floor. Cold ran on her spine. Was he hurt??

She then saw a blue arm looping around his neck and Lois gasped. There was a guard stuck under a huge metal cabinet! Lois felt another kind of heat rising inside her. She hadn't even seen that there was a person under there, she barely saw the fallen wall and cabinet, only Clark and the story and her competitive strike. Spinning around, she changed her primary objective. Clark was right. She always thought of herself as a fairly good person, following stories that could help people at the same time that it gave her thrills. But right now, there are people who need more urgent help. He had already managed to free the guard when she reached them.

“What can I do to help?” Lois said, crouching to their height, the man had a bad gush on his leg, it was bleeding profusely..

Clark shot her an enigmatic look, before his features all softened. “I think it cut his artery, we need to find something to stem the blood.”

Lois gave him a nonsensical look and reached for his tie, yanking from his neck under a mildly exasperated gaze. His ties were horrible anyway and annoyed her, she was making the world a favor by ruining it. She tied firmly around his upper thigh, her military training kicking in hard, and asked the man who was pale as a paper sheet, to take deep breaths to calm him. Clark stood up next to her and looked around, there weren't many people there now, the visibility lessened because of the smoke and dust, faint screams kept coming up from ahead the corridor.

“There are more people trapped.” And without hesitation, he stepped inside the thick smoke.

“Clark!” As much as she hated to admit, she was concerned if he could get in some cross fire or other could tumbled over him.

He appeared just a minute later with two people hanging on his arms, they couched nonstop and walked with difficulty.

“Lois, point them in the right direction outside.” He asked, getting closer to her.

“We could use Superman’s help here.” Lois spoke gravely and Clark smiled awkwardly, giving her the two people leaning on his arms.

“Well, until he gets here, we need to help the way we can.” And disappeared again in the smoke.

Lois was miserable and stinky and sweaty and ached all over her body. But she felt good, weirdly enough. Even without nailing the terrorists’ story, she was satisfied with herself. Resting her head on the wall behind her, she looked at the sky and smiled. She did something good today, she and Clark helped as many people as they could outside the building. Superman had swept some time later, caught the bad guys, put out the fires and rescued the remaining people, the usual, and took off a couple of minutes ago. Suddenly, a can of soder appeared in front of her eyes, blocking her view of the sun.

“Pop cola?” Lois focused her sight into the eager smiling face behind the can.

Lois snorted, but accepted his offering, bringing her legs closer to her to sit upright. The City Hall was still chaotic and she had to yell at the paramedic to leave her be. She guessed she had inhaled smoke, her throat was a bit raspy now, so when the cold beverage ran down, she felt immense relief. Predicting that Clark would tell her to be checked by the medical team, she glared at him, making him close his mouth before any sound left it. Good. He had always been a fast learner.

“You surprised me today, Clark.”

“Did I?” He had a can of cola too, and took a sip.

“Hm-hm. You deserve to be the one to write the story.”

Clark almost sputtered the beverage, turning to look at her as if she had lost her mind. Maybe she had.

“Okay, Lois, you really should check that smoke inhalation, you're not sounding like yourself.”

“Very funny.” She sneered, standing back up on her feet. “I’m just being fair here. Don't even dare to think this will be a recurring event.”

He shook his head and smiled again. The easy way that he smiled never sat right with her, it bothered for some unknown reason. No one smiled that often around her.

“We can both write the story.”

Now it was Lois’s time to look at him as if he had lost his mind.

“Are you asking to share the byline??” She took a step forward and poked him with a firm finger. “Now you're getting over your head, Kent!”

He straight out laughed at her, the bastard. Her blood started to boil. “No, that was not what I was thinking. We can both write the story, but from different angles.”

Lois tilted her head. That was an interesting idea.

“We frequently compete for Superman stories, but usually our every-day stories have different angles.”

“Yeah… you have a thing for human interest-”

“Which you despise.”

“And I usually go for mayhem… Which you despise.”

“What do you say?”

“I think you're into something here. You could just let me have all the mayhem then.”

He smirked. “No way! Where the fun in it?? The joy of beating you one front page is half the reason I do this job!”

Lois tried to hold back, but the smile cracked on her lips.

After that day, she couldn’t avoid noticing that Clark never turned his eyes away from the people in need. In that regard, he wasn't that different from Superman.

Chapter Text

Lois approached his desk reluctantly, she really didn't want to do this.

"Hey, Clark."

"Hey, Lois."

"Do you have plans for tomorrow night?"

Clark only raised his eyebrows.

"Because if you do, I will understand."

"No, I actually don't.."

"Ugh! Dammit Kent!"

"What??"

"Uh, it's better to get this over with… My mother asked me to invite you for dinner tomorrow."

"Your mother?"

"Yes."

"And… Do you want me to go?"

"Not, really."

"All right."

"But… Lucy wants to introduce her boyfriend to my parents tomorrow."

"Ah." He searched for the red hair in the newsroom. "That's why Jimmy has been so jumpy these last few days."

"Yes… so…"

"I will be there."

***

Her mother was euphoric, Lois thought she was making dinner for a whole battalion, she even took out the fancy flatware and all.

The doorbell rang and she knew it would be Clark, Lucy had keys and she went to make sure Jimmy would reach the house in one piece.

Lois opened the door and there was him, with that sly smile that made her skin crawl somehow and a cute bouquet of yellow lilies in his hands.

"Flowers? Really, Kent?"

"It's for your mother, she's the one who's invited me, isn't she?"

She rolled her eyes and grabbed him by the arm inside the house. Her mother came from the kitchen and opened a big smile when saw him.

"Thank you for the kind invitation, Mrs. Lane." He began, polite as always and offered the flowers. "I heard you liked lilies."

Lois rolled her eyes again.

"Oh my, they don't make young men like you anymore, Clark!" Her mother hugged him and brought him to the living room. Lois was close behind them, amused.

"Sam, this is the young man I was talking about."

"You're talking about??" Lois asked, half exasperated.

"Ah, Kent, nice to meet you." The imposing man stood up from the sofa with that military pose to shake Clark's hand.

"The pleasure is mine, sir." His handshake was firm and Sam gave him a nod of appreciation. But before they could say anything anymore, the door opened and Lucy and Jimmy came through. The poor boy was even more flustered than normally.

Awkward introductions were made, since they already kind of knew each other, Jimmy being the photographer that normally tags along with Lois most of the time. Clark could see how relieved the youngest man was that he was there.

Ellinore called all to the dining table just after a bit more of small talk, that was basically, Clark talking with Sam.

Lois was relieved her father was trying to be civil with all of them, especially her and Jimmy. Since his retirement, her father had toned down his brusqueness. And he probably didn't see Clark as a treat, anyway. It didn't matter, he was serving it's purpose, that was taking the attention away from poor Jimmy.

Nothing too grave happened until after dessert when Jimmy had to excuse himself, he had the graveyard shift on the Planet tonight and needed to go back to the office.

"Ah, Lois, accompany your sister out, please?" Her father asked when the young couple left the door.

"What?? Lucy isn't fifteen anymore, dad!!"

"Lois."

His firm voice was just the tone Lois likes to argue with, but thought if it was really a good idea to blow the night for just that. So huffing like a teenager, she left the house and caught exactly what she was expecting.

"Lo!" Her sister admonished.

"Ugh, don't mind me."

Of course, it had the effect her father wanted, the two said their goodbyes in a hurry and Jimmy almost tripped on his way to his rusty car.

"Dad?" Lucy asked, returning to the house.

"Dad."

Lucy huffed, just like her sister had a few moments earlier and entered the house again, followed by Lois.

The youngest woman went looking for their father in the living room, surely to complain, and Lois smiled. At least, her sister had a healthier relationship with their father. She could complain about stuff without turning it into a nuclear war.

Lois then looked around, Clark was nowhere to be seen, not that it was that unusual. His disappearing acts were famous, but she didn't expect him to do it at dinner. Her mother then came from the kitchen with a smile that barely fit her face.

"Dear, help me with these crystals, will you?"

Lois picked the remaining glasses, while her mother began to take the table cloths out. When she entered the kitchen, Lois almost dropped all of them on the floor.

"What on Earth are you doing???"

Clark was at the sink and turned surprised at her surprise.

"I'm helping out."

"You didn't have to, Clark!!" She put the glasses with a bit more strength than necessary on the sink.

"I'm just being polite."

"No, no, no. That's much more than being polite! Oh Clark, you have no idea what you have done!!"

He gave that guileless look of his and she grunted, bringing her forehead to the cold stone of the counter top.

"My mother is probably in the living room planning our wedding now!!"

"I'm… doing the dishes, Lois."

"You don't know my mother!! Oh, I'm not going to hear the end of this!!

She grunted again.

"What should I do now, then?"

Lois turned her head to look at him, that blasted puppy eyes looking at her completely lost and apologetic.

"Ugh, nevermind. That's not your problem. Give me some space there." She indicated the sink with her chin. "If we finish these dishes quickly enough she may not have time enough to reach the first grandchild."

Clark snorted and gave a step to the side for Lois to fit in front of the sink. They worked in silence while one washed and the other rinsed.

When it was time for Clark to leave, Lois was practically shoving him out of the door. Her father came from the living room to shake his hand and that surprised everyone. He didn't even ask her to have a chaperone outside.

"Ugh, I wonder if I helped or not." Clark asked, leaving her parents front porch.

"You helped… Jimmy and Lucy, anyway."

He gave her an apologetic smile again.

"Don't, I'm the one who dragged you into this, after all."

"It was interesting to see you outside the work environment."

"Don't go thinking that will give you any advantages on the field. I'll make you eat dust any time of the day."

"No doubt." He laughed and on a whim, he kissed her on the cheek. "Good night, Lois."

"Uh, good night, Clark..." She  shifted somewhat unsease, watching him take a step back, and began to turn to the empty street. "Wait? Are you walking?"

He shrugged and put his hand on his pockets. "It's a very pleasant evening, after all." And turned to walk towards the sidewalk.

Lois didn't even have time to breathe when she was inside the house again, ambushed by her mother.

"I like him."

"Of course you do, mom, you invited him for dinner."

"Lois… you know what I meant."

"Mom, please, Clark and I work together, don't make things even more awkward, I still have to see him six days a week."

"Honey, you're not that young anymore, you can't continue postponing this over your career for much longer."

"Mother!!"

"Your father hasn't even hated him… What's wrong with settling down with a nice man from a decent family?"

"There's nothing wrong with that. It's just not me!"

Chapter Text

“Kent!” Perry's voice came from the intercom on his desk. “Come in here now. I want you to meet someone.”*

“Lois, can you come here, please.”* His voice also came from her intercom.

They both shared a questioning gaze when walking to their editor’s office. Clark opened the door and Lois sneaked inside first, leaning very closely to Clark. A gorgeous blond woman was inside the office already.

“Clark Kent, Lois Lane.”* Perry said, pointing at them. “I'd like you to meet the newest member of the Planet staff… Catherine Grant.”*

“Catherine Grant!”* Clark exclaimed, as if remembering, he knew he knew her from somewhere when they stumbled on each other on the elevator earlier that day.

“Call me Cat.”* She purred.

“You two know each other?”* Lois wasn't impressed and raised one eyebrow, almost in disdain. A telephone rang in the background.

“You could say we've taken a trip together.” Clark answered her without looking, his eyes were all in the newcomer. “Catherine Grant, hmm? I've read your column for years. The way you interview those Hollywood stars… It's wonderful. You really seem to know them.”*

“Some of them better than others.”* Her honeyed voice made Lois want to puke.

“Kent, this is for you.” Perry passed him the phone.

“I've heard how you got some of those interviews.”* Lois entered the conversation.

“You don't hear them complaining, do you, Miss Lane?” She gave her a sultry smile. “Or me, for that matter. Mmm?”* Her eyes left the female colleague and landed on the tall man on the phone. Lois squinted her eyes at the blond, the way she was looking at Clark was very unprofessional.

Clark finished the call and started to walk to the door when Cat reached for his arms and clung to them. “Hey, Clark… Since Perry wants us to work together on this new story, why don't I fill in on it… over lunch? The Cossak tea room, all right? Mm?”* She purred against him.

The poor man was clearly uncomfortable, but he couldn't say no and just nodded. Lois rolled her eyes and had to suppress a groan. “Watch those calories, Kent.” She couldn't hold herself and jabbed, watching him leaving the office.

“Lois, I heard about your mother. How is she?”*

“I'm not here to talk about my family, Perry.”* She then turned at her editor, waving her hand in question. “ Why did you hire her??”*

“I take you don't like her, huh?”

“She's a scandal monger!”*

“And a very good one at that.”* Perry lit his cigar. “ With a large following.”* He took a gulf. “She's perfect for the new Sunday supplement magazine. Trust my instincts, Lois. After all… I hired you too when you had fewer credentials.”*

Lois raised her hands in surrender and grimaced, looking at the window. Perry could see a very tense person standing in front of him and reached her shoulders carefully.

“Lois, I know you're closed-mouthed when things really hurt you, but I'm concerned. Why didn't you tell us, me or Clark, about your mother’s accident?”*

“What could you have done about it?”*

“Lighten your workload?”*

“And give it to someone like Cathy Grant?” Lois saw Clark walking behind the woman in question in the parking lot from the window. “No. No way.” They entered her fancy convertible. “I don't need time off. I’ll be fine… Just fine.”*

***

Cat was just fixing her bright red lipstick when Alice came from the Archives.

"Ah! Allie! I heard you get along with Clark all right, can you tell me if he likes sushi? I want to surprise him."

The blond small woman diverted her eyes and tried to look around for an escape route. "Ahn… I don't know, Miss Grant."

"Oh, please call me Cat. Do you remember him mentioning if he liked eating something in particular?"

"I really don't… look, Cat, did you talk with Lois about… this… ?"

"No… why would I?"

"Umm… they have, uh, a thing going on…"

"A thing? Really?? But Lois doesn't seem remotely interested in Clark… she's even totally rude to him."

"Well, yeah, I don't know… and I really don't want to get in the middle of this. So please don't ask me anything anymore."

***

“Oh! Hi, Lois… I didn't hear you come in.”* Said the lush blond leaving the bathroom both. Lois groaned inside. “What a week! I love the weather.” Lois groaned on the outside now. Weather was shit. “Clark and I went skiing, the boy’s getting good.”* Lois grit her teeth. “How'd you ever let a hunk like him slip through your fingers??”* Lois breathed slowly. “He's a find and a half!”* She approached her by the sink. “Say, how's your mom doing? Clark told me she was having some health problems…”*

“I'm fine, Catherine! My mother is fine, Catherine! My sister is fine! My father’s fine ! My goldfish are fine! That should cover everything and everyone.”*

“Look, I know you're having some family problems. So am I, you know, I've started a custody fight for my son-”

“Look, Catherine, I've got a lot on my mind…. Really.”* It was the understatement of the year, Luthor paws were still crawling under her skin and on her nerves, but if it would give her mother a chance…

“Lois, I didn't mean-”*

“Cat! I'm stuck on my already terminally late feature on gangs in Metropolis… and you're not helping!!”*

“Lois, why are you doing this? I was just trying to talk to you… see if perhaps we could be friends, but I see you won't budge an inch.”* Lois passed by her in the direction of the door. “C’mon, loosen up, we do have to work together, Lois.”*

“Wrong! We work at the same newspaper.” Lois turned to the blond at the bathroom door. “We don't have to work together. Beyond that, I'm writing news. You're writing gossip and innuendo. Usually from firsthand experience, I gather!”* She gave a few steps in the direction of the woman in a menacing stance. “And what are you planning on doing with Kent, anyway? You're gonna eat him up then spit the core away when you're satisfied??” She turned to exit the bathroom. “And as for being friends-” Lois closed the door behind her.

Clark was outside talking to Eddie, the hot dog vendor, when he saw a tense Lois Lane leaving the Daily Plant’s building.

“Hi, Lois… You see Cat anywhere?”* Her face turned even more angry.

“You want information, Kent? Dial 911!”* And almost shoved the coffee in his hand, while walking by.

“Lois, is something wrong?”* He asked after her, worried, she had been like this since a couple of days ago. He wondered if something had happened, in addition to her mother’s illness.

“Hiya, Blue eyes!”* Cat’s sing-song voice came from behind him. “How about lunch?”*

“Did I say something wrong?”* He asked the blond, still looking at Lois' back on the sidewalk. “What's with Lois lately? Sometimes she acts like she's a tank just looking for war.”*

Cat shrugged. “Who can comprehend the female mind?”* She pushed his arm with her. “C’mon, I hear the black redfish is worth dying for!”*

***

This was a terrible idea! Her brain didn't stop screaming in her head at each step she took in the direction of his apartment. She didn't want to analyze too closely why she was doing it. Nope. Definitely not. She could tell herself it was because that Mixelyplit character cheated Kent out of a lunch, no. Stop thinking. You're just thanking him. As friends do.

She hoped he was at home, at least. Or perhaps it was best that he wouldn't be at home.

“Miss Lane! Nice T’be seein’ you again. Shall I be ringin’ Mr. Kent?”* The elderly porter opened the glass door for her.

“Er… No, thanks. Mr. Harringan. Let me surprise him.”*

The man gave her a kind smile and nodded. Lois made her way to the elevators, still mussing if that was really a good idea. 

She arrived at his door before she could really come to a conclusion and rang the doorbell. She could hear the shower and it took a while to listen to footsteps in the living room. An image of a wet Clark just in a towel invaded her mind. Her heart was racing inside her chest. Lois sighed. Could it be that after all these years he's finally getting to her with his world's sexiest boy scout routine? Maybe she just had been too long without a boyfriend.

The door opened and from inside came a barely dressed Catherine Grant.

“Er… Lois??”*

“Cat??”*

She smirked and leaned on the door frame. “Clarkie’s in the shower. I was just going to fix him a nice dinner… that’s not what you're here for, is it, Lois?”*

“What?? Oh, no!”* She took a few steps back, away from the door. “I was… just… passing…”*

“Oh, good! Then you can keep passing, yes?”* And closed the door in her face.

Lois stood there for a few seconds to recover. Yes. That was a terrible idea. A big fat terrible idea!

Chapter Text

They were perched on one of the tallest rooftops in Metropolis.

"It seems Mr. Mxyzptlk didn't mess with the rest of the city this time."

"I can only be thankful that I don't have to deal with that every 90 days, Gotham already has enough craziness without it."

"I don't have the feeling he's a bad guy, but he does dangerous things… Have I ever told the time he turned the Planet into a walking building?"

"I've heard."

"It was a miracle no one died, but did add a few counseling terms in our Health Insurance."

"Does Lois remember anything?"

"A few things, she said it was more or less like a dream where you're not sure what happened."

"What are you gonna do about her?"

"What about her?"

"Clark…"

"I… can't, Bruce. It's too dangerous."

"More danger than she already put herself into?"

Clark had to snort at it.

"It's a different kind of danger, you know what I'm talking about. I can't drag her to our world, Bruce."**

"Hmm…"

"What?"

"I didn't say anything."

"But I know your grunts."

"... She's already in our world and I think she can handle it. The question is… can you handle it?"**

"... Either way, I can't. Superman can't belong to anyone."

"All right, so you wouldn't mind if Bruce Wayne asked Miss Lane to dinner?"

"Did you?"

"I have a reputation to keep."

"... No, you have fun… Just…"

"Don't worry, I have no intention of dragging Lois into danger."

***

Lois was surprised by the invitation after all these years, of course she knew of his fame as a playboy, but much better than the creep Luthor fame. They had gone to dinner two times this week already and he was due to return to Gotham on the weekend, but still asked for another date on Saturday. The opening play of a famous Opera. Fancy stuff.

She wasn't shy of having dates with people outside her sphere, but she was always suspicious of billionaires. Once bitten, twice shy, isn't? But somehow the fact Clark actually liked Bruce Wayne, made her lower her defenses a bit.

The play was just wonderful, so was the dinner they shared after, and the man was surprisingly old-fashioned, polite and respectful. They talked about real stuff, even deeper stuff, definitely not what she expected from what the tabloid and social columns painted him. She should know better, of course, than to trust everything it's written around.

She was even more surprised when the car pulled by her apartment. His… butler hadn't even asked his boss where to take them after dinner. 

Lois raised her eyebrows at her partner for the evening in question, but he only gave her that unsettling playboy smile of his. The door was opened by the butler and Bruce assisted her leaving the car, not that she needed it, but it seemed to be the norm to these rich guys. He was, however, very polite and even caring towards his butler, that was rare in her experience with the other side.

"Thank you, Alfred. It was nice to meet you." She said, giving her arm to Bruce, her impression was that the man was much more than a simple servant.

"Likewise, Miss Lane." The old English man gave her a small bow and closed the car door after she left.

Bruce offered her his arm. "When I take a woman out, I make sure she's home safely." Lois had to roll her eyes at him, but accepted his offer. They walked up the stairs of her apartment building in silence and stopped just before the threshold. Taking her time to pull her keys from her purse, Lois pondered if she should invite the man in. He had been a gentleman the whole evening, but did she wanted to extended their date? It had been a while since she'd been with someone. And... Clark's and Cat's flirting on the office was getting on her nerves.

"Would you like to come in?" She asked, resolutely.

The billionaire opened a tiny smile this time, and Lois guessed this was his true smile. "I'm honored by the invitation, Lois, but here is were I must leave you."

Lois tilted her head, examinating the handsome man on her arms for a moment. "You know, Bruce, you don't seem to really be the playboy you play."

He then gave her an enigmactic smile now.

"Why did you even invite me for those dates?"

"If I told you that's because I enjoy your company, as a person?"

"I would suspiciously raise my eyebrows at you, I'm well aware I'm not exactly an enjoyable company."

Bruce laughed and reached for her hand on his arm. "I'm fairly sure not everyone thinks that." He very gallantly brought her hand to his lips, landing a light kiss on her fingers. "Either way... You are off-limits, Miss Lane."

Lois squinted at him while he began to retreat on his steps.

"Thank you for accompanying me tonight. It's been a pleasure, Lois." He said before turning and disappearing from the hallway.

Chapter Text

Clark just showed up out of nowhere as usual, she hadn’t even seen him coming from the door, but she guessed he was really good at blending to the background sometimes. Which was something , considering the bulky body he had. Lois reached for one of the clean mugs at the shelf and hoped Ralph didn't have taken all the cream again. Lois' attention was dragged again toward the bullpen when she heard Clark’s low voice a bit louder than he usually uses and saw a beautiful strawberry blond woman arguing with him. It’s a new girlfriend? The man surely had been busy these last weeks. She suddenly felt uncomfortable, but before she could think too much about it, their discussion clearly turned into a fight. Lois saw the woman grabbing Clark shirt in both hands, a flick of terrible panic crossed Clark’s face and she ripped his clothing open.

His tie hung loose to the side and his bare torso became entirely visible. A very defined torso. Wide strong pectorals and perfect six pack abdomen in a lean waist. His chest hair went all the way down to his belt and- Lois swallowed with a mug halfway to her mouth.

The woman then grunted something else and jumped through the window! Breaking the glass and flying away!!

Clark didn't waste time and ran outside the cityroom, no doubt to chase her. His shirt was still open.

***

Lois barged into Perry's office, her editor did not even bat an eye on that anymore.

"Any news?"

He knew what she was asking. "No."

Lois crossed her arms and began to pace in front of his desk. She then stopped and looked resolutely at her boss.

"I'm going to Smallville."

"What do you plan on discovering there? If Kent was with his folks, he would have called."

"It's the only clue we have, Chief, that shirt-ripping Lang woman."

"... What do you have on her?"

"Not much, only that she's Clark's childhood friend and likes to rip shirts open."

Perry almost couldn't hold the snort. Lois began to pace again.

"Of course, if we overlook the fact she entered the office, quarreled something with Clark, that clearly upset him, ripped his shirt and flew off through the window!!"

"Lois."

"Clark went after her and hasn't been heard from since!!"

"Lois."

"It's not the first time he vanished, of course, but it's been almost a week now!!"

"Lois, I get that you're worried about Kent, I am too.

"I'm not."

The editor gave a pointed look.

"Maybe… A little."

"Right. If you want to investigate that yourself, I'm glad to let you do that as part of the staff."

"Thank you, Perry."

"I'm sure you will find Kent or he will just show up again as he always does."

"Yeah..."

When she closed the door behind him, he shook his head and wondered if she noticed she'd mentioned Kent's shirt ripping three times.

Chapter Text

After hearing the hush-hush about the whole town being brainwashed by aliens, Smallville seemed an appropriate name for a town to have a goddamn flying-saucer crashing down and no one was the wiser. Lois was finally heading to her primary destination: the Lang Farm.

The place seemed almost abandoned really and no one seemed to be home. Lois decided to go around and do her usual snooping when the scene that greeted her was as unexpected as gut wrenching. Superman had a beautiful blond woman in his arms and she had her arms around his arms.

A faint "oh!" left her lips and the other two gave their own "ohs" in surprise as well.

The awkward silence that followed was a clear indication that she shouldn't have seen that. And they didn't know how to react to her arrival.

"Uh, Superman! What are you doing here?"* That was a valid question, in Smallville of all places, Clark's hometown, but what she did want to know was his connection to the shirt-ripping Lang woman in his arms. "Do you… know this woman?"*

"Ah."* He seemed to only now realized he had her in his arms and hastily let go of Lana Lang's arms. "Uh, yes." It was completely odd seeing him stumbling in his words. Something was definitely going on here. "As a matter of fact..." He regained his pose. "I've known Lana for… quite some time, Lois."*

" 'Lois?'" The blond woman asked surprised. She coughed, stumbling in her words as well, as if covering something she has said. "Superman… Is this Lois Lane?"*

"That's me."* She answered before Superman could and gave a step in the direction of the other woman. "And I'm betting you're Lana Lang, the woman who rips shirts open and jumps out of windows..."*

The other woman seemed to redeem a bit. "Er… yes… I guess I am… or was. I don't do that anymore."* She sneaked a peek at the man at their side. "Thanks to Superman." 

She crossed her arms and tilted her head, analyzing Lana's expression. "You don't, hm?" Her gut was screaming there was something else going on. Or it was just that stupid part of her that insisted on having a crush on the superhero. She was jealous, wasn't she? The blond was very beautiful, was Superman in love with her? Lois turned to Superman, who had a conflicted frown in his face, that it was unusual for him. "I don't suppose you'd care to tell me all about that? Or is this another story I lost to Clark Kent?"* 

His expression turned into a pained grimace for a few seconds. "Uh, well… It was with Kent that this all started, Lois…"* 

She tilted her head again. "Where is he, by the way?"*

"Uh, as… As you can plainly see… Kent isn't here, uh, just now..." She had the impression if he could sweat, he would be covered in it. He was hiding something.

It was time for Lana to interfere and invited everyone inside for tea and cookies.

***

"Well, that's some story!"* Lois stated after Lana and Superman finished telling the last couple of days' events. "Alien robots, an evil master plan reaching back thousands of years!!"* She took a sip of her tea, it had almost everything Perry likes in a story, and it was too bad she couldn't write it. "You're quite right, Superman. It's the kind of story that should be kept under wraps…."* She grimaced, Lois really didn't like to sit on stories. "For a while, anyway."* She saw Superman's shoulders relaxing a bit. The image of him in this kitchen, with tea and cookies in his hands, was really bothering her, the way he looked extremely out of place and strangely at ease at the same time. "But I still have a couple of unanswered questions."* She wouldn't give up, the thing that was nagging at her since she saw Superman at the back of this house.

"What might they be, Lois?"*

"Well, why Smallville , for one? What's your connection to this little town that the Manhunters would have come here? Presumably, it's got something to do with your friendship with Clark Kent?"*

Clark would probably have smiled at her, if he wasn't so terrified. Lois always asked the right questions. "'Friendship' is perhaps too strong a word, Lois."* He said instead, his secret was holding in very slim strings at the moment. "Kent and I have a… working relationship, which the Manhunters attempt to exploit."* He hoped that was good enough.

"Hm…"* Was her answer, taking another sip from her mug.

She didn't buy it. Not one bit. He swallowed dryly. He definitely would be sweating if he could. She tilted her head again, scrutinizing him. It was terrible being on this side of Lois Lane's onslaught.

"You know… It's odd. Seeing you here, in Kent's old hometown, with Kent's old friends, all mixed up with these cosmic shenanigans…"*

Her voice had a hint of anger she tried to hide, but he knew it was there. His legs were starting to fail him. He could see where this conversation was going and he didn't like it. He didn't like it, at all.

"It's got me thinking… thinking about you in a way I never really have before… It got me… wondering…"*

"What… about, Lois?"* She was cooking him in low heat, he could see it.

"About who you are and where you come from… About 'Superman', that's the name I gave you… You never even pretended it was your real name."*

"... No…"* It was all he could say. It had reached a point he almost just wanted it to end.

"No."* She smiled triumphantly in her pursuit. He seemed to have finally left the defensive state, he was now just wary. "It's funny. Your debut seemed to cause a whole explosion of costumed crime fighters… Pretty soon almost every major city in America had its own champion… and more than not a few of them were extraterrestrials, like you…" She put the mug on the table, crossed her legs and waved her hand to emphasize her next words. "We were all so thrilled to have a superhero around again*… after so many years…" She then became bothered with her line of thought. Something really awfully coming from her guts. "Especially the greatest superhero ever-"*

"What's your point, Lois?"* He interrupted, her voice was clearly letting on she was also hurt.

"My point?"* Yes, she was definitely angry now, and wasn't hiding it. "I'm not sure yet. Except that in our awe, we sort of overlooked some of the details."* He could see her preparing her posture to lay the final blow. "But now when I think about the other heroes, their masks, their secret identity and all… And then I put that together with you, Smallville… Clark Kent…"*

He had to sit now, his knees were shaking so much he was afraid it would end causing a minor earthquake. He stole a glance with Lana, she was blank like a paper. It was the end. He was doomed.

"What… do you come up with, Lois?"* He managed to say, it was the only thing he knew how to do at this point, after so many years, clinging to his lie until the very end. It wouldn't be long now.

"Again, I'm not sure… There's something… A penny that just doesn't want to drop… Something… Crazy maybe…"* Lois took a deep breath. "Well, I will ask you, point blank… Superman, are you Clark Kent?"*

"Land sakes!!"* Came a voice from behind her. "What a question!!"

Lois jerked her face to the kitchen's back door and saw two elderly people coming from it. She didn't see Superman sighing deeply and searching his oldest friend's face, who shared the terrified look with him.

"I reckon Clark would be flattered, at least!"* Said the elderly man with the hand on the doorknob.

"Who…?"*  A memory came to her mind. "Oh, you're Clark's parents, aren't you? I saw a photograph of you once, at his apartment."*

"That's right. I'm Martha."* Said the tiny elderly woman with what seemed to be a pie in her hands. Lois stood to greet the couple. "And this here's Jonathan."*

She shook the woman's hands, then the man's. "And we don't need to ask who you are. It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Miss Lane."*

"Lois. It's good to meet you too."* She saw the elderly couple exchanging a glance at the man in tights and cape. "I take you know Superman..."*

"Sure do."* Jonathan answered promptly. "Why… It was me who found the rocket that brought him to Earth."*

"It was…??"*

Clark felt he needed to sit again, but instead just propped at the table and hoped it would hold his weight.

"Didn't Clark ever tell you about it, Lois?"* Martha entered the conversation. From behind Lois, Clark tried to send a desperate glare at his parents. "There's no reason to keep it all secret anymore."* He shook his head, the small bit of hope he got when his parents arrived evaporated completely. "Clark was… oh, about two, three months old when it happened."* The person in question frowned, confused.

"Yep."* His father went along. "We were snowed in. Worst blizzard ever in this part."*

"The blizzard the Manhunters caused?"*

"Oh, so you know about that part, do you?"* Martha asked. "Terrible business. Poor Lana and the rest… Being used like that."*

"Guess none of it would have happened if I hadn't got to the rocket before them."* The elderly man mussed. "Well, that night we saw a bright light coming down from the sky, I thought it was a meteorite and went out to check, it wasn't that far from the house."

"Jonathan brought the baby home and… well, it wasn't five minutes before we knew he was something special."*

"Yep. As soon as he got a look at Clark asleep in his crib he flew out of Ma's arms and jumped right in with him! Scared little Clark out of a year's growth!"*

He looked at his parents with awe, they weren't even lying that much, the same face was stamped at Lana's. Lois' face was unreadable, and quite frankly he was afraid to look too much and mess the whole thing all over again.

"Of course."* Martha continued. "We realized if the government or anybody like that found out about little Kal… That's his real name, did you know? Kal-El… Well we figured they'd come and whip him off to some laboratory or something."*

"So we kept his whole existence a secret until he was ready to go out in the world as Superman."* Jonathan finished the tale and silence erupted in the kitchen.

"And..."* Lois grimaced, trying to wrap her head around all of that. "Is this..."* She turned to face Superman. "This is true , Superman!"* It wasn't a question, the whole thing was so absurd that she found it difficult not to believe in it.

"Er… Yes, Lois."* Well, it was almost all true, they had only found about his real name a couple of days ago, but Lois didn't need to know the timeframe. He answered her anyway, the hesitation in his voice and the - was it fear? - in his eyes were other confirmations. He sighed. "Mr. and Mrs. Kent raised me."* He seemed relieved.

The horrible ball of feelings from her stomach began to make its way back up. 

"So… You and Clark are… almost like… brothers??"* 

"Well, yes… I guess that is a pretty good description of the relationship."*

Lois felt her blood run cold.

"Er… Is there a problem, Lois?"* He asked, forcing smiling that guileless smile she was used to seeing in Clark. Now it made sense. It all made so much sense. And it made her so angry. It made her boil.

"A problem??"* She was worse than angry, she was hurt, she was in pain. "PROBLEM?!?"* She almost took out her hair in rage. "Why of all the miserable, no good, underhanded--- UUUHHh!!!"*

Lois pointed a finger at him and waved her other hand in a fist, probably holding herself to not punch him in the face. Not that it would do anything to him, most likely would only hurt her hand.

"Lois?"*

"Don't you 'Lois' me, you big jerk!!" She snapped. " You and Kent have been having just the best time, haven't you?? Tossing me a story every now and then , just to keep me going."* At the same time the words were flowing out of his mouth, tears began to form as well, but she wouldn't let it happen, she wouldn't let them fall. " Playing with me!"* Her voice cracked on this and Superman tried to get closer to her.

"Lois..." He whispered, his face almost as pained as her.

"All the time laughing yourselves silly every time I got all moon-eyed over you!! Well, no more!! It stops now!!"* She jerked away, grabbed her purse from the table.

"Lois."* He tried calling her again.

She didn't give him attention. "You're not going to have Lois Lane to kick around anymore!!"* And stormed out of the house.

He followed her outside with his x-ray vision and saw her recklessly driving her car away. " Lois…"* He whispered again in mid sigh.

Another sigh came from the middle of the kitchen. "Er… Sorry, son."* Martha broke the tension of the silence. "That didn't quite come off the way we thought it would."*

"It's… Okay, Ma… Pa."* He put both hands on the table. " I know you meant well."* He shook his head and lowered his head between his arms. "It was a good save, all things considered*… and you told her mostly the truth." He raised his head again and searched for her with his x-ray and telescopic vision combined. She was stopping at Wight's hotel. "But… I think it's going to need a little fine tuning… if I don't want to lose Lois forever…"* He was watching her entering the hotel, buffing, clearly holding back tears.

"You're going after her now?" His mother asked.

"No. I think it's best to give her some time to calm down and think… And I need to make the time frame plausible to go as Clark."*

His mother squeezed his shoulder in support.

***

Lois was typing furiously on her portable computer, she had cried, she had cursed, she had punched various pieces of furniture, now she was just a bit numb about everything. She couldn't believe she really had such strong emotions tied to those two jerks. Everything she knew about him, about them, was a lie.

She heard a knock on the door.

Gathering a bit of strength, she stood from the bed, closing the lid of the computer, she didn't want anyone to read her venting out in words. It knocked again.

"Just a minute!"* She answered annoyed, putting her robe over her pajamas.

Lois opened the door, still tying the robe. "Yes, who-?"*

"Lois, I-"*

She slammed the door in his face with all her strength.

Clark just stood there, watching the stain on the wood very closely. He sighed and slowly reached his hand to touch the door.

"Lois..."* He whispered, resting his forehead against the door.

Lois could hear him whispering her name, it sounded almost as hurt as she felt.

"Lois!"* She heard him call her again, now in a normal voice tone. "Please… I know you're upset."* A second of hesitation. "Superman told me what happened...."*

A stubborn tear ran down her cheek.

"But it's not the way you think. I swear it isn't!"*

And just like that her hurt turned into anger again, she forcefully dried her cheek and walked to the door. Lois opened it with violence. "Not the way I think?"* She glared at his pleading eyes underneath the glasses. "Not the way I think ??"*

Lois grabbed his stupid barf-green sweater in her fist and brought him to her height. "All these years you've had Superman in your back pocket!!"* She practically growled and let go of his clothes, almost making his trip over his feet. "You got your job at the Planet by turning in the world's first exclusive on Superman!!"* He grimaced. "And now, just when I get to the point that, I think maybe you're not such a slime-ball, maybe I can consider something more, that you're a good person… I find out you and Superman have been in cahoots all this time!!"* He looked at his feet, but didn't deny her accusations, it only made her feel worse. "That every exclusive I ever got on him, I got because the two of you let me have it!!"* She was almost shouting at this point, it was possible to hear doors being opened and closed around the hotel.

"Lois… isn't like that. I promise you it isn't..."* His voice was small and pleading, but she was shaking with fury. Inside her heart, the memories of being told she would never be enough were resurging from the pits she had buried them.

"Look… I know how you must feel right now-"*

"Do you, Kent?"* Her father was making her feel guilty for being born a girl. Blaming her mother.

"Sure I do, Lois. You're confused and you're hurt, but there's no reason to be… Even if Superman and I did give you those stories, which we didn't, believe me, it wouldn't matter."*

"It wouldn't matter??"* Her father was making her feel useless because she was a girl. The backpack was too heavy, because she was a girl. That she would always need a man's help, because she was a female.

She wouldn't allow herself to brake.

"You're a good reporter, Lois. The best . And… and I'm sorry if I hurt you… I never meant to. Never."* He was doing his puppy eyes and Lois almost let herself think he was hurt too. "I… care about you, Lois… More than you'll ever know, probably."*

He was saying that now?? She couldn't believe him!!

"Do you, Kent? You have an odd way of showing it."*

His face closed off.

"Even if I believed you, it wouldn't make any difference. I'll never be able to look at you, or Superman the same way. Not ever again."*

His shoulder lumped again.

"Which makes it really hard for me to come back to Metropolis, back to the Daily Planet."*

He jerked his head up again, his eyes almost desperate again. "What are you even saying, Lois!? The Planet's your life! You love being a reporter… and"* He hesitated a little again " … It… the Planet just wouldn't be the same without you."*

"I'll bet."* She maintained the cold shoulder. " Cat Grant or Jimmy Olsen wouldn't be half as much fun to play these games with."*

"Lois…"* He practically groaned in frustration.

"Save it, Kent. You've made your little speech, I may even think about what you've said, but right now I need some sleep if I'm going to get off early in the morning…"* She walked to her hotel room again. "... Good night, Kent."* She closed the door before he could answer her.

"Good night, Lois."* He said to the stained wood anyway.

Her plan to leave early was, however, spoiled by Lana's ambush when she was leaving the hotel the next day.

***

Twelve hours later, Lois locked the door of her apartment behind her and sighed. It was all in the place she had left, but it was all different. She felt alone and tired. She also couldn't stop thinking about the conversation she had with Lana over breakfast, it was interesting , to say the least. Lana told her she was sure Clark was in love with her, that he was a good, honest, person and still a wholesome boy from a small town, despite not living there for years. And because of that he would never hurt her on purpose. Of course, Lois knew Clark had shown interest in her, especially at the beginning of their acquaintance. At first she thought it was just to annoy her, it indeed did drive her crazy for a while, but a woman knows these things. She decided it was best to just ignore him, they hardly get along anyway. But then it stopped a few years ago. She thought he had gotten over his crush on her, but… the things he said in the hallway yesterday and Lana's certainty… Not that it mattered, she would never trust him, or Superman, again... And she apparently still had her own crush to deal with. She sighed and noticed she was standing on her entryway still holding her luggage.

She dropped the whole thing on the couch and switched the lights on. Her answering machine was blinking with messages. There were four, the first it was her mother, the second from Bill Turner, saying he was in town. He was a bit of fun for a while, but no. The third was Lex's. It made her skin crawl, but maybe she wouldn't be able to get rid of that one. And the fourth was from Jose Delgado, the cute school teacher she had gone on a date with and almost got himself killed protecting her from a crazy criminal. He was just saying 'thank you' that she saved his life. Lois smiled and looked at her watch. Maybe she could still make it to the hospital.

Chapter Text

Cat arrived to work directly from the mayor's gala, her thousands of dollars dress was in extreme disagreement with the Planet’s dress code. God, she was still pickled.

She saw Jimmy working in his cameras and laid on his desk, purring him good morning. The boy was so cute, with his face and ears getting bright red with her generous cleavage.

He stumbled on his words and then, relieved, opened a smile at the hunk of a man arriving at the newsroom, it was the cue for Cat to leave him alone.

“Clarkieee…”* She quickly strolled to his desk and practically climbed on his lap, running her fingers on his face.

“Cat…” He sighed. “Please, you have to stop with this.” His eyes darted at Lois desk, she was on the phone, clearly annoyed.

“Kent!” It was the bark from their editor. “If you're not too busy, I want to have a word with Cat.”

***

She felt like she was at the principal's office right now.

"Okay, Cat… First off, I don't like my reporters involved in office romances. It's too disruptive. When things go bad, we all suffer!"* He took a puff of his cigar. "Just look at Clark and Lois!* Something happened a few weeks ago, now two of my top reporters are barely speaking to one another."

"Yeah, what's up with those two? I can't get what's happening with them pinned down."

"They've been dancing around each other for years, Cat, years… and since you've been here I've seen you throw yourself at Clark… right in front of Lois… several times!"* He began to shake his cigar to emphasize his words. "Great Caesar's ghost, you've even started playing young Olsen for a fool!"*

"But Jimmy is a cute kid."*

"He's one of my reporters! What are you doing to Olsen is downright mean and I'm not alone in thinking this."* His voice wasn't mad, but definitely firm.

"But I do like Jimmy*… and flirting around is what I always do, it's nothing to be taken too seriously."

"Well, I have to ask you to stop doing it in my newsroom. And as friendly advice, I would suggest you to stop flirting with Olsen and Kent outside the office, as well. Jimmy is still too young and inexperienced, he will get hurt. And Clark is in love with Lois, everyone knows that, the whole staff knows that, the umbrella stand knows that, the newspaper vendor across the street knows that. Hell, maybe even Lois knows that. You're making his position very complicated. Understood?"

"Yes… umm I think I'd like to get back to my work, sir, if you'll-"

"No, you asked for my opinion, you're going to listen."

***

“So you may have to move to New York, Cat?”* Clark asked when she gave him the cup of coffee. Whatever the conversation she had with Perry, it had the immediate effect.

“My custody case is coming up, I may win it, but I may also have to move to the same city where Adam’s father lives. Visitation rights and all that… but… I don't want to lose you, Clark.” She was being sincere. “You've made my life worth living again. You're my hero. Would you consider moving? The New York Times would love to get you.”*

Clark reddened a bit. “Cat…”* And scratched his head. “I… flattered, but… I belong here in Metropolis… Do you understand?”*

“I do… and I hate myself for being so civilized about it.”*

The cityroom door opened and Perry entered, dropping the bomb that he would take some time off because of conflict of interest with the gang war situation and his son being mixed around.

“Any questions? No? Good, back to work!... Lane, Kent. My office now!”*

Clark smiled apologetic at Cat and stood from his chair, Lois had already made a beeline to the office.

“What's really going on, Perry?”* Clark asked, closing the door behind him.

“Just what I said, Kent. Don't read anything into it… I decided my family comes first… for a little while. Kent, while Lois continues on the teen gang follow-up, I want you to pursue the organized crime angle, remember when my son was kidnapped? Jay Falk was behind that. I think he may be behind this, too.”*

“Uh-uh, Perry!” Lois imposed herself in front of Clark. “All my sources point to Luthor.”*

“Luthor? Why? Falk is the one with the vendetta against me.”*

“Jose Delgado told me Jerry implicated Luthor.”* Her face was one of the most terrifying things Clark had ever seen. He wondered what had made her irate like that, it seemed to be something with the slimy billionaire. “Luthor’s into this mess up to his shoulders blades!”* She growled in anger.

Perry stayed silent for a few seconds. “Doesn't make sense, Lois. Why Luthor? What does he gain from a gang war? Luthor's motivated by power and money, not chaos…” She glared at her editor. “Okay, okay, check out Falk and keep an eye on Luthor, too.”*

“What are you two standing around for? Get moving!”*

“Uh, yes, sir.”* They managed to leave the office without talking or even looking at each other.

“Er, Lois?” She didn't stop walking to her desk. “Uh, I’d sure like to meet this Delgado guy… and since you two seem to be a item-”*

She turned to him, in fury and almost at super speed, grabbing his tie and jerking his body down to look at his eyes from the same height “Forget it Kent!!* If we are or not, what the hell business is it of yours?? You keep your nose out of my business!!” She released him and stormed off, knocking some papers and interns in her wake.

Clark tried to smooth his now wrinkled tie, Cat came with an amused grin on her face, but asked if he was alright.

“Uh, yeah, it's just… it has been a while since Lois grabbed me by the tie like that.” It seemed they were back at square one in their friendship, as if it could even be called that anymore.

Chapter Text

He couldn't believe he had managed to get a date with Wonder Woman, well, the date part hadn't been said with all the words, but still. He wasn’t able to take his mind off her, it sneaked in his thoughts and dreams when he was last expecting. With Lois barely looking at his face, as Clark and Superman, and apparently dating another person, he was feeling lonely, and it had been a very long time since he felt that way.

The weather was really terrible, he didn't want to meet her with his cape in scraps, but he guessed now was too late. He found her waving at him from the spot they had arranged over the telephone, he landed at her side.

“Superman!”* Her voice was so beautiful.

“Wonder Woman! At last!”*

Before he could control himself, he was kissing her. It was a bit of a shock first, but then the Amazon returned in kind. The kiss lasted for a few seconds more, then naturally came to an end and they broke apart.

“Er…”* Superman was extremely awkward and took a few steps back. “S-sorry… I… guess that was out of line…”*

“Somewhat*… Not unsatisfying, though.” Woman Woman shyly adjusted her hair. “I guess I just didn't expect such a… passionate reception, Superman.”*

“I guess not. Sorry again, Wonder Woman. I freely admit it was completely inappropriate.”* Superman scratched his head, reddening it a bit. “It's just… you've been on my mind an awful lot since we met in Washington… I was hoping that maybe I might be in your mind a lot too. Sorry.”

“That's the third time you have said ‘Sorry’, Superman, once was more than sufficient… I am… not without feelings. I will not say you have been completely absent from my thoughts in the month past…. In fact, I have a friend in Boston perceptive enough to have read much into my silence on the subject of you.”*

“Then…” Superman tried to confirm what he got from her extremely formal way of speaking. “Then there's a chance the feelings I have whirling about inside my brain… might be reciprocated…?”* He raised one eyebrow, almost not believing on his luck.

“I do not know, Superman. I have lived in Man's World only a short time and so many of the emotions which pass freely between the sexes are still… I will not say I have not thought of you since the affair in your Washington. In fact, has been more in the fashion of a deliberate avoidance of thought of you, in many ways a greater strain than facing any feelings outright.”*

“You must have a stronger mental self-control than I do, Wonder Woman… I thought of you and had dreamed with you. That was when I started to wonder if it might not be my heart trying to come in terms with something my brain had yet to see…”*

“You speak in most compelling terms, Superman, I have a warrior heart, but I am not unmoved by your words.”*

His brain was starting to struggle with her choice of words. “Ahm, so… where does that leave us exactly?” He frowned, trying to understand where this conversation would lead.

She smiled a beautiful smile. “This is my prerogative, is it not?”* Then added, almost playfully. “To use the language of this land, this is our… first date.”*

Superman smiled too.

“We seek understanding, not consummation. Am I right?”*

“Yes, absolutely.”* He offered his hand at a very respectable distance. “Wonder Woman, will you come with me now, so I can introduce myself properly?”*

“Superman, I would be honored.”* She accepted his hand and they shook, sharing a knowing grin. “But, please, my name is Diana.”*

“Then…” He offered his hand again, now for her to pick. “First, what say we go to my place?”

They took off to the skies, hand in hand, but soon they reached a good altitude, they released each other's hand. 

“This is where I'm most at home, Wo- Diana.”* He let himself feel the wind blowing in his hair, closed his eyes and opened his arms to enjoy it even more. “I absolutely adore to fly… in the sky, where all the problems of the world seem to fall into their perspective*. I feel it's where I fit the best… not exactly part of the stars, not exactly part of the Earth, something in between.”*

“It is a fitting place for such as we, Superman… We who are flesh and blood and yet not exactly human.”*

“Yes, that is one way to put it. Although my humanity is very important to me… You were born on Earth, Diana… at least I’m assuming you were, but I came from a world in deep space. Humanity is your birthright, for me, it's a hard won prize.”*

“Strange sentiments, for one who might stand as equal with the gods!”*

“I'm no god, Diana… I'm just a man… “*

“You… underrate yourself, surely…?”*

“No. I can do things normal humans can't, Princess, but for all that… well, at heart I'm just a boy from a small town in Kansas.”*

Diana jerked her head to the side. “Hermes??”* She shouted to nowhere, but he was sure she was seeing something he wasn't. “Yes! Yes, I'll come at once!”*

“Diana? What's happening?” She flew away from him. “Stay back, Superman. I am summoned to realms beyond human ken!”*

He tried to reach her, but she was becoming far and far away. “I’m… coming with… you…”* Superman suddenly felt a terrible pain and when he opened his eyes again he was in a place coming straight from the imaginations of classic poets mixed with the absurdity of an afternoon with Mxyplyzyk.

***

They were able to win a fight against a literal god with the help of another god and returned from Olympus in one piece. Clark had never felt so out of his depth than in this experience. He had to take a few seconds to breathe the cold air from the good old earth around him and ground him again.

“That was… really amazing, Wonder Woman! Olympus! The Greek Gods! Absolutely astounding… and it's made me realize something.”*

“What is that, Superman?”*

“The true nature of the feelings I was having towards you. I admire you, Wonder Woman. I respect you very much, even more after spending today with you, but there's no chance of romance between us. I mistook these feelings for something else. I am just a boy from Kansas, after all, you're way out of my league.”

“I agree with your decision, Superman, if not all your reasoning*. And I can say that those feelings of respect are most definitely reciprocated.”

“I hope we can be friends…”

“Only if you, please, call me Diana.”* She opened a bright smile and offered her hand for him to shake.

“Deal…”* He took her hand, smiling back. “If you will call me… Clark…”*

***

He had another commitment before returning to the Daily Planet - he definitely wasn't avoiding being around Lois, no, not at all - and it was waiting for him over the rooftop of a building. 

“Didn't bring the Boy Wonder with you this time, Batman?*... I guess this is a school day.” He said landing by his side in the shadow of a communication tower. His face still held the silly grin since he left Diana at the forest.

“As usual, your humor eludes me, Superman… Shall we get on with this? I have other things to attend to.”*

Apparently he was in a bad mood today.

“I know. That's why I appreciate you’re taking the time to do this favor for me.”*

“Of course.”* He reached behind his caped and procured a worn white scrapbook. “It was quite simple really. This scrapbook you asked me to examine is a veritable treasure trove of information. Whoever owned it certainly wasn't trying to hide anything.” He gave the book to Superman.

The man reluctantly eyed the book in his hands. “I sense a ‘but’ in this…”*

“Perceptive.”* The black cladded one answered. “Yes, there's all kinds of information to be obtained from the paper stock, the make of the scrap book, dust particles, things like that, I could tell you everywhere it's been since it was bought. Plus there were fingerprints all over it. Unfortunately, none of them belong to any criminal record. At least none I could find. In fact, the only absolute fact I was able to glean from this thing is that you're Clark Kent.”*

“What?”

“It's very possible whoever sent this to you, deduced your true identity, as well. It was delivered to your desk at the Daily Planet, wasn't it?”*

Superman frowned, the smile long gone now. “Can you give me something else about it?"

“The book was bought seven years ago in a general store… in Smallville.”

Superman took a deep breath. “Ma.”

“It really seems like it.”

“Someone could have been just trying to give it back…”

“Clark.”

He sighed. “I know. Thanks a lot, Bruce.”

“You’ll have to be more careful from now on.”

“Yeah… Thanks… Is… Is everything alright?" The way Batman was talking to him was almost mechanical. "Why didn't you bring Robin?"

"Jason and I are… Not in the best of terms right now."

"There's something I can do?" The kid was rough around the edges, but always liked him.

"No, but thanks for asking." Before shooting his way out of the rooftop, he turned to Superman again. “Why were you grinning like an idiot before?”

Clark opened a smile again. “I had a date with an angel and she was completely out of my league.”

“And you were happy about it?”

“Yeah… because I think I won something even more precious in the end… A friend for life.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, maybe we should all hang out one of these days.”

“No, thank you.”

***

He walked inside the newsroom and was taken aback by the uproar the place was in. Some really big news happened. He continued walking toward his desk wanting to ask anyone what had happened. He had missed something important when he was busy earlier? When he looked closely was it when he noticed everyone had an exemplar of the Boston Globe in their hands, not a Daily Planet’s.

“Allie?” He asked the passing intern. “May I?”

“Ah, sure, Mr. Kent, can you believe it??”

He picked the newspaper and almost fell backwards with the head line. ‘True love? Super-Romance of the Century’ and a photo of Superman and Wonder Woman. “When..?” He asked more to himself.

“Isn't it? No one saw that coming!” And the blond left him by himself to bewilderedly read the article.

“Lois! I didn't expect you in!”* Clark faintly heard their editor greeting the newcomer.

“I didn't expect me in either, Perry, what's all the hubbub?”*

Perry showed her the paper, which she grabbed with widened eyes. “Superman… and Wonder Woman?? I… never suspected…”* She walked to her desk, reading the article.

“It's crazy!”* She heard Clark saying from his desk. “This has been blown way out of proportion!!”*

She raised her head. “What do you mean, Kent? You have inside knowledge on this?”*

“I-uh… “ It was the first time she was starting a conversation with him without any bite in it since their falling out in Smallville. She was still using his last name, though. “I managed to get through Carole Bennett at the Globe… evidently the story originated with some publicist who Wonder Woman had hired to promote her peace tour.”*

“You're saying… there is nothing to it?”* Her eyes shone at him, his gut contorted.

“Uh,er… nothing like the Boston papers imply… I'm sure Superman and Wonder Woman share a certain… respect … and admiration for each other, but this…”* He looked at the front page in his hands. “...Well… I mean… who could believe such a thing?”*

“Hm.” Was Lois’ answer and she walked over to Perry to talk about her story, but was rejected due the Super story going on already. Perry sent her away to rest, she seemed to be needing it.

Clark watched her retreating form with a terrible feeling in his stomach. Why was she so shaken by this story? As rumors went, Lois had her share of speculations about her relationship with Superman, but Clark knew, heavens, he knew they weren't true!! But it didn't mean she didn't have feelings for the big guy. Had he just buried the chance to gain Lois' friendship back?? 

***

Lois walked idly around the city and only went home when it was dark and the cold was too much for her clothes. She was surprised with herself for being so shocked with the news of Superman’s involvement with Wonder Woman. They may have never had the kind of relationship the gossip painted them, but she thought she had a special connection with him. As if she was special to him, somehow. Well, apparently, not.

No wonder, she was giving Superman and Clark the cold shoulder for weeks now, of course they wouldn't stick around her much longer. She knew Clark had gone on a date with Cat the other day, at the circus or something. And now Superman was also distancing himself from her. It made her heart heavy. Not that she hoped for anything romantic between them, any of them, she liked Jose and she really wanted to give him a chance. Clark had been a rival turned into a friend she liked to have around. Someone who made the chase even more exciting and the victory much sweeter. And she could always count on both when she needed to. Well, most of the time.

Nok. Nok.

Lois opened the door absently minded.

“Kent!?!”*

“Lois…”* He stood a bit uncertain at her doorstep, hand fidgeting with his hat. “... you… seemed upset at the office.”* He searched for something in her face with his blasted lost puppy eyes. “This…Wonder Woman business must have come as a shock to you. I know it did to me… though not in the same way, of course…”* She crossed her arms in front of her, he took as a chance she was giving him to talk. “I realized that you haven't been too happy with either Superman or myself lately… I guess I can't really blame you, but believe me, neither of us wants to see you hurt.”* He looked at the door, still just half opened and looked pleading at her again. “I know I haven't been very lucky around doors lately, but maybe… maybe you'd like to talk?”*

She hated that guy! She hated his guts and his blasted puppy dog face and… She sighed.

“Sure, Kent.”* She opened the door the whole way. “Come on in.”*

He walked inside and Lois finally took notice of her clothes, the one she put to infiltrate the criminal base the day before. “Oh, look at me… I am a complete mess.”*

“You look fine.”*

“At the very least, I need a shower! You might as well make yourself at home, Kent. I may be awhile.”*

“Take your time, Lois, I'll be here.”*

He sat at her armchair to wait for her, but not even five minutes had passed when he heard the sirens and the screams. A building was on fire across town.

He regretfully looked at the spot Lois had disappeared inside the apartment, whispered an apology and flew through the balcony. 

***

Clark left the store room lost in his thought, that he almost tripped over Lois.

“Oh… Afternoon, Lo-”*

“Kent.”*

“..is…”* 

Not even his invulnerability could protect her from that cold shoulder.* He deflated his shoulders and followed her, they were going in the same direction anyway, since their desks were still almost in front of one another.

At some point, Clark groaned and decided to talk to her, nothing would be resolved if he didn't take the first step. He knew she wouldn't. He slid his chair to the side of her desk, embracing the backrest to look at her. She stopped the notes she was writing and crossed her arms, leaning on the chair and waiting for the new string of excuses he would give her. She had a very good idea why he vanished, there was a burning building and no doubt Superman tipped him off.

“Listen…”* He began. “I know I've put my foot in it a couple of times these past few days…”* Lois raised an eyebrow, unimpressed and still without saying a word. “But…well, give me a second chance and I promise I'll find a way to make it up to you…”*

“A second chance??”* She asked incredulously. “A big boy like you should be able to count better than that, Kent… Fifty -second, you mean, don't you??”* The chair squeaked when she put her weight back up to lean closer to him. “I've given you more chances than Superman has capes!! And every single time you've managed to screw up!!”*

Clark didn't have word to argument.

“I may have even entertained the idea of something else, well, no more, Kent!! Just so happens I've found someone else to fill that particular empty space in my life, so if you're still looking for someone to play your games with… I suggest you try Cat Grant!”*

“Lois…”*

She huffed and turned her face away from him, almost in a childish stubborn way. Clark sighed and slid himself back at his desk. He had really screwed up this time.

Chapter Text

Ma was at the table feeding the girl with pap, they had decided to call her a she, despite she didn't really have any gender. Her skin was still a mess and bright red, but Clark had said her powers would most likely return and she would be able to change to a more human-like appearance, like the beautiful Supergirl she was before. The house was deep in an eerie silence since he had returned from some kind of time-cross-universe travel; she sometimes had trouble comprehending the things that happened to her son. They knew he was still up in his bedroom, in silence, alone, in the dark. Her motherly instincts were screaming to go see him, but she also knew it would probably be something she hardly understood.

“It's so quiet up there.”* Pa sat at her side at the kitchen table, he had finished his chores for the time being. “I'm worried about Clark.”* He looked up, in the direction of their son's bedroom, as if he had x-ray vision to check on their boy. “He's been sitting in the dark like that all morning…”*

The girl reached for the elderly man's face and he smiled kindly at her, she was like a toddler. He gave her his worn cap and she laughed in unrestrained happiness.

“He's in a bad way*… I can feel it.” Ma agreed, waiting for her to stop playing with the cap to continue feeding her. “It kills me seeing him like that.”* 

Jonathan nodded. “He’s always come to us before with his problems… He must be wrestling with something big this time, Ma.*

“Why don't you see if he needs anything?”*

Pa stood almost immediately, she knew that just like her, he doubted he could really help, but wouldn't stay without doing something when their son was clearly agonizing alone. He knocked on the door and waited a bit, but had no answer, so he slowly opened the door to the bedroom.

Sitting in the middle of the room was a stern-looking stone statue of Superman.

“Clark?”*

The statue opened his eyes, it was an uncanny sight and Jonathan felt shivers in his forearms.

“Your Ma and I were… well, we're worried.”*

The statue joined the hands over his stomach.

“Son?”*

No more movements. His heart squeezed seeing his boy like that and he walked inside the bedroom.

“I just thought… well, when you're ready… I want you to know that we’re here for you.”*

Clark winced and looked away.

Jonathan could see a solitary tear straining his contorted face. “I know…”* His voice sounded weak. “I just… can't talk… yet.”* His hands grabbed the arms of the chair he was sitting on with the maximum of the strength he could use without turning the thing into dust. “I need to… to just sit here… in my room… with all my things… mementos of Smallville surrounding me…. Reassuring me*... of who I am….”

“Clark?” Jonathan was really worried now.

“I'm sorry, Pa… I really just need to be alone… pretend I don’t hear the rest of the world out there… pretend that no one needs me just now… and see if I can still live with myself… with what I have done…”*

Jonathan nodded and left his son alone in the dark again and closed the door behind him.

***

He was at Smallville Elementary's playground, he didn't mean to spin the Merry-go-round so fast, he didn't mean to make his friends sick or hurt, he didn't mean to put Lana in trouble with Mrs. Berg, he didn't mean he wanted her dead. He really didn't. He was scared, his father was ordering him to pay his respects to Mrs. Berg, but Clark was too afraid to get near the casket.

He felt himself being shoved forward and suddenly the person in the casket wasn't Mrs.Berg anymore, it was General Zod, rising from the dead with his two lieutenants.

Clark jerked around on the bed, his arms trying to drive the phantoms away.

“We begged you for our lives, Kal-El, but you wouldn't hear of it!”*

“NO!”* He wrestled with something invisible.

“You murdered us!”

He jumped on the bed. “You… you're not real!! You were created by the time trapper!!* He tried to punch the woman, but his fist passed through her.

“We were flesh and blood! Our world was alive!”* Faora shouted

“You destroyed that world and its inhabitants!”* He tried to punch Quex-Ul, but his arms just went through like in a mist.

“We pleaded! You could have returned us to the Phantom Zone!”

“I couldn't take the chance that you'd escape again!”* His fist now hit something, but it wasn't the phantom. “Escape and doom my Earth to the same fate as the Time Trapper’s world!”* He grabbed an object and threw at General Zod coming from behind him, but he was also unaffected. “This is my home, my world… These are my people!”* He tried to grab Quex-Ul again.

“Are you now their god, as well? Do they know their savior is a murderer??”*

“They look up to me, count on me to help… I am one of them!” Clark kicked the shelf on Faora, the furniture fell on the floor, spreading all its contents around.

“You are not one of them. You are a Kryptonian! The Earthers fear you now!”*

He aimed at Zod again. 

“Imagine their terror when you are revealed a murdered? And a coward! You were afraid to fight us, Kryptonian to Kryptonian, instead choosing to poison us with Kryptonite!”*

“You deserved to die! The three of you were responsible for the death of billions!! It was the only way!”* His attacks still weren't getting through.

“Why was that your decision to make?”* Quex-Ul asked.

“Is it not wrong to kill for revenge?” Faora asked.

Clark tried to hit the two again, but only found the wall.

“The Phantom Zone existed as an alternative to execution!”* Faora said.

“If you are truly the hero you think yourself to be, why did you not weigh the options more carefully before killing us?”* Quex-Ul asked again.

“You were beyond redemption…”* He tried one more time.

“This choice made in haste shall haunt you, Kal-El!”* Zod was the one talking now. “Your conscience would be clearer had we three died at your hand in battle, than by the cowardly act of poisoning us!”*

“I did what I had to do…” Clark stopped trying to chase the phantoms and stood in the middle of the room. “You escaped the Phantom Zone before… how could I chance that you wouldn't escape again? I couldn't risk it…” He kneeled on the floor. “The stakes were too great…. You had to die for the safety of my world… ”* Clark woke up in the middle of his destroyed living room. “... My home.”*

Chapter Text

“Kent! I thought I had told you to take the rest of the day off.”

“Well, yes, Chief - yawl - but Superman stopped a heist just now, I will just fill in the story and go home.”

“You do that!”

Clark dragged his body to his desk and booted the computer. Lois looked up from her station and frowned. Perry had said Kent looked terrible today, but Lois didn't believe him, until she saw for herself. The blasted man always looked infuriatingly perfect. He clearly wasn't today and she made a decision.

Clark was halfway through his article when a steaming hot cup with the double sugar, milk caramel cappuccino he favored appeared in his desk. Clark looked up and saw Lois' worried face watching him.

“It seems like you need it.”

Clark opened a big, but tired smile, too bad he was dragging his carcass the whole day or he would have given his most charming smile and hoped for the best. “Thank you, Lois.”

She nodded and returned to her desk. She looked at him one more time with knitted eyebrows, the man appeared to be carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders.

He had completely forgotten about his trashed apartment when he opened the door, so he startled when saw the state it was in, but even more surprised was the shadow he encountered in the middle of his belongings.

“Geez, Bruce!”

“Come in, Clark. Close the door behind you.”*

He sighed, locking the door. He really didn't have enough energy to deal with whatever issue Batman was bringing to him. “What are you doing in my apartment? If anyone saw you-”

“No one saw me, I'm very careful about my comings and goings.”* He looked around. “You, on the other hand, seem to be having problems… What happened here? A break-in?”

“Can’t you deduce it yourself?” He answered curtly. Despite being covered by the cowl, Clark could see his eyebrows rising at him. “Uh, sorry… I kind of had a long night.”

“Does this have something to do with who sent you the scrapbook?”

“Ah, no…no." Clark pinched the bridge of his nose under the glasses. "What brought you here then, Bruce?”

Batman stood in silence for a couple of seconds, Clark knew he was pondering if digging deeper on the state of his apartment would be worth it. He then reached inside his cape and produced an old looking book. “This is why I'm here… it seems that books keep bringing us together.”* Apparently not worth it, then. He proceeded to explain how he got the book from a fence in Gotham, it was about an old family, it was all in gaelic. Clark flicked through the pages and noticed that the last ones were in English, despite looking as old as the rest of them.

“Eh?? This is an account of my first battle with Silver Banshee!”*  He looked at the next one and it was the account of this very moment, of Batman giving him the book. “What in blazes is this ?? It's us!”

“What? Let me see!”* Batman walked at him and Clark could see the surprise behind the cowl. “This last page wasn't here before, in fact there are several new pages… all old as the rest… There is definitely something supernatural about this.”*

“You know supernatural is not really my thing, Bruce.”

“Neither is mine, but I thought you should know about this. There’s an obvious connection between it, you, and Silver Banshee.”* Batman left the book in the only piece of furniture he could find that wasn't torn or turned and walked in the direction of his balcony. “What you do with it is up to you, but I advise you to handle it carefully, Clark, very, very carefully.* She almost killed you once.”

“I will, thanks for the heads-up.”

Batman nodded and turned to leave, but hesitated for an instant looking at Clark again, he decided against whatever he was thinking and disappeared in the night. Clark let himself fall on the only surviving armchair and sighed. Batman never brought the easy ones.

***

He still wasn't feeling 100% when he walked inside the newsroom in the morning.

“Mr. Kent!” Allie called him before he could even sit. “Mr. White is calling you and Miss Lane to his office.”

He exchanged a look with Lois, before following her to his office, he was going to knock, but Lois just opened the door unceremoniously.

“What's up, Perry?” She asked.

“I want to know where my best people were when the biggest story of the week broke?” His fake collected tone was way more terrifying than his usual bark.

“What story?” Lois and Clark asked together.

“This one!” Perry showed them an exemplar of the Star. “The one we didn't get!”

“‘Gangbuster’s back? Lexcorp plant vandalized??” Lois read out loud. “No! Perry! It can't be him!”*

“Are you sure, Lois? You told me he was going through an experimental treatment, wasn't he?”

“Yes, he's getting better, he can walk on wires and support, but still needs the wheelchair to go around, he definitely isn't in any condition for break and enter, let alone knock out a half dozen of guards.”

“Wow! What kind of treatment is that?”

“I’m not sure, but it's from A. R. L.”

“Luthor?? Lois….”

“I know what you're going to say, Clark, I said the same to Jose, but he didn't listen to me… and well, it is working, isn't it?”

“But you never know what he is going to take in return…”

“Don't I know??” She growled with so much venom, Clark even forgot what he was going to say next.

“Regardless.” Perry interrupted. “I want you to find out about the return of Gangbuster, we're not going to lose any more stories to the Star, did you listen to me? I want you to check with Delgado, Lois, and Kent, see if you can get in contact with Superman. Now go!”

***

Clark was so tired, he barely could keep his eyes open. His cold metal desk looked so inviting, but he still needed to finish his article and tried to figure out the new Gangbuster identity. The guy was too violent, he needed to do something about it, but his brain was stuck and he had no energy to think past the need for rest.

Lois was watching the absolute wreck Clark was on his desk across from her, she saw him fall asleep on his keyboard a couple of times the last few days, saw the lines in his face became harder and the circles under his eyes got darker. She couldn't avoid the urge to help him inside her gut bubbling on the surface more than once. She was worried about him, despite all the disagreements, they were friends.

She saw him tripping over his feet on his way to the door and leaving the office without giving anyone good night.

Clark had left through the window of the storeroom and flew as fast as he could. He was surprised for a moment that he could still fly at all and the only thought in his brain then was how an alien invasion was the last thing he needed right now.

***

The office was a construction site at the moment, but they were able to not miss any edition even during the whole invasion. Perry was very proud. Half of the building was still missing, but the vital parts were miraculously intact. But Lois couldn't avoid thinking that one major asset was still missing from the building, though. She maneuvered her way between wood, boards and contractors to reach her editor's office. Lois put her head inside.

“Perry, can we talk?”*

“Come in, Lois. Surprised you're still here, what's up?”* The man multitasked between pulling a mock up for the front page together and signed the construction permits. 

“I just finished my story on how City Hall is handling this crisis…”*

“Good, good…”* He half heard her, giving one of the contractors a paper sheet.

Lois waited for the man to leave the office and crossed her arms around her midsection. God, she lost count of how many times she put the terrible thought at bay this week. Perry was waiting for her to say something.

“No one’s seen Clark during all of this. I'm worried…." Yes, she was, the guy wasn't in his prime shape lately on top of everything else, she dreaded to think his infuriating luck had run out. "He's usually the first guy to file a story on something big...”*

“With all the activity around here… you know… you right, it's not like the Clark Kent of old…”*

“I'm planning on stopping at his place on my way home.”* She bit her lower lip.

“It's probably nothing to worry about, though, Lois, his block wasn't even damaged in the alien’s attack.”* 

“True, he may very well be off working on his Intergang exposé… but I’d like to check on him anyway…"* She sighed. "He's been so moody and withdrawn lately… something’s eating him…”*

“I tried talking to him about just that., but he wont open up… I told him to take some time off…”*

“Who assigned him the Intergang stories?”* Lois put her hands on her waist, accusatively. Clark was barely keeping up with the rest of his assignments.

“He pitched the idea to me! Said he had access to inside information!..."* Perry defended himself. "Well, go on. Tell him I said ‘hey’”*

“G’night, Perry.”*

Her editor waved her good night and watched Lois pick her purse on her desk and made a beeline for the elevators under a fatherly gaze. No matter how bad their fights were, Lois couldn't ignore she cared for Kent, after all. The old man scratched his head, he had a baaad feeling.

The metallic doors opened and from them came a half dead looking Clark Kent.

“Clark!!”*

“Night, Lois.”

“Where have you been?? You look like hell!”*

“Uh, thanks…” He scratched his stubbled chin. “I guess I could use a shave… I was off getting an inside line on the invasion…” He dragged his feet off the elevator. “How about you? Anything new on the Gangbuster story?”*

As he walked out, she walked in the car without really noticing, her eyes were still on his battered face, his irises barely were visible under the heavy eyelids and dark circles. He even seemed to have lost some weight. “Uh, no, not since his run-in with Guardian the other day. I wrote an overview on his recent exploits for the early edition… “* She gave him the paper with her story and the doors began to close.

“Uh, thanks… see you.”* He humped his back and started to walk away.

“S-sure…”* The doors closed, she supposed there's no point in going to his apartment now. “Clark…” Lois whispered to herself. “What are you doing to yourself?”*

Clark found Perry in the middle of the half newsroom that was still standing. The whole staff stopped to look at him.

“Something wrong?”* He asked no one in particular.

“Kent! My god, man, where have you been?? You look like hell!”*

“So I'm told, hello Perry, just got back from Australia, saw most of the battle, communications were so scrambled, I figured there's was no sense in wiring my story:” The editor put his glasses to be able to read the story on the notepad, Clark had just handled him. ”Sorry, it's longhand, couldn't find a type-writer.”*

“Kent, this is… Alice! Have Snider get this copy read!”*

He picked a phone. “Press room? White, hold the afternoon edition, we're replacing page one!”*

Clark dropped himself on his chair and groaned, he was so exhausted, he pinched the bridge of his nose, under the frame of the glasses.

“Kent, I'll bet you haven't copped a wink in days! Probably been on the go since this thing started, haven't you?”*

“Well…”*

“Thought so, go home and get some sleep, son… you're not Superman, you know!”

Clark chuckled humorlessly and pressed his eyes with his fingers, he was so exhausted.

Chapter Text

Clark watched the beautiful golden sky meeting the golden plains and his heart squeezed. That could be the last time he see this scenery, the scenery he held most dearly in his life. He was still terrified of finding out Gangbuster was actually himself, sleepwalking. His hands hadn't stopped shaking since he awoke to Guardian hitting him with his shield, ripping the costume and revealing the super suit underneath. The thought of someone as powerful as himself loose in the city, completely out of control, perturbed him very much. That, and the fact he had killed those three people, forced him to make a drastic decision. He lost control in the other world, he had lost control here, he couldn't live around people anymore. He had firstly suspected Brainiac could be the cause of his split personality episode, but he couldn't always look for an outside source for his problems. Some things came from within.

He caught Pa just in time.

“Well, are you ever a sight for sore eyes!”*

“It's good to see you too, Pa!”*

He landed and put Jonathan carefully on the ground by his side, a slim girl with pink skin and white hair came, crying at them. “Ma-trix is sorry to hurt you Jon-a--than.”*

“Matrix?”

Jonathan caressed the girl's forearms, calming her. “Now, now, honey. It's all right. See, I'm okay!”* She stopped crying, but still had that guilty expression on her face. “It was an accident, Mae, the ladder just tipped, It's not your fault.” The girl nodded, slowly.

Clark looked questioningly at his father.

“She started calling herself that a while back and I guess it kind of stuck.”* Pa reached for his son's shoulders and turned him toward the house. “Hey, Ma! Look what just fell out of the sky!!”*

He smiled longingly at his dad on their inside joke.

“Clark!!”* His mother shouted in happiness from the farmhouse door. “I'm so glad to see you've come home!!” She couldn't hide the relief in her voice while she went down the porch to hug her boy.

“S’man take Ma-trix home?”* The girl touched his arm shyly.

He looked at her sorrowfully. “I'm sorry, Matrix, your home is gone. Here's your home now.”*

“Is?”

Before Clark could answer, he was engulfed in his mothers arms. “Oh! I miss you, my boy!”

Clark kissed her forehead lovingly. “Mom, I had to see you and Pa!”

“Oh, Clark! How've you been? We were worried…. When we didn't hear from you during this invasion business ....”* Martha looked at her son with analyzing eyes and knitted her eyebrows in concern. “Have you lost weight? I'll bet you haven't been sleeping right either!”*

“Maaa…”* He whined as a kid would do at a motherly fussing, but in truth he was relishing in his last moments with the people he loved the most in the world. “Why don't we go inside… What… what I came to say is very difficult to me.”*

Martha’s heart instantly filled with dread and she let herself be led inside the house again.

They all gathered in the kitchen and waited for him to say whatever he was going to say, Clark took a deep breath and closed his eyes. “I came to say good-bye.”*

“Clark, what on earth-”*

“Ma, let me finish…”* Clark closed his hands in fists. “Some things have happened to me. I've lost control, become dangerous to those around me… you're at risk right now with me being here… but… I had to come say good-bye to you-”*

“Forget the risk-business, tell us what's going on, Clark! Let us help you.”* His father interrupted him. Then scratched his chin, something occurred to him. “It has to do with what happened on Matrix' world, doesn't it? She remembers bits and pieces of what went on, usually after a particular nightmare…”* Pa looked at her, by his side. “The poor girl has related some pretty horrible memories, Clark.”*

Superman nodded solemnly. “Her world was devastated by three super-powerful beings… I… caught them… then I killed them.”* He looked at his feet, gritting his teeth, really ashamed of himself. The silence after his words was freezing cold.

His father was the first to shake off the shock. “Surely it was in self-defense?”*

“I was their judge, jury and executioner.”*

“Nothing’s that cut and dried.”*

Clark pushed a chair from the kitchen table and sat heavily on it, leaning his elbows in his knees and joining his hands in front of him. Mother and father exchanged a telling look, yes, it was something big.

“I was in the military, son…”* Jonathan started, touching his shoulders in support. “In peacetime, it's easy to forget what war’s all about… people killing people.”* Clark looked up to his father almost in a new light, the true message was very clear.

But then he shook his head and let it fall in front of him. “I'm Superman... I should have found an alternative to killing.”*

“You're a man, Clark, a person. And people aren't perfect.”*

He shook his head again. “If I could have found a way to return them to their Phantom Zone prison…”*

“And if they got free and followed to Earth?”* Ma argued. “Maybe we wouldn't be standing here right now… maybe we’d all be dead!”*

“Do you think a policeman who kills in the line of duty doesn't go through the same self-doubts as you?”* Pa added, putting both hands on his shoulders.

“We raised you with a strong sense of right and wrong. Clark.”*

“Yes.” Superman agreed. “And killing can never be the right answer.”

“Ma and I believe you did what you had to do with the cards you had in that horrible place… it's time to put these demons to rest*... or you're going to get nuts thinking about it.”

“Exactly…” Clark sighed. “That was just the start of it, Pa, the tip of the iceberg…”* He proceeded to tell his parents about Gangbuster and how he assumed this other, more violent persona every time he fell asleep. He couldn't risk the possibility of a monster to emerge the next time. He needed to leave.

Ma and Pa had sat down at this point and the resolution in his tone of voice made clear their son wouldn't bulge in his decision.

“But… What about your job? It was your dream… and your friends? You're going to just disappear without saying anything?” Ma asked.

Clark had flown by Lois’ when he was leaving the city, but she seemed to be having an important conversation with Delgado - an argument, his brain provided - perhaps it was for the best. If he had gone to see her one last time, perhaps he wouldn't have gathered the strength and courage to leave, after all….

And Bruce, he had called, Alfred said he was off to some middle east country.

“They were busy…but I talked to Perry earlier and said I was taking a personal leave.” He reached for his messenger bag, still with him, and produced a pile of envelopes. “I have a favor to ask, please send these envelopes to the Planet for me, two per week. They’re already addressed. It's a very important story I have been working on…”

Ma wasn't happy, but accepted the task nonetheless.

His father appeared soon after with a fresh cape in his hand, his own being long lost in one of the battles the last couple of days, he didn't even remember which one it was.

“It's time.” He hugged him while his mother fastened the cape on his back.

“Just take care of yourself and everything’ll turn out okay.”* Pa said with a husky voice.

“Ma, Pa… I love you so much… I promise I’ll be back as soon as I*… I’m not sure…”

His mother just whisked him in a bear hug. “You make sure you wear this cape proudly wherever you go…. And remember that we'll always be proud of you.”*

Just when Clark was going to the door, Lana walked in.

“Clark!! You're home!!”* She said happily, but then took the scene in front of her, the tears in Martha’s eyes. “What's happening?”

Soon, he explained roughly his situation and it was time for Lana to shed tears. “I can’t believe you're leaving Earth… how will you even survive in space?”*

“I’ll manage with this breathing apparatus a friend gave me*, I’ll be alright…” He then watched his oldest friend drying her tears and giving him a strained smile. “It seems I'm always saying good-bye to you, Lana…”*

“Just kiss me, Clark.”*

Superman bent down and gave her a slow peck on the lips, Lana put her arm around his neck and pulled him to a longer kiss. They didn't speak after breaking apart and he walked to the door again, Matrix began to follow him outside.

“No, Matrix…”* He reached to the girl’s shoulders. “Stay with them… please, protect them… Love them.”*

She nodded solemnly, Superman nodded back at her, in an understanding, and finally left the house.

Ma and Pa embraced each other to see their son reaching for the sky. As he was gaining altitude, his heart grew homesick already and he couldn’t find strength to look back down. He just whispered for himself. “Good-bye, Smallville.”*

Chapter Text

She was dreaming of something when she heard the phone ringing. It was in a confused haze she picked it and barely recognized her editor's voice on the other side.

"Wait, say it again, Perry. I didn't get it."

"There was an murder on Kent's apartment."

"What??"

"The police are still investigating it, but some of the neighbors said they saw Kent entering his apartment just before the assault."

Lois was listening, but the words began to lose meaning halfway through. Her heart was beating so strongly she could feel it on her brain.

"Lois? Still there?"

She ran her hand on her face, now completely awake.

"Yes, Perry, I'm still here." Sitting on the bed and resting her head in her hands. "Wasn't… wasn't Clark laying low? Why would he return to his apartment when he knew he was being targeted?" He had had some terrible days before leaving, she could see there's something consuming him, maybe he had been receiving threats from Intergang long before he took his leave.

"I don't know, Lois… we don't know for sure if it was really him, but the description… fits…"

Something inside her was really close to breaking. 

"Henderson is leading the investigation, he just called me… I thought you would want to know as soon as possible."

"Yes… thank you." She swallowed the lump on her throat. "Did… did you talk with the Kents?"

"No, the police will contact them in the morning."

"Yes, I suppose this is the procedure."

"Lois… you don't need to go to work tomorrow if you don't feel like it."

"No, Perry, if there is something I need is to go to work."

"But do try to get some sleep, okay? We don't know anything for sure yet."

"Yes, I will."

But of course she couldn't. Her mind started racing, trying to figure why he would return, what he could be doing there and not to dwell on the consequences if it was really him. And every time one particular thought started to bubble up, she forcefully shoved back inside her chest again. 

She was an investigative reporter, she needed clues, evidence, hard facts! First thing in the morning was to go to his apartment, she barely slept after the call, she just laid in her bed for an unknown amount of hours until it wouldn't be too dark to get up. Whenever she felt this restless, the best thing to do was to keep in motion. 

The cab couldn't even reach the block of his building. It was crazy in front of it, a swarm of reporters and camera crews, but she was granted access by the porter who knew her, with flashes, microphones and cameras being shoved at her face. It was kind of weird being on the other side of the press.

Henderson caught her just when she left the elevator.

"Inspector! I need to see inside the apartment!" She wasn't in the mood for pleasantries this morning.

"Lois, you're really putting me on a hot spot here."* He knew that.

She looked at his door with the police line and her throat went dry.

"Kent was a friend of mine too, but that don’t change the fact his place was the site of a murder! You know I can't let you in!"*

"Inspector Henderson… Bill…"* She was begging. "This is personal, not professional… please."*

The older man gave her a sympathetic smile. "Okay, okay, I'm a sucker for romance. You got five minutes… but don't touch anything!"*

"I know, Bill. Thank you."

The inspector lifted the police line to let her enter and suddenly Lois began to feel cold shivers on her spine. The apartment was completely trashed, obviously a fight took place there. Having special care to not tamper with the scene, Lois walked between his personal belongings on the floor, books, Highschool flag, and photos. Her eyes were drawn to a big picture of him when he played football in school, his kind smile and sweet eyes looked back at her and she couldn't hold anymore. Tears began to flow freely on her cheeks, she even needed to crouch and hold herself. It couldn't be true!! Clark had been one of the few constants in her life for years, insufferable as he may be sometimes, and sincerely, she didn't want to imagine a world without that sly grin of his greeting her good morning. Without their bantering and their competition. Without reading his work every day, because of course she read it. The daily dose of optimism and compassion he gave everyone in Metropolis.

She then looked at a picture of his parents, the glass all shattered. Superman hasn't been seen for days now, where was he?? He wouldn't just ignore that? Would he??

Suddenly she couldn't stay there anymore, Lois left the apartment running and didn't stop to talk with Henderson or anyone else. She caught her breath at the elevator and fixed her makeup to walk through the sea of sharks in front of the building. The ride to the Planet was a haze.

Everyone stopped when she entered the newsroom, some of the brave ones came to say something of solace to her. Allie was clearly crying. She wondered if her face was letting on that she was also crying just a moment ago.

She desperately needed a coffee and once more was approached by grieving colleagues.

She huffed. "Why is everyone giving me condolences??" Stubborn that she was. "It's not like we're close or anything!!" Her eyes inadvertently went to his desk and her chest pinched with pain. "We're not sure… not sure…" She whispered more to herself than to anyone else.

Lois then noticed another coworker looking at her with pity, she huffed again and walked resolutely towards Perry's office.

"Send me away."

"Away?"

"Look, Perry, I don't care what type of story it is or where it is… just get me out of town!"*

"Don't care about the story? Now that doesn't sound like the Lois Lane I've known all these years. Care to let me in on it?"*

Lois leaned on the other table and took a sip of her coffee that miraculously was still full on her hand. She's been reaching some forks in her life lately.

"I need a break… a change of scenery… room to think things out."*

Her eyes searched for his desk again.

"It's Clark, isn't it?"*

“Please, don’t, Perry.”

“I know you were close friends…”

“Stop. You're my boss, not my shrink, please don't try to analyze me, Perry…Now, what's my assignment?”* That's it, Lois, keep moving, don't think.

Perry gave her a fatherly knowing look, but conceded with a tiny nod.

Chapter Text

Lois was finally able to breathe normally after the last few days, Jimmy had found Clark wandering the city with no memories whatsoever and took him to the police for safety. She was calling the PD to confirm, to hear his voice, but with the city in uproar since Superman’s disappearance, they were taking ages to pick- 

“Lane.” It was Inspector Henderson’s voice. “If you’re still looking for a quote on the Peterson case, it's ‘No comment!’”*

“No, no, Inspector. Jimmy called, he said Clark is with you there? Please, let me speak with him!”

She could hear from the other side of the line, Henderson giving the receiver to someone.

“Kent!”*

Oh, it was really him then, Bill would know .

“Lois Lane wants to talk to you.”* A bit more of fumble noises. “On the phone!”*

“I don't think I like her.”

What??

“Do I, Jimmy Olsen?”*

Did Clark just said what I thought he- *

“Clark??”* Despite the relief of hearing his voice after all those weeks thinking he was dead, something horrible just turned in her stomach. “Clark, please talk to me.”* She could hear his breathing on the other side. “I know I’ve been rough on you in the past, but I thought we’re friends."*

“Lana is my friend.”*

Why did he sound so childish?

“Clark, I am your friend, as well.”*

Nok. Nok. Great, just when she finally was able to speak with him.

“Look, can you hold for a second? Someone’s at the door.”*

Lois muffled the phone on her chest and went to attend whoever was at her door.

“Catherine Grant? What brings you here?”*

“I'm so glad I caught you at home. I've got major worries and I didn’t know where to turn!”*

Ugh, all happening at the same time!

“Why me?” They didn't actually get along. “Is your hairdresser out of town?”* The pained look on the other woman's face showed her attempt at humor was far off, but her head was still with Clark, who sounded really weird on the phone. “Ahh… have a seat and let me finish my call.”*

She put the phone back in her ear and the sound of a dead line came through. The gut wrenching feeling on her stomach was there again.

“I don't believe Clark Kent hung up on me!!”*

That made the other woman widen her eyes in hope.

“Clark's alive?? Then the reports were true… Lois, this has to do with him… and Morgan Edge.”*

Cat sat on her couch and covered her eyes in her hands for a few instants before starting talking. “As you probably know, Morgan Edge and I have been seeing a lot of each other lately, just after I got my new job as anchor for GBS, you may also have noticed that Clark’s Intergang exposé began appearing shortly thereafter.”*

Lois gaped at the woman in front of her. “You were Clark’s inside source??”*

Cat joined her hands in front of her legs, her posture indicating she’s ashamed. “After I blew my chance at the Planet, I just wanted to contribute to something worthwhile…”*

“Cat…”* Lois breathed, all the previous dislike he had for the woman began to dissolve. “And Kent agreed with such a risky situation? What was he thinking?”

“I acted anonymously, he didn't know it was me… I didn't want a by-line…”* Cat looked up when felt Lois’ arms on her back, a friendly gesture at least, she smiled sadly at the brunette. “I just wanted to prove myself to people like you…”*

Lois shook her head still in disbelief. “Cat… that… was extremely brave, but extremely dangerous. And that means something coming from me.”

“I know, I'm afraid for my son now… and me. If Edge finds out it was me…”* Tears began to roll on her cheeks. “He’s a monster, Lois! The things I’ve seen…”*

Lois crouched in front of the blond and picked her hands in support. “I've never gone that far with anyone for a story, Cat, but I have done things I'm ashamed of in pursuit of a headline.”*

“What do I do now?”

“Perry White will help us figure this out.”*

“But I don't work at the Planet anymore...”

“You're Clark’s source and the Planet protects our sources, don't worry, we will pull all the protection procedures.”

That seemed to have calmed down the other woman.

The silence stretched a bit, they weren't exactly friends, but Lois supposed she was the closest person to her at Metropolis, apart from Jimmy and Clark, and apparently, the only woman.

“You must be relieved of Clark being, well, alive, I heard you were really upset with his death.”

“Mm, yes…”

“But?”

Lois raised both her eyebrows, Cat was a very competent gossip columnist, she had a way of getting information and now Lois could see why.

“I… heard Clark say he didn't like me… and that bothered me a lot.” She grimaced at herself.

“That's not true, Lois… Clark’s crazy about you, everybody knows that…” She smiled as if in an inside joke. “Even the umbrella stand knows that.”

“What?”

Cat laughed for the first time in weeks.

Chapter Text

Superman flew as fast as he could, Lois’s voice sounding faintly strained through the cellular phone line. The giant robot already had half of the hospital wing damaged when he arrived at the place. Taking advantage of his speed, he clenched his fist and punched the machine with the help of his momentum, sending the thing flying. The people cheered at his, admittedly, dramatic entrance. It was the first time he appeared in public after returning to Earth. But he didn't have time to accept the people’s affection, Lois' voice still pleaded for help somewhere under the rubble.

“Stay back, all of you”* Superman ordered. “I don't want anyone else getting hurt!”* His eyes shone, activating his x-ray vision. Luckily, Lois managed to hide next to a structural pillar, preventing her from being crushed by the slabs. She had another person in her arms, protecting whoever it was with her own body. His heart skipped a bit, the brave, selfless woman she could be also gave him nightmares sometimes. It had been for a close call, this one. He didn't want to think what could have happened to her if he hadn't returned to Earth when he did. Superman grabbed the collapsed slab, wanting to rescue Lois and the injured person she protected as soon as possible.

“Lois!”* He called when her face appeared behind the rubble, she had bruises on her arms and legs and cuts all over her face, but when she recognized him, she opened a big smile. It was the most beautiful thing he ever saw.

“Superman! Boy! Am I glad to see you!”* Her face then closed in a grimace, turning to the person in her arms. Gangbuster laid unconscious on her lap, his legs trapped under a fallen wall. His heart squeezed in a conflicting storm of emotions. “He needs help! Been unconscious for a while, I’m afraid his implants were damaged in the fight!”

“First things first, then.”* He crouched by their side and searched for the strongest part of the rubble to grab. “We need to be careful with his spine. You pull him out while I get this wall off him, ‘kay?”*

Lois wrapped an arm around his torso and propped him carefully on her body. “Got him.”*

Superman lifted the wall a little, not wanting to collapse the fragile remaining structure. Lois managed to drag him from where he was trapped. He frowned by the way Lois moved, she must have been hurt too! But Delgado was the priority for the time being. Activating his x-ray vision, he checked his spine first, not wanting to move him too much. “I can see some internal injuries, but it doesn't look too… wait a minute, there's some kind of machine inside his…”*

“Yes, I know.”* Lois sighed. “I’ll explain it to you later.”

“Implants? They seemed to be intact.”

Lois grunted something between an affirmative and a complaint of pain.

“What about you?”* He finished checking for more injuries on Delgado, finding none, he turned to Lois. “You’re hurt.”*

“I’m fine, Superman.” She protested.

“Let me check you, Lois...”

”I’ll be fine, Superman. Really.” She insisted. “We need to get Jose to safety.”

“Lois.”

“Fine!”

He flicked his x-ray on her body. The only serious injury was on her right arm. “You’ve broken your arm in two places.” His stomach clenched, he shouldn't have gone too long!

“That explains a lot.” She said, unimpressed, standing up.

Superman secured Jose on his arms, being extra careful with his back. “Wait for me? I'll be back in a jiff.”

“Go!”

Superman dropped Delgado in another hospital and returned with Lois in less than two minutes. The man was awoken now and medical staff was already taking care of his injuries. As soon as Lois touched the floor, she hurried to his side.

“How are you feeling, Jose?”*

The man opened a big smile upon seeing her. “Okay, I guess… the docs said it could’ve been a lot worse.”*

“Superman said your implants seem to be okay, miraculously.”* She glanced thankfully at him for a moment.

“So, I’ll be able to walk out of here in about a week.”*

Lois put the hand of her uninjured arm over his hand, and squeezed it. “I’m so glad, Jose. I really am.”* Superman had to avert his eyes from her demonstration of affection to another man. He didn't have any right to feel like that, he was the one who decided to not pursue a relationship, but the feelings were still there.

“Lois… you were right… about gifts having string attached-” The man began, but Lois shifted clearly uncomfortable.

“Not now, Jose. You get some rest.”* Lois retrieved her hand and took a step away from the stretcher. “Later on we’ll talk about it, okay?”*

“Yeah, okay.”* He answered, disappointed.

Superman still looked the other way, not wanting to intrude in a clearly private matter between them. 

“Thank you, Superman.” Lois spoke softly, after one last look at her boyfriend.

“I was glad to help. You're in good care now, and remember to check your arm, Lois. Glad you're all right, Delgado.” He nodded toward the man on the stretcher, who answered with a nod himself. “I’ll be going now.” And stepped away from the couple, he didn't want to see any more display of affection between them, guilt and jealousy eating from the inside out.

“Wait, Superman!” Lois jogged behind him. He slowed down until she reached his side. She bit her lips before speaking. “Have you heard about Clark?”

Superman frowned. “What about him?”

Lois began the movement to hug her midsection, but the pain on her arm must have stopped her. “He lost his memory.”

“What??” His grimace deepened, he most definitely did not lose his memory.

“While you're gone, his apartment was attacked by Intergang’s assassins, we thought he was killed, because no-one could find him after that.”

“You thought, uh… Clark was dead??”

“For a while, yes. But his stories kept coming in the mail, so we hoped he was just in deep hiding. Jimmy then found him wandering on the streets, without memories.”

Uh-oh. That was another level of complications he didn't expect on his return to Earth. He had a good idea of who was his doppelganger, but what on Earth was Matrix doing away from Smallville? “Where… is he, uh, Clark, now?”

“I think Jimmy’s with him in his apartment.”

“Thanks, Lois. I’ll see what I can do to help Clark.”

“Thanks.” Her shoulders relaxed and she smiled gratefully. “He's been through a lot lately, I'm glad he has friends to help him.”

Superman couldn't help himself and touched lightly on her shoulder. “I’m glad too.” He whispered softly, thankfully for her friendship.

***

Clark was at Perry’s office when a storm known as Lois Lane went through, of course a broken arm wouldn't slow her down.

“Clark! I heard you got the story on Superman’s return when I was in the hospital! Even with me being the person he actually saved!!”

“Well, Lois… you were in no condition to write it at the time, I simply took the chance.”

“It seems you are also back at your weasel self.”

“Any time, Lois.”

“Speaking of time.” Perry spoke. “Next week we have the Wonder Women's Award you've been nominated for, Lois. Will Jose be released until then?”

“Ah, no, the doctors said he’ll need to stay longer because of his previous spine injury.”

“How's he?” Clark asked worriedly.

“Annoyed... for being at a hospital bed again.”

“I'm sorry.”

“It's not your fault, Clark.”

“The police asked me to give them a list of the people attending the dinner, since we've been put under witness protection. If you're going to invite someone else to go with you, please, inform me beforehand.”

“Sure, Chief.”

“I will return to work then, Mr. White, if everything’s settled?”

“You do that, Kent. Good… good thing you're back.” The older man said a bit awkwardly, everyone knew Perry worried about everyone, despite all his bark.

“Thank you, Chief.” He stood up and began to walk to the exit of their editor's office, where Lois was standing close to the door.

“And you should be home resting, Lois. Goodness, did you come here just to pick on Kent?”

She grinned and left just after Clark, not giving their boss any more word.

“Ah, Clark?”

“Yes?” He turned to look at her in mid step.

“Uh, would you want to go with me to the award?”

“As your escort?”

“Why not? We've been to other events together and Jose can't go, anyway.”

“Ahm, sure, Lois, I'd like that.”

“Good, it's a date then!”

***

The Eradicator was safe in a lead box now, he should have hidden the infernal thing right from the start. It was too unpredictable.* He needed a place to safely store all these things.

Bing Bong.

He would need to file that thought for later. He walked to the door while searching for any super flagrant in his living room.

“Lois Lane…” He greeted, opening the door for her. “You're the only woman I know who could turn a sling into a fashion statement.”*

“Well, thank you*, you flatterer.” She smiled and offered a bouquet of pink roses. “Here… a little peace offering.”

“What?” She practically shoved the flower in his hands, “You didn't have to…”

“I wanted to.”

“Uh, thank you, then.”

He raised one eyebrow at her, in question. Why was she, of all people, giving him flowers? And pink roses to boot? Well, they could only mean friendship, better not think too much of this gesture and just pick a glass of water to put them on. Lois followed him with her eyes until he was back at the living room and stood in front of his mirror, to finish getting dressed.

“Clark…” She began almost reluctantly. “During that horrible week when we believed you're dead… “ She averted her eyes from him. “I thought a lot about… the disagreements we've had.”*

He raised his eyebrows again and a faintly amused smile appeared on his lips. Disagreement was the understatement of the century. He began tying his bow tie, politely waiting for her to resume her speech as she seemed to be looking for the right words in her head.

“Look, we'll probably always be in competition for stories… but we can still be friends, can't we?”*

He stopped in the middle of the final tug. So, yeah, only friendship. “There's nothing I’d like better, Lois.”* His voice was a mix of relief and regret, if that was possible.

“Good. I was afraid that you’d agreed to escort me to the awards banquet out of some stubborn midwestern sense of politeness…”* She got closer to him, watching him giving the final touches to his tie. “You were… a little distant last week.”*

“Last week, my mind was… off space.”* He gave her a strained smile. “But I'm much better now!”*

“Glad to hear it! Let's go!”* She grabbed his arm and pulled him with her in the direction of the door.

Clark stumbled on his feet while reaching for his dress jacket. “Hey, what's your hurry?”*

“I don't want to miss a moment of the banquet…I've been looking forward to it for months!”*

***

The conversation with Cat and her new French boyfriend was pleasant, but when the music started, Clark didn't waste time and stood up.

“Care to dance, Lois?” He offered.

She looked up and saw him extending his hand at her and that somehow always cheeky smile in his face.

“Why, yes…” Lois looked at their table neighbors. “Excuse us.”

Clark led them to the dancing crowd, making sure her injured arm was always protected, Lois noticed pleasantly. He was the old fashioned guy who's do that without bringing any attention to it.

They positioned themselves the best they could, since her arms still needed to remained immovable for a while. They laughed at the awkward first steps of their dance, but soon found a rythm that worked fine. Clark always been a good dancer, with was a surprise after years of bullying about his farm upbringing. He never took her barbs to the heart though, he was never ashamed of his origins, quite the opposite in fact. The mild mannered farm boy turned into big city journalist, who just scored one of the biggest exposes ever. Again. But this time she couldn't resent him for it. He deserved it. He risked his life and limb for this story. She could even be proud of him and for him. They were friends right? Despite all the murkiness of their relationship over the years, if she think about it, he was one of her closest, dearest friends. The little voice inside her head began saying something, but she shut it up, by blurting the first thing that came to her mind.

“Looks like you have some international competition, sport!”

Clark tilted his head. “Excuse me?” He frowned. “Oh! You mean Leblanc? Come on, Lois, there was never anything between Cat and me.”*

“I know. I just wanted to hear you say it.”*

“Why Miss Lane, I didn't know you cared!”*

Something just passed between them and the energy around suddenly changed. Lois felt her body being pulled towards him against her will.

“There’s a lot you don't know. Mr. Kent.”* And she heard herself saying against her better judgment.

Instead of backing off, Clark leaned down in her direction. “Such as?”* His voice was deeper than normally, causing a shiver down in her spine.

“Well…”* Their bodies were so close now that they ended up losing coordination and the spell was broken. “Ah… How to avoid your partner's feet?”* She teased, lightheartedly, and eternally grateful for the interruption.

“Oh, I'm sorry, Lois.”* He pulled away, laughing a little nervously and bringing once more a proper distance between them. “I hope you’ll forgive me! Guess I'm out of practice… It's been a while since I’ve gone dancing.”*

“You're not totally at fault, Clark. This slings complicates things…”* She then looked around like searching for something, anything! “Oh, look! There's the Chief and his wife…” She disentangled hasthly from his arms and made a quick exit in the direction of their boss. Her heartbeat raced with what just happened and she needed to put more distance between them as possible.

Chapter Text

He met the young man on one of the tallest rooftops, as they usually did.

“It's been a while, Nightwing.”

“Oh, hi, Clark. Thank you for coming…”

The usage of his name made him more attentive, this was not a professional call.

“I wasn't sure if you would get my message, the word was that you're off planet.”

“Yes, I was…"  He had finally made peace with his actions before returning, but when he arrived the world was upside down, he barely had time to breath, Darkseid was attacking, jimmy was at the hospital and Robin was dead. "What happened, Dick?” He had a pretty good idea himself.

“It's B… he’s… not well.”

“Because of Jason?”

“And Babs…” His voice trembled. “He blames himself, he's… more violent… getting reckless….” Nightwing sighed. “Last night, Alfred told me he almost got killed. And it has been a constant these last few weeks.” His face grimaced then. “I… I even think he… he let Joker die.. on purpose.”

Superman nodded in silence. “What do you want me to do? If not even you or Alfred are getting through… I'm not sure what I can do.”

“Just talk to him, he listens to you… you may think not, but he does. Guilt and hurt are consuming him.”

Superman slowly nodded again. “I have an idea.”

The young man smiled in return, relieved.

***

The bundle in his arms was begrudgingly silent, he could feel his annoyance growing by the minute, but Clark continued to show him all of his dearest parts of Smallville, until they stopped at a vast golden plain. The farm.

“I assume there’s a reason why you are showing me these things.”*

Clark kneeled and picked a bit of soil in his hands. “Yes.”* Then let it fall on the ground again. “You fight against Joker, against Cat-woman, against Two-face.”* He stood again. “But this…”* Superman opened his arms, as if embracing all the plains around him. “This is what I fight for.”*

“Very touching… honestly.”* He didn't sound very touched, really. “But it doesn't change how I fell about Robin’s murder… Batgirl’s crippling…”* His dark cape swung with the wind, looking very out of place surrounded by golden grass. “It's like I’m being shown things by the ghost of Christmas past… but it's all your past, not mine.”*

The silence stretched for a while, then Batman looked away. “Wait.”* His voice became harder. “This is what you said you fight for. This is what you were preserving and protecting when you killed those villains.” His tone became even more harsh now. “You want me to understand, don't you? To make up for not telling me the whole truth before…” He turned his head at Superman and despite his eyes being covered, he knew the look on the other man’s face. “You're asking for forgiveness. My absolution!”*

“No! I-”* Clark answered quickly, but then stopped himself. “Well… I suppose there might be some truth to that… but it isn't just about that!”* He looked away. “Tonight in the Batcave… I saw how you're pushing yourself. Punishing yourself for what happened to Batgirl and Robin… for what you could have, should have done differently.”* Clark then looked deeply into his white lenses. “I know… because the same thing happened to me.”*

The two heroes watched each other in silence.

Superman sighed and continued. “After I executed those villains, I adopted a new identity… one that went looking for trouble and showed no mercy. The kind of brutal hero I'd subconsciously decided I’d become. An identity modeled in some ways… on you.”*

That took Batman by surprise. “Brutal? Merciless? That's how I need to be perceived, but… I thought you knew me better than that. Better than anyone except four… three other people.”

“It… it was just subconscious*… and of course more than one thing can be said about me dressing up as Lois’ boyfriend… It doesn't mean I will do something about it or that's how I actually see you.”

“I know where you’re trying to go, I know I didn't pull the trigger on Robin and Batgirl… but I might as well have… I trained them… let them wear the costumes that made them targets… It doesn't matter that the Joker shot Barbara Gordon, not Batgirl, it was only a matter of time-”*

“Bruce.” Clark interrupted his string of self guilt. “If you kept them out of the costumes they wore, they would’ve just worn different ones… and without your training, Robin could’ve died long ago and Barbara might be worse than crippled.”*

Superman tentatively reached for Batman's shoulder. “That's what you need to remember… That's why I brought you here… What we do isn't about death… it's about life!”*

“You can't have one without the other, at least.”* He mumbled more to himself, but of course Clark heard.

“Bruce, I’ve self imposed exile in space, because I couldn't live with the decision I've made in taking someone's life. But that wouldn’t solve anything, wouldn't bring those three people back, nor relieve my consciousness of that. A very wise person helped me see that it would only deprive the people I care about of a person they hold dear. I needed to accept what happened and move forward, learning from that… Pushing yourself to the limit won't bring Jason back nor cure Barbara, there are people that care about you and would be devastated if you're gone.”

Batman stayed silent for a couple of seconds, looking away from Clark, in the direction of the small farm.

“Could we go someplace… less open?*” He asked almost in whisper.

Clark brought them back to the Simson’s Quarry, where Batman promptly found a small cave to hide in the shadows.

“Much better.” He said, leaning on the rocks.

“I'm surprised you didn't insist on going all the way back to Gotham.”*

“You’ll take me back when you're done here… when you think I've learned my lesson… Whatever that is.”*

Superman looked at his black cladded partner, pensive. “No. That's not it at all. You would’ve found a way to stop me if you didn't want to come. We would never have left the Batcave…. For all your posturing, you knew you needed to get away to work things out.”*

“What things?? That I feel guilty over what happened to Robin and Batgirl? That I think the world would be a better place without the Joker? That's hardly news.”*

Superman then reluctantly asked, after a few more seconds of silence if Batman had left Joker to crash in the helicopter on purpose.

“I barely got out myself. If I’d tried to save that grinning ghoul, we both would’ve died.”*

“What if it was the other way around? What if you were certain you were going to die? One hand chained to a bomb about to explode, no way to escape and in your other hand… Joker… Do you let him go so he can live and kill again or do you hold onto him?”*

Another silence.

“It wouldn't happen. There's always a way out.”*

Clark smiled at his answer.

“But since we're dealing with hypotheticals… What if you were in a similar position… faced with a relentless, destructive force that annihilates everything and everyone in its path. Including you. The only way to stop it is to kill it. Do you?”*

“If it was the only way? Yes.” He answered without second thoughts. “I’d bring it down with my last breath.”

Batman nodded and left the security of his shadowy little cave. “Remember Erik Stang?” Clark remembered. “Maybe Stang was right, look at us… talking about what circumstances we would kill under… he said we'd come to this.” They stopped by the water.

“No. Three deaths on my hands are three too many. If there's a fourth… I won't walk away either.” *His face was hard, but his eyes were looking faraway on the water.

“I wish I was that certain… What if your sacrifice means hundreds more die? Hundreds you could have saved if you lived… Even if it's only one life…. What if your death meant someone close to you would die, too?”*

Clark did not answer right away, then tilted his head and even attempted a little smile. “Well, for what small consolation it is… most of the people close to you are trained to handle danger. They have a better chance than most… but the people important to me… my parents, Pete, Lana, Jimmy… didn't ask to be part of this never-ending battle.”*

“The people in my life are on the front lines of that battle, they need to be able to handle themselves… your friends are on the side-lines, out of the direct line of fire… safer.”*

“That's what I try to do… but I wonder if that… could change… If I let someone into my life…”* Clark took a shuddered breath and closed his eyes.

Bruce watched the red and blue man struggle with something in his mind. “You could do that.”* Clark snapped his eyes open and looked at Batman. “I told you once, but I know better now… you can tell Lois Lane all your secrets… Fly around the world with her… build her a castle at the North Pole…”*

“Bruce…”

“Because it’s a fantasy. A deadly fantasy the minute the wrong people find out she's Mrs. Superman.” He sighed with sorrow.. “The only thing more foolish would be to take a child under your wing.”* His voice was loaded with sadness and anger.

“Does that mean you won't be looking for a third Robin?”*

His face, even underneath the mask, became darker. “I won't look for a third Robin, but I never looked for Dick Grayson or Jason Todd, either.”* Batman turned to Superman. “I didn't look for either of them. They found me… They were part of my life before I even met them.”*

Superman nodded in understanding. “I know what that's like. I feel the same way about Lois.”* He closed his eyes, but then rapidly opened again, tilting his head.

Batman got closer. “You hear something?”*

Yes, he heard a new life coming to this world and they needed to help.

***

“Clark?”* He heard his father's voice coming from downstairs. “That you I hear up there, son?”*

“Yeah. It’s me, Pa.”* Clark answered, exiting his childhood bedroom with a man behind him. “Sorry. I was just finding some, uh… regular clothes… for, um…”* He checked over his shoulder with the man who probably never wore a plaid shirt before. “A friend?”*

“Yeah. A friend, Clark.”

Jonathan opened a kind smile watching the men from the bottom of the stairs.

“This is my father, Jonathan.” Clark gestured to the elderly man and then turned to his friends. “Pa, this is… uh…” And frowned, not knowing how to introduce him.

“Bruce.” The gray-blue eyed man offered with his hand extended. Clark couldn't keep the smile away from his lips. He was trusting his parents with his true name. Only the first name, but still. Maybe his words did indeed cross that thick skull of his, even if just a little. 

“Bruce it is then. Nice to meet you.”* The men shook each other's hands, but he could see the glint behind his father’s glasses. He couldn't fool him even if he tried.

His nose picked up some amazing smell coming from the kitchen. “Is that flapjacks and bacon I smell?”* And he didn't even need his super scent for it, though in all fairness he had smelled the dough way before arriving at the farmhouse. Stepping inside the kitchen, Clark saw his mother taking an enormous piece of bacon from the oven. The special one they were gifted by one of their neighbors, prepared with herbs and all. Over the table, a tall pile of flapjacks rested next to the oversized bowls of toppings. “Ma! You always cook a big breakfast for you and Pa?”*

The woman grinned, putting the platter with the beautifully roasted piece of meat next to the rest of the breakfast. “Oh, I had this feeling you’d be by, Clark.”* Pa and Bruce entered the kitchen after him and his mother’s smile widened. “Not much in this town slips by me!”* Her eyes also glinted watching the dark haired man over his shoulder. “Now you and your friend better sit down and dig in!”* 

“Ma, this is Bruce… Bruce, my mother... Martha.” The youngest men exchanged one knowing look.

Bruce then smiled almost shyly at his mother. “Thank you, Mrs. Kent.”

“Let’s eat!” Pa exclaimed enthusiastically, tapping his fairly advantaged belly, before seating his usual place. “Ma made a special breakfast today!”

Clark picked the pot of coffee from the stove and the milk from the fridge and joined his parents and Bruce on the table. They passed the food and the coffee around as if it was like any other day. His father talked about the crops and his mother about the new calf. As if they just didn't know they were having breakfast with a billionaire. With Batman. His chest filled with pride for his parents, as he noticed Bruce relaxing little by little, they always knew how to sooth him when he needed to. Clark was more than glad to share it with his friend.

“So, I heard some ruckus happen at the Mullers. Dr. Water had a stroke during a call.” His mom fished on the town gossip.

“Yeah.” Clark answered between bites. “They took him to Midwest Med. He will be fine.”

“Thank god!” As if she didn't know it had been Batman and Superman who saved him.

“Oh! And Sarah had her baby!”*

“Yeah. A boy.”* Clark also answered nonchalantly under Bruce's gaze. Superman and Batman also assisted her on the delivery.

“That's wonderful!”* Pa beamed. “Any idea what she named him?”*

“Jason.”*

Bruce jerked his head up from his bacon, eyes and mouth wide open, but said nothing.

“At least, that was a suggestion.”*

“Oh, Jason is a fine name!”* His mother nodded in appreciation. “A strong name. Don't you think so… Bruce, was it?”*

“Uh, yes… Yes. I have a certain… fondness for Jason myself.”*

Clark saw through his calm exterior, the pain and guilt deep in his eyes. The three Kents observed Bruce for a moment, making him move slightly uncomfortable on his chair. Clark knew very well how his parents' scrutiny seemed to look deep inside his soul.

“You know, Bruce. Clark just returned from a little trip…. We’re mighty glad he’s back.”* His father reached for his coffee mug and took a sip. “It’s the kind of trip of people who see a little too much misery… like reporters do, of course.”* His smirk behind his mug told them what he was truly referencing. “They needed to go on it every so often… just to get away and clear their minds.”*

Bruce looked down at his plate for a few seconds. Clark waited, drinking from his glass of milk and watched his parents work their magic with Bruce. After a beat, he raised his head back at the Kents. “I think… most of us go on trips like that, Mr. Kent… sometimes to the most unexpected places.”* He smiled at the family. “And we come back… with a little better understanding of life… if we're lucky.”*

Ma nodded with a soft smile on her lips and Pa grinned. “Couldn't agree more , Bruce. Couldn't agree more. ”* Pa raised his mug with milk and coffee. “Here’s to the little journeys, then!”*

Clark smiled, licking the milk from his lips and clinking his glass with his father. Her mother joined right after with her milk and coffee. Bruce slowly picked his black coffee and joined the family.

“And the grand detours!”*

After the meal, Clark joined his mother on the sink and finished the dishes before she could dry her hand on the towel.

“I guess you have to go back, right? Almost time to clock in.” Pa said from the table, where he picked the morning edition of the Daily Planet with his byline of the font page to read.

Ma kissed his cheek in goodbye. “Make sure to drop Bruce safely back in Gotham, will you?”

Yes, of course they knew who Bruce was. “Sure thing.” 

“Won't be necessary. My ride is almost here.”

“Your ride?” Ma raised her eyebrows, curiously.

“Yes.” Bruce pointed with his thumb to the window, as a sleek black flying ship landed on the tall grass. “Let me introduce you folks to my family.”

They exited the farmhouse at the same time as the elegantly dressed man climbed down from the cockpit.

“Good morning, Master Bruce.”

Chapter Text

Their dinner date had started so well, lately they hardly could stay more than a few hours without turning it into arguing. Usually involving a caped hero. Lois was tired of always having to explain herself.

"It's him again, isn't it?! Superman?"*

Lois sighed. "Jose…"

"The Big S is back, so Delgado is out of the running!!"*

"I-" She sighed again. "I like you very much, Jose…"*

"But you love him! Believe me, I've seen this coming!"* He stood up from the sofa. "You don't have to explain your feelings to me…"*

"It's not like that, Jose."

He reached for her shoulders. "We've been through this before."*

"Exactly."

"You love him. A guy like me can't begin to compete with the ultimate man."*

"That's not-"

"I don't like it, but I do understand, Lois.* Tell me, if you feel you will ever love me?"

Lois couldn't bring herself to say anything. Jose nodded, visibly hurt and Lois felt tears forming on her eyes.

"I also know that you care for me enough to not want to hurt me, so I'll make it easy… I'm backing off as of right now. Grandma didn't raise no fool."*

"I'm sorry, Jose."

"I won't stand in the shadow of what might be, between the two of you. Stop me if none of this makes any sense to you.* If you think we still have a chance together."

Lois didn't move and Jose nodded again, before getting closer.

"Still got a green light, do I?" He hugged her. "Well then, this is the part where I say it's been swell, Lois. I always knew I was on borrowed time here…"*

She couldn't bring herself to deny this point. The only thing she could do was kiss him good-bye. Jose then picked his jacket and went to the door by himself, he stoped with his hand on the doorknob.

"Good bye, kid. Have a good one… I know I won't."* And opened the door, but before leaving, he turned one more time. " You know, Lois, you're one the smartest women I know, but I think you're being a fool for pining for Superman."

"Jose…" The door closed behind him. "I am not." She whispered to the wood.

She walked, tired and defeated, but somewhat relieved. She did care for Jose, but not like he cared for her and she knew the longer she waited the harder would be to end things amicably. Lois let herself fall on the couch and kicked her heels off her feet. She let a long sigh of relief leave her chest.

"I'm sorry… I'm so sorry..."

Her eyes landed on the photograph they took last Christmas, him in that ridiculous sweater.

"But it's not Superman."

***

Lois sat on her chair on the Planet, stirring her coffee and looking at nothing in particular, she didn't notice someone was at her side.

"Everything all right, Lois?"

She jerked her head up, to look at his concerned eyes and that thing on her stomach agitated again.

"I… uhm…" She sighed and rested her chin on her hand. "Jose and I broke up."

Clark reached her shoulder and squeezed in a supportive gesture.

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be… I had it coming."

He frowned and leaned on her desk, hugging the papers he had on his hands. "Why? You want to talk about it?"

Lois even considered talking about it, but wasn't Clark one of the reasons they just broke up?

"No, not really." She then thought better, Clark was a good friend, observant and supposed to be his stepbrother. "Why does everyone assume I have a thing going on with Superman? Did I ever… I mean… Ugh!"

Clark flashed her a sad smile.

"I'm sorry."

His voice almost cracked and Lois had to rethink the idea of discussing that particular matter with someone supposedly in love with her. At least that was what everyone said to her, she wasn't very sure herself. In fact, she was terrified of finding out the truth, his friendship was too important for her. The only one capable of keeping up with her. To give her as good as she gave him. She was terrified of actually mixing things up here. Since day one, Clark always made her nervous for some reason.

"It's ok, Clark, but thanks anyway."

Chapter Text

Lois watched as Clark cleaned his desk across from her in the bullpen. She couldn't believe he actually accepted a job at a magazine . Okay, it was a higher - better paid - position, managing editor and all, but Lois thought Clark was a reporter through and through. His desk was practically bare now, he made quick work of his stuff, being the insufferable orderly person that he was. Lois hoped he took longer to do that…. For some reason. Reason she didn't want to look too closely. She wasn't even aware of where that feeling had come from. Giving him the cold shoulder earlier was hard, everyone was doing the same to surprise him with the farewell party later, but it didn't sit right with her to treat him so badly, she saw the hurt on his blasted puppy eyes before.

Ugh, stop thinking about it, Lane!

She forced her eyes back to the screen, unlike Clark, she still had a deadline to fulfill today, but the letters blurred together. Her eyes returned to her colleague and friend putting away his nameplate inside the box she gave him. That was it. After the Christmas party turned into a farewell party, Clark would move on from her life. They won't share coffee every day in the morning, neither share lunches every now and again or go to social events together. Of course, they would probably meet from time to time, but he wouldn't be the constant in her life that he had been for so many years. They wouldn't compete for stories anymore, neither tease each other in good fun on the silliest of things. Coming to work suddenly fell much less appealing without Clark there. Lois swallowed a lump in her throat. What was happening with her??

Perry called Clark to his office and that was the clue for the staff, who began preparing the surprise for Clark. Lois reached under her desk and grabbed the real present she had for him, not that empty box she gave him earlier. Uau. That had been harsh, even for her standards. Maybe it was just her usual knee reaction to dealing with unpleasant feelings with anger that made her come up with such a cruel stunt. With a clearer head now, she hoped she could tell him, despite their constant fights and disagreements, that she actually truly cared for him.

The interns climbed on chairs to tie the banner wishing Clark good luck, some of the men brought tables together to the center of the bullpen and the rest of the staff put all the food they brought to the party there. Cat lit the Christmas lights and Dana kept her hearing tuned to any signs of movements inside the Chief's office.

The door began to open and Dana gestured to everyone to stand and wait for them to come out. Lois stood up from her chair and joined the rest of the staff under the banner.

“In that case…”* Perry's voice reached them, as they exited his office. “I think these people have something to say.”*

Clark’s face was a mix of surprise and confusion.

“Surprise!!” Lois heard the people around her cheer, but her throat remained tightly closed.

His face opened in a bright grin and Lois’s chest constricted. People started to hug him and wish him good luck on his new job, to keep in touch, to drop by once and a while. Lois stayed behind, waiting with her Christmas present in hand. When it was Cat's time, she produced a mistletoe from who-knows-where and tried to kiss Clark, who ducked just in time. Lois glared at the woman, biting back the urge to bark her away from him. She knew how the other woman operated now, but she still didn't like it one bit. Jimmy stumbled inside the newsroom after a while, puffing and huffing with the effort of running there. His hair was still short from his time sick after the Egyptian spirit possession episode, but his color was much better now. The young man seemed to be as shocked as she was by Clark’s sudden job exchange, almost crying while saying the planet wouldn’t be the same without him. Yeah, Lois could relate to that. It never occurred to her that Clark would leave… she took him for granted, a friend that would always be there for her. The lump on her throat returned and she shoved it down forcefully. It was time, there was no one else to say goodbye to Clark besides her. And she didn't want to do it, but she gave a step in his direction. When she reached his side, the staff gave them space, busying themselves with the food and drinks on the table behind them.

“This is for you.” She repeated her words from before, but now gave him the real present.

“It's not an empty box this time, isn't it?”

“Gods, no!”

Clark gave her a knowing tiny smile, receiving the packet from her. “Should I open it?”

“Go ahead.”

He pulled a dark blue sweater from the box.

“Well, I thought of giving you an ugly Christmas sweater, but since you seem to have a whole collection of them.”

Clark chuckled lightly and smiled. “Thanks, Lois.”

A moment of silence fell between them and Lois held her midsection. “We, uh… I’m going to miss you here, Clark.”* Lois blinked a couple of times, ordering her tears to remain unshed.  “You’re… the best competition a reporter ever had.”* Why was it so hard to speak up??

His smile softened, putting one hand on her shoulder. “Thanks. I’m going to miss the competition too.”

They fell into silence again. 

“I’m… Clark, you…” Uh. Just say what you think of him, woman!!  “I wanted to say that… that…”

However, Perry approached them before she could find the proper words, interrupting her perhaps ill-timed confession. “Here now, kids! Kent’s not going overseas! He’s just moving across town!”*

“You’re right, chief. We’ll keep in touch.” Clark retrieved his hand from her shoulder, turning to the rest of their colleagues, Lois felt its loss too keenly for her liking.

The party kept going for about an hour until Perry barked his traditional ‘get to work, people’, sending the staff back to their posts. Lois sat on her desk to watch Clark going to his for one last time, he secured the box under one arm and turned to her.

“Well, I guess that's it.” He smiled sadly. The first time in the day that Clark showed some negative emotion about leaving the Planet. He stopped in front of her. “You guys did not make it easy to say good-bye today.”* Lois couldn’t find anything to say to him, it was hard for her to say goodbye too. And just when she thought… when she finally realized that- “So much of my adult life is tied up here.”* He looked around. “Even these walls seem like old friends.”*

“The Planet is one big family, Clark.”* She managed to say.

He nodded, agreeing. “And as such, a time comes when individuals have to leave the family to strike out on their own.”*

She frowned, that was one strange thing for him to say. Was this the same guy that called his parents every week and received his mother’s baked goods in the mail regularly?

“I appreciated all the experience I gained in this place, but now it's time to move on.”

That was exactly what she feared.

“Good-bye, Lois.” He perched the box on his hips and leaned down. His lips brushed her cheek and her insides stirred in turmoil. But before she could find her voice, Clark gave her his back and walked away. 

As Lois watched him disappeared from the newsroom, it struck her how wrong all that felt.

***

Lucy perched on the stool, glazed on the tv, the racers were in full steam now and the crowd in the stadium also in similar attention. Lois on the other hand absentmindedly poured hot water on her mug.

“Hurry up, Lois! The race has already started, you're going to watch it, aren't you?”*

“Be right there, sis.”* She searched for the flavor she wanted on the tea box. “Who's leading?”*

“Even-Steven so far!”* The younger sister said excitedly.

“Hmm” Was her answer, she picked the spoon to add sugar.

Her sister teared her eyes from the screen for a while, to look at her sister.

“Wow, for a Superman fan, you don't seem too enthusiastic…”*

Lucy had noticed she’d been a bit down lately.

“I'm rooting for Superman, of course I am.” Lois came to the living room and leaned on her buffet. “Though, in all fairness, Flash should win this one.”

“What?? Is Lois Lane really saying this?”

“Speed is Flash's thing, he should win, but of course I'm rooting for Superman, I always will.”

“Right…”

They watched the race for a few minutes in silence, then her sister couldn't hold it anymore.

“Are you all right, Lois?”

Lois waited a half second longer to respond. “Oh… I don't know…. I've been feeling sort of out of it all week…”* And sighed, looking away from her sister's concerned gaze. She knew what was nagging her, but didn't dare to put in words so far.

“Something happened?”

“No… yes… Kind of.”

“What's it, Lo?”

“I’ve…"* she bit her lower lips, then sighed. "Uh, I'm feeling off like this since Clark left the Planet.”* There, she said it.

That certainly wasn't what her sister was expecting and widened her eyes in surprise. “Wow, Lo… I never realized you were so hung up on the guy… He... just doesn't seem like your type.”*

Lois gave Lucy a wary smile and shrugged. “You know, he's a pretty decent guy!”*

“Alright!”

Lois took a sip of her tea and looked longingly at a photo they took on the last Christmas party at the Planet, Clark was ridiculous in his Christmas knitted sweater. She sighed again.

“And even though I was kind of hard on him at first… Clark was always there for me when I needed him…”*

Lucy could barely believe what she was seeing unfold in front of her.

“Guess I was a little obsessed with my career and Superman… and everything to really notice him.... of course, dating around didn't help.”* A sad, regretful expression took over her older sister's face when she looked again at her. “And now he's gone.”*

“Lo…” She wasn't sure what to do, no wonder her sister was kind of lost herself, finally figuring out she had feelings for someone after all these years.

“I really miss him.”

“Lois, it's not like he's gone to another planet, he just changed jobs. He didn't even move out from his apartment, did he?”

“No…”

“So call him.”

Lois didn't answer that.

Chapter Text

His parents' reaction puzzled him, he didn't see the motive to celebrate the passage of years in life span, it only meant they are getting closer to their own demise. And Lana seemed to be hoping for a significance in touching her mouth with his. He didn't get it. And why is he supposed to give her something for getting closer to death? The earthling’s actions were getting more confusing with each passing day. Perhaps he should retreat to his Fortress and study a bit more.

He flew behind a building to change for his earthling identity in superspeed, he actually needed to be in a conference by now, but the Kents insisted he sleep in their farm last night. It wasn't the most efficient way to use his time, but something irrational in him made him obliged.

Maybe he should reevaluate all of his distribution of time. If he spent less time maintaining this charade, he would have more time to change the world to a better place. Maintaining two identities was rather an illogical concept. Maybe he should give up on-

“Clark??”*

He made sure his glasses were on, as per muscular reflex, and turned to look at the woman crossing the street in his direction.

“Is that you??”* He could detect doubt in her voice.

“Lois.”* He greeted curtly.

“Hey, long time no see, Mr. Managing Editor!”* Kal-El failed to see the reason for her humorous smile. “I must say…”* She gave him an once over. “It certainly looks like the new job is treating you well!”*

He tilted his head again, her smile also waiting for something in return, he had only adjusted the quality of his garments in accordance with his new expenditures and earnings. He supposed he needed to return her compliment, as social norms dictate. “You look nice, too.”* An awkward silence followed, so he forced a common ground conversation topic. “What's new and exciting at the Planet?”*

His super hearing picked an increase in her heartbeat rate. “Tell you what…”* She reached for his shoulder. “Why not come over to my place for a special home-cooked meal tomorrow night…” She bit her lower lip. “And I’ll bring you up to date.”*

Kal could tell she was nervous, all of her posturing was indicating so, but why would she? They didn't have to maintain a social rapport anymore. He frowned. “Thank you, but no, Lois.”*

Her hand immediately left his shoulder and clutched at her purse.

“I see no reason for us to socialize now that we're no longer colleagues.”*

She took a step back. “Oh.”* He could hear her breathing getting labored and her jaw tensing up. Was she mad about something? “See you around, Mr. Kent.” Her voice sounded very differently than before, she turned her back to him and crossed the street again.

Kal tilted his head again, trying to understand why such an emotional response? He put his hand on his hips, still watching her retreating form. If his memory was correct, her behavior was always emotionally responsive, so he decided the most logical thing was to just let go and fulfill his obligations for the day, so he could return to the Fortress to begin a couple experiments.

Chapter Text

The scene he saw upon arriving at his fortress after throwing the blasted Eradicator on the sun was at the same time impressive and completely ordinary. His mother had somehow gathered the remaining functional robots to help with the cleaning up and was ordering them around. His father also helped.

Both the elderly Kents opened a big smile when they saw their boy coming from the higher tower.

"Clark!" His mother called to a hug and he went instinctively. He could hear both their sighs of relief. He was affectionate and caring again.

"I'm really sorry I worried you two so much, you had to come all the way to Metropolis after me."*

"Nonsense, Clark." His father joined the hug. "You're our son, we will always worry about you and we will always come for you if you need us."*

"Thank you, Pa, Ma, it was you, the love you taught me, that brought me back."

"Seeing you like that was really scary, son." Her mother added.

"I'm sorry… I… I know you guys have this fear that one day I will just turn into something else. And believe me, since you told me about the spaceship, so do I."

"Clark…"

He sighed and finally disentangled himself from his folks' embrace.

"That's why I always kept my Kryptonian heritage at arm's length. Didn't want to get too close, afraid I would start doubting who I was."

"It's just natural, son, we raise you to be human, all your beliefs are humans."*

"Exactly, I think of myself as human*… but the truth is… I'm not."

Clark then opened his arms to indicate the half destroyed space.

"This is also part of who I am… this thing with the Eradicator may have been a mess, but showed me parts of myself, it put knowledge about Krypton in my brain, built this place…"

"What are you talking about, son?" His father asked, apprehensively.

"Maybe it's time for me to stop running away from my alien heritage, maybe it's time to learn about it and, perhaps, one day, I can accept it.

The older couple exchanged wary glances.

"Don't worry, I will do it on my own terms now and at my own pace*. I'm still me, Clark… Being stripped of all my emotions only showed me how important they are and... it is what really makes me... me."

The parents shared a sigh.

"The Eradicator wanted to turn me into the ideal Kryptonian, logical and dispassionate. As Jor-El said, something very important was lost at some point and I think… I think it was love. Love about things that inspire us and love for the people we care about. Is life without love really living or just existing?" He looked around, at his alien Fortress of Solitude. "It makes me wonder if the Kryptonians weren't already doomed even before the planet was destroyed."

He then reached both of his parents' shoulders.

"And I'm really grateful that you're the ones who found me and gave me all the love in the world."*

"Oh, Clark!" Martha was practically in tears.

"And… there is another thing I've been running away from this whole time."

"And what's that, son?" Jonathan asked, but Clark only smiled in answer.

Chapter Text

You know when something is going on at the office, the overall noise around is different, today people were even trying to peek at the glass windows.

“Why’s everyone huddling around the Chief’s office?”* She asked and everyone looked at her with mixed faces, some with knowing smirks and others with fear.

“Haven't you heard, Lois? Perry’s talking with-”*

The door opened and from it came the Chief with his cigar and, as if from the ashes of its smoke, that smiling face with glasses she was spending too much time cursing lately.

“Eh? What’re you all standing around for?”* Came the chief’s bark, but then he just began to make the announcement without waiting for answers. “Oh, okay, Clark Kent is back where he belongs, on the Planet! Now you can all go to work!”*

“Uh, I’ll just be on a freelance basis for the present.”* He said, adjusting his glasses, to no one especially, most people had already returned to their work stations. Just Lois was still around, so he turned to talk to her. “My experience as editor of Newstime Magazine kind of killed my enthusiasm for the nine-to-five routine…”*

Lois squinted and turned to walk away. “Being fired can do that to a fellow!”* Yes, she was still mad, no one can rub salt in the wound like Lois, Clark almost smiled.

Perry cleared his throat before something bad happened. “Let's all get back to it, okay?”*

She began to walk away so quickly, Clark had to jog to catch her. He needed to talk to her.

“Lois, wait!”* He called, but she didn't stop. “One of the things I missed at Newstime was the friendships I had here.”* He tried again, it wasn't his first choice to talk with everyone around.

He heard her taking a breath, as to begin to speak, but did not stop walking across the bullpen. “Friendship??”* Her voice was almost a growl. “I don't think so. You mean work relationships, don't you??”*

Clark refrained from the urge to groan, he's already frustrated enough with himself for refusing her invitation for dinner.

“You know…”* She then entered that babbling state she does when she’s really bothered with something. “You leave a job you’ve had for a long time, tell your coworkers that you’ll keep in touch… but you never do find the time! It happened to school friends all the time, Kent.”*

“Lois, I really meant to keep in touch…”*

At that she turned, furious and pointed a finger on him. “Don't pull that one on me!” She huffed. “I looked you up, to see how you were doing! You were downright rude to me!!”*

He could see in her face how hurt she was. “You're absolutely right and I'm apologizing to you now…”*

She didn't seem convinced with that. “I know you are a dork, Clark, but that was so… I don't even know what that was!!”

“Lois…” He took a step closer to her, she didn't put more distance, it was a good sign. “I can't really explain my behavior... I... wasn't myself lately… and everyone, including my folks, was being shut out of my life.”* He reached for her arms and she let him touch her. “Without the people I care about… it wasn't much of a life, really… I miss you.”

Lois touched the lapels of his suit. “I reached out to you…”* She was almost whispering. “You turned me away.”*

Clark took a leap of faith and cupped her jaw, she let him. “I'm reaching out now. Please, don't turn me away, Lois.”*

“I…” She then rolled her eyes almost in annoyance. “Oh, damn!”* And smiled.

Clark smiled too and pulled her in a tight hug. Lois rested her head on his chest and he nuzzled her hair.

“Welcome back.”* She said, muffled by his suit. “... You swine.”*

Clark snorted and reluctantly broke their embrace. Lois had a playful glint in her eyes and that made Clark relax his still tense shoulders.

“Of course, I meant that in the nicest way.”*

Clark laughed. “Of course!”* He then took another chance. “Would you be averse to continuing this over dinner sometime?”*

“That could be arranged.”*

They foolishly smiled at each other, oblivious to their colleagues being dragged to the newsroom's windows to see the current villain starting to attack the city.

Chapter Text

Everything seemed in order with the food. Good. She really didn't want to blow this up.

“Hey, you know I got nothing against the guy, Lois!”*

Her sister was pestering her since she told her about their date. And since this morning. And since she started preparing the food.

“It just really bowls me over to think you're cooking this 5 star dinner for… Clark Kent!”*

Lois huffed. “You know, little sister, I thought flight attendants were supposed to be polite and tactful.”*

“We're not on a 747, Lois.”*

“Bingo!”* She put a pan with relatively more strength than necessary on the counter. “And this dinner is just for two! So unless you plan to serve it to us-”*

Bing. Bong.

Lucy jumped to her feet to answer the door. Clark was kind of startled to see the youngest Lane at the door.

“Hi, Lucy! I didn't know you were joining us tonight.”* Always polite, Clark.

Lucy gave him a knowing smirk and shouted to her sister. “Looois, Mr. Right is here!”*

“Lucy!!”* She admonished from the kitchen.

“Ooops! Sounds like my cue to go!* Have fun, kids! See you!” Laughing, the younger one let Clark enter and exited the apartment herself.

“Lois?” He called for her, walking indide the living room. It was different from the last time he was here. Her photo with her father was new too.

“In the kitchen.”

Clark walked to the dining room and searched for her through the hatch connecting to the kitchen.

“Did you cook?” He half teased, half asked, apprehensively.

“Careful, Kent.”

He smiled his way out of it and continued. “It's really nice of you to have me over, Lois… Despite Ma’s efforts at teaching me, I'm not much of a cook myself.”*

“Well, these are the only dishes I know how to make that don’t involve chocolate or ice cream, so this is probably the only time I will cook something.”

“And I really appreciate the effort.”

“You'd better!” Lois then checked something on the oven. 

"Can I help with something?" 

“Could you, please, open the wine? It's on the dinner table.”

“Sure.”

He found the table already set with the bottle, opener and glasses. After putting the wine to breathe, he heard her coming in his direction.

“You remodeled the apartment.”

That seemed to caught her by surprise. "I did… just one thing or another, I felt like I needed a change, after everything.”

“I know how that feels… though my last remodelings weren't exactly on my plans.”

Lois snorted and went for the bottle, not much of a patient person that she was. “It was really lucky you were laying low when it happened, Clark, they only identified that PI through DNA.”

“I still don't know what he was doing at my apartment… but let's not talk about work tonight.”

“Couldn't agree more.” Lois poured one glass of wine.

“As for our… uh, relationship…”*

Lois grunted and jerked her head. “I hate that word!” She poured another glass and turned to give it to Clark. “Why don't we just keep things light…”* He picked the glass and Lois smirked. “And see where it takes us, okay?”*

Clark smiled and they clinked their glasses. “I can do that”

“Good.” They took a sip each, without diverting their eyes from one another. The silence that followed was heavy with the ultimately awareness of the change past-friendship their were making. Her smart purple eyes glared at him, calling him for a challenge. She licked her painted lips after swallowing the wine and Clark wanted to kiss her. He could allow himself to think that now, right? Oh, how he wanted to kiss her, but she made clear of wanting to take things slow. He'd respect that. They didn't blink during this charged stare down, or maybe it was just his perception of time that went to the frits lost in her eyes. 

Bing. Bong.

The spell was broken and Lois snorted, finally averting her eyes from his and he already missed having her full attention like that.

"Looks like Lucy forgot her keys again!”* She put her glass on the table and went to the door. With the door halfway opened, she stopped shortly just before making a remark.

“Oh!” Lois gave a nervous laugh and leered at Clark. “It's you…”*

Perry entered, followed by his wife, and took the situation in, the wine, the table set for dinner, and slowly looked at Clark then to Lois, then cleared his throat in the awkward silence that arose.

“Uhm… Sorry to interrupt.”* He scratched his head, clearly uncomfortable. “But I knew you wanted to study these papers before Monday, Lois.”*

“Glad to, Perry, starting tomorrow.”*

Another silence, Clark thought it was better to say something. “Hi, Perry. You and Alice are looking good as always.”*

Before Perry could say something, his wife interfered. “We’ll get out of your way now, Lois.” And added very bitterly. “Goodbye, Mr. Kent.”*

“Uh… nice seeing you, Alice. It's been a while.”* He tried.

“You should have expected that when you stabbed my husband in the back, Mr. Kent!”*

“Huh?”*

Alice marched at him with a finger pointed. “You heard me, Mr. Newstime! Perry took your rookie mind off the streets and molded it into a writer’s!”*

“B-B-But…”*

“So how do you pay him? You not only quit, but have the gall to come back crawling back begging for mercy!”* She even put emphasis on each work with her pointed finger. “You, Mr. Kent, is a real stinker!”*

The silence after stretched and since no one made any comment against what had been said, Clark could only sigh in resignation. He knew he had hurt people he cared about when he's influenced by the Eradicator and couldn't really explain what happened.

He was saved from any more awkwardness by the phone. It was Lois' time to sigh. It seemed their date was falling through even before starting.

She picked the phone while Alice was still glaring at Clark and Perry visibly trying hard not to take sides.

"Telephone call for you, Perry. It's the City Desk."*

"Oh!" Visibly relieved for having something to distract, he picked the receiver from Lois. "Okay, Lester, shoot."*

Lois exchanged a rueful look with Clark.

"Four radioactive paranormals are invading Lexcorp!? Wow!"*

Lois jerked her head back at Perry, immediately more interested in her boss call.

"Send the best photographer you can find! I'm on my way!"* Perry hung up the phone and began to walk to the door. "C'mon, Lois! Let's hit the streets!"* He called already with the hand on the door knob.

Lois reached for her purse on the buffet to follow the editor and turned to Clark in mid movement with an apologetic smile. "Look, Clark, someone has to stay and watch dinner and since you're just a freelancer… pluh-lease be a dear and do that?"* She was already at the door. "Ciao!"*

"Sure, Lois, whatever you want."* He answered to the closed door.

At least, she wasn't calling off the dinner, just postponing. Clark went to the kitchen and turned the oven off, just in case. He would go too, as Superman, but the fact Perry didn't ask him to tag along really struck home. Did he agree with what his wife had said? And Lois did too? He couldn't really blame them if they did, after the way he treated them.*

At that point he was already out of the window, in tights and cape, heading towards Lexcorp, which was indeed being invaded by paranormals.

***

After dealing with the tragedy of the astronauts, he flew back to Lois' apartment, hopefully in time to finish their dinner. It took years for them to get to this point, he would not give up that easily.

He heated up the soufflé with his heat vision just in time to hear Lois searching for her keys at the door. He super sped there and opened it for her.

"No need for those, Lois, I'm still here."*

Her eyes widened in surprise. "Gosh, Clark! I can't believe you waited for me!"* She was still holding her keys to open the door. "Sorry it took so long..."* She then made a movement to walk inside her apartment. "But when I tell you about the block-buster happening at Luthorcorp-"*

"Wait."*

Lois eyed him inquisitively, as Clark then gave two steps forward with confidence he rarely let slip between his personas. What happened to Terri Henshaw, their mission ending in such a tragedy, their life together, everything she held dear vanished before her eyes in just a few hours, her words struck him very deeply.

"I don't want to talk about Lexcorp, work or anything else..."* His voice and posture was a mix of both sides of him. He wanted to be truthful here. "Except us."*

Lois watched him with some awe, he was emanating a very different aura and she felt incredibly attracted to it.

“Just…” He got even closer, practically towering her. “There's something I wanted to do, something I have wanted to do for a long time."

"What is that?" Her whisper was barely audible, her voice momentarily weak and her senses in high alert by his presence.

"I know you want this relationship to proceed at its own pace, Lois, but I think life is too short to sit and wait. Sometimes you have to push life, take chances… and if you fail… at least you can say you tried."*

"Like what?"* She whispered again. Her heart beating so loudly inside her chest she was sure he could hear it.

Clark cupped her face in his gentle touch and got closer. "Like this."* He stopped just a hair away from her lips, she could fell his hot breath in her skin, waiting just enough to see if she would be averse to it. When she didn't move away, he finally, finally, locked his lips with hers. Lois widened her eyes in surprise, but the gentleness of his lips against hers made her relax her shoulders, her purse and keys fell on the floor and she barely noticed.

The kiss started chaste, just the smooth and soft warmth of each other's lips. When Lois sighed against him, closed her eyes and wrapped her arms around his neck, he opened his mouth to deepen the kiss. Lois accepted and felt her body being pressed against his, Clark's strong arm embraced her around her back and the hand on her cheek ran to her nape. Her own hands began to run over him: back, shoulders, neck, and finally threading on his hair while drinking on the passionate kiss it had become.

At one point she totally forgot where she was, maybe she even whimpered, she wasn't sure. But before she could lose all composure, a sound down the stairs made her remember they were in public.

They broke the kiss at the same time, maybe Clark had heard it too. They remained with their heads close together, the tip of their noses almost touching while recuperating their breath. The world suddenly seemed very quiet and still.

Lois then gave a feral smile. "Who would have thought?" Her voice was cracked, almost sultry.

"What?" His voice was equally affected.

"Clark Kent likes smack women on their doorstep."

"What??" His face reddened very quickly and he looked around, embarrassed. "I- uh..." He clearly had also forgotten where he was.

Lois chuckled at him. "I'm just teasing you, Clark… So… Should we get inside? Did you keep dinner warm?"

He beamed. “Yeah.” She then pulled him by the arm inside the apartment, kicking her purse and key with her and closed the door rather forcibly.

Before Clark could say anything else, he felt himself being thrown against the door and hot soft lips attacked him again.

Chapter Text

Clark waited for her at the Planet's office, he hoped he wouldn't be going too strong, but yesterday had been just incredible, he wanted to see her as soon as possible again. He dreamed of kissing Lois for so long, and the reality of it was so, so much better. He could still feel her body against his, her fingers dancing on his hair and her lips warm and thirsty… cleared his throat and smooth his tie, it was better he stop thinking about that, not with her just leaving the elevator.

Lois opened a big smile when saw him standing there and his heart flustered with happiness. When she got closer, he made a flick with his hands, pretending to be a trick of magic - he was just using his superspeed, really - and a single red rose appeared between his fingers, surprising her.

“Oh! Clark!”*  She raised one eyebrow at him, but still reached for the flower and instinctively put it close to her nose, not that roses had any particular scent. “And good morning to you too, Mr. Kent!* I never knew you were such a magician.” Her eyes glinted delightedly at him.

“There's a lot you don't know about me, Miss Lane.”* His voice came out a bit deeper than usual. “However, it seemed an appropriate way to thank you for a wonderful evening.”*

Lois smirked and lightly smoothed his tie with the pad of her fingers. “It was fun, wasn't it?”*

Clark himself was very aware of the silly grin he had on his face. One of their colleagues walking by frowned at them before entering the City-room. They shared a knowing glance and walked to the bullpen themselves.

“You know…”* Lois began again when Clark opened the glass door for her. “I still have some soufflé left over… maybe you should drop by and help me finish it.”*

She walked by him to enter and his grin grew even sillier. Lois wanted to see him too, outside work, that is, and soon. “I'd like that, Lo-”* He almost bumped into her, as she stopped mid-entering the newsroom. “-is?”*

The whole room stopped to look at them. Someone whistled.

“So the Lois-and-Clark expedition arrives at last!”* Someone shouted.

Someone started singing a romantic song and people laughed.

“Ahm, I didn't expect our arriving together to provoke such a demonstration…”* Clark leered at Lois, they're still at the door.

“Don't let it bother you, Clark.”* Lois spun the rose on her fingers and walked inside. “Good morning, Allie.”*

The blond intern had a big smile on her face. “Morning, Ms. Lane, Mr. Kent… Just ignore them, they don't have a romantic bone in their bodies. I’m happy for you two.”*

“Uh, thanks?”* Clark frowned.

Lois sat on her chair and Clark perched with one leg on the desk, he looked around at some of their colleagues still whistling and giving them suggestive looks. Lois booted her computer and he scratched his head. “How does everybody know?”

“Clark, we're reporters… aaaand…” Lois pointed a finger at him. “You did lay a big hug on me the other day.”*

“You’re the one who hugged me!”

“Uh-hu, you did.”

He was very sure she did, but let it go. “Well, not the most discreet move, was it?”*

“Like I said, Clark, don't let it bother you. Office gossip is a way of life…”* She tilted her head at him and leaned closer. “In fact…”* She reached for his tie, grabbed it in her hand, a dangerous fling behind her eyes, and started pulling him down, closer. A movement she had done a couple of time before, but never with this intent.

“Eh? Lois? What are you-”*

She inclined her face to a better angle  “Let's really give them something to talk about…”* Their lips were almost touching. They closed their eyes.

“Well, well, well!”* Cat’s voice interrupted the moment. “What have we here??”

They broke apart, regretfully. Clark noticed in her eyes how annoyed she was for being interrupted and his chest inflated with pride. She wanted to kiss him! A lot! Cat also noticed and snorted.

“Don't stop on my account, darlings!”* Clark’s ears became a pink color and he adjusted his tie, embarrassed, trying to hide it. But Lois saw it and chuckled  “So this is finally lifting off, isn't it?”

A man came from behind Cat and the awkwardness was palpable, it was Jose Delgado.

“Ahm, uh, hi, haven't seen you in months, Jose… how…are you?”*

“Getting by.”*

“He's a doll, isn’t it? My ex-husband decided that the police protection wasn't enough, so he hired Jose to guard my body. I haven't had so much attention in ages !”*

Lois snorted, she could see through Cat’s play now. She just liked to fluster people, Lois couldn't deny it wasn't an effective interviewing disarming weapon.

“Come along, love. The keyboard beckons!”*

“I thought Cat didn't work here anymore.”

“Perry gave her a part time spot. She has a huge following, after all.” Her terminal rang.

“Mmm… Lois, do you think-?”

“Just a minute, Clark.” She picked the phone. “Daily Planet. Lane. Yes…”*

He smiled fondly at her, she was already full into reporter’s mode. He stood from her desk to let her work.

“Clark?”* She asked, interrupting her call when he began to walk away.

He gestured to her don't stop. “I'll see you later.”* And waved the manila folder with his story he needed to drop at the Features Desk.

She smiled, picked the rose and gave a little peck on it

Clark beamed, almost tripped on his feet then practically hit his face on a collum on his way out, and this time he wasn't even faking it, she made him a complete mush inside.

Outside, he couldn't stop doing pirouettes in the air. It would be a rough day waiting for their encore date later on.

***

Clark awoke with the rain in his face, he didn't know how long he had been out cold, he didn't know if it was dark because of the time or because of the downpour. He tried to move, but his body was heavy and ached all over it. At some point he managed to prop on his elbows and noticed his shirt was unbuttoned, leaving the supersuit completely visible. Panic struck him, how had he stayed like that?? His memories of how he had ended in that position began to return and he jolted his body to move, despite being in terrible pain. He needed to find that woman! She knew his identity. She was conceded to Lex Luthor. She had a kryptonite ring!!

“Say, there…”* A voice close to him scared the hell out of him, Clark had not heard him approaching! “Are you okay, mister? You don't look so hot…”*

Clark fumbled for his hat and found it close by, he put it as quick as he could to hide his face. His superspeed was gone!! “It's all right… I just… slipped. On the wet grass. I'll be fine.”*

He stood and put as much distance to the groundskeeper as he could, at some point the man must have decided Clark wasn't too bad and stopped following him. Clark tried to fly away, but as he had imagined, no flight either.

His clothes were completely soaked, he doubted any taxi would accept him in their cars, so he walked home, he wanted to start investigating that woman. Perhaps it would be wise to ask for Batman's help, he was the one who alerted him of someone possibly knowing his true identity. He didn't have the Daily Planet’s database to support him anymore.

Oh, snap! Lois!!

It was late, but not too late. He hoped he hadn't put his foot in his mouth with her already. Again. So he ran, his body too slow for his liking, too heavy and too sore. It was all wrong.

“Clark!” He was almost three blocks away from his place when he heard her voice. “Where were you??” She came to him, under an umbrella, her face had that line of worry on her forehead. “What happened to you?? You're soaked!!”

“Uh, I… was following a lead, but…”

“That bad, huh?” Sympathy invaded her features and he felt himself relaxing. At least, she didn't appear to be mad and he didn't appear to be hurt.

“Atchim!!” Clark sneezed and it didn't blow half the cars away, which meant no super breath, as well.

“We better get you out of this wet clothes, Clark, we wouldn't want you to catch a cold.”

Clark felt like in a role reversal at the moment, but his head began to pound, so he just let himself be led to his apartment.

Lois shoved him inside the bathroom and ordered him to take a hot shower. “Honestly, Clark, you need to take better care of yourself!”

When he left, feeling so much better, the delicious smell of soufflé filled the air.

“Lois?”

She had two plates with her and put them on the coffee table. “Call it a sixth sense.” And smiled.

“You're just the best, Lois.”

“And don't you forget, Kent.” She sat on the couch and tapped the place by her side. “Now, c'mere.”

He exhaled in relief when he sat, his legs were stiff with the unfamiliar use of his muscles.

“And I thought I had had a rough day waiting for this.”

He smirked, pulling her to a kiss. The next several minutes were a blur and he found himself half on top of Lois on the couch. His cheeks burned when he broke off the kiss. It wasn't his intention to go so hard on her so quickly.

"Uh, sorry. Slow down, right?" He asked, tensing up in fear of her reaction.

Lois tried to regain her breathing and clreared her throat before speaking. "I guess, if we want to finish this souffle tonight." She grinned finally and he breathed again.

They could do this. Lois was his girlfriend! He could barely believe that! Then he kissed her again without been able to resist and the souffle went cold.

Chapter Text

Clark flew through the window just as Lois arrived at his door. He quickly changed clothes and arranged an excuse for why he wasn't ready yet.

He opened the door to see Lois dressed in a very flattering white garb.

"Gosh, Lois, you look fabulous!"* He said as a greeting.

"And you're dressed a wee bit casual, aren't you, Clark?"*

He adjusted his glasses and let her enter the apartment.

"And you're a wee bit early, I just finished ironing my shirt."* He explained, while picking his burgundy dress shirt from the sofa.

"I don't iron anymore."* She threw her coat on the armrest and picked the tie resting on the back of the chair. "I hang my wrinkled clothes in the bathroom while I shower. The hot steam takes the wrinkles right out!"*

"It'd take a lot of steam to fix my shirts…"* He pointed while putting the shirt on.

"Maybe I'll help…"* Lois put the tie around his neck with a playful grin on her lips and proceeded to tie it. When she was finished, she gave a little tug on the tie and Clark bent to her height. "If you ask nicely."* 

His eyes glinted and the air became suddenly charged. She didn't know why she was being so bold in such early stages of their dating, but he had such an energy around him sometimes…

"My mother used to warn me about girls like you."* His reply was somewhat cute, though.

"What'd she say?"*

He gave a final tug in his coat’s belt and grinned cheekily. "She told me not to let them get away."*

Lois opened a big smile. "Good advice."* And put her arms around his waist, pulling him with her through the door.

Clark had kept his lips closed sealed about the place they were going to dinner, but she gasped when she noticed the restaurant they’re heading to.

“Is it? How?” The place was so hyped lately, it took months to get a table there!

“I know someone who knows someone…”

Lois squinted her eyes at him, he wouldn't ask who she thinks he asked, right?

They were welcomed in the place and guided to a very romantic corner.

“If you're trying to impress me, Clark, consider the mission accomplished.” Lois said, after he helped her sitting and sat in his chair himself. “But you really didn't need to, really.”

“It's the first time I'm taking you out on a date, Lois, I wanted to be something special.”

Her lips bent in a soft smile and she took the opportunity to take the man in front of her in, while the maître gave him the wine options. His dark suit and burgundy shirt definitely brought out his blue eyes and enhanced his handsome face. Not that she had never noticed his face before. Actually, when the haze of fury subsided after they met, the fact the slime was also handsome, only made her even angrier. She chuckled to herself. She must have known it would come to this.

“And for the lady?” The maître asked, Lois had been completely distracted with his face that she didn't hear a word of what they were talking.

“Why don't you surprise me, Clark?”

“You don't like surprises.”

“It depends on the type of the surprise.” There was her again, talking in innuendo again. What had come up with her?

Clark cleared his throat and his ears reddened just a bit, but she saw it and something inside her inflated with pride.

“But seriously, Clark, tell me how you did it?”

He snorted. “You really can't hold yourself, can you?” His voice had that smooth sound to it, that in the beginning, she thought it was a patronizing tone, but now she could see that he was just fond of her antics. Clark shrugged. “Remember that story about the low waged kitchen workers I did a couple of years ago?”

Lois had to narrow her eyes and dig inside her brain to find the story in question. “The one with the dishwasher kid?”

He beamed at her. “That's the one. He's the sous chef here now.”

“Really?” She remembered how invested he was with the story, something about his own experience as a kitchen aid when he was traveling the world.

The maître returned with the wine and began the serving routine. Lois watched him taking a sip and nod, Lois had to hold back a snort, because he said to her once he knew next to nothing about wine. He was just a farm boy from Kansas, after all.

He leered at her with mirth in his eyes, he knew what she was thinking about and she grinned back at him. 

“Next time we should try role reversal,” Clark’s eyes glinted and his lips pressed in a tight line. Was he… was he saying what she thought he was saying? Was Clark goddamned Kent playing with this kind of innuendo? Oh, boy, this was going to be fun!

Her face must have shown her surprise because he chuckled and looked back at her with something in his eyes that made her skin crawl… no; it wasn’t that. It made her shiver. It made her whole body feel goosebumps down to her toes. Had he always looked at her like that? 

He reached for the glass of wine and waited for hers. “To… uh, us?” Lois laughed, he was doing so well, so far, but clinked her glass with his.

Chapter Text

“Are you prepared for that?” He looked at her, sitting at his side on their way to the venue.

“That what?”

“It's our first public event as a couple, there will be a lot of people who know us there.”

Lois restrained an amused smile. “Why? Are you wary of being seen with me?”

“Are you?”

“We've been to many events together, Clark. Besides, you're going to dominate this award, I will even be proud of you... sincerely.”

“Well, thank you.”

“This is your night Clark and I am going to hang in your arm decoratively, don't worry.”**

“Lois…” He began, worried, but he saw the amused smile creeping into her face. “I promise the next award you win, I will hang in your arm decoratively, as well.”

“You'd better, mister.”

He leaned to kiss her. “Please, mind the make-up.” He smiled and only laid a light touch on her painted lips. “Thank you.”

The taxi arrived at the impressive property, the fancy party was happening around a huge lit swimming pool. The place was already in full swing and they identified a lot of acquaintances there.

“Looks like everyone in journalism is here!”* Clark said, embracing Lois on the shoulders. “Hey, there's Steve Lombard!”*

“Quick!”* Lois snuggled closer to whisper in his ear. “Let's make our way to the other side of the patio or we'll end up on that dippy show of his!”*

Clark chuckled and leaned further down in direction of her. “Quickly!” They spun 180° and began to walk another path to reach the amazing view of the pool, giggling like fools.

“What is this??” A small brunette woman came in their direction. “When I heard the rumors I couldn't believe it!”

“Hi, Janyce.” Lois greeted the woman.

“Good evening, didn’t know you’re back.” Clark added.

“Oh, not officially yet, anyway. But what I want to know is how the hell that happened!” She pointed at their embrace with her glass of champagne.

“Oh, you know, things have changed a bit since you've been transferred.”

“A bit??” The woman laughed. “Do you remember how you had a chip on your shoulder just for being in the same room as Clark?”

"Uh, yes, I do remember. Sometimes more accurately than I wanted to."

He laughed goodhearted and looked at Lois with fond amusement. “Well, no one holds a grudge like you do, Lois.”

She raised an eyebrow in defiance and crossed her arms. Clark smiled and unwrapped his arms from around her shoulders.

“Drinks?” He offered it as a peace offering to save face.

"She clearly doesn't hold it anymore, do you?"

"Oh, but I do." She answered her colleague, but was looking at Clark.

He took a breath to say something that no doubt would push her buttons.

"Didn't you offer to get us drinks, Clark?" She interrupted him.

He nodded, smiling at their colleague, before walking away in the direction of the Bar.

Clark traversed the left side of the pool, greeting people with nod along the way. the “Someone got lucky." Came a deep voice from his left side halfway there.

“Y’know, your voice isn't exactly the one I want to be hearing in my ear tonight.” Clark tapped the earplug, scanning the area for the man, without stopping his way to get drinks.

He found him closer to the band, standing alone with a glass of whiskey in his hands, the slightest movement of his head indicating that he was aware of Clark's gaze on him.

“Are you really doing this?”

“Yes, I am.” He approached the barman and asked for two glasses of champagne.

"I thought you didn't drink when you fly."

"Today is an exception and you know alcohol doesn't affect me." 

"Are you sure you won't be too... distracted to help Inspector Henderson with security?"

"You are not the only one who can multitask."

He received the flutes from the barman and began to make his way back to Lois, still talking with Janyce.

“Now for the love of god, Bruce, stay out of my ear.”

Clark could hear the annoyance in the faint grunt before the commlink was closed. He approached Lois from behind, her back was totally exposed on her very fashionable strapless one piece. He couldn't resist depositing a little kiss where her neck meets the shoulder as a greeting. She turned to look him with a mischievous glint in her eyes

"There you go." He offered the cup to her, in a very low voice in her ear. She thanked him with a kiss on his jaw.

"I, uh, going to leave you two to that ." The woman was a bit embarrassed, but then tilted her head to squint at them. “You know what? I suppose… this... makes sense, you've always been at each other's throats, anyway.”

They both smirked. The woman grinned and began to walk away, but then turned again. "Ah, good luck at the award, Clark, though I doubt anyone else can win this thing, but you."

"Thank you, Janyce."

They barely had time to tap their glasses and have a couple of sips, before another person came to greet them. It seemed Clark really was in high demand tonight.

"Lois?" They were finally almost at the dance floor when the sing-song voice made their way through the party's rumble.

"Bruce Wayne!" Lois opened a smile. "What a surprise! What brings you to Metropolis this time?"

"Ah, business this time, I'm afraid." He reached for her free hand and placed a gentle kiss on her fingers. "And, of course, couldn't let the opportunity to see an old friend." He gave her his best playboy smile and then turned his attention to Clark. "How are you doing, Kent?"

"Fine, Mr. Wayne, thank you."

"I couldn't let the evening pass without telling you how much I admired your Intergang series."*

Clark put his arms around Lois' shoulders and brought her closer to him, he watched with fond eyes her put one arm around his waist and the other rest on his chest, just above his heart. "It was a joint effort." His words were soft in his lips. "I started it with Cat Grant as the inside source, but Lois wrapped the whole thing... brilliantly." He was still looking at her and for a second, she watched him with the same glow in the eyes.

Bruce frowned slightly, but rapidly put the mask back on. "Oh. You're even sharing bylines now?"

Lois laughed, turning her attention to the billionaire. "No, no, we're not sharing bylines. There's a limit for everything, Bruce."

He laughed that unsettling laugh of his.

"And you look like you're alone tonight."* Lois continued.

He approached Lois with that playboy pose. "With all the beautiful women here, I see no reason to tie myself to only one."*

"Well, well, well, look who's here!"* It interrupted whatever Bruce was going to say next.

Luthor's voice made the three of them struggle to keep their disliking at bay and out of their faces. They instinctively knew something was up and obviously not just a few minutes later, the venue was blowing up all around them.

Chapter Text

He found Batman at the address in the note he had left, he was sitting on a couch in a ransacked living room.

“Come in… I believe I've found the final pieces of our puzzle.”*

“My god, what did you do to this place?”* Superman askes, slipping inside through the window.

“Nothing.”* He casually opened the book in his hands. “I'm afraid that things have been as you see them for the past couple of weeks. Do you think that I would need to ransack an apartment to find what I wanted?”*

“No, I suppose not…”* Superman grumbled.

“This mess was the work of whoever killed Amanda McCoy, two of them from the looks of things.”*

Clark began to search the place around with his x-ray vision, McCoy was the woman who stole the Kryptonite ring from Luthor, the one who knew his secret identity. He and Batman had broken into Luthor's lab the night before and found her credentials in his computers. 

“Try not to touch anything, their fingerprints are all over the place.”* Superman looked at Batman again, he was getting up from the couch, offering to book in his hand. “A quick survey suggests that they stole a small television and a stereo. Items easily fenced for cash. But they completely overlooked the great treasure…”*

Superman accepted the small book and raised one eyebrow at him.

“Amanda’s diary. Go ahead, take a look.”* There were many equations and seemingly unconnected scribbles.  “You’ll find that it holds a great many secrets… including that of your double identity.”* Superman flipped through the pages in superspeed until he found the part of his identity. “It seems that Ms. McCoy was an accomplished computer scientist whom Luthor himself tapped for a pet project of his… delving into the secrets of your past. She was very good at her craft.”* He found that part in the book too. “Fortunate for you… unfortunate for her. Luthor couldn't believe a man of your power would never deign to live the life of an ordinary human being.”*

“This solves our scrapbook mystery, as well as the reason why that PI was in my apartment.”

“Yes, Luthor ordered the data to be purged from his computers and fired McCoy on the spot, but she left Lexcorp with a few items, among them, your mother’s scrapbook. She hoped to use it to personally vindicate her conclusion, so she mailed it anonymously to your desk in the Daily Planet… but every time she tried to confront you…”*

“Well, it was a crazy couple of months, to say the least.”

“She became frustrated and even began to doubt her own analysis, eventually she became so obsessed with proving her conclusions that she hired that private detective to shadow you, yet, she never told him why he was watching you or what he was looking for. The mystery must have intrigued him, so he broke into your apartment to search it… the same night that it was visited by an Intergang hit squad…”*

“And now, they're both dead…” Superman sighed and ran his hand on his face.

Batman nodded. “There's nothing you could have done, Clark… you're not even on the planet when it happened.”

Superman winced at the memory of the other thing he couldn't help, because he was off planet.

“Amanda blamed herself for his death.” Batman continued the tale without mentioning it, but Clark knew he had also thought of Robin for an instant. “And became even more determined to prove your double identity, in desperation, she used her knowledge of Lexcorp security systems to break into Luthor’s vaults and steal a ring he had fashioned… a ring he had stopped wearing after its kryptonite stone cost him his hand… According to the diary's final entry, she planned to confront you with the ring and force you to admit that you're Superman.”*

It was Superman's time to nod. “And so she did. She tricked me into a meeting in a remote cemetery… Now everything makes sense. She had me at her mercy with that ring and she just wanted me to say I was Superman. I passed out soon after and didn't know what had become of her until you told me about her death.”*

“After she left you, she must have walked into the wrong neighborhood at the wrong time… and was killed for the contents of her purse.”*

“Then, the killers must have the ring.”*

“No, they do not.”* Batman reached for one of the biggest compartments on his utility belt and procured a dark metallic box. “My best guess is that Amanda dropped the ring during the attack and it fell to the street unnoticed until it found its way into the possession of a wandering vagrant on his way out of town.”* Batman gave a last close look and then extended his hand with the box towards Superman, who glared at his white lenses. “I found him in Gotham shortly after he had died and the ring came into my possession.”*

Superman frowned his eyebrows and his lips formed a very thin line. “You had it all along.”* His voice had a coldness he usually kept out.

“For these past few days, yes.”*

Superman slowly reached for the box and picked without taking his eyes from Batman. Clark was clearly bothered with the whole thing.

“It was connected to a death in my city. That made it my business, I had to learn the full story behind it.”*

“Kryptonite is a very dangerous element. Outside of that lead case, its radiation would kill me in a very short time.”*

“I know.”

“You put me at a disadvantage.”*

“I know.”*

They watched each other in silence for a few seconds, the air was heavy.

“If the mystery had not led you here, would you have given me the Kryptonite?”

“But it led me here.”

“Bruce, be careful on this path, or it might be a day you won't be able to discern between friend or foe anymore.”

“It is fruitless to deal in hypotheticals on this, Clark, the fact is that it led me here and I gave the ring to you…. I don't care if you trust that or not… An anonymous call to the police should suffice… oh, and I found a Smallville High School flag and a photo of the Kent Family in the middle of the debris, I would want to get rid of it before the police arrive, if I were you.”

Batman disappeared through the window.

***

Alfred had laid down his Daily Planet exemplar and went back to the kitchen to bring the coffee. The big headline of Edge's trail pleased him and he ran his eyes on the other stories until he found the other one he was searching for. Clark had written McCoy's story.

“Good… very good.”* He murmured to himself.

“You seemed inordinately pleased by the morning news, sir.”*

“Yes, Alfred, our little trip to Metropolis seems to have produced some positive results-”*

BONG. BONG. BONG.

“Good Lord!”* Alfred almost let the tray with the coffee fall to the ground.

Bruce immediately stood from the chaise. “The alarm! Someone is in the cave!!”*

He ran to the office and hit the button to open the passage behind the old grandfather clock.

“Stay put, Alfred, I don't want you involved in this!”* The butler nodded and saw him disappearing in the passage.

He quickly changed to his Batsuit and ran down the stairs, his mind already conjuring the most terrible scenarios. Batman stopped in his tracks when saw Superman standing in the middle of his trophy room. He seemed particularly interested in the T-Rex.

“I remember that one.” He pointed to the huge 10 cent coin. “I liked what you did to the place. It suits you.”

“You didn't come here to critique my décor. What do you want?”*

“I'm sorry, I'm not in the habit of barging in on friends unannounced… but then, we're not exactly friends, are we?”*

Batman didn't answer and waited for Superman, the man in blue joined his hand behind his back and began to pace. ”You know, there are many who still think that Batman is a psychotic vigilante, as insane as the ones he hunts down… I think they're wrong. I think Batman is simply a very sane man who tries to bring justice to an often insane world.”* Superman stopped and looked at Batman, who was still in silence. “We are very different, you and I, practically the opposite, I would say… but I like to think that we are working for a similar cause.”* He took a few steps towards the caped crusader, his eyes watching Batman very attentively. “I am aware of my power, Bruce, and one of my greatest fears is to lose control one day… There were beings who tried to subvert my will, control me, in the past. They never completely succeeded, but I live in fear that someday, they might…. “* Superman brought his hand back to the light and in his hand was the lead lined box he had given him a couple of days before. “If any of that ever happens, if I ever lose control, there should be a way to stop me.”*

“The kryptonite??”*

Superman offered the box to Batman, opening his fingers around it. Batman didn't move.

“Do you realize what you're asking?”*

“Yes. Yes, I do… I want the means to stop me to be in the hands of a man I can trust with my life.”*

The silence stretched for one full second before Batman took a step forward and retrieved the box from Superman's hand. He nodded at their silent agreement and flew away at superspeed.

Batman stood there, still in silence, the lead lined box in his hand and a deep frown behind the cowl.

“Computer.” He said after a few moments. “Open new personal audio: Priority alpha, research non-lethal applications of the element 126, common denomination: Kryptonite, and its possible isotopes.”*

Chapter Text

He caught up with her at the copy room.

"I arranged some tickets to a concert this weekend, do you wanna go?"

"Concert?"

He approached and whispered in her ear, giving her goosebumps. "Whitesnake." 

She groaned. "Ugh! I've forgotten you had that piece of blackmail material on me!"

"Don't worry, Lois, I still like you, your penchant for hair metal and all. And I will only use it against you once in a while." **

She grabbed his tie and brought him to a sound kiss on the mouth. They were avoiding any great displays on the Planet, but apparently offering to go on a guilty pleasure concert was a bit too much of what she could hold herself back.

***

On Saturday night, Clark pressed the doorbell and a Lois dressed in jeans, t-shirt and black leather jacket came out of the door. She was even wearing sneakers.

"You look comfy."

She laughed and assessed his appearance as well. "And you look completely out of your element."

He adjusted his glasses. "Not that much."

Lois snorted at his terrible lie and kissed him hello. "Thank you, anyway."

She slipped her hand in his and pulled him towards the elevators.

"I must warn you though, Clark, you got yourself on this, I have plans of getting drunk tonight, you can't properly enjoy a hard rock show without being at least a bit inebriated."

"Ah, is that how it works?"

Lois gave him a sly smile. "You might see a not very good side of me tonight."

"I don't think that actually exists, Lois." He answered with that dreamy face of his.

"Oh, you!" She gave him a playful slap and looked away quickly. That was very silly.

"Are you blushing?" He asked, surprised.

"Of course not." She averted her eyes from him again, grumbling her answer.

He smirked knowingly at her, she could be cute sometimes, despite her rough exterior.

As if reading his thoughts, she took a breath before talking again. “Not that you haven't seen my worst side before. In fact, for a while it was all that I showed you.” She made a beeline inside the elevator car as soon as the doors opened.

Clark tilted his head, in reluctant agreement, following her into the car. "But it also showed me how much you value your work and have pride in it. It inspired me to be the best reporter I can… I actually learned a lot from you, Lois."

"Clark…” She breathed his name in a way his whole body swayed in her direction.”... you never told me that…”

He took a step back and shrugged. “You never asked.” 

Lois shook her head. “You're amazing… How do you do that? You always look for the best in people even when they walk all over you…”**

 His face acquired a soft expression and he shrugged again. “I guess that's just who I am… but seriously, Lois, don't worry about what I might see or have seen... I know who you are and I think you're amazing."

The doors began to close with the two inside.

“You know..." He continued. "If we think about it, the only time people seem to express themselves is when they’re passionate, when that polite veneer of society drops off… you know, like when they're fighting…or…”**

"Or making love."**

Clark gaped his mouth at her and his ears and cheek assumed a bright red tint. Lois, on the other hand, took advantage of the enclosed elevator car they’re in and attacked him with her lips and teeth and tongue.

“Can we just cancel the whole thing and come back in?” She whispered against his lips.

He barked a surprised laugh, more to hide his embarrassment, but kissed her with the same enthusiasm. Too bad the trip down to the ground floor was too short. Or maybe it was good. The things escalated a bit too quickly. Clark wasn't sure if he could maintain the decency of his pants if she continued to roam her hands on his body like that. And to make those sounds.

In the end, they managed to get to the concert hall, after all. To tell the truth, Clark’s mind wandered away from the band for the most part of the night, he was more of a country feel-good music guy, but it didn't matter, Lois seemed happy and that was what mattered the most in the universe.

Chapter Text

Clark pulled the paper sheet from the type-writer, smashed it and missed the glass container he was using as a trash bin. Not that it would have fit inside, anyway. Discarded drafts covered the Fortress’s floor, and even the robots had given up on trying to keep the place tidy. He grunted and let himself fall on the cushions of his floating chair.

“Who am I kidding? This is going nowhere!”* He had hoped a change of scenery would strike him out of this block. But no. He slipped a glance to the panel and saw it was almost time to return to the Planet. When did the entire weekend go by?? He floated to the wet chamber and checked himself in the mirror. His beard had grown and his eyes had dark circles under them. He hadn’t slept in three days. He had completely lost track of time!

***

His desk was a mess of papers and files and mail. He was usually a very organized person, but his novel’s due was making him crazy! His super nose detected an awful smell coming from the elevator and for a moment he thought Swamp Thing had left the green for a spin. But it was actually just Lois with a mood very similar to the creature. She marched inside the newsroom, covered in grime and who knows what else.

“What is that smell?”* He teased her when she was at listening distance.

“Don’t start, Clark!”* She answered between her teeth.

“How’s your weekend?” He pushed further, not being able to resit playing with fire.

Lois glared at him. “I spent the last two days knee deep in refuse aboard the Lazlo… The garbage scow stuck in Metropolis Harbor with no place to dump his cargo. Tell me your weekend was better?”*

“Three days of pure solitude!”* He sighed. “And I couldn’t finish a single page of this novel!”*

“Uhm, so you spent it in a different kind of stuck.” Lois gave him a self-deprecating smile.

Clark snorted, then ran his hand over his tired face. “I’m blocked, Lois. Big time.”*

She tilted her head, noticing the dark shadows under his eyes. Maybe he needed a little encouragement. “You? I don’t believe it!”* She pulled a chair from nearby and slid it to sit in front of his desk. “C’mon, I saw you knock out a top-notch front-page story fifteen minutes before press!”*

He smiled gratefully towards her. “News, not fiction… reporting the facts is a lot easier than making them up.”* Clark noticed a specific mail between the files of his last story. “Besides, since I rebuilt my apartment, I owe everybody. Look at all those bills!”* He showed the batch of not opened bill mail in his hands. “Even with the final payment from the novel, I’m in debt through the next year!”*

Lois chuckled, picking a magazine with a photo of Luthor in the cover from his pile of folders. “Well, you could always send your resumé to LexCorp. Their Execs start with salaries higher than ours combined.“*

“Right. And I could also make a deal with the devil.”*

Lois snorted, opening the magazine to read whatever was written about the businessman.

“Where is Clark Kent!?”* A strident voice cut through the noise of the newsroom and Clark froze in place for a second.

“No.”* He whispered in panic and looked at Lois. “Not her!”*

Lois raised one eyebrow. “What’s wrong?”*

“She found me!”* Clark then stood up from his chair in frantic movements and grabbed his jacket from the chair. “It’s Carol Chavez-Shiffman… My agent!”* He looked around as a fugitive trying to find an escape route. “I’ve been dodging her calls all month. My novel’s, well, sort of due the next week.”*

She widened her eyes then started openly laughing. “It’s nice to see you panicking over a deadline for once!”*

“You’re having fun, aren’t you?”

She dismissed his barb and waved her hand at him. “Go on! I will cover for you.”*

Lois rested her chin on her hands to watch the man tripping over in his rush to the storeroom, almost bumping into Jimmy on the way, and shook her head. How did she end up thinking that was somehow adorable?

***

They were preparing for a movie night when Lois decided to ask the question that was stuck in her throat since the night before.

“Clark, can I ask you something?”*

“Sure, Lois.”* He closed the fridge to give her his full attention, something in her voice must have warned him.

“Is there something between you and Joanna da Costa?”*

“What??”* His expression would have been funny in another situation, but the twisting and turning inside her killed all the playful mood in her.

“Last night, when the ambulance arrived, you were so…”* She knitted her eyebrow, searching for a word that stung less, she felt his hands touching her upper arms worriedly. “... so protective of her…”*

“She was in shock, Lois. That man was shot in front of her.”*

She ran her hand on his chest, staring at his eyes for reassurance, the ball of confused feelings was still roaring inside her guts. “She's one of Luthor's top lawyers, Clark…”* She doubted she would really be in shock of a man being shot in front of her. “She probably knows everything about how the Griffins got those guns.”* She actually didn't have any proof of that, but something horrible inside her just wanted to keep Clark away from that woman.

But then, Clark looked away and left the reach of her arms. “What does this have to do with us?”*

Lois felt a cold down in her spine. And suddenly she was angry.

Clark wouldn't look at her at the moment… He wouldn't, would he??

She walked past him, grabbed her things that were on his couch and turned to him before reading the door.

“Look, we’ve been seeing each other for a while… and if this isn't going to be exclusive, tell me!”*

His suspiration was equally unnerving and excruciating. So it was the words that accompanied. “Lois, I don't have time for this… my novel’s due, the story-”

“You're using work as an excuse to shut me out??”* Lois stormed out, but before slamming the door, she turned one more time to him. “Clark, were all afraid of failure, we're all insecure… that's what makes us human!”* He winced. “When you want to talk to me, I mean, really talk… you know my number.”*

Lois felt her heart hammering inside her chest in her stride to the elevator, she was holding her feelings very closely so far, but this episode showed her that she might have let go more than she was aware of.

Clark sat down in one of the chairs from the dinner table and stared at the closed door in silence.

***

Clark was angry, he was frustrated, he was sad and he felt guilty above all of everything else.

“ ‘Staring at the blood-stained and bullet-riddled body of Preston Trager, all he could do was laugh bitterly… when you make a deal with the devil, he always takes your soul.’ ”* Lois finished the reading out loud and looked inquisitively at the man gaping at her. “Pretty hard-boiled, Clark.”*

He walked at her and snatched the pages from her hands, not gently. “Give me that.”* And Lois raised her eyebrows at him.

“Sorry, I was waiting for my copy and it was laying around.”* Lois leaned on her elbows at her desk and supported her cheek with one hand. “So that's how your book ends? Guthrie kills Trager?”* She asked unimpressed.

“I think that's pretty clear.”* He grumbled, looking at the pages in his hands. He didn't like what he had written, but he was so angry!

Lois spun her chair to face Clark, challenging and intimidating as only she could be. “Blowing the bad guys brain out is no solution…”* She crossed her arms in front of her. “And it's surprising to read from one of the most good-hearted men I know… Nihilism doesn't become you, Clark.”*

He knew that. Of course he knew that.

“I was just venting out, Lois.” He sighed, lumping his shoulders and looking down.

Lois took a second to decide whether she touched the subject or not, but then, she wasn't known for refrain asking the hard questions. “This is about Joanna da Costa, isn't it?”* He lifted his head, just a bit, but didn't answer. “You blame yourself for her death.”* That wasn't a question.

Clark raised the papers in his hands and then took a deep breath, throwing the pages at Lois’ trash bin. “You're right, Lois. You're always right.”* He then spun in his heels. “It doesn't solve anything.”* And slowly walked out the office.

***

He ran as fastest as he could, and that was something, he caught her just when she was entering a cab.

"Lois, wait!"

She stopped halfway through the movement, but didn't look at him.

"I need your help."*

"My help? In what?" She then turned to look at his face.

"I need your help to write the story."

She looked at him incredulously. "Are you kidding me?"*

"I've been coming at the Luthor angle all wrong. I need another perspective…"* His shoulders lumped. "I know I've been a jerk lately… I'm sorry."*

Lois, who still had one foot inside the cab, exited it completely, holding the door open. When did she begin to yield to everything because of those puppy eyes of his? "My life was much easier before you came to Metropolis, Clark Kent!"*

He opened a big sunny smile and she snorted at the ridiculous bubbling feeling at her stomach. She then closed the taxi door and leaned at the window to speak with the driver. "Take off. I'm staying with the jerk." The man only shrugged, amused, and hit the gas.

***

Everyone who walked by their desks couldn't avoid the surprise, curiosity and no small amount of disbelief. Did they seem to be doing what they seemed to be doing?

Her desk was in an uproar of the photos and old registers of land properties. Her notes scattered all around it and both of them pressed together in front of her computer terminal. Clark typed and Lois dictate the pace. They were surprisingly efficient.

Just a couple of minutes before the afternoon edition's deadline, Lois and Clark walked inside their editor's office with a copy in their hands. 

"What's this?" Perry was intrigued, he had seen what was happening at the newsroom earlier. And what happened even earlier, when they had burst with each other and he had to fish Clark back to the office at the pier. He didn't like office romance. It was something to do with another woman. He didn't like office romance.

"It's our story."* Lois surprised Clark by answering herself.

" 'Our?' ” Perry looked suspicious at the piece of paper in Clark's hands. "Are you feeling all right, Lois?"

"It turned out my story and Clark's story were the same story."

"Ah." He slowly picked the offered piece of paper. "I, ahm, assume everything is… Fine again, isn't it?"

"Just read the story, Perry." Lois cut him short and Clark gaped at her roughness.

He looked down and his eyes widened even more with each word he read. His smile was taking over his whole face when he finished and looked up again.

"COOOPY!!!" He yelled, getting up from his chair in a haste.

He reached for both of their shoulders, they had proud grins on their faces. "We can even nail Luthor with this!!" 

"That still remains to be seen, he's a snake, after all."* Lois reasoned.

Jimmy opened the door, out of breath. "Yes, Chief?"

"Get this to Andy, we need another headline!"

"You're not even going to edit it?" Lois asked.

"There is no time and I'm sure Kent just doesn't do typos." Jimmy received the paper and ran off again. "I never thought I was going to see the day we would print a shared byline of the two of you."

Right now, Perry loved office romance.

"Good work, you two. Why don't you two take the rest of the day off? You still have to finish your novel, Kent."

***

Lois approached him while he was putting on his jacket.

"So… where do we stand exactly?"

He sighed. "I'm sorry, Lois, I-"

"I'm sorry too, Clark. I should have been more understanding of your situation. It's just… I guess I let jealousy get the better of me."

"Lois, I would never do something like that to you."

"I know you wouldn't."

He smiled and cupped her cheek in his hand. “I’d like to take you to dinner to make up for the other night, but I need to finish my novel or my agent will eat me alive.”

“Do you know who to finish your novel now?”

“Yes, thanks to you. You reminded me where I want to go with my stories, fictional or not.” A little tug crept on his lips. “I guess we can say you saved the day today?”

Lois smiled back, pleased with his answer, but then hesitated. “Do you… want more help? I mean… I could…  proofread?” To which he raised an amused eyebrow at her. “Or…” She bit her lower lip and rested her hands on his chest. “Just to keep you company.”

Clark’s heart swelled, and he beamed at her. “I’d like that very much.” Then wrapped her in his arms.

***

The sun was rising between the buildings when Clark pulled the last page from his father’s old type-writer. He stood from the diner table to give the last batch for Lois to proofread. He took a moment to take in the image in front of him. Lois dressed casually in his couch, barefoot and probably very close to a caffeine overdose for staying up all night, helping him, after a full day at work. She was amazing and so, so beautiful.

“You amaze me, Clark.”* She said, putting the red pen down and he beamed at her. “Three hundred and thirteen pages of typewritten manuscript… and only seven typos.”* She had that pressed lips amused smile on her face and looked at him teasingly.

Clark rolled her eyes. “That's all you have to say?”*

She raised one eyebrow knowingly at him. “Is Rebecca Carr supposed to be me?”*

“No.”* He answered immediately, but then tilted his head. “Yes. Sort of. ”* He picked the envelope from the table and reached for the bunch of paper in her hands. “No matter how I try to separate the two, my life always filters into my work.”*

Lois smiled softly. “And vice versa.”*

He agreed tilting his head.

“Plus, you can live out your heroic fantasies in your fiction.”*

Clark gave her an enigmatic look at her, he did that a lot, and closed the envelope. “Well… you could say the rest of my life is pretty mundane… Present company excepted.”*

She stood from the couch, walked around the coffee table to meet him and put her arms around his neck. “Exception noted .”*

One of his hands caressed her back affectionately and pulled her a bit closer. He let the envelope fall on the table, just beside the Daily Planet's edition with their shared by-line on the front page. They both looked at the paper at the same time. His other hand, now free of the novel, joined the other in her back, making her entire body touch his.

“We make a good team, Miss Lane.”* He said with a husky and low voice, the teasing on the choice of pet name wasn’t enough to hide the remorse for the way he handled this whole thing.

Her hand ran up to his neck, and her fingers dipped in his hair. “And don’t you forget it, Mr. Kent.”* She pulled his head down to kiss him on the lips.

Clark breathed against her skin, relieved, and opened his mouth in invitation, and Lois jumped in.

***

Clark held the statuette in one hand and the champagne with the other. It had led to a couple of awkward handshakes, but he managed, somehow, not to spill anything on his white tux so far. Lois was done being the trophy girlfriend for the time being and went off on her own around the party. But Clark never really completely lost sight of her.

Lois must have felt his eyes on her, because she searched around and she scowled at him when saw him.

The second time she caught him watching her, she was close to the bar with some other female reporters from out of town. This time she walked towards him, her face clearly looking for trouble.

“You know, Clark, just because we are together doesn't mean we have to be together the whole time.”

His smile was goofy and dreamy, and it made his face so completely adorable. “I know, Lois, I know… it's just… I can't take my eyes off you tonight.”

Lois gasped as something inside her thrummed, she felt her whole body being struck by some kind of energy, cold and hot at the same time. Her lips were over his before she even realized and he hummed, satisfied. “So, please, do keep looking.”*

And with that she returned to flying by herself around the party, but once in a while she looked at him, to see if he had his eyes on her, and he had, every time. She was afraid butterflies were gathering on her stomach.

“Some party, eh, Clark? Everyone who's anyone is here.”* Jimmy approached him at some point. “Oh, yeah, I almost forgot, this arrived at the office after you left.”* He gave him a letter.

“Thanks, Jimmy. Nice tux, by the way.”* The blue and the pink kind of worked together.

“Hey, gotta look good, I'm shooting’ for the society page and I'm supposed to be on the lookout for Bruce Wayne and some actress.”*

“Mr. Wayne is not coming tonight.” Clark answered, distracted, opening the letter that had no sender.

The letter was from Joanna. Clark had to control himself to not hover from the ground. Joanna was alive! She never even made it to the plane in the end.

“Fan mail from some flounder, Kent?”* A very disgusting voice came from his side.

“Luthor.” He greeted, politely, but coldly.

“Just read Under a Yellow Sun. Fabulous book.” The man seemed to not have noticed and continued talking. ‘I had my secretary tell the Germans I was ‘in conference’ while I finished it. And Preston Trager… What a great villain!!”*

“Glad you thought so.” Clark hid the letter inside his coat and turned to fully face Luthor. 

“You know, I can arrange for Lexcorp Publishing to buy out your Prometheus contract.”* He offered it as if it was an amazing compliment.

“Um… Gee…” He had to fake being honored. “Thanks, Lex, but I'm happy where I am.”*

Luthor put a hand, not the robotic one, on his shoulder and pulled him closer, Clark frowned at the touch. “So tell me, Kent, where do you get your ideas?”* A photographer came by and took a photo of them.

“I’m very observant of my surroundings.” Clark answered in a low voice, but Luthor already had his eyes on a blonde in pink walking by.

“Male bonding with Luthor, Clark?”* He felt an arm resting on his other shoulder, but this time he smiled. “I just heard Van Hook's telling prosecutors he acted without Luthor's knowledge.”*

“Luthor’s Teflon, Lois. Nothing sticks to him.”*

They both watched the slimy bald having his hands all around the poor woman.

“Yet.” Lois said with confidence and he turned his face to see her eyes glinting with determination. His chest filled with affection and pride for this wonderful woman at his side and grinned at her.

“Yet.” He agreed and it was Lois’ time to grin at him.

“Now… I think you owe me a dance, Mr. Kent.”

“By all means, Miss Lane, let's rectify that.”

Chapter Text

He walked sheepishly towards her desk, it was already past the deadline, but Lois furiously typed something on her computer.

"Hey." He called.

"Hey." She smiled, but didn't stop her typing nor looked at him.

"Hot story?"

"Something like that."

"Care to share?"

"Actually, Kent, this one you will have to read it on the front page like everybody else."

He discreetly looked at the many clocks on the wall.

"I know I missed the deadline, Clark."

"I didn't say anything." He defended himself weakly and began fidgeting with his hands.

She finally stopped typing and looked at him. "Spilled out already."

"Uhm, are you free this weekend?"

"I might…" She tilted her head, studying his face. "What do you have in mind?"

"I was thinking if you would want to go to Smallville with me this weekend."

"Smallville?"

"Yes, it's the fair's weekend so it won't be too boring for you."

"Last time I was in Smallville there was an alien mass brainwashing operation going on there, Clark, I'm past the assumption Smallville is boring."

He smiled relieved. "And there will be fireworks."

"I like fireworks."

"And… you could meet my parents, I mean, you already know each other, but, you could, uh, meet them-"

"Clark." She had an amused grin on her face when she interrupted him stumbling on his words. "I'd love to go to Smallville with you and to meet your parents again."

He opened a sunny smile and bent down to whisper something. "I really want to kiss you right now."

Lois smirked. "You're more than welcome."

He looked around, there weren't many people left at this hour. He leaned in her direction and she met his lips halfway.

"What are you two still doing here?? If you want to snuggle, do it outside my newsroom!"

They smiled against each other's mouths and broke the kiss.

"Oops." Lois whispered. "Daddy caught us."

They put a respectable distance between them again and Perry closed the door of his office, satisfied, but still annoyed.

"I will call Ma and Pa, tell them you're coming and book the flight."

"Sure."

***

She didn't show up at the airport in Topeka, for a moment he felt the dread of having lost her after his slip in the suit. He had talked about their meeting in Smallville without realizing he was Superman at the moment and it sounded as an invitation to dinner. Of course Lois wouldn't be so cruel*, she wouldn't just toss him to the side like that.

The obvious answer was that she got caught up on her hot story, she had already rebooked her flight to be able to meet a source. Whatever she was following, undoubtedly, was big and, undoubtedly, it was dangerous.

He looked at the cliff and the highway passing right next to it, saw the footprints in the dirt and the heat trail. He shook his head, sighing and getting on his feet as if his body weighed too much. The truck went west and he sighed again, looking at the sky. He couldn't believe she had made that jump.

“This woman’s still going to find a way to give me a heart attack.”

He followed the truck she jumped over and found an abandoned-not-abandoned military base and, of course, Lois was just in the middle of the action, tied down and with a rifle pointed at her head. Obviously.

His entrance wasn't the most elegant one, actually he just broke the wall and knocked down the soldier pointing the gun at her. She took the opportunity to give her captor a good kick between his legs and stole his pistol.

"Miss Lane, it seems you have things well in hand."*

"I do now*, I appreciate your timely arrival."

Lois frowned. What on earth was he doing in the middle of nowhere?

"However you've been able to find me?" She asked him suspiciously, giving him the rope to tie the rogue militaries.

"Ah. Uhm. Kent was worried about you."

"Ugh!! Clark!!" She checked her wristwatch. "Fuck!! I missed the flight!"

Superman watched her amusedly. "Do you want a lift back?" 

"Yes, please. But first I will leave it to you to round up his merry man."*

After he cleaned the military base, he returned to Lois and he could see her worried face. He slowly scooted her in his arms and took a chance.

"I'm sure he will figure something out about your trip to Smallville."

"How do you know about that??"

"Ah, that's a secret." And winked before taking off.

***

They were practically shoved outside of the house by his mother, claiming ‘you kids needed to enjoy the fair the best you can’. It was already late afternoon when they arrived at the airport, together this time, and both Kents came to pick them up.

"So, what is it about this fair that I heard so much about?" Lois asked when they arrived at fair grounds, just at the outskirts of the town. "You promised me fireworks!"*

"Tomorrow we can see the Corn Queen pageant, the Cornorama, corn husking, corn-"**

"Stop it. I get it."

Clark laughed. "But tonight…" He showed her the basket in his hand. "Just picnic under the stars."

"Is there corn inside that?" She teased.

"Very funny."

They walked through the main attractions and found a small hill, already full of people, groups of friends talking, families playing and couples flirting.

Clark chose a more reserved place, but still with a good view of the lights and the sky. He set a blanket on the grass and picked a bottle of wine and two glasses from the basket.

"Drinking in the open air, Mr. Kent?" She grinned at him, settling down at the blanket. He sat at her side, affectionately kissing her hair.

"You know me, I'm very wild."

Lois snorted. "Right."

Lois rested her back against his chest and he put an arm around her waist, resting his hand on her hip bone. Clark gave her the glass and they clinked before sipping the wine in a comfortable silence.

She sighed and nuzzled her nose at his neck. "Clark, this is so great. It's been quite a day!"*

"Too bad about your story, though."

"Whatever the military is involved in, it's a pain in the ass." She almost growled.

Clark chuckled, put his glass at the blanket and caressed her arms in support.

"That and the mess at the studios later, it was a full day." He kissed her hair again. "Those Infinity Inc. kids sure are something, along with Superman, they saved the day. If only they had managed to catch that Terrama-"*

"Clark?" She called and turned to look at him, cupping his jaw in her hand. "I don't want to hear about Superman or anyone else." 

His lips were on hers before he could think and he could think very fast. Good thing Lois' glass was already empty, because it found itself abandoned when her fingers threaded in his hair, deepening the kiss. They didn't stop when the first explosion lit the sky, not even the second and third lit their now intertwined bodies. His fingers dug into her hips almost painfully, he was very careful not to hurt her, but the way she clung to him was maddening. Her moan was muffled by the fireworks, now filling the sky with light and colors, but he heard it and he moaned involuntarily himself. The rumble seemed to be too much and Lois climbed on his lap, stranding his muscular thighs. The fireworks working as a barrier of privacy, releasing something in them, they have never made out this hard and hot in public or otherwise.

"Well, well, well, looks like our mysterious man with the secret identity has returned to Smallville for a visit!"*

Clark practically jerked away from Lois, startling her, a panicking expression crossed his face.

"You know, crusading big city journalist by day and simply farm boy on weekends and holidays! How ya' doin', Clarkie?"*

"Clarkie?" She asked, amusingly raising one eyebrow at him, still on his lap, still catching her breath. Clark had his glasses askew on his face and was his shirt one more button opened?

He adjusted his glasses, tried to tidy his hair. "Lois, let me introduce you to Pete Ross, boyhood pal, small county agent…" Clark dug his fingers on her hips again, not wanting to let her go. "And a guy whose timing stinks!"* He growled at his friend.

Pete offered his hand to Lois, smiling knowingly, and she had to stand from Clark's lap to shake his hand.

"Y'see, Miss Lane, the fireworks are supposed to be in the sky! As a duly sworn officer of the court it's my duty to protect the eyes of the innocent from-"*

"Pete, if you don't lighten up I'll tell your mother who blew up the police station mailbox in sixth grade!"* He had to stand up too. Good thing he had mastered the control of his body functions.

"Is this a private party or can anybody join?"* Came a female voice from behind them.

"Why, hello, Lana! Nice to see you again!"* Lois tried to smile.

The air became awkward between Lana and Lois and Clark could only think how he didn't want to be there right now.

Before they could get to any more small talk, the sky exploded in more than just fireworks.

***

They were returning to the farm on his father's truck, somehow Clark had managed to slip in and out his Super persona without much trouble. Lana being there helped, of course. He glanced at Lois and she had that face on her face. The face of a reporter writing a story.

"You can fax Perry the story."

Lois grinned at him, of course he would know.

"I was just wondering, how often spaceships land on Smallville?"

Clark looked at himself in the rear mirror in a half second of panic.

"Not often."

"Not often?? It's the second time I come to Smallville and it's the second time I see a spaceship here… if we include Superman's ship… it's at least three times."

"Ugh… it's not that uncommon for spaceships to come to Earth anymore, isn't it?"

"True… but it makes me think…" Lois looked at him with a troubled face, but then shook her head.

They drove in silence the rest of the way, each one within their own thoughts. That was probably very similar in nature.

***

"So, I heard you went to Smallville to meet the parents… things are getting serious."

"Cat… "

"Who would have thought? You and Clark… but… I guess you're even kind of cute together… on your own way."

"Ask what you want to ask already."

"Have you seen what's underneath the hood of that All American Muscle?"

"Cat!!"

"Alright, alright!"

She waited.

"Fine! We're taking it slow." 

"Yeah, slow and steady**, that sounds like something Clark would do."

"Now go away, I need to work."

Cat left, laughing.

"Great…" Lois couldn't avoid peeking at Clark, bending to grab something from the floor. She smirked. "Now I'm not going to have any work done today."

She felt herself being observed and saw Cat smirking at her from across the newsroom.

Chapter Text

They watched Clark leave the hospital room as if he had seen a ghost, mumbling something about a late appointment, which made Lois close her face. They had just returned from Smallville, he had no appointment.

“Maybe Kent just doesn't like hospitals, Lois, and can't see them like-… Olsen is a good friend of his.”

Lois looked at the two young men that had just left surgery, they were attached to the ITU apparels and still out cold. Alice White held her son's hand and silently prayed for his recovery sitting by his bed.

“I appreciate you two took the time to come visit.”

“Of course we would come, Perry.”

A doctor came in to check on their recovery, reading whatever was writing on their sheets. Then he turned his attention to the adults in the room.. “We’re repaired the damage from the gunshot wounds, it will take time, but they’re both strong young men, so…”*

Perry touched his wife's shoulders when she shuddered. “Thank you, doctor.”* He said and Lois put one hand on his shoulders in support too.

“Lois, you will find out who shot the boys, won't you?”

“Of course, I will, Perry.”

“It's a blessing that Jimmy's mother still isn't aware of what happened to her boy…”* Alice breathed, holding her tears together.

A fuss at the door drew their attention to the doctor trying to prevent someone from entering.

“Sir, I'm afraid it's after visiting hours… only family-!”* The doctor tried to stop whoever it was.

“What the devil?”* Perry stood from the chair.

“Stand aside, you twit!”* The doctor was shoved to the side and a large man wearing a white suit barged in the hospital room. “I'm Lex Luthor! I donated half of the wings in this hospital!!”*

“What kind of stunt is this, Luthor??”* Perry walked in his direction, trying to be as big as he could. Lois followed her editor, crossing her arms and being as challenging as she could.

“I'm here because of Jerry!”* The bald man said to his face and Perry didn't back up.

“And what is that to you??”* He barked.

“If you truly don't know, I suggest you ask your wife !”* The man answered with a nasty tone of voice.

“What's that supposed to mean?!”

“I've come to see my son!”* Luthor said and Perry launched against Luthor. Alice put herself between the two men, putting her hands on their chest to keep them for hitting each other. Lois held Perry’s upper arms from behind. Not that she really wanted to hold Perry back.

“Calm down… this is a hospital.”* Alice asked, but then turned to Luthor with angry eyes and a pointing finger. “Lex Luthor, and you can't possibly know that for sure!!”*

Perry slouched and sighed. “So it's finally been said… out in the open…”*

Lois gaped at the exchange, but didn't let go of her editor’s shoulders.

“My doctors had occasion to examine the boy a while back when he was running in a street gang… there is no doubt. He is my progeny.”*

Husband and wife looked at each other and a silent conversation passed between them, until Perry sighed. “All these years… I wondered, but I couldn't never bear to ask…”* His voice was almost broken and Lois squeezed him in support.

Alice surprised everyone by slapping Luthor. “Why in god's name are you doing this now?? Get out of here!!” She shouted and fury.

Luthor angrily grabbed her arm with violence. “How-dare-you-slap-me!”*

“Lex!”* Perry growled at the man, shoving him to the side and he let go of her arm. Lois quickly went to check on Alice. “You keep your filthy hands off my wife!! And landed a heavy punch on the pit of Luthor's stomach, that caused the big man to lean forward and holding puke the contents of it.

Alice and Lois watched the scene with widened eyes.

“Get out!! This room is just for family and that boy is my son! Alice and I raised him. He's our son! You get the hell out of my face!”*

The shouting drew attention and a nurse opened the door. “Nurse, get Mr. Luthor some fresh air!”* Perry barked and the big bald man left the room almost crouching in pain.

Perry reached for his wife's shoulders while she started weeping and Lois couldn't hide the big grin on her face, her chest puffed in pride for her editor. Oh, how she wanted to have done that herself to Luthor and how she wanted Clark to have watched this… Where the hell Clark went off to??

At that moment, Jerry White started to convulse and blood stained the front of his hospital gown.

Chapter Text

Clark was more accompanying Lois on this assignment than really working himself since he was still a freelancer. The city was in uproar since the appearance of the sand Superman, the public opinion still a bit divided about it. Some appreciated the more aggressive and decisive version of Superman, some feared.

"I think Superman should have authority to solve the world's problems!" Said one of the other reporters waiting for the official release from the police.

"Superman isn't here to solve the world's problems." Lois said.

"Why not? He has the power, he just doesn't want to."

"I'm sure he can't have such responsibility on his shoulders, he's just one man, he makes mistakes, you know?"

"You don't trust Superman like we do, Kent…"

Another reporter mocked them from behind. "Of course you would say that, you're dating his girlfriend."

"Hey!!" Lois turned in rage, to punch whoever had said that, but Clark stopped her by passing his arms on her shoulder.

"Lois… you don't want to get arrested again. Let's just move over there." And half dragged her away from the rude reporter.

"I'm sorry about that, Clark." She said after calming down. "I swear, if I bump into that reporter that put this nickname on me I will wring his neck!"

"It must not be easy to deal with these kinds of rumors all the time, I'm sorry, Lois."

"It comes with the territory, being a public figure and a woman…"

"But it shouldn't."

"No, it shouldn't. And just to make things perfectly clear, Clark, these rumors don't pass from that: rumors. I have nothing going on with Superman."

He gave her an enigmatic sad smile. "I know you don't, Lois."

"You would be the first to actually believe in me." 

"I'm sorry you have to deal with it alone all this time, but Superman thinks if he actually addresses the matter, it will only bring attention to it and end up doing more harm than good."

"I get it, the only thing that matters to me now is that you believe in me, Clark."

"Always."

Chapter Text

He dragged his body out of the elevator car and saw her in front of his door.

“Clark! I was just writing you a note.”* She then widened her eyes at him. “What happened to you?? Are you hurt?”* She met him halfway the corridor and ran her fingers on his face, over the swell already growing under right eye, answering her own question. “Were you mugged?”*

Clark chuckled bitterly. “Let's just say I had a run-in with somebody.”* He couldn't possibly tell her, he was rolling on the floor throwing punches with Lex Luthor just half an hour ago. He searched for his keys in his pocket and tripled inside his apartment.

Lois held him by the shoulder and felt the coldness of his shirt. “Your clothes are soaked!! What happened? Oh, nevermind, just get out of them and into a hot tub!”*

He threw his ruined coat over the buffet and sighed, every movement hurt and to tell the truth, he just wanted to be alone at the moment, but he couldn't possibly ask Lois to leave. He needed to sort all that happened earlier. “At least a hot shower. You don't have to wait, Lois, if you don't want to.”*

“Nonsense. I'll fix us some cocoa.” She answered, pushing him inside the bedroom.

He entered the ensuite bathroom and closed the door behind him, sighing again. All these years he wanted to be close to her like that and now he was trying to get rid of her.* He looked at his torso in the mirror and saw the patches of skin already gaining a green tint. His whole body hurt. He opened the hot tap and saw that his knuckles had a bright red color on them.

Maybe he could have Prof. Hamilton having a look at his body and the fake kryptonite he found. Maybe they're related, the reason he had lost his powers.

He couldn't hold back a moan when the steaming hot water washed his sore muscles.

Clark left the bathroom halfway putting his shirt, his whole body still hurt, just the act of lifting his arms was a challenge.

"Gosh! Clark!" Lois put the sandwich plate on the table and walked to him, making him stop with just one arm on the sleeve.

He felt Lois' cold fingers on his skin, he recoiled at her touch, more because of the unfamiliar sensitivity of his now not-invulnerable skin.

"Your ribs!! If it's hurting that much you should check if it's not broken, Clark!"

"Uhm, I think I will wait and see, maybe it will be better tomorrow."

Lois looked puzzled at him. "No, it will get much worse tomorrow. Have you ever been in a fight before? It's always much worse the next day." She then began to walk to his kitchen. "You need to put ice on that."

Clark followed her, putting the rest of his t-shirt and saw her opening the freezer.

"Pro tip, Kent: frozen peas are even better than ice in these cases, but since the only thing in here is ice, we'll have to use it."

She picked the tray and turned expectantly at him. "Do you have an ice bag?"

"I… uh, don't think so."

"Really?"

"I… don't... usually get hurt." And scratched the back of his head.

"I noticed." She then picked a plastic bag and put the ice in it. "Let me see it."

Clark then pulled his shirt up and Lois pressed the ice on the worst looking patch of purple skin. He gasped with the cold and sighed in relief of the pain. Her hands stayed longer on his torso and a bit of charged energy passed between them.

Lois then shook her head. "I, uh, hope you don't mind, but I made us some sandwiches."* And began to walk back to the living room. "I skipped lunch, and…" She looked at the man following her, battered and scrapped, holding the ice on his ribs and looking extremely troubled for a reason. "You look like you could use something to eat as well."*

He then smiled that kind smile of his and reached for the plate.

"Now that you mention it, I am really starving!"*

They sat together on the couch and each one picked a sandwich.

"Mmmm, peanut butter?"*

"It was all you had in the fridge besides sour milk. Typical bachelor!"*

They began to eat in silence, but he knew Lois was there for a reason, he could see her preparing herself to say what was bothering her.

"Clark... I came here because I didn't know where else to turn."*

He put his sandwich down and waited.

"I've been at the hospital since this morning, when I left you."* Lois looked at her bitten sandwich, he could see her trying to hold herself together. "It's my mom."*

He put their sandwiches back on the plate and turned to her.

"Clark, she's dying and I don't know how to deal with it."* At that she couldn't hold anymore and she gasped at the same time tears began to fall on her cheeks. "You're always like a rock during tough times..."* He pulled on a tight embrace. " I need that now…"*

"We'll find a way to help your mother, Lois. I promise you..."*

***

"Lois… Sorry, I'm late… but it just couldn't be helped. How's your mother?"*

"Hangin' in there. No better, no worse. Unfortunately, the doctors are not sure of what course to take next. All we can do is pray."*

They met the other two people waiting at the hall.

"Dad… you remember Clark Kent?"*

"Good to see you again, Mr. Lane."*

"Likewise, son. And make it Sam."* They began walking towards one of the wings and the oldest man took his darkened eye in. "Say… you've been in a fight lately?"*

"Uhh… not really. Just the byproduct of a little investigative journalism."* Clark answered a bit sheepish.

Sam huffed. "Just what I needed to hear! I spend half my days worrying about Lois and the trouble she's always getting in!"*

"Now, dad…"*

"Since Lois was a kid dad's been calling her Danger Mouse!"* The youngest Lane entered the conversation.

"Sounds appropriate to me, Luce."*

"I'm telling you, Clark, you have no idea how much a father worries about his girls!"*

"C'mon, dad… I doubt Clark wants to hear your lonely old man routine!"*

"Gotcha, kiddo, it's just that your mother…"*

"Easy, dad! She's going to be okay! The hospital director is trying to get hold of Lex Luthor."*

"Luthor?? What does he have to do with anything?"* Clark's tone of voice showed surprise and wariness. The other Lanes quickly entered the room, to give them privacy.

"Sorry… this is not my favorite subject… but… well, we are getting a lot closer…"*

Lois then explained the reason and circumstances of her mother's accident, when she worked at a Lexcorp chemical plant, and the deal she made with Lex Luthor to provide her mother with the serum every month, keeping her alive.

"... In the meantime I've dread the day Luthor might ask for payment…"*

"Might? Lois, do you realize the mess you're in? Luthor can blackmail any time he wants!!"*

"Only if I let him!"* So far he had only asked for company for a couple of dinner and functions. Not that made it any better.

Clark scowled at her, knowing she wasn't really saying everything, but decided to let go for now. There were pressing matters at hand. "But…. If the serum worked, why is your mother here?"

"The serum lost its effectiveness, probably grown immune! And if the doctors can't help her, I will do whatever I have to… even… even if it means going to Luthor again…"*

"Lois…"

"You may think I'm a hypocrite, gloating about Luthor on the paper, but when things get too close home, I yield."

"No, Lois, never that. If anything, you care too much.” He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her closer. “If it was my mother, I would have made a deal with the devil myself."* He reached out to caress her cheek.

"Oh, Clark!!" Lois breathed in relief, leaning her head just a little on his hand before hugging him tightly and burrowing her face against his neck, his scent mixed with his cologne had a soothing effect on her. He brought her body closer and kissed her hair affectionately.

Chapter Text

"I promised my folks I would go to Smallville this weekend... to help with the harvest, but I can stay if you want me to."

"No, no, Clark, go help your parents."

"Or… you could go with me… take your mind out of Metropolis?"

"I- Isn't the harvest too busy to receive guests?"

"I'm sure Ma will find something for you to do."

***

The farm was at a much frenetic pace than the last time she was there, workers and machines going left and right.

"I was a little surprised when Clark told us you're coming, we absolutely love to have you here, Lois, but we won't be able to give you much attention." Martha said, leaving the truck. She had picked them up at the Airport, since Jonathan was commanding the combine harvester front.

"I wanted to take my head out of things, thank you for having me anyway."

"We can always have an extra pair of hands this time of the year."

"I will try to help, but I'm not sure Clark warned you about my lack of talent on the domestic front."

"Oh, we will find something for you to do. Now, you go drop your things inside. I've prepared both rooms, are you still sleeping separately?"

"Ma!!"

Lois snorted to her side at his endearing embarrassment.

"You kids do things differently nowadays, I had to ask, Clark."

***

Martha wasn't shy to put Lois to work, which she actually appreciated, Lois always liked to be active, after all. And maybe one day this knowledge about harvesting could be useful in a story. 

It was good, doing something that only requires the body, it was exactly what she needed, to not think of anything, just do it. So much so that she didn't notice the time passing, the hired help had already begun to put the tools and machines away. Martha came through the barn with two big glasses of lemonade and Lois turned off the thresher.

"So, how was it?"

"Well, it's definitely very hard to mess this up."

"As long as you don't stick your hand in it. Then you would have a big mess. Here, refreshments, Clark's favorite drink after working hard on the farm." Offered the glass to her.

"Really?" You would think someone would want a beer or something the like, but lemonade seemed just about right for Clark. She took off the safety gloves, gave a big gulp of the juice and had to agree with Clark there. She felt the cold and relief filling her whole body.

"It is great, isn't it?" Then gave the other glass. "Can you give it to Clark? I think they must be back from the east field by now. I have to check the hired help out."

"Sure."

Lois followed the voices she recognized as Jonathan's and Clark's to a small shed, where she knew the tractor was stored. His father only indicated the back of the shed with his thumb and turned to walk in the direction of the farm house.

Going around the shed, Lois began to hear the sound of running water and when she turned the last corner the sight in front of her was like a punch in the face, or more likely her lower abdomen. Clark was naked from the waist up, his overalls opened and hanging in front of him. He held a hose on his nape to clean the leaves and hay all over him. Lois swallowed and murmured a curse under her breath, that was more of a  gasp. 

That made him look up and opened one big sunny smile and Lois almost groaned at herself at how cliché that was. But she did feel her knees giving up a bit.

"Hey. You survived."

"It wasn't that bad." She walked up to him, almost shyly and offered the glass. He accepted with another smile after tapping off the water and began to drink everything in one go. Lois felt herself licking her lips while her eyes couldn't divert from his Adam pole going up and down and his now tanned skin and muscular-

She took a sip of her lemonade to cool things down. 

He moaned in his glass of lemonade, completely clueless of Lois' thoughts, making her run her hand on her face. Seeing him like that really did things to her. Maybe it was because he was always so nice and polite and harmless, that this version of him emanating masculinity made her realize, truly realized, Clark was a freaking gorgeous man. And it did things to her.

"You know, maybe it's a good thing you're just a freelancer at the moment."

"What?"

***

Later in the afternoon, they drove somewhere further than the point where the wheat had already been harvested. The golden color of the field seemed like a never ending precious waved carpet. They stopped on a small hill, where they could see far and wide. Clark parked the truck close to the fence, where she could see many things written on the old wood. She guessed it was a favorite spot of his.

“How about a proper date with a farmboy?” He gave her a boyish grin before leaving the driving seat.

“What do you mean?” She asked, following him outside.

Clark was grinning like a fool when he opened the bed of the truck and stepped inside. “I always wanted to do this…” He said, offering his hands to help Lois get up there with him. “Only the cool kids did this with their girlfriends…”

Lois saw there was a blanket on the truck bed floor and a picnic basket, she gave him a knowing look and grinned at him.

“Why? Pa Kent didn't allow you to borrow the truck to make out hidden in the bushes?”

Clark laughed and sat, bringing the basket closer to him. “Something like that…”

She smiled at the adorable man, his cheeks were in a faint pink color, and she sat by his side, leaning at the back of the cabin.

They ate the light meal Clark had packed and talked mainly about their childhood. Surrounded by the very same place where he grew up, she could understand him a lot more now. Lois also told him how she grew up all scattered around the world following her father's assignments, about the training her father put her through when a child, how he wanted a first born son and treated her as such. Clark knew her relationship with her father was strained, but with her mother's illness, they were putting aside some of their resentment.

After the conversation naturally came to an end, they just laid down together, her head resting on his shoulder and watched the sky turn red with the sunset in silence.

"I love you." He whispered at some point.

Lois jerked her head up, eyes wide open in surprise. Clark chuckled and looked down at her, smiling kindly, almost longingly.

"I've been in love with you for a long time, Lois." She was still frozen in place, mouth slightly open. Clark reached up and touched her cheek, then cupped her jaw the way he knew she liked it. "You must have noticed."**

"I… yeah."

They watched each other for a few seconds, the same seconds Lois' head was spinning and she thought her heart was going to leave her mouth.

"And I love you." She whispered back.

The moment those words left her mouth, she felt relief and absolute dread at the same time. But somehow, she still knew it was right.

It was his time to be frozen in place, mouth agape and eyes wide.

"Why are you looking so surprised??" Lois had a smug grin on her face.

"I… I didn't… I thought-"

Lois then huffed and rolled her eyes. "Just kiss me, Clark."

He didn't need to be asked twice, he brought their lips together and soon the romantic slow kiss turned into a sloppy battle of teeth, tongues and gasping, while their bodies rolled on the back of the truck.

***

Clark helped her with her luggage until they arrived at her door.

"Did it help? Took your mind out of Metropolis?" He returned the duffle bag to her hands, when the unlocked and opened the door.

She smirked. "It definitely took my mind to places." 

Lois could see the moment the meaning sank into him, his ears reddened and eyes widened.

"Lois!"

She laughed and stood on her toes to reach his lips, lingering a bit longer than just a chaste kiss.

"Good night, Clark."

And entered her apartment.

Chapter Text

His mind was drifting under the hot water, he was getting used to the ache all around him, trying to think of a way to confront Luthor about the red Kryptonite when he heard the ringing. He ran to the living room, dripping wet to pick the phone.

"Hello? Oh, hi, ma!"* He put the towel on his hair. "Doing? I was in the shower. Yeah, seems like. Hey, you must have ESP…"*

"Not ESP… it's CNN! Pa and I saw coverage of that prison break, there in Metropolis… and we noticed you weren't quite... yourself* yet."

"Nothing to worry about, Ma. I'm dealing with it. Really."

"I thought you had that Star person taking care of things…"

"I did, but it's still hard to stand and do nothing."

"Just be careful, Clark!"*

"I will, Ma."

"On a more pleasant front, what'd you think of the surprise I left in your suitcase?"

"What surprise?"* He began to walk back to the bedroom, now with the towel around his waist.

"Don't tell me that you haven't unpacked from your last visit?!"*

"Ma..." He held the cordless phone between his ear and shoulder to bring the suitcase on the bed.

"I can't believe you haven't unpacked yet!*

He opened and began to rummage between his things. 

"Ma, I've been busy. You didn't leave me cookies again?"*

"No cookies… What's wrong with my cookies? Oh never mind! Just look in your shaving kit!"

He opened the zipper and between the foam and the razor, he saw it. Slowly, he took a small red velvet box from the bag.

"What's this?"* He asked, almost whispering.

He could hear her mother's excitement from the phone. "It's a ring, silly! It's a special ring, your father asked me to marry him with it... and since you're our only child, it's yours now."*

Even slower, he opened the little box and the gold ring with a solitaire diamond appeared, he took a deep breath.

"For you to give whoever you decide to marry!"*

He picked up the ring from the box, still surprised, almost in awe, and smiled. "You sure you don't have ESP, Ma?"*

"No son, it was the way you and Lois looked at each other, the last time you both visited us."*

Clark put the ring back on the box. "... Never could hide my feelings from you."*

"Clark, promise me that if you do give her this ring, you'll do it with a clear head. Don't let your current situation color the decision."*

"Ma, I'm not about to rush into anything before I've thought it through."* He sat on the bed and sighed. " Besides… How can I ask her to marry me when I'm not being honest with her?"

His mother went silent on the other side of the line for a moment. "Well, that is another decision you have to make with a clear head, Clark."

"I know, Ma." He ran his hand on his face and stood from the bed, stealing a glance from his watch on top of the drawers. "I've got to run, okay? So say hi to Pa for me..."*

"I have to scoot, too, cause Pa'll be home soon and he told me no to meddle! Love you, son."*

"Love you too, Ma… and don't worry about meddling*… Thank you, 'bye."

He hung the phone and put it on the bed, next the red velvet box.

"Good ol' Ma, always one step ahead of me!"

Smiling, he thought it would be wise to put the ring away for the time being.

***

Clark waited for Lois in his apartment, they had planned to go to dinner tonight, but Lois said she wasn't that keen on putting on a face and a dress and going to a restaurant. It was only fair that he cooked her something.

She entered through the door, huffing and cursing under her breath.

"Hey... you've been fighting Perry again, I see." He said as a greeting, closing the door.

"Ugh, he straight out ordered me to drop a story!! Can you believe that?" She threw her purse on the couch. "He said I was trying to use the paper as my personal vendetta against Luthor!!" She began to pace in his living room. "It's not my personal vendetta, he's a crook, he's evil, we need to expose him!!"

"What did Perry say this time?" He asked, diplomatically.

"He said I was exposing my neck too much, it could be dangerous to openly attack him like that." 

"I'll have to agree with the Chief here, Lois, remember what happened to that reporter who was writing that unauthorized biography?"

She huffed again. "If no one stands against him, he will not be brought to justice!! He's done some many terrible things to so many people! Perry included!!"

"Honey, he's just trying to protect you… and the paper, which is, by the way, his job."

Lois was saying something, but then she stopped and turned at him with a frown.

"What did you just call me?"**

"Uhm… honey?"**

Lois' frown deepened.

"I've never been a honey before."**

She walked at him with a troubled expression on her face, Clark stood uncertain in his place.

"I like it..."** Her arms went around his neck and he smiled relieved at her, grabbing her waist. Lois snorted and smiled too. "What is happening to me?"**

He kissed her, but not for long because she laughed against his mouth.

"What else do you have?"

"Uhm… Sweetheart."** Clark said, seriously, and Lois nodded.

"Pumpkin."

Lois shook her head, but got even closer, the tip of their noses almost touching. "No, that's you."

He snorted and she smiled mischievously.

"My… little… tornado."**

Lois barked a laugh against his mouth. "That's terrible."**

"Mmm..." He began saying another one, but Lois interrupted with a deep kiss.

Her arms left his shoulders, running down on his chest until she hugged his broad back, fully encapsulated by his body. His hands made the opposite path, running up on her back in the direction of her head. He threaded his fingers on her hair tilting her head in a slow and sensual movement, her whole body felt it and she gasped against his mouth. He allowed his body to fully touch hers and she crashed her lips on his again. At some point she felt her lower back hitting the counter top and her legs being trapped between his against the lower cabinets. He had his huge frame towering her and the feel of his hard muscles pinning her were driving her to places. 

Suddenly she needed to feel the warmth of his skin, so she reached for the hem of his shirt, pulling it from his pants. She felt him tense for a second when her fingers slipped under his shirt, but then relaxed when her hand touched his bare back. The other followed the first hand and she was surprised by how smooth his skin was. One would imagine the years he helped his parents on the farm would have had an effect on his skin, but it didn't. His pelvis pressed her a bit more strongly against the cabinets and she forgot any reasoning thoughts in her brain. She could feel... him. A barrier was definitely being crossed there and her lower abdomen turned into a molten mush sending shockwaves through her body. Her first instinct was to rip his shirt off, but when his hand searched for the hem of her blouse and that made contact with her skin, the tingling of energy from the contact make her gasp deeply. He broke the kiss quickly and retrieved his hand from her.

“Sorry.” He whispered with a low husky tone that she wasn't sure she had heard or felt it. Concern mixed with desire clouding his eyes.

“No, it's…” She cleared her throat, trying to make her brain work again. Why did he stop it?? She didn't want him to stop. But then the smell of burning food reached her. “Uh, dinner.” Was the only word she could muster.

He looked at the pan over the stove and saw the corners of the sauce turning black. “Oh!”

She missed the contact of his body when he turned his attention to their dinner and shuddered a long breath to regain her bearings, holding herself over the counter top. Lois ran one hand on her hair and noticed it had become quite a mess. 

He stirred the sauce while hearing Lois walking around in his apartment.

"Clark, do you have a comb**?" Her voice came from the living room.

"In the top drawer in the bedroom."

He stirred it a bit more and then remembered what was stored in one of the top drawers. Panic struck him.

Lois entered the bedroom, opened the right top drawer and saw the small red velvet box. Panic struck her.

She slammed the drawer shut.

Clark abandoned the pan and ran to the bedroom.

She was leaning on the furniture.

"Lois?" His voice barely hided the fear.

"Yes??" She answered a bit too quickly.

"Did you find it?"

"I-" Her heart was so loud she almost didn't hear her own voice. "No, I… uh."

He walked to the drawer and opened the left one. Picked the hair brush and gave it to her, without saying anything.

"Thanks." She whispered.

***

She couldn't bring herself to pay attention to any word during the staff meeting next morning. "Lois, what's your take on the proposal?"

"The prop-?!" She had to calm her heart. "The proposal… the law proposal, right."

Before everyone left the room, Perry asked to have a word with Lois. They were locking horns lately, her and her editor. Perry wouldn't let her attack Luthor directly, despite having his own issues with the man. So she stayed in the conference room, waiting for another earful on her behavior.

"Clark proposed?"

Thank goodness she was already sitting. "Jeez, Chief!! Give me some warning!" She ran her hand on her hair to buy time. "Uh... No... but he has a ring already."

"Ah, it must be terrible to try to surprise you, don't envy Kent... Look, you know I don't like office romance, but if you kids are talking marriage, that's another thing altogether. Clark's current position as freelancer is more a learning experience taking advantage of a bureaucratic trammel, until I can secure his old job back. You know that."

Lois just tilted her head in agreement.

"I still expect you two to be my ace reporters, it doesn't matter your marital status and I expect professionalism from both… That said… Why are you so terrified?"

"Because… Perry… It's marriage!"**

"Are you not certain Clark is the one for you?"

Lois didn't answer.

"Lois… you just spend the weekend on a farm helping his parents with harvest. Can you picture yourself doing it for anyone else?"

"No… and I'm not even sure if he is planning to propose to begin with, Perry."

"You know Kent's been carrying a torch for you practically since the day he set foot in this building, right?"

"But he was just joking before, in the beginning, bantering about…"

"Have you ever seen him making these kinds of jokes to anyone else?"

"No…"

"If you are terrified of giving an answer, imagine him having to ask the question?"

Chapter Text

They walked inside the restaurant, it was busy this time of the day, the owner greeted them with familiarity and let them choose a more secluded table near the counter. It was one the favorite places of the working folk, just downstairs at the Planet.

"Any changes in your mom's condition?"* He asked while pulling the chair for her.

"She's stable, but the doctors are still going over her toxicology lab results."*

"Any prospects of her waking up?" He sat himself.

"They say she has every chance to, but nothing we can do, just wait…." She put her purse on the back of her chair and when she turned to him again, she had an apologetic smile on her lips. "I'm sorry to bring you down with it, about mom…  you've been a dear about all of this, Clark."*

"Don't be silly, I'm here for you, Lois."*

"I know you are, sweetie, and I'm sure mom will get well."*

"Yes, she will. Now about what you and the chief were arguing this time?"

"The story that Perry bounced… It detailed how my mother became ill while working at the Lexcorp Chemical Plant… and how Lex was personally involved! How can that be libelous??"*

The waiter came to pick their orders, Lois wasn't very hungry lately and only ordered a drink, under a motherly gaze from Clark.

"Oh, here I am again, Clark, talking about this again."

"Don't worry about it, Lois… Actually… there's some things I'd like to talk about with you."

The change in his tone of voice picked her attention. " Yes?"

He reached for his suit jacket, searching for something.

"Watcha got there?"*

His hand opened and in his palm was the red velvet box. Lois' brain suddenly froze.

"Well, it's something special in my family, my mother slipped it into my luggage when you and I left Smallville…."* He opened the box and picked the ring. "She told me she did it because of the way you and I looked at each other during our last visit…"*

He was really doing this now?? Between ordering a tuna sandwich and a club soda?

"Clark! That's an engagement ring."*

"I know… I've… thought this over for a long time, Lois… Would you- I mean, will you be my… uhm."*

"Wife?"* She could hardly believe he was asking her that question at Dooley's!! Maybe he wasn't that terrified as the Chief had said! She was still terrified of giving him an answer. She didn't have an answer to give yet!!

"I..." Lois forced herself to be honest with him. "I can't deny that I've been wondering about it… What would it be like…"* She felt her face reddening. "This is really sweet."*

Clark put the ring back on the box.

"I'm sorry, that sounded condescending, didn't it? With all that's going on, give me time to sort it all out."*

"That sounds fair."* He closed and put it back in his pocket.

They heard a throat being cleared at their side, it was her drink order. Lois gave a big swig of the soda to calm herself.

"The other thing I wanted to talk with you about was… well… uh." Clark adjusted his glasses, nervously now.

"Excuse me." The man was there again. "Tuna fish for the gent… and telephone for the lady."* He had a plate on one hand and a wireless phone on the other.

"The hospital?"* She asked.

"No. Lex Luthor."*

"This is no time for a practical joke, Dooley!"*

"Listen, I just answer the phone, folks."*

Lois picked the phone and held it against her ear. "Look, whoever this really is, I'm not amused."*

Lois' demeanor changed the moment the other person began to speak on the other side of the line. Clark tried to listen, but the noise in the restaurant and his lack of powers didn't allow him to. He ate his tuna sandwich in practically two bites and waited for Lois to answer her caller, which he knew was making her very annoyed by her huffing.

"Three points… First, my mother is still sick, no thanks to your useless serum!"*

That gave Clark an idea.

"Second, I'm not known for writing fiction! Third, word is your last biographer wound up dead!"*

"Lois, let me talk to him!"* He reached for the phone.

"Clark, what are you-?"*

"Luthor? This is Clark Kent, don't hang up!"*

"You have ten seconds. Make your point, Mr. Kent."*

"Two words: Red Kryptonite."* Lois squinted at him. "I have it and you want it."*

"You have it??"* He listens to a sigh on the other side. "Very well, what is that you want?"*

Clark looked at the suspicious glare from Lois.

"Why don't we negotiate the exchange face to face?"

The line went silent. Lois frowned at him.

"Hello? Are you still-"

"I'm still here, Kent. Bring the rock to me at Lexcorp in twenty minutes, then we talk. My time is at a premium-"* The click from the finished call came from the phone.

He looked still silently at her and began to stand. "I'm sorry, Lois, I have to go."

"What was that about red Kryptonite?"* Lois stood up too.

"It's a long story, Lois… not a news story, though… I'm… doing this to help Superman."*

Lois nodded and hugged him.

"I'm sorry, I can't tell you more."

"It's ok, go."

It was Clark's time to frown at her. She then cupped his jaw and brought him to a light kiss. "Be careful, you're walking right into the lion's den."*

***

Clark put the suitcase on the floor, next to his leg and at a safe distance to Luthor and any goon hidden way.

"Hello, Lex."*

"Hand over the rock, Kent, and I won't press charges against you and that youngster Starman."* He was looking at the city with that superior pose of his. Then turned to Clark. "I know it was he who took my red kryptonite and you are in possession of stolen property."*

"Pay my price."* He shot, crossing his arms in defiance.

Luthor wasn't expecting such a bold presence of a famously weakling like Kent.

"You are in no position to make demands."

"Your claim on the rock can't be confirmed, Luthor, because no one knows of its existence besides your own inner scientists, this won't stick this time."

The bald man pondered for a few seconds.

"What is your price then?"

"Two things... First: give me the real serum to cure Elinore Lane's illness."

"Aw, how romantic of you, Kent. If only it actually existed." He scoffed.

"C'mon Luthor, as if you would let a public failure like this go unsolved, even if it's just for you... Especially one involving Lois Lane."

Lex raised one eyebrow. "All right, you have my attention. And the second thing?"

"Tell me about the rock, off the record."

"You're trying to help your alien buddy, Kent?" His smile was disgusting. "Tell me, has your friend helped any old ladies across the street lately?"*

Clark squinted at him. "You know he hasn't."*

They watched each other in silence for a while. Clark then picked the suitcase at his feet. "Because this hunk of rock robbed Metropolis of it's champion… People need him and you took him away, Lex. Is that how you wish to be remembered? As a conniving billionaire who let his paranoia and jealousy of Superman consume him??"*

"What did you just say??"

"Word on the street is that you don't have much time left, Lex." Clark slowly walked closer to his desk. "So with a death-bed grasp you're taking your enemy, as well?"*

His fat face became red with anger. "Are you trying to provoke me, Kent??"*

"No, I want you to understand how serious I am about this exchange."

"You're right. This is an exchange, I still haven't seen the proof you really have the red kryptonite with you."

"First give me the serum, then I will show you."

Luthor gave a mocking laugh. "Are you kidding me, Kent?" 

"I guess you will have to trust me."

"Yeah, you wouldn't have the gall to cross Lex Luthor."

Luthor called someone by the intercom and soon after, a female scientist came with a suitcase in her hands. She put it on the desk and opened it to Clark to inspect the contents, before leaving the room.

"There you have it. The serum and the toxicology analysis."

"How do I know its the real thing?"

"I guess you will have to trust me."

Clark's tensed his jaw, but put the vials and folder in his inner pocket and proceeded to open his suitcase. 

"Having green kryptonite wasn't enough, Luthor, off the record?"

"Off the record, Kent, the kryptonite which should have poisoned that do-gooder, is instead killing me!"

"So is this a creation of yours?"* Clark picked the rock in one hand and showed it to Luthor.

As expected, Luthor reached for the kryptonite with his gloved hand, smashing Clark's fingers between the metallic prosthesis and the rock.

"My creation?? Achh! If you knew the irony!"* They began to struggle for the piece of rock. "But it's worth it to have the man of steel powerless!!"*

"What irony? Tell me how you did it… took Superman's powers away… on the record!!"*

Their struggle started to turn into Luthor's side. 

"If you are dying… all the more reason to get it right for the, uh, books!"*

Clark was now on his knees and Luthor had a nasty grin on his lips.

"How, uh, did you do it?" Clark wouldn't give up, in spite of his undoubtedly broken fingers.

Luthor then gave him one last smash and Clark couldn't hold the rock anymore, letting it drop on his other waiting hand. He then pressed the switch to call his security, without taking his eyes from the glowing red rock on his hand. Luthor only deemed a smug glance at Clark on the ground, before turning his eyes to the kryptonite again, almost hypnotized.

"You want to know how I did it? On the record?... He specifically said I couldn't tell Superman, but… If I told you and you told him…" He gave another nasty smile. "That wouldn't violate the rule, would it?"*

"Uh… Rule?"*

The two security personnel were grabbing Clark by the arms now, to throw him out of the building.

"Take him outside!" They were already dragging him out of the door. "And Mr. Kent? This was given to me by the imp from the fifth dimension… Mister Mxyzptlk."

When the door closed behind him, Clark could hear the nasty laugh inside Luthor's office. Though who wanted to laugh right now was himself.

By the time he was thrown on the sidewalk, he was already feeling his body recharging with solar energy. He used his heat vision to get rid of the guards and recklessly took off to the skies.

After dealing with Luthor and sending Mr. Mxyzptlk back to his realm, he flew to Prof. Hamilton's lab to check if the serum was real. He didn't trust Luthor, after all.

Emil confirmed it was safe to use and it would most likely cure the poison on Ella Lane's body.

"It's a shame for someone with such intellect, to use it to his own petty benefits. Imagine what Luthor could do if he applied it for the common good?"

"No doubt, Professor."

"How did you get it, in the end?"

"Ah, Luthor is very careful in everything he does, with only one exceptional situation: when involves me and he has the upper hand. He turns smug, his ego makes him careless and he ends up making mistakes."

"So you found how to get your powers back and he was too busy with other things to bother taking the serum back… Not bad, my boy, not bad."

"Good thing it worked, I didn't have much of a plan B."

"I supposed that's what makes you Superman, you go with everything you got."

"Thank you, professor, I'm going to drop this at the hospital."

"You do that."

Chapter Text

The night was falling outside and the Lanes were taking turns at Ella's bed side. The doctors had called as soon as they received the serum from Superman and now her recovery was surprising everyone. Sam and Lucy went downstairs to have some dinner and Lois was alone helping her mother with her dinner, which was just juice and gelatin, really.

"Lois, what is troubling you?"

"Mom, you're just recovering from a coma, you don't need to worry about me. I'm fine." She was arranging the pillows on her back.

"Sweetheart, I'm your mother, I know something is going on."

Lois sighed and sat on her chair, beside the hospital bed.

"Clark... proposed."

"Lois!!" Ella almost jumped from the bed, some of her monitors began to beep.

"Call down, mom."

"You… you didn't answer the poor man yet??"

"I told him I wanted time to think."

"Lois!"

"It is a big decision, mom, I don't want to make it hastily."

"Of course not, but you've known him for years and I can tell you, I have never seen you happier. I was a bit off lately, but I know you."

"Yes… Clark does make me happy… well, most of the time… when he's not driving me crazy."

Her mother gave her a knowing smile. "That's because you love him."

"I know."

"So what's holding your answer?"

"I… feel… he's hiding something."

"Don't you hide things from him?"

"Of course I do… but that's… something… else..." Lois shook her head, looking down, then lifted her head again to look at her mother. "How can I marry someone that I know it's not been honest with me?"

"Lois…" Her mother called, extending her hands to her and Lois held them. "Let me tell you something I learned from being married to your father for almost forty years. The most important thing in a marriage is trust. Love certainly helps, but it's not enough, not if you want a healthy and strong relationship... Do you trust him?"

"Yes."

"So there's your answer."

Sam and Lucy entered the room right after that and she was surprised her mother didn't mention their talk or Clark's proposal to the rest of the family. And she was very grateful for that. They waited for Ella to sleep, it didn't take long.

"Seeing you and Lucy here when she woke… did her a world of good… Why don't you go home, get some rest. She'll sleep now for a while, Lois."* Her father said, hugging his oldest daughter.

Lucy opened her book and sat on the chair Lois just vacant. "Yeah, sis… Clark's waiting in the lobby for you."* Lois couldn't hide her soft smile.

Her father kissed her forehead and whispered. "Didn't have much of an opinion of that guy either way before, but the way he's conducted himself through this… well, he's passed muster with Sam Lane."*

Lois snorted, but kissed his cheek. " Thank you, daddy. I like him too." She grabbed her purse and turned to the door. "Call me if mom's condition changes. 'Bye."

At the lobby, she found Clark sitting close to the reception. Her heart skipped a beat.

"Hey, stranger..."* She called.

He looked up and opened his big smile. Her heart skipped another beat. "Lois, hi. I hope you don't mind, I wanted to check in on your mom's recovery, but only family is allowed after hours."*

"She's doing better, she's going to be all right."*

He stood to walk with her, Lois slipped her hand on his and squeezed. "Thanks."*

"Sure. I'm glad she's recovering."

Lois smiled and picked her car key. " My car is in the lot… want a ride home?"*

Instead of answering, he brought Lois to a tight hug. Her heart almost tripped again.

"I take that as a Yes?"*

She could feel his smile on his face buried in her hair, Clark's usually very affectionate like that, but not usually in public. Her breath got caught on her throat, her heart was so erratic that she could very well stay in the hospital. She knew her answer.

"You know, mom talked to me a little tonight..."*

"That's great, Lois!" He said, breaking the embrace.

"Yeah…" They continued to walk towards the exit. "She really has always liked you… She kept saying how you had good manners and came from a good home… so I told her about us…"* Lois looked at him. "The proposal."

He opened the door for her. "Stop. I didn't come to the hospital to pressure you…"*

"I know, sweetie, I know…" She kept walking to her car. "But you needn't worry..."*

"Lois, I don't need an answer right now-"* She stopped walking, turned at him, in the middle of the car lane, and put a finger on his lips to make him stop talking. She suddenly wasn't nervous anymore.

"Shhh, Clark. I've already decided… Yes."*

His eyes widened and his mouth opened, astonished.

"I want to share my life with you."

The smile he opened was like the sun, almost blinding. He reached in his front pocket and found the little box again. He held her hand, she was sure he was trembling, and he slipped the engagement ring on her finger. Lois grabbed his face and landed a sweet kiss on his mouth. 

They only stopped when a car honked.

Chapter Text

“That was perfectly wonderful, Mr. Kent… and so are you.”* They were properly celebrating their engagement before telling anyone else, besides their parents, of course. They didn't want to create any fuss in the office just yet.

“Well, Thank you, Ms. Lane… You're pretty wonderful yourself.”*

“Mmm, you know, when I accepted your proposal, I had no idea that you knew so many scrumptious restaurants, if we keep eating out like this, I'll have to watch my waistline.”*

“I'm glad you liked it…” Clark took a few breaths before talking again. “There's actually another thing I'd like to talk to you about-”

Eeep! Eeep! Eeep!

“Darn!”* Lois muttered.

“Lois… don’t tell me you brought your cellular phone along?”* He didn't know if he was relieved or annoyed by the interruption.

“Uh-huh, a reporter’s second best friend. Just be a sec, Clark… Hello, I… what?!”

His super hearing picked something about a fire in a brewery.

“Clark, I really hate this, but I've gotta run! You understand?”* She was already standing from her chair.

“Well, I-*

“I knew you would. Call you later.”* She gave him a quick peck. “Bye!”* And disappeared through the restaurant’s door.

Clark watched the intrepid reporter walking away and smiled fondly, in the past he would have tried to beat her on the story*. Not anymore. They could work things out. He super sped away, but not without leaving the money on the table.

He saw her arguing with a taxi driver and took the opportunity to sweep her off her feet. “Need a lift?”* It was the first time he was seeing her as Superman since she accepted his proposal.

“Superman, do I ever!”* She answered animatedly and put her hands around his neck to leverage. “There's a fire out in Bakerline!”*

“So I hear. I'm headed there myself.”*

“I really appreciate this!”*

“Don't mention it.”* He looked at her arms around his neck and saw the ring on her finger and had to hold a smile. But then she noticed his eyes on the ring and smiled.

 Superman should say something about it. “Uh, Lois… is that an engagement ring? Don't tell me Clark finally got up the courage…”* He cringed at his own words.

“Clark got plenty of courage.”* She then gave him a mischievous grin, maybe mistaking his grimace for something else. “What, did you expect me to wait for you to ask me?”*

Clark felt his stomach turning. “Uh, No, I-”* He couldn't keep playing this secret identity game with her any more. “... Lois, for what it's worth… I think you made a good choice.” He cringed again.

“I know I did.”*

***

The news that Luthor was going to test the new jet fighter was in total opposition to the rumors of his terminal disease, so Lois needed to confirm what was what. Luthor had been a thorn in her side for too long, but it's not that she wanted the creep to die. And the guy was being slippery as always.

“Try to lose some weight and what the tabloids say?”* He mocked. “I wish I could stay and straighten things out, but I have a business meeting…”* He glanced at his shiny golden watch. “... make that, should have had a meeting.. half an hour ago! Where is that man??”* He huffed. “Maybe he got lost like you did, Ms. Lane. Maybe he's in my private office even as we speak.”*

The elevator opened and from there came an elegant dressed man. “... Believe the meeting is in the conference room on the 37th floor, Master Bruce.”*

“Nonsense, Alfred.”* He noticed the people walking in the direction he was going. “Look, there's Lex now-”*

“Wayne! Where have you-”* Luthor began, but the younger man opened a big, charming smile and walked past him.

“And Lois!”* He reached for her hands and gave a sound kiss on her cheek. “It's been ages!!”* He then gave her a once over very playboy-like. “You look stunning, as always! Humor me, let me think you’re here because you heard I was going to be!”* He didn't wait for her to answer and kept talking still with that euphoric boyish way, but in a lower tone, just for her to hear. “Of course, what I hear is you’re already taken! Engaged to Clark, of all people! Congratulations!”* He then tsked playfully. “I should’ve made my move when you were still available!”*

Lois chuckled. “Bruce! You!”* And smiled at him. “You're very sweet, I don't know how you found out… but Clark and I want to keep things quiet for now…”*

He winked conspiratorially. “Certainly. Everyone’s entitled to their secrets, after all. I won't let the cat out of the bag…”*

“Excuse me, Master Bruce…” Alfred interrupted. “But we are running a bit late. Perhaps you should attend to your business with Mr. Luthor and chat with Miss Lane later? There are… other things you wanted to do during this trip to Metropolis, as I recall.”*

“You're absolutely right, Alfred… you always are!” Bruce then put his hand on his butler’s back and turned to Lois again, still ignoring Luthor, who was getting very annoyed with the whole thing. “Do you remember Alfred, Lois?”

Lois offered her hand for him to shake this time. “It's been a while, isn't it, Alfred?”*

He shook and bowed his head respectfully, “It's always a pleasure, Miss Lane.”*

That seemed to be the last straw, Luthor wouldn't be ignored any longer, so he put himself in the middle of their gathering and began complaining about his thigh schedule and Bruce’s eccentricities. Before they could continue to the conference room, the alarm fired.

***

Lois carefully left the shaft. “Service room to freight elevator to dumbwaiter…. Never a dull moment with you, is there?”*

The other woman gave her a feral smile. “Never. Let's see if they’re still on my tail…”* She silently stepped to a terminal and used her wrist gadget to gain access to the system. Lois leaned on the wall, waiting for whatever the other woman would do. “I scrambled security’s access to the monitor-cams, but not mine so… Ah! The bat and boy scout are just a few steps behind… Puurr-fect!”* She collected the cable. “I love to play hard to get!”*

“Especially with Batman, right?”* Lois crossed her arms over her chest. “The sparks between you two…. I'm surprised the place isn’t on fire!”* She raised one eyebrow in her best confrontation pose. “You're a master thief who can get anything you want, aren't you? Except the one thing you want the most.”*

Catwoman stopped and slowly turned to look fully at Lois. “Look who's talking!”* She gave one step in her direction. “Don't tell me Superman gets that hot and bothered for everyone in Metropolis… and don't tell me the feeling isn't mutual!”*

Lois huffed. “I love someone else and I'm engaged to him!”*

Catwoman’s face momentarily lost its ferocity and gained a softer, almost longing demeanor. “Isn't that how it always is? There's the man you want and the man you can have… but they are never the same person… Do you think it's different for you? Do you think you found the man who’s both?”*

“Yes.” Lois barked her answer without any delay.

Catwoman gave her a complicated smile and finally tapped something on her wrist gadget, opening the door closer to her. Their heart-to-heart chat was over.

Superman and Batman appeared soon after she jumped out of a window covered in a smoke bomb. The caped crusader busied himself with Luthor’s confused security team while Superman flew outside to get the cat.

”She isn't going anywhere, Batman…”* Superman appeared outside with Catwoman hanging in one of his arms. “... and neither the plans for the X-27.”* In his other hand was a Cd-rom case.

The smoke was finally clearing, so he could see Batman, Lois and the half dressed and still confused Team Luthor watching him hovering outside the building.

“Well…” Catwoman began with that purring of hers. “Don't you look like the cat who ate the canary, Superman? Another job well done…”* With a swift movement, she got rid of his grip on her arm. “Congratulations!”* And landed a sound kiss on his lips.

Superman was so surprised that he froze in place for a few seconds. Catwoman chuckled, breaking the kiss.

“How sweet.. You kiss like a farmboy ! Why am I not surprised?”*

Superman widened his eyes and looked at her, then at their audience, as if he was a deer caught in the highlights, Batman had an unreadable look in his face and Lois only raised one eyebrow at him, almost amused.

“Uhm…”* He tried to say something, but nothing came out. His brain left him.

Catwoman took the opportunity to pull her last trick, setting some incendiary bombs and jumped into the night again.

After disabling the bombs and checking the building, Superman landed by Batman's side and an awkward silence hung between them.

"That… was not my fault." 

"I don't know why you're saying this to me, I'm not the one you should explain yourself to."

Superman leered at Lois and he felt a pang in his stomach, just in time for Luthor to open the door with violence.

“My god, Pennyworth… you're right! They never left the locker room! Someone better tell me what happened!”*

Lois had already gotten some words from Batman and was now interviewing the Team Luthor's members that were still in the locker room. They all stopped talking and looked at the two men walking inside the room.

“You tell him the bad news.”* Superman whispered to Batman. “He already doesn't like me.”*

Batman went towards Luthor. “Catwoman set off a series of charges, Luthor. Loud. Bright, but harmless. A diversion. Of course we didn't know that until we’d checked… by then-”*

“You let her get away??” The bald man barked at Batman. “A glorified wrestler like yourself can't begin to comprehend the cost having the x-27’s plans on the open market will-”*

“Oh, but she doesn't have the plans, Luthor…”* Superman interrupted and avoided Luthor winning a black eye or something. “Here’s the disk… and there weren't any copies hidden on her. I… uh.”* Batman turned at him. “ … checked.”* He said looking straight to his white lenses.

Luthor angrily snatched the disk from Superman's hands. “That… that doesn't matter! She could have modemed the information out while still in the building! I can't chance it! The x-27 test flight will have to be moved up! Now get out! All of you!!”* He then turned at Alfred. “And tell Wayne our deal’s off! I bet you're the real brains behind that dimwitted dilettante! Work for me.. I'll pay you twice as much!”*

Alfred strained her back even more and looked at Luthor almost with disdain. “If I was seeking new employment, sir, I’d rather work for Catwoman. At least she doesn't hide who she truly is.”*

Luthor huffed under his breath. “Uppity butler."* He began making his way to the door. "LeMANS! You're fired! That's for talking to the press!”* He yelled before leaving.

Lois and the two Team Luthor looked startled to the bald man leaving the locker room, no one noticed when and how Batman disappeared and Superman was grinning widely at the oldest man in the room.

“Well, you really put Luthor in his place, Alfred.”* He whispered, stopped by his side. “Didn't know you had it in you!”*

Alfred silently observed Superman. “Pardon me, sir… but you're scarcely better yourself.”*

It stung coming from the always polite, although highly prone to sarcasm, butler. Alfred joined his hands on his back, assuming that traditional pose.

“If I may a word… no, three words.”* Alfred looked at Lois, still interviewing the security team. Superman followed his gaze to his fiancée. “Tell her. Soon .”*

Superman groaned. “I know. I know!” He then sighed and ran one hand in his hair. “I’m trying!! It's just… something always comes up…”

***

He was nervous and couldn't stop tapping his foot, he needed to be careful not to shake the building too much. He had already given his story to the Features Desk and now was lingering around her desk, having excuses to be drinking his third coffee of the morning. And where on Earth was Lois??

He heard her heartbeat coming from the elevator and fired in her direction, managing to intercept her before she had met anyone on her way.

“Clark?”

He grabbed her hand and pulled her with him without saying anything, he was afraid he would lose his resolve if they did as little as small talk. He walked confidently in the corridors until he slowed down and reached for a doorknob.

“What is it with you and this store room?”* She asked playfully.

The store room.

“Come in and I'll show you, Lois…”*

Before Clark could breath to gather his courage he felt her lips on his, he instinctively responded and the kiss soon became a hot mess, taking advantage of the darkness of the place. Well, he supposed this could be their last kiss after all, he would enjoy it while he could.

“Mmm…” Lois moaned when they broke for air. “I'm beginning to understand what you see in this place.”*

Clark grinned like a fool at her, but soon had scolded his features into seriousness again and to put the things back on track, “Actually, there's another reason I brought you here…”* Lois’ hands caressed his neck and she hummed for him to continue. “There's something I've wanted to tell you, but things have been too hectic…”* He was aware he’s started babbling.

She put her arms around his neck and caressed the small hairs at his nape, it was getting harder to say anything anymore.

“Something very few people know…”* Lois pressed her chest against his, her attention picked. “A… uh, super-secret, really…”*

Clark took a deep breath and the door opened. “Break it up, lovebirds!” Jimmy put his head inside. “The chief says you gotta make out on your own time! And he wants another extra edition out… an hour ago!!”*

“Of course he does.”* Clark grumbled and Lois chuckled at him, taking her arms from him and putting a bit of distance again.

Jimmy walked away, but left the door opened for them to follow, so Lois began to walk to the door too.

“You heard the chief. You coming?” She asked already halfway through the door.

“Just a sec.”

Lois smirked at him, definitely thinking something else and disappeared to the corridor. Clark leaned on the shelves packed with office supplies and crouched on the floor, half sighing аnd half grunting and utterly defeated.

***

The first one, apart from their families, that they told about the engagement was Jimmy, he was so over the moon that he had overstepped a bit and told the whole staff of the news. When Lois and Clark arrived at the Planet the next day, they were received with a big congratulations banner and heart balloons and music and confettis. It was sweet of the people in the office, but they were trying to not make a big deal of the news.

Congratulations and happiness wishes were directed at them, some were very sweet, some were not so much. Like some snarky remarks of the people who think it wouldn't last or the one about a way to get rid of competition by marrying her. As if Lois would stop working after getting married, when did they think they lived? Middle ages? It was the 90s!

Food was plenty and many employees from other departments came and went to congratulate the couple and pick a snack or two. They even popped a bottle of champagne in the middle of the work hours. Clark worriedly looked at the chief editor's office, to see if Perry would be too mad about it, but saw the man sadly sitting in his chair looking at nothing in particular.

“Chief?”* He asked, opening the door just a bit. The oldest man raised his head to look at who was walking at his office. “Are you all right?”* Clark asked.

“Oh, hello, Kent. Party started already?”* His voice sounded very tired. “I'll be right along.”*

Clark shut the door behind him and tilted his head, studying the man. “That doesn't answer my question.”* He said boldly and Perry gave him a small smile. Clark then pulled the chair and sat in front of his editor. “Are you all right?”*

Perry took his cigar and sighed. “I don't know… since Jerry died… some mornings it's all I can do just to get up… It's hard enough to lose a parent, but when you lose a child…”*

“Perry, I admit I don't know what that's like, but you can count on me to help… even if it's just to listen.”*

“You can count on both of us.”* Lois' voice came from the door. “After all, we're all in this together.”*

“She's right, Perry.”* Clark agreed. “The Planet is more than just a job or a regular paycheck to us.”*

Perry stood and walked at them. Clark reached for his shoulder and Lois held her arms around one of his upper arms affectionately. “Think of us as family.”* Clark said.

Perry’s shoulders fell and he closed his eyes. “You kids are too much.”* He breathed out. It was really rare when Perry really said what he thought of them, not that they didn't know the truth.

Lois squeezed his arms and he looked at a smiling woman hanging on his arm. “Who taught us both how to be reporters? If we’re kids, then we're your kids!”* And she gave him a light kiss on the cheek.

At the newsroom, the staff watched in shock the images of the x-27 in shambles and the reporter claiming that Lex Luthor had died in the accident.

Chapter Text

Clark was checking his last feature story before filing in when Lois’ desk phone rang. “Hello, Clark Kent here.”*

“Clark!” She breathless at the other side of the line.

“Oh, hi , Lois.”*

“Have a scoop, but Foswell needs a hard copy to hold the front page. We have 10 minutes.”

“You want me to type your story into the computer system?”*

“Yes.”

Clark pulled from the desk he was leaning on and sat on her chair, walking the computer and holding the phone between his shoulders and ear. “Well… okay, go on, Lois.”*

Lois started dictating the story and Clark soon realized that was a job for Superman, but first he needed to make sure her story was on the front page as quickly as he could. He typed almost too fast for the terminal to process and in less than 5 minutes they had a full article in the system. 

“Thanks, Clark, that was fast.”

“Glad to be of service.” He practically could hear her rolling her eyes. “I'm going to talk to Foswell, please, be careful while you're there, Lois.”

“Don't worry, Clark. “

But worry is what Clark did, he jumped to talk to the new managing editor.

“Mr. Foswell? Lois’ story is on the system. You should look it over… it's big news…”* He could see the oldest man with piles of paper over the desk.

“What?”* He looked up from his full hands at Clark by the door. “Are you and Lois trying to give me another ulcer??”* He had the mock up of the front page practically ready in his hands. “Oh, all right, I'll read her scoop.”* He then let go of his pen and reached for the mouse with uncertainty in his eyes. “Uh, could you help me access it? I'm not too familiar with Perry’s terminal.”*

“Uh, sure.”* Clark answered a bit anxious now, the longer he waited, the more dangerous the situation could become over the landfill. Terra-man managed to get a whole group of bystanders injured the last time they met*. And, of course, Lois had to be in the thick of things!

Clark walked around the table and opened the document he had just finished over Lois’ desk.

“Hmm… this is good…”* The man murmured. “But since when did you and Lane start working together?? I thought-”* He looked at Clark who was raising an eyebrow at him. “Ah, forget it… Thanks, Kent.”* And picked the phone to call the composing room.

Clark nodded and walked a bit faster than a normal human towards the emergency stairs, he had already lost too much time.

***

Superman arrived just in time to save a couple of scientists and executives from Luthorcorp from being buried alive, unfortunately for one of them, not fast enough. Superman tried to reanimate the man for whole 15 minutes, but couldn't save him. Lois had never seen Superman uttering a bad word before.

***

Clark was sitting at the microfilms at the Planet’s archives, trying to find a connection, a clue to why Terra-man had attacked this time around and why in that place. A man had died on his watch.

He felt a small hand on his back, Lois was bringing him coffee.

“What do you say about a little break, Clark?”

“Manning killed a person and now is out there…”

“I appreciate you are helping me with the story, sweetie, but you’re going nonstop for hours…”

Clark looked at the little window and saw the sun already falling behind the buildings. “Oh…”

“Yeah.”

He smiled at her and picked up the mug she was offering him. He took a few sips and returned to the old newspapers microfilm under a knowing look of Lois.

“I've found a local angle on Manning!”* Clark exclaimed after a few minutes, Lois leaned down behind him to read the article too. “He built the Lookout Peak Chemical Plant with four others.”* Clark summed up for her instead.

“Lookout Peak? The town that the EPA bought from its residents? Just so they could evacuate it?”* Lois frowned trying to link the point in her head. Lois took over the dial to look for other articles.

“Manning was the sole partner to be indicted for the chemical spills from their factory ten years ago.”* Clark mussed, crossing his arms in thoughts.

“This other story details the EPA investigation that led to fines and prison time for manning alone .”*

“His partners however, all died while he was in jail.”* He added, having already read the article to the end with superspeed.

Lois threw herself in the chair next to him. “Gee… is that suspicious, or what??”* She held her chin and knitted her eyebrow, Clark didn't like that face of hers. “Clark… my love…”* She started and he knew. “If Manning is in the area, what better place for him to hide out than in a town that's been deserted for ten years?”*

“I don't like the sound of that, Lois.”* He didn't like the glint in her eyes either. “Lookout Peak is still contaminated, so, please, don't go out and do anything dangerous .”*

Lois smiled and began to stand up. “Clark…. Don't worry.” She bent down and gave him a peck on the lips. “I'm only going to Luthorcorp to follow up any connection between them and Manning…”*

***

Clark was really ticked off, he flew as fast as he could to Lookout Peak. He couldn't believe his own fiancée would lie to his face like that! Not that he was any better, really. The pressure of his secret hanging over his head was getting practically unbearable. But Lois did misdirect him to pursue a dangerous angle she knew he wouldn't like… Lucky her contact at Luthorcorp called to know why she would need a containment suit and he was the one to pick the call. And of course he heard her voice in distress coming from the abandoned town.

He used his heat vision to disable some kind of droid that was trying to capture Lois, he landed by her side and broke the nets with his hands, freeing her.

“How long do you expect to keep barreling head-first into trouble like this without getting hurt??”* His voice was nowhere close to the cheerful calming one he normally used as Superman.

“I don't know… as long as you're around?”* Lois joked and it only made him angrier.

“This is serious, Lois!!”* 

“Wait, you're mad at me??” She was surprised.

He was really worried about her too. But before they continue, a tornado announced the arrival of Terra-man. 

“Manning!” Superman put his body between Lois and Terra-man, protecting her of whatever Manning could throw at. “Walk back to the town line now, Lois.”*

She opened her mouth to say that was her story, but Superman cut her off. “And don't argue. ”

“Wow, I never seen you this irritated with me before!”* She didn't give any indication she would leave the place and Superman groaned. It was becoming really hard to keep in the persona.

“Why did you tell Clark you wouldn’t come here??” He couldn't hold anymore.

“Wha-??”

“Hey, time out, guys?” Terra-man asked, and suddenly Clark remembered where they were, god, he was so mad. “ I'm working on something mighty important here.” His stance wasn't of confrontation, but Superman didn't leave his protective position on Lois. “When it's finished I promise you I'll turn myself in to the local sheriff. My treatment converted that garbage into inert material… dirt is once again dirt.”*

“Look, Manning, I think your intentions are good, but an innocent man died this morning because of you…”*

Despite his anger, something was telling Clark that this man wasn't a bad person, just a bit misguided in his actions. Perhaps… Perhaps instead of fighting, he could try to trust this time.

Chapter Text

Clark had barely stepped inside her apartment and he felt himself being thrown on the couch. Lois straddled him soon after, threading her fingers on his hair and kissing him with hunger. For a few minutes all that could be heard was gasps and wet sounds of mouth against mouth, until the pop of the popcorn.

"Mmm..." It was hard to leave their liplock. "Sorry to break that off..."* She said, breathlessly. "But I think our popcorn's ready."*

"P-popcorn?"* Clark's brain was still trying to catch up. "Oh… right." He hadn't even noticed his hand going up on her leg, under her skirt. He slowly brought it back to a more discreet position. Elroy was trying to get on the sofa with them. "Uh, well, as long as we're coming up for air… there's something I've been wanting to tell you, Lois."*

She was getting up already, the pop pop of the popcorn indicating it was almost done and she couldn't let it burn. "C'mon, tell me in the kitchen!"*

"It's something you should know about me, if we're going to marry…"*

"Let me guess, you snore!" She joked, busying herself with the popcorn.

"No… I..." He touched the frame of his glasses.

"Well, whatever it is, I'm sure we can deal with it." She opened the cabinet to get a bowl.

Clark stood behind her, took a breath and took his glasses off. "You see, Lois, I-"*

Nok. Nok.

The door.

He put the glasses back and raised his arms in defeat.

"Would you see who's at the door, Clark?"*

"Sure."* He grumbled and was already walking to the door, in resignation. But he knew he needed to tell her, they were engaged and he couldn't keep lying to her.

An white arm broke through the door and grabbed Clark by the throat, he felt his mind going numb and then he blacked out.

He awoke in Lois’ arms, she had tears in her eyes. “What? Uhhn, Lois?”*

“Clark!! You're alive!!”* She hugged him and buried her face on the crook of his neck. “I couldn't find a pulse!! I - I -  thought she’d killed you!”* Her voice cracked in the end.

“She? Who?”* He asked, confused, he had no memory of what happened and his body hurt. That was very worrisome.

“Silver Banshee! She smashed right through the door!”* Lois helped Clark get to his feet again.

“What? Where did she go?”* He was still a bit weak on the knees.

“I scared her away with the popcorn, I think. She flew off throughout the balcony… She seemed to be looking for Superman.”*

He walked outside, stepping over the shattered glass door and searched outside with his telescopic vision.

“Clark, I don't understand… I thought she had died when her family's castle blew up…”* Lois touched his slouched form leaning on the balcony rail. His body ached all over. He really didn't like magic. “Why would she have come here? To my apartment?”* As always, Lois was asking the right questions.

He straightened his posture and adjusted his glasses over his eyes. “I don't know, dear. There's no sign of her now…”* He said seriously. Silver Banshee was tracking him somehow, good thing she didn't see through his civilian disguise, but he couldn't stay there. He pushed himself away from the rail. “If she's on the loose again, no one is safe!” He said out loud, forgetting to maintain the difference in his tone of voice between his personas.

“Clark? Where are you going??”*

“Oh… uh….”*

Tell her!!

“I…”*

Say it!

“I… have to try to get word of this to Superman… He's the only one who stands a chance of stopping the Banshee.”*

Lois grabbed his forearm and pulled him back with unusual violence. “But she hur t you!!”* Her voice was raw with fear. “Do you have to go out there in this??”*

He was taken aback by her words, was she talking about Superman or Clark?

“Isn't there someone you can call, Professor Hamilton or somebody?”*

“I'm afraid not.”* He ran his hands up on her arms. “This… is something I have to do, Lois.”* He held her on her shoulders. “Please… trust me on this.”*

Lois searched for something in his eyes then, found it or not, she reached up and kissed his lips. “Go.” She whispered against his mouth.

Clark nodded and went back inside. “I'll be back as soon as I can. I promise.”* He looked at her one more time before leaving through the smashed door, she was holding herself on the frame of the balcony door donning a very worried face.

“Clark, be careful.”* He heard her whispering with his super hearing when he was already flying in the elevator shaft, changing into the super suit.

“It wasn't the right time.” He whispered to himself. He couldn't possibly just drop the bomb and fly off next second to face a foe who almost killed him two times. “Nope. not the right time.”

***

He scared the living out of her by arriving so silently in the darkened apartment. She hugged him with all her strength, she was so worried about him. Silver Banshee had almost killed Superman in the past.

"What a relief."* Lois breathed out, nuzzling her face on his chest.

With a click, all the appliances came back to life.

"Oh… the lights..."* Lois was still with her head buried on his chest. "Maybe we should turn them off and go back to the candles..."* Lois suggested with her voice muffled against his shirt.

Clark didn't answer right away and that made Lois break the embrace to look at him directly.

"Uhm, I'd like that, but not just yet, Lois." He looked away for a bit, finding his words. "Before we do that, there's something we need to talk about."* He then looked straight into her eyes with resolution in his. "I can't keep deceiving you."

He had Lois' full attention now. He held her by the shoulders and breathed. "You better sit down."

Very silently she walked to the center of her living room and sat on the sofa, eyeing him with apprehension. He followed and stood in front of her.

"Lois…." He stopped and began again. "You should know that..."* He stopped again and sighed. "Did you ever have a secret…  One you'd kept for so long that*…" He shook his head. "And when you finally confide in someone, you're afraid that they'd take it the wrong way?"*

"Have I? Clark, you wouldn't believe some of the stunts I pulled when I was a kid! I never told another living soul-"*

"It's ok. I'm not asking you to tell me anything, but there is something I have to tell you… something you must know before we marry…*" He grimaced. " If… you'd still want to marry me..."

"Clark?" Her eyes searched on his, scared, he just shook his head and searched for words again.

"Well, I've made a lot of enemies over the years… Being married to me might not be the safest thing in the world."*

"Hey, you're not the only one who's rubbed people the wrong way to get a story. I can handle*, you can handle it." She reached for his arm. "I love you, Clark.* We can handle it together."

"And I love you, but… this isn't easy to talk about."*

He gave a deep sigh, kneeling in front of her. He looked deeply in her eyes and then, silently, began to undo his tie.

"Clark?"*

"Lois… for the past few years, I've lived a double life..."* His tie fell on the floor and he began to unhook the first button of his shirt, all without taking his eyes from her eyes.

"... using the name you gave me after I was forced to use my powers in public..."* He had half of his buttons opened now and Lois' eyes began to widen. "To prevent the crash of that experimental space-plane..."

He opened the shirt, revealing the S shield and the blue suit underneath. "Since that day, I've been both Clark Kent and Superman."*

The silence that stretched was deafening. Lois had somehow turned her expression into stone, she didn't make a sound while reaching for his glasses and taking them off.

Clark stayed there, with his shirt open waiting for a reaction with his heart in his mouth.

"You… don't seem so surprised." He said after a few more terrifying seconds of silence.

"I had my suspicions." Her voice was carefully controlled.

"You had?" He asked, closing the buttons of his shirt. "And you didn't confront me?" 

"In my heart I think I've known for a long time, but my brain would always dismiss the notion… suspecting something and acting on it are two different things."* She sighed. "Actually I'm kind of relieved… it explains away a lot of your erratic behavior*… and that I wasn't just writing novels in my head in my spare time."*

She looked at the glasses in her hand.

"It's frightening to have it confirmed*, though… I mean, it's like a puzzle that suddenly makes sense because the missing piece is finally in place…*" She suddenly stood up from the couch. "Look, Clark, or Superman, or whoever you are, my head's still spinning… It's a lot to take in."

"Lois, please… don't turn away…" Clark also stood and gave two steps in her direction. "I'm Clark, the man you love. Superman is the creation… You named me, Lois."* She hid her face. "Lois?"* He tentatively cupped her cheek to make her look at him. "I'm so sorry I didn't tell you sooner*, but I-"

"I know. I understand why you couldn't."*

"I couldn't continue this deception with you… not now*… And I'll understand if you want to end things. It's not what I want, but I'll understand."

"I don't know… I just don't know what it takes to be a wife to a Superman, that the same man I'm planning on marrying is actually an alien from another planet…"* She became agitated with each word and began pacing. "How does that impact on us being husband and wife, for god's sake??!"* 

"I don't have all the answers, Lois…"* He didn't dare to approach her. "I just know that I love you and want to share my life with you."*

She stopped and looked at him for a few seconds. "And I love you too..."* Her shoulders dropped with her sigh. "Clark, please give time to sort this through…"*

"I guess I expected this... All right."

She walked towards him and gave him his glasses back. "I think it would be best if you leave for the night."

He just nodded while reaching for the frame. Lois then turned, scooped Elroy on her arms and walked back to her bedroom. "When you go, don't forget to lock the door…"* Her hand waited a bit on the doorknob. "Or, um, the window."* And slammed the door behind her.

Clark watched the closed door in silence before putting his glasses back and walking to the front door.

Chapter Text

Lois couldn't sleep that night, she cried a bit, yes, but in fact she was more furious than sad. She tried to hide it*, she knew he was taking a huge risk by telling her, this was big, this was huge! The story of the century! And she knew she wouldn't ever write it.

But it hurt, it hurt thinking she was sharing a life with a ghost.* That he lied to her, to everyone, every day, for years!* Him! The best of us! How was that the way to treat anybody!

She pondered calling a sick day, but the new editor seemed to be having a hard time getting the hang of things. So she put on a face and working clothes and left the apartment.

And of course the first person she bumped into, leaving the elevator, was Clark. She would have thought it to be a coincidence before, but she knew better now. Without deeming him a word, she passed through angrily and went to her desk. No one dared give her good morning.

"First fight?" She could hear one of her coworkers asking Clark at the metallic door she just left.

She didn't hear the answer.

Luckily, she had a bunch of new messages to return and hopefully a lead to take her head out of everything.

Her attention was brought back to her surroundings when a collective 'ohhh' filled the newsroom. Lois looked around and saw many of her colleagues watching the images from the TV bank. She stood and approached, already guessing what, better yet, who she would see on the screen.

Superman was flying side by side with a F-14 Tomcat. It was something about the deposed president of Qrac. No doubt Clark would file the full story later… or would he?

She knew she shouldn't write Clark's story, how many other stories he had to sit on over the years? How many will she have to in the future? There were some complicated work ethics involved in this.

The anchor began an interview with some top brass about international interference and Lois lost interest. She had her fill of military bravado for a lifetime. She noticed the other news in the other screens, politicians screaming on their podiums, wealthy business people demanding their privileges, misguided public figures throwing up their misguided discourses. Even in the Planet, unfortunately, senior staff terrorizing the interns… and yet… Clark… the most powerful person on the planet…

She looked around and saw him, alone, sitting at the office kitchen's table. Something inside her broke. She was finally seeing him. Truly seeing him for the first time. He was alone, he had always been alone. He never had anybody. He wanted to be one of us so badly… and he wasn't. This was the closest he could get.* She felt a lump in her throat. But still… He wanted to know how it felt. To be small and forgotten. Ignored. He made himself weak so he would never forget how strong he was. So he'd never stop fighting for those who couldn't.*

"Lois?"

She hadn't noticed, but she had walked towards him and was now at the kitchen's door.

"What-" 

She silently walked in and offered her hand. He took it and watched her face carefully. She could feel her eyes burning with unshed tears. She put the other hand on his shoulder and while getting closer, she ran it to his jaw to bring him to a kiss. Just a light touch, really, but she hoped it conveyed her love and admiration.

"You're not alone anymore, Clark."

"Lois..." His voice cracked. "Are you ok with me being… me?"

Lois shook her head, trying to hold her tears. Had he never been himself to anyone?

"You're the person I admire the most in the whole wide world, Clark, please never stop being yourself."

He gave her a sad smile, he surely understood that she had seen him. He caressed her arm until he held her hand on his. The hand that was still wearing the ring. And he looked at her, inquisitively.

"I still need time to think about the marriage, Clark, you have to agree with me that when I said yes, I wasn't saying it to Superman…" He grimaced, but nodded. "But I want you to know that you will always have me at your side, always. You won't be alone anymore."

Chapter Text

He knocked on her door, holding his breath. He heard her fumbling inside the apartment and hanging the telephone. He could imagine her approaching and looking at the magic eye. The door opened just enough to fit her face.

"Hi. I'm almost surprised to find you at the door. I half expect you to fly in through my window."* She then seemed to chide herself mentally. "I'm sorry… that's not a shot or anything…"* She opened the door just a bit more. "... but you have to admit this is an uncomfortable situation."* 

"I know you asked for time, Lois… but… It's been a week…" His face was of a blasted lost puppy. "Lois, we have to talk."*

"Okay… come in, Clark." She let him in and closed the door silently after him.

"The way we left things has really got me wondering where we stand."* She turned at him and crossed her arms. "As a couple." 

"I wish I knew what to tell you, but I don't!"

"You can love Clark, but not Superman?"*

"That's- that's not it at all… I love you both! I mean, you! I mean-" She huffed. "Uh! See how confusing this is??"*

She began pacing in front of him. "Marrying Clark Kent is the easy part! But marrying Superman? That's like marrying a god! What on Earth will our life together be like? How can I know what to expect?"*

He got a little closer. "You know I have no answer for that and I won't make promises… Deep down I'm just ordinary guy* from a small town trying to do the right thing, Lois.** You know that!"

Lois looked at her hands. "Right. Ordinary."* Her tone was sarcastic. "As ordinary as anyone who can count the grains of sand on Mars with a glimpse."*

He sighed. "Lois … please."* 

She snapped a bit and put a little more distance between them.

"Really though, Clark, how ordinary are you??"* She waved her arms to emphasize. "Will you even age?? Or are you immortal??"*

"I… uh… I've aged pretty normally 'til now."*

"It's marriage we're talking about… When I'm sixty-five, how old will you be??"*

"Truth to tell, Lois*… I… I only learned where I came from about three years ago. I don't know much about myself either… so I really don't know."

That made Lois stop on her tracks. "Well, neither do I, Clark."* She distanced herself one more time, now with a houseplant in the middle. "All I know is that I'm confused… like I don't know what life holds in store for me anymore!"*

"No matter how hard we try, we can't predict the future, Lois*… no one can… well, mostly."

Lois gave a tiny knowing smile and walked to her balcony.

"You know that I love you and that I'll do everything I can to keep you happy."*

He didn't let her put too much distance this time and reached for her face, she let him caress her cheek, even leaned on his hand a bit.

"Beyond that, all we can do is take it day by day..."* Clark put his arm around her to bring her closer and she rested her hand over his, leaning even more and closing her eyes in affection.

"I know..." She almost whispered. "But… it would be nice to know what our day-to-day life will be like!"* Then shuddered in his arms. "Firemen… Policemen… I can't think of anyone with a more uncertain existence than a Superman! By this time tomorrow you could be in another galaxy or-"*

A bright light appeared in the sky in front of them.

"What's that??"*

"Someone's flying… getting shot!!" Clark looked closely. "Booster Gold?? What's he doing back in Metropolis?"* He reached for his glasses and looked with regret at Lois. " I know we have a lot left to talk about, Lois… but I have to go."

"Hurry… he's propping like a stone!" He waited a half second. "Just go! I understand!"

And in front of her eyes, she saw for the first time Clark Kent transforming into Superman, the changes were actually very subtle, but very impressive. She lost her voice for a moment.

"Back as soon as I can, hon!"* He was flying already.

"I- I'll be waiting. Just be careful, okay?"

He gave her a tiny smile, fully in his Super persona now, and flew towards the mysterious light in the sky.

Lois then snapped out of the awe she was in. What was she doing? Of course she wouldn't be waiting at home!! She picked her jacket and ran outside her apartment.

***

Booster Gold wasn't much of help, but at least she knew Clark was somewhere in the future. And that didn't make her the least calmer, actually she found that maybe being in a distant galaxy was in fact preferable.

Lois opened the door to the darkened apartment, no sounds either.

"Clark? Clark, are you here?"* She thought with the whole time traveling thing it wouldn't be unrealistic that he had already returned. She hoped he had. The only traces of him were the clothes he had on before he left as Superman.*

She picked the trousers and the glasses, they were closer to the door, she could see his shirt thrown in the back of a chair… And that was?

"Elroy! No! That's Clark's shirt!!"* The little yellow cat jumped scared. "You little beast! What's got into you??"*

Lois picked the shirt and couldn't hold herself, she brought the piece closer to her face, she could smell his scent on it, and clutched it in her hands.

She felt the cat on her leg, asking for forgiveness, no doubt. Lois sighed and checked the shirt's condition.

"You really did some surgery on it, Elroy!"*

The little rascal jumped on the sofa to look at her mistress. Lois slipped into the shirt, a good part of her shoulder was visible through the rips. She held the shirt around her chest and felt his scent embracing her. She was so worried and so afraid. All of this was so new to her, she didn't know how to properly react. This must be how her mother felt whenever her father was deployed to combat. Every time that Clark disappears now she would know he was off to god-knows-where being Superman*… Her heart clenched.

"Oh, Clark, my love, please come back to me."* The whispered plea was almost inaudible to herself, but she irrationally hoped he could hear with his super hearing wherever he was now.

Lois didn't know how much time she spent looking at the window, hoping to see a red dot in the night sky, but at some point she had to sit on the sofa. Elroy promptly jumped on her lap, maybe it was his animal sympathy trying to help with her worried state. Not too much time later she had already covered herself with a blanket and was alternating between sleep and awakening over and over again, still waiting for Clark to return. Until she finally gave up and decided to find help the next day.

"Lois?"*

She felt a warm hand on her shoulder and stirred from a dreamless sleep.

"Mmmm?"*

"It's me… I'm back."* His voice sounded unsure, all she could see was a silhouette and a hint of the blue uniform, even his face was in shadows.

"Clark?"*

She didn't need to hear the answer, she jumped on the sofa and hung on him. Her hands embraced his head and her mouth found his, even in the dark. Clark clung to her as well, holding her head and torso with his strong arms, their kiss was deep and unrestrained. Lois with her mind still sleepy wasn't holding back, she devoured his mouth as if she would never be able to do it again, barely noticing the texture of his full beard, and Clark responded evenly.

Clark slowly sat on the couch, without stopping kissing her, he hugged her just a bit shy of being too much, her body now half on his lap and her fingers fiercely grabbed his hair, holding him very close to her. They barely breathed for a few long minutes until they couldn't hold anymore and were forced to break the kiss.

Clark was breathless, he's never breathless, and he's holding her so tightly, tighter than he ever did.

"I was so afraid that I would never see you again!"* He sounded raw and it string a cord on her chest.

"What? Why? I mean… I worried when you disappeared, babe… but that was just a couple of hours ago…"*

Clark moved back and looked at her in surprise. He then noticed she was wearing the same clothes as when he came to talk and let all his weight fall on the couch rest. "Is that all? It's hard to believe… It was nearly five months for me!"*

"Five months!??"*

Clark then explained how he jumped from place to place in the timeline: 30th century, 1940s, medieval and prehistoric periods where he had a dinosaur pet for a few weeks. And tentatively scratched Elroy's ear. He then explained how he wasn't able to save the moon and its millions of habitants a thousand years in the future. Lois honestly was having a hard time following everything, his life has always been so chaotical? She could see the tragic fate of their natural satellite had deeply affected, as he would always worry about everyone else, but himself. The sadness and regret were visibly on his face and it touched her. He was the same kind, wholesome guy who helped old ladies reach the products at the top shelf in the supermarket and also blow nuclear reactors as if they were birthday cake candles. And when he couldn't help, he suffered.

"Clark… I- I may never comprehend all that you've experienced, but - Please! - don't do this to yourself!"*

He didn't say anything and she saw now how tired he was, he's so rarely let it show, he must be really exhausted, the beard only emphasized his exhaustion. How he managed to keep two lives all these years was completely beyond her. She was beginning to understand, though, who he really was. She wanted to help him, anyway she could. At the moment, she decided that was to ease his tension, Lois stood by his side and began massaging his neck, it was stiff as she expected, she wasn't sure if it was really making anything until he hummed and caressed her arm in thanks.

"For all of your powers, you're not a god!"* She felt him exhaling. "You can't do the impossible… You did your best, you can't expect to win every time, dwelling on a loss won't do you any good."*

"I s'pose y'r right."* His voice was dragged.

"I know I'm right!"* He hummed again. "Look, you… you're Superman! You're still the best hope this world has…"* She kissed the top of his head. "And I love you."

"Love you, too."* His answer was low, almost inaudible. "Feels good."*

"You like my neck rubs, huh? I'm not surprised… My aunt Rose always said- Clark?"*

She looked at him, his breathing had become heavy and even, his eyes were closed and his expression finally lost that heavy weight from before. Lois, delicately, pulled him to his side and supported his head with one of the pillows from the couch. She then covered him with the blanket she was using before and kissed him on the forehead.

***

Clark awoke with a sharp and furry thing bumping on his cheek. He opened his eyes slowly, the sun in his face and his favorite scent all over him. Lois' scent. Now he remembered, he finally found his way back to his time and apparently made up with his fiancée. Another bump in his face.

"Elroy..."* Clark sat on the couch and scratched the back of his head, still situating himself. The cat mewed annoyed at him. "Y'know, before your mistress and I marry… you and I are going to have to come to an understanding!"* He jumped on the floor, as if asking to be followed and mewed again.

Clark stood up and stretched. "Morning already?"* He looked at the window, for the position of the sun, it was that still early. "Uh… Lois?"* He called, maybe she hasn't left for the Planet yet.

Elroy mewed again, sitting expectantly in front of the coffee table, where he could see his civilian clothes neatly folded and a note with her handwriting on it.

"Wow!"* He whispered after reading, he felt like floating, now he was sure they had made up… 'Love you madly', she wrote. He was very certain he had a silly grin on his face and absolutely didn't care. The cat mewed again.

"Alright! You deserve a reward!" Clark said to the cat and walked to the kitchen, with him close on his heels.

He opened the cabinet he knew Lois stored the cat's food and retriieved a can of wet tuna food, he felt him bumping his head on his shin.

"I know you're manipulating me, Elroy." He crouched and put the bowl with the food on the floor, the cat almost trotted there. Clark took the opportunity to scratch his ears. "But I am buying your love with food, too."

He then looked at the clock on the kitchen wall. "Hold the fort, Elroy!"* And flew through the balcony at superspeed.

He saw her crossing the streets just a couple of blocks away from the Planet.

"Pardon me..."* The voice came from behind her. "Is this sidewalk taken?"*

Lois looked back and opened a big smile, he was sure to be grinning himself too.

"Well, good morning! You look 100% better."*

"I slept surprisingly well…"* He caught up with her and put a chivalrous hand on the small of her back, leaning a little in her direction to whisper. "And awoke to find a beautiful note."*

She smiled again. "I'm sorry about your shirt, I'm afraid Elroy got a little jealous and really did a number on it."*

"That's okay*… I'm working on it…. And it was an old shirt. I had to go home to freshen up anyway."*

"Really? I didn't leave home for more than 15 minutes. How long did it take? A minute?"

"27 seconds!"

"Show off." She grumbled.

He had a tiny smile of relief on his lips. They would be fine. "Dinner tonight?"* He risked it.

"Sounds lovely, but right now we better step on it… if we get to work too late, people are liable to talk!"*

Chapter Text

“Well, well, well, look who’s arriving late and together!” The mocking comment came from one of their colleagues, entering the elevator.

“Which is none of your business.”

“Actually…” The man smirked smugly, waving the morning edition on his hands. “It kind of is, Lane.”

Lois could see with the corner of her eyes, Clark trying to look as small as possible, which was an useless and awkward attempt. It was still a bit hard to believe he was him .

“Please, stop, Clark can hardly dig a hole large enough for him right now.”

The other man laughed and conceded the point, remaining silent for the rest of the ride up. They left on the Cityroom floor and Clark shot Lois an exasperated look.

“What? Clark, in these situations it is better to take it in stride or they will never let go.”

“I understand, but we didn't - We haven't-'' He shut his mouth, reddened, and began to walk in the direction of the Features Desk. They then noticed the place was in uproar.

They caught Jimmy running like a headless chicken.

"Morning, Jimmy, what's news?"* Lois asked.

"Oh, hi, Lois… Clark! Boy, it's one of those days! Stories are breaking left and right. Foswell wants to see you both in the Chief's office… ASAP!"*

In less than five minutes, Clark had his job back and they were both assigned to major breaking stories. Since Luthor's death, it seemed the city had lost its footing. He found himself a desk more or less close to Lois and they began to work.

At some point, she remembered she hadn't had breakfast this morning and probably neither did Clark, but who knew? He may be able to eat in fractions of seconds, too. She went to the kitchen, maybe there were still donuts there. In the middle of her task, she smelled her perfume before the blond smiling head became visible.

“Loooisss.”

She grunted.

“Is it true? You and Clark arrived really late on a big news day. And you were not chasing a story...”

“Really? With all this craziness happening? Clark and mine's love life is hardly newsworthy.”

Lois looked up... And thought better... Actually...

“Oh, but it is… So? How was it getting really serious with him? I mean, it was already serious, but....” She tapped her pen on Lois' hand that held the coffee mug and also wore the engagement ring.

Lois grunted again, busying herself with the milk now. Clark liked his coffee with milk.

“I’m even a bit surprised, I mean, it's Clarkie, I thought he was the kind of guy who waits for the wedding kind of guy.”

Lois' head jerked up and looked in horror at the woman. “Do you think he’s-” She then stopped herself, Cat always had a way of getting things out of her, it was annoying.

“Wa- wait, you guys didn't-?”

She outright groaned now, putting both mugs on the counter. “No, he slept in my apartment last night, but we had…. other things going on.” It was the understatement of the century, Clark had spent months lost in time and they still hadn't been able to really talk about Superman.

Cat gave a sympathetic look.

Lois then looked at Clark on his desk, his huge frame almost comic in the small chair.

“Clark is not that corny....” She looked at the other woman, who only raised one eyebrow. “Do you really think he's the kind of guy who waits for the wedding?” Cat only maintained her eyebrow raised as an answer.

Lois shook her head and grabbed their mugs.

She left a grinning Cat at the break room and walked firmly towards Clark.

“Oh, fu... dge!” She remembered half way: Super hearing.

She arrived on his desk, put his coffee with milk closer to his arm, which he thanked with a smile, and took the opportunity to whisper to him.

“Please tell me you didn't listen to that.”

“What?” He whispered back. “You talking to Cat? No, no, I don't listen to other people's conversations.”

“No?”

“It works more or less like peripheral and focal vision. I am aware of the sounds, but don't listen to them, unless something picks my attention, like someone asking for help.”

“Ohh…” It will be interesting to get to know all the nuances of Clark's powers, too bad she won't be able to publish them.

He flashed at her a different smile, a mix of shy Clark and confident Superman, her body shivered at that. Lois was still mad at him, she was actually still furious at him, but she loved him and she wanted him. Just wouldn't do, wait until after the wedding, no way she would wait. They still hadn't even set a date yet.

“Lois?”

“Uhm?”

“Something’s wrong? You're practically tearing a hole in my head without heat vision.”

“We have to talk.”

“I know.”

Oh, yes, that, they needed to talk about that too. “Do you think we can find a moment to be able to finish a conversation without a crisis in time and space this weekend?”

“Can't for sure guarantee, sorry, I think you're beginning to notice the pattern.”

“Yeah, I noticed.” She sighed and took a sip of her black coffee, analyzing his face. “But after we talk, we need to talk.”

His eyes widened and fear crossed his beautiful face. “Talk?”

“Yes.” With that she left him to go to her own desk.

Cat took the opportunity to approach the panic-stroke Clark.

“What happened, stud? Lois scared the living out of you?”

“Why do when women say we need to talk it seems the world is going to fall apart?”

Cat barked a delighted laugh.

***

So Clark couldn’t stay more than an hour in the office in the morning before disappearing again, didn’t return to lunch and barely made it to the staff meeting in the afternoon, where he only stayed enough time to upgrade Foswell on the super feats he’s covering. Now that Lois thought about it, it was incredible that Clark had a job at all. But then… Perry was the kind of editor that liked his reporters beating the streets, because that’s where the stories were, not inside a stuffy office. Foswell, on the other hand… Clark would need to be more careful with his absences from now on.

She returned to her desk and was surprised by a note in Clark’s neat shorthand.

Meet me on the rooftop?

She smiled. Oh yes, she was most definitely meeting him on the rooftop.

Her terminal was turned off before Foswell could emerge from his office to complain about the spelling errors her story typed in a rush certainly had. Lois jumped on the elevator and slammed the top floor button almost giddy. She knew what was waiting for her up there. Practically running the last flight of stairs, she opened the door to the rooftop in a hurry and there he was… floating in the air close to the globe, his cape waving with the wind, the sunset painting him in a warm aura, glowing in gold and red and blue. It always took her breath away, since the very first time he could see him this close in this light. Lois lost count of how many times she met Superman on this rooftop, sharing information on a story or sometimes just to talk… Now it all made perfect sense.

It was the first time she was meeting Clark like this, though.

His smile was even warmer than the sun on his back and her heart sped up even more. Superman floated down towards her and very slowly and gently, he offered his hand to her.

“Fly with me?”

His voice was the soft tone of Clark, but the energy around was all Superman, and she had momentarily forgotten how to talk.

Forcing herself into motion, she gave a step closer and breathed when was able to formulate words again. “Always.” Yes, always.

He floated closer and Lois reached her hand to his. His skin was hot to her touch, and she wondered if the tingling she felt was something only on her head. 

Superman put an arm around her waist and pulled her closer. Her feet left the rooftop floor, and she used her arms around his neck to hold herself in the air with him. Like she had done many times before, but not with Clark. Not with Clark.

Lois watched his handsome face smiling at her, the impossibly blue eyes shining at her as if she was the most precious thing in the universe. Her heart made a flip when she realized it could be very well true. At least in his eyes.

Slowly, Superman flew upward, the cape floating around them, creating some sort of barrier, so Lois pulled herself closer and ran her fingers through his hair. She had fantasized about doing it with Superman more times than she wanted to admit. His eyes never left her, and his firm embrace around was enough to make her feel safe. They kept flying until the buildings were small enough, where they could still see the city, but the city could not see them. Where the sun shone the brightest and the clouds created a blanket of colors around them.

Caressing the small hair on his nape, Lois took her time observing the man in front of her, this super man, the kindest, most wonderful person she ever met. He was the love of her life; she knew. And he was also The Superman, the world’s greatest hero, a larger-than-life force for good who could do impossible things. In all her frustration and anger, she forgot how unworldly Clark truly was. And he was showing her now. This was her life now. This would be her life in the future. Lois pulled his head toward her and captured his mouth.

This was her first flight with Clark Kent.

Chapter Text

“Watcha doing, babe?”*

Clark felt her small hands on his shoulders, her fingers running to his neck and he felt the scent of her shampoo surrounding him with the kiss she gave on his hair. He stopped typing to smile at her.

“Umm”* He hummed at her little caresses on the skin of his neck. “Eye witness account of the airport debacle.”* 

There was a blackout on the systems and a lot of planes were flying blind, he had a lot of trouble getting all the aircrafts on the ground safely and then came the threat of a bomb in the airport. The weather was just terrible. It had been a full afternoon, to say the least.

Her hands returned to his shoulders. “It must have been horrible. Your parents are all right?”*

“Yeah, they’re fine.”* Luckily, he had been at the airport to pick his parents up and was able to avoid any disaster.

Lois’ arms wrapped around his neck and he felt her chest touching his back, she was leaning on him to read what he had been writing. “Hey… no fair.”* She exclaimed, having read the first paragraphs. “Superman is the hero, but Cerberus steals the headlines?”*

“I writes ‘em like I sees ‘em.”* Clark answered tiredly.

Lois gave him a peck on the cheek in support. “I still think it stinks. I hate giving that creep more publicity.”* She stood up, caressing his shoulders while breaking her embrace on his neck. “Who is he, anyway, Clark? Who is he targeting with these attacks? What does he want?”*

“I wish I knew.”* He sighed, drawing Lois' attention back to him. He carelessly took his glasses off and pinched the bridge of his nose.

“Clark?”* She asked worriedly while watching around, no one was really paying attention to them. “Are you all right?”*

“Headache…”* His head had been pounding since the airport thing, his mother had also asked if he was alright earlier.. “Doesn't matter.”* He began to stand too. “I need to find Cerberus, I thought I'd run a search through the papers database… try to find some connection between his victims… some common denominator…”*

Lois nodded in agreement. “But it will have to wait, babe, Foswell has called a meeting in the bullpen.”*

Just now Clark realized practically all the staff was gathering around the watercooler. They couldn't believe what they were listening to. Foswell informed the paper was in a pinch and a lot of people were being laid off. Including Jimmy. Lois protested, but the current managing editor didn't bend.

“Jimmy had just signed the lease on his new apartment! We can't let it happen! We have to do something”* Lois protested again to Clark, when the older man left, but Clark had just heard a message from Prof Hamilton. Lois looked at him and would question his silence, but stopped when she noticed his attention was elsewhere. He had this face so many times before, only now she understood what he was really doing. He was listening. “Clark?”* She called after some time.

He looked back at her when the message ended. “We’ll deal with Jimmy later, okay Lois?”* He looked around and put his hands over his tie. “I’ve got to…”*

Lois nodded, standing on her toes to brush a peck and whisper against his lips. “Fly…”* He smiled relieved and cupped her cheek in one hand affectionately, Lois smiled back. “Later, then…”*

He began to run away when Lois called again. “Hey, want me to start running that computer check?”* He only gave her a small nod, already leaving the newsroom, his mind in the professor’s warning.

***

Lois found him almost at the exact same position she had that afternoon, the office was dark already with only the monitor illuminating his face. “So what do you think?”* She asked, walking in his direction, she had taken a quick shower and changed her clothes before coming back to the office.

“It doesn't make sense, Lois…”* His voice sounded even more tired than earlier that day. There's got to be a connection between the department store and the destroyed warehouse… and the shipping agent at the airport…”* She had reached him and felt him leaning against her touch. “But so far, I don't see a thing.”* He breathed, defeated. She knew the feeling. It was infuriating.

“Yeah, I know, sweetie, I was hoping you'd spot something I missed.”

He leaned in the back of the chair and ran his hand over his chin, thinking. Lois noticed he had his tie and even a few buttons of his shirt undone, but not enough to make the suit visible. He knitted his eyebrows deep in thought. “Maybe if we search deeper… check each victim’s background.”* He was practically mumbling to himself. “Trace down their ownership through holding companies and dummy corporations…”* He was going nonstop again, she could see. “And…”*

“And we will…. later.”* She interrupted him. “Cerberus will keep, my darling. We have dinner reservations and your parents are waiting.”*

He nodded, but she could see he was still in his spiraling thoughts.

“Clark.”

He stood, picking his jacket and booting off the computer. “Cerberus' next victims are also waiting…” He sighed. “And there's so many terrible things happening in the world… in the city… after Luthor died everything seemed to be crumbling down-”

Lois stopped him by putting a hand on his cheek, he took a deep breath and sunk his shoulders down. “Lois, sometimes I wonder how I think I have any right to have a private life…”*

She was taken aback by his words. Had he always had these doubts in his mind on top of everything else? No wonder he sometimes felt overwhelmed. Since he had told her his secret, she knew his life was so much more exigent and challenging than she had realized before. His tired eyes waited for her answer behind the glasses. She looked around and saw they were alone in the darkened office.

“You're a man, Clark.” Her other hand reached for the frame of his glasses and took them off, holding his face on both of her hands. “You can't be everywhere … Nor can you right all the Earth’s wrongs…”* She looped her arms around his neck and pulled him down. “A life and a love… they help you remember what it is you're fighting for*…. Isn't that what you said to me?”

He gave her a watery smile, his arms wrapping her body and bringing closer to him. “Why did I take so long to tell you everything?”

Lois smirked and closed the gap in a deep, sensual kiss. One they wouldn't do if the bullpen was full of people during the day.

“Come one.”* Lois said, with her voice raspy, after breaking the kiss “Your parents are waiting for us.”*

***

Martha Kent opened a big smile when she saw the couple entering the restaurant hand in hand. She waved happily at them, not that Clark wouldn't have spotted them already, but she was so excited to finally give them a hug.

“Lois! Clark!” The older woman called, getting up from her chair to greet the younger couple.

“Hi, Martha.” Lois smiled at the elderly woman, it was the first time she was seeing the Kents after knowing their secret. They had spoken on the phone, but there was only so much they could be comfortable saying in a non secure line. And Lois couldn't avoid thinking how people in front of her were absolute amazing.

“Oh, Lois!” The woman pulled to a tight hug. “We're so happy to see you!” Her words meant something more and she knew. Martha broke the embrace and reached for her hand to look at the ring on her finger. She could see the tears forming on the oldest woman's eyes. “We are so happy, Lois, for you two!” She looked at her son, who had his arms around Jonathan’s shoulders.

“So are we.” Clark gave Lois that goofy smile and she couldn't avoid smiling back.

“Since the very first time Clark told us about you, we knew it was it.” Jonathan said, reaching his hand for her.

“Really?” She raised her eyebrow interest, chuckling and hugged the eldest man, as well. He winked at her, conspiratorial. “Care to elaborate, Clark?”

“Uh.” His ears grew redder. “Why don't we sit at the table?”

“Of course, son.” Jonathan smiled, clapping his back affectionately.

Both father and son stood by the chair to help the women sitting, Lois almost snorted, of course neither she nor Martha needed help, but it was so old fashioned endearing. Clark’s manners definitely show its origins.

“I think it was a wonderful idea to celebrate your anniversary here in Metropolis, Martha.”

As in cue, Clark reached for his pocket and procured an envelope.

“Happy anniversary, Ma, Pa.”* Clark grinned, giving the envelope to his mother.

“I just hope our lives together are as happy as yours have been.”* Lois complemented, grinning too.

“Oh, it will, honey!” Martha squeezed the youngest woman’s hand and opened the envelope. “Land sakes! They’re tickets, Jonathan!... For a cruise to the Bahamas!” Martha gave the envelope to her husband.

“I wanted to get you something special, the cruise was Lois’ idea.”* He looked at the woman smiling at him, their hands found each other over the table. “She's great, isn't she?”

“You are wonderful, Lois.” Jonathan agreed, smiling at her. “We're so glad you found someone so special, son…”* He’s still eying the tickets. “But what about the farm…? We can't just pick up and leave…”*

“Of course we can!” Martha intervened. “Fred Peterson will do what needs doing…” She then gasped animatedly, as if an idea occurred to her. “A second honeymoon, Jonathan! Imagine! I just can't believe we leave so soon… tomorrow!”*

Their conversation was interrupted by people who started to sing and clap their hands. The family looked at the other table and saw one of the waiters bringing a cake with a few candles towards a little girl.

“Looks like big night for celebrations all ‘rond!”* Lois commented, before a waiter brought their own dinner. That was one of Lois’ and Clark’s favorite restaurants and they hoped his parents would also love the food, as well.

Just when they were finishing the tea, the maître came to the news there was a bomb threat in the building and chaos issued, despite the man's pleads to remain calm. People began to run, tables were turned and bodies clashed with one another. Clark was leading his parents and Lois toward the exit, when he saw a big fellow pushing the birthday girl on the floor, but no one had seen her, as people were still desperately trying to leave the building.

“Go!” Clark said to Lois and his parents, they were almost at the door, when he saw the mother trying to walk back to her daughter. There was real danger of the girl and mother being trampled over. “Go on out, Ma’am!” He touched the woman's shoulders. “I’ll get her!” The girl was now crying for her mommy. He didn't wait for her answer and stormed inside again. He had, of course, no problem traversing on the contrary of the flux and was able to pick the girl before anything happened to her. She was shaking and terrified and Clark tried to calm her down whispering to her that everything was going to be alright. The girl clung to him on their way out, Clark took the opportunity to check if anyone else needed help, but most of the people were already on the outside.

“Sharon!”* The woman cried, running in the direction of Clark when they emerged from the building. “My baby!!”* Lois and the Kents were trying to calm the mother down in the few minutes they waited for them on the sidewalk. Clark returned the crying child to the crying mother's arms. “Oh, Thank you!”* The woman breathed, burrowing her face on her daughter's hair. “Thank you.”* Clark smiled his practiced smile and walked towards his family.

“Lois, keep an eye on Ma and Pa?”* He asked, anxiously, his hand going to his tie, in a movement she was becoming familiar with.

“You know I will, Clark, hurry!”* There was still a bomb inside.

***

Lois heard the door of her balcony closing and walked to the living room, with a very good idea of who the visitor was. What she didn't expect to see was Superman crouched on the floor with burnings all over his skin.

“Oh, my god! Clark!!” She ran towards him. “What happened?” She hadn't seen him after they separated at the restaurant, no doubt he spent the night looking for Cerberus, after he found there was no bomb on the restaurant.

“It was the Eradicator!” Clark managed to say, his frowned painfully. “He was testing me, that was why all the threats always happened where I was.”

Eradicator. She had to search in her brain what it was. He had told her so many things in the last few days she was still processing everything. “Right, the Kryptonian machine that took over that last time when you're acting weird. I thought you had thrown the thing in the sun.”

“I did. But he returned.” Clark stood, hissing at his skin stretched with the movements. “As Krypton Man again. He absorbed the sun's energy and acted on me.”

“I thought the sun gives you your powers, how can he hurt you with it?”

“The heat… I'm very resistant, but not impervious to it.” Clark sat on the couch and looked at the clock on the wall. “We have to drive my parents to the terminal soon.” He tentatively touched his face and winced. “I don't want my parents to worry during their trip…” Lois kneeled in front of him and shoved his hand out of the way to assess his burns.

“I have an idea… Can you change back?” Lois asked him, standing and walking towards her bedroom. She returned with a small bag in her hands. Clark was sitting in the same position as before, but in his civilian clothes, and raised one eyebrow in question. Elroy was watching him with suspicion on the back of the couch. Lois kneeled back between his legs, put the bag on her lap and opened the zipper.

“Make-up?” He smiled. “You're a genius, Lois.”

“Tell me more, Kent.” She grinned, searching for the foundation, he watched as she opened the tube and applied a bit on her hand and turned his head to the side to try the color. Then began to apply the product carefully over the red marks. She didn't like the tiredness she saw in his eyes, he probably was going non stop for days, worried about the attacks, he even was having headaches.

“What's it?”

“Mm?”

“You have that face in your face.”

“I don't have any face on my face.” She grumbled, turning his head to the other side to see if there were more marks she hadn't covered yet.

“Lois…”

She sighed. “The last time you faced this Eradicator, he was messing with your head, wasn't he?” Clark did not answer. “You are having headaches lately and… I can assume… you don't usually have headaches…” Lois finished covering the burns and closed the tube, looking sternly at her fiancé. “There's something you're not telling me, right?”

His shoulders fell and he averted his eyes from her, almost ashamed.. “Yes… I'm sorry. I’m not sure how to do this yet… I don't know how much of the things going on I should tell you.”

“You're worried about it being newsworthy or because you don't want me to worry?” She asked seriously.

“Both…”

Lois nodded silently, thinking while putting the foundation back on her bag. Lois looked deeply at his kind eyes that watched her expectantly. Her realization that he didn't actually know how to open up made her heart ache for him. She touched his thighs with hands and squeezed affectionately.

“I understand why you want to hide your burns from your parents, your instinct is to protect them… and me, but I'm choosing to be by your side, Clark, we're on this together… And regarding the newsworthiness, you are a good reporter, with good instincts, I will leave it for your own discretion.”

He shook his head almost in disbelief, cupping her jaw in his hands in bringing her to a light kiss. “I love you.”

“And I love you… now… what's really going on?”

“I'm not sure either.” He half chuckled, giving her an apologetic smile. “From time to time, I'm having some kind of hallucination, as if drifting between different versions of our world.”

“Clark!!”

“I know, I know… that's why I wasn't sure if I should tell you.”

“Of course you should!! I worry plenty for the both of us no matter what, anyway!”

“I'm sorry, I’m still getting the hang of this.”

“It's ok, sweetie, we will adapt together… But it has to be the Eradicator, right? He did it before.”

“I'm not so sure it is him this time…” He looked at the clock again and they were almost late now. “We need to get going, Lois, thank you for the.. Um, fix.” He indicated his face.

“No problem, honey.” She stood up, leaning on his thigh to leverage, taking the opportunity to give Clark a little peck.

***

Pa and Lois were already halfway the terminal, admiring the huge ship, while Clark helped his mother out of the taxi and instructed the porter with their luggage.

“You mean that's the boat we're going on? Almost looks bigger than my whole dang farm!”*

“Forget about your farm, Mr. Kent… this is a vacation!”

“Sure hope Smallville didn't get hit with a storm as bad as Metropolis did… Maybe I oughta call home to make sure things are ok…”*

“Absolutely not! Vacation, remember?” Lois put her arms around his shoulders and leaned to whisper. “If something really bad happens, I'm sure Clark can make a jump over there.” That seemed to comfort the older man a bit.

“I guess I’m such a land lover that this whole cruise idea is makin’ me a little jittery*… but Ma is so excited to go…” They both looked at the oldest woman walking in their direction in the arms of her son, the very gentleman he was, and Lois smiled softly. The porter was already on board with their luggage.

“Yes and it's very sweet of you.”* Lois gave Jonathan a kiss on the cheek. “I'm sure you’ll have a wonderful time!”*

When Clark and Martha caught up with them, they were already very close to the planks. “I have to admit that I'm envious of the fun you’ll have, Ma!”*

The elderly woman cupped his cheek. “This from a boy who can fly!”* The family gave little chuckles and Clark kissed her forehead in goodbye. “Promise me you’ll stay out of trouble while we’re gone?”* She asked with no doubt her motherly sixth sense kinking in, but Clark only smiled.

“You got it, Ma!”*

Martha hugged Lois before giving her hand to her husband to hold. “Thank you for the wonderful gift again, Lois.”

“Don't mention, Martha, just enjoy your vacation.”

Jonathan shook his son’s hands and also turned to his wife.

“Bon Voyage!” They wished in unison before the elderly couple began to walk on the stairs to board the cruise, they turned one more time to wave at the younger couple waiting on the port.

“I hope the real gift pans out.” Lois commented when the Kents were finally on board.

“It will, their cabins are right beside each other.” Clark hugged her from the side. “You are a very clever person, you know that, Lois Lane?”

“I know, but you can tell me more.”

He chuckled and discreetly checked with his x-ray vision if the Whites were already on board, as well.

Chapter Text

Lois tapped her heels on the floor, she hadn't heard a word Mayor Berkowitz was saying, the only thing she got was that instead of focusing on the weather chaos in the city, he was announcing his bid for reelection. The rat. 

She looked at her watch again, Clark was last seen hours ago as Superman fighting the Eradicator somewhere outside Suicide Slum, no word from him ever since. She was getting really anxious with his disappearance. Not that it was any news, but the Eradicator had all the power Clark had and some. And the reports said he was taking quite the beat, she had seen the state the place had become… she wouldn't think the worst. He had always found a way. He had always come back.

She heard the noise of people moving chairs and chattering, it was when she noticed the conference was over. Faster than a speeding bullet, Lois got up and left the premises of the hotel. She jumped inside the first available taxi. She wanted to make a quick stop at her parents house, to check on her mother. She had finally been released after more than a year in the hospital. The family was very optimistic. With that and with her engagement.

Spotting Lucy walking with Ella on the sidewalk, Lois asked the driver to stop.

“Seven dollars?? Used to be six-fifty!”* Lois complained about the price, leaving the car.

“That was then, this is now, Lady!”*

Lois grumbled something under her breath, but paid the man. She supposed the things were bad for everyone. It wasn't enough the current weather crisis, but the financial and economic crisis the city was in after Luthor’s demise was making everything more difficult and everyone a bit crazier and grumpier. Clark barely had time to spend with her lately.

“Mother, what are you doing out here? You just got out of the hospital!!”* Lois complained as a greeting.

“I told you she’d said that, mom!”* Lucy was also railing their mother.

Ella Lane crossed her arms in front of her and stubbornly grumbled. “I needed fresh air.”

Lois sighed, resigned. Stubbornness was definitely a family trait. But before she could say anything anymore, the ground between them shook and the daughters quickly tried to hold their mother.

“Another tremor. Relax.” Lois said. “I think it best if you two go inside.” Lucy nodded, pulling her mother with her in the direction of their brownstone.

“But you, Lois?” Ella asked.

“I? I do my job, mom.”

***

The Eradicator had gone crazy, transforming buildings and monuments and signs into something Kryptonian. Superman was still MIA and Lois was going crazy with worry. At least she had plenty of work to distract her most terrible line of thoughts. She could feel the sweat running down her back with her crouched in this position. After the absurd rainfall in the region, came the absurd heat wave and earthquakes. She just hoped the storms had not reached all the way to the Bahamas. Lois pressed the button of her recorder, watching the kids breaking the storefront window and stealing tv sets.

“New paragraph. At times like these, you'd expect people to pull together to help each other through disasters, and usually they do… you'd expect that. But today, you'd be disappointed. New paragraph… The looting that followed in the aftermath of all the ‘quakes and aftershocks served as further evidence… that this city is in big, big trouble.”* She released the button to stop the recording and sighed. “Where are you, Clark?”

A pair of hands grabbed her from behind, covering her mouth, her whole body went cold. “No need for trouble now.” The man's disgusting voice was so close to her ear, it gave her irks under her skin. “Keep quite an’ ya won’ get-” Lois jerked her head back, hitting the guy on his forehead, surprising him enough for her to free one of her arms and swinging her elbow right in the assaulter’s throat. He tripped back, just in the perfect position for Lois to strike his nose from below, causing the man to fall backward in pain and with a massive nosebleed. The guy put his hands on his face wailing in pain.

“Stay right there and don't move!” Lois growled and ran toward the main street where there was a bigger chance to find a patrol car.

“You're sure that you are okay, Ms. Lane?”* The female officer asked, her partner was cuffing the criminal.

“Aside from the adrenaline rush and a little revulsion, I'm fine, thanks.”*

“Well, if you have second thoughts, you call that crisis hotline… we have to go back to work.” The female looked at the broken storefront. “All this looting… we sure could use Superman’s help tonight!”*

Lois’ heart tightened. “Yes… couldn't we all?”*

Where are you, Clark?

***

Lois ran with all her might towards the falling building, smoke and dust blocking her vision, but she had seen the blue blur flying in the direction of the site. The whole structure had just collapsed over him. Of course she had seen worse things falling on Superman before, but now that she knew it was Clark, it got her three times over more concerned. She climbed the debris, lucky the building seemed to have been evacuated in time, only the street was now completely blocked and transit already began to form. If there was injured, she wasn't sure the service cars would be able to reach them. She was able to clim to the top without trouble, the fact she chose to wear a tracksuit and sneakers definitely helped.

Lois searched for any sign of movements, listening to her heartbeat on her throat, when a big chunk of a slab raised from the pile and an arms cladded in blue appeared from beneath it. She released her breath in relief and ran towards him. She wanted to embrace him, to kiss him and make sure he was all right, she was so worried, but there were people watching from below.

“Superman!” She called when he was mostly free from the debris around him. It was the first time seeing him in his Super persona in public since he told her the secret. She had called him Superman for so long, but now it felt a bit weird calling him that. “Are you all right?” She tried to conceal most of her emotions from her voice.

He raised his head to look at her and his face showed how relieved he was to find her safe and sound. “I felt better.” He answered honestly, but still trying to maintain the tone light.

Lois smiled at his humor, but then took him in. There first thing she noticed was the state of his suit: it was dirty and sans cape. His hair was disheveled and full of debris, she couldn't remember when she saw him like that before.  Oh, god. She wanted to touch him.

“I… ah…”* She saw other people starting to get closer to them. “We’re glad you're back. That was the third ‘quake to hit the city today.”* She kept talking business to be able to get closer to him. She saw his eyes were even more tired, starting to form dark circles under them. “You look awful! What happened?” She whispered, holding one hand on the other, she wanted to touch him, she wanted to caress him, she wanted to comfort him!

“Long story.” He whispered back, breathing deeply. “I’m afraid the Eradicator is behind this, Ms. Lane.”*

Ms. Lane?? Oh, right, to put some distance. But she could see in his eyes how much he wanted to touch her, hold her, kiss her. Her whole body thrummed in need of his reassuring touch. Then he tilted his head, his attention somewhere else.

“Meet me at Emil Hamilton’s lab…”* He whispered in his soft voice. “And I will tell you all about it.”* He straightened his posture, fully in Superman mode. “You’ll have to excuse me now, I heard a lot more work in demand of my attention!”* And he was flying before she could give him any answer.

***

Lois opened the metallic door and looked inside. “Hello?”*

“In here, Lois”* Clark’s voice came from the left and she saw him sitting in front of a massive computer. It occupied half of the room. Really high tech stuff. She closed the door and walked toward him. He was all of the image of a superhero during an investigation.

“Sorry I took so long… getting across town is a real adventure tonight.”*

“No need to apologize, I just got here a couple of minutes ago myself.”* He was very focused on reading something on the many monitors from the computer.

Lois stopped by his side, dropping her purse with care not to press any key on the huge control panel. “Uh, are we… alone?”*

“Eh?”* Clark jerked his head at her. “Uhm, yes… Prof-mmm”* She bent down and looped her arms around his neck, kissing his mouth in the middle of the sentence. His hand that's holding a mug, blindly searched for a place to let go of the coffee and thread his finger on her hair, deepening their kiss.

“You got me really worried, mister.” She breathed when the kiss broke.

“Sorry, got a run down with the Eradicator.”

“I heard.”

“No, another one, he tried to throw me on the sun.”

Lois raised one eyebrow. “For a machine supposedly rational, that is incredibly revengeful.”

“Yeah.” Clark indicated the computer. “I was just accessing Ham’s data on the Eradicator…”*

She looked around. “You're saying something about the professor before I interrupted you?” She asked with feigned innocence.

He smirked. “He's at my Fortress in Antarctica, studying Mr. Z’s gemstone for me.”*

“Really??” That took Lois by surprise, she knew he had this lair in Antarctica, but didn't imagine he'd let someone explore it on his own. “It seems that I learn more about your other career every day.”* She looked around again and something red caught her attention. She opened the locker and it had a couple of capes hanging inside. “You store extra capes here?”*

“A few, yes.”* 

Lois looked at her fiancée again. There were so many things about him she didn't know. And she knew it would require time and patience to get to know him from who he really was. She picked one and walked at the man sitting on the computer again. She fastened the cape on his suit. “There, now the outfit looks complete.” And kissed his temple lovingly.

He tilted his head at her, she could feel his smile on the movement of face. He hummed at her. “Why, thank you Ms. Lane.”*

“You're very welcome, Mr. Kent.”* He opened a sunny smile. She noticed his skin was almost perfect again. “Your burns are already fading.”*

“I heal fast, fortunately. Coffee?”*

Her head gave another turn. This question was like the one he asked her more times than she could count on the office.

“I’d love some.” She gave him the usual answer and he grinned back, standing to serve her coffee from the machine.

Lois took the opportunity to read whatever he was reading on the screens, sitting on the chair she just vacant.

“Just hit the ‘enter’ and we’ll review what he has on file.”*

“Good, I want to know more about this thing. You told me that it was originally some Kryptonian artifact?”*

“Uh-huh,”* Clark gave her the steaming hot mug with the appropriate amount of sugar, the way she liked it. And he leaned on the control panel, to start explaining the story about the Eradicator. For a moment, Lois thought they could have been at the Planet’s bullpen, excluding the huge computer and Clark's choice of wardrobe, and that brought her a warm feeling on her stomach and a goofy smile on her face. She was glad they still had that common ground between them. Apparently, the Eradicator was responsible for the weird weather happening all around it  because he messed up the sun's core somehow. And had nothing to do with Cerberus. In the middle of the explanation, Clark gasped and his eyes got lost somewhere in the wall.

“Clark, what is it?”* She knew now that it was when he was seeing or hearing something with his enhanced senses.

“Oh… my… god!”* He whispered.

“What's wrong?”*

“Hamilton! The Eradicator has him!”*

“What? How do you know?”*

“I… just know… There's no time to explain. I have to go... Tell you all about it later…”* He pulled her closer, kissing her again, before she could really feel him, he broke the kiss and was flying at superspeed through the window. “Wish me luck. She heard him saying before disappearing into the dark sky.

“You can do it, babe… you can stop that thing.”* She knew he heard her.

***

The city was still cleaning after the weather disasters and the bombings from the terrorists from Cerberus, but Superman still had a lot to do. Clark stumbled inside the newsroom, still putting on his jacket. “Sorry, I'm late, Marty…. My, uh, alarm didn't work.”* He babbled whatever excuse passed through his mind at the moment.

“Nice of you to join us, Kent.”* The man didn't even bother to look up, Clark’s random comes and goings were nothing new to the more permanent staff. “That info you requested from the morgue is on your desk.”*

“Thanks!” Clark saw the yellow file over his keyboard, but before he could reach his desk, Foswell came from the editor in chief office.

“The Daily Planet is trying to cut costs, Mr. Kent. Firing tardy columnists could help achieve that, hmm?”*

“Right, Mr. Foswell. I’ll make up the time tonight.”*

Lois barged in the bullpen, just as they had planned, he had dropped her on the rooftop and he had flown in through the window in the store room like he always did.

“Check this out! What a coincidence that she's late too!” One of their colleagues raised his coffee mug in praise to Clark.

“Coll it, Robert!”* Lois intervened. “I was busy watching Superman extinguish that warehouse blaze this morning!”*

“Suurrre… sure you were.”* He continued.

“Over here, if you please, Ms.Lane.” Foswell called her when she was saying something to their nosy colleague. “After reviewing your expense reports, I have to say that… I am shocked!”*

“Every single expenditure is legitimate, Mr. Foswell!”* Her voice raised considerably.

“Just don't go overboard like-”*

Clark was watching the scene from the copy room. U-oh, he was sensing Lois getting very tense about this. Perry was used to Lois' temper and modus operandi, Foswell was not. That could end bad. He looked at his copy on the machine and looked around. He always avoided using his powers so recklessly like that, but he supposed he could risk a bit and show off to his fiancée a bit, couldn't he? He super sped in a velocity no one would be able to see him and ran in the direction of Lois arguing with Foswell and landed a soft kiss on her cheek. He returned to the copy machine and noticed it had moved a sixteenth of an inch. Not his best time.

He saw Lois stopping in the middle of her complaining and searched around for him. When their eyes met, she gave him a knowing smirk and he grinned back.

A pair of black clad legs broke the window just next Lois and Foswell, the man shouted, demanding Superman to show himself.

Lois exchanged another glance with Clark, very differently now, and put herself between him and the newcomer man. “Take a good look, mister, he isn't here!” She drew his attention just enough to buy time for Clark to slip outside. When the man tried to pass her, she grabbed the steaming coffee jar and threw it at him. “Care for some cream with your coffee?”*

Clark couldn't avoid the silly grin on his face while changing into Superman. They made a very good team, they were partners. The Lone Ranger had Tonto, Batman had Robin and now… Clark had Lois!*

Chapter Text

The sisters were putting the best silverware on the table, their mother, though still recovering, was gleaming and energetic around the house. Even her father seemed satisfied with the progression of things between her and Clark. Lucy, on the other hand, wasn't so keen on their engagement.

"Alright, Luce, out with it."

"Out with what?" She feigned ignorance.

The eldest sister just put her hand on her waist.

"Uh, right..." The young woman thought for a few seconds before saying. "You've been dating him for like… six months? And you're getting married already?"

"I thought you liked Clark."

"I like him, I mean…He's nice and has been crazy about you for... years ."

"But?"

"I don't know…it's just... It's marriage, Lo!"

"I know."

"How can you be sure?"

"Mmm…. I can't."

"But then…?"

"There's no way I can be sure, Luce, but something happened when Clark first kissed me... It's hard to explain…" Lois had to find the words. "Things just seemed to click into place."

Lucy raised one eyebrow, incredulous.

"It feels right, Lucy, to be with Clark. Our relationship works, apparently against all odds."

"But he's… A bit dull, for you."

Lois laughed. "He's the only one who can keep up with me, little sister, he's most definitely not dull."

The doorbell rang at that moment and Lucy rolled her eyes at her sister. "Go get your prince charming then."

It was Lois' time to roll her eyes and she left Lucy to finish setting the table.

Lois opened the door and there he was, dressed as the adorable dork he was and with a colorful bouquet in his hand.

“Flowers, Kent? Really?”

“It's for your mother, she is the one who invited me.”

Lois raised one eyebrow and held the door, still blocking his entrance. But she was smiling, knowingly, at him.

He grinned and showed what he had in his other hand, hidden behind his back. “And this is for you.” A bouquet of red roses. “I'm sorry, I can't help my old fashioned self.”

Lois snorted, amused, but leaned on him and kissed his lips, lingering there a bit. Then she accepted the roses, mouthing a thank you and let him enter the house.

He found the oldest Lane woman waiting for him in the hall. Ella opened a big smile and opened her arms to a hug.

“Thank you for inviting me for dinner.” He said politely, offering the flowers.

“Thank you for not giving up on our Lois.” She whispered at him, accepting the flowers with a wink and eyeing the roses on her daughter's hands.

 Lois heard it anyway. “Mom!” But she was smiling. She couldn't avoid smiling.

Ella cupped Lois cheek and whispered. “Mom always knows, dear.” She saw her daughter's cheek gaining a little tint of pink and grinned, then gestured to the bouquet. “I will put them in a vase so you can go officially introduce Clark as your fiancée to your father.”

***

They were returning from a very exuberant lunch when Lois stopped in front of a street vendor. One with Superman merchandise.

She gave him an enigmatic smile and pointed to a mug.

"Want that one, please." She said to the vendor.

Clark raised one eyebrow, but said nothing. The man packed the ceramic and exchanged the money in silence. No doubt he recognized her.

When they were at a safe distance to speak, Lois explained.

"I always restrained myself from buying this junk, you know, with the whole Superman's girlfriend reputation." She shrugged. "Do you even earn something from this stuff?"

"Of course not, Lois."

"Of course you don't."

"If I did, you should have your share too, you're the one who gave me the name."

Lois snorted and Clark turned to her with a smug grin on his face.

"They are not exactly wrong anymore, are they? The Superman's girlfriend thing." He teased her.

"Oh, but they are... " She stood on the tip of her toes to brush her lips on his. "I'm his fiancée."

Lois flashed him a knowing smile, snuggled closer and pulled him with her to walk to the Planet, arm in arm.

Chapter Text

The grip from the giant green hand made his whole body ache, the nausea was familiar, the hand was made of kryptonite. He couldn't break free. He couldn't breathe.

“Does it hurt, little man?”* His voice still carried that same snobbish accent to it. “Do you feel the icy grip of death closing in on you?”*

Superman groaned in pain.

“Good!”* Luthor’s laugh ran cold on his spine. “You were the death of me, Superman… it's only fair that I returned the favor!”*

The giant bald man squeezed him and Superman thought it was his end, but gathering the last of his strength, he was able to break the hand and freed himself. Falling to the invisible ground, he was now surrounded by the huge pieces of the kryptonite hand, having no energy left, Superman couldn't even sustain his body anymore.

“This… can't be happening. It must be… some bad dream…”*

“Great truths can be found in dreams.”* A voice came from behind him. “I have a message for you, Superman.”*

With much effort he was able to raise his head and saw the receding hair Lex in his fancy suit watching him with his smug grin of superiority. “I run Metropolis… the city belongs to me. Its people are mine… to nurture or to destroy as I see fit! But they’ve forgotten that!!”* The man grabbed Superman by the suit and lifted him up. He was so weak that he wouldn't be able to stand if Luthor let go of him. “They looked at you! With your costume and your flashy power… and they’ve forgotten who their real master is!! Well… I intend to remind them, Superman, I'm going to show that you're nothing!”* Luhtor threw Superman on the ground and walked towards him, towering him. “One day, very soon now, you are going to die, Superman!” He felt the a chill down on his spine and Luthor's face started to melt. “And you know who's behind it, won't you? … oh yes… In fact, everyone in Metropolis will know… but no one will be able to prove it!!” His face was now half bones. “I’ll not be arrested for your death, Superman, no, I’ll never be arrested again, after all, you can't arrest a dead man… and that's what I am… a dead man… just like you will be… Soon!!” He was now a mass of bones coming for him. “I'll see you again, very soon… one the other side!!”*

Clark jumped awake on the bed. He was covered in cold sweat. His body was shivering. His breath labored and eyes wide open in fear. He wasn't sure how much time he just stayed there in the same position gathering his bearings, but when he was able to move again, he couldn't stay still anymore. He supersped into his suit and flew through the window.

***

Lois awoke with little taps in her window, she dragged herself out of the bed, sneaking a peak on her radio clock. It was so much earlier than she wanted to be awake. She opened the curtains only to find Superman hovering outside her windows holding a bag of donuts and a tray with two coffee cups from her favorite place.

“Honey? What’s up?” She asked with a choked voice of sleepiness, opening the window for him to enter, rubbing her eyes, and he couldn't avoid smiling fondly at her. Not too many chances to see Lois Lane being cute. Easy to imagine a young little girl doing the same.

“Nothing… I just… uhm, wanted to see you.” He stumbled on his words, offering his gifts.

Lois crossed her arms. “Clark? It's five am.”

“Yeah, I know… sorry.”

“Don't apologize, honey, something definitely happened, so tell me.”

“I’m…uh, trying, sharing is not something that comes that easily.”

“I know and I’m glad you come to me, sweetie.”

“I..uh… had a.. uhm, nightmare.” He was suddenly feeling very self-conscious and his cheeks burned with embarrassment. “Sorry, it's just… so silly.”

“No, Clark, it's not…” She touched his arm in support, she didn't want him to back off. “For goodness sake, you face the most terrible villains of the universe heads-on, if something is enough to scare you, it's not silly at all!” She caressed his face, very awake now. “Just give me a sec, I will change and we can take a walk, it's getting clear and the weather is still good. We can eat these wonderful offerings at the park while you tell me your dream. Okay?”

“Okay…” He whispered, grateful.

They were sitting on a bench with a beautiful view of the lake and the orange sky turning blue. The sun was still hidden behind the skyscrapers, but it was still a beautiful sunrise.

“And that’s when I woke up…”* Clark had finished his donuts long before. “I've had my share of nightmares before… but never anything like that… I was like a premonition… I was literally in a cold sweat and I don't normally perspire.”*

“It was just a dream and Luthor’s dead.”

“It was just a dream.” He repeated it in agreement. “I realized that, I even realized that while I was in the midst of it, but even so… I couldn't get that horrible sensation off, I couldn't go back to sleep, so I flew around the world to clear my head, but it was no use.”*

“No wonder you looked so wild-eyed, honey. Why didn't you come by my place earlier?”*

“I didn't want to wake you.”* He answered easily, at least he was coming to her with his problems. “Why should you suffer a sleepless night just because I had a bad dream?

“Clark, we are engaged to be married .”* Lois snuggled closer to him and he wrapped an arm around her shoulders. “It's time we started sharing the good and the bad.”* He leaned for a kiss. “And…” Lois’ tone of voice changed for one of teasing. “I don't mind losing a little sleep for you anyway…”* Clark grunted with the back of his throat and captured her lips on his.

Chapter Text

The rain began all of sudden, as summer thunderstorms usually did this time of the day. She had miscalculated the time to walk from the City Archives to the office. She could, of course, have sent an intern to do the research, but she needed a change of scenery to help with the story. And not because Superman had been in the City Hall all day.

So they're waiting for the downpour to subside so they could run to Clark's apartment, it was the closest. Actually they could see the building already.

"Ugh. We're wasting time, Clark!" 

"Lois, we hadn't been even 5 minutes here."

"Ugh!" She walked to the edge of the marquee they're under, protected from the rain, and looked the deserted sidewalk.

Clark snorted and tried, unsuccessfully, to dry his glasses with his fingers.

"Can't you just, know, zap us to the apartment without ruining the material?"

Clark had the papers they gathered to her next story under one of his arms, it was quite the volume.

"I could, but I'm afraid to avoid all the drops of water, the speed would have to be so high I'm not sure your skin would remain in the same place."

"Tsk." She was annoyed. "I suppose we will have to wait then, I prefer to have skin over my body."

"So do I."

Lois jerked her head in his direction, was he playing with innuendo? He had that deadpanned face of his, so she wasn't sure. They were walking around the subject for weeks now. They haven't actually talked about as she wanted to, their make out had become increasingly more heated lately, but she knew Clark was an adorable old fashioned romantic, she knew he would want their first time to be special. Anyway, that wasn't the place or the time to talk about it.

They managed to reach the apartment in just under a couple of minutes of heavy rain respite. The papers were safe and dry, their clothes not so much.

Clark put the material on his table and looked at his shirt, the red blue suit almost visible underneath it. Lois had her own suit completely ruined with water.

"You better take off these wet clothes and take a hot shower, Lois, I don't want you to catch a cold."

Lois chuckled. "Yes, mom." But she was already walking in the direction of the bathroom.

He just shook his head. "I will make us tea."

It was a relief actually, the clothes were cold and sticking to her skin. She used the shampoo and soap that smelled just like Clark, it was like he was all over her.

Lois walked to his bedroom to pick something to wear and her eyes were drawn to a worn and faded red plaid shirt. It was so big on her and she felt even more surrounded by Clark.

She found him walking to the table with two mugs of tea, as soon as he saw her, he stopped on the step, his eyes widened, taking all of her in. Lois could almost feel the touch of his eyes running on her body. It was one of his powers, maybe?

Clark deposited the mugs on the table and walked, determined towards her. His hands, warm and gentle, cupped her cheeks and brought her to a kiss. A deep and hungry kiss. It was so unexpected that Lois almost lost her balance, she had to hold herself on his elbows to not fall. Not that he would let her.

His hands ran to her hair and shoulders, drawing her even closer, even deeper on their kiss. On the contrary of what people may think, Clark was never shy in his demonstration of affection, but this one had a clear intention. Lois let a moan left her lips. He scooped her on his arms and began to walk her back in the bedroom, never breaking the contact of their lips, which at that point had become quite messy.

He slowly put her on his bed and they finally broke the kiss. She wondered what had prompted this. She was probably a mess, hair still wet and tangled, make-up blurred from the rain and shower, only his old shirt as clothing... Oh.

She then took him in, his hair was disheveled, his mouth, surprisingly, red and swollen with her kiss, his breath labored and hot on her skin. Lois smirked proudly of her work.

"I thought you're invulnerable."

He gave her a feral smile and her whole body thrummed. His hands caressed her bare legs, moving up to the helm of his shirt, he looked at her eyes as if asking for permission, the wonderful man he was. She gave him a tiny smile as answer, they didn't talk, it wasn't needed. When his hands found nothing underneath the shirt, he finally snapped with a low groan from his throat.

He attacked her mouth, with her hands grabbing his hair rather forcibly there, he proceeded to kiss her jaw, neck and shoulders while his hands explored her skin under the shirt. Lois gasped and moaned in satisfaction with his warm touch. His other hand went to the front of the shirt and slowly began to undo the button, one by one, Lois was very aware of her nakedness under the plaid and felt a rush of desire through her body. When Clark was finished with the buttons, Lois broke their kiss and pushed him away, which he understood to lay at her side. She wanted to be on top and he couldn't hold the amused smirk on his face. When Lois straddled him, his shirt opening just a bit, tantalizing him with what was underneath was enough to turn his smirk into a awe silly grin. Lois smiled knowingly back at him, but of course he wouldn't let her win this one and covered her smirking mouth with his, half sitting on the bed to reach her. She chuckled in the middle of the kiss and dug in, holding his head in her hands again. Of course she knew what he was doing too.

Clark held her waist in his arms, to bring her closer, straddling his most definitely aroused parts, Lois gasped and jerked her head up, breaking the kiss to be able to breath.

“Clark…” She whispered hoarsely and he thought he wanted to hear her calling him like that until the end of time.

He took the opportunity to lavish her neck with wet kisses, the shirt was now hanging very precariously on her shoulder and it didn't take long for it to fall down on her arms, revealing her full naked body. He stopped the attack on her collarbone and leaned back a bit to be able to look at her. There was no coming back now, they were definitely crossing that bridge.

“Lois…” It was his time to breathe her name, half in awe, half strained with lust. His eyes were so hot running on her body that she thought that perhaps he was using his heat vision without realizing. She never felt so sexy before.

“Are you going to just look, farmboy?” Lois teased, feeling bold and comfortable. Well, not so comfortable, the molten mess in her lower abdomen was almost unbearable. And she could feel it wasn't the only mess lower on her body.

Clark didn't immediately touch her, she was provoking him. He knew and she knew that he knew. He continued to run his eyes on her until they locked their eyes in each other.

“I love you.” It was what he said and Lois melted, of course he would say that before doing anything to her.

She touched her face with both hands, cupping his jaw. “And I love you.” She whispered, trying to convey all her trust and love in her look, the same she could see in his eyes watching her back. Her gaze then lowered at his still buttoned shirt.

“And you are too clothed.”

Clark chuckled and opened his shirt, mimicking his actions to change into Superman, but there was no suit underneath, only skin. Lois snorted, he was being silly and her heart swelled for him even more.

She bent down and kissed him just above the heart and then trailed her way up with kisses and nibbles until she found his mouth again. Their shirts were discarded and they rolled on the bed again. Only the lights of the thunderstorm illuminated them from time to time, their first time was special because it was theirs.

***

(Explicit smut ahead)

Lois ran her hands in front of his torso, the beautifully toned muscles that tantalized her under the shirts and tights for so long. She had already touched his bare skin there many times before, but now it was with clear intent. She spread her fingers against his ribcage and ran her palms all the way to his belt, enjoying the feeling and view on her way down.

"You are so beautiful." The compliment left her lips before she could hold back and Clark's eyes danced with amusement at her.

"Isn't it supposed to be the other way around?"

She smiled softly. "Well, you are…" One hand traveled back up and rested over his heart again. "On the outside and on the inside."

"Lois." He breathed her name and sat immediately to capture her lips again.

She whispered against his mouth. "Make love to me, Clark."

Taking a shuddered breath, Clark took the rest of his shirt off and threw it on the floor, then picked the plaid shirt that was still pulling around Lois's hips and threw that on the floor too. Now she was entirely naked in his arms and he could hear her heartbeat skyrocketing. He stroked her legs up then her hips, waist, and finally touched her breasts. They had groped each other before, but always with clothes between them. The soft touch of her skin was almost as delicious as the soft sigh she released when he touched her nipples with his thumbs.

The fire she could see in his eyes was hotter than his heat vision and her body trembled with desire. His warm lips covered one nipple, then the other, with Lois guiding his head in place. Clark covered her chest with kisses, finishing his task between her breast and traveling upwards with mouthful, wet kisses toward her collarbone and neck, jaw, ear.

"Lois." The low tone of his voice went directly to her core, making her clench between her legs.

The sound of her wetness almost made him lose control and rush things forward, but he wanted to take his time. This was their first time making love and it would happen only once. He wanted it to be special. However, her nimble fingers made quick, almost frantic, work of his fly, pulling a chuckle from the back of his throat. Lois kept working on his pants and threw it somewhere on the floor too, before stopping to appreciate the image of him only on white briefs, that did nothing to hide anything, spread on the bed to her. She bit her lower lip and her heartbeat was so strong that was practically the only thing he could hear at the moment. It was all he wanted to hear right now. He wanted to hear her, and only her. Shutting down the rest of the world and the rain outside his window, he concentrated all his super senses on Lois, he smelled the musky scent of her arousal mixed with his own shampoo, heard her shallow breath and the blood pumping on her veins. Her cheeks and breasts flushed, the pores on her skin working, the glistening on the well trimmed patch of hair- He swallowed hard and tried to ventilate his lungs, but the air inside the bedroom didn't seem to be enough, never enough.

Lois hooked her index finger on the band of his briefs and smirked. He watched her face carefully when she uncovered the last layer of clothing between them and his chest swelled with pride. She was obviously very pleased with what she found underneath. Her blown up pupils, her mouth watered and her panting ran out of her control.

Blue eyes found purple when she looked up from his groin. "You're beautiful." She whispered again.

His features all softened and he stroked her arms lightly. "So are you."

Lois snorted. The blasted guy knew he was gorgeous. Just out of spite, she provoked him with her fingertips and he hissed in pleasure. Not invulnerable down there, it seemed.

"Come here." He called and Lois bent down more than willingly towards him.

The kiss was lazy. Deep. Sensual.

Holding her against his mouth by the nape, Clark spun them around on the bed, laying half on top of her with his arousal nested delightfully on her pelvis.

His kisses traveled on her face and reached her pulse point, which he sucked strongly. For a moment Lois worried it would leave a mark, but then she realized she didn't care and remembered it was Clark. He wouldn't hurt her or mark her if she didn't ask him to. Maybe some other time.

Clark kept kissing her everywhere his mouth could reach, while one hand gripped her left breast and the other traveled down, to her ribcage, navel, hesitating just above her bikini line. Her abdomen was a mess already and still found space to turn in affection for him. To encourage him, Lois brought his head back up by his strands and licked the shell of his ear.

Lois whimpered when his fingers touched her most intimate place. The hum of satisfaction that left the back of Clark's throat reverberated on her chest, she bit his earlobe, moaning quietly with his finger making its way down there.

Slickness coated his finger. Clark panted heavily against Lois's neck, and he had to hold back his other hand from digging too hard on her breast. To be on the safe side, he pulled his hand from there and cupped the back of her head.

Lois trembled against his finger, when he stroked her nub. Oh, he was losing control, he wanted to make this last, but he was so hard now. His groin area pulsated with the amount of blood that had traveled there. It was becoming difficult to think clearly.

He pulled his fingers away under a huff of protest from Lois and rested his forehead against hers to slow down things a little bit. Moving away to look into her eyes, Clark took a couple of seconds to realize what this truly means, Lois was trusting him completely. With her heart, with her body… with her life. He brushed some of her strands away from her eyes and face. He had never seen her this beautiful and his eyes shone heavily with emotion. 

"I love you."

"Yeah, I know… now fuck me already!" She grunted.

Clark threw his head and laughed. "I was trying to make this first time last, Lois. I was planning on kissing and loving every single part of you."

Lois took a breath between her teeth. The image of Clark kissing her every single part invaded her mind.

"We have the whole night, honey." She drew the contour of his strong jaw with her fingertips "And, oh, I want you to do that. But right now… I want… need you."

He smiled and moved to the side to reach the night stand drawer, but Lois held on his biceps to stop him.

"We don't need that."

"But-"

"I'm on birth control."

His eyes widened and he was back on top of her faster than a speeding bullet. Lois laughed against his mouth at his eagerness. Clark kneeled in front of her legs, her heart pounded inside her chest and she slowly opened her legs to him. There it was, they were crossing the last barrier to be completely intimate with each other. Lois watched him holding himself in hand and aligned with her. They exchanged a look before the velvety touch of his cock touched her entrance and he pushed inside her.

They moaned together.

The feeling of her giving him access, bending her body to receive him fully, tight and hot, wasn't something he would ever forget, or ever grow tired of. He was sure of that. He wanted to make love to Lois Lane until the end of time.

Lois breathed deeply, accommodating Clark inside her. A gentle warmth emanated from her pelvis, then traveled up to her abdomen. She felt charged with energy. Was it something related to his solar powers? Or it was just her mind and body going crazy of how good he felt. 

Lois opened her eyes that she didn't notice she had closed. Clark's eyes reflect her own feelings on them.

This was it. They found… it.

Lois looped her arms around his neck and brought him down with her on the mattress. His hips started to move slowly at first, picking up speed little by little, she met him thrust by thrust. Deeply, closer, higher.

They never noticed the rain turning into a thunderstorm and neither the lightning that illuminated the bedroom from time to time. The sound of flesh against flesh and gasps and moans filled the room together with the furniture hitting the wall.

"Clark!" She shouted when felt herself snap.

He held her tight while she shook and jerked, riding her orgasm and holding back his own. Realizing he had been wrong before, this was the most beautiful he had ever seen Lois. And he tumbled over himself, buried deep inside her, he spilled his load, trembling and grunting.

For a moment, Clark was deaf and blind, the haze taking over him hard. But then he opened his eyes and saw Lois numb in his arms, relaxed, and satisfied. Happy. Not even a hint of her usually guarded nature. She was completely open and he knew it required a lot of trust for her to do that. Still inside her, he laid on top of her, resting his head between her breast, hearing her heartbeat slowing down. It helped slow down his own. He never felt this connection before. It was the same feeling of belonging he felt when he kissed her, but much, much stronger. She was his safe place. 

Lois hummed and thread her fingers on his damp hair. She didn't know Superman perspired. She didn't know many things about Superman, but one thing she knew for sure was that they had made love . True love. Her first time connecting so completely with someone else. And despite the thrilling notion that Clark could vaporize her in an instant, she never felt so safe. Comfortable. Whole.

"I love you." She whispered into the quiet room.

"And I love you." 

(End of smut)

***

Clark had been awake for a while now, and he was glad he did, because he couldn't get tired of watching Lois sleeping peacefully in his arms. He knew she would wake at any moment, since her breathing pattern began to change and a minute later, she stirred.

“Morning, beautiful."

"Hmm…" Beautiful? She didn't feel beautiful, her body ached all over it, she had a hole in the stomach and was desperately in need of a shower. Opening her eyes, the way Clark watched her left no doubt that he thought she was the most beautiful thing in the universe. And she found herself beaming back at him. "Hi."

"Hi." He glowed with the sunlight coming from the window. "Sleep well?"

"Better than ever." Stretching her sleepy limbs, the soreness that came from her lower body made her smirk with satisfaction. Then buried her smile on his neck. "Hmmm… giving you the name Superman was definitely appropriate."

His arms squeezed her tightly, and his whole body shook and vibrated with the deep sultry laugh that came from his chest. 

They remained in the embrace for an unknown amount of time until the patience of Lois' stomach drained and it grumbled to make itself noticed.

"Hungry?" Clark asked, chuckling.

"Starving." She answered, still snuggled against his neck. "Someone didn't let me eat last night."

Clark chuckled harder, sultriness emanating from it, and when he started to sit on the bed, she felt the loss of the contact of their bodies. “Well, I did eat.”

Lois gasped, slapping him playfully on the upper arm. “Kent!”

“It was so delicious, I want seconds.” His grin widened and his eyes lit with mirth. Who’d have thought Superman had a naughty side.

Lois' stomach now twisted in a different kind of hunger. Which should be addressed as soon as the other one was solved.  “You definitely have a super appetite, but I really need sustainment if I want to keep up with you.”

Clark nodded vehemently. “Let's feed you immediately then.” Pulling one leg outside the bed and picking up the lamp from the floor. Lois took the opportunity to ogle his ass when he bent to put the lamp back on the nightstand. It was a very nice ass. Should they do it the other way around? First hunger then hunger?

Clark shot her a knowing look and opened a drawer to pick some underwear. "I can whip us something real quick."

"You don't need to cook me breakfast, Clark. We can just grab something on our way to the office and use our time in better ways."

"No way!" He put on a pair of red boxers. "You know how long I've been dreaming of making you breakfast, Lois? Years!"

Her inside clenched and she jumped inside his arms, using her legs to wrap herself around his hips. "Clark Kent, since when have you fantasized about spending the night with me?"

"Since the day we met, Lois Lane." He brushed his lips against her. “In my dreams, probably even before that.”

Ugh. They would have to leave the food for later, now.

***

They tumbled over the door, lips and tongues and teeth and gaps and they fell over her couch.

***

Clark rolled over her on his bed, he wanted to savor her, but she was too hungry and had no patience, so she rolled him over again to be able to straddle him. Lois yelped when they both fell from the bed. And laughed on the floor. When Clark flew them to the bed again, Lois had already resumed devouring him.

***

Cat caught Lois at the water cooler one more time.

“Sooo, I noticed that you and Clark are much more handsy around each other lately. It happened, didn't?”

Lois grunted. “Cat, couldn't you apply your significant observation skills for something more useful than gossip?”

“That's what I do, Lois.”

Both women watched the other in silence, the pause being an effective interviewing strategy. They smiled knowingly at each other.

“Was it good?” Cat couldn't resist asking. “You know what they say about the quiet ones.”

Lois smirked. “No comments.”

Chapter Text

“Where the devil is Kent?!” Foswell barked, searching for the man in the newsroom. Lois would love to know too, he had disappeared sometime before lunch and still hadn't returned. “Lane! Where's Kent??”

“Uh… out.” Now she knew how hard it was to come up with excuses for his vanishing acts. She’s been in on the secret for just a few weeks and she had already run dry of good ideas. “He's… out researching for… a column… on Socrates!” How come she ever believed his ridiculous excuses for so long?

“Socrates?? Intergang has just shown its fangs again and Kent is researching Socrates??!” The older man threw his hands in the air. “The story is yours now, Lane, you took part in the original series so it wouldn't be any problem, right?”

“I guess not…” Lois searched around for Clark, he had this thing for arriving just in the nick of time, but this time he was nowhere to be seen. But then, how can she blame him, he had two lives to live. Running to save the day and running back to report it.

Her mole in the police called just a few minutes later to tell her there was an escape attempt in Stryker’s Island. Intergang members tried to break the prison using their super alien weapons to free other members, but Superman foiled their attempt. So that's where Clark was. She supposed he would write the story later, so she didn't bother to deviate from her own research on Intergang... She could go wait for him instead and give the heads up on the poorly formed excuse of his absence.

Lois took the elevator to the rooftop, then the lateral staircase to enter the golden globe’s structure and, finally, the rarely used maintenance door to access the globe’s exterior and lettering. She had found out he had two places with clothes stashed, one being the famous storeroom and the other the globe’s inner structure.

“Welcome back, Superwarden!”* Lois greeted him when saw the red and blue blur arriving.

He slowed down to a point he could be recognized and smiled. “Lois, I take it you heard?”* He landed by her side and taking advantage of their hidden place behind the big letters, reached for Lois’ waist and pulled her to a kiss.

“Well, hi.” Lois said breathless after they broke apart.

“Hi… I missed you.”

“I missed you too.” They had seen each other this morning, in fact they had seen each other every day at the office, but it had been quite a few days since they had been together . “So, uh, prison break?”

Superman smiled and released her waist, taking a bit of distance from her. “No matter what I do, Intergang seems to keep coming back for more!”*

“They aren't your only problem. Foswell’s been storming the office looking for Clark Kent.”* She gave him a cheeky smile. “I told him you were out researching Socrates.”*

Superman raised one eyebrow questioningly and Lois maintained her smirk in answer.

“Geez, thanks, Lois! I can't wait to do a whole column on him!”* They chuckled knowingly at each other, but then Superman’s face turned blank and he seemed to have difficulty breathing.

“Clark?” Lois asked and reached for his arms, worriedly. “Is everyth-”*

Brainiac. Wedding. Manheim. Bomb. Funeral. Wedding. Batman. Kryptonite.

“-ing okay?”*

Superman was still frozen in place. “Yeah…”* He slowly looked at her again. “Fine.”* Her hand ran down on his arms and found his hands, he held them affectionately. “Just a weird feeling there for a second.”* He frowned. “You know the old expression ‘Feels like somebody stepped on my grave’?”*

Lois grimaced at him, she didn't even want to think about it. “C’mon, let's get you into work before Foswell goes on the warpath.”* She pulled him inside the globe and closed the maintenance door.

***

“So this is what a big city park looks like, eh?”* Ma watched the scenery around her animatedly.

“Well, it sure doesn't seem like a park with all those tall buildings looming over the trees… give the wide pone prairies of Kansas any day.”*

“It will have to do, Pa… it's all we have!”* Clark said, hugging Lois by the shoulders to let people pass by them while they walked on a busy Centennial Park trail.

“Oh, ignore your father’s grousing! He's just homesick!”*

They had just returned from their cruise and Lois’ plan worked like a charm, the Whites and Kents hit off immediately. The fact the ship almost sank with the storm and a crazy Mayan god rampant also served to strengthen their friendship really quickly.

“Guess I'm looking forward to getting back home…”*

“Well, I don't care where I am as long as Clark is with me.”* Lois  rested her head on his shoulder and smiled fondly at him.

“It has been hard to find time to be together…”* He gave her an apologetic knowing smile.

“Sounds like the lady wants to see more of you, son!”* Jonathan chuckled, teasing him

“Our boy does tend to live life on the fly, right, Clark?”* Lois joined her future father-in-law in the teasing, but Clark was looking to his side, directly at a tree trunk, which he was obviously not looking at, at all.

“Gunshots, screams, sirens… all coming from downtown.”* He explained when saw the three of them looking at him expectantly. “I have to leave.”* He removed his arm from Lois’ shoulders and started to walk away.

“Clark!”* She called him, but thought better before he stopped in his tracks to look at her. “Please… be careful, okay?”

He smiled at her and disappeared between the trees. A woosh sound after told them he was gone already.

She felt a hand on her shoulder. “Lois, I realize this is hard for you, but considering Clark’s place in the world…”*

“I know. I know.” She turned to the parents and gave them a tiny smile. “Being engaged to the most important man on Earth requires patience.” She held Martha's hand and looked at her kind eyes. They might not be blood related, but her eyes had the same kindness as Clark’s. “Clark has so many responsibilities and his dedication is part of what makes me love and admire him so much…”*

“But…?” Martha prodded.

“But those realities make me wonder… if I will ever adjust to this… will he ever-”

Will he ever have time for me?

She sighed and didn't finish voicing her thoughts. “It's hard not knowing what to expect, especially once we’re married.”

“Time will tell, Lois”* Martha tapped Lois’ hand in support and affection. “ Time will tell.”

***

Lois tapped her heels on the floor, she had already sat and stood up one too many times, she checked her watch before looking at the window. Again. Where the hell was Clark?? They would miss their reservation.

The woosh sound came from the balcony and Lois turned to see Superman entering the apartment with a scowl in his face and his cape in shreds.

“What happened?” Lois asked, her heart already speeding up with apprehension.

“Parademons freed one of the sons of Darkseid. The guy was tough, but I managed to send them back into a boom tube to Apokolips.”

Lois released a long sigh in relief. “But then why are you with that face?”

“Metron!” Clark threw his hands in the air, clearly upset. “He manipulated me to clean their mess!”

Lois searched her brain again. “Right, Metron, the weird guy in the freaking chair. Right.”

“Of all the nerve!”* Superman began pacing in front of Lois. “He could’ve at least asked for my help! There must be a dozen ways Metron could have contacted me… But nooo… He had to play his mind games… luring me down to New Mexico like some fish on a line!”*

“I can see why you’re upset, Clark, Why would he do something like that?”*

“Who knows? Who cares?? ”

Lois had to hold her chuckled back, she knew Clark had a stubborn side to his infinitely kind and gentle personality. She thought it incredibly endearing. Sometimes.

“Of all the arrogant!”* He was still going on, waving his hands and pacing, fuming with what just happened. “To think… after all the times I’ve helped Metron’s people over the years… that he’d treat me like that!”* He then turned to face her. “I tell you, Lois, I am getting just a little sick and tired of all these aliens butting in!”

Lois bit her lower lip. “Careful, dear… You're an alien, too.”*

He groaned and made a half turn, huffing. “You know what I meant!”* 

“I know.”* Lois conceded with a knowing smirk on her face. She needed to turn his attention to another thing, otherwise he would be obsessing over that the whole evening. And they had to be in another place in 5 minutes. “But I also know that it's a waste of time to dwell on such things…”* She touched his chest, ran her hands over his muscled pectorals. “Especially when  that time could be spent in much better ways…”* Her voice was low and sensual and he was unconsciously brought closer to her, but then she grabbed his shoulders and forced him to turn around. “So march yourself into that bedroom and get ready!”

“But…!”* He spun around over protests, but went anyway.

“No, ‘buts’...” She walked inside with him and gestured to the clothes laying on the bed. “I made us reservations for 6:30 at L’Auberge and if my fiancée shows up sporting a cape, people will start to talk!”*

Superman leered at her with a smirk. “Okay, you win.”* He took off the cape from his back and reached for the dress shirt. “But I still resent having been used as a pawn!”*

It was Lois’ time to groan. “Who wouldn't?”* She leaned against the bedroom wall to wait for him to change. “You have every right to be angry, honey, just don't let it spoil your whole-”* A gush of air crossed the room and a fully clothed Clark Kent was standing in front of her, adjusting his bow tie. “-evening.”* Lois finished her sentence, looking the man up and down.

He picked his glasses from the bed and looked questioningly at her. “Something wrong, Lois?”*

She bit her lip in a sensual way, not making the slightest effort to hide her appreciation for the man. “Not from where I'm standing.”*

Clark smiled shyly at her and put on the glasses to hide his blush. They had made love a quite number of times now, but he was still adorably timid about it.

She grinned and grabbed him by the lapels. “Come here, handsome!”* Bringing him to a hot, but brief kiss. “I almost hate to go out and share you with the outside world…”* He pulled her in against him, his big hands wrapping almost all of her waist. “But a good meal and a little fun will do wonders for your psyche, Mr. Kent.”*

“Mmm…”* He touched the side of her neck with his nose and lips, smelling her perfume. “I feel better already, Ms. Lane.”* He then took a step back and looked down, first at the cleavage of her strapless dress and then at the rest of her body. “You look gorgeous, Lois.”

“Why, thank you.” She disentangled herself from him, eyeing him knowingly and pulled him towards the door. “Shall we?”

Lois picked her purse and they left his apartment together, but before they could reach the elevator, Clark froze in place and his skin turned pale.

Accident. Funeral. Wedding. Shooting. Flashes. Election.

Pa?

Lois looked back at him. “What's wrong, babe? You looked a little strange there.”*

“Hmm?”* He was startled by her voice at his side. “I… I’m not sure… I just had the strangest sensation…”*

The elevator door opened and he shook his head to clear the terrible feeling in his chest. Lois entered the car and looked questioningly at him when he didn't follow her inside.

“Clark?”

“Look, you go on ahead to the restaurant. I’ll meet you there.”*

“What? Why?”* Did he hear something?  No, his face was almost in agony, very differently than when he heard someone asking for help. “What's going on? Clark--?”*

“I can't say… Just have a feeling …”* He was already running for the emergency staircase shaft. “Have to check it out!”* He shouted before closing the heavy door behind him.

Lois just looked at the door for a few seconds, trying to decide what to do. She had the feeling she would never really know what was going on with him. She looked at the elevator then, it was still open on the floor. He asked her for her to go and wait for him. She noticed she was doing that a lot lately. 

Clark met her at the restaurant as promised about 20 minutes later, she was sitting at their table and had already drunk her welcome drink.

“Sorry about that, Lois.” He said, sitting in front of her.

“What the hell happened? Where did you go?”

“Smallville.” Lois raised one eyebrow. “I just had this terrible feeling something would happen to Pa…”

“Was everything all right there?”

“I arrived there just when the tractor was falling over him.” Clark was breathless, as if he could hardly believe that had really happened. “It would have been a horrible accident.”

Lois opened her mouth and widened her eyes. “You…?”

“I don't really know…”

“... Maybe it's because you have such a deep bond with your parents? You sensed something…?”

“I don't know, I'm just glad I was able to be there.”

“No kidding…”

The maître came to ask if they could start serving dinner and they left this conversation topic to the side.

In mid dinner, Clark stopped eating out of the blue and kept staring at her intensely.

“What?” She asked after a while and looked at her dress and lap, had she dropped something?

“You are beautiful, y’know that? I've seen a lot of incredible things over the years, Lois, but I’ve never seen anything as beautiful as you look tonight.”*

Lois almost snorted at his sappiness, but deep inside she knew he was earnest in his compliments, it didn't matter how dorky they were. “Thank you, Clark…”* She smiled at him.

“You are always beautiful, mind you, even when you are covered in grime and dust and sewage facility waste.” He smirked and Lois didn't hold back her snort this time. 

“It was only that one time!!” She protested in a good sport.

Clark chuckled and caressed her cheek with a ghostly touch of his fingers and she leaned her head on his hand. “But I like when you dress up like that, I can't avoid thinking how lucky I am.” He was watching her with adoring eyes.

“Y’know, it seems you're always so busy with… your other responsibilities… that we’ve had remarkably few actual dates.”* He nodded with a frown. “Do you realize that our entire relationship has almost entirely been built at work?”

“True enough, we really should try to get out more, I guess…”* He looked longingly at her. “We might even ask Jimmy and Lucy if they want to double date next Saturday… With the hard times he's seen he deserves a good ti-”* He then made that tilt with his head, listening in. “I'm sorry, Lois.”

“Clark…”

“I have to go.” He said already standing.

“Not tonight, Clark…”* She sighed, closing her eyes, she knew she was being selfish, but…

“Navy Rescue Wing heading to the sea. Something with a submarine. Must be serious.”*

Lois nodded, opening her eyes to look in resignation at him.

“I know, I know. We haven't seen each other too much lately, but I can't ignore it.” He kissed her hair on the top of her head affectionately. “I’ll be back in a flash!”*

In the end, Lois waited for him for more than an hour and decided to go home alone. There was no point waiting for him anymore. Their date had already ended.

Chapter Text

Elroy walked on the back of the couch eyeing his mistress pacing in her living room, once again Clark disappeared to god-knows-where in the middle of the day. She didn't want to be mad at him, she understood his obligations, but still…

He mewed at her and she smiled at the animal.

“Thank you, Elroy. I’m just worried about Clark, that's all.” She scooped the yellow cat on her arms. “Where do you think he is, Elroy? He vanished hours ago!”*

“Lois?”*

She startled at his voice by her side and jolted to the window, where he saw him floating. “Cl- Superman!”*

“Hi…”* He looked worriedly at her. “Could you change into something warmer?”* He asked almost reluctantly and she pointed a questioningly glare at him. “I think it's time we go somewhere and have a talk.” He added seriously in answer.

Lois felt a cold shiver running through her body and could only nod, before letting her squirming cat go and walk to her bedroom without saying a thing. He waited for her on the outside of the building, only increasing her anxiety.

They flew for considerable time, Lois could barely keep her eyes open, but saw sea and land, day and night passing her. Until they slowed down in a vastness of ice and rocks.

“Here we are, Lois. Can't find much more privacy than Mt. Fuji. Maybe now we can talk uninterrupted.”*

“As long as your super-eyes don't spot an alien invasion in Timbuktu, that is.”* She was trembling and she wasn't sure it was because of the cold.

“Lois…”*

“Sorry, Clark… I think the freezing cold is getting to me…”* They landed on the top of a smaller mountain and yes, she was trembling also because of the cold. “You said dress warm, you didn't say warm enough for ice station zebra!”*

“Yes, I should have told you.”* He took his cape and offered it to her. “Maybe this will help.”*

Lois wrapped herself on it and it kept the wind away, but she was still trembling. “This will help, but I'm still not comfortable.”* Her shivers mostly likely didn't have anything to do with the temperature. They looked at each other in silence for a moment. “This is it, right?”* Lois tried to swallow the lump on her throat. “‘So long, it was fun while it lasted’?”*

Clarks face blanched and his eyes almost jumped off their sockets. “What?? No!! That's not it at all!!”*

Lois whimpered in relief, she could breathe almost not desperately now.

“Why??”* He held her shoulders in his hands. “Don't tell me you're thinking of calling it off?”* His eyes were now the lost puppy eyes he gave her when he was desperate.

“Of course not!”* She hurried to assure him.

He let his head fall with a sigh of relief, then lifted his head again to look straight at her eyes. “Look, I realize our relationship is not exactly what you’d call normal… ” 

“That's the understatement of the century!”* Lois snorted. “It seems like I never get to see you for more than five minutes at a time!”*

“I know… I’ve been busy… the way the city is at the moment and-”

“I get it, Clark, I really do… “ She did. “I'm simply trying to… find my place in this relationship.”*

The silence that followed was heavy. Neither of them knew the answer.

“There aren't any advice books for people who are marrying super-heroes!”* Lois tried to lift the things a bit and he smiled fondly at her, aware of her attempt.

“And we can't exactly walk into a marriage counselor either.”* He shrugged, smiling awkwardly and going along with her.

“Shows you how unique this situation is… Sometimes I try to think of you as a doctor or a fireman type… Always on call… but it just doesn't work.”*

“You know I don’t have the answers for that, Lois.”

“I know.” She wrapped herself in the caped a bit tightly and looked away from him, to the snowy horizon.

“And I know we haven't had the opportunity to really talk about things, so why don't we start with what I have the answers for?”

Lois looked back at him. “An interview? Really?” She had a smirk on her lips.

“If you want to understand this as an interview, Ms. Lane…” He smiled fondly again, pushing away the hair strands that had fallen over her face with the wind. “An interview only for you, no secrets, no lies, no hiding.”

“All right…” Lois held the caped more firmly around her neck. “There's something I’ve always wondered about… Why did you become Superman?”

Clark barely restrained the guffaw. “Straight to the jugular as always, hein, Lois?”

Her eyes danced with delight.

“It's not an easy way to answer that.”*

“I mean, you could have become anything in the world your heart desired! Crusading lawyer, athletic superstar, pioneering surgeon, cop… probably even President! ”*

“You're right, with my powers I could have become anything…” He looked at the horizon, lost in thoughts. “But even as a boy, long before my powers emerged, I knew I wanted to make a contribution somehow… “* He looked back at Lois. “That's one of the things that attracted me to journalism… It's one of the few professions that exists where I can compete on equal footing with everybody else*… I traveled the world trying to find my place, trying to find what I could do that would be fair, and I found in writing my answer… Ma and Pa taught me and I believe that I should use my gifts to make something good, to help those around me, be that shooting fire from my eyes or writing an article.”

“You still haven't answered my question! Why be Superman? Heaven knows that I know now how much sacrifices and hardships it brings into your life.”

“I’ve never intended to be Superman. It kind of happened.”

“What??”

“You're there, Lois, I wasn't Superman when I saved that space plane. I was just Clark.”

“Then why did you? You still became Superman.”

“Because no one else can.”*  Lois felt the weight of his words sinking inside her. “I'm Superman because I can, Lois."

“You help… because you can help?”

“Yep. That's it.”

There was pause.

“You are a strange man...”

“Did I mention I can fly?” He gave her a flirty smile and she snorted.

They had barely touched during the conversation so far, but now she needed to feel him, she needed to hold him and needed him to hold her back, because the next question was one that was lurking in her darkest thoughts and dreams lately. And he noticed the change in her mood, the wonderful man he was, and embraced her.

“What I need to know, though, is…”* She swallowed dryly, her insides turning in fear. “Will you have time to be Clark Kent?”* She felt her eyes pricking. “Time to be my husband?”*

He watched her eyes in all seriousness and after a heartbeat too long: “I will give you all the time I can give you.” He answered honestly. It wasn't the most optimistic answer, but it was the right answer to give. The truth.

They talked for hours, finally having time to ask the hard questions and give the hard answers to each other. The experience was rich in emotion and filled with promise. Even more promising was the result: the uncompromising conviction that they are destined to be together.* They lost track of time and everything else, for that period of time the only thing that mattered was each other.

***

They flew back to Metropolis only to find out that they hadn't even been gone for an hour. They touched the floor of her apartment and looked around puzzled.

“Weird! According to my watch it should be well past eleven and completely dark outside, but the clocks here and the daylight totally contradict…”* Lois said, giving him the cape back.

“That is strange… I have to admit I really wasn't paying attention to the time… I hope nothing bizarre happened to Metropolis while we were gone. Maybe I should start looking-”*

“Hushh…”* Lois put a finger over his mouth. “Today was so special, whatever happened, broken watch, time-zones or criminal activity… I thank heaven for our time together.”* She kissed him on the lips. 

“You’re right, Lois.”* He agreed against her mouth and they deepened it, slowly, emotionally and sensually.

They were breathless when they broke apart. “I really should check the city…” Clark whispered. “And you have work to do, as well… I’ve already taken too much of your time.” They took a few steps from each other. “See you tomorrow, hon.* I love you.”

“And I love you…” She whispered back watching him walk to the balcony again. “Thanks for today, Clark.”*

He opened a big smile and took off.

Lois walked resolutely to her home office and booted the computer. She had a column due tomorrow and she knew exactly what to write. His time was the most precious thing he could give her and she knew only one way to repay him.

She typed the title: Time for thanks.

Chapter Text

Clark had pulled almost an all nighter again, he really didn't need much sleep, but he’s feeling the toll of his increasing load of work due to the economic crisis in the city. His two hours of sleep didn't do much, but he needed to go on patrol soon. He padded still disheveled to the living room, scratching his head and saw his face on the front page of the Planet. He picked the paper and opened searching for the familiar name and found it just below the fold. His throat constricted while he read it.

He needed to see her!

Lois grunted with her head buried in the pillow, the blasted thing rang again and she punched it without looking. Mumbling something about ten more minutes.

She raised her head and saw that the time was still very far from the alarm set. There it was again. That noise. She scratched her head, trying to understand what was happening.

Tap. Tap. Tap.

It was coming from the window. She crawled out of the bed and opened the curtain. The ‘s’ shield was the first thing she saw.

“Superman!”* She exclaimed, still half sleeping.

He raised an eyebrow and smirked. She opened the window for him.

“Sorry I called you Superman, Clark… old habit-”*

She tried to explain herself, but he ignored and grabbed her by the waist, pulling her firmly against him. “Mornin’ beautiful!”* Lois smiled, a bit more awake now and put her arms around his neck. “I awoke this morning to the most amazing tribute in the paper… I thought I should thank the author personally for the story.”*

“It's the least I can do for you, Clark. You deserve it.”*

He bent down and took her lips in his. “I think I will just have to marry you…”*

“Mmm…” She agreed, smiling against his mouth before digging in his mouth hungrily. In her sleepy state, the stimulus made her body in flames. They hadn't been together for a while now. She craved him. “That is some thank you…" She breathed when they broke the kiss. "What else can I do for you?”

He looked at the sky only now turning pink with the sunrise.

“Spare a cup of coffee for a lonely superhero?”* He asked innocently and Lois couldn't avoid a knowing grin. He was adorable. But at the moment she wanted other things.

“How ‘bout something else?”

“Mmm.” He attacked her mouth again, he held her by her thighs, hoisting her on his hips. She locked her ankles round him and they walked back, tumbling over the bed together.

His hands were quick to pull her nightgown up on her hips and tuck his finger under the waistband of her knickers. She gasped with his eagerness and propped on the bed to help him get rid of the underwear, grabbing his cape to leverage. His hands ran up on her body, catching the night gown on its wake and pulling it all the way off this time. They had to break the kiss for it. When Clark bent down again, he began lavishing her neck with wet kisses and making his way down now. Lois let her head fall heavily on the mattress with a satisfied sigh when his lips found the valley between her breasts. He didn't stop there, he went straight down. Lois widened her eyes and jerked her head up, to look at him. Their eyes met for a hot moment before he resumed his mission and Lois watched him give ghost kisses on her skin until he found his objective. She moaned breathlessly, laying down again and closing her eyes to just enjoy his absolutely delicious kisses.

Lois awoke again with a ring in the back of her mind, she made an effort to take her head from the perfect spot his collarbone was to look at her nightstand. They were almost late now. “Mm? Waitaminute… That's the phone.”* Dragging herself out of the bed, under his adorable mumblings in protest, she grabbed her robe and stumbled to the corridor, better not be Lucy asking her to pick her up at the airport again! 

“Yes?”* She answered the phone rather harshly. “Oh, I thought it was my sister… hold on, say that again??”* The sleepiness rapidly faded. “You're kidding?? Negotiations fell apart that fast? Uh-huh, I understand… Right, the wire service. Okay, bye.”* Lois put the phone back and walked to the bedroom. Clark was awake and propping on the bed to sit against the headboard.

“What's the matter?” He asked when saw the frown on her face.

“Got a call from Costanza in typesetting… seems the trade unions are going on strike against the paper…”*

“What?” He widened his eyes in surprise. “How’d the thing fall apart so fast?”*

“My question, exactly.”

“Well, the writers and photographers won't cross that picket line.”*

“Maybe. Apparently Management took a hard line and threatened to fire them all if they didn't settle!.”

Clark grimaced, looking at his lap, thinking.

Lois sat on the bed by his side. “I can't help thinking that Perry’d never tolerate a management position like that.”* He hummed his agreement. “Foswell seems to give into their every whim, without a fight… Look at all the staff who were laid off the last couple of weeks?”*

Clark shook his head, sadly. “I guess we’ll be working from home, filling our stories directly with the wire service then?”*

“Yes.” She eyed his bare torso with a hungry expression. “There are some perks, though.”

His eyes glinted with amusement, but he began to move from the bed. “I will have to rain check on that coffee, however…” He rescued his boxers from the floor. “Morning patrol.” He answered her questioning gaze.

“Remember tonight is the first meeting of our families at my parents place.”* She said, when he fastened his belt over the red trunks. “We both have a lot to do between now and dinner, but if you get super busy I can pick your parents up at the airport if you need.”

He beamed at her, putting the shirt with the ‘s’ on. “Thank you, you're the best, honey.” He picked the cape from the foot of the bed in his hand and walked to her to give her a quick peck goodbye. “I will be there, Lois, I promise.” He reassured her, since she had had that worrying wrinkle on her forehead.

“I know, love… bye.”

“See ya later, dear.” And he flew away through the window fastening the cape on his shoulders.

***

Lois walked inside his apartment right after his parents and startled when Martha gasped Clark’s name. Superman was laying on the couch, with an arm over his head, more than a little worse for wear.

“Are you feeling all right, son?” She asked, kneeling at his side on the sofa. He took his arm from over his eyes to look at his mother.

“I’m okay.”

“Boy, what makes you think you can fool me?”

Clark gave her a tiny smile. “I'm fine, really, just… drained.”

“The effects of your fight with the Parasite haven't worn off yet?” Lois asked, perching at the couch’s arm rest.

“Parasite??” The Kents turned, scared, to look at her.

Lois then proceeded to tell them about the guy that could drain people's energy and was especially favored to Clark’s energy. They had a run in the middle of town in the afternoon and that's why she was the one to pick the folks at the airport.

“What are you feeling now, son?” Pa asked.

“Nothing too serious, a headache and soreness. I am fine.”

“I’ll make a cold compress for you.” Ma stood and went to the kitchen.

“Do you have any aspirins in the house?” Pa asked.

“No, it didn't do much for me, anyway.”

“I have.” Lois reached for her purse.

“But-”

“Here.” His mother interrupted and put the wet cloth on his forehead. He tried to get up, but Martha gently pushed him back. “You lie right back down there, young man. And keep that cold compress on!”*

Lois could swear he pouted.

“I'm okay, Ma… really! ”*

Jonathan appeared with a glass of water and Lois had a bottle of Aspirin in her hand.

“Listen to your Ma, son… no sense taking chances.”

Lois gave the bottle to Pa and went to find the phone. “I will call my parents and tell them to hold the dinner back for a while.”

“There’s no need to-” He tried to protest, but was once more interrupted by his mother.

“That's a good idea, Lois. Let’s just hope you're better by then, because you're looking awful, honey.”

Clark grunted in defeat and let his head drop back on the armrest. While Lois called her parents, they convinced him to take the Aspirin anyway.

“No, mother, Clark’s just feeling a little under the weather, he’ll be fine…”* She looked at the man laying on the couch and he smiled back. “Yes. The Kents are looking forward to meeting you and daddy too.”* She hung up the phone and addressed the parents. “Well, dinner is on for 7:30…”*

“Seven-thirty, eh? I s’pose with an hour more our boy will be all right by then. That shiner’s already start’ to fade.”* Pa noticed.

Clark took the cloth from his face and began to sit. “Look, I'm not invalid! I can go to dinner!”

His mother held his movement with a hand on his chest. “Hold your horses! I don't care if you are Superman, you're in no shape to go gallivanting around!”*

“Your mother is right, Clark, you’ve hardly taken it easy lately. You've been on the go practically non-stop for weeks!”* Lois crossed her arms, taking a spot by his mother’s side, blocking his way.

He raised his hands in defeat. “All right, all right. You have a point, but I can just stand idle while-”

“You're not idle, babe, you're recovering. We just want you to relax a little and let your body recover… Let us take care of you for a change!”

 Clark stubbornly grunted, just to make sure of his displeasure and crossed his arms.

Lois didn't hold her amused snort back and exchanged a knowing look with Martha. “Men.”

Pa just watched the whole scene with a fond smile on his lips.

***

At 7:30 sharp, Clark was knocking on the door of the Lanes’ brownstone. His color had returned to normal and his headache was more of an after though at the moment. The door opened and a blond head came from inside.

“Hello, Luce!”* Clark greeted her and gestured to the elderly couple at his side. “Ma, Pa, this is Lois’ sister, Lucy…”* The youngest woman waved. “Luce, these are my parents, Martha and Jonathan Kent.”*

“Hello, dear.” Martha greeted with a kind smile.

“Hiya, Lucy! I see that Lois didn't get all the good looks!”*

Lucy searched for her sister's eyes, standing at the other side of the Kents, then looked back at Clark. “Yes, he must be your father, Clark.”* Then smiled amused at the elderly coupe. “Pleased to meet you all, come right in!”*

Lucy let the three Kents and Lois enter the house before shutting the door and felt her sister pulling her to whisper to her while Clark introduced his parents to their father.

“Dare I ask, how things are going?”*

Lucy leaned in her direction to whisper back. “I'm ready to believe in miracles! Daddy’s been on his best behavior all day… Cross your fingers!”*

Lois then saw her dad giving Pa a too strong hand shake and friendly slap on his shoulder and she sighed. Her mother came from the kitchen with a plate of canapé just in time.

“Hello, you must be Martha! I'm Lois' mother, Ella.”* They smiled at each other. “Care for an appetizer?”*

“Why, yes, Thank you! They look wonderful!”* She picked one and tried it out and widened her eyes in delight. “Goodness, they are delicious!” Her mother tilted her head in thank you.

Lois gave another sigh, this time with relief, her mother and Martha would get along just fine, it seemed. She then reached for the plate to try one herself. “You really outdid yourself with the pate, mom!”*

“Thank you, honey.”*

“Ella, hi!” Clark said, finally being able to leave the father’s conversation without sounding rude. “My, you are absolutely beautiful!” He donned his most charming smile and kissed her cheek. Ellinore had lost a lot of weight during her hospitalization, but now that she had gained a little back, she was in great form.

“You are just too much, Clark!” The woman chuckled and turned to Martha. “I don't know what you have done with this boy, but you did it right, Martha!”

She beamed at the other woman. “We know we did, Ella!” And Clark scratched the back of his head, embarrassed.

Lois smirked, putting an arm on Ma’s shoulders to look at him. “It's the Kent charm.” Lucy rolled her eyes at her sister.

A delicious smell came from the kitchen.

“Isn't there anything we can do to help?”* Martha offered.

“Oh, no, dinner is under control.”*

Ella made a motion to return to the kitchen, but was stopped by Lucy. “Okay then, you relax and have fun. I’ll see to the meal!”*

Before she could disappear to the kitchen,  Lois whispered to her. “Nice going, kid.”*

“Hey, you're not the only Lane with smooth moves!”* The blond winked and slipped out.

Lois hugged Clark by the waist and leaned on him to sneak a peek to her father and Pa on the other side of the room. “I think it's better if we go rescue your father from my father now.” 

When Sam saw the youngest couple walking towards them, he smiled and moved to the bar in the corner of the living room, reaching for a bottle already set.

“I propose a toast!”* He said with his strong military voice. “To the joining of our two families!”*

“I’ll drink to that!”* Jonathan joined him, happily.

Lucy was called from the kitchen and the glasses with wine were passed down. Sam raised his glass and the rest followed him.

“I’d like to toast to our soon to be one family and to wish this happy couple all the best in their crusading into the future.” Lois smiled fondly at her father, he had been in his best behavior, mostly. “I can't really express how glad I am that my little girl found someone with the patience to keep up with her.”

“Dad!!”

Samuel just laughed and toasted his glass with Clark’s. “Really though, son, because heaven knows I know .”

“Lois is special, Sam.” He answered diplomatically and everyone toasted to his: “To our family.”

The conversation between the parents resumed, Lucy went back to check the meal and the couple was left into their own bubble. Leaning against each other and whispering.

“I told you that you were worrying over nothing… they’re getting along fine!”* Clark said, taking a sip of his wine.

“So far, so god. Now if dad can just keep from discussing politi-”*

It was too late, Sam had begun his rambling about strikes, the mayor and the economy and what-not.

Lois sighed and buried her face on his neck. “I knew it couldn't last.”* She mumbled resignedly against his collar.

And her father seemed determined to be in rare form throughout the whole dinner, her hands turned into fists around the cutlery, and she tense her jaw. A warm hand found her thigh under the table and she felt Clark leaning in to whisper in her ear. “Count to ten, hon.”*

“I just did.” She answered him between her teeth.

To their credit, the Kents were the most polite people in the universe, hence their son’s manners, and could hold their conversation with Sam just fine.

“Dad is in rare form tonight. I'm sorry your parents have to put up with this.”* She held his hand under the table.

He squeezed in support. “I wouldn't worry, Lois…”*

“Sorry Lo.”* Her sister called from behind, she didn't even notice Lucy leaving the table. “There's a call for you.”*

Lois breathed relieved. “A reprieve! Thanks, Luce!”* She answered standing from the table and the other members felt silent waiting for her return.

She was alarmed, returning to the dining room with purse in hand already. “Clark, there’s been a fire-bombing at the planet printing plant!”* She explained.

He widened his eyes, standing so quickly that it seemed awkward. “What??”

“My contact said it may be strike related!”*

“Let’s go!”* He gave a few steps, but stopped and turned to their family still on the table. “Uh, sorry we have to eat and run! Be back as soon as we can! Great dinner, Ella, Thanks!”*

The elder Lanes were stunned, looking confused with the frantic exit of the couple.

“Be careful, you two.”* Martha said when they were about to disappear at the door.

“See ya later.” Pa added.

They left the house, walking fast and searching around.

“There's an alley just over there.”

“I know.”*

They entered the darkened space and Clark began to shed his blazer. “Ready in a sec, hon.”* Before she could say the coast was clear he had already changed to the suit and scooped her on his arms.

“I'm sorry we had to leave Lucy and your folks to suffer my father’s hot air alone.”* She looped her arms around his neck to secure her position a bit more.

“Yes, well… there are more urgent things to consider right now… such as…. how we want to approach this fire.”*

Lois frowned and looked at his face questioningly. “Oh! Right… Clark Kent’s fiancée probably shouldn't be constantly seen in Superman’s company… we don't want people to start asking the wrong questions…”*

“Or the right questions, rather.”*

“Yeah…well, since this sounds more like a job for Superman, just let me off a few blocks away and go on ahead. I’ll hoof it the rest of the way.”*

“‘Kay…” He nodded, already slipping into the Super persona, so she took her arms from around his neck and put a bit of distance between their bodies. They needed to keep the appearances, after all, and something just crossed her mind.

“Speaking of which… this morning…”

He was probably looking ahead at the fire because of the face he had on, but he snapped back in the mention of their morning together. “Yeah?”

“You left my bedroom window halfway putting your tights back on.”

“I did not!” He protested. “It was only the cape!”

“Even so, there's already too much gossip about me and Superman, we don't need to fuel the flames with more speculation. We’ve been careless lately.”

“Yeah, you’re right, I will be more careful for now on…”

***

“... And again, I’m so very sorry we had to abandon you to my father…”* Lois said.

“Really-”*

“Will you two stop apologizing? We had a ball!”* Pa was the one to interrupt this time. “Your dad has some interesting opinions, Lois… can't say I agree with all of ‘em, but it was still fun!”*

“‘Sakes, yes! Your mother is a jewel!”*

They announced their flight was now open to boarding.

“Well, I'm glad you came, Ma. I hope you enjoyed the weekend in Metropolis.”

“We sure did, son.” She said getting close to hug her son.

“Too bad Perry was buried in work because of the strikes.” Pa said, hugging Lois.

“Yeah, next time you will be able to see each other.” She answered.

“And anytime you need help keeping that boy of ours outta trouble, you just call.”* Lois chuckled and kissed his cheek. “And you be careful too, y’ hear?”*

“I will, Jonathan… promise!”*

“Take good care, Ma. I’ll fly out soon for a visit.”* Clark said to his mother.

“You’d better, huggy bear! I miss you already!”*

They exchanged more goodbyes, walking the elder couple to the gate.

“You were right, hon, the folks weren't fazed by dad in the least!”* Lois pointed when they began to head back. “Now I know where you get your patience!”* She hugged him by the waist and gave a mischievous grin. Clark gave her a knowing look and put his arms around her shoulder to kiss her hair. He would not put his foot on the mouth there.

They had reached the communal waiting room and Lois saw something that drew her attention. “Well, look at this!!” She fished one of the available newspapers for reading. “The Star picked up the story I filed with the wire service…”*

“Not surprising, Morrie Clavin knows good writing when he sees it.”*

Lois kissed his lips spontaneously, making him beam at her, but as quickly as she leaned on him she returned to analyze proudly her headline. “It is a bit weird seeing my by-line at the Star… but… my copy is still making the front page, Kent!”*

“Okay, next time you fight the bad guys and I write the story.”**

She slapped his chest with the folded newspaper.

Chapter Text

Lois stormed outside the lab, fuming in anger, she couldn't believe she was scooped by him! Well, she could believe, of course, it happened more times than she liked to remember, but it had been a while since she got bothered by it!!

Of course he had an ear tuned to whatever happened to the Parasite, but, ugh, it angered her. For years she battled with him for the stories, thinking it was a fair fight, but now she knew better! And with the Planet on strike, they’re virtually without formal work, it was each reporter for its own. No more assignments to keep their stories for compete with one another.

She was so caught up in her own thoughts that she didn't see the young man leaving the ATM machine and she bumped on him, almost knocking him down. She grabbed him, just in time.

“Excuse m- Jimmy!!”* She hadn't seen him since he was fired from the Planet weeks ago. And he was supposed to be her sister’s boyfriend! “Jimmy, how are you??”* She asked worriedly and he shrugged as an answer. “How's the job hunt going?”* She asked then and his face gained a tired demeanor.

“Uh… it's fine. I’ve.. uh, nearly sold a story, it's for The Tattler… I know it's a rag, but…”* He shrugged again

She could see the kid wasn't in his best days, he might even have lost a bit of weight. “What say we get together next week for dinner… my treat!”*

He gave her a shy smile. “That would be great, but you’re out of work too, you're on strike like everybody else.”*

“Don't worry about that, Jimmy!”* Her ears caught a familiar voice in a megaphone and she searched for the source across the street. “Do you mind if I…?”

The young man smiled knowingly at her. “Spot a story, haven't you?”

“I’ll call you about the dinner, just need to talk with Clark and set a date, ’kay?”

“Thanks.”* Jimmy wondered if he should have told her that his line had been canceled.

Lois was trying to see the man between the pickets and placards, hearing what he announced to the mob of strikers in front of the Planet.

“We’re peaceful, law-abiding citizens with a grievance against management. But if they bring in scabs… if they insist on violence then, by heaven, we’ll give them what they want!”* The man with long hair in a low ponytail was saying, he spotted her in the crowd and smiled, gave the megaphone to someone by his side and began to step down the scaffold built in front of the paper, to block the entry door.

“Jeb Friedman, whose middle name is trouble!”* And he had just given her an angle not even Clark could scoop her on!

“Lois Lane, whose last name is trouble!” He said to her in greeting and she smirked at him.

“So what's Intergang’s involvement in the strike, Jeb?”* She asked and he made a very unconvincing innocent look. “Do you look the other way to make your point with management?”* She gave another step in his direction crossing her arms defiance. “Was it your way of getting the threat across while keeping your own hands clean?”*

He scoffed. “I'm a strike organizer, honey. I haven't had clean hands since I started to play this game!”* She raised one eyebrow, unimpressed, he then gave her his tried and proved charming smile. “What is this, Lois? Am I on trial? Or is this just a social call?”*

She waved her pen on his face. “Look, Jeb-”

“Neither, right?”* He interrupted her, still unfazed with her jabs at him. “That's your interview face! I can tell by the stuck out chin!”* He propped on arm at the ladder and smiled teasingly. “So who’s going to be the lucky recipient of my words of wisdom?”*

Lois huffed. “You know I have ties to the United Press. Now, are you going to answer me or-”*

“I give up!”* He interrupted again and wriggled his browns suggestively. “Meet me for drinks at the Jazz Joint and you’ll get your answers.”* Then add a bit more seriousness. “I just can't promise you’re gonna like ‘em.”* He tilted his head, pointing to the end of the conversation and turned to the ladder to return up on the scaffold.

***

Lois was taken by surprise by warm lips on her cheek and she let a small shriek escape her mouth.

“Jeb!!” She chastised him, angrily,  while he pulled the chair on the other side of the table to sit. “I could have broken your nose!”

“Guilty as charged!” The man raised his arms in fake defeat. “What are you drinking? I want one too.” And gesture to the waitress to take their orders.

“So, spill it!”

“Hey, we’re not even sharing drinks before doing the deed?”

“Jeb…” Lois warned him.

“All right, all right! “ He put his elbows on the table and leaned closer. “Ask away.”

“How is Intergang involved in the strikes? Are they using their influence inside the Unions as a form to keep the Planet out of circulation?”

“Who knows? … but it is a good opportunity for our cause.”

“What??”

“I meant it! The threat of violence will make the Planet’s management more inclined to see reason!”*

“Reason, my foot!!”* Lois shook her head, outraged. “You’re talking about blackmail, Jeb!”*

He shrugged and rested in the back of the chair again, the waitress was coming with their drinks. 

“What I want to know is…”* Lois waited for the woman to put the glasses on the table and leave. “Are you responsible for involving intergang?”*

“Certainly not!!” Jeb scowled. “On the record, I deplore Intergang’s alleged association in our strike, nor do I understand what they hope to gain… Off the record, of course.”*

“You’re not gonna look a gift horse in the mouth?”* She raised one eyebrow knowingly at him. “Look, Jeb, I know when this strike is settled, you’re going to move to the next trouble spot…”*

He picked his glass and toasted the air. “I like trouble!”* And gave her a very pointed look.

“No one knows that better than I do.” Lois didn't toast back. “But I also know the Planet and Intergang’s involvement in the strike will continue to create problems here. I just want the strike to be settled soon!”*

He leaned in her direction again. “Even if it means I have to leave Metropolis?... And you? ”* He opened a seductive smile at her.

Lois smirked. “I'm not a college kid anymore, Jebster. You're not gonna get me flustered enough to botch the interview.” It was her time to open a charming smile. “So stick to business and answer the damn questions.”*

Jeb laughed. “You know, I don't think anyone ever got you that flustered, Lois… but I love to try.”*

Lois shook her head, amused “It’s been years, but you haven't lost your touch, have you, Jeb?* Didn't change one bit.”

He wriggled his eyebrows again.

“Off the record, then…”* She sighed, resigned. “Did Intergang approach you?”*

“And you only got better…”**

“Just answer-”* A shadow by her side and a touch on her back jolted her in surprise, she only not splashed her drink everywhere, because a hand caught it before it spilled.

“Uh, hi, Lois.”*

“Clark!”* Her hand went to her chest, her heart had sped up like crazy.

The other man mumbled something under his breath, before standing up. “Kent! Nice to see you again! How’s it going?”*

He offered his hand to a handshake, which Clark accepted in silence. He vaguely remembered the guy from years ago, when Lois introduced him as an old friend.

“I understand congratulations are in order…”* The man gave a friendly tap on his back during the handshake.

“So you heard, Friedman, Lois and I are getting married.”*

“Haven't set a date yet, though, have you?”* He added with bite, after being at a safe distance. Clark raised one eyebrow at the man and tensed his jaw.

Lois just watched the whole scene with her drink in hand and a tiny amused smile on her lips.

“But I meant congratulations on the by-lines from united. The strike hasn't slowed you down at all!”* Jeb then quickly returned his attention to Lois, before Clark could answer anything, reached for her free hand and kissed it. “Three’s a crowd, my dear. Thanks for getting ‘down and dirty’ with me. Lots of fun… just like old days, wasn't it?”* He winked and began to leave. “I hope I gave you some ammo you can use in your ratings-war with Kent here!”* He waved at last and left the place.

“War?”* Clark asked, reaching for the chair Jeb had just left. “Down and dirty?”* He frowned. “What was that all about, Lois?”* He asked, sitting at the table, with an uncomfortable feeling in his chest.

“Forget it, Clark! You’re not scooping me on this story, too!”* She leaned on the back of the chair to look in the direction Jeb went. “He was about to spill his guts on Intergang…”* Then turned to look accusatory at her fiancée. “Then you show up and scare him off!”*

He scowled at her. “I was supposed to meet you here, remember?*... And I really doubt the reason he left had anything to do with a story.” He mumbled, under his breath, but Lois wasn't paying attention.

“Look!” She leaned in his direction to whisper, not that she had to do that, he would listen to her regardless. “I don't begrudge you for using your powers to get the story, I mean, hey, anything for a scoop, right? I don't mind being beaten out of a story fair and square, no, actually I do, but … could you have scooped me all these years if it weren’t for Superman? I guess we will never know who is the better reporter.”*

His eyes lit with something. “Is this a challenge?”* He leaned in her direction too.

“You bet it is, buster!! Get the Intergang story without Superman’s involvement… if you can!”*

Clark opened a big feral grin, resting on the back of the chair again. “All right, then… you’re on!... We’ll start in the morning.”*

Lois smirked smugly at him and he reached for her drink, also with a cocky smile. “Just so you know, Lane, I always avoided using my powers to do my report work.”

“I guess we will find out then, Kent!”

***

“You think that slipping out earlier gives you an advantage, Lois?” He asked from the bed.

“No, I will drop by my parents to pick some stuff up.” She answered in the middle of putting her skirt back on. Perhaps she should drop by her own place to change her obviously yesterday's clothes before going to her parents. “Then I will go to the courthouse.”

“I will meet you there, then.”

“You bet.” She bent over to give him a kiss goodbye, but he grabbed her arm and brought her in the bed with him again and crawled over her body, very deliciously slowly and bare naked. “Are you already resorting to dirty methods to slow me down, Kent?”

“I would never do that, Lane. I am the hack from nowheresville, remember?”

Lois gasped and slapped him on the shoulder. “You heard that!!” He only gave her a smug grin in answer and she gaped at him. “You…you… swine!!” And shove him to the side to be able to get up again and pointed a finger at him. “For this, Kent… I'm going to kick your very nice butt!!”

She heard him laughing when stormed out of the bedroom without looking back at him, she wouldn't allow herself to be distracted by his very nice butt.

***

She had encountered her mother and sister leaving for some auction to spend her dad’s pension on some old furniture, no doubt. She was happy with how wonderfully well her mother seemed to be. Clark was the one who had snatched the real serum from Lex to cure her… all when he was without his powers… Lois sighed… perhaps she shouldn't have challenged Clark like that, but…

Darn it! He deserved it! With the powers he had, when they went after the same story, she didn't have a chance!!*

It made her boil!!

Not wanting to risk having a discussion with her father, by the way her mood was, Lois went directly to the cellar where she had many of her stuff stored, her apartment wasn't that small, but she rarely used the things in there that she didn't bother in moving them. She was looking for some of her tactical gear, when one of the labels on the boxes caught her attention. The military grade Aqualung she had used in her desperate attempt to get Superman’s attention and interview… only to have that effort scrapped by Clark’s story on him… or rather, himself.

She grunted and cursed him between her teeth. The swine definitely deserved the challenge!!

A loud crashing sound came from upstairs, startling her and Lois ran to see what was happening.

When arrived at the living room, the only thing she could see was a huge blue skinned monster towering over her father and their destroyed dinner table.

“Dad!!”* She shouted, taking one of the chairs that was close to her and swung the piece of furniture at the creature's back. “Get away from him, you monster!!”*

“Lois! Keep back!!”* Her father ordered from the ground.

Lois then tried to give the thing a spinning kick on his gut, but it didn't even bounce.

“Monster, am I?”* The creature said, the voice was smoother than Lois was expecting. “Everyone calls me that now, don't you think I know it?”* Lois stopped her attacks, maybe she could reason with him, he didn't seem to be evil. “Even my own mother ran screaming when she saw what I’d become!”* He looked at her father, still laying on the floor, he seemed to be injured. “What you made of me, Sarge! But I will make you pay! I'll take you with me!” And began to charge against Sam.

Lois put herself between him and her father, whatever had happened between them, it seemed serious. Whatever it was, definitely wasn't normal military service! But her father was in danger, her questions could wait!

“What's the matter with you, girl? They all scream and run when they see me!”*

Lois put herself in a fighting stance and waited for him to charge.

“Get out of here, girl! This is between me and the captain!” He waved his huge hand to get rid of her as if he was getting rid of an annoying mosquito, luckily Lois was able to parry the attack, but the sheer force of the blow threw her across the room.

“Lois!!”* Samuel shouted, desperately, on seeing his daughter flying over the coffee table.

Clark checked his watch again and searched around for her. The hearing had already begun and Lois was nowhere to be seen. He arrived early to be able to get the seat just behind Intergang’s alleged handyman and his lawyer and had already gathered enough info to get his investigation going.

Where on Earth was Lois!?

He stood up in the middle of the judge's speech, he had a bad feeling about her absence. She wouldn’t lose the hearing unless something serious happened. He made his way to the exit, at the same time trying to find her heartbeat in the premises of the courthouse. Outside, he searched for her car and didn't find it. The unsettling feeling in his chest intensified and he remembered she had plans of going to her parents house before the hearing.

He concentrated his super hearing in the direction of the Lanes’ brownstone and, after a bit of cacophony, he heard the sound of furniture being broken and Lois' heartbeat fired up. His breath caught up in his throat and he looked around, he needed to find a place nearby for him to change and fast!

Lois touched the guy’s shoulders, his size seemed to change with his moods and it also affected his ability to speak, she needed him to talk more about the experiment project the military had him in! And also prevent him from trying to attack her dad again.

“Look, Private Angst, what if I tell your story to the world in exchange for dad’s life?”*

“You can't do that, Lois!”* Despite being injured and on the floor, he didn't lose his military bravado. “It's a matter of National Security!”*

“Give me a break, dad!!”* Lois barked back at him. “I know you know more than you're saying!! And the taxpayers deserve to know what their dollars have wrought! They-”*

Lois was pushed to the side and a huge hand grabbed Sam by the torso.

“Enough talk! You're like every officer I ever met! Sticking up for your own kind, even when they're dead wrong! It's your kind turned me into a monster! It’s your kind ruined this country!”

Lois tried to hold his other hand from hitting her dad again, he was already too injured. If only Clark was somewhere around, but she knew he was at the courthouse following the Intergang story sans powers. Because of her.

“Ain't no good talkin’ ‘bout this, lady, they won't let you tell the story. No! The only way to stop this thing is to rip out his heart!”*

“NO!”* Lois grabbed at his forearm with all of her strength, her nails trying to rip his flesh, but he was too hard.

A woosh sound followed by a violent movement of the huge guy, made her father fall from his grip, a red and blue blur crossed her field of vision and she was also taken away from him. 

“I suggest you pick someone your own size!”* Superman then grabbed his arm and twisted on the back, immobilizing him. “Lois! Call Star Labs! We need a containment team!”

“What??” She asked, but was already reaching for the destroyed coffee table that used to hold the telephone.

“He's radioactive! We need to get him contained or he will contamine to whole city!”

“Yes!” The ex-soldier was able to free himself and punched Superman in the face, making him fly directly at the fireplace. “I’m decayin’ ‘fore your eyes… and radioactive element!!”*

Oh, her mother will be so pissed off when she comes back! Lois ran to the corridor, picking the phone on the way on the floor. She dialed the number she knew by memory and hoped they could get it soon, Superman was being smashed by the guy. 

After Private Angst was sedated and contained with Superman’s help and her dad was being assisted by the paramedics. Lois approached the superhero tentatively.

“Excuse me, Superman, may I talk with you?”* The lab crew looked at her curiously.

“Certainly, Miss Lane.”* He answered very politely, as well, and walked to a corner in the house with no other crew around.

“Look, Clark…” She began, whispering very low, she knew he could listen. “You’re off the hook. This… military action made me realize, you haven't got time for childish dares. You're not just a reporter… you're Superman.”* She had a somewhat guilty look on her face. “And it isn't fair for me to hamstring you with a challenge that forces you to be less than your true self.”*

His eyes shone with adoration and, hell, she could see how he wanted to hold her, but then the moment passed and he smiled his Superman smile, leaning towards her. “No way, babe.”*

She raised her eyebrows, the discrepancy with his pose and the words was doing something to her brain and knees.

“The dare stands. Superman will keep an ear out for trouble…”* He dropped the pretense and leaned very close to her. “But Clark Kent is going to beat you at your own game.”* His voice was the softer version, but the confidence was all Super.

Lois felt her insides burning, god, she wanted to devour him right now.

***

Clark found himself on a crossroad, the man he's been following since morning, thanks to the information he got in the courthouse, entered a closed hotel room. He couldn't deny that it was a situation where he would be inclined to use his super hearing and x-ray vision. He crossed his arms, thinking how to get what he needed.

“What would Lois do?” He whispered to himself deep in thoughts, then gave a little snort. “Something dangerous and lawfully questionable, no doubt.” He looked at the window by his side.

***

“Dad, you have to tell me what really happened to Angst!”

“There's nothing to be said, Lois.” The man stubbornly looked the other way. “National Security. I can't tell you anything."

“So there is more to it, isn't it?”

“Lois.”

“Dad…” Lois took a deep breath and glared at her father across the table. He was all bandaged up, but thankful nothing serious happened to him. She had recognized the terror on her dad’s eyes when the private charged against her. “I know as well as you do, there's no way a project like this would’ve been overseen by an ordinary infantry sergeant.” There was something she had noticed one too many times in her life.

“What do you mean by that?” She could recognize the defensive tone, barely there, but she was a great listener.

“Do you really think I would have missed all the evidence over the years? The silences, the sudden mysterious assignments, the constant moving around the world… the things you taught me growing up?”

The man watched his daughter with hard eyes. Eyes that knew he was busted.

“You’re training me as an elite soldier, just like you… because it was the only thing you knew how to do.”

He didn't deny it and a heavy silence stretched for a couple of seconds.

“Does mother know?”

He still didn't say anything.

Lois ran her hands on her face and sighed. “I'm not naïve, dad, I know you couldn't say anything to anyone. Believe me, dad… I do understand! And I don't plan to say anything to jeopardy the safety of our family… But tell me the whole story on Angst. We can save his life! Or many others!”

Samuel finally let his head fall down and sighed, smiling knowingly at his daughter. “You were always too clever for your own good, kid.”

***

Lois threw the Newstime on the table and huffed angrily. Her dad picked it up to read the completely modified version of her story.

“I hate when the military gets involved!”

Then she was taken aback when her father stood up to reach the kitchen phone and called the magazine, pulling out of his military bravado and barking a very good earful on whoever was on the other side of the line. It was nice to hear him use his army voice on someone else for a change.

And while she wasted her time with the Angstrong debacle, Clark kept after Intergang… he would win their game, for sure. She was surprisingly barely bothered by that.

***

He heard something with the back of his mind, the telephone was ringing in the fortress? “Mmm?”* Clark awoke, realizing the telephone was ringing at his night stand. He aimlessly searched for the receiver and put it over his ear without taking his head off the pillow. He has had so little sleep these days. “Llumble… “* He mumbled something intelligible with sleepiness. “Uh, hullo?”

“Clark?”

“Oh, hi, Loish… whassap?”*

“Rise ‘n shine, sleepyhead!”* She sang on the other side of the line. “For a taste of your own fame.”*

“Mmm?”

“Turn on Cat Grant’s show!””

He tapped around him, searching for the remote and turned the tv on. Images of many crime bosses being arrested and computers being confiscated began to roll on the tube and Cat’s voice filled the room. “Kent’s article in Collin Thornton’s New York Bugle exposes Intergang’s nefarious criminal activities throughout the nation-”*

“Wow… I didn't expect it to break so soon.”* He said to the receiver.

“Nice going, Clark! You really nailed them.”*

“Not over yet, Lois.”*

“What do you mean?”

“We still haven't defeated the final boss yet. I left a piece of information out of the article to be able to hit the final nail in Intergang’s coffin tonight.”

“Mannheim?”

“Yes, and we will need Superman for that.”

***

“Nice work, Mr. Kent.” She said, finishing reading the typed copy he would send to Thornton with the evening developments with Intergang.

“Thank you very much.” She was perched at the desk in the corner of his living room, he pulled her closer to him by the waist to start something, but noticed she was looking at the paper with a pensive expression on her face. “What is it?”

“Tell me, Clark… Why did you stop going after the same stories as me? You weren't letting me have the stories, were you? We have already fought over this before.”

“No, Lois. What I told you that time was true. I never let you have any story.” He retrieved the copy from her hands and procured an envelope from the desk drawer. “I stopped going after the same stories as you because you beat me in half of them and I was literally there! ” He tossed the envelope with the story next to the typewriter and looked at her disbelievingly. “I still don't know how you did that!”

“Oh…” She was surprised by his admission and bent down in his direction. “So we do know who the better reporter is…”

He got closer, as well, seductively. “You forget, however, Miss Lane, who won our little bet.” He smirked smugly. “I was the one who kicked your very nice butt… this time.”

Lois barked a throaty laugh, throwing her head back. “Very true.” She conceded.

“And since our bet has been settled, we haven't decided on what the prize really is yet...”

“Well, you won… you chose.”

He eyed her bare legs sitting on his desk. “I have an idea.”

“Are we mixing business with pleasure, Mr. Kent? It’s not very professional…”

“No, it's not, Miss Lane.” He held her by the sides of her thighs and pulled her to be in front of him, then ran his hands up until they found the hem of her shorts. “I’d very much like to have you over a desk.”

“Oh, my!! Aren’t we being bold here? Is this some kind of subconscious desire to mark your territory or something?”

He blushed furiously. “Uh, maybe? Sorry.” Gods. He was adorable.

“Don't need to apologize, honey. You're the gentlest, most considerate person I know… and if there’s a thing you desire, I’m more than willing to indulge you… As long as you ask me… or I ask you.”

He was still blushing.

“So, what do you want me to do?”

He blushed even more.

“Say it, Clark!” She had that smug grin on her face, like she had just turned on the tables.

 He leered at her. “You're playing with me.”

“Oh, you’d bet I am!”

Chapter Text

“Nice work, Mr. Kent.” She said, finishing reading the typed copy he would send to Thornton with the evening developments with Intergang.

“Thank you very much.” She was perched at the desk in the corner of his living room, he pulled her closer to him by the waist to start something, but noticed she was looking at the paper with a pensive expression on her face. “What is it?”

“Tell me, Clark… Why did you stop going after the same stories as me? You weren't letting me have the stories, were you? We have already fought over this before.”

“No, Lois. What I told you that time was true. I never let you have any story.” He retrieved the copy from her hands and procured an envelope from the desk drawer. “I stopped going after the same stories as you because you beat me in half of them and I was literally there! ” He tossed the envelope with the story next to the typewriter and looked at her disbelievingly. “I still don't know how you did that!”

“Oh…” She was surprised by his admission and bent down in his direction. “So we do know who the better reporter is…”

He got closer, as well, seductively. “You forget, however, Miss Lane, who won our little bet.” He smirked smugly. “I'm the one who kicked your very nice butt… this time.”

Lois barked a throaty laugh, throwing her head back. “Very true.” She conceded.

“And since our bet has been settled, we haven't decided on what the prize really is yet...”

“Well, you won… you chose.”

He eyed her bare legs sitting on his desk. “I have an idea.”

“Are we mixing business with pleasure, Mr. Kent? It’s not very professional…”

“No, Miss Lane, it's not... But we're not in the officeare we? Lois grinned widely at him and he held her by the sides of her thighs to pull her closer, in front of him, then ran his hands up until they found the hem of her shorts. “I’d very much like to have you over a desk.”

“Oh, my!! Aren’t we being bold here? Is this some kind of subconscious desire to mark your territory or something?”

He blushed furiously. “Uh, maybe? Sorry.” Gods. He was adorable.

“Don't need to apologize, honey. You're the gentlest, most considerate person I know… and if there’s a thing you desire, I’m more than willing to indulge you… As long as you ask me… or I ask you.”

He was still blushing.

“So, what do you want me to do?”

He blushed even more.

“Say it, Clark!” She had that smug grin on her face, like she had just turned the tables on him.

 He leered at her. “You're playing with me.”

She gave him a feral grin, at the same time, kicking her sneakers out and lightly touched his inner thigh with her toes. “Say what you want me to do, Clark.”

He gulped and touched her ankle with his hand, holding her feet in place and regarded her quietly for a few seconds, finally reddening a little bit more, but straightening his posture on the chair.

“Do you have any of your work clothes here?”

That made her widen her eyes and gasp. “Clark Kent! You’ve been fantasizing about taking me over a desk in the office??”

He squeezed his fingers around her ankle in reflex. 

“Yes.” His low voice went directly to her lower abdomen and she suddenly began feeling very hot, despite wearing very light clothes at the moment.

“I don't… have clothes here.” She whispered, it was hard to speak over her heavy breathing, she swallowed dryly. “But you can, y’know, zap over there and choose any clothes you want.”

He was gone with a whoosh and was back before she could even level her breathing and calm her fast beating heart. They were really doing this? Her wholesome fiancé undoubtedly had some surprises for her. He had the gray calf length cross over skirt and a white chiffon blouse in his hands**. It was a combination she wore with frequency. Who would have thought? 

Lois jumped from the table and retrieved the clothes from his hands without breaking eye contact. He even brought her heels to complete the outfit. She could see in his eyes that he could hardly believe they were really doing this.

“I will be right back.” She hardly recognized her own voice, how heavy it was with lust.

She entered the bedroom to change, but didn't shut the door, she heard some textile rustling coming from the living room and guessed he was putting his suit jacked back on. A whimper left her mouth unintentionally. Lois rapidly changed her clothes and even put on some lipstick she had left in his bathroom.

Clark paced in the living room, he was so nervous, he couldn’t believe he had actually proposed the idea and she actually seemed as excited as him. There were days in the office when he couldn't take his eyes off her. No matter if he was a super powerful alien, he was still just a man, after all. He heard her heartbeat sped up even more and looked at the bedroom door, she was leaning on the doorframe, watching him. Clothes, heels and lipstick, all in place, that she could have been going to work. Could. If it wasn't the heated glare and the slightly flushed cheeks. He swallowed dryly.

Lois walked towards his home office desk, noticing he had also put the glasses and fastened the tie back. She sucked the air to try to calm herself, unsuccessfully. His eyes bored on her while she got closer and waited for whatever he would do to her. The bulge in his pants was unquestionable. She felt his hands on her forearms guiding her to sit back over the desk.

“Could you, please, cross one leg?” He asked hoarsely.

She did and, oh.

Clark watched her whole leg being revealed by the skirt’s slit when she crossed the right leg over the left. He licked his lips and looked at her. Did she know the effect it had on him when she sat over his desk to discuss whatever and he could hardly think because of the tantalizing leg begging him to be touched? The glint that crossed her eyes indicated that she knew, at least from now on. He sat on the chair and pulled closer to be able to reach her thigh. He bent down and kissed the inner side of her knee. Lois gasped with the touch and leaned back, to be able to see him from a better angle. He slowly kissed his way up on her exposed thigh, only when he found the slit’s limit, he touched each side of the leg and made his way up with each hand too.

He stood from the chair and captured her lips on his, from what they were playing she thought he would attack her mouth eagerly, but the kiss was tender and slow and she melted a little bit, moaning against his lips. He uncrossed her legs with one hand, standing between them and the other hand made its way under the skirt, facilitated by the slit. She felt his fingertips scratching her underwear and she moaned again. He didn't lose time and gently pushed it to the side and touched her. They moaned together this time and he had to stop for a few seconds to recover his control. Lois could have laughed, but her head was as fogged as his, she guessed. She felt his finger going a bit further and he hissed.

“Gods… Lois…” She was drenched and she knew.

“Every time I wore this skirt you’ve thought about doing this?” She tried to aim for teasing, but it sounded more desperate than anything else.

“Not every time, but lately, often.” He whispered against her ear and Lois shivered.

She kept her position, propped on her hands behind her to help with the angle, while he brought her closer and closer with his finger. It didn't take long for her to snap. She was almost gone when he first made contact anyway.

Clark watched with awe as she trembled against his hand until she fell to her elbows over the desk. He didn't want to be rough, but he couldn't hold himself anymore. He pulled his hand from her and began to fumble with the fly of his slacks. Lois promptly perched herself closer to the edge of the desk. Clark didn't even unfasten his belt, he grabbed her thighs closer, pulled her underwear to the side again and thrusted inside in one go. They grunted together.

He kicked the chair away from him and locked her heels behind his back. Lois gasped with the pressure in her still sensitive parts and hissed, but before he could retreat from her, she grabbed his tie and pulled him to a sloppy kiss. They started to move at the same time, together. The desk shook and scratched the floor, the pencil-box fell to the floor, spreading the contents around, the papers and the envelope with the story didn't survive much time either and joined the rest of the supplies on the floor.

“Clark…” Lois breathed. “Str-stronger… use your super strength.”

He stopped to look at her, surprised and more than a little concerned. “I don't want to hurt you.”

“You won't.” He searched in her eyes again, then something changed: he hoisted her legs on his arms, her knees bent on the crook of his elbows and he held her by her thighs. He looked one more time at her, his heart was at his throat, and thrusted. Lois gave a low, deep groan and her arms gave up, she fell on the desk with a tud. The skirt was already ruined and pulled way past her hips. The blouse had two buttons opened and her bra was completely exposed, though Clark had not touched her chest once, she breathed very heavily. He looked at her again for confirmation.

“Again.”

He did it again with a bit more strength than the first one and she contorted, holding back a grunt.

“More.”

He tried it a bit stronger and she gasped.

“More.”

“Lois, I'm going to bruise you if I go any stronger.”

“I'm okay with that…. Are you?”

“I don't want to hurt you.”

Lois nodded and smiled. “That's the limit then, go ahead, honey.”

“Not sure I can last much longer.”

“Okay.”

He resumed thrusting in her among her moans and jerks, first carefully, then when both grew used to the new intensity, it became more frantic, both seeking the pleasure. The desk was almost in the middle of the living room now and the next thing to fall over was the typewriter, but they were way past noticing anything despite the loud noise. Then went his glasses and Lois felt his movements starting to lose the rhythm, so she grabbed his tie once more to pull him closer to her. Clark grit his teeth in concentration, he needed to hold just a little bit more, he could hear she was almost there too. 

“S’speed now.” She managed to say.

He grunted loudly and changed almost to a vibration. Lois howled and came immediately, shouting his name with no restraints. His mind went blank for a moment.

When they came back to it, Lois was completely spread on the desk with her head hanging from the far edge and Clark had fallen over her.

“Fuck.” Lois breathed in awe, gathering all her strength to run a hand on her damped forehead.

It had been a complete debauchery and they were mostly still fully dressed, excusing the glasses on the floor.

They started laughing

Chapter Text

The blackout caused by Prof. Hamilton was the last straw to send the city into absolute mayhem. Crime was running loose around, people were fighting in the streets, accidents caused by the lack of lights and signals in every other corner. Luckily, Superman wasn't the only hero in Metropolis, they had raised to do something about in his absence, even Thorn was helping and Gangbuster left his retirement to try to calm things down. What really bugged her was this mysterious heir to Luthor’s empire that was supposed to show any minute now. Apart from Clark’s yet again disappearance plus the possible brain damage caused by the surge of electricity Prof. Hamilton had to use short the mind controlling helmet he had on and whatever that creepy Mr. Z guy was doing to Clark or making him do it.

Lois sighed, still waiting to be released from her statement about the blackout. She needed to get back to the lab with the professor to try to find out where the hell Clark was!! She ran her hands on her hair, no doubt with the amount of worry she's having, her grays would come much earlier.

Suddenly the silence that grew in the police bullpen was very similar to the paper’s and Lois stood to see what had caused it. Normally it was something big. And it was. The mysterious heir to the throne had arrived and was giving a speech. The guy didn't seem to be more than twenty years old and had vast, full bright red hair and beard. Nothing in common with the previous Luthor, the one he was claiming to be the son of.  All of her reporter's instincts began tingling, there was something there! But right now, she had more important things to do. She grabbed Prof. Hamilton’s wrist and took the opportunity to slip out of the precinct while they were focused on Luthor’s, the second, speech.

The streets were in darkness and chaos was loose, benches, signs and Molotovs were being thrown around, so it was any other public equipment that could be carried in a generalized fight around the Plant’s block. Apparently the strikers had been caught in a cross fight and now no one knew who was the one hitting and getting hit back. And in the middle of it, was Jeb Friedman. She didn't want to get involved, really, she just wanted to pass through the craziness to reach the lab in suicide slum. But when Jeb was grabbed by a huge man, clearly a rioter, bragging about the strike and was dragged down by him, she had to run to his rescue.

“Hey! Hands off, you turkey!!”* Striking a very good knee jab in the guy’s stomach, which made him release Jeb, she then grabbed his wrist when he tried to charge again, hit a pressure point on his collarbone with a blow and the troublemaker fell to the ground. “If you're a plant worker, my name isn't Lois Lane!”*

Jeb laughed and stood up to join the fight, giving the other guy that was coming a big punch in the face. “Been keeping up the Karate classes, huh?”* He asked when she turned her back at him and punched another rioter.

“Been a black belt for a while now!”*

Their backs touched and they found themselves surrounded by more people, Prof. Hamilton was lost in the middle of all that.

“Nice to have you on my side for a change, Lois!” He glanced behind him, towards her and smirked. “Didn't know you cared!”*

Lois smirked back. “I’m just surprised as you are, Jeb!”*

Hamilton found himself and tried to get in the fight too, but was hit in the face and Lois had to run for him before anything serious happened to the scientist, with Jeb punching the rioters on her way.

***

The stegosaurus stepped on them before he could fly them to safety, luckily the ground was a soft clay and he could protect his friend’s body with his. When they tried to get up from the mess they were in, they began to hear gruff voices in an intelligible language getting closer to them. To tell the truth, now that he thought about it, he didn't remember how he learned the language he was speaking himself.

A shadow appeared in front of them and soon the origin of the voices appeared: it was an absolutely gorgeous, voluptuous woman, with a loose thong and flowers for clothes and a spear in hand. A good number of men followed her. She tried to talk to them in that unknown language.

His friend's eyes almost jumped out of its sockets, he could not look at the nothing the flowers were doing to hide on her chest. He trumped out of the pool of mud there as the drowned man had finally found water.

“What's he saying?”* His friend asked, when she said her mysterious words again.

“I don't know…”* He left the mud pool too and the woman looked at him with curious eyes, analyzing him from head to toe. After a while she said something again and the men with her grabbed their spears and charged at them.

***

Lois and Prof. Hamilton were able to reach suicide slum, but the situation there was even worst than in downtown. They seek refuge in the Ace of Clubs bar, where the professor said the owner was a good guy and an ex-pro-boxer. They would be fine there. Well, until his Harley Davison was thrown through the storefront and hell broke loose inside the bar too. Then the Guardian was thrown through the other window and knocked half of the people down, including himself.

***

He and his friend were brought in front of a throne looking rock, with a huge man in furs sitting on it. They all talked and looked at them suspiciously, but they couldn't understand what was being said.

His friend couldn't stop babbling of how they should think they were god or something, that they were surprised by their presence. Perhaps he was just nervous. He sincerely doubted these people were surprised by them, they looked more annoyed than anything else.

A loud noise came from their side and a triceratops appeared, charging at the woman. He didn't remember how he knew the name of the creatures either. But his instincts made him jump in front of her.

“Run! Get out of the way!”* He yelled, but the woman didn't move, preparing her fight stance with her spear, so he grabbed the giant by the horns and took it down. “Are you crazy?? There's no way you could have stopped this monster with a little spear!!”*

KRAK

The woman hit him in the head, yelling something at him, very angrily. And threw herself over the face of the dinosaur, caressing its muzzle, then turned at him and continued her intelligible complaining.

“Oh…” He understood when the woman and the dinosaur got up and she mounted it. “It's a pet?? It never occurred to me… I didn't realize you were playing.”* He gave a few steps in the direction of the unexpected duo, still looking at the angry woman, who had now stopped talking and was watching him. “I'm sorry.”* Then slowly and tentatively reached for the dinosaur's muzzle himself. The huge animal let him touch his head and he smiled. “I'm sorry.” He said to the dinosaur and the woman opened a big, beautiful smile.

The big man in furs came between them, growling something and the other man pointed their spears at him and his friend.

***

Lois was still putting on her sub zero coat when they reached the white vastness of the frozen tundra.

“Thank you for appropriating the Whiz Wagon, Guardian.”*

“Anything to get Superman back, Lois.”* The man in the golden helmet answered, behind the wheel. “Are we on course, Professor Hamilton?”*

The eldest man had an apparel on his hands. “Half degree west, Guardian, will lead us to Superman's last location.”*

Lois’ chest tightened. “Hurry!”* She asked. “I hate to think of him out there somewhere… lost and alone.”*

***

The woman sat by his side on the rock he was tied to and offered a fruit to eat. He didn't remember exactly what hunger was, but he supposed he should eat the offering. He opened his mouth, but the woman didn't give him the fruit, she leaned closer, opening her own mouth. They almost touched, he could feel her breath on his skin, until the huge man, the king, apparently, pulled her by the hair away from him. The woman screamed.

Afraid the man could hurt the woman, he freed himself of the ropes and rocks that were supposed to keep him imprisoned.

***

The place had nothing besides the remains of the mind control helmet and a bunch of turned snow. 

The professor kneeled to recover the helmet. “This is the exact spot where Superman and Mr. Z struggled.”*

Lois looked around, her breath getting caught in her throat. “But there's no sign of either of them. That must mean that they are still… very much alive…” And sighed a white puff.

***

The woman, he guessed the name was Lola, brought him by hand to a cave, it was actually very comfy inside. Not that he knew what a house should look like, but it seemed like an important place.

“This cave must be reserved for guests… honored guests? Judging by the beauty of the pottery?”*

Lola said something he couldn't understand and brought him even further inside the cave.

“I guess your father’s not angry with me anymore?”* He asked again and Lola also said something unintelligible. He guessed the man was her father, by the protective way, too protective way, he treated her…and they had the same eyes.

She slowed down and entered a small chamber where he could see some kind of bed, or nest, covered and fluffy furs and pelts. He supposed he should be tired, right? He didn't remember how tiredness was supposed to feel. He laid on the fur and they were very comfortable.

“Very soft… there's enough space for two here, so my friend will be sharing this cave with-”*

Lola straddled his waist.

“-me?”* He widened his eyes, while the woman sat over his groin. He could feel something building inside him.

Lola seemed amused with something and started saying something else, he couldn't understand anything, but the intent here was obvious. She ran her hands on his naked chest until she found his neck and bent down at the same time she pulled his head in her direction. He closed his eyes and opened his mouth to wait for her when suddenly something inside him stung. In his chest. And he widened his eyes, an unreasonable fear and apprehension took over him. His hands quickly grabbed her arms to stop her movement.

“There's something wrong here!”* His brain was screaming for him to stop doing this. She eyed him questioningly. “Lola, I know you don't understand, but we’ve got to stop this before this goes any further*… I can't do this… and for the life of me, I can't remember why.* But I can't do it.”

***

The Guardian and Prof. Hamilton were busy with something in the Whiz Wagon computer and weren’t paying attention to Lois climbing the bonnet and beginning pacing, babbling to herself. “Superman isn't here, so what do we do now? How in the world will we ever find him??”* She groaned.

“What's this??”* Hamilton exclaimed. “Guardian, there's something coming over the radio!”*

It was a Russian submarine, saying they had rescued two scientific researchers from Antarctica in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. They claimed Superman was with them, but he didn't know his own identity anymore.

Lois crouched, hugging herself and giving a deep grunt of relief. “So he has amnesia… It could be worse.”*

The men looked at the woman with sympathy. “The first step is to locate him.”* The Guardian reasoned.

“We know where their plane went down, so what are we waiting for??”* Lois exclaimed.

***

When they left the cave arm in arm the whole place seemed to have changed in atmosphere, the people were dancing and drinking and eating. There was lots of food and game around, flowers covered the trees and the throne was turned into some kind of pulpit. The men and women gave them pat on the backs and a collar of flowers was put around his neck. He searched for his friend, who had his hands and mouth full of food.

“I guess… whatever the reason, it seemed to have made everyone very happy…”* He wished he could understand what everyone was saying to him so animatedly. 

Her father started talking with a solemn tone of voice and everyone went silent. 

***

What the hell this place was!! They were attacked by freaking dinosaurs!! Dinosaurs!!

Surprisingly enough, Prof. Hamilton was the calmer of the three, perhaps was just his scientific curiosity taking over. “First the pteranodons and now a gigantic plesiosaur! Why, this is a puzzle that defies explanation!”*

“That isn't the only puzzle we need to solve, Professor.”* She said, breathless, the last time she was almost thrown outside the flying car trying to fire a blaster on the creature.

“Lois is right… problem is… our altimeter is shot, our compass is spinning wildly, none of our navigational equipment is working!”* The Guardian noted.

“So how do we find Superman if we’re blind?”*

Prof. Hamilton began to murmur his scientific babble deep in thoughts and then opened the panel to do something. They had a signal and soon after they could faintly see the outline of an island covered in mist.

The place was a tropical marvel, with dinosaurs and extinct species of flora.

“Good Golly! Lois, I think you’ve just found the ultimate scoop!!”*

“Maybe, Professor, but right now I'm more interested in finding Superman!”*

“Sounds as though you and Superman must be fairly good friends, Miss Lane!”*

“Ugh… Ah… I.. only meant that Superman’s disappearance might be a bigger story.”* Her insides turned. “If… something bad happened to him, that would be devastating for the world.”*

“Speaking of our missing friend… Maybe one of the Whiz Wagon super cameras can do the job!- Holy smokes!!”* The image in the panel showed Superman with a beautiful woman in his arms, they're covered in flowers. “It's him!!”*

Lois held her breath with her heart on her throat. Something was wrong!

“And it looks like he's in the middle of some kind of ceremony or something.”*

No. No. No.

“That's more than an old ceremony, Guardian!!”* Lois jumped over him, took over the wheel and hit the guardian’s feet, busting the gas.

***

He felt all the eyes on him, the father seemed to have asked him something. He looked around, then at the woman clinging to his arm.

“Tell me, Lola, how should I answer him?”*

SWOOOSH

Something white came flying directly at them, he pushed Lola out of the way and the car half crashed and half landed in the middle of the ceremony. A very angry woman jumped out of the car and ran towards him.

“What the fucking hell you think you're doing??!!” She growled at him, grabbing him by the collar of flowers.

“He does not remember who he is, Miss Lane!”* An older man shouted after her.

She let go of the collar and took a deep breath. “Right… yeah… We’re so worried about you, Superman!”*

“Indeed! When that helmet blew I feared I'd killed you!”* He then noticed his friend by his side. “But what is that infernal character doing with you?”*

His friend whispered to him, a bit confused. “Remind me… Who’s Superman? You?”*

A weird looking guy came too, he had a funny golden helmet on his head. “You're Superman!”* He pointed to his chest. “Don't you remember? You're the best there is!”*

“Best? At what? What do I do?”*

The woman then tried to explain what Superman was. “You're a hero! You save lives, cities, even the world!”* She jumped in excitement. “You're one of the most powerful men in the universe!”

He scratched his stubbled chin, doubting her. “Really? Seems like quite a job…”*

“That must make you a very busy man!” His friend joked.

The woman bit her lips, seemingly a tad unsure, then asked again. “Don't you remember anything, Superman?”* Something about the way she looked at him… stirred something. “Me?” He felt a twinge in his chest. “Jimmy Olsen? Perry White?... You must at least remember Metropolis?”*

“Metropolis?”* Yes, he recognized that name.

The woman must have noticed he recognized it, because she stepped closer and touched his forearms, her eyes almost watering.

An arrow missed her feet for just a couple of inches, Lola had her bow in hands and glared at them.

“And why are you getting married?? Don't you- Woow!”* Lola pushed her away from him and started yelling at the other woman. “Looks like the little bride is angry with me! Well, tough!”*

“Metropolis?”* He asked his friend. “Who is Metropolis?”*

“Sounds like a woman's name, maybe you're already married?”*

The newcomer woman groaned in frustration. But Lola understood it as a challenge and jumped on the woman, grabbing her hair.

“Uh! Look, lady! I didn't come here to fight anyone!”* But Lola didn't let go, so the woman did some kind of movement and grabbed Lola's hands. “I'm not going to just stand still while you-!”*

The loud noises and the tension must have distressed the dinosaurs, because a whole lot of them appeared from the forest and charged at them, breaking down everything in their wake. The villagers ran off, the guy in the helmet used his shield to hold as many as he could and the older one pushed one of the women out of the way too.

He needed to stop this!

“You need to stop this!”* The woman shouted at him while they ran side by side, fleeing. “They must fear fire! Use your heat vision!”* 

“How can I use it when I don't even know what it is??”* They were running around a big stone structure to hide.

“Uh, you told me it was triggered by strong emotions! I don't know!”

“I don't remember anything to have a strong emotions about something!”

A crazy thought crossed her mind. “Maybe… something more… instinctively…” She grabbed his shoulders and lowered him to her height and whispered in his ear.

His eyes felt burning, just like his groin, and a huge shot of heat left his eyes, burning the forest in front of them. The dinosaurs panicked and began to flee the clearing immediately.

“Oops.”* He said after seeing the damage he did.

“I think you used enough dynamite there, butch.”*

“I thought you said my name was Superman?”/

“It is, I was just… oh, nevermind…”* And sighed.

***

After they were able to explain more or less that he wouldn't be able to stay and marry Lola, the city people began to fix the flying car to take them away from the island. But the way the woman named Lois looked at him was certainly doing something to him, like she could see his bare soul.

At some point she just stood up, walked at him resolutely, grabbed his neck and kissed him in the mouth. Heaven, it felt right, it felt wonderful. His hand embraced her body closer, her fingers threaded in his hair and the kiss became a sloppy mess.

“Uhmm, Lois?”* Professor Hamilton called, but they were too busy. “Lois?” He tried again, but her tongue was too distracting. “Aren't you, you know, engaged to Clark Kent?”* He heard her whimpering against his mouth. “None of my business, I guess…”*

They kept kissing for a while, until Guardian decided to interfere. “Miss Lane, What do you hope to gain from this?”*

She broke the kiss, rather startled, as if he had forgotten where she was. “Well? Did that do anything for you?”*

“No, but it was very nice…”*

“I might have an idea of how to bring Superman’s memories back. “Guardian said, back to business. “But we need to get back to civilization.”*

He saw something on the ground and bent down to pick up. It was the professor’s glasses. Something familiar crossed his mind. 

“Do I wear eyeglasses?”* He opened the temples, making motion to put the glasses on. It felt familiar.

“Oh, no!!”* Lois frantically reached for his hands, retrieving the glasses from him. “Definitely not!!”* Her desperation made it clear she was lying. Now, why it was a mystery.

***

Dubillex had guaranteed her that Superman's private thoughts wouldn’t be revealed by him, but she was still very much worried. He was babbling words that for them it must have sounded disconnected, but she had recognized some from his stories from the farm or his travels.

She bit her nail in worry.

***

He put Lois on the floor inside his apartment, she's awfully quiet the whole way from Prof. Hamilton's lab.

"Lois? I'm sorry, I didn't remem-"

"Gone!!"

"What?"

"Gone!!"

"What's gone, Lois?"

"All those years repeating and repeating myself to people that had nothing going on with Superman! Gone!!"

"Uh…"

"Not that it's true anymore, but still!!" She huffed. "I admit, the first one was a crazy idea, but I suppose I was influenced by the rabbit hole we crawled into. You would think they would excuse a kiss in the heat of the moment! But the second one? Why did you spill your name so easily like that??"

"You're mad at me? I had amnesia, I had no idea what was going on. You're the one who kissed me!"

"It was the first thing that came to mind to make you stop talking!! How can someone with such a thick skull like yours keep getting amnesia?? It's the second time this year!!"

"Ah, it wasn't m-"

"And why on Earth were you getting married to a native??!!"

"Lois, I had no idea what was going on."

She huffed and walked inside his bedroom. He could hear the noises of wardrobe's doors being opened and closed with violence. She returned with a new set of suit and cape.

"Go. Metropolis is in chaos, you have a job to do." 

***

“They what??” Lois almost fell off the stool she was sitting on, she had made a pit stop at the lab to catch up with Hamilton and the power grid upgrades, she had spent the last couple of days following Superman’s efforts to help the city and didn't have much of a break so far. She didn't expect to find him there as well.

“It wasn't the first time I’ve been the target of a dissatisfied individual, Ms. Lane.”* Superman’s voice was all too calm for her liking. “I doubt that it’ll be the last…”* He put his hands on his waist and sighed. At least he was showing his frustration.

“Here, Superman.”* Prof. Hamilton came from the other room. “I’ve a fresh cape ready for you.”*

“Thanks, Professor.”* He accepted it and started to fasten on his suit under Lois scrutinizing glare.

“And what are you going to do about it?”* She asked.

“What can I do?”* He shrugged, half groaning, half huffing. Lois could see his true personality escaping through the cracklings. “I don't like getting booed any more than the next man…. But I can see their side of things… I wasn't here to remedy the blackout or stop the looting… I let them down.”*

“That's ridiculous!!”* Lois waved her hands in the air, breathing heavily in anger. “You’d been attacked!! You blew up in the middle of Antarctica and then was washed up to a god forsaken island… all the while with amnesia !!”*

His eyes lit with amusement.

“Ugh!! When I think of all the things you’ve done for Metropolis!! Ugh!!* I really feel like punching a few faces right now!” She jumped from the stool and continued her venting. “It really frosts me to hear of people putting you down while they practically canonize this… this… Lex Luthor, the second!!”*

“Well, Miss Lane, young Luthor did restore the city’s power…” Hamilton tried to reason with her. “He bailed me out of jail… He seems like a good lad… I don't think we should blame the son for the sins of the father.”*

“Oh, I’m willing to give people the benefit of the doubt… usually …”* She huffed, putting her hands on her waist. “But what do we know about this Lex Luthor II?? No one had even heard of him until Luthor’s will was found! It all smells fishy to me!”*

“You shouldn't worry so, Miss Lane. Young Lex is really quite personable… you’ll see.”*

“Yeah, sure.”* She grumbled and grabbed her coat from the table. “Superman, would you mind giving me a lift to Clark Kent’s place?”*

He raised both his eyebrows at her. “Not at all.”* And gave a few steps in her direction to scoop her in his arms. “Bye. professor.”*

The older man waved at the duo flying through the window.

“Trusting soul, isn't he?”* Lois whispered at him.

“To a fault.”* He whispered back, while gaining altitude. “But he made a good point, Lois, few had worse dealings with Lex Luthor than I did-”*

“Worst dealings??! Clark! He tried to have you killed… I don't know how many times!!”*

“Yes, but the public knew him mainly as an employer, a benefactor… his son may not even suspect what kind of man he really was.”* He began to descend. “I’ll admit that I am uneasy with the thought of a new Luthor in town… but how can we blame him for his father’s crimes?”*

They reached the ground and Superman gently dropped Lois on the sidewalk in front of the building without touching the ground himself.

“Thanks again, Superman!”* She shouted at him and he gave her that famous Superman wave.

“My pleasure, Miss Lane! Give my best to Kent!”* And he flew off.

A guy walking his dog almost tripled with surprise. “Wow! Lady! You know him??”*

“Uh-huh.”* She answered without looking and headed to enter the building. She knew him better than you could imagine, was what she thought. If only they could have a few minutes to themselves. She was sure he had already turned around the building and got to his apartment by now. Sometimes she felt bad for keeping this charade, but it was necessary.

She knocked on the door and heard footsteps inside.

“Hi, hon.”* He smiled at her, opening the door, in a dress shirt and glasses.

“Afternoon, Clark.”* She said entering the apartment and crushing her lips with his, chuckling. “Giving my best to Kent.”

“Mmm…” He smiled in the kiss.

“So, care to continue our little discussion?”* She said as if nothing had happened when they broke the kiss.

“Now, Lois-”*

“Don’t ‘Now, Lois’ me!” She threw her coat at the back of the couch. “Sure, maaaybe Lex Junior is as pure as the driven snow…” She crossed her arms to face him. “Buuut if he’s anything like his old man, he’s poison! I just don't want you to take any unnecessary risks until we know more!”*

Clark made a face at her. “Me? Take unnecessary risks?? You're the one to talk-”* The phone rang. “Hold that thought!”*

Lois buffed and threw her arms in the air. There it went their moment alone together again.

“Perry!”* She heard him greeting on the phone and quickly leaned on him to try and hear what was being said on the receiver. “Hi! How ar- What? The strike is over?”*

“Let me talk to him!”*

“Just a moment, Lois is here…”* He passed the phone to her, he could of course hear the conversation with his super hearing.

“Are you back in charge at the Planet, Chief? Or is Foswell still playing editor?”* She asked, direct to the point as always.

“That is still under discussion… but in the meantime, I have a personal assignment for both of you… I want you to find out everything you can about Lex Luthor, the second!”*

Chapter Text

Clark was on his way to the first day back to Planet when he saw a fight in front of the printing plants. Two guys were yelling at each other with other men holding them to avoid a physical fight. The bigger one was able to free himself and punched the other on the gut and he fell to the ground.

“Hey!”* Clark sprinted towards them, he saw more men surrounding the fallen one, this could get ugly. “Stop that!”* He put himself between the men, holding the one on the ground by the arm and stopping the other with a hand on the chest, breaking the brawl.

“Well, if it ain’t Mr. Anti-Union Kent!”* The bigger guy snarled. “Didn't see you on the picket lines, scab lover!!”*

“Yeah!”* The other men around them roared in agreement. “C’mon, guys! We’ll show him!!”* Two other men joined the big guy and they charged at Clark, still holding the guy punched before.

“Us Union guys stick together or else!”*

The big guy tried to kick his abdomen and the other two punched Clark on the head and back, but they all were pushed back by the strength of their own hits, groaning in pain.

“OW!! My knuckles!!”* One shouted.

“What is wit him-!!* The other looked confused at the reporter awkwardly kneeling to the ground.

“All right, all right!”* A mechanically enhanced voice came from the gate. “Pile off! Recess is over!”* Jeb Friedman was walking in their direction waving. “Mr. Kent has the constitutionally given right to believe as he chooses.”* It was obvious the amusement in his voice. “And if he doesn't believe that workers should organize… he may not want to walk the picket line.”* The man was practically laughing when approached him, still speaking through the megaphone. Clark sighed, annoyed. The man had the gall to pat him on the head, messing with his hair. “On the other hand, he didn't cross it either.”* Clark gritted his teeth. “Now, let's return to work to be peaceful .”*

The troublemakers calmed down and took a few steps from the two men on the ground. Slowly, Clark stood up, helping the other man to his feet, who was still kind of sick by the punch in the stomach. He felt a strong slap on his back and Jeb directed to the men again, now without the sound equipment. “Kent was pretty active reporting for the wire services during the strike. Wouldn't want the Daily Planet’s own workers to become grist for his mill…”*

The men grumbled between them. “Yeah.” “He’s right.” Was heard and they walked away, toward the printing plant entrance, still grumbling. The injured man nodded his thanks and also left the place as fast as he could.

Clark adjusted his glasses and quickly hid the curl of hair he felt on his forehead. Jeb was smirking smugly at him. Something about this guy irritated him beyond reason!

“Look, Friedman, I don't need your supposed help, either in a fight or in explaining what I do and don't believe.”*

Jeb leaned closer, confronting him, the smirk still on his lips. “Couldn't have told that by looking at you!”*

Clark frowned and turned his hand in fists, not that he could really say what he was really doing during the strike, but before he could answer anything, a small hand pushed him back.

“Jeb!!”* Lois put herself between the men and glared at the man with the ponytail.

“Lois!”* He immediately backed off. “What brings you to the printing plant? You're looking for trouble, right? I can see it in your eyes-”*

“What are you grinning at??”* She shot, pointing a finger at him..

“Moi?”* The man put a hand to his chest in feign confusion.

“Clark was busting Intergang! Which was a lot more important than carrying around a sign to impress the Planet’s management!”*

Some ugly part of him didn't like having Lois defending him against Jeb Friedman. “Look, Lois, I can fight my own battles!”*

He saw when it struck her nerve, her shoulders tensed and she turned like a force of nature at him, eyes brimming in anger. “I’m not sure you can!!”* She was now pointing a finger at his chest. “You two act like a couple of gorillas every time you get around each other”* She gave a step in his direction, puffing her chest, opening her arms angrily. “What's your problem, anyway? Testosterone poisoning??”*

“What??”* He was the one to take a step in her direction now, facing her. “Now, wait a minute-”*

Jeb gave Clark another slap on his back and he turned annoyed at the other man, this time not restraining his grunt of frustration. “She’s on a roll, Kent, it’ll take her more than a minute.”* He laughed and began to walk away backwards. “All I can say… Better you than me!”* Then turned and slipped away very quickly.

“Oh! You two!!” Lois growled and stormed away herself.

***

The sky collapsed in an unpleasant and cold rainfall, just like his mood was. He watched as the running car almost hit a person on the sidewalk and one of the occupants put a semi automatic outside the windows and yelled. He landed in front of the speeding car and gave it a good kick, making the car tip over and stop upside down. Superman ripped the door open and grabbed the two punks inside by their collars, pulling them out almost violently. They argued and shouted at him to release them.

“Don't push it tonight, gentlemen. I'm not in the mood!”* He growled and glared at them, before flying away.

At some point he noticed the men trembling and clutching at his arms. They were terrified.

He sighed. “Uh, sorry for the manhandling, guys, but I still have to turn you in.”

The punks only nodded with their eyes widened in panic.

He left the two with the first patrol car he found, the men seemed relieved to be away from him and thought it was better if he calmed himself before the terrified more people around. He perched on a rooftop parapet to keep a look at the city and released a long sighed, freezing some of the water drops in front of him. “Great.” He grumbled. “ I lost my temper...”

***

The blasted weather was a good indication of her mood, she was so mad at Clark that she had forgotten the election was today. And this blasted queue didn't seem to get smaller! She guesses everyone waited for the rain to stop to come too. She had tried to distract her mind by doing some early Christmas shopping, but it didn't help at all. Their fight really had her rattled. She checked her watch again.

“The strike at the Planet is over, but there’s another brewing in L.A.”*

“Huh?”*

A pair of arms hugged her from behind. “Jeb!!”* She startled, half yelping, dropping some of her shopping bags on the ground.

“You weren't home, thought maybe you’d be here, good citizen that you are.”* He rested his chin on her shoulder.

“What do you want??” She snarled.

“To apologize for my treatment of Kent. For some reason, I find it hard to be fair where he’s concerned.”* He still hadn’t let her go from his arms. “You still haven't set the date for the wedding, have you?”* She frowned and jerked her head to look at him. “Sure you don't want to come to L.A. with me?”*

Lois only rolled her eyes at him. “If nothing else, you are soothing to the ego after my fight with Clark-”*

“Kent again?”* He turned her in his arms to completely face him. “Don't you ever think about anyone else?”*

“No.”* She answered curtly. “I’m engaged to Clark. I love him. I can think about him whenever I want!”* She freed one arm to point at his nose. “You’re not implying that you really care about me, are you, Jeb?”*

“Enough to want to get you out of that raincoat…”*

Lois huffed and pushed him back, breaking his embrace.

“And into something more comfortable...”*

“Dream on, Jebster!!”* She took a step away from him. “And I think the one who deserves your apologies is Clark.”*

“Think so?”* He grinned and reached for her shoulders, hugging her with one arm now. “Yo, Kent, over here!”*

The man waved and Lois almost jumped out of her skin.

“Clark?!”* She tried to pull his hand from her arm. “What’re you doing here?”*

He sighed, walking towards them on the queue. “I vote here, remember?”* His voice sounded tired.

Lois was finally able to take his arm from around her. “Look, Kent, I came here to apologize for my earlier cracks, not that I wanted to… Lois made me… she’s afraid you’ll beat me up if I don't. She worries about my safety, you know?”* He slapped Clark’s back again in a way that was supposed to be friendly, but clearly wasn't, but he said nothing, only put his hand in his pockets waiting for whatever the man was doing. “Did I tell you she saved my life during the riots?”* He grabbed his shoulders the same way he was doing with Lois a second earlier and pulled Clark with him toward her.

“Jeb…”* Lois warned. Clark was still silent.

“Sorry. Not much of an apology, was it? Total fabrication.”* He had now Clark at her side on the cue. “I don't know what comes over me when I get near, Lois.”*

“What the devil-?”* Lois tried to interrupt.

But Jeb looked behind them to a guy making faces at them. “Don’t you look at him like that. He’s not cutting. I'm giving him my place in line. It's the least I can do.”* He stepped away from them. “I'm off to the West Coast.”* He waved. “ I really think you two should work it out… Not that I’ll be broken-hearted if you don't…”* He smirked and finally turned his back at the couple to leave.

Lois had her eyes and mouth open in disbelief. Clark only looked silently at her, waiting.

A moment passed and the woman organizing the line called the next voters, which were them, before anything could be said. Clark took one of his hands from his pockets, collected her shopping bags from the ground and walked inside the building.

***

"I swear, you drive me crazy!!”* She threw her hand in the air as soon as they left the polls, she couldn't hold herself anymore. “And Jeb's not any better! How could you accept an apology like that from that… that-"*

"I felt sorry for the guy. Sue me."*

"Sorry?!?"* She gasped incredulous at him. "Oh, yeah… right… You can feel sorry for that snake…  but when I try to defend you... like you've defended me millions of times… you practically bite my head off!!” She waved her hand in a fist.. “You… you…"*

"Oh." Something seemed to finally sink into Clark and his shoulders fell. " The word you're looking for is jerk."*

"It is?"*

"Yeah.”* Clark reached out to her and held her on her upper arms. “I'm sorry, Lois. I guess… uh. You seemed to like Jeb an awful lot and… uh… I was afraid… uh."* His cheeks gained a pink tint

"Oh!" Her shoulders finally relaxed. "Clark… You were… jealous??"*

He looked away, embarrassed.

"I swear, sometimes your head is as thick as your bull neck."* She touched both sides of his face with her gloved hands. "C'mere."* She got closer, leaning on her tiptoes and hovering her lips against his. "As if there could ever be anyone for me but you, Clark Kent."*

It was Clark who closed the gap, wrapping his arms, Christmas gifts and all, around her waist and pulling her to a passionate kiss in the middle of the street. They were never that public about their affections.

When a passerby whistled at them, they broke their kiss, but not their embrace.

"Your place is closer." Her voice was thick and Clark grinned.

He wanted to just fly out of there directly to his apartment, but they couldn't, so they walked, fast, the four blocks to his building. They held themselves on the elevator, practically jogged on the corridor and barely closed the door before clashing against each other.

The shopping bags ended up somewhere on the floor, but safe and sound, their coats were shed with haste and thrown in the general direction of the couch. Clark's hat miraculously survived the trip and found the lamp, followed by his tie and her gloves. His suit jacket, however, was carelessly thrown over the buffet, knocking over some of the stuff on the floor. Her sweater didn't stand a chance and joined the stuff on the floor before they could've reached halfway through the living room.

Pressed against the wall, Lois huffed, annoyed, when ripped his shirt open and found the red and blue suit underneath. Clark, who attacked her neck and at the same time he tried to find the zipper of her boots around his waist, chuckled at her antics.

She tugged on his shirt. "Too… many… layers!!" And Clark half yanked and half helped her remove his shirt and the top of his super suit. He also managed to take off her boots, while she was occupied with his jaw and neck, and was now supporting her with his hips against hers. They wouldn't be able to reach the bedroom, as it was.

Lois' hands traveled from his strong back to his abdomen and then lower, finding the buckle of his belt. She began making work of that, not very effectively since she was very distracted by his tongue in her mouth. When finally was able to pry the thing open and unzip his pants, her hands found another buckle and another belt underneath. She groaned in his mouth and jerked her head back, breaking the kiss and hitting against the wall behind her.

"Cla-ark..."* She whimpered his name, breathlessly and sounding as wanting as annoyed.

He chuckled again and super sped away the rest of their clothes. They didn't reach the bedroom.

The calendar on the floor marked the 17th of November of 1991.

Chapter Text

She could hear his heartbeat underneath her, the rhythmic rise and fall of his chest was like a soothing lullaby. Her mind was still in that aftermath haze, it was hard to keep her eyes open.

Her phone then rang somewhere to her left, she had forgotten she brought it with her. Clark made a protest noise when she began to move, she didn't want to leave their bubble of warmth either. She tried to reach the blasted thing, but her hand didn't even find the end of the mattress. Suddenly she felt herself touching the device, she looked up, Clark had lifted them both and flew them closer. She smiled at him before opening the cell phone to pick the call.

It was the source of one of the major stories she was following at the moment. When she turned it off, she noticed they had switched places hovering above the bed.

"Clark?"

He grunted something.

"I need to go."

He groaned.

"I need to work." 

"No." He looked at her with a mischievous glint in his eyes.

"Clark. Don't." She warned.

And with that he let them fall in the bed, with him covering her whole body, trapping her against the mattress.

"Uff! Let go of me, Clark!"

"No."

Lois huffed and tried to wiggled her way out under him, with no success.

"Get off!"

"I'm comfortable here." He nested his head on her neck, holding her struggling head also in place.

Lois then tried to free her legs to kick him, but they were very secured by Clark's strong thighs.

"Move, you big lug!!"

"Not moving."

Lois sighed and dropped her head defeated, her whole body stopped resisting. After a second of hesitation, she raised her head to get very close to his ear, almost touching his skin.

"Please, Clark." Her voice was breathless and she felt the shiver he felt.

Clark made a satisfied sound and leaned on his elbows to look at her with that ridiculously gorgeous smile of his.

"For you, my love, everything."

It was Lois' time to groan, Clark was ridiculous sometimes and she was so in love with him it was ridiculous. She then couldn't hold a snort and began to laugh.

"You are ridiculous."

"It doesn't matter." His hand reached her face and he caressed her cheek affectionately. His eyes looked at her almost reverently. "If it makes you laugh."

She whimpered against his lips, melting against him. They were both ridiculous and she didn't mind at all.

More minutes than she realized later, Lois tried to get out of bed again.

"I have to…" He reached for her lips one more time. "I hav... to uhmm gooo… uhmm." She was able to untangle his arms from around her now. "My source is waiting for me, Claaarkk." She pleaded, breathlessly, and with a whimper he finally released her.

Lois began getting dressed while Clark watched her, with a sly smile in his lips, arms crossed being his back, making his muscular torso very tantalizing and the sheets barely covering his groin.

"You're making it very difficult for me to leave, Clark."

He gave her a rare sultry smile. "That's the idea." Damn, he's gorgeous and he knows it.

Lois half huffed, half gasped and grabbed one of his plaid shirts that were laying around. He's usual very orderly person, but since they began to have sex, the amount of clothes being haphazardly throw around was superior to the amount he could wash and store.

"I'll be back as soon as I can." She had, with much effort, buttoned the shirt and walked to the bedroom's door.

"Ah, uhm, Lois..."

"Uhm?"

"I, uh, made a spare key for you." She could see he was a bit nervous. "It's on the shelf in the living room."

"Oh..." Lois could feel her cheeks heating up. "Thanks… I could kiss you now, but I know I won't stop if I start, so..."

Clark laughed and smiled fondly at her. "Go, Bobby is waiting for you… just be careful, it's very late already."

Lois rolled her eyes, admonishingly, but still smiled and went to find her keys.

She stopped her car near a figure waiting on the sidewalk.

"You took your time."

"Sorry, Bobby, I was… held up." She barely restrained her smile.

"Uh-hu." The skinny man snorted while leaning on the car door. "Couldn't you at least change your clothes? Your fiancée's shirts definitely aren't very flattering on you."

"I like to wear his shirts, it smells like him."

"Oh, boy… You're that far gone? Well, good for you, kid." He gave her a fatherly smile. "Now, let's get to business." 

***

Lois entered his apartment with the keys he gave her a few days earlier, she was still getting used to this level of intimacy. She had never had a relationship where she had exchanged the keys to their apartments. But again, she had never been engaged before.

She entered the living room and found Clark, shirtless, in a sitting position and closed eyes. Was he meditating? Really?

She left her things on the sofa and waited for him to stir out of whatever he was doing, but minutes passed and he was still very still. Not known for being a patient person, Lois got closer and lightly tapped on his head as if she was knocking on a door.

"Ooi! Earth to Clark!"*

He remained very still.

"We've been engaged for just a couple of weeks and you're already ignoring me?"*

That made him smirked and opened one eye to look at her. Lois was also with a playfully grin on her face. Faster than a speeding bullet, she was scooped off her feet and thrown on the floor in front of Clark. She yelped with the sudden movement, but was grinning even more when he climbed on top of her with a feral glint in his eyes. She hummed in delight.

"I already knew the mild mannered Clark, the country bumpkin Clark..." She leaned on her elbows to whisper in his ear. "The Super Clark..." She could feel his smile on her neck. "Now the zen Clark? Will the surprises never stop?" 

He just grunted and pushed her back on the floor, still without saying a word to her. She was just so happy to let him keep ignoring her, if his mouth kept occupied ravishing her body with kisses.

***

She parked the car in front of the office building. Both of them leaned down on the panel to look at the windows with light coming from.

"I could go get the information myself, but undoubtedly there are armed guards, lawsuits against breaking-and-entering and a lot of ground to cover in a feasible time."

"I know exactly what you're doing, Miss Lane."

"It's not like I go putting my life on the line all the time."

"You want me to start alphabetically or chronologically?"

"Do you want me to?" She challenged back.

They glared at each other for a couple of seconds, but Clark already knew he’d lost it even before started, so leaned down to look at the building through the windshield, he pulled his glasses off and searched for the information she wanted using his various vision powers.

It was an address and he dictated for her to write it down.

"I really don't like to use my powers to do report work, Lois." He sighed, leaning on the seat again.

"Take this as me asking Superman for a little help… not Clark."

"Lois…"

"You always ask me to be careful, this is me being careful, Clark. I could have gotten the information by breaking and entering instead."

"Ok, ok, I get it."

***

They had started at the sofa, but somehow now they were somewhere close to the table. Clark had one more of his disappearing acts this week, dealing with time travelers again. Lois handled it much better now, maybe she was growing accustomed to the other demands of his time. Maybe because they lived on the edge, both of them, when they had these calm moments they tried to make the most of them. Well, not so calm moments, Lois was quite breathless at the moment, still half dressed and sprawled on the floor. Clark then jerked his face from her chest, alarmed.

"The roast!!"

"The roas-'' Her brain was still catching up, then she smelled the burning and jerked herself up. 

They adjusted their clothes the best they could and ran to the kitchen. Lois turned off the oven and Clark opened the door, they could see the blackened half in flames thing inside it.

"Oh, God!" We'll never be able to save it, Clark!"*

"How could this have happened, Lois?"*

Lois leered at him, with a knowing smirk on her face.

"Someone just forgot to set the oven's timer! Now look at my pot roast!"* She said instead.

"It's charcoal now."*

She opened the drawer and rummaged through the things. "Very funny, now help me find some pot holders!"*

Clark just took the pot from the oven with his bare hands. It only made a tshhh. "Quite frankly, Lois…"* He examined the pot. "I've never really had the need for them."*

"Well, I do, so if we're ever going to be-"*

EEEEEEEEEEEEE!

The smoke detector.

"Arrgh!!!"

"Whoops."

Lois then started to jump, trying to reach the button to turn the blasted thing off.

"Huh!" She jumped again. "Huh! Can't shut it off..."* Clark looked at her in amusement, while she tried again. "Don't suppose, huh, you got a footstool around..."*

He took pity on her and began hovering off the ground and Lois crossed her arms, annoyed.

"I got it."* He said, turning it off.

When he returned to the floor, Lois huffed.

"I-"*

"Don't say it, don't say it… 'never had a need for a footstool either!"*

He smiled.

"Things are going to have to change when we're married, buster!"* She grabbed his sweater with her fist in a manner that would be violent if she wasn't smiling herself. "Now how 'bout you treat us to a couple of Big Belly burgers to make up for that roast?"*

***

Lois felt two strong arms embracing her from behind, she opened her eyes, noticing the light already on his bedroom wall and took a peek at the radio clock at the nightstand. Not even half an hour before they needed to get up to go to work. She felt him snuggling his head on the crook of her neck and shoulder and breathing deeply on her hair. He sounded exhausted. She caressed his arms tenderly and let him relax against her, even if it was just for a handful of minutes. They had planned a dinner date the night before, but an emergency had him flying through the window before they even began cooking, well, Clark even began cooking. She tried to wait for him awake, but sleep won at some point in the night.

The time was almost up, at least she could be the one to wake him instead of a random broadcast speaker. “Clark?” 

He grumbled.

“Time to wake up, my darling.” Lois half turned to look at him. Clark grumbled something like ‘just a bit more’ and she chuckled quietly. She crawled out of his arms and looked at him, with his brows furrowed in a stubborn effort to continue sleeping. She leaned in and kissed his forehead. “Honey?” He hummed, but still didn't open his eyes. Lois then started to kiss her way on his face towards his neck and she felt the low rumble of his humming against her lips. Clark then stirred and he raised his hand towards her face, but instead of cupping her jaw as she expected, he poked the tip of her nose with his index finger. She snorted. “Fine, 10 minutes.” And stood from the bed.

She padded to the living room and looked around, the place was too quiet and tidy and still. Clark normally was the one to awake first and she normally was late and frantic to leave when sleeping alone. She reached for the remote and turned on the tv. It was time for Cat’s show already. Images of Superman helping contain an immense bushfire in Australia popped up, the huge flames and explosions, the animals trying to escape and the teams trying to save them and subdue the fire. She had read it was something about the sap or oil or something, that made those fires so hard to put out. That was why he stayed out the whole night. Lois looked at the bedroom door and decided that maybe he could sleep a bit longer.

She turned the switch on in the kitchen, the sky wasn’t that bright anymore to light the apartment so early in the morning. She made another decision and put the coffee machine to work.

“Uh, hate when eggs do that!” She huffed, trying to pick the little piece of shell that was fleeing her finger. Again. Clark could crack several eggs without having shells falling into the bowl. Ugh!

She then remembered she had bacon on the pan and quickly went to check if nothing had burnt yet. Everything was under control. Lois actually could cook one thing or two for dinner, but she never was much of a breakfast person, she usually could go by with a big enough cup of coffee. So she guessed eggs and bacon was a safe enough bet. Together with the fruits already chopped from the previous evening inside the fridge and an orange juice. It would work.

She took the bacon from the fire just in the nick of time and put them to dry the grease, remembering how Clark did when he cooked breakfast, she put the eggs immediately after on the pan, in the bacon’s fat, not wanting to waste the flavor. Just when she was transferring the egg to a plate, her elbow hit the orange juice bottle and everything fell at the sink.

Clark opened his eyes, the sound of something falling reached his ears and he lifted his head from the pillow. His super hearing picked her huffing something about stupid bottles. He quickly jumped from the bed, very awake. “What in the world is Lois doing in the kitchen…” He murmured to himself, reaching for the doorknob.

He saw Lois coming from the kitchen with two steaming hot plates of bacon and eggs in her hands, the table was all set with coffee, juice, toast and even two colorful fruit bowls.

“Morning, sleepyhead.”

“M’nin’…”  He watched her putting the plates on each side of the table. “Thank you, Lois… that… looks great!” It really did.

“Don't say it as if it was a surprise.”

He smiled and knitted his eyebrows to look at the kitchen through the wall.

“If you say something about the kitchen it will be one week without sex for you, mister!”

***

“Hey, slow down, Clark… Let me catch my breath!”*

“Sorry; Lois, I forget sometimes that the air’s thinner this high up!”* He repositioned his hands around her, to a better hold. “We’re almost there at any rate.”*

“This still beats waiting around at some airport on stand-by, for a crowded flight out to Kansas!”*

“Are you telling me you won’t miss your frequent flyer discounts?”*

“Wait a minute! Now you're telling me that Air Superman doesn't offer any perks?”*

A silent moment between them made very clear what they were both thinking, sultry smirks in both faces.

“We should try that another time, besides… I have an excellent on time record… and I guarantee to get you back to Metropolis in time for your family’s Thanksgiving dinner.”*

She tightened her embrace around his neck. “Oh, I love you.”*

“We advise against getting friendly with the pilot, Miss.”*

“Shucks…”* She touched the skin on his neck with her lips and ran up in the direction of his ear. “I wanted to get very friendly with the pilot…” And lightly bit the lobe of his ear. “And then marry him.”*

“Oh, well, that is allowed.”

Chapter Text

Superman sighted the two people when he was almost above the post office, the visibility was terrible because of the snowfall, why were they waiting for him outside? He quickly made his way to land just by their side on the snowy sidewalk.

“Heads up, Mr. Simpkins, our illustrious guest has arrived!”* Lois warned, making the elderly man startled and look around.

“Glory be! I didn't even hear him!” The man smiled and walked towards him. “Guess I expected there’d be a great wooshing sound or something.”* He laughed and offered his hand to shake. “Good to see you, Superman!”* They shook hands firmly. “Hard to believe a year has gone by already, isn't it?”*

“It is at that, Willie!”* Superman answered, putting his hands on his waist in his traditional super pose. “Tell me, did I get a break this year?”*

“Hardly. Truth to tell, there's about twice the amount you ever had before. Times are tough, y’know. That's what it does.”*

“Apparently so.”* He agreed and finally looked at the woman at the man’s side. “I see we have company this time.”*

“Yes.”* The man gestured for them to walk inside the building, the wind was getting worse now. “This here’s Lois Lane from the Daily Planet.”* He opened the door for her. “She wants to make a story out of this if it’s okay with you.”*

“Of course.” Superman locked his eyes with hers. “Nice to see you again. Ms. Lane.”* They actually just had lunch together.

“Always a pleasure, Superman.”* She answered with a glint in her eyes, biting her lips to hide a smirk before entering through the door. Superman didn't hide his smile and gestured for the man to walk in first.

He waited a couple of seconds, taking courage to walk inside.

“Coming, Superman? You’re acting like a boy being sent to the principal’s office?”*

Superman took a breath and entered, tailing behind her and the post officer. He leaned in her direction to whisper. “I’ve already told you, Lois… this always ends up-.”*

“As you can see, Superman, he had to get a bigger room.”* They walked inside a corridor to reach an old office supposedly converted into a store room. The man took a big bunch of keys and began messing with it, to find the right one. “The old one was full up by October!”* He found the key. “One of these years you’re gonna hafta give us your address!” And gave a muffled laugh. He turned the doorknob and pushed the metallic door open. “Here you go!”* Gesturing them to walk inside first. “A whole year's mail for a mist’ man o’ steel!”*

Superman walked inside already knowing what to expect, but he heard Lois gasping and her heart speeding up. Indeed it was much more than the year before, but it wasn't the quantity that dreaded him. It was the content of it.

“Incredible!”* Lois walked past him to look at the room, piles of boxes and bags, every single surface had mail covering it, even the floor. “I had no idea!!”* Lois turned to look at Superman’s face and he could see the worry in her eyes mixed with awe. “Where does it come from?”* She asked him.

“Everywhere. From every nook and cranny in the world. Letters from men, women, kids… letters in English, French, Russian, Swahili… hundreds of thousands of them.”* He gave a tired sigh.

“And they're all for you, Superman. I will leave you to your fun.”* The man closed the door behind him, leaving Superman and Lois in the poorly lit room alone with the mountains of mail around them.

They stayed quiet looking at the letters for a moment.

“Oh, wow.”* Lois said finally. “You should have started this weeks ago!”

His shoulders fell. “And prolong the torture? Not a chance!”* He picked the first box in front of him. “Pull up a chair and grab some mail, Lois. It will be a while…”*

She took off her coat and hung it on the back of a chair, grabbed the mail that was laying on the table and sat in its place. She looked around before tackling the first batch. “I'm beginning to understand why you hate this so much.”*

He’s already in a fast sequence of reading letters at superspeed. “See…” He stopped in one. “Here's a classic example of why.”* He proceeded to read a business proposition on finding oil in Alaska with his x-ray vision.

“Amazing! You said these were all letters from the needy!”*

“No, I said the letters all wanted my help.”* He put the letter in one of the piles he was organizing on the table. “Over the past couple of years I’ve seen a lot of wild schemes to help people get rich.”* He sighed.

Lois huffed, crossing her legs. “Don't they realize that you’d never do something like that? Don't they understand what Superman is all about?”*

“Makes you wonder, doesn't it?”* He agreed tiredly, already back at the letters. “Dear Superman…”* He read aloud the next letter in his hand. “I’m a highschool senior and I thought of something in geology class that you might want to attempt. Try squeezing a chunk of coal in your hand with all your strength and when you’re done you should have a diamond!” Superman snorted. “If you do this please be sure to send me some.”*

Lois straightened her back and widened her eyes. “Now, hold on for a second! You can't possibly...?”*

“I can.” Then smirked. “But I can't.”

“That's okay.”* She chuckled and lifted her left hand. “I’m quite satisfied with the one I have.”*

Superman hummed and gently held her stretched hand, bending down to kiss the ring on her finger. Her breathing quickened, so did her heart beat, when he looked up her eyes bored on his almost made him drop the flimsy self control he had.

“Now, we have a job to do, Ms. Lane.”

“Aye.” She grinned knowingly at him, but turned her attention to the mail on her hand.

A couple of minutes in silence was interrupted with Superman’s deep breath. “Oh, boy… this one is really tough.”*

“What?”

He read the letter of a elderly woman asking for help to see her sister before it was too late. They had been separated during holocaust.

“This one is the kind of help I can provide.” He put the letter in a new pile and looked at Lois. “I'll be back as soon as I can.”*

***

He wasn't expecting to find Lois still at the post office when he returned from Germany.

“Gosh, Lois, I thought you’d be home already…” He went straight to another box on the floor.

“I tried to, but while you're gone I kept reading the mail…”* He noticed her eyes were puffy and red. “And all I could think about were their problems… there are so many of them!”* he stood and reached for her arms, he whispered her name apologetically. “For the most part it's just one tragedy after another.”*

His heart clenched for putting her on this, but he did try to warn her before they started. “I know. That's why this tears me up so much. That and the fact I can't do anything for most of them!”* He sighed half frustrated, half sadly.

“Why do you keep doing it to yourself, Clark? It’s torture!”

“It is… but at least on the holidays, if I can make a difference for at least one person…”

“Clark…” She shook her head in disbelief and leaned in to touch his forehead with hers. Her skin was warm and calming against his. “Well, I separated them into piles that we can deliver to various government and charitable organizations.”*

He felt dozens of tons being lifted from his shoulders and he hugged her, not caring if they could be walked in. “Good idea. They’re far better equipped than I am…”* He cupped her jaw and kissed her lips. “You’re just… brilliant.”

“I am indeed... Superman.” She was right, too. Not the place for that, so he took a few steps back and returned to the mail.

It didn't take much more than a minute for him to find another letter he could attend, this time to comfort a boy whose father he wouldn't be able to save.

***

He brought dinner with him this time, the room was practically clean now, Lois was just super in the task, he could help so many more people than he normally did by himself. He put his cape on the floor to improvise a picnic towel, set the Big Belly Burgers bags in the middle and waited proudly for her reaction. Lois smiled softly at him.

“You're going to turn my head like that.”**

“That's the idea.” Superman offered his hand in a gallantly way to help her sit on the floor.

Lois accepted his hand and sat in front of the bags. “Gods, I'm starving! Being emotional sure makes one hungry.”

“What a day, hn? I feel like we've really been on a roller coaster ride of emotions.”*

“Yeah, I can see why you've always postponed this now.”

Superman grunted something in agreement, already biting on his double big burger.

“There are some letters I want you to have a look at, they are on the box over there.” Lois nodded their side and opened her own bag of fast food.

Superman stretched one arm, grabbed the box and looked inside. “Oh.”

“Yeah, I’m not sure what to feel about that .”

“Lois…” He sighed, putting the box away.

“I know, I know. You're a public figure and, well, gorgeous, and of course people don't know you're engaged and… and-”

“You're pissed, I get it… but there's nothing I can do about it.”

“For goodness sake! That's so disrespectful!” Lois glared at the box. “What did they think you would do with their underwear to begin with??”

“I honestly prefer not to think too much about it, Lois.”

She huffed and bit her burger angrily. Greasy food always helped calm her down.

When they finished the food, Lois pulled one letter from her back pocket. “There's one last letter you might want to read.”* He received the folded piece of paper from her. “Remember that the Daily Planet throws a party every Christmas for the disadvantaged kids, right?”* He nodded and didn't look at the letter, waiting for Lois to explain what it was. “Well, they’ve always gotten a Santa Claus to hand out presents, but with the strike this year… they just didn't have the budget to buy any presents… So to make up for the lack of presents…”*

“They want Superman to show up and divert the kiddies’ attention from the lack of toys?”* Superman completed it.

“More or less.”*

Superman smiled and stood, offering his both hands for her.  “You know, Lois, it might be fun to see some bright shining young faces!”*

She smiled, giving her hands to him. “You’re going to go?”*

Superman scooped her into his arms. “Not only am I going to go, but I think I know a way to make it a special evening for them!”* Lois’ smile grew even wider.

***

The bucks were a bit scared, the poor things, but securely held over his shoulders. The kids went crazy when he flew around the globe, just to make a theatrical landing with the sled and Prof. Hamilton, perfectly dressed as Santa Claus. The very dark suit he was wearing, hopefully would hide him from the kids and they would think it was really Santa coming with the presents. Lois had them all gathered on the rooftop to wait for the surprise, she had no idea what he was planning either. Her heart almost exploded with affection when she saw him landing and quickly slipping away.

“Did they see me?”* He asked her whispering.

“No, but get going before they do.”*

“Okay…”* He started hoovering. “ I'll be back in a bit.”* And flew away.

Lois watched the point he disappeared in the sky and felt the warmth inside her growing. Sometimes she could hardly believe someone like him even existed. With all his power, he was still so kind… so gentle*… 

“God, I love him!”* She whispered to herself without even noticing.

Not too much time later, Clark walked from the staircase door to meet her and the kids on the rooftop. Hamilton seemed to be having the time of his life being Santa.

Lois grabbed him by the lapels and landed a huge kiss on his lips. Clark smiled against her mouth before deepening their caresses. How he wanted to do this the whole day!

“Eww!!”

“Argh!” Some of the kids' protests reached their ears and the couple broke the kiss, laughing.

“Where did you get the toys from?”

Clark gave her an enigmatic smile. “From a friend.” Batman was really surprised for receive a call from Superman on Christmas Eve.

Lois raised one eyebrow, but didn't press further. She rested her head on his shoulder to watch the kids laughing and being amazed by Santa’s visit. “It was a wonderful idea.”

***

Lois was a bit tipsy from the eggnog from the party when they arrived at his apartment. It seemed like it had been days since he was last home. And from the amount of mail he had in front of his door, it was very much true. He spent the last couple of days attending to Superman’s business and barely any of his.* He crouched to pick the letters from the floor and Lois huffed behind him.

“The last thing I want to do now is read more mail, Clark.” She hugged his waist when he stood again, her fingers started to search for the gaps between the buttons of his shirt. He chuckled, but began to go through the letters. “Claaaark…” She made her way around him and nibbled his neck, just below his ear. She kissed his jaw then, he hummed in appreciation, but still continued his boring task. When Lois started to make her way with mouthful kisses to his collarbone, she felt him tensing. “What?” 

“Uh… it’s… an invitation.”

“For what?” Lois looked down to see a fancy card in his hand. It was a wedding invitation. “Lana and Pete?” She watched his very conflicted face. “Did you know they were together?”

“No… no, I did not.” He frowned. What was this awful feeling inside him? Was he that small?

It was Lois’ time to frown. “You're upset with their engagement?”

“No… I mean… they are my oldest friends… it’s just… Lana hadn't talked to me since-”

“Since?”

“Since… we got engaged.”

“Oh.”

“We are…uh, exes, y’know.”

“Yeah, I know.”

“You know?”

“The awkward tension when they caught us making out that time in Smallville made it pretty obvious, Clark.”

“Oh… Sorry for not telling you sooner.” He put the invitation and the rest of his mail on the buffet, but still frowned at the paper.

“Are you really upset?”

“I'm not, Lois… I want them to be happy, they are two of the dearest people to me. It's just… all this time Lana hasn't talked to me, she is one of the few people in on the secret… and…  she's getting married? To Pete? We’re all supposed to be close friends!” He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Sorry, I guess I'm still a bit emotional.”

“Maybe she needed the distance, Clark.”

“But-” He stopped when saw her very pointed look. Of course she knew that too. “You’re right, as always… I guess I was just sad for being left out of the loop.”

“You’re upset because they kept a secret from you?” Lois raised one eyebrow, teasingly.

“Touché.” He gave in on her attempt to change the mood. “Now, I guess you were trying to start something before.”

“Oh, was I?”

He scooped her in his arms at superspeed and disappeared to the bedroom.

***

They rarely have time to make love in the morning when they spend the night together, but she guessed he was making an exception for being Christmas morning. Or maybe just there wasn't any emergency yet. A Christmas present for them both. Even she could notice the silence outside. Only their heavy breaths and caresses filled the air. It was slow and tender, perhaps they were still emotional from the mail ordeal, with their bodies held very closely to each other and lengthy sensual movements, they lazily brought the other higher and higher.

Lois searched for his lips when felt the tension on her body close to snap and held his head firmly against her mouth when her body shook and trembled. Clark followed her soon after. When they were both spent, he let his body fall on top of her and they sank on the mattress catching their breaths, staying like that for an unknown amount of time.

“Our first Christmas together.” Lois started caressing his back with the tip of her fingers at some point.

“The first of many.” His answer came muffled from the place his head was buried on her hair.

She hummed and kissed his shoulder.

That was definitely a different Christmas, opting for spending it together and alone instead of with their families. They would later have lunch with her parents and then dinner with the folks in Smallville, but the morning was just theirs and it had been wonderful so far.

Clark finally seemed to have gathered enough energy to pull out from her, taking care not to make a mess on the sheets and giving her a sheepish half smile. Lois' breath caught on her throat. He was so sexy.

“You’re so sexy, Lois…” He said with a husky voice and she laughed.

His cheeks got even redder. “What? Did I say something wrong?”

“No… I was thinking exactly the same thing about you…” She pulled him back on top of her and kissed his lips. “I am a very lucky woman.”

“So am I…” He tilted his head and Lois’ heart sank, an emergency. “Why don't we go to the living room to see if we got lucky with Santa?”

“What?” She snorted, despite being confused, then saw the slight change in the color of his irises. He was looking through the wall. 

“I think there's something for you there.” And opened a boyish grin on his face.

Intrigued, and not just a little charmed by his enthusiasm, Lois rolled from under him, grabbed the first piece of clothing she found, that was his shirt, and walked to the living room putting it on. She searched around the tree on the corner and didn't find any extra gift, beside the one she would give him. She felt his presence arriving behind her.

"Merry Christmas, M'Lady!"* He pulled a gold chain from his pocket, it had a delicate heart shaped pendant. He pulled her hair out of the way, laid the necklace around her neck and kissed the crook of her shoulder.

Lois looked down and touched the little pendant delicately. "Oh, Clark! It's beautiful!"*

He hugged her closely, kissing her hair and smelling her scent with a deep breath on her neck.

Lois didn't want to break the embrace, but slipped down to reach a red and green box. “And this is yours.”

Clark held the box in his hands and smiled brightly, she could imagine the little boy he once was opening a Christmas gift in Smallville and she melted again.

Then he made a curious face. "What's this?"* 

"Oh, as if you hadn't peeked already."

"Of course not, Lois." He didn't even try to hide the feigning tone.

"Why I don't believe you?" He smirked, but started to open the box.

"It's a pullover sweater, Mr. X-ray vision!"* She said when he lifted the piece of clothing from the box

"Wha-at?"* He feigned surprise again.

"I will start wrapping your gifts in lead!!" But she kissed him anyway. "Merry Christmas, honey."*

Chapter Text

Water filled his lungs and his body sank like a rock at the river, that ray of something really had taken a toll and the mental attacks were still making him have problems controlling his powers. The most alarming thought was the vision he had of Warworld. It was somehow coming to Earth.

Warworld was coming!

He managed to swim back to the surface, but as he was still weak, he found a ladder to reach the pier. His limbs were so heavy, pulling him up and his cape wasn't helping with the weight, it made him wonder if he would make it to the end of the climb. A shadow appeared in front of it and a hand was offered to help him.

“Quick on the scene, as always, aren’t you, Lois?”* He smiled, despite everything.

“Yep.”* She answered simply, holding his shoulders as he finally reached the pier. “And recorded your victory with my handy, dany, automatic camera, after all, I am the best there is at what I do…”* Superman crawled from the ladder and stayed on his hands and knees on the floor, catching his breath, then gave her a knowing smirk in answer to her comment. “What happened to you up there?”* It was her time to kneel in front of him, there was no one around, so she ran hand hands on his shoulders and upper arms, searching for any injury. “Are you all right??”*

“Me personally… yeah, I’m fine…”* He answered breathlessly, then his expression turned to a frown. “But, Lois… Something terrible is about to happen…”* He forced himself to stand up, with Lois still supporting him. He closed his mouth, searching for words to try to explain what he experienced.

“What? Tell me!”* She demanded, worried now.

“It's Brainiac, Lois… He somehow has control of a, um, techno-world filled with alien warriors… And he's going to use them to invade the Earth!”* Only just to put it in words made him shiver.

“What will you do?”* Lois asked after a while processing what he just said.

He had experienced what Warworld was and the strength of its warriors first hand during his exile in space. He needed to be very careful on this or Earth’s fate would be doomed.

“I can’t handle this alone, Lois.”* He looked at her with a hard expression. “I’m going to need help.”*

“You mean the Justice League? The UN disbanded them.”

“I mean everyone!”

***

Superman watched with hope the rooftop of Luthor Tower filled with heroes and they didn’t stop coming. It seemed that everyone that could come, answered his call. They could make this happen, he was sure of it, with the right preparations, resources and people, they could do anything.

“I can’t thank you all enough for coming.”* He began, hovering a bit to get everyone's attention. They all stopped their chats immediately and turned to look at him. “I believe everyone has seen the news about the alien invasion upon us… We face a crisis here… Having dealt with Brainiac before I can vouch for the gravity of the situation!”* His voice carried throughout the place, all of them listening carefully to his words in silence. “And we’ll need all our collective power if we’re going to crush this invasion!”* Chatter began among the heroes, some became anxious, some were still disbelieving him. Some just mocked. Batman told Gardener to shut up. Superman needed to make them understand what his plan was, this was a too delicate situation. He was never one to attack first, but this time… “In the past, we’ve dealt with alien invasions after they staged their full-scale attacks. But Brainiac is so lethal, that if he brings a juggernaut like Warworld here… it would mean Earth’s certain destruction!”* He would do something very unlike him and the ones who knew that looked at him with surprise. “We have to take the fight to them on our terms… not theirs !”*

Raised voices and chatter erupted among the heroes. Discussion, agreement and disagreements.

“I ask you for your help in this fight.” He then gestured to Deathstroke. “As we’ll be dealing with a telepath and we’re taking the fight into their territory, I asked Slade to be our military tactic advisor. We will come up with a code and plan of actions for our attack.” Superman then landed in front of heroes who were closer to him. “Can I ask you to be responsible for Earth’s defensive efforts, Batman?”

“Count with me, Superman.” He offered his and the two shook hands.

Superman then turned to Wonder Woman and put one hand on her shoulder. “Diana, I want you with me in space, if something happens… Will you take the lead?”

“I shall, Superman.”

“It’s settled them. Let’s get to work!”

Deathstroke and Batman began discussing tactics, with Guardian joining the ground team advisors, Mr. Miracle and Big Barda gave some insights now and then, since the New Gods were also involved in this. Most of the heavy lifters would go to space, but some would stay on Earth to assist at the defenses. Diana was getting restless, tough.

“Has anybody seen Aquaman? He was supposed to meet us here!”*

“His own city of Atlantis is at war, Diana*… Maybe he couldn’t leave?” Superman pondered.

At that moment, Brainiac’s giant robot head broke the wall of Luthor’s penthouse with Aquaman unconscious in one of his tentacles.

***

Superman wasn’t expecting that much fuss when they returned by boom tube. It was literally a parade on the streets, people cheering and singing, confetti and ribbons being thrown in the air to congratulate their return. But sincerely, he wasn't much for celebrating at the moment. They had won, yes, but at a cost. Dragga died, Matrix disappeared and Brainiac became catatonic. Wasn’t something he would desire to anyone, not even his enemies.

Some of the heroes from the defensive front were still at the welcome party and the attack team began to disperse. Captain Marvel approached Superman with a hand stretched.

“It was an honor to serve under your command, Superman!”*

“The honor was mine to have you on the team, Marvel!” They shook each other’s hands with both hands and Superman couldn’t deny he had a good feeling about the Fawcett hero.  

Lex Luthor, the second, was talking about something on the microphone and only when the people around him were waiting for something, did he realize the billionaire was talking to him.

“Superman.”* He called again, the son still gave the same irk his father used to give him, no matter how they didn’t seem to be alike, after all, the young man hadn’t hesitated a second when he asked for support in resources averting the invasion. Apparently, his Team Luthor fought well, too. But then again, the old Luthor wouldn’t want the world to be taken over by aliens, as well. “Let’s not disappoint these fine folks who turned out to pay tribute… Give us a few words.”*

“Um, I…”* He wasn’t sure, he looked around and the other heroes cheered him up and encouraged him on walking towards the pulpit. There were lots of microphones and cameras pointing at him. Not that he wasn’t used to the press - both sides of it - but that was on a scale he usually tried to avoid.

“Splendid!”* Luthor, the second, exclaimed when Superman stood by his side at the podium . “Ladies and gents, I give you the man of the hour, Superman!”*

“Um, thanks…” He said, still unsure. Superman stood in front of the pulpit, between the applause and cheering and took a moment to think about his words. He saw with the corner of his eyes, Wonder Woman standing by his side in support. “I guess all I can say is that… Thanks to a team effort, we’ve defeated a menace who threatened our very existence. When you’re up against a menace more powerful than yourself, working with these other dedicated folks shows us that teamwork is a necessity*… We can achieve things we couldn’t possibly do by ourselves and that we’re stronger when we’re together… I’d like to thank all of those not here, who did their share in this… and especially our fallen comrade… A warrior known as Dragga, who gave his life so that one of us would live to fight another day!”* The crowd went completely silent now. “Let this gathering serve as a memorial to a being not of this Earth, who nevertheless fought with us to protect it!”* Superman gave the people a hard look. “We’re fighting an alien invasion, yes, but it was also an alien who gave his life for our planet. Thank you.”*

***

Superman landed on her balcony and opened the sliding door.

“Hi, Lois.”* He called her and she was startled. She was really focused on the computer screen. “I’m surprised to see home.”* He closed the door behind him and walked towards her.

“I hardly plan to spend the day shopping!”* She stood from her chair and turned to him.

“Yes, I thought you would be at the Planet.” He put his arms around her and pulled her body against his in a tight embrace.

“Well, yes, but most of my files from the last couple of weeks are here.” He buried his face on the crook of her neck and sighed. “It was a tough fight, hum?” He nodded and Lois wrapped him in her arms, caressing his back under the cape. “I’m sorry for the loss of your comrade over there.”

“He was a gladiator with me when I was stuck in Warworld and helped me break free, he wore the suit with the ‘s’ I’d left there… He was a weird kind of guy, a ruthless warrior, but also somehow a gentleman… He gave his life for Matrix.”

“Oh, Clark…” 

They stayed embraced in silence for an unknown amount of time.

“I guess I should be the one showing my face at the Planet, how long have I been gone?”

“A couple of days, but Perry knows how you work. We won’t be needing to improvise as much as he had with Foswell.”

“Yeah, but I’d better have an exclusive on the war ready for the afternoon edition anyway.”

“That it will… Nice speech, by the way.”

***

Clark flew through the stairs, changing his clothes and when he opened the globe’s little maintenance door, he was already full in Superman’s costume.

“I knew you’d respond to this one.”* A deep voice came from behind the ‘N’.

“Batman!”* He breathed. “Geez, you’re the only one who can give a scare like that… what are you doing here?”

The black cladded hero jumped on the globe’s ring that served as a platform. “I take it you’re headed for Florida?”*

“Somebody has to… With the Justice League disbanded I’m the next in line to take on them.”*

“Indeed. A shame about the League, isn’t it?”* Batman closed his cape around his body when a wind blew it open. “Wouldn’t you agree the Justice League should still exist?”*

“Sure.”* Superman answered, raising one eyebrow, he had a bad feeling about it. “All in all, they were a good bunch… somewhat ridiculous sometimes, but a good bunch.”*

“Agreed.”* Batman’s lips pinched in a thin line. “In fact, several days ago, Maxwell Lord contacted me to rebuild the JLA.”*

Superman sighed. “No wonder you’re here, but my answer is still ‘no’.”*

“I know you’ve been approached in the past, but don't misunderstand me, I’m not asking you to be a member, someone should take charge…  but not me… I think you’re that someone.”*

Now that was unexpected. “Me? Head up the team?? Forget it! I work alone.”*

“It doesn’t have to stay that way. People think of me as a loner, yet I’ve often worked with others*… The Robins, the Outsiders, the League*…  You said it yourself, that we’re stronger when we work together… and I’ve done my best to help them be effective.”*

“That’s great and you’ve done a good job! I will always be available to assist the League in whatever they need, but I don’t have the time to be a constant member… besides, I don’t want to lead anything!”

“You are a natural leader, didn’t you notice that during the fight against Brainiac?”

It was Superman's time to press his lips together. “That may even be so, but I can’t take on the League, Bruce! I barely have time to do my reporting work lately… I barely have time to spend with Lois! I am most effective working solo.”

“We realized during this invasion the world needs the League… With the Martian Manhunter gone, the team needs your muscle! And they need your leadership, Clark.”*

Superman breathed, frustrated and began hovering, he could hear the trouble in Florida getting worse. “Sorry, Bruce, but no. The League just isn't my style. I’ve to go! See you around!” And flew south, leaving Batman alone at the Planet’s globe, hoping whatever Superman would find in Florida would make him change his mind.

Chapter Text

He flew as fast as he could back to Metropolis, he hadn’t noticed how long he stayed at the League’s former Headquarters, he was supposed to meet Lois right about now. He searched for her with his x-ray vision and found her waiting for him in one the the alleys.

She turned towards him with the whoosh sound of him landing behind her. “Well, hello, stranger.”*

“Hello, yourself.”* He greeted Lois with a smile. “Been waiting long?”*

“Not that long.”* She smiled back and Clark noticed she had the dry cleaner bag over her shoulder and a very attractive black dress on her body.. “I didn’t mind.”

“I’m glad.” He said, getting closer, checking her from her up-do to toe with an approving hum. Noticing his eyes wandering, Lois changed her posture in a way to show him the mid thigh slit on her dress. He took a breath and leaned to kiss her ear. “You’re gorgeous, you know that?”*

She shivered with his low voice whispering so close to her and giggled. “Mmm, hold that thought!”* Lois said, turning to give him the bag she was holding. “Right now, you’d better get into your tux!”*

Clark gave her a smirk, but received the clothes from her.

“I’ll keep watch until you’re-”*

Whoosh.

“Done!” Clark exclaimed, proudly, putting his glasses over his eyes. “How do I look?”*

“Mmm…” Lois bit her lower lip, checking him from head to toe. “You do fill out a tux very nicely, Mr. Kent.”*

He tilted his head. “Why, thank you, Ms. Lane.”* He said it with Superman’s voice and extended his hand for her. “And thanks for picking it up for me!”* He added with his normal voice while Lois laced her fingers with his on his extended hand.

“My pleasure.”* They walked outside the darkened alley, hand in hand. “Now… tell me all about this big emergency that took you out of town this morning!”* She demanded while crossing the streets in direction to the pier.

“Oh, that! Some international dignitaries were taken hostages and Superman lent some friends a hand in their rescue… that’s all.”* He flashed her a cheeky grin.

“Claaark!”*

He pulled her closer and leaned in on her to whisper. “Can’t say anymore right now, hon… Too many ears around.”* 

Lois watched the crowd waiting for the transport gathering around them. “Well, all right… as long as you give me chapter and verse later.”*

“It will be my pleasure, Ms. Lane.”

***

“Mr. Kent! Ms. Lane!”* The elderly man greeted them when they stepped on board. “How good to have you with us again! It’s been a long time!”*

“A very long time, Captain.”* Lois greeted the man, as well, Clark nodded his acknowledgement, but couldn’t stop to chat, because there were many people behind them to enter the ridiculous expensive yacht too.

“It’s been years , actually! I’m surprised that he remembered!”* Lois commented when they walked further inside the ship, in the direction to the great hall.

“No one could ever forget you, Lois*, not in the dress you were wearing that night… Though I’m very fond of when you took it off.”

“Clark Kent!” She feigned outrage.

“It’s a good thing for you that I take a ‘long’ in a dinner jacket…”*

“Oh… “ Her eyes danced with mischief. “So your thing for me dressing in your clothes started that night?”

He opened a big grin and raised one eyebrow. “My thing, Ms. Lane??” Then scoffed. “You’re right though… It was years ago that we’re here. I’ll never forget that night.”* One of his hands found the small of her back and pulled her closer to him. “It was the first event we attended together.”

“Was that so?”* She feigned not remembering.

“Yes, it was. And of course, hell broke loose, because, of course it did.” It was actually the first of Luthor’s, the elder, machinations towards him and the day they became sworn enemies.

“Well, this evening should be different!”* Lois affectionately rested her hands on his chest, flashing the engagement ring on her finger.

“Oh?” Clark leaned in with a small smile in the corner of his lips. “And here I had my jacket cleaned especially for you.”*

She barked a completely unlady-like guffaw. “You!!”* His chest swollen with pride for being able to make her laugh like that. She brought her forehead to rest on his chest to calm herself, then lifted her head to whisper just below his ear. “Later, Mr. Kent.”

“Mmm…” He hummed and docked to kiss her, but stopped just a hair from her lips when a loud male voice cut the moment. They both turned to look inside the great hall at the same time. “Is that…our host singing??”* He asked with a frown.

“And playing??”* Lois added with the same disbelieving voice.

***

He stopped in the middle of the turn and looked to the other side of the dance floor.

“Clark? Something wrong?”* Lois whispered, she knew that look.

“I’m not sure… from the sound of things, a Team-Luthor squad just shot by… headed up river at great speed.”* He hated doing this to her, but it’d be better if he checked it out. “Lo-mm!”*

Her lips found his in mid movement and sentence, she cupped his jaw and briefly deepened the kiss. “Some things just don’t change, after all… I think we deserved a little fun and I intended to dance the night away with the handsomest man in Metropolis!”

“Oh, anyone I know?”*

“Check your mirror*, buster!” 

Clark leaned in one more time and they were interrupted one more time by Luthor’s voice. He was calling the party-goers to a toast when an insect-like villain broke the glass and grabbed him in its claws.

***

He ended up not meeting Lois until the sun was almost up, after saving Luthor, the second, a series of mysterious explosions and fires started to go on in the city. Superman had literally almost lost his breath putting out some many of them. He saw her lights still on and landed on the balcony. Lois was sitting in her home office, typing something so furiously on her keyboard, that she almost didn’t notice him entering from the glass door.

“Hey!” She greeted him. “Busy night.”

“Yeah.” He noticed with sad eyes she had already taken off the dress, not that he expected her to keep wearing it at home after jumping all over the city covering the fires, as well. He kissed her hair when she resumed whatever she was writing on the computer.

“Perry will have a hard time choosing the headline tomorrow.”

“Want one more for the pile?” He threw himself on the couch.

“Sure.” She answered without looking at him.

“I joined the Justice League.”

Lois froze for a second then spun her chair violently to face him. “What??”

“Actually… I’m kind of the leader now.”

She stood. “What??”

He shrugged. “It will be an experience. I have no idea how to do this, actually.”

“Scrap the giant ants and the fire demons, that is the scoop, Clark!!”

“You’re welcome, Ms. Lane.” He let his head fall on the back of the couch and closed his eyes. The fight with the fire demon took him to the other realm, he was exhausted. “Y’know… I really don’t like magic.”

Chapter Text

Lois bolted out of the room, annoyed, almost hitting Jimmy with the door.

"Oh, my bad." Lois said quickly, tidying her hair the best she could, the wind had made a havoc of it.

"No probl-" The young man's eyes widened like two sausages when he saw Clark leaving the room right after Lois, fastening his tie closer in his collar. "Ugh." He took the people he admired in, Lois' cheeks were red as if with exertion and Clark's normally perfectly pulled back hair had a few strands falling over his forehead. "What- what were you doing in the store room?"

"Store room?" Lois asked, confused and looked at the back of the door, to read the sign.

Jimmy's face was pale and red at the same time, if that was possible. "Oh, she doesn't even know where she is." 

"What's up, Jim?"

"N-no, nothing, Mister Clark. I mean, Mister Kent." With that the young man left the couple as fast as he could, tripping over his legs.

"What was that?" Clark frowned.

Lois snorted by his side. "I think he thinks we're having a bit of fun in our coffee break inside the store room."

His cheeks and ears burned in red. "What? No, that's… that's terrible, Lois!"

"What do you prefer? That we tell him we just flew in through a twenty-fourth floor window?"

"But…"

"At least it was Jimmy, he's our friend, it's not like he's going blabbermouth…" The couple look at each other. "Or… will he?"

He would. The next day their colleagues were all whispering around them. It was driving Lois crazy, she couldn't even imagine being Clark who could actually hear what was being said. The ultimate blow was when Perry called them to his office, they felt like they were called to the principal's office instead. All heads turning away on their walk of shame in the newsroom.

"Right, some rumors reached my ears… about an incident yesterday afternoon."

Clark instantly reddened again, shifting uncomfortably in his chair. Lois just huffed. She would need to take the wheels on this one.

"Perry… that's not true."

"Oh, so you know what the rumors are about?... Look, I've been young too, kids, I know in the beginning of an intimate relationship sometimes it's hard to keep the hands out of each other's."

"Perry."

"I'm glad you two finally figured out what everyone already knew and I really don't want to interfere between you two, what you do outside the office is your own business… But inside the office…"

"Chief…" Clark practically whined.

Lois snorted and crossed her arms. "Nothing happened, Perry! Jimmy only got the wrong impression because of our… appearance."

"Loois…" Clark definitely whined now.

"Appearance?"

Clark ran his hand on his hair.

"We're having a… heated discussion."

"Mild discussion." Clark finally entered the conversation.

"In the store room?"

"It couldn't wait." Lois picked the reigns again.

"You never refrained yourself from doing so in the newsroom before."

"It was private."

"For future reference, do your laundry at home.” The older man thought for half a second. “This is really what happened? Because I will still have to write it on the disciplinary record."

"Perry, really??" Lois huffed again, standing to put her hands on her waist. "It's Clark!" She waved one of her hands to her side, indicating the man who's trying to look as small as possible and falling at it. "Do you really think the guy who only crosses the street on green and iron his socks before organizing them by color would have a quick shag in the storage room??"

"I really didn't need to know how Kent organizes his socks." Their editor then turned his gaze towards the man in question. "All right, I believe this time was a misunderstanding. You are my ace reporters, I can't have you two mixed in this level office offense. Understood?"

"Don't worry, Mr. White, I will never do something this disrespectful towards my colleagues."

Perry nodded at Clark then turned to the woman. "Did you hear me, Lois? You know your disciplinary file is already long enough to fire you three times."

"Tsk." She pouted like the stubborn woman she was.

The worn editor sighed. "I'd like to have your word on that, Lois. You agree with Kent that you're going to follow the rules?"

"Clark and I disagree on a great many things."

"Lois!!"

"Alright, get the hell out of my sight, you two!!"

Clark practically grabbed her out of the office.

“Couldn't you have just agreed with Perry on this one?” He whispered, walking towards their desks.

“I don't like making promises I can't keep.” She whispered back, stopping to look at him. “Besides, if megalomaniac supervillains get to attack you whenever they feel like it, I reserve myself the right to do the same.”

Their rushed whispers got the attention of their colleagues in the newsroom, especially the flustered face Clark had when Lois left him with a mischievous smirk on her lips.

Chapter Text

Wedding. Pregnancy. Pain. Funeral. Exile.

He sensed something leaving him and a terrible feeling almost took his breath away. His chest tightened and fear flooded inside him.

Lois was still looking at him, expectantly.

"Earth to Clark…"* She called again. "Clark… are you sure intervention is with an 'e'?"*

His gaze was locked somewhere on the wall, with his mug frozen halfway to his mouth. "What?"* He seemed to snap back and turned to look at her.

Lois raised an eyebrow. "Intervention… as in Superman's. This article, babe, on the S&L robber, remember?"*

"Sorry, Lois."* She frowned. "Just… Wool-gathering… I guess."* She returned to her story still frowning.

Clark then grimaced and put his mug beside her Super Mug on her desk.

"Lois…"* His serious voice made her stop typing to look at him. "There's one thing about marriage that we haven't talked about yet." She waited for him to continue, concerned. "Have you... ever thought about children?"* Her eyes widened. "We never really talked about this."

"I… Of course I have… I'm just not planning to have any in the next year or two. Why?"* Lois looked around, the office was in full steam. "Do you really wanna talk about this here? Now? "

"Uh.. no.. it's…" He sighed and shook his head, as if to expel something from his head.

"Clark, are you all right?"*

"Sure. Why wouldn't I be?"*

It didn't convince her. "I dunno. For a minute there you seemed to be a million miles away."*

He ran his hand on his face. "Maybe I was." 

***

Lois couldn't see a thing, she was wrapped in his cape while they dove on the melted ice. Suddenly the humid blue chill became a yellow warmth and Lois felt her feet touching the floor. The cape was removed from around her and she opened her eyes.

It was one of the most impressive structures she ever saw, it looked like she was transported to a Sci-fi movie set, but it was all real. She didn't know what to look at first, there were so many things to see there, machines, robots, artifacts she couldn't even begin to guess what it was, not to mention the two huge statues in the center.

"I was really wondering what this place of yours was like."

Clark stood in front of her with a conflicted expression on his face.

"I'm sorry, Lois… In truth… I was actually putting off bringing you here."

"What? Why?"

"I'm…Uh... I was reluctant to show you this part of me… so evidently. "

"Clark… How many times have I flown with you so far?"

"No, Lois, I don't think you really understand." He shook his head, his eyes showing sadness and some reservation. "Neither I truly understand yet… I see myself as human, you see myself as human… but I'm not."

Lois took two steps in his direction, closer to the center of the impressive hall.

"I was conceived under a far, red sun that warmed a now destroyed planet. I was little more than an embryo when my father put me into that ship that brought me here."*

Why was he bringing this up after all these months? "You've told me, Clark, you were an infant when the Kents found you... the first arms that held you were human arms."* She noticed this was a very complicated subject for him. 

"But I'm not human, Lois."* He sighed and opened his arms to indicate the area around them. "I brought you here, to my Fortress of Solitude, to show you what I have left of Krypton. So you know what I know. What I am.* How… alien I am."

Lois shook her head and reached for his face, cupping his jaw, bringing him down, to look at her. He put his hands on top of hers and sighed deeply.

"You have to understand who… what you'll be marrying… even if it means I lose you."*

Lois searched his eyes for a moment. "What is this really about, Clark?"

He searched on hers too and a silent second passed before he answered.

"When I asked about children the other day... do you realize we might not be able to have any?"*

"Yes… I thought about that."*

"And if you do get pregnant one day, there's a huge risk… you might-"*

"Hold on, Clark, we're not even married yet… Where is this all coming from?"

He went silent again, then took a deep breath. "I had a… feeling, almost like a foresighting… We're from different worlds, Lois, different species, it might be dangerous to attempt..." She could see a shadow passing through his eyes. Whatever feeling was that, definitely affected him deeply and she had already learned enough to stop questioning the weird stuff that happens to him all the time.

"Honey… you're worried, I get it, but let's just tackle one thing at a time." Lois kissed the tip of his nose. "No matter where you come from, my darling, I love you*, your quirks, your dorkiness, your superspeed and heat vision and all. Even your strange sense of humor." She kissed his cheek and smiled, relieved for having been able to crack a tiny smile from his lips too. "I want to marry you, Clark… and if possible, to have your children..."* She then touched his lips with hers. "All this may be a monument to solitude, babe, but face it, you're not alone anymore."*

Clark stroked her hair. "I don't think I've ever known anyone more courageous than you, Lois."*

"You, my love, and your parents… but don't worry about this now, we have a whole life ahead of us to figure things out."

"You're right, as always." He scooped her in her arms and kissed her with passion. "We love each other… we're together… and for now, that's enough."* She nodded in agreement against his lips.

He began walking in the direction of a smaller passage, not the one leading to the other great hall she could see from where they were.

"You're going to show me the rest of your fortress now?"

"In a moment."

He went through a corridor with many doors and entered the last, biggest chamber, the one that had a huge and inviting looking bed. Clark flew to reach the center of the bed and deposited her gently on it, before laying on top of her and starting kissing her. First the lips, then the jaw, running down to her neck.

“So this was your secret plan all along, wasn’t it?” She breathed, he could hear the glee in her words. “Lure a native to your lair and have your way with her?”*

“Lois! I was trying to be romantic here!”

She giggled. “And I love you when you do, honey.”

Chapter Text

They kissed as soon as they saw each other inside the Planet’s elevator and didn’t even bother with their companions on the ride up, they had only seen each other at work lately and even so, just barely. His joining the Justice League made his already impossible schedule even crazier.

“I missed you.” Lois said against his lips and a low groan came from their side.

“Lane, Kent, for the love of god, stop!”

She laughed and took some distance from her fiancé. “Sorry, Ralph, didn’t want to offend your sensibilities.” The man just snorted and resumed to his reading of the last edition.

Clark then noticed she was much shorter than she usually was in the office and looked down, intrigued.

“Sneakers, Lois?”*

She smirked at him. “I know how much you like me in heels, Clark, but they feel great. Comfortable clothes should always be in style!”* The door opened with a ping and they left their companion alone in the car. “Why? You think they’re not the right look for me?”* She turned to see him following her to the city room.

“Babe, there is no wrong look for you!”* Clark gave her his most charming smile and she melted a bit, leaning against the door to the newsroom.

“Flatterer!”* She pushed the door open and the noise from the bullpen reached them. “C’mon, Let’s get to work!”*

“Oh, Lois!” A female voice called when he was helping her out of the jacket. “A Ray Mossbach called… said he was returning your call. He left a number. It’s on your desk.”*

“Thanks, Allie!”*

“Mossbach?”* Clark asked in a whisper, hanging their coats in the racks.

“My Lexcorp contact. I met him during that dust-up with Terra-man at Hellsgate, remember?”*

“Oh, yes.”* He had been so mad at Lois that time and she knew it by the looks on her face. She gave him an apologetic smile and sat on her desk to search for the number. Clark took the opportunity to fetch them some coffee.

When he returned, she was putting the phone back on the hook. He gave her the Super Mug properly filled with caffeine and perched at her desk to sip at his Daily Planet’s mug before leaning in.

“I was wondering if I could persuade you to a movie date tonight?”

Her eyes widened with delight. “I would love to, Clark, but do you think you can make it?”

He tilted his head. She knew the answer. “I promise to make an effort to leave only if it’s entirely necessary.”

“Okay, so let's make it at my place, so if you have to go, I will, at least, already be at home.”

It was his time to give her an apologetic smile. She knew as well as he, that the chances were that he would need to leave in the middle of the date. The phone rang.

“Lois Lane… Oh. Ray, hi! Thank you for returning my call.” She agreed to meet and put down the phone again.

“What’s this all about?” Clark asked.

“Just making a few inquiries. I’ve been hearing some interesting rumors about young Mr. Luthor interest in the female sex. It's sounding as if he takes after his late father in that respect.”*

Clark frowned, standing from her desk. “He's barely twenty-one!”*

“Uh-huh, just about the age when his old man started making his conquests!”*

“Well, old man Luthor had his eyes on you for a long time, just be careful, hon.”*

“I will, sweetie.”

“Good morning, Cat.”* Clark greeted the woman, without looking, before she could hug him from behind. The blond gave an amused huff.

“Morning, Clarkie!” Cat appeared from behind him with her practiced smile. “Lois.” She leaned on her desk, much more interested now. “What’s all this about these conquests? Whose conquests?”* 

“Alexander, The Great’s, who else? What brings you in so bright and early, Catherine?”* She answered coldly.

Clark chuckled. “You two have developed an interesting friendship, y’know?”

“We’re not friends!” They answered in unison.

Clark pressed his lips together and rescued his mug from Lois’ desk to finally go to his and start working himself.

***

Superman flew faster than the eyes could see through the balcony door and changed to a pair of jeans, plaid and glasses. “Lois?”*

“I’m in the kitchen!”*

“Thanks for leaving the door open for me, it makes it much easier for me to enter without being seen.”*

“I know, hon.” She was putting the popcorn in a bowl, dressed only in a simple pink nightdress and socks, likely fresh from a shower. Clark stood there for a moment, just looking at her, she was so beautiful.

He took a couple of steps to reach her and buried his face on her neck, grabbing her hips and pulling her backwards towards him. “Mmm… you smell good, Ms. Lane…”* Then nibbled at her earlobe, where he knew it made her shiver. “Taste good, too.”* 

“Care for some popcorn with that ear, Mr. Kent?”* She offered one over her shoulder and Clark caught it with his mouth from her fingers.

“I get popcorn, too? You surely know to show a fella a good time, ma’am.”*

She landed a peck on his cheek. “Do you mind if we watch Cat’s show before the movie?

“I was going to suggest that myself, I’m curious about what Luthor might say.”

Cat had landed the first one-on-one interview with the new bilionaire. They walked to the living room with Elroy watching the bowl of popcorn with interest and sat on the sofa. The cat immediately jumped to her side and tried to pick one with his paw.

“No, Elroy! Have manners!” Lois scolded the animal, but he didn’t listen to her.

“Here.” Clark put the bowl on his lap and the cat glared at him, giving up on his attempt to steal the popcorn.

Lois chuckled. “I guess your plan to gain his love isn’t going too well?”

“Well, he tolerates me, so I count it as a success.”

She chuckled and snuggled against him, putting her feet under her and her head on his shoulder. Clark put one arm around her and reached for the remote to turn the tv on. It was still at the evening news program. He saw the VHS cases on top of the tv.

“Which movies did you pick for us?”

“Ah, some new releases that were in the highlight’s shelf and ‘Die Hard’...  just in case.”

He laughed and kissed her hair. Lois and her taste in movies.

“Do you remember the first movie you ever saw?* In the theater, I mean?” He asked to pass time.

“Oh, I do! It was ‘Snow White’ and I was so young that the witch scared the bejeebers out of me! As I got older, my father started taking me to things like ‘Ice Station Zebra’ and ‘The Dirty Dozen’... I guess I was doing duty as a surrogate son. Hence my present taste in movies.” She sighed and picked a handful of popcorn. “How about your first movie?”*

“Oh, I’ll never forget it! I was seven years old and the Smallville Theater was showing some classics. We had our choice of two movies one warm Saturday night. Pa wanted to see ‘Zorro’, but Ma wanted to see something else. It was up to me to cast the deciding vote… and I went for ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’.”*

“Really? Most boys would kill to see ‘Zorro’!”*

“I suppose so. I can’t even remember why I chose it, all I know is that it made a big impression on me.”*

“Well, the film’s message of justice is kind of-”* Cat’s voice cut through and they turned to look at the screen.

As the interview went on they noticed the woman was clearly flirting with the billionaire, but the man hardly took any notice. Lois tilted her head. “Maybe those rumors of Junior's womanizing were just that, Cat’s giving him her most soulful look, but… of course, he knows that he’s on tv…”*

Luthor began saying something about introducing someone important to him.

“Really, Lois, do you think- Oh my god!”* He tensed and frowned at the tv. “I don’t believe it!”

A blond young woman appeared flying on the screen, dressed in red and blue, her cape fluttering on the wind. “Ladies and gentleman, may I present… Supergirl!”* Luthor announced.

“What on Earth, Clark??”* Lois sat straight, eyes widened at the woman wearing Superman’s shield on her chest. “Do you know anything about this??”* She turned to him..

“About Supergirl, yes.” He soothed her with a caress on her upper arm. “It’s Matrix.” Lois relaxed a bit. “But as to what she’s doing there, no! She disappeared after the invasion…”

Luthor proceeded to explain from where she had come and the two looked pretty close. Too close for his liking.

“She seems… quite taken with Luthor.”* Lois pointed.

Clark felt a cold shiver down on his spine. “She lived with Ma and Pa for a while. She knows I’m Superman.”* He finally took his eyes from the screen to look at Lois. “This could be bad… This could be very bad!!” He stood, Lois was able to save the popcorn just in time and he was already flying out the door.

***

Superman groaned in frustration. “I felt like a complete idiot!! The last time I got into a fight like that I was six years old!”*

“Really?” Lois asked from the couch. “You seemed to have always been to be such a a good boy, I can’t imagine a young Clark Kent entering a fight.”

“It was before my powers developed. I got into a shoving match with Steve Davis after he called me a farm boy…”*

Heh.

“The principal finally separates us.”*

Heh-heh.

“And-”*

Heh-heh-heh.

“Lois!!”*

She was holding back her laughter and tears began to form in her eyes. “I’m sorry, but the thought of you rolling around on a playground defending your honor is just too funny!”*

Superman huffed, shacking his head vehemently. “Well, there's nothing funny about what happened today! I usually hold my temper pretty well… with my kind of power, I have to!” Lois had already stopped laughing at that point, noticing how worried he truly was. “I never should have let that argument build the way it did. It’s just that Matrix is still so innocent! She’s not at all experienced in the ways of the world. I know I came across as lecturing older brother, but I couldn’t help it!!”* He huffed again and ran his hands in his hair. “It bothers me! No, it scared me the way she hang on Luthor every word!”*

“You think that he’s taking advantage of her.” She stated.

“I don’t know what to think. I hate to let idle rumors cloud my judgment of anyone. Lex, the second, has done many admirable things, but so did Lex, the first…”* Superman put his hand on his waist and took a breath, beginning to pace around the couch again. “And the way he ordered that camera man around reminded me too much of the old Luthor! When he reassured us about the tape… I’d swear that I heard an implied threat, but maybe I'm just being paranoid.”*

“Absolutely not! If he had sincerely wanted to reassure you, he’d have destroyed the tape!”* She looked over her shoulder to face him. “I think we should keep a close eye on the young Mr. Luthor… and be there to help Matrix, if she needs us.”*

Superman’s whole face softened at her words. “Lois…”* He breathed her name, reaching for her hair. She leaned on his touch and rested her head on the back of the couch, to look at him from upside down. “You’re something special, you know that? You keep giving me reasons to be glad I asked you to marry me.”* He bent down and kissed her smile. It was definitely a different way to kiss and made something awake on her belly. “Now, how about that movie I promised you?”

“Let’s just skip it and go to bed, Clark.”

Chapter Text

The weather was finally getting warmer enough for Lois to put on the cute dress she bought thinking of one of Clark’s plaid patterns. It also flashed her legs to tempt him through the evening. He was very mysterious about what he had planned for their first dating anniversary. Lois turned the keys on the lock and opened the door to his apartment. The place was all dark with only a weak flickering yellow light coming from his rarely used dinner table. Lois walked inside, dropping her purse on the couch and saw the candles and the fancy silverware and wine cups. Her heart burst in affection for him.

“Lois.” He called from behind her and there he was, standing with a single flower in his hands, dressed in a very flattering polo and trousers. No glasses tonight.

“Mmm, you look so handsome, honey.”

He grinned, walking to her. “And you’re beautiful, I like this dress.” 

“I know you would.”

He offered her the flower, it was a simple one, no fancy ribbon or wrapping as if he had just plucked from the earth. The colors however were a mix of the whole specter, creating a rainbow pattern on the petals. “Clark, it's beautiful!” She tried to find in her brain if she recognized the species, but came out empty. 

“It’s alien.” He provided, noticing her deep concentration. “I gathered the seeds during the time I was in exile in space and grew them at the Fortress.”

She crushed her lips against his. “That's incredible, Clark! And very sweet… just like you, honey…” Lois scrunched her nose with her own sappiness and Clark chucked at her, poking the tip of her nose with his, affectionately.

“I'm surprised you allowed me to give you flowers all this time.”

She brushed her fingertips on the rainbow petals. “Well, I realized that it was not the flowers that I don't like receiving, it was the people giving them.” Clark's sunny smile lit the entire apartment. “Though I would be concerned about bringing exotic species to the Planet.” She pointed a look at him and he grinned playfully.

“I’m doing it in a controlled environment, don't worry. However… I’m thinking of creating some kind of sanctuary in the Fortress for those species I come across who don't have a place anymore… Well, that's food for some thoughts, anyway.”

“Speaking of food…?” Lois indicated the table with her head.

“Ah, yes.” He promptly reached for the chair and pulled it for her, very gallantly.. “If you please, ma’am. Dinner will be served shortly.”

Lois sat, shaking her head at him and put the flower under her nose to smell it… It smelled like popcorn!!

“Very unusual, isn't it?” He commented, noticing the exasperated look on her face.

“Very!”

Clark brought two pots from the kitchen and a small vase to put the flower in while they ate. She could feel the wonderful scent coming from the meat. He opened the bigger lid with a proud smile.

“A little bird told me you like it, so I asked Ma for her recipe.”

“Beef Bourguignon?”

“Yep, with mashed potatoes!” He lifted the other lid to show her the dish. “Nothing fancy, but I think it turned out pretty fine.”

“And told me you couldn't cook on our first date!”

“Well, I couldn't. I’d be lost without frozen entrees and my microwave back them, but again, I never really needed to eat much. I just like to. Ma gave me a couple of recipes and I’ve managed to master them, but not much more.”*

Clark took her plate and started to serve the food. Lois rested her chin on her hands and watched his actions with dreamy eyes.

“You’re so sweet, you can write, you can cook, heck, you can fly and move mountains*… I guess I’ll have to, at least, learn how to cook.”

“Uh-oh…”*

“Uh-oh??”

He thought better to not say anything anymore and served her wine instead.

“Good choice.” She smirked, reaching for her glass.

“Happy first anniversary, honey.” He said, clinking his glass with hers.

“Happy anniversary, love.” They sipped their wine and Lois stayed pensive, watching her glass. “It's hard to believe it has only been a year since we started dating. So much has happened.”

“No kidding…” He reached for her hands over the table and caressed the finger with the engagement ring. “But I’ve never been happier in my entire life. Lois, and it's because of you.”

She melted at his words. “You’re not bad yourself, you know?”

They grinned like the two silly love birds they were and then started to eat.

“Oh my god, this is absolutely delicious, Clark!”

“Why, thank you.”

She hadn’t noticed before, but he had a small pot on his side of the table, he lifted the lid and used a small spoon to pick the contents and put it on his plate.

“What do you think you're doing?”

“I know, I know, Ma’s also horrified by that, but I like it…” He reached for the pot one more time to put even more ketchup on his beef bourguignon.

Chapter Text

The loud noises and bangs coming from the neighbor's apartment awoke Clark in the middle of the night again. He sat on the bed and covered his ears to try to muffle the sounds, but it was useless, his super hearing continued picking them. The last time he interfered with a case of domestic violence, it sent him into a spiral of emotions and it ended badly. He was young and still finding his footing as Superman, but right now he felt as lost as he felt back then.

Another scream. Another bang.

Clark spun in the suit and flew through the window, he couldn't stand to be so close to someone in peril and be unable to help. He flew fast and high, feeling the cold air on the night on his face and hoping it would help him clear his mind.

He landed close to the west fence and sat on top of it to watch the sun rising in the infinite horizon of Kansas. The bright circle was almost visible when he heard footsteps behind him.

“Clark?”*

“The wheat looks great, Pa. You’ll be harvesting any day now.”*

“Son, it’s five o’clock in the morning, for you to be here… what’s wrong?”*

Superman sighed. “I guess I never could fool you, Pa.”*

Jonathan rested one hand on top of the fence by his son’s side and the other clutched the jacket around his neck and waited for Clark to open up.

“You know, if I wanted to fly up to the moon I could do it in just a couple of minutes… But as impressive as that is, they aren't that important… it is the things I can't do that tears me apart… there are some terrible injustices out there that I can't do nothing about!”*

“You accepted that long ago, Clark, even Superman has some strict limits. What's so different about this one?”*

Superman went silent again. “Remember when I first started being Superman? I was still figuring out my limits and the boundaries I could not cross.”

“Oh, Lord, how can I forget?* You almost drove yourself nuts. You never turned off, always listening to the whole world, never giving yourself time to be… a person.”

“I was young, still something of a hot head. I thought I could solve any problem in the world…”*

“I don't think I could ever call you a hot head, son.”

Superman gave him a sad smile. “I made some big mistakes back then… one of them was when I came across some guy beating his wife. Remember?”*

Pa nodded. “You thought you could stop his abusive ways by scaring the bejeebers out of him.”*

“Yes, and the results have tortured me ever since*… My interference only made things worse and the wife ended up dead.”

Pa reached for Superman’s shoulders and squeezed it in support. “It was a tough call for you to make right out of the chute like that, son… and you learned a great deal from it. Don't ever forget that.”*

“I don't know, Pa. It’s happening all over again and I don't know what to do!”* He jumped from the fence, exaltedly, turning his hands into fists. “It's happening in the apartment right next door to mine, Pa! Right next door!* And I don't know what to do!” He turned to face his father. “If all I learned was to play safe, then what good is that??”*

“Clark, you built your limits and your moral code by learning from your mistakes. You're not playing safe, you're being responsible, considerate and trying to do your best, as you always do! But you're still a person, you're not obligated to be perfect or… do it all by yourself ....”

Clark’s shoulders relaxed a bit and he gave two steps closer to father. “I guess you’re right, Pa. Seems like you keep getting smarter every year.”*

“Only because I’ve learned from all my mistakes.”* His smile was kind and knowing. “Now let’s go wake up your mother and talk her into making us a stack of flapjacks!”*

“I guess I will have to pass that this time, Pa. I want to stop by a place before it's time to clock in.” He gave his father a hug and began to hover. “Thanks, Pa and be sure to give Ma my love.”*

“Sure thing, son.”* He waved to him and Superman flew away to a dot in seconds.

***

There weren't many occasions that she saw him visibly mad. She knew something was going on just from the way he walked inside the office. He marched towards her and bent down to give her a quick peck on the lips.

“Coffee?” He asked as he always asked her.

“Yes…” But grabbed his wrist before he turned around to go to the coffee machine. For him to be this bothered, at this time in the morning, it must be something related to his… other job. “Why don't we go have this coffee elsewhere?”

He frowned at her suggestion.

“Like, at the roof?”

The Planet's globe ring had become their secret spot to discuss anything they couldn't risk being overheard. Rarely anyone came up there and it was a perfect landing and taking off platform for Superman.

“So, what happened?” She asked when they are properly hidden by the globe’s lettering.

“You know the Johnsons next door?”

“Yeah.” They were a reclusive bunch, but then, with four kids she supposed they couldn’t afford to get out that much.

He took a deep breath and let his weight lean on the P’. ’“... I can hear the husband beating his wife, Andrea, every night.”

“Clark!!”

“I noticed it for the first time when I saw her in the corridor with bruises on her face a couple of weeks ago. When I asked her about it, she dismissed it as an accident… but it's getting worse each passing day.”

“Can’t you do something about it?”

“I can't. Last time Superman interfered in something like that… I can't risk it happening again.”

“But-”

“I went to the police this morning... And I can't do anything about it as Clark Kent, as well!”

“What do you mean? You reported the abuse, didn't you??”

“I did, but I couldn’t press charges, only the person assaulted can do that!”* He waved his arms in exasperation and began pacing between the P and the L. “The law says she has the right to choose… to stay with him or to leave… to press charges or not.”* 

“But when the choice threatens her life…?”*

“I know … I don't know what to do next! My hands are tied!” He turned to look at her, eyes begging her for an answer.

 “My god… I…” She didn't know what to do next either and it broke her heart seeing him tearing inside for not being able to help.

“I don't understand!! It makes me so angry!! How can someone beat the woman he chooses to marry?? The mother of his children--” His voice got caught in his throat and he frowned, looking down to recompose himself.

Lois walked closer to him and hugged his left arm, affectionately, kissing his shoulder in support. She hated not having an answer for him.

Clark looked down at the street and swallowed. “Sometimes I wish I could just drop guys like that from thirty stories up and be done with it…”* Lois breathed his name in astonishment and not in a good way. “But, of course, I wouldn't... Isn't the right answer and it wouldn’t solve anything.” He smiled sadly at her. “Everyone has something going on and everyone deserves a second chance. That is what I learned since the first time I was confronted with a situation like that… I just get angry and I don't know what to do to help… both of them.”

Lois shook her head in good astonishment now, reached his jaw with a hand and brought him down to kiss him deeply.

***

Tap. Tap. Tap.

Lois dragged herself out of the bed and opened the curtains, the already expected S shield was hovering by her window.

“Whassap?” She asked with a dragged voice, opening the window for him to enter.

“Ready for some jogging, my love?”

“What? You're crazy…”* She huffed, turning her back to him to walk back to her bed. “It's six o'clock in the morning on Sunday!”*

“You know we had a jogging date this morning, Lois.”*

She grabbed the sheets, planning to go back inside them. “Two hours from now, Clark!”* She sat on the bed and looked back at him. “Did your alarm go off early or something?”*

Superman’s face gained a dark expression. “No, I just couldn't stand being home.”*

“Oh.”* Lois suddenly felt awake. “The Johnsons must be fighting again.”*

He gave her an apologetic tiny smile while nodding.

“Give me a minute, Clark. I will change… and so should you.”

A wind whirl in her bedroom indicated to her he had already changed back to Clark.

The city was almost deserted, only the newspaper deliveries and the other joggers could be seen on the streets. They did a full lap on Centennial Park and even stopped in the memorial cemetery, where Clark told her the story about the first domestic violence case he came across. How almost blood thirsty he had become going after the murderer husband.

“It must have - huff - been difficult for you to turn him… over to the police.”* She said, breathlessly, after a while when they were jogging back to his apartment for breakfast. They were keeping a very fast pace for a while now.

“Not after hearing that crowd at the wife’s funeral, they were verbalizing feelings I wanted to deny.* It was the right thing to do. Besides, when I turned him in, it proved to Inspector Henderson that this new Superman was on his side.”*

“Huff - you did have your - uh - share of skeptics when you first - huff - arrived.”* Lois groaned in annoyance. “Couldn't you at least - huff - pretend you're working at this??”*

“Sorry!”* Clark started to pretend to breathe heavily. “Huff - I’m beat! - huff- That any better?”* He gave her a charming and smug grin.

“Oh, go eat a chunk of kryptonite!”* She complained just half playing and they slowed down to enter his building.

They could hear the fight happening inside the apartment from the elevator.

“Oh, my god, Clark!!” Lois exclaimed, horrified. “I thought you could only hear them because of your super hearing… not like this!!”

Something slammed on the floor and a male voice started to curse.

“We have to do something!!”* 

Clark sighed and walked to his door. “No.”*

“No??”* She jerked her head to face him. “Clark Kent! If we don't get Andrea out of there he might really hurt her!”*

“I already tried to approach her and I went to the police and came up empty.”* He opened his door, sighing in defeat and walked inside. “It’s a very delicate situation, Lois.” He continued when she chose to follow him inside the apartment. “I’ve told you what happened when I intervened in the heat of the moment, we can't become involved until they allow us to.”

Lois shut the door, still unsure and paying attention to the noise coming from their door. “Well, you can at least check on them with your x-ray vision and make sure they’re okay?”*

“I’m pretty sure they’re not okay, Lois, but that is another boundary of privacy I-”

CRASSSH

“That was glass, wasn't it?” They looked with haunted eyes at each other. 

WAPP and TUD

“That does it!”* Lois ripped the door open and stormed out of the apartment. 

“Lois, wait! The man’s sounding even more out of control than usual, he can hurt you!”*

“Not with you here! Someone has to stop this lunatic!”*

BAM BAM

Lois slammed the neighbor’s door so hard it hurt her hand, but it was necessary to be heard above the fight going on inside. “Gary Johnson! You open this door right now or I’m calling the police!!”* Lois shouted and a few seconds later the door opened just a bit.

“Leave us alone!”* A gruff voice came from inside. “This is none of your business!”*

His face was contorted with anger.

“Please…”* A weak hoarse feminine voice came from below. “Call the police…”* The man grabbed her by the sleeve of her dress and dragged her inside again, shutting the door on their faces.

Clark put himself in front of her. “Stand back, Lois!”*

“I won't let you stop me, Clark”*

“Relax!” He then took some distance and kicked the door, almost pulverizing the thing.

The scene inside was of a horror movie, the whole apartment was torn apart, furniture turned over and broken, spots of blood around the place and their four terrified kids inside of a closet watching everything. Lois' blood boiled.

“What the heck?”* The man let go of his wife and she fell on the floor.

Clark put himself between the man and the kids, to protect them from watching something even more terrible, if that was even possible. “Look, I don't want any trouble with you Johnson, but if you hit her again…”*

Lois on the other hand marched directly at him, she wanted to knock the man cold, but they needed to get Andrea and the kids to safety.

“You’re sick, mister!! I suggest you start walking and don't come back!!”* Lois pointed a finger at him and the man’s face contorted again.

“I’m not going anywhere!”* He closed his right hand in a fist and changed to an attack posture. “You, on the other han-”*

“Don't…” Clark practically growled, grabbing his hand over the man’s shoulder, stopping his movement intended to hit Lois. "... Even… think about that!”*

The man forced his wrist out of Clark’s grasp and made a motion to charge against the two women again, but Clark put himself between them and the altered male.

“I- I want you to leave, Gary… now.”* The woman's weak voice came from the floor again. “For the love of god, you have to leave… and stop this insanity before it’s too late for all of us!”*

The man turned his hand in fists again with intention to fight past Clark, but stopped when saw the usually mild mannered man crossing his arms and look twice the size he normally was.

“She said ‘leave’!”* His voice was the familiar commanding voice of Superman. “Go cool off. Permanently.”*

The man scowled at Clark, but retreated with a displeased grunt and left the apartment.

Lois kneeled by Andrea’s side and held her as she started sobbing. “It's... it's over. My marriage… everything…”*

“You're better off now, Andrea, really.”* She tried to comfort the woman, making sure not to touch her face, she was severely bruised with new and old injuries. She could barely open one of her eyes.

“But I didn't want it like this! I know you won't understand this… but I think I still love him!”* Her sobbing turned into a terrible cry. “Oh, I’m so embarrassed!”

Lois rubbed her back and watched the woman staring to break down in front of her. “Clark, can you leave us alone?”*

“Of course.” He adjusted his glasses and left from the torn door.

Lois turned her attention back to Andrea and she began to calm down when noticed no more men were in the apartment. She looked at her children still tucked away inside the closet, in silence and terrified. She gave a painful sigh.

“I know I had to end this cycle of violence… but what will I do with my life? How will I care for the kids?”*

“You will find a way. Andrea. I’m sure of it.”*

“That's for a working girl like you to say. I don't have any skills or means of support…”*

“No matter what happens, you and the children will be better off without Gary!”*

“I don't know. Maybe he will change… maybe-”

“No. Andrea, that is not how a healthy relationship goes. You have to take some steps on your own.”* Lois stood and grabbed a notepad she saw on the kitchen counter top. “This is the phone number for a women’s shelter I did a column on several months ago.”* She offered a hand for the woman to stand and gave her the paper on both of her hands. “You're a very courageous woman, Andrea, but don't be so courageous that you won’t ask for help.”*

Her eyes watered again and Andrea hugged Lois tightly, sobbing again. “I feel so ashamed and embarrassed admitting to anyone…”*

“They won't pass judgment. Call them, okay?”*

“I’ll… think about it…”*

Lois broke the embrace, but continued to hold her by the shoulders, she seemed so frail. “The more important thing now is to think about you and your kids, okay? It will also be a good idea to have your injuries checked, will you do that? I can call an ambulance or a doctor if you want it? I can stay or I can go, whatever you want.”

“Thank you, Miss Lane… I… I will be fine.”

“‘Kay, I’ll stay at Clark’s apartment for a while, so feel free to knock over there if you need anything… and please, call them.” She pointed to the paper on her hand, before leaving through the door frame, as well.

***

Superman flew through the window and saw Lois sitting on the couch, watching pensively her engagement ring. The whoosh sound made her look at him.

“Did you follow Gary Johnson?” She asked as soon as he touched the floor.

“Yeah, I expected trouble, but… didn’t expected suicide.”*

“What??”

“He didn't do it. I got there in time.” He kneeled in front of her and held her hands in his. “He said he had this issue with anger and hated himself for it. He tried to stop and when he could’t, it only made him angrier and hate himself even more. The cycle escalated so much, he couldn't find a way out anymore… He asked for help. I dropped him off at a counseling institute, they can help him in a much better way than I can.”

Lois nodded. “I did something similar for Andrea, remember that story about the women’s shelter?”

“Good call.”

“I just hope she actually makes it… I understand now what you’re talking about limits and boundaries, there's only so much we can do… This was, of course, an extreme case, but I can see how hard it can be to know whether we have the right to interfere or not.”

“Superman has it even harder.”

“And I do know why this got to you so deeply, beyond your previous bad experience… I know you were thinking of me the whole time, Clark.” She laced her fingers with his.

“Lois-” She put a finger over his lips.

“I know you would never hurt me, hell, you’re the strongest person on the planet and I know you would never want to hurt anyone .”

“That is one of my biggest fears, Lois, to hurt people around me. To lose control and hurt people, even not wanting to. Especially you.”

“You won't, honey.” She could still see the doubt still lingering behind his eyes so she tried to kiss it away.

***

Underground somewhere, a green covered fist hit a metallic wall.

Chapter Text

He watched the space plane hit the jet fighter and they both engulfed in a ball of flame, debris falling in Hobbs Bay, all the people around him also watched with horror in their eyes. He felt the tug of fate pushing him to action, but he didn't answer. The fear of being seen, of being discovered, left him paralyzed and glued to the ground.

Metropolis’ anniversary will be forever remembered as the day that the Constitution crashed on the outskirts of Metropolis, killing everyone onboard. Among the dead was the star reporter of the Daily Planet, Lois Lane.*

Clark sat on a bench in Centennial Park, reading the story Perry White had written, the first one in 17 years, about the disaster and the tragic loss of their star reporter. He vowed from that day on to devote his powers to preventing tragedies such as this.

No!

He looked around the people walking past him. Something was odd. Something weighed really heavy on his chest, it was almost unbearable.

No, that’s all wrong!!

“I saved those planes!!”* He shouted and the park transformed into deep space. “No one died!”* He opened his eyes, he felt his back against a hard surface. “Especially not Lois!!”

“No, it didn't happen that way… but it could have.”* An ethereal voice came from apparently everywhere and nowhere at the same time.

Clark struggled to get to his feet in the asteroid he awoke on top of. He noticed his suit was no longer shattered and his injuries were all cured. “Where in blazes am I?” He looked around, the place seemed like space, but it was a bit too crowded with rocks and planets and weird lights to be real. “Am I hallucinating?”*

“Perhaps. Then again, perhaps not.”* There was that voice again.

“Who said that?”*

“I did.”* The voice answered simply.

Okay, he needed to think. The last thing he remembered was being trapped in some kind of odd dimension fighting Blaze with the help of her brother Satanus. The battle between the demons siblings had brought part of Metropolis downtown through the portal with him, including Lois, Jimmy and Perry and the Newstime whole building. He was hit by Satanus ray of arcane forces they had used to defeat Blaze and that was that. Clark just hoped Lois and the others were all right.

Clark noticed he was actually breathing so the place wasn't really deep space, after all. He jumped to give the place a fly over, but realized only too late that he had no powers and was falling directly in the direction of another asteroid. He collided with his face and chest on the rock and felt the air, or whatever he was breathing, being knocked out of his lungs. He quickly grabbed the rock to avoid falling again.

“I advise you to remain in one place, to avoid injury.”* The voice again.

“Is that a threat? Show yourself to me!”*

“I’m all around you.”*

Superman climbed the rock to be able to stand and searched for the voice’s origin, but his telescopic vision was still screwy, just like in that other dimension. A terrible thought crossed his mind and fear flooded him. Maybe Blaze and Satanus were still toying with him. In their battle to gain more influence in the human world, he couldn't be sure they had not tainted every decision he ever made. Foswell was manipulated by Blaze for months. He didn't like to think about it, but after witnessing the powers of the two demons. He was affected by magic like everybody else. There was a force controlling his choices?

“Not controlling..”* The voice started. “But instead guiding your choices.”*

“This is crazy, show yourself!”*

“You require a physical presence to converse with?”* A rock with a female face appeared next to his foot.

Superman bent down to examine it. “What… who?”*

“I am all that is around you. Call me fate… destiny… Kismet.”* One of the planets floating around also gained the same feminine face. “Do you prefer this?”*

Superman frowned. “Uhh… okay… are you trapped in this place like me?”* He asked.

“Do you not comprehend?”* An image of a gigantic transparent greenish head with long hair appeared surrounding him. “I am this place.”*

“Oh…” Great, again he got himself tangled with forces way above his league.

“Let me enlighten you as to my position in the way of things… The Lords of Order and the Lords of Chaos are universal forces, locked in constant struggle for control… Good against evil… light against dark… There exist agents in each cause, some of them  known to you.”*

“Doctor Fate? The Spectre? The Phantom Stranger?”* Superman asked after thinking for a moment.

The huge head nodded. “Kismet exists between dark and light, illuminating the pathways to both. The choice belongs to those at the crossroads. Do you grasp this concept?”*

“I… think I do…”* The asteroid he was standing now had Kismet face on it. “But every choice is not clearly marked as black and white. There are shades of gray everywhere. Good can come from a bad choice and bad can come from a good choice.”*

“I do not judge… I merely offer the choice.”*

“I’ve devoted my abilities to the cause of good, Kismet. I have a hard time reconciling that I’ve been used by the likes of demons.”* He had chosen the lesser of two evils to defeat Blaze, aligning himself with Satanus. But evil was still evil, lesser, greater, middling***… Was that also just manipulation? Or was it the right choice? “I was taught by my adoptive parents since childhood what was decent and what was fair. That is where much of my concepts of right and wrong were formed… those concepts are shaken every encounter I have with a so-called greater being.* Every impossible choice I have to make.”

“Do you question the path you chose or the effort expended to stay true to your path?”*

Superman pinched his eyes closed, finally looking inside that terrible spot of fear ever present he had inside him. “Both.”* 

His mind spun around the images of a devastated world engulfed him.

“No one event challenged your beliefs like that which occurred on that alternate earth.”*

He felt the pain of a fist meeting his cheek and saw Quex-Ul charging against him.

“The entire planet was devastated by three superhuman beings and the task of stopping them fell to you…”*

Superman saw the container with kryptonite and flew towards it, opened the can and the three Kryptonians began to surround in front of him, they begged for their lives in agony. Calling him a murderer. Zod was right, he couldn't do it. Superman closed the lid and disposed of the kryptonite. His back ached with the heat, soon after it was his chest that was attacked with their heat vision. Zod grabbed him by the neck and began to strangle him between laughter and he could hear, when his mind started to go foggy, his lieutenants urging their commander to find another world to destroy.

“That’s not how it went down, Kismet!”* He was back at the odd deep space. “I was decisive at that moment. I did what had to be done and, thanks to a lot of soul-searching, I’ve learned to live with my decision. With every foe I’ve faced since then, I am reminded of my vow to preserve life, not take it.”*

“You still have confusion inside you.”

“Of course, it isn't something I will ever resolve… Was I wrong to kill those villains? Was I right for the wrong reasons or wrong for the right reasons? Either way… I tried to grow from the experience.”*

“It is as I have tried to impart to you… you are never the only force present in any given situation.”*

“Look, I’m not stupid, I’ve heard you message!”* He glared at the other asteroid who had her face now.

“Have you?”*

“I’m sick of this soul-search, Kismet! Let me go, I need to know if my friends and loved ones are fine! Let me rejoin them!”*

“You cried out for help and there's much more to be done… many significant events left to review…”

Clark felt his stomach turning inside him. “No! No more!”*

A white hand surrounded him. “You pondered ‘What might have been’ and I am obliged to show you... Witness a time during your adolescence in your hometown of Smallville…”

His mind spun around again and he was holding a beer in his hand, Scott offered them a drive home, but their school colleague was way too drunk with hard liquor. Clark offered to drive, he just laughed saying no one, but he drove his mustang. In the back of his head he knew none of them should be behind the wheel, however he followed Lana and Pete outside, he didn't want to appear a chicken with his upperclassmen. The blizzard was just terrible and his chest tightened, he knew it was the wrong thing to do. So he swallowed hard and ran inside the house to call his parents to pick them up. He knew he was up to some scolding for drinking alcohol.

Years later. Scott was drafted in the NFL.

“Perhaps he would have taken the same risk on another day, with worse consequences.”* Said Kismet and his mind was back. “You and your friends could have done the same without the accident as a lesson to you.”*

“Ma and Pa really drilled me on responsibility after the crash and their lecture stuck with me!”*

“Would their words have the same weight without Scott Brubakers tragic example?”*

Superman went silent, he knew it wouldn't.

“At that time, before you became who you are, you were but one force among many… Now, your everyday existence influences the choice of the masses… I sense a deep fear inside you.”* 

“Well, it bugs me, someone manipulates me and, in essence, they manipulate everyone I interact with!”*

“Your concern is for those close to you?”*

“You bet it is! The thing is, as Superman, I have to be concerned over everyone equally… but in my private life, my friends and family are the most important to me! My folks, of course, have always known about my life as Superman… but recently I brought someone new into this circle… What if my decision wasn't entirely my own… what if- She's vulnerable to retribution from any of my enemies… I hate to think of the consequences, Kismet.”*

“You deal with ‘what ifs’ right now… Let's dive into your worries and fears for the future then.”

“No! Please!” His heartbeat rate fired, he didn't want to look at it so closely. “Stop!”

His mind spun again and he felt the burning of magic flames all around him, Lois hang from Blazes vines, her body bruised, clothes ruined and her face contorted in pain, his parents ran from a horde of demons, their bodies weren't so agile anymore with the age and it was very unlikely they would be able to escape. He wanted to fly there and help them, but he was stuck in the magic flame, he couldn't move, just watch the most important people in his life suffer.

“Stop!!”

“These scenarios need not come to pass.”

His mind spun and he saw Lois howling in pain in a hospital bed, clutching her pregnant belly while a pool of blood formed between her legs.

“Please, stop…” He whispered, begging.

“Even if none of your enemies take action, you fear the one you love faces risks normal wives never would, just because you are who you are.”

“That's enough, please.”

“Very well… you have the strength to move mountains and yet you are still but a man… sharing many of the frailties of whom you seek to protect. Let me play out one final tableau in the future.”*

“Please… I’ve seen enough!” His whole body trembled now by facing his most deep fears. He knew which one the last one would be.

“Imagine a day when you’d mastered those human frailties, leaving only the cool logic of your Kryptonian heritage…”

“No…” His mind spun out of his control and he grabbed Flash by the throat, Marvel using all of his herculean strength to hold his arm from smashing the speedster’s cranium with his fist. On the ground, he could see Diana, Bruce, Supergirl and Green Lantern bleeding on the ground, no heartbeat could be heard from them. But it was necessary since their ways hadn't been effective before. He took over the United Nations and institutionalized kryptonian law and costumes to the whole world. He destroyed all the weapons on the planet, he pursued crime and corruption with an iron fist, he rebuilt the crumbling infrastructure with Kryptonian technology. With Lois at his side, he would right all the wrongs in the world. The people called him a fascist.

“That could never happen, Kismet!”* He forced his way back to her.

“All things are possible. Probability is not mine to ponder.”*

He held his head in his hands trying to keep the images from returning.

“You worry you will lose control someday. You will lose contact with humanity.”

“I won’t allow that to happen!”

“You are correct. The answer is not me… The answer is in you. It always has been.”* Kismet returned to the giant ethereal head. “You doubted your decisions, fearing some omnipotent being was influencing them, both forces are always present, do not forget it. It is up to you to make the choice and, as long you're aware of your fears and your path, I know you will make the correct one.”

Superman stopped trembling and he lowered his arms. The panic he felt building inside his chest subdued and his breathing slowly returned to normal. 

“Look…”* He regained his posture, his voice was firm and decisive once again. “This has been… interesting, to say the least, but I’m not entirely sure you and all of this isn't just a dream or hallucination? Or maybe I’m really just back home, in bed, having a nightmare?”*

“Or are you floating unconscious in deep space, in the throes of oxygen deprivation?”* Kismet provided and he wasn't sure he heard humor in the voice. “Perhaps it is imperative that we finish?”*

“Yes, send me back!”

His mind spun once more and he was floating above the Newstime building, there were police barricades around it, but the rest it seemed all in place, but how did he know it wasn't just another of Kismet visions?

He landed close to Supergirl and Maggie Sawyer to get some information about the situation.

“Superman!!” Supergirl exclaimed, seeing him touching the ground. “You’re back! Are you all right?? When you didn't return with the others…”*

“It’s okay, Supergirl, I’m just a little sore, that’s all, but… what are you doing here?”*

“The li’l lady gave us a big hand, Superman. Trying to bust through those force-shields or whatever they were that’s latched onto the building….” Turpin answered and continued talking, but his attention was caught by a brunette head with the paramedics.

“Captain Sawyer, can I give you my report later?”* He asked the blond police woman, who was giving orders around.

“Sure, Superman, we have things under control!”*

He nodded in acknowledgment to the other around him and took off.

Lois had just finished having her injured shoulder wrapped up and heard his voice calling her.

“Lois!”* He appeared from behind the police barricade, limping a bit in his left foot and waving at her. “Lois, are you all right?!”*

“Clark!!”* She jumped on her feet and ran towards him, throwing her arms around his neck and burying her face on his neck.

“When I hear about the trouble here… I’ve been so worried about you!”* He hugged her as thigh as he allowed himself to.

“I was worried about you too, babe… but everything’s okay now*… the fight-?”

“Not now, honey, Jimmy is coming this way.” He whispered in her ear and breathed her scent to convince himself he was really back home.

***

Pointy bones grew from its knuckles, ripped the green gloves and scratched the metal surface.

Chapter Text

“Hurry, Clark! It's almost 7:30!”*

He appeared dressed up and groomed in front of her.

“Grab your purse, Lois, can I help if it takes me 12 seconds to shave, shower and dress?”*

“Explain that to Pete and Lana! They are the ones waiting at the restaurant!”* She shot back, opening the door to leave his apartment. He had jumped heads-on into who-knows-what through another portal of light somewhen in the afternoon and had only returned, well, 15 seconds ago. “Are you sure you’re not just looking for an excuse to avoid them?”*

Clark pressed the elevator button and sighed. “I can't say I’m overjoyed about this. Dinners with ex-girlfriends and their fiancées never go well.”*

The door opened and Gary Johnson came from inside.

“Hello, Kent, Lane.”* He greeted them curtly.

“How’s it going, Gary?”*

“Heard from Andrea or the kids lately?”*

“Look, I’m getting counseling. I’m trying to work out my problems. It’s my business. Not yours.”* And left without any more words.

“It seems your wife-beating neighbor is as irritating as ever.”*

“As long as he's not violent anymore.” He held the door for Lois to enter the car and let out a sigh. It was an omen. The night could only get worse.

He then noticed Lois messing with her hand bag by his side.

“What’re you fishin’ around in your bag for? You forgot something?”*

“Ah, no… money… to give Charlie, y’ know, the guy who panhandles around here.”*

“Uhm… come to think… It has been a while since I saw him.”

“Really?” The door opened with a ping. “I hope he’s all right.”

“He’s probably fine.”* Clark put his arms around her shoulder and they exited the elevator together. They walked to the sidewalk to wait for their taxi. The night was pleasant, not too hot anymore. “You know “* He looked around the street, she could see the faint glow of his irises when he used his x-ray vision. “There seems to be a lot fewer homeless people around lately.”*

“Well, Cerberus is gone, Luthorcorp is back in shape, maybe the economy’s picking up…”*

“Maybe…”*

***

They met the other couple already seated at the table.

“Sorry, we’re late, but Clark was on deadline!”*

The woman hugged and the men clasped their backs amicably.

“I’m sure as a former US Senator Pete has seen more than his share of late emergencies.”* Lana dismissed Lois’ apologies with a smile and returned to her chair, as Pete did. Clark pulled the chair for Lois to sit before sitting himself and the table fell into a few moments of silence.

 “I simply adore your evening dress, Lois!”*

“Why, thank you, Lana!”* The awkward tension was obvious in the air and Clark hated every second of it.

“Isn't this something?”* Pete started animatedly, surely trying to get the awkwardness away from the table. “Who ever would have dreamed that three young kids from Smallville would wind up where we are today?”*

The other two Smallville kids agreed, nodding and humming.

“That whole Sons of Liberty must have been awful, Lana.”* Lois turned to the blond woman.

“Well, thanks to Superman things turned out for the best.”* Lois smiled at her words and took a sip of her wine, to slip a glance at Clark. He still had that sour look on his face. She knew he had talked to Lana after rescuing her a couple of weeks ago, but he clearly still hasn't got over their engagement.

“Well, it certainly has been a rough few months. The Sons kidnaped Lana and forced me to do things… that will prevent me from running for anything for a long while…”* Pete smiled completely smitten towards Lana and pulled her closer with his arms around her shoulders. “Thank goodness I've got Lana to help me through…”* Lana rested her head on his shoulder and smiled back. “She and a house full of kids are all I need to be happy.”*

Lois could feel Clark tensing by her side.

“How about you two?”* Pete turned his attention back to the other couple. “Planning to have little ones once you tie the knot?”*

Clark froze in a forced smile, but his hand over the table turned into a fist. Lois covered his hand with hers and forced a smile herself.

“Well…” Lois had to say after an uncomfortable amount of time of awkward smiling. “Clark?”*

“Grampa!! No!!”*

The commotion came from the neighbor table, the old man had just collapsed. Clark finally broke off of his paralyzing spell and stood to help the man. In the middle of changing into the suit he noticed the time had stopped around him.

***

They returned from the dinner earlier than planned, the old man's heart attack took all their will to stay there. Not that they were complaining, Clark was extremely uncomfortable the whole time. Lois also noticed he had a very dark resignation semblance when the doctors tried the reanimation, as if he knew there was no chance. Perhaps he knew.

Clark took his jacket off and put it in the back of a dining table chair, took his glasses off too and pressed the bridge of his nose.

"Clark?" She stopped to look at him, halfway taking off her earrings.

"Just a headache, Lois."

"You don't have headaches, Clark… not unless it's something really bad."

"Uhm, yeah. I had another trip on the time-string at the restaurant."

"I knew something had happened. It was something to do with that old man, wasn't it?"

Clark then gave her a fond tiny smile. "I can't hide anything from you anymore, can I, my Lady?"

"I sure hope not." She wrapped his waist on her arms and rested her head on his chest. "You froze when Pete asked about children…" He stiffed under her touch. "You're still worrying about it."

He deflated and sighed. "I am, Lois… I can't avoid it, but I'm not letting it get in the way of our relationship. We will handle it when it comes to it."

"Exactly… Now, come here." She reached for his mouth and kissed him, deeply and passionately.

***

The bone protuberances finally ripped through the metallic confinements.

Chapter Text

The sun was barely up and the cold morning air of the coming autumn was in complete disagreement with the clothes she chose to wear. The spaghetti strap top definitely wasn't something she would wear to work, it was her silent protest that this was supposed to be her day off.

Lois watched Clark putting another microfilm in the machine and sighed. Some epiphany hit him during morning patrol and he dragged her with him down to records to find whatever was nagging him.

"You know Clark, you asked me for help, you should let me help you."

"Just a moment, I know it must be here somewhere."

Lois whimpered and yawned. "I hope one day they finish updating the records to the system, then we can do research without having to leave the bed… Especially on days off."

Clark chuckled. "Sorry, I appreciate that you came here with me."

"Well…" Lois rested her head half on the nape of his neck and half on his shoulders. "The most appealing part about staying in bed today was you being there with me, so…" She could feel him smiling and smiled too. It was almost comfortable and his warmth and scent only made her more sleepy.

She must have dozed off because she was kind of startled when heard him calling her name.

"Did you find it?"

"Uhm, take a look."

"Good, then we can go back home, because as comfy as you are as a pillow, I prefer to do it horizontally rather than vertically."

He snorted when she leaned over his shoulder to read the old newspaper. Not even halfway through the first paragraph, she felt warm lips touching her exposed neck. He ran his mouth up and down, nibbling here and there between her jaw and collarbone. She may have moaned at some point.

"I've been a bad influence on you."

His smile turned the small bites into mouthful kisses and she completely forgot what she was reading.

"Mm… Yes, you're corrupting Superman."

He said that nuzzling the strap of her top off of her shoulder. That was the last drop. She rounded the chair and sat on his lap.

"Half the people think I do it anyway." She shrugged and attacked his mouth.

Only the small stripes of light passing through the closed shutters illuminating them ever knew of their slip.

***

The boned fist found its way across the thick metallic wall.

Chapter Text

“You know Superman’s interference can ruin the whole story, right?” She argued when they were safely inside her apartment.

“I had no idea you had inside people there, Lois! The only thing I saw was you tied up, a guy with a gun and monsters all around you! I had to act based on what I had!”

“I thought you would recognize Charlie?! He has been my informant on the action of the underworlders for weeks! He’s the one who warned me about the rebel cell trying to start a war with the surface!”

“I didn't know that, Lois. I’m sorry I worry about you!” He groaned in frustration.

“Oh, don't start, Clark!” Lois groaned back, equally frustrated.

“Lois…” He breathed her name, in a tired voice. “... you  could  have told me about it…”

“Charlie asked me to contact you only when the time was right, he didn't want to blow his position with the underworlders… Well, now it's gone anyway, but he will still keep his ears and eyes open for us down there.” She then looked at her ruined and sewage dirty clothes. “I need a shower.” And stormed inside the bedroom.

Clark groaned in frustration looking at the ceiling.

He felt Lois' small hands hugging him from behind when he was cooking them dinner and her face resting in the middle of his back.

"I'm sorry, I know you worry about me. Thanks for always keeping an eye or an ear on me."

"I'm sorry for barging in like that, I could've paid more attention. You know I'd never interfere with your stories."

She nodded and hugged him tighter.

***

Lois awoke with a scare, her heartbeat skyrocketing in her throat, and her body was covered in a cold sweat. Clark stirred at her side and as an instinct, brought her closer, holding her in his arms to calm her. She nudged her face on his neck and breathed in his scent and warmth. She wasn't sure if she had had a nightmare, but she felt a terrible pinch on her chest. Their fight the night before about Clark’s overprotectiveness and Superman’s interference in her story was still bothering her that much?

She peeked at her alarm clock, it was not too early to get up already. She tried not to wake him, it was rare for him to get free mornings like that, normally he was already flying and about by now. She walked to the ensuite bathroom to freshen up and came back to find him, sitting on the bed, with his back leaning against the headboard, arms crossed behind his head, and the blankets loosely laying very low around his hips, that she knew it was naked underneath it. A small gap in the curtain projected a bright light over him that made his presence almost ethereal. He watched her silently. Her heart sped up again.

"Looking good, Kent."

He opened a lazy smile. "Morning, gorgeous."

She smirked and let the towel around her fall on the floor, to put on some underwear under his heated gaze. They had made up the night before and had a very good lovemaking section after it, but she could still feel something in the air, a tension, she just didn't know exactly what it was. Lois only looked at him again when she was mostly ready, green dress, heels, and make-up in place. Maybe it was just the remnants of the previous night’s emotions. 

"If you continue to look at me like that, we won't be going to work any time soon."

It was his time to smirk. "Did I mention I have super speed?"

"Oh, but  I  don't."

The playfulness of their words wasn't enough to clear the weight she felt on her chest. She opened the other door of her wardrobe and chose a dark green blazer to put on top of her dress.

"And you have an early appointment with GBS today, shouldn't you start superspeed your butt of steel to finish morning patrol in time for it?"

He shrugged. "I just feel like I should enjoy the morning with you today." His smiling face faltered a bit. " But you're right, I should start moving."

"You should." She walked to his side of the bed and picked up her wristwatch. "Meet you for lunch?"

"If no apocalypse falls to Earth."

She froze with the pang on her chest again but forced herself to ignore it. If he noticed, he didn't say anything. Lois bent over and gave him a quick peck on the lips. "Love you."

He smiled. "And I love you."

She turned to leave her bedroom, but something made her stop when she was passing through the door frame. Her heart squeezed and she looked at him on the bed again. He raised an eyebrow in question.

Lois then crawled into bed with him and kissed his mouth almost violently, smearing his face with her lipstick.

"What was that?" Clark asked against her lips when she had to stop for air.

"Not sure…" She admitted but left the bed cleaning the lipstick smear from her mouth. "Just…" She grimaced. "Just be careful today."

"I'm always careful."

"No, you're not." She normally said that playfully, but not now.

She left her apartment feeling something really wrong was about to happen.

***

Lois sat at her desk, half distracted and half very concentrated on a portion of the ceiling, she didn't even notice when Allie called her with the research material she had asked for. She suddenly felt a shiver through her body, she looked at her arm and all the hairs on her arm were up.

"Miss Lane? Are you feeling alright?"

"Uh, sorry, I was… I don't know…" She ran one hand on her forehead, she was feeling almost feverish. "I might be getting down with something."

"It's this time of the year, the change of temperature."

"Uh-huh." Lois agreed, but she knew it wasn't that. She hadn't heard from Clark since morning, she normally gave him a dozen hours, even a day, before getting worried, but she knew something was wrong today.

"Lois!!" Came the bark from the Chief's office. "There's a monster tearing down Ohio, get Olsen and head to the chopper!"

She felt suffocating.

Lois stopped stepping inside the helicopter and had to grab the fuselage to balance.

"Lois?" Jimmy called, already set with his camera in his hands.

She could barely talk, as she was having difficulties breathing.

"Something is wrong, Jimmy, something is really wrong."

Chapter Text

Half of the Justice League was down, and half of the town’s suburb was destroyed. Dozens of people were dead already. He should have come earlier, he should have listened earlier. He was feeling weird all morning. He was distracted during the interview, like something was out of place. Lois also acted a bit oddly this morning. He flew there as fast as he could, but whatever was causing the mayhem was also very fast, the path of destruction was immense and devastating. Superman saw the being in a green suit and hood punching Ice and throwing her across a house. Gold Buster was hovering around and only the League’s heavy lifters had remained, beaten and bruised. He landed in front of the creature and it landed a big punch on his stomach, but it didn't make much of anything. The creature looked confused through the material covering his face and charged again against Superman, this time with his foot. The kick hurt, took the air from his lungs, and threw him across two houses and four threes in the suburban neighborhood setting. Before Superman could recover himself, the creature attacked Gold Buster and destroyed another house. At this point the chaos was complete at the place, families trying to pass through the fight in their cars, or abandoning them to flee on foot, children cried and adults too. The remaining members were able to regroup and planned a conjunct attack with all their powers. But to no avail, Buster and Bloodwynd got beaten down, Guy’s ring ran out and Fire lost control of her magic. Superman saw, between the flames surrounding them, the creature jumped into the air to continue his killing spree elsewhere, Superman flew after him with the only thought of stopping the creature, but he heard the cries of despair and fear coming from the inferno on the ground.

***

He barely had time to think, Maxima had rejoined the fight and they had managed to stop the creature's advances, which was now clearly heading to Metropolis. With another super-powerful alien on the front line, the destruction of the combat escalated tenfold, with Superman bouncing around between facing the monster and rescuing the people caught in the crossfire. He learned that the military had already been defeated way before the League got involved and the monster seemed to target anything that moved. No apparent objective insight besides going forward and destroying and killing everything in his way.

Walls were destroyed, and cars were thrown around. The town’s water system broke and the smashed electric lines met. Explosions and fire everywhere.

***

Guardian joined the fight and they continued to pursue the creature, running at full speed already on the outskirts of Metropolis. Superman got smashed through a Lex-mart, the creature's bone protuberances ripped his suit and flesh and he could feel the pain increasing with each passing blow.

He managed a few seconds to breathe, Guardian was down, and heard the sound of helicopters getting close to his location. That wasn't good, they were like annoying flies to the creature and he would definitely try to smash them too. As it had done to the last two that tried to get closer.

His heart almost stopped beating when he recognized one of them. It was the Daily Planet’s flying newsroom and… Good Lord! Lois and Jimmy were on board!! He hoped Ned kept his distance!!*

***

They saw the smoke and the fire in the distance, they had the other news channels tuned up to know where the fight was happening. Lois was feeling sick, she had a hole in her stomach and the shivers didn't stop. She had never had a reaction like that to any of Clark’s challenges so far. She pressed the button to the radio connected to the Planet's downtown newsroom and continued to dictate her story.

His red cape was already visible and so was the huge creature who he was fighting against. Her heart almost stopped when they got close enough to see Superman kneeling and suffering to parry a blow from that bonny and gray-skinned creature.

“Wow! He’s a big one!!”* Jimmy exclaimed, half terrified and half in awe, behind his camera lens.

Yes, very big. She just hoped Clark was being careful!*

“We can't get closer, Miss Lane, it's too dangerous!” Ned told her, keeping the controllers steady and the helicopters hovering above the battle. The GBS helicopter floated just beside them and their camera crew began transmitting it live on tv.

Lois pressed the button again to resume the dictation. “... The Midvale Lex-mart stood in ruins as Superman struggled with his mysterious… Doomsday creature. End of paragraph.”* They jumped out of their sight again and when the helicopters caught up with them, Superman was being whacked by a van and crashed into the window of a restaurant. Lois took a deep breath and pressed the button again. “Their battle raged across the rear lot of a fast-food restaurant, where- Oh my god!!”* The monster gave him a good punch on the floor and Superman seemed to have lost consciousness for a few seconds. Seconds Lois stopped breathing. “Uh… where, uh… D-Doomsday hurled a parked bus at the Man of Steel… knocking him through the side of the building*… and, uh, punched him to the ground.”

The creature jumped away again and Superman didn't lose time flying after him. When they met again, it was him that was punching the creature. But Lois didn't feel reassured, actually it got her even worried. She had never seen him like that.

“Geez!”* Jimmy breathed by her side. “Superman must’ve gotten a second wind or something! I’ve never seen him fight so hard!”*

“N-neither have I, Jimmy…”* Lois perched herself almost outside the cockpit to see the fight. “Next paragraph… taking advantage of the creature's momentary distraction, Superman redoubled his efforts*, grabbing him and spinning him around to throw the creature as far as he could from Metropolis. It crashed into the hills.”

***

He had never used his powers unrestrained like that, he could feel his whole body trembling with the energy passing through him. He put all of his muscles to work, punching him up, towards the stratosphere. He couldn't keep him away from the city for too long, perhaps if he took the fight to deep space he would be able to avoid an even greater disaster. When the monster seemed to try to strike back, Superman summoned all the energy he could behind his eyes, he felt his skin burning from the inside, and the release of heat burnt as it had never done before. The creature received it in full and Superman was able to pass through the lower atmosphere. Maybe he could freeze the creature, his breath didn't hold him for much longer, but perhaps combined with the vacuum… He felt a blow to his head and he got a bit dizzy. Another blow and he felt his body being dragged down again. The third blow awoke him, but they were already falling back to the ground in a ball of flame.**

The impact on the ground destroyed a couple of downtown blocks and shook the entire city. 

The combatants raised from the crater, Superman wobbled a bit and his caped was in flames, Doomsday seemed to be trying to figure something out, looking at his hands. The green suit that once covered him was now entirely destroyed and a hard gray skin covered and white pointy bones could be seen, his red eyes widened and his mouth finally opened. But the sound that left it was a terrifying thunder and it was angry. The creature charged against Superman again and their fists met halfway, making the crater they were in getting even deeper.

***

The couple sat on the edge of the couch, holding each other as tightly and closely as they could while watching their son face the most terrible creature the planet had ever seen.

***

She didn't want to believe it, she wished she was hallucinating or having a really bad nightmare, but she couldn't deny what she was seeing: Doomsday was getting faster, was getting stronger. She continued to narrate what was happening as if she had her body possessed by another entity, her whole body trembled and the cold sweat running on her back only emphasized the sick feeling she was having.

Supergirl was defeated with a single blow and Team-Luthor and Metropolis Special Forces Unit only gave him a few seconds of respite.

Doomsday grabbed him by the thigh and plucked his body out of the pavement, he flicked him in the air as if it was nothing and threw Superman in their direction. Lois took a while to realize he was actually unconscious again and wouldn't be able to avert the collision. The impact was heavy and knocked the equipment from her hands and head, the helicopter spun out of control and the only thing in Lois' mind was Clark’s limp body hitting the windshield.

And as soon she closed her eyes to wait for the other impact, she felt the helicopter stop spinning and being gently landed somewhere. Lois shakily grabbed the fuselage to be able to stand and left the aircraft. Superman was kneeling by its side, breathing heavily, bleeding and bruised all over his body, which she could see because the suit was in ruins. She wasn't sure she was able to breathe anymore.

Lois saw his legs shaking a bit when he forced himself to stand and gave her an apologetic smile that it didn't last much, because his knees gave up on his weight.**

She jumped towards him and supported his body before he collapsed. “I’ve got you.”** She whispered. Jimmy was right behind her.

“You’ve got me?”** He answered with humor in his voice. “Who’s got you?”** And gave her a wry smile. How could he?? Wasn't he aware of the situation!!??

“You have to call the cavalry.”**

A sad shadow passed behind his eyes and he took a moment to answer her. “I am the cavalry.”**

A big explosion drew his attention and he grit his teeth and his hold around her shoulders. Jimmy pointed his camera toward the fire, trying to focus on the action now. Clark forced his body to move to the parapet of the rooftop where he had landed the helicopter to see what was happening. He couldn't even sustain his own weight anymore. His body tensed and his hand turned to fist, he would fly back into action. A panic stroke inside her chest and she grabbed his arm, keeping him from taking off. “You can't go back after that thing!! It’s suicide!!”** She begged, desperate.

He turned to her again and his expression was almost serene, he had a fond smile on his lips and used his arm around her shoulder to bring her closer. Their bodies touched and she couldn't avoid running her other hand on his chest, resting it over his heart. He leaned in and whispered with a gentle tone of voice. “So it’s following it on a chopper.”** His eyes shone with a knowing glint.

“Clark…” His name choked on her throat.

His other hand reached for her face, cupping her cheek as he had done on their first kiss. “Just remember… no matter what happens…”* Don’t . “I’ll always love you.”* Don’t! “Always!”*

Don’t!!