Red Like Kryptonite
Folc4evernaday | Rated: M | Chapter 1
"Oh, Clark," She moaned, reaching beneath the waistband of his jeans. She gasped as his teeth tugged at the front closure for her bra, popping it open. His right hand rested on her hip as she tightened her grasp around his throbbing member.
" Oh, God, Lois…" he murmured.
"Oh, Clark, right there." She whispered as he nibbled at the areole, massaging it with his tongue.
"Lois, baby," He moaned as her hand glided up and down his length.
She laughed when his lips brushed against her earlobe, nibbling at the sensitive skin. She released him, withdrawing her hand from him as she reached out to hold his hand. He recaptured her lips, holding her hand tightly as he pressed her against the mattress. She squeezed his hand tightly as she felt the tightness in her abdomen begin to convulse. Her heart was pounding against her chest. He felt so good pressed up against her; as if he was meant to be there in her arms forever.
Just as quickly as he had appeared, he vanished.
"Clark?"
Lois sat up in bed, confused as she reached out for her clock to check the time. She looked around the room, assuring herself she was indeed alone. For the last week, she'd spent the entire week dreaming of that night with Clark. Every time, it ended the same. He would disappear from her arms, and she would call out for him with no answer.
She grimaced when she saw the time, 2:21AM.
"It's going to be a long night," she muttered. She buried her head beneath the comforter as she repositioned herself against the pillow, willing sleep to overtake her once again.
Bill Church Jr. took a puff from his cigar as he leaned back into the leather chair, folding his hands in front of him as he read over the scientific reports. He glanced up at the balding man in front of him who fidgeted nervously. "So, this Nirvana, how much are you wanting Intergang to front you?"
"We're looking at about 100 K, give or take, but the return will be worth the investment," Charles Knox urged.
"That's what they all say," Bill Church muttered, "I fronted the Wilders over 100K and look at all the good that did me. Wasn't Valhalla your idea, Knox?"
"Valhalla was fool-proof and it would have worked if Superman hadn't," Mr. Knox apologized.
"Yeah, I heard." Church shook his head.
"We have a deal with the FDA to push Nirvana through afterward, allowing us to profit from its effects," Knox explained.
"It's your head if this falls through, Knox," Church warned.
"I understand," Knox nodded nervously.
"I'll get you your money by the end of the week," he added.
"Thank you, sir."
In the dark, a flashlight shone the way for a group of men dressed in black. The trees acted as a shield as they began to dig. "Hey, I think I found something." A red glow could be seen through the soil as they continued to dig.
A large piece of the red glowing rock was excavated and a man in his mid-forties pulled it out. "Well, boys, I think we've struck gold…or in this instance, Kryptonite."
Clark watched as Lois stepped into the newsroom, carrying her briefcase, engrossed in the fax she was reading. He uncomfortably shifted in place as he watched her chew the inside of her lip. The small gesture that she had done countless times before was now yet another thing that quietly drove him crazy. She glanced over at him, smiling.
Did she know what she was doing to him? Probably not.
He watched entranced as she turned to take a seat at her desk, adjusting herself as she first crossed, then uncrossed her legs a couple of times. She was trying to kill him.
"CK?" Jimmy waved a hand in front of him, trying to get his attention.
Clark shook his head, turning his attention to the young man in front of him. "Jimmy, you're back."
Jimmy nodded, "Yeah. The doc gave me a clean bill of health,"
"That's great," Clark nodded. "We really missed you around here."
"Yeah, I kinda missed the Planet too," Jimmy acknowledged. "Just don't tell the Chief that."
"Your secret's safe with me," Clark promised.
"Hey, Jimmy, it's good to see you," Lois said, walking up mid-conversation. "How are you feeling?"
Jimmy laughed, "Don't worry, Lois. I won't be pulling any guns on you guys anytime soon. The doc gave me a clean bill of health. He said the Ticeon seems to have worked its way out of my system."
"That's good." Lois seemed visibly relieved.
"What about you guys, anything exciting happen while I was gone?"
"No," Lois said hurriedly at the same time as Clark, "Not a thing."
Jimmy furrowed an eyebrow at them for a moment, confused. He seemed not to want to push the issue, though. "So, I read that piece you guys wrote on the Wilders. Good stuff."
Lois seemed to relax visibly at Jimmy's change of the subject. "Thanks. I'm just glad it had a happy ending."
"I know. Can you imagine what would have happened if they'd succeeded with 'Valhalla?'" Clark added.
"They were seriously trying to sell this stuff as a weapon?" Jimmy shook his head. "That still freaks me out, knowing someone else was controlling me like that."
Lois patted his arm. "You weren't yourself,"
"I pulled a gun on you guys." Jimmy shook his head, "I still can't believe I did that."
"Everything turned out all right," Lois reassured him.
"But I shot at you," Jimmy agonized. "I'd been trained to shoot a gun since I was nine. I'm surprised and grateful I missed."
Clark shifted nervously in his seat. Jimmy hadn't missed. He'd been right on target, and Clark had gotten to the bullet before it had hit them. There was no way he could tell his young friend that. He glanced over at Lois, who seemed just as nervous about Jimmy's comments as he was.
"Well, what's in the past is past," Lois said hurriedly.
"Right," Clark added. "Nothing to worry about,"
"Exactly."
Jimmy looked at them curiously for a moment then shrugged it off. "Well, I'd better check in with the Chief before he starts."
"OLSEN!" Perry bellowed across the newsroom.
"Speaking of," Lois smiled at Jimmy. "We'll catch up later."
Jimmy sighed, "Duty calls."
Lois and Clark watched as Jimmy raced across the newsroom to the Editor-in-Chief's office. "Well, I guess things are getting back to normal," Lois commented.
Clark laughed, watching Jimmy's frantic hand gestures as he spoke to Perry. "Yeah, normal for the Planet anyway,"
Lois smiled, "True."
He caught her gaze for a moment. He could feel the anxiety resonating from her. "So, what have you got?" He motioned to the fax in her hand.
"What?" She took a moment to realize what he was referring to. "Oh, uh, Perry wants us to do a follow-up on the Wilders." She pushed back a strand of hair behind her ear. "I was going to meet with Bobby Bigmouth, try and find out what we could about this drug they were trying to push. It's just a bit hard to believe that a widow and daughter thought up this plan by themselves."
"You thinking Intergang?" Clark asked.
"Maybe," she shrugged.
He nodded, "Sounds good." She was still nervous around him. He wanted more than anything for things to go back to the way they had been before. "Lois…"
At the same time, she said, "Clark…"
"You go first," they both said in unison.
Lois smiled back at him, "Sorry; what did you want to say?"
"I just — " he began.
"Hey, guys, guess what?" Excited, Jimmy bounded up to them, unaware he was interrupting a long-awaited conversation.
"What's up, Jimmy?" Lois asked with a forced smile. She seemed mildly miffed as she spoke.
"You're looking at the Planet's newest Photo Journalist!" Jimmy showed them the form Perry had given him to get his new press badge.
"Congratulations, Jimmy," Clark said. "That's great,"
"Yeah, I'm really proud of you," Lois added.
"Thanks, I still can't believe it," Jimmy beamed proudly.
"That's really great, Jimmy," Lois continued. "You'd better go ahead and get your ID made. You never know when that big story is gonna show up,"
"Right," Jimmy nodded, taking the hint. He headed towards the elevator.
Lois watched him, shaking her head, "I swear. That boy should come with a bell around his neck."
"He doesn't do it on purpose," Clark defended.
"That's what's bad about it," She shot back.
"So, what have we got on the capture of the Wilders?" Clark asked, changing the subject.
"Oh." Lois glanced back at her desk. There was a twinge of something in her tone. Disappointment?
He followed her back to her desk where she pulled out the file they had on the Wilders. "Well, Katherine and her mother were captured. Henderson is questioning the man who was with them, Mr. Neener. He thinks he may have been a potential buyer of this drug." Lois rolled her shoulders forwards, moving her neck from side to side as she spoke.
"You okay?" Clark asked, placing a hesitant hand on her shoulders.
"Fine," she said hurriedly.
He figured it was best to stay on topic. "So, the Wilders were trying to make a sale of this drug, and we have a potential buyer. Anything else?"
"Um," Lois turned her chair to face him. He removed his hand from her shoulder, and she showed him her notes. "I'm looking at a possible connection to, uh, Intergang."
"You mentioned them before, but are you sure they're still in business? Bill Church retired," he reminded her.
"Well, Bill Church Sr. may be out of action, but his son's not."
"Lois, just because his dad was a criminal doesn't mean…" Clark was cut off when Lois glared at him.
"If something looks like a duck, quacks like a duck." Lois began.
"…chances are it is a duck," Clark finished. "Fine, let's see what Bobby Bigmouth has to say,"
"What do you mean you don't know anything, Bobby?" Lois pulled the sandwich out of his mouth.
"HEY!" Bobby looked at her in shock.
"Lois!" Clark admonished.
"I'm not feeding you for nothing," Lois shot back in disgust.
"I didn't say I had nothing." Bobby eyed the sandwich in her hand appreciatively. "Taking food from a hungry man? You have no heart."
"If you want to eat, you have to talk. That's the deal. Got it?" Lois retorted.
"I said I don't know anything concrete. There's a difference. Now can I PLEASE have my sandwich back?"
"Lo-is," Clark warned.
"Fine, start talking," She shoved the sandwich back into Bobby's mouth, forcing him to gag slightly.
Bobby took another bite of his food. "Remember, you didn't hear this from me."
"We never do," Clark reassured him.
"Bill Church Jr. is running Intergang."
"I knew it!" Lois congratulated herself.
"Things are a lot more cutthroat than when Bill Sr. was running it. Nobody is talking, but everyone knows who the boss man is. He's looking at a drug — Nirvana, I think is what it's called."
"Does this drug have anything to do with the Ticeon the Wilders were using with the Valhalla Project?" Clark asked curiously.
"I'm not sure, but I do know their buyer was connected to Intergang." Bobby took a swig of his soda, "But I don't know how long he'll be connected now that he's being questioned by the police — if you catch my drift." He finished the rest of his sandwich in one bite then got up.
"That's all I know for now. I'll be in touch."
INTERGANG CONNECTED TO VALHALLA!
Headlines soared off the newsstands. Every channel had something to say about the latest news piece. Theories and speculations were debated on every channel. Finally having enough, Bill Church Jr. clicked the television off as he paced around his office angrily. "One of these days I'm gonna get you, Perry." He muttered. "Then we'll see who's smiling."
Lois stepped out of the shower, wrapping a towel around herself as she wiped the fog off the mirror. It had been a long day. It was exhausting working with Clark, knowing he was lying to her when he came up with lame excuses to leave, only to return hours later. Pretending to be in the dark was hard, but she needed him to tell her the truth. She needed him to be honest with her.
She couldn't believe that she was wrong about Clark. He had always been honest with her about everything else. He was genuine and open-hearted, completely opposite of every other man she'd had any relationship with. He was her best friend and the possibility of losing that friendship was too much for her to bear. He had to tell her. There was no other option.
The only way they would make it was if he was honest with her.
"I thought Kryptonite was supposed to be green. This is red." Bill Church Jr. eyed the substance before him critically.
Gene Newtrich pulled out a report, "Three different laboratories have assured me it's Kryptonite. It has all the same properties, but it has a different color."
"Will it kill Superman?"
"We don't know,"
"We don't know? Well, then what we need is a field test. Of course, that means we have to send someone expendable. Someone we at Intergang won't miss if they wind up in jail." He turned to Gene, "How about you, Gene?"
"My pleasure, Mr. Church," Gene replied.
The next morning, Lois and Clark walked to the Planet together. "Clark, can we talk?" Lois began.
"Sure. What's on your mind?"
"I wanted to talk about what happened last week,"
"Oh." An awkward silence fell between the two of them.
Lois noticed the way he seemed to be concentrating on looking at the ground as they walked. She was going to just have to do it. She had to have this conversation with him, or they were going to remain in this awkward limbo. "Clark…"
A gunshot interrupted her speech. Lois and Clark looked towards an armored truck that was parked in front of the Planet. "Lois, isn't that the truck that delivers our checks?"
"Oh, my God! It's always something,"
"I'll be right back. I'm gonna go call the police." Before she could argue he was gone.
"Somebody stop them!" Lois yelled as she crossed the street to advance toward the criminals. "They're robbing the truck!"
"Don't worry, Lois, they'll be in jail before you can say, 'Cappuccino.'" Superman landed beside her.
Lois did a double take. She still couldn't believe she had been so blind. The witty comments, the way he joked with her, was all Clark.
She watched as Clark approached the armored car. "I'm afraid you'll have to take a rain check on those checks, boys."
The men wore ski masks. One of them looked up at him with a smile, "Really? What if we don't want to?" He reached inside the armored car for something.
Clark shook his head then looked back at the men. His whole demeanor seemed to have changed. "Well, I don't know. Maybe nothing. I mean, they'll just have to reissue the checks. So, what do I care?"
"Uh, right." The man turned to his henchmen, "Come on!" They disappeared in their getaway car, and Clark just watched, not doing a thing.
"Cla-Superman! You let them get away!" Lois caught herself at the last minute. She was used to thinking of him as Clark. She had almost slipped up.
He didn't seem to notice. "It's not that big a deal, Lois. Most criminals are repeat offenders. I'll probably just catch them again later." He began to fly off, "And if I don't, who cares?"
"Hey, get back here!" she hollered as he disappeared in the sky.
Lois punched the elevator call button furiously. He just let those criminals go. Why would he do that? "Clark Kent, you better be in the newsroom by the time I get there or your name is mud…" she muttered under her breath, positive that he could hear her. She pushed her way past the other staffers on the elevator, daring anyone to say the wrong thing to her.
She stepped off the elevator in a huff. She was a woman on a mission. The Daily Planet staffers avoided her like the plague as she scanned the newsroom for her missing partner. "Jimmy!" she called across the newsroom.
"What is it…Whoa! What's wrong?" Jimmy asked when he saw the look on Lois' face.
"What's wrong? What's wrong? I don't know, Jimmy, why don't you tell me what could possibly be wrong with Superman letting a bunch of criminals take off with our checks…HE just stood there!" she ranted, tossing her briefcase on her desk as she angrily sank into her chair.
"Oh," Jimmy replied meekly. "I see."
"Really? Because I don't see, Jimmy!" Lois snapped back, "I don't see how he could…DO something like that!" Lois was near tears at this point.
Jimmy just stared on, unsure of what to do. "Lois, I'm sure there's a really good explanation for all of this." He began, desperately scanning the newsroom for Clark. Clark was the only person that seemed to be able to cajole Lois out of her bad moods. He spotted Clark coming out of the elevator and called him over, "CK!"
Clark met Jimmy's pleading gaze and headed towards him and Lois, "What's up?"
"Uh, apparently Superman let some criminals go earlier…with everyone's checks…" Jimmy explained, nodding his head discreetly at Lois while mouthing 'She's in a bad mood!' to Clark.
"What?" Clark just shrugged his shoulders, "Well, I guess they'll have to reissue the checks."
"CK? Are you feeling okay?" Jimmy asked.
"Never better," Clark responded.
"How can you be so calm? Our paychecks were just stolen, and Superman didn't do a thing about it!" Lois snapped at him.
"Lois, the payroll company is responsible for the safety of the checks, not Superman. Let them take care of it," Clark replied indifferently.
"What about the responsibility of the individual to the society as a whole? The social contract that obligates one person to help others for the betterment of everyone?" she shot back.
"Well, Lois, if that's the way you feel…great. Otherwise, I say, kick back. Enjoy. Do your own thing." He shrugged.
Jimmy and Lois just stared at him. "CK, are you sure you're all right?" Jimmy asked.
"Yeah, why?"
"Who are you and what have you done with my partner?" Lois asked, feeling his forehead.
"What are you guys talking about?" Clark asked, heading towards his desk. "I'm fine."
"Uh-huh." Lois nodded. She watched Clark sit down at his desk and then turned to Jimmy, "Jimmy, get me a copy of the security tape from the entrance of the Daily Planet. If we're lucky; the robbery was caught on tape. Something is definitely up."
"You got it," Jimmy muttered, scurrying away from her desk. Lois glanced across the aisle and saw Clark was at his computer…playing a computer game.
Bill Church Jr. sat at his desk with Gene Newtrich, watching the playback of the robbery from earlier that morning. The image showed the crooks robbing the truck and then Superman appeared on the screen. "This is where Superman comes in! I talk to him and then—" Gene froze the picture, "There! That's when we opened the box. When he got within about ten feet, his mood changed. Suddenly, it was like he didn't care."
Bill Church Jr. stared at the screen for a moment before bursting out in laughter, "Oh. This is perfect! This is better than killing him! He just doesn't care! That's the problem with that green stuff…it always ticked him off." He tapped his fingers on the desk thoughtfully, picking up the edition of the Daily Planet from his desk. "For Operation Nirvana to succeed, it's essential we control the media, and that means the Daily Planet. And if Franklin Stern won't sell the Planet to me, we'll just have to do things the old-fashioned way. And Perry White's pal Superman won't be able to do a thing about it."
He let a group of criminals escape. How could he do that? Clark sat at his desk, staring into space as he tried to understand what had come over him earlier that morning. He had remembered walking to work with Lois. She had brought up that night when things had gotten pretty heated between them…He winced at that memory. They really needed to talk about that night, but every time he even thought about it, he felt his body responding uncontrollably to the memory of her skin against his…
"CK?" Jimmy's voice interrupted his thoughts. Clark looked up to see
Jimmy handing him a stack of photos. "Here are the photos you needed for the Quine project."
"Huh? Oh, sorry, Jimmy. I was…someplace else." Clark took the photos from him and began to sift through them.
"You okay, CK?" Jimmy asked hesitantly. "You seemed kind of off earlier. Is everything okay with you and Lois?"
"Yeah, it's nothing like that." Clark smiled reassuringly at him. "I was just wondering about why Superman let those crooks get away."
Jimmy nodded, smiling knowingly at Clark. "That was wild, wasn't it? I mean, what was Superman thinking?"
"I don't know." Clark answered, "I- He just didn't seem to …care."
"Man, those are the luckiest crooks in Metropolis, huh?"
Clark nodded and stood up from his desk, "Not for long…Because when Superman makes up his mind to do something, he doesn't back down." He watched Lois from a distance typing furiously at her desk. "Excuse me." He walked towards Lois' desk hesitantly.
"So," he began hesitantly, kneeling down to peer over her shoulder, "what have we got?"
"Hah, Jimmy, did you hear something?" Lois looked around sarcastically.
"Lois…" Clark breathed.
She turned to glare at him, "What? You have some explanation for why you've opted to play computer games all morning rather than help track down the people that stole our checks? I'd love to hear it, but my bullshit meter has met its max for the day."
"I'm sorry. I honestly don't know what was wrong with me earlier." He placed a hand on her shoulder, squeezing it supportively. "The cops still don't have any leads?"
She shook her head, "No." Then she glanced towards Perry's office in concern. "I wonder how Mr. Stern is taking it."
Clark followed her gaze towards Perry's office where the blinds were drawn and Perry was on the phone, raising his fists in the air as he walked around the office. He shook his head. "Judging, by the way, Perry's pacing, I'd say 'not good.'"
"Well, let's see what Perry's plan is," Lois said, walking toward the Editor-in-Chief's office.
They knocked on Perry's door, and he waved them in, still on the phone. "Whoa whoa whoa. Now, Franklin, I disagree. The Planet is harder hitting than it's ever been. We're the last bastion of truth in Metropolis. We're the lead man in the fight for justice. The lighthouse of enlightenment! The…Okay, great. Yes. Yes. Give my best to Muriel. Call me when you get to Paris. You too, bye." He hung up the phone and turned to Clark and Lois. "Have I lost my edge?"
"No, why do you ask?" Lois asked.
"Oh, no reason," Perry sighed.
"What did Mr. Stern say?" Clark asked.
"He's got an offer on the table, and he's thinking about selling the Planet to Multi-world Communications," Perry explained.
Lois' eyes widened in horror, "What? Not to Intergang!" She and Clark had worked for months to dismantle the organization and put a stop to them adding Metropolis to the long list of cities they had taken over. There was no way she would work for Intergang.
Perry was quick to counter, "Now, Lois, we've never had any proof Intergang runs Multi-world Communications."
"Everybody on the street knows it." Lois threw her hands up in the air for emphasis. "Bill Church ran Intergang, and after he retired, his son took over."
Perry shook his head, refusing to listen to any more of Lois' arguments. "Lois put a brake on that wagon. I know you've been working on that story since November, but you're talking about Bill Jr. I've known him since he was old enough to spit up on me."
"And that makes him innocent?" Lois asked sarcastically, crossing her arms in defiance.
Perry wasn't budging, "Billy used to caddy for me and his dad and the only thing he took over from Bill Sr. is Cost-Mart stores. And he's doubled the stock. Now he's one of the biggest philanthropists in the country."
"And the biggest fake," she sniped.
Clark decided to butt in before the argument got any more heated. He had his own suspicions about Bill Jr., but he'd learned the hard way not to force someone to see something they didn't want to see. "Chief, what did Mr. Stern say he was going to do about the offer?"
"Well, between the printer's strike and the delivery drivers out sick and now this payroll thing…" Perry held his index finger and thumb close to one another for emphasis. "He was this close to selling, but I talked him out of it."
"Great." Lois and Clark sighed in relief.
"For now; at least for seventy-two hours." Perry sighed. "Then we're goners. Unless you two can prove to Mr. Stern and me that Bill Church Jr is behind Intergang."
"Seventy-two hours?" Lois asked in disbelief.
"It'll take us that long just to organize our research," Clark complained.
"Hey, you want to swim with the big fish, you have got to swim fast. Now, I suggest we adjourn for lunch so you can bring me up to speed on what you got so far," Perry said looking at his watch.
"Chief, it's nine-fifteen in the morning," Clark said, slightly amused.
"Am I still in charge here? When I say it's lunch; it's lunch. Now, move!" Perry shot back. He motioned to the door as he grabbed his coat. Lois and Clark nodded and headed out the door with Perry.
TBC...