A/N: This is just going to be a series of drabbles as the inspiration strikes. They are not connected to each other or linked, unless I specifically say one is linked to another. They're not in any particular order. The general rule is that both Lois and Clark should be in each drabble. Also that they be able to fit into the general scheme of S9 somehow… but they don't necessarily follow show canon 100%. (At least, yet.)

WARNING: Some of these may reference spoilers or mention upcoming episodes. I'll note that before each drabble. Also, the ratings are wildly different… G to NC-17/R. If it has a mature rating, I'll note it before that particular drabble, but please bear that in mind.

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Drabble 1Movie Night Redux

Lois opened the door to her apartment, breathing a sigh of relief that the long week was finally over. Not that she had much to show for it. Slow news week. If she had any more weeks like this one she could forget about making her way out of the basement.

She stepped into her apartment and absentmindedly hit the light switch while kicking the door shut behind her. Too late, she registered that the lights were already on and that she'd ended up plunging the room into darkness instead.

"Lois?" A male voice spoke out from the corner of the room.

Lois stifled a scream and grabbed for the pepper spray she kept in her purse while jabbing the wall in search of the light switch. As room flooded with light, she saw a large man approaching her.

"Lois? What are you doing?"

Lois blinked a bit and then started laughing. It was Clark. Of course. "Clark!" Lois smiled brightly. "What are you doing here?" Trying not to be obvious, she slid the pepper spray back into her raincoat pocket. She couldn't resist adding. "It's Friday night. Shouldn't you be playing a game of solitaire in your loft right now?"

Clark eyes zeroed in on her hand, but he didn't say anything. He did smile a bit, though. "I came here for movie night." He turned and grabbed a stack of dvds from the kitchen counter. "I have every dog movie known to man right here." He held up the first disc with a disarming grin. "We can start with 'Old Yeller'."

Lois blinked in dismay. "Old Yeller?" She reached out and grabbed the discs from him. "Old Yeller, Where the Red Fern Grows, Marley & Me…" She shook her head and gave him a look of disbelief. "You've got to be kidding me."

Clark shrugged. "What? I like dog movies." When she didn't respond, he added, "You picked all shark movies for the last movie night. And I didn't complain."

Lois pondered that for a moment. "You do have a point."

She tossed the discs back on the counter and turned to sling her purse on the coat rack she kept next to the front door. As she started to shrug out of her rain coat, Clark immediately rushed forward to help her pull it off. He hooked his fingers into the shoulders and slid the coat off with ease.

"Thanks," she said, startled by his sudden proximity. She had been a bit chilly and wet, but now she felt a sudden flood of warmth rush through her body. He was standing far too close and her slightly damp blouse was going to be showing the effect he had on her if she didn't move away very quickly.

Heading straight towards her bedroom, she called over her shoulder, "You know, I'm just going to change into something more comfortable. Why don't you get the first movie started?"

Clark watched Lois almost sprint to her bedroom and felt slightly disappointed. The night was not going as he had planned. It had been a slow week for the Blur, so he had thought it would be the perfect night to spend some time with Lois.

He knew that, in some ways, he was being a coward because he wasn't asking her out on a formal second date and choosing the informal and last minute method, instead. The problem was that he never felt he was in a position to ask her out in advance, knowing that he might end up standing her up again at the last minute. He felt guilty about it, but – at least – he knew that this night would be spent only with Lois and his focus wouldn't be disturbed.

But how long could he keep it up? He was already starting to feel her withdrawal. She couldn't get away fast enough from him and she definitely hadn't looked pleased to find him in her apartment. Had she changed her mind? Did she want to end things between them even before they started? Not for the first time, he wished that he had more experience with women. The roller coaster of a relationship with Lana hadn't really prepared him for Lois. Every time he felt that he finally had a handle on what made her tick, she surprised him. Even reading her mind didn't give him the edge. Maybe the time had come where he should just put his cards on the table and let her know how he felt.

Lost in his thoughts, he didn't hear Lois come back into the room until she spoke.

"Clark? You didn't put the movie on." Lois sounded puzzled. "Did you change your mind about movie night?"

Clark blinked and looked at her. She looked sexy and gorgeous, as usual. He bit back a groan. She wore a faded gray sweatshirt that said "Army" across the front. It fell off her shoulder a bit and was so threadbare that he could see flashes of skin where the material had been worn so thin that it was actually see-through. She wore a ratty pair of jeans with it and her feet were bare. With some surprise, he noted her toenails were painted a bright red. She had pulled her hair up in a messy ponytail. He couldn't help but grin. Only Lois could end up looking so gorgeous even when she was trying so hard not to.

"Smallville?" Lois waved her fingers in front of his eyes, breaking his stare. "What's going on? We skipping movie night?"

Clark shook his head. "No, sorry, I was just thinking about…" he paused, not wanting to tell her that he was ogling her, "…. work. You know, wondering what my next story would be."

Lois's eyes lit up, like they always did when the subject turned to reporting. "Yeah? So what did you decide?"

"I…I… decided that I should think about work later and focus on getting the movie on." Clark made his way over to the DVD player and started to set up the first disc. He glanced over his shoulder at Lois and saw that she was frowning a bit in confusion. "Why don't you get the snacks ready?"

Lois nodded and headed over to the tiny kitchen. "Well, I'm just letting you know that I don't have the full buffet at my fingertips like you do," Lois warned, as she began scanning the shelves of her cupboards. "I haven't been grocery shopping in awhile." After realizing that most of her cupboards were empty, except for a few dusty cans of soup, she turned to Clark with a wide grin. "OK, I don't have much in the dry foods department, but I do have a well stocked freezer. What's your poison? Rocky Road? Chunky Monkey? Coffee Heath Bar Crunch? Dublin Mudslide?"

Clark hooked his fingers into his jeans pockets and gazed at her with that same semi-dazed expression he'd been wearing when she'd entered the room. She had no clue what it meant, but she could feel her heart begin to speed up – something it had an annoying tendency to do whenever the full force of his green eyes were focused anywhere near her. Her smile slipped a bit. "Well?" Lois bit out a lot more impatiently than she'd intended.

"Oh! Um…" Clark cleared his throat. "What was the last one?"

"Dublin Mudslide!" Relieved to be able to look at something other than Clark, Lois opened her freezer and pulled out the container. "Irish Cream Liqueur Ice Cream with Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies and a Coffee Fudge Swirl," Lois read out loud and then admitted, "I've never had this one, actually. I got it because it was on sale. But I'm sure it's good. Can't go wrong with a combo of Irish cream, coffee, and chocolate."

Clark couldn't help but grin. "Sounds good, then."

Lois grabbed two spoons out of the drawer and – in an effort be a good hostess – a couple of root beers out of the fridge. She handed Clark a bottle and a spoon and then settled down on the sofa just as the opening credits began to roll. Clark looked around and then moved the pillow resting next to Lois so he could sit down right next to her.

Lois took a quick bite of the ice cream and held out the container to Clark. He slid his spoon in and scooped out a little. He lifted it to his lips and licked it off, all the while not taking his eyes of Lois. "Hhhmm… it's pretty good. You're right, this is a good combo."

Lois licked her own lips nervously and tried not to stare, while struggling to come up with a coherent response. "Um… yeah. They go well together. The ingredients."

Clark took another scoop and said thoughtfully. "Yeah, they do. Even though, you know, it's not really obvious that they would go together. But it all works out."

Suddenly, Lois felt like they weren't talking about ice cream, anymore. And she wasn't sure how she felt about that. She turned away from Clark purposefully and watched the movie for a few minutes in silence. Finally, she said, "You do realize that I'm picking the theme from now on, right? I mean, dog movies, Smallville? What were you thinking? Every movie ends with the dogs dying."

"Nope, not in the "Shaggy Dog"," Clark replied lightly, clearly getting the message that they were moving on.

Lois rolled her eyes. "Next marathon? It's gonna be Star Wars. We need some Vader after this."

Clark turned to her and studied her for a moment. "It's a deal – under one condition."

"Oh yeah?" Lois's brow rose and she asked in a challenging tone, "What would that be?"

"You have to wear this same outfit."

"Wha… what?" Lois choked out.

Clark's gaze raked over her from her hair to her feet. "I like it. You look nice."

Lois took a deep breath, trying to keep her heart rate under control. "Um… a… OK. Sure." She turned to him and clinked her spoon against his. "It's a deal."

"Good." Clark turned his focus back on the movie, but not until after he'd dropped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer to him.

Lois hid a smile as she took another bite of the ice cream.

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