Hi FoLCs! This is my third story... As usual I wrote it a long time ago...

First of all I have to thank all the friends who edited it for me... and their number is constantly growing: Elena, Helene, Jeanne, Labby, Ray and Sarah (written in alphabetical order) THANKS GUYS!

Ok, now about this fic... It's set at the end of 1st season... just a couple of days before the wedding... and this is a "what if" fic:

What if Lois' doubts about the wedding had started just a couple of days before the Big Day instead of a couple of hours before the ceremony?

I hope you like it...and all kind of feedback is very welcome!

Enjoy it!

Disclaimer: I don't own anything! Nor the Planet (wow.. I sound like Tempus here) I played with someone else toys! I used them just for fun! Duh!

-O-

A MISSED WEDDING

Lois looked at herself in the mirror. She looked beautiful in her wedding dress. She thought that the dress was much too sumptuous, but Lex had chosen it and she couldn't oppose him. She'd always heard that the husband shouldn't see the dress before the wedding, but instead he had chosen the shop, the dress and he was there the first time she had put it on. He had it made-to-measure without even consulting her. Lois wondered if he would behave this way in their new life. Would she have the freedom to choose? She sobbed aloud.

She looked again at herself in the mirror.

"Mrs. Lex Luthor, Lois Lane Luthor, Lois Luthor Lane... Lois Lane... Kent, Lois Lane..." She sobbed deeply. "What in hell are you thinking, Lois!" she reproached herself. "It's only your fear. Only your terrible fear... You NEED to see Lex," she told herself, "and all of this'll pass!

Lois repeated it again and again; if she saw Lex her fears would go away, and she would realize how much she really loved him, how much she needed him, how right it was for her to marry him.

-OOOO-

In the same instant that Lois was miserably contemplating her future with him, Lex Luthor walked into his office, slamming the door. Mrs. Cox was on the phone, her tone formal but firm, as usual.

"Mrs. Cox, in my office, NOW!" The woman smiled, nodding, trying to cut the call as short as possible. Lex stood in front of her desk and with a sudden movement of his hand broke the communication. He took the handset and put it on the desk in order that no one might disturb their argument.

The woman followed him without question. She was used to the way he acted. This was one side to her chief that appalled her more than anything. He was unwilling to hear "No" from anyone. Nor would he wait for anyone. He had always gotten what he wanted, always, and immediately.

-OOOO-

Lois Lane went to see her husband-to-be. All was in turmoil because of their impending marriage. There were only two days to go. There were people running in all directions, all over the building. Lois looked around; all this magnificence made her shiver. She didn't like so much ostentation. She would have preferred something much more simple. But it was too late now. Lex had decided and it would be this way. "I'm one of the richest men in the world," he had told her. "You wouldn't want me to act like a farmer, would you?"

In the general confusion almost no one noticed her. The guard tried to inform Lex's office that she was there, but the phone rang out.

Lois went in anyway. Mrs. Cox wasn't there. "What luck," she thought; she disliked that woman. She disliked the looks that Lex and Mrs. Cox shared, and she disliked the superior tone with which that woman spoke to her. She was nowhere to be seen. Lois moved closer to the door of Lex's private office. From behind the door she clearly heard a moan. Curious, she went in. The door didn't make any noise opening. What she saw made her stomach turn.

Mrs. Cox was lying on Lex's desk. He was plastered atop her, and he kept her pushed against the wooden top while he pawed at her in an overbearing manner with possessiveness that almost scared Lois. At the moment she opened the door, Lois saw his hand slip under the shirt of his secretary. Then she heard the woman moan with pleasure, trying to arch her back, but his hold precluded her from that action.

"No, Mrs. Cox... I conduct the play..."

Lois felt herself becoming faint. "Are you going to do the same with me, Lex? You'll decide the rules of the game? Well, I am not going to play with you. The wedding is canceled!" She slipped her ring off and threw it toward him.

Lex moved away from Mrs. Cox suddenly, cursing.

"Lois! What are you doing here? It's not like it seems... I mean... don't make a rash decision..."

"It's not rash! It's final!"

Lex moved for her and he tried to catch her, but she ducked the hand that tried to grab her. Lois kept staring at his hand and was sickened. Then she turned on him. "How could you treat me like this!? "

"Lois... listen to me!" It wasn't a plea. It was an order.

"I don't want to see you ever again!" Lois turned and walked out of the building.

-OOOO-

She walked around all day, broken and desperate. She had trusted Lex. How could he do that to her? She had lost all her friends because of him. She was alone now. No more Planet, no Perry, no Jimmy. No Clark. He had confessed his love for her and she had refused him; no wonder he wouldn't see her again.

She never knew how much time she spent walking around the city; she didn't care. It was already dark when she found herself in front of an apartment house, 344 Clinton Street, Clark's home. Without thinking about it, she went up the stairs and knocked at the door. It opened long moments after.

"I've been waiting for you... you're late... Lois!"

"Are you waiting for ME?" Lois smiled.

"No... I mean... I thought it would be Perry or Jimmy or Jack... It's nice to see you!"

"Can I...?"

Clark moved aside so that she could come in. "You know that you're always welcome here!" Clark observed her; she had a look about her that was so sad. Her eyes were red as though she might have been crying a long time.

"Lois, is everything all right?"

Lois sat on the couch and Clark sat next to her.

"Sure..." Her voice trembled furiously. "It's just that I didn't know where else to go..." She stilled for a moment. "What are you going to do over the next couple of days? I thought I'd go away... would you like to come with me? I thought, well, I don't know, maybe to the ocean, or the mountains, or the country. I don't care... just so it's a calm place, far from everything..."

"Are you scared about the wedding?" Lois stared at him with such a sad look that he felt his heart was going to break.

"What wedding, Clark? There isn't going to be a wedding..."

"Lois, what happened?" Unable to suppress them, the tears started to roll down her face.

"While I was trying on my wedding dress... I realized that... that I was very scared... and so I went to see Lex... I needed to see him, to calm me down..." She looked at Clark, who felt himself grow cold just hearing her say that man's name "He was there... on Mrs. Cox. They were... were..." She burst out sobbing and he took her in his arms.

Just to be able to breathe her scent again... Clark closed his eyes, breathing deeply.

"How could he... I trusted him..."

He hated that man. He always had. And he knew - Clark knew that sooner or later he was going to hurt her. But he hadn't imagined that it could happen so soon. How could he explain to Lois the disdain he felt for that man and what good luck it was that she had her wedding canceled...? How could he tell Lois that she had her freedom back...? But she sobbed in his arms.

"I know, honey... I know!"

"Why? What's wrong with me?"

"You are perfect... just as you are..."

Then he smiled at the sound of his words. Lois pulled away from him a bit until she was able to look into his eyes.

"I've behaved so badly with you... how can you be so good to me...? I don't deserve you... I don't deserve your friendship."

Lois... I love you... and you know that... I'll be there for you, always!"

The tears started to roll down her face again. "Please forgive me... I... how could I treat you this way...?"

"You just did the right thing for yourself... You weren't in love with me. You were honest, and somehow we're still friends, right?"

"Oh Clark ... you are so... wonderful!"

Lois leaned over to give him a kiss on his cheek, but their mouths met and their tongues tasted each other. She started to explore his lips, his face, his neck. Clark was surprised, but his body responded to her in a way he'd never felt before.

"Please, Clark, I need you... now... please." Her voice was husky and trembling.

Her heart, her mind, her body were screaming. She needed so much to feel loved. The affection she felt for Clark, the emotion she was feeling being in his arms, was something that was beyond all the rest. She only wanted to feel loved. She needed it, and she knew that Clark loved her. She wasn't sure that she felt the same for him, but she could feel his love and his affection flowing in her body, making her forget the hurt caused by the man she'd been about to marry.

Clark couldn't believe the emotions he was feeling. He felt her breath on his skin, a host of new sensations, and suddenly he was overwhelmed by feelings and emotions that he had never experienced before. He knew that it wasn't right. He knew that he should stop her... but he was kissing the woman he loved more than everyone else in the world.

Clark tensed. "Lois... no... Lois... it's not right." Lois looked into his eyes.

"Why? I need you so much..."

"Lois, I've wanted you since the day I met you... but it's not right, not now... I don't want to be with you only because you are angry or sad or hurt. I love you so much... I can't do this to you... Do you understand what I mean?" The tears started rolling down her cheeks again.

"Please, Clark, forgive me, for all... I have done to you... You want me to leave now... don't you? I've hurt you enough..."

"Lois, I've never wanted you to leave me... I'd like to stay with you forever, but for the right reasons... Please, don't go away now..."

"Are you still my best friend?"

"I will be forever if you want me to!" Lois smiled, despite her tears. Clark held her in his arms.

At the same moment Perry, Jimmy and Jack came into the house.

"Clark... you left your door open... Lois! Honey... I'm so glad to see... hey!" Perry came over to her and stroked her head. "Honey... what's happened?" Lois smiled, despite her tears, and wiped her face with the back of her hand.

"Now I feel better... I'm here with my friends again!"

"Honey... it's good to have you with us again!"

Lois closed her eyes, sniffling. "I thought I'd lost all of you!"

Clark moved closer to her ear and whispered "Never!" She snuggled closer into his embrace.

"Boy, I don't want to break this up... but I'm dying of hunger... who's going to cook?"

"Don't look at me, it's well known by everyone... I can't cook!" answered Lois, raising her hand.

"If you want I can cook something..."

"NOOO!" Jack and Jimmy cried together. "Perry, we had enough of what you cooked yesterday... Clark," Jack went down on his knees and with folded hands said, "please... save your friends from a fate worse than death... cook!"

Clark hated to leave Lois, but he saw that she was laughing loudly. The worst was over. "You're lucky. My mother went to the store for me... with all this stuff I might be able to feed an army!"

"Thank goodness for Martha!!!"

-OOOO-

They really did eat like an army that evening, telling anecdotes about the Planet and funny stories that Jack couldn't know, all the while carefully avoiding the subject of Lex Luthor. Perry, as a very good journalist, immediately understood that there was a problem and without letting his best reporter notice, warned the two guys. Only funny subjects and old memories.

"And now I'd like to go my place, take a hot shower, slip into my pajamas, grab my teddy bear and go to sleep knowing that my hated alarm clock will rouse me for a hard day at Planet." She paused for an instant. "Not only isn't there a Daily Planet, but I also don't have a place!"

You sleep with a teddy bear?" Jimmy asked without thinking. Lois smiled, embarrassed, covering her mouth with her hand. Her eyes were shining.

"How long have you been doing it? I mean... It's kinda strange..."

"Less than a year Jimmy... My bear isn't very old. Last summer someone won it for me." Lois looked at Clark, smiling.

"Lois, we'll think about one thing at a time... You can have a shower here... and you also may sleep here... we'll find a way somehow... I'll ask my neighbors for a mattress and a few blankets. It's not that cold. And as for the problem at the Planet... we'll solve that very soon too."

Lois stared at him and for the first time in her life she realized that she was totally enchanted by Clark. He was extraordinarily sure of himself and charming in a way that she had never perceived before. And she realized that her heart was racing as she met his eyes.

She felt her face flush and turned from his gaze immediately. "Can I really have a shower?"

Clark gave her a robe, one of his T-shirts and a pair of shorts that she could use as pajamas, then, apologizing to his friends, he went to his neighbors to get something she could sleep in that night.

His neighbors were... in Kansas. He flew to his parents to obtain a mattress and two blankets. He chose the ones Lois was going to use, carefully, soft and warm. He wanted to pamper her. His mother had made some cookies and gave him a few of them. She suggested to him to be careful with Lois. To go slowly with her but to stay near her because she needed it. She said that if Lois would like to stay for a few days at their place she was welcome. She recommended again that he not rush her, but to not let her run away again.

"You have a second chance, son, don't waste it," Jonathan told him before he went back to Metropolis.

In a quarter of an hour he was back. The only difficulty was in keeping all the stuff in equilibrium on the mattress during the return. The second difficulty was getting it all through the door.

"Clark, you are really lucky to have such kind neighbors in Metropolis... I don't know the names of any of the people in my building..." Lois had just gotten out of the shower, her hair still. Clark's T-shirt, which was too large, stuck to her still humid body; her legs were left practically bare by the shorts. She was obliged to hold them as much as possible, to avoid having them slip down. Clark wondered if the others there would like to touch her, stroke her, bite her, kiss her from her head to her feet, as he did.

"Yep... really lucky." Clark smiled at his thoughts. "I suggest you taste these cookies. They are great!"

"These are the greatest! They remind me of Martha's!" Lois answered after the first bite.

Clark gazed at her for a while without being able to speak. Jack, without letting anyone notice, gave him a little push with his shoulder to bring him to earth again.

"My mother gave her the recipe last time she was here..." Clark trembled at the thought that they might guess the truth, but all of them were so engrossed with the cookies that nobody noticed him.

He turned toward Jack, then widened his arms as if to say, "You see... there is nothing to worry about."

Lois stared at the boy. "Jack ... can I ask you when... how did you get out... I mean... you shouldn't be here..."

"The same could be said for you too, Lois. Why are you here?"

The other people in the room froze; Lois smiled, in no hurry to speak. "It's a... complicated story."

"Mine too... but we'll talk about this tomorrow, won't we?"

"I agree."

"Perfect... did we make any sleeping arrangements?"

"Well... I guess... The two boys in my bedroom... Perry on the couch... no, Lois on the couch... no..."

"Clark if you're going to make me sleep on the floor you'll need a crane to make me get up..." Perry said.

Lois interrupted, "I'll sleep on the floor... it's not a problem, really!"

"Are you sure?!"

"Of course..."

"Well, so it's all set then!"

The next minutes were a continuous blur of mattress, blankets and pillows, lines for the bathroom and also for the kitchen. The last of the cookies attracted them like bees to honey. Then slowly they all began to quiet down.

They were just going to get into their beds when they heard someone knocking at the door.

"Kent! Open this door... I know you are in there! Open up!"

Lois suddenly became pale. "Lex... I... I don't want to see him..."

Clark stroked her face. "Nobody's going to make you... go over there..."

He kissed her on her brow, then he turned to the young boy. "Jack, hide!" he whispered as he walked to open the door.

Lois hurried up the stairs to the attic as Jack went into the bedroom.

"What do you want, Luthor?!"

"You know what I want..."

"She's not here..."

"I see that the news travels very quickly!"

"Just the good news!"

"Don't celebrate too much... in two days she becomes my wife... In any case..."

"Don't be too sure of that..."

"You want to come between us? Or maybe your friend in spandex... That's very funny, you know? Lois already made her choice... and she chose me. What makes you think that she would choose you, a poor farm boy turned journalist, instead of the richest man in all the world. Don't you know that the richest man in the world ALWAYS wins?"

"I've always believed you were a mad criminal... Luckily, Lois judges things a little differently she'll NEVER go back to you!"

"Oh yes, she'll do it... a couple of presents and she'll do it. Maybe I'll offer to make her a Planet director. Don't you think so, Mr. White? Just think... Lois Luthor, editor and director of the 'New Planet'... You see Kent... I love Lois, I do. I really do. But she's just a little too independent, don't you think? Well, I'll take care of that."

Clark shivered and Lois started to tremble. Those words terrified her.

"Get out of my house. Immediately!"

"Scared Kent? All's in vain... you can't beat me... ah, I almost forgot..." - He moved close to Clark's ear, as if he was going to whisper, but he spoke quite loud to allow all to hear. "I'll bet that Lois won't moan with you like she's done with me... Farmboy!"

Clark grabbed Lex's arms and he lifted the man a foot off the floor, barely keeping back the urge to hurl him against the wall. "And now, Luthor, get out!" Clark ordered, letting him go suddenly.

Lex barely avoided falling as his feet hit the floor, but this time he went out without being told again. The door slammed behind him, reverberating dreadfully.

Perry and Jimmy'd bet that they'd never seen Clark as angry as he was now. He looked like a bomb ready to explode. Neither of them had the courage to say anything. There was a long silence.

"Clark..." Lois said his name as if it was a supplication, an invocation, a prayer. The tears rolled down her face again, unrestrained. "It's not true... I didn't... Never."

Clark was next to her in a flash, holding her to him. "Hey," he told her gently, "you don't need to explain anything to me."

"No! I swear to you... I've never done it... not with Lex..."

Perry caught Jimmy by the arm and stopped Jack, who was rejoining the others, and made them enter the bedroom, closing the door behind him.

"Lois, I don't care about it... really, I don't care what he said..." She pulled herself back just the same that she could look his into eyes.

"Clark, I don't care at all about what people think of me, but you are the one I care most about in the universe, the one whose opinion I value most. I don't want you think... I swear to you Clark... I..." She tried to wipe her tears. "I've only been with Claude... I've been with no one else..."

Clark held her to him again. "Lois, it's late," he told her sweetly, "why don't we go to sleep... ? You've had a rough day..." She nodded and together they went upstairs. It was only an attic, full of books and a few other things. The two mattresses were one next to the other, divided by about a foot and a half. Clark helped her to sit, holding her hand.

She smiled. "Thanks."

He smiled back. "Lie down, I'm going to tuck you in."

"You mean it, really?"

"Sure!"

"Oh God..."

"What?"

"This is just the thing I usually did... I mean... when we were children... I put Lucy in her bed, tucked her in, and I stayed with her until she fell asleep..."

"Didn't anyone do the same for you?"

She shook her head. "Mother had her own problems, and Dad came home too late..."

"May I do this for you tonight?"

"Be careful, I may get used to being treated this way..."

She saw his smile as it shone through the darkened room. That megawatt smile. And he did as he promised, staying next to her until she had fallen sleep. He walked downstairs, where he saw that Perry had taken his place again in the armchair, enjoying an old movie.

"Have you thanked the fates?"

Clark sat on the couch. "What?"

"Remember the chat we had yesterday... women are a little like trout. You get 'em on a line, you tug a little bit too hard, they're gonna go free. You've just gotta hope that fate and the currents kinda drift 'em your way..."

"I should thank that... rat, Luthor... But how is it possible to do a thing like this just two days before the wedding?"

"There are people who act even worse... not that it means what that creature did to her was right..."

"Yes, I know... but nobody is going to marry Lois Lane!"

Perry smiled. "You know... I love her like a daughter... I adore her... but I swear to you, when she told me about Lex... about the wedding, I mean... I wish I'd slapped her and took her home to make her see reason!"

"Well, she thinks of you like a father..."

"Yep, Clark, I'll say this tonight only, and then I swear I'll deny ever having said it, even in front of a judge! You are the best thing, the best person, to ever happen to her. You made her live again... thanks... from an ex-chief, almost father and great friend..."

"Thanks, Chief!"

"For what? I said nothing. Somehow... son... tomorrow we'll go on with our plans to retake the Planet!"

"Do you want something to drink? "

"Yep, why not?" Clark opened the fridge and took out two bottles of beer, he offered one of them to Perry, but instead of opening his, he kept staring at it.

"Chief, how much money would we need to rebuild the Planet?"

"Too much, son."

"And if we could get a backer... someone that..."

"Who are you talking about?"

"Superman..."

"No... How could he do that?"

"Well... finding gold, oil, plutonium... anything."

"Clark... we can't ask him to do this. He already does so much... for everyone... It wouldn't be right, especially for him... You understand what I'm saying?" Clark nodded.

"You thank him for his proposal... but I think that the world needs a Superman more than a Superminer..." He paused. "It's almost bedtime. We've been talking for more than two hours, son. Time has simply flown, hasn't it?"

"Yeah!" Perry saw him jump.

"What's happening?"

"Hadn't you heard... Lois..."

"Go... I guess she needs you just now!" Clark didn't need to be told twice. In a few seconds he was at the top of the stairs, a very good time, especially since he didn't use his superspeed.

Feedbacks are soooo welcome !