Disclaimer: I do not own Superman. I only wish I did.
This is a short vingette that covers that last part of the movie and a few hours afterward. This is the first Superman fic I've ever done, but after watching the movie, I just couldn't resist. Please read and review.
Always Around
by Cyrano the 2nd
Lois stood on the dew-dampened grass, staring with sightless eyes at the inky expanse of water in front of her. She crossed her arms over her chest, trying to keep her heart from bleeding out of her chest. The pain was worse than drowning, and more terrifying than an out-of-control jet liner. The man she has once loved-still loved-was lying in a hospital bed, and she had no idea if he would live or die.
She had visited the hospital earlier that day, hoping against hope that the sound of her voice might do what the greatest medical minds could not. In reality she had been desperate to see him again, desperate to see if it was all true, and terrified that it might really be.
She has entered the room and seen him, laying so still and silent, his normal vitality gone. Her heart had consticted to a pinpoint. She felt Jason tugging at her hand, and watched him detach himself and walk over to a nearby chair. A red and blue jumble of cloth had been carefully laid out over the chair's arm, and two tall boots sat tucked underneath.
Suddenly it was all real. Superman was lying in a hospital bed and she was losing him all over again.
Lois had felt tears springing to her eyes, and she fought them down ruthlessly. She had not known how she'd got across the room-her knees felt too weak to support her weight-but suddenly she was beside the bed, looking into his still face. It had felt so strange to look down at him. He was so tall, so overpowering, in real life...
Lois had felt words springing to her lips, slipping out without any real thought behind them.
"I don't know if you can hear me. They say that people that--" What? She couldn't even finish the thought. "I don't know if you can hear me..." The tears had escaped then, spilling over onto her cheeks. She had bent down, breathing in the cool, clean scent of him. Her eyes had darted to Jason, seemingly transfixed by the material of the cape in front of him. She turned back to the man in the bed, and whispered into his ear,
"You have to live, I can't lose you again. I need you. And your son needs you, too." The last word had come out in a strangled sob.
No change. The monitor still beeped fitfully, and he still laid there, still and silent. Lois had leaned over and brushed her lips against his, her eyes searching his face, before turning away in disappointment.
Only in fairy tales did a kiss wake up one's true love.
It wasn't fair. Not to her, nor to Jason. And most definately not to Richard. Oh God-Richard! He had been there for her and Jason for five years. How could she tell him that Jason wasn't his son?
She stood, feeling like her own life was draining away as she stared into the black night. Richard had asked her once if she had been in love with Superman. She had lied- said that everyone loved him, but no, of course she didn't. She might have even convinced herself if it had not been for Luther and his insane plans. If it had not been for the strangled sense of terror she'd felt as she realized that Superman might not live through this. And when she ordered Richard to turn the plane around and go back, she knew that he knew it, too.
Lois sighed, taking a sip of her now-tepid tea. A shout from Jason's room made her whirl around, and there he was.
Not dead. Not even hurt.
She knew they were talking, but her heart was thundering too loudly to hear. "Will we...you know, see you around?"
Superman gave her a soft smile, his eyes full of emotion. "I'm always around."
He slipped back into the night. Lois walked shakily back towards the house. As soon as she hit the door, she knew that something was wrong. Richard was standing in the foyer, his hands clasped in front of him, his face shuttered.
"Lois," he said, "We have to talk."
