Hidden Feelings
Author's Note: Wow, I wasn't expecting so many (mixed) reviews. Thank you so much once again. I just have some things I need to address:
1. Yes, this is a Lois & Clark story. I try to minimize as much Lana/Clark scenes as possible, but sometimes, they are necessary to keep the story going.
2. LOL at everyone not liking Clark right now. There's nothing else I can say about it except that (in Oliver's words) "he doesn't know what he wants".
3. To those who requested, I'm sorry. I won't be bringing Bruce in this story. For one, I don't feel comfortable writing about his character & two, it's just not how I envision this story to go.
4. I am introducing a new character in this chapter, since I agree that Lois does need a little tlc as well. But, they won't have any romantic relationship. I want to focus solely on building Lois & Clark's relationship, and having a love triangle/square isn't really something I have in mind.
5. I want everyone to know that I really do take all of your reviews seriously (whether they are a positive or negative criticism), and I can never even thank you enough for taking the time to give me a piece of your mind. It means a lot, really.
Okay, with all of that out of the way, here is chapter four. I hope you all enjoy. :)
Chapter 4: Chance Meeting
If there was a perfect time to be invisible, that time would be now.
When Lois came to Clark's house, she didn't think things would turn out like this. She expected to see Chloe and Jimmy, she expected to eat dinner, and last but not the least, she expected to see Clark and Lana together. But Clark finally telling her what she'd known all this time? Unexpected. Very, very unexpected.
It was almost as if someone took a knife and punctured her right through her chest. It was almost as if someone took her heart and shattered it into a million tiny pieces. It was almost as if she heard about a joke only to find out that the joke was on her. The pain was inevitable. It hurt too much—her fragile heart was bleeding.
On the outside, Lois tried her best to look indifferent about Clark's confession. Although she was hurting on the inside, she rolled her eyes and scoffed, to give some sort of "reaction" he was expecting from her.
"That's not really front-page news, Smallville."
Clark looked at her, astonished.
"You mean to say that you're not…"
"That I'm not what? Shocked?"
"No. I thought you'd be disappointed in me."
"Look. It's pretty obvious that you're still not over Little Miss Iron Chef. She'd only been gone for a couple of months, so I'm sure that seeing her again brought back all the feelings you had for her. It's only natural to feel that way."
"And you're okay with this?" he asked unsurely.
"You don't need my blessing to be with anyone you want to be with, Clark. If she makes you happy, then it's good enough for me."
She was surprised to hear so much truth from her own words.
"I'm glad that's settled." He smiled at her.
"Yeah, me too. Guess I'll see you at the Planet on Monday, then. Goodnight, Clark."
"Goodnight, Lois."
As she walked towards her car, Lois' eyes started to get watery from the overwhelming emotion that came over her. She blinked a couple of times to prevent from shedding a tear, but one managed to escape. She wiped it quickly and got in her car, turning on the engine.
As she backed up the car, Clark waved his hand and smirked. She looked at him one last time, glad that he couldn't see her in the darkness. She then drove off, not knowing where she was headed, but all she knew was that she wasn't going home just yet.
Five days later…
"Hey, watch it!"
Making her way towards the main entrance of the Daily Planet, Lois bumped into a man who just exited the building and was going the opposite direction. Her folders fell to the floor as they both got down to pick them up.
"I am so sorry." He answered as he quickly retrieved the folders one by one off the gray asphalt.
As they both stood up, Lois got a better look at the man. He was tall, almost like Oliver's height, with a medium build. His dark hair was pushed back, complimenting the hazel shades of his eyes. He smelled good too—the scent of his cologne not too empowering.
"Here are your folders," he said, handing them back to her.
"Thank you."
"I'm Patrick, by the way. Patrick Grant." He held out his right hand.
"Lois. Lois Lane." She returned the gesture.
"A star reporter at the Daily Planet. Very impressive."
"And yourself?"
"I-uh, I own a small publishing company in Europe." He answered modestly.
"Oh. Oh!"
Lois blinked her eyes twice, dumbfounded. She knew exactly who he was. How could he sound so calm when he owned almost half of France?
"You're the Patrick Grant?" she asked, demanding an answer.
He nodded his head firmly.
"What are you doing walking around not incognito? This is Metropolis; people will be all over you!"
"Actually my car is right over there," he pointed to a glossy black European car. "I was walking towards it when we, ahem…" he chuckled.
"Oh. Well you were in my way, so…"
Patrick raised his left wrist to check on the time. He had to leave for his next appointment.
"Tell you what, Ms. Lane. Why don't we continue this conversation when I'm done with all these ridiculous business meetings I have to attend?" He reached for a pen in his pocket as he gestured for one of the folders Lois was holding.
"May I?"
She nodded her head quickly.
He wrote his number down on the folder, big enough for Lois to read it. "We'll see each other again. Have a good day."
"Y-you too," she answered back, the fascinated expression on her face still visible. She watched him as he walked to his car and left.
"Patrick Grant." She looked at the handwriting that concealed his phone number. She smiled to herself as she made her way inside the Daily Planet.
Eight forty am.
Lana tossed around the bed until she finally faced Clark. His eyes were still closed, breathing lightly.
She smiled at him as the pads of her left fingers touched his cheeks. Immediately, he reacted and opened his eyes.
"Good morning."
"Mm. Good morning to you too." He extended his neck to kiss Lana on the lips. Later on, he smiled.
"How's your sleep?"
"Good. Yours?"
"Wonderful," she said as they kissed once more.
He placed his arm around her waist as they spooned on the bed together. Lana closed her eyes, preserving the moment she shared with the man she loved.
On the nightstand, Clark's cellphone rang as Lois' name showed up on the screen. He turned around, breaking their position on the bed, as his arm reached for his phone.
"Lois?"
"Smallville! Where are you?"
"I'm uh, I'm on my way," he replied.
"Really? Really Clark?" she asked him in disbelief. "You know, I'm tired of playing the role of your personal alarm clock. If you're not here in the next ten minutes…"
"I'll be there, Lois. I'll see you soon." He hung up.
Lana wrapped the sheets around her body as the cool mist from the open window gave her chills. She looked at Clark with puppy-dog eyes, almost pouting.
"You have to leave now?"
"I'm sorry. When Lois calls me in the morning with that blaring tone of hers, it's pretty much going to be a long and busy day."
She nodded her head, still disappointed.
Clark got changed and went to the bathroom to brush his teeth. Lana fixed the bed and went downstairs to prepare a light breakfast for him.
He rushed to the kitchen where he found her toasting some bread and pouring some orange juice into a glass. He fixed his tie as his eyes darted to the microwave to check on the time. It was five minutes before nine.
"I'm so sorry. I promise I will make it up to you later." He kissed her on the cheek.
"It's okay. I understand work can be very demanding."
She handed him a piece of toasted bread as he gulped down the orange juice quickly.
"Thank you." He grabbed his coat as he super-sped out the door, leaving Lana at the farm all by herself.
The entire day, Lois and Clark went in and out of the Planet busy with their separate articles. Lois spent the entire day mostly interviewing her subjects, while Clark did the same, attaching his Red-Blue Blur duty on the side. They barely saw each other nor shared a moment to ask how the other was doing. It was, as Clark predicted, a long and busy day.
After the humiliating showdown that took place in Clark's front porch, Lois tried to be less involved in his personal life. She rarely asked him about his relationship with Lana, or how things at the Kent farm were going. Unless Clark voluntarily shared a story, she didn't ask anything in that aspect of his life. She wanted to maintain a professional relationship with him—to save herself from more of the heartbreak, and also to put a stop to her silent desperation of wishing he felt the same way.
Making his way towards his work desk after a long day of interviews, Clark caught a glimpse of a man's handwriting in one of Lois' folders. It was a name.
"Patrick Grant. He one of your subjects?"
"Not exactly."
"Who is he then?"
"Oh, just someone I met today," she answered as the corner of her lips curved. It was almost as if Clark was missing some vital information about the guy that Lois wasn't willing to share.
"Someone as in he's the new article you're working on?" he asked again.
"What's with the 21 questions, Smallville? And to answer your question, no. He's not work-related."
"So you just met him today, completely not work-related, and already you have his phone number. Are you even sure if this guy is safe?" he asked, concerned.
Her eyes narrowed, suspecting he had other intentions. She pursed her lips together and smiled knowingly.
"Clark Kent, are you jealous? I must say, green is definitely not a good color on you."
"I'm not jealous, I'm just a concerned friend."
Just then, a tall man dressed in a suit came over to Lois' table. Their eyes immediately shifted from each other to the man holding a stack of papers.
"Lane, boss wants to speak to you now," he commanded. Lois got up from her chair and gathered her belongings, including the folder with Patrick's number printed on it.
"See you tomorrow, Smallville." She waved the folder in front of him as she danced her way to the elevators.
Lois knocked on Tess' door.
"Come in."
She took a quick sigh and closed the door behind her.
"Randy said you wanted to speak to me."
Tess closed her laptop and laced her hands together.
"I'm sending you to Paris next week."
"Paris? Wait, why?"
"An Egyptian artifact is being brought to the Louvre Museum for showcase. I need you to keep an eye on it."
"So you're sending me halfway around the world to babysit some rusty old relic? Can't you just send one of your men to do that for you?"
"Three of the most powerful men in the world want to get their hands on it. It is your job to extract the information as to why they want it and what kind of mystery that artifact holds." Tess walked around her desk and stood, facing Lois.
"Hmm. And how long is my stay?"
"When I think you've supplied me with enough information, then I'll send you back."
Lois nodded and excused herself from the conversation. As she was about to leave, she was stopped by Tess' final words.
"And remember: don't let anyone know in this building about your upcoming escapade. Not even your friend Clark Kent."
Author's Note: Well, I certainly hope this wasn't a 'cruel' cliffhanger (sorry about that, imhooked.) My next update probably won't be until after Christmas, so I apologize. On my next update, I promise to reply to everyone individually. Merry Christmas to everyone, and Happy Holidays!