CHAPTER 13: NOT SO BAD BEING ORDINARY

WARNING: MATURE CONTENT

For seven years, Bruce Wayne had searched the world. He travelled the globe seeking answers to the questions that had plagued him all his life. It was a quest to give direction to the fury he felt watching his parents die in front of him in that dark alley so long ago. Seven years in the forge and he had emerged as something uncompromising, relentless and infinitely patient. He knew his metamorphosis was not complete. The final product was still in a chrysalis, evolving.

What he would be, he had not become yet.

Therefore, he could be forgiven for the occasional lapse.

Like right now, as he drove towards Wayne Manor with Clark and Lois, having made good their escape from the DeSaad Building. The need for DeSaad to project a legitimate front had made it possible for them to escape without too much fanfare. As soon as the internal security systems were disabled, external security forces were rushing to the scene, limiting the capability of Lois' captors to pursue them as vehemently as they wished. Leaving the building the same way they had arrived, they were soon driving away from the city limits towards the road that took them back to the Manor.

Bruce was convinced if this Mr. Corben had arrived before they reached Lois; it was likely that they could have retrieved her at all. It seemed as if Hank Cobb was only a lackey, good for tricking young women into captivity through the Internet. Corben sounded like the man who made the decisions. Keeping the name in mind, Bruce planned to research the name with Chloe's help as soon as he got back to the cave.

That is, if he didn't ditch his two companions on the side of the road first.

"I'm just saying Smallville," Lois continued to insist as she sat in the back seat of the car "I could have gotten out that situation…eventually."

Not for the first time since they embarked on the trip home, Clark begged to differ.

"Are you kidding me Lois?" Clark looked over his shoulder from where he was riding shotgun with Bruce, disbelief etched in his features. "You said it yourself, they drugged you. God only knows what you told them while you were under."

Lois narrowed her eyes and glared at him because that remark stung. "What more could I have told them?" She demanded. "They already know that blue meteor rocks affect you! If they know that, they have to know you're from Krypton!"

"You could have told them where we've been hiding!" Clark pointed out.

Lois swallowed thickly unable to deny that possibility but she still refused to give up. It wasn't in her nature to admit she might have made a mistake and worst than that, she might have endangered not only herself and Clark but also everyone else at Wayne Manor. "If I had given that up," she said regrouping, "they wouldn't have wasted any time keeping me captive, they'd already have stormed the Manor and grabbed all of you."

If only to put an end to the argument because frankly this bickering was wearing thin on even Bruce Wayne's impressive patience, he added over the steering wheel. "That could be a possibility. They did seem very insistent on acquiring you Clark. If they had a location, they wouldn't have wasted any time coming after you."

"Thank Christ for small favours," Clark fumed, still angry and feeling more helpless than before. If it weren't for Bruce, he would never have been able to get into DeSaad and rescue Lois. Just how helpless he was, was starting to dawn on Clark and he was terrified that the next time Lois was in a dire situation, he wouldn't be able to help her. All his life, he had wanted to be a normal so that he could be with the woman he loved without having to worry about secrets. Now that he had what he wanted, Clark never imagined he would wish other wise. "We were lucky this time. Next time, someone could really get hurt."

The Manor came into view and Bruce pressed down on the accelerator a little harder than he ought, sending the car flying through the gates faster than was considered safe. However, he was trying to outrun an argument that was about to hit critical and he had no desire to be in the front line of this particular melee.

"This is what I do!" Lois exclaimed, getting angrier at his comments. She knew he was justified in being angry but Lois felt guilty enough. However, she refused to believe that she was completely helpless without his help. "I can't be an investigative journalist without taking risks Clark! I've managed to not get killed in the last two years."

"That's because I've almost always been there to save your ass Lane!" Clark bit back. "Even before you knew about my secret, do you have any idea how many times I've had to come to your rescue? Keeping up with you is a full time job even with my abilities!"

Even as he said it, Clark knew he crossed a line.

Ouch. Bruce thought, glancing at the rear view mirror to see Lois' look of dismay at Clark's return serve. Thank God, he thought when the front steps of the mansion came up along side of the car. If parking were an Olympic sport, then the amount of time that Bruce took to bring the vehicle to a stop would have qualified him for a medal. Hr was about to jump out of the car when Lois beat him to it. She slammed the door behind her and raced up the steps, saying nothing to Chloe as she rushed past.

A full ten seconds passed before Clark spoke.

"I over reacted didn't I?" He said with a grimace.

Bruce gave him a look of pure disbelief. "Do you really want me to answer that?"

"I should go after her," Clark sighed, climbing out of the car.

"What was that about?" Chloe asked when Clark emerged, certain that something was wrong by the manner Lois had raced past her saying nothing. Even after a rescue, Lois Lane was never at a loss for words.

"I gotta talk to Lois," Clark retorted, not wanting to tell Chloe that he had behaved like jerk. Lois would describe it better than he would later anyway. Hurrying up the stairs, he left Bruce to fill in the details.

"Judging by the fact that you're all here I assume everything went alright?" Chloe stared at Bruce puzzled as the storm named Lois and Clark shifted its destructive trail away from them.

"Pretty much," Bruce retorted, shutting the car door before approaching Chloe. Not for the first time today, Bruce thanked the gods that Chloe and her cousin were distinctly different.

"Then what was that?" She asked, quite bewildered.

"Who knows?" Bruce leaned forward to give her a kiss, "but I'm sure grovelling will be involved."

It wasn't difficult to find Lois even in a mansion as large as Wayne Manor.

Clark was only a few paces behind Lois, his long legs making up the distance as he hurried after her, feeling like a heel for behaving as he had. Bruce was right, he had overreacted but the reasons had nothing to do with Lois and her devil may care attitude. He had fallen in love with her because of those very qualities. Her ability to shake her fists and stand defiantly against all comers no matter what, had captured Clark Kent's imagination long before she captured his heart.

He didn't want that to change.

In truth, he wasn't nearly as angry with her as he was with himself. Clark liked being there for Lois. He liked being there when she was in over her head. Lois' fearlessness at being able to rush in where angels feared to tread was a quality Clark did not wish to impede just because of his own frailties. She wouldn't be the Lois he loved if she was any other way.

Entering the room they had been sharing since they began their stay at Wayne Manor, Clark didn't need enhanced hearing to hear the quiet tears coming from the bathroom. Clark could never stand to see Lois in tears, even when he wasn't in love with her. On those rare occasions, he was afforded a few of a beautiful, vulnerable woman who felt things more deeply than most despite her best efforts to hide it.

"Lois," Clark leaned against the bathroom door and said softly, "I'm sorry."

Her answer was another sniffle.

Clark winced at that sound. Kryptonite didn't feel this bad.

"Lois, I was a jerk. You being a pain in my ass is the one thing about you I love the most. I'm not angry that you take risks, I'm angry that I can't be there for you when you do. I don't know if I'm ever going to get my powers back and that makes me afraid that I might lose you. I love you more than I've ever loved anything. I can't imagine anything happening to you, not now. Not after I finally know what you mean to me."

The sniffling stopped and Clark took that as a good sign.

Sliding to the floor, he sat leaning against the door, continuing to speak. "All my life, this is what I wanted, to be normal. I hated keeping secrets from the people I cared about, it always felt like one lie after another. Other than my parents, you're the first person I've ever made a conscious decision to share the truth with. Everyone else found out by accident."

It was the true. Even with Chloe, his closest confidante, it had been circumstance that forced him to share the truth with her. Lois was the first person that Clark had willingly told the truth.

"I never realised how much apart of me being Kryptonian was and now that I've lost that, I feel..." he shook his head. "I don't know what I feel…"

Suddenly the door opened behind her and Lois was staring at him. "Jeez Smallville, what next violins?" She stared at him impatiently. "You had me after 'I'm sorry'." Her lips quirked into the barest hint of a smile.

Clark stood up quickly and looked down at her, seeing the drying tears on her cheeks. "Lois I'm sorry." He repeated himself, guilty that he had wounded her so. "I didn't mean to be such ….

"A dork? A jerk, jackass…idiot?" She fired at him.

Clark let out a rueful laugh. "Yeah," he admitted. "Any or all of those. Thanks for taking my apology so gracefully." He threw in sarcastically.

"Smallville," she winked. "It's me. "

"Right," he chuckled as she took his hand led him to the bed. "What was I thinking?"

Lois sat down on the edge of the bed, all mischief fading from her face when she lifted his hand and brushed her lip against a callused knuckle. "Smallville, you were my knight in shining armour way before I found out you could leap tall buildings in a single bound. You may not be able to deflect bullets for me anymore but I'll always need you to be there and I don't plan on letting anything happen to me either. We've got too much stuff ahead of us for that. Following Whitesnake around when they do that cross country tour, buying our first sofa together, our Valentine's Day pact to put a burning effigy of cherubs on the front lawn…"

Clark burst into a grin, wondering how it was possible for her to make him feel so good by some of the absurd things that came out of her mouth. "Yeah love is definitely committing arson."

"Damn straight Smallville," she pushed him onto his back and climbed on top of him. "Besides," her expression became unreadable. "There are perks to you being normal you know?"

Clark raised a brow, staring at her intrigued. "Like what?"

Her response was an enigmatic smile as she reached behind her and released the pearl clip that held her hair in place. Auburn locks fell around her shoulders like a cascade of russet as her eyes locked with his. Clark watched mesmerized by that smile, never knowing what it meant when she employed it. Leaning down, he felt the soft strands caress his cheek an instant before Lois planted a deep, exploring kiss against his lips.

Oh, his brain finally caught up.

"Lois," he managed to speak as her kisses moved past his lips and down his jaw. "You mean…are you…now?" He stuttered a response.

"What are we waiting for Smallville?" her voice became soft and husky, filled with a seductive tone she seldom used and for good reason. He had no absolutely no defence against it.

"Nothing I can think of right now," Clark muttered incomprehensively as his thoughts started to turn into gibberish. Lois' fingers were rolling the dark sweater he had been wearing up his body, her hands charting a tantalising journey past his taut muscles of stomach and up her chest.

"Besides the best part of a fight," she lifted her head long enough to look in his eyes, "is making up." Lois winked.

The love Clark saw in hers allayed his doubts as did the fears he had about this moment. Months ago, when they had first started dating, his alter-ego Kal had made an appearance and in encountering Lois, enjoyed the intimacy Clark had been too afraid to share with her at time. With Kal's memories in his head, Clark had seen Lois responding to the less inhibited and certainly more aggressive side of his personality. Since then, he had resisted the urge to revisit the subject, fearful that if they did make love, she would crave Kal not him.

As she stripped away the sweater and tossed it aside, Clark saw no evidence of such thing. The desire he saw in Lois' eyes were for him and only him. Watching in fascination as she took charge, Clark quickly disregarded all the reasons why he hadn't taken this step with her before. As Lois continued to kiss him, her lips making a sensual journey along his collarbone and down his chest, Clark made one final attempt to reason with her.

"Lois," he said through heavy lidded eyes. "Are you sure?" He asked, his voice breathless.

Lois didn't answer. Her eyes met his with a smile his Presbyterian upbringing could only call sinful before she lowered her mouth unto a nipple and suckled insistently.

"Oh God," he hissed, having never experienced that particular type of foreplay before. Although he wasn't a virgin anymore (Thank God), his sexual encounters with Lana had been brief and Clark didn't count Kal's experiences as his own. They had been two inexperienced kids back then and though he had engaged in some intimacy with Lois, she had respected his decision to take it slow.

As he felt her lips, biting and nibbling at him, making him so hard and erect he could barely form thought, Clark Kent wondered what the hell he had been thinking.

His fingers threaded through her hair, savouring every strand of russet in his fingers, trying not to be overwhelmed by what she was making him feel. All those heated nights on the couch, trying not to let things get too far, trying to hold back for reasons he knew had little validity, Clark had denied not only himself but Lois too. He used to be afraid that he might hurt her but Kal had proved a fully sexual relationship with Lois was possible, if only he dared.

His eyes flew open when he felt her pulling at the zipper of his pants and Clark lifted his head to look down. Swallowing thickly, he felt another surge of dark lust as he hardened even more at sensation of her breath against his stomach as she freed him. His jaw tensed as her palm wrapped itself around his flesh and he barely managed to hold in the moan that wanted to escape.

"Lois…you don't have to…" he whispered even though his eyes said differently.

Lois smiled, suspecting by their earlier encounters that Clark and Lana's sex life had been very pedestrian. When she had been listening to him earlier on, it seemed as if Clark felt the loss of his powers made him less of a man. Part of the reason she was taking this step with him now was to remind him that he was every bit a man and being normal didn't mean he was powerless.

"See I told you," she smirked as she held him in her hands, teasing.

"What?" He barely managed to ask.

"Can't call you Smallville, can't I?" Lois winked.

"Lois!" Clark exclaimed indignantly before all other thoughts vanished from his mind as she took him into her mouth.

Lana never did this…he thought and then asked, Lana who?

Clark thought he might die from how good it felt to have her slide up and down his length, her teeth biting into his skin just enough to pull a low groan from his mouth. His body wanted to push instinctively. Every sense came alive as he resisted the urge to thrust as far as he could into that incredible well of heat. Biting down as his fists knotted around the sheets, the voice inside his throat drowning in a silent scream of exquisite intensity.

The pleasure was beyond belief. Clark had heard about it, imagined how it might be but experiencing it for himself the first time was amazing, just as incredible as watching her work his flesh so expertly he could barely breathe.

Lois could hear him calling her name as she continued to taste him, hearing the helpless need in his voice unleashed her own desires for Clark. He was the most beautiful man she had ever seen and though she hadn't loved him from the start, she was eternally grateful that she loved him now.

She imagined what he would do to her when she finally moved the seduction to that level and felt a shudder of arousal moving through her like a ripple. For now, Lois wanted him to feel pleasure the likes of which he had never known. She wanted Clark to know that who he was should be celebrated, power or not, that nothing between them would ever change. His inexperience brought out the best in her and Lois was determined that their first time together was everything he imagined.

It was also even more comforting when Lois realised nothing in any of this reminded her of Kal. This moment belonged only to Clark and her.

"God Lois," she heard him groan. "I love you," he chanted over and over again. "I love you so much."

He was close, she could feel his control beginning to slip. He was thrusting so frantically into her mouth that there was no other conclusion. She glanced up was gripped by the perfect expression of pleasure on his face. His mouth was gasping for air and his hands were snaked in her hair. She doubted that he was even aware that he was guiding her descent.

Jesus, Lois thought to herself as she felt an intense sensation of desire surging savagely through her upon seeing his beautiful body squirming in pleasure. Did he even have any idea how incredible he looked at his moment, glistening with sweat, gasping aloud and making her wish there were lips there to capture that perfect mouth to plunder it as relentlessly as she was doing the rest of him?

"Lois," she heard him groan, his voice pleading at her desperately. "You, you have to stop."

Lois stopped what she was doing and felt a moment of dismay. Had she pushed him before he was ready for this? She was almost afraid to ask, "Smallville?"

It was nothing less than torture to say those words but through the ecstasy she was making him experience, Clark knew what he wanted more than her mouth doing sinful things to him.

"This is our first time Lois, it should be special." Smouldering blue eyes met hers with a smile. "I want us to get there together. "

Understanding him fully, Lois burst into a radiant smile and never thought she could adore him any more than she already did. "Well if you insist…" she smirked.

"I insist," he whispered, head still spinning. She was still fully clothed and with fingers trembling slightly, Clark worked the buttons of her blouse loose, popping them one after the other until the silk slid off her shoulders. After everything that had happened so far, Lois felt somewhat self-conscious when she revealed herself to him. It wasn't as if he hadn't seen her naked before but this wasn't just about flesh, it was intimacy.

"Let me," she said unhooking the clasp on her bra and shivering when his big hands slid the straps off and discarded the flimsy piece of lace material.

Naked to the waist, Clark took a moment to appreciate the sight of Lois sitting on top of him, with her tousled hair and the sculpted perfection of her body in front of him. He remembered all those times he had admired her from afar. What this girl could do to a bikini should be outlawed.

"You're beautiful Lane." He teased and was rewarded by a rare blush creeping into her cheeks. Cupping large hands over the perfectly formed breasts, Clark kneaded the flesh tenderly, a soft groan escaping him as he felt the tight nub of her nipples beneath his palms. Pushing himself upright, he caught a rosebud peak into his mouth and washed gently with his tongue. Another hand slid around her back, holding her in place as he began to suckling her flesh with as much mercy as she had given him earlier.

"Oh Clark," Lois whimpered, feeling teeth and tongue, biting and tugging insistently at her. Her back arched, pushing more of herself into that gloriously sensuous mouth.

"f**k," he grunted upon hearing that fevered cry. Was there anything as good as hearing your girlfriend cry out like that? "Lois, you're going to kill me."

"What a way to go Smallville," she muttered blissfully, feeling the surge of dampness between her legs as he continued to tease her. "God I need you inside me."

"You're so bossy," he grumbled playfully, hearing Lois' needy voice had emboldened Clark somewhat and he flipped them over, changing positions so that he was on top of her. Pulling back just enough to kick of his pants, Clark approached Lois with a knowing smile and removed the rest of her clothes. Once again, he was lost to the sight of her completely naked before him. She was the sexiest woman he had ever seen, with a body for sin and a spirit equal to none.

Lois sighed at how satisfying his weight felt against her when Clark lowered himself onto her body. She immediately ran hands over his strong back, shuddering when she felt him pressing hard against her lower belly.

Claming her mouth when she pulled him to her, they carried out a heated contest of duelling tongues as he slid one hand under her thigh and entwined the fingers of the other between hers. Her body moved under his like warm silk fluttering in the wind and the sensation made him so hard he had could barely think coherently. As his desire continued to build, his fingers tentatively explored the soft, delicate folds of velvet amongst damp curls. Fascinated by her warmth and emboldened by muscles that clenched around his fingers upon contact, Clark never thought a sense of touch could feel so satisfying.

"Jesus." His voice escaped him in a grunt. "You feel so good Lois."

Lois was beyond hearing.

"God, don't stop." She mumbled senselessly, her hips gyrating as she began riding his hand. His fingers were just wonderful and she wondered through a haze, just how he knew exactly where to touch her since this was the farthest they had ever gone sexually. She could feel him pressing up the wall of her slick depths, exploring her as if she were some wonderful new discovery.

"Never," he whispered even though he was not even conscious of having spoken. Her body was hard and taut under him, while her moist depths were ecstasy personified in a sensuous mix of heat wet and pressure. Her muscles kept tightening around his fingers, driving him damn near insane. She was finally his in a way that he had only dreamed about before.

"Smallville," Lois opened her eyes and looked at him. For all they were doing to each other, it wasn't enough. "I need you inside me." She begged in low hungry voice. "Please, come inside me."

Clark nodded, unable to offer a witty response to match her earlier teasing. He was so hard he could barely think. Hearing Lois plead like that had to be most erotic thing he had ever heard in his life. Clark never thought that there could be so much satisfaction in knowing that a woman like her could want him so badly. Losing his powers, being ordinary, it didn't seem so important if he could make Lois feel like this every day for the rest of their lives.

Sliding eagerly between her legs, he felt his thoughts fragment as he nudged past her soft, wet folds. His breath caught and he stiffened at the exquisite pleasure of penetration. Closing his eyes and biting down hard, he had to brace himself as warm suction coaxed him in with promises of agonising sensation when Lois wrapped her legs around his waist and sheathed him entirely.

Christ, she felt so good. How could he have held back so long?

"So tight," he muttered incoherently into her hair, "God, you're so tight."

Clark filled Lois like no one before, like no one she would ever want again. Just the initial stages of their coupling had sent her spiralling into a whirlwind of sensation from which she never wanted to surface. Her fingers slid over the firm muscles of his rear now that he was exactly where he should be. It was beyond reason how he was making her feel, Lois had never imagined it could be like this. She loved the smell of him, the taste of him, the way he felt buried inside of her all the way to the hilt.

"I love you Smallville," she whispered.

He raised his head just long enough to meet her eyes and though he was lost in sensation, Clark still appreciated the significance of her words. His cobalt coloured eyes sparkled just enough to show her his happiness before pleasure exerted control and he began to thrust into her.

It did not take Clark long to develop a rhythm although he knew it had been too long since the last time for him to last as long as he would have liked. Pumping into her warmth, feeling her muscles tighten around him, Clark felt slightly comforted by the fact that he didn't think Lois would last much longer either.

Jesus, he was f**king incredible, she thought blissfully out as his pace increased and he was starting to pound into her relentlessly, every ounce of pent up desire was finally finding its release and Lois was grateful for all of it.

Lois called his name repeatedly, unaware that words were leaving her mouth. It didn't matter so long as he continued what it was he was doing. She was flying higher and higher with each hard thrust, until she could hardly breathe for the pleasure of him. This was what was missing when she was forced to make love to Kal, this was what made Clark so distinctively different. With Clark, there was hard, driving desire but there was also tenderness and the mix was uniquely his. Lois knew at that moment, she would go to her dying day, never wanting to be with anyone else.

"Lois," Clark whimpered helplessly. "I can't hold on..."

Lois took his face in her hands and smiled, thinking he never looked as handsome as he did this moment, when he was about to succumb to the incredible dance of pleasure they had created together. "Let go Smallville," she whispered kissing him once more. "Let go."

Permission granted, his face contorted into a silent scream of pleasure as he gave in to the pent up desires he had held back for so long. It wasn't just the sex but the experience of being able to give everything of himself to someone. For once, he could do it without worrying about the consequences or feeling doubt that they would run away from him in fear.

With his release, Clark took Lois with him. Feeling him stiffen inside her was all she needed to push her over the edge. Like the sunrise on the horizon, Lois could feel warmth and light, until she could see nothing else but sheer brilliance. What made it sweeter had nothing to do with technique or skill and everything to do with the fact that she would love this man always.

"Do you think we should check on them?" Chloe asked Bruce over a cup of coffee in the kitchen. She hated it when her two best friends were mad at each other.

"Even I'm not brave enough to get in the middle of that argument," Bruce retorted, taking a sip from his own cup. "I'm sure they'll come down when they're ready."

"Okay," Chloe said dubiously. "But if they kill each other, I'm blaming you."