Ch. 25
The road was empty, save for one car. In it were two occupants, their seatbelts tightly wrapping them into the seat. Neither was speaking, but both knew the silence was only temporary.
Lois fidgeted in the seat, pulling her skirt once again.
"Lois, you have to stop that. You look great; there is no need to hide what is so beautiful." Clark looked over at her, his left wrist draped over the steering wheel. Quickly flashing a grin, he put a hand on her bare thigh and gave it a firm squeeze.
She reddened as she felt his hand on her thigh. "How come you make me so nervous and bashful?" She asked him, placing her hand on top of his. "I'm normally the one who makes the other blush."
Clark shrugged and put his foot down on the pedal a little harder. "You have a soft spot for me?" He looked back to the road, leaving his question hanging in the air.
"Maybe." She said softly, her words barely above a whisper. Neatly crossing her legs, she let his hand drop to the seat. She still held onto his though, her fingers gripping tighter to his palm.
Clark lifted her hand and kissed the back of it. "Don't worry Lois, it's not a bad thing."
Lois looked out down the road, her vision scanning the clouds that were steadily depleting the sunshine. "Good thing the top is up. It looks like it is going to rain." She changed the subject as quickly as she could. Any normal person would have picked up on it and questioned what was wrong, but Clark wasn't normal. She smiled as he just left it alone.
Clark leaned his head over the steering wheel and looked up to the clouds. "You're right." He said. Moments later a few rain drops fell onto the windshield and he turned on the wipers. "So much for the sun." He gripped the wheel with both hands and pushed on it. He sighed heavily.
"Don't like the rain Smallville?" She smirked at him.
Clark glared at her, but replaced it with a sly grin. "Well, not usually no, but to see you soaking wet may change my opinion."
"Hair like mine doesn't do so well when wet." She said, stroking a strand. "After getting so much body in it, it would suck to have it flattened again."
"When did Lois Lane begin to fret about her hair?" He chuckled.
She shot him an annoyed glare. "When you told me to brush it Smallville." She smirked at him suddenly. "I'm beginning to think you have a follicle fetish." Her grin was wider than the clouds above the car.
Clark, still grinning, reached over and patted her on the top of her head, just like he would a dog. "It's just one of many." He said, winking at her.
Lois shoved his hand away, feeling like a child as she did it. "Quit treating me like a child, I'm your girlfriend, treat me with a little more respect." She had said it seriously, but she really didn't mean it.
He heard the sternness in her voice and looked over to her. "I'm sorry Lois." He said, his eyes lingering on her face as she turned to look at him. "I didn't mean to upset you."
She stared at his apologetic face. "You are always apologizing. You never do anything wrong, yet you always think something is amiss." She grabbed his hand and rubbed it. "I don't want to hear another apology all day." She paused and looked at him. "Okay?" She stated when he didn't say anything back.
"Okay." He said, bending towards her to greet her in a kiss, but the seatbelt caught him before he could get anywhere close.
Lois laughed, pulled off her seatbelt and leaned over, kissing him. She pulled back, smiling. "A seatbelt the only thing that can hold you back?" She joked, looking at the mirth in his eyes.
Clark chuckled along with her. He was surprised he didn't snap the seatbelt; it would have made for an awkward moment to say the least. Looking back to the road, he could see the outline of the city growing closer as the rain began to fall more steadily. The road was still empty, no car going in either direction. "Where is all the traffic?" He asked aimlessly.
Lois looked at him, thinking he was just playing with her. She stopped herself from giving a flip retort when she saw the look on his face. His question had been dead serious. "I have no idea." She said, worried. Looking back to the road, she noticed the lightening beginning to flash over the city. "Looks like quite a storm."
Clark looked up to the sky again, this time leaning towards the driver door window. "Looks like a big one." He replied, echoing her statement. "Hopefully we'll make it to the mall before it starts to rain really hard." He could see the mall just as he took the first turn off. "Luckily it isn't right downtown." He said, smiling over at Lois.
"Yes, my hair is that important you know." She was unbuckling her seatbelt as the car pulled into the parking lot. "Now, since we both didn't bring a coat, please tell me you brought an umbrella?"
Clark snorted a laugh. "You know full well I didn't. Plus, this is your car; shouldn't you have one in here somewhere?" He laughed to himself as he found the closest empty parking spot to the mall and pulled in.
"Yeah right Smallville." She punched him lightly in the shoulder as he turned the car off. I'm wearing a coat of some kind. You're just in a T-Shirt. You'll be wetter than me." She looked at him seductively. "Too bad it's black and not white."
Clark rolled is eyes and opened the door. Getting out, he let the rain hit him full on. It wasn't coming down very hard, but each drop was large and heavy. He was about to walk towards the mall entrance, but stalled when he saw that Lois wasn't getting out. Bending down, he looked in at her. "Getting out?" He asked.
Lois's sly smirk found its way back onto her face. "You're my boyfriend. You should open the door for me."
Clark groaned and shut the door. He casually walked to the other side of the door and knocked on the window, ignoring the rain that was falling upon him. The window rolled down slowly.
"Yes?" Lois asked, acting as if she had never met him before. "Speak up sir, what do you want?"
He grumbled some more as he decided not to play along in her little game. His shirt was getting soaked. "Come on Lois, I'm getting wetter out here every second you delay."
"Good, then maybe I'll have to buy you a new shirt to walk around in. I really never liked black on you." She grinned at him and rolled the window back up slowly. Smiling even wider, she locked the door.
Clark, annoyed with her game, slipped up and let his emotions get the best of him. He grabbed the door handle and wrenched the door free. The sound of the lock snapping brought him back to reality as he let go of the door as it swung aside. He watched as Lois got out of the car and stood in front of him, her eyes wide.
She looked at him, then at the door. For almost a minute she looked back and forth from him to the door, her eyes almost bulging out of her skull. "You broke my door." She said finally. There were no other words that would escape her lips. She was shocked to say the least.
Clark's face slipped from his annoyed look to absolute fear. He quickly gained back his scowl and shot back. "That's for not getting out of the car." He smiled at her quickly, trying to lighten the tension that was hanging over them.
She just stared at him, her eyes still wide. "Clark, what in the world did you just do?"
"I opened the door. Isn't it obvious?"
Lois dropped the questions that were running wild in her head and squeezed his right bicep. "I knew you were strong Clark, but you broke the lock. I don't know if I can ever let this go." She watched his eyes cloud over in fear, but she washed it away with a grin. "Don't worry; I won't dump you because of it." Her eyes showed mirth, but deep down she was conflicted. What he had done just raised so many questions she wanted answered. There was no way that someone could just rip open a locked door, but Clark just did. She closed her eyes and shook her head. She would leave her questions until later. "Now, let's get in before we get soaked." Tugging at his arm she darted for the mall.
Clark stood there stunned. Lois had dropped the door fiasco like it was a rabid coon. He frowned. Lois never dropped things; she always had to root out the source of all things strange and obscure. In many ways she was like Chloe, but with more attitude. He heard her call him, bringing him out of thought. He watched her grin at him while she ran backwards. "I'm coming." He said, running after her a second later.
Lois laughed as she tried to dart in-between each drop of rain. Her footwear was slowing her down, but she kept on going. She was almost at the curb by the entrance when she felt a strong pair of arms lift her up off her feet.
Clark let out a bellowing laugh as he draped her over his shoulder. Rushing through the doors, he spun her around a few times. He watched as her hair went flying wildly.
Lois let out a yelp as Clark spun her around on his shoulder. "Stop Smallville." She laughed out.
"Getting dizzy?" He asked, ignoring the people who were watching them. He slowed down and came to a smooth stop, Lois still draped over his shoulder.
"I'm not dizzy." She said, looking from the spinning floor to spinning mall. "Put me down." She said with more authority.
"Why?" He asked, still laughing.
"Because, everyone is getting a good look at my rear end."
Clark looked at what she meant. Her rear was sticking straight out by his face, her thong clearly showing from under her skirt. Blushing furiously, he set her down, his hands sliding to her waist.
She turned almost the same color as Clark as she looked around at the people staring. Feeling incredibly self conscious, she straightened her shirt and pulled at her skirt yet again. "Let's get out of here." She said meekly.
He nodded and led her away from the entrance with his hand on her back. They walked briskly, still feeling the eyes of others on their backs as they disappeared into the throngs of people walking between stores.
As soon as they were far enough away so that no one could see them, she backed him into a corner and gave him a hard punch to the arm. "What the hell did you do that for?" She scowled at him like only his mother would. "Everyone got to see my bare arse. God Smallville, sometimes you are so stupid I think I might have to put you on a leash." She pinned him up against the wall with a hand to his chest. His shirt was still wet, and suddenly she realized that her hand was drawing circles around his pectorals.
"Uh, Lois." Clark was looking down at her strange expression.
"Mmm?"
"Lois, we're in public. Get your hand off my belt." He pushed her hand away, trying to be as gentle as possible.
Lois snapped back to reality as she looked up at him suddenly. "What is it about you that causes me to lose all my inhibitions?" It was a serious question, one that she couldn't put her finger on the answer.
Clark looked down at her pleading eyes and could only shrug. "I don't know Lois; you do the same thing to me. The thing is I know the difference between decency and indecency. You are just greedy Lois." He was smiling at her.
"Can you blame me?" She smirked, kissing him softly on the chin. "Now, answer me. Why did you pick me up earlier?"
"Isn't it obvious?" He asked, grabbing her hand in his.
"No." She retorted, her anger boiling just a pinch. "If it was I would have stated so." Removing her hand from his, she turned around and looked at the numerous people passing by, none of them aware that she was watching.
Clark closed the distance she had made between them. Placing his hand on her shoulder, he bent down and whispered in her ear. "I just wanted to see you smile."
She turned around and looked at him straight in the eyes, her own screaming with desire. The words had come out his mouth so smoothly, so softly, all she wanted to do at that moment was rip his clothes off. She reminded herself that they were still in public, and swallowed the lump in her throat. Resigning to just a kiss, she put a hand on his cheek. "You really have to stop playing with my emotions. I don't think I can take it anymore."
He gave her faint smile. "Are you admitting defeat?" His smile quickly spread into a toothy grin.
She closed her eyes and sighed. "I'm serious Smallville. My body is aching for you, and all you seem to do is edge me on. Whether you're doing it on purpose or not, you have to stop." Her eyes fluttered open.
The look she gave him was enough for his grin to disappear. He wrapped her tightly in his arms. Lois had given up. It wasn't really a victory, but more of a surprise. The woman never gave up. First by the car, then this, he was seriously wondering if she was truly alright. "You're scaring me Lois."
"How?" She asked, her hand never leaving his face.
"You're not acting like yourself. You are showing me something that I didn't think existed."
"And what is that?" Her fingers tapped his cheek softly.
"Vulnerability." He said, his eyes staring into the top of her head. "I've never seen you this vulnerable."
Lois couldn't help but agree with him. He seemed to bring down all her barriers, most likely not on purpose, but he did it none the less. In truth, she felt disgusted. She was always taught to be strong, to have willpower, but for some reason Clark got to her. It wasn't just a one way street though; she had some strange hold over him too. "I may be vulnerable in your arms Clark, but it won't take much and you will be putty in my hands."
"I don't scare you, do I?" He asked, suddenly.
She pulled back and looked up at his pleading eyes. "In some ways you do. The way you opened the door, the way you caught up with me at the entrance way. There was no way you should have been able to do any of that." The sadness that was creeping into his eyes caused her stomach to tighten. There was something there that he was hiding; no he was forcing it to stay hidden. "There is something in your eyes Smallville, something I can't make sense of. Usually you can tell when someone is hiding something, but you, you aren't hiding something. You are trying to forget something." She searched his whole face for meaning, but came up empty. The look he was giving her caused her stomach to turn over, instantly forcing her to regret her words. She lightened the mood suddenly. "I'm not Lana, I won't even begin to ask."
Clark laughed. One moment she was being serious, on the edge of questioning him, and then she completely surprised him. He was incredibly relieved. The moment she began questioning him, it would be the first sign that she didn't trust him. The words that she was unlike Lana were so ironically true. Lana's doubts ate away at their relationship. Luckily, he could see that Lois didn't seem to share those same doubts.
"I'll agree with you on that. You are much taller."
She stepped out of his arms and crossed her own over her chest. "That's all?" She asked, her playful frown deepening her soft features.
Clark draped his arm around her and guided her back to the throng of people walking through the shopping mall. "You happen to have some muscle on you. Plus, you eat like a woman should. Lord knows how I put up with a woman who ate dainty salads and felt like a twig in my hands."
"Are you calling me fat?" She asked. The laughter was almost escaping her throat.
Clark squeezed her shoulder and shrugged. "No, just pleasantly plump." He caught her gaze, her eyes squinting at him.
"I am not plump." She said with a sour tone. "In fact, I don't have any excess weight on me."
"Maybe not, but you get what I'm saying?"
"I think so." She glared at him with a sloppy grin. "You want someone who won't break under pressure." Winking at him, she slipped from under his arm and held his hand. "Now, let's find you something to wear. Your shirt is still wet."
"That's your fault remember. You are going to pay for a new one."
Lois snorted out a loud laugh. "In your dreams Smallville." She pulled him towards a small clothier store that carried only men's finer clothes. "Let's see if there is anything in here."
Clark let her half drag, half force him into the store. He didn't like shopping. In fact, it was so far down on his list of enjoying things to do, he thought it almost like church, he never went. He looked down at her legs as he followed her into the store. He might not have enjoyed shopping, but her legs could certainly keep him following her from store to store.
Lois stopped abruptly to look at a shirt hanging from a rack on the wall. She almost fell to the floor as Clark bumped into her from behind. Regaining her bearings, she turned around and glared at him. The blush in his cheeks was the only thing that gave him away. "You were drooling over me again weren't you?" The sheepish look in his eyes gave him away again. "I told you to stop; you could have pushed me over and hurt me."
"Yeah right." He said sarcastically.
She smiled at him. "Good to see that you're starting to get it. Now, try this on." She turned around and grabbed a nice white polo golf shirt. Holding it up in front of him, she smirked. "Your color I think."
"I don't think so." He said dryly.
"Hmm." Lois sighed, putting the shirt back. Walking farther into the small store, she eyed a nice pair of slacks. "Do you prefer black or beige?" She asked, grabbing a pair from the rack. "I'm a fan of the black myself."
Clark eyed the pants meticulously. "I like the style, but I usually have problem with the length."
Lois held the pants up to his belt. "They might just be long enough, Why not give them a try."
He grabbed the pants with a heavy hand and headed towards the change room.
"Smallville?" Lois called, watching him walk towards the change room.
"Yeah?" He asked, turning to look at her, and getting a face full of shirt.
"Try that on too."
"Yes m'am." He grumbled, closing the door with authority.
"They're all the same aren't they?"
Lois looked to her left to see who had spoken. She was greeted by a tall dark skinned woman with curly black hair and glowing white teeth. The woman seemed friendly enough, so she nodded. "That they are."
"I'm Katherine." The dark woman said, extending her hand.
Lois gave it a slight shake. "Lois, nice to meet you."
"You here with a friend?" Katherine asked, slightly bored with the silence that was enveloping the store.
Lois was relieved that this woman didn't seem to be the quiet type. Small chatter was never her forte, but it was better than nothing. "Well, sort of. I guess you can say that." Lois wasn't quite sure how to label her and Clark's relationship, there were so many variables to it there really wasn't anything else she could think of.
Katherine picked up on Lois's tone right away. "Sounds like you're not sure." She paused a moment, gauging how intimate she should get with a complete stranger.
Lois was struggling with her own decision to explain more or just leave it be. The silence that passed between them made up her mind. "First date." She said finally.
"Seems like you've known him a while though, especially if he lets you pick out his clothes." Katherine checked her watch. "What is with men? I swear sometimes they are so slow they make my morning makeup routine seem like a forty yard dash." A small smile parsed her lips.
Lois rolled her eyes in agreement. "Clark and I have known each other for about two years, things just sort of fell into place yesterday. It was really strange. Everything went backwards, but I guess that in itself makes perfect sense. There's something about him that I find odd."
"Odd in a good way though?"
"Yeah, but I don't spend too much time thinking about it. I tend to let these things fall into place. I'm lazy when it comes to relationships." Lois frowned and knocked on the door. "You ready yet Smallville?" She asked. Lois chuckled as she heard him grunt from behind the door. "Hurry up before you use all the hot water." Laughing sharply, she banged on the door for dramatic effect. She continued to smile as she looked over at a grinning Katherine. "So, I forgot to ask you. Boyfriend?"
"Fiancé." She replied in a cheery tone.
"Congratulations." Lois said, taking the woman's left hand and spying the ring. "Nice rock."
"Thank you." She replied, pulling her hand away, feeling a little uncomfortable.
Lois nodded. "When's the wedding?"
"In a couple of weeks." Katherine spun the ring on her finger. "Not soon enough to tell you the truth. I'm already jittery."
Something in the back of Lois's mind was tugging at her, but she ignored it. "Never been married, can't give you any advice." She gave the woman a helpless look. "I'm sure it will go fine."
Katherine thanked her with a smile. "I know it will. Right now I just hope I can get him something to wear for the rehearsal dinner. He is so fashion challenged its ridiculous. T-shirt and jeans everyday."
"I know how you feel." Lois said. "I have the exact same problem with Smallville. He does throw on a plaid shirt on once and a while though, but that's not proper clothes to be wearing around in public."
"Smallville?"
"Nick name. Well sort of." Lois looked at Katherine with and empty expression. Turning her attention back to Clark, she pounded on the door again. "Hurry it up, we don't have all day."
"Coming dear." Clark said sarcastically from behind the door.
Lois grinned and looked over to Katherine again. "What's your fiancé's name?"
Katherine was about to answer but the door opened and her future husband walked out.
"It's Victor." He said, handing over a set of pants to Katherine. "This one fits." He readjusted his belt and looked at his fiancé. "Talking with strangers again?" His white teeth showed brightly against this dark skin. He was about to say something more, but he stopped. "Did I overhear you say Clark?" His eyes were focused on Lois.
"Yes, but why-." She was cut off when Clark came out of the change room, his pants up past his ankles and his shirt at least one size to small for him.
Clark looked at the shirt and tugged at the sleeves that went only to his forearms. "Larger size might do." He said, looking up at Lois with a grin. Lois had a weird look on her face, and she wasn't even looking at him. Following her gaze, he noticed two people standing together just a couple of feet away.
"Clark, I really think you ought to hit the big and tall store. You look ridiculous." Victor laughed.
Clark clasped hands with the former Met High wide receiver. "Victor, I think you're right. I do look ridiculous." He glanced over to Katherine. "Congratulations on the wedding." He wasn't too surprised that he ran into them, it was Metropolis, and weird things were synonymous with Metropolis and Smallville in general. He turned his attention back to Lois who looked a little lost.
Lois's eyes snapped wide as she found that little tug on her brain. "Ah, now I know who you are. Sorry, took me a second to piece it all together." Clark introduced her formally, but she had probably talked to Katherine more in three minutes than he ever had.
"You're coming to the wedding aren't you?" Victor asked, tucking in his t-shirt.
"Of course Victor, wouldn't miss it." Clark undid the tight shirt and took it off. It was really uncomfortable, and he really didn't care if he wasn't in the change room. Handing it over to Lois, he grabbed the same shirt, but two sizes bigger. While he was buttoning it up, he glanced to see both Katherine and Lois staring at his chest. He looked at Victor with raised eyebrows.
Victor got the look and nudged his soon to be wife. "Honey, quit staring. It's Clark, not an underwear model."
Katherine tore her gaze away. "Sorry." She said.
Victor just rolled his eyes and grabbed the pants in her hand and walked to the checkout counter.
Lois was still staring, but then again she always did. Clark looked at Katherine and laughed. "Katherine, you wouldn't mind bringing Lois back to reality for me would you?" He grinned and stepped back into the changing room with a bigger pair of black pants.
"Lois." Katherine hissed. She nudged the brunette with elbow. "Lois, snap out of if."
"What?" Lois screamed. She became self conscious as others in the store turned to look at her. Her face became a little red as she looked over to Katherine. "I was staring again wasn't I?"
"Again? I could have sworn you have never seen his bare chest before, you were like a kid in a candy store."
Lois let her eyes close, remembering the sight of a naked Clark Kent. "I've seen everything that man has to offer, and trust me, if you saw it all, you'd stare too."
"Lois!" Katherine said sternly. "I don't know you at all, and you're going to talk to me about that sort of thing."
"Why not? I can't talk to anyone else about it. My best friend is my cousin, and she's in love with Clark. The only other women I'm close to is Clark's mom." Lois let out a long sigh.
The dark haired woman ran a hand through her curly locks. "Sounds like a pretty pickle you've managed to work yourself into."
"I haven't even mentioned that we haven't even told anyone that we're dating."
"Why is that?"
"There are two people in love with him, one I couldn't hurt, and one I want to beat the life out of. If Chloe wasn't still in love with him, I wouldn't be so worried and secretive." Lois watched as Victor came back over to them, his clothes in a bag. She noticed something odd in the way he was walking. There wasn't anything particular she could put her finger on, he just seemed to walk different.
"How long did your cousin and Clark date?" Katherine asked, finding Victor's hand as he got closer.
"That's the kicker, they never dated."
"Never dated?" Victor said, surprised. "Sounds like a high school crush to me."
Lois raised her hands in the air. "Finally, there is someone who understands. I thought I was the only one who did."
"What about Lana?" Victor asked.
Lois grinned to herself; the thought of slapping Lana around some more was giving her the tiniest bit pleasure. "Clark dumped her about three months ago."
"I thought Clark had been in love with her since elementary school." Victor draped an arm around Katherine.
"He had been, but I think he found out that she is the most whiny, needy and doubting woman in the world. I was always kind to the woman out respect, but once he broke up with her, I got all the emotion from him. He almost despises the woman. It's shocking to think that Clark could almost hate someone." Lois tapped her foot, trying to forcibly will Clark out of the change room.
Clark stepped out a second later, a navy blue dress shirt that he hadn't bothered to tuck in. The pants fit really well, but they weren't long enough yet again. Doing up the zipper, he stood in front of the mirror. Not bad he thought to himself.
"Looking handsome, Smallville." Lois said, standing beside him, her smirk present. "Good thing those cuffs on the bottom of those pants come down, otherwise we'd have to go to the big and tall store."
Clark raised his eyebrows. He hadn't seen the cuffs while changing; they were much bigger than they needed to be. "Good, less shopping then." He grinned and went back to the change room, leaving a smirking Lois Lane by the mirror. He came out a minute later with both the pants and shirt in hand. Walking over to Lois, he winked to both Victor and Katherine. Turning back to Lois, he handed her the clothes. "You wouldn't mind paying for these would you?"
Lois scowled at him, her hands going straight to her hips. "I don't think so." She said seriously.
"Come on Lois, I forgot my wallet." He grinned at her.
She just shook her head and laughed out loud. "I'm not that stupid Smallville."
"Why don't you just race home and get it?" Victor asked from behind.
Clark's eyes went wide. He saw a weird expression on Lois's face and turned around. The glare he gave Victor caused the man half made of bionics to lose his grin. Clark shook his head and mouthed "No." silently.
Victor looked at Clark and instantly understood what he meant. "Just kidding Clark." He said, smiling quickly. He slapped himself mentally at being so careless. Clark had dated Lana and never told her about his abilities, he shouldn't have been surprised that he hadn't told Lois. Looking over to Kat, he spoke quietly. "Oops."
Katherine swatted him on the arm. "Oops is right." She said, glaring at him.
Lois watched as Clark turned around to look at her, a grin on his face again. When Victor told him to race home, she could have sworn he sounded serious. Something was going on, but she didn't have the heart to ask. "You're paying for it, and that's final Smallville." She pushed away the clothes that were still in his hands. Walking briskly out of the store, she smiled to herself, the victory hers, even if it only lasted a few minutes.