Part 15
The security was even tighter than the one in LexCorp. Lois Lane found it odd to have the robotic movements following her every move. She couldn't think of a reason why Bruce Wayne's building would be guarded more heavily than Luthor's, when it was apparent that more people generally hated Lex and Bruce was more accepted in the social circles.
Reporter's instincts aside, Lois was glad that everyone would be scanned this much before even getting close to any of the Wayne Enterprises employees. Here in Gotham City, which primarily was an introvert if ever a place was one, nobody would notice that a billionaire's dead fiancé was building a career of her own.
She met Lily Alexander in an exclusive café on the twenty seventh floor of the building, where Lois had to show her ID and be checked in for confirmation with the guard on the entrance and the security group manning the cameras.
It was the first time she saw Chloe Sullivan since she dropped her off with Bruce Wayne a couple of months ago. Lois couldn't help but exclaim the second she saw the woman, "You are positively glowing!"
Chloe's serious demeanor cracked and she gave her a bright smile. "Thank you!" And at once Lois could see that her friend was in way blaming this sudden change on the baby. "I finally tamp down my cynicism on the beauty of mothers-to-be."
The brunette took the seat in front of Chloe. "I was so surprised when I got your letter," she began. "I mean. I didn't know you were dating."
"I'm not. It was a one-time thing." Chloe paused for a while, considering. "Ummm two. Two separate instances but it wasn't singular on each-"
"I think I know what you're getting at," Lois interrupted. She closed her hand over Chloe's and measured her words carefully. "Was it. ummm. Mr. Wayne's?"
Chloe pulled back her hand as though scalded. "What?! No! It's." She swallowed to clear her throat. "Just. it's a wanted baby."
Lois' eyes went wide as she regarded the woman sitting in front of her, sipping her mocha frappe, not meeting her eyes. "Oh my God," she whispered. "You didn't tell me! I can't believe you kept something this big from me."
"Lois, it's no big deal."
"No big deal? You did it with Lex Luthor before you left him."
"I've been doing it with Lex Luthor for years!" she snapped. And then Chloe realized what she had said, and remembered that those words were not true at all. "I-"
"You're right," Lois said. She didn't mean to remind Chloe of the most important reason why she was feeling that way about her former fiancé. "You've been dating him since college right?"
Chloe smiled her thanks. "So tell me, Lois. What's new?"
The brunette regarded her suspiciously before going on and on about the Daily Planet, her friends, her dating life. Finally, when she saw that the blonde was about to blow up, Lois grinned. "What's going on with Lex Luthor you mean." Chloe rolled her eyes. "He's actually been pretty quiet. No huge deal since I took you here. It's even scarier now without any news surrounding the guy. He could be working on some sort of time bomb and we're not even sufficiently trembling."
"He won't do anything," Chloe said, more to herself than to her friend.
"Chloe, would you ever consider going back to him?"
There was a moment of silence before pink lips curved. "I pack my stuff up every night and call the airport, asking about the flight schedule to Metropolis," she answered. "But then after I've thought about it again I would unpack and get to bed."
"You can't be afraid of him," Lois reasoned. "You said it yourself. He won't do anything bad."
"But if I'm there, it would be easy for his enemies to use me against him. He will eventually commit things he would regret, because he thinks it would be best for me. Especially with the baby." Chloe frowned. Why was it that when she gave words to her reasons they seemed pointless and vague, but in her heart, she was justified? "Lex did all these heinous acts the past two years. I can't forget that."
When Lois didn't respond, Chloe prodded her with a tap. "You're not afraid he'll be pushed to evil," Lois told her. At Chloe's look of outrage, she amended, "Fine. You are. But that's not entirely your reason. You still haven't forgiven him."
"You don't know what you're saying," Chloe said softly.
"It's true. Lex Luthor violated not only all those people in Smallville and in Metropolis when he was fighting to keep you with him. He violated you, because more than lying to Clark and Mr. Sullivan, he lied to you for two years." Chloe looked awake, but Lois closed her hand over hers. "It's okay, Chloe," she insisted. "It's okay to feel that way. He created this huge lie and made you live in it."
"He made up a baby for me," Chloe whispered. "And then he made up every day like it were real. And he told me all the time he loved me in a make believe world."
Lois settled back in her chair and considered everything that Lex Luthor did. It was so much for one man to deal with. "What a burden of conscience," she murmured, and Lois didn't notice how her words made Chloe's attention snap back to her. "Just so he wouldn't let you go."
In the Daily Planet offices, Clark Kent was furiously working on the article that Lois had left him hanging with. He was copyreading another of his partner's works that had been due for over six hours already. He didn't pay attention to the way the busy bullpen suddenly hushed at the dinging of the elevator bell.
The hushed murmurs that had died down earlier suddenly picked up. But Clark was working and didn't even bother to look up at the newcomer.
"Will you be greeting me anytime soon?"
His head snapped up to take in the form of his best friend, in a black coat with a gray scarf around his neck. Clark swallowed before still croaking out, "Lex, what are you doing here?"
"I came by to talk to you. I didn't know you were being treated as a slave here. I could have given you an easier and higher-paying job had you asked."
Clark, still uncomfortable with the sudden appearance of the man who used to claim to be his best friend, fidgeted before motioning to Lois' vacant seat. "I doubt that you would have. I've been trying to get in touch."
Lex's mouth quirked at the subtle reminder of the way Clark kept landing on his balcony the last few months. "I apologize," he said, and Clark was stunned into silence. Lex never said sorry to anyone. Chloe used to say that when they had a fight, they just never spoke about it and continue on as before. She said it had something to do with Eric Segal's "Love means never having to say you're sorry." That was utter irony, he used to think, because of how parallel Jennifer and Chloe ended up as. "I was a little out of it."
"For two years." The words slipped out of Clark's mouth before he even caught them.
Lex merely nodded in acknowledgement. "I suppose my sudden appearance has you dumbfounded." He took a large manila envelope from inside his coat and handed it to his former friend. "This is what I came for. I'm leaving for business in a couple of hours. I need you to go back to Smallville and settle these. I will owe you forever, not that I already don't."
Clark took a look at the papers contained in the envelope. He skimmed through various land titles and checks.
"Hand them back to their owners and give the money to the families in reparation. Those are the people who've been affected by my mad quest for the past couple of years. I don't want her to be involved in this."
Lex released a relieved breath when Clark stood up and extended his hand. He shook it and then gripped the younger man's shoulder. "I won't ask," Clark told him.
"I have business to take care of. I don't know how soon or even if I'll be returning. But I want this settled, Clark. I wouldn't want people to blame her when word gets out about why I took their lands from them."
"Where are you going, Lex?" Clark asked, just before his friend vanished into the elevator.
"Gotham."
Clark picked up his bag and shoved the papers into the out tray. Lois just went there right after she received mail from. Lily Alexander. Lillian. Lex. He jogged to the editor's office and yelled, "I'm sorry, Perry. I gotta go." Without waiting for an answer, he ran down several flights of stairs within seconds, knowing he needed to be there in Gotham for whatever kind of showdown there would be.
The security was even tighter than the one in LexCorp. Lois Lane found it odd to have the robotic movements following her every move. She couldn't think of a reason why Bruce Wayne's building would be guarded more heavily than Luthor's, when it was apparent that more people generally hated Lex and Bruce was more accepted in the social circles.
Reporter's instincts aside, Lois was glad that everyone would be scanned this much before even getting close to any of the Wayne Enterprises employees. Here in Gotham City, which primarily was an introvert if ever a place was one, nobody would notice that a billionaire's dead fiancé was building a career of her own.
She met Lily Alexander in an exclusive café on the twenty seventh floor of the building, where Lois had to show her ID and be checked in for confirmation with the guard on the entrance and the security group manning the cameras.
It was the first time she saw Chloe Sullivan since she dropped her off with Bruce Wayne a couple of months ago. Lois couldn't help but exclaim the second she saw the woman, "You are positively glowing!"
Chloe's serious demeanor cracked and she gave her a bright smile. "Thank you!" And at once Lois could see that her friend was in way blaming this sudden change on the baby. "I finally tamp down my cynicism on the beauty of mothers-to-be."
The brunette took the seat in front of Chloe. "I was so surprised when I got your letter," she began. "I mean. I didn't know you were dating."
"I'm not. It was a one-time thing." Chloe paused for a while, considering. "Ummm two. Two separate instances but it wasn't singular on each-"
"I think I know what you're getting at," Lois interrupted. She closed her hand over Chloe's and measured her words carefully. "Was it. ummm. Mr. Wayne's?"
Chloe pulled back her hand as though scalded. "What?! No! It's." She swallowed to clear her throat. "Just. it's a wanted baby."
Lois' eyes went wide as she regarded the woman sitting in front of her, sipping her mocha frappe, not meeting her eyes. "Oh my God," she whispered. "You didn't tell me! I can't believe you kept something this big from me."
"Lois, it's no big deal."
"No big deal? You did it with Lex Luthor before you left him."
"I've been doing it with Lex Luthor for years!" she snapped. And then Chloe realized what she had said, and remembered that those words were not true at all. "I-"
"You're right," Lois said. She didn't mean to remind Chloe of the most important reason why she was feeling that way about her former fiancé. "You've been dating him since college right?"
Chloe smiled her thanks. "So tell me, Lois. What's new?"
The brunette regarded her suspiciously before going on and on about the Daily Planet, her friends, her dating life. Finally, when she saw that the blonde was about to blow up, Lois grinned. "What's going on with Lex Luthor you mean." Chloe rolled her eyes. "He's actually been pretty quiet. No huge deal since I took you here. It's even scarier now without any news surrounding the guy. He could be working on some sort of time bomb and we're not even sufficiently trembling."
"He won't do anything," Chloe said, more to herself than to her friend.
"Chloe, would you ever consider going back to him?"
There was a moment of silence before pink lips curved. "I pack my stuff up every night and call the airport, asking about the flight schedule to Metropolis," she answered. "But then after I've thought about it again I would unpack and get to bed."
"You can't be afraid of him," Lois reasoned. "You said it yourself. He won't do anything bad."
"But if I'm there, it would be easy for his enemies to use me against him. He will eventually commit things he would regret, because he thinks it would be best for me. Especially with the baby." Chloe frowned. Why was it that when she gave words to her reasons they seemed pointless and vague, but in her heart, she was justified? "Lex did all these heinous acts the past two years. I can't forget that."
When Lois didn't respond, Chloe prodded her with a tap. "You're not afraid he'll be pushed to evil," Lois told her. At Chloe's look of outrage, she amended, "Fine. You are. But that's not entirely your reason. You still haven't forgiven him."
"You don't know what you're saying," Chloe said softly.
"It's true. Lex Luthor violated not only all those people in Smallville and in Metropolis when he was fighting to keep you with him. He violated you, because more than lying to Clark and Mr. Sullivan, he lied to you for two years." Chloe looked awake, but Lois closed her hand over hers. "It's okay, Chloe," she insisted. "It's okay to feel that way. He created this huge lie and made you live in it."
"He made up a baby for me," Chloe whispered. "And then he made up every day like it were real. And he told me all the time he loved me in a make believe world."
Lois settled back in her chair and considered everything that Lex Luthor did. It was so much for one man to deal with. "What a burden of conscience," she murmured, and Lois didn't notice how her words made Chloe's attention snap back to her. "Just so he wouldn't let you go."
In the Daily Planet offices, Clark Kent was furiously working on the article that Lois had left him hanging with. He was copyreading another of his partner's works that had been due for over six hours already. He didn't pay attention to the way the busy bullpen suddenly hushed at the dinging of the elevator bell.
The hushed murmurs that had died down earlier suddenly picked up. But Clark was working and didn't even bother to look up at the newcomer.
"Will you be greeting me anytime soon?"
His head snapped up to take in the form of his best friend, in a black coat with a gray scarf around his neck. Clark swallowed before still croaking out, "Lex, what are you doing here?"
"I came by to talk to you. I didn't know you were being treated as a slave here. I could have given you an easier and higher-paying job had you asked."
Clark, still uncomfortable with the sudden appearance of the man who used to claim to be his best friend, fidgeted before motioning to Lois' vacant seat. "I doubt that you would have. I've been trying to get in touch."
Lex's mouth quirked at the subtle reminder of the way Clark kept landing on his balcony the last few months. "I apologize," he said, and Clark was stunned into silence. Lex never said sorry to anyone. Chloe used to say that when they had a fight, they just never spoke about it and continue on as before. She said it had something to do with Eric Segal's "Love means never having to say you're sorry." That was utter irony, he used to think, because of how parallel Jennifer and Chloe ended up as. "I was a little out of it."
"For two years." The words slipped out of Clark's mouth before he even caught them.
Lex merely nodded in acknowledgement. "I suppose my sudden appearance has you dumbfounded." He took a large manila envelope from inside his coat and handed it to his former friend. "This is what I came for. I'm leaving for business in a couple of hours. I need you to go back to Smallville and settle these. I will owe you forever, not that I already don't."
Clark took a look at the papers contained in the envelope. He skimmed through various land titles and checks.
"Hand them back to their owners and give the money to the families in reparation. Those are the people who've been affected by my mad quest for the past couple of years. I don't want her to be involved in this."
Lex released a relieved breath when Clark stood up and extended his hand. He shook it and then gripped the younger man's shoulder. "I won't ask," Clark told him.
"I have business to take care of. I don't know how soon or even if I'll be returning. But I want this settled, Clark. I wouldn't want people to blame her when word gets out about why I took their lands from them."
"Where are you going, Lex?" Clark asked, just before his friend vanished into the elevator.
"Gotham."
Clark picked up his bag and shoved the papers into the out tray. Lois just went there right after she received mail from. Lily Alexander. Lillian. Lex. He jogged to the editor's office and yelled, "I'm sorry, Perry. I gotta go." Without waiting for an answer, he ran down several flights of stairs within seconds, knowing he needed to be there in Gotham for whatever kind of showdown there would be.