Metropolis: The Daily Planet: Lois Lane's cubicle/office

11:17 A.M.

Friday, June 18th

Clark Kent was leaning on the paper-strewn desk with his left elbow. His right arm was preoccupied with pushing the mini Hot Wheels racecar over a pile of folders that he had stacked up as a ramp. Lois Lane was currently in Perry White's office talking to him about something. Clark assumed it was big because she had gone in an hour ago and she still hadn't come out yet.

Maybe she's been murdered, Clark thought as the racecar zoomed this-way-and-that on the curvy path that he had created out of pens and pencils lying around on Lois' work space. Clark's mind began to wander to a different topic. So far, this week has sucked…Lana barely has time for me when I get home and when I do get home, it's already eight or something…. Clark had been forced into overtime by Lois; her excuse being that she hated being in the office alone at night and she needed her coffee. Clark was just glad that Lois was going home early today since Chloe suggested the two of them go clubbing. It gave Clark the chance to catch up with his fiancé's doings for the few past days. Usually when I get home, Lana's busy looking at bridal magazines with Mom. Clark had come home last night to his mother and Lana bending over page after page of wedding dresses. He and Lana had barely exchanged words for the past nights. It had just been a 'hello' and 'goodnight' for them and an occasional 'love you.'

"Hey, give this to Lois, Clark." A voice jerked Clark out of his thoughts.

"Lucy!" Clark jumped at the slight of an elder woman in her early thirties. Lucy Loins was red-headed and she wore some of the shortest skirts that he had ever seen. She happened to be Perry White's secretary and Lois Lane's source for all the gossip that happened in the building from the elevators to the bathrooms. From what he had gathered from Lois, she happened to have a small thing for him. Oblivious to any other woman besides his angel, Clark had shrugged it off. Lois could have just been saying that to get him uncomfortable.

Up until yesterday, Clark Kent would have agreed with that. Now, though, he wasn't so sure. During his lunch break yesterday, when nearly everyone had left the building for some of Tony's pizza, Lucy Loin's had sneaked up on him. Clark had been filing some papers for Lois while she was using the bathroom, when he was stunned by a Lucy Loins wearing a short miniskirt that looked like it had been stolen from a stripper bar.

Flashback

"Hi, Clark."

"Lu-Lucy…" Clark's mouth hung open and he had to clutch Lois' papers tight. His face was a shade of crimson. He slowly stood up and dropped his gaze to the floor. Lana would not like him seeing this. Clark looked around him and for the first time he noticed it was deserted. Clark kept his gaze to the floor as she got nearer.

"What's the matter, Clark? Don't like what you see?" Clark heard her giggles get closer and soon he was staring at pointy black high heels.

Clark lifted his face up, but turned it slightly away from hers. He focused on bobble head on the desk behind her. "Err…it's nice…." Clark said, shifting his head in different directions to avoid looking at her.

"You look tense…why don't I help you out?" Clark heard her say in a seductive tone.

"What? N-no-o…it's alright…." Clark said timidly, protesting slightly while he tried to get past her.

Clark flinched violently when she put a hand on his arm. Clark jumped and dropped the files he was supposed to be filing for Lois.

What's wrong with me? It's just Lucy! Clark thought; staring at the files on the ground, as if blaming them for the situation he was now in.

"You seem jumpy, Clark. Why don't I give you a massage?" Lucy attempted to put her hand on his shoulder, but Clark jerked it out of her reach.

Trying to cover his mistake of letting her know how nervous he was, Clark stuttered, "Umm...I have to go…." Without looking at her, Clark walked as fast as he could without going into super speed mode out of the office.

End Flashback

"Clark? Earth to Clark?" A voice brought Clark out of the past.

"Oh, umm…" Lucy was still there. Clark gave her a small smile and straightened up, releasing the toy racecar from his grip. "I'll give it to Lois," Clark said, referring to the note Lucy handed him. Clark also hoped that the confirmation would send her away.

"So, how's your fiancé? What was her name again, Lulu? Leah?" Lucy asked casually, leaning on Lois' desk.

"It's Lana, and she's doing fine," Clark replied, a bit defensively. Lucy didn't seem to notice his annoyed tone and still remained sitting on the desk. Clark couldn't read her face for any signs of embarrassment for yesterday or any indication that it ever did happen.

"Hello, Lucy."

Clark glanced behind Lucy and saw that Lois had returned. For once, he was grateful for her arrival.

"Well, I better go now," Lucy said, jumping off the desk, knowing that her time alone with Clark was up. Just as she was about to leave though, she hiked her skirt up high enough to allow Clark and maybe Lois a glimpse of the black thong she was wearing.

Clark turned red and sent Lois a glare to warn her not to say anything. Lois simply shrugged and when her gaze fell upon her desk, her eyebrows rose.

"What the heck did you do to my desk, Smallvile?" Lois sent him a thoroughly annoyed look. Clark had failed to notice that he had completely trashed her desk. The racetrack that he had made for the toy car out of pencils was still there and gum wrappers and chocolate candy bar wrappers littered the work area. The only thing that remained untouched by Clark's junk, as Lois put it, was the computer. It was quite a sight.

"Oh, err…sorry, Lois," Clark replied, really feeling remorse.

"Yeah, whatever," Lois snapped. Her mood had changed from annoyed to snappish in a matter of a few seconds. "C'mon, Kent; we have somewhere to be."

Clark's eyebrows knitted together. "What do you mean we have somewhere to be?"

Lois sighed and rolled her eyes as if the answer was in plain view of him. "Read the note that Lucy gave you to give to me."

Clark picked the yellow post-it off of a Twix candy wrapper and read out loud, "Lex Luthor is ready for you." Clark waited a few seconds for it to sink in. "What does it mean he's ready for you? Ready for what?"

Again, Lois sighed impatiently and glanced at the metallic watch that was sitting on her wrist as if she was running late for something. "Look, Kent, I don't have time for questions. The most powerful man in the world is waiting for me and you in his office. Let's get moving."

Clark opened his mouth, ready to pummel Lois with a storm of questions, but Lois had grabbed him by the crook of his arm and pulled him out of her chair.

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LexCorp: Lex Luthor's Study

Clark watched as the most powerful man in Metropolis—and possibly the entire world—lean back in his plush leather chair and give a courteous smile to him and Lois. Clark gave him a timid, nervous, but friendly smile back. After all, it wasn't everyday that you 'bumped' into your former best friend whom you haven't spoken to in four years.

"So, how would you like to start off this interview, Miss Lane?" Lex Luthor said in a smooth, suave voice that Clark hadn't heard in four years. He remembered that it was the tone that Lex used when speaking to woman, trying to seduce them or get them to bend to his will. Lois, however, wasn't having any of that.

"Mr. Luthor─"

"Please, call me Lex,"

"Okay, then, Lex," Lois said, emphasizing his name as if she was mocking him. "That sophisticated, oh-so-charming tone of yours isn't going to help you any bit. I'm a reporter and I'm here to report the facts, whether it suits you and your company or not. So, be my guest to curse and spit at me all you want, but just a warning, the questions I will ask may be blunt, personal, and rude."

Clark cringed, knowing he and Lois were done for. He half-expected Lex to call his security team to have them kicked out. To his surprise, Lex laughed. Clark joined in with him, hoping it would amend for Lois' big mouth. He elbowed Lois sharply in the ribs to follow suite, but all he got was a swift kick in the leg for elbowing her. Clark grinned when Lois' mouth formed an 'o', a sure sign that the kick had hurt her more than him.

"Well, I have to admit, Miss Lane, you have quite a charisma; it's similar to your cousin's. What was her name again, Clark? Oh, wait, I assume I can still call you Clark?" Lex looked at Clark's direction with a hopeful smile.

Clark nodded and tried to push down his uneasiness he had just acquired. It was just a dream, Kent. Get over it.... Clark thought, referring to the time Lex had him shipped off to a research facility. Clark still wasn't sure if it was a dream or not. It was too real to have been a dream, but too unnerving to have been real. It was almost as if Jonathon, Martha, and Clark Kent's worst nightmares had come true, but it carried every little detail of their fears; some of them hadn't even made sense. Clark vaguely remembered being fed peas everyday in the facility without any purpose.

"So, Clark, to be honest, I would have never thought you'd be working for the Daily Planet. Your friend's interest must have rubbed off on you," Lex said pleasantly enough for Clark not to hate him. Unfortunately, the phrase, 'buttering him up for the kill' came to his mind.

"Believe me, Lex, I doubt I wouldn't even be here if it wasn't for Lois," Clark said, gesturing to Lois. Lois rolled her eyes at him, telling him to drop it, it wasn't a big deal. To Clark however, it was a big deal. On their way to Lexcorp, Lois had filled him in on how she had confessed to Perry White about stealing his article.

Flashback to Taxi Ride

"You did what?" Clark was stunned.

"Yes, I told Perry that it was your article," Lois said as if it was nothing. Then she added, "Uhh…you might want to close your mouth before that fly flies in."

Clark snapped his mouth shut, but opened it again to ask, "What did he say?" As shocked as he was at Lois' very-out-of-character actions, he was even more curious to find out what Mr. White had said.

"He said that for me to tell you 'welcome to the team.' You and I and now partners," Lois explained, grimacing at the idea of sharing her career and articles with Clark Kent, a resident of Smallville, Kansas. "Anyway, your first assignment is a follow-up article on the explosion at Gateway Docks with Lex Luthor."

"Lex Luthor?" Clark repeated, stupefied that today would mark the day that he and Lex Luthor would cross paths again after four years.

"Yes, Lex Luthor, so you better not screw this up, Kent. This could be the break of my career and the beginning of a long career for you."

End Flashback

"Okay, as happy as I am that you two are catching up for old time's sake, we do have an interview here to get done," Lois said, but then added to it seem more polite, "I'm sure Mr. Luthor here has better things to do than to talk to us."

"Oh, no, I have all the time in the world; especially since the head of security thinks I need to take a break from the corporate wars and go into hiding," Lex leaned forward in his chair and placed both elbows on the glass desk. Clark guessed that the desk had been recently replaced because it had blinded him from several angles when he first stepped into the sun-filled office. The glass looked new and not a scratch was on it, but then again, it could have just been the clean-up crew's job to make it look like that.

"Really?" Lois raised an eyebrow and set the tape recorder on the desk. "And why is that, Mr. Luthor?" Clark figured she had forgotten to call him 'Lex' or she just didn't want to.

"On or off the record?" Lex glanced at the tape recorder and then at Lois.

"Depends," Lois said before Clark could reply.

"Just ignore her and continue, Lex," Clark offered, feeling sorry for Lex being under the microscope.

Lex grimaced and got up. Clark watched as he shuffled toward a cart to the right of the room. On it sat remainders of a probably nutritious breakfast, a jug of freshly squeezed orange juice (from the looks of it), and four glass cups. Lex gracefully filled three out of the four with juice and brought them over to his desk. Silently, he handed one to Lois, one to Clark, and set one on his desk. Clark nodded at him for a soundless thank you.

"So, where were we?" Lex asked as he adjusted himself comfortably in his seat.

Lois put her untouched glass on the table with a clink and said, "I think we were at the part where you told us why you had to go into hiding?"

"Ah…let's see…I believe it had to do with the incident that happened on Monday," Lex said, glancing at Lois and then at Clark. Lois had her hand poised over a small notebook, ready to jot down anything news-worthy. Clark quietly sipped his juice, not really knowing what to say. "A former employee of mine came into my office for his paycheck. Unfortunately, things escalated to the point where security was needed."

Lois raised her eyebrows and before she could speak, Clark cut her off with, "Are you okay, Lex?"

Lex chuckled and said, "Clark…you're still the same…always thinking of others. You still have that hero quality."

"Okay, hate to break up the reunion, but the rough draft of this article needs to be on Perry's desk by four," Lois said loudly. "Let's continue. So what exactly happened that caused you to call security?"

"Well, there was an argument over the paycheck and I guess it just got out of hand." Lex shrugged it off as if it was something that happened everyday in the corporate world.

"Err…can you give the names or why your former employee was meeting you?" Clark said, deciding to try his hand at the journalism thing.

Lex's expression darkened and Clark immediately regretted saying anything at all. "Let's just leave it at that, shall we?"

Clark sent Lois an apologetic look. Their angle on the incident on Monday morning was gone.

"So," Lois began, but was cut off by a beep. Clark assumed it was Lex's cell phone or one of his highly-advanced-technology-wise devices. But, it wasn't; it was Lois's phone.

"Excuse me," Lois said, standing up and walking swiftly out of the room, leaving Lex and Clark alone and together.

Dammit...now what are Lex and I supposed to talk about? Clark thought. He didn't need to worry about it for long because Lois came right back.

"Kent, Perry just called and says that there's been a bank robbery at Metropolis Royal Bank. He says he wants one of us to cover it. Since you're inexperienced, I'm gonna cover that, while you stay here and finish this interview," Lois said with one breath. "Call me if you need anything, okay?"

"What─" Clark started, but Lois was already running out the door; her shoes making clinking noises. The slam of the door signaled that she was gone and he was now stuck with Lex Luthor.

Clark gave Lex a timid smile and he returned it with an encouraging one.

"So…would you like to comment on what happened on June sixth down at Gateway Docks?" Clark asked, saying the first thing that came to mind.

Clark watched as Lex bided his time, trying to come up with a sufficient answer. Just when he was about ready, a small beep emitted from Lex's Apple laptop sitting on his desk. Lex's forehead furrowed and he frowned.

"What's wrong?" Clark asked, confused.

"Security has triggered the silent alarm," Lex informed him. He added when Clark's confused expression didn't go away, "It means that everyone inside the building should go into a one of the designated safe rooms and lock up. Someone or something has entered the building that could possibly do damage."

Clark's face was one of shock. He forced his mind to think. "Well, where's the closest safe room?"

"We're in it," Lex said, pressing a key on his laptop. Clark heard several clicks and a voice coming from overheard saying, "Door and windows have been secured."

"Now, we wait," Lex said calmly, but the sweat that had appeared on his bald head gave his nervousness away. Clark felt his heart beat faster—it wasn't the kind of beating when Lana walked into the room, or when Lana gave him one of her melting kisses. It was the beating of fear.

Thump. Thump. Someone was knocking on the door. Clark and Lex both turned towards the door and waited. Thump. Thump.

"Just wait…." Lex muttered.

"What if it's someone who couldn't get into a safe room?" Clark voiced, feeling his insides turn to ice.

"No…security should have made sure everyone got into one."

The thumps from the door were getting louder and so were the ones from Clark's heart. Something wasn't right; he could just feel it.

Thump. Thump. Crash.

Clark turned his head sharply to the door and was just in time to witness the heavy door come down with a loud boom.

"What the─" Clark said out loud when he turned toward Lex and found him and everything else moving slow. He was in super speed mode.

Clark stood up from his chair and saw a man with a long coat rushing into the room. The sun reflected off the scales on his face, momentarily blinding Clark. When he regained eyesight, he saw Lex slumped in his chair and the man leaning over him, kneeling on the desk.

"Hey!" Clark shouted. He didn't know what else to do.

The man looked his way and a stunned countenance came upon his face.

"What are you doing here?" He yelled angrily. Then, he turned toward Lex and brought his head close to the pulse on Lex's neck. Clark got a flashback of the lady lying dead in the alley, fang marks on her neck.

Clark shifted into action and ran at the man like a football player about to tackle his opponent. Clark took extra care not to hurt Lex and he moved his body at an angle so that he and the man would land on the floor.

The man, surprised by his attack, fell hard on the floor. Clark pulled him up and attempted to knock him out, but to his astonishment, his fist only connected with air.

"Ahh!" Clark cried as he felt his back connect with the wall behind him. Clark got up, dazed, looked over at Lex, and to his relief, found that he was still out. He didn't want to have to explain to him how he had managed to tackle a man heavier than him to the floor in mere seconds. Clark then scanned the room for his newly-found opponent, but was surprised to see that one of the windows had been shattered. The man was gone.