Chp 20 – Veritas



-- Metropolis – September 2010 --

"How was your flight?" Lois asked, straightening as she saw Clark exit the airport terminal. She had been leaning against her car waiting for him to arrive.

"Long," he replied, lowering his small bag to the ground.

Lois hesitated briefly before stepping closer so they could share an embrace. Leaning in, she awkwardly placed a soft kiss near the corner of his mouth. She stepped back and Clark picked his bag up and walked to the car's passenger side.

"Still got the tail, huh?" he asked, as Lois signaled her merger into passing traffic. He knew the greeting had been cover. Not that he minded, though.

"Brown coupe, six cars back," she affirmed.

It had taken them a few days to figure out who their trailing agent would be. Lois had been right to assume that the FBI wouldn't get rid of all their surveillance devices. The agent had been using different cars every few days, but they had finally been able to decipher the pattern.

They had decided not to make the FBI aware of the fact that they knew they were being followed. Lois figured that as long as they played dumb, they could stay a few steps ahead.

Clark was returning from a two-day survey trip to the Congo. On the record, he had gone there to do a follow-up to his previous articles on the Katanga secession. Off the record, Lois had drawn him a crude map to the place where she had buried the gun she'd taken from the smugglers' plane.

"Did you have any trouble getting it?" Lois asked.

"No. I only brought back the important parts, and they made it through customs with no problem." Clark had dismantled the gun, and had only kept the parts that would help them locate the manufacturer.

"All right, let's get these over to S.T.A.R. Labs and then we'll hit the Planet to put write up the articles."

"Lois, I was wondering if we could have dinner tonight."

Lois looked at him before returning her attention to the road. "We have dinner together every night, Smallville. Lunch, too, in fact."

"Yeah, but we're always working with those. I mean a real dinner- at a restaurant, with wine glasses, and maybe dessert."

"You asking me on a date?"

"If your answer is yes."

"A date, date? Like when I put on my best perfume and dab some behind my knee, even though I don't know why?"

"Yeah, I guess so," he replied.

"Well… I don't know… I mean- I need to think about it."

"I'm asking you to dinner, Lois. Not for your hand in marriage."

"Yeah," she sighed, sarcastically. "Because you seemed to have forgot to ask for that."

Clark laughed. "So- dinner, how about it?"

Lois glanced at the dashboard clock. It was already 2:00 pm and they needed to get to the Planet to get some work done. "On our way home from the Planet tonight, we can eat at a restaurant… with wine glasses and dessert."


Perry tapped his jaw thoughtfully, reading through the article one last time. Lois was really laying it all on the line with this one. The piece described the atrocious conditions that people in the Congo were living under. The greatest portion of the article described how gunrunners from more affluent countries were benefiting by empowering rebel groups. Lois had gone on to talk about the impact on the villages and, most importantly, on the children of the war torn nations.

She was powerful with words and subtlety, so no one would have been able to guess that she had spent close to a year and a half living in the land that was her topic, but she had inserted plenty of hints for her intended audience to pick up on. The bait was on the hook.

Perry pressed his lips together, worriedly. "You sure about this?"

He held the article toward her, offering her a chance to take it back.

Lois turned her head to look at Clark. When he nodded, she smiled. "We're sure."

Perry looked at both of them for a long moment. "Jimmy!"

The young man stuck his head inside the office door. "Yeah, Chief?"

"I need you to hand walk this down to Layout. I want it front page, below the fold, for the evening edition. It goes above the fold tomorrow, got it?"

"Sure, but why not just email it in with the edits already done?" Jimmy asked, noting the red marks on the document.

"They can find Lane's original document on the network. I do my redlining by hand. News is made to be touched and felt! These fancy computers may make the world go faster…" He focused a hard stare on Clark as he continued. "…But some things are just better when you take your time."

Clark quickly nodded. He understood the fatherly warning behind his Perry's words.


"You didn't order dessert," Clark remarked, as the waiter left with his Chocolate Mousse order.

Lois sat back in her chair and placed a hand on her stomach. "I'm full." She gestured at the leftover fajitas that were in the center of the table. "We should probably have that boxed up to take home. I bet it's like pizza: better the morning after."

Clark smiled. He was happy that they were able to have a relaxing dinner. Lois had opened up to him more and more over the past few days, but he felt that tonight had been a breaking point. They had spent the evening joking and talking about their lives during the time they'd been apart.

It was a welcome distraction from the stress of FBI agents (even though one was no doubt watching them right at that moment), smugglers, and snipers.

The waiter returned and deposited a silver bowl on the table in front of Clark.

Clark thanked the man and raised his spoon. "You sure you don't want to try it?"

Lois eyed the dish with interest but shook her head.

"I know you have a thing for chocolate…"

Lois picked up her wine glass and swirled the red liquid before bringing the glass to her lips. "True," she acknowledged around the lip of the glass, with a seductive smile. "But I'm trying to keep it in check."

Clark started eating the dessert. "This is the best I've had since Verona. Here, try some."

He scooped some onto his spoon, and held it out to her. Instead of reaching for it, she closed her eyes and opened her mouth. Clark swallowed hard as he moved the spoon to her mouth. He slid it out and watched as she licked her lips.

"Hmm," she sighed. "I have no control."

Clark reached across the small table and put a hand over hers. "I doubt that's true."

"What time are you heading out tonight?" As had become their pattern on Fridays, Clark would head to Smallville for the night to check in with his parents and Cole.

"In an hour or two, I guess."

"Hey, lucky I found you!" Bobby Big Mouth strolled up to their patio table. He pulled a chair from a nearby table, and sat down. "Fajitas!"

He laid a tortilla on his palm and began scooping meat, sautéed onions and peppers, and toppings onto it. He took a large bite and started talking. "Kind of fancy digs for a couple of Newsies, don't ya think?"

He reached for Clark's glass and emptied the rest of the wine into it. Clark was about to protest, but was distracted when Lois moved her hand on top of his and began idly stroking the back of it.

Lois fixed their guest with a soft glare. "We're on a date, Bobby."

"A date! You're married for crying out loud. What's the point? Isn't that kind of like crawling after you walk?" Bobby reached for the remaining dessert and pulled it to him.

"So what brings you out here?" Lois asked.

"Just warning my best client." Bobby licked his fingers and reached for Lois's napkin when she held it toward him. "I don't know what you did, but over the last two hours, your name has become the hottest ticket in Mayberry."

She glanced at Clark. Her article was starting to have its effect.

"I just wanted to make sure you were watching your back."

Lois released Clark's hand to lean forward. "Any certain group leading the pack?"

"Ah- some Intergang wannabes. They're too loose to be the real deal, but I wouldn't put it past the Boss to put them out as feelers." Bobby downed the rest of the wine in his glass. "Nice pick," he told Clark.

Bobby jumped from the chair. "This one's a freebie, but next time see if you can bring me a Hogie. Authentic Philly style are the best."

When Bobby left the patio, Lois faced Clark. "I know what you're thinking," she announced, arching an eyebrow at him.

"You're telepathic now?"

"I might as well be when it comes to you," she returned. "I know that look."

Clark merely raised his hands and shrugged.

"You're not staying. You'll go to Smallville as planned, and everything will be fine."

He pressed his lips together.

Lois knew that look as well. "You'll be back in less than 24 hours! What damage could I do overnight? Don't answer that."

Lois stood up. "I'm going to go the bathroom, and then we can continue to argue if you want. But just a warning- I'll win."

Clark watched her leave and pulled out his cell phone. He had learned from previous experience that Lois ended up with the last word. This time he had planned in advance. He had called for reinforcements.


Lois smirked as she unlocked the door to her apartment. He had put up a good fight, but in the end she'd come out on top. Her jaw dropped open as she stepped through the door. With a squeal, she ran and wrapped her arms around her cousin.

"Chloe! I didn't think I'd get to see you until after your Gotham assignment!"

Chloe laughed and gripped Lois tighter. They had talked on the phone, but hadn't yet had a chance to see one another face to face.

"How…" Lois frowned as she pulled back. "When…?"

"It seems that your husband knows you better than you think he does," Chloe teased.

"Oh, don't even go there," Lois quipped, grudgingly acknowledging that Clark had gotten her this time. "It's a disguise. There is nothing going on here."

"Really?" Chloe picked up the picture of Cole from the coffee table.

Lois shifted her weight to her right foot and sighed. "Chloe, listen…"

"He's beautiful."

"Thanks." Lois walked to the couch and held out a hand. "Care to sit down?"

"That's probably a good idea."

Lois watched as Chloe replaced the picture and lowered herself to sit on the couch. Sitting beside her, Lois's emotions were torn between the great joy of seeing her cousin, and the awkward guilt of her current circumstances.

"I guess that the secret was living with him," Chloe commented.

"The secret?"

"To winning Clark Kent's affection. Wish I had known that before. It would have saved my adolescent heart from a few kicks."

Lois reached to tuck her hair behind her ear. "It's not like that, Chloe. It just… kind of happened."

"You didn't see it, did you?"

Lois frowned. "See what?"

"Foreplay."

"What?"

"All the bickering and the fighting. You were headed toward this even back then, in Smallville. Why didn't you say anything?"

"There was nothing to say!" Lois protested. She frowned as Chloe burst into laughter. "Wait, you're not mad?"

"Mad? Of course not. I was hurt at first, but that was because you didn't tell me. I guess I was just in denial back then, because I could see something between you guys from the beginning."

"The beginning?" Lois was reluctantly intrigued.

Chloe scoffed at the doubt in Lois's expression. "Are you going to tell me that I'm wrong?" she challenged.

Lois was silent for a moment, warily eying her cousin. Finally, she decided it was time to be honest with her. Because, maybe then, she could start being honest with herself.

"Okay. You're sort of right. There was a spark, early on. A small one."

Chloe laughed and shook her head. "A spark?"

"Yes! I mean, the whole Highlander effect when I found him in the cornfield was pretty powerful. And, I tried not to look…" Lois's eyebrow rose, and her lips curled as she remembered. "But when I found out who he was, and what that meant to you… well, that was that."

Chloe smirked. "And then…"

Lois sighed and rolled her eyes. "And then the General decided to strong arm my life, and I moved in with the Kents… The boy was ga-ga over Lana, and our interaction was mostly sibling rivalry."

"Without the sibling part, which makes it more like fore…"

"No," Lois interrupted. "We became good friends, even though neither of us would admit it." There were some details that Lois couldn't reveal. "And after the whole Lana thing started to die out, there might have been some mutual… flirting. But nothing bordering on serious."

Chloe tilted her head, thoughtfully. "I always thought Clark might have had some help getting over that obsession. He had never acted so free until you came around. I knew you had that effect on me, but with Clark, it was like a total identity change."

"I never could stand a mopey cowboy," Lois quipped.

"And the meeting in Cuba?"

"Was unexpected," Lois finished. "I was caught off guard, and I guess the spark, um, ignited."

"And where is that spark now?"

"I don't know, Chlo." Lois sighed and rose from the couch, walking toward her bookcase. "I already have a man in my life, and he's the most important, and the best thing I have ever done." She was gazing at a picture of Cole. "I don't want to be in love. Love makes you weak… and vulnerable."

"It can also make you stronger," Chloe offered, studying Lois's profile for a moment. "Lo, both of us have been longing for a true family for as long as we can remember. Now that it's right in front of you, all you have to do is reach out and take it."

Lois turned back to face her cousin. "It's not that easy, Chloe."

"I know. But maybe it's worth it."

Lois clasped her hands together and changed her expression to reveal a bright smile. "And what about you? How is Vickie Vale managing the tough streets of Gotham City?"

Chloe was well versed in the art of subject change, but decided to let it slide. They would have another chance to talk. "Vickie Vale is knocking 'em dead."

"I knew you would! Like riding a bike, right?"

"Absolutely. I've run into a snag, though. The elusive resident billionaire has a thing against reporters."

Lois winced inwardly. She had an inkling of an idea why. "You mean Bruce Wayne?"

"Yeah. That's actually why I can't stay the whole weekend. Wayne Enterprises is throwing a huge gig tomorrow night, and I need to see if I can get him in a corner."

"Maybe I could make a call for you…"

Chloe smiled. It was funny how things had changed. Now Lois was the one with the connections, and she was the one calling in favors. "You know Bruce Wayne?"

"Yes." Lois decided that she would leave it at that. "I'm sure he'll be a little easier to approach tomorrow."

Chloe knew she would have to get the background on that story later.

"I, uh, was able to reach your dad. He hadn't known that you were missing, but he said that he was glad you were safe." Chloe had embellished a bit on what the General actually had to say.

Lois saw through her fib and shook her head, smirking.

"What happened between you two?" Chloe asked.

"We both finally crossed the line we've been dancing around for years."



tbc