Part 4:

-------July 2007-------

A beaming smile lit Clark's face as he sat up and stretched the sleep out of his muscles. It was a beautiful day, the sun was shining, birds were chirping, and just last night he had given Lois the bracelet. 'Everything's perfect,' Clark reflected with a contented smile.

He walked into the kitchen; got out a frying pan, eggs, and sausages; and proceeded to cook breakfast with his heat vision. Clark had just finished setting the table when he noticed a folded piece of paper with his name on it, lying at the center of the table.

Curiously, he picked up the note and began reading it.

Dear Clark,

I'm not sure how to say this, so I'll just come out and say it as directly as possible. I have to leave. I've got a lot of things to think about, and I can't do that here. I'm not sure how long I'll be gone - heck, I don't even know where I'll be going. Please don't try to contact me; once I've got everything all sorted out, I'll contact you again.

- (love) Lois

(Author's Note: the word 'love' is supposed to be crossed out.)

Clark ran upstairs to Lois' room, hoping that the letter was some kind of joke or that she wouldn't have left yet.

His heart dropped as he threw the door open. Everything that belonged to Lois was gone, the only indication that she had ever lived there was the dresser drawer that hadn't been pushed in all the way. In an almost trance-like state, Clark walked over to the drawer. What he saw there, lying in the empty drawer, brought tears that stung the corners of his eyes. Clark wasn't sure how long he just stood, motionless, staring at it before he hesitantly picked it up.

He took a few steps backwards and sank down to the floor with his back up against the bed.


Martha walked into the bedroom. When she noticed Clark on the floor, turning the bracelet over and over in his hands, she sat down next to him and pulled him into her arms. "Clark? What's wrong?"

"Lois is gone."

"What do you mean 'gone', Clark?"

Clark just handed her the note. Martha wrapped her arms more tightly around Clark after reading it. "I'm sure she'll be back, Clark. She probably just needed time to think - just like she said."

Clark shook his head. "It's my fault. I shouldn't have given her the bracelet. I should have know she wasn't ready."

"Honey, it's not your fault. You had no way of knowing what Lois' reaction would be - you don't even know if that's why she left."

"Yes, I do," he said sadly.


Clark gently pushed Lois' hair off of her face. It had taken him a few days to realize that Lois was just scared to accept that she needed to come to terms with that fear on her own.

TBC…


Thanks for all the feedback, everyone. The next part should be up within a week or so.