Author's Notes: Another day, another chapter. It's pouring rain outside and it's seriously cutting into my happiness. There's just something about rain that gets me tired almost immediately. I'm not quite sure what it is, but it's there.

Act Four

Clark knew he shouldn't have left the Talon with Lois, but ever since this whole body-switch thing happened, he couldn't help but wonder what it would be like being with her. Does that make him a bad person?

"Are you all right, A.C.? You haven't been acting yourself lately"

He grabbed hold of his wandering thoughts and looked at her sheepishly. "Have you ever thought about Clark as something other than a friend?"

She raised her eyebrows, silent until it was followed by a small chuckle. "Are you seriously asking me that?"

He shrugged.

Yes, apparently he was.

Lois inhaled deeply and thought about it for a moment before answering.

"He's a good guy, but I've never really thought about him like that. He's kinda untouchable so that's probably one of the reasons why I've never considered it"

Her answer piqued his interest.

"What do you mean untouchable?" he continued to inquire, curiously. She couldn't possibly know about him being an alien, could she?

Lois had no idea where Arthur's line of questioning was coming from, but she didn't back down from the question, so she answered it anyway. She had nothing to lose in that respect.

"I've known about him, even before we met. It didn't exactly paint him in a good light, so I already had these preconceived notions of him before actually meeting him"

He realized what she meant. "Chloe?"

She meekly nodded.

"What happened after?" he couldn't help but press the question. A part of him wanted to know even though another part of him dreaded the answer.

"People change, I guess. Whether the change is good or bad, I could never tell with him. I'm just glad my cousin's over him. I hate seeing her unhappy"

Even though her words hurt Clark more than he ever thought it could, her devotion to her cousin Chloe has always been one of her most endearing character traits. He could never get angry at her for that.

"Would you ever see him differently?"

"Okay, now that's a strange question to ask me. Have you forgotten that we're seeing each other?" She asked with a laugh.

He chuckled. No he didn't forget. Actually, it's all he could think about.

"Just curious." He mouth felt dry all of the sudden. "I'm getting kind of thirsty"

Her face glowed. "I know the perfect place"

Twenty Minutes Later

"That was your perfect place?" he asked, laughing.

"What?" she replied innocently. "What's wrong with Baskin Robbins?" They spent the last fifteen minutes inside a Dunkin Donuts Baskin Robbins store, ordering Bold Breeze's for their lunch snack.

They talked easily in the next half hour, walking through town until something caught Lois's eye.

"Let's go in there"

"Where?" He turned and saw the store she entered.

Ruby's Aquarium

Clark walked into the small store that contained dozens of fish tanks along three shelves. He's been in here before, when he was little, window shopping with his mother. He liked swimming but he never really craved to be in the water like Arthur does so often.

As they stared into the fish tanks, he finds himself with the ability to attract all the fishes. He wasn't quite sure how he was doing that and it was freaking him out a little bit.

"Go ahead, talk to them"

He looked at her like she was out of her mind. "Excuse me?"

She laughed. "You can communicate with dolphins, whales and great white sharks but you can't say hello to a little gold fish. Why do I find that amusing?"

"I could talk to fish?" Realizing that he wasn't Arthur Curry and that there were things about him he has yet to know about, he quickly tries to recover. "Right. I mean…" looking inside the tank, he felt like swimming suddenly.

"Do you want to leave?"

"Can we?"

"Sure," she replied softly, without questioning him any further about the matter.

He was more than grateful.

Outside…

"What happened in there?" Lois asked, concerned. "I've never seen you freeze like that before. I'm sorry; I thought you liked places like those"

"No," he assured her. "I liked it very much," he added in hopes he channeled Arthur's personality well enough to appear genuine. Being someone else has never been so hard. Not even when he was Lionel.

Then again, he was trapped in prison so he shouldn't complain.

"This doesn't freak you out?"

Once again, Lois is confused. "Why would it?"

"You act like its normal"

"You're going to have to explain a little deeper there, A.C. I have no idea what you're talking about"

"These things that I could do. It's not normal," he said bitterly, more for himself than anything else. Lois didn't know he was referring to more that just water balls and talking to fish.

Lois gives him a stern gaze. "Normal? Is that what's been bugging you all day?"

"It's something I've been thinking about"

"That's new to me. You've always treated your gifts with respect, when did all these insecurities pop out?"

"It was just a question, Lois"

The tone in his voice reminded her a little too much of a farm boy she knew. She grows angry.

"Okay, first of all. You are normal. Your gifts, they're what's normal to you. You grew up with them, and if I didn't know any better, I'd go as far and say that you were born with them too. It's not abnormal to be different, and I don't see why it's bothering you."

She moved to leave when he stops her, pulling her in and hugging her tightly.

"Thank you," he whispered to her ear.

Lois was hesitant to react, but she did so anyway and returned his embrace.

"Ahem!"

Lois and Arthur part and see Clark standing in front of them, looking positively angry. Far angrier than Lois has ever seen him.

"Hey Smallville," Lois greeted him, completely unaware that her boyfriend is trapped in Clark Kent's body.

Arthur glared at Clark for slipping away with his girlfriend.

"Hey Lois, could you give us a minute?"

Lois looked between them, while curious; she remained respectful of their privacy. She moved to kiss him on the cheeks before leaving them alone.

"I'll see you tonight"

Clark gulped, revealing a forced smile. "See ya"

Once she was out of ear shot, Arthur remained where he was for the next few seconds. It was starting to disturb him.

He held his hands up in protest. "It's not what you think, Arthur."

Arthur, in the guise of himself, spoke calmly. "Kissing Lois. Having a stroll with her. Hugging her. Is this what you meant about not seeing her in that way, because, seriously bro, I see it far clearer than these x-ray vision specs you have imbedded in your eyes?"

"We're just friends"

He doesn't believe him. "News flash. Are you forgetting that you're in my body? She thinks you're me, and I can tell that you're seeing her differently, not that I can blame you entirely, she's amazing"

"What do you want me to do?" Clark was tired; he just wanted this to be over with so he could live his life in solitary, like he's meant to.

"We're telling her the truth. Right now would be nice."

Clark's eyes shot up. "You can't do that"

"I'm tired of all this hiding. Lois is the first person I've ever met that I can actually be myself with without owing anyone anything, and I won't apologize for not wanting to lose that"

"I'm sorry, I wasn't trying to be – "

"That's exactly your problem, Kent. You're not trying at all. You think because you're me, you can take over my life? You have one of your own, what the hell makes you think you can touch mine"

"Because I'm jealous, all right!" he yelled at him.

Arthur looked at him suspiciously. "You're jealous of me?" Clark didn't say anything. "Dude, what planet are you from?"

"You really don't want to know," he joked bitterly.

"Bro, you can run faster than I can swim. You can see through walls, hear really far. You're invulnerable, for God's sake. And friends. You've got lots of them including two parents that love you. What is wrong with your life, exactly?"

"You don't understand"

"I understand better than you think. You seem to be forgetting a lot of things since we've switched bodies, but I'm not exactly human either, you know"

The revelation surprised him.

"What do you mean?"

"It means, I don't know where I came from. My dad found me drifting in a basinet when I was a baby. I don't know who my biological parents are. All I know is that ever since I can remember, I knew I was different. And I'm at peace with that"

"You're a lot braver then I am then"

"It isn't hard, Kent. Accept where you are and live your life"

"It doesn't make it any simpler"

"If life were simpler, there wouldn't be much life to live now, would there?" Arthur lets out a deep breath. "You do what you gotta do, but I'm telling Lois now"

He walked away…

Clark didn't stop him.

To be continued…