Disclaimer: Don't own Smallville or 'The Year without a Santa Claus' or Bruce Wayne

AN: First fiction, so don't be too harsh. Response to Rapierhomme's challenge.

Mistletoe Kisses

The sounds of laughter and music pouring into her apartment from downstairs caused Lois Lane to scowl. Couldn't people respect her right to hate Christmas with an unbridled passion? It wasn't right for so many people to be so cheery at once. Looking down at the eggnog in her hands, Lois smile grew wide as she reached over to add her own little ingredient to the mix…

"Okay Clark, ready for more Christmas cheer then you can handle?" Chloe teased as she stepped out of his truck "Thanks again for the ride, I swear I'll have my car back by tomorrow."

"It's no problem, now let's get inside before we freeze to death!" Clark joked as he held open the door to the Talon. Inside was a sight Clark really wished he never had seen.

His parents were singing together in front of the whole town.

Now Clark's mother singing wasn't horrible, a calming sound that often helped put young Clark to sleep. The problem with his parents belting out Jingle Bells was his mother's better half. Jonathan Kent could not sing for his life, his voice was too deep and on high parts, many tried not to cringe. The song ended and the crowd went wild, their eardrums spared once more.

The sound of a squeal came from the other side of the room where a boy had pointed out a piece of mistletoe and promptly kissed a surprised Lana Lang on the mouth. She grinned at him afterwards, it was easily seen that the two loved each other. Chloe turned to Clark, laughing at the sight, had not she seen the look on Clark's face.

"Don't tell me you're into Lana, I thought you liked you-know-who?" Chloe accused with raised eyebrows. Clark face slowly turned back to normal as he took a deep breath.

"For the last time, neither I nor Lois feels anything besides reluctant friendship." Clark looked up at the ceiling fear striking in his heart. How was he ever going to avoid this mistletoe deathtrap?

Lois had placed the punch by the Christmas tree and grabbed a glass for herself. Looking around the packed room, Lois smiled brightly at the sight of the person coming towards her. Chloe looked fabulous as always, if not a little down. Her boyfriend had left the state for the week and Lois could tell she missed him a lot. Lois suddenly got an idea as she made an extra glass of eggnog and held it out to the arriving Chloe.

"Hey cuz, wanna drink? Homemade by me!" Chloe suddenly looked nervous, but took the cup and had a sip.

"Wow, this is really good! Finally something Lois Lane can make without burning!" Chloe drank the eggnog with relish and got another one. Lois smiled and watched as her cousin slowly drank her way through the spiked eggnog.

Clark had finally done it. He had made it to the one place on Earth where there would be no mistletoe to hurt him.

Lois Lane's apartment.

Okay if caught up here he may die, but the horror of mistletoe had haunted him from childhood. Never knowing whom you would end up kissing, annoying aunts or scary unknown ladies, it was best to avoid it altogether.

It was easy to see why Lois's apartment was safe; the whole place looked untouched by the Christmas spirit. Rather it seemed to be touched by a tornado. Deciding that the way to maybe get in Lois's good graces was to clean up, Clark sighed and started in the kitchen.

"I mean it's Christmas! What boyfriend wants to be pent up at the office instead of being with their girlfriend? Ughh…I hate men." Chloe ranted to her cousin, bored now by her cousin's ramblings. What had meant to be a funny stunt to get her cousin to relax had backfired big time. Lois had taken to drinking some of the Eggnog to and though she wasn't as tipsy as Chloe, she was starting to go a little.

"Well then I suppose you won't want to see me." At the sound of the tired voice, Chloe and Lois turned around to look into the grinning face of Bruce Wayne. Chloe flung her arms around the man and kissed him happily. Lois's scowl deepened as her one form of anti-boredom went up in flames. Mumbling something that neither of the happy pair heard Lois walked off to the sanctuary of her apartment. On her way there, she bumped into a dancing Mr. and Mrs. Kent. Grinning they turned to her a hurried excuse me and hello issued.

"Have you seen Clark, I think he got nervous and ran off again" Mrs. Kent scanned the room for her son to no avail.

"It's fine, he probably went home to avoid the mistletoe. Now if you excuse us Miss. Lane, I have to finish my dance." Whisking his wife away, Lois turned away from the happy laughs and walked up the stairs to her apartment.

Opening the doorway, Lois Lane found the apartment cleaner then she ever seen it, and on the couch was Clark watching t.v.

"Smallville what the heck do you think your doing?" Lois was tired, mad, and really did not need Clark Kent to be here right now.

"Umm…I can explain. You see I couldn't stay down there and so I came up here and the place was a mess so I thought I would pick up and then I had nothing to do so I've been watching t.v" Clark spoke slowly, fearing each word would be his last. Obviously, Lois was not happy and he was in her line of fire at the moment. Then Lois Lane did something unexpected.

"It's fine you can stay" She walked over to the couch and sat down. Looking over at the t.v screen she nearly laughed. "The year without a Santa Claus? Little pathetic Smallville."

"It's a classic, I mean who doesn't love the two misers?" Clark sat next to her with a grin.

"Well, I suppose the Ice miser isn't horrible, the Heat one though is annoying though." Lois grinned as she watched the two brothers be scolded by their mother. Giving a yawn, she let her head fall to the side where it hit Clark's shoulder. Her eyes snapped open and she could feel him tense, but she refused to remove her head or look like it bothered her. The feel of his flannel shirt was nice and the definition of the muscles under it wasn't bad either.

"Hey Lois, do you hate Christmas?" Clark's mind had gone crazy when the girl rested her head upon his shoulder and he blurted out the first thing that came to mind.

"Yes. No. Well, I suppose I dislike what it represents more then the holiday itself. I never got to see the General on Christmas, he was to busy." She didn't know why she was saying this. It must have been the eggnog; it would explain her loose tongue and the warm feeling that had filled her spirit. Something that was saying it wasn't, was squashed left forgotten in the back of her mind. "Everywhere I went people seemed happier then I did, I couldn't find anyone who had anytime for me." Turning her head as best she could without removing it, she looked him in the eye. "Why do you hate mistletoe?"

Clark turned red and tried to turn his head to the t.v set. Lois sighed and slowly lifter her head, which was filled with a happy buzz, which dimmed the longer her head was not resting on his shoulder. Standing she turned to him.

"Come on, let's make on last appearance Smallville."

Walking outside the door they stood at the top of the steps together looking down at the people, dreading the fate that await them downstairs. Suddenly a voice called out over the crowd.

"Clark and Lois are under the mistletoe!" Clark and Lois stared at the tipsy Chloe who was being held up by Bruce while pointing at the two. Looking upwards, they saw she was right and now everyone was staring waiting for them to kiss. Clark nervously turned towards Lois, who looked up at him with the same expression. Leaning down he placed one hand at the back of her head and pulled her towards him. Lois moved into the kiss easily, her lips meeting his own in a soft embrace. Slowly they relaxed more and found themselves losing themselves in the kiss. Suddenly a whoop from somebody down below awoke their minds and they broke apart, staring at each other with shy and shocked smiles. The crowd erupted in happiness over the kiss, all slightly shocked but drunk enough not to care.

"Merry Christmas Lois."

"Merry Christmas Smallville."