Clark glanced down at his watch for the tenth time in the last hour. They still had two hours left until they landed in Paris, but he had become restless during the first thirty minutes of the flight. Once a person has flown around the world in minutes, a plane seems like an obnoxiously slow way to travel. He had hoped he would be able to fly Lois over himself, but it would have been too suspicious if Perry had checked up on their status and seen that they had never checked in at the airport.
At that moment he looked over at Lois who was fast asleep beside him. He couldn't believe he was really going to propose to her this weekend. He had read over their itinerary to figure out when they would have some time alone. Unfortunately, the President was cramming in over ten different individual visits a day. He and Lois would be forced to follow him from seven each morning until about nine in the evening. That would allow for a late dinner, but he expected they would both be fairly exhausted.
Lois shifted in her seat so that she was now laying her head on Clark's shoulder. He tenderly brushed a piece of her hair out of her face, and then leaned his head gently against hers. He knew he would find a way to make time for Lois. He had to.
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By the time Lois stepped off the plane, it was already a couple hours into the evening in Paris. Despite taking a rather long nap on the plane, she was still pretty tired. She and Clark retrieved their luggage from baggage claim and then took a cab over to the hotel. They found their rooms were adjoining, and opted not to get a single room because they were practically together anyway.
"Well, I think I'm going to turn in." she said as she went to change into her pajamas.
"Really? I'm wide awake. Maybe I'll do a quick fly over the city." She knew he wanted to stretch his legs, so the kissed him goodbye and watched him fly away.
Lois walked over to her suitcase, and almost tripped over Clark's clothes. He had simply shed them on the floor when he had changed into Superman. She folded up his shirt and slacks and placed them in his suitcase, and then began hanging his coat over the armchair. She heard a faint thud, and looked down to see a small black velvet box lying next to the chair leg.
"What the..?" she began to say as she picked it up. She slowly flipped open the box, and gasped as she saw the sparkling diamond ring inside. A million thoughts began running her head. "Is he going to propose? Is it too soon? What will everyone else think? What will I say?" The answer to the first question was obviously yes, but the rest of her questions did not have that clear of an answer. She had only broken up with Richard weeks ago, but she also knew in her heart that Clark was the love of her life. As to what everyone else would think, she assumed that Clark hadn't been planning on telling everyone because of their pact to keep things a secret for the time being.
She wasn't sure how long Clark planned on being gone, so she quickly returned the small box to his coat pocket and continued to get ready for bed. When she went to lie down, her mind was once again filling up with concerns. She knew she would never be able to sleep now, but tried to appear like she was when Clark returned. He slipped in silently, and soon she felt the familiar warmth of his arm around her. She desperately wanted to reveal that she knew about the ring, but she did her best to appear completely relaxed.
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As they awaited the President's arrival at the Louvre, Clark noticed Lois was fidgeting with her watch.
"Is everything okay?" he asked.
"What? Yes." she said and immediately put her arms at her sides.
"Are you sure?" he asked again as he placed a hand on her shoulder.
She tensed up a bit at the gesture, which took him a little off guard. She didn't respond, but instead pointed at the limo pulling up at the entrance. He let go of her arm and quickly got the camera ready. Lois pulled her tape recorder out of her pocket and checked to make sure there was a tape inside.
As the President walked past, Lois thrust the device forward and shouted "Mr. President, how are you enjoying your stay in Paris so far?"
The President could barely hear her over the hundred other members of the press gathered at the entrance, but he managed to shout a "Fine, thanks." in her direction.
Clark snapped a couple photos of the President entering the Louvre, and then turned to Lois.
"You know he will be in there for at least an hour. Do you want to grab a sandwich at the café across the street?'
She hesitated for a moment. Lois had become paranoid that if they were alone for even a moment, he would propose. She realized it wouldn't take Clark too long to figure out that something was bothering her, though, so she tried to respond casually. "I don't want to lose our place in this crowd. Why don't you go get the sandwiches and bring them back here?"
He seemed disappointed, but agreed to go. He handed her the camera, and then made his way through the impatient photographers to the café.
A French reporter nudged her lightly and said "Young love, ah?" She could barely understand him through his thick accent, but gave him a weak smile anyway.
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"I'm gonna go take a shower." Lois said as soon as they returned to the hotel only a few minutes before ten.
"Lois, wait. You've been acting strange all day. Just tell me what's wrong." The look of genuine concern he gave her made Lois sigh in defeat. She walked over to her bedroom and sat on the edge of the bed. He joined her seconds later, and she took his hand in hers.
"Clark, you know I love you, right?" He nodded, but she noted the worried expression that appeared on his face.
"I love you more than I have loved anyone else in my life. I will never meet anyone who makes me feel so perfectly complete for as long as I live, but…" Lois paused as she realized what she was saying. What was she so scared of? She couldn't imagine spending the rest of her life with anyone else. It didn't matter what had happened in her life during the past five years; nothing had been as constant as her love for him.
"Clark," she began, but he silenced her with a kiss. He brushed her lips gently, and then reached into his coat pocket.
"Lois, I feel the same way. I wanted to wait for the perfect moment to do this, but I think this is it." He slowly moved off the bed and knelt down in front of her. "Will you marry me?" he asked as he opened up the box.
Lois placed a hand lightly on Clark's cheek as a single tear fell down her face. She stared lovingly into his eyes and responded "Yes, Clark. I will marry you." He leaned forward and kissed her as they both stood up. The kiss was not full of passion and lust. It was instead full of the enduring love that they shared for each other over many years.
Clark leaned away slightly to remove the beautiful ring from it's box, and then gently slid it onto her finger. She took a brief moment to gaze down at her hand as he kissed it, but they were both soon lost in each other's arms as their lips met once more.
Lois backed up slightly into the bed and began lying down as she pulled Clark with her. Without pulling away from the kiss, Clark quickly slipped his arms out of his jacket and let it fall to the floor. He unbuttoned his shirt with Lois' help, and discarded it as well. She then began tugging lightly at his undershirt until he finally broke their kiss so that she could pull it over his head.
"No Superman today?" she whispered as she realized the familiar "S" was not under his shirt.
"Lois, nothing could take me away from you right now." he said before trailing her neck with kisses. She shuddered slightly at the gesture and pressed her hands against his back.
He pulled back again and began removing her clothes as she waited in anticipation. This time, though, it was Lois who leaned into Clark's ear and whispered "I love you." before their minds drifted off in ecstasy.