See first post for disclaimer
Part 5
A blue hue was cast over the living room, the movie having end hours earlier. Clark blinked at the blank screen and the time displayed on the TV. Lois hadn't made it even half-way through the film before succumbing to the temping bleakness that was unconsciousness and he was soon to follow.
Pushing a strand of hair away from her face, he watched for any sign she was waking. As if she could sense his thoughts she groaned into his shirt and shifted her weight from one side to the other while turning her head away from the TV. Clark stifled a groan of his own at the sensations she was creating while laying on top of him.
"Time's it?" She mumbled, her voice husky from sleep.
"Just after three." His answer was laced with his own fatigue.
"Shouldn't've lemme sleep." She complained half-heartedly. "Get'up….should go." Her brain couldn't quite form the words she intended releasing a speech that was barely coherent.
Clark took a deep breath and let it out gently, ruffling her hair resting just beneath his chin. "You shouldn't drive half asleep. You can stay here."
"That's your plan all along." Lois' lips formed a tired smile. "Want me alone an' tired, so'll be at your mercy." Her brain was slowing regaining some sense but her body didn't have the energy to spare to form the words fully.
"Wouldn't you like to know." He ran a hand down her back; stopping at the bottom of the sweatshirt of his she was wearing. "Seriously though, I'll stay on the couch; you take my bed."
Lois' head rose from Clark's chest. "Okay." She pulled herself up, kissed him briefly and was on her feet before Clark could form a clear thought. "Night Smallville." She smiled.
Clark blinked, raising himself on his elbows. "You never had any intention of going home; you were just waiting for me to give up my bed." Though she pulled a face of innocence her eyes gave away her devious mind.
"Wouldn't you like to know." She parroted his earlier phrase, leaned over for another taste of his lips then headed upstairs. "Better get some sleep Smallville, we've got a busy day ahead of us."
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By nine the following morning Lois and Clark were on the road to Maddie's house. When he had woken earlier that morning, Lois had already left to head back to her own apartment to prepare for the day; but she did leave him a note explaining where she had disappeared to and warned that he should be ready to go when she returned to pick him up.
She had been surprised when she opened the door to her apartment to find Clark standing with two Talon coffees, one with her requisite three sugars, and a shy smile etched on his face. His reward had been a wide smile, showcasing perfectly straight white teeth and a kiss so deep he wondered if it were legal so early in the morning.
The car ride was devoid of any awkwardness as Lois regaled Clark with stories of over-zealous lobbyists and political train wrecks she'd had the displeasure of meeting in her new position. He laughed along as she divulged some of the staff's more colourful antics and listened with pride when she would talk of the way his mother dealt with the intricacies of her job.
With Lois verbally motoring non-stop, the trip flew passed and before he knew it, they were pulling into Maddie's familiar driveway.
As she had done the week before, Maddie bolted from the front door in a rush to greet her friends. The little girl sprinted with such enthusiasm that she missed seeing Clark seated in the passenger side of the car.
"Lois!" She shouted.
Slamming the driver's side door, Lois caught Maddie in a hug when the girl hurled herself into the larger body. "Whoa there ya speed demon. One of these days you're going to complete the tackle and we'll end up spending our Saturday in the hospital." She joked.
"What're we doing today?" Maddie pulled back and looked at her friend with intrigue.
"Well, last week your Grandma mentioned you need some new clothes for spring and summer cause you've out-grown the ones from last year, so what do you say to a trip to the mall?" She waggled her eyebrows.
"Really, we get to go shopping?" She cried. Her grandmother was great but shopping was best done with someone who'd know what was fashionable for her age.
"You bet! And I've even brought along our own personal bag carrier for the day." She pointed to the other side of the car where Clark was standing with his door still open.
"Clark!" Maddie's grin widened further and she ran to Clark's side.
"Hey Maddie." He bent to hug her as Lois had. "I thought I might tag along today, if it's alright with you." He added.
"Of course! This is so awesome." She jumped, spinning around to face the house. "I gotta go tell Grandma. I'll be right back." She stopped right before the porch to turn back to Clark and Lois, her hands out in front of her and a serious expression crowding her young features. "Don't. Go. Anywhere." She said simply and took off again.
"She seems to be getting over her shyness." Clark noted.
"She still withdraws sometimes. Not that I blame the kid…she's been through a lot." Lois twisted the keys in her hand.
"You're pretty amazing." Clark remarked.
Lois was startled at his rather abrupt observation. "What?"
"I've talked to Maddie on the phone a couple times and we've traded e-mails but here you are, every Saturday, spending the day with her." He smiled at her on the other side of the car.
"Yeah well, I kinda get where she's coming from. Living in a new place surrounded by people you don't know; it's a tough break." She downplayed her involvement in Maddie's life effortlessly.
The young girl reappeared on the porch, her grandmother close behind. Maddie had taken extra time inside to rearrange her hair to emulate Lois' long relaxed curls, her excitement bubbling over at the idea of spending the day with not only Lois but Clark as well.
"Hi Mrs. Michaels." Lois waved to the elderly woman.
"Hi Dear." She nodded.
"You remember Clark?" Lois indicated her guest.
"Of course. How are you Clark?" She smiled at the young man.
"Fine. Thank you Mrs. Michaels." He returned the platitudes.
"We should be back around dinner time but I'll call and let you know whether we're going to eat out or not." Lois told the old lady.
"You mind Lois and Clark now Maddie." Mrs. Michaels called after her granddaughter.
Maddie nodded, reverting to her mute behaviour far too easily; she kept her side of the conversation clipped until they were almost fifteen minutes down the road when she once more began to relax and answer Clark's questions while asking some of her own.
"Hey Clark, want to know a secret?" Maddie leaned as far forward from the back seat as her seatbelt would allow.
"You bet." Clark smiled boyishly.
"Lois' been helping me practice moving pieces of glass around. Now when I get mad things don't always break."
"I always knew you could do it Maddie. You're abilities don't have to be a bad thing." Clark didn't truly hear the words until they were out of his mouth and circulating within the car. He marveled at his own hypocrisy; he was endorsing Maddie's abilities while condemning his own.
"That's what Lois says. She says that it's a gift and that I can do really good things." Maddie was positively giddy sharing the news with Clark.
"You two do realize I'm sitting right here." Lois teased. "If you keep talking about me like I'm not here I'm going to get a complex." She huffed, winking at Maddie through the rear-view mirror so she knew she was kidding.
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Mall
"I think you've bought as much as Maddie has." Clark pretended to be weighed down by the many bags he was carrying.
"It's going to be too hot for me to wear my suits to the office soon. I need some summer business attire." She shared a smile with Maddie. "Tell you what Smallville, why don't you take those bags out to the car so you don't have to lug them around and we don't have to listen to you complain." She tossed her keys to him and watched as he struggled to catch them without dropping the bags.
Maddie giggled at his efforts.
"We'll be looking at sunglasses over there in the meantime." She pointed to the store to his left. Lois bit the side of her cheek to keep from laughing at Clark's forlorn expression.
She redirected her focus toward Maddie who was just managing to get her chuckles under control. "So Kiddo, what kind of sunglasses are you thinking of?" Although the question was aimed at her young friend, her eyes followed Clark as he traveled through the mall away from them.
"I like those ones; they're like yours." She picked up a small black pair of sunglasses and tried them on. "Is Clark your boyfriend?" She asked casually.
Lois' lips had already begun forming the word 'no' when she abruptly stopped. After the previous week and more notably last night, she wasn't sure how to classify their relationship. Despite everything that had been shared between them, neither had broached the precarious topic of labels for their relationship.
"Why'd you think Clark's my boyfriend?" She queried, hoping to forestall Maddie before having to answer her earlier question.
"You guys are always hanging out together and he lets you make fun of him." She shrugged. "He looks at you funny and you look at him funny too." She continued to peruse the sunglasses selection. "He's really cute."
Maddie wad beginning to wonder if she had been wrong about Clark being Lois' boyfriend but she was hoping she hadn't been. She wanted Clark to come with them every time they went out on Saturdays…well maybe not every time; she liked her girl time with Lois.
"I guess…" Lois paused "Yeah, Clark is my boyfriend." She surprised herself when the admission rolled off her tongue. "And you're right he is really cute." She raised knowing eyebrows at Maddie. "You're a pretty smart kid." She pulled her to her side for a short hug.
"I know." Maddie answered, replacing a pair of sunglasses on her nose.
Laughing aloud, Lois rolled her eyes sky-ward. "I think you've been spending too much time with me; you've already got the Lane bravado down." She nodded at the little girl. "I like those ones." They made their way to the cashier before leaving.
When Clark arrived back to the store Maddie and Lois were standing out front, bag in the former girl's hand.
"I was gone a couple minutes and you've already bought something?" His eyes widened incredulously.
"It's okay Clark, I'll carry this one." Maddie held up the tiny bag smiling impishly.
He returned her smile, a sucker for her childish charms. "Where to next ladies?" He gallantly held out his arm for Lois and his hand for Maddie as she couldn't quite reach his elbow.
"We need to make one more stop, and then we'll go somewhere to eat and put you out of your misery." Lois slid her hand into his rather than take the proffered arm, winking at the shy looked of surprise on Clark's face. On the other side of Clark's frame Maddie watched as the adults shared a look of longing; she ducked her head to keep her giggles from them.
The large sporting goods store spelled a reprieve for Clark from the monotony of female clothiers. His eyes danced over the inline skates, hockey sticks and basketballs as they moved toward the wall of footwear. Lois explained that Maddie's grandmother had signed her up for soccer that summer and she would need a pair of cleats. Finally feeling in his element, Clark jumped into surveying the merchandise choices.
"I like those ones." Maddie pointed to the cleats a few inches out of her reach.
"These are good. Support around the ankles, stiff toe and high lacing." Clark listed the attributes as though he were intending to make the sale himself.
"I like them cause they have purple that matches my uniform." Maddie divulged.
Clark appeared dumbstruck at the logic of the girl. "Oh um…that too." He mumbled.
"Where'd you want to go to eat?" Lois asked, clearly amused at the situation.
Maddie cocked her head to the side, thinking carefully about the question. "Can we get spaghetti?"
"You bet." Clark nodded, gathering the shoe box to take to the front.
The middle aged man working the register smiled as the three approached; the smaller of the group was barely able to see over the tall counter.
"Were you folks able to find everything you 'er lookin' for?" He drawled.
"We did, thanks." Clark smiled at him, resting his hand briefly on Maddie's head.
"Ah, so you've got a future soccer star on your hands." The clerk winked at Maddie as he rang in the box. "You make sure your Mom and Dad here get you out practicing; I'm going to be lookin' for you on TV in the future."
Clark's eyes bulged in their sockets and he glanced quickly to his right where Lois was stunned silent. Unsure of Maddie's reaction to the man's unknowing comment, he turned his gaze down. She had her hands covering her mouth to keep from shrieking with laughter at Lois' uncharacteristic state.
"We're not her parents" Clark informed the man "we're friends."
"Clark's Lois' boyfriend." Maddie managed to get out around her titters.
"How old do you think we look?" Lois sputtered indignantly.
"Sorry Miss, you just got that family vibe." The man appeared trite, trying to hurrying up the purchase.
"I don't know what you were doing when you were ten but I certainly wasn't having a baby!" She ranted.
"I really am sorry Miss." The clerk seemed to shrink before their eyes.
"Come on Maddie." Lois snagged the little girl's hand with her left and headed for the door.
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"And he actually had the nerve to tell me I can't trust Lex." Lana shook her head, dismayed. "Is this some big game to him? He doesn't want to be with me but no one else can either?"
"Clark's just trying to look out for you and yes he has a poor way of showing it but he means well." Chloe soothed.
The two girls walked around the fountain in the middle of the busy mall, coffee in one hand and purchases in the other. It had been Lana's suggestion to go shopping as an excuse to spend time together; despite being roommates they saw very little of one another with Lana spending the majority of her time with Lex and Chloe balancing school and work.
"I know but he's undermining my ability to take care of myself and he was the one who wanted to break up in the first place." They continued to walk through the building. "I think Clark wants to get back together but now that I'm with Lex it's impossible."
"Do you want to get back with Clark?" Chloe whipped around to eye her friend.
"Maybe." Lana admitted. "But it doesn't matter because I'm have Lex." Her dark eyes steeled themselves with the declaration. "Is Lois in Metropolis today?" Lana's gaze drifted a few stores down.
"Not that I know of. Why?" Chloe took a large gulp of her coffee.
"Isn't that her?" Lana gestured.
"Yeah, it is." Chloe answered with delighted surprise.
"Who's the little girl with her?" The two watched as Lois spoke seriously to the laughing child.
"I have no idea." Chloe's brow furrowed. She opened her mouth to call out to her cousin when she caught sight of a familiar form moving into her line of view. "What's Clark doing here?" She muttered.
"We should go say hi." Lana began walking toward them.
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Clark took the extra moment to pick up the bag. "Sorry about that, she gets irritable when she hasn't eaten." He frowned apologetically.
"No problem. Women are testy about their age most of their lives; I should've known better than to open my big mouth." The clerk joked. "You take care and I hope those cleats work out for your friend."
"Thanks." Clark rushed after his shopping companions. "Hey!" He called after them.
"I saw you laughing in there Smallville." Lois glared. "There was absolutely nothing funny about that guy thinking we're old enough to be Maddie's parents."
"Oh come on Lois, it was a harmless mistake. Maddie thought it was funny, didn't you?"
Maddie glared, not please with being dragged into Lois' line of fire. "It was funny cause the guy must have been blind to think you guys were old enough to have me." She shook her head at Clark's grateful expression as Lois deflated beside her. "Come on you guys, I'm hungry." She piped in once more.
Clark wrapped his arm around Lois' shoulders while Maddie kept hold of her hand on the other side. A question floated through Clark's mind as he remembered something Maddie had said in the store. "Maddie, who told you I was Lois' boyfriend?"
"Lois." Came her simple answer.
"Oh really?" A sly grin spread across his lips.
"Shut up Smallville." She warned, a blush creeping up her neck.
"Well now that Maddie knows I'm your boyfriend I can do this right?" He leaned down and stole a quick kiss.
"That's so gross." Maddie giggled.
"Yeah, gross." Lois agreed, a teasing glint in her eyes while she reached up to wipe at the lip gloss Clark was wearing.
"Clark? Lois?"
"Chloe!" Lois turned in surprise. "Lana." She smiled brightly at the newest arrivals, hoping to dispel the uncomfortable silence that descended over the group and cover her unease. "What are you guys doing here?"
"Shopping." Was Chloe's witty retort, her eyebrows yet to journey back from her hairline. "What are you doing here? With Clark? Kissing?"
"We're here shopping for Maddie." Lois blurted out quickly, the awkwardness of the situation settling in on her consciousness.
She was standing in a busy shopping centre in a city with millions of people and she and her new boyfriend had managed to run into said boyfriend's former girlfriend, who was currently frowning, and her cousin who also happened to habour feelings for him at one point in time; fate was far too adept at cruel and unusual punishment. And the boyfriend in question had yet to utter a single word.
"I'm assuming you're Maddie?" Chloe looked over at the girl on Lois' left.
Maddie nodded, shyly moving a step behind Lois under the scrutiny of the new girls. Sensing her withdrawing, Lois tugged on the hand she held.
Clark leaned into Lois, whether he was aware of it or not, portraying a telling picture. "Yes, she is." He confirmed, finding his voice. "Maddie, this is Lois' cousin Chloe and our friend Lana."
"It's uh, nice to meet you Maddie." Lana pasted a smile on her face for the sake of the little girl; though she was bewildered by the hurt she experienced seeing Clark and Lois together.
"So mind letting us in on what's going on between you two?" Chloe tilted her head toward the older pair, sipping on her coffee.
"Clark's Lois' boyfriend." Maddie revealed.
Chloe sputtered while Lana gaped. "Of all the times she picks to talk, now's one of them." Lois muttered under her breath, causing Clark to grin.
"Hey Maddie, let's go get a pretzel to snack on; I'll never make it to lunch." Clark suggested. "We'll be down the hall when you're ready to go." He casually kissed Lois' temple. "Chlo, I'll talk to you later. Lana, good to see you." And then he was gone.
"You are so dead Clark." Lois once more whispered under her breath.
"Clark does have those quick exits down." Chloe quipped. "So ah, when did this happen?" She smirked. "Or more importantly how? You and Clark were barely tolerating one another not too long ago."
"Okay, first of all I was going to tell you." Lois held out her hands as a gesture of both innocence and confirmation. "But it happened so quickly. I mean one day Clark shows up to take me to lunch and the next he's sending me flowers and we're going on a date. This whole take charge attitude he's got going on is really hot." She rambled.
"Let's start from the beginning, when did this first lunch take place?" Chloe inquired.
"Monday."
"Last Monday?" Lana's eyes widened. "And now suddenly you're dating exclusively?"
"Is this as weird for you two as it is for me?" Lois rubbed her temples, a headache approach at breakneck speed. "Everything kind of changed after we spent last night together."
"You spent the night together!" Lana looked positively scandalized.
"We didn't have sex!" Lois denied rather loudly, drawing looks from the odd passerby. "We had one of those deep and meaningful conversations." She rolled her eyes facetiously. "Smallville can be very charming when he wants to be." She shrugged innocently.
"Coz, I wouldn't believe if I wasn't seeing it but you're falling for Clark Kent." Chloe smiled with delight.
"She is?" Lana bristled.
"I am not….well maybe….a little bit." Lois' eyes immediately began searching for the topic of conversation throughout the throng of people around her.
"I'll let you get back to your 'boyfriend' but only if you promise to call me tonight with all the gory details." Chloe's eyebrows waggled for emphasis.
"This is okay right?" She asked Lana, considering the girl a friend and not wanting to step over any lines.
Lana grinned. "Of course, who Clark dates is of no concern to me. And anyway I'm with Lex now." However those words gave her no comfort as jealousy and hurt boiled beneath the surface.
"K then, I'll see you guys later." She leaned in to hug Chloe. "Are you sure this is alright with you?" She whispered the meaning evident behind her words.
"Trust me when I say yes." She replied softly. "I saw this coming years ago and I couldn't be happier for you guys." Chloe's genuine smile was enough to assuage any guilt on Lois' part.
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When Lana had seen them at the mall, she had been sure their hook-up would be short lived; in fact she wouldn't allow herself to go so far as to refer to it as a relationship but Clark and Lois had proven her wrong. In just over a month they had become inseparable in their off hours and Chloe had mentioned that Clark was becoming somewhat of a fixture at the Senate office in Topeka. What made the entire scenario even worse was that the closer Lois and Clark became, the more strained her relationship with Lex turned.
But Lana had to admit that she really did like Lois, which was why she found herself in Smallville on a Sunday evening. It was her duty as a friend to warn Lois of the pitfalls of continuing her relationship with Clark before anyone ended up hurt.
"Hey." Lana watched from her place at the front doors of the Talon as Clark approached Lois from behind, trapping her with his arms on either side of her on the counter.
"Hey there stranger." She smiled and continued to pour sugar into her coffee. "What's up?" Leaving her mug on the counter, Lois spun to face him.
"My mom's home tonight and she's cooking I was just making sure my gorgeous girlfriend would be joining us for dinner." His hands dropped to encircle her waist.
"Like you even have to ask." She quirked an eyebrow, smiling when Clark bent his head to press his lips to hers in a lingering kiss. "Mmmm, I have some work to do before I come over though."
"Want some help?" Clark asked earnestly.
Lois chuckled. "The last time you 'helped' I spent all of two minutes reading then ended up on the couch learning to breathe through my nose."
"But you were learning something at the time." Clark teased.
"You bet and when the Senate decides to vote on kissing technique you can help me work as much as you like." She tilted her head upward to steal another kiss. "I'll be over in a little bit and you'll have me to yourself for the rest of the night."
"You'll get no argument from me." He shrugged and released her. "I'll see later."
Lana moved away from the door and into a crowd at one of the tables as Clark left the establishment. After the display he and Lois put on she wasn't in any mood to make idle conversation; she would speak to Lois and be on her way.
"Lois?" She addressed the other woman softly.
"Lana? Hi." The surprise was fleeting and Lois immediately replaced it with a smile. "Are you in town seeing Lex?"
"No Lex is in Geneva this week; I actually came here to see you." Her expression was closed to whatever she was thinking.
"Oh, well okay." Lois once more felt off balance in the conversation, not having spoken to Lana for any great length of time since seeing her at the mall over a month earlier. "Is everything okay?" Her mind went to countless horrific situations involving her cousin.
"Yeah everything's fine. I just wanted to talk to you." Lana implored, her nerves showing as she twisted her hands.
"Okay then, let's go up to the apartment." She nodded to the stairs wondering what Lana could possibly want to discuss with her.
Once the door closed behind them the air thickened, a heavy tension bearing down with insurmountable force.
"So what's going on? You're not usually this high strung." Lois attempted the joke but its comedy was lost in the dense foreboding aura infringing on her mind.
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Clark was on his way home when he remembered that he had intended to ask Lois about the Independence Day celebration the governor was planning. He thought it would be fun to spend the long weekend in Topeka and attend the gala at the governor's mansion. Changing directions, he headed back to the Talon. As his hand was raised to knock his hearing picked up voices on the other side of the apartment door; though his conscience waved the proverbial red flag at his actions Clark continued to listen.
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"I'm not really sure how to say this…" she paced in front of the sofa "it's about Clark." Lois waited expectantly as Lana gathered her thoughts. "I wanted to make sure you understood what you're getting into with him."
Lois squinted at Lana in confusion. "I'm not sure I'm following you."
"Clark's a sweet guy and it's easy to get caught up in his charms but he's not as invested as you are in your relationship. He'll say all the right things but he'll never be honest with you."
"Honesty isn't exactly something I'm concerned about from the original farmboy." Lois rolled her eyes. "I'm not sure what you're hoping to accomplish but Clark and I are fine thanks."
Lana knew this conversation wouldn't be easy to hear for Lois but she wasn't going to give up. "You don't understand. You can't trust Clark. He hides things about himself; aren't you bothered by all the secrets he keeps? You're going to end up getting hurt."
"If there's one thing I know, it's that Clark would never hurt me intentionally and the fact that you would think he could makes me wonder why you were with him in the first place." Lois bristled at Lana's comments. "As for Clark's secrets, he'll tell me when he's ready and not a moment sooner. Badgering the truth out of him isn't going to do either of us any good although I think I can see now why you and he didn't work out."
"This isn't about my relationship with Clark." Lana argued.
"Isn't it?" Lois countered. "I don't know where your hang-ups came from but they're not mine. I don't expect my boyfriend to give me a tell-all in the first month of our relationship. That's why people date; to learn about one another."
"You're willing to be with a man who doesn't share all of himself with you?" Lana couldn't grasp Lois' reasoning and her frustration was beginning to show.
"If I am it's really none of your business." Lois fumed. "How about I share something with you? I despise hypocrites." She moved closer to Lana, her voice lowered menacingly. "When Clark warned you off Lex you cut him up but yet here you are in my apartment doing the same thing to a guy who would lay his life down for you. Secrets I can live with, treachery I can't." She bit out around a clenched jaw. "I think you should leave now."
Lana headed for the door more out of self protection than anything else; Lois appeared on the verge of lashing out and hitting her. As she turned the handle she took one final parting shot. "How long do you think you can live with the not knowing? How long can you live knowing that he doesn't trust you?" She opened the door. "Eventually you'll realize he would be honest with you if he truly cared about you." And she was gone.
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Clark had experienced a full range of emotions while listening outside Lois' door. He had been furious when Lana had begun talking and touched at how Lois defended him; he had been surprised that Lois didn't mind his secrets and guilty that he hadn't told her yet. Chloe had mentioned telling Lois his secret a few times but he had brushed her off by claiming the relationship was too new.
He was no longer ignorant to the realities of life; he had worn blinders for too long with Lana and he refused to do the same with Lois. But Lois wanted to be with him; secrets and all. It was hearing her stand on the issue that made his decision for him: he wanted nothing more than to be able to tell the woman he had fallen in love with who he was. So he would, simple as that.
5/6
Please R&R if you get the chance.