NOTE: Thanks everyone who's reading this! This is a lot of fun because of you guys. Um, I separated scenes differently with o's since the bar thing wasn't working on the sight. And here is chapter 16 and some good Superman/Lois interaction! It's more serious than the last couple chaps but I'm a sucker for fluff...so enjoy!
Mr. Firenze: Ohhhkay... :D I thought you just found it amusing but I wasn't sure so...Lol. Well, now that that's out of the way. Thanks a bunch! Haha, I just don't know for sure sometimes what some people are thinking. :)
Sunny2006: Yes, there's some good Supman/Lois stuff here in this chapter actually :). Thanks, I'm glad you liked it! I love to write about those two...
xtreme-pansy: I'm glad they're safe too ;). That was fun to do, to write Superman saving the day. Thanks for the review!
queequeg1013: I'm glad you enjoyed last chapter :). I'm glad I actually succeeded in being funny too, lol. Thanks!
Amylion: Lol! Thanks!
Nightcrawler8: Yup, it just wouldn't be Lois not to get mixed up in stuff :). Thanks for the review!
katie: I'm glad you like it :).
Jedi X-man Serena Kenobi: Yes, and here's more good stuff for our fave couple (thought a bit more dramatic, I must say, than last chapter)! Thanks a lot!
Nette: Haha! Yeah it made sense...sort of ;). Thanks, it's good to know you liked the end part.
Maddi-B: Thank you for the constant reviews! It's very kind of you. Yeah, I thought that would be cute if she reacted that way :).
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Lois lifted her head when Clark opened his door. He beckoned her inside and she swept close past him. His heart thudded in his chest, and he adjusted his glasses to settle his nerves for a moment.
She was already plopped onto the couch of his apartment once he turned around. Her bag was tossed beside her, and she was leant back into the cushions.
"Bad day?" he asked.
She shrugged. "Not really. Just busy. Very busy." Her dark hair was up in a messy bun, and she wore dark slacks with a tan blouse. She was the perfect vision of a working woman, but he was captured by how her defined beauty still shone through. He could spend hours tracing the soft contours of her face with his eyes.
"What is it?" She noticed his intense gaze.
"You look nice today."
She rolled her eyes, yet he saw the slight blush in her cheeks. "Thank you."
That was another reason he had fallen for her so quickly. Though she was beautiful—and had been for a long time—she had always been so determined and focused on what lay ahead and more than her physical appearance, the good number of men who pursued her were ignored. A wall was built up around her, and no one had broken through till a hero in red, blue, and yellow flew into her life. No one had ever made her heart beat so quick, her stomach turn in knots, or overwhelmed her thoughts so much like he had.
"You're probably wondering why I'm here," she said
"I'm just glad to have you around. It was hard not being able to talk with you like we used to or…to touch you…" He slowly reached out a hand and tucked an errant strand of hair behind her hear.
Her lips parted in stunned silence. Her eyes were entwined with his until she tore away.
"Jason and I are moving here."
"Wait, here?"
"Here in the same building. I figured it was best to let Richard have the house even though I would have liked Jason to grow up in a real home. I figured this was the best place to start." She threw up her hands. "I hope I'm making the right decisions. I keep wondering…"
He grasped her hand. "I've never known you to be irrational or selfish. Jason will be fine."
"It's a lot for him right now, and I'm afraid this will have a bad effect. I've already hurt one good man, and I don't want anyone else to get hurt either; most of all Jason."
"Don't worry, Jason has the best mother on earth." He smiled.
She laughed and leaned towards him. "And the best father."
"Lois…I never thought I'd be a father. I don't know if I'm prepared."
She understood how he felt. She hadn't exactly felt totally gung-ho either when she was pregnant. It must be even more that way for him. He isn't exactly the same and didn't grow up the same either. But it's obvious he won't have any trouble.
"I have no doubt in you, Clark." She brushed aside his long, loose hair and realized she did much the same with Jason a lot of the time. "You've already proven yourself wrong, and I'm glad. Jason will be a great man some day; hopefully like you, saving the world by your side."
"I hope so too," he said. "I would also feel more comfortable having you both close by. Well, I don't exactly stay here often. Have you told him?"
"No. I will soon." She leant her elbows on her knees and rested her chin on her hand. "It's peaceful here. I don't have a thousand memories turning in my head or a hundred people talking or milling around."
There was a long silence as she enjoyed the tranquility.
"I should go." But she did not move though.
"You don't have to if you don't need to," he quickly interjected. His eyes expectantly searched hers.
"I…" Lois Lane was not a woman to become speechless, yet she faltered in her words often around Superman. That intense gaze of his always breached the wall around her. She wrenched her eyes away and closed them. "I do need to go, but could you…take me back?"
A wide grin split his face. "Of course. I'll be back in a second."
She nodded and watched him disappear in his bedroom from the corner of her eye. Her spirits were already lifted at the thought of flying with him again. Every time they did, they could slip away from the world and float above the clouds in the heavens where dreams seemed to come true. It was there her heart had first fell into his palm. No, I handed it to him and knew no other could replace him. She heard her mother's words from years ago: "There is no man on this earth good enough for my Lois Lane whether she knows it or not."
"I guess you were right, mom," she whispered. "I had to go and fall in love with a man from another planet." She laughed at herself. "But it felt like…destiny."
"What did?"
Her head came up, and she was stunned for a moment. He was Superman now, draped in his crimson cape, his body formed with blue and yellow, and his shadowed hair well-groomed. However, it was the same weight of the world on his shoulders and same heaviness of responsibility in his eyes.
"Us, Superman. Do you ever feel like time all came together to the moment we met? Like we were saved for each other all our lives?" She had risen to her feet and was taking slow steps towards him. "Like our love is a foundation of the world?"
He held her gaze firmly and crossed the gap between them. "Yes. Every day since I met you."
She shuddered at his nearness and let all the emotions of all their days and years together wash over her. It made her tremble and her heart flutter.
He saw her grow unsteady and placed his hands gently on her arms.
"Superman. Clark. Which one are you?" she murmured.
"Both." His brow creased with confusion.
I should have seen it. Why didn't I? they are so different but so much the same. How is he two men at once? Do I love both, or just Superman? It chilled her to know she had her doubts. She made another decision.
"Clark," said Lois, "I want to love all of you, not just the greater part the world sees." She touched his lips with the tips of her fingers. "I want to love the man the world doesn't see. Superman flew into my life turning everything upside-down but Clark Kent steadied it and was always around. Well," she laughed, "I suppose Superman was 'around' too."
He smiled a genuine, joyful smile as brilliant as the sun. He did not even reply but gathered her in his arms and pressed his lips to hers. It deepened into the most passionate kiss they had shared since five years gone.
When Lois pulled her head back to catch her breath, she couldn't help but beam up at him. It felt so right to be with him like they had always been one half of the other waiting to be completed. With Richard something was missing and now she knew why.
He brushed his thumb over her soft lips and kissed her brow. She belonged to him now: she was his again to hold and to protect.
"We'll go now," he murmured.
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They landed near the back porch again and Lois turned to go inside. Superman stood tall and still in the afternoon sun like a monument to a forgotten place and time no one else would ever know. She was drawn to that lonely figure and forgot about whatever else was on her mind.
She ran back into his arms and laid her head on his chest. "Don't ever feel alone, Superman. I'll always be here. And so will your son. I don't know how it feels to be the only one left alive of my kind and to be different from the rest of the world but I do know I'm willing to be there for the man who does." She leaned up to cover his lips with hers then went back to the doors. "Thank you for giving me a ride." One of her rare radiant smiles seemed to light the entire back yard.
"No, thank you Lois Lane. You've given me a life and made me feel more human and normal than anyone or anything else on this earth." He returned the smile and shoved off into the skies.
Lois's smile did not leave her face as she hurried inside to find Jason.
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"Moving? Where?" asked Jason.
"To the same building Clark lives in."
Jason was glad at first but soon was overtaken with sadness. He hung his head and toyed with the shoelaces on his right foot.
"Honey, I know it's difficult for you to be torn away from the way our lives were, so I'm not surprised if you're angry or upset with me," she said. "You've taken everything very well so far. Unusually well." She frowned and considered the possibility of him bundling all his emotions inside into a horde that could someday explode.
He shrugged. "It's weird. I'm kind of confused. Should I be mad at you?"
"No, but I thought you might be." She stroked his hair. "You'll understand better when you're older."
"I trust you, mommy. If you want to move, I won't be mad."
She felt tears prick her eyes. "Thanks, sweetie. I'm glad you're not." She embraced him and held him tight.
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Richard watched as Lois carefully placed some of her keepsakes in a cardboard box. Her hair was in a casual ponytail and she wore jeans and a plain white shirt. Gradually the boxes had piled up in the hall until that evening when she taped the last one shut.
He caught her gaze when she straightened for a moment.
"Richard, don't look so forlorn."
"I can't help the way I feel about all this."
"But it hurts to see you look so…lost." Her sarcasm kicked in to cover her sadness. "I hope you get over me pretty quick for your sake."
He was still looking directly at her. "I don't know if I'll ever get over you, Lois Lane. You're one of a kind. I've never met anyone quite like you before and I don't suppose I ever will. It's no wonder he fell in love with you of all the women in the world and hasn't let go. The whole world fell in love with you and your reporting. Why shouldn't the world's two favorite people be together?"
"Richard, do you know what you're saying?" she murmured. She squinted in concentration at him. "Have you given up so easily?"
His laugh was heart-wrenching in its derisiveness, pain, and sorrow. "I was always a fighter, and I don't 'give up so easily,' but how can I fight against a guy with super powers and super charm? I tried and I failed. I'm not stupid enough to not admit defeat. And I don't want to cause you anymore suffering." He lowered his head. "You've been through enough."
She looked away and fingered the smooth roll of tape in her hand.
He turned and left the bedroom. Lois stared at the empty doorway and thought of one last kindness she could do for him.
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NOTE: Next chapter--We say goodbye to dear Richard...
It would be great to know what you think of things so far! Review if you feel inclined :).
