ok.. Chapter 3.
it's emotional and totally setting up future events. that's all i'm gonna give ya
i love my feedback for all of my fics. but the feedback in the Lilies Trilogy is especially loved since it's my baby.. so thanks for taking the time to post FB
so here we go...
Author: Alison
Disclaimer: Characters belong to DC, WB, AlMiles, etc., etc., etc. I only own the story. Hey, I wrote it, after all. Although, I do now own 5 official Keith Urban guitar picks as well as a Monkeyville passport holder. My cat is very jealous.
Chapter 3
She could feel it already. Her head hurt. She didn't want to open her eyes. But she had to.
One eyelid slowly opened.
Wait. This couldn't be right. Where was she?
The second eyelid popped open and took in her surroundings.
How did she--? When did she--?
What happened?
She remembered being in the loft with him. She held him for what seemed like hours. He cried the majority of the time, but then he became quiet. He wrapped his arms around her and they sat there holding each other. They must've fallen asleep together. But she couldn't remember.
But how did she get to his bedroom?
Slowly, she sat up and looked around. She was under the covers, wearing the same pantsuit she'd worn to the funeral yesterday.
Her heart sank at the mere thought of it.
She looked at the clock radio on his nightstand. It was already ten o'clock in the morning. She had things to do.
As she rolled out of bed, she caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror above his dresser. Ugh. She had to clean up before she could go anywhere.
She quietly opened his bedroom door and crept down the hall. She didn't know if Mrs. Kent was awake or not. She slipped into the bathroom and softly closed the door behind her. Pausing briefly, she looked at the shower curtain and thought back to when his mother found the two of them, wet and scantily clad, together in the bathroom. That was a fun day. The look on his face was enough to make her smile again at the memory.
She missed that. She missed him. She'd never admit it out loud, but she missed him.
Grabbing a towel out of the cabinet, she walked to the sink and turned on the faucet. She splashed some cold water on her face and then gently patted it dry with the plush cotton towel.
It was different now. She was trying to get through to him. Was this what he was going through only a few short weeks ago with her?
She reached for his brush and tried to smooth her thick hair. She wanted to go home. She needed to go home. But something was telling her she was needed just a little longer with this family.
Sighing and blowing her bangs out of her eyes, she took one last look in the mirror, straightened her suit jacket and headed out the door and towards the stairs.
Maybe she could surprise Mrs. Kent and fix her some breakfast. Ha! Yeah, right.
Wait. Breakfast. Food. Oh no! She completely forgot about all the food she'd left sitting out the night before. She'd promised Mrs. Kent she'd put it away. That's just what the recently widowed woman needed. Way to go, Lane.
She picked up the pace and bounded down the stairs. She stopped suddenly when she saw the scene before her.
Mrs. Kent looked as though she'd been up for hours. The house seemed to sparkle. The older woman had apparently been cleaning all morning. All of the food that had been left sitting out the previous night was nowhere to be found.
Lois slowly walked to Mrs. Kent, who was meticulously scrubbing the stove.
"Mrs. Kent?"
The older woman glanced up and flashed a weak smile at her.
"Oh, good morning, Lois. Would you like something to eat? I can whip up some pancakes for you, if you like?"
Pancakes? Good morning?
Didn't this woman's husband die a few days ago? Last night she was so…distraught. She didn't even want to talk.
And where was Smallville this morning?
She glanced in the living room. Nope. Not there. No sign of him. No pillow, no blanket. He always slept on the couch before when she occupied his bedroom. What was going on?
She turned back to Mrs. Kent.
"Oh, no thanks, Mrs. Kent." She paused and watched her furiously clean the stovetop, not twice, but four times over. "You know, I don't think it's gonna get any shinier." Mrs. Kent kept scrubbing. Lois sighed. "Mrs. Kent?" Scrub, scrub, scrub. "Okay, I'm sure Mr. Clean would be proud, but this has gotta stop." She grabbed the sponge out of her hand and tossed it in the sink.
Mrs. Kent put her hand on her head and sighed.
"I'm sorry, Lois. It's just…" She paused and looked just inside the living room. Lois followed her gaze. The old brown jacket he always wore still hung on the old hall tree. Mrs. Kent sighed before continuing. "...everything here reminds me. It's not that I don't want to remember. I guess, now that he's gone, I'm just afraid I'm going to forget."
Lois wanted to cry. She could feel it.
She had more in common with his mother than she'd ever realized.
Mrs. Kent walked to the island and sat on the stool.
Lois let her head hang as she watched her put her head in her hands.
What more could she do?
Should she give the same speech as before? Did she even have a right to?
She sighed and walked to her side, placing a hand on her shoulder.
"Mrs. Kent, I promise you'll never forget. No matter what happens…you will never forget."
She said it partly because it was true, and also in part because she thought of her mother every day.
No. You never forget.
Mrs. Kent looked up as their eyes met. Lois could see the redness again. She could see the tears forming. She looked down and nodded.
Lois wasn't sure what made her do it. But she reached out and slowly pulled Mrs. Kent into a hug. The older woman hopped off the stool and hugged Lois even tighter. She closed her eyes as she embraced his mother. She didn't even know it was there, but a tear slowly fell down her cheek.
A few weeks ago she would've kicked herself for letting it fall. But now… Two escaped in the last twenty-four hours. How many more tears were gonna fall?
She quickly wiped the tear as Mrs. Kent released her embrace.
She'd been thinking about him ever since she woke up. But when she saw his mother…well. She just couldn't bear to ask it then. But now that she was wiping the tears away, maybe it was her chance.
Deep breath.
"Have you seen Clark this morning?"
Was that the best way to say it?
Mrs. Kent kept her head down and sniffed back the tears as she spoke.
"He finished up his chores earlier this morning, then he said he had somewhere he needed to go to think about some things. I'm not too sure where that is though."
She wasn't sure either. But she had a gut feeling.
And Lois Lane never ignored her gut.
"Mrs. Kent, are you going to be okay? I mean, I need to run some errands, but I can come back later and help you around here if you--"
"No, Lois." Mrs. Kent smiled faintly. "It's okay. I'll be fine." Lois smiled and nodded before turning to grab her coat off the hall tree in the living room. She walked to the door and grabbed the doorknob, taking her keys out of her pocket as she threw on her coat. "Besides, Clark needs you more than I do right now."
She froze as she stepped halfway out the door onto the porch.
Um…what?
She looked at Mrs. Kent, who stood next to the kitchen island…smiling that knowing Mrs. Kent smile.
"Uh…whatd'ya mean?"
What was she doing? What was Mrs. Kent doing?
The older woman sighed as she lifted her coffee mug to her lips.
"Just go to him, Lois. You may be the only one that can get through."
She felt the chill sweep through her body. She'd blame it on the cold winter weather. But deep down…she knew better.
The door softly closed behind her as she made her way down the old wooden porch steps and across the driveway to her car. The snow had stopped falling, but it was pretty deep. She sighed as she looked at her snow-covered car. She'd have to scrape the windshield before she could go anywhere.
After several minutes of warming up the car and scraping the ice and snow off all the windows, she hopped in and slowly drove down the snowy dirt lane. She turned on the main road and drove in the now all too familiar direction.
She knew exactly where he was. She knew because it's where she'd be, too.
She turned off the road and parked her car. Would he want to talk? Would he want to tell her to leave? She braced herself for anything. After all, she knew she could handle it.
Opening the door, she stepped out into the deep snow. Thank goodness she wore her boots. She'd hate to walk through snow in heels.
She should've seen it when she pulled in. It was brilliantly visible against the white snowy backdrop.
But there he was. His red jacket gave him away.
She slowly walked to him. Did he even hear her coming through the snow? She couldn't be sure. She stopped next to him. He didn't look at her. He kept his face down, staring at the gray marble stone.
Her heart jumped. It jumped because she remembered the first time she saw the memorial he'd given her. It also jumped because it was then she realized how much she loved his father.
She couldn't say anything. If she did, she'd cry.
So, she just stood next to him.
But she had to say something. Wasn't this an uncomfortable silence? Shouldn't she be drowning in fear right now?
The fear, however, wasn't there. She wasn't afraid to stand in the cemetery with him and stare silently at his father's grave.
She wasn't sure if she should leave. She wasn't sure if she should give him his space. After all, he hadn't said anything to acknowledge her presence.
She was about to turn and walk away. She was about to ignore Mrs. Kent's words. But then, he slowly reached out and gently took her hand in his.
And it was then she knew he needed her.
