Chapter 20
Lois woke to the sound of nothing, only the slow droning of a heavy breath beside her. She fought to keep her eyes closed, forcibly willing herself to stay asleep, but finally relented to the fact that she was awake. Groaning just a little, she lifted her lids to find herself nose first into the hard form of one Clark Kent. She smiled to herself as she drank in his manly aroma. Her nose suddenly wrinkled as she smelt what she thought was burning metal. Her eyes suddenly went wide as she recognized the smell. She had grown up on army bases her whole life, and she knew the smell of gun residue anywhere.
As Clark continued to breathe slowly, she poked her head over his chest to look at the alarm clock. It was almost ten, and she was sure both Chloe and Jimmy were up, but she really didn't feel like leaving the bed. The blankets overtop of her warm, Clark's body was warm, and all she wanted to do was go back to sleep. She knew it wouldn't come though, having gone to bed much earlier than usual the night before. Breathing out a heavy sigh in exasperation, she dropped back down onto her pillow and turned onto her back.
She stared at the ceiling as she tucked her arms back under the sheets and brought them up under her chin. The coziness of the situation was just perfect and she didn't want it to end. A smile tugged at the corner of her lips as she thought back to the night before. She had no idea where her sudden emotional outburst had come from, but it was incredibly comforting to know that she had someone like Clark to put her at ease. She knew that even if they couldn't have children, life wasn't over. It was just the beginning of another chapter. Relenting to let it stew away in the recesses of her mind, she glanced over to the man lying beside her.
Letting out a soft moan of pleasure, she closed her eyes. She didn't know happiness, like what she shared with Clark, existed. Her whole life had been about putting up a tough front, but now she felt truly free to release everything she had to the one man she loved unconditionally. It was feeling she knew that not everyone had the chance to experience and she wouldn't waste it. She would be thankful for every minute she could be with him, knowing that in due time he would possibly leave her for an extended period of time. It pained her to hear of it, but she understood. Clark Kent was to be shared with the world, and selfishness was not an attribute that she had.
Her eyes drifted to his bare shoulder as it peaked up from underneath the covers. Her nose wrinkled again as she lifted a finger out of the blankets and wiped the ridge of his collar bone with her finger. A black powdery residue came off his skin, and when she brought it to her nose, she frowned. "Clark?" she asked softly, gently using her other hand to wake him. He groaned in disagreement and turned away from her, presenting her with a fine view of his back. Rolling her eyes, she tickled his spin and blew on the back of his neck.
"Lois!" Clark said with a stern but quiet voice.
"Care to tell me you why you gave gun powder and bullet residue all over you?"
Clark groaned in disapproval and went back to sleep.
"Smallville?" Lois asked with a more demanding voice, poking him hard in-between his shoulder blades.
"Watch the news," Clark mumbled as he pulled the cover up tighter to himself.
Lois frowned, but dropped the matter. She softly lifted the covers off herself and peeked at Clark's lower half. Her eyes went wide as she saw his boxers, barely being held together by a piece of fabric here of there. "I hope your boxer shorts don't look like that on the front?" She laughed as she rolled off the bed and stood up, placing the covers back over him as he grunted again. "Care to explain to me what happened last night?" she asked as she walked round to the other side of the bed and stared down at him.
Clark opened an eye and looked up at her. "After sleep," he said as he closed his right eye and tried to catch a few more winks.
"I find the man I love with gun powder all over him and I should have patience? I don't think so, Smallville." She towered over him with her hands on her hips, dressed in her blue flannel pajamas.
"The news," Clark mumbled again as he turned back over so that she was facing his back again.
Giving up in frustration, she ran her hands through her mangled mess of hair and left him alone. He was adamant about her watching the news, and if he wasn't going to tell her right away what happened, she would do exactly as he suggested. Her patience was never very good, and her curiosity was peaking considerably as she pushed open the bedroom doors and went into the main room.
She was greeted with two people turning their heads to her. "What?" she asked with a lopsided look as they stared wide at her.
"Is Clark up?" Chloe asked quickly, looking to Jimmy and then back to her cousin.
"No, why?"
"Can you get him up and out here, please?"
Lois was about to throw back a silly remark about Clark's early morning gruffness, but the look on both Chloe and Jimmy's face told her that she should really do as she had been asked. "One moment." She turned quickly and walked back into the bedroom, closing the doors. Looking down on his sleeping form, she bent over and ripped the sheets off him, only to get a dissatisfied groan in return.
"Time to get up Smallville, Jimmy and Chloe have some urgent news it seems."
"It can wait," Clark replied as he turned onto his back and opened his eyes.
She was about to say something but was rendered speechless when she saw his boxers. The front was a tattered mess, his privates easily visible through the massive holes. "Smallville, put some clothes on," she said as she turned away.
Clark quickly leaned up and looked down at his boxer shorts and put his hands over himself. "Wow, I hadn't even thought of that." He sped quickly into a fresh pair of jeans. "Sorry," he said sheepishly as he touched Lois's right arm from behind.
Laughing just a little, she turned and gave him a tight smirk. "It's not that I don't appreciate a sneak peak here or there, but there are two people in the kitchen who want you?"
"Want me?
"Yeah, and I have no clue what about, but they are both pretty adamant about seeing you."
Clark sighed heavily and slipped on a t-shirt. Lois reached for the bedroom doors, but he grabbed her hand and spun her around, bringing her nose to nose with him. She let out a tiny squeak as he grinned, her eyes bulging out in complete surprise. "Good morning."
"Good morning to you too," Lois replied as she felt his hot breath against he nose. "I haven't brushed my teeth yet."
"Does it look like I care?"
She gulped and shook her head, allowing him to kiss her. Her eyes closed in pleasure as she drank in every piece of the moment. His breath was surprisingly fresh, but she didn't care, she was locked in a good morning kiss wit the man she loved. It was not only sweet, but incredibly erotic. His tongue pushed for entrance, but she broke the kiss and said. "We can do that once I have my teeth brushed. You're breath may be fresher than a daisy, but we humans tend to wake up with a nasty taste in our mouth." She wiggled her tongue around in her mouth. Yep, she was right; her mouth didn't taste too good.
Clark laughed let go of her hand. "I don't care what you taste like."
Slapping him playfully on the chest, she kissed him again, but only lightly. "I know, but right now there are two people waiting for us in the kitchen."
"Can't they wait?" he asked softly as he brought both his hands up and rubbed them through her hair, massaging her scalp.
Lois closed her eyes in pleasure and lost herself in his touch. "Oh my," she said in a husky tone as he continued to rub her head. Her heart rate began to quicken as she felt one of his fingers find a spot that she didn't know existed. A loud moan escaped her mouth as she struggled mightily to open her eyes. "Clark," she whimpered as he continued to massage even harder. She tried to say his name again, but she wasn't sure if it had escaped her lips, her mind having been lost in the torrent of incredible pleasure as his large hands continued rubbing her scalp.
Clark grinned even wider as she slowly fell into his chest, her forehead dropping down onto his chin. His eyes went wide as he felt her suddenly touch his belt and begin to undo the buckle. "Lois!" he said in a warning tone as he instantly stopped running his hands in her hair.
"Clark," she whimpered again, opening her eyes and breathing heavily against his chest. She lifted her hands from his belt and put them on his chest as she lifted her eyes to meet his gaze. His green orbs stared at her in worry as she smirked again, bringing out an instant response from his lips in the form of a tight, but weak smile. "You're evil."
He chuckled and kissed her. "I know, but at least I know where you like to be touched."
She swatted his chest again and pulled away. "It'll be a long time before you touch this body again." She smiled wildly and went out of the room, leaving him standing still with a shocked expression slapped across his face.
It took him a minute to respond, but he finally managed to follow after her into the kitchen. He was about to fight back with his own words, but he was presented with two very cold stares. "What?"
"That's what I asked too," Lois said in a chirpy tone, opening the fridge and pulling out the jug of orange juice.
"Are they angry?" Clark asked as he walked past Chloe and Jimmy, taking two glasses out of one of the cupboards.
"Beats me, but they sure have those concerning looks down pat."
He nodded as he heard Chloe speak, finally.
"Stop it!"
"Stop what?" Lois asked as she brought the jug to her lips and took a sip.
"Hey," Clark said as he tore the jug from her hands and poured her a glass.
Chloe looked at the two of them. "Quit talking to one another like we're not here."
"That would be nice," Lois said out the side of her mouth as she winked at Clark. He laughed suddenly and it only seemed to upset her cousin even more. "What Chloe?" she asked in a heated tone, her mirth turning into anger as her cousin continued to stare at them.
"Something happen last night?" Chloe asked suddenly.
Clark, thinking that Chloe meant something sexual, exchanged an awkward glance with Lois and replied. "No, why do you ask?"
"The bank robbery?"
"Bank robbery?" Lois asked, turning to her cousin to face her squarely.
"Oh, that." Clark poured himself a glass and put the jug back in the fridge. "It was nothing. There was a little trouble I heard." His eyes suddenly went hard as he stared at Chloe and then glanced to Jimmy, whose eyes were now wide. "Chloe," he said gravely, turning his gaze back to her.
"I told him everything."
Clark's anger came out as he stepped closer to her. "Care to tell me what gives you that right?" He towered over her as she continued to sit on the stool. No matter how much he trusted her, she was his best friend after all, he hated that she took it upon herself to share his secret without first asking him if she could.
"Clark I-." She fumbled for a response as she stared up into his hard eyes. Her tough exterior crumbled as he looked down at her with what she could only describe as pure malice.
Jimmy took the opportunity to jump in, trying desperately to relieve the sudden tension that had enveloped the room. "Wait, Clark, its okay. She only did so because I saw you on the news."
"What are you talking about?" Clark asked as he let his gaze fall onto the shorter man. He watched as Jimmy suddenly moved back a step.
"We both saw what happened at the bank last night," Chloe said suddenly.
Lois, feeling that things were suddenly slipping out of control, pulled Clark away from her cousin and held onto his arm. "What happened Chloe? What could possibly make you think you could tell Jimmy Clark's secret?"
Chloe looked to her boyfriend and then to Lois and Clark. Her cousin held onto Clark's arm protectively. "We saw Clark foil a bank robbery on the news."
Lois frowned. "So that's why your boxers were a tattered mess?"
Clark nodded, but didn't turn to meet her gaze. "It was, but my concern is why Jimmy knows it was me?"
"I had to tell him everything," Chloe said quickly, making sure that he didn't have time to interrupt him. "He said he knew it was you, especially with the mask on. Clark, it was undeniable."
Letting out a deep sigh, Clark walked away from the three people around him and paced back and forth by the dining table. "I wish you would have spoken to me before you told Jimmy," he said as he continued to pace.
"I know, but he was one-hundred percent sure, and he was incredibly skeptical about why bullets were bouncing off you like rubber bands."
"So you told him everything?" he asked as he dragged a hand over his face.
"Yes."
He nodded and went to the counter where Jimmy was again sitting on a stool. He leaned his hands on the edge of the wood trim and stared right at the photographer. "I hope you know how much danger you're now in, but I guess I can't expect my best friend to keep things from the one she loves." He smiled suddenly, bringing the mood back to a reasonable level as he looked to Chloe out the corner of his eye. "I don't like that you told him without my permission, but I won't begrudge you for it. Love is not about secrets, it's about honesty. I understand." He looked at everyone again and turned around. He went to the couch, picking up the remote and turning the television on.
His eyes were intently focused on the screen as the news ran footage of the attempted robbery over and over again. He could here three sets of feet come closer to him as he watched the TV even more intently. He wasn't surprised that everything had been caught on tape, and he thanked J'onn for remembering to give him a mask. "Have you all seen this?" he asked.
"I haven't," Lois remarked as she pushed past him and took the remote from his hand, sitting on the couch with a rather loud thud.
Clark turned away from the screen and ran his hand through his hair. He knew that it would all be captured on tape, but the more he thought about it, the more he knew that the last escaped criminal from the Phantom Zone would surely know where he was. He was scared for his friends and Lois, but he took some reassurance from the fact that he wasn't alone in having to deal with it all. J'onn was around, and that was somewhat settling enough to push his anxiety away for the moment.
"Are you not going to watch this?" Jimmy asked.
"I was there, remember," Clark replied as he put his hands in his pant pockets and turned back to the TV. He bumped the front of his thighs on the back of the couch as he sighed again.
"Smallville, who is that with you?" Lois turned her head to look at him.
"A friend," he replied simply, trying to leave J'onn out of the conversation as much as possible. He knew it wouldn't work though. He was surrounded by two reporters and a young man with a niche for photography and media.
"Candice?" Chloe asked.
"No." He walked away from them and went to the balcony door, staring out to the ski hill. There weren't many people skiing, but he knew it wouldn't be too long before it was incredibly busy.
"Who was it then?"
Clark turned to them all and said. "John Jones."
"Who?" Lois asked as she stood up and walked over to him. She could see from his facial expression that he wasn't happy about revealing the identity of the other person on the video. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing, it's just that I sort of promised not to tell anyone else that he's here."
"He asked you to lie for him?"
He nodded and moved away from her, his fingers going to his forehead in frustration. Things were now more complicated before. Not only was he in danger, but the more he revealed to his friends meant the more danger they were in. In the end though, he knew he couldn't lie to them.
"Jimmy, how much has Chloe told you?" He paced around the dining table.
The photographer looked to Chloe with a worried glance, but her smile convinced him to admit how much he knew. "She told me about your origins and your powers, why?"
Clark nodded as he slowed his pace. "Pay close attention, for I'm only going to tell you all once. I don't know if the thing is here, or has eyes and ears like mine, so I'll keep this short for not only your safety, but for John's too."
"What are you talking about, Smallville?" Lois asked as she walked toward shim again, but was brushed aside as she tried to grab his arm. He continued to pace around the table. "Smallville?"
"Lois, Chloe, Jimmy," he began as he stopped and put two hands on the back of one of the chairs. He craned his neck and continued. "You're in danger, all of you." He was nervous about telling them.
"Clark?" Lois asked, using his real name to emphasize how concerned she was. She stood by Chloe as Clark looked at them all. "What's this thing you're talking about?" She had picked it up, but it didn't seem like the others had as they stared at her confusingly.
"The last phantom, it's here, somewhere."
Chloe's eyes went wide as she looked around the room. "What do you mean here?"
Clark shrugged and went back to the balcony doors, staring once again at the ski hill. "It's here in Aspen somewhere. At the top of the mountain there is a large depression that has been covered up. John first thought it was still in the mountain, but he later told me it wasn't. Now we have an escaped criminal from the Phantom Zone on the loose. The problem is that we're not dealing with any dumb criminal; this one knows what it is doing. It is avoiding me like the plague, but I know it's out there somewhere."
"How do you know?" Chloe asked with a shaky voice.
"John told me he could feel its presence. The being is leaving hints as to where it has been, but neither of us can pin point exactly where it is."
"Who is this John?" Lois asked suddenly, interrupting her cousin who looked as if she had something else to say. She knew the dangers that the Phantoms represented, but she was more concerned about the people he was involved with; especially people that seemingly had abilities like him.
Clark dropped his gaze to the floor as he let his head droop. "Chloe, you know the man you refer to as the Martian Manhunter?"
"Yeah?"
"That's him," he said as he pointed to the television as he saw more footage cross the screen. The other three turned and watched, but his eyes went back outside.
Lois was the first to turn away from the screen. "Where's he from?"
"Please," Clark begged, "do not make me betray his trust."
Lois nodded as she walked over to him and took his right hand in both of hers. "Tell us more about this Phantom."
"What else do you want to know?"
Chloe took her opportunity and walked closer to the two of them, Jimmy following only a step behind. "How long have you known it was here?"
"A couple days."
"And why didn't you tell us?"
Clark dropped his gaze to the floor again. "I promised not too. John knows how much danger you'd all be in, and I knew too."
Lois squeezed his hands. "Smallville, as much as you feel that you must carry this burden upon your own shoulders, you should never feel like you should have to lie to us to keep us safe."
He shook his head and said. "You don't truly understand how much danger you're in. This escaped criminal could very well be the most powerful being on this earth. Like I said before, it's not as dumb as the others; it's not much of a stretch to think that it could use any one of you as bait to get to me. It would only take a few minutes of observation on its part to realize that besides kryptonite, humans are my only weakness."
She smiled weakly and tilted his chin up with her thumb and index finger. "We love you, Clark, anyone-."
"I don't love you," Jimmy interjected suddenly with a laugh.
Clark grinned as he looked to his friend. "I hope not."
Lois rolled her eyes at the two of them. "As I was saying, we love you and we would gladly put ourselves in any danger if that meant you could be honest with us. You've lived your whole life keeping everything in and the last thing I, or anyone here wants to see you do, is crawl back into that shell that you've been in for so long. You, me, we've both made gigantic strides in the past few days. Just promise that you won't doubt that we can handle it."
He tried to smile again, but he failed miserably. "I'll try," he said, finally giving in.
"Good," Lois replied in a cheery tone as she dropped her hand from his chin and walked to the kitchen, knowing full well that Clark was done explaining things for now. She understood him better than anyone. He didn't like revealing too much all at once, rather preferring to stew over things and explain them over an extended period of time. Chloe wasn't going to accept that, and when she heard her cousin begin to ask Clark another question, she turned to Jimmy. "Shut her up."
"What?" Jimmy and Chloe asked in unison as they turned suddenly in her direction.
Lois looked at the two of them and then to Clark. "You don't know when to stop do you?" she asked as her eyes settled back on her cousin.
"What do you mean?" Chloe asked in confusion.
Lois filled her glass again and walked back to them. "It's obvious Clark is having trouble with all this, and even though he's told us what's going on, you still want to pester him for more."
Felling hurt, Chloe said. "I only-."
"That's it cuz, you only wanted to know more, but you put aside other peoples feelings to achieve your own goals. You've been the reporter longer than I have, but I've already learned that being nosy only gets you so far. Being insensitive can sometimes be disastrous. Clark is your best friend, but you treat him like he's just another witness to a crime."
Chloe opened her mouth, but closed it as she felt her anger rising. "Those are some pretty strong remarks, Lois. How long have you been sitting on those for?"
"Too long," she replied as she took a long swallow from her glass. "I'm just tired of people treating Clark like he's a random piece of luggage."
"Lois," Clark warned.
"No Smallville, it needs to be said." When he sighed and dropped his head, she smiled and continued. "His whole life he's kept you and everyone else safe, but so many people treat him like he is their personal watchdog. First Lana treats him like garbage, not trusting him and constantly prodding for answers he could really never trust her with. Secondly-."
"Lois!" Clark interjected again, this time with more authority.
"No!" she responded heatedly, cutting him off. "Now you go ahead and want more from him, Chloe. Sometimes I wonder how he puts up with the selfishness of the people around him. For as long as I've known him all he does is try to help anyone he can, never looking for restitution or glory, yet people expect so much from him. To me it just looks as if you're taking advantage of him too, especially since you've known his secret for so long. You have trouble separating the reporter and the human part of you. Your curiosity gets the best of you, and I'll admit, that's one of the reasons I admire you, but I also hate it. It seems that you tend to forget that Clark has the weight of the world on his shoulders. I just wish people would leave him alone sometimes."
"That's enough," Clark said as he turned to Lois and glared at her.
Chloe was almost in tears, but every word cut into her like a knife. Her cousin was right and she knew it. She had been taking Clark for granted, always expecting more from him because he possessed such extraordinary abilities. In her excitement for being the best friend of a super powered being, she often tended to forget that there was a man behind it all, a man whose world was more difficult and complex than anyone could ever imagine.
"I'm sorry, Clark," she said as she went to touch his arm.
"It's okay," he replied, turning from her and walking into the bedroom, leaving the three of them alone.
"I'm sorry, Lois, I never meant to."
"I know." Lois wrapped her smaller cousin in a hug. "Like Smallville said, it's okay, but you just have to remember, no matter what abilities he possesses, there is still only a man behind them. He has doubts and fears like everyone else. Being invulnerable on the outside doesn't mean he is the same on the inside."
Chloe shook her head in wonder as she pulled away from her cousin's warm embrace. "There is no doubt in mind you are the one for him."
"What?"
"You understand him better than anyone Lois, even more than me, and I've known him twice as long as you have."
Lois smirked. "I try my best."
"No, you don't try, it's something that no one else sees, and that's why you're so perfect for each other. I never thought he'd find someone after the way Lana had treated him, but I know now that he will never be alone. He has you Lois, and he needs you."
Still smiling, Lois shrugged and walked backwards to her and Clark's bedroom. "Need is one thing cousin, knowing your needed is another." When Chloe smiled, she said. "At the moment, I do believe that I'm needed." She gave them a wink and closed the door in front of her.
"You didn't need to do that."
"And you would have?" She turned around to notice him staring out the bedroom window. When he shrugged, she smiled and said. "See, you wouldn't have. Plus, she needed to be told sooner rather than later. Everything I said was true, wasn't it?"
He nodded and looked at her. "It was, but it seemed a little harsh."
"Chloe is that way sometimes. Her stubborn streak is parallel to my own, and a few heated words work best."
"Thank you," he said as he gazed back out the window.
"No thanks is needed, you're the man I love. Defending you is something I would do in a heartbeat."
"I'm the man. I'm supposed to defend you."
Lois laughed as she positioned herself in front of him and gazed into his eyes. "What gave you the idea that this relationship was going to be a normal one?"
Clark laughed with her as he wrapped his arms around her waist and brought her closer to him. "I didn't think for a minute that it would be routine. You're a unique woman, Miss Lane, but definitely the right one for me."
She leaned up and kissed him, but unlike earlier, she hardened it, slipping her tongue into his mouth for the faintest of seconds. With a confident hand, she began to undo his belt buckle. "And you're the right man for me."
-
Chloe felt Jimmy's hand find hers as she sat on the couch with him. She continued to watch the footage on the television as she shook her head in wonder. "I can't believe that I've been taking advantage of him like that."
Jimmy squeezed her hand. "It's okay; I think Clark knows you never meant to hurt him."
"What hurts the most is that it took Lois to tell me, not Clark."
Laughing suddenly, Jimmy said. "You and I both know Clark would never say anything like that, that's not him."
"I guess you're right.
"Of course I'm right, you two are best friends and it's not hard to see that he understands and forgives you. This is Clark Kent after all, the alien with the heart of gold."
Chloe shook her head in wonder. "I still can't believe you're taking this so well."
"If I didn't have such an amazing girlfriend, I don't think it would be as easy at it is."
She leaned over and kissed his cheek, nestling her head on his shoulder. "Hanging around Smallville does tend to make you open your mind up to the impossible."
"There is that." He laughed and stood up. "I believe we haven't had breakfast yet, and there is a great buffet downstairs."
She smiled up at him from the couch and took his outreached hand. "I'm famished," she said as she got up with his help.