Chapter 5

Lois was in shock. So shocked she was by her discovery that she practically couldn't sleep that night. She drove the way back to her apartment in autopilot and so stunned she was that she didn't recall changing into her pajamas and going to bed at all.

So Clark was Superman. Well, it made sense now that she thought about it. There had been so many unusual circumstances around him that she couldn't believe she hadn't figured it out sooner. Really, she had met the guy in the middle of a corn field after he had been struck by lightning and she never suspected that he might be 'out if this world'? Not to mention the rest of the things he could do, like the other day at the newsroom, when he somehow grabbed a falling book case that was more than twenty feet away from him before it hit the ground. Or all those times he had arrived at a crime scene before anyone else, or his ability to open impossible locks, or when he vanished in the middle of an extremely dangerous situation just before Superman made a miraculous arrival.

If Lois had to give him credit for something, that was for being able to hide this from her all these years without giving away signs of his other identity, always coming up with fairly good excuses to justify his absence. Hey, there had been times in which she hadn't even noticed he was missing at all. Surely keeping this façade had not been easy for him. Poor thing. All those nights he had been up and around, saving people all around the world and then flying back to the Planet to be berated by Perry (and herself) for being late to a staff meeting. But he had done it, all these years without complaints or showing fatigue. He had been the savior of the world, her partner and best friend, always giving, never asking or expecting anything in return.

Still, one question remained: why was she so freaked out about this? For God's sake, she loved Clark and she thought Superman was the hottest man on Earth, so what could be better than them being the same person? What was she afraid of? Why was she so terrified of being near him now that she knew who he really was? Was she afraid of the responsibility of knowing his identity? Or was she just scared of being in a relationship that would never be 'normal'?

Lois had been in many, many problematic relationships. After she broke up with Oliver, she had hooked up with all kind of yuppies with world dominating aspirations. Some of them with good intentions, most of them without. What she loved about Clark was his balance, his humility, his 'normality'. She had always seen Clark as the guy with whom she could eat pancakes in the morning or someone she could call at two in the morning to chat about a bad day at work. He was sweet, loyal and noble (not to mention hot as hell), the kind of guy with whom a girl can marry and have a bunch of kids without having to worry about the mortgage. A regular guy. But now that she knew that there was nothing normal about him, that the mild mannered reporter who had been her best friend for ages was in fact an alien that had become the protector of the Earth. Would she be able to deal with the other aspect of his life?

Lois's eyes were fixed on the flat screen that hung from the newsroom's ceiling, watching intently at the News Channel daily report. There was a bank robbery in Singapore. Twenty hostages were being held captive by a super professional group of thieves that were threatening to kill everyone if the exits weren't cleared for them. But what these guys weren't expecting was the Man of Steel to show up right when they were trying to escape. Superman crossed the scene in a blur of red and blue and disarmed the blackguards in only a fraction of a second. If that weren't enough, there were also explosives, which he didn't have time to deactivate, but which he covered with his body to prevent the expansive wave from destroying the building. All captured by the cameras of different news networks.

The most incredible thing about it all was that it had happened only an hour after she had left Clark's apartment, what meant that he barely had time to rest after the meteor rock exposure and, depending if he performed another rescue on the way back, he only had time for a quick shower and a cup of coffee before coming to work.

"Morning Lois," Clark brushed by her desk. "Sorry, I overslept."

His hair was still wet, which meant he probably flew from his apartment to the Planet and landed in some empty alley, jogged to the newsroom and then waited for a place in the crowded elevator. Or maybe he just entered through the rooftop where there were fewer chances that someone would see him. How did he manage the stress? She needed at least an hour to get ready every morning and a huge mug of black coffee before she became functional, not that she was high maintenance, when he probably did all this in a millisecond.

"I'm going for a cup of coffee, do you want one?" He voiced, startling her out of her reverie.

"What? Sure, thanks."

Clark came back with two coffees from the vending machine situated on the other end of their floor and gave one to Lois. She absentmindedly stirred hers, thinking of all the unfair advantages he had, like drinking the tarry beverage without getting an ulcer like the rest of them.

"Lois," once again Clark snapped out of her limbo nearly half an hour later. "We have a deadline, remember?"

She realized that she hadn't type one single word since he arrived. "Yeah. I don't know what's wrong with me."

"You should get more sleep at night. All these midnight excursions aren't doing you any good," he teased. After all, she left his apartment way passed two in the morning.

"At least I got more than you," she mumbled.

"What?" He frowned.

"Nothing."

Lois fired a few more shots in his direction that morning. Though puzzled, Clark assumed her sudden grumpiness to be the consequence of their late night expedition. Lois never was in her best mood when was hungry or tired.

"Wanna grab something to eat before heading home?" Clark showed up at her desk as she was getting ready to leave.

She studied him for a moment, doubting. "Okay."

They reached the sidewalk and Clark pointed the cafeteria where they usually had lunch. Lois wasn't her usual conversational self, she was distracted and barely said more than ten words in a row so Clark, though puzzled by her sudden detachment, didn't ask any questions. But the comment she darted when they left the diner and he offered her to walk her home, made him realize that there was something wrong with her.

"Don't you have more important things to do?" She snapped back. "Like, I don't know, helping someone?"

"No." he replied, looking confused.

Only then she realized what she had said and how she had said it. "I'm sorry, Clark, I didn't mean to snap at you like that. I'm really tired. I just wanna go home and get some sleep."

"Sure, I was just offering to walk you home, but if you don't …"

"No, it's okay, come."

If Clark was having expectations about walking the few blocks to her apartment holding hands with her or with his arm around her shoulders, Lois' attitude warned him not to venture in such dangerous idea.

"Here we are," Clark brushed a strand of hair from Lois' cheek. His fingers lingered down her cheek only for a second, hoping that at least he would be able to extract a goodbye kiss from her.

"Yeah, here we are." She smiled uncomfortably, sensing his intentions and discouraging him by taking a step back.

"Okay." He shoved his hands on his pockets.

"Okay." She turned around and headed towards the door.

"Lois?" Clark called from where he was standing.

"Yeah?"

"Is everything all right?"

At that moment, she was a goner. If there was something that Lois was not able to resist, were those baby blue eyes staring helplessly at her. She walked back to him and planted a hard kiss on his lips.

"Nothing to worry about, Smallville," she replied. "It's just me hysterical about something."

"Can I be of help?"

"No," she brushed a peck of dust from his shoulder. "I'll figure it out by myself."

He flashed her one of his dazzling Clark Kent smiles. "See you tomorrow, then."

Clark never imagined that at his nearly thirty years of age he would revert to his high school behavior. Of course, the last time he had dated someone was when he was in high school so it was logical that he would suffer the same jitters and uncertainty he had felt when he was dating his first and only girlfriend. Sex was still an issue for him and while Lois had stopped complaining about the lack of it, he wasn't sure when he would overcome his fears and be able to take the relationship to the next level. He was doing his homework –not as often as he should, but more frequently that he felt comfortable with-, and though he had gained control of some aspects of the 'process', there were a few little details he wanted to be sure about before risking something that might hurt Lois.

So they were back into comfortable dating. Dinner, movies, lots of talking, a little making out, but that was it. He wasn't pushing it, neither was she. Until that night.

"You are late, Smallville," Lois growled when she opened the door. "I'm not responsible for the pie's taste."

"You cooked?" Clark made a panicked face. "I thought we were going to order Chinese."

She darted him a menacing glance. "And you are going to ask for seconds."

He followed her to the kitchen. "Sorry, I'm late. I had to finish an article. It took me longer than I thought."

"Yeah, sure," Lois replied with a hint of sarcasm in her tone. She had called the newsroom to see if he was still there, and when nobody answered the call, she checked the news to see if he was busy somewhere else. He was, obviously, in Detroit, putting out a fire. It always gave her goose bumps to see him crossing the skies and perform one of his impossible rescues. But, while she understood his need to keep his secret, at this point of their relationship, she would have preferred he would have felt comfortable enough to share the truth with her. Everything would be so much easier, for both.

"I brought some wine."

"Great. Why don't you pour us two glasses?" Lois said. Maybe, with a little alcohol in her system, she would be able to do what she had been tempted do these past weeks.

Though he was not much of a drinker, Clark knew that it was more dangerous to refuse Lois cooking than to eat it so he helped himself with a full glass of wine before attempting a bite at Lois' carbonized chicken pie. Maybe a little wine would make the task of digesting the meal easier for his stomach of steel.

After the dinner, they relaxed on the couch while drinking the coffee that Clark fixed for them. That was when Lois fired the so dreaded question.

"Are you staying tonight?" She asked while smiling seductively into his eyes.

"I … well, do you want me to stay?"

"I wouldn't be asking if I didn't."

"A-are you sure?"

Subtlety was not one of Lois major assets so, just to make her point clear – in case he didn't get it-, she sat astride him and pressed her mouth against his.

"Do I look as if I'm not sure?" she breathed. "The question is, are you?"

Clark's reply came in the shape of a hungry kiss. He placed his hands on her hips and pulled her tightly against him, making her moan against his mouth. He knew he should slow down, he felt that he was not ready for this yet, but hell, he wanted to make love to her. But when Lois began to unbutton his shirt, he was reminded of all the reasons why he shouldn't and that her safety –and his sanity- depended on his ability to put an end to what was going on.

"What?" Lois groaned with irritation when he took her hands away from his chest and began with his usual stammering. "What's wrong now?

"N-nothing, I don't think we should rush …"

Lois climbed off his lap and began to pace the room, looking furious. "You know, Clark, I am really trying here. I understand your hesitation, well, I don't, but I am trying my best to go on with this relationship without exploding. If we want this to work, I need your cooperation."

He swallowed.

She stopped the pacing and faced him directly. "Okay, I was going to wait until you were ready to tell me, but I don't think I can do this any longer,"

"Do what?"

"Pretend. I can't pretend I don't know."

"Know what?"

"You know perfectly well."

"Lois, I …"

"Are you wearing the suit now? Is that why you don't want me to open your shirt?"

He glanced down at his clothes, then at the chair where he had neatly hung his jacket. "My jacket's over there …"

Lois rolled her eyes with fastidiousness. "Not that one!" The other one!"

Clark stood, looking very confused. "Which one?"

"This one!" She strode towards him and pulled his shirt open, sending the buttons flying across the room, coming face to face with his… bare chest.

"Lois, what are you doing?"

"Of course you wouldn't wear it here," she huffed, frustrated. "Not during a date."

"Will you please tell me what you're talking about?" he was looking at her as if she had lost her mind.

"I know you are Superman."

The long, intense silence that filled the room only confirmed what she had just thrown at his face like an accusation. Clark stood looking at her, his expression hard and reflective, doubting the wisdom of admitting who he really was but knowing there was no point in denying it. He didn't want to deny it. He took the glasses off and stood tall and imposing, and in Lois eyes he became Superman, but in street clothes.

Though concerned about the future of their relationship, in one way, Clark was relieved that the façade had fallen. Whatever they decided from now on, it would not be based on lies. "I'm sorry, Lois, I never wanted to …"

"No, don't apologize," she interrupted, "I'm not mad at you. Really, I respect your decision of not telling anyone. This is huge. I mean, of all secrets, this is one that certainly should be kept, but I already know, and I can't go on pretending I don't. So now you know I know."

They were standing several steps away, looking at each other like two strangers. "I wanted to tell you, I just wasn't sure we were ready for this."

"Why? You don't trust me?" Lois looked hurt by his words.

"It's not a matter of trust, Lois. I never thought you would betray me, but knowing my identity is a huge responsibility, one that I wasn't sure you wanted, one that I didn't want to impose on you. Not yet."

Lois nodded in comprehension. "I understand. People would kill to learn who you really are. If someone suspects I know …"

"I love you, Lois." He said feelingly. "The last thing I want is for you to get hurt because of me."

"Is this why you don't want to have sex with me?"

He sighed. "It might be dangerous."

She bit her lower lip. This was something they would have to figure out. Lois Lane would never quit because of a simple technicality.

"When did you find out?"

"That night at the warehouse, when you fainted. You said you couldn't breathe, so I opened your shirt and I saw the suit."

Clark smiled. She had known his secret for three weeks and she never said a word about it. Knowing her confrontational and inquisitive nature, keeping this inside of her must have been very hard for her.

"I was afraid you might have seen it. But then you didn't say anything, so I thought that, for once, you respected other people's privacy."

Lois returned his smile. "It was not my intention to peek, really, but you weren't waking up and I didn't know what to do."

"Fortunately, you were there to help me." He made one step towards her.

"Yeah, I was." She didn't step back.

Clark stopped right in front of her. "There is nothing 'earthy' about me, Lois. I know you want normality, but that's the only thing I can't give you."

"Well," Lois brushed a wrinkle from his shirt, which was ridiculous because she had just ripped it open. "I suppose that if I had wanted normality I would never have dated someone from Smallville in the first place. No one coming from that town can be normal."

"So," he said hesitantly, "you don't mind if your boyfriend is an alien with double identity and two jobs?"

Lois rose to her toes and wrapped her arms around his neck. "I wouldn't change that for anything in this world, or neighboring ones, farm boy."

He would have commented on that, but his mouth was too busy kissing hers.

Clark smiled in absolute happiness, still incredulous that things had worked out so well. It was too good to be true, really. Lois was lying in bed next to him, with her arm resting across his stomach, her leg carelessly entangled with his. She had dozed off for a couple of hours, but now she was awake, he could tell for her breathing and heart rhythm, still, she wasn't moving, probably because the same reason he wasn't. Surely she feared that even the slightest move would ruin the perfection of the moment or worse, that it would erase the last few hours of absolute heaven they had just lived.

"You're so warm, Smallville," she moved even closer.

"I hope in a good way."

"In the winter, yes," Lois sighed, "but I'll have to turn the air conditioner on in the summer."

He kissed the top of her head. "I'll share the electric bill with you, don't worry."

Lois' fingers travelled the length of his chest, testing if she could produce any reaction on his skin, but there was none. No goose bumps, no shuddering or tingles. She wondered what his impenetrable skin was sensitive to. Certainly he wasn't ticklish, she had tried that earlier. But she knew he felt everything, she had heard him groan with pleasure with her caresses a couple of hours earlier and become aroused with her kisses, but his body wouldn't let it show, unless he consciously allowed it. It was amazing and yet scary. To have so much power, such strength, but also to be forced to calculate every move, incapable of doing anything remotely spontaneous or acting on his own passion, always afraid of hurting the woman he wanted to make love to. Because he was scared of hurting her, she knew that, and yet, he was the most gentle of lovers.

"I don't know why you were so afraid of this. We managed to do it without major catastrophes. Well … almost." she glanced at the nightstand, broken in halves right next to the bed by Clark's powerful fist. Never go down on a superhero when he's half asleep. When startled, he can react quite violently.

"I'm sorry, I'll buy you a new one."

"I have the feeling that it's not the first one you've broken."

"I have a few more of these in my destruction record. It usually happens when I turn off the alarm clock." Clark smiled. If everything worked out so well –broken nightstand aside- it was because she had dealt with it marvelously. She encouraged him when he doubted and reassured him that her moans and cries weren't caused by pain, but by pleasure.

Still intrigued by the oddities of his skin, Lois pinched him on the ribs. She barely succeeded in twisting his skin, and it left no mark. She tried harder.

"What are you doing?" Clark chuckled.

"Can you feel that?"

"Of course I can."

"But it doesn't hurt."

"No, but I feel it."

"It must be amazing to be invulnerable, to know that nothing can hurt you."

"I can feel pain, too, Lois. The fact that I am invulnerable doesn't mean I don't feel pain when something hits me."

"Like bullets and missiles and all that stuff?"

"There are things that hurt me even more than anything they can throw at me."

"What?"

"It hurts to see the woman I love dating a guy that I know will break her heart. In fact, it hurts to see her with anyone else other than me."

She smiled sweetly at him. His flesh might be indestructible, but his heart was as vulnerable as anyone else's. "That will never happen again, I promise you."

Supported on her elbow, Lois continued her silent contemplation of him. She was absolutely fascinated with this whole new side of him, intrigued by the contrasts and variations of both aspects of his personality. She felt she had so much to learn his invulnerable, alien side, but she also felt this comfort, this complete sense of familiarity around the farm boy that had been her best friend for years.

"If I pull your hair, can I get one out?"

"I doubt it."

Her fingertips moved along his jaw line, making him smile with delight. "Do you shave? I don't think a regular razor would be able to cut your beard."

"No, it doesn't. I made one with kryptonian metal. Anyway, I have a very slow beard growth so I shave only once or twice a month." He loved that she wanted to know all these trivialities about him.

"I remember that time in Smallville, when you told me that you felt like an outsider. Now I understand what you meant. You must have felt so … alienated, growing up feeling being so different, always hiding, always pretending."

"Yeah, but I had the best parents in the world. And very good friends, too, though some of them would get a little annoying at times." He smiled at her.

"I can't believe I lived in your house for weeks and never noticed the things you could do."

"Thank God you never paid much attention to me. You almost caught me red handed a few times, though."

"Yeah, yeah, Superman was right beside me but I was too busy looking the other way. The story of my life."

"We were just kids, Lois. Let's say that we were interested in other things at the time. Look all you've accomplished, what you've become. Ten years ago you were deciding your future based on what a vocational test in a magazine said and now you're Lois Lane, the ace reporter of the Daily Planet."

Lois smiled proudly. "Me? Look at you, Clark. You are Superman. You became a symbol of peace and justice, someone to look up to."

"Not bad for a farm boy from Kansas you thought was a geek, huh?" he teased.

"Don't get too cocky, Smallville," Lois laughed. "Remember, I still have information about you that might be quite embarrassing if it's known."

Clark smiled and brought her face to his for a long, sensuous kiss that didn't break, not even when he moved her body to lie over his. Lovemaking three was about to begin.

"Do you know something?" Lois murmured against the hollow of his chin.

"What?" Clark sighed with pleasure as their bodies found the appropriate rhythm.

"Remember my first article about you?"

"The one titled 'I spent the night with Superman'?" Clark always thought was very suggestive headline that had always inspired some very wild fantasies about him and Lois.

"When I wrote it … I never thought I would actually sleep with him."

"Neither did I, Miss Lane."