CHAPTER 5 - INSTINCT INTERVENTION
Smallville, two weeks later
Nothing good ever came from driving the back roads of Smallville at night, at least not for Lois. She'd almost been run off the road by a lightning strike, hit Shelby with her car, nearly missed at least two different cows and a tractor, and now she was blinded by some kind of column of light coming from the Luthor mansion.
What was going on? The light looked alien somehow and Lois felt her insides tighten as she thought about how interested Tess had been in Clark since he'd rescued her. What was she doing and with what; was it leftovers from Lex? The light was blinding.
Calling Clark was out of the question. She was still backing off, giving him space. Of course, if Clark noticed, he didn't let it show; things were status quo as far as he was concerned.
For Lois, the stress caused by her withdrawal was a revelation. Her concentration was negligible, sleep was elusive, and her moods - Chloe had threatened to kick her out. After a few days, Lois had to admit that she missed Clark more than ever before, which was saying a lot after all her time observing Night while praying for Clark to return to himself.
Are you Lois Lane?
Garth's words nagged at her because reliving her life was starting to give her doubts. Inside, she knew she was still Lois Lane, reporter and General's daughter, but how was she supposed incorporate who she was with what the Legion had sent her back to do? Already things were changing, and the shift in her focus from work driven to Clark driven was throwing her off-kilter.
Was that the real reason she was letting this light bother her; was she looking for an excuse to call Clark? She shook her head and let up on the gas pedal. No, something wasn't right. She could feel it in her gut and her gut was never wrong. Lois Lane never ignored her gut.
As Lois drove closer, the blue light became even more blinding, so that she was forced to avert her eyes. Her notes, strewn all over the passenger seat of the car, caught her eye. Maybe it was time for a late-night visit from an employee. Lois made a sharp left as she continued driving toward the mansion, a plan forming in her already tired brain.
Daily Planet, next day
Lois walked down the stairs, blowing her bangs in annoyance, reading the newest project she'd inherited. Evidently, Tess didn't appreciate late-night visits from her employees. Now Lois had three stories to finish and no help thanks to her "Give Clark Some Space" plan.
Forget destiny. Lois hit the speed dial.
"Lois?" Clark answered.
"I need you Smallville," she said, brushing off the way that came out. Desperate times and all that, "I just got to the Planet and I'm already having the work day from hell. What's your E.T.A?"
"I'm flying into the building right now; I'll be there in a second," he said, and Lois was sure that she'd heard the swishing sound from his speed. Was he literally flying?
Whoa.
Oliver had never mentioned him flying before but she assumed he could since Night flew but, well … she didn't want to think about that.
When Lois got to her desk, phone still to her ear, Clark wasn't at his.
"Hey, I thought you said you were coming in for a landing, what happened? Run into some turbulence?" she said into the phone, turning around and bumping right into Clark.
"According the clock I'm still two min-"
"Hey there, flyboy, watch the landing." Lois said at the same time, interrupting Clark. She stumbled back a little.
"Sorry," Clark said, reaching out to steady her. "Now what's so urgent that you actually broke down and called me?" He asked, sounding curious and just a bit bitter.
Lois found herself staring at his chest, while her arms were absorbing the warmth from his hands. She was so distracted that it took a minute for his words to sink in but, when they did, she lifted her eyes to his. Maybe he hadn't been so oblivious to her backing off after all. Before her birthday, she'd called Clark regularly but she'd stopped once she'd decided to give him space. Her eyes searched his for signs that he'd missed her, but all she saw was that impassive look. Maybe she'd read it wrong.
"I was hoping you could take on some of my work load; this is my fourth cup of java and I'm still not firing on all cylinders," Lois said quickly, pulling away and walking over to the coffee machine.
"Rough night of sleep?" Clark asked.
"Try no night of sleep. I kind of got caught up in some work," Lois started, not wanting to go into a lot of detail about her late-night visit to the boss, "and Jimmy moved in so he and Chloe could save some wedding pennies." Lois winced, "The groom snores like a freight train."
Lois had been regretting her decision to distance herself from Clark and last night had just added to her discomfort. After all, anything could happen to him without her around. The blue light was just one example. It was dangerous to Clark somehow, she knew it. In her mind, it related to him and not in a good way.
During the long hours awake she'd also begun to realize that she couldn't give Clark a choice if he didn't know what the options were. By playing the friendship card, Lois wasn't really letting him know that something else was available.
He needs you.
Those words from Imra had planted an idea in her sleep-deprived brain, one that seemed overly bold in the light of day. Even though she'd had the guts to mention it before, she hadn't followed through. If he took her up on it this time … she took a deep breath and looked at Clark while stirring her coffee.
"You know, it must be nice for you in that Kent farm house all by yourself, so quiet and so many empty rooms," Lois commented, sneaking a look at Clark's face through her lashes.
"It is pretty quiet." Clark said, his expression dejected.
"You are so predictable," Lois harrumphed, her lack of sleep fueling her frustration. The man just couldn't take a hint. If it would make a dent, she'd hit him over the head with a crowbar.
Of course, in her exhausted state, her first reaction was to lash out. After all, he might have mentioned missing her just a little. "I mention one little thing about the big empty farmhouse and you start singing the Lana blues."
Lois walked over to the file cabinet for some research as Clark followed, eyebrows raised in surprise.
"Look, I hate to be the one to dish out the tough love, but Lana is gone. She left you a "Dear John" DVD, for goodness sakes! Maybe it's time for you to move on, get outside your wheelhouse," Lois told him, slamming the cabinet drawer and facing him, letting her frustration show.
"I have a wheelhouse?" Clark asked, managing to look surprised and troubled at the same time.
"Of course you do - pretty, friendly, damsel in distressy," Lois finished, relaxing at his expression; she couldn't resist smirking at him. "Maybe it's time you tried something a little less sweet vanilla and a little more wild cherry." Normally Lois hated repeating herself but she was feeling the lack of sleep and, besides, it was hard to top that one.
Predictably, Clark rolled his eyes.
"Let's get to the work," he suggested, walking over to her desk.
"Fine," Lois said, following Clark and grabbing an assignment. She handed it to him without looking.
Clark flipped through the report. "How does a twenty-five year old suddenly die of a heart attack?" He asked her, raising his eyes.
"What?" Lois asked, sorting through the other assignments on her desk. Clark stepped closer to Lois, continuing to read.
"The coroner says the endorphin levels in his blood were sky high."
"Yeah, well, doesn't take much imagination to figure out what he was doing," Lois said absentmindedly, reviewing the oldest one of her assignments. She could probably get this one wrapped up in a few hours. Of course she'd have to use one of her access cards-
"What do you mean?" Clark asked, interrupting Lois' train of thought.
"Come on, Clark," Lois responded, exasperated that they were still talking. How was she supposed to get her own work done if he was still here? "You know what endorphins are, right?"
"Yes, they're hormones that are released when you play a sport."
Lois dropped her own paperwork and turned to face Clark, frustrated that he wasn't getting the point. This was obviously a straight-forward case.
"Or, there's another type of activity, repetitive motion, builds to a climax …" Lois said as his eyes widened, while her words drifted off. She felt her face flushing.
There was something in his eyes. He looked almost … considering, not embarrassed or mocking like he would be normally. As his eyes lowered to her mouth, she was thrown by his reaction and her hand idly reached for her throat. Her discomfort increased when Clark reached out to cover her hand with his own, stopping hers in mid-air.
The minute Lois felt his touch, her mind flashed and she could see it - she and Clark, tangled sheets, whispers and touches - repetitive motion. She gasped and pulled her hand away. Some part of her had become accustomed to the flashes of memory but that was no memory. When had her imagination become so vivid?
"Lois?" Clark asked and Lois couldn't tell if he was asking for permission or forgiveness. Her body heated as she considered his now flushed face and wide eyes.
"Let me see that," Lois said, frightened by the strength of her reaction and the evidence of his. Trying to stop herself from kissing him right there in the Bullpen, she snatched the report from Clark. He let it go, absorbed in his own thoughts. Focusing on the words of the coroner helped distract Lois and her brain slowly started to function again. Something was familiar about this.
"It says here that the victim was fully clothed and that his endorphins were through the roof," Lois told Clark after a minute, her memory nagging her. "I think I'll give you some help with this one, Clark. There's something more going on here. Besides, I know the cops who work this area."
As Lois grabbed her purse to follow Clark out of the Bullpen, she tried to push aside the visions of tangled sheets and focus on this story from three years ago. This time, she had a flash of Clark up against the elevator wall, shirt open, naked chest …
Okay, not helping.
She racked her brain but couldn't remember much more, other than the shrew who was kissing Clark later throwing Lois' car across the street with Lois in it.
How could she have forgotten so much about this case? Seriously, time travel must have given her brain damage. First, Davis snuck up on her, then Oliver was poisoned, and now this. Of course there was no article to help her jog her memory because the man-eater had disappeared; no suspect, no story.
Even more disturbing was the fact that Clark was in danger. First, there was the familiar-looking blue crystal that Lois had glimpsed after storming into the study at the mansion. Her mind had pictured Clark the minute she'd seen it. Now there was the crazy creature with the killer kiss.
Maybe she should warn him, but about which one, and how?
"Clark, do you know why Tess would be messing around with a blue crystal?" Lois asked.
Subtle, Lane.
"What?" Clark asked.
"Well, last night, I was driving home and saw this strange blue light shooting through the sky from the mansion, so I, uhm, went to see Tess," Lois was feeling less than confident about this part of the story. "I told her I needed to talk about a story. Anyway, I saw her with this blue crystal thing - do you think it could have been making the light?" Lois was on a roll now. "And why would she have such a thing? It must have a lot of power to produce such a strong beam."
"Whoa, Lois," Clark stopped walking and held up his hands. "Why are you interested? You aren't investigating Luthorcorp again are you?
"No, I'm just curious about Tess and whether she's following in the Luthor tradition. I'm not sure even Lex conducted experiments at the mansion," Lois said, exasperated that she couldn't tell him about her suspicions.
"The crystal looked so familiar," Lois was muttering to herself by the end of her answer to Clark.
Clark stopped walking so suddenly that Lois passed him before she realized he wasn't with her anymore. She turned and looked at him. His expression was clearly confused and a little … scared.
"Why did it look familiar?" Clark asked her.
"What?" Lois responded distractedly. She was trying to remember where she'd seen it before.
"What makes you think you've seen the crystal before?" Clark asked, his fear showing a little more clearly.
"I don't know," Lois said, trying to picture it in her mind. She could see Clark in her memory and he was holding the crystal but nothing else was visible.
Clark was staring at her as if he was trying to read her thoughts. Before her expression could reveal anything, Lois turned around and started walking. She probably needed to be more careful about revealing things from the future, but it was difficult when Clark's life could be in danger. That crystal gave her a bad vibe.
She needed help; someone other than Chloe who had her own issues to deal with. Lois smiled to herself as she spotted the police officers up ahead. There might be someone else. Another plan started taking shape in her head as she walked forward to interview the officers, while Clark went to check out the scene.
"What did the police say?" Clark asked her quietly after she followed him to the scene. He seemed lost in thought; she wondered if he was thinking of the blue crystal.
"They found evidence of a fire in the alley, but they suspect it's unrelated," Lois told him.
Clark turned to her. "Then there was no reason for us to come down here?"
Now she could tell he was distracted; she looked at the burn mark and paused.
"Classic rookie mistake, Smallville," Lois lectured him. "The scorch mark is pretty unusual for a homeless hoedown, but if we ask around, someone may have seen something," Lois wondered why she hadn't noticed the unique pattern on the pavement last time around.
Clark didn't follow Lois as she walked out to get the additional interviews. She turned, and saw him staring at the scorch mark on the ground. She'd seen that look before; he was using his x-ray vision. What was he seeing?
She turned back and saw her friend Tom Allen, a new detective with homicide.
"Hey, Lane, you coming to the poker game tonight?" He asked.
"Why, they give you a pay raise with the detective badge?" Lois smirked at Tom; he was a terrible poker player. "Wait a minute, why are you here?"
"Three more young guys turned up dead between here and Smallville, all of them looking like heart attacks," Tom said quietly. "Don't bug me for the names, though, we're still trying to notify the families."
"No problem, Tom, thanks," Lois said, turning around to find Clark and tell him.
"See you tonight," he answered, as she walked away.
Lois waved a hand over her head as she walked toward Clark.
"This story just got bigger," she told him. "Looks like a string of young men turned up dead between here and Smallville, all of them apparent heart attacks. Do you think we have a meteor freak on our hands?" Lois asked Clark.
Clark looked confused. "I'm not sure, Lois."
"What else could it be?" She asked him.
"I don't know," Clark responded, but he sounded hesitant.
"Let's go see what else we can find out," Lois said, wanting to keep Clark away from that creature this time. She was going to stick to him like glue.
She lost him within the hour.
Damn flight.
He disappeared from the Daily Planet while she'd been talking on the phone to the Smallville Sheriff's office. Clark told her he would be searching for similar crimes or suspects in archives. By the time Lois finished, Clark was nowhere near the archives and she couldn't find him anywhere else, either.
He must know more about this than he was letting on. If the killer wasn't a meteor freak, what was she? At least Lois knew the suspect was a she. Where would Clark go if he suspected or knew more? She punched in Clark's number on her speed dial and listened as it went to voicemail. She hung up and hit Chloe's number. When Chloe answered, there was a smirk in her voice.
"Lois?" she asked. "What can I do for you?"
Oh, she knows Clark's in trouble.
Lois could hear the sarcasm in Chloe's voice.
"Is Clark with you?" Lois asked abruptly, her patience wearing thin. She was still behind on two stories and now she had to babysit her co-worker.
"Sure, he's right here; do you want to talk to him?"
Lois could almost see Clark in the background shaking his head at Chloe and mouthing, "No."
She smiled.
"I would love to, thank you." She told Chloe sweetly and she could hear Chloe's laughter fade as she handed the phone to Clark.
"Lois?' Clark asked.
"I thought we were working on this story together, Smallville," Lois accused.
"Uhm, we are, I just needed something else from Chloe," he said, sounding vague.
"Oh, like information on this female meteor freak, who may not be a meteor freak?" Lois asked smartly.
"No, actually, like information on Tess and the crystal," Clark said, sounding serious.
"Really?" Lois felt such a sense of relief that she didn't call him on his disappearing act. "What did she say?"
"Here, she'll tell you," Clark responded, and Lois realized she had just been given the brush off.
Curse him.
Lois listened as Chloe launched into some story about Luthorcorp developing a new computer chip based on crystals. After the second sentence, she stopped listening. They were feeding her a story. Fine, as long as Chloe was aware. It was at least some protection for Clark.
In the meantime, Lois would wait for him to get back to the Planet.
Two hours went by and still no Clark. Friday night poker was set to start in ten minutes. Lois chewed at her thumb nail.
Where was he?
She really needed to go tonight. If her plan worked, she might be able to get some help without breaking any of the time travel rules. The poker game was a relatively safe place to meet the person that she hoped would be her new best friend on the police force.
Making a decision, Lois grabbed her purse, left her desk and headed out. She needed some back up. Hopefully, she could go and return before the meteor freak, or whatever she was, attacked Clark. She really didn't need to see that again.
An hour and half later, Lois was standing at the newspaper's elevator tired, disappointed and worried. None of her plans were working today. Her contact wasn't at the poker game, which meant Lois had no support and, to top it off, she didn't know where Clark was.
Could this day get any worse?
She hit the down button and waited. When the door opened, Lois was stunned. Of course, she'd seen it all before but seeing it fresh, after the day she'd had, was devastating. Plastered against the back of the elevator was Clark, shirt unbuttoned, hair tousled, with the red-haired bimbo all over him. Rather than fighting her off, Clark seemed to be an active participant in the mutual mauling. It was still shocking seeing him like that, the clean cut farm boy, in a passion play with a woman, any woman. Lois wondered, not for the first time, what it was that breached that Kent self-discipline.
Relief at seeing him alive and relatively unharmed was replaced by anger at his obstinacy. Heart-attack-causing-hottie was on the loose and Clark wasn't even protecting himself from her. The least he could have done was keep his friends close for protection.
"Smallville!" she yelled, irritation mixed with trepidation making her voice loud.
What if she couldn't break the spell this time?
She watched as he leaned to the side and looked around the redhead. She barely registered as the redhead turned to look at her as well.
"Lois?" Clark said, and Lois heard the confusion in his voice.
She had to get him away from this creature.
"I'll take the stairs," she said and turned to walk away.
It was killing her to leave him but it was the only way she knew to get him off of the elevator. It took less than a minute before she heard him call out.
"Lois," he said, and she heard his footsteps behind her.
She stopped as her eyes closed and she breathed a sigh of relief.
"Wait," he demanded.
She turned around and found herself looking at his bare chest. Unexpectedly, her mind conjured herself standing in place of the redhead on the elevator, rubbing her hands on Clark's bare chest, pushing him up against the elevator wall, kissing his soft, full lips …
Clark pulled his shirt together, and she was able to look up at his face.
"Let me explain," he said, still looking a little hot and bothered.
Desire morphed in to frustration and frustration fueled anger. How dare he make out with some homicidal harlot he'd only met minutes ago, when Lois was the one who was worrying about him, running after him, trying to protect him?
"What is there to explain?" she shouted at Clark, "You were pulling a Nine and a Half Weeks in the elevator with your new girlfriend. What's next, the Mile High Club?"
"She's not my girlfriend; Lois, just calm down," he yelled back.
"Calm down, calm down; oh, I'm perfectly calm," Lois said, poking his chest with her finger in frustration. God, this day was even worse the second time around!
Of course, Clark's expression changed to confusion. He was so dense sometimes.
Stalking away before she smacked the expression off of his face, Lois couldn't keep it inside any longer. "Why wouldn't I be calm? I've only spent the past few weeks thinking about you, trying to protect you, wanting you - crazy girl gets five minutes and she's got you half undressed. I've got five years and I can't get past first base!"
Punctuating her words with waving hands and sharp steps, Lois was almost to the door when she ran into a very large, very solid, partially bare chest.
"Oomph!" Lois felt the wind knocked out of her. Strong hands gripped her arms to keep her from falling over.
"Smallville, give a girl some warn-," she started, only to have her lips and her thoughts completely cut off by the feel of his as he kissed her.
Clark wasted no time with preliminaries, slipping his tongue into her mouth, tangling with hers and heating her up from the inside. Her body took over immediately, melting into Clark's like it had been waiting for this moment. As legs, hips and chests met and aligned perfectly, she felt as if she was drowning in him. His kiss was amazingly thorough and impossibly deep. As he explored, tasted, and pillaged, she surrendered without thought.
All of her senses were overwhelmed by the feel of his body, his taste, and even his scent. As always, the heat of his skin mesmerized her and she couldn't resist pulling away just enough to run her hands over the chest that had beckoned her minutes before. When his lips broke away from hers to kiss along the column of her throat, she sighed, realizing that he was probably still under the influence of his elevated endorphins. A big part of her didn't care.
The other, smaller part of her brain that was thinking about pushing him away never got the chance, as she was ripped from Clark's arms and sped to the alley where she and Clark had investigated that morning. When her vision cleared Lois could see that she was being held by the redhead with the killer kiss, her back against one of the brick buildings. Lois struggled but the creature who was pinning her with just one arm was strong, super strong.
What was she?
"I could not kill you in front of him but now that I have you alone, I will make sure you never take him away from me."
Lois laughed and continued to fight against the harlot's hold.
"Smallville? I could never take him away from anyone," Lois said, putting the emphasis on his name. It was time to put his secret to good use.
"Oh, he will come with me when you are gone," she responded. "I have finally found the man I wanted all my life and you cannot have him." The hand that held Lois by the neck began to squeeze.
"Smallville?" Lois questioned, again stressing the name as much as she could. "What's so special about Clark?"
"He is the Kryptonian I waited for," the woman said.
Uh, oh, not from around here …
"Smallville?" Lois choked out, hoping Clark was using his super hearing, "He's just a regular guy and, by the way crazy chick, there's nothing between us."
The woman laughed as Lois struggled to breathe.
"Oh, there is a bond between you or he would never have been able to break away from me. He feels it and so do you," her laughter turned into more of a shriek as Lois felt her breaths become shallow and her vision fade. "Otherwise, he would not have been able to kiss you as he did."
Before Lois blacked out, there was a quick breeze and the pressure against her throat disappeared. Dropping to the pavement, Lois struggled to focus. When her vision cleared, she saw Clark standing on the scorch mark, gripping the redhead's arms with both hands.
"… I've found the last son of Krypton and you are everything I wished for," the bimbo was telling Clark. "When we kissed I felt your passion, so much stronger than I have felt from any man, and I could sense that you are as desperate as I am to find a mate. You want me as much as I want you."
Lois' breath hitched at those words. Pain seared her throat and tightened the area around her heart as she watched the killer run her hands up Clark's chest.
"I don't want you," Clark responded, grabbing the woman's wrists and moving her hands away.
"Are you sure?" Lois heard her ask, "Because no one on this planet will be a better match. If you come back with me, you will never be alone."
Something flashed in Clark's eyes.
"My destiny's here," she heard him say, "and you're not part of it."
Clark touched the bracelet on the woman's wrist and she vanished in a column of bright light. Lois closed her eyes in relief, having recognized the conflict in Clark's eyes. God, he'd even used the word destiny, did he always feel so trapped? Didn't he see anything in the future for himself?
"Lois," Clark said, placing a hand on her face to brush the hair out of her eyes. She opened her eyes to see that his were full of that guilty, haunted look she'd come to know. It was the look that she couldn't bear, the one she always wanted to take away with a punch or a smirk or a teasing remark.
"Clark," she winced as the air hit her throat and she heard the croak in her voice.
"Hang on, I'll get help," Clark said, picking her up with one arm under her shoulders and the other under her knees.
Exhaustion was taking over. Her lack of sleep combined with her injuries seemed to press in on Lois and her eyelids drooped before she felt the familiar sharp pain in her head that preceded the memories she tried so hard to block.
"Fly with me," she whispered, already lost to the future.
Lois was being held in cold arms as the wind rushed past, cooling her skin. In fact, she felt cool everywhere, except for her neck. It was on fire. She whimpered and opened her eyes.
She could see his face, just above hers. Something like anguish showed in his expression. He looked so much like Clark that she blinked, her vision blurred from the pain. He looked at her as she felt a tear slide from one eye. The pain was excruciating, and not all of it physical.
Suddenly, his mouth lowered and she felt his breath on her neck. Like the feel of his arms, his breath was ice cold. It felt incredible as it hit her overheated neck and she sighed in relief, closing her eyes again.
The next time her eyes opened, he had landed. She was still in his arms, his face above hers. Her vision clearer, she could see the lack of expression on his face. Maybe she had imagined the concern before. The heat was slowly creeping back into her neck. As Night carried her indoors, the burning sensation returned. She gasped and grabbed at his arms. He stopped and lowered his mouth to her neck, blowing gently to cool the heat and dull the pain.
Lois could see that they were in a large apartment. A family crest became visible and she realized they were in Oliver's penthouse in Star City. She would have snorted if her throat wasn't so sore. Oliver would be furious if he found out Night was using the penthouse as his local hideout.
She felt herself being lowered to the bed when the nausea hit. Her head landed on the pillow and she gripped the satin sheets, breathing quick and shallow to avoid vomiting. She had a feeling her tender throat would not appreciate the sensation. As a distraction, Lois focused on the feel of the satin and her thoughts strayed. These sheets were a far cry from the flannel at the farm. She wondered which one Clar - Night preferred. Maybe evil had a need for the finer things?
She closed her eyes, continuing to ignore the bile rising in her throat. Just when she was sure she would be decorating the expensive sheets, she felt a cool cloth touch her neck and smelled the ointment that covered it. Lois kept her eyes closed while he wrapped the bandage loosely around her burned flesh and then covered her with a blanket.
The ointment was soothing, the blanket was warm, and Lois felt herself drift toward sleep. Her mind shifted gears as the pain lessened. Why was he taking care of her? What did he plan to do with her? Something about the last question caused her to shiver. She would need to escape eventually but right now, she had a chance to heal and she would take it.
Metropolis General, nighttime
Her throat hurt. Lois moved her hand to touch her neck and felt smooth skin. She was sure her memories of the future were starting to mess with her perceptions of the present until she tried to groan in response to the pain.
Okay, real pain.
Then she heard Chloe's voice; what was Chloe doing here?
"Clark, I got your message. What happened?"
Lois listened for Clark's voice but couldn't hear him.
"Lois, look at me; can you look at me?" A strange voice directed. "I need you to open your eyes."
"Are you sure she didn't hit her head?" The strange voice asked no one in particular.
"I don't know," Lois heard Clark answer and she felt relieved at the sound of his voice. "The attacker had her by the throat when I got there." Her mind continued to clear as she realized Clark was himself and she'd been attacked by some Amazon alien.
"She should be opening her eyes by now," the stranger said.
Easy for him to say.
"Lois, can you hear me? You need to open your eyes if you can hear me," Clark's calm, low voice sounded closer now and Lois felt a warm hand on her arm.
It was a struggle but Lois managed to squint enough to see Clark standing over her. She smiled.
"We need to stop meeting like this," she said and was shocked at the weak, raspy sound of her voice.
So was Clark, if his anxious expression was any indication. She caught a glimpse of it before a doctor pushed in front of him to begin his examination. Lois was busy watching Clark and Chloe walk behind the curtain and didn't pay attention to the doctor until he told her that her larynx may have been damaged.
"That means you shouldn't talk for the next day or two, then keep conversation limited until your follow up appointment," he told her.
She barely controlled a snort, remembering the pain in her throat, and instead looked past the doctor as Chloe walked over just in time to hear the doctor's advice. Lois looked at her in panic.
Seriously?
She must have recognized the desperation in her cousin's eyes because Chloe stepped forward and put her hand on Lois' arm. "It will be okay, Lois. We'll all help," Chloe told her.
"It's usually easiest if you can isolate yourself from others, stay in your room, maybe read or watch some television," the doctor said with a smile of sympathy. "I know it's hard but if you don't protect your larynx you could cause permanent damage."
Lois watched as Clark pulled the curtain aside following Chloe into the examination area. She knew she was probably looking at him like a deer caught in the headlights, but she couldn't help it.
Not talk for two days? And she'd thought this day couldn't get any worse.
It was when Detective J'onn Jones walked in behind Clark that Lois wanted to weep with frustration. The one man she'd been looking for all day and now there was nothing she could tell him.
"Miss Lane, I heard what the doctor said about remaining quiet, are you up for giving a written statement?" he asked.
She shook her head in the negative, not wanted to make a record out of the majority of what she wanted to tell J'onn. Since her attacker was an intergalactic traveler it wasn't like time was an issue anymore. Lois didn't have a solid lead on her whereabouts, even if J'onn could catch her. Already frustrated by her inability to communicate, she felt tears fill her eyes.
Undeterred, she steeled herself and caught Chloe's eyes, holding up two fingers and nodding toward J'onn. Chloe looked puzzled, so Lois repeated her movements with Clark, also closing her eyes and resting her head on her hands.
Clark's eyes narrowed in concentration. "She'll get back to you in a couple of days, Detective," he told J'onn. "In the meantime, she should probably go home and rest."
Lois nodded vigorously and caught Chloe's look of amazement, which soon changed to amusement, while J'onn made arrangements with Clark to get an interview after the weekend.
It was when Clark pulled Chloe to the side of the curtain that J'onn leaned over to give Lois his card. "I'm sorry Ms. Lane," he said, "I'll be sure to stop by the Planet next week for that interview."
Lois just smiled and nodded as J'onn patted her arm. Chloe and Clark came back in as J'onn pulled the curtain aside to leave.
"I should go take care of my fallen fiancé now," Chloe said, hugging Lois. "Be careful Lo, and I'll see you later." She glanced at Clark, raising her eyebrows suggestively. "I think you two have some things to talk about anyway." Clark just looked pointedly at Chloe as she left.
Lois gestured toward the curtain with a questioning glance.
"Jimmy was admitted earlier today with injuries, but he's going to be fine," Clark answered part of her unspoken question. She didn't follow up on Chloe's other comment. If Clark had something to talk to her about, he would get to it eventually. After everything that had happened today, she wasn't sure she wanted to delve into all right now.
Lois swung her legs off the bed and started grabbing her things. At least she was going to get out of here tonight. When Clark didn't move, Lois stopped and looked at him. He was watching her with his hands in his pockets.
"I heard the doctor say that your recovery would be faster if you were some place quiet," Clark commented, pulling one hand out of his pocket and running it through his hair.
"I know you weren't sleeping at the apartment and, well, if you want your old room back at the farm, it's yours," He finally smiled but the look in his eyes was one of confusion and doubt. He wasn't sure that this was a good idea, she could tell.
Lois smiled back as she nodded anyway. She had her own doubts but pushed them aside. It was important that she get closer to Clark, if for no other reason than he needed someone to keep an eye out for him. The blue crystal was still out there.
Kent farm, two days later
"Lois, what are you doing?" Clark's voice came from the direction of the stairs.
Even with her head stuck in the freezer, Lois considered rolling her eyes. Clark was such a mother hen. It'd been two days and he was already making her crazy …
Lois, don't lift that! Lois, shouldn't you be resting? Lois, are you muttering under your breath?
He would make anyone mutter.
She schooled her features and turned toward his voice, tub of Ben & Jerry's in one hand, spoon in the other. Holding them up as evidence, she lifted her brows …
What does it look like?
His facial expression told her he wasn't ready to back down.
"Shouldn't you be resting?"
She couldn't stop from rolling her eyes at him this time, even punching him in the arm for emphasis, when she passed him on her way to the couch.
Once she was settled with her ice cream, she couldn't seem to control her gaze, which continued to wander from the movie to the kitchen where Clark was making his own snack. His movements were easy and she questioned how he controlled his strength so easily. He must have had years of practice; he looked so comfortable moving around in his plain white t-shirt and gray sweats.
Lois only wished she could feel as relaxed. The incident with the raging redhead had left her with uncertainties and concerns. Her memory of the redhead's hands on Clark as she told him there would never be a better match …What if Clark had needs a human female couldn't handle? Lois choked on a bit of ice cream at the thought.
As her eyes glanced back at the kitchen, she saw Clark stretching with his arms over his head, his t-shirt tightened against his chest and biceps, revealing every sinewy muscle. She almost dropped her spoon.
Get it together, Lane.
"How did you manage to fit all that stuff in to that little Talon apartment?" Clark asked, finishing his stretch and dropping his arms to look at Lois. "Don't answer that," he said quickly, putting his hands in the air when she opened her mouth.
Unable to respond to Clark's question, Lois turned back to the television and waited while Clark walked over carrying his snack. Soon, she felt her lips pressing together, although she wasn't sure how that physical response was going to help control her wayward thoughts. She groaned internally when Clark sat next to her on the couch.
"Star Wars," he said, turning to her with a smile, "and no running commentary for once."
Lois glared back at him, letting her frustration show. Clark just laughed and looked back at the television, while Lois continued to eat her ice cream. Soon her eyes were drawn back to him, only to find him looking at her. She glanced down quickly, staring at her almost empty container of ice cream. Lately, she started to catch these little questioning looks from Clark, but she couldn't be sure what questions he was trying to get answered.
Why was this so difficult? She felt the need to reassess her strategy, again. The alien chick's words kept playing over and over in her head.
No one on this planet will be a better match …
What if that were true? The idea that she might not be enough for Clark was making her nervous. Yet she'd always known that he had a passionate side. Otherwise why would she constantly challenge him, if it wasn't to draw him out, get him to let go?
Just then, Clark leaned his head back against the couch and closed his eyes with a sigh. He looked exhausted. How much control did he exert every day? How much did he keep stored away for just the right woman? She couldn't stop the shudder that went through her body as she contemplated the answer to that last question.
"Are you cold?" Clark asked her, turning away from the movie at her movement. He grabbed the blanket from the back of the couch and threw it over both of them. Then he lifted his feet to the coffee table, crossed his arms over his stomach, and settled into the couch. Lois couldn't stop her smile as she remembered Clark and Mr. Kent napping like this every Sunday, at least until Mrs. K yelled at them to get their feet off the table.
She poked him in the shoulder and watched as he frowned without opening his eyes and moved his feet to the floor. She scooted closer to Clark's warmth with a sigh.
As always, her memories of the farm soothed and bolstered her. When Lois leaned back to snuggle under the blanket, her eyes moved around, taking in the comfortable living room. She was always so contented here. No matter the trouble, the farm magically put it into perspective. She could almost hear Mrs. Kent telling her softly that no intergalactic female was going to understand Clark, at least not the way he was raised. Clark would need more than passion; he would want an emotional attachment, a connection with someone like his parents had.
You understand; he's so much like his father …
As she sidled just a little closer, Clark's warmth washed over her and she remembered his touch, his kiss. In her memory she relived all the little details and felt her body heat. She turned her back to Clark and closed her eyes, hoping to shut out the memories. Instead, all she could see was Clark with that woman at the end.
My destiny's here and you're not part of it.
Destiny.
Are you Lois Lane?
Destiny.
Then this will work.
She released a shuddering breath at the realization that she could grow to crave Clark's passionate side if she wasn't careful.
It was the emotional attachment he needed that scared the living daylights out of her.