Lois pulled open the door to the closet in her hotel suite. She had been up late last night, and despite sleeping late this morning, she was still tired. She was glad she still had three hours before she had to be at the ballroom at the Regency Hotel. Surely she could drink enough coffee in that time to keep her up late enough tonight.

She set the little two-cup coffeepot to brewing, and returned to her original task of fixing her hair. It was a real chore- her hair was so thick, she could never quite tame it completely short of straightening it to the point that she almost burned it with the iron. But after nearly an hour with the curling iron, she achieved her goal.

It looked pretty good, she thought, examining her reflection in the large mirror. Now if she could just turn the face she'd inherited from the General into something people could look at without pitying her, it would be even better. She proceeded to attack herself with mascara.

Lois wasn't much for extensive beautifying, but Chloe had called her earlier in the afternoon. She'd hinted that the Green Arrow might be there- in cognito, of course. The memory of that one kiss in the alley still made her flush whenever she thought of it. If he was going to be there, she intended to be the only girl in the room who could capture his interest.

As she streaked a light blue eyeshadow across her eyelids, she pondered the events of the evening before. Clark's determination to help her have a good time at an event he'd known would be difficult, his offer of comfort when she'd made such an ass of herself over a stupid song... It made her edgy and she didn't know why. Well, no, edgy wasn't really the right word. It was something else, something she couldn't quite put her finger on...

Finally, she found herself to be acceptable. She returned to the closet and took out her costume. She ran the blue satin through her hands, then picked up the little white domino mask that fulfilled the 'masked' part of 'masked costume ball'...

Clark hung up the phone. Chloe's announcement that she'd told Lois Green Arrow would be at the costume party this evening made him anxious. That would make Lois far more alert than even she could be. She'd be watching for him, and when Lois looked, she would find. Things could get awkward if she realized who he was.

He glanced at the closet. The Green Arrow ensemble Chloe had rented for him hung there.

But he didn't want to wear that. It seemed too... obvious. Just because Lois thought of him as tactless and unsubtle didn't mean he had to actually be that way. He'd prove to her- even if she didn't know who he was- that he could be more than just a farm boy. It made him quite glad that he'd made contingency plans in case the Green Arrow costume turned out to be a bad idea.

He had just stepped out of the shower when Chloe had called. He only had twenty minutes before the fundraiser at the Regency began. Well, time to get dressed...

A Note From Lara: Well, just a really short little chapter (especially compared to the last one). I'm still having issues deciding on a costume for Clark. I know that's a terrible thing to admit when it's supposed to be a really big surprise, kind of a cliffhanger, what-are-they-going-as ending there. But I'm just... stuck.

If you want the next chapter, I really need you to give me some ideas. Remember, Batman and Spiderman are out. I'm going for suave, and I'd prefer a DC superhero. However, I'll also settle for a fairy tale character. But if ONE MORE PERSON sends me a private message suggesting Zorro or Batman I am going to slit my throat. He's already done Zorro, and now I've said TWICE that Batman's not viable.

Seriously people, help me out. Even if you don't normally leave reviews, just leave a really really short one with the name of some character you'd like to see Clark go as. (And now, with Reader Traffic, I KNOW how many people read my work. I also know how many reviews I get. The numbers do NOT add up people. Come on. All it takes is one word, the name of the character. That is ALL I'm asking for.)

Thank you all so much!