Chapter 26
Clark couldn't believe what he was seeing. This couldn't be happening. "No, no, no. Lois…"
He ran to free her, but getting closer to her brought to him a very familiar pain, making him gasp. Clark gave a step back looked at the hole in her chest, seeing for the first time a green sparkle. He breathed hard as he realized it was kryptonite.
He moved closer, damning the consequences. Struggling to keep on his feet and to breath, he was now face to face with her. His shaking hand finally reached the wound. As he tried to take the piece of rock out of her, his veins started to twitch and to lose its color. More blood started to come out of her wound. "I-I'm sor… Sorry. You'll be… You'll be fine. I-I promise." he said, his voice uneven.
Clark coughed, the proximity with kryptonite killing almost all of his strength. He was having difficulty to pull the piece off her. When he finally took it out, he dropped it immediately on the floor, falling on his knees next. He was breathing heavily.
He looked up, nothing had changed to Lois. He then looked at the kryptonite on the floor, realizing it was just a tiny piece of the green rock. He knitted his brows in worry. "No…" Tears started to form on his eyes.
He held on the wood of the window to stand up. Even with his vision blurred, he looked carefully at her wound, managing to see a couple of other pieces of the broken rock.
Clark could barely stand on his feet, so he stepped back, trying to recover himself. He took deep breaths. He then used his heat vision to free her from the ropes holding her. But as he ran to her in time to catch her body before it hit the floor, the kryptonite inside her weakened him, making him fall with Lois in his arms.
He gasped in pain. But this wasn't the biggest one he was feeling at that moment on the floor. It was having her immobile body over his. Cold. No signs of breathing.
Tears started to fall from his eyes. "Please, no."
Desperate, Clark used all the strength he had and didn't have to roll Lois on her back. He kept lying on the floor, breathless, trying not to break down.
Even feeling dizzy, Clark managed to position himself over Lois. Due to the closeness to the kryptonite, sweat started to cover his face and his stomach started to ache. He tried to take other pieces of kryptonite out of her, but his shaking hand wasn't helping him. "Damn. I can fail you."
But his body couldn't take it anymore. Clark quickly started to lose conscience, his body falling on hers, her name being the last words coming from his mouth, in a sobbing whisper.
-º-
Lex was lying on the riverbank when he woke up. Dizzy and coughing water, he looked as a shadow covered his bald head. There she was, the woman he had saw in the water before passing out.
His guardian angel.
There was shadow over her face, but he had a glimpse of her beauty. Unfortunately for Lex, as he looked down, turning his eyes away from the sunlight, the blonde woman flew away.
When he looked up again, he watched confused and stunned she flying around in the sky.
-º-
"Clark? Clark?" Chloe called as she entered the barn. Her expression was one of sadness and her eyes were red and puffy. She had been crying since she received the news of Lana's death.
She climbed the stairs, still calling for him. Reaching the end of it, she stopped on her tracks. A frown took over her features.
"Clark? Lois?" Chloe called worried as she eyed both of them lying on the floor. She walked slowly to them. "Guys?"
She took a deep breath before getting down. She shook her friend's body slightly. "Clark? Clark?" Her heart was palpitating, fearing the worst. She grabbed his shoulder with both hands and rolled him onto his back.
Her eyes opened widely as she saw blood on his shirt. However, it was when she looked at Lois and saw the wound in her chest that she felt her heart pounding out of her chest. She approached her cousin's body. "Lois! Oh my God, what happened to you?"
Chloe fight back the tears, trying to focus in what she could do to help her cousin. She then caught sight of a green glow. "Kryptonite…" She whispered to herself.
Chloe looked at her side, realizing it was the thing affecting Clark. She quickly stood up and grabbed his arm, dragging him away from Lois. She then ran back to her cousin's side.
She supported Lois's head on her lap, her cousin's pale face sending chills down her spine. She wouldn't accept Lois was gone. She couldn't. The blonde looked around searching for something to take the kryptonite out of Lois, but her eyes caught nothing. She hadn't much time left, so she decided to do it empty-handed.
Unfortunately for her, although her fingers were way smaller and thinner, she still couldn't reach the kryptonite deep in Lois's heart. She looked at her hand covered in blood and then back at Lois. Tears finally appeared on her eyes. "No…"
A few feet away from them, Clark started to wake up, dizzy. Then, remembering how he passed out, he quickly looked stood up, the fear rushing back into his mind and heart. "Lois!"
He stopped at the heartbreaking sight in front of him. Chloe holding onto Lois tightly, loud sobs coming from her.
"Come on, Lois. You're a fighter. Come on. Come on, Lois. Come on. You're the strongest girl I know," Chloe said to her cousin.
Clark averted his eyes, avoiding to breakdown along. "Chloe…" He hesitated. "I need to take Lois to Jor-El. He can help her," he said, not so sure of it. And that scared him.
But Chloe wasn't listening, she kept talking to Lois. "Come on! Please! You can't die. I can't lose you. I love you too much. Please."
As she kept crying, a tear reached her jawline. It then fell on Lois's forehead. Suddenly, a shiny white light started to appear on the spot where Chloe's tear fell.
Clark turned to look at them as the brightness grew exponentially around the two of them. "Chloe," he called, puzzled. "What's happening?"
He covered his eyes with his arm as the white light took over the room. He slowly lowered his arm once the light dissipated. His eyes then opened widely in shock at what he was saying. Chloe was also lying unconscious on the floor.
Clark ran to her side and held her, tapping her cheek lightly. "Chloe, wake up! Chloe!" he called, in vain. His friend was getting paler. "Chloe!"
Near them, there was Lois lying on the floor. Her body appeared to have the same lifeless look, however, something was happening. The wound in her chest started to heal abruptly. The tiny pieces of kryptonite popped up at the end of the nearly healed wound, leaving her body and dropping on the floor next. Then, the hole in her chest disappeared completely, like it had never been there.
Clark kept trying to wake up Chloe, fearful for her. "Come on, Chloe. This can't be happening." As he focused his super hearing on her vitals, another sound caught his attention. Louder. One that he could pick out without his powers.
His heart skipped a beat.
He jerked his head to the side and saw her. "Lois!" He said, a big, relieved smile forming on his lips. She was coughing. Clark placed Chloe carefully on the floor and moved toward her.
He stopped on his tracks, though, realizing the kryptonite around Lois. Clark used his heat vision to exterminate all the pieces, damning the thing that hurt the woman he loves.
He got down and held her. "Lois! Lois!" He called, hopeful.
Lois started to open her eyes slowly, Clark's face taking her visual field. Her eyes opened widely, fear in it. "Get off me! Get off me!" She yelled, hitting and pushing him away.
Clark looked confused. "Lois?"
Her expression then changed to one of anger.
He then realized it. "It's me, Lois. It's me!" He said with pleading eyes.
Lois looked fixed at him for a couple of seconds and then her face softened, a hint of a relieved smile appearing on her lips. Clark smiled back and hugged her tightly. "You're safe," he said, closing his eyes and taking comfort in her embrace.
She took comfort in his embrace, too, but her attention shifted when she looked at the side. "Chloe!" She shouted when she saw her cousin lying on the floor. Lois pulled away and ran to her side. "Oh, my God. What happened?"
"I'm not sure," Clark replied, a sad expression taking over again his features. "I think we should take her to a hospital."
Lois just nodded. She caressed her cousin's pale face, worried.
-º-
Clark and Lois were sitting at the waiting room. Chloe had entered the emergency room several minutes ago. Lois was looking downcast, pensive, after they told each other about what happened. He, meanwhile, kept looking at her, a tender expression on his face.
"Why are you looking at me like that?" Lois asked, without turning to look at him.
"I almost lost you."
Lois turned to look at him, teary-eyed. "And now my cousin's life is in danger because she saved me."
"We're not sure of that."
"C'mon, Clark." Lois stood up. "She passes out and I heal after a shiny light? Sounds like typical Smallville stuff to me." She looked around and lowered her voice. "And we both know what Chloe is," she completed, reminding of her cousin's meteor infection."
Clark got up, too, and then placed his hands over hers. "Chloe will get through this. And whatever is happening to her… We'll work it out, alright?"
Lois nodded. "Right after I show my fists to a certain beautiful-looking phantom."
Clark gave her a half smile. They stared into each other's eyes, a visible longing when their hazel and blue eyes met. The moment was then interrupted by a woman's voice.
"Miss Lane?" a doctor called.
Lois turned to look at her. "Yes?" But as she looked at the doctor she saw in the woman's face she hadn't come to bring happy news.
Clark realized it, too. "What happened?" He asked, his voice low, uncertain of the need to hear what she was about to say.
The expression on the doctor's face saddened. "I'm sorry. We did everything we could –"
"No…" Lois shook her head in denial. Tears started to appear on her face.
"She didn't make it."
"No…" Lois broke down, her legs giving out.
Clark held her before she fell. He looked at the doctor, shocked, tears falling down his cheeks. She looked down.
"I'll give you some time alone," she said. "I'm sorry for your loss." She then left.
Lois had head buried into Clark's chest, crying endlessly. Clark hugged her tightly, his head resting over hers.
"She can't be dead. She can't be," Lois kept saying. "I need to see her." Lois pulled away and started to walk away.
Clark grabbed her arm. "Lois…"
She looked at him, seeing in his teary eyes he was as hurt as she was. "We have to do something, Clark. Take her to Jor-El or whatever. We have to do something."
"I'm afraid… I'm afraid that's not how it works."
"It worked for me!"
"It was a different situation…"
She shook her head, more tears falling from her eyes. "I was the one supposed to be dead. Not her. Not her."
Clark hugged her again. "No."
"It should be me," she whispered between sobs.
"Don't blame yourself. Please," he begged as he ran his hand up and down Lois's back. As he tried to calm her, his super hearing picked out her heartbeat. It was irregular, mirroring her uneven breathing.
Just like his.
His mind started to remember Chloe. The quick-witted way she spoke, her eyes full of curiosity, her smile. A smile so bright that it could fill the room with joy.
He could even hear her voice.
"Help! Help! Somebody help me!"
Clark's eyes widened, looking ahead. "Chloe?"
Lois looked at him, a puzzled look in her swollen eyes. "Clark?"
He pulled away from her and stepped forward, focusing his super hearing next.
"Help! Help! Please!"
Clark suddenly superspeeded away.
Lois blinked in surprise. She then followed him, stopping at the morgue. "Clark, what are…" She stopped at the loud sound coming from one of drawers of the morgue.
"Help!"
Lois frowned. Her heart beat quicker. "Chloe?"
Clark didn't wait anymore and opened the drawer and pulled it out, revealing a disoriented Chloe. "It's okay. It's okay," he tried to calm her down and relieved she was alive, at the same time.
"What hap…?"
"Chloe!" An overly happy Lois ran to her cousin's side and hugged her tightly. "Thank god." Tears of relief fell down her cheeks.
Chloe looked confused. She then took a look around. "Am I in a morgue?"
"Come on, let's get you out -" Clark tried to change the subject.
"Why I am in a morgue?" She asked, this time louder.
Clark and Lois exchanged a look. He then looked at the blonde. "You're alive. That's what matters now," he said.
Chloe looked down, realizing she had a toe tag. "But I wasn't alive, was I?"
There was a silence in the room. Clark then removed the toe tag.
"Lois…" Chloe looked at her cousin, remembering the last moments before she passed out.
"You saved me, Chlo," Lois told her, gratitude and guilt in her tone.
Chloe pondered it, the fears coming from Lois's implication taking over her mind. "Clark, turn around," she asked him as she got up.
Clark turned around. Covering herself with a sheet, Chloe started to walk to a more private area.
"Did it happen before?" Lois asked.
"I don't know what you're talking about."
"A bright light came and you practically exchanged places with Lois," Clark told her.
Chloe dressed herself with a white coat. "How you can be sure it was me?" She said, getting defensive.
Lois approached her, concerned. "I know how you're feeling. We just wanna help you and try to make sense of all this."
"Guys, I don't have time for it right now. I gotta get out of here."
Clark looked at her. "Chloe, you just died and came back to life. Don't you think you should have your blood pressure taken?"
"And get turned into some sort of lab rat? From one guinea pig to another, I think I'll pass." She looked at the side and saw a chart. It was hers, her certificate of death. She yanked it off.
However, it was the one below hers that affected her more. Lana Luthor.
The reason she went to the farm in the first place. The pain of that news coming back all at once. She looked at Clark. "I was going to tell you…"
"Wha…?" Clark moved closer. He then saw it. He breathed hard, the same pain affecting him. "I already knew," he said, looking downcast.
Lois looked puzzled. "What are you guys talking –" She stopped at the sight of Lana's name on the death certificate. She looked at both of them, completely shocked. "Is… Is it true?"
Neither of the two of them said anything or looked back at her. It was all it took to confirm it.
-º-
At a jail cell, Lex's lawyer, a tall, black man, was showing him a mini-recorder with his last conversation with Lana.
"You're right, I never stopped loving him. And even if I can't be with him again, you can be sure he means more to me than you ever will," Lana said. Then, there was a slap sound. "That's the last time you'll ever touch me."
"Do you really think I could just let you walk away?" Lex told her.
"What are you going to do, Lex… Kill me?"
Lex heard the tape with guilt in his eyes. His lawyer stopped it. "With evidence like that, I doubt we'd be able to get you bail," he said.
Lex had the opportunity to run away earlier, but decided to face trial. "I'm not worried about me. I want an update on the recovery efforts at the dam, and more specifically I need to know the status of model 503."
"Most of the compromised units have been recovered, but we're still looking for 503."
"My father?"
"Still on a hospital bed, recovering. Sir, we have to find you an alibi."
"I wasn't miraculously saved to run away from my demons, Keating. I was brought back to face them."
Bizarro suddenly showed up at the jail cell, ripping off the door. "Be careful what you wish for." After perforating Lois's heart, he went after kryptonite. Still hurt from his battle against Clark, he was getting weaker. The kryptonite in the barn was supposed to help him, but eliminating an enemy was a more immediate opportunity. "I looked for you at the mansion."
Lex stood up, alarmed. Bizarro walked in and stood in front of Keating and stuck his hand into the man's chest, and then ripped out his heart, tossing it aside next. "Huh. The second heart I break today," he said with a smug smile on his face.
"The phantom," Lex realized. "You took Clark's body."
"Just a few cells." Bizarro moved closer. "Clark's still alive. He's out there. And you will help me kill him. I need meteor rocks... A lot of them."
"I'd never help you kill Clark."
Bizarro looked unconvinced. "Lex, redemption doesn't suit you. Why protect a Clark Kent who hates you, when you can help the one who wants to be your ally? It's what you've always wanted. Isn't it, Lex?"
Lex just kept looking at the phantom, his eyes undecipherable.
-º-
Chloe was sitting in her apartment, crying as she watched a video of her and Lana on her laptop.
"Chloe, put down the camera and look at the..." Lana spoke.
"Whoa!"
" Chloe, the Empire State Building is just around the corner..."
" Ooh, ooh, let's follow him, Mr. Buns of Steel," Chloe said, between laughs.
"Chloe, he's watching you now."
"Whoa!"
Lois looked at Clark as he watched Chloe crying endlessly with the video. She could see him suffering as much as her cousin. Lois herself was feeling pretty sad. Despite the issues that separated both of them, mainly coming from the fact they both loved the same man, she still considered Lana a friend. But the feeling didn't compare to the other two. The man who up until months ago only had loved her and would always hold the memories dearly in his heart and the woman who considered her one of her best friends, practically like family.
Lois didn't know what to say or what to do. She felt so impotent.
"Next time, we are taking a taxi..." Lana said. Both of them started to laugh.
Clark approached the blonde, trying to be strong. "Chloe?"
"Hey," she replied, finally distracted from the video. She couldn't control the tears. "Oh, it's really hard to concentrate when Lana was here one minute and now she's just..."
Words failed Clark. They looked at each other, bonding over a shared pain. Chloe then got up and put her arms around Clark. They took a moment and just held each other.
Lois watched them, hugging herself. Maybe that's the comfort they needed right now, each other.
"There's a lot more people that could get hurt right now," Clark spoke, pulling away. He averted his eyes.
"Yeah," Chloe collected herself. "Denial should be our friend right now." She went back to her laptop. "Okay, so, this phantom-Clark thing was inhabiting humans. But when he touched you, it just replicated. Why?"
"The phantom needed a Kryptonian body in order to replicate to become whole again."
"Considering the way he acted around me, I don't think he just want to be a replica of you, Smallville," Lois said.
Clark nodded. "He wants to take my life."
"Well, where's our Bizarro Clark now?" Chloe asked.
"I don't know. But, Chloe, before I hit him, his face distorted, almost like he was hurt."
"Which is why he pushed pause on his one-man mission to kill you. But... Why would your doppelganger weaken if you didn't?"
"It's like everything affects him the opposite. When Lionel held the meteor rock to him, it almost made him stronger."
"So maybe he went to find more meteor rocks so he could recharge and finish the job he started." Chloe started to type on her laptop.
Lois realized something. "Before he stuck that kryptonite into my heart, I remember he had wounds over his body. I think he was planning use the rock to heal before I got there. He must be really weak right now."
Clark followed her thoughts. "It's our chance to take him down. We have to get to him before he finds more kryptonite." He then remembered something. "You know, Oliver's been tracking all of Lex's meteor shipments for his 33.1 experiments."
"Yeah, and it says here in these records that there were several containers transferred to Reeves Dam just a couple weeks ago," Chloe checked on her computer. "If he gets there before you two do… How are you gonna take this guy down?"
Clark pondered it and then realization downed on him. "There is someone who might help us with that."
-º-
John Jones and Clark were standing in the loft of the barn. "When you left here, you were hurt pretty badly. How did you heal so fast?" Clark asked.
"I just had to leave the Earth's atmosphere. But in my absence, it appeared you did exactly what you were always trying to prevent."
Clark looked guilty. "I unleashed a carbon copy of myself... Only without my..."
"Humanity."
"What was I supposed to do, let him kill every host he inhabited?"
"That is one of the hardest trials you will face, Kal-El. While your humanity is your greatest strength, it is also your greatest vulnerability."
"Well, it's part of who I am. And it's who I want to be. I'm proud that I was raised to care about people, and I am not gonna apologize for it anymore," Clark told him, firmly.
"I know. But this creature was discarded at birth as a poor imitation. He was shown no compassion, no conscience. Therefore, he has none. He knows only one thing ... Survival."
"How do I stop someone who has all my powers and none of my weaknesses?"
By opening your eyes to what you take for granted every day," John Jones looked outside. Clark then headed to the window, also looking outside, the sunny light illuminating his body. "Your faith in humans is not the only thing that gives you strength."
"The yellow sun," Clark nodded. "That's why his face distorted when he got into the light."
"That may be the only way to defeat him. I can help, but it is your battle."
Clark turned around, a confident smile appearing on his lips. "It's not only my battle."
-º-
Lex and Bizarro were walking within the wrecked facility of the Reeves Dam. "The section of the dam where the meteor rock is stored shouldn't have been compromised," Lex said. They entered the room they were looking for. "The meteor rocks are in ther," Lex pointed towards a door.
As Bizarro walked towards it, Lex picked up a huge gun near him, pointing it at Bizarro next. "I may have tracked you around the globe, but clearly you're not a native. Where are you from, and why did you only replicate Clark?"
Bizarro looked at it with disdain. He then walked toward Lex. "Now you got a decision to make, Lex. What's more important... Destroying me or solving the mystery of Clark Kent?"
As Lex looked indecisive, Bizarro speeded around Lex. Lex turned aroung to point the gun back at him, but Bizarro grabbed the gun. "Wrong decision." He then hit Lex, throwing him against some metal piping attached to the wall.
Bizarro gave a smug smile and walked toward the door again, ripping it off. Clark arrived at that exactly moment. He checked on Lex who was lying unconscious on the floor. He watched stunned as Bizarro absorbed all of the kryptonite.
Bizarro turned around, a triumphant smile on his lips. "Did you enjoy the gift I left you back at the barn?"
Clark glared at him.
"She was so hot. Such a shame I couldn't show her what a real man is like, but I was in a hurry." He stepped forward. "You had the existence I could only dream of, every pleasure at your disposal, and you wasted it. You don't deserve this life, Clark. But I do."
Clark looked angrier, but kept still.
Bizarro called Clark for a fight with his hands. "Come on."
The side of Clark's lips curled into a smug smile. "There's nothing I would like more than to make you pay for what you've done, but there's someone else who called dibs."
Like a shooting star, Lois appeared behind Clark and flew toward a surprised Bizarro, landing into his face a powerful strike. She kept punching him over and over again, concentrating all of her rage in her fists.
Clark, meanwhile, speeded Lex away from there.
She threw more punches at Bizarro, sending him to the ground, blood all over his face. "Missed me?" She asked in a sarcastic tone.
He wiped the blood coming out of his nose with the back of his hand. "Maybe this time I'll give you a proper funeral, honey."
Clark returned.
"Where did you take Lexie?"
"Back to prison." Clark looked at the phantom getting up. "Need any help?"
"Nah. Just getting started." Lois then flew toward Bizarro again, ready to punch him again, but the bad guy blocked it. He grabbed her arm and threw her across the room.
"Lois!" Clark yelled. He jumped at superspeed to punch Bizarro, but was taken by surprise when his opponent, with both hands, hit his chest with everything, sending him flying backwards and crashing through a pillar in the other side of the room. The destruction left a hole in the ceiling.
"I expected more of a fight from you two. Well, actually, I expected Lois to be dead," Bizarro mocked. He then approached Clark. As he saw what looked like a defeated person on the ground, he smiled victorious and turned around, walking toward the spot where Lois was throw to. He was surprised, however, when he didn't saw Lois anywhere.
Clark slowly started to get up, the sunlight coming through the hole in the ceiling warming his body and soul. Healing his wound on the hand and then his wound in the face.
Bizarro turned to face Clark, angrier. "Where's she? What are you two planning?"
Clark gave him a cocky smile. "Are you afraid?"
The phantom came face-to-face with Clark, the sunlight revealing his grey steel-like, deformed form. He was serious, determined to end with the kryptonian's life. "You're no match for my strength."
Clark let Bizarro throw him one last punch. Because it didn't hurt anymore. Because the sun was protecting him. Because it felt good to be made of steel.
Filled with confidence, Clark looked at Bizarro, a stare sure of the resolution of this battle. For the first time, Bizarro lost his cool, feeling uneasy.
And, finally, Clark delivered a super powerful uppercut punch, sending Bizarro flying up into the sky. The phantom started to come apart, the interior of his body filled with the kryptonite he absorbed.
Lois appeared beneath him and grabbed him, escorting the phantom out into space and beyond to a prison made especially for him.
Back on the ground, Clark smiled proud of the teamwork and himself.
-º-
Clark and Lois were walking together within the limits of the farm.
"And Wes's body?" Clark asked.
"Properly buried in his grave," Lois told him.
"How are you feeling?"
"Happy that I could honor my friend's memory and that Lex's in jail, although not for the crime I expected." Lois then stopped. "We're here."
They were in the middle of a field. Clark looked around, puzzled. "Why we're here?"
"Doesn't this place remind you of anything?"
Clark looked around, still not getting it. "The farm?"
Lois sighed. "I was thinking in a little more action driven."
Clark frowned. He looked around again and then at her, realization downing on him. "Our first kiss," he said, a fond smile taking over his lips.
She nodded. "The moment our relationship changed for better." She then took a deep breath. "I know this is not the best time to bring it up, with Lana's death and the worry over Chloe's problems, but I… I…"
Clark grew anxious. "You what?"
"I feel like if I don't do it now, I won't ever get the chance to do it. Between me running away, coming back and getting stabbed, you getting busy with your kryptonian things, and Smallville being Smallville, we just didn't get the time to get into it." She took a box out of her jacket. "So pardon me to choose this moment to do it. I can't hold it back anymore."
Clark gasped.
Lois got down on one knee. "Clark Kent, you're the most amazing man I've ever know. You've made me grow, you've made me believe a crazy city girl could find happiness in the most weird small town, full of corn and ET stories. You made me more happy than I've ever been." She opened the box, revealing the diamond ring. "Smallville, will you marry me?"
Clark gave her a tender smile and placed his hand over the box. He then got down on his knees. "I was the one supposed to do that."
"Wha…?" Lois frowned. "Don't tell you're one of those guys."
Clark took the box out of her hand. "No. The way I proposed to you was wrong, I just want to make it right this time."
"You already know my answer…"
He ignored her remark. "Sometimes I don't know how to describe you. You can be bossy, rude, loud, irritating. But you can also be gentle, vulnerable, understanding. You're always strong, intuitive, sure of yourself. But you know the weirdest part? I like all of it in you."
Lois chuckled softly, getting emotional.
"I learned to love every bit of you, the good and the bad. I never overlook your flaws and, just like you, I embraced my own. That's the thing I learned from you, to embrace who I am despite the adversities. And you know who I am now? The guy madly in love with Lois Lane, who cannot promise life won't be crazy for them, but who can promise her he'll do everything he can to make her the happiest woman." He took a deep breath. "Will you marry me?"
She smiled widely, her eyes sparkling of happiness. "Yes. Yes, yes!" She threw herself at him, capturing his lips with hers.
They pulled away after a few seconds so Clark could put the ring on Lois's finger. As they kissed again they lost balance and fell, Clark lying on top of her. They laughed, pure joy in it.
Clark gazed into Lois's eyes. "Does this remind you of anything?" He asked.
"Mmm. I think I'll need help with that."
Clark gave her a smile and then landed a passionate kiss on her lips. It was as full of love just like the first one, probably even more, but the realization was the same. From this moment on, they were entering a new chapter in their lives.
Up in the sky, watching them, there was Martian Manhunter. A man who long ago had lost a wife and a daughter, but who found comfort in the happiness of another last survivor of an extinct civilization. "You're definitely not alone, Kal-El," he spoke, a genuine smile on his lips.
At the Smallville water tower, the blonde woman who had saved Lex sat atop of it. She looked at a bracelet, hoping she could find what she was looking for. She got up, determination in her eyes, and then she flew up, up, and away!