"He went into a woman's apartment after the other night's fire."

"And?"

"And..." a drawl came from the man sat across from him, a small smile on his face as he knew that his discovery could be used for something big. He was well aware that it could happen. "It is his girlfriend."

"Many people have girlfriends, David. Please get on with it."

"His girlfriend has applied to work here," David spoke back, his eyes gleaming as the bald man across from him arched a brow. He laced his hands together and rested them on the desk, looking across to his employee as he gathered the information. "She has an interview to be your PA. She has a Politics degree, comes from a small town in Kansas, divorced...and now she seems to be dating Superman."

"I see."

"She'd be a good investment, sir," David spoke with a forceful nod. "Her degree could come in handy if you run for a political position."

"I don't need some girl with a degree," he rolled his eyes as a response. "I am fine on my own. What's her name?"

"Elizabeth Rose Lowe," David said, clearly still feeling impressed with himself. And why shouldn't he? No one else had bothered to dig deep enough to find the girl. "She could be the ticket to getting him...to controlling him..."

"Maybe," he replied. "We'll soon find out, I suppose. Make sure she's hired."

"But there has to be interviews," David protested. "You don't want LexCorp to look biased, do you?"

"Are you telling me what to do?"

"I wouldn't dream of it."

"Then cancel the interviews. Call Miss Lowe and tell her she has the job. She starts Monday."

"As you say," he agreed with a small nod and stood up.

The man turned around in his chair, looking over the skyline of the Metropolis as he did so. His eyes scanned every building and he wondered if there was anything he hadn't played a part in. He didn't think so. He knew that he owned this city.

"And the body?" he called over his shoulder.

"In the basement, as you requested. The government believe it to have been lost."

"Good. Now go and hire my pretty new PA."

...

"Clark...Clark...wake up..." Lizzie spoke as she stood in his apartment. The clock had just struck six at night and Clark Kent had fallen asleep on his sofa. Lizzie had come over at two, Clark collecting her from her own apartment. She had made dinner in the kitchen, cooking stuffed peppers whilst he sat and watched TV on that Saturday afternoon.

It was only when she saw that he wasn't answering her when he was sleeping. She couldn't remember seeing Clark sleep in a long time. She wondered if he even really needed it. He was superhuman, after all. She left the peppers on his small dining table and moved into the living room, crouching down by his side and resting her hand on his shoulder.

He grunted once as he slowly opened his eyes and she stood up, patting him on the head.

"Dinner is on the table," she said, pulling out a pitcher of orange juice she had left in his fridge. "Besides, do you even get tired?"

Clark sat up and stretched his muscles out, pulling his arms over his head as he moved over to her. He took a seat on the left and she sat opposite, pouring the juice into glasses.

"Not physically," Clark said. "Mentally, yes. I've only had four hours sleep this week."

"That's crazy," Lizzie said, picking up her knife and fork. "Anyway, I had a call when you were sleeping."

"Oh yeah?"

"You are now looking at the new Personal Assistant to Lex Luthor," Lizzie smirked, stuffing her face with pepper as Clark smiled over at her, his look genuine as he did so. He had heard of Lex Luthor. Who hadn't? The man practically owned the Metropolis. His infrastructure and supplies to the city were vast.

"Liz, that's brilliant," Clark said.

"I know," she couldn't help but agree with that statement. "I start on Monday. I called my mom. She sounded happy...she knows it isn't what I really want to do, but it gets me out of the diner, doesn't it?"

"That's the main thing," Clark said, continuing to eat. He yawned once, draining his glass of juice as he looked across to Lizzie. "Did you want to go back to your apartment tonight or stay here?"

Lizzie almost choked on her pepper at his phrasing. She coughed loudly, her hand on her chest as she tried to spit out the piece of pepper in her throat. Clark moved around to her, patting her on the back and wrapping an arm around her waist as he finally pushed her far enough to get rid of the piece of pepper.

"Drink," Clark commanded, handing her the glass.

She did so, draining all of the liquid, only for Clark to refill it. He kept his arm tight around her as he tried not to laugh. She turned red, pushing her hair over one shoulder as she spoke into her glass;

"Was that a proposition, Clark Kent?"

Oh. Clark finally realised what she thought he had meant. He shook his head at her, hastily moving from her to sit back down in his own seat.

"No," he told her, only to receive a look of some kind of hurt. "It's not that I don't want to...I mean...I have...for a while...but I don't want to rush anything...besides...it isn't like I've actually done anything like that..."

"What?" Lizzie spat out, unable to believe her ears. "You've never done it?"

"No," Clark admitted hesitantly. "I have been a bit busy trying to save the world recently."

"Wow," Lizzie mumbled. "There wasn't a girl whilst you travelled?"

"No," Clark said. "You know I spent most of my time on a fishing boat. The rest of it was spent writing to you and wondering what I was. Besides, I bet James is your only one."

"This is turning odd," Lizzie grumbled, looking down to her pepper and cutting it further. "Yeah, of course, he is. I wasn't a college slut."

"I never thought you would be," Clark replied quickly. "Anyway, why are we talking about this? I only meant that we both don't have to be at work in the morning, do we? So why worry about going anywhere?"

"Is this coming from Superman?" Lizzie wondered. "I know you're going to end up leaving me to save some damsel in distress."

"I have to," Clark whispered. "It is my job, Lizzie."

"And I'm not saying that it isn't a noble thing to do," Lizzie assured him. "I am just saying that there are sometimes...well...I'd like to eat dinner without you running away."

Clark sighed and looked down to his food, his eyes closing solemnly.

"I want that too," Clark promised her.

"But there is always going to be some to save." She concluded. "It's not that I resent you for it, Clark. I think you're being noble. I just want you to be here for once."

"I do want to be here," Clark said.

"Of course you do," Lizzie said, trying to be a lighter edge to the conversation. She grinned mischievously at him. "My stuffed peppers are too good to miss."

"That they are," Clark smirked back. He said nothing as he saw a brief moment of sadness flicker through her eyes. He reached his hand over the table, picking hers up into his. "I am doing my best, Lizzie," Clark whispered to her. "But the other day...when you were attacked...and I couldn't even save you, Lizzie..."

"You were working," Lizzie said, trying to get him to stop blaming himself. "You couldn't do anything for me, Clark. Don't blame yourself for that. It isn't your fault that-"

"-I couldn't protect the one thing I care about," Clark interrupted her. "I manage to save everyone else, but not you."

"You save most of them from death, Clark. I didn't die."

"You don't know what could have happened," Clark complained. "I don't want to know what could have happened if someone hadn't found you. I don't want to think about it."

"Then don't," Lizzie urged him. She stood up and bent down by Clark's chair, holding his hand tightly in her own. "Please, Clark, can we not think about it? Everything will get better. It has to. I'll take this job, and you will be Superman by night and Clark Kent by day."

Clark nodded, moving his hand to cup her cheek. He kissed her gently as she ran a hand through his hair, trying to get him to calm down.

"Okay?" Lizzie checked with him. "Honestly, Clark, I'm going nowhere. You're going nowhere. Everything will be fine now. I know it."

"And when have you ever been wrong?" Clark wondered, remembering the time she told him that she refused to be beaten, especially by him. Lizzie smiled at that, moving closer to kiss him again. Somewhere in the distance a rip curling scream echoed from all around. Clark's ears pricked up as he pulled back from Lizzie and looked to the balcony door of his apartment.

"Go," Lizzie said. "The dishes will still be here when you come back."

Clark smirked, kissing her on the forehead before whispering; "I love you."

The words caused Lizzie to gasp, but Clark was out of the apartment before she could say anything. A smile overwhelmed her and she wondered if Clark had known what he had just told her. Keeping quiet, Lizzie tided the dishes herself, unable to stop the cheesy grin which sat on her face.

...

Clark returned to find Lizzie curled on his sofa, a blanket over her as she held the TV remote in her hand. She had the news channel on for a while, looking as Superman saved some people from a train crash.

"You know," Lizzie said, "it is only when your boyfriend is a superhero when you realise how much destruction there is in this city."

"Too much," Clark complained, flopping back by her side and wrapping his arm around her shoulders. He still wore the suit on his body, not bothering to change in case something else happened that night. "It was a train owned by LexCorp too."

"What doesn't LexCorp own?" Lizzie wondered, leaning further back against Clark as she dangled her legs over the arm of the sofa. "Everywhere you go there is a sign with the company's name on it, and now I am to be the PA to the boss."

"I hope your salary is worthy," Clark joked with her.

She kept quiet as she closed her eyes and Clark stiffened, his ears picking up another strange noise. He moved quickly to the balcony window, looking down as a bin tumbled to the ground.

"What is it?" Lizzie wondered from him. "Is there something wrong?"

"I heard a noise," Clark said, his x-ray vision coming in handy as he looked into the darkness.

"It was probably cats," Lizzie shrugged, moving to stand up. She kept the blanket wrapped around her as she stood behind Clark, her arms snaking around his waist. She rested her cheek in between his shoulder blades as Clark took hold of her hands, not entirely convinced that it was cats. He kept quiet and turned around in her hold, closing the doors again.

"Probably," he agreed limply, tugging at the blanket to bring her closer to him. She wrapped her arms around his neck, wondering if she would ever tire of being so close to Clark Kent.

"Come on," Lizzie said, tugging at his hand. "America's Next Top Model is on repeat."

Clark rolled his eyes, but gave in. He always did when it came to Lizzie.

...

"Miss Lowe, I take it."

Elizabeth stood at the reception area on Monday morning, looking around for someone to tell her where she should be going. The bald man in front of her offered his hand and she took it quickly.

"Mr Luthor?" Elizabeth checked, holding his hand as he shook it, checking her firm grip.

"Yes," he spoke. "It is a pleasure to meet you, Miss Lowe. Please, do follow me and I shall show you to your desk. Madison will help you to settle in. She is leaving us for New Orleans next week to be with her husband."

"That's nice," Lizzie forced herself to be polite. "I have to say it is a pleasure to be working here."

He walked slowly by her side, looking down at her with a confident smile on his face. She seemed polite enough. He suspected he would have a lot of fun with this one, especially if she was as close to Superman as he thought.

"It's a pleasure to have you here," Lex replied. "All the job enlists is making sure my appointments are set up at convenient times. You may need to come with me to some of them to make sure I am correctly briefed. It is all very straight forward business, nothing too complicated. Tomorrow you can come with us to the acquisition meeting."

"Acquisition?" Lizzie arched a brow.

"I intend to buy the Daily Planet," Lex simply spoke.

Lizzie froze for a moment, wondering what Clark would think of that. Lex caught up on the vacant expression he was receiving from her.

"Is something the matter? You've turned quiet since that news."

"Oh, it is nothing," Lizzie said, shaking her head. "I just know someone who works there. I applied twice."

"And they never took a pretty thing like you on?" Lex wondered.

He smirked at her as she kept calm, shaking her head and adjusting the satchel on her shoulder.

"No," she said. "I don't know why."

"What is their loss is my gain," Lex informed her.

If only she knew how much of that was true.

...

A/N: And so it begins again! thank you all for reviewing and sticking with this! Your thoughts are always appreciated!