Incident #2 - Meeting the new DDA

Clark had offered to drive the three of them to the nearest precinct. Lois gladly took him up on it. During the short drive there, the car was quiet. Lois couldn't help but sneaking glances at her partner, who would then throw her a worried look.

She studied him. How he sat in the driver's seat of her car. He just seemed to look normal. He was just the guy she went to the Kerth's with. The guy who not too long ago confessed his love for her. Then took it back. The guy who nonetheless held her in his strong arms after the disastrous Luther-Lane wedding. The guy she ran to for comfort when the prankster got under her skin. The guy who laughed at her babbling episodes and challenged her when she admittedly wasn't completely open to all leads and ideas in front of her. He started as a real pain in the neck, but soon she found out, to her own surprise, that he had sneaked his way past her defences and had become her best friend.

Could he really also be the guy that flew around the city and saved the day? She had unabashedly thrown herself at Superman, whilst treating Clark horribly unfair. Surely if they were one and the same, he wouldn't still want to be her friend?

Besides, their personalities couldn't differ any more from each other. Superman was always heroic and serious and focussed, whilst Clark was much more meek and funny and liked to joke around. But then she had seen Clark serious and very focussed too. At work, but especially during the night they were held captive at the Planet. She was so flattered and distracted at that time by the advances Lex was making towards her, that she paid very little attention to the heroics of her partner. In fact, for the better part of the first year working together, she had paid very little attention towards him. Something about Clark Kent scared her. Scared her a great deal. It's not like she couldn't trust him or that she was afraid he'd do something to hurt her, but from the first moment they'd met, he saw her. He had the ability to see right through all the facades and grandeur she put out and he seemed to be able to have her pegged. To look right into her soul. That made her want to run at first. And hell, she did try running and keeping him at arms length.

Superman had made her feel many things, but never that. Never like he knew her soul and genuinely liked it. That was something unique to Clark. Superman always made her feel like she had to walk on her toes to be her best self. With Clark she could just, be. She pondered some more as Clark put the car to a stop near the police station.

'You're ready to give your statement?', he asked her, probably still concerned with how quiet she had been.

As if waking up from a dream she blinked a couple of times and started to unbuckle. She had to get herself together. She was probably just tired. They had just wrapped up their Prankster-series, which had taken a toll on her. Then the Planet was too short-staffed for them to take some proper time off afterwards. They had just gone on. And on top of that, she spent the majority of the morning feeling hangry, because she didn't have breakfast. Whilst walking up the steps of the station she took a breath, feeling much better for having rationally excused her rattling thoughts.

The station was bustling as always, but not in the way she had expected, with just one car showing up. People were reading reports or eating their lunches at their desks.

'Excuse me, we were asked to follow the police car that just brought someone in for arson at the Americana Café?', she heard Clark say. She watched her Uncle Mike who looked anxiously around. He didn't seem to like being in there much. He'd probably much rather been cleaning up the mess.

'Someone will be with you soon.', the receptionist replied. At that exact moment, the young man that was taken was forcefully moved into a room by two cops.

'All that crime out there and look what we have in here, a doughnut commercial.', Lois commented whilst taking in her surroundings. Clark gave her look, but she just rolled her eyes at him.

Then Clark's eyes grew wider and his mouth fell open as something caught his eye. That was when a young, blonde woman appeared behind her.

'Ehm, excuse me, is one of you Clark Kent?', the woman asked the men Lois was with. Lois let her eyes go over the woman that forced such a reaction from her partner.

'I am.', Clark replied to her.

The woman seemed pleased by this. She stuck out her hand as an introduction.

'Mayson Drake, Deputy D.A. I'd like to see if you'd be willing to testify against Baby Rage.'

Just as Clark was about to answer, he was interrupted by shouting and loud cursing from the back of the station. 'Baby Rage, I wonder why they call him that.', he joked, which awarded him a pretty smile from Mayson. As if she seemed to remind herself not to smile at him too long, she turned to Lois and Mike. Lois, who was watching the interaction, let her eyes linger on her partner for a little bit. He didn't seem to notice. Was he seriously flirting with this DDA?

'You must be Mike Lane. I am very sorry about what happened to your restaurant.', Mayson Drake kept her eyes focussed on Mike.

'Thanks, but they're gonna have to do a lot more than that to get me to pull out.', Mike bravely said. A Lane family trait, Lois thought as she gave her uncle a proud look.

'And you are?', the DDA had now turned her attention to her.

'Lois Lane.', Lois merely answered her, but Mayson Drake seemed to expect more. 'I'm the one who called the police.'

'That kid also threatened Lois.', Clark supplied.

'Clark, he was just trying to scare me.', Lois tried to wave it off, looking at Mayson Drake for support.

'Well, now it's my turn to scare him.', the DDA firmly said. 'With your help.' She looked at Clark almost bashfully and locked eyes with him again. A simmering tension seemed to blossom between the two, that was duly noted by the other people in the room.

'Whatever I saw, I will tell in court Miss Drake.', Clark said with a charming smile. He was not so secretly enjoying the fact that this beautiful woman in front of him was openly appreciating him.

'Mayson.', she replied smiling sweetly at him, but she seemed more conscious of the raised eyebrow Lois gave the pair then her own partner was.

'Call my office in the morning so we can arrange a disposition. And if you need to reach me during off-hours…', Mayson bravely continued, deciding to be bold. 'My home phone's on the back.'

'Thank you.', Clark said as he took the number, muling over how to interpret the action. His partner however took less time to digest what had just happened and voiced her conclusion.

'Subtle.', Lois sarcastically said, irritation evident in her voice as Mayson walked away.

'And I'll have Superman get in touch with you.', Clark called after her as he suddenly remembered that his alter ego was the one who actually caught Baby Rage, he was just the witness.

'Oh Superman, right. I guess I have to talk to him, don't I?', Mayson answered with a sigh.

Lois watched as Clarks earlier flirtatious smile dropped to a downcast expression as he stared at Mayson.

'Most people would consider that an honour.', Lois stepped in, just as shocked at someone disliking her hero so openly.

'Well, I guess I'm not most people.', Mayson scoffed before focussing on Clark again. 'Clark, we'll talk soon?', she asked with a smile and much softer tone.

'Yeah.', he forced his confused expression off of his face and replaced it with a smile. This time it did not reach his eyes.

After the Deputy DA walked off again, she left people in the room confused. Lois saw Clark stare after her pensively. Earlier thoughts wriggled their way back into her mind. Surely this wasn't proof was it? Clark who seemed upset by someone's disliking of Superman?

Well, she was just as thrown off as anyone by this firm dislike of the superhero. After all, both she and Clark considered Superman their friend.

'Come on.', she tried to pull Clark out of his own thoughts. 'We're gonna find out why these cops are slowing down all of a sudden. Bye Uncle Mike.'

'Go get them, honey', Mike said as Lois kissed him goodbye.

Maybe this was exactly was needed. A deep dive into work to distract her from her intrusive thoughts about her partner. And maybe as an added bonus, they would find reason for him to stop flirting so openly with DDA Mayson Drake.