Not Clark, 1 of 2
Yes, *gasp*, it's a CLois.... You may or may not remember months and months ago when I had that dream which spawned this idea, but it's finally done.
Thanks go to
tragicllyhip for the hand-holding!
Title: Not Clark
Author: DM Wyatt
Pairing: Superman/Lois
Warnings: Adult, NC-17, future-fic
Spoilers: None
Summary: Lois is at home alone on a Saturday night and Superman makes an unexpected visit
Word Count: 9853
1 of 2
~:::~
Lois dried her hair as she looked coolly into the mirror. She wore only her robe since she'd just gotten out of the shower. As she waved the hair dryer back and forth over her hair, Lois was confused why she was alone. Clark had wanted to come over, saying something about maybe seeing a movie or just sitting on the couch to watch TV, do whatever she wanted actually, but she had told him she was busy.
Yet here she was.
Definitely not busy.
In fact, she'd known that she wouldn't be busy and yet lied to him anyway. She had worked out, showered and washed her hair, while home alone on a Saturday night...
How pathetic was that? It was like something from a 1950's romantic comedy: I'm sorry, baby. I can't have you over because I'm washing my hair...
If she'd been smart, she would have let him come over, watched a movie, maybe even made love to him... But she was going to be alone tonight and will probably end up reading a book.
Alone.
Even go to bed.
Alone.
She sighed as she finished drying her hair and looked at herself appraisingly in the mirror. Her skin was still damp from the shower and her silk satin robe clung suggestively to her curves. She smiled at herself.
She had clear skin, bright eyes, and (she admitted to herself) great curves. A waist kept slim and flat through exercise combined with generous breasts and flared hips made her figure one to be envied. She turned slightly to look at her butt and frowned.
Well, maybe my butt could be better, she thought wistfully...
She considered adding more lunges in her workouts, but other than that she knew that she was hottie. Her eyes were probably her best feature, bright hazel and slightly almond shaped... She was even smart and talented on top of everything else.
Dammit, she thought. She didn't understand why it was so hard for someone like her to find her own special someone.
She asked herself, Yeah, so what if I'm dating Clark?
He was nice and she cared for him, but he just didn't seem to do it for her. He was beyond adorable, despite the rumpled, ill-fitting suits he favored and those thick glasses...
Smallville was sweet and could be a bit naïve, which she found amazingly attractive despite his complete dorkyness. She guessed that she did love him, but there was no fire, no excitement. When they were together, somehow, they just were...
He was comfortable and familiar, like her well-loved pair of pink bunny slippers or like that aptly named tiny town where he grew up. There were never uncomfortable silences, they were often in perfect synch, which might explain why they worked so well together despite their different writing styles...
Yes. She loved him, but there was clearly no passion.
Well, at least not on her part. The thing was, she wasn't sure why.
He was completely adorable, and her coolness on the relationship wasn't because the sex wasn't good, because it was. However, the sex with Clark was like everything else he did, somewhat clumsy and uncertain, but also earnest and sincere. He was so shy that she had never gotten a good look at him nude. It was always too dark or he'd stayed under the covers.
That was odd, but when he made love to Lois, she still felt pampered and special. She became the center of his little universe. Somehow he turned it into being all about her even though she knew guys just weren't like that...
Well, most guys aren't like that, but Clark clearly isn't like most guys.
She smiled as she thought back to their first time. He had been so flustered that he adorably forgot to take off his glasses.
He had been stark naked, his body unbelievably gorgeous (who would have guessed cute, rumpled, slouchy Clark would have such a nice body), but he could probably not even have seen her through the steam that had fogged the lenses of his glasses. She had tried to pull them off, but at first he didn't let her...
As he held onto them, he stammered, "Bu... but Lois, I... uh... I need these..."
She interrupted, annoyed. "For what? To see? Come on, they're so fogged you wouldn't be able to see an elephant if it were two feet away..."
He just looked at her helplessly and let her pull them off, "You don't need to see, anyway."
Oddly, he had looked scared when she'd pulled them off, his eyes as big as saucers, bright and sparkling like he was about to cry. So, to try to distract him from whatever was worrying him she smiled at him seductively, or she'd hoped she'd been seductive, or she at least hoped he could still see well enough to notice that she was...
"What we're going to do doesn't require clear vision, Smallville."
He had been so cute, he'd blushed a brilliant shade of red that adorably went up to his hair line. They quickly forgot all about his glasses and anything else aside from each other...
She had to admit that the sex was pretty good, but it was just so bland and so much like Clark. White bread; vanilla; boring.
She sighed and thought that maybe she should call Clark after all... He was so sweet, in that geeky farm boy sort of way that he had... However, she decided against it. Maybe a night alone would be the thing to do... It wasn't a bad thing to have alone time now and then. She didn't need him to define who she was, after all. Besides, she needed to let him know she was in charge. It wouldn't do to let him know how important he was to her, despite the lack of passion.
She slipped on a pair of underwear with the words "red hot momma" emblazoned across the butt, a joke Christmas gift from her younger sister, Lucy. She frowned toward her overflowing dirty clothes hamper. She didn't like wearing them, and never did wear them on a date if there was a chance the guy might see them, but it was her last clean pair. It was too late to run downstairs to the laundry room, she'll have to hand wash some before she went to bed so she had clean in the morning....
She then slipped into her pj's, flannel ones that Clark had given her for her last birthday. They were way too big for her but she loved them. The pajamas were warm and comfortable, and the flannel always made her think of her huge, dorky, Kansas Farm Boy.
Lois smiled at the thought of Clark's size, she loved how big he was. He was probably the biggest man she knew, tall and beefy. Well, he was probably the biggest aside from Superman that is. She had never seen them stand side by side, but Superman seemed taller. At least he stood up straighter, which was so not Clark. He tended to hunch his shoulders. She had tried to get him to stand straighter, but for some reason he never did.
She sighed as she slipped her feet into her big, fluffy pink bunny slippers. The slippers had been a gift from her father when she had been fifteen. She'd been well past liking fluffy pink bunny slippers then, but the General hadn't apparently known, or maybe hadn't cared. She hadn't cared either, not really.
She adored him that he gave them to her; that he still thought she was young enough to like them so she loved them, as childish and as silly as they were. She loved them so much that she still wore them more than ten years later... Putting them on reminded her of her father. He was so gruff and stern with his men, but was silly enough to give his fifteen year old daughter fluffy pink bunny slippers for Christmas. She smiled at the thought.
Lucy had also gotten a pair that year, but she hadn't appreciated them the way Lois had... hers ended up in the bottom of her closet and were left behind at their next move.
Had it been to go to Japan or Italy?
Anyway, Lois didn't leave hers behind. Not ever. She had taken hers everywhere: to all the foreign postings where her dad had served... She hadn't left them behind when she went off to college at Met U or even when she got kicked out of MU later.
They made her feel safe, warm and loved. Sorta like the pajamas Clark had given her, so Clark, yet hers... The pink bunny slippers were so Dad, yet all hers too.
Her friends who'd seen them would make fun, until she served up her coldest glare at them, that is. It was only then they'd realized that you don't make fun of what the General had ever given her, no matter how silly it was. Her Dad was the best ever and she loved him dearly.
She snapped on the TV, the only light in the dark room, and it drove Clark nuts that she always had the news playing even as she did other things, reading, surfing the internet... But he was so cute when he was frustrated with her, so sometimes she did it just to make him make faces of consternation at her. She smiled as he looked over the books she had... The books on her shelves were ones that her serious journalist friends would admire her for having; books that the very serious Clark would approve of.
He was always so intent with the books he read. Oddly, aside from serious non-fiction about subjects few people cared about, Clark would also intently read self-help and pop psychology books. She always found his fascination for that odd. It was like at times, despite his often insightful articles, he seemed completely mystified by people. It was like he didn't understand them at all. The dichotomy was endearing.
She wondered what he would make of her choice of reading material tonight. Lois smirked and opened up a chest she kept her spare blankets in. She moved stuff around so she could uncover her secret stash. She found what she was looking for and smiled.
The cover showed a dark haired character, his shirt ripped and his muscles glistening in the warm light of a blazing sunset as he held onto the bare shouldered girl who looked about to faint.
The title, "The Princess and The Pirate," along with the provocative cover, pretty much said it all...
Lois was sure Clark wouldn't understand and might even be shocked that someone with her education, her forced one semester hiatus from Metropolis University notwithstanding, loved bodice rippers. Never mind the fact that she liked to read them while listening to Keith Olbermann in the background. She was about walk over to turn on the lamp on the end table when a small sound from the direction of her balcony startled her...
Perplexed because she was twelve stories up, Lois looked over at the sliding glass doors and gasped when she saw fluttering red fabric.
Superman!
She immediately blushed. She hadn't brushed her hair and she wore frumpy plaid flannel pajamas! She didn't have time to change because Superman suddenly opened the sliding glass door.
He smiled when he looked at her, an uncharacteristically predatory smile... it was slightly disturbing.
And sexy...
She had to remember that Superman is not Clark, she shouldn't be turned on by him. Not like this.
It was only as he walked toward her slowly, his large, heavily muscled body taking a huge amount of space, she remembered she was holding that smutty novel in one hand... She blushed vibrantly then, unsure what to do with the book since he caught her in the middle of the room, she held it behind her back as she smiled, embarrassed.
"Superman? What are you doing here?"
His smiled broadened. "I was just passing by and I heard your heart beat so I decided to check in on you, Miss Lane."
She had asked him to call her Lois, but he never did. However, him checking up on her like this... She wasn't sure how to feel about that, excited? Repulsed? Flattered? She opted for indignation. "You often listen to my heart beat? You probably shouldn't do that... I do have a boyfriend, you know."
"I know you have a boyfriend, Miss Lane. I know about you and Clark." He looked at her appraisingly as his eyes roamed up and down her body. Even in the dark room, lit only by the flickering light of the TV, she could see him smile.
"Well, you still shouldn't listen."
"I know your heart beat so well that I hear it often without even trying...
"It's an invasion of privacy, only my boyfriend should do anything like that and you're definitely not Clark..."
"I know you're seeing Clark, but is he really your boyfriend?"
She got angry, shocked at the question. "What do you mean is he 'really my boyfriend'? Of course he is... Why wouldn't he be?"
Lois couldn't get a good look at Superman's face because her apartment was dark, lit only by the flickering light from the TV behind him, but she didn't like his tone. It was amused and predatory. "You seem to be holding back, Lois." And he put an odd emphasis on the name, "Clark doesn't think your heart is really in it."
She was confused, it was almost like he'd read her mind. She replied quietly, "What do you mean?"
"Well, sometimes he thinks you're just going through the motions. You don't seem..." He searched for the word, "...sincere."
She was too shocked to reply at first, but then indignation took over. "What gives you the right to come barging...?"
Superman pointed out, "I didn't barge in; the door was open..."
"Whatever, you come traipsing in here and start questioning the state of my relationship... what gives you the right?" She crossed her arms, not thinking of the book still in her hand.
He glanced down and back up and smiled. "Miss Lane, I'm surprised..."
Confused by what he was referring to she asked, "By what?"
He gently took the book from her hand, "The Princess and the Pirate, Miss Lane? I would have thought a serious journalist like you wouldn't be caught dead reading something like this..."
She scowled at him and snatched the book quickly before turning away, "It's none of your business what I read for pleasure..."
"Pleasure?" She could hear the smile in his voice as he read aloud from the book she held in her hands, "'Her heart pounded with excitement as the scoundrel grabbed her bodice and ripped it open, exposing her heaving bosom...' You actually enjoy this kind of thing?" He laughed softly, mocking her. "It's not quite Oprah Book of the Month club worthy, now is it, Miss Lane?"
Damn that x-ray vision, she thought. She tossed the book to the coffee table and turned back to face him, her anger getting the better of her. "So what if it isn't? I have nothing to apologize for, Superman." She sniffed, "You shouldn't be objecting to my choice of reading material, much less even be here."
His smile faded and he stepped into the light from the TV, she could see the intense blue of his eyes almost flash in the light. There was even a hint of red in them, but maybe she'd imagined that. "Why shouldn't I be here, Miss Lane?"
"I've told you to call me Lois, or do you want me to start calling you Mr. Superman or... uhm... Mr. El?"
He took a step closer, his form large and overbearing in her tiny apartment. It excited her and her heart began to beat faster... "There is no analogous form of address for Kryptonians like 'Mr.'..." He stepped even closer. His eyes were so intense his gaze was a bit unnerving, even for Lois. "But I would like to point out that you did not answer my question, Miss Lane. Why shouldn't I be here?"
Lois was confused, hadn't she said? "I told you. It's because you're not my boyfriend, not Clark, that's why."
He didn't answer but gave her an oddly sad look. She felt embarrassed that somehow she had made him feel bad. She turned away from Superman and then tried to compose herself. "Well, Clark is my boyfriend and I don't think it's entirely appropriate for anther man to be here when I'm only wearing my pajamas and I don't have my hair done and I'm not wearing any make-up on and its late at night and Clark's not here."
She wasn't looking at his face, but his voice got surprising quiet but he sounded genuinely concerned. "You think..." He again put an odd emphasis on the name, "...that Clark would be upset if he knew I was here?"
"Well, yes, or... I don't know, maybe. I mean, he is your friend and he probably trusts you, I know I trust you, but this is... is..."
He gently placed his hands on her shoulders. "Is what, Miss Lane?"
"Well, it's uncomfortable. He's not the jealous type, but I'm not sure Clark would like you being here..."
"Do you think Clark doesn't know I'm here?"
She was shocked at the implication and wanted to turn to face him, but his hands, surprisingly gentle and shocking in the intimacy of the touch, kept her from moving. Her heart raced and her voice nearly gave out on her so she spoke so softly that she was surprised he heard. "Clark knows you're here?"
Then she realized he can hear her heartbeat miles away, so of course he heard.
His hands gently squeezed as he whispered into her ear. "Yes, it was actually his idea that I come..."
"What?" She resisted and tried to turn around but he held her still.
"Please don't turn around, Miss…" His voice dropped further as he finally spoke her name, his voice saying so much more than the simple word that was her name. It was like a gentle touch or a loving look, not just her name. "Lois…" He took a deep breath. "Don't look at me…" He then sounded uncertain, maybe even a little scared, a tone she'd never head from him before. "This will be easier if you don't look at me."
She was confused. Superman was always confident and strong, his voice commanding and deep even while kryptonite took his powers and threatened his life. She'd never seen this side of him before and was glad she couldn't see the look on his face. It scared her and yet, at the same time, still endeared him to her even more. The Man of Steel having a vulnerable side made him even more appealing to her.
She was scared to hear the answer but she had to ask, "What will be easier?"
His thumbs gently caressed her shoulders and she found her back pressed up against his broad chest. Even though Superman clearly is not Clark, she found herself leaning back into him, his warmth and solidity comforting and (despite her commitment to Clark) arousing. She closed her eyes, and tried to control her breathing.
"Talking to you about how I feel, how Clark feels, how you feel…" He bent his head down and brushed his cheek against her slightly damp hair then gently kissed the top of her head.
"Why do you want to talk about that?"
"Lois, you're important to me but you're also important to Clark. So, I'm not sure I should really put you into the position of choosing between us but Clark thinks it's important for you to decide."
She was confused, "Decide what?"
"Decide which of us you want to be with."
Continued.....
Thanks go to
tragicllyhip for the hand-holding!
Title: Not Clark
Author: DM Wyatt
Pairing: Superman/Lois
Warnings: Adult, NC-17, future-fic
Spoilers: None
Summary: Lois is at home alone on a Saturday night and Superman makes an unexpected visit
Word Count: 9853
1 of 2
~:::~
Lois dried her hair as she looked coolly into the mirror. She wore only her robe since she'd just gotten out of the shower. As she waved the hair dryer back and forth over her hair, Lois was confused why she was alone. Clark had wanted to come over, saying something about maybe seeing a movie or just sitting on the couch to watch TV, do whatever she wanted actually, but she had told him she was busy.
Yet here she was.
Definitely not busy.
In fact, she'd known that she wouldn't be busy and yet lied to him anyway. She had worked out, showered and washed her hair, while home alone on a Saturday night...
How pathetic was that? It was like something from a 1950's romantic comedy: I'm sorry, baby. I can't have you over because I'm washing my hair...
If she'd been smart, she would have let him come over, watched a movie, maybe even made love to him... But she was going to be alone tonight and will probably end up reading a book.
Alone.
Even go to bed.
Alone.
She sighed as she finished drying her hair and looked at herself appraisingly in the mirror. Her skin was still damp from the shower and her silk satin robe clung suggestively to her curves. She smiled at herself.
She had clear skin, bright eyes, and (she admitted to herself) great curves. A waist kept slim and flat through exercise combined with generous breasts and flared hips made her figure one to be envied. She turned slightly to look at her butt and frowned.
Well, maybe my butt could be better, she thought wistfully...
She considered adding more lunges in her workouts, but other than that she knew that she was hottie. Her eyes were probably her best feature, bright hazel and slightly almond shaped... She was even smart and talented on top of everything else.
Dammit, she thought. She didn't understand why it was so hard for someone like her to find her own special someone.
She asked herself, Yeah, so what if I'm dating Clark?
He was nice and she cared for him, but he just didn't seem to do it for her. He was beyond adorable, despite the rumpled, ill-fitting suits he favored and those thick glasses...
Smallville was sweet and could be a bit naïve, which she found amazingly attractive despite his complete dorkyness. She guessed that she did love him, but there was no fire, no excitement. When they were together, somehow, they just were...
He was comfortable and familiar, like her well-loved pair of pink bunny slippers or like that aptly named tiny town where he grew up. There were never uncomfortable silences, they were often in perfect synch, which might explain why they worked so well together despite their different writing styles...
Yes. She loved him, but there was clearly no passion.
Well, at least not on her part. The thing was, she wasn't sure why.
He was completely adorable, and her coolness on the relationship wasn't because the sex wasn't good, because it was. However, the sex with Clark was like everything else he did, somewhat clumsy and uncertain, but also earnest and sincere. He was so shy that she had never gotten a good look at him nude. It was always too dark or he'd stayed under the covers.
That was odd, but when he made love to Lois, she still felt pampered and special. She became the center of his little universe. Somehow he turned it into being all about her even though she knew guys just weren't like that...
Well, most guys aren't like that, but Clark clearly isn't like most guys.
She smiled as she thought back to their first time. He had been so flustered that he adorably forgot to take off his glasses.
He had been stark naked, his body unbelievably gorgeous (who would have guessed cute, rumpled, slouchy Clark would have such a nice body), but he could probably not even have seen her through the steam that had fogged the lenses of his glasses. She had tried to pull them off, but at first he didn't let her...
As he held onto them, he stammered, "Bu... but Lois, I... uh... I need these..."
She interrupted, annoyed. "For what? To see? Come on, they're so fogged you wouldn't be able to see an elephant if it were two feet away..."
He just looked at her helplessly and let her pull them off, "You don't need to see, anyway."
Oddly, he had looked scared when she'd pulled them off, his eyes as big as saucers, bright and sparkling like he was about to cry. So, to try to distract him from whatever was worrying him she smiled at him seductively, or she'd hoped she'd been seductive, or she at least hoped he could still see well enough to notice that she was...
"What we're going to do doesn't require clear vision, Smallville."
He had been so cute, he'd blushed a brilliant shade of red that adorably went up to his hair line. They quickly forgot all about his glasses and anything else aside from each other...
She had to admit that the sex was pretty good, but it was just so bland and so much like Clark. White bread; vanilla; boring.
She sighed and thought that maybe she should call Clark after all... He was so sweet, in that geeky farm boy sort of way that he had... However, she decided against it. Maybe a night alone would be the thing to do... It wasn't a bad thing to have alone time now and then. She didn't need him to define who she was, after all. Besides, she needed to let him know she was in charge. It wouldn't do to let him know how important he was to her, despite the lack of passion.
She slipped on a pair of underwear with the words "red hot momma" emblazoned across the butt, a joke Christmas gift from her younger sister, Lucy. She frowned toward her overflowing dirty clothes hamper. She didn't like wearing them, and never did wear them on a date if there was a chance the guy might see them, but it was her last clean pair. It was too late to run downstairs to the laundry room, she'll have to hand wash some before she went to bed so she had clean in the morning....
She then slipped into her pj's, flannel ones that Clark had given her for her last birthday. They were way too big for her but she loved them. The pajamas were warm and comfortable, and the flannel always made her think of her huge, dorky, Kansas Farm Boy.
Lois smiled at the thought of Clark's size, she loved how big he was. He was probably the biggest man she knew, tall and beefy. Well, he was probably the biggest aside from Superman that is. She had never seen them stand side by side, but Superman seemed taller. At least he stood up straighter, which was so not Clark. He tended to hunch his shoulders. She had tried to get him to stand straighter, but for some reason he never did.
She sighed as she slipped her feet into her big, fluffy pink bunny slippers. The slippers had been a gift from her father when she had been fifteen. She'd been well past liking fluffy pink bunny slippers then, but the General hadn't apparently known, or maybe hadn't cared. She hadn't cared either, not really.
She adored him that he gave them to her; that he still thought she was young enough to like them so she loved them, as childish and as silly as they were. She loved them so much that she still wore them more than ten years later... Putting them on reminded her of her father. He was so gruff and stern with his men, but was silly enough to give his fifteen year old daughter fluffy pink bunny slippers for Christmas. She smiled at the thought.
Lucy had also gotten a pair that year, but she hadn't appreciated them the way Lois had... hers ended up in the bottom of her closet and were left behind at their next move.
Had it been to go to Japan or Italy?
Anyway, Lois didn't leave hers behind. Not ever. She had taken hers everywhere: to all the foreign postings where her dad had served... She hadn't left them behind when she went off to college at Met U or even when she got kicked out of MU later.
They made her feel safe, warm and loved. Sorta like the pajamas Clark had given her, so Clark, yet hers... The pink bunny slippers were so Dad, yet all hers too.
Her friends who'd seen them would make fun, until she served up her coldest glare at them, that is. It was only then they'd realized that you don't make fun of what the General had ever given her, no matter how silly it was. Her Dad was the best ever and she loved him dearly.
She snapped on the TV, the only light in the dark room, and it drove Clark nuts that she always had the news playing even as she did other things, reading, surfing the internet... But he was so cute when he was frustrated with her, so sometimes she did it just to make him make faces of consternation at her. She smiled as he looked over the books she had... The books on her shelves were ones that her serious journalist friends would admire her for having; books that the very serious Clark would approve of.
He was always so intent with the books he read. Oddly, aside from serious non-fiction about subjects few people cared about, Clark would also intently read self-help and pop psychology books. She always found his fascination for that odd. It was like at times, despite his often insightful articles, he seemed completely mystified by people. It was like he didn't understand them at all. The dichotomy was endearing.
She wondered what he would make of her choice of reading material tonight. Lois smirked and opened up a chest she kept her spare blankets in. She moved stuff around so she could uncover her secret stash. She found what she was looking for and smiled.
The cover showed a dark haired character, his shirt ripped and his muscles glistening in the warm light of a blazing sunset as he held onto the bare shouldered girl who looked about to faint.
The title, "The Princess and The Pirate," along with the provocative cover, pretty much said it all...
Lois was sure Clark wouldn't understand and might even be shocked that someone with her education, her forced one semester hiatus from Metropolis University notwithstanding, loved bodice rippers. Never mind the fact that she liked to read them while listening to Keith Olbermann in the background. She was about walk over to turn on the lamp on the end table when a small sound from the direction of her balcony startled her...
Perplexed because she was twelve stories up, Lois looked over at the sliding glass doors and gasped when she saw fluttering red fabric.
Superman!
She immediately blushed. She hadn't brushed her hair and she wore frumpy plaid flannel pajamas! She didn't have time to change because Superman suddenly opened the sliding glass door.
He smiled when he looked at her, an uncharacteristically predatory smile... it was slightly disturbing.
And sexy...
She had to remember that Superman is not Clark, she shouldn't be turned on by him. Not like this.
It was only as he walked toward her slowly, his large, heavily muscled body taking a huge amount of space, she remembered she was holding that smutty novel in one hand... She blushed vibrantly then, unsure what to do with the book since he caught her in the middle of the room, she held it behind her back as she smiled, embarrassed.
"Superman? What are you doing here?"
His smiled broadened. "I was just passing by and I heard your heart beat so I decided to check in on you, Miss Lane."
She had asked him to call her Lois, but he never did. However, him checking up on her like this... She wasn't sure how to feel about that, excited? Repulsed? Flattered? She opted for indignation. "You often listen to my heart beat? You probably shouldn't do that... I do have a boyfriend, you know."
"I know you have a boyfriend, Miss Lane. I know about you and Clark." He looked at her appraisingly as his eyes roamed up and down her body. Even in the dark room, lit only by the flickering light of the TV, she could see him smile.
"Well, you still shouldn't listen."
"I know your heart beat so well that I hear it often without even trying...
"It's an invasion of privacy, only my boyfriend should do anything like that and you're definitely not Clark..."
"I know you're seeing Clark, but is he really your boyfriend?"
She got angry, shocked at the question. "What do you mean is he 'really my boyfriend'? Of course he is... Why wouldn't he be?"
Lois couldn't get a good look at Superman's face because her apartment was dark, lit only by the flickering light from the TV behind him, but she didn't like his tone. It was amused and predatory. "You seem to be holding back, Lois." And he put an odd emphasis on the name, "Clark doesn't think your heart is really in it."
She was confused, it was almost like he'd read her mind. She replied quietly, "What do you mean?"
"Well, sometimes he thinks you're just going through the motions. You don't seem..." He searched for the word, "...sincere."
She was too shocked to reply at first, but then indignation took over. "What gives you the right to come barging...?"
Superman pointed out, "I didn't barge in; the door was open..."
"Whatever, you come traipsing in here and start questioning the state of my relationship... what gives you the right?" She crossed her arms, not thinking of the book still in her hand.
He glanced down and back up and smiled. "Miss Lane, I'm surprised..."
Confused by what he was referring to she asked, "By what?"
He gently took the book from her hand, "The Princess and the Pirate, Miss Lane? I would have thought a serious journalist like you wouldn't be caught dead reading something like this..."
She scowled at him and snatched the book quickly before turning away, "It's none of your business what I read for pleasure..."
"Pleasure?" She could hear the smile in his voice as he read aloud from the book she held in her hands, "'Her heart pounded with excitement as the scoundrel grabbed her bodice and ripped it open, exposing her heaving bosom...' You actually enjoy this kind of thing?" He laughed softly, mocking her. "It's not quite Oprah Book of the Month club worthy, now is it, Miss Lane?"
Damn that x-ray vision, she thought. She tossed the book to the coffee table and turned back to face him, her anger getting the better of her. "So what if it isn't? I have nothing to apologize for, Superman." She sniffed, "You shouldn't be objecting to my choice of reading material, much less even be here."
His smile faded and he stepped into the light from the TV, she could see the intense blue of his eyes almost flash in the light. There was even a hint of red in them, but maybe she'd imagined that. "Why shouldn't I be here, Miss Lane?"
"I've told you to call me Lois, or do you want me to start calling you Mr. Superman or... uhm... Mr. El?"
He took a step closer, his form large and overbearing in her tiny apartment. It excited her and her heart began to beat faster... "There is no analogous form of address for Kryptonians like 'Mr.'..." He stepped even closer. His eyes were so intense his gaze was a bit unnerving, even for Lois. "But I would like to point out that you did not answer my question, Miss Lane. Why shouldn't I be here?"
Lois was confused, hadn't she said? "I told you. It's because you're not my boyfriend, not Clark, that's why."
He didn't answer but gave her an oddly sad look. She felt embarrassed that somehow she had made him feel bad. She turned away from Superman and then tried to compose herself. "Well, Clark is my boyfriend and I don't think it's entirely appropriate for anther man to be here when I'm only wearing my pajamas and I don't have my hair done and I'm not wearing any make-up on and its late at night and Clark's not here."
She wasn't looking at his face, but his voice got surprising quiet but he sounded genuinely concerned. "You think..." He again put an odd emphasis on the name, "...that Clark would be upset if he knew I was here?"
"Well, yes, or... I don't know, maybe. I mean, he is your friend and he probably trusts you, I know I trust you, but this is... is..."
He gently placed his hands on her shoulders. "Is what, Miss Lane?"
"Well, it's uncomfortable. He's not the jealous type, but I'm not sure Clark would like you being here..."
"Do you think Clark doesn't know I'm here?"
She was shocked at the implication and wanted to turn to face him, but his hands, surprisingly gentle and shocking in the intimacy of the touch, kept her from moving. Her heart raced and her voice nearly gave out on her so she spoke so softly that she was surprised he heard. "Clark knows you're here?"
Then she realized he can hear her heartbeat miles away, so of course he heard.
His hands gently squeezed as he whispered into her ear. "Yes, it was actually his idea that I come..."
"What?" She resisted and tried to turn around but he held her still.
"Please don't turn around, Miss…" His voice dropped further as he finally spoke her name, his voice saying so much more than the simple word that was her name. It was like a gentle touch or a loving look, not just her name. "Lois…" He took a deep breath. "Don't look at me…" He then sounded uncertain, maybe even a little scared, a tone she'd never head from him before. "This will be easier if you don't look at me."
She was confused. Superman was always confident and strong, his voice commanding and deep even while kryptonite took his powers and threatened his life. She'd never seen this side of him before and was glad she couldn't see the look on his face. It scared her and yet, at the same time, still endeared him to her even more. The Man of Steel having a vulnerable side made him even more appealing to her.
She was scared to hear the answer but she had to ask, "What will be easier?"
His thumbs gently caressed her shoulders and she found her back pressed up against his broad chest. Even though Superman clearly is not Clark, she found herself leaning back into him, his warmth and solidity comforting and (despite her commitment to Clark) arousing. She closed her eyes, and tried to control her breathing.
"Talking to you about how I feel, how Clark feels, how you feel…" He bent his head down and brushed his cheek against her slightly damp hair then gently kissed the top of her head.
"Why do you want to talk about that?"
"Lois, you're important to me but you're also important to Clark. So, I'm not sure I should really put you into the position of choosing between us but Clark thinks it's important for you to decide."
She was confused, "Decide what?"
"Decide which of us you want to be with."
Continued.....