Love of a Lifetime

By Emerald Shine (emeraldshine@usa.net)

Summary: Clark tries to find a way to get close to Lois again, and Dan Scardino receives a surprise.

I would like to thank all those on the IRC (#loiscla) for listening so patiently to my fanfic ideas! You all…inspire me!:)

This is a story of "suppose if"'s. Suppose if Mayson Drake hadn't actually died. Suppose if Daniel Scardino had come to Metropolis not only to investigate the bombing, but to speak with Mayson himself. Suppose if the fates aligned…

***

The Daily Planet Newsroom was so busy that no one could've noticed Clark Kent rolling his eyes. DEA Agent Scardino, aka "please - call me Daniel", had stepped out of the elevator, obviously in search of Lois Lane. What a crock. Why did this have to happen - the Scardino Syndrome - just when everything had been going so great for Lois & Clark?

Scardino had arrived on the scene shortly after the attempted bombing of Mayson Drake's car. It seems he had come of his own free will: Washington had literally told him to stay away! For Clark, Daniel Scardino was a recurring nightmare…

His interest, he had explained, was more than professional. It was personal. Several years passed, his partner and fiancee had died in a bombing of the same type. She had been burned to the point of ashes - there had been nothing left. It was almost as if she had never been inside the car. The only identification had been a tiny piece of cloth from her favourite shirt. What was her name? Jessica? Jasmine? Jenny?…Jenna! That was her name, so fondly remembered by Dan. If only Clark had been Superman then. He could've saved her, and then he might not be in this mess.

Scardino had long since solved the mystery of "Resurrection", the miracle drug that was being used to break convicts out of prison and had almost gotten Mayson killed. He was still around though - enough to seriously annoy Clark. Scardino said that Lois reminded him of Jenna. Super. Clark exhaled slowly in frustration. If only he could bring himself to tell her! Then Lois would still be his, and he'd be hers…

One of the reasons Lois had started going out with Scardino was because she thought Clark was pulling away. And, Clark guessed, he was. But not for the reasons Lois thought. Not because he was afraid of commitment, or because she was "yesterday's news". Clark almost laughed out loud. He loved her more than he'd ever loved anyone. Ever. He needed her, and that was probably the only thing that *did* scare him. What with his powers and love from his folks, it seemed he'd never needed anything. That was, of course, until he'd met Lois. It was a good kind of scared, though, the best kind. Now, he wanted to take back the night, to return to their magical kiss with the promise of so much more. Just to take her in his arms and to hold her, so close, for forever. Just to be with her… ***

Lois Lane stepped out of the elevator, looking for Clark. She spotted him at his desk, deeply in thought and appearing to be sad. A knot of self-hatred gripped at her stomach. She had screwed up - big time. If only he hadn't pushed her away, locked her out when he needed her most, when she needed him. If only she could run to him, throw her arms around him and remain there, always. She vividly remembered their kiss and wished the moment had been frozen in time. Just to be with him…

Lois felt strong arms encircle her shoulders and her heart skipped a beat. Clark…she blinked. Something was wrong with this picture. "Scar— Dan!" she exclaimed, hoping she'd sounded less disappointed than she felt. She sent a panicked glance in Clark's direction, though it failed to reach him. She was trapped - a prisoner of her own conflicting emotions.

"How've you been?" Dan asked softly. He seemed to care deeply for Lois, but she sometimes wondered if he wasn't still in love with the memory of Jenna.

"Uh,…fine," Lois answered uncomfortably. She had a sinking feeling of what was to come.

"So tell me," Scardino smiled. "Would you like to go out with me tonight?" ***

Jimmy Olsen felt as though he was on the outside looking in as he peered through the window of Perry White's office, into the newsroom. Without meaning to, he gave a chuckle.

"Jimmy?" Perry appeared beside him. "What in the blazes are you looking at?"

"Why don't you see for yourself, Chief?" Jimmy stepped aside to watch Perry's reaction.

What Perry saw *did not* amuse him. First, there was Clark, seated at his desk and doing an awfully good impersonation of a lovesick zombie. Then, there was Lois. Or rather, Agent Scardino and Lois. Perry had come to greatly regret the day the DEA Agent had set foot inside his newsroom. If they weren't careful, the whole newsroom would fall apart! Some things should never be tampered with. The city girl and the farmboy just had that unique chemistry…

Jimmy looked at a zoned-out Perry. "Doesn't it feel like you're stuck inside a television series storyline?"

"Not for long," Perry muttered to himself. In a way, he had caused this, very indirectly and definitely unintentionally. He could fix it too. While Jimmy stood at the window, quite intrigued, Perry opened his office door.

"Lois! Clark!" he bellowed. "In my office, on the double!"

Perry noticed that Lois appeared to be relieved. She had been shooting expressions of a much-needed escape to Clark, and they had gone unreceived. Clark, on the other hand, still walked like a man in a trance. This was going to take a bit of work.

Jimmy had to give Lois & CK credit. They did an excellent job of acting like all was just dandy in their little world. They acted like partners, though the "best friend" concept seemed to be lagging, and missing was the romance. Mixed-up vibes filled the room.

Perry cleared his throat. "What in the Sam Hill do you two think you're doing?" A dead silence met this question.

Finally, Clark spoke up in an almost depressive, quiet monotone. "I'm not sure what you mean, Chief."

"Is that so? Well then, by all means let me clear it up for you! This newspaper is where you *work*, is it not?"

"Yeah." Lois wondered what Perry was getting at.

"Then *why* AREN'T YOU DOING IT??!!!" Perry had the appearance of a boss ready to explode.

Lois & Clark took this as their cue to get on top of a story. Quickly, they left the room. Together.

Jimmy, meanwhile, was undecided between hurrying out himself or just collapsing in laughter. Perry turned towards Jimmy.

"Sometimes, son, you've got to be cruel to be kind." ***

Clark walked into the newsroom the next day, whistling to himself. Things had started to look up for him and Lois yesterday, though it had been a bit awkward when he'd dropped her off at her apartment building. He'd offered to walk her upstairs, and while she hadn't refused, she had sent him one of her "I-don't-need-you-to-protect-me" glares. Clark smiled. *His* Lois was back.

Clark stopped dead in his tracks when he heard the annoyingly familiar voice coming from across the room. Resisting the urge to fling his cup of coffee at his rival for Lois' affections, he stepped closer to where Lois and Scardino seemed to be having a disagreement of sorts.

"Lois, I *have* to talk to her before you! I am a federal DEA agent and—"

"You're not even here officially!"

"As I was saying, I have to hear what she remembers before anything can be released to the press!"

"*EXCUSE ME?!* I think not! You do your job *without* interfering in mine!"

"Lois—"

"I *know* Mayson! You've never even met her!"

Clark almost hated to step in, but there was an important detail they were forgetting. "Mayson is in the intensive care unit right now," he reminded them. "She isn't being allowed any visitors."

Lois and Scardino's heads swiveled around to face Clark. Lois appeared almost,…well, *happy* to see him. Scardino simply smirked.

"Who asked you, Kent?"

Lois had completely had it. Dan was half of the problem between her and Clark, and she really hated him talking to Clark that way! "Scardino," she seethed through clenched teeth, "go home!!!" She flounced away to her desk.

Clark felt triumphant. He couldn't have said it better himself.

Scardino refused to admit defeat. "This isn't over!" he mumbled on his way to the elevator.

Clark followed the route Lois had taken. Coming up behind her, it was all he could do not to massage her tense muscles, to kiss her beckoning lips, neck, throat…

Lois sensed Clark's presence. "Why won't he just touch me?" she thought. "Hold me, never let me go?…"

An uncertain moment passed. There was so much they needed to say,… yet so much remained unspoken. Why couldn't they just get it together? What did they have to be afraid of?

Lois turned around in her chair and gave Clark a tight smile. "Well, partner. Shall we get started?"

"On what?" his gaze was locked on her eyes, searching for something. Anything.

"For crying out loud, Clark! What do you think? What Dan and I were just…discussing!" Lois noticed Clark flinch at the mention of Scardino.

"You mean Mayson?"

"No. I mean the effects of not-completely-with-it people on their much more together partners! Hello? Are you in there?" she touched his forehead. A long moment passed while she kept her hand there. He touched the side of her cheek. Their heads bent closer, until—

"Clark! Line one for you!" Jimmy called.

The spell was broken. Clark reluctantly picked up the phone. "Clark Kent."

Lois watched his fallen expression turn brighter. After a brief conversation, he hung up the phone and turned to Lois excitedly. "We're in!"

"In where?"

"In to see Mayson!…Legally," he added.

"Then what are we waiting for? Let's go!" ***

If Lois had been walking any faster, she might've crashed into the 6'2 wall standing in her way. "The Return of Scardino," Clark thought. This would be good.

They squared off in the center of the hallway. Daily Planet vs. DEA. Who was going to win? Well, if Lois had her way…

"Where do you think you're going?" Scardino demanded, not budging an inch.

"Three guesses - and the first two don't count!" Lois shot back.

Clark could sense another argument brewing - Lois seemed to be completely fed up with Scardino. On the one hand, this was a *great* setup he had going, but on the other, he didn't want to get kicked out of the hospital.

"Um,…"Clark hesitated, biting his lip. Pulling Lois off to the side, he continued, "Maybe we should all go in at the same time."

Lois looked at him incredulously, and Clark hastened to explain his logic. "We're never going to get *anywhere* this way! We have to give a little."

As much as Lois hated to admit it, Clark was right. "Okay." ***

They entered the room together, Lois & Clark catching their first glimpse of Mayson since the explosion. She appeared so frail… Lois wondered what was going through Clark's mind. Then she remembered Dan.

"Agent Scardino, meet—"

Scardino couldn't believe his eyes. Was he hallucinating? Or was he having yet another of those dreams which kept him awake and filled him with false hope and promise? "Jenna?!"

"Danny?!"

"Jenna?" Lois & Clark exclaimed in unison, then adding, "Danny?" The questions were ignored, as Mayson and Scardino now had each other locked in a tight embrace. Seeing that gesture of affection, Lois & Clark both just wanted to reach for each other's hand. Surprisingly enough, they found their fingers already intertwined, an automatic reflex. Both silently vowed to never let go.

"Ohmigod, Jenna!" Scardino was crying. Mayson was sobbing. Lois & Clark were utterly perplexed.

"Um, Dan?" Lois said as gently as she possibly could. "This is—"

"Jenna," Scardino once again interrupted. He felt that this time, he was the one who should be giving an introduction. "Lois Lane, Clark Kent, meet Jenna Drake. My partner. My best friend. My fiancee." He just barely managed to whisper that last sentence.

Lois thought he was insane. It was Mayson in that bed. Surely Mayson knew that…

As if sensing the need for confirmation, Mayson began to talk. "Clark, Lois. It's true. I *am* Jenna Drake."

"But,…how?" Lois & Clark asked together, their voices blending as one.

"No!" Lois cut in. "Wait! Before you answer that,… Dan? How could *I* remind you of *her*?"

Dan took a deep breath. This could prove to be complicated. "Lois," he began, "you resembled her…so much…"

"Come again?" Lois implored. "I look nothing like her! My hair is brown! Her hair is…" The words died off her lips. After lying in the hospital bed for weeks, Mayson's hair had grown a bit. Lois noticed the brunette roots. "…a dye job!"

"Okay then! What about her eyes? My eyes are brown! Hers are—"

"Contacts," Mayson finished. "See?" Sure enough, her eyes were brown.

Clark found his voice. "You still haven't answered our question. How?"

Mayson inhaled sharply. She had years of a carefully constructed plan to explain. How could she justify all this to Danny? "Several years ago, I lived in Washington. I, too, was a DEA agent, and quite content. I had Danny." She stopped for a moment to gaze lovingly at him, then went on. "We were working on a case involving Sean McCarthy. I found out some startling evidence and stepped a little too close. It pushed him over the edge. So he planted a bomb in my car. That night when I left work, I heard a faint clicking sound. I don't know how I heard it - just lucky, I guess." She shrugged. "I was in such a hurry to get out of that car that I ripped my shirt. I was completely spooked. There were some … circumstances. Confidential," she added. "No matter what kind of protection I had, he was going to kill me. I knew too much."

"I decided the only thing I could do was run. I came all the way to Metropolis, where I changed my name and appearance. I let everyone in Washington believe I was dead. I couldn't even tell Danny I was alive! McCarthy was having him watched and bugged - the works. It was too risky. I kept working on that case though - from a distance. I must've slipped up, because suddenly, my car was bombed again. That turned out to be a good thing…I have Danny back!" There were tears in her eyes.

This was absolutely incredible. Almost too much to digest at once. Suddenly Lois felt very tired. She leaned into Clark. Clark dropped Lois' hand so he could put his arm around her, then picked up her hand with his other one Slowly, they turned and left the room. It was time to leave Jenna & Dan alone - they had two years of catching up to do. It was also time for Lois & Clark to be together, the way they should be. ***

They pulled up in front of Clark's place, having spent the ride home in a thoughtful silence. They had so much to think about - only a fraction of it had to do with Jenna & Dan. They had been thinking about each other, wondering who was going to make the first move.

"Lo—"

"Cla—"

They laughed uneasily. "You first," Clark said.

Lois tried to control the nervousness now creeping up on her. "I was just going to ask you if I could come in." She looked at her feet.

Clark took her hand. "You must be a mind reader."

That night, the weeks of tension became resolved. And no one had to utter a sound…

As soon as Clark had shut the door, he could no longer wait to show Lois what he had wanted to do since their first kiss. He followed her down the stairs, and circled his arms around her from behind.

Lois halted, then turned around in his arms. There was so much love in his eyes… She remembered her thoughts from earlier in the day, and wrapped her own arms around his neck. His face tilted toward hers, until finally, they kissed. It started off soft, testing, but quickly grew deeper and passionate. They shared many such kisses that night, and Lois fell asleep in Clark's arms.

That night, Daniel & Jenna had been reunited. That night, Lois & Clark made their fantasies come true. That night, they all found their love of a lifetime.

—END—

(lifetime.txt)Love of a Lifetime By Emerald Shine (emeraldshine@usa.net)