By PeacheZ082
Rated PG
Submitted January 1999
Summary: Perry sends a pre-relationship Lois and Clark off to a cabin in the mountains to hide from an old enemy. What will happen when they're left alone … or not quite alone? I would like to dedicate this story to Mary, who literally gave me the idea.
***
"I have to go where with who?" Lois Lane cried, staring at her editor in disbelief. "Are you kidding me?"
Perry White sighed, rubbing his temple. Lord, this woman gave him monstrous headaches! "I repeat, you have to leave Metropolis, and you have to take Kent with you."
They were standing in the middle of the Daily Planet news room. Since it was early, not many people were in, except for Lois, Perry, Jimmy Olsen, Clark Kent, and some guy from travel. The three were all watching the scene with growing interest. Lois and Perry always fought, and Perry almost always won. It was fun to watch Lois put up a big stink, though.
Lois dropped into her chair, letting her short, black hair do its best to hide her face. "Why do I have to take Clark?" she whined.
Sighing again, Perry thought to himself, No wonder I have high blood pressure. This is too much stress! Why can't she just listen to what I'm saying? I do know what's best!
Out loud, he said, "Lois, honey, it's really not that big of a deal. It's not as if I'm sending you to the honeymoon suite of the Lexor Hotel with the guy."
Jimmy and the guy from travel grinned at each other. They remembered that fiasco all too well. Clark just blushed.
She looked up and glared at him, also remembering that undercover assignment all too well. Before she could come up with something smart to say, he turned and began to walk away. "That's final," he called over his shoulder.
From across the room, Clark Kent smiled. He had heard Perry and Lois's fight with his super hearing, since he had been sitting too far away to hear it himself. He knew it was impolite to eavesdrop, but he couldn't help it. He noticed Perry walking towards him, and he busied himself with making coffee.
Perry tapped him on the shoulder. "Clark? Can I talk to you for a minute, son?"
Clark put on his surprised face. "Sure, Chief. Is anything wrong?"
Shaking his head, Perry said, "No, everything's fine … well, except that one of the criminals you guys put behind bars is out to get you two," he blurted out. "Anyway, I'm kind of worried about you guys. I decided that you better get Lois out of Metropolis. And since you're her partner, I want you to go with her." He looked over at Clark. "Unless you're busy, or don't care about, you know, being stalked."
Taking a sip of his coffee, Clark smiled. "No, I think I'm free. Where will Lois and I be going?"
Perry smiled mischievously. "To the mountains in Pennsylvania. Alice and I have a cabin you can use."
Clark almost choked. "Wha-what?"
Grinning, Perry slapped him on the back. "Don't worry; I'm sure you can handle her for a couple of weeks."
"A couple of weeks?!" Lois cried, coming up behind them. "That's insane!" She saw Clark's face. "Clark, are you OK?" She smacked him on the back. "Was the coffee too hot?"
Without waiting for an answer, she turned back to Perry and began to whine again. Clark sighed. It was going to be a very long couple of weeks.
***
Two Hours Later
Lois slammed her apartment door, causing the whole apartment to shake. Her little sister, Lucy, walked into the living room, wearing sweats and a tee-shirt. Apparently she'd been working out. She looked concerned.
"What's wrong?" she asked Lois, who gave her the 'I'm not in the mood to talk about it' look. Lucy ignored it. Smiling, she asked, "Is it about Clark Kent?"
Lois jerked her head up from the mail she was shuffling through. "Of course not."
Lucy rolled her light brown eyes. "Of course not," she mimicked.
Sighing, Lois looked at her. "Well, actually, it is, but don't go — "
"I KNEW IT! I should have my own hotline or something!" she shouted.
"Crazy," Lois finished.
Grinning, Lucy sat down on the couch. "Who, me? OK, sis, spill it!"
Sighing again, it was now Lois who rolled her eyes. "There's nothing to spill. I had a little tiff with Perry about Clark." Before her sister could make a smart comment, the phone rang, and Lucy picked it up.
"Hello?"
A familiar voice on the other end of the line asked, "Is Lois packed?"
Lucy's eyes went wide. "Packed for what?"
Clark sighed. "Can I talk to her please, Lucy?"
"Ok, bye Clark." Grinning, Lucy held the phone out to Lois. Lois glared at her sister and yanked the phone out of her hand, shooing her away.
"What do you want, Clark?"
Clark sighed again. "Are you packed? We leave in an hour."
"I know what time we leave, Clark. And, no, I'm not finished packing. I suppose you are?" She could practically see him smiling.
"What is it with you? Do you always have to be late? Yes, I was packed amost an hour ago."
Picking up the cordless, she walked into the kitchen. Picking up a pot to make tea, she slammed it down. "What a surprise. What is it with you? Do you always have to be on time?"
On the other end of the line, Clark jumped, not wanting to answer that question. "What was that?" he asked.
"Oh, just a pot," Lois said casually.
Clark frowned. "A pot? What do you need a pot for?"
She opened her mouth to say that she was just making tea, but she changed her mind, and said instead, "So I can hit you over the head while you're asleep."
He swallowed, not really knowing if she was kidding or not. When he heard her laugh, he shook his head. Suddenly, Clark had an idea. "Uh, Lois, I've got to go," he paused, "pack my extra pair of glasses. I'll see you at my apartment in twenty minutes, OK?" He knew it sounded lame, but Lois bought it.
"Fine. Bye, Clark."
After he hung up the phone, he smiled. Lois was about to get a visit from her favorite superhero.
Sighing, Lois hung up the phone. "He is so weird," she muttered.
"You'd better get packing!" called Lucy in a sing-song voice from the bedroom. Lois walked over to her.
"Shouldn't you be leaving?"
"No." Suddenly there was a familiar "WHOOSH," and a knock at her window. Lucy sighed. "Some girls just get all the luck. I changed my mind. I'm leaving. No sense in watching you two drool over each other. Bye."
Waving a quick good-bye to her sister, Lois rushed to open the window. Opening it, she said, "Superman, come in."
He climbed through.
"Is something wrong?" she asked, leading him to the couch.
Superman shook his head. "No. I heard you were leaving soon, and I wanted to say good-bye."
Lois was confused. "Good-bye? Why can't you just fly over and see me when you're free?"
He shook his head. "Nope. Afraid not. Perry and Clark made me promise not to come. They said you needed to relax, and Superman doesn't break promises."
Lois was furious. "They did what?! And you actually agreed? Why would you do something like that?"
Superman suppressed a smile. "Because Clark and Perry are my friends."
She rolled her eyes, thinking, I'll kill 'em both!
He stood. "I've got to go. Good-bye, Lois."
"Bye," she said with a sigh.
He disappeared out the window. Lois looked at her watch. "AHH! I've got to pack!"
Clark smiled. He was flying somewhere over Hawaii and felt a tiny bit drowsy. That didn't go so bad, he thought. Using his great eyesight, he looked down at a man's watch. When he saw what time it was, he said, "Oh man! I'm going to be late!" He zipped back to Metropolis. Just as he stepped in from the balcony, he heard a knock at the front door. Quickly, he spun into his 'Clark' clothes.
"Clark! Open the door! We're going to be late!"
It was Lois.
Grabbing his suitcase, he ran super-speed up to the front door. Pulling it open, he noticed Lois looked about ready to hit him.
"You know, I don't want to go on this trip, but if we are going, I don't want to miss the plane and have it blamed on me."
"Sorry. I was," he paused, "in the bathroom."
Lois waved a hand in his face. "Whatever. Are we going or not?"
Clark grinned. "Yup. Let's go."
Three hours later, they were sitting on a plane. Lois was asleep. Clark was perfectly content watching Lois. But he couldn't help feeling a tiny bit bored. He was used to zipping around at his own speed. This flight was taking forever. He looked at his watch. Lois, who was next to him, stirred.
He was about to wake her up when he realized she was mumbling something. He leaned in closer and used his super-hearing to hear what she was saying. "No! No." She tossed around. "Clark …"
This caught his attention.
"Clark, don't go … I — I love you," she muttered.
He almost fell out of his chair. Grabbing Lois's arm for support, he woke her up. She jumped up. "Wha?" When she realized where they were, she slowly sat back down. "What do you want? Why did you wake me up?" she asked him.
Clark couldn't speak. "I … uh … need a drink. I'm going to go find a stewardess." He dashed away before she had a chance to object. As he practically ran down the asile, Clark's mind was screaming out, "Did you hear what she said?! She loves you! Not Superman, you!" He shook his head, trying to clear it. Someone tapped him on the shoulder.
He spun around, almost knocking over Lois. "Lois! Don't do that! You scared me!"
She looked surprised. "I called you twice."
He ran a hand through his dark hair. "What is it?"
She frowned at him. "Come and sit down. I need to ask you a question."
Sighing, he said, "OK."
They walked back to their seats and sat down. Clark began tapping his knee impatiently. Lois put her hand on his to stop him, and he yanked his hand away.
"What's with you?" she asked him.
"Nothing!" he said quickly.
Lois shifted her position so she was facing him. "Clark Kent, something is wrong. Just tell me what it is, and don't lie, because I can tell when you're lying."
Clark put his head in his hands. "OK, well … when you were sleeping, you said something."
She studied his face. "Something bad? Did I curse?"
He smiled weakly. "No." I wish that were it, though, Clark thought. "What did you dream about?"
Lois was caught off guard. "I … um … well … to tell you the truth, I was dreaming about you, actually." Clark nodded. Lois continued, "What does that have to do with anything?"
He looked at her. "Lois, you were talking in your sleep. And you said — you said — "
"What?" she practically yelled. Everyone turned to look at her, and she blushed and lowered her voice. "What did I say, Clark?"
It was Clark who blushed this time. "You said you loved me, Lois."
For a minute she just stared at him. Then she shook her head. "Impossible. You must have heard me wrong."
He rolled his eyes skyward. "Of course, I must have," was his sarcastic reply.
Lois stared at him in amazement. "You don't really think I — "
She was interrupted by a voice saying, "Hello. This is your captain speaking. We will be landing shortly, so I ask that you please fasten your seat belts."
Both thought: Finally.
***
Two Hours Later
Lois stepped in the door of Perry's cabin, and her mouth practically hit the floor. Clark came in behind her, carrying their luggage.
"Wow," he said, lowering everything to the floor.
"Gosh, Perry must make a lot more than we do!" was all she said.
Clark laughed. "You think?"
Lois pointed to a couch in the middle of the living room. "Put the suitcases there, OK? I'm going up to look for a bedroom." She started to walk away.
"Wait!" Clark called.
Turning around, she made a face at him. "What?"
He walked up to her. "How many bedrooms did Perry say were here?"
She bit her lip. "He … um … didn't say."
Frowning, he said, "What if there's only one?" Lois opened her mouth to say something, but Clark held up a hand. "If there is only one bedroom, you are not getting it. We went through this at the hotel during our stakeout. I'm the one who never got to use the bedroom!"
She was speechless. After a minute, Lois said, "What are you saying?"
Clark shrugged. "I'm saying if there's one bedroom, we share."
Her eyes went wide, and her mouth dropped open. "Share, a bed, with you? Ha! Never going to happen, my friend!"
He had meant only that they'd share the room, not the bed itself. But instead of answering, which Clark found pointless, he headed for the stairs that led to the second floor. Turing back to Lois, he shot her a grin. "First one to find the bedroom gets it the whole time we're here!" he cried, taking off.
***
Later That Night
Clark was lying in the bed in the master bedroom, staring at the ceiling. Lois was on the floor. He sighed. Why is she so darn stubborn? She should trust me by now. It's only been two years since we've known each other!
Just then, Clark heard a sneeze, and than another. It occurred to him Lois could catch a cold lying on the floor, in a cabin, in the middle of winter with very little heat.
Sighing again, he stood up, forgetting to put on his glasses. Finding Lois in a corner, he picked her up, then realized his face felt empty. She stirred. Please don't wake up, he silently prayed.
After a minute, she sighed and opened her eyes. Looking at him, a confused expression came over her pretty face. "Clark?" Suddenly, her eyes went wide. "You're … you're — Ohmigod! Clark, you're Superman!"
He inhaled sharply. Great, now what? he thought as Lois jumped from his arms.
***
Somewhere Outside
"I wonder what Lois Lane is doing now?" a hooded figure asked himself aloud. Looking at the paper he had in his hands, which was quite a few years old, he read the headline aloud. "Star Reporter Puts Madman Behind Bars … again. Full Story on Page 3B." He laughed dryly.
"Hear that, Snook?" He asked his stuffed bird. "Now I'm a madman! Well, little Ms. Lois Lane is going to get hers, now, isn't she?" With that he smiled, and then screamed as loud as he could, sending a huge pile of snow hurling toward the little cabin.
***
Back Inside the Cabin
"Lois …" Clark tried again. She held up a hand. He sighed, he was sitting on the bed, watching Lois pace back and forth across the room.
"Wait. Let me think about a nice way to say this … oh, forget it. You've been Superman for how long?"
Clark bit his lip. "Two years."
Lois threw her hands up. "Two years! And you never even told me! God, Clark! You knew I was in love with Superman, and I talked about him to you and you to him! You were the same person! When were you planning on telling me?"
Taking a deep breath, Clark said, "Well, there were a lot of reasons I never told you. At first I didn't even know you! Then, after awhile, I realized, if I tell her, she'll kill me. So, I didn't tell you. I figured I could be your best friend as Clark, and your love interest as Superman. But it didn't work out that way. Besides, you yourself told me, and I quote, 'Don't fall for me, farm boy; I don't have time for it.'"
Lois looked amazed. "What? I said — I didn't know — how dare you turn this around to me! This is your lie!" Before Clark could answer her, a loud rumbling erupted from outside. He froze, and Lois looked around. "What the — "
"Close all the windows!" he cried.
Now she looked confused. "Why?"
"Just do it!" he said, taking off at super speed.
Not long after they had closed all the windows, they heard another rumbling. "Clark, what is that?" Lois asked him.
He shook his head. "An avalanche."
She stared at him. "An avalanche?! Well, go out there and do something!"
"I can't, remember? We're safe for right now. I'll get us out of here if it gets too dangerous."
Just then, the moonlight disappeared and the room went completely dark. Racing over to a window, Lois peered out … or at least she tried to. The window was covered with snow. "Clark! The window's covered! I can't see out!"
Clark's handsome face creased with worry. "Check all the other windows, OK?"
Lois nodded.
They spilt up, and five minutes later, Clark walked into the living room, after finding all the windows he had checked had been covered too. The room was now almost completely dark. Sighing, he plopped down on the couch.
"OW!" Lois cried out. He jumped up. "Jeez, Clark! That was my foot you sat on!"
He grimaced. "Oh, I'm sorry."
Lois sighed. "You're a lot heavier than you look. Look around and see if Perry has any candles, will you? Otherwise, there will be nothing of me left in the morning."
Lowering his glasses, Clark said, "OK, hold on." After X-raying the cabin, he turned back to her. "There's some candles in the kitchen. I'll go get them." He stood up, but Lois grabbed his hand.
"Take me with you. It's too cold to just be sitting."
Squeezing her hand, Clark led the way to the kitchen.
When they were halfway there, a loud BUMP made him stop short.
Lois walked right into him. "Ouch! Why'd you stop?" she asked, rubbing her shoulder. "Man of Steel, all right."
"I thought I heard something. It sounded like — " BUMP! "That," Clark finished, frowning at the ceiling.
Lois tugged at his hand, "Well, let's go and get the candles, and then you can go investigate."
"Me?"
***
On Top of the Cabin
"Ha. I'm coming to get you, Lois Lane!" The hooded figure laughed. "I'm going to kill you and leave you to rot here. Just like you did to me. Only you didn't kill me first. Well, I'm not going to be that kind." He had slid down the moutain he had been using as shelter from the avalanche, and had dug a hole in the snow covering the roof. Now he was stamping around that little hole, hoping to freak them out.
He laughed again and took another step, stamping as hard as he could.
***
Back Inside the Cabin
"Brrr! Gosh, it's cold in here! And whatever that noise is, it's beginning to irk me." Lois said, rubbing her hands together in front of a candle. They were down to their last one. "Can't you … look and see who it is?"
Clark shrugged. "I'm not cold, and I think whatever, or whoever, was making that noise stopped. I tried looking through the roof, but there are lead pipes running through, so I can't see, and when I can, all I see is snow. It does sound like someone's talking to themselves though. Somthing about coming to get us … that's not unusual, though. And you keep talking, so I can't really hear all that well."
Lois rolled her eyes. "Sorry. Since you can't ID the guy yet, let's worry about something else. And excuse me, Mr. Kryptonian! Those of us from earth get cold. How do you stay so warm, anyway?"
He shrugged again. "I just do."
She turned her attention to the burning candle in front of them. "Can you tell me about you? I mean … your Superman side? Like, where you're from and stuff?"
"I honestly don't know much. They don't keep record books about other planets in the libraries, you know. I know my father's name was Jor-El, and my mother's name was Lara."
Lois smiled. "That's a pretty name. Lara, I mean. Hmm. I wonder if you were a cute baby? Hey, what's your name?"
Clark grinned. "Kal-El."
Before Lois could reply, there was a knock at the front door. They both jumped up, and Lois went to go answer it.
Clark grabbed her arm, and asked, "What are you doing? Lois, the front door is blocked off with snow."
Gaping at him, she said, "Ohmigod! You're right! But … where did that knocking come from?"
He shrugged. "I don't know, but I'll go and see."
He started to spin into The Suit when Lois cried out, "What are you doing?" He stopped short. "Superman promised not to come!"
Clark sighed. "Great. Now what do we do?"
She didn't answer for a minute. Then, looking at her watch, she said, "Clark, it's almost midnight." Leading him over to the sofa, she added, "Maybe we're both so tired, we thought we heard a knock when it was just the cabin creaking. Let's try and get some sleep."
He smiled. "OK." Noticing the candle was out, he lowered his glasses and re-lit it with his heat vision.
Lois was really shivering now. "It is really cold in here."
Clark looked around the dimly lit room. "Shouldn't there be a fireplace or something?" he asked her.
She smiled a little. "I'm not the one with x-ray vision!" came her sarcastic remark. Clark blushed. After a minute, she cried, "Well, aren't you going to look?! I am cold!"
Sighing, he lowered his glasses again and x-rayed the cabin. When he looked at Lois, he shook his head. "Nope."
"What kind of a cabin is this?" She started ranting.
"Lois …" Clark began. She kept right on going. "Lois …" Again she ignored him. "LOIS!" he yelled.
She looked at him. "What?!"
He held up his hands in surrender. "I was only kidding. It's over there." He pointed to the left.
Her mouth fell open. "Well, what are you waiting for? Go over there and light it!"
"Yes, your highness," he muttered.
***
Outside the Cabin
"Doesn't she know to answer the door when someone knocks?" The hooded figure stood looking into a living room window he had uncovered. Gazing at Lois, he said bitterly, "Too bad you never loved me, Lois. I loved you. I was willing to do anything for you, so I asked you to marry me, and you said yes. We were going to be so happy, you and me. The 3rd richest people in the world … until your little friends Clark Kent and Superman ruined it. Ha. Superman let me fall off that building, hoping I would die.
"And when I didn't, you didn't waste any time in getting me into that asylum. Too bad for you, Lex Luthor doesn't give up so easily!"
***
Inside the Cabin
"Clark?" Lois looked over at her best friend's face. He was asleep. Shaking her head, she took off his glasses and put them on the floor beside him. He stirred. Smiling, she walked over to the couch and pulled the afghan off the back. Spreading it over Clark, she sat next to him and sighed.
He looked so peaceful in his sleep. She remembered the episode on the plane earlier that day, and, looking into the fire, everything became clear. "Oh, God. I really do love him!" As soon as she finally admitted that to herself, a lot of things finally made sense. For one, this explained the feelings she had had when her archrival, Linda King, had come to Metropolis and tried to steal Clark away from the Planet.
Clark stirred again and opened one eye.
Lois yawned.
"Lois? What are you doing?"
She smiled. "Watching you sleep, and thinking." She twirled a piece of hair around her finger.
He propped himself up on one elbow. "Oh? And what were you thinking about, Ms. Lane?"
Smiling again, she said, "Just something I said. It's actually starting to make sense now."
Clark raised an eyebrow. "Oh? What would that be?" he asked, sitting up.
"About what you said I said in my sleep on the plane." She watched his reaction.
He closed his eyes for a minute. Opening them again, he asked, "You mean you don't think I heard you wrong?"
"I doubt that with super-hearing you could have heard me wrong. Now, hear me out; I think I finally got this straight. I was thinking about when Linda came to Metropolis and I thought you were in love with her. Remember that?"
Clark nodded, then smiled. "Yup. Gosh, it was fun seeing you get so jealous over nothing. It was the same thing with Toni Taylor and Mayson Drake."
Lois nodded as well. "I remember them. When you kissed those two, I felt like the wind had been punched out of me. I tried to keep reminding myself we were just friends, but I still felt terrible. I guess I've always known you've had a crush on me … I mean, you told me so yourself. But I always thought you would just …"
"Keep on loving you and no one else?" Clark asked.
She nodded again. "Well, actually, I have and probably always will, but since you really never indicated you liked me … I almost gave up a couple of times."
"I'm glad you didn't."
He smiled. "Me too."
***
Outside the Cabin
"I think the time has come, Lois." Lex cocked his revolver. "If I can't have you, no one else can. No Clark, no Superman, no one." He aimed the gun at the door and pulled the trigger …
***
Inside the Cabin
"Hey, where did this come from?" Clark asked suddenly, noticing the afghan on top of him.
Lois shrugged. "The back of the couch. I know you don't get cold, but I figured …" she trailed off, not really knowing what she had figured.
Clark smiled. "Thank you, Lois. Now, what was the whole point of what you wanted to tell me?"
"Lucky for you, I'm exhausted, so I'll just tell you. Clark Kent, I — "
A shot rang out. Clark and Lois jumped up. Lois's eyes were wide. "Oh, Lord. What was that?!"
Clark didn't say anything. He put a finger to his lips, motioning for her to be quiet. He lowered his glasses, x-raying the door. When he saw who it was, his eyebrows shot up. Turning to Lois, he said, "Go upstairs and hide. Quick."
She looked terrified. "Clark, who is it? Who's outside?"
Sighing, he shook his head. "You're not going to believe it. It's Lex."
Lois hit the floor with a THUD. Clark stared at her in amazement. She had fainted. Shaking his head again, he picked her up and wrapped the afghan around her. Racing upstairs at Super speed, he put Lois in the bedroom closet and shut the door. Please don't wake up, Lois. If he hears you …
His thoughts were interrupted by footsteps.
"Lois …" a sing-song voice called.
Clark resisted the urge to throw up. This guy was really sick.
"Lois … I'm coming to get you … where are you?"
Swallowing the lump in his throat, Clark spun into The Suit, not really caring that he was breaking a promise to himself and Perry. As soon as he was done, Luthor appeared at the bedroom door.
When he saw Superman, he screamed, "WHERE'S LOIS? WHAT HAVE YOU DONE WITH MY LOIS?"
Clark winced. "I sent her away, Lex. You need help. How did you get out of the institution?"
Lex shook his head. "No more help. I never needed help. You ruined my life. You let me fall off the building! You wanted me to die so you could have Lois! If I can't kill her or you, there's only one person left." Much to Clark's horror, he put the gun to his head.
"If you come anywhere near me, I'll blow a hole in the roof, and it will cave in. Either way, I'll die. Good-bye Superman."
The next few minutes seemed to take forever. Clark took a deep breath, and froze Lex in place.
Before Clark had a chance to recover, a pounding on the closet door startled him.
"Clark! Let me out!"
Running over to the door, he pulled it open.
Lois jumped out at him. "Are you OK? Where's Lex? Why was I in the closet? Were you trying — " She stopped dead when she saw Lex.
Clark put his arms around her. "He was insane. He wanted to kill you, and when I told him you weren't here, he threatened to shoot himself, so I froze him."
Lois shook her head. "Let's go home, Clark. Take me home."
***
Two Days Later
"Judas Priest," Perry said as he skimmed over the article Lois and Clark had written. Lex had been unfrozen and turned in to the authorities, who promised he wouldn't get out this time. Now they were standing in Perry's office. "That man was insane."
Lois nodded. With a half-smile, she said, "I sure know how to pick 'em, huh, Chief?" Perry and Clark looked at her sympathetically.
"Lois," Clark began, "this wasn't your fault. Lex was completely crazy. Even Superman thought so."
She smiled up at him. "I know. Thank God you and Superman were there."
Clark smiled back. "Thank God you passed out; otherwise, I never would have been able to stick you in that closet."
Perry looked confused at that, but he said, "I want to talk to that guy about his promise — I'll make him promise never to promise anything to me again!"
Lois and Clark looked at each other and laughed.
"Oh, by the way," Lois added as an afterthought, looking at Clark, "can I talk to you a minute in private?"
"Uh-oh, this doesn't sound good," Clark said.
Perry, realizing he wasn't going to get any answers from his duo of reporters, sighed and walked out. "Take as much time as you need," he called over his shoulder.
When he was gone, she looked at Clark and said, "Remember how I started to tell you something before Lex shot the door open? Well, if you're not too busy, I'd like to finish now."
Clark shrugged. "Go right ahead."
Lois took a deep breath. "Clark, I — "
The door opened and Jimmy stepped in.
"OUT!" they both ordered.
His smile vanished, and he headed for the door. "Fine. I just wanted to see how you were doing. Glad to know I'm appreciated," he muttered.
Clark turned back to Lois. "You were saying?"
"Jeez, I might as well tell you this before we grow old and die, and by that time it will be too late, you would think …" she stopped when she saw Clark's familiar 'Lois, stop babbling and get to the point' look. Sighing, she said, "Clark, I love you."
Clark smiled. "I know."
Lois frowned. "What do you mean, you know? I just figured it out …"
"I guess I know you better than you."
"Yeah, right."
Clark opened the door. Looking over his shoulder, he smiled and said, "Hey, Lois?"
She looked at him. "What?"
"I love you, too."
THE END