Be Careful What You Wish For

By Alexis Waters <LoisLane9397@aol.com>

Rated PG-13

Submitted August 2002

Summary: An elseworld story set after the episode "AKA: Superman."

All Lois and Clark characters are copyrighted by DC Comics, Warner Brothers and December 3rd Productions. All other characters are owned by me.

I would like to thank my editors Mar Brian (Mar Brian@aol.com) and Nancy (DNCPNissen@aol.com). I would also like to thank my best friend Tina (ringowolf1@aol.com) for giving me the opportunity to bounce ideas off her even though she didn't start watching Lois and Clark until 1998! :) I would also like to thank LnC fanfic lists in general. If it wasn't for these venues, then I wouldn't have started writing fanfic in the first place! <G>

***

Lois fumbled for the keys in her purse while Clark gave his commentary on the night's events.

"Well, that was one of the more interesting birthdays I've had."

"I'm sorry, Clark…I really tried to pull off a party for you."

"That's okay. I like this anyway." Clark Kent put his arm around his beautiful and vivacious wife, Lois Lane.

"You're sure?" she asked. Lois almost sounded disappointed as she got lost looking into her husband's chocolate brown eyes.

"Yeah. Just you and me."

"Ha! Alone at last!"

Suddenly, it dawned on them. This was the first time in eight days when they were finally alone. No one was calling Superman for help. Tonight Superman could take a siesta.

With the clink of the door keys, husband and wife propelled their bodies toward one another. They were two trains on the same track ready to collide.

Clark ran his tongue along the roof of Lois' mouth. Boy, did it feel good to be back in her arms. He couldn't wait to take her upstairs and make love to her. Eight days had been way too long for him. Heck, it was way too long for any newlywed couple to wait. All he could think about was the smoothness and contours of her unclothed body. He loved the way her heart beat in time with his. Clark wanted to get her into bed as soon as possible, but with all of the kissing and caressing that was going on, it was making it hard for even Superman to turn the doorknob.

Since the doorknob didn't want to turn, Clark decided to use his super-strength to open the door. He grabbed Lois around the waist and took a giant leap forward. The door flew open with a BANG!

*Yes!* he thought to himself. Clark would have raised his arms in victory, but Lois was unbuttoning his shirt.

Suddenly, the light exploded on from above. "What the…?" muttered Clark under his breath. Before Clark could get off the floor to investigate, he heard the word that he most feared in a situation like this:

"SURPRISE!!!!"

Clark couldn't believe it. There was the Chief, Jimmy, and most of their coworkers from the Planet, basically watching him make love to his wife. Clark was very embarrassed. He knew this would be the office gossip for weeks to come.

*Okay Kent…just act normal. Act normal and keep cool.*

"Ha, ha!" Perry chuckled.

By this time Clark helped his half-clothed wife put her jacket back on. The cheering continued while the clearly bewildered couple stood. Perry was the loudest of them all. His deep belly laugh overpowered everyone else's voices.

"I figured the only way to throw a surprise party for you was to surprise both of you. So did it work? Are you surprised?" Perry inquired.

Lois and Clark looked at each other. Each hoped the other one would speak.

"Ahh…well…yeah, yeah," mumbled Clark.

"Stunned!" Lois answered sheepishly.

Applause erupted at her outburst.

***

Another two hours had passed. Lois and Clark were so clearly turned on from their brief roll around the living room floor that they tried to find little corners of their house where they could get away with having some sex.

They tried behind the stairs, behind the kitchen door, in the closet, under the table. But no success.

Just when they thought it was safe to go to the next base, someone would interrupt. That someone was either Jimmy asking for another beer, or Perry trying to introduce them to another one of his peculiar friends.

Lois and Clark counted the minutes until this surprise party would FINALLY be over.

***

It was approaching midnight when the last of the guests left. Just as a precaution, Superman made sure that no one was left lurking in the brownstone.

"All clear for takeoff!" Superman shouted.

Lois giggled at his obvious pun.

"Let's say you and I get into our…or should I say, out of our clothes and into our birthday suits," Lois purred.

"Did I ever tell you how naughty you can be sometimes, Lois?"

"I don't seem to recall that, Superman. Maybe I need you to remind me?"

With a reckless whoosh, Lois and Clark vanished into the bedroom.

As Lois lay on the bed, her mind wandered. She couldn't wait to wake up next to her husband's muscular body. Even after a couple of months of marital bliss, she still couldn't get over how well defined he was.

She loved the way the bed sheets clung to her body. The static cling from the fabric created electrical sparks that tickled her legs. Those same sparks were created in bed each time she and Clark made love.

Tonight she and Clark would try out some new satin bed sheets. She'd seen them on TV the other day and had just had to buy them. The satin sheets were red, the perfect color for Clark's skin tone.

"Oh, Clark!" Lois moaned, as she was gasping for air.

"Shh, Lois, shh…" Clark covered her mouth with his. His breathing quickened. His blood was pumping. He could feel every last muscle in his body tense with excitement.

Clark's strong index finger outlined the curve of Lois' spine. She felt an excited shiver running down her body. "Do it again, Clark…" she whispered in his ear.

Just as Clark let Lois' bra fall to the floor, he heard a noise. "Oh my God!"

"What, Clark? What?" Lois scurried to find the nearest pillow to cover her naked chest.

"There's been a major explosion in Honolulu. The whole city is burning! I have to go!!!"

"But…but…"

"I'm so sorry, Lois! I'll be back as soon as possible. Don't wait up for me too late, okay?"

WHOOSH!!!!!

Lois started to cry as she put her bra and shirt back on.

***

*Why does this always have to happen to us?* Lois asked herself between sobs.

*I mean, Clark and I are married now. Superman takes up so much of his time that we barely have time to ourselves. Tonight! Tonight was supposed to be OUR night! It was OUR night to hold each other in the darkness. Is it too much to ask for one night of uninterrupted passion?*

*Oh, Clark…* Lois burst into tears. She was laying face down in Clark's pillow, her chest heaving with sorrow. *I miss you already.*

"Sometimes I wish there wasn't a Superman!" Lois said between sniffles and sighs.

CLICK!

"Oh my God! Clark, is that you? Clark???" Lois was worried that Clark heard her sudden outburst.

The handle on the window was jiggling. Lois got off the bed to take a look. If Clark was in trouble, she wanted to be there to comfort him.

"Hello? Is anybody out there? Clark? Are you hurt; do you need help?"

Lois opened the window. The air was quiet. Her husband in the red and blue tights was not waiting for her. Lois thought it must have been a twig or something that brushed up against the window. But something else happened.

"What the heck? What's going on here?"

Lois couldn't close the window. It was like an outside force equal to Superman's that prevented her.

"WOW! Sheesh! I thought I'd never get out of there! Do you know how screwy those 5th dimension vortexes can get?"

"Wha…who…?" Lois asked, startled at the visitor.

"Oh, I'm sorry. We haven't been formally introduced! My name is Mxyzptlk," he said as he extended his hand. "But you can call me Mxy."

"Oh, no! Don't tell me you are another leftover of Lord Nor's scraggly army?"

"Heaven's no, my dear! I'm an imp from the 5th dimension. I have more power then any one of those Kryptonians and your 'overgrown muscle' of a husband, put together!"

"You mean you know that Clark…I mean, uh, Superman…comes here often?"

"Of course I do! I've been observing you and SUPER Clark for quite a while. In fact, I witnessed a very interesting display of affection that took place on that bed a few moments ago!" Mxy winked.

"Oh God!" Lois' face turned a shade of pink. She felt this overpowering urge to fall back. If it wasn't for Mxy's quick reflexes, Lois would have knocked herself out on the bedpost.

Mxy gently set her on the bed.

"I think I need some water; cold water!" She tried to stand up.

"Please, Ms. Lane, sit back down. It would be my pleasure to get you that glass of water."

Mxy took a perfect glass of water out of his shirt sleeve. Lois' mouth opened in disbelief. "Umm…thanks…I think?"

Mxy had strategically placed Lois next to Clark's pillow, the man she could trust. He hoped Clark's scent would put her at ease. Mxy's plan seemed to be working. Her face was no longer pink and her breathing slowed.

"Well, Mr. Mxy…what did you say your name was?"

"Oh, it's Mxyzptlk, but you can call me Mxy."

"Ah, yes. Mxy. Well, Mxy, I hope you're not here to take over the world, because if you did, you picked the wrong house to…"

Mxy interrupted her. "Oh, but I would if I could. I admit I used to be a bad imp, a very, very, bad imp. But I have seen the error of my ways. And if I can't take over the earthlings of this planet, then I might as well join them. That's where you come in, Ms. Lane…or Mrs. Kent! Hehe."

"Me?"

"Yes. I'm here to help you. I was sent here to grant you your wish!"

"My wish?!? I don't have a wish."

"Oh, yes, you do, Ms. Lane. Remember your wish for a life without Superman? Well, I'm here to grant it."

"Oh, goodness! I didn't mean anything by that. I just yelled it in a fit of frustration. I mean, you of all imps should know how crazy us earth women get! Ha ha ha…"

Lois felt really uncomfortable. There was no telling what this guy would do. *Maybe he has a secret stash of Kryptonite up his sleeve. Literally.*

"Now, I think you'd better just go back to wherever you came from, Mxy, or whatever you are! If you stay any longer I'll be forced to yell for Superman!"

"Temper, temper, Ms. Lane. I'm here to grant your wish and that's exactly what I'm going to do!"

"But… NO! You can't! You don't understand!!!"

"Hush now, Ms. Lane. You've had a long day. It's time for you to rest."

***

It was a beautiful, spring-like morning in Metropolis. The sun shone through the brownstone's bedroom window.

Lois felt her body tingle. *Shoot, I must have left the heat on when I fell asleep and had that very weird dream!*

The alarm started blaring, BEEEEEEP!!!, and her thoughts about her weird dream dissipated.

*Oh, jeez! I must have set the alarm so I could be awake when Clark returns.*

"Okay, okay. I'm coming!"

Lois tried to open her eyes, but the sunlight blinded her.

"Arrggh!!!!"

The alarm kept blaring.

"Okay, okay! Hold on just a second."

Lois tried once more to open her eyes, but she couldn't. Suddenly, the alarm stopped.

*Hmm…it's quiet and the alarm has stopped. I guess the battery ran out or something. Oh well, that'll just give me a few extra minutes to wake up here!*

Lois stretched her arms out. It was going to be a long night.

"Mmm…"

Lois pulled her arm back.

*What on earth was that? It wasn't me. Unless I'm sick, or some…*

"Mmm…"

*There it is again! Things have been awfully weird lately!*

Lois let her fingers wander across the bed sheets. She was startled when she came across something that she didn't remember being in the bed with her. She ran her fingers across a smooth and very muscular surface.

"Mmm…"

The loud groan freaked Lois out. Her body shot straight out of bed. "Oh my God! Clark???"

The man in bed with her leaned up against the bedpost and kissed her hand. He looked at Lois with his sleepy, chocolate brown eyes. "Mmm…good morning."

"Clark??? What on earth are you doing home?"

"What do you mean?"

"What do you mean, what do I mean???" Lois was frenzied. Her arms were waving. "Clark, Honolulu is burning! I know you're Superman, but even YOU can't be that fast! I mean, you were only gone for ten minutes."

"Man, I knew this was worse than I thought."

"Clark? What is it? What's wrong?" Lois almost hit Clark in the head with her arm.

Clark grabbed her arms forcefully. Lois wanted to break away, but she couldn't. Lois knew there was something wrong with her Clark, but he just wasn't listening.

"LET ME GO! You're scaring me, Clark!"

"No, you're scaring me, sweetheart." Clark's grip lessened and he started massaging Lois' hands. "Okay, first of all, Lois, I need you to calm down and take a deep breath."

"But I don't want to…"

"Hush, Lois! Just do it, okay? When you calm down I'll explain to you what's going on."

Lois found Clark's behavior to be extremely odd, but she decided to do as he said.

"Last night after the surprise party that Perry threw for me, you and I went upstairs, and while we were in the middle of undressing each other, you accidentally bumped your head on the bedpost. You developed a bad headache and fell fast asleep. That's why you woke up with your clothes on."

"A bump on the head, Clark? You're going to have to give me a better story then that! I mean, hello, you're talking to Lois Lane, intrepid reporter for the Daily Planet. I think I would've remembered a bump on the head!"

"Not necessarily," Clark interrupted.

"Clark, stop it! You're really scaring me here! If this is some idea of a joke, then it's not funny!"

"It's not a joke, Lois! Come on, it makes perfect sense. First you wake up and yell at me and accuse me of being Superman, and then the next thing…"

"Clark, did you just hear what you said? You just said you're not Superman! Are you nuts?!? You've been Superman all of your life!"

"No, I haven't, and you know it, Lois."

Clark's voice took a somber tone and his eyes looked down at the bed sheets.

"Clark? What on earth is that supposed to mean? You're not Superman… Do you think I'm that stupid!"

"Lois, please don't put me through this again. I beg of you."

"Put you through what, Clark? What on God's green earth is going on here???"

"It's a long story, Lois, and it will soon come back to you once I nurse you back to health."

"Clark???"

"Oh, Lois, I'm so sorry I had to drag you through all of this!" Clark cried as he pulled Lois into a strong embrace.

"Drag you through what, Clark? What do you mean?" Lois' voice had softened. She had never seen Clark break down like this before and it alarmed her. "Clark? Are you okay?"

There was no response. Clark buried his face in her shoulder and continued to cry. All Lois could do was run her fingers down his face and wipe his tears away.

This proved to be too much for Clark. Suddenly, he laid Lois down upon the bed and engulfed her mouth with his. Lois tried to break free from his passionate embrace, but it was all too much for her. She enjoyed the feel of Clark's lips brushing up against hers. She groaned for more. Clark's hands went under her shirt and undid her bra strap.

As Lois and Clark continued to make love, Clark inadvertently hit the radio with his arm.

"Clark!" Lois giggled as the song on the radio was blaring.

"Well, think of it this way…we can have some unexpected background music while we make out." Clark winked. His winks always made Lois melt.

"Mmm…" Lois groaned as Clark playfully nipped her ear.

"THIS JUST IN:

A bomb has gone off in the city of Bakersfield, 50 miles north of Metropolis. Thousands were evacuated and there is no word on casualties. Stay tuned to this radio station for further details."

"Mmm…Clark? Shouldn't you go?"

"Go where, Lois?" Clark asked between kisses.

"You know, to Bakersfield to help in the recovery."

"Oh, that! Yeah, that's really sad." Clark cupped Lois' chin in his hands and he kissed her passionately.

"Mmm…no! Clark, stop it! You're acting really weird here. Now go out there and fly! I'll still be here waiting for you, I promise."

"Lois, I never thought we'd have to relive this nightmare again, but if it helps you remember, then we'll have to."

Clark took a deep breath and held onto Lois' hands as he spoke. "If you recall, a couple of years ago there were those crazy Newtrich sisters who used the Red Kryptonite laser on me. The laser hit me and transferred my powers to you. After that you became Ultra Woman to help me out."

"How could I forget," Lois remarked.

"Well, unfortunately the powers were then transferred from you to Lucille Newtrich. I tried using a replica laser that Dr. Klein made, but all it did was remove the powers from Lucille and it malfunctioned before I could transfer them back. If it weren't for you, I don't know how I could've gone on. You were a tower of strength. You promised to love me no matter what and we were married two months later."

"This has got to be quite a nightmare. In a few minutes I'm going to wake up and find Superman standing above me."

"It's no dream. I'll prove it." Clark took his wrist and smashed it on the night stand. He grimaced with pain. Blood trickled from his wrist.

"Clark! You're bleeding! Superman doesn't bleed!!" Lois grabbed her robe and put it on. Her body shook and she ran her fingers wildly through her hair. "I can't take this anymore. I have to get out of here!"

Lois got off the bed and walked to the window. Clark tried to stop her, but she was too fast for him.

Lois threw open the blinds. "Aack! It's light outside."

"Of course it is, Lois. What did you think it was, the dead of night?"

"Well, I just figure if I'm going to have this dream with my husband in it, then it should at least take place during the night, because I miss…"

Lois stopped in mid-sentence. It was like a light had turned on. "Oh my gosh! Mxy!"

"Huh?"

"Oh! Uh, I said, oh my gosh, I'm missing something at the Planet. I need to get there as soon as possible!" Lois tried to get back to the bed so she could get dressed, but she felt a wave of drowsiness sweep over her.

"Lois!" Clark rushed over to his wife. She was lying in a heap on the floor and Clark went to the ground to cradle her.

"Lois, honey? Lois, please wake up!" Clark stroked his wife's face and rocked her back and forth in his arms. "Please come back to me! I can't live without you, Lois."

"C-l-a-a-r-k…"

"Thank you!" Clark said while he looked up to the sky and hugged his wife.

"Clark, I need to go. I need to get ready to go to the Planet."

"You'll do no such thing. You need to rest. I won't let you out of this house until you at least take a nap."

"But, Clark, I need…"

"Shh!" Clark hushed Lois as he picked her off the floor. He carried her in his arms and laid her on the bed. Although Clark was definitely different now, Lois still loved the secure feeling she got whenever he carried her in his arms. She let out an unexpected sigh as he helped her out of her robe and covered her with the bed sheets.

"Now Lois, you get some shut eye while I go and take my shower." Clark bent over and kissed her forehead before he headed off to the bathroom.

***

Clark let the water droplets rush down his body. He loved how the hot water hit his skin. Since he couldn't go flying off into the clouds anymore, he looked forward to his daily shower. The shower was the only place where he could unwind and let his cluttered mind clear. He especially loved it when Lois joined him, but that would have to wait.

Lois wasn't tired, so all she did was stare at the ceiling. She wanted to get to the bottom of the mess that Mxy had put her in. She looked forward to going to the Planet. There might be something there to focus on so she wouldn't go completely insane.

Clark stepped out of the bathroom, clad only in a white towel. *Darn!* Clark looked so good to Lois that she wanted to undo the towel and take a test drive. *Stop it, Lane! You need to focus on what's more important here! You need to remember that Mxy put you in this mess. There's no time for test drives!*

Clark's worried voice broke up her forbidden thoughts. "Dangit! Now where did I put it? Ahh, here we go!" Clark held out a pair of black shorts and waved them around like a flag. "I can't forget my lucky shorts and lucky briefs! Hehe…it wouldn't be right for me to workout without them!"

Clark stepped back into the bathroom.

"Workout?"

"Yeah, Lois, workout. Jimmy and I go to the local gym together. Jimmy works out to pick up babes and I workout to keep up with you!"

Clark stepped out of the bathroom again and winked. Lois almost swallowed her saliva the wrong way! Now her husband was clad in only black shorts and he looked even better. *Please, God, let Clark put a shirt on before I do something I don't want to do!*

Her prayer was only half answered. Clark put on a muscle shirt. His well-defined muscles shone in the sunlight. Lois wanted to reach out and rub her fingers across them.

"I should be home sometime this evening. I need to stop by the Daily Planet before I leave for the gym. Please try to get some shut eye when I'm gone, okay?" Clark leaned over and kissed Lois lightly on the lips. "I love you."

"I love you too," Lois said breathlessly.

***

[Inside Menken's Gym]

"I just don't get it, Jimmy. I mean, how could a bump on the head cause her to act so weird? She was acting like Lois, and then in a way she wasn't acting like Lois. Right when things started to get hot and heavy, she would pull away and try to pull off some excuse for why she or I had to go somewhere."

Clark babbled while he pumped iron. Jimmy pedaled his heart out on the stationary bike. Clark was careful with his words since he still didn't want Jimmy to learn that he once moonlighted as the "Man of Steel."

Clark grimaced with pain as he brought the dumbbells up to his chin and back down again. He often spent hours at the gym improving his physique. A lot of those times were spent after a long, hard day in the newsroom. It wasn't exactly his favorite thing to do, but if he could maintain Superman's well-defined muscles, then that made him happy. Plus his workouts were also keeping him healthy after snacking on Twinkies and Ho-Ho's for many years.

"Well, C.K., a bump on the head can be pretty traumatic sometimes. People can have amnesia. Just be happy that you don't have that problem."

"Yeah, I guess."

"Give Lois time. Maybe her head hurts and she needs some time to rest. Or better yet, go home early and accompany her to the Planet. The Planet always helps her bounce back!"

***

A yellow Metro taxi cab pulled up in front of the Daily Planet. A man in his middle 30's stepped out of the car. He was a tall man about 6'-3" and he had black hair and brown eyes. He resembled Clark Kent, except for the fact that he didn't wear glasses and that he had a small body frame.

The man walked through the revolving doors of the Planet and headed straight for the information desk. "Excuse me, Miss, but where can I find a Mr. Perry White?"

"Oh! Just go up the elevator to the 3rd floor. That should bring you to the newsroom. You should find Mr. White either roaming around the Pit, or in his office. Someone will direct you to him once you exit the elevator."

"Thank you, Miss."

"You're welcome, Sir."

***

[Inside Lois and Clark's brownstone]

Clark walked up the stairs to his bedroom. "Lois? Oh, oops!"

Lois was snuggled in the sheets fast asleep. Clark couldn't help but smile when he noticed her hugging the teddy bear he won for her back in Smallville a few years ago. He kissed her forehead and pulled out a chair. He decided to work on an upcoming article for the newspaper while Lois slept.

***

[Inside the Daily Planet]

The elevator opened and the man stepped out. The Pit wasn't its usual bustling self, since it was a Saturday.

He walked up to a man in his early 30's. The man had on the weirdest colors he had ever seen put together. He was wearing a purple shirt, pink tie, and gray pants. His name was Ralph and he was the goofiest reporter within those walls.

"Oh, hi, bro! How's it going?" Ralph slapped the man on the back.

The man looked puzzled. "Excuse me, but am I supposed to know you?"

"Oh jeez, man, sorry! For a moment there, from your profile, you looked a lot like a coworker of mine, Clark Kent. But the more I think about it, you look nothing like him. I mean, you're skinny and he's buff!" Ralph flexed his muscles to illustrate his point. "And he's much better look… "

The man gave him a dirty look as Ralph rambled on. "I, uh, well…I…uh, yes! How can I help you?"

"I'm looking for a Mr. Perry White."

"Ah, yes, Perry…or the Chief, as we like to call him. Well, actually he's Mr. White to most of us, but he's the Chief to important reporters like Lois and Clark and myself!" Ralph flashed a sleazy grin. He noticed the man roll his eyes as he rambled on. "Well, um, to get to his office, all you need to do is walk straight through the Pit, past Lois Lane's desk and take a right. That should take you to his office. You can't miss it!"

***

[Back in Lois and Clark's brownstone]

"Lois? Wake up. Lois, sleepyhead…?"

"Hmm?"

Lois rolled over and stretched. Clark thought that Lois was her sexiest when she woke up. He never understood why he thought that, but maybe it had something to do with her eyes. Her eyes shown like perfect pools of light, pools that Clark could drown in.

Clark's mind flashed back to the first time he and Lois shared living quarters. It was during their first stakeout for the Planet. They'd posed as a newlywed couple in the honeymoon suite of the Lexor Hotel. Lois was a knockout. He wanted to tell her that morning, but instead he'd said some lame comment about her looking "pretty decent."

Lois' groan brought him back to reality.

"Lois, honey. It's time to wake up. You need to get ready before we go to the Planet."

"The Planet?" Lois asked sleepily.

"Yeah. I came home early so you and I could go together. All I need to do is finish up this article and then we can be on our way."

***

[Inside Perry White's office]

A gray-haired man in his middle 50's sat at a desk strewn with papers. The middle-aged man was up to his armpits in red ink. In the corner of the room hung a portrait of Elvis. It looked like the picture was taken sometime in the 1970's.

The younger man tapped lightly on the door. "Excuse me, Mr. White?"

"Ah, yes, that would be me. What can I do for you, son?"

"I'm looking for a job."

"Well, uh, what kind of job are you looking for?"

"A reporting job."

"A reporting job? Well, son, we have all the reporters we need."

"Oh, please, sir! Just give me a chance before you write me off!"

The man handed Perry a folder. Perry opened it up and inside he found examples of the man's work from very prestigious institutions.

"The New York Times, The Seattle Times, Newsweek, Time Magazine? Wow, those are some pretty highbrow places. What makes you want to write for a "little" newspaper like the Daily Planet?"

"Well, sir, I heard all about Metropolis while I was abroad, so I wanted to take a look for myself. There were so many exciting Superman stories floating around that it sounded like the place to be."

"Ah, yes. Superman. He's been gone for almost two years now." Perry was almost in tears. "It's a shame that he had to go back home to New Krypton. But, uh, well, uh, enough about that! If you truly want to work here at the Daily Planet, then I have a reporter's position just waiting to be filled, Mr. …uh…?"

"Damian Johansen," he said while he shook Perry's hand.

"Well, uh, Damian, you can just call me Perry. I think what I'm going to do is team you up with one of my favorite reporters, Lois Lane. She's married to the other half of Lane and Kent, Clark Kent. Lois will be able to show you around the Planet and tell you how things get done. I might even team the both of you up for your first story."

"Oh! I've heard a lot about Ms. Lane and Mr. Kent. I can't wait to meet them."

"Well, then, Mr. Johansen, welcome to the Daily Planet!"

***

It was 5pm when Lois and Clark walked out of the famous Daily Planet elevators. Lois wore a white sweater and blue jeans, while Clark wore a tan sweater and blue jeans. Lois and Clark were a very attractive looking couple walking arm in arm into the Daily Planet newsroom.

Lois was very excited about getting back to the newsroom. The closer she got to the newsroom, the closer she felt to being able to crack the problem that Mxy had thrown at her. If this was the way her husband was going to act, then she felt she could put up with it for at least a couple of days. That was assuming that the world could go on without Superman's assistance for a while.

"Oh, hey! Come over here, you two! I have someone I'd like you to meet." Perry motioned them to his office. "Lois and Clark, I'd like you to meet Damian Johansen."

"Hi. It's nice to meet you." Clark shook Damian's hand.

"And you must be Lois Lane." Damian kissed Lois' hand, and it caused Clark to wrap his arm around her waist in a possessive gesture.

Perry could sense the tension in the room. He tried to break the deafening silence. "Well, Damian here is going to work alongside you two. I'm even thinking of pairing him alongside with Lois for his first story."

"What???" Clark's mouth dropped.

"Well, uh, of course with your help, son. I mean, we can't have Lane without Kent! Ahem…"

Clark's grip tightened on Lois.

"Ow!"

"Sorry…"

Lois slapped his hand off her thigh. "Quit it, Clark! My gosh, you're acting like a little boy who doesn't want to give up his toy!"

"Okay, if you really feel that way…" Clark mumbled. His head lowered as he walked back toward his desk.

"Oh, Clark! I'm so sorry!" Lois ran over to her husband and threw her arms around him. She started to sob as she apologized to Clark. "All I do is snap at you because my head hurts and I'm exhausted. There's no excuse for my actions. I should never take out all of my frustrations on you."

Whatever Mxy had done to the world, it had started to temporarily take over Lois' mind. Lois no longer remembered why she wanted to go to the Planet.

"Lois, it's okay. I understand."

"No, you don't, Clark." Lois laid her hands on his cheeks and brought his face forward. "I mean, if I ever lost you…I would…well…I…"

"I know, Lois. I know. I feel the same way."

Their lips met for a kiss. As the kiss got deeper and deeper, the rest of the world melted away. Things were heating up!

"AHEM, um…folks?"

Their lips parted and Lois and Clark looked at Perry with sheepish grins. "Oops," the lovers said in unison.

"Well, uh, that's okay. I just wanted to get us all back on track, if you know what I mean."

Lois and Clark held hands as they rejoined Damian and Perry outside of his office.

"Well, why don't you folks get aquatinted while the night is still young."

Clark piped in, "Hey, why don't we go out to dinner!"

"That sounds like fun," Damian remarked.

"You can join us too, Chief."

"Well, Clark, I'd love to, but I have tons of editing to finish before I put the Sunday morning edition to bed. Plus I promised Alice that when I got home, we'd curl up on the couch together and watch 'Jail House Rock.'"

***

Lois, Clark, and Damian chose a tiny Italian restaurant. Clark ordered pasta. He gave Lois a sexy smile. He hoped Lois was thinking the same thing.

"So Damian, tell me a little about yourself."

Clark frowned.

"I was born in New York. After high school I attended Oxford University, where I got my journalism degree."

"Journalism degree?"

"Yes. When I attended Oxford, I studied English and I took part in a pilot journalism program."

"Oh."

"Journalism worked well for me, so I decided to travel abroad and work for newspapers like the New York Times."

"So let me get this straight. You're a Rhodes Scholar and you're in Metropolis. May I ask why?"

"I was curious about Superman. I was hoping to meet him and then interview him, Ms. Lane."

Clark cleared his throat loudly.

"I count you extremely lucky, Ms. Lane. You were able to get to know him on an intimate level before he had to leave."

"Leave?"

"Yes, Mr. White told me all about it. About two years ago, Superman left for New Krypton. Don't you remember? If I recall, you were extremely upset, along with the rest of Metropolis."

"He di…?" Lois looked over at her husband. He was mouthing something to her and he looked distressed. It looked like he was trying to say, drop the subject! Lois assumed Clark didn't want his secret identity exposed. "So Damian, do you have any ideas on what you want to write about?"

"You'll have to excuse me, Ms. Lane, but that will have to wait." Damian stood up. "I have a previous engagement scheduled for tonight. But I'd love to meet you guys for coffee or something tomorrow morning. Is that all right with you?"

"It's fine with me. Is it all right with you, Clark?"

"Sure." At this point Clark would say anything if it meant getting rid of Damian and getting Lois home ASAP. The pasta started to take an effect on him and he felt this sudden urge to go underneath the sheets with Lois.

"I'll call you guys tomorrow morning at 10am and then we can go from there. Bye!"

"Bye!" the couple said in unison.

"Well, he's gone, so let's go!" Clark was trying to push Lois out the door.

"Clark? Why the big hurry?

"Hurry? I'm not in a big hurry!"

"Clark…come on, you're practically trying to shove me out the door!"

"Well, it's getting dark out there and I just want you to be safe. There are so many weirdos out there that I think the best thing for us is to go home."

"But we haven't had dessert yet!"

"We can have dessert at home…"

"But…I…"

"Come on, Lois, let's go!" Clark hurried Lois out of the restaurant and they both got into the Jeep. Clark decided to drive because he wanted to get home fast. It took them 10 minutes to get home. Lois headed straight for the couch.

"Uh, Lois, I was thinking of serving dessert upstairs."

"I'm not feeling so well. I think I'll rest on the couch for a while."

"Well, Lois, if you come upstairs, I can make you feel better! I know just the thing!"

"Clark, that's nice, but not tonight!" Lois left her husband's side and plopped down on the couch. She let out a sigh as she stretched.

Clark started wringing his hands as he watched her sitting there. He didn't know how long he could last. He sat down next to her and started kissing her neck.

"Clark!

Clark groaned and continued necking her.

"Clark! I told you not tonight and I meant it!"

"Lois, relax, I'm only trying to make you feel better."

"I know you are, Clark, but I have a headache and your constant necking isn't helping. I'm going to go upstairs and turn in early."

"But Lois, I thought…"

"I'm sorry, Clark." Lois kissed Clark on the cheek and walked upstairs to the bedroom.

***

A dim light illuminated Mazik Jewelers. The light was left on for security reasons. A black shadow passed by the store. It seemed to stall in front of the doorknob. It was like it had a mind of its own.

There wasn't a cloud in the sky. The air was still, so one can imagine how odd it would be to see a black shadow spin around like a twister. The twister thinned and passed through the keyhole.

***

"Ah, Ms. Lane. It's very nice to see you again."

"Mxy?!?"

"Why, yes. Who else would be floating in midair besides Superman. Oh, whoops! My bad. Superman doesn't exist. But enough of that. I didn't come here to sling Superman insults. I came here to express my deepest condolences."

"Condolences?"

"Of course, my dear. And may I add, you make a very attractive widow."

"Widow??? Wh-a-a-at…I…am not a, I…am…not…" Lois stepped backwards. The room was dark except for the light that shined on Mxy's face.

"A widow. Now who's being stupid here? You're Lois Lane, intrepid reporter for the Daily Planet! I can't believe that you don't remember your own husband's passing!?!"

"Clark isn't gone! I left him sitting on the couch." Tears welled up in her eyes.

"Ha, ha, ha, ha…" Mxy's maniacal laughter echoed. With one flick of his wrist, light filled the room. Next to her feet lay a body, Clark's body. Lois felt weak and she fell to the floor. She immediately flashed back to the time when Clark took the bullet for her at the gangster club. Clark had faked his own death to save her life. She hoped Clark was doing the same thing now.

"Clark, honey, please wake up. Lois is here. It's okay. I'm right here." Lois' tears fell like raindrops across Clark's face. He didn't move.

"Oh, Clark!" Lois lay across his chest and sobbed. As she touched his face, Clark started to fade away. Everything faded. Clark was disappearing.

"Oh my God! What's going on here? What's happening?" Lois stood up and violently shook Mxy by his shirt collar. "TELL ME WHAT IS GOING ON HERE!!!"

"Ms. Lane, it's very simple. Clark doesn't exist anymore. You got rid of Superman, so Clark can't survive! Without Clark there can be no you, and without you there can be no Utopia. And without Utopia there can be an earth just waiting for me to inhabit."

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

***

Clark was asleep on the couch when he heard Lois' blood curdling scream.

"OH MY GOD, LOIS!!!!"

Clark quickly ran up the stairs to his bedroom and kicked the door down. He found Lois kicking and screaming on the bed. He went over to her and held her in his arms. She continued to kick and scream loudly as he held her tightly to his chest.

"Lois! Calm down. It's okay, I'm here."

"Noooo, Clark…I want Clark!!!! Noooooooooooo…" Lois went on with her struggle. Clark tried calming her down.

"Lois, wake up! You had a bad dream. Everything will be okay. Please wake up!!! LOIS!!!!!!"

Suddenly, her eyes opened and she looked up at Clark. "Oh my God, Clark!!!" She grabbed him in a teary embrace, soaking the front of Clark's shirt, but he didn't care.

"I had this dream and you weren't there…I called, and you…and you and I…" Lois was in a frenzy. She violently shook as she cried and clung to Clark's body.

"Shh, Lois, it's okay. I'm here now. You had a nightmare. It's all over. Shhh…"

"No, Clark, you don't understand. I called for you and you weren't there!!! I mean…" Lois screamed again.

Clark didn't know what to do. He continued to hold her tightly, as she struggled to break free. Lois was hallucinating. She was awake, but something from that dream still haunted her.

Eventually, Lois became exhausted and her struggling stopped. Clark sat on the bed with her cradled in his arms. He stroked her hair and assured her that everything would be all right.

"But Clark, I…"

"I know, honey, it was a nightmare. It's all over now. I'm not going anywhere. Shh…"

***

The phone rang. Clark groaned while it continued. He wanted to pick it up, but Lois was asleep in his arms. He didn't move because he was afraid she would wake up and scream again.

Fortunately, Lois didn't fall asleep on his legs. Clark really wanted to get the phone, so he used his foot. He took his right leg and swung it over the bed. His toes were used to grab the phone chord and pull it on the bed where his hand waited.

"Hello?"

"Oh, hi, Clark! It's Damian."

Clark rolled his eyes.

"It's 10 AM and I was just checking in. Are you and Lois available for a cup of coffee?"

"Well, uh, normally I'd say yes, but something happened last night and now I'm in a position where I can't really get up and leave."

Damian's first reaction was that he had just got a firsthand account on Lois and Clark's love life. But maybe Clark was an open book and Damian just had to get used to it. "Oh, well… I…"

"Oh, no!" Clark chuckled. "It's not what you think! Lois had a nightmare last night."

"Wow! Is she all right?"

"Yes. She's sleeping peacefully in my arms right now, but I don't want to disturb her. So until she wakes up, I won't be going anywhere."

"Oh, well, I completely understand. If I had a wife like Lois, well, heck if I even had a wife, I'd do the same thing. I'm at the Planet right now and Perry just gave me a beeper, so why don't I give you the number and you can page me when you two are ready."

***

Damian hung up the phone and walked over to the information desk. The woman whom he talked to yesterday was there again. "Excuse me, miss? But I couldn't help but notice how pretty you look this morning."

"Me?" the woman blushed.

"Yes." Damian grabbed her hands and brought them next to his lips. "I have a confession to make. I was instantly attracted to you. I'm new in town, so I was wondering if you'd like to show me around, maybe tonight?"

"Well…I…"

"Oh, please say yes! I'm lonely and I'm looking for some companionship. You strike me as a nice, young woman who knows her way around Metropolis. You don't have to worry. I won't bite!"

Damian and the woman laughed.

"Well, when you put it like that, I guess I can't refuse."

"Great! I'll pick you up at eight. We can go out to dinner and take it from there." Damian let go of her hands and leaned over the desk and kissed her lips. The woman almost lost her footing as he walked away.

"WOW!"

***

Clark felt like he was burning up. Lois fell asleep before he had a chance to take off his clothes. His tan sweater was soaked with sweat and tears. It clung to him like a second layer of skin.

Lois squirmed. "Clark?"

"Oh, thank goodness you're awake! Now don't take this the wrong way, but I really need to take this shirt off!"

Clark peeled his sweater off while Lois grinned like the Cheshire cat.

"Ahhh…now I feel better. Sorry about that."

"Honey?" Lois started laughing. "There's no need for you to apologize. Besides, I like it better this way." Lois leaned over and made a trail of kisses on his stomach.

"Actually, sweetheart, I need to take off all of my clothes. I'm sweating up a storm here and I feel like a walking sauna." Clark moved Lois off his chest and stood up. "So if you want, maybe you could finish your 'little Safari' in the shower with me. We could be each other's tour guides."

"Okay!" Lois said as she leapt off the bed and landed in Clark's arms.

Clark grinned. His wife was acting like her old self again and they were about to rekindle the love they shared. Things couldn't get any better then that. It was going to be a wonderful day.

***

Lois and Clark grinned as they entered the newsroom. Lois wore a short, one-piece white dress for Clark's behalf. She loved the look on his face when he stared at her long, shapely legs. Clark wore nice slacks and a dark blue button-down shirt. Lois undressed him with her eyes.

"Hi, you two!" Perry walked up to Clark and patted him on the back. "Damian told me that you had a nightmare last night, Lois. Are you all right, honey?"

"I'm fine, Chief. Thanks to my doctor here," Lois purred as she nipped at Clark's ear.

"Well, uh, honey, that's more then I needed to know! Hehe…but I'm glad to hear that you're okay. Damian is in the cafeteria waiting for both of you. Oh, but before you go, I have something to tell you. There's been a robbery at Mazik Jewelers. And get this—the security cameras saw no one. All they saw was some gold jewelry floating out the door."

"Jewelry floating? I wonder if this has to do with that story Clark and I worked on a couple of years ago; you remember, the invisible suits?"

"I dunno, Lois, but it might be."

"Well, I for one don't care how it happened. This sounds like front page news to me!" Lois was excited. She finally had a breaking news story to focus all her attention on.

"That's exactly what I was thinking, Lois! You and Clark get on it as soon as possible!"

"Got it, Chief!" Lois and Clark chimed.

Perry walked back to his office. *You know, I'll never get used to that.*

Lois and Clark found Damian sitting at a table in the cafeteria.

"Wow! Lois. You look great!"

"Yes, she does, doesn't she!" Clark pulled her to his waist.

"Clark…I can speak for myself." Lois smiled at her husband. "Thanks, Damian."

"Uh, guys, about this first story thing…"

"You want to work on the robbery story."

"Well, yes. I was just about to say that."

"I knew it! Ha, ha! I can see that determined look in your eyes. It's the same look I had when I started at the Planet. So don't worry, I have everything covered!"

"You do?"

"Of course, Clark. Well, okay, I don't, but all I have to do is tell Perry and he'll be all for it. What a better way for Damian to make a name for himself than with this story!"

"Uh, Lois?"

"Yes, Damian?"

"Thanks for being so nice. I mean, you don't have to do this."

"Oh, it's no problem. Why don't you and I go tell the Chief that we'll be at Mazik Jewelers. Clark, you can stay here and call our sources."

"But I thought you and I would go together like we always do?"

"I know, Clark. But this is the perfect opportunity for Damian to be in the midst of the action and I don't think it would be right for a crowd to follow."

Lois was excited. She practically jumped up and down in the middle of the room. She grabbed Damian by the sleeve and ran out of the door. Clark yelled after her.

"Hey, Lois!"

"Yeah?"

"I love you."

"I love you too! We'll keep in touch by cell phone!!"

***

"C.K., are you all right?" Jimmy found Clark staring at a blank computer screen. "Hey! C.K., are you okay?"

Clark continued to stare at the screen. He slid his glasses down his nose to rub his eyes.

"Clark!"

"Huh? Oh, hi, Jimmy."

"C.K., are you all right? I called your name a couple of times and you didn't respond. You looked like you were on another planet."

"Oh, sorry about that. I have Lois on my mind."

"When don't you?!" Jimmy laughed and Clark gave a small smile.

"No, Jimmy, this is different. It's a guy problem."

"A guy problem?"

"Yeah, a guy problem named Damian Johansen."

"Damian? Oh, you mean that guy who looks a lot like you from the back."

"Well, uh, I never really noticed that, but okay, if you say so."

"C.K., you and Damian are almost like twins. You have the same hair and eye color…"

Clark shook his head. *Where is a gag when I need one?* He looked up at the Daily Planet clock. It was going to be a long day.

"Man, I'm sorry." Jimmy looked over at Clark who was staring at the bay window. "Here I am rambling about this guy who seems to have charmed Lois somehow."

"Charmed?" Clark's voice grew louder. He took his wrist and banged it on the table. Unfortunately, this was the same wrist he had used to prove to Lois that he was no longer the Man of Steel.

Jimmy backed away. Clark was a pretty strong guy and he wasn't sure what Clark would do next.

"OW!"

"C.K., are you all right?"

"Yeah, yeah. I think I just hit my funny bone."

"C.K., you look wound up. Maybe you should take a break or something."

"I can't, Jimmy. I promised Lois that I'd stay here and call all of our sources."

"Oh, come on, C.K.! A group of us are heading on over to my pad to watch the Metropolis Metros vs. the Seattle Mariners game."

"Um, Jimmy, I'm sorry but I can't. I promised Lois I'd stay here."

"Aww, C.K., you know Lois. She's an independent newswoman. She'll be okay without you. Anyway, didn't she tell you she'd keep in touch?"

"Yeah, by cell phone."

"Well, there you go. So come on. We can take my motorcycle."

"But Lois…"

"C.K.! You're too wound up to focus on anything. If I were Lois I'd be happy that you went off for a bit to clear your head."

***

[Inside Mazik's Jewelers]

Lois was frustrated. Damian wasn't paying attention to anything she said. He spent his time staring at all of the jewelry. He acted like he was taking a leisurely stroll through a jewelry store instead of trying to cover what might be the crime of the century.

Lois' arms waved in the air as she let out a couple of "OY's!" *Where is Clark, when I need him? Oh, yeah, I left him back at the Planet…*

Lois cupped her forehead in the palm of her hand. What on earth was she thinking? She left her life-long partner, her best friend, Clark, at the Planet.

Lois looked down. Her dress had hiked up about an inch. Lois blushed. She had no clue how long it had been that way, but without a second thought, when no one was looking, she pulled her dress back down. Lois then went to the back of the store and pulled out her cell phone to call Clark.

***

It was the bottom of the third and the Metros were down by one. Clark wasn't sure if he should be hanging out with Jimmy, but he couldn't help, but enjoy it. The game got really exciting.

While Clark was watching the game, he flashed back to his Superman days. He used to enjoy playing baseball against himself. He could zip from base to base in a matter of seconds. No matter what the score was, he always won. He thought if he ever wanted to relive the fun of playing baseball, he'd have to relearn the game as a "normal" human being. Maybe Lois could give him a few pointers…

CRACK!

Jimmy's bachelor pad erupted with cheers. The Metros had hit a home run and they were up by three.

"Yes!" Clark yelled as he gave Jimmy a high five.

A humming noise broke up the yelling.

"Hey, C.K.! What's wrong with your pants?"

"Huh? Oh! I guess I left my phone on vibrate." Clark took his cell phone out of his back pocket. "Hello?"

"Hi, Clark. It's Lois."

"Lois?"

"Clark, I just wanted to apologize for my behavior. I don't know what I was thinking. I ditched you, my life- long partner."

"Lois, I…"

"No, Clark. What I did was inexcusable and I apologize…"

"Hey, Clark, is that Lois?" Jimmy leaped over the couch and grabbed the phone out of Clark's hand.

"Uh, Jimmy, I…"

"Hey, Lois!" Jimmy yelled.

"Uh, hi, Jimmy!" Lois held the receiver away from her ear.

"I haven't seen you in a while. How are you? How's that story going? Do you have any good leads yet?"

"Jimmy!" Lois laughed. "One thing at a time. I'm doing fine. Are you helping Clark on the robbery story?"

"Actually, no, I…"

Lois didn't hear Jimmy finish his thought as a choir of male voices filled the air.

"Oops, Lois, I gotta go. The Metros just hit another home run."

"Baseball?"

"Yep. The guys and I thought we'd spend our Sunday hanging out at my place."

"You did, huh?"

"Yep, but like I said, I gotta jet so I don't miss the rest of the game. Do you want me to put Clark back on?"

"Yes. Please do!" Lois said in a clearly agitated voice.

Jimmy handed the phone back to Clark. "Lois wants to talk to you and she sounds kinda upset."

"Oh jeez…" Clark answered as he ran his fingers through his hair.

"Good luck, man." Jimmy patted Clark on the back, as he went back to join the others.

Clark reluctantly brought the receiver to his ear. "Umm…Lois, I…"

"CLARK JEROME KENT!"

"Uh-oh."

"Why on earth are you watching a baseball game, when you should be working on this breaking news story?!"

"I, uh, well, I…"

"Arggh! Clark! You really frustrate me sometimes! I was holding out against all hope that you of all people would be working on the story! You know, you and Damian are so alike!"

Clark was usually in control of his temper, but this was the final straw. "Okay, now you've gone too far!"

"You should talk! I mean you…you…oh I don't know…" Lois slammed her cell phone closed.

"Shoot!" Clark muttered as he put his phone back in his pocket. He climbed off the couch and got ready to leave.

"C.K., where are you going?"

"I'm sorry, Jimmy, but I gotta go to the jewelry store and talk to Lois."

"Okay, whatever. It's your loss," Jimmy replied as he turned his back toward Clark and stared at the TV screen.

Clark walked out the door and whistled for a cab. He found Jimmy's behavior to be extremely rude. Out of the few years that he had known Jimmy, he never once remembered Jimmy snapping at him. It was as if Lois' coldness toward him was rubbing off on all of the people she came in contact with.

In a matter of minutes, Clark was being dropped off at the jewelers. He got out of the cab and paid the driver. Clark had been sweating a bit, so he had to push his glasses back up on his nose. He wished he could just throw them away, but ever since he'd lost his superpowers, he actually found that he needed to use them.

He walked inside the store and found Lois talking to Inspector Henderson. "Hello, Lois," Clark said as he lightly tapped her on the shoulder.

"What? Oh gee, it's my husband, Clark. Now the party can begin," Lois remarked in a sarcastic tone toward the Inspector.

The Inspector looked away from the angry couple. He tried to look busy because he wanted no part in this silly little lover's spat.

"Lois, I think we should talk. And I think it would be best for all of us if we talked outside."

"Okay, whatever," Lois said as she rolled her eyes. "Inspector, if you'd please excuse us."

Clark grabbed onto Lois' arm and walked her out the door.

"Okay, Clark. You can let me go now! We're outside."

"I don't think so, Lois. We need to talk and if I have to do it by force, then so be it."

"Getting tough now, are we?" Lois smirked as she looked into his eyes.

"LOIS!"

"What?" Lois asked slyly. She tried to break free, but as she struggled, Clark's grip tightened.

"You know what I mean, Lois. I came here to apologize for going off and watching the game."

"The apology isn't necessary, Clark. Instead of working on the story, you went off to watch a baseball game. It's obvious to me that you don't care, which is fine by me, because I have everything under control."

"Lois…"

"Clark, like I said, everything is under control, so if you'd kindly let me go, then I can continue to talk to my sources."

"Actually, I think the best thing for us to do is to go back home and talk. You and I, especially you, have been acting quite odd for the past couple of days."

"Me? You're the one that acts like an overprotective freak whenever Damian is around!"

While Lois struggled to break free from Clark, Damian watched from the store's front window. He couldn't help but smile as Lois defended him to Clark. But he couldn't dwell on that too long, since he had a date to prepare for. He decided it was time to make an exit.

"Damian!" Lois said as she broke away from Clark.

Damian walked toward Lois. "Guys, if I'm the cause of this fight, I want to apologize. I didn't mean to come between you and Clark."

"Oh no, Damian. I'm not mad at you. I'm just trying to explain to Clark here that he's keeping me away from my sources. Isn't there a phrase that says 'time is of the essence'?"

"But Lois, if I…"

"Damian, you're doing no such thing!" Lois grabbed his hands. "Okay, I admit, you weren't focusing a lot on the story, but that's understandable since you're a beginner. Hopefully, I'll be able to help you along."

"Well, thank you, Lois. Now if you would please excuse me, I need to go get ready for a date." Damian slipped his hands out of Lois' and started to walk away.

"Damian!" Lois said as she ran up to him. "I'll see you tomorrow." Lois leaned over and gave him a prolonged kiss on the cheek.

Clark's mouth dropped. He didn't know whether to punch Damian out, or grab Lois and throw her into the car.

"Um…okay." Damian's voice sounded shaky as he left.

"LOIS LANE KENT!" Clark yelled angrily.

Lois tried to ignore him as she walked toward the Jeep.

"And may I stress the name, KENT!" Clark added. "What are you doing? You did that on purpose! I'm your husband, Lois. Your husband!"

"Clark, it was just a peck on the cheek. Don't get so huffy about it."

"Not from where I was standing! Heck, you even shocked Damian. The guy could barely talk straight!"

"Well, can I help it if men can't resist my lips?"

"Um…well…okay, I guess I can't argue with you there. But I guess I'm just upset that Damian gets a kiss on the cheek and I get nothing!"

"Okay, here." Lois leaned over and gave him a quick peck on the cheek. "Are you happy now?"

"Lois, quit with the sarcasm because it's not helping!"

"Sorry. I was just trying to lighten the mood." Lois pulled her car keys out of her purse. She unlocked the front door and climbed inside. "Now if you would please excuse me, I'm late for an appointment. I'll see you later."

Lois pulled the door shut. "Lois…don't do this!!! Lois!" Clark frantically banged on the door. "Lois, open the door now!!! Lois!!!"

Lois rolled down the front window, as the motor started. "Unless your feet are made of steel, I suggest you get out of the way!"

Clark moved back as Lois stepped on the gas pedal and sped away. "DARN IT!" Clark yelled as he kicked at a garbage can.

"Hey now! I'd advise you to stop that before you get arrested."

Inspector Henderson walked out of store only to find Clark kicking at garbage cans in a fit of anger.

"I'm sorry, Henderson, but Lois is just making me so mad! Arrgh!!!" Clark kicked at another garbage can.

"Okay, Kent. Just calm down." Inspector Henderson grabbed Clark by the shoulders and moved him away from the cans. "Kent. You don't stay married for twenty-five years without learning a few things. I could see this coming from miles away."

"You did?"

"Oh yeah! It's so obvious that it's almost laughable! I mean, it's obvious that you two haven't, well, uh, how can I put it? You two haven't had a 'romantic evening' in quite a while."

"Well…yeah," Clark answered as he looked down at the ground and shuffled his foot.

"Well, there you go, Kent! Go out there and buy things she likes! Shower her with love and affection. Tell her that you're sorry. Surprise her when she comes home."

***

Lois drove down the street toward the Morris home. She was going to revisit the inventor of the "invisible suits."

She turned on the radio. Ricky Martin's song, "She's All I Ever Had," played.

<i>"…it's the way she understands.

She's my lover, she's my friend.

When I look into her eyes,

it's the way I feel inside,

like the man I wanna be.

She's all I'll ever need."</i>

"Oh God!" Lois remarked as she quickly turned off the radio.

Lois pulled up to the house. The Morris family still lived in the same white, picket-fenced home located on the same quiet street. It amazed Lois how nothing had changed since she and Clark had walked down that same street just a few years ago.

Lois rang the doorbell. A little boy answered the door. He was about three feet tall and had dark brown hair and brown eyes. He wore blue jeans and a red T-shirt. The little boy looked up at Lois and smiled. In a weird way he reminded her a lot of Clark.

"Hellwo."

"Uh, hi. Is Mr. or Mrs. Morris here?"

A shadowy figure appeared behind the boy. It was Helene Morris. "Welcome, Ms. Lane," Helene said as she leaned over to shake her hand. "Honey, this is Ms. Lane. She's friends with Superman."

"WOIS!!!" The boy yelled her name as he grabbed onto her legs.

"Well, he's certainly friendly."

"Oh, Ms. Lane, he isn't that friendly with just anyone," Helene laughed. "But please come inside and make yourself comfortable. Alan is waiting for you in the living room."

Helene led Lois and the little boy into the living room. Alan welcomed Lois.

"Hello, Ms. Lane. It's nice to see you again." On Alan's lap sat a little girl. "Ms. Lane, I'd like you to meet Tara."

She slid off his lap and curtsied. "It's nice to meet you, Ms. Lane."

Tara was around nine years old. She had wavy brown hair that fell just below her shoulders. She wore a pink, frilly dress. Lois couldn't help but flash back to the time when she was a little girl. It reminded her of all the times her mother tried to force her into those nasty things. And that was only on days when she was sober. Lois shuddered at the thought.

"And this cute little boy here," Alan continued his introductions, "his name is Dean."

"Hi, Wois!" Dean waved his little hands in the air.

Lois forced a smile.

"Why don't you go sit over there so we can begin the interview," said Helene, who led Lois to a white couch. She joined her husband in a chair of the same color that was located across from the couch.

Tara and Dean joined Lois on the couch. Tara was on her right and Dean on her left.

"A-ha. Well, okay, I… Mmph. Excuse me?!?" Lois was interrupted when Dean tried to sit on her lap.

"Oh, don't mind him," Helene stifled a giggle. "Dean looks at you as some sort of super hero. Whenever I talk about Superman, your name seems to pop up. He wants to be near anything and everything that comes in contact with Superman." Her voice lowered. "But we'll never tell him that Superman is no longer living in Metropolis. It would break his little heart if he found out Superman doesn't hang out in the clouds while keeping an eye on the city."

"Oh." *Not the nonexistent Superman junk again!* Lois thought.

Lois wasn't sure what to do next. She wanted to get this interview over with and then go home. She preferably wanted to get home before Clark, so she had to think of something fast.

"Well, Dean," Lois looked into the child's brown eyes. "if you're a good boy, I might give you something I know that Superman has, too!"

"Really?" Dean's eyes sparkled.

"Yeah. Oh, wait a minute! I might have it with me." Lois unzipped her purse and searched through the clutter. "A- ha! Here we go!" She pulled out a Daily Planet business card and handed it to the boy. "Now I'm positive that Superman has one of these!"

"Kewl! Look! Look! Look!" Dean ran around the room and waved the card around until he settled himself in the corner of the room and pulled out his crayons. The biggest smile crossed his lips as he scribbled on the Daily Planet design.

Lois looked over at Tara. "I suppose you want one, too?"

"Oh, no, Ms. Lane. Coloring is for babies. I'm nine years old. Definitely not a baby!"

Lois couldn't help but smile. Tara exhibited many of the same characteristics she'd had at that age. "Well, your children are certainly outspoken."

"Oh, no, Ms. Lane. They aren't our kids," Helene remarked. "Tara and Dean are our niece and nephew. They live in California and occasionally they like to stop by Metropolis for a visit. Dean has a fit every time we drive by the Daily Planet. He always points to the Daily Planet globe and yells, 'Big gwobe! Supaman! Big gwobe!' It's like he thinks Superman lives there or something. Alan and I can actually picture Dean working there someday. Tara, too."

"Actually, Auntie Helene, I want to be President of the United States. Although being editor of the Daily Planet wouldn't be so bad either."

"Speaking of the Daily Planet, we heard about you and Mr. Kent. Congratulations!" exclaimed Helene.

"Thanks."

"We were hoping Mr. Kent would be with you this afternoon. Where's that wonderful husband of yours?"

"He's, uh…working on a story." *Yeah right!*

"Oh, that's too bad, because I was hoping to congratulate him also. I think it's great you and Mr. Kent got together. I could tell, when I first met you a couple of years ago that it was meant to be! Now you two are planning a future together! Have you…"

"Oh, no. We don't want kids. Well, it's not like we don't want kids, we're just waiting," Lois blushed. "With our careers being so busy, as they are now, we just want to enjoy each others company." *When we're not at each other's throats!* "We basically want to live alone for a while. Take a few years to discover and learn new things about each other. Do what newlyweds do."

"Ah, I completely understand." Helene winked.

"A-ha. Yeah."

Helene could sense that something else was on her mind. She noticed Lois kept pulling on her dress while fidgeting on the couch. This was highly unusual behavior for the Daily Planet's top investigative reporter. "Well, Ms. Lane, how about we get started? You probably have a lot of things to ask Alan, and I know how busy you investigative reporters can get."

"Uh, yeah. Okay. Well, let's get started then. Last night Mazik Jewelers was robbed. No one saw the culprit, and the weirdest part was that, technically, no one was seen. My editor told me that the surveillance tape only showed a bunch of gold jewelry floating out the door. There were no hands or wires involved. It was just floating on its own, out the door. I hope to talk to Inspector Henderson again and get a copy of the tape. Maybe analyze it, piece by piece. But for now all I have to work with is what Mr. White told me. That's why I'm here. I wanted to ask you about those invisible suits you made a few years ago. Are any of them missing again?"

"Well, Ms. Lane, I don't think that could happen, since I destroyed all of the suits and the blue prints to them, after Superman brought Helene and me back together."

"Oh."

"Actually, according to what you've told me, I kinda wished it had been the case. Without those suits, it makes things more complicated, huh? I'm sorry I couldn't be of any help."

"Don't feel so bad, Alan. Your information is very useful. It'll help the police narrow down suspects and motives for the crime. It has also caused me to realize that this story is bigger than I thought. This might just be the story that gets me that Pulitzer!"

BOOM!

"Uh-oh!" Dean said as he pointed to the window.

"Uh-oh" was right. Outside, the heavens had opened and they were pouring tons and tons of rain. So much rain fell that in a matter of seconds, the streets started to flood.

Lois got off the couch and walked to the window. Alan and Helene followed.

"Well, Ms. Lane, I guess you'd better get going," Alan suggested. "It sure is pouring out there and I don't want to see you get wet."

Helene agreed. "You can do what Alan and I do. Go home and watch the rain fall, as you cuddle with your honey on the couch." Helene started to giggle as Alan playfully kissed her cheek.

*Ahhh! Get me out of this nightmare!* Lois turned away from that unnecessary display of affection and watched the water running down the window pane. Her mind wandered…

The melodic sound of raindrops fell upon the roof. Lois let out a sigh as Clark ran his fingers down her leg. She felt the shift of his weight as he moved to other parts of her body. They were on the floor making love by candlelight. Body upon body…

Lois ran her fingers down her lips as she continued to stare out the window. *Oh my God! What am I doing? I'm supposed to mad at Clark!!! Not lust after the man!! Sheesh, I really need to get out of here. Get a grip, girl!!!*

Lois turned away from the window and walked toward the front door. "Well, I guess I'll be going now. I want to send my notes to Mr. White before it gets too stormy."

"Okay," the Morrises said between kisses.

Lois rolled her eyes.

"Buh, bye, Wois!!" Dean waved his hands wildly as Lois turned the doorknob. She had no clue why she did this, but before she stepped out the door, she blew Dean a kiss.

"I can't believe those two. I mean, of all the nerve. Especially when I'm supposed to be mad at Cla… Arrgh!!!" Lois had been so worked up about the Morrises that for a moment she had totally forgotten about the rain. Unfortunately, the only thing she was wearing at that time was the white dress. If there had been a wet T-shirt contest going on right at that second, Lois would have won first prize.

She quickly got into the car and put the key in the ignition. The car wouldn't start. "Come on! Come on!" It still wouldn't start. "COME ON!!! ARRGH!"

Lois slammed her fists on the steering wheel. "Okay, okay. Just calm down. You have your cell phone with you. Now would be a good time to call your husband."

She dialed the number. No one answered. "Hmm, there's no answer. Maybe I dialed the wrong number?" Lois dialed the number again. Still no answer. She hit redial again. Still nothing. "What the heck?"

She hit the redial button yet again. This time there was a click. "Finally! Clark?"

NO ONE CAN ANSWER YOUR CALL RIGHT NOW. SO LEAVE A MESSAGE WHEN YOU HEAR THE BEEP.

"Darn it!!" she yelled as she slammed the cell phone shut. "Where's that man? Okay, that's it, Kent. No second chances! You just overstepped your boundary. I was going to forgive you, but now I'm not quite sure how long it will take!" Lois was so desperate to get back home that she grabbed the sunshield to use as a cover for her head and exited the Jeep.

***

It took Lois a little over an hour to reach the brownstone. She was so wet and so tired that all she wanted to do was take a long, hot shower and go straight to bed. Gone were the thoughts of making love to Clark while the rain fell outside. She actually found herself cursing all rainstorms.

Lois turned the doorknob, relieved to see the lights were still off. Clark wasn't home.

#Here I am on broken wings. Quiet thoughts, unspoken dreams. Here I am alone again. I need her now to hold my hand.

Lois dropped her bag as her mouth fell open. She must have been too distracted to notice it before. There was Clark, surrounded by candlelight, dressed in black silk boxers and waiting for her on the couch.

"Lois," he remarked as he flashed her that famous Kent grin. He got off the couch and walked toward her. Everything moved in slow motion. Lois stood in awe at the sight before her. He touched her slightly on the shoulder. Lois jumped.

"Huh?"

"Sorry, Lois. I…" Clark searched for his words. Lois was soaked. Her clothes were so wet that he could see the outline of her shapely figure.

"Lois, I…I… Aiyiyiiii!!!" *Okay Clark, get it together! Your wife is soaking wet. You need to make sure that she's okay. There will be enough time to stare at her figure later.*

"I, um, uh…Lois, you're all wet!!!"

"Of course I am, Clark! I mean, duh!"

"Well, here, let me…"

"Clark! Take your hands off me! All I want you to do right now is turn off that annoying song!!!"

"Not much of a Ricky fan, huh?" Clark chuckled.

"Clark, just do it, okay?"

"Okay, okay. Hold on just a sec." *And I thought this CD promised to bring couples together, so to speak.* "I don't want to anger you any more than I have." He grabbed the remote and turned off the stereo.

Lois stood there for a moment, trying to gather her thoughts. The water dripping from her clothes was creating a puddle under her feet, but she didn't care. She had more important things to worry about, one being what was going through her husband's mind. He actually thought he was going to make it up to her with a night of romance. *Ha! Well, he's got something else coming!*

Lois tried to look away from what Clark was wearing—more like the lack of what he was wearing. Clark returned to the couch and Lois followed.

"Lois, the couch!"

"Okay, okay, Clark. I'll just sit on the floor."

"But Lois, you're…"

"Enough of that, Clark. Right now I don't care. What I want to talk about is all of this!"

Sitting on the coffee table were a dozen red roses and a bowl full of chocolate covered strawberries.

"Clark, do you really think these temptations would make me forget about today?"

Clark slid off the couch and joined Lois on the floor. "Actually, Lois, I didn't. I was hoping that being with me would help. Those things on the table are merely decorations. I love you, Lois, and I want to show that to you. The love that we share is something really special and I don't want to lose that. If I had my way, you and I would go far away from this place. We'd be together, away from the rest of the world. We'd get lost within ourselves."

Clark reached over and brushed her cheek. Lois remembered the first time Clark touched her that way. She had this sudden urge to melt into his arms. She experienced that same feeling every time he touched her. It was like the first time, over and over again.

As Clark caressed her cheek, shivers went down her spine.

"Lois, you're shivering! That's a good reason why you should get out of those wet clothes. I can warm you up in no time. I also brought down your favorite blanket."

"What?"

Clark reached behind the couch and brought out the blanket. He brought it near her face. "See? So here, let me help you with your dress."

His body drew closer to hers. He wrapped his arms around her and reached for the dress zipper in the back. Lois pulled away.

"Clark, no."

"Shh, Lois," Clark silenced her with his soft lips.

"Mmm…Clark."

Lois' groan was an invitation to him. Clark's kisses grew deeper. He tasted the sweetness of her mouth. It was a taste he was longing for. He was apologizing to Lois without words.

"Clark…"

Clark reached behind Lois and unzipped her dress. He slipped the dress off her shoulders and rubbed his hands across her back. Lois groaned for more as she leaned into his muscular body.

While Lois physically wanted to make love, she wasn't mentally ready to jump into the sack with Clark. *Lois! You need to focus here. You didn't become the strong news woman you are by submitting to someone you didn't want to.*

Lois pulled away from him. "Clark, no."

Clark wasn't listening. He grabbed Lois and brought her near his chest. She could feel the sweat dripping off him.

*Come on, Lois! This is your husband here. Just walk away, Lois. Shove him away from you and yell NO!* "Clark. NO!" Lois put both her hands on Clark's chest and pushed herself off the floor.

"What?"

"I said no, Clark! I can't do this anymore." Lois had one hand on her dress as she tried to keep it up. She almost stumbled backwards as she tried to back away from Clark. Clark tried to get up to help her.

"Clark, stay where you are. I don't want you to be anywhere near me."

"Lois?"

"Clark, I know what's on your mind and I just don't want to do that."

"Um, honey, I don't know what to think. But you sure fooled me on the floor about thirty seconds ago."

"I know that, Clark. Physically, I want to make love to you, but mentally I'm not ready to move on from what happened today. You really ticked me off and I don't think you realize that. You think making love to me will make everything better. Well, it won't! I don't want to make love to a man when I don't mean it."

"Any man?"

"Come on, Clark. You know what I mean! See? This just proves my point." Tears were welling up in her eyes. "You can't accept that Damian and I have a strictly professional relationship and it's driving you nuts!"

"Okay, okay. I'm sorry. I should never say that. I know you'd never do anything like that to me."

"You got that right! That's why I have to walk away. I can't make love to you, Clark, when I don't mean it! I'd only be doing it out of guilt. And that's just not right."

"Lois…" Clark pleaded as a tear fell down his cheek.

"Oh, my God, Clark. You're crying! I actually made you cry." Seeing Clark crying caused Lois to really lose it. Tears were streaming down her cheeks.

"Lois, it's not a tear, it's just sweat."

Lois knew that Clark was lying. She could see it in his eyes. Lois stood there for a moment and just looked at her husband through her tears. She had been crying so much it looked as if Clark was being covered in a thick fog. It reminded her of the nightmare she'd had last night. "Obviously you and I need to talk. But right now isn't a good time. I'm sorry!" Lois remarked.

Clark picked up the remote and turned on the Ricky Martin CD. He lay on the floor and held the blanket close to him as he watched Lois run up the stairs.

***

Damian took his date to a small Irish pub located in the heart of Metropolis called "Casey's Pub."

"Bree, what a beautiful name."

"Yeah, well, I come from an Irish family. This is our favorite pub. They have the best Irish food."

Damian looked into her eyes. Her voice put him in a trance. He was in love.

"Why are you looking at me that way?" Bree inquired.

"What look?"

"You keep staring at me. I bet you're shocked!"

"Shocked?"

"I bet you don't believe me when I say I'm Irish. Most people expect the red hair and green eyes. I have blonde hair and green-gray eyes."

"Actually, I wasn't really thinking that. I was wondering what it would be like if I had my way with you…"

"Damian!" Bree blushed.

"Just kidding," Damian said as he kissed her left ring finger.

***

The dessert tray passed the couple. Bree eyed it like a cheetah after its prey. "Well, how about some dessert?"

"Actually, I was hoping we could have it in my apartment." Damian smiled.

"Well, I don't know."

"You might not know this, Bree, but I'm actually a great cook and I'm not talking about the kind of cook you're thinking of." Damian touched her on the nose and they both laughed.

"Okay, your apartment sounds lovely."

Damian hailed a cab. The two of them were sitting in the back of the car, holding hands. For the first time in her life, she was truly happy. This just might be Mr. Right. No more lonely nights for her.

It took them only twenty minutes to reach his apartment. Damian lived in a studio apartment. It was more appropriate for an artist than a newspaperman.

He walked over to his refrigerator and took out some chocolate mousse. Before he joined Bree on the couch, he picked up a spoon.

"Here you go, my dear," Damian said as he brought the spoon up to Bree's red lips.

"Mmm…this is really good!"

"Thanks. I made it myself."

Damian brought the fork back to her lips. As she was savoring the second serving of cake, Damian slipped off her jacket.

"Damian, what are you doing?"

"Hush," Damian said as he leaned over and engulfed her mouth with his. As the seconds passed, the kisses got deeper and deeper. Bree reached over to the buttons on his shirt.

"Oh my gosh!"

"What? Did I do something wrong?"

"Oh, no darling. I just remembered something. That's all."

"What?"

"Actually, it's something I want to give you. I want to give it to you, before we go any further."

"You got something for me?"

"Yeah. It's crazy, but ever since I saw you behind that information desk, I instantly thought that you were the one!"

"It's not so crazy, because I feel the same way."

Damian reached over to the table next to the couch and pulled out a tiny box. "Bree, I'd like to give this to you as a token of our 'newfound' love."

She opened the box and inside she found a tiny gold bracelet. "Wow, Damian. It's so beautiful!"

"It's a beautiful bracelet for a beautiful woman. Here, let me help you put it on."

"Wow." The bracelet shone on her wrist.

"You look so beautiful, my dear, that I think I want a picture of you to capture this moment."

"Okay."

"Just stand over there and I'll get everything ready."

Damian took a tiny, black contraption out of his back pocket. The black object looked a lot like a garage door opener.

"Okay. Now just stand over there and look really pretty." Damian hit one of the buttons on the black device and a blue light shone all around her.

"Wow, Damian. That's so cool! How do you do it?"

"It's magic, my sweet. Now hold still."

He hit another button, and all of a sudden it became really windy. The blue light turned into a funnel cloud. The funnel cloud was trying to pull Bree inside. It was so strong that it ripped the blouse right off her.

"DAMIAN!!! Is this your idea of a joke?"

"No, no, sweetheart. I just want this picture to be dramatic and seductive. So just hold still." Damian hit yet another button and the funnel became even stronger. It held Bree by both of her legs. The funnel was pushing her.

"DAMIAN!" she wailed.

"Just one second, my dear. I have to find the camera. Ah, here it is."

"Damian! Please, help me! Can't you see I'm in trouble here?" Bree cried.

"Camera shy, eh? Just smile pretty for me and it will be over real soon."

"DAMIAN!!!" By now the only thing apart from the funnel was her head.

"Okay, sweetheart, say good-bye as I snap the picture!"

"Good-bye??? Damian, I'm scared!"

"No, Bree, I'm not going to help you."

"What? I thought you said you loved me?"

"I lied. Sorry."

"You lied?"

"Yes, I lied. Now say good-bye."

"No, please, Damian. Please help me out here."

"I have no more use for you. So if you don't say good-bye, Bree, I will."

Damian brought his finger near the last button on the device. "No, Damian! Don't touch that! Damian!!!! NOOOOO…" Bree's screams filled the room as Damian hit the button. Then there was silence. Bree and the blue funnel were gone.

"Oh goody, it worked!" Damian said happily as he returned the black device to the table drawer.

The only signs that Bree had been in the room were her jacket and blouse. He picked up the jacket and then the blouse. He brought them up to his nose.

"Hmm…if only I was human and had a heart like Clark Kent's, we might have had a future together. Oh well," Damian remarked as he mashed the clothing together. He was so strong that he got it to the size of a ping-pong ball and threw in the garbage.

His apartment only had one window. It was a bay window. Damian walked up to the window and looked at the dazzling city below.

"Lois, Lois, Lois…" he cooed. "Lois, you're making this waaay too easy for me!"

***

"Face it, Ms. Lane. He's gone," Mxy stated.

"Clark? Clark? Clark???" Lois called out for him.

"Your precious Clark is gone. This is what you wished for, am I right?"

"NO!"

"Well, my dear, you did wish for Superman to go away, so to speak. So, in essence, your wish was granted."

"No…no…" Lois repeated as she slumped to the floor of the windowless room.

"You know, I was going to kill you, but I've reconsidered. I'm going to let you live so we can be together."

"I'd rather be stuck in this windowless room forever than to be with you!"

"Oh, I know right now it doesn't sound like much. I'm just a simple imp. But think of the possibilities. Once I take over the world, you and I can rule together. I may have superpowers, but one thing I can assure you is that I'd never run away—or should I say, fly away—to help some stupid human in need! Especially if we were in the middle of something important." Mxy winked.

Lois had a look of disgust on her face. "Well, that's where you and Clark differ."

"I know. Isn't it great?"

"No."

"Okay, I admit I don't look like flyboy, but I think you could grow to love me, especially if I look like… Well, I'd better stop there. I wouldn't want to spoil the surprise."

Mxy moved closer to Lois and ran his finger down her cheek. Lois slapped his hand.

"Ooh, feisty, are we? I love that in a woman. Nonetheless, I'll eventually tame you. We must get going now."

"NO!"

"Ms. Lane, there's no choice. You must come!"

"No! STAY AWAY FROM ME!"

As Mxy drew closer to Lois, his body turned into a huge, black fog cloud. The cloud started to overcome Lois.

"No!!! Clark? Help me! Clark, where are you??? Clark!!!"

Suddenly, Lois shot out of bed. "Oh my God! It was just a dream." Lois looked over at her husband sleeping peacefully beside her. She took her right hand and ran it down his cheek.

"Oh, Clark…"

Clark shifted unconsciously toward her. Startled, Lois grabbed part of the quilt and handed it to him. Clark hugged it tightly to his chest.

***

Monday morning was breaking in Metropolis. Early morning traffic was atrocious at the beginning of the week, so Lois and Clark liked to start out early.

The bedroom was quiet except for the sound of Clark's heavy breathing. "Lois, I'm so sorry…"

"Shh, Clark. It's okay. I completely forgive you."

"Lois, I…"

"No, Clark. No, no, no! Just shut up and kiss me."

Lois stood up and unzipped her dress, letting it fall to the floor. Clark reached over and touched her legs. He made a trail of kisses that started at her feet. As he went farther and farther up her body, she sank lower and lower to the ground. Pretty soon Clark was watching the candlelight playing upon Lois' stomach. Watching Lois' body glowing in the candlelight only fueled his desire. He kissed her mouth with a fury like a desert-dweller who had just found a reservoir. He then traveled down her neck and to her shoulders. Lois groaned in appreciation.

"Lois…"

"Clark…"

"Lois…"

"Mmm…Clark…"

"Lois, Lois…LOIS!" Clark sat up straight, rubbing his eyes. He had yelled her name so loud that it had startled him out of bed. *Well, I guess I won't have to worry about that alarm going off today. I just hope Lois slept through it.*

Clark opened his eyes and looked down. He was hugging Lois' pillow, but there was no Lois. On the night stand was a note:

I went to the auto body shop to get the Jeep fixed.

Lois

"Arggh!" Clark yelled as he crumbled the note and then threw it across the bedroom.

***

Clark left the brownstone around seven, but didn't get to the Planet until nine. He was so depressed that he decided to walk. Why bother getting to work on time if Lois wasn't going to be there?

He did a lot of thinking on his long walk, coming to the conclusion that Lois' distanced attitude toward him was eating him up inside. He no longer cared about the Daily Planet and his career. If Lois didn't care about him, then he didn't care about himself. He was only going to the Planet in hopes of seeing his wife.

He stepped out of the elevators and into the Pit. No one seemed to notice that Clark was running an hour late. It was Monday morning, so news was breaking all over the place. Part of Clark was disappointed that no one noticed him walking into the Planet. He could've really used the attention.

Clark headed on over to his desk and did a double-take. "Lois?"

Lois sat at her desk, answering email.

"Lois, what are you doing here?"

"Oh, hi, Clark," Lois didn't even glance at him. She continued answering email.

"I thought your note said you'd be at the auto body shop."

"It did. And I was heading there until I bumped into Damian. He gave me a jump-start."

"I bet he did," Clark muttered under his breath.

"What was that?"

"Oh, nothing."

"Whatever, Clark. Since I know you, it was probably an insult toward Damian and frankly I don't give a damn what you think."

"Lois, instead of answering your email, I think you and I should talk."

"For your information, this happens to be more important then arguing about something petty with you!"

Things were heating up. Clark took a couple of deep breaths to calm himself down. He didn't want to make a spectacle of himself, especially in front of his colleagues.

Fortunately for Lois and unfortunately for Clark, Damian came running out of the conference room. "Hey Lois! Perry told me that he'd meet with us in about a half an hour to discuss my theory. He'd have made it earlier except for the fact that he's arguing with the printers. It has something to do with a possible union strike."

"You have a theory?" Clark inquired.

"Yes, he does, and a very intelligent one, if I might add," Lois answered.

"Thanks, Lois. I have a theory about the robbery at the jewelry store. Around the same time the store was robbed, a couple of prison inmates broke out of jail. I think they might be involved."

"Oh?"

"Clark, don't treat him that way! He spent a long time working on this. I bet he came up with more then you did!"

"Well…"

"Clark, you're welcome to join us in the conference room. I can give you more details in there."

"Hold it right there, Kent." Lois' hands brushed Clark's chest. Clark wanted her do that all day, if that meant he could have some physical contact.

"Before you go charging into our meeting, I need to know what you've got."

"Got?"

"Yeah, what have you learned so far about the robberies?"

"Um, nothing."

"Nothing. Well, it's been nice seeing you."

"Lois…"

"Clark, you know my rule. If you don't have anything to report, then you can't join my conferences."

"But Lois…"

"Yeah, Lois. Maybe you should let him join."

"No, Damian. I try never to break any of my rules. In this case I'm not going to make an exception, even if he's my husband. So let's get going before Perry wonders where we are."

Lois walked toward the conference room and Damian followed. She looked back at Clark, who was clearly angry. His whole body shook as he sat down at this desk.

"I guess I'll be seeing you sometime at home."

Clark was resting his face on the desk and didn't look up.

***

A half an hour had passed. Perry was still on the phone. Clark looked up and stared into the window. Lois looked up at the same time and stared at Clark. After a few seconds, she turned away and moved closer to Damian. They both started to laugh. Lois and Damian were enjoying themselves at Clark's expense.

"DARN IT, LOIS, what am I going to do with you?" Clark cried as he threw the computer keyboard to the ground.

The buzzing stopped. Everyone in the Planet turned around to look at Clark Kent, who was clearly having a mental breakdown. He stood up and threw his chair across the room. It almost hit someone in the head.

"Darn it, darn it, darn it!" he yelled. He dropped to the floor as tears started to stream out of his eyes. "Lois, no. Lois! NO!!!" He covered his ears as he yelled.

No one came to assist him. They were all too shocked. Lois looked out at Clark, like a deer caught in headlights. She stood frozen like a statue.

Perry came charging out of his office. "What in the Sam Hill is going on here? Can't you see I'm in the middle of a really important phone call, folks?"

The room remained still except for the sound of Clark on the floor. He was mumbling something to himself.

"Judas Priest! Kent, are you all right?" Perry noticed Clark lying on the floor. He walked over to him and tapped Clark on the shoulder.

Clark jumped like a frightened animal.

"Uh, hey, it's okay. It's just me, Perry. Is everything all right, son?"

"Lois…"

"Lois? Well, she's in the conference room right now. Would you like to talk to her?"

"Lois… She doesn't love…she doesn't love me anymore. So I can't go on…"

"Kent! Where did you go off and get a cotton picking idea like that? The woman is madly in love with you, son. I knew it from the first day she met you!"

"She told me she doesn't care…"

Perry looked up at Lois. All she could do was shrug her shoulders.

"Okay, well, it looks like something is clearly bothering you right now. So why don't you pick yourself off the ground and we can talk in my office."

Clark got up off the ground while Perry patted him on the back. "Now that's good, son. Just follow me, and if you want to, you can talk to Lois a bit later."

While Perry led Clark to his office, Clark looked back at Lois. They both stared at each other with blank eyes. Clark looked away from Lois when Damian came up behind her and gave her a hug.

***

"Kent? Is everything okay? You're acting mighty peculiar. You're not yourself."

"No, Chief. I'm not okay! I'm having major problems with Damian Johansen! That man has practically ruined my life since he joined the Planet and he has charmed his way into Lois' life. He's trying to take her away from me and he's doing a DAMN good job of it! Did you know that Lois and I haven't…well, you know…in quite a while now! Hell, I don't even remember the last time we did. All I can say is that we haven't done much of anything since he's been here! GOD, he's making me so mad!!!!"

"Okay, okay, Kent. Now, we don't need to go around using those kind of words."

"Well, I'm sorry, Chief, but he is!"

"Kent. I think your problem is that you're not giving him a chance. Damian can be really nice once you get to know him. But son, you immediately went off the deep end once he showed any attention toward Lois. Damian and Lois are just friends. Heck, the boy even went on a date last night and from what I've heard, it went really well. So don't worry Kent. It's not like he's Lex Luthor."

"This is exactly what I mean, Chief! He has everyone duped, including you! That's it. I gotta get out of here." Clark walked over toward the door. "What the heck? The doorknob won't turn."

"I thought it would be best if you stayed in here for a while, son."

"No, no, no…" Clark started running his fingers wildly through his hair. He started pulling on his clothes. Clark pulled so hard on his shirt that he ripped it open.

"Oh, great! Now look what I did. My shirt is ripped!!! Darn it, I can't take this much longer…"

A crowd of people gathered outside the office. When Clark started tugging on the door, most people fled in fear that he was going to break a window. Only Jimmy and Lois remained.

Clark wasn't in control of himself and there was nothing she could do about it. Lois almost regretted not making up with Clark last night, but she had to do it. She was relieved that Clark was sensible enough to keep his superpowers from getting the best of him. Although, she found it odd that Clark wasn't wearing the suit under his clothes. Maybe he forgot it, as a result of all of the confusion. That confusion was probably a blessing in disguise. People would have definitely figured out who Clark Kent really was if they had seen the 'S' on his chest.

Perry looked over at Jimmy and mouthed the words, "Call the police."

Henderson and his men were there in less then two minutes. It was almost as though they were waiting for Perry's call. They burst into the office. Inside they found Clark beating on the garbage can. Perry was in the corner of the room, hugging his Elvis picture. Clark could destroy anything in that room except for Elvis. Nobody touched that picture except for Perry himself.

"Clark Kent, this is Inspector Henderson, from the Metropolis Police Department. You're under arrest for disturbing the peace and destroying public property."

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me, buddy. Now put your hands behind your back!"

"Hey!" Clark yelled as one of Henderson's men pinned him down and slapped the handcuffs on.

"You have the right to remain silent…anything you say will be used against you in a court of law. You have a right to an attorney; if you cannot afford it, one will be appointed for you…"

"You can't do this to me, Henderson! I need to talk to Lois!"

"I don't think so. You need to calm down before you go scaring Lois half to death."

"No!!!" Clark screamed.

"Take him away, fellas…"

Clark was being dragged out the door. He tried to break free, but to no avail. Clark's flailing around made it hard for the police to get him out the door.

"Clark?" Lois watched her husband being dragged off in handcuffs and she started to cry.

"I'm sorry, honey," Perry remarked as he walked up to Lois and gave her a hug.

"Clark!" Lois yelled as she broke way from Perry.

Clark looked up at her with reddened eyes. She ran up to him and gave him a prolonged kiss on the lips.

"Lois, you took quite a chance there. Are you nuts???" Inspector Henderson inquired.

"I know, Henderson. I really don't know why I did it. I guess I just hoped it would calm him down."

"Well, I'd love to stay and chitchat, but I've got a man to book into jail. Good day, Ms. Lane, Mr. White."

"NO, DON'T TAKE ME AWAY!!!! Lois needs me. She just said so with her kiss. Please let me go!!!"

Lois wiped the tears from her face and returned to the conference room.

***

When they got to the police station, Henderson locked Clark up in an empty cell.

"Clark, I'm not really going to arrest you. I just had to say that because it's standard procedure. Perry and I thought it would be best if you 'cooled your heels' at the police station."

"Whatever."

"Seriously, Clark. I'm sorry this is happening to you. You're usually a pretty cool-headed, mild-mannered sort of guy. So this must be a pretty major thing between you and Lois. I just don't like seeing any of my colleagues hurt, especially you."

Clark wasn't in the mood to listen to Henderson's sympathy violins, so he turned around and stared at the wall.

"Well, I guess I'll be going now. I'm going to leave you at the station for a couple of hours. I was going to bring you back home by squad car, but I don't think that would be a good idea. I don't want to ruin your wonderful reputation that you have within our community."

***

[Back at the Planet]

"Can you believe it, Damian? Clark was arrested! I can't believe that Perry would do something like that."

"Well, Lois, he was disturbing the peace, while harassing you. The guy almost hit someone in the head with his chair! I know it wasn't on purpose, but I think sometimes he underestimates his own strength."

"Clark wasn't harassing me."

"He wasn't? Then what do you call his constant calling out of your name and his need to get near you?"

"I call that desperation, not harassment. Clark was desperate to talk to me."

"Oh, come on, Lois. Even Perry felt it was best to lock him up. He looks toward you as his daughter. He wanted to make sure you were okay and he wasn't going to take a chance with Clark.

"I know…"

"I usually don't like to get involved in personal affairs, but I can't believe you've totally forgotten about last weekend. The way Clark was watching some stupid baseball game instead of working on the story."

"I haven't forgotten!"

"As I said, I don't want to get involved, but you might want to remind yourself what got you there in the first place. But instead of wallowing in our own misfortunes, why don't we do some investigating?"

"Well…"

"Come on, Lois. We can stop by the prison and check things out. I might not be Clark, but I'd honored if you'd be my partner."

***

[Inside the Metropolis Police Station]

"Okay, John. I'll get on it right away. But next time remember to bring a three-layer cake instead of a one-layer cake. The more frosting, the better!"

The cake man turned around and noticed Clark staring at the wall.

"Clark? Hey, Clark, it's me, Bobby Bigmouth."

Clark turned away from the wall. "Bobby?"

"Yeah, buddy. Long time no see!"

"Yeah…"

"I heard you and Lois got hitched a while ago. Congrats! So how are you? Oh, wait a minute. What am I saying? Here you are, stuck in a jail cell and I'm asking you how you feel! Sorry, man."

"That's okay."

"By the way, why are you stuck in the slammer? Is it for a story?"

"Not exactly. Besides, it's a long story and you probably don't have time"

"Lucky for you, Clark, I just ate some cake, so spill it."

***

[Inside the prison]

"Damian, this isn't worth it. Let's go."

"Ah, come on, Lois, we just got here. We haven't even begun our investigation and we have so many inmates to talk to."

"Well, I don't want to talk to them, so let's go and we can pick up the police report on the way out."

"Lois, why are acting so weird? Are you afraid?"

"Yes."

"Well, don't be. You have me to protect you," Damian remarked as he pulled Lois to his waist.

"Well, that's easy for you to say." Lois pushed herself away from him. "You don't have men staring at you like a play toy!"

"Lois, what's up with you? I thought you were the world's best investigative reporter. The woman who took risks, who wasn't afraid of danger."

"Well, that's because I have Clark with me. I feel safe with him. I know that nothing bad will ever happen to me. He gathers me up in his strong arms and I just want to stay there forever. Obviously, I didn't know it at the time, but meeting Clark was the best thing that has ever happened to me. Falling in love with him has been so easy, I don't know why I fought it for so long…" Lois looked out a window and sighed. Her fingers brushed the glass.

***

"Jeez, that's quite a story."

"You believe me, don't you?"

"Oh, yeah, man. You're my friend. And I take your word over his. Personally, Damian sounds a little psycho to me."

"Tell me about it."

"Tell you what, I'll keep close tabs on this Damian character and I'll do it for free. I really want Lois and you to make up. Plus there's something about Damian I just don't like."

"Wow, thanks a lot!"

"No problem. Just think of this as my way of paying you back for all those meals!"

Bobby and Clark chuckled as Inspector Henderson returned.

"Hey, Bobby! I just came back to tell Clark that he's free to go. But before I let you go, why don't I take a quick trip to the Planet and find Lois."

"Actually, Inspector, you won't find her there."

"Why, Bobby?"

"Well, I tried calling down there because I had some news on the robberies, but Lois wasn't there. Jimmy said something about Lois and Damian heading down to the prison."

"WHAT?"

The men looked over at Clark, who started tugging on the bars.

"Okay, okay, Kent. Calm down. It's going to be okay," Inspector Henderson reassured.

"Yeah, Clark. I'll go find her and bring her back here!"

***

"Lois!"

"Bobby? Oh my God! I haven't seen you in months! Come here." Lois gave him a big hug. For the first time in a few days, Lois actually looked truly happy. "Bobby…I'm so glad to see you! This place is weirding me out so much! Oh, how rude of me. Bobby Bigmouth, this is Damian Johansen. Bobby, Damian. Damian, Bobby."

"So this is Damian, hmm?" Bobby said as he shook his hand.

"What?" Damian asked.

"Oh, nothing. It's just that I've heard a lot about you."

"Good things, I hope."

"Um, yeah. Hey, Lois, I was looking for you because they're ready to release Clark from the police station.

"They are?" Lois' face lit up.

"Yeah, so let's get going."

"Okay, good. I'm so excited about seeing Clark again. Um, Damian if it's not too much trouble…"

"Yes, I can finish up here. No problem, Lois. You go have fun with Clark!" Damian leaned over and kissed her cheek.

"Tell Perry I'll see him tomorrow. And thanks again. You're such a lifesaver!"

***

"Clark!"

He looked up and his eyes widened. Lois was reaching through the bars to get to him. He saw true love reflecting in her eyes.

"Can someone please open this annoying piece of junk? Inspector?"

"Okay, okay, Lois! Between you and Clark, I've had my hands full!" The Inspector unlocked the prison door and Lois rushed in.

"Oh, God, Clark! Oh, Clark, oh, Clark, oh, Clark!" She repeated his name as she madly kissed his face. At that moment Clark wanted to collapse into her arms.

"Come on, let's go home. I have so much to say. And you don't have to worry about the Planet because I told Perry we'd be taking the rest of the day off!" Lois smiled as she ran her finger down his chest.

***

On the way home, Lois kept rubbing her right hand up and down his leg. Clark leaned back in the chair and closed his eyes. He felt her hand travel up to his crotch and he jumped.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Clark!" Lois blushed.

"No. There's no need to apologize. I was just a little startled. You haven't touched me there in quite a while. That's all."

"Well, hopefully that'll change," Lois said huskily.

Clark looked up to the sky and whispered, "Thank you!"

Lois giggled.

***

When they got home, Lois led Clark to the couch. "Okay, Clark. Now I think we should talk before we go any further," Lois said between kisses. "Although my hormones think otherwise. I'm willing to forget everything that happened in the last couple of days if you're willing to do something for me…"

"What is it, sweetheart?" Clark asked her as he pressed his lips hard upon her shoulder.

"You have to tell Damian that you're sorry."

"What?"

"Come on. The guy has apologized constantly for moving in between the two of us. The least you could do is say you're sorry that you went off the handle toward him."

"Lois…I can't believe you're actually suggesting this!"

"Well, if we want to put this far behind us, this is what we have to do."

"I can't believe I actually have to pull a 'Lois' right now!"

"Excuse me?"

"I'm going to get up and walk out! That's pulling a 'Lois.'"

"Clark!"

"Lois, you know I can't apologize to him. So if you can't accept that, then forget it!"

"Darn it, Clark! You're making it so hard to move on. I want to move on from here. I want to turn on some soft music and make love to you."

"Lois, you know I'd make love to you in a heartbeat, but I can't go against something I believe in."

"Clark…" Lois reached out to Clark who was now standing.

"Lois, I really don't want to travel down this road again. If today is any indication of how unstable I am, then it's best that I leave now. Excuse me."

"But Clark…"

He walked up the stairs as Lois was pleading for him to stay. He headed straight for the bedroom. Lois put her hands to her eyes and sobbed.

***

Clark closed the bedroom door and flopped on the bed. He stared up at the ceiling and sighed.

*What am I going to do? Maybe I should've just said I'd apologize. No, I can't do that! That would be lying and I can't lie! Arrgh! I need to get out of this nightmare!!*

Then a light bulb went off in his head. He was going to call the two people who could help him in any situation. The people he had been meaning to put on the bedroom phone speed dial.

"Hello?"

"Mom!"

"Clark!"

"Hi, son!"

"Hello, Dad!"

"It's so nice to hear your voice again."

"I know, Mom. I miss you guys, too, now that I can't…you know…anymore."

"Yeah…" Martha's voice took a somber tone. The day that Clark lost his powers was a sad day for the Kents. It hit them like a ton of bricks. It felt like they had lost a beloved member of the family.

"Son, you sound a bit agitated. Are you okay?"

"Yeah, Dad, I'm fine. Actually, no, I'm not! I'm having major problems communicating with Lois."

"Aww, that's too bad, honey. Just remember that married couples go through this a lot! Heck, your father and I went for days without speaking to each other."

"But Mom, it's not like that. There's another man who's coming between us."

"Oh no!"

"That's not the half of it! She's dumped me as a partner and gone off with this character!"

"Oh, honey… Do you want me to fly out there and go talk to her?"

"No, Mom. I think we're okay."

"Do you think she's in love with him, son?"

"No! No…I mean, the Christmas tree lights are still working. Except for a few times, when we have tried to plug the lights in and things went POOF!"

"Well, has Lois been under a lot of stress?"

"Yeah, your father makes a good point. Is she under a lot of stress, Clark?"

"Perry did assign her to a jewelry break-in story and she can't seem to find any leads. But what I don't understand is why she leans toward this inexperienced reporter when she and I have been together for years! So I make one mistake and go off and watch a baseball game when I should've been working on the story! What else was I supposed to do when Lois was ignoring me? Because of the distance she's creating between us, I was arrested! Well, not exactly arrested, but I was still thrown into jail!" "Yeah, we heard about that. Mr. White called us about it. I hope you know that your father and I are very disappointed in you! But now it all makes sense."

"Excuse me?"

"Well, it's obvious that Lois is angry at you, and frankly, I don't blame her. You left her alone with the story. She was left with the other guy who knew nothing…"

"But Mom…"

"Hush, Clark. Lois is mad at you because you were watching sports instead of working. With both of you on the case, you could've solved it in a matter of hours. That way you could've had more time with yourselves and you wouldn't be experiencing this Christmas light problem."

"Your mother does have a good point, son."

"Um, whose side are you on here? I thought you were on my side. I'm your son!"

"Yes, but Lois is our daughter now and this time we support her."

Clark punched the mattress. "Well, I better go…I just realized I have an article to work on. Bye." Clark hung up the phone before his parents could respond.

Clark picked up his black gym bag from off the floor. He started filling it with clothes. He was determined to get out of the brownstone as soon as possible.

When Clark finished packing his bag and swung it over his shoulder, he walked downstairs and found Lois busily taking notes while she watched the five o'clock news.

"Lois?"

"Yeah…" Lois hit the mute button on the TV. "Wait a minute, why the bag? Are you on a stakeout?"

"No, not exactly. Lois, I'm leaving you…"

"What?" Tears started spilling out of her eyes.

"No, no, no. Please don't cry. I didn't mean it like that, sorry! What I meant to say was that I'm going away for a while, temporarily. Well, at least for tonight."

"Oh."

"You and I have been fighting so much that I think the best thing right now is to have some time apart. I'll be at the Lexor if you need me."

"Okay."

"See you tomorrow, sweetheart. I love you." Clark leaned over and gave her a kiss on the lips. He wanted to carry her off to the bedroom, but he painfully controlled his hormones.

***

"Lois, can I speak with you?"

"Yeah, sure, Chief. Let me just finish sending this email."

"Okay, honey."

Lois hit the enter button on the computer keyboard and walked into Perry's office.

"Lois, honey. Are you all right? You're dressed all in black."

Lois looked down at her sweater and skirt. "Hey, yeah! I guess not having Clark next to me in bed can do that to me!" Lois chuckled.

"Honey, it'll get better, I swear. You don't need to fake happiness with me. I know how much you're hurting inside." Perry gave Lois a big hug.

"Thanks, Perry, for caring so much."

"It's no problem. I like to look after my top reporters!"

The phone rang. "Ah, Lois, I'd better get that."

"Yeah, Chief. I think I'll call Bobby and ask him for an update." Lois walked out of Perry's office and headed for her desk.

"Hello?"

"Perry?"

"Oh, hi, son! How's it going?"

"It's okay. I'm just about to leave for the Planet. I'm at the Lexor right now."

"Yeah, I heard. Lois was devastated last night…"

"What?"

"Lois called Alice and me last night in tears. She told us that she couldn't sleep because you weren't next to her."

"She had that problem, too?"

"I mean, you should have heard her, Kent. She was heartbroken. Alice and I offered her our guest room, but she refused. We figured she probably cried herself to sleep."

"Is she still at home?"

"No, she's here at the Planet, but she doesn't look so good. The woman dressed in black and she didn't even realize it until I pointed it out to her."

"Oh."

"I think Lois could really use the company, if you know what I mean."

"Oh…okay. Well, anyway, I'll be at the Planet in about ten minutes."

"Okay, Kent. See you then."

***

Lois sat at her desk and stared at her screensaver, a flying Superman cape. She really missed Clark, but she didn't know how to tell him. She figured he wanted nothing to do with her.

Lois heard the elevator doors open and her face lit up. *Clark?* It wasn't Clark. It was Damian. Lois quickly grabbed a pad of paper and a pencil. She wanted to look busy.

"Hey, Lois!" She didn't answer him. *Hmm…she must be busy.* Damian walked off in the direction of the cafeteria.

The elevator doors pinged again. Lois was afraid to look up. But much to her surprise, it was Clark. He was wearing his typical Daily Planet attire, along with one of his goofy ties.

Clark walked up behind Lois and touched her shoulders. "Hi," he said as he kissed her cheek.

Lois felt a tingle go up her spine. "Hi."

The air was quiet for a few minutes until Perry yelled out of his office door. "Lois. Clark. Could you please come in here for a minute?"

They walked toward his office. This would be the first time in a while that they had actually been in a room together. Damian was eating a doughnut when he saw them walk by. He smiled, but Lois didn't respond. Clark wondered if Damian had done something to Lois that upset her. He shot Damian the evil eye. Damian quickly went back to eating his doughnut.

"Hey, you two, I'm going to re-team you guys on the robbery story. I'm going to reassign Damian to another beat with Jimmy."

"Okay…" Lois' voice trailed off.

"Inspector Henderson says that he looks forward to working with you both again. He's the one who suggested this partnership. Even if you're at each other's throats!"

Lois snickered.

"What's so funny?" Clark asked.

"Oh, nothing. I just had this really funny mental picture."

"Oh!" Clark and Lois were both laughing now. Their hands brushed and they smiled.

"Well, if you two are totally against this, then I won't force you to do it! I just think that having Lane and Kent on the case would move the investigation along quicker. But please don't do anything that would make you feel uncomfortable," Perry babbled.

"It's fine, Perry. We're on the case!" Lois and Clark said in unison. Their eyes widened.

"Well, I guess we've still got the magic!" Clark remarked as he brushed her cheek with his finger.

"Hmm…" Lois answered.

"Great! Then why don't you two kids go compile your notes while I call Inspector Henderson and tell him you two are on the case!"

Lois and Clark walked back to her desk.

"Lois…"

"Clark…"

They could hold back their emotions no longer. They grabbed onto each other for a huge embrace.

"I missed you so much, Clark!"

"I know…"

"Let's never fight again!"

"Mmm…"

Lois could clearly tell that her husband was thinking the same thing she was, so she leaned over and whispered something in his ear. Clark smiled and grabbed her hand. They walked out of the Pit together.

They walked down the hallway until they came to a door marked: STORAGE ROOM. This wasn't the same room that Perry caught Clark trying to go out the window a few years ago. This room was never used, except when Lois and Clark needed a little private time.

Clark took a little key out of a nook inside the wall. When he unlocked the door, Lois pushed him inside and slammed the door shut. She shoved Clark all the way to the wall and then she started feverishly kissing his mouth. Clark returned the kisses with just as much passion. He started loosening his tie as Lois went for his pants. The pants made a whooshing noise as they fell to the floor. Clark groaned, as Lois reached for his briefs…

"You know, you guys really should remember to lock the door."

Lois screamed and Clark almost lost his footing as he scrambled to button up his pants. The embarrassed pair turned around to see Jimmy standing in the doorway.

"JIMMY!" they both exclaimed.

"Ha-ha! I figured you'd both be in here!"

"Huh?" Clark remarked.

"Excuse me?" Lois asked.

"Lois, don't assume that we all don't know where you and Clark go. The whole news room knows, except for Perry."

"OY!"

"At first we weren't quite sure what was going on, but we caught on real fast! You go down a hallway that's rarely used. The only thing down there is that storage room that hasn't seen the light of day in years! What really gives it away is when you come out twenty minutes later with the biggest grins!" Jimmy started cracking up.

Their faces turned a deep shade of red. In all of the confusion, Clark had forgotten to zip up his fly. The sound of his zipper broke up Jimmy's laughter. "Well, I guess we'll just have to find a better hiding place, won't we?"

"Uh, yeah. Well, if it's so important to come in here and interrupt us, then spill it, Jimmy!" Lois said in an agitated voice.

It took Jimmy a few seconds to actually respond. It finally dawned on him what he had just witnessed. It actually turned him on a bit. Then he felt bad. Clark was clearly about to 'get some' and he'd ruined it by opening the door.

"Wow…" Jimmy muttered to himself.

"What?" Lois asked.

"Oh! Well, I…um…I was just reacting to this note Perry wanted me to give you."

Lois took the note from Jimmy and opened it. "Oh my God!"

"What?" Clark asked as he looked over her shoulder.

"It says here that Bree from Information has officially been listed as missing. Also, someone from Lulu's old hangout was put on the 'missing persons' list. I guess that means we'd better give these people a visit."

"Sounds like old times again." Clark grinned.

"Yeah, to a point." Lois shot Jimmy a look.

"What? I'm sorry, but you two were the one's who left the door unlocked!"

Clark shook his head and chuckled as he patted Jimmy on the back.

***

"Damian, did you hear the news?"

"No, what happened?"

"Your date, Bree from Information, is reported missing."

"Oh no!"

"When was the last time you saw her?"

"When I took her to my place." Damian looked toward Clark for the international sign for 'Oh, you scored!' but instead Clark rolled his eyes.

"Well, uh…she left soon after!"

"Okay, Damian. Clark and I are going to look into this."

"Hey, can I help?"

"No, Damian, not this time. Perry is going to reassign you to a different story. He figures that this story is a little too complicated for a new reporter to deal with."

"Oh."

"Plus, I want to spend more time with my husband. We're partners and I think lately I've been forgetting that."

Perry stuck his head out of the door. "Damian? Could you please come here for a minute?"

Damian turned towards Perry's office. "Well, it looks like Perry needs me, so I'd better get going. I hope your investigation is successful."

"Arrgh!"

"What is it, sweetheart?"

"It's just Damian. You know, Clark, you're actually right! That guy is getting so clingy. And do you know how much I want you right now?"

"A little louder, Lois…sheesh!"

"Well, I'm sorry, but I do! If I could, I'd take you right here!"

"Hehe Lois…you have no clue what this conversation is doing to my…well, you know. But why don't we go investigate now and then play later before we embarrass ourselves again!" Clark winked.

"Okay. But not before I do this!"

Lois pulled Clark by the tie and kissed him full on the lips. Clark had this sudden urge to rip her clothes off. It took a lot of control for him not to put his hand up her shirt. *Man…Lois. Sometimes you make it really hard to control myself!*

Their smooching was interrupted by someone in the back of the Pit yelling, "Get a room!"

"Ah, shut up!" Lois answered back as she and Clark laughed.

***

"Ah, that's so sad…"

"I know."

"I have this really weird feeling that Bree is dead,or that they'll never find her."

"Yeah."

"What really got to me was seeing her mother and sister break down in tears over the thought of Bree being gone."

"While they were thinking of that, I was thinking of a life without you, Lois…"

"Oh, Clark…I'm right here and I'm not going anywhere." Lois quickly kissed his lips and continued driving. They were going to Lulu's Place.

Lois parallel parked the Jeep. She was one of the best parallel parkers in the city, besides Clark. Clark could just use his body to move the stubborn vehicle. Lois couldn't help smiling as she thought about the little dance his posterior did every time he hit the car. She looked over at her husband. Her eyes seemed to wander to his belt buckle. She started to mentally undo it as a smile spread across her face. Her thoughts were broken up when she heard Clark's voice.

"Are you okay?"

"Hmm…yeah, I'm okay."

"Okay. It just looked like, for a moment there, that you were on another planet."

"Oh, I was! I was on the planet of Clark!"

"Uh-huh…" Clark said as he raised an eyebrow.

"I just can't stop thinking about tonight," Lois added as she leaned over the passenger seat to play with Clark's belt buckle.

"I know. We haven't done this in a lifetime!"

"I want this so bad that I'm even considering playing hooky!" Lois said as she started blowing in Clark's ear.

"Lois and hooky?! Hmm…"

"Hey, cowboy! I've been known to play hooky occasionally…" she purred.

Lois took her index finger and ran it slowly down Clark's chest. This caused Clark to shift uncomfortably in his seat. It wasn't because he didn't like it. It was that he was really liking it.

"I…um…I…"

"Really, Clark. You're so tense. You need to sit back and enjoy the ride…"

"Now, now, Lois. We promised Perry we would do this. The sooner we do this, the sooner we can go home and play 'hooky!'"

"Yeah, I know. It's just I can't get you out of my mind…"

"Same here. But I think I found a way to temporarily cure us of this problem."

"Okay, anything."

"On the count of three, let's both close our eyes and think of the person that annoys us the most!"

"Okay…"

"Well, do you have a better idea?"

"No."

"Well?"

"Oh, what the heck! I guess it's worth a shot."

"Good. Okay, on the count of three. One…two…three." The couple closed their eyes for about ten seconds.

"Okay, I'm cured!" Lois exclaimed.

"Me too!" Clark added.

"Who did you think of?" Lois asked.

"Lex Luthor. And you?"

"Cat Grant."

Lois and Clark laughed. "Well, I guess that tells us something," Clark commented.

"Yep, it certainly does! But let's get going. The hookers await us! Jeez, that sounded so bad!"

"Yep." Clark laughed loudly.

***

"I figure you've heard the news already."

"Yes, sir."

"I'm sorry about Bree being missing. She was probably someone special."

"Yes, she is, Mr. White, and I won't give up until she's found!"

"But you'll do it from a distance. I'm sorry, but I can't have you working on the case with Lois and Clark. You're just too close to the victim."

"I understand."

"I promise you, Lois and Clark will let you know if any new information breaks. But until we hear anything, I'm going to team you up with Olsen. You guys can work on a lighter story. It'll be something to get your mind off the fact that your girlfriend is missing."

"Okay."

"I think Olsen said something about a motorcycle convention. Does that sound like something you'd like to cover?"

"Yeah. I actually own a motorcycle, so I was thinking about heading down there anyway."

"Great! I'll sign you two up for that story. You should find Olsen in the dark room."

***

"Hey, would you look at that," Lois remarked.

She and Clark were walking down an alley until they came to the famous corner where Lulu used to frequent. Lulu, or 'Long Legs' Lulu as her clients liked to call her, had been killed a couple of years ago in this same place.

"What do you know, Lulu actually has a place!"

Across the street stood a small tent. Hanging above the front flap was a piece of paper. Written on it, in big block letters were the words, LULU'S PLACE.

"I wonder if it's 'first-come, first served,' or it's just one big orgy?" Lois questioned.

"Uh…" Clark muttered as he held onto Lois' hand tighter.

"Clark?"

"I, um…I…just want to keep you safe. There's something about this alley that I just don't like!"

"I know…and thanks." Lois brought his hand up to her lips and kissed his fingers. Clark smiled.

They walked across the street and into the tent. The tent seemed bigger once they were inside. Actually, the tent seemed to fill the whole back alley. The interior was covered from floor to ceiling in red satin.

"Talk about being tacky…" Lois whispered.

"I don't know. I kinda like it! Red satin sorta turns me on!"

"Oh, stop it!" Lois exclaimed as she playfully hit him in the stomach.

In the corner of the room sat a seedy man at a small desk. He looked like a cross between Miami Vice and the A-Team. He was wearing white cargo pants, a Hawaiian shirt, and gold chains. He had black, greasy hair and olive skin. It looked like he hadn't shaved in a few days and he had a small gap between his front teeth.

Lois looked back at Clark. She was pretty unsure about all this. Clark wrapped his arm around her waist as they walked up to the desk. The man at the desk looked up from his paperwork. "What can I do for you fine folks? Oh, don't tell me! You want our Double's Package?"

"Double's Package?" Lois mouthed.

"Ah, no. We're reporters from the Daily Planet. My name is Clark Kent. This is my partner, Lois Lane.

"Oh! Are you guys here to do a story on me?"

"Uh, sort of," Lois added.

"Actually, we came here to ask you about an employee of yours."

"Oh, okay. Well, please sit down."

"Um, I think we'll stand." The man's breath smelled like tobacco and it was making her nauseous.

"Please sit down, miss. Believe me, I don't bite!"

"Uh…"

"Come on, Lois. It's okay." Clark coaxed her into a chair.

"So what do you two want to know?"

"Well, one of your employees is reported missing," stated Clark.

"Yeah, Marilyn. So?"

"Well, we just wanted to know a little bit about the last time you saw her. Was she with anyone else? Did she exhibit any weird behavior?"

"Hmm…well, all I do know was that she was out on a call when she was reported missing."

"Did you see the guy who picked her up?"

"Yeah, but not too well, though. He was dressed all in black and he had a five o'clock shadow. And get this, the guy didn't want to pay in cash. He paid with jewelry instead!"

Lois looked back at her husband. "Hey, do you think…"

"I dunno, maybe. Hold on a minute." Clark took his cell phone out of his coat pocket and dialed the Daily Planet newsroom.

"Jimmy? Hey, could you give me an update on Mazik Jewelers? Okay. Uh-huh. Yeah. Okay. Yeah. Fine. Thanks, Jimmy!" Clark hung up the phone.

"Jimmy said that Mazik Jewelers had another break in last night."

"Oh my! They're probably…"

"…connected," Clark said as he finished Lois' sentence.

"Well, I for one don't want no stinkin robber and/or kidnapper as a patron at my establishment. If you know what I mean!"

"Yes, we understand. So that's why we're going to track this man down so he can be thrown into jail," Lois reassured.

"So, thank you for your time and information. It really helped us out." Clark got up to leave and Lois followed.

"Hey, wait a minute! Baby cakes!"

"Baby cakes? I do have a name, you know."

"Oh, yeah. What is it? I forgot."

"Lois Lane."

"Oh, yeah, Ms. Lane. Please stay, because I have some business to discuss with you."

"Business?"

"Yeah. So, please sit down."

Lois and Clark returned to their seats.

"Before we discuss anything, I just have to compliment you on your legs."

"My legs?"

"Oh, yeah! Those are the nicest stems I've ever seen!"

"Uh, thank you, I think."

Clark was becoming annoyed. "Did you just keep us after so you could compliment Ms. Lane on her legs???"

"Oh, no. I've got a little business proposal for 'Little Miss Sweet Thing' over there!"

"Excuse me? And can you please stop calling me pet names?"

"Oh, sorry about that, Ms. Lane, or Lois. Is it all right if I call you Lois?"

"Well, I…"

"Good. Now Lois, babe. How about you and I form a partnership?"

"A partnership?"

"Yeah. With a body like yours and legs like that, you could go far!"

"Oh, God…NO!"

"Oh, yeah, baby cakes. You could make a lot of money off that body. You're just what the doctor ordered!" The man winked.

Clark slammed his wrists on the desk. "EXCUSE ME. BUT THAT'S MY WIFE YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT HERE!"

"Well, why didn't you say so, buddy! We can split the profits, three-ways. Believe me, I don't mind, as long as it's all fair."

"Okay. THAT'S IT!!!"

"Clark…it's okay. Please calm down!"

"No, Lois. I'm not going to calm down! He wants to use my wife as a hooker, for heaven's sake!!!"

"Well, you of all people should know the phrase 'if you got it, flaunt it.' What do you say to that, Mr. G.Q.?" the man asked.

That was it for Clark. The jerk had pushed the final button. He threw himself over the desk and jumped on top of the man.

"CLARK!"

The men started to fight. Clark was obviously stronger than the other guy, so he was getting the most punches in.

"Clark, please stop. It's not worth it!"

"Lois, get away! I don't want you to get hurt! Stand back! Arrgh!"

While Clark was trying to push Lois to safety, the man took advantage of his vulnerability. He punched Clark square in the jaw. A tiny bit of blood trickled down from his bottom lip.

"Clark! You're bleeding!" Lois cried as she ran over to him and tried to wipe the blood away.

"Lois, please! NO! I'm okay. I don't want to see you get hurt!"

"But Clark!"

"GO LOIS! GO!" Clark threw off his jacket and flung it across the tent. Lois picked it off the ground and wrapped it around her shoulders. She buttoned the jacket so it clung tightly to her chest. Tears were rolling down her face. She knew that Clark would give up his life for her, but she just didn't want to see him do it.

She was watching her husband struggling on the floor when she found his cell phone lying next to her. She picked it up. She was going to call Inspector Henderson. Maybe he could help.

"Inspector Henderson, this is Lois Lane from the Daily Planet. Clark is in trouble. Yes. Yes. No. We're located on the corner of 8th and Clifton Street. He's in a tent marked Lulu's Place. Okay, thanks."

Inspector Henderson and the same men who carried Clark off to the jail were inside the tent in a matter of minutes. They found Lois huddled on the floor with Clark's jacket.

"Lois?"

"Huh? Oh, Inspector, am I glad to see you! Clark's over there fighting with that nasty man. He's angry over the fact that the guy tried to pimp me."

"Yes, I can see that. And as much as you're going to hate me for this, I'm going to have to ask you to leave."

"What?"

"It's for precautionary reasons. I don't want any more people to get hurt. And if he has a gun, I…"

"A gun?!" Lois interrupted.

"Lois, I'm not saying he has a gun, I just want to be careful. It's part of my job description."

"But…"

"Lois, please. Just follow the kind man outside and Clark will be with you shortly."

A young officer walked up to Lois and gently pulled on her arm. "Come along, ma'am."

"No. I…"

"Lois, please! If Clark was here, he'd want you to be safe, too!"

While the officer led Lois out of the tent, Henderson tried to break up the fight. Clark had the man pushed up against the wall while he punched him in the stomach.

"Okay, fellas, that's enough!"

"And take that and that and that! This is for being such a jerk and bastard for hitting on my wife! Heck, it's for all of the other women you've screwed over!"

"I said, THAT'S ENOUGH, Kent!" Henderson grabbed both of his arms and pulled them back.

"Hey!"

"Kent, if you don't calm down right now, I'll be forced to arrest you for real this time."

Clark's muscles relaxed.

"Wait a minute, where's Lois? Oh my God, where's Lois??? Oh my God, they took her away!!!! No!!!!!!!!"

"KENT! Calm down!"

"LOIS!!!!!!"

"Okay, I'm sorry if I have to resort to this, but you leave me no choice!" Inspector Henderson brought back his fist and punched Clark right in the stomach. Clark doubled over in pain.

"Ahhh…" he wailed.

"Maybe now you'll listen to me. Lois is safe. She's waiting outside for you. One of my guys will lead you to her while I arrest our friend here!"

Another officer showed up and Clark put his arm around him for support. Just one look at Clark and you could tell that he had been in a fight. His shirt was ripped, his hair was a mess, and he had dried up blood on his chin. Clark was also limping a bit, but it was nothing too major. His opponent was different. His hair was messy and his shirt was torn to threads. He had a black eye and blood still trickled from his lips.

The officer slowly led Clark out of the tent. Clark saw Lois standing next to one of the squad cars.

"Lois!"

"Clark!"

Clark almost fell as he ran over to embrace his wife. He wrapped his arms around her body and wouldn't let go.

"Lois…I thought they took you away…"

"No, honey. They didn't. Now hush. You need to rest."

"Lois…"

"I know. I know." Lois started brushing her fingers through his hair. Clark jerked.

"Oh my God! I think he's losing consciousness!"

An attending paramedic walked up. "Ma'am, it's okay. Your husband's just a little weak. Is this your car?"

"Yes."

A couple of men took Clark out of Lois' arms.

"Hey, what are you doing?"

"It's okay, ma'am," he said. "We're just moving your husband into the car for you. We'll secure him in the back-seat so he can rest as you drive home."

"Okay."

Moments later, Inspector Henderson and his men were dragging 'the boss' out of his office.

"Well, you two just made my job a lot easier!"

"What do you mean?" Lois asked.

"This here is 'Baby Daddy.'"

"'Baby Daddy'?"

"Yeah, well, 'sugar' was already copyrighted. Anyway, he's the head of the biggest 'nightlife' ring here in Metropolis. We've been trying to catch this bloody mess here for ages!"

"Are you going to press charges?"

"Against your husband, no. Your husband's a hero. He not only caught one of the top ten guys of 'America's Most Wanted,' but he also taught him a very valuable lesson!"

"Wow."

"Yeah, so when you see Clark again, tell him I said thanks and that it really made my day. I might even get promoted for this!"

"Well, okay!" Lois laughed.

"Thanks so much, Inspector, for getting Clark out of there."

"No, Lane, thank you!"

***

Lois went to the back of the Jeep. Clark was lying across the backseat. He had his eyes closed, but it still looked like he was in some pain.

"Clark, sweetie? Are you okay?"

"Hmm…"

"Clark, it's me…Lois."

"Oh, Lois! Hellooooooo." He smiled.

"Jeez, you must be more hurt then I thought you were. You're so out of it!"

"No. Actually, the kind paramedic lady gave me some medication to get rid of the pain. I think they're finally kicking in!"

"Oh, great! I'm going to be stuck with a drunk husband for the rest of the day!" Lois threw her arms in the air. She wasn't being serious, because at the same time she grinned at Clark.

"Hehehe…" Clark answered back.

***

"Okay, honey. We're home now."

Lois returned to the back of the Jeep to free Clark from the confines of the backseat. He was even worse than before. Clark was so out of it that he kept pointing at the ceiling while Lois took off his seat belts.

"Okay, Clark, come on. Here we go."

Fortunately, Clark was with it enough to be able to get himself out of the car. Clark was a big man and Lois really didn't want to work up a sweat trying to get him out of her vehicle.

Clark was still a bit wobbly, so he leaned on Lois' shoulders. "I like you Lois! You're really swell!"

"Thanks," Lois said as she burst out laughing.

"What?" Clark asked between snickers.

"It's just that I'm figuring I'll probably get a crash course in Parenting 101 tonight."

"Hehehe…" he laughed.

"Then again, if I have my way with you, you'll be feeling like an adult in no time!"

"Huh?"

"Oh, never mind. Just follow me."

Lois unlocked the door to the brownstone and Clark followed.

"Come on," Lois said as she grabbed his hand.

"Where are we going?"

"You'll see. Now follow me."

Lois led Clark to the bathroom.

"What???"

"We're, well, actually, you're going to have a nice and relaxing bubble bath."

"Lois, I don't think that's a good idea. I've taken showers since I was a little boy. I don't want to sit in a bathtub and just 'relax'!"

"Well, tonight you're going to try something new. And believe me, you won't regret it," Lois purred.

"But…"

"Hush now, Clark." Lois turned on the hot water as she unbuttoned Clark's shirt. "There you go." She took it off and let it fall to the floor.

"To make you feel a little more relaxed, I'm going to use your favorite scent." Lois picked up a bottle of cucumber oil and poured some in the water.

"Now drop your pants and get in!"

"What?"

"You heard me. Drop your pants and get in! I'll be back in a minute."

"Lois, I really don't want to," Clark said as he fidgeted with his belt buckle.

"Do I have to undress you like a little kid?"

"Well…" Clark raised an eyebrow.

"Don't tempt me Kent!"

***

Lois went into bedroom to change. She returned to the bathroom where she found Clark relaxing in the bathtub. He had his eyes closed and his chest rose and fell in slow, methodical beats.

"I knew you'd see it my way."

"Well, you know how cucumber oil drives me wild, so in essence, I couldn't resist!"

Clark opened his eyes so he could give his wife a kiss when his mouth fell open. "WOW! You changed!"

Lois was wearing really short, tight-fitting, denim shorts, along with one of Clark's gray football shirts from college. In the right hand corner were the words written in blue: 'Property of the Midwestern State U. Steers.' On the back of the shirt was the name Kent and the number eleven.

"I hope you don't mind me wearing this, honey. It's just that your clothing is so comfortable!" Lois gave herself a hug and sighed.

"Hmm…I haven't seen that sweatshirt in years! It kinda reminds me of Lana."

"Clark!"

"Just kidding!" Clark chuckled.

"I swear, Kent, if you weren't in that bathtub right now, you'd be in immense pain!" Lois picked up a washcloth and hit him in the head with it.

"Hey!"

"That's for mentioning Lana. You know how jealous I can get." Lois leaned over the tub and started sucking on his lower lip. "It can get to the point where I never let go."

Lois brought her hand into the bath water and grabbed Clark's left leg. Clark groaned.

"So you like that, huh?"

"Mmm…I keep waiting for the part where you slip off that shirt and join me."

Lois laughed as she started tracing his well-defined pecs with her finger. "Actually, I kinda like this. You sitting here, naked and vulnerable. Me, out here, fully dressed, in the driver's seat…"

Clark's eyes widened.

"You didn't think your 'little tornado' had a playful side? Well, babe, you ain't seen nothing yet!" Lois remarked. She brought his mouth up to hers and kissed it full. Lois ran her tongue all over the roof of his mouth. Clark groaned as he returned the kisses.

"Oh God…Clark…"

"Make love to me, Lois."

"Mmmpf… No. I mean, not yet!"

"Oh no, not again!" Clark rolled his eyes.

"No, it's not that. It's not like I'm not in the mood, or something. I just want to finish what I've started."

"You can, Lois, here with me in the tub."

"No, Clark. You've pampered me so much that now it's my turn!"

"Okaay…" Clark sighed.

"Just relax, Clark. And I'll take care of everything." Lois pulled the washcloth out of the soapy water and proceeded to wash his face. With every rub, she leaned over and kissed that part of his face. "Hmm…there we go."

"Thanks, honey. I was beginning to get real sick of feeling dried up blood on my face."

"No problem. The pleasure was all mine."

"I bet."

Seeing Clark completely naked and soaking in a bathtub made her libido run amuck. She watched the water drip off his chest and it put her in a mystical trance. She completely forgot what she was doing as she laid her lips upon his flesh.

"Uh, Lois?" he moaned. "Lois…umpf…I thought you said you wanted to finish what you started?"

"Hmm…oh, yeah…I… Oh My God!" Lois pushed herself away from the bathtub.

"What?" Clark asked.

"I…you…me… You actually saw what I what I was doing?"

"Um, yeah."

"Okay. God, I thought I was just dreaming." Lois blushed.

"Well, that must have been some dream, because I had it, too, and I was awake!" Clark laughed.

"Yeah, well, that tells you something."

"It sure does! It tells me how irresistible I am!" Clark let out a small sigh as he leaned back in the tub and brought his arms behind him.

"Don't flatter yourself!" Lois smiled.

"Ha, ha! But it's true!"

"No comment," Lois purred.

"Oh, come on, don't deny it, Lois! I know how much you want me! That last display of affection definitely proved it to me."

"Clark, could we please stop talking about this?! I have a job to finish."

"Yeah, some job." Clark winked.

"Clark!" Lois giggled.

"Okay, okay. I'll be good."

"Fine. Now bend over."

"Excuse me?"

"I said, bend over. I want to wash your back."

Clark moved slightly away from the edge of the tub and he leaned over. Lois dipped her hands in the sudsy water and rubbed them on his back. Clark moaned as Lois massaged his back. She touched every muscle, which seemed to tense up with excitement. She touched his back like a master guitar player, running her fingers up and down his spine.

Clark had clearly had enough of this. "Lois, enough!"

"What?"

Lois shrieked as Clark's arms shot out of the water and grabbed her by the waist. With all his might he pulled her into the bathtub so that she was lying on top of him. Lois coughed as she choked back the water that was getting in her mouth. She felt Clark's hands touch her thigh and then unbutton her shorts. He threw the shorts and they made a splatting noise as they hit the mirror.

Then his hands traveled up her shirt and she felt it disappear. She found it totally amazing how Clark could easily take off something that by now felt like second skin, particularly since they were floundering around like salmon trying to swim upstream. "Clark?" she coughed. "Clark, are you insane?"

"Oh, Lois!"

"Clark!" she yelled as she slapped him in the face. "Snap out of it!"

"Huh? What? Oh my gosh." Clark looked down at Lois who was lying on top of him in only a bra and underwear.

"I did all of that?"

"Yes. And no thanks to you, I almost drowned! This isn't 'Pretty Woman' you know! Sheesh!"

"Sorry…" Clark said as he lowered his eyes.

"That's okay." Lois climbed out of the tub. "I think we both just got a little carried away. I'd really enjoy making love to you right now, but not in a bathtub! I don't want to have back problems for the next few weeks!"

"Again, I'm sorry."

"It's fine, Clark. Now why don't you go get dressed and I'll change. We can go into the kitchen and have a little snack before we have that nightcap I think we both deserve."

"Okay," Clark said as he lowered his lips. He was giving her the 'puppy dog' look.

"Ahh, jeez. Now you're giving me one of the looks that made me fall in love with you in the first place!"

"Sorry…" Clark said as he continued his 'puppy dog' look.

Lois walked over to him and kissed him full on the lips. "There. Now does that make you feel better?"

"Yeah," Clark smiled.

"Next time we just have to remember to be more careful. Or we could just get a bigger bathtub!" Lois grinned.

***

Lois went into the bedroom and took off her bra and underwear. She found a towel and dried herself off. She only put her robe on. She knew that she wouldn't be wearing it for long, and why bother with clothing when it just got in the way of what she and Clark really wanted.

Lois walked down the stairs toward the kitchen. She found Clark sitting on the couch. He was also wearing his robe. Lois looked back at him and smiled as she walked into the kitchen.

A few minutes later, Lois came out of the kitchen carrying a plate full of goodies. She brought out a plate full of Twinkies and Ho-Ho's, Clark's favorite food. When Lois reentered the living room, Clark was resting his eyes. "Honey? I brought us a snack."

"Great!" Clark smiled as he opened his eyes. But that smile soon faded as he looked at what was sitting on the coffee table. "What's this?"

"It's your favorite snack food, silly."

"It was my favorite snack food, Lois. It was, Lois!" Clark got up and started pacing back and forth. He continually ran his fingers through his hair.

"Is something wrong?"

"Yes. Yes, there is, Lois!" Clark's voice rose.

"Okay. Well, sit down and let's talk."

Clark wouldn't move. His breathing deepened.

"Clark, please sit down," Lois pleaded as she pulled on his arm.

"Don't touch me! I can sit myself down," Clark snapped.

Lois sat down at one end of the couch and Clark sat on the other side. She blinked back the tears as she looked over at Clark. She had been crying a lot in front of Clark and she didn't want him to know that she was scared. "Clark? Please tell me what's going on. You're acting weird."

"Weird, Lois? This isn't weird. This is anger and frustration coming together! I'm sick of you thinking that I'm Superman! Lois, you're an intelligent woman. You should know how I can't eat that stuff anymore! Why do you think I spend hours in the gym? I have this fear that you'll leave me if anything changes."

"What?"

"I've also grown accustomed to this body, so I want to maintain it."

"Excuse me, Clark, but could you back up just a bit? What do you mean, you have this fear that I'd leave you? I love you so much Clark; you're my world. I could lose everything else and still go on with just you!"

"Yeah, well, I used to think that, too…that was, until Superman came back into the picture. You can't stop talking about him. It's almost like you long for him. I remember when we first met, you were obsessed with him! Maybe your feelings for him are resurfacing."

"Clark! Are you that dumb? You're talking like Superman is another person. Well, news flash Clark, YOU'RE SUPERMAN!"

"Arggh! See, this is my point! Lois, I was Superman! Do you hear me? Superman is no more! But here you are still stuck in this dreamland! Everyone else has moved on, so why can't you? All of this nonsense started ever since you accidentally bumped your head. I told you to get some extra rest, but no, you wouldn't want to do something like that! You'd rather work with Damian on a stupid story with no leads!"

"Hey, I…"

"Quiet, Lois. I'm on a roll here. I ask you to see a doctor, but no, you say it's fine and go to sleep! It was my birthday, Lois! We were supposed to celebrate! I felt so guilty and I still do. I should have taken you to the doctor when I had a chance!"

"Clark! That never happened!"

Clark threw his hands up in the air. "I feel like I'm talking to a brick wall! It must be that mild amnesia coming back to haunt me."

"Clark…" Lois' lower lip quivered. "I'm sorry…"

"Yes, you say you're sorry, but this is just something else to add to the hell you and I have both been experiencing. The hell that Damian has put us both through!"

Lois lowered her eyes and started picking at some fuzz on the couch at the mention of his name. Clark got off the couch and picked up the dessert plate.

"Darn it, Lois! Are you listening to me? I don't think I can take it any more!"

Lois screamed when Clark dropped the plate and it shattered into a million pieces. There was broken glass and Hostess products all over the floor. Clark heard Lois' scream and he immediately ran over to her. She was crying into her hands.

"Lois? Honey…I'm so sorry…"

Clark touched her cheek with his hand and, without even thinking twice, she slapped him across the face.

"Lois, please. I'm sorry!"

Lois shoved him aside as she got up off the couch and ran upstairs to the bedroom.

***

Lois climbed onto the bed and burst out crying. She found the nearest pillow and buried her face in it. Clark stood in the doorway and watched her cry. Lois' back went up and down in quick spurts. It almost looked like she was hiccuping.

He quietly shut the door behind him and tiptoed toward the bed. He sat down next to Lois and started stroking her hair.

"Lois, honey? I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to scare you. Lois, please forgive me. Lois? Do you hear me? Lois?"

Lois lifted her head out of the pillows and stared at Clark with red, swollen eyes. "Get out!"

"Honey?"

"I said, GET OUT!" Lois shoved Clark, so he fell off the bed.

"Hey!" Clark said as he stood up.

"If you don't want me to make a scene, then leave!" She shoved Clark toward the door and opened it. "And stay out! I don't ever want to see you again!" With one final shove he was out the door and Lois slammed it in his face.

Lois sat back on the bed and rummaged through her purse. She was trying to look for some Kleenex to dry her eyes with. Instead of Kleenex, she came across an unfamiliar business card. "Where did this come from?" She pulled the card out of her purse. On the card was this: Damian Johansen, Daily Planet reporter. *Damian must have slipped it in my purse,* she thought. Even though it was 9pm, Lois had a sudden urge to pick up the phone and dial the number.

Still dressed in only her robe, she leaned up against the pillows that sat on the bed and picked up the phone. Before she dialed the number, she noticed how unusually quiet it was in the brownstone. She thought by now Clark would be back again trying to beat down the door. But there was nothing; no sound came from outside. It was kind of scary to Lois. It was scary enough that she wanted to check on Clark. She wanted to check on her husband except she was afraid enough that he might be waiting outside to jump her or something.

"Hello? Daily Planet."

"Damian?"

"Lois! How are you? You sound sad. Have you been crying?"

"I have been crying, Damian." Lois felt the water faucets being turned on again.

"Ah, Lois. Please don't cry. Tell me what's wrong. Is it Clark again?"

"It's always Clark," Lois answered shakily.

"Oh no."

"Clark and I got in another really huge fight and most of it had to do with you."

"Figures."

"Yeah, I know. But personally I don't think this is the best place to be talking to you about Clark."

"Well, why don't you stop by the Planet and visit me? I'm the only one here, so we'll have plenty of space and privacy to talk."

"Yeah, I think I will! No matter how I'm feeling, the Planet always lifts my spirits! I guess I'm more like Perry then I thought."

"Okay." Damian laughed.

"I need to get dressed first, so I'll see you in about fifteen minutes."

"Okay, that's fine. I'll see you then."

***

Lois got dressed and then walked downstairs to the living room. She picked up her bag that was lying near the entryway. The gooey mess that Clark had caused by dropping the plate was still there, but he was nowhere to be found. Lois opened the front door and took one last look around the room before closing it behind her.

***

It was an odd feeling going back to the Planet at this time of night. The streets were all deserted around the building and the lights were all off except for one or two of them. Those lights used to be Lois and Clark's, before they were married. After they were married, things gradually changed. They found themselves spending less and less time at the Planet. They had more important things to do, mainly in the "male and female bonding" department.

Now there was only one light. Damian's light. When he saw Lois, he smiled.

***

Clark ran his hands up and down the arm of Lois' jacket. He brought the cuff up to his mouth and slowly kissed it. He was in the walk-in closet. He had been crying. A single tear still ran down his cheek. That tear was the only thing he had left of Lois. It was a symbol of their love. Clark hid in the closet because he didn't want Lois to see him like this. As strong as he was, he never wanted Lois to see him cry. There were only two other times he remembered crying.

The first time he cried was after he learned about Lois' engagement to Lex. The last time he cried was after Mayson died. He didn't "love" her as he did Lois, but he still cared for her as a friend. Both of the times he broke down were in the privacy of his apartment. Things were different now…

***

"Lois…I'm so sorry. If you want to break up our friendship, then I totally understand. I'd do anything to ensure a happy life for you and Clark."

"No, no, Damian." Lois started to cry again, so Damian handed her a Kleenex. "I'd never do that to you. I don't know how I would've kept it together without you." Lois sniffled.

"Ah, Lois. Please don't cry! I hate seeing a woman cry, especially you." Damian took a Kleenex and wiped her eyes with it.

"You know, you remind me so much of my husband. Well, at least how he used to be…" Lois brought her hand up to Damian's forehead and brushed back the hair that was falling in his eyes. Damian grabbed onto both of her hands and held onto them tightly. Lois stared into his eyes and he smiled.

***

Clark listened to the life outside the closet door. It was quiet. In fact, it was too quiet. He decided to vacate the closet so he could check on Lois. At a time like this, he sure wished he had his x-ray vision.

He opened the door and stepped outside. Clark took a few seconds to look around the room. Lois wasn't there. He looked toward the front door and noticed that her bag was gone.

***

Jimmy was back in the dark room developing pictures from the motorcycle show. He looked down at his watch. It was getting late, so he decided to lock up the dark room for the night.

He walked out of the room and locked the door. Jimmy was heading toward the elevators when something stopped him. He saw Lois and Damian hugging.

"And remember, Lois, please call me if you ever need someone to talk to…"

"Thanks, Damian."

Jimmy's mouth fell open. Clark would flip if he knew about Lois and Damian. He wasn't sure what he was interrupting, but he was glad he did it. They were still hugging when Jimmy cleared his throat. Lois looked up and jumped away from Damian.

"Jimmy!"

"Uh, hi, Lois. I'm sorry that I interrupted you two."

"Oh, no, Jimmy. We weren't doing anything…uh, I mean, we were just talking."

"Okay."

"I mean nothing else happened, okay?" Lois interrupted.

"Yeah, okay. Like I said, I'm sorry I interrupted you two. I'll leave you two to your work and I'll see you tomorrow."

"Okay, goodnight, Jimmy."

"Goodnight, Lois."

Jimmy entered the elevator and pushed the L button. The elevator brought him to the lobby. Jimmy walked out of the Planet and headed over to the pay phones.

***

Clark started cleaning up the gooey mess on the floor. He still couldn't believe that he had done that, especially in front of Lois. He was usually in complete control of his temper—that was, until Damian showed up. His thoughts were interrupted when the phone rang.

"Kent."

"C.K., this is Jimmy."

"Hey, Jimmy, how's it going?"

"Everything's fine…well, at least for me, anyway. I'm not sure if I should tell you this, but I think you have a right to know."

"Know what?"

"Well, as I was leaving the darkroom, I saw Lois and Damian hugging."

"WHAT?"

"I don't think they were doing anything else, but let's just say they were looking closer then just Planet colleagues."

"Oh my God…"

"I felt you had a right to know this, not because I wanted you to get angry, but because I think Lois needs to get away from him! I used to think you were crazy for excluding Damian out of our circle. But C.K., you didn't see the look in that man's eyes. It was evil, pure evil. He looked like he was more than enjoying the notion of his arms wrapped around Lois' body."

For a moment, Clark's end of the phone line was quiet. It was taking him a few seconds to completely process what Jimmy had just observed.

"C.K., are you all right?"

"Yeah, Jimmy. Yeah, I'm fine."

"C.K.? I think we should get her away from that guy as soon as possible, don't you think? Just tell me how I can help and I'll be more than happy to do it!"

"All I know right now is that I've got to get to the Planet as soon as possible! Unfortunately, Lois took the Jeep so…"

"…you want me to pick you up! That's fine, C.K. I should be at your place in a matter of minutes."

"Great! Well, I'll see you in a few then, and thanks!"

"No problem. That's what friends are for."

Clark rushed upstairs and stripped off his robe. He found the nearest clothes and put them on. He didn't even care if they didn't match. Although Clark didn't have to worry about ever looking bad.

Clark was amazed how quickly he threw everything together. He hadn't gotten dressed that quickly since he was Superman.

Jimmy was outside of the brownstone in a matter of minutes. Clark grabbed his black leather jacket and stepped outside. Jimmy and Clark walked out to the front where Jimmy's motorcycle was stationed and Clark hopped on.

Jimmy sped all the way to the Planet. He went so fast that he cut his normal time by five minutes. It also helped that there was no traffic on the streets at that time.

"Thanks a lot, Jimmy," Clark said as he got off the bike.

"No problem, C.K.," Jimmy said as he started to get off his motorcycle and accompany Clark.

"Uh, Jimmy, no." Clark pushed him back down on the bike.

"I want you to go home now. I don't want there to be a big scene in there. I just want to get my wife and go!"

"Are you sure, C.K.? I mean, will you be okay in there?"

"Yeah, Jimmy. I'll be fine. Damian doesn't scare me at all," he stated.

"Okay, well goodnight, C.K.!"

"Goodnight."

"Let me know how it goes."

"Okay, I will."

***

Clark stepped through the elevators and found Lois and Damian sitting together. They were laughing when Damian took his hand and brushed it across her forehead. Clark's blood ran cold. He created a fist and kept hitting it against his other hand. Clark went down the stairs and walked over to Damian's desk. He stood behind Lois and cleared his throat.

"Ahem. Hello, Lois."

"What?" Lois said as she turned her chair around and faced her husband. She covered her mouth with her hand as she stared into his eyes. "Oh my gosh…"

"Lois, I think it's time to go home." He reached over and started pulling on her shirt sleeve.

"Huh?" Lois questioned.

Damian slapped his hand away. "Hey, buddy, Lois and I are talking here!"

"Don't touch me, Damian! You really have no clue who you're dealing with here!"

"Oh, I think I do!" Damian retorted.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"It doesn't matter. All that matters is that you're interrupting us."

"Come on, Lois, let's go!" Clark tugged on her arm again.

"No, Clark. I told you I don't want to see you again and I meant it."

"You don't mean that."

"Yes, I do," Lois responded as she stood up and walked over to Clark. "So Clark, please leave before things get out of hand. I don't want to go through this madness again."

"Lois…" Clark said as he cupped her hands within his. "Lois, listen to what you're saying here. I'm your husband; you're my wife. We love each other. That's all we need."

"Yes, Clark, I do love you."

"Well…"

"I love you, but that's why I'm doing this. I can't go through this any more. It's tearing us apart."

"Lois…"

"Clark, please leave. Maybe we can talk later, but not right now."

"No, Lois. I'm not going to leave until I have you!"

"Clark!" Lois pleaded.

"Don't tell me you don't feel something when I do this…" Clark pulled Lois into his body and kissed her mouth hard. His tongue intertwined with hers. At first Lois struggled, but as Clark's hands explored the contours of her back, she relaxed. She moaned as Clark went deeper and deeper into her mouth.

"Lois!" Damian yelled.

Lois pulled away from Clark's lips and slowly turned toward him. To both men it looked like she was moving in slow motion. Clark and Damian watched every inch of her body move. Clark sighed as Lois' hair lightly brushed his soft lips.

"Lois, what are you doing?" Damian asked.

"Hmm…?"

"This man's insane, remember?"

"Damian, shut up! Lois isn't listening to you!" Clark cupped her cheek in his hand and laid his lips again upon hers.

"Mmm…no. Clark! He's right! I shouldn't be doing this…please go!"

"Lois, don't listen to that! He's just trying to brainwash you!"

"I…I…I…" Lois stuttered.

"Come here, NOW, Lois!"

She screamed as Damian grabbed her by the waist and sat her on his lap. Clark moved over to take her.

"Don't step any closer, buddy!" Damian retorted.

"Damian, let me go!!! Please!"

"As you wish, my dear." Damian let go of her. Unfortunately, this caused Lois to lose her footing and she fell to the ground. Clark ran over to help her when Damian moved his chair in order to block him. Clark grabbed him by the shirt collar and said, "I don't think so!" He let Damian go, and with one push he moved him and his chair clear across the Pit.

"Lois, are you all right?" Clark asked as he brushed the hair out of her eyes.

"Hmm…Clark?"

"Yes, sweetheart. Is everything okay?"

"Yeah. Yes. I think I'm fine. My head hurts a bit, though."

"Okay, well, come on. Let's go home." Clark picked up Lois from the floor and carried her off in his arms.

Clark walked passed Damian and stared at him. "I don't want to hear or see you touch her again, because if you do, next time you'll be getting a one-way ticket to the ER!"

***

Clark drove Lois and himself home. Lois' eyes were fluttering. It looked like she was about to pass out. He carried her upstairs to the bedroom and laid her down on the bed.

"Clark?"

"Shh… It's okay now. Just rest." Clark took off his jacket and shoes and joined Lois on the bed. He laid her in his arms and started stroking her hair. Lois' eyes closed.

***

Wednesday morning was finally here. Only three more days until the weekend. It was hump day. Lois woke up in Clark's arms. She grunted a bit as she got off him. She climbed off the bed and walked into the bathroom.

Lois stripped off her clothing and stepped into the shower. She let the hot water cascade down her back. She let out a sigh as the water hit her chest and ran down her legs. She let the water soak her head as she tasted the water dripping from her red lips. It felt so good to be in the shower, to let the showerhead massage her back. She hadn't felt this good since the last time she and Clark had taken that "little Safari."

Minutes later, Lois turned off the water and stepped outside. She grabbed a white towel and wrapped it around her curvaceous body. Then she opened the bathroom door to let out all of the steam. She looked over at Clark on the bed. He was still asleep. *Thank goodness!* Lois took out her hairdryer and proceeded to dry her hair. The sound from the hairdryer caused Clark to stir. He opened his eyes and noticed that Lois was gone. He noticed that the bathroom door was ajar, so he got off the bed and walked into the bathroom.

"Lois?" Her body was bent over as she dried her hair.

"Lois…"

"What?" she barked as she turned off the dryer and remained bent over.

"It's just that you look good, really good!"

Lois noticed Clark staring at her cleavage coming out of her towel. She wanted to hit him, but she was afraid that her towel would fall. Instead, she shot him a stern look.

"What, Lois? I mean, come on! You do look really good and I haven't seen that in a long time…"

"Oh God…" Lois held onto her towel and shoved Clark out the door as she closed it in his face.

"Hey! Lois? Lois?"

She turned the dryer back on and resumed drying her hair.

***

Minutes later, Lois walked out of the bathroom, fully dressed. She was wearing a white blouse, a tan vest, and tan skirt. Clark was back on the bed and he watched Lois' legs as she walked across the room.

"The bathroom's free, Clark. And my advice to you is that you take a cold shower…a very cold shower!" Lois commented as she picked up her shoes and walked out the door.

***

Lois was applying her lipstick when Clark walked down the stairs. He walked up behind her and started kissing her neck.

"Hmm…sweetheart, are you almost ready to go?"

"Stop it, Clark!" Lois said as she pushed his lips off her neck. "Nice tie, by the way."

"What?" Clark asked. He was wearing a blue tie full of red hearts. "I'm in love and I want to show the world!"

Lois rolled her eyes at his comment.

"Well, um…how about we go now."

"Whatever," Lois snapped.

***

"You look really beautiful today, Lois," Clark said as he drove the Jeep.

Lois stared out the passenger door window.

"Lois?" Clark asked as he touched her shoulder.

"Don't!" Lois knocked his hand away.

"Lois?" Clark's voice shook.

Lois grumbled as she continued to stare out the window. The rest of the trip to the Planet was spent in silence.

When Lois and Clark both exited the elevator, Lois headed straight for Perry's office.

"Hey, kids! You're just the people I wanted to see!"

"Well, actually, Perry, uh…we need to talk…"

"Lois, there's no time for that, honey," Perry interrupted. "Bobby just called and he wants you and Clark to meet him at the Americana Caf‚. He has some breaking news on the jewelry robberies."

"But Perry, I…"

"There's no time, honey. You have to go now! You can tell me when you get back. Now scat!" Perry gave Lois a small shove and she collided into Clark who was standing in front of her. He smelled really good.

Clark lifted Lois' head off his chest. "Lois, are you all right?"

"I'll live," Lois answered as she moved his hand off her chin. "Perry says we have to go to the Americana Caf‚ to meet with Bobby, so let's get going. We'll take a cab."

***

"Okay, here's the chicken cacciatore, teriyaki rice bowl, and spaghetti. Who ordered what?"

"It's all for him," Lois answered as she pointed at Bobby.

"It is?"

"Of course, Uncle Mike. One thing you've got to learn about Bobby is that he's a bottomless pit!"

"Oh, so that's it! I wondered why you guys were ordering lunch food during breakfast." Mike laughed.

Lois smiled.

"Well, why don't I get you something, sweetie."

"Actually, Uncle Mike, I'm not hungry."

"Well, you have to eat. I'll get you a muffin—a low fat muffin!"

"Okay."

"That's my girl," Mike said as he kissed Lois on the cheek. "I'll be back in a few."

"Mmm…yum. Nmphf… Hey, Lois, this stuff is great! Your uncle really knows how to cook!"

"Thanks, Bobby. Now could you please tell me why you dragged me here? I'm on a schedule, you know!"

"Okay. Well…I… have…a…potential…suspect to…add…to…your list," Bobby said between mouthfuls. He was eating from the three plates at the same time.

"Who?" Lois and Clark asked in unison.

"Hey, that's cool! How do you guys do that?"

"Never mind that, Bobby. Now spill!"

"Okay, Lois. Just one second. Sorry about that. I needed to swallow. Ahem!" Bobby cleared his throat.

"Bobby!" Lois and Clark yelled.

"Ha, ha! There you two go again!"

"OY!" Lois remarked as she started tapping her fingers on the table.

"Okay, okay. I guess this is the least I can do, since you fed me so well. I've doing a little digging on our friend, Damian. It seems that no one can confirm his whereabouts whenever a robbery at the jewelry store takes place."

Lois' mouth dropped open. "What?"

Clark smiled as he rubbed his hands together.

"Now, Lois, I'm not saying he's the thief, but he looks awfully suspicious. He's so suspicious that I think we should find out more about this Damian Johansen character."

"I knew it!" Clark yelled as he gave Bobby a high five.

Lois looked down at the table and rubbed her temples. She was getting a headache. Lois got out of her chair to leave.

"Sweetheart, is something wrong?" Clark inquired.

"I just have a headache, that's all. I'm going to go back to the Planet."

"Well, wait! Let me come back with you."

"No, Clark! No. Stay here with Bobby. I'll be okay."

"But Lois…"

"Clark, I said no. I'll see you later."

Lois was walking toward the curb when she bumped into her uncle.

"Honey, where are you going? You didn't get a chance to eat your breakfast."

"Oh, I'm sorry, Uncle Mike. I have a headache, so I'm going to go back to the Planet."

"Do you need some aspirin?"

"No, no, I'm fine! I have a ton of work to do, so I'll talk to you later," Lois said as she leaned over and gave her uncle a kiss on the cheek.

Mike placed the muffin on the table. "Lois, I love you so much," he said as he gave a hug.

"I love you too."

"I miss seeing you, Lois, so please stop by more often."

"Okay, I will!"

***

Lois took a cab back to the Planet. She stepped out of the elevator and headed straight toward her desk. Perry was going over the paper layout when he saw Lois.

"Lois?"

"Hi, Perry."

"What are you doing here? I thought you were out with Clark."

"I was Perry. I just had a headache, so I decided to come back a little early."

"Well, honey, if you're not feeling good maybe you should go home."

"No, Perry. I'd better stay here. I have a lot to work to do."

"Lois, it's okay," Perry said as he laid his hands on her shoulders. "We can hold down the fort without you."

"Thanks, Perry, but I'd better get to work."

"Okay, honey. I'll see you later."

While Perry was heading back toward his office, Lois looked over at Clark's desk. It was empty, but she knew Clark would soon be back. Lois really didn't want to deal with him right now. She got out of her chair and picked up her bag. "Perry?"

"Yes?"

"I think I'm going to take some time off. I haven't done it in a while, so I think now is a good time."

"Okay."

"I'll see ya tomorrow, Chief!"

"See ya!"

Lois was walking toward the elevators when she bumped into Jimmy. "Jimmy, if Clark wonders where I am, tell him I went to The Fudge Castle!"

"Okay, Lois. Have fun!"

Lois smirked at Jimmy's comment.

***

About ten minutes later, Clark got back to the Planet. He looked all around for Lois, but she was nowhere to be seen. Even her bag was gone. Clark was about to go into Perry's office when Damian cornered him.

"What are you doing?" Clark asked.

"Well, um…I think we need to talk."

"We do?"

"Yes, so if it's all right with you, can we meet downstairs in the lobby? I'll buy you a latte or something."

"Okay," Clark said with an ounce of hesitation in his voice.

The two men took the Daily Planet elevator down to the lobby. Clark ordered a non-fat vanilla latte, while Damian ordered a cup of coffee.

Damian started. "Clark, I just want to apologize for my behavior last night. It was uncalled for. I guess with Bree missing, all my emotions are on overdrive."

"Okay," Clark replied as he drank his latte.

"I guess what I'm trying to say is that I'm sorry that I've come in between you and Lois. I tend to be a clinger and when I cling, it distracts people."

"Oh."

"Basically, I'm making this apology in hopes we can put this all behind us. You and Lois can go your way, I'll go mine."

"Well, you don't have to do that. Just remember that Lois needs her space."

"Done."

"Um, while we're on the road of apologies…" Clark started to say as he played with his fingers, "…I think I owe you one. Well, actually, try one hundred of them!" Clark and Damian laughed.

"But really, I'm sorry. I just went berserk when I saw you two together. I didn't know what to think. Lois told me time after time again that you two were just friends, but I didn't believe her. I hate myself for that."

"Clark, don't hate yourself. If I had a wife like Lois, I'd be feeling the same way. She's so beautiful and smart that I'd be cherishing her forever!"

"I do!"

"I know, so let's just forget this ever happened. It's water under the bridge."

"Great! That makes me feel better."

"Yeah, now you and Lois can work on patching things up," Damian remarked as he pat Clark on the back.

"I wish it were that simple," Clark added as he lowered his eyes. "Lois is so sick of me that she won't even talk to me. I told her how beautiful she was today and she still said nothing."

"Well, Clark, with the few times that I've been alone with her, there's no doubt in my mind that she loves you. So at least you have that to work with. Sometimes I'll be talking to her and she'll look like she's on another planet! Another time I was talking to her and she accidentally called me Clark!"

"Yeah, well, I know she loves me. I just need to find a way to get her attention and right now she doesn't want it."

"Hmm…well, I'm no Dr. Ruth, but has there been something special you two have shared? Something where you two have experienced blissful happiness?"

"Lois and I have had many moments. Actually, we've been very happy until this past weekend."

"Okay. Well, is there an event in your life that you'd like to recreate?"

"Hmm…" Clark took a moment to think. He flashed back to their wedding, to the time when they first met; their "almost first date." But the memory that stood out the most in his mind was their first date.

"I think that would have to be our first date," Clark answered Damian with a smile.

"There you go! Why don't you do something like that?"

"Yeah…yeah…yeah…" Clark stared off into the distance, thinking of all of the possibilities.

"What?"

"Oh, nothing. I just think I've thought of the perfect idea, so I need to get in touch with Lois ASAP!"

"Okay, well, good luck, my friend!"

"Yeah, thanks friend!" Clark yelled as he ran toward the elevators. As he reached the elevators, he bumped into Jimmy.

"Oh, hey, Jimmy," Clark said as he pulled him by the arm.

"You'd better make it quick, C.K.! I came back for my camera and I'm in quite a hurry!"

"Okay, that's fine. All I need to know is, have you seen Lois?"

"Why?"

"Well, I was talking to Damian and…"

"You were talking to Damian?!?" Jimmy interrupted. "What about last night?"

"Oh, we worked that out. Everything's fine. At least between Damian and me."

"It is?"

"Yeah, but I can tell you more about that later. Do you know where Lois is?"

"Um, yeah. I think she said something about The Fudge Castle."

"Oh, okay. Hmm…could you please drop this off?" Clark said as he scribbled something on a piece of paper. "I need Lois to get this as soon as possible!"

"Okay, C.K. That's fine. I can give this to Lois on the way to City Hall."

"Hey, thanks, Jimmy! I've to go talk to Perry, so I'll catch ya later!"

***

Jimmy hopped on his motorcycle and drove toward The Fudge Castle. He found Lois sitting around the circular chocolate bar. It looked like a normal bar except that the bartenders only served chocolate products. One of the most popular things to order were the strawberry daiquiris with a hint of chocolate.

When Jimmy walked up to Lois. She was sitting at the bar eating a Clark candy bar. She was clearly enjoying herself as she licked the chocolate and caramel off her fingers.

"Mmm…" she moaned as she stuck her finger in her mouth.

"Having fun with 'Clark' are we?" Jimmy piped in.

"Oh!" Lois yelped as her face turned a deep shade of red. She took the candy bar wrapper and crumbled it up as she threw it to the side.

Jimmy laughed.

"Well, um, Jimmy. What are you doing here?" Lois asked as she wiped the sweat from her brow.

"I just stopped by real quick to give you this," Jimmy said as he handed Lois the note. "Perry wants me to look up stuff at City Hall, so I'll see ya later!"

"Okay, Jimmy. See ya later!" Lois smiled as he ran out the door.

She held the note that Jimmy had just given her in the palm of her hand. It was from her husband and she wasn't sure if she should open it. Lois brought the piece of paper up to her nose. It smelled like him. It was Clark's favorite cologne. She sighed when she thought about how much she missed him. She missed smelling his cologne as she leaned into him; as they made love, body upon body.

"Oh, Clark!" she muttered to herself. She got up enough courage to open it.

Lois,

I hope you don't have any plans for tonight, because I have a surprise for you! See you later.

Love your husband, Clark

P.S. Don't worry about Perry. He told me we can come in later tomorrow! =)

*Hmm…I wonder what he's got planned?* Lois thought.

***

Lois looked down at her watch. It was 5pm. After hanging out at The Fudge Castle for a bit, she went back to the Planet to hang out at the coffee shop. She finished up her latte and headed out to her Jeep. She pulled out of the parking lot and slowly drove past the front of the Planet. She saw Clark coming out of the famous revolving doors.

"Oh, hi, Lois!"

"Hi," Lois added as she kissed him on the lips.

"Mmm…" Clark answered back. "Lois, honey, could you do me a favor?"

"Yeah, sure."

"Okay, good. Could you please go to the store and pick up some more bread and cereal? And maybe some champagne too! I have some more work to do, so I'll be home kinda late and this will really help me out."

"Okay."

"Thank you so much, sweetie. I don't know what I would do without you! I'll see you later, okay?"

"Okay, see you. Bye!"

"Bye, sweetie!"

Lois' eyes lowered as she rolled up the window. *I guess something came up, so they'll be no surprise.* Lois was slightly depressed because she was looking forward to spending some time with him. She stepped on the gas pedal and headed toward Costmart Groceries.

***

Lois walked up to the front door with a bag of groceries in her arms. She noticed that the door was slightly ajar and the light was on. "Clark? Clark? Hey, Clark, are you there?"

She walked through a door and headed for the kitchen and dropped the groceries off on the counter. "Arrgh! Don't tell me I forgot to lock the door this morning?!? No, no, no, Lois, you always lock the door. Maybe Clark stopped by and he forgot to lock it. Yeah, that's it," Lois reassured herself. She walked out of the kitchen and went back to the door to lock it. She locked it triple time.

Lois was a bit stressed, so she thought another hot shower would help her relax. She went upstairs to the bathroom and took off her clothes. She found a bottle of cucumber oil and started rubbing it all over her body. She was going to wait for Clark on the bed, wearing nothing but a smile, a smile that spread across her lips when she thought about rubbing her hands all over Clark's sexy muscles.

Lois finished with her shower. As she was toweling herself off, she remembered that she forgot to put away the groceries. "Ahh, the champagne!!!" She wrapped a towel around her body and quickly ran down the stairs.

She was stopped in her tracks when she heard something coming from the stereo. It was Dean Martin. "Wait, how did the stereo know that I like Dean Martin?" She walked into the kitchen and noticed that all of the groceries were gone. They were put away. Lois smiled. "Oh my gosh…it's Clark!" Lois whispered to herself. "Clark? Clark? You can come out now! I know it's you, silly!" Lois yelled.

There was no answer. "Hey, Clark, I'm standing here in only a towel!" Still nothing. "Um, honey, I'm downstairs and I'm completely naked! I'm naked and I'm waiting for you to take advantage of me!" Lois started to giggle at her last outburst. The giggling soon stopped when no Clark showed up. *Jeez, I was so sure that would get his attention! I must be going insane, or I need a vacation really bad!* Lois decided to leave that thought for later and return to the bathroom.

She went into the bedroom to search for something to wear until Clark came home. Lois was scrounging around in the drawer when something caught her eyes. Something red was peaking from under the cover sheet. She went over to the bed to investigate. It was red satin. In fact, the bed was made with red satin sheets. Lois brought the fabric up to her face and started rubbing it all over her neck and arms. She groaned as the silky fabric kissed her flesh.

By moving the sheets around, something else was exposed. Under the satin was a box. The box was addressed to her. Lois' eyes widened as she looked inside. It was her dress and everything down to her pantyhose, from her first date with Clark.

"WOW! That man is sure into detail!" Lois laughed to herself.

Included in the box was a simple note that read: PLEASE WEAR.

"That man never ceases to amaze me! I wonder what that wonderful husband of mine has planned now? I guess one way to find out is to put these clothes on." Lois walked back into the bathroom and shut the door.

***

Lois opened the door and looked at herself in the mirror. She looked exactly as she did on that special night except that her hair was slightly shorter. She fluffed her hair a bit with her fingers. Then she ran her hands up and down her thighs as she smoothed out her black dress. Lois smiled to herself as she looked at how short the dress really was. Tonight, Clark would be putty in her hands. She picked up her purse and was about to leave when the phone rang.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Lois. It's Damian! How are you?"

"Hi, Damian. I'm fine."

"I heard that you weren't feeling good today, so I called to check up on you."

"Aww, thanks, Damian, but I'm fine now."

"Okay, good. I'm really glad to hear that. By the way, have you seen Clark lately?"

"No, not lately. Why?"

"Oh, nothing. I was just wondering. We talked today and…"

"You and Clark talked?" Lois interrupted.

"Yep. I mean, it was really weird, but Clark and I both apologized to each other and now we're close friends!"

"Wow…"

"Yeah, I know, so if you see him, tell him I said hi. Perry has me working late, so I gotta get back to what I was doing."

"Okay, I will. See you tomorrow."

"Yeah, tomorrow."

CLICK!

Lois picked up her purse again and walked out the door. She shook her head in disbelief. *Clark and Damian, friends! Who would've thought…*

She went back downstairs. She was sure that Clark was waiting for her, but he wasn't. In fact, the brownstone was very quiet. Lois sighed as she stood in the entryway. She didn't know what to do. Suddenly, there was a knock on the door.

"Just a minute," Lois said as she undid all of the locks. "Oh my gosh…" Tears started falling as she looked at the sight standing before her outside the door.

"Am I too early?" Clark asked.

Lois laughed as she wiped the tears from her face. Clark pushed the door aside and gave Lois a hug. "Aww, sweetie, don't cry."

She broke away from Clark's embrace to look at him for a moment. He was wearing the exact same charcoal suit from their "first date." Clark looked really sexy, which excited Lois. She was very happy that she was married to the man.

"Wow…" she muttered under her breath.

"What?" Clark asked.

"Oh, I'm just glad this mascara is water proof!"

"I'm glad too," Clark added as he kissed her cheek. "But come on. We have things to do and sights to see!" Lois shrieked as Clark pulled her out of the door by her arms. He locked the door behind them as the happy couple ran toward the Metro cab.

***

Lois and Clark were sitting in the back of the cab holding hands. Clark laid his hand on Lois' leg. It then traveled up her dress and onto her thigh. Clark thought Lois was going to bat it away, but instead she put her hand on top of his.

"Clark?"

"Yeah."

"Damian called me tonight."

"He did?"

"Yep. He called to tell me that you guys apologized to one another and now you're friends!"

"Shocking, huh?" Clark asked as he grinned.

"Yeah, a bit. But I'm very happy that you did that!" Lois remarked as she leaned over to kiss his lips. "I'm very, very happy you did that…"

Lois slid over and sat on Clark's lap. She straddled herself on Clark just like someone sitting in a chair backwards. She started rubbing her hands all over his body as she kissed his mouth. Their tongues intertwined and Clark let out a huge groan as Lois grabbed onto the waistband of his pants.

"Mmm…Lois, you know we're in the back of a cab, don't you?" Clark said before he dove back into her mouth.

"I know…" Lois said as she came back up for air. "But who cares. We have a few more minutes."

"Mmm…yeah, we do, so come here!"

Lois giggled as Clark pulled her into his body and they resumed their caress.

As Clark was going for the zipper on Lois' dress, the cabby tapped on the window. "Um, folks, we're here!" Lois and Clark didn't hear him. They were too busy to hear. The cabby tried again. "Excuse me?" Still nothing. Then he violently hit the brakes. Lois screamed as she almost fell off Clark's lap. "I said we're here, folks!"

Lois and Clark felt as if they were going to die of embarrassment, but instead they started laughing.

Lois pointed down to Clark's underwear and smirked.

"Oh my gosh, I almost forgot!" Clark quickly zipped up his pants.

"Well, if there's one thing I learned from this little adventure, is that it pays to wear smudge-proof lipstick!"

"Oh jeez!" her husband commented.

"Well…" Lois said as her eyes twinkled.

"I know…I know…" Clark added while flashing that famous Kent grin. "But come on, let's get going!" He got out of the cab and held onto Lois' hand as he helped her out. He paid the cab fee and then the couple walked over to Angelina's.

***

The couple's food had arrived and Lois was eagerly eating it up. Lois and Clark were sitting at the exact same table and eating the exact same food from their first date. Lois had salmon, while Clark had pasta.

"Whoa, honey. You sure ate that fast!"

"Well, I'm hungry and I haven't had food this good in a long time. No offense to your cooking, sweetie. I love it, but this stuff is just so, well, it's so…"

"It's okay, Lois, I understand," Clark interrupted as he grabbed her hand and kissed it.

He moved his chair over so he could sit next to Lois. Lois laid her hand upon his leg and leaned over to kiss his lips. "Let's pay the bill and go home and do a little cooking of our own…"

"Mmm…Lois, we can't. We haven't had dessert yet!"

"I don't need dessert, Clark. All I need is you!"

"Ah, ah, ahhh… We can't leave until we have some of this delicious chocolate cake."

"Hmm…" Lois sighed. "When you put it that way, how can I refuse? But I insist we use one fork!"

"My thought exactly!" Clark answered back.

The couple sighed as their lips touched yet again. Lois wrapped her arms around Clark's waist when she felt something vibrating. "Wow!" she exclaimed as she jumped back. Lois moved away from Clark like someone who had just touched something hot.

"Oh." Clark blushed. "It's my cell phone. Excuse me." Clark pulled his phone out of his pocket.

"Hello?"

"Hi, son, it's me, Perry!"

"Oh, hey, Chief! How's it going?"

"Everything's fine. It's just as fine as Graceland on a crowded day!"

"Okay, Chief!" Clark chuckled.

"I just called to see how Lois is doing. Is she feeling better?"

"Yes, in fact, we're having dinner at Angelina's right now."

"Ah, well, son, then I think I'll let you go. And like I said to you earlier today, take your time. I figure by now you and Lois deserve a break, if you know what I mean."

"I actually do!" Clark laughed. "Thanks, Chief!"

"No problem, Clark. See you tomorrow."

"Yeah, tomorrow." Clark closed the cell phone and put it back in his pocket. "That was the Chief. He wanted to check up on you, make sure you were okay."

"That was nice of him." Lois smiled.

"Yeah… Hey, honey, I just remembered something I've got to do! So I'll be right back."

"Okay, sweetie, but don't be long!" Lois called after him as she blew him a kiss.

"I won't!" Clark winked back.

***

When Clark got back, he found Lois staring at the chocolate cake.

"I took the liberty of ordering the dessert while you were gone. I thought I had enough willpower, but those chocolate fumes are really getting to me!" Lois complained.

Clark sat back down. "Well, honey, you didn't have to wait," he added with a smile.

"Clark, I wanted to wait," Lois answered back as she looked into his chocolate brown eyes. But her attention was soon diverted to the cake before her. Her eyes narrowed as she licked her lips.

"I guess it's time to feed the huntress!" Clark laughed. He dug the fork into the cake and brought it up to her luscious lips. Lois opened her mouth ever so slightly as Clark laid the fork on her tongue. Her lips closed upon it as he slowly slid it out of her mouth.

"Mmm…" Lois moaned. Clark watched his wife roll the chocolate within her tongue, with foggy eyes. He was in a trance.

"Ready for round two?" Clark asked.

Lois excitedly nodded her head yes.

"Okay, here we go!" Clark placed the forkful of cake in her mouth.

"Oh God…" Lois quietly murmured. She noticed that Clark was looking at her with eyes of desire. "Here," she said as she took the fork out of his hands. "You haven't had any of this delicious cake. Believe me, it's quite an orgasmic experience!"

"Actually, Lois, it's okay. I don't need any mpmf…" Lois silenced his soft lips with her finger. She dug the fork into the cake and brought it up to his mouth.

"Here, eat."

"Mmm…this is good," Clark commented between mouthfuls. Lois gave him a seductive smile. She noticed there was some leftover chocolate on the fork, so she used her tongue to lick it off. Clark gulped. Lois dug the fork again into the cake and fed Clark his second serving.

"Mmm…this stuff is great!" Clark said while savoring every bit of it, especially since Lois fed it to him. "Are you sure you don't want any more cake, honey?" Clark asked.

Lois laid the fork on the table and brought her mouth up to his. She tasted the chocolate flavor within his mouth and she groaned. Clark pulled away from her lips and whispered in her ear, "Let's say you and I get out of here!"

"My thoughts exactly!" Lois purred.

***

Lois and Clark were standing outside the brownstone door, rubbing their hands all over each other.

"You know, Lois, if we keep this up, we'll end up making love here in the hallway!"

"Well, there's that Beatle song about 'doing it in the road,' so…" Lois smirked.

"Lois!" Clark exclaimed.

"I'm just kidding." Lois laughed. "Here you go." She handed him the keys as her hands brushed his rear.

"Whoa," Clark remarked as he almost dropped the keys. He quickly opened the door as Lois ripped the jacket right off him. Clark used his posterior to slam the door shut and the couple both kicked their shoes off as they fell to the floor. Clark had kicked his shoes so far that they crashed through the kitchen door as Lois yelled, "It's up! It's good!" They both started cracking up.

The laughing soon stopped when they realized where they were. Lois was lying on top of Clark on the floor and her fingers traveled to his shirt buttons. The lovers stared into each other's eyes as Clark brought Lois' face toward him. They only paused for a few seconds until they threw themselves into each other. Lois and Clark feverishly kissed each other. Their hands frantically caressed every inch of the other partner's body.

Lois unbuttoned the top button on Clark's shirt, when he told her to stop.

"What?"

"Please, Lois, I need to do something first." Clark removed her from his body and walked toward the stereo. Lois sat up and blew part of her hair to the side with her mouth out of frustration.

Clark turned on the radio and smiled. Lois stood up and walked over to him. "You know, Clark, I don't need the radio to get in the mood…" she purred.

"I know, but just wait. I have a surprise for you!"

Just then a voice broke the airwaves:

Okay, we're back, and you're listening to Metropolis' #1, late night radio show. My name is Rick, AKA "Mr. Love." The next request goes out to a super woman from a super guy! Clark Kent of the Daily Planet would like to dedicate "I Knew I Loved You" by Savage Garden, to his wife Lois Lane, also of the Daily Planet. Clark also sent this message: "Lois, I love you very much. You're the light of my life and I don't know what I'd do without you!" Aww, folks, isn't that sweet! This song goes out to you two lovebirds!

"Oh my gosh!" Lois shrieked.

Clark grinned like a Cheshire Cat. "Would you like to dance?"

"Sure," Lois said as she began to cry tears of joy. The happy couple wrapped their arms around each other and danced in the middle of the room.

*Maybe it's intuition

Some things you just don't question

Like in your eyes

I see my future in an instant

And there it goes

I think I've found my best friend*

*I know that it might sound

more then a little crazy

But I believe*

*CHORUS*

*I knew I loved you before I met you

I think I dreamed you into life

I knew I loved you before I met you

I have been waiting all my life*

*There's just no rhyme or reason

Only a sense of completion

And in your eyes I see the missing pieces

I'm searching for

I think I've found my way home*

*I know that it might sound

more than a little crazy

but I believe… *

*I knew I loved you before I met you

I think I dreamed you into life

I knew I loved you before I met you

I have been waiting all my life*

*A thousand angels dance

around you*

*I am complete now that I've

found you*

*I knew I loved you before I met you

I think I dreamed you into life

I knew I loved you before I met you

I have been waiting all my life*

The song ended and Lois and Clark looked into each other's eyes.

"Wow, Clark. I don't think anyone has ever done that for me! I'm so touched by this that I'm at a loss for words."

"That's okay, Lois. The smile on your face is more than words could ever say."

"Thank you so much, Clark. I'll never forget this…" Lois leaned over and kissed his mouth. Clark returned the kisses, and with each one they got deeper and deeper.

Without exchanging a single word, Clark carried Lois off to the bedroom. He walked through the door and shut it quietly behind them. Clark set Lois down near the bed. With one stroke of her hand across Clark's cheek, Lois took off his glasses and laid them on the nightstand. She hit the play button on the CD player and the couple started their slow and sensual dance.

*Every endless night has a dawning day

Every darkest sky has a shining ray

And it shines on you, baby can't you see

You're the only one, who can shine for me*

*CHORUS*

*It's a private emotion that fills you tonight

And a silence falls between us

As the shadows steal the light

And wherever you may find it

Wherever it may lead

Let your private emotion come to me

Come to me*

Their bodies swayed from side to side as they ran their hands down each other's bodies. Lois started unbuttoning Clark's shirt. She could hear Clark breathing heavy as she caressed his chest with her hands. His breath seemed to accelerate with every button. Lois slipped his shirt off his broad shoulders as she started kissing them. Clark let his shirt fall to the floor, as he pulled her into him.

*When your soul is tired and your heart is weak

Do you think of love, as a one way street

Well it runs both ways, open up your eyes

Can't you see me here, how can you deny*

*It's a private emotion that fills you tonight

And a silence falls between us

As the shadows steal the light

And wherever you may find it

Wherever it may lead

Let your private emotion come to me

Come to me*

Lois moaned as Clark reached behind and unzipped her black dress. He slowly slipped the straps off her shoulders as he kissed her neck.

*Every endless night has a dawning day

Every darkest sky, has a shining ray

It takes a lot to laugh as your tears go by

But you can find me here till your tears run dry

It's a private emotion that fills you tonight

And a silence falls between us

As the shadows steal the light

And wherever you may find it

Wherever it may lead

Let your private emotion come to me*

"I love you, Clark Kent!" Lois said as she placed a kiss on his soft lips.

"I love you too, Lois Lane!" lark answered back as he cupped her cheek in his hand and then engulfed her mouth with his. Their tongues intertwined as they caressed their bodies in the moonlight.

The lovers continued to make love frequently throughout the night.

***

Lois stretched as the sunlight danced upon her face. Her legs were sticking out of the sheets along with Clark's. She noticed that they were wrapped around Clark's body and she sighed. It just felt so good, so natural. Lois stretched her arms out to the side as she started rubbing Clark's chest. Her husband stirred.

"Morning, sweetie."

"Morning, Lois," Clark said as he kissed her lips.

"Isn't it a beautiful morning?" She grinned as she looked out the window.

"Yeah," Clark sighed. "It's a beautiful morning…a beautiful morning indeed!"

Lois looked over at the red satin sheet lying across Clark's lap and sighed. "Wow…"

"I know."

"I thought we'd never get any sleep last night!" Lois laughed.

"Yeah, I know." Clark winked. "Speaking of sleep, how are you feeling?"

"I'm feeling pretty darned good! And you?"

"I haven't felt this good in a looong time!"

Lois started giggling. Clark looked over at her and smiled. He then looked over at the clock.

"Hey, look! It's time for breakfast." Clark took the sheets off his body as he grabbed his robe from the chair and put it on. "I'll be right back," he said as he walked out of the bedroom.

A few minutes later, Clark was back bearing gifts. "I have breakfast," he said as he stripped his robe off and grabbed an edge of the sheet so he could jump back in bed with Lois.

"Oh my gosh! Chocolate covered strawberries! My favorites!" Lois sighed.

Clark snuggled up next to Lois and she laid her head in between his arm. He took a strawberry out of the bowl and fed it to her. Lois wrapped her lips around it and slowly took a bite. Clark looked at her with wide eyes. "Mmm…" Lois moaned. "Here try some!" Lois took the strawberry she was eating and brought it up to his lips. Clark took a bite. "Mmm…darn, this is good…but not as good as you!" Lois almost swallowed her salvia the wrong way as Clark laid the bowl of strawberries on the floor. He looked at Lois and then back at the clock.

"Hmm…it's only 8:30, and do you know what that means?" Clark asked.

"The morning's still young!" Lois exclaimed.

"Exactly!" Clark remarked as he pulled Lois into him and darted under the covers.

***

Lois grunted a bit. She felt groggy. She realized that they must have fallen asleep after making love for the 50 millionth time…or so it felt like. Then a smile spread across her lips as she thought about last night and early this morning. She was so happy that she and Clark had made up. Make up sex was the best sex around, especially due to the fact of how long they had been apart, or how many times they came close to making love, but the other person broke away. She vowed to never let it happen again.

Lois rubbed her eyes in order to bring them into focus. Lois looked over at Clark who was sleeping peacefully next to her, his arm still wrapped around her waist. Clark's breathing was at a slow, normal rate. He looked like an angel asleep there next to her.

Lois leaned over him to look at the time. "Oh my God!" she screamed. "Clark, wake up! Wake up!" she pleaded as she shook him by the shoulders.

"What? Huh? Lois, what's wrong?" Clark groggily asked.

"The time, Clark! Look at the time!"

"2pm. Yeah, so? What's the…oh, shoot!"

"Exactly, Clark! We're late! Super late!"

"Well, um, in times like these, it calls for drastic actions. We need to shower in groups!" Clark winked.

"Clark!"

"The last one to the shower is a lunkhead, or in your case, Lois, a little tornado!" Clark laughed.

"You're on!" Lois laughed as she jumped out of bed and ran across to the bathroom.

"Oh, no, you don't!" Clark picked up the red satin sheet and wrapped it around his body like a cape. He ran after Lois and tackled her to the floor.

"What are you doing?" Lois yelled as Clark rolled her around in the sheets. Their bodies were again on top of each other. Clark silenced Lois by feverishly kissing her mouth.

"Clark," Lois said as she pushed his lips off her mouth. "We're late, remember?"

"So, who cares?" he commented between kisses.

"Perry will care! He'll have our hides!"

"Lois, it's okay…mmm… Everything's fine!" Clark rolled around with Lois again. Lois knew he wanted a repeat performance and she was trying her hardest not to give in.

"Well, okay. But we had a bet and you know how I don't like to break them! So, get off of me!" Lois tried standing up, but Clark pushed her back down. "Clark!" She tried standing up again and this time she was successful, but not as successful as she wanted to be.

"Hey, there, Mr. Clingy, I thought we had a race to run."

"Forget the race," Clark answered as he shoved her against the wall. "We have better things to do…"

Lois tried to gasp for air as she moaned, while Clark violently kissed her lips. She blindly hit the light switch and tried to steer Clark and herself into the bathroom.

Clark was wrapped so tightly around Lois that she felt like they were joined at the waist. She waddled herself toward the shower. "Come on, Clark. You're not making this any easier! Plus we're ruining the satin!"

"Don't worry, honey, we'll have them dry-cleaned," Clark said as he necked his wife.

"Well, we've also wasted about ten minutes just trying to get into the bathroom! Perry's going to kill us!"

"Would you please stop mentioning Perry? He's the last person I need to worry about right now."

"I'll stop mentioning him once you use your brain and stop using something else!"

"Oh, come on, Lois! Where's your sense of adventure? We're Perry's top reporters. We deserve a break."

"No, Clark. We should be at the Planet working."

"Lois…"

"No, Clark. I'm no longer having fun. So, please let me go!"

"No, no, Lois. It's okay."

"No, it isn't Clark! I don't want to argue, so please let go!"

"Lois, I'm sorry," Clark apologized by brushing his hand down her cheek.

"Clark, please. Please Clark." Her struggling was slowing down as Clark massaged her shoulders.

"Hush, Lois," Clark silenced her mouth with a kiss.

"Mmm…" Lois moaned as the sheets fell to the floor.

"I'll tell you what…mmm… It's 2:15…mmm…right now. We'll…mmm…take a…mmm…quick…mmm…shower and then go get ready to go to the Planet…mmm…" Clark said between kisses.

"Okay," Lois said as she resumed her lip-lock with her husband.

Clark moved Lois closer to the shower so he could reach his hand in and turn on the hot water. "This way the work day won't be a total loss and hopefully Perry will understand."

"Whatever," Lois commented. Lois' hormones got the best of her. Her mind was no longer on the Planet. She was thinking of Clark's body and how she was going to rub her hands all over it once again.

Lois wanted to start the shower right away, so she pushed Clark into it and slammed him up against the shower wall.

"Umpf!" Clark grunted.

"Oh my God, Clark! Are you hurt? Is everything all right?"

"My back's a little sore, but I should be fine."

"Oh God, I'm so sorry, Clark!"

"It's okay, Lois, I'll be fine in a matter of minutes. I'm more startled then anything else."

"Hopefully, you'll be feeling better in a matter of seconds," Lois purred as she wrapped her arms around Clark's waist.

"We'll just see about that," he said as he wrapped his arms around her waist.

"Mmm," Lois moaned as Clark kissed her mouth. "Hold onto your shirt…actually, you don't have a shirt." Lois blushed. "Anyway, hang on, cause it's going to be a bumpy ride."

***

What was only supposed to be a ten-minute shower turned into more like thirty minutes. The pair looked pretty shook up as they stepped out of the shower and wrapped towels around themselves. Of course, they were shaken up in a good way.

Lois grabbed her clothes and make-up as she walked back to the bathroom. She noticed Clark staring at her body that was spilling out of the towel.

"I think it would be best for both of us if we get dressed in separate rooms," Lois suggested.

"Yeah, that's probably a good idea," Clark agreed as he blushed.

"Yeah," Lois reassured. She was going to close the door, but Clark's nicely defined posterior caught her eye. He was bending over to pick up some clothes. "Hmm," she sighed as she smiled at that sight before her.

Clark turned around to see Lois still standing there. "Is something wrong, honey?" he asked.

Lois was startled out of her trance. "Ah, no, sweetie, everything's fine," she said as she quickly shut the door.

She leaned up against the bathroom wall and rubbed her hands down her face. "Lois, Lois, Lois!" she said out loud to herself. "You really need to get it together, girl! At the rate we're both going, Perry's going to have to let us out early!"

***

Lois drove like a speed demon down the streets of Metropolis, forcing Clark to hold on for dear life.

Lois and Clark entered the Daily Planet lobby elevator. They were all alone. When the doors closed, they were all over each other. Clark's hands kept going up Lois' skirt.

"How are we going to make it through the day?" Lois asked.

"Ha, ha, ha…I don't know!"

"You know, we haven't done this since our honeymoon," Lois giggled as Clark necked her.

"I know. Too bad this is a public place. I think it would be quite an adventure if we just did it here in the elevator!"

"Oh my gosh!" Lois squeaked. Clark chuckled when he noticed Lois was blushing.

"God, I wish we didn't have to be here," Clark whispered in her ear.

"You must be reading my mind…"

"Hehe…" Clark chuckled.

"Seriously, Clark, I want to be with you so much that I'm going to ask Perry if we can get off early."

"Hmm, that sounds nice. But until then, let's enjoy this elevator ride!"

"Okay," Lois said as their lips touched.

The lovers wrapped their arms around each other. They both sighed as they tasted the insides of their mouths. As Clark's hand went up Lois' skirt again, the elevator door pinged. She opened her eyes and noticed Jimmy standing outside. Clark was too busy kissing Lois to notice Jimmy. Lois softly nudged him in the ribs. "Clark, sweetie, I think you spoke too soon!"

"Huh?" Clark looked up to see Jimmy standing in the doorway. "Oh, wow!" He noticed they were in the Pit now. He grabbed Lois by the hand and they stepped out of the elevator as he straightened his tie.

"You guys must have had a lot of fun last night, huh?" Jimmy inquired.

"What makes you say that?" Lois asked.

"Well, #1, it's 4'o'clock and you finally made it to work! #2, you have the same look on your faces like you did after your honeymoon…" Lois and Clark laughed at Jimmy's observation. "And #3, I sure hope you had fun, because it's all about to end when the Chief learns you're finally here!"

"Ew. That bad, huh?"

"Bad, doesn't even begin to describe it, Lois. The Chief is in a frenzy over the disappearance of his top two reporters! He's so ticked that he's taking it out on all of us!"

"Yeesh!" Clark commented.

"All I have to say is that you two owe us big time!"

"Okay, we'll remember that," Clark stated.

"You'd better. I gotta go pick something up for the Chief, so I'll see you later. I'm sorry I won't be around for the fireworks, though!"

"OY!" Lois said as she looked up to the sky.

Lois and Clark watched Jimmy leave the Pit. When the elevator door closed, they held hands as they walked toward their respectable desks. Perry was walking out of his office when he saw the pair.

"Let's give it up for Lois and Clark!" Perry yelled. He and the rest of the newsroom whooped it up at the Kents' entrance. Lois and Clark both blushed.

"Lois and Clark, in my office, NOW!" Perry motioned them with his hand.

"Ooooh…" Ralph teased.

"Oh, hush!" Lois snapped back.

Clark looked back at Ralph and grinned. Ralph shot Clark a dirty look as he darted back into his cubicle.

"Now kids, I thought I told you to take your time, but I DIDN'T think you'd be THIS late!" Perry wailed.

"I'm sorry, Perry…" Lois apologized.

"Sorry won't cut it, honey. I'm up to my armpits in news and no one is here to write it!"

"I guess we just lost track of time because we were a bit distracted…" Lois tried to hide her grin.

"Yeah," Clark interrupted. "We figured since we're your top reporters, we could come in late. We deserved the break!"

"Judas Priest, son! Who do you think you are?!? It's already 4 o'clock!!! Most people are getting ready to go home now. I understand you getting in at 1 maybe, but 4, I mean come on!"

Lois and Clark were looking at Perry with wide eyes. They couldn't believe that Perry was that angry.

"But never mind about that. I'm wasting my time blowing smoke here, so get going." Perry picked up two large stacks of paper and shoved them in Clark's arms. "I said, GIT!"

***

It was 6'o'clock. In the course of two hours, Lois had gone through the pile that Clark had given her. Clark was filing something when Lois looked over at his desk. She smiled as she watched him bend over. His posterior looked really nice in those pants! She knew that this was a good time to go ask Perry if Clark and she could go home.

Her husband didn't notice her entering Perry's office. "Hey, Perry, I was wondering if…"

"Lois," Perry interrupted. "I have some more things for you to work on! Here." Perry shoved another pile of papers in her arms.

"But…Perry…"

"Go on, Lois. You don't want to be here too late now, do you?"

Lois walked out of his office. Clark looked over at her. She was pouting. He sighed as he took his pencil and threw it across the room. This was just another thing that served as a block between Lois and him getting home to make love.

Ralph was getting ready to leave when the pencil landed at his feet. He picked it up and walked over to Clark's desk. "Hey, Kent, I think this is yours. You're lucky I found it, buddy!"

Clark forced a smile as Ralph handed the pencil to him. He put the pencil down and softly banged his head upon the desk.

***

It was now 8'o'clock. Lois laid her pencil down and sighed. She was finally done. Lois looked over at Clark who was rubbing his eyes.

"You know, I think Perry is doing all of this to punish us!"

"Ya think?" Clark asked sarcastically.

Lois started to laugh. "But seriously, Clark, this whole day has been a nightmare. Well, except for the part where we made love about a million times."

"You mean 50 million times, honey…" Clark said as he flashed her a sexy grin.

"Yeah…" Lois said as her voice trailed off. "It's just that I'd love to go home and do it right now!" she whined.

"Well, it's only eight, so we still have time," Clark said in a sexy voice.

"Hmm…you're right," Lois purred.

Perry walked out of his office; he was going home.

"Goodnight, Perry."

"Yeah, goodnight, Chief," Clark added. Lois and he were packing to go home.

"Not so fast, guys!"

"What?" Lois asked.

"You can't leave yet. There's still more work to do."

"Perry, it's time to go home, so give us a break!" Lois wailed.

"Lois, you're incorrect. It's time for everyone to go home except for you two." Perry handed Lois a piece of paper. He traveled to Clark's desk and also handed him a piece of paper.

"Arrggh!!!" Clark yelled.

"I want both of you to make multiple copies of this for me," Perry instructed.

"But these are box scores!" Lois piped in.

"And I have the weather!" Clark complained.

"Well, son, think of it this way…if you hadn't been romancing Lois all day, you could've been home by now." Perry patted Clark on the back as he walked away.

"Darn…" Clark muttered under his breath.

"Have fun, you guys. And please no 'you know what' in the newsroom. You don't want to set a bad example for the janitors!" Perry chuckled to himself as he walked into elevator.

"I've never been so humiliated in all my life!"

"I know, Lois. I know. At a time like this I sure wish I was still Superman!"

Lois smiled at Clark's comment, but in the back of her mind, she was puzzled. Nonetheless, she decided to let it go.

***

It was well after midnight when Lois and Clark made it back home. They both threw their bags down and stripped their clothes off. Lois was wearing black lingerie and Clark was looking at the body that shone underneath the lace.

"Wow, Lois, you look great!"

"Thanks," she said as she smiled.

Lois looked at Clark's well-defined muscles and sighed.

"Well…" Lois said to break the silence.

"Well…" Clark stood there and smiled. He was watching Lois' chest move up and down in her outfit. "Oh, dang it, I can't take it any longer!"

Lois giggled as Clark wrapped his arms around her body. He picked her up and laid her on the bed as he positioned himself on top of her. Clark kissed her deeply and passionately. Lois shifted her weight so she landed on top of Clark. She started kissing him when all of a sudden she heard a growl come from his throat.

"Clark? Clark? Are you all right? Clark?" Lois slowly lifted her body off his and opened her eyes. "Oh my gosh! He fell asleep on me! Of all the nerve! I swear I'm going to…" Lois stopped in mid-sentence as she let out a huge yawn. After yawning, her body slumped forward as she fell on top of Clark and rolled right off him, back into bed. Now they were both fast asleep.

***

"Wow, Lois, you're here early!" Jimmy yelled from across the Pit.

"Yep."

"And it's a Friday, too. I'm impressed!"

"Thank you."

"I second that!" chimed in Perry.

Lois grinned. "Well, I slept like a baby last night, so I figured, what the heck, why not come in early and make the Chief proud!"

"I had no doubt in my mind that you would." Perry walked into the middle of the Pit and cleared his throat.

"Excuse me, folks, but I just want to take a moment to make an example of our fine reporter, Lois Lane. Lois is an exceptional woman and highly devoted to her job at the Planet. She's so devoted that she even came in early on a Friday! Lois' conduct within these walls is the type of conduct that we should all follow. Way to go, Lois!"

The whole newsroom erupted in cheers and applause at the end of Perry's speech.

"Aww, Perry, you don't have to do this."

"Lois, honey, I have to. You're one of the best damn investigative reporters around!"

Lois couldn't help smiling at Perry's last comment. The rest of the newsroom kept looking at her.

"Okay, folks, show's over! Let's get back to work."

Suddenly, the newsroom was broken out of its trance and once again it was buzzing full of activity.

Lois continued to smile as she logged onto her Daily Planet email account.

"Lois, I'm very proud of you. Keep up the good work," Perry said as he patted her on the back.

"Thanks, Chief."

"No problem."

Perry grinned all the way back to his office. He was so happy to be working with such a talented group of journalists.

***

The elevator door pinged and Clark Kent stepped out. He noticed Lois at her desk. She was smiling as she answered her email. Music was softly playing from her computer, so she didn't notice him entering the building.

Clark sat down at his desk as he threw his stuff to the ground. His eyes narrowed as he looked at Lois. He stared at Lois as if she was his prey. His concentration was broken by Jimmy, who ran up to his desk.

"Hey, C.K.! How are you? You look mad. Is everything fine?"

"Hi, Jimmy. I'm okay, really I am."

"Well, that's good to hear. Man, you missed quite a spectacle a few minutes ago."

"A spectacle? What kind of spectacle?"

"The Chief stood in the middle of the Pit and praised Lois for her integrity. He was especially proud of the fact that she came in early on a Friday morning."

"He did?"

"Yep. At first Lois told him to stop, but then she accepted the praise like a real trooper!"

"Hmm…"

"The Chief told us that we should follow her example, because she's one of the greatest! Personally, I think she's something! Don't you agree, C.K.?"

"Yeah, something," Clark answered bluntly.

"All I can say is that you're one lucky man, and I mean more than one thing when I say lucky!"

"Jimmy…"

"Sorry," Jimmy blushed.

All Clark could do was shake his head as he started to leave his desk.

"Where are you going, C.K.?" his friend inquired.

"I need to go congratulate my wife…" Clark explained.

"Oh, okay, cool."

"We can have lunch together, if you want."

"Yeah, that would be super, C.K.! I'll see you then." Jimmy went running over to the darkroom as Clark walked over to Lois' desk.

Lois was humming the song "Fly Me to the Moon" when Clark walked up behind her. She could feel someone's warm breath hit her skin, so she looked up to see who it was.

"Oh, hi, Clark!" Lois got up to give him a kiss, but Clark pushed her away. Lois frowned.

"Lois, we need to talk, now!"

"Okay," she reluctantly said as she followed Clark into the conference room.

"Lois, I can't believe you'd do this to me."

"Do what?"

"You left me in my underwear all by myself! When I woke up you were gone! I understand the underwear part, but you left me and that was just plain mean!"

Lois started laughing.

"What's so funny?" Clark asked.

"Oh, nothing. I'm just having this really funny mental picture of you waking up and realizing you're only in your underwear!"

"It wasn't funny!"

"Well, I think it is…"

"I'm serious here, Lois! At first I thought something might have happened to you."

"Whatever…"

Clark sighed as he repeatedly tapped his fingers on the wall. "Are you doing this to get back at me for yesterday?"

"No, Clark, I saw it was time to get up. Actually, I woke up early and I wanted to get a head start at the Planet. I wanted to be on Perry's good side."

"Oh, so you want to suck up to Perry, but leave your husband behind to make him look bad!"

"I didn't say that, Clark! I was just afraid if I woke you, we would've had a repeat performance of last night!"

"Whatever…"

"Plus, I was angry with you for falling asleep during our foreplay earlier this morning."

"Me, fall asleep? Oh you should talk! I remember waking up a few minutes later and then you were passed out like a light. I was going to wake you up, but I decided to let you get your rest!"

"Oh yeah, well, at least I don't think about sex all of the time!"

"I DO NOT think about sex all day!!!"

"Uh-huh…and what do you call these last couple of days?"

"Lois, I love you. And people can express their love by making love. There's no crime in that."

"I know. But there are also other ways to express your love besides sex. Less time consuming ways then going at it all morning…"

"Lois, if I remember, you really enjoyed yesterday. You were actually asking for more!"

"Yes, I know. I really, really, did enjoy making love with you and if I could do it for the rest of my life, I would. I'm sorry if I misjudged you. I just couldn't help but think that you might make us late. I didn't want to be humiliated again."

"Yeah, well your little misjudgment made me look bad in front of the Chief!"

"You didn't look bad. Come on, you're on time."

"Well, that doesn't matter much when you came early."

Lois shook her head and sighed. "If you're finished here, then I really have to get going. I've got a lot of work to do.

"I'm finished. So go on if you like."

"Thank you," Lois said as she leaned over to give Clark a kiss. He was going to do the same thing, but instead he pulled away.

"You wouldn't be trying to avoid kissing me because of the fact of the thing we both agreed we weren't thinking of?"

"Umm…no."

"Ha, ha. I heard the hesitation in your voice. You're bothered by my presence and you'd like to finish what you started earlier today."

"Yeah, well, I bet you're thinking the same thing!" her husband retorted.

"I might, or I might not," Lois purred. "Plus, I have ways of curbing my cravings, so to speak."

"And what ways are those?" Clark asked slyly.

"Chocolate, you lunkhead!"

"Oh, great," Clark commented as he rolled his eyes.

"In fact, there's a Clark bar in that machine over there that has my name written all over it!"

"Well, then go to it!"

"Maybe I will! Anyway, I don't think you can get through the day without thinking of 'you know what!'"

"Yes, I can!"

"You wanna make a bet?" Lois smirked.

"What???" Clark exclaimed.

"Do you wanna make a bet? $100 will be awarded to the winner. Whoever tries to act upon the other person sexually, owes the other person money! What do you say?"

"I say you're on, Lane!"

"Okay, good Kent!" Lois smiled. She grabbed Clark's hand and shook it. "I'll see you on the battle field!" Lois walked out of the conference room toward her desk. Clark started to watch Lois move underneath her skirt.

"Arrgh, Kent! What are you doing?!?" He walked out of the room and headed toward the cafeteria. Right about now was a good time to have a cup of coffee.

***

It was a bit after 5'o'clock. Lois was working nonstop in hopes of keeping her mind completely off Clark. Whenever she felt like she might lose control, she went for a Clark bar. Lois almost felt guilty, considering the name of the candy bar, but her husband didn't seem to mind. Whenever Lois walked toward the vending machine, he would just shrug his shoulders.

Lois smiled. She got a lot done today. She left her desk and walked over to Perry's office. "Hey, Chief, I've finished everything! I've gotten so much done that I can afford to take most of Saturday off!" Lois laughed.

"That's great, Lois!" Perry exclaimed. "All I have to say, honey, is that this is definitely a huge change from yesterday and I like it! You're free to go home if you like." Perry smiled.

"Okay, thanks, Perry. I guess I'll stop by sometime tomorrow to check up on things."

"Okay, I'll see you then…"

"Okay, bye!"

"Bye, Lois," Perry waved.

Lois walked up behind Clark and wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed it. "Hey, honey, are you ready to go home now?" she asked.

"Not yet, Lois." Clark didn't even flinch when Lois' lips brushed his. All he did was continue to type as he stared at the computer screen.

"You wouldn't be avoiding coming home with me, in hopes of having a better advantage with winning this bet?" Lois suggested.

"Nope. I just have some work to finish up. That's all."

"Well, okay…I guess I'll see you later."

"See ya."

Lois removed her hands from his neck and brushed her index finger quickly through his hair before heading back to her desk.

***

Lois walked into the brownstone and haphazardly dropped her car keys and bag on the coffee table as she headed toward the kitchen. She took out the espresso machine and made herself a mocha latte.

She carried the latte out with her into the living room. Lois sat down on the couch and brought the straw from her drink up to her lips. She sat back into the couch cushions and sighed. *Mmm…I've gone this long without giving in…I'm definitely going to win this bet, girl! Clark is definitely going to have to pay up!* she thought to herself. Lois started giggling as she thought about the look on her husband's face when he had to give her money. If he played his cards right, he might just get something in return. Lois quickly shook that image out of her head. She had plenty of time to think about that later.

While reveling in her premature victory, Lois' eyes started to wander. She focused on the picture of Clark and her taken a few years ago. The picture was from the time when Clark won the Kerth Award. He was holding the award in his left hand, while her hand rested next to his. Both people in the picture were grinning. Lois remembered that she had never been more happy with Clark then she had at that moment. Lois never really told Clark how proud she was of him that night. Sometimes that curtness toward Clark was all an act. She was afraid of what others might think if they knew she was attracted to the "farmboy" from Smallville.

Lois sighed as she looked at Clark. She was so happy that she was married to that man. She couldn't help grinning when she thought of all of the women who stared at Clark as he walked by. It got even better when those women realized that she was married to him. Lois loved to run her hands down Clark's chest as other females would give her looks of "you're so lucky because you get to go to bed with him every night!"

Lois sighed again, as she continued to stare at the picture. Then she started undressing Clark with her eyes. He was wearing a long sleeved black pullover shirt. Black was a good color on him. It was great for his skin tone. "Okay, this isn't good…" She thought now was a good time to go upstairs.

Lois walked into the bedroom and noticed something lying in the corner of the room. "Oh my…" she said as her eyes opened wide. In the corner of the room were her panties and Clark's underwear from the night before. She picked them up and dropped them into the hamper.

She walked over towards the bed. She noticed that the red satin sheets were back. Lois brought the sheets up to her nose and smelled them. "Hmm…he must've had them cleaned!"

***

Clark was trying to organize his desk. Just like Lois, he could now afford to take Saturday off. He opened his desk and came upon a picture of his wife. It was a very private picture of Lois wearing very little, that he took during their honeymoon in Hawaii. "Oh man…" Clark muttered to himself.

***

Lois stretched her body across the bed. Her fingers massaged the satin lying underneath. She closed her eyes and the only thing she could see was Clark's half-naked body lying next to her. Lois moaned. "Okay, that's it!" Lois yelled as her eyes fluttered open. "I don't care if I lose this bet. I want him so bad!"

Lois found her purse and took out her wallet. She frantically flipped through the bills, trying to find the $100 she owed Clark. "Shoot! I'm short $50! I wonder if he'd take a check? Or maybe Master Card, or Visa?" Lois was reaching for her credit card when all of a sudden she stopped. "Wait a minute, what am I doing here?" she laughed. "This is Clark we're talking about here. I'll pay him $50 and then give him the other $50 later," she remarked. "Besides," Lois giggled, "he won't be thinking of money after I'm through with him!"

***

Clark took a cab back home. Jimmy had offered to take him home by motorcycle, but Clark didn't want to burden him since it was a Friday night.

Clark opened the brownstone door. He entered the living room and looked around. Lois wasn't there. Maybe she was upstairs? Clark was about to check when he stopped himself. *Maybe I'd better not. What if she's vulnerable?* Clark had a look of worry on his face as he stood on the second stair on the staircase. As he stood there lost in thought, his mind wandered back to the picture of Lois in his desk back at the Planet. Clark moaned in ecstasy. He tried to walk up the stairs when all of a sudden he stopped in his tracks. Clark winced in pain. He grabbed onto the staircase to regain his footing. "Oh God, this isn't good. Okay, Kent, just take a couple of deep breaths. A couple of breaths, that's all it takes!"

Clark took a couple of deep breaths and made his way upstairs to the bedroom. He figured if he could get himself to the bed, everything would be fine. He had his hand on the doorknob when he stopped. Clark listened through the door and heard Lois sigh; actually, it was more like a groan. He heard her loudly calling out his name. Clark could feel his body tensing up. "Oh man, here we go again…" he exclaimed.

Meanwhile, Lois continued to make noise inside the bedroom. Clark held onto the doorknob while he ran his other hand through his hair. What was he going to do? He knew that Lois was probably very vulnerable at that moment and it would be easy for him to "get in her pants," so to speak. But if he did that, then that would mean he would lose the bet. *Then again, what's $100?* he thought to himself. One hundred dollars was nothing to him. He could have it back within less then a day's work at the Planet. Clark came to a drastic decision, as once again he heard Lois call out his name. He was going to lose it. He would pay her the money so he could make love to her. Lois and him both had Saturday off, and what better way to spend it then being in bed?

"Okay, here goes nothing!" Clark said out loud as he stripped off all of his clothing. He didn't care about being neat, so his clothes were strewn all over the hallway. The only thing he had on was a pair of black briefs and a smile. Clark owned at least two pairs of black briefs that were used for special occasions, this being one of them.

He took one more deep breath as he opened the door. The room was completely dark, except for a figure on the edge of the bed. "Lois?"

All of a sudden Clark heard a clicking noise and simultaneously, a single light brightened the figure on the bed. Clark's mouth dropped as the music started to play. The figure on the bed was Lois. She had her back to him, as she was wrapped in the red satin sheets.

*How glad a million laddies

from millionaires to caddies

would be, to capture me?*

*But you had such persistence

you wore down my resistance,

I fell and it was swell*

Clark was stunned. Lois was giving a repeat performance of her song from The Metro Club. The only difference between this performance and that performance was the lack of clothing. Clark remembered how Luthor practically drooled on Lois' dress that night and then he thought about where he, himself, was now. *Take that Luthor!* Clark chuckled to himself.

Lois continued to sing as Clark was frozen with sexual desire. With every phrase, the sheet slipped lower and lower off her body.

*You're my big and brave and handsome

Romeo. How I won you I shall

never, never know

It's not that you're attractive,

but oh my heart grew active when

you came into view*

*I've got a crush on you, Sweety pie

All the day and nighttime… *

Lois dropped the sheet and turned around so she could get a good look at Clark. She stopped in mid-sentence when she looked at the sight before her.

"Oh my God!" the couple said in unison.

"You were…"

"…going to lose the bet!" Clark said as he finished Lois' sentence. "Oh man, oh man, oh man…" Clark repeated to himself as he walked over to the bed and sat down next to his wife. His head dropped to his hands as he started to rub his eyes.

For a moment there was an awkward silence in the room. No one knew what to do next. The silence was so awkward that Clark had to look up to see what was happening.

"Well…"

"Well…"

"I guess we forfeit, huh?" Clark asked.

"I guess," Lois answered back.

"I wonder what people do after they forfeit?"

"Maybe they do this…" Lois said as she leaned over and kissed Clark's lips.

"Hmm…" Clark groaned. "They probably do this, too…"

***

"Wow, Clark, I can't believe we're actually here…"

"I know…but it's all for the better."

Lois started giggling as the warm ocean water tickled her feet. She felt the sand shift underneath her body as the warm water trickled off Clark's body and onto hers.

"Mmm…" Lois moaned as Clark's hot lips pressed against her skin. "I can't believe we're actually doing this."

"You mean, making love?" Clark asked.

"Yeah. Who would've thought that you and I would be on a beach together, making passionate love within the waters of this planet."

"Hmm, that's true Lois. But I had to do it! If you and I wanted to live a life together, we had to do this. I just couldn't go on being two people. I love you way too much to give you up. So I had to choose, Superman, or you and I chose you…"

"And I'm very happy you did," Lois sighed as she ran her hand down his cheek.

"The only thing we'll have to get used to is the isolation, but I think we're handling it pretty well so far," Clark said as he cupped some water in his hands and playfully showered it into Lois' bellybutton.

"Yeah…" she giggled.

"This can be our Fortress of Solitude. Our little corner of New Krypton where no one would dare look for us."

"If this is New Krypton, Clark, why does it seem so much like home?"

"Well, Lois, the Kryptonians were trying to see if they could reproduce parts of your earth artificially. Human beings and Kryptonians are similar in structure that they wanted to experience what you and I take for granted every day. They were successful in creating patches here and there; hence where we are right now. This is what I like to call our own tropical island. We are pioneers of New Krypton's artificial biosphere. Kinda like the biosphere on your earth, except we don't live in a big bubble, and clothing is always optional!" Clark winked.

"Hmm…I like the sound of that." Lois massaged Clark's backside as he inched his lips closer to her mouth. He took her lips within his and kissed her mouth full.

"Oh God, Clark…please don't let this be a dream!" Lois sighed. When she said that, as if it was on cue, a ringing sound went off.

"What the heck? Clark, do you hear it? Do you hear the ringing? Clark? Clark?" Lois called out frantically.

Clark was too busy with Lois' body to notice.

"Clark, MAKE IT STOP! PLEASE!!!!"

Suddenly, Lois shot out of bed. She wrapped her hand around her neck as she took a couple of big breaths of air. The phone on the nightstand was ringing.

"Arrgh…" Lois grumbled. "Clark, would you please get that?" Her pleading was no use. Her husband was out like a light. He was smiling peacefully as he hugged the pillow close to his chest. Lois shook her head in amazement. If there was one thing about Clark that mystified her, it was the fact that Clark was a heavy sleeper. That man could sleep through almost anything. Lois wished she could sleep like Clark. She was a very light sleeper. Lois remembered with disgust, her trip up to the mountains. The only highlight of the trip was making up with Clark and almost 'going all the way.' Lois was glad, though, that they had waited. She was glad because the place that they were making out in was just plain disgusting and she was glad, because it made their wedding night very special.

The ringing phone brought Lois back to reality. She practically had to lean across Clark's body in order to reach the receiver. Thank goodness they had a cordless phone. Lois thought it would be really weird to be lying across Clark's torso while she was talking on the phone, especially when she was unclothed. What if Clark woke up? How bad would that sound to the person on the other end? Lois shuddered at the thought.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Lois! How are you?"

"Bobby?"

"Of course, darling. Who'd you think I was, the Queen of England? Anyway, are you and Clark busy? It did take you forever to answer the phone!"

"Um…well…" Lois looked over at her husband who was still zonked out. "I'm not busy…"

"Okay, good, because we're gonna need at least one of you to check this out."

"Okay," Lois said with a bit of hesitation in her voice.

"Now Lois, I'm about to give you a freebie here! But I'm only doing this because your uncle fed me so well the other day. The next time you want info, you've got to get me the loot!"

"Okay, okay, I know that, Bobby! Now get to the point!" Lois was in a hurry because she wanted to hang up the phone before her husband woke up.

"Well, I got a tip from a guy on the street that there's going to be another robbery taking place."

"Really?"

"Yeah. This informant told me that he overheard these two guys talking about it. I think one of the guys was trying to purchase a stun gun, or something along those lines. Unfortunately, he didn't positively identify them. My man was trying to remain inconspicuous, so all he saw was shadows."

"Wow…"

"I also hate to break this to you, Lois, but I think your friend Damian might be involved."

"Damian? No, that can't be!"

"I know, Lois, I thought the same thing. When my man told me that, my jaw dropped to the floor. As much as that guy weirds me out, I don't think he'd be capable of pulling a stunt like this!"

"Yeah…"

"Anyway, that's where you come in. I think we need someone with the brains and swiftness like yours to get the job done."

"What?"

"Well, I'm not telling you what to do here, but I think you should stake out this building tonight. The robbery is supposed to happen sometime after 10:15, so that'll give you enough time to set up. So what do you say? Are you game?"

"Um…" For the first time in her life, Lois took time to think about a breaking news story. This stake out would be a chance of a lifetime. It wasn't that she was worried about breaking in, she was just worried about Clark. Worried about what he might do when he found her gone. Lois looked over at him again. Clark was still sleeping peacefully.

"Uh, Bobby, where are you now?"

"Hobbs Bay."

"Okay, well I need to get dressed first, so meet me in front of Mazik Jewelers in fifteen minutes!"

***

Lois found Bobby standing on the curb outside of the store. She didn't know how she did it, but she managed to slip out of bed, get dressed, and walk out the door without waking up Clark. Lois was dressed all in black so she could fade into the background.

"Oh, hey, Lois!" Bobby exclaimed. "Here," he said as he handed her a small duffel bag.

"What's this?"

"It's just a bag full of goodies my man and I put together to help you make it through the night. It has contraptions in there that should make it easier for you to get around. You'll be like the new 'Miss Bond.'"

Bobby started to walk away when Lois exclaimed, "Hey, where do you think you're going?"

"I'm going off to be inconspicuous. This is a one-man, uh, I mean, "woman" show. But don't worry, I'll be around. Inspector Henderson and his men are around just in case if something goes wrong while you're in there. So there's no need to worry. You'll be fine.

"Okay," Lois said with a look of worry on her face.

"You will, believe me, kiddo. I know you will. You've done things like this before and came through with flying colors! Tonight won't be an exception.

"You know, you're right, Bobby!" Lois exclaimed as a smile spread across her lips.

"Yep, I know I'm right. Also remember to stay completely hidden and use the infrared camera if necessary. Good luck!"

***

Lois managed to open the store door with a hair clip she had in her pant pocket. When she stepped inside, she noticed that the alarm system was on. She used a special device that caused the laser lights to come in view, while she slowly inched her way under them. Lois was grateful for that first place limbo trophy she won in eleventh grade.

She found a corner to settle herself in. Lois knew that this was going to be a long night. She just hoped that Clark would be okay. Lois could only imagine the look on his face when he woke up and didn't find her there.

***

It was now 10'o'clock, fifteen minutes before the robbery would take place. She had been sitting in the same corner for a couple of hours. Lois missed Clark. She needed something to do, preferably something that would take her mind off her husband lying alone in bed.

The thing she really wanted to do was write. Unfortunately, she couldn't have any lights on because that might draw the thief's attention. That was something she and the rest of Metropolis couldn't afford.

*Please God, if you could just do one thing for me tonight, please watch over my husband, Clark. I'm worried about him. I'm worried that he'll freak out when he finds out that I'm gone. The best thing for both of us would be for him to stay asleep. He should still be sleeping, when I return. Clark has been under an enormous amount of stress these past couple of days. It has been so bad for him that I think he's forgotten how to be Superman! He's forgotten that HE IS Superman! The last thing he needs right now is to know that I went on a stake out without him. Thank goodness crime has gone down in this city, except for this store. Because if it didn't go down, then we'd be in some real trouble…*

Lois' babbling within her head was interrupted when she heard a noise. She quickly pulled out her infrared camera and started looking around. The doorknob was jiggling, so Lois zoomed her camera lens onto the front door. She saw nothing. Even using the x-ray vision function was useless.

Then she picked up the spy binoculars that Bobby gave her and she used them to scan the room. Still nothing. The binoculars slid out of her hands as she instantly felt something brush past her face. Acting on a reflex, she rubbed her right hand across her face. Lois thought a piece of fuzz might have landed there. As she brought her hand away from her eyes she looked across the room and noticed gold jewelry floating in the air. "Oh my God…" she said under her breath. Lois screamed as she heard some glass break. Her scream caused the floating jewelry to stop in mid air and drop to the ground. By then, Lois knew she had done something wrong. She had gotten the thief's attention. Now all he had to do was either bolt out the door, or go after her. Lois was hoping he would bolt.

She quietly stood up and tried to tiptoe toward the front door, but it was too late. The person, or whatever it was, had found her. The entity wrapped itself tightly around her waist. Lois screamed as it shoved her hard against the store wall. A black cloud was trying to knock the wind out of her.

Lois continued to scream for help, but to no avail. Neither Bobby nor Henderson and his men were there to assist her. She found herself gasping for air as the black cloud turned into a twister and wrapped itself around her neck.

Instinctively, Lois brought her hands up to her neck and tried to fight it off. Fighting it was no use. The more she struggled, the tighter it got. Lois stumbled into one of the jewelry display cases as she pulled tightly on the shadowy beast. The black cloud jerked her head up and let it down quickly, so she would hit the display case. The blow to her head was so hard that she fell to the floor, unconscious.

***

"Lois? Are you all right? Lois?"

"Uhhhh…" Lois groaned as a pain shot up her spine. "My back…my back…it hurts."

"Okay. Well, stay down and I'll help you up."

"No, no…I can do it. I want Clark. Where's Clark? I need him…"

"I know…" Lois heard as a hand caressed her cheek. She moved her own hand from off the floor to touch the hand that touched her cheek. But as her fingers grazed the hand, it quickly pulled away. For the first time since she had hit her head, Lois opened her eyes. The room was still dark and all she could make out were two hands moving straight for her waist. Lois' eyes focused a bit more on the image before her. The black cloud was gone. All she could see now was a man; a man who was not Clark. Lois was hoping it was Clark. She had hoped Clark would be there to gather her in his arms and take her home. Her disappointment turned into fear. What if the black cloud had all been in her head? What if this man standing before her was trying to kill her? Lois started backing into a corner as the hands moved closer.

"It's okay, Lois. I'm not going to hurt you. Just hold still."

"No!" Lois yelled. "I want Clark!"

"Clark's not here and you need help…"

"NO!" she screamed as the man's hands grabbed her by the waist and pulled her into a standing position.

"I WANT CLARK!!! NO, NO, NO! LET ME GO!!!" she cried.

"Hush, Lois. Hush now. It's okay. I'm here…" The man started to massage her arm.

Lois fought back by slapping his face. "Don't touch me! You're not my husband!"

"I said HUSH!" the man snapped back as he held onto her tighter.

"NOOOOOOO!!!" Lois let out an earsplitting scream. She continued to yell for Clark. Where was Superman when she needed him? "Clark, heeeelllppp me… Clark help me, please!!!"

"Lois, calm down!" the man pleaded as he shook her by the shoulders.

"LET ME GO!!!!!!!"

The man sighed in frustration. He didn't want to use force, but he had no choice. "Please forgive me…" the man said as his hand flew up to her mouth and clamped it shut. He could still hear her screams, although muffled, through his hand. She was kicking at him from all directions. She even tried biting his hand.

"LOIS!" the man said as he turned on the store lights. "It's me, Damian!"

Lois immediately stopped moving, so Damian took his hand off her mouth. "Damian?"

"Yes, Lois, it's me. I've been trying to tell you all along, but you never listened. You thought I was the bad guy, but how could I be? The thief doesn't even know your name!"

"Oh my God," Lois said as she grabbed his waist and pulled him into a huge hug, "I'm so sorry…"

"It's okay, Lois. Really it is."

"Oh Damian," she stammered as the tears started falling. "I'm so glad to see somebody."

"Aww, Lois, don't cry. It's all going to be okay. You're safe now."

"I was…I…was so scared…" she hiccupped.

"I know. But it's all right now. I'm here. No one's going to hurt you anymore."

"Oh Damian," she cried. "I…" The tears were coming out of her eyes like a faucet turned on high. "I want Clark so much…I need him…"

"Okay, Lois, that's fine. I'll drive you home to make sure you're safe."

Lois nodded in agreement as Damian led her out the front door.

***

Clark sighed as the warm water slid down his back. He was feeling pretty good. This weekend had been a sharp contrast compared to the last one. Last weekend they couldn't stand being together, this weekend they couldn't stand being apart. When he woke up this evening, he noticed Lois was missing. Clark decided to not let it bother him. If he wanted to keep things they way they were, he needed to relearn how to trust his wife. Now was a good time to begin.

Meanwhile, Lois was outside the brownstone, frantically looking for her keys. "Where are they? Darn it!" Lois yelled. "I can't find my keys! Darn, darn, darn!"

"Lois, they're right here," Damian said from inside the living room. "The door was unlocked and your keys were left sitting on the table over here."

"Oh right," Lois said as she walked into her home and closed the door.

"I don't believe I've ever been here before. Your home is very nice, Lois."

"Um, thanks, Damian. Now where's Clark? Clark? Clark? Are you here? It's me, Lois!" The brownstone was absolutely quiet, so Lois tried again. "Clark, it's me, Lois! I left for a bit, but now I'm back." To her disappointment, Clark didn't answer back. Lois was worried. What if Clark got angry with her disappearance and left?

Lois impatiently started to pace in the middle of the room. "Where is he, where is he, where is he?" she continued to repeat to herself.

Damian walked over there in hopes of getting her to stand still. Watching Lois move back and forth like that was making him dizzy.

"Damian, where's Clark? Do you know where he is? Tell me where my husband is!"

"I…um…I…" he stammered.

"I knew it! Clark's gone! I should've known better then to go out like this!"

"Well…"

"Don't you get it, Damian? My husband is gone! He left me!!!" Lois yelled, while shaking him by the shoulders.

Damian's eyes widened at Lois' angry wrath. She finally stopped shaking him as she removed her hands from his shoulders. Lois' right hand covered her mouth as she tried to hold back the tears.

"Oh God…Clark…" she wailed as she fell to the floor in a dramatic fashion. Lois sobbed uncontrollably into her shirtsleeve.

Damian wanted to console her, but the fact that he was in the Kent's home, stopped him. He wasn't sure if touching Lois would be the brightest thing to do if Clark was hiding in the wings.

As Lois continued to cry, a creaking noise was heard coming from upstairs. "Clark?" Lois asked as her puffy, red eyes looked up the staircase. The same creaking noise was heard yet again. "Clark!" Lois shrieked as she picked herself up off the floor and bolted up the stairs. Damian slowly trailed behind.

Her husband was still in the middle of his shower when Lois ran into the bathroom and almost ripped the sliding glass door off its hinges in order to reach him.

"Lois!" Clark exclaimed.

"Oh my God, Clark! You're here…you're here…" Lois repeated as she threw herself around Clark's naked body.

"Lois, sweetie, are you all right?"

"Oh, Clark," she cried. "Oh God, I thought I lost you…"

"Honey, you didn't lose me. I'm right here. Please tell me what's wrong."

"Oh, Clark!" she sobbed. The tears were flowing when she heard the concern in his voice. "Oh God…"

Besides being concerned for the well being of the woman he loved, Clark was also highly confused. Something had happened to Lois. It was so bad that it put her in hysterics. He would get to the bottom of whatever was bothering her and the person—or persons—involved would definitely have to pay.

"Okay, well, I can see that now isn't a good time to talk about it. But Lois, you're home now and I'm here. I won't let anything or anybody hurt you anymore. You're safe now," Clark calmly reassured her.

Lois sniffled a bit as she wrapped her arms tighter around his waist. Clark felt her arms hugging his body as he noticed her clothes were soaking wet. "Lois, your clothes…"

"I don't care," Lois whispered.

Clark could feel her lips lightly brushing his abs. He was getting slightly turned on by that, so he tried moving her away from that particular area. Right now was not a good time to be thinking of sex.

Suddenly, there was a sound coming from the bedroom. "Lois?" Clark turned off the shower in order to hear better. "Lois, is everything okay in there? Are you all right?"

Someone was in the house and Clark started to freak. *Okay, okay,* he told himself. *Calm down. You need to find out who it is before you attack. You need to investigate first!* He grabbed the towel that was closest to him and wrapped it around his waist. "Lois, honey, stay here and I'll be right back." Clark leaned over and kissed her lips in hopes of reassuring her that everything would be okay. The kiss didn't work as well as he had planned. Lois almost looked lifeless as he left her standing there in the shower.

"Hello? Who's out there?" Clark asked from the confines of the bathroom door.

"Clark?"

"Damian?!? May I ask why you're standing in our bedroom?" Clark stated as he stepped out of the bathroom door and closed it behind him.

"Well, I found Lois tonight and she was in trouble, so I helped her out. Then I took her home."

"Uh-huh," Clark said as his eyes narrowed.

"I swear it's true!"

"Yeah, right, Damian! You're still the same, so please spare me the bull! Heaven forbid I let my guard down just once and I let her go out alone. And what do I hear? I hear you're there to take advantage of the situation!"

"No…that's not true, Clark, I mean, I…" Damian argued.

"Shut up! I'm not done yet. If I know Lois she was probably out on some stake out and you decide to show up, therefore scaring her half to death! You have no clue how things work here in Metropolis, buddy! No clue at all!"

"Sorry…I swear I was just trying to help, that's all."

"Your sorry excuse of an apology is NOT enough! If I had my way, Lois would've never met you!"

"Clark, I'm sorry…I really am!"

"Well, I can't deal with this right now. I've got a hysterical wife in there who needs me. So all I want you to do right now is get out of my sight."

"But, Lois! I need to talk to her. I need to make sure she's okay."

"Lois will be fine as soon as you leave! Besides, you're the last person I want Lois talking to, especially tonight!"

"Clark…"

"GET OUT OF MY HOUSE NOW!!!!" Clark yelled at the top of his lungs as he went up behind Damian and shoved him out the bedroom door. He was so angry that he wanted to do more than that. He wanted to do some bodily harm, but he surprised himself with his restraint. Clark followed Damian all the way to the front door.

"The next time we talk, it'll be at the Planet!" Clark said as he slammed the door in his face.

***

Clark Kent opened the bathroom door to find his wife slumped in the corner. She was whimpering.

"Oh man," he said as he grabbed a small hand towel and joined her on the floor. Clark lifted her head up off the ground and started wiping her face. "Oh my love, what did they do to you?"

Lois threw her arms out, and once again she pulled Clark into a tight embrace. She was sobbing again. Clark sat with her on the floor while he tried calming her down.

"Shh, Lois. It's okay. Shh…" he continued to repeat as he ran his fingers through her beautiful brown hair. His soothing seemed to be doing the trick. Only after a couple of minutes, Lois' breathing rate slowed. She had stopped crying and Clark even saw a small smile spreading across her lips. "Lois, can you please tell me what happened? I promise I won't get mad."

She was feeling much better, so Lois proceeded to tell Clark about the call from Bobby, the shadowy creature, and then her run in with Damian.

"Well, I'm glad you got out of there okay. Is your back still sore?"

"It still hurts a bit, but other then that I'm o…achoo!"

"Oh! You've got to get out of those clothes. Here." Clark helped her up. He went out into the bedroom to get her robe. Clark brought it back with him and then helped Lois out of her clothes.

"Mmm…this is much better," she commented as she wrapped the clean robe around her body. "I just wish that my back didn't hurt so much! I mean, look!" Lois slipped her robe off her shoulders in order to expose her backside.

"Ouch!" Clark remarked as he looked at a big bruise. "I'm so sorry."

"That's okay. It's basically my fault."

"No, it's not," Clark said as he was lost in thought.

"What is it, Clark?"

"Well, I had an idea." He grabbed a couple of towels and handed them to his wife. "Do me a favor. Take off your robe and get on the bed. Make sure to be on your stomach. Put one towel under your chest and wrap the other one around your waist."

"So, this is your great idea, eh?" Lois winked.

"Oh no, it's not what you think!" Clark laughed. "Just do this for me and I'll be right back," he said as he went downstairs.

***

A few minutes later, Clark came back with a bowl and a few ingredients. He started mixing these ingredients near the bathroom sink.

"What are you doing?" Lois asked from the bed.

"You'll see." Clark smiled.

When everything was mixed, Clark took the bowl out with him to the bedroom. He got onto the bed with Lois and straddled himself across her legs. Clark dipped his fingers in the element inside the bowl and proceeded to rub it on Lois' back.

"Mmm…this feels good. What exactly are you doing to me?" Lois laughed.

"I'm giving you a massage. This is a special massage that I learned while I was in the Philippines. It's supposed to help alleviate back pain. The cream I'm using is made from a blend of milk, tea bags, and flower petals."

"Really? I would've never guessed. And you just happen to have all of this with you?"

"Yep. Clark Kent is always prepared!"

"Hmm…well, you're already doing a good job. My back is already feeling better."

"Well, that's good to hear. I saw it only once and you're the first person I've tried this on. I guess I can put this on my 'good list.'"

"That's not the only thing you're good at." Lois giggled.

"Thank you. It's nice to know that I'm appreciated." Clark winked.

Clark massaged Lois' back for about ten minutes. "Okay, turn over on your back." Lois grabbed the towel underneath her chest and flipped over. Clark leaned over and started kissing her stomach.

"Um, Clark, as many times as I've had massages, I don't remember kissing the navel to be involved!"

"Well, I can't help it. You're just too delicious to pass up!"

Lois smirked at Clark's comment.

"Okay, okay, since you're so persuasive, I'll explain. Remember when I told you I learned this in the Philippines?"

"Yeah…"

"Well, this specific massage is from a tribe back there. It's a healing massage, and once the person is healed, it's traditional for the male and female to make love. Through the act of love making, the male is supposed to prove to the female that she is safe. Of course these males and females are married like you and I. So, how am I doing so far?" he asked as he kissed her shoulder.

"Hmm…" she moaned, "very convincing."

***

"I wish we didn't have to leave…I mean we keep getting interrupted," Lois stated as she traced her finger around Clark's pecs.

"Yeah, I know…"

"It's like the gods, or whatever is up there, want us to be happy, and then BOOM, something happens that stands in our way!"

"That's true."

For a few moments, the lovers just enjoyed the feeling of being with each other.

"Darn."

"Mmm…what?" Clark asked as he pulled away from Lois' tasty lips.

"Well, I just looked at the time and we should probably be going down to the police station soon. Henderson will probably want a statement from me, so they can start investigating as soon as possible."

"Yeah, you're probably right," Clark agreed.

Tears started welling up in Lois' eyes.

"Aww, sweetie, don't cry," Clark pleaded as he kissed her cheek.

"I know…it's just I want to stay here with you. I don't ever want to leave you, or this moment in time," she said as the tears started falling.

"I feel the same way, honey." Clark saw the tears falling from her face. "It's going to be okay," he reassured her as he hugged her close to his chest. "I promise, one of these days we'll spend alone together. You and I together in this bedroom, in this bed…"

***

[Inside the police station]

"It's nice to see you, Mr. and Mrs. Kent, especially early on a Saturday morning!"

"Well, I'm only trying to do what's right for Metropolis, Henderson."

"I know, and the city thanks you. Lois, I heard that you received some injuries last night. Actually, there was one injury in particular we'd like to check out. Do you mind if I have a look?"

"No," Lois said as she removed her jacket. She was wearing a sleeveless top, so Clark took his fingers and moved the back of her shirt to the side.

"Oh!" the two men exclaimed.

"What? What?" Lois asked frantically.

"Hush, sweetie. It's okay. Everything's fine," Clark reassured.

"No, it isn't, Clark! You guys sound shocked! I want to know. I need to know! Please…"

"Kent, was this here before?" Henderson inquired.

"No. I looked at it last night and it was just a normal bruise. Now it's this!"

"It's what, Clark? Please tell me! Please…" Lois pleaded.

"Okay, Lois, calm down. The bruise on your back has changed. In a way, it has morphed."

"What?"

"Well, it doesn't look like a bruise anymore. It looks like a shadowy figure."

"A shadow figure?!? Oh my God!!! I need to get away. I…need…I…I…"

"Lois?"

"Noooo…" Lois screamed. She was hallucinating the shadowy beast. "Let me go!!!" She struggled against Clark's strong grip.

"Lois! It's okay. Nobody's going to hurt you."

"Noooo…" she moaned.

"Lois, no one else is here except for your husband and me," Henderson stated.

"Clark, please…" Lois interrupted.

Clark looked over at Henderson and motioned him to play along.

"Ah, um, Ms. Lane, Clark is right here. He'll protect you."

"Clark!" Lois wailed.

"I know, I know, honey. I'm right here," he comforted her as he hugged her close to his body. While his hands rested on her back, his finger brushed the shadow on her skin.

"Ahh…" Lois screamed as her body lurched forward.

"Lois, honey? Are you all right?"

"Ahh…" she screamed again as she was pulled back. Suddenly, her eyes closed, as she fell limp in Clark's strong arms.

"Lois, honey. Lois, please speak to me! Loois…" he cried.

"Oh my God, Kent, the mark on her back disappeared!"

"I could care less about that right now, Henderson! My wife is unconscious!!!" he stated.

***

"Lois honey, please wake up. Please…" he cried. Clark sat in the police station with his wife cradled in his arms. He sat back in his chair and rocked her back and forth. "Lois, oh, Lois! Please don't leave me…please…please." The tears fell from his eyes as he ran his fingers through Lois' hair.

Lois could feel Clark massaging her head, so she stirred. "Clark?" she coughed. "Clark…"

"Lois? Oh honey, you're awake!" Clark exclaimed as he hugged her close to his body.

"Uhh…" she moaned.

"Oh! I'm sorry. Did I hurt you?"

"No, it just feels like I had the wind knocked out of me, that's all."

"Yeah…it was pretty scary. I can't believe that a bruise could do something like that! It was like it had a mind of its own!"

"Speaking of that shadowy thing, is it gone?" Lois asked excitedly.

Clark pulled back her top and took a look. "Yes, it's gone. It looks like nothing was ever there. It never made a mark. It didn't even leave a bruise."

"Oh God," Lois said as she let out a huge sigh.

"I know. I'm just glad that I didn't lose you," Clark commented as he ran hand down her cheek.

"Ah, Ms. Lane, you're awake. Would you like to finish my interview?" Henderson asked.

"Yeah, I guess."

"Good. Why don't we go to my office?"

***

[Inside Henderson's office]

"Okay, Lois, can you please tell me what happened to you last night, say from 10:15 on."

"Well, by the time 10:15 hit, I'd been hiding out in the store for at least a couple of hours. The room was completely quiet until three minutes later. At about 10:18, I heard the doorknob jiggling. I took out an infrared camera to take a look. The camera couldn't see a thing. I changed it to the x-ray vision function and I still saw nothing. As I brought the camera away from my eyes, I felt something move down my cheek…"

"What do you think it was? Was it of human form?" Henderson asked.

"I'm not sure. All I did was rub my hand down my face and the sensation was gone."

"Hmm…very weird. Very, very weird. Anyway, go on."

"As soon as I brought my hands away I heard glass breaking and gold jewelry was seen floating. There were no wires, hands, or anything. Just jewelry floating on its own. I guess my scream must have gotten his attention, because as soon as I made a peep, the jewelry abruptly dropped to the ground. The only thing I could think of was trying to keep quiet. I was trying to stay alive."

"Did this thing threaten you in any way? Did it do something to you, or say something to you to make you think you were threatened?"

"No. It did nothing. I mean to say that it approached me with no warning! Before I saw it, this black cloud had itself wrapped around my body and it was trying to suffocate me!!!"

"Lois, it's okay. You can calm down now. That monster isn't here anymore."

"I know, Clark. I know. It's just my only real question here is why didn't your men come and get me while I was screaming at the top of my lungs?!?"

"Lois, could you please tell me what time the attack occurred…"

"Excuse me?"

"Just tell me, okay."

"Why the heck do I need to? What's done is done. I was almost killed and you guys weren't there to help me!" Lois snapped back.

"Lois…I wouldn't say killed…" Clark pleaded as he laid his hand on her shoulder.

"Don't touch me!" Lois said as she knocked his hand away.

"Ms. Lane, please! We need to know the time! The quicker you tell us, the faster this interview will be all over."

"Okay, if it really means that much to you, the last time I checked my watch it said 10:18."

"I knew it!" Henderson yelled as he slammed his fists on the table.

"What?" Clark asked.

"What we have here folks, is the work of a real master! About a minute before Ms. Lane was attacked, our surveillance equipment went dead. My men and I were hiding behind one of the nearby businesses, keeping an eye on the jewelry store. At about 10:17, our equipment went out and we lost the signal from Ms. Lane…"

"You were keeping tabs on me?!?" Lois interrupted.

"Of course! Bobby slipped something in your pant pocket while he was talking to you. Unfortunately, before you were attacked, our equipment went dead. It was like this person wanted you to be vulnerable. The thing that frustrates us the most was that the equipment came from S.T.A.R. Labs. They promised it wouldn't malfunction on us! It was even Dr. Klein certified!"

"Oh God…"

"Ms. Lane, there's definitely someone who's out to get you!"

Although she and Clark had been thinking about this for quite a while now, hearing someone else confirm their suspicions made Lois more upset. She could hold her emotions back no longer. The tears fell.

"Ah, honey, it's okay…" Clark soothed as he wrapped his arms around Lois in a tight embrace.

"Mr. Kent, if I were you, I'd keep a close eye on your wife, at least until we catch this psycho!"

"I will…I will…" Clark repeated as he kissed Lois on the cheek.

Henderson could clearly tell that Lois was very upset. He knew that nothing else could result from this interview. It was probably a good time to end things. "Um, thank you for your time," he said uncomfortably. "Your information is very helpful."

Lois sniffled as she nodded in agreement.

"Lois and I thank you for your time, Inspector. If you learn anything new, please let us know!"

"I will, Kent! Take care," Henderson said as he shook Clark's hand. "You, too, Lois!" he added as he patted her on the back. Lois buried her head in Clark's shoulders as she felt Henderson's fingers brush her back.

After Henderson exited his office, Clark nudged his wife. "Lois? Lois, honey?"

"What?" she hiccuped.

"Henderson has left, so now we can go, too. The interview is over."

"Uhh…" Lois moaned as she tightly grabbed onto Clark's shirt.

"Honey, you're safe now. Everything will be okay because I'm not going to leave you. I promise!"

Lois buried her face deeper into Clark's shirt.

"Uh, um, are you hungry?"

Lois nodded her head 'yes.'

"Well, why don't we pay a visit to the Americana Cafe and have a bite to eat. Then we can go back home and spend some quality time together, just you and me. I'll call Perry and tell him we won't be stopping by today because you're a bit under the weather. How does that sound?"

Lois looked up into Clark's eyes and smiled.

"Great! Well, let's get going then."

***

"Lois, are you okay?"

"Lois had a rough night, Uncle Mike. So that's why she and I are taking some time out for ourselves."

"That's great, Clark!"

All Lois could do was smile at her uncle. She really didn't feel like explaining to him why her weekend wasn't the best. Fortunately, her uncle wasn't one to delve into her private life, unlike someone else she knew.

"Ah, kiddo, it'll all get better, I promise!"

"Thanks, Uncle Mike," Lois muttered quietly.

"Oh, by the way, your parents send their love. They're on a cruise in the Caribbean."

"Oh great…"

"Lois!"

"I know, Clark. I guess I should be happy that they're together and out of my hair!"

"I think we're all glad that they're out of our hair!" Everyone laughed at Mike's insight. "So, what would you two kids like?"

"Well, how about you get us a big plate of your best pasta, along with two forks. Remember to include a bottle of wine." Clark smiled.

"Great choice and I'll get right on it."

"Thanks!" Clark cheerfully said.

"Yeah, thanks." Lois smiled.

"Anything for my favorite niece and her significant other!" he said as he kissed Lois on the top of her head.

"Actually, could you make it one fork instead?" Clark asked.

"Yeah, sure. I understand," Mike winked before walking back into the restaurant.

***

"Here you go, kids!" Mike exclaimed as he laid the steaming plate of pasta upon the table.

"Oooh, fettuccine alfredo, one of my favorites!" Clark remarked.

"If you guys need anything, like dessert, please holler."

"We'll let you know as soon as the time for dessert arrives…"

"Okay, you're the boss!" Mike laughed as he walked back inside his cafe to check on the other customers.

Clark took the fork and wrapped a section of the pasta around it. Lois watched Clark's fingers move around the fork like a merry-go-round. She licked her lips in response.

"Okay, dear, you get the first bite," Clark chuckled.

"Hmm…" Lois sighed.

"Okay, here you are," Clark said as he brought the fork up to her mouth. Lois let the noodles slowly slide down her tongue.

"Mmm…" she sighed.

"Good, huh?"

"Uncle Mike makes the best pasta this side of the Mississippi!"

"Hmm…well, that's good, because we all know what pasta does to me…"

"Yep," Lois said as she leaned over and kissed him on the cheek.

Clark brought the forkful of pasta up to his mouth and took a bite. "Mmm…god…this is so good," Clark said as he took some of the pasta sauce off his fingers. "I just wish we weren't in such a public place." He sighed. Lois started to giggle as Clark playfully nipped at her ear.

Clark was so in love with the plate full of pasta in front of him that he completely forgot about Lois sitting there. He dug his fork back in and took another bite. Meanwhile, Lois started picking at the noodles on the side of the plate.

"Oh, honey! I'm sorry. Did you want another bite?"

"No…you can finish it up and I'll eat whatever's left over," Lois said as she picked up a noodle and let it slowly slide down her mouth.

"I have an idea. Let's make that dessert 'to go!'"

"It's a deal!" Lois said as she smiled.

Lois suddenly noticed a figure standing near the side of the building. "Oh my God!" Lois shrieked.

"What is it, sweetheart?"

"It's…it's…it's…" she stuttered. "It's Damian," she stated as she pointed at the figure in the doorway.

"What?"

"Look! Over there, next to that wall…I think he's spying on us."

Clark looked toward the direction that Lois pointed to. When Clark made eye contact with him, Damian bolted in the opposite direction.

"Hey! He's running away!!!"

Lois nervously twirled part of her hair with her fingers as she watched Clark's muscles tense up in extreme anger.

"I can't believe this character! He never knows when to leave well enough alone. Doesn't he get it?!?"

Lois shrugged her shoulders.

"I'm going to go after that guy. He needs to learn a lesson…preferably from my fist!"

"Claark…" Lois pleaded.

"Lois, I'll be fine. We need to teach this guy a lesson and make sure he gets out of our life forever! Please stay here and I'll be right back." Clark stood up and kissed Lois on the lips.

"Clark…" Lois muttered to herself.

He started walking toward the front door of the cafe when Lois tightly grabbed onto Clark's shirtsleeve. "Clark, no."

"Lois, I have to. And nothing's going to stop me. Even if I have to rip this shirt off!"

Lois' lower lip started to quiver as she felt her grip on Clark's arm loosen.

"Honey, I need you to be brave for me now…" Clark pleaded as his hand caressed her cheek.

Lois watched his arm slowly slip from her fingers as he left her to go find Damian.

***

"Oh God…" Lois quietly said to herself as she looked down at her watch. Clark had been gone for ten minutes. Her suspicions had been true. Those were not dreams she had been having; they were premonitions that were about to come true.

Lois wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. She was starting to cry. Crying was not the answer to her problems. She had done enough of that lately and look where it got her. Lois decided to go look for her husband. Maybe he was in trouble but he couldn't call out to her, or she couldn't hear him.

***

"Clark, where are you? Are you okay? Clark???" Lois called out. She had walked out to the back of the cafe, in hopes of finding her husband. "Clark? Clark? Clark, are you here?" she continued to call out into the spring-like, metropolitan air. Lois went around the corner of the back parking lot when something blinded her. She screamed in pain as a bright light shown directly into her eyes. She leaned over in hopes of blocking the light from hitting her again. In a matter of seconds, the light disappeared. Lois slowly got back into a standing position. She moved her hands away from her eyes and noticed she was no longer outside. Instead of being in the parking lot, she found herself standing in the middle of a completely white room.

"What the heck?"

"Ah, Ms. Lane, it's so nice to see you."

"Oh God, not you again!"

"Well, it wasn't exactly the response I was looking for, but hey, it'll do for now. I pictured you being happier than this."

"Mxy, if you were the last person, um, I mean imp, on earth, I wouldn't care!"

"Ha, ha!" the imp chuckled. "You know you're quite beautiful when you're annoyed…"

"Uggh!" Lois said as her lips turned up in a sour look.

"Hmm…Ms. Lane, you're just too much!" Mxy grinned.

"Shut up!"

"Edgy now, are we? Did we get up on the wrong side of the bed this morning?" he asked in a voice that a person would use if they were talking to an infant.

"Urrarrgh!" Lois said as she stomped her feet.

"Throwing temper tantrums now, are we? I don't think that's appropriate conduct for a newspaper woman, now, is it? Answer this for me—are these violent outbursts a recent development within your psyche?"

"Mxy, I'm not here to play any of your stupid games! So just get me out of here so I can go on with my life!"

"I am your life, darling…"

"Well, if in your sick world you feel that way, then I'll pray for you."

"And why is that?"

"Well, as soon as I tell Clark about…"

"You haven't told Clark about me yet?" Mxy interrupted.

"No."

"Hmm…interesting."

"I thought if I told him earlier, he wouldn't have believed me. We've been having some problems, but we're fine now."

"Problems, eh?" Mxy smirked.

"All married couples go through rough times. It's perfectly normal."

"Hmm…"

"Besides, once I tell Clark, he'll be here to wipe the floor with you! So I'd have to say that you picked the wrong girl!" Lois said proudly.

"I've heard this spiel all before, Ms. Lane. Besides, you really don't know, do you?"

"Know what?"

"Never mind. I mean, it's just too easy! Anyway, don't you want to find Clark?"

"Yes."

"Well, you might find him in there," Mxy said as a single white door appeared through some smoke.

Lois walked up to the door and turned the doorknob. As she opened the door and walked through, smoke covered her until she found herself standing in another white room. Lois looked puzzled as her eyes scanned around. She was in another white room, the same as the last one she was in. Suddenly, another door appeared and she walked through it and the same thing happened. She was led into another white room. Lois kept walking through doors and into other white rooms until she thought she would collapse.

"Hey! What's going on here?" she yelled. Mxy's evil laughter filled the room as the white door disappeared. "No! Bring it back, Mxy! Bring it back, Mxy! Noooooo…" she screamed. "Nooooooo…" Lois cried as she punched the walls. "Let me out please? Let me go!!! Clark, help please, help!"

"Clark's not here anymore, Lois. It's only you and me now."

"NO!!!!!!!!" Lois let out a bloodcurdling scream as she fell to the floor. She placed her hands over her ears to try to block out Mxy's continual laughter. "Claark!!!!"

***

Clark rounded the corner of the cafe when he saw Damian running down the parking lot. Clark quickly caught up with him and used one of his famous college football moves to tackle him to the ground.

"Hey!" Damian exclaimed as he could feel the weight of Clark's body crushing his ribs.

"What are you doing here?" Clark angrily asked. Damian stayed silent. "I asked you a question!" Clark snapped at him as he pushed his hands harder on Damian's chest.

"I…can't speak…I can't breathe…" Damian coughed.

"Fine!" Clark got off Damian and stood up with him while he held tightly onto his shirt collar. "I'll ask you once again. What are you doing here?"

"I came to see Lois…"

"Why?"

"Why? Well, um, gee, I don't know. Lois was hurt yesterday and I'm her friend and I wanted to make sure that she was okay," Damian said.

"Don't you dare use that smart alecky tone with me!"

"Jeez, I'm sorry man. I mean, chill!"

"I won't chill as long as you're here creating a living hell for me and my wife!"

"Despite what you think Clark, Lois and I are very close friends. She always comes to me whenever she needs a shoulder to cry on."

"Yeah, she ran to you, when in essence it was your fault for causing her that grief. She was too caught up in your spell to notice. Fortunately, I was able to break through to her and make her see what a jerk you really are!"

"I hate to tell you this, buddy, but Lois and I are always going to be friends…"

"No, you aren't!"

"Lois is a very beautiful woman, Clark. Any man would be more than lucky to have her as his bride. But if you keep treating her the way that you are, you might lose her. If I had my way, she would be better off with me then you…"

"Don't say that!" Clark yelled as his grip tightened around Damian's shirt collar. His voice softened a bit as tears started welling up in his eyes. "Lois and I are completely in love. She told me so herself."

"Are you sure?"

"Of course, I'm sure!" Clark stated as the volume in his voice increased. "It's just every time Lois and I try to get physically close, something interrupts and tears us apart."

"You know, if Lois really cared, she wouldn't rush off to whatever it was. She'd do anything to be with you. Screw the interruptions!"

Damian's last comment struck a major nerve on Clark. His body flushed in reds as his muscles tensed up and his mind was filled with extreme anger.

"I have every right to hit you from here to the next galaxy!!! Stay away from Lois and stay away from me!!!" Clark brought his fist back. He was about to punch Damian square in the jaw when he heard someone screaming.

Instantaneously, Clark lowered his fist and his grip loosened around Damian's neck.

This time Clark listened closely to the screams resounding in the distance. It was a woman's voice. The woman was calling out for someone. It sounded like someone whose name started with a C and then an L and then an A and then an…*Wait a minute! That's the name Clark! I'm Clark! She's calling out for me!!! Oh my God, it's Lois! She must be in trouble!!*

As Clark rushed off to find his wife, he dropped Damian to the ground like a discarded rag. Clark felt like he was running a marathon that never ended. His sweat soaked his shirt, so it stuck tightly to his skin. He had problems breathing as he rounded each corner on the building. The building had become wider and taller since he had left Lois at the restaurant table.

"Looiiissss…" Clark wailed as he leaned up against a brick wall to rest. Now his breathing problems were severe. Things were getting so bad for him that he wanted to pass out.

As Clark's body slid farther down the wall, he noticed a body curled up in the middle of the road. It was Lois and she rocked back and forth as her hands covered her ears.

"Lois?" Clark tiredly asked.

"Clark—I want Clark—I can't go on without him—" she muttered to herself.

"Lois, it's me, Clark. Lois!"

"Clark—Clark—Clark!" she cried.

"Lois, I'm over here!" he yelled. "Lois—please—Lois— Arrghh!"

Clark doubled over in pain as he lost his grip on the wall and fell to the ground below. He groaned as he tried getting up on all fours to crawl over to where Lois sat. An immense pain shot through his back with each shuffle of his knees across the hard and rocky pavement. Clark hadn't been in this much pain since he'd been Superman and had his last run-in with Kryptonite.

He continued to whisper the name "Lois" across his lips. Lois was the only thing that kept him going. He had to get to her.

It took Clark at least a couple of minutes of excruciating pain to finally reach her. Lois was still curled up in a ball and he could feel her shivering as his fingers grazed her back.

"Oh God," he exclaimed as he threw his body over hers.

Clark tried to move Lois' hand away from one of her ears, but when he moved it, she would quickly cover it again.

"Lois!" he said as he held tightly onto her arm.

"No! Let me go!"

"Lois, it's me, Clark," he softly whispered in her ear. To make it even more believable, he lightly brushed his lips against her flushed cheek.

"Clark?" Lois asked as she removed her hands from her ears.

"Yes, honey, it's me," he soothed.

"Clark—"

"Lois, open your eyes. It's okay now." He could feel Lois' legs shift under his chest, so he removed himself from her back.

"Oh God, that hurts!" Lois yelled as she tried to stretch out her body.

"Here, let me help you." Clark flipped Lois onto her back, while her legs were still tucked into a fetal position.

"This is going to hurt a bit, but it'll all be over soon…" Clark said as he grabbed a hold of her right leg.

Lois cried in pain as Clark slowly pulled her leg away from her chest. He then did the same thing with other leg. It tore him up inside to see Lois crying, especially since he was the one who was causing it.

"Okay. Now I want you to push as hard as you can against my chest. Don't worry about me getting hurt. You can think of it as getting back at me for causing you this discomfort." Clark laughed.

A small smile spread across her lips.

"I'm going to massage your legs in order to alleviate the muscle tension."

"You know, it's pretty amazing I'm married to man who can fix almost anything. I'll have to keep that in mind during childbirth…" She paused. "I mean to say, when we decide to start a family a few years from now…" Lois uncomfortably added.

"Of course," her husband said as leaned over and kissed her lips.

***

Jimmy Olsen rode his motorcycle down Hyperion Ave. He was leaving Lois and Clark's brownstone. Perry had sent him out because he was worried. Lois had said they would stop by sometime today, but they hadn't yet. Jimmy drove to their house in hopes of finding them there. He figured they had slept in. Unfortunately, his assumptions were false. Neither Lois nor Clark answered the door when he rang the bell.

Now Jimmy was headed in the direction of nowhere. If he had to go on a wild goose chase, then so be it. He wanted to avoid the angry wrath of the Chief if he came back empty handed.

He stopped at a traffic light and looked at all of the buildings that surrounded him. On his left was the Americana Cafe, one of Lois and Clark's favorite places to eat. When the light turned green, Jimmy drove down the street until he found a corner to turn his bike around. With his bike pointed in the opposite direction, he drove back to the cafe. It wouldn't hurt to look.

***

Clark was massaging Lois' left leg when he heard a motorcycle pull up. "Jimmy?"

"Oh, hey, C.K.!" Jimmy exclaimed as he parked his bike. He looked down at Lois with her legs pushed up against Clark's chest. "Oh man…is she all right?"

"I know it looks bad, but she's fine. She had an accident, so her legs are a bit sore. I'm just trying to make them feel better."

"I understand. I'm just glad you're both all right! The Chief was worried, so he sent me out to look for you."

"Shoot!" Clark said as he hit his forehead with the palm of his hand. "I totally forgot…I was going to call and tell him that Lois and I needed some time off."

"Oh, that's okay. I'll tell him for you, C.K. He'll probably understand." Jimmy hit the gas pedal and started pulling out of the parking lot.

"Jimmy, before you go…"

"Yeah, C.K.?"

"We've been having some weird run-ins with Damian Johansen. You can blame him for Lois' injury here. Could you please do a background check on him and then get back to us?"

"Yeah, sure," Jimmy said as he sped off in the direction toward the Planet.

"Do you think you can stand up?" Clark asked his wife.

"I dunno. Lemme see." Lois wrapped her arm around Clark's shoulder as they both started to stand up. She winced in pain when she started to take the first couple of steps. "Oh God!" she yelped.

"Okay, that's it! I'm carrying you to the car…"

"Clark, I'm okay, really. I can do it myself!"

"Lois, honey, you're in pain and you need help. Take a day off, okay?!" Clark lowered his arms so he could scoop Lois up. Lois blew her hair out of her face out of a fit of frustration.

"Honey, I'm not trying to be rude, I'm just trying to take care of you. I love you with all my life."

"And I love you with all my life, too," Lois said as she leaned over and kissed his mouth.

Clark moaned in appreciation as Lois caressed his face with her hands.

"Why don't we go home and continue this in the bedroom?" Clark suggested.

"Okay, as long as you drive…" Lois smiled.

"I always do, Lois!" Clark winked.

"Clark!" Lois exclaimed, as she lightly hit him on the chest. "I didn't mean it that way…"

"I know. I was just teasing you," her husband grinned.

"Oh Lord!" Lois said as she rolled her eyes.

***

"I don't think I can take it anymore…" Clark complained as he tried to walk Lois and himself through the front door.

"I know…" Lois whispered as she ran her hand through his hair.

"Do you mind if we…"

"Oh no, not at all."

"Good," her husband eagerly said as he used his foot to slam the door shut. "At the rate we're going, I'm afraid we won't make it to the bed," Clark said as he carried Lois to the couch.

"Yep," Lois agreed.

"Lois, what did I do to be stuck with a wonderful woman like you?"

"Hmm…I dunno. Maybe it's the fact that you look incredibly sexy right now, so all I can think about is ripping those clothes off your body," Lois whispered in his ear.

"Oh God," Clark tried to say as he gulped.

"It's also because you're multitalented. You're good at fixing things…" she winked.

Lois giggled as he made a trail of kisses starting at her neck and ending at her lips. Just then the phone rang.

"Oh no, not the phone…mmm…not the phone," he complained as he busily kissed Lois' mouth.

The phone continued to ring.

"Mmm…honey, you'd better…mmm…get that. I mean, what if it's…mmm…mmm…something important. What if it's the Chief!"

"Mmm…Lois…I really don't want…"

"Clark!"

"Okay…mmm…you're right," Clark said as he pulled away from Lois' scrumptious lips.

He reached over to pick up the phone receiver. "Hello?"

"Oh, hey, son! It's Perry. You sound a bit out of it…did I wake you up?"

"Um…, Chief," Clark said as he rolled his eyes.

"Good. I just wanted to let you two know that Jimmy gave me your message. I'm not mad at all. I'm just relieved that you kids are safe. So please take your time. If you don't feel like coming in during the next couple of days, then by all means don't! You can just email me your work."

"Thanks, Chief."

"No problem, son…" There was a short pause before Perry resumed speaking. "Well…um…I'd better let you go. You probably have a lot of resting to do…"

"You don't know the half of it," Clark mumbled.

"What was that?"

"Um…oh nothing…"

"Oh, okay, son," Perry chuckled. "I thought you said something. Anyway, take care and please call me if you need anything."

"Okay, will do!"

"Good-bye, Clark."

"Good-bye, Chief."

Clark hung up the phone and sighed. "Well, as you can probably tell, that was the Chief. He told us we can take as much time off as we need…but enough about that! Let's get back to what we started…" He grinned.

Clark leaned over to kiss Lois' lips when he noticed her eyes were closed. "Lois? Lois? Are you okay?" he asked as he shook his wife by the shoulders. He laid his ear on her chest and listened to her breathing. Lois was breathing slowly, but it was normal. She was asleep.

"Oh jeez," Clark said as he shook his head and smiled. "It's probably for the best…"

***

A loud banging noise echoed through the brownstone, stirring Clark from his light slumber. He groaned as he removed Lois' limp body from his lap and then blindly felt around for the armrest on the couch. He grabbed onto it so he could slowly stand up. Before walking toward the door, Clark smoothed over wrinkles in his pants. He looked over at Lois who was still passed out. Her position reminded him of a quilt.

Clark edged closer to the door so he could look through the peephole. "Who is it?"

"C.K., it's Jimmy. Can you let me in? I really need to talk to you guys!"

"Clark? What's going on?" Lois tiredly asked.

"Jimmy's here…"

"Jimmy?" Lois mouthed with her lips.

"Please, guys, open up!" Jimmy pleaded.

"Okay, hold on…" Clark said.

Lois got up to join Clark near the door when Clark looked at her in shock. "Lois, your pants!!!!"

"Oh my God," she shrieked as she quickly pulled her pants up from her ankles and zipped them up.

When Lois was properly dressed, Clark opened the door. Jimmy practically came breezing by the couple as he sat down on their couch and started spewing forth information.

"Um, make yourself at home." Lois laughed.

"You guys won't believe this…I looked up Damian Johansen on the City of Metropolis database and I couldn't find anything. Damian wasn't at his desk, and according to the Chief he's been missing for a couple of days. Anyway, I went digging through his desk and I came upon an address…but not just any address, it was an address that's awfully close to your old apartment, Lois! So I took the address and decided to check it out…"

"You did what?" Lois and Clark both interrupted.

"I took the address and went to check it out."

"Jimmy…"

"Oh, come on, C.K.! You and Lois do it all of the time."

"But we're professionals!"

"Oh and I'm not?!" Jimmy asked hurtful.

"Clark…" Lois said as she looked at her husband sternly.

"Okay. I'm sorry. That was uncalled for. Keep going."

"So I decided to check this address out and it brings me to another apartment complex next to Lois' old one. I got as far as Damian's door. Actually, I was ready to break in when he came racing out of his door. Man was he fast. He ran as fast as Superman. Um, as much as Superman did…"

Lois rolled her eyes. Did everyone in this city have amnesia except for her?

"Anyway, I should probably get going. The Chief had some pictures for me to work on for Sunday's morning edition."

"Jimmy, I just want to apologize for snapping at you like that. I've been under a lot of stress lately. And with Damian interfering, I tend to make irrational judgments on things I should know better not to do."

"That's okay, C.K. I knew you didn't mean those things."

"Thanks, Jimmy," Clark said as he threw his arms around him and gave him a big hug.

"Aww…now that's the stuff I like to see." Lois laughed.

"Come here." Clark motioned with his arm.

Lois walked over to the two men, when all of a sudden Clark grabbed her by the waist and pulled her into their hug. Lois giggled as the group rocked back and forth like those "dancing flowers" you can buy at Costmart.

"Well, as much as I want to stay like this," Jimmy commented as he squeezed Lois' shoulder.

"Jimmy!" Lois exclaimed.

"Ha, ha," he laughed. "Anyway, I gotta go," he added as she dropped out of the embrace and walked toward the door. When Jimmy left the circle, Lois and Clark pulled their bodies close.

"Here's the address just in case you want to check it out yourselves."

"Thanks."

"No problem, C.K. I guess I'll see you…well, maybe I'll see you on Monday."

***

Clark sat next to his wife on the couch. He was watching Lois stare off into space. "What's going on in that beautiful head of yours? Are you thinking the same thing I am?"

"I don't know, you tell me."

"Well, I was thinking of a nice, relaxing bath, maybe a hot shower, or a nightcap upstairs?" He grinned.

"Hmm…"

"What?"

"Oh, I was just thinking about how you've lost your touch."

"My touch?"

"Yeah. Everything you said was totally wrong! I have something completely different on my mind right now."

"And what is that?" Clark asked slyly.

"I've been thinking about Damian and this address. I really think we should check it out."

"Lois…"

"Jimmy left the name of a Mr. Benjamin Alcott. I figure this might be Damian's landlord. I think we should go talk to him right now and get some answers."

"Lois…you know we shouldn't do this right now, I mean…your legs."

"Clark, my legs are fine. Besides, where's your reporter's instinct? Damian might be the person who cracks the jewelry story mystery. Maybe he's the story!"

"I dunno about this, Lois…"

"Clark, it's okay. If you don't want to go, I'll do it myself!" Lois said as she grabbed her jacket and bag.

"Oh, no, you don't! You're not going out alone!" Clark remarked as he ran after her.

***

"Do you find this weird?" Lois asked Clark as they drove down an all-too-familiar street.

"Yeah, a bit…"

"Nothing's changed. It's sorta like the 'Twilight Zone.'"

Lois pulled her Jeep up to the sidewalk and sighed. Another perfect parallel parking maneuver for Lois Lane, Queen of all SUVs!"

"Nice job!" Clark exclaimed as he gave his wife a round of applause.

"Thank you, thank you," Lois smirked. "Someone's got to do the dirty work."

The couple got out of the Jeep. Clark went in one direction, Lois in the other.

"Lois, where are you going?"

"I'm going over here…"

"In the direction of your old apartment?"

"Yeah, why not?"

"Lois, do you really want to see it?"

"Oh, I dunno. I'm kinda curious to see who lives there now…"

"Lois…"

Okay, fine then," she said as she stomped her feet on the steps and then rejoined her husband waiting for her on the sidewalk below.

Lois and Clark walked down a couple of blocks until they reached the apartment complex that Jimmy had told them about. They walked through the front doors and over to Benjamin Alcott's office.

"Excuse me, Mr. Alcott?" Lois asked as she tapped lightly on the door that was ajar.

"Yes, can I help you?"

"Um, yes. We're friends of Damian Johansen. He wanted us to drop something off in his apartment. Unfortunately, he didn't leave a key…so we can't get in. Could you please help us out?" she sweetly asked.

"Let me go check…" Alcott said as he smiled back.

In a matter of minutes, the landlord was back with an extra key. "Mr. Johansen lives in apartment #100, Miss," he said as he laid the key in Lois' hands.

The man's fingers lingered a bit longer than she hoped, so she quickly pulled away. "Thank you very much. My friend and I really appreciate this."

"Your welcome, Miss. Don't be a stranger, okay? You're always welcomed here."

"Uh, um, thanks. I'll keep that in mind." She winked. Mr. Alcott had to hold onto his chair to keep from falling down.

As they walked off, Clark complimented his wife. "Nice use of your femininity."

"Well, if you've got it, flaunt it!"

"Um, I guess…"

"Clark Kent, are you actually jealous?"

"Um, I dunno…" He smiled.

"Well, I find jealous men extremely sexy," Lois said in a singsong voice as she rubbed her hands down Clark's chest.

"Hmm…in that case…" Clark smirked.

Lois laughed. "I love you."

"I know…I know…" Clark grinned.

When they reached Damian's apartment, Lois turned the key. "Well, here goes nothing," she said as she opened the door.

Damian's apartment was full of papers. Papers that were strewn all over the floor. Lois bent down and started looking at the documents that were lying on the floor. She looked at one such pile that was full of Daily Planet editions. Every byline written by Lois Lane was circled.

"Clark?"

"Yeah?"

"Damian has some Daily Planet newspapers, and under every byline I've written, he's circled my name."

Lois turned the page and gasped.

"What? What is it, honey?"

"Clark…your name is crossed out. Actually, it's blackened out. Instead of your name, it reads 'Damian Johansen.'"

Lois took a couple of big breaths in hopes of calming down. She was really scared.

"Lois, it probably means nothing," he reassured. "He's probably jealous or something."

Clark was standing near Damian's computer. All he could find were some attempted drafts of a story. Clark decided to move his investigating to the bedroom. Lois continued looking around the living room. She walked past the garbage can and took a look inside. *You can learn a lot about an individual just by looking through their garbage,* she thought. All Lois could find was a little piece of fabric. Although, it didn't seem like much, Lois pocketed it. The fabric might hold some clues.

She walked over to a table next to a couch. The table contained a drawer with it, so Lois opened it. Inside there was a page from the phone book crumpled up. Lois opened it, and to her astonishment, she found some gold jewelry. As she brushed the jewelry aside, she noticed that the page that had been ripped out was the section that had Mazik Jewelers address and phone number listed.

Lois grabbed the jewelry and walked with it into the bedroom. She found Clark near the dresser drawers. "Clark? Take a look at this. Damian's been hiding gold jewelry! I think we might have found our thief! The $64,000 question is, how did he do it?"

Clark looked away from the jewelry and continued digging through Damian's clothes.

"What are you looking for?"

"I don't know…"

He moved some clothes aside when he came across a small box. It looked like a device that controlled something.

"It looks like something out of Star Trek…maybe a communicator?" Lois asked.

"I don't know, but it kinda does look like one of those things."

"Maybe we should…"

"No, no…" Clark said as he stopped Lois from grabbing at it. "I think we should keep it closed until we find out exactly what it is."

"That's probably a good idea," Lois agreed.

"I'm going to go back out to the living room. So if you need me, just holler," Clark said as he took the device and left.

Lois went over to Damian's bed and sat down. She opened up his nightstand and looked inside. Lois pulled out some pictures that, with one glimpse, made her drop them and scream.

Clark heard his wife scream as he quickly ran back into the bedroom. "Lois, honey, what is it?" he asked as he sat down next to his wife.

Lois pointed down to the pictures on the ground as tears spilled out from her eyes. The pile of pictures were all pictures of herself. Every picture of her had a red heart drawn around her face. There was even a copy of that very private picture Clark had back in his desk.

"How in the hell did he get a copy of this?" Clark angrily asked.

"I don't know, Clark, but I'm really scared," Lois sobbed.

"I know, honey, I know," Clark soothed as he hugged his wife close to his body.

"I'm so scared, and I'm so sorry for not believing you. I'm a complete idiot!"

"No, Lois, you're not an idiot. Damian's the idiot. He's the idiot for messing around with people like us!"

"Clark, this isn't good. I've got a bad feeling about this. It's the same feeling I had when we dealt with Lex."

"Don't worry, honey. Damian will pay. He'll definitely pay for what he's done to us!" Clark exclaimed as he held on tightly to his wife.

"Clark, I don't want to be here anymore. It's just not safe. I want to go home…"

"I agree, Lois, but I'm not leaving without this!" Clark picked up the picture of Lois in Hawaii and stuck it in his right jacket pocket.

Clark wrapped his arm around Lois' shoulder as they walked out of the bedroom and toward the front door. "I need to stop by the Planet first. Then we can go back home and stay there for the rest of the evening," he said as he turned the doorknob.

"Shoot!"

"What?"

"I just saw Damian walking up the steps!"

"What?!?"

"You've got to hide," he exclaimed as he shoved Lois into the corner of the door.

"Well…uh…wait, what about you?!?"

"Don't worry about me, I'll be okay. Just remember to stay low and keep quiet."

Damian opened the door to his apartment. He was puzzled by his unlocked door. He remembered locking it, but he didn't dwell on it.

He was in some sort of hurry. Actually, it looked like he was in search for something. He knocked over the table next to the couch in an angry rage. "Darn it! Where the heck did I put it? I need it NOW!!! Arrggh!!!!"

Lois was crouched behind the door. Her body shivered as Damian came closer to her. She prayed that he wouldn't notice her.

"Where in the hell is it?!?" he yelled.

Lois noticed that she had the small device that Clark had found, in her hands. She took a chance by shoving it over in Damian's direction. The device hit his foot.

"Oh, here it is!" he exclaimed. Damian picked up the device and ran out of the door with it.

Lois watched him leave his apartment as she let out a huge sigh of relief and then fainted.

Clark ran from the other end of the room. "Lois, sweetie…are you all right?" he asked as he cradled her head in his arms. There was no response. Clark leaned over and listened to her chest. She wasn't breathing. Clark quickly laid her back down. He straddled himself across her chest and proceeded to perform CPR. He lifted up her chin and opened her mouth. Then he placed his mouth over hers and blew into it. Clark pumped her chest with his hands. Lois was still not breathing, so he started the process all over again.

As he was pumping her chest again, Lois coughed. "Clark?" she gasped for air.

"Shhh…honey. Don't talk," Clark said as he lifted her up and hugged her to his chest.

"What happened?" she shakily asked.

"You lost consciousness…"

"Oh my God, I did?" Lois exclaimed.

"It's okay," Clark soothed. "I think you just experienced too much trauma and stress that your body couldn't take it anymore."

"I'm just glad that you were here," Lois said as she ran her hand down his cheek. "I mean, if you hadn't been here, I…" Her voice broke off.

"Hush…let's not think about that," he said as he lightly kissed her lips.

"You know, that bath idea is sounding better and better every second," Lois laughed.

"Come on, let's go," Clark said as he scooped his wife up in his arms and carried her out of the apartment.

***

Clark drove the Jeep in the direction of the Planet. "I'm sorry. honey, but I've still got to stop here for just a second. I hope that's okay with you."

"Sure."

"I promise we'll go straight home when I'm done."

"Clark, it's fine. I'll be okay, so go!"

"You won't leave, right? You won't get out of the car, even to chase a runaway cat?"

"Clark, I'll be fine!" Lois laughed. "I won't set foot out of this vehicle. Not even for a runaway Pulitzer!"

"Good," Clark smiled. "I just don't want you going out in the condition that you're in right now."

"Clark! Go!" Lois said as she slightly shoved him toward the door.

When Clark ran off in the direction of the Planet, Lois leaned back in her chair and sighed. This day had been a total nightmare and she just wanted it all to end. She wanted to forget that a day like this even existed!

She turned on the radio in hopes of finding something to relax to. Fortunately, Metropolis' brand new New Age radio station was having an Enya marathon. Lois closed her eyes and took deep breaths as she allowed Enya's voice echo through her mind.

It hadn't even been five minutes when she heard someone rapping at the window. *Boy that was fast!* "Clark, did you forget your keys again?" Lois asked as she opened her eyes. Lois jumped when she looked out of the window and saw it wasn't her husband, but Damian instead.

Damian walked up to the window and mouthed something with his lips. It looked like he was saying her name. Then he grabbed the door handle and started shaking it. Lois moved closer to the driver's seat while shivering in fear.

She was about to hit the horn when something stopped her. Lois looked over at the window and noticed Damian doing something. It almost looked like he was slowly kissing it. He then looked up at Lois and winked.

"Oh my gosh!" she exclaimed as Damian's wink caused a vision of Mxy to flash her mind. *Nah, it couldn't be…* she thought to herself as she tried to shake the image out of her head. But it was no use; Mxy did not disappear from her mind.

"Oh Clark…" she whispered to herself as she closed her eyes and covered her ears.

***

"Darn it, I knew it!" Clark exclaimed as he got back into the car. He noticed Lois staring at the window in a trance. She had paid no attention to his re-entrance into the car.

"Lois, honey, are you all right? Lois?" he asked as he waved his fingers in front of her eyes. "Hey, Lois!" Clark said as he gave her one shake by the shoulders.

"Huh? What?" Lois asked confused.

"Lois, it's me, Clark. Are you all right? I swear you were so out of it that you looked like your mind was someplace else."

"No, Clark. I'm not all right…"

"Why, what's wrong?"

"Damian was here…"

"WHAT?!?"

"He was standing over there just a few minutes ago and he was trying to get in!"

Clark's face turned crimson as he listened to Lois speak.

"Damian kept pulling on the door handle. He wouldn't stop, and his eyes…his eyes looked really scary…"

"Arrgh!" Clark yelled as he accidentally slammed his fist down on the horn.

"Clark!"

"I know…I know…I'm sorry. My temper isn't good. I need to breathe…I need to breathe in, 1…2…3…breathe out, 1…2…3… Breathe in, 1…2…3… breathe out, 1…2…3…"

Lois rubbed Clark's arm as he was trying to calm down.

"It's just that this day has turned into a total nightmare!" he complained. "I went to my desk and it turns out Damain stole the picture of you from Hawaii that we found. He stole it! When is this all going to end?!?" he cried. "I just want him to go away…"

"I know, sweetie, I know," Lois soothed. "Let's just go home, okay?"

"Yeah, home. Home sounds nice."

Clark started to put the key in the ignition when he noticed a piece of light blue fabric. "What's this?" he asked as he picked it up off the floor.

"Oh, that…well, I found it in Damian's garbage can and I was hoping it might contain some clues. But the more I think about it, I must've been out of my mind."

"No, don't say that. I think you might have stumbled across something really important here. Considering the circumstances we're involved in right now, I'll be willing to take a chance with anything if it means getting rid of Damian Johansen for good!" "True…"

"I'm going to swing by S.T.A.R. Labs on our way home.

***

"Dr. Klein?" Clark called out from the front door of his laboratory. "Dr. Klein, it's Lois Lane and Clark Kent from the Daily Planet."

"Lois, Clark?"

The pair smiled as they walked up to the absent-minded scientist.

"Hey guys. Long time no see."

"Yeah, it's been a while." Clark grinned.

"Well, with you two kids getting married and all, it was bound to happen." Klein winked. Lois blushed.

"I just wish Carolyn and I could get together. I mean, private internet chat rooms are nice, but they're just not quite the same as the real…"

"Uh, um, Dr. Klein, the reason we're here," Clark quickly interrupted, "is because we have some evidence we'd like you to look at. We think it might be connected to the jewelry store robberies, but we're not completely sure…"

"Really? The jewelry store, you say?"

"Yeah, so could you help us?"

"Oh yeah, sure. Anything for a friend. Plus it'll give me and Carolyn something to talk about the next time we…"

"Um, Lois and I really outta get going now, so we'll see you later!" Clark called out as he quickly shepherded his wife out the door.

***

"Wow, what a day…"

"Tell me about it."

"I'm going to go upstairs and get ready to take a nice, relaxing soak in the Jacuzzi. Do you wanna join me?"

"Ah, no. I think I'll go watch football, or check my email."

"Okay, suit yourself," Lois said as she lightly kissed Clark on the lips.

Clark watched Lois walk upstairs toward the bedroom. When she rounded the corner, he grinned. He had a plan brewing in his head as he quickly ran toward the downstairs bathroom.

***

"Excuse me, Benjamin…do you have a minute?"

"Yeah, sure."

"I found this extra key and I was wondering where it came from. I don't remember asking for one…"

"Oh yeah, that! A couple of your friends showed up asking for it."

"Friends?"

"Yeah, a woman and a man. And boy, was that woman hot! She's a knockout!"

"Hmm…"

"Hey, do you know if she's seeing anyone…maybe that guy she was with?"

"Unfortunately, yes. Those two are pretty close…"

"Darn! If she was single, I'd be all over her."

"Oh, believe me, I'm working on that. She'll be all mine real soon…real, real soon…" He grinned.

***

Lois walked down the stairs in her white bathrobe. "I think I need a drink," she mumbled to herself as she headed toward the kitchen.

Lois opened the refrigerator and pulled out the champagne bottle from the night before. It was the bottle that had yet to be opened. She removed the shiny covering on top and pulled the cork. The small device went zipping around the room as a spray of "bubbly" hit Lois in the face. She giggled as the residue sprinkled her nose. Lois poured some champagne into a small glass and took a sip. "Mmm…" she moaned. "This bath thing is definitely a good idea!" she said as she picked up the bottle and the glass and headed toward the bathroom.

Lois turned the doorknob and smiled. She was really looking forward to drowning her sorrows in a nice, soapy, bubble bath, even if she was going to be soaking alone.

She quickly shut the door behind her and went over to the counter to pull out her bubble bath. Her bubbles were missing! Where was it? Lois frantically knocked over all of the bottles. She still couldn't find it.

*Maybe I left it near the tub.* "Ahh!" she screamed. Lois was shocked and surprised to see Clark soaking in the Jacuzzi. Huge, fluffy, bubbles covered him just below the neck. The bubbles left enough of his chest exposed so that Lois could stare at his well-defined pecs. It was as if he was torturing her with his sex appeal.

"What are you doing here?!? I thought you were off watching football!"

"I lied." Clark grinned.

***

Lois lazily traced her fingers across Clark's well-defined chest. Her head leaned back against his flesh, as she outlined every individual muscle.

"Clark?"

"Yes, honey?"

"I have a confession to make."

"Okay…" he reluctantly said.

"I've been having these dreams…"

"Dreams?"

"Yes. I seem to have one everyday and it doesn't matter if it's day or night."

"Really? Why didn't you tell me?"

"I was too embarrassed—I mean, at first I thought I was going insane, but the same people and the same things seemed to always happen. The more I think about it, they might be premonitions."

"Premonitions? Uh, Lois…"

"No, Clark, I'm serious here! A lot of those times you found me crouched in the corner somewhere…that was me having a vision. Lately, I've had these visions before or after Damian has done something."

"Wow, Lois, I—"

"The dreams usually contain some imp called Mxyptlk."

"Mxyp…what?" Clark asked,as he raised an eyebrow.

"Mxyptlk, but I call him Mxy. I'm not exactly sure what an imp is, but maybe he's infected Damian with something."

"Maybe."

"But Clark, those dreams were so scary. During one such dream, you were gone. I looked all over for you and I couldn't find you…I couldn't find you…" She started crying.

"Hush, Lois, it's okay. They were only dreams."

"But Clark…"

"Shh…I'm right here and I'm not going anywhere…"

"Clark…"

"Shh…" he said as he placed his finger upon her lips.

***

"Happy Monday, everyone!"

"Wow, Chief, you're happy…maybe too happy for a Monday morning!" Lois laughed.

"Yes, I am, honey…I'm very happy. I feel like Elvis did after he finished a peanut butter and banana sandwich."

"Well, that must've been quite a weekend, Chief."

"It was, Lois, it was. Alice let me don the Elvis suit and we…well, you probably don't want the details…" Perry blushed. "Anyway, enough about me. How about you? How was your weekend?"

When Perry said weekend, a number of thoughts flooded her mind. Lois in the jewelry store, her run in with Damian, Henderson's office, eating at the Americana, running after Clark, breaking into Damian's apartment…

"Um…my weekend was different. Although, Clark and I spent a very pleasant Sunday staying in bed and relaxing."

"That's great. I just love rekindling the flame, if you know what I mean." Perry winked.

"Yes, I certainly do," Lois chuckled.

"Well, I gotta go check up on some things, honey, so I'll see ya later!"

"Okay, Chief,"

"Later," Perry called out as he went whistling toward his office.

As soon as he was gone, Lois quickly pulled out a book. It was titled: Everything You Didn't Want to Know and More About Imps.

She was busily flipping through it when her husband came up behind her and kissed her neck.

"Morning sweetie."

"Oh, ah, morning, Clark!"

"What are you reading?"

"Uh, nothing, nothing," Lois said as she quickly closed the book and threw it under her desk.

"Oh, well," Clark said. "I'm sorry I couldn't accompany you to work this morning. Perry insisted I go to City Hall and do some research."

"That's okay," Lois said.

As soon as her husband was gone, Lois quickly pulled out her book again. "Imps…imps…imps…please give me something useful."

Lois paused for a moment and looked toward Perry's office. *Good, Clark's still in there. If he knew I was doing this, he'd kill me!*

She went back to her book when a boisterous voice broke her concentration.

"Hey, Lois!"

Lois looked up and noticed Ralph standing behind her.

"Lois, how are you?"

"Oh, um, I'm fine, Ralph, thanks for asking."

"Cool!" he said as he gave her a thumbs-up sign and walked over to his desk.

Lois shook her head and continued to read. She frantically flipped through all of the pages. Lois needed answers fast!

"Arrgh! Come on, come on, I don't have all day!" Lois was about to throw the book out the window when something caught her eye. It was a chapter entirely devoted to getting rid of imps.

"Bingo!" she exclaimed.

***

Lois watched her husband run out of the Daily Planet building. She sighed. Perry had sent him on another assignment…or was it? Lois smiled to herself. Maybe Clark was becoming himself again? Maybe Superman's assistance was needed?

Lois continued to smile as she popped her favorite Dean Martin CD into the hard drive. With Clark busy and Perry occupied, it gave her more than enough time to work on her special assignment.

***

Lois switched off the computer monitor. It was a little after one o'clock and she was hungry. She was going to call Clark up on his cell phone and ask him if he wanted to accompany her to lunch.

Her fingers lightly brushed the receiver when it started ringing.

"Clark?"

"No, Lois, it's me, Damian."

"Oh!" she shrieked.

"Please don't hang up on me. I think I have something you want…well, it's more like I have some information you need…the information that could get you that Pulitzer!"

"What?" Lois asked as the receiver started slipping from her ear.

"But it's not safe for me to talk to you here. It would probably be safer if you stopped by my apartment."

"Umm…" she hesitated.

"Please, Lois, I really need to talk."

Lois looked over at Clark's empty desk. "Okay, I guess I can stop by. Give me fifteen minutes."

"Great! Don't you need directions?"

"I, um, I…"

"That's okay, Lois. I already know you and Clark stopped by. When you get here, I'll be able to explain everything."

Lois heard a dial tone on the other end of the phone as Damian hung up. She stood up and grabbed her bag. Clark would kill her if he knew what she was doing. Then again, Lois was never the type of woman to give up a Pulitzer- winning moment.

Perry White was stepping out of his office when he noticed the perky reporter heading toward the elevators.

"Lois, honey, are you okay?"

"Yeah, Chief, I'm fine. Damian called. He had some information he wants to share with me about the robberies. I think it might be enough to crack the case."

"Good, good, good. I'd love to get the scoop on this before The Daily Star does!"

***

Lois pulled her Jeep in front of the sidewalk next to her old apartment. "I can't believe I'm doing this."

She walked up the steps and over to Damian's apartment. As she was knocking on the door, Benjamin Alcott waved at her.

"Hey, you!"

"Uh, hi." Lois continued frantically knocking. She wanted to get away from this creep.

Benjamin watched Lois at Damian's door and he gave her a greasy grin.

"Damian? Damian? Can you please open up?!?"

"It's already open!" Damian yelled from inside.

"Uh, bye!" Lois quickly said as she opened the door and ran inside.

***

Clark sighed. "If I see another microfiche again, I think I'll turn this table over!"

He looked up at the library clock and noticed it was half past one. Clark's stomach growled. "Hmm, time for lunch." He took out his cell phone and dialed the number to Lois' desk. Clark let it ring for a little over a minute and there was no answer. Instead he got her voicemail. *Perry must have her out on assignment.*

***

Lois cautiously walked around his apartment. She went over to his kitchen table and noticed that he had lunch laid out for two. "Oh God," she muttered to herself.

"Lois, I'm so glad you're here. I'll be with you in just a minute. Please make yourself at home."

Lois decided to sit on the couch. She wanted to let this jerk know that she was not going to be part of his "fantasy date," or whatever it was.

"Lois, you look great!"

Lois dropped her bag at the sight before her. The contents inside spilled all over the place. "Ah!" she screamed.

"Here, let me help you."

Lois jumped when Damian moved closer to her.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I just got out of bed, so please pardon my appearance." He smiled.

Lois stared in disbelief at Damian's attire. He was in the exact same pajama outfit Clark was wearing on their wedding night. Damian drew closer.

"I, um, I can't believe…" she stammered.

"It's the black silk, right?"

"Oh my God!"

"Oh, stop, Lois! You're making me blush. But please, follow me. I have a wonderful lunch planned for the two of us!"

Damian grabbed her arm and Lois followed. She was so out of it, she let Damian move her. She had no clue what she was doing.

"I've made you a wonderful salmon dish. I'm having pasta—"

"No!" Lois shook her head in disbelief.

"Not hungry? Oh, well let's talk. I bet you're just dying to hear what I've got to say. Before I do, I have something to give you." Damian handed Lois a tiny black box. "This is a token of our friendship."

Lois opened the black box and found a tiny gold bracelet. "Wha—"

"Please, put it on."

"I—"

"No, please. It would look absolutely wonderful on you." Damian grabbed her arm and slipped it on.

"I—"

"Wow, that looks beautiful," he said as he kissed her hand.

"Where did you get the money for this?"

"You wanna know the truth? I stole it. I'm the famous Mazik Jewelers thief!"

"Oh!" Lois exclaimed as she covered her mouth with the palms of her hands.

"I know you're shocked. But see Lois," he said as he brought his chair closer, "I did it out of love for you."

Lois flashed back to Lex and shivered.

"I love you, Lois, and I hope you feel the same way about me, too."

"Damian, I love Clark and not you!"

"Your mouth may be saying that, but I know your heart is elsewhere."

"Damian, you're insane!"

"Am I?"

"Okay, that's it," Lois said as she started to stand up.

"No!" Damian snapped back as he sat her back down into the chair. "I'm not done."

He went behind Lois and took off her coat. Then he took off her black blazer, leaving her wearing only her tank top. "Lois, you need to relax."

"Damian," her voice quivered.

"Hush, it's going to be all right," he soothed as his lips brushed the nape of her neck. "All we need to do is get rid of the competition, then we can be together forever."

"Nooooo…"

"Shh, my sweet. You're safe here; nothing bad is going to happen to you. Don't you know who I am?" Damian asked as he knelt in front of her.

Lois looked deep into Damian's eyes. As she looked deeper and deeper, his face morphed into Clark's.

"Clark?" she hallucinated.

"Don't you know who I am?" he whispered.

"Clark," Lois said as she ran her hand down Damian's cheek. "Clark," she whispered as their lips touched. But as soon as she felt Damian's rough lips upon hers, she pulled back. Something wasn't right.

"NO!" she screamed.

"Lois, I don't want to hurt you, but you leave me no choice!"

"Nooooo!" She struggled.

"We must be together! It can be no other way."

Lois cried in pain as Damian grabbed her by the neck and started choking her. In a matter of seconds, it was all over. Damian let Lois' limp body fall to the ground as he felt her struggling cease.

"Clark Kent must be destroyed!"

***

Clark re-entered the Planet eating a hot dog. He walked past Lois' empty desk and on toward his own. There were no notes or messages from his wife. It was like Lois hadn't even expected to leave.

"Chief, have you seen Lois?"

"Ah…no, son. Not since she ran out of here in a hurry about an hour ago…"

"Did you send her out on an assignment?"

"Actually, no. Supposedly, Damian called up with some important information."

"What?"

"Personally, I didn't think it was such a hot idea, but you know Lois."

"Did she say where she was going?"

"No, son. All she said was that she was meeting Damian and then she was gone!"

"Oh no!"

"What Clark? Is everything all right?"

"It might not, if I don't find Lois fast!"

***

"Lois? Lois, are you in there? Lois?"

Clark backed up a bit and then ran his body through the door.

"Lois?" he called out as his eyes scanned the room. "Lois!"

Clark walked over to the kitchen table and noticed a figure lying on the ground. It was his wife.

"Lois!" he yelled as he dropped to the ground. "Lois, please…it's Clark…" Lois wasn't responding. "Oh God, please don't be dead!" he cried as he laid his face upon her stomach.

"Ah, Mr. Kent. It took you long enough!"

"It's you! You did this to her!!!" Clark cried.

"Did what, Mr. Kent? What did I do?"

"You know what you did…you k…you…k…k…"

"What did I do?" Damian taunted.

"You know what you did, you jerk!" Clark screamed as he lunged toward him.

The two men fought violently. This time Damian would attain the upper hand as Clark felt a fist hit his face while the room went black.

***

The low hum of organ music drifted in the air. Lois could see the ruffles on her gown move with every rise and fall of her feet. Her father was next to her. He had his arm linked with hers and he was leading her down the aisle. Lois looked up at his face and he smiled. She smiled back.

It was her wedding day, the happiest day of her life. She was about to marry the man that she loved. Lois could see the outline of Clark's muscular back through his tux jacket.

"Oh, Clark," she sighed quietly to herself.

As Lois got closer and closer to Clark, her heart rate increased. Sparks seemed to fly just as her father handed her over to the groom. They linked arms and Lois smiled as she looked into Clark's chocolate brown eyes.

Her smile soon faded as she looked at the sight before her. "Damian?" Lois asked in a state of shock.

"Who else would it be, my dear?" Damian smiled.

"No!" Lois yelled as she dropped her left arm out of his grasp. "Where's Clark?" she angrily asked.

"Over there," Damian said, as he pointed to the upper left- hand corner of the church.

"Clark!" she screamed.

Lois ran over to Clark, who was barely standing up. A rope was tied to his waist so he could stay in a standing position. He was dressed in the Superman outfit, which was practically torn to shreds. His hair was roughed up a bit and blood trickled from his lower lip.

"Oh, Clark!" she cried. "Clark…Clark…" she repeated over and over again as her hands moved down to the exposed flesh from underneath the 'S'.

"Lois," Clark weakly said. "Lois, I'm so glad to see you." He smiled.

"Clark, what happened? Who did this to you?"

"Damian."

"What?!?"

"Damian did this to me…"

"NO!" she cried. "Come on, Clark, I've got to get you out of here."

"No, Lois, no. Damian's the better man…he's won…"

"Clark, honey, I love only you. I only care about you."

"Lois, please listen to me. Damian is the better man. He's won. I want to see you married before I die. Seeing you with the better man will make me so happy."

"Clark!" Lois cried as the tears started spilling out of her eyes.

"Good-bye, my love!" Clark said as he gently kissed her lips for the last time.

"Clark…"

"Come on, Lois. We have a wedding to perform," Damian reminded as he tugged on her arm.

"NO! Let me go! I want to be with Clark. He needs my help!"

Damian laughed. "You're mine now, dear. It's time to make it official!"

"Arrggh!!!" She struggled. Lois looked into his eyes and almost lost her footing as Damian's face morphed into Mxy.

"You're…you're…" she stuttered. "You're Mxyzptlk!!!"

"Aww, shucks, you peeked!"

"MXY!" Lois exclaimed as her eyes opened and she was back in Damian's apartment.

Lois moaned as she felt pain fill her head. She must have taken quite a fall. All she could remember was almost being strangled by Damian and then the room going black.

Lois looked at her surroundings. Damian was gone.

As she was letting out a huge sigh of relief, she heard someone moaning near her. She slowly moved her head to the side. "Oh my God, it's Clark!" she muttered under her breath.

Her husband was only lying a few inches away from her, but Lois was too weak to move.

"Clark?" she whispered. "Clark?" she whispered again. Lois wanted to keep quiet just in case Damian, or should she say Mxy, was in another part of the apartment.

Clark groaned.

"Clark." Lois smiled.

"Lois…" Clark mumbled under his weakened breath.

"I'm right here, sweetie," she said as she brought her hand over and grabbed his large fingers.

"Looiss…" Clark said in a rather relaxed tone.

Suddenly, there was a noise and Clark's eyes closed.

"Clark?" Lois asked as she felt his fingers slipping away.

"Ah, Ms. Lane, I see you've discovered Mr. Kent! He looks awfully angelic when he's sleeping…then again, you should know that, shouldn't you? Here, let me help you up."

Lois spat in his face when she felt Mxy's hand wrap around her waist and pull into a standing position. "I don't need any help, Mxy!"

"Darn it! You've discovered my secret! At least you figured out mine quicker then your idiot husband over there." Mxy laughed.

"Ha, ha, very funny. I'll tell you what. If you let me and Clark go, we won't call the police. I'll let you go back to your 5th Dimension Vortex, or whatever it is, and live happily ever after."

"Wow, I'm impressed! You actually did your homework."

"Cut the crap!"

"Oooh, I love it when you get all snappy like that!"

"Please…just leave me and my husband alone! Please let us live the life we've dreamed of before I do something I might regret!"

"Oh, Lois, you don't understand, this is your dream! You wanted this."

"Excuse me?"

"You've been in a dream state this whole entire time. My dear, even your husband was trying to tell you that!"

"I don't understand."

"That one night in your bedroom, you wished for Superman not to exist…"

"I…"

"I'm here to grant wishes. Your wish is granted. You wanted this; you needed this. You need me!"

"NO!" Lois cried.

"Shh, my dear. You don't need Clark. He's a weakling without his powers. I'm the one with all the powers now."

"I…" Lois stuttered.

"Shh, my sweet," Mxy said as he ran his hand down the side of her face. That was something Clark had done many times to her.

Lois found herself nearing Mxy's face. She felt an electrical surge go through her body as their lips touched. Her mind and body lost all control of themselves as the kisses became deeper and deeper.

"Oh, Clark…" she moaned. Lois felt his strong hands travel to her back.

When he started tugging on her shirt, the trance was broken. "Oh my God! What on earth am I doing?!?" she screamed.

"Lois, it's okay. It's fine. We must've gotten caught up in the moment and I'm sorry," Mxy apologized.

"Oh God," Lois wailed as she wiped her lips. "What have I done?"

"Lois, I'm truly sorry. I didn't mean to upset you."

"Yeah, right."

"Really, Lois, I am. It tears me up inside when I see you cry. It bothers me so much that I've decided to get out of your life for good."

"Really?"

"Now, I can't reverse what's already been done, but at least you and Clark can live a fairly 'normal' life, minus his superpowers though…"

"I'd take Clark any which way, if it meant we could be truly happy together."

"Can you just do one more thing for me? I mean, before I get out of your life forever…"

"Um…"

"It's nothing bad. All I want is a picture of you to take home with me. There was a time when we were friends and I want to remember that."

Lois couldn't help but smile. "Yeah, that was nice."

"So let's put all of this nonsense behind us and part as friends. Okay?"

"Yeah, I'd like that."

"Good. Now why don't you stand over there and I'll take a quick picture of you. I want to try out this new portable camera I got."

Mxy smiled a wicked grin to himself as he reached over to the table and pulled out a tiny black box out of the drawer. He had Lois exactly where he wanted her.

"Say cheese!"

Lois gave a small smile.

"This will only take a second," Mxy reassured.

When Mxy hit the button on the black box, a strong wind started to fill the room.

"Hey!"

"Don't worry my sweet…it's just for dramatics."

A few seconds later, a blue light filled the room and Lois felt her body being sucked into what felt like a vortex.

"No!!!" she screamed. "Let me out of here! Do you think I'm that stupid?!? You're not using a camera here. What happened to just taking my picture?!?"

"I lied, my dear."

"Let me out now! Or I swear you're going to regret ever doing this!"

"No, dear, I don't think so. If you won't come with me willingly, I've got to resort to taking you by force."

"No!!! Clark! Help!!! Help me, please!!!" she screamed as more and more of her body was starting to disappear.

Clark's eyes opened up at the mention of his name. He shielded his eyes with his hand in order to protect himself from the blue light that filtered throughout the apartment.

"CLARK!!!!"

"Lois? Honey, is that you?"

"Clark, please help me! I'm being sucked into a vortex. He's using a tiny black box to run it! You must get to it. Hurry, because you don't have a lot of time!"

"Oh my God! Lois!" Clark yelled as he got himself off the floor and saw Lois' head sticking out of a blue circle of light.

Mxy was too busy reveling in his own triumph to notice Clark coming up behind him. When Mxy's fingers started to push another button, Clark used a football maneuver to tackle Mxy to the ground. He quickly took the box and smashed it with his fist. Sparks flew and a large thud echoed in the room as Lois fell to the ground.

Clark stood up and held Mxy up in the air by his shirt collar. "I may not be Superman, but I can still hold my own!"

"I wouldn't be so sure of that."

Lois watched in anguish as Mxy kicked Clark in the stomach. Clark was doubling over in pain, so this gave Mxy ample time to remove himself from his clutches and grab a device that looked a lot like a gun.

Lois was confused. The gun-like device had looked like it had appeared almost out of thin air.

"Lois, my dear, say good-bye to your husband!"

"NO!!!" Lois let out a bloodcurdling scream as she tried to throw her body in front of the gun. The force from it was so strong that it gave Clark enough time to push her out of the way.

Lois opened her eyes. She was lying on Clark's chest. She felt something warm running through her fingers. It was blood. Clark's blood.

"Oh God…" Her voice quivered.

"I hate to do this, but I've got to go!" Mxy said as he started to leave his apartment.

"No! I need you to stay…you need to help him."

"I don't think so."

"For God's sake, he's bleeding! My husband's dying!!!"

"Oh, well. Ciao!"

Mxy had disappeared. Lois looked down the empty hallway and screamed in horror. "SOMEONE CALL 911!!!!"

***

"Mrs. Kent, you're going to have to leave. We need to stop his bleeding and you're only in the way."

"No, I want to stay with Clark."

"Mrs. Kent, please," the doctor pleaded with Lois as he tried to shepherd her out of the O.R. "I promise, as soon as Mr. Kent is stabilized, we'll let you come back."

Lois watched the doctor walk through the swinging double doors as tears streamed down her flushed cheeks. Her husband was bleeding profusely and there was nothing she could do about it. Why, oh, why did she have to let that one little wish slip!

Lois placed herself in one of the hard, plastic chairs located in the waiting area. Time would march for her slowly.

"Ms. Lane?" a male voice paused. "Lois?"

Lois looked up as she felt a finger tap her on the shoulder. "Henderson!"

"Hi, Lois. I came as soon as I heard. How's Clark?"

"They're working on him down in the O.R.," she said with a haggard look in her eyes.

"Good Lord! We can only pray that he makes it out alive. My men filled me in on what happened to you. I'm very relieved that you got out of there safely. Dr. Klein also came back with a report on that piece of fabric you found."

"He did?"

"Yes, and I'm afraid to say that the fabric you found came from that missing woman, Bree, I think it is. The fabric had her matching DNA on it. We have yet to find a body, but as of today, we've started a full investigation and sent out an arrest warrant on Damian Johansen."

Lois sighed as she thought about the mess that she had gotten everyone in to.

"I need to go back to the station to fill out some paper work, but as soon as Kent's status changes, you let me know, kiddo, okay?"

Lois nodded her head as she watched Henderson leave the hospital. She took a big breath. She had to be strong for both of them. She had to be strong for Clark.

"My dear, I must say that I'm quite impressed!"

"Mxy!"

"Yes, it's me, my dear. It's me in my full impish form. Now let me ask you…do you like me better like this, or like Damian?"

"I can't believe you even have the guts to show up here!"

"Oh my dearest one, I couldn't stay away. At least not from you, anyway. I mean, how could I stay way from someone who wrote such a flattering article about yours truly for the Daily Planet? 5th Dimension Imp to Take Over As Ruler of the Free World. It's absolutely brilliant! I could swear that you and I are telepathic or something!"

"Well, I try," Lois said sarcastically.

"There's just one thing, just one teeny tiny issue that I have here. What the heck is this? Who the heck…?"

"Mrs. Kent?" the doctor interrupted. "He's asking for you."

Lois walked into the O.R., only to find her husband hooked up to a bunch of machines. He had a tube in his nose to help him breathe. It broke Lois' heart to see her husband so helpless. She knelt down near the bed and held tightly onto Clark's hands.

"Lois," Clark whispered because he was weak, "please take care of my parents. Take care of Perry and the others, too."

"What?"

"Lois, I'm dying. I know I'm dying, so I need you to be strong for the both of us."

"No, Clark, no," Lois sobbed as her tears fell like raindrops into the palm of Clark's hand. The fingers that caressed her body during love making now barely had pulse to them.

"Clark, you can't die, you're a hero. Heroes can't die! Henderson told me that the man you beat up at Lulu's was on America's Most Wanted list. You busted a bad guy and Henderson may get promoted because of it!"

Clark gave a small smile. "Lois, I need you to be strong. I feel myself slipping away…" Clark brought her hands up to his lips and kissed her fingertips in a way that felt like the last time.

"Honey, you need to stay awake here…you need to stay awake for me. Guess what I found out? Damian was really…"

"Shh…Lois…shh…I don't want to talk about Damian. I want to be with you and think about you in my final moments of life. I want to think about the short life we had together. The way I felt so alive whenever you and I made love together! I will treasure those moments while I'm away. I'll treasure those moments until we are reunited again."

"Noooo…"

"Lois…I will always love you…"

"No, Clark, no…"

A low beep filled the room as Clark's eyes closed shut.

"Clark?!? Clark! NO!!!" she screamed.

***

"Kl…p…z…no, that's not it. Kltpzy…no…Kltpzyx… What the heck is it?" Mxy asked himself as he continued to stare hard at the article.

"Oh wait! Kltpzyxm…hey, I get it! It's Kltpzyxm. That's Mxyzptlk spelled backwards! Hey…uh…oh…" Mxy said as he felt his whole body disappear.

***

"Oh my God! Clark!!! Somebody please help me!!!!" Lois cried.

The doctor came rushing in and looked over Clark's bedside. "Mrs. Kent, I'm afraid your husband has fallen into a deep coma."

"NO!!!! NO!!!! Oh God, NO!!!!" Lois screamed as she buried her head into Clark's lap and cried.

***

"Lois? Lois, sweetie, wake up. Wake up. It's me."

Lois' crying ceased as she tried to decipher who was talking to her.

"Lois?"

Lois looked up, only to see Superman standing above her. She was back in their room. Her head had been lying on the bed!

"Superman?!?" She was almost afraid she was hallucinating.

"Of course. Who else would I be?" He grinned.

"Oh God, it worked!" Lois exclaimed as she threw herself into Superman's arms. "It worked!" she said as she madly kissed his face.

"What worked? Honey, are you okay?"

"I was just scared I lost you, that's all. All I know is that I never want to let you—or Superman—out of my sight again!"

"That's weird, because I had that same feeling too. I mean about you, of course. I was fighting the fire when all of a sudden I couldn't do anything for thirty seconds. I lost my powers for thirty seconds and it really scared me!"

"Thirty seconds?!?" Lois said as she thought about the week of torture she went through.

"Yeah, why?"

"Nothing…"

"Come on, now, I know that look. Now spill it!"

"Okay, okay. I'll tell you once we've finished what we started."

Lois' giggling filled the room as she brought Superman over to the bed and then pulled his body on top of hers.

THE END

Acknowledgements:

1. Lyrics from "She's All I Ever Had," sung by Ricky Martin (1999)

2. Lyrics from "I Knew I Loved You," by Savage Garden (1999)

3. Lyrics from "Private Emotion," sung by Ricky Martin and Meja (1999)