By Fin Li <fin.li@verizon.net>
Rated: PG
Submitted: December 2006
Summary: It's Christmas time and the daughter of Lois and Clark really wants to meet Superman.
***
Lois was sitting at the kitchen table, addressing what seemed to be the thousandth Christmas card. She cringed as she licked the seal and muttered to herself, "Well, my taste buds will never be the same."
As she straightened the piles of cards, her eyes fell on her wedding ring. She sighed as she traced her finger over the band. She missed Clark.
It was four days until Christmas, and he was still on assignment in Europe. He had been there for the past two weeks. Well, that was what everyone else believed. He had actually come home every chance he got.
She smiled softly as she remembered the last time he had snuck home. It had been four nights ago. She had fallen asleep on the couch covered in piles of research for an article she was working on. Her thoughts drifted to that night and the memory played out in her mind as if he was actually there with her now.
He drifted silently through the window, and she awoke to find him standing in the shadows watching her sleep. She ran into his strong embrace and breathed in the smell of the cold air that clung to his suit. Her arms slid around his waist, and she allowed her hands to glide up over the solid muscles of his back. His arms closed around her, and she snuggled into the warmth of his body. Lifting her head she looked longingly into his eyes.
He kissed her — hard at first, but then his lips softened and brushed hers lightly. He hugged her close as if he'd never let her go. Bending slightly, he had whispered suggestively into her ear, and his low rumbling voice made her giggle. She tried to wiggle out of his embrace, but he held on tight, making her resort to tickling him until he finally relented and loosened his grip. Grabbing his hand, she tugged him towards their room, but suddenly he stopped, his head cocked to one side in the all too familiar way that always meant that there was trouble.
With a deep sigh, he had pulled away from her, disappointment evident in his strong face. He pulled her into his arms again, kissing her deeply before reluctantly releasing her. He backed towards the window, mouthing the words "I love you," before he disappeared out into the cold night air.
She wrapped her arms around herself trying to ward off the sudden chill that replaced the warmth of his body. She turned away from the window, and her gaze traveled upwards. She thought she had seen movement at the top of the stairs. She paused, listening. When she was sure that their daughter still slept, she relaxed.
Her gaze traveled around the room to all the Christmas decorations that Clark had missed putting up this year. She knew he regretted not being at home this time of year, but he had promised that he would make it up to her. With that thought, her gaze had traveled upwards to the object hanging above her. She smiled when she realized that they had been standing under some mistletoe. She had to bite her lower to suppress a moan as the thought of being in his arms flashed through her mind…
Clark always kept his promises.
***
Lois sighed again and the sound brought her back to reality. She * really* missed Clark.
"What's the matter, Mommy? The small voice of their daughter Lindsey almost made her jump. She hadn't noticed that the child had come into the kitchen.
"Oh, nothing, Lindsey. I just miss your father." Lois gathered the five-year-old up into her arms, hugging her before pulling away slightly. As she looked into her daughter's face, she could see her husband's features staring back at her, his nose and his smile.
She blinked back tears of pure joy and pride as she hugged her daughter again, realizing just how lucky she really was to have these two wonderful people in her life.
"Is Daddy going to come and hear me sing at school?" Lindsey asked for the hundredth time. Lois set Lindsey down, picked up the Christmas cards, and rubber banded them together.
"Your father promised you that he would be there. He never breaks his promises," she reassured the child.
"Is Superman going to be there?" The question startled Lois, and she turned to her attention back to Lindsey.
She and Clark hadn't told their daughter that he was Metropolis's Man of Steel. Since she hadn't exhibited any signs of having had inherited any of his powers, they thought it best to wait until she was able to fully understand the situation and would be able to keep it a secret.
"Ah, I don't think so sweetie. Superman is a very busy man. She turned back to the cards, trying to divert her daughter's attention to something else. "Your grandparents, Martha and Jonathan will be there. Won't that be nice?"
Lindsey dropped her head in disappointment as she muttered softly, "I wish Superman was going to be there."
Lois chewed on her bottom lip trying to decide if she should tell her daughter the truth. Even though she had never actually met him, Lindsey adored the super hero. They tried to keep her exposure to him at a minimum. They thought it would make it easier when they finally told her the truth. However, it was getting harder and harder to come up with truthful excuses.
She watched as the little girl trudged slowly up the stairs to her room. She and Clark needed to do something about this situation. But hopefully they would be able to wait until the holiday season was over.
***
It was two days before Christmas and Clark still wasn't home. Lois was scurrying around the house tidying up for her in-laws who where due to arrive any minute. They had planned to meet at the apartment so they could all go to the Christmas cantata being held at Lindsey's elementary school. Lois glanced at her watch. It was three hours before they had to leave. "Clark where are you?" she muttered under her breath. Their daughter would be crushed if he missed this very important night.
The doorbell chimed and Lois hurried to open it. As she swung it open, Clark's parents, their arms filled with luggage and bags of gifts, greeted her with warm smiles and hugs.
She ushered them inside, taking their coats as she called for her daughter. "Lindsey, Papa and Grandma are here. Come down and say hello." A squeal of joy followed by the sound of running footsteps came from the floor above them.
Lois took Martha and Jonathan's coats and quickly stepped out of her daughter's way as she dashed down the steps and into the open arms of her grandparents.
As the three chattered away, Lois finished hanging up the coats. She turned quickly when she heard the tell tale whooshing sound outside the window. She smiled. "Lindsey, I think your father is home."
Lindsey broke away from the older couple, ran to the door, and swung it open. Clark opened his arms wide and Lindsey leaped into them, hugging his neck. "I was scared that you wouldn't come to my Christmas cantata, Daddy."
Clark's eyes beamed with love and affection as he looked at his daughter. She was wearing a red velvet dress with delicate white lace around the sleeves. Her long black hair was pulled back in a matching red bow and fell over her shoulders in ringlets and curls.
"I wouldn't miss it for the whole world sweetie. I promised you that I would be here didn't I?" He kissed her on the cheek, making her giggle.
"And Mommy says you never break a promise," she proclaimed proudly, making the grown-ups laugh.
He placed her back on her feet and greeted his parents before Lois gently pulled him away. "Come on. You need to go get changed. We don't want to be late for Lindsey's program." They started up the stairs. "Lindsey, why don't you sing a song for Papa and Grandma, one of the ones we heard on the radio," Lois suggested as she followed Clark up the staircase.
When Lois and Clark reached their room, Clark pulled her into his arms, kissing her. Lois pulled away after a long moment, laying her head on his broad shoulder. "I missed you so much. I thought you were never coming home."
Clark hugged her close, "I know, and I'm sorry. The peace treaty took longer than I expected." He dropped a kiss on the top of her head before pulling away and tugging at his tie. "So, did anything exciting happen here while I was away?"
Lois sat on the edge of the bed watching him peel his clothes off. She wished they had more time before they had to leave. Pulling her thoughts back from the scene that was forming in her mind, she focused her attention on smoothing the wrinkles on the bed.
"Not much," she informed him as she wrestled with her erratic heartbeat. "Lindsey and I baked some cookies and finished putting up the Christmas decorations. We left the star for you to put on top of the tree. We aren't tall enough to reach it and since you don't need a ladder…" Her voice trailed off, but he got her meaning.
It was a tradition since they had gotten married. Lois always insisted on putting the star he had given to her as a Christmas gift one year on the treetop. He would float to the top of the tree to put it in its place of honor. But it was harder to do now that Lindsey was getting older.
"Oh, that reminds me," Lois lowered her voice. "It's time to have 'the talk' with Lindsey. She's been asking more and more questions about Superman."
Clark stopped buttoning his shirt to turn to look at her. His eyebrows shot up. "Do you think she knows?"
Lois walked over to him, buttoned the last four buttons, and adjusted the tie around his neck. "No, she doesn't know, but it won't be long until she figures out something is going on. I thought she saw us the other night when you came home. We need to be more careful." She smiled shyly at him.
Clark placed his hands on her upper arms rubbing them gently. "Don't worry about it now, Lois. It's almost Christmas and I'm sure it can wait until after the holiday. I promise we will sit down and have a chat with her then, but right now let's just enjoy spending the evening with my folks and Lindsey.
Lois nodded her head in agreement. She hugged Clark and let the worries of the future drift away. As they stood in their embrace, the sound of their daughter's clear, high voice drifted up the stairs.
She was finishing 'O, Holy Night', and as her grandparents burst into a noisy round of praise and applause, Lindsey took a low bow. "And now," she announced with a grand sweep of her arms, "I'm going to sing a song that I want to sing for Superman."
Upstairs Lois and Clark looked at each other in confusion. As Lindsey started to sing agin, Lois could only shrug in response to Clark's questioning glance.
{*"I saw Mommy kissing Superman
Underneath the mistletoe last night.
She didn't see me creep
Down the stairs to have a peep;
She thought that I was tucked up
In my bedroom fast asleep."*}
Lois and Clark stood in the dark, and as it dawned on them what she was singing, Clark heard Lois take a sharp breath. "Uh-oh," he breathed, as Lindsey continued.
{*"Then, I saw Mommy tickle Superman
Underneath his cape so red and bright;
Oh, what a laugh it would have been
If Daddy had only seen
Mommy kissing Superman last night."*}
This time as she finished there wasn't any applause from the Kents. There was only muffled laughter. Clark grabbed Lois's hand and headed for the steps. His voice was filled with amused urgency. "Lois, I think we need to have that little talk with Lindsey earlier than we thought."
"I thought that was what I was trying to tell you, Clark." Lois tried to be serious even though a giggle escaped her covered mouth.
When they reached the bottom of the steps, an excited Lindsey greeted them. She bounced up and down, and her Patten leather shoes clattered loudly on the hardwood floor. She grabbed Clark's hand. "Did you hear my song, Daddy? I want to sing it for Superman. Do you think he will come to the cantata tonight?"
Clark crouched down, bringing him face to face with his hopeful daughter. He placed his hands on her small shoulders. "Lindsey, there is something very important that I need to tell you about Superman…"
THE END