214Author's note: Well, all, here's another oldie. I am working on the other stories, but real life has really gotten in the way of fun stuff, like writing our awesome Clois. This one is almost done. Probably two more chapters, so look for them soon.
Hope you enjoy and I'd love to hear what you think.
Chapter 17
Lois Lane had been anxiously chewing her nails and wordlessly pacing the floor for a full five minutes.
Lounging on the couch, head tilted back, Bruce Wayne stared at the ceiling and let her, uninterrupted.
But when the clock clicked over to minute number six, Bruce had no choice but to invade her thoughts.
For even a man accustomed to the quiet of solitude couldn't take the uneasy silence forever.
"He's going to be fine. You do know that, right?" Querying the wooden beams high above him, Bruce began listing all the reasons why that fact was blatantly obvious to him. "I mean, think about it. Tactically, he has the element of surprise, not to mention a team of heroes backing him up, which…" Shaking his head, Bruce voiced the awed disbelief he couldn't help but acknowledge. "…I have to admit - it was pretty damn impressive how he pulled that flash of proactive brilliance out of his hat."
He heard the note of admiration in his voice and almost hated himself for it. Almost. "Besides, the guy's invulnerable, for Pete's sake."
Lois stopped pacing, her disquieted sigh filling the room. "Yeah. To some things."
Bruce turned to take her in, his brows furrowing in concern.
Head bent, Lois' worried focus was on the floor at her feet as she allowed the island separating the kitchenette and the rest of the room to support her sagging weight.
"If you're worried about Lana, don't be."
That grabbed her attention. Her head snapped up and her hazel eyes narrowed. "What do you mean?"
"He's over her, Lois. Hell, I've never met her and I barely know him, but even I can tell you that."
"Yes, well, you don't have the benefit of history on your side, now do you." Lois quipped, trying to keep her sarcasm in check but not quite able to do so, given the current situation.
The last thing she'd expected when she came back so ready to embrace a future with Clark was to be confronted with the ghost of Lana Lang. But one word had brought that unresolved issue front and center.
And sliced her healing heart right open again.
She was being unfair. She knew she was. And it wasn't like she wanted anything to happen to Lana. Just the opposite. No one deserved suffering at the hands of a deranged Lex Luthor. Not even the girl that had chosen him over the pure goodness of Clark Kent.
But dammit…
All she could see, all she could think about was that kiss. The one she'd walked in on. All she knew in that moment were the years of watching him love another. All she felt was the pain she'd be in if, on the very brink of her own happiness, his past proved stronger than even his own professed desires for a different future.
And now, he was off risking his own safety, not to mention facing his greatest nemesis, to rescue the very past that set her teeth on edge and made her heart freeze in fear.
For even though she'd let him go with hope in her heart, the doubts had started to surround her once again.
She had no idea what was going to happen next.
And knowing that, terrified her.
Bruce cleared his throat, nudging Lois out of her disconcerting thoughts. "No. But I do have the benefit of observation. And since the moment he stepped foot in my town, he's shown every last sign of a man head over heels in love." He paused. "It wasn't Lana Lang that brought him to my door, Lois. It was you."
Lois let Bruce's words settle over her, acknowledging them even as she firmly pushed them to the side. No matter what her future with Clark Kent, one thing was clear - her future with Bruce Wayne was nearing its end.
Before it even had a chance to begin.
Her eyes softened with regret, her lips tilted in gentle teasing. "You do realize that, as my fiancé, you should be saying the exact opposite of everything you're telling me right now."
Bruce shrugged. "Well, given what happened before Clark left, I'd say my days of being your fiancé are coming to an end." A pointed eyebrow quirked. "Wouldn't you?"
Sighing, Lois pushed herself away from the island. "Bruce, I'm so…"
"Don't, ok?" Holding up a hand to stop her, Bruce relaxed back against the couch, his gaze shifting away from her captivating eyes. He took a deep breath and steeled himself for the conversation to come. He started by rationalizing away the very dream he'd been clinging to for the past month.
"The way I see it, a happy ever after with us was always a gamble considering his was the first and only name on your delirious lips. And it's not like I didn't know there was a chance of this happening when I gave you that folder today. Besides, when he showed up demanding to see you, well..." He pulled in a calming breath, hating that his own was beginning to shake with emotion. "...let's just say...I knew the battle for your heart was one I was destined to lose."
Lois crossed over to him and eased herself down on the table in front of the couch before reaching out and gently taking his hand in hers. "How?"
He covered her hand with his before his straightforward gaze met hers. "For the exact same reason you let him walk out that door, knowing with perfect certainty that he will come back to you."
Bruce Wayne had long suspected that sometimes the best form of participation is observation. It allows you to know your enemies, your allies and your place.
The next few moments were chocked full of observation as the couple in question bowed up and squared off.
"Well, then. I guess you'd better go."
"Lois…" Clark reached out to touch her.
She shrank back. And retreated to Bruce's side. "After all…we wouldn't want to keep your princess waiting…"
"My prince…" Clark sputtered to a stop then exploded. "Look, this isn't what you think!"
"No?" Her arms crossed protectively. Her expression was guarded. "So Lana isn't in danger? You don't need to go save her?" Clark opened his mouth to respond but was unerringly cut off. "If you think I'm going to try to stop you, I won't. I would never stand between you and someone who needs your help, Clark."
"I know that, Lois..."
"So why don't you just do us all a favor and..." The breath she pulled in was as shaky as her wavering emotions. "...go do what you do best, Clark. Be her hero."
Lois turned from Clark only to be stopped by his hand on her arm and a plea in his voice.
"Lois, please. Don't shut me out right now. This isn't about Lana."
She ignored and conceded the truth of his words in one breath. "You know what? You're right. It isn't." A sadness stole through her expression as she turned back to face him. "It's about you. And about how you'll do what you've always done. You'll risk everything to rescue her. And that's fine, Clark. That's great. That's what a hero does. And honestly, I would expect nothing less...from you."
She tilted her head to the side, her hazel eyes taking him in, judging him, convicting him. "But it doesn't stop there, does it? No. Because, after all, it is Lana. And you'll open your heart to her and the rollercoaster will start all over again."
"Not. This. Time."
"Every. Time."
Clark took an imploring step forward. "Lois…"
Anticipating him, Lois took a defensive step back at the same time.
To Bruce, it looked very much like a sparring match that had just begun. Or a dance between lovers who had yet to embrace.
"Believe me, Smallville, I know the drill. I've been witness to your endless pity parties for years." Determination flashed in her eyes. "But things have changed and I no longer have to help you pick up the inevitable pieces of that stubborn heart of yours."
Having put what she thought was an end to all argument, Lois spun around, her flipping hair nearly hitting Clark in the face. She stomped the few short steps it took to Bruce's side.
Clark made a move to follow her then pulled up short, like he'd hit an invisible wall.
And Bruce Wayne suddenly knew his place.
He was her defensive shield. Her refuge of safety in the heat of battle. The convenient wall where that heart of hers could hide when her emotions were too raw to face.
A consolation prize.
And if there was one thing Bruce Wayne would never be, it was that.
Bruce took a deep breath. "Look, Lois, Clark's right…"
An accusatory glare suddenly snapped in the obvious culprit's direction. A pointed finger followed suit. "You stay out of this! I don't need your help! You've done enough already!"
"Hey!" Defiant hands on hips, Lois immediately reengaged, jumping to Bruce's defense. "What are you blaming Bruce for? He didn't do anything."
"Oh, you have no idea." Clark scoffed.
"Don't even start, Clark." Her eyes narrowed dangerously.
"Me? I'm the one that started this?"
"Well, it certainly wasn't Bruce." Lois shot back.
"Oh, no? So your fiancé didn't just happen to mention Lana knowing full well that she is the one and only thing standing between us?"
Ignoring the truth of his accusation, Lois' fiery defense continued. "Bruce had every right to tell me about her. It's call prioritizing, Smallville. Damsels in distress are supposed to make the top of the knight in shining armor's rescue list."
"Damsels in..." Wondering when Lois had become so acquainted with fairy tale terminology, Clark ran a frustrated hand through his hair and threw out his arms in total exasperation. "I don't even know if Lana's with Lex against her will, Lois!"
Taken back, Lois pulled up short, her expression losing its edge.
"Wait, what? What do you mean?"
Overwhelming relief swept over Clark. He'd been given a reprieve. Even if it was a tentative, one-time-only reprieve, he wasn't going to waste it. Or screw it up. Clark blew out a breath, chose his words carefully and proceeded with caution.
"When I went back to meet Bruce and he wasn't in the car, I used my superhearing to try to locate him and figure out what happened. I overheard a conversation between Lex and Lana. To be honest, I don't know if she's there against her will and she's just trying to play Lex to gain an advantage or if she's with him because she wants to be."
Lois blinked in confusion. "You think she'd actually want to be with that bald-headed psycho?"
"It wouldn't be the first time now, would it?" Clark responded evenly, without even the slightest hint of the usual hurt lurking in his eyes.
"Wow." Breathless, Lois wondered once more where this Clark had been hiding all these years. "That certainly was."
"What?"
"I just…" Pulling her scattered thoughts together, Lois quickly dismissed them with a shake of her head. "Nevermind." Switching gears, Lois' brows furrowed. "You really think she'd help Lex hurt you."
"I wouldn't go that far." Clark amended. "I do, however, think it's possible Lana doesn't know his end game."
"Do you?"
Clark shrugged nonchalantly, the past rolling off his broad shoulders as if worrying about it was a waste of his time. "Not really. I've never been able to figure out if Lex wants to expose me, destroy me or worship me." Hands on hips, Clark lips quirked wryly. "It's been a very complicated relationship."
"Those seem to be your specialty." Lois quipped, more meaning than she intended filtering through her words.
"You would know." Clark's voice softened along with his gaze as a hint of a knowing smile touched his lips.
Swallowing hard in response, Lois' cheeks flushed under his intense scrutiny as her flustered gaze skittered away from his.
Bruce noted with a sense of finality that it wasn't in his direction.
Emboldened by her reaction, Clark pressed his point and closed the distance between them. "You know how they say love is blind? Well, in my case, loving you has opened my eyes." He dipped his head to capture her faltering gaze as gentle fingers tilted her chin upward until their eyes met. "So, please believe me when I tell you…this isn't about any lingering feelings for Lana, ok? It's about helping someone who could potentially be in a very bad place because of me. I at least have to go see what the situation is."
A pause. A question. And the coaxing of a willful spirit.
"Agreed?"
Lois was clearly affected. By his touch, his voice. The clear blue eyes begging her to believe him. The full lips daring to tease a smile out her. Her eyes lost their edge, her shoulders their defiance, and her expression softened as she nodded her mesmerized consent.
And though this battle was far from over, his victory, far from certain, a triumphant smile spread like wildfire over Clark's expression.
And broke the spell Lois had fallen under.
Lois Lane acted on instinct and instantly shifted into action mode.
Pulling away from Clark, Lois absently turned away as the wheels in her head began to spin. "Alright, then. We need a plan. Actually, we need two, in case she really is there by her own choice..." She suddenly spun to face Clark, an expectant question on her lips. "So. How are we gonna do this?"
Clark blinked at the sudden shift as instant wariness squared his shoulders. "We? Do what?"
"Take on Lex and get Lana back."
"Ohhhh, no." Clark instantly rejected Lois' assumption. "We aren't doing anything about Lex. I am."
"And I'll be right by your side because I'm coming with." Lois insisted.
"Uh…no, no you're not."
Arms crossed defiantly in front of her. "Yes, I am."
"No. You're not." Clark stated firmly, his jaw tensing, his hands hitting his hips. "Lois, I have no idea what I'm walking into."
A smug smirk. "Precisely. Which is why I'm going. You need backup, Smallville, and who has ever backed you up better than then super-awesome me?"
Sidestepping her rhetorical question, Clark's eyes narrowed knowingly. "Is this because you're worried about my safety or because you don't trust me around Lana?"
"Six of one, half a dozen of the other." Lois shot back with a shrug.
Sarcasm slipped through his expression. "Oh, that's just…great. Wonderful." A commanding eyebrow rose. "Super-awesome or not, you are sooo not going."
Lois' reaction was instinctive. "Oh, no? Well, either I go with you now or...or..."
Clearly, Lois hadn't thought her ultimatum through, as Bruce could easily ascertain. The proverbial fly on the wall found his opening and unexpectedly rejoined the fray as Bruce swooped in to rescue a floundering Lois.
"Or she stays and makes wedding plans with me."
While the suggestion was offered casually, there was an edge to his tone. Though he was just as opposed to Lois tagging along on a potentially dangerous mission as Clark was, Bruce felt duty bound to reengage. To make his presence known. To stake his claim.
Even if it was patently obvious the claim was no longer his to stake.
That was, of course, if it ever had been.
Hrumphing his displeasure, Clark's jaw tensed and his eyes narrowed in disgust as he was rudely reminded Lois wasn't free to be his. Lois' cheeks flushed with embarrassment at having so lost herself in the emotional push and pull with Clark that she'd completely forgotten they had an audience, let alone who was in it.
Lois' attention swung Bruce's way, apologetically, questioningly, only to have him return her mortified uncertainty with a perceptive nod, an unexpected prompt and an endearing wink.
Forgiveness had been given.
The inevitable had been accepted.
And understanding had been granted.
For without realizing it, despite all of her protestations, doubts and fears, Lois Lane had just declared her choice. She'd slipped back into her own skin. She'd claimed her place by Clark's side.
And Bruce Wayne had been witness to it all.
Lois' heart swelled with a gratitude she knew she would always feel and broke with regret for the inevitable to come. Bruce noted her hesitancy and gave her silent prompt as he angled his head toward Clark. Nodding once at Bruce's silent command, Lois forced herself to focus on the issue at hand, grabbed Bruce's offer and ran with it.
"What he said." Hitching her thumb in Bruce's direction, Lois returned flippantly. "Your choice, Smallville."
Clark's gaze shifted from Lois to Bruce then back again.
He knew she was bluffing. That the threat held no real weight. And yet, there was something in the unspoken look Bruce and Lois had shared that spoke volumes he wasn't quite sure he liked.
No, he didn't like it at all.
"So, let me get this straight. You're either going to willingly put your life in danger...again. Or you're going to marry the flying rodent."
"Hey!" Bruce protested. "Bats are not rodents!"
Clark ignored him. "And those are the only two choices you could possibly come up with right now?" Clark stated, knowing the answer before she uttered it.
"Yep."
"Right. Because that make a lot of sense." Clark quipped sarcastically as the wheels in his mind began to whirl.
Bruce watched Clark shake his head in obvious disbelief and instantly knew what he was about to do. He was going to give in. Cave. Surrender. Not that Bruce could blame him. He'd been on the receiving end of one of Lois Lane's special looks on a few occasions himself. His own defeat had been swift and complete. So it was no surprise to Bruce that as Clark gazed into her defiant, pleading eyes, he visibly started to crumble.
Bruce rolled his eyes. "Oh, for pity's sake. You know there is another, rather obvious, option." Bruce chimed in.
"What's that?" Lois turned toward Bruce then instantly gasped as he swung his legs over the side of the couch and attempted to stand. "Wait. What the hell do you think you're doing?"
Lois was instantly by his side, gently pushing him back down.
"I'm going with him."
"No. Absolutely not." Lois was more forceful this time. "Bruce, you can't move. You're only going to make your wound worse."
"Lois…"
Attempting to regain his lost footing, Clark took a deep breath and moderated his tone to downright conciliatory. "You know what? She's right. You shouldn't move."
That gained Lois' hesitant, guarded attention.
"Look, truth is, I don't need help from either of you." Clark declared unexpectedly.
"Oh, no? And just who is going to watch your back in case this thing is a trap?" Lois shot back.
"Green Arrow." Clark announced, then continued. "And...some other masked friends."
"What masked friends?" Bruce queried, his eyes narrowing suspiciously.
"Black Canary. Impulse. Cyborg." Clark ticked off the his team members with a hint of pride. "Oh and uh...Aquaman, though his reasons might be a bit more nostalgic than the rest."
"You're kidding." A surprised and suddenly envious Bruce Wayne had a ton of questions. "The whole team? When did you...how did you..."
"I sent out my version of the Bat Signal while I was playing dress up in the Bat Cave. It's called a text."
"But...why?"
Clark turned the full weight of his attention on Bruce. "Look, I know you're Batman and all, but I just met you today. And after what you did, shooting me with kryptonite arrows not to mention telling Lois my secret, did you really think I'd trust the love of my life to you and only you?"
At Clark's words, Lois' breath caught. Her heart started to thunder inside her chest. And tears prickled the back of her eyes.
Shaking his head, Clark was unrepentantly apologetic. "I'm sorry, Bruce, but with Lois' life in Lex's hands, I wasn't going to take any chances. So, I made sure the people I trust were there to back us up in case anything went wrong."
"And you didn't think my being shot fit the definition of something going wrong?"
"Do you?"
Bruce bit back a heated retort.
"Yeah. Didn't think so." Clark commented.
Abandoning Bruce, Lois approached Clark slowly, taking in and processing this latest information. Besides Oliver, she had no idea who any of these characters Clark was talking about were, but the fact that Bruce not only knew them but was obviously impressed that Clark had the ability to marshal them with a simple text meant something.
"Wait. What are you saying? Are you telling me that you have a whole team of superheroes at your beck and call?"
Under Lois' suddenly intense scrutiny, Clark demurred. "I...I wouldn't say at my beck and call, but they're there when the need arises."
A few, cautious steps closer. "And...and you called them...all of them...to help rescue...me?"
The awe in her voice, the question in her eyes, begged to be answered.
Clark was only a foot away from her now. Staring down into those vulnerable eyes of hers. He'd been here before. Heated battle turned to hesitant calm. Resistance and uncertainty still standing between them.
Taking his own future in his hands, Clark reached out and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, his fingers sliding down the long column of her neck then dropping to lightly cup her face. He felt a tremor rush through her and thrilled to the knowledge that one touch could affect her so.
"Well, yeah. Insanely perfect only comes around once in a lifetime, Lois. And I will move heaven and earth to protect it. To make it real."
"Oh Clark..." Lois Lane instantly melted at the meaning behind his words and shivered at his warm breath on her face as her heart swelled with a love so overwhelming, so freeing, it left her breathless. "You just did."
How she'd managed to let him get so close, she didn't know. Somehow she'd gravitated toward him like a magnet, the pull to him too intense to ignore. Her hands moved of their own volition to capture his face.
In the next moment, she was in his arms, breathlessly gazing up into his marbled eyes as the warmth of his smile shot straight to her heart and radiated through every cell, every nerve. His gaze roamed her face, a gentle caress, before issuing a tempered command. "In that case, this is how this is going to go. You are going to stay here. You are not going to make wedding plans. You are going to trust that not only do I know what I'm doing, but I am coming back…to you." A questioning eyebrow rose. "We clear?"
The slight nod of her head was answer enough.
But she was, after all, Lois Lane.
"Crystal. As a bell. Ready for take off." Her thumb absently brushed against his lips and she felt them tremor under her touch. "Clark?"
"Yeah?"
"What are you doing?"
He was staring at her lips. His focused gaze so intense, she could practically feel her lips burning from the heat of it. Clark swallowed hard, his voice husky. "Trying to remember why I'm not kissing you right now…"
From his perch on the couch Bruce cleared his throat.
Not taking his gaze from Lois, Clark's lips curled downward in a bemused frown. "Right. That would be the reason."
"I'd better go." Clark reluctantly released Lois only to have her capture his hand and his attention. He tuned back to her, waiting.
Gazing up at him, her concern, her fears were gathering like storms in her eyes. "Hey…do me a favor. Be careful. And..."
"And?"
"Come back to me."
Clark flashed Lois a smile of promise then leaned forward, connecting his forehead with hers. "Do us a favor." His lips brushed her heated cheek on their way to her ear as he offered a whispered request. "Be free when I get back."
"Yeah, I'm...sorry you saw all of that." Lois muttered her apology as her guilty gaze refused to meet Bruce's.
"I'm not, Lois." Bruce responded truthfully. "Seeing the two of you together, well...it makes it easier to let you go."
Lois nodded, lost a moment in contemplation. When she finally did speak, it was with the words Bruce least expected.
"There's just one problem with that." A pause. A soft confession. "I'm not quite ready to say good-bye."
tbc...
P.S. Don't freak out at the last few lines. Bruce and Lois need a bit more closure than what they got in this chapter. And before anyone thinks it was cruel to have Bruce witness everything between Clois, keep in mind that he's already known - pretty much since Clark arrived - that he and Lois were doomed. Seeing Clark handle Lois and Lois really being Lois was the point of him witnessing their interactions here. Hope that makes sense...