"Bride" really kind of pissed me off with the Lois/Clark build up and Lana's reemergence, so I wrote this as a different version! One-shot for now, but who knows.

Clark stood comfortably on the edge of the dance floor and watched as Jimmy twirled the beautiful woman he had just been dancing with in a circle. He couldn't help but smile as he watched Chloe beam at her new husband. There was a light in her eyes that he hadn't seen since they were in high school and thinking back to their conversation a few moments ago, he knew that everything in her life was finally perfect. That weight that had been on her shoulders for so long was finally gone and all he could do was be happy for her. Though he was no longer her best friend or the only man in her life, he was perfectly happy with the one replacing him.

Turning to his right, he found that the gentle peace he was currently experiencing, disrupted. It was as if a bolt of lightning had struck his heart and shocked his entire body into an immobile state. Lois Lane was an absolute vision of beauty. Her auburn hair was swept up on top of her head and cascaded down over the exposed skin on her back. The orange bridesmaid's dress clung to her body in all of the right places and he would be a liar if he said his eyes didn't linger on the deep valley of her cleavage.

The simple fact was that he no longer felt just amicably towards her anymore. He wasn't sure he ever really had. Even when they bickered, he had always noticed how beautiful she was inside and out. Lois was a force of a nature, a wildfire that refused to be tamed. But she was also just a woman who cared an immense amount for the people she loved. Her willingness to do absolutely anything for her friends and family, despite how dangerous it might be, was just one of the many things that drew him to her. Her ability to make him question himself entirely and the way she challenged him only made him want her more.

Lois turned to him and their eyes locked for a brief moment. He smiled softly at her, but her eyes flickered with a range of emotions. Nervousness, confusion… fear? Her heartbeat was faster than normal and he noticed the way that she drummed her fingers on the side of her thigh repeatedly. Something was making her nervous and he wondered if, or rather hoped, he was the reason why.

Suddenly, the lights dimmed and the disco ball began to spin. The reflection of the light off the glittery sphere filled the room and scattered little squares of light around. He was entranced as he watched the lights dance across her cheeks and he realized in that exact moment that he wanted her. He wanted her more than he had wanted anything in his entire life.

"Guess I can give these well-heeled puppies a rest," Lois said as the music began. She gave him a brief smile before walking away from him, but he grabbed her hand and tugged lightly before she could get away. She turned at his touch and stared at him, her eyes silently questioning him, but all he could do was smile and tilt his head towards the dance floor. Words were not his strong suit when it came to Lois and he breathed a sigh of relief when she followed him without question.

He placed one hand gently on the curve of her waist and held her other hand in his. Gently beginning to sway, Clark began turning in a slow circle with Lois following him. He pressed closer to her so that his lips were mere inches from her right ear. As he held her close, he caught a whiff of her hair. Inhaling deeply, he found his head was beginning to spin. The intoxicating mix of her shampoo and—was that maple? —radiated off of her, overwhelming his senses in the best of ways. Suddenly, Clark wasn't sure how much longer he was going to be able to stay on his own two feet. Just the closeness between the two of them was affecting him in a way that no Earthly substance ever had before.

However, she was suddenly ripped from his arms as a guest shoved past her. He heard Lois release a small huff before her eyes turned towards his again. This time, she looked at him in an entirely different way. As he found himself moving closer to her, hazel eyes questioned him. She wondered what he was doing, why he was moving so close to her. Trying his best to make her understand, he looked at her with a completely open heart. Lois knew him better than anyone else. She could see his soul reflected in his eyes and he only hoped that the look he was giving her was enough to convince her of his feelings towards her.

Tentatively, Lois placed her hand on his chest. Her thumb stroked his grey silk tie gently before her eyes flickered back to his. Taking a deep breath, Clark stepped towards her again. Her hand, though it was only touching his jacket, was burning a hole through his chest. He wanted to be closer to her. He needed to be. And so, when he saw the nervousness leave her eyes and instead, light up with hope, he dipped his mouth towards hers.

"No way! I can't believe it!"

The moment was shattered. They both immediately whipped their heads around to see what Chloe was yelling about. Standing in the shadows of the barn door, stood a dark figure. Clark squinted to see who it was, but his eyes couldn't fixate on the defined features of the person.

"Oh my God, hey!" Chloe yelled as she ran over to the late guest. As she embraced with, who he realized was a smaller woman, she finally stepped out of the light and Clark felt his world turn upside down.

Lana Lang had returned.

At first, all he could concentrate on was her. Her raven hair was loosely curled around her face and she had gotten bangs. Her petite frame was dressed in a silver and Clark could see a new amount of definition in her arms. Whatever she had been doing lately, it definitely suited her. Her smile was still as bright as ever, along with the laugh he heard as she talked to Chloe. She looked absolutely stunning. It was only when her eyes connected with his that he noticed something else.

The feeling of his heart being squeezed was no longer there. At least, not when he was looking at her. Instead, that familiar feeling began to take effect as his peripheral caught sight of an orange blur moving away from him. Turning his head to the side, he saw Lois's backside quickly retreating towards the house. That moment, though it was only mere seconds, felt like an eternity to him as he tried to figure out what to do. Did he go talk to Lana or go after Lois?

Lana had returned and that had to mean something to him. He just wasn't quite sure what it was. But Lois… she was leaving. Now. She was giving up just as soon as things were about to begin and he wasn't sure if things would ever be the same if he let her go now. Finally deciding on what to do, he looked at Lana once more to be sure she wasn't coming to talk to him and took off after Lois. She had just reached the door to the barn when he reached out and grabbed her hand. She spun around at the contact, startled, and opened her mouth to say something, but was cut off.

"Do you trust me?" Clark blurted out. Lois looked at him with wide, confused eyes and snapped her mouth shut.

"Yes," she replied softly. He could tell what she was thinking. There was pain in her eyes that hadn't been there before Lana had arrived and he needed to make sure that she understood exactly where he stood before things could progress.

"Meet me on my front porch in twenty minutes? I have to take care of something first," Clark said evenly. She nodded once and bit her lip. He wanted nothing more than to tell her how he felt right now, but it wouldn't be right. Clark had to set things straight with Lana before he could even think about starting a romantic relationship with Lois. He gave her a small smile and squeezed her hand before letting it go.

"Thank you."

Lois drummed her fingers against the white painted railing on the porch and sighed. Clark Kent was going to be the death of her.

She tried not to think about it, but her mind kept formulating images of Clark and Lana together. She could picture them together up in the loft, happily catching up and getting back together. She even imagined what he was going to say to her when he got here. Hey, Lois. Sorry about that almost-kiss. Lana's back now though, so we're going to pick up where we left off and go live happily ever after!

Rolling her eyes, she glanced towards the barn. The festivities were still in full swing and when she heard her cousin's laugh float through the air, she couldn't help but smile a little bit. At least her night was going just the way she had planned.

"Something funny?" a voice asked, breaking her out of her thoughts. She turned around to see Clark standing behind her holding two glasses of champagne. He wordlessly held out a glass to her and she accepted it gratefully. He knew her well. Bring her some alcohol to soften the blow. Nice touch, Smallville.

"No, I was just listening to how happy Chloe sounds and it made me smile," she said after clearing her throat. Clark smiled at that and walked to stand next to her at the railing.

"I know what you mean. Seeing them dance together earlier really made me realize how happy she is. I guess he's really the one for her, huh?" he asked. Lois sipped her champagne and nodded. They stood in a comfortable silence for a few moments more, simply content with watching people drunkenly stumble out of the barn and listening to the music and laughter going on inside.

"Tonight, I finally understood what you meant," Clark said. She turned to face him with a furrowed brow.

"About what?"

"About knowing when the right girl walks into your life."

And there it was. Lois took in a sharp breath and tried not to concentrate on the pain of the imaginary knife being twisted through her heart. She took a shaky sip of her champagne and mentally prepared herself for the conversation she was about to partake in. Knowing she was going to have to stand there and listen to Clark talk about the love of his life's return, she plastered a smile on her face and looked up at him.

"She does look beautiful tonight, doesn't she?" Lois offered. Clark's eyes twinkled at that comment and he stared wistfully at her.

"Yes. She sure does," he replied. When he didn't continue speaking, Lois took another sip of her champagne and stared at her feet.

"So did you two get together?" she asked. Clark frowned and shook his head.

"Not exactly. We were about to, but there was an interruption. So I asked her to meet me later. I needed to think about some things before I could really be with her," he said as he gazed out over the farm. Feeling the tears begin to prick at her eyes, she fixed her gaze on the horizon. There wasn't a chance in hell that she would allow Clark to see her cry over him.

"What's there to think about? You love her, don't you?" Lois asked bitterly. She knew that she should try to seem more supportive, but her mouth was betraying her mind. She couldn't help it. Knowing that she wouldn't be able to continue this conversation without giving herself away, she downed the rest of her glass and stared at him.

"Well-"

"Listen, Clark. I've had to hear you go on and on for years about this woman. Everyone has. Obviously, she means something to you, she always has. If you're going to let whatever it was that kept you two apart earlier get in the way of what could be, you're not the Clark Kent I know. So you better get your lumberjack ass back in that barn and let her know how you feel."

Clark was silent for a moment. She could feel his eyes searching hers for something, though she couldn't say exactly what. All she knew was that if he kept looking at her like this, she was going to crumble into a million pieces.

"There's just one problem with that plan."

"And what's that?"

"She's not in the barn."

Lois rolled her eyes and placed her empty glass on the railing a little harder than intended. She glared at Clark, who seemed to have an amused expression on his face, before throwing her hands up in the air and groaning.

"Well, wherever she is! Jesus! Take it with context, Smallville. I can't keep track of-"

Lois's words were cut short by a pair of lips pressed firmly to her own. Eyes wide open, she saw that none other than Clark Kent was the owner of those lips. His left hand held the small of her back while his right hand gently caressed her face. Completely forgetting the conversation that they were in the middle of, Lois began to respond to the kiss. Oh, God this was actually happening! He tasted of mint and something so purely Clark that she couldn't describe it. All she knew was that she was addicted now with zero chance of recovery.

He kissed her slowly after that. Twice, moving his mouth to cover hers, each time causing her to slowly melt more and more into his arms. It was absolute bliss. The kiss came to a slow, natural conclusion and eventually Clark pulled away from her. She missed the contact the second his lips left hers. When she opened her eyes, she found his baby blues beaming directly at her. His hands slowly left her body and fell to his sides, leaving Lois standing there totally and utterly confused. And angry. Oh, was she angry.

"What… why did you… what the hell, Clark?" Lois finally sputtered out. What in the world just happened? His eyebrows drew together in confusion as she yelled at him and he opened his mouth to speak, but shut it quickly.

"I thought that-"

"You thought that it would be a good idea to kiss me after talking about getting back together with Lana?" she yelled, throwing her hands up in the air. She watched as his expression changed from one of confusion to one of amusement, something that only infuriated her more.

"Lois, I'm not getting back together with Lana," he said. Out of all things, a laugh bubbled up in the back of her throat and escaped her in the form of a loud snort.

"Then what the hell were you just blabbering to me about before you attacked me?"

"Attacked? Are you kidding- Lois… I was talking about was you!"

Dumbstruck, she just stood there. Her? He had been talking about her? There was no way. She was Lois Lane. Royal pain in his ass, utterly annoying cousin of his best friend, steal-all-of-his-hot-water, Lois Lane. And besides, the look in his eyes when Lana walked in the room was still burned in her memory. He had that same lovesick puppy dog expression on his face that always popped up when she was around. She wasn't stupid and she'd be damned if Clark was going to let her get caught up in whatever the hell this game was.

"Right. That's why as soon as Lana walked into the barn, you basically dropped me like a dead fish," she said with a scowl. As annoyed as she was, the feeling of his lips was still burning on her own. She blushed at the thought, but stood her ground.

"Look, I was just surprised, alright? I wasn't expecting her to show up," he said. Rolling her eyes, she retreated to the railing behind her and leaned back.

"I saw the look on your face, Smallville. And it's fine, I get it. Absolutely thrilled for you two to pick off where you left off and continue the Clark and Lana love story. Just leave me out of it, okay?"

"No, not okay! Were you listening to anything I just said?" he asked.

"Oh, I was listening, but I'm just telling you what I saw. You're still wrapped up in Lana-land, so again, leave me out of it," she said. Turning before he could respond, she walked off the porch and into the house. Making a beeline for the stairs, she prayed that he would let it go, but was not surprised when she heard the door slam behind her.

"If I'm so wrapped up in 'Lana-land', what am I doing in here talking to you?" he yelled from behind her. Spinning around, she dug her fingers into the banister and glared at him.

"I don't know, adding even more drama to your endless love saga? Giving you something else to brood about in your barn? Just leave me alone, Clark." She tried to turn and walk up the stairs, but was pulled back by his hand on her arm.

"You didn't want me to leave you alone when we were on the dance floor. Why the sudden change, Lois?" he asked with a smug smile. She couldn't decide between smacking the smirk off of him or kissing those annoyingly tempting lips again, so she deflected.

"I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Yes, you do. We were about to—"

"It doesn't matter, it didn't happen!" she yelled. She ripped her arm out of his grasp and shoved a finger in front of his face. "As soon as she walked in the room, it was like I didn't exist, just like anyone else around you when she's near!"

She saw him pinch his nose and heard a low growl emit from his mouth. God, that was hot! The fire in his eyes when he glared at her only made her want him more. Damn it, Lane, focus!

"God, Lois, I'm sorry, okay? I'm sorry my ex-girlfriend, who broke up with me by leaving a damn video tape behind, unexpectedly showed up at the last place I'd expect to see her and momentarily distracted me! I was surprised, alright? And I'm sorry you took that as a rejection, but stop acting like I'm still in love with her, because I'm not!"

Never in a million years did she think she'd ever hear those words leave his mouth. The look on his face after he registered what he had said made her think that he never thought he'd say them, either. Clearing his throat, he took a step back from their close proximity and shoved his hands in his pants, waiting for her to answer. But for once in her life, she didn't have anything to say. After a few moments of silence, he sighed and ran a hand through his hair.

"Look, I won't lie to you. When I saw her at first, I was shocked. I looked at her and expected to have all of those feelings come rushing back, but they didn't. I didn't feel anything until I saw you walking away. And that's what I told her."

"You told her that?" she managed. Using the handrail to support her suddenly shaking legs, she stepped down to the floor, unwillingly to trust herself to keep her balance on the stairs. He nodded and took a hesitant step towards her.

"That's where I went after I asked you to meet me here. I needed to tell her the nothing could happen between us. Not anymore," he said.

She wanted him to be lying. Everything would be so much easier if he was lying. But damn those eyes, she could read them like a book. Everything he was saying and had said to her earlier was nothing but the truth. As he took another step forward though, their conversation on the porch replayed in her head. He knew. He knew what she had been thinking. He knew that she thought he was talking about Lana and then waited until she was at her most vulnerable point to make his move. Crossing her arms, she frowned at him causing him to stop his advancement.

"You knew what you were doing to me on the porch. Why?" she asked. "Were you trying to upset me? Make me cry, even? Cause let me tell you, buddy, you are the last person that I would be caught crying over."

"Can you stop denying your feelings for me for once?" he asked.

"I don't know what you think I-"

"Lois, just stop!" he yelled. "I'm trying here, okay? The only reason I said what I said was to try and see if you felt anything for me. And given your reaction then, and now, I'm pretty sure I hit the nail on the head. But stop acting like there's nothing between us! You wouldn't have kissed me back if there wasn't."

"You caught me off guard, that's all," she said weakly. His temper, and the added fact that he was right on all accounts, was throwing her off her game. As he took another step towards her, she let go of the railing and tried to step back, but was thwarted when the back of her heel hit the staircase. Wobbling and bracing herself for the feeling of the hardwood beneath her, she was surprised when she found herself in Clark's arms for the third time this evening. The feeling of his strong arms beneath her combined with his intoxicating scent invading her personal space was making it hard for her to think straight.

"I don't think so," he said as he raised her to her feet. Refusing to meet his eyes, she placed her hands on his chest meaning to push herself out of his embrace. When his grip around her waist did not lessen, her eyes flickered up to his. She tried to glare at him, she really did, but the blazing look in his eyes turned her body to mush. She ached to further explore the strong chest beneath her fingertips and found herself sliding her hands further up towards his pectoral region rather than away from him.

"Please let me go," she whispered. With a slight shake of his head at her protest, he brought one of his hands up to her cheek as the other gently pulled her in.

"I don't think so."

As his head dipped towards hers, her eyelids fluttered shut as she waited for his lips to touch hers again. When they finally did, she gave in completely. At the lightest touch, she leaned fully into his embrace, even tugging on the edges of his suit jacket to get herself closer to him. With his arm wrapped securely around her lower back and the feeling of his solid chest beneath her hands, she was positive she had never felt safer in her entire life. She had never felt more at home. Sliding her hands around his neck, she parted her lips and lost herself in him. His tongue traced her bottom lip before exploring her eager mouth. A low moan escaped her and she almost pulled away from embarrassment at the noise she didn't know she could even make, but Clark's hold on her made it impossible.

Lois felt him guide them backwards until her back hit the wall with a resounding thud. She probably would've chastised him in any other situation, but she was too lost in their kisses to care. Everything about this felt too right, despite what her stubborn head might be telling her. The way he kissed her—God, where did he learn to kiss like that? —the way their bodies fit together, the way his scent enveloped her… everything was just right. As much as she hated to admit it, this was exactly where she wanted to be for as long as possible.

Of course, it was with that thought that all hell broke loose.

As a deafening roar erupted from outside, Clark ripped away from her. He rushed out to the porch quicker than Lois thought humanly possible, but she was hot on his tail. Screams and loud crashes sounded from inside the barn as guests fled from the doors. Confused and terrified, Lois could only think of one person: Chloe. She took a step towards the stairs, but Clark's stiff arm blocked her path. Whipping her head up, she saw a steeled expression on his face.

"Stay here."

"Are you kidding me, Smallville?! Do you not hear that thing? We have to get Chloe out!" she yelled as she tried to move past him again. He moved her away from the stairs in a manner that briefly gave her déjà vu to the first time they had met and he picked her up at the hospital. With his hands gripping her waist tightly, he leaned down so he could make direct eye contact with her.

"Lois, I'll get everyone out. Just stay here. Please," he said. As she opened her mouth to protest, he cut her off with a hard, but brief kiss. "I promise I'll come back. Just stay here. I can't lose you."

And with that, she watched Clark Kent sprint into whatever hell awaited him.