Red Like Kryptonite

Folc4evernaday | Rated: M | Chapter 3

"And how are we feeling now?" Bill Church Jr. asked, stepping into the room where Perry was imprisoned. Perry just glared at him. "Still a bit disgruntled? I understand. But Perry, I don't want you to think of this as a prison. Think of it as your future headquarters."

"I'll never join Intergang." Perry snapped vehemently.

"I don't think you fully understand the seriousness of the situation. If you work for me, you get rich beyond your wildest dreams. If on the other hand, you continue to cling to your misguided morality, you die. At Harvard Business School, we'd call that a no-brainer."

Perry just glared at Bill Church Jr in disgust. "I'm ashamed I ever let you spit up on me!"

"Well, well, what do we have here?" Knox asked, circling around Lois and Clark. He resembled a vulture of sorts. They had been thrown into the back seat of a black sedan by the thugs and held at gunpoint. Clark didn't seem to care. Lois looked over at him in concern. She hoped he wouldn't do anything to expose himself in his state of apathy.

"You won't get away with this!" Lois snapped. "People know where we are! They'll come looking for us!"

"The famous Lois Lane spunk," Knox muttered in disgust. "I hate spunk. It doesn't matter. Soon you'll be working for us."

Clark's head seemed to be in a fog. All he could concentrate on was Lois. He should be doing something, but for the life of him, he couldn't think of what it was. All he wanted to do was take Lois in his arms and pick up where he'd started before.

They had been unloaded from the sedan to what appeared to be some sort of warehouse. It didn't look like anything of interest to him. He looked towards Lois who was standing next to him, putting up her best fight with the goons that held them there.

"You won't get away with this!" Lois snapped at the balding man in front of them. "People know where we are! They'll come looking for us!"

"They can't come looking for you if they don't know where you are!" The man shot back.

Lois glared at him, stepping forward as if to challenge him. The man lifted his hand towards Lois. Clark caught his wrist midair. "Don't even think about it!"

"Well, well, someone has guts. Spunk and guts. The two things I hate the most."

"Mr. Knox, your FDA guy is here to see you," one of the thugs said, hanging up his phone.

Knox smiled, "Let him in."

"FDA?" Lois asked confused. The other side of the room lit up when the elevator car arrived. The doors opened, revealing a familiar face. "Dan?"

Perry held a halogen lamp in his hands, tightening his grip on the neck of the lamp. The door to his room opened and one of the guards, dressed in a suit, wheeled in a full course meal on a cart. "Dinner is served," he said, lifting the dome up.

"Boy, I could get used to this," Perry laughed.

"Mr. Church has his own chef," the guard said simply. He turned to face the door and Perry turned the light off. He used some strategic martial arts moves and the halogen lamp to knock the guard unconscious.

Perry slipped into the hallway unnoticed as he made his way towards what he thought was the exit. He opened the door and found an empty office with a map on the wall of buildings and different locations around the world. It appeared he had found the headquarters of Intergang.

"Nice to see you again, Lois," Dan beamed. "Sorry, it's under such dire circumstances."

"Enough of the small talk." Knox hissed, interrupting them. He then sneered at Lois, "You won't be able to say anything much longer!"

Dan glared at Lois and Clark, then turned his attention to Charles Knox. "Hi, Charles Knox, right? Dan Scardino, FDA." Lois coughed at that comment; he ignored it. Looking at the briefcase Knox held in his hand, Dan asked, "Is that the money?"

Lois just glared at him. "You really are a piece of work!"

Knox nodded and hefted the briefcase up to open it, revealing the money. "Let's talk dates."

Dan smiled. "We hardly know each other, but hell, if you're paying…."

Knox slammed the suitcase closed and stepped into Dan's face. "Go be Chuckles the Clown on your own time! On my clock, shut your mouth! Now, we want FDA approval on the drug. We want it by the first of the year and we want it guaranteed."

"What about all your ethics now, Dan? What about Jenna? Did she even really exist?" Lois continued to rant.

"You got it." Dan smiled back. He cast another wayward glance at Lois and Clark. The four guards had their guns trained on them, ready to shoot at the slightest motion.

Knox turned towards her. "You are getting on my last nerve!" He raised his hand towards Lois once again only to find Clark blocking him.

Dan decided to intervene. "Hey, hey, let's all calm down here." He cast an uneasy look at Lois and Clark then turned back to Knox.

Knox glared at him menacingly. "Do you have a problem, Mr. Scardino?"

"No, no, not at all….it's just…Well, I think …."

"Yes?" Knox glared at him.

"I don't believe in hitting women." Dan gulped.

Knox stepped away then laughed. "You really are a piece of work." He kept a watchful eye on Dan. "Well, we only need one of them alive. You just made our choice easy for us." Knox handed him a gun.

"What's this?" Dan asked, looking at the gun Knox had tossed him uneasily.

"Take care of the problem," Knox remarked menacingly. "Unless you have another set of morals we aren't aware of."

Dan stared at Clark for a moment. He met Dan's gaze without an ounce of fear. How could he stay so calm? He caught the glance between Lois and Clark. There was such tenderness in her eyes and something else.

Fear?

"What's wrong, Scardino?" Knox asked. "Pull the trigger!"

"He-He's not here…" Jimmy stammered, looking around the newsroom for any sign of Lois or Clark." It was five in the morning. He had come in early to try and get caught up on his research and he had been bombarded by Wally, one of the veteran reporters. Wally was known for digging up the dirt on the politicians in Metropolis. "Perry went to…an executive retreat. You know one of those think-tank things where they talk about the future of the world, then play a little golf."

Wally was impatient. "Well, when's he getting back?"

"I'm not exactly sure, but soon," Jimmy stammered, trying to keep his cool.

"I'm sitting on a major story. I just learned that a certain aide to the Mayor has been the unwilling recipient of her Honor's sexual advances."

"Wow! Really?" Jimmy tried to calm his reaction down to a more professional manner. "Uh, are there any witnesses?"

"I've got an eyewitness, but she's not back in town until tomorrow."

"Man, uh, I don't know, Wally…"

Wally scoffed, "You don't know? Who cares if you don't know? I need Perry's approval to go with this now."

"I'll try to get him on the phone and run it by him."

"You do that."

Wally waltzed away, leaving Jimmy in a frenzy. "Where are you, Chief?" he muttered. Just then the phone on Perry's desk rang. He looked at it skeptically. Did he dare answer it?

Gingerly he picked up the phone and in a hesitant tone he spoke into the phone, expecting the worst. "Hello?"

"Olsen?" Perry's voice boomed from the other side.

"Chief! I am so glad to hear from you! Are you all right?"

"I'm fine; listen, I'm being held by Bill Church Jr. He's head of the whole Intergang operation."

"Wow! So, I guess Lois and CK were right, huh?" There was no answer. "Chief?"

Perry sat in a chair across from Church's desk with a gun trained on him. "You disappoint me, Perry. Why did you have to go snooping around?"

"Old reporter's instinct, I guess."

"Too bad it doesn't include an instinct for survival," Bill Jr muttered.

"What to do with you?"

"Look, Inspector Henderson, I'm telling you there's something going on. He said he was being held by Bill Church Jr. Maybe look in the Cost-Mart stores?" Jimmy ran a ragged hand through his hair. "No, I don't know where Lois and Clark are. They haven't been in all morning."

"Well, he won't be causing any problems," Dan muttered, looking on the ground at the unconscious Knox and surrounding guards. "How'd you know I wasn't really going to shoot you, Kent?"

Clark just shrugged. "I figured you'd have done it long ago if you were gonna do it."

"Ah," Dan smiled. "Let's get out of here."

"First we need to find Perry. It can't be any coincidence that we're in the sub-basement for Cost-Mart," Lois said. "Bill Church Jr has Perry and we need to stop him."

"I even had a nameplate made for you and everything." Bill sighed. "I guess that's the way it goes, huh?" He moved closer to Perry. "Don't worry. I'll tell Alice you said good-bye."

A loud resounding bang could be heard in the hallway. Bill's head jerked up and Perry took the opportunity to deliver a swift kick in the stomach, causing Bill to hunch over in pain. Perry bolted out the door only to come face to face with Lois, Clark, and Agent Scardino.

"Perry!" Lois exclaimed, happy to see him.

"Lois, run, honey! Run!"

"I've got this covered." Dan pulled out his gun and kept it aimed on Bill Church Jr's door.

"So do I." A voice from behind him said. The cold barrel of a semi-automatic grazed against Dan's forehead.

"Everyone, I want the perimeter secured. No one gets out. We'll go in through the back. Roger, I want your team to go in through the front.

Everyone understand? This is the kind of thing that could make or break a career. The day we've been praying for. Don't screw it up! Everyone does everything by the book or else!" Henderson roared to his team outside the Cost-Mart. Jimmy Olsen stood on the sidelines impatiently waiting for a sign of Perry or Lois and Clark to show up.

Clark watched as Gene Newtrich held the gun up to Scardino's head. He had to do something. He had to get out of here and change into Superman, but there was no way of escape. This may be one time where Superman couldn't come to the rescue. Lois remained behind him; Perry stood next to him. Gene kept a secure grip on Dan as he inched towards Church.

"Miss Lane, your timing couldn't be worse," Bill said. He turned towards Dan. "I assume you're the one responsible for Mr. Knox being incapacitated?"

Dan just glared back. "You won't get away with this," Lois said vehemently. Clark took in a breath when he felt her arms tighten around his waist. She was terrified.

"Maybe, but as you can see, I'm giving it my best shot." Bill sneered.

Clark aimed a beam of heat vision at the above lantern, causing darkness to fall over them. At super speed, he moved to secure Church and Gene along with their guards. A light aimed towards him.

"Kent?" Henderson's voice boomed through the hallway. "I thought I heard Superman?"

"I think you just missed him, Inspector," Clark replied. He pointed to Gene, Church, and the guards that sat tied up in the corner.

"Uh-huh." Inspector Henderson looked from Clark to the angry Church and Gene, then back again. "Let's go," he said, grabbing the criminals and taking them by the collar.

Dan stood up from the ground, where he had been knocked down. "Wow. Superman doesn't waste any time, does he?"

"I guess not," Clark said evasively.

"Well, if it's all the same to you, I've seen enough of this place," Perry interrupted.

"Yeah." Clark nodded, heading towards the elevators with Henderson, Lois, Dan, and Perry.

"It's crazy, huh?" Jimmy asked, watching Lois and Perry leave.

Clark shook his head. "Yeah, crazy…. I still can't believe Bill Church Jr kidnapped Perry like that."

"I know. The Chief was his biggest defender." Jimmy shook his head.

"Well, it looks like my work here is done." Scardino muttered, brushing himself off. "If you run into Superman, tell him I said thanks for saving my butt."

Jimmy looked from Scardino to Clark, anticipating the former rivalry that had once existed between them. Nothing.

"I'll let him know," Clark said.

"See you around," Scardino replied. With that, he was gone.

One Week Later…

"Lois, Clark, my office!" Perry bellowed across the newsroom. Lois and Clark glanced at each other, wondering what the other had done, but followed Perry's orders.

"What's up, Chief?" Lois asked, closing the door behind them.

"So, the police did a search of Billy's office and found something interesting," Perry said, pulling out a large metal box. "I figured you two could take it over to STAR Labs. I know a lot of people say this stuff is only harmful to Superman, but I don't want to take any chances."

"Chances?" Lois asked, feigning ignorance.

"Kryptonite," Perry said grimly. "It's red."

"Red?" Lois and Clark asked in unison.

Lois and Clark glanced at one another. Pretending not to know of the meteorite's existence wouldn't work this time. They had both fought so hard to keep its existence a secret to protect Clark. Now Perry knew about it. Would he want the story printed? Would he hide the Red Kryptonite's existence? They looked back towards their Editor-in-Chief, who looked at them with a Cheshire grin on his face.

"I figured you two could take it over to STAR Labs for safe keeping. With all the officers that were in Billy's pocket… Well, I don't want this getting into the wrong hands." At their questioning looks, he pressed on, "Don't look so surprised. I didn't become Editor-in-Chief because I can yodel."

After dropping off the red kryptonite with STAR Labs Lois and Clark made their way back to Lois' apartment. Clark seemed withdrawn as Lois discussed the events of the past week. A new version of Kryptonite was out there. That was why he'd been apathetic during Perry's kidnapping and why he'd allowed Gene and his henchmen to take the checks that morning.

The exposure to the red Kryptonite had left Clark feeling numb. He had buried so many emotions over the years and thought nothing of them. His fears of not being able to do everything had come out as he allowed himself to sit back and do nothing when his friends needed him most.

Over the last two years, he'd suppressed his desire for a relationship with Lois. Now, the closer they got, the harder it was to ignore the emotions he had bottled up for so long. The night Lois had come to his apartment and pushed their relationship past the normal barriers she'd kept for so long. Lately, those emotions had risen closer and closer to the surface. During his exposure to the red kryptonite, hiding those feelings had been impossible.

"Clark?" Lois waved a hand in front of him, trying to get his attention.

"Huh?" Clark looked up and saw Lois looking at him with concern.

"Are you okay?" She sat down next to him on the couch.

"Yeah, I'm sorry. I was just thinking," Clark apologized, offering her a weak smile.

"It's been a rough few weeks. How are you feeling?"

"Better, I guess." Clark sighed. "I'm relieved to have an answer to a lot of unanswered questions."

"Yeah."

"I wonder how many different versions of Kryptonite there are out there." Clark mused. "This red variation…. definitely had a different effect on me."

Lois flushed slightly, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "I'll say."

Clark cupped her cheek. "I'm really sorry about that. I should never have done that."

Lois took a shuddered breath. "Well, I wasn't exactly beating you off me."

Clark looked up at her. They needed to talk. They really needed to talk. He caught her gaze. "Lois..." At the same time, she said, "Clark…" Then in unison, they both said, "You go first."

Lois smiled shyly, "We've really got to stop doing that." Her hand brushed against his as she watched him.

He looked up at her and smiled. "Yeah. I am really sorry, Lois, for everything."

"Why didn't you tell me?" Lois asked.

"I wanted to," Clark said.

"You wanted to?"

"I've been trying to figure out how to tell you for the last few months," Clark explained. "The timing…just wasn't there."

"I guess Mayson's death and Dan showing up constantly didn't make it any easier," Lois reasoned.

Clark smiled weakly, then reached out to grasp her hand. "How mad are you?"

"I'm not mad."

"What?"

"I'm not. I was embarrassed, angry, hurt, and… okay, I was mad, but not anymore."

"Is this a trick?" he asked suspiciously.

"No, it's no trick. I'm not mad. I had time to allow everything to sink in. I…I wasn't the easiest person to deal with when you first met me."

"Lois, I—"

"No, let me finish," she said, holding up her hand to stop him from talking further. "I was mean, cruel in some instances, but you still put up with me. You put me in my place when I needed it and you were my friend when I needed you to be. I still can't figure out why." Her tears fell down her cheeks of their own accord.

Clark pulled her into his arms, trying to soothe her. "Lois, you're being too hard on yourself. We've both put each other through…a lot." He held her against him.

"I don't understand why you put up with me," she whispered.

"Lois, I don't know how not to. You…. I love you, Lois." He gazed down at her and cupped her cheek.

She smiled up at him. "I love you too, Clark. I've been trying to deny it for so long, but I do love you." She leaned up to kiss him.

"Lois…" Clark whispered against her lips. "You have no idea how long I've waited to hear you say those words."

"I think we've both waited long enough to hear a lot of things from one another." She linked her arms around his neck.

"So, where do we go from here?" he asked.

"Well, I love you; you love me. That's a good start to…well," She leaned up to capture his mouth once again. He moaned against her lips, his arms encircling her waist.

He felt so good. His body was pressed up against hers as she wrapped her legs around him. She raked her hands through his dark silky hair as she continued to devour him. Their surroundings had changed. She felt the soft cotton of his bed sheets against her back as his weight shifted against her. "Cl…"

She hadn't even felt them move from the living room to the bedroom. He felt so good. He shifted his weight against her, releasing her lips as he brushed his lips against the swell of her breasts, massaging them gently through the fabric of her lace bra. She recalled tossing her blouse on the floor in the living room earlier.

"Oh, Clark," She moaned, reaching beneath the waistband of his jeans. She gasped as his teeth tugged at the front closure for her bra, popping it open. His right hand rested on her hip as she tightened her grasp around his throbbing member.

" Oh, God, Lois…" he murmured.

"Oh, Clark, right there." She whispered as he nibbled at the areole, massaging it with his tongue.

"Lois, baby," He moaned as her hand glided up and down his length.

Was she ready for this step? She certainly felt like she was. It definitely felt right. They may have only been dating one another for a little over a month, but they'd known each other for almost two years. He had been her best friend for over a year now. Yes, it was scary to edge closer and closer to that intimacy threshold but to not cross it would probably drive them both insane.

He pulled away from her and had opted to just hold her against him. She wasn't sure if she was relieved or disappointed. She could feel the heat from his body against her own. She wanted to touch him. Should she make the first move? Give him a sign that she wanted more from him?

"You didn't listen," she said, patting his knee lightly.

"Listen to what?" he asked, confused.

"When I told you not to fall for me. You didn't listen," Lois teased, crossing her arms over her chest in mock irritation.

"Oh, really?" he teased back. His tone was full of humor but his eyes were filled with something else. Desire? "I don't seem to recall you having any problems with that before."

Her breath caught in her throat as she tried to continue the teasing banter between them. "Yes, well, you made me think you were two different people. You tricked me into it."

"Well, I had to figure out some way to break down the maximum security system you built around yourself," Clark shot back.

Lois closed her eyes a moment, savoring the warmth from his touch. Her heart pounded as she watched him hesitantly. He seemed to be contemplating something as he gently squeezed her kneecap. He looked at her hesitantly, keeping her gaze. He seemed nervous.

"Oh, God, Lois…" he murmured.

"Oh, Clark, right there." She whispered as he nibbled at the areole, massaging it with his tongue.

"Lois, baby," He moaned as her hand glided up and down his length

She really wanted him, but she was afraid to make the first move. What if he pulled away again? She traced the outline of his hand with her own, anticipating his next move. She tilted her head towards his as he leaned in to kiss her.

He felt her hand relax against his the moment their lips touched one another. She hungrily devoured him, pulling him into her arms as their embrace continued. The last few weeks had taken a toll on them both. He wasn't sure where his head was, nor was he sure where hers was. He still wasn't sure if she was even ready to take the next step in their relationship. Where they had been a few weeks ago was completely different now that she knew of his alter ego. Now she had to readjust, take everything she knew about him and merge that with everything she knew about his other identity.

He groaned in approval as she slipped her tongue inside his mouth. She ran her hands up and down his chest methodically, encouraging the embrace. He deepened the kiss, cupping her face with one hand. She linked her arms around his neck, pulling him closer. Her hands roamed up and down the sides of his face as she tugged at his lower lip with her teeth.

He allowed his other hand to explore the curves of her body. He hesitated at first, but encouraged by her moans, grew more assertive. She felt so good in his arms. The things she was doing to him…

The memory of her body molded to his from a few weeks ago still haunted him. The way her skin felt, tasted…The way she felt when she…

"Oh, God…" he moaned as she moved to straddle him. He could feel his body responding to her touch as she raked her hands up and down his chest. His hands encircled her waist as she ran her hands through his hair, devouring his lips with her own. He ran his hand up and down her creamy thigh, kneading it gently.

"Clark…." She murmured as she leaned up against him, pressing her chest against his face as she fumbled with the button to her suit jacket.

His hands continued their exploration up the back of her thighs, kneading the stocking covered flesh as she brushed her jacket off, revealing the pink sleeveless blouse beneath. He brushed his lips against her collarbone, pulling her to him as he lowered himself on the couch to begin shedding himself of his own jacket.

"Mmm….yes…." she murmured as she tugged his arm out of the jacket and threw it behind her.

"Loiss…" he hissed when she began to grind her hips against his. He could feel the hardness in his slacks coming to life with each touch. If they kept this up he wouldn't be able to stop. Right now he wasn't sure if he wanted to. He could smell her arousal as their embrace continued. She had her arms linked around his neck as their kisses deepened. Every time, he thought they would slow things down, she grew more insistent, devouring him with her lips.

He could feel his arousal throbbing for attention. He looked up at her for approval as he removed his hand from her thigh, kneading the flesh gently before moving daringly up to the hem of her skirt. He looked at her for approval once more before moving his hand further up. She nodded mutely, pushing his hand up her thigh invitingly. He scrunched her skirt up as he pushed it up her legs. He outlined the lace of her thigh high stockings before daringly moving north, finding her soft flesh and moistened panties.

"Please…" she pleaded with him, moving his hand to cup her center.

"Oh, God…" he moaned, trying to string together a coherent thought in between kisses.

"Lois…are…you…sure…we aren't….moving…too …" he was cut short when she ran her hand over his own hardened arousal through his dress slacks "Oh, God…" he moaned, capturing her mouth once more.

She wanted this. He wanted this. He wanted her. He watched in rapt attention as she slowly pulled her sleeveless top over her head, tossing it to the ground, revealing a simple white lace bra. He groaned his approval when she ran her hands up and down his chest before recapturing his mouth with hers once more.

Hesitantly he ran his thumb over the moistened cotton, finding the sensitive flesh of her nub as she sighed her approval. She began layering his skin with light kisses as she tugged his tie out of the collar of his shirt. He let out a shuddered breath as her hands moved up and down his chest. One by one the buttons came undone as he felt the cool air hit his chest. He moaned his approval as she brushed her lips against his chest.

"I love you…" He whispered as he let out a soft moan, running his hands through her hair as he felt her thighs tighten around him.

"I love you too….so much." She murmured against him.

"Are you sure about this?" He asked, cupping her face.

"Never been more sure of anything in my life." She whispered leaning in to kiss him once more.

"Good." He smiled against her lips as she yelped in surprise when he stood up, wrapping her legs around his torso as he walked her determinedly toward the bedroom.

The last item of clothing fell to the floor as Clark grazed his tongue against her erect buds. She fingered the hair on the back of his head lovingly as she fisted his hardening length. She gasped out his name as his mouth sealed over her right breast, teasing the sensitive flesh as his other hand moved to trace the moistened opening between her legs.

"Yes…" She sighed happily, sinking further down into the mattress as he slipped his index finger inside her. He groaned his approval, moving his attention to her left breast as he continued to stroke her. "Cl.."

She gripped his shoulders, encouraging his ministrations as she felt his hardened length pulse in her hands.

He moved up her body, running open-mouthed kisses against each layer of skin until he was face to face with her. She could feel the tightness in her stomach as his index finger worked its magic inside of her. She tightened her fist over his hardened flesh.

"You're incredible he murmured," Leaning in to kiss her as he removed his hand from between her legs. She was about to voice her protests when she felt him settle his weight on her. She nodded enthusiastically, helping guide him to her center.

He let out a guttural moan, burying his face into the nape of her neck as she took him in inch by inch. "Wow…" She managed as she grinned up at him. He smiled, holding her face in his palms, looking at her as if he was trying to memorize every curve and wrinkle and line.

"I love you, Lois," He whispered, before leaning in to capture her lips with his own.

"I love you, Clark," She managed to squeak out as he began to move his hips against hers in slow deliberate strokes. She fisted his hair encouragingly, "Oh, yes yes yes…" She felt a mind-numbing pulse run down her spine and he grinned against her lips.

"You ain't seen nothing yet." He murmured, leaning in to capture her mouth with his in a fiery kiss. He gathered her in his arms and the world slowly disassembled as she found herself wrapped securely in his arms well into the night.

~ The End