Extraordinary People "Being with you ... is stronger than me alone. That's new to me." Clark's words echoed through Lois, branding themselves on her memory. The flickering light of the fire across his face accented his features; his eyes were dark pools reflecting and redoubling the flames. The moment lasted an eternity; the heartbeat she lay against rumbled through her in harmony with the ebb and flow of the water just inches from her feet. Quiet sounds crept from the forest around them, the crickets a constant murmur. The sand was warm under her legs, Clark was warm under her back. A moment more, and Lois finally remembered to breathe in. Then she did the only thing she could do: answered his uncertain smile with a kiss. She reached up to him, winding her arms around his neck. As she leant into the kiss, communicating with him through a passion she barely understood but that felt *so* right, Clark's arms came up to circle her; one hand supporting her back, his body heat like a brand through the thin sweater she wore. His blunt, strong, fingers cupped her shoulder as he returned the kiss. The sounds of the island receded as he squeezed gently. Lois drew back just enough to follow Clark's lips, tracing their outline with her lower lip; he tasted of warm bananas, with a touch of something more. The odd thought that chocolate would be wonderful with fire-toasted bananas chased across Lois' mind and she smiled at the thought. "Mmm?" Clark half-moaned, half-mumbled his query; he'd felt Lois smile and wondered what had caught her attention now. The reply he got was the touch of her hand on his stomach; his muscles clenched at the sensation, then relaxed a fraction as she pulled his t-shirt from his trousers. Not for long; her fingers were cool against his skin as she started to explore, tracing the undulations of the muscles across his stomach. All relaxation fled as Clark felt Lois' fingers dip lower to trace the waistband of his trousers. "Ahh, Lo-is," came a half-strangled moan. Once again, no words, just a kiss. Not just a kiss; another incendiary exploration of his mouth as her tongue swept past his lips to trace the line of his teeth, to coax him into deeping the kiss yet further. Clark pulled her closer to him, hoping she'd stop her teasing ... she didn't, choosing to follow the design of his buckle then trace the line of the zip below. All words fled; Clark simply groaned into the kiss as Lois settled her hand lightly, firmly, onto his arousal. A swift hard stroke and Clark sat up abruptly, dragging Lois with him. "Lois," his voice returned, ragged, "wait, please ..." Lois blinked, her eyes opening slowly and unwillingly at the interruption. He'd felt so good. "Lois," he insisted, "please." Lois sighed and let her hands settle at his waist, tucked under his t-shirt but unmoving on his skin despite the demands of temptation and instinct. "Lois, I ..." Clark dragged a hand through his hair in frustration. "Do you ..." Lois lifted her hand, put a finger on his lips. "I do," she said, simply. Her eyes tried to convey a multitude of meanings in those two words; her acceptance of him, of all that he was. Of all that they were. The strength they had between them was new to her as well, not just to him. She tried to find the words to let him know, struggling for an eloquence that was so easy to find in matters that meant so much less. In the end, she repeated herself. "I do." A quiet, eternal, declaration picked up by the breeze and let loose on the waters around them. She felt Clark trembling against her; a feeling of awe and fear ripped through her at the sensation, the realisation of just how much she meant to him. How much he meant to her. She found herself deep in another kiss without realising how they'd got there; the surprise passed rapidly, pushed away by a rising arousal that she had no intention of stopping or of allowing to be stopped. Clothes were dispatched with no particular caution, thrown into the darkness beyond them. Clark's hands savoured her with a thoroughness that soothed any doubts Lois had ever harboured about whether he'd find her physically attractive; the rumbling monologue of endearments and dreamt-of anticipation pulled Lois' arousal further still. Anxiety born of need had her hands exploring every inch of him that she could reach, twisting in and out of his kiss as she traced the length of his legs and felt the twitch of his thigh muscles under her hands as she dipped dangerously close to his straining erection. The ripple of his stomach again, clenching and relaxing in time to her touch; his shoulders, copper in the firelight, and then his face. She traced his jaw slowly, a moment of stillness in the rush of instinct, then let her fingers trail across his mouth. So soft, full and damp. "Now." Clark moved slowly, against all her anticipation. She'd expected speed, to find him settled against her before she could blink once she'd voiced the demand. Instead he took his time, easing down along her body and covering her carefully. Winding her arms around his neck, Lois pulled Clark down into another kiss as she felt him settle against her. Desire shot through her as they fit along the length of their bodies; it seemed there was nowhere that she couldn't feel him although all sensation centred on the heat of his arousal against her thigh. The kiss slowed into soft, meandering touches of lips until they ceased altogether. Clark rested his forehead against Lois', murmuring once more. "Lois." "Mmm?" Too keyed to speak, with a tense lethargy contradicting itself within her, Lois opened her eyes again with an effort. "I need to see your eyes ... I - I need to know how you feel." Clark's words came quietly, with a soft stutter. "I feel ... so many things." Lois echoed his earlier words, "and all at the same time. I feel you. I need to feel you." She tried to keep her words quiet and still, letting them settle in the air between them, but she heard her voice grow tighter as Clark moved against her, brushing upwards until he rested against the damp heat between her legs. Lois struggled to keep her eyes open, losing herself in the black heat of Clark's gaze and the heat of his arousal as he eased into her. The discomfort of disuse that she'd expected melted with his touch and she felt Clark hot within her; too much all at once, she cried out his name. Almost before the concern could show she was reassuring him, a stream of words that conveyed all she felt for him; love, passion, friendship, and love again. Always love. Clark smiled at the babble and swept her reassurances into a kiss that opened and echoed the increasing thrust of his hips against hers, and the parry of hers against his. Taking and giving, a layer at a time, their climax was built until it shattered in twin cries into the night air. Too tired to do anything else, they slept in a tangle of legs and bodies; wrapped around each other mentally and physically. At some point during the night Clark woke enough to drag his shirt over them, scant protection against the cool breeze from the water. Dawn broke, the forest coming to life behind them; and Clark was awoken by the butt of a gun against his shoulder.   Written: 29 July 1999 This was written as a response to Supermom's "What-If" and Wendy's 30 minutes challenge on Zoomway's boards. See index page for disclaimer and copyright acknowledgements. This story, however, is my copyright and is not to be distributed without my permission.