The Cat and the Bullet

Chapter 1

Chapter 1

"Would you look at the sight of that thing," Lois scoffs. "The only thing holding up that dress is pure faith," she says.

Lois is not wrong. The toothpick on the runway wears a dress made entirely out of strings of beads that wrap around her lithe figure. She stops at the edge of the stage and twirls in place, beads swaying along her body. Heat rises to my face. From our position at the round table by the stage I would only have to look up to have a front row seat to her more sensitive lady parts. My face reddens. I sip my champagne and avert my eyes before I see more than I should.

"The designer needs to hit the drawing board again. I've seen aliens with better fashion sense." Her tone is hard and calculating, but she never once loses her lopsided smile, as if she's privy to the world's secrets and couldn't be bothered to share with the class.

A knot forms in the pit of my stomach. I prefer the term 'Traveler' to 'alien.' Alien makes me sound like the villain of a sci-fi movie. There is still time; you never know, I might be one bad day away from becoming the nightmare in 'Brightburn.' No matter how many times I save the world, there will always be those out there that fear me.

I roll my eyes. "I thought you hated the suit."

Lois smiles coyly. "God no," she moans against my mouth. "It's such a turn on."

Lois loops her hand between mine and gives it a reassuring squeeze, her eyes lighting up like twin stars. I keep waiting fot the floor to fall out from under me. I'm afraid I'd blink and this pleasant reality will evaporate like smoke. Lois will wake up and realize she's dating an alien. Superman is nothing more than a story to her. The exotic alien that lands her front page news, time and time again. If Superman gains a new power or bleeds, she'll be the first to break the story. At first, she'll be excited at the prospect of her boyfriend being from another world. But at the end of the day my Kryptonian side will drive us apart faster than a speeding bullet. No one could ever love an alien.

"Gotta say," a stifle a huge yawn. "Girls are more reserved in Smallville."

I wince, as my ribs throb in protest and I lean on the table for support. It hurts to speak. I curse my bruised chest that has stubbornly remained tender even after a month of recuperating. Though the mugging I stopped yesterday probably didn't help move the healing process along.The naysayers will be thrilled to know The Man of Steel has still failed to heal after Nightfall, the meteor that nearly destroyed the whole planet. It was just my luck, Nightfall turned out to be a remnant of my home world.

On the bright side, I can at least remember my name now. And everything else in between. More importantly, Lois Erica Lane. I would have given up long ago without her at my side.

"Clark," Lois rubs soothing circles into my back. "Why don't we call in reinforcements and skip the fashion show from Hell?" she whispers in my ear, a suggestive lilt to her voice. "There's still time catch the evening monster truck rally and the after party," she teases, nibbling eagerly at my earlobe.

I shoot her an incredious look. She's unbelievable. We're in public. "Perry gave us a job to do.We can't just quit because this story isn't exciting enough."

"Careful, Smallville," Lois warns. "You might jinx us."

Don't worry. If a lunatic wrecks havoc on the show Superman will be there to save the day . . . or die trying. 'I am this close to grounding you, young man.' Uncle Emil's words from yesterday ring in my head. 'Your body will never heal at this rate. You need rest and lots of it.' Rest and Superman don't exactly work well together. I don't have time for self-care. There's a whole world out there waiting for Superman; a whole world full of voices and stories itching to be heard.