Quicksand 9/13
Title: Quicksand
Authors: herohunter and ladydreamer
Pairing: Clex
Rating: Generally PG, and NC-17 in parts
Warning: mpreg
Summary: One cold November evening, twelve years after Lex Luthor left Smallville and Clark Kent behind, the two meet in Centennial Park… as Lex is walking home with his daughter.
Thanks to our beta lexalicious, and to lapetite-kiki for the beautiful cover for the fic.
Part Nine
A Year and a Half Later
Lex moved into the kitchen. He was hungry for something, although he didn't know what. The past year and a half had been a time of transition for their family, taking their daughter to her new school and watching her adjust. In a surprising but happy turn, she'd found friends easily at Greenwich Academy, and the students seemed much less acrimonious toward one another. Lex approved of the atmosphere and attitude of the teachers.
And then... Lex cupped his rounded belly fondly. And then he and Clark had decided it was time for another child. Who was demanding food. At six months, he couldn't have been more grateful to have Clark by his side with this one. It made all the difference. Clark had practically jumped him when Lex had suggested they try to get pregnant again, and he could see in Athena's eyes how thrilled she was to have a little sister on the way.
"Lex?" Clark had just come back from a Superman emergency and a quick stop under the shower. Then he had put on his usual jeans and t-shirt outfit and joined Lex in the kitchen. "Hey."
"Hey, how'd it go?" Lex asked. He slipped a hand under his shirt. Their daughter kicked him softly, urging him to open the cupboard again. Instead, he walked over to Clark and wrapped his arms around him with a sigh. It was irrational, but it seemed like right now he missed Clark more when they weren't together.
Clark held Lex and kissed his forehead. "Fine. I enjoy working with Wonder Woman, although she's short on patience," he chuckled. "How are the girls and you today?"
"Athena went over to Toby's to watch movies with him. He has a crush on Keanu Reeves," Lex informed Clark. He kissed Clark's neck. "Our baby girl is just fine. Hungry, as always."
"Aw." Clark bent down, pulled Lex's shirt up and gave the top of his belly a kiss. "We must feed her, then."
"Absolutely." Lex patted Clark's cheek and took his hand as he turned to poke his nose in the refrigerator.
"What do you feel like?" Clark asked, hugging Lex from behind and giving the back of his head a kiss as he rubbed over the belly lovingly. Such a miracle, his Lex and their babies.
"I don't know." Lex took the jar of pickles and took one before putting the lid back on and putting it back in the fridge. "You know what I'd really like? When I was pregnant with Athena, there was this little bistro not too far from the hotel I was staying. They made the best scallops. Grilled with smoked salt. Those were the best. Oh, and they had these mini-eclairs. I must have eaten a dozen of those. No wonder I got so fat." He took a bite out of the pickle.
Clark met Lex's eyes. "Do you want me to go get those for you? Tell me where it is," he offered.
"You're going to France to get me a snack?" Lex laughed softly. "Well, I suppose it wouldn't take you that long. It was around the cross-section of Bonaparte and Viscotti, I think. It was named after the owner, Cedric De Villiers."
Clark nodded once. "I'll get my wallet and shoes on." He kissed Lex's lips slowly and smiled. "Be right back, sexy."
Lex beamed and ran his hands up and down Clark's sides. "Thank you, Clark. I'll repay you later." He gave Clark another kiss.
"Heh. I do it for free, but I won't mind getting some lovin' later," he said happily. "Love you both." He zipped off.
Lex smiled, so content, and went back into the den to sit on the sofa where he had his book, and could put his feet up. He kept his cell at the ready, in case Athena needed him.
Fifteen minutes later, Lex's stomach rumbled, and he looked at his watch with a frown, wondering how long it would take for Clark to get the food. It wasn't that he was impatient, but that he knew Clark could get to Europe in a few minutes. He maneuvered himself up and rubbed his belly a little. There was no reason to worry. Not really. Maybe they had gotten excited to see Superman. Clark could have put on his uniform when he went out. Or maybe something had happened, and Superman had been needed to step in. He pushed himself up and paced back and forth for a few minutes. Then he flipped out his cell phone and tried to call.
When the phone was registered out of range, Lex began to worry in earnest. He closed his eyes and reminded himself that there was a possibility that Clark had needed to go out of the atmosphere. He ran a hand over his head and tried to remain calm.
Suddenly, Superman burst through a window, glass shattering everywhere and, in the blink of an eye, he had a large hand around Lex's neck as he pressed Lex against a wall. "What did you do, Luthor?" he boomed, nostrils flaring with anger.
"C-Clark?" Lex gasped, struggling and trying to get his fingers around Superman's hand to keep it from crushing his windpipe. His first thought was that Clark had run into Red K, but that stripped his inhibitions. It wouldn't make him attack his pregnant boyfriend.
Superman's eyes widened slightly, and his scowl only deepened. "How the hell do you know that name? And what have you done to Lois?" She no longer recalled being married to him, and the Justice Lords no longer patrolled the streets or kept their headquarters in Washington, DC. He had checked.
"I- I haven't done anything to Lois!" Lex squeaked out, blinking to keep his vision clear. He was going pass out, and he couldn't let himself do that until he and the baby were safe. "I haven't even talked to her since last week. Please... Clark, d-don't do this. I'll help you. Just let us go!"
"Us?" Superman finally glanced down, x-rayed Lex's body, and yanked his hand back as if it had been burned. "What the-?" He held his hands in fists at his sides, took a couple of steps back, and glared at Lex again. "What the hell's this? You're pregnant?" His lips twisted in disgust and confusion at the word.
Lex coughed, rubbing his throat, and his eyes grew damp. He tried not to cry, though, and curled his hand around his belly and began inching toward the bedroom, where a piece of Kryptonite was hidden in his mother's box-just in case. "Who are you?" he asked, unable to keep the hurt out of his voice. Something was seriously wrong with Clark, or this was something else staring at him from Clark's startlingly beautiful green eyes. "How did you know where I live?"
Superman used his laser vision to burn a hole though the wall near Lex's head, almost burning his ear. "Not a step, Luthor! I don't know what you're up to yet, but I'm going to find out, so you'd better fess up and save us both the hassle!"
"What I'm up to? I'm up to saving myself and my child from a psychopath who bursts into a man's home and chokes him with absolutely no preamble!" Lex snapped. His mind was trying to find a way out of this, but he couldn't think of one off hand. Maybe this person would get distracted.
"You did this!" Superman accused, his voice rising. "You're the psychopath and a criminal, and I don't know how you made your LexCorp Towers disappear, and how you think I'll believe in this-" he waved a hand, "-farce!" He took a step towards Lex again. Baby or no, he would beat the truth out of Luthor; who knew how many lives he was putting at risk with this recent stunt!
Outside the apartment, Athena heard the commotion inside, which was weird because her dads never fought. She squinted at the door to see what was going on. Her dad on the floor on his back, and Clark was looming over him in the super suit. They both looked really angry, and her dad looked scared. She bit her lip and decided that she would have to use superspeed to do anything, given how much Clark could do, and he was stronger and faster. Maybe she could distract him, and her dad could get the Kryptonite... but that might hurt the baby.
She pressed her ear to the door and listened, then looked around the hallway to see if anyone was there, then ran to the window, opened it, and used her speed to run around the side of the building to her fathers' bedroom window. She grabbed the box on the dresser and appeared in front of Superman, opening the box. "Stop it! You stay away from Dad!"
Superman stumbled back instantly. He looked at Athena as he backed away towards the broken window. "Dad? Luthor, when did you have time to make a clone in prison?" He leaned back on the window frame.
"Do I look like a boy? My dad's never been in prison," Athena protested, trying not to drop the box, even though the veins in her hands were starting to bulge.
"Baby, put that down and get over here. That's not Clark," Lex said, struggling to his feet.
"I know, he's wearing the wrong suit. The red briefs are missing," Athena said. Her hands shook, and the box fell from her hands. "Ah! No!"
Lex grabbed her around her waist and pulled her back away from Superman protectively. The Kryptonite sat between them.
Superman looked at them in utter confusion, pain radiating slowly all over him. That something was wrong was a given, but a pregnant Luthor with a little girl who called him 'dad' and knew where the Kryptonite was kept? He slipped on the broken glass and fell on his ass on the floor. The Kryptonite seemed to be affecting the little girl now, and Luthor did not look too good, either. He pushed himself forward, ignoring the glass digging into the palms of his hands, and crawled to where the box was. He had to close it!
Athena shuddered and curled against her father. Lex was feeling like he might throw up or faint, and the baby kicked frantically. He pulled Athena to the door, grabbing his cell on the way. He'd call the League. One of them would know what to do, surely.
His fingertips finally reached the box, and Superman managed to drag it slowly to him, and shut the box closed. He grunted and rolled onto his back, then looked up at the ceiling as the pain and nausea washed away from him, and the bits of glass slipped out of his flesh as the cuts closed, instantly healed.
"Damn," Lex said, to Athena's shock, because her father rarely swore in front of her. He quickly hit the number Clark had given to him and sent a short 911 to Batman.
"I'll speed us away," Athena told Lex.
"He's faster, if he has Clark's abilities," Lex replied quietly, petting over her hair gently.
Athena looked up at him. "Run, Dad. Save the baby. I'll take care of him."
Superman got up to his feet slowly, a deep frown on his face, and tilted his head to the side as he watched Luthor and the girl on the floor. He x-rayed Luthor's belly and took a step closer. "The baby is unharmed," he assured them. "Just agitated." He cautiously approached them and held out a hand.
The two Luthors stared at him skeptically.
"No thanks to you!" Athena exclaimed, her eyes filling with tears.
"Do NOT aggravate him," Lex instructed, keeping his eyes on Superman. He licked his lips nervously. "What do you want from us? I don't know what you've been talking about; I can't tell you about that. But I'll help if you explain it to me, and you don't hurt my children."
Superman reached down and grabbed each of their arms, then pulled them up and carried them to the sofa. He set them down and looked around the room, his lips parting when he spotted a framed photograph on a side table. He walked to it, picked it up and studied it. Not even his microscopic vision could detect the photo manipulation in the image of Lex, the little girl and himself posing happily outside the Kent farmhouse, on a sunny day. Luthor had leveled Smallville years ago; the farm no longer existed, and yet here the picture was, looking current and having not a trace that it was a forgery. "How-"
"Whoa, what happened here?" Flash asked as he jumped through the window and skidded on broken glass. "Oh, Supes, you're home, good! Bats got the distress call from Lex and-"
Superman stared at Flash. "When did you change your uniform to red?" he asked softly.
Flash gave Superman a 'huh?' face behind his mask and looked down at himself. "What are you talking about, big guy? I've always had this one!"
Lex took a deep breath and looked up at them. "How long has everything been wrong? Us, Flash, your uniform?"
Superman looked at Luthor again. "What? Since..." He frowned. "Since I was coming home from a nuclear spill in Europe." He decided to tell the truth since everyone seemed to be just as confused as he was at the moment.
Flash tapped his ear. "Uhh, Bats? Yeah, we got a bit of a problem here... No, they're fine, but... We might need your bat-brain for this one. Okay!" He turned to Lex. "He's on his way, too. What's going on?" He moved to sit by Athena and gave her a hug. "Hey, darlin'!"
Athena hugged Flash a little too tightly in her exuberance.
"What's going on is likely... Well, either this is a clone who thinks that he's Superman-- only whoever created him got all of the details wrong-- or he may be from another world," Lex said, leaning his head back on the sofa cushions.
"I'm not a clone!" Superman boomed and huffed, crossing his arms over his chest.
Flash let out a little squeak as Athena jumped, squeezing him, and he patted her shoulder. "Easy, baby!"
"Sorry." Athena let go of him and turned to her father's side to check on him. She touched his brow. "Do you feel okay?"
"I'm fine, kitten," Lex assured her, pushing some hair out of her eyes. "We'll find our guy, and it'll be all right."
Athena frowned dubiously, but got up to get her father a drink.
"If you're not a clone..." Lex said to Superman in a leading tone. "Flash, you remember about a year ago when those jelly monsters were targeting Superman, and he and Bats couldn't figure out where they were coming from?"
Flash's eyes widened. "Oh yeah!" He jumped up and addressed the Superman who was still looking at his costume funny. "There were those big blob-things, you remember, Supes?"
Superman shook his head. "That never happened..." He eyed Lex and his pregnant belly, and added, "...Where I come from." He eyed the picture in his hand again, and Athena's black hair and pouty lips called his attention. If the girl and Lex's baby were vulnerable to Kryptonite... "They're... Your Superman's?"
"Our... Oh." Lex pursed his lips and patted his belly. "Yes. They're his. I was kind of expecting to see him this evening."
Superman frowned and sat back on the coffee table, letting go of the photograph and placing his head in his hands. Luthor wasn't aiming a gun at him, and he doubted that this surreal situation could get any worse, anyway. "I'm married to Lois. She looked completely dumbfounded when I flew into her apartment, gave her a kiss, and asked why she was there and not at our home tonight. His head snapped up at Flash suddenly. "Blob things, you said? Wait, I do remember those. Lu-" He thinned his lips. "My Lex Luthor created them, but I haven't seen one in a while. If they ended up here, that will explain why."
Athena returned with two glasses of lemonade and plates of leftover fried chicken, potato salad, and a pickle for Flash and her father. "I know you burn a lot of energy," she told Flash as she gave him his plate.
"A woman after my own heart!" Flash declared, taking the plate and giving Athena's cheek a kiss. "Or stomach!" He picked up a piece of chicken, took a series of flash-fast bites, and then chewed with a moan. "Mmm, your grandmother's cooking is the best, pumpkin!"
Superman sat up. "Grandmother?"
Athena sat next to her father and pressed the plate into his hand. Lex took the pickle and set the plate aside.
"Martha," he clarified when it became apparent that Athena was giving Superman the silent treatment. "Sometimes we go down there for weekends, or Athena goes. She and your father adore her."
"They're alive?" Superman muttered, his eyes widening.
Flash swallowed and looked from Superman to Lex. "This is way too weird," he said out loud.
"You're telling me? I thought for certain some color of Kryptonite had taken control of him," Lex muttered, closing his eyes.
Superman stood again and began pacing back and forth. "So... You're not a worldwide criminal," he told Lex redundantly. "My parents are alive, and your Clark and you are..."
"Together, settled, and having a second daughter," Lex replied tersely, since it apparently wasn't obvious to Superman. He should probably feel some tenderness toward this person; he was actually Clark... Physically anyway. "I'm a worldwide criminal?" He looked at Athena. "I told you the world was better with you in it."
Athena giggled and rubbed her father's shoulders.
Superman eyed the little girl, went to her, and kneeled in front of her. "What's your name?"
Flash set down his empty plate and let out a burp.
Athena watched Superman cautiously. "It's Athena Luthor Kent."
Unless Luthor had managed to inflict a very realistic hallucination upon him, this was real, and Superman was not quite sure what to make of it. He nodded. "Athena. Pretty name. I'm sorry I hurt you and your father. Where I come from, he's-" He pressed his lips together, hesitating to say bad things about his version of Athena's father to her. "Well. I apologize." He looked at Lex. "And to you, Lu-um, Lex."
Lex nodded seriously. "Well, once we talk to Batman, we'll find a way to send you home to your Luthor and your... Lois and everything will be the way it was before."
Superman frowned but did not argue. Maybe here, their Dick Wayne had a machine that found parallel dimensions in the Batcave. If he had a Batcave at all.
"Dad, you're pale," Athena complained.
"I'm pregnant," Lex told her with a shrug. "It happens."
She set the plate of uneaten chicken on the coffee table and lifted his feet up. "Lay down."
"Okay, okay." Lex submitted. Once he was lying down, he felt a little better and closed his eyes. Athena stroked his head.
Flash got up so Lex could have the whole sofa to stretch one. "Can I go get you something, Lex? Like a milkshake?" He sure could use about three of those.
Superman stood as well and went to put the framed photograph where he had gotten it, as well as clean up the glass he had smashed into the room.
"No, I'll be okay, Flash. Thank you," Lex replied. "I just need to relax."
"Get him the milkshake. He needs to eat something," Athena ordered. "It's way past snack time."
Flash nodded. "I'll get us all some." He gave Lex's leg a pat and turned to Superman. "You won't try to hurt them again?"
Superman gave Flash a flat look. "No, I won't. He's not who I thought he was, and he's clearly just as unhappy at this situation as I am. Or more."
Flash nodded, touched the top of Athena's head, and zipped off.
"Can you fix the hole in our wall?" Athena asked Superman.
Superman frowned. "I'll have to get plaster in the morning, if I'm still here. Unless you have some in the house?"
"I don't think so," Athena said, arching a brow. "Dad only paints."
"We can get some tomorrow. Your father can fix it when he gets back, baby," Lex told her. She leaned on him and sighed.
Superman stood there, unsure. He had no place to go, really, and he had been told to wait for Batman. He supposed he could go to the farm, but how to explain to the Kents that he was not their Clark, and that he had almost choked their son-in-law to death tonight? He turned his head and looked at the window he had broken. He should get a sheet to cover that, as well.
Athena petted Lex's belly and hoped he wasn't pretending to feel better than he did for her sake. She wouldn't be leaving his side until one of the League members was there to protect them.
"You still work at The Daily Planet, Supes?" Lex asked quietly after a moment. He wondered if, in the other dimension, he was like his father.
Superman shook his head. "No, that's what Lois does. I'm a doctor, actually. E.R." He shrugged one shoulder. "So I get to take people to the hospital and then treat them a minute later. Takes away a lot of guess work."
"That's interesting. Clark said he thought about becoming a doctor," Lex said thoughtfully. "It's hard think of LexCorp as a real company. It didn't take long here before my father took the company over. It couldn't stand without me as the head, unfortunately. Well, I suppose that's debatable. Smallville's economy dropped and then improved."
"LexCorp is a giant where I come from," Superman said. He did not try to approach the sofa. "Into everything, but mostly, it's a front for the selling of weapons to the highest bidder."
"Weapons. Fantastic." Lex sighed.
"It's not you. You're a good man, and a good dad," Athena insisted.
"Thank you, baby." Lex patted her hand.
Batman knocked on the door roughly, and Athena hopped up to open it for him. He looked down at her, then at the otherworld Superman. "What's the situation?" he growled.
Superman's eyes widened at the sight of Batman. He stretched his neck as if to see better, then approached Batman slowly. "You?" he whispered, and suddenly wrapped his arms around Batman and closed his eyes tightly. Bruce, alive! His lover of so many years, right here in his arms, and he even smelled right!
Batman went rigid. "What are you doing?" He looked down at Lex, who was propping himself on his elbows.
"We think he's from an alternate dimension. The same dimension the jelly monsters came from. Remember them?" Lex asked.
"Not willingly," Batman said gruffly. He looked down at Superman curiously and wondered if the hug was going to end, or if he would have to take measures.
"Oh my God," Superman whispered, his voice changing into some resemblance of Clark's before he caught himself. "Bruce." He pulled back only enough to meet Batman's eyes. "You're alive!"
Batman tensed his lips, looked at Lex and the kid once, then back at Superman. "I'm alive. I've been alive." He swallowed and stopped growling so deeply. It was rough on his throat. "I take it I haven't been so lucky in your world."
Superman shook his head. "Penguin, he... The first Penguin, I mean." He just could not let go, his hands on Batman's arms and his eyes roaming everywhere. Bruce, Bruce, so close that if he leaned in, they would kiss!
"I'm sorry to abandon you in the fight," Batman told him seriously. There was no mistaking that look. This Superman was in love with him. "I'll be cautious."
Lex rested his hand in his lap and took Athena's hand. He decided that his jealousy definitely belonged to Bruce and not Lois.
Superman nodded slightly, licked his lips, and finally took a step back. Look like him as he may, this man was not his Bruce; he did not look at him the same way. Now he just had to convince his heart of that. He moved his hands to his sides, opening and closing them nervously. "So."
Batman sighed and reached up to touch Superman's shoulder. "I'm sorry, Clark."
Clark -who the hell was he fooling anyway?- let his head drop and shook his head. "So am I," he whispered.
"All right, I got-hey, Bats!" Flash smiled brightly as he slowed up by the sofa and handed Lex and Athena two Styrofoam cups. "Chocolate for the little lady, and vanilla for Sexy Lexy! If you hate vanilla, you can have my strawberry," he offered Lex.
"I do like vanilla. Thank you," Lex leaned back again and took a sip.
Athena smiled, happy that he was eating something and tried hers. "These are the best. Thank you!"
"Best shakes in town!" Flash declared happily. "Just not this town!" He winked at Athena and walked up to Superman and Batman. "Cherry for Supes, and Banana for Bats," he announced, tilting his hip towards Batman as he held out the large cups.
The corners of Batman's mouth turned up just slightly as he took the shake. Not a smile, but almost. "Thank you. That's very considerate."
Clark watched Batman and arched one eyebrow. Oh, no. Not Flash, the clown.
"That's me!" Flash declared, throwing the cup tray over his shoulder as he held his own rocky road shake and leaned his back against Batman's side. "Considerate and oh-so-charming! Right, darling?" he asked Athena.
Clark spun around and went to drink his shake on the other side of the room. In truth, he wanted to throw it away, but polluting outer space was never his thing.
"Very much so," Athena told him cheerfully.
Lex watched Flash leaning on Batman, and Batman letting him... "So what are we going to do about this mess? Any ideas, Wally?"
Flash paused, glanced at Batman, and pointed the top end of his straw at Lex. "Hey! Who told you my name?"
"I'm an evil genius. I don't have to be told." Lex smirked and sipped his shake. Actually, knowing that Batman was Bruce and that Batman was close with Flash enough to make Superman jealous, it was just a skip of logic to guess that Bruce's friend Wally West was the Flash, from his voice. Not that he would tell anyone.
"Huh," Flash said, shaking his head and sipping half his shake at once. "Beats being a crazed loner, I guess," he joked, not looking at Batman, though the playful jab was directed at him, and an old joke between them.
"It's possible," Batman replied, patting Wally's back. He moved them closer to the sofa so he could see Lex. "What I'd like to do in this case is try to build something to sense where the rift where the Supermen flew through must be. It may take some time, but that way we can get you both back where you belong."
"I can give you the exact coordinates where I think it happened," Clark volunteered from where he was leaning on a wall. "I didn't know what it was at the time, but I felt the air change slightly."
Batman looked up at him. "We'll have to look there first, then. Perhaps it's still open."
Clark was going to say something, but then a thought came to him and he gasped softly. "Your... This... Batman, you have to fix this now!" He pointed at Lex. "When his Clark comes home and finds it all changed, who do you think he'll go to first? I went to my wife!"
***
The bistro that Lex had described had the television on, and Clark leaned on the counter to wait for the scallops, looking up when he heard mention of Superman on the news. He frowned when he saw the image of... Himself, flying low over a city, and the reporter explained that Superman had aided in preventing a nuclear disaster just moments before. The girl at the counter handed him a bag, and Clark thanked her, then rushed out. Minutes later he was over Metropolis, stopping dead in the air as he came face to face with a huge building. It was the tallest in the city, and had a large sign that read 'LexCorp' on it. Clark felt his heart drop. The world had changed somehow, and Lex... He x-rayed the building and found Lex on the top floor, a penthouse.
"No," Clark whispered, paling when he did not see their baby inside Lex, their little unborn baby girl. He did not have to be a genius to figure out that Athena would probably be missing as well. Setting his jaw, Clark flew towards the building, landed softly on a balcony, and slid one door open. "Lex!" he called as he stepped inside.
Lex Luthor, King of Metropolis, sat in his study, staring at his glass of whiskey with a severe expression on his face. The day had not gone well, and when he heard his name called by the familiar voice, he jerked up straight, knocked back his scotch, and rose. He opened his desk drawer and pulled out a small box, slipping it into his pocket, just in case, and propelled himself with a dangerous, fluid gait toward the sound of his intruder.
The balcony, of course, he thought as he made his way through the expansive, and empty, penthouse. He only stopped in surprise when he came face to face with Clark. "How did you get into my penthouse, Mr. Kent?"
Clark leaned back and narrowed his eyes. Oh, crap. Lex didn't seem to be joking at all. "I, uh. You invited me," he tried, knowing fully well how lame that sounded. "I brought the scallops!
"You... brought me scallops." Lex paused and tilted his head to the side. He walked briskly over to the phone and dialed a number. "Mercy, send another guard over here for my private elevator. Have that one tell Gary that he is fired... There is an intruder in my penthouse... No, I won't be needing assistance. I can take care of him."
Lex set down the phone and motioned toward the kitchen. "We aren't to eat with our hands, are we, Mr. Kent? I presume you are interested in an exclusive interview for your wife. However, I cannot say I'm particularly chatty today."
Clark swallowed and shook his head. "No. Just the food. Um. You feeling okay, Lex?" He was sorry for the poor Gary guy who was going to get fired, but Lex really didn't look like he was going to take the 'I flew here' reply too kindly.
"As you might surmise, I have been having a particularly bad week, and an especially bad day. I think you, however, have had a rather good week. Kudos on your wife's latest article. She has me entirely wrong, but what can I say. Mrs. Lane has never struck me as particularly interested in the truth as much as she is glory," Lex replied, heading toward the kitchen to find a good bottle of wine.
Clark frowned. His wife, Lois? Not in a million years, thank you! He followed after Lex, looking around the penthouse. Clean, designer-made, gorgeous. And horribly impersonal. A very lonely man lived here.
"I'm sorry your week's been bad. What happened?" Suddenly and for the first time in years, Clark felt underdressed in front of Lex. He had felt like that several times when they went out way back when, but not when it was just the two of them.
Lex stopped with his hand on a 1977 Sauvignon Blanc and turned his head. "Don't tell me you've had a head injury as well, Kent. I just saw you in the ER a few days ago." He arched a brow and turned his head so that Clark could see the healing scar. "The internal bleeding did not start again, obviously. A house visit was not necessary."
Clark's eyes widened briefly. He was a doctor? A nurse? He shook his head fast. "No, no! I meant besides the... You know." He made a motion with his free hand to indicate the cut on Lex's head.
"Being tossed into an explosion by Superman wasn't enough? Well, after you took the metal shards out of me, your wife wrote her delightful article, LexCorp's stock dropped two points, and one of the scientists in my R&D department decided to-" Lex cut himself off, narrowing his eyes and tightening his mouth. "You'll hear about it in the press release tomorrow."
Clark walked to the counter, set down the food he had brought, and opened cupboards to find two platters for the scallops and the mini-éclairs. Which his pregnant Lex, wherever he was, was still craving. He swallowed the lump in his throat down and turned a bright smile to this Lex as he pulled out a couple of plates.
"And éclairs?" Lex said brightly. "You spoil me. Should Lois be jealous?" He took two glasses and popped open the wine. He normally would have shooed the man out of his home and spared himself whatever games Kent and Lane were playing, but this evening he was moody and craving company a bit. So if Kent desired, he could fulfill the craving.
"Yes," Clark said simply, turning and taking the platters to the table without looking at Lex. Until he found out exactly what was happening, until he could contact Bruce, at least, Clark needed to stay close to Lex and figure out who this guy was.
"Well then." Lex poured their wine and set a glass in front of Clark and in front of himself. He'd probably have to go easy on the wine. He'd already had, one, or was it three, glasses of scotch. He sat across from Clark with a slick smirk. "Should we make a toast?"
"We should," Clark said as smoothly as he could. He picked up his glass and held it up slightly. "To second chances?" Whatever had happened or not happened between them, they had met at the ER, that much Clark knew.
Lex held his glass, freezing as he looked into Clark's eyes almost angrily. "Second chances? Do you really mean that, Kent? Is this some kind of trick?"
Clark set his glass back down and held Lex's stare. This man was intense, much like his Lex, but there was something off about him. Well, clearly. "Would you like one?"
Lex set his glass down and asked quietly, "A trick or a second chance?" He licked his lips, knowing full well what Kent meant, and although he desperately wanted that, he wasn't certain he could show the weakness required to actually make amends. "We could try," he added guardedly.
"All right. Trying is good." Clark picked his glass back up, clinked to Lex's carefully, and brought it to his lips.
Lex sipped his wine, relishing the crisp taste, and then set his glass down. He took up his fork and took a bite of the scallops. "Mm." He wiped his mouth. "I don't normally like scallops, but these are excellent."
"I know a place," Clark said, tasting one himself. His poor pregnant Lex, who was going to bring him that, and who the hell had traded places with him, if that had in fact happened? Clark feared so. "Can I ask you something?"
"You may ask. I may not answer," Lex replied a bit jauntily.
Clark chuckled lightly. "Fair enough." He sat back and took another sip of wine before facing Lex again. "Why did Superman toss you into an explosion? That hardly sounds like something he'd do."
"Funny, I always took you to be a smart man." Lex took another sip of wine himself. "This is strictly off the record, by the way, if you repeat this to your wife, I will deny it. LexCorp, as you know has been working on a project to fund more ecologically long term solution to our energy crisis. I invented a perpetual generator that-- if it worked-- would solve our dependence on foreign fuel within a matter of decades. Unfortunately, during our initial testing, things didn't quite go according to plan," Lex narrated rubbing his finger along the side of the glass. "Of course the men who attacked my demonstration were in no way affiliated with LexCorp, not that he'll ever believe that. A stray bullet did fly into the matrix, and as the explosion went off, Superman's arm flew back just in time to knock me into the blast."
Clark tilted his head to the side. "So it was an accident? The explosion and Superman shoving you into it?"
"I very seriously doubt it was an accident, Kent. His life would be much simplified if I were not in it, and although he plays the idiot, I know he would not be fool enough to openly take me out," Lex replied tersely.
"Huh." Clark finished his wine and thought about it. He didn't buy that. No matter what their issues were, and they seemed to be colossal, he just couldn't believe that this Lex's Superman would try to kill him. "So... Why doesn't he turn you to ash while you sleep and then torch your place? Or he could freeze the breaks of your car and cause a fatal accident, or... Lex, I think that if Superman really wanted you dead, you and I wouldn't be talking right now."
Lex pressed his lips together and took another bite of his scallops, chewing thoughtfully. "Either option would leave him as a suspect. Inexplicable circumstances of death would not be in his best interests. His ego couldn't take the blow."
Clark puckered his lips and shrugged. "If you think so. He must not be a very smart super-powered alien, then, if he can't figure out a way to kill you." He grabbed the bottled of wine and poured the two of them some more. "But enough of him. How've you been?"
"He's not," Lex muttered under his breath as he took another drink. "Haven't I answered that question? I suppose you mean since Smallville. I... I truly am sorry about what happened. You may not believe me when I say my only intention was to stop it."
Clark blinked, searching his brain for the best way of replying to events he had never known about. "I've been thinking about that lately. Well, always, but mostly since the hospital... I want to believe you, Lex." He figured that jumping into agreeing with Lex would only make him suspicious.
"I want to be believed in," Lex admitted with a tinge of wistfulness in his voice. He blinked and set the glass down. He had really better stop.
"Well." Clark finished his second glass. "I'm here. Try me."
Lex stood from his chair and walked around the table. He took one of the mini-éclairs and began licking the chocolate off of it. "I'm not normally the type to indulge..."
Clark tilted his head back to watch Lex, spreading his legs slightly. He could almost pretend that this was his Lex, being playful with him before they went to bed together... In reality, he was counting on this Lex being attracted to him as well, so he could get close enough to find out if the man had done something that would have gotten him here. He needed to go back home to the man who loved him and their girls; he would do anything to achieve that. "No? Maybe you should, sometimes. All work and no play..." He gave Lex the shadow of a grin.
Lex took his glass and drained it, then deftly sucked the filling out of the éclair, for Clark to see, then set it aside. He moved closer and trailed his fingers along Clark's thigh. "Do you have a recommendation, Dr. Kent? An activity I might try... To help me wind down?"
Clark wrapped his fingers around Lex's wrist, but not hard enough to hurt him at all. He couldn't do it. He couldn't flirt with this man, whose heartbeat was right, as well as eye color, scent and everything else, but was so wrong that it made Clark's chest ache. A small part of him had hoped that his Lex was in there somewhere, and he just had to find him, but no. This man had never gotten pregnant, given birth to a beautiful baby girl alone in a hotel room, or pretended not to cry when he watched Enemy Mine. "I miss you, Lex," he said, his voice nearly breaking because oh God, it was true! "I want to be your friend. I want you to be happy."
Lex's lips pressed together so firmly that they began to turn white. "I see." His fingers drew back, and he looked away. "It has been a very long time since I had a friend. I really wouldn't know what to do with one."
Clark stood, touched Lex's arms so he would not leave, like he looked he wanted to, and wrapped Lex in a tight hug. He pressed their cheeks together and closed his eyes. "I'm trying to do the right thing," he whispered. "I don't know who you are anymore, and you don't know who I am, but..." He wondered if he should just tell Lex the truth, but how would Lex react if he so obviously disliked Superman? "I don't know what else to do."
"Then caution is best," Lex replied softly. He stiffened as though he didn't understand how to respond to being touched, but he patted Clark on the back. "Perhaps, we could... reacquaint ourselves?"
"I'd like that, Lex." Clark didn't let go. It was almost like going back in time and starting all over again, but without Athena, this time. "Do you live alone?" he asked as an afterthought.
"Of course," Lex replied. "It's just me here. I have a maid, of course, who comes and goes during the day."
"I'd like to come back." Clark finally pulled back but moved his hands up from Lex's arms to his shoulders.
"You may do so." Lex said with a nod. "Only, please give some notice beforehand. Now I have to rehire Gary and send his family a gift basket."
Clark laughed and nodded. "Good. I was gonna ask you to do that." He cupped Lex's cheek with his right hand and looked at him fondly. How he could not love him? He had always loved Lex, always. "Do you have any free time tomorrow?"
"I'm Lex fucking Luthor. I can make some time." He narrowed his eyes and looked pensive. "With a tesseract, if necessary."
Clark's eyebrows rose. "Do you happen to have one lying around?" he asked, trying to sound casually. That would explain a lot, actually.
"Need to be home for the misses an hour ago? Not lying around, no." Lex chuckled. He paused and looked at him curiously. "Why? I'm not making it up," he said defensively. "I can do it. I'm not boasting."
Clark let his hand drop and nodded. "I believe you, Lex. If anyone can do something, you can. I just..." This world isn't mine. Clark took a deep breath.
"What? Lex stumbled back and rubbed his head a little. "Hm. What time is it?"
Clark checked his watch. "Nine ten." He looked down at the platters on the table. "I should go. I can't remember my schedule for tomorrow." And it was a very good thing that Clark did have all the knowledge to practice medicine. "Are you gonna be okay?"
"Fine. I'm fine. Just need a hot shower and a good night's sleep." Lex looked up at Clark as though he were taking him in. "See you tomorrow, Clark."
"Yeah." Clark didn't want to leave. Lex needed him, this one especially, he could tell. "Give me a number where I can reach you. I won't tell anyone."
"Even... Lois?" Lex demanded, curling his lips around her name as though it were something distasteful.
Clark let out a chuckle. He definitely could relate. "Especially Lois. I promise."
Lex nodded and patted his pockets. Pulling out a LexCorp pen, he took Clark's wrist and wrote his private cell phone number on it. "Just for your eyes. To receive trust, my mother used to say, you have to give a little."
"I'm going to call you," Clark warned, reading the number and submitting it to memory. "Thanks, Lex."
Lex leaned up to him and kissed Clark on the cheek. "Take the easy way out. Take the elevator."
Clark's heart broke. He had no idea what the Clark and Superman that this Lex knew had done, but he could tell that Lex was the same deep down. He would try his hardest to fix their relationship before he left, if he could. He took Lex's left hand, brought it to his lips, and gave the middle of his palm a kiss. "Good night."
"Good night." Lex walked Clark to the foyer, although since he'd gotten in here, he should know the way. He hoped that he wasn't being unnecessarily sentimental, too over-willing to believe in Clark. Tonight, he might just do as he said and call it a night, instead of drinking until he fell asleep in the study.
Clark left Lex's building and stood in the middle of the sidewalk for a moment. He had no idea where he lived. He turned right, found a pay phone, and called information to request his own address. Apparently, he lived on 1938 Sullivan. The address made him remember Chloe, and he wondered where she was in this reality, if she was still pulling double duty as a reporter and a hero like she was in Gotham of his world. He zipped towards Centennial Park and then walked the rest of the way to the apartment building. Because he didn't have a key and wasn't sure how much Lois knew, he jiggled the front door until it unlocked for him, climbed the stairs to their apartment, braced himself mentally, and knocked on the door.
It was a little while before Lois opened the door, barefoot but still wearing her work clothes, a very low-cut blouse, and a skirt suit that was almost painted on. She put her hand on her hip and barked, "Where have you been? You didn't even bring the Chinese? Thanks for nothing, Smallville." She turned around. "Ugh, you would not believe my day. That bitch Sullivan got to the dock story before me. Again. I don't know how she weasels information out of anyone, the midget freak- oh, not like that, Clark. Then Grant spent her morning writhing on the desk next to mine in front of that new reporter. So pathetic. Anyway, I have a deadline, and I need to get this article on Luthor done. I'm waiting for Jimmy to call to tell me if we're going out to get pictures or not, so don't expect me to be in bed early."
Clark tented his eyebrows. He closed the door behind him and slowly looked around. The apartment wasn't too small, but it seemed over furnished with pieces that clashed miserably. It was also rather messy. "What article on Luthor?" he asked, after clearing his throat and heading to the kitchen, which he could see through a tall counter to the right.
"We think the bald eagle's got a deal in the works with selling his newest crazy weapon to terrorists," Lois replied. She followed him to the kitchen and opened the fridge. She sniffed the milk and sighed, tossing it in the trash, then grabbed a Diet Vanilla Dr. Pebble. "Cat's got the whiff of a story. There's this chick who might end up being the sixth Mrs. Luthor."
"Sixth?" Clark squeaked, his head snapping towards Lois before he could stop it. Lex had been married five times already? He x-rayed the cupboards, opened the door where the glasses were, and got some tap water to drink. "You'd think he'd be too busy for dating, huh?" he said with a grin he thought made him look like he really didn't care. "What weapon?" he asked behind the rim of the glass.
"Oh, it's these sparkly blobby things. I think they're meant to suffocate the enemy or something. The man's about forty-seven colors short of the crayon box," Lois replied.
Clark took a sip of his water, slowly set the glass down, and closed his eyes for a second. Oh, Lex! So that was where those things were coming from! "You're going to work, then?" he asked next. He needed to talk to Bruce.
Lois' phone rang, and she darted out of the room to answer it. After yelling at Jimmy for ten minutes, she returned and hung up. "No stakeout tonight. Dumb kid. So." She walked up behind him, waggled her brows, and wiggled her rear. "Rawr?"
Clark's jaw dropped and his eyes widened. Oh. Oh, no way! "Um." He stepped away from her a little. "Actually, I'm the one who has to go. Hospital... Stuff. You know." He really needed to get a hold of some information about who the hell he was supposed to be!
"Oh," Lois said, quirking the side of her mouth in disappointment. "Well, I can always get to work on something else." She slapped his chest. "I'm gonna shower." She grabbed her soda can and unbuttoned her blouse as she headed out of the room.
Clark leaned back on the kitchen counter and exhaled. He had no idea what his counterpart was thinking and how many levels of denial he was under, but Lois? Really? He shook his head, waited until she sounded like she was in the shower, and entered the bedroom. Even messier. How did he live like that? He wanted to call Lex but instead, he zipped around, found his hospital tag and pocketed it, as well as a cell phone he found in his nightstand drawer. Lois's nightstand had... Well, he'd rather not even think about what he'd seen in there. He grabbed a leather jacket from the closet, put it on, house keys with a key chain that read CK, and the other Clark's wallet. He needed to fly to Gotham now. X-raying the room he found a Superman costume behind the closet, in a box, so he grabbed that as well.
Authors: herohunter and ladydreamer
Pairing: Clex
Rating: Generally PG, and NC-17 in parts
Warning: mpreg
Summary: One cold November evening, twelve years after Lex Luthor left Smallville and Clark Kent behind, the two meet in Centennial Park… as Lex is walking home with his daughter.
Thanks to our beta lexalicious, and to lapetite-kiki for the beautiful cover for the fic.
Part Nine
A Year and a Half Later
Lex moved into the kitchen. He was hungry for something, although he didn't know what. The past year and a half had been a time of transition for their family, taking their daughter to her new school and watching her adjust. In a surprising but happy turn, she'd found friends easily at Greenwich Academy, and the students seemed much less acrimonious toward one another. Lex approved of the atmosphere and attitude of the teachers.
And then... Lex cupped his rounded belly fondly. And then he and Clark had decided it was time for another child. Who was demanding food. At six months, he couldn't have been more grateful to have Clark by his side with this one. It made all the difference. Clark had practically jumped him when Lex had suggested they try to get pregnant again, and he could see in Athena's eyes how thrilled she was to have a little sister on the way.
"Lex?" Clark had just come back from a Superman emergency and a quick stop under the shower. Then he had put on his usual jeans and t-shirt outfit and joined Lex in the kitchen. "Hey."
"Hey, how'd it go?" Lex asked. He slipped a hand under his shirt. Their daughter kicked him softly, urging him to open the cupboard again. Instead, he walked over to Clark and wrapped his arms around him with a sigh. It was irrational, but it seemed like right now he missed Clark more when they weren't together.
Clark held Lex and kissed his forehead. "Fine. I enjoy working with Wonder Woman, although she's short on patience," he chuckled. "How are the girls and you today?"
"Athena went over to Toby's to watch movies with him. He has a crush on Keanu Reeves," Lex informed Clark. He kissed Clark's neck. "Our baby girl is just fine. Hungry, as always."
"Aw." Clark bent down, pulled Lex's shirt up and gave the top of his belly a kiss. "We must feed her, then."
"Absolutely." Lex patted Clark's cheek and took his hand as he turned to poke his nose in the refrigerator.
"What do you feel like?" Clark asked, hugging Lex from behind and giving the back of his head a kiss as he rubbed over the belly lovingly. Such a miracle, his Lex and their babies.
"I don't know." Lex took the jar of pickles and took one before putting the lid back on and putting it back in the fridge. "You know what I'd really like? When I was pregnant with Athena, there was this little bistro not too far from the hotel I was staying. They made the best scallops. Grilled with smoked salt. Those were the best. Oh, and they had these mini-eclairs. I must have eaten a dozen of those. No wonder I got so fat." He took a bite out of the pickle.
Clark met Lex's eyes. "Do you want me to go get those for you? Tell me where it is," he offered.
"You're going to France to get me a snack?" Lex laughed softly. "Well, I suppose it wouldn't take you that long. It was around the cross-section of Bonaparte and Viscotti, I think. It was named after the owner, Cedric De Villiers."
Clark nodded once. "I'll get my wallet and shoes on." He kissed Lex's lips slowly and smiled. "Be right back, sexy."
Lex beamed and ran his hands up and down Clark's sides. "Thank you, Clark. I'll repay you later." He gave Clark another kiss.
"Heh. I do it for free, but I won't mind getting some lovin' later," he said happily. "Love you both." He zipped off.
Lex smiled, so content, and went back into the den to sit on the sofa where he had his book, and could put his feet up. He kept his cell at the ready, in case Athena needed him.
Fifteen minutes later, Lex's stomach rumbled, and he looked at his watch with a frown, wondering how long it would take for Clark to get the food. It wasn't that he was impatient, but that he knew Clark could get to Europe in a few minutes. He maneuvered himself up and rubbed his belly a little. There was no reason to worry. Not really. Maybe they had gotten excited to see Superman. Clark could have put on his uniform when he went out. Or maybe something had happened, and Superman had been needed to step in. He pushed himself up and paced back and forth for a few minutes. Then he flipped out his cell phone and tried to call.
When the phone was registered out of range, Lex began to worry in earnest. He closed his eyes and reminded himself that there was a possibility that Clark had needed to go out of the atmosphere. He ran a hand over his head and tried to remain calm.
Suddenly, Superman burst through a window, glass shattering everywhere and, in the blink of an eye, he had a large hand around Lex's neck as he pressed Lex against a wall. "What did you do, Luthor?" he boomed, nostrils flaring with anger.
"C-Clark?" Lex gasped, struggling and trying to get his fingers around Superman's hand to keep it from crushing his windpipe. His first thought was that Clark had run into Red K, but that stripped his inhibitions. It wouldn't make him attack his pregnant boyfriend.
Superman's eyes widened slightly, and his scowl only deepened. "How the hell do you know that name? And what have you done to Lois?" She no longer recalled being married to him, and the Justice Lords no longer patrolled the streets or kept their headquarters in Washington, DC. He had checked.
"I- I haven't done anything to Lois!" Lex squeaked out, blinking to keep his vision clear. He was going pass out, and he couldn't let himself do that until he and the baby were safe. "I haven't even talked to her since last week. Please... Clark, d-don't do this. I'll help you. Just let us go!"
"Us?" Superman finally glanced down, x-rayed Lex's body, and yanked his hand back as if it had been burned. "What the-?" He held his hands in fists at his sides, took a couple of steps back, and glared at Lex again. "What the hell's this? You're pregnant?" His lips twisted in disgust and confusion at the word.
Lex coughed, rubbing his throat, and his eyes grew damp. He tried not to cry, though, and curled his hand around his belly and began inching toward the bedroom, where a piece of Kryptonite was hidden in his mother's box-just in case. "Who are you?" he asked, unable to keep the hurt out of his voice. Something was seriously wrong with Clark, or this was something else staring at him from Clark's startlingly beautiful green eyes. "How did you know where I live?"
Superman used his laser vision to burn a hole though the wall near Lex's head, almost burning his ear. "Not a step, Luthor! I don't know what you're up to yet, but I'm going to find out, so you'd better fess up and save us both the hassle!"
"What I'm up to? I'm up to saving myself and my child from a psychopath who bursts into a man's home and chokes him with absolutely no preamble!" Lex snapped. His mind was trying to find a way out of this, but he couldn't think of one off hand. Maybe this person would get distracted.
"You did this!" Superman accused, his voice rising. "You're the psychopath and a criminal, and I don't know how you made your LexCorp Towers disappear, and how you think I'll believe in this-" he waved a hand, "-farce!" He took a step towards Lex again. Baby or no, he would beat the truth out of Luthor; who knew how many lives he was putting at risk with this recent stunt!
Outside the apartment, Athena heard the commotion inside, which was weird because her dads never fought. She squinted at the door to see what was going on. Her dad on the floor on his back, and Clark was looming over him in the super suit. They both looked really angry, and her dad looked scared. She bit her lip and decided that she would have to use superspeed to do anything, given how much Clark could do, and he was stronger and faster. Maybe she could distract him, and her dad could get the Kryptonite... but that might hurt the baby.
She pressed her ear to the door and listened, then looked around the hallway to see if anyone was there, then ran to the window, opened it, and used her speed to run around the side of the building to her fathers' bedroom window. She grabbed the box on the dresser and appeared in front of Superman, opening the box. "Stop it! You stay away from Dad!"
Superman stumbled back instantly. He looked at Athena as he backed away towards the broken window. "Dad? Luthor, when did you have time to make a clone in prison?" He leaned back on the window frame.
"Do I look like a boy? My dad's never been in prison," Athena protested, trying not to drop the box, even though the veins in her hands were starting to bulge.
"Baby, put that down and get over here. That's not Clark," Lex said, struggling to his feet.
"I know, he's wearing the wrong suit. The red briefs are missing," Athena said. Her hands shook, and the box fell from her hands. "Ah! No!"
Lex grabbed her around her waist and pulled her back away from Superman protectively. The Kryptonite sat between them.
Superman looked at them in utter confusion, pain radiating slowly all over him. That something was wrong was a given, but a pregnant Luthor with a little girl who called him 'dad' and knew where the Kryptonite was kept? He slipped on the broken glass and fell on his ass on the floor. The Kryptonite seemed to be affecting the little girl now, and Luthor did not look too good, either. He pushed himself forward, ignoring the glass digging into the palms of his hands, and crawled to where the box was. He had to close it!
Athena shuddered and curled against her father. Lex was feeling like he might throw up or faint, and the baby kicked frantically. He pulled Athena to the door, grabbing his cell on the way. He'd call the League. One of them would know what to do, surely.
His fingertips finally reached the box, and Superman managed to drag it slowly to him, and shut the box closed. He grunted and rolled onto his back, then looked up at the ceiling as the pain and nausea washed away from him, and the bits of glass slipped out of his flesh as the cuts closed, instantly healed.
"Damn," Lex said, to Athena's shock, because her father rarely swore in front of her. He quickly hit the number Clark had given to him and sent a short 911 to Batman.
"I'll speed us away," Athena told Lex.
"He's faster, if he has Clark's abilities," Lex replied quietly, petting over her hair gently.
Athena looked up at him. "Run, Dad. Save the baby. I'll take care of him."
Superman got up to his feet slowly, a deep frown on his face, and tilted his head to the side as he watched Luthor and the girl on the floor. He x-rayed Luthor's belly and took a step closer. "The baby is unharmed," he assured them. "Just agitated." He cautiously approached them and held out a hand.
The two Luthors stared at him skeptically.
"No thanks to you!" Athena exclaimed, her eyes filling with tears.
"Do NOT aggravate him," Lex instructed, keeping his eyes on Superman. He licked his lips nervously. "What do you want from us? I don't know what you've been talking about; I can't tell you about that. But I'll help if you explain it to me, and you don't hurt my children."
Superman reached down and grabbed each of their arms, then pulled them up and carried them to the sofa. He set them down and looked around the room, his lips parting when he spotted a framed photograph on a side table. He walked to it, picked it up and studied it. Not even his microscopic vision could detect the photo manipulation in the image of Lex, the little girl and himself posing happily outside the Kent farmhouse, on a sunny day. Luthor had leveled Smallville years ago; the farm no longer existed, and yet here the picture was, looking current and having not a trace that it was a forgery. "How-"
"Whoa, what happened here?" Flash asked as he jumped through the window and skidded on broken glass. "Oh, Supes, you're home, good! Bats got the distress call from Lex and-"
Superman stared at Flash. "When did you change your uniform to red?" he asked softly.
Flash gave Superman a 'huh?' face behind his mask and looked down at himself. "What are you talking about, big guy? I've always had this one!"
Lex took a deep breath and looked up at them. "How long has everything been wrong? Us, Flash, your uniform?"
Superman looked at Luthor again. "What? Since..." He frowned. "Since I was coming home from a nuclear spill in Europe." He decided to tell the truth since everyone seemed to be just as confused as he was at the moment.
Flash tapped his ear. "Uhh, Bats? Yeah, we got a bit of a problem here... No, they're fine, but... We might need your bat-brain for this one. Okay!" He turned to Lex. "He's on his way, too. What's going on?" He moved to sit by Athena and gave her a hug. "Hey, darlin'!"
Athena hugged Flash a little too tightly in her exuberance.
"What's going on is likely... Well, either this is a clone who thinks that he's Superman-- only whoever created him got all of the details wrong-- or he may be from another world," Lex said, leaning his head back on the sofa cushions.
"I'm not a clone!" Superman boomed and huffed, crossing his arms over his chest.
Flash let out a little squeak as Athena jumped, squeezing him, and he patted her shoulder. "Easy, baby!"
"Sorry." Athena let go of him and turned to her father's side to check on him. She touched his brow. "Do you feel okay?"
"I'm fine, kitten," Lex assured her, pushing some hair out of her eyes. "We'll find our guy, and it'll be all right."
Athena frowned dubiously, but got up to get her father a drink.
"If you're not a clone..." Lex said to Superman in a leading tone. "Flash, you remember about a year ago when those jelly monsters were targeting Superman, and he and Bats couldn't figure out where they were coming from?"
Flash's eyes widened. "Oh yeah!" He jumped up and addressed the Superman who was still looking at his costume funny. "There were those big blob-things, you remember, Supes?"
Superman shook his head. "That never happened..." He eyed Lex and his pregnant belly, and added, "...Where I come from." He eyed the picture in his hand again, and Athena's black hair and pouty lips called his attention. If the girl and Lex's baby were vulnerable to Kryptonite... "They're... Your Superman's?"
"Our... Oh." Lex pursed his lips and patted his belly. "Yes. They're his. I was kind of expecting to see him this evening."
Superman frowned and sat back on the coffee table, letting go of the photograph and placing his head in his hands. Luthor wasn't aiming a gun at him, and he doubted that this surreal situation could get any worse, anyway. "I'm married to Lois. She looked completely dumbfounded when I flew into her apartment, gave her a kiss, and asked why she was there and not at our home tonight. His head snapped up at Flash suddenly. "Blob things, you said? Wait, I do remember those. Lu-" He thinned his lips. "My Lex Luthor created them, but I haven't seen one in a while. If they ended up here, that will explain why."
Athena returned with two glasses of lemonade and plates of leftover fried chicken, potato salad, and a pickle for Flash and her father. "I know you burn a lot of energy," she told Flash as she gave him his plate.
"A woman after my own heart!" Flash declared, taking the plate and giving Athena's cheek a kiss. "Or stomach!" He picked up a piece of chicken, took a series of flash-fast bites, and then chewed with a moan. "Mmm, your grandmother's cooking is the best, pumpkin!"
Superman sat up. "Grandmother?"
Athena sat next to her father and pressed the plate into his hand. Lex took the pickle and set the plate aside.
"Martha," he clarified when it became apparent that Athena was giving Superman the silent treatment. "Sometimes we go down there for weekends, or Athena goes. She and your father adore her."
"They're alive?" Superman muttered, his eyes widening.
Flash swallowed and looked from Superman to Lex. "This is way too weird," he said out loud.
"You're telling me? I thought for certain some color of Kryptonite had taken control of him," Lex muttered, closing his eyes.
Superman stood again and began pacing back and forth. "So... You're not a worldwide criminal," he told Lex redundantly. "My parents are alive, and your Clark and you are..."
"Together, settled, and having a second daughter," Lex replied tersely, since it apparently wasn't obvious to Superman. He should probably feel some tenderness toward this person; he was actually Clark... Physically anyway. "I'm a worldwide criminal?" He looked at Athena. "I told you the world was better with you in it."
Athena giggled and rubbed her father's shoulders.
Superman eyed the little girl, went to her, and kneeled in front of her. "What's your name?"
Flash set down his empty plate and let out a burp.
Athena watched Superman cautiously. "It's Athena Luthor Kent."
Unless Luthor had managed to inflict a very realistic hallucination upon him, this was real, and Superman was not quite sure what to make of it. He nodded. "Athena. Pretty name. I'm sorry I hurt you and your father. Where I come from, he's-" He pressed his lips together, hesitating to say bad things about his version of Athena's father to her. "Well. I apologize." He looked at Lex. "And to you, Lu-um, Lex."
Lex nodded seriously. "Well, once we talk to Batman, we'll find a way to send you home to your Luthor and your... Lois and everything will be the way it was before."
Superman frowned but did not argue. Maybe here, their Dick Wayne had a machine that found parallel dimensions in the Batcave. If he had a Batcave at all.
"Dad, you're pale," Athena complained.
"I'm pregnant," Lex told her with a shrug. "It happens."
She set the plate of uneaten chicken on the coffee table and lifted his feet up. "Lay down."
"Okay, okay." Lex submitted. Once he was lying down, he felt a little better and closed his eyes. Athena stroked his head.
Flash got up so Lex could have the whole sofa to stretch one. "Can I go get you something, Lex? Like a milkshake?" He sure could use about three of those.
Superman stood as well and went to put the framed photograph where he had gotten it, as well as clean up the glass he had smashed into the room.
"No, I'll be okay, Flash. Thank you," Lex replied. "I just need to relax."
"Get him the milkshake. He needs to eat something," Athena ordered. "It's way past snack time."
Flash nodded. "I'll get us all some." He gave Lex's leg a pat and turned to Superman. "You won't try to hurt them again?"
Superman gave Flash a flat look. "No, I won't. He's not who I thought he was, and he's clearly just as unhappy at this situation as I am. Or more."
Flash nodded, touched the top of Athena's head, and zipped off.
"Can you fix the hole in our wall?" Athena asked Superman.
Superman frowned. "I'll have to get plaster in the morning, if I'm still here. Unless you have some in the house?"
"I don't think so," Athena said, arching a brow. "Dad only paints."
"We can get some tomorrow. Your father can fix it when he gets back, baby," Lex told her. She leaned on him and sighed.
Superman stood there, unsure. He had no place to go, really, and he had been told to wait for Batman. He supposed he could go to the farm, but how to explain to the Kents that he was not their Clark, and that he had almost choked their son-in-law to death tonight? He turned his head and looked at the window he had broken. He should get a sheet to cover that, as well.
Athena petted Lex's belly and hoped he wasn't pretending to feel better than he did for her sake. She wouldn't be leaving his side until one of the League members was there to protect them.
"You still work at The Daily Planet, Supes?" Lex asked quietly after a moment. He wondered if, in the other dimension, he was like his father.
Superman shook his head. "No, that's what Lois does. I'm a doctor, actually. E.R." He shrugged one shoulder. "So I get to take people to the hospital and then treat them a minute later. Takes away a lot of guess work."
"That's interesting. Clark said he thought about becoming a doctor," Lex said thoughtfully. "It's hard think of LexCorp as a real company. It didn't take long here before my father took the company over. It couldn't stand without me as the head, unfortunately. Well, I suppose that's debatable. Smallville's economy dropped and then improved."
"LexCorp is a giant where I come from," Superman said. He did not try to approach the sofa. "Into everything, but mostly, it's a front for the selling of weapons to the highest bidder."
"Weapons. Fantastic." Lex sighed.
"It's not you. You're a good man, and a good dad," Athena insisted.
"Thank you, baby." Lex patted her hand.
Batman knocked on the door roughly, and Athena hopped up to open it for him. He looked down at her, then at the otherworld Superman. "What's the situation?" he growled.
Superman's eyes widened at the sight of Batman. He stretched his neck as if to see better, then approached Batman slowly. "You?" he whispered, and suddenly wrapped his arms around Batman and closed his eyes tightly. Bruce, alive! His lover of so many years, right here in his arms, and he even smelled right!
Batman went rigid. "What are you doing?" He looked down at Lex, who was propping himself on his elbows.
"We think he's from an alternate dimension. The same dimension the jelly monsters came from. Remember them?" Lex asked.
"Not willingly," Batman said gruffly. He looked down at Superman curiously and wondered if the hug was going to end, or if he would have to take measures.
"Oh my God," Superman whispered, his voice changing into some resemblance of Clark's before he caught himself. "Bruce." He pulled back only enough to meet Batman's eyes. "You're alive!"
Batman tensed his lips, looked at Lex and the kid once, then back at Superman. "I'm alive. I've been alive." He swallowed and stopped growling so deeply. It was rough on his throat. "I take it I haven't been so lucky in your world."
Superman shook his head. "Penguin, he... The first Penguin, I mean." He just could not let go, his hands on Batman's arms and his eyes roaming everywhere. Bruce, Bruce, so close that if he leaned in, they would kiss!
"I'm sorry to abandon you in the fight," Batman told him seriously. There was no mistaking that look. This Superman was in love with him. "I'll be cautious."
Lex rested his hand in his lap and took Athena's hand. He decided that his jealousy definitely belonged to Bruce and not Lois.
Superman nodded slightly, licked his lips, and finally took a step back. Look like him as he may, this man was not his Bruce; he did not look at him the same way. Now he just had to convince his heart of that. He moved his hands to his sides, opening and closing them nervously. "So."
Batman sighed and reached up to touch Superman's shoulder. "I'm sorry, Clark."
Clark -who the hell was he fooling anyway?- let his head drop and shook his head. "So am I," he whispered.
"All right, I got-hey, Bats!" Flash smiled brightly as he slowed up by the sofa and handed Lex and Athena two Styrofoam cups. "Chocolate for the little lady, and vanilla for Sexy Lexy! If you hate vanilla, you can have my strawberry," he offered Lex.
"I do like vanilla. Thank you," Lex leaned back again and took a sip.
Athena smiled, happy that he was eating something and tried hers. "These are the best. Thank you!"
"Best shakes in town!" Flash declared happily. "Just not this town!" He winked at Athena and walked up to Superman and Batman. "Cherry for Supes, and Banana for Bats," he announced, tilting his hip towards Batman as he held out the large cups.
The corners of Batman's mouth turned up just slightly as he took the shake. Not a smile, but almost. "Thank you. That's very considerate."
Clark watched Batman and arched one eyebrow. Oh, no. Not Flash, the clown.
"That's me!" Flash declared, throwing the cup tray over his shoulder as he held his own rocky road shake and leaned his back against Batman's side. "Considerate and oh-so-charming! Right, darling?" he asked Athena.
Clark spun around and went to drink his shake on the other side of the room. In truth, he wanted to throw it away, but polluting outer space was never his thing.
"Very much so," Athena told him cheerfully.
Lex watched Flash leaning on Batman, and Batman letting him... "So what are we going to do about this mess? Any ideas, Wally?"
Flash paused, glanced at Batman, and pointed the top end of his straw at Lex. "Hey! Who told you my name?"
"I'm an evil genius. I don't have to be told." Lex smirked and sipped his shake. Actually, knowing that Batman was Bruce and that Batman was close with Flash enough to make Superman jealous, it was just a skip of logic to guess that Bruce's friend Wally West was the Flash, from his voice. Not that he would tell anyone.
"Huh," Flash said, shaking his head and sipping half his shake at once. "Beats being a crazed loner, I guess," he joked, not looking at Batman, though the playful jab was directed at him, and an old joke between them.
"It's possible," Batman replied, patting Wally's back. He moved them closer to the sofa so he could see Lex. "What I'd like to do in this case is try to build something to sense where the rift where the Supermen flew through must be. It may take some time, but that way we can get you both back where you belong."
"I can give you the exact coordinates where I think it happened," Clark volunteered from where he was leaning on a wall. "I didn't know what it was at the time, but I felt the air change slightly."
Batman looked up at him. "We'll have to look there first, then. Perhaps it's still open."
Clark was going to say something, but then a thought came to him and he gasped softly. "Your... This... Batman, you have to fix this now!" He pointed at Lex. "When his Clark comes home and finds it all changed, who do you think he'll go to first? I went to my wife!"
***
The bistro that Lex had described had the television on, and Clark leaned on the counter to wait for the scallops, looking up when he heard mention of Superman on the news. He frowned when he saw the image of... Himself, flying low over a city, and the reporter explained that Superman had aided in preventing a nuclear disaster just moments before. The girl at the counter handed him a bag, and Clark thanked her, then rushed out. Minutes later he was over Metropolis, stopping dead in the air as he came face to face with a huge building. It was the tallest in the city, and had a large sign that read 'LexCorp' on it. Clark felt his heart drop. The world had changed somehow, and Lex... He x-rayed the building and found Lex on the top floor, a penthouse.
"No," Clark whispered, paling when he did not see their baby inside Lex, their little unborn baby girl. He did not have to be a genius to figure out that Athena would probably be missing as well. Setting his jaw, Clark flew towards the building, landed softly on a balcony, and slid one door open. "Lex!" he called as he stepped inside.
Lex Luthor, King of Metropolis, sat in his study, staring at his glass of whiskey with a severe expression on his face. The day had not gone well, and when he heard his name called by the familiar voice, he jerked up straight, knocked back his scotch, and rose. He opened his desk drawer and pulled out a small box, slipping it into his pocket, just in case, and propelled himself with a dangerous, fluid gait toward the sound of his intruder.
The balcony, of course, he thought as he made his way through the expansive, and empty, penthouse. He only stopped in surprise when he came face to face with Clark. "How did you get into my penthouse, Mr. Kent?"
Clark leaned back and narrowed his eyes. Oh, crap. Lex didn't seem to be joking at all. "I, uh. You invited me," he tried, knowing fully well how lame that sounded. "I brought the scallops!
"You... brought me scallops." Lex paused and tilted his head to the side. He walked briskly over to the phone and dialed a number. "Mercy, send another guard over here for my private elevator. Have that one tell Gary that he is fired... There is an intruder in my penthouse... No, I won't be needing assistance. I can take care of him."
Lex set down the phone and motioned toward the kitchen. "We aren't to eat with our hands, are we, Mr. Kent? I presume you are interested in an exclusive interview for your wife. However, I cannot say I'm particularly chatty today."
Clark swallowed and shook his head. "No. Just the food. Um. You feeling okay, Lex?" He was sorry for the poor Gary guy who was going to get fired, but Lex really didn't look like he was going to take the 'I flew here' reply too kindly.
"As you might surmise, I have been having a particularly bad week, and an especially bad day. I think you, however, have had a rather good week. Kudos on your wife's latest article. She has me entirely wrong, but what can I say. Mrs. Lane has never struck me as particularly interested in the truth as much as she is glory," Lex replied, heading toward the kitchen to find a good bottle of wine.
Clark frowned. His wife, Lois? Not in a million years, thank you! He followed after Lex, looking around the penthouse. Clean, designer-made, gorgeous. And horribly impersonal. A very lonely man lived here.
"I'm sorry your week's been bad. What happened?" Suddenly and for the first time in years, Clark felt underdressed in front of Lex. He had felt like that several times when they went out way back when, but not when it was just the two of them.
Lex stopped with his hand on a 1977 Sauvignon Blanc and turned his head. "Don't tell me you've had a head injury as well, Kent. I just saw you in the ER a few days ago." He arched a brow and turned his head so that Clark could see the healing scar. "The internal bleeding did not start again, obviously. A house visit was not necessary."
Clark's eyes widened briefly. He was a doctor? A nurse? He shook his head fast. "No, no! I meant besides the... You know." He made a motion with his free hand to indicate the cut on Lex's head.
"Being tossed into an explosion by Superman wasn't enough? Well, after you took the metal shards out of me, your wife wrote her delightful article, LexCorp's stock dropped two points, and one of the scientists in my R&D department decided to-" Lex cut himself off, narrowing his eyes and tightening his mouth. "You'll hear about it in the press release tomorrow."
Clark walked to the counter, set down the food he had brought, and opened cupboards to find two platters for the scallops and the mini-éclairs. Which his pregnant Lex, wherever he was, was still craving. He swallowed the lump in his throat down and turned a bright smile to this Lex as he pulled out a couple of plates.
"And éclairs?" Lex said brightly. "You spoil me. Should Lois be jealous?" He took two glasses and popped open the wine. He normally would have shooed the man out of his home and spared himself whatever games Kent and Lane were playing, but this evening he was moody and craving company a bit. So if Kent desired, he could fulfill the craving.
"Yes," Clark said simply, turning and taking the platters to the table without looking at Lex. Until he found out exactly what was happening, until he could contact Bruce, at least, Clark needed to stay close to Lex and figure out who this guy was.
"Well then." Lex poured their wine and set a glass in front of Clark and in front of himself. He'd probably have to go easy on the wine. He'd already had, one, or was it three, glasses of scotch. He sat across from Clark with a slick smirk. "Should we make a toast?"
"We should," Clark said as smoothly as he could. He picked up his glass and held it up slightly. "To second chances?" Whatever had happened or not happened between them, they had met at the ER, that much Clark knew.
Lex held his glass, freezing as he looked into Clark's eyes almost angrily. "Second chances? Do you really mean that, Kent? Is this some kind of trick?"
Clark set his glass back down and held Lex's stare. This man was intense, much like his Lex, but there was something off about him. Well, clearly. "Would you like one?"
Lex set his glass down and asked quietly, "A trick or a second chance?" He licked his lips, knowing full well what Kent meant, and although he desperately wanted that, he wasn't certain he could show the weakness required to actually make amends. "We could try," he added guardedly.
"All right. Trying is good." Clark picked his glass back up, clinked to Lex's carefully, and brought it to his lips.
Lex sipped his wine, relishing the crisp taste, and then set his glass down. He took up his fork and took a bite of the scallops. "Mm." He wiped his mouth. "I don't normally like scallops, but these are excellent."
"I know a place," Clark said, tasting one himself. His poor pregnant Lex, who was going to bring him that, and who the hell had traded places with him, if that had in fact happened? Clark feared so. "Can I ask you something?"
"You may ask. I may not answer," Lex replied a bit jauntily.
Clark chuckled lightly. "Fair enough." He sat back and took another sip of wine before facing Lex again. "Why did Superman toss you into an explosion? That hardly sounds like something he'd do."
"Funny, I always took you to be a smart man." Lex took another sip of wine himself. "This is strictly off the record, by the way, if you repeat this to your wife, I will deny it. LexCorp, as you know has been working on a project to fund more ecologically long term solution to our energy crisis. I invented a perpetual generator that-- if it worked-- would solve our dependence on foreign fuel within a matter of decades. Unfortunately, during our initial testing, things didn't quite go according to plan," Lex narrated rubbing his finger along the side of the glass. "Of course the men who attacked my demonstration were in no way affiliated with LexCorp, not that he'll ever believe that. A stray bullet did fly into the matrix, and as the explosion went off, Superman's arm flew back just in time to knock me into the blast."
Clark tilted his head to the side. "So it was an accident? The explosion and Superman shoving you into it?"
"I very seriously doubt it was an accident, Kent. His life would be much simplified if I were not in it, and although he plays the idiot, I know he would not be fool enough to openly take me out," Lex replied tersely.
"Huh." Clark finished his wine and thought about it. He didn't buy that. No matter what their issues were, and they seemed to be colossal, he just couldn't believe that this Lex's Superman would try to kill him. "So... Why doesn't he turn you to ash while you sleep and then torch your place? Or he could freeze the breaks of your car and cause a fatal accident, or... Lex, I think that if Superman really wanted you dead, you and I wouldn't be talking right now."
Lex pressed his lips together and took another bite of his scallops, chewing thoughtfully. "Either option would leave him as a suspect. Inexplicable circumstances of death would not be in his best interests. His ego couldn't take the blow."
Clark puckered his lips and shrugged. "If you think so. He must not be a very smart super-powered alien, then, if he can't figure out a way to kill you." He grabbed the bottled of wine and poured the two of them some more. "But enough of him. How've you been?"
"He's not," Lex muttered under his breath as he took another drink. "Haven't I answered that question? I suppose you mean since Smallville. I... I truly am sorry about what happened. You may not believe me when I say my only intention was to stop it."
Clark blinked, searching his brain for the best way of replying to events he had never known about. "I've been thinking about that lately. Well, always, but mostly since the hospital... I want to believe you, Lex." He figured that jumping into agreeing with Lex would only make him suspicious.
"I want to be believed in," Lex admitted with a tinge of wistfulness in his voice. He blinked and set the glass down. He had really better stop.
"Well." Clark finished his second glass. "I'm here. Try me."
Lex stood from his chair and walked around the table. He took one of the mini-éclairs and began licking the chocolate off of it. "I'm not normally the type to indulge..."
Clark tilted his head back to watch Lex, spreading his legs slightly. He could almost pretend that this was his Lex, being playful with him before they went to bed together... In reality, he was counting on this Lex being attracted to him as well, so he could get close enough to find out if the man had done something that would have gotten him here. He needed to go back home to the man who loved him and their girls; he would do anything to achieve that. "No? Maybe you should, sometimes. All work and no play..." He gave Lex the shadow of a grin.
Lex took his glass and drained it, then deftly sucked the filling out of the éclair, for Clark to see, then set it aside. He moved closer and trailed his fingers along Clark's thigh. "Do you have a recommendation, Dr. Kent? An activity I might try... To help me wind down?"
Clark wrapped his fingers around Lex's wrist, but not hard enough to hurt him at all. He couldn't do it. He couldn't flirt with this man, whose heartbeat was right, as well as eye color, scent and everything else, but was so wrong that it made Clark's chest ache. A small part of him had hoped that his Lex was in there somewhere, and he just had to find him, but no. This man had never gotten pregnant, given birth to a beautiful baby girl alone in a hotel room, or pretended not to cry when he watched Enemy Mine. "I miss you, Lex," he said, his voice nearly breaking because oh God, it was true! "I want to be your friend. I want you to be happy."
Lex's lips pressed together so firmly that they began to turn white. "I see." His fingers drew back, and he looked away. "It has been a very long time since I had a friend. I really wouldn't know what to do with one."
Clark stood, touched Lex's arms so he would not leave, like he looked he wanted to, and wrapped Lex in a tight hug. He pressed their cheeks together and closed his eyes. "I'm trying to do the right thing," he whispered. "I don't know who you are anymore, and you don't know who I am, but..." He wondered if he should just tell Lex the truth, but how would Lex react if he so obviously disliked Superman? "I don't know what else to do."
"Then caution is best," Lex replied softly. He stiffened as though he didn't understand how to respond to being touched, but he patted Clark on the back. "Perhaps, we could... reacquaint ourselves?"
"I'd like that, Lex." Clark didn't let go. It was almost like going back in time and starting all over again, but without Athena, this time. "Do you live alone?" he asked as an afterthought.
"Of course," Lex replied. "It's just me here. I have a maid, of course, who comes and goes during the day."
"I'd like to come back." Clark finally pulled back but moved his hands up from Lex's arms to his shoulders.
"You may do so." Lex said with a nod. "Only, please give some notice beforehand. Now I have to rehire Gary and send his family a gift basket."
Clark laughed and nodded. "Good. I was gonna ask you to do that." He cupped Lex's cheek with his right hand and looked at him fondly. How he could not love him? He had always loved Lex, always. "Do you have any free time tomorrow?"
"I'm Lex fucking Luthor. I can make some time." He narrowed his eyes and looked pensive. "With a tesseract, if necessary."
Clark's eyebrows rose. "Do you happen to have one lying around?" he asked, trying to sound casually. That would explain a lot, actually.
"Need to be home for the misses an hour ago? Not lying around, no." Lex chuckled. He paused and looked at him curiously. "Why? I'm not making it up," he said defensively. "I can do it. I'm not boasting."
Clark let his hand drop and nodded. "I believe you, Lex. If anyone can do something, you can. I just..." This world isn't mine. Clark took a deep breath.
"What? Lex stumbled back and rubbed his head a little. "Hm. What time is it?"
Clark checked his watch. "Nine ten." He looked down at the platters on the table. "I should go. I can't remember my schedule for tomorrow." And it was a very good thing that Clark did have all the knowledge to practice medicine. "Are you gonna be okay?"
"Fine. I'm fine. Just need a hot shower and a good night's sleep." Lex looked up at Clark as though he were taking him in. "See you tomorrow, Clark."
"Yeah." Clark didn't want to leave. Lex needed him, this one especially, he could tell. "Give me a number where I can reach you. I won't tell anyone."
"Even... Lois?" Lex demanded, curling his lips around her name as though it were something distasteful.
Clark let out a chuckle. He definitely could relate. "Especially Lois. I promise."
Lex nodded and patted his pockets. Pulling out a LexCorp pen, he took Clark's wrist and wrote his private cell phone number on it. "Just for your eyes. To receive trust, my mother used to say, you have to give a little."
"I'm going to call you," Clark warned, reading the number and submitting it to memory. "Thanks, Lex."
Lex leaned up to him and kissed Clark on the cheek. "Take the easy way out. Take the elevator."
Clark's heart broke. He had no idea what the Clark and Superman that this Lex knew had done, but he could tell that Lex was the same deep down. He would try his hardest to fix their relationship before he left, if he could. He took Lex's left hand, brought it to his lips, and gave the middle of his palm a kiss. "Good night."
"Good night." Lex walked Clark to the foyer, although since he'd gotten in here, he should know the way. He hoped that he wasn't being unnecessarily sentimental, too over-willing to believe in Clark. Tonight, he might just do as he said and call it a night, instead of drinking until he fell asleep in the study.
Clark left Lex's building and stood in the middle of the sidewalk for a moment. He had no idea where he lived. He turned right, found a pay phone, and called information to request his own address. Apparently, he lived on 1938 Sullivan. The address made him remember Chloe, and he wondered where she was in this reality, if she was still pulling double duty as a reporter and a hero like she was in Gotham of his world. He zipped towards Centennial Park and then walked the rest of the way to the apartment building. Because he didn't have a key and wasn't sure how much Lois knew, he jiggled the front door until it unlocked for him, climbed the stairs to their apartment, braced himself mentally, and knocked on the door.
It was a little while before Lois opened the door, barefoot but still wearing her work clothes, a very low-cut blouse, and a skirt suit that was almost painted on. She put her hand on her hip and barked, "Where have you been? You didn't even bring the Chinese? Thanks for nothing, Smallville." She turned around. "Ugh, you would not believe my day. That bitch Sullivan got to the dock story before me. Again. I don't know how she weasels information out of anyone, the midget freak- oh, not like that, Clark. Then Grant spent her morning writhing on the desk next to mine in front of that new reporter. So pathetic. Anyway, I have a deadline, and I need to get this article on Luthor done. I'm waiting for Jimmy to call to tell me if we're going out to get pictures or not, so don't expect me to be in bed early."
Clark tented his eyebrows. He closed the door behind him and slowly looked around. The apartment wasn't too small, but it seemed over furnished with pieces that clashed miserably. It was also rather messy. "What article on Luthor?" he asked, after clearing his throat and heading to the kitchen, which he could see through a tall counter to the right.
"We think the bald eagle's got a deal in the works with selling his newest crazy weapon to terrorists," Lois replied. She followed him to the kitchen and opened the fridge. She sniffed the milk and sighed, tossing it in the trash, then grabbed a Diet Vanilla Dr. Pebble. "Cat's got the whiff of a story. There's this chick who might end up being the sixth Mrs. Luthor."
"Sixth?" Clark squeaked, his head snapping towards Lois before he could stop it. Lex had been married five times already? He x-rayed the cupboards, opened the door where the glasses were, and got some tap water to drink. "You'd think he'd be too busy for dating, huh?" he said with a grin he thought made him look like he really didn't care. "What weapon?" he asked behind the rim of the glass.
"Oh, it's these sparkly blobby things. I think they're meant to suffocate the enemy or something. The man's about forty-seven colors short of the crayon box," Lois replied.
Clark took a sip of his water, slowly set the glass down, and closed his eyes for a second. Oh, Lex! So that was where those things were coming from! "You're going to work, then?" he asked next. He needed to talk to Bruce.
Lois' phone rang, and she darted out of the room to answer it. After yelling at Jimmy for ten minutes, she returned and hung up. "No stakeout tonight. Dumb kid. So." She walked up behind him, waggled her brows, and wiggled her rear. "Rawr?"
Clark's jaw dropped and his eyes widened. Oh. Oh, no way! "Um." He stepped away from her a little. "Actually, I'm the one who has to go. Hospital... Stuff. You know." He really needed to get a hold of some information about who the hell he was supposed to be!
"Oh," Lois said, quirking the side of her mouth in disappointment. "Well, I can always get to work on something else." She slapped his chest. "I'm gonna shower." She grabbed her soda can and unbuttoned her blouse as she headed out of the room.
Clark leaned back on the kitchen counter and exhaled. He had no idea what his counterpart was thinking and how many levels of denial he was under, but Lois? Really? He shook his head, waited until she sounded like she was in the shower, and entered the bedroom. Even messier. How did he live like that? He wanted to call Lex but instead, he zipped around, found his hospital tag and pocketed it, as well as a cell phone he found in his nightstand drawer. Lois's nightstand had... Well, he'd rather not even think about what he'd seen in there. He grabbed a leather jacket from the closet, put it on, house keys with a key chain that read CK, and the other Clark's wallet. He needed to fly to Gotham now. X-raying the room he found a Superman costume behind the closet, in a box, so he grabbed that as well.