One Step Behind Part 2/2
Title: One Step Behind
Fandom: Smallville
Pairing: Lex/Clark
Rating: Mature
Disclaimer: I don’t own DC
A huge thank you to the girl that read over my story and made it legible. Thank you so much twinsarein for all your wonderful work. It means the world to me!
Summary: It is centered on the six months just before Superman's death and just after Superman comes back. Lex reflects on his past and present with his old friend Clark Kent and his present enemy Superman.
Part 2/2
When Lex found himself outside a shitty apartment in ‘The Slums’ of Metropolis, he knew he’d hit rock bottom. The apartment door had rusty gold color numbers nailed into it.
Apartment number forty five on Baker’s St. Lex knew the address as well as his own, but had never come here before. It was almost a standing rule between the two of them. Clark never came to the penthouse at LexCorp, and Lex never came to his apartment in the slums. Odd that they both respected each others’ off times, almost like they found it bad form to intrude in each other’s personal lives.
It wasn’t always like that, but it had been years since Lex thought of Clark Kent as anything other than business. A man who had once been the very essence of Lex’s personal life had, throughout the years, become nonexistent, until all that remained was Superman.
In fact, Clark Kent was someone Lex hardly ever thought about, a memory he pretended to forget, a mirage that he forced himself to overlook whenever he looked into Superman’s blue eyes.
With a dramatic sigh, he kicked down the door, and walked in without a second’s pause. There was nothing special about the place, the white walls and lack of pictures gave nothing away. The apartment looked as if someone had just moved in and hadn’t had the time to breathe life into it. The white couch and large, black coffee table were all that sat in the small living room. The undersized kitchen was spotless and gave the viewer the impression that no one had ever prepared food in there. The apartment was lifeless and impersonal. If Lex wasn’t certain otherwise, he’d assume someone had already moved Clark’s stuff out.
“A far cry from Smallville, Kent,” he said to the empty apartment.
He walked over to the kitchen and opened up the fridge, noticing a single magnet placed in the center of the freezer door. It was a miniature of the golden globe on top of The Daily Planet. Lex grimaced at the similarity; he himself had only one magnet on his fridge, the logo of Lexcorp.
“It seemed both of us only lived for one thing, Clark.” He said as he leaned down to stare inside the fridge. He quickly recoiled in disgust when the smell of rotten milk and eggs assaulted his nose. He slammed the door shut and as he turned a tiny, red light caught his eye.
He walked over to the counter and stared at the answering machine. He watched the little red light blink off and on, off and on, before he pushed the button.
‘You have 25 messages.’ It stated in its emotionless voice.
“Clark!” The first message shouted out, “It’s me, Lois. Where the hell are you?!”
Lex snarled and pushed the delete button viciously. The next ten were Lois as well, her annoying voice becoming more and more hysterical with each call. Every time Lex heard her, he became increasingly irate and stabbed the delete button before she could utter a single syllable.
“If you didn’t realize who he really was,” Lex snarled at the machine, picturing Lois’s face, “then you never fucking deserved him!”
Lex was about to grab the machine and throw it across the room when he heard what he’d been waiting for. His heart stopped as he heard his own voice on the machine.
“I’ve just called this number ten times,” His own voice hissed, “Every time, I hear your damn voice asking me to leave a message and I… DAMN IT, CLARK!”
Lex winced at the desperation in his own voice as his yelled out to a dead man.
“How dare you do this to me! How dare you fucking leave me alone!”
Lex’s finger was an inch away from the delete button when he stopped himself and took a step back. The next message started.
“Kent, its Perry…”
Lex walked away from the machine and let it continue playing messages from people who only knew half of the man they all claimed to care about.
He looked around the living room with his arms wrapped around himself, before venturing into the hall. The first door he opened was a bathroom. It was tiny, slightly cruddy looking and nothing special, just like the rest of the place.
He turned and walked to the last door in the hallway. Lex’s heart was in his throat as he turned the knob slowly and stared into the dark room.
He didn’t know what he was expecting. He laughed harshly at himself. What the hell did he expect to find anyway in this shitty little apartment?
The bed was small. Clark’s huge body must’ve looked ridiculous and monstrous when he lay in it. There was also a small dresser and a small desk with a laptop on it and a huge stack of files off to one side. There was nothing else in the room, nothing of importance, no medals or shiny plaques…nothing!
“This is what saving the world and being a fucking hero brought you!” he sneered at the empty room. “A shitty apartment and a fucking empty bed!”
Lex strolled into the room; he pushed the laptop to the floor. He grabbed the files and threw them across the room. He walked over to the dresser and ripped open the first drawer. He pulled out socks and briefs and threw them behind his back. He turned and pulled the comforter off the bed, then the sheets and pillows.
He didn’t stop moving until the room was a disaster; he couldn’t stop and had no clue what the hell he was doing. He stared around at the mess and began to laugh hysterically.
“I’m fucking reduced to this!” he hissed at the empty, tacky looking mattress. “This is what you’ve left me to become!”
He turned on his heels and opened the closet, smiling at the thought of ripping those hideous brown suits that Kent used to wear to press conferences off their hangers. Lex sneered as he thought of all the times he saw Clark Kent walk around with his head down. Those ugly thick, black glasses and shit colored suits. The way Clark would shrink into himself and stutter as he spoke, all the fucking while he’d stare at Lex behind those glasses with Superman’s eyes! The fucking lying bastard!
“Fuck you, Clark!” Lex shouted as he ripped a suit off its hanger, “did you think I didn’t know! Did you actually believe I, a god damn Luthor, would forget something as important as what my old best friend looked like in Smallville. You thought a pair of fucking glasses and this damn suit,” he yelled as he threw said suit behind him, “would fool me! Did you think I couldn’t look past you in this fucking costume, this damn facade,” he said as he grabbed another brown suit and wrung it between his fists, “and see the real you?!”
He threw the last suit behind him and tried to calm his breathing. When he looked up at the only shelf in the closet he saw a huge cardboard box.
He reached up and grabbed it. It was taped shut and he walked backwards as he stared at the words written on the top in Clark’s handwriting.
‘Smallville,’ was written in black marker.
He kept walking backwards until he felt the edge of the bed touch the back of his legs and sat down. He placed the box next to him and ripped the tape off.
Inside were photo albums that he couldn’t bear to open, yearbooks he pushed aside and flannel shirts that made him smile briefly before he realized what he was doing and threw them across the room in anger. He saw a nametag for the Talon with Clark’s name on it. A framed prom picture of Clark and Lana smiling he violently threw away before he could let a single thought cross his mind. There were two other framed photos, one of Chloe and another of a young Pete Ross.
And there at the bottom of the box, Lex stopped dead in his tracks.
Another framed picture was lying there, hidden in the shadows with a small, lead box beside it. Hidden beneath all the other memories Clark left in his closet, was Lex Luthor.
He first picked up the framed photograph, one he remembered seeing every time he visited Clark’s loft, all those years ago, or maybe to be precise, a lifetime ago.
Lex remembers that Clark had framed photos of everyone on his desk in that dirty, old loft in Smallville. He also clearly remembers the first day he saw a framed photo of himself on that desk.
“Didn’t think I rated a spot, Kent,” he’d said as he picked up the picture of him and Clark at the Talon. Lex was sitting in one of those huge, overstuffed chairs. Clark was sitting on the armrest with his arm leaning against the back of the chair and his hand cupped around Lex’s shoulder.
Clark had given him a shy smile as he took the framed photo back and placed it in the middle of the desk. Lex remembers feeling something close to joy at the position of the framed photo. Right in the middle, center stage to the rest of the pictures.
Clark had blushed and stated softly, “Of course you rate, Lex. You’ll always rate.”
A lifetime later, Lex stared at the picture, and could only see the lies. A lifetime of repressing all his past memories, Lex felt his old insecurities and pain rear their ugly head.
“Liar,” he hissed at the smiling picture of Clark, “never once did I rate in your world. You trusted everyone, Pete, Chloe, Lana,” he hissed out the last name like it was poison on his lips, “everyone else knew, but me. You told everyone expect me. Lies, all this was…” he said as he threw the picture across the room, “was a lie!”
The last item in the box was another box. The first token of friendship ever given, and the only one ever really received.
He picked up the lead box and let the weight of it settle in his hands. He remembered giving the box to Clark twenty years ago. Twenty years and Clark still had the damn thing.
One of the few precious items he had of his mother’s. To this day, Lex is still confused about why he’d given it to the boy, only days after meeting him. It was something Lex had treasured and so easily given to Clark without a second thought. It had been completely out of character for him.
He pushed the now empty cardboard box off the bed. He crossed his legs as he placed the lead box in his lap.
He slowly opened the box and considered all the things that could be in it. It could be a lock of Martha Kent’s hair, or an old, rusty tool from his father’s barn; maybe something of Chloe or Lana’s.
What he wasn’t expecting, was what he saw.
“Jesus,” he whispered as he picked up the huge piece of kryptonite.
“Christ, Clark, why the hell would you have this in your room?!”
Lex understood kryptonite better than anyone else on the planet did. It didn’t matter if it was in lead or not. Clark would be able to feel it, he wouldn’t have any of the adverse affects, but still he’d feel its presence.
----------------------------
Once, four years ago, Superman and Luthor had been trapped in a cell together for five days. They’d been kidnapped by a gang of new villains in town.
Luthor had heard about the gang a week before, and held a meeting with their leaders on their first few days in Metropolis. He had informed them of his rule, no gang was allowed to traffic or carry kryptonite, unless they were under Lex’s orders to do so. The gang had agreed to Lex’s terms and Luthor had left them to their petty crime.
It had seemed that the small gang had been trying to gain power behind Luthor’s back. A common mistake all new gangs tried and failed to do, but none of the previous gangs had been stupid enough to take Luthor as a prisoner.
The day he and Superman were kidnapped, Lex had been in the midst of a screaming match with the alien. It had been about Lois Lane or something like that, Lex doesn’t remember the reason anymore. But as they screamed at each other, the gang appeared out of nowhere and trapped Superman. Unknowingly, the brainless henchman had grabbed both Superman and Lex. When leaders had found out what their lackeys had done, they’d feared the consequences of letting Lex go.
After a few minutes of yelling back and forth at each other, they had decided to put Lex in the lead cell with Superman.
“We all know how much they hate each other,” the main guy told his partners, as they stared through the bars of the cell. “Maybe putting them together, in a locked cell, will solve all our problems,” he said with a nervous chuckle. His eyes trailed from Lex to Superman.
Lex ran at the bars and slammed his fists against it, ignoring the pain it caused.
“Get me out of here now, before I not only kill you, but every single person you ever loved, hell, I’ll kill everyone you’ve ever talked to!”
He glanced back at Superman and noticed the way the alien was trying to gather enough strength to stand up. The cuts and bruises on Superman’s face weren’t healing. Lex could tell he was close to passing out. Around them, the room glowed a sickly green color that remained Lex too much of his days in Belle Reve.
“How much fucking kryptonite is in this room?!” Lex hissed as he forced himself to look away from the superhero and back at the stupid moron that had locked him up. The moron ignored him as he turned to the rest of the group.
“Looks like Supes won’t last long,” he said, “and Luthor…well.” This time the moron looked him in the eyes and gave him a smile with more teeth than lips. “Even the great Luthor can’t live off his own arrogance alone. Soon enough, food and water becomes a necessity for us all.”
Lex had yelled and screamed for the rest of the day, not stopping until his throat gave out and his screams sounded more like gasps of air then words of anger. He stared off and on at Superman as he paced the cell. Sometimes walking over and kicking him lightly to make sure the alien was still alive.
“If you kick me again,” Superman had said one of the few times he was conscious, “I swear, next time I find one of your labs I won’t just burn it down, I’ll come after you as well.”
Lex had sneered as he stood above him, “Big words from the nearly dead.”
The alien chuckled, “If it’s to stop you, Luthor, I’d come back from the dead to do it.”
Lex rolled his eyes and turned away. Not bothering to kick him the next time it looked like the alien had stopped breathing.
The next day, Lex was getting pissed off. “Where the hell are they?” he hissed under his breathe as he paced back and forth.
The small cell was starting to bring back too many old memories, and the last thing he wanted to do was rehash the past with Superman so close by. He swore that if he began to think about his father or his time in Belle Reve, he’d spend years, not just months, torturing the bastards that had trapped him down here.
“Didn’t know you were claustrophobic, Luthor,” Superman said, halfway through the second day; his eyes followed Lex as he continued to pace back and forth.
Lex stopped pacing and hissed out, “Oh, just go back to dying, you asshole.”
Superman had chuckled before falling back to sleep.
Hours later, Superman was awake again and watching Lex intently. A few times, Lex told him to stop, but Superman only laughed.
“Don’t think I’m not aware of how much time you’ve spent staring at me,” Superman said with a weak smile.
Lex ignored him which only made Superman’s smile that much brighter.
“You’re going to pass out soon,” the alien said, “if you don’t stop pacing like a maniac.”
Lex stopped pacing just long enough to glare at him.
“Passing out would be a far better option then hearing your concern for me.”
Superman snorted before closing his eyes, “Just a momentary lapse, Luthor, I assure you.”
Lex stalked over and leaned down, causing the alien to open his eyes again, “and here I thought the great Superman had concern for all us lowly humans.”
Superman’s eye were blue, too cobalt to be common, and to brilliant to be real, he hated their etherealness. It was just one of the many things Lex detested about him. When the alien blinked, Lex sneered at the long eyelashes that fluttered across perfect cheekbones.
“Do you want me to be concerned for you, Luthor?”
Lex frowned at Superman’s question, and snarled when the alien laughed at his momentary confusion. He stood up quickly and took three large steps back so he was as far away from the alien as he could get.
“I want nothing from you.”
Superman’s eyes were already closing and the massive alien began to shake, in what Lex could only assume was an unbearable amount of pain. The room began to glow a bright, sickly green and Lex could feel his own energy begin to pick up.
What gave Superman pain, also gave Lex strength. It had been years ago that Lex had finally accepted the fact that he was a meteorite freak, one that healed and gained power from the only thing that could hurt and destroy his enemy. In Lex’s inequitable world, he proclaimed kryptonite as the only just thing left.
When Superman’s body finally stopped shaking, Lex’s body began to relax. He wasn’t even aware of how tense he was, until he stared down at his fist and slowly unclenched his fingers. On his left palm there were four, small moon shaped cuts.
“Damn place is getting to me,” he sniffed as he turned his back to the alien. When he heard Superman yelp in pain, he flinched and bit the inside of his cheek.
“This fucking cell is getting too DAMN SMALL!” He screamed out as he slammed his fists against the bars.
The rest of the day, Lex sat with his back against the wall as he watched Superman shake and cry out in pain.
“They’re dead, they’ll all die for this,” Lex had whispered as he wrapped his arms around himself and closed his eyes for some much needed sleep.
On the third day, Lex had stopped pacing and simply sat on the cold floor with his arms wrapped around himself. The alien faded in and out of consciousness, and at times he’d mumble words like Lois, Chloe, and at other times, when he’d begin to shake violently, he’d cry out desperately for his Mom. Lex pretended, not only to himself, but to the alien, that he didn’t hear Superman. It wasn’t hard to do most times, but late at night, Lex found it difficult to act as if he didn’t personally know the people Superman cried out for.
Lex laid there, his arms covering his face, and when Superman called out for his Mom he forced himself not to remember what Martha Kent’s apple pie and hot chocolate tasted like on cold, Kansas nights.
On the last day of their entrapment, before Hope and Mercy found them, Lex had started talking, watching out of the corner of his eyes as Superman’s skin began to blister and bleed. Lex imagined that the alien’s body had been filled with so much poison that it was trying to push it out the only way it knew how. The gruesome sight began to pull away the strings of Lex’s sanity and the man needed something, anything to keep from screaming like a banshee for help.
Lex had crawled over to Superman and had whispered into the alien’s ear.
“When we get out of here, I’ll make the world pay for this.”
The alien didn’t stir and Lex leaned closer, he was unsure why he was so thankful to see the rise and fall of the alien’s chest, but sighed in relief at the sight.
“I can just picture these moron’s faces when we escape this hellhole.”
Lex looked away from Superman as blood began to trickle from his closed eyelids.
“I don’t think even you, the most judgmental bastard I’ve ever met, would judge me for killing them.”
Lex paused for a moment, as if waiting for the alien to protest, but the cell remained eerily silent. He placed his hands behind his neck and stared up at the green, glowing ceiling. His shoulder was resting against Superman’s.
“You ever think…” he trailed off as he closed his eyes, his need for food and water draining all of his energy, “…what it would be like….if we were normal?”
An hour later, Lex was awakened by someone calling out his name. He opened his eyes slowly and focused on the voice. He turned his head and was surprised to see Superman staring at him. The pain Lex saw there was overwhelming to witness and caused a violent uncontrollable rage to settle in Lex’s stomach.
“Lex,” he whispered, “I’m dying.”
Lex remembers feeling like he’d just been punched in the gut.
“No,” Lex hissed through cracked lips that begged for water, “you aren’t going to die here; I fucking reserved the right to kill you years ago.”
He wasn’t surprised that Superman tried and failed to smile; they knew each other too well.
“I know, Lex, but I guess…” Superman’s eyes started to close and Lex slapped him hard.
“Don’t you dare close your eyes, Alien!”
Superman opened his eyes again, and Lex noticed that they were no longer a vibrant blue, but a dull green like they had been---a lifetime ago. They had turned blue when he’d first come back, from what Lex later found out to be his training in the Fortress of Solitude, just before he’d introduced the world to Superman. Lex couldn’t find the words as he stared into those eyes, because they looked so much like the ones of a boy who use to call him his best friend. At that moment he didn’t feel like Luthor, and the alien beside him didn’t feel like Superman.
“Green eyes,” Lex muttered.
“It’s just because of the kryptonite.” Clark whispered back.
Lex reached out and grabbed Clark’s hand.
Moments later, Mercy and Hope found them. Hope said nothing as Lex ordered them to make sure the jet was ready to fly. But as Mercy picked him up and held him close to her, she whispered, “The Fortress?”
Lex had nodded, before he passed out.
Days later, Luthor left Superman inside the Fortress and as he walked away; leaving the alien there to do whatever was needed to mend himself, Luthor told him.
“This is only because I want you in top shape for the next fight. No one gets to kill you, Superman, only me.”
------------------------------------------------------------
Thinking back to that time, and seeing the lead box filled with kryptonite in Clark’s apartment, confused Lex. How could someone, who had such a strong reaction to this shit keep it around them?
Lex lay down on the bed and placed the lead box on his stomach. He stared up at the ceiling; it had signs of water damage and yellow tar. It looked like someone, before Clark moved in, had chained smoked every night in this room.
“Did you sit here at night thinking of ways to save us humans from ourselves?” Lex asked the dead alien who couldn’t hear him. “Or did your eyes wander from water stain to water stain, as you thought of the day you’d finally take over the world?”
“Actually I hardly ever sleep here.”
Lex almost flew out of bed as he looked around the room with wild, crazy eyes. When he saw Superman, in full costume, leaning against the doorway, he tightened his grip on the lead box.
“Clark?!” He yelped in surprise and belatedly realized his mistake. “Superman,” he said to correct himself.
Clark wasn’t transparent like a ghost, but from his appearance, he looked like the walking dead. His eyes were lifeless, and his body was frail and weak. His bright costume was hanging off his body like it was two sizes too big. It reminded Lex so much of their time locked away, that he looked around the room to make sure they weren’t still locked in that cell.
“Clark, Superman--I go by either,” Clark said as he walked into the room on unsteady feet. He shrugged off his cape and sat down on the bed next to Lex, “not that you aren’t aware of that, Lex.”
Lex didn’t know if he was asleep or in some fucked up world that his dead mother had locked him in. He looked past Clark and narrowed his eyes to see into the hall.
His mother wasn’t there, thank god. The last thing he needed was another trip down ‘hell dimension’ lane.
When he looked back at Clark, the alien was staring at him with tired, bloodshot eyes.
“Jesus, are you sure you’re alive?” he asked, because from the sight of him, it might have been possible that he wasn’t.
Clark’s raised his eyebrow and the look he gave him made Lex feel like an idiot, “Of course I am.”
Lex pushed away his shock and sat up, trying to regain his decorum.
“Well, you don’t look it,” he stated; his grip still tight around the box.
Clark glanced at the box in his hands and then around the room, as if just noticing its state for the first time.
“I see you’ve made yourself at home,” he said as he braced his arms behind him for support. Lex wasn’t too comfortable with how weak the alien looked.
He ignored Clark’s statement and asked him, “Is this a permanent thing, are you going to remain alive?”
Clark was still looking around the room when he shrugged his shoulders, “looks like it.”
Lex felt something close to relief, before he sneered not only at himself, but at the alien. He always hated defeat in other people’s voices, especially when he wasn’t the cause of said defeat.
“You don’t sound too damn happy about that!” he snapped.
Clark’s eyes drifted over to Lex’s and he began to laugh, although the sound was quiet and painful to hear.
“You better watch yourself, Luthor, or people will start to think you actually care.”
“I don’t give a shit what people think!’ Lex roared which only caused Clark to laugh more, but stopped short when he hissed out in pain.
Lex’s eyes widen at the sound, “Why the hell are you here, Superman?” he snapped, “Go to that damn Fortress of yours and get better!”
Clark nodded his head, “I will, it’s just…”
Lex bit his tongue and waited for a moment, before impatience took a hold of him, “It’s just what, Alien?!”
“I could hear you,” Superman said as he stared into Lex’s eyes.
Lex did a double take before regaining himself, “what the hell do you mean?”
“When I was down there, underground,” he said with a shudder, “trying to get enough strength to crawl out of my grave I could hear you.”
Lex raised a hand to stop Clark’s words, “Are you telling me you were alive, in the ground, this whole time?” Lex didn’t hear the next words out of Clark’s mouth because he jumped up and began to pace. The box still held tightly in his grip.
“I knew I should have checked. I knew I should have dug you up and put your damn body in the fortress. I thought I was being morbid, but fuck!”
He shouted as he threw the box across the room, forgetting all about the kryptonite inside. When Clark gasped out in pain, Lex looked up and saw the way his skin began to glow green.
“Shit!” he exclaimed as he ran to the other side of the room and quickly closed the box.
He remained silent as the alien lay down on the bed and placed both hands on either side of his temples. Lex listened to his breathing as it began to slow down. He was certain that Clark was falling asleep, but the alien surprised him by opening his mouth to speak.
“I could hear you, Lex. It was quiet, but I could hear it. You were screaming when I woke up in that coffin. It was the first thing I heard past the sounds of cars and the cries for help.”
“Bullshit,” Lex hissed and felt the undeniable need to hit him. “Don’t talk to me like I’m someone you care about!”
Clark didn’t answer him and silence between them became tangible. Lex looked away and considered walking out. He even contemplated forgetting this conversation ever took place, but he understood himself better than that, he never forgot anything, nothing in his life ever went unanswered or unanalyzed. He knew he had to stay and hear Clark out.
“So you heard me screaming, and you thought to yourself, ‘well I better go and make sure my archenemy is feeling okay?’” Lex sneered, his words filled with sarcasm.
Clark chuckled, his eyes still closed and his hands still rubbing his temples. “No, not quite Luthor,” he said. “I’m here to tell you that I’m still alive and any thoughts you have of destroying the world ends now.”
Lex laughed at the alien’s audacity, “You think I’d end it all… because of you?”
Clark opened his eyes and stared, his eyes saw too much, they always saw way too much.
“Yes, Luthor, I know you would.”
“Bullshit.”
Clark sat up and grabbed Lex’s hand, the one that held the lead box, “What were you going to do after your little trip down memory lane, Luthor?”
Lex pulled away violently and turned his back to him, “None of your damn business, Alien!”
Clark didn’t reply and their stillness filled the room much like the stale scent of smoke that Clark probably hated, but never repainted to get rid of.
“If you want,” Clark said, as he raised his arms in surrender, “kill me now, before anyone is the wiser and you can have what you always wanted.”
“And what’s that?!” he hissed.
“An end.”
Lex’s lips curled into a snarl and he seriously considered doing just as the alien suggested.
“You’d like that wouldn’t you?!”
Clark shook his head, cold indifference in his eyes, “no, I wouldn’t…and we both know, now that I’m back, neither would you.”
It was Lex’s turn to begin to laugh, “You truly believe that you, an alien, have that much power over me?!”
Clark reached out and grabbed Lex, pushing him down and wrapping one arm around the back of his neck.
Lex tried to push him away, but stopped when Clark’s lips descended upon his own. The lead box was between them; and his other hand, covered in a black glove was dangling off the bed.
At first, Lex resisted the kiss, until he felt the soft brush of a tongue against his lips. All sense of self went to the wayside as he opened his mouth and melted into Clark.
His lips burned and tingled as the kiss deepened. His mouth was alive and screaming for more. When Clark pulled away, Lex tried to follow, unwilling to say goodbye to this newfound sensation. His blinked twice as he slowly opened his eyelids. He saw confusion and uncertainty written on Clark’s face, before it was masked with apathy.
Clark was still holding him down and he could feel his warm breath against his cheek.
“What the hell was that?!” he whispered, not even attempting to get away.
Clark’s eyes filled with a million different emotions, before growing cold and distant once more. Clark got up and walked over to the other side of the room. He bent down slowly and Lex noticed it before Clark picked it up. It was the framed picture of them at the Talon, a lifetime ago, when they could never imagine a world without each other.
It seemed some things never changed.
Clark brushed off the broken glass from the photo and ran his finger down the glossy finish.
“You’ll always rate, Lex.”
It felt like a jab, it felt like a punch so below the belt that Lex could hardly breathe.
“Fuck you,” he hissed, because he had no other comeback.
Before he realized it, he was storming out of the room and heading to the front door. He heard Clark call out his name, but pretended not to hear him.
As he reached the kitchen he grabbed the answering machine and yanked so hard that the cords ripped out of the wall. Without looking back, he stepped out the front door and all but ran to his Ferrari.
Mercy stared at the caller ID for a moment before she sighed and flipped up her cell phone.
“Sir,” she answered curtly.
“Mercy…”
The sound of his voice made Mercy sit up straighter, and the bowl of chicken noodle soup on her lap rolled off and splattered to the floor.
“Shit!” she exclaimed as she held her pants away from her skin to stop from getting burned.
“Are you okay?” Hope cried out, as she came running in from the kitchen, at the same time as Lex shouted.
“What the hell kind of greeting is that?!”
“I’m fine,” she said to Hope with a smile, and then told Lex, “It’s the customary greeting for all people that slap me,” she stated with a snarl.
“About that…” Lex trailed off and Mercy could hear the silent apology in his tone. It was something so out of character from the billionaire, that Mercy could physically feel herself forgive him.
“Well, that’s your one get out of ‘Boot to the Ass’ this year, sir,” she said.
Lex still remained silent, and Mercy could feel her temperature rising. She was about to ream him out when she recalled the way he’d said her name just before she’d spilled the chicken noodle all over herself.
“Is everything alright, sir?” she asked as she stared into Hope’s eyes.
Hope walked over and moved in close enough so that her ear was against Mercy’s cell phone. Mercy rolled her eyes at Hope, but the other woman ignored her.
“I saw him today,” Lex said in a rush. There was something in his tone that neither girl thought they’d ever hear again; it sounded like something close to being alive.
“The bastard is back, Mercy.” Lex hissed out, “and this time, I swear to you, I’ll kill Superman so that no alien power can bring him back!’
Mixed in with the anger, there was a joy in Lex’s voice that Mercy knew her boss would never admit to and maybe didn’t even notice.
Mercy’s lips curled upwards and Hope was covering her mouth to hide her smile.
She kept her voice calm as she told Lex, “God, that bastard doesn’t give up. Don’t worry, sir, we’ll make sure not to fail next time.”
Lex agreed and hung up without saying goodbye.
Mercy slowly snapped her cell phone shut and let out a cheer.
“We can never fail again, Mercy,” Hope said as she placed her arms around her.
Mercy nodded and silently thanked the higher beings as she held Hope close.
“I know, Hope, we have to make sure every single plan of his fails, so that we never fail him again.”
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A month passed, to the day, and Clark flew into Lex’s office, using the window as his access. Clark was dressed in a brown, shit colored suit and had black, thick glasses covering his eyes. He looked ridiculous, flying around in the getup and Lex said as much, as soon as Clark walked in.
“I though you’d like the sentiment,” Clark said with a shrug of his shoulders.
Lex pushed away from his desk and got up out of his chair. He walked over to his bar and poured himself a drink. He didn’t offer Clark one, because he knew the alien would never accept.
“So, why are you here, Clark?” he asked placing emphasis on the name.
Clark chuckled and leaned against the edge of Lex’s desk. “You took something that belongs to me,” he said as he tapped his index finger on the lead box.
Lex had placed it by his monitor weeks ago, and hadn’t moved it since. Sometimes he caught himself staring at it and rubbing his fingers lightly against his lips.
Lex stared at the box and then glanced at Clark.
“It was never yours, Clark, I loaned it to you.”
Clark laughed and grabbed the box, “You said it was a gift, Lex,” he said placing emphasis on the name just as Lex had on his, “and I want it back.”
Lex was about to argue the point, but the words lodged in his throat. He merely nodded his head and took a sip of his bourbon.
He saw surprise in Clark’s eyes, but it quickly faded and became indifference.
“If that’s all,” Lex said as he took a step towards his desk, “I’m a busy man.”
Clark shook his head and took a step towards the window, before he suddenly stopped, “do you want to know why?” he asked.
Lex assumed he was talking about the box, and answered with bitter sarcasm, “So you can always have a part of me with you.”
Clark chuckled, like he always did, and Lex wondered how someone who dealt with the crud of society everyday, could still smile.
“No, actually-- I’m not sure why I kept the box…” Clark paused and looked down at it, shaking his head as if trying to figure it out for himself.
“I actually wanted the kryptonite more than anything else.” He said after a few moments, “but I though you might be wondering why I keep kryptonite in my apartment.”
In all honesty, Lex was more interested in why he kept the box.
“Why?” he asked because any answers comforted Lex.
“Because, you and I have only one thing in common, Luthor.”
Lex chuckled at his words, “Let me guess--our nightmares of exploding cornfields.”
Clark smile was blinding, “Well, that too, but mostly…it’s our distrust of Superman.”
Lex’s glass was halfway to his lips, when he froze and glared at Clark. Clark’s eyes held nothing, not a single sign of where to go next.
“You don’t trust yourself?” he asked carefully.
Clark nodded, “and you wonder why I never trusted you.”
“Pete, Chloe, Lana?” the last name was hissed out. Lex could never say Lana’s name without venom, “you trusted them?!”
Clark shook his head, his eyes were sad and tired, “They all found out on their own, Luthor, they had seen it with their own eyes, some even had proof. I’ve never told anyone who I really am.”
“But you trusted them to keep your secret?”
Clark's eyes went distant, “I did as a child,” he stated sadly, “but after, before I became Superman, I erased their memories.”
Lex stared at him in shock, “they…you…they don’t remember?”
Clark shook his head, “once, a few years back, Lois even found out. I tried to live a life with her, a human life. But…” he trialed off and looked older than Lex had ever seen him look. “She doesn’t remember either.”
“You erased her memories?”
Clark nodded. Lex took a step back, thinking of ways to escape and weapons near his grasp. He inched his way closer to the exit.
“Are you going to do the same to me, because if you try…” he began to threaten.
Clark’s smile was as cold as his icy, blue eyes, “I almost did, almost robbed you of all your memories of a young Clark Kent.”
“What, when?” Lex asked, startled and scared that he had no idea what Clark was talking about.
Clark was taking a step closer to him and Lex felt the urge to run.
“When I kissed you,” Clark said softly.
Lex’s eyes widened, “Is that what that was all about?” he asked as his rage began to build.
“At first,” Clark answered truthfully, “but when you responded to the kiss…” he trailed off and shrugged, “I couldn’t do it.”
“Why?’ Lex demanded as his hands clenched into fists at his sides.
Clark froze for a moment, words dangling in the air that remained unsaid, before a bright smile appeared on Clark’s face. Lex sneered as Clark held up the box and shook it twice, “I just told you, Lex. We don’t trust Superman and you’re the only one who can stop me from going too far.”
Lex was about to demand he say more, but knew Clark well enough to know that was all he was getting. Both of them only ever scratched the surface of each others walls.
“So I’m the only one who knows.”
Clark nodded his head, “now that Mom’s gone…” Lex had the decency to look away. He’d sent flowers without a card when he’d heard.
“Yeah, Lex,” Clark softly spoke, “you’re the only one, and you’ll remain the only one.”
Since the day Clark had died, and come back, Lex's life kept crashing down and reshaping itself. This moment was a life altering one. Everything around him melted away and he was shocked that when he regained focus, everything around him was still intact. With Clark’s words, Lex’s world changed and he had no idea where to go next.
He stood his ground as Clark walked towards him. He didn’t expect a hand to brush his cheek or the way Clark whispered his name, but he allowed it as he stared into Clark’s vibrant blue eyes.
When Clark leaned forward, Lex did as well. The lips met softly and slid perfectly against each other. It lasted a moment, but felt like the ending to a novel neither one of them cared to name.
After Clark left, Lex walked over to the window and stared out into the clear, star-filled sky. A hundred feet away Clark was floating, just watching him. He didn’t know what he saw when he looked at Clark anymore and felt helpless for the first time in years. A new book was just starting its first few lines.
Nothing in Lex’s life ever went the way he assumed it would. Life was always one step behind his expectations.
Epilogue
When Clark got back to his apartment, he walked into his kitchen and placed the lead box next to his new answering machine. He stared at it for a few minutes as he tried to tune out the noises of the city around him.
The answering machine light was blinking and he pressed the button to hear his new messages.
“You have two new messages,” it told him.
“Smallville, your long vacation, the one you told no one you were going on, BASTARD, ended weeks ago! So get your head out of those bikini filled shores and back in the game, mister. I’ll be there bright and early to pick you up.”
Clark shook his head at her gullibility and at the same time thank god for it.
As the next message started, from Jimmy, he turned to look at the once, bare wall of his apartment.
“Chloe wanted me to call to…”
He tuned out the rest of Jimmy’s message and moved closer to the wall.
In front of Clark were pictures, from his past and present that he'd hung up a week ago. Two of his mom and dad, one of Lana and him at prom, Chloe and her beautiful smile, and another of Pete and him next to the basketball hoop in Smallville. There were also pictures of Lois and Jimmy at work, Chloe in her wedding dress, and even a picture of ‘The Chief’ scowling with a cup of coffee his hand. And there in the middle, was an old picture of two best friends smiling brightly at the camera.
”Come on, Lex,” he said as he sat on the edge of the armchair and grabbed his shoulder, “you don’t want everyone to think you can’t smile, do you?”
“I hate smiling in photos, Clark; I look demented when I do.”
Clark squeezed his shoulder and shook him slightly, “You do not look demented, Lex.”
“Yes, and hence the fact that I don’t smile.”
Clark rolled his eyes and leaned closer, “I meant it, Lex you look good when you smile.”
Lex looked up and their eyes met briefly before Clark felt his cheeks burn red. He looked away quickly, so Lex wouldn’t notice, but it seemed he’d moved too slow. Lex started to chuckle and pushed his shoulder into Clark’s.
“Hey, don’t worry, Clark, I know you weren’t hitting on me.”
Clark laughed nervously and Lex laughed with him, obviously thinking Clark’s uneasiness was because of the usual topic, and trying to make him comfortable again.
Chloe made a ‘ahem’ noise and both boys turned towards her as she shook her camera, “not getting any younger here, boys.”
Clark waved away her impatience and inched closer to Lex. “Okay, don’t smile.”
“Okay, I won’t.”
“Baby.”
Lex snorted before it grew into a full out chuckle, “did you just call me a baby, Kent?”
Before Clark could answer the sound of a camera clicked and they both blinked to get rid of the spots in their eyes.
“There, I have proof,” Chloe said as she walked over and waved her camera in their faces.
“Yes, fine, you got a picture of me smiling, Ms. Sullivan.”
Chloe laughed as she sat on the couch facing them and shook her head, “Nah, I’ve got better dirt on you, Lexy-poo.”
For a brief instant, Clark could see Lex narrow his eyes before he squeezed his shoulder to remained him he was safe with them. Lex glanced up and gave him an apologetic smile.
“See, there’s my dirt,” Chloe said with a big, toothy smile.
Lex and Clark turned away from each other and stared at Chloe in confusion.
“What are you talking about, Chlo’?” Clark asked as he let go of Lex’s shoulder, realizing belatedly that he was still holding onto the other boy.
Chloe glanced from Clark to Lex and back again. She stared into their confused eyes and began to shake her head.
“Boys,” she said as if being one was the vilest thing she could imagine.
She placed her finger to her lip and tapped it gentle, “well, I guess you could say I know Lex’s weakness.”
“And what might that be?” Lex asked as he leaned forward.
Chloe leaned forward as well and whispered, as if it were a deep secret only the three of them could hear, “friends.”
Lex leaned back and Clark laughed as Lex’s eyebrows rose in thought.
As Lex looked off into the distance, Chloe caught Clark’s eyes and mouthed the words. “You’re his weakness, Clark.”
Clark frowned at her and turned to see if Lex had noticed, thankfully the other boy was still lost in his own thoughts.
A moment later, Lex got a call on his cell.
His eyes grew heavy and tired as he listened to the other person on the line.
“I’m leaving now,” he snapped before shutting off his cell. He turned to Clark and shook his head sadly.
“Rain check on our game of pool?” He asked and smiled when Clark nodded.
“I have to go before my employees began crucifying my father,” he said as he grabbed his latte and gulped it down in one go.
Clark waved goodbye at the window as Lex hopped into his car. When the sports car was out of sight, Clark looked down at Chloe and he let his arm drop.
He leaned down and whispered into her ear, “He’s mine, too.”
Chloe stared at her feet, for a moment, before she looked up with one of her bright, fake smiles that Clark hated.
“God, Clark, you should know better than that. Great reporters never state the obvious, they only report on the extraordinary.”
Clark’s smile was blinding as he wrapped his arms around her, “it isn’t obvious to everyone, Chlo’.”
“Boys.” Once again Chloe said the word as if it were a fatal disease.
In the present time, Clark ran his finger down the picture of Lex’s smiling face and shook his head in confusion.
“What happened, Lex? When did we forget?”
When Clark saw the picture, the night he’d first kissed Lex, he recalled what the other man had said the first time he saw the picture of them in the old loft in Smallville.
“Didn’t think I rated a spot, Kent.”
Clark stared at Lex’s smiling face and realized how true his words were; how true they’d always been.
“Of course you rate, Lex, you’ll always rate.”
Fandom: Smallville
Pairing: Lex/Clark
Rating: Mature
Disclaimer: I don’t own DC
A huge thank you to the girl that read over my story and made it legible. Thank you so much twinsarein for all your wonderful work. It means the world to me!
Summary: It is centered on the six months just before Superman's death and just after Superman comes back. Lex reflects on his past and present with his old friend Clark Kent and his present enemy Superman.
Part 2/2
When Lex found himself outside a shitty apartment in ‘The Slums’ of Metropolis, he knew he’d hit rock bottom. The apartment door had rusty gold color numbers nailed into it.
Apartment number forty five on Baker’s St. Lex knew the address as well as his own, but had never come here before. It was almost a standing rule between the two of them. Clark never came to the penthouse at LexCorp, and Lex never came to his apartment in the slums. Odd that they both respected each others’ off times, almost like they found it bad form to intrude in each other’s personal lives.
It wasn’t always like that, but it had been years since Lex thought of Clark Kent as anything other than business. A man who had once been the very essence of Lex’s personal life had, throughout the years, become nonexistent, until all that remained was Superman.
In fact, Clark Kent was someone Lex hardly ever thought about, a memory he pretended to forget, a mirage that he forced himself to overlook whenever he looked into Superman’s blue eyes.
With a dramatic sigh, he kicked down the door, and walked in without a second’s pause. There was nothing special about the place, the white walls and lack of pictures gave nothing away. The apartment looked as if someone had just moved in and hadn’t had the time to breathe life into it. The white couch and large, black coffee table were all that sat in the small living room. The undersized kitchen was spotless and gave the viewer the impression that no one had ever prepared food in there. The apartment was lifeless and impersonal. If Lex wasn’t certain otherwise, he’d assume someone had already moved Clark’s stuff out.
“A far cry from Smallville, Kent,” he said to the empty apartment.
He walked over to the kitchen and opened up the fridge, noticing a single magnet placed in the center of the freezer door. It was a miniature of the golden globe on top of The Daily Planet. Lex grimaced at the similarity; he himself had only one magnet on his fridge, the logo of Lexcorp.
“It seemed both of us only lived for one thing, Clark.” He said as he leaned down to stare inside the fridge. He quickly recoiled in disgust when the smell of rotten milk and eggs assaulted his nose. He slammed the door shut and as he turned a tiny, red light caught his eye.
He walked over to the counter and stared at the answering machine. He watched the little red light blink off and on, off and on, before he pushed the button.
‘You have 25 messages.’ It stated in its emotionless voice.
“Clark!” The first message shouted out, “It’s me, Lois. Where the hell are you?!”
Lex snarled and pushed the delete button viciously. The next ten were Lois as well, her annoying voice becoming more and more hysterical with each call. Every time Lex heard her, he became increasingly irate and stabbed the delete button before she could utter a single syllable.
“If you didn’t realize who he really was,” Lex snarled at the machine, picturing Lois’s face, “then you never fucking deserved him!”
Lex was about to grab the machine and throw it across the room when he heard what he’d been waiting for. His heart stopped as he heard his own voice on the machine.
“I’ve just called this number ten times,” His own voice hissed, “Every time, I hear your damn voice asking me to leave a message and I… DAMN IT, CLARK!”
Lex winced at the desperation in his own voice as his yelled out to a dead man.
“How dare you do this to me! How dare you fucking leave me alone!”
Lex’s finger was an inch away from the delete button when he stopped himself and took a step back. The next message started.
“Kent, its Perry…”
Lex walked away from the machine and let it continue playing messages from people who only knew half of the man they all claimed to care about.
He looked around the living room with his arms wrapped around himself, before venturing into the hall. The first door he opened was a bathroom. It was tiny, slightly cruddy looking and nothing special, just like the rest of the place.
He turned and walked to the last door in the hallway. Lex’s heart was in his throat as he turned the knob slowly and stared into the dark room.
He didn’t know what he was expecting. He laughed harshly at himself. What the hell did he expect to find anyway in this shitty little apartment?
The bed was small. Clark’s huge body must’ve looked ridiculous and monstrous when he lay in it. There was also a small dresser and a small desk with a laptop on it and a huge stack of files off to one side. There was nothing else in the room, nothing of importance, no medals or shiny plaques…nothing!
“This is what saving the world and being a fucking hero brought you!” he sneered at the empty room. “A shitty apartment and a fucking empty bed!”
Lex strolled into the room; he pushed the laptop to the floor. He grabbed the files and threw them across the room. He walked over to the dresser and ripped open the first drawer. He pulled out socks and briefs and threw them behind his back. He turned and pulled the comforter off the bed, then the sheets and pillows.
He didn’t stop moving until the room was a disaster; he couldn’t stop and had no clue what the hell he was doing. He stared around at the mess and began to laugh hysterically.
“I’m fucking reduced to this!” he hissed at the empty, tacky looking mattress. “This is what you’ve left me to become!”
He turned on his heels and opened the closet, smiling at the thought of ripping those hideous brown suits that Kent used to wear to press conferences off their hangers. Lex sneered as he thought of all the times he saw Clark Kent walk around with his head down. Those ugly thick, black glasses and shit colored suits. The way Clark would shrink into himself and stutter as he spoke, all the fucking while he’d stare at Lex behind those glasses with Superman’s eyes! The fucking lying bastard!
“Fuck you, Clark!” Lex shouted as he ripped a suit off its hanger, “did you think I didn’t know! Did you actually believe I, a god damn Luthor, would forget something as important as what my old best friend looked like in Smallville. You thought a pair of fucking glasses and this damn suit,” he yelled as he threw said suit behind him, “would fool me! Did you think I couldn’t look past you in this fucking costume, this damn facade,” he said as he grabbed another brown suit and wrung it between his fists, “and see the real you?!”
He threw the last suit behind him and tried to calm his breathing. When he looked up at the only shelf in the closet he saw a huge cardboard box.
He reached up and grabbed it. It was taped shut and he walked backwards as he stared at the words written on the top in Clark’s handwriting.
‘Smallville,’ was written in black marker.
He kept walking backwards until he felt the edge of the bed touch the back of his legs and sat down. He placed the box next to him and ripped the tape off.
Inside were photo albums that he couldn’t bear to open, yearbooks he pushed aside and flannel shirts that made him smile briefly before he realized what he was doing and threw them across the room in anger. He saw a nametag for the Talon with Clark’s name on it. A framed prom picture of Clark and Lana smiling he violently threw away before he could let a single thought cross his mind. There were two other framed photos, one of Chloe and another of a young Pete Ross.
And there at the bottom of the box, Lex stopped dead in his tracks.
Another framed picture was lying there, hidden in the shadows with a small, lead box beside it. Hidden beneath all the other memories Clark left in his closet, was Lex Luthor.
He first picked up the framed photograph, one he remembered seeing every time he visited Clark’s loft, all those years ago, or maybe to be precise, a lifetime ago.
Lex remembers that Clark had framed photos of everyone on his desk in that dirty, old loft in Smallville. He also clearly remembers the first day he saw a framed photo of himself on that desk.
“Didn’t think I rated a spot, Kent,” he’d said as he picked up the picture of him and Clark at the Talon. Lex was sitting in one of those huge, overstuffed chairs. Clark was sitting on the armrest with his arm leaning against the back of the chair and his hand cupped around Lex’s shoulder.
Clark had given him a shy smile as he took the framed photo back and placed it in the middle of the desk. Lex remembers feeling something close to joy at the position of the framed photo. Right in the middle, center stage to the rest of the pictures.
Clark had blushed and stated softly, “Of course you rate, Lex. You’ll always rate.”
A lifetime later, Lex stared at the picture, and could only see the lies. A lifetime of repressing all his past memories, Lex felt his old insecurities and pain rear their ugly head.
“Liar,” he hissed at the smiling picture of Clark, “never once did I rate in your world. You trusted everyone, Pete, Chloe, Lana,” he hissed out the last name like it was poison on his lips, “everyone else knew, but me. You told everyone expect me. Lies, all this was…” he said as he threw the picture across the room, “was a lie!”
The last item in the box was another box. The first token of friendship ever given, and the only one ever really received.
He picked up the lead box and let the weight of it settle in his hands. He remembered giving the box to Clark twenty years ago. Twenty years and Clark still had the damn thing.
One of the few precious items he had of his mother’s. To this day, Lex is still confused about why he’d given it to the boy, only days after meeting him. It was something Lex had treasured and so easily given to Clark without a second thought. It had been completely out of character for him.
He pushed the now empty cardboard box off the bed. He crossed his legs as he placed the lead box in his lap.
He slowly opened the box and considered all the things that could be in it. It could be a lock of Martha Kent’s hair, or an old, rusty tool from his father’s barn; maybe something of Chloe or Lana’s.
What he wasn’t expecting, was what he saw.
“Jesus,” he whispered as he picked up the huge piece of kryptonite.
“Christ, Clark, why the hell would you have this in your room?!”
Lex understood kryptonite better than anyone else on the planet did. It didn’t matter if it was in lead or not. Clark would be able to feel it, he wouldn’t have any of the adverse affects, but still he’d feel its presence.
----------------------------
Once, four years ago, Superman and Luthor had been trapped in a cell together for five days. They’d been kidnapped by a gang of new villains in town.
Luthor had heard about the gang a week before, and held a meeting with their leaders on their first few days in Metropolis. He had informed them of his rule, no gang was allowed to traffic or carry kryptonite, unless they were under Lex’s orders to do so. The gang had agreed to Lex’s terms and Luthor had left them to their petty crime.
It had seemed that the small gang had been trying to gain power behind Luthor’s back. A common mistake all new gangs tried and failed to do, but none of the previous gangs had been stupid enough to take Luthor as a prisoner.
The day he and Superman were kidnapped, Lex had been in the midst of a screaming match with the alien. It had been about Lois Lane or something like that, Lex doesn’t remember the reason anymore. But as they screamed at each other, the gang appeared out of nowhere and trapped Superman. Unknowingly, the brainless henchman had grabbed both Superman and Lex. When leaders had found out what their lackeys had done, they’d feared the consequences of letting Lex go.
After a few minutes of yelling back and forth at each other, they had decided to put Lex in the lead cell with Superman.
“We all know how much they hate each other,” the main guy told his partners, as they stared through the bars of the cell. “Maybe putting them together, in a locked cell, will solve all our problems,” he said with a nervous chuckle. His eyes trailed from Lex to Superman.
Lex ran at the bars and slammed his fists against it, ignoring the pain it caused.
“Get me out of here now, before I not only kill you, but every single person you ever loved, hell, I’ll kill everyone you’ve ever talked to!”
He glanced back at Superman and noticed the way the alien was trying to gather enough strength to stand up. The cuts and bruises on Superman’s face weren’t healing. Lex could tell he was close to passing out. Around them, the room glowed a sickly green color that remained Lex too much of his days in Belle Reve.
“How much fucking kryptonite is in this room?!” Lex hissed as he forced himself to look away from the superhero and back at the stupid moron that had locked him up. The moron ignored him as he turned to the rest of the group.
“Looks like Supes won’t last long,” he said, “and Luthor…well.” This time the moron looked him in the eyes and gave him a smile with more teeth than lips. “Even the great Luthor can’t live off his own arrogance alone. Soon enough, food and water becomes a necessity for us all.”
Lex had yelled and screamed for the rest of the day, not stopping until his throat gave out and his screams sounded more like gasps of air then words of anger. He stared off and on at Superman as he paced the cell. Sometimes walking over and kicking him lightly to make sure the alien was still alive.
“If you kick me again,” Superman had said one of the few times he was conscious, “I swear, next time I find one of your labs I won’t just burn it down, I’ll come after you as well.”
Lex had sneered as he stood above him, “Big words from the nearly dead.”
The alien chuckled, “If it’s to stop you, Luthor, I’d come back from the dead to do it.”
Lex rolled his eyes and turned away. Not bothering to kick him the next time it looked like the alien had stopped breathing.
The next day, Lex was getting pissed off. “Where the hell are they?” he hissed under his breathe as he paced back and forth.
The small cell was starting to bring back too many old memories, and the last thing he wanted to do was rehash the past with Superman so close by. He swore that if he began to think about his father or his time in Belle Reve, he’d spend years, not just months, torturing the bastards that had trapped him down here.
“Didn’t know you were claustrophobic, Luthor,” Superman said, halfway through the second day; his eyes followed Lex as he continued to pace back and forth.
Lex stopped pacing and hissed out, “Oh, just go back to dying, you asshole.”
Superman had chuckled before falling back to sleep.
Hours later, Superman was awake again and watching Lex intently. A few times, Lex told him to stop, but Superman only laughed.
“Don’t think I’m not aware of how much time you’ve spent staring at me,” Superman said with a weak smile.
Lex ignored him which only made Superman’s smile that much brighter.
“You’re going to pass out soon,” the alien said, “if you don’t stop pacing like a maniac.”
Lex stopped pacing just long enough to glare at him.
“Passing out would be a far better option then hearing your concern for me.”
Superman snorted before closing his eyes, “Just a momentary lapse, Luthor, I assure you.”
Lex stalked over and leaned down, causing the alien to open his eyes again, “and here I thought the great Superman had concern for all us lowly humans.”
Superman’s eye were blue, too cobalt to be common, and to brilliant to be real, he hated their etherealness. It was just one of the many things Lex detested about him. When the alien blinked, Lex sneered at the long eyelashes that fluttered across perfect cheekbones.
“Do you want me to be concerned for you, Luthor?”
Lex frowned at Superman’s question, and snarled when the alien laughed at his momentary confusion. He stood up quickly and took three large steps back so he was as far away from the alien as he could get.
“I want nothing from you.”
Superman’s eyes were already closing and the massive alien began to shake, in what Lex could only assume was an unbearable amount of pain. The room began to glow a bright, sickly green and Lex could feel his own energy begin to pick up.
What gave Superman pain, also gave Lex strength. It had been years ago that Lex had finally accepted the fact that he was a meteorite freak, one that healed and gained power from the only thing that could hurt and destroy his enemy. In Lex’s inequitable world, he proclaimed kryptonite as the only just thing left.
When Superman’s body finally stopped shaking, Lex’s body began to relax. He wasn’t even aware of how tense he was, until he stared down at his fist and slowly unclenched his fingers. On his left palm there were four, small moon shaped cuts.
“Damn place is getting to me,” he sniffed as he turned his back to the alien. When he heard Superman yelp in pain, he flinched and bit the inside of his cheek.
“This fucking cell is getting too DAMN SMALL!” He screamed out as he slammed his fists against the bars.
The rest of the day, Lex sat with his back against the wall as he watched Superman shake and cry out in pain.
“They’re dead, they’ll all die for this,” Lex had whispered as he wrapped his arms around himself and closed his eyes for some much needed sleep.
On the third day, Lex had stopped pacing and simply sat on the cold floor with his arms wrapped around himself. The alien faded in and out of consciousness, and at times he’d mumble words like Lois, Chloe, and at other times, when he’d begin to shake violently, he’d cry out desperately for his Mom. Lex pretended, not only to himself, but to the alien, that he didn’t hear Superman. It wasn’t hard to do most times, but late at night, Lex found it difficult to act as if he didn’t personally know the people Superman cried out for.
Lex laid there, his arms covering his face, and when Superman called out for his Mom he forced himself not to remember what Martha Kent’s apple pie and hot chocolate tasted like on cold, Kansas nights.
On the last day of their entrapment, before Hope and Mercy found them, Lex had started talking, watching out of the corner of his eyes as Superman’s skin began to blister and bleed. Lex imagined that the alien’s body had been filled with so much poison that it was trying to push it out the only way it knew how. The gruesome sight began to pull away the strings of Lex’s sanity and the man needed something, anything to keep from screaming like a banshee for help.
Lex had crawled over to Superman and had whispered into the alien’s ear.
“When we get out of here, I’ll make the world pay for this.”
The alien didn’t stir and Lex leaned closer, he was unsure why he was so thankful to see the rise and fall of the alien’s chest, but sighed in relief at the sight.
“I can just picture these moron’s faces when we escape this hellhole.”
Lex looked away from Superman as blood began to trickle from his closed eyelids.
“I don’t think even you, the most judgmental bastard I’ve ever met, would judge me for killing them.”
Lex paused for a moment, as if waiting for the alien to protest, but the cell remained eerily silent. He placed his hands behind his neck and stared up at the green, glowing ceiling. His shoulder was resting against Superman’s.
“You ever think…” he trailed off as he closed his eyes, his need for food and water draining all of his energy, “…what it would be like….if we were normal?”
An hour later, Lex was awakened by someone calling out his name. He opened his eyes slowly and focused on the voice. He turned his head and was surprised to see Superman staring at him. The pain Lex saw there was overwhelming to witness and caused a violent uncontrollable rage to settle in Lex’s stomach.
“Lex,” he whispered, “I’m dying.”
Lex remembers feeling like he’d just been punched in the gut.
“No,” Lex hissed through cracked lips that begged for water, “you aren’t going to die here; I fucking reserved the right to kill you years ago.”
He wasn’t surprised that Superman tried and failed to smile; they knew each other too well.
“I know, Lex, but I guess…” Superman’s eyes started to close and Lex slapped him hard.
“Don’t you dare close your eyes, Alien!”
Superman opened his eyes again, and Lex noticed that they were no longer a vibrant blue, but a dull green like they had been---a lifetime ago. They had turned blue when he’d first come back, from what Lex later found out to be his training in the Fortress of Solitude, just before he’d introduced the world to Superman. Lex couldn’t find the words as he stared into those eyes, because they looked so much like the ones of a boy who use to call him his best friend. At that moment he didn’t feel like Luthor, and the alien beside him didn’t feel like Superman.
“Green eyes,” Lex muttered.
“It’s just because of the kryptonite.” Clark whispered back.
Lex reached out and grabbed Clark’s hand.
Moments later, Mercy and Hope found them. Hope said nothing as Lex ordered them to make sure the jet was ready to fly. But as Mercy picked him up and held him close to her, she whispered, “The Fortress?”
Lex had nodded, before he passed out.
Days later, Luthor left Superman inside the Fortress and as he walked away; leaving the alien there to do whatever was needed to mend himself, Luthor told him.
“This is only because I want you in top shape for the next fight. No one gets to kill you, Superman, only me.”
------------------------------------------------------------
Thinking back to that time, and seeing the lead box filled with kryptonite in Clark’s apartment, confused Lex. How could someone, who had such a strong reaction to this shit keep it around them?
Lex lay down on the bed and placed the lead box on his stomach. He stared up at the ceiling; it had signs of water damage and yellow tar. It looked like someone, before Clark moved in, had chained smoked every night in this room.
“Did you sit here at night thinking of ways to save us humans from ourselves?” Lex asked the dead alien who couldn’t hear him. “Or did your eyes wander from water stain to water stain, as you thought of the day you’d finally take over the world?”
“Actually I hardly ever sleep here.”
Lex almost flew out of bed as he looked around the room with wild, crazy eyes. When he saw Superman, in full costume, leaning against the doorway, he tightened his grip on the lead box.
“Clark?!” He yelped in surprise and belatedly realized his mistake. “Superman,” he said to correct himself.
Clark wasn’t transparent like a ghost, but from his appearance, he looked like the walking dead. His eyes were lifeless, and his body was frail and weak. His bright costume was hanging off his body like it was two sizes too big. It reminded Lex so much of their time locked away, that he looked around the room to make sure they weren’t still locked in that cell.
“Clark, Superman--I go by either,” Clark said as he walked into the room on unsteady feet. He shrugged off his cape and sat down on the bed next to Lex, “not that you aren’t aware of that, Lex.”
Lex didn’t know if he was asleep or in some fucked up world that his dead mother had locked him in. He looked past Clark and narrowed his eyes to see into the hall.
His mother wasn’t there, thank god. The last thing he needed was another trip down ‘hell dimension’ lane.
When he looked back at Clark, the alien was staring at him with tired, bloodshot eyes.
“Jesus, are you sure you’re alive?” he asked, because from the sight of him, it might have been possible that he wasn’t.
Clark’s raised his eyebrow and the look he gave him made Lex feel like an idiot, “Of course I am.”
Lex pushed away his shock and sat up, trying to regain his decorum.
“Well, you don’t look it,” he stated; his grip still tight around the box.
Clark glanced at the box in his hands and then around the room, as if just noticing its state for the first time.
“I see you’ve made yourself at home,” he said as he braced his arms behind him for support. Lex wasn’t too comfortable with how weak the alien looked.
He ignored Clark’s statement and asked him, “Is this a permanent thing, are you going to remain alive?”
Clark was still looking around the room when he shrugged his shoulders, “looks like it.”
Lex felt something close to relief, before he sneered not only at himself, but at the alien. He always hated defeat in other people’s voices, especially when he wasn’t the cause of said defeat.
“You don’t sound too damn happy about that!” he snapped.
Clark’s eyes drifted over to Lex’s and he began to laugh, although the sound was quiet and painful to hear.
“You better watch yourself, Luthor, or people will start to think you actually care.”
“I don’t give a shit what people think!’ Lex roared which only caused Clark to laugh more, but stopped short when he hissed out in pain.
Lex’s eyes widen at the sound, “Why the hell are you here, Superman?” he snapped, “Go to that damn Fortress of yours and get better!”
Clark nodded his head, “I will, it’s just…”
Lex bit his tongue and waited for a moment, before impatience took a hold of him, “It’s just what, Alien?!”
“I could hear you,” Superman said as he stared into Lex’s eyes.
Lex did a double take before regaining himself, “what the hell do you mean?”
“When I was down there, underground,” he said with a shudder, “trying to get enough strength to crawl out of my grave I could hear you.”
Lex raised a hand to stop Clark’s words, “Are you telling me you were alive, in the ground, this whole time?” Lex didn’t hear the next words out of Clark’s mouth because he jumped up and began to pace. The box still held tightly in his grip.
“I knew I should have checked. I knew I should have dug you up and put your damn body in the fortress. I thought I was being morbid, but fuck!”
He shouted as he threw the box across the room, forgetting all about the kryptonite inside. When Clark gasped out in pain, Lex looked up and saw the way his skin began to glow green.
“Shit!” he exclaimed as he ran to the other side of the room and quickly closed the box.
He remained silent as the alien lay down on the bed and placed both hands on either side of his temples. Lex listened to his breathing as it began to slow down. He was certain that Clark was falling asleep, but the alien surprised him by opening his mouth to speak.
“I could hear you, Lex. It was quiet, but I could hear it. You were screaming when I woke up in that coffin. It was the first thing I heard past the sounds of cars and the cries for help.”
“Bullshit,” Lex hissed and felt the undeniable need to hit him. “Don’t talk to me like I’m someone you care about!”
Clark didn’t answer him and silence between them became tangible. Lex looked away and considered walking out. He even contemplated forgetting this conversation ever took place, but he understood himself better than that, he never forgot anything, nothing in his life ever went unanswered or unanalyzed. He knew he had to stay and hear Clark out.
“So you heard me screaming, and you thought to yourself, ‘well I better go and make sure my archenemy is feeling okay?’” Lex sneered, his words filled with sarcasm.
Clark chuckled, his eyes still closed and his hands still rubbing his temples. “No, not quite Luthor,” he said. “I’m here to tell you that I’m still alive and any thoughts you have of destroying the world ends now.”
Lex laughed at the alien’s audacity, “You think I’d end it all… because of you?”
Clark opened his eyes and stared, his eyes saw too much, they always saw way too much.
“Yes, Luthor, I know you would.”
“Bullshit.”
Clark sat up and grabbed Lex’s hand, the one that held the lead box, “What were you going to do after your little trip down memory lane, Luthor?”
Lex pulled away violently and turned his back to him, “None of your damn business, Alien!”
Clark didn’t reply and their stillness filled the room much like the stale scent of smoke that Clark probably hated, but never repainted to get rid of.
“If you want,” Clark said, as he raised his arms in surrender, “kill me now, before anyone is the wiser and you can have what you always wanted.”
“And what’s that?!” he hissed.
“An end.”
Lex’s lips curled into a snarl and he seriously considered doing just as the alien suggested.
“You’d like that wouldn’t you?!”
Clark shook his head, cold indifference in his eyes, “no, I wouldn’t…and we both know, now that I’m back, neither would you.”
It was Lex’s turn to begin to laugh, “You truly believe that you, an alien, have that much power over me?!”
Clark reached out and grabbed Lex, pushing him down and wrapping one arm around the back of his neck.
Lex tried to push him away, but stopped when Clark’s lips descended upon his own. The lead box was between them; and his other hand, covered in a black glove was dangling off the bed.
At first, Lex resisted the kiss, until he felt the soft brush of a tongue against his lips. All sense of self went to the wayside as he opened his mouth and melted into Clark.
His lips burned and tingled as the kiss deepened. His mouth was alive and screaming for more. When Clark pulled away, Lex tried to follow, unwilling to say goodbye to this newfound sensation. His blinked twice as he slowly opened his eyelids. He saw confusion and uncertainty written on Clark’s face, before it was masked with apathy.
Clark was still holding him down and he could feel his warm breath against his cheek.
“What the hell was that?!” he whispered, not even attempting to get away.
Clark’s eyes filled with a million different emotions, before growing cold and distant once more. Clark got up and walked over to the other side of the room. He bent down slowly and Lex noticed it before Clark picked it up. It was the framed picture of them at the Talon, a lifetime ago, when they could never imagine a world without each other.
It seemed some things never changed.
Clark brushed off the broken glass from the photo and ran his finger down the glossy finish.
“You’ll always rate, Lex.”
It felt like a jab, it felt like a punch so below the belt that Lex could hardly breathe.
“Fuck you,” he hissed, because he had no other comeback.
Before he realized it, he was storming out of the room and heading to the front door. He heard Clark call out his name, but pretended not to hear him.
As he reached the kitchen he grabbed the answering machine and yanked so hard that the cords ripped out of the wall. Without looking back, he stepped out the front door and all but ran to his Ferrari.
Mercy stared at the caller ID for a moment before she sighed and flipped up her cell phone.
“Sir,” she answered curtly.
“Mercy…”
The sound of his voice made Mercy sit up straighter, and the bowl of chicken noodle soup on her lap rolled off and splattered to the floor.
“Shit!” she exclaimed as she held her pants away from her skin to stop from getting burned.
“Are you okay?” Hope cried out, as she came running in from the kitchen, at the same time as Lex shouted.
“What the hell kind of greeting is that?!”
“I’m fine,” she said to Hope with a smile, and then told Lex, “It’s the customary greeting for all people that slap me,” she stated with a snarl.
“About that…” Lex trailed off and Mercy could hear the silent apology in his tone. It was something so out of character from the billionaire, that Mercy could physically feel herself forgive him.
“Well, that’s your one get out of ‘Boot to the Ass’ this year, sir,” she said.
Lex still remained silent, and Mercy could feel her temperature rising. She was about to ream him out when she recalled the way he’d said her name just before she’d spilled the chicken noodle all over herself.
“Is everything alright, sir?” she asked as she stared into Hope’s eyes.
Hope walked over and moved in close enough so that her ear was against Mercy’s cell phone. Mercy rolled her eyes at Hope, but the other woman ignored her.
“I saw him today,” Lex said in a rush. There was something in his tone that neither girl thought they’d ever hear again; it sounded like something close to being alive.
“The bastard is back, Mercy.” Lex hissed out, “and this time, I swear to you, I’ll kill Superman so that no alien power can bring him back!’
Mixed in with the anger, there was a joy in Lex’s voice that Mercy knew her boss would never admit to and maybe didn’t even notice.
Mercy’s lips curled upwards and Hope was covering her mouth to hide her smile.
She kept her voice calm as she told Lex, “God, that bastard doesn’t give up. Don’t worry, sir, we’ll make sure not to fail next time.”
Lex agreed and hung up without saying goodbye.
Mercy slowly snapped her cell phone shut and let out a cheer.
“We can never fail again, Mercy,” Hope said as she placed her arms around her.
Mercy nodded and silently thanked the higher beings as she held Hope close.
“I know, Hope, we have to make sure every single plan of his fails, so that we never fail him again.”
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A month passed, to the day, and Clark flew into Lex’s office, using the window as his access. Clark was dressed in a brown, shit colored suit and had black, thick glasses covering his eyes. He looked ridiculous, flying around in the getup and Lex said as much, as soon as Clark walked in.
“I though you’d like the sentiment,” Clark said with a shrug of his shoulders.
Lex pushed away from his desk and got up out of his chair. He walked over to his bar and poured himself a drink. He didn’t offer Clark one, because he knew the alien would never accept.
“So, why are you here, Clark?” he asked placing emphasis on the name.
Clark chuckled and leaned against the edge of Lex’s desk. “You took something that belongs to me,” he said as he tapped his index finger on the lead box.
Lex had placed it by his monitor weeks ago, and hadn’t moved it since. Sometimes he caught himself staring at it and rubbing his fingers lightly against his lips.
Lex stared at the box and then glanced at Clark.
“It was never yours, Clark, I loaned it to you.”
Clark laughed and grabbed the box, “You said it was a gift, Lex,” he said placing emphasis on the name just as Lex had on his, “and I want it back.”
Lex was about to argue the point, but the words lodged in his throat. He merely nodded his head and took a sip of his bourbon.
He saw surprise in Clark’s eyes, but it quickly faded and became indifference.
“If that’s all,” Lex said as he took a step towards his desk, “I’m a busy man.”
Clark shook his head and took a step towards the window, before he suddenly stopped, “do you want to know why?” he asked.
Lex assumed he was talking about the box, and answered with bitter sarcasm, “So you can always have a part of me with you.”
Clark chuckled, like he always did, and Lex wondered how someone who dealt with the crud of society everyday, could still smile.
“No, actually-- I’m not sure why I kept the box…” Clark paused and looked down at it, shaking his head as if trying to figure it out for himself.
“I actually wanted the kryptonite more than anything else.” He said after a few moments, “but I though you might be wondering why I keep kryptonite in my apartment.”
In all honesty, Lex was more interested in why he kept the box.
“Why?” he asked because any answers comforted Lex.
“Because, you and I have only one thing in common, Luthor.”
Lex chuckled at his words, “Let me guess--our nightmares of exploding cornfields.”
Clark smile was blinding, “Well, that too, but mostly…it’s our distrust of Superman.”
Lex’s glass was halfway to his lips, when he froze and glared at Clark. Clark’s eyes held nothing, not a single sign of where to go next.
“You don’t trust yourself?” he asked carefully.
Clark nodded, “and you wonder why I never trusted you.”
“Pete, Chloe, Lana?” the last name was hissed out. Lex could never say Lana’s name without venom, “you trusted them?!”
Clark shook his head, his eyes were sad and tired, “They all found out on their own, Luthor, they had seen it with their own eyes, some even had proof. I’ve never told anyone who I really am.”
“But you trusted them to keep your secret?”
Clark's eyes went distant, “I did as a child,” he stated sadly, “but after, before I became Superman, I erased their memories.”
Lex stared at him in shock, “they…you…they don’t remember?”
Clark shook his head, “once, a few years back, Lois even found out. I tried to live a life with her, a human life. But…” he trialed off and looked older than Lex had ever seen him look. “She doesn’t remember either.”
“You erased her memories?”
Clark nodded. Lex took a step back, thinking of ways to escape and weapons near his grasp. He inched his way closer to the exit.
“Are you going to do the same to me, because if you try…” he began to threaten.
Clark’s smile was as cold as his icy, blue eyes, “I almost did, almost robbed you of all your memories of a young Clark Kent.”
“What, when?” Lex asked, startled and scared that he had no idea what Clark was talking about.
Clark was taking a step closer to him and Lex felt the urge to run.
“When I kissed you,” Clark said softly.
Lex’s eyes widened, “Is that what that was all about?” he asked as his rage began to build.
“At first,” Clark answered truthfully, “but when you responded to the kiss…” he trailed off and shrugged, “I couldn’t do it.”
“Why?’ Lex demanded as his hands clenched into fists at his sides.
Clark froze for a moment, words dangling in the air that remained unsaid, before a bright smile appeared on Clark’s face. Lex sneered as Clark held up the box and shook it twice, “I just told you, Lex. We don’t trust Superman and you’re the only one who can stop me from going too far.”
Lex was about to demand he say more, but knew Clark well enough to know that was all he was getting. Both of them only ever scratched the surface of each others walls.
“So I’m the only one who knows.”
Clark nodded his head, “now that Mom’s gone…” Lex had the decency to look away. He’d sent flowers without a card when he’d heard.
“Yeah, Lex,” Clark softly spoke, “you’re the only one, and you’ll remain the only one.”
Since the day Clark had died, and come back, Lex's life kept crashing down and reshaping itself. This moment was a life altering one. Everything around him melted away and he was shocked that when he regained focus, everything around him was still intact. With Clark’s words, Lex’s world changed and he had no idea where to go next.
He stood his ground as Clark walked towards him. He didn’t expect a hand to brush his cheek or the way Clark whispered his name, but he allowed it as he stared into Clark’s vibrant blue eyes.
When Clark leaned forward, Lex did as well. The lips met softly and slid perfectly against each other. It lasted a moment, but felt like the ending to a novel neither one of them cared to name.
After Clark left, Lex walked over to the window and stared out into the clear, star-filled sky. A hundred feet away Clark was floating, just watching him. He didn’t know what he saw when he looked at Clark anymore and felt helpless for the first time in years. A new book was just starting its first few lines.
Nothing in Lex’s life ever went the way he assumed it would. Life was always one step behind his expectations.
Epilogue
When Clark got back to his apartment, he walked into his kitchen and placed the lead box next to his new answering machine. He stared at it for a few minutes as he tried to tune out the noises of the city around him.
The answering machine light was blinking and he pressed the button to hear his new messages.
“You have two new messages,” it told him.
“Smallville, your long vacation, the one you told no one you were going on, BASTARD, ended weeks ago! So get your head out of those bikini filled shores and back in the game, mister. I’ll be there bright and early to pick you up.”
Clark shook his head at her gullibility and at the same time thank god for it.
As the next message started, from Jimmy, he turned to look at the once, bare wall of his apartment.
“Chloe wanted me to call to…”
He tuned out the rest of Jimmy’s message and moved closer to the wall.
In front of Clark were pictures, from his past and present that he'd hung up a week ago. Two of his mom and dad, one of Lana and him at prom, Chloe and her beautiful smile, and another of Pete and him next to the basketball hoop in Smallville. There were also pictures of Lois and Jimmy at work, Chloe in her wedding dress, and even a picture of ‘The Chief’ scowling with a cup of coffee his hand. And there in the middle, was an old picture of two best friends smiling brightly at the camera.
”Come on, Lex,” he said as he sat on the edge of the armchair and grabbed his shoulder, “you don’t want everyone to think you can’t smile, do you?”
“I hate smiling in photos, Clark; I look demented when I do.”
Clark squeezed his shoulder and shook him slightly, “You do not look demented, Lex.”
“Yes, and hence the fact that I don’t smile.”
Clark rolled his eyes and leaned closer, “I meant it, Lex you look good when you smile.”
Lex looked up and their eyes met briefly before Clark felt his cheeks burn red. He looked away quickly, so Lex wouldn’t notice, but it seemed he’d moved too slow. Lex started to chuckle and pushed his shoulder into Clark’s.
“Hey, don’t worry, Clark, I know you weren’t hitting on me.”
Clark laughed nervously and Lex laughed with him, obviously thinking Clark’s uneasiness was because of the usual topic, and trying to make him comfortable again.
Chloe made a ‘ahem’ noise and both boys turned towards her as she shook her camera, “not getting any younger here, boys.”
Clark waved away her impatience and inched closer to Lex. “Okay, don’t smile.”
“Okay, I won’t.”
“Baby.”
Lex snorted before it grew into a full out chuckle, “did you just call me a baby, Kent?”
Before Clark could answer the sound of a camera clicked and they both blinked to get rid of the spots in their eyes.
“There, I have proof,” Chloe said as she walked over and waved her camera in their faces.
“Yes, fine, you got a picture of me smiling, Ms. Sullivan.”
Chloe laughed as she sat on the couch facing them and shook her head, “Nah, I’ve got better dirt on you, Lexy-poo.”
For a brief instant, Clark could see Lex narrow his eyes before he squeezed his shoulder to remained him he was safe with them. Lex glanced up and gave him an apologetic smile.
“See, there’s my dirt,” Chloe said with a big, toothy smile.
Lex and Clark turned away from each other and stared at Chloe in confusion.
“What are you talking about, Chlo’?” Clark asked as he let go of Lex’s shoulder, realizing belatedly that he was still holding onto the other boy.
Chloe glanced from Clark to Lex and back again. She stared into their confused eyes and began to shake her head.
“Boys,” she said as if being one was the vilest thing she could imagine.
She placed her finger to her lip and tapped it gentle, “well, I guess you could say I know Lex’s weakness.”
“And what might that be?” Lex asked as he leaned forward.
Chloe leaned forward as well and whispered, as if it were a deep secret only the three of them could hear, “friends.”
Lex leaned back and Clark laughed as Lex’s eyebrows rose in thought.
As Lex looked off into the distance, Chloe caught Clark’s eyes and mouthed the words. “You’re his weakness, Clark.”
Clark frowned at her and turned to see if Lex had noticed, thankfully the other boy was still lost in his own thoughts.
A moment later, Lex got a call on his cell.
His eyes grew heavy and tired as he listened to the other person on the line.
“I’m leaving now,” he snapped before shutting off his cell. He turned to Clark and shook his head sadly.
“Rain check on our game of pool?” He asked and smiled when Clark nodded.
“I have to go before my employees began crucifying my father,” he said as he grabbed his latte and gulped it down in one go.
Clark waved goodbye at the window as Lex hopped into his car. When the sports car was out of sight, Clark looked down at Chloe and he let his arm drop.
He leaned down and whispered into her ear, “He’s mine, too.”
Chloe stared at her feet, for a moment, before she looked up with one of her bright, fake smiles that Clark hated.
“God, Clark, you should know better than that. Great reporters never state the obvious, they only report on the extraordinary.”
Clark’s smile was blinding as he wrapped his arms around her, “it isn’t obvious to everyone, Chlo’.”
“Boys.” Once again Chloe said the word as if it were a fatal disease.
In the present time, Clark ran his finger down the picture of Lex’s smiling face and shook his head in confusion.
“What happened, Lex? When did we forget?”
When Clark saw the picture, the night he’d first kissed Lex, he recalled what the other man had said the first time he saw the picture of them in the old loft in Smallville.
“Didn’t think I rated a spot, Kent.”
Clark stared at Lex’s smiling face and realized how true his words were; how true they’d always been.
“Of course you rate, Lex, you’ll always rate.”