Fic: (SV) Expose
Written for undermistletoe's Mystery Schmoop Week.
Cross-posted here.
Title: Expose
Author: Corbeaun
Fandom: Smallville
Pairing: Clex
Summary: Futurefic. In which Lex gets called away and Clark freaks out.
Expose
by Corbeaun
The heater must have broken down sometime in the night. Lex bit back a curse when he climbed out of bed that morning, and frenetically grabbed for the clothes he had strewn on the floor the night before. He had just pulled on his trousers when the covers on the bed moved back to reveal a bleary-eyed Clark. "Lex, what's going on?" he asked drowsily.
Lex ignored him and rapidly buttoned his shirt. "I always knew those tales of you getting up with the sun were false, farm boy."
Clark blinked a couple of times. "It's Christmas," he frowned, much more awake now. "You are not going to Luthorcorp."
Lex had almost finished dressing. He shrugged into his great coat and stepped up to Clark's side of the bed. "Emergency. The plastics contract," he said briskly. The cell phone in his hand blinked urgently in agreement. He leaned down and quickly kissed Clark on the lips. "We'll dine in tonight," he added and was gone from the room before Clark could protest. The front door clicked shut half a second later.
Clark had only a minute to stare at his empty room before the pounding on his front door started.
"Come on, Smallville," Lois' voice boomed through his apartment, "open up!" Clark groaned and flopped back onto the bed, unable to believe this. A door opened in the hallway and Clark heard one of his neighbors tell Lois to shut up. "Look mister, my friend's in there and he might be dead or dying -- yeah, that's right, run away when a man needs help!" The pounding continued mercilessly. "I know you're in there, Clark! Now open the goddamn door!"
He flung open the door and Lois stalked in and whirled upon him. "You know how many time I've called you?" she snarled, stabbing him repeatedly in chest for emphasis. "Fifteen million times, that's how!"
Clark fumbled for his horn-rimmed glasses. "Dead or dying, Lois? What --"
"What the hell did you do to your phones?" she said, stalking away from him, picking up the disconnected phone lines.
"Really, Lois, I don't think that --"
She dropped the phone lines to grab the half-full wine bottle sitting on Clark's rickety coffee table. "And this! What's this?" She uncorked the bottle and sniffed the opening. Her eyes widened. "This brand isn't exported -- you can't get this unless you fly to France yourself." Which Lex actually had. Clark winced internally.
"Look, Lois, this really isn't --"
"And are these actually from Katmandu? When did you get the time or the money to jet set?"
"Honestly Lois, they're not really --"
He heard a terrible gasp and looked up to see Lois staring at him. "Oh my god," she croaked, and plopped down on the sofa. She stared up at him in disbelief. "It really is true."
Clark closed his eyes.
"You're having an affair with Lex Luthor."
He blinked. And then narrowed his eyes in sudden revelation. "Look, Lois," he smiled toothily as he pulled her up from the sofa and propelled her to the door, "why don't we talk about all this later?" and locked the door firmly behind her.
He shoved the telephone line back into the wall plug and dialed Lex's personal phone. Lex answered on the second ring.
"Clark, this really isn't the time --"
"Exactly what damage control are you working on?"
There was a pause and then, "Lois came to see you?"
"You bet your lying ass she did."
There was a muffled cough in the background, and he heard Lex sharply dismiss someone.
"The paparazzi photographed us," Lex said tersely.
"Doing what?"
"Remember that night we were making chocolate-chip cookies when you just moved in?"
"Yeah?"
"And you had all that leftover melted chocolate?"
"Yeah?"
"And you hadn't gotten the curtains for your windows yet but Martha had already sent the curtain ties?"
"Yeah?"
There was a pregnant pause on Lex's side of the phone.
Clark dropped the receiver. "Oh. My. God." Lex said something else, but Clark didn't hear anything. He groped blindly behind him for the sofa and sat down on it hard. The receiver on the floor shouted his name a few times. Clark blinked at it.
"Alright, Clark," Lex voice came through finally. "I'm coming over."
"No! Wait!"
He grabbed for the phone too late. When he tried to dial Lex's personal line again, no one answered. Clark pressed his fingers to his eyes. He stood up and went to the windows and peered down, and sure enough there were already two white vans below him in the street.
"It's Christmas!" he muttered at the one reporter and the cameraman that was standing out in the snow. "Can't you have waited just one day?" He focused his eyes and was seriously contemplating burning the pants off the reporter and cameraman when a distinctive silver Porsche swerved up the street. Clark hid his face for a moment, not bearing to watch, but curiosity and a dread sense of morbidity finally got to him and he turned just in time to see not Lex but a tall reserved gentleman step out of the car. "A lawyer," Clark muttered under his breath, and watched keenly as the gentleman graciously served the reporter some papers. The reporter turned green and immediately he and the cameraman dismantled their equipment back into the van. At the same time, the gentleman flicked open his cell phone and said a few words, and a minute after, the second van squealed off.
Only after the two vans had left did Clark see Lex step out of the Porsche. He saw the lawyer nod politely at Lex before stepping back into the car and driving off. Lex stood in the snow for a moment, hands in his great coat, before walking away from the sidewalk. Clark watched him and thought hard.
By the time Lex knocked, Clark was calm and waiting at the door. "Nicely done," he said casually as he took Lex's coat from him.
Lex raised an eyebrow, surprised at Clark's turnabout. "Well, a little late," he replied cautiously, "but I thought it was well executed."
Clark nodded absently and walked over to the closet to hang up the coat. "But you know this is just a momentary solution."
"I've handled the incriminating photos," Lex frowned, "and the photographer has found a new career."
Clark closed the closet door with a firm click, and turned to face Lex. "Let's eat out tonight."
"I -" Lex cut himself off, shook his head in bewilderment. "Clark, what are you saying?"
All of a sudden, Clark smiled and in a few steps had Lex in his arms. "I mean," he murmured in Lex's ear, "that we should give the Metropolitan society some pictures to look at - but not too risqué for the old society matrons' sakes."
For a long minute, Lex was so quiet that Clark thought he was mistaken, and he was pulling back to look at Lex's face when Lex's arms suddenly came around him and pulled him viciously back in.
"Alright, Clark," Lex answered softly against Clark's lips, "alright."
~end~
Cross-posted here.
Title: Expose
Author: Corbeaun
Fandom: Smallville
Pairing: Clex
Summary: Futurefic. In which Lex gets called away and Clark freaks out.
Expose
by Corbeaun
The heater must have broken down sometime in the night. Lex bit back a curse when he climbed out of bed that morning, and frenetically grabbed for the clothes he had strewn on the floor the night before. He had just pulled on his trousers when the covers on the bed moved back to reveal a bleary-eyed Clark. "Lex, what's going on?" he asked drowsily.
Lex ignored him and rapidly buttoned his shirt. "I always knew those tales of you getting up with the sun were false, farm boy."
Clark blinked a couple of times. "It's Christmas," he frowned, much more awake now. "You are not going to Luthorcorp."
Lex had almost finished dressing. He shrugged into his great coat and stepped up to Clark's side of the bed. "Emergency. The plastics contract," he said briskly. The cell phone in his hand blinked urgently in agreement. He leaned down and quickly kissed Clark on the lips. "We'll dine in tonight," he added and was gone from the room before Clark could protest. The front door clicked shut half a second later.
Clark had only a minute to stare at his empty room before the pounding on his front door started.
"Come on, Smallville," Lois' voice boomed through his apartment, "open up!" Clark groaned and flopped back onto the bed, unable to believe this. A door opened in the hallway and Clark heard one of his neighbors tell Lois to shut up. "Look mister, my friend's in there and he might be dead or dying -- yeah, that's right, run away when a man needs help!" The pounding continued mercilessly. "I know you're in there, Clark! Now open the goddamn door!"
He flung open the door and Lois stalked in and whirled upon him. "You know how many time I've called you?" she snarled, stabbing him repeatedly in chest for emphasis. "Fifteen million times, that's how!"
Clark fumbled for his horn-rimmed glasses. "Dead or dying, Lois? What --"
"What the hell did you do to your phones?" she said, stalking away from him, picking up the disconnected phone lines.
"Really, Lois, I don't think that --"
She dropped the phone lines to grab the half-full wine bottle sitting on Clark's rickety coffee table. "And this! What's this?" She uncorked the bottle and sniffed the opening. Her eyes widened. "This brand isn't exported -- you can't get this unless you fly to France yourself." Which Lex actually had. Clark winced internally.
"Look, Lois, this really isn't --"
"And are these actually from Katmandu? When did you get the time or the money to jet set?"
"Honestly Lois, they're not really --"
He heard a terrible gasp and looked up to see Lois staring at him. "Oh my god," she croaked, and plopped down on the sofa. She stared up at him in disbelief. "It really is true."
Clark closed his eyes.
"You're having an affair with Lex Luthor."
He blinked. And then narrowed his eyes in sudden revelation. "Look, Lois," he smiled toothily as he pulled her up from the sofa and propelled her to the door, "why don't we talk about all this later?" and locked the door firmly behind her.
He shoved the telephone line back into the wall plug and dialed Lex's personal phone. Lex answered on the second ring.
"Clark, this really isn't the time --"
"Exactly what damage control are you working on?"
There was a pause and then, "Lois came to see you?"
"You bet your lying ass she did."
There was a muffled cough in the background, and he heard Lex sharply dismiss someone.
"The paparazzi photographed us," Lex said tersely.
"Doing what?"
"Remember that night we were making chocolate-chip cookies when you just moved in?"
"Yeah?"
"And you had all that leftover melted chocolate?"
"Yeah?"
"And you hadn't gotten the curtains for your windows yet but Martha had already sent the curtain ties?"
"Yeah?"
There was a pregnant pause on Lex's side of the phone.
Clark dropped the receiver. "Oh. My. God." Lex said something else, but Clark didn't hear anything. He groped blindly behind him for the sofa and sat down on it hard. The receiver on the floor shouted his name a few times. Clark blinked at it.
"Alright, Clark," Lex voice came through finally. "I'm coming over."
"No! Wait!"
He grabbed for the phone too late. When he tried to dial Lex's personal line again, no one answered. Clark pressed his fingers to his eyes. He stood up and went to the windows and peered down, and sure enough there were already two white vans below him in the street.
"It's Christmas!" he muttered at the one reporter and the cameraman that was standing out in the snow. "Can't you have waited just one day?" He focused his eyes and was seriously contemplating burning the pants off the reporter and cameraman when a distinctive silver Porsche swerved up the street. Clark hid his face for a moment, not bearing to watch, but curiosity and a dread sense of morbidity finally got to him and he turned just in time to see not Lex but a tall reserved gentleman step out of the car. "A lawyer," Clark muttered under his breath, and watched keenly as the gentleman graciously served the reporter some papers. The reporter turned green and immediately he and the cameraman dismantled their equipment back into the van. At the same time, the gentleman flicked open his cell phone and said a few words, and a minute after, the second van squealed off.
Only after the two vans had left did Clark see Lex step out of the Porsche. He saw the lawyer nod politely at Lex before stepping back into the car and driving off. Lex stood in the snow for a moment, hands in his great coat, before walking away from the sidewalk. Clark watched him and thought hard.
By the time Lex knocked, Clark was calm and waiting at the door. "Nicely done," he said casually as he took Lex's coat from him.
Lex raised an eyebrow, surprised at Clark's turnabout. "Well, a little late," he replied cautiously, "but I thought it was well executed."
Clark nodded absently and walked over to the closet to hang up the coat. "But you know this is just a momentary solution."
"I've handled the incriminating photos," Lex frowned, "and the photographer has found a new career."
Clark closed the closet door with a firm click, and turned to face Lex. "Let's eat out tonight."
"I -" Lex cut himself off, shook his head in bewilderment. "Clark, what are you saying?"
All of a sudden, Clark smiled and in a few steps had Lex in his arms. "I mean," he murmured in Lex's ear, "that we should give the Metropolitan society some pictures to look at - but not too risqué for the old society matrons' sakes."
For a long minute, Lex was so quiet that Clark thought he was mistaken, and he was pulling back to look at Lex's face when Lex's arms suddenly came around him and pulled him viciously back in.
"Alright, Clark," Lex answered softly against Clark's lips, "alright."
~end~