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Lex answered his phone and looked at Clark. He reached his index finger behind his earlobe. The boy of steel read the message without fail. Listen in.
‘I have an offer for you,’ said Chloe’s voice on the other side of the phone. ‘I know you’ve been trying to find a way to bring your father down. I can get you the confession you need.’
‘With Levitas?’ Lex stated rather than asked. And when Chloe didn’t respond, he added: ‘I know all about your little field trip to the plant the other night. So, what do you want in return?’
‘First, a job for my father. With a pay equal to the one he had.’
‘Done.’
‘Second, witness protection for both of us. I’ll be basically turning myself into a living target until Lionel’s behind the bars.’
‘Absolutely.’
‘And finally,’ Chloe hesitated, but clearly decided she could make as many demands as she willed, ‘You’ll give me an interview.’
Lex paused and exchanged looks with Clark. So far, Chloe’s offer was like Christmas coming early, but right now neither of them were sure this was worth the risk. What would happen if Lex revealed Clark’s secret? She had been the farm boy’s friend since forever, but he also knew her obsession with the truth and, what was worse, sharing the truth.
‘I’m gonna have to get back to you on that one,’ said Lex, ruling that this decision wasn’t only his to make.
‘Fine,’ replied Chloe, clearly discontented. ‘Just don’t think too long.’
‘What do you think?’ the billionaire addressed Clark as soon as he got off the phone.
‘It’s risky,’ Clark admitted. ‘She almost made Pete and my mum spill. Lex, if she starts asking you questions, sooner or later she’ll stumble upon a piece of information we don’t want her to have.’
Lex pondered.
‘What if she were to only ask one?’ the billionaire considered. ‘She has no idea about our relationship, so what are the odds of her asking about a secret she doesn’t even know I have?’
Clark tried to speculate how the conversation might go.
‘Chances are she’ll ask about your business or family relations,’ the boy of steel admitted, ‘but depending on how she phrases the question, she might still get something important out of you. If not about me, then about some other stuff you’d rather keep hidden.’
Lex sighed. He knew Clark was right. Ever since the bombing, he was bent on putting his father behind bars. He had a valid reason – Clark had filled him in on what Lionel erased from his memory – but still lacked evidence. This was his one chance to get it.
‘Such opportunity may not repeat itself,’ he noted. ‘But if you think she’s too much of a threat, I’ll find another way.’
Clark thought of this for a moment. He wasn’t ready for Chloe to find out about his secret, but Lex’s safety took precedence over everything else.
‘Let’s do this,’ he finally said.
‘Hey, don’t be so down in the dumps just yet,’ said Lex. ‘You may have mastered the art of making up excuses, but as far as evading questions without lying is concerned, you’ve got nothing on me.’
***
‘Okay, Chloe,’ Lex welcomed the aspiring journalist into the main room of his mansion. ‘As we agreed. You get one question.’
Chloe swallowed hard with excitement. Oh, had she waited for this. The truth was, she had intended to extort a confession from Lionel either way, but if she could gain something while doing so, why not take the opportunity?
‘Tell me, Lex,’ she started somewhat nervously. She had considered how to phrase her question all night yesterday. ‘What is your most guarded secret?’
Standing right behind her, Clark took a deep breath and looked at Lex with a rush of panic. The worst scenario was coming to pass. Unless there was something Lex hadn’t shared with him, he was now about to reveal the truth either about their relationship or Clark’s secret. The boy of steel wasn’t sure which would be worse. Meanwhile, the billionaire paused and swallowed slowly, evidently stalling, but both him and the boy of steel knew there was no way he could resist the journalist’s newly acquired power.
‘The identity of the person closest to my heart,’ he finally responded.
Chloe’s interest peaked. What a story! she thought, excited. Lex Luthor’s secret lover!
‘That is…?’ she urged.
‘Hey,’ Clark protested, ‘it was supposed to be only one question!’
But he saw Lex was already compelled to answer and there was nothing he could do to stop him. He exchanged gazes with Clark. Oh well, thought the farm boy. Guess we’ll end up on the cover of tomorrow’s “Torch”.
‘Standing in front of me,’ the young tycoon responded turning his eyes to meet the journalist’s and gifting her with the sweetest, most tender smile across his face.
Clark froze, absolutely stupefied. He needed a second to process his boyfriend’s unexpected subterfuge. And once he did, it took all of his self-control not to burst out laughing, as he looked at Chloe turn redder than a basket of freshly picked beetroots. Hopefully, it would finally teach his friend some restraint. He peeked at Lex who was doing his best to keep a straight face and preserve a nostalgic expression, but the farm boy knew the billionaire’s body language well enough to know that the minute twitch of the corner of his mouth meant he was actually choking on laughter.
‘Umm, I, uhh,’ she stuttered to both men’s utter amusement, ‘I-I’m sorry, Lex. I don’t… feel the same way.’
‘I know,’ he shrugged still sending her a kind smile. ‘And you’d never find out about my feelings if you hadn’t asked. Some secrets are better left unspoken.’
Clark observed the situation in silence. At first he found it amusing, but now as Lex kept sending their friend longing looks, he was beginning to find it disturbing. His boyfriend was too good of an actor.
Meanwhile, Chloe sighed nervously. The billionaire was right. For the first time in her life, the young journalist felt she’d been better off not knowing the truth.
‘Okay, so, uh,’ she was still short for words, ‘you guys arrange the meeting with Lionel, wire-tap me and I’ll get that confession out of him.’
Right after saying that, Chloe stormed out of the room. And not a moment too soon, because Lex felt he wouldn’t be able to control himself for another second.
‘She brought it upon herself,’ the billionaire concluded, giggling, ‘but I feel kinda sorry for her. Let’s just hope she doesn’t change her mind about me or this’ll get really awkward.’
But Clark didn’t respond. Instead, he walked towards the door and made sure it was closed. He then approached his boyfriend with a strange decisiveness in his gait and an oddly stern expression.
‘Clark?’ prompted the billionaire confused.
But he didn’t manage to say anything else as the farm boy’s lips suddenly pressed onto his in a possessive kiss. The boy of steel pressed Lex down until his back lay on the desk he had been leaning against. The billionaire felt his boyfriend’s fingers enfold his upper arms enough to let him feel his strength but not to cause him pain.
‘Uhh, Clark?’ said Lex when his boyfriend’s lips finally freed his mouth and were now restlessly wandering up and down his neck. ‘What are you doing?’
‘Seeing you act as if you had feelings for somebody else made my blood boil,’ he whispered right into the billionaire’s ear.
Lex raised his eyebrows and chuckled.
‘Clark Joseph Kent!’ the billionaire gasped with amusement. ‘Are you jealous?’
Clark pulled up and pushed his palm against Lex’s sternum. The billionaire now felt that this added weight limited his breath capacity but he found himself accepting this sensation. He met his boyfriend’s fierce gaze and revelled in the thrill it suddenly gave him. This was a side of Clark he had never experienced before.
‘Call it what you want,’ said the boy of steel imperiously once again pulling towards his boyfriend’s lips. ‘Just never do that again.’
***
‘I never knew you could cook chicken soup,’ said Martha rising up in the bed. She spoke in a quiet coarse voice.
‘Actually, it was Lex,’ Clark admitted, fixing the pillow under his mother’s back.
‘Lex?’ said Jonathan, his voice even weaker than Martha’s. ‘What’s he doing here?’
‘He wanted to go over some stuff before tomorrow’s hearing, so that we’re sure Lionel won’t get out on bail,’ Clark explained. ‘And when he heard you’re both sick, he offered to cook his nanny’s flu remedy.’
Normally, Jonathan Kent would at least react with a snarky remark. It told volumes about his state that he resolved to sipping the soup in silence instead.
***
‘How are they feeling?’ asked Lex when Clark returned downstairs.
‘Still not their best,’ said the farm boy with concern. ‘I think this is the first time I’ve seen them this sick.’
‘How did they even catch it here, on the farm?’ wandered Lex.
‘There was this guy here yesterday,’ Clark recalled. ‘Came to fix the CO detector or something. He was coughing pretty hard.’
‘Now that’s some tough luck,’ the billionaire commented. ‘But I guess it still beats having to worry about your safety.’
Chloe was going to be placed into FBI-ordered protective custody within days. In the meantime, Lex had arranged for her to go into hiding so that Lionel would have no means of getting to her. With Clark testifying, they expected the old billionaire was likely to make a move against him as well. Lex was so glad to know for certain that whatever devious plot his father might coin, his beloved was completely safe.
They were now sitting on the sofa in the Kents’ living room, going over the details of Clark’s testimony to make sure it was consistent and effective while at the same time not jeopardising the farm boy’s secret.
‘Lex, are you feeling okay?’ asked Clark. He had noticed that the billionaire’s voice quieted down untypically and a small wrinkle appeared on his boyfriend’s forehead.
‘It’s just a headache,’ Lex replied, rubbing his eyes. ‘I think all the recent madness is finally catching up with me.’
Clark embraced Lex’s chest and pulled him close, allowing the man’s back to rest against him. He then began gently massaging his neck.
‘Are you sure you’re not coming down with anything?’ he asked softly. ‘My parents’ cold started with a headache, too.’
‘Your parents don’t have my Krypton-issued immune system,’ Lex smiled confidently.
The boy of steel looked at him perplexed.
‘Oh, didn’t I tell you?’ Lex picked up on Clark’s expression. ‘The meteor shower cured my asthma and gave my white blood cells one hell of a boost. I have pretty high alcohol tolerance and I never get food poisoning, so sometimes I think it might’ve increased my resistance to poison. Psychoactive drugs still affect me, but they wear off faster than you’d expect. Too bad my dad knows about this or maybe I wouldn’t have ended up at Belle Reeve last year.’
‘Speaking of your dad,’ Clark suddenly remembered something. He reached into his jeans pocket and produced an old-fashioned brass key. ‘He sent me this a couple of days ago. Any idea where it leads?’
‘Oh, I know exactly where it leads,’ said Lex looking at the key. ‘I can show you if you wanna come over.’
Lex tried to get up but as blood rushed away from his brain with the sudden movement, debilitating throbbing overwhelmed him. He moaned and sat down again, pressing his fingers to his temples.
‘Maybe you shouldn’t be driving,’ said Clark with care.
The billionaire sighed. He had been trying to hide how severe his headache was, but he knew the farm boy was right. He passed Clark his car keys and got up again, this time much more slowly.
***
Lex’s white Carrera had most likely never seen such steady driving. Even though Clark was a confident driver, he simply never saw the need to go wild behind the wheel. Why bother if even the fastest car couldn’t match his speed even by a fraction?
‘How’s your head?’ asked the farm boy.
‘Actually better,’ responded Lex. ‘So if this driving style is on my behalf, you needn’t worry.’
‘It’s just the way I drive,’ said Clark, but he did accelerate a little.
One problem the boy of steel had always had with cars was that they couldn’t match his reaction time. No matter how early he spotted danger and how aptly he countered, the braking distance and the swerving path were dictated by the technical limitations of the vehicle. So when a young girl in a white dress appeared out of nowhere, Clark knew that despite hitting the brakes right away, the machine wouldn’t stop in time. Worse still, he also knew that with all his super-speed he only had the time to save one person. A choice, he would later realise with a shiver, that he made instantly and unhesitatingly.
Lex had hardly noticed a pale shape suddenly appearing in front of the Porsche, when he heard the tyres screech and felt being pushed out of the car. Next second, he was rolling on the ground, pressed securely into Clark’s chest, his head cradled firmly in the farm boy’s hand. They stopped when Clark’s back crashed into a tree.
‘You okay?!’ the boy of steel gasped, immediately scanning the billionaire for injury.
‘Yeah, I think,’ replied his boyfriend, sitting up. ‘What was that?’
Clark swallowed hard and looked towards the road. The wreck of the white Carrera lay in the ditch upside down, bent all over so much that it was now hard to even recognise the make. Clark knew what he would see when he looked at the blacktop and it mortified him.
‘A girl,’ he spoke barely audibly.
A shiver went down Lex’s spine. The state of the car made it obvious no one would survive the accident unless being saved by the boy of steel. And the girl hadn’t been. He had.
‘Stay here,’ he told Clark and walked back to the crash site.
Meanwhile, Clark sat under the tree, paralysed with terror. I killed someone, was going through his head over and over. Granted, the girl had appeared out of nowhere and he had to choose between saving her and Lex. Still, there was now blood on his hands and nothing could change that.
He felt dizzy from blood rushing into his head. Part of him wanted to scream, but his throat was all closed up. A strange instinct told him to run, but at the same time he found himself unable to move. Even though he didn’t need to breath, he started frantically gasping for air.
He didn’t even notice when Lex returned to his side. Only after his boyfriend wrapped him in his arms and pressed his head firmly into his chest did he snap out of it.
‘Clark,’ the billionaire said caringly, ‘are you listening?’
The boy of steel nodded, unable to control the quivers that took over his body.
‘There’s no one there,’ said Lex. ‘No signs of a hit, no blood – nothing.’
‘Wh-what?’ the farm boy stammered. ‘But I clearly saw…’
He pulled back a little and gave the area an x-ray. Lex was right. There was no sign a human body anywhere in the vicinity.
‘So did I,’ said Lex. ‘I couldn’t make out what it was, but there was clearly something.’
The billionaire, still holding Clark in a tight embrace, tried to consider different options. It didn’t take him long to come up with potential answers.
‘Either that girl was meteor-infected,’ he said, ‘or it was my father.’
‘You mean it was a trap?’
‘He was willing to blow up the whole plaza just to get rid of me,’ argued the billionaire. ‘What’s to say he didn’t set up a hologram to make me swerve off the road to my death? I wouldn’t be surprised if we found a projector somewhere in the trees, provided it hasn’t self-destructed.’
He looked down at Clark, whose face was once again buried in his long-sleeved T-shirt. He wasn’t shaking anymore and he was breathing steadily. Yet, he kept his arms wrapped around Lex’s waist with an odd intensity.
‘Even if there really was someone on that road,’ the boy of steel confessed quietly, ‘and even if I knew for sure it would kill them, I’d still make the same choice.’
Lex smiled softly. There was fright in Clark’s voice, a sense of guilt at the realisation he was actually able to sacrifice human life. But how could Lex not be happy knowing the sacrifice would be made on his behalf?
‘I know,’ he whispered back, gently kissing his beloved’s hair. ‘And I’d be by your side to help you pick up the pieces.’
***
They got to the mansion nearly two hours later, after Lex had overseen the towing company sweeping what used to be his Porsche off the blacktop. By the time it was done, Clark had fully regained his composure.
‘So, the key?’ he now asked.
‘See for yourself,’ said the billionaire. ‘Second door to the left.’
When Clark opened the old-fashioned wooden door, it revealed a vast windowless chamber. But it was only when Lex reached for a remote control on the wall by the entrance that the boy of steel realised what the room actually was.
The domed ceiling lit up with myriads of tiny white points along with blurry spots of nebulae. A ribbon of blue and gold flared out from one side to the other. Every now and again, a bright white streak flashed briefly across the artificial sky.
‘I didn’t plan on showing it to you before your birthday,’ said Lex somewhat apologetically.
Clark watched the dome of the planetarium completely mesmerised. Yet, after a moment, his face began to show confusion.
‘Doesn’t look quite familiar, does it?’ the billionaire guessed his thoughts.
‘I can’t recognise any of the constellations,’ Clark admitted. ‘I thought maybe it showed the southern hemisphere but that doesn’t work either.’
‘That’s because,’ said Lex triumphantly, ‘this is a hypothetical view of the night sky on Krypton.’
Clark’s lips parted in surprise as he looked at the billionaire.
‘How did you…?’
‘Oh,’ Lex shrugged, ‘I just told some talented MIT students they’ll get a ludicrous scholarship if they can prove their skills by working up a star map from a seemingly random point in the galaxy. Don’t worry, I made it seem like a rich eccentric’s whim. I doubt they’ll ever wonder why I chose that exact location. Especially since Krypton isn’t even there anymore.’
‘It’s beautiful,’ said Clark still looking at the projection with delight. ‘But it doesn’t make sense. What would Lionel possibly have to gain from showing me this?’
Lex sighed. He knew the question would be raised and had time to prepare his answer, but it still made him anxious.
‘It don’t think he even knows about this,’ he responded. ‘His purpose was most likely to show you what was here before.’
Lex paused. He knew he had no choice but to tell the truth. This is what Clark must’ve felt like when he told me he was an alien. Except, his secret was something he had no say in while the billionaire’s related to his own actions and choices.
‘This is where I used to keep everything regarding your superpowers,’ he confessed in one breath, fearing if he’d stopped mid-sentence, he wouldn’t be able to finish. ‘The Porsche I drove you off the bridge with, the hologram of the key to your spaceship, some bullets that hit you, a parasite from the Kawatche caves…’
He stopped to look at Clark. The boy of steel was doing his best to remain calm, but the billionaire could tell how upset he was.
‘You have to believe me when I tell you,’ Lex tried to tame the trembling of his voice, ‘I hadn’t come to this room since Summerholt and the night after the bombing I got rid of everything. I realised how dangerous it would be if anyone were to find it.’
Clark looked at the billionaire, his expression grim and entrenched.
‘I never meant to use whatever I found out against you. All I wanted was to solve a mystery that intrigued me.’ He paused and took a deep breath. ‘So, this is me hoping you’ll accept that my curiosity evens out against your secrecy.’
The boy of steel pondered for a moment that felt like eternity. Is this the end of us? Lex thought with a rush of panic. What he had done and that he had kept it a secret, especially after he had explicitly promised to stop, was a serious breach of trust. Clark had now every reason to walk away forever. Would Lex manage to ever win him over again?
But then the boy of steel let out a deep sigh and put his hands on the billionaire’s shoulders.
‘I so desperately wanna be mad at you,’ he said and Lex couldn’t stop himself from smiling as he recognised his own words, ‘but the thought of spending a single day away from you drives me insane. Besides, I’d be playing right into your father’s hand if I let it break us apart.’
***
‘I’ll have someone pick you up an hour before the hearing,’ said Lex on the phone the next morning.
‘Okay, I’ll be ready,’ replied Chloe. ‘And, Lex? I want my dad to stay here until we get that FBI-ordered protective custody. I’m worried Lionel might try to get to me through him.’
‘Sure, not a problem,’ said Lex.
He put down the phone and thought he was glad that with Clark’s invulnerability he had no such weaknesses. And then it hit him. He didn’t but Clark did.
They were too careless. It had, of course, occurred to Lex that Clark might become a target, but he dismissed the thought with a chuckle. What could possibly happen to Clark Kent? Granted, he did have a weakness, but Lionel had no way of knowing what it was (at times like this Lex was almost glad he didn’t either). Instead, he focused his resources on protecting Chloe and her father, conveniently assuming the boy of steel could handle himself and entirely forgetting that his parents could not.
He reached for his phone and called LuthorCorp’s chief accountant. But he already knew what he’d find out. Both Kents going down with a mysterious flu-like illness, his strange headache that passed as soon as he’d left the farm, all this right after someone tampered with the CO detector. Someone who, as the accountant now confirmed, was paid by his father.
On the way to the garage, he tried calling Clark, but he didn’t answer, so instead he texted him: “Get home ASAP” and drove off.
Fifteen minutes later, he was in front of the Kents’ farm. He tried knocking but when no one answered, he barged in. He found Clark’s parents unconscious in their bedroom. He bent over, lifted Martha in his arms and ran outside.
‘Lex, what happened?!’ he heard the farm boy’s voice from behind him as we was laying down Mrs Kent against a nearby tree.
‘Gas leak!’ he explained as briefly as he could. ‘That’s what made them sick and gave me the headache. Get your dad!’
The boy of steel dashed inside and, within seconds, lay his unconscious father next to his mother.
‘Did he do this?’ asked Clark while they were waiting for the ambulance.
‘Without doubt,’ said Lex. ‘I found evidence in the accounting. I should’ve realised sooner! Clark, I was so glad he couldn’t get to you whatever he did, I never for a second thought he can come after your parents!’
***
Lex was sitting in the hospital corridor, anxiously awaiting any news. He knew with all the overwhelming clarity of that realisation that what happened was his fault and his entirely. The Kents got in the middle of his struggle against his father. If he had found anyone else to testify instead of Clark, none of this would’ve happened. If he had realised sooner that they were at risk, just as Chloe did with her dad, he could’ve kept them safe. If he hadn’t become involved with Clark in the first place, his beloved’s family wouldn’t be fighting for their lives. Whatever consequences they would suffer, he now thought in the cold brightness of the busy corridor, would be entirely on him.
In the corner of his eye, he spotted Clark approaching nervously.
‘And?’ he prompted impatiently, getting up.
‘Mum’s gonna be okay. They want to keep her in for observation for a couple of days,’ said the farm boy to Lex’s visible relief. ‘But dad…’
Clark looked at Lex and the billionaire noticed tears building up in his boyfriend’s eyes.
‘Dad’s in a coma,’ he said and it was as if the hospital walls collapsed onto them. ‘They suspect brain damage. He might never wake up.’
‘Clark,’ Lex could barely summon his voice, ‘I’m so sorry.’
But Clark sniffed and brushed tears off his cheeks.
‘Come on, we’ve got less than two hours to get to Metropolis,’ he said.
‘You still wanna testify?’ the billionaire had completely forgotten about the hearing.
‘Lionel almost killed my parents,’ the farm boy replied with grim resolution, ‘and he’s gotta pay for that.’
***
Between Belle Reeve, Summerholt and the tampering with the CO detector, it wasn’t difficult to convince the judge to deny Lionel Luthor bail. After the matter was settled, Clark and Lex visited the hospital once again to check in on the Kents. Having learnt that there was no change in Jonathan’s condition and Martha was well taken care of, they went back to Lex’s mansion.
‘Lex, I know what you’re doing,’ Clark spoke up. The billionaire had been quiet and pensive all evening, avoiding Clark’s gaze and doing all he could to get out of his way. ‘Stop acting like it’s your fault.’
‘Well, isn’t it?’ said Lex bitterly.
‘Lex, I would’ve testified even if we were just friends,’ said the farm boy, taking Lex’s hand and pulling him closer. ‘Or even if we weren’t. That’s just the right thing to do. If anyone’s to blame for what’s happened, it’s me. If I had gone to see Lionel about the key, as he’d expected, he would’ve thought I’d taken the bait and laid off. This happened because I ignored him and he panicked.’
‘Clark, no,’ the billionaire put his other hand on his beloved’s cheek, ‘don’t do that. This happened because I dragged you into this idiotic game he’s been playing. I should’ve thought about your family’s safety like Chloe thought of hers.’
But the boy of steel shook his head, put is arms around Lex’s shoulders and held him close to his heart. Then he buried his head in the billionaire’s shoulder. For a moment Lex thought he might be crying, but instead he heard a soft, calm whisper.
‘Just don’t go anywhere. You’re the only thing I’ve got left.’
Lex put his arms around Clark’s broad back and hugged him tenderly. Of course he wasn’t going anywhere. No matter how bad things were, there was absolutely nowhere he’d rather be.
Clark had actually been glad to have kept himself occupied throughout the day. It kept the terrifying thoughts at bay. Now, as night drew near, he found those thoughts creeping right into his mind and there was little he could do to stop them anymore.
What would his life be like from now on? What if the doctors were right and his dear dad was truly never waking up? It would be just him and his mum from now on. He imagined her heartbroken, depressed, overwhelmed with grief. Would he be able to provide her the support she would need?
‘I should head back,’ he finally said. ‘I can’t leave the farm unattended while mum and dad are in hospital.’
‘Mind if I tag along?’ asked Lex. ‘My Ferrari’s still there.’
Before they left, Lex grabbed a paper file off his desk.
‘Here, in case you wanna get your mind off things’ he said, passing the documents to the farm boy. ‘I pulled it up last night after you left. It’s a list of young female meteor shower victims. Maybe one of them will resemble our mysterious encounter from last night?’
‘You think she was a meteor-charged ghost?’ Clark had almost forgotten about their crash.
‘You don’t think that’s possible?’
Clark shrugged. Of course it was possible. And he was grateful for anything that could provide even a momentary distraction from his father’s state.
***
When they arrived at the farm, they were surprised to notice someone standing at the porch despite the late hour. Upon closer inspection, their shock grew even more. It was a young blonde-haired woman in a white dress. Even Lex, who hadn’t had a closer look, realised immediately who she was.
‘Kal-El,’ she spoke approaching him and Lex noticed the unfamiliar name had given him a start. ‘I have come to take you home.’
‘Who are you?’ the boy of steel asked, confused, and simultaneously took a step to protectively put himself in front of Lex.
‘I am Kara of Krypton,’ said the girl. ‘Now that humans have murdered your adoptive father, it is high time that you returned to your real family and accepted your legacy.’
‘My dad isn’t dead!’ Clark protested. ‘And my family is here, on Earth!’
‘His body might be kept alive,’ Kara spoke dispassionately, ‘but his mind is gone. You’re all alone here, Kal-El. So come home with me instead.’
Kara’s words hit Clark hard. She was simply confirming what the doctor had implied to him, but he had refused to give up hope. To have the matter stated so coldly and matter-of-factly hurt him to the core.
‘He’s not alone!’ Lex protested. ‘He never will be!’
Kara turned her gaze to Lex and squinted angrily.
‘You’re not a part of this conversation, human,’ she hissed.
Her eyes turned red and her pupils began to glow orange. Clark noticed it immediately and knew what it presaged. He pushed Lex behind him right as the hot beams shot out of the girl’s eyes. He groaned painfully as they burnt his skin, sizzled on his muscles and reached a bone before the girl stopped. He covered the burn with his palm, moaning achingly, as it slowly healed.
‘Try hurting him again,’ he snarled, ‘and you’ll be sorry you ever came to Smallville!’
The girl hesitated, gauging the situation.
‘I apologise,’ she said cautiously after a moment. ‘I misjudged the situation. It was never my intention to antagonise you, Kal-El.’
‘Either way,’ said Clark, checking that his wound healed, ‘I’m not going anywhere. This is my home.’
‘But you must!’ Kara protested with a confused expression. ‘Kal-El, we’re the last children of Krypton! It is our legacy and our duty to ensure the survival of our kind!’
‘You want me to bed you?!’ Clark uttered with utmost disgust.
Kara now stepped forward and placed her hand on his cheek.
‘I know that right now I feel like a stranger to you,’ she said lovingly. ‘But I’m convinced that with time you’ll realise I’m the best you could wish for and you’ll grow to love me, just like your real parents did.’
Startled, the sound of pumping blood throbbing in his ears, the farm boy wanted to back away, but she made nothing of it. Meanwhile, Lex recognised instantly how upset his boyfriend was, struggling with all his might not the give in to a panic attack caused by this sudden female touch. But the billionaire knew if he wanted to help his beloved, he couldn’t afford to act rashly. The girl was clearly at least as strong as the boy of steel.
‘And then what?’ he asked matter-of-factly.
Kara looked at him, puzzled.
‘Let’s say you two have children,’ Lex elaborated. ‘And then what? They’re all siblings, so unless Kryptonians practised incest, I don’t really see that going further than one generation. Hardly a survival strategy.’
Lex’s plain argument rendered Kara speechless. Her lower lip wavered as she was desperately trying to find an answer to the billionaire’s conundrum. This hesitation gave Lex enough time to finally have a closer look at the girl’s face.
‘You’re not Kryptonian!’ he gasped, reaching for the file Clark had dropped to the ground when Kara attacked Lex with her heat vision. He flipped through the print-outs inside and found the sheet of paper he was looking for. ‘You’re Lindsay Harrison! You went missing after the meteor shower.’
He passed the document to Clark.
‘You haven’t aged a day,’ the boy of steel noted.
‘N-no,’ Lindsay shook her head frantically. ‘I am Kara of Krypton. I have been waiting for you, Kal-El, to take you back to your father when the time was right.’
‘Lindsay,’ Clark approached her carefully, ‘Jor-El is using you. Why else would you look exactly like the girl on the photo?’
The girl began hyperventilating and looking around agitatedly, as if looking for a solution. Then, faster than either of the men could react, she threw herself into Lex’s arms and kissed him adamantly. Clark tried catching her by the arm, but before he could, the girl’s body turned into dust right in his hands.
‘Are you okay?’ he addressed Lex.
But Lex stood there, eerily calm and quiet.
‘Let us go,’ he finally said in a cold voice.
‘Go where?’ asked Clark.
He caught Lex by the upper arm to stop him, but the billionaire caught his wrist and pulled it away. Clark immediately noticed the unnatural strength of his boyfriend’s grip. It was actually causing him pain.
‘Who are you?!’ he demanded.
‘Your friend will remain unharmed,’ whoever controlled Lex replied in the same emotionless tone, ‘provided you come with me.’
Clark determined he had no choice but to follow Lex. He fought to keep calm, but the thought of some entity, possibly Jor-El, overtaking his beloved’s body and stripping off his free will, was driving him mad.
Pretty soon he guessed where they were going. The Kawatche caves.
‘Kal-El, my son,’ Jor-El’s voice greeted him as soon as he approached.
‘Release Lex,’ ordered Clark. ‘Then we can talk.’
‘I shall release your friend once you come with me.’
‘No!’ the boy of steel protested. ‘First you let him go and then I’ll listen to what you have to say. And just so we’re clear, if you hurt him, I’ll bury these caves under tonnes of rubble! Without the spaceship you’ll never be able to reach me again!’
Jor-El fell silent for a second.
‘So be it,’ he finally ruled.
Lex moaned, staggered momentarily and looked around in confusion.
‘Lex, are you all right?’ asked Clark caringly as he embraced his boyfriend.
‘I’m fine,’ the billionaire muttered. ‘Other than a memory lapse.’
‘Don’t worry,’ the farm boy reassured softly. ‘You only lost a couple of minutes. My biological father was controlling you. I was with you the whole time.’
Clark had made sure his beloved was truly fine before addressing Jor-El again.
‘As promised, Jor-El,’ he said, ‘I’m listening.’
‘You must come with me, my son,’ the voice echoed throughout the cave. ‘It is time you accepted your legacy as the son of Krypton.’
‘And make some fake Kryptonian babies?’ he derided.
‘That… was my lapse of judgment,’ Jor-El admitted. ‘A failed attempt to encourage you to choose the right path. Thus far, you were raised as a human, Kal-El. Now it is time you be reborn and know your Kryptonian heritage.’
‘I have no intention of becoming a Kryptonian,’ Clark protested. ‘I may have been born there but Krypton is gone and I live on Earth now!’
Lex noticed the boy of steel had clenched his fists and right now his hands were shaking. He’s scared, the billionaire realised. He can’t be sure Jor-El won’t take him against his will. He reached out his hand and folded it over Clark’s fist. The boy of steel promptly opened up his palm and entwined his fingers tightly with Lex’s.
‘What is it that he can’t do the way he is now?’ Lex asked, trying not to sound demanding. The last thing he wanted was to anger an entity that apparently could control his mind and who knew what else.
‘Kal-El is weak. Too weak to face what’s coming,’ Jor-El replied.
‘So what? You’re gonna transform my body to be even stronger than it is now?’ Clark enquired.
‘It is your mind that needs transforming,’ said the Kryptonian. ‘Humanity has made you weak.’
‘No,’ said Clark. ‘Forget it. I don’t care what calamity you’re trying to scare me with, I’m not going with you. I won’t let you take away what makes me human.’
Jor-El went silent and for a moment both men hoped he had given up. But as they were ready to turn around and leave, the voice spoke again.
‘What if Jonathan’s health could be restored?’ he bargained.
Lex could feel Clark’s hand twitch.
‘You’re lying,’ said the boy of steel in a trembling voice.
‘If you come with me, my child,’ the voice reassured him, ‘it will be possible to heal him.’
Clark swallowed hard. Lex looked at his lost expression, as he breathed heavily and frantically tried to make a decision. Or, rather, tried to come to terms with the only decision he could make.
‘Go,’ he whispered.
Clark looked at him frightfully.
‘Lex…’ he said, ‘I might not be the same person. I might forget you. I might not even return at all.’
‘I know,’ said the billionaire, forcing a faint smile onto his lips. ‘But your dad will be alive and well again.’
Clark sighed. Deep inside he knew that was an offer he couldn’t afford to refuse. He stood opposite Lex and hugged him dearly, tenderly.
‘Forgive me,’ he whispered in a broken voice.
Lex pulled back just a little and pressed Clark’s fist against his heart.
‘There’s nothing to forgive,’ he said softly, fighting back tears. ‘You’ve made my life complete.’
Walking away from Lex towards the light-filled crack in the cave wall, Clark felt his heart shatter into a thousand pieces. He kept looking back, desperately trying to remember his beloved’s face, his eyes, his silhouette, his soft sad smile. He struggled to imprint those images in his brain, to make them the core of his self, but he had no idea whether this self would even still exist by the time his biological father was done with him.