This terrific cover was made by LauraB. Thank you so much, hon!

Human Behaviour

by Suz suzvoy@tesco.net

 

Disclaimer - WB and DC own 'em.

 

It's Clex. It's definitely an AU. I'd better rate this NC-17 to be on the safe side. This is going to be longer than usual for me, but I don't envision it as being ginormous. I guess we'll see!

 

Many, many thanks to my smoochie. *smooch*

 

Feedback would be great :)

 

*

 

Clark's initial impression of Lex could be summed up with one word:

 

Bald.

 

Which was rapidly followed by the feeling that he had to get to know him better. Clark wasn't sure why, but there was something intriguing about Lex, something that made Clark keep sneaking looks at him, and it wasn't just the way he looked.

 

Or not entirely.

 

Plus, Lex always seemed kind of lonely, and Clark's need to protect people had long since stopped just manifesting itself in his attempts to rescue the residents of Smallville from whatever the latest meteor mutant was. When he saw someone needing help of any kind, he had to intervene.

 

Steeling himself - it was ridiculous he felt this nervous; he was only trying to make a new friend - Clark's hand tightened on the duffel bag he'd slung over his shoulder, and he started making his way across the quad.

 

"Hi," he began when he reached the bench, "you're in my psychology class, right?"

 

Looking up from his book, Lex seemed a little surprised before smiling slightly. "I think so. With Taylor? 10 am tomorrow?"

 

"Yeah," Clark nodded, relieved that he'd at least been recognised. "I don't suppose you could do me a huge favour and lend me your notes from the last class?" He knew for a fact that Lex kept meticulous notes - he'd watched him working on them in class. "I, uh, kinda got distracted and forgot to make my own." More like deliberately burnt them with his heat vision so he'd force himself to do this, but Lex didn't need to know that.

 

"I hear that can happen in Taylor's classes," Lex replied with a touch of wry humour. "He's not the most...attention grabbing speaker."

 

Pleased, Clark grinned. "I love the subject, don't get me wrong. But I tend to enjoy it more when I'm really getting into the material, you know? Not listening to Mr Taylor drone on."

 

Nodding his understanding, Lex carefully placed a bookmark between the pages he was reading, closed the book, and placed it down on the bench. His own bag was resting on the ground between his feet and as he picked it up and started pulling a folder from it, Clark frowned.

 

They hadn't even had psych today, and Lex was carrying his notes around with him. Clark supposed he could have just been dedicated; he did always seem incredibly focused in class.

 

Shifting his stance a little, Clark's gaze moved to the book Lex had been reading. It was about psychology, all right, but it wasn't one of their course textbooks, and it definitely wasn't on the required reading list.

 

Maybe he was just really fascinated by the subject.

 

"Here," Lex said, holding out a few sheets of paper that'd been in the folder. "You're lucky. I didn't find that much to make notes of, this time." His lips quirked up slightly, making fun of himself. "Have you done the required reading?"

 

"Yeah," Clark nodded, taking the paper. "At least I remembered that." Grinning, he glanced down at the unsurprisingly neat handwriting. "Seriously, thank you *so* much. You're like...really cool." Okay, *that* was lame.

 

"I can't say I've ever been called that before," Lex replied, obviously amused.

 

Embarrassed though Clark was, he was starting to realise that Lex was in no way the shy guy he'd thought he was. Lex wasn't shy. He was just busy.

 

Clearing his throat, Clark waved the papers around. "It shouldn't take me long to copy these. Where can I find you later to return them?" So that probably wasn't subtle. But he really wanted to know which dorm Lex was in. He had a suspicion, but...

 

"You can just give them back to me in class tomorrow," Lex replied easily.

 

Damn. "Oh. Right, okay-"

 

"Or, uh..." For the first time since the conversation had started, Lex looked uncertain.

 

"Yeah?" Clark asked, wondering if he really sounded as hopefully pathetic as he thought he did.

 

"You could always drop them off when you're done tonight. I'm in Baker. 211."

 

Trying to hold back a huge grin, Clark hoped he sounded as calm and suave as he was going for. "Sounds good. I have a few things to do," like talk to Chloe and try not to panic, "but I should be able to drop by around...seven?"

 

"That's fine," Lex said, closing the folder and working it back into his bag. "I guess I'll see you then."

 

"Right," he replied. "See you then." Right. "Thanks again, Lex."

 

Dropping the bag to the ground, Lex nodded back at him. "No trouble at all, Clark."

 

It was only as he walked away that Clark realised they'd never exchanged names.

 

*

 

As it turned out Chloe was behind on her reading and couldn't meet up with him anyway. So, having to forego the Chloe Sullivan pep talk (she was usually good at making him do what he actually wanted to do), Clark set off for Baker Hall with the notes in hand.

 

Arriving at the dorm building a little before seven, Clark was surprised to see Lex waiting around outside the main door. Was ridiculously pleased, even. It was almost as if Lex had been waiting for him.

 

Spotting him, Lex lifted his head and stepped further away from the building. "Needed some air," he offered as explanation before nodding back towards the building. "Come on. Let's go see how identical our rooms are."

 

It was a pretty lame joke, really. Clark could only hope it meant Lex was as nervous as he was.

 

Feeling a little more confident, Clark followed him into the building and then up a flight of stairs. The building seemed pretty much identical to Clark's dorm, but he supposed that made sense. Most of the dorms had been built around the same time so he figured they'd gone with one design and stuck with it.

 

When they reached Lex's floor, quite a few of the doors were open. Some students were going in and out of different rooms, or sprawled across their beds studying, or...Clark blushed and pulled his gaze away from the doorway he'd just passed. He was pretty sure *that* sight hadn't been meant for the public.

 

211 was one of the doors that was closed, and when they reached it Lex unlocked and opened it up. "This is it," he said needlessly, stepping inside and holding the door open for Clark. "Make yourself comfortable."

 

Taking the weight of the door from Lex, Clark stepped in after him and then let the door click shut. "Thanks." Looking around, he saw that their rooms really were similar. Like Clark - although unlike a majority of students - Lex had a room to himself. Clark's was a necessity due to the rare but still occasional bout of sleep flying, and though he didn't know Lex's reason it did seem to fit what he knew of the guy so far.

 

There were books. A *lot* of books. All of them about psychology, the human mind or the brain itself. Moving closer to better examine the contents of the various bookshelves that'd been crammed into the small room, Clark shook his head in wonder and then looked back over his shoulder. "Something tells me you're taking a lot of psych courses." He was careful to keep his tone teasing - he didn't want to come across like he was making some kind of judgement about it.

 

"People fascinate me," Lex admitted, sitting on the edge of his neatly-made bed with his hands clasped together, apparently not minding at all. "I like to know what makes them tick. Why they do the things they do. Why they are the way they are."

 

Clark could understand that to at least some degree. He'd taken psychology purely because he was an alien, and though he felt human he was hoping pscyhology would at least teach him something about *being* human.

 

Realising, then, exactly what Lex had said, Clark frowned and turned his whole body around to face him. "You said 'they'."

 

"Sorry?" Lex asked, looking up from where he'd been picking at his jeans.

 

"You said you wanted to know about 'them'. Not 'us', or 'we'." He smiled gently. "You're human too, Lex."

 

Grinning - and wow, that was really nice - Lex nodded in almost absent agreement. "Some days it doesn't feel like it."

 

"I can understand that," Clark retorted with a smile, definitely meaning it, before turning back to look at the shelves again. Eventually spying something crammed between the books, Clark's curiousity got the better of him. Placing the borrowed notes on top of a stack of books, he carefully pried the object free...and his eyes went wide. "Oh my God, Warrior Angel?!"

 

He'd never even heard Lex move, but suddenly he was standing behind him. "You like Warrior Angel?"

 

"I *love* it," Clark declared, grinning broadly as he spun around, holding up the comic. "Totally my brother's fault - he got me into it when we first met, and that was it. I was hooked."

 

Obviously confused, Lex frowned at him. "When you first met...?"

 

"Ryan's adopted," Clark explained. "He's a great kid. Man, he'd love this." Glancing down at the comic, he smiled again. "You're gonna have to meet him some day. He always feels reassured when he finds another like-minded geek."

 

Lex narrowed his eyes. "That would imply that I'm a geek."

 

"Yup," Clark replied, feeling way more comfortable than he would have expected. "It would."

 

Faking an annoyed look, Lex snatched the comic out of Clark's hand. "People who call me a geek don't get to touch my comic books."

 

Catching the humour in Lex's face, Clark laughed and followed him as he headed back towards the bed. Pausing near the bedside table, Clark jammed his hands into the pockets of his jeans. Resting on the table was a lamp, an alarm clock, a book (no surprise there), and a picture of a red haired woman. She reminded him a lot of Mom. "Is that your Mom? She's really pretty."

 

Sitting on the bed again, Lex looked towards the photo. "Yeah. That's my favourite picture of her."

 

He wasn't really smiling *or* frowning, but Lex's tone was so full of obvious fondness that Clark suddenly had a horrible feeling. "Oh God, I'm sorry. Is she...?"

 

Definitely wearing a clear expression now, Lex pulled his gaze away from the picture to smile up at him. "Relax, Clark. She's alive."

 

"Oh." Oh, good. "Glad to hear it. So, how long have you been reading Warrior Angel?" The change in topic might have been a bit obvious, but when Lex indicated for Clark to sit down next to him on the bed and they started sharing their own personal comic book histories, neither of them seemed to mind.

 

*

 

"Mind if I sit here?"

 

Jerking in surprise, Clark looked up to see Lex standing over him. "Hi! No, not at all. Help yourself." He had, in fact, been wondering if he should go and sit next to Lex whenever he saw him walk by, but they'd been in the semester long enough by now that people had unofficially laid claim to specific seats, and they tended to sit in the same place every class. Clark hadn't wanted to tread on anyone's toes, but if Lex wasn't going to care than neither was he. "How're you?"

 

"Good," Lex replied, slipping into the seat next to Clark's and pulling his folder out of his bag. "Had a dream about Warrior Angel last night." He glanced towards Clark and the grin was positively *wicked*. "I blame you, of course. How about you?"

 

"No exciting dreams to report," Clark sighed dramatically, pleased at the smile it brought out of Lex, "but they had my favourite cereal at breakfast this morning. That's definitely something worth celebrating."

 

"Practically makes the whole college experience worthwhile," Lex agreed, nodding sagely as he located a pen and turned to a fresh sheet of paper in the folder.

 

Last night had gone well. *Really* well. So well that, after leaving Lex's room, Clark had grinned the entire way back to his own room. And when he'd eventually gotten changed for bed. And when he actually lay in bed, staring at the ceiling. And yeah, he had kinda been forced to admit to himself that it wasn't just friendship he wanted from Lex. Clark didn't typically grin like a maniac everytime he thought of someone he considered just a friend.

 

The big dilemma, of course, was that he had no idea if Lex liked guys, or liked him. He'd barely seen Lex interacting with anyone at all other than Professor Taylor, but that did actually give him some hope. Lex didn't seem to go seeking anyone out and yet here he was, deliberately sitting next to him. It could have simply been friendship - which would still be great - but Clark was just going to have to wait and see.

 

The suspense was killing him. In a *really* good way.

 

Professor Taylor called for everyone's attention, then, and class began. Lex was instantly hunched over his folder, ready to make notes. He seemed so absolutely dedicated, which was no doubt great for his grade average and pretty much adorable to Clark. Shifting in his seat, Clark made a point to focus on the professor and make his own notes.

 

That was really the extent of their interaction in class. Occasionally they'd glance over and smile at each other, but Lex was way too into his work for anything else no matter how boring they'd both agreed Professor Taylor was. Clark got called on to answer a question once, and thankfully got it right, but it wasn't until class ended that Lex said anything.

 

"You actually study," he teased.

 

"Yeah," Clark snorted, following Lex up the steps that led out of the room, "thanks to you."

 

"Oh, that's right," Lex said, obviously faking realising something. "The notes you needed to borrow from me." Waiting until they were out in the corridor, Lex stepped to one side and turned to face him. "The notes I could have sworn I saw you making in the previous class."

 

Clark went bright red. There was absolutely no way to ignore the knowing look on Lex's face, or the fact that when he hadn't been looking at Lex, Lex had apparently been looking at him. Which shouldn't have been possible given Lex's obsession with the class. "Guess you must be mistaken." He really hadn't gotten much better at lying.

 

"Hmm," Lex replied, "I guess so." Smirking, he brushed by Clark and continued along the corridor.

 

Jogging a few paces to catch up with him, Clark cleared his throat. "So...you have any classes now?"

 

"Nothing until this afternoon."

 

Excellent. "You wanna go grab a coffee?"

 

He didn't pause walking, but Lex did glance down at the bag he was carrying in his left hand. Apparently reaching a decision, he looked back up Clark. "Sure. I could probably stand to study a little less for once. I think I inherited my Dad's severe workaholism."

 

Pleased as Clark was, he screwed his face up. "Is that even a word?"

 

Lex met his gaze. "Do you want to go for coffee?"

 

"Sure."

 

"Then it's a word."

 

Clark could go with that.

 

There was a coffee place just off campus that a lot of the students went to and by the time they arrived it was already packed. Clark had just spied a couple about to leave a table when he saw Whitney at another table, waving at him, obviously indicating that he had free seats. Great. He'd known the guy forever, and as much as he just wanted to be alone with Lex right now, ignoring Whitney would probably be something that'd come back and bite him in the ass.

 

Plus, you know. Not very nice.

 

Plastering a smile on his face, Clark led the way to the table. "Hey, Whitney."

 

The two friends Whitney was with were apparently just leaving, as they briefly said hello to Clark and then vacated the chairs. Clark had a vague recollection of meeting them before but had no idea what their names were, and then he was sitting down and nodding towards Lex to take the other chair.

 

"Hey, Clark," Whitney smiled. "How's it going?"

 

"Pretty good; just had psych." Deciding introductions were in order, Clark continued. "This is my friend, Lex. Lex? Whitney Fordman."

 

Apparently recognising the name, Lex's expression loosened. "Whitney Fordman? 'Star' Quarterback?"

 

Whitney was used to that by now, and he never really seemed to mind the attention. But then Clark knew for a fact that Whitney's Dad was an ass, so he probably appreciated it. "Yeah. I swear, that's gonna be my epitaph." It was probably true. Whitney was just as popular at college as he had been in high school - sports were big business everywhere.

 

"Clark," Lex began, leaning back in his chair, "you didn't tell me you had friends in high places."

 

Recognising the gently mocking tone in Lex's voice, Clark turned to face him. "Oh, you know. I try to get by on my own merits." And...yeah. Clark could see how it'd seem strange that a guy like Whitney would even sit with a kid from Nowheresville, USA, but Whitney was a genuinely decent guy. The fact that Clark had saved his life more than once probably helped, too. "Okay, what do you want to drink?"

 

"I'll get them," Lex said, standing up and placing a hand on Clark's shoulder. "What do you want?"

 

There were *so* many answers to that question, but Clark managed to blurt out a coffee-related one. After checking if Whitney wanted anything, Lex headed off to order and Clark turned back to face Whitney.

 

Who was grinning.

 

Clark frowned. "Everything all right?"

 

"Fine, fine," Whitney answered, sipping at what was left of his drink. "You spoken to Chloe lately?"

 

"Not for a couple of days."

 

"You should," he said mysteriously, seeming really pleased about something.

 

What the heck did that mean? "Why?"

 

Refusing to elaborate, Whitney ignored any more questions and turned the conversation towards football. Clark couldn't blame him - football was practically his whole life. When Lex returned with the drinks a few minutes later, they'd just begun reminiscing about Smallville.

 

"Man, do you remember Coach Arnold?" Whitney asked as Clark blew gently at his coffee. "He was a psycho. He was a great coach, had worked there forever but, you know," he lifted his eyebrows and leered towards Lex, "nutty as a fruit cake."

 

Seeming uncomfortable, Lex shifted in his chair, but before Clark had a chance to ask him if everything was all right, he spoke. "So, how long have you two known each other?"

 

"Must be going on..." Whitney looked at Clark. "...what? Fifteen years?"

 

"Sounds about right," Clark agreed, before speaking to Lex. "We went all through school together."

 

"Is that right?" Lex asked, sipping carefully at his latte. There was something almost suspicious about his tone, and he kept looking between the two of them and...oh.

 

"How's Lana?" Clark suddenly asked as possible damage control, hoping that Whitney was please going to mention that Lana was his girlfriend so there was therefore no chance of anything happening between him and Clark.

 

Whitney's whole face softened - Lana was the part of his life that wasn't football. "I got another letter the other day. She's good...says it's kinda scary, which I think I can understand, but she is enjoying it. I think it'll be good for her, you know?" He sounded like he'd been spending a lot of time convincing himself of that.

 

"I'm sure it will be," Clark assured him, forgetting all about Lex for a while. "You guys are still gonna meet up in Spring break, right?"

 

"Yeah," Whitney smiled. "Trying to figure out if I should go to Paris, or she should come back here."

 

"I'm sure you'll figure it out."

 

"Yeah." He grinned down at his empty coffee cup, before looking back up sharply. "Well, I better go. Football waits for no man." Picking his sports bag up from the floor, he hooked the handle over his shoulder and stood up. "See you around, Clark. Nice meeting you, Lex."

 

"You too," Lex replied, and then Whitney was making his way out of the shop. A few moments later, Lex was sipping at his drink again. "Seems like a nice guy."

 

"He is," Clark insisted. "He used to be...not quite so nice. But his dad had a heart attack a few years ago, and I think it put some stuff into perspective for him, you know?" He sighed briefly. "Anyway, how's your coffee?"

 

Conversation went from class, to Professor Taylor impressions, to favourite TV shows. Lex apparently hadn't watched all that much for the last few years, so Clark made a mental list of things he *had* to show him eventually. More than once Clark said, "Seriously, Lex, you don't know what you're missing," until Lex finally got him to admit that he was something of a geek, too.

 

They drank countless cups of coffee (it didn't affect Clark all that much, and Lex seemed just as impervious), shared something that might have been a sandwich when they got hungry, and almost before Clark knew it Lex was pulling up his sleeve to look at his watch.

 

"I have to head off, I'm afraid. My next class is in a few minutes."

 

Surprised to realise it was nearly 1:30, Clark grabbed his bag and stood up. "Yeah, I should go, too. Have someplace I should be." Someplace he *should* have been half an hour ago. He really was going to have to keep better track of time while he was around Lex.

 

Slowly meandering back to campus together, they talked the whole way. More than once Clark laughed at something Lex had said and, disappointingly, it didn't take them long at all to reach the building Lex's class was in.

 

"Well," Lex said, "this is my stop."

 

Nodding, Clark pointed to a building on the other side of the quad with the finger from the hand that was holding his bag over his shoulder. "I'm over there." Lowering the finger, he bounced momentarily on the balls of his feet. "I guess I'll see you later." He was seriously fighting the urge to do something ridiculously girly, like kiss Lex on the cheek (that had to be girly. Definitely didn't seem very masculine.)

 

"Right," Lex smiled tightly, almost...awkwardly? That could be good. "See you later. Oh, and Clark?"

 

"Yeah?"

 

"It's a real word. Workaholism is a real word."

 

Clark blinked. "Oh."

 

There was a brief moment where absolutely *nothing* happened, but Clark could have sworn something was *about* to...and then they were walking away from each other, in opposite directions across the quad.

 

Clark couldn't remember the last time *anything* had made him sweat like that.

 

*

 

Clark was woken up the next morning by a phone call from his parents. He didn't specifically tell them about Lex - there was really nothing to tell, anyway - but he did mention that he was making a new friend.

 

"That's great, son," Dad said, and then over-compensated with enthusiasm the way he always had since Clark'd come out to them. "Are they gay, too?"

 

Still feeling groggy, Clark closed his eyes and wished he was still asleep. He was pretty sure Lex had been in his dream, and wondered how Dad'd react if he shared that particular piece of information. "No idea, Dad." Yawning, he made an attempt at changing subjects. "How's the farm?"

 

As Dad went on about home, Clark threw back the covers and forced himself to get up and gather everything he needed for his usual morning trip to the shower room. "That's great, Dad," he said, having no idea what'd just been said. Mom came onto the phone then, and her enthusiasm for just about everything helped him wake up a little more.

 

"And," she eventually announced, "I think Ryan has a girlfriend."

 

Bending over to pick up a towel, Clark froze. "No way! That's great."

 

"Well, we'll see," Mom chuckled. "He's never really been in this position before, so I guess we'll have to wait and see if he's able to deal with being that close to someone."

 

Clark knew she didn't mean physically, or at least not exclusively. Ryan had gotten really good at learning to block random thoughts from people, but sometimes strong emotions were still difficult for him to handle. "Maybe he just needs experience with dealing with that kind of stuff," he replied, grabbing the towel and straightening up. "Just like everything else."

 

"That's what we're hoping," Mom sighed.

 

"I'm sure it'll work out," he assured her. He knew how worried she was that neither of her sons would ever have a 'normal' life. "After all, look how I turned out." Waiting for expected laugh at his cheekiness, he continued. "But this is great! I have something to tease the little dork about next time I talk to him."

 

"Yes, Clark," Mom said wryly, "that's exactly why I told you. What? Oh..." Obviously talking to Dad off the phone, she came back a moment later. "We have to go, honey. Deliveries to make. Cows to check."

 

"Sure," Clark grinned, "I have to go shower anyway. Love to you, Dad and dork."

 

"You too, honey. Bye!"

 

"Bye." Hanging up the phone, he headed off to the shower.

 

He went through his morning abulations with his usual speed - he tended not to linger, if he could help it - and then he was drying off and getting changed into today's clothes, which really weren't all that different from yesterday's clothes. He was definitely gonna have to do some laundry soon.

 

Combing his hair into some semblance of order, he checked which books he had in his bag and then left the building. He didn't have a class 'til eleven, but he could grab a bite to eat and then study in the library for a few hours. For some reason it was always easier there, and he-

 

Lex was sitting on the bench again, reading.

 

*Or* Clark could walk over to Lex, and see if he wanted to do anything.

 

Yeah. That sounded good.

 

Lex had to be cold, sitting outside reading this early without a hat on, but if he was he didn't show it, calmly turning a page as Clark walked closer. Before Clark could call out a greeting and draw his attention, someone else was yelling.

 

"Clark!"

 

And there was Chloe.

 

Frustrated though he was, Clark couldn't help but smile as he turned towards the familiar voice and was tackled by a spikey-haired blonde lump (he was pretty sure Chloe wouldn't appreciate that description). Laughing, Clark hugged her back. "You okay?" They usually hugged, especially when they hadn't seen each other for a while, but it was never this enthusiastic.

 

Pulling away, she grinned up at him broadly. "Just missed seeing you. Sooo..." Turning him back towards the path, she slipped his arm through hers. "Where're you headed?"

 

"Well," damn, she was going to walk them right by Lex. And if he couldn't ignore Whitney yesterday, he really couldn't ignore Lex right now. Especially as he saw Lex look up briefly from his book, only to look back down again. Crap. "Well, I was thinking of getting something to eat."

 

"Food sounds like a *very* good plan," Chloe nodded heavily. "I've heard it's actually essential to survival."

 

"I've heard that too," he answered in the same tone, just as they reached the bench. Ah, well. Here it went. He just had to make his voice work... "Hey, Lex." There it was.

 

Looking up at them, Lex nodded tightly but didn't smile at all. "Clark."

 

Knowing that if he didn't do it, Chloe would, Clark introduced them. "Chloe, this is Lex. He's in my psych class. Lex, this is Chloe. She's another old friend from Smallville."

 

"Hey," she objected, "not so much of the old." Thrusting her free hand out towards Lex, she gave him no choice but to lower his book and shake her hand. "Chloe Sullivan. Nice to meet you. Choice or tragedy?"

 

Letting go of her hand, Lex frowned. "I'm sorry?"

 

"Your hair, or lack thereof. Choice or tragedy?"

 

There were occasions where Clark was horrified to be Chloe's friend. This was definitely one of them. "Chloe!" God, she could be so embarrassing sometimes. "I can't believe you'd-"

 

"It's all right, Clark," Lex interrupted the rant. "At least she's straightforward. And as for my lack of hair..." He really *looked* at Chloe. "I suppose you'd have to call it a tragedy."

 

Chloe didn't appear embarrassed, or sympathetic. She didn't look away, either. "Are you good friends with Clark?"

 

Lex glanced towards him, briefly, before looking back, obviously having no idea what that had to do with anything. "I think we're getting there."

 

Apparently pleased, Chloe nodded. "You should tell him what happened, some day."

 

Clark was standing right *there*, and feeling pretty miffed. "Look-"

 

"We're just on our way to eat something," Chloe cut him off. "You're welcome to join us if you'd like."

 

Seeming as if he was seriously considering it, Lex eventually shook his head. "Thanks for the invite, but I'm behind on the reading I wanted to do anyway. Have a good day."

 

"Sure. You too."

 

Clark didn't even get a chance to say goodbye because she was steering him along the path again, away from Lex. Gritting his teeth, he waited until they were definitely out of earshot before starting. "What the hell?!"

 

Looking completely shocked - that *had* to be an act - Chloe gawked at him. "What the hell what?"

 

"What the hell was that?" Clark continued. "I see Whitney yesterday and he tells me I *have* to talk to you, and then when I do see you you're all over my new friend and embarrassing the life out of me! What is *up* with you?"

 

Releasing his arm, Chloe took a step back and smirked at him. "That was a pretty severe reaction, Clark. Something you'd like to tell me?"

 

Oh, man. "Chloe..."

 

Relenting, she grinned. "Look, I talked to Whitney last night - he told me about you being in the coffee shop yesterday with Lex. Being all...cosy. *That*'s why he told you to come see me. He thought I'd want to know about this, and he was right. As for today, I was just...scoping out the territory." She had a shark's grin, and Clark absently wondered how many freshmen she'd killed. "Have to make sure he's good enough for my Clark."

 

It was kind of sweet...in a completely twisted Chloe kind of way. And Whitney had thought he and Lex were 'cosy'? "Lex is just a friend. I don't even know if he's gay." And yeah, even he had to admit he sounded pretty damn depressed by the prospect.

 

She snorted. "He's gay."

 

"You don't know tha-"

 

"Oh, he's *gay*, Clark," taking his arm again, she grinned up at him. "I have a gay guy for a best friend. Trust me on this."

 

Sighing, he let her tug them along. "How is it you figure this stuff out and I don't?"

 

"Genius," she said, fluttering her eyelashes at him. "Pure genius."

 

*

 

It was a very good thing the cold didn't affect him, Clark decided. He also decided that standing outside Lex's dorm building for over an hour didn't constitute stalking, simply waiting with intent.

 

Or he'd possibly had too much time waiting around in the cold, trying to rationalise what he was doing.

 

But he did need to talk to Lex. And he did know - thanks to x-ray vision - that Lex wasn't anywhere in the building. He had no idea what the rest of Lex's college schedule was, so waiting outside his dorm seemed a pretty good place to run into him eventually.

 

Finally, just as dusk was starting to set in, Clark looked up to see Lex approaching from the path. His eyes widened briefly when he recognised Clark, but then his expression blanked out. There was no other term for it. It was just - gone.

 

"What are you doing here?" he asked, pausing when Clark stepped towards him.

 

Disturbed to realise there wasn't a single thread of warmth in Lex's voice, Clark swallowed heavily. He'd been worried that Lex might have been annoyed by Chloe's behaviour this morning, but he hadn't expected anything nearly this severe. "I need to talk to you."

 

Lex had a bag over his shoulder and a folder held in both hands. "About what?"

 

"Chloe." That was interesting. For a second, Lex's blank expression has almost been...not-blank. "If she did or said anything that offended you this morning, I'm really sorry. I know she can be..." What was a good description? "...like a force of nature, sometimes. But hey," he forced a laugh, "you should meet her cousin."

 

Of course, Lex had never met Lois, so the joke fell completely flat.

 

"Um," Clark continued, and this was *hard* because Lex wasn't giving him anything to work with, "but I meant what I said. She can take some getting used to, but she's a really good person. And...we're becoming friends, right? Me and you?" Finally, there was some kind of vague acknowledgment on Lex's face. "I wanna be friends, Lex, and I don't want anything to stand in the way of that."

 

And...wow. That could *not* sound anymore like a come on if he *tried*. And he seriously hadn't been trying.

 

Lex just studied him for a long time - a time where Clark was seriously begin to wonder if he should go back to his own dorm and never come out again - but eventually a slow smile shifted onto his face. "Come on," he said softly, moving to step by Clark with obvious invitation.

 

But Clark couldn't just let it go. As Lex stepped by him, Clark half-turned and grabbed his arm, looking into surprised blue eyes when he spoke. "Can you not do that again?"

 

"Do what?" Lex asked, not pulling away.

 

"Be the jerky guy who's treating me like crap when I haven't done anything wrong. Or, if there is a reason you're angry with me, tell me what it is and I'll try to fix it."

 

Guilt flashed across Lex's face - he definitely wasn't hiding his feelings right now. "Of course." He turned his head away, and Clark released him. "Sorry. I'll try not to do that again."

 

The walk into the building, up the stairs, into Lex's room - all of it was done in silence, until the door clicked shut behind them and Lex put his folder down, shrugged his jacket off and let it fall onto the bed.

 

"So, how long have you known Chloe?" he began conversationally, keeping his back to Clark as he dumped his bag onto the bed and started pulling things from it.

 

Clark stayed where he was - standing in the middle of the room with his thumbs hooked into the pockets of his jeans. "A while, though nowhere near as long as Whitney. Her dad moved them out to Smallville from Metropolis when we were in 8th grade, so since about thirteen." Remembering one of his first encounters with her away from school, he grinned. "She was the first person who ever kissed me. Said we had to get it out of the way."

 

Lex's voice was amused. "She sounds like a handful."

 

"She can be," Clark agreed, "but no one's perfect."

 

Picking up his jacket and hooking it over the back of the computer chair, Lex began piling the books he'd taken from his bag onto the bedside table. "And how long have you two been a couple?"

 

Clark coughed. Checked he hadn't just been transported into an alternate universe and that he *had* just heard what he thought he'd heard. "I'm not dating Chloe!"

 

Lex froze, mid-book move. "You're not?"

 

"No!" Okay, so he may have been a little too enthusiastic about getting his point across. "I'm really not."

 

"Oh. I..." Finally turning around, Lex was still holding onto a book. "I could have sworn there was something there."

 

"I guess that makes sense," Clark conceded. "We tried the dating thing a couple of years ago, but, uh," he laughed nervously, "as it turns out, she was the one who helped me realise I'm..." Lex's head lifted up, a silent question. "...a big flaming gay." Lex blinked. Clark grinned too much. "Her words, not mine."

 

Just like everything else, coming out to Lex wasn't what he expected it to be.

 

"You're gay?" he asked.

 

"Yeah," Clark breathed, his whole body tense. "Is that a problem?"

 

"Not at all," Lex smiled gently, and Clark's breath whooshed out in a big rush.

 

"Good," thank God. "That's...good."

 

"I have to admit," Lex said, moving to put the book on top of the others, and drag his bag from the bed onto the floor. "I was wondering if you were. But then I saw you with Chloe, and..."

 

Something flicked in Clark's head. Something that might have been his Happy Button. Lex had seen him and Chloe together, had thought that he and Chloe were *together*. He hadn't been particularly friendly when meeting Chloe, and he'd almost been downright horrible outside the building a few minutes ago and...Clark *beamed*, because nothing else made sense. "Lex?"

 

"Clark?"

 

"Were you jealous?"

 

Lips twitching up slightly, Lex was facing him again. "Possibly."

 

Clark was pretty sure that, long after he left Lex's room, his grin would still be there. "You don't need to be."

 

"Clark," Lex began, sloooowly walking towards him, "how would you feel if I kissed you right now?"

 

Brain. Overloading. Words. Needed. "I'm thinking I'd feel great. Of course the only way to know for sure is to get you to kiss me." He deserved some kind of award for talking just then, surely.

 

"I suppose that's true," Lex agreed easily, barely a foot away now. "Purely in the interests of science."

 

"Right," Clark nodded, heart rate going through the roof, "purely in the interests of-"

 

Mouth. On his.

 

Eyes, closing. Warm and hard and hands and skin, and there was a door against his back that hadn't been there a moment ago. *Lex*...

 

Lex, who was pulling away.

 

Clark snapped his eyes open. "Come back here," he complained softly, not embarrassed because Lex wanted him, Lex wanted *him* and he really wanted to do some more of that kissing thing.

 

Blinking slowly, Lex smiled gently. "Make me." He looked...nervous, but he was still saying that, and was this some kind of test? Clark was mostly terrified but Lex was being so brave and Clark really *really* wanted to do some more of that kissing thing. So his hands found themselves moving up and carefully cupping Lex's shoulders and pushing him backwards. His gaze fell to the exposed skin at Lex's neck, smooth and perfect; Clark's nostrils flared and he bent his head to inhale, then awkwardly licked at the skin even as they kept stumbling.

 

Lex made a *really* interesting noise just before they hit the bookcase, and then Clark had to pull away from the licking to make sure Lex was okay. He was sure he'd still been gentle, but he hadn't exactly been in this situation before. "You okay?" he murmured, turning Lex around before he even had time to respond, hands gently running over Lex's skull. A brief use of his x-ray vision confirmed no sign of injury whatsoever.

 

Relieved, Clark took the opportunity to caress the little bump Lex had at the back of his head; it'd always kinda intrigued him and...huh. Lex's hands had come up to grip at a shelf, and when Clark's fingers had rubbed over the bump, they'd tightened.

 

Clark rubbed again. The hands tightened again.

 

Sometimes it took him a while to realise something, but no one could ever accuse Clark of not taking advantage of it later. Leaning in closer, he licked his tongue over the bump.

 

"*Fuck*," Lex gasped, and if he'd been Clark that shelf would have been in pieces by now.

 

Liking this new development way too much, Clark was just considering how sucking would go down - so to speak - when Lex spun around and just kind of...*attacked*.

 

Clark's mind had to process too many things at once, too many things he wasn't used to. Hand on his ass. Tongue in his mouth. Really, really hot bald guy. Groping *him*.

 

Not having had much experience with French kissing, Clark's tongue was kind of useless but Lex didn't seem to mind. Focusing a lot on trying to learn how to kiss back, Clark had a feeling he wasn't enjoying it as much as he was supposed to but in-between breaks for air, Lex's tongue was tasting, teaching, and at some point everything fell into place.

 

Kissing with tongue *good*.

 

It was like dancing, Clark thought stupidly, just before Lex started pushing them away from the bookcase. Trying not to separate, they stumbled around the room. The back of Clark's leg hit something - table, his mind filled in helpfully - and he barely managed to fake an "Ow," around Lex's mouth when his legs hit something that didn't move as easily, and they fell onto it with an undignified thump.

 

Sprawled across the bed, gasping for breath, Clark first blinked at the ceiling and then at Lex's head which was resting about chest level. Grinning, he shifted. "Lex?" Clark's mouth felt tender, used, but in so completely a good way.

 

"Mmm?" Lex hadn't moved, his whole body almost over Clark's, the fingers from his left hand gently rubbing at Clark's side. Which was really, really nice.

 

"I don't think we should audition for a porn movie anytime soon."

 

The fingers froze. Lex's laughter, when it came, was the best thing Clark had ever heard. Pulling away until they were side-by-side, Lex propped his head up on his hand. "Do you have any idea how perfect *you* are?"

 

Now was a really stupid time to get embarrassed, especially after all the kissing and groping. "Come on, Lex. No one is."

 

Maybe conceding Clark's point, Lex shrugged slightly. "You're close to it."

 

Not sure what to say to that, Clark's eyes fell to Lex's mouth. It looked swollen, darker. He'd done that. *Him*. He felt...primal. Needed to make Lex *his*. "Can I kiss you again?"

 

"Clark," Lex drawled, smiling widely, "you can kiss me absolutely anytime you want to."

 

Pulling Lex closer, Clark planned to take advantage of that promise at every single opportunity.

 

*

 

Judging from the looks he'd been getting, grinning like an idiot in the shower hadn't been a great idea, but Clark didn't care. Life was perfect. He was doing well in college, he was loved by his friends and family, and he'd made out with a hot guy last night for so many hours that his mouth still felt it now.

 

Running his fingers carefully over his mouth, he was surprised at how almost tender it felt. It didn't many any sense, physiologically speaking. He was invulnerable, right? Technically none of his skin should ever feel less than perfect.

 

Clark *loved* feeling less than perfect. It made him a little more like everyone else.

 

Leaving his room, he wondered - not for the first time - when he'd see Lex today. They hadn't made any specific plans to meet up. They'd started to, but then saying goodbye last night had taken about half an hour and they'd gotten seriously distracted (another reason Clark was grinning so much that his teeth were probably going to start aching soon).

 

As it turned out, he shouldn't have worried. The moment he stepped out of the building his eyes zeroed in on a specific bench, and there Lex was, reading another book.

 

Waiting for him.

 

Clark knew, now.

 

He wondered how long, how many times Lex had been waiting for him.

 

Maybe feeling the scrutiny - or maybe it was just good timing - Lex looked up and smiled when he saw Clark watching. Matching the smile and holding Lex's gaze the entire way, Clark crossed the quad towards him.

 

Stopping by the bench, Clark suddenly had no idea what to do next. Were they supposed to kiss? They hadn't talked about being out at college at all last night, and he had to jam his hands into his jacket pockets to stop himself from reaching out to touch Lex. "Hey."

 

"Hey," Lex replied, still smiling.

 

"Whatcha doing?" Clark asked, rocking on his feet.

 

"Reading," came the response, accompanied by an arched eyebrow and a brief lift of the book in question.

 

"Ah," Clark nodded, still rocking and feeling only slightly embarrassed. "That would explain the book."

 

"I suppose it would," Lex agreed. Still smiling. "I have class in a few minutes."

 

Good mood dipping slightly, Clark nonetheless decided that any Lex time was good Lex time. "I can walk with you, if you want."

 

"All right." Picking up his bag to put the book away, Lex snuck a look at Clark out of the corner of his eye and...flushed. There was a definite flush on his cheeks.

 

Pretending not to notice, Clark also had to pretend not to notice his not particularly sudden urge to push Lex back on the bench and kiss him senseless. Not only was Lex hot, but he was unbelievably *cute* sometimes.

 

When the book was away they started walking along the path, keeping a good few inches between them. Clark had never had this before, this overwhelming urge to reach out and just *hold* someone. He was nervous and jumpy but wanted to do *everything*. Was this how other people felt? Was this how Chloe had felt about him? If so, she was even more fantastic than he'd ever realised.

 

Apparently they weren't going into any of the main buildings because Lex was leading them around the corner of one of them, heading off to where the smaller buildings were locate-

 

And then there was a hand on his chest, stone against his back, and a mouth all but devouring his own.

 

He may have heard their bags thunk to the ground; he may have worried for a split second about any breakable contents, but then his hands were pulling Lex closer, gripping his body tighter, and he was sure that Lex's beautifully hot mouth could convince him to do anything.

 

"All I want," Lex broke away, breathlessly mouthing Clark's neck between words, "is to take you back to my room and do this forever."

 

Clark was so down with that plan. Really, he didn't need to finish college. He didn't need to get a job, either. All he needed was Lex's mouth, Lex's body, and a locked room with a comfortable bed and that was a really bad thing to think because now he had to walk around campus with a hard on.

 

"Let's do that," Clark agreed, nudging Lex's head back up so they could kiss again. God, they'd gotten good at this last night, and he was groaning into that hot, hot mouth as Lex's hand worked itself between's Clark's butt and the building, pushing them closer together.

 

And then the hand stopped pushing. And then he was pulling back, but only slightly. Still holding onto Clark, Lex kissed him softly; on the mouth, on the nose, on his closed eyelids, obviously trying to calm them down. "I really have to go to class," Lex whispered.

 

Frustrated, feeling Lex pulling away from him, Clark reached out and grabbed onto his arms. "Come with me." Naturally, it was only after he spoke that he realised how it could've been taken. Still, he didn't look away.

 

"Come with you where?" Lex asked calmly.

 

He had to do *something*. He wanted to show Lex off to the people who mattered the most. "I'm going home tonight for the weekend. To see my family." He licked his lips, hoping. "Come with me."

 

Obviously startled, Lex's eyes widened. "That's...fast, Clark."

 

"I know." He really did.

 

"I mean this only started yester-"

 

"I *know*." Closing his eyes, Clark calmed himself. "I just really want you to be there. I don't..." Opening his eyes, he looked at Lex. "I don't want to have to go without seeing you until Sunday night." Which was...kind of a lie, but also the truth. Nearly two days without Lex sounded hellish right now.

 

"Clark," he sighed, "I don't-"

 

"It's okay if it's too fast," Clark said, not actually agreeing with the sentiment. "You can say if it's too fast. I just thought you should know how I felt. You know. Being truthful."

 

Taking in the words, probably having no idea how *hopeful* Clark was, Lex looked away. "I...it's just...I've never done this. That." He glanced back. "Met the parents. Especially not my *boyfriend's*, or whatever the hell you are." The ending tone was definitely teasing.

 

He was so pleased and distracted by the word 'boyfriend', that it took Clark a while to realise the possible implications of what'd just been said. "Lex?" Sharp, but almost scared blue eyes looked back at him, and Clark thought he understood now. "Am I the first guy you've been with?"

 

Lex's face tightened. Relaxed. He exhaled heavily. "Yes."

 

"Oh." Kind of surprising, but some things made sense now. "Well, you're my first, too." At the very least Lex had kissed the hell out of *someone*, because he knew what he was doing with his mouth. But Clark was his first guy ever, apparently, and that...oh yeah, that was good. Clark felt all primal again, until he felt a finger prodding him in the stomach.

 

"Hey," Lex grinned, "if your chest puffs out any further it'll probably explode."

 

Clark ignored him, but did his own share of grinning. "So did I like, make you gay or something?"

 

Barking out a surprised laugh, Lex then rolled his eyes. "I liked guys before you, Mr Ego. I'd just never been with one."

 

"Darn," Clark mock-complained, and it seemed like a good time to kiss Lex again, so he did. Sighing, he eventually drew back. "So, what do you think?"

 

Expression serious again, Lex was obviously giving it a lot of thought. "I'll have work to do."

 

"So will I," Clark told him. "They're really good about giving me space to study when I visit."

 

"I don't like getting behind on my other reading," Lex confessed. "It's important to me."

 

Clark nodded. "I'm pretty strong. I'm sure I could carry-"

 

"I have a car."

 

Well. That made things easier, because Clark hadn't exactly figured out how they'd be getting to Smallville yet without revealing the whole superspeed issue and...wait. "Is that a yes?"

 

Lex's mouth lifted on one side. "I guess it must be."

 

Squealing like a little girl was out of the question, so Clark kissed him again. "We'll have a *great* time, I promise. My parents are so cool, and hey, you'll get to meet another Warrior Angel fan."

 

"Clark," Lex said fondly, pulling back, "I've already agreed. You don't have to keep selling me on the idea. As long as your family'll be okay with me visiting, I'll be okay with visiting."

 

"Trust me, they'll love you," Clark insisted, leaning in to press a quick kiss against the side of Lex's forehead. "You should get to class. You done by four today?"

 

"Yeah."

 

"Good," he said. "Meet you at the bench at four? Then we can get our stuff and go."

 

Nodding his agreement, Lex drew Clark in for another kiss before insisting that he had to go the rest of the way to class by himself. Clark couldn't really disagree; if Clark'd gone with him, they probably never would have made it.

 

Enjoying the view as Lex walked away, Clark eventually stooped down to pick his bag up. He got some interesting looks as he walked away, and realised that though there hadn't been anyone around when Lex had first pushed him against the building, there definitely was now. So much for not making it public.

 

Not caring, Clark dug his cell phone out of his bag and called the first number in the memory. "Hi, Mom. It's me." He took a deep breath. "If it's okay I'm gonna come home to visit this weekend and, uh...I'm bringing a friend with me."

 

*

 

"You're taking him home to meet your parents *already*?"

 

Chloe had known the moment she'd seen him that he'd 'gotten some' last night. He wasn't quite sure how much 'gotten some' covered, but he couldn't really deny it. Definitely didn't want to, either.

 

They hadn't been able to talk much yet, but throughout their journalism class she'd kept sending him happy little grins. He was *so* happy she was happy for him. He hadn't had that many doubts, but being gay and actually being in a relationship with another guy were kind of different things.

 

But here they were now, spread across her bed as Chloe absently flicked through a textbook she hadn't looked down at once.

 

"I know it's kinda fast..." And it was, but that still wasn't stopping him.

 

"Superspeed," she smiled and wrinkled her nose.

 

He rolled his eyes. "Hey, you never know. This could be normal for me. I mean I've never really dated anyone before and..." She gave him The Look. Crap. "...apart from you," he continued. She still kept staring. "And you were the best girlfriend *ever*." More skunk-eye. "I just happened to be gay."

 

Cracking, she laughed and whacked him with the book. "You are so easy. As I'm sure Lex will attest."

 

Not even bothering to avoid the book, he stuck his tongue out at her. "You know, I'm trying to have a serious conversation about what relationships are like for my people, but if you really want to resort to violence..."

 

She whacked him again. Sometimes Clark thought she did it just because she could.

 

Threatening to hit him one more time, she held the book over her head with a huge grin on her face. But, after looking at him for a few seconds, she lowered it and sighed happily. "Maybe it's not an alien thing at all. Maybe you just really like him, Clark."

 

Propped up against the wall, he blushed and stared down at his shirt. "I really do, Chloe. He's..." There wasn't a word for it. There actually wasn't a word.

 

"If you were anyone else," she said gently, "I'd be on my second barf bag by now."

 

"Gee, thanks." Shifting on the bed, he rolled towards her. "You know, I still need to retaliate."

 

Her expression instantly wary, Chloe shifted away slightly. "Retaliate?"

 

Clark reached his hands out towards her.

 

Now she looked horrified. "Clark, if you tickle me I will *kill* you. Don't think I don't know how. So if you keep moving towards me like that I'll..." Ignoring the warnings, Clark grabbed her and started tickling. "I know where your parents keep the kryptonite!"

 

*

 

He couldn't stop staring. It was nice. It was *really* nice. "Lex?"

 

"Hmm?" came the response. Lex was putting their bags in the trunk and yeah, though they weren't particularly heavy, Clark knew he should have been offering to help despite the books he was holding.

 

He just couldn't stop staring.

 

"You have a Porsche."

 

"Nicely observed," Lex retorted, ducking into the trunk again.

 

Clark's brain was still trying to wrap itself around the concept of knowing - no, *dating* - someone who had a Porsche. "Why do you have a Porsche?"

 

"Because it's pretty," Lex grinned as he stood back up from arranging something in the trunk. "And it goes really fast. One of my true pleasures in life, Clark."

 

"No, I mean..." What did he mean? "Are you rich?" He hadn't even thought about money. And did a Porsche have enough trunk space?

 

"Kind of," Lex said carefully, his grin fading. "I mean I'm not the richest person in America, or even Kansas...but if I wanted to, I could probably go my whole life without working."

 

Shaking his head, Clark just couldn't imagine that. His parents had always taught him that work was an integral part of life; it wasn't the point of being alive, but it was always there and was always something you could be proud of. "Wow."

 

"Is that okay?" Lex asked, again doing that thing where he was moving books and not looking at Clark. This time the books were going from Clark's arms into the trunk, and there were nine of them. Either Lex hadn't decided exactly what he was going to read, or he was some kind of freaky speed reader.

 

Of course Clark wasn't one to make fun of anyone who could read fast.

 

"It's fine, really," Clark told him, and it was. "Just surprised." Trying to make Lex feel less awkward, he tried another route. "At least you can keep me in the manner to which I've become accustomed."

 

Reaching for the last two books, Lex froze. Looked up. Smirked. "Oh yes. Buying you coffee's and sandwiches. I obviously have you well kept."

 

Clark gave up on not trying to smile. "Man, have you *seen* how much they charge for latte's?"

 

Shaking his head and laughing, Lex grabbed the last of the books and pressed a brief kiss to Clark's lips. "Get in."

 

Torn between Lex's lips and the car, Clark quickly opted for the Porsche, because at least he'd have access to Lex inside. Plus. A *Porsche*. "I think I've regressed to pre-adolescence," Clark confessed when Lex got in and started the engine. He couldn't stop reaching out and touching the various surfaces, looking at all the buttons and dials, flicking through the CDs in the player.

 

Making sure he was buckled in, Lex pulled the car out of the student parking lot. "Feel free, Clark. The only thing you can't touch in here is..." Looking for traffic as he indicated left, that smirk reappeared. "Actually, there's nothing you can't touch in here."

 

Clark really wanted to test that theory, but had a feeling it'd probably cause an accident.

 

*

 

The drive passed quickly and happily enough, but when they reached the sign welcoming them to Smallville Lex's mood turned decidedly somber.

 

Directing him out to the farm, Clark waited until the car was parked in the driveway before saying anything. "They'll love you. I promise."

 

Slipping the key out of the ignition, Lex turned to face him. "How do you know?"

 

Holding out his left hand, Clark started counting out reasons with his right index finger. "One, Mom is really open minded. All she's worried about is that someone cares about me; doesn't matter who. Two, Dad is trying so hard to be okay with me being gay that he'll probably even let you sit in his favourite chair. Three, Ryan is like the best judge of character, ever. There's no way he's not going to get how great you are." Of course, he hadn't actually told Mom that he was bringing his *boyfriend* home, but no one in his family was dumb. Aside from him, sometimes.

 

Leaning in close, Clark touched the side of Lex's face and held his gaze. "They'll love you. *I*-" Okay, *way* too early for that. "-think we should get out of the car now."

 

All but scrambling out of the passenger side, Clark slammed the door behind him and leant against it. He couldn't be in love already. He'd never done this before and the whole thing felt like it was veering out of control, terrifying and wonderful and-

 

"Clark!"

 

Smiling and actually feeling it, Clark turned and stepped out from behind the car. "Hey, Mom!" Jogging to meet her on the garden path, he returned her hug gratefully. "It's so good to see you."

 

Pulling back, she looked up at him, lifting her right hand to run it lightly over his hair. "It's good to see you too, sweetheart." Looking past him, she smiled. "And you must be Clark's friend."

 

"Yeah," Clark said. Half-turning, he found his right hand wrapping around Lex's left as he looked at him and smiled gently. "This is my mom. Mom? This is Lex."

 

She got it, instantly. Her face didn't show any obvious sign of shock or realisation, but she knew nonetheless. Clark could tell.

 

"It's nice to meet you, Lex," she greeted, "Clark's mentioned you before."

 

Surprised, Lex shot a look towards him but shook Mom's hand. "It's nice to meet you too, Mrs Kent. I really appreciate you letting me impose like this. Thank you."

 

As Mom laughed off the idea of anything being an imposition, all three of them started moving towards the house. Letting Mom go ahead, Clark lingered behind with Lex.

 

"You've mentioned me before?" Lex murmured, obviously surprised given that they'd only started 'dating' yesterday.

 

Blushing as they climbed up the steps to the house, Clark shrugged. "Is it my fault you're so hot?" Deliberately turning away so he wouldn't see Lex's face, Clark pushed through the screen door and into the kitchen. Spotting his brother straight away, Clark grinned and headed for the table. "Hey, dork!" He went for a hug, and Ryan pretended he didn't want one for all of five seconds.

 

Of course, when they did hug it didn't last long, because Ryan was closing in on sixteen and hugging your older brother just wasn't cool.

 

"That's a really dumb nickname," Ryan said for about the thousandth time as he stood up. "You're just as big a dork as I am."

 

"This is true," Clark said, also for the thousandth time, but he had more important things to talk about. "So..." he teased, "I heard *someone* has a girlfriend."

 

Rolling his eyes - he'd long been older than he should have been, for obvious reasons - Ryan chuckled and looked towards Lex briefly. "Really? Because *I* heard that *someone* has a boyfriend. And brought him home, in fact." Grinning, he picked up his can of soda from the table. "I get all teasing rights from now on."

 

Only vaguely embarrassed, Clark deliberately reached out and mussed up Ryan's hair. "Hey, remember when you used to hero worship me?"

 

"Yeah," Ryan said, batting Clark's hand away. "Thank God I got over it."

 

Actually feeling pretty much the same way, Clark got the introductions out of the way. "Well, little *dork*, this is my friend, Lex. Lex, this is my brother, Ryan."

 

"Nice to meet you," Lex said, stepping closer.

 

"You too," Ryan smiled. "I'm not sure what you see in Clark, but we have a Porsche parked outside our house now so you can't be too bad."

 

Gently smacking the back of Ryan's head, Clark eyed Mom as she looked on with fond amusement.

 

"Hey, Ryan," Clark began, "Lex loves Warrior Angel, too. He has every single issue." Here was the kicker. "Including number 23."

 

Ryan's eyes went *huge* as he focused back on Lex. "Oh my God! You are *way* too cool to be dating my brother!"

 

All three adults were laughing at his reaction as the door squeaked open. Turning to see his father walk in, Clark grinned towards him. "Hey, Dad." They shared a fatherly-son hug type thing, and then Dad was nodding towards Mom.

 

"I got that gate fixed up, Martha."

 

She smiled her pleasure at the news, and then Dad was turning to face Lex and eyeing him carefully.

 

"You must be Clark's friend. Nice to meet you." He held a work-worn hand out. "Jonathan Kent."

 

Lex took it and shook firmly. "Lex Luthor. Thank you for having me over, sir."

 

"No problem at all," Dad said, releasing Lex's hand and wearing his best 'I'm absolutely fine with this' smile. "What say you boys help set the dishes out for us?"

 

As Dad left to wash up, Mom checked on the food and the rest of them started getting the dishes out. While Lex was fussing with the cutlery, Ryan snuck up to Clark.

 

"He's really scared," Ryan said quietly, looking behind them to peer at Lex.

 

"*Ryan*," Clark admonished, clanking dishes around loudly. His little brother knew he wasn't supposed to invade someone's privacy like that anymore.

 

"Seriously, Clark, I'm not trying to read him." Ryan certainly seemed sincere enough. "It's pouring off of him."

 

Frowning, Clark supposed that made sense. Lex had said he'd never met anyone's parents before. "Well you guys are going easy on him, right?"

 

"It's not that," Ryan murmured. "He's not scared of us. Well, not that much. He's scared of something, but he's not scared of us."

 

Clark didn't get a chance to ask anything else. Mom needed help with something, and then dinner was being served.

 

*

 

Knowing what "Clark, I could use a hand in the barn," really meant, Clark grabbed his jacket and followed Dad out of the house.

 

Dinner had gone as well as could be expected. Lex had been obviously uncomfortable for a while, but by the time dessert was being served he'd loosened up enough to make fun of Clark at the table, which'd probably endeared him to Ryan for life. They'd all helped clear up afterwards, and then Ryan's girlfriend had called and he'd disappeared with the phone.

 

That's when Dad had made the request.

 

Shucking his jacket on - he didn't need it, but it'd look weird if Lex saw him without one - Clark walked into the barn and waited while Dad fidgeted with the contents of one of his work tables.

 

"So," Dad said eventually, glancing up then down. "Is he your...boyfriend?" He obviously wasn't sure what word to use, but then neither was Clark.

 

"Yeah," Clark replied, jamming his hands into his pockets. "I'm sorry I didn't give you any warning."

 

Dad shook the apology off. This was obviously a version of The Talk, but of course it was about Clark, so it was different than for anyone else. They'd never really had one about Chloe. She'd always kind of been there, and had slipped in almost unnoticed. Lex was new, an unknown quantity.

 

A guy.

 

"How long have you been seeing each other?"

 

He could have listed the hours, minutes and seconds. "Since yesterday." Dad's face registered the surprise, and Clark shifted nervously. "I know it seems fast, bringing him here already, but it's just...right." He swallowed. "I feel it, Dad."

 

Hesitating, Dad sighed. "Have you told him?"

 

He didn't need to specify.

 

"Not yet," Clark admitted, almost hating the expression of relief on Dad's face. "But I want to."

 

Closing up a little again, Dad slowly walked towards him and placed his hand on Clark's shoulder. "Whatever happens, just...be sure, okay? Not everyone is as used to the unusual as Chloe is."

 

Feeling surprisingly emotional, Clark nodded heavily. "I will be."

 

"Good," Dad's hand tightened on his shoulder before dropping away. "Why don't you head back inside?"

 

And that was that.

 

Clark's hands were shaking when he took them out of his pockets, so he quickly shoved them back in. Running back to the house, he let himself inside. He really wanted to see Lex, like *now*. Only it became evident as he crossed the kitchen that Mom and Lex were talking in the living room. It was also equally evident that, due to the noise the dishwasher was making, they didn't know he was there.

 

"So," Mom said, "Lex Luthor, isn't it?"

 

"That's right," Lex responded.

 

"I don't suppose you'd be Lionel Luthor's son?"

 

Paused in the kitchen, Clark frowned. Who the heck was Lionel Luthor?

 

"I..." Lex's voice was obviously startled. "I didn't think anyone knew him here."

 

"Most people wouldn't," Mom replied in a comforting tone. "I'm from Metropolis originally, and my father runs his own business. Clark Industries?"

 

Unable to help himself, Clark activated his x-ray vision. Lex was sitting on the sofa, and Mom was on the old chair across from him, leaning forward as she spoke.

 

"I've heard of it," Lex confirmed.

 

Mom nodded. "I heard a lot about the business world when I was growing up, and even out here I like to stay up to speed with what's going on." She paused, hesitating. "I'm sorry about your father."

 

Lex shook his head. "Thank you, but it was a long time ago."

 

Had Lex's dad...died? Lex had never said anything about it. Clark could barely remember him mentioning his father even once, and definitely nothing about him having passed away.

 

"Were you with him?"

 

Lex's voice was tense. "Yes. That's how..." He gestured towards his head.

 

Mom looked devastated. "Oh, honey. I'm sorry. I shouldn't be asking you about-"

 

"No," Lex interrupted. "It's okay. I'm just...I'm not used to talking about it."

 

Studying him for a while, Mom tipped her head to one side. "You know, Clark's a very good listener."

 

Shoulders relaxing, Lex leant back against the sofa. "You're his mother - you *have* to say that."

 

"Well, yes," she smiled, "but that doesn't make it any less true. You should talk to him."

 

"I will," he assured her. "I'll tell him everything someday."

 

Confused as hell about absolutely everything, Clark thumped loudly into the living room. "All done outside," he announced.

 

Lex looked just as happy to see him as he was to see Lex, and Clark was even happier when Mom left to put the coffee on. Tackling Lex down onto the sofa, Clark kissed him breathlessly, trying to make better whatever it was that'd happened to him.

 

Pushing Clark up, Lex looked around to make sure no one had been watching. "What was that for?"

 

"Hey, I was gone for a whole five minutes," Clark flirted. "Are you gonna tell me you didn't miss me too?"

 

Trying to hold back a smile, Lex kissed him deeply before pulling back and shaking his head. "Not even going to deny it."

 

*

 

Saturday morning had passed quickly enough. After breakfast Clark had volunteered to help Dad with the chores for a while. Of course, with Lex around he couldn't risk using any of his powers, but Dad and Ryan had appreciated the extra help. There was an added bonus for Clark, too, because Lex was watching the entire time - mostly from the porch - and the knowledge that Lex was just *watching* him...

 

Well, it'd resulted in them sneaking off at the earliest opportunity, i.e. he'd headed into the house declaring the need for a drink, and the moment the door had closed behind them Lex'd pounced.

 

Judging by the looks on both Dad and Ryan's faces when he came back, they knew exactly what he'd been up to.

 

Clearing his throat, he'd got back to work.

 

When Clark finished they headed to the barn to work on their assignments from class, the theory being that if they got everything out of the way now, they'd be free to do whatever they wanted for the rest of the weekend.

 

Unsurprisingly, it hadn't gone to plan. Despite the best of intentions, Lex had located an extremely sensitive patch of skin on Clark's neck, but after groping for a while he tore himself away and insisted that they absolutely *had* to get on with their work.

 

Clark had grumbled a lot.

 

Still, many hours later, they managed to finish their assignments and that was when Lex reached for one of his own books. Clark knew that the books were important to Lex; Clark also knew that he didn't appreciate being ignored.

 

Drumming his fingers on the side of the sofa, Clark sighed heavily. And maybe deliberately.

 

The book lowered. Blue eyes narrowed towards him. "Everything all right?"

 

"You're reading," Clark complained.

 

Familiar lips twitched. "The art of stating the obvious isn't just something that passed you by, is it Clark?"

 

"You're *still* reading," Clark specified, fighting the urge to stick his tongue out. "We've both finished all our work, spent most of the day getting everything done and...you're still reading. I'm not."

 

Lex regarded him carefully. "So you're bored?"

 

"*Lex*," he could be kind of annoying, sometimes. "I know the books are important to you, and I don't want you to stop reading them," or at least, not much, "I'm just..." It sounded stupid but it came out anyway. "...feeling left out."

 

The book fluttered. Lex stared at him with amused amazement. "You think I like them better than you."

 

Now he really *did* sound stupid. "That's not what I-"

 

Sighing - a little too much, Clark thought - Lex leant back against the sofa. "I don't know, Clark. I mean, I've known books for a *very* long time. This could be quite the fight for my affections." He was obviously enjoying this way more than he should.

 

Rolling his eyes to cover his embarrassment, Clark mock-punched him in the shoulder. "Jerk."

 

"Hey," Lex said seriously, turning on the sofa to face him properly. "Do I meet books parents? Do I make out with books when we think no one is looking?"

 

"Well, I don't really know what you do in your spare time," Clark teased, secretly thankful.

 

Whacking him lightly on the arm, Lex continued talking. "Trust me, Clark. Much as I may have wanted to with a favourite in the past, I've never actually made out with a book. And, you know, just because my hands and eyes are occupied, it doesn't mean the rest of me is."

 

"What does *that* mean?" Clark frowned, because he really liked Lex's hands and eyes.

 

Smiling, Lex tugged his sneakers off and then shifted around on the sofa until his feet were on the seat cushions and his back was against the arm rest. Grabbing a cushion that'd fallen fo the floor, he shoved it behind his back, and then slid his body down until he was propped up and - apparently - comfortable. Spreading both arms, he grinned. "Make yourself at home."

 

Laughing - truly, no one was dorkier than Lex Luthor sometimes - Clark eagerly climbed on top of him, straightening out his legs. Instantly aiming his head towards Lex's neck, he snuffled happily, enjoying the smell.

 

"Hey, hey," Lex warned. "No funny business."

 

Grinning, Clark drew back and further down Lex's body. It took a bit of shifting and adjusting, but eventually Clark was sprawled across Lex's body with his chin resting on his folded arms. It was the perfect view, too. From here, with his arms over Lex's chest, he could look up and watch Lex's face nearly all the time.

 

Lex, for his part, was holding the book off to one side slightly as he read it, and didn't say anything about the fact that Clark was staring at him.

 

"Will you tell me some day?" Clark asked softly, studying Lex's face as he frowned slightly at something he read. "Why you have to read so much?" It wasn't all he wanted to know, but it was all he risked asking for now.

 

Not looking away from the book, Lex turned a page before his hand found its way into Clark's hair, running through it. "Yes. Now, don't move. I'm just starting to lose all feeling in my right leg, and we don't want to miss out on a *really* good case of pins and needles."

 

Lowering his head, Clark muffled his laughter into Lex's chest.

 

There was no doubt about it. He was *so* falling for the guy.

 

It was kind of nice, so he decided not to panic about it.

 

*

 

Clark didn't fall asleep, exactly. He kind of dozed, half awake and half asleep. He was aware of Lex's hand running through his hair for a long time; he was equally aware when it stopped moving but he was too comfortable to do anything about it.

 

Finally, a noise from the stairs brought him fully awake and Clark blinked open his eyes and turned his head. Surprised to realise that night must have fallen, he looked up and grinned when he saw Lex - head tipped towards the back of the sofa, mouth slightly open as he slept. He wouldn't have minded watching a while longer, but there was still someone at the top of the stairs.

 

Turning his head towards her, Clark smiled. "Hey, Mom," he whispered, trying to feel okay with being seen like this. It wasn't like he and Lex had been doing anything...

 

Carefully creeping across the floorboards, she knelt down by the end of the sofa. "Dinner'll be ready soon, honey. You should wake Lex up and come inside." Turning her gaze onto both of them, she smiled to herself.

 

Clark tried not to shift self-consciously. "What is it?"

 

"You're both just so..." She looked at him. "...sweet, like this."

 

He was definitely blushing. "*Moooooom*." Maybe he could burrow further against Lex and hide. Most people's kids had probably gone through this parental embarrassment thing long before they reached his age.

 

Laughing quietly, she reached out and rubbed her hand over his hair. "I'm so happy for you, Clark. I think..." Drawing back her hand, she regarded him sadly. "Maybe if your dad could see you like this, he wouldn't have to try so hard to think it's normal."

 

Dad wasn't about to come up, was he? Clark wasn't sure he could handle that as well right now. "At least he's trying." It made him sad sometimes that dad did have to try and be okay with it that hard, but Clark still knew how lucky he was.

 

"True," she conceded, smiling gently and then leaning over to kiss the top of his head. "Be inside in a few minutes, okay?"

 

"Sure," he agreed, waiting until Mom had walked away and moved down the stairs before doing his own kind of moving. "Hey," he said loudly, planting one hand on the edge of a seat cushion, the other on the the back rest, and pushing himself up until his face was hovering over Lex's. "Wake up, sleeping beauty, before I lick your face."

 

It was almost creepy how quickly Lex was wide awake. "You will do no such thing."

 

It was practically a dare. Leaning down, Clark licked his tongue clear across the side of Lex's face.

 

"Clark!" he yelled, pushing him away and wiping frantically at his face. "That's...gross!"

 

Wheezing with laughter, Clark fell back against the other arm of the sofa. "Oh my God," he wheezed, "you said 'gross'!"

 

"When you act like a five year old you get five year old words," Lex snapped, still wiping at his face. He shifted on the sofa, obviously intending to turn around or stand up, when he stopped and sighed purposefully. "And my leg has fallen asleep. Perfect."

 

Deciding against pointing out that Lex knew it was going to happen, Clark tried to school his voice into some kind of normalcy. "Anything I can do to help?"

 

"Let's just get it over with as quickly as possible," Lex replied testily, pointing towards his right leg. "Massage it for me? We need to get the circulation going again."

 

Grabbing the leg in question, Clark helped Lex turn until he was sitting normally, and then he leaned over and attacked the leg with a vengeance.

 

Cursing under his breath, Lex groaned as he stamped his foot around. Clark had never had pins and needles and probably never would, but Mom had described the feeling before and it didn't sound very pleasant, not to mention that right now, it looked pretty damn painful.

 

Suddenly hating pins and needles and annoyed that he couldn't fix it right away, Clark found himself leaning up and kissing Lex full on the mouth.

 

From the muffled noise Lex was obviously surprised, but nonetheless didn't pull away. He groaned as the kiss deepened, still stamping his foot occasionally, although it was lessening as a hand came up to grab behind Clark's neck and pull him closer and-

 

Someone cleared their throat.

 

They pulled away from each other so fast Clark was surprised Lex didn't get whiplash.

 

Oh look. Ryan.

 

"Mom sent me out here to get you guys."

 

Ryan, who'd seen them kissing enthusiastically, with Lex stamping his foot and Clark rubbing at his leg like a madman.

 

Ryan, who was obviously biting the inside of his mouth in an attempt not to laugh.

 

"I *don't* want to know," he grinned, "and if you don't want Mom and Dad to know, Lex'll show me issue 23 next time he visits."

 

Clark looked at Lex. Lex looked at Clark.

 

"Okay," they replied together.

 

*

 

Dinner was easier than Friday night, even if Ryan did keep smirking at them. Lex was obviously much more relaxed, and even Dad seemed to be honestly enjoying himself after a while.

 

Pleased, Clark insisted on taking Lex on a tour of the farm afterwards. Neither of them cared when Mom pointed out that it was dark outside - that wasn't what mattered.

 

Carrying a flashlight, Clark walked Lex around the edge of their property, sneaking in a kiss at every opportunity. When they passed near the storm cellar Clark wrapped his arms around Lex from behind, rested his chin on his shoulder, and said, "I'll take you down there one day."

 

Next time. Lex was still getting used to being here, and the whole alien revelation thing could wait until their next visit.

 

With the temperature dropping dramatically Clark was forced to keep Lex warm; it wasn't exactly a hardship, but he was worried about the body heat that had to be escaping from Lex's head due to his apparent inability to wear a hat.

 

Either Clark'd buy him a hat himself, or he'd ask Mom to make one. He had a feeling Lex wouldn't be able to turn down anything Clark's mom gave him.

 

Still, definitely concerned that Lex wasn't warm enough, Clark lead them back to the barn where they abandoned the flashlight, spread out on the sofa and pulled a blanket on top of them. To avoid risking pins and needles Lex was on top this time, and Clark thought he might like that even more.

 

With his right hand resting against Lex's back, Clark moved it gently, slow rubbing back and forth.

 

Making a happy noise, Lex shifted on top of him, nuzzling against Clark's neck for a while until he apparently decided kissing was in order, and he leant up to capture Clark's mouth with his own.

 

Kissing him back fervently, Clark's splayed hand spread further down Lex's body, and it seemed the most natural thing in the world to slide his hand over Lex's ass and just - push.

 

"Fuck," Clark gasped, half into Lex's mouth as he threw his head back, but he was moving again, doing it again, and it was so different to jerking off and oh god, Lex was groaning and moving his hips and his mouth was back on Clark's and Clark so wasn't used to this groin against groin thing...

 

This was gonna be over *so* fast.

 

"Lex," he panted, suddenly hot, hotter than he'd ever been, and he had no rhythm at all; was just pushing Lex down against him again and again and again and-

 

-he was coming, shaking, groaning under his breath, and as he dimly thought he had to do that again as often as possible, he felt Lex shudder on top of him, hands fisted in Clark's hair.

 

Heart rate calming down, Clark became a little more aware. And a little embarrassed for going off so quickly. "Umm, sorry," he murmured, moving his hand back up to rub Lex's back.

 

Opening his eyes, Lex carefully flattened Clark's hair back down and smiled as he pressed a kiss to the corner of Clark's mouth. "You were beautiful," he said between breaths, pulling his hands away from Clark's hair. "Or did you fail to notice that I was kind of trigger happy myself?"

 

Wow. Sex. He'd had sex. Kind of. And he'd made Lex *come*.

 

Blushing but pleased, Clark tugged him down until their foreheads were touching. "So not *only* did I make you gay..."

 

"Oh yes, we can't forget that," Lex snorted.

 

Clark ignored him. "But I also made you go off like...like..." What was a good term?

 

Pulling his head further away, Lex waited expectantly. "This should be interesting."

 

Somehow, it was just the right moment. Lex was making fun of him, his expression a mixture of wry amusement and fond tolerance, face still flushed from the sex - sex! - they'd just had. Clark was still feeling kinda overwhelmed, his heart still beating a little too fast, but he was so unbelievably *happy* that it came tumbling out.

 

"I love you."

 

Lex didn't say it back. Lex didn't say he didn't love him, either. Lex stared down at him in obvious shock, worked his mouth open for a few moments, but didn't say a word.

 

Clark wondered if he'd just made the biggest mistake of his life.

 

Eventually leaning down, Lex pressed their lips together so gently, so carefully, that Clark almost didn't feel it.

 

When Lex whispered, "Thank you," Clark thought his heart was going to burst.

 

Shifting about on top of him, Lex settled down closer and tugged the blanket further around them. "Can we sleep out here tonight?" he asked quietly, as if there hadn't just been a confession of any kind. "I really don't want to move."

 

Clark's boxers were already sticky and uncomfortable, but then Lex must have been feeling the same way. With Lex's head on his shoulder and Lex's hand resting on his chest, Clark pressed a kiss to the top of his head. "Sure."

 

Feeling distinctly lethargic, Clark made sure the blanket was covering Lex's shoulders before he closed his eyes and aimed for sleep.

 

Sometime later, when his mind was drifting and felt almost disconnected from his body, Lex's voice intruded.

 

"Clark?"

 

Clark *warm*. "Mmm?"

 

It was a while before Lex responded.

 

"I don't think I've ever been happy before."

 

His voice was - scared. Scared? He was scared of being happy? It made no sense, and Clark forced himself a little more awake and pulled Lex closer. "It's okay," he whispered, trying to reassure. "It's okay, Lex. Everything's okay."

 

When he woke up the next morning, Lex was gone.

 

*

 

Purposefully ignoring the urge to panic, Clark let the blanket drop to the floor - Lex must have tucked it back over him when he left - and scanned the barn for any sign of his 'boyfriend'.

 

Sneakers, textbooks, notepads, novels - all of it was gone, removed, as if Lex had never been there. Clark's preternatural calm managed to last until he climbed down the stairs, left the barn, and knelt down next to the remnants of tire marks left in the gravel by Lex's Porsche.

 

Which wasn't there anymore.

 

No car. No Lex.

 

It wasn't dawn yet. Though the sky was lighter the sun hadn't started peering over the horizon yet, which meant Dad was probably still asleep and *Lex was gone*.

 

Reality slipped in.

 

"Mom! Dad!" Launching himself up to his feet, Clark ran into the house and stumbled through the door with such force that he barely managed to stop the glass from shattering.

 

A quick run around the entire house revealed nothing, no proof of Lex, no sign that maybe - for whatever reason - he'd decided to park the car somewhere else.

 

Barrelling out of his parents bedroom as she tugged her robe on, Mom nearly smacked right into him. Dad was a step behind. "Clark?"

 

"Gone, he's gone," Clark said, distracted, brushing by them to sweep around the top floor of the house with his x-ray vision.

 

"Lex?" Mom asked, disbelief threading her voice.

 

Finding nothing, he turned back towards them. "I woke up and he was gone." Something must have happened, something *had* to have happened. Maybe Lex had had a phone call, or...something. "I have to go." Clark managed one step before Mom's hand wrapped around his wrist.

 

"*Clark*."

 

His Mom's voice, a mother's tone, and somehow it got through. Clark turned back.

 

Her hand squeezed. "What happened, sweetheart?"

 

Clark's throat was very, very dry. He didn't know if he'd actually ever been thirsty before. "I told him I loved him." Dad's blink was almost audible. "In the barn last night, we were..." In the barn. Last night. "...kissing. I told him I loved him. At first I thought he was freaking out, but then he said..." God, it was sad even thinking about it. "He said he'd never been happy before." This *hurt*, this thing in his chest. It couldn't possibly be meant to feel like this.

 

"Honey," Mom began softly, sympathetically. "If that really is true, if he's really never been happy before...sad as that is, maybe he simply wasn't ready to hear you say that yet. Maybe he needed to build up to 'I love you'."

 

A door creaked somewhere behind them, but no one turned around. Ryan was awake.

 

Mom might have been right, but it didn't really matter. Clark couldn't just sit around and wait - not about this. "I have to go after him."

 

"Clark," her hand squeezed again, "maybe that's not such a good idea right-"

 

"You don't understand," he warned, and she didn't. It was Lex, and he was Clark, and it was *meant*.

 

"What, Clark? What don't I understand?"

 

Dad finally spoke. "What is it, son?"

 

The word was ringing inside his head and yes, *that* was the one, *that* was the one word that described it perfectly.

 

"Destiny," he said, and then he was pulling out of Mom's grasp and running out of the house.

 

If Lex really was on the run he'd need to get his things first, so Clark knew exactly where he'd go. Arriving in Metropolis in just a few minutes, Clark's scan of the parking lot didn't turn up Lex's Porsche which meant he'd probably beaten him. Getting into the dorm and Lex's room with his powers was easy enough - especially as everyone was still asleep - and then he forced himself to sit on the edge of Lex's bed and wait.

 

He was tempted to start going through Lex's things, searching for some explanation, but breaking in here was violation enough. Instead he angled himself on the bed so he could look through the building and watch for Lex's approach.

 

The sound of his cell phone ringing jerked Clark back into normal vision. He'd fallen asleep in his jacket last night, and he'd forgotten that he'd shoved his cell phone into the inside pocket the last time he'd used it. Fumbling to turn the ringer off, he hesitated when he saw who was calling, but pressed the button and answered the call. "Mom?"

 

"Clark, I'm not trying to stop you," she began immediately, much to his relief, "but there's something I think you need to know." Her sigh was evident even over the phone line, and then she spoke the words that made Clark's heart drop even further. "Lex's father was killed in the meteor shower. Your father and I were distracted with you at the time, but I remember that Lionel Luthor was here when the meteors hit. I mean, it was pretty big news that he came to visit at the time - in Smallville, anyway. When I met Lex, I was sure I remembered something about Mr Luthor not being alone, so I asked him about it the other night..."

 

Oh, God. When Mom and Lex had been talking in the living room. "Lex was in the meteor shower."

 

"Yes, honey."

 

"That's how he lost his hair."

 

"Yes, it is."

 

It wasn't Mom's voice that'd responded. Snapping his head up, Clark saw Lex watching him from the doorway. Swallowing heavily on the guilt, he spoke into the phone. "I have to go." Ignoring her pleas for him to listen, he ended the call and turned off the power.

 

Lex looked...cautious. Nervous. Surprised. "How..?" He paused. Started again. "I broke the speed limit all the way here."

 

Standing up slowly, not wanting to spook him, Clark nervously rubbed his hands along his thighs. "I broke the sound barrier."

 

Obviously thinking Clark was joking, Lex ignored the comment and looked down, towards the empty overnight bag held in his left hand. He must have emptied the previous contents into the trunk of the Porsche, and now he was here to collect his things. "I'm sorry," he said quietly, head bowed. "I really thought I could do this."

 

He sounded so sure, so certain that it couldn't work out, that Clark started walking towards him.

 

Bad move. Lex instantly backed away.

 

Clark froze, carefully keeping his hands at his sides. "Lex, whatever it is...we can deal with it. If you're not ready, I can wait. I mean," he laughed a little hysterically, "you think I don't know how fast this has been going? We've been speaking to each other for barely six days. I've never had something like this with anyone before, and here we are and I haven't even known you a week!"

 

As he spoke, Lex started moving around him until he reached the bed. Slowly turning so he could keep watching him, Clark didn't attempt to move any closer.

 

Tugging the handles on the bag out of the way, Lex began grabbing books from a shelf and placing them in the bag. "It's not too fast," he said, his back to Clark. "It shouldn't be happening at all. I have..." He laughed. "I have what you might call an obsessive personality, Clark. I tend to get focused, *really* focused on just one thing, to the detriment of everything else." Lex reached for more books. "I'd make a terrific case subject - Taylor could have a class about me." He laughed again, which was getting disturbing. "He could probably have an entire semester." Carefully packing what books he could into the bag - he was obviously trying to take as many as possible - Lex's voice dropped to a murmur. "I can't stop thinking about you. You're in my head when I fall asleep. I see your face when I close my eyes. When I try to read my mind drifts, thinking about you, and I have to keep reading the same passages over and over again. And when we're together...God, Clark." Pausing his packing for a moment, he hunched over the bed. "You make me happy."

 

Clark didn't know where to *start*, thrilled and confused as hell, but words came blurting out of his mouth anyway. "How is that a bad thing?"

 

"Because you were right yesterday," Lex announced, continuing the packing with renewed vigour, "the books are more important than you. They have to be. There are things I have to *do* Clark, and if all I think about is you, I can't do them. Especially tomorrow, it's a Monday tomorrow and I'm always busy on a Monday," he finished inanely. "You know what they say. All play and no work..."

 

Lex sounded like he was just barely on this side of a nervous breakdown, and Clark wasn't staying back anymore. Taking three steps forward, he grasped Lex by the arms and turned him around. "Listen to me," he said forcefully, as Lex tried to break free. "Listen! Let me try to help. I'm different, Lex. I can do things no one else can. Whatever it is...let me try."

 

Still now, looking dangerously close to losing it, Lex stared back at him. "Can you turn back time?"

 

Clark closed his eyes, hope dissipating. "No."

 

He felt, rather than saw Lex's nod. "Then let me go."

 

Clark released him, opening his eyes. Lex obviously didn't know it as he grabbed for his bag and hastily zipped it up, but this wasn't over. Clark wasn't going to get any answers here, so he was just going to have to find them somewhere else.

 

Grunting at the weight as he lifted the bag, Lex grabbed the picture from his bedside table and started making his way out the room, carefully shuffling backwards. "I'll still take my classes," Lex said, "but I'll live off campus, now. It'll be easier that way. I apologise in advance for any awkwardness that may spring up if we're ever around each other, and for that reason I also suggest that we sit nowhere near each other in class." Pausing in the doorway, Lex met his gaze and nodded tightly. "I'm sorry."

 

Clark stared at the empty doorway that was left behind for several minutes, still trying to process everything. When he finally moved it was almost on auto-pilot - going back to his own dorm, showering and changing (he'd had his stained jeans on for hours, but had purposefully been ignoring the feeling) - and then he was outside Chloe's room, knocking on her door.

 

"Come on, Chloe," he said loudly, knocking again, "open up."

 

"It's Sunday!" she yelled back, apparently caring as little as he did if she woke anyone up or not.

 

"It's important!" Clark retorted. "Don't think I won't break down this door, because you *know* I ca-"

 

Door suddenly swinging open, Chloe somehow managed to talk to him quietly through the teeth of the fake smile she was wearing. "Careful what you say, Clark, I have companyyyy." Turning it up to normal volume, she continued brightly, "Sure, Clark, come on in!"

 

The guy in Chloe's room had evidently hidden under the covers because although there was no one else to been seen, there *was* a suspicious lump in the bed.

 

Patting down her most definitely post-coital hair, Chloe indicated towards the bed. "This is Justin."

 

"Hey," Clark greeted.

 

"You too," came the muffled response.

 

Chloe let a few moments pass, clucking her tongue against the roof of her mouth. "Clark is just a friend."

 

"Glad to hear it!" the lump replied.

 

Reaching the limits of his patience, Clark dragged Chloe as far away from the bed as possible, and began telling her in whispered tones everything that'd happened. By the time he finished she looked distraught, her hand reaching out to rest against his arm.

 

"What do you want me to do?" She asked, and there was no doubt that whatever he needed, she'd make it happen.

 

"I need to find out about Lex's family," Clark said, "specifically his mom. I think whatever's going on, it's something to do with that." Lex's dad was already dead, and Clark figured this was as good an area as any to look.

 

Nodding thoughtfully, Chloe pondered for a few moments before coming up with a response. "The campus library won't have what we need - it's too small." Rubbing his arm, she grinned up at him. "It's time to call in the big guns."

 

*

 

Metropolis Public Library was huge. It was also - thanks to Mayor Tate's education drive last term - open all week, but even she couldn't make them open their doors before 9am.

 

It took Chloe a while to convince Clark that breaking in and risking getting caught by the police would just make everything take longer, but the moment the doors opened they were the first inside, heading straight for the help desk.

 

Clark quickly learned that newspaper archives were *boring*, especially on the machine he was using to look through past issues. It wasn't too bad at first at least - they knew the date of the meteor shower, so finding reports on the Luthors on that day didn't take too long.

 

What was surprising was exactly what they found, and Clark stared at the screen in surprise. "Lex's mom was there."

 

"Sorry?" Chloe asked, rubbing at her eyes.

 

"Lex's mom was there when the meteors hit."

 

The rubbing stopped. Chloe moved to look over his shoulder. "Was she hurt?"

 

Reading the article, still dumbfounded, Clark shook his head. "Barely. Scrapes and bruises. A few burns."

 

"Wow," Chloe said. "She got lucky. I mean these things kill her husband, strip off her son's hair, and she walks away with..." She looked at Clark's face. "Oh God, I'm really not helping, am I?" Moving until she was leaning against the desk, she touched the side of his face. "How many times have we had this conversation? It's not your fault."

 

He'd desolated that entire family. "Tell that to my guilt complex."

 

"It's *no one*'s fault," she continued quietly, furtively looking around to make sure no one was nearby. "Your planet exploded, right? Well, planet's do that sometimes. And you, as a kid, *definitely* had nothing to do with it. Personally I think you give yourself too much credit, Mr Kent."

 

Somehow she always knew what to say. Letting one almost real smile emerge, he caught her wrist and kissed the back of her hand. "Get back to work."

 

Pulling her hand away, she saluted. "Yes, sir, Mr Kent, sir!"

 

Someone shhhhed.

 

As he read further, Clark came to understand that the Luthors had been pretty big news in their day. LuthorCorp had been growing well, but according to the business pages he found, after the meteor shower things took a turn for the worse. Lionel had left the company to his wife - she had her own business background - but rather that get involved with running the company she'd let the board of directors take care of everything.

 

Who'd apparently made some bad choices.

 

As the years passed the company reports got thinner on the ground. The Luthors were scarcely news anymore, and though the company was turning a profit it was stagnating, heading nowhere.

 

And then Chloe found something, pointing to her screen. "Lex took control when he turned eighteen, three years ago."

 

Lex ran a *company*? And wait, Lex was older than him? "Does he still run it now?" It seemed kind of implausible with him at college.

 

"No," Chloe shook her head. "He sold it off immediately," her eyebrows lifted, "for a sizeable amount, I might add."

 

That was where he'd got the money.

 

It was several hours later when they finally found something else. The Luthors had all but dropped off the news radar, and Clark was more thankful than ever for his enhanced sight when it zoomed in on a small space-filling article. There wasn't even a picture.

 

"Chloe," he whispered as he read over the article, sorrow and horror filling his voice. *Lex*. "I think I found it."

 

*

 

"We're missing something."

 

Busy staring through - literally *through* - the window, not to mention the security fence and the cars in the parking lot, Clark didn't really hear anything she'd said. "Hmm."

 

"I'm serious, Clark."

 

Still staring out the window, his ears at least starting paying attention Chloe's voice. "About what?"

 

"We're on a *stake-out*," she enthused. "There are rules, traditions that we have to follow. For example," Chloe continued, making him turn his head to look as she lifted up the binoculars she'd procured from *somewhere*. It was probably better that he didn't know. "We have our surveillance devices - not that you need them. We have a car - a vital part of the stake-out procedure, I'm sure you'll agree." Lowering her hand, she began reaching out to touch the things she was talking about. "We have coffee so bad my car could actually run on it, donuts covered with so much sugar that my teeth are threatening to fall out if I so much as look at them...chips!" she yelled. "That's *it*, Clark, we need chips, some flavour with a really strong aftertaste that'll also stain our fingers an entirely different-"

 

"Chloe,"

 

"-too much?"

 

Clark was watching the parking lot again. "Just a little." He knew she was trying to distract and cheer him up, and while he appreciated the effort he didn't want to be *that* distracted. "So, tell me about Justin."

 

"Oh." She sounded surprised. "Not much to tell. We met a few weeks ago and have a lot of fun together. It's not serious." He wasn't looking but somehow he knew Chloe was shrugging. "But the sex is really good."

 

Even now he flushed, but that didn't stop the words from coming out of his mouth. "I wish I could do that."

 

"Do what?"

 

He still wasn't looking at her, but now for an entirely different reason. "Be so...blase about sex." He could practically hear her eyebrows lifting, and quickly pressed on. "I mean, I think it's always gonna be a huge deal for me, you know? I think I'm always gonna have to have known someone forever before I could do anything. Maybe it's because I'm different."

 

"Right," she agreed, in a tone of voice that was astoundingly normal. He'd kind of expected her to tease him about it, and was a little surprised that she-

 

"So remind me, Clark - exactly how long have you known Lex now?"

 

Oh, yeah. And he was still blushing. "Lex is different. It may have only been a week," a week today, in fact, which was just *nuts*, "but it's not about that." Thinking over his words, he quickly continued. "Not that it would matter if it was." Risking insulting Chloe wasn't a good idea. He didn't want her to think that what he and Lex had was just about sex, but he also didn't want her to think that there was anything wrong with a relationship that *was* just about sex. "That's just...not what it is."

 

His head hurt.

 

"Wow," she said after a while. "You really suck at being diplomatic."

 

Hopefully it was something Lex could help him work on. "This isn't news, Chloe."

 

"No, it's not," she teased. "So I guess what you're saying," she continued, "is that it's fine for other people to have sex, but not good ol' Clark Kent?"

 

He *hated* Chloe sometimes. "I never said we didn't have sex. That's just not *all* it is."

 

"You *did* have sex! I knew it!" She was all but bouncing in her seat. "It was pure speculation until now. You've been holding out on me."

 

That was kinda true. When he'd told her about Lex running off, he'd conveniently left out the small detail of the sex on the sofa beforehand. "Look, when I woke up after, Lex was gone, okay? It was great at the time but that kind of made it a bad memory."

 

A few moments later, Chloe's hand was on his arm.

 

"I'm sorry, Clark. That should never happen to anyone, and especially not after their first time. Look," she paused, and he made himself look at her, "when you're done kicking some sense into him, I'm next in line to kick his ass, all right?" Pausing, she grinned mischievously. "Unless he's a little sore there."

 

Couldn't. Believe it. "CHLOE!"

 

Her snickering was cut short when she spotted something behind him. "Oh hey, check it out!" Lifting up the binoculars, she aimed them over Clark's shoulder even as he turned around to see for himself. "Bald guy at two o'clock."

 

Hand already on the car door, Clark opened it and stepped outside. Pausing, he braced himself on the car and peered back inside. "Thanks for being here, Chloe." He knew she'd skipped class, but she'd insisted on coming with him.

 

"No problem," she grinned at him, winking, putting the binoculars on the passenger seat and starting the engine. "You go get your guy. I think I'm gonna go get mine."

 

Smiling his thanks, Clark closed the door and ran.

 

Belle Reve Sanitarium wasn't the friendliest looking place, but then Clark hadn't expected it to be. For a moment it struck him as odd that a place like this would even have a parking lot for the people who came to visit, but then he'd never really had to think about it before.

 

Mostly, he was just glad that he'd paid attention to Lex's babble about always being busy on Monday's, and that his hunch about what Lex did was actually right.

 

There was one barrier and one guard at the entrance to the parking lot and Clark bypassed them easily, coming to a stop as he crouched down by Lex's car. Kneeling on the asphalt, he hid by the trunk of the Porsche and watched the approaching man.

 

Fighting the instinct to stand up immediately, Clark waited until Lex was almost as the car before speaking.

 

"Lex."

 

Stunned, Lex spun in his direction and took a surprised step back. His eyes were red, and raw, but his cheeks were dry.

 

In a split second his expression changed, darkened. "What the hell are you doing here?"

 

This was going well. But Clark recognised that particular defense mechanism as well as anyone else, and kept talking as he stood up. "We need to talk."

 

"So, what?" Lex asked coldly. "You're stalking me?"

 

It would probably actually qualify. And man, Lex could be *scary*. "I don't know what you'd call it, but we do need to talk. Waking up after the first time you've been with someone and realising they've run off...well...it totally sucks, Lex."

 

Clark could have sworn he saw a wince.

 

"It's okay," Clark continued, and at the moment it kinda was. "Right now I just want to help. I..." Pausing, he studied Lex warily, afraid he was going to bolt. "I found an article in an old newspaper. It...it must be terrible that your mom's in there." He glanced past Lex for a moment, taking in the harsh lines of the building. "I can't even imagine."

 

"She's not just in there," Lex spat out, obviously emotional and trying badly to contain it. "I *put* her there. I had my own mother commited."

 

Blinking against the burning in his eyes, Clark lifted a hand up, placating. "She needed help, Lex."

 

"*Help*?" Lex asked, disbelieving. "They have no idea what they're doing."

 

Yeah, Lex was seriously screwed up. Somehow it only made things seem like they were supposed to be. "Is that what the books are about? You're trying to find a way to make her better?"

 

Lex's jaw tightened, as if anything he was about to say would be painful. "Yes."

 

If he hadn't been so concerned, Clark might have found the sheer arrogance funny. "Lex, I'm sure they have doctors in there. Specialists. People who have been training and working in their respective fields for *decades*. Do you really think that reading some books and taking a few college courses can give you an insight they missed?"

 

Pressing his lips together Lex stared back at him, eyes hollow. "She's my mother, Clark. There's no other family." It was obvious that some part of him knew how ridiculous, how unlikely it was, but he had to keep trying.

 

Clark could understand that much, at least, if not all of it.

 

Lex was all she had.

 

"No," he argued, walking forward, grabbing Lex and pulling him against his chest before he could argue. "Not anymore."

 

The body he was holding tensed, then struggled, but Clark didn't let go no matter how hard Lex tried to pull away. Eventually gasping something - maybe a name, maybe nothing at all - Lex sagged against him as if all the strings holding him up had been cut.

 

*

 

Clark soon discovered that compliant Lex was even more disturbing than determined Lex. Securing him into the passenger seat, Clark drove the Porsche out of the parking lot and headed towards college.

 

He couldn't even enjoy it.

 

Head tipped to one side, Lex stared blankly out the window the entire way.

 

*

 

Clark still wasn't sure what he was doing even when he opened the door to his own room and hussled Lex inside. Closing the door behind him, he sat Lex on the edge of the bed and then began ridding both of them of their shoes and jackets.

 

Moving on instinct he stretched out on the bed, moving Lex with him until he was sprawled half on Clark and half on the bed, his left leg folded over one of Clark's.

 

It was just as well Clark was strong. Lex gave him no help at all.

 

"You can be happy," Clark started whispering, hand running over Lex's back, "she'd want you to be happy. You can do both. You can be happy and try to find a way to help her. I know you think it's impossible, but impossible things happen every day. I should know. You can-"

 

"It was all right at first," Lex said suddenly, surprising him, and Clark shut up immediately. "After the meteor shower. I...it was sad that Dad died, but I don't think he ever liked me very much." Lex's body tucked closer, and Clark held him tighter. How could your own father not like you? "And we were all right. Mom was quiet a lot, but she'd just lost her husband so it wasn't unusual, you know? It was a few years later when things started to...change. I still don't know what triggered it. She'd stopped going out in public, had long since lost any friends she had. She let the staff go, claiming they were stealing from her, but nothing ever went missing. I learned how to cook. How to wash the clothes. Sometimes she'd have entire conversations with people who weren't there or she'd start screaming for no reason and..." Pausing, he pressed his head into Clark's chest. "I looked after her. I looked after her for years because I *knew* it was just grief, and she'd get better, and she'd hate being locked up somewhere but..." Sighing, his voice wavered. "I wasn't strong enough. When I turned 18 I gained access to my own money, and the first thing I did was put her in that place. I couldn't take it anymore, I couldn't-"

 

"Shhh," Clark hushed, barely blinking back tears.

 

"I was so happy when she was gone from the house," his voice was thick, muffled by Clark's shirt. "What kind of son does that make me?"

 

God. Lex had obviously never talked about this to anyone before, but Clark wasn't sure he was strong enough to listen.

 

"They don't know exactly what's wrong with her," Lex continued, working past the pain in his voice as if he hadn't just asked a question. "They diagnose a condition, but the treatment never works. They try something else, and that doesn't work either. Psychology is far from an exact science, but they haven't made any progress at all."

 

Clark had been worried about this possibility after learning that Lillian had been in the meteor shower, and then read that she'd been commited. "I think there might be a reason. I...don't know for sure. I don't know if there is a way to know for sure, and I don't know if it'd help us even if we *did* know for-"

 

"Clark, that's a lot of 'knows'. What are you saying?"

 

That sounded much, *much* more like the Lex he knew. "The kryp-the meteor rocks. They change people, mutate them. Make them different. The meteor rocks are all over Smallville, and so many people have been affected by them. There was this one kid, Greg, who kind of became half-man half-bug-"

 

"What the hell kind of town do you live in?" Lex interrupted, lifting himself up slightly by pressing the palm of his hand against Clark's chest. "There's a *bug* man?"

 

"There's also the shape shifter, the coach who can control fire, the woman who can see the future-"

 

"Clark..."

 

"What about you?" Clark asked suddenly, and he couldn't believe he hadn't thought about *Lex* before. "Can you do anything...special?" He wasn't sure if he wanted to know or not. So far, life hadn't gone particularly well for anyone who had a mutation.

 

Lex shrugged. "Never have a haircut?"

 

"I'm serious." Though, it was reassuring how fast Lex calmed down when he had something to focus on even if he surely hadn't had time yet to process what Clark had told him about certain residents of Smallville.

 

"I can honestly say I haven't noticed anything different, other than the baldness. But then, my life hasn't been particularly exciting. I haven't really done anything. Went to school. Looked after Mom..."

 

"Sold a business..."

 

"Speaking of which," Lex shifted, looking down at him. "Exactly how did you find all this information? Because it seems you've taken stalking to impressive new levels." He was teasing, or at least attempting to. His mouth almost formed a smile but it was obvious he couldn't quite manage it.

 

Pulling his hand away from Lex's body, Clark reached up to touch the side of his face, but it wasn't for comfort as much as it was to make sure Lex didn't took away. "Lex, I'm not letting you do this alone. We'll work on this together, use whatever resources we can. I can't promise that we'll find anything or that we'll make your mom better, but we *are* going to *try*." Keeping his voice firm, he was all but telling Lex what they were going to do, and made a point to hold his gaze the entire time, to not look away even for a second.

 

Licking his lips, Lex spoke. "Clark?"

 

He rubbed his thumb over Lex's mouth. "Yeah?"

 

His voice was shaky, but sure. "I really have to go to the bathroom."

 

*

 

"Do you think she can see ghosts?"

 

Blinking, Clark shifted on Chloe's bed and frowned at her. "Who?"

 

"Lex's mom," she clarified. "I mean you said she talks to people who aren't there, right? Maybe it's not that. Maybe she talks to people that no one else can see."

 

He really shouldn't have been surprised by the prospect - he was an alien, after all - but that didn't stop him from responding with a, "Huh."

 

"Or *maybe*," she continued, sitting up further and getting into full speculation mode, "she has access to another plane of reality, and can see the people there. That'd probably be enough to drive anyone insane."

 

There was no doubt about it - their lives were *weird*. "We don't even know for sure if she was changed by the kryptonite, Chloe," he pointed out. "She didn't get ill until a few years after the meteor show, remember?"

 

"You know as well as I do that it can take years for mutations to manifest themselves. Clark." Leaning towards him, she studied him sympathetically. "If she is sick because of the meteors, you're not responsible. Didn't we have a conversation about this just the other day? Stop trying to martyr yourself."

 

He wasn't trying to martyr himself. Not deliberately. He just didn't want Lex to hate him. Turning his head away, he watched the fingers of his right hand tap at his thigh. What the heck was taking so long?

 

"Shouldn't he be here by now?" Chloe asked, apparently deciding to let the subject drop.

 

"He'll be here," Clark insisted. He had no doubt. Lex had promised, and Lex was the kind of guy who kept his word.

 

"And you're looking really calm about that," Chloe pointed out, gaze falling to the fingers that were still drumming nervously against his leg.

 

And then she got it.

 

"You're going to tell him."

 

The fingers stopped moving.

 

It was all the answer Chloe needed.

 

"It's barely been a week," she reminded softly.

 

Eight days. It was early afternoon of the eighth day since he'd started talking to Lex. They're gone to class together this morning before Lex had headed off to see what he could do about his dorm room - Clark had convinced him that living off campus simply wasn't an option.

 

Clark had offered to go with him but Lex had stood firm, standing in the middle of the quad as he held Clark's gaze.

 

"I need to go by myself. I need to prove to you that I'm not going to run again. I need you to know that you can trust me."

 

Clark had kissed him right then and there, not caring that Whitney was walking by with a bunch of his football buddies.

 

As it was, Whitney hadn't cared either, simply laughing and telling Clark to make sure he got an invite to the wedding.

 

And now here Clark was, waiting for Lex.

 

Nervous. Excited. Terrified.

 

He'd known since before going to Belle Reve yesterday that he was going to tell Lex his secret, and without even consciously planning to he was apparently intending to tell Lex *today*, judging by the sheer sense of anticipation.

 

This was more than just wanting to see him; it was practically a biological need.

 

"Long enough," Clark said finally, knowing that Chloe still needed a response. "It's long enough."

 

When someone knocked on the door, Clark was so tense that he jumped off the bed.

 

And stayed there.

 

"Hey, hey," Chloe tried to joke, though she looked as concerned about his floating as he was, "that may not be the best way to tell him."

 

Closing his eyes and trying to relax, Clark carefully felt himself float back down.

 

Patting his arm, Chloe climbed off the bed just as another knock sounded. "Coming!" she yelled and then she was there, swinging open the door. "Hey, Lex. Come on in."

 

"Thanks," he nodded, looking relieved as he stepped inside. "I was worried I had the wrong room."

 

"Nah," she said, closing the door to face him as Lex smiled towards Clark. "We were just a little busy making out on the bed."

 

Clark didn't even get a chance to blush.

 

"Miss Sullivan," Lex replied immediately, "I mean this as no insult to you, but Clark has made it abundantly clear that if he was going to make out with either one of us on that bed, it wouldn't be you."

 

Obviously amused, Chloe folded her arms across her chest and arched an eyebrow. "Very possessive, Mr Luthor. Would you like to pee on him next?"

 

Clark didn't even get a chance to splutter out a "Chloe!"

 

There was no hesitation at all. "I have no idea if Clark is even into that."

 

Clark gawked.

 

Chloe blinked.

 

And burst out laughing.

 

And this was it, Clark realised. This wasn't some fake veneer of politeness, like the introduction at the bench last week. This was two of the most important people in his life, actually talking. This was Chloe and Lex, actually meeting.

 

Suddenly feeling a lot more hopeful about...*everything*, Clark all but bounced on the balls of his feet. "So, what did they say about your room?" he asked, moving a little closer to Lex.

 

"Well..." Lex's quiet amusement faded, which so didn't bode well. "Single rooms are at a premium, and I chose to give mine up. They said they should be able to get me a place to stay on campus, but I'll probably have to share with someone."

 

The answer seemed unbelievably obvious, although Clark's mouth had the answer before his brain did. "You can stay with me. Umm." Right, because he hadn't thought about the logistics of this at all. "You know. If you want." Would Lex just be able to move into his room? It wasn't like they needed two beds - they'd slept in Clark's bed just fine together last night (and that was the way Clark *always* wanted to wake up from now on).

 

He hated his indecision. Yesterday, talking to Lex on the bed, he'd been so absolutely sure about everything. Why couldn't he stay that way?

 

"Oh." Seeming surprised, Lex nonetheless recovered quickly. "Actually, that makes sense. If we are going to be investigating it'll be useful not to have anyone else in the way. Plus, costs will be cheaper for both of us."

 

Right. Because Lex couldn't afford a room all by himself. And Clark was not feeling at all slighted that Lex's reasons had absolutely nothing to do with *him*. "Great. Sounds good."

 

Having far more experience recognising the signs of an incoming cranky Clark than Lex did, Chloe cleared her throat and distracted them by walking towards her PC. Realising that his mood was all over the place today - no doubt a result of the big confession, coming soon to a dorm room near you (or at least him) - Clark silently thanked her for not letting him become a *complete* idiot.

 

"This," Chloe declared, moving the mouse around to get rid of the Mulder screensaver, "is what we wanted to show you. It's basically a database of every weird and wonderful thing that's happened in Smallville since the meteor shower. The mutations we know of, photographs, strange occurrences we never managed to get an explanation for." Turning to face Lex, she shrugged. "I ran the highschool newspaper and most of these started out as articles. Of course most of them never actually got printed, either, but I kept records for myself. I swear, Kwan was such a tight ass about this stuff, but then I guess he was like everyone else. If you don't talk about it, it's not happening, right?"

 

The cynicism was palpable. Chloe had long grown sick of people pretending things were normal in Smallville. It was one of the reasons she'd been so glad to get out of town when she went to college.

 

Now clearing his own throat, Clark stepped closer to her. "We figured, you know, if the meteors *are* what affected your mom then you should be brought up to speed with everything that's happened in Smallville. Give you a better idea."

 

"All right," Lex said easily, sitting down in the chair by the desk when Clark gestured towards it.

 

Backing away, Clark watched as Chloe ran through the program with him. It was pretty self-explanatory though, so after a few moments she pulled away.

 

"I'll leave you to it," she said, "but if you have any questions feel free to ask."

 

Nodding his thanks, Lex turned his attention back to the monitor and started clicking.

 

Three hours later, he was still clicking.

 

Every now and then Lex would produce a sound of interest, which would usually be followed by some frantic scrolling down of whatever document he was reading. Most of the time, however, he was silent save for the sound of the mouse clicking.

 

Having grown officially bored after just twenty minutes - there was only so many times he could put up with Chloe's worried gaze; it was obvious she thought telling Lex the entire truth would be a bad idea - he pulled a book and folder out of his bag and got to work on his latest assignment.

 

His attention was all over the place, of course. His gaze - and mind - kept flicking from Lex to Chloe to the PC. By the time nearly four hours had passed, he'd barely written two pages.

 

When Lex's chair finally creaked and swivelled towards them, Clark lifted his head with equal amounts hope and anxiety.

 

Unsurprisingly, Lex was staring at him and, equally unsurprising, a few moments later Lex was speaking.

 

"You're mentioned a lot."

 

Not as a mutant or anything else, Clark knew, but simply because he'd stopped a lot of the mutants. It wasn't the smartest thing to do when you were trying not to draw attention to yourself, but it wasn't like he couldn't *not* help.

 

"Most of the stories where Clark is mentioned either weren't published at all, or were the earlier ones," Chloe said from next to him on the bed, her own work spread across her lap. "Later on it seemed...a good idea not to mention him."

 

Chloe was hinting way too much, but wouldn't that ultimately make it easier for Clark to say what he had to say?

 

Judging by the look on Lex's face, maybe he barely had to say anything at all.

 

"You help people," Lex said with certainty.

 

Clark nodded slowly, once. "Yeah."

 

Not looking away, Lex tipped his head towards the PC. "Are you like them?"

 

Carefully, slowly placing his work aside, carefully, slowly, crossing the room, carefully, slowly kneeling down by the chair, Clark looked up at Lex. "My arrival created them."

 

Watching a small frown mar the otherwise smooth forehead, Clark waited as Lex put it all together. He already knew that the meteor rocks caused the mutations, and meteors came from...

 

Lex's eyebrows went up, eyes widening.

 

"Oh."

 

Clark's hands were damp where they rested against his thighs, and he started dragging them back and forth across the denim material. "I...you...I..." He couldn't speak, his tongue feeling ten sizes too big. Swallowing heavily, blinking back ridiculous tears, he lowered his head. He wanted *so much* but he couldn't find the words, could never find the words and he was going to lose-

 

A hand was running through his hair.

 

"You look so human," Lex whispered, and it wasn't fear or disgust or loathing in his voice.

 

It was wonder.

 

Shuddering, Clark's hands came up to rest on top of Lex's knees.

 

"If every way that matters," Chloe's voice said, "he is."

 

Had Chloe moved? Was she behind him? It hadn't been like this with Chloe, he hadn't *told* her. She'd stumbled across the pod and freaked out - not because he was an alien, but because, "You should have *told* me, Clark! God, I need to get everything involving you down from the wall!"

 

It'd been different. He could deal with that, the shouting; somehow it was harder facing her quiet room and the gentle tug of Lex's hand in his hair.

 

"Please," he realised he was whispering, "please please please. *Please*." Because he couldn't assume, not about this. He needed to hear the words, he needed to *know* that Lex was okay, that he didn't...

 

"It's all right," Lex murmured, bending at the waist to tug at Clark's arms, forcing him to kneel up. "I don't blame you."

 

*Yes*.

 

Suddenly limp, Clark exhaled heavily and clung onto Lex's body. It was awkward - Lex was still sitting and the chair was in the way - but neither of them let go, Lex's arms around Clark's shoulders, his chin a few inches above Clark's head.

 

It was okay. It was okay. Lex was okay. Clark suddenly felt like laughing, but his face was wet.

 

Realising, he lifted his head away from Lex's stomach and tried to blink the moisture out of his eyes. "I'm not usually this melodramatic about it," he croaked. It seemed kinda pointless getting embarrassed about it - it wasn't like anyone else had been through this.

 

Well, that he knew of.

 

Pulling back but still holding on, Lex smiled down at him kindly. "So, what? You're much more blase when you tell people you're an alien normally?"

 

Chuckling, then choking on the tears, Clark was thankful when a tissue appeared near his face. Realising it must have come from Chloe he also realised he'd been ignoring her for a while. Chloe used to hate being ignored.

 

Tugging an arm from around Lex, Clark took the tissue and made a point of turning to look at Chloe. "Thank you."

 

Smiling and looking a little watery-eyed herself, Chloe rubbed a hand over his back.

 

Clark had the best friends in the entire world.

 

Wiping at his face with the back of his hand, he used the tissue to blow his nose. He managed to do that one-handed, because he wasn't letting go of Lex yet.

 

When that was done, he disposed of the tissue and turned back to Lex because it was important that he let him know this.

 

"I've never told anyone before." Watching Lex's gaze move to Chloe, Clark continued. "Chloe found my spaceship, which kind of gave me away." He paused, managing a wry grin. "Mom and Dad know of course - they're the ones who found me. But...that's it. No one else knows." Leaning closer, he held Lex's gaze. "I've never told anyone before."

 

Swallowing heavily, Lex nodded slowly. "Thank you for trusting me, Clark. I promise I'll never tell a soul."

 

Clark wasn't worried about that - he knew Lex would be careful, would never talk about it to anyone who didn't already know. "I know. I just, I...I had to tell you, Lex. I don't know if I can explain it."

 

Lex, apparently, had no such problem, one side of his mouth curving up. "Destiny."

 

Which was just the most perfect thing he could have said because Clark was launching himself at him, mouths clashing together hungrily, and wow, who knew that revelations would make him so damn *horny*?

 

"Well," Chloe's voice said from somewhere, but Clark didn't care, he was pulling Lex down from the chair and onto the floor, "this has obviously been an emotional afternoon for everyone involved. I think I'm gonna go hunt down some chocolate...or maybe Justin."

 

Growling - Clark didn't even know Lex could *do* that, and man it was hot - Lex rolled them until Clark was underneath him, and his hands were in Clark's hair, pulling at the side of Clark's top; Clark's own hands were already under Lex's shirt, gliding across the smooth, smooth skin of Lex's lower back.

 

"Umm, right," Chloe continued, apparently still there, "I'd really better be...umm...going. There's condoms and stuff in the bedside table, and if you make a mess anywhere on the carpet I'm sending you the bill to have it cleaned."

 

Clark groaned but it had nothing to with Chloe and everything to do with the way Lex was sucking on his tongue.

 

His ears dimly registered the sound of the door slamming shut and he knew he'd be embarrassed later, but right now he didn't care. This was destiny and Lex and Lex's hand struggling with the zipper of his jeans and-

 

"Oh my GOD!"

 

*

 

Okay, *this* was how he wanted to spend every morning. Spooned together in bed, completely fucked out, with Lex leaning over him from behind to press the occasional kiss against his shoulder.

 

"I am never moving again," Clark murmured happily, and really, why should he when he had all that naked Lex skin pressed up behind him?

 

Another kiss to his shoulder. "Really?" Lex's voice was richly amused and, pressing even closer, his left hand wound around Clark's body and grasped Clark's dick.

 

Which *really* liked it when Lex touched it like that. Groaning, Clark happily started shifting his hips back and forth and he was so totally for this movement thing. Moving was good. And when he could move forward into Lex's hand or back to rub against Lex's dick, moving completely kicked ass.

 

The angle was awkward but Clark turned his head back anyway, meeting Lex's mouth for a kiss, gasping into it when Lex's hand upped the pace. Oh...God...

 

"Tell me, Clark," Lex's voice, husky and practically speaking into Clark's mouth and God, that was nearly enough to bring him off. "Is that a spaceship in your pocket or are you just happy to see me?"

 

Clark froze. Processed that he had just heard what he really thought he'd heard.

 

Laughed his head off.

 

"I can't believe you just said that!"

 

Snickering, Lex gently bit at Clark's neck. "Couldn't help myself."

 

Frowning, Clark batted Lex's hand away from his dick and turned over until he was pressing Lex down onto the mattress. He was definitely still hard, but not quite so close anymore. "You've been wanting to say that ever since you found out," he accused fondly.

 

"That is not true," Lex insisted, lips twitching. "Just the last half an hour."

 

Leaning down, Clark kissed him sloppily. "Geek," he breathed when he pulled away. "I'm in love with a geek."

 

"Well, yes. But you're a geek too, so we're well suited."

 

Grinning down at him, Clark kissed Lex again, but they'd definitely left something unresolved. Shifting on top of Lex, he moved until...

 

Ohhh.

 

Gasping into Lex's mouth he moved again and Lex was moaning with him. Doing this naked was even better than it had been in the barn, and it didn't matter anymore about lame spaceship jokes.

 

Being geeky fucking *rocked*.

 

*

 

Clark had had sex.

 

True, it wasn't the first time he'd been with Lex, but it was the first time they'd both been naked and Lex had stuck around afterwards. Which made it all the more perfect.

 

Clark had had *sex*.

 

And yeah, they'd had to strip Chloe's bed later and promise to get the sheets cleaned ASAP, but even that couldn't ruin his good mood.

 

Clark had had sex.

 

He didn't really feel any different...well, okay, he did. He was more *aware* of his body than he'd ever been, aware that Lex found him desirable enough to be with him, and it made Clark feel almost ridiculously proud of himself.

 

That was pretty much it. He was still Clark Kent, still his parents' son, still an alien from another galaxy - the only difference was that he knew what a nice butt Lex had (before it'd all been theory; now he had practical groping experience).

 

Speaking of Lex's butt, the owner of said butt had just walked into the room carrying another box.

 

Clark sighed and remembered the sex again.

 

He had no idea when Lex had even had the time to get his stuff put into storage after running, but Clark guessed that if you had enough money you could anything done.

 

The truck parked outside now held all of Lex's possessions, and they were in the process of transferring them into Clark's room.

 

Their room.

 

Clark suspected Lex's money had helped with that, too, but he was too happy with the development to risk asking and letting one of the possible answers play on his conscience.

 

Once they had the boxes inside Clark could have had it all unpacked and put away in seconds, but that would have been missing out on the experience. He'd never moved in with someone before, never lived with anyone who wasn't his parents. Although the opportunity had never risen before anyway, the fact that Clark occasionally gave off somewhat obvious signs he was alien (floating in bed was something of a giveaway), it wasn't something he could risk.

 

But Lex knew. Lex knew everything now, and didn't care.

 

Clark grinned again, and kept grinning when Lex bent over to root through a box.

 

"Will you stop staring at my ass?"

 

Apparently Clark hadn't been as subtle as he'd thought. Which wasn't really a surprise.

 

"Thrilled though I am," Lex huffed, bending up to place a handful of books onto a shelf, "to know that you find it so appealing, you *did* say that we'd be doing this together."

 

"Hey, I carried the heavy stuff up from the truck. I did my part," Clark teased, but moved until he was by Lex and started pulling books out of the same box.

 

Working together they had all the books on the shelf in no time, and Clark couldn't help but notice that the shelf groaned ominously.

 

Lex glanced towards him. "Maybe I should invest in some new shelving."

 

"Good idea," Clark agreed. Lex had way too many books - this was only the first box.

 

"See how much faster it is when we work together?" Lex pointed out a little smugly. "And for your cooperation, I believe you deserve a reward."

 

Clark really hoped it involved getting naked. He'd tried to hide it, but he was pretty obsessed with that sex thing. "Does it involve taking our clothes off?"

 

So much for trying to hide it.

 

"Well it certainly involves *you* taking your clothes off," Lex smirked, *dirtily*, and suddenly Clark's dick was fighting the confines of his jeans. Pretty much literally, and Clark wasn't sure how long the denim was going to hold.

 

Hooking his index fingers through the belt loops on either side of Clark's waist, Lex turned them around and slowly started walking backwards towards the bed, dragging Clark with him.

 

The only problem with this was the fact that they'd barely unpacked anything, so there were boxes scattered all over the place. Lex was walking backwards so...he kept walking into them.

 

Each time it happened he'd freeze momentarily, look annoyed, then change his angle and take another step back.

 

When it happened for the forth time, Clark couldn't hold back the snigger. It was sweet, but... "Come on, Lex. Forward's as good as backwards." And he really hadn't meant that to sound so *gay*.

 

Either ignoring or missing the double entendre, Lex stubbornly refused to look where he was going. "I'm trying to be romantic here, Clark. You shouldn't discourage me." Another step.

 

"I just don't want the backs of your legs to require medical attention." Although the idea of playing Clark Kent, M.D? Surprisingly hot.

 

Clark needn't have worried - a few more steps back and the back of Lex's knees were hitting the edge of the bed and down they tumbled.

 

Of course there wasn't much room there, either - there were boxes at one end (Lex had a theory that they were secretly mating while no one was looking) - but there was enough to kind of straddle Lex, to move his head down for a messy kiss and have all kinds of fun as he ground away.

 

Until Lex pushed at his shoulders.

 

Pulling away immediately, Clark was pleased to see the reassuring smile that greeted him, but then Lex was pushing him to one side and kneeling down by the bed and...unbuttoning and unzipping Clark's fly.

 

Tugging Clark's jeans and boxers down.

 

Staring at Clark's dick.

 

Clark had always thought dicks were pretty strange looking but Lex seemed to have no such qualms, studying it so intently that Clark was starting to feel a little uncomfortable.

 

He felt whole other *worlds* of uncomfortable when Lex's head moved down, just for a moment, and his tongue licked clean up the side of Clark's dick.

 

Throwing his head back and closing his eyes, Clark wheezed as he clutched onto the edge of the bed with both hands.

 

Holy. Shit.

 

Realising nothing else was happening, Clark cracked open one eyelid and peeked down at Lex.

 

Who was looking up at him, smiling softly, his cheeks flushed a slight red. Well, that made sense. Lex had never done this before either. There was bound to be embarrassment or awkwardness, and Clark's dick would just have to cope with that.

 

"Lex," his voice was saying, though he didn't remember intending to speak. He *did* know that he didn't want to rush Lex into anything, sexually, that he wasn't ready for. This whole thing was going so fast and Clark was ready, Clark was *so* ready, but if Lex wasn't he could wait. "You don't have to do this."

 

In retrospect, Clark should have realised that Lex would have seen that as a challenge.

 

Because Lex's head went down and his mouth was open and Clark's entire body *arched*.

 

It was nothing, nothing like touching himself, or being touched. It was wet, hot, *torturous*, and when Lex didn't have the head in his mouth he was *licking* at it which was just *evil*, and Clark was panting like a normal guy who'd run ten gazillion marathons and it was building already, he could feel it, and he tried to hold back, didn't want to end that soon, and Lex was mouthing and sucking and teasing and when a phone started ringing, that was it. What was left of Clark's control snapped, and he came.

 

All over Lex's face.

 

Gasping, lying back on the bed, Clark decided that sex was probably the only thing on Earth that was going to be able to kill him.

 

"Hmm," Lex said.

 

"Lex," Clark said. Or at least attempted to. It came out something like, "Guuuuuh."

 

There was still a phone ringing. Realising the noise was coming from his jeans, Clark forced himself to sit up and rifled through the pockets of the jeans that were still bunched up beneath his knees. Pulling out the cell phone, he lifted his head and saw that Lex had found tissues somewhere and was busy cleaning himself up.

 

Feeling a little guilty about the mess, Clark spoke. "Hey." When Lex looked up, Clark grinned mischievously. "I am *so* doing that to you, later."

 

Pleased by the resulting expression on Lex's face, Clark pressed the talk button on the phone and lifted it up to his ear. "Hello?"

 

"Clark?"

 

"Mom!" Way to kill the mood. Shoving the phone between his face and his shoulder, he suddenly stood and started pulling up his boxers and jeans. "Great to hear from you!" It was possible he was shouting too much, but if he was semi-naked for too long while on the phone to his mother, she'd *know*.

 

As Clark straightened his clothes out and kept talking to Mom, he watched Lex. First smirking at Clark's reaction, Lex's face quickly wrinkled in vague distaste at something.

 

By now he wore no obvious signs of sex, but he pushed himself to his feet and navigated his way through the boxes until he was stepping outside the room, leaving the door open.

 

Figuring that Lex had left to wash up properly, Clark kept talking to Mom, reassuring her - not for the first time - that things between him and Lex were fine. Steering well clear of the fact that he'd told Lex about his origins - that was really something they had to talk about in person - Clark ended the call before Lex returned.

 

"Well," Lex said when he came back, closing the door and speaking when he saw that Clark was off the phone. "That was certainly-"

 

Moving as suddenly as he'd planned, Clark had his mouth over Lex's in nanoseconds. Lex's noise of surprise was muffled but he quickly adapted and kissed back.

 

Eventually pulled away, Clark rested his forehead against Lex's. "We've been ordered back to the farm this weekend."

 

Wincing, Lex pulled further away. "All right."

 

"They'll be fine," Clark assured him.

 

"I hurt their son," Lex retorted.

 

"Yeah," Clark replied with a grin, "well *he* forgave you. They will, too. Come on," he continued, "let's get the rest of this stuff away, and then I'll return the *favour* from earlier." Clark wasn't entirely sure he could look lecherous, but he gave it his best shot.

 

It was all the motivation either of them needed.

 

*

 

Several hours later, Lex was snoring next to him. It was both adorable and worrying the way Lex clung onto him while he slept, as if he expected to be alone when he woke up.

 

Though he felt guilty, some part of Clark really didn't want to find out exactly what was wrong with Lex's mom. He knew it was going to be difficult and painful and these last couple of days had been so *good*. He understood what Lex had meant when he said he'd never been happy - Clark had certainly never been *this* happy in his entire life.

 

Sighing, he tucked Lex closer to him, pressing his face into the smooth neck.

 

"Clark?"

 

He dimly realised the snoring had stopped a while ago. "Hmm?" he said into the neck.

 

"I want to take you to see Mom tomorrow."

 

It was the smart thing to do. It was something they ultimately had to do, anyway. Knowing what they knew about the effects of the meteors, Clark could look for anything familiar, and Lex could look for something he might not have noticed before because it seemed unimportant. Going to see Lillian Luthor was vital to trying to help her.

 

But that wasn't why Lex wanted him to come. At least, not specifically.

 

"I'd be honoured," Clark murmured, pressing a kiss to Lex's skin. "Though I think an occasion like this calls for dressing up. What should I wear?"

 

Rubbing a hand slowly up Clark's arm, Lex responded quietly. "Purple," he said. "Mom always loved purple."

 

*

 

Clark felt like he should be wearing a tie or something.

 

"So you're meeting his mom today, huh?"

 

Trying to stare at the entire reflection in the small mirror he had in his room, Clark tugged at his shirt. He would have had an easier time with the bigger mirrors in the showers, but then Chloe wouldn't have been able to come along.

 

Not that a little thing like naked men would ever have stopped Chloe Sullivan.

 

"Yeah," Clark replied, distracted, tugging at the end of the shirt again. "Does this look okay?" Clark didn't care about fashion, but he did want to look nice and it was the first time he'd worn this shirt. Lex's request for purple had sent Clark on a shopping spree - well, a shopping spree of one shirt, but he'd gone into enough shops that it probably counted as a spree.

 

He really should have asked Chloe to go with him. He'd told Lex he had something to do after class, and he'd ended up saying the same thing to Chloe which was just dumb. Having her advice would have saved a lot of time, and he wouldn't have been worried now about not being ready in time.

 

Then again, he was gay. Wasn't he supposed to know about clothes and stuff?

 

"You look *great*," Chloe insisted, moving to stand in front of him. She'd been waiting outside the dorm when he'd come back, claiming she needed to go over something Professor Adler had said in class.

 

Clark figured she'd known he was up to something.

 

Changing once he got back to his room - Chloe had made a production of promising not to look, and then had tried to anyway - Clark was now wearing his good pair of black dress pants, black shoes, and the new shirt.

 

Maybe Chloe was right. Turning to one side to see what he could of his profile, Clark thought that maybe he didn't look that bad. It just wasn't what he was used to wearing, so he didn't feel very comfortable.

 

It might have seemed silly considering where he and Lex were going, but he really wanted to make a good impression, and he completely understood now how Lex must have felt about meeting Mom and Dad.

 

"Okay," he heaved, turning to stand face forward again. "I'm ready."

 

"Now remember," Chloe began, "look for any sign of behaviour that seems just weird enough to be kryptonite related. Maybe she has some physical signs. Of course if she's glowing green or something you should probably stay-"

 

Clark glared at her.

 

"-so when's Lex due?" she continued, not missing a beat.

 

"Any time now," Clark replied, glancing at his watch. Remembering that he'd left his wallet on the bed, Clark picked it up and slipped it into his pocket.

 

As he tugged at his shirt for the eighth time, the door swung open and Lex stepped into the room. Smiling at him in the mirror, Clark then turned around to smile at him directly.

 

"Hey."

 

Smiling in return, Lex let his bag fall to the floor and walked towards Clark. "Hi." Pausing just in front of him, Lex's gaze moved to Chloe and he...hesitated.

 

Clark thought he knew how he felt. Now that they'd been *naked* with each other, it was weirdly awkward doing something overtly 'romantic' in front of anyone, like they'd *know* or something. And it was stupid because Chloe really knew first hand just how 'romantic' he and Lex were, but that didn't stop him from feeling weird.

 

Until Chloe said, "Oh, just kiss already."

 

So they did.

 

Drawing away, Clark shrugged and smiled. "How was the library? Get all the books you needed?"

 

"All but one," Lex replied. "And I think someone was having sex in the history section." He murmured it absently as if it happened every day - and who knew, maybe it did?

 

Besides, Lex's attention had definitely fallen to Clark's shirt. "I like this," he said, reaching out to brush the palm of his hand along Clark's left arm.

 

"Yeah?" Clark asked, pleased.

 

"Though it'd look even better if you took the price tag off," Lex continued, grinning as he tugged at the tag in question.

 

Shooting Chloe a "You should have *told* me!" look, Clark quickly yanked the tag off.

 

Chloe shrugged helplessly.

 

"You need anything else?" Lex asked, and when Clark shook his head Lex continued. "Then let's go."

 

Opening the door, Clark let Chloe and Lex out before him, and as he was closing the door behind them someone suddenly stumbled into him.

 

"Careful," Clark said warmly, grabbing their arm to make sure they didn't fall. They'd obviously been distracted if they'd walked right into him.

 

But the guy - Greg, Clark recognised, from down the hall - yanked his arm away and shoved at Clark. "Keep away from me, fag." Pushing passed him, Greg deliberately bumped into Lex's shoulder as he stalked away from them.

 

Staring after Greg, Clark could barely comprehend what'd just happened. Greg had seemed a decent enough guy, but presumably he hadn't known before that Clark was gay.

 

"Jerk!" Chloe was yelling after him, even as Lex stepped towards Clark and touched his arm.

 

"You all right?"

 

Dragging his gaze towards Lex, Clark faked a shrug, feeling surprisingly shaky. "He obviously doesn't know what he's missing, right?"

 

Lex's lips quirked. "His loss, definitely. Though I can't say I'd rather have him in your place."

 

"Glad to hear it," Clark retorted, and was about to say more when Chloe interrupted.

 

"Hey," she said quickly, leaning in to kiss Clark's cheek. "I hope you two have a good visit today." Moving to kiss Lex's cheek, she stepped back and pulled up her sleeves. "I have a homophobic jackass to take care of."

 

Watching Chloe turn and stampede down the corridor, Clark considered telling her to be careful but knew she'd ignore him anyway.

 

"There are times," Lex stated simply, "when she makes me wish I was straight."

 

Clark wasn't offended. He felt exactly the same way.

 

*

 

Not knowing what to expect, everything about Belle Reve was a surprise. For some reason having to sign in seemed really weird, but Clark dutifully filled in his information beneath Lex's smart scrawl and held onto his visitor's badge, unsure where to clip it.

 

A few minutes later, a nurse - orderly? - approached, obviously familiar with Lex. He looked tired but at least attempted a smile.

 

"Didn't expect to see you again this week," the man said, nodding at Lex.

 

"Change of plans," Lex replied, glancing at Clark.

 

"Sure," the man shrugged, though he barely looked at Clark. "She's in the rec area at the moment." Saying nothing else, he turned and walked away as if expecting them to follow.

 

Waiting for Lex to walk after the orderly before moving, Clark quickly caught up. As they passed through the rooms and corridors, Clark was surprised by how open it all was. Most of the patients were walking, apparently freely - within certain confines. Maybe he *did* have some preconceptions about what this place was going to be like, after all. Or rather, misconceptions.

 

Though the pale blue walls were as depressing as he'd thought they'd be.

 

"Kent!"

 

Spinning around, Clark took a surprised step back when he saw Eric Summers angrily walking towards him. He knew Eric had been getting help somewhere, but he had no idea it was Belle Reve. "Eric..."

 

Clark, of course, could have stopped him with no effort at all, but suddenly the orderly was between them, holding one hand up in warning.

 

"Easy, Eric."

 

Not seeming to mind the interruption, Eric smirked at Clark over the orderly's shoulder. "Hey, freak. Been struck by lightning lately?"

 

"Back off, Eric," the orderly warned, "or I'll take you back to your room."

 

All talk without superpowers to fall back on, Eric relented with one last sneer at Clark before walking away.

 

Turning to face him, the orderly frowned at and studied Clark. "Seems you have a reputation, kid. You okay?"

 

"Yeah," Clark swallowed heavily, waiting until the guy kept walking again before turning to look at Lex.

 

Who grabbed his arm and pulled him to one side. "That guy *knew*, Clark!" he hissed, his face almost angry.

 

Lex had figured that out just from Eric calling him a freak? "Um...yeah." So maybe he hadn't been entirely truthful when he said that no one else knew, but it wasn't as if he deliberately hadn't told him. He hadn't even thought about Eric, or any of the other mutants who'd seen something they shouldn't have. Fortunately - although really, that was a bad thing to think - most of them ended up in places like this. "It's not like anyone would believe him if he said anything." Remembering that they were there to see Lex's mom, that may not have been the most sensitive thing he could have said.

 

Thankfully Lex didn't seem to notice, so Clark quickly spoke again. "Look, I promise I'll explain everything later. Let's just go meet your mom, huh?" Holding out his arm, he brushed his right hand against Lex's left. There were a few moments of hesitation as Lex frowned at him, but then his fingers were threading with Clark's, tightening the hold.

 

"You're telling me everything later," Lex vowed.

 

Clark didn't disagree.

 

When they reached the end of the corridor, the orderly was waiting for them. Nodding towards what had to be the recreation area, he then glanced down at his watch.

 

"Ten minutes?"

 

"Sounds good," Lex agreed. "She's not used to more than one visitor, so it's probably better to keep it short."

 

As they kept talking, Clark scanned the area, looking for anyone who could be Lex's mom. There were a couple of women who looked the right age, but when he saw a woman with red hair sitting at an easel, something in his head just clicked.

 

Pausing her painting, she turned her head slightly and smiled at him.

 

Clark wasn't sure if he should be reassured or freaked out, but then the orderly was gone and Lex was tugging him across the room. Weaving through various tables and chairs - not to mention people - they eventually came to stop behind and slightly to one side of the easel.

 

"Hey, Mom," Lex greeted warmly, leaning in slowly to press a kiss to her cheek.

 

"Different day," she replied, lifting her brush up again to keep painting. She wasn't what Clark would call beautiful, but she was certainly striking; would have been even more so without the dark circles under her eyes.

 

"Yes," Lex replied, pulling away. "There's someone I'd like you to meet, Mom." Squeezing Clark's hand, Lex tugged him closer. "This is Clark."

 

Suddenly having an attack of unbelievably dry throat-itis, and still a little shaken from that jerk at college as well as Eric, Clark tried not to stutter. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Mrs Luthor." Was that...okay? Too formal?

 

Moving her gaze away from her painting, she smiled at him, almost seeming not awake. Her eyes blinked slowly, lazily. Maybe she was on medication.

 

"Nice to meet you, too," she greeted, the poster child for sanity.

 

Until...

 

"Superman."

 

*

 

Clark's confusion was matched by Lex's, although Lex's only reaction was to turn his half-smile into a frown.

 

"Been reading Nietzsche again, Mom?" he asked, letting go of Clark's hand to bend down at the knees, looking up at her. "I know how much you love to read."

 

Smiling indulgently at him, Lillian shook her head. "No book, baby boy. Just truth."

 

Okay, so this was weird, but Clark studied what he could and didn't feel sick around her at all, which thankfully ruled out the more obvious physical mutations of kryptonite. Getting weak and dizzy whenever he was around Lex's mom would definitely have been unfortunate.

 

Then there was the 'Superman' thing which was equally weird...but then she was in a mental institution. And he was Clark Kent. Weird was probably to be expected.

 

"Truth," Lex repeated, nodding slowly as if he understood, still looking up at his mom. "The truth is that Clark and I are...involved. I wanted you to meet him."

 

It so wasn't the right time for it, but Clark felt a giddy rush at hearing Lex say that anyway.

 

Still smiling, Lillian reached out to gently grasp Lex's forearm. "That's as it should be, baby boy. You were meant to find each other, but..." She leaned closer. "You have to make sure that things don't change. You'll always love each other, but you can still fight each other, too."

 

Wincing, Lex licked his lips. "Mom..."

 

Worried, Clark moved closer. That grip on Lex's arm was starting to look suspiciously painful.

 

"You'll never be able to kill him," Lillian said, which was seriously disturbing, but things got even more so when she grinned brightly. "But you'll kill everyone else trying." Tipping her head to one side, she regarded him fondly. "You always were your father's son, baby boy."

 

"Mom," Lex ground out through clenched teeth, "you're *hurting* me."

 

That was it - good impressions be damned. Grabbing onto each arm, Clark pulled with just enough strength to separate them.

 

Landing on his butt on the floor, Lex rubbed carefully at his arm, staring at his mother in shock.

 

Clark, for his part, was still holding on to her. "Enough," he warned, and it didn't matter who she was now because she'd been hurting Lex, "you're hurting him."

 

"No," she retorted, suddenly seeming lucid, not even trying to pull away as she stared right into his eyes. "I'm not the one who hurts him. I'm not the one who makes him have to protect himself with the kryptonite."

 

Shock came as it always did - sharp, sudden; stealing his breath and making Clark release her arm. When the nurses appeared to take her away, Clark didn't even try to stop them.

 

How the hell did she know about kryptonite? How did she even know the *name*?

 

Lex was still sprawled on the floor, staring after Lillian, so Clark crouched down next to him and spoke softly.

 

"Lex?" When he got no reaction, Clark reached out and carefully placed a hand on Lex's shoulder. "Lex?"

 

Head jerking towards him, Lex blinked heavily but still didn't seem to be actually *seeing* him. "We have to go."

 

Clark couldn't agree more.

 

When Lex was back on his feet they left the building the same way they'd come in, only pausing when it was absolutely necessary. Finally they were handing over their visitors passes at the security check point, and then bursting through the double doors that led them out into the parking lot.

 

The words tumbled out of Clark's mouth immediately. "She knew about-" But they were in public, and he was speaking normally, and mental institute or not he wasn't taking any chances. "The car," he continued, "we need to get in the car."

 

Lex remained silent as they crossed the parking lot, leading the way.

 

Clark felt restless, his hands itching, gaze running all over the parking lot and the building, looking for any sign that they were being watched. It was paranoia, he knew that, but that didn't stop him doing it. He'd been scared that Lex wouldn't want him after finding out the truth, but he actually hadn't been scared of some random person finding out his secret for a long time.

 

Finally they were at the car, and the doors were unlocked and they were slipping inside. The noise from the dual slamming of their doors seemed to echo for a long time.

 

Hunched up against the passenger seat, staring at the dashboard, Clark started again. "She knew about the kryptonite." Oh God, he'd said it out loud and what if someone had bugged Lex's car while they were in there? But no - a quick scan showed nothing, no trace of anything out of place.

 

Paranoia sucked.

 

"Kryptonite?" Lex asked.

 

Right. That was one thing he'd failed to explain yet. No time like the present. "The...planet I come from," Clark began, "it was called Krypton. We call the, uh, meteor rocks that came down with me kryptonite. They're all over Smallville. No one knows that name, Lex!" It was entirely possible he was freaking out. "No one! Just me, my family, and Chloe. No one else! Maybe she's...psychic?" His mind ran over the possibilities. "But then there was that Superman thing..."

 

"You've encountered people before who can see the future," Lex said deliberately.

 

Clark finally tore his gaze away from the dashboard. "Well, Cassandra. She could see the future when she touched people. And there was the kid who saw how people would die. You think your mom has a similar ability?" God, and it was still kinda weird that Lex knew everything.

 

Lex nodded slowly. "If she saw your future while we were there it could explain how she knows about the...kryptonite. If it's as prevalent as you suggest, then you'll no doubt come across it again. And as for Superman..." Pausing, he licked his lips. "Your abilities, Clark, the things you can do...you still look so much like us. If people didn't know you were an alien, it'd seem as if you were more than human." He paused. "Super human."

 

Clark frowned. "So super *man*?"

 

Lex shrugged. "Maybe that's the only way she knew how to describe you. We don't know how this...mutation that she has works. How things appear to her."

 

And it was proof, now, that Lillian Luthor wasn't mentally ill. Or at least wasn't *just* mentally ill. Mentioning the kryptonite had left Clark in no doubt that she had been mutated by the meteor shower somehow. Man... "I have to tell my parents about this."

 

"*We* have to tell your parents about several things," Lex amended.

 

The fact that they were *together* together, the fact that he'd told Lex he was an alien, the fact that they were now living together, *and* the fact that Lex's mom was a mutant who could apparently see into the future and knew some version of his secret.

 

"Could we move to Antarctica instead?" It sounded reasonable.

 

Sounding a little less constrained - this whole thing had shaken Lex badly, but Clark knew he was trying not to show it - Lex shook his head with a firm smile. "No."

 

"Damn," Clark replied absently, taking the opportunity to reach over and grasp Lex's hand now that his own panic was receding. "Are you okay? Did she hurt you?"

 

"A few bruises," Lex said breezily. "I've suffered worse."

 

That wasn't the point. "Lex..."

 

Sighing, Lex turned his head away, pausing for a while before he responded. "She's never hurt me before. At least, not deliberately. A few times I got closer than I should have when she was having an episode, or," Clark could see the faint smirk, "seeing something from the future, I suppose. But she's never hurt me on purpose before." Turning his head back to face Clark, he met his gaze. "This time she did."

 

Clark swallowed. "Do you think what she said is true? That...in the future, we'll fight each other?" It didn't bear thinking about, but they had to at least discuss it.

 

"The future isn't certain," Lex said eventually, "and I refuse to believe that anyone - even my mother - knows exactly what's going to happen. More than likely she saw one possible future, and I'd like to think that knowing about it means we can prevent it."

 

Clark nodded, liking that plan a lot, although he honestly couldn't imagine either of them ever doing anything that would make them fight the way Lex's mom had implied. Like...enemies? "Nothing could ever make me want to hurt you," Clark told him firmly, because it was something that needed saying.

 

The response wasn't exactly what he'd hoped.

 

"Promises like that can be dangerous," Lex said, his hand nonetheless moving to tighten around Clark's, "but I can honestly say that nothing could ever make me want to hurt you, either."

 

*

 

Night shifted as Clark lazily blinked his eyes open. It may have been the fact that Lex was no longer lying next to him that had woken him up, but whatever the reason Clark rolled onto his other side and quickly spotted Lex, sitting cross-legged on the floor, papers spread out around him.

 

Clark was still too sleepy to do anything other than frown. "Lex?"

 

"I couldn't sleep," came the quiet reply, as Lex picked one of the sheets up and brought it close to his face to study the contents as well as he could in the poor light. "I didn't want to wake you."

 

"You shouldn't," Clark was cut off by a brief yawn. "You shouldn't read in this light." There was some moonlight coming through gaps in the curtains, and light from beneath the door, but that was it. "It's bad for your eyes."

 

"Are you sure *you* aren't my mother?" Lex teased.

 

"Nah," Clark replied heavily. "No uterus." Lex snorted, and Clark shifted until he could extend an arm out towards him. "Come back to bed. It's better with you here." Which was...girly, if true, but at least he wasn't at that 'I can't sleep without you' stage.

 

Girlyness aside, he just wanted Lex to come back to bed.

 

Because he knew what Lex was reading.

 

Complying, though, Lex gathered the papers up into a semi-neat pile and put them to one side before climbing back in next to Clark.

 

Sighing gratefully, Clark nuzzled closer, thankful - and not for the first time - that Lex didn't seem to care how tactile he was. "If you still can't get to sleep later," Clark murmured, brushing a kiss against Lex's face, "lemme know and I'll see what I can do about tiring you out."

 

"Mmm," Lex replied. "I may have to pretend that I'm suffering from insomnia just to see what you're going to do."

 

Chuckling thickly, this time Clark kissed Lex's neck. "Sex fiend."

 

"It's entirely your fault," Lex retorted, and then his body was relaxing completely against Clark.

 

Warm and secure now that Lex was there, Clark let himself start to drift before Lex's voice interrupted once again.

 

"Clark?"

 

He shifted a little. "Yeah?"

 

"How do you know that you *don't* have a uterus?"

 

*

 

Chloe had managed to sum up their entire visit with Lex's mom in two words:

 

"That's *weird*."

 

Clark couldn't disagree.

 

Walking along with him now as they came out of one of their journalism classes, she pondered aloud about what little progress he and Lex had made.

 

"Based on what she said, the idea that she can see the future seems like a reasonable assumption," Chloe began, although Clark was a little distracted by the huge ass hickey on her neck.

 

He was never going to have a hickey. Ever.

 

Did people still *get* hickeys?

 

"Of course," she continued, drawing his gaze back up from her neck and the reality that apparently people *did* still get hickeys, "there's also the possibility of telepathy a la Ryan, or maybe she's seeing into some kind of alternate reality." Chloe offered up the suggestions like she was talking about an assignment.

 

God, his life was straight out of a sci-fi movie. "You know there's really no way to prove that."

 

"There's no real way to prove any of it," Chloe replied, stepping out of the building and holding the door open for him. "Unless, you know, she can do the standard cliche of giving us the lottery numbers, or letting us know who's going to make it to the American Idol finale."

 

"Chloe..."

 

"I'm telling you, Clark, Pedro's a shoe-in!"

 

They all had their obsessions. Chloe's was bad TV, which - considering her opinions on the state of the world in general - was pretty damn amusing. "Right," Clark retorted, "that's why they all said he sucked last time."

 

Making her way down the steps from the building, she waggled a finger at him. "Drama, Clark. They have to keep the ratings up." Reaching the bottom of the steps she dragged him to one side, out of the flow of human traffic, her face suddenly serious. "You know the easiest way to know if she can see the future *is* to get her to predict something that's going to happen soon."

 

That made sense of course, but... "I don't even know how to get her to try, Chloe. For all we know maybe she can't control what she says, or she can only see far into the future, which isn't much use at proving anything anytime soon. And she's in Belle Reve for good reason, something else that might not make it easy for her to co-operate."

 

Sighing glumly, Chloe nodded at his point. "You know, no matter what we figure out about exactly what she can do, I don't know of any way to make her 'normal' again. And even if we did find some way to undo whatever the..." she glanced around, "...meteor rocks have done to her, she's been like this for so long that I seriously doubt she'd suddenly be 'sane' again."

 

Grasping his bag even tighter over his shoulder, Clark ducked his head. "I know." It was the reason part of him hadn't wanted them to start investigating this theory; the fear that although they'd finally know what had happened to Lillian, they wouldn't be able to do anything about it. Make her better.

 

He didn't want to give Lex false hope, because Lex was already scarily determined to try anything that might make his mom better...but he didn't want to be all doom and gloom, either. "But you never know," Clark forced himself to say. "We're from Smallville. Strange and miraculous things happen all the time." Like Ryan's tumour suddenly vanishing, or...

 

Okay. So it was a pretty short list of miraculous things, but to his mind, no less impressive.

 

Also obviously forcing a grin, Chloe turned and hooked her arm around his and started heading them towards the food hall. "And when she's better, you can do the boyfriend thing and get her to show you embarrassing pictures of Lex wearing no underwear." She paused. "Unless you guys take pictures like that now..."

 

Clark didn't know why he even bothered getting depressed around Chloe anymore.

 

Friday afternoon arrived much the same as it had the previous week - Clark and Lex went to their classes, grabbed their bags, and drove out of the parking lot. Lex was justifiably nervous again, but brought along a bribe in the hopes of appeasing Ryan (though he swore blind it wasn't actually a bribe, Clark knew better).

 

Clark had made it clear that Lex didn't need to buy anyone's forgiveness for running off last week, but Ryan at least would appreciate the gesture. He *was* a teenager.

 

His parents, on the other hand, would have been completely insulted if Lex had offered anything tangible - other than the fresh flowers he picked up as they passed through town - and Lex was going to have to make a normal apology, just like anyone else.

 

Of course Clark knew his family, had talked to them several times since Sunday, and knew by now than none of them were upset with Lex.

 

But it was all kinds of fun making Lex squirm.

 

Maybe that made him a bad boyfriend but hey, he was still new at this.

 

"You can drive, right?" Lex asked as he pulled into the road that led to Kent farm, no doubt trying to distract himself from his nervousness

 

"Sure," Clark replied. "Farm kid. Kind of a requirement."

 

Nodding, Lex slowly brought the car to stop a few feet away from the fence that surrounded the garden. "Remind me to get you put on my insurance."

 

Clark gawked. Blinked. Stared. Sure, Lex had *offered* to let Clark drive the Porsche before, but this was whole other levels of coolness. He could drive the Porsche whenever he wanted (if Lex wasn't driving it), and *legally*, too (if Lex still wasn't driving it).

 

"I love you!" Clark yelled, earning a surprised chuckle from the Coolest Boyfriend Ever, and he leant over and kissed Lex right there, not caring that Ryan was watching from the garden path.

 

"Hey, go on," Clark continued when he pulled back, nodding towards Ryan. "Give him the folder."

 

Opening the trunk - Lex could do that from inside his car, which was *really cool* - Lex got out of the car (the one that Clark could now drive), retrieved the folder from the trunk, and advanced warily towards Ryan.

 

Ryan, being the teenager that he was, was obviously determined to make this as difficult for Lex as possible. He stood there, arms folded tightly across his chest and looking very much like his older brother as Lex approached.

 

Climbing out of the car himself, Clark leant back against it and watched.

 

"Ryan," Lex began, coming to stop a few feet away.

 

Clark couldn't see much of Ryan's expression from here unless he used his x-ray vision, but he was content just to watch from where he was.

 

"Lex," Ryan replied, not giving an inch.

 

"I brought you this," Lex offered, holding out the folder.

 

Ryan's glare hadn't quite reached Mom proportions yet, but it was getting there. "You brought me something?" he asked, sounding insulted, but eventually reached out to take the folder. "You really think that'll make up for treating my brother like..." Opening up the folder, he glanced down at the contents. "...oh my *God*! Issue 23! And it still has the decoder ring attached!"

 

Wow. Ryan's voice screeched so high that it almost hurt *Clark's* ears.

 

"Am I forgiven?" Lex asked innocently, doing a bad job of keeping the humour out of his voice.

 

"Ah, I was just teasing anyway," Ryan answered with a grin, leaning forward to whack Lex on the arm with his free hand. "I gotta go read this! Thanks!" he continued, turning and running up towards the house.

 

When Lex stayed where he was, Clark slowly walked towards him and nudged him gently with a shoulder. "You okay?"

 

"Just..." Lex looked like he was trying really hard not to flinch. "*Please* tell me he doesn't eat or drink anything while he's reading them."

 

Laughing quietly, Clark nudged him again, this time with the intent of guiding Lex towards the house. "Come on, big guy. Let's go face the firing squad."

 

"Ha ha," Lex dead-panned, looking nervous again.

 

"Mom'll take you out with muffins at twenty paces!" Clark warned.

 

"Oh honey," Mom began, opening the door from inside the kitchen, obviously having overheard the end of their conversation, "I wouldn't do that." She glanced at Lex and smiled deliberately. "Any good cook knows that it's *cookies* at twenty paces."

 

"Mrs Kent," Lex began, but Mom immediately cut him off.

 

"Come on, Lex," she said, opening the door wider, "you can help this cook finish getting dinner ready. Clark, your father could probably use a hand with the fence on the other side of the pasture."

 

"Sure, Mom," Clark said, giving Lex one final nudge - a figurative one, this time - by leaning in to kiss him on the cheek. "Have fun." He was half tempted to speed across to the fence, but then it really wouldn't be fair to show Mom that Lex knew like that and then leave Lex to face the music alone.

 

With one last, desperate look from Lex, Clark waited until they were inside the house before he set off.

 

As expected, Dad was working on (growling at) the fence when Clark arrived.

 

"Hey, Dad."

 

Glancing up, Dad's expression loosened in recognition. "Clark! I thought I heard a car nearby. Give me a hand with this, will you?"

 

Bracing the weight of the wooden gate, Clark easily held it in place and watched as Dad worked on what looked like a broken hinge.

 

"How was your week, son?" Dad asked, focusing on the hinge. Clark had spoken to Mom several times, but he and Dad never really *talked* over the phone.

 

"Interesting," Clark confessed. He knew Dad would know the basics - that he and Lex had worked out their problems and were back together, but there was so much more to talk about. Taking in Dad's by now suspicious expression, Clark tried not to grin too scarily. "It can wait until after dinner."

 

*Everything* could wait until after dinner.

 

*

 

Everything, that was, except Mom's curiousity.

 

"So, Lex," she began just after they'd started eating, "Clark tells me you managed to find another room on campus already. Apparently you have to share now? I imagine that's quite an adjustment."

 

Clark stared at her, open-mouthed. There was no doubt in his mind from her tone of voice - she *knew*. At least about that. And she was going to make them say it.

 

Mom was *evil*.

 

Lex, doing a pretty good job of looking composed, was no doubt searching for the right words. Clark's mouth - apparently taking pity on him - delivered the first words that came to Clark's tongue.

 

"Um. Actually." Everyone turned to look at him. "Lex is sharing with me now. We moved his things in earlier this week."

 

Even Ryan looked surprised.

 

Mom looked disturbingly malicious at not being told earlier even though she'd apparently known already, and Dad...Dad was frowning. "Well, it's a pretty big step considering how long you two have known each other, but I'm guessing there wasn't any other option that would have kept him on campus."

 

"Exactly," Clark lied, relieved. Dad was taking this way better than he'd expected. "And this way we get to split costs, saving money." *Definitely* the right thing to say. Dad was almost smiling now.

 

And then he looked thoughtful. "Must have taken some reorganising to get another bed into that room. I remember it being pretty cramped as it was."

 

That was when Clark's inability to hide a blush became a serious problem, and the moment he turned red, Dad got it.

 

Dad's mouth opened.

 

Then closed.

 

Then opened again. "Never mind."

 

And then he was shovelling food into his mouth at a speed that rivalled even Clark.

 

Mortified, Clark stared down at his plate, poking absently at his dinner.

 

Lex cleared his throat, drawing everyone's attention. Even he looked a little flushed.

 

"Seeing as we seem to be sharing things," he began seriously, "there are a few other items Clark and I need to discuss with you."

 

All eyes were on him again. Clark didn't know if he should throttle Lex or not for bringing the *other* things up so early, but then the sooner he said them, the sooner he'd be able to stop worrying about the fact that he'd *have* to say them.

 

Yeah.

 

Lowering his fork, closing his eyes, Clark took in a deep breath and decided to do it all in one fell swoop. Like ripping of a band-aid, or so he'd heard. Clark hadn't had to use band-aids for a very long time.

 

Realising he was procrastinating, he forced himself to let the words out.

 

"Lex and I are living together, Lex and I are sleeping together, Lex knows I'm an alien, and as it turns out his mom *is* some kind of meteor mutant who can read minds and/or see into the future because she knows about me even though neither one of us has ever told her."

 

It felt like the entire *planet* paused.

 

Cracking open one eyelid, Clark told himself it was relief he felt when he saw that they were all still sitting around the kitchen table, but that didn't stop him from swallowing heavily as he watched Mom stand up from her seat and lurch towards the cupboard he knew they kept the liquor in.

 

"Who else needs a drink?" she asked too breezily.

 

Lex looked at Clark. Clark looked at Dad. Dad glared at Lex.

 

"Me?" Ryan asked, hopefully.

 

*

 

There was, at least, less finger pointing at Lex than he'd been expecting. Not that that stopped Clark from feeling bad that he hadn't discussed this with his parents before deciding to tell Lex, and he learned once again that no one could make you feel guilty quite like your parents.

 

The moment Mom said that she and Dad needed to discuss things in private, Clark didn't even think of objecting. Grabbing Lex's hand, he bolted from the house and headed straight for the barn.

 

Letting himself be tugged along - for now, Clark knew - Lex didn't speak until they were up in the Fortress.

 

"Clark?"

 

Letting go, Clark rummaged around the left side of the loft until he found what he was searching for. Holding the metal box in both hands, he knew he was making the right decision. Lex knew his other secrets. It was important he discover this one, too.

 

"There's something I haven't told you about the kryptonite," Clark began, turning back towards him and lifting his head up to look at Lex. Rather than risk falling to the floor, Clark moved until he was sitting on the sofa.

 

Frowning, Lex warily mimicked his movements until he was sitting next to him, turning so they were facing each other. "What's going on?"

 

Placing the box on the cushion between them, Clark kept a hand on the lid as he held Lex's gaze.

 

"It hurts me," he said, flipping the box open.

 

The effect was instantaneous. It always was. He could feel the strength draining out of him immediately, and on the heels of that came the agony. It never got any easier, no matter how much he tried to prepare, how hard he tried to brace himself for what always came.

 

Gasping, he fell back against the sofa, and then there was a snapping noise and the pain receded.

 

The box was gone and Lex was helping him sit up, although Clark almost felt his normal self already.

 

Now probably wasn't a good moment for jokes about recovery time.

 

"You okay?" Lex asked softly, concerned, hands barely touching Clark's skin as if afraid they'd hurt him.

 

"Am now," Clark smiled at him a little goofily. "Proximity thing. The further away I am the better it is. Lead is the only thing that seems to protect me straight away."

 

"Good," Lex replied, staring right into Clark's eyes as he finally pressed a hand against the side of his face.

 

In a split-second his entire mood changed, anger replacing concern. "Now would you mind tell me what the hell you think you were doing?"

 

Uh...wasn't it obvious? "Showing you what it does to me?"

 

"And you couldn't have just *told* me?" Lex demanded. "You had to put yourself at risk because *you* thought it was the best way?"

 

Lex obviously didn't get it. Clark had been dealing with kryptonite his entire life, and he knew what his body could and couldn't take. "Yes! This is the *only* thing that can hurt me, Lex. You have to realise how dangerous it is."

 

Drawing his head back, moving his hand, Lex glared in a way that was almost imperious. "Clark, the kryptonite took my hair, killed my father, and turned my mother into a meteor mutant. I am *well* aware of how dangerous it is."

 

Oh, hell. And Clark thought *Mom* could give an impressive skunk-eye.

 

Damn Lex for having a good point anyway. "I didn't-"

 

"God, this is just like you," Lex cut him off, pushing up from the sofa to start pacing. "Always jumping in without thinking, going too fast. Like when you told your parents everything back in the house. That was hardly the best way to break the news. What the hell were you thinking?"

 

Disbelieving, Clark pushed himself to his feet. What the hell was going on? "For your *information*," he took a deep breath, "I was trying to make it easier on you by telling them myself. And as for going too fast, I didn't notice you complaining when you moved into my room. When you introduced me to your mom." Indignant now, it was all Clark could do not to yell. "When you let me-"

 

There were, apparently, some things Clark still couldn't say. "When you let me blow you on our bed," was one of them.

 

Instead he stopped talking entirely, choosing to glare at Lex and hoping it was just as effective.

 

Apparently it was.

 

Closing his eyes, Lex turned away, left hand coming up to rub over his head. "Shit, this wasn't..."

 

Hands clenching at his sides, Clark forced himself to keep quiet, waiting to see what was coming next.

 

Now he understood why married couples argued. Why Mom and Dad argued. Lex could be really *annoying*.

 

Eventually, Lex's hand fell away and his shoulders slumped. Still not turning around, he seemed to be staring out at the house as he spoke. "I watched you. Even before we became friends. You were always so..." He sighed, sounding almost exasperated. "God, Clark, you have no idea how *alive* you are. You never look tired, or worn out. You always have the energy to do anything. You looked like you could never get sick, or have a hangover, and who knows - maybe you can't. You always looked...perfect."

 

The back of Clark's throat was *not* burning. "I'm not perfect, Lex."

 

"I know *that*," Lex shot back. "And I don't mean how attractive you are, either. And stop blushing, because you really are."

 

Yeah, right.

 

"But it's..." Lex paused. "It's like you were invincible. That nothing could ever touch you, hurt you, make you less than you are. Maybe somehow I knew, even before you told me. But when you opened that box..."

 

"Something hurt me," Clark understood.

 

"Yeah." He sighed again. "I'm not ready to adjust to the idea that something could take you away." He paused. "And I'm also worried that your parents are going to do something unseemly to me involving a pitchfork."

 

Lex was worried that Clark was going to die? That was...that was... "How do you do that?" he asked.

 

"Do what?"

 

"Turn from an obnoxious prick into the most melodramatically romantic guy I've ever met in the space of a single conversation?"

 

Barking out a quiet laugh, Lex finally turned to look at him. "Thank you. I think. It's good to know I have *some* skills."

 

Shaking his head, Clark stepped towards him. "C'mere, you jerk." The jerk in question was there instantly, and Clark sighed as he closed his eyes and held on.

 

He also got why his parents made up.

 

"We shouldn't fight," Lex informed his chest.

 

"It's not very nice," Clark agreed.

 

"So you need to stop and think once in a while."

 

"And you need to stop being an obnoxious prick when you're worried about something," Clark replied, "and everything will be great. Just as long as I hide the pitchfork."

 

A new voice intruded.

 

"Hey, can we all insult each other or is this just a Clark and Lex thing?"

 

Groaning, Clark slumped his head forward. "Go away." He swore, Ryan came up here just to bug them on purpose.

 

"No way," he argued, the slight squeaking noise indicating that he'd thrown himself down onto the sofa. "They're still talking it out in there. Even hiding in my room is scary."

 

Pulling away, Clark still kept his arm pressed against Lex as he faced his brother. "How's it going?"

 

"Well by 'talking' I mean 'shouting'," Ryan clarified, making Clark wince, but then held up the folder Lex had given him and grinned. "But look what I brought with me."

 

Twenty minutes later the three of them were sitting on the sofa, as Lex and Ryan discussed the entire history of Warrior Angel.

 

Clark wasn't really participating but he didn't care. Ryan was sitting at one end and Clark was sitting at the other, with Lex pressed up against him. Clark took every opportunity he could to touch Lex, rub his hand slowly across Lex's back, even press the occasional kiss to his neck as proof to himself that they'd weathered their first major argument.

 

Lex didn't seem to care. Lex didn't even seem to notice considering the enthusiasm he was discussing comics with, frequently leaning towards Ryan and grinning as he emphasised a point or something amusing. It was nice seeing him relaxed like this. Clark knew comics, but had nowhere near the amount of knowledge that Lex and Ryan did, so he was grateful the two of them had someone they could really talk to.

 

Plus, he'd get to make fun of Lex being geeky again later, which was *always* fun.

 

Clark's contentment was sadly short-lived, interrupted by Lex's cell phone.

 

Muttering an apology, Lex pulled out of Clark's grasp to retrieve the phone from the pocket of his jeans. A few moments later he had the phone in his hand, answering the call and cutting off the theme from the Warrior Angel cartoon just before it reached the dramatic 'bom bom boooom booooom' part.

 

Ryan looked distinctly disappointed.

 

"Hello?" Lex answered. "Yes, this is he." Pushing away from the sofa, he gestured to the two of them to keep talking while he focused on the phone call, moving further away. "No, it's not really convenient for me to come back right now..."

 

Clark shrugged at his brother.

 

Ryan gave him an almost skunk-eye.

 

"What?" Clark asked, confused.

 

"Everything's okay, right?" Ryan asked. "You're very...touchy touchy."

 

He was not going to blush just because his little brother had noticed just how much he'd been groping Lex. "It's fine. We had an argument earlier, so..." That was all the explanation needed, really, was which just as well, because Clark had no idea what to say beyond that.

 

"Cool," Ryan nodded.

 

Lex was still talking to whoever was on the phone.

 

"So how are Mom and Dad?" Clark suddenly asked. "Really?" He wasn't asking Ryan to read their minds, not *really*, and Ryan knew better than to do that now anyway. But he could still get impressions of feelings sometimes whether he meant to or not, like he had from Lex the last time they'd visited.

 

"They'll be okay," Ryan assured him. "Just a lot to freak out about at once. Telling Lex your secret, the risk from his mom...the fact that you're definitely not a virgin anymore..." Ryan was *so* amused.

 

But it was kind of wrong, somehow, the way it always had been since Ryan had arrived. He'd been forced to be so much older than he was that at times like these, Ryan was the older brother and Clark was the one needing advice.

 

Of course it tended to balance out when Ryan did something unbelievably immature like paint one of the cows green.

 

Clark definitely needed to tease Ryan about his girlfriend again sometime soon, but before that there were other, more important things to deal with. Like...

 

"Did I tell you Lex is putting me on his car insurance?"

 

Ryan froze for three entire seconds. "Mom will *freak*!"

 

Clark couldn't believe it. "Oh, so telling Lex I'm an alien and having sex with him is okay, but driving a Porsche is *bad*?"

 

"Yes!" Ryan cried. "You don't understand how Mom's mind works, Clark. You-" His head jerked suddenly, tilting down in a movement that was familiar. Too familiar. "*Lex*."

 

Something was wrong. Something was horribly, horribly wrong.

 

Clark didn't even think, he just *moved* and he was by Lex, touching his shoulder, holding an arm as Lex staggered back at something he'd heard. Oh, God.

 

"Lex?"

 

Oh God, oh God.

 

The hand that'd been holding the phone up to Lex's ear dropped, the device clattering to the floorboards. Lex turned towards him, his face masked with grief and shock as stunned words forced themselves from his mouth.

 

"Mom just died."

 

TBC

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