Lights of Tomorrow, a smallville fanfic

Lights of Tomorrow

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters from Smallville.

Part 1:

New York, New York: Tonight the lights in the city glimmer splendidly for the models of Elite Model Management, as they prepare for the grand opening of a new line of Vera Wang evening gowns, along with the latest fashions from Burberry and Gucci. On the first floor of one of the city's finest buildings on Park Avenue South, men in crisp Armani suits and women with Chanel and Coach hand-bags, purchased from 5th Avenue, gather under the sparkling auditorium lights, blending into the never-ending audience. They seat themselves around the runway, with its enormous blackness extending into the center of the room, as if taunting the audience with the surprising delights it would soon bring. As laughter of the elite class collides with the hungry anticipation of famous fashion designers from around the world, conversations hush as the lights suddenly dim, drawing a blanket of silence across the room. A handsome young man from behind the dark velvet blue curtains steps onto the stage, holding a microphone in his left hand. Lifting the object to his mouth, Nicholas Patronik opened his lips, "Let the show begin."

Backstage, a slim young woman busily ran back and forth across the bustling and loud room, bringing coffee to models in one corner and makeup and hair pieces to others. While everyone else was dressed in clothing that either cost a fortune or did not belong to him or her, she wore a simple outfit: an off-shoulder soft-yellow blouse and tight black jeans with Steve Madden flats. Her hair was pulled back into a messy bun and a pencil was behind her right ear. Despite her clothes, lack of makeup, and strain of sleepless nights for the past two weeks due to stress and worry, Lana Lang was still as beautiful as ever, still a sight for sore eyes.

"Lana, I need you to help me zip up this dress!" Trinity yelled from across the room. Lana rushed over to the model, forehead frowning slightly as she tried to zip up the cream-colored gown.

"Trinity, sorry but the dress is a bit too tight," Lana said as the zipper stopped at the hips and wouldn't go up.

Trinity grunted and tried to suck in harder, "Damn, I knew I shouldn't have had those brownies last week. Is it working now?" Lana only smiled; Trinity was one of her favorites. While all the other models only ate yogurt and carrots, Trinity actually allowed herself some real food, once in a while of course, if you counted junk food as real food.

"Yeah, I got it! Now go out there and strut your stuff!" Lana grinned happily as she watched Trinity rush to the curtains wearing her four-inch Jimmy Choo stilettos. Grimacing, Lana could only imagine what it would be like to wear those shoes. Hearing her name called again, Lana's thoughts shifted and she swiftly turned and rushed off to help another model prepare her head piece.

Part 2:

"Ugh, I can't believe the show is finally over!" Lana sighed contentedly, her body completely relaxed in her chair. She was still backstage, but was now joined by her best friend, Victoria Cunningham. The only people in the dressing room, the two girls smiled lazily at each other, immensely grateful that the show had been a great success. Victoria had been the first person Lana met when she began working for the modeling agency. Although she was several levels higher in management than Lana, she never looked down upon the girl from Kansas like certain other girls had. The two quickly became friends after finding a shared interest in Chinese herbal tea and dessert pastries.

"Lana, I'm never met anyone who works as hard as you," Vicky said admiringly. "You're definitely going to get a promotion by the end of Spring Season.

"Psh, yeah right, I'm sure management, let alone Nicholas, hardly notices. Besides, I love what I'm doing right now. It's great getting to work with the girls. They can be a little crazy, but personal communication is always fun," Lana smiled.

Vicky paused before giving her friend a devilish grin, "You know, Nicholas treats you really well, and he pays more attention to you than any other employee in the company, sometimes even more than the models." She winked.

Lana put on an incredulous face. "Ha ha, very funny Vicky, but the man who's going to become CEO of this company would DEFINITELY not be interested in me. "Besides, there's only been one guy I've ever truly loved…" Lana suddenly stopped speaking.

Vicky sighed, "Lana, WHEN are you going to start dating again and stop thinking about Clark Kent? He broke your heart and you're still letting him get to you!"

Lana didn't say anything, as the painful memories swept across her mind. No, she couldn't think about it, not here, not now. She looked up at Vicky and smiled weakly, "I'm fine; I just haven't met the right guy yet." She stood up, "Come on, let's go change for the party."

Vicky only shook her head and followed her friend out of the room. Lana was a smart girl but when it came to love, she could be totally clueless.

Part 3:

Lana entered the lavish dining hall, admiring the work of the decoration committee. It was the celebration after-party of the fashion show, with everyone there from Vera Wang herself to New York's top supermodel, Parker Gaines. Dressed in a dark blue strapless evening gown extending to the floor, Lana had never felt more like a princess as her dress pinched in at all the right places and her hair was swept up, with loose strands framing her pretty face.

She grinned at Victoria, who was by her side but left to say hello to someone. Lana was still admiringly the decorations, saying hello to everyone she knew and giving models she worked with huge hugs of congratulations. As she neared the dance floor with the orchestra playing a beautiful melody, she felt a tap on her shoulder.

Lana turned. "Nicholas," she breathed as she looked up into his clear green eyes, "Um, can I help you with something?"

"Yeah, I was wondering if I could have this dance," Nicholas smiled down at her.

"Uh, sure," Lana said nervously as he led her by the hand to the middle of the dance floor. Placing his arm around her waist and pulling her close to him, he glided her gracefully across the dance floor.

Lana closed her eyes and tried to let her partner guide her, glad that those ballroom dancing classes Victoria signed her up for was finally paying off. She hoped people from the company wasn't paying attention to the two of them and wondering why Nicholas was dancing with her.

Although she denied it every time to Victoria and everyone else, deep inside, she knew that there was something more between Nicholas and her than friendship in the workplace. The first time they met, he kissed her hand twice. Whenever she passed him at work, she could always feel his eyes lingering on her, making her shiver as he glanced appreciatively over her body. She could never admit that she was attracted to Nicholas as well, because there was always someone else on her mind, and that someone was Clark.

She hated admitting that even though she hadn't seen Clark for five years, he was still a part of her life. He invaded her dreams at night. His face was always there when she closed her eyes. But she could never go back to him, because that was a closed door to a part of her life she never wished to open again.

As for Nicholas, she was grateful that he never asked her out, because she knew that he knew she was holding back. Lana's thoughts were interrupted as the music careened to a stop and Lana opened her eyes, finding the scowls of several coworkers glaring at her from the sides of the dance floor. She quickly stepped away from Nicholas, giving him a smile and turning and leaving. As she reached the food table and was about to grab a small bite of raspberry and white chocolate cheesecake, a hand tapped her on the shoulder again. She thought it was Nicholas and turned with a smile.

Her smile immediately fell as she inhaled sharply. Everything was moving in slow motion as her cheesecake and fork clattered to the ground. She stared into those blue eyes, with her knees weak and buckling. She knew she was going to faint. It couldn't be, could it?

"Hello Lana," Clark Kent smiled.