Her dark brown hair blew behind her. It was as if her hair was a separate being, somehow entranced by the blustery wind. It stood behind her, each strand dancing, somehow with a subtle grace piercing the icy atmosphere. On her face were two eyeballs staring in the opposite direction, mesmerized by the constant traffic and the hazy gray sky. It was going to rain any minute. She shivered, even though she was not cold.
She wore a black shirt and loose black jeans, but no one died. A beaded black pearl necklace caressed her fair skin. She sighed and looked down at the ground and started walking. She could have taken the limo, but she didn't want to. She wanted to escape for a while; she needed time to think things over. She thought back to the conversation:
oOoO "But it's cold outside. I don't want you getting hurt."
Fake. So fake. Why had she fallen for it? He had only wanted her to hurt somewhere else. Did he really think that he could go on pretending to love her? Did he really think it could suffice?
"You can't control me, Lex," she had said, staring into his pastel blue eyes. They were so transparent; she almost laughed at the subtle irony. The soul penetrated the flesh, stretching at hidden depths unknown to the world. His eyes in particular were so deceiving. But she had believed him. She had fallen in love with him. But it wasn't real. She realized that now. Too late; it was too late.
"I don't want to control you, Lana. I want to love you," he said.
"Then start," she had said.
"I already do. I love you with all my heart. There's nothing more I want than to be with you forever….."
He sounded so phony.
"No you don't. You just want to hurt Clark," she had said.
"What the hell does Clark have to do with this?" Lex screamed, throwing a chair at her. It couldn't hurt her (physically, at least), but he didn't know that. "You don't still love him, do you?" Lex continued.
Maybe she did.
"I don't know," Lana said, staring at the ground. The tile floor was cold, and Lana was feeling more and more uncomfortable. Maybe her love for Lex was only on the surface. Maybe it wasn't even real. But she was still drawn to his oval-shaped face and his bald head and his blue eyes, even though she didn't want to be. He had her mesmerized, in a bad way. Only God knew how many women he had slept with…how many women he had tricked into feeling this way. Was it all a game for him? Did he have a dark closet filled with millions of voodoo dolls? Was that it? Or did he find someway to use mind control? But it couldn't work on her, anyways…could it? Maybe if he used the meteor rocks. No. Not the meteor rocks. Kryptonite. It was the only thing that could effect her….that could hurt her, or be used to manipulate her….did Lex know that?
Probably not. He wasn't physically controlling her. But he was playing a sick little game. And she had fallen for it.
She had to leave the mansion, get some air. Her brain felt befuddled.
"Good bye, Lex," she said. She walked out of the mansion, wearing a dark outfit that made her beautiful face resonate even more so, vibrating in such a ghostly, ethereal way.
She could still hear the sound of the door slamming shut as she left.
Why did she love him, when she didn't want to?
Maybe she didn't. She didn't feel safe in his arms; she didn't get that warm tingly feeling you're supposed to get when you're in love. She didn't trust him. She didn't really even know who he was. For all she knew, he could be a monster.
Maybe he was. oOoO
She continued to walk, staring at the gray sky. She wondered how long she had been out, but unconsciously she knew that it didn't really matter. Maybe she'd never even come back. She didn't belong there. She still had to finish school, anyways.
She averted her stare to a sign. Alas. Finally. A store. She was sick and tired of the bitter cold, even though it wasn't affecting her. Lex had been right about one thing; it was too cold. She couldn't feel the could, but people would get suspicious. They would wonder how she was out and looking perfectly in tact. Just ten minutes ago, it had started snowing. Freezing rain, too.
It was a clothes store. Just what she needed. For someone to recognize that she was the latest Lex girl. She closed her eyes and squinted, and made a mental note, hoping no one would notice her. She reached into her bag and put on a big pair of sunglasses.
None of the clothes racks really interested her. They were boring, blaze, cliché clothes. Lana didn't want to be boring and cliché. Suddenly she paid attention to the radio overhead the store. She listened to the lyrics of the song that was playing:
She's got her halo and wings
Hidden under his eyes
But she's an angel for sure
She just can't stop telling lies.
But it's too late for his love
Already caught in a trap
His angel kiss was a joke
And she is not coming back
Because heaven sends and heaven takes
Crashing cars in his brain
Keep him tied up to a dream
And only she can set him free
And then he says to me
Kill me now, kill me now, kill me now, kill me now
Kill me now, kill me now, kill me now, kill me now
Yeah she's got a criminal mind
He's got a reason to pray
His life is under the gun
He's got to hold every day
Now he just wants to wake up
Yeah, just to prove it's a dream
Cause she's an angel for sure
But that remains to be seen
Because heaven sends and heaven takes
Crashing cars in his brain
Keep him tied up to a dream
And only she can set him free
And then he says to me
Kill me now, kill me now, kill me now, kill me now
Kill me now, kill me now, kill me now, kill me now
Stupid on the streets of London
James Dean in the rain
Without her it's not the same
The same, the same, but it's alright
Because heaven sends and heaven takes
Crashing cars in his brain
Keep him tied up to a dream
And only she can set him free
And then he says to me
Kill me now, kill me now, kill me now, kill me now
Kill me now, kill me now, kill me now, kill me now
Again and again
By the end of the song, Lana felt like she wanted to scream. She looked in the mirror and she noticed that there were tears in her eyes.
Clark.
That was all she could think about.
Before she had time to embrace herself and calm down, another song came on.
If you change your mind
I'm the first in line
Honey I'm still free
Take a chance on me
If you need me, let me know and I'll be around
If you got no place to go when you're feeling down
If
you're all alone when the pretty birds have flown
Honey I'm still
free
Take a chance on me
Gonna do my very best and it ain't
no lie
If you put me to the test, if you let me try
Take a
chance on me
(That's all I ask of you honey)
Take a chance on
me
We can
go dancing, we can go walking, as long as we're together
Listen
to some music, maybe just talking, get to know you better
'Cos
you know I've got
So much that I wanna do, when I dream I'm alone
with you
It's magic
You want me to leave it there, afraid of
a love affair
But I think you know
That I can't let go
If you
change your mind, I'm the first in line
Honey I'm still free
Take a chance on me
If you need me, let me know, gonna be
around
If you've got no place to go, if you're feeling down
If
you're all alone when the pretty birds have flown
Honey I'm still
free
Take a chance on me
Gonna do my very best and it ain't
no lie
If you put me to the test, if you let me try
Oh you can take your time baby, I'm in no hurry, know I'm gonna get you
You don't wanna hurt me, baby don't worry, I ain't gonna let you
Let me tell you now
My love is strong enough to last when things are rough
It's magic
You say that I waste my time but I can't get you off my mind
No I can't let go
'Cos I love you so
The music faded and Lana could swear that it was as if the people who were putting up the songs knew she was in the mall. They didn't, of course; it was really just a coincidence, but still, it felt like it was Clark speaking to her.
And then she realized something: she did still love Clark. She was still in love with him; there was something magic and strong about his soul. He was always there for her, even when she wasn't "with him", and even after she had said that she hated him. She was mad that he kept secrets from her, but she kept secrets from him, too.
She was drawn to him; he seemed to understand her like no one else did.
All of a sudden she saw a pair of faded blue-jeans with rhinestones (or were they diamonds?) lining the sides of them. She decided to try them on. They were a little bit loose, but they looked good on her. Then she looked at the tag. They were a size 0. She used to take a size 3; the stress of being with Lex (and losing Clark) must have made her lose weight. 'Oh well,' she thought, looking in the mirror. She knew it was probably too vain to admit it, but she looked good. No wonder Clark was still in love with her.
Then she laughed at herself, because of course she wasn't that egotistic. But still, she did look good. She looked at the price tag on the jeans. They were $1068.
Just kidding.
They were $168.39 (the sale price; originally they were $256.99). She decided to splurge and buy them. As she was standing at the checkout counter, she paid attention to the song playing on the loudspeaker:
Bat your eyes girl.
Be otherworldly.
Count your blessings.
Seduce a stranger.
What's so wrong with being happy?
Kudos to those who see through sickness...yeah
Over and over and over and over...
She woke in the morning.
She knew that her life had passed her by
She called out a warning.
Don't ever let life pass you by.
I suggest we
Learn to love ourselves,
Before it's made illegal
When will we learn, When will we change
Just in time to see it all come down
Those left standing will make millions
Writing books on ways it should have been
She woke in the morning.
She knew that her life had passed her by
She called out a warning.
Don't ever let life pass you by.
Floating in this cosmic Jacuzzi
We are like frogs oblivious
Soon the water starting to boil,
Now I flinched and we all float face down
She woke in the morning.
She knew that her life had passed her by
She called out a warning.
Don't ever let life pass you by.
Pass you by.
"Are you ready to check out, miss?" the clerk asked her, interrupting her pained thoughts.
"What…um, oh yeah, yes," Lana said.
"Caught you in a trance?" the clerk asked.
"What? What do you mean?" Lana asked, looking around.
"You know, the song playing on the loudspeaker. Sometimes, they ring so true that they catch you in a trance," the clerk said.
The clerk had her head-on.
"Yeah, I guess," Lana said quickly, handing the Lex's credit card to the clerk. Just then, she realized what she was doing. Was money the only reason she was with Lex. "No, wait," Lana said. She put the credit card away and opened her wallet. She'd pay in cash; her cash. She wasn't going to Lex's money anymore. She decided that before it was too late, she had to leave him. She had to listen to her heart, before it was too late.
After she bought the jeans, she walked back outside and looked around. She decided she might as well go into the next store. She listened to the song playing on the loudspeaker:
Hottest finest
Everybody wanna be, bearing jewelery,
safe in reality, running the city.
So you wanna be number one?
Don't forget where you came from.
It's not about me and you,
it's about the things you do.
Most guys don't have a clue, material issues.
How can I make you see,
the real things in life are free.
Hottest, finest
(We all need someone)
That can show you what you love true is,
(Need someone)
That will never let you down,
(Need someone)
To tell you that they love you and always be around.
You could be the hottest, you could be the finest it don't matter to me.
You could be the baddest, be the most stylish, you could be rolling in money.
It don't matter what you got, if you heart is out of love,
You could be the hottest, you could be the finest it don't matter to me.
I don't mind pretty things, wouldn't mind a diamond ring,
but trust me I'll be tripling and take what life brings,
I gotta do what I do aside, but do what feels right.
I just wanna keep it real, that's just how I feel.
It's not about the J-O-B but the
R-E-S-P-E-C-T.
How can I make you see,
the real things in life are free.
hottest, finest
(We all need someone)
That can show you what you love true is,
(Need someone)
That will never let you down,
(Need someone)
To tell you that they love you and always be around.
You could be the hottest (hottest), you could be the finest (finest),
It don't matter to me.
You could be the baddest, be the most stylish,
You could be rolling in money (you could be rolling),
It don't matter what you got, if you heart is out of love,
You could be the hottest, you could be the finest it don't matter to me.
If you got it, you don't have to flaunt it,
If I don't show it don't mean that I ain't got it,
No it don't mean a thing if you ain't got real things,
Shoo-wap x7
You could be the hottest, you could be the finest, it don't matter to me.
You could be the baddest, be the most stylish, you could be rolling in money.
It don't matter what you got (no, no), if you heart is out of love,
You could be the hottest (hottest), you could be the finest (finest),
It don't matter to me.
You could be the baddest (baddest), be the most stylish (stylish),
You could be rolling in money
It don't matter what you got, if you heart is out of love,
You could be the hottest, you could be the finest
It don't matter to me.
It was creeping her out. It seemed like all of the songs were about the twisted love triangle she was trapped in. Lana looked in the mirror and saw a pale face and haunted eyes. She sighed. She knew she had to leave Lex, but it wasn't going to be easy. He could track her down; make her whole life miserable. He had the money to do that. If he had to, he would kill. She remembered Helen's face all too well. Helen. Lana had done some digging; Lex had dated and "done 'it'" with millions of girls, but as far as she knew, he had actually fallen in love with Helen. When he found out that she tried to kill him, he killed her. Now, it wasn't that straight-out; it was complicated. Lex wouldn't do something that he couldn't get out of. He had his way to obscure things; he had a way to force the world to see with tinted lenses.
But Lana was taking hers off. She saw a white velvet shirt with black polka-dots. She bought it and then left for the store. Just for the fun of it, she decided to use her super-speed. Before she knew it, she was on her way to Smallville.
Smallville? Why was she running to Smallville?
But deep down, she knew the answer to that question.
Clark lived in Smallville. And Lana Lang, the last daughter of Krypton, was still in love with him. Before it was too late, she had to make things right. Lana stared at the sky. Was it only a trick of the mind, or was the sky a little lighter; a little less tinted? Was her head conning her soul, or was the icy rain falling down a little less harshly? Was it just her, or was love-real love-the only thing she needed?
She woke up from her trance to save someone's life. A car was speeding at 60 mph and they were about to crash into the bridge. From the back she pushed the car, causing it to slow down, and then ran away. She smiled to herself, knowing she had just altered someone's life, and that she would never know who it was or what they were going to do next. It didn't matter. Some people would say it did but they were wrong. It only mattered that they were alive. They weren't dead. They had a second chance, whoever they are.
Lana ran the rest of the way to Smallville. She stood amidst the vast farmland and realized that she was wearing the outfit that she had just bought. She found herself on the Kent Farm…..