Disclaimer: Me no own Smallville.
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The Thing About Life
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"Tell me the story!"
The man feigned a groan at the little girl's request. As she jumped up on the couch and settled next to him, he gave her an affectionate smile – the heat emanating from the fireplace comforting them both in the cold, Metropolis winter night.
"Again? Aren't you sick of it?"
"Nope."
Of course she wasn't. It was her favorite story and he would freely admit that he loved to tell it as much as she loved to hear it. However, the quaint old-fashioned clock hanging on the wall clearly indicated that it was way past the child's bedtime. Sensing his hesitation, the little girl made with the puppy-dog eyes to send him over the edge.
"Fine," he sighed in defeat, "I'll tell you the story one more time. But it's the last for tonight okay."
"Okay!"
She shifted into a comfortable, attentive position as he started to tell the story they both loved so much.
In our bustling city of Metropolis, there lives an extraordinary man like no other. People don't know what his name is – all they know is that he's amazing and can do remarkable things humans like us can't even begin to imagine. He has powers that allow him to help people by bringing justice to the world and rescuing those who find themselves in danger. Over the years, his good deeds and powers have turned him into a hero – a superhero. And that's why we call him Superman.
"Superman is so cool!"
"I think he's overrated," the man smirked, "I could probably kick his butt."
"Yeah right! No one can beat him. He's unstoppable!"
The man smiled and continued his story.
The Superman we all know is confident, reliant and strong but that wasn't always the case. When Superman was just a young man back in Smallville, he was awkward, emotional and vulnerable – like all teenagers. People may think that he's a god among Men, but the story of his experiences with love proves that he goes through normal trials and tribulations like we do – and sometimes, he's just as human as we are.
It began with his best friend. Her name was Chloe, and they met in Superman's freshman year. Perhaps fittingly, she was our young hero's first kiss…but she wasn't his first love. There was no doubt that he cared for her a lot, but he just didn't see her in a romantic kind of way. For him, they were just friends. But for Chloe, it was a different story. There was no other she was more in love with and she would have done anything for young Superman to reciprocate her feelings. He however, was too busy to notice this because he was too caught up with somebody else.
The man stopped for a moment. He raised an amused brow at the child's expression of distaste.
"Not a Lana fan?"
"She's okay," the little girl murmured and motioned for him to carry on.
Well young Superman was. Lana was his whole world. For years he sought after her love, but the secret of his identity, powers and his constant need to save the day formed not just bumps but mountains on the road to Lana's heart. Eventually though, he got there. And when he did, Chloe became upset. She was still very much in love with him…but at the end of the day, all she wanted was for him to be happy and it was clear that being with Lana made him the happiest man alive. With a loving family and a girlfriend, Chloe decided that all young Superman needed to make his life complete was a best friend with no hidden agenda. From then on, she decided she would have to forget her feelings for him and focus on trying to play that role in his life.
After that, times went well for our hero. Sure, his tendency to attract danger, drama and near-death experiences was slightly above average, but his grades were good, his home and love-life were fantastic and he couldn't have asked for a better best friend. When they moved to Metropolis for their college years, Chloe was let in on his secret and she unexpectedly welcomed the news with open arms. Even though by then they didn't hang out as often as they use to, their bond hadn't waned and it was Chloe's surprising acceptance of his true self that encouraged him to come clean with Lana as well.
Of course he and Lana were happy together, but young Superman knew that his secret held them an arm's length apart. He dreamed of the day he could finally tell her his secret, diminishing any walls or barriers between them and finally he had the courage to make that dream a reality. Unfortunately, it never occurred to him that Lana wasn't like Chloe. Her reaction was totally different. Where Chloe had been shocked but then understanding, Lana had been shocked and only remained shocked after. She clearly found it difficult to accept the truth about Superman, because from then on, instead of her smile being a genuine display of the happiness she felt when she was with him, it became a false expression to veil the awkwardness and fear she felt when he was around. He scared her.
"Oh no," the child breathed. She always felt sorry for Lana and Superman.
The man smiled sadly.
And it was the reaction Superman had feared. He tried to ignore it at first; he tried to ignore the way she would flinch when he hugged her, and the way her eyes would never meet his. She tried to do the same – acting as though the knowledge of his true origins didn't affect her love for him. This charade went on for months until finally, Lana couldn't do it any more. She felt as though he just wasn't the same person she fell in love with back in Smallville. And so, she braved herself and told him that maybe, it was for the best they didn't see each other any more.
Finally knowing he was the reason her life had been a supernatural drama, Lana moved to a place far away not long after, to pursue a more normal existence. Superman was so heartbroken. In an attempt to forget her, our hero kept himself busy by studying harder, saving the world a bit more and resuming his normal relationship with Chloe. Without a girlfriend to consume his free time, he and Chloe got to hang out again. But things had changed. Chloe wasn't around as much as she use to be, and although Metropolis University Chloe was just as nice, fun and vivacious as Smallville High Chloe, she was somehow different. She was a lot more clever, confident. She had lost all the baby-fat, and her features had become more matured and defined. Young Superman realized he had missed his best friend's transition into womanhood…but it wasn't just the passage of time that contributed to Chloe's change. While he'd been working on his relationship with Lana, Chloe had met someone.
The child clapped in excitement, the flames from the fireplace dancing in her eyes that sparkled in anticipation. It made the man laugh as he ruffled his audience's hair.
"Is it Dean?" she asked, eager for her favorite character.
"Yeah, yeah," the man replied, jokingly rolling his eyes.
Dean. A paranormal-hunting hotshot in a leather jacket with a vintage ride. Apparently he and Chloe had met on campus, when he and his brother came looking for her to ask questions about the meteor-related events of nearby Smallville. She and this guy had been dating for several months – which was an utter shock to young Superman. Chloe told him that they rendezvoused out-of-town often, but mostly kept in contact via phone because of Dean's travels. It explained why Chloe was never around anymore and why Superman hadn't seen the guy before. The day he finally met Dean was the day Dean decided to leave his wandering lifestyle behind, to stay in Metropolis and be with Chloe. Superman did not like this one bit. Dean was not the type of guy he wanted his best friend to be with. Chloe was suppose to be with someone gentle, sensitive and not so…bad-ass. Am I allowed to say bad-ass? Don't tell your mom I said bad-ass.
"The story," the child reminded her storyteller firmly, with a giggle at his rambling.
"Oh, right."
Well, the more time our hero spent with the couple, the more he realized that maybe they weren't such a bad match. Chloe's self-assured personality both rivaled and complimented Dean's; her clever mind and extravagant vision put together with his savvy and fervor put the world at their feet. Superman began to see that if anyone could take care of Chloe, it would be Dean. But, this wasn't the only thing he began to see. With Dean around, the opportunity to spend time alone with Chloe was hard to come by so when it did, Superman appreciated every moment of it. He began to notice things about her he hadn't noticed before – like how uniquely candid her smile was, or how his world just seemed so much calmer and in perspective when she was around. It wasn't long before it got to a point where he couldn't stop thinking about her. He began to see that maybe, he was falling in love with his best friend.
"Finally," the little girl huffed.
"Finally," the man echoed, a distant look in his eyes.
With this new revelation, he devised a plan. It was their final break of their final year in college and in a moment of honesty and desperation, he asked Chloe to spend the holiday with him. He didn't make his newfound feelings for her a secret – telling her his exact intention to take the time as an opportunity to see if their relationship could transcend friendship. Chloe became mad and conflicted. She loved her best friend, but her life had stopped revolving around him a long time ago. Then, she told him that Dean had proposed. She was to be married after graduation and for the second time in his life, Superman felt his world fall apart. However, Dean did the unexpected and encouraged Chloe to go. He told her he didn't want to deny her the chance of finally figuring out who could truly make her happy.
"Dean is so cool!" the child exclaimed, a big, proud grin on her face.
"I thought you said Superman was cool?"
"Yeah but Dean is cooler!"
With a wry smile, the man continued.
After making Dean promise he'd be there waiting when she got back, Chloe reluctantly agreed to Superman's proposition. He took her back to Smallville. They talked, had picnics, shared laughs just like the old times. And that's when Superman knew he had made a grave mistake when he chose to pursue Lana all those years ago. He realized that the girl he should have given all his attention to was not the one who gave him butterflies, but the one who made him feel comfortable. He wondered why he hadn't seen it before; why he hadn't taken notice of Chloe until she was with someone else. All he knew was that he was thankful he was getting a second chance with her but before he knew it, the break was over and they were going back to Metropolis.
When they arrived, Dean was there keeping his promise, waiting for them – leaning against his big black shiny car. In that moment, Superman knew that his best friend had to make her choice right then and there. So, he stood in front of her, took her hands in his and asked her one simple question.
A door slammed shut, and a familiar voice filled the house, preventing the man from continuing any further.
"Hello," the voice drawled so sweetly it was almost like a song, "Where are you guys?"
"Mommy!" the little girl squealed, jumping from the couch and running to give her mother a big hug as she appeared in the doorway. The woman met her child, their identical beautiful eyes shinning with love. The man watched the scene play out, his gaze warm and his smile broad, unable to think of a better view than the two most important people in his life safe and sound.
"What's with that look on your face?" the mother asked, eye them both suspiciously, "You two were up to something weren't you."
The man held up his hands to protest his innocence, but the little girl betrayed him when she suddenly remembered the story.
"Oh!" she exclaimed, wriggling out of her mother's grasp, "What happens next? What does Superman ask Chloe?"
The man's stare shifted from the little girl to the mother, and her smile slowly thinned. Looking into the woman's eyes, he recited his favorite part of the story.
"Superman asked Chloe who she wanted to be with. She looked into Superman's eyes and said, 'You. I love you and no other'. They got married, and lived happily ever after."
"Yay! I knew it! Did you hear that Mama?"
"Yeah I heard sweetie," the woman said lovingly, planting a kiss on her daughter's forehead, "Hey, Daddy wants to see you in the kitchen. He bought you a present."
"Yay!"
With a final cheer the child disappeared, running to greet her father and leaving the two adults alone.
"Thanks for looking after her. I'm a bit amazed you had the time."
"Anything for her. She's a great kid."
"Listen – "
"Yeah, I know, I know," he interrupted, turning away, "But she wanted me to tell her the story. She likes it, and besides, she hasn't even worked it out yet."
"But what happens when she does? What happens when she realizes the names aren't just a coincidence and puts two and two together? She's smart you know. Its all in the genes."
"Mostly from the father's side then."
Her soft laughter was like music to his ears as his joke earned him a playful smack in the arm. They shared a comfortable silence, until he made a move for the door. She grabbed his hand and prompted him to stop.
"Seriously," the woman said, her eyes blazing with gravity, "She's bound to figure it out."
"So I'll change the names."
"No… No. It's not about that. She's my child and I don't want her growing up believing in – "
"In what happy endings? She's just a kid."
"But she's my kid. And she has to know that sometimes, when you let something pass you by, it might not come back and you just have to deal with that."
"I know. I just…"
"I just want her to know that things don't always turn out the way you want them to. That's just the way things are – just the way life is. You make choices and sometimes you're right, sometimes you're wrong. Not every story can have a happy ending."
"You got a happy ending," the man stated. His tone was a mixture of resentment and lament.
"But the story isn't about me. Its about Superman," the woman replied with a small sigh, "I'm not asking you to stop telling it to her. I know how much that story means to both of you, but just tell her the proper ending. Please?"
After a moment of speculation, the man ran a hand through his hair and turned his back on her. He walked to the front door and took his coat off the hanger, silently putting it on to ready himself for the chill outside.
"Okay," he said, "I will. I'll tell her next time. But you know, even with who Chloe really chose, its still a happy ending for Superman."
"Of course it is," the woman said soothingly, "Or at least it will be. Because he'll find someone else – someone better for him and someone he can share all of himself with."
"Maybe. Even if he doesn't, it doesn't matter. His happy ending is that Chloe got hers."
The woman's eyes widened as she realized the significance of what he had just said. After a short moment of silence she replied, smiling sadly with eyes full of love, hope and pity for him.
"That's one hell of a thing to say Clark."
The man looked over his shoulder and gave his best friend a thin smile before opening the door and stepping out into the cold.
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The End
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Author's Note: This story was inspired by a short story I read a long time ago for English Lit. Sorry, but I can't remember what it was called but I loved it so much its stayed with me all this time obviously. Oh, and yeah, that would be the Dean from "Supernatural". I read a Dean/Chloe story ages ago and liked the idea of it all 8)