~I Need You~
The snow swirled and danced in the night sky as the stars casted their light onto them. There was a slightly chilly breeze that nipped at Conner's nose. But he didn't pay any mind to the weather around him as he stared absent minded into the night from his place on the snow covered ground. It was Christmas Eve night. While others were inside, sleeping and dreaming of tomorrow, Conner was wondering. Wondering where everything went wrong. Wondering when did he start to become weak.
In less than ten years, someone he called a friend turned traitor and other friends have been killed. Now recently, his father was gone to stand trial on a different planet for crimes that he didn't do willingly along with other fellow heroes. Conner knew that being a hero was dangerous and something could happen to change people, but it still hurt knowing. It hurt knowing that loved ones could die. It hurt knowing that friends could become enemies. It was like someone was stealing the fire that was burning inside of him and replacing it with ice.
Conner stared down at his hands and whispered, "I am a Kryptonian. I am the son of Superman and the grandson of Jor-El and Lara. I am Superboy. I am supposed to be strong. I supposed to be able to protect people." He looked up, his blue eyes glazed over, to the dark sky and asked it, "So when did I become so weak that I couldn't even protect those closest to me? Where did I go wrong?" A pair of warm arms was suddenly wrapped around his shoulders but the clone didn't tense up and attack. He knew who was behind him, trying to keep him together. "Mom."
Lois Lane pulled her son closer to her and said to Conner, her voice slightly wavering, "Don't fall Conner, please. Don't think you are weak because you couldn't save them. You're strong in every way possible. So don't fall into that dark abyss. Please, I need you."
The Superboy gently squeezed Lois's arm and whispered softly, "I won't Mom. I need you too." The pair just sat there in the snow, with only the stars as witnesses to their encounter.