A/N: I know that this story is probably not what anyone thought it was going to be but I like it more and more each day so, enjoy. Oh! And I would like to point out that I've never been to a will reading so don't call me out on mistakes. I tried to make it as believable as I could.
Lex rolled over, sighing into his pillow. Last night had been great. After losing Clark's friendship, then practically stalking him, then the worrying phone call from Martha Kent, Lex was happy that they seemed to be friends again.
Standing from the bed, he went to see if Clark was up yet. He padded across the hall, yesterday's slacks reminding him just how much spending the night with Clark had worn him out. He hadn't even had the energy to change clothes.
He reached Clark's bedroom door, knocking on it lightly.
"Clark?" he called quietly. After all, he didn't want to wake him up if he was still asleep.
There was silence from the other side.
Slowly, Lex opened the door. The bed was straight in front of the door, giving Lex a clear view. It was obvious that Clark hadn't slept in the bed, if he had even walked in the room.
Lex stood there, staring at the unwrinkled bedclothes, for nearly ten minutes before the sound of a phone ringing broke through the blankness in his mind.
He followed the sound of his cell phone back to his own room where he found it lying innocently in the middle of his bed. Reaching out for it, he picked it up and flicked it open.
"Lex Luthor."
A slightly husky male voice came over the line. "Mr. Luthor, this is Agent Anthony Hopkins with the Smallville Insurance Agency. I'm calling on the behalf of Clark Kent."
"I understand," said Lex.
"On behalf of Mr. Kent, I'm calling to summon you to the Agency headquarters in Smallville for a will reading."
Lex's breath caught in his throat. Please, let this be a mistake. "A will reading?"
Hopkins's voice softened slightly, dripping with sympathy. "If you answer the summons, all will be explained at the reading."
"All right," said Lex.
"Thank you, Mr. Luthor. I'll see you at the Agency in an hour?"
"All right," repeated Lex.
"Goodbye, Mr. Luthor."
Hearing the silence of the line, Lex pulled the phone away from his ear, staring at it in bewilderment. Please, let this be a nightmare.
[Clex]
An hour later proved that it was, unfortunately, not a nightmare. Lex stood in a private office at the Smallville Insurance Agency, surrounded by Clark's friends and what little was left of his family.
He cast his gaze around the confused, frightened faces- Martha, Pete, Chloe, Lois, Jimmy, and Lana –standing beside him. No one knew, or was admitting at least, why they were all there.
Agent Hopkins, a tall, 30-something with dark hair and eyes, stood in front of them, gracing them with a detached stare.
"If you'll all sit," he said, motioning to the chairs lined in front of him, "we can get started."
They sat quietly, no one knowing what to say in the tense atmosphere.
"I'm sorry to say that I have gathered you here today for the reading of the last will and testament of Clark Kent," said Hopkins.
Lex clenched his jaw and watched the reactions of the others out of the corners of his eyes. He watched as Martha bowed her head, silent tears pouring down her face. He watched as Pete's hands turned to fists, knuckles whitening, and how he started to shake. He watched as Chloe's gaze went dead, as if all presence of mind left in that second. He watched as Lois's eyes narrowed and her lips repeated 'fuck' silently. He watched as Jimmy's face widened in sad disbelief, tears welling up quickly. He watched as Lana's expression closed off, her face tightening.
Hopkins grabbed a folder off the counter beside him, opened it, and read, "Last Will and Testament of Clark Kent. I, Clark Kent, a resident of Metropolis, Kansas, being of sound and disposing mind and memory and over the age of eighteen years or having been lawfully married or a member of the armed forces of the United States or a member of an auxiliary of the armed forces of the United States or a member of the maritime service of the United States, and not being actuated by any duress, menace, fraud, mistake, or undue influence, do make, publish, and declare this to be my last Will, hereby expressly revoking all Wills and Codicils previously made by me."
Clearing his throat, Hopkins flicked his eyes up to his saddened audience and said, "It changes from the legal form from here out."
They nodded obediently.
He continued, "All right, guys, I know that you are probably sitting there wondering how this could've happened to me. I'll explain as clearly as I can."
"Around the time I turned sixteen, my biological father contacted me," read Hopkins. "He spoke to me of a genetic problem that ran through our family and how it could end up affecting me. It turns out that my family carried a dormant chronic disease that could be woken up at any point in our lives."
Lex watched suspiciously as Martha, Pete, Chloe, and Lana focused even more intently on the folder with the Will in it, as if it held the answers to life's greatest mysteries.
Hopkins read on, oblivious, "It's a type of disease that causes a person's nerves to seize, causing speech stutters and muscle spasms that quickly become deadly. The heart, after all, is a muscle. After so many spasms, it could just fail. I'm suspecting that that is what's going to happen to me in about a month or so."
A persistent burning pushed at the back of Lex's eyes but he ignored it.
"I know that it's terrible to think of me dead, but I've had nearly ten years to get used to the idea," recited Hopkins. "I don't suppose I'll see the ten year mark, though."
"Anyway, I wanted to give all of you my stuff. At least, the stuff that's important to me."
The will reading suddenly got that much more quiet. Lex's fists clenched, not wanting any of Clark's stuff if it meant that he was gone and not coming back.
Hopkins cleared his throat again and read, "To my loving mother, I give you back the blankets you knitted for me from the time you adopted me, the towels from my kitchen that you made from my old clothes, and the dishes that you painted for me by hand when I finally moved out. These things may seem material but to me they're material proof of your love for me, the love that never ended no matter what happened. I'll tell Dad you love him."
Martha buried her face in her hands, her shoulders trembling with quiet sobs. "My baby..." she whispered, over and over again.
"To Pete, my very first friend, I give you my collection of baseball cards that you helped to start when we were nine years old and the collection of skin mags that you also helped start when we where fifteen years old. You were like the brother I never had, Pete, and I want you to know that I love you...just not the type of love that's shown in those mags."
Pete laughed shakily, his eyes glassy through a film of tears. "Everyone loves Ross the Boss, Clark Bar. But I love you too, man," he said quietly.
"To Chloe, the first bit of city speed in my farm slow life and the jelly to my peanut butter like the sandwich we shared when I first met you, I leave you a copy of the first front page headline you made at the Daily Planet. I know you probably have your own in a glass case but this one has its own commentary by yours truly. I never loved you like you wanted, and was never the friend you needed, but I loved you like the sister I always wanted. Keep Pete in line, like always."
Chloe wrapped her thin arms around her body, her hair covering her face. She said, "I love you, too. And I will, Clark. Always."
"To Lana, my first crush and my first mistake, I leave you nothing but the knowledge that you're a stuck-up, two-faced bitch who'll spread its legs for anything with a twenty dollar bill in its pocket. I thought I loved you once, but thankfully someone came and proved me wrong before I fucked up my life over you. Burn in Hell, bitch."
Anger lit up Lana's eyes. She stood and stomped out of the room without a word.
"To Lois, the tornado that tore my teenage years apart and the glue that held my adult years together, I leave you the blanket you wrapped me in when you found me naked in the field. It may not seem like much but it gets better. I hand stitched the story of our years as friends into it, so you'll never forget me. You made me realize that love is shown in unusual ways sometimes. I hope that through all our bickering and childish fights I've shown you that I love you, the sister I couldn't get through life without."
Lois sat up straighter, a proud yet depressed smile flickering over her torn, bloody lips. "I don't know what I'd have done without you either, Smallville."
"To Jimmy, my personal paparazzi, I leave a stack of pictures you've taken of me over the years. They should hold good memories for you. I also leave you with my blessing. When you get past this, I expect for a ring to be put on Chloe's finger the first chance you get. Treat her right and welcome to the family, Jimmy. Thanks for being a great friend, even if we weren't given the chance to get that close."
Jimmy saluted the folder, "Right-o, CK."
Hopkins took a drink of water from a bottle on the counter and continued, "Lastly, to Lex, I leave a box of my most important possessions over the years. As the love of my life, I want you to understand what I thought and how I felt as I grew up and as we grew apart. I gave you life with my love and I lose my life with just as much love for you as I had when I was fifteen. You may try to convince yourself that it couldn't possibly be that much but I want you to know that the love alone was enough to power a small country for life should you ever use your genius to find a process to convert love to electricity. I also want to make sure that the mindless lust and desire I feel for you exists in heaps and bounds. Never forget that I love you, no matter how angry or scared you get. And promise me that you'll be happy, even if that means being with another person."
Lex let out a wet chuckle, the tears he had kept at bay for the past hour finally falling. "You know I can't promise that, Clark..."
"This is coming to a close, you guys," Hopkins read. "But I want to mention one last thing. All things that were left to you are at your respective houses and I love you all, forever and always. I'll see you all again one day."
The gathered people mouthed 'I love you, too' in united silence.
"This concludes the Last Will and Testament of Clark Kent."
Lex was the first to stand. He rushed out of the room and into his limo, intent on getting back home.
[Clex]
Busting into his penthouse, Lex swept through the whole place before retiring to his room. Opening the door, he stopped short.
There on his bed was a small box, an envelope that he vaguely remembered seeing on his nightstand resting on top of it.
He walked shakily to the bed and grabbed the envelope, noticing the way Clark had written his name- shaky, like he hadn't written it til the end, when the muscle spasms must have been taking over.
Opening the envelope, he tipped it over and dumped out its contents. A cd with 'PLAY ME' written across it fell onto the bed gently.
He grabbed the cd with care and stepped around the bed to his laptop. He laid on the bed, dragging his laptop onto his lap and placing the cd in the disk drive.
Waiting for the disk to load, Lex took a deep breath. The screen blinked and, shakily exhaling, Lex pressed 'play'.
A/N: so that was sad, huh? Sorry about that...there should only be one chapter left if my calculations are correct. I hope they are. REVIEW!
~S.
