I know, it's been a while, but for some reason these last few chapters are being stubborn. I think my muse may be napping...in Florida.
This week on 'Lifestyles of the Buff 'n Shameless...'
Luthor Manor
"Come in Clark," Lex's preemptive call prevented the coming knock on his office door, instead admitting a grinning Clark. Lex allowed a small tilt to his lips as he took in Clark's happy mien.
"Guess what Lex?" Clark playfully demanded as he strode into the room allowing the doors to fall shut behind him.
Lex allowed the silence build as he rose to his feet and speculatively circled Clark, as if the secret to his question could be discerned from his body. He stifled the smirk that threatened to cross his lips when Clark started fidgeting where he stood, the secret too great for him to contain for much longer. Finally, at Clark's exasperated "Guess!" Lex blithely tossed, "You asked Lana out and she said yes."
Clark rolled his eyes as only a teen could do properly, "Wrong, guess again."
Lex rubbed his chin as he teased Clark once again by studying him. Finally he guessed, "You asked Chloe out and she said yes?"
An exasperated sigh joined the second eye roll and an exaggerated, "Noooo, guess again."
Lex chuckled as Clark flopped into his customary spot across the couch with a great heaving sigh when he said, "I give up Clark, what?"
Clark watched as Lex moved to the mini-fridge and retrieved two bottled waters, waiting until Lex had seated himself before exclaiming joyfully, "Barring the evening chores, I have completed everything that needed to be done at the farm today!"
Lex felt his mouth curl in an answering smile, knowing full well that there were no parents waiting for Clark's immediate return. "So that means you can stay for a couple rounds of pool."
"No, that means that we've got enough time to actually use the real pool," Clark corrected teasingly.
"Oh really? How do you know it's not drained?"
"Because Mrs. Pierce told me that she was going to bring the double batch of her raspberry chocolate chip cookies to the pool house and if we were hoping to have some then that's where we should be."
Clark laughed when Lex huffed and rose to his feet, leading the way towards the pool, "I swear, my cook lives to feed you Clark. She just gives me these looks that implies mass destruction if I don't eat everything on my plate. You should hear some of the things she says to try and get me to eat."
"I can't help it Lex, I've got a healthy appetite, and you hire cooks that like to have their food eaten," stifled snickers shook Clark's shoulders as he followed casually behind.
"Healthy if you've got the metabolism of a hummingbird and a hollow leg," Lex snarked as they came upon the poolroom. "If I didn't know better I'd say you two were conspiring to get me to eat more."
"Oh! You've caught me!" Clark cried out dramatically while clutching at his chest, staggering through the door. "I'll just have to save your waistline and eat all those cookies myself now."
"In your dreams farm boy," Lex mock growled as he lightly pushed Clark towards the dressing rooms. "You're just lucky that you're my best friend, I don't share those cookies with just anyone, especially cookie gobbling farm boys."
"Sticks and stones Lex," came the singsong reply before the door closed fully on the rest of the phrase.
"May break your bones but your lips and flesh still tease me," he sighed softly as he entered his own dressing room girding himself to an afternoon of watching a nearly naked, golden wet farm boy playing in his pool.
Lex couldn't believe his luck. 'No wait, yes I can,' he thought sourly to himself. The poolside antics that Clark had been entertaining him with had been interrupted by an emergency phone call from none other than Chloe herself. Apparently, The Nose had been driving by the Kent Farm, 'Most likely stalking the place looking for where Clark had hidden himself,' when the cattle had gotten loose and were roaming the roadside. Of course, being the good son that he was, Clark quickly made his apologies, dressed, and dashed out of the house before he could offer him a ride back to his home.
By the time Lex had changed his own clothes and driven out to the farm Clark was studiously herding the cattle back into the corral that they had escaped from, the expression on his face showing that this was a common occurrence on the farm. He offered to keep Clark company while he repaired the fence that had allowed the cows their brief taste of freedom. Clark grinned affably and thanked him for the offer as he strapped on a leather tool belt and loaded it down with the tools that he would need.
"It's the least I can do Clark, especially as I don't think I'd be much help with the repairs."
Clark had only laughed and ribbed him a little about getting his clothes all dirty by lugging around the heavy posts. At least he didn't imply that Lex was too weak to carry them around, but he could see how a teenaged boy would come about having a body like that. Lift, bend, flex and sweat your way to a better body by working on a farm. He knew of gym fanatics that paid hundreds of dollars a month in gym fees and personal trainers to have a body like Clark's but couldn't seem to achieve the naturalness to their physique that Clark did.
He was glad that he managed to carry on a conversation with Clark without betraying how he felt or the fact that the majority of his concentration was tied up in the picture that Clark presented. He had changed clothes by the time Lex had arrived into a pair of faded and worn jeans, the ever present yellow work boots and a small white t-shirt that looked like it had been painted on his body. The tool belt hung heavy on his hips conspiring with gravity to tug down the waistline of Clark's jeans with every jostle and jerk that Clark made while repairing the fence.
By the time he had gone home he had realized that he hadn't seen any traces of Chloe around the farm. He spent a couple of minutes wondering about this until he remembered her penchant for taking photos of Clark while he wasn't looking. Deciding that if he couldn't have an afternoon of live 'Pool-Boy Clark' then he'd settle for reading through past variations of Clark on Chloe's LiveJournal. Besides…he had to finish the recounting of the 'Super-Soaker Summer.'
