All characters and names are owned by DC comics. I own nothing of the characters and am making no profit from the story, except the satisfaction of screwing with icons that are decades old.
CONFUSED RECEPTIONS AND REFLECTIONS
Wally carefully took the tray with the six bottles of coke to the table where Clark, Bruce, Diana, Arthur and John were waiting for him, and placed it in the centre.
"I think a toast is in order." Wally said, taking a bottle and raising it in the air. The others followed his example. "To the new and improved version of Clark Kent. May he always look like he wants to give the rest of us guys a huge inferiority complex."
Clark grinned as everyone cheered and downed their drinks. "Thanks Wally, mighty generous of you to buy us all the drinks."
"That's okay, Bruce is paying anyway." Wally said cheerfully.
"I am?" Bruce asked. Wally gave him a look and he sighed. "Fine, although I don't really like coke." He saw everyone's exasperated expressions and continued hastily. "But it's okay. It's a celebration. i understand..."
"And now, Clark, maybe you'd like to tell us how this happened?" Arthur said after downing his drink.
"Yes, how did you manage to effect such a dramatic change in you appearance?" John asked. "You look like a before and after ad for some medicine for anorexia."
"Careful, John." Wally said with a grin. "Don't say anything to annoy him. He looks like he can do a lot of damage if he goes psycho boxer on us now."
Clark laughed. The atmosphere at the table was jubilant, and he felt a warm glow as he looked at his friends laughing and joking, there relief upon seeing his improved appearance apparent, which showed how worried they had all been.
"First of all, I'd like to apologise for the fact that I haven't been in touch with anyone over the summer." Clark began. "I know it was abominably rude of me, and I'm really sorry guys. I just didn't want to worry any of you but," Clark took a deep breath. "The truth is, I was really sick over the summer. In fact, when the holidays began, there was a time when the doctors were pretty sure I wouldn't survive the next month."
The mood at the table had changed. Clark saw the shocked faces of his friends, all except Bruce, who already knew all this.
"But I'm all better now." Clark said lightly, trying to alleviate the atmosphere, and now wishing he hadn't been so abrupt in imparting the news. "The doctors have given me a clean bill of health, and I've really never felt better."
"You should have told us Clark." Diana said reproachfully. "We were so worried. What exactly happened?"
"You all know I was sick before I came here." Clark said quietly, his voice growing serious. "Really sick. As a result of my long illness, my body's immune system was weakened greatly."
Clark gazed at his friends and continued softly. "For the last year I've been taking medicines to strengthen my immune system and get my health back. The medication should have gotten me back to normal by now."
Clark paused and looked at Diana, whom he had told this last year. "Unfortunately, my health was not getting better. In fact, I just seemed to be getting weaker. Finally, a week before the holidays, my father had me re-examined. The results were definitely not pretty."
Clark stared down at his plate and continued grimly. "The medication I'd been taking had caused a side reaction in my body. For the last year, my body had been falling apart and my central nervous system getting weaker, and closer to the point of total collapse. By the time the doctors found this out it was almost too late. My medication was stopped immediately. I have... never seen my father so angry before."
Clark paused. The week after leaving the medication have been hard..., and extremely painful. There was no point in upsetting his friends with that particular story.
"So anyway" he resumed. "Once I recovered from my illness, and then my medication, I started getting better. Then I started working out again. Pretty soon I was back to my old self."
The others looked surprised at the slightly abrupt ending, but did not say anything. Clark did not want to upset them with story of his recovery. They didn't need to know that for the first week after leaving the medication his body had rebelled against being cut off from the drug that it had gotten used to. They didn't need to know that it had taken him a week more just to stand up without passing out. All he had done while lying in bed all those days had been eating a lot of food, his appetite improving as his body was weaned off medicines. And they certainly didn't need to know how risky it had been for him to take up exercise again so soon after getting better. His parents and doctors had been dead set against it, and the initial phase of exercising had of necessity been very slow and careful. It was impossible to say how potentially dangerous those backbreaking hours in the gym would have been if there had been the slightest mistake or slip up on his part.
But Bruce had been right. He had let the disease take over his life for long enough. It was time to take back control. The days of the initial illness had been a nightmare for Clark. Remaining in a half delirious state most of the time, having his mother wait on him night and day like he was an invalid on his deathbed, watching his body waste away in front of his eyes, and the feeling of weakness and uselessness had been as bad as the recovery. Clark knew he could not have allowed himself any other path then the one he had chosen, no matter how painful it had been. And now, feeling fitter and stronger than ever before, with no more headaches or medication to bother him and with his friends around him, laughing and talking, he knew he had made the right choice. It was good to be back.
Bruce sat back in his chair and gazed around the table at everyone else. He was reminded of the time, almost exactly a year ago, when he had sat like that, trying to get used to being around so my people his own age. But there was a difference between that scene and the present one. A big, broad shouldered difference with a spit curl across the forehead.
Bruce had to admit he was impressed by the change Clark had managed to bring to his physique. He was still lean, but obviously very strong and muscular. And judging by the width of his shoulders, he was going to grow bigger still. When regular people thought of exercise, they pictured slow and steady running at the gym, weight lifting with their friends, or rhythmic exercises shown in exercise videos. But there was a darker side to exercise, which only people who were really serious about raising their fitness to another level ever considered.
Bruce was one of those people. Clark had explained to everyone in one line that he had simply started exercising to regain his health. Bruce doubted any of them really understood the extreme pain and exhaustion that type of exercise involved, especially if you had just recovered from a serious illness. Bruce knew the summer had been spent by Clark in excruciating pain and discomfort which the normal man never even contemplated. It was a testament to how determined Clark had been to get back to his old life that he had gone through so much. Physically he was the Clark Kent that he had been before the illness.
But mentally? Bruce wondered. He realised that he did know this new Clark very well. Who knew what the change in his health might have wrought in his psyche? When Bruce had gone to visit Clark in Smallville, he had met Clark's old sparring partner, Capen Morrel. Cap had told Bruce about some of Clark's experiences in the ring, which Bruce had had trouble believing of the skinny, gentle boy he had come to know. Cap had spoken with great respect and admiration of the person Clark became in the ring, when he was sure no one other than him would get hurt. The speed and strength he exhibited as he wove around the ring. The only one who could take on the unstoppable Hulk. Bruce wondered what fighting someone like that would be like.
Now as Bruce watched Clark he wondered if he would ever get to see that side of Clark. He doubted he would. Clark's physique might have changed, but on the inside he still seemed to be the same old Clark Kent, laughing and joking with his friends, seemingly oblivious to the looks of deep interest he was getting from passersby, most of them females. Still the same harmless and carefree person.
Except that he wasn't, Bruce noticed suddenly. He had missed it at first. But now that he paid attention he saw it. The tall frame was always bent ever so slightly, just enough to bring him to eye level with whoever he was talking to. The shoulders were bent as well, making his frame look smaller than it really was. There was even something different about his manner. More cautious, as though aware that people might find him physically intimidating, and taking care not to scare them. Considerate, to the last, of other people's feelings.
"Always the boy scout." Bruce thought wryly. Afraid of hurting or intimidating anyone in any way. But maybe that was a good thing.
The break came to an end and everybody rose to get to their classes. Diana and Clark waited for Bruce to go pay for the drinks at the counter.
Clark saw Diana looking at him quizzically. He quirked an eyebrow questioningly.
Diana smiled, then hesitated. "Clark I hope you do not take this as undue criticism..."
"What is it, Diana?" Clark asked. He grinned. "I promise I won't go all psycho boxer on you."
Diana laughed. "Well, do you think you are wise to remove your glasses as well? I assume you are using contact lenses now, but they can be quite troublesome, and if you have left the glasses simply because they might seem unfashionable..."
Clark looked uncomfortable. "Yeah... about those glasses" he said awkwardly. "I never actually needed them."
"What?" Diana said in surprise. "Then why did you wear them?"
"Well, see, the truth was, I was a little nervous about coming to a big city like metropolis after staying in Smallville forever." Clark said, blushing slightly. "So I took a pair of my dad's old glasses, replaced the lenses with zero power lenses, and brought them here."
Diana continued to stare at him. Clark blushed even more deeply.
"I know it sounds silly, but I felt safer with the glasses on me. Felt like my dad was with me and was helping me get used to the university and metropolis and stuff..." his voice trailed away and his eyes became very interested in the tiled floor.
Suddenly Diana started giggling. It was the first time Clark had heard her giggle. She tried to stop, but the image of the tall, impressive figure making the strange confession was too much, and she giggled harder.
"Well, if you're quite done, maybe it's time I went to class. Glad I could amuse you." Clark said huffily, as he made to leave.
"No, wait. I'm sorry Clark." Diana gasped, trying to control her laughter. "It's not so bad. I understand why you did it. I did something similar as well."
"Really?" Clark said, interested. "What did you do?"
Now it was Diana's turn to blush. But Clark had been honest with her. "My godparents gave me a length of rope made of gold as a birthday present when I was a child." She said. "I and my friends used to love to play with it. We pretended it was a magic rope which could grow very long, like Rapunzel's golden hair, and that if you tie it around yourself then you always have to tell the truth. We used to play truth or dare with it. When I came here I brought the lasso with me because it reminded me of my home and my friends. So you see I understand you wanting to have something to remind you of your home."
"Then why were you giggling just now." Clark demanded.
"It just seemed strange to think of you as scared." Diana said apologetically.
"Of course I get scared, Diana" Clark said, rolling his eyes. "I'm still just a regular guy. Still the Clark I was last year."
"I will bear that in mind from now on." Diana said sweetly, still grinning. They saw Bruce making his way back from the counter and waited till he joined them.
"Did you know about his glasses, Bruce?" Diana demanded as they came out of the cafeteria. "Do you know why he doesn't wear them anymore?"
"The fact that he never needed them, but kept them as a reminder of his home?" Bruce said. "Yeah I knew."
"How?" Clark asked, surprised.
"They were flat lenses, not concave or convex or cylindrical." Bruce shrugged. "Obviously your eyes were fine. You also told me they weren't new but had once belonged to your father. It was obvious you kept them as keepsakes."
Clark stared at him for a few seconds. "That's the kind of stuff you spend your time brooding about?" He asked.
"Yeah, why?" Bruce asked.
Clark patted his arm sympathetically. "And I thought you were messed up enough as it is..."
A few days later came a Sunday, and a full day holiday. Since it was the beginning of the new term, there were no assignments or term papers yet. It was a beautiful morning full of sunshine and a lovely breeze. The seven friends decided to have a picnic in the campus park.
They were sitting together in the grounds where they were joined by Cat and Lois, with Mace in tow. Cat's eyes gleamed as they roamed over Clark, Bruce and Arthur.
"Mind if we join you guys?" She asked brightly, taking a seat on the ground right next to Clark.
"Not at all, Cat." Clark said with a smile, moving aside courteously to make room for her. Somehow he ended up with John between himself and her.
Lois sat down as well. Mace remained standing awkwardly, unsure of what to do in the group full of strangers. Lois looked nervous, but also excited.
"Hi Clark." She said. She was looking at him with new respect, as though seeing him for the first time.
"Hi Lois." Clark replied, his voice friendly and casual. "Sorry I haven't been to the newsroom yet, I was a little busy. Did you have a good summer?" Bruce gave a nod of approval and gave him a small thumbs up sign.
"Can't complain." Lois said. She grinned. "Quite a personality change, Smallville. I almost didn't recognise you before."
Clark gave a good natured smile. "Just started exercising again. That's pretty much the only difference."
He looked up at Mace hovering awkwardly behind Cat, who appeared to have forgotten him.
"Hi, I'm Clark." He said, extending his hand with a friendly grin.
"Mace" Said the diffident youth, shaking his hand. "Nice to meet you."
"You too" Clark replied. He introduced the rest of the group to each other. Cat's greeting to Bruce and Arthur was warmer than was strictly necessary, but she made up for it by being extra cool towards Diana.
"So, Clark." Cat said, twisting a lock of blonde hair between her fingertips. "I noticed you don't wear your glasses now."
"Yeah, I don't need them anymore." Clark said with a shrug.
"Well, that's really great. Now people can see that beautiful shade of blue of your eyes." She said, leaning in as close as having John between them would permit. "They always used to be hidden behind those ugly glasses before."
"Thanks, Cat." Clark replied, adding with a self deprecating smile, "But I think people have better things to do than stand around gaping at my eyes."
"Besides, those glasses sure seem to suit Mace." Wally said gravely. Mace looked at him hard, unsure of whether he was making fun of him or not. But Wally's face was blank.
Mace was wearing glasses similar to the ones Clark had worn last year. Clark knew Mace looked a lot like he had done last year, and Bruce had compared Mace's attitude towards Cat to Clark's behaviour towards Lois once. It was not a flattering thought. He caught Bruce's eye, who was watching him with a smirk, as though he knew what Clark was thinking. Clark grimaced at him.
"Cat, I took the supplies you wanted from the art room and put them in your room like you told me." Mace said, sounding like an obedient schoolboy reciting his lessons. "Here's the spare key you gave me."
"You keep it." Cat said sweetly. Mace almost dropped the key in his excitement. He didn't know she was going to change her room in a week's time anyway. "I know I can trust you."
Wally was watching Mace with interest. "You're in art class right? My friend Kyle Rayner's there too." he said.
"Er, yeah. I've met him." Mace said, pushing his glasses up with a hand as he focussed his attention on Wally. "I've seen you run, you know. You're really good."
"Yeah, thanks, I'm all right" Wally said modestly. "Kyle said you guys were doing portraits now. You've found a model yet? I think Diana would make a pretty good model." he added with a grin at her.
Diana frowned at him. "No thank you." she said primly. "It would be very boring to sit still for so long and do nothing."
"No, no, that's okay. We're trying pictures for now." Mace hastened to reassure her. "We're doing a portrait of Aishwarya Rai."
"The indian actress?" Arthur asked with interest. "I've heard about her. People say she's the most beautiful woman in the world."
"Yeah, she's pretty famous." Mace said, forgetting his diffidence in his enthusiasm. "Diana looks just like her. She's really beautiful and always looks really great in the movies, especially in this Indian film I saw called Josh. It was about this war between two gangs. It reminded me of a fight I saw once when I was a kid. This gang had got hold of a guy from another gang. So they chained him up and beat him till his skull caved in with-"
The others were surprised by the abrupt change in the narration. Mace saw their looks and blushed.
"Sorry" he said, fumbling in his pocket for a handkerchief to wipe his forehead, which had become sweaty under their concentrated gaze. "It just had an interesting storyline and stuff..."
"It does sound like an interesting story." Wally said, trying to keep the laughter out of his voice. "Um, have you ever been in a fight like that?"
"No way" Mace said hastily. "I just thought it was interesting, you know? How they all started fighting with this guy just because he was from another gang and all. They weren't using their heads at all."
"It's always much more interesting if someone else is in the fight." Arthur commented. "Not quite the same thing if you are the one in danger. Have you ever been in a similar situation?"
Mace frowned. "Well, no. I never said I was-"
"Then it is a moot point." Arthur said dismissively. "Only people who have been in a fight can understand how difficult it is to keep your head and think clearly."
"Wait, so you're saying I'm a coward?" Mace said, his voice growing angry.
"Of course he's not saying that." Wally said hastily, interceding before Arthur could respond. "He just means you don't seem like the type of guy who gets into those types of situations."
"I can handle myself in any situation." Mace declared heatedly. He did not enjoy being made out to be some kind of cowardly nerd, especially in front of Cat, who was watching the conversation with interest.
Wally blinked. He had been trying to help the poor guy out. But if he was going to snap at him... "Fine" He said coolly. "How about giving us a demonstration?"
"A demonstration?" Mace paused. But Cat was still watching him. "What do you want me to do?"
Wally looked around. Nearby was a staircase to a lower section of the park. He pointed towards it. "How about jumping down from there?" he said pleasantly.
Mace looked at the stairs. They were a long way down.
"Unless, of course, you're scared..." Arthur said softly.
Mace flushed. He got up, his hands balled convulsively into fists. He walked over to the edge of the stairs and looked down at the eight feet drop. His face had a look of resolution as he stood there. But slowly the resolve faded. He turned pale as he stared at the long drop. Sweat formed on his forehead as he tried to gather his courage again. But it was no use. He walked back unsteadily to the group and collapsed on the ground, his body slumped. The others felt sorry for him and even Arthur and Wally looked slightly ashamed of themselves.
"That was a great try." Cat said with a sweet smile, patting his arm soothingly. Mace brightened at these words.
"I was going to do it, you know." He said almost pleadingly. "But it's so far away. You know you can sprain you ankle and stuff, jumping off stuff like that, you know, without any safety stuff underneath and all, you know?" he finished rather incoherently.
"Yes, it looks really dangerous." Cat continued sympathetically.
The others followed her lead, comforting Mace with words and gestures. Wally was especially bracing and added that he himself would have been scared to try it too.
Mace looked happy again under all the sympathy. Clark leaned in and muttered to Bruce "I wasn't like that before, was I?"
"Of course not" Bruce whispered back. "You were a much bigger dork"
"Thanks Bruce"
"Anytime, Clark"
After that little interlude, the rest of the conversation at the picnic was led mainly by Cat. Lois was pleased to see that, even though Clark was friendly and polite, he firmly resisted any attempts by Cat to turn the conversation towards romantic channels. Wally was amused by Cat's quite unashamed flirting and joined in enthusiastically in the conversation, while Cat found Arthur much more responsive to her coy looks and banter than Clark or Bruce. John sat quietly in his place, his eyes trained on his food.
He appeared disinterested in the entire proceedings, but was in fact paying close attention to the interactions in the group, to the subtle undercurrents that were always present in a conversation.
He glanced at Diana, who was looking disapproving of Cat's blatant flirting, to Lois, who was also frowning at Cat, to the all conquering Miss Grant, who was carrying on an animated conversation with Wally and Arthur, to Bruce, sitting quite and impassive in a corner next to Clark, to Mace, who was hanging onto to Cat's every word, his mouth slightly open, his protruding eyes gaping fish-like at her. John resisted the urge to laugh. Finally he glanced at Clark, who was resolutely digging into his fourth sandwich and showed no signs of stopping. It warmed John's heart to see Clark healthy and robust, after watching him grow steadily weaker last year. Of all those present at the picnic, John was the one who knew the most about personal loss. The thought of losing one the few friends he had now had terrified him. There had also been a part of him that had been afraid that the sudden change in his health and his increased popularity because of it, specially among the female students, might have changed him. But he needn't have worried. He was still the same old Clark Kent who had stood up for him against Luthor. He saw Clark watching Cat with an amused smile, then glance towards Lois, who was watching him as well.
"I suppose it was only a matter of time." John mused. "Cross connections, misunderstandings, misinterpretations. And always that elusive hint of romance." he glanced at Bruce, Diana and Clark again. His friends. "I wonder how long it will be now."
A few days later Clark was walking alone through the campus on his way to classes. He was examining a device Bruce had brought back from home and given to him for the day. Bruce was fond of collecting gadgets from every field of applied sciences that contained any new or different type of technology. He had brought a few of these items with him to college, some of which were not even available on the market yet, to study them more closely.
"Hey Smallville." Clark heard a female voice call out. Lois was coming towards him, her bag slung over one shoulder.
"Hey Lois." Clark smiled. "No classes yet?"
"Just waiting for Cat." Lois said. They stood for a while in silence, not really sure of what to say. Clark was dimly aware that this was the first time that he had the chance to talk and it was possible that Lois would actually listen to him, yet except for some remarks about the weather he had shot his bolt.
"You know, Lex Luthor gave me a visit during the holidays." Lois ventured.
Clark frowned. "Why?"
"Trying to scare me." Lois said with a satisfied grin. 'Apparently the articles I wrote about him last year got under his skin a bit. He warned me to keep my nose out of his business. He threatened Cat the same way as well."
Clark stared at her, troubled. "Be careful, Lois." He said seriously. "Luthor can be a very dangerous guy to cross."
"I know, but it means we're getting to him." Lois said with an airy wave of her hand. "We have to take risks when we're doing something we believe in, Smallville."
"I guess that's true." Clark said reluctantly. He knew he would never be able to persuade Lois to give the matter up until she had gotten what she wanted, no matter how much danger it put her in. They relapsed once more into silence.
"So, you heard about Cat?" Lois asked finally. She wondered why it was suddenly so hard to talk to him, maybe because this was the first time that she actually cared about making a good impression on him. She had to admit they had never had any conversations other than those in the newsroom. She knew embarrassingly little about him, except that he was a farmer's son, and came from some country in Kansas called Smallville. She had never bothered to find out more before. She was finding the idea of possibly dating him not as ludicrous as before. But for that to happen first they had to have a full sized conversation, even if it had to be about the shady doings of her friend.
"Heard what?" Clark asked, glad to have something to discuss.
"She dumped Mace" Lois said, pointing towards the far left, where the cafeteria was located. Clark looked over to see Mace shuffling miserably out of the canteen. "She said he'd been getting too clingy. Poor guy took it pretty hard. He's been moping around ever since. He came back to return her key last night. He looked too dazed to even try to talk about getting back together with her."
Clark felt sorry for Mace as he saw the weak figure trail across the campus, dragging his feet. But he had to admit he wasn't surprised. Cat was not the type of girl who would take a guy like Mace seriously, and he had known it would end sooner or later. Clark hoped Mace would get over the break up, although he doubted it would be easy for him.
"I'm going to give her a piece of my mind when I see her." Lois said grimly. "Just because the guys a bit of a dork she feels like she can use him and then toss him out when she's bored. Like the poor guy doesn't have any feelings. You know I hate it when people use others like that."
She broke off with a rather confused look, remembering what Cat had said to her that day at the science fair about Clark. She blushed and glanced sideways at him. He was watching her with an amused smile, as though aware of what she was thinking. She looked away hurriedly and started scanning the crowds for Cat.
Clark meanwhile was inspecting the gadget Bruce had lent him. It was a small tube with a tiny lens attached at the end. The device was made of optic fibres and could be bent almost three sixty degrees around, making it perfect for capturing video from any angle. It could be attached to a cell phone and record videos at better resolutions than that offered by the phone's camera. Clark studied it closely, feeling the ridges along its spine running over the tube.
"Cat?" Clark heard Lois call out. There was something unexpected in her voice. She did not sound angry or rebuking, but startled. He followed her gaze.
Cat was walking towards them, her head bent, and although he couldn't see her face he knew something was wrong. She looked up at them, and he was stunned to see that she was crying bitterly, her eyes red and swollen. Her body was shaking as she wept.
"What is it Cat?" Clark asked, alarmed, as she came towards them. Cat reached them and buried her head in Clark's shoulder. Any other time Clark would have thought she was just being her usual flirtatious self, but she looked truly miserable. He had never seen her looking so scared. Lois looked shocked as well to see friend this way.
"I didn't do it" Cat was sobbing. "I swear. I don't even know how it got there."
Clark patted her back gently while she sobbed into his shoulder. He was about to speak, but just then he saw the warden enter the cafeteria and make his way to the platform. The eyes of all the students followed the warden. He cleared his voice and spoke into the microphone in a dry voice without any emotion.
"Catherine Grant of second year, media communication branch, was discovered to be in possession of an illegal firearm in the form of a loaded revolver in her dormitory room. Miss Grant is expelled immediately from the university and will remove her belongings from her hostel room as soon as possible. Students are warned that any future misdemeanour of a similar kind will result in immediate expulsion and possible incarceration. Thank you for your attention."
A big thanks to all the readers who've been kind enough to review. Your encouragement is much appreciated.
Oh, and yeah, I did base Diana's looks upon those of Aishwarya Rai in the story. And if you see the song "Nakhre" from her latest movie "Action Replay" that's on YouTube right now, you'll understand why.
