Lex faxed a copy of the newly revised sale agreement to his father after breakfast. And then he awaited his father's phone call with mixed emotions. It came a little after ten that morning.
"Dad!" he said as he answered the phone in his office. "Oh? You got it then?" Lionel informed him that this was a dumb question. Of course he'd received the fax, and as expected, he was *not* happy. "What do you mean 'how could I agree to this?' I had no choice; he wouldn't have bought the damn plant otherwise." Lex shut his eyes and let his father's insults roll off him like waves rolling away from the shore. "Really, Dad... how very immature of you. You can't win them all, you know. You're just lucky he didn't try suing you for those little surprises of yours." This time there was silence. Then Lionel suggested he come to Smallville himself and deal with Mr. Wayne. "No," Lex told him. "Both the doctors here and your lackey in Metropolis told you to stay way from stressful situations while you were recuperating. Smallville isn't exactly paradise right now. Yeah," Lex lied, faking a rueful chuckle. "I actually *am* looking forward to getting out of this dump." He could literally feel his father beaming at him, the pride in his voice more than evident as he confidently proclaimed that he'd known Lex would come around. Hubris, as Lex knew his father couldn't possibly be proud of anyone but himself. Lex wanted to reach through the phone and choke the smug look he *knew* was there off Lionel's face. Instead, he asked his father to look the new agreement over once more and let him know if it would be satisfactory and hung up. He knew instinctively that it wouldn't be, but still hoped Bruce was correct in the assumption that their nemesis would cave in to their demands.
In the meantime, he had work to do, preparations to make for the future. His own and that of the town which had shown him the way out of the darkness he'd been living in. Lex smiled a little, a pleasant thought wiping away the memory of his father's call. That darkness was fading away, like morning mists giving way to the sun. Once it was completely gone, Lex would no longer be under his father's thumb, dependent on Lionel's whims.
Until then, Lex had a purpose. A goal. And now, thanks to Bruce Wayne, a way in which to make it all work out.
Soon, Dad, Lex silently told his father as he called up a file on his
computer. Soon, you'll know how it feels.
*L*E*X*
Lex found Bruce at the Kent farm later that day. The billionaire was seated at a picnic table on the lawn in front of the Kent porch. He was dressed in blue jeans and a light gray tee shirt and looked totally as ease as he spoke to the farmers seated around him. They were eating lunch, Lex noted, a hungry growl from his stomach reminding him that he hadn't eaten yet. They stopped talking as Lex exited his car and car towards them.
Bruce stood, offering Lex his hand in a firm, friendly handshake. The contact sent a shiver through Lex, which he masked quickly. "Glad you could join us, Lex. Eat yet?"
From his seat on the porch step behind them, Clark snickered. "I'm willing to bet he hasn't. Lex usually has to be reminded to eat," the boy commented.
"Would you like something, Lex?" Martha inquired. "I can get you a plate."
Given the fact that there were paper plates on the picnic table, Lex assumed she meant she would get him a real one from the kitchen to spare him a more pedestrian tray for his food. Ordinarily, Lex might have let her do it, too, but he could feel Bruce's eyes on him, and knew without even looking into those eyes that anything less than a paper plate would be an offense. And maybe Bruce was right, Lex reasoned, seeing how at home the virtual stranger was in the presence of Smallville's farmers. Bruce wasn't afraid to get down on their level--something no Luthor would ever think to do.
"No," he said at last, reaching for a paper plate and a napkin. "I can manage on my own." He smiled at the pleasantly surprised look on her face and the shocked looks on everyone else's. "It all looks so good," he commented, helping himself to the pasta salad. A few of the other farm wives puffed up with pride that Lex Luthor had complimented their simple offerings.
Once Lex was seated on the bench beside Bruce, the conversation reverted back to what it had been before he arrived. Crops--damaged ones--money, and other farming concerns. He was amazed to discover that even though everyone there had their own troubles right now--their own damages to regroup from--they were still pledging to help one another. They spoke of rebuilding and replanting... but avoided another possibility. Selling out. None of these farmers seemed willing to acknowledge the threat of foreclosure on their horizons. Their determination, as well as their sense of community, overwhelmed and impressed him.
In a lull in the farm talk, Bruce turned to Lex expectantly. "How'd it go this morning, Lex?"
"If you mean with Dad, he called," Lex replied, setting his lemonade down and frowning a little. "It wasn't a pleasant a conversation, either. He hated the new terms," His voice held a slight note of glee.
Bruce smirked. "Didn't figure he would like them, honestly," he added with a shrug.
Lex returned the shrug with one of his own, a mild smirk forming on his face. "Like you said, you're not here to please him."
Wishing to forget his father for a few minutes, Lex decided it was time to change the subject, and asked Bruce how *his* morning had been. Bruce had left just after breakfast to tour some of the farms and see just what really needed done.
"I think it's safe to assume it was better than yours," his friend commented wryly, causing their companions to laugh. He filled Lex in on some of the particulars about his tour, citing specific examples on some of the farms of things he knew needed the most attention. "I asked our friends here," he concluded, meaning the Kents and the others present "to give me some ideas on where to start. You might call this a brainstorming session."
"Funny, it looked like lunch," quipped Lex.
"That, too." Bruce winked before turning serious. "Did you get a chance to check out those financial options I left with you?" he asked.
Nodding, Lex rose from the picnic table to dispose of his paper plate and plastic utensils.
"What financial options?" Jonathan Kent inquired, waving Lex in the direction of the recycling bins.
"Debt consolidation," answered Lex. "Bruce asked me to see what I could do for you all in that arena."
Before Clark's father could voice any objections, Lex raised a hand in a gesture of peace. "I know, I know. None of you really want hand-outs, least of all from me, but just, before you turn down the offers, ask yourselves how you're going to do any of this on your own." While he meant everyone present, his eyes were on Jonathan's... challenging.
"The bank--" someone started.
"--is owned by my father," Lex cut off the speaker. "And he's already made his position clear. He said he'd crush anyone who stood with me against him, and owning the bank gives him enough power to do it."
This silenced the farmers instantly, and Lex felt a little sorry for them. He couldn't imagine what it felt like to put his heart into something, only to have it ripped out of his grasp. No, he amended. He could imagine it: the Smallville fertilizer factory. While it wasn't his life's ambition, he had given it his all, and his father had rewarded him by yanking it away from him like a broken toy about to be tossed in to a box for the next garage sale. Not that Luthors ever had garage sales.
"My son lost his job when the plant closed," one man muttered in the deafening silence. "And now you tell us your father intends to hold us all hostage... by threatening our homes and farms?"
Lex closed his eyes, breathing deep. Opening them, he looked past the man to Bruce, seeking assurance in his lover's expression. Receiving it, Lex nodded slowly. "I'm sorry, but yes. That's exactly what I'm telling you. However, there may be a way to ease your burdens a bit."
The farmers exchanged guarded looks.
"Boys, I think," Jonathan Kent said at last, "we'd like a little time to discuss your proposals. It doesn't seem like the kind of thing we should be jumping into without weighing all the options."
"Of course," Lex, replied. "I wouldn't expect less of you." He didn't either. Jonathan Kent was an intelligent, and Lex knew he'd make sure the Smallville farmers got a fair deal. He only hoped his friend's father didn't let his dislike of Luthors and charity--or charity from Luthors--cloud his better judgment.
*L*E*X*
"Lex!" "Lex?"
The man in question currently stood in the middle of the ruined castle library. He heard his lover's voice, of course, but wasn't quite ready to answer him and reveal his location. He wanted to be alone and think. Shaking his head, he reached out to touch the beam that had fallen on his father not even two weeks ago. He could still remember trying to lift it on his own--injured and bleeding as he was--and seeing his father lose consciousness. He recalled his frantic call to 911, begging them to send help now... that they were trapped and his father might not last much longer.
A frantic call, one fraught with fear he couldn't even begin to express. What had he really been afraid of? Losing his *father*?
No, that wasn't it. Lex hadn't been afraid of losing his father. He could never be that; he'd lost his father long before he'd ever been sent to Smallville. No... it was something else that had filled him with such dread that day...
"Lex?" Bruce pushed the library door open a little further and came in, gingerly stepping around a pile of rubble in his way. Lex watched him silently, thinking how empty his life had been until recently. Smallville had given him a glimpse of something he really wanted--a family, friends, and love. A filler for the loneliness, he realized as Bruce reached his side. "What's the matter?" he asked, eyes full of concern.
"Dad called again while you were out." He took a deep breath. "He accepted your terms, Bruce."
The new owner of the fertilizer plant nodded. "I never doubted he would."
"He's sending the helicopter for me in the morning."
"Joy," came his companion's bitterly sarcastic response. "Is that why you're hiding out here?" Bruce half-teased; Lex chuckled ruefully.
"No... I was just trying to figure out what prompted me to save his life in the first place."
"Ah." Bruce sat, easing himself onto the fallen beam carefully. "One of those big questions." Lex nodded. "Find an answer?"
Sighing, the troubled young man shook his head. "It's all a jumble, really. I remember what happened--what I did--but I can't explain..." his voice trailed off as he reached out to touch the beam upon which his partner sat. His eyes closed tightly, as if to block out the unwanted memories. And then he felt Bruce's arm slipping around him.
"Come on, Lex. Let's get out of here, " the other man said, brushing
his fingers lightly over his friend's hand. The contact was comforting.
Opening his eyes, Lex followed Bruce from the damaged library.
