Chapter 21 [Two Weeks Later]
[Kent Farm—Just Before Sunrise]
In the midst of the still darkened bedroom, Lana stared anxiously at the ceiling. Since the talk at the Talon, Vincent, Catherine and J. T. had worked at transitioning into their new lives within the community. Lana had forced herself to stand by and just watch as her lookalike and the two guys forged their own path. She ground her teeth but discerned to have faith in those friends.
Still, even for a Kryptonian, the butterflies over her friends' advancements made sleep impossible.
Hope they do okay! Why am I so nervous? They should be fine! She curled her lip and sighed deeply. She resolved to give it another five minutes then she'd get up and do the chores done.
["You okay?"] Clark called telepathically.
["I'm fine. I didn't wake you, did I?"] She mentally kicked herself. ["Sorry. My mind just can't stop thinking about the others."] She got up and put on her bathrobe.
["You wouldn't be you if you didn't. Mind if I come in?"] he queried.
She opened the door to find him already dressed in his plaid flannel shirt and blue jeans. His hair seemed slightly disheveled. Bits of hay stuck from his sleeves. She saw a bunch of her favorite lilacs in his right hand. "Wow. Somebody's already been busy."
"Felt your anxiety. Kind of figured it was my job to help you deal with it," he supposed.
"Oh really? And what did you have in mind, Mr. Kent?" she queried almost saucily.
"We both get ready. Then we head out for breakfast before school? Maybe Mabel's in Topeka?" he suggested.
Her mouth watered. "You want the shower first? I can do chores while you do that."
"Already done them. I didn't want you thinking about it," he assured her. "Don't want to come between you and those cinnamon rolls."
She shrugged before super speeding down the hall.
He listened for the shower which hissed on less than a second later. "About five minutes given the makeup and stuff," he muttered before heading into his room and shutting the door. He changed into his white t-shirt and blue sweatpants before grabbing a grey towel. He made sure that all of the books and stuff were packed up in the backpack for the day.
Just as he finished, he heard the water shut off and her call out, ["It's all yours!"]
["Thanks!"] He sped for the bathroom and his crack at cleaning up.
It was already better for them both and the sun wasn't even up yet….
[11:00 AM—Dodge City Community College]
J. T. collected his notes and rammed them into his satchel. He'd been pleasantly surprised by the students' questions and attentiveness during his initial lecture to them. Frankly, with just the basic science classes, he'd figured on more than a few things not to be up to snuff.
He'd been glad to find he was wrong about some things at least….
This might have some potential after all. He threw his coat on and headed for the student center's coffee cart. After a rapid fire synopsis, he definitely felt in the mood for another mocha and maybe one of those turkey sandwiches from there. He trudged across the central square and into the two story brick structure on his left. There he discovered the tiled coffee counter and cart beside it.
A slim red haired woman smiled at him. "Hello again, Sir. How did your class go?"
"It was…great. Thanks." J. T. hesitantly fumbled with his glasses. He was still feeling out his surroundings after three days on campus. "Was looking forward to more of that turkey and Swiss on the onion roll if you have any. Maybe that and another mocha please?"
"I happen to have one right here. Chips with that?" she agreed while reaching into her cooler and producing a wrapped sandwich.
"The sandwich is fine. Thanks," he expressed while rooting around anxiously in his coat for his wallet. Not finding it he rolled his eyes. "I left it in my office again."
She shrugged and put the sandwich back in her cooler again. "I'll be here for a couple more hours. There'll be plenty." She saw Dave approaching. "Good morning, Dr. Dubois. Something I can get you?"
"Hi, Marie. I'd love a roast beef and cheddar, a bag of your barbeque chips, a Diet Pepsi and throw whatever Dr. Forbes wanted in too. I've got it," Dave requested while counting out a ten and a five and handing it to her.
She nodded and produced the items in question. Then she accepted the money from him. "It'll be $9.25. " She did appreciate his tipping even if technically she wasn't supposed to accept it. Still she knew he'd just leave it on her counter if she didn't take it. "Here's four dollars back. Let me get that mocha for you, Dr. Forbes." She turned back to the coffee press at the counter.
"I'll pay you back. Sorry," J. T. apologized sheepishly.
"You get me sometime when I need it. No sweat." Dave assured him. "How did your first class go?"
"The kids surprised me. For a bunch of community college students, they actually seem more interested than what I'm used to," J. T. assessed.
"They surprise me too." Dave saw that she had prepped the order. "Just a sec. Thanks, Marie. You're great. Mike doing okay?"
"He's fine. Thanks for asking, Professor," she expressed while handing him the order.
"My pleasure. You have a nice day," Dave replied pleasantly while balancing the tray over to the nearby table J. T. had claimed for their lunch. "Sure you don't want some chips? We can split this one."
"Nah. The sandwich is plenty for me. Thanks again." J. T. eyed his benefactor/hall mate curiously.
"What? Did I do something?" Dave wondered.
"No. It's that you're not…freaking out. I looked up your file. Sorry but…." J. T. bit into his sandwich. "Shutting up now."
"J. T., it's okay. Like your friend, Vincent, I've had a few misadventures. The Child can be very protective. Just do me a favor? Chill out please. He's not going to bounce you off the ceiling unless you start threatening me, Angie, the girls or the others," Dave assured him.
"No…no…It's the farthest thing from my mind, Dude. Just getting used to everything," J. T. admitted.
"We all have to deal with each other. We'll be okay," Dave indicated. "It's just like we were saying in the Talon. Communities may be diverse. We may have to agree to disagree and some of those points may strain things. Still we have to live together." He bit into his roast beef and nodded. "Marie makes a hell of a sandwich."
J. T. took the hint and dropped the topic. Still he had to admit that the medievalist did have more control than he figured initially. "So your class….?"
"It's Western Civ. The students were paying attention at least. I'm waiting to see who drops after the first quiz," Dave replied almost off the cuff. "There are a few interested ones already though. They make the semester worthwhile."
"My first test is on the seventeenth. We'll see how we do. Thanks by the way for helping Vincent and Catherine," J. T. replied.
"It's my pleasure, J. T. Thank Agents Petersen and Singleton for being willing to listen and bend the rules a bit. They're watching but they know I'm a pretty good judge of character. You hang in there." Dave finished his sandwich and stuck the chips in his pack. "Got to get ready for the next section. Enjoy your lunch." With that he left the area.
J. T. mused over the point while biting into his sandwich again. He had to admit that he was surprised that things were turning out as positively as they were. He hadn't heard a peep from Muirfield or any other hostile force for that matter. His research grants had somehow made the transition with him. (He guessed that Dr. Swann and Lex were responsible for that happening.) He checked his watch and looked back toward Smallville.
By now Vincent would be through the first part of the day.
Let's just hope it's a good one! He bit into the turkey again and pondered things some more before the biology class later in the day….
[Smallville Regional Medical Center—Forty-five minutes later]
Vincent walked out of a patient's room feeling satisfied with the elderly lady's progress. He scribbled a few notes on her chart and set it in the holder outside of the room for the nurses to follow up on. When he took the position, he felt a little uncertain about being out in the open. He didn't want another Alex-type surprise coming his way from out of nowhere.
Surprisingly it had been almost too easy. Even with a few refreshers on the computer along the way to brush up, he handled cases as if he'd never been away for the previous decade. The clinic brought some smiles amidst the tumultuous emotions from colds, pain, injuries and such things. His cases challenged him but in a positive sense to grow and advance….
…For once the Beast wasn't the only central factor in his life….
He glanced at Catherine's picture on his desk and smiled. With the mess in New York, she'd anticipated correctly that Sheriff Adams wouldn't let her in the front door. Still she hadn't found a job yet. He'd tried to keep her spirits up with dinners, flowers and such.
Catherine, for her part, never let him see her frown. Other than dealing with her father's untimely death and the week back in Manhattan, she kept a very straight countenance. She wanted to be positive for his sake.
Wish I could do something. I know this is killing her! He sat down in his chair and scratched his chin purposefully. Then he heard a knock at the door. Looking up he saw the object of his thoughts smiling at him with a picnic basket. "Hey! This is a surprise!"
Catherine beamed. A large smile and glittering eyes dominated her facial features as she carried a large picnic basket into the office and shut the door. "Dr. Dubois said this was a great time. I took the initiative. Figured you could use some lunch."
"You did, did you?" He grinned before they kissed. "Any news on the other front?"
"Actually yes. I got a call from Bender's Books on Edgemoor. I start there day after tomorrow. Not that exciting but it'll get us to that house all the sooner," she informed him.
"I'm not complaining as long as you're happy. That's great news. Definite celebration material," he assured her.
"I knew you'd see it that way. Brought us some of that roast chicken from last night and some fresh potato salad from the deli at that Dillon's place down the street. I got us a couple of sodas from the machine down the hall too," she informed him while setting two plates out on his desk along with the goodies at hand. "Dig in."
"This is awesome." His heart felt lighter than it had in a long time. The usual buzzing in his head wasn't as much of an issue. In fact he felt happy and less guarded. He had his profession, great colleagues and friends not to mention not hiding from the woman he loved most in the world. "You have been making a difference…job or not."
"I want to carry my share. Now I can," she agreed while brushing her lips across his cheek. "Now let's enjoy." She sat down in her chair and gazed into his eyes while sampling the first forkful of chicken.
"You always do, Catherine. You always do," he declared while following suit.
Celebration might have seasoned the air but Amor carried the day as always. And so the last of Uncertainty's storm clouds scattered allowing the sunshine of Bliss to pour down on the couple and their friends….