July 8; Valenti Household; 6:45 a.m.

Kyle scratched his chest; he yawned and went into the kitchen. He needed coffee. Reaching up he grabbed his favorite coffee cup and filled it with water. Dad was probably still sleeping, that's where he should be, in bed dreaming of Playboy models. Instead he was awake; he hadn't even had a full four hours of sleep, what the hell was up with that?

After he and Dad returned home he was too wired to sleep so he stayed up till one watching TV. Then Dad came back from his room and told him to go to bed. He went to his room but he didn't go to sleep. Not until almost three.

Now he desired coffee and coffee was what he'd get. The microwave dinged and he pulled out the hot water. He briefly entertained the idea of heating it up with heat vision…if he knew how anyway. Besides he didn't even know if he had it. For all he knew he had strength and speed but not heat vision.

He remembered when Liz got heat vision. That was the day he found out about where she came from and his life changed forever.

As he made his coffee Dad came down the hallway and entered the kitchen. "Son." He greeted, not quite awake enough to say much else.

"Father." He teased.

"Very funny." Jim reached up and grabbed the Frosted Flakes. He pulled out a bowl from the dishwasher and gently tossed it onto the counter. "How'd you sleep?"

"That had to have been the worst night sleep I've gotten in a long time. Couldn't get to sleep till almost three. Then I couldn't stay asleep to save my life."

Jim nodded. "I was hoping you wouldn't get that side-effect but you are my son." He finished pouring his cereal and went for the milk next.

"What are you talking about?" Kyle took a sip of the coffee.

"During the change to become a Protector there are certain side-effects. When I was going through it I couldn't sleep through the night either. Some sleep fine and continue as normal but others not so much." He submerged his spoon in his breakfast and began eating.

"Great." Father and son sat at the dining room table.

"You'll be okay. When you're completely changed the sleeping habits will go back to what they were before." He lightly hit him on the arm in comfort.

Kyle stayed silent for a few minutes drinking his coffee thinking about how to ask a question that had been on his mind since last night. Insomnia gave him a lot of time to think of questions to ask Dad. This one though he wanted…no needed an answer too.

"Dad, how come…well you see how Clark and Liz are? Hell even now I can feel her love and desire to keep Clark close. Which let me tell you makes me uncomfortable." Here he was a straight guy and he's having Liz's thoughts of how delicious Clark tastes. Not exactly something he needed to know.

"That'll go away when you have better control." Jim finished up breakfast and left the empty bowl on the table while Kyle continued with what he wanted to ask.

"Okay, well with how they are how come you're not jumping off the walls because Mom isn't with you? Why if we're able to rush some place in a matter of seconds that she hasn't come back for a visit? Not once has she called."

Jim sighed, he should have known Kyle would be curious about his mother. After all she left when he was a little kid. He remembered when Michelle knelt down and hugged their son close telling him how much she loved him and that she always would. That was the last time either of them ever saw her or spoke to her.

"Your mother loves you Kyle. Never doubt that for a second." He stared directly into his eyes making sure he understood that right from the start.

"If she did then she'd give me the courtesy of a phone call every once in a while. The fact that she hasn't in over a decade speaks volumes." He argued. Kyle hated doubting his mother's affection but what else could he believe? Wasn't he important to her?

"Michelle and I aren't mates. My chosen mate died when she was only a child and Michelle was never assigned a mate. From what she told me the parents that were supposed the have a child that would have the chance of being her mate were captured by a rival planet. With Clark and Liz they're mates so it's difficult for them to be out of contact." Jim explained.

"Did Mom not feel an attachment to me, her son? How could she just…"

"She had to leave Kyle. Michelle had to protect Clark. One of us would have had to leave." Jim explained.

"Great, so Clark and Liz were more important than keeping our family together? More important than watching me grow up." Kyle clenched his hands into fists.

"You are always more important than anything to your mother and I. Please don't ever think you're second to Liz and Clark." He held onto one of Kyle's clenched fists. "As for rushing back here, Michelle doesn't have the super-speed that we have."

"Why?"

"Not every Kryptonian gets the same gifts. There are the basic ones that most of our people got. Heat vision, strength, and hearing. However the speed, ice breath, various mental abilities, flying, and a few others only show up in a few people."

"Like who?"

"The House of El or Clark's blood-line. Also Hylena's, they have their own abilities that normal Kryptonians don't have."

"What about Liz's blood-line. The House of Ra?" As he and Dad spoke he slowly released his hands.

"Not being royal she doesn't have the same abilities as Clark. Speed, strength, heat vision, and hearing she has but as for anything else that remains to be seen."

Calm again Kyle brought up the subject of his mother again. "So why isn't Mom here? Now that Clark's here shouldn't she be here too?"

"It's unlikely that she didn't know he was coming here. She…she might have thought I could handle it." He coughed uncomfortably.

Seeing his father's uneasiness he asked, "What aren't you telling me?"

Jim sighed. "Your mother probably didn't show up here because of me. We got an official divorce a year ago and she told me that she's getting involved with a human. She's fallen in love with him." That wouldn't smooth things over but he couldn't lie to Kyle.

"Oh, so you a.) have been keeping in contact with her, b.) she didn't ask to speak to me, her son, and c.) she met someone else and is starting a new family with him. Great. Fantastic. It's nice to know we don't matter." Without another word he hurried off out of the house.

"Kyle!" Jim shouted after him. "Dammit." He rested his forehead against the front door jam.

TBC