Okay, so many of you have probably seen that Lex/Clark is a pairing in my Justice League A/B/O AU series, so I decided to write a story that contained the key moments of their relationship, up until the start of Secret Origins.

I hope you enjoy it, and please read and review ?

Young Clark Face Claim: .

Lex Face Claim: .

….

"Don't use the upstairs bathroom…backed up… snake the pipes."

Clark simply nodded along to whatever his Ma was saying, "Where's the leftover pizza?"

"Fridge, second shelf…. nuke the chili."

He'd stopped fully listening by that point, focusing on the music coming out of his headphones as he pulled the pizza out… and then the headphones were pulled away.

"Clark? Some clue you actually heard me?"

"Ummmm…. Upstairs bathroom off-limits after nuclear chili dinner."

Martha rolled her eyes at him, "Glad to see your hearing hasn't changed."

"Clark, can I get a hand out here, please?!"

Racing outside, Clark beamed at his Pa as the man gestured to the car. "Son, would you- "

"Sure."

"Thanks…" Clark grabbed the back of the jeep and lifted it slightly off the ground, "… Sure picked one heck of a day to snap an exhaust hanger."

As Jon fixed the exhaust pipe, Martha turned to Clark, "I left the number of our hotel on the nightstand. I think that's everything."

Crawling out from under the jeep, Jon beamed at the other, "That ought to do it…. I'm definitely raising your allowance."

Clark beamed at this, as his Ma spoke up once again.

"If you need anything- "

"- Call." Clark chuckled, "Ma, it's a couple of nights in Metropolis. I'll be fine."

"I'm sure he'll be fine." Jon agreed, "And soon, madame, so shall we be!"

Before they could get into the car, Clark suddenly remembered something, "I almost forgot!" He pulled a pizza stained envelope out of his pocket, "Sorry…. Happy anniversary."

Martha pulled her son into a hug, "Sweetheart, bye-bye."

Jon said his own goodbyes, patting his son on the back and throwing a dirty cloth at him, before the two drove away, leaving Clark alone.

Which is how he ended up here…. Alone…. In his own house where a party was getting out of control, people smashing glass and generally being pests.

"Well this is… interesting."

Clark around, wincing when he saw Lex standing in the doorway, "Lex… hey!"

"The parents are gone, and you throw an impromptu party… how very rebellious." Lex winced when he heard something shatter, "If you need me to replace anything, just let me know… how are you so calm?"

"After the first few dishes, you get used to it…. How many parties did you used to throw at my age?"

Lex smirked, but before he could say anything, the sound of fireworks filled the air, causing everyone to gasp in delight and amazement, rushing outside to see them.

"What the- "

"- Call it a party gift Clark. "Lex beamed, "I hope you like it."

The pair headed outside, with Chloe and Pete joining them.

"It's great…" Clark sighed, "...it's just- "

"- Forget the police. It's covered… This kind of party can make or break a reputation. I wanted to make sure yours was a hit." He then turned to Chloe and Pete, "I hear you're taking a tour of my plant?"

"It's a class field trip." Chloe answered.

"… What'd you do wrong?"

Clark chuckled at that, "It's that bad, huh?"

Nodding, Lex couldn't help but return the grin, before clearing his throat, "Sorry I took so long to see you by the way, someone overflowed the bathroom."

"… I'm officially dead."

…

So… Lana and Whitney were now fighting, and from what Clark overheard, it all revolved around Lana's presence at the party… and how she didn't tell him.

Yikes.

They had moved to the barn to have what little privacy they could.

As Clark was pondering how he was going to help without Whitney starting an Alpha fight, there was a commotion outside and Lana came rushing in.

"Clark! You better get out here!"

Clark and Chloe followed her outside to the barn, quickly spotting Whitney brandishing a pitchfork at something.

"Kent, get up here!"

Whitney and Lana had clearly been spooked by something, and this made Clark himself tense as he headed to the upper areas of the barn, torch lit as they headed towards a quivering blanket. With one swift moment, Whitney yanked the blanket away, quickly bringing the pitchfork up in a defensive position.

"Got him!"

Through the light of the torch, Clark recognise the man. "Earl?" He turned to Whitney, "Back off, I know him!" He knelt in front of the man, who was quivering violently, "Earl, what are you doing here?"

"I-I came to see your dad. He's the only one I can trust."

"He's out of town…." Clark frowned as the violent shaking increased in intensity, "What's wrong with you?"

When he tried to reach out and touch Earl, pain shot through his arm and his veins turned green… meteorites.

"Call an ambulance!"

….

Later, when they were in the hospital and Clark was reminiscing about the time that Earl worked on the farm, teaching the young Alpha how to play the guitar, before he took a better paying job at the LuthorCorp plant, cops suddenly entered the building, asking about Earl.

"Excuse me…." Clark wandered over, "… I'm a friend of Earl's. Is he in some kind of trouble?"

"Oh, yeah."

Suddenly, there was a crashing noise from the room that Earl had been taken to and various medical staff came rushing out. "We need help in here!"

When Clark and the officers went rushing into the room, they saw Earl violently shaking, his entire body a blur as everything in the room reacted as though there was an earthquake.

"Earl!"

When Clark tried to grab the man, he found himself flung through the observatory window, sliding along the floor as he stared at Earl in shock.

What on earth just happened?

….

Early that next morning, Clark stumbled home, his feet sliding across the sticky floor, food and rubbish everywhere. When he went to place his elbow on the table, he groaned as cheese stuck to the fabric, staining it as the cheese refused to be parted from the soft material.

Within the following two minutes, Clark had zipped around the entire house, sweeping, mopping and cleaning up everything before his parents came home. With the last apple placed back in the fruit bowl, Clark grinned in satisfaction.

And then he heard the slow clapping behind him.

"Hi…." Clark winced as he twisted around to see his parents standing by the staircase, "… You're home early."

His parents frowned at him.

"We called six times last night, spoke with six different people none of whom knew who you were?"

He winced again, doubly so at the tone in his mother's voice "It was supposed to be an intimate occasion."

Jon crossed his arms, "Clark, where have you been?"

"…The hospital."

Turning to her husband, Martha threw her hands into the air, "I'm never leaving home again."

"Who got hurt Clark?"

Clark frowned and shook his head, "Nobody, but I found Earl Jenkins hiding in the loft…. He was looking for you, Dad…. He's all messed up."

"What's the matter with Earl?"

"I don't know, but he's wanted for murder."

Clearly, Jon didn't believe him. "Earl? Did he have anything to say for himself?"

"No, I couldn't get close."

"How come, the police?"

"No… Because when I got near him, I got sick. It was weird. Every time I stood next to him, it got worse. It's kind of like- "

He paused, glancing between his parents as Martha frowned at him, "-Like what?"

"It's kind of like the way I feel around meteor fragments."

…

The hospital was depressive, as per usual, but the sight of Earl strapped to a bed was equally as sad. Jon and Clark watched as the Doctor left the room, quickly trying to get her attention.

"What's wrong with him?"

The Doctor frowned, "Well, to be honest, I haven't the faintest idea. It's amazing his body's been able to survive the seizures this long…" She went over to the X-ray machine, "…Take a look at the x-rays. It looks like mineral poisoning, but it's not a mineral I've seen before."

"Is that why he's shaking so hard?" Clark asked.

"Mineral fragments are embedded under his skin. His body is trying to push them out."

"How did they get there?"

"He claims there was an explosion at the LuthorCorp plant six months ago."

"… I didn't hear about that."

"That's because it didn't happen. I pulled the plant's safety records and I checked with OSHA and the EPA."

Jon nodded in understanding, "Can I go in and talk to him by myself?"

"Better hurry up. Metropolis P.D. will be here any minute to transfer him back to the city."

"Thanks."

As Jon headed towards the room, Clark was quick to follow. "I wanna go with you!"

"No… Listen, you said that you felt sick when you got around him, right? I bet what he was exposed to has to do with those meteor rocks. I don't want you passing out around here. It'd bring us a whole other set of problems."

Though he didn't want to, Clark hung back, choosing to watch from the window.

As soon as the man saw Jon, he beamed. "Jonathan… Am I glad to see you."

Jon smiled back, gesturing at the window. "Hey, look."

Leaning over, Earl grabbed a small microphone. "Clark… Can you hear me? I'm sorry. I didn't mean to- "

"- I'm fine." Clark interrupted, "Don't worry about it."

With Earl reassured that Clark was alright, Jon turned his attention back to the older man, "All right, Earl, what's going on? I can't believe you'd wanna kill anybody?"

"It was an accident! I was trying to see Lionel Luthor."

"Why?"

"Find out what they used on Level 3."

"Earl, you're not making any sense."

"When I got that job at the Smallville plant I was assigned to clean Level 3. They were doing these hush-hush crop experiments. A new kind of fertilizer supposed to make corn grow twice as fast…. There was something unstable in that fertilizer. There was a huge explosion." Earl winced, "I was cleaning at the time. This stuff, it got under my skin. And the next thing I know they shut it all down and I was transferred to Metropolis. Then two months ago, the jitters started."

Jon frowned, "Did you see a doctor?"

"I must have seen 50…. But nobody could tell me what was wrong. They needed to know what I was exposed to. But when I went back to the plant, they told me that Level 3 didn't exist. That it never had. I've got to find out what they were using! That's why I need your help. You gotta get me out of here!"

"Earl, you're wanted for murder."

"You don't understand! I can't control it! I'm running out of time! The jitters are getting worse, it's already cost me my job, my marriage, my baby! I gotta get back into that plant, or I'm gonna die! Help me!"

There was silence for a moment, before Jon sighed and gently patted Earl's hand, "You get some rest, Earl." He whispered, seeing that Earl had worn himself out, before leaving the room.

"… My baby."

Jon practically raced out of the room, where Clark was eager to meet him.

"Do you think he's telling the truth?"

"I have no idea."

"I have a field trip to LuthorCorp today, maybe I could look around?"

"… I know you're worried, but Earl has more trouble than he can handle. And I don't even know if he's in his right mind. So, please, don't do anything."

….

"Hello, everybody, I'm Gabe Sullivan, plant manager and proud father…." The beta male turned his attention to Chloe, "… Hi, sweetheart."

"Hi, Dad."

"Welcome to LuthorCorp: Where we give a crap… little fertilizer humour there."

Chloe groaned under her breath, "Okay, somebody kill me now."

"Before we go inside I need you to remove all your cell phones, pagers, jewellery. Anything that jangles, dangles or rings has to go in these plastic trays…. Any other questions?"

Clark raised his hand.

"Yes?"

"I heard there was a third level to the plant? Is that true?"

Gabe smirked at this, "Yeah… That's where we do the alien autopsies. I think we'd better get started, this way everybody! All right, people, let's stay together."

As they were led through the dark corridors of the plant, Clark spotted his opportunity… an authorised personal door that was slowly sliding shut.

With an extra burst of speed, he was through the door.

He was away from the group…. Of course, that was when Earl decided to take Gabe Sullivan and the rest of the group hostage.

…..

"When we send our kids on a field trip we'd like to believe that they're gonna be safe!"

Lex frowned when he heard the familiar voice, sounding his horn in order to part the crowd and open the gates. Nobody ever wanted to hang around this place, what on earth were all these people doing here?

"Lex Luthor!"

Lex slowly pulled to a stop and got out, his eyes instantly falling on Clark's parents. He hurried over to the gate and gestured at the pair, "Let these two in, just these two…." He ordered the officers.

Jon and Martha were quick to follow, reassuring the other parents that they would find out more about what was going on.

"What's going on here?" Jon asked as they made there way over to where the police were set up.

"There's a lunatic inside demanding to be taken to some place called Level 3. We've evacuated the plant, but he's taken the students hostage."

"Is anyone hurt?" Martha asked in concern

"Not yet."

"… What's his name?"

"Earl Jenkins."

Jon frowned, "I know Earl Jenkins, he used to work for us!"

"Well, what's he doing in my plant?" Lex asked, confusion in his voice.

"He claims that Luthor-Corp is doing some crop experiments on some secret Level 3, and that's what made him sick. He's convinced it's the only place he can get a cure!"

"… We've got a serious problem, because there is no Level 3."

They all turned their attention back to the cameras…. And then Martha spotted something odd.

"Where's Clark?!"

….

Clark, was watching the entire thing from the security room, his body tense as he watched Earl Jenkins hold his friends' hostage.

He needed proof that there either was or was not a Level 3 to this place… and judging by the security cameras, the office that would hold all the blueprints was un-occupied.

…..

"I swear, I don't know anything about Level 3!" Gabe begged, as Earl slowly circled him.

"You're lying!"

"He's not lying!" Everyone turned around to see Clark entering the room, a large scroll in his hand, "I found these blueprints! There is no Level 3."

Clark handed the paper over, his face pale as Earl snatched them from him and went over to the table to examine them…. He didn't like what he saw.

"Every night…" He snarled, "… I go down to Level 2 follow the red pipes down that long hallway go to the door, I open it and I take the elevator down to Level 3!" He growled at Clark, getting right up in his face, "You're just like everybody else…. Get over there and you sit down!"

….

Outside the plant, a helicopter was flying over, coming in to land.

"Who's that?" Martha asked, glancing over at Lex in concern when he groaned.

"My father."

Lionel Luthor made his way out of the helicopter and straight towards Lex, "Lex! How did you allow this to happen?"

"I didn't allow- "

"- Then how did this man get inside?"

"I think- "

"- You think?" Lionel snarled in frustration, cuffing Lex around the side of his head, "Why don't you know?!"

Now Jon didn't really like Lex, but no-one deserved to get smacked around like that. "Hey!" he bellowed, "Can we focus on what's important? We've got innocent kids in there!"

"This is Jonathan Kent." Lex introduced.

Lionel stared at the pair, "It's been a long time, but I never forget a face."

"Kent's son is inside. They know the gunman personally."

"What's your assessment of this lunatic?"

Jon sighed, "He's sick, he's desperate and he blames your plant for his condition!"

"… This Level 3 nonsense- "

"- I've assured everyone there is no Level 3…." Lex interrupted, "… That is the truth, isn't it?"

"Of course, it is!"

Jon couldn't help but glare at the other man, "People's lives are at stake, including my son's! What will you do about it?"

"I'm going to let SWAT do their job. When he makes a mistake, they'll move in."

Martha frowned, "What about the kids? You need to get on the phone and talk to him!"

"Mrs. Kent, I understand how you feel… I want everyone to walk out of there alive too. But I do not negotiate with terrorists!"

"He's not a terrorist! He's sick and he needs help! If you won't talk to him, then Jonathan will!"

When Jon moved over to the phone, intending to do exactly that, Lex stopped him. "You're not the one he blames…" he whispered, "…Is he, Dad?"

…..

In the room, where the students were being held hostage, the phone rang, promting Gabe to answer it.

"Gabe, it's Luthor… Lionel Luthor."

Earl glared at the phone. "Speaker." He ordered, stepping closer and smirking at the phone, "Mr. Luthor. I've finally got your attention, haven't I?"

"Earl, why don't you come out? We've got a lot to talk about."

"Just tell me what you were using down on Level 3!"

"You're sick, Earl…. Let everyone go, we'll get you help."

It was at this moment, that Earl had another fit, his hands gripping onto a nearby tank. When Clark tried to stop him, Earl's hand flew out and knocked Clark to the floor.

"Clark!"

By the time the fit stopped, Earl had managed to damage the tank, creating a small hole…. That was now causing methane to leak into the room.

"Oh, no…" Earl gasped, "… See what you made me do? See what you made me- " He raced over to the security cameras, "- See what you made me do?!"

Outside, Lex shook his head at his Father, "Way to go, Dad. I see you haven't lost your touch."

…

"We need to do something." Whitney muttered, ignoring how Lana protested, "The man's nuts. He's not listening to the cops, and that gas is gonna blow."

"He's sick, but still strong." Sighed Clark as Lana continued to protest.

"I'm not putting my life in that man's hands… The two of us can take him. How about it, Clark? Two Alphas against a beta!"

"… I can't."

Whitney looked betrayed by this, even as Lana tried to reassure Clark that it was okay. Shaking his head in disappointment, the other Alpha slowly got to his feet and crept over as Earl continued to yell at the camera.

"I trusted you. You told me you were trying to help people!"

Earl then noticed Whitney, "What are you doing? Get back!"

The gun was knocked out of his hand in the scuffle, but Earl was still victorious, knocking Whitney to the ground and grabbing the weapon, aiming it at the camera. "It's all your fault, Luthor!"

….

"We've got shots fired, one hostage down. Full alert!"

Lionel shook his head in despair, "What was he thinking?"

"He's an Alpha teenager who's been waiting for someone out here to take the initiative. There's a hostage situation and a potential bomb. Somebody's gotta do something!"

"You're right…." Lex sighed, "… I'm going in."

As Lex went to leave, Lionel rushed over and caught up with him. "Lex, don't be foolhardy. This is no time for mock-heroics. If an Alpha can't take him down, then you definitely can't!"

"You said this is my plant. It's my call!"

Lionel grabbed his son's arm roughly, "I won't allow it, Lex." He growled, forcing a little Alpha command into his voice.

His son didn't like that. Wrenching his arm out of Lionel's grip, Lex glared at him. "Don't ever do that again" He then turned to the SWAT team leader, "Take your positions. Tell him Lex Luthor's coming to see him."

"I wouldn't advise that, sir."

"Make the call. Give me your vest!"

Lionel stared after his son, a little bit of respect in his eyes.

…..

Clark felt like his heart was going to stop when he saw Lex enter the room, vest on and hands up in the air in surrender.

Earl was also surprised to see the younger Luthor, "What kind of man sends his own kid to do his dirty work? And an omega at that!"

"I'm not doing anybody's dirty work Earl…" Lex sighed, walking a little bit closer, "… This is my plant." He then turned to Lana and Whitney, "How is he?" he asked of Whitney

Lana had her handkerchief pressed against a wound on Whitney's head, caused by his head making contact with a control panel, "He needs a doctor!"

Lex then glanced at Clark, silently asking the same question of him. When Clark simply nodded, Lex sighed in relief and turned back to Earl, "What are we gonna do about these kids, Earl?"

"… I never meant to hurt anybody. I tried talking to your father, but he wouldn't listen to me!"

"Trust me, I know the feeling…." He then sent an apologetic smile at Clark, before removing the bullet-proof vest, "Earl, you say that everybody's been lying to you. I'm gonna tell you the truth…. My father doesn't care about you. He doesn't care about anybody in this room. Because if we all die, his PR firm will spin it. His insurance company will pay and you will go down as the bad guy."

"I'm not the bad guy… I'm just trying to get better."

"How are you gonna get better by killing a bunch of kids?" Lex glanced around and sighed, "If you let everybody go, I'll take you to Level 3."

Earl brought his gun up to Lex's chest, ignoring Clark's warning Alpha growl, "You stop lying." The beta muttered.

"Let them go, and I'll show you where it is! Earl, trust me. I'm a man of my word!"

"Get out…." Earl whispered, before raising his voice and bellowing at the children and the other employees of the plant, "Get out. Get out! Everybody, get out!"

As everyone else rushed out, Clark raced over to Lex, who was loosening his tie. "Do you really know where it is?" he asked.

"Yeah… it's in his imagination." Lex smirked, "There is no Level 3, Clark. Now, get out of here!"

Clark hesitated for a moment, before following his friends out of the door, where they were met with several SWAT agents.

"This way, kids. This way!"

….

"The kids are coming out!" The lead SWAT agent announced, smiling as Martha and Jon gasped in relief and rushed over to the plant entrance.

He then turned to Lionel Luthor, "We need to bring down the fire doors. The gas levels are too high…. Your son will be sealed inside. I'm sorry, sir."

Lionel paused for a moment, before shaking his head. "Do it."

…..

As they raced out of the plant, a thought occurred to Clark and he suddenly doubled back, running back towards the plant as Pete protested.

"Come on, man, we gotta go!" Pete yelled, as Clark rolled under the closing doors.

"What kind of an Alpha would I be if I just left Lex in there!" Clark yelled, "Don't worry about me!"

He was under the door, before anyone could stop him, racing through the plant in order to try and find his ome- Lex…. To try and find Lex.

…..

"Pete!" Martha pulled the young beta close in relief, "Where's Clark?!"

"He's back inside, Mrs. Kent. I-I tried to stop him. I'm sorry, I- "

Martha raced over to Lionel Luthor, "You have to open the doors!" She begged the Alpha.

"They're safety locked and can't be opened until the gas levels go down."

"My son is still in there!"

"So is mine!"

….

Clark raced towards the small room, where Earl claimed the elevator was…. All he could see was a wall.

Moving using, he focused on the wall with his x-ray vision.

There!

An elevator!

…..

"We're running out of time…" Earl whispered, heading over to Lex, who was on his knees, ".. All right, I've done my part. Now it's time for you to do yours."

"Earl, there is no Level 3!" Lex begged, "It's all in your head, in your imagination!"

He yelped in pain as Earl struck him across the back of his head, knocking him to the ground.

"I should have never trusted you…." Earl grunted, gripping the back of Lex's neck and lifting him to his feet, "… You Luthors are all the same!"

"Earl!" Clark's voice came over the speaker, "I found Level 3. They built a wall in front of the elevator, but it's still here!"

Earl pressed the 'Speak' button and growled into the microphone, "Stop playing with me!"

"Get out of the building, Clark!" Lex yelled desperately, resisting the urge to grown in pain.

"Earl, it's here! Don't you want to see it? I promise!"

Earl growled, tugging at Lex's leg, "Come on, I want you to see the truth. Come on! Come on, come on!"

"Alright! Alright!"

….

Once he was sure that they were out of the room, Clark sped in, focusing on the methane tank. Using his enhanced strength, he managed to mend the hole, pulling the metal back together.

…..

"Sir."

"Hold on." Lionel Luthor asked the person on the other end of the phone and turning to the lead SWAT agent, who was frowning.

"The gas pressure is beginning to drop."

"How did that happen?"

"I have no idea."

…..

Lex winced as Earl's grip tightened on the back of his neck, allowing himself to be dragged along the second floor and into the cloak-room. There was a large hole in the brick wall, that revealed a hidden elevator.

"Son of a bitch!" Earl growled, shaking Lex like an ill-behaved puppy, "How do you explain that?"

Lex knew his face was pale as he stared at the elevator, "... I can't."

He was then dragged into the elevator, where he spotted only two buttons, "Look…" he gasped, "… Two buttons. Two levels… I'm sorry, alright?"

Earl just smirked at him, reached out and pressed an unseen button, painted black to match the panel.

Level 3

When they reached the level, Earl threw Lex forwards, causing him to grunt as he landed on his hands and knees.

"I told you it was here…." Earl exclaimed in glee, before he realised that the level was completely bare "… Where is it? Where is everything? There used to be a- It was a field of corn with sprayers all over it, and every night, they'd spray this green mist on it…." He turned to Lex, who was gazing around in amazement, "What have you done with it… What have you done with it?!"

"I don't know…" Lex gasped in shock, still glancing around in amazement, "… They lied to me too, Earl. I had no idea this was here!"

"Earl!"

They both span around to see Clark standing in the entrance, standing up tall as he stared at Earl, "Let's go back upstairs and talk about this!"

Earl shook his head, ""It's all gone. How am I gonna get better if I don't know what poisoned me?"

Desperately turning to Clark, Lex shook his head, "I didn't know about this place. You gotta believe me!"

"I believe you, Lex."

Earl clearly didn't agree with Clark's sentiment. "He's lying! He's just like his father!"

And then the seizure started.

The violent shaking caused the metal pathway beneath Lex and Earl's feet to sway dangerously from side to side, before the screws holding the bridge together fell away and it tilted to one side, sending Earl and Lex over the edge, hanging onto the bars a good 30 feet off the ground.

"Clark!" Lex yelled in fear, his face pale as he stared at the ground below.

Before Clark could get any closer, the bridge suddenly broke a little bit more and Lex lost his grip.

"LEX!"

Much to Clark's relief, Lex managed to grab onto Earl's legs.

"Oh, God!" Clark muttered, as he slowly made his way along the broken bridge.

"Clark!"

Ignoring the pain that shot through his entire body, Clark grabbed Earl's worst, barely managing to pull him to safety, allowing Lex to get purchase on the metal bridge.

"Get to the elevator!" Clark ordered Earl, not even bothering to see of the older man made it… he was too focused on Lex. Gently taking a hold of the omega's wrist, Clark pulled him to safety as well, putting Lex in front of him, as they made their way to the elevator.

And then Earl had another seizure.

As he shook, the metal bridge started to come apart a little bit more, prompting Clark to push Lex forwards, until they reached safety, dragging the other two into the elevator. The rest of the metal bridge fell to the ground below, smashing several barrels and sending up a cloud of dust.

As everyone tried to calm down, Lex turned to Clark in alarm, a question on his lips. "Clark, how did you pull us up?"

Clark was silent for a few moments, before he gently pulled Lex closer, "I don't know… Adrenaline, I guess."

…

Whilst Clark was having a happy reunion with his parents and Earl was taken away on a stretcher, strapped down as he was transported away in an ambulance, Lex found himself storming over to his Father.

"You lied to me!" he growled at his Alpha Father.

"No. When? I said Level 3 wasn't on any plans…. It wasn't. It's plausible deniability."

Lex scoffed, "What were you doing down there?"

"It doesn't matter… It was a failure. We closed the door and moved on."

"You almost got me killed!"

"No, you almost got yourself killed." Lionel frowned at his son, "It was your call, remember?"

"Mr. Luthor! Mr. Luthor!"

As the press converged on the pair, Lionel smirked at his son. "I'll handle this."

"What can you tell us about Level 3?!"

"I think you're referring to a redundant storage area at the base of the plant. Mr Jenkins is a very sick man who desperately needs medical attention."

Sensing that his Father was just going to brush it all under the table, Lex stepped forwards. "That's why my father and I have pledged to find Mr. Jenkins the best medical care possible. He was a Luthor-Corp employee. Here at Luthor-Corp, we always put family first...Isn't that right, Dad?"

The press lapped it up, shoving the microphones in Lionel's face,

"Mr Luthor! Is it true the government is going to shut you down?"

Lionel shook his head, forcing an upset look on his face. "No more questions, please…." He turned to Lex and pulled him into a hug, "… My son has been through quite an ordeal today."

As he endured the fake hug, Lex turned his attention to the Kent family. Jon and Martha Kent were so happy to see their son, they couldn't seem to let go of him.

That's the kind of family he wanted.