His parents were turning off the lights when he poured into the doorway like a breeze.

His mother looked up. "Clark, you're home." She half-smiled. "And what an entrance! What's the hurry?"

He took off his jacket. "Lex is coming," he said.

Martha Kent frowned. "Why?"

"To ask you about me," he said. He pursed his lips. "He met me on the road and asked… questions."

"Dangerous questions?" Martha said, almost joking.

"Yeah."

She shrugged. "Well, thanks for the warning." She turned back to clearing the table, then stopped. "How was dinner?"

"Good," he said noncommittally. "Mom, Lex is almost there."

She looked up apprehensively. "There… where?"

"He's almost there, he's almost got it. Mom," he let out half a breath explosively, "he's got teams of scientists examining his car day and night, computer programs calculating what happened to the roof! How long before he just… understands?"

His mother stared at him, then looked down. "I don't know, Clark… we'll just have to hold him off as long as we can. Hopefully forever," she added.

"Maybe I could just… tell him," Clark said quietly.

At that Martha stopped working and gave him That Look.

"Well, I mean," Clark felt very defensive. "Where's Dad?"

"Stop changing the subject. What are you saying, Clark?" she looked at him, half-sympathetic, half-disapproving. "You can't tell anyone, let alone Lex."

"Maybe he could help figure out where my parents were from," Clark suggested wildly. "I mean, he's got teams of scientists on a car, so it wouldn't be too hard to work on a spaceship, right?"

His mother's melting sympathy gave him the itch to run again. "Clark…" she said gently. "You can't…"

A knock on the door froze them both. "That's Lex," said Clark urgently. "Don't tell him I'm here!" He was gone before the second knock came.

From his room he watched his bewildered mother answer the door and let Lex in. Through the floor he watched his friend enter and take Martha's offer to sit. I wonder what he'll ask, he thought. I wonder what she'll say.

Since he couldn't hear a word they were saying, he stopped watching when they left the living room to walk in the barn. It was straining his eyes anyway. His room was deathly silent. He stared at his walls for a while, then looked out the window. He blinked. Walking towards his house was Lana Lang. He put two and two together and knew why she was here and what would happen if Lex got a chance to pump her. If nothing else, she would watch Clark more carefully, and he didn't want that.

He ran downstairs as only he could, trying to be quiet. He slowed as he approached his front door and opened it as if he had just been strolling out for some air.

"Lana!" he said as she approached his porch.

She smiled a bit regretfully. Clark instantly hated that look. He wished he hadn't seen it. "Sorry to stop by so late," she said.

"No problem," he said. "I was just stepping out. Walk with me?"

She shrugged. "Sure." He joined her and they started down the dirt path to the main road. When they were a short distance away, Lana said uncomfortably, "Clark…"

He looked at her. She was looking down, too embarrassed to look at him. "You want to talk about what happened?" he asked gently. I don't, he thought. I don't want to be patronized.