Title: Discovery
Author: Natalie_C44
Rating: PG for now, might change as the story goes on
Summary: Lex/Lana fic, after the pair become friends they discover (yes that's where the title comes from, and I know it sucks, but I didn't have the time to think of a more fitting one!) that maybe there's a lot more between them than just friendship.
Disclaimer: Nope, I don't own any of these characters, or places or whatever, they all belong to the WB or some other big money corporation
Authors note: okay just to let you know because I forgot to mention it in the first chapter, that I'm envisioning this to take place after Tempest, in the fall of that year. Oh, and Lana has split up with Whitney btw, just so you don't think she might be about to cheat on him – he's definitely out of the picture
Also, thank you all so much for the lovely feedback you gave me, it really helps to know someone likes what I've wrote, please let me know what you think of this chapter :)
Chapter 2
Everything changed between her and Lex after that night. Although they never again talked about what Lex had told her, she could feel that there was some sort of unspoken bond between them, and Lana had a feeling that if Lex ever wanted to talk again he would come to her.
Before that night conversations between the pair had been few and far between. She'd always viewed him as her boss, or as Clark's friend, but now, and she felt confident in thinking this, he was her friend as well.
She remembered how she had been unable to stop smiling for days when she realised that. For all her supposed popularity, she'd never really had a true friend, someone who could see her for everything she was and yet still wanted to spend time with her, yet with Lex she felt as if she had gained this.
He would come into the talon most nights when she was working and they would talk as they closed up. They would have ordinary, normal conversations about anything and everything. Often making lengthy observations about those they knew; Clark and Chloe, and they burgeoning relationship being one of the main contenders. And they'd talk about pointless, trivial stuff like movies and television, not the sort of things she would have been expecting to discuss with Lex Luthor. However, despite the trivialness of some of their conversations Lana felt a kind of warm glow inside of her at the knowledge that she was probably the only person who knew that as a child, Lex had cried when his Mom took him to see the Lion King, or that despite his favourite film being the Godfather, he also had a secret fondness for the occasional dodgy teen movie.
It was strange, she thought to herself – in the past she'd always seen Lex Luthor as untouchable; a ruthless businessman determined to get what he wanted, whatever the cost. She'd been so stuck in believing this image she had of him, she'd never taken the time to realise that he was a real person, with real feelings and real emotions. Heck, she'd never even thought that Lex would have any feelings!
If anybody asked her, she probably wouldn't be able to pinpoint the exact moment that she realised she'd fallen for Lex. It may have been one night in the Talon when Lex hadn't popped in to see her. She remembered that as the night grew later she kept glancing at the door, hoping that at any moment she would see the familiar sight of him strolling confidently in, that smirk on his face that showed he knew every customer in the place was trying their best not to stare open-mouthed at him. And she remembered how her stomach sank as she spent as long as she possibly could closing up, willing him to turn up, desperate to have just one small glimpse of him. She remembered how; as she began to walk home that night; the sound of an engine roaring and skidding to a stop beside her made her stomach flip flop and her heart beat uncontrollably, and she'd turned round to see Lex behind the wheel, that famous half smile on his lips. The sight of him made her feel like shouting out to the world "he's come to see me! He hasn't forgotten about me! Lex Luthor has come to see Lana Lang!" Then she remembered the feeling she'd had in her stomach, the sheer horror when she realised just why she was so glad to see Lex, why his visits were the only thing she looked forward to each day. She had fallen head over heels for him, completely, utterly, totally. Lana Lang had fallen for Lex Luthor.
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That night was probably the first time she'd admitted it to herself, yet sub-consciously she must have known how she felt about him for a long time. It was in the way he'd completely changed her outlook on life. Since getting to know Lex, she no longer viewed herself as having a pre-determined destiny, poor little Lana Lang, the girl who was born, lived and died in Smallville. Lex had challenged this view "We make our own destiny" he'd told her, and his belief that she could do whatever she wanted had given Lana the courage to finally believe in herself. She could do great things with her life she'd realised, she just needed to believe in herself, believe in what Lex told her, believe in him.
Once she'd realised how she felt she couldn't believe she hadn't known earlier. Every time she was near him her stomach would fill with butterflies, and just the smallest look from him, with those cool blue eyes, would make her feel alive in a way she never had before. She could barely think of anything else but Lex, he ran through her mind all day, all night. She longed to tell him how she felt about him, but at the same time the thought terrified her. She had to keep reminding herself of who he was, who she was, and how someone like him, so rich and powerful would never be interested in a little girl like her. He was her friend, and she didn't want to risk everything they had between them by longing for something more.
Yet sometimes she found herself wondering, maybe he does feel something more, maybe, just maybe, he was thinking about her the way she thought about him, longing to kiss her, to hold her, to protect her. Maybe he too was scared of the implications about acting on his feelings, scared that she didn't want him the way he wanted her. She would quickly brush that thought away though, if Lex wanted her, she was sure she'd know by now, after all, he was Lex Luthor, he always got what he wanted, didn't he?
