Crossed Paths
By: kf6tac
Rated: R for sexual situations
Synopsis: Clark and Lana break up before they leave for college, but both are left with lingering doubts.
Clark looked at the list of colleges and acceptance letters spread out in front of him on the kitchen table.
Kansas State
UCLA
University of Michigan
Columbia University
Metropolis University
University of Maryland
Then he shifted his eyes over to the two schools he had more or less ruled out already.
"Tomorrow's the big day huh?" A pair of soft hands slid over Clark's shoulders as he continued to stare at his choices.
"Yeah," he replied, placing his hand on top of Lana's. "I've gotta get one of these postmarked by tomorrow… otherwise it's community college for me!"
"You've narrowed the list a little," Lana said sarcastically as she held up the two acceptance letters that Clark had set aside.
"Well… those two were pretty much back-ups – I had every intention of getting in somewhere better."
"You know… you could always come to Maryland with me. I mean, it's on your list."
"I know Lana, but…"
"But…?"
"No offense, but Maryland isn't exactly known for its journalism program." Clark turned to face Lana. "I know I want to study journalism, and I have the chance to study someplace really famous for it!"
Lana tried not to be hurt by the fact that Clark had pretty much rejected the opportunity to go to college with her. "What were you thinking of then? Columbia? That's still on the same coast at least."
"I was thinking I'd go to Metropolis."
Lana's heart sank. "That's so far away…"
"I know Lana, but… they have one of the best programs. And they have connections to the Planet. It's not an opportunity that comes around every day." He saw the expression on Lana's face and tried to say something to make it easier. "I mean… we'll still be in Smallville for breaks and holidays, and really it's not too bad! I could run…"
"I know you could run the distance in a few hours if you wanted Clark, but… I guess I just don't handle the long distance thing well. I couldn't do it with Whitney, and even though I feel so much more for you… I don't know if I can handle it now. I just don't." Lana turned away and brushed her hair over her shoulder, trying her hardest not to cry.
"Lana…" Clark approached her from behind and wrapped his arms around her waist. Despite her best efforts, Lana eventually gave in and leaned back against him, letting her tears fall.
"I don't know what to do Clark. I love you, but I can't stand the thought of being so far apart. I know you have to go your own way and I guess that's just not the same way that I'm going."
"Lana, I want to be with you so badly, but…"
"I know Clark, I know. Maybe… maybe our paths weren't meant to cross for the rest of our lives. Maybe your birth parents sent you here for another reason and maybe… maybe you weren't sent here to be my angel forever."
"What are you saying Lana?"
She turned in his arms to face him and wiped the tears from her cheeks. "I'm saying that if we really do love each other and care about each other, then maybe we have to accept that we weren't meant to spend our lives together. That… sometime we're supposed to let go and walk our own roads, and that sometime is coming up soon."
"Do you want to break up Lana?" Clark asked, suddenly a little more afraid of what was to come.
"Not now. Not yet. But by the end of this summer, I suppose. That way we can both pursue our futures." Lana was shaking in Clark's arms, trying to hold back sobs as she spoke to him. "Maybe we just weren't meant to last forever Clark. We'll just enjoy the summer and live every moment, and then when it's over we move on."
"Are you sure Lana? I mean… I can still go to Maryland…"
"It's not just about the colleges Clark. It's about you, me, and our futures. You're wanting to go one direction and I want to go another, and it's going to eventually tear us apart."
"But it won't be any easier this way."
"I think it will, Clark. I don't want you to go to Maryland and then suffer because the journalism program there isn't the best. And come on, we'll still be friends."
"Yeah… still friends," Clark said hesitantly.
"Now cheer up. We've still got four months." Lana flashed him her best smile. "I should be getting home though… Chloe's expecting me."
She grabbed Clark by the back of the neck and planted a solid kiss on his lips. "I'll see you tomorrow."
For Clark and Lana, the next month or so went by like most of the months they had been dating. Clark mailed out his paperwork for Metropolis University, and Lana mailed out hers for the University of Maryland. As time passed, though, Lana became more and more apprehensive about what was to come. Before either of them knew it, they were getting ready for graduation. Yearbooks were passed around and signed, parties were planned, and senior trips were taken. As she sat watching Clark, in his cap and gown, receiving his diploma, Lana couldn't help but feel suddenly lost, alone. It was a feeling she hadn't felt for a long time, the same feeling she had after her parents had died. Clark had taken away that feeling but now, it was coming back to her.
'Why, why do you feel this way Lana?' she asked herself. 'It's the right thing to do. You and Clark, you've got very different futures ahead of you. It's what's fair to him. You'll find someone else.' Deep down inside, though, she feared it wasn't true.
Clark, meanwhile, was distraught in his own way. He watched in awe and wonder as Lana strode across the stage, her dark brown hair cascading down her back from beneath her graduation cap. He had admired her from afar for every day of his life since he had met her, and even now he still admired her. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't fight the feeling that he was letting her "get away." The day he had mailed out his application for Metropolis University, he had sat in the post office for almost two hours, deciding whether to hand over the envelope or to take it home and light it on fire with his heat vision. Even though he knew that Lana was probably right about them parting ways, he didn't want it to happen.
For both Clark and Lana, every day after graduation brought them one step closer to what seemed like their inevitable parting of ways. Every kiss, every dance was one less that they would have in their future. Finally, the night before Clark was due to leave for Metropolis, the moment they had both been dreading was upon them. They sat out on the Kents' porch all night, looking at the stars and re-telling stories from their childhoods – childhoods that had become linked one fateful day when a downpour of meteors had crashed into Smallville, carrying with them Clark's spaceship.
As the approaching dawn began to turn the horizon pink, Clark walked Lana to her car and the two tried to say goodbye. They kissed one last time, and when they pulled apart Lana could no longer control the tears and the sobs that wracked her body. Clark held her close, but her despair turned to anger and she shoved him away.
"How could you?!?" she cried. "You said you'd never hurt me… how could you just up and leave?"
She turned away and got into her car. "Don't you dare chase me Clark… I know you can, but… just DON'T!!!"
She sped away from the Kent farm, leaving Clark standing in a cloud of dust in his own driveway.
When Lana got back to the Sullivans' home, tears streaked across her cheeks, Chloe was there waiting for her.
"You did it, didn't you?" Lana's blonde roommate asked her.
All Lana could do was nod through her tears. Chloe circled her arms around Lana in a hug and tried to cheer her up.
"Maybe… maybe Clark Kent is just meant to be unattainable. I mean, at least you got to date and kiss him. All I got was a few rounds on the dance floor before he went off chasing tornados."
The mention of the tornado just made Lana cry harder. Having spent her life in Smallville, she had seen a fair share of tornados, but none was as severe as the one that struck the spring of her freshman year – the one that had swept her up into its deadly spiral. Despite it all though, she had felt safe because of Clark. Because of the way he had appeared out of the chaos and shielded her. They had been through a few tornados together after that one as well.
"Okay… I guess we now know that I suck at this cheering up thing," Chloe responded. She managed to get a laugh out of Lana in spite of the tears. "Why don't I give you a few minutes to clean up, and I'll go make us some tea."
After Lana left, Clark retreated to the solitude of his loft. He spent the early morning there, using his recently-developed telescopic vision to survey the hills, hoping to catch Lana on her way to the cemetery. By the time Jonathan Kent walked in to find him, however, Clark's efforts had not met with success.
"Son, is everything all right?" Jonathan asked as he walked up the stairs of the loft.
"I guess."
"You guess?"
"Lana and I broke up earlier."
"Ah. That would explain the shouting and the car speeding away."
"I'm sorry you had to hear that dad."
"It's all right," Jonathan came up to Clark and clasped a hand on his shoulder. "The question is, are you?"
"It hurts. I haven't decided if it's worse than the meteor
rocks but I think it's getting close."
"I know it does son. The genes from the Potter side of the family, they make some strong women… they're somethin' else. I had a hell of a time letting go of her aunt Nell too."
"But you found Mom, right? Everything turned out okay for you."
"I wish I could tell you that it won't hurt, but that wouldn't be the truth. You just have to give it time, Clark. Eventually it won't hurt so much anymore, and you'll find someone else. It's a big world."
"I know Dad. I guess it's time to go huh?"
Jonathan nodded toward the suitcases that were sitting at the entrance to the barn. "Metropolis is waiting for you."
Outside, a few of Clark's friends were waiting to say goodbye to him. Pete was there, as was Chloe. Lex was there too, much to everyone's surprise. He and Clark had been drifting slowly apart over the past year and Clark hadn't really expected Lex to take the time out from his business pursuits to say goodbye.
"I know we haven't talked much lately with all the new developments for LexCorp," Lex said to Clark, "but I wanted to stop by and wish you the best. If you ever need to use the penthouse, it's yours."
"Thanks Lex. Good luck with everything."
"Is Lana going to be here?" Clark asked Chloe, cautiously, after the two of them had said their goodbyes.
Chloe looked down toward her feet. "I… I dunno Clark. She was pretty shaken up."
"I know. I guess I can't expect too much. Say goodbye to her for me if you can."
Clark took one last look around before he got into his dad's truck, hoping to find Lana. She was nowhere in sight. In fact, she was sitting on top of the windmill in Chandler's field, looking toward the Metropolis skyline.
Two years later…
School's been great, although I can't believe how much faster I'm reading these days. It's like I learn how to speed-read a little more each day, Clark typed to Pete.
Well it figures, I mean… your brain's gotta catch up to your legs sometime right?
Yeah I guess. How've things been on your end?
Pretty good, math is kickin' my butt though. Makes me wish I'd paid more attention in high school! I talked to Lana the other day, she's doin' okay too.
At the mention of Lana's name, Clark stopped typing. His eyes wandered to the bottom drawer of his desk, and he opened it to reveal a photograph of him and Lana that had been taken in their junior year of high school. After a few minutes, he finally became aware again of the beeping that was coming from his computer.
Earth to Clark, you there man? You're still hurtin' about Lana aren't you Clark? I'm tellin' you… if it weren't for those super powers, school would be kicking your butt at this rate. You gotta move on!
I know Pete, I know.
'But can I?'
Lana, too, was still dealing with regrets two years later. Her roommate at the University of Maryland was flipping through Lana's yearbook when she pointed to Clark's picture and commented, "Who's the hotty?"
"That… that's Clark Kent. We dated for awhile, but we broke up when he left for college."
"That's a total bummer. He's cute. He's got those killer eyes."
'Oh you don't know the half of it,' Lana thought to herself, remembering all of Clark's vision abilities that totally blew her away the first time he revealed them to her.
"Yeah, he does." Lana sighed and turned away, toward her window. Her dormitory was a high-rise, and from her floor she could see the stars at night. She looked out and saw the strange constellation Clark had showed her once, the one that looked like the face of a wolf. Even though he had found out about it from another girl, Lana always was reminded of Clark when she saw it. She looked to where the wolf's eye was supposed to be, the star that was missing.
'It always looks so incomplete without it,' she thought. She couldn't help but feel the same way about herself. Every day for two years she had told herself that she did the right thing, letting Clark go. He was destined for a lot more than she could give him, she knew that, but still it didn't make losing him any easier.
"Do you think I should've let him go, Jaina?" she asked her roommate.
"Well… I know he's cute and all, but I guess only you really know what was right. I can't really say Lana. I'm sorry."
When she woke up the next morning, Lana said to herself, 'Jaina was right. I did know what was right all along.'
And with that, she set out on her suddenly busy day.
A few weeks later, Clark stood on the rooftop of the statistics building in the pouring rain. It was an early spring rainstorm and the rain was pounding down, but Clark had no reservations about standing atop a ten-story building. Any lightning wouldn't be able to hurt him. He tucked his hands into the pockets of his black coat and looked down on the campus below him as the wind whipped droplets of rain against him. In some of his darker moments he had wanted to run and leap off the top of the building to see how far he could jump, but his self-control always held him back. He didn't want anyone to see him, in any case. The rooftop had become a replacement for his loft, somewhere he could go when he wanted to be alone.
"Clark Kent, always the man of mystery. You wouldn't believe how long I scoured this campus to find you. Even your own housemates had no idea where you were."
Clark turned at the sound of the soft voice and looked behind him.
"Lana."
She stood there, the rain dripping from her long locks of hair and soaking her clothes to the skin. In her left hand she clutched a wrinkled piece of paper, with an address written on it that was now illegible from the water damage.
"I had to ask your parents for your address," she explained. "You'd think that after two years I would've gotten more than a postcard and an e-mail, but I guess not."
"No offense Lana, but you haven't exactly been winning awards in the correspondence department either."
They stood silently for a moment, the only sound coming from the rain hammering down on the rooftop.
"Please don't tell me you came all this way in search of a few postcards," Clark finally said.
"No, I didn't."
"Then… what?"
"I also had to submit my transfer application."
"Your what?" Clark asked in disbelief.
"My transfer application. With some luck, I'll be attending Metropolis University next fall."
"But Lana, why? I mean… all you wanted in high school was to go to University of Maryland."
"All I wanted in high school, at least after we started dating, was to be with you Clark. And when you wanted to go to a different college… I guess I just got scared. I'd been dreaming of going to UM for so long, I didn't know what to do. Now I do."
"Lana, what about your future? Your career?"
"My future is with you Clark. I still love you, and I just had to know if you felt the same way too. If you tell me now that you don't still love me, then I'll go back to Maryland and we'll go on our own ways."
"No Lana, don't go! I love you too. I can't go one day without thinking of you, and wondering if I should've chased after you that night even though you told me not to. I can't live without you Lana."
In a flash of blurred movement, he was holding her in his arms, with her face inches from his.
"I've missed you Clark."
"I've missed you too, Lana."
Their lips met in a passionate kiss as the rain continued to fall down on the two of them. Lips, tongues, and teeth mingled uncaringly as beads of water flowed down their faces, dripping from their wet, matted hair. Lana smiled with her eyes closed as she felt Clark's mouth tenderly plucking individual droplets of moisture from her lips. They kissed again on the elevator ride down to the ground floor, where Clark swept Lana into his arms and carried her through the rain to his apartment.
"We should get you out of those wet clothes before you catch a cold," he told her.
"Only if you'll keep me warm," she replied, pulling his face down to hers for another kiss as she began unbuttoning her shirt.
Clark stepped back and watched as Lana's wet clothes fell to the ground piece by piece.
"Lana… you're beautiful," he told her when she had removed her clothing.
"It's not like you haven't seen it all before," she blushed.
"Actually, I haven't."
"You haven't?"
"No. Even though I had x-ray vision… I wanted to wait until you were ready. No peeking."
"Not even once?"
"Well… just once… before I knew how to control the x-rays."
"Clark… I love you."
He walked over to her and his lips caught hers in a heated kiss, one which rivaled anything she had ever experienced in her life. Lana's fingers trembled as she reached up for the buttons on Clark's shirt, and by the time she removed his clothes her entire body was trembling.
"What's the matter?" he asked her as he set her gently onto his bed.
Lana had never in her life feared Clark's physical strength before, but for the time that fear raced through her mind. Clark didn't need for her to speak out loud though, and before she knew it her fears were melting away into the warmth that his kisses spread through her body. She hooked her arms underneath his shoulders and clung tightly to him, opening herself to him and welcoming the journey that stood before them… a journey they would be taking together.
"I love you Lana," he whispered to her as they lied awake later that evening.
She kissed his lips softly, resting herself against his chest. "I love you too."