Chapter 10: The Many Shades of Lana Lang
~~~
My bags are packed and I'm ready to go. I smile as I place the goodbye note next to the answering machine. As I open the front door I notice a necklace dangling on the door. Not just any necklace, Lana's necklace. There's a small note attached; it reads: "Dearest Lana, thank you again for the necklace. It kept me safe and warm during my time away, but it's no replacement for the wonder that is you. So I return this to you and anxiously await your arrival, and the beginning of our new life together. Love, Whitney."
How sweet. I hold the sparkling jewel in my hand and put it on around my neck. Now, I really felt like Lana Lang. My thoughts turn to Whitney, probably sitting in his motel room waiting for me. Flipping through channels, looking out the window, anticipating my arrival. How could I do that to someone so full of love? Change of plan.
"Lana!"
Damn, it's Clark, about thirty feet away. He squints at me and his eyes grow wide with realization before he starts running toward me. "Tina!" he shouts. I make a dash for the truck but he catches up to me. In a flash, he is behind me, turning to me around to face him. His face suddenly contorts in pain and he sinks to the ground. I don't know what's going on, but I certainly don't want to get into another fight with Clark Kent, remembering how he once threw me with almost super-human strength. I open the door and try to get in, but Clark grasps onto my leg in desperation.
"Where. Is. Lana?" he asks, clearly struggling to get out the words.
I bend down and grab him by the collar, realizing he's weak.
"You'll never find her! I'm Lana Lang now!" I yell at the top of my lungs.
His eyes grow weary as he shakes his head.
"No, you won't win."
"I already have," I reply, before kicking in the head as hard as I can. He lands in a heap. I nudge him with my feet a few times to make sure he's unconscious.
"Sweet dreams."
~~~
A stray dog runs up to me and begins to lick my face. I groan in protest and waive my arms about trying to get away from the curious canine. The pounding in my head refuses to stop even for a moment. Nevertheless, I open my eyes and look around. The sun has set so hours have past since Tina knocked me out. She was long gone, and if she was telling the truth, so was Lana. A deep fear crawls into my gut at that thought.
I rush into her house and do a sweep with my x-ray vision. No sign of Lana. Panic sets as I frantically search the house, but it's no use. My headache suddenly intensifies as a ringing begins stabbing me inside my head. I grasp my ears in agony and collapse to my knees. I can feel the muscles behind my eyes pulse and throb. When it finally subsides I hear a muffled noise from afar.
"What the fuck. Lana!?"
I turn my head in a circle but can't seem to place the sound. A few moments later I hear it again. I follow it to the back of the house and out to the porch. The only thing out here is Nell's run-down shed. I scan it and see Lana's skeletal form struggling to get free of some kind of confinement. In a flash I'm gone, the door of the shed is destroyed, and boxes are thrown out of the way. I find Lana inside one of them, her mouth gagged, her hands tied. I carefully pull her out of her prison and hold her against me. She's conscious and very weak, but she still manages the strength to hold on tightly to my neck.
"Clark."
I barely hear her, as I realize there's something wet on my hands. I pull them away from her head and hold them up in shock. They're covered in blood.
~~~
Lana pulls up in the driveway just like she said would. She looks incredibly out of place in a town like this. Donning sunglasses and a cashmere scarf, elegantly wrapped around her neck, she more closely resembles a femme fatale than the proverbial girl next door. The embodiment of danger, mysterious, and sex.
"You got your stuff?" she asks after rolling down her window.
I turn my head toward the suitcases and bags on the porch. I take one last look at the house before grabbing my belongings and heading to the car. I feel bad for leaving my Dad like this, but a girls got to do what a girls got to do. Hopefully one day he'll understand. I chuck my stuff in the back of the car and jump into the passenger side. She pulls her sunglasses down to look at me with those hazel orbs of hers. She licks her dry crimson lips. They prove to tempting to resist.
"You really want to do this?" she asks after pulling her mouth away from mine.
"Yeah, let's blow this hick town."
"Chloe, before we go, I have to tell you about a slight change in plans."
"Oh, what is it?"
She smiles sheepishly at me, while she tries to gather the words. I can't wait to find out what it is.
~~~
I am in motion. The wind blows through my hair with such force, but only for a moment. Then the voices start. I feel myself being laid down on something flat. Lights pass by. Though my eyes are closed, I feel them - flashes in the dark. I'm cold and light-headed. Pain shoots down my skull. The voices speak frantically. They talk too fast for me to understand it all. They tell me to open my eyes. A light shines into them when I do. I continue to blink, trying desperately to hold on to consciousness. They say that if I close my eyes for too long, I might never open them again. The voices are worried, concerned, scared. I'm afraid too, afraid that my time has come. Someone close to me once said I wasn't meant to die young. That same man now holds my hand, lending me his great strength. We both silently hope he was right.
~~~
~~~
My bags are packed and I'm ready to go. I smile as I place the goodbye note next to the answering machine. As I open the front door I notice a necklace dangling on the door. Not just any necklace, Lana's necklace. There's a small note attached; it reads: "Dearest Lana, thank you again for the necklace. It kept me safe and warm during my time away, but it's no replacement for the wonder that is you. So I return this to you and anxiously await your arrival, and the beginning of our new life together. Love, Whitney."
How sweet. I hold the sparkling jewel in my hand and put it on around my neck. Now, I really felt like Lana Lang. My thoughts turn to Whitney, probably sitting in his motel room waiting for me. Flipping through channels, looking out the window, anticipating my arrival. How could I do that to someone so full of love? Change of plan.
"Lana!"
Damn, it's Clark, about thirty feet away. He squints at me and his eyes grow wide with realization before he starts running toward me. "Tina!" he shouts. I make a dash for the truck but he catches up to me. In a flash, he is behind me, turning to me around to face him. His face suddenly contorts in pain and he sinks to the ground. I don't know what's going on, but I certainly don't want to get into another fight with Clark Kent, remembering how he once threw me with almost super-human strength. I open the door and try to get in, but Clark grasps onto my leg in desperation.
"Where. Is. Lana?" he asks, clearly struggling to get out the words.
I bend down and grab him by the collar, realizing he's weak.
"You'll never find her! I'm Lana Lang now!" I yell at the top of my lungs.
His eyes grow weary as he shakes his head.
"No, you won't win."
"I already have," I reply, before kicking in the head as hard as I can. He lands in a heap. I nudge him with my feet a few times to make sure he's unconscious.
"Sweet dreams."
~~~
A stray dog runs up to me and begins to lick my face. I groan in protest and waive my arms about trying to get away from the curious canine. The pounding in my head refuses to stop even for a moment. Nevertheless, I open my eyes and look around. The sun has set so hours have past since Tina knocked me out. She was long gone, and if she was telling the truth, so was Lana. A deep fear crawls into my gut at that thought.
I rush into her house and do a sweep with my x-ray vision. No sign of Lana. Panic sets as I frantically search the house, but it's no use. My headache suddenly intensifies as a ringing begins stabbing me inside my head. I grasp my ears in agony and collapse to my knees. I can feel the muscles behind my eyes pulse and throb. When it finally subsides I hear a muffled noise from afar.
"What the fuck. Lana!?"
I turn my head in a circle but can't seem to place the sound. A few moments later I hear it again. I follow it to the back of the house and out to the porch. The only thing out here is Nell's run-down shed. I scan it and see Lana's skeletal form struggling to get free of some kind of confinement. In a flash I'm gone, the door of the shed is destroyed, and boxes are thrown out of the way. I find Lana inside one of them, her mouth gagged, her hands tied. I carefully pull her out of her prison and hold her against me. She's conscious and very weak, but she still manages the strength to hold on tightly to my neck.
"Clark."
I barely hear her, as I realize there's something wet on my hands. I pull them away from her head and hold them up in shock. They're covered in blood.
~~~
Lana pulls up in the driveway just like she said would. She looks incredibly out of place in a town like this. Donning sunglasses and a cashmere scarf, elegantly wrapped around her neck, she more closely resembles a femme fatale than the proverbial girl next door. The embodiment of danger, mysterious, and sex.
"You got your stuff?" she asks after rolling down her window.
I turn my head toward the suitcases and bags on the porch. I take one last look at the house before grabbing my belongings and heading to the car. I feel bad for leaving my Dad like this, but a girls got to do what a girls got to do. Hopefully one day he'll understand. I chuck my stuff in the back of the car and jump into the passenger side. She pulls her sunglasses down to look at me with those hazel orbs of hers. She licks her dry crimson lips. They prove to tempting to resist.
"You really want to do this?" she asks after pulling her mouth away from mine.
"Yeah, let's blow this hick town."
"Chloe, before we go, I have to tell you about a slight change in plans."
"Oh, what is it?"
She smiles sheepishly at me, while she tries to gather the words. I can't wait to find out what it is.
~~~
I am in motion. The wind blows through my hair with such force, but only for a moment. Then the voices start. I feel myself being laid down on something flat. Lights pass by. Though my eyes are closed, I feel them - flashes in the dark. I'm cold and light-headed. Pain shoots down my skull. The voices speak frantically. They talk too fast for me to understand it all. They tell me to open my eyes. A light shines into them when I do. I continue to blink, trying desperately to hold on to consciousness. They say that if I close my eyes for too long, I might never open them again. The voices are worried, concerned, scared. I'm afraid too, afraid that my time has come. Someone close to me once said I wasn't meant to die young. That same man now holds my hand, lending me his great strength. We both silently hope he was right.
~~~