"A coma? Dad, what're you talking about? She was fine this morning!"
Jonathan Kent sighed and put a hand on his son's shoulder. "Look, that's all I know. Nell is in with Lana right now, but Lex can fill you in when we get to the hospital."
Clark nodded wearily. "Okay, thanks, dad."
They drove the rest of the way to the hospital in muted silence.
Clark opened the car door as soon as his father slowed down in front of the hospital entrance.
"I'll go park the car," Jonathan yelled as Clark ran inside. He didn't have to think anymore. He'd spent so much time in this place recently; he simply went through the motions. Pressed elevator buttons, raced through hallways, and avoided doctors. Soon, he was on the intensive care unit heading towards Lana's room. Lex sat outside the door, almost as if he was guarding it. He clutched a cell phone and was barking furiously into it when Clark rounded the corner. He barely noticed Clark's arrival but motioned vaguely for his friend to sit down and closed the phone quickly.
"What happened Lex?" Clark said, out of breath.
"She looks okay," he said tentatively, as he peered into the room. Nell sat by her niece's bed, asleep in a chair.
Lex nodded. "Look, I'm not going to pretend to be an expert on this, but since Nell's not in really great shape right now, I think I should be the one to explain what I know so far."
"Okay."
"Despite what the doctors have been telling us, she hasn't been doing well."
"We knew that already," Clark said, frustrated.
"Well, what you didn't know was that there wasn't any progress made in the last couple days. The specialist from Metropolis, Dr. Kaysen, suggested that Lana be put in what's known as a medically-induced coma."
"Why would they want to put her in a coma? Doesn't that sort of defeat the purpose of her getting better?"
"Because, Clark, it's a last ditch effort. She wasn't improving. The doctors are hoping that by putting her in the coma, it'll force her body to relax enough to respond to treatment. Hopefully, it'll help reduce the swelling in her brain. All of that was in laymen's terms, obviously."
"But this could help?" Clark said inquisitively.
"Maybe. At this point, we still don't know. But her chances are better than they were a few hours ago, before Nell decided to authorize it. She wanted to call you, so you could be here, but it all happened so fast, I guess in the commotion, she forgot."
"You could have called me," Clark muttered quietly.
Lex put a hand lightly on Clark's shoulder. "I did," he explained. "I called you dad."
Clark nodded. "I'm sorry," he said apologetically. "I just don't know if I can just go back and sit in that room again, just thinking about what could happen. How do you stand it? Just sitting out here with your cell phone, doing nothing. Doesn't it drive you insane? I mean, you've been here almost as long as I have, and I'm her boyfriend.sort-of."
Lex smiled. "I'm a twenty-one year old millionaire. What else am I supposed to do with my time? Besides, I have a lot of saved up vacation time and the laptop is in the Porsche. Nell's a wreck, and you're not doing so great yourself right now. She's a friend of the family, and you and Lana are friends of mine. So if I have to take a week off of work for an emergency like this, so be it. Besides, I'm the one with the resources to fly any doctor in the country out here in the middle of the night."
"Good point."
"Here's a piece of advice Clark. When Lana wakes up, tell her how you feel, and don't ever let her go. You've been given a chance to make things right. Don't mess it up okay?""
Clark sighed and hung his head. "I just feel like.like I haven't had enough time yet. You know? Lana and I.I've known her forever. It's a small town; I was in her class in kindergarten for Christ's sake. But then, this year, I finally got to really know her, really know her, as a friend.and now it's just falling apart. Everything is just.falling apart. I don't know what to do anymore. If she doesn't wake up.God, I can't think about this right now. Before Lana, everything just seems, dark."
"I can't offer you advice for something like that Clark," Lex said quietly. "I wish there was something.anything, that I could say, but."
"Do you think she'll really wake up Lex?"
"Well, I have the best doctors in the state working on her. If anyone can help her, they can."
Clark forced a smile. "I'm uh, going to go in now." He stood up quickly and walked into Lana's room.
Nell opened her eyes and smiled wearily at Clark. "Oh good," she said quietly. "Lex called you."
"Yeah. How are you?" he asked awkwardly.
"Fine." She paused. "Thanks for coming Clark. I know how much it would mean to her, you being here." Nell reached out and patted Lana's hand gently. Then she got up and stretched stiffly.
"I wanted to apologize. For what happened before, at your house. I had no right to say the things I said. I was upset, but that's no excuse. You just have to try and understand that Lana is the only daughter I've ever had. I know I'm overprotective of her sometimes, but when.when Laura died, I felt like it was up to me to raise her child as best as I could. I know I'm not the ideal parent but--."
"Nell," he interrupted. "Lana loves you. That's all that matters. You've done everything you in your power to make her happy."
Nell nodded uncertainly. "Thank you Clark.for being so good to her."
Clark stared at Lana guiltily. "I wish I could have done more," he said softly.
"You did everything you could have done." Nell sighed. "It doesn't really matter anymore anyway. I didn't see it before.I saw you as a threat to her happiness. I just want the best for her, but sometimes I get carried away. But these last few days have been just horrible, and your dedication to my niece is just.You really care about her don't you?"
"Yeah, I do."
Nell smiled and took his hand.
"Um.Clark. Sorry to interrupt."
Clark turned around and saw Chloe standing in the doorway.
Nell waved her in. "I think I'm going to go get something to eat. You'll stay with her?" she asked Clark.
"I'm going to stay over tonight, if you don't mind."
"No, of course not. I think I might go home for a few hours. Try and get some sleep."
"Good idea," Clark commented and handed Nell her purse. She gave him a quick smile and left.
"How are you?" Chloe asked when Nell had gone.
"Just great," Clark replied sarcastically.
Chloe bit her lip nervously and made no effort to come closer.
"I'm sorry," he said after a moment. "I know you're trying to help. I'm worried, that's all." He motioned her inside.
"I'm worried too," Chloe said sympathetically. "If Lana were here, she'd no doubt be telling us how everything was going to turn out fine. She's so positive, it's sick sometimes."
Clark grinned. "Yeah, that's Lana." His expression sobered. "Sometimes I think she's gotten so good at acting happy, that when she's not, she just.pretends."
"She should know she doesn't have to," Chloe said. "We're her friends, we don't need her to be perfect all the time," she reasoned. She stared hard at the girl lying peacefully undisturbed on the bed. Lana was supposed to be her competition. Now, winning Clark seemed so silly.
"She's really pretty," Chloe commented softly. "Even without all that make- up on."
"Yeah," Clark agreed. "She's beautiful."
She laughed unexpectedly. Clark looked at her, startled.
"What?"
"I don't know. I just got this mental picture of Nell sneaking in here in the middle of the night, applying mascara and lip-gloss to Lana, like she's her little doll. Don't you get that, when you see them together? Like Lana's the puppet, and Nell's the puppeteer."
"Chloe." he warned.
"I'm sorry. This is just so weird."
"What?" he said, sounding exasperated.
"This. Everything that's happening. I just want it to be over. I just want something to happen. Anything. Just so that this waiting game ends."
"You and me both."
"C'mon Lana," Chloe coaxed. "Any time now."
Clark grinned. "I've tried that already."
Chloe nodded. "Right. Okay. I guess I'll go then. See you later?"
"You just got here," Clark pointed out.
'I know. I just wanted to check up on you. See if there was any progress. I don't really like hospitals. They make me kind of nervous."
Clark nodded. "Later." He sighed and scooted his chair closer to Lana's bed.
Chloe lingered in the doorway and watched as Clark took Lana's small hand and brought it to his lips. Chloe smiled faintly, and left them alone.
"Come on Lana. Please wake up. I can't do this anymore. I want you back. Please just.open your eyes. Lana."
The stark walls, the white lights; closed around him, suffocating him. He shut his eyes to seal out the brightness of the room. Eventually, his breathing slowed, and he fell into a light, fitful sleep.
Clark dozed restlessly, semi-conscious. He was so tired, but he couldn't force his mind to stop racing long enough to let himself really relax. His head rested inches away from Lana's limp hand, and if he held his breath and lay very still, he could feel the vibrations as she breathed reverberate across the bed. It comforted him, to be close to her like this.
Lana heard a soft buzzing in her ears, far away but getting louder. Her eyelids felt heavy, and burned with an intensity that made her whole head ache. She wanted desperately to open her eyes and free herself from the aching pain of nothingness. She recognized the sterile smell of a hospital. 'What happened to me?' she thought. She tried to open her mouth to say something, but she felt to weak and the words just wouldn't come. She felt as if her blood was jumping out of her skin. She wanted to scream, but no sound would come out. So she moved her fingers instead. She ran her hand along cool sheets until she they met warm skin.
Suddenly, the stillness was broken. Her hand brushed Lana'sLLana's hand brushed through Clark's hair lightly. He lifted his head slowly, not daring to believe that she was the one who had woken him up. He held his breath and opened his eyes.
"Lana?" he breathed.
Jonathan Kent sighed and put a hand on his son's shoulder. "Look, that's all I know. Nell is in with Lana right now, but Lex can fill you in when we get to the hospital."
Clark nodded wearily. "Okay, thanks, dad."
They drove the rest of the way to the hospital in muted silence.
Clark opened the car door as soon as his father slowed down in front of the hospital entrance.
"I'll go park the car," Jonathan yelled as Clark ran inside. He didn't have to think anymore. He'd spent so much time in this place recently; he simply went through the motions. Pressed elevator buttons, raced through hallways, and avoided doctors. Soon, he was on the intensive care unit heading towards Lana's room. Lex sat outside the door, almost as if he was guarding it. He clutched a cell phone and was barking furiously into it when Clark rounded the corner. He barely noticed Clark's arrival but motioned vaguely for his friend to sit down and closed the phone quickly.
"What happened Lex?" Clark said, out of breath.
"She looks okay," he said tentatively, as he peered into the room. Nell sat by her niece's bed, asleep in a chair.
Lex nodded. "Look, I'm not going to pretend to be an expert on this, but since Nell's not in really great shape right now, I think I should be the one to explain what I know so far."
"Okay."
"Despite what the doctors have been telling us, she hasn't been doing well."
"We knew that already," Clark said, frustrated.
"Well, what you didn't know was that there wasn't any progress made in the last couple days. The specialist from Metropolis, Dr. Kaysen, suggested that Lana be put in what's known as a medically-induced coma."
"Why would they want to put her in a coma? Doesn't that sort of defeat the purpose of her getting better?"
"Because, Clark, it's a last ditch effort. She wasn't improving. The doctors are hoping that by putting her in the coma, it'll force her body to relax enough to respond to treatment. Hopefully, it'll help reduce the swelling in her brain. All of that was in laymen's terms, obviously."
"But this could help?" Clark said inquisitively.
"Maybe. At this point, we still don't know. But her chances are better than they were a few hours ago, before Nell decided to authorize it. She wanted to call you, so you could be here, but it all happened so fast, I guess in the commotion, she forgot."
"You could have called me," Clark muttered quietly.
Lex put a hand lightly on Clark's shoulder. "I did," he explained. "I called you dad."
Clark nodded. "I'm sorry," he said apologetically. "I just don't know if I can just go back and sit in that room again, just thinking about what could happen. How do you stand it? Just sitting out here with your cell phone, doing nothing. Doesn't it drive you insane? I mean, you've been here almost as long as I have, and I'm her boyfriend.sort-of."
Lex smiled. "I'm a twenty-one year old millionaire. What else am I supposed to do with my time? Besides, I have a lot of saved up vacation time and the laptop is in the Porsche. Nell's a wreck, and you're not doing so great yourself right now. She's a friend of the family, and you and Lana are friends of mine. So if I have to take a week off of work for an emergency like this, so be it. Besides, I'm the one with the resources to fly any doctor in the country out here in the middle of the night."
"Good point."
"Here's a piece of advice Clark. When Lana wakes up, tell her how you feel, and don't ever let her go. You've been given a chance to make things right. Don't mess it up okay?""
Clark sighed and hung his head. "I just feel like.like I haven't had enough time yet. You know? Lana and I.I've known her forever. It's a small town; I was in her class in kindergarten for Christ's sake. But then, this year, I finally got to really know her, really know her, as a friend.and now it's just falling apart. Everything is just.falling apart. I don't know what to do anymore. If she doesn't wake up.God, I can't think about this right now. Before Lana, everything just seems, dark."
"I can't offer you advice for something like that Clark," Lex said quietly. "I wish there was something.anything, that I could say, but."
"Do you think she'll really wake up Lex?"
"Well, I have the best doctors in the state working on her. If anyone can help her, they can."
Clark forced a smile. "I'm uh, going to go in now." He stood up quickly and walked into Lana's room.
Nell opened her eyes and smiled wearily at Clark. "Oh good," she said quietly. "Lex called you."
"Yeah. How are you?" he asked awkwardly.
"Fine." She paused. "Thanks for coming Clark. I know how much it would mean to her, you being here." Nell reached out and patted Lana's hand gently. Then she got up and stretched stiffly.
"I wanted to apologize. For what happened before, at your house. I had no right to say the things I said. I was upset, but that's no excuse. You just have to try and understand that Lana is the only daughter I've ever had. I know I'm overprotective of her sometimes, but when.when Laura died, I felt like it was up to me to raise her child as best as I could. I know I'm not the ideal parent but--."
"Nell," he interrupted. "Lana loves you. That's all that matters. You've done everything you in your power to make her happy."
Nell nodded uncertainly. "Thank you Clark.for being so good to her."
Clark stared at Lana guiltily. "I wish I could have done more," he said softly.
"You did everything you could have done." Nell sighed. "It doesn't really matter anymore anyway. I didn't see it before.I saw you as a threat to her happiness. I just want the best for her, but sometimes I get carried away. But these last few days have been just horrible, and your dedication to my niece is just.You really care about her don't you?"
"Yeah, I do."
Nell smiled and took his hand.
"Um.Clark. Sorry to interrupt."
Clark turned around and saw Chloe standing in the doorway.
Nell waved her in. "I think I'm going to go get something to eat. You'll stay with her?" she asked Clark.
"I'm going to stay over tonight, if you don't mind."
"No, of course not. I think I might go home for a few hours. Try and get some sleep."
"Good idea," Clark commented and handed Nell her purse. She gave him a quick smile and left.
"How are you?" Chloe asked when Nell had gone.
"Just great," Clark replied sarcastically.
Chloe bit her lip nervously and made no effort to come closer.
"I'm sorry," he said after a moment. "I know you're trying to help. I'm worried, that's all." He motioned her inside.
"I'm worried too," Chloe said sympathetically. "If Lana were here, she'd no doubt be telling us how everything was going to turn out fine. She's so positive, it's sick sometimes."
Clark grinned. "Yeah, that's Lana." His expression sobered. "Sometimes I think she's gotten so good at acting happy, that when she's not, she just.pretends."
"She should know she doesn't have to," Chloe said. "We're her friends, we don't need her to be perfect all the time," she reasoned. She stared hard at the girl lying peacefully undisturbed on the bed. Lana was supposed to be her competition. Now, winning Clark seemed so silly.
"She's really pretty," Chloe commented softly. "Even without all that make- up on."
"Yeah," Clark agreed. "She's beautiful."
She laughed unexpectedly. Clark looked at her, startled.
"What?"
"I don't know. I just got this mental picture of Nell sneaking in here in the middle of the night, applying mascara and lip-gloss to Lana, like she's her little doll. Don't you get that, when you see them together? Like Lana's the puppet, and Nell's the puppeteer."
"Chloe." he warned.
"I'm sorry. This is just so weird."
"What?" he said, sounding exasperated.
"This. Everything that's happening. I just want it to be over. I just want something to happen. Anything. Just so that this waiting game ends."
"You and me both."
"C'mon Lana," Chloe coaxed. "Any time now."
Clark grinned. "I've tried that already."
Chloe nodded. "Right. Okay. I guess I'll go then. See you later?"
"You just got here," Clark pointed out.
'I know. I just wanted to check up on you. See if there was any progress. I don't really like hospitals. They make me kind of nervous."
Clark nodded. "Later." He sighed and scooted his chair closer to Lana's bed.
Chloe lingered in the doorway and watched as Clark took Lana's small hand and brought it to his lips. Chloe smiled faintly, and left them alone.
"Come on Lana. Please wake up. I can't do this anymore. I want you back. Please just.open your eyes. Lana."
The stark walls, the white lights; closed around him, suffocating him. He shut his eyes to seal out the brightness of the room. Eventually, his breathing slowed, and he fell into a light, fitful sleep.
Clark dozed restlessly, semi-conscious. He was so tired, but he couldn't force his mind to stop racing long enough to let himself really relax. His head rested inches away from Lana's limp hand, and if he held his breath and lay very still, he could feel the vibrations as she breathed reverberate across the bed. It comforted him, to be close to her like this.
Lana heard a soft buzzing in her ears, far away but getting louder. Her eyelids felt heavy, and burned with an intensity that made her whole head ache. She wanted desperately to open her eyes and free herself from the aching pain of nothingness. She recognized the sterile smell of a hospital. 'What happened to me?' she thought. She tried to open her mouth to say something, but she felt to weak and the words just wouldn't come. She felt as if her blood was jumping out of her skin. She wanted to scream, but no sound would come out. So she moved her fingers instead. She ran her hand along cool sheets until she they met warm skin.
Suddenly, the stillness was broken. Her hand brushed Lana'sLLana's hand brushed through Clark's hair lightly. He lifted his head slowly, not daring to believe that she was the one who had woken him up. He held his breath and opened his eyes.
"Lana?" he breathed.