This is from Pete's POV I don't know why but I love Pete he reminds me of
one my old friends. Oh yeah I should tell you that this is set 10 plus
years (IF my calculations are correct I will mention I suck in math) after
the last chapter.
Thank you to all my reviewers I love it all. Also to the Die Hard I am trying to use commas more often I swear. Thanks Pineapple I was smiling like the Cheshire Cat on Acid when I read your review. To scifichick774 yeah my muse Mercutio is a cad and was feeling really angsty. Also he kidnapped my other muse Benvolio so I had to comply with his wishes.
***********************
Cinq: We live in a Beautiful World or Pete's Story
I was the guy who stayed behind and let my friends reach glory. My years of glory had already peaked. Clark was just the guy who followed Lana around like he was a little lost puppy and Chloe was the weird chick that wrote the school newspaper and had some weird wall hall of fame.
I had peaked in high school I was the star football player and homecoming and prom king, my girlfriend Lana was homecoming and prom queen and local princess.
My friends had peaked when they were outside of those walls.
Chloe lived more in her 18 years than most people do all their lives.
My buddy Clark left Smallville became a reporter, Superman, and has probably saved the world more times than I would like to know. It would probably give me more grey hairs.
---------------------------------
Lana and I were there for Gabe when he needed someone to baby-sit for Gabriel. I was his godfather and Lana his godmother. Lex came to us after Chloe's funeral and asked us. I could not refuse, but I would have said yes anyways.
What I mean is that at that moment he could of asked me to apologize to his father and I would of. I realized he was broken up about Chloe dying but I didn't know how badly.
When he left Gabriel with Gabe I went to see him in the castle. We got to talking and he told me about his last conversation with Chloe. I tried looking shocked but he stopped me and said that I had to know.
I admitted I did then he told me how he thought that Clark was at the scene of the accident and didn't help.
I didn't say anything. Then I asked him why he was leaving his son with Gabe.
He looked at me, well sort of at me we were both pretty drunk that night him more so than me in that he was drinking before I got there.
"Pete I want you and Lana to help Gabe he will need help not financially but well you know to baby-sit and such. Just help him."
"But why leave your son?"
"Pete I can't give my son the kind of unconditional love that is needed to bring up a healthy kid. I want him to have at least some good memories of his life and have an actually childhood. I am afraid that I will raise him the same way my father did me and I know Luthor's aren't supposed to be afraid or give up this is for his own good."
I knew he was lying but I didn't have enough time to call him on his explanation or reply to it because I looked over to see a passed out Lex. So I just sat there letting the conversation swirl around my head until sleep claimed me.
Lex left before I woke up the next morning, there was a note and some papers attached.
The note read:
Pete
I know we will never be true friends and we both know why. I still am asking you to help Gabe in raising my son. Could you please give these documents to Lana it's about the Talon.
Lex
PS I took a dollar from your wallet I sort of needed it.
That was it nothing more and it was the strangest thing I probably had ever seen Lex do. I was also confused as hell why would he need a dollar? He was a billionaire, and then I started entertaining the idea that he had become one of those eccentric rich guys or had truly lost it since Chloe and Lillian had died.
When I got back to The Talon Lana of course had to ask me every single detail and I told her what I could remember. Scotch makes everything a little fuzzy. I handed her the papers, which she read then hugged and kissed me.
"Pete did you read these?"
"No I figured they were between you and Lex so really didn't think it was my business."
"Well, we own the Talon!" she squealed.
"What? What!"
"Yeah that dollar he took was so he could sell you his share. We own the Talon Pete!" That was a good day and an even better night. I still owe Lex for that. It was nice for the next few years we helped Gabe raise Gabriel, we saw Lex at least four times a year, but what about Clark?
I had no idea he left right after Chloe's funeral and none of us had heard anything from him. It wasn't until Gabe's funeral did I see him again.
We talked briefly about what, I have no idea I never thought I would see the day where I would just bullshit my way through a conversation with a former good friend but I did.
Following that Lex took Gabriel back to Metropolis, the house although no one lived there it had a caretaker to insure its survival.
Everyone in Smallville knew the story of the Sullivan's and Lex. We kept our mouths shut though. I must say I was happy when those papers came calling all those years ago that no one said a word about the incident. None of us wanted to relive that tragedy or force Gabriel to.
I watched, as the whole town did, as Lex became something worse than his father. When Lionel did finally die it was on my birthday and a day before Lex had left some cryptic message on my voice mail saying he had finally figured out what to get me. I never told Lana I don't think she'd be able to handle it. I don't know what Chloe would think about this how her husband had changed. How he became the very thing he swore he'd never become, but I can't judge.
On her birthday, on the day she died, her wedding anniversary, I have wanted him to succeed but then I think of Chloe and what she'd say. There was one day that if I had heard Clark was dead I might have just shrugged my shoulders.
It was the day my daughter Chloe was born. I held her tiny body in my arms and I swore that I would never let any harm come to her. In that moment I understood why Lex was hell bent of destroying Clark. Clark could have helped save Chloe and his daughter but instead he let them get hit and didn't even help. I knew that if anything happened to Lana or my children and I knew the person who did it.
I would kill them or something to that effect and so I let Lex hunt Clark/Superman.
But then I hear my conscience (it sounds a lot like Chloe) and regret those thoughts.
Some time after I had married Lana, Gabe in the ground, and Gabriel in Metropolis and in the Tabloids more than needed, we had our first three children; I was cleaning the attic out like the good husband I am.
I had found some home tapes, which was strange since most of our tapes had been converted into DVD's. So I showed Lana who started digging through out stuff, found a VCR popped in a tape and watched. As soon as we started watching it we wanted to immediately take it out and we knew what the rest of the tapes contained.
"So what should we do with it?" asked Lana.
"We should send it to Gabriel," I said.
"Don't you think it might be to painful?"
"I don't know but I think he should see this."
So the next day we sent it to Gabriel. Soon after he stopped appearing in the Tabloids, was looking cleaner, sober more like the person Chloe and Lex (the one I knew) would want him to be.
-----------------------------------
I looked in the newspaper today it was talking about how Gabriel Luthor donated 20 million dollars to MADD in honor of his mother on the 20th anniversary of her death. I showed the article to Lana who smiled started tearing up but then told our son PJ to get his feet off the table.
Just random moments like that make me remember Chloe. Maybe I am getting old or sentimental or something but I remember what Chloe told me when she was pregnant.
"What are you so worried about Pete?" Chloe asked me.
"I don't know it's just have you thought about what type of place you are bringing this kid into?" I answered a question with a question.
"Yes I have."
"So you know what I mean."
"Pete," then Chloe pointed to a family at a park across the street that were just laughing and playing. "It's just a random moment they may be so happy right now but could be at one another's throats in a few hours, still. There is something to be said about how special we are and how each moment is," she looked at me her eyes sparkling, "we live in a beautiful world."
Then she covered up her one moment of venerability to me by saying she thought the hormones were kicking in.
But she always was right.
We live in a beautiful world. *************************
Ok the next chapter will be Lex POV but I am still sort of sorting it out. But if you feel this story is just hopeless review or if you like it review. In other words please review.
Thank you to all my reviewers I love it all. Also to the Die Hard I am trying to use commas more often I swear. Thanks Pineapple I was smiling like the Cheshire Cat on Acid when I read your review. To scifichick774 yeah my muse Mercutio is a cad and was feeling really angsty. Also he kidnapped my other muse Benvolio so I had to comply with his wishes.
***********************
Cinq: We live in a Beautiful World or Pete's Story
I was the guy who stayed behind and let my friends reach glory. My years of glory had already peaked. Clark was just the guy who followed Lana around like he was a little lost puppy and Chloe was the weird chick that wrote the school newspaper and had some weird wall hall of fame.
I had peaked in high school I was the star football player and homecoming and prom king, my girlfriend Lana was homecoming and prom queen and local princess.
My friends had peaked when they were outside of those walls.
Chloe lived more in her 18 years than most people do all their lives.
My buddy Clark left Smallville became a reporter, Superman, and has probably saved the world more times than I would like to know. It would probably give me more grey hairs.
---------------------------------
Lana and I were there for Gabe when he needed someone to baby-sit for Gabriel. I was his godfather and Lana his godmother. Lex came to us after Chloe's funeral and asked us. I could not refuse, but I would have said yes anyways.
What I mean is that at that moment he could of asked me to apologize to his father and I would of. I realized he was broken up about Chloe dying but I didn't know how badly.
When he left Gabriel with Gabe I went to see him in the castle. We got to talking and he told me about his last conversation with Chloe. I tried looking shocked but he stopped me and said that I had to know.
I admitted I did then he told me how he thought that Clark was at the scene of the accident and didn't help.
I didn't say anything. Then I asked him why he was leaving his son with Gabe.
He looked at me, well sort of at me we were both pretty drunk that night him more so than me in that he was drinking before I got there.
"Pete I want you and Lana to help Gabe he will need help not financially but well you know to baby-sit and such. Just help him."
"But why leave your son?"
"Pete I can't give my son the kind of unconditional love that is needed to bring up a healthy kid. I want him to have at least some good memories of his life and have an actually childhood. I am afraid that I will raise him the same way my father did me and I know Luthor's aren't supposed to be afraid or give up this is for his own good."
I knew he was lying but I didn't have enough time to call him on his explanation or reply to it because I looked over to see a passed out Lex. So I just sat there letting the conversation swirl around my head until sleep claimed me.
Lex left before I woke up the next morning, there was a note and some papers attached.
The note read:
Pete
I know we will never be true friends and we both know why. I still am asking you to help Gabe in raising my son. Could you please give these documents to Lana it's about the Talon.
Lex
PS I took a dollar from your wallet I sort of needed it.
That was it nothing more and it was the strangest thing I probably had ever seen Lex do. I was also confused as hell why would he need a dollar? He was a billionaire, and then I started entertaining the idea that he had become one of those eccentric rich guys or had truly lost it since Chloe and Lillian had died.
When I got back to The Talon Lana of course had to ask me every single detail and I told her what I could remember. Scotch makes everything a little fuzzy. I handed her the papers, which she read then hugged and kissed me.
"Pete did you read these?"
"No I figured they were between you and Lex so really didn't think it was my business."
"Well, we own the Talon!" she squealed.
"What? What!"
"Yeah that dollar he took was so he could sell you his share. We own the Talon Pete!" That was a good day and an even better night. I still owe Lex for that. It was nice for the next few years we helped Gabe raise Gabriel, we saw Lex at least four times a year, but what about Clark?
I had no idea he left right after Chloe's funeral and none of us had heard anything from him. It wasn't until Gabe's funeral did I see him again.
We talked briefly about what, I have no idea I never thought I would see the day where I would just bullshit my way through a conversation with a former good friend but I did.
Following that Lex took Gabriel back to Metropolis, the house although no one lived there it had a caretaker to insure its survival.
Everyone in Smallville knew the story of the Sullivan's and Lex. We kept our mouths shut though. I must say I was happy when those papers came calling all those years ago that no one said a word about the incident. None of us wanted to relive that tragedy or force Gabriel to.
I watched, as the whole town did, as Lex became something worse than his father. When Lionel did finally die it was on my birthday and a day before Lex had left some cryptic message on my voice mail saying he had finally figured out what to get me. I never told Lana I don't think she'd be able to handle it. I don't know what Chloe would think about this how her husband had changed. How he became the very thing he swore he'd never become, but I can't judge.
On her birthday, on the day she died, her wedding anniversary, I have wanted him to succeed but then I think of Chloe and what she'd say. There was one day that if I had heard Clark was dead I might have just shrugged my shoulders.
It was the day my daughter Chloe was born. I held her tiny body in my arms and I swore that I would never let any harm come to her. In that moment I understood why Lex was hell bent of destroying Clark. Clark could have helped save Chloe and his daughter but instead he let them get hit and didn't even help. I knew that if anything happened to Lana or my children and I knew the person who did it.
I would kill them or something to that effect and so I let Lex hunt Clark/Superman.
But then I hear my conscience (it sounds a lot like Chloe) and regret those thoughts.
Some time after I had married Lana, Gabe in the ground, and Gabriel in Metropolis and in the Tabloids more than needed, we had our first three children; I was cleaning the attic out like the good husband I am.
I had found some home tapes, which was strange since most of our tapes had been converted into DVD's. So I showed Lana who started digging through out stuff, found a VCR popped in a tape and watched. As soon as we started watching it we wanted to immediately take it out and we knew what the rest of the tapes contained.
"So what should we do with it?" asked Lana.
"We should send it to Gabriel," I said.
"Don't you think it might be to painful?"
"I don't know but I think he should see this."
So the next day we sent it to Gabriel. Soon after he stopped appearing in the Tabloids, was looking cleaner, sober more like the person Chloe and Lex (the one I knew) would want him to be.
-----------------------------------
I looked in the newspaper today it was talking about how Gabriel Luthor donated 20 million dollars to MADD in honor of his mother on the 20th anniversary of her death. I showed the article to Lana who smiled started tearing up but then told our son PJ to get his feet off the table.
Just random moments like that make me remember Chloe. Maybe I am getting old or sentimental or something but I remember what Chloe told me when she was pregnant.
"What are you so worried about Pete?" Chloe asked me.
"I don't know it's just have you thought about what type of place you are bringing this kid into?" I answered a question with a question.
"Yes I have."
"So you know what I mean."
"Pete," then Chloe pointed to a family at a park across the street that were just laughing and playing. "It's just a random moment they may be so happy right now but could be at one another's throats in a few hours, still. There is something to be said about how special we are and how each moment is," she looked at me her eyes sparkling, "we live in a beautiful world."
Then she covered up her one moment of venerability to me by saying she thought the hormones were kicking in.
But she always was right.
We live in a beautiful world. *************************
Ok the next chapter will be Lex POV but I am still sort of sorting it out. But if you feel this story is just hopeless review or if you like it review. In other words please review.