Ch. 2

"Wha..." Clark's mind was still reeling. "What are you doing here?"

William tried to speak, but couldn't find the words.

Chloe stepped in. "He came to see you."

"I don't understand—how did you know I'd be here?"

"I read your byline." He held up a piece of paper. "Very impressive for someone so young."

Clark took it. "Where did you get this?"

William smiled. "You are full of questions—just like your mother was."

"Makes him a good reporter." Clark remembered there were three people in the room. "I do put the paper on the internet, Clark." Clark's gaze shifted to Chloe. The look on her face said it all.

"Like your friend said—I'm here to see you." Clark looked back at his grandfather. "Look, Clark—I know I haven't always been there as much as I would have liked to..." He looked down. It was harder for him than he had thought. "I was just trying to..."

"I know, Granddad—it's okay." Clark smiled.

"I'm just glad I'm here now."

"Me too." He paused. "And a little confused."

William looked proud. "There's that reporter's curiosity again."

"Yeah, that's Clark for you—full of surprises." Clark stared at her for a second.

"Well the truth is, I'm not sure how long I'll be able to stay. I haven't gone to see your mother yet, and frankly I was afraid if I saw her first I wouldn't be able to see you."

Clark was angry. Not at his parents—at himself. It was just one more thing that was his fault—well, two actually—his mom not being able to see her dad, and himself not being able to know his grandfather. But anger in this case was good—it gave him resolve. "It will be different this time, Granddad. I promise you."

William just looked down. He didn't look too happy. "Yes... yes, it will."

Clark remembered why he was there. "Chloe..."

Chloe stopped him. "Clark—go home with your Grandpa." Clark wasn't sure what to do. "Really—it's okay."

Clark nodded. He forced himself to smile again. "You haven't seen the farm lately—You have to see my loft..."

Chloe pretended to be busy cleaning up the Torch as the two men walk away. She always did find it odd that Clark's grandfather was never involved with their family. Especially after hearing a bit of his and Clark's conversation, and Martha was his only child. No... Chloe forced herself to stop. She had promised herself she would stay out of anything that had to deal with Clark. This could only lead to heartbreak... or maybe it could lead to the answers she was looking for.

Jonathon was working under the tractor when he heard Clark's car drive in. This tractor seemed to brake down every week, but they couldn't afford to buy a new one—especially with Clark's college just one year ahead. He didn't know what he would have done had Clark not been there. When he was younger they would hire workers to come out and help them in the fields, but when Clark was older, they didn't have to. If they had to hire workers now with Clark's college and Jonathon's medical bills...

Jonathon heard a door slam. "Clark—good, you're home." He reached for a wrench. "Could you help me—just lift this up for a sec."

Clark looked at his grandfather nervously. "And how would I do that?"

Jonathon didn't get the hint. "Well, Son, you could..." he paused when he saw four feet instead of two. "You could get the lever," he covered as he climbed out from underneath the tractor. Jonathon had been used to making up explanations on the spot—it just came with the territory. The trick was not to let yourself be surprised. He froze when he saw whom the other two feet belonged to. Yep, he was surprised.

"Hello, Jonathon." Clark's grandfather held his hand out, hoping Jonathon would take it. He didn't.

"William." Jonathon stood up and brushed the dirt off his pants. He walked towards the barn. "I thought we had an understanding."

"I'm just here to see my daughter."

Jonathon turned towards him. "She's not here."

"I know—Clark told me about the Talon."

Jonathon looked at Clark. "He did, did he?"

"It's not Clark's fault, Jonathon. He didn't know I was in Smallville."

"So you just happened to run into him first, did you?" William looked down, trying not to incriminate himself. Jonathon walked into the barn. "If you're here to see Martha, why aren't you over at the Talon?"

William thought about that for a second. "I didn't want to surprise her at work."

"Clark, why don't you go in the house?"

That surprised Clark. "Why?"

"Just go, Clark."

"Dad, you said if I acted like an adult you would treat me like one." He waited for a response. "I want to stay."

Jonathon would have fought the issue, but he wanted to get rid of William. "I thought Martha and I had made ourselves clear—we don't need you or any or your help."

"I'm not here to offer my money, Jonathon. I came to see Martha and Clark, and even you." Jonathon looked at him suspiciously. William added, "That's what normal Grandparents do."

Normal. That struck a chord. "William!" He stopped when he realized Clark was still in the room. He softened a little. "Look, we've gone this long without family contact—we shouldn't try and ruin a perfect record."

William became defensive. "That's because you've had family around you all this time. My family." Jonathon started to reply, but William interrupted. "I'm not leaving until I talk to my daughter."

"Fine—you can wait out here." He turned to his son. "Clark, if you need me, I'll be in the house. For some reason it's getting a little cramped outdoors."

Clark and William watched Jonathon walk out of earshot before William spoke again. "I've never known a man who could hold a grudge as long as Jonathon can."

Clark had to say something. "That's not fair, Granddad—you don't really know him that well yet."

"Yes, well, I might not get a chance to." He turned towards Clark. "You're old enough now to know the truth-- if there's one thing I hold against your father it's not letting me have the chance to know my grandson."

Clark squirmed a little. "He had his reasons, Granddad."

"Well, whatever they are—I know you'll be off at college next year, and I just didn't want you to leave thinking I didn't want anything to do with you for the rest of your life."

Clark smiled. "Thanks."

"Speaking of which—have you given much thought as to which university you might want to apply to?"

Clark grabbed a football and shrugged. "The University of Metropolis is one. It's not too far away from home that I couldn't come visit. And I'm hoping to play football there—maybe get a scholarship."

"You have to have a lot of talent to play for the Metros."

Clark wasn't sure how William meant that. "Yeah..."

"But don't worry about the money, Clark. I'll make sure you'll have enough to get whatever you need. I could rent you an apartment close to the school—or did you want to live in the dorms your freshman year?"

Clark was a little overwhelmed. "I guess I haven't made any definite plans. Right now I'm just focusing on how to survive senior year."

William chuckled. "I remember that. It might have been a little different in my day, but the feeling was still there."

Clark smiled. Yeah, it was a little different for him than it was for William. He had meant surviving literally. Chances are William didn't have people trying to exploit him and trying to kill his friends. "Granddad—I don't want you to take this the wrong way..." Clark paused.

"What is it?"

"Why are you here?" William started to answer. "I know you said to see my mom and me, but I can't help but feel like there's something you're not telling me."

William put a hand on Clark's shoulder. "Don't worry, Clark—I wanted this to be a happy visit." That still didn't satisfy Clark's curiosity. William changed the subject. "Your girlfriend tells me you're quite the reporter."

Girlfriend..."Y...You mean Chloe?" William turned towards Clark. "Chloe's not my girlfriend. We're just friends."

"Yes, I felt your... friendly tension... at the Torch today."

Clark smiled. Everyone in Smallville had been obsessed with secrets—keeping them, finding them out, trying to exploit them—but William was very blunt in a non-blunt way. You knew he didn't like to play games. He thought a second before answering. "Our relationship is a little fragile right now."

"Sounds like we have a lot in common."

Clark smiled again. He felt he could really open up to his grandfather. "Chloe was mad at me for something I did..." He stopped himself. He couldn't be too open with his grandfather.

"Which was..."

Clark looked down. "I wasn't as honest to her as she would have liked. Anyway, now we're in a huge fight and I don't know what else to say to her."

"Have you tried telling her the truth?"

Clark smiled. If only you had read the last fanfic... "That's sort of what our fight's about. It's complicated."

William shrugged a little. "Well, it's probably a good thing anyway."

That confused Clark. "What do you mean?"

"Well, when I stopped by the Torch, I couldn't help but see what she called 'The Wall of Weird'. If you ask me, she's not quite right upstairs."

Clark wanted to defend Chloe, but he without hurting his grandfather. "You'd be surprised."

"She said it all happened because of the meteor shower?"

Clark felt uneasy again. "That's the theory."

"What do you think?"

Clark smiled nervously. Someone who didn't like to play games probably wouldn't like Smallville. "I think you should have an interesting stay."