Note: Thanks for all your reviews. I got a review asking me what happened in the last chapter, so I don't know if all of you got it. Sorry for the confusion, but this is basically what happened. Clark died. Yes, he died. But, he came back to life with the help of
Jor-el. During the time that Clark and Jor-el chatted, Clark was physically dead, but he was in a place between afterlife and earth. He was in the caves, living like Jor-el; a spirit, if you could call it that. He couldn't remember what happened because that was the price of becoming a spirit like Jor-el; that was Jor-el's payment. Now, Jor-el chose to help Clark out because he knew that Clark had a destiny. He gave him a gift. The gift has to do with the ice, but I'll let you ponder that until a later chap. I think some of you may get it, but don't tell the others. (If you still don't get what happened, just email me and I'll try my best to explain it again.)
On another note, people have been asking me why I changed the title of the story. This chap will explain it. Some of you may like the other title better, so I apologize for changing it, but the rose just wasn't working with my story. I wanted to incorporate the rose into the story, somehow, but my storyline/plot has changed, so I think this title suits the story better. If you have any ideas or suggestions, feel free to tell me. Thanks! Now, on with the story.
Metropolis: Gateway Docks
10:17 P.M.
Sunday, June 6th
"C'mon, Lana," Lois encouraged as she guided Lana out of the police car. Lana was shaking from head to toe and surprisingly, the tears had stopped. Lois had figured she was passed the 'he's dead; he's dead' stage and moved on to the initial shock one. Lana's face was pale and her eyes seemed empty. Lois had never seen her in such a state. Then, of course, you could only die once in a lifetime.
"Are you okay, Lana?" Lana heard Lois ask. She nodded her head slowly, tears threatening to spill from her eyes once again. People always pitied her for one reason or another. First, her parents, and now the love of her life. Tears rolled down her young, beautiful face. It seemed like everyone she cared about left her in the end. Even the man she was destined to be with had left her.
Silent tears were now rolling unceasing down her cheeks. Lana hated this. She shouldn't be feeling sorry for herself; she should be mourning for her fallen love. Mourning for a life taken away so suddenly and unjustly. It wasn't fair that a man with such a big heart and a huge amount of potential was taken away. It wasn't fair that he had to leave her. Nothing was fair anymore in this God-forsaken world! She had nothing left….
"Why!" Lana screamed to nobody in particular. "Why did you have to take him away from me!" Lana looked to the star-filled sky for answers. A star twinkled ominously at her. She wished to tear it out of the sky and shove it down someone's throat right now. She wanted someone else to suffer; to feel the pain and heart break that she was feeling now.
A few heads turned in surprise at her outburst. When their eyes fell upon her tear-streaked face, they quickly looked away. Anyone could spot her angst, pain, heartache from a mile away.
"Lana, are you sure you're okay?" Lois asked again. She watched as the color returned in her cheeks, surely from her anger.
Lana closed her eyes momentarily and opened them. "Yeah…." She said softly.
Lois opened her mouth to speak, but was cut off by gasps and cameras going off by the press.
The whole warehouse was covered by ice. Surely it was a story worth the front page of the Daily Planet. "Umm…Lana…."
"Go ahead," Lana gave her permission to leave her for a story. But, Lois was already running away.
Left again in the dark and cold….Lana thought miserably as tears rolled down her face continuously. Lana began walking down the dock, away from all the commotion and misery. She didn't want to see his body when they rolled him out. It would mean that he was really dead and the small light inside of her would go out. It was really silly to hope that he was still alive, breathing, loving her.
Lana gave a long-needed sob and stood there crying. Her arms were hugged around her body. Usually, Clark would offer her his coat even if there was just a slight breeze. Lana shivered in the warm night and hugged herself even tighter.
"Clark, I love you….Why did you have to leave me?" she whispered into the night.
"I'm sorry, Lana."
It took Lana a moment to register that footsteps were pounding lightly behind her. Her heart quickened its beat as the footsteps came to a halt. Lana closed her exotic eyes and reopened them to face whoever was behind her. Despite her mind telling her it was a trick of the day's events, her heart couldn't help but speed up and flutter at the sound of that voice. She knew that voice anywhere; from a crowd of a million people to the silent, warm, summer night.
Slowly, she turned around. The color drained from her cheeks. It was her lover, her soul, the boy next door. It was Clark Kent in flesh and not dead.
"C-clark?" Lana gasped as a slight breeze blew her hair, making her look even more breath-taking.
"Lana…." He gazed lovingly at her; adoration filling his greenish, hazel eyes. It was then that he fell right in love with her again.
"Clark," Lana choked out again as tears flowed freely down her face and onto the dock.
Time had frozen. The only two people in motion were the young lovers. Lana ran into Clark's outstretched arms and hung on to him to dear life. Tears dripped from her face and on to his tattered tuxedo, but neither cared. All that mattered was this moment, frozen in time.
After a few minutes, Lana released Clark from her death-grip. She still clung on to him, but not as tightly; far away enough to gaze into his pools of green which was swirling with love for her. "How…?"
Clark smiled a mysterious smile. "Jor-el helped me out…I think. When I woke up from the dead, it looked like Santa and the North Pole had dropped by," Clark joked.
Lana smiled through her tears, and, despite her efforts to keep her emotions in check, she burst into a new set of tears again.
Clark slowly gathered Lana in his strong arms and rocked her. He waited patiently until her sobs subsided.
"S-sorry…." Lana apologized as Clark rubbed her tears away with his thumbs. "It's just…I never thought I'd hear another one of your corny jokes again."
Clark pretended to look hurt, but Lana wiped the pout off his face with a kiss. Tongues clashed and teeth collided. Clark, surprised from the attack, tried to fight back as hard as possible, but it was a losing battle. Lana had sucked most of his breathe away and she was passionately massaging his lips. Clark kissed Lana as if he had nothing to lose; all he needed was the woman sucking on his lips.
The kiss slowed down to a soothing, but still passionate lip lock. Lana was the first to pull away; she needed air desperately. Clark leaned his forehead against Lana's and panted softly. His expression became pensive as he thought back to his conversation with Jor-el. How could he ever think he had the option to just die and leave Lana?
"What's wrong?" Lana asked with concern.
Clark lifted his head off Lana's and gave her a sad smile. "Jor-el gave me the choice of living without any doubts or pain."
Lana searched his eyes before lowering her head against his strong chest. "Sounds like a perfect afterlife," she conceded.
Although her face was buried in his chest, Clark knew that she was crying again because of the water stains slowly erupting on his once-white dress shirt. Clark gulped, feeling guilty that he had placed doubts in her mind about his love for her and his promise to her. He swore that he would never leave her once, and he intended to keep that vow.
"Lana, he also gave me the chance at another attempt at life," Clark swallowed hard to stop the tears that were forming in his eyes to run down his face. "It was you, Lana, that brought me back."
The summer night was gradually turning into a pitch-black night. The water beneath the dock was leisurely rolling back and forth, creating small waves. From afar, a person could peer into the darkness and see the outline of a man and woman cuddling. The man was holding his significant other in his strong, loving embrace. If you looked close enough, you could catch the man whispering sweet-nothings in his lover's ear. The woman would tip-toe now and then to place a kiss on her boyfriend's cheek. It was truly a beautiful sight. Such a moment that loving should be frozen in time.
At least, in Lana Lang's mind, it would be. Her giggles filled the sky and brought Clark Kent's heart racing even faster. It was a perfect end to what was-almost-was the worst day. How could things change so dramatically in an hour?
When the last of Lana's giggles faded away, a comfortable silence took their place. "Lana?" Clark said, breaking the silence.
"Hmm?" Lana sighed and leaned her whole weight against his body. Life was too perfect, it seemed.
When Clark didn't reply, Lana opened her eyes and found Clark fidgeting with his pockets. "What are you doing?" She noticed that Clark had pulled something out of his right hip pocket and he was now hiding it with his fist.
Lana felt the warmth that she had grown accustomed to fade as Clark gently untangled himself from her.
Now, or never, Kent, Clark thought with growing determination. He had vowed that he would ask her if he survived and he intended on keeping his word. Slowly, almost painfully too slow, Clark Kent dropped to one knee.
Lana's eyes and mouth widened a considerable amount. Tears began forming in her hazel eyes immediately. She brought a shaking hand to her mouth and gasped, "Oh, Clark."
Clark sucked in his breath to stop himself from following her lead and crying too. "Lana, I've loved ever since I first set eyes on you," he choked out. Tears ran down her cheek and dropped into the gaps of the dock; mixing them with the river underneath them.
"It was you that kept me walking down the halls at Smallville High. The only reason I went to school was to catch a glimpse of you. You saved me from drowning in my own pity and despair after I found out I was from another planet," Clark paused to let the new information sink in for Lana. "You were at the graveyard talking to your parents."
Lana nodded, understanding what had been said. "So, that was why you were sneaking around the bushes at night," Lana smiled through her tears.
Clark gave a small laugh and a nod. "Lana, I love you more than anything. I can't live without you by my side. Every step I take away from you is another stab at my heart. Every time I make you cry, not in happiness, but in frustration, is a stab at my heart. I want to spend the rest of my life with you because that's how much I'm in love with you." If Lana was crying before, it was nothing compared to now.
"Lana Lang, will you marry me?" Clark snapped open the red velvet box and there was the ring sparking up at her. Overcome with tears, Lana nodded and tugged at Clark's hand to indicate he could stand now.
"Oh, Clark…." Lana sobbed as he slipped the ring onto her finger. "It's beautiful. You're beautiful." She cupped his now-tear-stained face and whispered, "Of course, I'll marry you, Clark Kent."
