Author's Note: Italics signify thought or emphasis. Underlined is telepathic communication.
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Aen called Martha later that day. After Aen assured the other woman that she was perfectly fine after the ordeal the day before, Martha and Aen discussed the picnic, which they mutually decided to have on Saturday. A barbeque at the man-made lake and beach that had once been a stone quarry was chosen since the weather was supposed to be particularly nice that day.
Although Aen argued about it, Martha wouldn't hear of Aen and her friends bringing anything to the gathering but themselves. This was the Kents' way of welcoming the Smiths and Jisin and Aen to Smallville, and as such, the Kents would be hosting. Once Aen had given in, Martha changed the subject.
"I have a favor to ask, and I'm sorry it's such short notice, but with all the excitement at the bank, I never got the chance to ask you."
"What is it?" Aen asked.
"I need a babysitter for Zoey tomorrow," Martha answered. "It would be from about five in the afternoon until Clark gets back from a trip to Metropolis."
"I'd love to," Aen said softly.
She had missed Zoey almost as much as she had missed Clark, and the opportunity to spend time with the little girl was too good to pass up. Seeing Clark for at least a few minutes when he came home and she left was an added bonus.
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When Clark and Lex walked into the Kent's house, Aen was waiting with a jean jacket already on.
"Aen," Clark said in obvious surprise.
Aen smiled tensely at them both. "Thank goodness you're home. Zoey's in bed, she ate fine and played herself into exhaustion. But I really need to go. One of our horses is going into labor and Zin thinks it's going to be breach. I'm the only one who has experience with breach deliveries."
"Do you need me to drive you home?" Clark asked.
Aen finally looked Clark in the eye, and their gazes met and held. Aen seemed to relax slightly as Clark tensed a bit. Lex watched the odd balancing of worry in fascination. Aen smiled softly at Clark and Clark's mouth curved immediately in response.
"Thank you, but no, Jisin's on her way. She was going to watch Aen for me until you got back, but you're here now, so everything will be fine."
Just then the headlights of a truck were seen and Aen sighed in relief.
"She's here. Before I go, are you sure you don't need us to bring anything to the beach picnic on Saturday?"
Clark shook his head, "Just yourselves."
Aen smiled again. "In that case, I'll see you then. Bye, Clark. It was nice to see you again, Mr. Luthor."
Lex waited until Clark had closed the door behind Aen to ask, "Will Jisin be going to this picnic?"
Clark smiled slyly. "If she is, are you going to ask to be invited?"
Lex raised his eyebrows at Clark. "I did just take you to a game, it would be only..."
"I was teasing, Lex," Clark cut off the older man. "Of course you're invited, you're just busy so often and honestly I forgot about it until I saw her. And as long as we've known each other, you've never really struck me as the picnic type."
Lex smiled at the unconscious way Clark emphasized 'her' when referring to Aen. Why hadn't the younger man made a move yet? It had been obvious, to Lex at least, that Aen was very much interested in Clark, so it couldn't be like it had been when Clark was in high school and Lana Lang had only seen him as a friend.
"I think I can handle it, Clark," he answered, thinking to himself, It'll be worth getting sand everywhere just to see you two make moon eyes at each other wearing swim suits.
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The Kents had just taken most of the stuff for the barbecue out of their trucks when Lex pulled up in one of his many sports cars, followed almost immediately by the truck Clark recognized as the one Jisin had been sitting on the hood of the day of the bank robbery. Clark waved to the new arrivals before lifting two of his mother's bags and heading for the area his mother had chosen to set up their site.
He watched in slight jealousy as Zoey ran over to greet Aen with a hug. The redhead was wearing shorts over her swimsuit while the other two young women had simply worn theirs without a cover, Jisin and Sar in two pieces and Aen in a one piece; Zin had on a pair of swim trunks and sandals, just as Clark did. Lex was slightly more dressed, a brand new t-shirt over shorts that had probably never been worn before.
Clark almost laughed when Martha admonished Lex to put some sunscreen on. His friend was very pale. As always, Lex didn't mind Martha's mothering. Clark knew it was because of the loss of his own mother at such a young age that Lex had always appreciated the way Martha treated him. When everyone was together, Aen looked surprised when Martha hugged her, but Aen hugged back. Introductions were made all around and the younger adults spread blankets on the sand as Martha and Jonathan got the barbecue ready.
Zin and Sar settled on to one of the blankets, Jisin taking a place next to Sar and Lex sitting down beside her. Aen was still standing, looking across the man-made lake to the cliff that rose from the water straight across from them. It wasn't far across the water, probably only fifty feet. Zoey was flitting happily back and forth between himself, their parents and Aen.
Clark felt his face heat slightly as he watched Aen take off her shorts in preparation of going into the water. Jisin and Sar were showing much more skin than Aen in their modest two piece swim suits, but he didn't feel anything more than aesthetic admiration for their physical perfection when he looked at them. When he looked at Aen in her simple one-piece… well, he felt a lot more than simple admiration.
"Clark," his mother called. "Can you go get the cooler with the drinks from your father's truck?"
"Sure, Mom," he answered, disappointed in having to take his eyes off Aen.
He accomplished his task as fast as was humanly possible, keeping in mind the large and varied audience that might notice use of his powers.
"Where's Aen?" Clark asked Jisin as he came back from the truck, brought the cooler to his parents and then rejoined the others on the large blanket.
Jisin shrugged, but Lex's mouth fell open and he pointed up and across the man-made lake. Martha gasped and Zoey squealed with excitement when they looked where Lex had pointed. Aen had just finished climbing to the top of the quarry cliff and was now standing at the very edge, looking down into the deep end of the quarry pool. Clark's stomach fell to his toes and he considered blowing his cover to speed across the lake and stop her from getting hurt before remembering that there were green meteor rocks at the bottom of the lake at the deep end.
Clark paled. If she did get hurt, he wouldn't be able to get to her. Remembering after a moment the fact that meteor rocks had been disappearing all over the place, Clark squinted through the water. He could see the outline of rocks, but in his panic he wasn't sure if any of them were meteor rocks or not.
Zin's calm voice cut through his fear, "Don't worry, Aen knows what she's doing. One of her favorite places we ever lived was Hawaii, and she learned to cliff dive there. This is nothing."
Sure enough, Aen raised her arms over her head and launched herself into the air, completing a beautiful triple forward tuck on her way down. There was hardly any splash as she made contact with the water, and when she came back up, Jisin whistled loudly and Sar and Lex applauded. Zin was frowning thoughtfully, but Clark was just happy Aen was okay. Zoey danced around with excitement and Clark caught hold of her to hug her.
She hugged him back, whispering, "Aen can fly like you."
"Not exactly, Zo."
But the little girl had already moved on to her next activity, scooping sand into a yellow bucket the shape of a castle tower. By that time, Aen had swum back to the beach, and she sat down close to Zoey. Clark joined them, trying hard not to be distracted by the water running down Aen's chest to disappear beneath her one-piece swimsuit. He was almost sorry he had promised himself long ago to never use his x-ray vision for personal enjoyment.
"Do you want me to bury you in the sand, Zo?"
Zoey nodded in answer to her brother's question, handing her own shovel to Aen. Sometimes Clark felt like asking his mother to talk to Zoey about assuming Aen would do whatever the little girl wanted, but, inevitably, Aen always did help out or play with Zoey as the case warranted. His family had only known Aen for a few weeks, but already she was a bigger part of their lives than he had realized. How much closer could they get before he would have to push her away for her own good?
Determined not to dwell on what he couldn't have when everyone was together and happy, Clark concentrated on piling more sand on Zoey's legs. Once Zoey was sufficiently buried, Clark leaned back and watched Aen shape the pile. He smiled, remembering when Aen had watched The Little Mermaid with Zoey and himself. Aen was now turning his sister into a mermaid.
Martha glanced over at them, and, seeing what they were doing, took her camera out of her beach bag. Martha snapped a few shots while Aen was finishing up the details on Zoey's tail.
When Aen dusted off her hands, Martha asked, "Aen, will you take a picture of Zoey and Clark and myself?"
"Of course," Aen smiled.
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"Daddy, too!" Zoey demanded.
"Jonathan, can you come here for a minute?"
Jonathan looked down at the hamburgers on the grill and hesitated.
"I'll watch them for you, Mr. Kent." Jisin took the spatula from Jonathan's hand, Lex next to her.
"Thank you, Jisin."
"Sure, go get in the picture before your daughter wriggles out of her tail."
Jonathan laughed lightly and went to join his family on the sand.
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When Jonathan was settled next to Martha, Aen took a few pictures of the family. After her third shot, a hand on her elbow stopped her. She looked up into Lex's eyes, studying them for a few silent moments.
"Get in the picture," he lightly commanded.
For the first time Aen truly smiled at Lex, and suddenly Lex understood why she already meant so much to Clark. She was goodness and light personified, a female version of Clark himself. Lex had always scoffed at the idea of finding your other half, but now he knew that was exactly what Clark had found in Aen.
Glancing at the younger man, who he considered his best and only true friend, Lex wondered if Clark realized just what he would lose if he let Aen leave Smallville.
Lex turned back to Aen and she whispered, "Thank you."
"You're welcome," he mouthed back, smiling.
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Aen sat down next to Clark, and he looped an arm around her waist, pulling her closer. They were hip to hip. Aen looked up into his blue eyes and got lost. Lex's command to "smile, everyone" broke her out of the trance, and she turned her face to the camera, smiling happily. Lex took several pictures before Zoey could no longer contain herself and wriggled right out of the sand pile. Everyone laughed, and Zoey tackled her brother and Aen, showering both of them with sand. Jonathan went back to the grill and announced the hamburgers and hot dogs would be ready in just a couple of minutes.
"C'mon, Zoey. Let's get washed off," Aen suggested.
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Zoey took hold of one of Aen's hands, and held hands with Clark on the other side. Together the three of them walked into the water, not noticing Lex behind them on the sand, taking more pictures. Martha stood beside him, and when he lowered the camera, she smiled at him.
"You know how he feels about her, don't you, Martha?"
"Yes, Lex," she sighed. "He loves her; I just don't know if he knows it yet."
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"You don't sound too happy about it. She's perfect for him as far as I can tell." Lex grimaced, recalling his own two failed marriages to Desiree and Helen. "But maybe I'm not the best judge."
Martha lay a comforting hand on his arm.
"No, you're right. She is a wonderful young woman. But she is leaving, and it's going to break Clark's heart."
"Maybe it's time for Clark to take another step forward in his life." Lex pondered aloud. "Maybe he should ask her to stay."
"Maybe," Martha echoed softly.
She rubbed her hand on Lex's arm, smiled at him one more time and went to help Jonathan with the hamburger fixings.
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The afternoon ended too quickly for Clark's taste. But it had been a great day. Everyone had gotten along, and his father had even been civil to Lex. Clark had gotten to spend hours with Aen, even allowing himself to touch her several times. Each time it had been more difficult to take his hands away from her, but each touch had been worth it. There were several times when he had wanted to kiss her, and it had been a physical pain not to be able to do so. But he had stopped, telling himself that he was already getting too attached to her, and that they had an audience. His excuses were wearing very thin.
They had just finished packing everything up. Zoey was already in his dad's truck, sound asleep, worn out from her day of play. Aen walked toward him. She had changed into jeans and a t-shirt more than an hour ago, and her hair was pulled back in a quick but tidy braid. He smiled as she stopped in front of him, and she smiled back, a little sadness in the expression.
"Thank you for inviting all of us, it was a wonderful day," she said softly. "I wish it wouldn't end."
"It doesn't have to." The words were out of his mouth before he had a chance to think, and he waited a second for his brain to catch up with his mouth. "Would you like to go to a movie with me?"
She bit her lip, smiling, and blushed softly, "I'd love to, but…you don't have to feel obligated just because I said that."
One corner of his mouth lifted in a crooked grin. "I don't; I just want to spend more time with you."
She smiled again, and Clark felt as if the space around them had suddenly become the center of the universe, as if everything revolved around the two of them.
"I'll go tell Zin."
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Aen skipped over to Zin. It was either skip or fly. She smiled at him.
"Clark asked me to a movie."
Zin frowned, "You can't go."
Aen glared at him, furious.
"I'm going. You can't give me orders, you're not my father."
Zin flinched and paled considerably. Aen covered her mouth, realizing what she had said. Tears sprang to her eyes.
"I am so sorry, you know I didn't mean to compare you to him. You're nothing like him, nothing. Please, please forgive me."
Zin sighed heavily and nodded. "Just…be careful, okay?"
"Thank you, Zin. I will be."
She threw her arms around his neck and let him pull her close, comforting him the best way she knew how.
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Lex walked over to Clark to say good-bye. Martha joined them, looking at her camera in Lex's hands.
"Martha, I have a dark room at the mansion. Since I wasn't able to bring anything for the barbecue, would you let me develop the pictures and make copies for everyone?"
"Of course, Lex, that's very generous of you."
"My pleasure, Martha."
Lex took the last picture on the roll, capturing the sunset over the quarry cliff. He then waited for the film to automatically rewind before taking it out and pocketing it, handing the camera back to Martha. She hugged Clark and waved to Lex, walking to the truck. Lex waited until the rest of the Kent family had driven away before he turned to Clark.
"Got any plans for tonight?"
"Yeah, I asked Aen to go to a movie. I'd invite you and Jisin, too, but I want to spend some time alone with her."
Lex smiled knowingly, "That's okay, Clark, you two need to spend some time alone together. The four of us can do something another time."
"Thanks. Give me a call tomorrow and we'll make plans."
"Alright, have a good night, Clark."
Lex strode away to his Porsche, got in and took off, too fast as usual.
Clark looked around for Aen, and his gut twisted. She was standing in Zin's embrace. The tall man had his eyes closed as he brushed a kiss against Aen's forehead. Aen smiled up at him and then turned away, tossing a good-bye wave over her shoulder. Zin's truck pulled away and Aen crossed quickly to stand by his side. Without a word, he turned to his own truck, holding the door open for her. She climbed in with a soft "thanks", but he didn't respond.
Clark could feel Aen stare at him as he pulled the truck onto the main road. He knew she was confused about how he was acting, but he couldn't seem to control the jealousy eating him up inside.
"Clark," Aen ventured softly, "is something wrong?"
Clark heaved a sigh and pulled the truck over to the side of the road. He turned off the engine and turned to look at her.
"Are you in love with Zin?"
Aen smiled delightedly, and Clark frowned, confused.
"Are you jealous, Clark?"
He almost got huffy, but then he considered how he felt about her. He didn't want there to be any more secrets between them than were absolutely necessary.
So he answered her truthfully, his voice soft, "Yes."
She smiled again before becoming serious. "Can you keep a secret, Clark?"
Clark thought about all the secrets he had kept for so long already and forced himself not to flinch. He nodded.
"I do love Zin, but not that way, not the way I…" she stopped, pale, and took a deep breath before continuing, "I'm not in love with him. I never have been and I never will be. Zin is my half-brother."
"Your…" Clark smiled so hard he was afraid his face would crack. "Thank God."
Their eyes locked and Aen blushed. Clark lifted one hand to tuck a loose strand of hair behind her ear, caressing her soft cheek with the back of his fingers. A tingle ran up his arm and he wondered if Aen felt it, too. Her eyes drifted closed and Clark could hear her heartbeat become faster. He mentally shook himself and pulled his hand away, starting the truck again.
As they drove, Aen told him that she and Zin shared a father, a cold man who didn't acknowledge her because of how it would change how other people would look at him. Clark had the feeling that she was being kind in her description of the man and wondered why. Was Aen's father dangerous? Was he the reason she had to move around so much? He wanted to tell her that he would never let anyone hurt her, but then he thought better of it. He couldn't be with her every second, no matter how much he might wish he could.