A/N: Thanks for all the replies.

"Mom! I'm home!" Clark called through the empty kitchen. Baking pans and various flavors of muffins were laid out on the counter. He shrugged when he didn't get a reply and went to the fridge, looking for a glass of lemonade. To his surprise, he found none and frowned. Instead, he took a muffin and set his red backpack on the counter and went out.

"Hey, dad. Hey, mom. There isn't any more lemonade in the house." Clark greeted as he spotted the pair next to the tractor. His father was under it, trying to fix something and his mother was standing by with the tools.

"Oh, hi sweetheart," Martha said. "As for the lack of lemonade in the fridge, you're just going to have to survive on milk for the time being."

Clark grinned. "Freshly squeezed milk it is then."

Martha gave her son a disapproving look and fanned herself. "It's pretty hot for May, isn't it Jonathon?"

Clark's father grunted and accidentally let out a curse when he bumped his head.

"Clark, give me a hand with this thing, will you?"

Clark easily lifted the tractor. "Mom, what's with the muffins in the kitchen?"

"Oh, didn't I tell you? I thought you would have heard about it at school…. I'm just having a bake sale to help raise money for your prom," Martha replied like it was no big deal. However, it was a big deal to Clark.

"Mom, you don't have to do that…."

"But I want to," Martha said, and then looked at her watch. "I have to get going to the Talon now. I left some pasta in the fridge for you and your father."

Clark nodded as watched her run to the car. Then, he turned his attention back to his dad. "Dad, is it alright if Lana stops by later?"

Clark lifted the tractor a little higher to allow Jonathon to squeeze out.

"Lana?" Jonathon asked as he wiped his hands on a towel. "Well, I have to admit, I haven't heard that name in a while."

Clark sighed, putting down the tractor. "I invited her over to talk."

"Talk?" Jonathon Kent was now alarmed. "Clark, son, you're not thinking about telling her your secret, are you?"

Here we go with the secret again….No wonder Lana resents me as much as she does. I'm beginning to resent myself for keeping the secret a secret.

"No, dad…." Clark said, knowing his dad didn't believe him.

"Clark, I know how much you want to tell her, but remember what happened to Pete last year?"

Clark sighed impatiently. "Yes, I remember, dad. But─"

Clark and his father were now walking back toward the house.

"Clark, this is your secret; only you have the right to tell people." Jonathon stopped walking and placed both hands on Clark's shoulders. "If you want to tell her, by all means, tell her. But, just remember, once you tell her, you can never take it back."

"He invited you to his loft?" Chloe asked with exaggerated widened eyes. Truth to be told, she had seen this coming a mile off. She was glad her earlier conversation with Clark had its desired affect.

Lana nodded and looked into her cup of coffee. She and Chloe were at the Talon. It was the time of the day when the Talon was packed with students. It was loud enough so that no one could listen in on your private conversations, but it was quiet enough so there was no need to scream to be heard.

"He invited me to his loft," Lana repeated with a soft smile. Then, she frowned. "It took him eight months to do it."

"Hey, better than nothing, right?" Chloe offered, taking a bite of her cookie. "Maybe he just needed the eight months to work up the courage."

Lana stared at her and finally said, "Why do I get the feeling you had something to do with this?"

"Me?" Chloe faked. "Nope, it was all Clark."

Lana smiled. "Thanks, Chloe."

"For what?" Chloe asked, taking another bite of her cookie.

Lana laughed and let it slide. "You know, I think this may be the beginning to mending our friendship."

"And maybe the beginning to something more?" Chloe questioned with a hint of sadness in her voice.

Lana took notice of this and said, "Chloe…I'm sure the right guy is out there for you."

Chloe nodded her head and veered the subject toward Lana again. "Lana, can I ask you something?"

"Of course."

"How do you feel about Clark?"

Lana lowered her eyes and thought. "I don't know…"

"You know, you can tell me how you really feel. I won't break or anything," Chloe said with an encouraging smile.

Lana smiled. "It's hard to pinpoint where my feelings for Clark are….I mean, I thought that a summer in Paris would help me get over him, but it just made things so much more complicated."

Chloe nodded even though she didn't understand.

"I had a summer fling in Paris," Lana confessed, sounding guilty. "I thought I was in love, but when I came back to Smallville, all those feelings for Clark just came rushing back. I think…I still love him."

"Wow," Chloe said quietly.

"And you want to know what the worse part is? I still wonder how I can love him after the countless times he's broken my heart." Lana sighed.

"I guess it's just the Kent charm," Chloe said, trying to lighten up the atmosphere.

Lana tried to smile. "I guess it is."

I can never take it back… Clark stared into the night sky, lost in thought. He heard footsteps ascending the loft steps and fought the urge to turn around.

"Hi, Clark."

Clark gave in and turned to face her. "Hi, Lana."

Clark's face reddened when he realized he had absolutely nothing to say next. His mind went into overdrive, flying through various topics to talk about, but none of them seemed right. Except for one. His secret.

Clark gave a nervous cough and saw she hadn't moved any closer or farther away from him.

"So…"

Lana gave a nervous laugh and blushed when they had both spoken at the same time.

Clark asked the first thing that came to his mind. "Do you want a look? I mean, at the telescope?"

Lana smiled with relief and stepped closer to him so that her arm was bumping against his chest. She bent down, her long silky hair brushing her face as she looked into the telescope.

For the first time, Clark noticed what she was wearing, a pink dress with sparkles. She was dressed up.

Clark pondered how he was going to bring it up, but found himself captured by her beauty. After a few moments, he felt her eyes on him and knew he had been caught. He blushed, but was grateful when she turned away, ignoring the fact that he had been staring at her chest.

"So, what's the occasion?" Clark gestured at her dress as Lana looked up from the telescope.

"Oh." Lana gave a nervous laugh and explained, "It's laundry night for me…and I didn't have anything to wear so I just decided to throw this on."

Clark nodded. "Well, now I feel underdressed."

Lana glanced at his flannel and jeans and laughed.

Clark moved away from the window and sat on the couch, hoping she would follow his example. She did.

After a few more moments of tense silence, Lana spoke up.

"I missed you."

It took Clark a while to respond, but decided to go with a simple reply. "I missed you too."

Lana nodded and looked away, not knowing what else to say.

"How was Paris?"

"Paris was alright…it sure wasn't the same as Smallville," Lana offered.

"Yeah…no meteor freaks in sight, huh?"

"That's not what I meant…."

"I know."

Clark sighed, knowing he had just killed the conversation.

"So, how was your summer?" Lana asked.

"It was alright…it wasn't the same without you, though."

Lana smiled, obviously liking the answer.

"So, how is your senior year so far?" Clark asked, feeling more comfortable with her by the second. "Don't leave out any details."

Lana sent him a melting smile that warmed his heart. "I won't, if you don't."

The two of them sat and talked for hours, not even bothering to notice how late it was getting. Finally, when the conversation died down, Clark leaned back against the couch. Lana did the same and this time, a comfortable silence filled the air.

"Clark, do you think things will go back to the way they were before?" Lana asked quietly, breaking the welcoming silence.

"What do you mean?" Clark asked, knowing exactly what she meant.

"I mean, do you think we'll ever be able to be together again? Like our sophomore year?"

Clark sat up and Lana followed. A pensive look was written across both of their faces.

"I honestly don't know, Lana," Clark said after a while. "I wish they could, but things are so complicated right now….We'll be going away to college soon…"

Lana nodded, turning her head away. Then, she stood up. Clark's heart broke when he noticed tears in her eyes.

"Good bye, Clark."

"Bye, Lana," Clark said softly as he watched her descend the steps, never once looking back.