A/N: KuzImKoolLikeDat, your review made me laugh! Haha…I had no intention of making them seem lesbian. You don't have to worry about Chlana in this fic…. Lana and Chloe were just joking around…girls (at least my friends and I) like to do that all the time—and no, we're not lesbian. Anyway, NO offense to anyone.

That night, Lana twisted and turned, trying to rid of the ideas and thoughts that Clark's mini speech had provoked. Dreams of him caressing her body and kissing her until no end plagued her mind. Finally, after some more tossing and turning, she threw the white sheets off and grabbed her cordless phone on the bedside table.

"What am I doing?" Lana asked herself out loud, placing the cordless back on the night stand. She fell back down on the bouncy mattress, playing with a loose string in the sheets. After some debating, she glanced at the clock. 12:49.

She sat back up and picked up the phone, dialing the number to the Kent Farm. After the first ring, she hung up. Throwing the cordless on the bed next to her, she sighed and ran a hand through her long hair.

Several minutes passed of thoughts and hopes. Maybe she could do this after all…

Dialing the number again, Lana waited eagerly for someone to pick up.

"Hello?" The tired voice of Mrs. Kent sounded over the line.

"Mrs. Kent…I'm sorry for bothering you so late," Lana apologized, picking at a hole in the bed spread.

"Who's this?"

"Lana Lang."

"Oh…Hi, Lana." She could tell that Mrs. Kent was trying hard to suppress a yawn.

"Umm…Can I talk to Clark? I know it's really late, but…" Lana requested pathetically.

"Oh, of course." She could hear footsteps padding across the hallway and into Clark's room. Mumbles from Clark were exchanged to his mother. Lana couldn't help but giggle when she heard Clark shoot up once his mom had announced who was on the other line.

"Lana?" he answered breathlessly.

"Clark…hi," Lana breathed, twirling her hair in her fingers nervously.

"So…"

She gave a nervous laugh. "Umm…I couldn't sleep…."

"Me either."

"Yeah….Well…I'm feeling tired now, so I'll just go," Lana lied, mentally kicking herself.

"Wait!" Clark cried over the other line. "I mean—stay."

"Stay?"

"Lana…I want to apologize for the stuff I said earlier…. I had no right to say what I did…. If anything, you should be the one saying that stuff."

Lana bit her lip and laid back down on her sheets. "Are you really sorry?"

A pause on the other line.

"Be honest," Lana said softly.

A sigh. "No…I'm not," Clark admitted quietly. "I'm afraid that I might've scared you away."

"You didn't scare me away, Clark," she whispered, wishing that she could see his face.

"Good."

"Good."

"So…why the call at one in the morning?" Clark asked, curiosity in his voice.

"I was just thinking about all the stuff that you said earlier…and you're right," Lana said slowly. "I don't want to wait any longer either…I want this."

"Lana…you don't have to make any decisions now," Clark said quietly.

"No…Clark, I want this," Lana stated firmly. "I've never been so sure of anything in my life."

Silence on the other line.

"Clark?"

"Lana—I love you."

She smiled, feeling as if she was on cloud nine. "I love you too," she whispered.

"So…does this mean that you'll go on a date with me?" he asked, suddenly sounding nervous. "Not for kissing or anything—but just to talk."

"Talk?" she repeated.

"Yeah…talk about us…about me…"

"About you?"

"I don't want anything between us anymore…I'm ready."

Lana smiled some more, pleased that he was finally going to open up. Maybe this time it would work.

"I'd love to go on a date with you, Clark," Lana replied happily.

"I promise that I won't disappoint you."

"I believe you," Lana whispered. She brought her knees to her chest and rested her head on them.

"Lana…I have to go now…. I have to wake up early to do the morning chores."

"Oh, right. Of course," she said, sad that he had to go.

"I'll talk to you tomorrow?"

"Bye, Clark," Lana said softly, hanging up. With a huge grin on her face, she slipped back under the covers and fell into a pleasant dream.

The next day, Clark woke up fairly early with a smile. Not once did it falter while doing his morning chores either. During his shower, he burst out in an out-of-tune song. Yup, the day was going well for Clark Kent.

"You're up early; considering the fact that you were up half the night," Martha commented as Clark bounced down the stairs, a grin still plastered on his face.

"I figured that I'd get a head start on this lovely day." He surprised his mother by giving her a kiss on the cheek and sat down at the table, waiting for his breakfast.

"Now something must be wrong if he just used the word, 'lovely'," Jonathon announced as he also took a seat at the table.

"Well, be glad we have a jubilant Clark instead of a gloomy Clark," Martha joked, bringing over two plates of eggs for her boys.

"Well, I hope that that smile won't go away because you still have your chores to do," Jonathon said, digging into his breakfast.

"I already did them," Clark said, chewing over his eggs also. "These eggs are great, mom. Did you add something in them?"

Martha looked over at him in surprise. "You're certainly in a good mood—I can't remember the last time you complemented my eggs." She smiled at him and took a seat next to him.

Clark shrugged. "Is it such a crime to be happy?"

"No, of course not," his mom contradicted. "I just haven't seen you so happy in such a long time. It's a nice change."

Jonathon cleared his throat and got up from the table, dumping his plate in the sink. "Well, just be sure that grin of yours is still there when you get home from school. We still have that fence to mend."

His father turned to leave when Clark called him back. "Dad, maybe you should take a break for a couple of days."

Jonathon sighed and glanced at his wife before turning back to his son. "Clark, as much as I would like to do that—this farm still has to be kept running. Besides, I'm feeling fine. It was just an allergic reaction."

Clark got up and dumped his empty plate in the sink. "But, the doctors don't know what you were allergic to—what if it's still out there?"

"Well, telling the cows and chickens that I'm allergic to some unknown won't exactly go well with them," Jonathon said, smiling. He gave his son a thump on the back. "Clark, don't worry about me. I'll be fine."

Clark took a seat next to his mom again and heard the screen door clank, announcing that his dad went out.

"So…what did you and Lana talk about last night?" Martha asked curiously.

Clark took a swig of his orange juice and eyed his mother. "Just some stuff."

"Stuff, huh?" Martha repeated, rearranging the place mats.

"Are you prying? Clark asked playfully, remembering the last time he had used that line. He got up and threw his red backpack over one shoulder.

"No, of course not," Martha retorted with a smile. She also rose and went over to the sink.

Clark fidgeted with the shoulder strap of his backpack, suddenly appearing nervous.

"Mom?"

"Hmm?"

He took a breath. "I want to tell Lana my secret."

Clark could've sworn he heard a plate break.

Martha turned around and looked at her son. He was serious.

"Mom, before you say anything─"

Martha smiled at her son. "Sit." She pulled off her yellow gloves and sat at the table, pulling out a chair for him.

"First of all, why do you want to tell her?"

Clark blinked, taken aback from his mom's approach of the situation. "I guess…I don't want any more secrets between us. I'm tired of all the times I have to lie to her just to cover up my abilities. It's not fair to her or me."

"And why else?" his mother asked, reaching over and patting her son's hand.

"I love her," Clark confessed, not feeling the least bit embarrassed admitting it to his mom.

Clark watched as his mother's wrinkled-face break into a smile. Although he had never actually thought of his parents as particularly old, something about his mother right now changed that.

"If you love her, then tell her," Martha said with a kind smile.

Clark grinned. "Thanks, mom." He got up and gave her a hug complete with a kiss on the cheek.

Martha Kent watched with sad eyes as her son exited the door with a huge grin on his face. Although she had made him happy by giving him her support, she couldn't help but feel a twinge of sadness. Her son was growing up.

Clark cautiously opened the door to Lex Luthor's study, not wanting to alarm his friend. It had been a while since he'd been the mansion. For the past year, he and Lex had been slowly drifting apart. It wasn't like he had been avoiding Lex or anything—their schedules just didn't fit anymore. With Lex having to run off to Metropolis for business meetings and such, Clark had found that he barely knew his friend anymore. Age, something that didn't seem to matter much before, was starting to now. While Clark was still in high school, filling out forms and such for college, Lex was in the fully fledge business world where only the strong survived.

Age wasn't the only thing hindering their relationship, as Clark had found. Perspectives of the world and opinions on good and wrong were also. Over the years, he had observed little things that had put Lex apart from himself. While he, Clark, had always been careful and cautious about endangering people, Lex had not only put himself in danger numerous times before, but he had pushed limits to their friendship. Spying on his family for instance, or snooping for clues about Clark's aura of mysteriousness. Lex had called Clark a brother several times before, but now, Clark wasn't so sure about that. He wasn't sure if he wanted someone as cunning, manipulative, and possibly destructive as a brother, or a friend.

"Are you going to stand there or are you going to come in?"

Clark blinked and looked up. He smiled uncertainly at his friend, who was perched on his chair at his desk. He stepped into the room and tripped over a box.

"Whoa…careful there, Clark!" Lex said, standing up and walking towards him. "I have some valuable heirlooms in that box that you nearly squashed."

Clark smiled sheepishly. "Sorry, Lex." He shoved his hands in his pocket and glanced around. "What's with all the boxes?" He indicated the various boxes scattered around the room. "Are you remodeling?"

"No, not at all," Lex said, chuckling. He gently prodded the box that Clark had tripped on and pushed it out of the way. "I may be rich, Clark, but I know how to put my money to good use."

"Right," Clark walked over to the couch, the only furniture besides the desk and chair left standing in the room. "So, you still haven't answered my question yet."

Lex pondered Clark for a moment before asking, "Where's your mom?"

"She had a shift at the Talon to cover…. She told me to tell you that she was sorry she couldn't make it…." Clark explained, wondering why Lex kept putting off his question.

"That's too bad…. I had a business proposal for her," Lex said, waving his arms in the air for Clark to stand up.

He obliged and allowed the two men who had come to take the couch, take it.

"Really? I hope it wasn't too important…. I can tell her to drop by tomorrow," Clark said offhandedly.

"On the contrary, I was and still am going to offer my share of the Talon to her," Lex spilled, watching the movers take his desk and chair.

"What? Why would you do that?" Clark asked, confused.

"Because I'm moving to Metropolis."

Clark's eyebrow's furrowed. "Why? Smallville gotten too boring for you?"

Lex chuckled. "Not at all. I can never imagine this town to be boring—the opposite of what I had predicted before I first came here."

"Lex, I don't understand…." Clark said, putting his hands in his pockets. "Then why?"

"Clark, have you ever sat down one day and wondered about the future?" Lex asked, his expression pensive.

"Well, sure; college," Clark said.

"No." He shook his head. "I mean, what you want out of life. What kind of legacy you want to live behind."

Clark viewed Lex for a moment before saying, "I don't know…. I haven't really thought about that."

"Well, I have and I've decided that Smallville isn't exactly the best place to leave behind a big impression on the business industry," Lex said animatedly. "You have to go to the big city for that."

"So, you're leaving to run LuthorCorp?" Clark asked slowly.

"Yes and no. LuthorCorp is just one part of the equation. The other part is about change and moving toward greater things," Lex explained. "My father's gone now, Clark. I no longer feel guilty about taking over his assets."

Clark nodded, remembering when Lionel Luthor's death had been all over the media.

"Well, I'll miss you," Clark offered, breaking the silence. "It won't be quite the same around here without one of your LexCorp experiments gone awry."

Lex smiled slightly. "And with my move also comes the loss of your family's supply of free fertilizer."

Clark faked a smile, remembering his dad's sudden allergic reaction. "Lex…you haven't added anything new in the last batch of fertilizer, have you?"

"Well, my team of scientists have been tweaking the formula a bit to insure its effectiveness."

Clark fidgeted with a loose string on his red t-shirt. "Lex, I don't know if you've heard, but my father recently had an allergic reaction to something on the farm. Is there any chance that the fertilizer…"

"Clark, I assure you that the fertilizer is perfectly safe," Lex said firmly. "Besides, I let you come into the manufacturing room and see how it was made."

"So what you're telling me is that it's just made out of crap, dirt, and some secret stuff that you refuse to tell me?"

"Yes, and I promise you that there are no meteor rocks in it."

Clark nodded, although he still had his suspicions. Every time he got near the stuff, a wave of nausea would wash over him. His guts told him that kryptonite was the secret ingredient that Lex had mentioned, but his nature to give people the doubt of the benefit argued with that. The only reason that Jonathon and Martha Kent had agreed to be the guinea pigs in the testing was mainly because of Clark and his pleading to give Lex a chance.

"Okay, in that case, I'll pick up another bag on my way out."

"Actually, I have two bags right over there." Lex pointed to two sacks up against the wall. "The last ones. If you like, you can wipe me clean of them today. The fertilizer is going on the market soon after we get it approved."

Clark walked over to the sacks and bent down to retrieve then. He straightened up without them when colorful papers on top of a box caught his eye.

"What are these?" Clark asked curiously, picking them up and waving them.

Lex grinned. "I'm hosting a post prom bash for the seniors. With no doubt, the media will find its way in and that's when I'll officially announce my departure to Metropolis."

"A business party?"

"A business party for me—more graduation fever for the seniors."

Clark laughed and grinned. "I'm sure that my fellow classmates will love it—another chance to spike the punch bowls."

"Speaking of prom and punch bowls, who is Mr. Quarterback taking to prom?"

"Actually, I don't think I'm going to go," Clark said, his mood declining. "I don't have a date."

"Who's the girl?"

"What?"

"Well, the star quarterback and nominee for Prom King shouldn't have trouble getting a date," Lex said rationally. "There must be some girl by the name of Lana Lang involved in your dateless situation."

Clark shrugged uncomfortably. He wasn't exactly sure if he wanted to share his love life with Lex at the moment. It had been a while since the two of them had really talked and now, standing here, Clark felt as if he and Lex were strangers. Sure, they still knew each other's doings and whereabouts, but that was it. No heavy emotions were needed and no earth-shattering secrets were revealed.

"Well, I'm going to get going now. Unfortunately, the homework doesn't stop in mid-May," Clark said, breaking the silence.

"Don't forget the fertilizer," Lex reminded.

"Oh, right. Thanks, Lex," Clark nodded towards him and lifted a sack of fertilizer. He was about to lift the other one when he realized that it would be too heavy for a normal man to carry. He could feel Lex's eyes resting on him.

"Lex, I'll have to come back for this one—it's too heavy," Clark lied, beginning to walk out the door.

"That's fine," Lex replied.

A moment later, he came back.

"Well, I'll see you later, Lex." He picked up the final sack and started to head out. The last image he saw of Lex was him pulling out his cell phone and dialing a number.