okay, I really enjoyed writing this part!
&
&
&

Lex un-strapped Clark, and grabbed under his arms, sliding Clark out of the tank. Lana helped Lex lay Clark down on the floor, gently. Lex flipped his cell phone open as he called someone, for help, Lana assumed.
She knelt down over Clark, and tired to brush the broken glass that was under him, away. "Clark, you're gonna be okay." Lana comforted him.
"Lana." Clark said, opening his eyes a little,

"I'm sorry..." Clark sounded like he was having trouble breathing still. Lana had no idea what Clark was sorry for.
Clark had seen thousands of memories, of this life. He saw how many times he hurt Lana, how many horrible things Lionel had done to him, how Jonathan sacrificed his health to bring him back from Metropolis.
"Lana, let's get him out of here." Lex said, forcing Clark to his feet, and putting an arm around his neck, for support, and Lana on the other side, they brought him out to the front desk and set him down on the carpet.
Lex wasn't surprised to see his father was gone.
"Clark, what happened?" Lana asked, seeing that Clark looked like he felt a lot better, he was sitting up.
Clark didn't answer her for along time, but finally he said
"I was wrong... I always was wrong."
&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&
Clark woke up in his room. Even in his dreams, he continued to see memories, important and just random moments that meant nothing.

Hope, dangles on a string
Like slow spinning redemption
Winding in and winding out
The shine of it has caught my eye
Roped me in so mesmerizing
And so hypnotizing
I am captivated
I am...

Yesterday changed his whole life, and not just this life. His whole way of thinking had been wrong, and everyone saw it but him. Lana was right, Lex was right, The Kents were right... Lionel was evil.

Vindicated
I am selfish, I am wrong
I am right, I swear I'm right
Swear I knew it all along
And I am flawed
But I am cleaning up so well
I am seeing in me now
The things you swore you saw yourself

Clark especially hated the memory of how Lionel had drugged Lex, driving him crazy, because he found out that Lionel had, had his parents killed for their life insurance money.
His father was a murderer.
He ruined people's lives in order to get what he wanted.
Clark hated himself so much; he could see every mistake he had made, so clearly. Trusting Lionel, telling Chloe his secret, all mistakes.

So clear
Like the diamond in your ring
Cut to mirror your intention
Oversized and overwhelmed
The shine of which has caught my eye
And rendered me so isolated
So motivated, I am certain now
That I am..

Clark just wanted to die. He didn't want to live in this reality; he didn't want to go back to his real life anymore, either.

Vindicated
I am selfish, I am wrong
I am right, I swear I'm right
Swear I knew it all along
And I am flawed
But I am cleaning up so well
I am seeing in me now
The things you swore you saw yourself

Clark hated them both, if he did something right in one, he messed up something else he did right in the other. This life he had to guard his secret so closely, that not even Lana completely trusted him. In real life, the only reason he could be more open with his secret was that Lionel would basically destroy anyone who knew or told his secret. He had parents, who he loved, and they loved him back, but he didn't have Lana. In real life, he had Lana, but a cold hearted killer for a father, who was raising him to be just like him. Clark saw it all now, Lionel was turning Clark into himself, and he let him.

Trace the moment, fall forever
Defense is paper thin
Just one touch and I'd be in too deep
to ever swim against the current

So let me slip away, so let me slip away
So let me slip away, so let me slip against the current
So let me slip away, so let me slip away
So let me slip away, so let me slip away

Lionel had been everything to Clark; he had taught him everything. So what are you supposed to do when your rock is gone?

&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&

"Jonathan, I'm so worried about him... he has been sleeping for 4 days. He just sits up there in his room." Martha said.
"Well the accident at Summerholt was pretty traumatic. The kryptonite must have been so painful." Jonathan couldn't stand the thought of it.
"He's not sick, Jonathan. He is depressed. He barely says two words, he doesn't eat; you've seen him. He is going threw so much pain inside." Martha felt like crying, she couldn't stand seeing her baby like this, "We both know it wasn't just Summerholt. Clark has been through stuff like this before; it's something else."
"I tried talking to him yesterday, and barely even answered me. I just wish I knew what was bothering him, so I could help him." Jonathan wished he could go through Clark's pain for him.
"He needs to get up and out. Maybe if he saw his friends, do you think that would cheer him up a little?" Martha asked, but didn't wait for an answer, "I'm going to go call Pete."
"I'm going to go and try and see if he will talk." Jonathan headed up the stairs.

Jonathan knocked on Clark's door, and when he didn't get a response he walked in.
"Hey, Clark. Feeling any better?" Jonathan said, and he pulled out the chair by Clark's desk, and sat down next to the bed.
Clark was awake, sitting in his bed, "sure."
"Clark, your mother is really worried about you." Jonathan said. Clark just looked away. All the memories he had seen, had given him a new love for Martha and Jonathan, as parents, and he felt a pang of guilt for making them worry, but it didn't motivate him to get out of bed, to move on, to face the world; it just made him more depressed.
"Clark, what happened?" Jonathan asked.
Clark gave Jonathan a brief look, revealing all the pain he was feeling before looking away again. Clark didn't think he could ever tell anyone, because saying it out loud made it more real, more painful.
"Clark, why don't you at least go take a shower, you'll feel better once you're up." Jonathan was once again greeted by silence, he patted Clark's shoulder, "Come on."
"Okay." Clark said, it came out softer than a whisper. He slowly pulled back the covers and his feet touched the cold floor.
&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&

"I got him to take a shower, it's a start at least." Jonathan told Martha.
"Good. I asked Pete to come over and he'll be here in an hour. I didn't want to ask Clark, I was afraid he would say no." Martha said nervously.
"Maybe Pete can help Clark, because, Martha, I can't stand to see him like that." Jonathan admitted.
"I know." Martha finally let herself cry, and Jonathan wrapped his arms around her. Martha hated this more than anything in the world, seeing her son in so much pain and being so close, but not being able to help him. She'd give anything to take away his pain.
&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&

"Hey, Mrs. Kent." Pete said, as Martha answered the door, "Is Clark doing any better?"
Martha shook her head, sadly.
Pete decided he shouldn't tell anyone about how Clark wasn't the king of plaid they loved. Pete didn't even feel like visiting Clark,, after all this was not his best friend, it wasn't even close.
&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&
"Hey, man." Pete said, walking into Clark's room. Pete immediately felt guilty for not wanting to be there, when he saw Clark.
Clark looked over at Pete.
&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&

"So, how did it go?" Martha asked, as Pete came back down to the kitchen.
"He barely said anything. I just couldn't talk to him." Pete couldn't think of a more awkward scene, as he thought back on the 15 minutes he spent with Clark. "He just wanted to be alone."
"Alright, well thanks for coming over, anyways, Pete." Martha said, as Pete left.
&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&

"Clark's still not at school?" Chloe said to Pete and Lana, as they all were hanging around the torch.
"I saw him yesterday and he is totally depressed." Pete shared.
"Why?" Lana and Chloe said at the same time.
"I have no idea. He won't tell me, he barely even says anything. The Kents said he isn't eating."
"Poor Clark, he must have been pretty messed up, from Summerholt." Chloe said, feeling guilty. She should have stopped him.
"No, he isn't sick. It's not that... it's something else." Pete said, handing Chloe the front page to the Torch as she placed it in a stack of papers.
"I should go visit him." Lana said, she couldn't get the image of Clark strapped down, and underwater, completely pale.
"You can if you want, but he doesn't even talk, it's like he is in his own little world. He sits there and mumbles 'okay' every once and a while." Pete felt he should warn Lana of the uncomfortable situation she would be in.
"Maybe it has something to do with his personality change last week." Chloe suggested.
"Naw, it's not that." Pete knew.
&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&

"Lana." Jonathan said, surprised, as he answered the door.
"Hey, Mr. Kent. I have Clark's homework." Lana used that as an excuse, "And I thought I could try and cheer him up a little, Pete told me he isn't doing so good."
"Ya, sure." Jonathan opened the door wider, as Lana stepped in, "But I have to warn you, he isn't really talking a lot."
"I heard." Lana said, as Martha came in.
"Hi, Lana." She said in a cheerful voice, "Are you here to see Clark?"
"Ya."
"He's up in his room." Martha told her, "Oh, and can you bring this up to him?" Martha handed her a plate of food, "I doubt he'll eat it, but at least it's there."
"Sure, no problem." Lana headed up the stairs, and knocked on Clark's door. Clark didn't respond, so she just opened it.
"Hey." Lana smiled, in spite of how she felt, looking at Clark, he looked as if his spirit was gone, "I brought you food."
Lana thought she saw Clark's eyes brighten a little bit, but then they returned back to the former emptiness that held nothing but pain.

Memories consume
Like opening the wounds
I'm picking me apart again
You all assume
I'm searching in my room
Unless I try to start again

"It's okay, I'm not hungry." Clark, sat up a little more.
"Okay, I'll just put it here. Chloe wanted me to say hi for her." Lana set it on his desk. She sat down on Clark's bed, "So I here you aren't doing so well."
Clark looked her in the eyes, confirming it.
"You feel okay?" Lana asked.
"I'm not sick." Clark informed her.
"Then what's wrong?" Lana held his hand. Clark didn't answer her.
"Come on, Clark. Tell me what's going on inside your head." Lana squeezed his hand.
Clark sighed, "I just want to end it."
Clark saw Lana's eyes widen, "What, why?" Did Clark actually say that?
Clark felt better with Lana there, "If I go back... I'll be just like him... hurting people. If I stay... I won't even have you. Either way, I'll end up totally alone." Clark wasn't really concerned if Lana understood or not, he just knew that he always trusted her, and confided in her.

"Clark..." Lana cupped Clark's face with her small hand, tilting his head up, forcing him to look into her eyes, "I'll always be here for you. You aren't alone, you have your parents, Lex, Chloe, Pete, and me."
"Lana, I saw it. You leave to Paris, Lex betrays me, Pete leaves because of my secret..." Clark found that saying at least part of it aloud, didn't hurt him more.
Lana would have dismissed Clark's ramblings, as paranoia, but she thought back to the Paris school of Arts pamphlet in her room, which no one knew about but her.
"Clark..." Lana wasn't sure what to say.
"What would you do, if everything you thought was true, was just a lie. If the one person you trusted with your life, who always gave you the answers, who made you who you are was evil? And you were bound to end up just like him? I just see no way out." Clark confided.
"Clark, you aren't going to become evil." Lana smiled, "I'm sure of it. Clark, I don't know what's happening to you, but I know you are so strong; you can find a way."
"I can't." Clark's voice quivered. Lana looked at him, to see a single tear slide down his cheek.
"Clark." She hugged him, and he held onto her, tight, "You're going to be okay. You can do this. Because no matter what kind of future you see for yourself, if you want to change it, you'll find a way, I know you will." Lana broke the hug, but she held onto his arm, rubbing it, "Clark, you are the most incredible person I know; you've been through so much, and pretty soon, you'll be able to put this on that list."

Clark believed her. He didn't know why he didn't see it before; Lana was the answer. She was always there for him, she was his rock, not Lionel.
Lana had so much hope as she saw a smile sweep across Clark's face, "Come on, take a shower, and we'll go out. We'll go see a movie or something." Lana said in a cheery voice.
"Alright." Cark said in a happier tone than Lana had heard him use the whole time.

I don't want to be the one,
the battles always choose
Because inside I realized
that I'm the one confused
I don't know what's worth fighting for
Or why I have to scream
I don't know why I instigate
and say what I don't mean
I don't know how I got this way
I know it's not alright
So I'm breaking the habits tonight

&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&

"You look so much better, already, Clark." Lana said, as he came back into his room, with fresh clothes on and his hair was still wet.
"uh huh." Clark said sarcastically, but he laughed a little.
"What's with..." Lana walked over to Clark, and gently tugged on a clump of hair that was noticeably longer than the rest, "this?"
Clark looked in the mirror for the first time in days, "I donno."
"Sit." Lana said pulling out a chair, and opening his desk drawer, pulling out a pair of scissors, "I'll give you a hair cut." Lana smiled.
"Ya, no thanks." Clark said, "You're gonna give me a chop job." Clark laughed.
Lana was happy to see him actually making a joke, "No, come on. I swear, I'll do a good job."
Clark reluctantly sat down in the chair. As Lana started cutting his hair, he realized how bad he looked, yet it didn't embarrass him, he didn't care that much yet.
Clark noticed the plate of food on the desk, and slide it over to where he was leaning on the desk, and took a bite.

Clutching my cure
I tightly lock the door
I try to catch my breath again
I heard much more
Than inside before
I have no options left again

&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&
"Jonathan, are you hungry?" Martha asked as Jonathan came in from the back door.
"Not really." He said as he went to the sink and washed his hands.
"Okay, then. I'll start making dinner in about an hour." Martha said.
"I saw Lana car still out there." Jonathan noted.
"Ya, she's been here almost an hour. I think that's a good sign." Martha said hopefully.
Martha and Jonathan looked over to the stairs, when they heard footsteps, and they saw Lana and Clark come down.
"Um, we were just going to go to a movie, if that's okay." Lana said.
"Ya." Martha said a little too enthusiastic.
"Bye." Clark smiled at Martha and Jonathan, before he shut the door and left.
"He is actually going out and did you see him smile?" Martha couldn't control her own smile.
"Ya, sweetheart." Jonathan smiled too.
&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&

Lana made sure they went to a comedy, and she didn't bring up anything or ask anything about why or what Clark had meant, what he was talking about in his room. She made an extra effort to make it as normal as possible, while adding a little extra cheer.
Clark found that just getting out, walking around, helped him. He couldn't just focus completely on his problems, like he could in his bedroom. And being with Lana, reminded him of how much he loved her. He thought back to real life, and he knew Lana was worth it, she would help him be a good person.
About 2 hours after they had left the house, Lana really noticed Clark start to really snap out of his depression. He started conversations on his own, and she could just tell, his eyes gave him away. Although he did seem different, just in the way he talked, acted, Lana was just happy that he made so much progress in such a short amount of time.
&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&=&

Clark and Lana were walking down Smallville's main street, and Clark held Lana's hand. He knew they weren't together, not here, but he didn't care. He stopped, and turned to face Lana, "Lana, thank you." He meant it on so many levels, and so deeply. He had said those words so many time, but never really knew what if felt like to truly mean it with all of your soul.
"Anytime." Lana smiled, and Clark hugged her. Clark couldn't fight the urge, and didn't even want to try, so he bent over and kissed Lana.
When he parted the kiss after a few moments, he looked into Lana's eyes and saw nothing but acceptance and love.
As he was starring at her, everything started to go blurry and fade, more and more. Clark blinked, hoping his vision would return to normal, but found that the only thing in front of him was Todd, Clark tried to ask him what was happening, but everything went black.
&
&
&TBC . . .

Song lyrics by Dashboard Confessionals & Linkin Park
Okay, I hope you liked it! I really appreciate all your feedback, keep it coming!