Disclaimer: Again, characters belong to DC, WB, AlMiles, etc. etc. etc. I only own the story. Critiques/feedback are encouraged!
Chapter 2
And cue the uncomfortable silence.
She didn't mean to tell him. It just came out. She closed her eyes and mentally kicked herself for it.
"I'm sorry."
Of course he was.
He was always sorry for something. It was really just a polite thing to say, a blank statement with no real sentiment.
"And I know I wasn't the one that got her hooked on cigarettes behind the gym during high school." She laughed. He remembered. "But I'm sorry you have to go through this. I can't imagine what it's like to lose a parent, especially when you're only six years old."
She couldn't believe he remembered.
"Yeah, well, you gotta play the hand life gives you. If it was up to me, I would've grown up with two parents in a loving home. Instead, my mom died, my sister was sent away to boarding school, and I was left with my father who dragged me all over the world like a spare piece of luggage."
There's that familiar wall inching its way up.
"What do you remember about her?"
She smiled at his innocence.
"Well, you've met my father, right?"
He hesitated at the mention of the General.
"Yeah."
"Well, she was the complete opposite of him."
He laughed. Somehow he knew that was probably the case.
"She was always the peacekeeper. She kept Lucy and me in line. And she could calm down the General by simply placing her hand on his shoulder, looking him square in the eye and saying, 'You're never dealt more than you can handle. And if you can't handle it, then that's what I'm here for.' She'd always say it with a wink and a smile." She paused and stared into the fire. "I miss her."
She could feel a tear forming in the corner of her eye. She hoped it wouldn't fall. Not now. Not with him sitting so close. Why was she willingly opening up to him? This wasn't right. Yet, why did it feel right?
She'd already shared something she'd only told one other person. And she felt much more comfortable crying in front of Chloe than she would ever feel in Smallville's presence.
She closed her eyes and turned her head away from him. Weak. That's what she was.
If the General were here, he'd tell her to 'Stop that crying right now, Lo. Just suck it up. I don't want to hear it anymore. You don't want to look weak in front of Lucy, now, do you?' She could hear his gruff voice reverberating through her head.
She hated hearing that. She hated having to always be the strong one. But she did it anyway, for Lucy.
Clark sat there staring at her with a half smile that said he wanted to comfort her, but wasn't sure how. She couldn't blame him, when even she didn't know what she needed to be comforted.
She hated uncomfortable silences, and this was beginning to be unbearable. She was going to break down in front of him if she kept her current thought process.
"Lois…"
She took a deep breath. Thank goodness.
"I don't know what to say. But, I'm here for you. And I know we sometimes don't get along. But, just remember…," he said smiling and leaning over towards her, with his voice softer now, "we are friends now."
She smiled. There he goes again. How did he do it? How could he get her to smile on today of all days, when she wanted to do anything but smile?
"You haven't told anyone about that, have you? Because if you did, I'd have to hurt you, and not in the good way."
Now it was his turn to smile. That beaming Kent smile. It apparently goes along with that "famous Kent charm" Chloe's always talking about. Of course, Lois saw it. What girl wouldn't? She just didn't indulge herself in it like certain other girls. She was stronger than that.
"I wouldn't dream of it."
"Good."
She didn't want him there, but, for some unknown reason, she was glad he was sitting in her apartment on a cold and rainy night, making small talk. It's amazing how that small talk can have so many connotations.
He laid the picture of her mother he'd been holding back in the box and pushed himself up off the floor.
Was he leaving already?
"Well, I guess I'd better be going."
"No, wait!"
She hesitated. She wasn't too sure why she just said that. But all she knew is that she didn't want him to go now. She didn't want him to stay, but the thought of him leaving just didn't feel right, at least not then.
"Look, could you just stay for a little while?"
"I thought you said you wanted to be alone?"
"I did." Crap. She did. "But, that was then. This is now. And now I want you to stay." She had to say something. "I mean, it's cold, it's raining and it's late. I'd hate for you to drive all the way back out to the farm. The roads are probably slick and who knows what kind of crazies are out. Why don't you stay here tonight?"
"Stay…here?"
His voice cracked as if he'd hit puberty all over again. This apartment brought up too many memories. And the vast majority of those memories involved Lana.
And some of those memories, the more recent ones, involved various articles of clothing strewn across the floor and lots of nakedness.
"Yeah, here. Look," she said, pointing over her shoulder to the big overgrown piece of furniture she was leaning against, "I have a couch. You can sleep there."
He sighed and shoved his hands in his pockets.
"Lois, I don't know."
She sighed, put the pictures in the box, and quickly stood, placing her hands on her hips.
"Well, you're not leaving. I'm not going to be responsible for you careening off the road at 11 o'clock at night. Or worse, you could hit something."
He grinned.
"Like a dog?"
She smirked.
"Cute, Smallville. I just don't want to have to explain an accident to your parents."
She wasn't going to budge now. He'd come in and interrupted her evening of crying. Now she was gonna have to wait another 365 days before she could do it again.
"Okay. I'll stay. But, on one condition."
She eyed him cautiously. "And what's that?"
"You have to eat. My mom packed you a whole meal and I don't want to have to explain to my parents why you didn't eat her food."
"Fine. But you're going to warm it up."
And there was that Kent smile. "Sure." She turned to walk away. "Hey, Lois?" She stopped and faced him. "You wanna watch a movie or something? I mean, I know it's late, but if you didn't want to go to sleep right away, I figured we could do something."
"Yeah, a movie sounds great. I've got a ton of DVDs over there on those shelves. Go pick something out. And while you're doing that and warming up my dinner, I'm gonna go dry my hair."
She turned and headed towards the bathroom. Clark watched her leave the room and smiled. He was surprised at how much she shared with him that evening, but thankful nonetheless. He knew those opportunities didn't come often.
She shut the bathroom door and reached in the cabinet for the hairdryer. She plugged it in, turned it on and, running her fingers through her wet hair, got lost in her thoughts thanks to the din of the appliance.
She was surprised at how much she shared with him that evening, but she was glad and, in a way, relieved. She felt comfortable talking to him. It was…nice.
And he made her smile. She hated that. She never smiled on this day. No, on this day, she cried. But he made her smile. And she loved it.