After the final bell rang at school, everyone breathed a sigh of relief. It was the signal that they were done with half the finals for the school year. Kiley jumped from her chair, grabbed her bag, and then raced for the door. She wanted to be able to wait outside the school for Clark. He still hadn't given her camera back, and she wanted to thank him again in person.
Waiting by the school's front doors, Kiley kept an eye out for Clark. She finally spotted him making his way out of the school 5 min after she had.
"Hey Clark!" she called out, waving her hand so that he could see her. Clark grinned and waved back, a smile already lighting his face. Quickly he made his way over to her, pulling his backpack from his shoulders. When he reached her he set it down and pulled out her camera.
"Here, thought you might want this back."
Kiley lunged forward, grabbing the camera with both hands and cradled it to her chest.
"Thank you thank you thank you thank you!" she laughed, wanting to do a little dance. "I was sure I was dead when Daniels dumped my bag." She paused, "how did you find it so fast? I always hide it just in case." Clark grinned and shrugged.
"It wasn't that hard to find. Maybe you didn't hide it as well this time." Kiley wasn't so sure about that, she always took extra care to hide the camera, but she let it slide.
"Well thanks again. I still owe you. What do you want?" she grinned at him as he contemplated what he wanted.
"Didn't you say something about feeding me? Let's start there." He offered her his arm companionably and she took it, hooking her arm through his. Together they left the school and headed towards home.
"Kiley, please! This is the third time we've stopped!" Clark groaned as Kiley pulled her arm from his again to grab her camera from her bag. He rolled his eyes as she scurried around the dirt road, trying to get the best light on the crow that had landed on the scarecrow in the middle of the corn field.
"I'm sorry! I can't help it. This is just too good to let go! And keep you voice down, you might scare him away." Quietly she climbed the fence to get as close as she could to the crow. As soon as he shifted, Kiley froze, not wanting him to fly away. Slowly she lifted the camera to her eye, and focused on the bird. Quickly she took a few pictures, just to make sure that one didn't come out blurry. Suddenly there was a loud clap behind her, and the bird took off in fright. Immediately her finger pressed down, and a picture was snapped. She held her breath as she realized she might have just gotten the best picture she had taken in a while. But then, that didn't stop her from turning and pouncing on Clark, who was standing on the other side of the fence looking innocent.
"You! What if I hadn't taken the picture yet?" She vaulted the fence and landed next to him, standing as tall as her 5 foot 5 frame would allow her. She walked up to Clark and poked him hard in the chest, looking up into his face. "Hmmm? What if you ruined my chance for the photo contest next month?"
"But you had already taken a few, and I wanted to go." Kiley rolled her eyes.
"How did you know I had taken some already?" Clark shrugged and tapped his ear.
"Good hearing." He replied with a cheeky smile. Kiley was forced to resist the urge to roll her eyes again at his response. She sighed gustily and picked up her bag again, and headed down the road.
"So, we gonna stop at your house?" she asked casually, stopping in the middle of the road to wait for Clark.
"Nah, I'm thinking I would just drop my stuff off then head to your house." Clark bit his tongue as he said this to keep from laughing at the dismayed expression on Kiley's face.
"We're not going to stop?" the pleading in Kiley's voice was barely audible, but Clark could hear it. He couldn't help but grin.
"Ok, we can stop, and I'll ask my mom for some of her spinach puffs."
"Spinach Puffs!" Kiley nearly shrieked. Now Clark was helpless to keep from laughing.
"I'm kidding Kiley. She was planning baking this morning, so you're in luck; you still get to stuff your face full of her cookies. Again."
Kiley looked up at Clark with a slightly frustrated look on her face. "You know Clark, you aiming to get yourself beat up by a girl. I'm warning you now; because I'm gonna kick your butt in a second!" With that she jumped on his back, locking her legs around his waist.
"Kiley!" Clark laughed, trying to get her off his back. Kiley just laughed and held on more tightly as Clark spun back and forth, trying to dislodge her from his back. After a few more moments, Clark realized that he wasn't going to be able to dislodge the girl from his back. He stopped his efforts, and groaned.
"Kiley, you need to get off now." He stopped to see if she would comply. When she didn't, he went on, using the only blackmail that he knew would work.
"I'll tell my mother that you aren't allowed to eat her baking anymore because you have been ruining your appetite for you dinner at home, and your father doesn't want you eating her stuff anymore." He couldn't help but grin as she leaped off his back and landed on the ground.
"Don't you dare, Clark Kent. You know full well that isn't true. You wouldn't lie to your mother anyway."
"It got you off my back, didn't it?" he said with a sly smirk. He jumped back as she lunged for him again. He avoided her for a few seconds, then held up his hands in a show of peace.
"Truce?" he asked, sticking his hand out for her to shake. Kiley sighed.
"Truce." She grabbed his hand and squeezed, meaning to get him back a little, but was surprised when he didn't even flinch. She looked up into his smirking face, an eyebrow raised in her direction.
"I saw that coming from a mile away." He explained. She grinned and dropped his hand, and started down the road again.
"Really Mrs. Kent, you cook too well to be allowed too. I mean, you could sell these snickerdoodles and make a fortune!" Kiley divulged while sitting on a stool in the Kent kitchen, her feet swinging back and forth under the counter. Her red hair was down and fell over her shoulders as she ate. Impatiently she pushed it back behind her again.
"Guess what? Mr. Daniels chewed me out again for being late. He was going to take my camera, but Clark saved my life when he took it out of my bag before I brought my bag up to Daniels' desk." Martha eyed her with a knowing look.
"You were late. Again." She raised her eyes to the ceiling. "Why am I not surprised to find out that it was because you were taking pictures?" Kiley shrugged and took another bite of the cookie.
"I can't help it. Do you understand me, how do I explain...? I mean, it's something I have to do. I can't help myself. If I see something beautiful, I want to be able to capture it forever. That's what a picture is. A moment captured forever, the moment might be gone the next minute, but by taking the picture, you have a chance of saving it." She was silent for a minute. "Sometimes I wish I had taken more pictures of my mother before she died."
Martha smiled softly as she brought another batch of baked goods out of the pantry. Kiley's mom, Margaret Morgan had died in a car accident while on her way back from visiting her sister in Willowdale. That had been 4 years ago, and Kiley still didn't talk about her mother often. Martha had been supportive, always being there to listen whenever Kiley needed someone to talk to.
Taking the goodies, she placed them on a large plate and wrapped them up in plastic, then tucked them in a small basket along with a loaf of banana bread that she had made that morning. With a smile she placed it in front of Kiley, laughing at the awed looked on her face.
"Here, take some home, but make sure to share with your pa."
"Really?" At her shocked tone Martha let out another laugh.
"Really Kiley." At her words, Kiley shot up off the stool, and ran to give Martha a hug.
"Thank you Mrs. Kent." She held on tightly to the woman. "Knowing you're here is almost like having mom back. Thank you." Martha returned the embrace just as fiercely as she felt tears sting her eyes. She looked over the girl's shoulder to see her son, Clark, standing in the doorway to the kitchen. She sent him a watery smile, then let go of Kiley.
"Now you go and keep Clark out of trouble. I hear you owe him a dinner at the diner." Kiley smiled, her mood soaring.
"Don't worry Mrs. Kent, I won't let him do anything too illegal." She giggled as Clark made a snorting noise behind her. Quickly she rose up on her toes to give Martha a kiss on the cheek, then grabbed the basket, gave Clark a friendly shove, and then disappeared out the door.
Clark watched Kiley play with their new puppy for a few moments before walking up to his mother.
"Mom?" he asked, concerned about the tears he had seen earlier in her eyes.
"Don't worry Clark, I'm fine. We just had a little chat. Nothing to worry about." She gave his shoulder a squeeze to let him know that she was fine, then walked back to the kitchen. "You're father is coming home late tonight, so your chores had better be done by the time he gets home." Clark grinned.
"Don't worry mom, they will be." With that he followed Kiley out the door and into the yard.
Yeah, I know, a filler chapter, but it explains a little of who she is, and a little insight on why photography is so big for her. Don't worry though, there's more coming. I'm already writing the next chapter!