Clark sits on a fencepost beside the barn, lost in his thoughts, staring at the sky. His thoughts are interrupted when a black Mercedes pulls up the long driveway. Clark recognizes it as Lex's car, but the driver is driving way too slow to be Lex. He's right as he sees a familiar brunette step out of the car.
"Lana." Clark calls and walks toward her. "What are you doing here?" He asks, surprised to see her.
"Hey Clark. After keeping me in that prison of boredom overnight, The doctors decided I'll live, and let me leave." She says with sarcasm and smiles. "Other than having a severe limp, I'm back to normal."
"I'm glad your ok. Seeing you unconscious and bleeding inside a crashed helicopter was one of my deepest fears." Clark tells her and inwardly frowns at himself. Why did I have to go and say that for? Just what she needs to hear when she's trying to get over me.
Lana smiles and her eyes brighten a bit. "Really?"
"Yeah." Clark answers.
Lana's smile fades and regains her serious expression. "I better say what I came over here to say, before I decide not to."
"What is it?" Clark asks, sensing that it's serious.
Lana sighs and sits down on a hay bale beside the fence. "I've decided not to stay in Smallville. I'm not a part of your life anymore, and there isn't any reason for me to stay."
Clark sits down beside her. "Lana, just because we aren't together anymore doesn't mean we cant be friends."
"That's just it, Clark. I can't go back to being your friend and always wanting more. If I don't let go now, I'll never get over you." Lana tells him.
Clark gets up and Lana follows him. "If that's what you want, I can't argue with you. I'm just sorry that I have to say goodbye."
"Thank you. It means a lot to me that I'm leaving on good terms this time." She says with a smile.
"If you need anything, you know I'll be here. And you know I can be there quicker than anyone else." Clark tells her and smiles.
"Thanks, Clark." She thanks him and gives him a hug.
"Bye, Lana." Clark says as they separate from the hug.
"Bye." Lana smiles one last time and walks back to the car. Clark watches as she drives away and fights the urge to run after her. Watching her step out of his life hurts just as much, every time.
:o
Clark walks back into the house slowly and slumps into one of kitchen chairs while his mom works busily in the kitchen. She's about to ask her son what's wrong when the phone rings.
"Clark, can you get that?" Martha asks.
Clark silently gets up and picks the phone up from the receiver. "Hello?"
"Hey, this is Todd. Todd Wrangler. Clark, is that you?" A voice Clark hasn't heard in awhile asks.
"Hey Todd, yeah it's me. How is everything?" Clark asks.
"Oh, not so good after yesterday. How did everything hold up at the farm?" Todd asks.
"Everything's great here at the farm. The meteors didn't come this far south. What happened?"
"I was out of town yesterday when it happened, and came back to this war zone. I pulled up my driveway to my garage turned into a crater and half my house gone." Todd tells him.
Clark's eyes widen. "Oh wow, sorry to hear that. At least your ok."
"Yeah, I'm ok. But your career isn't. The car was in that garage. Along with all my tools and everything." He explains.
"Well, what are we going to do? Did you have insurance?" Clark asks and sits back down.
Todd laughs. "Yeah, I had flood, tornado, fire… but sadly, my insurance company does not include meteor showers."
"If you need a place to stay, I'm sure my parents wouldn't mind." Clark offers.
"That's fine, I already have it covered. I just wanted to call and tell you about the car. I'm really sorry." Todd tells him.
"Don't worry about it, it's definitely not your fault." Clark says.
"If I hear of any rides opening up, I'll be sure to tell you. In the meantime, I wish the best of luck to you. But seeing you race, I'm sure you don't need it. I'll see you later, Clark." Todd says.
Clark smiles. "Thanks, Todd. Bye."
Jonathon walks in to the house as Clark hangs up the phone and notices the look on his face. "Clark, is everything alright?"
Clark shakes his head. "That was Todd. He lost his house to the meteor shower, along with his garage and my career."
Martha stops what she's doing and comes over. "That's awful, is he alright?"
"Yeah, he wasn't home. I just can't believe the car is gone. Everything was just getting going at the end of last year. Who knows how many wins I would have gotten this season." Clark says.
"You can't look at it that way, son." Jonathon tells him and sits down. "Maybe it was just your time to move on to other opportunities."
Clark sighs and stands up. "Listen to me. The guy just lost his house along with everything he's ever had, and I'm worried about a car." He reaches into his pocket and pulls out the keys to Amy's Trans-Am. "I need to get out of here and clear my thoughts. Do you mind if I go for a ride?" Clark asks and backs toward the door.
Martha glances at Jonathon to read his expression and answers. "Sure, hunny. Just don't stay out too late."
"Keep it under 90 and come back in one piece?" Jonathon asks, even though Clark could crash a fighter jet and still be in one piece.
Clark smiles and nods before walking out the door.
:o
The mid-afternoon sun shines down on the black pavement as Clark cruises down route 29 in the orphaned black trans-am. Clark has no idea where he's going, so he just puts the pedal to the metal and flies down the road out of Smallville. Sure, Smallville will always be the place where he grew up and the place he loves, but sometimes he just wants to get out of there.
The hum of the engine would be enough to sooth an ordinary gasoline-appreciating person, but all this resentment towards everything Clark's feeling right now, needs something more to sooth his mind. Clark shifts the car into high gear and exceeds 120 miles per hour. He presses the on button of the stereo system and it automatically goes to CD. Clark frantically tries to switch it over to radio, as he doesn't want to hear the last thing Amy listened to. Before he can, Green Day's Boulevard of Broken Dreams comes on.
I walk a lonely road
The only one that I have ever known
Don't know where it goes
But it's home to me and I walk alone
Clark finds the button to switch it to radio, but decides to turn the volume up instead.
I walk this empty street
On the Boulevard of Broken Dreams
Where the city sleeps
and I'm the only one and I walk alone
I walk alone
I walk alone
I walk alone
I walk a...
Route 29 is about to end and the "ç Grandville, Metropolis è" sign appears. Clark decides to goes left and cruises toward Grandville.
My shadow's the only one that walks beside me
My shallow heart's the only thing that's beating
Sometimes I wish someone out there will find me
'Til then I walk alone
Ah-ah, Ah-ah, Ah-ah, Aaah-ah,
Ah-ah, Ah-ah, Ah-ah
Clark finds himself pulling into the Grandville Speedway parking lot without any reason why. Two cars are busy practicing on the track as he pulls the car up to the fence.
I'm walking down the line
That divides me somewhere in my mind
On the border line
Of the edge and where I walk alone
Clark gets out of the car and sits down on the hood of the car, watching the cars go around the track.
Read between the lines
What's screwed up and everything's alright
Check my vital signs
To know I'm still alive and I walk alone
I walk alone
I walk alone
I walk alone
I walk a...
It's been nearly five months since he's been behind the wheel in a race, but it seems like an eternity. Who knows when the next time will be.
My shadow's the only one that walks beside me
My shallow heart's the only thing that's beating
Sometimes I wish someone out there will find me
'Til then I walk alone
Ah-ah, Ah-ah, Ah-ah, Aaah-ah
Ah-ah, Ah-ah
I walk alone
I walk a...
Clark finds himself thinking back to the night where he won in Miami. Not even his football days could come close to touching that feeling of taking the checkered flag. For one night, all of the racing world's eyes were on him, Clark Kent.
I walk this empty street
On the Boulevard of Broken Dreams
Where the city sleeps
And I'm the only one and I walk a...
My shadow's the only one that walks beside me
My shallow heart's the only thing that's beating
Sometimes I wish someone out there will find me
'Til then I walk alone...
Hopefully, these meteors will not be able to crush his dreams, and he'll get another chance behind the wheel.
:o