Referenced Sexual Assault

In Play

Alana woke up at five in the afternoon to multiple messages from her parents, Gloria, Nicholas, and half the student body looking for deets.

"Are you okay, Mom?" Jackson asked when he saw her dragging herself to the kitchen.

"What do you want for dinner, baby?" She asked, bypassing the question completely. "I meant to be up two hours ago, I'm sorry."

"Rick, Alan, and I grabbed a pizza after practice, so I'm not crazy hungry right now. You seemed really tired today."

"It was just a hellish shift for me. Five deaths, three severe alcohol withdrawals, and a new diabetic who refuses to believe she's diabetic. Not to mention the suicidal patient who swallowed a bottle of Tylenol and then called 911. It's insane! Tylenol isn't an insta-kill drug. All ODing on Tylenol does is destroy your liver. It's infuriating because she only did it because her parents refused to pay her bills anymore. She's thirty-one years old! So instead of getting a job, she decided to try and off herself!"

"Sounds rough," he said, giving her a hug. The boy was used to hearing these little snippets of the medical world from his mother. Growing up with a doctor for a mom made this par for the course. His science classes were some of his top classes. And giving his friends medical advice was his secret specialty.

"Thanks, Jackson," she said as she returned the hug. "How about BBQ ribs with rice and a salad? I can have it ready in under an hour."

"Sounds great, Mom," he shrugged. "The answering machine is full."

"Ugh… I was hoping that this morning was only a bad dream. I'll empty the machine and prep dinner. How's your homework coming along?"

"I'm finished. Just trying to get a head start on this ten-page paper I have to write about The Little Prince. I don't know where to start."

"Have you read The Little Prince?" she asked as she started assembling her dinner for the two.

"No."

"Then I would suggest you read the book and start with a summary of the story. After that you can explore the themes of the story and draw comparisons to other books you've read that may have similar themes. That should cover you, right? It's ten pages double spaced, right?" She braced herself when the boy tackled her with a hug.

"Thanks, Mom," he said as he hugged the life out of her.

"Anytime, baby boy," she smiled, reaching around him to turn on the oven.

"I'm gonna start reading the book. Call me when dinner's ready, okay?"

"Will do," she said, waiting until the boy was back in his room with the door closed to play her messages. As she'd suspected, most of them were junk. Class tomorrow should be interesting. But her parents sounded frantic. They called during the playback, so she paused to answer.

"Hello?"

"Are you okay, Nugget?" Alana grinned at her father's nickname for her. It was two-fold. She'd always had a 'nugget' of information ready no matter the subject growing up. And there was a period between sixth grade and eighth grade where she insisted on chicken nuggets for every meal. She took a moment to truly savor her parents' love for her.

"Così come ci si può aspettare," she sighed in Italian. Since her father had been the one to study with her during those years of high school she knew he would know what that meant. (As well as can be expected).

"That bad, hey?" he said. She giggled tiredly, heading back to the kitchen to get out the rice cooker.

"Oh Daddy… I never wanted to be a celebrity. I never wanted me or my son in the spotlight! I never wanted any of this to come out! Why did that jerk have to track me down?"

"I know, honey, I know. But you can't undo the past. You can only continue to move forward. Are the news crews still camped outside your building?"

She looked outside the window. "It doesn't look like it. I answered what I could this morning. But I was so delirious with fatigue I'm not sure I answered all the questions."

"Oh, I have no doubt you gave them all the information they needed, Nugget." The two shared a laugh. "So, what are you doing now?"

"Just sorting through my messages and getting dinner ready for the boy. Dinner should have been ready hours ago, but I kinda accidentally slept the day away."

"I'm sure you'll get everything back on track, Nugget. I'm going to clear this line so you can finish sorting your messages and everything, okay?"

"Thanks for calling, Dad. I really appreciate it. Give Mom our love, okay?"

"Will do, Nugget." They hung up and Alana put her rice and some frozen veggies in the rice cooker. She then went back to sorting her messages. By the time she'd finished and determined who she needed to call there was a knock on her door. She opened it cautiously to find her suitor standing there with a single white rose and a cup of her favorite drink - French vanilla cappuccino - in his hand. She squealed and threw open the door.

"How… how did you-"

"I bribed your best friend. May I come in?"

"Oh, of course," she grinned, stepping aside to let him in. The man stepped into the apartment and schooled his expression.

"Nine Inch Nails and rubber duckies are an interesting combination, Mama Bear. And forest green happens to be my favorite color." The woman lost all color in her face as she realized that she had just opened the door to her suitor wearing her comfort clothes and her dad's ratty old bathrobe. She had no makeup on and her hair was still plaited…

"Oh God, I went on TV without any makeup this morning!"

"You looked amazing, Mama Bear," he said firmly, grabbing her hand where she was furiously trying to fix her hair. "Honestly, you still do. Why on earth are you dressed like that?"

"This is my 'I don't feel like doing anything' outfit. It rarely gets used. Um… do you want to stay for dinner?"

"If it's not an inconvenience, I'd love to stay. They've played that interview a lot today. 'Fun' in dysfunctional?"

"Hey, they woke me out of a sound sleep. They're lucky I was dressed at all!" She blushed when he raised an eyebrow.

"And what was the frying pan for?"

"To brain somebody?" she told him. "We're having ribs, rice, and a salad if you still want to have dinner with us. Look, give me five minutes and I will jump in the shower and clean up, Teddy. This is in no way indicative of how I usually dress at home." She ran off to shower and change. Nicholas watched her go, finding himself stranded in her kitchen. He hunted through the cabinets for a glass and filled it with tap water.

"She likes you. You know that, right?" Nicholas turned to face the man of the house.

"I got that impression, yes."

"Mom hasn't really smiled like that ever. She's very withdrawn and cerebral. In control. I like her like this. Hurt her and it'll be the last thing you ever do."

"I'm not your father. I have no intention of making her cry." The two shared a look of understanding.

"So, what's your specialty going to be?"

"Excuse me?"

"Mom's an Orthopedic Surgeon. You are?"

"A cardiologist. That means-"

"Hearts are complicated. That's a challenging specialty, doctor."

"You can call me Nick."

"Why does my mom call you 'Teddy'?"

"Short for 'teddy bear'. We were listening to this old song that-"

"My mom's an Elvis fan. I got the reference." Nicholas nodded at him in the silence that followed, taking a sip of his water.

"You're very mature for your age."

"I take after my mother."

"So… What are you working on in class?"

"We're reading this book called 'The Little Prince'. It's about-"

"I know the story. I first read it when I was about your age, but I come back to it every once in a while. I get something new out of it every time."

"Really? Cause I have a book report due on it in two weeks. Ten pages."

"I could write a fifty page paper on that book. It's one of my favorites." The two started talking about the book, comparing the little bit he'd read so far to the rest of the book and what the characters represented. Alana came out of the shower to this domestic scene and smiled while drying her hair. She truly loved it that her son and her suitor were getting along.

"I hope Jackson here isn't conning you into writing his book report for him,"

"No, Mom. Mr. Nick was just telling me what I have to look forward to in the book. It starts out kinda slow, but-"

"I'm glad to hear that, sweetheart. Go ahead and wash up for dinner. Everything is ready, I just have to make the salad." The boy grinned and headed for the bathroom.

"Thank you for entertaining my son while I was in the shower, Teddy."

"It was no trouble, Mama Bear. I happen to love that book. Have you ever read it?"

"I have, actually. It was required summer reading in ninth grade. I don't remember much of it, though. It's been a while." He moved out of his seat at the table and slowly approached his woman. He loved the way her pupils dilated as he got closer to her.

"You can borrow my copy if you want, Mama. I just finished reading it again the other day." She whimpered softly and leaned towards the heat of him. This pleased the doctor greatly and he ran his hands through her wild, static-filled hair. "You look good enough to eat, Mama Bear," he told her in a low, sultry voice. Gone was the adorably mismatched shirt and boxers under the comfortably raggedy housecoat. She'd opted for a light and airy Spring dress that fell to her ankles and was probably too light to wear outside yet. The sandals matched the dress perfectly, but her hair needed a good brushing before it would behave. He leaned down to sample her lips lightly.

"I have been dreaming about your sweet lips all day, Mama." The girl looked pleased with this news, standing on her tiptoes for more. He grinned teasingly and pulled his head back. "Don't want Jackson coming in and getting an eye full, do we?" He chuckled when those vibrant eyes of hers widened in horror. "Besides, dessert comes after dinner, don't you agree?" Her smile was like sunshine, he couldn't resist another short kiss to her sweet lips before backing away.

"You're distracting me," he grinned. "I was going to say that I make a mean salad if you wanted to finish your hair. It's… puffy right now." He ignored the renewed look of horror on her face and sent her back towards her bedroom with her towel over her shoulder. In the meantime, he hunted through her fridge for salad ingredients.

Alana brushed her long locks out slowly, restraining her powers. She hadn't meant to build up a static charge just now. She needed to calm down, she was the one who had warned Jackson about restraint. Putting her hair to rights and forgoing jewelry - he'd already seen her at her worst - she came out of her room to find her son reading at the table while her suitor put the finishing touches on the salad. She opened the fridge door to get the salad dressing, placing it on the table before going to turn off the rice cooker and pull the ribs out of the oven.

"I didn't mean to put you to work first thing, Teddy. I-"

"I don't mind. I'm not used to such a delicious-smelling meal in my own apartment. Maybe I'll stop by more often."

"I'll… I'll bear that in mind when picking my sleepwear from now on," she said without thinking. Not wanting to start a sexual conversation with her kid right in the room, he only smiled and reached into her kitchen cabinet for the croutons. Dinner was a very relaxing and fun affair. Everyone served themselves and the conversation wasn't forced, mostly centered around Jackson's schoolwork. When the meal was over, they all pitched in to clean up the kitchen. It was all very… domestic. He could get used to this.

"You have a real gift for cooking, Mama Bear," he complimented her as Action went back to his room to read and the adults settled into the living room for after-dinner conversation.

"I'm a country girl at heart. Plus, you have to plan meals when you have a kid. Take-out every night isn't really an option."

"Yeah, I guess you're right," he nodded, making a mental note to clean up the take-out trash in his apartment. Usually, he didn't think about it but seeing how clean his woman's place was made him want to clean up his place just in case she ever stopped by. "What else do you have to adjust to, being a young mother?"

"Well, drinks with friends are mostly out. Have to be ready in case there's an emergency with the little one. Also-"

"I'm not so little anymore," Jackson yelled through the door.

"Do we have to have a talk about privacy, Action? Or should I demonstrate how thin the walls are in this place the next time your friends are over?"

"I don't know what you're talking-"

"Then shall we talk about Aisha Simpson's-"

"I hear nothing," the boy blurted out through the door. She huffed a laugh and turned back to her suitor. "Sorry about that," she said, lowering her voice even though she knew it wouldn't help with his super-hearing. "I was about to mention that new clothes are a luxury. I have to be ready for his growth spurts."

"You make an old wardrobe look good," he said sincerely. "You always look so good on campus and on the job. Most of the class just assumes that you are into retro fashion."

"Nope, I just can't afford newer ones right now. I luck out at the Goodwill every once in a while, but other than that-"

"I happen to like your fashion sense," he said smoothly, fingering the bodice of her dress. She shivered as his sculpted fingers brushed bare skin, then jumped up from the couch.

"I s-should… I mean, I…"

"Relax, little one," he crooned, blinking at her speed at getting off the couch. "I don't mean you any harm. Come here." Alana sat gingerly on the very edge of the couch. Nicholas couldn't help his chuckle at her shyness. "I don't bite, Mama Bear. Come here." She inched a little closer, gasping when he hooked his hand around the inside of her thigh and pulled her flush against him.

"That's better, " he whispered against her ear before licking his way into her mouth. She made a chittering sound she didn't know she could make when he pressed his tongue against her retreating one and pulled her even closer. Her body started trembling as his hot hands caressed her back and thighs. God, she was on fire at the moment! She wrapped herself around him with a soft sigh, forgetting everything for the moment.

"You taste so good," he murmured softly against her lips before claiming them again, turning them so that she was under him on the sofa. She sighed with pleasure, pressing her body against his. Delving even deeper into the recesses of her wonderful orifice, Nicholas started using his nimble muscle to prod at her shy tongue. He wanted it to play with him. He wanted her to lose her inhibitions and twirl it around-

"Still here, guys," Jackson said through the door. Alana jerked under him and the spell was broken. His pale brown eyes bore into hers hungrily, focusing on the mussed neckline of her dress.

"Your son has impeccable timing," he panted with a smile. His woman swallowed hard before attempting to detangle herself from his grip on her. "We're not finished," he promised her, standing up and pulling her from the couch. He wrapped her up in his arms and possessed her mouth like the seasoned pro that he was. He smoothed his hands over her back and butt, promising her pleasure in time. Finally, he tapered the kiss, knowing that her son was listening.

"I should go," he said at last. "Dinner was amazing, but my mind is on my savory dessert at the moment." He laughed as she gasped and covered her burning cheeks.

"Thank you for stopping by," she grinned mischievously. "I'm sorry to interrupt your meal."

"It's okay. Such a wonderful meal is meant to be savored, not rushed. I'll be sure to arrange a time to truly enjoy it."

"Are you guys talking about sex?" Jackson called out the door.

"Are you finished reading your book yet? It's almost bedtime. Brush your teeth and get ready." Nicholas looked at her in awe as she turned back to face him. "What?"

"You're such a mom," he said in amazement. She smirked at him.

"I've had a lot of practice," the girl settled on. The smile faded from her face, replaced by a worried look he associated with their relationship. "A-are you really going to-" He kissed her passionately, wrapping her up in safety and heat.

"I never got an answer about the carnival this weekend, Mama Bear," he said firmly.

"I… I um… I never got a chance to ask."

"Then let's ask right now. Hey, Action!" The sound of a chair hitting the floor made both adults smile. When the door opened, he had to school his features as he had on entering the apartment. He didn't want to hurt the pre-teen's pride. "I want to take you and your mom out of the city to the carnival that's in town. What do you say?" The boy's eyes were wide and full of glee, but he could tell that the boy wanted to play it cool.

"Well, if you guys are going anyway, I might as well tag along."

"Good. That'll save me the time and expense of hiring an all day babysitter for you."

"Mom!"

"What?" she asked teasingly. "I can't leave you alone all day, that's neglect."

"I'm not some little kid anymore!"

"No. But you are not yet a man, my love." She sang this sweetly to him. "I'm glad you're willing to tag along. It's going to be a blast!"

"Whatever. See you soon, Nick," he said firmly, gripping the man's hand almost too firmly as he shook it. His mom's warning hand on his shoulder stopped him from crushing the poor human's hand.

"Ah, to bask in the heat of all this testosterone…" She said sarcastically. Nicholas chuckled, shaking out his hand a little. The young mother walked him to the door. "Goodnight, Teddy."

"I don't want to be your tiger, 'cause tigers play too rough…" he sang lightly.

"I don't want to be your lion, 'cause lions aren't the kind you love enough…" She finished the verse.

"Night, Mama Bear," he said with a kiss on her cheek. Once he was gone, she turned to her son angrily. "What did I say about restraint, Action?"

"Hey, he was making out with my mother right in the living room! With me in the next room over! I had to!" She groaned in disgust

"Just… rein it in, little man. I can't exactly have my suitor show up in the emergency room with his bones turned to mush. That sort of thing would lead to uncomfortable questions and would equal-"

Jackson gasped and she knew that she'd gotten her point across. "These are the terms you have to think in now that you have Superman powers. Actions have consequences. Our actions especially."

"Can we practice?" he pleaded quietly.

"Not with the reporters and cameras around, Jackson. Let's wait until the heat dies down a little and then we'll practice, okay?" The boy sighed but nodded. "Come on, it's bedtime." The mother tucked her son in and then went into the kitchen to heat up and enjoy the cappuccino her suitor had so generously bought her. The rose - one of her favorite flowers - was sitting in a coffee mug at the table and she couldn't help but feel especially feminine looking at it. Who had ever bothered to buy her a rose? Her father reserved flowers for when he was in the doghouse. Never having dated or even been invited to a school dance, she'd never been given a flower or a corsage. She'd never thought much of it since the boys in Smallville were cruel and immature and she'd never had time for the men in Metropolis, but right now she was completely entranced with the simple gesture.

The phone ringing interrupted her musings. Placing her now cold cup of french vanilla goodness on the kitchen table, she went to get the phone before it went to voicemail.

"Alana, are you okay? I've been trying to reach you all day!"

"I know. I meant to call you, Gloria, but I slept the day away. Then Nicholas turned up at my house and dinner was kinda crazy and-"

"Oh, so I've been supplanted by the boyfriend, now?" Gloria teased, sounding calmer.

"Never," Alana gasped. "You are my best friend, there is no 'supplanting'. He showed up with a white rose and a cappuccino, I couldn't just turn him away. Even if he did see me in my 'bumming around the house' clothes.

"You didn't!"

The mother sighed and threw her drink in the microwave again. "Complete with my dad's old bathrobe."

"Oh, God. I told you to burn that outfit! Where did you even get it from?"

"Catherine Winters and I went to a Nine Inch Nails concert when we were in tenth grade - my mom went to chaperone since we flew to Illinois for the concert. Catherine ended our friendship once the trip was over because Laura Spires was jealous that her mother hadn't allowed her to go as well. The rubber duckies were a gag gift from Samantha Griffin 'cause she said it was the closest I'd ever get to getting wet. And I used to borrow Daddy's robe when I was sad, so he gave it to me when Mama bought him a new one."

"Your old friends sound horrible!"

"They were. I didn't exactly cry when we pulled up stakes and moved to Metropolis. I think I was burned out on Smallville long before I left for good. Smallville was full of small minds. Plus everybody knew about me and my crush on Clark. I prefer the anonymity of the big city." She shrugged to herself as she pulled out her now hot drink from the microwave and took a grateful sip.

"I'm glad you're happier now. So, what do you think is going to happen in class tomorrow?"

"I'd rather not think about it. Francis Thrus is likely to want to talk about my fashion sense on camera and Lyndsay Paton will be feeding the rumor mill I suspect. I canNOT believe I went in front of the cameras wearing my 'dysfunctional' t-shirt!"

Gloria burst into laughter. "I wasn't going to mention it. You looked so adorably scruffy during the interview, and domesticated with that frying pan held up like a baseball bat. All I could think was 'what was she thinking'?"

"Yeah, yeah. I was dead tired after my shift and suddenly there was an army of reporters at my door. They're lucky I was dressed at all!"

"Well, the Lion certainly would have appreciated that." Realizing what she'd just said - what she'd told Nicholas a few hours ago - she turned beet red in the darkness of her kitchen.

"I… I didn't mean it like that," she finally squeaked.

"I know. I take it that you shared that particular comment with the Lion?"

"...yes…" The laughter on the other end of the line was all the confirmation she needed of her mistake. The woman groaned and slammed her head on the kitchen table. "I… No one's ever cared that I slept in the buff before."

"I'm sure many, many men do care. Just… I wouldn't spread that particular nugget of information around, okay?"

"Okay."

"Good, now tell me about dinner. What did you make? How did he react to Jackson? More importantly, how did Action react to him? Did he make a move on you?" Alana filled in her friend about the dinner and the fact that her son seemed to like the man. She talked about the kissing after dinner and the flirting. It was getting easier to flirt with the attractive male. Gloria seemed to agree.

"I just… How long do you have to wait to have sex with a suitor? I don't want to be labeled as a slut."

"Alana, people are always going to talk. What you and Nicholas do in your relationship is your own business and no one else's. You are both grown adults."

"I know, I know. It's just… He's always talking about touching me down there and I'm not sure how to take it. Is that normal?"

"Girl, if you've found a man that's willing to go down on you, you'd better marry that boy. That's as rare as a unicorn in my experience."

"I don't know that he'll actually do it. I just know that he seems to talk about it. Like a LOT. I'm nervous because-"

"Oh let me guess. That loser Clark never touched your pussy. He just pushed in and plowed away until he was finished and then left you all alone." Silence on the line. "Alana?"

"How did you know?" she asked in a small voice.

"You're serious?" This time the silence was punctuated by a sniffle.

"It hurt, but he didn't stop when I asked him to. He just kept pushing and eventually, it felt okay, but then he froze and then pulled out. I felt so cheap and used. But I had no right to complain, it had been my idea. I just curled up in a ball while he pulled his pants up. When he got out his wallet, I felt so humiliated. I slapped him and went home. I was a drunken mess when my parents found me curled up in the shower. I just wanted to die, I was so ashamed of what I'd done; of how I'd let the boy of my dreams treat me. That's when my parents decided that Smallville was too toxic for me. We moved to Metropolis within three days of my graduation. They didn't even talk to the neighbors. We were just gone. I didn't talk about what happened. I didn't have to. They just knew that I'd done it and that it had been a bad experience for me."

"I thought that was the end of it, but then I missed a period. I'd never missed my period ever. Life went on, and then I missed another period. I was terrified when Mom took me to the doctor. Suddenly there was Jackson and I had to bury my feelings about the events surrounding his conception. I haven't allowed myself to think about this for over a decade. Jackson is my life. I have never regretted him. But the event itself… I'm terrified of a repeat performance by Nicholas. I… I never want to feel that cheap and humiliated again."

"Oh honey," Gloria said. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. No woman, no woman anywhere deserved to be treated so cruelly and callously, especially with the way she'd felt about him. It was bad enough that he didn't love her and never had. But to just… "That rat bastard ought to be tarred and feathered for what he did! No wonder you don't want him anymore!"

"It was my idea," she said in a small voice.

"It was your idea to have someone you loved force his way into you without even preparing your body for his invasion and all but rape you before leaving you feeling cheap and used? It was your idea to have that same asshole offer you money for the privilege of being his masturbatory aid?" The girl was crying in earnest now.

"It hurt so bad! I thought I was being torn in two. Then he was all the way inside of me and there was blood everywhere and he just kept pushing and I was begging him to stop, but it was like he couldn't hear me!"

"I'm coming over. I'll see you in half an hour." The line went dead, but Clark had heard enough. He'd always thought that their tryst was good for her. Thinking back, he had been a little insensitive to her. Just because she wasn't the love of his life hadn't given him the right to treat her so shabbily. He honestly didn't remember her asking him to stop. But he'd been so drunk that he wasn't surprised. Had he really been so bad in bed? No wonder she was so resistant to his charms! He'd have to find a way to apologize. He hadn't meant to hurt her.

The criminal element noticed right off the bat how much more violent the Man of Steel was that night. The memory of her tears drove him to want to hurt someone. But he had no one to blame for her grief but himself.

So, the secret is out. Let's see how this shakes out, shall we? See y'all next week! :D