"We're Not In Kansas Anymore"

Chapter 11

"Coming Home"

Work. Just work…work and school.

That's all that mattered now.

That's all to concentrate on. That's all to live for.

That was all Clark had been doing for nearly two weeks straight.

Ever since he…did what he did.

Since he tried to steal Layla from Will.

He was so ashamed of himself. Will was sick, just recovering from his ordeal with Royal Pain, and Clark had…had…

Just work…work and school. That's all that mattered.

Clark had refused to think about or do anything else. All he did was go to school at Sky High, avoiding any and all contact with Layla and the others as he studied hard, then when he returned home he did all his chores with the concentration of a robot, letting the work be all he thought about. Anything to keep from thinking about what he had done.

Jonathan and Martha were worried about Clark. He had not told them what had happened, and they had no idea what was going on. He had simply returned from Maxville after leaving to see Will and had been like a zombie ever since. They had even called Warren, but he had no idea what was going on, as Clark wasn't speaking to anyone at school. He said he had an idea, and he was going to check it out.

Now Clark was working on moving the entire haystack closer to the barn, bail by bail without using his super speed; he wanted it to take as long as possible. It was a warm fall afternoon and though he was super strong Clark still sweated from the warmth of his exertions. He had removed his flannel shirt and was totally absorbed in his labor so he didn't feel the slight breeze across his back for an instant.

"Clark?"

He stopped dead. That voice…he knew that voice. He had not heard it since…

He turned around and saw her.

Layla.

"Hi Clark," she said. She was a vision. Though she was wearing a simple green tank top and blue jeans and her hair was in woven pigtails, she was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen in the world. She looked so natural here in his home environment, especially since he had found out about her power to control plants. She would be perfectly at home here in the country…

No. He was doing it again. Layla belonged with Will…end of story.

"Clark," said Layla, bringing him out of his thoughts, "hey, are you here on earth or what?"

"Yeah," said Clark, actually not sure himself, "yeah. I'm sorry…I just…never expected to ever see you again."

"Well, I wasn't having much luck talking to you at school, so I had a little help tracking you down.

Clark turned and saw Wally standing nearby, grinning.

"Hey C.K.," said Wally, "Layla was looking for you, so I figured I'd just bring her here."

"How did you know I lived here?"

"Dude, I ride the bus with you, remember? Besides, the big sign out front saying "Kent Farm" is a good clue."

"Sorry," said Clark, feeling totally stupid, "I just…haven't been myself lately."

"I guess not," Layla smiled, "you've been totally avoiding all of us at school the past week and a half, and I thought Warren was the brooding champion. You didn't even come to the big celebration at school."

Layla was talking about the ceremony where she and the others who had been in on the rescue of the super babies from Royal Pain and her evil associates were honored. Along with her were the sidekicks Zach, Ethan and Magenta and the ones who had fought off the villains; Warren, Zach, Alicia, Wally and, though he could not attend, Will. Even Lash had been given an award, though he had been in on the original attack he had seen the error of his ways as had Speed and Penny. All three were on probation, having to do community service under the watchful eye of Coach Boomer.

"I was there," said Clark, still unable to look her in the eyes, "I couldn't miss seeing all of you get the honors you deserved. I just stayed in the back of the crowd."

"I wish you had been up front," said Layla with a hurt look in her eyes, " I wish you had…"

"Uh, not to be rude," said Wally, "but it looks like you two want to be alone. If it's okay with you…"

"Yeah, you go on," smiled Layla, "Clark will take me home later."

With that Wally waved then vanished in a blur.

"Now," said Layla, "like I was saying, I wish you had been up there…I…wanted to see you so much."

"I…I couldn't," said Clark, "I don't deserve to be with you…not after what I did."

"All you did was ask me to homecoming," said Layla, still unable to understand why Clark was acting this way, "and you didn't stay for my answer."

"I…I knew you would say no. You would have been totally right in doing that…even though it would have broken my heart."

Layla took Clark's face in her hands, gently forcing him to finally look into her eyes. They were so deep green…as green as the fields and woods of Smallville in late spring.

"Yes."

Did she just say…? It took a moment for it to register in Clark's brain that this was reality, not some dream to torture him in his self-imposed solitude.

"I'd love to go to homecoming with you," she added with a smile that was as bright as the sun in his eyes.

"But you and Will…"

"Will and I had a long talk while he was in the hospital. I realized something during all of this, especially after I spent time with you and you asked me out. I really wasn't in love with Will…I was in love with BEING in love with him. I've had a crush on him for years, but then I realized that we were friends…best friends. He agreed that was all we were, and that was good enough for both of us."

"Then you…"

"Warren was right," she said with a mischievous pixie grin, "you ARE slow on the uptake."

With that Layla stood on her tiptoes and kissed Clark on the lips, sending a shock through his body that made his eyes go wide. It was a deep, long kiss like none he had ever experienced before, even with Lana. It was as if Layla was acting as a conduit for the very earth itself, reaching into Clark and touching his soul.

When they stopped they were both out of breath; apparently the kiss had the same effect on Layla as well, for she looked as stunned as Clark felt, and he had to reach out and steady her to keep her from falling.

"Wow," she whispered, "you ARE a super boy."

Clark felt his heart soaring. He had to release the joy that was filling him to bursting, and with a wild yell he leaped high into the air, as far up as his mighty legs would take him. At the top of the arc he looked down to see his home and the fall countryside below. He wished he could share this view with Layla, so she could also enjoy the simple beauty of the earth from this point. He wished…

It was then he realized he wasn't coming back down. He was still high in the sky, the wind brushing his bare chest and arms as it mussed his hair. He was floating in mid-air. How was he going to get down? What was…?

Then he began to move. It was like when he first learned to swim, only he was doing it in the sky. He began slowly at first to move about as he willed it, changing direction and levels until finally it sank in.

He was flying. Actually flying.

He soared high for several minutes, then swooped down back to the Kent farm and landed gracefully in front of a startled Layla, whose hands were over her mouth.

It was then that Clark noticed that for several yards around Layla every plant was sprouting and growing. The grass had turned deep green and was several inches deep, the nearby trees were suddenly putting on new leaves, and even the gunnysacks of potatoes were tearing open as shoots from the potatoes were popping out, seeking soil to plant themselves in and grow.

"That was some kiss," Clark grinned, "I think we better wait a minute before we try again."

"Well I should hope so," said Martha, standing with her arms folded and with a fake scowl on her face.

Both teens jumped and looked totally embarrassed. Clark realized he still had his shirt off and scrambled to get it while Layla tried to compose herself.

"Uh, Mom," said Clark as he fumbled with his shirt, "this is Layla from school. She came to see me and…well…"

"Oh, YOU'RE the one who saved everyone from Royal Pain," smiled Martha as she took Layla's hand, "Clark babbled about that for days. Even though he praised you to the heavens he didn't mention QUITE how cute you are. He only kept saying "beautiful" and "goddess"."

Clark bowed his head, desperately searching for something to look at as his cheeks turned red with embarrassment. Leave it to his mom to make him feel like a complete goofball in front of the girl he…yes, the girl he loved.

"Thank you, Mrs. Kent," said Layla, who was also blushing from the compliments, "you've got a beautiful farm here…and quite the son as well."

"I thought something was up when I heard Clark yell and saw him take off like a rocket," said Martha, "I hope no one else saw or heard him though."

"Nobody was around Mom," said Clark, whose view while up there had confirmed that there hadn't been anyone for miles to see him.

"Well that's good to know," smiled Martha, "now how about you two come on in. I was coming out to tell Clark that it's nearly lunchtime, and you're welcome to join us Layla."

"I'd love to Mrs. Kent," said Layla, "though I have to tell you I'm a strict vegetarian, if that's alright."

"That's fine," said Martha, "we've got plenty to eat here…it wouldn't be much of a farm if we didn't."

As they approached the house Jonathan came out, a big smile on his face.

"You'll never guess who just called…" he started, and then he saw Layla. He stopped in his tracks, and a strange, almost stunned look came over him.

"Dad," said Clark,seemingly oblivious to Jonathan's reaction, "this is Layla…I told you about her."

Jonathan quickly came out of his surprised state as he smiled at Layla and took her hand in his.

"So this is the heroine of Sky High," he said, "Clark told us…"

"I ALREADY told her about what Clark said," said Martha, letting her husband know she had beaten him to the fun of embarrassing their son, "it seems she's come to accept Clark's offer to be her date at homecoming."

"That IS good news," said Jonathan, "especially since I just found out what your mother and I are doing that night."

"What's that?" asked Clark.

"I just got off the phone to Principal Powers," said Jonathan, "she wanted to know if we would chaperone homecoming, and I said yes."

Clark was stunned again. This was turning out to be quite the day after all. He was with Layla for homecoming, he had learned to fly, and now his parents and all his friends at school would meet each other. He doubted he would sleep from that moment until after homecoming, if then.

"Come on Layla," said Martha, "you can help me fix lunch and I'll tell you everything you need to know to handle Clark."

The two women exchanged a conspiratorial grin as they went into the kitchen, but Clark wasn't worried; Layla knew how to handle him very well already. But there was something else he was wondering about.

"Dad," asked Clark, "you had this weird look on your face when you first saw Layla. Why?"

"Well son," said Jonathan as he looked in the direction of the kitchen, "that's because she looks exactly like another certain beautiful girl did when I first met her, and we've both known her for years."

"Who's that?"

"Your mother."

Unknown to anyone, far away from the house, something was happening. Down in the root cellar was hidden the alien ship that had brought Clark to earth as a baby. For years the ship had remained quiet and untouched ever since Jonathan had put it there.

But that changed the moment that Clark and Layla had kissed.

The instant it had happened and the strange energy rush passed through the two teens, the ship suddenly activated like an animal jolted from hibernation. It glowed brighter and brighter, then suddenly began to change its very shape, becoming a glowing sphere that floated in the air. Strange, arcane alien symbols flashed across its surface as it began to process all the data and information that it had silently been gathering for years in preparation for this moment.

"Contact has been established," came a strange voice from the sphere, "the time of destiny is approaching."

It was the exact same voice that had awakened Clark's mind from his pacifier induced baby trance and enabled him to help stop Royal Pain's plan.

It was the voice of Jor-El.

To be continued

Next:

Clark and Layla are going to Homecoming! Yayyy! But when they get there, there may be a few surprises they never expected!