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This part might get confusing because I switch POV, I wanted to show it through different characters eyes. Hopefully I made it clear enough to follow?
Stars and Water
Chapter 22
Martha stood up from the breakfast table as she heard the car pull into the driveway, she could feel her heart pounding and her knees felt like water. Car doors slammed and they could hear Bart talking as several sets of footsteps came slowly up the stairs of the porch. "Okay dude, just a few more steps and you're home safe and sound." The reply was muffled but it was definitely Clark's voice. Martha felt the sound of that beloved voice pull at the deepest place in her heart. Tears filled her eyes as she stood frozen, staring at the screen door. When it opened and she saw Clark standing there leaning on Bart she burst into motion and flung herself across the room.
"Clark!" She cried out and she wrapped her arms around her son and held on tight, rejoicing in the feel of his familiar arms around her as he hugged her back. He was trembling and Martha pulled away to look at his face and saw behind his loving eyes a desolate pain that made her pull him closer and hug him even tighter. "Everything's going to be all right baby," she murmured soothingly, "You're home and everything is going to be fine." Clark held on tight, blinking back tears, and nestled his face down into her hair as he let himself be comforted by the feel and smell of his Mom.
Bart stood back and watched their reunion, swallowing hard. If only he could go home and get a reception like that. Suddenly Chloe was hugging him, saying "Good job Bart! You brought him home, you're a hero." And then Oliver was pounding his back and grinning broadly at him in approval. Maria took both of his hands in hers and smiled through tear filled eyes as she thanked him quietly. Finally, Mrs. Kent turned to him and pulled him into a warm hug, telling him how glad she was that he was safe and how grateful she was to him for bringing her boy home. By the time they were done Bart was glowing pink and speechless with emotion.
Chloe watched with tear filled eyes as Mrs. Kent held Clark. Then her attention went to Bart and she saw the longing in his eyes as he watched the reunion of Mother and Son. Chloe's heart went out to the boy and she quickly went to him and gave him a tight hug. Then she turned to Clark as Mrs. Kent stepped away. Clark grinned at Chloe and threw his arms around her, pulling her into his embrace, giving her back a little rub. "I'm okay Chloe; you don't have to look at me like that." He said into her neck. Chloe held on tight and then stepped away, letting Oliver approach.
Oliver started to shake Clark's hand but suddenly found himself hugging Clark, patting his shoulder and saying "Thank God you're all right. Man, you scared us."
"I scared me too." Clark replied with a grin, then he saw Maria and it was as though the rest of the room faded away. Oliver noticed his expression and stepped out of the way with a smile.
"Maria," Clark breathed; there was a lump in his throat that made it hard to talk. She came to him and slid into his arms and it made him feel warm and whole again just being close to her. He bent his head to kiss her and when their lips met he realized just how much she meant to him and held on like he was never letting go. Maria's shaking ceased as she felt his strong arms around her at last. She felt the knot that had been in her stomach for days loosen and melt away at the touch of his lips. Their kiss became more passionate as they put all the love they held for each other into that long embrace.
When they finally broke the kiss and looked up slightly dazed they noticed the room was silent. Martha cleared her throat and bustled into the kitchen, smiling to herself at the love her boy had obviously found. "I'll get everyone fresh coffee." she called. As though her voice had broken a spell the room erupted in talk and laughter.
Later Clark relaxed on the couch and let the voices wash over him. It felt so good to be home, it made what he had gone through seem distant and unreal. Surely horror like that couldn't exist in the same universe with these laughing, beautiful people. As he watched them the memory of a terrified face disappearing in a spray of blood hit him and he gasped and blinked hard, holding in his emotions and trying to conceal them from his friends. Maria saw the look on his face and went to him. "Clark, what's wrong?" she said, "Are you in pain?"
Clark looked away; he didn't want to tell anyone about what he'd seen. He didn't want to burden them with the terrible images haunting him, and so he did what he usually did. He shut Maria out to protect her and told her he was fine. Maria felt him pull away and it confused her. She could tell he certainly wasn't "fine". She decided now wasn't the time to press him for answers, he looked like he was hanging on by a thread.
She took his hand and said "Clark, no one could be fine right after what you went through but you will be okay again. I promise." and she stayed by him on the couch with his hand held lightly in hers until she felt him squeeze hers in return. When she looked up at him he met her gaze and let her see what he was feeling before he pulled her closer.
"Thanks Maria," he said softly, "I hope you're right."
Oliver finished his coffee and stood up. "Come on Bart, we need to head out. Stop mooning over Chloe and get it in gear. She has a boyfriend, remember, and he's bigger than you are."
Bart just winked at Chloe, who was already grinning from the image of anyone being intimidated by Jimmy. "Oliver, everyone knows size doesn't matter, I have other gifts."
Chloe burst out laughing, "Speed isn't exactly what a girl wants either." she said, eyes twinkling.
"I was talking about my undeniable charm and dashing good looks." He said with a mock frown, "but now that you mention speed…" Bart disappeared for a moment and returned with a tulip for Chloe. "…it has its benefits. If Jimmy ever lets you go, give me a call." He laughed that he had rendered Chloe speechless and joined Oliver in saying goodbye to Clark.
They all kept it pretty light, to avoid more embarrassing emotions, and then left the house quarreling about who would drive. "No Bart, I will not teach you how to drive in my new Jaguar!" Oliver exclaimed as the door closed behind them.
Chloe stood up and prepared to go. She looked at Clark with Maria snuggled up next to him, his eyes were closed and his head rested against the back of the couch. He looked completely exhausted, but he was alive, he was home, and that was what mattered.
Just as she turned to talk to Martha the kitchen door flew open and Lois walked in. "Where is he? I just got your message Chloe, and I came as fast as I could. Oh!" and Lois stared at Clark and Maria on the couch. Maria had opened her eyes and was looking at Lois with irritation but Clark didn't even flinch, he had fallen asleep and he was so tired he didn't hear her.
Lois swallowed hard; she had never seen Clark like this. He looked pale and there were dark circles under his eyes. Lois turned to Martha. "Shouldn't he be in a hospital? He looks terrible! Seriously, he could be suffering from shock or dehydration or something!" She looked at him again, and felt an odd jolt at the way his arm was draped around Maria's shoulders. How ridiculous, she couldn't be jealous over Smallville. She must just be tired, yes, and nicotine deprived.
Lois found herself stepping close to him and she watched her hand as though it belonged to someone else, reaching out to touch his face. When he opened his eyes she yanked her hand back as though it had been burned and scowled down at him. "Well Smallville, it took you long enough to get home! While you were out there playing Daniel Boone your friends were worried sick about you!"
Maria was ready to launch, like a puma ready to pounce on a deer. She could feel her muscles bunching as rage poured into her, only to be shocked into silence by Clark's laugh.
"Lois, I didn't know you cared!" he said, raising one eyebrow, a teasing tone in his voice.
Maria blinked as she saw Clark beaming at Lois as though he had won some kind of game. He was enjoying this! Clearly there was more going on between these two than she'd thought at first and she wasn't sure she liked it. She felt Clark's arm pulling her closer and wondered if he had sensed her tension.
Chloe had been watching and felt now would be a good time to intervene, especially since Lois looked about to unleash one of her famous, punch Smallville in the shoulder, moves. Chloe had the feeling that Maria would uncoil and strike if that were to happen. "Lois, we should go and let Clark rest. I have a scoop about Lex that I've been dying to share with you. How about we drive back together to Metropolis and I'll fill you in?"
Lois stood looking at Clark for a minute. With that smug look on his face he was looking much more like the Clark Kent she knew. Maybe he didn't need a hospital. When she saw him pull Maria close with a tender expression and brush her forehead with his lips Lois suddenly felt ready to leave with Chloe.
After they left Clark heaved a sigh and let his head drop back against the couch. "Do you want to rest here for a while? I could get you a pillow and blanket." said Maria quietly.
"No, what I really want is a shower. I'm just gathering my energy to tackle the stairs." Clark rested for a moment more and then struggled up to stand, swaying a little.
Maria was up in a second, holding Clark's arm and insisting, "Here let me help."
Clark shook her hand off and said harshly, "No, I can do it myself." Then he looked down apologetically at her stricken face, "Maria, I'm sorry. I'll be fine. Just let me do this on my own, Okay?"
Maria nodded and backed off, clenching her fists to her sides and willing her feet still as Clark climbed laboriously up the steps. She heard the bathroom door close and she let out the breath she had been holding and looked up to see Martha watching her with understanding. "Jonathan was the same way. Kent men are terribly stubborn and independent, they love to help others but they hate to accept help themselves." Martha smiled reassuringly. "Why don't you come on into the kitchen? I'm going to make Clark his favorite apple pie for tonight and we can talk."
Maria gladly accepted and when Clark came back downstairs he smelled a freshly baked pie and heard his Mom and Maria laughing and talking in the kitchen while they cleaned up. He stood and listened to the sound of their voices blending and the easy way they laughed together, it made him feel wonderful listening to the way the two women he loved got along.
Maria spent the day at the Kent farm. After she and Martha finished in the kitchen Clark asked her to walk outside with him and she noticed as he stepped into the full sun he stood taller and shrugged his shoulders back as if he gained energy. Shelby ran up and they played with him for a while, throwing the Frisbee and laughing at his attempts to catch it in midair. Maria watched Clark's face and reveled in the happiness she saw there as he wrestled with his dog.
Clark showed her around the farm proudly, introducing her to the cows, chickens, horses, even the barn cats, which all seemed to come close as soon as they heard Clark's voice. "I feed them" he shrugged, but Maria felt it was more than that. Clark was always quiet and calm when he spoke to an animal; she felt the animals knew who to trust.
The sun was beginning to go down when Clark pulled at her hand.
"Come on, I have something I want to show you." Clark said as he tugged her towards the barn. She looked at the barn doubtfully and followed him inside. When they entered and Clark ascended the stairs easily she could barely contain her surprise. He seemed to have recovered quite a lot just by spending the day walking around his home and soaking up the summer sun. When she got to the top of the stairs she was delighted to find a loft with a beautiful view of the sunset.
"This is lovely Clark." She said, leaning against the window sill to look out and taking a deep breath of the warm, sweet scented air. She turned to see Clark looking out the window with a distant look in his eye. Something about his stillness alarmed her and she rubbed his back and asked quietly, "You okay Clark?"
Without looking at her Clark answered "I'm fine," then he sighed and said "I just suddenly missed my Dad, he built this place for me, called it my fortress of solitude. He was always the one I would go to when things got to be too much for me. Now I don't, well, I just miss him." Clark looked down at Maria and she saw his eyes shining from unshed tears.
"Yeah, I know what you mean." She said, "It can sneak up on you and hit you when you least expect it. You'll think you're fine and then something will remind you and you hurt all over again." Clark looked at her a little surprised, it was the first time since she had told him about her father that she had mentioned him and he could see how much it cost her by the way she swallowed hard and blinked up at him through her tears. Clark pulled her close and tucked her forehead into his shoulder, kissing her neck and stroking her hair soothingly.
"Can you tell me about what's bothering you?" she asked, "I know I'm not your father but maybe it would help to just have someone listen."
Clark shook his head, "I don't want to tell you. It's too awful and I don't want you to have these images in your mind."
Maria reached up to stroke his face; she was worried about the look of desolation that had come back to his eyes. If he were anyone else she would suggest counseling but it wasn't as though he could share any of his experiences with a psychologist, he'd end up in Bellreeve within minutes. "Clark I can handle a lot more than you think but I'm not going to push you to tell me. Maybe talking to your Mom or Chloe would be easier. I just don't think it's good to keep it all inside." She wrapped her arms around him and held him close, trying silently to give all her love and support through her hug.
Clark felt something inside him let loose at her silence and suddenly found himself talking about his fight with the Phantom. How frightened he had been, how it felt to follow in the wake of such destruction, the horror of seeing people die before his eyes and finally how it had felt when he was holding himself together with one hand and aiming the crystal with the other, feeling his blood gushing out of the wounds in his chest and stomach and terrified that he would die before he captured the phantom and it would be free to wreak havoc on the world. He shared his guilt at having set the phantoms free in the first place and how alone he felt when fighting them. Once he started talking the words rushed out of him along with tears and it was all she could do to just listen and not cry along with him. Somehow she knew if she wanted him to continue to talk her best course of action was complete stillness and so she listened and held him until his words came to a halt in a gasping sob.
To be continued…
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