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Stars and Water

Chapter 24

Clark met Maria on the steps of the Daily Planet. He was standing there in the full sun with his head thrown back looking up at the building when she first saw him. He looks like he's about to lift off, she thought as she approached. Clark recognized the sound of her footsteps and turned to her with a brilliant smile. "Maria!" he said and the way he said her name made her melt.

"Hey Clark," she replied, sliding into his arms for a hug. They kissed lightly and then turned to go into the building. Clark kept his arm resting around Maria's waist as they walked inside and she leaned into him briefly. She had missed him in those few days apart, as though she couldn't be fully herself without him near. They had talked on the phone a few times but it just didn't help, in fact it made it worse because she wanted to climb right through the handset to be with him.

A feeling of peace washed over Clark at having Maria near and he kept his arm around her waist as they walked, reluctant to let go of her any time soon. Reaching Chloe's desk they found her surrounded by stacks of paper and typing madly.

"Hey Chloe, ready for lunch?" asked Clark when she looked up and blinked at them as though coming back from another world.

"Lunch? Is it time for lunch already?" she looked at her computer and started to type in just one more sentence as Clark grinned. Jimmy came up behind her and pulled her chair away from the desk.

"Step away from the computer Chloe. Even Woodward and Bernstein ate occasionally." and Chloe reluctantly removed her hands from the keyboard.

"Fine, but it better be good!" she said as she stood up with her eyes still scanning the screen distractedly.

"You should know. You picked the place." said Jimmy with a kiss on her cheek. "Now come be social for a little while. I promise to get you back to work in an hour." Chloe allowed herself to be led away from the computer and they all walked out into the sun together.

At the restaurant Maria listened with interest as they ate Chinese food and talked. Chloe and Jimmy seemed to know everything that went on in Metropolis and had the inside scoop on stories that hadn't hit the papers yet. Clark also was talking animatedly and she enjoyed seeing how his mind put facts together and came up with insights that the others hadn't considered. He'll be a good journalist, she realized, he's as at home here as he is on his farm.

"It was great to see you two," Clark said as he stood up and helped pull out Maria's chair, "We better go if we are going to get to the campus and explore. Besides, I have somewhere else I want to take Maria first." Clark grinned excitedly. "The Planetarium has a new exhibit that is just going up and I want to get in before the crowds hit."

Chloe and Jimmy stood up too and Chloe gave Clark a hug. She pulled back and looked into his eyes and grinned, it was so good to see him happy. Clark smiled back; he knew exactly what she was thinking. Then Chloe turned to Maria and surprised her with a hug. Maria returned it happily, she felt like she was being approved of by family.

After a slow drive across town, during which Maria stared out the window at the amazing city and Clark watched Maria taking it all in, they pulled up in front of the Metropolis Planetarium. Maria could tell this place meant a lot to Clark and as they proceeded through the exhibits she became caught up by his enthusiasm and looked at it all with interest.

They were standing in front of a beautiful star map and Clark was pointing out the constellations he knew and telling her the mythology that went with them when a load of crates came trundling in. Maria turned to see what the odd noise was and nearly fell when Clark's full weight hit her shoulder. She turned and grabbed at him as he slid to the floor with a strangled gasp of pain.

"Clark! My God Clark, what's wrong?" Maria fell to her knees next to Clark's writhing body. He was struggling for breath and trying to say her name. She gently stroked his face. "Clark, please tell me how I can help you. What is hurting you?"

Clark's body shuddered and he moaned as his eyes drifted shut. He struggled to open them but they were too heavy. He could hear Maria's frantic voice and he wanted to answer her but he didn't have the strength. He needed all he had left just to breathe. Clark felt that all too familiar feeling of nausea and grinding agony that meant there was Kryptonite somewhere near, a lot of Kryptonite. He tried to tell Maria but couldn't speak. Darkness was closing in on him fast and he struggled against it.

Maria watched in horror as his body trembled, and then went still and his gasping breaths slowed to a near stop, coming very far apart. What had hurt her invincible Clark Kent? She didn't know what to do and she didn't have any time to make a mistake.

Clark was pale and sweating, his skin icy to the touch and his heart beat faint and erratic. It was all absolutely wrong for her always warm and vibrant Clark.

Maria yanked her cell phone out of her purse with trembling hands and prepared to dial 911. She had actually entered the numbers but stopped just short of pressing CALL. What was she thinking? She couldn't send him to a hospital! Maria choked back a sob feeling suddenly very lost. She needed to be calm, Clark needed her to think, she brushed the tears from her eyes with impatient hands and glared at her phone.

She knew if anyone would know what was wrong it would be Martha Kent but she was so far away. Who was closer that could come help? Chloe then, Chloe had known Clark's secret for years, she had to know something that would help him. Maria stroked Clark's face again and the sight of him in such pain had her so rattled she couldn't remember Chloe's number.

She thought a moment and then pulled Clark's phone from his pocket. "Clark, you're going to be all right. I'm going to call Chloe; she'll know what to do." Maybe he could hear her; maybe it would comfort him to hear her. She pulled up his menu and saw #1 Chloe Sullivan, it gave her a little jolt of jealousy for the first time to see Chloe's name above hers in his speed dial.

She looked at Clark's face and swallowed hard, as if speed dial numbers were important now, she thought. She pressed the number and prayed, Chloe please pick… before she even finished her thought Chloe answered. "Hey Clark! What did you do, get lost on campus?"

Maria cut in "Chloe, Clark's sick and I don't know what to do!" She yelled frantically into the phone, and then she adjusted her volume and continued "I don't know what's hurting him…oh…what's Kryptonite?" Maria looked frantically around "I don't see any glowing green rocks. Chloe I don't see anything like that."

Looking up at the huge crate that had just been rolled in behind them Maria gasped in horror, an eerie green glow was emanating through the cracks between the slats "Chloe do you mean meteors? They just brought in a huge crate and the display plate says it's the largest known intact Meteor to hit Smallville." She looked back at Clark. He looked worse, if that were possible, his face had gone greenish gray and his skin looked bruised.

"Chloe I think he's dying! What do I do?" Maria's voice was shaking, her body wracked with shivers as cold flooded her at the sight of Clark lying so still. She listened to Chloe and feeling a little calmer after her reassurances and instructions she quickly stuffed both phones in her pockets.

"Okay Clark. Chloe says you need to get outside away from that meteor and into the sun so I'm going to be pulling you out of here." Maria reassured Clark, caressing him with trembling hands and trying to sound confident that she could do this. Hearing a sound she looked up and realized a small crowd of people had gathered, looking on with sympathy and offering help, but she hadn't heard them.

"Please, he's um, having a seizure and needs to be outside away from the, um…the artificial lights. Can you help me move him?" she asked. Instantly hands reached out to lift him and using her hands to gently support his head she directed them out the door and to the sun filled slab of marble that served as a top step.

Maria thanked the strangers who had helped and gently encouraged them to leave. She was worried someone had called an ambulance but so far none showed up. Quiet descended as the people wandered back inside. Maria looked closely at Clark. The change that occurred when they got him out of the building and into the sunlight was miraculous. The pain in his face vanished and his breathing became easy, his entire body relaxing onto the warm marble.

Sinking down next to him she cradled his head in her lap and gently stroked his face. "Come back to me Clark." she murmured, "everything is going to be okay now sweetie, just open your eyes and come back." She watched as his skin flushed with color and the dark circles disappeared from under his eyes. His body was warm again and the sweat evaporated from his skin.

She could feel the tension leave her own body as she watched him recover, going from looking like death to looking like a sleeping child. His face was so beautiful and innocent in the sunlight she felt her heart turn over as his eyelashes fluttered against his cheeks. "Clark?" she touched his cheek with her fingertips and saw his eyes blink slowly open. "Hey, welcome back sweetheart, how are you feeling?" she said softly.

Clark turned his head and focused on her face, "A little dizzy and weak but okay. What happened?" He thought about trying to sit up but decided that there were worse places to be than laying in the sun with his head in Maria's lap, and he was tired.

"You just came in contact with the world's largest intact meteor. I'd recommend you wait until this exhibit has moved to another planetarium before you return to the main hall."

Clark looked apologetically at Maria, "Sorry, Meteor rocks make me sick." he said.

"A fact you might have shared with me before I found myself watching you die. I couldn't help you because I didn't know how!" said Maria, her voice rising. Now that she could see he was going to be okay a wave of anger washed over her and she let it loose on Clark.

Clark slowly stood up with her help and began to pace, he could feel his energy return, and his strength. He was back to normal, well, normal for him. "Maria I've never told anyone about Kryptonite voluntarily, even Chloe found out by accident. I'm not used to talking about things like this and I hate telling you things that will make you see me as even more…" Clark paused, "More weird than I already am."

All her anger fled as she saw the sadness on his face. "Clark I don't see you as weird, I see you as wonderful. You aren't supposed to be just like a human, you need to be who you truly are. Sweetie it's like an eagle trying to be a…a hamster. Who cares if you can't run on a wheel, you're meant to fly."

Clark stared at her, speechless. Somehow he always thought he would find love when he found someone who would overlook the things about him that were different, someone who would treat him as though he were human and normal. That had been what he wanted from Lana, to feel like he was just like everyone else. What Maria said made him feel anything but normal and human, and yet he felt completely accepted and loved. He smiled at her. "but I like hamsters, they're cute and fuzzy…"

"Oh stop it, you know what I meant, I was trying to make a point and I couldn't think of anything else." Maria rolled her eyes and Clark reached out and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her into a kiss.

"Yes, I know what you mean." he murmured

To be continued…

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