-1Chapter Thirty Three-Back to Life
Clark sat in a stuffed chair and watched as Lana finally woke up. Chloe stood next to the couch and watched Clark. She had noticed him limp, and the way he used his left arm to help him sit. Now that Lana was waking up, she could get answers and figure out what happened to him.
Clark watched as Lana sat up and stared at him. He couldn't think of anything else to do but smile. Chloe wrapped her arm around Lana's shoulder as she sat next to her on the couch. Lana couldn't bring herself to smile back at Clark. Either she was in shock or she was really pissed at him.
"How are you feeling?" Clark asked hoping to figure out if she was mad or in shock. Her facial expression turned from blank to pissed and he got his answer. She stood from the couch and walked forward.
"How am I feeling?" She asked coming to stand over him. "Why the hell didn't you tell me you were alive?" She practically yelled as she slapped his shoulder. Clark winced in pain and tried to stop her assault. She managed to get a few good hits on a few sore body parts. Chloe shot up from the couch and pulled Lana back. She'd never seen the brunette so pissed.
"Let him explain," Chloe said pulling Lana back to the couch. Lana folded her arms over her chest and watched as he gathered his breath.
"I'm sorry Lana." Clark stated.
"I know you are. What I want to know is what happened.," She responded to his apology.
"Lex threatened me at his first hearing. After living with him and living on his bad side, I knew what he was capable of. I never thought someone would shoot up my barn." He started off.
"The police assumed you were dead from the amount of blood. They also said you were dragged away," Chloe said hoping to get the scoop.
"Max found me inside the barn with a few bullet holes in me and a pile of debris on my back," Clark said in response to Chloe.
"You got shot?" Lana asked. Clark nodded and pointed to his shoulder and his leg. "Clark why didn't you tell me? I was hitting you on your shoulder!" Lana exclaimed feeling horrible for causing him more pain.
"Don't worry about it. I deserved it," He said hoping to make her not feel so bad about it.
"So Max found you?" Chloe asked wanting to get back to the answers.
"Yea, he dragged me out and got me to a safe house in Metropolis. I recovered there and when I could move around again I prepared for Lex's appeal," Clark answered.
"How did that go?" Lana asked finally speaking again and making eye contact.
"He was found guilty," Clark answered.
"So we're done with Lex?" Chloe asked
"If anyone has to deal with a Luther it will be me. Now that the Talon has a new owner, neither of you will have to worry about Lex," Clark answered Chloe with a huge smile.
"So what now?" Lana asked wondering what Clark was going to do now.
"I'm going to get some sleep before going back to work. With football over I have time to get my homework done. I'd just hate to start the semester off while being behind on the farm," He said while rubbing his hand through his hair while in thought.
"So you won't need me on the weekends then," Lana stated with disappointment.
She should have known that he was only with her so he could get something out of his battle with Lex.
"Actually, I was thinking that instead of studying that we could actually go on a proper date," Clark said seeing the disappointment in her eyes. Chloe quickly stood from the couch and made her way to the apartment door. They didn't notice as she left, closing the door behind her.
"You still want to be with me?" She asked.
"As long as you'll have me," Clark responded with a smile.
She smiled back and stood from the couch. She walked over and kissed him solid on the lips, her hands cupping both sides of his face. Considering the awkward angle the kiss lasted so long.
"Can you spare staying here tonight? I don't want to let you out of my sight." She asked after pulling away for air.
"I doubt I could move from this chair," He responded with a laugh.
"Well in that case, are you hungry?" She asked.
"Starved," He answered.
She gave him a quick kiss before disappearing into the kitchen. She wasn't as great of a cook as Clark but she could make something other than a sandwich. Clark moved himself to the couch and propped his bum leg up on the cushions.
"You wouldn't happen to have any pain killers, would you?" Clark asked.
She came in a second later with a glass of water and two pills in her hand. He gladly took them and gulped down the water.
"Are you okay?" She asked sitting on the edge of the couch, giving his propped up leg some room.
"I've been on my feet all day. It's just starting to catch up with me," He took her hand in his and rubbed his thumb over the top.
"Can you tell me what exactly happened in the barn?" She asked hoping he wasn't to scarred by the event to share.
"I was, uh, working on the tractor when I heard a car pull up. I started to head for the barn door when wood started to splinter all around me," He paused remembering the fear he had felt. "I was hit in the leg first and the pain was enough to take me down. When I started to crawl away one got me in the shoulder and the next thing I saw was part of the stairway falling down on me."
Lana brushed some hair from his eyes and moved her hand to cup his cheek again, her thumb rubbing it gently. "You must have been so scared."
"I don't remember what I was thinking, but I was scared," He said softly.
The buzzer went off in the kitchen and caused them to jump. They laughed once they caught their breath. Lana stood from the couch and headed back into the kitchen. She returned a little later with a plate full of food. Clark took the plate from her and also the fork. He eagerly ate and Lana smiled at his compliments on her good cooking. She figured he'd eaten take out or Max's cooking for the last two months. As it got later the two of them started to get tired. Lana detangled herself from Clark's arms and reached for the remote turning the TV off.
"Hey what are you doing?" Clark asked reaching for her again.
"We're both tired and I'm not letting you sleep on the couch," She said reaching to help him up. With a few grunts of pain, she was able to get him back to her bedroom and his shoes off. She loosened his tie and tossed it over onto a chair along with his suit jacket.
"Where are you going to sleep?" Clark asked as he unbuttoned his shirt.
"Couch is fine," Lana said heading over to her dresser to grab her pajama's.
"I don't think so," Clark said carefully pulling of his shirt.
Lana turned around with her pajama's in hand. She saw the huge bandage on his right shoulder and his shoulder blade. It looked as if the bullet went straight through.
"You're hurt. Are you sure you can sleep if I'm there?" Lana asked.
Clark smiled as he tossed his shirt into the chair along with his tie, belt, and shoes. "I can manage just fine. Besides, I had the hardest time sleeping in Metropolis without you."
She smiled and kissed him softly. When she pulled away and disappeared into the bathroom, Clark limped back over to the bed and managed to crawl underneath the covers. Lana came out shortly later dressed in her pajamas. She slid under the covers on Clark's left. He raised his arm to let her snuggle up on his side. She rested her head on his shoulder, her hand on his chest. She felt the coolness of metal. She realized he was still wearing her class ring. His breathing slowed and she looked up to see him asleep. With a small smile she kissed his shoulder and closed her eyes.