Chapter 21 [Later that Afternoon]
[Porch]
Lana sat in the warm sunshine and rocked softly on the wooden rocking chair by the stairs. The swaying motion calmed her anxiety and fears a bit. Admittedly the constant darkness overwhelmed her. She wanted to blink and have her sight restored….
…if the doctor's prognosis was correct, that wouldn't happen….
Still she had decided to take Clark's advice. It would've been easy to retreat to her bedroom or huddle helplessly on the couch inside. Instead she tentatively embraced the day. Her nose took in the aromas of nature. Her ears sampled the symphony of small noises around herself. Her tongue sipped on the cherry limeade that her hostess made for her.
Her left fingers touched the cool metal encircling her right ring finger. Even if she couldn't see it, she recalled signing the paperwork for the marriage license with Clark earlier that morning. Despite her misfortunes, she was going to be married to her prince in just three days….
…He would commit to her in three days…as soon as they could….
"He still wants me," she murmured happily to herself. She heard a creaking on the porch beside her. "Hello?"
"Of course he does," Martha assured her. While she knew it was a good choice, she still wondered about the circumstances surrounding the younger couple's decision. "You're a part of the family officially now even if you're not 'officially married' yet."
"I appreciate that, Mrs. Kent. Thank you," Lana expressed.
"You're welcome. Mind if I join you? I brought the pitcher with me. Seems your glass is getting low," Martha noted. She refilled the half-empty glass and then filled another one with her own refreshment. "I wanted to suggest a couple of things if that's okay? The first thing was something we learned when Clark went blind in high school."
"O…okay," Lana hesitantly accepted. She wondered if she'd done anything.
"It's okay." Martha rubbed her shoulder reassuringly. "Take your index finger and stick it in the glass."
"Stick it in the glass?" Lana hesitated but did so. About a half inch down from the top of the glass, she felt the cold liquid on her fingertip. "I feel the limeade." She removed it from the glass and wiped her hand off against her pants.
"Now drink some. It's okay," Martha urged gently.
Lana did as she was bade. She drank close to half of the glass before setting it back down. "Okay."
"Now put your finger back in it."
Lana stuck her hand back in there and discovered that she had to extend the finger farther to make contact with the liquid. "I see. That's so I can know how I'm doing with my drink. Is it okay if I ask for a refill?"
"Of course! We didn't want you to sit around and wait for us to notice you. Given that you're a proactive person, that's something you can do for yourself. We're here for you. Okay?" Martha declared. "Maybe we can over table settings at some point?"
"Table settings?" Lana turned in disbelief at her hostess. She did know how to eat after all.
"Sorry, Lana. One thing we learned with Clark was how to arrange things so he'd know where everything was by memory. I want to do the same thing with you too. I know it's overwhelming for you right now…." Martha clarified.
Lana fought back indignant feelings. Admittedly she'd wanted to scream at the world about how unfair it was being toward her. She burned over the constant black drop cloth over her eyes. "You can see, Mrs. Kent. I can't." She sighed deeply and bowed her head. "I'm sorry. You're being so kind. I feel like everyone's hovering over me like some broken bird or something."
Martha maintained her silence for a minute. She could understand her son's motivation now to be there in all things for the woman to her right. He's not going to let her fall into despair. "We're here to support you, Lana, not smother you. That's why I'm suggesting this to you. A lot of people would need time to adjust. You're being so very brave."
Lana chuckled indelicately. "If it wasn't for Clark, Mrs. Kent, I'd be curled up in my room. He's so amazing, you know? I'm not talking about his abilities. I'm referring to his inner warmth and that special heart of his. Now that he isn't trying to protect me from everything, it's so great! It's awesome to know he doesn't look at me any differently because I'm blind and paralyzed."
"None of us here do, Lana. You incurred this situation because you protected Clark and those people at the Daily Planet from harm. You have a big heart too. Clark knows and loves that about you. He's not about to let you go. And he does know about the blindness firsthand. That's why he and I want to structure things for you. We know you like to do things for yourself," Martha assured her.
"You're right. I really appreciate that. Just do me a favor?" Lana requested. "Please don't do this to push me away? I admit I don't want to be alone with this stuff." Her eyes teared up.
"You're never alone, Lana. I'd never leave family like this. Besides I have a favor to ask of you too," Martha requested. "Please call me Mom from now on. You are my daughter-in-law now. Might as well call it as much."
"Mom…It's been so long since I could call anyone that," Lana felt a pang from missing Laura inside of herself. "I'd like that,…Mom." She grasped onto Martha tightly.
"You're welcome. Now no more talk or feelings of 'earning your place.' It's all right," Martha reiterated. "If you need help, you ask without shame. Promise?"
"I promise," Lana agreed in disbelief. "After listening to Oliver and Chloe…."
"They're not dealing with the situation. We are, Lana. Clark's made his decision. He's restructured his life for you. When he's at the office in Granville, it'll be us girls. I'd appreciate your help on some projects if that's okay? I can show you some of the things your mother loved to help me with. How does that sound?" Martha offered.
"I'd like that, Mom. Thanks," Lana accepted. "If you don't mind me asking, what did she like to cook? Nell made it sound like Mom wasn't much like that."
"When she did cook, your mother could bake a great apple pie. When I first married Jonathan, I admit I needed some help on desserts and such. Your parents were among the first to knock on the front door and offer friendship and assistance to me. Now I can pass that assistance on to you." Martha squeezed Lana's hand. "Nobody helpless unless they want to be, Lana."
"That's great to know. I miss her even if I didn't know her and Dad all that long. I know Henry Small's my biological father but Lewis really made an effort to be Dad, you know?" Lana pointed out.
"They were nice people who reached out instinctively. I miss them too. You're so much like her in your own way. Take pride in that," Martha insisted. "Wonder how he's doing up there?"
Lana looked toward where she knew the barn to be. What is he doing up there anyhow?
Clark mused in the Loft protective sanctuary over his next few moves. The papers for the marriage license were filed. He'd arranged for Reverend Sanders to do the ceremony as soon as the process was finished. He'd start back at the Planet's satellite office two days after that.
Pete, despite the circumstances, ecstatically accepted the best man duties. His girlfriend, Sam, insisted on playing for them during the event and to add a mini-concert after dinner for their benefit.
Chloe just as enthusiastically accepted the matron of honor duties. She determined to give her best friend the best possible experience in all regards.
Byron and Sandra, as always, added their support in whatever way they could for the wedding party.
It's really coming together! I just wish it was for longer. He frowned at the continual realization that he'd have his dream finally but only for a short time.
"It's okay, Clark. We'll always out live them here," Kara reminded him. Seeing him tense, she added, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean it like that. We Kryptonians have longer life spans than Earthers do. The yellow sun just makes it more so. My point is so what if we only have a short time with them? Make the most of it."
Seeing her point, he let his stance soften. "I get it. I'm doing that. Kara, thanks for doing this. I know you're getting yourself in trouble with Jor-El over it."
"He can deal with it. I'm not openly trying to defy him. I just want to help you and Lana. I explained to him that I'm repaying a debt to you both. In addition you are my cousin. So's she. Why not help family?" she explained. "Speaking of doing, Clark, mind if we try something?"
He looked around anxiously but saw nothing out of the ordinary. "Okay."
["Focus on me,"] she directed. ["Look into my eyes and open your mind. What do you see?"]
He gazed into her icy blue eyes deeply while relaxing as she had instructed. For a minute he only saw her irises and the pointed pupils. Then the vision blurred as their telepathic link established itself. "What?"
["Just keep focusing. Trust me."]
As his eyes cleared, he jumped in spite of himself. It was like he was looking into the bathroom mirror….
…He saw himself….
"How did…you?" He broke off the telepathic contact and stared curiously at her.
"You were looking through my eyes. Because of our telepathic link, we can share such experiences. I've also done that with blind Earthers too in the past." She smirked and motioned toward the house.
He realized her point. "I can do that for Lana too!"
"If she's open to it, yes you can. She's very sensitive and intuitive. She needs to learn to function in case one of us isn't around to help. At least though we can help her out when we can. Well, Clark?" she explained.
"I'll need to learn how to focus like you had me do," he doubted.
"It's just like your flying. Once you relax and open up to the Kryptonian side, it's second nature. Let's try again. She took a deep breath. "Close your eyes and open your mind again." Then with a telepathic urge, she added, ["You can do it."] She hovered in the air.
He followed her directions. Slowly the world from her perspective came into focus. He saw the Loft's roof coming closer as she floated higher. As she turned in a circle, he took in the whole expanse and then the fields beyond as she saw them too.
["You're doing great, Clark. Just keeping relaxing,"] she complimented. She continued their odyssey for another minute before alighting back on the floorboards and gently cutting off the link. "Open your eyes."
He did so to see her grinning at her. "Wow. That was amazing!"
"You can do it too. Want to see if she'd like to try it?" she queried before leading him back down the wooden stairs toward the house.
"You bet!" he exclaimed enthusiastically as they rushed toward the porch. "Mom! Lana!"
"Clark, what is it?" Lana wondered curiously. "Is everything okay?"
"Nothing seems out of the ordinary," Martha presumed as she watched the two cousins approaching them. "Clark, Kara, what's going on?"
"Everything's fine, Martha. Thank you," Kara assured them. "I was just showing Clark something that might help Lana."
"Help me? What would that be?" the blind woman inquired anxiously.
"Part of being Kryptonian is being telepathic," Kara explained. "We can hear and speak to each other through our thoughts. We can also see through each other's eyes so to speak if need be."
"Hear each…?" Lana squinted in confusion. "I don't understand."
["We can speak to each other like this,"] Kara explained to them both telepathically.
"That's what Jor-El does! That's how he speaks to us!" Martha realized.
"Exactly, Mom," he agreed. "Kara says that she's done this with Earth folks too."
Lana sucked in a deep breath. "Can you see for me too?"
["If you're open to it. Clark needs some practice still. You know how guys are, right?"] Kara cracked eliciting an eye roll from him.
Lana grinned. "Yeah I do. Show me what to do."
["Relax and look deeply into my eyes. Open your mind to me. Don't worry. I'll only access the part where your brain processes visual images. Just relax."] Kara bade.
Lana relaxed. She felt a weird burning sensation in her head. Her mind felt lighter. Rather than fight it, she relented to the experience. Then something happened….
As Clark had, she saw herself and jumped. "How? You look like me!"
"You're looking back at yourself through my eyes, Lana," Kara explained while letting the link close itself. "It's just like looking in your mirror."
"You just let her see through your eyes?" Martha wondered aghast. "I thought her optic centers couldn't work because of the tumors."
"Just the muscles between them and my eyes, Mom," Lana realized. "Kara was tapping into that part of my brain. That was so awesome though! Who can help me do it?"
"Just Kara and me. Once I get more practice at it, we can do more together. You'd still have to learn about all of the organizational stuff in case we aren't here. This way you'll be able to function and enjoy our life together," he indicated. "You're a part of this family. We're going to do what we can to make your life as meaningful as possible."
"Just work with us," Martha agreed while seeing the point in front of them.
"I will. Sorry it's a little weird but I can deal with it," Lana agreed without hesitation. "Clark, can you try for me now? Just don't look right at me. The reflection thing is startling."
He grinned and relaxed As he did so, his mind opened. He perceived the world on much greater terms than a human one. Then he reached into her mind keeping his aim on her optic centers. ["Just relax. Now what do you see?"]
She stiffened but made herself stay in tune with him. As her brain picked up on his impetus, it used his eyes' perspective rather than her own. She saw the fields, sunflowers and the barn in front of the house. Then she noticed the dirt road leading toward the state highway in front of the fence. Finally she saw Kara and Martha smiling at her as his eyes picked up on them. "It's amazing!"
He found the effort taxing but pressed on for his beloved's benefit. ["How are you doing?"]
"Are you kidding? THIS IS GREAT!" she exclaimed. "Thank you!"
["No problem. As I said, we can do more of this stuff as I get practice. I'm going to turn it off,"] he noted before shutting off the connection. He collapsed into a chair from the effort.
The sudden return to the darkness jarred Lana as well. She reached out in front of her for the views he'd just granted her. "Clark, what happened? Are you okay?"
"He just overtaxed himself on his first real attempt at it," Kara assured her. "You both need some practice with it. As he said, you need to learn how to function without your sight too. I have my patrols to do. Clark will be at the paper working for a few hours each day. Martha will need your help around the house."
"I just wish you were always here, Clark. Sorry. I don't want to hurt you," Lana lamented.
"So you just helped her to see through your eyes?" Martha asked wondering how such a thing was possible.
"He did, Martha. It's about trusting each other and having a good telepathic link. Kryptonians can do it because our minds are tuned to such things," Kara replied. "At least though we can help her to see things from time to time."
"But if you two aren't here, how will she function?" Martha queried in concern not wanting Lana to become dependent with them there and an invalid when they were away.
"I get it, Mom. I'll just ask when there's something really special. I don't want to hurt Clark by pushing him too much," Lana assured her. "Meantime we'll just work on both ways. All right? Kara, can you do it for me? Just for a second? There's something I want to see." She relaxed and opened her mind to her cousin-in-law.
"All right," Kara agreed while establishing a link. ["You're with me. What do you want to see?"]
Lana extended her hands toward her fiancé. "Help me up, Clark? Just hold me."
"You bet," he agreed while gently tugging her toward him.
"Kara, look at Clark please? Maybe over my shoulder?" Lana requested.
"I can do that," Kara concurred while looking right at her cousin's face.
As his face came into view, Lana grinned. "I can't believe we're doing this!" She leaned forward and locked her lips right on top of his.
Instinctively his lips returned the contact and sent loving energy back into hers. He had longed for such contact on an equal and open footing for as long as he could remember. Even if he'd been with Lois for years, he'd never received such open and trusting warmth from her…
…Lana did so by instinct. Conditions be damned….
Lana released the kiss. "That's great, Clark. Thanks. I…need to sit."
"Sure. You okay?" he inquired in concern while helping her into a comfortable position.
"I'm great. Thanks," she concurred. "Seeing you and doing that is better than any medicine, Clark." She smiled warmly. "I'm glad I can see you like this at least some of the time."
"And I'm always around even when you can't. Trust in that." He kissed her softly on the cheek. "You're so strong. You'll handle this. I know you can."
"Only because you're here with me," she admitted. "It's okay, Kara. I don't want to overtire you."
"I appreciate that, Lana. As Clark said, we're here for you," Kara indicated before letting the link go.
"And I'm here as I said I'd be," he affirmed while squeezing her hand as a salve in the darkness.
"I can have faith again," Lana agreed with a grin. "I'll be able to function thanks to everyone. You'll see. I won't let you all down."
The trio nodded in satisfaction at her resolve. While the situation could've been hopeless, due to extraordinary love and ability, it would not be so.
And another hurdle was crossed…..