With a feeling of relief, Lex Luthor signed the discharge papers that would release him from Smallville Medical. He was more than ready to leave the place. Hell, he would have already left the place, medical release or not, if not for Cecily. His fiancé's worry and insistence that he listen to the doctor's had persuaded him to endure this place this long. He liked having someone that cared about him enough to worry over his well being, even if he had played on that worry a bit to convince her to go to her meeting, the last work responsibility she had before taking thee weeks off for the wedding and honeymoon. He had promised her he would stay put until the doctor released him as long as she went to the meeting.
Luckily, the doctor had seen fit to release him after examining him this morning, meaning that Lex was getting sprung from his hospital prison only a few hours after Cecily had left for Metropolis.
A soft knock on the door made Lex look up from the paper. He found Clark standing in the doorway of the room.
Picking up the paper, Lex held it up for the teenager to see. "You're my witness, Clark. I'm leaving here with the doctor's approval."
Clark smiled even as Lex handed the paper to the nurse standing patiently by, an amused smile creeping onto her face at her patient's comment.
"Then I guess this will be a short visit," Clark remarked, stepping into the room. He felt relieved that his friend was well enough to be leaving the hospital. "Is your driver coming to pick you up?" Clark asked, knowing that Lex didn't have any of his cars at the hospital.
"I haven't made the call yet."
"Then if you don't mind being seen in our old pick-up truck, I can give you a ride home," Clark offered.
"Best offer I've had all day," Lex replied. He looked from Clark to the young nurse who was handling his discharge. "Am I free to go then?"
"Yes, Mr. Luthor. However, please remember the doctor's orders and try to take it easy for the next couple of days," the nurse replied.
"Well, now that you've mentioned that particular instruction in front of Clark, I don't think I'm going to have much choice but to follow it," Lex replied, knowing that his friend wouldn't hesitate to remind him of the doctor order if Clark felt he was pushing himself. He also had no doubt that Clark would repeat the instruction to Cecily at the first opportunity that he had.
"Good to know you actually listen to someone," the nurse replied. "Have a good day, Mr. Luthor," she added as she headed toward the door with the signed medical forms.
Lex slid off the hospital bed, more than ready to escape the four walls he had felt like a prisoner of the last couple of days. Having been mostly in a lying position during his stay at the Medical Center Lex's body protested the sudden vertical orientation with a wave of lightheadedness. Reaching out, he placed a hand on the bed behind him to steady himself as he waited for it to pass.
"Should I get the nurse?" Clark asked, seeing his friend's disorientation.
"Don't you dare," Lex replied immediately. "I just stood up too fast," he added, already feeling steadier on his feet. He lifted his hand from the bed and started to reach for the small duffel that held the few things that had accumulated during his stay in the hospital.
"I'll get that," Clark said, stepping toward the bed and his friend.
Deciding it wasn't worth the argument that he was capable of carrying his own bag, Lex withdrew his hand and let Clark claim the bag. Without another word, the two friends headed for the door the nurse had disappeared out of moments before. The two walked in silence. When they reached the front entrance of the Smallville Medical Center, Lex let Clark take the lead as the young millionaire didn't know where Clark had parked.
It wasn't long before the two had reached the old, blue, pick-up.
"I think it's really nice that you're trying to give Cecily the wedding she really wants," Clark finally said, breaking the silence as he placed Lex's bag in the back of the pick-up. "I'm sure getting married on a farm was the last thing you'd thought you'd ever be doing," he added as he unlocked the doors of the truck.
Lex gave a short laugh as he reached for the passenger side door. "That's for sure. Then again, there was a time when I never expected to be marrying for love either," he added as she climbed into the passenger seat.
Clark felt the familiar pang of sympathy he did whenever he was faced with the realization of how devoid of love Lex's life had been. Despite their different financial status, Clark knew that there were ways in which he had been far richer than Lex. Now, with Lex marrying Cecily, Lex might be able to realize the emotional wealth that he clearly envied in the Kents.
Which brought them to Clark's secret. Clark had always felt guilty about keeping the secret from his friend. It hurt not to be able to answer the questions about that day on the bridge honestly. Clark knew, that as long as that secret lay between them, there would always be an underlying tension in the family dynamics. Granted, he wasn't sure exactly what kind of repercussions finally revealing the truth to Lex would have, he could very well find himself not standing by Lex's side when he said his vows with Cecily, but he had been raised to believe that honesty was the best policy.
Although, in this case, he would always wonder if perhaps he should have followed his instincts on that belief sooner than this.
"I hope my idea of a spur of the moment country wedding isn't creating too much work for anyone," Lex continued, breaking Clark out of his thoughts.
"Are you kidding? Mom has been flying as high as a kite since Dad broke the news. She's enjoying being a part of the wedding."
"Perhaps it wasn't fair to keep her out of the loop in the first place. I just thought things would go smoother with my father if things were exactly as he wanted them, and Cecily seemed okay with the idea. Granted, I think she was only okay with it for exactly the same reason—to smooth the situation over with my father. Sometimes I wonder if we'll ever be good enough for one another's parents."
Clark reached out and rested his hand on Lex's shoulder.
"If it's any consolation, you are making some headway with our father and Mom has always had a soft spot for you."
"Ever since my mother passed away, all I've ever wanted was to feel like I was part of a real family again and not just a disappointment."
Clark wanted to assure Lex that his father didn't think of him as a disappointment but he wasn't quite sure he believed it himself. Granted, he hadn't spent a whole lot of time around the elder Luthor, but what time he had, Lionel hadn't exactly endeared himself to him. Even Clark could sense the strained relationship between father and son and he was convinced it wasn't all Lex's doing.
There was one thing that he could assure his friend of though.
"Well, come Thursday, you'll officially be a part of our family," Clark said, applying gentle pressure to his friend's shoulder.
Lex smiled as he turned his head to look at Clark. It was a genuine smile that actually reached the young millionaire's eyes.
"Thanks, Clark," Lex said softly, as Clark dropped his hand from Lex's shoulder and reached for the key he had already placed in the ignition.
In silence, Clark pulled out of the parking spot and pointed the pick-up in the direction of the parking lot entrance. Internally, Clark was debating on whether to ask Lex out to the farm now to discuss his secret or if he should give his friend more time to rest before springing the bombshell on him. The only thing Clark knew for sure was that he wanted to do it before the wedding.
As Clark took a left-hand turn onto the road, Lex spoke up and helped Clark with his internal debate.
"Do you mind if we stop by your father's farm before you drop me off at home? I'd like to see how the plans are shaping up for myself."
"The businessman in you just can't stand to be left out of the loop, huh?" Clark joked.
"No, it's not that. When it comes to a simple, country wedding that I know Cecily will enjoy, I know your family know much better than I do how to pull that off. I'm just curious about what is being planned and want to see if there is anything I can do to help."
Clark smiled and as he approached the fork in the road, he took the road that would lead him out to the farm instead of in the direction of Lex's old Scottish mansion.
A little over an hour later found the two friends sitting on the Kent's front porch. They had arrived on the farm to find Mr. Kent working on a white trellis arch to hold the ceremony under. In the house Nell Potter was sorting through flowers with Martha. Nell had left shortly after Clark and Lex's arrival with the promise of several dishes for the wedding celebration on Thursday.
It hadn't taken Lex long at all to realize that Clark was right - Jonathan and Martha Kent didn't think of the spur of the moment wedding as a burden but as an opportunity to do something for the daughter that they loved.
It only made him more envious of what Clark and Cecily had.
The sound of the screen door opening, disturbed the silence the two friends were enjoying. Both young men looked up at the sound to see Martha stepping onto the porch with a small tray in her hands.
"I thought you both might like some lemonade," Martha commented as she placed the tray, with two glasses of fresh squeezed lemonade on the small wrought iron table on the porch.
"Thank-you, Mrs. Kent," Lex replied without missing a beat.
"Yeah, thanks Mom," Clark echoed as both young men reached for a glass.
"You're welcome," Martha said, turning to head back inside.
Alone with Lex once again, Clark stared into his glass of lemonade as he tried to figure out how to bring up the subject of his secret. For the first time, Clark found himself wishing that Lex would ask him about the day at the bridge. Fielding that question would give him the opening he needed, instead of bringing up the topic out of the blue.
Oh, and by the way I'm not from this planet, wasn't exactly a line you brought up in normal conversation.
"Lex, remember when you said you'd do anything to protect your friends?" Clark finally ventured, breaking the silence between the two of them. He was still staring into his untouched lemonade, unable to look over at Lex.
"Yes," Lex replied, looking over at Clark as he rested the hand holding his glass on the arm of the wicker chair that he was sitting on. The one word reply had a measured tone to it, as well as conveying the curiosity that Lex felt as he wondered where Clark was going with the question.
"Did you mean it?"
"Yes," Lex replied without hesitation, his thoughts going to Mandy. Everything he had done that night, he had done believing he was doing what was best for her. He hadn't wanted her to marry a guy who was already cheating on her. She deserved so much better than that. He hadn't expected things to turn out like they did. He thought he was saving her life by covering up the fact that she was the one who had pulled the trigger but like other things in his life, he had been wrong.
Somehow though, Lex didn't think that talking about Club Zero was where Clark was trying to go with this conversation.
"Is there something you're trying to tell me Clark?"
Clark sighed. The conversation was not going well and he wasn't sure how to put it on the right track. Not for the first time he wished he had his friend's conversational skills. Lex seemed to be able to talk to anyone about anything and seem totally at ease with the conversation. Like right now. Though his voice held a hint of curiosity, Lex's body language was that of a person totally at ease - as if they were discussing nothing more important than the weather.
"It's about that day on the bridge," Clark started nervously, hoping the words would come to him if he began to talk.
"I thought we agreed to put that behind us," Lex replied, taking a sip of his lemonade. As often as he had wondered about what had really taken place on that bridge that day, Lex had come to realize that his relationship with Clark and his family was more important to him than an explanation.
"We did," Clark replied, wondering if he was making a mistake by pursuing this avenue. Still, he knew for a fact that Cecily and Lex had broken up once because of the tension keeping his secret had caused. He refused to be the cause of any more problems between the two of them. "However, I think the situation has changed. This doesn't just affect my friendship with you, it affects the relationship you have with Cecily. Well, maybe it always has," Clark conceded, "but I think it'll just continue to create more and more tension if it isn't addressed."
Lex held up the hand he wasn't holding the glass with as he spoke. "Clark, I finally feel like I'm making some kind of headway with your dad. I don't want to do anything to jeopardize this, least of all cause any problems between you and your father. I've already caused enough between him and Cecily."
"My dad told me the decision was mine and he would support whatever choice I made."
"That doesn't sound like your Dad when it comes to something Luthor," Lex commented, taking a sip of the lemonade.
Though there was only the slightest hint of emotion, Clark didn't miss the trace of bitterness in his friend's voice. Clark found that he couldn't really blame his friend for feeling that way. After all, Clark's father had hated Lex the second he heard the name Luthor and despite the times that Lex had tried to help, Jonathan Kent had refused to change his feelings about the young industrialist.
Except that now Clark had a feeling that his father was finally starting to budge just a little bit.
"I think my father is starting to accept the fact that whether he likes it or not, you're kind of linked to this family," Clark replied, knowing that his dad still had his misgivings about the younger Luthor even if he was giving his blessing on his marriage to Cecily.
"At least it's a start," Lex said, longing in his voice.
What Clark really wanted to do was assure Lex that his father would come around. That one day Jonathan Kent would truly accept Lex for who he was and not just see him as a Luthor. However, Clark knew his father and he knew, though he didn't understand it completely, how deep his hatred for anything Luthor went. Though his father was trying, Clark knew that there would probably be a part of him that would suspect Lex of not being totally up-front about things for a long time, if ever.
All Clark could really do was finally be completely honest with his friend and hope that Lex could understand why he had lied to him for so long.
"Unfortunately, I can't control my Dad's feelings," Clark replied, "however, what I can do is finally be up front with you about the accident. That day on the bridge, your car did hit me."
Lex shook his head in disbelief. Although his own memories of the accident told him that he had hit the teenager, the fact that Clark had pulled him from the river, said that it couldn't have happened that way. If he had truly hit Clark, then they both would have died that day on the bridge.
And yet there still remained that car. There was no practical explanation for the way the roof had been pulled back. It was as if something had pried the roof of the car back, but no human could have accomplished that feat.
There was a time when Lex had thought that Clark was special in some way. That something in the area, the meteor rocks perhaps, had altered him somehow. That somehow, exposure to them had made Clark invincible or something. Lex had definitely encountered enough strange things since coming to Smallville to convince him that it wasn't implausible. There had been quite a few Smallville High students that had showed some kind of inhuman characteristic just in the short time he had been in the town. Lex wasn't sure what the reason behind the phenomenon was, though he was certain it wasn't the fertilizer plant like local legend would have people believe.
Now, secret experiments his dad might have run within the plant could be a likely explanation but then Lex was convinced that theory would come back to the meteor rocks that he was convinced his father was experimenting with on the walled up secret level of the plant. His father could claim plausible desirability, all he wanted but Lex wasn't that stupid.
"There is no way you could have survived being hit by that car, Clark," Lex said. "And I know I came to you about some crazy theory that perhaps there was something special about you that did allow you to survive by some miracle but I saw with my own eyes the injury that Eric Summers inflicted on you. Now granted, from what reports say, something clearly had given him inhuman strength but-"
"An accident involving the meteor rocks and lighting temporarily transferred my powers to Eric," Clark interrupted. The words came out in a rush, Clark cringing as he said them. Lex had opened himself up to Clark emotionally that night he had come to him with his theory. He had begged for Clark to be honest with and instead, Clark had lied to him once again. "Guess lighting struck at the right time for me," he added lightly, trying to lighten the mood.
"Lucky for you," Lex muttered, staring down at the glass he held tightly in his hand. No matter what the circumstances, he hated being lied to. Add to that the fact that he had genuinely felt bad about his wild theory when he had seen his battered friend at the hospital, Lex could feel the anger building within him.
"And you saw what anguish Eric's powers being public caused for the Summers. The incident only convinced me more that my parents had been right to instruct me to keep my abilities secret all along."
"So, like all the other strange happenings around here, are you claiming to be yet another victim of whatever strange toxins the Luthorcorp plant is poisoning Smallville with," Lex commented, his tone hard. "Or the meteor rocks if you prefer the less popular theory," he added offhandedly.
"Not exactly," Clark admitted tentatively. He could tell Lex was angry, which he had expected really. No one liked to be lied to and no matter how Clark tried to justify the need to lie to Lex, and his other friends, it still came down to the fact that he had been dishonest with most of the people he cared about. Everything hinged on Lex understanding his reasons and his fears as well as those of his parents. "The meteors weren't the only thing that came to Smallville that day."
Lex's conversation with Eddie Cole, the crop duster who claimed he saw a spaceship come to earth the day of the meteor storm, came back to him. Given his experiences in Smallville since the day of the meteor storm, Lex felt that the older man's story might have some credibility. It was why he'd had Hamilton search Miller's field, where they had located the strange octagonal metal disc that had proven not to be like anything on this Earth. The disc had disappeared, but it had provided tangible credibility to Cole's story.
And now to Clark's claim.
"Is that why your father got angry with me for conducting the excavation on that piece of land?" Lex asked, not really needing an answer to it. Truth be told, he was testing Clark to see just how honest his friend really intended to be this time around.
"Yes, he was afraid you would find something in that field."
"I did."
"I know," Clark countered. "I recognized the 'paperweight' as being part of the ship when I saw it on your desk."
"So, are you the one that took it?"
"No," Clark replied immediately. The quickness in the reply told Lex that it was the truth. Clark wasn't the type of person to whom lies, even simple ones, came easily. "I'd never take something from your house that way."
"I believe you," Lex replied slowly. "However, the piece is gone. It disappeared sometime before the tornados hit and I haven't seen it since."
"I believe Roger Nixon took it. My parents found him in the storm cellar with it. The ship we had stored there came to life and took off."
"The ship you came to Earth on?" Lex ventured. He was trying to sort things out and speaking out loud seemed easier than trying to sort through it all in his head.
"Yes," Clark replied. "I know it sounds crazy. I had a bit of a hard time believing my father when he first told me about how they found me the day of the meteor storm. I actually thought he was pulling my leg until I actually saw the spaceship and unfortunately, I don't even have that to prove that anything I'm telling you is true."
Lex nodded absently, a far away look on his face.
Clark found himself watching his friend, wondering what was going through Lex's head. Would his friend believe him or think he was just once again telling him a convoluted story to deflect the truth?