Bless the Broken Road

[clana1fan4ever]

update soon!!

[Cardinal]

Chapter 107 - Christmas, Part Two

The rest of Christmas with the Kents just seemed to sail along for Clark and Lana. While Lana loved her earrings, the gift that had been the biggest surprise came from Jonathan and Martha. They gave her an all-expense-paid trip to the national championship game in New Orleans. The game itself was two weeks away and Lana had been making plans to borrow some money from Nell so she could go. Now, with that worry taken care of, she’d just be able to enjoy the trip.

After the gifts were all unwrapped, and the piles of wrapping paper were cleaned up, everyone had breakfast and then dressed for the day. Martha immediately started in on final preparations for the big Christmas dinner. She called Kathy in to help her, primarily to give Clark and Lana some alone time without them having to go to the attic.

Jonathan had no interest in watching a Christmas movie, so Clark and Lana had the den to themselves and they settled in to watch the sappy but traditional, It’s a Wonderful Life.

The rest of Christmas looked like something that Norman Rockwell would have loved. Dinner was a bounteous feast comprised of a honey-glazed ham, mashed potatoes with a choice of either brown or cream gravy, jalapeno-spiced corn, candied yams, crusty rolls, and, of course, two freshly-baked fruit pies, one apple and one blueberry.

The afternoon was spent with everyone complaining about how much they had overeaten. Despite their complaints, Clark and Jonathan were each plotting a late afternoon sneak attack on the leftovers.

Once the night’s festivities were over, Clark and Lana packed up their gifts, made their farewells, and headed home. Lana was driving, so they headed to Clark’s place first to unload his gifts before heading to Lana’s. Soon, they were carrying the last packages into her apartment, and had some time to truly be alone for the first time after two whole days spent with family.

“So,” Lana asked, “where were we?”

Clark worked his way around Lana until he was behind her, just like he had been outside his bedroom early in the morning. His hands clasped her slender waist, and his mouth returned to its favored location on her neck.

“You remembered. Oh, good boy!”

Once again, Lana tilted her head to give Clark easier access to her neck, but this time, her hands reached behind her and latched onto his hips, pulling his body more tightly against hers.

Lana could tell Clark’s breathing was becoming ragged, as his hands had left her waist and were roaming freely, and a growing pressure against her lower back hinted at another biological change.

Before things could go too far, Lana wormed her way out of Clark’s encompassing arms, and moved toward her bedroom door. Puzzled and frustrated, Clark followed her halfway and asked, “What’s going on, Lana?”

She turned in her doorway and replied, “Sorry, Clark, but this is something I’ve had planned for a while and I wanted to do it before it was too late.”

“But…”

“I’ll be out in a minute or two with your last Christmas present.” Lana scooted back to Clark and kissed him full on the lips. The kiss was just long enough to help stoke Clark’s fires, but not nearly long enough to satisfy him. “There, that will have to hold you for minute.”

Clark waited reluctantly and stayed rooted to the spot. True to her word, Lana changed as fast as she could. It helped that she was mostly taking clothes off without putting many back on.

Not more than two minutes later, Lana emerged from her bedroom wearing nothing but a smile and her brand-new #8 football jersey with the name ‘Kent’ stitched across the back of her shoulders. The sky-blue jersey barely came down to mid-thigh on her, and the effect on Clark was instantaneous. His nostrils flared and his eyes glowed red as Lana held her hands out to the sides as if to say, ‘Whaddya think?’

What Clark thought was obvious.

“Aren’t you going to open your present?” Lana asked innocently.

That did it. Clark rushed down the short hallway like a defensive end rushing a quarterback, which was appropriate given Lana’s jersey.

A long time later, Lana and Clark were entangled with the sheets, and with each other. “If you hadn’t given me the jersey today, I had planned to walk out the bedroom door wearing nothing but a giant red bow and a card that said ‘To Clark, From Lana.’”

“Oh man, that…that might have caused a problem not covered by Renter’s Insurance.”

Lana casually remarked, “I think this is the first time in history that a quarterback got ‘sacked,’ and came out ahead on the deal.”

That got Clark to start snickering, and Lana quickly joined in.

“Yeah…and now there’s just one more game to add to my scrapbook. For which, by the way, I haven’t thanked you enough. My gift just took money, yours took time, and effort, and talent, and most of all…love. I do love you so very much, Lana Elizabeth Lang.”

“I love you too, Clark Joseph Kent.” Lana shifted her head to rest it on Clark’s shoulder.

“Merry Christmas, Lana.”

“The first of many.”

Once Christmas was over, football practice returned with renewed intensity for Clark, as the national championship game was now only two weeks away. Since school wasn’t in session yet, and wouldn’t be until a week after the game, the normal rules that limited the amount of football-related activities didn’t apply, so the team was spending more time than ever to get ready.

Lana spent a couple of days, working with Martha, preparing the two logos for Clark’s costume. His boots had already been re-dyed, so all they were waiting for were the red wrestling trunks and for Clark to make the Kryptonian super-adhesive for securely attaching the logos and the cape.

According to Clark, Jor-El’s instructions for the adhesive appeared to be exacting and extremely time-consuming, so Clark didn’t think he could get around to making it until after football season was over.

As New Year’s Eve approached, Lana turned her thoughts to a private party that Chloe and Veronica had suggested the three of them host for their boyfriends. It was to be a combination intimate social gathering and safe way to celebrate the new year. Clark, meanwhile, sought out his father for a private talk. He needed to borrow a large chunk of money for a very special purchase.

[SVsleuth]

:) So Lana made use of her Christmas gift right away. I'm sure Clark didn't let her wear it for very long at all... ;)

So now a New Year's Eve party is being planned, and Clark is planning a special purchase? :) ...MUST be a ring! ;) PPMS!

[NYC300Z]

Yeah if Lana had done her original plan i'm pretty sure the whole apartment complex would have been burned to the ground~!;);)
I wonder what Jonathon will say to Clark's request?

PPMS!!

[Nemu]

Aaah soo..

A New Year starting with an engagement? Now that would be a very good way to start...

This was good!!! Hmm... much better Lana in Clark's jersey than Chloe...

PPMS!

[happycamper]

I'm trying to think what I'd have preferred. Jersey or red bow? Jersey...bow? Jersey! Bow! I definitely have to sleep on it! :lol:

Long past time for that major purchase, I believe.

When would be the best time? After the game, or with the first appearance of our favorite caped hero?

Come to think of it, the adhesive seems a pretty good way to finance their future together!!


:D :D

[kewl]

:lol: wow! clark got the greatest gift of all.... love!
great update card! ppms!

[smallvillewolf17]

Finally he is going to get an engagement ring.

Really great update, Card!

PPMS!

[clana1fan4ever]

Wow great update!! seems like Clark loved his last gift from Lana alot :lol:

PPMS!!

[idunowinks]

wow, i just have to say i have been reading your story for the last couple of days. its been a nightly ritual. and i absolutely love it. i really hope you post more soon. its great :) your writing is fantastic.

[clark&lanafan06]

Great Update !!!!!!!!! PPMS !!!!!!!!

[binkys711]

That update was awesome Card!!

hehe naughty naughty Lana! is she trying to burn down her apartment? :p very very sexy clana moment! ;) loved it! :D

aha! so Clarky is borrowing a big chunk of money to buy....a teddy bear? j/k! hehe I wonder if it's one of the rings they saw together in the mall or something he found on his own? hmmm...
can't wait to see the New yrs bash the girls have planned!

PPMS!!! :)

[Cardinal]

Originally posted by idunowinks
wow, i just have to say i have been reading your story for the last couple of days. its been a nightly ritual. and i absolutely love it. i really hope you post more soon. its great :) your writing is fantastic.


Thanks!

Welcome to the Clana fanfic board. ;)

[kewl]

guess it's time that u post an update card. ;)

[idunowinks]

thankss and yes i think its time to post an update :):):)

[Cardinal]

Chapter 108 - New Year’s Eve

The only place available to Lana, Chloe, and Veronica that was large enough for their purposes was the concrete-floored basement of Clark and Pete’s apartment. By now, both Lana and Veronica had keys of their own, so getting in to decorate wouldn’t be a problem, but getting the guys out of the way for a few hours would.

Since Jonesy had no reason to be at Clark and Pete’s place, the three girls didn’t have to worry about him, and taking care of the other two only required having Veronica suggest to Pete that since she was ‘busy’ this afternoon, he might want to take this chance to see the new action flick at the Metropolis 16 Cineplex. Pete knew he’d never get see that movie if he was with her, so he leapt at the chance and dragged a somewhat reluctant Clark along with him.

That gave the girls all the time they needed to make the bare, cinder-block walls suitably festive. The girls lined the top edge of the basement walls with icicle-style strings of lights, all of which were white. Lana put her artistic talents to work, quickly turning two large pieces of poster board into life-sized representations of Father Time 2007 and Baby New Year 2008, which were then taped to the wall. Throw rugs, body pillows, thick blankets, and old sleeping bags were brought in to serve as comfortable seating on the concrete floor.

They had a table set up in a corner to hold refreshments, including egg nog, sherbet punch, party mix, and assorted other snacks. The egg nog would be virgin, the punch would not. One of the reasons for having this celebration here was that they had plenty of room for anyone who had too much alcohol. Lana could stay with Clark, Veronica could stay with Pete, and if Chloe and Jonesy were both drunk, Clark could push together the two couches in the living room to make a fairly comfy makeshift bed for them.

Another table was set next to the first one, but it was left empty for the time being. It was being reserved for the hot snacks which would be showing up later: homemade nachos with jalapeno peppers and Rotel tomatoes, along with delivery pizza. To go with the pizza, the girls had several two-liter bottles of soda stashed in the fridge.

The last thing to be set up was the entertainment. It took all three girls to carry Pete’s stereo setup to the basement, and Veronica was a ball of nerves the whole way. She knew Pete would die if anything happened to his equipment. They then brought some board games down, things like Twister and Trivial Pursuit, and last, but not least, they opened the basement door to roll in their big expenditure for the evening, a professional-quality karaoke machine that they had rented for the night. All of the preparations were complete in plenty of time for the girls to pick out a song they could do together and run through it a couple of times.

Clark and Pete both knew something was up as soon as they came home from their blood-soaked matinee. Seeing their girls there wasn’t a big surprise, but seeing Chloe there was. Once they walked in, Chloe called Jonesy and asked him if he would care to join them for a couples-only New Year’s Eve party. He didn’t have to be asked twice; spending time with Chloe doing anything was his favorite pastime.

By dinnertime, the tunes were cranking on Pete’s stereo and the pizza and soda were already being eaten. Once everyone had gorged on pizza, their first activity needed to be something sedate to allow time for the food to begin to digest, so they picked Trivial Pursuit. The played with couples as teams, and Clark and Lana won easily. Lana knew all about Clark’s eidetic memory, but she hadn’t quite realized how widely read he was.

Chloe had known this game was a mistake from her experiences playing it against Clark as a child, but she hadn’t wanted to risk trying to explain to Veronica why the game wasn’t going to be that fun with Clark playing, so she valiantly played along. Next up was Twister and it was particularly fun to watch two halves of a couple go at it, especially since they almost always ended up in a clinch on the vinyl play mat.

Before each game, the other couples made very small wagers on who would win. The last game was the third game between Lana and Clark. After they had split their first two games, this one was the tiebreaker. The guys were betting on Clark’s strength, conditioning, and long arms and legs to win, while the girls were betting on Lana’s small size and flexibility to help her win.

Just before the first flick of the spinner to start the last game, Lana stepped up and whispered into Clark’s ear, “No cheating.” Clark just grinned at Lana in reply and the game began. Soon, Lana and Clark were both in precarious positions. One wrong move and the game would be over.

Lana’s head was close to Clark’s and she knew if she didn’t do something soon, she would lose when her arms or legs became too tired. So, seeing Clark’s ear inches away from her mouth, she gambled and began to nibble on his earlobe ever so gently. The feel of her velvety lips and warm breath on his skin was enough to turn Clark's rock-steady arms and legs into quivering columns of gelatin. When the next spinner command was called out, ‘right hand, blue,’ Lana finished her torture with a quick sucking kiss and watched as Clark collapsed. Before she was able to stand up and celebrate her triumph, Clark pulled Lana down on top of him and their lips locked in a deep kiss.

When Clark finally released Lana’s lips, he murmured, “No cheating, huh?”

Giving Clark an impish grin, Lana replied, “I was only talking about you, Clark. I, on the other hand, was under no such restriction.”

Clark chuckled to himself as Lana was helped to her feet by the other girls. After a brief celebration, Veronica and Chloe headed upstairs to make the cheese sauce for the nachos while Lana got Clark to help her move the karaoke machine to an advantageous location. Pete and Jonesy were helping themselves to a handful of party mix and a cup of the sherbet punch when they saw it was soon going to be time to sing, something neither one of them really wanted to do.

Once the girls came back downstairs with the piping hot cheese sauce they had just poured over a 9” by 13” pan of nacho chips, Pete forgot all about his reservations about singing, as he promised to sing first if he got first shot at the nachos. Soon, Pete was flipping through the song catalog to pick out a song with what he referred to as ‘personality.’

As Pete belted out his chosen song, “Kiss” by Prince,


…You don’t have to be rich to be my girl
You don't have to be cool to rule my world
Ain't no particular sign I'm more compatible with
I just want your extra time and your . . . . . kiss,


he made up for his lack of singing talent with sheer enthusiasm…and the dance moves he threw in didn’t hurt any either. He was singing directly to Veronica and his song choice informed her decision to sing Christina Aguilera’s “Genie In a Bottle” as a reply. When she got to this part of the song,


…If you wanna be with me
Baby there's a price to pay
I'm a genie in a bottle
You gotta rub me the right way

If you wanna be with me
I can make your wish come true
You gotta make a big impression
Gotta like what you do,

she had the complete attention of everyone in the room. Veronica was a decent singer, but there was just something about her when she sang, some kind of presence, that commanded everyone to take note of her.

Clark nudged Lana at the end of Veronica’s song and said, “I bet those two sneak out of the basement and head up to Pete’s room before midnight.”

“Those were two sexually charged performances,” Lana allowed, “but Veronica’s a hostess here, just like me, so I think they’ll wait.”

“Maybe.”

Chloe and Jonesy exchanged songs, with each one of them picking out something sweet and adorable to sing, and then, it was Lana’s turn. She looked across at Clark and got nervous, so she looked at the other girls and gestured toward the stage. The other girls shrugged their shoulders, and got up together.

“That explains the three mikes,” Pete said to the other guys.

“Great,” Jonesy replied, “you know this means we’ll have to do a song together.”

“Just promise me we won’t sing any boy-band songs,” Clark said.

“What?” Pete asked. “No Backdoor Boys or ‘N’Stink?” Pete began to chortle. “No Nude Kids on the Block?” The other guys were laughing now.

Clark added, just before the girls finished arranging themselves, “No, but I was more worried about the ultimate boy-band, Pete…the Village People.”

As soon as the words were out of Clark’s mouth, Pete insisted that was the group they’d have to sing. Clark was just as adamant against the Village People, and Jonesy sided with Clark.

“Sorry, Pete,” Jonesy said. “I have to be with Clark on this one. There’s no way on God’s green Earth that I’m going to sing Y.M.C.A. in front of those women.”

Any further discussion was cut off by the girls clearing their throats into their mikes. When the guys redirected their attention to ‘the stage,’ Veronica said, “We were originally going to sing ‘Don’tcha’ by the Pussycat Dolls. Heck, we were going to get all dressed up for it, but then we realized each one of us would have to be singing ‘don’tcha wish your girlfriend was hot like me’ to someone other than her boyfriend, so…we nixed that idea. I hope you like what we chose to sing instead.” Chloe pressed play and the song’s intro started. It wasn’t familiar to Clark or Jonesy, but Pete, who came from a farm background, knew he’d heard it before.

The three girls sang the opening stanza together, but it wasn’t until Veronica took the lead on the first verse that Pete remembered the song’s name: “I Will, But…” by Shedaisy, a trio of sisters that sing country harmonies.

Clark and Jonesy both noticed how well the girls switched off on the various parts, with each girl singing lead on one verse, and all three joining in on the chorus. The guys could tell the girls had practiced a bit. Each girl lined up directly in front of her guy and sang directly to him.


“I Will, But…” - Shedaisy

I won't be ignored
I won't be bored
Hey!

I won't be your dirty secret
I won't be your cure-all pill
And I won't run to fetch the water
Just to tumble down the hill

I won't be your Friday paycheck
I won't be the prize you flaunt
And I won't be your Martha Stewart, Baby,
Or your all night restaurant

But I will, I will, I will be your everything
If you make me feel like a woman should
I will, I will, I will be the whole shebang
You know I will, but…

I won't be your crutch to lean on
I won't wear stiletto heels
I won't walk a mile in your shoes
Just so I know how it feels

I won't be your obligation
I won't be your Barbie doll
I won't be the portrait of perfection
To adorn your wall

But I will, I will, I will be your everything
If you make me feel like a woman should
I will, I will, I will be the whole shebang
You know I will, but…

Hey - you know I will
All right

I wont be your lifetime girlfriend
I won't be just one of the guys
I won't be your mama's favorite
I refuse to be the last in line

But I will, I will, I will be your everything
If you make me feel like a woman should
I will, I will, I will be the whole shebang
You know I will, but…

Yeah, I will, I will, I will be your everything
I will, I will be the whole shebang
I will, I will be your everything
I will, I will, I will, I will- yeah

You know I will
You know, you know I will
You know I will
You know, you know I will - yeah


The girls did well with the fun and somewhat flirty song. The guys politely clapped their appreciation, then headed for the stage, each one of them knowing they’d been ambushed with that song. While they liked the effort the girls had put into the song and how much fun they’d had singing it, none of the three guys was especially pleased with the implication that they had been taking their women for granted.

It was time for payback.

[SVsleuth]

:)

So, no one has a chance against Clark at Trivial Pursuit - no fair!

And Lana cheated on Twister - poor CLARK didn't stand a chance that time!

Oh, it would have been fun for the guys to do Y.M.C.A. :p

And now the girls kinda got under the guys' skin & it's time for payback. Hmm.. let's see what they've got coming. PPMS!

[Nemu]

:D and the other one lol

Oh man I wanna know what they will sing as payback...

And its totally unfair that Clark was left out of a solo performance by his girl... lol


Now.. .this was good!!!

PPMS!!!

[clana1fan4ever]

Great update!!

Can't wait to see what the guys are going to sing

:lol: It's funny how Lana cheated on Twister

PPMS!!

[NYC300Z]

payback huh? I wonder if they can pull it off on the fly?

PPMS!

[Cardinal]

Chapter 109 - New Year’s Eve, Part II

Lana had been a bit nervous about the song they had chosen since she knew how literally Clark tended to take things said to him. She had gone along with Chloe and Veronica because they thought that not only would the song be fun to sing, but also, if the guys couldn’t take a joke, well, that was just too bad for them.

Lana thought she had seen a strange look in Clark’s eyes when she finished singing her solo part, but she wasn’t sure. But when he brushed by her with barely a word on his way to the karaoke machine, she knew something was wrong. She didn’t know what the danger signs were for either Pete or Jonesy, so she looked at Chloe and Veronica and saw that Chloe was nervously biting her lower lip, while Veronica appeared to be relaxed.

The longer the guys took to choose a song, the more nervous Lana became. By the time the guys finally agreed on a song, with Clark apparently being the one who made the choice, she was on tenterhooks. Another look at her friends showed Chloe still biting her lip, and Veronica now appearing to be a bit concerned. As the guys turned to face their audience of three, the looks they leveled at their respective girlfriends confirmed it, they weren’t happy at all.

“Remember,” Clark said, “you guys can pitch in on the chorus, but let me take the verses. I know this song pretty well from grade school.” Pete pressed play and the song started. The only musical accompaniment was a lone acoustic guitarist as Clark began to sing directly to Lana.


“More Than Words” - Extreme

Saying ‘I love you’ is not the words I want to hear from you
It's not that I want you not to say, but if you only knew
How easy it would be to show me how you feel
More than words is all you have to do to make it real
Then you wouldn't have to say that you love me
‘Cause I'd already know

What would you do,
If my heart was torn in two?
More than words to show you feel
That your love for me is real
What would you say,
If I took those words away?
Then you couldn't make things new
Just by saying I love you

More than words

Now I've tried to talk to you and make you understand
All you have to do is close your eyes and just reach out your hands
And touch me, hold me close don't ever let me go
More than words is all I ever needed you to show
Then you wouldn't have to say that you love me
‘Cause I'd already know

What would you do,
If my heart was torn in two?
More than words to show you feel
That your love for me is real
What would you say,
If I took those words away?
Then you couldn't make things new
Just by saying I love you

More than words


The song was slow and plaintive, and Jonesy and Pete did chip in on the choruses even though the three guys had no chance of harmonizing. All three of them wanted their girls to know what it had felt like to be on the receiving end of a song of that type; how a song that might seem to be fun could actually hurt. They succeeded, especially Clark. His eyes hadn’t left Lana’s since the start of the song, and he could tell she was bothered both by the song and the very intent way he was singing it to her.

When the song was over, the silence in the basement was complete as the three couples stared into each others’ eyes, trying to discern what was going on inside. Clark wasn’t prepared for the tears that had formed in Lana’s eyes though and when the guys set down the mikes, Lana shot out of her seat and began flipping through the karaoke machine’s songbook without so much as a second glance at Clark. She wanted him to know, right away, exactly what she truly felt about him and about them.

As the other couples settled in and began murmuring quiet apologies to each other, Clark stayed standing, waiting for Lana to at least look at him. He waited a long time. Lana finally found her song, keyed in the right code, and pressed play. Then she tuned to face Clark. The unshed tears were still in Lana’s eyes, but now she had a brilliant smile on her face, a smile that let Clark know everything would be all right as she began to sing a public declaration of her love.


“Valentine” - Martina McBride

If there were no words
No way to speak
I would still hear you
If there were no tears
No way to feel inside
I'd still feel for you

And even if the sun refused to shine
Even if romance ran out of rhyme
You would still have my heart until the end of time
You're all I need, my love, my Valentine

All of my life
I have been waiting for
All you give to me
You've opened my eyes
And showed me how to love unselfishly

I've dreamed of this a thousand times before
But in my dreams I couldn't love you more
I will give you my heart
Until the end of time...
You're all I need, my love, my Valentine

And even if the sun refused to shine
Even if romance ran out of rhyme
You would still have my heart until the end of time
'Cause all I need is you, my Valentine
You're all I need, my love, my Valentine


Lana didn’t possess even a tenth of Martina McBride’s singing talent, but the strength of the love she put into every single note she sang more than made up the deficiency…at least, it did in Clark’s eyes, and that’s all Lana cared about. The slight pain he had felt during the girls’ song melted away and he felt truly stupid for ever getting upset by what was clearly intended to be a fun song by the girls.

Clark had stayed standing for Lana’s entire song, rooted to the spot, and when she finished, he swept her into his arms. They kissed hard and fast and then hugged each other fiercely. Clark and Lana each whispered into the other’s ear at the same time. Lana was saying she was sorry, over and over, that she should have been more sensitive, while Clark was apologizing for being so thin-skinned and stupid.

When they released each other, tear tracks were evident on both of them, but so were radiant smiles. The other two couples were watching and listening intently, almost embarrassed to be witnesses to what amounted to a double public apology. Lana finally moved off, curious to hear what song Clark would choose to sing. Like Clark, Lana found herself unable to sit as she waited. Clark finally chose his song, a song he hoped would explain exactly how he felt to Lana, and began to sing.


“I Swear” - John Michael Montogomery

I see the questions in your eyes
I know what's weighing on your mind
But you can be sure I know my part.
Cause I’ll stand beside you through the years
You’ll only cry those happy tears
And though I’ll make mistakes, I'll never break your heart.

I swear.
By the moon and the stars in the sky
I'll be there.
I swear.
Like the shadow that's by your side
I'll be there.
For better or worse, ‘til death do us part
I'll love you with every beat of my heart
I swear.

I'll give you everything I can
I'll build your dreams with these two hands
We'll hang some mem'ries on the wall.
And when there's silver in your hair
You won't have to ask if I still care
‘Cause as time turns the page
My love won't age at all.

I swear
By the moon and the stars in the sky
I'll be there
I swear
Like the shadow that's by your side
I'll be there
For better or worse, ‘til death do us part
I'll love you with every beat of my heart
I swear

I swear
By the moon and the stars in the sky
I'll be there
I swear
Like the shadow that's by your side
I'll be there
For better or worse, ‘til death do us part
I'll love you with every beat of my heart
I swear

I swear


Lana melted into Clark’s arms as soon as he was done singing. Once again, they shared a kiss, only this time, it was slow and lingering. As they came up for air, Lana was surprised that no one else was clearing their throat or telling her and Clark to get a room. One look was all she needed to know why. Both of the other couples had begun impromptu makeout sessions of their own while curled up together on the floor.

Echoing her own thoughts, Clark said, “That looks fun.”

“Yeah,” Lana said, “making up by making out.” She gave Clark a dimpled grin. “Shall we?”

Clark held out his hand to Lana, and said, “Oh, I think that idea rates a ‘definitely.’”

Their makeout session was fun, but they kept it slow and gentle to keep their hormones from boiling over. After all, the party wasn’t over yet, they still had two hours to midnight.

Everyone else stopped their makeout sessions for roughly the same reason. They knew if they didn’t stop, they’d be doing a whole lot more than kissing. With two hours still to go, they decided to watch a movie. Since they wanted to be near their pile of snacks, Clark got drafted to bring the big TV downstairs to get set up, while Pete brought down the DVD player and Clark’s zippered carrying case filled with DVDs. The girls immediately claimed the carrying case and debated the merits of various movies while Clark and Pete set up the TV and DVD player.

“You know this means we’ll be watching a chick flick,” Pete said sotto voce, as Clark set the TV in place where the remains of the nachos had been not too long ago.

“So?” Jonesy replied. “Are you gonna tell me you have problems being snuggled up next to Veronica? ‘Cause if you are, I’m here to call you a liar. Just think, one good touchy-feely movie will take us right up to midnight. Then you two can ring in the new year however you choose to.”

Pete didn’t even need to think as he said, “So, did I ever tell you guys how much I’m looking forward to this chick flick we’ll be watching?”

Not long after, the three couples were comfortably ensconced in nests of pillows, sleeping bags, and blankets as they watched the John Cusack-Kate Beckinsale movie Serendipity. The movie was about a guy and a girl who meet by chance one night and hit it off. The girl impulsively decides to leave him, figuring that if they were meant to be together, they would meet again.

Years later, just before they were both scheduled to marry two other people, events began to draw them together once more. Time and again their two characters had near misses before meeting once again at a public ice rink in New York.

When the movie was over and ‘happily ever after’ had been achieved, Clark hurried the TV back upstairs to reconnect it with the cable TV signal so they could count down to the new year with the people on TV. When the time came, they watched the tape-delayed broadcast of the falling ball in Times Square in New York.

All six of them counted down together, in unison, “Ten…nine…eight…seven…six…five…four…three…two…one… happy New Year!”

Everyone turned to their partner for the traditional first kiss of the new year as thousands and thousands of partiers celebrated mindlessly on TV.

“Happy New Year, Lana.”

“Happy New Year, Clark. The first of many.”

With the dawning of the new year, the party quickly drew to a close. The girls weren’t looking forward to the clean up, but Clark volunteered to take care of it…as long as Lana stayed to help him. She had an idea of what he had in mind, so she readily agreed. Pete and Veronica headed upstairs, and Chloe and Jonesy headed to her place. Both couples thanked Clark and Lana profusely before disappearing.

As Lana suspected, Clark used his super-speed to clean everything up in mere seconds. All they would have to do in the morning is return the karaoke player to the rental store and the blankets and such to their owners.


Clark dusted off his hands as if he had spent hours in back-breaking labor and said, “Well, now that that’s out of the way, we just have to spend a couple more hours down here so no one gets suspicious.”

Giving Lana a lecherous grin, Clark wondered aloud what they could possibly do. Before Lana could protest that she wasn’t about to get undressed in the relative chill of the basement, no matter what, Clark had headed over to the karaoke machine.

“What are you doing?” Lana asked.

“Nothing much,” Clark replied as he picked up a microphone. “I just remembered that I owe you a song.”

Lana wasn’t averse to hearing Clark sing again, especially now that they were alone, but he had already sung once and didn’t have to do it again. When she said so, Clark answered that he had promised her two songs if she got up and sang one. The fact that he had made his promise on their long-ago, day-long date didn’t change a thing. As far as he was concerned, he still owed her a second song. Lana wasn’t going to argue with that screwy logic because it got her exactly what she wanted, a personal serenade.

“One week to go, Lana. One more game to play,” Clark said. “Then everything changes. We can finish making my suit, all except for that hi-tech mask anyway, and give this next phase of our lives a try. This song is for you…the woman that makes me so much better than I would be on my own.”

Clark already knew what he wanted to sing, it was the song he had originally picked out to sing to her earlier tonight, but then he decided he wanted this song to be something private between them. His voice wasn’t quite as high as the original singer, so he had to pitch his voice a little bit lower to start out.


“The Glory of Love” - Peter Cetera

Tonight it's very clear
As we're both standing here
There's so many things I want to say
I will always love you
I will never leave you alone

Sometimes I just forget
Say things I might regret
It breaks my heart to see you crying
I don't want to lose you
I could never make it alone

I am a man who would fight for your honor
I'll be the hero you're dreaming of
We'll live forever
Knowing together
That we did it all for the glory of love

You keep me standing tall
You help me through it all
I'm always strong when you're beside me
I have always needed you
I could never make it alone

I am a man who would fight for your honor
I'll be the hero you're dreaming of
We'll live forever
Knowing together
That we did it all for the glory of love

Like a knight in shining armor
From a long time ago
Just in time I will save the day
Take you to my castle far away

I am a man who would fight for your honor
I'll be the hero you're dreaming of
We'll live forever
Knowing together
That we did it all for the glory of love

We'll live forever
Knowing together
That we did it all for the glory of love
We did it all for love


And then, when the song was over, he added a tag line, the last line from another song, “Everything I Do” by Bryan Adams:


You know it’s true
Everything I do
Ohhhhh, I do it for you.


Lana was already emotionally overcome, and then Clark added, “I love you, Lana. You’re my reason why.”

Through her sniffles, she asked, “Your reason why, what?”

“For everything,” Clark said. “You’re why I breathe.”

That did it, Lana tipped over the edge, and began bawling her eyes out. Clark set down the microphone and enfolded her in his arms. While she cried, Lana found it curious that she never felt safer than she did when she was in Clark’s arms. To her, it felt like climbing back into the womb. She was able to draw strength from his closeness to rein in her crying.

“Clark?” Lana asked between sobs.

“Yes, Honey?”

“You’ve already sung, ‘For better or worse, ‘til death do us part I'll love you with every beat of my heart’ today. Why won’t you just quit beating around the bush and propose?”

Clark had his reasons, but to tell her why he was waiting would be as good as telling her all about the proposal itself, and he didn’t want to do that, so he asked for a little more of her patience.

“Trust me, Lana,” Clark said. “I’m working on the most romantic proposal I can think of, the proposal you deserve, but it can’t be rushed. Please…as you trust me with your heart, trust me with this.”

“I don’t know if it’s possible to get more romantic than the emotional outpouring you just sang to me,” Lana said. “But okay, Clark. I trust you.”

[Nemu]

:D
2 in one day!

Thank you!!!

hmm I'm with Lana there and can't wait for the proposal...

Man that 'battle of the songs' sure was a rollercoaster ride...

Hmm... soo... after the last game then?

PPMS!!!

[clana1fan4ever]

:D wow 2 updates in one day how great was that!!!

I love that update!!!

[SVsleuth]

2x! :)

Wow! I could really feel the emotional tension as they sang those songs - & I don't even know those songs! Just reading the lyrics is enough to get the message across.

Lana and Clark are so much in love! I can't wait for the actual proposal. Sounds like Clark is planning something special. I hope Lana thinks it is worth the wait. Seems she can hardly wait to say, "Yes!"

Thanks for the 2x, Card. I guess the next update will be on Vermilion? ;)

Hope you enjoyed your birthday. ;)

[ajfinn]

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, CARD!!!!!

AJ :D

[Nemu]

Oh its your birthday Card??

then Happy Birthday!!!

[clana1fan4ever]

Didn't know it was your birthdat Card...


Happy Birthday!!!!!

[NYC300Z]

That was so sweet! Clark singing to Lana again...her asking him at the end everything! oh HAPPY BIRTHDAY CARD!:cool:

PPMS!

[Max001]

Nice update, Card. Hope you have a great bithday :)

[binkys711]

Omg Card! those 2 updates were uuterl fantastic, both fun and very romantic! I loved them! Great song choices btw ;) Woohoo Clana! :D Just a bit more 'till the proposal....

Well I got here 1/2 an hour after 12 (my time)...but heck it still counts as your b-day to me :p

HAPPY BIRTHDAY CARD!!!

Hope you had a great time partyin' today and opened a truck load of presents!! :D:D:D

[kewl]

HAPPY BIRTHDAY CARD!

awesome double update!

[smallvillewolf17]

When is Clark going to propose?

PPMS!

Happy Birthday, Card.

[Nemu]

I'm in the process of re-reading this.... (almost done)

and an idea crossed my mind...

A Valentine's Day proposal? that would be romantic...

but i guess its either that or a post-champisonship win proposal...




EDIT!!!

Ok I'm done re-reading and ready for the next chapter(s)...

PPMS!!!!!

[kewl]

need more card, ppms

[smallvillewolf17]

Yeah, where's the update, Card?

[NYC300Z]

Bump from the second page in anticipation!;)

[Cardinal]

I'm working on it. It's half done already. If Clark and Lana cooperate, I may get it done tonight.

[Nemu]

sweet... guess ill be reading it tomorrow then...

[Cardinal]

Chapter 110 - The National Championship Game

The Met U football team left town on January 2nd, bound for New Orleans and its date with destiny. The team touched down at Louis Armstrong International Airport before noon and was greeted by a small contingent of the media. Most of the news people were from Metropolis, along with a sprinkling from Virginia, the home state of their opponents, the Virginia Tech Hokies.

In an effort at keeping his players focused on the game, and away from the excesses of Bourbon Street, the Met U head coach had arranged for his team to stay in a brand-new Hilton Hotel in Slidell, Louisiana. Slidell is just northeast of New Orleans on the other side of Lake Pontchartrain and was far enough off the beaten paths for tourists to be a good place for his team to unwind, without being too far from their official practice facility at Tulane University.

Once they reached the hotel and settled in, Clark called his folks to let them know he was all right and then called Lana for a long talk. She and his family weren’t scheduled to arrive in Louisiana until the night of the 6th. That would give them an entire day to check out some of the sights of New Orleans before the game on the 8th.

The team was kept busy during the days leading up to the game. If they weren’t practicing, they were being subjected to all kinds of interviews from all kinds of unusual sources. People magazine even sent a photographer to cover Clark since they planned on naming him one of their 50 sexiest people in America after taking one look at him at the Heisman Trophy presentation.

After practice was over and their media obligations were covered for the day, there was always some social event for the two teams to attend. One night, it was a giant Louisiana Crab Boil. Besides the crab, the boil was laden with new potatoes, corn on the cob, lemons, onions, celery, garlic, salt, Louisiana Hot Sauce and other seasonings. Clark cheated and cracked open the crab claws using only his fingernails, then pulled out the succulent meat and ate it with his fingers.

Another night, the two teams piled on an authentic Mississippi River steamboat, named the Natchez, for a dinner cruise up the river. The paddles and the steam engine made a fair amount of noise as the boat sliced its way through the water, but the college kids didn’t. Most of them had never been on a river of this size and power, and they were amazed at how small and inconsequential they seemed in comparison.

But no matter what event they went to each night, as soon as they were back in their quiet hotel, Clark broke out his cell phone and called Lana to ask about her day. Soon enough, Lana would steer the conversation around to his day, but he wanted her to know that being in the New Orleans area for the game didn’t lessen his interest in her and her doings one iota.

Lana appreciated the calls and reveled in Clark’s attentions. She could tell right away how hard he was trying to let her know that she was still his priority, which was something she already knew. Silly man, Lana thought, I know I’m number one with him. He’ll never have to prove that to me as long as he lives…still, it’s nice to know he thinks he has to work at our relationship everyday. Not being taken for granted is very nice.

What Clark didn’t know was that his four family members, as Clark secretly referred to them in his mind, were actually coming down early on the 6th and they would be there in time to catch the team practice at Tulane. When Clark trotted off the field that day, at the end of the last full practice before the game, he was surprised by his very own cheering section. The girls were saving their twin Met U game jerseys for the game itself, but all of them, even Jonathan, were decked out in Met U sky blue and red.

Clark basked in an aggressive bear hug from Kathy, while softly reminding her about not using her powers to interfere with the game. That elicited a fake pout from her and giggles from Lana. Martha was next, and she wished her son the best while hugging and kissing him.

Jonathan tried to keep his interaction with Clark limited to a firm handshake, but Clark pulled him into a back-slapping hug of their own. All Jonathan said was for Clark to leave it all out on the field. “It’s the big game. Don’t risk walking off the field in two days wondering if there was something more you could have done, something more you could have given. Don’t cheat yourself.”

“I won’t, Dad.”

Last, but certainly not least, was a hug with Lana. Even though they had spent slightly less than four days apart, they clung to each other like they were dying of thirst and had just found a water bottle. There was no simple peck on the cheek for these two, oh no. Each one tried to bury the other under a cascade of kisses. Interspersed with the kisses were single syllable words like: love you…missed you…need you.

Who knows how long they might have gone on, except an assistant coach stuck his head out of the locker room door and yelled, “Hey, Kent! The locker room’s over here. Do you think it would be too much trouble if we asked you to join us?” A red-faced Clark stumbled off, helmet in hand, as a flustered Lana tried to rearrange her blouse and hair.

Lana and the Kents got something quick and simple to eat, before heading back to their hotel down near the Mississippi River. It was within easy walking distance of the French Quarter and other tourist attractions, which made it ideal for their excursions the next day.

The football team had a day off from physical practice to rest up for the game, but they commandeered their hotel’s conference rooms to have team meetings to go over the mental side of the game one more time before the game. It was their coach’s way of keeping them focused on what they were in New Orleans for.

Lana and the Kents visited tourist stops like the St. Louis Cathedral, the Cabildo museum, and the French Quarter before making it to the famous Commander’s Palace restaurant for a reservation that Martha had booked months ago. Lana’s only regret about the events of her day, especially dinner, was that she didn’t get to share them with Clark.

This time, when they talked on the phone, Lana had something more than everyday life to share. Clark was glad to hear that, in some small way, being with him was exposing her to a larger world. Maybe once football is over and I drop out of the limelight, Clark thought, I can use my abilities to take her places that she’s always wanted to go. Just the two of us visiting the wonders of the world…that sounds nice. Clark had to hang up sooner than usual because the coaches wanted lights out by midnight with the game being the next day.

In an effort at helping the game’s televising network draw the biggest possible ratings, the game was scheduled for a 7 p.m. start, which was something Clark and his teammates weren’t used to. The Kent family party, along with hundreds of other Met U fans, were on hand outside the Louisiana Superdome when the Bulldogs disembarked from their team buses. Clark spotted them before he left the bus, and waved, but all four of them could tell from the distracted look on his face that his mind was already on the game.

Lana and Kathy were in their matching jerseys and they had taken the football uniform theme one step farther for this game by wearing matching white tights which sort of looked like the tight white football pants that the Bulldogs wore. Jonathan and Martha were more conventionally attired in Met U sweatshirts and jeans, but one and all, they had on temporary tattoos on one cheek that said ‘#8,’ Clark’s number, in white edged with red. Lana and Kathy made wild designs on the other side of their faces in red and blue.

Their car was a rental, since they had flown down to New Orleans, so they didn’t have their normal tailgating equipment, instead, they improvised with a giant cooler filled with cold cuts and bread for sandwiches, bags of chips, and plenty of drinks.

Meanwhile, Clark was in the locker room, going through his pre-game ritual one final time, and he was the only one in the room that knew it. There had been speculation in the media and on campus almost since the season started about whether or not Clark was going to leave Met U and turn pro, but no one had even considered the idea that he might retire from football altogether.

After warm-ups and their final team meetings, the team headed out of the locker room and down the long tunnel that led back to the field. Clark went through pre-game introductions and the ritual coin toss as if in a daze. His mind was split between what he needed to do in the next three hours, and the fact that this was it for him. He realized then that he would miss playing football more than he had previously thought he would.

The coin toss was over and the other team captains were walking back to their sidelines to get ready, but Clark stood still and turned in place, drinking in the sights and sounds of a gameday crowd for the last time. When Clark had stored away as many memories as he could, he strapped on his helmet and joined his teammates on the sideline for the start of the game.

The game was tight the entire first half, with the Bulldogs taking a 14-13 lead into halftime. Clark’s first half play wasn’t outstanding, but it didn’t suck either. At halftime, the team hustled into the locker room where the coaches chewed their butts for a few minutes before breaking the players into offensive and defensive groups to go over the halftime adjustments to the team’s gameplan. Just before they headed back out onto the field, Clark called everyone together for a quick word.

“You guys all know I’m not usually the rah-rah, speech-making type of guy. I generally like to lead by example. But today, there are a few things I want us to think about before we play the last thirty minutes of our season.” Clark started turning slowly, catching the eyes of various long-time teammates as he spoke. “I want the receivers and defensive backs to remember getting up early five days a week last summer just to join me in pass-catching drills. I want all of us to remember the sweat and pain of off-season workouts beginning in early spring. I want us to remember the hell that was two-a-day practices late last summer. I want each and every one of us to recall all of the little ways we’ve tried to improve ourselves, because the next thirty minutes of game time is what we’ve all been working for: the chance to prove we’re the best and bring home the national championship trophy.”

Clark held his hand out into the middle of the crowd and other teammates followed suit, each placing a hand on top of his, or at least trying to. “Are we ready to do this? Then let’s do it. Together on three. One…two…three…” And the whole team roared out, “TOGETHER!”

The Bulldogs came tearing out of the tunnel onto the field, chomping at the bit to get the second half underway. The second half was a nip-and-tuck affair, with both teams scoring a third quarter touchdown to make the score 21-20 in favor of the Bulldogs heading into the final fifteen minutes of play.

Kathy had already lost her voice, Martha was burying her face in Jonathan’s shoulder every time Clark’s team ran a play, and Lana was so tied up in Clark’s performance that she was an emotional wreck. Every time he got hit, she cringed, even though she knew he was invincible. Whenever a receiver dropped a pass, Lana was tempted to use some of the more interesting swear words she had picked up over the years, and anytime Clark made a poor throw on a pass play, she berated herself as if she had made the mistake.

Still, things were looking up for the Met U Bulldogs and their slim one-point lead until they lost a fumbled punt on their own fifteen yard line with little more than four minutes left in the game. The defense was unable to hold Virginia Tech out of the end zone from only fifteen yards away, and suddenly, with slightly less than three minutes left, the Bulldogs were behind for the first time in the game, 27-21.

After the kickoff, the Bulldogs had the ball on their own twenty-four yard line with two minutes and forty-four seconds left in the game. 2:44 left in my career, Clark thought grimly, win or lose.

The other ten offensive players gathered around Clark in a circle, bending forward at the waist to hear the play that he was going to call. Clark was on one knee in the midst of the circle, looking from face to face, trying to see who might be scared. Finally finding someone, Clark gestured at the jam-packed Superdome and said, loudly enough to be heard, “Isn’t this something? I want you all to take a look around and enjoy this moment. Go ahead…look.” After they did, Clark cracked a rare on-field smile and asked, “Ever think you’d see this many drunks in one place at one time in your life?”

His teammates busted up laughing, which was exactly what he was looking for. He figured if his guys were relaxed a bit, they had a better chance of giving him the performance he needed.

“Okay now, let's do this. One more touchdown…one more time. Pro-I Right 44 B Delay…on 2.”

The team hustled up to the line and Clark scanned the Hokie defense for any faulty alignments he could take advantage of. The play was a fake off-tackle run by the tailback, followed by a short pass to the fullback in the right flat for a pickup of seven yards. Clark led the Bulldogs on a methodical march downfield, judiciously using the sidelines to stop the clock and conserve their last two timeouts.

Finally, the Bulldogs had the ball, first-and-goal, on the Hokie seven yard line after a completed pass on a crossing route to the tight end. The clock showed 32 seconds left. Plenty of time, Clark thought, as he waited for the officials to move the chains.

On first down, the tailback bulled straight up the middle for a four-yard gain. Clark immediately called their next-to-last timeout. The clock said 27 seconds left now.

The end zone was so close now that Clark could practically smell it. Three yards…nine feet…108 inches. A national title is that close.

On second down and goal-to-go, Clark tried a sprint-out pass play that gave him the option to throw or run. He thought he might have a chance to reach the end zone on foot, but ‘might’ wasn’t good enough, so he tried to complete a pass to a split end in the back corner of the end zone. The ball touched his hands, but he was instantly pulverized by a quick-to-arrive safety. The hit knocked the ball loose and it fell, harmlessly, out of bounds.

It was third down now. Clark knew they’d only get two more plays to reach the end zone. That scant three yards was beginning to look a lot longer now. He stepped into the huddle and called the play. “Idaho Trips Left, 44 Slam…on 2.”

This was a power run inside, a call designed to catch the defense expecting the pass. It almost worked, the tailback pounded the ball down inside the one-yard line and Clark took the Bulldogs’ last timeout. He ran over to the sideline to talk with the coaches and get the play to call.

The coaches sent in two extra tight ends and a second-string offensive guard who was declared an eligible receiver so he could line up as a fullback. The three wide receivers came out of the game as a result, and that group of personnel meant one thing: a big, powerful lineup designed to power the ball straight ahead over the remaining half-yard and into the end zone.

The Met U coaches hoped that’s what the opposition thought the play was going to be, but they had something different in mind. Clark was going to fake a handoff to the tailback who would smash into the line, following the lead block of the second-string guard.

Clark, meanwhile would hide the ball on his right hip as he rolled around the right end of the line. Two of the tight ends would block and then break off to provide him with receivers should he choose to throw, but the plan was for him to run into the front corner of the end zone.

Just before Clark stepped under center, he surveyed the defense and realized that, win or lose, this was going to be the last play of his career. 72,003 people, the official capacity of the Superdome for football games, were standing and screaming as Clark squatted and barked out his signals.

Receiving the snap, Clark turned and headed back toward the tailback, with the ball held in his outstretched right hand. The guard/fullback plowed on by and Clark stuck the ball in the tailback’s gut. As the tailback’s arms closed over the ball, Clark slid it out and placed it on his hip. He took a couple of slow steps, as if his part of the play was over, and then started to rollout to the right.

When Clark finally got a look up field, he knew instantly that the play was in deep trouble. Despite their best efforts at faking the dive into the line, the defense had not been fooled. Clark found both of his receivers well-covered and two defenders between him and the goal line.

When all appeared lost, when it looked like his dream was going to be stopped just short of realization, Clark had a thought that had never occurred to him on a football field before. If I use just the smallest bit of my power, I can run into the end zone dragging two guys with me, and no one will ever know.

The thought was in an out of Clark’s mind in a fraction of a second, but his conscience responded as Clark’s body tried to get to the end zone. No one will know. No one but you, Lana, your parents, and your kid sister…the very sister who you’re trying to teach the responsible way to deal with having powers. And what will Lana think of the man she seems to want to marry? What about your dad, the man you’ve always wanted to be? Would he cheat to win? Ever?

Clark knew what the answers were; he knew what he had to do. He tried as hard as he could to make his way past the two defenders, but did it without any super help, and was brought down at the one-yard line for a half-yard loss. Met U had turned the ball over on downs and all Virginia Tech had to do was run one play to win the game.

Half of the fans in the stadium were out of their minds with joy, but that half didn’t include those in sky blue and red. Lana and Kathy were holding each other and crying, with their tears making tracks through their red and blue face paint. Martha and Jonathan were also distraught, but more for their son and the end of his dream.

Clark walked off the field in a daze. It’s over, it’s all over…and we lost! He didn’t even see the last play of the game as the Virginia Tech quarterback snuck far enough into the line to not end up in the end zone before kneeling down. The Virginia Tech players and fans rushed the field in celebration of their upset victory over the number-one ranked Met U Bulldogs. Clark just sat on a bench on the sideline, helmet in hand, and wept.

Lana ached to run down onto the field to be with Clark in this dark hour, but she knew she’d never get close to him, and she didn’t fancy having to explain to Nell that she had been in a jail cell in New Orleans, so she waited and agonized with every shuddering breath he took.

Clark’s period of private mourning was cut short by a reporter and camera crew from the network that was televising the game. The first question from the pretty young woman, was along the lines of ‘Mr. Kent, how do you feel right now?’ The sheer stupidity of asking that question when he was obviously crushed was appalling, and almost sent Clark into a rage. The good thing was, that question gave him something else to focus on.

“I hurt,” Clark said carefully as he lightly tapped his chest with one fingertip. “I hurt a lot, right in here. I hurt for my teammates who worked so hard to get here, I hurt for the coaches who work insane hours to get us ready to win each week, I hurt for the cheerleaders and band members who give up their free time to practice so they can support us.” Clark looked the reporter in the eye and added, “But to be completely honest, right now, I mostly hurt for myself. I wanted to win a title for my dad, since he had to turn down his football scholarship to help his dad on the farm.”

Clark, however, took heart when he realized something important. As much as he wanted to win for his dad, he would still be Jonathan Kent’s son the next time they met. He would still be loved without limit and he would know, deep in his heart, that he had done the right thing.

The reporter, unused to such displays of honesty and emotion, thanked Clark politely and slipped away, looking for someone else to question. In her haste, she had forgotten to ask him the one question that was on every football fan’s mind when it came to Clark Kent. Is he turning pro or will he come back for his senior season?

That question was asked, several different ways however, when it came time for the formal post-game interviews with the national press corps. Clark had to deflect that question every time it was asked. He had long ago promised Chloe the exclusive on his plans…a story he intended to write. It was almost an hour after the game before the Met U players began to leave the Superdome locker room to board their buses. They were scheduled for a team meal at a Shoney’s all-you-can-eat food bar that had been cleared out for their arrival. Since 60 college football players can eat a lot, the restaurant had been cooking non-stop for a long time to have enough ready.

Clark, however, made a beeline for his family. Normally either Lana or Kathy was the first one to greet him, but this time, it was Jonathan. He was halfway down the ramp before Clark saw him, and the two men shared a ferocious hug.

Quietly, so no one else would hear, Jonathan said, “I saw what you did, Clark. I know what you were thinking down on the goal line.”

“What?”

“I saw you hesitate, just for the barest of moments, and I know you thought about giving yourself an unfair edge…but you didn’t.” Jonathan wrestled back his tears. “Son, in all of your life, I have never been as proud of you as I am right now. The boy I remember from Metropolis Washington High would have run those two kids over with barely a thought, but the man standing before me now has passed that test.”

“It was closer than you think, Dad. I almost did it, despite what everyone in the family would have thought. I’m beginning to see the silver lining to the dark cloud of retiring. If I go pro, the pressure and desire to win at all costs would only grow larger, and eventually, I would fail the test. I‘ll miss football, but I’m glad I’m getting out now.”

[SVsleuth]

:)

- Thanks for the shout out to my hometown, Card. ;)

- Of course Clark is one of the 50 sexiest people in America! Can't wait for Lana to see that edition of People magazine & comment on that. ;)

- I got a kick out of the scene where the assisstant coach had to coax Clark away from Lana after practice. LOL

- I hope Clark remembers this when it comes time to plan a honeymoon: :)

Maybe once football is over and I drop out of the limelight, Clark thought, I can use my abilities to take her places that she’s always wanted to go. Just the two of us visiting the wonders of the world…that sounds nice.

- Ah, so you finally revealed that Clark plans to retire from football after this game. I imagine this would have surprised me, if you hadn't told me you planned to write it that way. (not that I'm complaining about getting spoilers.) ;)

- Wow! That goal line decision must have been the hardest one of his life! But Clark can be proud of the man he has become.

- I'm glad Clark remembered that he promised Chloe the exclusive interview & deflected the questions of the other reporters.

- Wonderful that Jonathan knows Clark so well that he knew, before Clark told him, what Clark had done on that last play. He certainly couldn't be any prouder of his son - even if he had won the Championship game.

- I wonder what Lana will say to Clark when he confesses to her his temptation at the goal line. Can't wait for that or more Clana of any kind in the next chapter.

(Back to Vermilion now?) ;)

[Nemu]

:D :(

They lost!! How utterly crushing this is...

I can't wait for Clark's article...

That was good Card!!!

PPMS!!!

[clana1fan4ever]

:)
Wow great update!!! Its sad that Met-U didn't win...

PPMS!

[Max001]

*Sniff*

I don't even like American football (Or... Just football... To you guys...) but I was SO into that game it wasn't even funny. Somehow I felt the defeat comming, and Clark did make the right choice. The fact that he thought about cheating just shows the humanity in him.

[CaptainObvious]

Thanks for the post Cardinal. This is my very first post on K-site and I had to make sure it was in response to your story. I don't feel worthy to refer to you as "Card" yet as others do but I've read many of your stories and love them. Can't wait to read more!!!

Met-U lost the game? Thought for sure they'd have a "team" win without CK's "special advantages"! How sad but a good twist to the story. I just love those father/son moments and the way you portray them.

[NYC300Z]

Awesome job with the game Card. I guess Clark made the right decision, but it would have been so much more fun to win;) Oh well now on with his life!lol

PPMS!

[Cardinal]

Originally posted by CaptainObvious
Thanks for the post Cardinal. This is my very first post on K-site and I had to make sure it was in response to your story. I don't feel worthy to refer to you as "Card" yet as others do but I've read many of your stories and love them. Can't wait to read more!!!

Aww...you'll make me blush. :o

Go ahead and call me Card, everyone else does. ;) Cardinal works, too.

I'm glad you like my writing. :D

Thanks for the first post, that was sweet. :)

[smallvillewolf17]

That was great, Card.

Is Clark gonna propose in the next update?

PPMS!

[treker]

Originally posted by Cardinal
Aww...you'll make me blush. :o

Go ahead and call me Card, everyone else does. ;) Cardinal works, too.

I'm glad you like my writing. :D

Thanks for the first post, that was sweet. :)


Can I call you cubbie?

:rotfl:

[binkys711]

ok fisrt of all..... :lol: ^^^^

second....WHAT?!?! you have the power if the keyboard in your hands and u make them lose?!?!? FOR SHAME CARD!....I love football! hehe watched it since I was a tiny tike and wowzers that was a tight game! but they lost?! I was tearing up with Kathy and Lana! *sniffle sniffle*

I'm very proud that Clark made that decision of not using his powers (even though he was so close) heck even I wanted him to use his powers to win :p but alas, he is Superman. Good boy!....or good man :) (it would have been nice to retire with a title though ;))

awesome update Card! PPMS!!

[maru11]

awesome updaet!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Cardinal]

Originally posted by treker
Can I call you cubbie?

:rotfl:

Them there is fightin' words, Mister! :mad:

[Max001]

It's not to late Card, you can still disqualify the winners for being full of steroids or somthing :p

[treker]

Originally posted by Cardinal
Them there is fightin' words, Mister! :mad:

Aww...come on Mr. Cub it's okay.....

:rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:

[kewl]

they lost??? that's sad, but at least clark played fair... nice update card! ppms!

[Nemu]

The emotional impact of the loss and the fact that Clark went through that dilemma has a far more influence than if they won...

PPMS!!!

[mcgairman]

This story just keeps getting better. Thanks for the great work CARD!!!

:) MCGJr

[Cardinal]

Chapter 111 - The Article

Everyone was back home the next day, with slightly more than a week to go before the start of the second semester. Clark was already hard at work turning his football decision into a newspaper article to be published in The Metropolitan. He usually enjoyed the process of organizing his thoughts and writing, but writing this article was forcing him to keep dwelling on the end of his career, and it was affecting his moods.

Lana noticed how down Clark was, but she thought it was just an extension of his initial reaction to losing an important game in such a painful manner. In New Orleans, after Jonathan and Clark had finally separated, the other Kents had taken their turns consoling Clark on their near miss, before Lana got her turn.

Lana had been red-eyed from crying at the time, but her focus had been on Clark and how he was feeling. They spent several minutes talking quietly before Clark had to join his teammates for the ride to the restaurant. Clark hadn’t wanted to tell Lana about his weakness, how he had almost given in to temptation, but she had eventually drawn it out of him. She had secretly liked both sides of his dilemma. First, that he had shown his humanity by being tempted, and then, that he had shown his strength by resisting the temptation.

Martha had watched the two of them after the game and had marveled at how both of them had been upset but had calmed down as soon as they were together. Jonathan had replied that, like most couples, they were able to draw strength from each other, but unlike any other couple he had ever seen, they were also able to draw peace from each other.

Once back in Metropolis, Clark had asked Lana for a little bit of space so he could write his article in privacy. Lana understood him not wanting her hovering over him while he wrote, because she hated it when people stood behind her and looked over her shoulder as she painted. Both writing and painting were solitary art forms to her mind, so his request was easy for her to grant, especially since he wanted her to be the first to proofread the article before it was published.

So now, Clark was moping his way through the writing process, with Lana checking on him every so often to see how he was getting along. After a couple of days, his continued depression was beginning to worry her, so she asked him to take a break from writing. Clark thought it over for a minute and reluctantly agreed, so they arranged to spend the next day together on a prolonged and very relaxed date.

Clark drove over to Lana’s just after noontime to pick her up. They were going to start off with a light lunch. Lana’s goal for the day was to get Clark’s mind off of his problems, to earn just one smile, so she was going to keep the conversation off of football. If a smile was all Lana wanted, she succeeded before ever leaving her apartment, because Clark’s first sight of her caused a wide smile to spread across his face.

“You, my dear, are a sight for sore eyes,” Clark said as he stared into Lana’s eyes. She answered with a smile of her own and Clark allowed his eyes to wander lower to take in the sight of her kelly green cable-knit sweater and tight-fitting blue jeans. The mid-January weather was warm enough that Lana didn’t need a coat, but she brought one along just in case since she had no idea how long they’d be out.

Lana wasn’t shy about eyeing Clark from top to bottom either. He had on a light blue long-sleeved shirt with the cuffs rolled up and a pair of khaki Dockers with a red jacket draped over his shoulder only to help keep up his disguise. Lana thought Clark looked delicious this way. She couldn’t decide which of his various looks she liked the most, but was glad she didn’t have to. I get to see all of his looks, she thought.

“I’ve missed you too, Clark,” Lana replied as she stretched her elegant neck up for a quick kiss. Clark was only too happy to oblige Lana’s unvoiced request before they left.

After a leisurely meal of angel hair pasta in pomodoro sauce along with garlic bread at a small Italian restaurant close to the Met U campus, the young couple each popped a breath strip inside the other’s mouth to take care of the garlic breath. That, of course, led to several deep kisses to make sure the breath strips had done their jobs.

Lana didn’t care where she went next, as long as she was with Clark, but he had a specific destination in mind and drove them to the Metropolis Museum. They’d been here several times since their first date, but today, they were going to have a lot more time than usual. Clark intended for them to explore areas they hadn’t seen yet, and to revisit favorite exhibits from the past.

Lana was like a kid in the proverbial candy store. She led Clark from room to room as she saw the masterworks of artists she had only read about in books. Lana wasn’t self-absorbed during this by any means. Instead, she drew Clark into conversations about the various works of art, seeking his impressions and opinions, and forcing him to think instead of merely to see.

Clark responded to Lana’s intellectual challenge with relish. Some of his opinions and conclusions surprised her, including one sharp, but brief argument they had over the symbolism in a Madonna and child painting. Still, to her way of thinking, Clark seemed more alive than he had since before the game, and a small spat was well worth it if it helped bring him out of the funk he had been in.

Clark and Lana didn’t leave the museum until she felt her stomach rumble. That unmistakable sign that it was dinner time didn’t stand a chance of slipping by Clark and his super-hearing, so he drove them to their favorite restaurant, The Forbidden City. Once again they ate food that was almost as good as the company. As was their custom when they ate there, they chose a number of menu items and each had a little of this and a little of that.

The day, and the date, had been going well. Lana was thrilled to see Clark come out from under the little black storm cloud he’d been under ever since coming back from New Orleans. When she commented on it, Clark said, “Of course I’m happier now. Making you happy always makes me happy, because when I’m focused on you, I don’t have any time for my problems.”

After a small dessert of sliced bananas covered with a thick cherry syrup, Clark and Lana climbed back into his truck. He then drove them on what seemed to be an aimless path through the city.

“I would have taken you to our favorite frozen custard stand for dessert instead,” Clark said, “but it might be a little too cold for that…too cold for you anyway.”

“Your consideration toward me has been duly noted, Clark,” Lana replied. “But some of that creamy goodness would be worth a little bit of cold. Especially when I’d get to snuggle up next to you in the truck afterward.”

“Oooh, I’d forgotten to take that idea into account.” Clark pretended to be giving that idea some real thought. “Mmm…snuggling with my honey in an overheated pickup truck that would be on the verge of becoming even more overheated. I like that idea, too.”

By this time, Clark had pulled off the expressway, had driven down a city street and turned into a parking lot on the edge of Forest Park. Once stopped, Clark opened Lana’s door and handed her down from the cab. The weather was still decent, but it was getting colder, so as they left the truck, Lana pulled on her coat for the first time tonight. Clark followed suit, and pulled on his red jacket.

They clasped hands and went for a walk down worn paths through the trees that give the park its name. Oak, sweet gum, maple, cedar…it was the same path they had walked down on their very first date, a detail that did not slip by Lana unnoticed. Come to think of it, she thought, we went to the museum and to The Forbidden City on that date also…Clark is suddenly getting nostalgic. Or maybe…just maybe…this is finally IT.

Lana had to struggle then to control her excitement as they walked side by side. Just as on their first date, tall, iron lampposts lit their way as they passed by wooden park benches and closed concession stands. The park had been buried under a mantle of snow as recently as a week earlier, but a slight warming trend in the area had taken care of that, leaving behind nothing but the cold. As they walked, each exhalation of breath formed a visible cloud of water vapor that seemed to swirl around their faces like smoke before disappearing into the dry winter air.

Just as on their first date, Clark led them at last to the edge of a small lake adjacent to a boathouse which was tightly shuttered for the winter. They sat on the same park bench where they had almost had their first kiss, and Lana’s hopes rose a bit further. She was so nervous now that she could barely manage breathing…speaking was definitely out of the question.

They were still holding hands, and their legs were pressed together as they looked out over the small lake. Lana’s eyes were open, but she wasn’t really seeing anything, her whole being was focused on the man sitting next to her.

“Lana,” Clark said suddenly, “there’s something I’d like to ask.” As he reached into the inside pocket of his jacket with his free hand, Lana’s emotions rose to a fever pitch. Her lower lip was trembling and tears welled up in her eyes.

“Yes?” she somehow managed to croak out.

“I’d like it if…” and pulling two carefully folded sheets of thick, creamy white paper out of his jacket and handing them to her, he finished, “you’d proofread my article. It’s finally done, and I need your input.”

Lana felt like she’d been punched in the gut. The breath she’d been holding left her in a rush. She wanted to be mad at Clark, but couldn’t when she saw the innocent, hopeful look on his face. She had a job to do, she’d just have to deal with her emotions later.

A full-moon and a nearby lamppost provided the only illumination, which Clark hoped would be sufficient to read by. If not, he was prepared to zip into the trees and return with a downed branch which he would then set on fire to create more light. Thankfully, that wasn’t necessary, but Lana did have to let go of his hand to read since she needed one hand to hold the paper and the other to switch which sheet was on top.

Once Lana composed herself somewhat, she began to read. The first thing she noticed was that the entire article was handwritten. Why didn’t he write this on a computer and just print me a copy? Lana wondered. That made her think about the paper and wonder why he was wasting his best paper on an article he had to turn in. Returning her thoughts to the two sheets of paper in front of her, she read:

Hello, I’m Clark Kent. Most of you know me as the quarterback of the Met U football team, but today, I’m writing in my role as a reporter for The Metropolitan.

There has been much speculation on campus and in the media about me, specifically my future plans for playing football. Some people, many in fact, expect me to forego my final year of college eligibility in order to enter the N.F.L. draft. While most people here seem to expect me to go, most of them want me to stay at Met U and take one last shot at that elusive national title.

That seems to be the crux of my decision: do I run to the instant wealth of pro football, or is the pull of another season spent playing here too strong?

The thing everyone needs to understand is that, for me, football has never been about the money I might be able to make one day. It has always been about having fun and proving to myself, my family, and my friends that I could do it.

I think that by now, I’ve proven to everyone what I can do. I don’t need to go to the N.F.L. to prove myself, but staying here another year won’t prove anything either.

So here is my decision.

The Virginia Tech game was my last one. I’m not going to the N.F.L., but I’m not staying here to play one more year either. Instead, I’m retiring from football altogether. I would like to thank everyone who has supported me along the way, from my family, to the coaches I’ve had, to the rabid fans. You’ve all meant a lot to me. But now it’s time to move on to the next phase of my life.

There is only one thing left that I need to prove to anyone, and that is to prove to the woman I love exactly what kind of man I can be…and I intend to spend the rest of my life proving it to her every single day.

Lana paused between paragraphs, hands shaking now as she was afraid to read the last paragraph for fear it wasn’t the proposal she was hoping for. She looked up at Clark and found him staring intently back at her, his face an odd mixture of hope, fear, and longing.

“Maybe you ought to read the last paragraph to me, Clark,” Lana said, as she held out the paper.

Clark slid off the bench and sank to one knee in front of her. He took the paper, folded it, and carefully stored it in a coat pocket. He didn’t need the paper since he already had it memorized. When his hand came back out of the pocket, it held a velvet-covered ring box.

“Lana Elizabeth Lang, I love you more than anything on this Earth. I can think of a life without football, but I can't think of a life without you. Will you do me the very great honor of marrying me? Will you be my wife?”

During his short speech, Clark had slowly opened the box. Inside was a one-carat, round-cut diamond of exceptional clarity and brilliance. The stone was in a four-prong setting on a platinum band. But despite the way the stone sparkled in the light of the full moon, Lana’s eyes were locked on Clark’s.

She had known for some time that a proposal was coming, and she thought she had had plenty of time to prepare herself for it, but faced with reality, she fell apart. Words failed her…thoughts failed her…all but one anyway, and that one word, that one thought, was, Yes.

When Lana nodded her head and forced the word ‘yes’ through her happy tears, Clark fumbled with the ring box in his haste to get the ring on her finger. Lana held out her left hand and Clark took it with his left hand as he finally slid the ring on her next-to-last finger with his right hand. Then, in an unplanned move, he used both hands to raise her hand to his mouth, where he lightly kissed her ring.

Lana launched herself at Clark then, wrapping her arms around his neck and holding on tight. No full-throated crying, just quiet tears that slowly changed to bright laughter as Lana allowed herself to let go. She finally let go of her fear that she would never find the right guy, let go of the last remnants of pain from having once lost Clark, and instead embraced her future, their future together, as man and wife.

While Lana was purging herself emotionally, Clark lightly wrapped his arms around her waist and floated high enough into the air to be able to set his feet on the ground. She still had a death grip on his neck, and when she started laughing, he started crying.

Like Lana, Clark had always wondered if there was someone out there for him, someone who could understand, love, and accept him. After being rejected by Lori little more than a year before, that fear had blossomed into something black and painful that had wrapped itself around his heart. Only Lana had been able to worm her way through to his heart, and only her ‘yes’ had been able to burn away the last of the blackness…the last of the fear.

Once he got himself back under control, Clark asked, “Could you say that out loud, Lana? Just once?”

“Say what?” Lana asked playfully, with a smile that outshone her ring.

“The word, the one word, the only word that matters.”

“Yes.”

“Say it again,” Clark requested eagerly.

“Yes.”

“Say…”

“Yes.” Lana kissed him quickly. “Yes, yes, yes, yes, YES!”

Clark spun Lana around once, while she squealed with delight. When her body came to rest, Clark set her back down, and they both got a little more serious as they looked deep into each other’s eyes.

“This is real, isn’t it?” Clark asked.

“No,” Lana replied, “this is forever.”

And then they shared a deep, passionate kiss, a physical symbol of the love they shared…and like their love, the kiss might have never ended except Clark finally remembered someone was waiting for them.

They were both seeing stars when Clark reluctantly pulled back, and said, “As much as I’d love to spend the rest of the night kissing you, we have somewhere to be right now.”

Puzzled, Lana asked, “Where?”

“You’ll see.”

On their way back to the parking lot, Clark and Lana were quiet, just enjoying the silence and each other‘s presence. Clark was wondering if Chloe had made it on time, while Lana was thinking. Between the article, which had been handwritten on expensive paper, and the fact that ‘someone’ was waiting for them, it occurred to her that this hadn’t been a spur of the moment proposal.

Suddenly suspicious, Lana asked, “You had this whole day planned out, didn’t you?”

“Moi?” he asked with mock innocence.

“Yes, you,” Lana said as she lightly punched him on the shoulder. “And I’ll bet that your ‘woe is me’ moping the last two days has been one big put on, too.”

Impressed with how quickly Lana had tumbled to that idea, Clark came clean. “Well, mostly anyway,” he said. “I was upset while writing about giving up football, but I had that article done in a couple of hours. The rest of the last two days, I spent waiting for you to get so worried about how down in the dumps I was, that you’d finally intrude on my asked-for solitude to try to cheer me up.”

“It worked, too. But the end,” Lana said, as she waved her ring finger in the air, “justifies the means…in this case anyway.”

Soon, they came within view of the parking lot, and parked next to Clark’s truck was a red Volkswagen Beetle. Lana only knew one person who owned one of those, and seeing a mop of blonde hair on the body standing in between the two cars was all the confirmation she needed. Lana let go of Clark’s hand and raced across the remaining distance, anxious to tell Chloe and show off her ring.

Clark watched from a distance as Lana reached Chloe. He could have listened if he wanted to, but he chose to allow them their moment of privacy. He didn’t need to hear them anyway, what they did was enough. He saw Lana say something, and then Chloe shrieked. He could hear that without trying. The two close friends then hugged. After that, he could see Lana hold out her left hand, obviously showing off the ring. Chloe then leaned in close to inspect it, and after straightening back up, she looked at him and gave him a big thumbs up in approval of his ring choice.

Clark took that as his signal to come on over, but he got to watch his best friend, and his girlfr…no, his fiancée, holding onto each other’s forearms and jumping up and down like two loons. When Clark got close, Chloe turned to him and gave him a big hug.

“You did it,” Chloe said softly, “you finally broke free. I’m so proud of you.”

Clark knew Chloe had wondered privately if he would ever be able to ask another woman to marry him after what happened with Lori.

“You did get your e-mail copy of the article, right?”

“Oh sure, it’s already in the computer. We’re just waiting for Lana’s answer so we can go to print.”

“And did you…?”

“Yes, Clark, your other request is in the cab of your truck.”

“Thanks, Chloe, you’re the best.”

After Clark pecked her on the cheek, Chloe said, “I know, I know…but it’s nice to hear someone say it once in a while.”

Clark shook his head from side to side in amazement at Chloe’s chutzpah as he stepped around Lana and reached for the truck door. Once the door was open, Clark reached inside and pulled out a massive bouquet of irises he had given Chloe the money to buy. When he handed them to Lana, her mouth dropped open in shock.

“Oh no you didn’t!” Lana said. Nothing would do except that Lana bury her face in the flowers and take a deep sniff.

Clark turned back to Chloe and said, “Thanks, Chloe. But now that you know, Lana can fill you in on the details of the proposal later. You’ve got a paper to put to bed, and I’ve got…”

“…a Lana to put to bed?” Chloe snickered.

“Maybe later,” Clark allowed. “Right now it’s late, but not too late, so both Lana and I have some parents to inform.”

[SVsleuth]

Wonderful, amazing proposal, Card! Clark sure was sneaky, but finally was able to surprise Lana when he proposed. Nice touch that he re-created their first real date, and then popped the question at the end of his article.

I did feel sorry for Lana in that moment when he pulled out the article for her to read when she was hoping he would pull out a ring. But I'm sure she now thinks the emotional roller coaster was worth it. Finally engaged! Yay!

No more football for Clark. Time to move on to married life with Lana, and becoming Superman. Perfect.

Thanks for the wonderful chapter, Card. I guess Clark had this proposal in mind for a while, announcing his retirement & proposing at the same time - so that's why Lana had to wait - until it was time for him to announce his retirement.

PPMS! Love this story. :):):):):)

[Nemu]

:DThat was GOOOD!!!!!


can we have x2 please?? I wanna read the parents stuff...

Nell will be happy he finally did it...

And the Kent will be overjoyed too...

I smell the end drawing closer... but... this story is soo good...

PPMS!!!!!!!!!

[Max001]

Man that was AMAZING!

That's without a doubt one of the best chapters you've ever written. The pace was steady, the tension was just right, the expressions of each characters thoughts and feelings. Everything was perfect.

I don't even know how you're going to be able to finish this story off now with a chapter like that to follow.

[treker]

You always do great proposal's Cardinal....btw, you don't happen to have a pic of the ring do you?

[deanyouk]

That was brilliant... I was second guessing whether or not this would finally be the proposal chapter. And may I say you pulled it of great! I can't wait for more......

[Cardinal]

Originally posted by treker
...btw, you don't happen to have a pic of the ring do you?

Nope, I never thought about looking for one. I suppose I could.

[SVsleuth]

Originally posted by treker
You always do great proposal's Cardinal....btw, you don't happen to have a pic of the ring do you?
See what kind of expectations you set for yourself up for, Card, when you wrote The Proposal & The Wedding? LOL!! :lol:

[clana1fan4ever]

Wow Great update!!!

That proposal was soo cute!!!

PPMS!!

[Cardinal]

Here's Lana's engagement ring.

[treker]

Originally posted by Cardinal
Here's Lana's engagement ring.

That's a lovely ring card.....good job.:)

[smallvillewolf17]

Really great update.

Love the ring.

PPMS!

[maru11]

AWESOME updateç!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[binkys711]

wowzers! what a proposal!That sneaky Clark...:p
the ring is beautiful Card! ;) It's true what treker said, your proposal are always spectacular! this one isn't left behind :)

Loved all the clana bliss! PPMS!!!

[CaptainObvious]

Great job Card! Super chapter and what a proposal!! At last their engaged!! I would most certainly say it was worth the wait!!!

Martha will be elated! Heck, I'm elated! Yes, Clana bliss!

[maitriniazngurl]

All i can say is WOW!!

Your proposals will never cease to disappoint! :)

Loving all the Clana...

Clark not play football anymore... and them getting married.... and everything else... Wow, I missed a lot...

I just wait for their parent's reaction...

PPMS!!

[clark&lanafan06]

Great Chapter ! That was I a wonderful proposal . PPMS !!!!!!!!!

[NYC300Z]

Great job with the proposal Card! It was wonderful! I'm reading this all the way from London, England!

[kewl]

Originally posted by Cardinal

Clark turned back to Chloe and said, “Thanks, Chloe. But now that you know, Lana can fill you in on the details of the proposal later. You’ve got a paper to put to bed, and I’ve got…”

“…a Lana to put to bed?” Chloe snickered.



:lol::rotfl:
yes,yes,YES! they're engaged! that was such a brilliant update card... next update please.... ;)

[idunowinks]

ahh so exciting, please update!!

[maru11]

update soon!!!!!!!!!!!!1
please!!!!!!!!!!!

[Nemu]

Now that Nullification is done with... can we hope for a good update here?

please?

[NYC300Z]

Let's a go!;)

[kewl]

next update pls...

[kenny356]

hope you update soon card, this story is great.

[smallvillewolf17]

18 days and still no update?

[maru11]

update please!!!!!!!

[Cardinal]

Working on an update now. Will likely be posted on Thursday before the new episode airs.

[binkys711]

EasterN (;)), Central or Pacific? :p (gotta be ready ya know) ;)

[Cardinal]

Central. It's the only time zone that matters. :p :p :p

[binkys711]

Originally posted by Cardinal
Central. It's the only time zone that matters. :p :p :p

HEY! :mad: watch ur typing fingers mister :p

k cool ;) *starts getting ready for update & new SV* :D

[NYC300Z]

Originally posted by binkys711
Easter, Central or Pacific? :p (gotta be ready ya know) ;)

Easter huh? That's next month right?;)

And Card K-site time is EasterN!;)

[Cardinal]

Originally posted by NYC300Z
Easter huh? That's next month right?;)

And Card K-site time is EasterN!;)

Actually, K-Site time is GMT (Greenwich Mean Time). You have to adjust it to your own time zone when you join. ;)

[binkys711]

lol I was going to say that right now ^^^

as for the typo well...uhhh...*looks around* who was playing with my keyboard?! tsk tsk tsk...:p

*goes back to edit* :o

[NYC300Z]

lol oh so that's why it says GMT minus 5 hours? But actually it's only four now, because of that stupid new law, but somehow the time is still right. omg i'm talking too much about time lol;)

CARD PPMS!

[treker]

Originally posted by Cardinal
Central. It's the only time zone that matters. :p :p :p

Central time? hmmmmm that begins with a "C"....

I guess we must be on the "Cubs" time zone......

Hmmmmmmmm.....

:p :D :lol: <smile cardinal>

[Cardinal]

Chapter 112 - Coffee Cake

After leaving Chloe, Clark and Lana went to see Nell and Dean first. Nell had been in transports of delight once she saw the ring. Even after she had given Clark her permission to propose, she had still harbored a small shadow of doubt about whether or not he’d come through. But he had come through, and that was all that mattered.

While Lana and Nell were busily chatting and admiring Lana’s ring, Clark and Dean shared a firm handshake as Dean welcomed him to the family. The women were so engrossed in their conversation that they never noticed the men head to the kitchen for coffee.

“Once those two get wound up,” Dean said, with an amused look on his face, “the world could come to and end around them and they’d never notice.” Dean took a sip from his cup. “After they talk themselves out, they’ll miss us and come in here…though I half expect my wife to try and plan the whole wedding tonight.”

“Really?” Clark asked. He was beginning to wonder if they’d make it to his house in time to tell his family before Kathy’s bedtime.

“Yes, really. According to Nell, she’s been looking forward to Lana’s wedding almost since the day she officially adopted her. If you think you and Lana are going to have a little wedding, welllllllll, you’ve got another think coming.”

Oh great, a wedding that’s bigger than either of us, Clark thought. On the bright side, there’s no way Nell can have a huge wedding ready before I come back from my training in the Fortress this summer, so that’s good. I do wonder how Lana’s going to explain my absence though.

As predicted, by the time the guys had sipped their way through two cups of coffee each, the women had missed them and come in to join them. Nell broke out a fresh raspberry coffee cake which the four of them ate with their coffee.

It was another half-hour before Clark and Lana were able to say their goodbyes and make their way to the Kents’ house. On the way to his parents’ house, Clark caught Lana admiring the sparkle of her diamond as she turned the ring this way and that next to the truck’s door window.

“I’m glad you like it,” Clark said quietly.

“Like it?” Lana asked incredulously. “I love it! All the girls I know will be so jealous.”

Clark responded to Lana’s obvious excitement with humor. “Gee, and here I thought they’d be jealous because you’re with me.”

“Oh, most of them were, but they’ve gotten over it by now. This, however,” Lana said as she brandished her ring, “will start off a whole new round of jealousy.”

Concerned now, Clark asked, “This isn’t going to cause any trouble, is it?”

“Not for me,” Lana chuckled, “though it may for their boyfriends.”

Clark eased to a stop in front of his parents’ house and his left hand clasped Lana’s right as they walked to the front door. He had already learned to leave her left hand unencumbered so she could be ready to flash that ring at a moment’s notice.

Since Jonathan had been the one to loan Clark the substantial sum of money required to buy the engagement ring, he knew a proposal was coming, just not exactly when. Jonathan had grudgingly agreed with Clark’s request to keep Martha in the dark because she might get overly-excited and give something away. That ban on information was doubly important where Kathy was concerned since she chatted on the phone with Lana two or three times a week these days.

“One down, one to go,” Clark said as they stood before the door. “Brace yourself for the coming storm.”

“Hurricane Kathy?” asked a bemused Lana.

“Oh yeah, but Mom won’t be too far behind her.”

“If I was able to make it safely past Nell, then I think I can handle your family.”

Clark eyed Lana doubtfully as if to suggest he wasn’t sure she was sturdy enough to withstand any more abuse.

“And if something weird does happen,” Lana added, “I will have my very own superhero to call on.”

“We’ll see just how super I am after I attempt my third rescue. You might remember that my first rescue attempt ended with me being saved by the woman I had just rescued.”

“I seem to remember something about that,” Lana replied. “Your second rescue worked out pretty well for the Sanchez girl, I’d say.”

Warmed by the memory of little Bianca’s smile, Clark said, “That’s what it’s all about, isn’t it? Little girls like Bianca, and the families that would be destroyed without them.”

“Yeah. That’s one family that’s already benefited from your abilities. Who knows how many more there will be.”

Clark unlocked the door and put his hand on the knob, and said, “Time to go in.”

He then opened the door. Lana led the way inside, with Clark following close behind and shutting the door. He quickly scanned the premises to see where everyone was as Lana groped for the light switch in the darkened hallway. Clark’s parents were nowhere to be found outside of their bedroom, and Clark knew from hard-won experience to not ever x-ray inside of their bedroom…not after the time he accidentally saw them ‘going at it’ when he was fifteen. The memories of that day still made him nauseous.

Kathy appeared to be in her bedroom, and Clark could tell the lights were still on in there. After he told that to Lana, she decided to tell Kathy first, figuring that a scream from the youngest Kent would likely draw the other two out into the open. Once up the stairs, Lana stood right in front of Kathy’s door with Clark looming behind her. He reached out and knocked loudly enough to be heard over the music they could hear coming from inside.

“Kathy?” Clark asked. “Can we talk to you for a minute?”

It took Kathy a second to realize that it was Clark who was talking out in the hall, and another second for her to realize that he had said ‘we.’ That stoked her curiosity enough to get her out of bed. She was wearing her favorite winter flannel jammies, which had little pink Piglets sprinkled all over them. She shoved her feet into her pink fuzzy house slippers and shuffled her way over to the door.

Clark and Lana saw the door open just a crack, and one of Kathy’s eyes peered out through the crack. When she saw it was Clark and Lana, she threw open the door, wondering what they could be wanting this late.

“You know Dad will have a cow if he sees me out of bed this late on a school night, Clark. What’s so important?”

Lana answered her simply by slowly raising her left hand, until the one-carat diamond caught the light from Kathy’s room and started refracting it. Kathy’s eyes went from the ring, to Lana’s face, to Clark’s, and back to the ring. By this time, Kathy’s smile was as huge as Lana’s.

One last look at Lana as she asked, “Is this real?” was all Kathy needed. A hugely affirmative nod ‘yes’ from Lana set Kathy off. She immediately screamed at the top of her lungs and lunged for Lana to hug her. Kathy was quick to pick up on the implications this had for her personally, showing she had previously put some thought into it. “I get a new sister!” she shouted, just as Jonathan came tumbling out of the master bedroom, tightening the sash on his old robe.

“Kathy Louise…” Jonathan said in a voice that promised punishment, but trailed off as soon as he saw Clark and Lana. Jonathan knew what this had to be, and stood to one side as he leaned back into the bedroom to say, “Martha? Come out here please. This is something you’ll want to see.”

Martha set her reading glasses on the bedside table on top of the book she had just been reading, wondering what Kathy had done this time. She had somehow not heard Kathy’s last yell well enough to understand it, but understanding came quickly as Martha made it to the hallway and saw Kathy and Lana hugging for all they were worth. Looking up, she could see her son’s face in profile as he looked on with an excited and satisfied air about him.

“Oh, Clark,” Martha said, which caused Clark to turn his head just as Kathy released Lana and cannoned into him for another fierce hug. As Martha saw her two kids embracing, her prospective daughter-in-law shyly made her way down the hall to greet her soon-to-be-mother-in-law for the first time.

“Welcome to the family,” Martha said as she hugged Lana and they exchanged cheek kisses.

“It feels good to be here,” Lana replied. Lana then hugged and kissed Jonathan before she got to show off her ring. The ooohs and ahhhs from the Kents weren’t forced in the least.

“Nice to see that my son has some taste,” Martha said. “With all of that plaid he likes to wear, I sometimes wonder.”

“Hey!” Jonathan said, “I happen to like plaid, and I have excellent taste.”

“Oh yeah?” Martha said, challengingly.

“Yeah, I married you didn’t I?”

“Yes, you did.” That got Jonathan and Martha kissing a time or two and made Lana hope that she and Clark would be like that when they reached twenty-plus years of marriage.

All three of them had their attention called down to Kathy’s room by a surprised shout from Clark. They had been hearing some pleased squeals from that direction, but then the squeals had gotten louder just before Clark’s shout. What they saw was Clark hanging his sister upside-down by her ankles. Her pajama top and undershirt had slid up toward her neck, just barely revealing what Clark knew to be the very bottom edge of a bra.

“When did this happen?” Clark spluttered. “She’s not old enough to need one of those is she?”

Jonathan and Martha were snickering at the priceless look on their son’s face as he struggled with the idea that his sister was growing up. Lana was imagining Clark’s reaction when their own girl reached this age. She was smiling too, but hers was one of warmth and fondness.

Kathy thought people were laughing at her, so she was furiously demanding to be let down. Clark turned her upright, and tried to hug her by way of apology, but she wasn’t having any of it, and Lana made her way down the hall to act as peacemaker.

She pulled Kathy aside and asked, “I thought you weren’t going to be wearing that to bed.”

“Well, I just got it, and it makes me feel kinda like a grown-up, so…”

Lana nudged Kathy toward her bedroom and said, “I understand, Kathy, but you’ve got the rest of your life to be a grown-up, don’t be in such a hurry. Enjoy being who you are right now.”

Kathy reluctantly slipped into her bedroom to change out of the training bra and Lana turned her attention to Clark. “It’s part of growing up for a girl, Clark.”

“But…she’s my little sister. She’s not supposed to grow up.”

“Clark, you know better than that. She’s right at the age when changes start hitting a girl almost faster than she can keep up.” Lana stepped in close and her voice got very soft. “Kathy’s going to need your support as she undergoes these changes, just like you’ve always done in the past.”

“I do support her, Lana,” Clark insisted. “It’s just going to take some getting used to the idea that my sister is becoming a woman.”

Jonathan and Martha had just watched as Lana deftly defused the situation. When Kathy came back out, Lana made sure she knew that the laughter had been aimed at Clark’s confusion and not at her. Clark then apologized. He told Kathy he hadn’t known about her new piece of clothing and was just surprised by it, and that he would always support her.

Mollified, Kathy allowed Clark to pull her in for a hug. “Thanks, Clark.”

Kathy quickly pushed him away, however, as she wanted another look at Lana’s ring in better light. Martha excused herself and went to join the other females. Clark started laughing when he realized he had been abandoned by the women in both houses they had visited tonight.

“What’s so funny?” Jonathan asked.

“Well, Dad, let me tell you about it over a pot of coffee.” As they trudged down the stairs and into the kitchen, Clark said, “I wonder if Mom has a coffee cake in here somewhere.”

[SVsleuth]

:) Aw... what a sweet chapter. So many cute little details, with a nice dose of humor. Classic Cardinal. ;)

Wonderful celebration of the Clana engagement. I guess Clark may just get more coffee cake as he waits for the women to finish their oooos and ahhhs.

PPMS!

[Nemu]

:D

That was funny!! and good...

and the funny part is not just the Kathy/Clark stuff but also the coffee and cake part of it...

Well... that was good Card!!!

PPMS!!! (next is Somebody or are you completing this before going back to the other?)

[clana1fan4ever]

:D

That was great!!

It Clark/Kathy part was really funny...Haha the girls left Clark once again...This was really good though!

PPMS!!!

[binkys711]

What?!?! Card! I thought u said Thursday!! gosh here we are talking about time and u come a day early?! yeesh :p j/k! actually I'm happy it's here earlier :D

off to read...

First off: :rotfl: that was just adorable!!! the Kent interaction was hilarious!! just loved it! Oh Clark, what a big brother thing to do! :p cute. ( I feel bad 4 Clark though, I'm starting to wonder if that x-ray vision is really such a good idea :eek: poor guy)
I really liked the way Lana got to show off her ring to both families in 1 night. The happyness must spread! :D Dean gave a pretty good lesson: when women chat, guys get coffe cake! funny!
*sighs happily* the prospect of having clana 4ever...:):):):)
I'm really liking this Bianca character btw, there should be more mention fo her :p ;)

awesome update Card! Loved it! PPMS!!!

[SVsleuth]

Originally posted by binkys711
when women chat, guys get coffee cake!
That about sums it up, yeah. LOL ;)

[NYC300Z]

lol funny with Clark and Kathy. Great job with them showing off their new engagement.

PPMS!

[Cardinal]

Originally posted by binkys711
I'm really liking this Bianca character btw, there should be more mention fo her :p ;)

Imagine that! Binky has a special place in her heart for a character named Bianca. :rolleyes:

[kewl]

clark, u BDA! ur sister's growing up! i really love how lana can soften clark, she really has a way with him....its just so cool! one big happy family! awesome update card!

[maru11]

awesome update!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Dr. Jeckyll]

The Doctor comes crawling out of his cave, squinting against the sky... A fresh update from Card in Clanaland?

Just wanted so say that this story is probably my all time favorite on the board and the one that keeps drawing me back in. It was an excellent update as always. I always get in a good mood by reading this story and this time was no different. I like the dynamic between Lana, Kathy, Clark and Martha/Jonathan. You always keep it funny and realistic. That's a combo few writers can pull off. Nice work.

A lot of people have mentioned that it looks like this fic is coming to an end.. I don’t know if you’ve said anything yourself, but if not; what are your plans for it? I can see it go on for long time still.

If not, we’ll always have Somebody to Love. Once again you’ve struck gold with that one. It’s always nice to read the start of a new fic and the growing relationship between Clana. It’s especially cool that he has become Superman already and that you included Batman as well. Excellent work.


Originally posted by Cardinal
Central. It's the only time zone that matters. :p :p :p … Central European Time, yes? The ONLY time zone that matter. I really don’t see why you guys can’t just use that one? Would’ve been much easier :p

[CaptainObvious]

Another stellar update! The Clark/Kathy interaction is always worth a chuckle or two. I certainly wasn't expecting a family discussion regarding a training bra! Great job! I wonder if Nell will become the crazed party planner like she did for Lana's sweet sixteen party. I don't think Clark will miss this party for anything! I know Card's story is completely different but I'm just saying.......

[smallvillewolf17]

I am loving this story.

PPMS!

[clanas1ally]

I liked it, good Clana, Low stress, and sweet!! I've been reading too much show-related fanfiction (way too stressful!!!) Really enjoyed it!!! PPMS!!!!!!!

[Hahaveryfunny]

Great update Card! Clark and Kathy were hilarious! PPMS!

[ajfinn]

I just want to congratulate Cardinal for his long-standing dedication to this fic!
:D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D

[Cardinal]

Chapter 113 - The Finale

Lana hadn’t been able to sleep much at all once she and Clark had called it a night and retired to her apartment. She had prepared herself for being engaged to this man ever since they had gotten back together, but the reality of it was overwhelming her. It was no surprise to Clark that she wore the ring to bed, since he had been told by Martha that Lana would be more likely to remove her skin during the next six months than that ring.

Lana’s extra energy showed itself in how chatty she was. She wanted to discuss everything, and Clark was getting pulled along with her whether he liked it or not. As they laid there on their sides, facing each other, Lana asked, “When did you first start to like me?” She’d asked him several times in the past when it was that he had first known he was in love with her, but this question was new.

“I thought you were nice the very first time I met you,” Clark said, “but it was during the guided tour of campus I gave you that I first began to think you were something special.”

“Really? How?”

“It was…so easy to talk to you. Listening has always been easy for me, but opening up was a whole ‘nother matter. I felt so comfortable with you that day and told you things that people who have known me for years still don’t know.” Clark smiled as he recalled the sensory input from that day. “I distinctly remember walking home, wanting just a few minutes more to savor your smell, your sound, the way your hair bounced as you walked, and the swing of your hips.”

Figuring it was finally safe to tell this story, Lana said, “You do know we were setup that day, don’t you?”

Clark pursed his lips as he thought briefly. “Chloe?” he asked.

“Yeah, Chloe. She completely faked having to pull double duty just so you’d have to be my guide.”

Another moment’s thought led Clark to say, “Sounds like we owe her a big one. If she had waited for me to step up with you, who knows where we’d be right now.”

“You might also want to know she was the one that suggested having you tutor me in Trig.”

“Well, I knew that.”

“Yes, but did you know she was the one who pushed me to attend the lecture and viewing at the Meyer Observatory?”

“No.” Clark chuckled softly. “It sounds like she’s been our very own Fairy Godmother…which brings up something I’ve been meaning to talk to you about.”

Lana adjusted her head’s position, and said, “Yes?”

“There are only two things in our wedding that I need you to grant me.”

Simply, without any sort of hesitation, Lana said, “Name them and they’re yours.”

“The first is your undying love, without which I would be lost.”

“It’s yours already, Clark, but I will make that pledge in public, before all of our friends, so that everyone will know.”

“The second is that I want my lifelong best friend, Chloe, to be my ‘best person.’ There’s no one I’d rather have standing with me as my second than her.”

Lana had already been considering Chloe as her Maid of Honor, but she didn’t know if she could possibly refuse Clark’s request. She did know she’d never be able to put Chloe into the position of having to choose between her two best friends though.

“You drive a hard bargain,” Lana said. “I guess I’m just going to have to come up another girl to be Maid of Honor.” Clark was hesitant to make any suggestions, but Lana could see that he was dying to say something. “Speak up, Clark. I’d think you’d know by now that I don’t bite.”

“Except when you’re nibbling on my ear,” Clark said.

“True. But that’s okay because we both know you happen to love it. I like it because I can’t get enough of those mewling sounds you make whenever I do it.”

“I do not mewl!”

Lana‘s hands began to explore the breadth of Clark’s bare chest and a mischievous light gleamed in her eyes as she asked, “Wanna bet?”

At that moment, Clark wanted nothing more than to find out, but there was one more thing he wanted to say.

“In just a second, Hon, you can make me mewl, baa like a sheep, or bark like a dog, whatever you want, but I do have an idea for your maid of honor that I want to say before I forget.”

“Who?” Lana asked as she slid down just far enough to plant a kiss on one of Clark’s nipples while one finger toyed with his belly button.

“Well, in case no one around campus makes the grade, you might want to consider Kathy. She’s already too old to be a flower girl, at least from what I’ve seen at weddings anyway, plus she’s big enough to look like she belongs up there, and we both know she already considers you to be her big sister, so it would mean the world to her.”

Lana had been working her way back up toward Clark’s vulnerable ear lobes, stopping only long enough to plant a particularly strong kiss in the little hollow on his neck that sat just above his collarbone.

“You know, Clark, it’s hard for me to mark my territory when, no matter how hard I kiss you, I can’t ever manage to give you a hickey.” Then, giving a minimal amount of thought to what he had just said, she mumbled distractedly, “Kathy, huh? I’ll keep her in mind.”

Lana’s lips continued their march unimpeded until they reached their target. “See?” Lana said triumphantly, “you do too mewl.”

“Okay, I mewl,” Clark conceded as his hands and lips joined in the fray, “but I’ve got a trick that makes you squeal like a little piggy, and I’m anxious to see how well it’ll work on my brand-new fiancée.”

“Fiancée,” Lana sighed. “I love hearing you call me that just as much as I’m going to love calling you my fiancé.”

Clark’s hands had already found their way beneath the short-sleeved top of Lana’s white silk pajamas when he said, “That sounds perfect to me, too.”

The next morning, they both woke up late, a luxury that Clark was still adjusting to. After a lazy breakfast, they decided, now that all of their impediments were out of the way, that today was the day to assemble Clark’s suit for his foray into the world of superheroes.

Martha and Lana had the two S-shield emblems ready to go back at the Kent house along with Clark’s red Kryptonian blanket. All they needed now was for him to bring the body suit, boots, trunks, and what Lana still thought of as ‘that dreadful mask,’ to the house. He then had to go through the laborious process of creating Jor-El’s special Kryptonian adhesive so they could attach the emblems to the suit and the cape and then attach the cape to the suit.

It was after lunch before they were at the Kent house and Clark could get busy in the kitchen. The ingredients for the adhesive had been easy enough to come by; the hard part was having to heat them to a temperature Clark could only achieve by using his heat vision.

Martha and Jonathan were at work, and Kathy was at school, so Lana was by herself in the den. She had the clothes laid out and spent a while finding the exact right location for the emblems now, because Clark had made it clear that this adhesive was supposed to bond extremely quickly once the emblems were coated with it.

Clark’s eyes were beginning to tire from the long use of his heat vision by the time the adhesive was ready. Clark carefully applied it and Lana then placed the emblems precisely. They watched in awe as, in a matter of seconds, the two fabrics seemed to fuse into one. Once they were sure it was dry, Lana tried to pick the emblems off of the suit and cape, but couldn’t even find a seam to pick at.

“It works!” Lana said.

“I sure hope so,” Clark replied, as he rubbed his eyes. “I’d hate to have to do this again.”

They then worked on attaching the cape to the suit, and once again, everything worked out fine. Then came the moment Lana had been waiting for: Clark began to pull everything on. The suit, the trunks, the boots, everything looked perfect until she remembered he still had to wear that stupid wrestling mask

Clark had turned on the television when he came into the room with the adhesive, more out of habit than anything else, but that paid off in a way neither of them would have imagined. A rerun of “Seinfeld” was on , but neither one was paying it any mind until a newscaster broke in with a special news bulletin.

Clark was still holding his mask in his hand when they heard a male voice say, “This just in. A LuthorCorp executive jet, which is enroute to Metropolis from Los Angeles, is in trouble. For more, we’ll turn to Bob Edmonds at Metropolis Interntional Airport. Bob?”

“Thanks, Ted,” the reporter said. “Here at the airport, we’ve been informed that the inbound flight has none other than majority stockholder and Chairman of the Board Lionel Luthor on board. The plane has lost one of its two engines and is rapidly losing altitude. It’s unknown at this time if the stricken plane will be able to reach the runway.” Bob looked back over his shoulder. “A telling piece of information is that, not only has the airport’s entire fire brigade been scrambled, but the police have been evacuating the houses that are just beyond the far end of the runway.”

“Bob,” the newscaster asked his reporter, “how much longer before the plane comes down?”

The reporter checked his watch and replied, “Ten minutes at the most.”

Clark and Lana shared a look. They didn’t need to say anything to communicate what they were thinking. They had only meant to try on the suit and make sure everything fit, but now that they were faced with a genuine emergency, something that only Clark had a chance of handling, they had a decision to make and no time to do it in.

Clark wanted to go, but needed for Lana to agree. Her agonized shout, “Go!” was all he needed to hear. He leaned down for a kiss and Lana responded, kissing him hard and fast before saying, “You come back to me, you hear?”

“I’ll always come back to you, Lana,” was the last thing Clark said before pulling on the mask and lacing it up. He then raced into the attic, threw open the Dutch doors, and shot into the sky before anyone had the chance to see him.

Clark streaked across the sky, appearing to be nothing more than a figment of the imagination to any who happened to catch a glimpse of the red and blue blur. Lana planted herself in front of the TV and whipped out her cell phone to make sure Chloe was watching. When Lana told Chloe to drop what she was doing and watch, Chloe noted the fear in Lana’s voice and did as she was told.

Once her TV was on, Chloe asked, “This emergency…umm, is Clark responding to this one? Is it his first?”

“Yeah, and I’m scared out of my mind.” Lana had no problem admitting her fear, now that the moment was upon her, especially since Clark had already left. “We just got engaged, and he’s out there risking himself the next day. And I’m the one that talked him into it.”

“Lana,” Chloe said soothingly, “you and I both know that Clark is invincible. He’ll be fine.”

“But this is a plane!” Lana was well past scared now and was headed straight for terrified. “I always thought he’d slowly work his way up to things like this as we figured out what he could handle and what he couldn’t.”

“Trust him, Lana,” was all Chloe could manage to say. “Trust him with his life as you already trust him with your heart.”

“But, Chloe,” Lana whimpered, “his life is my heart.”

Chloe secretly shared Lana’s fear, but knew she couldn’t let it show because Lana needed someone to support her right now. Lana found something to focus on when Kathy came piling in the front door. Kathy heard the TV and was surprised but happy to see her prospective sister-in-law in the den. As she popped in the den doorway, Lana just wordlessly pointed to the seat next to her on the couch.

When Kathy asked where Clark was, Lana just pointed to the TV. Puzzled, Kathy started to ask a question. Lana told Chloe she had to go, and then shushed Kathy. Wrapping an arm around her, Lana said, “Just watch…and pray. Clark is trying to save that plane.”

Kathy’s eyes opened wide and, suddenly interested, she leaned toward the TV. Soon, the two young women each had an arm wrapped around each other as they anxiously waited.

What had taken Clark so long was trying to find one small plane in the vastness of the sky. All he knew was that the plane was a small executive jet and was coming in from Los Angeles. Once he finally located the right plane, he rocketed across the sky while trying to think of what to do.

From his vantage point, it was clear the plane was not going to make the runway without his help, and that was before the second engine went up in smoke. Once that happened, and the plane began to slow, it lost lift and began to drop like a rock. Clark later learned that the pilot had been overstressing the one working engine in a desperate attempt at saving the plane. That had led to the destruction of the second engine.

Clark reacted instantly, diving under the plane’s body, and balancing its immense weight on his shoulders and the back of his neck. It was easily the heaviest thing he had ever lifted, but Clark was thrilled to learn it was nowhere near his limit. I can do this! Clark thought. He hadn’t been sure before, but now he knew.

Back at the Kent house, the first change the women noticed was when the plane, which was somewhat visible through the use of a long-range lens on a video camera, lost its second engine as evidenced by a puff of smoke. They still didn’t see Clark anywhere, and Lana began to wonder what was going on.

Lana’s first indication that Clark was on the scene came when the reporter blurted out that the plane, which had begun to drop precipitously, was suddenly leveling out its flight. Lana and Kathy both looked hard and could see a tiny speck of color on the underside of the white airplane. Both women shifted emotionally from pure worry and fear to a more hopeful state of mind, and they were now hugging each other with both arms as they watched with a sense of growing anticipation.

The whole time that the plane came closer, Lana and Kathy watched as the speck of color grew into a blob and then into distinguishable red and blue areas. Since they knew what they were looking at, they noticed it was a man quite a bit before the reporter did. When he finally figured it out only seconds before landing, all he could manage to say was, “That…that’s a man under there.”

A Daily Planet reporter and her photographer were standing nearby. The photographer, Jimmy Olsen, was furiously shooting as many frames as possible. The reporter, Lois Lane, overhead what the TV reporter said, and amended his statement, saying to herself, “A man? He looks more like a super man to me.”

Clark kept the plane’s airspeed up and trusted the pilot to do the rest. The pilot was stunned to find himself once again in complete control of his plane, but like the veteran pilot that he was, he made landing his first priority. Questions of how it happened could wait until later. He set his controls for a slight negative lift as always on landing, and hoped his divine assistance held out a little longer. When the landing gear came out, Clark smiled, figuring that they were going to pull this off. A minute later, and the plane landed safely, as if nothing had been wrong. Clark stayed around only long enough to assure himself that everyone on the plane was all right before disappearing from sight.

Meanwhile, Lana and Kathy were screaming themselves silly and jumping up and down as they continued to hold onto each other, both immensely relieved that Clark had pulled it off. Their voices were hoarse and their feet were sore from the sheer ferocity of their celebrations by the time Clark made it home a few minutes later. He flew in the open Dutch doors in a blur, managing to come to a halt just before blowing out the back wall of the attic. He then made his way quickly down to the den where he knew Lana would be waiting.

Lana released Kathy and launched herself at Clark, wordlessly sobbing into his chest as he held her close. Kathy just stood back and tearfully admired the finished costume that Lana and her mom had worked up. I wanna be like Clark when I grow up, Kathy thought. I wanna use my abilities to save people, too…and maybe I’ll get to wear something like that.

“Oh God, Clark,” a raspy voiced Lana said finally. “I was so scared. Starting off with a plane of all things.”

“That’s the thing about disasters,” Clark replied. “You don’t get to choose them, they just happen.” His voice became quieter and more soothing. “The good news is that I handled that plane easily.”

Wanting to believe him, Lana looked up and asked, “Really?”

“Really,” Clark replied. “I wasn’t sure at first, but when I lifted the plane, I found that it was easily within my capabilities.”

Knowing he’d never actually been in any danger calmed Lana, and she said, “I’m so proud of you, Clark.”

“Well, I’m proud of you, too. All you got to do is sit here helplessly and watch me while you worried yourself sick, and yet, you hung in there.”

Kathy kept uncharacteristically silent and watched Clark and Lana. She didn’t realize it, but she was unconsciously taking notes on how a couple in love act. She had her parents as her primary example, but Clark and Lana were younger and newer to love. They were still exploring what it meant to be in love, and she was learning a little bit, too.

In time, the Kents made it home from work, and the five of them had an impromptu party to celebrate. Martha ordered delivery pizza and Clark breathed lightly on a couple of two-liter bottles of soda to chill them.

At the same time, while reviewing Jimmy’s photos, Lois spotted the large ‘S’ emblazoned on Clark’s chest and her thoughts went from calling him a super man, to calling him Superman. A quick call to Perry was all she needed to get the headline on her article changed. Perry liked her name for the masked man and made the new headline read, “Superman!”

The next morning, Lex Luthor was up bright and early, reading the morning’s Daily Planet as he picked at his Eggs Benedict. There, on the front page, was the culmination of more than a year’s planning. He had tried to assassinate his own father, and would have succeeded if not for the interference of this man in red and blue.

“I don’t know who you are, or where you come from, Superman,” Lex said, his rage building, “but I vow I will destroy you and everything you stand for, if it’s the last thing I ever do.”


The End

[SVsleuth]

:) Wonderful Finale, Card! So, Lex is evil after all, eh? And now he has a reason to make Superman his number one enemy.

It was neat having Lana help Clark put the suit together, too - and another glimpse of the special relationship that has grown betweem Lana & Kathy was a nice touch too. I hope Lana does ask Kathy to be her Maid of Honor.

Martha was so right that Lana would have no intention of removing that engagememnt ring any time soon. Most girls will never take it off unless it is necessary. Oh, and Clark mewls? LOL! :lol:

Cardinal, this has been a wonderful story. I'm sad to see it end, but all good things must eventually come to an end. I have very much enjoyed the Clana journey in this fic. Thanks for allowing me to beta for you. It's been really fun getting to see how your ideas develop in a sudden burst of ideas, which you jot down and expand upon later. This final chapter, I know, you have had in mind for a VERY long time. It's good that you finally got to write it.

I hope Clark gets to make his special synthflesh mask soon, so Lana won't have to endure that evidently hideous wrestling mask.

Thanks again for this amazing fic. All your Clana-loving fans really appreciate all the many, many hours you have spent writing this for us.

Is it possible that Card is now down to only one fic? Yep, StL is the only one left - unless we count the possible sequels & epilogues you may still write for a whole host of fics you've written in recent months. ;)

See ya!

[Nemu]

:(

That was a very good ending... and I liked that last sentence...

I wish this wasn't the end... because there are soo much more that could be done in there...

but... it was a gread ending to a great story...

and I liked Kathy about her comment on Clark and Lana... soo true...

Martha and Jonathan have been together for more than 20 years... while Clark and Lana have been together for less than 1... so they are not at the same "stage" in their love...

Great work Card...

[happycamper]

:D :D

[kenny356]

that was great, but I'm sad that it is over. Hope you have an epilogue or twenty for us too.

[smallvillewolf17]

I'm sad that your story is over but I loved every part of it.

Great Job, Card.

[Hahaveryfunny]

AWE, such great ending with the save!

Do we get an EPILOGE with a Clana wedding Card?

PPMS!

[C.A.chick]

First off: OH MY GOD CARD!!!!!!!

This fic has been my favorite story I've read on K-site, or for that matter, anywhere. Its always been the first one I check for an update, and although I do not leave many comments, this story amazes me.

First, the love and connection you show between Clark and Lana is so brilliant and beautiful. Their relationship is described so well that I can truly see them interacting, and every time I read about something like Clark's "mews" or Lana's dedication to wearing her ring, it makes my day.

And as if that weren't enough, you go on to write such wonderful characters including Kathy and the Kents... Kathy... definately a lovely addition to the Kent family, and an important one too. I loved to read about the relationship between Lana and Kathy, because Lana seems to be such an important part of Kathy's life now. And when i read about Clark seeing Kathy's bra. That was the highlight of my day. I just couldn't stop laughing.

But this fic has also been more than just a funny story. The angst and pain was just as well written, if not better. When Clark and Lana almost slipt for good, I couldn't help but get caught up in wondering what would happen.

Thanks for such a wonderful fic. I'm going to miss having this story to read. Please post a nice LOOOOOONNNNNG epilogue. THANK YOU SOOO MUCH CARD!

[kewl]

brilliant finale card!sad that it's over though...will there be an epilogue?

[NYC300Z]

look at that Lex getting in the act at the very end! Lana already seems like a seasoned memeber of the family even though they're not married yet. Great job with this sotry Card. You should have draged it out to october that way it could have been two years running!;) Awesome story i'm going to have to go back and re-read the whole thing! Epilouge? Please..

[Max001]

'Bless the Broken Road'... Is finished!?

Really?

Wow. Well... this is probably the longest fanfic on the site, and definately one of the best. What are you planning to do now? 'Work on Somebody to Love' more?

Also, if you don't mind me asking. Are you a writter? Like, professionally? I was just wondering because the only person I can even compare your work to is AJ and I know she writes.

Once again, simply amazing.

[clana1fan4ever]

:(

It's sad that is wonderful story had to end....I loved it....But it was a great story loved the ending.:)

[treker]

You've been writing this for 1 1/2 years....113 chapters later and god only knows how many pages. I knew the end was near but was hoping you would stretch it out even longer.

But, all good things must eventually end (they do???)

I feel like I've lost a good friend without this story to read; this story has brought me nothing but joy and warmth from reading; it is the way clana should be. Maybe they should fire all the writers and replace them with you and AJ.

113 chapters, Cardinal you are simply A M A Z I N G ! ! ! !

Thank you for this story!

[binkys711]

ahem: *clears throat*
The END?!?! WHAT?! I...but...he...when did...wha?! :eek: I can't believe it's over, after all this time. I'm shocked. I was starting to think this fic would never end, a reliable source of clana blyss with no end, but *sniffle sniffle* it is over! *starts sobbing uncontrolably*

*manages to regain composure*
Card your dedication to every fic you have done is simply outstanding, all of us lucky enough to read your clana gems are witness to that firsthand. 1 1/2 years Card! went by in a blink didn't it? I still don't know how you have managed to do so many fics while continously and unfailingly post on update each and every one of them. Your a Superman all on your own! ;)
I am sad to see yet another amazing fic end, but await anxiously your future fics *nudge nudge*wink wink* :p I know all of them will be a pure joy to read.

Thank you Card, for your undying passion to your stories, because Bless the Broken Road, along with all the others before it, have once again left a lasting mark on all our clana obsessed hearts. :D

*sits down*
*awaits epilogue* :p

P.s: Loved that Clark finally became Superman! Lex is now his mortal enemy with a very cool reason for it, he is truly evil. And :rotfl: Clark mewls!!! :lol:

[Cardinal]

Afterward


It hardly seems like seventeen months have gone by since I started this fic back in the middle of October in 2005. At the time, I was still writing two other fics, and Smallville was actually giving us some real Clana. Boy do I ever miss those days.

Two of my best Clana friends reviewed my idea for this fic and proofread the first chapter. One of them, SVsleuth, has remained my faithful beta reader to this day. She catches most of my many mistakes and listens patiently as I fire off a bunch of crazy ideas for my next few updates. She claims that getting to read every update in advance of the general public is enough payment, but I disagree and so I’m here to give her my thanks publicly.

Thanks, SV, you’re the best! ;)

Next, I’d like to thank my many faithful readers, most especially the ones who always took the time to post a reply about something they especially liked or disliked. Without readers responding with feedback, no fanfic author would write for long, it’s the lifeblood of what we do. Even negative feedback is welcome, as long as it’s constructive.

That brings me to the fic itself. I spent some time checking and discovered that besides having 113 chapters, this fic has more than 262,000 words in it. Obviously, I need to learn to write things more concisely. The crazy part is, while the thread is over, the story isn’t. I already have all kinds of ideas for what comes next.

That, however, will have to wait. I need a break from this story. So I won’t be writing any sequel for some time. I have a new story, “Somebody to Love,” that some of you are impatiently waiting for me to get back to. Starting tomorrow, I will. It’s the only fic I have left. If you haven’t read it yet, I encourage you to get caught up since there are only sixteen chapters so far.

Thank you all for reading and responding. You are why I am here…well, that plus the chance to write the kind of Clana I’d like to see on Smellvile. :p


See ya later,

Steve (Cardinal)

[SVsleuth]

:D You're welcome, Steve. I really do enjoy being your beta, and you really don't have many mistakes - not nearly as many as the typos I make on AIM all the time - many of which keep us laughing throughout the whole writing process.

I remember when you were just writing your very first Clana fic, and I've seen amazing development in your writing since then. I seem to recall that you didn't think you could write very well, and had no idea what you were doing. Well, it didn't take you long to become a master storyteller, and all of your readers are very glad you took that first risk to try your hand at writing Clana.

Thanks again for this amazing story & all of your wonderful fics. ;)

[Nemu]

Well Card... I am glad to hear that other ideas are poping in your head about this story...

But you are absolutely right in taking a break for now...

Somebody to Love looks very promising and I am sure more ideas will come along the way for other 'short' fics like Vermillion and Nullification...

You are one of the best I read on the boards here and elsewhere.

Continue your great work and to bring us the entertainment that is clana fics ;)

[kewl]

you're one of the best writers in this forum card! please keep on writing and give us the clana stuff that we'd like to see on smallville, helps keep our hopes up :)

can't hardly wait for ur next update on somebody to love ;)

[CaptainObvious]

Hi Card!
I went to see if there was an update to "Somebody To Love" only to see a fan's comment that "Blessed Be" was completed! I freaked and immedately jumped over to read the conclusion to what I consider the best fic on K-Site. I check it nearly every day so was surprised that the conclusion was posted and I missed it!

Even though I'm a new K-site member, I've actually been reading your stories and enjoying K-site for a long long time. This story pretty much convinced me to be a member simply so I could jot down and reply with my two cents worth of comments to you and other writers. Other fics a good, some are great, but yours have a quality all their own that are unmatched in my opinion. I'd love to point out my favorite parts of this fic but I'd be here all day. It is what it is.....a great story!

For Clana fans this story was perfect. It had it all and was conveyed in all the right ways. Since Clana right now is in severe termoil ("Promise" was a Clana tear jerker), so this fic can only help bring a little of it back!

"Somebody To Love" is already great! It's off to a super start. Keep it up! Thanks Card!

[idunowinks]

:) that was a great finale!! this was def. one of the best fanfics on the board, when i started reading it was almost done and i sat up late nights and just read it right thru, i was immediately hooked. im sad that it ended, but it ended so beautifully. cant wait to read your next story, and i plan to check out your other ones :)

[Nemu]

You know Card... On 01-03-2006 08:46 PM

you wrote


Believe it or not, the fact that Clark's sister's initials ended up being KK was a complete accident. I took the name Kathy from a close friend of mine.

It was only much later that I realized she was another KK.



and Since Kathy's full name is Kathy Louise Kent... her full initials are KLK... which are similar to Kristin Laura Kreuk...

KK was funny... but the fact that it is both KLK?

Ok I shut up now... (oh yeah I *am* re-reading this wonderful story)

[clana-lives-on]

OH MY GOODNESS!!!!! This story cannot be over.:( It was one of the main reasons I came on this site all the time!!!!:)

Cardinal, you have got to be my favorite writer ever and this is my favorite story that you've written. You have such a unique style of writing; you're stories are descriptive and captivating, which keep me coming back for more. "Bless the Broken Road" was the reason I recently became a member Card (and I know that I'm probably getting all emotional and stuff, but it's true.):) I was tired of sitting and just reading the story and not being able to comment.

I haven't been on lately and sometimes I don't leave comments, but coming back on the site and finding out that this story was over left me shocked. I guess I was living in a world where Cardinal would always continue posting new updates.:D I will be patiently (or impatiently but i will try) be waiting for the continuation of this story. For now, I will continue to read the others you have written like "Somebody to Love" and those that have yet to appear in writing, but this will be my all-time favorite!!!!:D:D:D

[Cardinal]

Thanks very much for taking the time to sign up and reply.

I wish more people would do that.

[Hahaveryfunny]

You're welcome card. You're a great writer, keep up the good work!!!

[Nemu]

Card a small notice...

in chapter 101 Order of merit...

when Nell introduce the Prof to Lana...

she says


“Lana, this is Professor Malone. He’s an art instructor here at Metropolis University. Professor Malone, this is my niece, Lana Lang. She’s the artist who painted 'Kansas Sunrise.'” Clark took Lana’s clutch purse so she could shake the professor’s hand.

but isnt the painting called Kansas Sunset instead of Sunrise?

[Cardinal]

One of many mistakes still there to be found. :o

[Nemu]

lol so far is the only real big one i could figure out... and yes i did read all of it and up to there (in the process of reading the rest right now ;))

[JeffD]

this is my first post

i just wanted to let you know this was an awesome story

we're all awaiting the sequel

[Cardinal]

Welcome to K-Site, JeffD. :D

I'm glad you liked my story. I do have plans for a sequel here, but it will likely have to wait for me to finish "Somebody to Love."

[Nemu]

speaking of SL... can we hope for an update tonight there?

[treker]

Originally posted by Cardinal
Welcome to K-Site, JeffD. :D

I'm glad you liked my story. I do have plans for a sequel here, but it will likely have to wait for me to finish "Somebody to Love."

Which hopefully will take a very long time since I love this story so much....

[smallvillewolf17]

A Sequel? YAY!

[binkys711]

ditto^^^ :D:D:D

[cloula]

Cardinal, I’m new to the site, and have been compelled to try writing my own fanfic, and I have, but after reading yours, WOW!!! I have a bit of an obsessive personality, so that when I discovered your fic Tuesday night, I realized I couldn't continue with my own fic until I finished reading yours.

And 113 chapters later, on Friday night I finally finished! It was riveting! (I felt as though I had read "War & Peace" in a week, gosh was I tired at work every day, but it was well worth it!)

I can't imagine what it was like for the other members to have to wait for you to post your next chapter this past year and a half. I was always relieved to know that the next chapter was waiting for me with just a "click" away.

I applaud your stamina for having written for so long and your ability to describe various scenarios as well as you did. I’ve never been an avid football fan, but reading your descriptions of those Met U games, I felt as though I was there, watching the game myself...you're incredible! Kudos!

So now, while I regretfully have finished reading your wonderful tale of Clark and Lana (maybe I shouldn't have rushed through the story so that I could still be reading it) I must resume my own. I only hope that I can keep my readers for as long as you had, anxed with wonder and suspense desperately waiting for the next post.

Congratulations on an excellently written novel!

[Cardinal]

Thanks, cloula! Welcome to the Clana fanfic board. ;)

Good luck writing your own fic. I know it can seem daunting at first, but keep at it.

[clanaalltheway]

Great story!! I just read all of it. i love somebody to love so i decided to read more of your fan fic anf i found out i love this one to! cant wait for a sequel!

[Nemu]

as all good re-read comes... I found something I was wondering about at Chapter 52 - Power...

The events in that chapter revolve around Kathy getting her force field power...

but they are supposed to happen on Tuesday night right? (thats where I'm not sure) If that is the case then the whole discussion with Lana is wrong because they say Yesterday was the day she "broke up" with him... but the fact is that it was the same morning...

anway... just wondering... Back to my re-read now...

[Cardinal]

I make LOTS of mistakes with these stories...at least with the long ones. Hard to keep my facts straight all the time.

[Nemu]

understandable... just thought I would say it...

[Nemu]

well i am up to the end of Chapter 95 where they talk about children...

they had proof already that Human/Kryptonian child was possible in Kathy Kent...

only a re-read could make me see this... or else I would have mentionned it back then...

sorry if I continue to post comments here... just things I had to say...

[Cardinal]

Yes, but they didn't have proof that it was possible the natural way.

Kathy was essentially a test tube baby.

[Nemu]

ok... I was wondering about that part of Kathy's origin...

I'm up to where Lana regain's consciousness anyway ;)

Thanks for taking time to answer...

[Nemu]

well I completed the re-read x...

you were right about that Kathy comment...

they actually mention it when they tell the Kent the good news that they can have babies... something about the fact they want to make them the "natural" way ;)

Well... this story was good the first time... and still good now after I don't know how many re-read...

[zeba-el]

this is an outstanding story

[itsallinthespelling]

cardinal, just wanted to let you know that i finally got around to finishing this fic, and it was awesome. I hope you do end up writing a sequel, if you haven't already. I don't know, i haven't been around in quite some time. It would be nice to see how the public reacted to clarks article announcing his retirement, how his training goes, and of course, how the wedding goes. I'd be interested Lana did in fact decide to make kathy her maid of honor. anyways, i plan on reading some of your other fics now, though i may take a break for a bit after reading this one, it was quite long from beginning to end. see ya around hopefully more often now that i'm back on the boards,
Itsallinthespelling

[Cardinal]

A sequel...wow.

That would be a project and a half. The only thing upcoming I'm sure of in that story is that Kathy has one more power coming.

I'd have to reread the whole thing to remember what else I had planned.

[Nemu]

lol well you did mention a possible sequel someday...

that's why we ask about it ;)

[NYC300Z]

A sequel...wow.

That would be a project and a half. The only thing upcoming I'm sure of in that story is that Kathy has one more power coming.

I'd have to reread the whole thing to remember what else I had planned.

Looks like he has something cooking up there!:cool:

[zeba-el]

A sequel...wow.

That would be a project and a half. The only thing upcoming I'm sure of in that story is that Kathy has one more power coming.

I'd have to reread the whole thing to remember what else I had planned.

you could always just write a short epilogue to wrap it up. Although i vote sequel

[QueenClana]

This fic is so amazing I've read it like eight times and i still can't get enough.

[Cardinal]

This fic is so amazing I've read it like eight times and i still can't get enough.

Eight times? Really?

Cool!

I've always thought of writing a sequel, but I'm just worried it would end up being as long as this one was.

[Seaspray]

Eight times? Really?

Cool!

I've always thought of writing a sequel, but I'm just worried it would end up being as long as this one was.

And where would be the problem in that? The story is so good, the longer the better.:)

[Cardinal]

This story took seventeen months to write.

I just finished "In the Name of the King," which took two and a half years to write.

I don't think I have another massive fic left in me.

[Seaspray]

Ah, but you'll never know until you try. Don't think about it as a "massive" project. Just think about what the characters are going to do next - why you wanted them to be the way they are, and go from there.

It's too good and unique a storyline not to try.

[Cardinal]

Well...right now I'm busy with a Kristom fic and a rather smutty Clana fic, neither of which is on this site.

I hope to finish the smutty fic soon and dive into a Smallville-Roswell crossover fic.

[Seaspray]

That would be amazing. The parallels between the aliens from Roswell and Max's situation with Liz, and the Clana relationship would be interesting and meaningful. What era of Smallville would you set it in?

[Cardinal]

It would start at the end of Season Three in Smallville and at the end of Season Two in Roswell.

That would make them all the same age, and would start with Max and Liz at odds over her dumping him and then him sleeping with Tess, while Clark and Lana would have just dealt with some or all of his secret.

This would involve a few minor changes in each world. Lionel would go ahead and commit suicide at the end of "Crisis," which would lead to a host of changes on Smallville. In Roswell, Alex DID go to Sweden; the whole Las Cruces storyline never happened, as Nasedo had already translated the plates. Also, Liz never blurted about waiting for Max, who in turn never figured out she hadn't slept with Kyle.

[Seaspray]

All I can say is "Wow". This would be truly a work of genius to pull all that together. But with your ability I should say you would succeed superbly. And I hope Alex would survive in this world, and hook up with Isobell. I didn't like the Latino husband character - Jessie - he didn't fit in my opinion. And your changes to SV sound very interesting.

So many fics.....so little time.

[Cardinal]

Jesse may make a cameo appearance...hitting on Isabel at the law firm's picnic, until she lets him know she's the boss' daughter, and only seventeen.

I expect Alex and Isobel to be taking their first tentative steps together, with Michael and Maria as the stable couple of all things, while Max and Liz are at war.

On the Smallville side, Lana will be dealing with whatever part of Clark's secrets she gets to know. She will freak out a bit, sort of like she indicated she would in "Visitor." They won't be a couple, but won't be fighting either, and Pete may just get the nerve to pursue Chloe, now that she knows he loves her.

And of course, Lex is funding this trip by the Scooby Gang as a reward to Chloe for her work against his dad.

[Seaspray]

Man! That is going to be one sensational story. Can't wait to read it. Will you post it here or somewhere else?

[Cardinal]

Not sure. I will definitely post it on a pure Clana site and on a pure Roswell site. I might try to figure out where the fic should properly posted if I put it here.

[QueenClana]

Well...right now I'm busy with a Kristom fic and a rather smutty Clana fic, neither of which is on this site.

I hope to finish the smutty fic soon and dive into a Smallville-Roswell crossover fic.


Where are those fics? Are they on fanfiction.com? Or somewhere else. Let me know when you can.