Bless the Broken Road

[SVsleuth]

100 (101 now ;) ) pages IF you have K-Site set to the default of 15 posts per page. If you changed it to something else, then you will see a different number of pages. ;)

Card, I thought you planned to write tonight. Are you still there? IM me!

[mysteryman1]

Update soon.

[Cardinal]

I'm writing right now. Hopefully, something will be up tonight...late.

[NYC300Z]

cool hope so!

[annaliese]

post soon!

[ClanaLover]

PPMASAP! Whenever some one updates late, I'm sleeping so I have to read it in the morning...:( Oh well. I'm looking forward to my bed...I mean, your update! :D;

[mysteryman1]

Post soon.

[maru11]

udpate soon!!!!!!!!!!!!
please!!!!!!!!!

[Cardinal]

Chapter 49 - Happy Birthdays

Clark and Lana made their way to Lana’s SUV at the end of a long, long day. The day had begun as most of their Saturdays did these days. Clark and his teammates defeated the Texas A&M Aggies 35-20 in an early afternoon game that left them with a 7-0 record. They had become the number-one ranked team in the country the week before when Auburn lost to L.S.U.

Once the game was over, the Kents held a birthday party for Kathy and a dozen of her closest friends at the brand-new Incredible Pizza Company store that had opened up not too far from their house. Clark and Lana were already invited, of course, but Lana’s SUV made them extra welcome because of its seating capacity.

After a couple of hours of video games, soda, pizza, go-kart rides, and more soda, the girls piled into the cars and headed to the Kent house where there was an abundance of vanilla ice cream and all of the fixings for each girl to make her very own sundae or banana split.

Before they got to the ice cream, however, it was time for Kathy to open her presents. No daintily-careful slicing open of the wrapping paper for this girl. Kathy attacked her presents with abandon. Paper would have been flying off of the presents faster than Martha could keep up, if Kathy had not been taking a suitable amount of time between gifts to admire each gift and shower the giver with praise and affection.

The last gifts were from the family and Lana. Due to things she had picked up in their phone calls, Lana had suggested to Martha that Kathy might like a wardrobe upgrade. Kathy had always been something of a tomboy, but now that boys were entering the picture, Lana thought Kathy wanted some clothes that were a little more girly, stuff that would give her more options. So Martha had bought Metropolis Mall Gift Cards for Kathy’s present from her parents.

For her part, being a college student on a budget, Lana offered the use of her fashion sense to help Kathy pick out those new clothes. The two of them were going to go to the Metropolis Mall on a weekend when Clark was out of town for a game and spend all day shopping. With Jonathan’s reluctant permission, Kathy was also going to have her ears pierced for the first time, which Kathy found out about when Lana held up the tangible part of her present, Kathy’s first set of earrings.

Kathy squealed with delight when she saw the earrings, and then it was time for Clark’s present. Kathy knew the two packages were from her brother because of the awful wrapping job. Not knowing which one to open first, she looked to him for a hint.

“Lana said you were starting to look for something more grownup this year,” Clark said, “but you’re still my little sister, so I got something for both parts of you: the girl that’s becoming a woman, and the girl that lives and dies with the fortunes of the Met U Bulldogs.”

“Some help you are,” Kathy said, as she stuck out her tongue. “I was hoping for some idea of what was in these things.”

Finally, she chose to open the smaller, harder package and found a beautifully crafted wooden box with brass hinges and a small brass latch. Inside the box, each in its own compartment, was lip gloss, eye shadow, eye liner, and blush…a complete starter makeup kit.

When she saw what her brother had bought for her, she just looked up at him in amazement. The cosmetics themselves were good, but that something like that had been bought for her by Clark was just mind-boggling.

Shrugging his shoulders, Clark said, “I would have bought you some nail polish, too, but there are too many different shades and I have no idea which color you would prefer.”

Curious now as to what could be in the package that was for her tomboy side, Kathy showed a little more restraint in opening this one, and was surprised to find clothing. Only, instead of some cool t-shirts or a Met U sweatshirt, he had gotten her an actual sky blue Met U football jersey. The number on the jersey was 8, just like Clark’s, and it even had the name ‘Kent’ stitched on the back right between the shoulders.

When she held it up to get a good look at it, the bottom of the shirt fell to her knees and it was way too wide for her very slender frame. The other girls wondered about the size, but Kathy knew instantly that this was not just a replica jersey, but an actual jersey that Clark had worn in a game. She flew out of her seat and bear-hugged her brother as Martha began setting up the ice cream bar for the girls.

“Thankyouthankyouthankyou!” Kathy said. Just before she let him go, she reached up and kissed him on the cheek.

A muffled female voice said, “I wish that was me kissing him.”

The females in the room broke up in giggles, including Lana and Martha, while Jonathan pretended to not have heard anything. For his part, Clark’s face was puce.

He had noticed that he was getting a few shy looks from some of the bolder girls present but had never expected anything like that comment. Lana finally saved him from his awkward embarrassment by wrapping her arms around him from the side and saying, “Sorry, Girls, he’s all mine. You’ll have to find your own.”

A disappointed chorus of “Awwww!” threatened to make Clark flush all over again, but Martha’s announcement that the ice cream was ready created enough of a diversion for Clark to make his escape.

By the time the girls had been picked up by their parents, the kitchen was a certified disaster area. Martha looked at the mess, not quite sure where to start, when a blue-red blur shot past her and had the kitchen back to its normally spotless condition in no time.

Once in Lana’s SUV, Clark leaned over and kissed Lana on the cheek, and said, “Thanks, Hon, your advice on those cosmetics was right. Kathy was thrilled.”

Lana smiled back at him, and said, “I’d like to think she was happy with everything she got tonight. Mostly, I think she was happy that the people in her life were willing to acknowledge that she is growing up. The gifts she received were just tangible evidence of that to her.”

As Lana backed out of the Kent driveway, Clark said, “I hadn’t thought of it like that, but you’re probably right. I don’t know if I’ve ever seen Kathy happier than she was tonight.” He paused long enough to look at Lana out of the corner of his eyes and then said, “At least I’m done with coming up with good presents for a while.”

Lana shot him a quick look and said, “You’re not out of the woods yet, Clark. Remember, my birthday is on Monday.”

“Really?” Clark said in mock surprise. “I’ll have to see if I can clear a spot for you on my calendar.”

Lana just rolled her eyes at that, but when the came to a stop at the next stop light, she reached over tugged on his earlobe. When she had brought him a foot closer to her, she said, “I’d better be the only thing on your calendar Monday night…at least until Chloe and some other girlfriends of mine take me bar-hopping.”

Clark looked her in the eyes and said, “Don’t worry, I’m all ready for Monday. I’ve even got your present bought and wrapped.”

Unable to resist, Lana asked, “What is it? Please tell me. Please, please, pleaaaaaase.”

Lana’s pleading was so cute, that Clark found it hard to resist, even if she was not really serious about finding out. She’s so adorable, he thought, that I just want to snuggle in tight and never let her go. Clark looked at the space dividing his bucket seat from Lana’s and said, “You know, I just came up with another reason to dislike riding in your SUV.”

Curious, but keeping her eyes on the road she asked, “What’s that? Not enough leg room?”

“No, but that’s second on the list. My biggest complaint is that you have bucket seats. They keep me from sliding over and snuggling with you.”

Awwwwww! she thought, that’s so sweet. “You know what the answer to that is, don’t you?”

“Sure,” Clark said playfully, “trade in this rust bucket and buy a proper truck!”

“Rust bucket? My SUV is in much better shape than your old truck.” Shaking her head quickly, Lana said, “No, my answer is that you have to let me drive your truck once in a while.”

“Really? Okay,” Clark said as he shrugged his shoulders. “I’m not one of those guys that always has to be the driver, and my truck is nothing fancy, so if you want to take a turn behind the wheel, that’s fine with me.”

Lana had not been serious when she suggested driving his truck, but the fact that he was willing to let her do it made her smile. “Thanks, Clark, I promise I won’t put too many more dents in it.”

“Gee, thanks Lana!”

--------------------

Lana’s first class on Mondays was a late morning class and with it being on the side of campus nearest to her apartment, she was able to sleep in. A leisurely breakfast and shower were followed by a ‘Happy Birthday’ call from Nell.

They had thrown a birthday party for her the day before, which had come right after watching the Sharks’ game with the Kents. The game had been a disaster, with the Sharks getting hammered by the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs 44-10 at Arrowhead Stadium.

Clark and Lana had then headed over to Lana’s ‘official’ birthday party. Lana had ducked out of having the party on her birthday because she told Nell that her girlfriends were taking her out bar-hopping, but, short of disappointing her aunt, there had been no way to avoid the party altogether.

Lana had not been happy on the way to Nell’s place. When Clark had questioned her about it, she had said, “It not having a party that’s a problem, it’s that it’s a ‘Nell party.’ Nell puts on these parties that are more carefully choreographed than the Moscow Ballet. They become such big production numbers that they lose all of the feeling. When you add that to the fact that this is the first time in three years I’ve been near her on my birthday, and I expect this to be a HUGE deal for her, and no fun at all.”

“Well, at least I finally get to meet the person responsible for raising you.” Taking a deep breath, Clark said, “Meeting my girlfriend’s family members isn’t high on my list of favorite things, but I was beginning to think you were keeping me away from her.”

Lana cringed when she heard that, and said, “Well…actually, I have been putting this meeting off. Not because I’m in any way ashamed of you, Clark, but because Aunt Nell has this thing about your dad. Apparently, they used to date and were quite close. All of a sudden, she says, he dumped her and within a year married your mom. As a result, she’s not really fond of your family. If she learns you’re Jonathan’s son, there’s no telling what might happen.”

What had happened, was that Nell had been polite but distant with Clark when she learned who his father was. The night had been just for family, a pleasant surprise as far as Lana was concerned, so at least she had not been required to ‘make nice’ with a horde of well-wishers she did not know. When the evening was over, Lana had breathed a sigh of relief and hoped, as her relationship with Clark deepened, Nell would warm up to him.

This morning, however, Nell was picking at Clark, telling her that a football player was not good enough. As if she hadn’t been excited when I was dating Whitney, Lana thought. When Lana had brought that up, Nell dismissed it by saying that Whitney was high school, but this is college. Lana finally found out that Nell thought Lana should be dating for a medical student or maybe a law student.

“This is real life,” Nell said. “You do want your future to be secure, don’t you?”

Lana finally replied with some heat. “Whatever financial security I have will be because of my mind, not because I latch on to some guy. All I want from a potential husband is someone who loves all of me with all of him.”

That was the end of the call, but the memory of it burned in Lana’s mind long after she left for class. She was still thinking about that call in her 11 a.m. class when, halfway through the lecture, someone entered the doors at the rear of the lecture hall and headed for the professor’s desk.

Lana could not tell who it was or whether it was a man or woman because he/she was carrying an enormous bouquet of helium-filled mylar balloons. Once she began to read the messages printed on the sides, she sank down in her chair as low as she could go. The professor looked to be annoyed at the interruption and Lana was guessing that those balloons were for her since they all had to do with birthdays.

Her suspicions were confirmed when the professor looked at the card and said, “Miss Lang. These are for you. You may pick them up at the end of class.”

Lana had lunch and two more classes still to go and carrying those balloons around made her feel like she was leading a one-woman parade. Still, they were really sweet, especially the handwritten one that said, in giant red letters, Clark loves Lana. Instead of meeting Clark after practice as was their usual routine on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, Lana headed straight home to prepare for their date.

Clark showered quickly after practice and hurried out of the locker room. He ran all the way home and was ready for his date before some of his teammates had even left the locker room.

Clark had scoured The Daily Planet, looking for something Lana would love and he hit on something he thought would do the trick. He used his connections to find someone who would sell him two tickets, at face value, to see the touring company production of the Broadway musical Rent which was currently being performed at the Metropolis Center for the Performing Arts. Before that, they would eat at “The Forbidden City.” The last time they ate there was on their first date and Clark remembered how well Lana had liked it.

Clark was at Lana’s door promptly at 6 p.m. and was met at the door by a vision in a dark maroon satin spaghetti-strapped dress that was gathered at the waist with a black sash. Her hair was down, looking like a veritable cascade of curls, and a pair of glossy black three-inch heels completed her look.

Clark was wearing a charcoal gray suit, nearly black in color, with a white shirt and a maroon tie. First things first, Clark handed Lana a large box and said, “Open it.”

“Now?” she asked.

“Yes. Trust me, you’ll be happier if you open it now.”

Curious, Lana slid a well-manicured nail along a seam in the wrapping paper and popped open the tape that was holding the paper closed. “Who wrapped this for you, Clark? I’ve seen things you’ve wrapped yourself, and none of them looked this neat.”

“Chloe did. She knows I can’t wrap very well and offered to help me. By the time she got done, I think she was sorry she had offered.”

Lana began to see why as she unwrapped. The large box contained an inner box, which contained a smaller box, which contained a box that was even smaller. It was not until she got to the fifth box, that she actually got to the present. Inside was a black velvet box and inside that was a nice, medium-length, 14-karat-gold herringbone necklace. Lana’s eyes widened perceptibly and she oohed as she pulled the necklace from the box, turning it this way and that to catch the light.

“It’s beautiful!” Lana said.

Clark gestured at the necklace and asked, “May I?”

Lana excitedly handed the necklace to Clark and pulled her hair up as he stepped behind her and fastened the necklace in place. Once he was satisfied, he stepped back and Lana raced inside to check the effect in her bathroom mirror. That necessitated a quick change in earrings and then they were on their way.

“What made you think of a necklace?” Lana asked as they made their way across town to dinner.

“Truth? Well, I felt guilty for being responsible for the fact that you can’t wear you favorite necklace anymore. If your Aunt Nell finds out about that one, I think she’ll go berserk…either that, or go back to Smallville and collect as much of the green stuff as possible.”

Lana laid her hand on Clark’s upper arm in an attempt at soothing him, and said, “She won’t learn it from me, and Chloe won’t tell and Nell doesn’t talk to anyone else who knows about your reaction, so there’s nothing to worry about. In any case, I love this necklace. It sets off my skin really well and is a good length to wear with the necklines I usually wear.”

That’s good, Clark thought. It took me and Chloe five hours and four different jewelry stores to find this particular necklace last Wednesday night.

While Clark and Lana were enjoying their night out, someone else was putting the finishing touches on her plan.

Everything had come together just right for Candy, or so she thought. The swimmer that she had finally selected had been amenable to her wishes and had come by Friday night. That she and her swimmer do the deed on Friday night was particularly important to the success of her plan because it was the only night of the week that Candy could be absolutely certain Clark would not be with Lana. Clark always shut himself away from the world on Friday nights after dinner to prepare himself mentally for the game the next day, so it was the one day Candy was sure Lana would be unable to account for his time.

Candy had made sure that she and her swimmer did the deed with a TV in the background that was playing a local newscast. That way, Lana would be sure to know that the tape was a freshly-made one.

Chase had done his usual masterful job on the face replacement. Candy could not tell that it was not Clark she had just had sex with when she got the tape back from Chase on Monday morning. After school, she was mulling over how to get the tape to Lana in such a way that she would want to watch it, when her problem was solved for her.

Angie came scooting into the office and said, “You won’t believe what today is.” When Candy gave her no reaction, Angie went on. “It’s that Lana chick’s birthday! Clark sent her a large bouquet of helium balloons today and she was carrying them all over campus.”

“Really?” Candy eyes grew large as she anticipated what would happen next. Holding up the finished tape, she said, “Maybe we need to give her a present of our own…do you have any wrapping paper?”

“Sure.”

Candy slipped the tape into a protective box, and while Angie was wrapping it, made a greeting card on her PC which she printed out and then added a handwritten note to the bottom of the card that said, ‘For you, on your birthday. Watch it when you’re alone. XOXOXO.’ She then took the gift-wrapped package and headed for Lana’s apartment, the address and phone number for which she had gotten from the campus directory. Once in Lana’s parking lot, she called Lana’s apartment and, getting no answer, walked confidently to Lana’s door and slid the tape through the mail slot.

Hours later, a slightly tipsy Lana returned from a late night of bar-hopping with a recently twenty-one Chloe and some other new girlfriends of hers. She had had a wonderful night with Clark. She had always wanted to see Rent, and as good as the show was, the company was even better. She had not really wanted to go out bar-hopping, but she had promised, and with Chloe as the designated driver, Lana knew she would be safe.

Upon opening her door, Lana nearly tripped over a small package wrapped in brightly-hued paper, but instead, she kicked it across the hallway. Curious as to what kind of present she could have received at this time of night, and who she could have received it from, she picked up the package and read the card.

Well, she thought, I’m alone right now, so I might as well watch it now. I wonder what this could be?

Lana kicked off her shoes and turned on her TV and her VCR and stuck the tape in. When she settled in on her futon, she pressed the play button. What she saw next made her sit up straight and fumble for the rewind button on her remote. When she watched the first part again, she hit the pause button. Even with the deterioration of the picture quality due to pausing it, there was no denying it. There in the picture was Clark Kent, apparently having sex with that tri-Alpha b!tch whose name she could not remember right now.

Lana did not even see the TV, all she saw was the man she thought she loved, having sex with a woman she detested. First she tried to get me arrested, Lana thought, and now she’s stealing my man?

Lana raced for her bathroom as fast as she could go, sure that she was about to barf. She was right, but she made it to the stool just in time. As she was retching her guts out, all she could think, with the tears rolling down her cheeks, was Oh, Clark, how could you?

[SVsleuth]

1st - Oh, poor Lana! What an evil person that Candy is!

Kathy's party was cute - especially when her friends were ga-ga over Clark. Lana set them straight!

And Clark was so sweet, doing so many nice things for Lana for her birthday: the balloons, the necklace, the date...

What an awful way for her perfect day to end!

PPMS! We have a crisis to face here!

[ClanaLover]

2nd!

:eek: AHHHHHHHHHH!!! Lana no! Clark would never do that! Stop puking! Clark would never let somebody video tape that! Stop puking! You know how much he loves you!

Other then the end, great update! :p PPMASAP!

[happycamper]

3?

Come on Lana, have faith :( in your man! After all, it is Candy, ... :mad:

That's a pretty evil situation you've deliberately imposed, though, Cardinal! :(

I'm going to mention what I liked - namely, Kathy and her party!! :D And of course, the birthday date, at least until your horrid addition. :mad:

What more evil are you planning for our now unfortunate couple?

[superman_lives_on]

How can Clark prove it wasn't him? Damn, this is gonna be difficult...

I'm holding off on throwing insults at Candy ONLY because this is a PG-13 thread. :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad:

[treker]

:( :( :( :( :( :(

I now feel like I felt when I watched hypnotic and when I watched the lexana kiss. In other words...not happy at all!!!!!

:( :( :( :( :( :(

[auxvis]

*sigh* Lana Lana Lana....let's just hope she doesn't buy into it for too long....

[akuma]

NO NO NO NO NO NO NO!!! This is NOT happening! Come on Lana, u must know its not him, Clark u gotta prove u rinnocence!! PPMS

[NYC300Z]

yeah Lana's not thinking properly. She is a little buzzed. She has to come to the realization Clark wouldn't do that to her! Oh how is Clark going to get out of this one?

PPMS!

[SVsleuth]

Card, your Lana better go take lessons from AJ's Lana - that's the way to trust your man. Of course, Her Lois wasn't nearly as vicious as your Candy, so I'm getting nervous here.

Could we get a bit of a flashback of more of their date? Like the part with the goodnight kiss, maybe....;) PPMS!

[Nemu]

Come on Lana! at least try to talk to Clark BEFORE coming to conclusion...

And watching this tape tipsy wasn't the best idea...

Show it to Chloe too... that one will sniff out the fake im sure of it...

PPMS Card!!! :D

[deanyouk]

Dont worry Lana, I'll take care of you!!!

lol

ppms

[SpeedyKate91]

Awsome Update!!!! PPMS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[LLane_Adict_47]

:eek: evil evil evil Candy!!! grrr . . .
awsome update! :D can't wait for the next one


:pKimmi:p

[maru11]

i hate candy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
great udpate!!!!!!!!!!!!
update soon!!!!!!!

[mysteryman1]

Post soon.

[treker]

will lana be shattered by this....and will this destroy clark forever?

[superman_lives_on]

Originally posted by treker
will lana be shattered by this....and will this destroy clark forever?

The first, quite possibly, though I doubt it'll be permanent. The second--HECK NO! You forget who's writing this story. I trust Card to not screw things up beyond repair. :D

[treker]

Originally posted by superman_lives_on
The first, quite possibly, though I doubt it'll be permanent. The second--HECK NO! You forget who's writing this story. I trust Card to not screw things up beyond repair. :D

remember the first part of this story when lori left him it left him emotionally scared for over a year. and lori didn't hate him, depending upon how lana reacts to clark could determine how he reacts. If she hates him, then he could lose all hope. drop out of school, quite the team...retreat to the fortress.

I know, I'm morbid....just my dark side rearing it's ugly head. I would much rather have lana wake up with a hangover and realize that the tape was a fake....maybe the guys body doesn't match clark's and lana recognize this....

[MOOman0618]

WHOA!!! Lana, settle down there! She has to talk to Clark!! Not jump to conclusions!!!

oh man...post more soon so you can fix this!!

[mysteryman1]

Update soon.

[superman's my hero]

NOOOO!!!!!!!!! NOOOOOOOOO!!! PLEASE FIX THIS A.S.A.P!! How could Lana think that Clark would do something like that to her. URGH!! I hate Candy. What a b#$%!

[LovinMe210]

OH SHIZNIT!!! PPMS!!!

[Venezuelan Lana]

OH MAN; HOW COULD CANDY DO THAT! SHE'S EEEEEEEVIL! and how can lana believe that! she doesn't trust clarkie? this can't be happening!!!! oh, card you're an evil writer!

[superman_lives_on]

As Lex Luthor might put it, I believe it's time to cry havoc and let slip the dogs of war on Candy and her conspirators! The truth will come out!

Post more soon!

[superman's my hero]

Hey superman_lives_on, may I ask where you got your avi?

[superman_lives_on]

From a collection somewhere on these boards.

[linn]

aww man this is bad...really bad...Nasty tri-pha Candy whatever her name is....arrrgggggg...PPMS!!PPMSASAP!!!!

[superman_lives_on]

So, Card, what's the word on the next update? Any idea when we can expect it?

[Cardinal]

Not tonight, that's for sure.

I am working on it right now, but this is a chapter I want to get written correctly.

[NYC300Z]

Are you going to set the record straight in the next one?

[Cardinal]

To quote one of my favorite authors whenever he's asked about his books, 'RAFO' (read and find out). I never thought I'd get to say that myself.

[maru11]

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

[mysteryman1]

So WHEN are YOU planning to UPDATE the STORY?

Post soon.

[NYC300Z]

okay well then how about updating so we can read and find out!;):p

[Cardinal]

I'm working on it. The update is mostly done, but is undergoing some last-minute revisions. Should be up in no more than 2.5 hours....basically, by midnight Central time (1 a.m. on the East Coast, 11 p.m. Mountain time, and 10 p.m. on the West Coast...no friggin' idea when it'll be done for those of you who share happycamper's geographic location).

[pacifichic]

Can't wait!!!!!!!!!!!

[happycamper]

Originally posted by Cardinal
no friggin' idea when it'll be done for those of you who share happycamper's geographic location).

:D The difference with central time is five hours right now, four when you move up an hour (we don't do no stinkin' daylight savings time here). ;)
.
.
.
.

Edit - move back an hour :confused:

While you haven't named the guilty party, I'm sure we have our suspicions... :mad:

[NYC300Z]

2 mins til 1am!;)

[Cardinal]

Two things:

1. We're already doing daylight savings time.

2. The update is being edited right now, but won't be posted 'til 12:30 my time. Some unfortunate chatting with a K-Site member who shall remain nameless put me behind schedule. :(

[SVsleuth]

~Buffer~
:) :) :) :) :) :)

[Cardinal]

Chapter 50 - Brokenhearted

Once she stood up, Lana wadded up some Kleenex and wiped around her mouth. Then she grabbed a bottle of minty mouthwash and gargled for a full thirty seconds to remove that awful taste from her mouth.

Fruit-flavored cocktails do not taste better the second time around, Lana thought. Feeling somewhat presentable now, she wondered what her next action should be. The ball was obviously in her court, but taking aggressive action had never been her strong suit.

I’ve got to watch the rest of that tape before I confront Clark. Steeling herself to the highly repulsive task, Lana charged into her living room before she could rethink her decision. She found that the tape had kept running while she was in the bathroom, so she stopped the tape and rewound it.

While waiting for the rewinding tape, Lana headed for the kitchen to find something that would settle her stomach. Nothing in her fridge would do, so she got a bottle of Pepto Bismol from her medicine cabinet and took a dose.

Lana went back to the living room and sat down on the edge of her futon. There’s no such thing as ‘getting comfortable’ tonight, she thought. She grabbed the remote and, while wincing as if in physical pain, pressed the play button. I must be the biggest masochist in the world to make myself watch this…but, I need to know.

The tape started out just as she remembered it and from there, things got progressively worse. Clark and that…that…that slut, Lana thought, are doing things together that I had secretly dreamed of doing with him.

The caresses and gentle kisses, both given and received, culminated with the two participants looking spent and in a state of bliss. Lana was not angry at this point, she was just crushed. She had slumped off the futon on to the floor a while ago and was crying freely as she tried to blow her nose into a Kleenex.

As much as she had felt she needed to know not so long ago, Lana now wanted just as strongly to forget. She got up and rummaged through her small collection of liquor bottles and finally came up with something sweet that she thought her stomach could tolerate, a mostly-full bottle of Sour Apple Pucker Schnapps.

When Lana came back to the futon, she thought the tape was over and was getting ready to shut it off when they started up again. This time, things were less tender, less caring, much rougher and more physical. ‘That slut,’ as Lana now referred to Candy, appeared to be screaming something, and that is when she noticed something that had been bothering her the whole time: there was not any sound, not even when she maxed out the volume control on her TV.

That’s weird, Lana thought, and then, she noticed something else. The TV in the background was showing the Tonight Show. She rewound the tape to the preceding 10 p.m. newscast in hopes of finding out the tape had been made before she and Clark started dating. Grasping at straws, she eagerly watched the screen in the corner of the shot but soon had her budding hopes dashed when she noticed a story during the sports that previewed ‘tomorrow’s game against Texas A&M.’ Not only is he cheating on me, she thought, but he did it just three days ago!

That last hope gone, Lana let the tape play out and was soon wishing she had not when she saw the positions Clark and that slut were in and what they were doing while in those positions. For Lana, it was like watching a train wreck: she knew what was happening was horrifying, but she could not look away.

Every time she felt pain from a scene on the screen, Lana took another swig of the emerald-green stuff straight from the bottle. Drinking all of that booze on an empty stomach just ensured that it would enter the blood stream quicker and turn her very slight case of inebriation into something more serious. Any breathalyzer in the country would now register Lana as legally drunk.

What the breathalyzer would not tell you, but would be obvious to the eye, was that she was now volcanically angry. She was angry about what had been taken away from her by that slut. Even greater, though, was the anger she felt toward Clark. She had thought they had something special together and that he loved her just as much as she loved him. Well, I’m obviously wrong about that one, Lana thought. So much for Clark being a virgin…the guy in that tape has definitely been around the block a time or two.

Lana took another swig and then thought, I wonder how long he’s been stringing me along? Has he been seeing that slut all year? At least I now know the real reason why he’s not able to spend time with me on Friday nights after dinner, and it’s not because he’s mentally preparing himself for football like he said he was.

With her judgment impaired by the alcohol, Lana grabbed her keys, determined to confront Clark while her courage, and not coincidentally her anger, was high. Only the watchful attention of a caring god and a mercifully short drive kept the inexperienced drunk driver from hitting anything. With her late arrival home, followed by vomiting and then rewatching the tape, it was now nearly eight a.m.

Clark’s thoughts this morning were very different from Lana’s. As he began his shower, his thoughts returned to last night’s date. The dinner at “The Forbidden City” had been just as enjoyable as their first time there was. That restaurant was quickly becoming a favorite of theirs. Once again, they ordered several dishes and part way through dinner, took turns feeding each other. Clark decided to use the chopsticks and he used them like he had been born with a pair of them in his hand.

Lana had thought it looked easy, so she tried it herself…with less than satisfactory results. Feeding herself was hard enough, but when they switched to feeding each other, Lana nearly cried with frustration. She gamely kept at it, until a bite of Kung Pao Chicken fell off the chopsticks and almost stained Clark’s clothes. Only a quick burst of super-speed had allowed him to grab a napkin and catch the chicken before it hit his chest.

Following dinner Clark and Lana made their way to a parking garage next to the Metropolis Center for the Performing Arts. They were in plenty of time for the show next door, and Lana had been astounded when she found out their seats were what are referred to as orchestra seats…they were sitting sixth row center.

After the show, Lana had confided that this was only the second happy birthday she could remember having. When prodded for details, she had said that the first one was when she was three. Her parents had taken her to a drive-in movie. Her dad had pulled up to the front row so that the screen filled the windshield, and Lana said she had felt ‘all grown up’ because she got to sit in the front seat. Even though she had fallen asleep before the movie started, she said that was a happy birthday because it was the last time she had ever felt completely safe…until now.

By this time, Clark had whistled his way through his morning ablutions, gotten dressed, and was coming downstairs on his way to eating breakfast in the student union cafeteria when he heard a powerful triple knock on his front door. Wondering if Pete had forgotten his keys, Clark hustled to the door and opened it, smiling ear to ear when he saw that it was Lana.

Clark was just beginning to take note of Lana’s disheveled appearance, as he said, “Hi, Lana,” and leaning in for a good morning kiss, became aware of the odor of alcohol upon her breath. What he felt next was not her soft lips pressing against his, but a full-armed slap that rocketed into the side of his face.

“Owwwww!!!!” she yelled, and then, mumbling, she said, “I forgot you’re damage-proof.”

Lana had Clark’s full attention after that as his hand reached up to touch the spot she had hit as if to assure himself that she had actually done it.

“Don’t give me that,” Lana said sharply as she cradled her right arm with her left one. “You barely even felt it, while I probably just broke my hand.”

Clark reached out to take her arm so he could x-ray it, but Lana pulled her arm out of his reach faster than a viper strike and said, “Don’t you dare touch me. Not now, not ever! If you want to touch someone you can just go over and fondle that slut of yours!”

Clark looked at Lana like she had been possessed. He quickly x-rayed her hand and wrist and, wonder of wonders, nothing was broken. Maybe I should have x-rayed her head instead, Clark thought. Booze and Lana just don’t mix, maybe I should try to sober her up.

The bad thing for Clark was that Lana was not through. Nope, she had just gotten started. Believing she was in the right, Lana pressed the attack, determined that Clark would know she knew about him and Candy, would know just how much pain he had caused, and, finally, would know they were through.

Every time Clark tried to step in to plead his innocence, Lana countered with ‘I saw the tape, Clark,’ and rolled over him like he was not even there. He soon learned why tropical storms become hurricanes, not himicanes. Lana was a force of nature and she let her pain and anger fuel her speech, battering Clark for what she thought he had done.

It took some time for Clark to figure out who ‘that slut’ was supposed to be. When he finally asked, Lana went off, screaming at him that he ‘knew damn well who it was he’d been screwing.’ From her occasional comments, he pieced together the idea that Candy was the woman in question. He was bewildered by this charge, because he was still a virgin, and because Candy was a complete slut that he would never touch in that way for any reason.

By this time, Clark was developing some anger of his own, but mostly he was confused. After all, Clark thought, Candy’s the one who tried to move in on me right after Lori left. I turned her down rather harshly. All she wanted was to drag me into her bed where so many had been before me. When I told her that in the middle of a tri-Alpha party last year, she looked like she had been slapped. Elaine said Candy started in on me after I left the party, bad mouthing me to everyone. Then, Pete stepped in and said loudly, where everyone could hear him, that Candy and the ‘ho’s that were with her needed to leave me alone and that I needed time to grieve Lori’s loss. Pete got banned from the tri-Alpha house for nine months for that and though he swears he didn’t miss it, I know he hasn’t skipped a party there since he was allowed back inside. Maybe he just missed Veronica.

Clark grinned as he thought that over. Lana noticed his sudden smile in the midst of her harangue and she said, “What have you got to smile about now? Do you find this funny? Does the end of our relationship make you happy?”

“No,” Clark said, stonily. “I was remembering that I have friends who believe in me, who will make sacrifices to help me, people who will not abandon me at the first sign of trouble.” Lana stopped berating him, not quite sure how to respond, and then Clark added, “Know this, whatever tape you saw, it’s a lie. I’ve never had sex, much less made love, with any woman. What’s more, if I had done that with someone else, Candy Morgan is the absolute last woman in the world who would ever share my bed.”

Looking down at his feet for a moment, Clark took a breath, looked back at Lana, and said, “I guess what hurts the most is that you believe me capable of doing that.” It was Clark’s turn for his voice to be laced with pain, as he pleaded, “Don’t you know me well enough by now to know you’re the only woman for me? Didn’t last night mean anything to you?”

Lana softened momentarily at the mention of their time together celebrating her birthday, and said softly, “It meant the world to me…” and then, her voice regaining the acidic edge it had possessed until now, she added, “…but I’m not the kind of woman who will share her man with another woman. When you climbed into bed with her, you broke up with me. We’re through.”

Lana turned and headed back to her SUV, when Clark, realizing she was still drunk, super-sped to the driver’s side door and took her keys from her.

“What the…?”

“Break up or not,” Clark said, with tears streaming down his face, “there’s no way I’m letting you drive home drunk.”

“But I’m not…”

In a cold voice that brooked no argument, Clark said, “Get in, Lana. I’m taking you home now.”

Minutes later, Clark handed Lana’s keys to her after parking her SUV in her lot.

Refusing to look at him, she said, “Thanks, Clark.”

He walked her to her door, mostly out of habit. When they reached it, Lana said, “Don’t come back here, Clark. What’s between us now isn’t fixable.” With that, she pulled off the gold necklace he had just given to her the night before, and held it out to him, tears streaming down her face. “I can’t keep this. Give it to some other girl and keep your promises to her.”

Both of them were crying now and as Lana opened her door, she turned back to Clark saying, “Clark, I love you so much. How could you do that to me…to us?” Lana looked at him one last time, taking care to memorize each detail, before she said, “This isn’t ‘see you later,’ Clark, it’s ‘good bye,’” and headed inside.

Before she closed the door, Clark said, “If you really love me, you would trust me. Remember one thing, Lana. This is your choice. While I will respect your decision, you are the one that will have to live with it. When you learn the mistake you’ve just made, as I’m convinced you will, don’t come running back to me. You’ve broken my heart and nothing you say can repair it.”

[SVsleuth]

1st! What can I say, Card? Masterful writing, making us feel the anger and the hurt - on both sides. Thanks for adding Clark's thoughts about the date last night. It was nice to have a taste of the last of the happy Clana - for now. So get writing, so this can all get cleared up as soon as possible. Candy must pay! And Clana must survive! PPMS! I'm trusting you, Card. ;)

[NYC300Z]

2nd! Clark shouldn't be so hard on her he should understand she's drunk....but then what can be done to fix this? Because believe me it better be fixed;) Oh I have a few theories in my head, but I just hope Card gets a writing fast!:D

PPMS!

[happycamper]

Ouch! :(

Did all that really happen? You are too evil, Cardinal. :mad:

But what's with Clark - did he say he wasn't going to forgive her even when she found out the truth? It sounds like you going to drag us through a long session of angst... :( :mad:

Both of them seem a little hard and unforgiving - neither willing to hear the other side of the story... :(

:( Boo, hisssss!! :(

[superman_lives_on]

How the hell can this be fixed?! Looks like a job for Chloe Sullivan, if you ask me. Only the hope that the truth will come out is keeping me going on.

Update soon.

[treker]

I have never never never been so angry at a writer in my life. What the **** was this!!!! :( :( :( :( :(

After everything going on smallville I get my heart wrentched out by this!!!!

[auxvis]

Yeah ok Card...you need to fix this...and quickly

[deanyouk]

So Al Gough... sorry Cardinal... :P

How could you do this... its so not fair!! you better have them together in the next update!!!

ppmasap

[LovinMe210]

GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR FIX IT

[superman_lives_on]

Originally posted by deanyouk
You'd better have them together in the next update!!!

I think that'd be pushing it just a bit, Dean. It may be a couple of chapters before the truth is fully exposed and our couple reconcile.

[deanyouk]

ok at least find out at the end of the next update... and then back together at the beginning of the one after :P

[tygershot]

Oh no Al Miles have taken over the board and edited Cardinal's story! Hurry Cardinal fix it before your good Clana name is ruined! Just kidding! I know Clana will return. After all, this is the Clana board! PPMASAP!!!!!

[Dr. Jeckyll]

I've been gone for a while so it was a real treat to read all the updates I've missed. They were hilarious, sweet and dramatic.

I know it can't be easy for Lana - I mean she saw a tape of Clark and Candy. If it was a good fake it’s hard to tell. I also think Clark should have been easier on her. If it's something I've learned it's never take what drunken emotional girls say that serious, 'cause they tend to get messy ;)

I hope they can fix it soon - maybe with some help from our favorite krypto-hag, Chloe :) PPMS!!

[ClanaLover]

13th!

WTH?!?!?! NOOO!!! Lana stop being so stupid! Clark, stop beleiving her! Now kiss and make out...I mean make up...:p

PPMASAP so we can have some happy Clana.

[mcgairman]

Stop knocking Card, Guys. This is the Lana we've seen on the show. He's being realistic. The writing is great. The story is great. I, for one, can't wait for more.

[superman_lives_on]

Originally posted by mcgairman
Stop knocking Card, Guys. This is the Lana we've seen on the show. He's being realistic. The writing is great. The story is great. I, for one, can't wait for more.

Um, excuse me, but--THIS ISN'T SMALLVILLE WE'RE DEALING WITH HERE! Ergo, we're not dealing with the Lana-imposter we've seen on the show. This is a much smarter and stronger person. That's why I believe that she and Clark will come out of this with their lips firmly locked and hands joined.

[treker]

Originally posted by mcgairman
Stop knocking Card, Guys. This is the Lana we've seen on the show. He's being realistic. The writing is great. The story is great. I, for one, can't wait for more.

I was reading a story I loved because it was not what I am forced to watch on smallville. The writing was brillant and I was getting the clana that I always wanted on smallville. At least I was for 49 chapters. And, now it's dead.

:( :( :( :( :(

should have changed the name of chapter 50 to hypnotic.

[superman_lives_on]

Originally posted by treker
I was reading a story I loved because it was not what I am forced to watch on smallville. The writing was brillant and I was getting the clana that I always wanted on smallville. At least I was for 49 chapters. And, now it's dead.

:( :( :( :( :(

should have changed the name of chapter 50 to hypnotic.

Have faith, Treker. There's at least one factor Candy Morgan (AKA The B!atch) didn't count on--Chloe Sullivan. Looks like a job for our favorite intrepid journalist.

[mysteryman1]

Why do all stories have to have a happy ending?

Anyways, update soon.

[akuma]

Wow such emotional writing, I wonder how long its goin to take Lana to realize her mistake and Clark really not forgive her??? PPMS!!!!

[Cardinal]

Just popping in to let you all know that I'm writing the next chapter and am more than half way through it.

I hope to be finished by the time Smallville airs tonight.

(No, I will not be watching that piece of crap. :p )

[deanyouk]

Originally posted by Cardinal
Just popping in to let you all know that I'm writing the next chapter and am more than half way through it.

I hope to be finished by the time Smallville airs tonight.

(No, I will not be watching that piece of crap. :p )

LOL how can u pull the trick u just did, and then say you wont be watching that piece of crap... hehe

Can't wait for ur next update :)

[superman's my hero]

PLEASE FIX THIS!! We hafta have some happy Clana cuz I'm sure tonight's episode is gonna have *gag* Lexana *gag* in it. PPMASAP!!

[superman_lives_on]

Originally posted by superman's my hero
...I'm sure tonight's episode is gonna have *gag* Lexana *gag* in it.

Beg pardon, but don't you mean "*horf* Lexana *vomit*"?

[deanyouk]

Originally posted by superman_lives_on
Beg pardon, but don't you mean "*horf* Lexana *vomit*"?

Horf vomit?

Don't you mean, puke, upset stomach, diorrhea, yay pepto mismol... lol sorry! I'm not even sure I want to watch the new episode... or I'll just skip through lexana crap..

[superman_lives_on]

Originally posted by deanyouk
I'm not even sure I want to watch the new episode... or I'll just skip through lexana crap..

Skip it. Let the ratings drop into critical. That'll get the morons' attention.

[deanyouk]

That ratings have been dropping alot since around the 100th... or 101th... cos by then everyone knew Lexana nonsence was coming... tis a shame.

[Venezuelan Lana]

ok.. now u're making me cry cardinal! this can't be happening... make candy die on a car accident or something and after that, lana finds out the truth because of someone of the tri's.. and then runs crying to find clark and finds him sleeping with pete! hehehe... no... i'm kinda imaginative in here today hehe

[linn]

oh my gosh!!.
The heck, grrrrrrrrr......this is so messed up....I wonder whos gonna find out about this first.....Hoply of course they will come back to eachother....PPMSASAP!:D

[C.A.chick]

CARD! Are you insane?! OMG!!!!!!!!!!! I think I'm gonna die. I'm gonna murder that *****, Candy!!!!!!!!!!!! how could Lana believe that Clark would do that?! ARG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! PPMASAP!

[SpeedyKate91]

PPMS!!!!!!!!

[MOOman0618]

Originally posted by Cardinal
He soon learned why tropical storms become hurricanes, not himicanes.
HA!!! :lol:

But besides that part...holy crap!

I am thinking Chloe needs to get her butt in gear and intervene! They both need to settle down, Lana needs to sober up, and Clark needs to figure out what the heck is happening!! WHOA! I hope you can fix them fast Card.

Post more soon!

[maru11]

awesome update!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
update soon!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
please!!!!!!!!!!

[NYC300Z]

Yeah Card you put everybody in a frenzy you said you were more than half way through and hoping to post soon right? I sure hope so!

PPMS!

[deanyouk]

I came here expecting an update :( please post soon!

[Cardinal]

Chapter 51 - Help

By the time Clark left Lana’s, he was already late for class, but he did not feel like going anyway. He never missed and his grades were fantastic, so what were the football coaches going to do if he claimed to be sick? Suspend him? Not hardly! He was still going to have to show up for afternoon practice though. Only death or a hospital stay could get him out of that. Lost in his own thoughts, Clark wandered the streets of Metropolis, not paying any attention to where he was going.

In the mean time, back at Lana’s place, Lana had crashed hard once Clark left and her adrenaline level subsided. She was too tired to do more than sprawl on her bed and sleep, still wearing the much-worse-for-wear maroon dress from the night before.

The first person to notice that something strange was going on that day was Chloe. She and Clark shared a journalism class and it started at 11 a.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays. When he failed to show for class, something he never did, she got worried and called him after class while on her way home.

Clark was miles away from campus by the time Chloe called. The theme to the Pink Panther brought him back to reality and he looked around, wondering what part of town he was in as he flipped open his phone and accepted the call.

“Clark,” Chloe said, “I missed you in class today, are you all right?”

“Hi, Chloe, I’m perfectly fine.”

Chloe noticed a little hitch in his voice and called him on it, asking, “Clark? What’s wrong?”

“Nothing’s wrong.”

“But you sound upset and you missed class today.”

“Chloe…”

“Yes…?

“Drop it.”

“Okay…so how’d the big birthday date go last night?” Chloe asked, as she twirled some hair around a finger. “Lana couldn’t stop talking about it all night. I think she would rather have spent the night with you, but felt she had to keep her promise.”

Bringing Lana into the conversation brought Clark to a complete standstill. Chloe could hear ragged breathing on the other end of the line, and thought she heard sobbing. Clark Kent crying? Chloe wondered. What’s up with that? Beginning to become seriously worried, Chloe said, “Clark, where are you? I’m getting into my car right now to come talk to you privately.”

“What lot are you in?”

“Lot 32, across the street from…” Chloe jumped in her driver’s seat when she saw Clark standing right next to her car, and said, “Crap! I hate it when you zip up behind me like that.”

Clark bent down to put his shoes back on and then he walked around to the passenger side and climbed inside. It was plain to Chloe that he had been crying and the open use of one of his abilities testified to his disturbed state of mind. She just sat there and waited for Clark to say what was on his mind.

Clark finally managed to force some words out of his mouth, but they came haltingly, and were rife with emotion. “The date…was wonderful, Chloe,” Clark stammered. “The dinner, the show…most of all, the company.” Clark’s voice nearly broke on the word ‘company,’ and Chloe began to rub her right hand across Clark’s back in an attempt to help calm him.

“Take your time, Clark. We’ve got all day for your story.”

He looked over at her and said, “Not really. It’s after 12:30 and I have to be at practice by two, so I’d better get moving if I’m going to tell you this.”

Clark then assumed an otherworldly calm and told his story. When he got to the part about Lana’s story from childhood and how she felt safe again, Chloe began to sniffle herself. Lana didn’t tell us that part of the story, Chloe thought. He’s shared everything with her and now, she’s finally opening up to him. Maybe it’s because she feels safe with him.

When Clark’s story turned to the events of this morning, Chloe could not believe it. She wondered, can a woman, who was over-the-moon in love last night, turn around this morning and so savagely attack the man she loves? She was only a bit tipsy when I dropped her off early this morning, or else I would have walked her to the door, so that can’t be it.

“Did you do anything, anything at all that might make her suspect you?”

“No, nothing. Especially not with Candy Morgan.”

Chloe just sat there, waiting for Clark to explain and he obliged her by saying, “Let’s just say that Candy knows almost every one of the starters on the football team…and when I say she ‘knows’ them, I’m talking in the biblical sense of the word. For her, sex is something enjoyable to pass the time, just another form of recreation, and if she can combine it with her love of football…”

“She only does the starters?”

Clark chuckled and said, “Yeah. It appears Candy has some minimal standards when it comes to men. Anyway, when Lori left me last year, Candy thought the time to add me to her list had come. I turned her down in front of everyone at a tri-Alpha party last year. Apparently, she was humiliated and started talking bad about me after I left the party. Pete stood up for me and said some things that got himself banned from there for the better part of a year.”

“Okay…why would Lana pick Candy to be the woman you were cheating with? I could understand it a bit better if it was Elaine Thompson.”

“Elaine, Lana, and I have patched things up between us. I even had hopes that Lana and Elaine would be friends one day. Candy, on the other hand, was one of the girls that accused Lana of pushing me down the stairs at the library. So why Lana fixated on her, I’ll never know.”

Chloe‘s face scrunched up in a grimace, and she asked, “Did she say anything else that might indicate what was going on?”

“Well…she did claim to have seen everything on tape. I assume she meant a VCR tape, but that can’t be true because I’m still…” Clark shook his head from side to side and finally said, in a rush, “…because I’m still a virgin.”

“I know that! The day someone breaks your ‘seal of freshness,’ I expect you’ll wake me up with the news…though you’d better not tell me any details, save those for Pete.”

Clark looked offended at the idea that he might share intimate details of that type with anyone. He knew, from rare occasions of using his super-hearing, that women would talk about virtually anything when they thought no men were around, but Clark believed that ‘a gentleman never tells’ and he had always tried to be a gentleman…so that was that, not even Pete would be getting those kinds of details.

Now that Chloe had heard everything Clark had to say, she started her car and drove Clark home to change before football practice. She then got her game face on and headed for Lana’s. I told her there would be hell to pay if she hurt Clark and I meant it. I hope she’s ready for the industrial-sized can of whoop-ass I’m about to open on her.

Lana was still sleeping when Chloe showed up, and so did not hear Chloe’s first or second attempts at knocking on her door. Chloe then pulled back her open hand and began slamming her palm on the door.

“Come on out, Lana! I know you’re in there. Your classes are over and your SUV’s in the parking lot, so get your ass out here and take what’s coming to you!”

A few minutes repetition of this and an extremely disheveled Lana made her way to the door, this time, with a real hangover.

Pleased to see that it was a friendly face, and yet oddly annoyed that it was not Clark coming back to grovel for forgiveness, Lana opened the door to let Chloe in. Only a hangover-shrouded brain could confuse the snarl on Chloe’s face with friendliness, and in any matter, Chloe soon cleared up the confusion herself.

Once face to face with the woman who had hurt her best friend, Chloe stepped inside and let loose. One solid hit with the palm of her hand on Lana’s chest right below the throat sent Lana reeling. Chloe pushed the door shut and stormed after her. Slumped against the wall, Lana was still trying to gather her bearings and make the awful pounding in her head go away when Chloe stopped right in front of her, dragging her into the living room by her hair and shoving her down on the futon.

“Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t give you the beating you deserve!” Chloe shrieked. “I warned you that hurting Clark would come with a price, but noooooooo, you had to go and lose your mind last night.” Losing some of her steam, Chloe pleaded, “Why, Lana? What happened last night after you left me? Why would you ever believe Clark would hurt you like that?”

Lana glared at Chloe from beneath hooded eyes and said, with some heat, “There’s something you need to see first. I’ll answer your questions later.” Lana turned on the TV, handed Chloe the VCR remote, and said, “Just press play. The tape is ready to go.”

“You mean, there’s actually a tape?”

Standing gingerly, Lana said, “Oh yes, there’s a tape. I hope you like porn.”

As Chloe collapsed on the futon, Lana headed for an aspirin bottle, followed by a long, hot shower and a fresh set of clothes while Chloe watched the tape.

--------------------

At the almost the same time, Elaine was coming back to the tri-Alpha house after a long day of classes when Candy quickly pulled her into the president’s office for a private conversation. Candy was just about bouncing off the walls and that was so out of character for her that Elaine was already intrigued.

“Guess what, Elaine?” Candy asked as she bounced on her toes.

“I haven’t the foggiest, Candy, and since you’re so eager to tell me, why don’t you go ahead and do it?”

“Clark!”

Elaine suddenly became cautious as she knew that Candy was not especially fond of him. “What about Clark? Did he win some kind of football award for the school?”

“No, silly. The individual awards like the O’Brien, the Maxwell, and the Heisman aren’t for another month.”

“What then?” Elaine asked as she sank into a chair across from Candy’s desk.

Candy continued to pace the office like a rabbit on speed and said, “We got him for you. Me and Angie and Jessica got him back for hurting you.”

A sickly smile spread across Elaine’s face, but inside, she was horrified. What has this stupid woman done?

Candy was only too happy to loosely outline her plan and finished it off by saying, “It must have worked, because those two were nowhere in sight at lunch today like they always are. We’ll know for sure when Angie comes back from watching the practice. If Clark can’t hit the broad side of a barn today with his passes, then we can be sure that my plan worked.”

Elaine nearly panicked in her hurry to get out of that office, but Candy was too wrapped up in herself to notice that not everything was okay. Elaine checked her watch and knew that practice was still going on. That put Clark out of reach, so she wondered who might be the best one to talk to next. Pete was his roommate but she did not want Veronica to get the wrong idea, so she decided on calling that Chloe Sullivan chick she met when Clark was in the hospital. After checking the campus directory and writing the phone number on her hand, Elaine made excuses to anyone that wanted to talk to her and hurried to her car.

Once there, she whipped out her cell phone and called the number on her hand. It was Chloe’s voice mail and Elaine left a hurried message, saying, “Hi, this is Elaine Thompson. You probably don’t remember me, but I met you at the hospital when Clark got hurt. Someone else is trying to hurt him and Lana now and I know who. A tape was sent to Lana with falsified images on it. Call me back ASAP and I will meet you anywhere to talk about this. Thanks.”

--------------------

Chloe was busy watching the video and her mouth was hanging open. She wanted to believe Clark that he had never…but the tape was so good, so convincing, that either he was lying to her, an almost unheard of thing, or someone was really trying to do a number on him and Lana.

When the first ‘act’ of the tape finished, Chloe checked her messages since she had felt the phone vibrate while watching and because she thought the tape was done. She saw a call on the list from Elaine Thompson. Curious to know how she had attracted the attention of one of the daughters of the power elite in Metropolis, Chloe played the message, possibly the most fortuitous decision regarding Clark she had ever made.

What she heard made her blood boil. Chloe instantly went on the offensive, not waiting for Lana to dress to call and invite Elaine over to talk. When Lana came out of her bedroom, Chloe saw that Lana was wearing her meteor rock necklace again.

Chloe grimaced upon seeing the necklace, but given what she had just seen, and imagining Lana seeing it while tipsy, Chloe was inclined to be understanding. Lana walked out and asked, “How do you like Clark Kent now?”

Her anger at the unknown person who had setup her friends overflowed a bit and Chloe lashed out, saying, “Sit down and shut up before you say something else you’ll end up regretting.”

When Lana tried to say something, Chloe overrode her and asked, “You remember Elaine Thompson?”

When Lana sat down and nodded her head yes, Chloe held her phone up and told her to play back the voice mail message that was highlighted on the screen. Lana’s smug grin fell completely off of her face as she heard that someone might have faked that tape.

“How would that even be possible?” Lana wondered, and then, the implications of having been wrong hit her full force. Clark, what have I done?

Only the promise of learning who had done this kept Lana from running over to Clark’s instantly and begging for forgiveness. She was so nervous that she began fidgeting while waiting for her one-time adversary to deliver the information.

Minutes later, Elaine was at the door and when she was let in, the first thing she said was, “You’ve been set up, Lana. You and Clark both. That tape you were given is a fake that was made by one of my sorority sisters, Candy Morgan. She wanted to ruin your relationship with Clark.”

It looks like she did a bang up job, Lana thought. How am I ever going to make up with Clark? More importantly, am I worthy of him? All I ever seem to do is hurt him and he does nothing but bring me joy. Maybe I should just let him go.

Meanwhile, Clark was just getting home after a frustrating practice. Like Candy had predicted, his passing was erratic and he was having a hard time remembering the list of audible play calls they were using this week.

Angry at the world, he slammed his belongings down on a couch and sat down beside them, wondering what else could go wrong today. Tempting fate is never a good idea and Clark found that out when Pete came hustling downstairs.

“Clark? Your folks called while you were still at practice. They need you to call home right away.”

As he pulled out his phone, he said, “Thanks, Pete,” and pressed the number two name on his list, the number called ‘Parents.’

Only one ring went by before the call was answered and Martha’s voice came on the line. “Clark, please come home right away…as fast as you can.”

“What’s wrong? Did Dad have an accident at a construction site?”

“No, Clark, it’s Kathy. Please hurry!”

[NYC300Z]

1st! Well at least Lana knows the truth now! Oh what could have happened to Kathy? Just what Clark needs more problems! I wonder what Chloe, Lana, and Elaine will do next!

PPMS!

[Nemu]

2


Hmm... at least Lana knows... and Chloe... and Elaine... those last two will have a big role if clana ever comes back together...

Uh oh... what could have happened to Kathy?

I hope its nothing too serious...

PPMS Card!!! :D

[TakeCover]

3 ohhhhhh dont stop there

[superman_lives_on]

Thank God for you, Elaine Thompson and Chloe Sullivan! :D Don't let him go, Lana--neither of you will ever be happy again if you do! :(

Oh my--what's happened with Kathy?! :eek: Jeez, I hope she's okay...or will be okay...

Update soon!

[LetMeGo]

What a way to leave it hanging! Excellent update as always! Update soon!! Please!!

[superman's my hero]

OMG I love your icon LetMeGo!! Clark looks so hott there! ;)

[LetMeGo]

Thanks! :D That pic has always made my mouth water! :p

[SVsleuth]

Oh, Lana must feel awful that she reacted the way that she did towards Clark. Now she begins to realize just how much she hurt him. Will he be able to forgive her? Can he chalk it up to her being drunk & it being a very good fake tape? I hope Elaine & Chloe can work some magic, & Clark & Lana can work through this roadblock in their relationship.

And Kathy? What else will Clark have to add to his difficulties?

I'm betting the Bulldogs lose their next game, if things don't get fixed quick.

PPMS!

[deanyouk]

Yes! I knew you wouldnt let us down!!... great update Cardinal! And I'm glad you let her find out by the end like I asked :D

ppms

[treker]

I owe you an apology Cardinal. I see you putting them back together. I'm sorry. My only excuse is that I hate to see anything like what I saw on smallville tonight.

[akuma]

WOW! Amazing writing Card, im so engrossed in this fic, i love it! Whts wrong with Kathy?? And hows Lana gonna beg for forgiveness?? PPMS

[ClanaLover]

Horray for Elaine!!! :D Horray for Chloe!!! :D

Lana, what are you going to do?!

Ah! What happend to poor sweet little Kathy?! Clark hurry!!!

PPMASAP!!!

[superman's my hero]

What happened to Kathy?! Thank goodness for Elaine and Chloe fixing it! I don't think i could stand to see anymore unhappy Clana after tonight. PPMS!

[MOOman0618]

WHOA!! We haven't even fixed Lana and Clark yet and now there is something wrong with Kathy!! Man, things are going to hell in a handbasket!!

But at least Lana realized she was wrong and should have trusted Clark...I hope he is willing to patch things up.

POST MORE SOON!

[Iowanmom]

Cardinal,
I am not even close to catching up, but I had to look ahead. This fic has always pulled at me. I opened chapter 51, but am actually way back on chapter 37. Anyway, what do I say? I haven't even read the whole thing, but the fact that Clark has gone to Chloe for help, moves me in a way that few writers can. I'm in tears because you consistently allow Chloe her part in Clark's life. Never extinguishing her flame in the face of Clana. Always remembering that Chloe holds a special place in his heart and I'm grateful for that. Truly, I am grateful. Thank you. Thank you.

[happycamper]

This is just more evil!

I thought it was bad enough last night, but now Kathy, too!

Clark is going to be too worried to even think about any groveling from Lana! Which is of course, going to make Lana decide he'd be better off without her...



:mad: :mad: :mad: :mad:

[tygershot]

AAAAHHH!!! When's the next update?!

[SpeedyKate91]

PPMS!!!!!!

[linn]

ahhhhhhhhhhhh....this is insane first the tape, then the breakup,now Kathy.....but i wonder what happened anyways.....how are they gonna works things out...Card you better make it good...please....PPMSASAP!:D

[maru11]

awesome update!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
update soon!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[annaliese]

omg! lana must feel awful!!! and now somethings happened to kathy!!!!!! jeez! update soon

[pacifichic]

Oh m goodness! Great update...God Bless Elaine. :) PPMS!

[C.A.chick]

Well, I suppose I have some replying to do now. First off: STUPID,STUPID, STUPID CANDY!! How could someone be that evil? Arg. Second. Stupid Lana! Do you really think Clark would ever do that? And haven't you heard of people who can mainpulate pictures on video? Jesus Lana, get a clue, CLARK LOVES YOU! And, as he has admitted, to his own embarrassment, he's still a virgin.
Clark, you better accept Lana's apology, or I'm gonna sock you in the face with a fist made of kryptonite. You know that you love, so take her back!

Ok, as to you Card, AWESOME updates. Although they were quite depressing. You definitely show each and every character feelings very well. We (the readers) can see how they think, and it makes the story that much more real. *Sigh* i hope we get some clana soon though. And I also hope that nothing bad had happened to Kathy.
PPMASAP!

[Venezuelan Lana]

OMG CARD! I THINK U'RE EEEVIL! how can you make us wait till next update while little Katie is probably hurted and Lana is just being LANA? OMG IT'S NOT FAIR! LANA AND CLARK BELONG TOGETHERRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!

PD: *gollum's voice* I..NEED... SOME... CLANA... URGENTLY!

[*~KrYpToN619~*]

You must update ASAP!!!

[maru11]

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

[NYC300Z]

PPMS!;)

[Cardinal]

Chapter 52 - Power

Clark showed up at his parents house minutes later, slowed only by the need to drive away from his apartment in order to fool Pete. Man I wish Pete knew my secrets, Clark thought. This running around crap would be so much more convenient without having to pretend I’m actually driving everywhere.

Hustling up the steps to the front door, he burst through and found his parents in the front room waiting for him.

“What’s wrong?” Clark asked. “Where’s Kathy?”

“In order,” Jonathan said, “the answers are: we’re not really sure, and, in her bedroom.”

Clark cast a glance at the stairs before he returned his gaze to his parents and asked incredulously, “You asked me to come all the way out here, and use my powers to do it, and you don’t even know what’s wrong? What happened?”

“Kathy didn’t want to go to school this morning,” Martha said. “When Jonathan told her she had to go, they got into an argument.”

“When I had finally reached my limit and had decided it was time for a spanking,” Jonathan said, “she ran upstairs and hid in her room. Those doors don’t lock…”

“As you and Suzanne McCarthy well remember,” Martha put in quickly.

Clark rolled his eyes at the reminder of a teenage indiscretion, while Jonathan paused to look at his wife as if to say, Who’s telling this story anyway? and then added, “but I couldn’t get in. I couldn’t even get the door to budge.”

“Did she brace the door with a chair or something?” Clark asked.

“She couldn’t have. If she had, the door should at least have buckled a bit when I slammed into it.”

Looking quickly from parent to parent, Clark asked, “How’s she doing up there?”

“Well…” Martha said, “maybe you should just go up to Kathy’s room and see for yourself.”

“It’ll be a lot quicker than us trying to explain something we don’t even understand,” Jonathan murmured.

Now more confused than scared, Clark took the steps three at a time and made his way to Kathy’s door. Respecting her privacy by not even trying the doorknob, Clark said loudly, “Kathy! It’s Clark. Let me in, I want to talk to you.”

“Clark?” Kathy asked, in a small, hopeful voice.

“Yes?”

“You aren’t going to turn me over to Mom and Dad, are you?”

Leaning against the doorframe, Clark said, “No, Half-Pint. Let me in, I just want to talk.”

“Umm, Clark? I’d let you in…but I don’t know how. If I could figure out how to get the door open, I would have gone to the bathroom an hour ago.”

“What do you mean, you don’t know how? You did manage to lock the door all by yourself, didn’t you?”

“Yes, but I don’t know how I did it. All I remember is running up here to hide and wanting to keep Dad out, and then, he…he couldn’t get in. I was so happy, but now I can’t stop it, and I’m scared, Clark. Get me out of here…please?”

“Kathy? I’m going to try and come into your room now. I’d like it if you’d hide behind the bed in case anything happens, okay?”

“Okay.”

Clark put his hand on the doorknob, twisted, and began to push. Dad was right, Clark thought, this door isn’t budging in the least. He then stepped back and scanned her room, seeing through the wall. The walls of the room were lined with a pinkish haze and Clark suddenly began to worry. He returned to the door and began to push, this time using a small amount of his super-strength. The door moved inward slightly and then stopped.

Just before he added a bit more super-strength and pushed again, Kathy called out, “Clark? Could you hurry? I really gotta pee.”

Clark began laughing as he leaned into the door once again. This time, the door made steady progress inward until, with a barely audible ‘pop,’ the pink force-field finally collapsed.

Clark leaned against the now fully opened door and said, “Come on out, Kathy. The bathroom awaits.”

Kathy scrambled out from behind her full-sized bed and gave Clark a quick hug and peck on the cheek on her way to saving her dignity. When she came back, she sat down on her bed and Clark pulled her desk chair around so he could sit facing her.

“Okay, Kathy, tell me what is going on. Why didn’t you want to go to school today?”

Kathy stared at her toes and said, “Some boys were making fun of me yesterday when they overheard that I like David.”

“I thought you liked Jeffrey.”

“No, I haven’t liked him for a while.” Quirking an eyebrow in Clark’s direction, she asked, “How’d you learn about Jeffrey anyway?”

“Never mind that right now. I’m still trying to help you figure out what happened today, and as I am the resident expert on weird powers…” Clark’s hand rose to cover his mouth and he looked back toward the closed door. “I’ll be right back, Kathy. I’ve got to ask Mom and Dad a question. Okay?”

“Sure. I’ll be right here.”

Clark hustled downstairs to talk to his folks. When he entered the front room, they leapt out of their seats to ask what was happening.

Clark held up his hands to try and slow down the torrent of questions as he said, “She’s fine. A little bit scared, but fine.” Looking his parents over coolly as they hugged each other in relief that their youngest was okay, Clark asked, “Umm…I’m not sure how to ask this, but is there any chance that Kathy is Kryptonian?”

The Kents turned to Clark as one with twin expressions of surprise on their faces. “Whatever made you ask something like that, Clark,” Martha asked.

“Mmm…oh, I don’t know…maybe it was the fact that her room had been sealed with some kind of force-field, and it was a pink force-field at that.” When they did not answer him right away, Clark pressed them, asking, “Come on you guys! My little sister is upstairs right now and she’s scared. If I’m going to help her, I need to know everything. Don’t make me take her to Jor-El and ask him.”

The Kents turned to each other and shared a look. Jonathan turned to Clark and said, “Yes, Clark, Kathy’s half-Kryptonian. It was Jor-El’s price when we asked him for help in having another child. He added his genetic material when he artificially created the pregnancy.”

Excited by the news that he shared more than a last name with his sister and ticked off that his parents hid it for so long from both of them, Clark was torn about what to do next, but he decided his questions could wait. Kathy needed him now and so that is where he went.

As he retook his seat on the desk chair in Kathy’s room, Clark said, “Okay. So you didn’t want to go to school and Mom and Dad did what parents are supposed to do and tried to make you go. You came running up here to hide and then…did what?”

“I knew I was in trouble and didn’t want to get a spanking. I’m twelve-years-old now, Clark! I’m getting too old for spankings.” Clark waited for her to continue, and she said, “I just thought of walls to keep everybody away from me. I didn’t mean to do anything.”

“Why were they pink?”

Shrugging her shoulders, Kathy said, “I don’t know…maybe it’s because my favorite color is pink and that’s the color of the walls in here.” When Clark stayed silent as he thought, Kathy asked, “Clark? Can I ask a question?”

“Sure. Ask all the questions you want.”

“Well, what I want to know is, what was that pink glow and how did I do it? How come Daddy wasn’t able to get inside my room?”

Clark was touched by the faith in him shown by his sister, the simple belief that her brother Clark would know everything about special powers…whether he had ever seen them before or not.

“I think you created a force-field of some kind.” He approached the next part of her question with some trepidation, “As for how you did it, the people of my Kryptonian family who develop special abilities often learn them when the person who is gaining the abilities thinks he, or she, really needs them. Like my strength. I wanted to lift the edge of the car so Dad could reach a wrench he had dropped under it, and I did. Same thing with my speed. Chloe and I were playing tag one day when our families visited Forest Park, and I ended up on the other side of the park in seconds, completely lost.

“What I’m trying to say is that you’re not just my sister because the people that adopted me were your biological parents, but because we share some of the same physical makeup.”

“Huh?”

“Mom and Dad can explain it to you better than I can, but what that means is you’re not just my adoptive sister, you’re my half-sister. You‘re half Kryptonian.” Clark slid over next to his sister on her bed and wrapped her in a hug, and said, “We’re closer than ever, Half-Pint.”

Her voice muffled by Clark’s chest, Kathy asked hopefully, “Am I gonna get any other powers? I don’t care too much about the rest, but I’d really like to fly.”

“I don’t know, Punkin. You might get more powers or this one might be it. You’re only half Kryptonian.”

Clark then arranged to come back every night and help Kathy learn to control her ability. On Sunday, they were going to skip the Sharks game as it was the only day during the week when Clark was available during the day. That was to be the day Kathy made her first visit to the Fortress of Solitude. Clark did not think his parents would object, now that Kathy was manifesting an ability.

When he led Kathy downstairs to be reunited with the Jonathan and Martha, Clark watched as his parents enfolded her in a group hug. They then sat her down and told her about her origin, at roughly the same age that Clark learned about his. They told her everything, from why it was necessary to have ‘help,’ to why they had not told her until now.

Kathy was feeling much better about herself by the time Clark left, and he was feeling pretty good himself. Spending the whole night focused on Kathy had kept him from thinking about the other problem in his life, namely Lana. That all changed when he pulled into a curbside parking spot in front of his building. There, a few spaces distant, was Lana’s SUV.

What the hell does she want now?

Chloe and Elaine were still at Lana’s, making their plans for retribution, but Lana had left them some time ago, desperate to apologize to Clark. Clark figured she was waiting inside since he had yet to tell Pete about the breakup and so, was surprised when she stepped out of her SUV and met him on the walk in front of the townhouse. She had taken off the meteor rock necklace before leaving her apartment, so her only way to slow Clark down was to step in front of him.

“Hi, Clark,” Lana said, when she got him to stop. “Long time, no see.”

“Not nearly long enough,” Clark muttered as he tried to go around her.

Lana winced at that, but stuck out her hand to hold him in place. “Please, Clark. I’m here to apologize to you. I made a huge, terrible mistake yesterday. I accused you of doing something that you would never be capable of doing. I said a number of things that hurt me to remember, and knowing that I said them to you makes the pain much worse. I’m sorry, so incredibly sorry for what I’ve done. I don’t deserve your forgiveness, but I’m begging for it anyway. I apologize, please forgive me.”

Tears were rolling down her cheeks now as Lana begged for forgiveness. It pained Clark to see her this way, but the memory of yesterday was still laser-sharp in his mind. “I accept your apology,” Clark said, his voice breaking, “but I do not forgive you. You made your choice, and that was to believe a tape over the word of the man you said you loved. It was your choice, so live with it.”

“But Clark, I made a mistake. I learned the truth and I'm sorry…so sorry. I've changed my mind and I want you back...I need you back. I still love you.”

“You can change your mind, but you cannot change mine. Good evening.” With that, Clark brushed her arm aside like it was mist and went inside. Once out of Lana’s sight, Clark collapsed against a wall in the hallway and slumped to the floor. I thought seeing Lana after yesterday’s acrimonious breakup would be painful, he thought, but I had no idea how hard it would be to keep from wrapping her in my arms and telling her that all is forgiven.

For her part, Lana had fallen in a pile on the walkway in front of Clark’s townhouse and was crying freely. That hurt, she thought. I come over here and beg forgiveness and get the cold shoulder. At least he believed I was sorry. Lana sat there until the light finally came on in Clark’s room. Then she got an idea. She grinned wolfishly as she thought, Clark Kent may be stubborn, but he hasn’t seen real stubborn yet, but it’s coming and its name is Lana Lang.

Meanwhile, Clark had picked himself up and headed upstairs. Pete had wanted to know what was going on, but Clark said he would tell him later. Once in his room, he absentmindedly started scrolling through his missed call list on his cell phone. There was nothing interesting there, but seeing those names and numbers triggered a recent memory.

Looking for something to put Lana out of his mind, he headed downstairs and checked the caller id on the house phone. Scrolling back, he found the number for the Alpha Kappa Psi service fraternity and called them back. Getting only their answering machine at this time of the night, Clark left a message.

“This is a call for Mary Thomas. This is Clark Kent calling and I would like to make myself available for your bachelor auction…”

[SmallvilleMan]

1st, BWHHAHAHAAHAHA

[akuma]

2

WOW:eek: :D :eek: :D Tht was such a cool update, Kathy is half kryptonian!! And now she has powers, awesome!! And Lana deserves the cold shoulder unfortunately, she should have believed Clark, he wouldnt have ever done somethin to hurt her! And now he is gonna rub it in at the bachelor auction? Perhaps Lana can buy him at the auction??:D PPMS!!!

[superman_lives_on]

Originally posted by SmallvilleMan
1st, BWHHAHAHAAHAHA

Oh, pipe down. I don't see anything here to laugh about.

Clark's so stupidly stubborn. Damn it all, forgive her already! And that bachelor auction... Damn, Lana had better think of something GOOD!

And Kathy's half-Kryptonian, hmm? Why do I get the feeling that we will be meeting Jor-El in the near future...once this mess is straightened out, of course?

Update soon!

[SVsleuth]

Wow! Cool, Kathy is Kryptonian & has a force-field power. I wonder if she'll develop others along the way? Interesting choice of names for the boys she likes. ;)

Clark can't really be expected to get over the hurt he felt in a day. After his past with Lori, he was so reluctant to date again. Then, when he finally starts to get serious with someone again, she hurts him too. His natural instinct is going to be to withdraw and protect himself.

And the auction? - I'll chalk that up to the part of him that wants to somehow get back at Lana - or at least make her jealous.

PPMS! :)

[happycamper]

5? At least Kathy's OK! :)

Not surprising to see that Clark's idiocy follows him wherever he turns up. :(

Not stubborness, but excessive pride is his sin. He told Lana to live with her decision, but the same message applies equally to him. :mad: :(



You know, Card, you could return us all to previous seasons of SMV... ;)

After a suitable amount of suffering and pain, Clark could reconsider - only to have Lana finally giving up on him when she figured she had swallowed enough pride. Clark could then pursue an unwilling Lana, who...well, you know what I mean;)

[Iowanmom]

Originally posted by Cardinal
“You’re right on both counts. She’s the second most beautiful woman I know.

“Who’s the first?”

“First what?” Clark asked warily.

“Who’s the most beautiful woman you know?”

“Do you even have to ask?” Clark quickly wrapped his hand around hers and said, “Here’s a hint: I’m holding her hand right now.”

With that, Lana leaned against Clark with a sigh and said, “Oh, Clark.”
**sigh**

**looks at picture of Chloe and ponders why her beauty is so hard for others to see**

**sigh**

off to read.

[NYC300Z]

Yes Clark truly is very stuborn! I can't believe he's going to go and do the auction now! Lana just has to win the date with him or convince him to drop out of it to go back to her! oh and Kathy's origin is an interesting development!

PPMS!

[superman's my hero]

UGH!! Clark u simple must forgive Lana!! That's really cool though that Kathy is half-kryptonian. PPMS!!

[maru11]

awesome update!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
update soon!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[deanyouk]

Great update Cardinal!

ppms

[Venezuelan Lana]

Great update Card! your writing was amazing as it always is... and that's so nice Kathy is half-kryptonian, and why is Clark being so selfcenter and proud? he knows lana is sorry and wants to forgive her, so why doesn't he go for it?

[linn]

Wow Kathys half Kryptonian....i wiss he'd forgive her.....oh no and the bachelor auction thingy...hey maybe Lana might try and buy him back....hehhe..ppms!!

[maru11]

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

[clanas1ally]

i just read through all 109 pages in two days
please update soon!:D

[ClanaLover]

15th! :D

Kathy's half Kryptonian?!?! Whoa! That's a shocker! :wow:

Jeffrey and David?!?!?! :p Tee hee hee...

I bet Lana and C*ndy are going to be bidding for Clark...:p Well, maybe Lana and someone else. I don't know...But still...

PPMASAP!!!

[annaliese]

post more soon!

[closetfan]

oh man this is insane....i cant even study for my spanish final cuz of this story....damn

[tygershot]

Awesome update! Jor-el and his deals! I hope Lana will buy Clark at the auction!

[maru11]

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

[Venezuelan Lana]

CARD UPDATE SOOOOOOOOON PLEASE!

*gollum's voice* I... need... some.. nice... and.. real... CLANA

[NYC300Z]

PPMS!

[Iowanmom]

Well, Cardinal, I finished Chapter 38, Jealous. I gotta say, I've been thinking about this one for days. Every time I do, I get giddy. I am filled with................giddiness. I don't what else to call it.

Lana Lang **starts laughing** in a jealous rage had me rolling. Not because it was necessarily so funny, as it was priceless, absolutely precious and sooooo true to character with YOUR Lana Lang. She is fierce and I loved it.

Oh man, **still laughing** when she went off on Clark I thought OMG. Lana is exploding. I guess I"m so use to the reserved and emotionless LL on SV, I was pleasantly shocked and delighted to see the heated emotion with this girl. Turly she loves this man and I am exstatic about it.

She lets her true emotions show, warts and all. She's perfect and I NEEDED that. **sigh** Cardinal..... I LOVED this chapter. She is so real, so human, soooo completely head over heals IN LOVE. I'm giddy. Absolutely giddy!!!

And then when she was berating herself, I felt sorry for her..... that's saying something. I was praying Clark would be there, despite losing his head before, and had followed her to her appartment.

Imagine my surprise when he dropped from the sky right infront of her. I think I said "YES!!!!!!!!" I mean I lost it. I laughed my butt off. I was so happy. That's one way to make your girlfriend forget why she's mad at you. I was so rooting for him. **still laughing**

Anyway, I'm glad Lana came clean about the girls' attempt at 'having' him. Its kind of an unburdening of her soul, so to speak and it's got to make Lana feel better about coming clean.

A jealous Lana is quite the sight, but a flying and awe filled Lana tops it all.

Just how does she feel about his flying???? Moreso, about herself flying???? I am eager and excited to read the next update. This chapter rocked, Cardinal!!! It absoulutely ROCKED!!!

[MuchaLana]

Good F-ing story Cardinal, I finally caught up. It took me 2 months to finally get here. I love the story. Great job!

[auxvis]

Great update as always, Card...though I am a little bummed at Clark's hostility

[treker]

Originally posted by auxvis
Great update as always, Card...though I am a little bummed at Clark's hostility


while I hate anything that doesn't have a happy clana. I don't think clark could have just forgiven her right away. She shredded him to the core. Do you think he could just forget that overnight? Clark trusted her with his greatest secret....and she turned on him so badly without even giving him a chance to explain.

The good part is that Lana is not giving up....she realizes that Clark is worth the effort to win him back. She better go borrow some money from nell to get that date at the bachelor auction.

[superman_lives_on]

Originally posted by auxvis
...I am a little bummed at Clark's hostility.

Who isn't? Hopefully Lana can shatter that through her efforts to restore their relationship.

Update soon, Card!

[mcgairman]

Oh MAN!! You are the tops in the fanfic writing heap now, Card. For me, anyway. You have Lana down to a "T" in character. I like it. I can't wait for more. I've been busy so I've just now caught up. Thanks for some VERY GOOD writing.

:cool:

[auxvis]

Oh no I wasn't hating on it...I realize it is definately a necessary part of the story and is the way that Clark should have and would have reacted...but I can still be bummed about it :)

[NYC300Z]

PPMS!

[t-bone]

ppms !

[maru11]

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

[mysteryman1]

Update soon.

[maru11]

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

[maitriniazngurl]

This story is really good although Clark's attitude was a bit harsh.
well ppms!!!

[maru11]

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

[Nemu]

erm... Maru... 1 post is enough to tell him to update...

That said... Card!!!! PPMS :D

[deanyouk]

lol... maru does it in every fic... its amazing watching how fast her posts rise...

[superman_lives_on]

WHOA! Deanyouk, where did you get THAT avatar?!

[TakeCover]

Ya!! It's awesome
PPMS

[deanyouk]

Made it in photoshop... i was pretty bored lol

[Cardinal]

Chapter 53 - Anger

Disappointed and hurt, Lana headed for home, where Chloe and Elaine were still evaluating various options for getting even with Candy.

“…is my sorority sister,” Elaine said, “but we’ve been indifferent friends at best, and given what she did to Clark and Lana, she needs to pay. I want to be a part of it. So don’t worry about my association with the tri-Alpha sorority getting in the way.”

Chloe rubbed her hands together briskly, and said, “Okay then, let’s review what we’ve got so far. First, I’m going to investigate who could have made a fake of this quality in such a short period of time. From the TV broadcast on the tape, we know the basic footage was shot on Friday night and yet, the final product was put inside Lana’s door on Monday night. That’s awfully fast. There can’t be that many people who could have done it.”

“In the meantime,” Elaine said, “I’m going to try and collect specific details of the plot from Candy, Jessica, and Angie. Jessica and Angie are Candy’s primary flunkies. I get along with them much better than I do with Candy and I have a hard time believing that they would have participated if they knew the truth of the situation. As far as the tape itself goes, Lex will do just about anything for me, and he has access to virtually any kind of computer tech we could ever need. The people that work for his dad and him at LuthorCorp ought to be able to analyze that tape and tell us any secrets it might hold.”

Still amazed at the connections this girl had, Chloe asked, “Not to pry or anything, but how did you get Lex Luthor wrapped around your finger?”

“Lex? His family and my family have been friends for many years. He’s my unofficial big brother. All I have to do is ask for something and Lex delivers. He’s incredibly loyal to those that are loyal to him.”

About this time, Lana finally dragged herself in the door. Chloe and Elaine looked up from the kitchen table where they had been planning, and Chloe asked, “Where’d you go? I thought you were just going over to Clark’s to apologize to him. Surely he didn’t make you grovel that long.”

Unable to look at her friends, Lana said weakly, “He didn’t make me grovel at all.”

The two girls at the table shared a look and then Chloe asked, “So…you two are all patched up, aren’t you?”

Lana’s sad shake of the head told the story, but she felt obligated to voice her answer nonetheless. “No. He accepted my apology, but said he could not forgive me. He said I had made my decision and would have to live with it.”

When Lana went into the living room and plopped down on the futon, Elaine and Chloe shared one last look and then Elaine excused herself to allow the long-time friends some privacy for a heart-to-heart talk.

Once Elaine left, Chloe poured two tall glasses of iced tea and joined Lana in the living room. Lana was staring at, but not really seeing, the Renoir print she had hanging on one wall of the living room. When Chloe handed a glass of tea to Lana, she accepted it mechanically, and spoke the quietest of thank yous.

Not knowing what to say, Chloe just sat there and waited for Lana to begin. Lana finally broke her reverie, took a sip of tea, and said, “It actually didn’t take very long once I got a hold of Clark. When I got there, his truck was gone, and instead of going inside and waiting with Pete, I waited outside. I wanted this meeting to be private. Clark was gone a long time. Once he finally pulled up to the curb…”

From then on, Lana and Chloe minutely analyzed every word, every inflection, and every gesture to see if they could learn anything more about what Clark was feeling.

Chloe found promise in the way Clark’s voice broke as he told Lana that he did not forgive her, saying, “I mean, Clark must have been conflicted about saying that to you, or else it wouldn’t have been so hard for him to get those words out of his mouth.”

Willing to latch on to anything positive right now, Lana asked hopefully, “Do you really think so?”

“Yeah, I do. Clark has never been especially adept at hiding what he was feeling.” Smiling now, Chloe continued, “He thinks he is, but those of us who love him know better, don’t we?”

Lana allowed that Chloe might be on to something and then she turned the conversation to a different subject: how she was going to win him back. When Lana told what she wanted to try, Chloe said, “Okay, making sure he thinks about you on a regular basis sounds good to me, but I’m not sure about the second part of your plan. It sounds almost stalkerish.”

“Well, I have to let him know I’m not giving up on him. Maybe I can break down his resistance and get him to give me a second chance.”

“Mmm…maybe. Clark is one of the most stubborn people I know.”

“Well, so am I. My advantage is that Clark is being stubborn about something we both think he doesn’t really want to do, while I am being stubborn about something I want more than anything I’ve wanted in my life.” Looking at Chloe with a raised eyebrow and a small grin, Lana said, “Who do you think has the greater motivation?”

Smiling at the thought of Clark being hunted down by Lana, Chloe decided to share something with her. “Lana, there’s something about Clark I need to tell you.”

“Okay, I’m listening.”

Chloe paused as she thought about exactly how much she could tell Lana without giving away secrets she was supposed to keep. Finally, she said, “In high school, according to Clark, he dated quite a bit, though none of the girls lasted for more than two dates. Clark has only had two serious girlfriends in his life, Lori Lemaris and you. The only two girls he ever truly felt were special both dumped him after he fell in love with them.”

“Okay,” Lana said cautiously, “this is all stuff I know already.”

“What you don’t know is that Clark doesn’t open himself up emotionally very often, but when he does, he gives everything he has. He’s been burned twice now. Getting him to take that chance a third time will take some doing. I hope you succeed, but you need to know just how difficult it is going to be.”

Shortly thereafter, Chloe headed for home, sure that Lana was going to be fine. Clark, on the other hand, still worried her, but she would not be able to finish their conversation tonight. After a long day of playing Dr. Phil, Chloe thought, I’ve got to get some sleep.

The next morning, Clark headed for early morning weight-training before breakfast in the student union cafeteria. By the time he had polished off his third helping of sausage gravy and biscuits, Clark realized he would have to hustle to make it to his first class on time. He was walking at a fast clip, when he saw the last thing he had ever expected to see early on a Wednesday.

There on a concrete bench just in front the entrance to the building that held his first class was Lana. His first thought was, What is she doing here? She doesn’t have class this early. His second thought was, Duh! She’s got to be here to plead for another chance.

Just then, she looked up from her notebook, flashed him a big, warm smile and said, “Hi, Clark.” She then collected her books, stood, and lightly brushed against him as she walked off.

Clark was caught flatfooted by this and could only stand and stare as she walked by. Metropolis was currently enjoying an Indian summer and Clark could only admire the clothes that the unseasonably warm weather allowed Lana to wear. He was mentally wolf-whistling at her outfit of white canvas tennis shoes and ankle socks, khaki mid-thigh shorts, and a loose white tank top when someone nearby whistled out loud.

Clark shot the unknowing offender an irate look and by the time his eyes returned to Lana, her slender figure had been swallowed up by the crowd of students. It went that way for Clark the rest of the day, whenever he turned around, Lana was there just long enough for him to get a good look at her before she flashed him a big smile and disappeared. Getting Lana out of his mind was not going to be easy.

By the time he reached practice, the football team knew that Clark had broken up with Lana. Apparently, the three conspirators had spread their knowledge of the end of the relationship to the rest of the sorority, without revealing how it had come about. The players that had girlfriends in the sorority found out from their girlfriends and the story spread from there.

Most of the team was walking on eggshells around Clark, but a few of his closer friends on the team came up to him and asked if it was true. When he confirmed that he had been dumped by Lana, the team really began to worry. The year before, the Met U Bulldogs had been working on an undefeated season when, late in the season, Clark’s girlfriend Lori dumped him. The next game, Clark played like he was in a coma and the Bulldogs suffered their only loss of the season to the other new team in the Big 14 conference, the Arkansas Razorbacks.

Now they had a reason for his lousy performance at practice the day before. It was an open secret among the team and its fans that Clark’s worst game of his career coincided with the end of a romantic relationship and the team was deathly afraid of a repeat performance.

When Coach Fordman heard the news, he kicked his locker in disgust. What is it with Lana Lang? Does she have a fetish for hurting quarterbacks? Damn her! As Clark was his special project, Whitney went to find him as soon as Clark made it to the locker room.

“Hey, Clark, how’s it going?” Receiving a noncommittal shrug in return, Whitney said, “I heard about you and Lana…is it true?”

“Yeah,” Clark said in a near whisper. “She thought I had cheated on her and she dumped me.”

Whitney waited a bit and then asked, “Did you?”

That brought a rise out of Clark. He looked at Whitney like he was insane and replied, “I would never cheat on any woman I was in a relationship with…much less cheat on a woman I love the way I love Lana.”

Whitney snorted in derision and said, “That’s the problem with Lana, Clark. She doesn’t think about you or me or any other guy she’s dated, she just thinks about herself. I’m sorry to be right, Clark, but I told you so back when you two started dating. Lana’s just a heartbreaker and is never going to change.”

Clark was really beginning to get angry at Whitney for his misguided attempts at comforting him. Trying to make him feel better by tearing down Lana was not the way to go, only Whitney did not know that. Clark, however, was about to clue him in.

“Can I talk to you in private, Coach Fordman?” Clark asked.

“Sure, we’ll duck into one of the team’s film rooms.”

Clark followed Whitney into a darkened room, and as the lights came on, the door closed, and Whitney began to turn around, Clark grabbed Whitney by the belt buckle with one hand and lifted him off the floor. As Whitney’s back slid up the wall, Clark stopped just before Whitney’s head hit the ceiling.

“What the hell are you doing, Clark?” Whitney asked in a panic. “You could lose your scholarship for doing this to a coach!”

“Nah, there’s no one to see us here, besides this will be over quickly.” Clark’s grin left his face as he became serious, and said, “Coach, I like you, for the most part, and you’ve been a big help to me this year. Having said that, however, if you ever talk that way about Lana again…to me or anyone else…I will make you regret it. Any rumors I can trace to your door, any comments I overhear you make, anything at all, and we’ll come back here and finish this. Do you understand me?”

Convinced that Clark meant precisely what he said and awestruck by the power Clark showed by effortlessly lifting him off the ground and holding him in the air, Whitney could only stutter out a faint, “Y…y…yes, I un…unders…understand.”

“Good!” Clark said as he smiled and lowered Whitney to the ground. “Then we understand each other perfectly.”

As they left the film room, Clark looked back over his shoulder and said, “One more thing, Coach. I have incredibly good hearing and I will be listening. Lana’s suffered enough here on campus because of her association with me. She shouldn’t have to put up with any more of that.”

Visibly shaken, Whitney retreated to his locker and readied himself for practice. Clark finished dressing and headed out to the field. Unlike the day before, where he had practiced in a daze, today Clark was focused and intense. The need to defend Lana had given him an outlet for his suppressed anger and now that anger was bubbling just beneath the surface of his thoughts, looking for another target…and on a football field, targets abound.

Clark was frustrated in his need to pound someone by the fact that, as a quarterback, he wore a special bright green jersey that told the defense to keep from hitting him. The coaches did not want their star player getting hurt, so that was that.

After a practice in which his passing had been much sharper, Clark showered, changed, and, slinging his backpack over his shoulder, headed for home. His thoughts were still consumed by his anger, but when he stepped out of the locker room at the practice facility and saw Lana standing there, his sadness took over at the sudden reminder of what he had lost and what he was unwilling to risk putting himself through again.

As she smiled at him and walked away, Clark thought to himself, One shot at my heart is enough for any woman.

[deanyouk]

1st


Originally posted by Cardinal
One shot at my heart is enough for any woman.

Nooo....

Poor Lana and Clark...

You have to fix it!!! Soon!

[superman_lives_on]

Originally posted by Cardinal
As she smiled at him and walked away, Clark thought to himself, One shot at my heart is enough for any woman.

That's what you think, Kal-El.

I'm thrilled that Elaine, Chloe, and Lana will all be working together to expose Candy and get Clark back. I can only wonder how long it'll take for their efforts to bear fruit...

Update soon!

[SVsleuth]

3rd!


“What you don’t know is that Clark doesn’t open himself up emotionally very often, but when he does, he gives everything he has. He’s been burned twice now. Getting him to take that chance a third time will take some doing. I hope you succeed, but you need to know just how difficult it is going to be.”

...when he stepped out of the locker room at the practice facility and saw Lana standing there, his sadness took over at the sudden reminder of what he had lost and what he was unwilling to risk putting himself through again.

As she smiled at him and walked away, Clark thought to himself, One shot at my heart is enough for any woman.
Those quotes show just how deeply Clark had been hurt by Lana.

...if you ever talk that way about Lana again…to me or anyone else…I will make you regret it. Any rumors I can trace to your door, any comments I overhear you make, anything at all, and we’ll come back here and finish this. Do you understand me?”
....As they left the film room, Clark looked back over his shoulder and said, “One more thing, Coach. I have incredibly good hearing and I will be listening. Lana’s suffered enough here on campus because of her association with me. She shouldn’t have to put up with any more of that.”
And those quotes tell us how much Clark still loves Lana, and will always stand up for her.

Great update, as always, Card. PPMS! :)

[akuma]

He still loves her, but she broke his heart, its gonna take ALOT if she ever is gonna get him back, but if anyone can do it, its Lana!:D PPMS

[tygershot]

5th! Another great update, but I'm dying to see them make up! Hope it's soon!

[SpeedyKate91]

Awsome update~!!!!!! PPMS!!!!!!!

[mysteryman1]

Update Soon.

[superman's my hero]

Great update! That's really depressing. They really need to get back together. After all the L*xana in the show, I think we could all really use some Clana. PPMS!

[NYC300Z]

yeah Clark's a frustrating idiot we all knew that already right?
I hope Lana can convince him otherwise!

PPMS!

[linn]

Originally posted by superman_lives_on
That's what you think, Kal-El.

I'm thrilled that Elaine, Chloe, and Lana will all be working together to expose Candy and get Clark back. I can only wonder how long it'll take for their efforts to bear fruit...

Update soon! me too....this is so great..ppms

[maitriniazngurl]

Why is Whitney such a jerk?
anyways PPMS

[ClanaLover]

A sad/funny/wierd update! Yay! PPMASAP! :D

[Nemu]

i stick with my idea that Elaine and Chloe will help Lana buy Clark at the auction and then he will have to spend time with Lana and that might be what will give her a second chance...

as for Withless... well Clark was funny in that moment... and right too...

PPMS :D

[clanas1ally]

I love this story. please post whenever you can. But i definately understand the idea that quality is worth waiting for. Because i want you to continue posting forever i will not ask that you post soon no one wants to tire you out!:lol:

[happycamper]

Originally posted by UN-happycamper

What is it about Clark that makes him soooo stupid? ;)

Of course, despite his line about "One shot at my heart is enough for any woman," his reaction to what the coach told him is indicative of a man who still cares deeply...

Like you said, fix this soon! :mad: ;)

[SVsleuth]

Originally posted by clanas1ally
I love this story. please post whenever you can. But i definately understand the idea that quality is worth waiting for. Because i want you to continue posting forever i will not ask that you post soon no one wants to tire you out!:lol:
:confused: Card DID just post an update today - didn't you read it? LOL

[mysteryman1]

Update Soon.

[NYC300Z]

PPMS!;)

[LLane_Adict_47]

THIS STORY IS AMAZING! seriously . . .


Kimmi:P

THIS STORY IS AMAZING! seriously . . .


Kimmi:p

[mysteryman1]

I'm surprised that you haven't found out my little comment thing above my AVI meant, Cardinal.

Anyways, Update Soon.

[clanas1ally]

In my last reply, i asked that you post whenever you can rather than posting soon because 1 I knew there was a post already for that day 2 i didn't want to sound like everyone else by just saying "ppms!" and 3 id rather you post once a week if that meant there would be more posts at the end. Did i clarify? SVsleuth?

[NYC300Z]

Card any idea when the next update is coming?

[Cardinal]

Originally posted by mysteryman1
I'm surprised that you haven't found out my little comment thing above my AVI meant, Cardinal.

Anyways, Update Soon.

I've never had Latin, so I'll have to take a wild guess.

Amar might be the root for the English word amorous and the French word amour, both of which have to do woth love, so I'll guess the first word to be "Love."

Vincit definitely appears to be related to the English word invincible which means undefeatable or maybe unconquerable. So the second word is likely "Conquer(s)."

Omnia is the root for the English prefix omni, as in omnipotent, omnipresent, etc. In this usage, omni means 'All,' so that should be the meaning for omnia.

Therefore, Amar Vincit Omnia should mean...Love Conquers All. ;)


Originally posted by NYC300Z
Card any idea when the next update is coming?

Hopefully, late tonight.

[mysteryman1]

Ding. Ding. Ding. We have a winner.

Yes you were right Amar Vincit Omnia does mean Love Conquers All

Update Soon.

Ex Animo,

Byron.

-- Amantium irea amoris integratio est --

[NYC300Z]

Originally posted by Cardinal

Hopefully, late tonight.

Can't wait!

[MOOman0618]

GIVE HER ANOTHER CHANCE!!!!!!!!!!!!

Come on Clark...you know you wanna!! Maybe Chloe can help.

And what about Kathy!?! We can't forget about her.

POST MORE SOON!!

[maru11]

awesome update!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
update soon!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[NYC300Z]

what happened to late tonight?

[treker]

Originally posted by NYC300Z
what happened to late tonight?

carefull bud...I already had my head ripped off today because of saying such things. :)

Card will be there. No worries.

[NYC300Z]

oh ok sorry about that then....update as soon as possilbe then...no hard feelings right?;)

[treker]

Originally posted by NYC300Z
oh ok sorry about that then....update as soon as possilbe then...no hard feelings right?;)

Not from me. Course there are 2 authors I never...ever want to irritate. That's because they are so good...and generally you can set your watch by their updates. That would be Card and AJ. They are the best.

:)

[Cardinal]

Chapter 54 - Trust

When Clark got home, he dropped his books on his couch and let Pete in on the news of the breakup. Only, the news was not news to Pete, as his girlfriend Veronica had heard it at the tri-Alpha house and had passed the information on to him.

“I know you two broke up,” Pete said, “but what caused it? And who broke up with who? The last time I saw you two together for any length of time, I had to separate you with a bucket of cold water.”

Clark collapsed next to his books on the couch and said, “Lana definitely broke up with me…and I don’t know what caused the breakup, Pete. Monday night Lana and I went on a date. It was her birthday and everything was great. The next morning, I was on my way to eat breakfast before going over to walk her to class, and she ambushed me right outside our front door. I smiled at her and she slapped me hard.

“After that, it took a bit to figure out what I had supposedly done wrong and who I had done it with. Finally, she got around to letting me know that I was in trouble because she thought I had slept with…take a deep breath now, because you’re never going to believe this one…Candy Morgan. Can you believe that? I’d be more likely to have sex with Barney the Dinosaur than with Candy!”

Given what he knew from last year, Pete knew Clark would not touch Candy in that way. She had already offered herself to him and he had turned her down, point blank. Candy, Pete thought. Why would Lana choose her to be the target of her fantasy? As far as I know, Candy and Lana don’t even know each other…but they both know Clark. And isn’t it strange that the person who told Veronica about the breakup was Candy herself. How would she know? I didn’t get told by Clark until now and I live with the guy.

Clark had gone on with his story, not noticing that Pete was onto something until Pete waved him to a stop.

Curious at to his roommate’s train of thought, Clark asked, “What’s up, Pete?”

“Oh, I’m just wondering how Candy knew about the breakup so soon. She’s the one that told Veronica about the breakup earlier today.” Pete sat down on the other couch and asked, “Did Lana happen to say why she thought you and Candy were doing horizontal disrobics?”

“Oh yeah. Every time I tried to plead my innocence, Lana yelled that she had ‘seen the tape,’ whatever that means.” When Pete did not reply immediately, Clark’s eyes narrowed and he focused on Pete. Pete was normally a relaxed, carefree person, but now, his hands were fidgeting and his face was tight with concentration, so Clark waited patiently for whatever Pete had to say.

“Umm…Clark? Candy was mad at me last year when she had me banned from the tri-Alpha house, but I’m not the only one she was mad at. You embarrassed her in front of everyone. Did it ever occur to you that she might have done something to get back at you?”

“Get back at me? All I did was shut her down when she wanted to drag me into her bed.”

“Clark, Clark, Clark,” Pete said, as if explaining something to a small child. “A girl may be a slut, but pointing it in front of everyone she knows is not the way to make friends and influence people. Of course Candy was mad at you.”

Puzzled now, Clark asked, “So you think there might actually have been a tape?”

“Yeah, maybe.” Pete paused briefly and then said, “I doubt Candy’s smart enough to make that kind of fake herself, but she might know someone who could.”

Unsettled by the possibility of someone actively working to tear his and Lana’s relationship apart, Clark wondered if it was Candy, and then began considering the things he might do to gain revenge if Pete’s speculation was true.

--------------------

After seeing Clark at the end of football practice, Lana headed home, assured by the expression on Clark’s face that she was having an unsettling effect on him. Lana’s good mood lasted until she walked through the front door and sat down in the living room to check her cell phone messages. The first one was from the Kent house, but due to the time stamp, she knew it could not have been a call from Clark.

Not knowing what, if anything, Clark had told his family, Lana was cautious when she returned the call. She thought the original call had to have been from Kathy and, after a short wait, Lana was connected with her exuberant young friend.

“Hey, Kathy,” Lana said, “what’s up? I see you called me earlier today.”

“Hi, Lana!” came the chirpy reply from the newly-minted twelve-year-old. “I was just calling to see if we could set a date for our shopping trip. Clark only has two road games left before the conference championship game and those are this Saturday and then two weeks after that.”

Breathing a sigh of relief, Lana thought, She doesn’t know yet, which likely means his parents don’t know either. Maybe he’s not as sure about our relationship being over as he pretends if he hasn’t told his family yet.

“Well…I think this weekend would be better for me,” Lana said. And for us. Maybe Kathy and I can have our day together before Clark tells her that I dumped him. “What time would you like to go?”

“Just after breakfast,” Kathy enthused. “That way, we can get to the Metropolis Mall just after it opens at 9 o'clock.”

Sinking back into her futon, Lana allowed herself to become consumed by Kathy’s excitement over planning her big day. They discussed styles and Lana discovered Kathy was not too sure about what was in style for girls since she usually wore regular jeans and either t-shirts or Polo-style knit shirts.

Lana assured her young protégé that she could not be in better hands and that she would be better able to match up with the other girls in her class once they were through. As much as parents wished it would be otherwise, Lana knew that Kathy was in competition. She did not necessarily have to outshine the other girls, but she did need to fit in. Being ‘different’ or ‘unique’ was a sure way to be ostracized at a time in life when being ‘one of the crowd’ was so important to a child’s self-esteem.

When Kathy finally hung up to go to dinner, Lana smiled to herself thinking how nice it was to have a little sister figure to help navigate the road to becoming a woman. After her own dinner, Lana called the Kents again and this time talked secretly to Martha about what Kathy was and was not allowed to have in the way of clothes. The one thing Martha was most insistent about was not showing any abdominal skin. She could stomach hip-hugger jeans as long as they came with plenty of blouses that were long enough to go all the way down to the top of the jeans and a few inches past.

Once Lana had gotten Martha’s restrictions written down, she hung up and got to work on her homework, wondering if Clark was doing the same.

--------------------

After Clark and Pete ate dinner in the student union’s cafeteria and came back home, Clark was just getting ready to go to his family’s house and help Kathy with her new ability, when Chloe came over to finish the conversation they had begun in her car the day before.

Upon being let in by Clark, the first thing she said was, “We need to talk.” Seeing Pete on his couch watching TV, she grabbed Clark and pulled him up to his bedroom for a private chat. After the door closed, Clark stretched out lazily on his bed as Chloe sat herself on Clark’s desk chair.

“To what do I owe the pleasure of your company tonight, Chloe?”

Snorting a brief laugh at Clark’s idea that this was in any way going to be pleasurable, she said, without preamble, “There was a tape, Clark, and I had to watch it.”

“Was it convincing?”

“Let’s put it this way: if I didn’t know you so well and have the technical knowledge that a fake of that quality was possible, I would have hunted you down and beaten you with Lana’s necklace for doing that to her. You may be my best friend, but she is a close second.”

Clark sat up quickly and propped himself against his headboard. “Do I need to see this tape, Chloe?”

“No, not really,” Chloe said slowly, “not as long as you accept that it was a truly well-done fake. But, I brought the tape for you just in case you’re going to be stubborn and assume that Lana had to be out of her mind.”

As Chloe pulled the tape out of her purse, Clark wondered morbidly what it would be like to watch ‘himself’ have sex. I think projectile vomiting would be a prominent part of the evening’s festivities if I had to watch ‘me’ have sex with Candy.

Clark reached over and picked the tape out of her hand and idly toyed with it as he thought. Chloe just sat there, calmly waiting for him to work out what was going on inside his head.

Finally, he sat the tape down on his bedside table, and said, “Even if this is the best tape since Paris Hilton, it still doesn’t change a thing. Lana and I are where we are because she didn’t trust me.” Clark finally looked directly at Chloe and said, with pain evident in his voice, “I trusted her with my most intimate secrets and opened my heart to her and she repaid that trust by not trusting me when we hit our first rough spot.”

Chloe slid over to sit on the edge of Clark’s bed and rubbed a hand on his arm as she asked, “Clark…do you still love her?”

When he nodded a reluctant yes, she continued, “Then eventually, you have to forgive her. If you hold on to distrust, love will disappear. If you hold on to love, then distrust will disappear. The two cannot long co-exist.”

Clark smiled briefly and asked, “What is that, a quote from Bartlett’s or something?”

“No, but if you want a quote, try this one on for size, ‘You may be deceived if you trust too much, but you will live in torment if you do not trust enough.’ Lana made a mistake, Clark. She came home buzzed, saw the most horrific tape, and made a mistake. How long does she have to suffer before you let her back in? Heck, how long do you have to suffer before you let her back in?”

Clark patted Chloe’s hand and said, “I’ll suffer as long as I have to, Chloe.” He then shooed her off the bed and stood up. “If you don’t mind, I have to go home for a few hours. Kathy needs my help.”

“Kathy?” Chloe asked, “Does she need help with a school project or something?”

Unsure of how much to tell Chloe, Clark finally hedged and said, “If you want to find out, come by the house. My family hasn’t seen you since before your summer internship in Gotham City, so I know they’d love the chance to spend some time with you.”

The urge to spend some time with the affectionate Kents was too strong to resist, so she allowed herself to be persuaded to come along. With her dad still working for LuthorCorp in Smallville, the Kents were the closest thing to family she had in Metropolis.

[deanyouk]

1st

That was great....

So how long must you torment us with their seperation :P

post more soon :)

[treker]

Okay...Clark's need's to go postal on Candy.....which means recruiting the football team to exact revenge on the tri-alpha's. They are banned from all activities and parties until such time as Candy is booted.

And Clark is just being stubborn. He obviously still loves her to death. Lana just needs to corner him and plant a kiss on him to curl his toes. That just might convince him that she isn't going away.

[tygershot]

3rd Great job!

[happycamper]

4th :mad:

You're being mean and nasty Card, and making Clark just as stupid here as he is everywhere else! :mad: :(

Clark complained Lana didn't trust him, but didn't Lana say trust had to be earned? They don't have the years together to have earned that absolute trust, and after seeing the tape, didn't Lana have a right to think about what trusting him might have cost her?

I like Chloe here, but I'm trusting KK to get things fixed! ;)

[NYC300Z]

5th. Clark needs to consider what Chloe just told him. Hopefully if she hangs out with him for the rest of the day she'll impress upon him how much he needs to give Lana another chance!

PPMS!

[SVsleuth]

6th! Sorry I'm late, Card. Thanks for the great update. I wonder if Kathy will still go shopping with Lana, once she learns of the break-up? I wonder how long it will take Clark to be willing to forgive Lana for her mistake. Will the Kent's let Chloe in on Kathy's secret? Lots of questions still left to be answered, so PPMS! ;)

[akuma]

Maybe Clark and Lana will be back together before the weekend shopping??? One can hope:D:D PPMS!

[Dr. Jeckyll]

Wow, great update, Card. It's gonna be interesting to see how the shopping goes now that clana aren't a couple anymore... Kathy and Lana still have a great connection so I hope Kathy will think of something smart :) And when will Clark tell his family..?

PPMS!

[linn]

just forgive her alredy, please....ppms

[Nemu]

well... Clark might come around... but i still stand by my saide that the auction will come into play to bring them back together...

Good chapter...

PPMS

[maitriniazngurl]

Clark just forgive her already you know that it wasn't completely her fault she just made one mistake geez she only human :D

Anyways that was awesome Cardinal
PPMS!!!

[mysteryman1]

Update Soon.

[ClanaLover]

13th! :p

Awesome update card!

Come on Clark! stop being so freakin' stuborn!!! :mad:

Can we have some happy Clana soon, Card? *blubber lip* *big cute sparkly eyes* :(

PPMASAP!!!

[SpeedyKate91]

Awsome Update!!! PPMS!!!

[pacifichic]

When are you going to post again??? Is it soon??? Pease post again! I look forward to it very much! :) Thanks for the awesome story!

[maru11]

great update!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
update soon!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[superman's my hero]

Great update! I think they are slowly travelling down the road towards forgivness. Love the relationship between Lana and Kathy. Total future-sister-in-law-is. ;) PPMS!

[mysteryman1]

Update Soon.

[Cardinal]

Chapter 55 - Advice

On their way downstairs, the house phone rang and Clark answered it.

“Hello?” said Clark.

“Hi, my name is Mary Thomas and I would like to speak with Clark Kent, if you please.”

“I’m Clark, what can I do for you?”

“Mr. Kent? This is Mary Thomas from Alpha Kappa Psi. I was just calling to confirm your participation in our bachelor auction and to find the date most compatible with your schedule.”

Embarrassed to be talking about this in front of Chloe, who was ignoring his visual hints to go elsewhere while he was on the phone, Clark and Mary chatted back and forth. Comparing his schedules with those of the other prospective bachelors, she finally decided that a week from Saturday would be the best date for the auction, with his date with the winning bidder being on any day after that that he wanted.

By the time Clark hung up the phone, Chloe’s eyes were dancing and she badgered Clark to tell her what was going on. Clark rolled his eyes and told her all about the charity bachelor auction.

“…and Mary wants to have the auction a week from Saturday so her service fraternity will have enough time to publicize it. She would choose the first weekend off I’ve had in quite a while to do this, but it’s for a good cause, so I’ll do it. She’s sending me some specific information in the mail.”

Chloe was laughing so hard by now that Pete came into the kitchen to see what was going on. In between snorts of laughter at the idea of Clark offering himself for sale like a piece of meat, Chloe managed to relate the key parts of the story to Pete. Pete’s reaction was to check Clark’s forehead for a fever and then he joined in the laughter.

In response to Chloe’s snide remark about him starring in a remake of American Gigolo, a red-faced Clark said, “Yuk it up you two. Just know that I’m helping the American Heart Association by doing this…” and then, in a plaintive voice, he added, “…besides, maybe it will get my mind off of Lana.”

Mention of Lana brought the laughter to an immediate halt. Pete looked pained for his friend and Chloe looked at the floor and finally grabbed Clark’s hand to pull him out the door, on the way to his parents’ house.

Once on the road in Chloe’s shiny red Volkswagen Beetle, Clark stared out the window as the familiar scenery of houses, strip malls, and apartment complexes gave way to increasingly larger buildings as they approached downtown. The skyscrapers of the city center went by in a blur of glass and steel and then they drove along the edge of the expansive greenery of Forest Park. Clark finally came to when Chloe said quietly, “We know who made the tape, Clark.”

Clark surprised her by saying, “Yeah. So do I…Candy.” Just as Chloe was about to speak, Clark added, “And when I get my hands on her, that glossy brown hair she’s so proud of is coming out strand by strand…at the root.”

“Clark!” Chloe shrieked. “Why would you say such a thing? You would never do that to anyone, much less a woman and you know it.”

Clark paused a dangerously long time before saying, “Yeah, I suppose you’re right.” Chloe breathed a little easier with that admission and then Clark tipped his head back on the headrest and said, “It really sucks to be a nice guy sometimes.”

Chloe had no answer for that and while she tried to think of something to say, Clark asked, “How’d you find out about Candy?”

“Just after I watched that awful tape and was at a complete loss about what to do next, your friend Elaine called me to arrange a meeting. When she came over to meet us at Lana’s, she said that Candy had admitted to having made the tape to break you two up.” Watching Clark grimace at the confirmation of Candy’s involvement, Chloe added, “Elaine also told us that Candy said it was done as revenge for what you did to Elaine.”

When Clark maintained silence for the next few minutes, Chloe asked cautiously, “How’d you find out about Candy?”

“Pete. His girlfriend Veronica is a tri-Alpha and she told him that Candy had told her about the breakup. Veronica told Pete before I did, in fact. Pete wondered how Candy knew about it so early. When I told him there was supposedly a tape involved, he came up with an idea.

“He also thought Candy was motivated by revenge. But not for Elaine…for herself.” Clark then went on to give Chloe a rather explicit version of what happened at that fateful tri-Alpha party the previous November.

Chloe’s eyes narrowed in concentration and she was uncharacteristically silent for the remainder of the drive to the Kent house. When they made their way up the walkway to the front door, Chloe said, quickly, “Elaine will be most interested in that information, I think. She may be able to use it as leverage to get some of the other tri-Alphas to confess to exactly what they did. They may be unhappy to learn that Candy used them for her own personal gain.”

Clark opened the front door and followed Chloe inside. Chloe took two steps inside the house and then came to a sudden halt. Clark asked, “What are you waiting for, Chloe?”

“Umm…this may sound crazy,” Chloe replied, “but I can’t go any further. I almost broke my nose when I got stopped.” She was now running her hands back and forth across the empty hallway in front of her, looking like a mime. “Clark? What’s going on here? Have you sprouted a new ability?”

At this point, Kathy came barreling downstairs excitedly saying, “Clark, Clark! Look what I can do! I’ve been practicing by myself ever since I got home and I can change the colors now and I…” Kathy’s voice trailed off as she came around the corner at the foot of the stairs and saw that Clark was not alone.

Catching on quickly, Chloe asked, “Kathy? Do you think you could let me by?”

“Oh, hi, Aunt Chloe,” Kathy said sheepishly as she began to shut down the force-field.

“God, I feel old when you say that, KK…knock it off.”

Almost immediately, Chloe lurched forward as the force keeping her back dissipated. Clark smiled at his sister as he stepped forward, and messed with her hair.

“You were supposed to be the one that ran into that, Clark,” Kathy said.

“Yeah, well, I’m sneaky like that.”

“Oh,” Chloe said, looking back over her shoulder, “so now I’m cannon fodder?”

The threesome made their way down the hall to the den where Jonathan and Martha were cuddled together as they watched TV. When they saw Chloe, the Kents straightened up and greeted the young woman who had spent so much time in their house while growing up that they had joked about giving her her own bedroom.

Martha stood and wrapped Chloe in a warm hug. Chloe stood there, absorbing the welcome warmth from the woman who was, as much as anyone, her mother. How could I have stayed away so long, Chloe thought. Coming here is like crawling back into the womb. I feel safe and loved here. Chloe teared up a bit and thought, Oh, how I miss my dad! I need to go home and see him…soon.

“It’s about time you came out to see us, Chloe,” Jonathan said, “I was beginning to think you had relinquished all of your time with Clark to Lana.”

The mention of Lana was as painful for Clark as it was unexpected. Only Chloe knew what was going on and thus, only Chloe took a quick enough look at Clark to see the pained expression on his face.

Unaware of her son’s romantic entanglement, Martha said, “It’s good to have you home, Chloe.”

“It’s good to be home.”

“How did your internship in Gotham City turn out?” Jonathan asked.

“Nothing special happened,” Chloe said, “if that’s what you mean. I did get some ground-floor experience in a big city newspaper, though, and a promise for a good recommendation should I not interview for a job there after college.”

While Chloe was filling in the Kents on what had happened in her life since Spring, Kathy dragged Clark to the attic where she could do some more work on controlling her ability to project a force-field.

The first thing she wanted to know, as she clattered up the ladder, was, “Have you figured out how I’m able to do this, Clark?”

“Nope, not yet. I have some ideas, but I won’t know for sure until we talk to Jor-El on Sunday.”

“Jor-El, huh?” Kathy turned on the heaters and the lights as Clark came up behind her. By the time he had pulled up the ladder behind him, Kathy was sitting on the couch in front of the Dutch doors. When Clark joined her, she asked, “What do you call him when you two are alone?”

“Do you mean, what should you call him?”

“Well…yeah. I can’t call him Dad or Daddy, I’ve already got one of those…but calling him Jor-El would sound strange since he’s an adult. And do I get a goofy Kryptonian name, too?”

Wondering for the first time how the fact that Jonathan was not Kathy’s biological father was affecting her, Clark asked, “Kathy? Are you scared about meeting your biological father?”

“Yeah,” came her reply. The soft and shaky sound of her voice let Clark know that this upcoming meeting was causing her some serious trepidation.

“Jor-El’s a pretty good guy, Kathy. Ever since Mom and Dad gave the Kryptonian key back to me, we’ve gotten along really well. He has a lot of knowledge, both of the history of Krypton and of the Kryptonian sciences.” Seeing her fear subside a bit, Clark said, “What I call him is usually either Jor-El or Father. Since you aren’t considered to be an adult under Kryptonian law, he might prefer Father from you.”

Sounding out the word to herself under her breath as if she had never heard it before, Kathy slowly smiled and said, “Father…I think I can do that.”

“As for a name for you, I guess that will be up to Jor-El and you. I doubt he'll force you to use a Kryptonian name while visiting him, but I bet he'll give you one if you want it.”

After that, they got to work. First, Kathy showed what she had learned on her own. She had learned how to change the coloration of her fields, including making them transparent, and she was also able to shutdown, on command, any field she had created. With Clark there to practice with, she worked on controlling the size and shape of the fields. They found that when she made them smaller, they became stronger and harder for Clark to break through.

At the end of the practice session, Clark sat Kathy back down to try and teach her the most important thing…when to not use her abilities. He knew she had to understand how dangerous it would be for her if she was caught using a special ability. He did not want to scare her all over again, but in this case, it was, ‘Better safe than sorry.’

When Clark and Kathy returned to the first floor, Chloe was busy shoveling in a plateful of Martha’s leftovers. Like most any college student living far from home, Chloe did not get too many home-cooked meals and leftovers from Martha Kent were purest gold compared to the dross served at school.

When Clark signaled it was time to go, Chloe said, “There’s no way I’m leaving here without eating my apple-pie ala mode, Clark. So you can just forget it.”

The mention of pie convinced Clark that a while longer at home would be just fine. As he sat down before the luscious combination of hot and cold desserts, Kathy sat down to have some pie and ice cream of her own.

While the three of them ate, Chloe tentatively asked Kathy about her ability, and Kathy told her everything, though there was not much to tell at that point. The fact that Kathy was half Kryptonian did, however, make Chloe sit up straight.

“What a week,” Kathy said. “First, I turn twelve, then I get a special ability just like my big brother, and then I get to go shopping with Lana on Saturday.”

Once again, Clark looked like he was having momentary difficulty breathing and this time, Chloe decided to stick the knife in a little deeper by discussing the upcoming shopping trip with Kathy in some detail. Then, Chloe apologized for having forgotten Kathy’s birthday. Kathy shrugged it off, but hinted that it was never too late for Metropolis Mall Gift Cards.

By the time Chloe dropped Clark off at home, it was getting late, but Chloe had time for a couple of phone calls. She dialed Elaine and told her about Pete’s theory, which had Elaine smacking herself on the forehead and saying, “Of course! How could I be so blind? It‘s always been all about her.” Once they made arrangements for Elaine to come by The Metropolitan to borrow Chloe’s digital voice recorder, Chloe hung up and made her second call just as she made it inside her apartment.

“Hey, Chloe, what’s up?” Lana asked.

“Ohhhhh, nothing much. How much spare cash can you squeeze out of your budget?”

“Not a lot right now. Why?”

“Well,” Chloe said with an air of nonchalance, “I happen to know that the very eligible Clark Kent will be a part of the Alpha Kappa Psi bachelor auction a week from Saturday.”

[SVsleuth]

1st :) Ohhhhh! I wonder if Lana will go for the auction idea right away, or if Chloe will have to talk her into it. And Chloe going right ahead and discussing the shopping trip with Lana in front of Clark, turning the knife.... ouch! But I guess he will need some prodding.

Kathy is so cute, with her new ability. I wonder what her Kryptonian name might be?

PPMS! ;)

[treker]

You know....maybe chloe should send Clark 100 voice messages a day saying "Lana" and then Clark would get so sick of hearing it that he would just forgive her and take her back. Just a thought.

Or maybe lana should just jump him and place a kiss on him to curl his toes. That would work on me.

[NYC300Z]

3rd! Mostly everything SV just asked! oh and PPMS!;)

[happycamper]

4 :)

Yeah, SVsleuth covered my own list of questions pretty well. :)

I still think Clark is being an idiot, though! :mad:


Oh yes! We need more kk, and some more of your Kathy, too... ;)

[deanyouk]

awesome update Cardinal!!!

[tygershot]

6th! Another awesome update! I knew that auction would come into play! We need a Clana reunion soon with all the Lexana buzz coming from the season finale!(Barf!) Hope we get that reunion next update.

[MOOman0618]

Sweet update Card!!

So cool that Kathy has an ability and she is learning to control it.

At least Clark believe the tape is convincing! Hopefully he will forgive Lana soon.

...And maybe it will take a sizable donation to get the ball rolling again. :)

POST MORE SOON!!

[ClanaLover]

8th! :p

Awesome update Card! :D

Lana, you better go get a lot of money! ;)

Kathy's so cute! :D

PPMASAP!!!

[superman_lives_on]

You need a little italics editing, Card, but otherwise--fantastic work! Of course, Clark hasn't come to his senses yet--betcha anything that Lana buying him at the auction will be the real jolt. :D

Hmm... Kathy's Kryptonian name...perhaps Kara-El? And I'm looking forward to meeting Jor-El on Sunday! :D

PPMS!

[MOOman0618]

Originally posted by superman_lives_on Hmm... Kathy's Kryptonian name...perhaps Kara-El? And I'm looking forward to meeting Jor-El on Sunday! [/B]
I was thinking about that...

Kryptonian females take their father's full name as their last don't they?

Supergirl = Kara Zor-El... Zor-El being Jor-El's brother.

[akuma]

Hmmm, i wonder if Lana will go for the auction right away and will Chloe give her more money so she can get Clark for sure?? PPMs

[linn]

oh shhhhheeeeeeentttt......ppmsasap!

[Dr. Jeckyll]

Awesome update, Card. Now Lana needs to get some hard cash so she can get Clark all for herself. PPMS!

[mcgairman]

GREAT UPDATE!!! Can't wait for more. But don't you think Lana's suffered enough? Time to get Clark's head straight. :)

[clanas1ally]

Great Great Great im on pins and needles after reading it just now and suffering through a certain finale last night. I LOVE FANFICS:rolleyes:

[annaliese]

post soon!!!!post soon!!!!!!!!!!!!1

[Nemu]

well turns out i havent posted yet on that last chapter...

hmmm... I wonder what KK's Kryptonian name will be....

also I hope that Lana will go to the auction... and maybe Chloe and Elaine could help her buy him...

This was good.... funny when they arrived and Clark went in no prob and Chloe was stuck on the wall lol...

PPMS :D

[maru11]

awesome update!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
update soon!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Cardinal]

Chapter 56 - Shopping

On her way to the Kent house to pick up Kathy, Lana realized the only times she drove by herself to go to the Kents was when Clark was out of town…even now that they were broken up as a couple.

Thinking of her and Clark being separated made her think back to the events of the past week and her plan to get him back. Wednesday and Thursday, she had shown up everywhere he went, even if she had had to run a couple of times to get in the right position on Thursday. A quick, direct smile once she caught his eye and then she was on her way. That had seemed to work, because by the end of the day Thursday, Lana had noticed that Clark was beginning to look for her appearances, which she took to be a good sign.

After that, she changed strategy. On Friday, she showed up only occasionally, hoping to drive him up the wall when he couldn’t predict when or where she might choose to show up for a brief visual flirt. But when the team buses left for the airport on Friday afternoon for the flight to Austin, Texas, Lana was right across the street holding a handmade poster that read ‘I love you, Clark…Beat Texas!’

His face had been plastered to the window of his seat staring at her in reply. It had been hard to tell looking through the window tinting on the tour bus, but Lana had thought he was getting emotional as the bus pulled away from the curb…and now, she was pulling up to the curb at the Kent house.

She did not even have time to get out of the SUV and lock it before Kathy came out of the house like she had been shot from a cannon. She fairly flew down the front steps and met Lana as she came around to the passenger side of the SUV. After a brief hug, Lana asked Kathy if she was ready to go. Kathy’s enthusiastic head nodding gave Lana all the answer she needed.

Looking up at the door, Lana saw Martha and Jonathan standing just inside the screen door. As Kathy clambered inside the cab of the SUV and buckled her seatbelt, Lana waved at Clark’s parents, they are my boyfriend’s parents,Lana thought, whatever he says, climbed in the driver’s door, buckled herself in, and drove off.

Kathy was so excited, that she was bouncing all over the place…which was a hard thing to do with a seatbelt securely fastened over her hips. Lana smiled widely, glad to have some time for purely female pleasures. She realized how much of her free time had been tied up with Clark recently, and while she enjoyed that time together immensely, she did not want to miss out on other things.

I’ve got to maintain a better balance in how I use my time if, no WHEN, I get back together with Clark, Lana thought. I can’t let myself become one of those girls whose lives are defined by the boyfriend they have. I need to maintain my own life, outside of my relationship with Clark.

Lana let Kathy choose the radio station they listened to and was surprised when she set it on a country music channel.

When Lana quirked an eyebrow in question, Kathy said, “What?”

“I’m just surprised you like country is all,” Lana said. “Most girls here in the city would like more urban music, whether it’s Rap, Rock, or R&B.”

“Mmm…most of that stuff is okay, I guess, but I grew up listening to the radio with my dad and he loves country, especially stuff by Waylon Jennings and Willie Nelson.” Kathy rolled her eyes at that and said, “Me, I’m more into newer singers like Tim McGraw and Jason Aldean.”

At the mention of her dad, Kathy’s face had tightened briefly and then relaxed. Lana doubted Kathy even realized it had happened. Curious, Lana asked, “Kathy? Is there something wrong with your dad?”

Kathy stopped singing along to the music and said, “No, why do you ask?”

“You acted a bit strange when you mentioned your dad. I thought maybe he was sick or something, or maybe you had gotten in trouble.”

“Nope.” Kathy’s energetic display came to a crashing halt and she just sat there quietly for a minute before saying in a small voice, “There’s something I wasn’t going to tell you until after our shopping trip, but since you brought it up, I might as well tell you now.”

Kathy told her everything, from gaining her ability, to what Clark suspected and her parents confirmed about her paternity, to practicing with Clark to gain control over her ability, and ending with the news that she and Clark were going to be visiting the Fortress of Solitude in hopes of learning what she could expect to happen to her as a half Kryptonian being.

Stopped at a red light, Lana leaned over and gave Kathy a quick, one-armed hug before asking, “Are you scared? Excited? Nervous?”

“All of that.” Kathy said. “I’ve always wanted to be like Clark, but now that I am, I’m worried about what might happen to me.”

And I thought I had a lot to worry about when I hit puberty, Lana thought. This poor girl is getting it with both barrels.

Soon enough, worries about the future were replaced by the excitement of the moment as Lana found a spot nice and close to the food court entrance to park her SUV.

As the two young women headed for the entrance, Lana asked, “Did you remember to bring your mall gift cards?”

“Yup!” Kathy replied as she patted her small purse, “I’ve got them right here. I double-checked just before I left the house.”

Lana reached into her purse, pulled out another gift card and said, “Good. This card is from your ‘Aunt Chloe.’ She gave it to me last night on her way out of town.”

Stuffing the card into her purse along with the others, Kathy asked, “Where is she going?”

“Chloe was going back to Smallville to visit her dad for the weekend.”

“I don’t remember him very well since I was only a little kid when Chloe moved away, but I do remember the awful jokes he used to tell.”

Pulling open the glass door and allowing Kathy to go first, Lana followed her inside and said, “Trust me, Kathy, his jokes never got any better, but he is a dear man.”

The next several hours were spent entering every likely clothing store in the mall and trying on various styles of clothing. Lana used a small notebook to make notes about the clothes Kathy liked best and then they moved on to the next store. Lunch time rolled around and they went to the food court to eat.

“Wow,” Kathy said, “I didn’t know shopping was so much work, or so much fun. Usually, Mom just takes me to one store that has a lot of stuff and I try on a lot of different things and then mom and I pick some out and we go home.”

Lana looked across the small, white table as she finished a bite of her hot dog from Orange Julius, and said, “Now that you’re growing up, I expect you will have a lot more to say about what you wear…especially since you want more girly things.” Lana took a sip of her frothy fruit drink and said, “The way you shopped before sounds a lot like the way guys shop…go in, get something, and get out. Where’s the fun in that?”

Kathy shoveled her Sbarro’s pizza into her mouth and, once they were done eating, they washed off their hands before going to shop some more. It was two in the afternoon before Lana and Kathy started sorting out the various outfits and prices to come up with a final list. With Chloe’s gift card, Kathy had $550 dollars to spend and she and Lana were budgeting carefully to get the most out of her money.

By 4 o’clock, the shopping was done and the bags were stowed in the back of Lana’s SUV for the drive home. When they reached the house, Lana stopped Kathy from getting out and racing inside.

“Kathy, there’s something you need to do.”

“What?”

“When you go inside tonight, after you show off what you bought and the family eats dinner, make sure you spend some special time with your dad.”

Wondering where this was going, Kathy said, “Okay…why?

“Well, I bet the revelation that he is not your biological father has caused him as much anxiety as it has you.”

Her mind fully engaged now, Kathy turned in her seat to face Lana and asked, “What do you mean? He’s still my dad.”

“Yeah, but maybe he doesn’t know how you feel about him now that you and Clark are planning to go see the man that is your biological father tomorrow.” Lana reached across and grasped one of Kathy’s hands and said, “Spend some time with your dad tonight and make sure he knows that he’ll always be your dad…you’ll be happy you did, and so will he.”

Kathy’s smile widened, and she said, “Sure thing, Lana. Right after the football game.” When Lana gave her a startled look, Kathy said, “Don’t tell me you forgot that the game against Texas starts tonight at 7. You are going to stay and watch it with us, aren’t you?”

Trapped, Lana had to agree, even though she knew it was going to feel weird watching Clark with his parents and sister in the same room.

Lana helped Kathy lug her purchases up the steps and into the house and was rewarded with the smells of Martha Kent cooking apple-glazed pork chops and mashed sweet potatoes. Since she had already committed to watch the game with the Kents, it took no convincing to get her to eat with them, too.

Dinner was over by 6:30 and the pre-game show for the Met U-Texas game didn’t start until 7, so Kathy decided to put on a fashion show for the family. Lana helped her pick out several outfits to try on and show off and then she headed downstairs to wait.

Kathy was happy with her clothes and her parents were impressed to see her looking more like a girl for a change. The fact that her choices were stylish but not too far ‘out there’ was not lost on them either. During one outfit change, Martha leaned over and hugged Lana, thanking her for giving Kathy such a special day and for helping her choose such nice clothes.

“I never seem to know what’s in style for girls these days,” Martha said, “if she had gone shopping with me, there’s no telling what she would have come home with.”

“I loved helping,” Lana replied, “It was like playing dress up with a life-sized Barbie doll, and Kathy is like having a little sister. As an only child, I can’t tell you how nice that is for me.”

Kathy had finished modeling and was upstairs changing for the game when the pre-game show started on ESPN. The announcers were rattling off statistics and stories, but no one was paying too much attention until they talked about the keys to the game. There on the screen, large as life, was a head-and-shoulders picture of Clark. The announcers talked about how Met U’s team goes the way Clark Kent goes and illustrated that point by showing that Clark has only had one bad game as a starter and that was the only game Met U has lost since he became the starting quarterback.

Lana, however, heard none of it. Seeing Clark’s face so unexpectedly made her breath catch in her throat and she lost the thread of the conversation she had been having with Jonathan and Martha. Both Kents looked at Lana and saw that she looked lost.

“Lana, dear? Are you okay?” Martha asked.

The warmth of Martha’s maternal concern caught Lana at a weak moment and she nodded her head ‘no,’ and started to cry. When asked what was the matter, Lana told them only that she and Clark had been in a big fight and that she did not know if they could straighten things out and get back to the way they were before.

“Oh, Honey,” Martha said, “you can’t ever get back to the way things were before, it’s just not possible. As people, we are constantly growing, changing…evolving.” She put an arm around Lana and pulled her head down to rest on Martha’s shoulder and said, “Jonathan and I aren’t the same two people who married each other all those years ago…and we wouldn’t want to be.

“Our experiences changed us, even the bad ones. When you and Clark get past this fight, you will be different as individuals and as a couple, but that doesn’t mean you two will love each other any less, in fact, I bet you will love each other even more.” Martha looked over at a beaming Jonathan and said, “I know I love my man much more than I did when we first married.”

Lana quoted Nietzsche as she mumbled through her tears, “‘That which does not kill us, makes us stronger,’ huh?” Lana wiped her nose on a handkerchief handed to her by Jonathan, and said, “I could use a little less strength-building right now, thank you very much.”

By the time Kathy put away all of her new clothes, dressed in her sky blue Met U jersey and hustled downstairs to catch the opening kickoff, Lana had gotten her emotions under control and only a little redness around the eyes would ever betray her momentary distress.

The game was closer than they were accustomed to seeing, but Clark led the Bulldogs on two fourth-quarter scoring drives to lead them to a 27-21 win. That moved their record to 9-0 and left them with just three games on their regular season schedule.

Lana thanked the Kents for having her over and headed out into the night, feeling better than she had in a while. She now knew that this trip she and Clark were on did not have to end at it’s starting point to be successful, they just had to survive the ride.

[ClanaLover]

1st!

Awesome update!!! Kathy's so great! :D

Going into one store and picking some stuff out...Why does that sound so familiar? *looks at mom*

PPMASAP!!!

[SVsleuth]

:):)

It was nice to imagine Clark on TV playing football. Even though we know he does that, it's nice to have it actually included in the chapter.

I loved how Lana made the "I Love You, Clark" sign and went to cheer him on as the team left for the game.

And Martha's advice at the end gave Lana so much hope. She's so right - you don't have to go back to the past, but move on to a new future together, one that has gone through the bumps in the road together. Doing so strengthens the relationship. It's cool to have Marhta already being like a mother to Lana, and Lana being like a sister to Kathy. Now all we have to do is get Clark back in there to work through the bumps in the road with Lana.

I wonder what Clark's POV would look like. Like how he reacted to Lana's sign, & whether he had any trouble focusing on the game because of her.

Love your updates, as always. PPMS! ;)

[Nemu]

3rd... well I opted to read before posting this time...

that was very good... carefree shopping trip... emotional heart to heart with the parents... and simple fun...

such wisdom in Lana's words...

PPMS :D

[akuma]

YAY! UPDATE, and a great one at tht! Good thing Clark was able to win the game and shopping went well, lets see what happens at the auction, PPMS!

[superman_lives_on]

I do wonder what Clark made of it... I hope his barriers are beginning to collapse.

PPMS!

[TakeCover]

That was a fantastic update!! Kathy's like a little sister to Lana, that was cute........ anyways I hope Clark comes around soon. Me needs some more Clana soon. PPMS

[closetfan]

yay!!! update...this is soo gona get me through the summer

[happycamper]

Lana seems confident of her eventual success, although given who she is, it's no wonder, really... ;)

Was the game close because Clark's performance was affected?

I still say: Kathy, Kathy, Kathy (!) to the rescue. Let her tell her 'little' brother how stupid he's being for the way he's treating Lana! ;) :p

Post more when you can!!

:D :D

[deanyouk]

Loved the update Cardinal.... will the bachelor auction be in the next update?

post soon

[maitriniazngurl]

That was great Cardinal. I just hope that Clark and Lana can get back together.
Lana's quote was so wisdomish (If that a real word)
Anyways PPMS :D

[Cardinal]

Originally posted by deanyouk
Loved the update Cardinal.... will the bachelor auction be in the next update?

Soon, but not in the next update. Clark and Kathy are headed to the FOS in the next update, followed by a special update that should include some Clana. Then I should be able to get to the auction.

[Nemu]

sweet!!! KK and CK trip to the FOS should be interesting... and a special update with Clana will be nice too...

PPMS :D

[superman_lives_on]

WOOT! So the next update should have what I've most waited for--us the readers meeting Jor-El for the first time. This'll be cool...

Update soon! :D

[SpeedyKate91]

Amazing updates!!!!!!!! PPMS!!!!!!!!!

[mysteryman1]

Update soon.

[MOOman0618]

I'll be back to read tomorrow!!

[clanas1ally]

GREAT I LOVE IT, I LOVE IT ALL, PLEASE PPMS!!!!

[NYC300Z]

18 I didn't know you had updated! Where was I? oh well that was a sweet update even if Clark wasn't really in it! lol I wonder how Clark will feel about Lana spending time with his family? Hope it sends a good message to Clark!

PPMS!

[annaliese]

update soon!!!!

[maitriniazngurl]

Cardinal PPMS
I love this fic :D

[mysteryman1]

Update Soon.

[tygershot]

Aaaahhh! It's nice to see Lana pining for Clark for a while. PPMS! Wow! I just became a forum regular!

[SVsleuth]

CONGRATS on 100 posts, tygershot! :)

PPMS, CARD! ;)

[MOOman0618]

Sorry for the long delay in my reading! Great update Card!! Lana and Kathy are good together. Glad both of them get to have some sisterly love. Now, maybe Kathy can start chipping away at Clark's willpower to keep away from Lana!

Can't wait until the next update and the FOS! POST MORE SOON!!

[annaliese]

PLEASE POST MORE SOON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[mysteryman1]

Update Soon.