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Don't ask me where this came from cos I have no idea. I just wanted to write high school Cless. There's no reasoning behind this or planing really. I'm just following a whim.
Disclaimer: If I owned Smallville, don't you think this is how it would have been written?
Innocence
Clark Kent’s head banged against the wood table in front of him. “I don’t get it,” He declared with an angry sigh. “I don’t think it’s in English.”
His friend laughed, leaning back onto the red sofa in the centre of his loft. “It’s in English, Clark. Shakespeare’s just a different form of English,” Tess Mercer explained with a smile. “You’ll get it eventually.”
He turned, resting his head on the table and his blue eyes looking up at her. “You know there’s a reason everyone calls it Macdeath, right?”
“Relax, it’s not killing you,” Tess replied comfortingly. “You’ll get it. Just give it some more time.”
“That’s easy for you to say: you’re a genius.”
“Am not,” She retorted, more from habit than from annoyance. “I just spent my time studying instead of stalking.”
Clark almost flew into a seating position, “I’m not a stalker!”
“Oh really?” She raised an eyebrow. “Then why is that telescope of yours always pointing at Lana’s house?”
“Uh. Um,” He tried to think of what to say but couldn’t formulate a good enough excuse. Their friend Chloe may be the one who dreams of being a journalist but Tess is the one that could see a lie from a mile away. And she didn’t even have Clark’s superhuman powers. “It doesn’t. You must be seeing things.”
She laughed incredulously. “Yeah, I must see things every time I come up here.”
“It’s not always pointing there. I do look at the stars sometimes!”
He knew from the cat that caught the canary grin of her face that he’d messed up. “I hate it when you do that,” He grumbled, giving her an evil look.
“When I do what? You did it to yourself Clark.”
“Yeah but…”
“Think before you speak, Mister Kent. Always helpful.” Her green eyes sparkled teasingly.
“Gee, thanks.”
“And don’t worry – I won’t tell Whitney you’re crushing on his girl. He’d crush you in half.”
“I can look after myself, Tess,” He said indignantly. He wasn’t mad at her, not really. There was no way she could know how strong he really was. There was no way he wanted her to know that. “ I’m not scared of Whitney.”
“I know that. I’m just looking out for my good friend. Is that allowed?”
“Yeah it’s allowed,” Clark replied, reaching for the Macbeth textbook he’d come to despise. “Am I allowed to see your essay now?”
“No,” The quick reply almost made him pout. The red haired snatched her notebook away from Clarks wavering hand.
“Please Tess. I won’t copy. I swear; I just need some ideas.”
Tess rolled her eyes. “Yeah, that’s what Pete said to Chloe and look what happened there.”
“Nothing bad happened though. Come on, I said I won’t copy. You trust me don’t you?”
“Nothing bad happened? Clark, they got sent to the Principal’s office for plagiarism.”
“But they didn’t get in trouble and I promise that I won’t copy. Cross my heart.” He made the cross symbol over his heart.
He could see the determination leave her eyes. She sighed and he held back a smile. He knew exactly what she was going to say next. “Fine, but no copying.”
“No copying,” He nodded, letting the small smile out.
She handed over her English notebook. “And don’t look so happy, Clark. Maybe next time I won’t be so nice.”
“But you’re always nice,” Clark replied absently. He was reading through her essay, memorising the words and phrases he could adapt to write his own. Academia came so much easier to her than it did to him. “This is really good.”
She blushed a little at the praise. “It’s nothing much. I doubt I’ll get a good mark for it.”
He snorted. “Tess, you’re idea of a bad mark is a B.”
“And, what’s wrong with that?” She bristled.
“Nothing,” He quickly backtracked. He sometimes forgot how highly strung she could get sometimes. She’d been focused on her maintaining her perfect GPA since the Mercer’s had moved to Smallville. “Nothing at all. Just maybe you shouldn’t be so hard on yourself.”
“Right,” She picked up the huge biology textbook and started flicking through it, turning the pages with more force then necessary.
Clark sighed. This is why he needed Chloe. She’d tell him what he’d done wrong and how to fix it. And he needed Tess to do the same with Chloe. He cleared his throat nervously. “So, are you going to the game on Friday night?”
She turned a few pages, making Clark wait before replying. “Chloe and I were thinking about it. Why?” She didn’t look at him.
“Just wondering. Maybe we could all go together. Pete’s Dad’s out of town that weekend so he’s got the truck.”
“Good for Pete,” Tess said, still studiously ignoring him. “I’ll see what Chloe says.”
“Okay then,” Clark went back to reading her essay, still trying to work out how to eliminate the awkward silence between them. He came across he didn’t understand, “Hey Tess, what does this mean?”
She put down the book with a small huff but turned to face him. “What does what mean?” She leaned over, craning to see where he was pointing.
“Tomorrow, tomorrow and tomorrow/ Creeps in this petty pace from day to day,” Clark read out carefully.
Tess frowned, trying to think of how to phrase it. “Like all days are the same. They all creep at the same pace. None of it really means anything. It’s all trivial.”
“Cheerful,” He commented dryly. “I can see why Chloe chose Romeo and Juliet now.”
“That’s even more depressing,” Tess replied. “I think love stories should have happy endings; everyone shouldn’t die.”
“But happy endings are boring,” Clark countered. “You need a mixture.”
“Everyone needs a happy ending,” Tess said softly, her eyes unfocused. He could see the sadness in her eyes but didn’t know the cause.
Clark stood up and snatched the biology book out of her lap. The movement jolted Tess out of her dream-like state. “What are you doing?” She demanded.
“We’ve studied enough,” He declared confidently. “Exam’s are weeks away and we need a break.” He didn’t like seeing that look in her eyes.
“You mean you need a break,” She corrected, eyes watching her precious book in his hands, like a predator watching its prey.
“No, we need a break.” He stressed the word and deliberately moved out arms reach.
“Clark, I was reading that!” She stood up and reached for the textbook.
He jumped out of her reach, careful not to move too quickly. “Come on,” He teased. “You can to better than that.”
“Oh that’s it,” She chased him across the loft, creating a sort of dance where she grasped at his hand and he miraculously avoided getting caught. “Come on, Clark. Just give it back.”
“If you promise not to study,” He replied, pausing long enough to watch her pull a face at his half turned back. “Hey, I saw that.”
“Good,” She retorted. “You were meant to.”
“You know if you do that too many times, you’ll get stuck like that.”
“What are you?” She asked, jumping for the book he was holding above her head. “Six?”
“Sixteen, actually,” A voice floated up the stairs. “If you’d believe that.”
“Mum,” Clark froze at the same time Tess froze.
“Mrs Kent. Hi.”
“Hello Tess,” Martha Kent smiled at the younger girl as she walked up final few stairs. “I was going to ask how the studying was going but I can already see.”
“We were studying Mum,” Clark explained quickly. “We were just taking a break.”
Tess took advantage of Clark’s distraction and grabbed her book out of his hands, “We were just about to go back to studying Mrs Kent.”
Clark’s shocked expression made his mother smile. “Well, I just finished cooking dinner. You’re welcome to stay Tess.”
Tess looked at the ground. “I don’t want to be a bother.”
“Nonsense,” Mrs Kent smiled at her. “The more the merrier.”
“Mum just likes to show off her cooking,” Clark added, teasing his mother gently. “Come on,” He tugged at her wrist. “I’ll race you.”
“You really are six aren’t you?” Tess asked, letting his pull her down the stairs.
“No comment,” He smiled at her.
She smiled back. This was better than being at home.
Disclaimer: If I owned Smallville, don't you think this is how it would have been written?
Innocence
Clark Kent’s head banged against the wood table in front of him. “I don’t get it,” He declared with an angry sigh. “I don’t think it’s in English.”
His friend laughed, leaning back onto the red sofa in the centre of his loft. “It’s in English, Clark. Shakespeare’s just a different form of English,” Tess Mercer explained with a smile. “You’ll get it eventually.”
He turned, resting his head on the table and his blue eyes looking up at her. “You know there’s a reason everyone calls it Macdeath, right?”
“Relax, it’s not killing you,” Tess replied comfortingly. “You’ll get it. Just give it some more time.”
“That’s easy for you to say: you’re a genius.”
“Am not,” She retorted, more from habit than from annoyance. “I just spent my time studying instead of stalking.”
Clark almost flew into a seating position, “I’m not a stalker!”
“Oh really?” She raised an eyebrow. “Then why is that telescope of yours always pointing at Lana’s house?”
“Uh. Um,” He tried to think of what to say but couldn’t formulate a good enough excuse. Their friend Chloe may be the one who dreams of being a journalist but Tess is the one that could see a lie from a mile away. And she didn’t even have Clark’s superhuman powers. “It doesn’t. You must be seeing things.”
She laughed incredulously. “Yeah, I must see things every time I come up here.”
“It’s not always pointing there. I do look at the stars sometimes!”
He knew from the cat that caught the canary grin of her face that he’d messed up. “I hate it when you do that,” He grumbled, giving her an evil look.
“When I do what? You did it to yourself Clark.”
“Yeah but…”
“Think before you speak, Mister Kent. Always helpful.” Her green eyes sparkled teasingly.
“Gee, thanks.”
“And don’t worry – I won’t tell Whitney you’re crushing on his girl. He’d crush you in half.”
“I can look after myself, Tess,” He said indignantly. He wasn’t mad at her, not really. There was no way she could know how strong he really was. There was no way he wanted her to know that. “ I’m not scared of Whitney.”
“I know that. I’m just looking out for my good friend. Is that allowed?”
“Yeah it’s allowed,” Clark replied, reaching for the Macbeth textbook he’d come to despise. “Am I allowed to see your essay now?”
“No,” The quick reply almost made him pout. The red haired snatched her notebook away from Clarks wavering hand.
“Please Tess. I won’t copy. I swear; I just need some ideas.”
Tess rolled her eyes. “Yeah, that’s what Pete said to Chloe and look what happened there.”
“Nothing bad happened though. Come on, I said I won’t copy. You trust me don’t you?”
“Nothing bad happened? Clark, they got sent to the Principal’s office for plagiarism.”
“But they didn’t get in trouble and I promise that I won’t copy. Cross my heart.” He made the cross symbol over his heart.
He could see the determination leave her eyes. She sighed and he held back a smile. He knew exactly what she was going to say next. “Fine, but no copying.”
“No copying,” He nodded, letting the small smile out.
She handed over her English notebook. “And don’t look so happy, Clark. Maybe next time I won’t be so nice.”
“But you’re always nice,” Clark replied absently. He was reading through her essay, memorising the words and phrases he could adapt to write his own. Academia came so much easier to her than it did to him. “This is really good.”
She blushed a little at the praise. “It’s nothing much. I doubt I’ll get a good mark for it.”
He snorted. “Tess, you’re idea of a bad mark is a B.”
“And, what’s wrong with that?” She bristled.
“Nothing,” He quickly backtracked. He sometimes forgot how highly strung she could get sometimes. She’d been focused on her maintaining her perfect GPA since the Mercer’s had moved to Smallville. “Nothing at all. Just maybe you shouldn’t be so hard on yourself.”
“Right,” She picked up the huge biology textbook and started flicking through it, turning the pages with more force then necessary.
Clark sighed. This is why he needed Chloe. She’d tell him what he’d done wrong and how to fix it. And he needed Tess to do the same with Chloe. He cleared his throat nervously. “So, are you going to the game on Friday night?”
She turned a few pages, making Clark wait before replying. “Chloe and I were thinking about it. Why?” She didn’t look at him.
“Just wondering. Maybe we could all go together. Pete’s Dad’s out of town that weekend so he’s got the truck.”
“Good for Pete,” Tess said, still studiously ignoring him. “I’ll see what Chloe says.”
“Okay then,” Clark went back to reading her essay, still trying to work out how to eliminate the awkward silence between them. He came across he didn’t understand, “Hey Tess, what does this mean?”
She put down the book with a small huff but turned to face him. “What does what mean?” She leaned over, craning to see where he was pointing.
“Tomorrow, tomorrow and tomorrow/ Creeps in this petty pace from day to day,” Clark read out carefully.
Tess frowned, trying to think of how to phrase it. “Like all days are the same. They all creep at the same pace. None of it really means anything. It’s all trivial.”
“Cheerful,” He commented dryly. “I can see why Chloe chose Romeo and Juliet now.”
“That’s even more depressing,” Tess replied. “I think love stories should have happy endings; everyone shouldn’t die.”
“But happy endings are boring,” Clark countered. “You need a mixture.”
“Everyone needs a happy ending,” Tess said softly, her eyes unfocused. He could see the sadness in her eyes but didn’t know the cause.
Clark stood up and snatched the biology book out of her lap. The movement jolted Tess out of her dream-like state. “What are you doing?” She demanded.
“We’ve studied enough,” He declared confidently. “Exam’s are weeks away and we need a break.” He didn’t like seeing that look in her eyes.
“You mean you need a break,” She corrected, eyes watching her precious book in his hands, like a predator watching its prey.
“No, we need a break.” He stressed the word and deliberately moved out arms reach.
“Clark, I was reading that!” She stood up and reached for the textbook.
He jumped out of her reach, careful not to move too quickly. “Come on,” He teased. “You can to better than that.”
“Oh that’s it,” She chased him across the loft, creating a sort of dance where she grasped at his hand and he miraculously avoided getting caught. “Come on, Clark. Just give it back.”
“If you promise not to study,” He replied, pausing long enough to watch her pull a face at his half turned back. “Hey, I saw that.”
“Good,” She retorted. “You were meant to.”
“You know if you do that too many times, you’ll get stuck like that.”
“What are you?” She asked, jumping for the book he was holding above her head. “Six?”
“Sixteen, actually,” A voice floated up the stairs. “If you’d believe that.”
“Mum,” Clark froze at the same time Tess froze.
“Mrs Kent. Hi.”
“Hello Tess,” Martha Kent smiled at the younger girl as she walked up final few stairs. “I was going to ask how the studying was going but I can already see.”
“We were studying Mum,” Clark explained quickly. “We were just taking a break.”
Tess took advantage of Clark’s distraction and grabbed her book out of his hands, “We were just about to go back to studying Mrs Kent.”
Clark’s shocked expression made his mother smile. “Well, I just finished cooking dinner. You’re welcome to stay Tess.”
Tess looked at the ground. “I don’t want to be a bother.”
“Nonsense,” Mrs Kent smiled at her. “The more the merrier.”
“Mum just likes to show off her cooking,” Clark added, teasing his mother gently. “Come on,” He tugged at her wrist. “I’ll race you.”
“You really are six aren’t you?” Tess asked, letting his pull her down the stairs.
“No comment,” He smiled at her.
She smiled back. This was better than being at home.
Anyways, great start and I can't wait to read some more.
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