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This is a short, one-shot fic. It was originally written as an entry into the K-Site story contest. Since it wasn't selected for the voting (by the K-Site mods), I decided to post it here for you to read.
Of the two stories I entered, this was my favorite.
It's not a pure Clana story, rather, all three ships have chances here.
Shipless
Newly graduated from Central Kansas A&M, with a degree in journalism of all things, Clark Kent had leaned on an old acquaintance to get his first job. Perry White had just been named editor-in-chief of the Daily Planet and was eager to help out the young man who had saved his life. Well, he had been eager once he read a sample of Clark’s work in college. As a consequence, Clark was moving to Metropolis, where he had found a small studio apartment that he could afford in an unsavory part of town.
Clark watched from the porch as the last box was loaded into the delivery truck for the trip to Metropolis. He could just as easily have rented a truck and moved it all himself, but being hired by the Daily Planet had its perks, including the use of professional movers. His mom had already taken a smaller house in town, which, between Clark moving out and her spending half of the year in Topeka, was all she would need.
The movers had his new address, but they wouldn’t deliver until tomorrow morning, so Clark watched, hands stuffed in his pockets, as the delivery van rumbled down the hard-packed driveway, taking with it everything he owned that was not already stuffed into his pickup.
As soon as the truck disappeared from sight, Clark returned to the house, making one last sweep to assure himself nothing would be left behind. The house seemed…larger somehow, now that everything that had made it a home was gone.
The giant auction they had held the week before had attracted buyers of all kinds. Some were farmers looking to pick up some lightly-used equipment at a good price. Others were sale junkies, the kind of people that check the newspaper daily to find the best sales. Still others were just curious, wanting to see what the State Senator was getting rid of.
Some of the damnedest things brought on minor bidding wars, like Martha’s cookbooks and his old high school football jersey. The cookbooks were bought by old Mrs. McGreevey who cackled that now she would finally be able to win the baking contest at the Lowell County Fair. The jersey was won by Chloe of all people. At the end, she outbid the owner of a local sporting goods store who had wanted a piece of memorabilia from Smallville High’s last state championship to display in his store.
When asked why she had chosen that item, Chloe’s face went red as she remembered what she hadn’t been wearing on that long ago night in the loft and replied, “I kind of liked the way I looked in this, Clark. Plus, having this brings back memories of a different time in our lives.”
“Believe it or not, Chloe, I also liked the way you looked that day. I was just focused on someone else back then and your behavior kind of weirded me out.” Gesturing at the jersey in her hand, Clark added, “If I had known you wanted the jersey, I would have given it to you.”
“I know you would have. You’ve given so much to so many people over the years. Giving is a part of who you are, but I wanted to win this fair and square.”
Lana made a purchase of her own, something that only a select few knew the significance of: Clark’s old telescope. Broken and put away in its case, Clark thought it poetic that it was purchased by the woman who had so often been its focus. She and Chloe had driven down for the sale and for one last look around the memory-filled farm before it was sold. Clark made the same comment to her about wishing he could give her what she had already purchased.
Like Chloe, Lana demurred, saying, “Clark, you’ve given me so much, more than I could ever reasonably hope for from a friend. I can’t take any more from you…unless I’m allowed to give you something in return.”
Clark knew what Lana was referring to, a return to a full-blown romantic relationship. That was something Clark couldn’t handle with Lana right now. The odd thing was, his secrets were no longer in the way. Once Lana had discovered what Lex was all about and dumped him, she and Clark had taken a long time and had painstakingly rebuilt their friendship to the point that he had finally let her in on his secrets.
What was stopping them now was that Lana was like a hot stovetop for him: once burned, twice shy. Having seen her with Lex and knowing that her allegiance had, for a time at least, been given to his greatest enemy had broken something inside of him…something he thought might not be fixable. So while they had rebuilt their friendship, restarting a romance would be hard.
As for dating Chloe, he had tried and tried once he returned from the Phantom Zone, but she had turned him down. She was steadfast in wanting to maintain their close friendship but had smoothly deflected all of his attempts at something more. Clark couldn’t figure her out. That last kiss before his first showdown with Zod had been filled with passion, a passion she now denied at every turn. She had Jimmy, though how Chloe the adrenaline junkie dealt with a boyfriend who was just this side of comatose was beyond Clark’s ability to figure out.
Things were completely backwards. Lana wanted him and he wanted Chloe, and just like in high school, he didn’t have either. That confusion eventually led him, almost by a process of elimination, to Lois. They started dating right about the time she had left her position as his mom’s chief of staff to work for the Inquisitor. She was free because it turned out that Oliver Queen wasn’t such a straight arrow after all.
Lois was the one woman in his life who had never obsessed about his secrets. If she even suspected he was hiding something, she never said and didn’t seem to care. As annoying as she could sometimes be, Clark was comfortable with her. All she cared about was him. It felt wonderful to love and be loved, without conditions. Conversely, the fact that she didn’t care about his secrets made it easier for him to tell her everything.
And then came the mind wipe.
Clark and Jor-El had been going back and forth for years about his ‘destiny,’ with Jor-El insisting on 24/7 immersion in his duties and Clark steadfastly refusing any duties at all. Finally, they agreed on a compromise. Clark came to realize the good he could do with his abilities, but he also wanted to live a normal life, so they created a compromise: an alter ego, someone Clark could be as he used his abilities in public, so that no one would suspect mild-mannered Clark Kent. In order to make this work, Jor-El agreed to help him with the one constant threat to his secrets: Lex Luthor.
There was no bodily possession or anything as inelegant as that this time. No, Lex was handled at long range with a mind wipe. Jor-El made it so Lex would forget everything about Clark except his name and that they were friendly acquaintances. If Lex came across any information hinting at Clark’s secrets, his mind would just pass over it as if it wasn’t there. Now, the only way Lex could mentally link Clark and his alter ego was if Clark told Lex himself. Clark, his family, and his friends, were finally safe from Lex’s predation.
The problem was, Lois was talking to Lex at the time of the mind wipe, trying to get him to leave Clark alone, and was caught in the effect. She also forgot everything about Clark. When she came to, Clark was nothing more to her than a vaguely annoying friend. She was disdainful when told by everyone she knew that Clark was her boyfriend. ‘What could I ever see in Clark?’ was her snide reply. To Clark himself, Lois just said, ‘In your dreams, Smallville.’
Clark was crushed. He and Lois were back to square one, and there was no way for him to know how their relationship would be rebuilt. Would they be friends, would they be enemies, would they fall in love?
So as he embarked on this new phase of his life, there were three women out there, each as distinct as primary colors. Chloe had taken a position at the Daily Planet just like he had, Lana was the newest reporter for KMET TV-9 news, and Lois had recently been hired away from her position as a reporter for the Inquisitor to work at the Daily Planet. He knew the right girl was out there, and he suspected she was one of those three. Could he get past the heartache and try again with Lana? Could he get Chloe to take a chance on him? Could he manage to rebuild what he had had with Lois? He didn’t know, but there’d be plenty of time to find out once he made it to Metropolis.
Clark finished his tour at the kitchen door, stepping out into the yard before locking the door one last time. He would take the keys by his mom’s house an slide them through her front door mail slot on his way out of town, but first, he needed to take one last look at the loft.
Seconds later, standing in the open loft doorway, Clark looked out over what he could see of the Kent farm. The cattle had long since been sold, leaving only emerald grass and wooden fences. Turning to look at the loft, at his loft, one last time, Clark didn’t see the loft as it was, empty as the day his dad completed building it, but as it had been.
He saw the day Chloe gave him his first kiss, the day his father told him he was an alien, the day Lana brought him a midnight birthday cake. On and on the memories came, first a trickle and then a torrent. Faster and faster they raced, until they seemed to be nothing more than a continuous smear of color, one blending into the next. And yet for Clark, each memory was distinct, each moment precious.
At long last, it was time. Time for him to move on to the next step in his life, both as Clark Kent, rookie reporter, and as the hero he was called to be. He closed the loft doors, turned off the lights, and closed the barn doors as he walked out into the dying sunlight. Clark drove down the hard-packed driveway not looking back, but looking ahead, wondering what was in store for both Clark Kent and the guy in the red and blue suit.
Of the two stories I entered, this was my favorite.
It's not a pure Clana story, rather, all three ships have chances here.Shipless
Newly graduated from Central Kansas A&M, with a degree in journalism of all things, Clark Kent had leaned on an old acquaintance to get his first job. Perry White had just been named editor-in-chief of the Daily Planet and was eager to help out the young man who had saved his life. Well, he had been eager once he read a sample of Clark’s work in college. As a consequence, Clark was moving to Metropolis, where he had found a small studio apartment that he could afford in an unsavory part of town.
Clark watched from the porch as the last box was loaded into the delivery truck for the trip to Metropolis. He could just as easily have rented a truck and moved it all himself, but being hired by the Daily Planet had its perks, including the use of professional movers. His mom had already taken a smaller house in town, which, between Clark moving out and her spending half of the year in Topeka, was all she would need.
The movers had his new address, but they wouldn’t deliver until tomorrow morning, so Clark watched, hands stuffed in his pockets, as the delivery van rumbled down the hard-packed driveway, taking with it everything he owned that was not already stuffed into his pickup.
As soon as the truck disappeared from sight, Clark returned to the house, making one last sweep to assure himself nothing would be left behind. The house seemed…larger somehow, now that everything that had made it a home was gone.
The giant auction they had held the week before had attracted buyers of all kinds. Some were farmers looking to pick up some lightly-used equipment at a good price. Others were sale junkies, the kind of people that check the newspaper daily to find the best sales. Still others were just curious, wanting to see what the State Senator was getting rid of.
Some of the damnedest things brought on minor bidding wars, like Martha’s cookbooks and his old high school football jersey. The cookbooks were bought by old Mrs. McGreevey who cackled that now she would finally be able to win the baking contest at the Lowell County Fair. The jersey was won by Chloe of all people. At the end, she outbid the owner of a local sporting goods store who had wanted a piece of memorabilia from Smallville High’s last state championship to display in his store.
When asked why she had chosen that item, Chloe’s face went red as she remembered what she hadn’t been wearing on that long ago night in the loft and replied, “I kind of liked the way I looked in this, Clark. Plus, having this brings back memories of a different time in our lives.”
“Believe it or not, Chloe, I also liked the way you looked that day. I was just focused on someone else back then and your behavior kind of weirded me out.” Gesturing at the jersey in her hand, Clark added, “If I had known you wanted the jersey, I would have given it to you.”
“I know you would have. You’ve given so much to so many people over the years. Giving is a part of who you are, but I wanted to win this fair and square.”
Lana made a purchase of her own, something that only a select few knew the significance of: Clark’s old telescope. Broken and put away in its case, Clark thought it poetic that it was purchased by the woman who had so often been its focus. She and Chloe had driven down for the sale and for one last look around the memory-filled farm before it was sold. Clark made the same comment to her about wishing he could give her what she had already purchased.
Like Chloe, Lana demurred, saying, “Clark, you’ve given me so much, more than I could ever reasonably hope for from a friend. I can’t take any more from you…unless I’m allowed to give you something in return.”
Clark knew what Lana was referring to, a return to a full-blown romantic relationship. That was something Clark couldn’t handle with Lana right now. The odd thing was, his secrets were no longer in the way. Once Lana had discovered what Lex was all about and dumped him, she and Clark had taken a long time and had painstakingly rebuilt their friendship to the point that he had finally let her in on his secrets.
What was stopping them now was that Lana was like a hot stovetop for him: once burned, twice shy. Having seen her with Lex and knowing that her allegiance had, for a time at least, been given to his greatest enemy had broken something inside of him…something he thought might not be fixable. So while they had rebuilt their friendship, restarting a romance would be hard.
As for dating Chloe, he had tried and tried once he returned from the Phantom Zone, but she had turned him down. She was steadfast in wanting to maintain their close friendship but had smoothly deflected all of his attempts at something more. Clark couldn’t figure her out. That last kiss before his first showdown with Zod had been filled with passion, a passion she now denied at every turn. She had Jimmy, though how Chloe the adrenaline junkie dealt with a boyfriend who was just this side of comatose was beyond Clark’s ability to figure out.
Things were completely backwards. Lana wanted him and he wanted Chloe, and just like in high school, he didn’t have either. That confusion eventually led him, almost by a process of elimination, to Lois. They started dating right about the time she had left her position as his mom’s chief of staff to work for the Inquisitor. She was free because it turned out that Oliver Queen wasn’t such a straight arrow after all.
Lois was the one woman in his life who had never obsessed about his secrets. If she even suspected he was hiding something, she never said and didn’t seem to care. As annoying as she could sometimes be, Clark was comfortable with her. All she cared about was him. It felt wonderful to love and be loved, without conditions. Conversely, the fact that she didn’t care about his secrets made it easier for him to tell her everything.
And then came the mind wipe.
Clark and Jor-El had been going back and forth for years about his ‘destiny,’ with Jor-El insisting on 24/7 immersion in his duties and Clark steadfastly refusing any duties at all. Finally, they agreed on a compromise. Clark came to realize the good he could do with his abilities, but he also wanted to live a normal life, so they created a compromise: an alter ego, someone Clark could be as he used his abilities in public, so that no one would suspect mild-mannered Clark Kent. In order to make this work, Jor-El agreed to help him with the one constant threat to his secrets: Lex Luthor.
There was no bodily possession or anything as inelegant as that this time. No, Lex was handled at long range with a mind wipe. Jor-El made it so Lex would forget everything about Clark except his name and that they were friendly acquaintances. If Lex came across any information hinting at Clark’s secrets, his mind would just pass over it as if it wasn’t there. Now, the only way Lex could mentally link Clark and his alter ego was if Clark told Lex himself. Clark, his family, and his friends, were finally safe from Lex’s predation.
The problem was, Lois was talking to Lex at the time of the mind wipe, trying to get him to leave Clark alone, and was caught in the effect. She also forgot everything about Clark. When she came to, Clark was nothing more to her than a vaguely annoying friend. She was disdainful when told by everyone she knew that Clark was her boyfriend. ‘What could I ever see in Clark?’ was her snide reply. To Clark himself, Lois just said, ‘In your dreams, Smallville.’
Clark was crushed. He and Lois were back to square one, and there was no way for him to know how their relationship would be rebuilt. Would they be friends, would they be enemies, would they fall in love?
So as he embarked on this new phase of his life, there were three women out there, each as distinct as primary colors. Chloe had taken a position at the Daily Planet just like he had, Lana was the newest reporter for KMET TV-9 news, and Lois had recently been hired away from her position as a reporter for the Inquisitor to work at the Daily Planet. He knew the right girl was out there, and he suspected she was one of those three. Could he get past the heartache and try again with Lana? Could he get Chloe to take a chance on him? Could he manage to rebuild what he had had with Lois? He didn’t know, but there’d be plenty of time to find out once he made it to Metropolis.
Clark finished his tour at the kitchen door, stepping out into the yard before locking the door one last time. He would take the keys by his mom’s house an slide them through her front door mail slot on his way out of town, but first, he needed to take one last look at the loft.
Seconds later, standing in the open loft doorway, Clark looked out over what he could see of the Kent farm. The cattle had long since been sold, leaving only emerald grass and wooden fences. Turning to look at the loft, at his loft, one last time, Clark didn’t see the loft as it was, empty as the day his dad completed building it, but as it had been.
He saw the day Chloe gave him his first kiss, the day his father told him he was an alien, the day Lana brought him a midnight birthday cake. On and on the memories came, first a trickle and then a torrent. Faster and faster they raced, until they seemed to be nothing more than a continuous smear of color, one blending into the next. And yet for Clark, each memory was distinct, each moment precious.
At long last, it was time. Time for him to move on to the next step in his life, both as Clark Kent, rookie reporter, and as the hero he was called to be. He closed the loft doors, turned off the lights, and closed the barn doors as he walked out into the dying sunlight. Clark drove down the hard-packed driveway not looking back, but looking ahead, wondering what was in store for both Clark Kent and the guy in the red and blue suit.
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