Fic: Utopia Part 2

[sinderella81]

Title: Utopia Part 2
Author:cinderella81
Pairing:  Clex
Rating: G
Disclaimer:  Not mine, I just like to play!
Summary: Clark disappears after Alicia's death.  Two years later Lex finds him in an unlikely place and sets off to save him.

Clark woke up and found himself in a large bed facing a large set of French doors. He gingerly got out of bed and made his way across the room and out the French doors onto the balcony. Before him was the most beautiful sight. His balcony overlooked a large lake surrounded by trees. Clark made his way back into the bedroom and found some shorts and a shirt lying on a chair near the bed. Clark dressed and then left the room, intent on finding out just where he was.

 

He made his way down a long hallway and down a set of stairs. He found himself standing in the middle of a large kitchen and saw Lex standing in front of the stove, cooking something. Clark inhaled the smell. Eggs, onions, tomatoes, cilantro, and chives all hit Clark’s nose at the same time. Clark moaned involuntarily, causing Lex to spin around. 

 

“Morning Clark; I took the liberty of fixing us breakfast. I know you’re not quite ready for a lot of meat right now, but I figure the protein in eggs is a good start, so I made us omelets,” Lex said with a smile, offering a plate to Clark. Clark eyed the plate suspiciously, but when he saw Lex take a large bite of his own omelet, he relented and sat down to eat his own. The first bite of omelet hit him like a breath of fresh air. He practically inhaled the omelet, set his fork down and eyed Lex warily.  

 

“I know this is hard for you, Clark,” Lex said. He picked up the folder and handed it to Clark. “This is the man you called Matthew. His real name is Ethan Lambert, and this isn’t the first commune he’s tried to start. He ran from the last one, and left the members holding the weapons he’d had stored. He’s not a good man.”

 

“But he helped me forget,” Clark said slowly. 

 

“Clark,” Lex said, watching Clark grimace at the sound of his own name. “Clark, forgetting things isn’t going to help; sooner or later you have to deal. Now, I’m not going to force you to talk about anything. It’ll happen in its own time. But you and I will be here until I decide that I can take you home.”

 

“Home?” Clark looked up at Lex, confused.

 

“To your parents, your friends, Smallville,” Lex said. “Don’t dwell on that. For right now, how about a walk. I remember how much you love the sun.” Clark smiled and nodded shyly. 

 

                                                *           *           *          

 

“He’s still quiet,” Lex said into the phone. “Yes I know it’s been two weeks, but you can’t expect him to return overnight. He was there for eighteen months. He’s been spending a lot of time outdoors; hiking and swimming. Yes, I’ve been making sure to give him plenty of protein. We are now up to chicken and I’m making steak tonight for dinner. Hopefully not too much longer; yes, I’ll talk to you later.” Lex hung up the phone and looked out the window. Clark lay on a towel just outside the kitchen, soaking up the sunlight. 

 

Lex made his way outside to start up the barbeque and put the steaks on. Clark saw him come out, but remained silent. They had been like this for a while now; acknowledging each other, but not talking. Lex knew it was just a matter of time before the floodgates opened and Clark started talking. Lex stayed outside while the steaks cooked, taking in the sunset. 

 

“The steaks are done,” Clark said. Lex turned to see Clark standing by the door to the kitchen. Lex nodded, took the steaks off the barbeque and followed Clark inside where they ate their dinner in silence.

 

After dinner, they moved to the living room and sat in front of the fireplace. They each sat quietly, reading book and surreptitiously eyeing each other from their spots on the couch.

 

“I couldn’t save her,” Clark said quietly. “She was killed because I didn’t get to him in time.”

 

“Alicia?” Lex asked and watched Clark nod mutely. 

 

“She knew everything about me and she still cared,” Clark said, tears staining his cheeks. “She never had a chance; that bastard took her away and it was all because I couldn’t get to him in time.” The tears were falling faster now and Clark had curled up on the couch. 

 

“Clark, listen to me; you didn’t know. You had no idea that someone was going to go after Alicia and hurt her. You are not responsible for her death. I know that it hurts and I know that losing her wasn’t easy on you; but it is something that you have to deal with.” Lex had carefully moved over so he was sitting next to Clark. Clark shifted and laid down on Lex’s lap. Lex rubbed Clark’s back and let him cry himself to sleep. 

 

Lex sat there and continued to rub Clark’s back, even after Clark slipped into sleep. At least Clark had finally broken, and was now on the mend. Lex knew that there were more things that Clark was holding on to, and Lex would be there when Clark was ready to talk. He sighed and attempted to sleep with Clark snoring softly on his lap. 

 

                                                *           *           *                      

 

 

“Can I ask you a question?” Lex said. He and Clark were taking a hike through the forest surrounding the cabin. 

 

“Sure,” Clark said slowly. They made their way down a path and sat down on a fallen log. Clark stared and the ground and played with a leaf.

 

“What was so wonderful about Utopia? What made it such a wonderful place to be?” Lex asked.

 

“My choices were made for me. I knew when to get up, when to eat, when to go to bed, when to work. No one cared if I was different, or that I had been adopted. We were all the same there. Matthew made us all feel so loved; if we messed up, he was never angry. There was no hate, no pain.”

 

“We need those lows; that pain, that fear, and that anger, so that we know when we have something good, Clark.” Lex took Clark’s hand in his. “Trying to forget isn’t going to make it better. In fact, more often than not, it makes it worse.”

 

“I didn’t know any other way. I thought that if I opened myself up that I would get hurt again. Lex, I felt like no one wanted to listen to me; that I was supposed to be the strong one.”

 

“Clark, don’t feel like you have to be strong all the time. You have so many people who care for you, who want you to succeed. But, we all understand that you’re not perfect; no one is.”

 

Clark and Lex sat in silence. Finally, just as Lex was about to stand up, Clark reached over and pulled him close. Their noses were millimeters apart, and Clark leaned and gently kissed Lex. 

 

“I’ve wanted to do that for so long,” Clark said quietly. 

 

“Why didn’t you?” Lex asked with a smile.

 

“There were so many things and I was so scared; still am actually,” Clark said with a shaky smile. “There is something I need to tell you, before things go too far.”

 

“Anything you want to tell me,” Lex said. “I’m here to listen and nothing you tell me is going to scare me off. I have wanted to kiss you since the first time I saw you. I told you that we had a destiny, remember? Nothing can stand in the way of that.” 

 

Clark smiled. “You remember when you asked me if I thought man could fly? Well I think that sometime in the future, I will be able to fly us anywhere in the world. The meteor shower brought me with it. I’m from a planet called Krypton, which no longer exists. The yellow sun gives me powers. I’m pretty much invulnerable, unless I’m exposed to the meteor rocks. I can see through anything except lead which also protects me from the meteors. I have heat vision, super strength, super breath, and super speed.” Clark watched Lex intently for his reaction. Lex smiled softly and placed a hand on Clark’s cheek.

 

“It would just fit that my soul mate would be an alien from another planet,” Lex said with a grin. “I told you, nothing you tell me is going to change the fact that I love you.” Lex moved his hands to the back of Clark’s head and pulled Clark close. He looked deep into Clark’s eyes for a moment before pulling Clark against him and kissing him. They sat there on the fallen log for a few moments kissing before Clark pulled away and ran his hands over his head. His hands ran over his head a couple of times, and Lex watched his face change.

 

“What’s wrong? You’re not regretting anything, are you?” Lex asked. 

 

“I’m not regretting the kiss or telling you everything. I just can’t believe I let them buzz my head.” Clark said exasperated. Lex chuckled and kissed Clark on top of his head.

 

“You’re hair will grow back. I am just thankful that I got you out of there. Who knows how much longer you’d have been there if I hadn’t seen you at the airport.” Lex ran his hand over Clark’s head. 

 

“The clearer things get, the more I realize that I can’t run and hide from everything. I need to stand up and face the things that scare me,” Clark said. 

 

“Anything you’re scared of, we can face together,” Lex said softly. Clark smiled and pulled him in for another kiss.

 

“Together, I like the sound of that,” Clark said with a grin. 

 

“So, do you feel comfortable enough going home?” Lex asked. Clark sat still and silent on the log.

 

“Do we need to go back just yet? I feel like I’m just coming back; I don’t want to face everything just yet. I know that I need to face the real world, but can we just stay here for a little bit longer?” Clark asked.

 

“How about one more week,” Lex said with a grin. “We can use that time to learn each other again, figure things out,” he said, placing a hand on Clark’s thigh. Clark grinned, took his hand and they raced together back to the cabin. 

 

                                                *           *           *                      

 

“So, tomorrow’s the big day,” Lex said. He and Clark were lying in front of the fireplace, basking in the glow of flames and cuddling after a slow romp. 

 

“Yep, tomorrow we head back to Smallville,” Clark said softly. “I’m scared.”

 

“I know you are,” Lex said, kissing Clark’s forehead. “But we can face it together. You’re going to have to answer a lot of questions, but your parents and I will be there for you.”

 

“But what about school; I left before I could graduate?”

 

“I’m sure you can easily get your GED, and then we can see about getting you in some college classes,” Lex said softly. He ran his hand over Clark’s head, feeling the hair prickling under his hand. “I know you’re scared, but we’ll get through this.”

 

“I know,” Clark said with a sigh. 

 

“Come on grumpy Gus, we have a big day ahead of us tomorrow; we’d better get a good night’s sleep,” Lex said with a smile. He pulled Clark up and they walked to their bedroom; sleep came easily to the two of them. 

 

                                                *           *           *          

 

The trip to Smallville was uneventful. Clark and Lex spent most of the trip asleep. Lex had called ahead and let Martha, Jonathan, and Chloe know that they were coming home. Lex had promised Martha and Jonathan that he would bring Clark straight to the farm and promised Chloe to bring Clark to the Talon. 

 

Clark’s reunion with his parents was joyful and tearful all at the same time. Clark kept trying to apologize for his behavior but Jonathan and Martha would have none of it.

 

“We don’t blame you, son,” Martha said.

 

“We understand that you had things you needed to deal with. We just wish you’d talked to someone before deciding to run away,” Jonathan said, pulling his son into a hug. He stared at Lex for a moment, before pulling Lex into the hug. 

 

“Well, what are you plans now?” Martha asked after the hug broke. 

 

“Well, I want to get my GED, then begin looking into college,” Clark said.

 

“Sounds like a good idea. We have your room all ready; did you want to take a nap?” Martha asked. Clark and Lex shared a look.

 

“Actually, Lex and I are going to the Talon so I can see Chloe. But, um, I planned on moving into the mansion with Lex,” Clark said slowly. “We connected during our time in Colorado. He knows my secrets and we’re in love.” Jonathan and Martha shared a soft smile.

 

“We figured that it would happen,” Martha said with a smile. 

 

“It’s okay with us,” Jonathan said, “As long as you come every Sunday for dinner.” Clark and Lex shared a smile and nodded.

 

“Well, you’d best hurry; Chloe won’t wait there all day,” Martha said with a grin. Clark and Lex chuckled, hugged Martha and headed out the door.

 

                                                *           *           *          

 

“OHMYGOD! Clark!!!” Clark barely made it through the door before Chloe attacked. She barreled right into him and almost knocked him over. 

 

“Chloe don’t knock me over. I promise, I’m not going anywhere for a long while,” Clark said, kissing Chloe on her forehead.

 

“Don’t ever do that again Clark Kent,” Chloe said, slapping Clark on the arm. “And what in the world happened to your hair?” Chloe asked, rubbing Clark’s head.

 

“Don’t remind me; it’ll take me forever to grow it again. Never work on the fields in a commune,” Clark replied with a smile. They shared a laugh as the three of them moved to a table. Their conversation continued as the waitress came to take their orders. 

 

They were laughing and joking when Lana came wandering over to their table.

 

“Hello Lex, Chloe,” Lana said, leaning into Lex. Her gaze traveled around the table, and came to rest on Clark. 

 

“God Clark, what in the hell happened to you? It looks like you’ve been in a concentration camp!” Lana said, eyeing Clark with disgust. Chloe gasped and Clark hung his head quietly. Lex turned his head sharply and eyed Lana with a steely glare. 

 

"I'm sure Clark appreciates the tactful welcome home, Mrs. Teague, but we really have some pressing business to discuss. If you don't mind,” Lex said icily. 

 

“Well I never,” Lana said in a huff, and stalked away. 

 

“She probably never does,” Chloe said with a smirk. 

 

“Chloe!” Clark said with wide eyes that quickly melted into full blown laughter. Soon Chloe and Lex joined in and their laughter caused quite a few looks from the other patrons, but the trio laughed on, oblivious to the stares. 

 

Lex watched as Clark laughed and saw the light in his eyes. Lex knew that there was a long road ahead of Clark. It might take him years before he would be truly comfortable and happy again. But Lex would be there with him, standing at his side, to help face whatever came their way.