Though his father had left Smallville for the familiar comforts of Metropolis the night after he gave Lex his failed ultimatum, Lionel still employed Martha Kent. Consequently she had traveled to the city and back several times in the week that had passed and Lex had not seen her for more than a few minutes in that time. He missed her warm presence in the library. The room felt empty without her or his father, or even the intermittent visits Clark normally paid him. In fact the whole castle felt cavernous, hollow, the echoes of his shoes slapping the floor as he walked his only company.
Without Clark’s friendship, without his father’s grating presence, without Martha’s companionship Lex felt more alone than he could remember since Julian died and his family fell apart. For a time he had deluded himself into believing he could chose his own family and the Kents had been the paragon of family to him. There had been nothing Lex had ever desired from Martha or Clark, or Jonathan for that matter, more than he desired to be adopted into their hearts as one of the family.
Obviously that was never meant to be.
Instead he had managed to snake his way into the bosom of that family only to poison them with some innate Luthor venom he could never hope to control. Clark would never forgive him. Martha’s life had been thrown into upheaval, despite his best intentions, or possibly as a result of them. Nothing would ever be the same.
The sound of clunky high heels on parquet wood floors jarred Lex from his reverie.
“*Lex*,” Martha paused, a deer in headlights look that belonged on an insipid little girl like Lana Lang plastered across her face. “I didn’t think… Your father said you were in Metropolis.”
“No.”
“What are you… Why are you… Why would you stay here after…everything?” The thin silk of her blouse fluttered on her chest, her entire body shaking like a leaf.
“There is nothing for me in Metropolis.” Lex stepped closer to her as he spoke, watching her glassy eyes.
When he stepped into her personal space her arms sprang up and tried to push him away, but his arms were faster. She struggled for a moment in the tight circle of his arms, her hands still pressed into his chest, then gave up. Her forehead landed in the middle of his chest and hot tears soaked his shirt. When she struggled again, he let her go. “There is nothing for you here, either, Lex.”
Before Lex stepped out of the car in the dirt driveway he could hear the low, angry rumble of yelling. After what had happened with Martha in his office, he wasn’t sure why he’d decided to come at all, but after more than an hour of fingering the keys in his pocket after she left, he’d finally given in and driven the familiar route to the Kent Farm. It wasn't until he was almost to the steps that he could hear through the screen door what Clark -- sweet, innocent, naïve Clark -- was screaming at his mother.
“…he loves you?! How stupid are you?! Do you think he loved any of these women?! Look at them! He has fucked more women than he owns shoes and they meant about that much to him, too! He didn’t love any of them any more than he loves you. He doesn’t know what love is! He doesn’t even know what friendship is!”
Printouts and newspaper clippings of Lex with what looked like every woman he’d ever been photographed with since his 13th birthday from every tabloid in the nation and some in Europe spilled out of a red backpack on the kitchen table and scattered onto the floor. Pages and pages of crap he hadn’t thought about in years from his teens, pictures from his clubbing days, even a 16 year old Victoria Hardwick poked out from a sheet of paper under his foot. There were pictures from better times, too, gallery openings, the opera, through the window at his favorite restaurant in Metropolis. The Inquisitor probably didn’t have a file on the women Lex had gone through like water this complete, though Lionel Luthor’s was significantly better.
With her hands in front of her face like she was trying to fend off an attacker, Martha Kent rocked back and forth in front of the sink curled in on herself and sobbing, mascara running down her face while her son stood over her menacingly waving a fist full of paper covered in a blow up of Lex at 16 making out with a hooker in an alley.
“Clark!” Lex shouted to get his friend’s attention away from Martha.
“What the fuck are you doing here?” The look in Clark’s eyes startled Lex as the huge boy rounded on him, full of a barely contained rage Lex had never seen in his friend before, but it didn’t stop Lex from going on the attack.
“What the fuck did you do to your mother?!” Lex’s voice broke as he slipped around the table a hair’s breadth from Clark, but he had to get between Clark and Martha.
“What did *I* do?!” Clark was actually screeching, the sound almost painful. “What did *I* do?! What did *you* do?! Turning her into one of your *whores* wasn’t enough for you, you had to break her heart, too!”
“I don’t know what you are talking about, Clark.”
“Of course not. You wouldn’t even notice if you broke someone’s heart. I came home from school and she was like this, standing at the counter in her work clothes, covered in flour and crying all over the goddamned cookie dough!”
“And so you thought throwing photos of me with other women in her face was a good way to make her feel better?!”
“I was trying to make her see that you aren’t worth it, you piece of shit. Maybe it wouldn’t hurt so much if she realized you never cared in the first place, that you never could. Sure, she’ll still feel stupid, but that’s better than hoping that you just need a little more time to come to your senses and tell her you really do love her!”
“I do love her.”
Martha gasped and Clark just stood there, so angry Lex could swear he saw flames in his eyes for a split second and then the door slammed and Clark was gone.
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(no subject)
8/26/05 02:00 am (UTC)Have you seen this part yet?
Though his father had left Smallville for the familiar comforts of Metropolis the night after he gave Lex his failed ultimatum, Lionel still employed Martha Kent. Consequently she had traveled to the city and back several times in the week that had passed and Lex had not seen her for more than a few minutes in that time. He missed her warm presence in the library. The room felt empty without her or his father, or even the intermittent visits Clark normally paid him. In fact the whole castle felt cavernous, hollow, the echoes of his shoes slapping the floor as he walked his only company.
Without Clark’s friendship, without his father’s grating presence, without Martha’s companionship Lex felt more alone than he could remember since Julian died and his family fell apart. For a time he had deluded himself into believing he could chose his own family and the Kents had been the paragon of family to him. There had been nothing Lex had ever desired from Martha or Clark, or Jonathan for that matter, more than he desired to be adopted into their hearts as one of the family.
Obviously that was never meant to be.
Instead he had managed to snake his way into the bosom of that family only to poison them with some innate Luthor venom he could never hope to control. Clark would never forgive him. Martha’s life had been thrown into upheaval, despite his best intentions, or possibly as a result of them. Nothing would ever be the same.
The sound of clunky high heels on parquet wood floors jarred Lex from his reverie.
“*Lex*,” Martha paused, a deer in headlights look that belonged on an insipid little girl like Lana Lang plastered across her face. “I didn’t think… Your father said you were in Metropolis.”
“No.”
“What are you… Why are you… Why would you stay here after…everything?” The thin silk of her blouse fluttered on her chest, her entire body shaking like a leaf.
“There is nothing for me in Metropolis.” Lex stepped closer to her as he spoke, watching her glassy eyes.
When he stepped into her personal space her arms sprang up and tried to push him away, but his arms were faster. She struggled for a moment in the tight circle of his arms, her hands still pressed into his chest, then gave up. Her forehead landed in the middle of his chest and hot tears soaked his shirt. When she struggled again, he let her go. “There is nothing for you here, either, Lex.”
He whispered, “I miss you,” to the empty room.
***
(no subject)
8/26/05 02:01 am (UTC)Before Lex stepped out of the car in the dirt driveway he could hear the low, angry rumble of yelling. After what had happened with Martha in his office, he wasn’t sure why he’d decided to come at all, but after more than an hour of fingering the keys in his pocket after she left, he’d finally given in and driven the familiar route to the Kent Farm. It wasn't until he was almost to the steps that he could hear through the screen door what Clark -- sweet, innocent, naïve Clark -- was screaming at his mother.
“…he loves you?! How stupid are you?! Do you think he loved any of these women?! Look at them! He has fucked more women than he owns shoes and they meant about that much to him, too! He didn’t love any of them any more than he loves you. He doesn’t know what love is! He doesn’t even know what friendship is!”
Printouts and newspaper clippings of Lex with what looked like every woman he’d ever been photographed with since his 13th birthday from every tabloid in the nation and some in Europe spilled out of a red backpack on the kitchen table and scattered onto the floor. Pages and pages of crap he hadn’t thought about in years from his teens, pictures from his clubbing days, even a 16 year old Victoria Hardwick poked out from a sheet of paper under his foot. There were pictures from better times, too, gallery openings, the opera, through the window at his favorite restaurant in Metropolis. The Inquisitor probably didn’t have a file on the women Lex had gone through like water this complete, though Lionel Luthor’s was significantly better.
With her hands in front of her face like she was trying to fend off an attacker, Martha Kent rocked back and forth in front of the sink curled in on herself and sobbing, mascara running down her face while her son stood over her menacingly waving a fist full of paper covered in a blow up of Lex at 16 making out with a hooker in an alley.
“Clark!” Lex shouted to get his friend’s attention away from Martha.
“What the fuck are you doing here?” The look in Clark’s eyes startled Lex as the huge boy rounded on him, full of a barely contained rage Lex had never seen in his friend before, but it didn’t stop Lex from going on the attack.
“What the fuck did you do to your mother?!” Lex’s voice broke as he slipped around the table a hair’s breadth from Clark, but he had to get between Clark and Martha.
“What did *I* do?!” Clark was actually screeching, the sound almost painful. “What did *I* do?! What did *you* do?! Turning her into one of your *whores* wasn’t enough for you, you had to break her heart, too!”
“I don’t know what you are talking about, Clark.”
“Of course not. You wouldn’t even notice if you broke someone’s heart. I came home from school and she was like this, standing at the counter in her work clothes, covered in flour and crying all over the goddamned cookie dough!”
“And so you thought throwing photos of me with other women in her face was a good way to make her feel better?!”
“I was trying to make her see that you aren’t worth it, you piece of shit. Maybe it wouldn’t hurt so much if she realized you never cared in the first place, that you never could. Sure, she’ll still feel stupid, but that’s better than hoping that you just need a little more time to come to your senses and tell her you really do love her!”
“I do love her.”
Martha gasped and Clark just stood there, so angry Lex could swear he saw flames in his eyes for a split second and then the door slammed and Clark was gone.
(no subject)
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8/26/05 10:51 am (UTC)