“Hey Clark,” Pete waved from a side booth in the Talon. Clark smiled and made his way over, offering occasional smiles and head nods to those he knew. Eventually he flopped down. “You know Kent, you look a bit tired, you okay man, with …you know??” Pete waved one hand around to illustrate his other-worldly attributes. His arm was tucked around the booth holding a large cup of coffee.

“Hi Clark,” Lana appeared at their booth. “What will it be? The usual?”

“Uh, sure,” Clark replied with a slight frown. He watched her go. “What’s with her?”

“She’s a girl, it could be anything,” Pete laughed. Clark hid a grin but nodded. “Besides what do you care? I thought you went for Mr. Fancy Pants.”

Clark was grateful that Pete had finally accepted the fact that he was gay and had a crush on Lex, but he certainly didn’t want Lex to find out! Or the school for that matter! “Will you shut up!” Clark looked nervously around. But thankfully, no one seemed to be noticing them.

Lana returned to find Clark jokingly beating Pete around the head. She mumbled something that sounded suspiciously like “men” and left after grabbing Clark’s cash off the table.

“Women,” Pete muttered, apparently having heard it too. The two shared a glance and then started to laugh hard, barely staying in their seats.

“Mind if I sit here? I could use a good joke about now,” Lex muttered. At a glance and smile from Clark he sat down. Pete bristled but it wasn’t even in the neighborhood of the animosity he used to share towards the young scion. Clark was very grateful for his good friend at that moment.

“Bad day, Lex?” Clark asked looking back at Lex. He frowned at what slammed into his consciousness, Lex wasn’t just having a bad day, he was furious, anxious and if Clark was reading him right – “Oh had a run-in with your dad?”

“I wish you’d refrain from reminding me of that particular genealogical connection.” Lex’s face fell even further.

Clark put a hand on his shoulder. “Lex have you eaten today? Or slept recently?”

Lex chuckled sarcastically. “Give the man a prize.” He looked up and his eyes met Clarks. “Are you going to take care of me now?”

“Lex!” Lana called out. “I need to talk to you about the shop!”

Clark huffed and Lex let out a long sigh. “I’ll be right back.” He got up and walked over to Lana.

Pete nudged Clark’s elbow. “That was some serious flirting she interrupted. I bet if she hadn’t you’d be going home with your own personal billionaire.”

“I don’t think he meant anything by it,” Clark hung his head and began to shred his napkin. “I mean why would Lex ever think that about me, I’m just a kid. He’s probably over there flirting with some girl. He’s Lex,” Clark shrugged, “he flirts.”

Pete thought seriously whether or not it would be worth the pain it would cost him to hit Clark on the head a few times, and then decided wisely against it. “Only with you Clark, seriously, have you ever seen him flirt with me? No. He might flirt with some women, but only because he wants something. The Luthors are smooth operators.”

“Shh, here he comes,” Clark hissed.

Lex sat down looking from teen to teen. “You’re going to give me a complex if when I approach everyone stops talking.” He took a sip of a coffee he’d purchased while talking to Lana and continued. “So did you hear about the scholarship contest Clark? Will you be giving it a try?”

“Huh?” Pete and Clark echoed together.

“The scholarship that’s being offered by that station out of Metropolis, full-ride all four years,” Chloe announced proudly, slamming her oversize bag on the table. (Luckily they all had good reflexes and had moved their coffees in time) before flouncing onto part of the booth.

Clark momentarily lost his train of thought. Pete was to his right. When Lex had sat down it had been right next to him. Now with the addition of Chloe, they were pressed together. Heat was running down Clark’s side. He involuntarily gasped earning a lustful look from Lex. Now he definitely couldn’t breathe at all and…

“Earth to Kent!” Chloe waved a menu in front of Clark’s face. After several blinks Clark looked away from the unparalleled beauty of Lex’s eyes to look in confusion at his blonde friend.

“Huh?”

Lana suddenly plopped down on the other side of Pete and everyone had to move again. Lex was practically in Clark’s lap and the teen couldn’t be happier. He looked tentatively back at Lex who gave him a wink and wrapped their hands together under the table.  Clark hoped he didn’t look at gone as he felt. “Clark if you enter their contest and win, you’d be moving to Metropolis to go to college. After your freshman year, you could move off campus and come stay with me. I can help you find a decent job in the city when you graduate.”

Chloe started to laugh. “Clark, sing? I don’t think he can. I know I can’t. “

“I don’t think I’ve ever heard you sing Clarkbar,” Pete looked at his friend with obvious doubt.

Clark was still sitting in total shock. Lex was holding his hand and suggesting they move in together! “Good idea!” he blurted out.

Lana, Pete and Chloe looked at each other and started to laugh. “Can you sing Clark?” Lex asked curiously. If the need called for it, he would hire the best professional singing coach in the world to make sure that Clark won that damn contest.

Lana shook her head. “Are you kidding?” They all looked at her except for Clark who was blushing like mad and hanging his head. She shook her head and continued. “Clark sings in the choir at church. He has ‘a voice like an angel that fell from heaven.’” She looked around at the group that was now split between staring at her to gaping at Clark. “What? My Aunt Nell says it all the time. If you don’t believe me show up at service.”

Clark was now hoping the table would swallow him up. He tried to pull his hand away from Lex’s but the other man was having none of it, squeezing it tightly. Clark sighed with relief. At least Lex wasn’t going to make fun of him. Pete and Chloe had, however, dissolved into fits of laughter. With hurt driving him on Clark got up blindly and quickly pushed his way out of the coffee house.  He ran in back and turned on the super-speed once he was alone and tore up the roads on the way to his Fortress of Solitude.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Jonathan and Martha found him there sulking, lying on the hay. Clark continued to stare up at the ceiling. He had heard them coming and just didn’t feel like moving. It was too much like work. He looked at them momentarily. “Yeah?”

“Clark is everything okay?” Martha asked her son with concern.

“Luthor has been calling ever since you left the Talon. Tell me you didn’t use your powers in front of him!” Jonathan scolded.

“Jonathan!” Martha snapped. “That isn’t what he needs right now.”

“Sitting right here guys.” Clark sat up slowly. “Lex called?”

“Yes, honey,” Martha said with a hand on her husband’s chest. In her heart she had a feeling something had finally happened between the two. But was it over so fast? At least Lex didn’t want it to end. “Please Jon let me talk to him.”

Jonathan shot a look at his son. “Did you?”

“No dad. I didn’t use my powers in front of Lex. I waited until I got to the alley and no one was around.” Clark replied sulkily.

“Good.” Jonathan said firmly and left the barn.

Martha watched him go then sat behind Clark and put an arm around his shoulder. “What’s wrong Clark?”

“I can’t tell you mom…” Clark whispered. “Trust me, you don’t want to know.”

“If it’s that you prefer men and especially Lex and that something finally happened between the two of you, I guessed that much.” Martha smiled at the dumbfounded look on her son’s face. It was nice to know she still had it.

“How did-“

“Mother’s intuition. So what happened?”

The expression on Clark’s face instantly changed. “You aren’t mad?”

“Why would I be? You forget I grew up in the city. I don’t share all your father’s views either. Don’t worry I’ll work on him. A few nights without a home-cooked supper will have him on your side in no time.”

Clark hugged his mother tightly. “You’re the best.”

Martha smiled and inhaled deeply. Moments like this were all too few. She wasn’t going to let this one go easily and held on a bit long before shoving her son back. “So what did he do? If he hurt you so help me-“

Clark chuckled. “No. He didn’t do anything wrong mom. Lex held my hand.” Clark smiled happily. “And we sort of had a conversation about me going to Metropolis for college and staying with him. He’d even help me find a job.”

“That’s fast. He must have been thinking about it for awhile.”

“Well it just sort of came out. Then there’s some radio contest –“

Martha’s mind clicked. She’d heard about the contest that morning on the radio while having her morning coffee. “They found out.”

“Yeah.” Clark had always hated the attention he received at their church. He loved to sing but was embarrassed by the way people congratulated him after service. Luckily for Clark, the kids his age who still went to school didn’t seem to care. They just saw it as part of his farm boy innocence.

“Why are you embarrassed? Is it because we still go to church?” Martha asked with concern. While they didn’t know what Clark’s true religion of his home world was, they had hoped to give him something to be there for him when life got tough. But she knew that fewer and fewer of the younger members attended. It just “wasn’t cool”.

Clark shot to his feet. “Mom, everything was so perfect and then Lana let it blurt out! I can’t go back there! Pete and Chloe both heard! I’ll never live it down. But Lex–“

“Honey, you don’t know how Lex feels about religion. And if you were holding hands before this happened –“

“Great, so maybe he just thinks since church was brought up I’m a homophobe?” Clark sank back down hard, causing Martha to rise up on the bales. Sometimes she wondered how Clark ever kept his abilities hidden. “Talk to him Clark. Obviously he wants to talk to you. No matter what either one of you believes, something brought you together. Shouldn’t you give it a chance? You’ll only get one.”

“Okay, just… just let me think a bit okay? When he calls again, I’ll take it.”

Martha pulled out her pay-as-you-go cell phone and handed it to Clark. “He’s already made the first move and the second by the sounds of it. The rest is up to you. Just don’t come crying to me if this falls apart because you chickened out.”

Clark grinned and hugged his mom before she left him alone.

Clark sighed loudly while shaking his head. “No good.”

“I thought it was,” Lex suddenly appeared at the top of the steps to Clark’s hideaway. Clark blinked, surprised as always that Lex was the only human who was able to sneak up on him. He blushed as he realized what he’d just said.

“Uh, Lex. I didn’t see you there. How much did you hear?”

“Enough. At least now I know why you didn’t answer my calls.” He slid silently closer to Clark. One hand reached out to touch one of Clarks. It slid into place as if it had always belonged there. “I’m relieved that we still have a chance.” He squeezed Clark’s hand meaningfully.

Clark hung his head. “I’m sorry for not telling you.”

“Which one? That you can run home faster than my sports car or that you sing at church?” Lex laughed.

“Um, I got a ride.” Clark blurted out.

“Oh please. But okay, one secret at a time, I don’t care if you sing in a church Clark. I’m just disappointed that you never told me. I happen to be quite a fan of choirs.”

Clark bit his lip. “Oh.”

“Sing something for me Clark.” Lex requested sitting down on the battered couch.

Clark gulped and suddenly the world zoomed to just the two of them. He was so focused he failed to notice his father’s return to the barn. “Uh, what should I sing?”

“I can’t say I’m in the religious mood right now Clark. Oldies, pop? I don’t care.” Lex smiled encouragingly and pulled Clark down to sit next to him. Closing his eyes tightly Clark began to softly sing one of his oldie favorites he often sang while thinking of Lex and working alone on the farm.

Love me tender,
Love me sweet,
Never let me go.
You have made my life complete,
And I love you so.

Love me tender,
Love me true,
All my dreams fulfilled.
For my darlin I love you,
And I always will.

Love me tender,
Love me long,
Take me to your heart.
For its there that I belong,
And well never part.

Love me tender,
Love me dear,
Tell me you are mine.
Ill be yours through all the years,
Till the end of time.

Clark never finished. Lex had grabbed him, pulled him into his arms and was kissing him fiercely. A loud moan came from one of them, or both, and the kiss continued.

Neither of them saw Jonathan slipping out, going to the fence and holding onto it for dear life as he realized his son and Lex Luthor were in love.

A year later…

Clark tossed down his duffel, book bag and suitcase looking proudly around his dorm room he had free of charge thanks to winning the radio contest all on his own after encouragement from the man in front of him. “Isn’t it great Lex?”

Looking around at the cinder walls, peeling paint and dank interior Lex wished he shared his lovers enthusiasm. “Are you sure you don’t want me to pull some strings so you can live in the Penthouse this year?”

“You worry too much,” Clark walked over, pulled Lex into his arms and began to slowly kiss him. Lex responded pulling Clark closer by the means of his hair.

“Wow, which one of you is my room…oh my god, you’re Lex Luthor!” A stunned freshmen, suitcases in hand and Metropolis T-shirt on stood in the doorway gaping from one to the other. “You’re gay?”

“Clark,” Lex said sharply.

Clark quickly went over and after a mumbled apology, kissed his roommate and causing him to forget what he’d seen.

Lex sighed unhappily. “Couldn’t your parents have thought of another way to deliver that?” It had been a year since Clark had told him his secrets. More powers had come into being since then including the Kiss of Forgetfulness. It had come in handy more than once, but Lex didn’t like seeing Clark kissing anyone else.

“You are so cute when you’re jealous.” Clark kissed him on the nose before staging a pose between them for Clark’s roommate who was about to come to his senses any moment.

The roommate settled in and then left for some party. Lex closed the door with a grin and locked it. “Sing it Clark.”

“Love me tender –“

Lex threw Clark down on the tiny dorm bed and started to tear his clothes off. “Good thing you’re so rich.” Clark teased. Lex never did hear the end of the song which he had made come true in more ways than one.

“Good thing for you I love Elvis.” Lex teased back and then added with a grin. “And you.”

“I love you too, Lex.”  Clark smiled leaning in for his kiss while humming the last lines of the song.