� Jitters

Smallville is such a small town. People talk, word gets around. And among the high school crowd, if you're parents are out of town, it's party time.

A little birdie told me (okay, so it's the guy I have tailing him) that Clark was throwing a small gathering at the farm. High school parties, they could make or break you. I decided to help Clark out, after all, the shy farmboy probably didn't know how to throw a real party.

I arranged for the fireworks and dragged my date to the farm. She didn't seem to be enjoying herself, being around a few hundred teenagers. I didn't really care if she was or not, it was simply a courtesy date. A business move. While I was speaking with Clark, Chloe, and Pete about their upcoming class tour of my plant, my date gave me a look of disgust, making mention to the bathroom overflowing.

I could've sworn I saw a look of jealousy in Clark's eyes.

The party wasn't about her, I think that's why my date took off in a hurry. Fuck it. It's not every day that Clark Kent goes against his parents and throws a party. I wouldn't have missed this for anything.

After the evening was over, I made my way back to the mansion, alone. I'm starting to get used to that. Went through some paperwork, attempted to hack into my fathers computer again, and then turned in early.

The next day, I received an urgent phone call from my plant. Apparently some lunatic has taken the student field trip hostage. When I arrived at the plant, the parents of said students were all outside the gates, I almost hit a few of them on the way in.

After I got through the gates, I noticed the Kents in the crowd. I told the guards to let them in. I didn't want them to worry.

I hope they didn't notice how worried I was.

After I told Mr. Kent that Earl Jenkins was the man responsible behind the kidnapping, he began spitting more accusations at me. Something about crop experiments, my company getting him sick.

Typical.

Then he mentioned something about level three. Earl had made that demand to the police and my plant manager. He wanted to be taken there.

Problem is, it doesn't exist.

I allowed the Kents to view the security monitor. Mrs. Kent asked the question I was thinking.

Where's Clark?

To top it all of, my father shows up. Begins talking down to me, treating me like the help instead of his son. Asked me how I allowed this to happen.

Mr. Kent interrupted the obvious lack of family affection being displayed by my father. I'll try to remember that next time he's an asshole. When I introduced the Kents to my father, it became clear that they had already known each other from the past.

I'll have to look into that.

Arguments were had between the Kents and my father, who refused to negotiate or make any deals with Earl. Mr. Kent wanted to talk to him personally, but I put a stop to that. I have a strong feeling this level three does exist, or did, and that my father covered it up. It's the Luthor responsibility to deal with this. Finally my father agreed to put a call in.

It was a bad move really. My father did nothing but piss Earl off even more. No surprise there, after all, he's my father.

One good thing came out of Earls anger though, the quarterback received a nice fist across the face.

I couldn't allow this charade to continue any longer. Against my fathers better judgement, I decided to go into the plant and try to settle things myself with Mr. Jenkins. I'm not sure why my father tried to stop me, I'm sure it wasn't out of fatherly love. But people were getting hurt, this man was unstable.

And maybe I'd be able to save Clark.

I confronted Earl face to face. Tried reasoning with him. Explained to him that my father doesn't give a shit about him, these kids, or this plant. Explained to him his efforts were for nothing if he expected something out of my father, God knows I've given up on that.

He wasn't buying it.

So I bluffed him. Told him if he released the students, I'd take him to level three. Granted I had no idea where it was, assuming my father had it covered up. But I needed to get the kids out of there, needed to save Clark. And spite my father in the process. It seemed like a good plan at the time.

Earl released the students, Clark approaching me out of concern. I didn't realize how relieved I was that he was okay until he was standing in front of me, showing concern for me. He was the one that was just held hostage. Thankfully he left with the others. Now that Clark was safe, I could try and deal with Earl.

The stench of gas was overwhelming. Apparently Earl had released one of the methane gas valves. I had a hard time breathing. Once everyone was out, I tried to explain to Earl that there was no level three. Bastard hit me on the head with his gun.

I can't take anymore bumps on my head.

Clark comes over the intercom, what the fuck was that kid thinking staying in the building? He claims to have found the elevator to level three.

I knew my father covered it up.

Made me look like a liar on top of it all. No surprise there, after all, he is a Luthor. We finally arrive at the mysterious level three, and it's completely empty. There's nothing there. I try to explain to Earl that I honestly knew nothing about this. The curse of the Luthor name haunts me though, as people tend to not believe anything I say. Clark shows up, I try to plead my case to him. Clark will believe me, I know he will.

He does.

Earl's entire body goes spastic, taking apart the catwalk we were standing on. I lost all sense of reasoning there, lost the Luthor cool, and screamed Clark's name like a helpless child as I hung on for dear life. The catwalk was collapsing, and it was a long way down.

He saves me again.

And again.

Then it hits me. Clark Kent, teenage farmboy, just pulled up the body weight of at least 400 pounds, Earl Jenkins, and myself, hanging on to Earls legs. When I ask Clark, he claims not to know how he did it, adrenaline or something.

Add that to the mystery list of questions.

I confronted my father when we got out. The press was all over him. We played it off well, laying on the double dose of Luthor charm. They ate it up as usual.

In a surprise act of overdosed charm, my father pulled me in for a hug as the flashes of camera's went off around us. I looked over my fathers shoulder and saw Clark and the Kents. Their embraced seemed much more real, not forced. In that moment I wanted to be Clark, I wanted to know what that kind of love was like.

My feelings for Clark are taking an interesting turn.

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Melody and Erana
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